The moon was rising as the Cullens began to scatter.
Aiden stood near the kitchen entryway, sipping on a soda that Elise handed him.
"You're good with her," said a soft voice beside him.
He turned to Elise.
"I don't think she knows what to do with that," Elise added,
"I wasn't trying to be good," Aiden said.
"I know. That's why it matters."
He looked at her then, studying her face. Elise wasn't like the others—less polished, but somehow more aware. Empathetic in a way that felt earned.
"She's not cold," Elise went on. "She's frozen. That's not the same."
"You're saying I'm the thaw?"
"I'm saying you scare her."
"…Why?"
"Because you might be real enough to stay."
"But that does not matter right now, as I wanted to talk to you because I have something on my heart that I just have to get rid of." she said, holding her hand to her chest.
"I need to tell you," she began carefully, "when you first arrived... I nearly attacked you."
Aiden blinked. "What? Why?"
Elise's eyes flickered with a strange intensity. "I didn't know who you were. I just smelled your blood."
She paused, as if tasting the memory. "It called to me… like a hunger. Something raw and different."
She gave a small, almost rueful shake of her head. "It was like what Edward and the others feel with Bella's blood."
Aiden swallowed hard, the weight of her words settling on him.
"I was going to kill you out of instinct."
Elise's voice softened. "But Rosalie—she stopped me. She didn't understand everything either. She just knew… you had to live."
Aiden's mind spun at the implication—he wasn't just a threat; he was something else entirely. Something that stirred primal hunger in vampires like Elise.
"And that's why I owe you an apology," Elise finished. "Because I almost didn't think twice."
Aiden stared at Elise, trying to process her words.
"You were the woman who almost attacked me?" he asked, voice low, disbelief threading through it.
Elise nodded solemnly.
"I had no idea," he said, shaking his head slowly. "I remember someone—just a woman, really—just out of nowhere, like a flash of anger or hunger. But I didn't know who she was."
His eyes locked onto hers, shock flickering in their depths. "And it was you."
Elise's expression was grave. "Instinct. I didn't know you then. Your blood was different—something I couldn't ignore."
The weight of that revelation pressed on him.
"Not just a stranger, but someone close enough to be part of this world. And yet… you almost killed me before either of us even knew what this was."
Aiden ran a hand through his hair, the shock still settling.
"Yeah. That changes nothing"
Aiden's gaze softened, the tension in his shoulders easing just a fraction. "I get it," he said quietly. "You were acting on instinct. I don't hold it against you."
Elise let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding, relief washing over her features. "Thank you," she whispered. "I was afraid you'd never forgive me."
Before either of them could say more, the heavy footsteps of Emmett echoed down the hallway. He appeared in the doorway, his broad frame filling the space.
"Elie," he said firmly, his voice leaving no room for argument. "Come on. We need to move."
Elise glanced at Aiden one last time, a silent apology in her eyes, before following Emmett without another word.
Aiden watched them leave, a mix of curiosity and wariness swirling inside him.