Chapter One: Where We Belong

Faye's P.O.V.

The bell above the bookstore door chimed softly as Faye slid a book onto the shelf. She didn't bother glancing up; the sound had become background noise, as familiar as the creak of the old floorboards beneath her sneakers. It was late afternoon, and the sun—what little of it Timmins ever saw—had already dipped below the horizon. The store was mostly empty now, save for Mrs. Desroches browsing the mystery section, as she did every Thursday.

Faye wiped her hands on her jeans and leaned on the counter, glancing at the clock. Just two more hours. She was trying to finish a poem she'd been scribbling in her notebook during the quiet moments between customers. Something about the way the snow muffled sound, making everything feel a little lonelier.

The door opened again, and this time she did look up. Sebastian strolled in, his cheeks flushed from the cold. "Dad sent me to walk you home," he said, tugging off his hat and shaking snow onto the mat by the door.

Faye rolled her eyes but smiled. "I close in twenty minutes. You could've waited at home."

"Dad doesn't trust you walking alone at night. He thinks someone's going to kidnap you," Sebastian said, smirking. "Which, honestly, would be hilarious to watch."

"Thanks, Bash," Faye muttered, but her grin softened the words. "Sit down and stay out of trouble."

Sebastian plopped into the armchair by the window, pulling out his phone. Faye returned to the counter, but her mind wandered again, the same thoughts looping back as they always did. The bookstore. The snow. Timmins. She loved it all, but it felt like the edges of her life were pressing in. She wanted something more, even if she didn't know what that was yet.

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Edward's P.O.V.

From where he stood across the street, Edward Cullen could hear everything. The faint murmur of conversation inside the bookstore, the scrape of chairs against wood, the rhythmic beat of her heart.

He shouldn't have been there. He had come to Timmins to scout for his family, to ensure it was a safe place to settle for a while. That was all. But then he had caught her scent two days ago, and his plans had unraveled.

It wasn't just the scent—though it was like nothing he'd ever experienced, a potent, overwhelming lure that sent his instincts spiraling. No, it was her. She was... ordinary, in every measurable way. A seventeen-year-old girl in a mining town. A flicker of warmth in the middle of the cold. And yet, he couldn't stop watching.

She leaned on the counter now, her brow furrowed as she scribbled in a notebook. He wondered what she was writing. Words seemed important to her; there was an earnestness in the way she held the pen, as if trying to capture something fleeting.

He told himself it was curiosity, nothing more. He wasn't planning to approach her. He just needed to understand—her scent, her presence, the pull that kept bringing him back. And yet, her mind was quiet to him, utterly still. It wasn't empty, he could sense that much. It was as though her thoughts were locked behind a door he couldn't open, guarded and unreachable. The silence only made her more compelling, an enigma in a world of noise.

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Faye's P.O.V.

"Ready to go?" Sebastian's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

She nodded, slipping her notebook into her bag and grabbing her coat. "Let's head out before it gets colder."

The streets were quiet as they walked, their boots crunching on the snow. Faye tugged her scarf higher over her nose, her breath clouding in the frigid air. Sebastian was chattering about something—probably school, or hockey, or both—but Faye's mind drifted again.

They passed the bookstore's large window, and for a moment, Faye thought she saw movement in the reflection. A shadow, maybe. She glanced over her shoulder, but the street was empty, the only sound the faint rustle of wind through the trees.

"You okay?" Sebastian asked, giving her a quizzical look.

"Yeah," she said, shaking her head. "Just tired."

But she couldn't shake the feeling that someone—or something—had been watching.

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Edward's P.O.V.

He stayed out of sight as they walked past, his sharp eyes tracking their every step. The boy—her brother, judging by their easy banter—was talking loudly, his voice cutting through the stillness. She, on the other hand, was quieter, lost in thought.

Edward felt a pang of guilt. He shouldn't be following her. He knew that. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to leave. Her presence stirred something in him he hadn't felt in decades—something he couldn't quite name.

He stayed in the shadows until they disappeared into the warm glow of their home, leaving him alone in the cold.

Edward lingered in the street, his breath a ghostly wisp in the frigid air. He should have turned away. He should have left this town behind before he became something worse than curious.

But he didn't.

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Word count: 845, 4,869 characters