Chapter 1 - Mistake

Life was good, especially for Renesmee Cullen.

The bright lights of the trendy club's interior flashed and spun, making her dizzy as she ground her hips with the beat. The shots she had done at the bar were making her head spin delightfully, and she was hoping to keep her buzz for awhile. The guy she was dancing with pulled her ass closer, grinding himself against her in time with the bass.

"I don't think so," she giggled, touching his cheek. The song ended, and she quickly turned around.

"Hey, what the—"

"Thanks for the drink!" she called over her shoulder, smirking to herself. She was a tease, and she knew it. But being a tease got her into all of Seattle's trendiest clubs and bars, which she was nowhere near ready to give up. While the rest of her friends were graduating school and settling down to get married and have children with their college sweethearts, Renesmee was the exact opposite. She had graduated early, dumped her longtime boyfriend Mike, and was canceling all of her after-graduation plans to let her parents fund a trip to travel to Europe with her friend Jessica. She had spent all summer and most of the fall partying it up in downtown Seattle, and she had no intentions of stopping. Normal didn't suit her; it never had.

She leaned back against the bar, scanning the crowd for Jessica. She was sure her outgoing, obnoxious best friend was somewhere in the crowd, doing too much talking and too much flirting.

"Can I buy you a drink?" a voice asked.

Renesmee turned around, raising an eyebrow. She was greeted by a tall man with black dreadlocks. His chocolate skin was dark and creamy, and his face was perfectly chiseled. "Normally, the bartender doesn't have to 'buy' anything. He can just give it away," she replied, turning back around.

He cleared his throat. "Well, uh…in that case…a dirty martini for the lady," he said.

Renesmee smiled coyly, turning back around to lean on the bar. She gave him her best sex-kitten stare as he pushed the tall glass towards her.

"What makes you think I'd drink a dirty martini?" she flirted.

He smiled at her, exposing his white teeth. She leaned farther forward, letting him catch a peek down the plunging neckline of her black dress.

"You seem like a dirty girl," he flirted back, pushing the drink until it was directly in front of her.

Renesmee gave him her best smile, accepting the beverage. "It's one of my favorites, actually," she admitted, taking a sip.

He gave her another smile, and she was about to flirt back, when she heard the voice of her friend Jessica cut through the crowd.

"Ness! Ness!"

"Where have you been?" Renesmee asked as her friend hurried up to her, teetering on her high heels and yanking her too-short dress down.

"You would not believe the hottie I just met," she squealed, grasping her friend's arm.

Renesmee rolled her eyes. Every guy Jessica met was 'the hottest guy ever,' so she barely paid any attention.

"Do you want to go out into the parking lot with us?" she asked, giving Renesmee a pointed look.

Renesmee balked, looking at the sketchy looking blond guy who was approaching them.

"That's him," Jessica whispered. "He's gorgeous."

"James!" the bartender behind her shouted out.

The blond man Jessica was drooling over nodded at him, and Renesmee raised her eyebrows.

"Hmm…who knew the two hot guys were friends?" Jessica half whispered, half giggled. She reeked of tequila; she was probably already three sheets to the wind, but that was typical for her on a Saturday night. Drink first, think later.

"You in?" the blond guy asked. He looked at Renesmee, his eyes scanning her up and down. She shivered under his slightly creepy gaze, shuddering. He was good looking, no doubt; however, there was something about his slicked back blond hair and dark eyes that made the hairs on her arms stand up.

"Where are you going now?" Renesmee asked Jessica. Her friend was always doing this – disappearing with guys she just met while drunker than a skunk. It was always up to Renesmee to rescue her, and it was getting old.

"I'm just going to the parking lot. He said he has some blow to share with us. Come on, are you in or are you in?"

"I don't know…" Renesmee said slowly. She didn't do drugs; she never had. Alcohol was usually enough for her to have a good time, and she usually didn't even need a lot of that.

"Come on. Just a bump." Jessica winked at her.

Before Renesmee could protest, Jessica followed the hot blond and the sexy, chocolate-skinned bartender out a side door of the loud club, pulling Renesmee with her. Shivering, she rubbed her hands on her bare arms in the cool, dark alley where they now stood.

