Chapter Three

Bella POV

I sighed, sitting on my bed watching the clock. It's Monday morning and I was dawdling. I desperately didn't want to go. I could hear my dad calling me from downstairs so I reluctantly stood up and gave myself one last look in the mirror. Luckily, the pair of jeans in a 00 had come in just in time, so they fit pretty well. A lot more snug than the rest of my clothes. I had also ordered a XXS light blue hoodie that fit decently well. It was baggy enough to hide where my body began but tight enough that I didn't look like I was wearing three sizes too big. I ran my hand through my hair one last time, nerves endlessly shot.

I came down the stairs to see my dad standing in the kitchen, his uniform on. He was rushing around, getting his lunch together.

"Morning baby, hey so I can't take you to school today. I uh, I have to run in earlier than I expected." I nodded, leaning against the counter, crossing my arms.

"No that's ok, I don't mind walking." I told him and he shook his head.

"No, I don't want your energy wasted on that. I asked Jasper to come over to make sure you eat something and take you in." I sighed, nodding.

"Sorry, Bells. I did warn you that sometimes you'd hate me." He shrugged and I shook my head.

"I don't hate you, dad." He gave me a smile and kissed my forehead.

"Get yourself something…anything…to eat before school. Ok? Jasper will be here any minute, I've gotta run." I nodded and said goodbye, watching him leave. I sighed, looking around the kitchen. Not only was I already nauseous from the anxiety of today, but now I had to eat. I opened a few cupboards, scouring for the least objectionable options. I heard the door open and Jasper kicked off his shoes. He made his way to the kitchen and gave me a big smile.

"Morning." He said and I nodded.

"Morning." I mumbled back. He sat at the table and chuckled.

"Nervous?' he asked and I nodded.

"Sure am."

"I wouldn't be. I mean yeah…you're fresh meat at a small-town school but…you've got myself, Emmett, and Alice. I wouldn't worry." I didn't bother trying to smile, opening the fridge to look for something to eat. I settled on an apple and took out a cutting board to cut it into slices.

"You uh…you seemed a little put off by Emmett the other night. You…ok?" he asked and I kept my eyes on my apple. I didn't want to talk about it.

"Yea, of course." I said unconvincingly. He sighed.

"Bella, I know you better than that. What's up?" I brought my bowl over to the table and sat across from him.

"Ok fine, but you have to share. Deal?" I asked and he nodded, snagging a slice of apple. "Ok…so…I don't know I just felt…like I was intruding. I felt bad." I told him and he shook his head.

"We told you you weren't though…" He said gently and I shrugged.

"Yea but…that's just what you say." I mumbled and he sighed.

"What's this really about?" he asked and I picked at my apple piece, taking a deep breath.

"Back in Phoenix…Aaron cut me off from everyone. He didn't want me hanging out with his friends…with my friends. So…I started making up excuses why I couldn't hang out with them." I started and he watched me curiously, taking another bite. "After about two weeks they just…stopped asking. I don't know…it made it easier on me but…" I sighed, putting my apple slice down.

"It was so easy for them." I mumbled and he sighed, grabbing my hand.

"Bella." He started but I shook my head.

"If my own friends and my mom don't even like me…why would your friends? I don't…I don't want to be some charity case…or a favour to you. I just…I didn't come here to make friends." I told him and I saw hurt flash through his eyes.

"Bella you aren't a charity case. I want you here…Emmett and Alice were so excited when I told them you were coming. And not because they feel obligated. Alice is really excited to have a chill girl around. It's pretty much just annoying copycats that follow her around at school. And Emmett is literally friends with almost everyone he meets. He's just a really friendly guy. They're excited to have you around." I watched him, unshed tears in my eyes.

"Bella the other night…you weren't intruding." He told me again and I sighed.

"Yea but Aaron would-"

"Bella we aren't Aaron. Let me guess…he hated having you 'crash guys night.'" I sighed and nodded.

"Bella that's not us. He's a fucking idiot…don't compare anything you experience here to something that asshole did, ok? Things are different here. We love you and we want you here." He told me and I wiped a tear, nodding. He squeezed my hand.

"Ok. Now eat up, we don't want to be late." I nodded again, taking my first bite of apple and Jasper took another slice. It felt nice not eating alone.

We pulled up to the school and parked in the lot. I took a deep breath and opened my door, hopping out of Jasper's truck. He came around to the passenger side and grabbed my hand, leading me through the lot over to the doors.

"Hey wait up!" I turned to see Emmett and a small girl jogging to catch up to us. Jasper grinned and gave my hand a squeeze.

"Hey guys. Uh, Bella this is Alice, Emmett's sister. Alice this is my cousin Bella." I nodded to Alice who smiled brightly to me.

"It's so nice to finally meet you!" she greeted and I managed a nervous smile.

"You too."

Jasper cleared his throat, knowing I was nervous.

