Rosalie was standing on the very edge of the cliff looking at the world below. She had never liked heights much but at the same time she needed open spaces when she wanted to think. She had a lot to think about right now. She was dreaming about Jake again. She had not had a dream about him since they had shared that tearful goodbye before she came away to Stellar. She had tried to forget about him. What good was a best friend that you had not seen in years, that you did not know if they even remembered you. But she had hear rumours that he had come to Stellar too, and the last couple of nights she had dreamed about her past, and him, for the first time in a long time. She did not know why, but it did make her want to think.

She had, under sufferance worn her beach outfit even though she would have been happier in her bike outfit. At least that was less revealing than the outfit her friends had chosen for her. She gave him venue ideas and he forced fashion tips on her. Something was wrong there. Jake would never have done that. But then he was not here and Aaron was - nothing was going to change that, no matter how much she wished it differently. Sighing she dropped down to sitting on the cliff hedge and dangling her legs down continued to stay lost in her thoughts about Jake and the past.

(Dress)

"It's like I don't know you anymore." Jake said from behind Rosalie. He was in his full clothes; a black shirt, a pair of jeans and converses that were worn out because he walked around a lot. His tone was almost teasing but his face was twisted into a small frown that clearly showed he was surprised.

"Never thought you were a beach girl. I guess that happens when old friends meet, hm?" He drew forward and his fingers brushed over her arm. "A little more skin, babe, if that's how you really want it."

Rosalie started and placing one hand over her heart declared "you trying to kill me!" as she turned to see who had spoken to her, and made her jump. She frowned slightly in confusion, as she tried to work out if she was hallucinating or if it really was him. "Your awfully realistic for a figment of my imagination" she told him as her hands dropped back down to her sides. She then glanced down at herself and pondered his comment. Sure she was dressed a lot differently from anything she might have worn back when they had been friends. But then she was probably semi-nicer then back then. She was not ashamed to admit she had, still did actually, have a really bitchy side.

"Aaron is trying to get me to renounce my embargo on the opposite sex by using me as his barbie doll" Rosalie replied when she felt his touch, shivered slightly, and decided he must be real. She did not mention anything more on that. She was not sure Jake and Aaron meeting again would be a good idea -specially since she did not even know why Jake was here - they had not exactly got on well before.

"Not the welcome I expected, but it's cool to be in someone's imagination." He smirked as he sat opposite her with his legs crossed and his eyes in the same level as hers. "I'm flattered, Rosie. Do you really think about me that much to actually hallucinate about me?" He had that patriotic tone of voice that would have crushed the reserve of any other girl who didn't him as well as she did.

He was teasing, serious, and infuriatingly cryptic.

"Clearly you are my imagination because the real Jake would know that slutty Barbie look aside, calling me Rosie is a one way ticket to getting punched in he face" Rosalie replied in a cheerful tone with a mock winning smile, rising to the challenge. She then added "but of course I thought about you. I seem to remember you begged me too ..." She was not going to give in and ask him why he was here, why he had come looking for her, whether he even had or if it had been coincidence. She may not have faced his rough way with words in a while, but forcing her into a bikini was not going to smooth her edges no matter what Aaron thought.

"You love a good masochist." He said, shrugging and pulling his knees closer to himself with his eyes still locked on her. "You don't seem to happy to see me." He said with a hand covering his mouth to hide a smile. The only thing that moved were his irises and they were falling from her face, to her neck, down to her ivory skin and bikini.

"I don't like it." He muttered.

"What don't you like?" Rosalie questioned with a raised eyebrow as she surveyed him "the fact I love a masochist? The fact I am not pleased to see you? or the fact that I am a girl ..." She glanced down at herself once more. He really had not lost the knack of knowing how to make a girl feel self-concious. She flushed faint red and turning pulled her bag towards herself and yanking her leather jacket out her bag pulled it on and zipped it up. It still left her with some impressive cleavage but it covered up marginally more than before "I did miss you Jake ... they told me you were on the streets for a while ... you didn't think to call? Maybe I could have helped ..."

"I don't like how almost every guy in the beach has their eye on you." Jake said without much emotion but his temple contracted as he clenched his jaw and skewered a cold glare at someone who had his eyes on Rosalie's cleavage.

He looked away at the mention of the streets but he managed to give her a half smile. "Do you really think I'd ask for help? Besides, I'm fine. I'm alive and I survived. And you...are different."

"I have changed. I have changed a lot. I guess I was tired of being alone. This place will do that to you ... I am sure you have changed too" Rosalie replied with a tired sigh not looking at him but instead studying the sand where she was drawing weird shapes with one finger. Glancing up when he spoke again she caught his half-smile and it did not re-assure her "you were everything to me once Jake ... I did not forget that!"

"I was everything to you once." Jake repeated and he emphasized the 'once' with a smirk. His finger were suddenly over her hand to stop her from moving them and he pulled away when he realized what he did before he sighed out like she did. "You know, Rosie, I never thought you'd turn out so...so...." He sapped his fingers.

