A/N: A few of you had a couple questions about the last chapter, so I'll do my best to answer them without spoiling the story. The hospital didn't start an investigation on Bella's accident because she kept telling (not speaking but you get what I mean) Carlisle that she couldn't remember what happened. Then when Renee came in, she said the same thing. Carlisle had a theory that the bruises on Bella were hand shaped, but without Bella saying "yes Phil hit me", the hospital can't do anything about it. Carlisle did not have strong enough evidence. Anyway, thanks to all who reviewed/favorited/followed! All mistakes are mine. I hope ya'll like this chapter! It is by far the longest chapter I have written so far and it is one of my favorites out of the entire story. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

"But if I fall for you, I'll never recover. If I fall for you, I'll never be the same." – Maroon 5

Chapter 10

EPOV

December 2008

I'm waiting in Bella's driveway at 6:15 Monday morning. I am super early and I know it. I'm just so anxious to see Bella. Today is the first day back from Thanksgiving break and I haven't seen her in the two weeks we've had off for vacation. During this vacation, I have had no contact whatsoever with Bella. All I know is that dad took off her elbow sling and he told her she could ease off the pain medicine. He told me that she looked tired, as if she hasn't been sleeping very well. He said the medicine he gave her should have been enough to knock her out, but her appearance says otherwise. He wouldn't tell me when she had made her appointment during the break. Stupid doctor patient confidentiality. I couldn't very well stay at the hospital for my dad's entire shift every day for two weeks just to make sure she was alright. I wanted to, but dad put his foot down. He told me to just be patient and that I would see her soon.

I have never wanted to go back to school so much in my entire life. I just wanted to see Bella again. I had considered visiting her over the break, but my mom told me to leave her to her family. As if her foster parents are her family.

All I could think about over break was her. She consumed my every thought. I've never been so infatuated so much with someone in my life. She is such a mystery to me. She does not talk to anyone. She has only ever spoken to me twice and I am still in shock as to why she would choose me to be the person she talks to. As far as I know, I am the only one who talks to her and is friends with her, except Emmett, Jake, and Seth of course. She honestly believes that she is not worth anything. She doesn't understand that she has people who actually for her. I mean actually care, not that fake shit that Renee tried to pull off at the hospital. I wish I knew how to make her understand that I think she is worth something. I know she is worth something. She's worth it to me. I want to be there for her. I want her to talk to me, to confide in me. I want her to be able to tell me about how she got that concussion and how she dislocated her elbow. I have my theories, but without Bella's word, I have no actual proof. Something seriously sick is going on in her house and I will get to the bottom of it.

If she will just let me in, I can show her how she should be treated. I can show her what having a real family is like. I could make her mine. I need to do something to prove to her that I am here for good. She can't get rid of me, even if she wants to.

I glance up at Bella's house and notice that the light is on in what I can guess is the kitchen. I see someone moving around in there, but I can't tell who it is. I look closer until I hear my phone go off. It's Emmett.

Bro! Don't forget about my party this weekend after the game! Bring Bella! I want her to start hanging out with us more often!

I snickered. As if I could forget. Emmett has been bugging everyone about it since he came up with the idea for the party. I spy Bella coming out the front door and I send a quick text back to him.

Don't worry, you big oaf. I am not going to forget about your party. I'll talk to Bella about it, but I wouldn't get your hopes up Em.

His response was immediate.

Beg her if you have to, Edward. I want her to feel comfortable around me. I hate that she looks all sad and lonely all the time.

I sigh and put my phone in my back pocket. I get out of my car to meet Bella at her doorstep. Dad was right, she looks exhausted. The bags under her eyes are big. She walks like she is about to fall over. Despite her obvious lack of sleep, she has giant grin spread across her face when she sees me get out. I halfway run up to her and wrap her in a tight hug. She holds me back just as tightly. When I finally let go of her, I cup her cheeks with my hands and lightly press my lips to her forehead. I hear her sigh in contentment. I'm glad she has stopped flinching when I touch her. I pull back away from her face and say, "I'm pretty sure I drove myself crazy thinking about you the entire break."

