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Nate analyzed Alice's words at a pace that, had he been present, would have even impressed Edward. He noticed the slight change in her tone when she mentioned Jasper. A barely perceptible pause, as if she were weighing her words more carefully than usual. It wasn't simple affection: there was something thicker, murkier… as if not even Alice knew exactly how to define her connection with him. Nate noticed it immediately.
They weren't a couple. There were no visible signs: no territorial gestures, nor that invisible gravity that often hangs between two people who belong together. But there was history.
He thought about it for a few more seconds, his brows slightly furrowed, before deciding to save it for later. There was something more urgent to address.
"This 'patchwork family' thing," he said casually as if simply continuing the game, "do you mean that because they're all adopted?"
Alice blinked as if just realizing her choice of words. Her gaze softened, almost nostalgic.
"Not exactly," he replied with a smile that seemed to contain more than it said. "It's more because we came from different places. Loose, damaged pieces... and when we found each other, we became something stronger. Warmer."
An imperfect home… but ours.
Nate felt her words were genuine. For a moment, without layers or masks. It surprised him. Alice was a better liar than most, but that sentence came laced with unexpected vulnerability.
"You cheated," she said suddenly, raising an eyebrow with a mischievous glint in her eye. "You asked me two questions in a row."
"Oh? I didn't know you were keeping score," Nate replied with a half smile.
Alice leaned her elbow on the table, amused.
—You'll have to answer twice too. Rules of the game.
"I accept," he replied, tilting his head in a relaxed gesture.
Alice watched him for a few seconds, testing the waters. Then she launched her first:
—What do you think of my brother Edward?
Nate sensed the real intention immediately. It wasn't superficial curiosity: he wanted to know how much he'd noticed. To gauge the danger Nate represented, but also how much he could see through his family.
"We only spoke a couple of times," he replied calmly. "But they were interesting conversations."
"I hope he comes back soon. I'd like to get to know him better," he added with a smile.
After all, I only need to talk to him a couple more times and he'll tell me everything I want to know, consciously or unconsciously. Nate thought almost instantly after finishing his sentence.
Alice watched him silently. She found no trace of lies in his voice or his gaze, and that made her uncomfortable. Not because she believed he was sincere... but because she couldn't be sure he wasn't.
Nate leaned toward her slightly, ready to ask his question, but Alice stopped him with a sudden gesture: she gently placed a finger on his lips. A slight, almost playful gesture, but unexpected.
"I still have to ask one more question," she said with a sweet, dangerously charming smile.
Nate felt a surge of tension. He knew these gestures were designed to shake him, to throw him off balance. He took a deep breath, controlling his reaction. It wasn't easy to shake him, but Alice's touch—as subtle as it was accurate—had taken him by surprise. He quickly composed himself and crossed his arms, looking relaxed.
—Ask whatever you want.
Alice did not hesitate.
—What is your relationship with Bella Swan?
The question fell like a needle between crystal glasses.
Nate didn't show it, but something inside him clicked.
At school, he hadn't shared enough time with Bella to raise suspicions. At first glance, they were just acquaintances... maybe friends, if you pushed the interpretation. Even the conversation in the cafeteria—with the misunderstanding about the jacket—had happened less than an hour ago. Alice couldn't suspect anything... unless she'd seen them at another time.
Then he remembered.
That moment in front of The Lodge the day before. Bella had hugged him just as Jacob went to the bathroom. A brief but intimate gesture… at that moment, Nate felt a gaze on him. He scanned the surroundings that night but didn't recognize anyone. The street seemed empty.
Or had I not observed well?
He doubted it. If there was one thing Nate trusted, he could read a scene, to spot details.
Meanwhile, for Alice, his silence felt like an eternity. She knew she shouldn't have asked so directly, but she had her reasons. Carlisle had ordered Jasper to discreetly follow Nate, to assess whether Edward was exaggerating when he called him "almost as much of a monster as we are." Jasper—the most discreet of the clan after Edward—saw nothing alarming. Just a boy sharing laughs with normal teenagers. Nothing to back up Edward's words.
But there was something about his story that worried Alice.
He mentioned a hug between Bella and Nate.
Bella… Edward's final piece.
Bella, whose destiny had already been intertwined with her brother's in her visions.
And this new guy… was a dangerous variable.
One that not even Alice could predict.
"Are you sure you could handle the answer?" Nate finally answered, his voice low, his smile soft, almost whispering.
Alice blinked. For the first time, a flicker of nervousness escaped her. It wasn't jealousy. It was uncertainty. Her visions weren't helping her, and that scared her.
"Bella's one of the few people I feel comfortable enough to let my guard down around," Nate said, now with an unexpected seriousness. "It's not something that happens to me often. And I appreciate that."
Alice looked at him carefully. She analyzed his tone, the pauses, the nuances that usually betray a lie. She found none. Just a frank statement. No embellishment.
She then remembered one of his visions: Bella, among shadows. Converted. Or dead beneath Edward's fangs.
"Do you value her enough to be with her even if she were in the middle of... something dangerous?" she asked suddenly. Her voice was barely a whisper, like an icy breeze through the trees.
Nate didn't answer right away. The question carried weight. Emotional charge. It was a test, but also a warning.
He noticed it.
"It's not your turn to ask," he finally replied, with a crooked smile. But there was something else in his eyes.
Evasive, yes… but also alert. As if he knew exactly what Alice was talking about.
For a second, his eyes showed what worried Edward so much.
Just then, the bell rang.
Murmurs rose, chairs shifted, and students began to rise. The tension dissipated like smoke. But between Nate and Alice, everything remained suspended.
Unfinished.
Dangerously alive.