So here's the next installment in The Only Exception series. I'm really happy, and I know it's not ten, but my internet is being sporadic, so I wanted to post this while it's behaving. Reviews, please. Oh, and I don't own.

"Wake up, wake up, wake up!" someone was muttering, pacing around my room, if the footsteps were any indicator.

I blinked slowly, letting my eyes focus on the room. "What are you doing here?"

Embry smiled and walked over to my bed, then sat on his knees to look at me. "Waiting for you to wake up."

"Correction," I said, lolling my head over to look at him. "How are you in here?"

"Sue let me in," he said, leaning his face close to mine. "What time did you go to bed last night, Lee?"

I narrowed my eyes at him mockingly. "The same time someone stopped talking to the voices in his head. You know, Bry, most doctors would think that was a bad sign of your mental health."

"You," Embry said, leaning closer so his breath fanned over my lips, "are very bad for my health."

"And you," I said, throwing off my cover, "are far too cheesy this morning." I sat up and made a 'go away' motion. "Go, I need to change."

He stood and sat on my bed next to me, then pulled me into his arms and tried to kiss me, then whined when I pushed him away. "Leah! That's twice in one morning!"

"I know," I said, waving him away. "You're being overly cheesy."

"So now my cheesiness is grounds for penalty? You usually like it!"

I laughed at him. "No, I tolerate it. It's cute. But not when I've just woken up. Now shoo, I need to get dressed, then we can go to Sam and Emily's."

Embry pouted and crossed his arms like a toddler. "I want to kiss my girlfriend before she sees her ex-boyfriend."

My weakness. Over the last few weeks after the bonfire and all that went down with that, Embry and I had been spending more time with Sam and Emily, respectively. Embry was sensitive about having lunch with them together, because it was a first. He was being insecure, and it was kind of cute, but I didn't want him to be jealous of his jackass brother. That, and he called me his girlfriend (a rare occurrence for us to address one another as such), which set about ten billion butterflies loose in my tummy.

"Bry," I said, wrapping my arms around his shoulders. "Don't worry about it. Even if I wanted him, which I don't, I don't have a choice. I need you. Okay?"

He was silent for a minute, then peeked at me out of the corner of his eye. "Can I have a kiss?"

"When we pull up at Sam and Emily's, I'll give you a kiss that'll set anyone straight. Okay?"

He smiled full on. "Okay. Now get dressed, we don't want to be late!"

I stuck tongue out at him and got up, then motioned to the door. "May I?"

"Aw, Lee, you forget I've seen you naked," he said, standing up and giving me a playful look.

"Yeah, Bry, years ago when I phased for the first time. And if you keep this up, I won't kiss you at all."

He was out in a flash, and I was able to dress in peace. I decided to wear one of the dresses Rosalie had bought for me when she and I had gone shopping the day before. It wasn't so bad, hanging out with her, and we'd already decided to do it again soon. The dress she'd picked out was stark white, and she said it contrasted beautifully with my skin. It was a fairly plain sundress, with spaghetti straps and flowing fabric that hit mid-thigh. I paired it with a pair of flip flops and a headband to hold back my choppy hair, then left my room. Embry was sitting in the living room with Mom and Seth, and he gave me a once over and his mouth opened slightly.

"You look so beautiful, Leah!" Mom said, smiling brightly. "That Rosalie girl has good tastes."

I grinned and shrugged. "I guess. C'mon, Bry, we don't want to keep Sam and Emily waiting."

Embry scrambled to follow me and made a point to open the door for me, then opened the passenger door of his car for me. "Milady."

I smirked at him when he got into the drivers side. "What's with the ogling and the gentleman act?"

"Who said it was an act?" he said, sticking his tongue out at me. "And you just look really…"

"Girly?" I teased, shaking my hair.

Embry blushed. "Beautiful. White looks really good on you."

My turn to blush. "You're not getting that kiss until we pull up at Sam and Emily's."

He feigned crying and pulled out of my driveway. The mile and a half to Sam and Emily's was fairly quiet, and when we pulled into their driveway, our hands met in reassurance. I laughed at the way we didn't even read each others' mind to 'read each others' mind', then I turned my head to him and smiled.

