this chapter is dedicated to Leibeezer for her review to my story. keep being awesome!

Chapter Two:

"Isabella! Hurry up or your going to be late for school!"

I sighed when I heard my fathers voice.

"Coming, dad!" I call back. I quickly touch up on my make-up to hide the bruises on my arm and faintly under my eye, then push the make-up set into my bag and run down the stairs.

"Well its about time… hey, hey- are you okay?" My father, Charlie asked me.

"Yes… why wouldn't I be?" I asked him, slowly forming my words.

"No reason. Aren't you going to eat?" Charlie asked me as I headed for the door.

"I`ll buy a bagel when I get to school." I said. Which was less than likely, Jacob told me that I was getting too fat, so now I was on a strict diet.

Charlie gave me a skeptical look and I went up on my toes to kiss his cheek. I loved my dad- he was all I had. My mother had died when I was younger and I had been sent to live with him, in Forks, the rainiest place on earth.

I was 17 year old, I moved to Forks when I was 15 and my mother died in a car crash. My father had peered me up with his best friend, Billy`s son, Jacob- and we had stayed that way, our relationship eventually moving into something more than just friends. For about a year everything with me and Jake was perfect, then, I cant remember exactly when, he started hitting me, cursing me, calling me a bitch and a slut and a whore.

Jake was the star quarter-back for the football team at Forks High, and I was the head cheerleader.

No body knows about what really goes on with me and Jake. He acts like a total sweetheart around people, but once we`re alone there always seems to be something I did wrong.

It`s not his fault, though, he does love me, I know he does, I think he.. oh who am I kidding?

I was terrified to leave Jacob. Not only because I knew he would hurt me if I did, but because…. Well… where would I go? Even if he didn't, I loved him, to much.

I sighed heavily and turned on my heels to go out the front door. On the morning when I didn't hurry myself up enough, Jacob would pick me up in his car to drive me to school. Today was one of those mornings.

I flung open the door and ground my teeth together angrily. Jacob was standing in front of my house, leaning against his car and grinning at me as though he hadn't spent two hours yesterday punching and kicking me for refusing to tell my ex I didn't want to see him again.

And to make matters worse, Charlie flung open the window and waved, "Hey Jacob!"

"Hey Mr. Swan!" Jacob called back cheerfully.

I groaned, Charlie loved Jacob- which is another reason I didn't want to break up with him.

I bluntly ignored him as I walked around him to get into his car, but he grabbed my waist and pulled me back to him.

"Hey baby." He said, kissing my forehead.

"Hey." I growled. He pulled away and looked at me.

"Now… lets not have none of that, babe, why don't you get your pretty little body into the car and we can drive to school." He said, softly and smiling wickedly at me in a way so that Charlie wouldn't see.

I frowned and pushed away from him, getting into the car and slamming the door shut. As soon as his door was closed to he grabbed my face and forced me to look at him.

"Jake.. ow…. That hurts!" I complained.

"Good. Now listen here, Bella, I don't plan on arguing with you all day today, so you better fucking behave yourself or your gonna go home with far worse than a black eye tonight… you understand me?"

"Fuck. You"

A sharp slap to my right cheek.

"Don't fucking mess around with me, Swan- I`ve had it with you and your nonsense."

"I never do anything!" I shouted, trying to keep my voice down so Charlie wont be in danger of hearing.

He didn't say anything. We sat in awkward silence for the drive to the school. When he parked the car I looked up at him.

"Can you unlock my phone, please." I asked quietly.

"What?" Jake asked.

"My phone…. I need to call Angela, she came down with the virus yesterday evening and I want to see how she`s going." I said.

"Then why don't you fucking walk there." He snapped, and got out of the car. I sat down until I worked up enough courage to go after him.

"Jake! It isn't fair! It`s my phone and I demand that you unlock it!"

He ignored me. I knew I wasn't going to win this fight and I was starting to attract attention now.

I followed him and stood quietly while he talked to his friends, his arm wrapped tightly around my waist preventing me from moving away from him.

