I glanced at my watch for the nth time before looking around my surroundings. Before going our separate ways about an hour ago, Edward and I had agreed on meeting at the fountain in the middle of the mall at five-thirty so we could grab a bite to eat.

It was already ten minutes past six, but he was still nowhere to be seen. He hadn't answered my text, either.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not the type of girlfriend who nags and jumps at a dude's throat just because he isn't punctual, but I was getting a little worried. I mean, how long does it take to buy a new video card? Not this long surely.

Ten minutes more, I decided. I'll give him ten minutes more.

But ten minutes came and went, and I was still alone and hungry on the bench I was sitting on.

"Fine," I gathered my bags and stood. "If he won't come here, I'll just look for him myself."

Cyberzone – the techy-side of the mall – was located at the top floor, so I was grateful for the existence of escalators. The area was quite large, though, making looking for Edward a bit more difficult.

I eventually did spot my bronze-haired boyfriend, but not before having to peek into about six shops. He was standing in a store that sold video games.

"That figures," I chuckled quietly to myself and shook my head. Leave it to Edward to get sidetracked by video games.

I heard the shop assistant Edward was speaking to as I entered. "The Gammas are cool with anyone coming, and it'll be a lot of fun. My friend said they even got this hot new band to play."

I decided to make my presence known then. "Hey," I smiled. "There you are."

"Bella?" Edward whirled around. "What're you doing here? Wasn't I supposed to meet you by the fountain?"

"Well, after nearly half an hour of sitting there and doing nothing, I figured I better start looking for you," I replied dryly.

He looked at me strangely for a second before glancing at his watch. "Oh, shit. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I lost track of time."

"I can see that."

"Ahem," the shop assistant not-so-subtly cleared her throat. "So, what do you say, Edward? Will you go? I know I'd really love to see you again."

I raised an eyebrow at the girl. Did she not hear Edward call me 'sweetheart'? Maybe I need to be more obvious…

"He can't go," I stepped forward. I didn't what she was talking about, but after hearing the word 'Gammas' – a fraternity known for their wild parties – I could make a guess. "We have…things to do tonight," I made sure she knew what those 'things' were by placing my hand on Edward's chest and kissing his neck.

Whoa, where did that come from? That move was completely un-Bella, but hey, at least the shop assistant took the hint; she narrowed her eyes before looking me up and down.

"Edward can speak for himself," she told me pointedly.

"Actually, Amy, my girlfriend's right," Edward took the hand on his chest to give it a kiss. His free arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me close. "Our plans for tonight don't involve keggers or other people." He pressed his lips to the spot behind my ear. "And I believe I have some making up to do."

"I can think of a few ways you can do that," I pressed my body closer to his.

I couldn't stop the smirk that took over as Amy's face fell. She pouted and attempted the puppy-dog look Alice pulled sometimes.

Oh for fuck's sake. "Are you ready to go?" I asked Edward so we could just leave already; freakin' Amy was getting on my nerves.

"Yeah," he said, and with a final smile at the clearly dissatisfied store assistant, he led me out of the shop.

I was expecting some kind of dig at my show of jealousy, but surprisingly, Edward was silent. I watched his face as we walked, but he looked totally unaffected, like what happened earlier didn't.

Or at least that was what it seemed like until we reached his car.

I was just about to place my purchases in the backseat when Edward grabbed me by the waist and sandwiched me between his body and the vehicle. My bags fell to the floor as his lips molded themselves to mine.

"God, you're so sexy," he murmured. "Do you know how hot it is to see you so possessive?"

"She's lucky I didn't do anything violent," I laughed breathlessly. My fingers weaved themselves into the hair at the back of his head. "If everyone needs to know I'm yours, they need to know you're mine, too."

"I am," his thumbs stroked the skin exposed by my risen shirt, making me shiver. "Completely."

I captured his lips again and tilted my head to deepen the kiss.

The moment was ruined when a car's headlights suddenly blinded us. Edward regretfully stepped back, and I almost pulled a pout similar to Amy's earlier.

"We should, ah, probably get dinner," I murmured, looking down at my shoes. My cheeks were burning much like the rest of my body.

A gentle finger coaxed my face up. "We can continue later, sweetheart."

I planned on holding him to that.

