Disclaimer: Me, Charlene. Me not Stephenie Meyer, LOL.

Chp. 5

I turned slowly towards the front door, just in time to see it open quickly and smoothly...

I felt as if everything was happening quickly, too quickly. Like I wouldn't even have time to react if I wanted to. My eyes were fixed on the door. I couldn't have moved them even if I wanted to. My mind was working furiously, trying to figure out who was behind that door. I went down the list mentally.

Alyssa- No, she would be in school right now.

Sean- No way, he's at school.

Leo- Watching his charges.

Piper- School.

My rational side was desperately trying to substitute anyone, anyone, for who my heart told me it was. I was in danger. My heart and mind were in danger. I didn't want to know. So I did the only thing I could.

I closed my eyes.

When I heard footsteps, I knew the person was only a few feet from me. 'Please let it be a demon, the Source of all Evil, anyone but who I feel it is,' I thought. I knew I was acting childish with my eyes closed tightly. 'People say to face your fears; just don't face them all at once,' I remembered Piper telling me as a child. Even when she wasn't with me, her words were. I derived comfort from that and looked towards what I assumed was the floor.

Only then did I open my eyes.

I saw a pair of black, masculine leather shoes. I slowly trailed my eyes upward. The person was wearing a pair of dark blue jeans. A black, half-sleeved polo shirt completed the outfit. The way the clothes hung on the person's body gave hints as to his well-defined chest. I knew who this was. I couldn't not know who it was. I'd felt this person's presence before he even entered the room. I quickly dropped my gaze to the floor again. 'Don't look at his eyes, don't look at his eyes,' I kept screaming at myself in my head. Fury was the key. As long as I stayed furious at him for leaving, for not caring, I wouldn't feel any pain. I felt a pair of eyes staring at me, burning a hole into my scalp. I felt my gaze slowly moving upwards again, as if by gravity. I now saw the tousled bronze hair. I now saw deep almost black bags beneath his eyes.

I now saw the most beautiful onyx eyes.

I felt time stop. My heart started pounding fiercely. My pulse was racing. All I could think about was how much I loved him. I couldn't even stay mad at him. His eyes were like molten fire and I'd never seen this much emotion coming from him, ever. The way he looked at me was unnerving. It was as if he were trying to memorize my every feature.

He was looking at me as if he cared for me. But it was impossible, wasn't it? Just when I started to hope against my better judgment, his eyes slowly turned hard and cold. He once again became like an immobile statue. I slowly felt myself turn numb and empty. I wished so badly that my sisters were here; they'd help me out of this. A slight movement in front of me brought me out of musings.

He turned towards his family. The words that came out of his mouth completely destroyed any hope I had that he cared for me.

"What is she doing here?" Edward hissed.

The pain that coursed through my system was like a poison. I deliberately turned it into anger. At that same moment, Esme's glass vase levitated 6 feet into the air and shattered. Pieces of glass went flying everywhere. Everyone was confused and shocked. Jasper turned to me with wide, understanding eyes. Then, a smile uplifted his face.

"That was cool," he grinned at me. "Can you do it again?" he continued.

He was trying to somewhat diminish my anger but he was honestly impressed by my powers. I sighed and tried to calm down. It wasn't the poor mansion I was pissed at. Nor was I mad at Esme.

Flashback

'Being mad gives you no right to destroy people's stuff, Bella,' Renee had told me at 6. I had gotten really mad at this boy who pulled my hair and I'd ruined his favorite coloring book. The teacher had called Renee in and I was really upset. It had been his fault after all; he had pulled my hair.

Sean, Piper, & I were in the same school, though in different grades. Sean had been watching soundlessly from the doorway to the classroom. He heard Renee scold me and said out of the corner of his mouth, "Unless you can get away with it."

I'd only smiled at him and giggled.

End Flashback

I really should have applied that advice now. I could just imagine Leo lecturing me about controlling my powers and my emotions. Like it's my fault that my powers are tied to my emotions. When I get mad, something extremely random can happen like The Vase Incident.

"It's not like I did it on purpose," I responded, a bit defensively.

"Oh, I know," he replied, his smile fading a bit.

I didn't want to be here and face humiliation with someone that didn't want me here. I may not be good enough for him but I was definitely not going to degrade myself anymore. I calmly walked by him, feeling my heart drop into my stomach, and walked out the door.

I was truly going to leave when I remembered that something (someone) had tried to hurt Alice. Whatever it was could come back again and hurt them.

I sighed and dropped myself onto the porch steps. If I heard anything strange I'd be in the house in an instant but for now I just wanted to be away from everyone. It was freezing cold out here but I wouldn't go back in that house. The Cullens saved me and I wouldn't have Edward leave because he didn't want to be near me. This wasn't some fairytale ending. I clearly was not one of the protagonists & I definitely wouldn't be the girl who loves the male protagonist and tries to prevent him from getting together with the beautiful, ravishing female protagonist.

