To dear, Twigaloo. Seriously? I love you! Thankyou so much for the reviews. I just wanted to give you a shout out. Oh and to, Meg. :) Yeah, you may be crazy and hyper, but so AM I :D *deranged eye twitch*

I spent the night sleeping in Bella's bed.

I never shared a bed with anyone—obviously. I had never even thought about sharing a bed with anyone, never thought about having a girlfriend, never thought about falling in love. I was in love with Bella. If love could be defined as never wanting to be without her, always wanting her with me, always wanting her, feeling insanely protective of her, feeling so blissfully happy when I had my arms around her.

Then, I was fucking head over heels. And, by some universal miracle, some fucking god granted me the luck to have Bella love me back. I was on top of the world...and just waiting for someone to push me off it.

I sighed in content as Bella's arm snaked around my waist, my arm holding her closer. The faint sunlight streamed through her window. I could feel it on my chest, my neck. And Bella sleeping on me was like a little heat lamp.

I had given up all hope of feeling happiness again. And now, as I lay here awake, my Bella right next to me, I was so fucking happy—There was a knock, at Bella's door.

She tensed, I could feel it in her body, pressed so tightly against my side. She muttered a curse. My eyes widened, and with good reason. Charlie Swan had a gun. My arm tensed then loosened. I pulled away from her, unsure of what to do. Turns out, Bella was already thinking along those lines, pushing me violently off the edge of the bed.

I cringed at the sound of the thump, but obliged, keeping on the floor, flat on my stomach. I faintly heard Charlie ask if she fell out of bed, I could hear the smile in his voice. I bit my fist to keep from laughing. They murmured a conversation about fishing.

I sighed quietly, patiently, it was like five in the morning, I had plenty of time. It wasn't until the name "Jacob." Was said, that I stiffened. I could hear Bella's uneven voice, her tone a little shaky, Charlie would probably construe it as grogginess.

I listened intently, apparently Charlie was taking Jacob fishing with him. I gritted my teeth, really trying to hold back from thumping my fists against the floor boards. That would not help the situation, but it would help my anger. I waited till the door closed, and I heard Charlie thump down the stairs at an even pace. Bella backed up to the bed, slumping down like she had just been punched in the stomach. I wanted to kill that fucker.

I sat down next to her sobbing form, her shoulders hunched inward, her face wet with tears. I pulled her onto my lap, soothing her with gentle strokes down her back and face, kissing her forehead lovingly. "He won't stop," she whispered, terrified.

I wanted to gather her up and run away, run somewhere. I would do anything so she wasn't in pain anymore.

Anything, and it only made it more painful to know there was nothing I could do but be there. I wanted to do more. I squeezed her gently, afraid to let go. I was becoming so intense, any threat beared toward her and I would be utterly enraged, beating it back with bare fists if thats what it took.

"I'll make him," I whispered back, even I could detect the menace in my tone. I hoped it was enough to make her feel safe.

We had breakfast, all signs of fear and sadness faded from her features as I got her breakfast for her.

I playfully leaned over the table and kissed her on the lips. She giggled. I was doing a good job, I hoped. We jumped in her truck and sped off toward my house, I needed a change of clothes and my book bag for school. I also needed to explain to Carlisle why I didn't come home last night and why my car wasn't in the driveway.

I sighed deeply before walking into his study. Two minutes, this is all it would take. I held my breath. "Carlisle?" I said warily, he was sitting at his desk behind a big fat medical book. I didn't know why he bothered; he was already famous for his experience. Better to stay ahead, I guess. "Edward," he sighed, placing the book down.

"I must have woken you, sorry." I frowned. "Uh," "I fell asleep after you went for a walk," he shook his head at himself.

"I'm getting old," I just smiled half-heartedly. Poor, Carlisle, he trusted me so obliviously. "Carlisle, my car...it's, someone trashed it yesterday, at school." His brow furrowed and I thought for sure I was done for. "Oh, well that's no good. Don't worry, I'll take care of it." "Oh, no, you don't have—"

"Hush, Edward. It's already done." He smiled. I shook my head then. "Thanks," I said, disbelieving his unending graciousness. I would never get used to Carlisle. Which could be taken as either good or bad. I'd rather consider it good, the guy was kind of growing on me.

