Way back in the olden days of 2009, when a much younger Sage started writing fanfiction, there was a site called Twilighted. As I'm sure y'all have guessed, it was specifically for Twilight fics and there was a nice and highly active community of people who enjoyed talking on the message boards. I don't know if Twilighted is still up or not and the sentimental part of me doesn't want to go check only to find it's gone. One of the things that happened on those message boards in the days Pre-Reddit was story challenges being posted.

This story came about due to a challenge prompt, but it took on a life of its' own and was far too long for the challenge (I've never been accused of brevity of the written word). I decided to just finish it as a one shot, but alas that never happened either. This is one I would love to have the muse whack me in the head so I could finish it off.

**BELLA ~ 1922**

One hundred years is a lot of time to wander the Earth, and being alone for most of that of time was unbearable for me. I despaired early in my second existence, but I had no idea how to go about ending the Hell on Earth I had been sentenced to. I tried to starve myself, but found that made me dangerously feral and unsafe to be anywhere remotely near humans. I tried jumping from great heights, but there was never any real damage to my body. I tried ingesting poisons, but they refused to stay in my system. After years of fruitless attempts, I gave in and accepted my fate.

My last clear memory before awakening from the fires of Hell was of a red-eyed fiend calling me a tasty little morsel. I refused to be like that vile creature and harm a human for my own sustenance, so I quickly learned to feed on the blood of animals. I found after several months it changed my eyes from the demonic red I hated to a pretty golden color. I was able to be out and about in towns and villages I passed through after that which greatly eased my sense of isolation, if not my desire for companionship. Being an anomaly amongst my own kind and an abomination to the humans around me made it difficult to find any type of meaningful connection.

Finally, in 1917 I stumbled across someone who would possibly be able to understand me, someone who might wish to be my companion. Maybe even someone who would love me…

Carlisle turned out to be an excellent companion, and since both of us were so dreadfully tired of being alone we tried to encourage a more lasting bond to grow between us. He courted me as a proper lady should be courted, and I returned his gentle flirtations demurely. He escorted me about the city to plays in the evenings and to the gardens on cloudy days. I listened raptly to his engaging discourse about literature, the sciences, and his travels, and encouraged him to talk about his work as a physician.

We both knew it was half-hearted on my part. I tried, Lord above knows I did. He was handsome as sin, gentle, thoughtful, witty, and intelligent. I felt great love for Carlisle, but it was the love one would give a treasured brother. Neither of us wanted to admit we were ill-suited because we were the only two of our kind in existence. Our golden eyes and desire to live peacefully among the humans made us curiosities and objects of scorn to our more vicious kindred, but nothing more.

One night in 1918 we were walking back to my loft from a night at the theater when I decided I had to make one final effort. When we reached my door, I turned to Carlisle and kissed him. I was hoping for a spark, or any small indication that we could have a grand romance if I simply tried harder. Unfortunately, I felt no passion. He knew it within seconds, and broke from my lips.

He held me as I cried and told me he would always treasure me; that he would be happy to call me his sister and we could still see the world together.

We left Chicago early in 1919 and traveled to Wisconsin. Carlisle was a much-needed physician in the sparsely populated area we chose for our residence, and as his "widowed sister" I was in great demand as a mid-wife. For two years, our life was peaceful and idyllic.

Then the new schoolmistress came. She was also a widow, and in a greatly advanced stage of pregnancy. When I examined her to find out how advanced she was I discovered the woman was still healing from a horrific beating. She begged me to keep silent, as she had run from her abusive husband hoping to save her child. I convinced her to allow Carlisle to examine her to rule out injuries too severe for my skills, promising neither of us would reveal her secret. He came home from her bedside distraught and in an uncharacteristically violent frame of mind. He wanted to run that night to her former home in Ohio to destroy her husband. I convinced him not to.

I was called the next night to attend the birth of her son… it was far too soon, but there was naught I could do to stop the labor. He was undersized, and I could hear an abnormality in the thrum of his heart. I gave as much counsel and encouragement as I could to the new mother, hoping the wee mite would prove me wrong and thrive. Two weeks later, Carlisle and I stood by the young mother's side as she buried her child. Her wails of pain would haunt my ears for decades to come.

I returned from a hunt three nights later to find a panicked Carlisle standing over a screaming and writhing Esme. He had gone to check on her, only to find she left a note and went to the cliffs to end her pain. He was unable to stop her from jumping, but was able to get enough of his venom into her system to prevent her death. He begged me to understand his rash decision. He admitted he had met her previously. She broke her leg in 1911 when she fell out of a tree while observing a nest of baby birds. He was instantly enchanted by the young girl and felt a connection to her he didn't fully understand. He knew he would have to leave her hometown immediately. He couldn't bear the thought of being around as she grew into a woman and married another man.

I smiled, as I thought back over the year that followed our abrupt departure from Wisconsin. I left that night with Esme. I took her to a remote cabin Carlisle built in the wilds of Canada in case we ever needed a place to escape to. It was only a three hour run for the two of us, but it was a journey of at least three days for the humans, so we were confident we were far enough away to prevent discovery.

Carlisle put it around that I had gone home to help our older sister in Boston during her confinement. He joined in the search for Esme's body, and played the part of grieving would-be suitor to the hilt. It had not gone unnoticed by the town gossips how he watched her with admiration, so it shocked no one when two weeks later he announced he was going home to Boston as well, that the memories were too hard to bear.

I was glad to have Carlisle on hand full time, as Esme was far less controlled than I had been upon awakening. She craved human blood, and couldn't find the resolve to abstain. I had to stay by her side every moment, because if an especially strong breeze brought her the distant scent of a passing hunter she would be off like a hound tracking a rabbit. It became easier to persuade Esme to hunt animals once Carlisle was in residence, although she became aggressive and territorial towards me for several weeks. We finally had a blow out, where she accused me of trying to keep Carlisle from her. He and I were both shocked to discover she felt the same connection to him that he'd always felt for her.

Now I was standing behind Esme, putting the finishing touches on her hair. Her nervous honey eyes sought mine in the mirror and I smiled calmly. "Come along, sister. You have a man waiting impatiently for you down at the altar."

"You truly don't mind, Bella?"

I smiled again. "I love him dearly… as my brother. I know Carlisle told you he and I tried to form a more intimate relationship while we were in Chicago and it wasn't meant to be between us."

She hugged me tightly, murmuring into my ear, "You will find your forever, Bella. I feel it."

**BELLA ~ 1952**

My brothers were engaged in yet another inane argument about whether or not Les Paul and his electronic guitars would change music or fade to obscurity. My sisters were arguing over clothes, again. Esme was unsuccessfully trying to mediate their arguments, while Carlisle and I looked on in silent amusement.

Our family had grown considerably over the past 30 years, and I now had a whole passel of siblings to keep me company. Sometimes, it was even enough to numb the loneliness and pain that I carried in my un-beating heart. I thought back over the expansion of our family, remembering how each of them joined our lives.

Carlisle came in carrying a screaming, mangled human one day in 1933. We were living in Tennessee, and he came across a young man who was being mauled by a bear. He immediately confessed he hoped that this would be the man to capture my heart, so he brought him home for me. I was greatly annoyed by Carlisle's presumption, but the human was incredibly handsome so I resolved to do my best to find affection for him.

Emmett adapted easily to our lifestyle and showed interest in me, but as with Carlisle my own attentions were half-hearted. Emmett was very astute though, and realized quickly my flirtations were forced. He grabbed me in a head lock, told me I would be the best little sister ever, and then dragged me off to hunt hoping he could find yet another bear to avenge his human death on.

In 1935, Emmett came home carrying a young blond woman who had been assaulted and beaten within an inch of her life. He knew he didn't have the necessary restraint to change her, but he couldn't bear for her to die. Carlisle saw the expression on Emmett's face and knew he couldn't deny my brother his fated lover. Rosalie joined our family rather unwillingly, angered at losing her chance for a family of her own. Despite our vows to preserve human life whenever possible, we looked the other way and allowed her to avenge herself on the men who brutalized her before we left the area. This seemed to help her disposition somewhat and she quickly fell deeply in love with my clownish big brother.

