Book 1: Bet me

CHAPTER ONE

Well this should be good. My newest brother, Connor, was going to start High School today. He was going to the place where my life really started. The place where I met Edward. The place that it all started. He was going as the Cullen's newest adopted kid, a sophomore. He's frozen at the age of seventeen, just like Edward and where we assumed Alice must be frozen. We were all a little nervous; he was only a two-and-a-half- year-old vampire. We had found him laying half-dead in the woods. He was an orphan, he had no one. Carlisle changed him upon Edward suggesting it. He was rather quiet considering the agony he was going through, but he wasn't quite as silent as me. The only reason that he was getting to go to High School here at all is because he is such a controlled newborn. Once again, not quite as controlled as I was, but much more than any newborn should be. Connor was a very logical person, very smart. He said that's because he pretty much grew up on the streets. Sometimes that was better than the orphanages or a foster home. It's sort of his talent; he can take any situation, analyze it, and come up with a way to handle it. Edward told me that it's amazing being inside his head.

Another big thing was Renesmee, our daughter, was going to be going to school with him. She was going as our daughter. We were keeping the story that Edward's brother had died in a car accident leaving us as her only remaining family. Her aging had officially slowed down to the point of a normal human's growth rate, and it wouldn't get any noticeably slower. At least not noticeable to humans. She was going as a freshman, so she could have the whole High School experience. Jake was really excited for her. Edward and I had been tutoring him and all the younger wolves; the ones that changed a few years back. Their names were Caleb, Jeremy, Matt, Lucas, Nathan, Kyle, and Wyatt. The last four were at a junior and senior level right now, they would graduate soon. We offered to tutor them because they were struggling to keep up in High School. They missed class so much for one wolf thing or another. At one point, we were tutoring, Jacob, Quil, Embry, Seth, Collin, Brady, Caleb, Jeremy, Matt, Lucas, Nathan, Kyle, and Wyatt. All in one very toasty La Push house. I took the guys who were seventh, eighth, and ninth graders at the time, and Edward took the older kids. Nessie came with us too. She has actually already passed her freshman level with us, but she's happy to do it again. So yeah, you look at the world a different way after you spend several years tutoring thirteen teenage wolves and one very smart daughter.

Other changes had occurred as well. There were two new, very different wolves in Jacob's pack now. Their names were Joel, and Brooke. Joel is different because he changed at the age of twenty-one. He was late because Jacob's dad's younger brother had been his father. He had never met him, seeing as he died before he even knew Joel's mother was pregnant. He had grown up not knowing any of his father's family, and none of his father's family knowing about him. Leah Clearwater had imprinted on him, in the same instant he had imprinted on her. They were now married, and had a son, Nick, who was going to be three soon. Leah is pregnant with her second child now, as is Emily Uley. She and Sam were married a few years back, and have a daughter named Jenny. Jenny is the same age as Nick. Emily and Leah are both about three months along.

Brooke is different because she is a girl. Not quite as different as Joel, seeing as Leah is a wolf, but still, different. She was sixteen when she changed, and attended our tutoring sessions several times before she graduated. She imprinted on Embry Call, and, you guessed it, at the same time that he imprinted on her. They are adorable together. Seth Clearwater imprinted on someone as well. Her name is Abbey Nixon. She was thirteen at the time, but now she's the sweetest sixteen-year-old you're ever going to meet.

The other imprints, Rachel and Paul and Jared and Kim, just announced that they were both pregnant. So there's going to be lots of little wolf babies running around here in a few months. Nessie can't wait. She loves little kids.

Edward now works at the hospital as an EMT. He took classes eighteen hours a day six days a week for the past two and a half years so he could pass his classes faster. I am currently in training to become an ER nurse. I'm only taking night classes right now, but it wouldn't take as much schooling as Edward's did. I am doing my on-the-job training right now, and I will be registered in four months. Edward and I are both going to work the night shift tonight and the late day shift tomorrow. We had to "sleep" at some time.

"Time to get up, pretty girl," I heard Edward murmuring to Nessie. I was brushing out my hair in our room, and Nessie was in her room. "Time for High School," Edward said. I heard Nessie laugh.

