Author's Note and Disclaimer: Hey folks! Me again. I want to let it be known that've made up my own calendar for this story. I needed to do it to make my timeline work...as you'll see in upcoming chapters. Thanks for reading...I hope you enjoy.
Character names and song titles do not belong to me, they belong to Stephenie Meyer and The White Stripes, respectively.
*** Apple Blossom ***
EPOV
(Approximately One Month Later)
Knock, knock, knock.
"Edward, you need to get up now or we're going to be late," Alice shouts through my bedroom door.
Not once have we been late in the past month that we've been here, so I'm not quite sure why she still feels the need to tell me this.
I roll over and it suddenly comes to me. Today marks the beginning of 'Homecoming' season.
This will be our first official Homecoming. We've either never been around long enough to feel comfortable with going, or we'd move before we would even think about going. Needless to say, Alice has been excited about this day since our second week of school.
Knock, knock, knock.
My door knob is jostled, thank God I locked it last night, "Get up, asshole! I need to get to school early, so I can meet with some of the committee this morning!"
Ah yes, the committee. The committee she talked Jasper and me into joining. Well... actually Bella talked me into joining. Well... actually there wasn't really any 'talking into' required. She told me I should sign up and I did. Have I mentioned how much of a pussy I am?
Knock, knock, knock.
"Fucking Christ, Al! I'm up!" I yell before she has a chance to harass me again.
"About time, dick," she mutters and walks away.
I roll out of bed and stalk back and forth across my room, collecting the clothing I want to wear today. After that first week, I figured Jasper and I had established our relationship well enough and I went back to dressing the way I always had before. Jeans, t-shirts, and chucks. Though once a week, to appease Alice, I still wear skinny jeans.
Once I gather my necessities, I make my way to the bathroom. My mind wanders while I'm showering, as it so often does.
This past month has been the best of my life. I have a job. We have good friends. Dad loves the staff at the hospital. Esme is thinking about doing some design consulting from home. We're finally settled down and it feels really nice.
Rosalie and Emmett are going strong. He really hit it out of the park with their first date. They've spent every available moment together since. He's like a member of our household now, just like Rosalie is a part of his. She's even rode with the chief and Renee to a few away games to cheer him on. I've never seen her smile so much.
Alice and J have been spending more time together as well. From what I understand, most of their 'dates' consist of them hanging out with the kid and her telling him what a douche he is for letting Angela slip through his fingers in the first place. However, he may have a second chance soon.
To everyone's not-so-secret pleasure, Angela and Eric have been bickering an awful lot. When she sported her jersey with J's number for the third Friday in a row, shit kind of hit the fan. He tried to start an argument during lunch, saying her excuse of 'tradition' was total bullshit. She claimed she wasn't buying a new one and he'd have to deal with it. He didn't sit at the table with us the whole next week- not that we really cared.
Jasper has been such a good sport. If he's not with either Alice or myself, you can pretty much bet he's at Mikey's. He claims that when Mikey reins in his crazy a bit, he's awesome to be around. To his great delight, Daffy, who has dubbed him 'honeypie', makes a mean berry cobbler. He's also found that George is an avid Civil War buff. Jasper's planning on going with him to a reenactment soon.
I've been pleasantly surprised by how awesome 'Curly Haired Jess' is. The first day of our second week I discovered she was in my history class. She quickly became a good friend and has had dinner with our family on more than one occasion.
And Bella, despite still being with James, continues to be perfect.
We're making the drive to P.A. at least three times a week now. This has given us more than adequate time to get to know everything about each other. Other than the pesky boyfriend, there's nothing about her I don't love. Even when she's being ridiculously unreasonable like a couple of weeks ago...
I was dropping her off after our normal shift on Saturday and there was an extra car in her driveway. We went inside to find Jess sitting in her living room.
"Um... excuse me, but what the fuck are you doing in my house?" Bella asked her, not so politely.
Jess had just rolled her eyes, "I'm obviously casing the joint, so I can rob you in the dead of night."
Bella wasn't amused, "Funny. Now get out."
"No."
"Seriously, get out of my house," Bella insisted while tossing Jess's purse at her.
"Bella, knock it the hell off!" the kid yelled, "I invited her here."
Shock doesn't describe the look she gave him, "The fuck, kid?"
