I know, I'm crazy for starting something new when I can't finish the other two. I have one close to an ending and one close to just starting to come together. What am I doing with this?

Oh, playing with third person point of views. And I just loved the idea of this story that I had to get it written. (:

Here's a little hint about what it's about: Edward and Bella both attended the same school their whole lives. The first day they both saw each other they felt something. Being two years apart, Edward swore to himself that he would watch over Bella no matter what. And true to his word, he has. Now, at the age of twenty-one, can he make this spunky nineteen year old Bella realize that the reason he was her protector was because he fell in love with her? Or will it be too late?

Yeah. I like it. It's not gonna be like OH MY GAWD, SO MUCH ANGST! It's strictly Edward and Bella, no boyfriends/girlfriends, no cheating, nothin'. Just those two with the usual scoundrels. (:

Enjoy!

Protector – Chapter 1

Good Life

August 15, 1996

Bella

It was Bella's first day of kindergarten. Mommy was so proud of her when she stated months ago that she was ready to go. She wouldn't let Mommy say no to her, either. She wanted to be a big girl, even if she'll be the oldest one in her class because of her birthday being past the cut-off date. She'll be a role model to the other kids, being the only six-year-old. She wanted this, no matter how shy or scared she was when she walked into the big school holding onto Mommy's hand like her life depended on it.

The first thing Bella noticed was that there were a lot of bigger kids here. They were loud, running around the gym before the first bell rang since it was raining outside and they couldn't use the awesome looking jungle-gym Bella spotted from her seat in the back of Mommy's car. It made her sad knowing she wouldn't get the chance to swing from the bars because of the stupid rain. But then she noticed all the cool toys they had in the gym, and her frown was turned upside down.

"Momma, can I go play, too?" Bella asked softly, hiding behind Mommy's leg, but so eager to go out and play with the big kids.

Mommy smiled down at her. "Sorry, sweetie. I need to get you to your classroom so I can make sure you're all set. And I would love to meet your teacher, Mrs. Cope."

Bella nodded, always knowing that whatever Mommy said, she should listen to it. So, following after her, Bella gave one last longing look at the kids running around screaming, she connected with the eyes of a boy. And they were pretty. A bright green color that Bella knew wasn't in her box of Crayola Color Crayons. It was a special green.

The boy also had this funny hairstyle. It was everywhere, almost as if he didn't get told to brush it before he left his house. But it too was a pretty color – like pennies. But it didn't look dull on him. No, it was bright with gold and light browns mixing it with it. Bella again thought that the color wouldn't be with her crayons, because it was special.

The boy smiled at Bella, holding up a hand to wave at her before she rounded the corner with her mother. She tried to wave back, but it was already too late. He was gone, hidden behind the wall. Hopefully, he was in her class so she could talk to him, even if he had cooties. She wanted to know what color he called his hair so she could find a crayon to match it.

"Here we are, sweetie," Mommy called to Bella, bringing her attention back on her first day. "Mrs. Cope's room. You nervous?"

Bella shook her head 'no.' Mommy should know that Bella wasn't nervous by now. She was ready to start school. She dreamed of it.

She took in a deep breath as Mommy pushed the door open, taking in everything that she saw. A redheaded lady greeted them with a big smile, stating that she was Bella's new teacher, Mrs. Cope.

"And you must be Miss Bella," Mrs. Cope said once she crouched down to Bella's level. "The leader of the class, right?"

"Right!" Bella agreed. "I'll be six next month."

Mrs. Cope smiled. "Yes, and we'll celebrate it when the time comes. How about you go play while I talk to your mother?"

"Oooo-tay!" Bella replied with a smile. She hugged onto one of Mommy's legs before running over to a group of girls that were playing with building blocks.

