Blinking slowly, Roman forces her eyes to focus, squeezing tightly as her stomach lurches as she adjusts herself. 

She's in her truck, the boy she doesn't know driving behind Bella's red pickup. Her hand comes to her forehead at the harsh stab of pain in her head as pieces start to slowly come back to her. 

"Holy shit!" she shrieks, jolting painfully against the seatbelt.

The driver shoots her a look. "Hey, relax! You know for a girl that hangs out with vampires, you're surprisingly scared easy." 

The world crumbles, her brain turning to mush as all logical thought process is replaced with white-noise. Vampires? Vampires?! Vampires. 

It suddenly makes much more sense, how odd the Cullen's are. Stunningly youthful, impossibly beautiful and pale. They never eat, never come to school on the few days that it's sunny. They're all together, like together-together, in a way that parents, even adoptive and foster parents, shouldn't be okay with. The terrible insults -- leech-lover and bloodsucker. Laurent, the crazy man with red eyes. Golden yellow, beautiful eyes. 

She lurches from the car the moment it stops, tumbling to her knees as she heaves. Tears soak her cheeks. 

This was all too much. It was impossible. Impossible. Vampires and werewolves weren't real. They were stupid things that you saw in cheesy movies. How was it possible for them to exist the entire time and have no one be the wiser? How could LaPush, a place where her friends live, where she visits, have werewolves? How could she-- 

Her thoughts take a terrible turn, his face flashing behind her eyelids. Edward. How could Roman be so enchanted by a man, so bewitched, when she didn't know a thing about him? How could she be in love with a vampire? 

Because clearly it wasn't the wolves that were eating the hikers, there would be a sign of that, of an animal eating people, and roman felt foolish for not noticing it sooner -- but then she didn't know that vampires existed so what the fuck. 

There were vampires running around the woods eating people. 

"Roman?" Bella's voice hits her hard, jolting through her, and for once it doesn't soothe and comfort as she's used to. It hits her and she feels like a cat with her hackles raised defensively. "I'm so sorry. I should have said something sooner. I should have warned you." 

"She's not taking this as well as you did," the boy points out with a snicker. 

"Shut up, Jared," Embry hissed. 

"She didn't know, about any of this," Bella whispers. 

Roman groans miserably, sitting back on her feet and wiping at her eyes with her sleeves. 

"Oh man, I'm sorry, dude," Jared says, patting her head awkwardly. 

She swats his hand from her head, using him instead to hoist herself up and keep herself steady as she wobbles. 

It takes her a moment to gain her bearings, to face Bella with a set expression, as serious that she could make herself, frowning. 

The other girl was paler than normal, a little shiny with sweat, but she didn't seem to be affected by any of this, by any of the news, and if she had clearly only just learned of the werewolves, then it must mean that she knew what the Cullen's were this entire time. 

She knew who Laurent was when he came for them, of the dangers that she was stepping out to every day she worked. 

"You knew what that man was, in the woods. You knew that thing was still out there," she accused, words coming out hoarse. "How could you not tell me, Bella! I know how to protect myself against animals, but I don't with those, those demons!" 

"Ro, I didn't know it was him, I swear. I thought it was the wolves, I promise," Bella urges, reaching to take her hands. 

She steps back, shaking her head. "That man, he was out there killing all those people, I--" she staggers, knees buckling and she sits hard, readily placing her head between her knees to calm her racing heart. 

This was too much to handle, too many things to wrap her head around at once, and Roman just wanted the safety and comfort of her own bed even if she knew it would be of little use protecting her. 

Because nothing could truly protect her anymore, could it?

"I couldn't say, I promised them I wouldn't, Roman," Bella whispers, a desperate lilt to her voice as she settles at her side, her warmth pressed to her shoulder. 

"He's not here anymore, Bells! He left!" she shouts, nails digging into her scalp. 

It's silent, her heart still, and Roman sinks into herself, dropping her head lower as she cries softly, shoulders shaking. 

"I'm sorry. I know, I know, I'm sorry," she whispers.  A head falls on her shoulder. "I should have said something. I don't know what I would do if anything was to happen to you." 

The words are soft, warm, and it's like being wrapped in a protective sheet. Love has never been something that she had been confused about. Roman had always been certain of her emotions and her heart, perhaps she might have gotten confused and lost on what she was certain about --- the things she knew without a doubt -- but love had never been one of them. 

