Forks mornings were always the same color.
Gray light. Wet air. The kind of quiet that wasn't peaceful so much as unavoidable.
Bella sat at the table with her hair still half-wild from sleep, poking at her eggs like they'd wronged her personally. Charlie drank his coffee like it was the only thing keeping him civil. Mame finished the last bite of toast and stood.
Bella looked up at him, still suspicious.
"You're seriously not going to tell me why you were up at five?"
Mame slipped his plate into the sink. "I told you. I woke up."
"That's not an answer."
"It's an answer," he corrected, then glanced at her with a small smile. "Just not the one you want."
Charlie grunted. "You two ready? I'm not doing late notes on day two."
Bella sighed, standing slowly. "I'm ready."
Mame grabbed his bag. "I've been ready since last week."
Bella stared at him. "That's disgusting."
He grinned. "Thank you."
Forks High noticed patterns fast.
It only took the first period for Bella to notice one.
She walked into Biology.
Edward Cullen wasn't there.
The seat beside her stayed empty.
Mr. Banner droned on like normal, as if half the class hadn't turned their heads to check the door every few minutes. Bella tried to focus, but she kept flicking her eyes to the empty chair.
When the bell rang, she packed up fast, irritation tightening her jaw.
In the hallway, she found Mame leaning by a locker like he'd been waiting on purpose.
He watched her face for half a second, then tilted his head.
"Let me guess," he said. "He wasn't there."
Bella blinked. "How—"
"I can read faces," Mame said lightly. "And yours is doing that thing it does when you're pretending not to care."
Bella narrowed her eyes. "My face doesn't do a thing."
"It does," he said calmly. "It says, 'I don't care,' but your eyes say, 'I care and I'm mad about it.'"
Bella huffed and walked past him. "I'm not mad."
Mame fell into step beside her. "Sure."
She shot him a look. "Stop."
He smiled like he couldn't help it. "Okay, okay. I'll stop. Just… interesting."
"What is?"
Mame shrugged. "Edward's gone. You're annoyed. That's… entertaining."
Bella stared forward. "I don't know him."
"You don't have to," Mame replied. "Your face already does."
Bella groaned.
Mame's grin widened. "This is going to be a great week."
It kept happening.
Edward skipped Biology.
Then English.
Then lunch—his entire table, suddenly missing one of its usual statues.
But it wasn't just Edward.
Edith was gone too.
By the third day, it was obvious enough that even the teachers started pausing when they took attendance.
"Cullen?" they'd call.
Silence.
Then a tired sigh, like they'd already given up on expecting an explanation.
Bella grew sharper as the days passed.
She wouldn't say much—Bella didn't rant the way other people did—but Mame started noticing little things.
The way her grip tightened on her notebook when she passed the empty seat.
The way she stared just a second too long toward the cafeteria entrance.
The way she pretended she wasn't looking.
Mame teased her anyway.
Not cruel.
Just enough to crack the tension before it settled too deep.
On day four, Bella walked out of Biology and muttered, "Maybe he transferred."
Mame didn't miss a beat. "Yeah. Probably moved to Alaska."
Bella glanced at him. "Why Alaska?"
"Because if I were avoiding someone that hard, I'd pick somewhere with bears," he said seriously. "Harder to follow."
Bella stared at him for a second.
Then, against her will, a small laugh escaped.
Mame smiled. "There it is."
Bella shook her head, but she didn't look as tight anymore.
Mame found Alice after Art.
She was gathering her things at her desk, humming softly like the world didn't have problems.
Mame leaned on the edge of a table. "Hey, Pixie."
Alice looked up immediately, delighted. "Bean Swan."
Mame sighed. "I hate you."
Alice beamed. "No you don't."
Mame gestured vaguely toward the hallway, where normal students were walking like normal students. "Question."
Alice tilted her head. "Mmm?"
"Did Edward just get more… Edweird?" Mame asked.
Alice's smile stayed in place, but her eyes sharpened slightly. "Edweird?"
"You heard me," Mame said. "He's been skipping like he's allergic to the building. And now Edith is gone too." He leaned closer a little, voice lowering. "Did he infect her with his weirdness?"
Alice blinked once. Twice.
Then she laughed—bright and quick.
Mame watched her carefully. "You know."
Alice's smile didn't fade. "I know a lot of things."
"Yeah," Mame said. "That's what worries me."
Alice picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder like the conversation didn't weigh anything. "Edward's… dealing with something."
"That's vague," Mame said flatly.
