Twilight and its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. I'm just playing around with them.

Lots of thanks to MelissaMargaret for making this pretty, and to anhanninen and xxluvCarlisleEsmexx for prereading.


EPOV

I was clueless. Maybe more than clueless.

Littler girl turned and looked up at me. Her eyes filled with tears, and she started to cry.

I wasn't good with kids. I'd held my nephews all of five or six times between the two of them, and most of those times were forced.

But now littler girl was in my lap, and I didn't want her to cry. She should be happy since Mom had brought them inside and had given them new clothes. The million dollar question was how did I make her happy.

"Hey, kid…it's okay," I said softly. I lifted my hand and placed it on her back, rubbing slowly. I'd seen Rosalie rub her boys' backs so I figured it was worth a try. "Don't cry now, okay? Your…mom will be out soon." I guessed about their relation, but they sort of looked alike. Mom had said daughter earlier too, so maybe we weren't completely wrong.

"Uh…can you drink that juice? It's apple. Just please don't cry."

I continued rubbing her back, hoping for some magic to happen soon.

The combination of my efforts seemed to finally work. Her cries lessened enough for her to slowly lift the cup to her mouth. As she drank her juice, she stared. Just stared. At me. Her eyes kept their contact with mine in that creepy sort of demon way. Not that I thought the girl was a demon, but the unending eye contact was freaking me out.

She finally looked away and began scanning the room. Relieved, I sighed and attempted to relax in Mom's chair. My heart was racing, I assumed from the after effects of adrenaline. I'd been holding a kid for longer than a minute and I hadn't done any damage. There was a first time for everything, apparently.

Even though the littler girl had calmed a bit, I was still mentally begging Mom to come back or for the other girl to come out of the bathroom. Why she'd trusted me with her kid, I had no idea. I was still a stranger even though she knew my name and I'd given them some money. Maybe she was crazy. And the longer she took, the more chance I had to screw up. That would definitely put me on Mom's shit list, but I knew I was there already. I'd probably be there until the day I died.

Not two minutes later, the bathroom door opened, and my sigh of relief was even louder as Girl 1 rushed over to collect her little person. Her eyes darted around quickly, so I pointed over to the leather couch on the wall.

"You can sit," I offered, cringing as my voice made her jump. I didn't know why she was jumpy, but I worried about what would happen when I gave her the coffee. I wasn't cleaning up any spills this morning.

She looked from me to the couch a few times before nodding. "Thanks," she whispered as she sat on the edge of the couch. "Um...the towels are in the bathroom and so are our clothes. I didn't know what to do with them."

"Mom will know. You can ask her when she gets back." I slowly stood and carried the coffee over to her, holding it out for her to take. "Here's your coffee. I...uh...I made it how I like it. Some sugar and some creamer. It's okay if you don't like it. We have more."

She shook her head and cautiously reached for the cup. "I'm sure it's good. Please...you don't have to do that much stuff for us."

When her hand reached mine, I could tell it was much cleaner than before. Definitely an improvement. Her hand was still like an icicle, so I was glad she quickly took the cup to shorten our contact.

The littler girl was watching us both with wide eyes, so I stepped back to sit at the desk. Those big brown eyes were just...creepy.

Girl 1 placed Girl 2 on her lap then took a sip of the coffee. Her eyes closed as she sighed, her lips curling just slightly. Inside, I gave myself a pat on the back. It looked like I did something right. Take that, Mom.

"This is really good," she said before taking another drink. "Thanks again. We'll be out of your way as soon as we finish these. We don't want to be pests."

As I was about to agree with her plan, Mom returned with her arms full of breakfast items and at least two blankets.

"You are no such thing," she insisted, face kind but serious. The face only a mother can pull off. The one that meant I love you, but you'll listen to me if you know what's good for you.

I was very familiar with the face.

"You'll stay with us until the end of the day," she continued. "And then we'll reassess the situation."

Apparently our morning good deed was lasting until the afternoon.

Awesome.

Girl 1's eyes widened as Mom laid the breakfast out on her desk and then went over to cover them with the blankets.

"There," she said as she tucked the blanket in on their sides. "How's that? Are you comfortable?"

"Yes," the girl responded in a whisper, nodding. "But you really don't have to do that much for us. We'll be out of the way soon."

Mom shook her head. "I checked the weather, and that storm won't be letting up anytime soon. Please let us take care of you for today. You both need to be warmed up and fed, and I'd love if you'd allow us the honors."

"But you don't know us," she protested. "You don't even know my name."

Gesturing for me to stand up, Mom came over and pulled the desk chair over to sit in front of the couch. Smiling, she patted the girl's knee. "Well, why don't we start there, darling. I'm Esme Cullen, so what is your name?"

The girl remained silent, biting her lip. I didn't understand what the big deal was. It was just her name.

"Um...Bella," she finally said, glancing up at Mom before looking back at the floor. "I'm Bella. And this is Lucy."

"Nice to meet you, Bella and Lucy. Such beautiful names." Mom reached her hand out to shake Bella's. "I'm so glad you're here with us today. It's scheduled to be a slow day, so you can keep me company. How old is Miss Lucy?"

