Notes: M for language and smut, read if ya want! Im just tryin something out! ;)

Chapter One- First and Last Resorts.

I toyed with the idea of running. Running away from all the shit my mother seemed to enjoy throwing at me. It's not fucking normal. Normal mothers don't do this. But I knew running away would not help. I still liked to toy with it from time to time, despite knowing that I'm too chicken-shit to go through with it.

But I did need to get away. I needed Alice. She saves me. She is my best friend, my sister. I ran to her whenever I needed to get way from the bullshit of home, and she did the same when it all became to much for her. The only thing we never did was crash at each others houses because we both knew how it felt to have someone see the complete shit you live with everyday. We didn't need that. But she is the only one who would understand my current mental state, and I knew her mom was out of town at the moment. It was just her and her brother at home. She was my first and last resort.

Alice and I shared the same outlook on mothers and their inability to function, but we both knew that our situations weren't like everyone else's, we just liked to pretend that everyone had a fucked up mother and missing fathers.

We weren't super sorry for ourselves, and we didn't complain. We got on with our day to day lives. Alice had her shit and I had mine. Other people have their own shit too. Why would anyone care about our vast majority of shit? I think this was the reason Alice and I got on so well from the get-go. No shit-talking. Just deal, because people don't care. We had both learned that early in life.

I took my cell from my pocket and dialled Alice's number.

"Hey Bell, what's up?"

"Hey Al," I sniffed, unintentionally showing that I had just been crying.

"Awh shit. Bella what happened? I told you not to go home, you don't need this shit!" She bellowed down the phone.

"Dude, its okay. I just can't… I just fucking ca-" I broke off mid sentence with a series of sobs, embarrassing the hell out of myself, but knowing that it didn't matter, Alice was the one and only person who would understand.

"Okay. Get out of there, come back to school, lunch is almost over, and we'll hang out after, we'll go down to the river for awhile and talk and shit okay?"

"Alice?" I rasped, my throat sore from all the sobbing.

"Yeah Bell?" she replied in a tone that made me love her more than I already did. It was the 'whatever-you-want-I'll-do-it' reply.

"I don't like asking you this, you know that. I never have and I never will again. I'm only asking because I know that your mom isn't home right now, I would never ask otherwise but-" she cut me off.

"Bella, do you want to stay at my place?" She asked hesitanty.

"Um yeah… I just can't be here Alice. I need, I mean physically, emotionally, mentally need to get away from her. Just for a couple of days."

The phone was silent for a moment.

"Yeah okay… But Bell, my house is not any place your going to feel comfortable in. It's a wreck. Its falling apart and Edward will be there to make your stay extra uncomfortable. He's not a bad guy, just ..he's just Edward. I'm doing this because you need this. But Bell, you gotta go before my mom gets back. Renee is a nightmare for you, I know. But you don't want to experience my mother either. I know you know that."

"Alice, I live in uncomfortable, I can handle your brother." I laughed through a few more tears. I had never met her brother, he didn't come to school anymore. Everytime I mentioned him, Alice went off on huge rants about him ruining his life, so I learned not to mention him to much. "You don't know how much this means to me. Thank you so much." I half sobbed.

"Its okay dude. Just as long as your okay. Just get yourself back to school."

"Thank you. See you in a few."

I hung up the phone and took a deep breath and put on my hard face.

"Go back to school would you?" I heard Mommy Dearest shout from the kitchen.

"Ugh!!!" I roared from my upstairs bedroom. This was my solitary explanation of how I wasn't going to dignify the bitch with an answer, but to tell her 'Gladly! Now fuck off!'

I grabbed a bag from the corner of my closet and began shoving random articles of clothing in there. Then the essentials. Toothbrush, underwear, PJ's, Sir Teddington. The last one would be put at the bottom, hidden. I shoved my stuffed bear under all the clothes and instantly felt bad. I pulled him from the bottom of the bag and kissed his little white head. What the hell is wrong with me? I can tell my mother to fuck off but can't hide Sir Teddington at the bottom of a bag. Serious mental issues Bella, that's your problem. I placed him lying on the shampoo bottles on top or the rest of my stuff.

I ran down the stairs, grabbed an apple from the island and headed towards the backdoor. As I was just putting my hand to the handle I heard her feet stomping into the kitchen.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going back to school. Just obeying your orders." I scowled at the door, not wanting to look at her.

"You came home at lunch with no bag, now you have one, and fucking look at me when you talk to me. If I've taught you anything its manners." She rasped

"Noticed something? You? Fucking parallel universe or what!? And the idea of you teaching me anything is literally laughable."

"Shut up, don't talk to me like that and fucking turn around! Why do you have a bag?"

I turned around and looked her in the eye. I hated doing this. It always broke me. She looked like an old woman. I felt like screaming 'You're 39! This is fucking insanity! You are ruining your life and mine! GROW UP!' at her but I had done that already today and everyday for the past year and a half. This was the breaking point. I had to get out. I felt like crying. I needed my mom, to hug me, to stroke my hair and tell me everything was okay. But she was gone.

