(EPOV)
A few people had already started to gather in the living room, spreading themselves around on the couches and leaning up against walls.
"Hey Ed." A quiet voice whispered in my ear. I felt a small hand wrap itself around my waist, grazing swiftly over the front of my jeans. A slender girl soon crossed into my line of vision, her strawberry blond hair bouncing around her shoulders.
"Hey Tanya."
"Some party." She said with a smile, glancing around the room.
"And it hasn't even started yet." I said sarcastically, draping my arm around her shoulder.
"I hear Emmett has invited some freshman." She said, distaste evident in her voice.
"You're just jealous because you had to wait until you were a junior to get invited to this party."
She only shrugged. "Besides, he said it's his cousin and her roommate, so I doubt you have anything to worry about."
"Whatever" she said callously, walking away from me. Shrugging my shoulders, I grabbed a cup off the counter and headed down to the basement.
"Nice of you to join us Eddie." A voice called to me as I walked down the stairs.
"Yeah, I figured I could make an appearance. What's up Jazz?" Everyone seemed so shocked that I had come downstairs. Was I the only one who ever studied around here?
"Just enjoying the view." He said, nodding at a table of girls across the room.
"Eh." I shrugged. "It could be better."
"You're right. The view is about to become a hell of a lot better." Jasper said with a grin, moving from his spot next to the table.
Moving my head to follow his gaze up the stairs, my eyes finally found what he was staring at. Walking down the stairs was quite possibly the most beautiful girl I had ever seen in my life. And I had seen a lot of beautiful girls over the course of my four years at Southern.
"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Jasper said, nudging me with his elbow.
I was. And so was every guy in the room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
(BPOV)
A half an hour after my disastrous phone call with Jake, I was standing in front of the mirror, shock all over my face. Why had I let Alice talk me into this?
"Alice, you can't be serious. I'm not wearing this." I started to protest. She silenced me with a fierce glare.
"You can, and you are. You look amazing Bells, stop worrying." She scolded me, putting the finishing touches on my hair and makeup. "There, done!" She exclaimed, stepping back to appraise her work.
"Why do I let you do this to me?"
"Because you love me silly." She said confidently. "Now hurry up. It's almost 8:30." She quickly walked back into her room to finish up her look for the evening. Looking back to the mirror, I groaned.
Alice was right. I did love her, and that was the only reason I let her get away with this. The girl drives me crazy, but she was the best friend I had ever had. We had met during one of my childhood summers in Forks with Charlie, becoming instant friends.
When Renee got remarried two years ago, Alice was beyond ecstatic that I would be moving in with my dad. Before I had even gotten there, she had all of my extra curricular activities planned for the remaining of my junior year, as well as my senior year. That was just the type of person she was; and it was hard not to smile around her.
Taking one last look at the mirror, I adjusted the brown hair that was hanging in soft waves around my shoulders. Not my hairstyle of choice, but I had to admit that it didn't look half bad. The outfit, however, caused my breathing to quicken and my heartbeat to race.
Alice had chosen a pair of skin tight light jeans with strategically placed holes for me to wear, insisting that I would be more comfortable in them then the skirt she had originally picked. The lesser of two evils is what I called it. The shirt she had put me in could hardly be defined as a shirt. The back was open, showing off my pale skin. The front, a little more modest, scooped almost too low for my taste.
"Bells, come on. We need to go. Take a deep breath, and don't be nervous. I do good work." Alice said, winking as she took my hand and pulled me out of the bathroom.
"How are we getting there?" I asked, glancing at her yellow Porsche in the driveway. Her parents had given it to her as a graduation present. My dad had given me Billy Blacks old Chevy pickup truck.
"We're walking, of course. It's only a few blocks away."
Well, at least we wouldn't draw too much attention to ourselves, although Alice always got attention everywhere she went.
I glanced over at my best friend, feeling slightly jealous of how at ease she was with the situation. Alice loved being in the spotlight, enjoying any and all things fashion. Her short, spiky hair was always fashioned in the latest style. Her skin was pale, but not sickly like mine. At 4'11", she was the shortest person I knew, but she made up for it with attitude and spunk. I had never met a person who didn't like Alice.
"How are you not nervous?" I asked out loud, already knowing the answer.
"Easy Bella; I know how good we look, and I know that all eyes will be on us. Besides, Emmett will be there, so relax."
"That's what I'm afraid of." I hated being the center of attention. Maybe that's why Alice and I got along so well; I was more then happy to give up my share of the spotlight.
The late summer air felt almost cold on my skin, although I didn't need a jacket. Looking around at the neighborhood as we walked, I knew I didn't regret the decision that brought me to this school.
"I really do love it here Alice." I said, linking my arm in hers. "This is a really beautiful city."
She wrinkled her nose before smiling.
"The mall could be a little bigger, but so far that's my only complaint." She said with a laugh. I couldn't help but laugh with her.
As we walked, I could hear the light thumping of music from a distance, getting closer as we went down the street.
I started fidgeting with my hair as we got closer, noticing more cars parked along the street. I tried to slow down, but Alice kept me at a quick pace.
"Come on Bella, the sooner we make our grand entrance, the sooner you can calm down!" She said, pulling me up the sidewalk of a large house. "And stop messing up your hair!"
I barely had time to register the outside appearance of the house before she dragged me in through the front door.
I glanced around the dimly lit room, my mind still on the argument I had with Jake. It was ridiculous, really, that he was upset that I was coming to this party. Did he really expect me to just sit around by myself, all alone while the rest of the student body went to parties and had fun? And besides, it's not like anything was going to happen to me. Emmett was here, and that was more then enough protection for me.
"Bella, isn't this amazing?" Alice said, grabbing my arm and pulling me deeper into the room.