I leaned against the desk, already bored with the small talk. Apparently Lucy was two years old and liked something called a Dora - whatever that was. I tuned them out and reached for a cheese danish. Mom snapped at me before I could even get my hand on the pastry, somehow always knowing what I was doing.

"Edward," she sighed. "Those are for our guests. And you could be helpful and bring some over to them?"

Sure, it sounded like a question, but it really wasn't. So without another word, I grabbed one of the plates she'd brought up and filled it one of everything. I took it over to Girl 1...Bella...and handed it to her.

She accepted it with a smile, actually looking up at me. "Thank you, Edward," she whispered.

"Uh...you're welcome. Need anything else?"

She hesitated but then nodded. "A napkin?"

I searched the table eventually finding the napkins and took those over to her, too. Thinking my good deeds were finally over, I returned to the desk and leaned back. Of course, my mother had something else in mind.

"Edward, can you meet me in the hallway?" she asked, gesturing toward the door before turning back to Bella. "Bella, we'll be right back, all right? You two can enjoy your breakfast for a few minutes in peace."

I followed Mom into the hallway, and she quietly shut the door behind her.

"What's up, Mom?"

She shook her head sadly. "Edward, there's no way I can send them back out into the cold. I just couldn't live with myself if I did. So I'm about to go call your father. I want to bring them home with us."

"But you just met them!" I protested. "She could be a psychopath or something. It's not like taking a stray dog or something home."

"Edward Anthony Cullen!" she whisper-yelled, glaring at me. "That's the second time today you've ignored your raising, and I won't have you do it again. You might be twenty-five but I know I still scare you. And you're definitely old enough to know better than to judge someone based on circumstances."

"But Mom...I'm not judging her. I'm just saying..."

"What you're saying is inaccurate. Were you listening in there? Bella's so passive, she couldn't hurt a fly. And she has a daughter in case you haven't noticed. Since you obviously claim to be an expert you tell me – do psychopath's usually care about children?"

I shrugged. I didn't know, but I did know that I wasn't ready to bring these girls home with us. What if they stole something? Or just wanted to use us for our money and name? I'd had too many girls proposition me just because I was a Cullen, so I knew it could happen.

"And another thing," Mom continued. "Did you hear sweet Lucy's cough? I want your father to examine her because it doesn't sound good. If they've been out in the cold for any length of time, it could have made whatever's wrong that much worse."

I hadn't noticed any cough, but I nodded. There was no way I was going to win this one. Two homeless girls were coming home with us today.

Unless...

"Well, what if Dad says no?"

She gave me a pointed look. "He won't say no. Stop trying to get out of this. Bella and Lucy will be coming home with us today. Now I just need to find Alice to ask her –"

"Ask me what?" I heard Alice ask, right before she stepped up beside Mom.

I rolled my eyes. She was too much like Mom sometimes. And knowing Alice, she'd be on her side without even giving me a chance to explain my point of view. But that was standard for her. Since I was the youngest, she was the self proclaimed boss of me, and since she was the only girl, she got away with way more than us boys. Not that she used it for good anymore. No, now she had to agree with everything Mom said.

"Alice," Mom said, smiling. "Where were you, dear?"

"Sorry I'm late. The snow is picking up, so traffic wasn't the best. And I stopped for some Starbucks. Now what did you want to ask me?"

"I need you to find some things for me. Clothes, shoes, a car seat...probably a lot more than that."

As she explained the whole story to Alice, I took a step back and assumed my position against the wall. Glancing at my watch, I sighed. It wasn't even close to lunch yet. The day was dragging.

The next thing I knew, I was being punched in the arm.

"What the hell, Alice?" I stood up straight, rubbing my arm. "What was that for?"

"Charity jar, Edward. And that's for being a moron. Those girls need somewhere to go, and there's nothing wrong with them coming home with us. Get your head out of your butt."

"Fine, fine," I mumbled. "Just don't blame me if something crazy happens."

"Nothing crazy will happen, son," Mom assured me. "They're two innocent girls, and we're going to help them. I'm going to call your father now and probably make a decision about the weather. If it's supposed to get any worse, we might leave here early just in case."

Well, at least that was one good thing I might get out of this crazy day. I didn't want to be here any longer than necessary today. There was no way to know what else I'd do wrong or get in trouble for.

As Mom headed down the hallway, Alice turned toward the door. When she started to open it, I placed my arm out to stop here.

"Wait, Alice. These girls are scared, so keep your Starbucks energy level down."

She scoffed. "I know how to handle myself delicate situations. Unlike you." She went to punch me again, but this time, I was fast enough to move away. "Thank you for moving," she said with a sweet smile, entering the room before I could caution her again.

Alice was good. And hopefully she wouldn't be too much for them to handle. I might not have wanted the girls to come home with us, but that didn't mean I wanted Alice to scare them back to the street.

With a deep breath, I followed my sister into the room. Maybe I'd actually be the one to fix things now.


A/N: Thank you all so much for reading! I'm still blown away by your sweet words and support. It really means so much.

I'm so sorry I didn't get to reply to many reviews this time. I've had a crazy school week, and I figured an earlier-than-planned updated would be appreciated more than a review reply. Sorry if I was wrong. ;)

Next update will be in two weeks, and I'll try to post a teaser on twitter next week.

Thanks again for reading!