EPOV

As she smiled and left me I sighed, this girl was driving me insane! My crude but necessary ambush of Jasper this morning meant I was on my own in the getting-the-girl-department but Bella had left Jasper "busy" what ever that meant so I just might have a chance if Bella wasn't into Jasper. I looked around the food court again but my appetite was suddenly gone thanks to her.

Her smile and beautiful pink cheeks had left me winded and unusually happy. I decided the best thing for me would be a hot drink, and there was only one place for that.

BPOV

I left Edward in the food court and headed back to Jasper and Alice at Gloria Jeans.

'Hey lovebirds, I think its time to go, we have got school tomorrow, remember?' I nudged the very reluctant Alice who finally gave in and picked up her shopping. Jasper chivalrously donated his arms for a few and we headed out to the car park. Just as we were leaving I saw Edwards face in the crowd near the door. He was standing there with one eyebrow raised and a smile that the gods themselves would envy. I left without looking back at him hoping he hadn't noticed us.

I finally managed to shepherd Alice and Jasper back to my place.

'Hey, I'm heading home now. Bells right, we have school tomorrow.' He grimaced at the thought and Alice and I both laughed.

'Hey Jaz, if you don't mind I've got some stuff to do before school so do you think you could give Alice a lift home for me? It's in the same direction as your house.' As I asked I saw Alice blush slightly and Jasper smile slowly. I grinned. I was pretty good at this match making stuff.

'I'll just grab her stuff and I'll be right down.' Without waiting for an excuse I dashed inside and gathered Alice's stuff from my room. Taking my time I bought it all downstairs and into Jasper waiting open trunk.

'Bye Al, I'll see you around ok? Now, don't-' but Jasper cut me off.

'Bella, I'll see you tomorrow at school ok? Good, now bye.' And with that he pushed Alice into the car jumped in and left with Alice waving out the back window. It looked like something out f a movie. Giggling to myself I walked back into the house and pulled together something for Renee and myself for dinner.


BPOV (still)

The next day was Monday and as usual I drove my Chevy to school and parked next to Jasper's little blue Audi.

'Hey you!' I called out to Jasper who was waiting with a few of his friends who grinned and jabbed at his ribs as I walked up to them. My face blushed but before I could reach them I was ambushed by a guy I had seen in a few of my classes.

'Hi Bella, im Mike. Mike Newton.' His blonde hair was gelled into perfect spikes all over his head which made him look like an echidna that had been electrified. I managed to hold in my giggles long enough to shake his hand.

'Hi, umm I've got to go.' I left him standing there grinning like a clown in those old circus sideshows. His little confrontation had just made Jaspers friends laugh harder and this time Jasper wasn't telling them to shut it but joining in whole-heartedly.

'Nice Bella, really cold, like Ice Queen cold.' He slapped my back with enough force to make me stumble, which added to my natural clumsiness was a bad combination. As I was trying to regain my balance I promptly tripped over my own feet. I threw my hands out in front of my and squeezed my eyes shut and waited for the collision, but it never came.

'Just in time.' His smooth velvet voice cut through my confusion like a hot knife through butter. Edward. As I opened my eyes I became aware of his long arms wrapped tightly around my waist and the weight of his chest pressed against my side, again his voice whispered near my ear.

'Ahhhh, still speechless around me I see.' I recovered as he said this.

'I am not!' I had meant to sound assertive but I was still a little shaken from my fall and it came out breathlessly and lost a lot in transition. But Edward simply smiled and let me disentangle my self from his arms and walked away. I scowled at his retreating figure and turned back to Jasper and his posse. They were falling over each other laughing, again I scowled. Today it seemed I was going to have to make it by myself.

English was fairly easy to find- I had been there before- so I settled down in an empty desk and watched as the class filed in.

'Hi, do you mind if I sit here?' a soft voice asked from my left, indicting to the empty chair by my side. I smiled and nodded happily.

'My name's Angela Webber.' The girl introduced herself and I felt automatically at ease with her.

'Bella.' We smiled at each other sillily for a minute before the teacher came in and cleared his throat. The rest of the day passed in a blur as I tried to keep up. Angela was in a few of my classes and jasper was in the rest so I had found two solid friends. At lunch I sat with Jasper outside in the sunshine and joked around with his group.

That was directed towards Jasper as I started to doze off in the sun.

'Uhuh, not sure, what's the date?'

'The twenty first.' My head jerked up from against the tree and I sat back ramrod straight as my eyes automatically teared up. I stood and my head spun, mixing my surrounding in a blur of colour behind my wet eyelashes.

'Bella!' I could hear the concern in Jaspers voice but I couldn't stop. I ran for the car park and dropped my books beside me as I started the car. I ignored the calls from Jasper and the others and left the school holding back an avalanche of tears that threatened to explode. I drove onto the freeway not caring where I went. I drove till I reached the end of the road then I parked my Chevy and ran into the bush. I ran for an uncounted amount of time, falling again and again only to pick myself up and keep on going. Finally I fell to my knees in a clearing and let the tears flow. The twenty first, how could I have missed it! It was staring me in the face. Charlie's birthday. Today was my dead dads fiftieth birthday. (A/N: I wasn't sure of the date so I just made one up, if you do know, tell me and ill fix this up!)

I kept crying until my tears dried out and my sobs turned to the dry shuddering you get after.

