Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.

9. Tipping Point

I awoke the next morning from the same restless nightmares that had been plaguing me lately. They were all starting to run together in an endless haze of blood. Even after chugging a cup of coffee at breakfast, I felt utterly exhausted. I trudged to school and then to my English class.

Bella sat next to me. I decided to make the usual small talk, but I was feeling hopelessly resigned for some reason. Deep down, I was beginning to feel like I couldn't do anything for Bella.

"Morning, Bella. How was Port Angeles?" I asked.

"It was...great," she said unconvincingly. For a moment, I thought I saw something on her neck, but before I could get a good look, she had swung her hair around to cover it. I was no longer sure if I had seen anything at all. Her next words distracted me further.

"Jessica got a really cute dress."

The reminder of Jessica perked me up a little. I had barely thought about our date, with everything that was going on recently. "Did she say anything about Monday night?"

"She said she had a really good time," Bella said.

"She did?"

"Most definitely," she assured.

As Mr. Mason began the class, I replayed our short conversation in my head. Something seemed...off. It wasn't until I was gathering up my papers that I realized what it was. Bella's eyes still had the glazed over look they had acquired since she moved to Forks and met Cullen, but her demeanor today was less distant than usual. It was like she had gone from being a crazed up junkie to being a functioning addict. The problem was still there, it was just buried now.

I didn't have to look far to find out what had probably caused this new equilibrium. Jessica was literally bouncing up and down in her seat at lunch, barely able to contain her new gossip.

"Bella and Edward are dating!" she exclaimed as I sat down, "Can you believe it?"

I glanced around at the rest of our table. Lauren, Tyler, and Ben looked interested, but everyone else didn't seem to be paying that much attention. Tyler nudged Lauren pointedly.

"How did that happen?" Lauren asked, rolling her eyes.

"Well, Angela, Bella, and I were in Port Angeles last night looking for dresses, and Bella went off on her own. I think she wanted to check out the bookstore. She was gone for a while so Angela and I got some dinner. As we were leaving the restaurant, Bella reappeared with Edward. She said she was surprised to run into him and that they had a dinner date after we left. Isn't that right, Angela?" Jessica spewed out the words with hardly a breath in between.

Angela, a very quiet girl, especially for one of Jessica's friends, blushed and looked down at her tray of food. "That's right," she murmured. I noticed Ben looking at her curiously.

"You said 'after we left,'" I said with forced nonchalance, "Does that mean you left Bella there?"

Jessica shrugged it off. "She had a ride with Edward. Anyway I got the most amazing dress..."

And she was off on another topic. We all forced cheer throughout the rest of the lunch period, pointedly ignoring the fact that Bella was sitting with Cullen. I had a horrible feeling that I knew what must have happened last night between Cullen and Bella.

Biology was an unbearable hour as I tried to pay attention to the movie we were watching. Beside me, Sarah was taking careful notes. I was tempted to simply get a copy of them off of her later, but that would hardly be fair. I did my best to keep my own pencil moving, although I wasn't sure the words I wrote were matching what the movie was saying.

Finally, the class was over. I followed Bella and Edward over to the gym at a careful distance. They paused at the door. Cullen looked past Bella and saw me. He gave me his signature smirk as he raised a hand and possessively stroked Bella's cheek. He mouthed the word "mine" before turning tail and leaving.

It was our first official day of badminton, and as everyone paired off, I was quick to approach Bella.

"Do you want to be a team?" I asked.

"Thanks, Mike-you don't have to do this you know," she replied.

I was sure she was only talking about being a team, but her words struck me deeply. They applied to everything about my interactions with her. For a moment, I felt like she was trying to tell me not to look out for her anymore, not to try to get Cullen away from her. In that moment, I wondered if maybe she knew everything about Cullen, and didn't care. What if she was happy to open her veins for a vampire?

"Don't worry, I'll keep out of your way," I told her with a strained smile. I was also referring to being teammates now. Silently, I vowed that I would do anything to help her, even if she didn't want my help at all.

I should have taken her warning more seriously. Bella flailed around so wildly at first that she was a hazard to both of us. This was thoroughly proven when she managed to hit herself and me on the same swing. Luckily, Coach Clapp saw this and made Bella stand in the corner for the rest of class. It was just me against our two opponents, but I managed to win several games nonetheless. Although, I suspected they were going easy on me out of pity.

When the final whistle blew, I gave Bella a high five.

"So," I said as we left the court. It was a lame start, but I knew this might be my only chance to talk to her alone for a while.

"So, what?" she asked, looking puzzled.

I cast around for what to say. "You and Cullen, huh?"

I knew right away that I had messed up. Bella was instantly defensive. "That's none of your business, Mike."

"I don't like it," I muttered.

"You don't have to," she snapped, tossing her hair back. I got a good look at her neck. I really had seen something before. Two somethings. Tiny puncture wounds.

I couldn't help myself at this point. "He looks at you like...like you're something to eat."

Bella made a funny, strangled sound and ducked into the locker room. I was already mentally kicking myself. What had I been thinking? I got changed and walked over to the parking lot just in time to see Cullen driving away with Bella seated beside him. She was looking at him as if he was the most wonderful thing in the world. My stomach dropped at the sight.

My dad could tell something was wrong as soon as I walked through the door. He questioned me until I told him.

"Cullen did it. He bit Bella."

"When?" my dad fired off.

"Last night, I think," I answered automatically.

"Are you sure?"

"I saw the marks."

"I'll call Billy. He's friends with her father," my dad announced.

Several minutes later, he hung up the phone with a sigh.

"Well?" I asked anxiously.

"Billy is going to stop by her house tomorrow. He'll get a feel for what's going on," my dad said wearily.

"Good, and I can-" I began.

My dad gave me a stern look. "You can stay out of this. It's too dangerous for you kids. Go to the library. Research. Just leave this situation to the adults."

"Okay," I said, and went upstairs to my room before he could see any guilt on my face. We hadn't told anyone we were going through with the ritual, and with those events already in motion, I doubted any of us would be able to step back and be observers. Downstairs, I could hear my dad filling my mom in on what was going on.

Later, I went to the library. Lauren, Tyler, and Ben were already there. Lauren was looking frazzled.

"What took you so long?" she snapped.

I raised an eyebrow. "I had to tell my dad all about how Cullen is now feeding off of Bella. He called Billy Black."

"And?" Tyler asked.

"Billy's on the case. We are not to interfere," I said.

Ben frowned. "We're not going to listen to that, though, are we?"

"Definitely not," I affirmed.

"In that case, let's get back to work," Lauren declared.