"Sure Al… It's a dark room full of people we don't know. Absolutely amazing." I answered sarcastically.
"No need for the attitude B. Just have fun. Worry about Jake later." She said with a smile.
Alice had never really gotten along with Jake; she thought he was holding me back. I was beginning to wonder now if she had been right.
"Okay. No more attitude." I mumbled in apology.
"Good. Now let's make our way downstairs. They've gotta be hiding all the cute boys somewhere around here. And we have yet to see your darling cousin."
I let her pull me down the stairs as I glanced around the room, looking for Emmett.
That's when I noticed them. Well, him, really. They were both tall and muscular, and one had blond hair with dark blue eyes. He didn't hold my attention though. The guy standing next to him could put Apollo to shame. He had messy bronze hair that fell perfectly over his eyes; eyes that were the most beautiful green I had ever seen. They were piercing, and staring right at me.
I could feel the blood pooling in my cheeks as I quickly looked away. My entire body tensed as I paused mid step.
"Relax!" Alice whispered in my ear.
"I'm trying." I said back. "Do you see those two guys over there?"
"You mean tall dark and handsome standing next to that table over there? Of course I see them. And they definitely see us; especially 'ole green eyes over there. He keeps staring at you."
"Stop looking at them!" I hissed, trying to keep my balance. I was trying my hardest not to fall down the stairs, but as luck would have it, I did anyway.
I heard Alice laugh, and I braced myself for impact with the floor; but it never happened. Instead, I felt strong arms catch me around the waist, holding me up above the ground.
"Oh." Was all I could manage to say as I tried to regain my balance.
"Are you okay?" A voice called from above me. It was velvety smooth and absolutely intoxicating. I almost forgot to breath, and speaking was out of the question.
A loud laugh broke me out of my daze, and I blushed deeper.
"Still clumsy, huh Bells?" Emmett's familiar voice rang through the room.
I heard Alice laugh before she spoke to Emmett.
"Hey Em, it's good to see you!" Her soft tinkling voice sounded strange after his loud baritone.
"Are you alright?" The same voice asked me again, sounding concerned.
I swallowed. I didn't really trust myself to speak, but I didn't want him to question my mental abilities either.
"I'm fine, thanks." I mumbled a little quicker then I should have.
"You should be more careful. I'd hate to see you get hurt." He said, flashing me a crooked grin. I felt my heartbeat quicken, and I'm sure he felt it too, because he smiled wider.
"Th-Thanks." I mentally winced at my stutter.
The stranger's arms were still wrapped around my waist when Emmett's voice came from right beside me.
"Hey Eddie, you going to let go of my cousin any time soon?" Emmett asked with humor in his voice.
"I was thinking about it." The voice said above me.
I groaned. This was going to be embarrassing.
"But I'm not sure if I can count on her not to fall again."
Now wait a minute. This guy knew nothing about me. Who was he to make assumptions that I couldn't walk upright.
"Well, you do have a point. She does tend to fall a lot." Alice said, laughing.
Traitor.
"She is rather clumsy." Emmett continued. What was this? Pick on Bella night?
"I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own." I said, finally finding my voice.
"We know you can walk B, it's just staying upright that tends to be the problem." Alice countered.
"Thanks Al. Some friend you are."
I was trying to pull myself free of the strangers' arms, but only managed to succeed in tripping again.
"Here, let me help you." He said, guiding me down the stairs.
"I can handle it on my own." I bit back, trying to pull free again.
"It doesn't seem that way." He said, flashing his crooked smile again. I felt my knees go a little weak as I grabbed onto the railing.
"Oh Bells, we're just having some fun. Come give your favorite cousin a hug!" Emmett said, pulling me into a bone crushing hug.
"It's good to see you too Em." I choked out. "But I do need to breathe."
"So how are you liking college so far little cousin?" Emmett asked, guiding me to the center of the room. It seemed like everyone had gone back to their own business, so I wasn't in the spotlight anymore.
"It's been good. Kind of boring so far, but I guess that's to be expected this early in the year."
"You always were the studious one, weren't ya Ella." Emmett said, ruffling my hair.
"Hey, don't mess up the hair!" Alice called from somewhere behind me. "I worked hard to make it look that good."
Emmett threw his arms up and gave Alice a small grin.
"Sorry Alice."
I laughed. It was nice being around Emmett, he always knew how to make me laugh.
"Hey Emmett, are you going to introduce us to your cousin?" A male voice called from behind me.
"You come near my cousin and you'll wish you hadn't pledged this house." Emmett called back. It almost sounded like a growl. I turned to see who he was talking to. The guy was plain looking, blond hair pulled back into a pony tail. He was dressed in jeans and a polo shit, looking every bit like the stereotypical frat boy.
"Possessive much?" I said, turning to Emmett.
"Sorry. That guy is bad news though. I don't want him anywhere near you," Emmett said, draping his arm around my shoulder.
"Who needs a brother when I have you?" I said sarcastically. I glanced at the guy again, turning away when I saw him staring at me.
Emmett only laughed.
"Are you going to introduce us?" The boy with the green eyes asked Emmett. His green eyes were mesmerizing, and I found it hard to look away.
"Bella, these are my good friends Jasper," He said, pointing to the guy with blond hair, "And this is Edward. He's the one that prevented you from meeting the floor."
"Pleasure." Jasper said, shaking my head.
"Pleased to have been of service. I heard the floor isn't very nice." Edward said, laughing. His eyes sparkled when he laughed.
"Nice to meet you too." I said only to be jabbed in the ribs, painfully, by Alice.
"Oh, and this is my roommate Alice." I said, turning to her. She smiled sweetly before turning to Jasper.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Jasper." She said, extending her hand. She had a glint in her eye, meaning she had found a target for her affections.
The poor guy would never know what hit him.