"She's my tutor, jackass," he said, pointing to the open books on the coffee table.
"Why am I JUST now hearing about this?" Bella huffed.
"Gee... maybe because they knew you'd react like this, psycho," Jess snarked.
"JJ..." I said quietly and shook my head so she'd let it drop.
"Kid, I could've helped you with your maths!" Bella offered.
He started laughing, "Yeah... sure Bells. You're worse than I am. I think I'll stick with Jess. Now, could you guys shove off? We have another lesson to cover."
I pulled Bella from the room and up to her room, where I promptly put on some Jack and made her catch up on our bio homework. And, though I would never admit it to Bella, come that next Monday morning Jess and I did laugh at the look of utter shock on her face.
Pound, pound, pound.
"You better not be using all of the hot water, lover!" Jasper shouts from the hallway.
I turn off the water, I was finished anyway, and wrap a towel around my waist. Best I get dressed in my room, so we don't run 'late'.
"About fucking time, man!" he says when I open the door, "You weren't burping the worm again, were you?"
I roll my eyes, "Burping the worm. Really? Where do you come up with this shit?"
"Google," he smiles and then enters the bathroom.
I make a mental note to share that one with Bella. She'll appreciate it. She's been giving Em a hard time since he started dating Rosalie.
After I get dressed I head downstairs for some breakfast. Esme already has a plate ready for me.
"Esme, you're an angel," I compliment before digging in.
She just smiles and pats me on the head.
"Edward, you and Jasper need to step it up a little," Rosalie says entering the room.
I raise an eyebrow in question.
"I think Mikey may be on to you."
I feel my brow furrow, "How's that?"
She shrugs, "I don't know. He just mentioned the other day that you were the 'ungayest' guy he's ever met."
"Is 'ungayest' even a word?" I quip.
She tilts her head, "Edward. Get serious."
I throw my hands up, "What do you want us to do, Rosalie? We hold hands during football games."
"You've only been to three games," she shoots back.
"We sit next to each other at lunch whenever possible."
"Where you spend most of your time talking to and/or staring at Bella."
"WE'VE GONE ON DATES!"
"Only on group dates."
I open my mouth to debate.
"The ONE time you went by yourselves you went to see the new Star Trek, not the most 'gay friendly' movie."
"Um... Zachary Quinto is gay. We could've gone for him," I reason.
She laughs, "But you didn't, ass."
We sit in silence for a few moments, before she continues, "It was your decision, Edward. We're all in this now. No one comes out clean at this point. I just want you to think about that."
She leaves the room after that and I finish my breakfast, trying to ignore the penetrating stare I know that Esme is throwing at me.
"She has a point, Edward."
That's the only thing she says before she starts to load the dishwasher.
Finished with my plate, I take it over to her. I kiss her on the cheek and leave the room to go brush my teeth.
Twenty minutes later, when we're on our way to school, I look at Jasper in the rear-view.
"Jasper..." I begin.
"Yes, Eddie?"
"Think we could hold hands today?" I ask.
He nods, "I suppose that can be arranged, pookie."
I smile, "Cool."
Rosalie reaches over to pat my leg, "Thank you, Edward."
"Just to give you a guys a heads up, I'm going to ask the Homecoming committee over to the house sometime this week for planning. It's still warm outside, so I think the back patio will be perfect for brainstorming," Alice chirps from the back seat.
"Aren't they supposed to make the announcement for nominations today?" Rosalie asks.
Jasper answers, "Yup. Mikey was talking about those last night. He thinks your boy is a shoe-in, sis. And he may have dropped your name as well."
She gasps, "Shut up! No one would vote for me, except maybe you guys."
"Whatever, Rose," Alice cuts in. "You're awesome and people know it."
Rosalie just grunts in response as we pull into the school lot and park. She's promptly pulled out of the car by Emmett, who apparently couldn't wait the five seconds it would've taken for her to exit herself.
"See you guys later," she waves to us as Emmett carries her away.
Jasper waves back, then gets out of the car and holds out his hand to me.
"Ready to be all shining, shimmering, splendid up in this bitch?"
I laugh at him and take his hand, "As I'll ever be."
We hold hands all the way to my locker while Alice trails behind us. Once we're there we part ways due to our separate schedules. Alice and I head to Home Ec, joining the rest of our group in the kitchen once we get there.