The next couple of weeks went pretty smoothly by new couple standards. Sure, Edward and I bickered sometimes, but they were always over petty stuff and we would reconcile literally seconds later.

Our first fight didn't happen until the beginning of March.

It was just another normal Thursday. Edward and I were in his room with me on the bed, trying to memorize horrendous dates and hard-to-remember foreign names (why couldn't artists of the Renaissance period just be named Bob or something?) and him working some codes out on his computer.

Our study session went on without any snags, but then out of nowhere, Edward suddenly turned to me with a scowl.

"Will you stop doing that?"

"Huh?"

"You keep tapping," he pointed to the highlighter I've been unconsciously drumming against my book. "God, it's giving me a headache!"

"Sorry. Jeez," I held both hands up.

"Why do you have to do that?"

"I don't mean to; it's just a habit."

"Well, cut it out. It's driving menuts," he snapped. "How am I supposed to get anything done with that annoying noise playing in the background?"

"Calm down, man," my voice rose to the same level as his. "I'll stop, okay? But quit yelling at me."

"I'm not yelling!"

"What the hell is wrong with you, Edward?"

"I just want some peace and quiet so I can finish this," he tugged at his hair.

"Then why did you even bother inviting me over here if I'm such a nuisance?"

"If I'd known you were going to be like this, trust me, I wouldn't have."

My jaw dropped and my eyebrows shot up. What crawled up his ass all of a sudden?

Before I could say something that could make things worse, I took my book and apparently offensive highlighter with me and stormed out of his room. I narrowly resisted slamming the door behind me.

"Moody asshole," I muttered angrily to myself. "Shouldn't have made the effort to leave the house."

I continued to fume in the hallway for a while, but soon, the irritation was replaced by awkwardness. Where was I supposed to go now? I left my bag and my shoes in Edward's room, and there was no way I was going in there any time soon lest his royal highness be annoyed by the sound of my breathing or something.

The living room was my intended destination until Emmett's soft voice startled me.

"Hey," he called out. His head was poking out of a doorway that I assumed led to his bedroom. "Sorry, I heard shouting. You okay?"

"I'm fine," I sighed. "Edward's just being…" I waved my hand.

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Emmett grimaced. He opened his door wider. "You wanna come hang out with me for a while? I promise I'm not as uptight as Captain Grumpy Pants."

Emmett and I weren't that close, but his big kid smile and aura of easiness was making me feel better already. "Sure, that sounds nice. Thank you."

"No problemo, amigo," he stepped back to allow me to enter.

Emmett's room was a lot like the typical college spaces they show on TV. There was a mound of laundry in one corner, and in another was a desk piled high with books and random knick-knacks. Despite the disarray, though, it looked homey and well-lived-in.

"Have a seat…anywhere," he said as he settled on his desk chair. "Hope you don't mind the mess; cleaning's not exactly my favorite hobby."

"Eh, it's cool," I occupied the foot of the bed.

"So if you don't mind me asking, what happened?"

"You know what, I don't even know. One minute, everything's fine, and in the next, he's yelling at me for drumming my pen."

"Maybe he's on his period," Emmett suggested.

"Could be," I chuckled.

"In all seriousness, I think he's just stressed," he leaned back. "Edward's not normally a prick, but when he has something difficult to do in a short amount of time, like a paper or a program, he gets all pissy. Especially when he can't stay focused. I suggest you just keep yourself out of his way when that happens."

"But he called me over to study together," I grumbled. "Why would he do that if he was going to transform into Moody McGee?"

"Dunno. Maybe he thought having you around would help in concentrate. Though knowing how smitten he is with you, I don't see the logic in that."

Emmett shrugged. "Anyway, at least now you know Edward's bad side. When you guys buy a house in the future, make sure your office is far, far away from his so you can avoid little tiffs like this. Though make-up sex is pretty hot."

"I'm guessing you and Rosalie have fights often, then?" I asked jokingly.

"Oh yeah," he nodded and didn't bother denying. "She and Edward don't look anything alike, but they're on equal footing when it comes to temper. Rosie's quicker to get mad, but her anger disappears just as fast. Edward, on the other hand, can put up with shit, but when he blows up, he blows up," he mimicked an explosion with his hands. "The outburst he just had is a spark compared to what happens when he's really angry."