"I'm Laurent, by the way," he said to Renesmee.

She smiled, nervous butterflies settling in her stomach. Something didn't feel right…

"Well, we have the ladies here. Do you have the hookup or not, James?"

The slick looking blond man grinned, nodding. He walked up to a pair of men hanging out closer towards the street and began talking to them. They looked shady, so Renesmee looked away and pretended she couldn't see them.

"I thought he already had the stuff? This is such fucking bullshit; I'm already fucking freezing," Jessica whined.

Renesmee rolled her eyes at her friend, looking over at the men James was talking to. Suddenly, there was some shouting, and even a few pushes. Laurent's eyes went wide, and there was a flash of something in the small beam of light coming from the nearby streetlamp. More shouts echoed in the alley, and suddenly, someone screamed. James moved quickly, his arm connecting with the side of the second man. He doubled over, falling to the ground in a heap next to his friend.

"Holy shit," Renesmee gasped, seeing the flash of what James held in his hand. It was a knife.

"Oh my fucking god!" Jessica screeched, and her voice got James's attention.

"James! What are you thinking? They're dead!" Laurent exclaimed, kneeling beside them. He stared down at the lifeless, bleeding bodies, his dark eyes panicked. "You killed them! What are we going to do?"

"Nothing," James sneered, wiping the handle of the blade on his shirt. He tossed it up onto the roof of the next building, and Renesmee felt her heart begin to race. James didn't even look the least bit sad that he had just committed murder.

"We have to go. Now," she whispered, grabbing Jessica's arm. As they began to move, James looked up.

"Where do you think you're going?" he shouted. "Not so fast!"

"Jessica, run!" Renesmee gasped, pushing her friend towards the side door. They yanked it open, dodging through the crowd. People gave them dirty looks as they teetered through the loud club in their high heels, racing to get away. "Go, go, go!" Renesmee gasped, shoving at her friend. Her gut had been right; they needed to get away, and fast.

The swirling lights and loud music didn't help her already shocked senses; she could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she wove her way through the endless crowd of people, fleeing for her life.

"Jess! Grab that cab!"

They darted into the waiting taxi as soon as they were outside. After screaming at him to step on the gas, it peeled away from the curb and down the busy city street. Neither one of the spoke until they got to Jessica's downtown apartment.

Renesmee walked slowly across the floor of the lobby, her heels echoing against the marble. "That really happened."

"No…no…" Jessica babbled. "It didn't happen…no…"

"Jess," Renesmee said firmly, grabbing her shoulders. "We have to go to the police."

Jessica's tear streaked face grew ashen.

"We can't…we can't go to the police. They'll think we were involved! Sometimes accomplices go to jail, Ness, and…and…"

"Why would they think we were involved?"

Jessica bit her lip, looking away.

"Tell me, Jess!" Renesmee exclaimed.

"I gave James my number. He has my phone number in his pocket. They'll know, Renesmee. They'll know!"

Renesmee gaped at her friend. "You gave that creep your number? Jessica, you idiot!"

"I'm sorry, I just…he was cute, and…and he seemed normal at first. I mean, what was I supposed to do? If we go to the police, they'll know we were involved, Ness!"

"Um, not give him your number!" Renesmee hissed, slamming the door behind them. She clicked both locks on, sliding the deadbolt into place. Somehow, the resounding click of the steel didn't do much to calm her churning stomach.

"What are we going to do?" Jessica whined, gripping the kitchen counter.

Renesmee kicked off her shoes, eyeing her best friend.

"We're not going to do anything. If you don't want to go to the police…I can't make you. But this is a mistake."

"We can't," Jessica whispered, walking over to her. "Ness, they'll know that we were there. How can we prove that we weren't involved?"

Renesmee paused, licking her lips as she leaned over the counter. The bottom of her stomach churned nervously, and she had a bad feeling in her gut.

"I don't know, Jessica, I-"

"I…I'm scared, Ness."

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This was an idea that came to me this winter, and I had to write it. You know I couldn't stop writing Jake and Nessie ; ) This is a short story, but I'm really excited to share it with you all. If I get some reviews, I might just put up chapter 2 tomorrow!