A/N: I adopeted this story from gorgus818. This is the first seven chapters which she wrote. The next chapter will be mine. Please review and tell me what you think. This is an EmmettxBella story. No flames please. Edward does NOT cheat on Bella with Rosalie like most stories. Edward is the senior instead of Emmett. This story was requested by Sharnii Brooke so it is dedicated to them.

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or any of its characters. If I did I would make Jasper and Jake fight over me dreams

EmPOV

Ah high school. The average teenager's place for new learning. But for a hundred year old vampire it begins to feel a tad repetitive. As I sat in my English classroom staring out of the window I began thinking about the obvious excitement that was in the air this morning. The rest of my classmates were practically bouncing in their seats at the news of a new student. Isabella Swan, the local police chief's daughter, was starting at Forks High today. I was still yet to see her but her presence didn't hold much interest for me, my family and I weren't exactly very popular. The human's instinct generally told them to steer clear of us. Smart humans. I was suddenly pulled out of my day dreaming (the only kind of dreaming vampires got) by a nasal voice yelling my name.

"Cullen!" screamed my annoying English teacher, Mrs Miller, "Did you just hear a word I was saying?"

"Yeah. You said 'Cullen! Did you just hear a word I was saying'", I replied truthfully.

"Don't be a smart-alec with me. Now pay attention", she yelled, turning back to the board.

None of the female teachers ever gave me a detention, they seemed to just do what every other girl did, turn the other way looking hot and flustered. I went back to staring out the window for the rest of the lesson. I guess Mrs Miller gave up on me as she didn't call on me again. When I finally heard the bell ring, I was got up quickly, for a human, and was the first out of the classroom. I was in such a hurry to get out, I was the first to arrive at the Cullen lunch table. I sat there for another minute before Alice and Jasper arrived. They were holding hands as they walked to the table. I started fidgeting at their slow pace until they finally arrived. Jasper sat next to me and Alice was opposite Jasper. At that moment Edward and Rose turned up. You could tell it was them just by the flash of bronze and blonde stuck together. They were making out. Again. They took their usual place at our table with a full tray of food. We each picked up a morsel and began playing with it. Just by touching the food, no one even bothered to see if we ate it.

"How you holding up Jazz?" I asked, looking to my left at Jasper strained face. He hadn't been hunting in two weeks so we were really pushing him to the limits. He was the newest to our lifestyle choice of 'vegetarianism'.

"I can't see anything coming so he's going to be fine", said Alice, answering for Jasper.

At that moment, I heard the whole room go quiet. I looked around for the source of the peace only to see a small, pale girl walk into the room accompanied by none other than the school bitch, Jessica Stanley. That girl had at least one bad thing to say about every single person in the school. The poor girl next to her look scared out of her wits. Judging by the pool of blood under her cheeks, she was not one for attention. Jessica led her over to their table and began introducing everyone to her. She stuttered her name to the table.

"Hi. I'm B-Bella", I couldn't help but laugh when she tripped on her way around the table. She was just a tad clumsy. I heard a cough from behind me and turned to look at Edward. He was staring at me quizzically.

"What are you laughing at?" he asked.

"Nothing. Just the new girl. She's a klutz", Edward focused his attention on Bella. After a couple of minutes his brow furrowed. He began staring intently at where she sat.

"What's wrong Eddie?" I asked, using my favourite (his least favourite) nickname for him. He ignored his name for once.

"I can't 'hear' her. It's like she's not even there", he turned his head to Alice and began firing questions at her, hoping that she would know what's going on with his head. I continued staring at her until she finally turned around and noticed my fascinated stare.

"I'm guessing she just asked about you because Jessica's mind is going crazy with rather rude thoughts about the new girl and us", he gestured his head towards their table even though all my attention was focused on her. For some reason I couldn't take my eyes off her. She was just so interesting to watch. The way her eyelashes brushed her cheek when she looked down, which was often as she looked like she had trouble meeting all the eyes in her direction. Every time she spoke, I would listen intently just so I could hear her voice again. Edward nudged me with his elbow and I tore my eyes off the mesmerizing beauty sitting at the table across the room. He gave me a look.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked appalled. Oops. That's right. He could hear every thought of her going through my head, "Have you realised she's human? Don't try to get involved"

"I know. It's just…" I turned my attention back to her. She was looking at me now. I practically did a double take when I saw her eyes. They were the most luxurious shade of brown. Almost as if they were bottomless, never ending. Edward elbowed me again and turned back to him.

"What?" I growled.

"Dude, stop staring at her. It's not going to happen", at this point, everyone at our table was listening to Edward and I's discussion.

"What's going on Edward?" asked Alice.

"Emmett's got a girlfriend", he replied. I punched him in the arm. She wasn't my girlfriend…yet. He glared at me again. Oh right. Mind reader.

"What?" asked Jasper, joining in to the conversation.

"I do not have a girlfriend. She's just interesting to watch", I said innocently. Letting my eyes wander back to Bella. She was still staring at our table. I could hear Jessica yelling her name, trying to get her attention. Alice's eyes followed mine.

"What? The new girl?" she asked, her voice giving her thirst for information away.

