I do not own Twilight or any of it's characters.


The next few weeks were a blur of voices. Edward's, The Shrink's, and even Charlie's. But the one voice that repeated in my head was James'. Every night, just as I was on the brink of sleep I would hear his voice, "Don't move, pretty." I would awake so suddenly that sometimes I would find myself on the floor with no recollection as to how I had gotten there. It was then that I called the one person who had said they would be there whenever I needed them.

No, not The Shrink.

Edward and I had spent the few days that I was in the hospital getting to know each other. There was something about the fact that he might be just as screwed up as I am that put me at ease. Which just proves how even more screwed up I really am. Nevertheless, we spent hours just talking, him telling me about his life before the Cullens and even the early time with the Cullens. I found out that his mother's name was Elizabeth and that she had the most amazing green eyes, and could cook the most delicious food ever. I found out, that though his father was somewhat strict, he also loved Edward more than most dad's usually do. However, even with all that, it didn't stop Edward from acting out. He claimed that all the pressure that was put on him by everyone was what caused him to seek a release, and it didn't hurt that it gave him a thrill to know that he was actively breaking the law.

"I just, you don't know what it's like having everyone expect you to be perfect all the freaking time. I mean, it gets so tiring and you just, you want to be free."

"Are you kidding me? That was, the worst you had to deal with? There are children STARVING in Africa, and you smoke pot because you can't handle the pressure of being a golden boy!"

He just looked at me. "I smoked pot, past tense, as in not anymore."

"My bad, you SMOKED pot."

"Who smoked pot?"

We both looked up to find Charlie standing in the doorway looking all official like, which quickly ended that conversation.

However that night I found that having Edward as a friend wasn't all bad, aside from the "holier-than-thou" attitude and the issue of his adoptive father. It was that first night that I heard James' voice in my sleep. Edward was sitting there, having talked my father into letting him stay, when I woke up startled and screaming. He talked me down as he reassured me that James was not in the room, and that I was only having a bad dream.

"It wasn't a bad dream, Edward; it was a nightmare."

The next night when it happened again I couldn't stop crying. I just sat there in the bed hugging my knees and crying. Charlie couldn't calm me, and I attacked any nurse that came at me with a syringe. It wasn't until Charlie came in with Edward by his side that I finally started to calm.

He sat down by the side of the bed and just waited. There was something about him just being near me that just seemed to sooth me. The next day I was released from the hospital. The scenes in the hospital were nowhere near as bad as Charlie and Edward trying to get me into the house.

"No, no, no, no please. Please, I, I don't want to go in there. Please. Please, god please!" Charlie had me by the upper arms and was trying to take me into the house by force. I was digging my heels into the soft moist earth while tears poured from my eyes. "Please, Charlie, please…please, don't make go in there. Please."

Edward stepped forward and casually moved Charlie aside.

"Bella, Bella, Bella honey come on. Just look at me. Bella." He took my face in his too warm hands and brought it closer to his. "Bella, we're going in there with you, you'll be fine. We're not gonna let anyone hurt you. We'll be right here beside you."

Even in my mind, my overreaction made no sense. I wasn't afraid of Charlie or even Edward. I wasn't afraid of the house that was being patrolled 24/7 by AWAKE police officers. So why was I fighting so hard not to go in there. But I realized why after we crossed the threshold into the house.

Right where Charlie found me was a dark stain on the carpet. My eyes locked on that spot and my feet rooted me to where I was standing. I couldn't stop staring at it. It was my blood, my blood on the carpet where James had stabbed me in the leg. And even though it scared the shit out of me, it also intrigued me in a way that I couldn't quite explain.

"I tried to get it cleaned up…but it's too set in there. I'll have someone come replace it in the morning."

But I didn't hear anything that Charlie said, because my feet were now carrying me towards the dark spot on the cream carpet. I kneeled down and touched it, letting my fingers sink into the dense carpet. I had eluded James, I had eluded James for the second time and came away with my life.

"What are we doing for dinner?" I asked Charlie.

Both he and Edward exchanged a look, Charlie's was a look of confusion and Edward's was a look of relief. Later I would find out that he had experience the same sort of moment when he had first entered his house after his parent's death. How the blood had left dark spots on the walls of his house, and that after finally acknowledging what had happened, a small part of him was able to move on.

After that Edward walked me up to my room. I realized that I wasn't really hungry, just tired. When we got to my room Edward told me to wait by the door and entered in on his own. After a thorough inspection of my childlike room, which I remembered to be embarrassed about later, he told me it was safe.

"Bella, I can't imagine what you're going through; but I just want you to know that you don't have to do it alone. I know we're not the best of friends, but right now, you're the closest thing I have to a friend. And if you'll let me, I want to be your friend. It's up to you, no pressure. But," he grabbed a post-it note and a pen a wrote down some numbers, "If you ever need to talk, here's my number."

