5. The fire in the forest

“The things we bury tend to burn through the floorboards eventually.”

— Aster Swan

---

I didn’t go into the forest to run.

Not really.

But the feeling that followed me through the trees wasn’t fear. It was pressure. Something building in my chest that school hallways and cold stares couldn’t contain anymore.

The Cullens knew something. And so did I.

Something was changing.

---

The Day After the Music Room Incident

Forks High pretended to be normal.

Students passed rumors like candy. “Tyler was just lucky.” “Maybe the music room was already cracked.” “That Swan kid gives me chills.”

Charlie didn’t ask about the windows. Bella was too wrapped up in Edward to care.

But the Cullens?

They looked at me like I’d become part of their mythos overnight.

---

The Forest Edge – After School

I didn’t plan on anyone following me. Especially not Edward.

But there he was.

Not ten feet away, arms folded over his chest, eyes darker than usual. Bronze hair tousled by the wind.

“You don’t like being watched,” he said.

“No,” I replied, “and yet, you keep doing it.”

“I’m trying to figure out what you are.”

“Isn’t it obvious?” I said, my voice sharper than intended. “I’m a Swan. I get dragged into things I don’t understand and survive out of spite.”

That made the corner of his mouth twitch. Almost a smile.

Almost.

---

He didn’t ask why I was in the woods. He didn’t ask about the music room. He just walked alongside me in silence until we found a patch of moss and pine needles that felt… safe.

And I let myself sit.

“I didn’t mean to break the windows,” I said. Quiet.

“I know.”

“You do?”

Edward looked at me then. Really looked.

“There’s something in you,” he said, voice low. “It flares when you’re overwhelmed. And it’s not just emotion.”

I held my breath.

“I can’t read you,” he admitted. “Your mind is completely silent to me. But your energy—it pulses. It nearly knocked Jasper off his feet.”

“That wasn’t my intention.”

“I don’t think any of this is,” he said.

I let the silence stretch.

“I wasn’t born like this,” I said eventually. “Or maybe I was. I don’t know. It started small—lightbulbs popping. Dreams coming true. I thought I was going crazy.”

“You’re not.”

I met his eyes. “How do you know?”

“Because I’ve seen madness,” he said quietly. “You don’t have it.”

---

A branch snapped behind us.

We both turned.

Alice stepped into the clearing like she’d been waiting for the exact second we were ready.

“You two are adorable,” she said, grinning. “Also, you’re late.”

“For what?” I asked.

But she was already tossing me something—a hoodie. Mine. Left at school. She must’ve seen me forgetting it.

“She sees pieces of the future,” Edward explained, tone fond and slightly exhausted. “Usually when it involves drama.”

“And you?” I asked him.