"Her name's Bella and she's not, I repeat not, my girlfriend", I told them, still looking in Bella's direction.

"You are so smitten!" said Edward between laughs.

"Such the smitten kitten", agreed Alice.

I looked back to Bella once more before the bell for class went. Was I falling for her?

mPOV

I walked into Biology with Bella on my mind. What was wrong with me? I haven't even spoken to this girl. Hell, she isn't even the same species as me. It's like a lion trying to mate with a lamb. (A/N: Like the reference?) I sat down at my usual table by myself. I was used to being alone in half of my classes. My mind automatically wandered to a certain pair of deep brown eyes. My attention was brought back to reality when the teacher announced a new member to the class. I looked up to see the same eyes I had been day dreaming about just a second ago.

"This is Isabella Swan", she looked uneasy at being called by her full name. Mr Varner turned his direction to her, "Isabella, why don't you go take a seat by Emmett"

All I could do was stare as the modern day goddess came walking down the aisle towards me. When she got to my chair, she went to turn and take the seat next to me but ended up falling down in the process. I shot my arm out in a not-so-human style and managed to catch her before her face hit the floor. Everyone was giggling behind their hands while she struggled to get up, her face brighter than Mr Varner's shirt today, which was candy apple red. I grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. I guided her around my chair and into her seat.

"You didn't need to help me into the chair as well", she said a little sheepishly.

"I know but judging by the amount of times I've seen you trip today, you could use the extra help", she looked down at the ground as I said this. I watched once again as her eyelashes brushed her cheek.

"Today-" droned Mr Varner, "we will be studying onion root tip cells and labelling them into their current stage of mitosis. (A/N: is that right? Oh well. It sounds science-y) You will be with your current lab partner. Swan, you're with Cullen", I felt my insides jump for joy. Lab partners.

Mr Varner handed out the microscopes and slides while I tried to start a conversation with Bella.

"Umm… Hi. My name's Emmett Cullen. You must be Bella. I noticed you staring at me during lunch. Is that because of my friends Thunder and Lightning?" I asked jokingly, flexing my muscles.

"No, you had food on your face", she said seriously before breaking into a smile. If my cold, dead heart could beat, it would have stopped.

"Why did you call me Bella?" she asked, serious again. Boy this girl could change her mood in a second.

"Why? Don't you like Bella?" I asked her, confused. At lunch she'd been telling everyone to call her Bella.

"No. It's just everyone has been calling me Isabella. I was thinking my Dad had been telling everyone to call me Isabella. How did you know to call me that?" she asked. Oops. I guess I just blew my cool guy act.

"I heard you tell it to everyone at lunch", I admitted, a little ashamedly.

"But I was all the way across the room. How could you have heard me?" she asked, looking confused.

"I was trying very hard to hear your voice again. And now that I'm telling you, it makes it just that little bit more pathetic", I hung my head in embarrassment.

She placed a finger under my chin and lifted my head up. "Why would that make you pathetic?" she asked, looking at me caringly. I couldn't help but answer her.

"Because I just told you how much I was interested in you", I rubbed the back of my neck in anticipation, "Would you like to, y'know, maybe want to go out some-" I was cut off by an irritated Mr Varner.

"Cullen!" he barked, "Is that something you would like to share with the rest of us?" He looked a bit ticked off so I decided not to press his patience any more. I kept my mouth shut and he eventually turned back to the board, but not before glaring a bit more.

I was just starting to pay attention again when my elbow was hit by a piece of paper. I unfolded the not and read it underneath my bench.

Referring to the question that you were about to ask.

I'd love to.

She had added a little love heart to the bottom of the note and I couldn't help but smile when I saw that she'd used 'love'.

The bell signalling the end of the day went and I was filled by a sudden sadness. It would be another 12+ hours until I would see her face again. I watched her leave the room, brushing her hair aside to turn and smile at me. I could have sworn my cold, dead heart had beat once more. I laughed at myself. Like that would ever happen. I exited the classroom and made my way towards Edward's Volvo. Why couldn't he have a good car? What I wouldn't give to be able to take my Wrangler to school. Just for one day. I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind and continued walking, too slowly for my liking, to the shiny car parked a couple of yards in front of me. Edward was giving me a 'I-know-what-you-did-last-summer' look on his face. I shrugged my shoulders apologetically and climbed into the car. Alice was bouncing in her seat in delight about something.

"What is it Alice?" I asked impatiently. She was always excited about something.

"When do I get to meet her?" she asked. Honestly, the girl got more confusing by the second.

"Who?" I asked.

"Bella of course! I had a vision about my future best friend!" Yep. Crazier and crazier.

I ignored Alice on the ride home and spent the remainder of the afternoon sitting on the couch, thinking about every move Bella had made that day. Why was I so hung up on this girl? She was only human. But I continued fidgeting in anticipation for the next day. I eventually gave up.

That was the beginning of the many nights that I would watch Bella Swan sleep.

I ran up to Carlisle's study and knocked lightly on the door.

"Come in", said Carlisle from behind the door.

