Bow down before the champions of last chapter: LookOnTheBrightSide and Myth!!!! Both of them got the reference to the non-twilight book in chapter 11. It was The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. Last but not least PVG for the Jack reference.

Myth gets a second round of applause for coming up with an unintentional Jack reference (Jack Lemmon an actor from the 1950s). The intentional one was a "Jack of all trades" ( Izzy/Bella jokes that he's missed at least one near the beginning of the chapter). PVG, our third champion got that one.

Please feel free to bask in the glow of champions of chapter 11 for a moment before continuing and reading the chapter. :)

I brought bagels and fruit for breakfast that morning. Jack and I were sitting on the back of my truck and eating while he tried to figure out how to phrase his next guess.

"You were a good baby and your mother was a free spirit. She held you in one arm so that she could pick things up and introduce the world to you, one flower and pretty stone at a time. Your father didn't do that. He held you and watched your mother's features move in new ways on your little face and tried to find traces of himself beside those features. It's part of the reason why it took you so long to love this place. Here, you had to find the pretty things on your own."

I had to think about it for a moment. These were things that I couldn't remember so I had to say yes or no based on what I knew of myself and my parents. I pictured them doing what he'd said and my heart nearly broke for Charlie. Imagining him sitting there looking for proof of his and my mother's whirlwind romance in my face was painful. It made me slightly grateful for the fact that a child with both Edward's and my features was more than impossible.

"That sounds right. You were a happy little baby boy. Your brother, mischievous enough without the excuse of the terrible twos, took your toys and messed with you. You father made up for it, letting you crawl around his study. You had a front row seat in a high chair while your mom made dinner every night. They read to you, poetry mostly, because your attention span wouldn't allow for much more at first."

"You're partly right. My brother wasn't half as bad as you think he was. My father didn't have a study at home until I was older. He worked a lot when I was an infant, going overseas to observe different cultures. My maternal grandparents lived with us at the time and let me crawl around the guest room. My mother had more work with the family business then too, so my grandparents did more of the cooking dinner and reading. You never met your grandparents."

"How could you know that?"

He froze for a moment before recovering.

"I guessed, how else? So what are you doing after school today?"

"A shift at Newtons, then some studying. Why?"

"Just wondering. I was going to invite you over to study for the Biology quiz next week."

"I could call you after my shift and we could go try it over the phone."

"That sounds good."

We cleaned up the remains of breakfast and went to class. My mind wandered to Jack's family. Thinking of his childhood, I'd never entertained the idea that his parents had been anything but doting and over involved. His grandparents sounded nice enough, but why would his father volunteer to be so far from home with two young sons to take care of? His mother and her family business were also rather intriguing. Even if a father could stand to leave his young sons for work, shouldn't a mother want to be closer? Mine had.

Then again, who was I to judge? People worked when they needed to, whether or not it was convenient. I couldn't make assumptions about his family based on the fact that they'd worked more when he was younger. What was this family business though? All I knew so far was that it was probably not a restaurant. I also knew that it was either tiring or time consuming, because his grandparents had had to look after them. I resolved to ask Jack at lunch, then the bell rang and I went to Calculus.

Spanish started the same way it had for the first two days of the week, with Jessica Stanley practicing her glare on me. I remembered my encounter with Lauren the day before. I remembered my plans to start learning to ride a motorcycle and to take that self-defense class. Girls who talk back to witches like Lauren, and ride bikes, and kick butts, don't typically just sit there and deal with the annoying little something or others who glare at them in Spanish class for no apparent reason. I'd heard the saying, "be the change you want to see in the world" but I decided that it was time to be the change I wanted to see in myself. I waited until the exact moment when the bell rang to turn to Jessica and promptly ask...

"What is your problem with me?"

"What?"

"You've been glaring at me on and off for two days. Lauren said you called me a snob. I haven't spoken to you in months so I don't see how you could be mad at me."

"You don't see? You must be blind Bella."

She tried to storm out dramatically but I followed her.

"I'm not blind but you might be crazy. Look, I'll apologize if I've offended you but I genuinely can't see how I have."

"You've ignored me and Mike, and nearly everyone else here for months and now you just decide to wake up again and suddenly Angela and Ben don't hang out with us anymore and Tyler keeps shooting longing glances at your table. It's all about you all the time and I am sick of it."

"I don't control anyone but myself. I'm sorry I ignored you, I was in pain. My boyfriend left me and it hurt like hell. Don't you know how that feels?"

"Yeah, I get that but-"

"But nothing. If you really understand, from one woman to another, then that should be it. No jealousy or petty little girl stuff. Now do you want to sit with us at lunch? There's plenty of room."

She looked at me for a long moment with surprise and something like respect in her eyes before answering.

"Rain check?"

"Anytime. Now let's go, we're a little more than fashionably late."

We walked to lunch together and chatted amiably as we got our trays before separating and going to our own tables.

"Izzy, we've missed you."

"Is that so? Guys, what does he need?"

" Nothing, absolutely nothing. Why should he need anything?" Ben asked, trying and failing at showing loyalty to a fellow man.

"The study guide from Mr. Berty's class," Angela answered with a smile. I pulled it out of my backpack and handed it to him with a smile.