"And you remember Emmett." He motioned and I nodded, trying to smile. I felt bad that I had been rude…

"Yes, of course. Hey." I greeted and he smiled.

"How's it going, Bella." I shrugged.

"Yea hey, what the hell guys. You have a party without me?" Alice snapped, smacking Emmett's arm and he chuckled.

"Would you stop that?! I told you I didn't know!" she rolled her eyes and looked at me.

"Yea sure. What else is new." I laughed at her attitude and she smiled. I felt Jasper nudge me happily and I shivered.

"Cold?" Emmett asked me, watching me again. I felt a bit nervous under his gaze. I nodded.

"Uh…yea a bit." I told him, the winter air biting through my coat. He nodded and motioned toward the doors.

"Yea sorry about that…let's get inside." I nodded and let Jasper lead me inside, never releasing my grip on his hand. We walked to the office and I went up to the counter.

"Hello…um…I'm Bella Swan? I just need my timetable…" I told the secretary. She nodded and handed me a piece of paper.

"Right, right. Here you go." I thanked her and stepped out of the office, seeing Jasper and Emmett in conversation. Alice grinned to me.

"Let's see what you have! I hope we have some classes together." She told me, peaking over my shoulder at my schedule.

Biology, calculus, English, Lunch, Music, Phys-ed.

Alice clapped her hands.

"Oh yay! We have the first two periods together!" she told me and I smiled, her energy was contagious. "Oh! We all have phys-ed together!" she said excitedly, looking to Jasper and Emmett. They smiled, also looking at my schedule.

"Music, eh?" Jasper asked with a wink and I shrugged with a smirk.

"Yea I guess so." He laughed and nodded.

"I'm in that class. So is our friend Edward." He told me and I smiled.

"Oh awesome." I glanced to Emmett as he leaned over to look.

"English buddies!" he told me and raised his hand for a high five. I looked at his hand nervously, backing up a bit. I saw his confusion at my behavior and took a breath.

"Um…yea. That's great." I told him and hesitantly brought my hand up and clapped it with his. His face had fallen though, as if he didn't know what he did wrong. I saw Jasper give me a look of understanding though. I thought he was raising his hand at me. I forced a smile to Emmett and dropped my eyes back to the paper in my hands.

"Well…I'm going to steal Bella for class now. We will see you boys later." She told them, linking my arm. She paused when she made contact, grabbing mainly coat, but she smiled to me anyway. I said goodbye to them and let her take me to our first period class. I had a new locker outside our homeroom right beside hers.

We dropped our stuff into the lockers and she led me into the classroom, motioning for me to sit beside her.

"So, how are you liking the snow?" she asked with a smirk and I smiled.

"I actually don't mind it." I told her and she nodded.

"Ugh, I'd kill to be in the Arizona heat right now!" she commented and I shrugged.

"Yea that's not bad too." She nodded.

"I'd say. So, what brings you back to Forks?" she asked and I looked down to my notebook.

"Um…just…needed a change of scenery. And I missed my dad and Jasper." I told her and she nodded.

"It would be tough having to choose between parents." I fought the urge to scoff and instead just nodded.

"Well, I'm glad you're here. Jasper told us a lot of stories about you." I sighed.

"Oh no…" I told her and she laughed.

"All good things! Like when you and he scared your dad half to death by going cliff jumping?" I smiled genuinely at the memory.

"Yea…he was so pissed." I laughed. "I'm pretty sure he grounded me." She laughed too.

"Do you know Jake then?" she asked and I nodded.

"Yea, I do. He and I have been friends since I was a baby. I'm the one that introduced him and Jasper." I told her and she grinned.

"Oh! This is making sense." I thought about Jacob…I missed him.

"Do you guys hang out with him?" she nodded.

"Yea. Not as often as we maybe should but usually once or twice a month we all hang out.

"That's cool…I miss that kid." I told her and she smiled.

"We will have to get together!" I smiled and nodded, actually excited. I just hoped he would be as excited to see me.

"Um, excuse me? Get out of my seat." I heard a girl snap and looked up to find a blonde, perky, tiny girl glaring at me. I felt my face flush red and I stood up quickly, grabbing my books.

"Oh…I'm so sorry… I-"

"No…hey no. Jess, what the hell." Alice glared to her and I saw this 'Jess' falter a bit watching Alice glare at her.

"But she's in my seat." She told Alice who shook her head.

"I don't care. I asked her to sit here." Jess looked like she'd been slapped. I shook my head.

"It's ok…there's a seat open in the back I'll just sit there." I told them and Alice grabbed my arm.

"Bella no I-" but I stumbled back out of her grasp, feeling unbelievably stupid.

"I'm good. Thanks…for the chat Alice. I…sorry." I told the girl again, who looked smug, sitting herself beside Alice as if Alice was some type of trophy. Alice glared at her as I turned and walked to the open seat in the back beside some guy.

