A/N: A quick thank you to everyone who added this story to their alerts and/or added it to their favorite list. It truly means a lot to me.

Chapter 11-

Bella's POV-

"Grocery bill…. electric bill….Seth's video games' bill….Leah's foreign imported make-up bill…"

"Bella!"

I looked up with a jerk, the several pieces of paper that had been in my hand falling down harshly on the dining table, a small smile crossing my face at the sight of the person who had called for my attention, her steps as light as air- a boon as she had termed it to be, with two teenage daughters and one soon to be a teenager- son in the house.

She needed it, as she had so frequently stated it to us.

She let out a sigh, coming to a stop beside me, shaking her head in amusement. "What am I supposed to do with you, huh?"

"Love me?" I cheekily grinned at her, shrugging briefly.

She waved me off. "I already do that, you silly girl! But seriously, Bella, this is my job. Your father and I are capable enough of paying the bills. Sure, it may seem like throwing money down the drain at times, especially when Charlie receives those hefty credit card bills that Leah leaves for him each month without fail. But, irrespective, this is not your headache!"

"I know, Ma." I smiled at her, taking her hand in mine as she sat on the chair beside me, a sigh leaving her lips. "And I am perfectly aware of how capable you two are as parents and as individuals. I just like taking care of the rest of you."

She scoffed at that. "Bella, you offered to give Leah your entire savings on Valentine's Day, just because she told you that she wanted to take Sam out on this romantic date of a lifetime and she had not enough money saved to do so. Of course, she only has her spendthrift ways to blame for that. But yet, knowing that she was going to waste your hard-earned money on flowers and chocolates, you freely let her do so; not even thinking once that you were saving that money to buy a nice car for yourself, one you refuse to let us buy for you."

"Ma," I gave her a brief smile, shrugging, "Leah and Sam had so much fun on that date. It was well-worth it. And I am definitely not going to be able to buy a car in some few dollars. Might as well let them have their fun."

She sighed, shaking her head at me. "And what about that time when you gave up your bedroom for Seth, him having some crazy notion that monsters crawl out of the black wallpapered- walls in his bedroom, refusing to sleep in it. You gave up your bigger and airier room for him, moving into Leah's room, till the time his walls were not re-painted to a lighter and more inviting color. Which as a matter of fact, has been completed ages ago, and yet my son has not given you your room back."

"I like sharing a room with Leah." I protested in a whisper, playing with the hem of my shirt.

And Seth did like the bigger room more.

It gave him more place to keep his video games and music.

Sue raised an eyebrow at me, seeing straight through my lie. "Leah kicks, snores, and is a blanket hogger. No one could be happy to share a bed with her. Bella." She paused, caressing my hand softly. "My child, you need to be more selfish in life. You need to think about yourself."

I snorted at that, unable to resist the temptation. "You know, you must be the first mother on the planet to tell their child to be selfish! It is generally the other way round."

She waved me off. "I have to. I worry about you."

"Ma," I smiled at her, trying my best to convince her. "Don't. I am fine."

And I really was.

Leah and Seth were family. I liked taking care of them. I liked fulfilling every wish of theirs, no matter how useless, costly or inconvenient it be. Leah was my older (some would claim spoilt- I don't) sister and Seth was the baby of this family. He may be turning thirteen in less than two months now, but he sure pretended to be five, scared of everything on the face of this Earth.

He was literally the only twelve-year-old I knew who still believed that monsters would creep out of his bed at night and scare the shit out of him.

It was a task for Sue to get him to bed each night.

But he was also the cutest and most innocent being on the planet.

Seth just never thought about harming a single soul. He liked everybody, and respected every being out there. He never said a curse word or hit, kick, slap- either of the above.

He was an angel.

So, what if the angel demanded a few things at times?

It was not wrong to want the bigger room, or that single small piece of cake that I had saved for myself, the rest having already eaten their share- and more, with me being occupied with a phone call during that duration.

He was just a kid.

And kids did not understand right and wrong….

They just wanted their wish to be fulfilled.

I was the mature one here.

I was supposed to compromise.

I was supposed to understand.

"Bella," Sue sighed, giving me one of those sad looks of hers, "You are seventeen, not seventy. When I was your age…."

"Ma," I smiled, sheer amusement visible in my eyes. "I know you were the rebellious almost adult who sneaked out and partied…and drank….and enjoyed her life…"

"And yet, you do none of that." she frowned at me. "I often wonder if Leah took your share of rebelliousness, too, adding it to her share and making our life hell."

I let out a laugh, shaking my head at her. "She has Sam. He keeps her in control."

Which was a good thing.

As Leah without Sam was an out-of-control wild teenager who stole liquor from her dad's cabinet and threw parties in our basement when the parents were out; our dad is the police chief, just for the record.

She had no care and no fears.

She did what she wanted to do in life, stubborn as all of hell.

She just did not care that dad was angry at her, or that Ma was disappointed in her.

She believed her rules to be the only rules to be followed in life, and she had no rules!

Not one.

Sam kept her grounded. He made sure that she did not run rampant and ruin her life in the process. He loved her, and made her happy.

Heck. Even dad approved of him- and dad did not approve of any male who came too close to his 'vulnerable' daughters' heart or body- his words, not mine.

Sam was good for her.

She had found the one, so early on in life….

"Maybe," Sue hummed, a smile on her face. "You too need your Sam to find your wings and let you fly."

"What?" I gave her a confused look.

What did she even mean by that?

She shrugged, the smile on her face not reducing an inch. "Leah needed Sam to calm her down, to tame her into someone acceptable and likeable," she winked at me, a laugh leaving my mouth at the absolute honesty that was leaving her mouth. "But you need someone to bring out the child in you. You need someone who will make you laugh and do things that you could never even imagine doing. You need a free-spirit. That is what you need, Ms. Bella Swan!"

I waved her off. "And what you need, Mrs. Susan Swan, is to stop reading overly romantic novels. They are crap! And hold no resemblance to the truth, whatsoever!"

She let out a loud laugh, a knowing look in her eyes. "Trust me, Bella. You will find him one day."

I shook my head at her baseless predictions, getting up from the chair and walking towards the kitchen, my mind now concentrated on the recipe for the blueberry cheesecake that I was about to make for Seth.

He loved it.

And even more than that, he loved to boast about how delicious it was in front of his friends.

He had told me this morning that one of his friends was coming over, and so I needed to make it for him- no choice given.

Not that I minded.

I liked cooking.

And I liked cooking for my family even more than that.

Especially when they smiled and told me that they loved the new recipe that I had tried.

It made it all worth it, instantly.

And so, I pushed away every unimportant thought that was swirling through my mind, all my attention now concentrated on the task in front of me.

I was happy in life.

Even if at times that meant giving away my share of chocolates, no matter that they were my favorite.

They were my family, and I loved them.