"Yes once ..." Rosalie replied with another shrug, though it was half-hearted, and then she abruptly added as she considered how he was acting, and how she had come to act finding being alone too hard "but you know you are to blame for how I turned out - you may not like the new me, but it is your fault!" He had shown her she needed someone, that she could not keep muddling along in her messed up life alone, and now she had changed to fulfil that sudden need for people, and he did not like it.

"Well, whatever I did, there's no going back now. And it's a waste of time dwelling on it." Jake kept his eyes on his hands which were coarse from handling the streets and doing freezes and break winds that he was required to do when he freestyled. "And how can it be my fault when you obviously make your own decisions. It's called free will, babe."

"You are so infuriating you know that" Rosalie replied rising to her feet and folding her arms under her chest. She then changed tack and asked "so what are you doing back? Why are you here?"

"You mean infuriatingly attractive." Jake winked with a cold smirk in place. He was obviously just teasing her and a genuine laugh escaped his lips as he reached for the hem of her jacket to keep her from going any farther away from him.

"I guess you'd know." He looked up at her and said the word with exaggerated slowness. "I am terrifyingly talented." He flashed her a disarming smile.

Rosalie rolled her eyes expressively and replied "actually I would not know ... I am pretty sure any of the talents I am thinking of would not land you in this school!" Though her mouth did twitch slightly in amusement and she grudgingly sat down once more. "How long have you been here?"

"A while." Hesitation flashed across Jake's features but it disappeared as soon as it appeared and it was replaced by his old cool facade. He leaned back, propping himself up by the elbows and watched the end of Rosalie's hair sway to the sea breeze. "And I..." He hesitated again. "I'm a badass dancer."

"A while?" Rosalie repeated quietly as she processed that. He had been here a while and had not thought it a good idea to come find her. Had not been bothered to come tell her he was here. Well if he did not care then neither did she. She certainly was not going to let her upset at that comment show. Normally her emotions were evident but if he could do uncaring then she could to. "I guess that is cool ... not as cool as one woman band ... but you know, nothing is!" She was half joking, it was a bad attempt, but it would do.

"Yeah, that is if you consider two days on hold and six hours in the office being interviewed and recorded 'a while'." Jake said, watching her. He knew her well enough to know he did something stupid. That doesn't stop him from ignoring his conscience though and he retaliated by telling the truth.

"You going to stay?" Rosalie asked abruptly as she considered his answer, it was a strange question granted but for someone like him not an unfounded one. She was not going to try and let him back into her life, even though he clearly did not even want back in, if he was going to vanish again. Even if the first time it was her leaving him.

"If you want me to." Jake looked at her without his usual contempt for the first time since they've reunited. Something about the way he was running his eyes over her showed how he knew something was wrong and he memorizing her face.

It's not like I'm wanted anywhere anyway. Without giving her the chance to answer, he pushed himself up and he brushed the sand off his shorts. "You don't really have to answer that by the way. Rhetorical question." He lied.

"I hoped you would ... I want you to" Rosalie replied after a lengthy pause where she struggled with her response. She had yet to decide whether she liked or hate how well he could read her, how he knew her so well. Rising to her feet as well she added, because the moment could not get too awkwardly emotion for her "and just think how much easier it will be to tease me if you do not have too commute!"

"Do you really think I like teasing you that much?" Jake asked in a low voice but then he broke out chuckling. "Yeah, I guess I do." He let his hand run through his still damp hair. "Your face gets addicting sometimes."

There was a long pause as the wind picked up and they were momentarily overshadowed by some clouds that passed over the sun. "You couldn't see the sky anymore back in New York." He muttered. "Just strips and glimpses of brown."

"Not quite what I meant, but I like your version much better ..." Rosalie commented with amusement, unsure whether to take his last comment, when she had been commenting on the way he made fun of her, but apparently he did not hear it that way. That or he simply chose to pretend he had heard differently, which was more likely "even if I cannot quite work out whether being referred to as a form of addiction is a compliment or an insult!"

Rosalie shivered lightly and huddled closer in her leather jacket by instinct rather than she was actually cold. Shoving her hands in her shorts pockets she glanced across the skyline "you can always buy a New York skyline on post-card ... and save the trouble of trying to see past the smog!" As she spoke her mind kept drifting back to the dare she had been given by her room-mate Christa. It would be a perfect excuse to kiss him. But why the heck did she want an excuse? What was wrong with her. Mentally scolding herself for allowing herself to get distracted and her gaze to drift down his body once more she turned away from him and looked out over the cliff once more "could you do me a favour, Jake? ..."

Jake listened to her silently, not wanting to disturb her thoughts. He was immersed in his own thought himself and her speaking his name roused him out of it and he looked up with a wan smile.

"Depends on the favor." He caught her checking him out and that didn't stop him from flashing her a disarming grin.

Rosalie turned back to look at him, pausing torn, biting down on her lower lip lightly and frowning in thought. She would not be opposed to the idea, but she also did not want to ruin what might be the chance for them to patch their long neglected friendship. Plus nothing changed the fact that despite how much she liked him, and how cute he was, Jake was still a jerk. Even she knew that much. But she could not back down - the rules had been decided, a dare had to be done. Plus he looked like he would be good, something she had wondered back before as well ... damn her stupid emotional side. With that final choice Rosalie took a few steps to close the gap and kissed Jake.