When the bell rang for first period I scurried away from him and down the hall. This was the only class I didn't have with Jake today, and I always made the most of it.

Social Studies was my class with Mr. Rayner, one of my faviorite teachers, partially because I was good at his subject.

I slipped into the seat next to Angela and looked at him as he moved around a few papers on his desk.

"Good morning class." He said, after a while.

The half of the class that did answer answered in a dead, unbothered tone. I stifled a giggle.

Angela tapped the desk in front of her, "Coach wants to see you after school, something about cheerleading."

"Coach? Okay- did he say where?" I asked.

"Yeah, the gym."

"Got it."

"Girls- is there anything you would like to share with the rest of the class?" Mr. Rayner asked. We both shook our heads no and smiled innocently.

"Good. Well then… For your social studies project," A groan sweeps through the class, "In honor of Black History Month, you will research one important african-american person in history and write a 3000 word essay," An even louder groan and shouts of protests, "On that person and what they contributed to the American society."

"Does it have to be 3000 words, sir." One of the boys asked.

Mr. Rayner sighed, knowing that if he said yes, he was most likely to be ignored anyway, "I will accept 2000, no less or else you fail." He said.

"But- because of how incredibly cool I am, I will assign you each a partner to help you in your research. Kevin and Roama, Nicola and Aaron, Angela and Ben Cheeny- Isabella and….. hmm… Edward Cullen."

My head snapped up, Edward Cullen? Is that some sort of sick joke? I have a boyfriend, one who is not very happy with me socializing with other guys, eccspecially ones like

"Edward Cullen?" Angela said, smirking wickedly at me, "Oh this is going to be fun."

I groaned and glanced towards my left- Edward seemed to be having the same reaction I did, he was frozen, his pen had stopped moving and was just standing still on the paper, his head wasn't turned towards me so I couldn't see his expression that well.

Edward was cute, there was no denying that. He was around 6"2, And had bronze hair. He had a cool goldish color eye that was so memorizing, he could have any girl in the school just because of them, but he always kept to himself, he and his siblings. He and his family had moved to Forks a few years ago, not long before I had moved. He, his two brothers, Emmett and Jasper and his two sisters, Rosalie and Alice were all beautiful, too.

His parents, Esme and Carlisle were the cutest couple I had ever seen.

Personally, I don't know why they moved here, to the dull town of Forks Washington. when you have that beauty that belongs on the runway or on the front page of every magazine, and you were so exceptionally smart that you could skip the rest of high school and still be more educated than those of us who finished it, and you belonged to the richest family in the small town, all you did in Forks was stick out like a soar thumb.

All the Cullen kids were adopted, too. Jacob and his friends hated the Cullen family for some reason, but I found Carlisle and Esme really nice to adopt all those teenagers like that.

The bell rang and I got my bag from behind me, walking out of the class room with Angela tagging by my side.

She was talking about some thing, but I wasn't paying attention. I looked around until I saw him by his locker.

"Edward!" I called, running over to him.

He jumped slightly, and turned around to look at me.

I stopped, yep, those memorizing eyes again, they never seized to fascinate me.

"Isabella." He said in an enchanting tone.

"Bella." I corrected. He nodded once.

An akward pause.

"So…. Um…. We have that project to do together." I said, smiling shyly.

He nodded, "Yes, we do."

Another pause.

"So do you…. Um, wanna maybe come over later? We can start doing research then?"

"Of course." He said, smiling, "If that's okay with you."

"It is- so um…. I`ll see you later then, 4:00?"

"Four o' clock." He agreed, and then turned and walked off.

Four o' clock couldn't have come fast enough.

I went to the gym after school and met coach Davidson, he looked up and smiled when I walked in.

"Bella." He greated.

"Hey coach- is everything okay?" I asked.

"Yes, I just wanted to inform you that the cheerleading team will be present for the boy`s football game on Saturday."

"Saturday?" I asked, "Sure, I can talk to the girls and we can work something out."

