Hey guys! Thanks for the support 3 [=

The playlist for this chapter has been updated! Check out the song for this chapter because it rules.

Also, DISCLAIMER: I own nothing... besides this heated mattress pad I'm lounging on & these chocolate pretzels that are currently all up in my mouth. So, please don't sue.. because I really need the rent money I've saved up to move out of this terrifying city.

Chapter 2:

Bella

My uncomfortably stinging eyes alerted me to the fact that I had yet to blink during that whole exchange. If it could be called an exchange. He'd barely glanced at me while I stared at him like a wide eyed teenager.

I shook myself out of it. I wasn't a teenager. I wasn't a kid anymore. I grew up a long time ago. Mooning over some stranger was just embarrassing and not even remotely my style. To be fair, I didn't really have a "style," unless you consider staring constantly at my shuffling chuck covered feet while avoiding human contact a style. Then yeah. Totally not my style.

I huffed and pushed my thick George A. Romero tribute glasses up the bridge of my nose.

I heard a giggle to my left and I huffed again.

"Don't get all puffy with me sweet cheeks," Alice remarked as she flipped casually through an issue of Drum! Magazine.

I frowned in response. Was it really that obvious? I hadn't been that bad… right?

"That was beyond obvious," Alice replied to my unanswered question. She was good at that. She adapted well to my silent ways.

I grumbled and lifted my hoodie over my sloppy hair knotted comfortably on top of my head, and let my head connect with the counter with a grimace as my anxiety started to creep in.

What was that anyway?

I felt sort of… tingly. Nothing good came from a tingly anything. I felt my chest tighten slightly and tried to breathe through it. Change made me uncomfortable. Ok, understatement. Change made me so anxious that I sometimes couldn't move. Especially when that change was completely unexpected.

I caught Peter tossing the word "brother" at the dirty blonde stranger and considering the incredible similarities to each other it wasn't hard to put two and two together. I had known after getting to know Peter that he had a sibling. He didn't elaborate much given the fact that the two of them hadn't spoken in years, and when they did speak prior to that it had been strained. He wasn't very forthcoming with the details, but the gist was that his brother had made one bad choice too many, and the final one was the nail in the coffin burying his relationship with his family.

But here he was.

What did that even mean? What happened? Why was Peter expecting him? Was he staying here? Peter did mention he had a room ready. Maybe I misheard? Was Charlotte okay with this? Was I getting a new neighbor? How would I deal—

Er, okay. Getting a bit out of control there.

Deep breath Bella. Do not focus on the things you can't change. Everything will be sorted soon enough, I soothed my inner anxiety monster.

It roared back with another painful tug in my chest as my breath hitched.

I needed to get out of here.

I shoved back my stool to make my escape and ended up tangling my feet together. This is what Emmett would call a "classic." It was one of my finest… or not my finest. I frowned. Whatever.

A larger hand grabbed my upper arm. My breathing stuttered to a stop as I fought the initial instinct to rip my arm out of Edward's hold.

"I've got you," Edward breathed out before righting me into a solidly balanced standing position.

Edward always got me.

Our relationship had a rocky start. Edward and Alice were best friends and had been since they were both in diapers. When I showed up on my father's doorstep a semester into senior year in Forks and began my friendship with Alice, she assumed that Edward would also become a close friend.

Wrong.

It had taken Alice six months before I was able to speak actual words to her. With Edward… well. Our friendship was definitely a marathon instead of a sprint.

To say I had issues with the opposite sex would be a gross understatement. Edward was just unfortunate collateral damage.

Alice, Edward and I finished high school together before heading to Seattle to begin college. Well, for the two of them to start college. I didn't really have an interest in starting school, and soon after making that decision I had received the life insurance money, and stumbled upon this old brick building. It was fate. A tragic unfortunate fate filled with loss and suffering, but fate none the less.

