A/N: If you don't like the characters or plot, then don't read. This is slightly AU as fair as Lana and their ancestry and stuff like that. But the main premise will not change.

DISCLAIMER: I only own my OC, nothing else.

WORD COUNT: 2, 652

Chapter 5

Determination.

Oh no.

Oh crap.

Crappity crappy crap-crap.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" Bella asked.

Lana inwardly screamed, "WE WERE LITERALLY CAUGHT SPYING ON THEM AND YOU WANT TO ACTUALLY ACT LIKE WE DIDN'T JUST INVADE THEIR PRIVATE CONVERSATION?! BELLA~!" Edward cringed slightly as he started over to them and Lana sighed dramatically, slowly creeping backwards but Bella's hand smacked against her back, holding her in place, making the younger Swan hang her head in exasperation.

Damn it, Bella.

"What?" Edward asked, looking like he really didn't want to be near them.

'You and me both, buddy.'

"H-how did you get over to me so fast?" Bella looked up at the boy who for a minute, looked shocked before he composed himself.

"I was standing right next to you, Bella." Edward muttered, a small, barely-there grin played on his lips, like he was trying to play off his reaction to her. A perfectly sculpted brow lifted upon Lana's forehead as she watched him.

"No, you were next to your car, across the lot." Bella denied, her voice conveying her frustration, her expression very much the same.

"No I wasn't." Edward tried to write it off with a scoff, his smile getting a bit bigger, showing off pearly white teeth that made Lana feel incredibly anxious, like he was unsheathing a very dangerous weapon.

"Yes you were." Bella pressed on and his lips closed over his mouth, it made Lana feel a little safer, even though she was starting to feel annoyed at Bella's prying.

"Bella, enough." Lana said, reaching for her sister's arm, but she pulled back, wanting answers from the boy.

"Bella, you hit your head, I think you're confused." Edward countered.

"I know what I saw." Bella continued, her body becoming rigid.

"And what exactly was that?" Edward asked, he was challenging her.

Bella was thrown for a second before her jaw clenched. "You stopped the van. You pushed it away with your hand." Lana rolled her eyes, she was obviously concussed.

"Well, nobody's going to believe you." Edward more than confirmed, making Lana's head whip to him, her eyes wide.

"I wasn't going to tell anybody," Bella went on to say, her voice becoming soft. "I just need to know the truth."

Lana remained silent. She had no goddamn idea what she was doing there, it was another private conversation in which she was the third wheel.

"Can't you just thank me and get over it?" Edward rudely spat, glaring at Bella.

"Watch it, Cullen." Lana spat back, giving the older boy a stunning glare of her own.

"Thank you," Bella quickly said, obviously submitting to the boy's will.

"You're not going to let this go are you?" Edward asked.

"No." Bella blatantly answered, making Lana sigh loudly.

"Well then, I hope you enjoy disappointment." Edward parted with those words, leaving a pissed off Bella and an exasperated Lana.

(..)

The next morning, Bella told her all about her dream.

"Well, that's not really weird."

"What do you mean?" Bella asked, looking at her little sister for a split second before turning her eyes back to the road.

"You have a crush on him." Lana stated. "The signs are there." Lana said, having left her bike at home considering they had an excursion.

"Shut up," Bella laughed, smacking Lana's jean covered thigh.

Lana giggled, "just sayin' Bells. Maybe you have a thing for him." She shimmied her shoulders back and forth, making Bella laugh harder.

"Be quiet or I'll throw you in the wagon." Bella threatened jokingly.

"Yeah right, like you have the strength to toss me around." Lana grinned. "But the way you demanded an explanation from him. I've never seen you do that to anybody."

"I want answers, Lana."

"Well, I'd like some too. How can he do that to a van? Let alone your truck?"

"That's what I want to find out."

(..)

As they got to school, Bella stayed by her truck while Lana went to give the signed excursion papers to Mr. Molina.

As Lana turned, she saw Mike talking to Bella. "Oh sweet baby Jesus." She whispered, tip-toeing around, trying to listen in on their conversation.

"About what?" Bella asked, obviously confused, having turned her attention back to Mike.

"Oh, Bella!" Lana face-palmed, "this is brutal."

"Eavesdropping is rude, y'know?" A familiar velvety voice spoke from behind her and she rolled her eyes.

"Sneaking around isn't exactly decent either. You're just as bad as me, Eddie." Lana taunted, hearing him huff.

"It's Edward."

