I'll try not to ramble as much as I did last chapter. As promised, here's another update! Hopefully I can keep up at this frequency and I promise I will try my best. Especially with these first few chapters, just so we can get on to the real good stuff ;) Thanks for all the wonderful response the first chapter, and for all the favorites and follows. Can't wait to hear from more of you!

"You are writing your number on his cup the next time he comes," Rosalie instructed with a sly smile, nudging me in the shoulder.

We had hit our slow period of the day when the line disappeared for an hour or two.

"Don't know what you are talking about," I replied casually, not meeting her eyes.

"Bella, if you don't, I will," she wasted no time insisting.

"I don't even know him," I groaned, wanting to get out of the speculation of her implying smirk.

She shrugged, the smug look never leaving her face as she walked off to take her lunch break. I sighed in exasperation as I emptied the espresso machine. Rosalie was a handful sometimes.

It had been two days since Edward had been here and she had not stopped bothering me about it since. I mean Jesus, I had said like four sentences to the guy. We were hardly getting married, Rosalie.

Because she knew the amount of sleep I had been getting had not improved any, she let me off early again hoping I'd take advantage of this rare free time I had been given. I had been doing just fine, everyone was just making a big deal about nothing. Sure I was a little tired here and there. Who wasn't?

Of course, I just had to prove myself wrong and her right as my exhaustion caused me to walk right into someone on my way out the door.

A pair of strong arms steadied me to prevent me from falling, and I looked up to find that it had been Edward.

I blushed in embarrassment, though quickly pushing it away. "You know, for someone I don't even know, you're pretty good at being there for me," I joked.

"Well let's change that," his eyes lit up in amusement as I crinkled my nose at him. "The not knowing you part, not the being there for you, I have no problem with that."

I laughed, "Thanks for the clarification. So, Edward, how should we change that?"

To my surprise, he held out his arm for me to take. I started laughing as soon as he walked us over to the register and flashed a crooked smile at me. "How about a coffee date?" he suggested playfully, the smirk never leaving his face.

"It's not a date, you don't have to pay for me," I rolled my eyes, grinning back as I let go of his arm and walked around the counter to make us our drinks. As soon as I was finished, I handed him his and walked over to one of the small booths alongside the window.

I considered myself infinitely lucky that Rosalie was still on her lunch break, missing Edward and I's exchange.

I slid off my jacket, setting it next to me before turning back to face him. I studied his expression while I waited for him to say something, taking a sip of my latte. Although Edward came off as nothing short of friendly, I found him very hard to read. His actual emotions were hidden by the gentle expression he wore on his face.

"I will admit," he finally began. "I'm glad I caught you on your way out."

I raised an eyebrow.

"I may or may not have been coming here for you," he admitted carefully. His eyes were mesmerizing, and I had to look away before I lost my inability to speak. I dropped my gaze down to the table as a small smile spread across my lips.

He paused and when I looked up, his eyes were still on me. A teasing look came to his face as he took a sip from the drink I had made him. "I shuttered at the idea of making you fend for yourself this long without my assistance."

I narrowed my eyes at him, causing him to laugh. "In all seriousness, there's something about you though. I feel like I need to know you," he explained once he was finished making fun of me.

This time I didn't even try to stop the blush from heating up my face.

"There's not much to know," I admitted quietly.

"I doubt that," he replied softly. "Here, let me start with myself."

"I'm twenty-one, I moved here from Seattle a couple years ago and live with my best friend Jasper. I thought the new Gatsby movie was good, but nowhere near the book, if I don't stop myself I swear like a sailor, I love the rain, and I have a thing for brunettes," he paused. "And I said the last part because I knew you'd blush."

Damn he was good. I pursed my lips, trying not to smile as I looked away from him and out the window. "And I wanted you to blush because it is fucking adorable when you do."

He was smirking when I looked back at him.

I took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to stop myself from smiling like an idiot. It wasn't without difficulty. "Okay," I began. "I'm a sophomore here. I moved from Phoenix where I live with my mom. I love to read but I never have time for it anymore with work and classes. I love the rain too, and have a thing for green eyes."

Stealing his pick-up line, I waited for them to meet mine as they flashed and a small smile creeped across his lips. "And I said that because I knew they would do that if I did."

He was now rolling his eyes.

"And I love it when your eyes light up. They are so pretty. . ." I trailed off dumbly as he made a point to catch my attention with his gaze. It was intense, smoldering, and the depths of the emerald caused my breath to be stolen away.

As soon as I realized what he was doing, I snapped my eyes away. I shook my head, glaring playfully at him. "That was mean."

"But it was kind of fun," he responded humorously. I pursed my lips at him. "A little bit? A tiny bit?"

"It was mean," I repeated, trying to hold my serious expression but failing miserably.

"I'm sorry," he apologized sincerely, his eyes still smoldering regardless of whether or not he was trying to make them. "Tell me more, Bella. Tell me about your family."

I took another steady breath and went on. "Like I said. . .there's not much to tell. It's just my mom and me. It feels like it's been so long that's almost all I can remember it being." Before I could stop myself from boring him about my family history, my mouth just seemed to keep going. "Rene's great. I mean she's flighty, erratic, and a little crazy at times, but her heart's always in the right place. She's more like my sister than she is my mom. Leaving her to come here was probably one of the hardest things I've done."

"She seems great," he replied genuinely. He never asked about my dad, and for that I was strangely grateful. I almost felt like I owed it to him to tell him.

Edward had this funny way of making you feel at ease. He gave you all of his attention, completely focusing on the words that were coming out of your mouth. He listened with genuine interest, like he really wanted to hear everything you had to say, and there was something calming about the way his eyes softened whenever you smiled.

"My dad didn't leave us or anything," I went on. "He died of when I was sixteen."

Other than a flicker of something in his eyes, his expression remained the same, but the tone of his voice changed. "I'm sorry to hear that, Bella. You were too young to have that happen to you."

I smiled a little. "Sorry, not exactly the light table banter we were supposed to be having," I apologized with a grimace. "Thanks though."

"It's okay," he assured me. "Tell me whatever you want to."

In that moment I wanted to tell him everything. It was like I was under a spell. I wanted to sit there all day and talk with him. I felt more awake than I had in a long, long time.

"He was really funny," I explained fondly. "At least from what I remember growing up. He was an alcoholic, but I never really saw that side of him. I know he tried hard to hide it from my me and my mom, but I know it was hard on my mom. . .I know she tried everything she could to help him but there was only so much she could do."

I stopped when I realized how dark of a turn I had taken, and that I was crossing a line by pouring out things I hadn't even talked freely about to Alice. Other than a few recently learned facts, Edward was a complete stranger to me. And yet the words just kept coming.

"It tore her apart when he died, knowing she couldn't have stopped it," I told him slowly. "That's probably why I was so scared to leave her. I didn't want her to be alone."

"She wanted you to go out and live your life," he responded softly. "She would have been sad had you stayed."

I was taken back. I had never thought about it that way. I didn't have the words to respond, but he seemed to understand by the reassurance I read on his face.

"So now I'm here," I sighed. "I work too much, I study too hard, and I don't sleep enough. But that's my story."

His eyes changed slightly, but he hid the confliction before I had the chance to think twice. "You're strong, Bella. I don't think you give yourself as much credit as you deserve."

My heart raced at his words as I struggled for composure. I mumbled a thank you and quickly changed the topic.

"So, Edward," I asked, "What is your story?"

He chuckled. "My story?"

I nodded with a smile.

"I promise you it's nothing exciting," he replied with a cautious smile, echoing my words, "There's not much to tell."

"You're from Seattle? That's not too far from here. What's that like?" I asked, giving him something to start with.

"A lot like here," he told me, glancing out the window. "A lot of rain, at least. It must have been weird first coming here from Phoenix."

I nodded, widening my eyes. "You have no idea. I can actually breathe here without worrying about suffocating from the heat." He laughed at my expression. "I'm serious!" I exclaimed. "Rene had this big, flat rock out in our backyard where she'd cook eggs on sometimes when it was hot enough. She was so entertained with it every time, it never got old to her."

I sighed. Talking about my mom was making me miss her. I think Edward realized this.

"You'd like Seattle," he changed the subject. "The skyline, the mountains, the harbor. It's got everything."

I sighed with a small smile, placing my elbow on the table and resting my head in my palm. The sleepiness was beginning to set in, and like everything else, Edward seemed to pick up on that too.

"I should let you go," he said, sliding out of his side of the booth.

"I'm sorry," I apologized with a grimace. "There's not enough time in the day to fit sleep into my schedule, evidently."

His brow furrowed at my statement, but he said nothing.

"Thanks for this," I told him with a smile. "I needed it."

His eyes still held concern as he glanced out the window once more. It wasn't raining, but the trees were bent and you could hear the cold wind whipping through the town outside.

"How far away is your apartment, Bella?"

I shrugged. "Just over a mile, no big deal."

"Let me give you a ride," he insisted as we headed towards the door. I promptly ignored Rosalie's infinitely smug expression and looked back to Edward who was waiting for a response.

I bit my lip in contemplation. "It's okay, really. I'm used to walking."

But then I opened the door, stepped outside, and was almost knocked over by the force of the cold gusts. I snapped my head in his direction. "Where are you parked?"

He laughed in amusement, extending an arm like he had earlier, and led me towards his car.

I know riding with a stranger was greatly frowned upon, and for all I knew Edward could have been an insanely gorgeous serial killer that was planning on taking me back to his secret lair and going all sadistic on me, but there was something about him. The way I felt so at ease around him had me believing none of that was the case.

We finally approached a shiny, silver Volvo. He opened the passenger door for me and I stepped inside.

"I live on Ford and Grand," I told him once he started the car.

"Not too far from me," he replied. "Do you usually walk home after work?"

"Mostly," I explained. "There are times where I pick up closing shifts and it's dark by the time I'm done, then my friend Jacob usually comes and picks me up when he can."

Before I knew it we were pulled up to the front door of my apartment. He put the car in park as I unbuckled my seat belt. "Thanks for the ride," I told him gratefully. "Saving the day for the third time now."

His lip pulled up into a half smile. "Anytime, Bella." He paused, seeming to hesitate for a moment. "You know, if you ever need a ride just let me know."

He ran a hand through his messy hair and for the first time of the day it appeared as though Edward was nervous. I moved my eyes from my lap up to meet his and gave him a reassuring smile before reaching for my phone. Surprised at how not nervous I was, especially with someone like Edward sitting just a foot away from me, I pulled up a new contact page and handed it to him.

"Thanks," I replied gratefully, watching as he entered in his number.

As I got out of the car and fumbled with my keys to get into the front of the building, I was mortified by the fact that I was so dizzy I might fall down. And it wasn't even from the lack of sleep at this point.

What had just happened?

The nerves had finally decided to kick in as I watched Edward drive away. My hands shook as I walked in through the lobby and up to my room, trying to wrap my head around the last hour's events.

I unlocked the door to my room, stepped inside, and shut my eyes, leaning my back against it once it was closed. I waited for the rapid pace of my heart to calm down to a reasonable speed and when it finally did, I opened my eyes back up to find both Alice and Jacob standing in front of me with curious expressions.

I rolled my eyes at their faces, mumbling "I'm fine," as I stepped past the both of them.

"'Kay, crazy," Jake replied first. "Now where's my muffin."

I turned around to find his expression had changed to pure amusement. "Or did you give it to your new sex-hair friend?"

Alice giggled as I narrowed my eyes at him. "God damn it, Rose."

She pulled out her phone before clearing her throat. "Alice," she read, "I let Bella off early but don't expect her back anytime soon. Sex-hair, gorgeous green eyes, tall, muscles, jaw-line."

My face felt like it was two hundred degrees.

"Why didn't you have him come in, Bells?" Jacob teased, reaching out to pinch my cheek. "Alice and I would have loved to see those gorgeous green eyes."

They both had a good laugh, enjoying themselves as I plopped down on the couch and took out my laptop. "What are you even doing here, Jake," I asked in irritation, ignoring their comments.

"Just came to see my girl," he answered in a sing-song voice. "And I ran out of all the food in my pantry this morning."