"So, you and Jessica are civil again," Angela pointed out.

"We are. It was stupid really. We just needed to talk."

"Good. Have you decided whether or not to get your hair cut for the makeover? I was thinking that if you were going to do it you should probably get it done before Friday so that we could play with different styles."

"Good thinking. I'm just not quite sure that I want to. Jack what do you think?"

"I really don't think that you're capable of looking unattractive. It might make you feel the change a bit more if you do though. Do what you what you want, Izzy. If you're going to be a noblewoman, you must play the part."

"I look down to no one," I replied, catching the reference and shooting him a warm smile.

"So what will it be?"

"I guess you'll see soon."

"How soon," Angela asked, drawing my attention away from Jack, "because I was thinking about getting mine trimmed and we could go together."

"Tomorrow, afterschool for the hair. I was also thinking about going to Port Angeles on Sunday to finish the style portion of my makeover. Do you want come with me, or will you be too sick of me by then?"

"Yes! I mean to the hair and the shopping. It's nice hanging out with you."

We bantered and planned our way through the rest of lunch then parted ways and went to class. Biology was actually almost interesting that day, because we were doing a lab, and I could have really gotten into it but for the odd way that Jack was looking at me. He seemed to be almost looking through me, and I wondered if he was trying to imagine me after my makeover. I remembered his comment from lunch. He'd said, essentially, that I looked attractive.

Compliments from Jack weren't at all rare, but this one felt different. This one had been straightforward and in front of our friends. This one felt real. It was nice and sort of healing to be complimented on the "before" image. It made it hurt less that Edward might have lied about how attractive he found me.

After Biology I turned to make my way towards the gym when Jack called me back.

"What is it?"

"Just…Izzy I won't tell you not to change, because you have every right to be whoever you'd like to be. I just want to ask that you to… don't throw out any of the good parts, if that makes sense."

"It makes perfect sense; the best kind possible."

I could have kissed him, at that exact moment, there in the hallway for all and sundry to see and comment on. As it was, I just told him that I had to go and asked him to meet me by my truck after school.

I had another wonderful day in Gym. After my win the day before, people actually encouraged their team captains to pick me. I was so excited about being picked that I let myself have fun. I still had to watch the way I moved, but being more relaxed helped a lot. I was looking forward to the women's self-defense class more now that I knew that my balance was under relative control.

After Gym, I ran to meet Jack by my truck. He looked exactly the way he had when I'd left him in the hallway and I hugged him before I could make myself stop and think. He responded instantly and, unlike the spark of touching Edward for the first few times, I felt warm. It was like the sun had taken up residence in my heart.

"What was that for?" Jack asked after I released him.

"What you said in cafeteria and in the hallway earlier. Truly you must be the kindest of lords, and I, the most fortunate of ladies."

"My thanks. I was raised well."

"I forgot to ask earlier, you're mom mentioned a family business, may I ask what it is?"

"You may ask."

"But will you answer?"

"I would if I could, but I don't know. It's sort of a rite of passage in my family. We learn what it is "when it's time" or so my mother says. My brother tried to tell me on Sunday, but I wouldn't let him."

"When did he find out?"

"Mom told him a couple of years ago, after he met Alexandra, his first serious girlfriend. If you're going to work today, we should probably part ways. I'd hate to talk you out of a paycheck."

"Good point."

I got into my car and drove to Newtons. It was a good evening at work. Mike asked how I'd been and I could reply honestly that I'd been great. I was reminded of how generally nice a guy he was, and it wasn't bad working with him when he refrained from making random comments about "that new guy" as he consistently referred to Jack.

After work I went home and made dinner for Charlie, making too much on purpose just in case I was too busy with getting my hair done and taking the self-defense course to cook dinner the next day.

I called Jack and we studied for a while before the activity of the day finally caught up with me and it was time to go to bed. As I went to sleep, I remembered Jack and my conversation with him earlier. I remembered Alexandra.

I had an odd dream that night. I was in the dance studio in Phoenix. It looked exactly as it had before the fight with James, nothing broken or burned. the lights were off and the moonlight reflecting on the mirrors made the room seem haunting and endless. Strange bits of newspaper were covering the floor and fragments of scenes from a life other than my own flickered occasionally in the reflections of the archways dividing the mirrors. It was as silent as a grave. I reached down and picked up the only full page that I could find. It wasn't a cover page, but the girl in the picture beside the article was so pretty, with her dark hair and delicate features, that I wondered why it wasn't. Then I read the first sentences of the article.

"Alexandra Abdima, aged 17, died today in an alcohol related automobile accident at around ten yesterday accident occurred while…"

I woke up gasping for breath and feeling beginnings of sympathy for one Jamie Stevens.

Hey guys, it's late but it's here! No jack references, but there is a reference to a movie. (Hint: if you're going to be a noble woman, you must play the part). If you name the movie or tell me why Alexandra has the last name that she does (hint: it's Aramaic for ____) you will get a special shout out in the next update.

Thanks to all my readers and alert people, and the people who added this to their favorites lists. You guys are great. As for you lovely individuals

Thanks again to Myth, for making this story Beta (bad pun, deal with it)

Next chapter: Cutting, Beating, Guessing and more