Could I be lucky enough to have Bella and Carlisle? I shouldn't push my luck. "Oh, and, uh," he started as I was about to turn. "How was your walk, by the way?" I shrugged, unable to hide my grin. "It helped. I feel a lot better, thanks." He nodded and reached for the phone on his desk.

I turned on my heel and closed the door behind me to give him some privacy. I had already changed so I raced downstairs to get my book bag. Bella waited for me in the car, her feet propped up on the dash. I grinned, it was happening a lot lately. I was going to get wrinkles from doing so.

Oh, well. If that was the price for happiness.

***

Bella seemed nervous all day, jumping at small things, someone slamming their locker too hard, or talking too sharply.

I held her hand most of the time, glaring people down if they stared too long or smirked at us. They fidgeted and flinched, embarrassed to be caught staring or whispering about us. Lunch was by far a lot worse. Anger wise, I was ready to burst.

Me and Bella sat right next to each other, I was careful not to touch her in any way that may be uncomfortable. But she was partially better, less on edge by then. I had pulled my IPod out, before Bella snatched it from me, grinning conspiratorially.

I bit my lip. I had some weird taste in music, she might think it was retarded. Instead of being a sissy, I leant back on my chair and let her have it, shuffling through all my favourites, smiling, her eyes brightening at certain ones.

She even knew Claire De Lune! What were the odds? I was so fucking lucky.

Everything was fine, she was content listening to my tunes while I absent-mindedly played with a lock of her hair. I could feel someone staring at me—or Bella, rather. I could feel it on my skin, I seemed to be more intuitive today. And, I also knew that it was not a polite stare—as polite as stares can get. It was seething and jealous. I knew who it would belong to without even looking, I could almost hear the hateful words in his head.

So, thats how I knew the apple was coming. The same owner of those thoughts threw it. It missed my head, only because I leaned out of the way quickly, then snatched it out of the air before it could hit Bella instead. I put it down on the table and glanced around the room for him. Fucking Newton.

"Edward," Bella warned softly, just as my eyes landed on the piece of crap. "Edward, don't." She said, her voice a little louder, she was serious. I tore my eyes off of the side of his face to look at her, my frustration subsided. I sighed and went back to listening to music.

When Claire De Lune started playing, my fingers strummed against the lunch table out of habit, pressing the invisible keys rhythmically. I wanted to play for Bella, so badly. I would have to bring her over one day, so I could. Maybe even play her song, the one I made for her, and if she didn't like it, I could tell her it was some old classic I found in a book—fool proof plan. The bell rang then for class. I opened my eyes, not realising I had closed them and stood up, helping Bella to her feet, too. She handed me back my IPod with a small smile. "I must admit, you have good taste." She nodded, smiling wider. I grinned, relieved and excited to know she like the same music as me, no matter how trivial the fact.

It pleased me immensely. But I wouldn't say that. I bent down to kiss her, she had Calculus, I had Spanish—yawn. I practically knew it already anyway. I took an advanced class back in Vermont. Plus, my mother had taught me some. I tried to ignore the aching in my chest, and the intense feeling or guilt, remembering that I didn't deserve Bella.

"I'll see you in art, okay?" she said after I pulled back. I stuffed my IPod into my hoodie pocket, the earphones hanging out slightly.

I smiled once more before strolling through the glass doors that lead to the lockers. I found mine and opened it, getting my books. I hoped wouldn't call on me today, my head was clouded, filled with none other than—you guessed it, Bella. I sighed as I sat down in my usual seat, next to Ben Cheney. He didn't know me, but I knew about him. I could read him quite easily. It was easy to tell he was in love with Angela. Angela Weber, Bella's best friend.

Well, one of her best friends, apart from Alice Brandon. I had yet to really talk to her, and Angela, and Jessica and Jasper, and Rosalie and Emmett. But their company wasn't what I craved, so I wasn't that eager. But if it would please Bella, then so be it, I would act social for her.

Being introverted, it was difficult to find your place, even when I deserved friends, people would usually be-friend me on their own accord.

I didn't have the will to go and make friends. I would be able to tell if they liked me at least, or if they were a complete douche bag.

Because of this super sensitivity to people and their thoughts and feelings, kids my age thought I was a freak. Kids can be so cruel. But, I eventually made some acquaintances, that then turned into friends, real ones too, not the ones you fought with all the time. These people were worth my time, and yes, I considered my time precious, even if I was eight. I chuckled quietly at what a middle-aged kid I was. "Senor, Edward? Hay algo gracioso sobre mis metodos de ensenanza?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. I shook my head. "Sorry," I mumbled and dropped my head. She went on with the lesson, not letting my interruption annoy her.