"Good morning, everyone!" Alice singsongs.
"'Morning Al," they respond together.
I go stand next to Bella, "You look lovely today, miss."
She smiles at me, "Why thank you, sir! Though I didn't think one wearing a Hogwarts shirt could be classified as 'lovely'."
"Well you do."
Before she can respond, Mrs. Hoyt enters the room and announces our assignment for the day.
"I'm sure most of you have looked at the recipe cards on your work spaces. The concept of pie making goes back to more than 9,000 years before Christ was born! It's funny that such an old concept still poses a challenge to a good many people. Today, working in pairs, I'd like for you to make pies. Any kind you like. You'll find that the recipe can be altered for any filling. Begin."
Once Bella and I decide on making a traditional apple pie, we get to work. We work as a team peeling apples and deciding on spices, completely oblivious to those around us. As we're setting our timer after putting our pie in the oven, the bell rings.
"Okay people! Make sure your timers are set properly, or else I will not know when to pull your pies out! Thank you! You can come back to retrieve your pies anytime after noon."
Mrs. Hoyt continues to talk even after we've vacated her classroom, most of us half covered in flour.
The morning progresses as it has for the past month: English after Home Ec, Algebra after English, Spanish after Algebra. The only major difference is that Angela has been more quiet than she's ever been before, even J can't seem to get her to open up; a fact that he focuses on all through Algebra and Spanish.
I'm excited for a bit of a reprieve once the bell for lunch sounds.
I go through the motions of grabbing a tray, filling it with food, and heading to our usual table. As I make my way, I look to see if James is sitting with us today or with Tyler, Jess, and some other jocks and cheerleaders. An extra spring is added to my step when I see him sitting next to Tyler. Jess catches me looking their way and throws a weak smile and wave at me. I return the smile and continue to our table.
As I sit down next to Bella I address the table, "Jess looks pretty miserable over there." I gesture to the other table and everyone looks, luckily the other table is distracted and laughing at something someone said, so they don't notice our out-right staring.
"She looks fine," Bella says before tossing a tater tot in her mouth.
The kid speaks up though, "No. She's not. She doesn't like sitting with them anymore. She says they only talk about football or shopping."
I take a chance, "Maybe we could ask if she wants to sit with us?"
Everyone takes a moment to think about it. Everyone but Bella, who immediately objects.
"No. We don't get along and I'd rather her not spoil my lunch."
"Oh, come on, Bells. You guys have been more civil recently," Seth tries.
"No. Besides, where would she sit? We're usually at maximum capacity. There is no room at the inn!" she argues.
"She can sit in Eric's seat," Angela says timidly.
All eyes at the table snap to Eric, or at least they would if Eric were actually sitting there. Where the fuck is he?
"Where the fuck is Eric?" Bella asks, mirroring my thoughts and most likely everyone else's.
Angela looks up from her tray, but still avoids any direct eye contact, "Um... we broke up."
"WHAT?!" the table asks collectively, earning more than a few stares.
Angela rolls her eyes, "Could you guys be any louder?"
"You mean to tell me that you've just been sitting there, eating your lunch this whole time while you had this HUGE bit of news to share with your closest friends?!" Mikey squeals.
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize that my dating status was 'need to know' for the group," she snaps. I don't think I've ever heard Angela lose her temper.
J puts his arm around her and pulls her to his side, "It's not, Angie. It's no one's business..." he stresses while looking around the table, "...other than yours and Eric's. Mikey's just saying that this is a major change, you know? And that we're here if you need us."
"Yeah man!" Emmett agrees, "I just hope you didn't stomp his heart too much, the team needs him at 100%."
Angela gives him a weak smile, "I'm sure he'll be fine."
The kid interjects again with hope in his voice, "So, does this mean Jess can sit with us now?"
"No," Bella repeats, causing Emmett to laugh.
"Oh Bella, just give it a fucking rest," Angela pleads, sounding frustrated.
A hush falls over the table. First Angela loses her temper and now she's cursing? I feel like I've stepped into an alternate reality.
Bella looks... well, I believe the appropriate term would be 'gobsmacked'. The two friends stare at each other for a few moments, before Bella breaks the eye contact by looking down at her food.