I walked into the room and was immediately intimidated by all the books in there. I hadn't even attempted to read any of them. That was more Edward's kind of thing.

"I'm going out Carlisle. Don't expect me back anytime tonight", I told him, praying that he wouldn't question where I was going.

"Where are you going son?" he asked. Why did he have to be so perceptive, "Is something wrong?"

"I'm going to Bella's house. I have to be near her. It's killing me not hearing her heart beating. You have no idea how much I am struggling to not jump out that window right now and run to her"

Carlisle gave a small chuckle and looked into my eyes. "Whatever you think is necessary to make you happy son. Now go before you explode", he looked at my hands. They were clenched into fists by my side.

I ran down the stairs and out the door. I caught a brief glimpse of Edward and Alice's faces. Edward looked mortified whereas Alice looked elated. I ran as fast as I could, following her scent to a small house on the outskirts of town. It looked pleasant. I could imagine her walking through the little house in her slippers and pyjamas. I noticed that her fragrance was stronger around a window across from the large tree in the front yard. I scaled the tree in record time and listened for her heart beat. It was steady which meant that she was falling into a deep sleep. I heard her mumble my name sleepily. My dead heart swelled to twice its size.

I leapt into the room and sat down on the rocking chair in the corner. I studied Bella's sleeping form and noticed a small pool of drool by the corner of her mouth. I laughed quietly to myself. Trust my Bella to make me laugh. Wait a minute? Did I just refer to her as 'my Bella'? I hadn't even known the girl for a whole 24 hours and already I was calling her mine. I shook my head to clear my thoughts which is why I hadn't realised that Bella's breathing was becoming shallower and she was waking up. I looked up suddenly when I heard her heart go wild. She was sitting bolt upright in bed with her hair frizzed in a bird's nest on top of her head. I couldn't stop the loud guffaw that escaped my lips when I saw her. I was still rolling on the floor when I heard her father wake up. I pressed my finger to my lips in an attempt to get her to keep quiet. I ran at vampire speed into her closet as the door creaked open and Chief Swan's head poked through the doorway.

"Bella? Is someone in here?" he asked. I bit my lip, hoping that she wouldn't give me away.

"No. Why?" she replied. I stopped biting my lip and smiled. She trusted me. I guessed that I would have to tell her an excuse of some sort soon. I DID just run into her closet at vampire speed. To her it probably looked like I just disappeared. I tuned back into the conversation in Bella's bedroom. It had somehow turned to the topic of night lights.

"When you were little you had a little Disney princess one. It had all of your favourite characters and you would cry and cry until your mother or I turned it on. You never slept without it", Bella yawned loudly to hint to her dad that she was tired, "Oh right. Sorry Bells, I'll go back to bed now. Sleep tight" And with that he left the room. I waited until I could hear his snores before I came out of the closet. (A/N: HAHA! It took me a while to realise what I was writing) I ran over to Bella's bed and got down on my knees.

"Please, please, please don't tell anyone what happened tonight", I begged quietly. She looked at me curiously before asking the question I had been dreading she would say.

"What are you?" she was still studying me.

"I-I can't tell you. I wish I could but there's no possible way that I can. It would ruin everything my family has worked so hard to build in Forks. And…" I started rambling on about nothing in particular. I was too scared to form smart sentences. Bella gently pressed her finger to my lips. I felt a jolt of emotion run through me from the place where her skin had touched mine. I could tell she felt it too as she jumped back, hitting her head on her bedside table. She slumped over, falling unconscious, sliding off the bed. I ran over and caught her before she hit the ground. I smelled the sweet scent of her blood and realised that it was pouring out from the gash on the back of her head. I realised that she would need to go to hospital and it would be too hard to make up a story to Charlie if I took her straight there so I gently placed her on the ground in front of her bedside table and squealed like a girl. I didn't hear a change in Charlie's breathing so I tried again. He finally woke this time and I leapt out the window and into the outskirts of the forest near her house.

I hear Charlie swear and his puffing and panting as he tried to lift Bella up off the ground. I checked my watch and it was only 10pm. If I came around the corner, I could say that I was having a night time stroll which meant that I could help Charlie with Bella. It pained me to be away from her so I decided to put my plan into action. I ran around the corner of her street and waited until I heard Charlie walk out their front door. I chose that time to walk over and fake shock at the sight of Bella. I ran over to where Charlie was struggling to help an unconscious Bella into the police cruiser. I noticed with relief that Charlie had wrapped her head in a towel which meant that the smell of her blood was less potent.

"What happened to Bella Chief Swan?" I asked in fake surprise.

"She rolled off her bed and smashed her head on the bedside table. She's bleeding pretty badly so I guess it's time for another ride to the hospital", he sighed as though they had visited there many a time.

"Did you need any help? I could carry her", I suggested. He sized me up and looked at Bella, half hanging out of the cruiser with her head and upper body still in Charlie's arms.

"Couldn't hurt to have a bit of help. Just lay her down in the backseat and sit with her. If she wakes up just try to calm her down", and with that he handed me Bella and climbed into the front seat. I carefully placed her in the seat on the far side and climbed in. I leaned her body against mine and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. I noticed Charlie looking at me in the rear view mirror and frown.