"I can't wait," she told him. Edward left her room and came up behind me.

"Are you ready for this Mrs. Cullen?" He asked me.

"No, but she is," I said. He kissed me, then we went to wait for Nessie so we could all go over to the house together. Nessie came out of her room in a pair of jeans, and a black fitted t-shirt with sleeves down to her elbows. Her bronze curls hung down to her shoulders, and she had hooked the diamond necklace Alice got her around her neck. Our little girl was beautiful.

"Alright, Miss pretty, let's get going," Edward said. He loved her so much. We ran through the trees and got to the white house within seconds. Nessie followed closely behind. She was only half-vampire, but she definitely had her daddy's speed.

When we walked into the house, Connor was sitting on the white couch, and Alice was dusting off the photo frames in the living room. Emmett and Jasper were trying to do something on the computer, and Rosalie was playing Edward's piano. Esme and Carlisle were doing something in the kitchen. "Hey Ness," Alice said. "Ready for the big day?"

She giggled. "So ready."

"How about you, Connor?" Edward asked. Edward bonded with Connor. He told me that this was because Connor reminded him of himself. He had even moved into Edward's old room.

He sighed. "I'm worried," he admitted. "I've never really been a people person, and what if I can't keep up?"

Edward laughed. "Oh right, like that's even a possibility," he joked. Then he got a little more serious. "As for the people thing, you really aren't supposed to be everyone's friend." He sighed.

"Don't worry," Nessie said. "I'll be your friend."

Connor laughed. "Really? Cause I thought we were going to be enemies," he teased. She laughed with him. Connor had short chocolate brown hair, and a boyish look to his face. When he smiled, you couldn't help but like him. His eyes were of course gold, and he stood at about 5'11". He was just two inches shorter than Edward. Naturally strong, but very gentle.

"Well, you better get going, you don't want to be late," I told them. I ran over and kissed Nessie on the cheek. "Have fun, babe," I told her.

Edward hugged her. "Break all the rules, you'll have more fun," he told her.

"Ha, ha," She laughed.

As they walked out the door, Edward threw Connor the keys to the Volvo. "Drive fast and take chances," he said.

"Oh you're just full of jokes," Connor said sarcastically. He shut the door behind him.

Approximately eight hours later, we were all sitting in the living room playing cards. Carlisle was working, and Esme was renovating a house she found in Seattle. Edward and I didn't have to head out for work for another hour and a half, and we were waiting for Nessie and Connor to come home. I had my shield over everyone so the game was fair, but Edward was still winning. We were all waiting for Edward to make his bet, when he froze up. "Alice," he hissed. "Are you kidding me?" He was talking low and fast and I could hear the concern in his voice.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Oh, here we go again," Alice sighed.

"Um," Edward said. "We seem to have a problem." He cleared his throat. "Connor met a girl today, and let's just say Alice sees them as more than just gym partners."

Everyone was silent. What? What was he saying? Was he… was Connor going to fall in love with this girl? No…no…no, no. How could this happen? How could he fall in love with a human-?

I stopped myself there. How well I knew how he could fall in love with a human, and that human could fall in love with him. I had lived that. But… how could this happen twice? And how could this work out? We were vampires after all, and she couldn't know that. Or could she? This could work, but only under one condition. She had to know about us. There was no other way they could be together. And if they fell in love, that's the way it would have to be.

"O...kay," I said. "So, when do you see this happening?" I asked Alice.

"I can't be sure," she said. "I just see that it's going to happen."

"Sweet God," Emmett said. "Are you serious?"

"Well she's not kidding," I said obviously.

"What are we going to do?" Jasper asked.

"Absolutely nothing," Edward said without missing a beat. We all looked at him. "Now listen," he said. "Let's just see how things work out. Connor doesn't need to worry about something that might not happen."

"Edward you saw it just as I did," Alice said. "It's going to happen, but he doesn't need to worry about how it's going to happen."

Edward sighed. "I guess you're right. So let's not tell him anything. He'll know soon enough anyway…" Edward looked at me. I looked back. His eyes held the same as mine. We both knew this story. We just knew it our way. It would be up to them to make it their own. "Here they come," Edward said. I could hear the car on the driveway. Twenty seconds later they were walking through the door.