In 1936 I found myself once again arranging hair; blond this time instead of rich caramel, and a much fancier style than Esme's preference for simple chignons.

"You're sure you don't mind, Bella?"

I smiled indulgently at my little sister. "Rose, it will take a woman as feisty as you to deal with Emmett, Lord knows I couldn't do it. He's my brother; there was never anything more between us."

I was hugged tightly and heard the familiar words whispered in a different voice. "You will find your forever, Bella. I feel it."

In 1947 a scarred, battle-weary Jasper Whitlock showed up on our doorstep. His empathic nature had driven him to the brink of insanity because he was forced to feel everything his victims felt. He ran from the coven of one of the most sadistic perpetrators of the Southern Wars, after having been her enforcer for more years than he cared to remember. He tried living the life of a nomad for a few decades, but was still unable to outrun his guilt. An old acquaintance of Jasper's who also escaped from the Southern Wars told him of the rumored animal-drinkers. Intrigued by the chance to find peace by abstaining from human blood, he sought us out.

Carlisle was once again hopeful for me. Jasper and I were of similar temperament and we enjoyed similar pursuits. Though he was undeniably handsome, and a gentleman of the highest caliber… my heart felt nothing more than sisterly affection. There were no failed attempts at awkward flirtation between us as he could feel my lack of romantic interest immediately.

We became very close confidants, and he would always turn to me when his bloodlust was strong. I was usually able to calm him. Of all of us, he had the hardest time adjusting to a diet of animal blood. He also had the strongest reason to adhere to our diet, so he continued to fight, even when we thought he would cave under the pressure of his insatiable thirsts.

In 1950 we were living on the outskirts of Philadelphia. Jasper decided to go visit some of the historic sites during an overcast day. When he didn't come home that evening or the next, Carlisle and I set out to look for him. We were easily able to trace his scent until we came to a small diner. There was another vampire scent mingled with his, which we followed for about 2 blocks, but then it began raining rendering the trail unusable.

We returned home, ready to proclaim our failure, only to be met at the door by Jasper. His joy was uncontainable and he was throwing it off so strongly we couldn't even be annoyed by his thoughtlessness. Before I could work up a good snit to use, I was pounced by a tiny, energetic pixie of a vampire. I panicked for a moment, but she quickly stepped away with her hands raised, asking me not to attack her.

That pixie came to be my best friend and dearest sister, Alice. She knew due to her gift of precognition that we would be the best of friends, which is why her exuberant nature led her to hug me. She backed away from me so quickly that night because her vision showed me not reacting well to her affectionate attack.

In 1951 I stood behind Alice, smoothing her normally spiky short hair into sleek pin curls, when the anticipated question came.

"You're sure you don't mind, Bella?"

I laughed, "Some psychic you are, Ali! Of course I don't mind that my very best friends love each other so much. You two balance each other perfectly."

I was pounced by the enthusiastic little bundle of energy and heard the same words Esme and Rose had whispered to me. "You will find your forever, Bella. I feel it."

**Edward ~ 2010**

"We're moving where?" I knew I heard my mother clearly, but I couldn't believe this. They wanted to drag me away from my few friends and everything I had ever known three months before I started high school.

"Forks, dear. It's in Washington State, north of Seattle. Your dad was offered Chief of Surgery, but since it's a smaller hospital he won't be putting in 60-hour weeks on top of teaching. You know Northwestern is killing him."

I knew I was being selfish and petulant by resisting this move, but I had a hard enough time making friends in a huge, diverse school. I had a feeling this little Podunk town they were dragging me to had been inhabited by the same five families for the last fifty years. Everybody would know everybody else. Nobody would have room for a "new kid" in their group once the initial fascination wore off. I wouldn't actually be any more isolated than I was in Chicago, but I would feel it more acutely.

My lack of social life was mostly of my own doing. I wasn't interested in acting like someone I wasn't to win approval. I wasn't interested in dating some brainless twit just because my male peers deemed her physically attractive. I had no use for drunken parties, getting high, or worshipping at the altar of the school jocks, and in turn my peers had no use for me.

I picked up the stack of boxes my mother dropped for me and started packing. Trying to force some optimism, I told myself there was no way it would be as bad as I thought it would be.

**BELLA ~ 2012**

The past 50 years have been a time of learning for me. My odd ability to block my blood lust and to help curb Jasper's was finally explained by Carlisle's old acquaintance Eleazar. I have a Shield. After about 25 years of non-stop practicing I learned to manipulate it to my smallest whims. Alice can't see my future unless I allow her to. It annoys her to no end. Jasper can't feel my emotions unless I drop my protective layer. When I physically manifest the block around my body, nobody can touch me. I've learned to project mental protection around the rest of the family, but so far I can't block physical attacks for anybody but myself. Jasper and I are still working on that.

The past 50 years have also heightened my sense of isolation, which is both hard to comprehend, as I am never alone, and understandable as I am the sole unmated member of our family. I seriously thought of leaving them a few times, but I would miss them too much. I've made it a practice over the last 20 or so years to just shield myself at all times and put on a smile so they don't know how desperately alone and sad I usually feel.

When our time in London expired, it was Rose's turn to pick where we lived. She wanted to return to the area where she had first fallen in love, so that she and Emmett could renew their vows. I almost rolled my eyes at her reasoning, but I stopped myself. It wasn't Rose's fault she was blissfully happy and I wouldn't allow my acquired cynicism to ruin her moment.

When we had the family meeting to discuss Rose's choice of location, I was asked to drop my shield so Alice would have all available information to work with. I sat quietly, trying to concentrate on controlling my darker emotions around Jasper. I didn't really care where we went. I knew it was too soon to return to my estate in Ireland, so anywhere was fine by me. When Rose confirmed her desire to return to Hoquiam, Alice gasped and broke into excited little bounces which soon overwhelmed the entire family as Jasper lost his fight to contain her over-exuberant joy.

"We're going to Forks. It's near Hoquiam, Rose so don't get in a snit. You and Emmett could even do the "newlywed" thing again and live at the Hoquiam house if you wanted. Esme, you're going to love the house I saw us buying. It will be gorgeous… your showpiece for sure! Oh, you're an architect this time and Carlisle will be a surgeon of course. I think Rose and Em are in Hoquiam, because I don't see them with us in school, but the three of us are juniors this time and Bella…"

Jasper finally had to place his hand over Alice's mouth to stem the excited little pixie's tirade. We all thanked him. Ali can be a bit much when she gets on a roll like that.

We've fabricated a decent cover story over time, which gives us several years in one location if we're careful. Ali is adopted and usually starts in her first year of high school. Rose and Jasper are foster kids and we start them in the second year of high school. They play twins, as do Emmett and I. I was slightly older at my turning and Emmett is huge. We usually start as third or fourth year students since neither of us can convincingly pass for less than 17, and that's usually a stretch. Our features and coloring are similar enough to Esme's that we are introduced as her orphaned niece and nephew.

After some hemming and hawing, Rose and Em did end up deciding to live at the Hoquiam house and visit us every few days. This left me without my bodyguard. Rose's evil-eye and bitchy school persona were enough to scare boys away from her and to keep most girls from hitting on Em, and in turn he pulled rank as my over-protective brother to keep the boys away from me. Jazz projected waves of discomfort towards anybody who tried to approach Alice inappropriately. Humans seemed to instinctively fear him more than the rest of us; so hormonal teenaged girls didn't often bother him.

I scowled at the innocuous brick building as we pulled into the parking lot for our first day at Forks High. Alice saw my glare and giggled merrily. Whatever she foresaw at our family meeting that pertained to me, she had decided not to reveal. She just kept promising me I would be happy.

