Hello and thank you for reviewing, guys! I'm always happy when people read and review my stories ;-)

Rose stalked from the store right after Esme had insisted they would go home now, and all the way to the car her jaw was clenched and her eyes narrowed.

She should have seen it coming, she thought … now that they were allowed to come back home Esme didn't want to waste any time to yell at her for saying something about Edward. It was so ridiculous that it annoyed her.

Rose walked around the big, red Jeep to the driver's side, then leaned against the side of the trunk with her back, her arms crossed over her chest while she took a few breaths that were supposed to calm her.

Seeing that she didn't get in, Emmett rolled down his window and stuck his head out to look at her, a little frown was already creasing his forehead as he felt that something was off. "What's wrong, babe?" he asked.

She glared at the ground and shook her head in response – she wouldn't have said anything now anyways as Alice was already skipping towards them, followed by Esme.

Alice gave her sister a small, empathetic smile when she stood in front of her, then opened the rear passenger door. "Come, Rose," she said softly and climbed inside, then scooted over to settle into the middle seat right next to Jasper.

Pushing away from the trunk, Rosalie took a step, then got into the seat next to Alice and right behind the driver's seat.

She shut the door, using a little more force than intended, then buckled up and just hoped she could spend this car ride without having to say anything. Whenever she was in a bad mood she didn't speak, hoping people would notice and thus leave her alone, because otherwise she might snap at them without actually meaning to. So remaining silent right now seemed like a good idea, especially since they had an hour-long car ride until home and she didn't have the chance of secluding herself in case an argument would break out.

The front passenger door opened and Esme got in. She was holding a bunch of magazines in her hand that she had bought for Alice, and she passed them over her shoulder to her dark-haired daughter while shutting the door. "Here Alice, and please share with Rose," she said and fastened her seatbelt so they could finally leave the gas station and head home.

"Thanks, Mom. I will," Alice nodded her head, then held the magazines out for Rosalie to choose from.

Without even looking at them Rose just shook her head, then put her elbow on the edge of the car door and leaned her cheek upon her hand. She preferred to gaze out of the window at the passing buildings and cars instead of flipping through a magazine, because she felt it would more likely be able to help her rid her mind of all the stressful and negative thoughts. She didn't enjoy feeling so tense and disgruntled and she wanted to make use of the car ride to try to breath the emotions out of her before they would reach home and Esme would give her a telling-off for not speaking highly of Edward.

She let out a silent sigh when she heard a clicking sound and then suddenly music filled the vehicle. Emmett, her sweet husband, had put on some music to make sure there would be less talking and more … well, listening to music for the ride home.

He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and sang along like he was all alone in the car. It was a good thing though, he was drawing attention to himself and therefore Rosalie could relax as she knew no one would notice her when her husband was so loud and entertaining.

"Mom, sing along!" Emmett called every ten seconds and grinned at Esme, but she just patted his hand that was resting on the gear shift and told him she didn't know that song.

"Okay … can you beatbox?"

"What's that, baby?" she asked. She wasn't familiar with that term or all the modern music her children were so fond of, so all she could to was blink her eyes and wait for him to explain.

So he showed her.

She laughed and shook her head. "No, Emmy, I can't do that."

"I'll teach you!" he called excitedly and grinned at her, only to have Esme reach out to steady the steering wheel.

"Keep your eyes on the road, Emmett, please." she half-scolded, half-pleaded and turned the volume of the music down a bit. Emmett got a little distracted and had swayed to the right, getting dangerously close to the trees lining the road.

"Whoopsie daisy," he muttered and cleared his throat, then focussed back on the street to get his family home without glass or splinters of wood between their teeth.

The drive was quicker this time as it was late and there wasn't much traffic at this time of the day. Besides, Esme didn't seem to notice that Emmett wasn't exactly obeying the speed limit anymore. She seemed to worry about something - something that made her nervous and jittery. She kept checking her watch and cell phone, then looked out of the window to see how close they were to home, then she brushed invisible lint off her blouse, then she smoothed out non-existent wrinkles from her skirt. All these little actions were obviously supposed to keep her hands busy and give her something to do so she wouldn't worry even more, but it also made it quite obvious to her children that something wasn't right.

"Are you all right, Esme?" Jasper asked over the music, his face tense as he had to endure his mother's nervousness like it was his own.

Turning her head to look at him over her shoulder, Esme said, "Of course I am, dear." She tried to sound assuring, but failed miserably.

"Are you sure you're okay, Mom?" Emmett questioned and glanced at her while she looked at her wristwatch for the umpteenth time it seemed.

