Running Away.

Have you ever felt your mind go completely blank?

Like everything in your mind was just shoved out of your ears and now there's nothing in there but blank space.

If so, you now know how I was currently feeling as I looked down at the pretty blond in front of me, who was staring back at me with mischievous eyes.

This was all too much for me to handle at the moment.

For one, this could change a lot of things in this world related to the Cullens, and secondly, why didn't I care at the moment that it would?

Well I wouldn't say I didn't care, I did, but at the same moment my body was thinking one thing, while my mind was thinking another, and actively trying to fight it.

All of that was added onto the fact that I still didn't think I was really ready for a relationship, no matter how much I felt otherwise.

For the past six thousand years, my relationship status with women consisted of being just acquaintances, and one night stands, not long term relationships.

All of that was the same issue that halted me from being in a relationship with Evelyn, Except for the fact that she was a mortal.

Now I just had to deal with the possible change of the story if something was to start between me and Rosalie.

"Are you okay?" Rosalie asked, leaning closer to me as she asked.

Taking a step away, I raised my hands.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just…this is a bit too much for me at the moment." I said hurriedly, taking another step away from her.

I could see it in her eyes that my response to her wasn't exactly what she had anticipated.

"Let's go find the others." I said, abruptly turning away from her.

As I turned, I felt one of Rosalie's hands clasp my forearm, stopping me in place.

"Adam," she said, her voice firm. "I'm sorry if that was too forward of me. I couldn't help myself…I didn't even think, I just~" she started, but I interrupted her before she could continue.

"Got lost in the moment," I said, finishing her sentence, "me to.' I said, giving her a small fake smile that I hoped looked real.

"Let's go. They are probably waiting on us." I said as Rosalie let go of my arm.

Rushing through the forest, we abruptly blurred onto the gravel road where our cars were parked. Carlisle, Esme, and Edward were standing around Carlisle's car, lost in a whispered conversation before they saw our appearance.

"Ah. It's good of you two to join us. We were almost ready to start a search party~" Carlisle said, a wide smile on his face, but I ignored him.

Reaching into my pocket I pulled out my car keys while opening my car door.

Starting the engine, I put the car in reverse, turning my car around, before speeding down the road back towards New York.

"Stupid, Stupid, Stupid!" I said repeatedly, my grip tightening on the steering wheel as I drove. "How could you have let this happen!" I said to myself, replaying the night's events over and over in my head.

From the car ride to when I had thrown her into the air, I rewatched it in almost perfect recall, but still, I couldn't see where everything had gone wrong.

[Carlisle POV]

Standing by the front of my car, I watched as Adams' car roared down the road, leaving us all in a cloud of dust and silence.

His face had been stony and stern, a complete opposite to his usual joyful demeanor.

Turning my head, I saw Rosalie watching Adams' car disappear down the road, a sad and worried look on her face.

Walking over to her, I looked down the road then back at her.

"What happened?" I asked gently, worried for what could have possibly angered Adam and worried Rosalie.

Normally it took quite a lot in my experience to anger him, so whatever it was must be quite big.

"I-I don't." Rosalie started, but couldn't seem to finish her words.

"She kissed adam." Edward said in a surprised voice, walking around the car to where we could now see him.

Rosalie whipped her head to the side, staring daggers at Edward. "Stay out of my head!" she snarled.

"Someone had to tell them." Edward said nonchalantly as he leaned his back against the car.

I raised my hands to stop the bickering between them, wanting to get to the center of this.

"What happened?" I asked, looking back to Rosalie.

She let out a sigh as she ran a hand through her long golden hair, "I honestly couldn't tell you." Rosalie said with a shake of her head, "It just happened so fast…I didnt even think."

"It's alright, Rosalie." Esme said, walking over to rub a hand on Rosalie's back.

"Let's head back." I said, hoping to catch Adam before he could disappear on one of his adventures he takes whenever something is bothering him.

We all climbed into the car and quickly followed after Adam.

It took us nearly an hour to finally reach the hotel, the entire drive there was quiet.

Handing the keys to the valet, we walked through the foyer to our private elevator, heading up to our current home.

He wasn't there.

As soon as we had entered the house, I had checked his room while Rosalie locked herself in her own room.

Letting out a sigh, I closed Adams' door as I walked into the living room where both Esme and Edward were seated.

"Maybe we beat him here?" Esme said, hope filling her voice.

Edward quickly shook his head.

"I highly doubt that. If anything Adam is probably just driving around at the moment, trying to deal with what is on his mind."

"True," I nodded, sinking into an armchair. "He's always been one to process things on his own terms and time. We shouldn't push him, but I do hope he knows we're here for him."

Esme sat beside me, her eyes searching mine for assurance. "He's been a part of our family for some time now, Carlisle. I hope he realizes that no matter what happens with Rosalie, it doesn't change how much we care about him." she said, squeezing my hand gently.

Edward, who had been silent for a moment, spoke up. "He's conflicted." He said, drawing our attention to him. "That much was clear on his face. It must not just be about the kiss. It must be something to do with what it represents—for both him and Rosalie."

I leaned back, contemplating. "Adam's history with relationships is complex. He's carried the weight of his past for millennia, meaning he has a lot of baggage. Perhaps with Rosalie, it's not just about affection but also about confronting his own fears and insecurities which he's buried under time."

Esme nodded, her expression thoughtful. "And Rosalie, well, she's not used to feeling vulnerable. This might be new territory for her too."

"I think we should give them both space," I suggested. "But not too much. We should find a way to let them know they're not alone in this."

In the quiet of the room, I thought back to the many years I had known Adam. A man of ancient wisdom, yet still very much a person with human emotions and vulnerabilities. This incident with Rosalie was just another piece of evidence to show that even though Adam had thousands of years on us all, he was still a novice at some things.