Alice walked past him, tapping his arm as she went. "Sometimes vague is safer."
Mame watched her leave, then muttered to himself, "I hate vague."
Over her shoulder, Alice called, "No you don't!"
Mame stared.
"…I really do."
Lunch felt quieter without Edward.
No weird staring. No soul-scanning. No sudden tension spikes that made the air feel too tight.
Mame sat with Bella, Jessica, Mike, and Angela again.
Bella picked at her food, eyes drifting toward the Cullen table out of habit.
Only Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett were there today.
Two seats stayed empty.
Mame leaned back in his chair. "I have to admit… this is peaceful."
Bella glanced at him. "Because Edward isn't here?"
Mame nodded. "Yeah. No weird stares."
Bella's eyes narrowed. "He wasn't staring at you."
Mame looked at her like she'd just said the sky was green. "Bella. He stared at me so hard I had to clarify my sexuality."
Jessica choked on her drink.
Mike coughed.
Angela's eyes went wide.
Bella blinked. "You did not."
Mame's expression stayed perfectly serious. "I did."
Bella stared at him for a long moment.
Then she looked away quickly, cheeks faintly pink. "You're ridiculous."
Mame smiled. "True."
Bella's eyes drifted back to the Cullen table again.
Her voice went quieter. "But… why is Edith gone too?"
Mame's smile softened just a fraction.
"That," he said, "is actually a good question."
He got his answer after school.
Not from Edward.
From Edith.
Mame caught her near the parking lot when most students had already cleared out. She stood alone for a moment beside a silver car, posture too still, eyes fixed on something he couldn't see.
The pattern didn't change.
One day passed.
Then another.
Then another.
Every morning Bella walked into Biology.
Every morning the seat beside her stayed empty.
At first she looked at the door.
Then she stopped looking.
Mr. Banner eventually stopped calling the name during attendance. He just paused, made a small mark on his clipboard, and continued the lesson like the absence had become part of the room.
It wasn't just Biology.
Edward missed English.
Missed lunch.
Missed anything that would put him within ten feet of Bella.
Edith had vanished too.
Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett still showed up. Still sat together. Still looked like statues someone had placed at the same table every day.
But two chairs stayed empty.
By the end of the week the entire school had started whispering about it.
Bella pretended she didn't care.
She did a good job most of the time.
But Mame had started recognizing the small signs.
The tight way she held her pencil.
The way her eyes flicked toward empty seats without thinking.
The quiet irritation when someone mentioned the Cullens.
So, naturally, Mame made it worse.
They were walking across the parking lot after school when he spoke up suddenly.
"You know," he said thoughtfully, "I think I figured it out."
Bella didn't look up from her bag. "Figured what out?"
"Edward."
Bella sighed. "Please don't start."
Mame held up a finger.
"Think about it."
Bella glanced at him warily.
"What."
He lowered his voice dramatically.
"Maybe he's a werewolf."
Bella blinked.
"…What?"
Mame nodded seriously.
"You know. It's almost a full moon."
Bella stared at him like she was deciding whether pushing him into traffic counted as self-defense.
"That's not how werewolves work."
Mame looked offended.
"Oh really?"
"Yes," Bella said flatly. "Werewolves transform during the full moon. They don't need to avoid the sun."
Mame stopped walking.
Slowly he turned toward her.
His eyes widened like she had just walked into the trap he'd been setting.
"My dear Bells," he said gravely.
Bella groaned. "No."
"It's elementary."
"Mame—"
He raised one finger dramatically.
"The light from the moon," he said, lowering his voice into theatrical seriousness, "is the light from the sun."
Bella stopped walking.
Mame leaned closer.
"DUN DUN DUNNNNN."
Bella stared at him.
He spread his hands like a magician revealing the final trick.
"It's reflected sunlight."
Bella's face didn't move.
Mame nodded confidently. "So technically—"
Bella closed her eyes.
"—the moon is just bouncing sunlight back to Earth," he continued, warming up now. "Which means if someone were sensitive to sunlight, reflected sunlight might still trigger the transformation."
Bella rubbed her forehead.
"Mame."
"Yes?"
"That is the dumbest theory I have ever heard."
He pointed toward the school behind them.
"Or," he said, "maybe they're all werewolves."
Bella looked up again.
"Think about it," Mame continued. "Edward avoids the sun because it might speed up the transformation. His family helps him keep the secret. They all stick together. Protect the pack. Maintain the illusion."
Bella stared at him in silence.
Mame nodded sagely.
"It all fits."
Bella crossed her arms.