She blushes at my comment and pulls me in for a hug. She buries her head into my chest. I am so shocked by her actions, I barely have time to register when she pulls back, her face more flushed than before. I just smirk at her and she smiles and shakes her head. I grab her hand and pull her to my car.

We drive to the school and park in the parking lot, but we just stay in the car. She and I both know that there is no need to go to the library and study. Now we are staying in my car and I start to ask her random questions. I don't want her to feel like she has to answer me back verbally, so I give her my notebook and a mechanical pencil.

"What's your favorite color?"

Green.

"What's your favorite animal?"

Dog.

"Gee, can you be more basic?" I joke with her and she blushes. She playfully shoves my arm at my joke. I love seeing this side of her. She's not guarded. This is the only time that I feel as if she is letting me in.

What's wrong with dogs? Their loyal and they love you no matter what. Not to mention they're all adorable and cute and fun and furry and loveable and - .

I cut her off as she is writing. "Okay, okay, I get why you love dogs. Next question: what's your middle name?"

Marie.

"Is that a family name?"

A melancholy look comes across her face as she starts to write down her answer.

They told me it was my mom's name, but I don't really remember. I don't really remember much about before my life with Phil and Renee.

I instantly regret asking her that question. I try to lighten the mood with a joke. "Hey, what do you call a fake noodle?"

What?

"An impasta!"

The corny joke does the trick. She bursts out in laughter. I love the sound of her laugh. It's so carefree. It makes her seem younger than 15. Her laugh is contagious and it is not long before I am laughing along with her. As our laughter dies down, I take a moment to look at her, really look at her. Bella has really long brown hair. She has chocolate brown eyes. She has tiny little freckles on her nose that you can't see unless you're really looking for them. She has the perfect smile. She really lives up to her name, Bella, beautiful.

She notices me staring at her and to avoid her asking any questions, I question her. "What's your favorite subject in school?"

Biology.

I smirk at her answer. "Any particular reason?" I ask with a knowing look on my face.

She just blushes and looks away.

"Okay next question. Why do you let everybody in school treat you the way they do?" I am not entirely sure if she's going to answer me. I want to push her a little bit for answers because I have to find some way to help her. I need her to know that she can trust me and that I'll always be there for her.

No matter what I do, I'm always going to be a freak to them. I always have been. They just don't take the time to see me for me. Not just the girl who doesn't talk to anyone.

"But that's not true, Bella. You talk to me."

She smiles sadly, but doesn't answer. I start again. "You can always talk to me, you know."

Nobody has ever care for anything I've ever had to say. I guess I just got tired of trying. I mean, why speak if no one is there to listen to what you have to say?

I turn my entire body towards her. I cup her cheek with my hand and I lean in closer. I look directly into her eyes and say, "I'll listen. If you ever have anything to say, Bella, I will always listen to you."

"I know." She whispered back.

Trying to get off the tension – filled subject, I start talking to Bella about football.

"My entire life I feel like my parents have just pushed and pushed me to play football. At first I loved it, but now, I don't feel that excitement that I used to get when I run out on that field. I know I still love it, but sometimes it just gets too much. Between the pressure of being good and the 'fame' that comes with it, I don't even know what I would be like if I didn't play. It has literally been my life for as long as I can remember."

"Edward I –"

"You don't have to say anything, Bella. Shit. I don't even know what I would say to something like that. Sometimes I just feel like people only see what they want to see in me. I mean, my parents, my friends, the town, all they see is the football player. It's like they don't even see me, you know? Sometimes I think that football is the only reason I have friends. I mean, I met almost all of them through football. They just don't get me. They only know the football player. I don't think anyone even knows who the real Edward Cullen is. I -"

"Edward." She grasps my arm in her small hands. "You are kind and wonderful and anyone would be foolish not to like you for you and I know for a fact that your parents know and love you for who you are. That's what parents do. I am sure they will support you in whatever you do with your life, even if it isn't football. Besides, if you don't enjoy football anymore, why don't you just tell them?"