It was in moments like this where such a thing would come around to bite her because her heart screamed to accept the words, to accept the honest apology and leave the subject to never be touched again. She wanted to believe that Bella loved her in the same way, with the same fierceness that she felt for Edward and the swiftness that it had come over her. 

She wanted to believe that maybe it was okay to just let go of all sense of self-preservation and care for her wellbeing for the chance at that love that she wanted so detrimentally. To have a great, tragic love story wouldn't be so bad if she knew it was true.

If she could be with Bella, with Edward, she wouldn't care about vampires and werewolves, and she hated that about herself, just a little bit. 

"I'm sorry I yelled at you. I shouldn't have done that," she whispers, turning her face so her cheeks pressed to Bella. 

The other girl breathes deeply. "It's okay. I'm sorry I lied to you. I should have warned you. Don't leave me." 

Something in her snaps, a chord breaking free, only for the two halves to curl themselves around Bella, tying to her, wrapping her up. She could never imagine having never loved Bella when every part of her screams and demands that they were destined for always from the moment they met. 

"It's too late for that. I could never. You're stuck with me forever now." 

Loud voices pull her attention up, eyes darting to the quaint house. Embry and Jared have disappeared inside, slipping away with screams of food, and in their place stands a woman with satiny skin and crow-black hair, a tray of muffins in hand and an apron tied around her waist. 

It had been too long since she had last seen Emily Young, rarely having had the opportunity to visit when she came to the reservations. Sure, they spoke over the phone and made plans that always fell through, but things changed after Sam left Leah. She hadn't known they were living together, she hadn't seen her since she was... attack by an animal... 

Roman had spent weeks investigating and searching for any tracks. There weren't any. 

"Long time no see, forest girl," Emily greets, her teasing smile pulling at the scar that ran across her pretty face. "This must be the vampire girl." 

Bella straightens. "You must be the wolf girl." 

She laughs, her face warming. "I must be. Come inside. We have plenty to eat, settle your stomach," she says, not giving much room for disagreement. "We have mouth wash in the bathroom, Ro." 

Grimacing, she nods and stands shakily to her feet, pulling Bella alongside her. "We have to catch up, Em. Later," she says before waking in, taking in Jared's pointing to be the direction of the mouthwash. She rolls her eyes. 

The home isn't very large but it's enough for the two of them. It's cozy, remote, not like the apartment she shares with her mother. This felt comfortable, lived in, and Roman didn't blame them for keeping the place a secret from her. With everything going on, having to explain to old friends must have been terrifyingly stressful. Besides, she could talk to Emily later, clear things up. 

She never did get her side of the story. 

Gargling quickly, she steps back into the kitchen, stumbling over her feet. Emily had her sleeves rolled up, mixing batter in a large steel bowl, Sam wrapped around her whisper with a smile so full of love, eyes glowing with it, that Roman felt struck with how familiar the look was. Jared and Embry were stuffing there face at the counter, Bella sat silently with a full plate, Jacob leaning over her. 

Her heart squeezed. 

Sam turned, catching her eye. She nods in greeting. "Hey guys, Jacob's got news for us." 

"Let's hear it then!" Jared says through a mouthful of food, excited, but then he turns, eyeing her and pats the chair at his side. "Sit. We don't want you fainting again!" 

Sam coughs, nudging Paul. The boy sighs, head pulling up to face her fully. "Sorry, Ro, Jake's always complaining about how close you and Bella are, I never expected that you wouldn't know." 

"It's cool," she squeaks, clearing her throat, "It's just a big shock, you know." 

"Sorry, girl, didn't mean to worry you," he grins, handing her a muffin as a peace offering. She accepts with a timid smile. 

"Since we're all friends again," Jacob mocks. "I know what the redhead wants. That's what I was trying to explain before." 

"Who?" She mutters. 

"And?" Jared asks. 

Jacob glances down at Bella, a protective tick to his jaw and her blood runs cold. "She is after her mate but it wasn't the leech with the dreads. Turns out the Cullen's got her mate last year. She's after Bella." 

The confirmation set her aflame in a cold rage. All those people missing, presumed dead. They all could have been Bella if not for the wolves. 