"Hey, you're the new girl. Isabella Swan, right?" He asked and I nodded, looking to him.

"Bella, yea." I told him and he smiled.

"I'm Mike Newton." He told me, extending his hand. I took a deep breath and accepted his handshake, not particularly wanting to be touched by a guy I didn't know. I looked up as the teacher began to talk, thankful for a distraction.

I looked to Alice and Jess sitting together a few rows ahead. I couldn't help but notice how slender and petite they both were. And yet they had nice curves and looked healthy. I admired how beautiful they looked, remembering what I looked like in the mirror this morning. I felt my internal self-loathing setting in as I looked away from them. Why couldn't I look like them? Thin and healthy. Beautiful and not sickly. I picked at my notebook while the teacher explained our lab. I only half paid attention, having done this lab already a month ago. I was pulled from my trance by Mike nudging me. I jerked away at the contact but he didn't seem to notice.

"Ok…did you catch all that? I'm lost." He told me and I nodded, flipping my notes open to the lab I'd already done.

"Yea…I got it." I told him and he grinned, grabbing my notebook.

"Oh, hell yeah…" He commented. I felt eyes on me and looked up to see Alice turned in her chair, giving me an apologetic look. I looked back down to our project and tried to push down the embarrassment. Of course I'd take someone's seat on the first day, in my first class. Already intruding. Of course Alice would rather sit with one of her friends. She was just being nice...I'd just have to be more careful next time.

I asked the teacher for an empty seat in English having learned my lesson early. I politely declined to sit with Alice in calculus even though she persisted. I knew she was just being nice, and sure enough another girl bee-lined for the seat beside Alice within 30 seconds of me taking the empty seat at the back. I scratched doodles into my English notebook, lost in thought. I jumped as someone dropped their books beside me and looked up to see Emmett.

"Oh…sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." He told me, sitting down. I looked around and saw a few girls eyeing me and I immediately felt nervous.

"Oh…am I…did I take someone's seat? The teacher said it was empty…I-" but he shook his head.

"No…you didn't. I just wanted to sit here…is that not ok?" he asked and I looked to his face, that same uncertain look gracing his handsome features. I looked down to my book.

"Uh…no that's ok. I just thought…" I motioned to the stares I was still getting and he chuckled.

"Yea…ignore that." I sighed.

"Easier said than done." I mumbled and he opened his notebook.

"What do you mean?" he asked and I shrugged.

"Did…did I do something wrong?" he asked quietly and my eyes snapped to his. He was looking at me confused and I shook my head, feeling guilty.

"No…no of course not." I told him and he shrugged.

"Then…what. Do you just-" I cut him off.

"I'm really sorry. I don't mean to be rude I just…you guys don't have to go out of your way to do…this." I told him and he narrowed his eyes softly.

"Do what?"

"You know…you don't have to be my friend just to help Jasper out." I mumbled. I knew Jasper had tried to tell me otherwise…but after my interaction with Jessica my confidence was shot.

"We aren't…is that why you're so distant? You think we're taking pity on you?" he asked and I shrugged. "We just want to get to know you. Jasper said you were a cool girl." He told me and I sighed, looking to my books again. He exhaled and leaned on his desk.

"If you don't want to be friends…that's fine but…don't tell yourself that's because we don't want to be around you." He told me and turned to the front of the room. I felt tears welling in my eyes at being called out and sat in silence. Within a few minutes class began. I got a book that I'd already read a million times and turned to the page they were on. They started talking about the text and I drifted off in thought. After a few minutes I looked up and saw Jessica glaring at me yet again. I shrank into myself and looked down quickly. I heard Emmett clear his throat, causing me to look up. I saw him glaring back at Jessica who grinned to him shyly and reluctantly turned back to her book. I looked back to him and he looked down to me. He gave me a sincere smile.

"…thanks." I whispered and he nodded.

After a small lesson, the teacher asked us to break off into pairs to discuss the novel and I picked at my nails.

"Emmett! Partners?" that Jessica girl asked and he shook his head.

"Got one already." He motioned to me and she glared at me again, standing beside his desk.

"You again." She commented and I grabbed my book quietly, getting up to move when he grabbed my arm. I shuttered nervously at his touch, his huge hand easily circling my forearm.

"Why don't you run back up to your seat." He snapped at her and she gave him a sad look.

"But…but we always-"

"Not today." He told her and she sulked back to her desk. I looked down to him, his hand still holding my arm firmly yet carefully.

"Sit down, Bella." He insisted and I nervously complied. I kept my eyes down, not able to shake the feelings flooding me.

I hadn't wanted to tell Jasper but…Emmett and Aaron were a lot alike. Both very tall and muscular, same blue eyes, same strong features. Emmett's hair was a bit darker than Aaron's but…they were so similar. I felt nervous being around him…almost…scared even. When he touched me, I felt frozen.

