CHAPTER TEN

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I look at my sidekick. She stands there tapping her foot impatiently with her arms crossed. She's just little bit high with authority even though she is looking up at the tall, leggy blonde.

"Why won't you help us?" she demands. I stand in the doorway and watch as she tries to take control. "Come on Rosalie, you know Bella best. Help us, please!" I can tell that she is desperate, that her argument is weak, that she knows that there is not much more she can say or do to get Rosalie to change her mind.

"I won't help you because I can't," Rosalie explains. "People fall in and out of love by their own free will. You guys can't force them to be together." She looks at me, she wants me to take control, to use the authority that I have over my sidekick. I smile sadly and shake my head slowly.

"Rosalie, you must understand that we're not forcing them, we're merely guiding them," I tell her.

Rosalie shakes her head. "No, I believe that they will find their way on their own. They don't need help." She is adamant in this argument.

My sidekick looks at me, frustrated. "We can't force Rosalie to join forces with us," I shrug at her and look away.

"Oh, don't even try to give me those eyes," Rosalie whimpers.

"But Rose..." my sidekick tries.

"No!" Rosalie is final.

I cock my head to the side, "What do you know?" I ask Rosalie.

Her eyes widen for a split second and I think that we've caught her, but quickly her facade falls back and I can see nothing. My sidekick latches onto the idea and starts spewing out questions: "Are they together? Do they like each other? Is it Bella...?"

"I know nothing. Now I am leaving this room. No more questions, please," she begs and then leaves.

My sidekick turns to me and says, "She knows something."

I tap my chin. "I know, but I have a feeling that she won't tell us what it is. She's pretty loyal."

She frowns at me, "Loyal? Do you think Emmett has something to do with this?"

"Um, not in that sense. I think it's to do with the situation surrounding her and Emmett mostly," I explain.

"So, where does this leave us?" she asks.

"Well, I suppose it's just the two of us. I don't think we can expect help from anyone else," I frown. Rosalie's information really could've helped us. It probably would've made us change our course of action, but now where do we go? Do we keep toddling along the path down which we are going?

"Do you think our plans are working?" she asks me. I smile at her; her thinking is parallel with mine. "I've heard some complaints."

I cringe, "me too." I think back over every time Bella had complained about Edward and every time Edward's eyes narrowed at Bella.

"Hey," she breaks me from my thoughts, "a ruse!"

"What?"

"What if they're trying to trick us?" she asks.

I can see where she's heading. Rosalie is obviously keeping a secret, which I'm sure is about our Edward and Bella. Also, Edward and Bella just met. Do people really display such strong feelings about new acquaintances? Maybe, because they're sharing such close quarters, they've got permission to treat each other like they've know each other all their lives.

"I just don't know," she crashes down onto the couch as she says that. She half sits, half lays on the couch as if she is mentally spent. I sit next to her and pat her leg.

"We'll work them out," I tell her.

"It's just... even when they fight and pick on each other there's passion."

I nod, I've seen it too.

"I've never been so sure about anything in my life, well, except from..."

She is cut off by a "knock, knock?" We both look up. Charlie is standing in the doorframe. "Sorry, am I interrupting anything?" he asks.

"No, come and sit." I wave him in and he walks in uncomfortably: that is Charlie.

He talks, mumbling and rushing all at once. "I'd just like to thank you both for letting me stay here before the wedding. I know you're busy, Bells was just telling me that she and Edward are going to go and test the food..."

We both look at each other, knowing that Rosalie and Emmett were supposed to do that task,

"... and yeah. Hey can I ask you a question about Bells?"

"Sure Charlie," I say.

"Bella, she's been a little, weird? She's been a bit, jumpy? I don't know. I'm just reminded of when she was a teenager and she went out, telling me that she was 'studying', but really going to a party."

"That doesn't seem like Bella," my helper says loudly and Charlie and I look at her. "Sorry, I just didn't think she was the type of girl to sneak out to drink and..."

Charlie's face is a little red, like he didn't consider the fact that despite sneaking out to party that his underage daughter was also drinking.

Alice's words make me think though. Is Bella they type of girl to sneak around? And if so, is she doing it with Edward?

"Uh, well, anyway," Charlie continues, "do you think she's acting different, at all?" He directs the question mostly to my sidekick.

"I think she's fine, Charlie," she responds perfectly. "If it's anything, it's probably just the wedding. She's gotta make a speech you know." Both chuckle at a joke I don't understand. "But if I notice anything, I'll let you know."

Charlie nods once and then stands, "I'll let you two get back to whatever I interrupted... uh, thanks again." He leaves the family room.

Charlie thinks she's being odd. Parents intuition is strong. If Bella just dislikes Edward then why would that make Charlie worry about his daughter? But if he thinks Bella is up to something that she isn't telling him... say, sneaking out... then she probably is.

My sidekick is pondering too. "Did you hear that they're at the tasting, together?" she asks me.

"I did, I did. I think we need to change our game."

She sits up eagerly.

"What have we been doing?"

"Trying to get them together," she answers perfectly.

"Right, we've been pushing them together. We're letting them go to that party..."

She looks at me with confusion for a second.

"What if together is what they want? We're just handing that to them on a silver platter. If that's what they want then we shouldn't be giving it to them so freely. They want this and they want it hidden."

"Oh! Oh, oh, oh! We want it out in the open." Her eyes twinkle with excitement.

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder..." I suggest.

She jumps to her feet. "We need to keep them apart."