After two years of silence I started speaking to Edward. Once I started, it was hard to stop, which I think he was thankful for. He was a trooper through my issues; a trooper with excellent charade skills. But yeah, he got me.

Which was why he was aiming a hefty frown between his heavy brows in my direction. I gave him a small smile letting him know all was good while I brought my hand up to smooth between his brows to erase the wrinkled skin.

I gave a slight tilt of my head to the right and rose my eyebrows slightly. He gave me a grin and grabbed my hand practically dragging me down the hall towards the back of the bakery before stopping suddenly in front of the door leading us to the building connected to the bakery. I used the key attached to my wrist to unlock it before stepping in and taking my first real deep breath of the day.

When I happened upon this building a few years ago, it was attached to the building on the right of it. They were both empty spots, so I bought both. Hey, the economy was great for purchasing real estate. Oh, who am I kidding; I wasn't comfortable with the idea of having strangers right next door. Especially not considering above the bakery and the adjacent building housed two loft style apartments. I clearly planned on living in one, and I figured having a say in who lived down the hall from me would ease my anxiety.

Enter Peter and Charlotte. I couldn't help but laugh when he first entered the bakery. I couldn't decide if it was his child like wonder on his way toward the counter, or if it was the lovely drool path he left in his wake. I was concerned about the latter and glanced around for my "caution wet floor cone."

He quickly became my most loyal customer. Every day he'd wander in for the baked good of the day… as well as one or two of everything else. Honestly, considering his lanky frame it was impressive the amount of food he could pack inside of him. So impressive that he actually managed to out eat and beat Emmett in their latest eat off. By "eat" and "beat" I mean that Peter shoved one more mint Oreo in his mouth before spewing black and green all over my hardwood floors.

He's a winner right?

So much so that I let him rent out the place next door as well as the loft above it.

What can I say? He's a charmer. One I could trust Char to keep in line.

Peter had me talking to him in 3 months flat, but for Peter's safety we keep that little nugget to ourselves. Alice hits hard. Especially when she's got a stick in her hand.

I felt a tug on my hand and shook off my memories to focus on the wide open room in front of me.

I'm not going to lie, besides his sparkling personality, what really sold me on Peter was the fact that he wanted the building next door to be an instrument repair shop. Peter was good with his hands and always said there was a real sense of accomplishment in putting something back together and watching it sing.

I rolled my eyes at him. In reality, it was a big practice space for himself and other budding musicians. The instrument repairs just helped pay the rent, which I gave him a considerable discount on since he let me play whatever my inner music fanatic fancied.

Edward plopped down on a slightly unsteady stool before pointing to the one across from him and the two guitars closest to it. I was not amused by his throw back to our hand signal and charade days, but handed him a guitar before taking one for myself and settling in snuggly onto the small stool.

I glanced up and when Edward caught my gaze he warbled out my favorite line, "they're coming to get you Barbara," before starting to strum.

Well the high school kids they're all fucked up.
Touching each other, oh my god.
Yeah and forty ounces was never enough.
We want to pass out in your yard, we want to pass out.
Dressing in drag your best friend's clothes,
while boys kissed boys in hotel rooms.
Oh and just when we thought we were no longer lost
they kicked us out into the dirty streets of Atlanta.

I snorted realizing where he was going with this and joined in strumming and singing along.

So it's Friday night down on North Avenue,
where the gas station parking lot prostitutes
tried to fix their hair in our rearview mirrors.
You know we're just trying to get to the club and shake our asses.

I shimmied in my seat and grinned while bopping along.

A caravan of kids, some big old mess,
on an old wooden dock, oh we're bored to death.
We've got a bottle of wine, a fresh pack of smokes.
We're going to end up screaming about some midnight garage sale

God, put down your gun can't you see we're dead?
God, put down your hand we're not listening.

The microphone cut off so we're screaming at the top of our lungs.

Edward grinned back while shouting the last line into the air.

