EPOV

"Where will I be able to find some apparel?" Isabella asked as we trudged through the woods.

I thought about it for a moment. I couldn't exactly go home to Tanya with a naked girl on my arm. She wasn't the jealous type, but I couldn't imagine her accepting Isabella. Nothing was open right now to buy her clothes. Well, nothing that I could get to soon. I glanced around in the darkness, unsure of where we were even headed. I couldn't be certain we were headed in the right direction. We definitely wouldn't make it to the stores before they closed.

This predicament left us with one option. My cousin Alice. She stayed with my family because her parents died when she was an infant. She was very into fashion and had enough clothing to last her a lifetime. Alice could definitely help out Isabella. Unfortunately, this meant that I would have to go to my parents' house and somehow be able to explain how I found this girl.

I had no idea what I would tell them. Would I say she was a friend? A patient? A coworker?

None of those would seem acceptable. I would figure that part out as soon as we got out of here.

"Listen, Isabella," She stopped walking and turned to me. "We can get clothes from my Cousin. She'll be happy to help out. I think i have a sweater in my car, but I have no idea where I am in the woods. I think my car may be that way, but I can't see anything. Would you please be able to help me out?"

She looked around and frowned.

Uh oh. We were lost.

Isabella narrowed her eyes as she looked through the forest. Then, she turned back to me. With a determined look, she brought her hand up to my face. I flinched away from her. She immediately pulled her hand back.

"I will not hurt you," she promised. She hesitantly reached for my face, but she didn't touch me. Her hand was raised in the air between us.

"Yeah, I've heard that one already," I mumbled, backing away from her. She sighed and stepped forward.

"I am going to look into your mind if you will allow me."

"What for?" I asked the hand that was inches away from here.

"It will allow for us to find your vehicle much quicker than if we waited for sunlight."

She had a point.

"Um...sure, but please ignore a lot of what you see." There were a lot of things that went through my mind that would probably disturb people. She really didn't need to know about how often I masturbate or that blasting Taylor Swift in my car was my guilty pleasure.

Not that she would even know who Taylor Swift was. Or what masturbation was. Did her kind masturbate? how did they reproduce?

"I will only search your mind for your vehicle location," her voice broke through the strange turn my thoughts had taken. "You are capable of finding it, but because you humans do not use much of your brain, you are unsure of how to utilize certain aspects of your memory storage."

"Of course," I responded dryly. It was clear that she found me inferior.

Her hand slowly lowered to my temple. I felt my entire body break out in goosebumps. I felt static electricity spread from where she touched me all the way to my toes. My heart started speeding up as my breathing slowed. The sensation of pins and needles traveled through my fingertips and toes. My body felt lighter and for a moment, I thought that I was dying...again.

I felt my eyes widen at the idea, and I was going to take off break away from her.

"You must breathe," she spoke quietly, staring into my eyes. "Otherwise, I will not be able to see your mind."

I breathed in slowly and tried to relax. A calm feeling settled into my stomach. My body officially felt numb. I was paralyzed.

Her eyes that had been probing my own suddenly went blank. Her posture was stiff, and she appeared to be frozen in place. It didn't even look as though she was in her body any more. The lifeless stare made me uncomfortable. It felt as though this staring contest was going on for eternity when really it was maybe a couple of minutes.

She finally pulled away, but her eyes remained on me. It was strange to see such intensity in eyes that had nothing to them just moments before. Her eyes bore into mine, so I looked away.

"So...uh...did you see what you needed to?"

"Yes." She didn't add anything else.

"Okay and...?" She definitely found something disturbing in my head.

"I can trust you."

I hadn't been expecting that.

"Oh, good," I responded awkwardly. Maybe she wouldn't kill me. "How about my car?"

"Yes." She knelt down on the ground and before I could ask her what she was doing, she placed her hand over the grass. For a moment, nothing happened. I opened my mouth to speak, but felt the earth under me quiver. I gasped as the ground beneath her hand lit up. the light spread across the grass and created a path for us. She looked very pleased. "Follow the light."

I stared in amazement as the fluorescent light brightened the forest. The trees glowed in the white lights that shone from the ground.

"Wow," I whispered.

Isabella began walking without me. I followed, quickening my pace to catch up with her.

"That's pretty cool," I stated.

She glanced at the lit up grass and then back to me. The reflection of the light made her eyes appear golden and her skin almost translucent. She looked otherworldly. If anyone saw her here, they probably wouldn't believe their eyes.

"Oh no," she shook her head. "I do not believe the light is cold. The brightness must burn." She looked forward, narrowing her eyes in thought and then nodding. "Yes. It must be hot."

I couldn't hold back my grin, trying not to laugh for fear of my life. She took statements quite literally.

"It must be," I teased.

She must have heard the laughter in my voice because she stopped walking. I paused next to her. She had a curious expression on her face that immediately changed to remorse.

"What's wrong?"

"I apologize for assuming laughter was something negative," she spoke lowly. "It appears to light you up. There is nothing but radiance in your laughter." She looked intrigued. The words she used were flattering, disarming. I was beginning to think she like human beings. I smirked. "And what do you call what you are doing now when there is no noise?" she touched my face again. The static was there again, immediately spreading through my body. It happened much quicker than before-the strange connection.

My grin faltered and I stepped away.

"A smile?" I asked.

"A smile. How do I do that?"

"Um...well, you sort of...lift your mouth up, like this." I grinned awkwardly. She attempted it and her smile looked more like a grimace than anything else.

I started laughing. "Good start but you may need to work a little on that."

The light diminished when we neared my car. The world around us appeared even darker, colder than before. We reached my car, and I did indeed have a sweater for her and fortunately some old gym shorts. Gross. But at least it was something. I let her change into them as I looked away.

Isabella was very small. I hadn't realized how petite she was because I had been running away or avoiding her nakedness. Her size completely contradicted the strength in her strange powers.

It didn't matter that she was small. She terrified me. She was way too powerful for someone her size. She actually reminded me of Alice in a way. That girl was very influential.

I couldn't even imagine what it would be like when they met each other. Or when Tanya met Isabella.

That was something I'd have to worry about another day. For now, I'd have to worry about how I'd explain Isabella to my family.

Sorry for the delay! Update tomorrow!

thanks for reading!

-Bravery