AN: Hello everyone. So this was an idea i came up with last night while i couldn't sleep. Anyways i figured i'd give it a shot for now and see how people seem to like it. Keep in mind its in the very early stages. Please read and review! Also i will still be writing and updating my other story One Day to Change them All. Much love xo

D: Stephenie Meyer owns all known characters.

Chapter 1

I get by with a little help from my friends-The Beatles

Bella's POV

"Alice how many more apartments are you going to make me look at?" I cried as she dragged me out of her car for the tenth time today.

"We haven't found the perfect one for you yet!" she explained as she grabbed my hand and ran me across the street like a little kid.

--

Alice Cullen and I had been best friends since kindergarten. We had an inseparable bond that no one could ever understand. I was a plain Jane kind of girl while Alice was always known for her extravagance. We were total opposites in every aspect of our lives but that never mattered.

Alice was a member of a very wealthy and prestigious family. Her father came from a long line of doctors and he practiced at the Seattle General Hospital. His talent and expertise was rivalled by no other doctor in the country. I always wondered why Dr. Cullen has chosen to start a family in Seattle, seeing as plenty of well known hospitals would have paid thousands of dollars to have him on their staff. Nonetheless he and his wife Esme had made a wonderful life for themselves here. Alice is the youngest of three children. Her oldest brother is Emmett, a brooding and boisterous kind of guy. After serving in the Marines for four years he trained to be a firefighter and worked his way up the ranks very quickly. He now holds the position of fire chief, the youngest one in Seattle's history. Somewhere in between the marines and becoming chief, Emmett met the love of his life, Rosalie, a stunning blonde and editor of a fashion magazine stemming from New York. About a year after their marriage their daughter Avery arrived. That child steals the heart of everyone who sees her, including mine.

Edward is the middle child of the Cullen family. He very well might be the most gorgeous person on the planet, not that I'd ever disclose this information to anyone. Everyone thought that Edward would follow in his father's footsteps but it never happened. From what I've heard last Edward has made quite a career for himself, working for one of the most successful businesses in the United States. He's lived out of state since he graduated from high school and I haven't seen him in years. Alice and he remain quite close but from what I know he rarely returns to visit his family here in Seattle.

Now Alice is a strange being. No one ever thought that she would be the one to follow her father's lead into the medical profession but she has. Upon graduating from high school Alice was accepted into the Harvard pre-med program and is still continuing her education until her residency approaches. At Harvard she met Jasper, a handsome yet reserved man who too wishes to work in medicine. Although nothing has been said yet, I'm pretty sure they'll marry soon.

As for me, I just graduated from Stanford and have taken a job as a co-partner at an up and coming law firm here in Seattle. Some say that I am too young to hold such a position of power and that I lack experience but I'll prove them wrong. I graduated at the top of my class and did my internships with some of the greatest law firms in the country. I know I'll be excellent at what I do. The only down side to this gig is that I'm pretty much broke as of right now.

--

"But I'm tired! I just got home yesterday Alice" I said trying to convince her to take me back to her house. I was back in Seattle for good now but Alice was on her summer break from Harvard, an unusual occurrence for a medical student but she worked quite hard to get some time off and be ahead of her classmates.

"I know Bella but I have to head back to school soon and you need a place to live. I'm sure my parents would love to have you stay at our house but don't you want a place of your own?" she asked as she held the door to the apartment complex open for me to walk through. I sighed. Alice was right. I had to find someplace to live soon. I wished my father hadn't retired early and moved down to Florida. If he hadn't I could have stayed with him here instead of burdening the Cullen's.

"You're right. Let's get this done" I said with a smile as I backed through the door and waited for Alice to stand by me. Instead I saw her eyes widen and her jaw drop as she crossed the threshold.

"What's wrong Alice?" I asked becoming worried at her facial expressions. Without any warning she blew right past me, screaming something I couldn't even understand. I turned on my feet quickly to see what she was so excited about. She had hopped into someone's arms and hooked her legs around him. Could it have been Jasper? There was no way…

Then I noticed the baby stroller holding Avery sitting close to their legs. Emmett was the first thought that came to into my head but then I realized it couldn't be. Emmett was not as slender as this person and why would Alice react that way to seeing the brother she had just seen this morning. Then it clicked.

Edward.

I wasn't quite sure what to do. Did I wait for Alice to call me over? Should I just look around? I felt myself blushing already at the idea of meeting Edward. I was so juvenile at times. Getting over my fear, I approached them and bent down to kiss Avery. She giggled at me and tried to grab my nose. I pried her off my face and tickled her tummy before straightening up. Alice was back on the ground now, standing a few steps away from Edward. I took a moment to admire his face. He was more handsome than I remembered. His eyes stared back into mine. I got nervous and looked away.

