Edward

"You want to get out of here?" Jacob asked, and Edward nodded gratefully. Jacob didn't seem to need him to respond to the story, and for that Edward was grateful. He led the way down the stairs, but then he stopped in his tracks. His mom stood in the doorway, and she didn't look happy.

"We need to talk," she said. "Your friend can go." Jacob started to step forward and say something, but Edward put a hand on his wrist.

"No," he said. Jacob squeezed his hand, and went down the stairs and out the door. Edward closed his eyes at the click of the door behind him, and then he slowly walked down the stairs to his mother. She was looking at him with a cold fury that made him want to shrivel up and disappear.

"Do you have any explanation for your behavior?" She asked. He shook his head. "Do you have any idea what kind of damage you're doing to our family image? Skipping school, going off to god knows where with god knows who, completely unnecessary trips to the hospital when there's nothing wrong with you. Your brother was never like this." He walked into the kitchen, and she followed him. "Don't walk away from me, Elizabeth. You have some serious explaining to do."

"I don't know, Mom. I can't give you an answer. It wasn't planned."

"Well this is what you're going to do. You're going to go with me right now to explain to your teachers what happened, and then you're going to get your place on the track and soccer teams back. And you're going to cut the crap. You've used up all your chances." Edward nodded. Better to just go with it, he always thought. He put on his coat and followed her out to the car. He didn't look toward Bella's house, or Jacob, who he could feel was watching. He put his earbuds in and turned up the volume.

At the school, they walked to the principal's office. Principal Parker was a severe, no nonsense woman, who was well-versed in the ways of the upper middle class kids at this school. Edward generally didn't arrive in her sights, but of course she knew who his family was. Tony certainly made sure of that. Edward and his mom sat at the desk, and his mom launched into a monologue of her version of events. Eventually, Principal Parker raised her hand and turned to Edward.

"Ms. Masen, can you promise me that you'll finish the year without another blemish to your record?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Then I'm willing to overlook this lapse. But if you have a repeat of this past week, then action will have to be taken."

"I understand," he said. She nodded, and Edward and his mom stood up. Their next stop was the athletics department. Mr. Ross, the head track coach, was in the coaches office. He stood up when they came in, and again, Edward's mom took her time, explaining her version of events, and asked the coach to give Edward a chance to try out for the varsity track team.

"Of course there's a spot for Elizabeth on the team. Are you sure you're up for it?" He asked Edward. Edward nodded. "Alright then, the second round of tryouts is this Wednesday after school, and the outdoor season schedule will be handed out once tryouts are completed."

"She'll see you Wednesday," Edward's mom said, getting up. Edward followed her, and they went out to the car. On the ride home, she was still talking. "Beth, you aren't going to spend time with Bella for a while. I thought she would be a good friend for you, but it seems I was wrong. And your friend from earlier, I'm not having it. Their influence over you is disappointing for me as a parent, and I will not let you throw away your life because of some teenage angst. You're going to go to school, make friends with girls there, and move on from whatever this is." Edward watched the scenery go by, and said nothing. "Do you understand me?" She asked, raising her voice.

"Yes."

"Good. I expect a change in your behavior. Immediately." Edward pressed his lips together, but he didn't say anything. It wouldn't do any good. She pulled into their driveway. "I have to go back to work. I'll be late tonight." He got out and went up to the house. Inside, he watched as she drove away, and then he went to the kitchen. He pulled out junk food, snacks, ice cream, anything he could get his hands on, and he ate and drank until he was finally full, until it hurt, and he couldn't fit anything else in. And then he went upstairs, moving gingerly because his stomach hurt, and started the shower. He stripped and got in, giving himself a few minutes under the water to relax and settle his stomach. Then he bent over and threw it up. Over and over until the only thing he was choking up was bile. He washed it all down the drain, and when it was gone and the shower was clean, he rested against the tile, breathing hard. His heart felt like it was going a million miles an hour, but as uncomfortable as this was, he felt a hundred times better than he had at the school or with his mother. Slowly, the dizziness passed, and his heart returned to normal. He kept a finger on the pulse at his neck, sort of to assure himself that he was still alive. He let the hot water hit him, relaxing every muscle. When he was finally ready to get out, he let himself stand, naked, in the bathroom as the cooler air hit him. He felt good. Purging tended to do this. During the process, it was hell, but the aftermath felt great. Out of habit, he checked the scale, to ensure that he'd gotten everything out. He finished drying himself off and pulled his clothes on. He shouldered his backpack, and slipped out of the house and down the street to Bella's.