"Hey…don't let her get to you." He told me and I just looked at my book, trying to calm myself. This isn't Aaron…Emmett didn't hurt me. I took a deep breath and nodded, not speaking.

"What did she mean…you again?" He asked and I shrugged, crossing arms on my desk.

"She uh…I took her seat in biology by mistake." I told him, feeling bad for the way I'd been treating him. Just because he looked like Aaron didn't mean he was like him.

"Oh, you sat with Alice…right. Well, she'll get over it." I shrugged.

"It wasn't a big deal. There was an open seat in the back." He nodded but paused for a second.

"You mean for her, right?" I glanced to him and shook my head.

"No…no I moved." I told him and he narrowed his eyes.

"Wait…you moved for her? Why?" he asked and I shrugged again.

"Well…it's embarrassing enough being the new girl…I didn't want to get bitch slapped in the first 20 minutes too." I told him and his eyes turned soft.

"Don't…don't let them push you around, Bella. Jessica Stanley is all talk. She's just a possessive brat to be honest. She follows Alice around like a lost puppy and she likes to try to scare girls away from me." He told me quietly. I eyed him for a moment and snickered.

"Wow…" He nodded and I glanced to her. She kept stealing glances at Emmett. I turned back to him when he spoke.

"Don't make yourself miserable for someone else's benefit." He told me and I watched him. He really was sweet.

"Plus…you pretty much saved me from the most annoying half hour ever." He told me with a nudge and I felt myself stiffen a bit.

"You, ok?" he asked, his face concerned. I looked to my notes and nodded.

"Yea. So…I have some notes here on Jane's temperament…and how it mirrors the harsh environment of the cliffs…"

Emmett POV

I watched as she changed the subject but it didn't go unnoticed to me that she was visibly nervous when I touched her. I watched her thin fingers glide over her book that had been meticulously noted.

"Those are some serious notes." I told her and she smirked.

"Yeah…I'm a bit thorough." I chuckled, grabbing the notebook and flipping through it.

"Wuthering Heights...Hamlet…Dr. Jekel and Mr. Hyde…Lord of the Flies…wow there's a lot in here." I commented, reading through. She glanced to me and nodded, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Yea I don't know…I enjoy it." She told me and I nodded handing her book back to her and she looked up to me and smiled.

"Thanks…for not casting me off." She told me and I nodded.

"Oh, you're not off the hook that easily. You have to suffer through my company." I told her with a grin and she laughed, nodding.

"I'll just have to endure it." She teased and I chuckled. Maybe she really was funny.

We got to work on our assignment which took no time at all with Bella's notes. We chatted a bit and I felt like I was finally speaking to the girl sitting beside me. She was still hesitant, but she didn't try to push me away. I noticed her tiny frame and her nervous eyes…I felt that pull to her again. I just wanted to help any way I could.

Before I knew it, the bell was ringing and we were packing up our books.

"You coming?" I asked her and she nodded.

"Oh…right. We are going to the same people." She said, distracted. We walked together slowly and I tried to keep her talking.

"So how does it feel to be back in Forks?" I asked her and she looked up to me and shrugged.

"It's good. I missed my dad…and Jasper. It feels really good to see them again." I nodded.

"You lived with your mom, right?" I nodded again.

"Yeah, her and her new husband." I 'ahh-ed' at her response.

"How's the new guy?" I asked and she huffed. "That great, huh?" I asked and she rolled her eyes.

"Oh he's a peach." She told me and I chuckled.

"Is that right. Well sounds like you made the right choice then." I told her and she nodded.

"You have no idea." She mumbled but caught it. I let it go…but stored that information for later.

"Bella! How was your first morning? Emmett take good care of you?" Jasper asked and she smiled seeing Jasper.

"It was…good." She replied and I chuckled.

"Yeah, better than my sister. What the hell, Alice." I said and she looked at me defensively.

"What happened?" Jasper asked looking between us and Bella shook her head.

"Nothing happened. Really Alice, we're cool." I gave my sister a pointed look.

"I didn't mean for it to happen! I tried to tell her to get lost." She said and I rolled my eyes.

"I did tell her and guess what? She got lost." I snipped and Alice rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, that's a first." She mumbled and I heard Jasper huff.

"Can one of you please tell me what happened?" he asked, getting annoyed. I shook my head, glancing to an embarrassed Bella.

"Nothing. Jessica just tried to intimidate Bella." he sighed and looked to Bella.

"You alright?" he asked her and she nodded.

"Yeah…guys. Don't make a big deal." She said, looking down. Alice patted her arm.

"Tomorrow you're sitting with me." She told her pointedly and Bella nodded reluctantly.

"Ok." She said quietly and Alice smiled, satisfied with Bella's answer.