"Bella?" he asked quietly. "Is that really you?".

"It's me" I said with a somewhat worried laugh and a shrug. "It's good seeing you Edward.". Suddenly he pulled me into a tight hug.

"It's good seeing you too Bells. You look like you're doing well" he said before pulling away. I nearly melted into a pool of water on the floor. Edward had never hugged me. Ever. Nor had he ever called me Bells. I felt strange.

"Edward what are you doing here! And why do you have our niece?" Alice screeched, breaking mine and Edward's special moment.

"Well, it was all suppose to be a surprise. I'm moving back to Seattle to be the field manager of one of our new corporate buildings we're constructing close by. I was going to let the family know that I was here to stay once I found myself a place. Of course Emmett was in on the deal and said I could stay with him and Rose as long as I watched Avery. They're off doing there own things so I figured I'd get looking for an apartment and bring the cutie along with me" he explained before rubbing Avery's cheek.

"You're staying!" Alice practically screamed before throwing her arms around Edward's neck again. He laughed and then pushed Alice off of him.

"You know Bella is back in town too. She's here to look at apartments just like you"

"Are you now?" Edward asked me with a raised eyebrow. I nodded and he threw me the most wonderful smile. I reminded myself to remain composed. I was an adult not a teenage girl going crazy over a boy.

Alice had scampered off to find the building manager to give us a tour of the apartments available for rent. She was back before Edward and I really had any time to talk. The manager escorted us to several apartments. I quickly realized that there would be no way in hell I'd be able to afford this place. Maybe once I got on my feet and saved some money but definitely not right now. Edward however requested that the manager show us the penthouse. Of course Edward could afford it but I felt out of place. Alice played with her niece after giving her opinion on the place. She determined it was the place for me.

Edward surveyed the suite and I lagged behind him checking things out for the sake of it. The apartment was stunning. It had huge bay windows that over looked the canal. The floors were a dark hardwood and the kitchen had black granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances. My dream come true. This place was exactly what I had always dreamed of. I continued to walk through discovering there were three bedrooms and two baths. There were walk in closets in all the rooms and they were quite spacious. I felt myself getting sad. This was truly what I wanted but it just couldn't happen for me.

"What do you think?" Edward's voice rang behind me. I jumped, being scared half to death. He chuckled.

"I…umm…love it actually…a lot" I admitted to him while I leaned against the bedroom wall.

"You're going to take it then?" he pressed. I laughed.

"Oh no no no. I can't afford this place. I doubt I could pay a quarter of the rent here. I'll need to find somewhere else. It's a shame though because this is everything I want" I said with a pout. Edward then walked closer to me.

"How badly do you want this place Bella?" he asked

"Bad" I laughed

"We'll you see I want it badly too…." He began. I knew exactly where he was going with this.

"Edward that's alright! Go ahead and take it! I bet you'll really enjoy it here" I began but he cut me off.

"I was going to take it no matter what…" he said. I felt like he was being arrogant. I didn't like that. I huffed at him and furrowed my brow.

"I was going to take it no matter what but since you want it so badly we can maybe work out a compromise " he further explained after noticing the change in my demeanour.

"I don't understand…"

"Live here" he stated simply, cutting straight to the point. My eyes widened and my heart pounded in my chest. Me living with Edward Cullen? It could never happen.

"No Edward really…" I said trying to get him to change his mind

"Bella don't be silly. We're both adults and we've known each other for a very long time now. There's plenty of room here and you don't have to pay the rent until you start making some money. Hell I really don't even care if you pay" he pushed. I really had no idea what had just happened. Who offers someone a deal like that? It sounded totally unfair and I wasn't going to let it happen.

"No. This isn't right Edward. It's okay…I'll find a place I can afford" I insisted one more time.

"Just agree Bella. You know you want to…" he said with a wink. I really did want to. But wouldn't it be awkward? Yes we'd known each other for years but it's not like we were best friends or anything.

"I…I" I stammered not knowing what to say.

"All you have to do is say yes…" he hummed now looking at the ceiling.

"Why are you doing this Edward? I don't understand this at all…"

"I'm doing this because I see how badly you want this place. I don't mind living with you Bella really…" he clarified. I placed my hands on my hips. My gut told me don't go for this deal but every other part of me was screaming at the opportunity.

'Fine" I said before raising my finger "but only under the condition that I will pay you back once I get some cash flow. And I mean every penny will be paid back Edward…"

"Deal" he said with a smile before reaching out his hand for me to shake.