Chapter 4

The next morning brought Morticia much turmoil. What had that dream last night meant? She never saw any people in her previous dreams so why see someone now? And why Bella Swan? Why was she seeing her at all?

She was pondering this as she began to make herself a cup of coffee when Tony stomped down the stairs in full uniform. He was shocked to see her up and in the kitchen so early.

"Hey, kiddo. You're up early." He said as he went to grab a cup for himself.

"Uh, yeah. I couldn't sleep last night." She muttered to herself as she leaned against the countertop, gazing outside the window.

Tony chuckled, "I'll bet. You were probably so excited about this weekend and all the trouble you and little Alice Cullen will get into."

'Oh, that's right. The slumber party.' She thought to herself as she took a sip from her cup.

"Uh, yeah. Alice is really excited to play Barbie, I guess." She muttered quietly, unsure about how to continue the conversation.

It was still so weird to have Tony as a father figure. In her reality, she didn't have an uncle named Tony but rather an aunt named Linda on her mom's side who she barely spoke to because she lived so far away.

But, for some reason, Tony seemed to have the same mannerisms as her dad back home did. Her father always used the same coffee mug and always sat at the end of the table with his back to the wall just like Tony. Come to think of it, he even scrunched up his nose when he was confused too.

Speaking of facial expressions, currently, Tony's expression could resemble a cartoon lightbulb moment.

"Oh, I just remembered! Chief Swan told me yesterday that his daughter is moving in with him! Isn't that great?" He said cheerfully.

Morticia quickly put on an excited persona, "That's awesome! I bet Chief Swan is so happy!"

'Everything is going according to plan then,' She thought to herself happily.

"But that's not the best part! She's moving in at the beginning of September, right before homecoming, Isn't that great? Who knows, maybe you guys will be best friends just like you used to when you were little."

Outside Morticia was smart to keep her smile and cheerful demeanor but on the inside, she was freaking the fuck out.

'WHAT? She's moving in this soon? Edward just got slightly used to my delicious smelling ass and now he's gonna have another singer's scent shoved down his throat. Oh, this is so not good. I need to call Alice, ASAP.' As soon as the thought entered her head, the landline began to ring on the wall beside her.

'Man, I almost forgot about these things.' She chuckled as she grabbed the receiver.

As soon as the phone reached her ear, Alice's cheerful voice greeted her.

"Don't worry about it. I told Edward about the change in plans and we'll discuss a game plan on Friday."

Morticia sighed, "Thanks Alice, you're a lifesaver, literally. Yeah, let's discuss it Friday."

Alice giggled then replied, "just a heads up, you don't need to drive to school today."

Morticia furrowed her brow in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Take a look out your window in 3...2...now." At that moment a horn honked just outside the kitchen window.

Morticia turned to see a very familiar Volvo, with its even more familiar driver leaning against it.

Shaking her head, Morticia said into the phone, "Alice, why is your brother standing in my driveway?"

The man in question, who most definitely heard her, waved at her smartly.

"He said something about a game of yours not being over or something. Word of advice, I'd just go with it because if last night's pacing said anything, he's wound up more than a drum." Alice's voice chirped.

Morticia just giggled as she saw Edward's smile turn into a sour frown.

"I'll see you at school soon, Alice," Morticia said, hanging up the phone once she saw Edward making his way towards the front door.

'What the hell is he doing? Tony's here?!' She frantically thought as the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" She cried as she practically ran to the door.

As soon as she saw his smug face she growled, "What the fuck are you doing here?"

He just grinned widely before replying, "Why, I'm giving you a ride to school. As Alice said, our game wasn't finished, remember?"

Morticia was too flustered to give him proper response so she just settled for giving him a dumbstruck look.

Tony must have been curious as to who was at the door because he called from the kitchen, "Who's at the door, Tisha?"

She knew there was no way that she could quietly slip this past him. 'Damn cop instincts and I'm a shitty liar,' She said to herself as she opened the door wider.

"It's Edward Cullen. He decided to stop by to give me a ride to school because we have a project we're supposed to start next week and he wanted to get a head start on it." She hoped that was s good enough story as Edward glided past her into the foyer of the house and met Tony as he walked through the opening to the kitchen.

Edward and Tony shook hands after a very long staring contest. To Morticia, it looked like one of those scenes on the discovery channel where two alpha males were sizing each other up.

"Cullen, huh. You Doctor Cullen's boy?" Tony immediately had the intimidating dad's voice going on.

'Sweet Jesus, this is either going to be hilarious or go very wrong, very quickly.' She thought as she took in the sight in front of her.

Edward nodded, "Yes, sir. Carlisle is my father."

Tony seemed to size Edward up as he spoke, "I thought all his boys were seniors this year? How did you end up paired with Morticia? She's just a junior, you know?"

'Gee, thanks Tony, way to make a girl feel special.' She thought glumly.

Edward, having sensed her ire, quickly jumped to her defense- much to Morticia's surprise.

"Actually, Morticia is in many advanced classes and I'd wager that she could surpass even the smartest in the senior class. I'm actually a junior myself, it's my brothers, Emmett and Jasper who are the seniors." He gave a quick wink to Morticia as she looked dumbfounded once again.

"Oh, well. That's alright then. You kids have fun, and drive safe." Tony visibly seemed to relax after Edward's admission.

'If only he knew he was 109 and not 17, wonder how this conversation would go then?' She thought with a slight bite in her tone.

"Ok! As much as this testosterone fest is fun to watch, Edward and I need to get going, or else we will be late. Tell Caleb I'm sorry I forgot to tell him I couldn't take him to school!" Morticia finally cut in, annoyed at their blatant disregard of her.

