Eleanor couldn't stop the relief she felt when she saw Bella at school one day later. The girl looked pale and zombie-like, but she was no longer locking herself away from the world. Eleanor hoped her friend would open her arms to their friends soon.

Angela nudged Eleanor's side, her brown eyes clouded in concern. "Is she okay?"

Eleanor nodded as she glanced back at Bella. "She will be. Just give her time."

Jessica squeezed Eleanor's elbow, the twins shooting each other small smiles. She was glad that her sister knew about her relationship now - it was nice to be able to lean on someone aside from Bella.

And while her chest still felt tight and there was a constant stinging behind her eyes, she knew that she would eventually be okay.

Mike tracked Bella with his eyes before turning back to their group with a grimace. "Is this all because Cullen left?"

"Yes, Mike." Eleanor rolled her eyes at the blonde. "Not everyone has the emotional range of a teaspoon."

The three girls snickered at Mike's reddening face. He turned away from them as the bell rang, signaling the beginning of the school day. Eleanor stopped her giggling to swing her bag over her shoulder.

Her eyes caught onto the empty parking spots near the school and she sighed, her thoughts drifting back to her missing friends. A hand wrapped around her own and she turned to Jess, who tugged her forward. "Come on."

Eleanor forced her eyes away from the parking lot and followed Jess into the building.

Classes passed slowly that day. She found it hard to focus that day, her thoughts straying to Carlisle every so often. Her knee bounced, jaw clenched as she began to grow frustrated.

She had never felt so lonely in her life, even when she was dealing with her abilities by herself. Maybe it was because she was Carlisle's mate that she felt so empty and she couldn't help but hope that he felt the same.

Maybe the remote feeling would cause him to return.

The same thoughts flittered through her mind throughout lunch as she pushed around her food. She took small bites and contributed to the conversation when needed. Jess and Angela tried to direct questions to her, noticing that the girl was more quiet that usual.

"Hey Bella!" Mike interrupted something Eric was saying when he spotted the brunette. Eric glared at the blonde while El turned, hoping that the girl would join them.

Instead, Bella only glanced at their group before discarding her back at the table behind her. Eleanor's lips flattened as she watched Bella sit at the Cullens' table. She turned back to her tray as Jess leaned close to her.

"You should go sit with her," Her twin whispered beside her. "Maybe she'll talk to you."

Eleanor exhaled and nodded, realizing that she could at least try. She stood and picked up her tray before bidding goodbye to her friends.

Eleanor walked over to Bella, who was busy staring into space. She noticed her friend didn't even bother to go through the line. She pulled a chair out and entwined her fingers together. Bella didn't look up.

"Bella? I'm glad you came today," Bella raised an eyebrow. "You don't have to talk now. But when you're ready to, I'll be here to listen. They didn't just leave you, you know? They left me too."

Angela, Eleanor and Jess walked through the parking lot after school, dodging other teens who weren't watching where they were going. Angela hooked her arm through Eleanor's before looking over to the twins. "We should all do something tonight. It's been a while."

"We should." Eleanor agreed, smiling when she saw her sister nodding beside her.

It had been three months since Carlisle and his family left Forks. And while Eleanor still found herself missing her mate and his family more often than not, she felt like she was coping well.

Well, compared to Bella anyway.

The girl hadn't reached out to Eleanor in over a month. She showed up for her classes and participated when necessary, but she still sat away from them at lunch. Instead she chose to sit at the table their friends once occupied, looking zombie-like and numb.

"What should we do?" Jess asked as the three arrived to her car.

"I'll meet you guys at your house in a bit." Angela shrugged her bag higher onto her shoulder. "We could order take-out or we could go out?"

"You're the only one with a job, Ang." Eleanor reminded her with a laugh. She had been wanting to find an easy job to earn extra money, but it was too hard with her senior year moving quickly. "It's not like we have a lot of money to go anywhere."

Angela rolled her eyes, though a smile tugged at her lips. "I'll text you when I'm on the way."

Jess and Eleanor bid their friend goodbye before getting into the car. It was silent for a few minutes while Jess maneuvered out of the parking lot and Eleanor stared out at the other students.

Her eyes drifted to the parking spots her friends had once used and she gritted her teeth, frustrated in herself that she still kept looking for them.