"Yes, baby, of course," she replied and gave him a little, nervous smile.

Oh, she was probably concerned about little Eddie, Emmett figured. "Aww, Mom, he's all right, stop worrying so much!" He laughed a little, hoping he could calm her mind. He had been in Eddie's position before … once or twice … so he knew what he was talking about.

"I know, dear."

Emmett was silent for a moment, then said with a shrug of his shoulder, "Dad just whupped his ass, no big deal."

"Emmett, enough. I told you before that I don't want to hear you speaking about this matter as it does not concern you."

He obviously did not hear Esme reprimanding him, because he just continued his little speech that was supposed to calm his Mom's nerves. Seemingly remembering something, he added, "I mean, okay, he really screwed up, but what's the worst that's gonna happen now, huh? Is Dad gonna sell that -"

Esme's eyes widened at what her son was saying, but before she could even open her mouth, Alice and Jasper were already intervening.

An excited squeal emerged from Alice's lips, effectively drowning out what Emmett was saying, before she exclaimed, "Look at these boots, Mom!" and she held a fashion magazine directly in front of Esme's nose.

At the same time Jasper called, "I love that song! Care to turn the volume up, Em?"

"Sure thing, bro!" he replied and fumbled with the stereo. Oops, he had promised to be careful about this matter around Esme …

Luckily they were almost home as the unpaved road that led to their house was only a mile away. Esme would be busy coddling Edward or spend time with Carlisle until tomorrow, so he wouldn't run the risk of accidentally give away that he knew what Edward had done.

Apparently Esme thought her son had just tried to find out what had happened at home, because she didn't question him or say anything else anymore. Now she just seemed to be getting nervous and impatient again.

"Do you need any help, Esme?" Jasper asked and placed a hand on her shoulder as he was sitting right behind her. He really wanted to send her a few waves of calmness to take some of her nervousness away, but as these few would have to be ginormous, he preferred to ask her first. There was no way she wouldn't notice his influence, and just like his family didn't appreciate Edward invading their minds, they also didn't want him to change their emotional states to one he would prefer.

"No, dear, I'm fine," she replied and patted his hand, then continued to stare at the road ahead, still as nervous as before.

Emmett slowed down when they were reaching the house and as they waited for the garage door to open, it was apparent that Esme was now feeling relieved to be home. Still worried and nervous, but also relieved.

Rosalie however didn't look like she was sharing that emotion with her mother. Her face was unreadable, but it was pretty obvious that she didn't look forward to the impeding talk, but wanted to get it over with. It would be the last thing today she had to endure until she could finally spend what was left of the day with her husband. She longed for the privacy of their room and his presence so she could forget about this day and start the next one without feeling stressed or harassed.

The door was up, and Emmett chased his car into the garage. Before the Jeep was in its usual spot he abruptly hit the brakes, making the tires screech in protest as the car skidded to a halt right where Emmett wanted it to. He was proud of himself, the dimpled grin on his face was proof of that.

After everyone got thrown forward and then hit the backrest of their seats again, Emmett pulled the key out of the ignition and hesitantly looked sideways as he realised that his mother was sitting next to him and normally didn't approve of his preferred method of parking his car. And just like he had expected, Esme was giving him a stern look.

"Emmett, how often do I have to tell you, hm? Treat your car more carefully or you'll break it. And I hope you didn't leave any tire marks on the floor, it isn't sealed yet," she told him, knowing that he sometimes had a little trouble handling his strength or curb his enthusiasm. But he hadn't done that in a while now, so she had no clue why he would start again.

He gave her a sheepish look, and she patted his cheek before they unfastened their seatbelts and got out of the car.

The first thing Esme did was go to the trunk of the Jeep, not just to retrieve the numerous bags full of clothes, but also to check the floor of the garage for tire marks.

"I'll take my purse upstairs," Rosalie informed her mother as she was standing so close to her now. She hadn't spoken a word during the drive, and she felt that it had been the best she could have done as she felt much better now.

"Sure dear, go ahead," Esme replied while eyeing the floor.

Frowning at the fact that her mother hadn't even looked at her, Rosalie then shut the car door and marched out of the garage, heading for her room.

"Emmett." was all Esme said and she did not sound happy.

He walked up to her and then saw what she was looking at. "Shoot," he mumbled while kneeling down to examine the black skidmarks on the cement floor. He let his fingers run across one of them, then straightened up again and shrugged. Looking to the side he noticed his mother looking up at him expectantly and he suddenly smiled. "Now it's officially my spot."

