Alice picked Bella and me up in Edward's bright and shiny Volvo Friday after school. I had maybe ten minutes to pack a bag before she was honking the horn to announce her arrival. I mean, technically I could have packed it sometime last night when it was decided that there was going to be a sleepover, but I was too lazy for that. I was also too lazy to really pack, honestly. After dumping out all of my school things onto my bed I just shoved so shirts, leggings, and pajamas into their place. Then it was a run to the bathroom to grab my toiletry bag, which I also threw into the bag. After grabbing my elephant blanket, I was ready to go.

I met my sister at the top of the stairs and together we shared a look before heading down the stairs and out the front door. Doors were open and waiting for us. A song that I had never heard before was playing on the radio and Alice was singing along in a pitch that had to be at least two octaves higher than the artist singing. Getting into the back seat, I closed the door behind me and buckled my seatbelt.

"So are you guys ready for this sleepover?" Alice cried excitedly and loudly so as to be heard over the music as soon as Bella had closed her door.

"Well, I've never had a sleepover with a vampire before," I yelled back, "So I'm kind of excited."

Alice turned down the music before speeding away from the curb. "Yay! I'm so excited. You guys have no idea. I've never had a sleepover before! I've got so much planned for us to do."

The drive to the Cullen's house was fast, but I mean, that wasn't that surprising. I may not like it, but I pretty much used to how fast all the Cullen's drove. Pulling to a stop in front of the house, we were just getting out when Alice started bouncing up and down excitedly.

"Oh, do you guys wanna see my new car?"

"You got another car?" I asked. "Don't you all have enough?"

Alice seemed to ignore my second comment and just grabbed my arm instead before pulling me towards the garage door. "You have to see it, it's beautiful."

There was a fancy looking keypad on the side of the wall and Alice made quick work of pressing in the code. Maybe half a second passed before the doors were moving up to reveal a very impressive garage. Three expensive looking cars were parked inside; Carlisle's sleek black car, Rosalie's red convertible, and a new bright yellow car that I could only assume were Alice's.

"It's exactly like the one I stole in Italy," Alice told me before letting out a content sigh. Moving over to the car, she lightly stroked the yellow paint of the hood. "Isn't she gorgeous?"

"It's a very nice car," I laughed.

"Right!" I could tell Alice was really ecstatic to have this car. "Edward says I can't drive it around town though so it's trapped in the garage." There was a short pause as she looked sad before smiling once again. "Maybe soon we can have a road trip and break her in!"

A small smile played on my lips as I gave my head a slow nod. "Yeah, maybe. But shouldn't we see how this sleepover goes first?"

"Oh yes!" Alice shouted.

Grabbing my hand once again, she pulled me into the house, stopping only to close the garage door. Bella had already walked into the house and was waiting for us in the living room. The house smelled amazing so that meant that Esme was cooking. Alice indeed did have a list of things that she wanted us to door including manicures and pedicures, watching movies, pillow fights, and makeovers.

We started with the manicures and pedicures. I swear; Alice was like a professional. Once my nails were all painted a very pretty shade of blue with cute little swirls on them, I promised never to paint my own nails again. Next Bella and I ate some of the amazing Italian food that Esme had made. As we left to go do the next activity, Esme promised to bring us cookies when they were finished.

Next, Alice really wanted to do makeovers.

"Come on! I have so many new outfits that I want you guys to try on! And I can do your make up really nice!" Alice seemed to be an unending ball of energy, never taking long to stop. Like, she sat in the middle of us while we were eating, just bouncing away on the seat until we were finished.

"No dresses, though, Alice," I tried to negotiate. It was starting to get a little late and I didn't really want to change too many times. I really just wanted to put on my pajamas and watch one of the movies she had gotten. That was coming after I guess.

"Awww, Alex, you're no fun," Alice pouted, flashing me a puppy dog eye in the middle of the stairs.

I looked at her, trying to be strong but in the end, crumbling. "Okay, but no more than two."

"Yay!"