I wrapped my physical shield tightly about my body and opened my mind so Jasper's and Alice's gifts could keep tabs on me. I also wrapped them in a mental buffer to help them keep their thirst in check. We had developed this system years ago. Not having Em and Rose with us actually made things a bit easier for all of us. Our gifts didn't have to be stretched as thin with fewer family members to monitor.

Jasper collapsed to his knees as the desolation I worked so hard to conceal from the family flooded him. Ali's head snapped up as her mate's pain and the removal of my block triggered a vision. They both turned to me with bleak, hurt eyes. Neither had been subjected to my unguarded mental state in the past several years. I'd decided not to attend school in London and I kept myself off of their radars as much as possible.

"I'm sorry, Jazz. Would you prefer I stay shielded? My control is excellent and I can drop it if I need you…"

Alice grabbed me, and I wasn't sure if she would hug me or shake me at first. Finally she broke into dry sobs and wrapped her tiny arms tightly around my neck. "Bella, I know you've been lonely, but that can change! I swear it! I saw you happy here when I had that vision at the family meeting. I wanted to tell you everything, but the vision changed when I did… Please, trust me?"

I sighed deeply and wrapped my arms around her back. "I trust you, Ali. I'll try, OK?"

Jasper got back on his feet, the pain he was still feeling clear in his eyes. "Let me help you, Bella. Nobody should have to feel like that."

I smiled and forced calmness in my mind. His shoulders lost their rigid set and he smiled without humor. I knew he wasn't buying my act, but he was willing to let me be as long as my depression wasn't debilitating any longer. He hooked an arm around Ali's tiny waist and she smiled up at him. Pain ripped through me again as I could literally feel the connection between them at that moment. Jasper winced a bit and gave me an apologetic expression, so I smiled as convincingly as possible for him. Sometimes I honestly preferred dealing with Rose and Em's overt sexuality to the intense emotional depth between Alice and Jasper.

I looked once more at entrance of our latest prison before forcing a grin that convinced all three of us that I meant it. I let myself slip into my modern school persona and said, "Let's rock this joint."

**EDWARD ~ 2012**

I scowled as I pulled into the parking lot at Forks High. I vaguely remembered the pep talk I tried to give myself before leaving Chicago, when I decided Forks couldn't be as bad as I thought… Yeah, I'd been completely wrong.

Forks was everything I initially thought, unfortunately. Everybody wanted to get to know me, so they could be the first with the gossip. This place ran on gossip like it was an alternate fuel source. Within three weeks of my first day at this school, I was labeled a homosexual. It was certainly news to me since I was quite attracted to females. Apparently refusing to ride the town bicycle and turning down a few bubble-headed cheerleaders meant I went the other way. Who knew? Then I had to turn down a few of the boys… quite vehemently. I was halfway afraid some one would think that I was in to animals and offer to introduce me to their livestock, but thankfully it was decided I was just incredibly stuck up.

I went with it; I didn't mind being labeled the Ice King. There weren't any girls I wanted to put any effort into impressing, and as expected nobody had room in their clique for a quiet guy who wasn't in to drinking or sports after the newness wore off. I decided after my freshman year to quietly finish my sentence and escape to college where I could meet people with more than two working brain cells.

My plan was going well until this past summer. I hit a growth spurt that put me over six feet tall and redistributed my weight. I didn't think much of it until the flirting with me at the beach started and refused to let up no matter how many times I rebuffed their advances. Ben and his girlfriend Angela thought it was hilarious and offered to start a fan club for all the lust-addled idiots.

I parked and saw Ang leaning against her car three spaces over. She and Ben were the only people in this Godforsaken Hellhole I ever spoke to. They were both incredibly shy and quiet, so the three of us kind of naturally gravitated together. I nodded to Ang and headed over to wait for Ben with her. We saw him waiting to turn in behind a car that was definitely too fancy for this place. My third-hand used Volvo was in better shape than most of the teacher's cars, so I couldn't even imagine who that sleek blue machine belonged to.

"Are we getting new kids, Ang?" I crossed my fingers. New students would take the focus off my supposed "too good for Forks" attitude. Hopefully there was a guy so the skank patrol would have fresh meat and quit trying to tempt me. I shuddered at the mere thought of letting one of those girls touch me. Maybe there'd be two guys and one would miraculously be gay so my male fan club members would have fresh tail to chase too…

Angela tilted her head and thought for a second. "Ya know… my dad did mention a new surgeon starting at the hospital. He and his wife don't have children of their own, but they have an adopted daughter, his wife's orphaned niece, and a foster kid."

Ben was finally in the parking lot and he pulled his decrepit Chevy truck between my car and Angela's ancient Ford Tempo. He bounded over in high spirits and grabbed Ang for a hug and a kiss. She responded with a pretty blush and a giggle. I turned my head and let them get their hushed whispers of love out of the way for the morning.

Sometimes it killed me to see the quiet connection between them. They were the couple who would get married; then 50 years later tell their great grandkids all about how they were high school sweethearts, and never doubted their love for even a minute.

I recognized it, because my parents were exactly the same. They met in high school, and never looked at anyone else. My mom said that even through the brutal years my dad was doing his residency and all of the insane hours he worked up until we moved to Forks, nothing seemed to dim their connection to each other. It was both awe-inspiring and completely deflating to live in the shadow of such a genuine love. I knew I could never settle for less, but I sincerely doubted I would ever find it.

I let my eyes roam over the parking lot while Ben and Angela were still absorbed in each other. Jessica and Lauren caught my idle gaze and began their typical mating dance of pushing out their wonder-bra enhanced chests and trying to fluff their over-processed hair. I shuddered and swept my eyes away from their disturbing display.

My eyes caught on three figures I didn't know at the end of our row. The two girls were devastatingly beautiful. The tiny one had short black hair and the slightly taller one had long brown hair, but they both had delicate features and heart shaped faces. Looking at the brunette made me nervous, so I turned to the third figure. The tall blond boy at their side had a lanky frame and an intense look. He would probably top my own six feet two inches and he had an intimidating vibe. His eyes were hard until he wrapped an arm around the smaller girl. She smiled at him and I winced. Another transcendent love story to watch unfold. Fabulous.

Apparently the brunette felt the same way, because I thought I saw a flash of pain on her face. I realized I must have been mistaken when I heard her inane Valley Girl voice saying something about joints, and I shuddered again. Great… yet another brainless stoner twit in this school. Hopefully this one wouldn't bother me with her pathetic attempts at flirting.

I slapped my hand down lightly against Celine (yeah… Ang named her car) and told the dynamic duo I'd see them at lunch. They both fluttered their hands at me lazily from mid-kiss, and I felt the throb of pain again. The new kids were passing, and the boy snapped his head to give me a searching look almost as if he heard my mental anguish. The tiny girl watched me with amused eyes, but the brunette passed as if I didn't exist, her annoyingly perky voice admonishing the other two to hurry so they wouldn't be late.

I scanned for any friendly faces when I finally got to my first period American History class. Ben and Ang had gym this period, and I had no desire to end up sitting with Jessica. I noticed the new guy sitting alone in the back corner just as he turned to face me. He grinned lazily and motioned me to join him.

For some reason a shiver ran down my spine as he watched me, but since I was the last one in the door the only other empty seat was next to Jessica. She gave me what I'm sure she thought was a seductive look and patted the desk. I cringed and headed for the blond guy mentally steeling myself for that odd sense of disquiet again…

Lesser of two evils, Edward. It's this or Jessica and you know you don't want to be that close to Jessica for an entire year.

I smiled as I took the seat and stuck my hand out. "Edward Masen, nice to meet you."

He smiled back and shook my hand. I almost winced at the feel of his cold, hard skin. His voice was oddly melodic and had an accent I couldn't quite place. "Jasper Whitlock."

I busied myself with getting my pen and notebook ready, my brain going a million miles an hour. OK… so that was weird. He feels like a fricking statue. He also feels dangerous. I'm not usually nervous around people, but he makes me jittery.