"So. What's for lunch guys? Bella where should we go?" she asked and I made nervous eye contact Jasper. I looked to Bella to see her sputtering.

"Oh…I…I um…I don't-"

"Oh, come on! Let us take you for lunch on your first day! It will be fun." She linked Bella's arm and started dragging her to their lockers to grab their coats. She turned to us as we followed, trying to get a word in.

"Guys! Go get your stuff. We'll meet at Emmett's jeep. Go!" I saw Bella nervously lock eyes with Jasper, who helplessly let Alice whisk her away.

"Fuck." He whispered and I sighed.

"I mean…really she's the best one Bella could talk to…ironically." I told him, knowing it was a shame we didn't tell Alice. Jasper cringed.

"Yeah…maybe not telling Alice was a bad idea." He said and I started heading to my locker.

"Just hurry up, the sooner we get out there the sooner Bella's free." I told him and he nodded, jogging down the hall to his locker. I was worried about the torture Bella's was currently experiencing. I just convinced her to try to let us in…I hoped this didn't set her back.

Bella POV

I tried not to make eye contact as Alice dragged me through the hall out of the school. She was really digging to find out where I wanted to eat.

"You must be craving something Bella. What's something you haven't had in forever." I glanced to her as we exited the school, the chilled air nipping at my frame. It was hard to stay warm at this weight.

"Uh…" I saw Emmett and Jasper rushing out of the school, hot on our heels.

"Alice, I don't think-" but she cut Emmett off.

"Guys. Hush. Bella was about to tell me what she wanted…which is proving to be incredibly difficult! Ok, so you were saying, Bella? Something you haven't had in forever but are dying for." She looked at me excitedly and I felt Jasper take my hand and give it a squeeze.

"Well…" I looked nervously to Emmett, his resemblance to Aaron making me a bit scared to answer. His eyes held sincerity though, he seemed…sympathetic? I looked down.

"To be honest…there's this little coffee shop near the station. They have the best lattes and sandwiches." I told her and saw Emmett's face shift into…surprise. I looked to Jasper who beamed at me.

"Oh, I know that place! Joe's, right?" I nodded.

"Yeah…I love that place." I told her and she clapped her hands.

"Then it's settled! Off to Joe's, brother dearest." she told him and he nodded, smiling to me. He seemed…like he knew more than he was letting on. I glanced to Jasper as we walked behind Alice and Emmett to his vehicle. I sighed.

"So…you told Emmett." I commented and he stiffened.

"What? I don't…" I shook my head.

"Don't lie, Jasper. I can tell he knows." He stopped, pulling me to stop too.

"He's…he's my best friend. And…he is also…friends…with the person I know who beat her disorder. He could see the signs. I just…I'm sorry." He finished, hanging his head. I could see Emmett and Alice waiting at Emmett's Jeep and nodded.

"I'm not mad at you." I told him and he looked at me hopefully. "But…it doesn't help me not feel like a charity case. They-"

"Not they…Alice doesn't know." He told me and I felt relief. "And you're not a charity case, Bella. I promise." I sighed hearing Alice yelling at us to hurry up.

"Are you going to be ok?" he asked and I gave him a look but nodded.

"Let's go."

We climbed out of the Jeep and walked up to the coffee house. I couldn't help but smile as we walked into the cozy space, just as I remembered it. There were two groupings of couches, a few tables, and a bar facing the street. I felt a nudge and leaned into him, turning to whisper to Jasper.

"I missed this place." I told him happily. I then noticed Jasper walk around me and jumped to the side, seeing Emmett.

"Sorry, Bella. I didn't mean to scare you." He told me and I felt my face flush deep red.

"Oh God…I'm so sorry…" I told him and he smiled, reaching out to touch my shoulder. I stiffened again and his eyes turned soft.

"Hey…what's the matter? It's really ok." He told me and I was thankful for Jasper walking up to us.

"What's …going on?" he asked and I leaned back and out of Emmett's grasp, backing into Jasper. I saw Emmett look between Jasper and myself confused, settling on me. He smiled gently.

"Bella thought I was you for a second." He told Jasper, who gave my shoulders a gentle pat.

"It's ok Miss Marie. Go look at the menu. It's on me." I nodded and walked away, still wildly embarrassed and uncomfortable. I didn't want any guys touching me at all…let alone someone who looked so much like Aaron.

Emmett POV

"Jasper, man I don't know what I did. She keeps…flinching away like I'm going to hurt her or something." I told him quietly when Bella had reached the counter with Alice. He sighed and glanced to Bella.

"Just don't touch her. I…I can't explain right now. Just…don't." He told me, his face serious.

"Dude…I'd never hurt your cousin." I told him, a bit offended. He shook his head.

"No…I know you wouldn't. I…we will talk later. Ok?" I nodded and followed him to the counter. Bella and my sister had ordered and Jasper and I quickly ordered too. We followed Bella to two loveseats facing each other with a small table between them. I made sure I sat opposite Bella, not wanting to upset her or Jasper again.