Okay, so she ended up getting me to wear four dresses. The last one I asked to put on because it was simply gorgeous. It was a dark blue, very close to the color of my nails, with a full skirt that was shorter in the front and longer in the back. Alice had done my makeup all nice, I felt like a movie star going to a big premiere. Excusing myself from the room while Alice made up my sister, I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen to get some water.

"Oh, hey, Rosalie," I said, pausing slightly when I turned the corner and found the beautiful blonde vampire sitting at the counter by herself. Esme must have left to do something else while the cookies were in the oven.

"Alex," Rosalie said my name slowly, her eyes meeting mine. "Are you having fun?"

I'm not going to lie, I was a little thrown. Up until now, Rosalie hasn't ever really spoken to me. And, I mean, I guess I could respect that. I was a human. She was a vampire. My sister and I seemed to cause a lot of problems for her and her family. But if she was going to talk to me now, I wasn't going to be rude and just ignore her.

"Yeah, a lot of fun actually. And the sleepover really seems to be a lot of fun for Alice."

The corner of Rosalie's perfectly plump lip rose slightly in a half smile. "Good. She's been under a lot of pressure lately."

I nodded my head. "I bet. Keeping an eye out for both Victoria and that big scary head vampire dude. It can't be easy for her." I remembered just a couple days ago Alice commenting that she was watching their moves, looking into the future to see what they would do next and if it would involve us.

"Yes. It's nice to see her taking a break."

There was a pause as I got myself a glass of water, Rosalie following me with her eyes as I made my way across the kitchen. Taking a sip, I placed the glass on the counter before meeting Rosalie's gaze once again.

"Hey, Rosalie. I just want to say that I'm really sorry for the danger Bella and I seem to constantly bring your family. It seems to be like every other month. I can understand why you probably don't like us that much. But I just want to say thank you for helping. It does make me feel better that you guys are looking out for us."

I can't speak for Bella, but I really was thankful that the Cullen's were protecting us. They put themselves on the line for us and without them, I probably would have been killed months ago when James and his group came through town… Or maybe not seeing, as he only found out about Bella and me while hanging out with the Cullen's. They could have just let him have us instead of protecting us like they did.

"I don't dislike you, Alex," Rosalie said, surprising me once again. "Actually, I kind of admire you. You understand that there is more to this life than beauty and eternal life. You understand what you would be giving up and you are fighting to keep it." She paused, giving me a small smile. "Would you like to hear my story, Alex? I think you might see that we aren't as different than you might think."

I sat there, quietly for a moment, thinking about what Rosalie had just said, that we probably were more similar than first glance. Slowly, I started to nod my head. I had only ever really heard Jaspers story and would love to hear Rosalie's. So that's what I told her.

Rosalie started her tale slowly, keeping her eyes on me the entire time to see my reaction. And I held her golden gaze, barely blinking as I took in the words of her story. She told me about her dad and his job at the bank, her mother, her two brothers, her friend Vera and Vera's little baby Henry. How perfect her life was until Royce King came into it.

"He was so handsome, with light blonde hair, lighter than mine, and pale blue eyes. He told me that he liked when we were together, me on his arm because people would look at us. And I liked that too. There were plenty of parties and dances and roses. There were lots of roses. He sent me a bouquet of roses every night of our courtship, my room was overflowing with them."

There was a pause as her face hardened. For a moment, I thought about reaching out and taking her hand or something but I can't lie and say that I wasn't still a little frightened/ intimidated by her, especially because of how her eyes seemed to go from their golden honey color to a blazing fire.

"I was at Vera's one night, spending time with her and little Henry who was just learning to sit up on his own. As I sat in her small little living room, watching that adorable little boy with his curly hair and dimples, I couldn't help but picture my own little babies. Blonde haired and blue eyed angels who would run around and play together in the yard of our big house.

"But it was getting late and I needed to get home. So gathering my coat around me, I went out into the cold April night and couldn't help but think about how cold it was and that the wedding was in a week. All I could think about was how I didn't want to move the wedding inside.

"I was close to home when I came across them, a few streets. There were a couple of men standing under a broken streetlamp, all of them drunk. It wasn't until he called my name that I realized how well dressed the men where. It was Royce and a couple of his friends. There was this one man, in particular, a friend of a friend who had come into town."