"You've been thinking about this too much."
"I had a long night," Mame replied.
She narrowed her eyes. "That explains nothing."
Mame shrugged. "Science rarely explains everything."
Bella stared at him for a long moment.
Then she shook her head and started walking again.
"You're unbelievable."
He grinned.
"Thank you."
They reached the truck.
Bella unlocked it and climbed in.
Mame slid into the passenger seat.
As the engine started, Bella glanced sideways at him.
"You don't actually believe that."
Mame leaned back in his seat.
"Probably not."
Bella raised an eyebrow.
"Probably?"
He looked out the window toward the forest line beyond the school.
"…But something weird is going on with him."
Bella didn't answer right away.
She pulled the truck onto the road.
Rain had started again, tapping lightly against the windshield.
After a moment she said quietly,
"Yeah."
And for once, Mame didn't joke.
The rain followed them home.
Forks didn't really do clear skies. Just lighter gray and darker gray.
Bella drove while Mame watched the trees slide past the window, quiet for once.
After a minute she glanced at him.
"You're still thinking about it."
Mame shrugged.
"Something's off."
Bella sighed.
"Everything about them is off."
Mame nodded slowly.
"Yeah."
Neither of them noticed the black car parked two rows away from Bella's truck in the school lot.
Inside it, four figures sat very still.
They had heard everything.
At the Cullen house later that evening, the story spread quickly.
Alice was the first to say it out loud.
She was halfway across the living room when she suddenly burst out laughing.
Not a polite laugh.
A full, bright, uncontrollable one.
Emmett looked up immediately from the couch.
"What did I miss?"
Alice leaned against the piano, still laughing.
"Bean Swan," she managed between breaths, "thinks Edward is a werewolf."
Silence.
Then Emmett exploded.
A deep, booming laugh shook the room as he leaned back against the couch.
"No way."
Alice wiped a tear from her eye.
"He thinks Edward avoids the sun because it might make him transform faster."
Emmett slapped the armrest.
"That's the best thing I've heard all week."
Rosalie stood nearby with her arms crossed.
Her lips twitched.
Just slightly.
Jasper looked down at the floor, shoulders shaking once as he quietly hid a smile.
Edward stood near the window, very still.
"…He said that?"
Alice nodded, grinning.
"And then he told Bella the moonlight is just reflected sunlight."
Emmett leaned forward again, still laughing.
"Oh man. Eddie, you're a werewolf now."
Edward closed his eyes.
"This is not funny."
"It absolutely is," Emmett said.
Alice straightened slightly, mimicking Mame's dramatic voice.
"My dear Bells… the light from the moon is the light from the sun."
Emmett nearly fell off the couch laughing.
Rosalie finally gave in and let out a quiet chuckle.
Edward turned toward the piano slowly.
"You're all enjoying this far too much."
Esme stepped into the room from the kitchen, curiosity lighting her face.
"What's going on?"
Alice looked over immediately.
"Mame Swan thinks Edward is secretly a werewolf."
Esme blinked.
Then her hand rose to her mouth as a soft laugh escaped.
Carlisle looked up from the book he had been reading.
"A werewolf?"
Emmett wiped his eyes.
"Apparently we're helping Edward maintain the illusion."
Carlisle chuckled quietly.
"Well," he said calmly, "that's certainly a new theory."
Edward pinched the bridge of his nose.
"This is humiliating."
Alice leaned on the piano again, smiling brightly.
"Oh, I like him."
Rosalie nodded once.
"He's observant."
Edward looked toward her.
Rosalie continued.
"He noticed the food."
Jasper added quietly,
"And the way we move."
Carlisle closed his book gently.
"Yes," he said thoughtfully. "That's the part that matters."
The room grew a little quieter.
Esme folded her hands together.
"He's not looking in the same direction as everyone else."
Carlisle nodded.
"Which makes him more dangerous than the average human."
Emmett leaned back, still amused.
"Dangerous? He thinks we're dogs."
Carlisle smiled faintly.
"That doesn't mean he won't eventually notice something else."
Edward looked toward the dark window.
His voice was quieter now.
"…He already has."
Alice tilted her head.
"He's paying attention," Edward continued. "More than Bella realizes."
Rosalie crossed her arms again.
"Then we should be careful."
Carlisle nodded.
"Yes."
Emmett grinned.
"But still," he added, looking at Edward, "werewolf."
Edward sighed.
Alice laughed again.
And for the first time in several days, the Cullen house felt lighter.
Even if the boy who started the rumor had absolutely no idea.