A/N: This story is an offshoot of my first story, High Noon. You do not need to read High Noon first in order for this story to make sense, but please be aware that this story contains some spoilers for the ending of High Noon. High Noon is my full-length sequel to Breaking Dawn and is set in late 2016, about 10 years after the time Breaking Dawn ended. This story starts in January 2017, the day after High Noon ended.

I want to offer a huge thanks to my wonderful beta, Kelsismom! Her advice and feedback have helped to make this story much better than what I could have accomplished on my own.

Prologue

Seth was stunned as he looked up into those soft, hazel eyes that still glistened with tears. Suddenly, everything made sense. This was why he was staying here with Jake, why his leg had been injured, why he had ever met the Cullens in the first place. This was the reason he existed!

He wanted to pull her close, to kiss away her pain, to tell her he would protect her always.

No.

Not yet.

She wouldn't understand. They had only just met. He couldn't jeopardize their future by confessing so soon the completeness of his devotion to her, or the depth of his love. She would think he was insane…or just plain weird.

When she spoke, he regained his wits enough to form a coherent reply and then promptly excused himself from the room, urging Jake along with him. Jake would know what to do…he hoped.

His sense of loss and separation was almost tangible as he made his way up the stairs and away from the most beautiful creature he had ever seen – that delicate, heart-shaped face with hair a rich toffee brown and eyes filled with sorrow. It was with great effort that he resisted the urge to turn back and take her in his arms.

An hour later, his confusion had begun to abate; he now had a plan. Edward had managed to get him officially enrolled at Dartmouth and had been able to set up a course schedule which would allow him to see her at least once a day. If he could get her to agree to share books, he might have an excuse to see her on weekends as well. As long as he could be near her, life would be bearable. The gentle flow of her voice in the room below carried easily to his sensitive ears, and he listened attentively for clues as to how he could ease her pain and bring her the happiness she deserved.

~o~o~o~

Chloe had no idea as she drove along the dark, wet highway how significant and life-changing this day would turn out to be. Even as she finally went to sleep that night, she wouldn't suspect that there had been anything unusual about the fateful meeting at the Cullens' house.

Her first few months at Dartmouth had consisted of making new friends, meeting people, and generally having the time of her life. What had been missing? A boyfriend. The search for the perfect guy had dominated her thoughts. The boys she'd been attracted to had either been involved already or had not returned her interest, and her roommate's attempts to set her up had failed as well. Was there any such thing as the perfect guy?

There was no thinking of that right now. No, her grief was too fresh, her emotions too raw. Chloe wasn't sure what she was even doing here. Was returning to school so soon the right decision? All she knew was that right now, she felt an inexplicably strong desire to talk to her closest friend, Nessie Black. The very idea of seeing her again brought some small comfort. Nessie would understand her pain.

A/N: So...for those of you who have read High Noon, what did you think about the imprint being Chloe? I originally created her purely as an annoyance to Edward, but my beta for High Noon, javamomma0921, challenged me to help Chloe mature and to develop her character into someone who could be worthy of Seth. I was originally planning to give her a few paragraphs at the end of High Noon, or a short entry in the epilogue, but when I tried to get inside her head to imagine how she would react to Seth, I found she had a lot to say. Edward had a rather limited view of her during lab, and I've found that there was much more to her than the girl who was daydreaming about her hot TA. I hope you will keep reading and give her a chance. ;)