Mrs. Alton came in and started handing out books, effectively putting an end to my internal monologue. After she was finished she asked Jasper to introduce himself. Every head in the classroom swung around to focus intently on the blond boy, and he looked non-plussed at all of the attention he was suddenly getting. I felt a flash of sympathy for him.

"Well, I was born in Texas. I have an older sister named Rose. She's married and they live in Hoquiam. Dr. and Mrs. Cullen are my legal guardians and have been since I was about three. We just came back from a few years in London where Carlisle was teaching some program at Oxford. Ummm… that's about it. I'm pretty boring."

He dropped his head and started reading his text until people gave up on hoping for good gossip and faced the teacher again. Once he didn't feel any more eyes on him, he turned to me and muttered, "Are they always like this with wanting information?"

"You got off easy since you already have a girlfriend. They all decided I was gay when I didn't want to date any of the brainless tarts that were throwing themselves at me."

He snickered quietly, "Great. That type of place. So how many guys am I gonna have to beat off of Bells then?"

"Bells? Who's that?"

"Well, for all intents and purposes, she's my sister. The brunette I had with me this morning? I saw you checking her out, am I gonna have to breathe down your neck too?"

Though he said it lightly, I had a feeling he wasn't teasing. He would defend the ditzy little brat if need be. I decided to let him know he didn't need to worry about me.

"Yeah, I wasn't really impressed. I don't go for the brainless Valley Girl types, hence why I haven't dated anybody else in this school. But since she is exactly what all of the meathead jocks around here like, you'll have plenty of people to keep an eye on."

I shrank back a bit when I heard the low growl rumble out of his throat and saw his eyes had darkened somewhat. "Don't insult my sister, Masen. She's smarter than any three people in this place combined, including you. Stay away from her. She doesn't need any douche bags messing with her head."

He turned his attention back to Mrs. Alton, and I wondered how this was going to affect my ability to concentrate in class. This guy completely intimidated me, and I apparently just offended the living Hell out of him.

I was starting to think maybe I should switch my seat and just try to ignore Jessica, when Mrs. Alton announced a partnered writing project on any topic of our choosing that directly contributed to the beginning of the American Revolution. She went around the room assigning partners and finally came to me.

"Mr. Masen, you and Mr. Whitlock will work together. OK people, shake hands and get used to your partner, because they aren't changing this year. Your rough drafts are due in two weeks and the final paper will be due the week after that. Two thousand words, and be ready to give an oral presentation. We'll be doing at least one major project and several smaller ones per quarter. The big ones will count for one quarter of your quarterly grade. I suggest you don't put this off to the last minute."

I banged my head repeatedly against my desk, wondering what vengeful god of old I had crossed this morning.

"Stop it, Masen. I'm not thrilled either, but apparently I need what little brain you have to stay intact if I plan on acing this class. And I do plan on it, capisce?"

I glared at him and heard him call me a prima donna under his breath. We proceeded to ignore each other for the rest of the period instead of starting on our research like the rest of the class.

The bell rang and I followed him out into the hall when I realized he hadn't given me any contact information. We were going to need to get started immediately to get done on time. "Don't walk away from me, Whitlock! We still have to work together, damnit!"

He turned and growled at me again, only this time it sounded like an enraged animal rather than a pissed off man. I froze instantly, my eyes going wide as his darkened to a black color. "Back off, Masen. I'll deal with you tomorrow when I cool down."

He was dismissive of me one time too many and I was too angry not to respond, not even bothering to consider my rather public location. "Hey! Don't patronize me, Whitlock. Just because I didn't think your airheaded sister was cute…"

He looked behind me and his face slackened with shock, but then instantly went tight again. I turned to see the two new girls looking at me like I crawled out from under a rock and realized they heard every word out of my mouth.

Remorse instantly settled in me. I really didn't know the girl at all. I heard something completely out of context, made some assumptions, and used it as an excuse to take my bad mood out on a total stranger. My parents would be completely ashamed if they ever heard how disrespectfully I had just treated a female.

My immediate instinct was to apologize, but I got lost in her angry butterscotch eyes.

**BELLA**

Alice and I had English first period, directly across the hall from Jasper's history class. It would take awhile to get used to the small building and hearing several different simultaneous subjects in the same hallway.

Since Alice and I both had the same history teacher for our third period, we were eavesdropping on the lesson when Jasper started teasing the red headed boy I had noticed that morning about checking me out. Alice squealed quietly and whispered that she told me she saw him staring at me. I was getting ready to deny it again when we both heard his reply to Jasper. Alice's golden eyes shot wide then clouded over, while my fingers tightened into the desk leaving small divots.

I felt my eyes stinging and started to blink rapidly, almost as if I were fighting off tears. It was bad enough that I was constantly surrounded by inhumanly gorgeous men who saw me as nothing special, now I had mortals finding me lacking as well. I wasn't sure if I was more upset at being called brainless or at being rejected outright before I expressed any interest. To make it worse, he was the first male I'd ever felt pique an interest in me.

Ali patted my hand and started talking fast enough that only Jasper and I would hear her. "I don't know how to tell you this now, Bells… but that is the guy I saw you with in my visions. I still see you with him…"

I snorted loudly, drawing the attention of every eye in the classroom. The teacher, Mr. Berty, looked non-plussed by my interruption.

"Is there an issue with the assigned reading, Ms. Swan?"

Normally, I would have made an excuse and apologized profusely, but my dander was already up, so my mouth got away from me.

"I'm not the greatest fan of D.H. Lawrence, Mr. Berty. Sons and Lovers was just his attempt to reconcile himself with what he felt was the waste his mother made of her life by "marrying down", although if she hadn't he wouldn't have been around to whine about it. He also deals with the concept of emotional incest quite a bit… it makes one wonder what kind of a messed-up life the man had."

Mr. Berty sneered at me, "Well since you saw fit to ruin the reading for everybody else, I'll just go ahead and mark it completed. Everybody, thank Ms. Swan for your first A in my class. Ms. Swan, you will read Jean Rhys' Wide Saragasso Sea and have your report in by next Monday."

The bell rang and we started out to meet Jasper. He looked furious and was being followed by the red-haired boy. We heard him tell the boy to back off, followed by the jibe that Jasper's anger was because the boy didn't find me attractive and yet another insult to my intelligence. Jasper obviously felt the pain the boy's words caused me, because his face hardened dangerously.

The boy saw that Jazz's gaze was fixed over his shoulder. Ali and I both saw him tense and heard the gasp of breath he sucked in before turning to look at us. I tried very hard to reign in my anger with this impudent child, but I don't think I was successful. A myriad of emotions washed across his expressive face before it settled into shame. He looked at me, and I noted that his eyes were the clearest green I had ever seen.

I settled my face into a dispassionate mask and looked over the boy's shoulder to Jasper. "Hey Jazz, care to help a mental deficient find her next class? Ali's heading to the other end of the building, but you have chemistry this period, right?"

Jasper gave Alice a quick kiss and muttered they needed to talk about her vision before turning and offering me his arm with a deep bow.

"Yes ma'am. It would be my delight to make sure you arrive without incident to your next class."

Ali and I giggled. He knew we both loved it when he pulled out his Old South manners and Texas twang. Ali tossed us a wave and danced off down the hall to head for her French class. I curtseyed to Jasper and took his arm before I broke out what Ali called my "Southern Belle-a" voice. "Why thank you, kind sir. I'm afraid there are all sorts of ill-mannered louts roaming about today."

We started off but I couldn't resist throwing one look over my shoulder. The boy was leaning against the wall and running both hands through his hair as if he were trying to yank it out. Jazz caught my look towards the boy. "He really does feel horrible about that."

I quirked my eyebrow, "And yet… he said it to start with. Perhaps he needs a lesson in not voicing every random thought that runs through his mind."

"Ah, don't be like that, Bells. He was feeling some kind of emotional turmoil this morning in the parking lot and then I pissed him off; he's just having a bad day."

"Hey! You're supposed to be on my side! What happened to 'Stay away from my sister, douche bag' huh?"