"Whatever you say, Eddie. Now shush, I'm trying to eavesdrop. Go away." Lana waved her hand behind her, not looking over at him as she strained to listen.

"Oh, prom. . . dancing. ."

"Oh, dear Lord, she's dragging the poor kid's misery out." Lana pinched the bridge of her nose, seeming like she had a headache.

"Not such a good idea for me." Lana nodded imperceptibly, she knew her sister's capacity to fall when there was nothing but a flat surface and her two left feet. Dancing was not a good idea. "Uh, I have something that weekend, anyway. Lana and I are going to Jacksonville that weekend."

'Nice save, Bella! Wait, what?!' Lana thought to herself. 'Crap!'

"You can't go another weekend?" Mike questioned her.

"Non-refundable ticket." Bella quickly answered, her quick thinking only winning herself points.

'You're dead to me.' Lana thought viciously.

"You should ask Jessica." She said, "I know she wants to go with you." Mike looked over to Jessica who gave a little wave, making Lana smile gently.

'I still hate you, Bella. But, good job.'

Mr. Molina started rambling on about how 'green is good' so Lana jogged to Bella, linking their arms together. "You're dead to me." Lana hissed.

"What? Why?" Bella asked.

"Jacksonville? Non-refundable ticket? Why was I included?!" Lana smacked her sister's arm.

"Hold on, you were listening in?" Bella asked, raising her eyebrows at her little sister, who stopped, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

"Uh, no?" Lana hoped, knowing she screwed up.

"Lana." Bella warned.

"I'm not saying anything on the grounds that what I say next could incriminate me." Lana rattled off, running to the other bus, narrowly missing her sister's flying ninja hand as she jumped into the bus her friends had boarded, leaving Bella to catch up. Lana grabbed a seat in the back, stretching herself on the two seats and she opened her advanced Chemistry book and started to read, learning all about new substances and chemicals that could create some of the most beautiful results and it was an effecting way for her to tune out Bella, who shoved Lana's feet from the other seat and plonked herself down.

(..)

"And now, I'm going to make a steaming cup of compost tea." Angela and Jessica had their arms linked with Lana as they spoke happily, not really listening to the teacher, just chatting away. They considered the younger Swan to be more of a friend than Bella, considering the older sister was a bit more unapproachable.

Tyler took the 'tea' and looked at it in amazement while Mike walked to Jessica, looking at her with new eyes. "Um, Jessica, can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked her nervously.

Jessica straightened, speechless now and she nodded as Angela and Lana murmured their 'meet you, later''s and took off in the other direction, giggling. "I wish Eric would do that." Angela whispered to Lana, looking at the back of the Asian boy's head.

"You should ask him, Angela." Lana breathed back, so they didn't alert Eric or anybody else to their conversation.

"Me?" Angela pointed to herself, looking incredibly self-conscious.

"Angela!" Lana looked at the girl who refused to meet her eyes, "Angie." She said, using her nickname and she looked Angela in the eyes. "Take control. You are a beautiful, strong confident woman who will not take no for an answer."

"I am?" The older girl asked, pulling a lock of black hair behind her ear.

"You are." Lana confirmed.

"I just need a few days, to get prepared."

"Do what you gotta do. If you want him to stop having the 'new girl' crush, make him notice you. But remember to just be yourself, he'll like you for who you are." Lana slung her arm around Angela's shoulders.

"How do you know so much? You're like two years younger than me, since I'm the same age as Bella."

"From what I've learnt from my big brain, is that men are much less superficial than us women give them credit for. I can see that Eric is just a little, eh, confused at the moment. He's got his sights set on my sister because she's the new girl, a very pretty new girl with a 'suffer-in-silence' and mysterious attitude about her. A lot of guys like the mystery." Lana said as they walked outside, seeing the guys playing with the large box of worms. "A~and the large box of creepy, dirty worms."

"Hey, Angela, Lana! Look!" Tyler ran up to them with a stick, a large worm hanging from it.

Well, it didn't take long for both girls to run the other way.

Lana only caught a glimpse of Bella talking to Edward before she rounded the corner with Angela next to her and Tyler hot on their heels.

(..)

Bella didn't talk all the way home, hitting her steering wheel every five seconds, to the point where Lana put her headphones in, turned up her music and dozed off to the soothing rock of the truck.

When they got inside the house, both girls found their father sitting at the dining table, to which Lana set her bag down next to her seat, before hugging her father, giving him a kiss on the cheek before taking the plate, looking at the chips before leaving the chip packet which was still full and set the plate in the sink. She knew he was finished.