"Calm down. You'll get wrinkles," I said, then leaned over and pressed my lips to his softly, raising my free hand to his cheek to bring him closer.

He grabbed my wrist and held me in place for a long moment, not allowing me to break the kiss. When he did pull back, his kissed the inside of my wrist, then my forehead. "Let's go."

Embry got out and opened my door for me, then we went to greet our respective family members. Emily grabbed my hands and dragged me inside the instant I was up to her, leaving the boys to have 'guy time'. She pulled me to the back room that no one used, then covered my eyes so I couldn't see anything.

"Planning on murdering me, Em?" I laughed, trying to fight her hands off of me.

"I found out what I was having yesterday!" she squealed, holding her hands firm. "Do you want to know what it is?"

"Uh, yeah!"

She dropped her hands from my eyes, which were promptly assaulted by all things pink. "It's a girl!"

"It's a girl!" she repeated, clapping her hands together. "I'm having a girl!"

I turned around to embrace my cousin tightly. "Aw, Emily! You'll make a great mother. Hell, you act like a mom to the pack with all the food and spoiling them rotten. You fit right in with Mama Wolf and Mama Leech."

She quirked an eyebrow at me, then shrugged it off. I used to spout out nonsense a lot when we were kids, so I suppose my inner ravings weren't much different. "Can you feel the bump?"

I hadn't noticed it until then, but now that she mentioned it, I felt something foreign pressing lightly against my stomach. "Emily Young-Uley has a baby bump. This is big! The mini-you is gonna be huge!"

She laughed sarcastically, then grinned down at her own stomach. "Yeah, but she'll be worth losing my figure over."

I smiled, then hugged her again. "I'm so happy for you."

"It's conceited, but me, too," she said, squeezing me back. "And Alyssa's been letting me practice on Claire when Quil hasn't kidnapped her to go to the beach or the playground. Though it will be a while before mine is four."

"Oh, I'd say four and a half years," I teased. "But next time you have Claire you should come over to mine for lunch. I haven't seen her in a while."

"It's a date," Emily said, looping her arm through mine. "Now let's go to the kitchen. The boys wanted to cook, so I want to be there to see the show."

My eyes widened comically. "I have to see this."

We traipsed into the kitchen and took seats at the bar, watching the show. At the moment we walked in, Sam was attempting to sauté some peppers and Embry was browning strips of beef. They were both growing frustrated with their jobs, but continued to work, even when Emily tried to offer to help.

"No, dear," Sam kept saying, preoccupied with his work. "I'm handling it."

"But don't you think I could just-" Emily pressed, looking uneasy at the tortillas he was trying to crisp.

Sam looked up and waved his spatula at her. "This is the only thing you've ever let me cook. I'm going to cook."

She bit her lip. "I don't trust you."

"I know."

Their banter was entertaining, and didn't make me the least bit jealous or uneasy. Embry and I kept sharing glances and snickering, occasionally using the mind connection to make a comment to one another without interrupting our entertainment.

When lunch was finally finished, we all sat at their little table to eat the quesadillas the boys had made. The peppers were a little raw and the beef was slightly burnt, but it was actually pretty good (and safe to eat, like it wouldn't be if it were the other way around). As a surprise, Emily had made a peanut butter pie for after lunch, and we all ate hardy slices and chatted. It felt very grown up, but fun at the same time, like a double date of sorts.

We didn't reminisce, at all. The memories for us all were far too painful and complicated, and this lunch and the past weeks of hanging out had been to wipe the slate clean. Embry rarely questioned me about Sam, and I didn't question Emily. We just…coexisted, and we were fine.

All too soon, we were heading back to my house to hang out just Embry and I. That was a very odd drive home, seeing as about six deer ran in front of us. The first, second, and third were startling; the fourth, fifth, and sixth were amusing. On the seventh, we hit the tree.

A/N: Reviews? Thoughts? And trust me, the tree will be funny.

~Sidney