Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.

Thanks to MeteorOnAMoonlessNight for being my beta and Sara aka Nikki Black and Sukiethree for pre-reading!

—SE—

"Hey, baby." He grinned at me while I sat there staring at him, completely dumbfounded. I thought he was gorgeous in his pictures, but that was nothing compared to seeing him live, or as live as we could get for now. "Bella?" he called out to me, snapping me out of my daze.

I blinked and shook my head. "Hi."

"Hey," he smirked. "You doing okay over there?"

I squirmed a bit in my seat. "Yeah. I'm okay."

"You look beautiful."

I felt myself blush at his compliment and heard him chuckle. "Oh, you're a blusher! I love it. It looks good on you, baby." I felt my cheeks heat further.

I didn't know what to do or to say. I felt awkward while we essentially sat there gazing at each other.

"You're always so chatty on the phone. Is this so different, Bella?"

"I mean, yeah, kind of. I've never done this before, and I feel like I'm center stage. And you keep glancing down at my boobs."

It was his turn to blush. "Sorry, I didn't know I was being so obvious."

I bit my lip, trying not to laugh. "You were, but it's okay. Maybe I should start wearing turtlenecks if we're going to make this a habit?"

He almost looked panicked for a moment. "Yeah, no. Please don't. I'll behave, I promise," he rushed out while his eyes flicked down one more time. I couldn't keep my laugh in after that.

"You're going to make me think you just like me for my tits."

He ran a hand over his eyes, pushing out a deep breath. "I really am sorry; it's been a long time since I've been so attracted to someone, but it's no excuse."

"It really is fine. Let's change the subject. Show me your room or something!"

We chatted for hours, occasionally staring at one another as if we couldn't get enough of seeing the other's face. While I still felt unsure about my body, somehow, video chatting with him had ever so slightly eased my fears. There wasn't any way that I didn't want to be in the same room as him.

—SE—

When Monday came around, I sighed heavily as I walked up to my first class and noticed that Jessica was standing outside of the door waiting for me. I had no choice but to acknowledge her. "Hey, Jess."

She arched her eyebrow at me. "Hey, Jess, is that really all you've got to say? We haven't gotten together outside of class in almost a month, and when we are in class, Alice is always hanging around you. I'm starting to think you like her better than me."

"It's not that—"

She glared at me, then smirked. "Really? Then what is it? I mean, look at you. Did she tell you that top looked good? It's way too tight for someone your size. She's no good for you, Bella."

I opened my mouth, but nothing would come out. Jessica had always given me backhanded compliments, but for some reason, her being so blunt this time stung worse than normal. Maybe it was because I was finally able to see her for who she really was. I was just starting to gain some confidence, and here she was stomping all over me at the first chance and trying to keep me down.

"You know I'm right. I can't believe she let—"

"Shut up, Jessica!" Her words caused something to snap inside of me. I was tired of her, I was tired of Lauren, and I was tired of my mother. "No one let me do anything. I'm a grown woman who can make my own decisions on what I put on my body. I'm sorry you feel so badly about yourself that you've felt the need to make me feel bad for years. I'm done with you putting me down."

I didn't give her time to answer before I turned and walked away. I hadn't missed a class yet, so I could stand to skip it once. I sent Alice a quick text asking for any assignments and telling her I'd see her later.

Taking a deep breath, I slid into my car. There was only one person I wanted to talk to right now, so I pulled out my phone and dialed Edward's number.

He answered after a few rings. "Hey, aren't you supposed to be in class?"

I completely lost it at the sound of his voice. "Edward," I sobbed.

"Bella, baby, what's wrong? Are you hurt?"

"No," I gasped, trying to calm myself. "No, I'm not hurt, but Jessica is just so mean, and I don't know what I've done to deserve it."

"Oh, sweetheart, what did she do?"

I let my head fall back against the seat. "I put on one of the outfits I bought the other day. Honestly, for the first time in forever, because of you, Alice, and Angela, I looked in the mirror and I didn't completely hate what I saw. I didn't love it, but I felt okay. I almost felt... good, even. And then when Jessica saw me, well, she said some really mean things."

I swore I heard him growl. "I can tell you right now you looked better than just nice, Bella. You looked gorgeous today. She's just a petty bitch who doesn't know shit."

I scoffed quietly. "How do you know how I looked? You can't even see me."

"Anything that is on your body is beautiful. I hate that I can't be there to hold you and kiss away your tears. My heart is broken over it, baby."

"You have no clue how much I want that right now, too. I couldn't think of anyone else that I wanted to talk to after everything that happened."

"Bella?" I could hear the nerves In his voice, and it set me on edge.

"Yeah?" I asked hesitantly.

"I know it's still a ways away, but my spring break is in mid-March, and—"

"Yes. Yes, I want you to come. I need to see you, to be with you."

He let out a breath that he must have been holding. "You're sure? We can still wait, I don't want you to feel pressured. When you called me crying like that though, fuck, I was ready to hop on a plane and hunt down whoever hurt you. Hell, I still am. I know I shouldn't hit a girl, but I'm sure I could probably pay Alice or Angela to."

"They'd gladly do it for free, I'm sure. I want you here, but I'm terrified. What if—"

"Bella!" he nearly shouted. "Is the day ever going to come when you realize I don't love you with conditions? Look, I know we haven't known each other that long, and we've already had some bumps, but I love you no matter what. I've told you before, but I'll tell you again and again, I fell in love with what's inside: your personality, your kind heart, the way you make me smile. Your outside is just a very nice bonus to me."

"I know it doesn't seem like it, but I'm trying. I'm trying to wrap my head around it all," I said quietly.

"I know you are, baby."

I'd felt this way about myself since I was a little girl, so I knew nothing would be fixed overnight. I'd been making slow progress though, and between Edward and my actual friends, maybe one day I would feel good about myself.