"Well, it's your fault, you shouldn't have told her about the almost accident." Bella said, obviously annoyed but their father didn't notice or didn't comment.

"I suppose you're right, she always did know how to worry." Charlie took a swig of beer while Lana sat on the chair, yawning while Bella poured herself a glass of water. "She seems different. She seems happy." He observed. Bella swallowed the water, so Charlie continued, "Phil seems like an alright guy."

"Yeah, yeah he is." Bella said, before storming off.

"Alright." Charlie looked at Lana, waiting for an explanation.

Without looking up, she answered, "don't ask me."

(..)

"Hey, Harley. You coming to La Push?" Mike asked as she sat down with her tray, taking a bite out of a carrot stick, sitting next to him.

"Hell yeah! I'm gonna kick your ass on the waves." Lana make a swirly motion with her arms, making everyone laugh as Mike countered, making a perfect surfer pose.

"Hey," Eric said as Bella stood in front of the table, "La Push, baby. You in?"

"Should I know what that means?" Bella asked, making Lana roll her eyes. Yeah, of course she wouldn't know.

"La Push beach, down at the Quileute Rez, we're all going tomorrow." Mike explained, patting Lana's shoulder.

"And there's a big swell coming in." Jessica added.

"And I don't just surf the internet!" Eric got up as Mike struck another surfer pose before Tyler pulled him down, and they launched into a conversation.

"Eric, you stood up once, and it was a foam board," Jessica pointed out, making Lana chortle.

"But there's whale watching too. Come with us." Angela pleaded their case.

"La Push, baby. It's La Push." Eric continued.

"Okay, I'll go if you stop saying that, alright?" Bella teased, making the rest of them laugh, before walking to the salad bar, grabbing a tray.

"Seriously dude, it's creepy man." Mike said, throwing a piece of bread in the air and catching it with his mouth.

"What, that's what it's called." Eric said, dumbfounded.

"I've been there a few times with one of the guys that lives on the Rez. I know a good place to get parking, pretty close to the beach." Lana took a bite of the sandwich as they all looked at her.

"You know a guy there?" Mike asked, all of them suddenly intrigued.

"Yeah, childhood best-friend. Why?" Lana asked, eyeing them all suspiciously.

"It's just that we've all heard you talking about a boy on the Rez, we didn't know that you spent a lot of time with him." Jessica explained, her tone now lower, indicating there was romance brewing.

"Stop thinking like that, nothing is going on. Jeez, I'm fifteen, people." Lana laughed and the rest of the group followed with her infectious sound. Mike tapped Lana's shoulder and as she turned her attention toward him, to see his finger pointing in the direction of the salad bar. "Wha-" She started, but her question trailed off as she saw Edward talking to her sister.

Wasn't he the one that she'd enjoy disappointment? Why has his mood suddenly changed?

Bella turned toward him, engaging back and Lana rolled her eyes. Her sister's become one of those starry-eyed girls, already.

Lana sighed, straining to listen in.

"-what if I'm the bad guy?" She heard Edward say to her sister, making her fists clench and she almost threw her tray down and ran after him, intending on inflicting serious pain, if he was threatening her sister. But she kept her head down and tried to look nonchalant.

"You're not." Bella reassured, making Lana clench her teeth, "I can see what you're trying to put off, but I can see it's just to keep people away from you. It's a mask."

'Wow, Bells. How very original of you.' Lana sniped mentally.

"Why don't we just. ." Bella took a breath, "hangout?" Lana face-palmed. "Everybody's going to the beach. Come. I mean," Bella tried to lighten the mood, "have fun."

"Which beach?" Edward asked, his face soft. Lana rolled her eyes.

"La Push." Bella said, now excited that he was considering her offer.

Edward backed off, "I don't know."

The chorus of Hallelujah sang in Lana's mind.

"Is there something wrong with that beach?" Bella asked, Lana knew she was hoping that he'd say no and come with them.

Edward turned to look at the group who suddenly turned back, except for Lana who was a master in espionage, so she kept her head down and ate like she normally would, her mind blank as she looked at Jessica but her senses were tuned to Edward and Bella's conversation. "It's just a little crowded." He offered as his explanation.

'What is he hiding?' Lana asked herself, her eyes lifting upward to see Edward walking back to his table, but he was staring at her too, but this time, her eyes were conveying a message to him.

Hazel eyes blazed, the green and the brown swirled together.

'Stay away from my sister.'