The absolute last thing Eleanor wanted to do was go to school.

The temptation to stay home was a nagging thought in the back of her head, trying to drag her back into her bed as she pulled on a pair of jeans. She stared at her bed with bored eyes once she was dressed, almost convinced to just crawl back in when her twin knocked on her bedroom door.

When Jess poked her head in, the nagging thought disappeared and Eleanor grabbed her bag, trying her best to prepare herself for the day ahead.

She sat in Jess's car, her eyes trained on the road in front of them. Jess chattered away beside her, but El couldn't force herself to listen. Eleanor just wanted the day to be over so she could go home and lie in bed.

Angela noticed something was wrong with Eleanor instantly. More often than not, her brunette friend was cheerful in the mornings, always joking with the group with a smile on her face. But today, her eyes were dull and her mouth was turned down and she didn't say a word when she brushed past their group.

While Eleanor didn't necessarily expect to see Bella at school, she couldn't help the disappointment that flooded her when she didn't see her friend. She didn't want to go through this day alone but now she had no choice.

Her classes passed in a blur and Eleanor soon found herself sitting at her lunch table. She tossed her food around on her plate with her for, find that she didn't have much of an appetite. Angela watched her friend, concern written clear on her face.

Jessica was watching her sister as well, frowning when she noticed she wasn't eating again. The girl hadn't grabbed anything breakfast before they left the house and now she wasn't eating her lunch. Jess wasn't sure what had caused a sudden shift in Eleanor's mood but she wished she could help her.

It all clicked with Jess when she watched her twin turn towards the Cullen table. Her shoulders slumped before she turned back to her plate.

Eleanor's throat was suddenly tight and she pushed herself back from the table. Her friends turned to look at her, Mike and Eric frowning while Jess and Angela looked worried. She threw them a tight smile. "I'm going to class. See you in there, Ang."

The tears that she was desperately trying to fight back were threatening to spill over her lash line as she walked through the cafeteria and her heart burned in her chest. She hated Carlisle in that moment, hated every single one of the friends - family - that had left her.

And in that moment, she wished that they would never return.

Eleanor couldn't hide her surprise when Bella texted her during her last class of the day. The message wasn't much, just Bella asking if Eleanor to come over after school. She replied that she would and went to find her sister.

"Jess?" Eleanor called out when she saw her sister at her locker. "Can you run me to Bella's before you go home?"

Jess didn't say anything for a moment and Eleanor fidgeted under her scrutinizing gaze. She seemed somewhat better as she stood with straight shoulders, though her eyes were still clouded over and her lips were still pulled down.

"Yeah." She said finally as she closed her locker. "Will I need to come get you?"

"No." Eleanor's smile was sad. "She'll bring me home."

The ride to Bella's was quiet. wanted to ask about the Cullen family to see if that was why she was so upset but she also didn't want to make it worse for her twin.

When Eleanor entered the Swan's house, Bella was sitting on the couch, covered in a mountain of blankets. She didn't look up from the coffee table, seeming to be lost in her thoughts. The brunette looked worse than El did. "Bells?"

She jolted, like she didn't know Eleanor had entered the house. Her eyes and cheeks were red as she glanced at her friend. "Hey. Thanks for coming."

Eleanor went to sit down next to her and pulled some of Bella's blanket off of her so that it covered the both of them. El wrapped an arm around her friend and pulled her to her side.

The two sat in silence for a while, save for the occasional sniffles from Bella. She knew the girl was crying again, which made her heart hurt just a bit more. But she refused to cry in front of Bella - one of them needed to have a clear head.

"How did you get up today?" Bella's voice was quiet and shaky.

Eleanor sighed, rubbing at her tired eyes with her free hand. "I don't honestly know. I think it was because I don't want to let this consume me."

And that was true. Eleanor wasn't going to lose herself over Carlisle, even if it felt like her insides were clawing at her heart. Maybe one day he would come back but she wasn't holding her breath and she sure as hell wasn't going to wait for him.

"I can't believe they actually left."

"Yeah." Eleanor mumbled. "Me neither."

She wanted to say something encouraging, like that Edward just needed time and that they'd be back eventually, but she couldn't bring herself to if she didn't even believe it.

Bella stayed silent.

The two sat on the couch for hours. Eleanor drifted off a few times but always snapped back awake each time she heard Bella start crying. Eleanor held her friend tightly, trying to provide as much comfort as she could.

She didn't leave until Charlie got home. Bella was sleeping by the time he did so she didn't bother waking her to get a ride home and deniedCharlie's offer. Eleanor bid the police chief goodbye before she began the short walk to her house. She thanked God that Bella didn't live too far away from her.

It was just beginning to grow dark when she left. The once bright sunset was now fading into the night sky. While there were many houses around, there were few cars out, causing the night to be quieter than usual.

Eleanor stuffed her hands in her pockets and focused her eyes on her feet as she walked. She did so quickly since it was cold out and she had had a long day.

When she turned the corner, she felt chills creep down her spine and herhair stood up on the back of her neck. Eleanor stopped and turned towards the woods, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. With her hands still in her pockets, she let the mist circle around them, just in case something decided to pop out at her.

She waited for a moment longer, looking for the eyes she felt on her back. When she didn't see anything, she let out a sigh and continued to her house.

She made it there quickly and almost ran up the steps to reach the safety of her home. Once inside, she leaned her back on the door and sighed in relief.

"Eleanor?"

Eleanor looked to the top of the stairs to see her twin staring down at her. "Yeah?"

"Can I talk to you?" Jess asked, tangling her hands in front of her as she did.

El nodded and made her way up the stairs. Jess led the way to her bedroom and closed the door once Eleanor was inside. The two sat on the bed and Eleanor entwined her hands together. "What's up?"

"Are you okay?" Jess looked at Eleanor, cautiously. She seemed better now that she was home and Jess didn't want her to be sad again. "You've seemed... off all day."

Eleanor's eyes fell to the ground as Jess continued to talk. "I'm sorry to ask but is this because the Cullens' left? I understand that you were friends but you look heartbroken."

"I'm fine." Eleanor winced as how choked up she sounded. "People leave and that's all there is to it."

She didn't want to talk about this, about him. It felt hard to breathe all of a sudden and she hoped that Jess ended this soon. But when her sister sighed, she knew that Jess would keep prying.

"El, you can tell me anything, you know that right?" Jess' hand landed on Eleanor's and squeezed. "I love you and I'll have your back always."

She squeezed her eyes shut, deciding that she really did need to tell someone, especially if Bella wasn't available. "If I tell you, you have to swear not to tell anyone. Not mom, not Angela, not Lauren."

"I promise." Jess said easily. "I swear I won't say a thing."

Eleanor sighed before lifting her head and meeting Jess' eye. Her sister looked worried for her, causing El to lift her lips in a smile to try and help. "It was really unexpected and we didn't want to tell anyone yet since I'm still in high school."

Jess' face melted in realization "Is it Dr. Cullen?"

Her heart clenched at the mention of him but she managed to let out a laugh. "Yeah."

Jess shifted to wrap her arms around her sister. Eleanor buried her face into her shoulder, holding her tightly. "I'm sorry, El."

A tear escaped one of Eleanor's closed eyes and she sniffled, hoping that she wasn't getting snot on her sister's shirt. She didn't say anything in return and Jess didn't utter another word.