As she played, she couldn't get the pretty green eyes of the boy see saw out of her head. Again, she wished he was in her class so she could talk to him, but he never came in. Her eyes kept wandering back to the door, smiling every time a new boy would walk in, but then frown when it wasn't the boy with the pretty colored hair and eyes. All too soon, the bell rang and the class was placed at tables.

No green-eyed boy with pretty un-brushed hair was in her class. The rest of the day she frowned.

Edward

"You be a good boy, okay?" Mom said as she tried to run her hands through Edward's always messed up hair. "I know I don't have to ask, but please, Edward, no trouble on the first day, okay? We don't need to be like Emmett, do we?"

Edward had to smile back at that. Emmett always got in trouble on his first day of school. And now being in middle school, he knew that whatever he did would probably get him detention.

Thank goodness there's no detention here, Edward thought with a shudder. Detention sounded horrible when his big brother described it to him. Edward didn't want to sit in a class a whole hour after school got out, let alone be quiet the whole time. Especially if it was the teacher he didn't like.

Again, he shuddered at the thought.

"Oh, baby, are you cold? Do you have a jacket?" Mom asked with a worried look.

"Mom, I'm not cold," he replied with an eye roll. Mom liked to call him a drama king every time he did it. "It's August, too. It's too hot."

She sighed, giving him a sad look. "You're growing up too fast. I can't believe you're already in the second grade! My baby is all grown up."

Edward rolled his eyes again as he opened the car door. He had enough with Mom's tears. It was the last thing he wanted to see before his first day of being a second grader. So, he said a good-bye to a teary-eyed Mom before slugging his book bag onto his back. He smiled to himself as the sign for Fork's Elementary came into his view, keeping it on his face as he marched right into school.

"Edward! Over here!" he heard one of his best friends, Eric, call.

Edward turned towards his friend, dropping his bag by the door to the gym. He raced over to Eric and stole the basketball from him. Eric tried to get it back, but Edward was faster than him. He was the fastest of the group of friends, and he was willing to show it whenever there was a crowd.

"C'mon, Edward! That's not fair," Eric whined as he pouted. Edward couldn't help but laugh.

"It is too, Eric! That's how you're supposed to play basketball," he replied with a crooked smile.

Eric sighed before nodding. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Eric and Edward began to play again, and soon their other friends had joined them. Mike and Ben teamed up with Eric, and Jasper and Tyler teamed with Edward. They played hard, each trying to outdo the other as they ran around the gym. They laughed and joked around like they saw Emmett do with his friends whenever they were over at Edward's house, trying to act older and tougher. It was fun and had Edward's heart pumping. He was glad Mom made him eat the breakfast she had made. He would've been starving later if he hadn't.

They continued to play until they all grew tired. Jasper called a timeout and sat down on the bench. Eric and Tyler walked off to go get some breakfast the cafeteria was serving, while Edward tied his shoes. When he looked up he noticed a little girl standing in the lobby of the school with her mom. The girl was pointing towards the gym, and Edward saw that her mom shook her head 'no.' The little girl nodded in understanding, but turned towards the gym.

Her pretty brown eyes met Edward's, making him smile. He noticed that she bit down on her lip, and he knew that she saw him, so he waved. She smiled back at him as her mom started to walk down the hall towards the classrooms. He could've sworn that she was trying to wave back, too. His smile grew at the thought.

"Hey, Edward, you staring off into space again?" Jasper yelled. "We gotta play this game before the bell rings! Come on!"

Edward felt his head nod, but he couldn't take his eyes away from where the girl with pretty brown eyes and hair was standing minutes ago. This feeling came over him, landing right where his heart was in his chest. It was warm and tingly, and it almost made Edward sick. But it felt right, like it belonged there in his heart.

I think I might be going crazy. Girls are gross, remember?

Yeah, girls are gross.

Forgetting the funny feeling, Edward went back to his game. But during the first day of school, he couldn't help but remember the sight of the girl standing there, the funny feeling warming up his heart every time.

So, what do we think? Do we like enough for the next chapter? (: