The bell rang, signaling the end of class, and I smiled, wanting to get out of the gym as fast as I could.

The game of soccer that we had played today had taken a toll on my safety, something that Edward probably would have killed the coach for forcing me to play. I tried to walk normally to the door, for there were blisters cutting at my feet, and my knees and elbows were a faint green from where I had fallen down, sliding over the grass. I had also managed to get a few cuts too, long, thin lines running across the bend in my knee.

Edward would not be happy. I had scrubbed and scrubbed in the locker room, trying to get the grass stains to go away, but failing in the process. They had become less noticeable though, but what was more noticeable was that I was a klutz. The scrubbing had also made the cuts on my knee more noticeable and larger.

I neared the exit way to the gym, where Edward would be standing just like every other day that I had gym. I reached for the doorway, but Mike cut in front of me.

"Hey, Bella." He said, stopping me in my tracks.

"Oh hey, Mike." I said, nodding, to acknowledge that he was there, just like Edward would have done, and then tried to walk around him. He moved to the right, stepping in my way. "What?" I asked, sighing and looking up at him. "I want to go home." I complained.

"I know, but I was just…I was…I was just…"

"You were just what?" I asked, sighing again.

"I was just gonna make sure that you were…all right, you know, safe."

"Safe? From what? I'm not in danger." I let out a shaky laugh as memories of Victoria's face came rolling back to me. I paled, but Mike didn't seem to notice my alertness.

"Well you took a couple of hard falls today, Bella."

"That's why you don't pick me first for your team. Pick me last, Mike." I rolled my eyes. Can't this guy just get the message that I don't want to be with him?

"I'll take it from here, Mike." A velvet voice sounded from behind Mike, and my eyes lit up.

Mike turned around, "Hey, Edward." He seemed very glum all of a sudden.

Edward just nodded his head, and then turned and looked at me, "You ready to go home, Bella?" He asked, and I nodded my head, thankful to get away from Mike.

He smiled, and walked towards me as Mike slumped his shoulders, stalking out of the gym.

Edward's smile then turned to a frown. "What happened to you?" He asked, staring down at my knees.

"Oh." I stared down at my toes, and I could feel the heat rising to my face. I looked up and was startled. Edward was closer to me then I thought.

He pulled me into his chest and wrapped his arms around my back, kissing the top of my head and burying his face into my hair. "What happened?" his cold, icy breath tickled, and sent a shiver down my spine as he whispered in my ear.

"We played soccer." I mumbled, and Edward chuckled lightly, his chest vibrating against my ear.

"This is why you shouldn't join any sports teams." My stomach dropped, and my heart started accelerating to a thousand beats a minute.

I wasn't going to tell Edward.

I couldn't tell Edward.

If he found out that Angela forced me to sign up for the swim team, he'd get very, very, overprotective.

Which was taking a stretch, because as much as I loved him, he was overly protective, and sometimes, he just needed to take a step back and let me live a little.

I could almost hear him scolding me now. I couldn't even swim, and I'm sure that Edward knew how, he was perfect at everything. I wanted him to be my swim coach, but I didn't want to tell him about it. I wasn't ready to. But at least I know that Charlie would be pleased.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked, pulling me away from him and staring into my eyes, "Your heart just started accelerating. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, everything's fine. Probably just hungry. My heart rate accelerates when I'm hungry." I lied, and Edward didn't seem to buy it.

"Bella, tell me what's wrong. Now." He eyes were defiant; he wasn't going to take another lie from me.

"Maybe you're just dazzling me, I don't know!" I threw my hands up in the air in frustration, and Edward laughed.

"Come on, let's get you home." He said, wrapping an arm around my waist.

"Took you guys forever! Gosh, Edward, I could have ran home faster!" Alice stood, leaning up against the wall outside the gym filing her nails. She rolled her eyes, and Edward glared at her.

"Bella took a fall or two in gym. She has some injuries that Carlisle's going to need to take a look at, she's gotten then infected."

"Edward, I don't need Carlisle to give me a band-aid. Trust me, we have those at my house. I live there." I rolled my eyes, and Edward laughed as we walked towards his chair. Alice was already there, running to it.

"Alice really needs to stop doing that. She could expose our coven." Edward murmured in my ear. I just stared at her.

Alice turned and stared at us as we got closer to Edward's Volvo, and stuck her tongue out at him. "No I can't." She sang, and Edward helped me into the car as if I was crippled or something. Before I even got a chance to reach for the seatbelt, Edward was back inside the car, starting the engine.

We drove in silence, not even Alice talked. The only sound was the sound of wind as the car drove down the road at a hundred miles per hour.

"Something's wrong." Edward said, after glancing at me for about the fiftieth time since we pulled out of the Forks High School parking lot.

Suddenly, the blue piece of paper that advertised the Fork's Swim Team felt like a million pounds in my pocket, and I clasped my hands together, pulling at them as I looked at Edward.

"Nothing's wrong. Just tired, I guess." I shrugged my shoulders, and his look was pure disapproval.