A thoughtful pause later, he turns to Roman. "Her too, now, I guess, since there sent is all over each other. Probably explains why she's been inching toward the ranger station." 

"Great! We have bait," Jared crows in her ear. She kicks at his chair, hard, forcing it out from underneath him. He barely catches the can opener Jacob launches at his head. 

"We aren't going to use the girls as bait," Sam states. "We'll be changing our patrol routes to cover Forks better to make sure Bella and Charlie stay safe--" he looks to Roman and he's the friend that she remembers instead of this powerful, confident man that stands in his place-- "We'll have someone around when you're at work to keep her away, so don't be worried about it anymore." 

She huffs, picking at her muffin. "I wasn't worried. I was rightfully scared, now I'm terrified." 

Emily appears at her side, all kindness and compassion, and she leans into her, seeking comfort as they continue talking, debating about where Bella seems to be safest. She waits, hoping they can just decide because wherever her love went she would ultimately be. All she worried about was work, and if they thought she would take less hours due to these threats then they're sorely mistaken. Roman would rather face death at the hand of vengeful vampires instead of risking Marnie picking up her shifts. 

She was truly terrified, though, completely so, and it was a wonder she was able to speak coherently through all of it, even as Bella begged her not to go into the woods alone even if that was basically her entire job description. 

Despite everything and the distance, she was still willing to place her trust in Sam. He wouldn't just abandon her, leave her to face such a threat on her own. Roman knew him better than that no matter what might have changed. 

"Foods' ready," Emily chimes, cutting away the tension and the boys hoot, hollering as the crowd the table and Roman finds herself standing and moving away quickly before she's smothered in heat -- apparently werewolves were boiling infernos. 

Bella stands with her, mumbling something about needing to talk, as they both go sit outside, wandering slowly away from the house as she claimed they could hear exceptionally well, for privacy reasons, but never too far that they couldn't hear them if they were in danger. Bella always seemed very conscious of things like that, danger when it came to others and their safety. 

She wonders if it was because she was too used to caring for others all the time that she forgot about herself. 

They settle under canopy of tall pine trees and Roman felt right at home, safe in these protected woods with her mind at ease and clear to think straight without the dizzying questions about her reality. They were here to talk, to get answers, and she was ready. She wasn't going to take no for an answer this time. 

Roman lets her take her time, knowing how hard it could be to form the words, she doesn't press or prod. She didn't mind sitting among the trees -- though, Jacob might come looking soon if she didn't worry. 

"I figured it out. It was the only reason he was willing to give me a chance, I think, because I figured out his biggest secret," she mumbles, words breaking as they always do when she speaks of him. "They don't hurt humans. C-Carlisle wouldn't allow them to stay with him if they did. They use to call themselves vegetarians because they only fed on animal blood--" 

"Bells, don't force yourself. Just tell me the important parts," Roman encourages. 

"They're all important parts, every minute, and if I was going to share them with anyone, it'll be you," Bella whispers, facing her with shining eyes that just proves that she's here, that they're together, and Bella tells her everything in words light as wind but still colourful as flowers in spring. 

Each syllable drips with love sweet of sugared honey, the sort of things that feed hummingbirds and thrum with life. Each word is tearful, hard to listen to, but it's enough, it a sharing that Roman had never considered possible, moments that now belong partial to her even if only on the words of another. 

She drinks up each breath greedily, glued to Bella's side, she takes every sentence, ever secret, until there's no more Edward and it's Phoenix instead. It's Renee and summer road trips, and brief, rare trips with a military dad that doesn't think to write or call anymore. It's everything laid out around them until Roman thinks she has shared all of herself with nothing left to give. 

There were no more surprises, no more places for lies, and Roman had never been more in love than she was in this moment with dark eyes framed by thick lashes blinking up at her in kitty slow blinks. 

"I love you," Roman breathes with a content smile. 

Bella smiles shyly. "I-I think I love you too." 

Her heart burst and she beams, warm like the sun, as she rests her head against Bella's, sighing happily. 

A hand shakily takes her own. 

"Can I- Can I kiss you?" 

Trembling, she nods slowly, dazed, taken aback by her sudden burst of confidence. 

Bella's lips grace hers and Roman's in heaven. 

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Hello!!! this took a different path from how i was expecting it but i still like it!! don't forget to comment and let me know what you think!! 

Unedited 

2019-11-01