"I-I came home to get it 'cause I have gym after lunch…"

"Whatever. Get food somewhere for yourself will you. I wont have time to cook anything this evening."

"Yeah okay! I'll get it with the money you already spent shall I?"

With that I turned around, opened the door, walked out slamming it behind me, trying to fight back the tears that dared to push their way through.

EPOV

"Edward?" I heard Alice call from her bedroom.

"Mneh…" was all the reply I could muster up at this wee hour.

"Edward its fucking half one in the afternoon. Get up."

Half past one? Shit. I sat up and looked at the Power Rangers clock beside my bed. I should probably have gotten a new clock around the age that puberty hit, but clocks weren't exactly priority in this house.

Alice was standing at the door holding a carton of orange juice and a Pop Tart. Now that's something I don't get every morning… Afternoon. Whatever.

"Nice sis! What's the occasion? Wait… why are you not in school? Alice, just because moms not here doesn't mean you can-" she cut me off.

"Actually! I've got up, showered- with cold water I might add… Its broken again- gone to school, had lunch and bunked off 6th period so I could talk to you… and you have NO right to lecture me on not going to school! Edward you're a year older than me, you should be in your senior year. You take advantage of moms lack of parental skills, you know very well that if mom was here she wouldn't even notice if I was in school or not. So shut up."

"I don't take advantage! I'm not able for it Al. Everyone in that place is a dickhead. And besides, your smart. You can be somebody." I said, brushing off her rant. That never went down well.

"Not able?! What the FUCK Edward!! You are too smart! Smarter than most people I know!! And how the hell would you know what people in school are like? You went for orientation day on your first year, and bunked off everyday for 6 months then dropped out. I would like you to be in school with me. Even if you are a year ahead. And don't even try tell me that you can't be somebody. You have so much potential! You're wasting it here Edward. You could be anything." She sighed.

"Alice, I'm sorry. I can't deal with it okay? I know that's not enough of an explanation… but its all I've got."

"Whatever Edward. If you're not going to listen to me what the hell is the point."

I sighed. I hated doing this to her. I loved her more than anything. More than our other sister for sure. I know you're supposed to love all your family equally, but Rosalie was a bitch. That was the only word for it. At least Alice is here. Rosalie left at 17. Pregnant at 19. Mommy and wife to the biggest asshole in the world, Emmett, at the ripe old age of 20. Alice was all I had left now. I didn't want to lose her. She wasn't at home much lately. She says a friend of hers is going through a rough time, but she never gives me any details. Not that I would ask… It's none of my business.

She turned her back and began to walk out of my room.

"Wait! Al! I'm sorry okay? You said you bunked off to talk to me? What's wrong?" I suddenly felt nervous. Why would Alice bunk off just to talk to me?

"Oh… Eh, yeah. I need to ask a favour." She said hesitantly.

"Shit Al. What's wrong?"

"Nothing! Everything's fine! Honest… and I'm not really asking a favour… More… Telling you something."

"Eh… Okay?"

"My friend, Bella, well she-"

"Crazy one who eats up all your time and has issues?" I asked.

"Fuck you. She's got problems at home. Us of all people should understand that so… Fuck you."

"Okay! Okay! Back down!" I laughed nervously, more Wrath-of-Alice was not what I needed.

"Right, well she needs a place to crash. She's coming here. Say whatever you want, she needs a place for a couple days. So make the house someway decent. Thanks."

"Hey, hey! Hold on a second! Not once have you ever had anyone over? Ever! Why now? What's so messed up that she cant go somewhere else?"

"I don't know the exact details of this particular incident, but I don't think that's the point. I think its an accumulation of incidents. She just needs somewhere to go. And I am the only one she has. Like it or not, we'll be here around 5."

"Okay, but what about mom?"

"What about her? She said she'd be back In 2 weeks. That was a week ago! Bella will be gone before then."

"Whatever. Its fine by me. Not like I have a choice right?"

"I'm glad we came to an agreement." She flashed a wicked smile at me and bent down to kiss the top of my head.

"Love you Edward, even if you act like a complete tool," she sighed.

"Thanks Al." I laughed.

"Oh and why are you not in work?" she asked.

"Holidays. Thank lord," I replied, thinking about the fact that 'lord' and I didn't quite see eye to eye, but I seemed to address him a lot.

"'kay," she said, non-chalantly. "Around 5! Don't forget."

"Yes Al. Go back to school."

"Yes Dad," she mocked.

We both laughed but held back the look of pain at that word.

She left, closing my door behind her. New person… I thought to myself. This is going to be weird. This chick had no idea how any of the crap we had made over the years to make this house work semi-properly, worked. Screw that. She'd have to learn if she was gonna stay for a week.

I finished my Pop Tart, and got up to take the cold shower that awaited me.