Crack! The sound hit my ears and I whipped around to find the source. I saw a figure a few meters behind me flinch at the sound and squeezed their eyes shut.

'Sorry, I'll go.' Edwards' voice was quiet and I sniffed.

'It's ok, you can stay.' My voice was quiet and frail, giving away my feelings, I didn't know what made me say it but I did.

'Really.' I smiled and pulled myself to my feet, tottering as my nerve-dead legs wouldn't take my weight and for the second time today I found my self in Edwards arms. But this time I felt no inclination to leave.

EPOV

When I saw her in my clearing crying my first thought was to hurt whoever had made her cry like that, hurt a lot. I approached her silently from behind but broke cover when I stepped on a dry branch, snapping it cleanly in two with a loud snap. I flinched at the sound and saw Bella spin around. Her big brown eyes were wide and her dark hair was mussed and tangled, as she looked at me I could all most feel my heart desperately trying to take control over my body and pull me over to her. The only thing that stopped me was my common sense.

'Sorry, I'll go.' I said quietly, mentally hitting myself for disturbing her peace.

'It's ok, you can stay.' Her voice was equally as quiet but sounded as though something had broken inside her, turning her from a beautiful blushing teenager to a lost girl crying alone in a meadow.

She noticed my internal battled and smiled weakly.

'Really.' She tried to stand up but almost fell as her legs collapsed beneath her. Again I jumped foreword and caught her, keeping her slim body from hitting the harsh ground. I looked down into her face and my heart twanged. She was looking up at me through her thick dark lashes, most of which were stuck together from her wet tears. I carefully sat down against a tree and settled Bella more comfortably in my arms, I braced myself for the rejection I knew was on the way, soon my dream would backfire and I'd be left alone in the meadow. She cuddled against my chest and I held her closer, smelling the familiar scent of her strawberry shampoo and burying my face into her soft hair. We sat like that until Bella had stopped shuddering and her breathing normally.

'Thanks Edward.' I felt Bella's' voice more than heard it, muffled against my body.

'What for, if anything should be apologising. I've been an ass to you.' At that she laughed.

'I can't disagree but still, thankyou for just being here and not pushing me away.' I sighed and stoked her forehead over and over.

'Don't worry its nice being here, with you.' I tucked her hair behind her ear.

'Hmmm. You know, you're a lot deeper than you let every else think.' I laughed and Bella started to giggle when her head bounced up and down.

'Really, maybe I just let them assume what they want and because of my reputation no-one bothers too get to know me better and find out.' My hand stopped is repetitive pattern against her warm skin.

'Except for you.' Bella stopped giggling and looked up at me. She bit her lip and blushed again

I sighed. 'I guess we should head back to town, its getting dark.' We both looked at the sky, sunset had stained the sky above us pinks and red but the horizon was a beauty royal blue. With a rustle Bella sat up and stretched, reaching towards the sky.

'Yeah.' I grabbed a branch above my head and heaved myself up.

'Do you know the way back?' Bella shook her head.

'I do.' I grabbed her tiny hand and pulled her away from the meadow, splendid in the ruby light. Leading the way we left the clearing for the bush. The meadow. Our meadow.

BPOV

We came out of the forest to far from my Chevy, his shiny silver Volvo parked behind it. Edward dropped y hand as we neared the gravel car park.

'So are you going to tell me why you were in the meadow?' I had known this question was going to come out sooner or later but I really needed to get home, Renee would worry if I was home too much later. I looked at Edward. Today I had learnt so much about him yet we had barely spoken.

'Maybe, but not tonight.' He grinned.

'Then I have no choice but to ask you to accompany me to Port Angeles for dinner and a movie.' My eyes opened wide. He laughed, and the sound sent a shiver up my spine.

'I'll just take you're shocked silence for a yes, shall I?' I was still speechless. He just gave me that breathtaking smile and kissed me on the cheek before leaving. I just stood as the high powered engine of his Volvo faded into the distance. I raised a shaking hand to my cheek which tingled where his lips had made contact with my skin. Again I smiled.

EPOV

I got into my Volvo and drove off, leaving Bella standing open mouthed at the side of her truck. I hadn't had meant to leave as abruptly as that but after finally asking her out and her face, as surprised as she was showed pure innocence. I almost felt bad for tainting her with my presence; I had done some bad stuff before, before Esmé and Carlisle had taken me in, when I was a young teen living on the streets after running away from my first foster home. In Chicago the people who had taken me in originally had thought that having an orphan would be like Cinderella, easy to order around, a slave. I had never been one to sit down and shut up when something bad was happening. My parents had raised their only son to be a gentleman. A man, who respected women, stood up for what he believed in and helped those in need. I had let them down. I had run away, stolen, lied, taken advantage of people and bullied. I had thrown the most important things my parents had taught me out the window. I pressed my foot down and the car burst foreword, I was easily breaking the speed limit. I growled at myself, thinking about my past wasn't going to change anything. I was who I was and I am who I am, nothing could change that. But what I can change is who I am going to be, I was determined. Bella deserved the best man on this planet. It wasn't me but I could try, I am going to become that man my parents wanted me to be. For her. For Bella.


A/N: hey! i would first like to specially thank Zoella De Vil and Bibliocrazed for their help and ideas and eveyone else that reviewed, your input and POVs are seriously sppreciated!!
please keep the reviews comming! a happy writer make a happy reader!! (lol)

xxx
Bella