"I don't want to let them down. They have literally given me everything that I have wanted in life, so how can I quit the one thing they ask for?"

"You could never let them down."

I don't say anything after that. I smiled softly at her and press a quick kiss to her forehead.

"Oh, and Edward, you're way more than just a football player to me."

I smile. The bell is about to ring, so Bella and I walk hand in hand to class together.

At lunch Emmett sits with us. His boisterous laugh fills the entire cafeteria. Everyone is staring and I can tell Bella is uncomfortable. I reach over beside me where Emmett is sitting and smack him in the back of the head. "Can it, McCarty. There's no need for the entire population of Forks High to know your dumb joke."

Emmett's face is one of hurt as he reaches behind his head to touch where I just smacked him. "Ouch, dude! That hurt!"

I give him an incredulous look. I didn't hit him that hard.

"Okay, so maybe it didn't really hurt, but you didn't have to hit me, man. I have a reputation of being a badass to uphold."

I roll my eyes at him and put my arm around Bella. She is silently eating the chicken salad sandwich and carrot sticks that I brought her for lunch today. She notices me staring at her and stops eating, blush covering her face.

"If you're still hungry, Bella, you can have this Twinkie that my mom packed me." She looks at me and frowns. "I'm not going to eat it, so you might as well." She still doesn't look convinced.

"If she won't eat it, I will!" Jacob interrupted.

"I know you will Jacob, but I wasn't asking you." I give him a pointed look.

"Okay, okay. Gee, Ed. Remind me never to get in the middle of you and her and a Twinkie again."

Bella bursts out laughing at Jacob's side comment. All three of Jacob's, Seth's, and Emmett's faces are in shock. This is the first time they've heard her laugh, or make any kind of noise really. Soon their shock wears off and they are laughing again too. Like I said, Bella has a contagious laugh.

I can't help the smile on my face. Bella is opening up. She's letting more than just me in. I can't believe it! My eureka moment is interrupted when Tanya walks up to our table.

"Oh, wow! Look at the Freak! She's laughing! I think it's so nice that you boys have taken her on as your little charity case! I've always wanted to do community service, but I wouldn't want to waste my reputation on the Freak and neither should you boys."

I was the first one to jump to Bella's offense. I stood up and got in Tanya's face. "Oh, fuck off, Tanya. Can't you see no one wants you over here? Bella is seriously the only girl in this school who is not a whore like you. The only reason you can't see it is because you are too busy being a bitch. Why the hell can you not leave her alone?"

Our conversation starts to draw the attention of everyone in the lunch room.

"Wow, Edward I didn't know that poor and ugly turn you on. You either must be really desperate to get off or she must be an even bigger freak in the bed."

That did it. I was beyond pissed. No one should be talked about that way, not for any reason. My control is slipping away by the second. My mom always taught me to respect girls and to never, ever lay a hand on them, but I think she may make an exception in this case. Bella must have noticed my anger because the second I was about to punch her in the face and break her fake nose, Bella stood up behind me and grabbed my hand.

"Awe, look at this." Tanya turns around to the rest of the cafeteria who were just as engaged in our argument as we were. "The Freak is holding Edward's hand." She turns back to me. "I'd be sure to have that disinfected." She gestures to the hand Bella is holding. "We wouldn't want that perfect throwing hand to be infected with STDs or the Freak disease, now would we?"

I feel Bella tense up. I can feel the anger rolling off of her. She lets go of my hand and marches straight up to Tanya and slaps her across the face. Bella doesn't say one word. She just turns back around and takes my hand back in hers.

The entire cafeteria stays silent for a split second, then it erupts in laughter, applause, and whoops and hollers for Bella. I turn to face her. I can't actually believe she just did that. She stood up to Tanya by herself. I can't keep the smile off my face as I pull her in for a bone crushing hug.