What Rosalie tells me next stopped me short, my breath catching in my throat as she told me about what had happened and how Carlisle found her. By the time she had finished her story, I sat there like a statue.

"Thank you, for sharing your story with me, Rosalie," I said after a short silence that had followed the end of her tale. I felt terrible for what had happened to her. But it felt kinda... good... to have someone on my side. Who would give up the chance at immortality and beauty in exchange for the chance at a family and normal life?

Rosalie gave me a small smile before speaking. "You should probably head back upstairs now. I think Alice will be missing you. I would hate to be the one that ruins her slumber party. She's been looking forward to it for the last few days now."

"Why don't you come and join us?" I ask. This was her house as well. Why should she have to remain hidden and not participate? Sure it wasn't like she was told she couldn't join in. But we hadn't really sought her out either.

She seemed to consider it for a moment, a little hesitant before nodding her head. "I think Alice would like that. She's always trying to get me to do sister things with her when she's bored."

"I'm excited. I think this is going to be fun," I said, grabbing my glass of water before heading back towards the stairs.

"I can do your hair if you'd like," Rosalie offered as she climbed the steps behind me. "If you have your makeup done and are wearing that dress, your hair might as well be done as well."

I guess she had a point. I mean, my makeup looked like a professional had done it and the dress was absolutely stunning. It seemed a shame to just have my normal wavy hair up in a bun. "I would love for you to do my hair."

Reaching the top of the stairs, we crossed the long hallway and made our way towards Alice's room. Pushing open the door, I walked in and found my sister trapped at Alice's vanity with the short dark haired vampire applying a dark red lipstick.

"Hey guys, look who I found to do hair," I said.

"Oh, Rose!" Alice exclaimed, her lips stretching into a grin that showed off her perfect white teeth. She watched her adoptive sister walk slowly into the room before turning back to Bella and touching up the lip color.

Seeing as none of the Cullen's slept, there was no bed in the room. There was a fancy bench/ chair thing though so I took a seat on that while Rosalie stood behind me. I have no idea how she managed to do it, but she twisted my wavy mess of hair into an elegant bun of loose braids. A few chunks of hair hung free, though, framing my face.

"Dang, Rosalie, that is beautiful!" I muttered in awe as I turned my head this way and that, unable to look away from my reflection. "I almost don't even want to go to sleep because I don't want to ruin this work of art."

"Oh, thank you, Alex," Rosalie said quietly, a corner of her lips turned up in a faint smile. "You're welcome."

"God, I should hire you and Alice to make me pretty on days when I'm too lazy to do my hair or makeup myself." With one last look in the mirror, I turn away and walk over to Alice's closet, which is filled with fashionable, very expensive, outfits.

"Oh, Alex, you know I would do that for free anytime," Alice assured happily as she unzipped the back of my dress so that I could take it off. As beautiful as it was, I wanted to get comfy and put on my pajamas.

"I know, but I have to admit there are days when I am perfectly happy going out with my hair up, no makeup, and a comfy sweater," I admit. "But there may be a time when I call on you."

"And I will be ready."

I give a small chuckle and shake of my head as I hand her the dress to be hung back up in the closet. Walking over to my bag, I throw my oversized shirt over my bra and step into a pair of sleep shorts. My sister changes out of the dress she had been forced into by Alice and changes into a pair of sweats and a t-shirt before the four of us head downstairs to watch a movie.

I can't even remember what Alice had placed into the DVD player because I was out like a light before the previews were even finished.

Authors Note:: I swear, this has been the hardest opener that I have ever had to write. I just couldn't figure out how I wanted to start it! Ugh, but I figured it out and I hope you guys liked it. I also hope that the fact it has so many different character interactions will help you guys not be mad at me for taking so long. Now I would just like to point out that there is a poll on my profile that pertains to this story. It would be awesome if you could take it so that I can plan ahead. Thank you, everyone, who reviewed last chapter and all the people who have favorited, followed, or is just reading alone. School starts up again the 11th, just a heads up. I really want to be able to post at least one more time before that. Thank you!

7/31/2018: This chapter has been added to when it was made into its own chapter.