"She can sit with us if she wants to, kid," Angela softly says to him.
He nods, "Cool. I'll... um... I'll ask her and see what she says."
None of the rest of us know what to say, so we just continue to eat lunch in awkward silence.
Emmett and Rose cut out early to do whatever it is they do when they're not with the rest of us. Shortly after, the kid takes his leave with J and Angela. When the bell finally rings, Bella gets up from the table and dumps more than half of her lunch in the trash, before exiting the cafeteria. I throw at look at Mikey, Alice, and Jasper, silently asking for help in dealing with this situation. They all shrug and get up to head to their own classes, leaving me to chase after Bella.
I find her at her locker where she's pulling out both of our bio books. After that first week, I just told her to keep mine with hers, since stopping at my locker would just be time wasted. She hands mine to me and turns to walk down the hall. I catch up to her quickly.
"Want to talk about it?" I offer.
She shakes her head, "Not right now."
"You sure?" I push.
She bumps her shoulder into mine, "Yeah. It's cool. I realize that I'm a bit ridiculous about the whole Jess thing. I mean, do I like being called out like that? Not so much. Do I understand why it happened? Of course. Ang just normally has more tact than that. I guess the break up was harder on her than I thought. I'll talk to her later and we'll be solid again."
I smile at her, "Good. Because I don't like it when Mommy and Daddy fight."
She laughs and smiles at me and I feel like I've won a prize, "You are such a dork."
Biology keeps us busy today, so we're not able to do much talking that isn't class related.
"I'mma go pick our pie up, it's on my way to math, is that cool?" she asks, while she's packing up after class.
I nod, "Sounds good. You see Ang next period, right?"
"Yeppers," she affirms.
"Let me know how it goes?" I request.
"Will do!" she smiles and then we go our separate ways. I head history and take a seat next to my favorite curly-haired cheerleader.
"I will have you know, JJ that you were the cause of quite a bit of drama at lunch today," I say.
She groans, "Ugh, I know. Seth already told me."
"If you're this much trouble when you're not sitting with us, how much trouble are you going to be when you are?" I tease.
"I suppose we'll find out," she smirks.
"So, it's definitely happening? What about Tyler? Won't he be bummed if you're not hanging on his every word?"
"Yeah... not so much. We broke up."
I feel my eyes widen as far as they can go, "Shut. Up. When did this happen?"
"Last night. It just wasn't working. I'm not sure it ever really did actually," she admits.
"Wow, I didn't expect that. Eric and Angela breaking up wasn't a shock, but this?"
Jess gasps, "Angela and Eric broke up?"
I nod.
She smiles, "So, she's totally gonna snap J up now, right?"
"He's dating my sister, jerk!"
She rolls her eyes, "I think we both know that J is in love with Angela, Edward-Edward."
"I know nothing of the sort," I say, feigning indigence.
"Sure, sure," she snorts.
Class begins and Mr. Grantham starts teaching us what he knows about the war of 1812. Five minutes before the end of class, the announcement we'd been expecting finally comes.
"Good afternoon, school. I have your nominations for Homecoming King and Queen,"
Jess gives me a nervous look, before the voice continues.
"Your nominations for Homecoming King are as follows: Tyler Crowley, Laurent Le'Beau, James Myers, Jasper Hale, and Emmett Swan."
I look at Jess, "Who the fuck is Laurent Le'Beau?"
She just laughs.
"Your nominations for Homecoming Queen are as follows: Margaret Stevens, Jane Winchell, Rosalie Hale, Jessica Stanley, and Charlotte Damon. Thank you for your attention, students."
The intercom cuts out and the room erupts in chatter. Lots of people congratulate Jess, but mostly everyone just discusses the nominees. Mr. Grantham doesn't even attempt to get us back in order, which was a wise choice on his behalf because the bell rings a minute later.
"Homecoming Queen, JJ Stanley," I say as we walk out of class.
She makes a face at me, "Oh yeah. That's me. Honestly, Rosalie has it in the bag."
I shake my head, "I don't know. You are the head cheerleader."
"Yeah, but I'm only a junior. I still have a chance next year. I'll just leave it to the old hags this time around," she jokes.
"Awww... I'm telling Rosalie you called her hag."
"Oh lord, please don't," she begs, "I feel she already hates me because I dated Em that one time."