"I can't believe you just did that." I whisper with a smile on my face. It's about time she started standing up for herself.

"Remind me never to piss you off Bells! You've got one hell of a right hook!" Emmett says in between fits of laughter. I laugh along with Emmett and let go of Bella.

I look down at her and I am surprised by what I see. She looks absolutely mortified at what she did. I immediately sit her back down at the table.

"No, no, no, no. Do not feel bad for that. She deserved that. You do not deserve to be treated the way that she treats you. You deserve so much more than that. You deserve to be treated like a fucking princess and that's what I am going to do." I grab both of her cheeks gently and force her to meet my eyes. "I am never going to treat you like anything else. Do not think that you did something bad to Tanya. She deserved everything she got and if you hadn't of hit her, I was about to."

She doesn't respond and her facial expression does not change. She looks so guilty right now, almost as if she was in pain.

"What is going on in here?" I freeze when I hear Principal Banner walk into the cafeteria.

Oh shit. I silently vow right then and there that I am not going to let Bella get in trouble for this. I will take the blame for everything.

The entire cafeteria grows quiet once more as Mr. Banner walks over to where Tanya is hysterically sobbing on the floor.

"The Freak slapped me, Mr. Banner! All I did was come up to her table and talk to her and she irrationally got mad and slapped me as hard as she could." She is completely faking everything: her story, her tears, and her attitude.

Mr. Tanner looks confused for a moment. "Who are you referring to when you say the Freak, Tanya?"

Tanya looks up from her tearful gaze at Mr. Banner to over where Bella and I sit at our table. "Bella Swan slapped me when all I tried to do was be her friend!" She starts crying harder this time. "She probably left a mark on my face, too. Look at me!"

Mr. Banner turns to her and says, "Are you sure that someone slapped you, Tanya?"

She looks angry at Mr. Banner's question.

"Of course I am sure that someone slapped me!"

He looks incredulous. "Are you sure that Bella Swan is the one that slapped you?"

"Yes I am sure! Now are you going to fucking suspend her or not?"

"I am sorry Tanya, but I just can't believe that Bella Swan of all people would slap you. I can't suspend her without proof, either."

"Proof? You need fucking proof that she hit me? Look at my face!"

"I am sorry Tanya, but there is nothing on your face but smeared makeup. Unless you have some sort of proof or witness to Miss Swan hitting you, I am afraid I can do nothing about it."

"The entire fucking cafeteria saw her slap me! Just ask any one of them!"

Mr. Banner turns to Jacob, Seth, Emmett, and I first. "Did you boys see Bella slap Tanya?"

Emmett, Jacob, and I shake our heads no while Seth says, "No sir. Bella here is the sweetest girl in this school. She would never hurt Tanya, no matter how much she deserves it."

Mr. Banner nods his head and turns to the table next to ours. I knew most of the group that was sitting there. They were Lauren Mallory, Ben Cheney, Mike Newton, Angela Weber, Eric Yorkie, and Jessica Stanley. "Did any of you see anything?"

They all shake their heads no. When Mr. Banner asks the next group of people the same thing, they all say no. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. No one was saying anything.

Mr. Banner turns to face the entire cafeteria and says, "If anyone saw anything, now is the time to come forward."

No one moves or does anything. Tanya gasps in disbelief. "What? You all saw her slap me! Why are none of you defending me?"

The entire cafeteria gasps in shock when Tanya's best friend and fellow cheerleader, Rosalie Hale stands up and says. "Would you stop your bitching, Tanya? Bella Swan did nothing to you, so stop trying to get her in trouble. You're doing nothing but embarrassing yourself now. Stop playing this stupid charade and go wash that coloring book off of your face."

Tanya gasps at Rosalie's statement.

Rosalie walks over to Mr. Banner. "Bella Swan did not hit Tanya, but if Tanya does not stop acting like she is a fucking queen, I will."