"How was it?" I asked Nessie casually. Connor was going up to his room.

"Awesome," she said simply. "Very interesting. The lessons were stuff I already knew, but whatever. It was cool to have someone else teach it to me."

"I'm glad you liked it," Edward said. "What are you going to be doing tonight anyway? Homework?" He joked.

"Yeah right," Nessie said. "No, I think I'm going to go over to La Push. Jake slept all day I'm sure, so maybe we'll do something. Or maybe we'll babysit again…" She laughed. The last time she went to La Push Jacob had volunteered to babysit for Leah and Joel and Sam and Emily. When she walked in the door, Jacob was way in over his head. Both Jenny and Nick were crying because they had smacked heads and he couldn't get either of them to stop. Nessie came in and had them calmed down in like thirty seconds. She had shown us the whole story, and it was as funny as it sounds.

"Okay," Edward said. "You can always call if you need anything."

"I know," she said.

"Let's get going Edward," I said. "Am I going on ambulance runs with you tonight?"

He smiled. "Well hopefully not. I'd rather not have an emergency where an ambulance is called."

"Oh you know that's not what I meant," I told him. "C'mon, let's go get our stuff."

On the way over to the hospital, I wanted to ask Edward something. As soon as he pulled the Volvo out onto the open road, I knew the family wouldn't be able to hear us if we talked quietly. "So," I said. "What's her name?"

He squeezed my hand. "I knew you'd be curious," he said. "This is what I know. Her name is Julia Bird, and she's new here. She moved in today, that's why she and Connor were made gym partners. She has curly red hair, and bright green eyes. She's about 5'6 and is shy, but likes independent sports. She moved from Montana, and she has really strong legs. She loves jogging." He paused to look at me. "She lives with her dad, but they really aren't that close. Her mom died when she was two, and her dad's raised her ever since. He doesn't mistreat her or anything, but he wouldn't go up to her and ask if she needed help. Nor would she ask if he needed help."

"Oh," I said. We were silent for a minute. "Edward I'm worried about them." I said. I was worried they would go through what we did.

He sighed. "Me too."

The next day we got home after a really uneventful night at the emergency room. We ended up playing cards with some of the other nurses and EMT's. We saw Nessie and Connor off to school. Connor looked a little confused, and he didn't say anything to anyone. He had probably spent the whole night thinking about a girl with curly red hair and green eyes that just happened to be his gym partner.

After they were out of earshot, Edward met my gaze. "He can't understand it," Edward told me. "He can't understand why he wants to be her friend."

I sighed. "It'll all work out," I said confidently.

"I sure hope so," Edward said.

Around one thirty that afternoon, Edward and I drove back to the emergency room, and went to wait and see what was going to happen. I helped an older nurse get the vitals on a girl who had fallen out of a tree. She was fine, but her wrist was sprained. Around three, Edward and I were in the EMT room waiting for an emergency call. Edward had some training at five with the rest of the EMT's (there were only two more of them), but the other EMT's weren't even here yet. It was only me, Edward, and the other EMT on duty, a middle-aged man named John. At three thirty, the emergency bell rang through the room. We all jumped to our feet. Since I was still in training, I could pretty much go wherever they might need help.

The woman who answered the emergency room phone came over the intercom. "The High School is on fire," she told us calmly.

We darted out the door. John took the wheel, and Edward and I hopped in the back. We took off at a quick rate. The sirens were blaring. "Remember to stay calm," Edward told me as we pulled into the school parking lot. The firefighters were already there.

My sharp eyes took in the scene quickly. What looked like the whole school was standing towards the road, and I could see Nessie amidst the crowd of students. I didn't see Connor though. One of the buildings looked like it was on fire, and almost the entire gym had lit up as well. The last thing I took in before I began to run was Connor lying on the ground with a red-headed girl next to him.

Edward reached them before I could. They were covered in ash, and the girl was coughing violently. Connor was on his hands and knees and looked like he was trying to get his breathe back. He played the part well. Edward dropped to his knees next to the girl. "I need oxygen," he called. John came sprinting over with the mask. I knelt down by Connor.