We pulled up at Forks Hospital 20 minutes later than if I had driven at my speed. I scooped Bella up into my arms and followed Charlie into the emergency room. We were told to remain in the waiting room until we were called in to see Bella by a doctor. We were there for only half an hour until my father walked out and spotted Charlie and I looking worried. He walked over and shook Charlie's hand.

"Hello. My name's Dr. Carlisle Cullen, Emmett's father", he nodded his head in my direction, "Bella will be just fine. It's just a minor cut to the back of her head but due to the position of the cut, it bled quite a lot. She had to have a blood transfusion but she's sleeping", he turned his attention to me, "Emmett, could I speak to you privately for a second" He pulled me into an empty room.

"What happened?" he demanded in a calm tone.

"I was in her room and she woke up without me realising and saw me there. I begged her to keep quiet and hid in the closet when Charlie came in. I stayed there until Charlie was back in bed asleep and I came out and asked her not to tell anyone I was there. I was babbling on because I was so nervous and she put her finger to my lips and I felt this sudden jolt. It was like all of the emotions she's ever felt flowed through me. The same thing happened to her and she jumped back and hit her head" I finished. Carlisle's brow furrowed as though he was thinking about something strange.

"You say that you felt a sudden shock of emotions?" he asked, looking like he knew something I didn't.

"Yeah", I said slowly, "Why?"

"Nothing. It's just, I've heard of this happening to a couple of friends of mine. They say it was like they couldn't stand to be away from the other. A bit like love at first sight but not as strong"

I was fidgeting as he said this. He looked down at my hands and noticed that they were reaching towards the door.

"Go", he said with a laugh. He pushed me towards the door. I ran at human speed to Bella's room, following her scent. I crashed through the door and Charlie jumped. He had been sleeping in the chair in the corner of Bella's room. I walked over to Bella's bed and leaned over her stirring face.

"Bella?" I whispered, not wanting to wake her up purposely. Her eyes opened wide and I felt her launch herself at me. She crushed her lips to mine. I felt the fire in my throat burn harder and I felt myself kiss her back. I pulled her off me, looking at her in surprise.

"What was that?" I asked.

Bella looked at me, confusion evident on her face.

"Can't a girl kiss the guy she loves?" she asked.

"Hold on!" yelled Charlie, "Love? How can you love him? You've only met him once"

"Once? Charlie, we've been out heaps of times", she looked between Charlie and me.

I turned to Charlie, "Let me handle this. You go wait outside" He turned and huffed out of the room. I turned back to Bella.

"Bella, we've never been on a date. We've spoken once but that's it", I said slowly, willing her to understand.

"No", she said defiantly, "What about our date at La Bella Italia and that time in the meadow and then I met your family. Emmett, you sleep in my bed every night" Her eyes told me that she was getting confused every second.

"Bella I don't know what you're talking about. None of that ever happened. You must have been dreaming. I'm sorry but we've only ever spoken to each other once in Biology. I'm going to go get Charlie" I turned to leave but she grabbed my wrist. I stopped, as if she could stop me, and turned to face Bella but I was met by a pair of shocked brown eyes. Crap. She was holding where my pulse should have been.

"Emmett", she said warily, "Why don't you have a pulse?" She sat up and put her hand on my chest, "Or a heartbeat. Emmett please tell me this is some kind of sick joke. Emmett?!"

"Bella calm down. Please, I will tell you. Just not now, okay? Please", I looked at her pleadingly.

"Fine", she huffed, "But I won't forget" And I knew she wouldn't.

--

It was Friday morning. Bella came out of hospital yesterday after spending the remainder of the night there and the next day at home. I was sitting in the car on the ten minute drive to the inevitable high school experience. Edward pulled into the Forks High car park and I saw Bella waiting for me on the only bench outside. I tried opening the door at a slow human pace but I was shoved out of the car by Jasper.

"Geez Emmett. Could you go any slower?" he looked irritated. I stood in front of where Jasper was climbing out and stretched and yawned, blocking his escape. I heard him growl and hopped out of the way with a, can only be described as goofy, grin on my face. He huffed away and grabbed Alice by the waist and led her into the main building. I walked over to where Bella was standing, tapping her foot on the ground impatiently.

"Wow Bella, impatient much?" I asked, nodding my head in the direction of her foot.

"Well for a non-human you are pretty slow getting out of a car", I clamped a hand over her mouth, preventing her from saying anything else, I looked around to see if anyone had heard what she said. Apparently no one had.

"Say it louder Bella. I don't think China heard you. And why am I suddenly being accused of being not human?"

"Well for one thing you're heart doesn't beat and you don't have a pulse, you ran at such a speed to my closet and you were in my room late at night. None of those things add up to normal, Emmett", she had a point.

"Will you ditch with me?" I asked. I had to tell her. She could easily piece it together and I wanted her to realise how much she could impact on my family's lives.

"Wha-? Emmett I can't just ditch school", she argued. Goody goody.

"Bella I would rather be alone when we discussed certain things", I hinted.