Then he reached into the open trunk and grabbed a few bags just like Jasper was doing, so they could carry them inside for the girls. Not that they couldn't carry them themselves, but Jasper and Emmett were gentlemen and therefore wanted to take care of it for them.

"You will clean that up, Emmy."

"But it's a garage, Mom! It has to look like that!" he tried to argue.

"I'll give you Krud Kutter and a brush and then you can set to work, baby," she replied, then walked up the few steps and into the kitchen.

Esme bent down and opened the cabinet under the sink where she knew she had the things Emmett would need to clean the floor. She found them immediately and placed them on the countertop, then closed the door of the cabinet again.

Emmett and Jasper entered and put the bags on the counter, and while Jasper walked into the living room to see what his wife was up to, Emmett remained standing in the kitchen. Esme just pointed at the cleaning supplies when Emmett looked at her, and she nodded her head while he groaned.

"Right now, Em."

He walked over to her and grabbed the things without much enthusiasm, and Esme rubbed his back softly. "You'll find a wire brush in the closet in the garage, just in case it doesn't work with that one."

Alice had left the garage even before Rose had and she was lying on the couch now as she deemed it the perfect spot for going through her magazines. Jasper looked at her over the backrest of the couch, then gave her a kiss before turning around again. "I'll keep Emmett company, dear." he said while walking over to his pouting brother, who stood in the kitchen with slumped shoulders holding cleaning supplies in his hands.

And Esme headed for the stairs so she could finally find her baby boy and enfold him in her arms.

Rose placed her purse on the bed in her and Emmett's room, then turned around to go downstairs to get lectured. She wasn't even sure what exactly she was feeling at the moment, but she knew it wasn't excitement. Being able to sleep to get her mind off things would be a blessing, she thought, while stepping out of the room and closing the door behind herself. Hopefully it would only take a few minutes and then she could finally spend some time with Em.

As she descended the stairs, she could see that Esme was just about to put her foot on the first step, and so she picked up her pace.

Coming to a halt right next to the newel post before Esme could start to climb the stairs, Rosalie turned and raised her eyebrows when Esme looked at her.

"Yes?" Esme asked as the expectant look on her daughter's face told her that she was waiting for something.

"You wished to talk to me," Rose stated.

"Yes, Rosalie, but I really need to check on Edward first," she said and went upstairs, leaving Rose standing at the foot of the stairs.

"Esme."

Esme stopped and turned around to look at her blond daughter. "Yes, dear?" she queried, sounding slightly exasperated.

"You said you wanted to talk to me as soon as we get home," Rosalie pointed out and looked at her mother quizzically.

Esme sighed. She was anxious to end the uncertainty of her son's current condition and that's why she couldn't talk to Rosalie now. Her son was waiting in his room and seeing him right now had top priority for her.

"Rosalie, please understand, I would like to see your brother now."

Rosalie took a deep breath, then averted her eyes. "Yes, I understand," she replied, then turned around and walked in the direction of the kitchen.

So Esme hadn't shooed them out of the shop because she wanted to get home and get the talk over with. No, all she had wanted was to get home to coddle Edward. Edward, who got himself in trouble because he had felt the need to act like a selfish idiot. But, of course, Esme would treat him like he was an innocent victim.

The boy was now ruining the rest of Rose's night and put it further on hold, because now she had to wait until Esme would return from his room – and Edward was a little Momma's boy, so he wouldn't let her go anytime soon.

Rose could understand that - as a mother - Esme wanted to make sure her kids were well, but it was apparent that some of them were more important to her than others. That was okay for Rose, but in the current situation it felt disrespectful and unfair. She had hoped they could get this stupid talk over with and actually expected it to be as soon as they came home just like Esme had announced. She had a few things to say in her defence in case Esme blamed her for Edward being a jerk, but no, Esme didn't care about anyone but Edward right now.

"Rose!" Alice called and peeked at her sister over the backrest of the couch in the living room.

Rosalie shook her head lightly as she had been absorbed in thought, then walked towards Alice and gave her a questioning look while running her fingers through her long, blond hair. "Alice?"

"Come." Alice jumped up from the couch and skipped into the kitchen while grinning over her shoulder at Rose.

The boys had placed the shopping bags onto the counter and were now back in the garage, Rosalie noticed, because she could hear their muffled voices through the closed door.

Alice attacked the first bag she saw, then pushed it to the side and rummaged through a different one.

Suddenly her face lit up and she lifted the bag up from the counter and handed it to her sister. "That's for you!" she exclaimed and her eyes shone with delight, because she already knew Rosalie would love the things they had picked out for her.