"Take it easy there," I told him. "Relax." I pushed him onto his back. He let me. "Deep breaths," I instructed him. I put my hand by his neck to feel for a pulse that would never be there. I waited a second, then said, "The pulse is good." John nodded his head.

John was holding the girl's head up while Edward held the mask to her face. "Call the hospital," John told me. "Let them know we've got one, and take him to the truck for oxygen." I pulled Connor to his feet.

"C'mon buddy," I said. I put his arm over my shoulders and we started to walk over to the ambulance. I sat him down and pulled out the other mask. "Hold it over your nose." I told him. The look in his eyes was bewildered, and something I couldn't pick out. I ran to the front of the truck and reported back to the ER that we had one coming in, and one who needed what we called waiting-room-assistance.

I walked to the back of the truck and sat down next to Connor. "You okay?" I asked. He just nodded. The teachers were doing a good job of keeping the students back, but they were clearly all worried about their new classmates. John came running over to where Connor and I were sitting.

"C'mon," he told me. "We need to get her onto the gurney." I hopped up right away.

"Keep that on your face," I instructed Connor. I helped John unload the gurney. I had only been on a dozen ambulance runs in my year of on-the-job training, and none of them had been this bad. We carried the gurney over to where Edward was still holding the mask to the girl's face. I realized with a start that this must be Julia. The look in Edward's eyes was the same look that I hadn't been able to pick out in Connor's. Whatever had happened, Edward was in on it, and felt the same way Connor did.

"Try to relax," Edward was telling her. "You're fine, you're safe now."

We loaded her onto the gurney and I rubbed her arm as we walked her to the ambulance. "C'mon Connor," Edward said. "I want you to keep that on, but you can ride in the front with John." Connor nodded again, and let John lead him to the passenger seat. I hopped in the back with Edward again.

When we shut the doors and took off, I noticed something about Julia. Her ankle was swollen. "Edward, look at her ankle," I told him.

He did as I said. "Oh," he said. "That looks like it hurts. Um… I'm not sure if it's broken…" He got up out of his seat and walked to her feet. He gently stroked the swollen limb. She gasped in pain. "Sorry," he said. "I don't think it's broken, but you'll have to get an x-ray. It's definitely sprained though."

She nodded her head. When we got to the hospital, Carlisle was the ER doctor on call. He met us at the door, and looked at Edward to see what had happened. I was put in charge of Connor as they wheeled Julia in. I helped him hop out of the ambulance. I took the oxygen mask from him, and then we walked into the ER, me still holding the oxygen mask and tank. Edward still had Julia in the lobby, but they disappeared through the hospital doors as we were walking in. "I think her ankle's sprained," I heard Edward tell Carlisle. "She seems to have minor smoke damage in her lungs, nothing I thought extreme. Her ankle seems to be the worst injury right now." They were walking quickly, and I soon lost hearing of their conversation.

The lobby was empty, so I took Connor to one of the chairs and we sat down. "So what happened?" I asked him. I couldn't hold my curiosity in any longer.

He looked at me, and I could see conflict in his eyes. He sighed. "You'll know soon enough anyway," He said with resignation in his tone. "Well," he began. "I'll start at the beginning. We were in gym class, Julia and I." He looked at me. "Since we're both new in school, we were made gym partners. We were running laps, and she turned her ankle. The teacher told us to go to the nurse's office to go and get some ice. The only problem was, neither of us really knows our way around the school very well. We went the wrong way," I could see the regret in his eyes. "This was before the fire alarms had gone off. We were in that wing off of the gym, the hallway without windows. She was limping heavily, so we weren't going very fast. We had just figured out that we were going the wrong way, when the fire alarms went off. We began to move faster, toward the door. Like I said, we were in that hallway that only has two classrooms in it, and no windows. I don't think they have actual classes in there anymore, it's just for meetings. Anyway, as we made our way to the door, we saw the fire, it was blocking our path, and we couldn't get out. The other kids in gym class had gotten out through the door that leads directly to the parking lot from the gym. I immediately turned and went to look for another exit, pulling her along with me. We didn't get very far before I realized that there was a dead end. There was one way out of that hallway, and it was blocked. Smoke was filling the place up, and she was having trouble breathing. We got down on our hands and knees and began to crawl. Soon we were almost surrounded by the fire." He dropped his head into his hands for a moment. "I didn't know what to do Bella," he said. "We were both going to die. That's when I did something stupid. I didn't think about it, I just scooped her up off the floor, and kicked out the nearest wall. We bursted out into the open and the wall crumpled into the fire. I could hear the other kids that were out of the building, though I don't think they could see us, or notice us really." He sighed. "And I think you know the rest. I pulled her from around a corner quickly, so it looked like we'd gotten out the same way the others had. I don't know what she thinks. I don't know if she even noticed that the wall was still standing firm when I kicked it out. I'm worried Bella. She's a smart girl, and she's clearly not the type to just let this go. I was so stupid." He put his head in his hands again.