Realisation dawned on her face. I grabbed her hand and drug her to the Volvo. By this time, everyone was in their first class so the parking lot was empty. We drove in silence until we reached a small park in the center of town. There was no one around so I sat down with Bella in the long grass.

"Emmett", she said, "Before you say anything, I like you, no matter what you say. You could be a vampire and I wouldn't care" I couldn't stop the laughter that escaped my lips. Of all the non human things in the mythical world, she had to say vampire.

"Emmett this is no laughing matter", she scolded. I continued laughing.

"I'm not laughing at you, just something you said. Something that's utterly true", I guffawed.

"But I didn't…" the truth dawned on her. "Vampire?" she whispered. I nodded. She started scrambling away from where I sat. I grabbed her wrist.

"Bella, listen to me. My family and I are different to the other vampires. We drink animal blood, not human. Please Bella, listen to what I'm saying. There is no way that I could ever hurt you. Please stay", I pleaded with her to listen to what I was saying. She peered up at me from underneath her eyelashes and I was momentarily dazzled. I noticed that her mouth was moving but my ears couldn't detect specific words. She waved her hand in front of my face and I was brought back to the present.

"Emmett? Are you okay?" she asked. She looked genuinely worried about me.

"Yeah I'm fine. You just dazzled me", I said.

"I dazzle you?"she asked, confused.

"Frequently" I smiled.

After the little dazzling incident, I took Bella to the meadow that I had found a couple of months ago. When we arrived, Bella was shocked.

"It's just like my dream"

We sat down in a particularly long patch of grass. There were tiny yellow flowers dotted here and there all around us and we were surrounded by thick forest. I carried Bella the whole way, running at a pace that was just a bit too fast for humans. I started to think about the day's events when I was brought back to reality by a slight warmth trailing along the lines of my arm muscles. I turned to look at Bella; she was dragging her fingertips along my skin. I stared at her in wonderment. God she was beautiful. She looked up at me quizzically.

"I'm sorry. Is this annoying you?" she looked worried at the thought of an angry vampire. I suppressed a chuckle and answered her.

"No. Quite the opposite", I watched her as she silently began tracing the lines of my muscles. I sighed and became wrapped up in my own thoughts again. It took me a while before I realised how close Bella was. She had her head on my chest and was absentmindedly stroking my abs. I inhaled and felt her sweet scent inflame the back of my throat. But I couldn't move, I was infatuated with this girl. She was all I could ever want and more. I ignored the burning in my throat and stroked her hair. She turned her head to face me and looked up, surprised. I couldn't stop myself as I leaned down and touched my lips to hers. The response was instant. Her arms wrapped around my neck and her hands tangled in my curly hair. I felt the monster in me rise up and I had to stop the kiss. I was too close to losing control and there was no way I would ever hurt my Bella. She looked hurt when I gently pushed her away so I had to explain it to her.

"I'm sorry Bella. You have to realise that even though I do drink only animal blood, I still yearn for human blood. When I kiss you for too long, my inner vampire could take over and I could hurt you. But I promise that I will never, repeat, never hurt you. Whether it be physically or emotionally" I tried to express my sincerity in my face and words so that she would know that I meant every word. I drug my finger along the lines of her jaw and cupped her chin in my large hand, I pulled her closer and kissed her once, twice with such gentleness.

"See", I said with a smile, "Easy. Just try not to push me over the edge" I gave her my goofy grin and grabbed her hand. "Want to come over to my house?"

"S-Sure", she stuttered.

"Don't worry. No coffins, I promise", I pulled her onto my back once again. "Do you want to see how I travel?"

"Okay", she seemed a bit unsure.

I took off at full speed and I felt her hold on for dear life.

"Close your eyes if you're scared", I told her.

We reached the Cullen household 3 and a half minutes later. I let Bella slide off my back but had to spin around quickly to grab her as she slid to the ground in a daze. I held her up steady and clutched her to my chest.

"What's wrong Bella? Was the vampire too fast?" I was teasing her a bit by the end. I couldn't resist.

"Shut up Emmett. I think I'm gonna spew", she started swaying in my arms so I held her tighter, still not crushing her fragile body. I scooped her up into my arms and made my way to the door. We got through the door without any problems but halfway to the couch Bella started retching and struggling to get out of my arms. I raced her to the nearest bathroom and held her hair as she emptied her breakfast into the toilet.

"Go away Emmett. You don't need to see this", she moaned.

"No, I don't need to see this but I'm not leaving Bella"

We stayed in the bathroom for another couple of minutes until she was finished. I sat back on the bathroom floor and pulled her into my lap. I stroked her hair and rested my chin on her shoulder. She held my hands in her lap and we stayed there until Bella whispered that she was a bit hungry. We got up and I carried her down to the kitchen. Luckily we had some human food stocked for show. I watched as she spread some thick brown stuff on a piece of bread.

"What's that?" I asked in disgust. Honestly, the goo smelled feral.

"It's peanut butter. Want some?" I let the laugh in my throat escape and looked at her as though she were missing something incredibly obvious.

"What?" she asked.

"Bella, I don't eat food", I said slowly. The piece of bread in her mouth dropped out as her mouth hung open.