"So who is this mystery guy?" Alice asked with a sly smile.

"I barely even know him," I muttered. "Just a guy who's come to Café Mocha a couple times."

"What's his name?"

"Edward," I answered her. Jacob snorted and I shot him a glare. "And this conversation can be done now."

As much as I wanted to dish the details to Alice, I didn't need Jacob's snarky comments in the background. Besides, there weren't many details to dish at this point. I was reading way too far into things, like usual.

"Oh, Bells, don't be like that," Jacob sighed apologetically. "I'll stop, I promise."

"I'd tell you guys more but there's nothing more to tell. We sat down and had coffee after my shift. He drove me home." Alice's eyes widened. "It wasn't a big deal," I shrugged, cutting her off before she could say anything.

"Is that way you ran in here looking like you were going to pass out?" Jacob replied sarcastically. Alice shot him a menacing look. "Okay, okay, okay now I'm done."

Much to Jake's disappointment, I threw in a frozen pizza that night, too exhausted to cook. The truth was, had I not had a big calc exam tomorrow, I would have actually gone to bed early. Or tried.

I knew I was trying to prove everyone wrong, but as the semester dragged on, that was proving to be harder than I initially planned on it being, although I didn't have much of a choice.

So after dinner I shoed Jacob away, left Alice alone to studying on her own out in the living room, and locked myself in my room until I could successfully graph everything I possibly needed to for tomorrow's test. I was terrible at math and I swore at the subject everyday for being required as one of my generals.

For an hour straight I resisted the urge to pick up my phone, wrestling with my resolve on whether or not I should text Edward. He didn't have my number, I just had his.

If he had mine, would he have texted me already?

Would that be weird if I said something to him?

My sleep deprivation was ultimately my deciding factor, and after hours of studying a subject I would never understand, my brain was foggy with a decision made easier on little sleep.

Thanks again for the ride today, I typed, pressing send before I realized what I was doing.

Wait, should I say it was me? He didn't have my number yet so he didn't know it was me. But he should have known it was me, who else would he have given a ride home to today? Unless that was what Edward did, and just wandered around coffee shops finding girls to cast under the spell of his eyes. What if he had given a ride home to five other girls he had gotten the number of today? What if he didn't even remember me?

I could hardly handle the thoughts coming from my subconscious.

What the hell, Bella.

I rested my head for a few moments on one of my pillows nearby. Just as my eyes started to fall shut, I felt the vibration from my phone.

Just doing my daily save Bella moment is all, it read.

I grinned at the screen.

I promise I'm not as pathetic as I seem, I replied, hitting send.

A minute later, his name flashed across the screen. I ruled the butterflies in my stomach as ridiculous, pushing them away as I opened the message.

You seem far from pathetic.

I could never tell if Edward was flirting with me or if he was genuinely just that nice of a person. From the few times I had encountered him, he had been nothing but pleasant.

Haha, just you wait. Once I get my score back from my calculus test tomorrow I'll be able to prove you wrong, I responded.

Calculus? That's like a second language to me. Call me your new personal tutor.

Again, I smiled at my screen. With a yawn, I replied.

I make pretty good brownies if you're looking for a bribe.

His reply was almost instant.

I fucking love brownies. You've got yourself a deal, Arizona.

There was something about Edward. I didn't know what it was, but it was something good. Deciding maybe it would be good to get a decent amount of sleep that night, I sent him one last message.

Talk to you tomorrow?

I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth, taking out my contacts and changing into my pajamas. Placing my textbook and homework back into my backpack, I crawled into bed and reached over to shut off my lamp.

There were only two words in his next message, but they caused me to fall asleep with more ease than I had in the past month.

Night, Bella.

You heard my voice I came out of the woods by choice
Shelter also gave their shade
But in the dark I have no name

So leave that click in my head
And I will remember the words that you said
Left a clouded mind and a heavy heart
But I was sure we could see a new start

So when your hope's on fire
But you know your desire
Don't hold a glass over the flame
Don't let your heart grow cold
I will call you by name
I will share your road
-Hopeless Wanderer, Mumford & Sons

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You guys are the whipped cream to my mocha.