I thanked him and then he started to leave. I watched him pause, just as he was a foot away from me, there was a look in his eye that I almost interpreted to mean that he wanted something. But before I could question him, he made his way out the door.

"Bella?" Charlie's voice called through my door. "Bella? You awake?"

"What is it Charlie?" I called through the sleep still lodged in my throat.

"You have a visitor!"

Before I could ask who it was a tiny bundle of energy came humming into my room.

"Bella! You're alive! Oh…thank goodness. I mean, I thought I was going to have to find a new shopping buddy!"

"Hi Alice." I said to The Pixie as she sat on my bed with all the authority of the bed owner, and not the guest who had never once slept in the bed.

"So…I was thinking…seeing how it's Saturday, and there's nothing really to do….well…I thought maybe, you might-want-to-come-to-my-house-and-hang-out."

"What?"

"I SAID, that MAYBE YOU MIGHT WANT TO COME TO MY HOUSE AND HANG OUT!"

"I'm not deaf Alice, I just can't understand you when you're talking at three billion words per second!"

She just laughed. "Oh Bella!"

"Yes?"

"Well what do you think? You up for it?"

"Well, I don't know…"

"I knew you'd want to!"

"Alice!"

"What?"

"I just, I think…"

"Edward's gonna be there."

I blushed, "So."

"I knew it! I knew it! You have sooooo got a crush on Edward."

"I do not!"

"Do so!"

"Don not!"

"Do so!"

"Do not!"

"Do so!" We both heard from downstairs.

"Charlie!" The Pixie cracked up at this.

"Fine! I'll come over. But if you try anything, it will be the last thing you ever do."

"Are you threatening me Bella?" She asked coyly.

"No. I just want you to be aware that if you try anything it will be the last thing you ever do."

"Oh yeah, and what are you gonna do, if I do something?"

"Well, I have it on good authority that you are deathly afraid of spiders. And seeing how I am not a pansy like yourself, I would not even hesitate to grab the spider off my windowsill and fling it at you."

She quickly looked at my windowsill. "There's nothing there."

"That you can see."

Her face turned white and then she jumped for the door. "Get out of bed Bella, you're coming over!"

"Fine! Just let me change."

"Why? Afraid Edward won't like the PJs?"

I made a move for the windowsill and she jumped out the door and slammed it shut. I quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a hoodie and made my way downstairs. Charlie was watching the game and The Pixie was watching Charlie.

"Alice, you ready?"

"Yep!"

We drove to her house and pulled into the garage. Once inside I saw that Alice wasn't the only Cullen with an appetite for expensive cars. But as I made my way to check out a pretty little red thing, I bumped in the most humongous black hummer I had ever seen. Which of course caused it to start beeping and whirling as loudly as possible.

"Shh! Shh! I'm sorry! Please, please stop! SHH! SHHHHHHH!"

The machine suddenly went silent and I turned to see The Bear just looking at me.

"Sorry. I, I kind of tripped." He still didn't say anything. "I didn't hurt it, did I?"

At this The Bear just started laughing, and again I felt it rattle in my rib cage.

That day the Pixie and I did all sorts of things. It started out with manicures and pedicures because, "Omigod Bella, your cuticles are like, atrocious!" Which was quickly followed by facials because, "Omigod Bella, your skin would look so much better if you just attacked it with a good microderm abrasion cream." This of course was followed by a make-over.

"Bella, Bella you have to let me dress you up? Please. I've never seen you in anything but jeans and a hoodie."

"For good reason!"

"No Bella, please, you have to let me."

"No, I don't."

"Yes you do."

"No I don't"

"Bella, seriously, I have put up with so much surliness from you. I mean, you bitch about Charlie, you bitch about Carlisle, and I'm sure that you're going to start bitching about Edward. So please just let me dress you up. Just this once! Bella, PLEASE!"

"Okay, okay, jeez Alice."

She rushed me into the bathroom with several dresses, and skirts, and shirts, and heels, and 45 minutes later I walked out in a blue dress with silver heels.

"Come on Bella, come out, I want to see it!"

I stepped out of the bathroom and tottered into the room.

"Happy?"

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"No, I mean, you look good in the dress. It's just, your hair is so plain."

"No…"

"Please Bella, just let me—"

"No…"

"Please Bella, I just want to do your hair."

"No!"

"Bella!"

"No!"

"Bella!"

I tried to hold out but The Pixie wore me down, so the next thing I knew I was in a chair with a curling iron in my hair and make-up on my face. I sat there for an hour while she curled, and pulled, and teased my hair. But I had to admit, I looked damn fine.