He grinned happily, "You have got to tell Emmet about that one. He'll never believe it unless you back it up! Here's your class, Bells."

He dropped a kiss on my forehead and sauntered down the hall to his own class, leaving me standing there somewhat stupefied. Five minutes ago he was threatening that boy, and now he's defending him? Lord, save me from men and their mood swings!

I stepped into the classroom and headed for the back corner. Science was the one subject I still enjoyed, but I wanted to keep myself out of the direct visual path of the teacher as much as possible. Unfortunately, I'd had to test into this AP class, and even with trying to dumb myself down I'd scored higher than anyone else. I didn't want the teacher thinking I was interested in being his pet for the year on top of that.

A familiar scent hit my nostrils and I looked up to see the boy walking in, with a teacher directly on his heels. I looked around the room and cursed my luck. The only open seat was next to me, of course. The teacher must've realized it at the same time I did.

"Edward, there's an open one in the back corner. Go sit so we can get started."

There was still remorse etched into his features as he took the seat and slowly turned to face me, "Can we talk for a second?"

I kept my eyes to the front of the room effectively dismissing him.

"No."

"But I just wanted…"

"I really don't care what you wanted to say."

"Look, I'm really sor…"

I held my hand up toward him, stopping his forced attempt at apologizing. "If I hadn't overheard that remark you wouldn't feel like you did anything wrong. Now, stop speaking to me. You don't like me, since I'm such an airhead. And I most assuredly don't like arrogant little Emo boys like you."

I saw him pinch the bridge of his nose out of the corner of my eye. Then he held his hand out toward me like he wanted to shake. "I deserved that. Since we have to be lab partners can we at least try to start over?"

I took his hand and saw him try to hide his reaction to the feel of my cold skin. "Bella Swan."

He smiled then, and it erased a bit of the anger I felt for him. "Edward Masen. Can you ask your brother not to kill me, please? I have to work with him in history."

I smirked, "I make no promises. Jazz gets highly offended when men speak badly of ladies in his presence."

He winced and I turned back toward the front where Mr. Banner was starting to explain his syllabus.

I tried to pay attention after that, but I kept feeling his eyes on me. I finally shook my hair down over my shoulder so that I could hide behind it. I didn't know if I would be able to handle working with him, but since this was an advanced class I couldn't exactly offer to partner with a weaker student. I resolved myself to not speak with him unless it had to do with class and deliberately tuned out the part of my brain that was acutely aware of him.

**EDWARD ~ 6 months later**

I watched Bella walking down the hallway with her siblings. She was giggling about something Jasper whispered to her and the sunny smile that haunted my dreams lit her face up. I never saw her smile unless Jasper or Alice were around, so I enjoyed it while I had the chance.

I'd been so wrong about her. She was one of the smartest people in school, although she tried very hard to stay out of the spotlight. Other than her weird little feud with Mr. Berty, that is. It was common knowledge he was still miffed with her for ruining his first assigned reading project and subsequently looked for any excuse he could find to give her extra essays.

She also turned out to be one of the most genuinely nice people anyone could ever hope to meet. She had a kind word for everybody, and even though she didn't date or go to parties nobody started rumors about her.

I was the only one who didn't benefit from her sweet personality. Even Ben and Ang loved her, and they didn't make friends easily. When Ang heard about my verbal stupidity on the first day of school, she whacked me in the back of the head and didn't speak to me for three days. I knew it was my own fault, but it still killed me that any attempt I made at conversation was politely rebuffed. Bella never failed to acknowledge my morning greeting in biology, but she never looked at me when she responded.

Every slight rejection drilled through me like an ice pick. It hadn't taken me very long to realize why she'd set me on edge from the first moment I saw her. She made me nervous because I felt something when I looked at her. I trivialized her because it made me feel like that something didn't matter. Unfortunately, my big mouth had written a check my ass couldn't cash that first morning. While Alice and Jasper had forgiven me within the first couple of weeks, Bella hadn't even been interested enough to listen to an apology.

Alice and I actually managed to strike up an odd sort of friendship after she got done shooting me nasty glares. We had gym and trigonometry together in the afternoons and we were fine as long as I didn't mention Bella. I tried, exactly one time, to get her opinion on how I could get into her sister's good graces. Her eyes did that freaky darkening thing that Jasper's did when he was in a mood, and she told me that Bella would determine when or if she ever wanted to talk with me.

I'd hoped Jasper would be a little easier to maneuver around, but he was also extremely close-lipped when it came to his sister. However, we did find, once we got done with our male posturing, that we worked exceptionally well together. I wouldn't exactly call Jasper a friend, but he was definitely someone I could talk to at school.

I was starting to give up any hope of Bella ever speaking to me. Jasper noticed my lack of concentration and unhappy sighs in history and asked what was wrong. Normally, I would avoid any mention of Bella in his presence but today I was feeling pretty sorry for myself.

"I think your sister is going to hate me forever, man. I've tried apologizing. I've tried getting her to talk. I know I hurt her feelings, but after being around her I know how wrong I was about her. I let some stupid assumptions stop me from getting to know her and I regret it every day."

He gave me one of the deep, searching looks I had come to expect from him. It freaked me out, like he was trying to read my mind or something. He turned to the windows and appeared to be debating something with himself. When he turned back to me, his face was intense and I shrank back not even bothering to hide how badly he scared me sometimes. He noticed my reaction and softened his face, but his voice let me know he was deadly serious.

"Do not make me regret this, Masen. I will talk to Bella… once. If she asks me to drop it, I will never mention you to her again. If I convince her to speak to you and you put your foot in your big mouth again, I will break your jaw. If you ever hurt her again, I will hurt you. Are we clear?"

I felt the shiver of fear that always ran down my spine when Jasper displayed any strong emotions, and nodded silently. He reverted to his normal sarcastic self and picked straight back up on where he was with his portion of our outline for the paper we were doing about Gettysburg, but I couldn't just drop the weird feeling I got from him. He didn't say anything about my continuing preoccupation and just let me drift along until the bell rang.

I saw him meet up with Alice and Bella as they left their English class. He dropped a kiss on Alice's forehead before she headed the other way, and wrapped an arm around Bella's waist as they slowly followed along behind me towards our respective science classes. I took my seat and covertly tried to watch the door. I saw Jasper talking to her out in the hallway, but her back was to me. I couldn't tell if she was angry with Jasper and his face was completely blank. She could very well be telling him that she never wanted to speak to me, and that hurt for some reason. After what seemed like years he pulled her into a hug and kissed her cheek before heading down the hallway to his chemistry class.

I immediately glued my eyes to my study guide, hoping she hadn't caught me trying to spy on her private conversation with her brother. I felt her coming down the aisle towards our table and saw her from the corner of my eye as she slipped past me to her seat. I looked up and smiled at her before telling her good morning as I did every day.

Usually she answered in a coolly detached voice, but this morning she actually made eye contact with me and smiled softly, "Good morning, Edward."

I hoped every day for six months she would eventually respond to me so I could try to start an actual conversation, and when she finally did I got too lost in her eyes to think of one clever thing to say.

**BELLA**

Ali and I were keeping half an ear on Mr. Berty, but as usual the man didn't have anything remotely insightful or interesting to say. I saw her eyes glaze over for a few seconds, and then she turned to me with a wicked little smile on her face.

"You should listen in on Jazz and Edward."

I rolled my eyes at her, "I have no interest in what that boy has to say, Ali."

"Nope, you need to hear this. It's time for you to quit hiding from him and acknowledge that he is the first male who has ever affected you. At least listen?"

I nodded stiffly and let the chatter from the different rooms filter through my ears until I focused in on Jasper's voice.

"What's wrong, Masen? You look like somebody shot your dog."

"I think your sister is going to hate me forever, man. I've tried apologizing. I've tried getting her to talk. I know I hurt her feelings, but after being around her I know how wrong I was about her. I let some stupid assumptions stop me from getting to know her and I regret it every day."