"Alright Miss Hale, please calm down." He turns to Tanya. "It is pretty clear to me that nothing happened here, Miss Denali. I suggest you clean yourself up and come to my office to discuss what your punishment for causing such a ridiculous scene will be."

"WHAT?" She screeches. "My punishment? I am the victim here, Mr. Banner! How are you so dumb not to be able to see it? Are you really that fucking stupid?"

Mr. Banner's face scrunches in anger. "I suggest you stop talking Miss Denali before you say something that will get you in even bigger trouble."

"Oh, I can say a hell of a lot more. Like the fact that we have an idiot for a principal and he is sleeping with the Freak which is the only reason you're so fucking blind as to not see that she hit me! Or the fact that he –"

"Enough Tanya. You are to go straight up to my office and call your parents to come pick you up. You are suspended for the rest of the week, including the football game Friday night."

"WHAT? You can't do that! My daddy pays a lot of money to this school every year and when he hears about this he is going to –"

She is cut off by Rosalie once more. "Would you just shut up and leave, Tanya? Save yourself at least a shred of dignity and go without throwing a temper tantrum like a five – year – old would."

Tanya gasps in shock at Rosalie's statement, but she does what she says and shuts up.

"Good now if you will follow me to my office, I can fill out the paper work for your suspension." Mr. Banner starts walking out of the cafeteria.

Tanya follows him but stops when she passes Bella. She leans down to where we are sitting and whispers to Bella, "You're going to pay for this you little bitch."

Bella flinches at her words and I pull her into my side. "Fuck off, Tanya."

Tanya just glares at Bella and walks in the same direction Mr. Banner went.

As soon as they are both gone, the cafeteria, once more, bursts out in cheers. Everyone is rejoicing in the fact that Tanya just got thrown off of her horse. A few people even starting singing "Ding Dong the Wicked Witch is Dead." I chuckled a little at that.

Rosalie starts walking towards us and I start to speak to her when she beats me to it. "I don't want to hear it, pretty boy." She moves past me and on to Bella. I see Bella freeze as Rosalie gets closer. "Anyone who can stand up to that queen bitch is a friend in my book. I have been waiting on someone to finally pay her back for all the shit she has caused since school began. No one deserves to be treated the way that she treats half of this school, especially you. For as long as I remember, you have never once said or done a bad thing to anyone." With that, Rosalie Hale walks away from us and out the door of the cafeteria.

I just stare at Bella, wondering what the hell just happened. The bell rings and everyone starts to leave and go to their next classes. When Bella starts to clean up and head to class, I gently grab her hand and pull her back to me. She looks at me questioningly. "I want to take you somewhere for the rest of the day." I can tell by the look on her face that she doesn't want to go and risk getting in trouble. "Don't worry. I will make sure nothing bad happens to you. I will take care of you, Bella, I promise." Her resolve seems to slowly disappear and she nods her head.

I turn to Jacob, Seth, and Emmett who are waiting on me to go to gym with them. "Do me a favor and tell him that I got sick and went home after lunch, okay?" They look at me suspiciously. I roll my eyes at them. "Look I just want to take Bella somewhere for the rest of the day. She's had a pretty rough day and I don't want her to get too overwhelmed." They nod and say that they will cover for me.

I turn to Bella and pull her hand all the way to my car. "I want to show you the place where I go to think. I think you'll like it." She doesn't say or do anything to show me that she heard me. I sigh and open the passenger door for her and help her get in.

I drive for about 20 minutes until I see the familiar dirt road come into view. I pull off the road and turn the car off. I am suddenly grateful that today is one of the rare sunny days in Forks. Sunny, but not warm. I notice that Bella only has on the small jacket that she wears to school every day on. There is no way that she is going to stay warm in that for what I have planned for us. When I go to open the door for her I tell her to stay there for a second. I go to the trunk of my Volvo and get my football jacket and a blanket that I always keep in there. I bring the jacket to Bella and I slip it on over her arms and head for her before she has a chance to protest.

