Author's note:

I'm blown away by the positive response I've gotten so far, so thanks to all of you.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own imagination. Does anyone, really?

I followed Edward through the rain, trying to shield myself as much as I could, until we reached his dorm. I could feel my pants and coat becoming saturated and heavy, and wondered if there was any chance I'd be able to dry them.

«No undressing», I thought to myself harshly. It was a terrible cliché; girl gets wet and cold, boy lends her his clothes. The rest just wrote itself.

Entering, I slipped out of my coat, searching for a hanger. As I scouted the room, I noticed how well kept it was for a boy. The matching dark furniture seemed brand new, probably his own, and the soft white and green throughout made it a peaceful place. So different than having to live with Alice's pink and frilly obsession.

"You have a great room. Do you have connections with any interior designers?"

He chuckled, taking my coat and hanging it somewhere in the bathroom, where it wouldn't drip onto the carpet.

"That would be my mother. She took over organizing the space for me, but I couldn't get it to match my own taste any better if I did it myself"

I smiled, nodding, knowing he wouldn't see it. A large shell unit by the door was mostly filled with CD's, a keyboard resting on top. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was a Music major.

The only item hanging from the walls was a large picture of a slightly younger Edward and a middle-aged couple, one on each side, hugging him and smiling.

"Are these your parents?", I asked, not just looking for a confirmation. These two people shared no physical traits with him. The tall and lean man had light blonde hair, and the sweet-looking woman had caramel hair and brown eyes. Both of them beautiful, but not as disconcertingly as their son.

"In all the ways that count", he answered in a low voice, from right behind me, startling me for a second. I understood immediately what he meant. "I was a baby when they took me in. They've been there for me all my life, and Carlisle is the reason why I came to this college"

"What do you mean?", I blurted out, turning to him and trying to read his expression. I wasn't expecting it to be so pained, and winced a little for making him feel that way. "I'm sorry, I'm being intrusive", I sighed.

"It's alright, honestly. I don't mind admitting I'd rather be learning something music related, but I just can't. It's not an option"

Taking notice of the fact I'd read him correctly, I felt anger bubble inside me: "Your dad made you give it up?"

It horrified me to even think about it. I wouldn't have dealt with it well, if it had been me in that situation. I'd follow through with my wishes and make sure my parents lived to regret it.

"No, of course not!", he half-yelled, about as horrified as I felt. "They never tried to force me into anything, much on the contrary; they always insisted we had the financial stability for me to do whatever I wanted with my life. But I just can't do it. In some way, I think I owe it to them, to show them that they raised a man that can take care of himself, make his own money, and build an impressive career. It's not as if I don't feel attracted to medicine, I do, it's just…"

"Music is what you love", I finished. We fell silent for a few seconds, and I went to sit at the corner of his bed, his words filling my head. Would I have made the same decision? My choice of profession was one even the most demanding parents would be happy with. But what if it wasn't? Would I really fight for it? "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure", he answered, coming to sit at my side.

"Will you play for me, some other time?", I managed out, my voice cracking against my best efforts.

He smiled, his broad shoulders relaxing.

"Whenever you want, just say the word. And I take requests too", he added with a chuckle, before going to the desk to grab the laptop.

After that, we finally got to work; it took us both a long time to find good illustrations and photos online, since we hadn't access to a scanner, but it slowly built itself up. I handled the side notes, even though I could feel my eyelids drooping. I'm sure he felt just as tired, by the way he was grabbing his pillow.

"Bella?", I heard him ask, somewhat closer to me than I thought he was.

"Just wrapping up, two more minutes, maybe", I answered quickly, stifling a yawn. It was definitely late and he probably wanted to go to bed – the same bed I was currently sitting on -, even if he was too much of a gentleman to say so.

"That's fine, I was just wondering… Are we friends?"

His sweet voice and breath filled the air around me, successfully stopping my train of thought dead in its tracks. My hands hovered over the keyboard while I turned to him.

His hair was droopy because of the rain earlier, and he had slight lavender shadows under his eyes. Those amazing green eyes…

"Of course we are", I stated, my voice low but audible. He smiled, getting up and leaving me to finish. I bit into my lower lip, giving the notes a quick onceover and comparing them to the slides to make sure everything was perfect. As I turned off the laptop and got up to search for my coat, Edward was already there, holding it for me, fully clothed. It took me a minute to figure out why.