"Hey…Bella I'm sorry if I upset you…" I told her and she shook her head.

"No its ok…my mistake." She told me and I glanced to Jasper who sat beside her, eyeing me to drop it. I did and instead looked to what Bella had gotten to eat. She placed a latte down in front of her and turkey sandwich. I felt relief fill me at her choice.

"Um…Jazz?" she asked in a small voice, avoiding looking at Alice and I. He looked to her and she motioned to her sandwich.

"Would…would you share with me?" he looked nervously to his own sandwich and cinnamon bun, and Bella realized he didn't want more than what he already had.

"Hey…I'm a bottomless pit. I don't mind sharing." I told her and she looked to me surprised. She assessed my offer for a second before replying hesitantly.

"Oh…umm…ok. Yeah." I heard Alice scoff.

"Emmett let the poor girl eat her lunch in peace!" she scolded but Bella shook her head desperately

"No! Um…I don't mind…I'm…I'm not that hungry. Thanks, Emmett." She told me, her eyes thankful. She gave me a genuine smile as she cut her sandwich in half and I nodded back with a smile of my own, taking the half from her.

"Oh turkey, is this one good?" I asked her and she nodded shyly.

"Yeah…it's my favourite." I smiled and took a bite.

"Oh damn, that is good. My chicken salad is going to be a disappointment now." She laughed and picked up her half.

"No, that one is good too." She told me and I nodded.

"Did you want a bite?" I asked and she shook her head.

"No…that's ok." She told me and I nodded. I saw Jasper watching me talk to Bella about her food and I could tell he was nervous but I knew what I was doing.

"What kind of latte did you get?" I asked her and she looked to it happily.

"Vanilla." She said with a smile and I nodded, grabbing mine as well.

"Same." She grinned and picked hers up and cheersed me, taking a drink. She then looked to her sandwich. I looked back to the half she gave me and took another bite.

"I wasn't expecting turkey breast." I told her and she nodded, bringing it up to her mouth.

"Yea everyone thinks it will be shaved…that's what makes it so good." She took that first bite and my insides were screaming success. I saw Jasper grin as well, finally taking a bite of his own sandwich. I noticed her sinking into her chair happily, looking at her sandwich. She was chewing slowly, savoring it. I smiled knowing how huge it was that she would eat in front of us. She took another bite as if we didn't even exist. Jasper was keeping Alice preoccupied so she couldn't ask Bella any questions and I focused on Bella. I finished her half and started my own sandwich.

"Oh, yours was definitely better." I told her with a nod. She laughed and shrugged.

"Well…next time ask me. I'm older and wiser." She told me and I laughed loudly. She had perked up now that she was eating.

"Oh, is that right. Ok…I get it. That's fine, I'm going to make you order for me from now on." Her eyes danced with laughter and she took another bite and I gave her a big smile. She turned a bit more serious, but gave me a thankful nod. I could see her opening up a bit and for that I was grateful. She was a tough exterior to crack but I was determined to get her to let her guard down.

Bella was halfway through her sandwich when my sister escaped her conversation with Jasper.

"So, Bella, how did you know about this place?" she asked and I saw Bella nervously look to Alice, putting her food down. I sighed quietly, looking to Jasper. He glanced to Bella as well.

"Uh…growing up I'd get dropped off at the station a lot after being with Jasper or Jacob and my dad would still be working. So I'd come over here and kill time." She told her and Alice nodded.

"It's delicious. There aren't many places in a small town we haven't been to…but this place is great." Bella nodded, taking a sip of her latte.

"So, who's excited for volleyball." Alice asked us, rolling her eyes. We chuckled and Bella looked nervous.

"Volleyball?" she asked and Alice nodded.

"Our PE teacher is intense. Today we are doing volleyball and he has this whole mini tournament lined up all week."

"Oh…fun." Bella said, unenthused.

"Not a volleyball fan?" I asked her and she gave me an amused look.

"Yeah uncoordinated Bella is not someone you want on any sports team." She told me and I chuckled.

"Well we made room for you anyway." I told her and she groaned.

"Why…" Jasper laughed.

"Hey it was our team or Mike and Jessica's team." Jasper told her and she cringed, sipping her drink.

"Oh God…" she commented and Alice laughed.

"Did he talk your ear off in bio?" she asked and Bella nodded, wide eyed.

"Can confirm." I rolled my eyes.

"Wow. He pounces, eh?" I asked Jasper who shook his head. Bella looked to me and gave me a curious look.

"Mike is…very friendly." I told her and she nodded.

"Yea…" She cringed and Jasper put a hand on her knee.

"He didn't…try anything did he?" he asked her and she laughed.

"In the middle of class? I'd hope not. He just…got too close." She told him quietly and I noticed her shutter a bit at the thought. So, it wasn't just me.