She mouths the words thank you to me and I help her out of my car. I just smile and take her hand and lead her to the path heading into the woods. I stop when she tugs on my hand. I turn around to see Bella rooted in one spot and her shaking her head.

"Oh come on, hiking isn't that bad. I promise I won't let you fall." I give her my best dazzling smile, but she just raises her eyebrow. "Okay then, I guess I'll just have to carry you." I pick her up by grabbing her arms and throwing them across my neck. I hoist her on top of my back and her legs instinctively lock around my waist. Looks like I am just going to give her a piggy – back ride up through the woods.

I hear her soft protests. "Edward stop. You're going to hurt yourself by carrying me. I weigh too much."

"You know, you're lack of faith in my strength is kind of insulting."

"Edward, I don't want to hurt you. Put me down."

I scoff. As if she could hurt me by carrying her. "You're not going to hurt me, I promise. You weigh next to nothing. Now just relax and hold on to me until we get there." Her arms squeeze my neck and her grip on my waist tightens. I let go of my hold on her arms and move them to the back of her thighs, right before I get to her butt. She feels amazing pressed up against me like this. She's all warm and I can feel the heat coming from her –

Her voice brings me out of those thoughts. "Where exactly is there?" I hear the curiosity in her voice.

"You'll see. We are almost there."

She sighs and presses her face into my neck. A few minutes pass and I see the entrance to my place, my meadow.

"We're here."

She immediately looks up from my neck and takes in her surroundings. I let go of my grip on her thighs and she slides off my back. Fuck. I felt every part of her body just slide down off of me. Get your head out of the gutter, Cullen. I mentally chastise myself. Now is not the time to be thinking about that.

"It's so beautiful out here. How did you find this place?"

"One day when I was younger, my sister and I got into a fight. My parents took her side of the fight and I was so upset I ran away. I grabbed my favorite Scooby Doo backpack and filled it up with an apple juice box, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and a flashlight. I just ran into the woods and eventually I found this place. It was beautiful back then too. I thought I was going to stay up here for the rest of my life, but then I ate my sandwich and drank my juice. I got hungry soon after and decided that running away wasn't my smartest idea. I finally built up the courage to go home and face my parents and Alice. They were mad that I ran away for a few hours, but they were happier that I came home in one piece than anything. I didn't tell them about this place. I've actually never told anyone about this place, let alone bring them here with me." I look at Bella nervously.

"That's funny. I can just see little Edward running around in the woods carrying a Scooby Doo backpack." She teased

"Hardy har har." I can't keep the grin off my face.

"I didn't know you had a sister."

My grin drops. "Yeah, um, she died last year."

"Edward, I am so sorry."

I don't say anything. We just stand in the middle of the meadow in a comfortable silence for a few minutes.

I put down the blanket I brought and lay it down on the ground. I pull Bella on the top of the blanket and we lay on it, facing each other.

"Why did you bring me here, Edward?"

"This is one of my favorite places in Forks. I come here a lot to think or to just clear my head sometimes." I look up at her. I gently grab her cheek and rub my thumb over it. "Today's been a pretty long day. I figured you could use the rest."

Moments pass by and neither of us say a word. She turns around so she's not facing me anymore. I think she's fallen asleep until I hear her soft sniffles. She wasn't exactly crying because there were no tears in her eyes, but she was clearly upset.

"Bella, what's wrong?"

"I am a terrible person."

"What are you talking about? You're an amazing person, Bella. You could never be a terrible person."

"But I hit her, Edward. I hit somebody. I have always wondered what would make someone ever want to physically punish someone else, and now I know why. I am turning into him." I don't think that last part was meant for me to be able to hear.

"She deserved it, Bella. Don't forget that."

"Who am I to be the judge of that though? Who am I to be the one to hit her because of her actions? Who am I –"

"Stop. Stop overthinking this. You did nothing wrong."

"How can you say that? I hit somebody, Edward! How can you even look at me right now?" I can see tears forming in her eyes, but she doesn't let them fall.