"For me?"

"Yes!" Alice replied and bounced up and down, then snatched the bag from Rose's hand and opened it, revealing what they bought. "Look, isn't this the cutest little clutch you have ever seen? It would look perfect with your new dress, you know, the dark blue one."

Then she pulled the belt out. It was a thin white leather belt with an ornamented silver buckle.

"Perfect for your new jeans!"

And then Alice reached deep into the paper bag and pulled a large leather handbag out. "School," she said and shrugged her shoulders.

Rose was stunned when Alice gave her the bag again. She cleared her throat and looked at her cheerful sister. "They are beautiful."

"I know, right?" Alice said and smiled broadly. "Next time you have to come with us when we go to that boutique. They have amazing things, even though the shop is incredibly small ..."

"I'd love to, Alice. And thank you," Rose said and suddenly smiled. Alice was just too sweet and her ability to cheer people up seemed to be her second talent.

"You're welcome. Maybe you should check if I was indeed right with the belt and the little clutch, but I am almost a thousand percent sure that I am."

Rose gave Alice's hand a squeeze to thank her again, then stepped past her and headed for the stairs. She had nothing to do but wait, so why not take her new things up to her room?

She reached the first landing quickly and had already opened the door to her room when she suddenly saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Looking sideways she detected Carlisle and Esme standing in front of their room. He was brushing the knuckles of his right hand lightly over her cheek while she was talking to him with a frown on her face.

Rose just placed the bag next to the door in her and Emmett's room, then wanted to go back downstairs and join Alice in the living room when she noticed that it had become quiet. Her parents must have noticed her presence and as she turned her head they were indeed looking at her.

Rosalie closed the door to her room with a soft click and said, "I'm sorry, I did not mean to disrupt."

Carlisle gave her a little smile. "Hello, dear, you're not disrupting. How was the movie?"

"It was good," she said warily. As she saw both her parents just standing there and looking at her, she got the feeling that the time had come. She really wasn't in the mood for this, but she wanted to get it over with now so she could finally enjoy the rest of this day alone with Emmett. "Do we talk now?"

"Rosalie, I told you I wanted to check on Edward first," Esme replied with a sigh.

"Yes." Rose nodded her head. "So do we talk now?"

"No, not now, Rosalie. I haven't been upstairs yet."

Now that was weird. Esme had said she wanted to see Edward immediately and that's why they couldn't get the talk over with, but now she was standing here in the hallway with Carlisle.

"Oh."

"It might take a while. Please be patient," Esme told her.

Rosalie nodded and started to walk down the hallway in the direction of the stairs, but then she suddenly stopped and turned back around to face them. "Why can't he be patient?"

"Rosalie." Esme said and shook her head in a chiding way.

"What, do you think he'll run away?" Rose asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice. She had spent the last hours away from home and now that they were finally here she still couldn't relax as she had to wait yet another hour or so for a two-minute lecture – a two-minute lecture for speaking the truth, mind you. But what irked Rosalie most was that Edward would want Esme to cuddle him for hours, and she would do so. Shouldn't she realise that it would make more sense to take care of this here first? Especially since she had said she wanted to talk to her as soon as they would arrive home?

Suddenly Esme's eyes widened and she gasped. "Have you been eavesdropping?"

What? "What are you talking about?" Rosalie queried, her eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Rosalie, have you been eavesdropping?" Esme asked again, her hands resting on her hips now.

"Esme, no," Carlisle said and rubbed her upper arm in order to calm her. "Rose just came upstairs and we were talking here in the middle of the hallway instead of seeking the privacy of our room or my study. We can only blame ourselves if anyone overhears our conversation."

Esme was obviously still tense, and that feeling wouldn't go away until she could see Edward and make sure that he was all right.

"I didn't eavesdrop on you. I just came upstairs to bring the bag to my room. Is that a crime now?" Rosalie was struggling to keep her voice polite after her mother had just accused her of something she wouldn't do.

"No, sweetheart, your mother didn't mean to accuse you of anything. Isn't that right, love?"

"Of course I didn't mean to accuse you. I'm sorry Rosalie," Esme said and brushed a lock of her brown hair out of her eyes.

Rosalie raised one eyebrow and eyed her mother for a moment. "I'll be downstairs," she said and walked towards the stairs.

Yup, Emmett is still convinced that this is his story ... but he's in the garage now and I am planning on leaving him in there for a while so we will hopefully get a little more Rosalie to read about. The next chapter will be the talk between the parents and Rose, and guess who's not gonna be happy about the outcome ...

Please leave a review!