"Just ignore him. And if he doesn't take a hint let me know." He told her and she nodded. I glanced to her sandwich, wanting her to take a few more bites.

"Hey, Bella. Want to split a dessert or something?" she looked to me surprised and I saw Jasper throw a look at me. She looked down to her plate and realized she still had food.

"Um…no I don't think so. I think I might just…have a bit more of my sandwich." I nodded, inwardly smiling. I saw Jasper look to me surprised.

"Ok no problem. I'm just going to grab something quick." She nodded and I winked to Jasper as she eyed her sandwich. I went up and ordered a brownie and noticed her glancing up to me, waiting for me to come back. I don't know why but…I felt good knowing she was comfortable eating with me. That was a big step.

I came back and sat down. She picked up her sandwich and immediately took another bite. Jasper started chatting up Alice again and I tried to keep Bella's attention. She ate quickly, clearly hungry. I grinned as she popped the last bite into her mouth and she gave me a confused look.

"What?" she asked and I shrugged.

"Just…glad we came." I said, looking to her empty plate and she seemed to know what I meant. She nodded and glanced to my brownie. I looked down and got cocky.

"Are you sure you don't want a bite?" I asked her and Jasper threw a "don't push it look" but I caught Bella's eye and she seemed to soften.

"Uh…sure. Yeah…just a bite though…" she told me and Jasper looked stunned. He watched as Bella took the fork from me and stabbed off a small piece of brownie. She hesitated this time, it lingering at her lips for a few seconds. But she popped it into her mouth and involuntarily groaned.

"Holy shit that's good." She hissed quietly and I grinned nodding.

"Right? You should take one more." I told her and she contemplated the thought.

"Um…" I gave her a smile and she nodded.

"Ok…but then I'm done. I'm really full…" she told me and I nodded, letting her take one more piece of my brownie with my fork and eat it. She handed my fork back to me and sighed, leaning back in her chair and put her hands on her stomach.

She looked so content.

I took a few big bites of the brownie and it was gone. I watched as Bella stood, looking to Jasper

"I'm just running to the washroom and we can go?" she asked and he nodded, checking the time. Alice stood as well and followed Bella.

Jasper looked at me shocked.

"How the fuck did you do that?!" he whispered and I gave him a shrug.

"You forget I'm seasoned at this." He gave me a look.

"Yea but half hour ago she didn't want to be anywhere near you. Now she's sharing your brownie? Even Charlie and I can't get her to do that…" I nodded.

"The thing is…a lot of people think its best to ignore the food. That's the wrong way to do it. You want to talk about the food. Don't make it a taboo thing. The more she sees how ok you are with what's on her plate the more likely she is to eat it. If she allows herself to feel judged, she will eat less." He nodded.

"Yeah I didn't think what you were doing would work but…wow." I could tell he was happy. "Oh…uh…by the way. Bella knows that you know." He told me and I looked to him confused. He sighed.

"She realized in the lot. She said she could tell you knew." I frowned.

"Shit man…I'm sorry. I just wanted her to feel safe with us." I told him and he nodded.

"It's ok…she wasn't mad. It might actually work out well given that you seem to have gotten through to her." I nodded but held up my hand.

"Don't put a lot of stock into that though. Today worked well, tomorrow could be a disaster. One day at a time." I told him and he sighed. I took a drink of my latte. "But she did amazing. You should be really proud." He nodded

"Yeah I am…she had half an apple this morning too." He told me and I smiled.

"See? I'm assuming this is progress?" he nodded.

"Yeah…on Saturday she told me she couldn't remember when her last meal was." He told me and I felt my chest ache.

"So, this is…really fresh. She's right in the thick of it." I commented and he sighed.

"Yeah…it seems so." I nodded.

"Like I said. One day at a time. Every mouthful is a victory, be it 10 or 1." He smiled.

"Maybe…we hang out like this with Bella regularly? If she responds to you…I don't want to limit that." I nodded, surprised.

"I mean…yeah. We can of course. But…she seems to hate me just a bit." I told him and he shook his head.

"She doesn't hate you." I gave him a look and he laughed.

"I'm serious." I rolled my eyes.

"She looked like I was going to set her on fire and all I did was put my hand on her shoulder." I told him and he looked down.

"Yeah…uh…just…don't get close to her and you'll be fine." He told me and I narrowed my eyes.

"Yeah, you keep saying that. Why?" he looked to me reluctantly and I shook my head.

"Man if you want me to help, I need to know why she doesn't want to be near me." I told him and he sighed.

"Look…I don't know specifics yet…and I don't know how bad it was but…" He looked to the bathroom nervously and back to me.

"Her ex was abusing her." He told me and I felt my face fall.