He knew I was lying, and I turned and stared out the window, away from his glare, as he slowed at the entrance to the Cullen mansion.

"Bye Bella." Alice's perky voice came, waving at me as she got out of the car, "I'll see you later tonight, Edward."

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Edward nodding his head curtly at her, and then, once she was maybe a mere two feet away from the car, Edward took off again, speeding down the road towards my house.

We didn't say anything; Edward didn't even glance at me.

I wanted to tell him, I really did, but I couldn't. Tears of annoyance, frustration, and anger threatened to fall as they welled up in my eyes. I looked down, my hair hiding my eyes from him.

He abruptly killed the engine to the car, and at first, I thought it had died, ran out of gas, or blew the battery. But I looked up and realized we were at my house.

"Thanks," I murmured, and then opened up the door, stepping out of the car when my wrist got caught in something cool. I turned around and stared at him.

"Please, Bella, tell me what's bothering you. I want to help. If it's Mike, I promise that I will break his jaw for you, love. Just tell me what's wrong." His eyes were pleading. I sighed.

"Nothing's wrong, Edward."

He laughed. It was a hurt laugh, and I cringed, "You're such a bad liar."

"I'm not lying. Nothing's wrong."

"I'll find out." His eyes suddenly turned dark, and I got a little scared. He looked like a vampire. My heart rate started accelerating, "When you're asleep. You'll talk about it." I backed away, and then, before I knew it, the car door slammed, and he was speeding away.

I sighed and turned around, starting towards the front door of my house. I stepped in, hanging up my rain coat.

"Bella? Is that you?" Charlie asked, peeking his head in from the kitchen.

"Yeah, it's me Dad." I said, walking in and sitting down at the counter. "What are you doing?" I asked, eyeing him as he poured a black mixture that looked a little bit like dirt into a mug.

"Making myself a coffee, you want one? Just bought it today from the grocery store. Fresh in from Seattle, the coffee capital of the world."

"No thanks, Dad." I sighed and stared down at the counter.

"So how was school? Bad? You look a little down? How's Edward?"

"We played soccer today in gym, and I got a blister and a couple of cuts on my knees. Nothing major though, just something that a band-aid or two could fix." I shrugged my shoulders.

"Oh." Charlie said, "Let me seem 'em."

I turned in my chair so that he could get a clear view of the lines.

"Ouch." He made a face, "But nothing minor, you're right. You want me to get you some bandages?"

"No, it's okay. I'll put them on after I take a shower tonight." I said, and Charlie nodded.

"So anything else happen? You never did say how Edward was. Did you two get into a fight?" His eyes suddenly lit up, and I shook my head.

"No, we didn't. He's just acting…strange."

"Always does." Charlie muttered, and I think that I wasn't supposed to hear that, so I ignored it.

"He keeps thinking that something's wrong, but there isn't! I'm completely fine!"

"You don't look completely fine. I can understand where he would be concerned about that." He nodded his head, and I glared at him.

"No, Dad!" I groaned, "You're supposed to take my side!"

"Sorry, Bells." He smiled, "So…what is bothering you that you don't want Edward to find out about?"

"What is this? Twenty questions?" I asked, and he laughed.

"No, just curious." He smiled, "What are we having for dinner tonight? Do you want me to just order a pizza? They're having a special tonight. Two for one. You want cheese or pepperoni?"

"Angela signed me up for the swim team." I blurted out, unable to keep it inside any longer.

"You're on the swim team?" Charlie asked, his eyes growing wide, and I nodded, handing him the piece of paper that had felt like a hundred pounds in my pocket. He scanned over it and then smiled. "That's great, Bella! I'm proud of you!"

Too bad Edward couldn't act like that. Instead he'd just tell me what all the possibilities of me getting hurt and what he would do about it were.

"Thanks." I smiled, "I knew that you'd be happy about it."

"Congratulations, Bella! So, what about that pizza?" I laughed, and nodded my head, "Sure. Cheese, please. I'll be a vegetarian tonight." Just like Edward…kind of.

Charlie ordered the pizza, and it came in record time, thirty minutes. Too bad it didn't take longer; I didn't feel like going upstairs and hurting Edward more.

As I ate my pizza, Charlie went chattering on about this and that, and then his abrupt, 'Oh no!' brought me out of my thoughtless stare at nothing.

"What?" I asked, startled as I looked up at him.

"The game started half an hour ago! Sorry Bells, you don't mind cleaning up, do you?" He asked, and I shook my head no. That would mean time away from facing Edward again, and I liked that.

"Sure." I said, "I don't mind at all."

"Thanks," He smiled, and then started towards the living room. I could hear the TV turn on, and then springs of the couch as he settled in, focusing on the game. I put the remaining pizza in one of the two boxes, placing in the fridge before cleaning the cups and plates. I scrubbed slowly, and ended up wasting half an hour, and almost triple the amount of water I would normally use.

I was in a daze.

