Diclaimer: I don't own Twilight.

A/N: I have just found out that for some reason, this story was somehow replaced by a chapter from one of my other fics. I am really sorry for any confusion (I know I'm confused) and thanks to the person who let me know about it! :D

BPOV

Today was one of those rare days in Forks where the sun decided to shine. This meant that my vampire boyfriend and his vampire family couldn't come to school with me, which meant I was sitting with my human friends for lunch.

I always felt alone when Edward wasn't with me, whether he was hunting or avoiding the sunlight, or for any other reason he couldn't be there. It was rather pathetic how much I missed him, but he assured me he always felt the same way with me and I felt slightly better.

I sighed now, and picked at my food tray, not really feeling very hungry.

"Are you okay, Bella?" asked Angela, who was sitting across from me.

I looked up and smiled at her. "Yeah, I'm fine. Um…I'll be right back; I need the bathroom."

Angela nodded and resumed her conversation with her boyfriend, Ben. I stood up from the table and left the cafeteria, stumbling over my feet every now and then. I made my way to the bathroom in silence, remembering last night, that I spent with Edward. A smile lifted my lips when I thought about how he would tuck the blankets around me before kissing my forehead in a goodnight gesture and humming my lullaby until I fell asleep.

My daydreaming came to a halt when I entered the bathroom to find Lauren admiring herself in the mirror. Lauren was never very pleasant to me, for a reason that I didn't know. I might have brushed it off as jealousy, but she had been like this even before Edward and I got together.

"Hi, Lauren," I said in a small voice, smiling at her politely.

"Hello, Bella," she sneered my name with contempt, "Where's Edward today?"

"Hiking with his family," I replied automatically.

Lauren sniffed and turned back to her reflection, and I retreated to one of the toilet stalls. I heard the bathroom door swing open, and heels clicking on the tiled floor.

"Hey Lauren!" said Jessica, and I heard her put something down and clicking something - probably a make-up compact - open. "Who's in there?"

"Bella," Lauren answered, "Apparently Edward's hiking today, and she's too pathetic to face everyone without him."

I cringed at the malice in her voice, and even more at the truth to her words. Yes, I was pathetic, I knew that, but hearing Lauren say it hurt.

"I don't blame her!" said Jessica, and I wondered why they were talking about me like this when it was obvious I could hear them, "Why Edward would choose her I'll never know! I mean, she's not even that pretty!"

"I know, right?" scoffed Lauren, "I'm waaay hotter! What does he see in her? I mean, he's, like, perfect. Does she even realise what she looks like next to him?"

I winced, as though I'd been hit, but couldn't make myself stop listening. Each hateful word they said felt like a punch to the gut.

Edward loves you, I reminded myself, Edward loves you, and these girls are just children!

I relaxed slightly. I was being silly. Nothing they said meant anything, so I shouldn't be upset about it.

"Not just him!" added Jessica, "What about the others? Bella's lucky that the older Cullens are at college, or he might come to his senses and realise just how ugly she is!"

"Yeah right," snorted Lauren, "Sure, they're all amazingly gorgeous, but who would want to date them? Rosalie especially, is such a slut, and she thinks she's so much better than us. We're just as pretty as her! And that Jasper guy is so creepy! I never saw him smile while he was here, even when Alice was around."

"Ugh, Alice! How weird is she? I swear I was talking to her once and she totally ignored me, it was like I wasn't even there!" exclaimed Jessica, "And how she's always looking at our clothes, like she's such a snob! I guess it comes with money."

I was starting to get angry. Though they weren't talking about me anymore, they were still being incredibly hateful.

"Or maybe they get it from their parents," suggested Lauren, "Look at Mrs Cullen. She must think she's so special for adopting them all. She probably only did it for the attention."

That did it. I snapped. I stormed out of the stall and shoved Lauren back into the sinks with all my strength. How dare she speak about Esme like that?

"Ow!" complained Lauren when she hit the sink and got sprayed with water. "What's your problem Bella? You just totally ruined my outfit!" She gestured to the water that soaked her shirt. Her self-absorbed attitude just made me even angrier, and I leaned forward so my face was just inches from hers. I must've been hanging around with vampires for too long, because I growled at her furiously.

"You are my problem, Lauren!" I snarled, "What makes you think you can talk about people behind their backs like that?"

She rolled her eyes, but she looked slightly frightened, so the effect was lost. "Relax, Bella, I wasn't even talking about you!"

"'What does he even see in her, she's not even that pretty?'" I mimicked.

Lauren opened her mouth to defend herself, but I covered her lips with my finger to silence her.

"You can say whatever you want about me," I hissed, and I was surprised at how dangerous my voice sounded, "But don't you ever insult my family again!"

I shoved her one more time and turned away, past Jessica who was gaping at me. I had reached the door when Lauren found her voice.

"Your family Bella?" she called, "What, you think you're going to marry Edward one day? You're crazy. Edward would never marry you!"

"That's not the point!" I shouted. Then, I don't know what came over me, but the next words that came out of my mouth shocked everyone. "Even if he hadn't already asked me, I already think of the Cullens as my family!"

Lauren and Jessica's mouths fell open and they stared at me in disbelief.

"What?" Jessica shrieked, and I couldn't help but feel a little smug. Maybe now they would understand that Edward was mine, and I was his.

Lauren recovered first, and her stunned face twisted back into a sneer. "I guess that's a good thing. The Cullens deserve you. You're such a slutty whore that you'll fit right in with the rest of them!"

The next thing I remember was Lauren yelping in pain, her hand clutched to her right cheek, and my hand raised from hitting her across the face. I was surprised by my actions, as I wasn't normally a violent person. I didn't have much time to ponder what I had done, however, as Lauren launched herself at me and tackled me to the ground. We rolled around for a few minutes, hitting and kicking and clawing at each other, and meanwhile Jessica was screaming above us.

I wasn't very strong, not even from hanging out with the supernatural, and neither was Lauren, but she wore very pointy heels which she used to kick me. I gasped in pain and curled in on myself when she punched me in the face. I thought I heard a crunching sound, and then she was gone. I opened my eyes to see that we had been interrupted by a couple of teachers. The principal was holding onto Lauren, looking furious.

"What on Earth is going on here?" he demanded. "Miss Swan, Miss Mallory, what is the reason for such appalling behaviour?"

I lifted myself up to my feet and felt something wet trickling from my nose. I pressed my hand to it and winced. My hand came away covered in blood, and I started feeling light-headed.

The principal escorted us to his office and spent half an hour shouting at us. Meanwhile, I was feeling more and more faint, despite the bundle of tissues I had pressed to my nose. But I didn't regret it. As Edward had told me once, a part of being a Cullen was to defend our family.