She resented that my Spanish was probably better than hers. She managed to pick on me sometimes. It was a relief to get to art, finally. I felt like an idiot after painting over the picture of Bella. But that was before I knew she felt what she did now.

Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have splattered a crap load of different paints over the top to disguise my previous doings. Bella usually eyed my work curiously, probably wondering why I had screwed it up so bad. I just tried to pretend that it was intentional. However unintentional it was. It wasn't like I had done it on purpose, started a painting that closely resembled her, so I had to do something about it. If she had noticed, she probably would have freaked out.

I was about to walk down the hall to the exit when Bella spoke. "Oh, I have a detention for being late to Calculus." She stated, rolling her eyes. I smiled. "Are you going to wait for me at the truck?" she asked expectantly. I loved the way she smiled when I nodded. I started off walking again.

"Don't take too long!" I called over my shoulder as I walked through the school doors. It was pretty much empty.

In fact, deserted. Students fled as fast as they could after that bell rang. I didn't blame them, they would rather be at home, in their warm houses, watching T.V. That idea would have been appealing to me a while ago, but now it seemed lame.

I'd prefer to hang out with Bella. But she told me she had to talk to Alice after school, so she was going to drop me off at home. I agreed and started reluctantly planning what I would do instead. T.V seemed to be the only option.

I pondered about what good shows were on tonight as I strolled across the grass outside the cafeteria. "I miss my car," I sighed, talking to myself. I was almost to the stairs leading down to the parking lot when someone cleared their throat, I stiffened, surprisingly knowing exactly who it would be.

"What do you want?" I sneered, pulling my hands out of my pockets. Mike smirked and strutted up closer. I took a step back, not knowing how far my control could stretch.

His eyes narrowed and lightened suddenly, it looked like he had a bright idea.

"You know," he began. "Bella and I...we've, you know..." he raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"Right, which one of your dreams was that in, fuck face?" I growled. He raised an eyebrow then. "What dream? I'm talking about real life, man." I wanted to gag. He called me 'man' like he knew me, like we were friends. I would try not to use that word again, it was tainted. I rolled my eyes. "I'm serious. You want some advice on her, you only have to ask," he winked.

"I know how she works." He nodded. My fists clenched, my eyes tightening. I took a few steps forward, he didn't seem to notice. He was off on his own tangent, fantasising. I wanted to strangle him. "Oh, yeah?" I asked sarcastically. "Yep. She begged me for it. Liked it rough..." he sighed. I could murder him.

"I was her first, so I kind of like, have a claim, you know." My eyes bugged out. He thought he owned her?! That fucking douche bag! "Oh, god," he sighed wistfully, reminiscing about fake memories. "She was a great bang. Loved to suck—" I lunged forward, my fist connecting with his nose, crunching sickeningly. "Bullshit!" I spat at him.

"Don't fucking talk about her like that!" He was bent over, hands on his knees, a trickle of blood coming from his nostril. I glared at him pitifully. His hand twisted back then, I didn't move out of the way in time, I caught the brunt of it against my lip. I could taste a tiny amount of blood but not much.

I threw another one at him, he dodged, so I used my other hand to punch his stomach. He weezed and swore.

He stepped forward then, punching me in the cheek. My head hardly moved against his weak throw.

I almost laughed. Almost, if I hadn't been so pissed off. As I dodged out of the way again, I caught him by the collar of his shirt, pushing him hard against the brick wall. "Stop it!" Bella's voice sounded from a few feet away, breathless.

I was still glaring at Mike, he scowled at me, unable to move under my grip. She had reached us then. "Both of you get a fucking grip!" she hissed, careful not to raise her voice too much, probably so I wouldn't get in trouble. I reluctantly shoved away from the wall, letting go of Mike. He slid down slightly until he was in his feet, I hadn't realised I had actually picked him up off the ground. I looked down at Bella, feeling guilty. What did this look like to her?

Craziness? Probably. But love made knobs of us all. I wanted to tell her I was sorry. Then I realised she could have been reminded of her own horrific past, and I was just demonstrating it again, refreshing her memory. I should be put away. Out of the corner of my eye Mike lunged at me again.