Alice grinned widely, silently voicing an I-Told-You-So before we both listened in for Jasper's reply. He was silent for a few moments and I honestly thought he might leave the boy hanging. When he finally did reply, his voice was harsh and we could both hear the telltale spiking of a heart rate that indicated he was scaring the boy.

I snarled softly before I even realized I was going to. I heard Jazz laugh almost silently and Ali started bouncing in her seat. Jazz's voice floated across the hall, "Territorial much, Bells? I'm not gonna hurt your human, sweetie. I need him to pass this damn class, it's all partner based."

Alice choked on a giggle, drawing Mr. Berty's disapproving stare towards us. "Ms. Cullen, Ms. Swan… is there an issue? Perhaps you wish to voice disapproval of Dickens, Ms. Swan?"

I smiled as sweetly as possible, "No, Mr. Berty. I'm quite fond of Dickens, although I far prefer A Tale of Two Cities to Oliver Twist."

"Well then, I'm sure you wouldn't mind doing a report on A Tale of Two Cities that compares and contrasts it to Oliver Twist in addition to your assigned essay would you, Ms. Swan?"

My pleasant tone of voice never wavered, but I allowed the man-child to see a hint of the predator on my face. "Of course not, Mr. Berty. My pleasure."

His smug expression faltered and his heart stuttered before he turned away, and Ali placed her hand on my arm. "Bells, you can't threaten the teacher."

I hung my head, feeling completely out of sorts. "I'm so sorry. I have no idea what is going on with me today."

"You have unresolved issues with your mate. You've never been in love before. You're scared of letting go and trusting somebody after all of these years… take your pick."

The bell rang, saving me from answering Alice, and we met Jasper in the hallway. I saw the sad look on the boy's face just before Jazz wrapped his arm around me and started walking me along, slower than even a human's pace.

"You heard us, obviously."

I nodded, keeping my eyes on our feet.

"He meant it, Bella. When we were talking he was emitting desperation. Whenever he sees you he feels love. I doubt he acknowledges it as such because he barely knows you and humans really do have trouble accepting love at first sight… but it's there just the same."

"What do I do with all of this, Jazz? He's human. I can't even begin to explain to him why he's feeling such a connection to me when I hardly understand it myself."

"You really only have two options, sweetie. You take a risk and chase your happily ever after… or you let him go, knowing you'll be alone forever. Ali has seen you two happy together, even after what happened earlier this year. Since you probably weren't making decisions regarding him…well you can piece that together."

We reached the door of my classroom, and Jazz turned me so my back was to it. He smirked but quickly settled his face into an expressionless mask.

"Your boy is dripping anxiety right now, Bells. He knows I'm only trying one time, and it's killing him that this may be his last chance with you."

"Why'd you turn me away from the door?"

"Your poker face sucks. He can't tell how this is going from my expression, and I felt like tormenting him a little bit. Now, compose yourself and go talk to your mate."

My mate... they've both referred to him as my mate now. It explains why his derision hurt so badly, and it explains why his smile affects me.

Jasper dragged me into a hug and kissed me on the cheek, "Quit over-analyzing. Either give the boy a chance, or tell him you want nothing to do with him. Gotta go."

I observed the boy as I slowly entered the classroom. He appeared to be studying, but his notes were upside down and his shoulders were incredibly tense. For some reason, his display of nerves softened me.

I took my seat and he turned to greet me as he did every morning. Usually, I pretended his voice didn't affect me and his words were of no consequence. I could continue to ignore him and guarantee myself eternity alone, or I could take a chance.

"Good morning, Edward."

He seemed to space out for a moment while he was looking at me, but he shook it off and his smile lit up his face. He started to open his mouth again, but I placed a finger over his lips. They were so soft, and warm. I almost forgot why I needed to postpone the conversation I knew he wanted to have when his smile fell. He thought I was shutting him out again.

"We're taking a test today, Edward. This conversation will be longer than the few minutes we have."

He nodded and I started to lower my hand. He grabbed it and looked at me sadly, "I really am sorry about everything, Bella."

I smiled gently and squeezed his hand once before pulling mine back, "We'll talk later, OK?"

"Lunch?"

"Do you really want the entire cafeteria staring at us and trying to listen in?"

"I can meet you in the parking lot after school. We can go somewhere if you want…"

"I'd like that. Can you take me home afterward? I don't want to make Ali and Jazz wait for me."

"Of course. Bella… thanks for at least talking to me."

I had a lot of trouble the rest of the day. First, I forgot to dumb myself down for Mr. Banner's biology test and answered every question correctly. I consistently kept my test scores in the lower range for an A, not wanting to draw his attention any more than I already did on a normal basis. Then I actually tripped in the hallway. I vaguely remembered being rather clumsy as a human, but I never so much as stumbled any longer. Of course Jasper had to witness that moment. He even managed to snap a picture with his phone and text it to Emmett, I wouldn't be living it down in this century.

I wasn't paying any attention in Spanish, and of course teachers can tell when you're really checked out. For the first time since I'd been impersonating a high school student I had to ask a teacher to repeat a question and was lectured about my inattention. Then I forgot to shield myself in gym class and one of the boys pretended to "trip" so he could catch himself… on my breasts. Fortunately, the teacher ran over immediately because I was raising my hand to slap the insolent little brat, which more than likely would have broken his neck. He was sentenced to three weeks of in school suspension, which mollified me until I heard him telling his vile little friends that it was worth it.

My mood was definitely black as I stepped out of the school after gym. Not even the sight of Edward laughing with Jazz and Ali could lift my spirits any. My thoughts must've reflected on my face, because his happy smile fell away. Ali saw his expression change and turned to glare at me until she got a good look at my face.

"Sweetie! What's wrong?"

I sighed, "Everything, Al. I screwed up on my Bio test. I fell in the hallway and your jackass of a boyfriend sent a picture to Emmett, so I'll never hear the end of it. Mrs. Goff caught me zoning out in Spanish and everybody laughed at me. Then to top it all off, I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings and I got groped in gym class."

Ali and Jazz both caught my implied meaning and exchanged a worried look. It was almost unheard of for me to not physically shield in public. Jazz's face was dark with anger, so when Ali's eyes glazed over and she gasped I assumed she saw him confronting Newton.

"Edward, you can't do anything. I'm sure Mr. Joiner handled it."

Huh? Edward had no reason to care if I was groped on a daily basis, but a look at him showed me the same angry expression Jazz was wearing. I was slightly confused and figured I should ask an expert. I lowered my tone to something Edward couldn't hear and asked, "Jazz… are you influencing him?"

Jasper shook his head and closed his eyes. I felt calmness roll through me. Edward's shoulders relaxed and the anger faded from his expressive face. He still looked concerned, but I would take that over rage any time.

He placed one hand against my face and the other rested lightly on the curve of my waist, which shocked the Hell out of me as I was firmly shielded and had been since the Newton incident. "Are you OK, Bella? Whoever bothered you, me and Jasper can kick his ass if you want."

He looked over his should to confirm Jasper would indeed help out if it came to ass kicking and received a tight nod from my brother. Ali was not doing a very convincing job of hiding her own shock, and finally broke in, "Edward, I know you two had plans, but can I borrow Bella for about 10 minutes? You and Jazz can work on your outline some more and we'll be right back, OK?"

I smiled at him and stepped back so his hands would fall from my body. I felt the light snap as my shield closed. Curiouser and curiouser… apparently my shield yielded to his touch rather than dissipating. Nobody had ever been able to penetrate my protective covering, not mentally or physically. I dropped it just before Alice grabbed my hand and started trotting towards the field behind the parking lot.

Once we were out far enough to be away from Edward's hearing range she spun around and whisper-yelled at me, "What the Hell is going on with you today? You fell? You forgot to shield? A human managed to take you by surprise? Bella, really? How did I not see this? Your day looked pretty good in my head."