"You don't eat? What else don't you do?" She seemed a bit shocked with maybe a hint of fright.

"Boy, this could take a while", I counted off the things on my fingers as I said them, "Sleep, breathe, I don't age, my heart doesn't beat, we can't die like normal people. I think that's it" I looked over at Bella. Her peanut butter sandwich was now on the floor although her hand was still in the position it had been in while she ate it. I think she was in shock.

"You can't die?" she asked.

"Like normal people", I said, finishing her sentence, "We can die, it's just a bit harder. I'm sorry if this is a bit too much right now. I'm not trying to scare you. I just thought you should know"

"I'm fine, I'm fine. It's just a bit strange when someone tells you that they're a vampire. It tends to scare you a bit" She laughed a nervous laugh. It reminded me of bells pealing.

I shook my head in disbelief. "I'm still waiting for you to run out of that door screaming over something that I've said. Yet here you are, taking everything so calmly"

"That's not going to happen. I would never run away from someone like you. Every word you say just lets me know that you trust me to keep your secret safe. And that means a lot to me", she smiled and kissed my shocked forehead. I laughed a booming laugh at the fact that she had to stand on her toes just to reach. I bent down and pressed my lips to hers. It was a brief kiss but for some reason I got the feeling that my life was going to get a whole lot better.

Our 'moment' was ruined by a small, annoying pixie bounding into the room. I shot her a quick glare before turning my attention back to the angel in my arms.

"What do you want Alice?" I asked not even bothering to turn my head.

"Well it looks like it's going to storm tonight" her voice dripping with double meaning.

"Excellent!" I boomed. Bella covered her ears. "Sorry", I said apologetically.

"Don't worry", she said with a laugh. God I love it when she laugh but especially when I'm the one making her laugh.

"Emmett", Alice whined, "Are you coming or not?" I gave her a look. "Of course Bella's invited"

I looked back down at Bella. "Bella would you like to watch some baseball?" I asked. Please say yes, please say yes.

"Sure?" she looked a bit taken aback.

"This isn't like normal baseball Bella. This is vampire baseball. A tad more extreme and loads more fun"

"Oh, okay", she seemed more confident of her answer, "Will I need a raincoat?"

Alice stared into the future for a second.

"Nope", she said, her lips popping on the 'p'.

----

I pulled up in front of Bella's house in my beloved Jeep. You could hear the faint rumble of thunder coming from over the mountains heading in this direction. Alice was right yet again. I hopped out of the driver's seat and strode over to Bella's front door. I rang the bell and waited for someone to open the door. I heard scuffling from inside and Bella's panicked whispers. Seconds later Charlie opened the door.

"Good evening Emmett. I hear you've convinced my daughter to play baseball. That's quite a feat there son. Come in, please", you could tell he was only being polite for Bella's sake. You could practically see the scrutiny in his stance. He had his arms crossed with his eyes watching my every move. He gestured for me to enter and I walked past him and over to where Bella was standing. I leaned down to give her a quick kiss but she turned her head to the side at the last second and I ended up giving her a peck on the cheek. She looked embarrassed and I realised that she wasn't one for public displays of affection. I turned and stood next to her, taking her hand in mine. I noticed her dad's face start to go red so I realised her hand the tiniest bit until we were only holding each others fingers. Charlie's eyes moved from my face, to Bella's face, to our hands then back again. He let out a sigh and motioned for us to sit with him in the living room. We sat on the loveseat with Charlie on the sofa. He narrowed his eyes, pulled out a notebook and started talking.

"Full name?" he quizzed.

"No Dad. Please! Not the BF Test", Bella moaned. BF Test?

"Bella I'm just keeping you safe", he turned his attention back to me, "Full name?"

"Uh… Emmett Cullen"

"Do you have a job?"

"No sir"

"Tsk Tsk. Bad answer", he made a note on his pad.

"Wait, my family is rich. There's no need for me to have a job", I said, desperately trying to make up for my mistake. There was no way one test was going to stop me from seeing Bella.

"So you're a pretty, rich boy are you?" he said with distaste in his voice.

"Dad!" said a shocked Bella, "Emmett's not like that. Give him a lifeline on that one"

"Fine, but only 'cause I love you Bells", he crossed out whatever he had written on the notepad, "Age?"

"17"

"Do you date a girl and never call her back?"

"Um… I've never had a girlfriend before" Charlie all but fell off his chair.

"What are you? Gay?"

"Dad!" Bella yelled.

"It's okay Bella. No I'm not gay. It's just that all the girls in this town aren't even close to Bella's level. She's just right for me" I looked at Bella and smiled. She smiled back and we spent what can only be described as forever, looking into each other's eyes.

"Okay, okay. No need to get a sappy. What made you like Bella in the first place?"

"I don't know", I answered truthfully.

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"I'm not sure why I like her. It's just everything about her. I can't say just one thing. It's the combination of everything about her that makes her so special" I had turned my attention back to Bella as I said this. She ignored Charlie and gave me a quick kiss on the lips. We turned back to Charlie, whose eyes were bugging out of his head.

"Kissing?! You're already kissing?" he yelled.