Wow. If this girl was anything like me, than he was right. She wouldn't spend the rest of her life being curious, she would figure out how he could scoop her up into his arms that easily, and how he kicked out a wall with one foot. She would know our secret, just like it had to be. "Connor," I said. "Look at me." He didn't do as I asked, so I pulled out my stern voice. "Connor, now," I said. He slowly slid his eyes toward mine. "You did the right thing," I told him. "Saving her is what you should have done, and you shouldn't regret it."

"I just don't see how," he said. "I've put our whole family in danger. I've put my trust in this girl, out of all people. She could reveal our secret right now if she wanted to."

"She won't," I said immediately.

"How do you know?" He asked, sounding slightly frustrated.

"Did you forget?" I asked. "I've been that girl who has a secret. She won't tell." I repeated myself.

He sighed again. "I hope you're right."

"If you're alright here by yourself," I said. "I'm going to go back and see how Julia is, and see if they need any help."

"Yeah, I'm fine but… Bella?" he said.

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to need you on my side when I tell the rest of the family okay?"

I gave him a look. "Oh you can count on that," I said. "And you can count on Edward to be with you. And trust me, if anybody is really mad at you, Edward will knock their head off. But I don't think that anybody will be mad at you, just a little stressed."

"Thanks, Bella," he said.

"Hey, Con?"

"Yeah?"

I got closer to him. "Sorry," I hissed. "But you have to keep an oxygen mask on. Edward is my superior at the moment, and he told you to keep t on. Considering I don't even have a real job here yet, I can't exactly afford to be thrown out." I glared at him. "Don't get me in trouble." I handed him the mask, and flipped the tank on.

I walked in through the emergency doors and looked around for a second before I saw Edward coming out of a short-term stay room. That meant her injuries weren't too bad. "Oh there you are," he said.

"He told me," I said before he could ask.

Edward nodded. "It might be a rough night tonight."

"I expect that," I said. "But I told him we were on his side." I smiled at him.

"Ha-ha. You can bet we are," he said. "Why don't you call Esme and Mr. Bird? We're required to contact a parent since they're under eighteen. I'm going to help with the x-ray of her ankle, then I'll have to talk to Esme and Mr. Bird before Carlisle since I was the EMT on duty. John should actually do it because he's been here the longest, but his shift ended forty-five minutes ago, so he headed home. You can bring Mr. Bird to the nurse's desk. That's probably where I'll be." He leaned down and gave me a peck on the lips. "Oh, and by the way, I love you, and I have no regrets about anything I ever did for you," he whispered.

I smiled at him. "Me neither," I whispered back. Then I went to call Mr. Bird. He sounded concerned about his daughter, but not overly paranoid. I called Esme next. That phone call was much shorter. She first asked if he was alright, and then told me she'd see me in a minute. Mr. Bird arrived first, and I took him to the nurse's station where Edward was waiting. "Was her ankle broken?" I asked him.

He shook his head. "It'll take a few weeks before its back to normal, but it's just a sprain. She'll need a brace," he told Mr. Bird. "But just to help her walk until it heals."

I ducked out then to go meet Esme. She was walking through the doors as I walked up. "Hey," I said. I pointed her to Connor. He was still sitting in one of the chairs in the lobby. He had kept the mask over his face. She walked over to him, and like any mother would, threw her arms around him.