I held up a hand, "Chill, Al. I didn't decide to do any of the things that happened, so you wouldn't have seen them until afterward. I screwed up in my classes because I was thinking about him. I still don't know how I managed not to see that freshman I tripped over. I was so irritated with myself for letting him distract me all day that I must've dropped my shield without realizing it. You know I have to think about keeping the physical block up."

She nodded thoughtfully and turned to Jasper for his opinion. He nodded slightly and turned back to his History paper, before Edward could realize Jazz was participating in two conversations. "I just want to know why you were so freaked out when he touched you, Bella. He's your mate. The electric feeling…"

"I'm not denying he's my mate, and I know what that means, Jazz. I was shocked because my shield was up and he was able to touch me anyways!"

His head snapped up, drawing Edward's gaze over to us. Ali and I did our best to appear as if we were having a lighthearted girl talk until he looked away again.

Alice's eyes were so wide I was starting to fear they might pop out of her head. "So your human just reached through an impenetrable barrier that not even a vampire's strength can breach? Emmett is the strongest vampire any of us know and he can't even dent your shield!"

"He touched my face and my waist. I felt the shield snap closed when I stepped away from his hands. I can't explain it. Maybe he has a latent talent. Maybe it's the whole mate thing. Do you and Jazz mitigate each other at all?"

She shook her head, worrying her lip between her teeth. "How much are you going to tell him?"

"I'm not telling him anything relevant."

"Why?"

"Uhm, let's see… Hey, Edward, I'm a 210 year old vampire, but I don't eat humans so don't freak out. This weird connection you feel to me, yeah that's because you are fated to be my mate. So, I'll either have to change you and take you away from everybody you care about, or you can walk away and we'll both be unfulfilled for the rest of our lives. No pressure though!"

Jazz laughed quietly from across the field and Ali gave me a sarcastic snort. "Perfect. You should go with that. Jazz and I can break you out of the psychiatric facility after he wigs out on you and has you committed."

I shrugged, "It may be a moot point. I'm talking to him tonight, not asking him to marry me. We may never get past just being school friends, so let's not go borrowing trouble."

Alice rolled her eyes at me, but silently started back across the field. I took it for the out it was and followed along behind her. Jasper waited until we were three quarters of the way back before he looked up. His gaze drew Edward's, and I saw both boys smile softly. I was used to seeing that look on Jazz's face when Alice came into his direct line of sight, but such a tender look in my own direction confused me. I glanced to the other side to see if another girl was close by.

Jazz rolled his eyes at me and mouthed, He was looking at you, dumbass. I shrugged, confusion still running strong in me.

I was almost ready to consider telling him everything just so I could ask if he felt anything when he reached through my shield, when I saw his wrist. He lifted his left arm to run his hand through his crazy hair as he always did when he was anxious and his cuff pulled back slightly; there was a perfect ring shaped bruise about one inch above his wrist bone. There was no way he hadn't felt the pressure on his arm if it was great enough to mark him, and yet he hadn't given any indication of noticing anything out of the ordinary.

Alice and Jazz saw the slight widening of my eyes and looked at his arm. Their eyes locked on the small mark before flitting back to me. I saw the questions, and knew I would have to find a way to ask about the bruise without letting on I knew exactly how he got it.

I plastered on my not-scary-to-humans smile and stepped to his side, gently tugging his hand out of his hair, "Don't yank it all out."

He appeared slightly dazed for a moment before he shook it off and grinned at me. He turned back to the trunk of Jazz's car to start packing up his history papers, but I saw the smile never left his face. Alice started bouncing lightly on her toes and Jasper winked at me before he turned to gather his own papers.

**EDWARD**

I didn't even realize I was pulling on my hair again until Bella gently took hold of my wrist and asked me not to tug it all out. Just like this morning when she put her finger on my lips to shush me, I felt an electric current run through her and into me. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I could tell it meant something.

A lot of little things nagged my brain about Bella and her siblings like that. I can tell it means something… but it seems just out of my grasp. Their skin, their eyes, the odd statue impersonations they occasionally do, the odd whispers they direct toward each other from across crowded hallways, and the fact that they seem dangerous at times… especially Jasper.

I've seen how our classmates tend to shy away from them, almost as if they aren't even aware they're doing it. I sometimes feel that urge to back off too, but only with Jasper and only when he's in a mood. Ali is too perky to be scary and I don't think I could be frightened by Bella if she tried. I feel like I can trust her even though I don't really know her. Freaky, right?

I was pretty good at hiding my reactions, but I knew that a few times they'd noticed. They noticed that I noticed that there was something to notice… if that makes any sense? Probably not, but it's the best I can give as an explanation right now.

So I have lots of little questions and "what if's" digging at my brain, and this afternoon just exponentially intensified them all. I know for a fact that I felt something squeezing my wrists when I touched Bella that interfered with the electrical feeling I usually got from contact with her, and I also know for a fact that something wasn't there this morning when she touched me. Not that we'd ever had any prolonged contact before today, but even handing each other things during labs, if our hands or arms brushed there was a jolt like a static shock.

My brain automatically went Trekkie on me and started thinking about deflector shields… but I shouldn't have been able to touch her if there was one. Plus I'm pretty sure the wiki clearly stated there are no known advancements in current technology that would make a deflector shield physically possible in this time… but now I'm just geeking out.

I decide to stow it for now. I was finally getting the chance to really talk to her, and bringing any of my weird observations to light would just net me a silent ride to drop her off before she told me never to speak to her again. Not happening.

I finished gathering up my papers and books before turning to face the siblings again. "Jazz, where do we need to be by tomorrow to get this thing done on time?"

He considered for a minute, looking down at his outline. "I'll have the first three points written up by class tomorrow and you can do the final three tomorrow night. We'll do the introduction and conclusion in class after the rest is done, OK?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow then, and you too Ali."

I stepped forward and placed a hand on the small of Bella's back to lead her over to my car. I knew that she probably wouldn't have believed it given my previous rudeness, but my parents had managed to beat some gentlemanly behavior into me. Escorting a lady while she was in my company and holding doors were among those things. Most girls took it as an affront to their feminine empowerment, but Bella was at ease with my small gestures and thanked me sweetly when I held the car door and offered her a hand to help her in. I belatedly realized that with Jasper as a brother she was more than likely accustomed to such treatment. He still had a lot of that Southern Gent thing to him even though he said he hadn't been back to Texas since he was placed with the Cullen family.

I got in to the car and was stumped for where we might go to have a private conversation, without it seeming like I was just trying to get her somewhere secluded.

"Would you like to go to First Beach? I know it's a 15 minute drive, but we'll have privacy without being completely alone."

Bella looked almost apprehensive before quickly composing herself. "Why not Ruby Beach? I know it's a little farther, but I think it's prettier there and we definitely won't run in to anybody from school."

"Embarrassed to be seen with me, Bella?" I hoped she knew I was only teasing, but she kind of walked right into it with her worried little expression and her obvious wish to avoid anyone we knew.

Fortunately, she snarked right back at me, "Scared to be alone with me, Edward? Why else would you want to go to the busiest beach in the area for a personal conversation?"

"Ruby Beach it is."

We rode in relative quiet for the half hour it took us to reach our destination. I was trying to bring some order to my scattered thoughts, knowing this was probably going to be my only chance to state my case with her. She seemed pensive. She would cast me a small sideways glace, and then worry her lip between her teeth for several moments before starting the entire cycle over again.

I also noticed she kept looking at my wrists when she thought I wasn't paying attention. It was another of those she knew that I knew moments. I obviously felt the pressure on my arms, and I knew they were bruised. I bruised easily to start with and the pressure on my wrists had been moderately painful. This all begged the question, "What the Hell was that?"

I was willing to bet my life she knew, and I was equally as sure she wasn't planning on telling me.

We finally tuned in to the parking lot at Ruby beach, and I saw it really was deserted today. Even during the chill of early spring, First beach would be jam packed with people. There was a sense of peace though instead of any eerie horror movie vibes.