I watched the sun set over the trees, all the while listening to my iPod and pondering my life. It felt like ages when I suddenly heard the song "Beauty & the Beast" coming from the house. It was my cell phone. I knew automatically that it was Jake. It's our little inside joke. Bella means "beautiful" in Italian hence, "Beauty". Jake is a werewolf, hence the term "beast".

I walked slowly into the house but no one was around. I got my cell phone out of my bag and flipped it open.

"Hey," I said, sadly.

"What's wrong?" Jake asked, detecting my sad tone of voice.

"It's a long story; I'll tell you later," I replied.

"Where are you?" he demanded.

"I have no idea," I replied, laughing.

"Right, now where are you really?" he asked.

"I'm serious; I honestly have no idea, I could be in Russia, Timbuktu, anywhere really," I said.

"So did you tell Charlie you were spending the night here because he hasn't called and from your previous response I have a feeling you're not at home," he muttered.

"Piper called Charlie and told him I'd be spending a week at the Manor, because of the burst pipe at school," I explained.

"Lucky you have no school; what are you doing now anyways?" he questioned me.

"Um, you wouldn't believe me even if I told you," I replied, wryly.

"Try me," he insisted.

"Alright, I'm... babysitting," I answered.

"Should I bring flowers?" he said.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"You know to your grave," he responded.

"They're not that bad and besides the... children aren't exactly young," I assured him.

"That's not what I meant; I meant for your grave for when the parents kill you for letting the kids wreak havoc and die of starvation," he told me in one breath. I could practically hear him grinning and see his eyes laughing.

"I'll remember that the next time we hang out," I said, teasingly.

"Should I expect revenge?" he said, amused.

"Definitely," I told him. "Listen, I've got to go and check on the toddlers so I'll talk to you later," I continued.

"Alright, bye," Jake said.

"Bye, Beast," I said, laughing as I hung up the phone.

Talking to Jake had put me in a good mood. He was such a great friend. My laughter faltered. He thought of me as more but I couldn't do the same. I did love him just not as much as Edward. I could see my future already. I'd end up with Jake and we'd have the white house with the picket fence with the 2.5 kids and the SUV.

But deep down, that wasn't the life I wanted. I wanted the vampiric life with the hunting, the moving, only other vampires for company, and most importantly Edward. I shook my head. No use wishing for things that were out of your reach. But then again, that's exactly what wishes are. Things that may seem out of reach or impossible, that you want more than anything, that you someday hope to have.

I hadn't noticed Alice and the others in the room until she said, "Who was that on the phone?" She looked extremely frustrated.

"Why?" I asked, suspiciously.

"Whoever it was, I couldn't see them or your phone ringing," she snapped.

So Alice couldn't "see" werewolves. Fascinating. Jake was going to have a field day. I could just picture him smiling with glee. Oh well, at least someone was going to be happy because Alice sure wasn't.

"Well?" Alice demanded.

I hesitated. Should I tell her that it was Jake and that he was a werewolf? I had told Jake all about the Cullens. 'Fair is fair,' I thought, my mind made up.

I would answer all her questions, honestly.

"It was Jake," I surrendered. I felt Edward's eyes snap to me immediately. Looking into them, his eyes seemed to turn even darker at the mention of Jake's name. I quickly looked away but not before Emmett saw and grinned happily at me. I flushed and looked at Alice.

"This doesn't make any sense," she muttered. I felt a bit guilty not telling her he was a werewolf but she hadn't exactly asked a question pertaining to that.

Jasper snapped his head towards me and I immediately felt like spilling everything I knew. I glared at him.

He just stared back innocently. "Is there something you'd like to share with us, Bella?" he interrogated me.

"Not at all," I replied through gritted teeth.

The feeling of spilling my guts intensified and I was finding it hard to fight it and just gave up.

"Alice, I think I know why you didn't 'see' anything," I sighed.

"Why?" she questioned anxiously.

Everyone just stared at me inquiringly and I felt like a spotlight had been thrown on me.

"Just promise you won't get angry or freak out or anything."

"Fine, fine, just tell me," she pleaded.

"I think that the reason you didn't know about my phone call or my caller is because you can't 'see' werewolves," I whispered.

For the first time in my life, I witnessed the speechlessness of all the Cullens. Silence reigned primarily.

Then, chaos erupted.

AN: (There's a reason why Bella stopped saying he and just changed to saying he; that was deliberate) Ok guys I'm sorry for the long delay. Kill me later. Alright, please remember to read and review. Again, if you have any suggestions for the story then don't hesitate to let me know. BTW, reviews make me happy and inspire me to update faster. Thanks for the reviews!!!!

-Lola422