"I think we should just order takeout." Jess voiced a few moments later, pulling Eleanor from her thoughts.

"Sounds good to me." Eleanor said before shooting a text to Angela to let her know their plans. She dropped it back into her lap and turned her eyes back to the road.

Jess stared over at her sister briefly. "How have you been lately? Have you talked to Bella?"

"I think I'm finally starting to cope better. I still miss him but it's not present all the time, you know?" Eleanor said. Three months ago, Eleanor never would have thought that she'd feel okay again. "I've tried to reach out a few times but Bella never replies."

"I'm worried about her." Jess said after a beat of silence, causing El to glance towards her sister. She wasn't aware that Jess liked Bella that much. "Don't look at me like that. Bella hasn't spoken to anyone for three months. She looks like a zombie and she never eats at lunch."

Eleanor caught her bottom lip between her teeth, guilt washing over her that she wasn't doing more for the girl. "I don't know what else to do for her."

Jess sighed deeply, parking her car as she pulled in the driveway. "Me neither."

Jess and Eleanor disappeared into their own rooms once inside the house. After throwing her backpack on the floor, El dropped onto her bed, closing her eyes as she did.

She wished that there was some way she could reach out to Bella that would help the girl. Bella had turned into a ghost of her old self, barely there or noticeable anymore.

Eleanor blamed Edward. Actually, she blamed the entire family for going along with Edward's plan to leave Bella. Eleanor wondered how different it would be if they were still here now, if Bella's party had never happened and Edward didn't feel the need to protect her by leaving.

"Angela is here!" Jess yelled on the other side of her bedroom door and El turned, blinking away the sudden tears. She sighed and stood, pulling her phone out to send Bella a message, even if she knew she wouldn't respond.

After the message sent, El started towards her door, determined to enjoy a night with her friends.

A sigh escaped Eleanor's mouth as she glanced up at the house in front of her. Earlier that morning, Eleanor had decided that it could be a good idea to visit their house but, now that she was in front of it, she couldn't think of why.

Dark green shrubs and vines twisted up the sides of the house, leaving the once clean and modern now look somewhat outdated. Eleanor swallowed past the lump in her throat and glared at the house, like it was the one who up and left.

Eleanor looked down at her phone, checking to see if Bella had responded to her invitation to come along. Of course, there was no response and El tucked it back in her pocket.

She gathered all of her courage and took a deep breath, before moving to ascend the stairs. The front door was unlocked and El pushed it open easily, stepping into the front room.

It looked just the same as it had months ago, maybe more dusty. Nothing was out of its usual place, each book and piece of furniture in their correct places. A flash of hope lit up in her chest - perhaps if they had left the house like this, they did plan on coming back.

Eleanor eventually turned down a familiar hallway and stalled for half a second before continuing forward. If she stopped now, she'd never get to where she wanted to go.

His office door was closed and she suddenly felt very odd as she pushed it open. The door creaked ominously but Eleanor pushed forward, not daring to lose her nerve now that she was finally here.

When she was finally inside, Eleanor took a deep breath, closing her eyes in relief. The smell of her mate lingered inside and she felt something inside of her settle, the lump in her throat fading. She moved over to Carlisle's leather chair and sunk into it.

Carlisle's desk was wiped clean, the usual stacks of papers completely gone. Though, directly in the middle of the desk was a small polaroid photo. Eleanor pushed herself forward, frowning when she picked up the picture.

Eleanor clenched her jaw, tears stinging at the back of her eyes at the sight of it. She remembered Alice taking the picture the night of Bella's birthday party, when El and Carlisle had been wrapped around each other.

Their arms were wrapped around each other's waists and each had a bright smile on their faces. Eleanor was smiling straight at Alice but Carlisle's eyes were locked on El. His eyes were soft, lips pulled into a loving smile.

El's heart clenched and a tear ran down her face as she tucked the photo close to her chest.

She sniffed, reaching up to wipe her tears. She tucked the photo in her jacket pocket before leaning back in his chair and reaching into her bag. El pulled out a book and kicked her legs up, settling to get more comfortable.

She planned on finishing her book in Carlisle's office, feeling more relaxed than she had in months now. She allowed a content smile to linger on her lips as she began to read her book.