It might take a bit of convincing to get them to abandon their Saturday`s to go to the boy`s game, but I was going to have to go whether I was playing or not. Jake always made me go to them.

I got a ride home from Angela. Charlie was still at work, he would be until six o' clock. I got into the shower and then got dressed denim shorts and a white button up shirt, I held my hair up in a ponytail and waited for Edward to arrive.

When starring at the clock got tirring, I went into the kitchen and got out a few snacks for us to eat while doing our research. We could stay right here in the living room. Edward had a laptop, I knew because he brought it to school sometimes, and I had one, too. So we didn't need to use the computer in my room. Plus, Jake wouldn't like it much if a boy, ecspecially Edward, was in my room.

Thinking about Jake made me realize that I hadn't told him about my project with Edward yet. I knew I couldn't keep it a secret from him forever, but I would try to avoid it for as long as possible.

At exactly four o' clock my doorbell rang, and I jumped up and ran to it, flinging it open and grinning broadly.

"Hello Edward." I said, trying, with failure, to mimic his formal tone.

"Hello Isabella."

"I wish you would stop calling me that, it really is annoying." I said.

"Okay- Bella, shall we get started?"

I nodded, and welcomed him inside, walking straight to the living room.

I sat down on the couch and he sat down on the chair opposite me.

"Did you have any ideas on who we might be able to right about?" I asked Edward.

He pursed his lips, "I was thinking somebody like Rosa Parks, or maybe even Martin Luther King."

"Rosa Parks- that's the lady who refused to get up from the bus seat right?" He nodded, "Yeah- I always admired her, standing up for what she believed in like that."

"So did I."

There was a pause before I talked again.

"Where did you get that eye color- it`s really unusual."

"It is?"

"Not in a bad way- It`s pretty, I like it." I said.

"Thank you. I don't really know where I got them from." Edward said.

"Could they have belonged to your mother?"

He shook his head, "No- my mother had green eyes, according to Carlisle, at least. I never knew her well enough to say."

"I`m sorry." I said.

"What about you. Chocolate brown is a pretty color, I always liked your eyes."

"I got them from my dad." I said.

"You live with your father alone. I never hear you talk about your mother- where is she?"

I bit my bottom lip, "My mother has been dead for 3 years now."

"Oh- I`m so sorry, I shouldn't have brought that up." Edward said.

"It`s okay- it happened a long time ago." I said.

My phone rang then. Edward rolled his eyes.

"What.. don't you like the beetles?" I asked him getting up.

"I am not overly fond of what follows." He said simply.

I crossed the room and got my phone off the counter, checking the caller I.D. I wondered how Edward knew who it was calling me.

"Hi Jake." I said.

"Bella- where the fuck are you." He said.

"I`m at home… I`m doing a project for school." I said.

"A project?" He asked.

"Yes."

"You better get yourself down to La Push right now." He growled.

"Jake… I cant, I told Charlie I was going to be home this evening, and it's a group project, I cant just leave."

"Fuck, Bella, do you always have to make everything so complicated."

I didn't answer.

"I warned you- you have 10 minutes to get down here, or your gonna regret it."

The line disconnected.

I gulped and took a deep breath, walking back over to Edward.

He raised his eye brow at me.

"Shall we continue?" I asked.

"Why do you let him treat you like that?" Edward asked.

"What?"

"Jacob Black- why don't you stop him?"

"I don't know what your talking about." I whispered, looking down at my hands.

"To hell you don't Bella! He treats you like freaking dirt and you don't do anything about it!"

I was surprised Edward could tell how unhappy I was with Jake. We never spoke, or so much glanced twice at each other for all the time we`ve known each other.

"Thanks for carring, Edward. But I`d appreciate it if you didn't get involved in my love life." I said after a while.

He looked up at me like I was crazy, then his expression softened and he looked down at his book, then up at me again, and smiled.

"I do like the Beetles, by the way."

Love to those of you who are now following my story, and those of you who added me to your fave author/stories list. you really made my day when I saw it.