We are born so fresh, a goldenprize,
until you scrape that knee and quickly realize
that you're lost in a fog on your way to death.
Oh a thick black line, a thick black line.
So you better speak up, better raise that voice.
Come on, scream loud all you girls and boys.
Let's get wild, wild, wild. Let's rejoice.
C'mon, c'mon. I want to hear that fucking noise.

Our voices rose louder as the lyrics flew from our mouths.

Oh the push and pull of everything, oh this nightmare of electricity.
We are the living dead, yeah the living dead.
That's the way it is. That's the way it's always been.
Oh that snake slithered past my house today.
Oh I heard he caught you on a darkhighway.
No the clouds didn't part they just grew into a storm.
I can still hear the sound of the rolling thunder.

Edward followed the last line by a shouted, "THUNDER!"

I took over the next verse, singing sweetly:

God, put down your gun can't you see we're dead?
God put down your hand we're not listening.
God, put down your gun can't you see we're dead?
I said, God put down your hand we're not listening.

Edward came back in with another shout, "Oh we never were!"

We sang together, over and over, "I want to fuck it up…"

Followed by a repeated, "And I feel so alive…"

Before I ended the song with, "And I feel so…" letting the lyrics drift off with the last strum of our guitars.

We were both breathing heavily and smiling like goons.

Yeah. Edward got me.

Well, he had me at least until I heard heavy footsteps pounding down the steps on my left. My face must have shown my panic as I glanced over towards the voices that had now joined the falling steps. Edward frowned and glanced back while Peter and his brother came into view. Peter was obviously ribbing his brother while laughing at his own jokes (something he does often, since you know, no one else will) while his brothers shoulders were slightly raised with discomfort.

Peter beat his brother by a few steps and smiled widely at me.

"Barbara! They're coming for you Barbara! Look! Here comes one now!" Peter proclaimed throwing his thumb back behind him.

His brother stopped on the last step and took in the room, not meeting mine or Edward's eyes. Or, well, my eyes since I was boring a hole into his face, while I could feel Edward boring a hole into mine. This is quite possibly the worst staring contest I have ever been a part of.

"Guys, this is my baby brother Jasper," Peter grinned like a proud papa bear. "Jasper, these are some of the guys."

I felt a flicker of annoyance pass through me when Pete referred to me as "one of the guys," before squashing it down. Realistically I knew it would be best in everyone's interest to make Jasper see me as one of the guys, but it didn't stop the flash of disappointment crashing through me at the thought. Hell, given my appearance I wouldn't be shocked if Jasper really did think I was packing in the nether lands.

I frowned a bit.

Get it together Swan.

In fact, take your eyes off the guy. That's another thing in your best interest.

But I couldn't.

And when our eyes connected I felt the tingles again.

And I felt my eyes widen as he stumbled off the last step, looking embarrassed, while Peter chuckled.

I snapped out of my Jasper induced stupor long enough to realize that it was time to bail, big time. I shot Peter a glare and Jasper a small smile (well, a smile in the direction of Jasper since I was keeping my eyes on lockdown) before taking the steps behind them two at a time. I patted myself on the back when I reached the top for not falling up the stairs. I paused in the middle of the hallway between the two apartments and released a breath I hadn't realized I had been holding.

Jasper.

I felt his name roll around in my head like it was the only thing in there.

"Jasper," I whispered letting the word fill my mouth.

"That would be his name Sug." My head snapped up to see Char leaning against the open door frame to her apartment, "Making some new friends eh?"

I glared at her trying to hide my mortification before grumbling and heading towards my own door and shutting it quietly behind me.

"You know you can't hide forever!" Charlotte shouted to me.

I gave another huff as I slid down the closed door. Of course I could. I was a pro at it. A couple of slips due to some unexpected company didn't mean anything. They couldn't mean anything. Not only would I not allow it, but I felt the need to be realistic about it. It was an impossibility.

I felt that sting course through again.

"Jasper."