Jacob

Ater Edward left with his mom, Jacob went back to Bella's house. He called Sam, and then he helped Bella with Michael. Mike'd gotten some time off work for the trip, but now that they were back home, he was back at it.

Jacob was charmed by Michael, as almost everyone who met him was. He was a really pretty baby. Jacob couldn't help but see the innocence in him. Innocence that could so easily be taken. He'd been playing with the baby for a couple of hours when the door opened, and Edward came in. Edward took stock of the room, and then without a word, he took Jacob's hand and went to Jacob's bedroom. As soon as the door clicked shut, he turned around and pushed Jacob against it. He rested his forehead against Jacob's chest. Jacob wrapped his arms around him.

"Did you mean it?" Edward asked, his voice thick.

"Mean what?"

"That you love me."

"Of course I meant it," Jacob said.

"There's no such thing as 'of course,'" Edward said, shaking his head. "Not with this."

"Fine. Yes, I meant it."

"Take me back to Florida. Please?" Now, Jacob pushed Edward away to get a good look at his face.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Nothing's changed. Nothing is going to change. As long as they have their stupid image intact, they're happy." Edward went to the window, seat, looking out over the neighborhood. Jacob came up behind him, and put his hands on Edward's shoulders, massaging the tense muscles.

"Want to get out of here?" He asked. Edward turned around and looked up at him. They were so close, and Jacob cupped Edward's cheek. Edward lifted his head, and kissed him. "On second thought, we could just stay here."

"Mmmm…" Edward stayed resting against his chest, and he so rarely asked for comfort that Jacob relished the chance to just hold him. But something Embry reminded him, threatened to ruin the moment.

"Hey Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you eat today?" He felt Edward draw in a breath. "Or yesterday?" Edward didn't say anything for a long moment.

"Depends," he said carefully.

"On what?" Wasn't it a yes or no question?

"Ate or digested?" Edward pulled away and went to sit on the bed.

"Look, I know you're a smart kid. You know how bad that is for you," Jacob said.

"Really? Thanks, I'm cured." Edward snapped. Then he clenched his jaw and closed his eyes for a long moment. "I'm sorry," he said. "It's just that it's so fucking easy to say stuff like that, but it's so hard to actually do it."

"Why do you do it?" Jacob asked. He sat down next to Edward, who drew a knee up to his chest and hugged it, appraising Jacob thoughtfully.

"You really want to know?" He asked, head cocked. Jacob nodded. "It's an appetite suppressant. I mean, it started out being a solution for when I ate too much. Fill yourself up, then push reject. Simple. But then it was too suspicious to go throw up after every meal, and my parents started wondering why I disappeared after dinner every night, so I would just not eat all day, and then eat a lot when no one was around, and then throw it up. And I learned pretty quickly that if you do it like that, afterwards, you don't feel hungry, even if your stomach is empty. It curbs your appetite, and you don't have the urge to eat anymore."

"Doesn't it hurt or whatever?"

"No, not really. Maybe I'm just too used to it, I don't know."

"Is there anything you'll be willing to eat and not throw up?" Jacob asked. Edward laughed, and nodded.

"Yeah, actually. Most white foods are safe. I'm not sure why, but I think it's that it feels like they have less nutritional value, so the body gets less from them. Things like rice, or egg whites, or chicken, that kind of thing. And then vegetables and fruit. Because if anyone tells you they got fat eating apples or something, they're lying."