I could just picture myself drowning in the water, the water bubbling in my throat. I started choking, involuntarily, probably on my own spit, and dropped the cup I was drying in the sink. It didn't break, and I held onto the side of the counter for support.

"Bella, Bella, are you okay?" Charlie asked, running into the kitchen, out of breath. I just glanced at him, and continued to choke, the thought of me drowning in the water, and Edward completely unaware at home flooded my mind. "Are you choking? Bella!" He wrapped his arms around my waist and placed his hands in fists, preparing for the Heimlich maneuver.

He shoved once, and my stomach lurched. I was still 'drowning', and I had no idea what I was choking on. He squeezed again, and the contents that were in my stomach came out into the sink.

I wasn't coking anymore, and Charlie let go of me, struggling to find a towel as he whipped off the extra remnants from my mouth. He turned on the water, cleaning out the sink.

"You okay Bella? You almost gave me a heart attack." He breathed, relief washing over his face; it was dominant in his voice.

"I'm sorry, Dad. I'm fine though. I probably just need to get some rest. I'll take a shower and then go to bed." I glanced up at the clock. It was almost ten.

"All right." Charlie nodded, and I started towards the stairs as he started back towards the couch to watch the game.

"Dad?" I asked, stopping and turning around.

"Yeah?" He asked, stopping too.

"Two things. One…thanks."

He smiled, "No problem."

"And two?"

"Yeah, Bella?"

"Can you…try not to think about the swim team thing?"

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, "Don't think about it? Why?"

"Just don't, all right?"

"Um, all right. You sure you're okay?" He asked, and I nodded my head.

"Yes, Dad. I'm fine." I said, and then continued up the stairs.

I headed straight for the bathroom, I didn't want to go to my bedroom quite yet. Edward probably heard me say swim team, and was preparing his speech on why I shouldn't be on the team right now. I turned on the shower, waited till it was warm enough, and then climbed in, standing there, motionless. I didn't move, the only time I moved was to wash my hair, but my eyes still stayed in the same position, staring at the knob that turned the shower on. I must have only blinked a couple of times.

After I realized that I had wasted enough water for the night, I turned off the shower and stepped out, drying my body and wrapping the towel around me. I hadn't gotten my pajamas from my room, fearing the chance to hurt Edward by not telling him.

I sighed and trudged out of the bathroom. The walk to my bedroom seemed faster then before, even though I was walking at a slower speed.

I let in a deep breath of air. Clean, pure air, and then opened up my bedroom door. I closed my eyes quickly and then barely opened them, squinting into my room.

He wasn't there.

I quickly hurried into my bedroom and looked around.

He wasn't here!

I looked under my desk and in my closet, but he wasn't there either. I ran towards the window and stuck my head out of it, looking to the right and looking to the left.

The sky was clear; the only light were the few stars, and the thin crescent shape of the moon. The wind felt nice and cool against my face, but there was no one there.

"Bella?" I quickly turned around and saw Charlie standing in my doorway, dressed in his pajamas. "What are you doing?"

"Uh…w-watching the moon. It's a crescent tonight, Dad." I said, pointing to it.

"Well go to bed, it sounds like you need a lot of sleep."

I nodded my head and he turned off the light, "Goodnight, Bella." He said, and then closed the door.

I was in the darkness, and I was rather scared. I looked out the window again, but he still wasn't there.

I had made him angry enough not to come and watch me sleep? I sighed and lay down in bed, staring through the open window. My room was quiet, and I realized that, after about an hour, I couldn't fall asleep.

I needed Edward to hum me my lullaby. I started humming it myself, but, even though I was done, it didn't help me. I groaned, flicking on the light and crossing my room, pulling out the boom box from under my desk. I plugged it in, jamming it among the other wires that all, naturally, belonged to my dinosaur for a computer, and then searched through one of the drawers for the CD Edward had made for me. I searched through them.

Pink Slip, Lostprophets, Fall Out Boy, Muse, Billy Joel, Debussy, but no blank CD.

I sighed, and then sat down on my bed. I stared out the window again, and I instantly felt bad for not telling him about the swim team.

Where did Edward put that CD? I remembered that he took that and the pictures when he left, but he said that he hid them. Where? I crossed the floor back towards the boom box and I tripped, falling onto the floor.

"Ow." I rubbed my hurt knee, which was already hurt before, and stared at what I tripped over.

It was a plank in my floorboards that was loose; it had completely fallen out. I moved it away, curious, and then remembered what Edward had said.

He had hidden them under the floor boards.

There, right in plain view was my pictures of Edward and the blank CD that I had been looking for. I smiled and pulled them out. I placed the CD in the boom box and pressed play, the sweet melody of his lullaby filling the room.

I instantly felt sleepier, and I moved towards my bed, crawling under the covers as I turned off the light, the pictures of him still in my hand.

Sleep came almost automatically, and I smiled, the sound of his piano playing my lullaby running through my dreams.

Quote from the next chapter:

Bella: "Why can't you go more then 55?"