Well, Edward isn't perfect, I suppose. It's just difficult to remember that when all he's been to me is sweet. I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

Emmett must have misinterpreted my reaction as he quickly backtracked. "Don't get me wrong, Ed's a genuinely nice guy, and he really likes you. Like, seriously likes you. I've been friends with him since we were kids, and I've never seen him so entranced by a girl before."

"Don't worry, Emmett, I'm not going to leave him," I smiled. "You didn't sully his reputation or whatever."

"Oh, okay. Good," he laughed nervously. "Edward might kill me if I make you hate him."

"I don't think I can hate him," I sighed. "He's still being an asshole, though."

"Can't argue with that," Emmett grinned. He stood up and opened a mini fridge I didn't notice was hidden beneath his bedside table. "You want a Coke while you work on your…whatever that is? Or are you more of a Pepsi kind of girl."

"Coke, please. And it's just some Art History notes."

"Art History," he scoffed as he handed me a can. "You know, I can never understand why we have to study history. The way is to look is forward, dude. Technology, computers…now that's the future."

"Spoken like a true ComSci major."

"Damn straight."

Though I tried getting back to reading my book, I ended up simply leaving it closed. I couldn't concentrate well enough to study anymore because my brain was doing what it did best: overthinking the fuck out of the situation.

When is Edward going to come looking for me? Is he even looking for me? What am I supposed to say to him? Should I apologize?

Needless to say, I was no longer productive, so I decided to distract myself by chatting with Emmett.

Despite the interesting characters I grew up with in Forks and having Alice for a cousin, I've never met anyone quite like Emmett. Edward was right when he said he was one of a kind – the man can lighten any serious situation and fit more innuendos in one sentence than I can ever do in a whole paragraph.

He was a goofball through and through, but I could tell he was a passionate dude especially when it came to his two favorite topics: video games and Rosalie.

"How did you two meet?" I asked curiously. "Did Edward introduce you?"

"Actually, it's the other way around," Emmett laughed. "I was five and Rose was seven when I first met her in the neighborhood playground. Of course, I couldn't let a girl as pretty as her get away so I followed her around for weeks. She turned me down every time. Eventually, she got tired of putting up with me and introduced me to Edward so I'd get leave her alone. Obviously that didn't work, but Ed and I did become close friends."

"Oh," I nodded. "So when did you get together?"

"High school," he answered. "There were a bunch of guys that wouldn't leave her alone no matter what she did, but after a visit from me, they never looked her way again. Hah, I wonder how those punks would've reacted if they knew I was just a freshman then…anyway, from then on, Rose and I became inseparable."

The door suddenly opening interrupted whatever Emmett was about to say next.

"Em," a breathless Edward burst in. "Have you seen –?"

"Bella? She's right here dude," Emmett jutted his thumb at me from where he sat.

"Thank God," Edward swiftly pulled me up and enveloped me in a warm embrace. "I thought you left. I'm so sorry, Bella. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."

I didn't say anything and simply nodded against his shoulder.

"I just get…frustrated sometimes when I can't solve a problem."

"I already explained your shitty temper to her," Emmett called out.

Edward cradled my face in his hands, looking into my eyes. "Will you forgive me?"

"Yeah," I smiled tentatively. "But you can't take your irritation out on me, especially when you were the one who insisted I come over in the first place. If you want me to stop disturbing you or whatnot, you can just ask."

"I won't anymore," he said sincerely, pecking my lips. "And I promise, I'll be calmer."

"How cute," Emmett cooed from the background.

"Shut up, Em," Edward glared at him over his shoulder.

"Hey, you're in my room. If I wanna make commentary, I'm gonna," he retorted. "By the way, Rosalie called earlier."

"What did she say?"

"Her flight's booked. She'll be here this weekend! This is so awesome – you'll finally get to meet her, Bella."

I couldn't stop the flash of nervousness that ran through my body. While I wanted to meet Edward's family and the way Emmett spoke of Rosalie was always fond, I wasn't sure how I was supposed to act around Edward's tall, intimidatingly beautiful older sister.

"Sounds great," I smiled slightly. Guess I'll just have to work that out in my head later.

Want to see a screenshot of CULLEngage's MY GIRLFRIEND video?

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Thanks again to AstridGreenEyes whom I endlessly pestered to help me make it.