"W-what?" I stuttered, my chest aching painfully. I watched his eyes drift behind me and I turned to see Alice and Bella coming back. I noticed the way Bella nervously played with her sweater sleeve as she walked, heading back to us. The way she took a step back when I stood up. The way she always tried to maintain a certain distance between us when I moved.

She was afraid of me.

I looked down feeling like a piece of shit. In my mind I knew it wasn't me…that it was probably an every guy thing but…I couldn't help but take it personally. We walked out of the coffee house and to my Jeep.

I watched how Jasper slung his arm around Bella's shoulders and how she didn't even flinch. I noticed how she leaned into him, laughing about something he said. I thought back to when she thought I was Jasper and leaned into me…she was so unbelievably small…

Then the look on her face when she realized it was me. It was like she had been slapped.

I sighed as I climbed into my Jeep, Alice hopping in the passenger seat while Jasper and Bella joked in the back. For some reason…I wanted to help the way Jasper could help. Maybe it was because I took her illness to heart…but all I knew was that I didn't want her to be afraid of me.

I watched as Bella emerged with Alice in her PE clothes. The pants were quite baggy, even after she rolled the waistband. The t-shirt wasn't as bad, looking only about one size too big. I could see just how thin she was, her arms eerily slender. I watched her beeline for Jasper and myself with Alice by her side.

"Ready for some volleyball?" Jasper asked Alice who giggled and rolled her eyes.

"Shut up." She teased and she grabbed a volleyball, tossing it to him. They moved to the side to start bumping the ball back and forth and I looked to Bella. She smirked at them and turned to me.

"Hm." I gave her a curious look and she smiled.

"Looks like someone has a crush." She told me, glancing to the pair. I shot a look at her.

"Hey that's my sister." I told her and she laughed.

"Looks like you should tell Jasper that." She laughed and I looked back to them and saw their flirtatious behaviour back and forth.

'Gross.'

"So I guess you're stuck with me." I told her. I was still nervous about what Jasper had told me at lunch. She glanced to me and shrugged.

"You can pair with someone else if you want." She told me and I shook my head.

"No I'm good." I told her bluntly and she eyed me before nodding and walking over to the ball bin. I looked to Alice and Jasper again, wondering how I didn't see this. Of course now that I think about it, the flirting has been going on for a while. Not that I minded I guess…Alice could do way, way worse than my best friend. I sighed turning, expecting to see Bella but she still wasn't back. I turned fully to see Mike had stopped her at the ball bin. I watched as he nudged her with a grin and she pulled back quickly, crossing her arms around her body. He went to move a piece of her hair off her face and I closed the gap between us quickly. She backed right into my chest trying to avoid his hand and I glared at him.

"You get a ball, Bella?" I asked her and she stiffened against me, but didn't move away. She cleared her throat and shook her head.

"N-not yet." She mumbled and I nodded.

"I wonder why that is." I said with a pointed look at Mike. He glared to me and shook his head.

"Uh…we were talking." He told me and I shrugged.

"And now you're done…funny how that works." He rolled his eyes and looked to Bella. She leaned a bit further into me and I felt kind of…happy that she was trusting me.

"You don't want to be on our team?" he asked her and she looked down uncomfortably.

"Um…well…Emmett already…he already asked me…so…" she stumbled through her words and he huffed, nodding. He grabbed a ball and walked away, leaving Bella standing against me and I got nervous. Would she realize that she was touching me and get scared? I didn't move, just waiting for her to step away. She sighed and slowly turned to face me. She stood closer than she had earlier and gave me an annoyed look.

"Thanks…he uh…he's too…touchy for my liking." She told me and I nodded, scratching my neck.

"Yeah…I could see you were uncomfortable." She nodded and looked up to me.

"I owe you one." she told me and I shook my head.

"Don't be ridiculous…you don't owe me." I told her and she shrugged. I thought back to Jasper's words earlier and took my chance.

"Uh…consider us even after lunch." I told her, hoping she would understand what meant. She looked up to me quickly, eyes nervous. I watched as realization came over her and she nodded.

"Well…I uh…I kind of owe you one for that too." She told me, looking up to me pointedly and I was surprised that she wasn't angry that I brought it up. I shrugged and she gave me a look.

"So…you just...know this stuff then eh?" She asked and I fidgeted a bit.

"Guess so." I told her and she eyed me for a moment, letting it go.

"I see." She told me and I grabbed a ball.

"Is…that ok?" I asked her and she watched me for a moment, searching my eyes for something in particular.

"So far." She told me and I nodded. I don't know why she made me so nervous…but she did.

"You uh…you did awesome." I told her and her resolve faltered slightly. She stopped and stared into my eyes. Hers were very difficult to read. She took a deep breath and nodded.

"Thanks." She told me quietly and I nodded. I motioned for her to follow me back to our spot and we started bumping and volleying back and forth.

I couldn't help but feel like I'd just made huge progress with Bella…and that felt really good.

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