I moved easily, he would have missed anyway. Bella stepped forward, her face anxious. Thats when Mike must have hit her, with his elbow.

She fell backwards with a huff. I growled, not knowing I could make such a feral noise and shoved Mike out of the way, punching him in the jaw. I stood over Bella, she had already stood up. What had I done? She had gotten hurt? I felt sick to my stomach.

I couldn't see Mike, but I heard him say something. Bella's eyes flashed with fury, I frowned and before I knew what she was doing, she ran forward then toward Mike's retreating figure, kicking him square in the manhood. I stared, shocked. Shocked yet so fucking proud. I mean, yeah, violence was bad, but...I mean, come on.

She darted back to me then, grabbing her bag that she dropped on the ground and grabbing my hand. I grabbed my bag and let her pull me to the truck. She didn't say anything until we made it to my house. I glanced at her, concerned. She was probably angry, mega pissed. I would be too.

But I also couldn't hide my amusement from what she did to Newton.

That was just brilliant. It was some unspoken rule during fights between two guys, never to use that method, kicking in between the legs, but that same rule didn't go for girls. I'm glad she took advantage of that. She finally looked at me, I waited for her to yell at me like I deserved. She didn't look angry, though. She was examining my face. She bit her lip and frowned. She seemed to be thinking about something, she blushed without knowing then looked up at me again.

I wonder what that was about? She took my face in her hand, turning it to get a proper look.

"How the hell did this start?" she demanded, her voice remained light, though. I couldn't tell her. What Mike said or thought shouldn't matter, yet I had reacted.

But, Bella would only get upset. I didn't want to do that. "It doesn't matter." I said simply, avoiding her gaze. If I looked her in the eye, I would break, like I always did. She hadn't used this against me yet, but she would figure out my weaknesses soon enough. "Just tell me, Edward. Or I could go talk to Mike."

She hedged. I glared at the dash. Damnit, she knew one weakness, enough to hit the nerve. I didn't want her anywhere near him, and of course, he would be willing to say anything. So I caved, sighing. "He said you were his," I began, she snorted, amused at this. She wouldn't be for long.

"He said he slept with you," I continued. She was silent, I couldn't look at her reaction. I sighed and closed my eyes, trying to relax. "All the time. That you begged for it...that...you liked...it rough," I opened my eyes then, glaring, my fists clenched, my teeth gritted.

"And I...lost it." I confessed, meeting her eyes then. She was crying. I wanted to pound Mike's face into the pavement, smear his body against a railway track or something. She shook her head vigorously. "Liar!" she hissed, her voice betraying her emotions. I leaned closer to her, needing to comfort her.

I lifted her chin up and brushed away the tears that leaked down her face.

"I'll look after you," I promised. And I would. I would do everything humanly possible. I kissed her then. She was surprised at first, then kissed me back, her hands twining around my neck, her fingers splaying through my hair. Oh, god, when she did that, it made me insane.

Our lips parted, I caught her bottom lip between mine, savouring... I didn't want to push her, not after today, not ever. She would do whatever she wanted, what she was ready for. So I broke away, kissing her once more, gentle and quick. My fingers were also combed through her long brown locks.

It was impossible not to. She appeared to like it anyway. She smiled playfully. "I'll see you tomorrow..." her sentence trailed off.

I nodded and smiled. "I love you." I told her, her eyes brightened and she grinned.

"I love you, too." She said. I smiled then became serious. "Does your side hurt?" I frowned, eyeing her waist, a little longer than was necessary. She shook her head, indicating it didn't. I narrowed my eyes at her, knowing she was lying. I reached over, slowly and gingerly pulling her shirt and sweater up to her ribs on the right side. I hissed when I saw the rather large pink bruise. It was going to get worse over night. She pulled her shirt down.

"Tomorrow." She clarified, trying to distract me. I leant down then and gently kissed where the bruise was. I got out then and pranced—if guys prance—up the porch steps, hesitantly leaving her alone until tomorrow. The thought was incredibly depressing. I dragged my feet through the door, stealing one last glance at her. Carlisle had left for work already, he was on the graveyard shift this tonight. I felt sorry for him, the long hours were brutal. And yet, he always looked like freaking perfection. I wonder how he did it.

Tossing that thought aside, I slumped down at my piano...fingers hovering.

Even if she couldn't hear, I played for Bella.

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