Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. That is all.

The Blonde

Edward arrived at the bakery almost an hour before his shift began. He hadn't slept well last night. He hadn't been able to think clearly after he had lost sight of the woman he had seen the day before. He felt like he was going insane or was hallucinating.

That had to be the only explanation. Why else would he begin to see her after all this time? He had, at long last, lost it.

He washed his hands thoroughly after clocking in for his shift and began preparing pastries. He was lost in thought, so he didn't notice that the manager and Emmett were staring at him, perplexed as they tried to figure out why he was there so early. They shrugged it off though. They had an early morning delivery.

"Go tell Edward to help you arrange the order," the manager told Emmett before going to his office.

Edward was kneading dough when Emmett approached him.

"Hey, Edward. Eric asked me to tell you to help me out with an early morning delivery," Emmett relayed.

Edward nodded. "No problem. Just tell me what part of the order you want me to take care of so we don't overdo it."

Emmett beamed down at him with a bright smile before pointing out what he wanted Edward to take care of. Emmett went to wash his own hands before going to his own station to start on his part of the order. They worked in silence as they completed everything.

Emmett almost asked Edward if he was okay but held back. There was something about Edward that felt a little off. Emmett frowned, remembering when Edward had first come in to start working at the bakery. All of the girls had been fawning over him, but he would awkwardly reject them.

Emmett shuddered when he remembered the day their previous manager had come onto Edward. Edward had been in charge of closing that night. Emmett and Jessica had stepped out to throw away the trash and take a quick smoke break.

"What do you think of the new guy?" Jessica asked, exhaling smoke through her nose.

Emmett shrugged. "What is there to think? He does his job. He's good at it. He covers when someone needs to go do something. He's a decent guy overall. I can't say there is anything I can complain about."

Jessica rolled her eyes.

"Really? Doesn't he seem a little lonely to you? There's something about him…that's different than most guys. He's…what's the word? Withdrawn? Yeah, that's it. He kind of acts like someone died, you know? He's always got that look on his face," Jessica commented.

Emmett raised an eyebrow at her. "You think so?"

Jessica rolled her eyes again.

"You're such a guy, Emmett. Maybe if you pay attention to him, you'll see that-"

"GET THE FUCK OFF!" someone roared from inside.

Jessica and Emmett stomped out their cigarettes and ran inside to see their manager, Lauren pressed against an unwilling Edward.

"Stop acting coy, Edward. I won't tell anyone," Lauren tried to whisper seductively.

Edward's nostrils flared.

"Get off me," Edward responded in a threatening tone.

Lauren backed off, alarmed.

"I quit," Edward said with a sneer. He threw his apron down and walked off.

He didn't even acknowledge Jessica or Emmett on his way out.

Emmett had talked to the general manager about what had happened and after viewing the cameras, Lauren was fired. They had called Edward back and he reluctantly agreed to return.

Emmett had kept an eye on Edward since then. He wasn't obvious about it. He just made sure that no one bothered him. It was plain to see that Jessica had been correct in her assumption all those months ago. Edward walked around as if he was on autopilot.

He had been extremely surprised when Edward had come around a couple of days ago with a frightened woman. He was even more surprised when he discovered that it was a stranger that he was helping out. Emmett had agreed to assist the little lady in escaping. He actually found it to be some sort of progress with Edward's behavior. The kid had been so closed off that Emmett was surprised he had even noticed the lady was being followed.

When it came down to it, Emmett had to admit that he could easily picture Edward as the type of person to help out a person in need. It matched his polite personality.

Edward had dark circles under his eyes this morning. Emmett wanted to ask how everything had turned out for the little lady, but he kept his mouth shut as he inspected Edward's face. Edward looked…haunted.

Emmett clapped his hands and rubbed them together.

"All right, Edward! Who's it going to be? Do you want to deliver the order?" Emmett asked him.

Edward shrugged. "Sure, unless you had your heart set on it."

Emmett snorted and guffawed. "It's no problem. My heart will go on. Go on ahead and deliver it."

Edward nodded in agreement and boxed everything up while Emmett went up front to get some supplies.

He delivered the order and drove back. It had taken him almost an hour. The traffic in Seattle was ridiculous.

He came back in through the back door and threw on an apron after hanging the truck keys back where they belonged. He already wanted the shift to be over. It was a double edged sword in his case. He had to deal with people when he was at work, but when he was at home, he had to deal with the reality of his life. Either way, he never truly had a moment of peace.

He was nearing the front, where the gloves were at, when he heard Emmett's boisterous laugh. He turned his head to glance at him out of habit and paused all movements when he saw the blonde woman standing before him. She was new.