"Dad", whined Bella, holding her hands over her ears, "We don't live in the 1900s"

"Yes but I grew up in them and I don't like seeing my daughter kissing a boy she hasn't known for even a week. It's just not right"

"Okay Dad. No kissing in front of you. Can we kiss when we're married?" she added sarcastically. Married? She was thinking about marriage too? I wasn't a freak!

"Don't test me Bella"

"I think we'd better get going Bella. The others will be wondering where we are", I said, getting up.

"Others? No one mentioned any others", said Charlie.

"I just meant my family. My two sisters, two brothers and my parents", I tried to emphasise the part about the parents.

Charlie started muttering to himself and turned the television on. I took that as our queue to leave. I grabbed Bella's hand and led her out the door.

"Don't stay out too late", were Charlie's parting words as we walked out the door.

BPOV

I let out a low whistle when I saw the monstrous truck parked in front of Charlie's house.

"What the hell is that?" I managed to choke out. Emmett stared at me with wide, hurt eyes.

"That's my baby!" He proceeded to soothe the vehicle. I shook my head at him until I noticed how far the passenger seat was to the ground.

"Emmett? How am I supposed to get in?" I asked. He walked over and ruffled my hair.

"Silly Bella, I'll lift you" and with that he scooped me up, into his arms and placed me in the seat. He continued on to buckle me up in what can only be described as a klutz's death trap.

He walked at human pace to the other side of the Jeep and lithely jumped into the driver's side seat. I jumped when the car roared to life, the loud sound frightening me.

We continued driving for another 20 minutes until we pulled up somewhere along the highway, next to a small trail leading into the forest. I turned and gaped at Emmett.

"We're walking?!" I screeched. He laughed loudly and undid my off-roading harness. I continued to glare at him until I was curled up against his chest as he plopped me back onto my feet on the ground. I began walking angrily toward the trail until Emmett cleared his throat.

"Um Bella? We're going this way", he said, inclining his head the other way.

"But there's no trail! Have you not seen me walk? I'll fall over-" he cut me off.

"And I'll catch you. Bella if you're so worried about tripping I could carry you?" Did he honestly expect me to let him carry me after the first time? Nu uh! No way!

"If we want to get there before dawn, we'd better get going. Lead the way Lassie" He grinned and took my hand in his as we walked between the trees. It took another half hour until we reached a large clearing where the other six Cullens were all warming up for their game of baseball.

"Emmett, I shouldn't have worn these pants. I can't run in them. I'll make you lose", I started to rattle off excuses that would get me out of playing baseball. Just walking could possibly mean a trip to the emergency room; I didn't want to imagine me playing baseball.

"You're not playing Bella. Don't worry. You're here to watch", I could not describe the relief that flowed through me. Esme suddenly appeared next to me. Damn vampires and their inhuman speed.

"You're going to umpire, with me" Suddenly, everyone's attention was to Alice.

She looked around at all of the Cullens, gave a smug smile and nodded. Game on!

As Jasper stood up to bat, showing off just a bit. He did a couple of test swings until he was ready. It appeared that Alice's pitching technique was surprise as she barely moved her hand to throw the ball. If I blinked, I would have missed it completely. With a deafening thwack the ball was flying through the air, only to be followed closely by Edward. I watched in awe as he gracefully jumped from tree to tree to gain enough height to catch the ball in mid air.

"Out!" I called.

The game continued on in the same fashion for the next hour. Rosalie, Carlisle and Jasper were down by 2 runs (A/N: I live in Australia so I don't watch baseball so my knowledge is pretty limited. Sorry for incorrect terms). They were determined to win and I was determined to stay awake to see it. But my body had other plans. I felt myself start to waver into sleep as I sat and watched the game. I decided to go for a walk to wake myself up.

"Esme? I'm just going to go for a little walk around the clearing, okay?" I yelled to Esme. She nodded her approval as Rosalie came up to bat. I strolled around for a bit, not really paying attention to the game. I could faintly hear a commotion going on between the Cullen kids. It seems that Jasper used his 'ability' to confuse the opposing team in order for them to win. Emmett had explained all the quirks of the family to me in one of our trips to the meadow. Things like how Alice can see the future, how Carlisle is over 300 years old and Edward's mind reading abilities. I was glad to know I was an exception to his gift. Oh great. The argument is turning into a fight. I lightly cleared my throat. Immediately I was met by seven curious faces. I cleared my throat again and spoke at a normal volume, knowing they could hear me anyway.

"Um… sorry to interrupt the argument slash fight. I just thought I'd remind you that it might not be the safest thing for me. You know, human and all" I smiled sheepishly and some of their faces showed embarrassment. Rosalie however, spoke back.

"Why should we stop our ritual just because you chose to impose upon our lives?"

"I-uh-sorry?" I stuttered back. Emmett let a growl escape.

"Rose, you have no right to talk to Bella like that!" I could have sworn his eyes were darker.