"Edward, you're not taking me back, it's cold and it's late, you're already home, just stay, I'll be…"

He interrupted me by placing one of his long fingers on my lips, lowering his head so our foreheads almost touched, freezing me much more effectively than any pair of shackles with that small touch.

"I know you're an independent, strong woman, but it's cold and late and I want to make sure you get to your dorm just fine. After all, we're friends, and that gives me the right to be a little pushy"

If we're friends, than why are your eyes telling me different?

I kept that question silent, simply nodding and following a very happy looking Edward out the door. I didn't even put up a fight; the way he'd complimented me first left me completely defenseless. On the way to my dorm I mused about working on that.

He stood at my dorm room's door, hands in his pockets, true to his promise, when we said our goodnights. I went up to my room, trying to shake that mental image so I'd get a decent night's sleep, when I remembered checking the time. 3 a.m.; well, it would hardly be a night's sleep, but four hours was better than nothing.

Alice wasn't home. I sighed, my overall happiness towards the night I'd spend with Edward now tainted. I made a note to myself to try and find out if she'd been going to class every day or not.

Even with the little sleep I'd had, I woke up in a good mood, throwing on my favorite emerald knit sweater and rushing so I'd get to Cellular Biology in time. I refused to miss this class; it wasn't just demanding and heavy, but the only one where I'd see Edward for the following two days.

I got there just in time, and took a seat towards the back of the room, since he was nowhere to be seen. As I wondered if the late night had gotten the best of him, class started silently with a video about cell dynamic. Unfortunately, it made it that much obvious when the door swung open to give entry to a flushed Edward.

After receiving a disapproving look from the assistant teacher, he came to sit by my side, smiling but not daring to whisper some sort of greeting. As the dull video continued, I heard a small raspy noise of paper being dropped to the ground. I picked up the folded page, recognizing his handwriting.

I had to muster an incredible amount of control not to burst out laughing in the middle of a dead quiet room; what was this, Junior High? Making sure my movements weren't noticeable, I read through it:

- I was late because Mr. Gaspard caught me in the hall. I need to talk to you after class, wait for me. -

I nodded once, knowing he'd understand, and tried my best to pay attention to the lecture. Two long hours afterwards, I jumped out of my seat, knowing I'd probably have about 10 minutes before I had to get to Psychology, which wasn't even in the same building.

As soon as we were out the door, Edward tugged gently at my arm, leading towards the exit. Even before I was able to process how he'd come to leave the room before me, he was speaking:

"Do you have time for us to talk?"

"Not much", I admitted, "but don't leave me hanging here. What is it? Is there something wrong?"

"Well, yes", he said, turning to me with an anxious expression. "It's my fault, the librarian took it up with the Science department, and apparently they're willing to offer a paid position as an assistant"

"An assistant? As in one?", I asked, my happy weekly refuge crumbling before my eyes. "So, they're bringing in someone to do our work"

He paused for a couple of seconds, sadness overtaking his features. "No, not really; they figured it wouldn't be fair, so Mr. Gaspard will be choosing one of us. We have a meeting with him on Saturday morning regarding this"

My heart sunk to my stomach; this was it. From now on, we weren't working together towards something, but competing with each other. One would get the amazing opportunity of a paid job – with all the credit among the faculty and curriculum boost it entailed – and the other wouldn't. This situation might be a lot of things, but fair wasn't one of them; in a way, I wished they would have brought someone new.

"I really loved working with you", I said, barely acknowledging I'd said it out loud.

His sad expression became mischievous as he answered: "You'll be seeing more of me. And I will give you a run for this job, I can promise you that."

I was bewildered by his statement. Here I was, worrying about such a drastic change in our relationship – and the time we'd have together, if I wanted to be honest – and he was flirting and defying me. For some reason, I was proud about it – it showed he took me as an equal and that this could actually be enjoyable – something we'd laugh about over coffee. I could picture it easily; him getting back at me next semester by stealing the assistant's job during internship. Internship in the same team as Edward, seeing him everyday…

The wide grin appeared in my face all by itself. It was inevitable. My whole body and mind quivered in anticipation as I breathed out my response:

"You're on, Cullen."