He could appreciate her aesthetic appeal. He wondered why someone who looked like her would be here. His answer was about to come. The woman turned her head slightly until her gaze fell on Edward. She squinted her eyes for a moment and turned back to Emmett to tell him something.

"Hey, Edward! Someone is looking for you!" Emmett called.

Edward felt all eyes on him. All of the bakers had stopped what they were doing to see who was looking for him. He felt that it was only natural that they would do so. He never volunteered any information about his personal life with anyone. He supposed it was a person's natural inclination to satisfy their curiosity, so he didn't blame them for looking or being so obvious. The problem was, he didn't know who the woman was, so he was as clueless as the rest of them.

Edward walked up to the counter dutifully and extended a hand.

"Edward Cullen. You were looking for me, ma'am?"

The blonde woman pursed her lips and squinted her eyes again before slowly letting a breathtaking smile spread across her face. She shook his hand with a strong grip before releasing her hold.

"I'm Rosalie Hale. I was wondering if you had a moment to spare?" she inquired politely.

Edward looked over his shoulder. Emmett blushed when he caught him looking.

"I'll cover for you for a few," Emmett offered.

Edward nodded. "I won't be long."

He followed the blonde woman, Rosalie outside. She eyed the bench outside the bakery with a bit of disdain before taking a deep breath and sitting down. She patted the spot beside her, indicating that he sit down as well. He did.

"I wanted to thank you for your courageous behavior the other day. You see, I am friends with Alice. We live together; she mentioned that she had told you that. Alice has been through a lot and has managed to slowly overcome the hurdles she's been presented with. As all things that are worthwhile, it's been difficult and it's a work in progress. For that reason, I wanted you to be aware that Alice is a gentle soul; I won't have you mucking up her progress by betraying her confidence.

"I'd like to think of myself as a good judge of character, and I feel, now that I've seen you, that you wouldn't do that to her. However, I was the one who convinced her to move to Seattle with me, and it's my responsibility to look out for her. She's like a sister to me, and I don't want her to get hurt. I just wanted you to know that I won't tolerate anyone hurting her. She's dealt with enough," Rosalie stated.

Edward scowled at Rosalie's words.

"Don't worry about it. I'm not interested in ruining the progress she's made. She asked me to be her friend and I accepted. I don't betray my friends," Edward retorted.

Rosalie's face twisted into her own scowl as she eyed him. She abruptly stood and smiled down at him.

"We will see about that. I suppose time will either prove or disprove your sentiment," she replied.

Edward stood from the bench and brushed off his pants before heading back inside. Rosalie called out to him before he could go in. She approached him purposefully and handed him a red envelope with a ribbon on it.

"It's an invitation to our annual Halloween party. It begins at eight o'clock. Bring your friend," Rosalie directed, pointing her chin in Emmett's general direction.

Edward held back a snort.

"Of course," he answered before heading back inside.

Edward shook his head. He didn't really know what to make of Rosalie. She was a good friend if what Alice had told him she had done for her was any indication. She had a very direct and blunt approach to things, except for her obvious interest in Emmett. She also seemed a little closed off. Edward wondered how someone like Rosalie had befriended Alice.

That was when he remembered Alice mentioning that she had met her at a group therapy session. Did that mean that Rosalie had been a victim of circumstances similar to Alice's?

He frowned at the thought. He didn't like the idea of any woman being hurt in any way.

He looked down at the invitation. He didn't want to go; he knew that much. However, he had agreed to be friends with Alice. Sometimes, friendship included stepping out of one's comfort zone to be there for one's friends.

Edward sighed before readying his work station again.

Emmett looked at Edward thoughtfully. He wondered if he could ask Edward about the blonde. He hadn't seen her before. Perhaps, Edward could introduce them.

Before leaving that afternoon, Edward stopped Emmett on his way out.

"Emmett, the woman from earlier, Rosalie invited us to her Halloween party for helping her friend the other day," Edward told him.

Emmett's eyes widened. "That little lady is friends with the blonde?"

Edward nodded. "If you want to go, I can send you the information. Just give me your number."

Emmett agreed, excited at the prospect of seeing the blonde, Rosalie again. Emmett clapped Edward on the back in a friendly gesture before leaving.

"Have a good day, Edward!" Emmett exclaimed before running off to his car.

Edward's brow furrowed. As soon as Emmett had stepped away, he had felt the hair on the back of his neck prickle. Before he could look around, something shattered a glass bottle that had been just a few inches away from him, by the doorway.

Edward jumped back in surprise before poking his head out again. He frowned down at an arrow on the floor. He gingerly picked it up with his glove clad hand and inspected it before looking around.

Movement caught his attention from a nearby rooftop. All he saw was the billowing of curled, brown hair before the figure disappeared completely from his sight.