"Defend her?! You always do. Ugh! Can we just get back to the game?" yelled Rosalie. She stalked back off to the diamond, closely followed by the rest of the family. Emmett shot me an apologetic glance before walking back to the field. I continued walking along the forest edge and sure enough, a few moments later I heard the familiar crack of the ball and bat making contact but what I didn't expect was the crunch as something hard and cold slammed into my body, throwing me into a nearby tree. I could hear a commotion going on and large hands picking me up until the pain and blackness took over.

I knew I was dead yet it was nothing like I'd ever dreamt.

I was in an alley, that's for sure but it felt like something was missing. Like there was a part of me that should've been there but it wasn't.

As I eyed my surroundings my nose was hit with a disgusting stench. Like vomit and urine mixed in with the garbage. I tried holding my nose keep the smell out but when I breathed in I could taste it.

I continued scouting the area. The brick walls surrounding me were a grimy black but I guessed they were a dull grey in their prime.

Dumpsters and trash cans lined the brick walls on either side of me, going on forever. I couldn't even see a street ahead but I could see the dead end behind.

In one little corner between dumpsters, I saw what looked to be a homeless person's 'shelter'.

There were newspapers scattered everywhere and a small piece of tarp placed from one bin to the other, forming a tent-like structure.

Small morsels of food were stashed underneath the dumpsters, in what I guessed was an attempt to keep them from site of another hungry person.

But what freaked me out the most was the lack of life.

There were no rats, cockroaches or ants anywhere. The place looked lived in but I was the only breathing thing in the whole alley.

Suddenly my heart ached as I thought about how alone I was. The missing piece was burning a hole in me, gouging at everything that I had ever or will ever feel.

I sensed that it was somewhere nearby. That I could somehow reach out and touch it.

I began frantically searching for that something but I had no idea what it was.

I pulled the lids off bins and rummaged around until my hands and forearms were covered in food scraps and cigarette butts. But I couldn't find it.

Silent tears streamed down my cheeks as, after every bin, the thing stayed missing.

As I neared the end of the alley, the silent tears turned into hysterical sobs. I clutched at my chest to try and stop the gaping hole of the missing piece of me.

The last dumpster in the alley had a sort of eerie glow to it. It looked promising. As I leaned over the side of the bin, something pushed me forward, letting me tumble in the black depths of the dumpster.

But when I expected to be met face first by a pile of waste, I continued falling.

Every way I looked there just seemed to be endless black. I tried holding my hand out in front of me but I couldn't even see it.

Every so often, I would catch a bright flash of colour. A random purple streak or yellow pulse somewhere in what I guessed was the distance.

But with the black there was no way that I could prove it. And in a way I didn't want to.

Time seemed to have no meaning while I plummeted. But it was an improvement from the alley.

I could hear snippets of conversations that I couldn't see. People I didn't know. But I knew they were talking about me.

I heard words like 'coma' and 'broken'. And sometimes I would hear tearless sobs from a person that I yearned to see.

I knew this person was important to me for my heart ached when I heard their cries for me to wake up. But there was nothing I could do.

Then finally, it stopped. I dropped, head first, into water.

No matter which way I looked though, I couldn't see any light to show me the way out.

I sunk down but I never found the bottom. I swallowed more and more water, my lungs searching for the oxygen that wasn't there.

Suddenly, everything was jolted into reality. My eyes flew open and I caught a quick glimpse of something before I was back in the alley.

It was as though I fell again as I slammed into another bin. The force of the hit should've hurt me, but I didn't feel a thing.

I sat down against the brick wall to my right, pulling my knees up to my chest. I tried to think over what had happened.

I knew I was dead yet it was nothing like I'd ever dreamt.

There was a part of me missing but there was no way I could find it.

I constantly found myself in strange places and there was no way out. I was trapped in my own mind.

Then suddenly I was thrown back into reality.

As I closed my eyes, details came flying back to me.

There was someone shouting. Shouting loudly the word 'clear'. Then there was a jolt, on my chest, from two different points.

I analysed the quick image that I had seen. There were definitely a lot of people. The one that stood out though was the blonde male holding the things to my chest.

He seemed familiar to me. As though I'd seen him before.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by the sound of a door opening.

I quickly looked up to where the noise had come from and saw a large body duck through the doorway, a mass of curly brown hair on its head.

I couldn't believe that I didn't notice the door the first time I was in the alley but at that point in time I didn't care.

All I knew was that I had to get out and that door was the only way.

I ran down the path, trying to reach the door. But it seemed that every step I took, the door would move further back.

No matter how fast I tried to run, I couldn't get to the door. I was stuck.

Then without warning, the door flew open and I was introduced to a pair of pearly white gates. I could see what was beyond the door yet I couldn't reach it.

A part of me was desperate to stay behind but the other part was sure that I would stop missing that something if I went through the door.

With my mind made up, I strode toward the door, my head held high as I let death take me.

"NO! BELLA!"

I whipped my head around and immediately I flew forward.

I'm not sure what happened but one second I was standing just outside the door, looking back into the alley, the next I was being slammed around.

I was repeatedly pushed and shoved into various objects. Each shot was precise, only targeting my chest.

Then everything went black and my eyes opened

A/N: So, there you have it. The first seven chapters. Bella is going to be awake in the next one. Just tell me one thing, do you want her to remember Emmett or not?