I spotted a driftwood log up above the high tide line and decided that would be an awesome place to have a conversation, so I reached into the back seat to grab the old beach blanket I kept stashed back there. I jumped out of the car and walked around to open the door and offer Bella a hand out, which she took gracefully. Once she was standing she slacked her grip to release my hand, but I tightened mine keeping her small, cold hand enclosed within my own.

"C'mon. Let's sit on the log."

She nodded and allowed me to keep her hand. I smiled as I led her down the trail to the beach, and I noticed she had a small, shy smile of her own on her lips.

When we reached the log I started to place the blanket over it, but she stopped me. Taking the material from my hands she spread it out on the sand just below the log so that we could use it as a backrest. She sat down cross-legged and produced a hair tie from her pocket so that she could wind her hair up in a knot on the top of her head. I had the most desperate urge to put my lips on the slim neck she revealed, but I quickly shook it off and seated myself next to her.

I was trying to think of how to start the conversation, when she beat me to it.

"You don't need to apologize again. Jasper told me what you said to him this morning, and he's got a solid bullshit detector. If he thought you weren't one hundred percent sincere he never would have spoken to me to begin with."

"If you don't want an apology, why did you agree to come with me? I mean, I'm glad you did but why?"

"I'd like to know why you attacked me without even knowing me."

I flushed heavily and looked down at my hands that were folded in my lap. It was one thing to admit to having feelings for her; it was another to have to say those feelings scared me into acting like a complete dick.

Her cold hand came up to rest against my overheated cheek and she delicately lifted my head so that I was looking at her.

"I've watched you since then, Edward. You aren't mean-spirited or rude and you never speak nastily to females, even when some of them would truly deserve it. Part of my own anger over this was because of that. Why me? What's wrong with me that you would single me out like that without even knowing me?"

I was caught up in her amber eyes again and spoke without thinking.

"You scared me."

I saw the horror on her face as she recoiled from me and started to rise. I was desperate to stop her from leaving the blanket. I grabbed the belt loop of her jeans and pulled her back down. Somehow in the ensuing struggle I ended up laying half on top of her. Her eyes were glassy with pain and I started speaking without even stopping to consider my words.

"You are the first girl I've ever had any interest in, and that scared me. I heard you say something out of context about joints and I was terrified you were going to end up being another stupid stoner twit. It made me mad because for a few minutes when I was looking at you that morning, I actually felt hopeful and then that blew all of my hope up in my face. I'm so tired of being alone in the shadow of perfect couples perfectly in love…"

Over the course of my tirade I'd watched the expression on her face change from pain to curiosity to understanding… to something I wasn't quite sure how to label but it was soft and beautiful on her face. As my voice faded out, she shocked the Hell out of me by leaning up and kissing me softly. Her lips were as chill as her hands, and an odd combination of hard and soft. Almost like a rock wrapped in soft padding. I ran a hand up into her hair as I took over the kiss, and I heard what almost sounded like a purr rise in her throat as she put both of her hands on my shoulders.

In a small part of my mind I was kind of shocked by how quickly this situation was starting to get out of control, but it was like neither of us could help it. She writhed and let out soft purring moans as I finally gave in to my earlier desire and fastened my lips to her neck. Her hands were pulling at my hips, trying to urge me fully on top of her. I resisted and continued kissing down her neck to her collarbone. My hand slid under her shirt of its' own volition. I cupped a breast that once again felt oddly like heavily padded stone, but when my thumb ran upward and her nipple sprang to life against my skin we both groaned loudly and then froze.

I noticed that while my breathing was labored and my face felt flushed, she looked as calm and cool as a spring morning.

I sat up quickly, removing my hand from her shirt as I went. I averted my eyes for a moment so she could set herself to rights, horrified that my over-active hormones had just screwed things up between us. When a few seconds passed without her saying anything, I turned back, only to see her sitting with her face pressed to her upraised knees and her shoulders shaking slightly. Something in the dejection of her pose broke through my self-recrimination and I wrapped myself around her.

"Bella, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to get out of hand like that; I would never disrespect a girl by pushing her for more than she wanted. I'd never felt anything like that before. It's not an excuse, there is no excuse and I'm so sorry I made you uncomfortable…"

She'd turned to me and placed her finger to my lips again, stilling me from my babbling. Without thinking I kissed her fingertip gently and her usually golden bright eyes deepened a few shades… giving me more to think about in the mental column of "what the…" that I had running.

"No apologizing. I wanted that, I was just afraid you'd think I was some kind of slut. I'm not. I've never felt anything that strong before either and it kind of took me by surprise."

I situated myself against the log and leaned forward long enough to grab Bella and pull her into my lap. She gave a small squeak of protest, but curled up with her head against my shoulder.

"Where does all of this leave us, Bella? I know there are things you're not telling me. I know that you know that I notice the odd little things that don't quite add up, like what happened to my wrists this afternoon. Where do we go from here? Cause I know where I'd like to go, but I think it depends on if you trust me enough to tell me the truth or not."

She took my left hand that was resting on her hip and lifted it so we could both easily see my wrist before she unbuttoned the cuff of my shirt and pushed it up my arm. I kept my expression strictly neutral as we looked at the ring-shaped bruise. It was a thin, prefect line all around my wrist, and deep purple. I knew I'd have to wear long sleeves until it healed because there was no way I could explain this to my parents.

She looked at me for a second before she leaned down and kissed my wrist gently. The coolness of her lips felt good and my heartbeat spiked when she delicately traced the very tip of her tongue along the mark, trying to soothe it. I lifted her face up and placed a soft kiss on her mouth, tracing her lips lightly. She denied me entrance but her tongue very softly lapped against my own for a second before she pulled back.

"You are right, there are things I'm not sure if I can tell you yet. But your wrists… I am confused about. That has never happened before. What did you feel when it happened?"

I thought carefully before speaking. "Well, it felt like I poked a hole through some cling wrap, but then the holes grew closed around my hands. It pinched, but I didn't feel like I was in any danger. It felt the same when you stepped back from me, like a flimsy covering that I broke a small hole through."

She stood from my lap and appeared to concentrate for a moment before asking me to try to touch her again. I stood and walked over to her. I could feel an odd little hum of energy when I stood next to her, but when I reached out to put my hand on her face I got the same sensation of breaking plastic wrap. It immediately faded though instead of pinching me and I somehow knew she'd done that so I wouldn't get hurt again. I smiled once the sensation of a barrier between us faded and put my other hand on her waist to pull her closer to me.

"My brother Emmett is the physically strongest person anyone in my family knows of and he can't do what you just did, Edward."

"What did I just do?"

"Touch me when I don't want anybody to be able to touch me."

"But you wanted me to touch you. I don't know how I know that, but I do. You wanted me to be able to touch you."

She wrapped herself around me in a hug, her face pressed into my neck. I felt a brief second of nervousness, but then it was gone. I pressed my face into her hair, inhaling some flowery smell.

"In answer to your earlier question, about where all of this leaves us, I think that will be up to you. Can you come to my house this evening or do you have to go home?"

After clearing dinner out through my parents, we were headed towards the Cullens' house. I didn't press Bella for conversation, I knew she was deep in thought and I was pretty sure it involved me. I honestly figured I wouldn't hear anything out of her until it was time for her to give me directions, so I was a little shocked when she spoke.

"I know you notice things about me, Ali, and Jasper that don't make sense to you. Do we scare you?"

I looked over at her, but she was looking out the windshield. If not for the way her teeth were worrying her bottom lip, I would think she truly didn't care about my answer at all.

"No. Jasper makes me a little apprehensive at times, when I can tell he's in a bad mood… but I'm not scared of any of you."

I almost swore I was imagining things, but I thought I heard her barely whisper, "You should be." I looked over at her again, letting her know that I noticed another moment I would define as odd. The rueful smile that crossed her face let me know I hadn't imagined anything.

"I don't know why you think I should be scared of you. Jasper… maybe. He could kick my ass without halfway thinking about it