She kissed his cheek. "Are you alright?" She asked. He nodded. She looked at me. "Can I take him home?"

"Uh… not just yet," I told her. "You have to talk to Edward and Carlisle first. Edward should be right out, but Carlisle could be a second, he's pretty busy."

"Alright," she said. "Well, we'll just sit tight then."

I went to go see if any of the doctors needed help anywhere. There weren't too many people in the ER today, so I went to visit with Julia. She was probably terrified, and dying to get out of here. When I walked into her room, they had turned some of the harsh hospital lights down, and she was lying down. They had an oxygen max strapped to her head, her eyes were open, but they looked tired. "Hi Julia," I said. "I'm Bella. I'm married to Connor's brother. He was the EMT in the ambulance. I'm in training right now, but I'll be working here as a full-fledged ER nurse in a few months. Are you okay?" I asked. She nodded. "I just came to keep you company and clean you up a little before the doctor gives your dad the okay to take you home." She looked as confused as I thought she would. I walked over to the sink where they kept sponges and soap. I washed my hands, then grabbed a sponge and worked up a lather on it. I took another sponge that I rinsed in warm water. I grabbed a clean towel, and walked over to where she was. I began to work to clean up her feet and legs. I pulled off her shoes and socks, and silently cleaned her feet. I did the same to her arms. When I got to her face, the oxygen mask was in the way. "Let me go ask if I can take this off of you." I walked out to the nurse's station and the nurse there immediately gave me permission.

Once I was back in the room, I took the mask off, and studied her face as I cleaned it. She was as pretty as a picture. Her red hair complimented her green eyes perfectly. She had straight teeth from what I could see, and her nose was just the right size. The last time I had seen such natural beauty like that was when I first saw Emily Uley, back when she was still Emily Young. Her legs were muscular just like Edward had said. She had a flat stomach, and had an average sized chest. Her arms weren't particularly muscular, but they definitely belonged to a runner.

"Does your ankle hurt much?" I asked.

"Yeah," she sighed. Her voice was beautiful. I wondered if she could sing. I'm probably the only one that had noticed her pretty voice. Most humans couldn't tell the difference in voices unless they were drastic.

"I'm sorry," I said. "But you can take some Tylenol every few hours. It should help a little. Just keep ice on it tonight. If you feel up to it, you can go to school tomorrow, but you have to wear the brace that we're going to give you. Don't worry, it's not bulky, and it's made for comfort."

"Well I'm grateful that I made it out of that building in one piece. There was fire everywhere…" She trailed off, but I knew what happened next.

Edward came in then. "Hi," he said. He came over to where she was laying and shook her hand. "I'm Edward Cullen. I was your EMT."

"Oh, Julia Bird," she introduced herself.

"I'm sure your ankle hurts, but I promise it's not a horrible sprain. It'll be feeling better in a few weeks." He told her.

"That's good," she said. "Um, I run, when should I be able to do that again?" She asked.

"Well," he said. "That's pretty much up to you. Whenever you feel comfortable, but don't push yourself. You don't want to strain the muscle anymore."

"Alright," she said. "Can I go home now?"

He laughed. "Not quite, the doctor still has to see you, but I think he's talking to Connor right now, and you should be next. I hope I don't see you in here anytime soon, but it was a pleasure meeting you. I'm sure I'll see you around town."

"Oh, I'm sure," she said. I could see that she was still getting used to the idea of living in such a small town. It was five o'clock now, and that's when Edward, Carlisle, and I were supposed to go home. Carlisle walked in then, and pretty much told her the same thing Edward had. We clocked out together, and drove home in our cars.

"What are her thoughts like?" I asked Edward.

He thought for a second. "She's… very unselfish. She was really worried about all the other kids in school, and if they were alright. She's one of those people who just needs to know that everyone's safe."

"She's sweet," I added casually. I stopped talking then, they would be able to hear us soon. When we walked in, Esme had her arms around Connor, who had his head in his hands. They were sitting on the couch, and Esme was stroking his hair. The moment we walked in, Esme looked at Carlisle and he didn't hesitate.

All he said was, "Everyone, kitchen now."