"Alright, now we go show the family."

"Alice—"

"I was just kidding!"

"Alice?" I nearly fell over as Edward walked into the room. "Alice, do you have my—" He looked around for the Pixie, but found me first. His eyes locked on to mine but then they quickly traveled over my body. Then they traveled over my body once more, only a little slower this time. He unconsciously licked his lips and then focused on a spot just below my collar bone. His gaze caused a flush to run up from my neck to my face. "Bella?"

I tried to dart back to the bathroom, but halfway there I tripped over The Pixie's ridiculous heels and started to go down. Of course, I never hit the floor because Edward had me in his arms before I could collide with the carpet. Again he looked me up and down and this time stared at my lips.

"Don't get any ideas!" I said and tried to pull myself out of his arms.

He tightened his grasp and held me there, slightly horizontal and pinned to his chest. "Oh, don't worry, I won't." He righted me then, and I flushed even redder as I ran to the bathroom.

After that Alice and I agreed that it was time to just chill for a while, so we went downstairs and pulled out a funny movie to watch.

"I love this movie! I mean, it's just so funny, and you know, the guy in it's not too bad looking either!" She said with a smirk on her face as she took out "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days".

We were twenty minutes into the movie when a tall blonde guy came into the room and sat down next to The Pixie. I was quickly introduced to The Pixie's boyfriend, Jasper. However, the guy was quickly losing favor in my book. I would be sitting there watching the movie, and I would find him staring at me. When I would turn towards him he would focus his attention back on the movie. He did it for several minutes before I finally awarded him official creeper status in my book.

I was so busy awarding creeper status to Jasper that I must have missed the funniest line in the movie because then The Pixie turned to me and asked me why I didn't laugh.

"I guess, it just wasn't funny."

"But Bella, you never laugh."The Pixie said.

"I guess nothing ever tickles my funny bone."

The Creeper started to lean towards me, "Tickle, tickle, tickle."

I just looked at him incredulously.

"Jasper…" The Pixie warned.

"Tickle, tickle, tickle,"

"Jasper…"

"Tickle, tickle, tick—"

The next thing The Creeper knew my hand was grazing the side of his head.

"What's going on in here?" Edward said from the doorway. He had apparently just walked in.

"Jasper tried to tickle my funny bone, so I smacked him upside the head."

He chuckled. "Really? Now that tickled my funny bone!"

I just glared at him, but then The Bear entered then with a confused expression on his face, "Who tickled your what?"

"Emmett!"

"Alice!"

"Edward!"

"Jasper!"

"Bella!" I yelled.

They all just turned and looked at me.

"What? I wanted to be included too!"

This caused us all to dissolve into fits of laughter, myself included.

After the movie The Pixie thought it best that we call it a night. She was about to get up when Edward said, "I'll drive her!"

I blushed thinking about what had happened in The Pixie's room only a few hours ago, and then mentally begged The Pixie to tell him no.

"Sweet! Thanks Edward."

"Yeah, thanks Edward." I mumbled as I made my way towards the door.

The ride home was silent and I could feel in the air that something had changed. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something told me that I was no longer riding in the car with Edward my friend. I had almost put my finger on it when we pulled up in front of Charlie's house. I had my hand on the door when Edward offered to walk me to the house.

"Okay."

As we walked the tension between us grew thicker and thicker. We reached the door and I turned.

"Edward—"

"Bella I—no you go first."

"No, please Edward, you first."

"Okay, well. Bella, I was wondering if maybe you'd like to go out with me, next Saturday. You know maybe go out to eat, see a movie or something?"

"Edward, I—"

"Before you say anything, can you just think about it? Don't say anything now, tell me at school on Sunday. Okay?"

"Okay…"

"Bye Bella." He said as he started to walk back to his car.

"Edward!"

"Yeah?" he said, slowly turning.

"Thanks for the ride." I smiled at him, already thinking that I was going to say yes.


Hey guys, sorry for the somewhat short chapter. It's all I could do right now. I just felt bad for making it so long since I updated. But please, tell me what you thought of this last chapter!

REVIEWS ARE DAMN FINE!

"Bella, why don't you ever laugh?" asked The Pixie.

"Because nothing ever tickles my funny bone."

The Creeper started to lean towards me, "Tickle, tickle, tickle."

I glared at him.

"Jasper…" The Pixie warned.

"Tickle, tickle, tickle,"

"Jasper…"

"Tickle, tickle, tickle—"

The next thing The Creeper knew my hand was colliding with the side of his head.

"What's going on in here?" Edward said from the doorway.

"Jasper tried to tickle my funny bone, so I smacked him upside the head."

He chuckled. "Now that tickled my funny bone!"

The Bear entered then with a confused expression on his face said, "Who tickled your what?"