"Sure, sure. On one condition though," I offer.
She looks skeptical, "What condition?"
"Stop being so damn combative with Bella."
Her mouth drops open, "SHE starts it!"
"I know, I know! I'm just asking you not to take the bait."
"I'll think about it," she says snootily.
I guess that's all I can hope for at the moment. We walk to gym together and discover that we're going to be going over the fundamentals of basketball, which doesn't require gym attire. We part ways and I go find my usual group.
J is trying to teach Alice how to dribble a basketball properly, while Angela and Bella seem to be in deep conversation. I leave the girls to it and go join J and my sister.
"HEY!" she yells at me when I steal the ball from her, "Edward, bring that back here."
I laugh, "Nope. Come and get it, Al."
She crosses her arms and pouts, "You know you're too fast."
"Fine. Take it, you baby," I bounce the ball back to her, but J easily intercepts it, thus starting a game of 'keep-away' which Alice is not amused by, but J and I find hysterical.
We continue until the coaches come in and start lecturing us on the basics of basketball. I take a seat next to Bella.
"Everything cool with you guys?" I ask, nodding in Angela's direction.
She smiles, "Yup. We're all good. I'll fill you in later."
I smile back at her and then we give our attention to the coaches. Once they've wrapped up the basics, they just have us break into groups to practice passing the ball to each other.
"So, what do you guys think of the Homecoming noms?" Alice asks, passing the ball to Bella.
She catches it, "Predictable. Well... all but Laurent Le'Beau," she throws the ball to J, "Who the fuck is he?"
"You know him, Bells. He's that kid with the dreads," J says, tossing Angela the ball.
"Larry, Bella? Remember him? He was in our art class in fourth grade," she says, before making a bounce pass back to Bella.
Recognition finally dawns on her, "Oh Larry! He's the one who used to pretend he was French, right?"
J just shakes his head, "You're killing me, Smalls! He IS French!"
"Huh. Well, you learn something new everyday," she shrugs and passes the ball to me.
We continue in this fashion for the rest of the period. By the time the bell rings, we've all resorted to speaking in very bad accents. My apologies to the French.
Once we get to the parking lot and say our goodbyes, we part ways and head to our respective homes.
I waste no time in teasing Jasper, "Oh my god, I've like always wanted to date the Homecoming King!"
"Stop it," he grumps.
"Awww... don't be like that, baby! You should revel in this honor!" I persist.
"You're so not amusing. I don't even know why I was nominated. Is it because I'm gay? Mikey's gay. He should've been nominated, people love him. Em's gonna win anyway, it's hardly a contest."
"Jasper, you were nominated because you're ridiculously handsome and non-threatening. People love you! Not as much as I do, but still, they love you," Alice tells him.
He takes her hand and kisses it, "Thank you, Mary Alice."
"You are quite welcome. Now leave me alone, I have a mass text to send," she says before pulling her hand out of his and typing furiously on her phone.
"How are you feeling about it, sis?" he asks Rosalie.
"I'm honestly flattered. I mean, we haven't been here for very long, so it's nice that someone thought to nominate us," she replies, "Of course, part of me feels like it only happened because I'm dating Emmett."
"Or they just think you're awesome, like Al told you this morning," I reply.
"Have Ang and Bella made up?" she says, changing the subject.
I nod, "I think so, they were fine during gym."
She smiles, "Good. I'll be honest, I'm not too incredibly pleased about Jess sitting with us, but I know Em's over her. And I know she's been cool to you, so whatever."
"She really is good people," Jasper comments, "Mikey really likes her, though he doesn't really advertise it."
As I pull my car into our driveway, all of our phones chime with a text alert.
"It's just me guys," Alice says.
"Alice, this better not be about Homecoming. You know I have no time between school and Emmett," Rosalie says, getting out of the car.
"Chill out, Rose. I sent it in case you change your mind. We'll be meeting here a lot, so if you're here... and everyone else is here, you can join in. And though, I realize you don't have much time, you do still have some time. So, I figured I'd include you. Em's included too. I know he's busy with football, but he may have something to contribute. You never know!"
I look at my phone.
- Hello every1! Alice Cullen here! HCC meeting my house 2morrow after school! Txt for address, if needed.