"Baby, please. Don't beat yourself up over this. Why can't you see you've done nothing wrong?"

She doesn't answer but she rolls over to the point where she's not facing me anymore.

I sigh. "I can still look at you because you're so amazing, inside and out. You are sweet and funny and beautiful and strong. You see me for who I am, not who football player everyone else sees. You see me. No one, not even my parents have ever seen me before, Bella, only you. You never judge people, even when they deserve it. You don't think any less of anyone because of what they've done. You're one of the sweetest, most selfless, and kindest person I have ever met." I pause for a moment as I stare into her eyes. She doesn't believe me. I sigh. "You don't realize how important you are to me, do you?"

"I'm not important to anyone, Edward. I never have been and I never will be."

Anger rages through me. Why the hell does she keep saying that? I turn her over to face me once more. "I never want to hear you say shit like that ever again. Do you hear me? You are so important to me, Bella. Why can't you see it? What can I do to make you believe me? I'll do anything, Bella, just name it."

"I want to believe you, Edward, I really do."

"So do I, baby, believe me."

"I want to believe you, but I just can't."

"I'll do anything to make you feel important because you are. What can I do to make you feel important?"

"I need time, Edward. Time to process all this stuff. It's hard going from no one caring if you lived or died to actually being important to someone."

"Bella, you are so important to me. I can give you time. Just don't push me away. Don't keep things from me. I want to know everything about you, insignificant or not. I want you to be mine."

"You don't know what you're saying, Edward. You don't know me because if you did, you wouldn't want me."

"Cut that shit out, Bella! Have I given you any reason to make you believe that I don't want you?"

She sighs. "No, but you will."

I grab her cheek in my hand once more and I look directly into her eyes when I say this, "I doubt it, Bella. There is nothing you can do to make me not want you."

She doesn't reply. We sit in silence, just staring at each other for what feels like forever.

When I give up thinking that she will say something back she whispers, "I want to be yours too, Edward."

I smile at her, "One day you will be. I am always going to be here for you. Always."

She looks up at me, unshed tears completely gone from her eyes. We stare at each other for what seems like hours. I eventually calm down. Just looking into her eyes makes me feel this peacefulness that I have never felt before. My gaze goes a little lower and I find myself staring at her lips. Her soft, plump, pink, delicious looking lips. The thought of her lips pressed against mine takes me back to the football game when I kissed her.

"I really want to kiss you right now." I blurt out before I have a chance to realize what I just said. Her breathing hitches and for a moment I think I have scared her.

She takes a moment to respond, but when she does, I can't believe the words coming out of her mouth. "So why don't you?"

I sigh. "I told myself when I scared you by kissing you that night after my football game that I wasn't going to allow myself to kiss you no matter how much I wanted to. I want you to be the one who kisses me. I need to know that you want this too. Until you're ready for that, I'll just have to kiss you everywhere but your lips." I smirk and lean in to her face. She stopped breathing. I lightly press my lips to her cheek, her nose, her chin, the corner of her mouth, and lastly, her forehead. I pull back, but only slightly. I like being close to her.

I hear her sigh and she surprises me by kissing my jaw. I pull her closer to me. I don't ever want to let her go. I notice the bags under her eyes and realize she's probably exhausted. "Sleep baby. I will wake you up when it's time to go."

I feel her nod and she grabs my shirt with her tiny hands and pulls herself impossibly closer to me. Her body molds perfectly with mine. I wrap my arms around her and pull the blanket on top of us. She needs to sleep and I can't think of anywhere better than in my arms. I set an alarm on my phone and slowly start to go to sleep with the girl I am falling for, resting peacefully in my arms.

A/N: Awwe! Isn't Edward the best person ever! What do you think of this chapter? Did you like it? This has been my favorite chapter to write so far! By the way, I do realize that most high school football seasons would be finished by December. For the sake of my story, it lasts all year round. I know it's weird, but just go with it okay? Let me know what you think with a review! See you next week.