"You spent the whole car ride home on that?" I ask.
She punches me, "Fuck you! I spent most of the ride entering in all the numbers."
"Well, you should've added 'punch and pie'," I tell her.
"What?"
"More people will come if they think we have punch and pie," I deadpan.
She looks at me confused, "Well, we'll have refreshments."
"Oh, then I'm sure that will be fine," I pat her shoulder and walk away.
I laugh to myself and head inside, going straight to the kitchen.
"Edward, how was your day?" Esme says as soon as I enter.
"Not too bad. Busy. I feel like I never get to talk to my friends anymore."
"Oh those pesky teachers, wanting to teach you things," she smiles.
"Right? Like, hellooo, I have a life," I joke.
She laughs at my lame joke, like I knew she would, "Where are your siblings?"
"Well, I thought they'd be in here, but obviously I was wrong. I guess they're upstairs. Um... your son and daughter were nominated for Homecoming king and queen."
"Oh how lovely! Why aren't they telling me this themselves?"
I shrug, "Well, Jasper thinks he was only nominated because he's gay and Rosalie thinks she was only nominated because she's dating Emmett."
"Right. Because I'm sure that's the only reason they were nominated," she sighs.
"Alice and I told them this, I'm not sure they really let it sink in though."
My phone dings with another text.
- There will be punch and pie.
I laugh and look back to Esme, "We're having people over tomorrow after school for Homecoming committee. Alice just told everyone we'll have punch and pie."
Her eyes widen a bit, "Looks like I'll be busy tomorrow."
"You're a fantastic woman, Esme. I don't care what anyone says about you," I tease.
She chuckles, "Thank you, dear. Now scoot. And tell the others I want to speak to them, if you see them."
I kiss her cheek and head up to my room. Upon arriving, my phone dings again.
- punch and pie? was that your idea?
Bella.
- duh. speaking of pie, you totally have ours.
- i certainly do. i plan on presenting it for dessert tonight. i'mma take all the credit.
- thanks a lot. what if i wanted some pie?
- i didn't think you'd want anything to do with pies.
- i love pie!
- snort. how does jasper feel about that?
- he likes pie too.
- could've fooled me.
- bella! get your head out of the gutter.
- guffaw.
- you seriously just typed 'guffaw'.
- yup.
- what happened with ang?
She calls me, instead of texting.
"Hellerrr," I answer.
"Hey! It was just easier to call. So, Angela is an idiot," she starts.
"Wow. I hate to know what you say about me behind my back," I laugh.
"Oh, it's much worse," she quips, "So anyway, she's an idiot. She doesn't feel like she has any right to J. So now, even though she's single, she's going to 'respect J's happiness' or whatever and keep her feelings to herself, which she totally has."
"Well, if she thinks J is happy, then I guess I can see her point," I defend.
"THAT'S FUCKING BULL SHIT!" she shouts.
"Jeez, calm down, crazy!"
She sighs, "I'm sorry, but I'm just so fucking sick of everyone being so fucking polite. If J would've gotten a backbone ages ago, he and Ang would be together by now. And now SHE wants to be a fucking martyr or whatever and sacrifice her feelings for his happiness. AND HE'S NOT EVEN HAPPY!"
"Well she doesn't know that, now does she?" I reason, "Talk to J and Alice. I'm sure they'll break up soon and then BOOM... love connection."
"They better fucking break up soon," Bella huffs, "No offense to Al, but J and Ang belong together. I'm sick of their half-assed attempts at happiness."
"Same here," I agree. "Jasper and Rosalie think they only got nominated by default."
She snorts, "That's ridiculous. They were nominated because they're great."
"Duh. You'll have to tell them that."
"I totally will, but right now, I've gotsta help Mama Swan with dinner."
"Cool. Let me know how your pie is," I add, suggestively.
"Oh, I'm sure it'll be quite tasty," her voice drops, "If you're a good boy, maybe I'll save you some."
I gulp and laugh her off, "You're insane."
She giggles, "Yes, but that's why you love me."
Yes. That's certainly one of the reasons.
Add'l A/N: The 'punch and pie' line comes from South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut. The boys are staging a coup and trying to recruit people and Cartman suggests that 'more people will come if they think we have punch and pie'. It's the little things that entertain me. I'm silly, I know.