"It was nice to meet you, Deputy Addams," Edward called out cordially as Morticia all but dragged him out of the front door.

She could feel Edward's grin as she stomped her way to his passenger side door.

"You have no idea the trouble you just cause me." She growled at him over the roof of the car.

He smiled that crooked grin in return, "I have no idea what you mean...partner." He gracefully got in the driver's seat as Morticia's ire grew.

"He probably thinks we're dating or at least you're trying to get into my pants! Now I'm going to have to come up with an extensive cover story about this damn nonexistent project! Ugh, why the hell did you think this was s a good idea?" She all but spat at him as she settled in the passenger seat.

Edward took a moment to let her settle herself before replying, "Well I can't say he doesn't have some suspicions but he is much happier that I showed up instead of Emmett. If Emmett had shown up, your uncle would've had a heart attack."

His soothing voice did ease her frown slightly. "Be that as it may, now he's gonna be curious and curiosity leads to gossip, which spreads like wildfire in this town." She audibly groaned, pressing her hands to her face.

'So much for keeping a low profile.' She thought to herself, sourly.

"If you think the gossip from your uncle would be bad, then I won't put the thought in your head of what will happen once we pull into the high school." He said cheekily as they sped down the road at what she was sure was not the speed limit.

"You son of a bitch. I can't believe you're doing this to me. I'm gonna get you back so hard for this, just you wait your sparkly ass." She threatened, infuriated at his blatant disregard for her well being in this situation.

'Talk about throwing me to the fucking wolves.' She growled out her thoughts. 'Sitting at their lunch table was one thing but being chauffered to school by him was another. What's next, he gives me his letterman jacket?'

Edward laughed at her expression, "I promise I won't let you get ambushed! Alice assured me that you'd be fine and besides it's fun to see you get so riled up. You're cute when you're angry."

Morticia continued to glare daggers at the side of his face. 'Cute, huh. See how cute I am when I get Emmett to pummel your ass.'

"Just tell me if anybody is planning a Carrie moment and we'll be fine." She finally responded as she settled her gaze out the window.

Edward must have sensed her residual anger and was quick to try to diffuse the situation.

"I'm sorry if I upset you with my gesture or actions. I thought this would be a good time to try to be in an enclosed space with you and when Alice said she saw no problems I assumed you'd be fine with it. I should've taken your feelings into account." His voice was solemn and she knew that he really meant his apology.

Sighing loudly, Morticia met his gaze. "Alright. I accept your apology but don't try to sugar coat anything. You are totally doing this so you can get your fan club to quit asking for autographs."

Her response brought out another smile, "Yes, You caught me. I plan to use you as my scapegoat so I can finally stop being chased in the hallways." He said in a dull tone.

As their eyes met, Morticia couldn't help but wonder where this Edward had been hiding. In the book's portrayal, he seemed so stoic and serious, but the man beside her was so witty and playful. It was like a full 180 to what she expected.

It wasn't long before they were pulling into the parking lot and as she expected, as soon as they stepped out of the car, all eyes were on them.

'it's like my first day all over again.' She thought as Edward moved to her side.

"If it makes you feel any better, only a majority of people are thinking about if we're a couple, but not all of them." He murmured in her ear. Morticia just shook her head and turned slightly to face him.

"Thanks but it doesn't. Come on, let's just grin and bear it." She said as she turned to head to the front doors when she felt a weight settle on her lower back. Edward had put his hand on her back and was guiding her through the crowd that had gathered upon their entrance.

'Well, that's not going to help the rumors.' She thought with a grimace as she kept her head low.

After what felt like ages, they finally made it to the front doors.

"Thanks for helping me through the first round but I think I have to brave the next wave on my own. Wish me luck, I'm sure I'll see you at lunch." She said but didn't wait on his response as she quickly turned and all but ran into the building. There was no way that she was going to risk the rumor mill seeing him walk her to class, which she knew was going to be his next move.

As expected, the next few classes were literal hell for her. Every class she walked in, as soon as she entered it went dead silent and all heads turned to her. She was waiting for somebody to man up and ask her about it but shocker...nobody approached her. Instead, they chose to whisper behind her back and send her pointed or unsure glances.

Thankfully, Alice kept her sane with her delightful commentary of the conversations around them.

"Lauren and Jessica are about to go out of their minds wondering if you were able to snag Edward. They are like two angry kittens, it's quite funny actually." Alice told her with a snicker. "And don't get me started on the boys. Edward is getting some serious threats from Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley. Even Eric Yorkie is sending some not so nice suggestions his way."

Morticia groaned and lay her head on her desk. "Kill me now."

Alice giggled, "Don't worry. Lunch won't be too terrible. I fear that Edward may be challenged to a few duels though."

That made Morticia's head immediately shoot up. "Alice, please tell me you're kidding." The pixie just laughed at her mortified expression, not giving her an answer.

'I wonder if a bus could just randomly run me over in the hallway.' She wondered as they made their way to the lunchroom.

Rather than leading Morticia to the Cullen's table, Alice steered her to a table next to their usual where Edward sat all by himself.

"Edward asked to sit with you by himself today. That is if you both can play nice without killing each other." She told Morticia with a sly grin.

"I make no promises." Morticia groaned as she went to sit across from the Bronze haired vampire.

"Hello, did you have a nice day?." He greeted her sweetly, but Morticia heard the teasing undertone in his voice.

Morticia gave him an unimpressed look, "As if you don't know what hell I've been put through today."

Edward chuckled slightly, "You should hear some of the thoughts people are having right now. I fear I may have to fight for your hand with pistols at dawn."

Morticia gave him a withering glare, "Don't you fucking dare! As if I would let that happen. I am not some damsel in need of men fighting for her. I'll throat punch those pencil dicks before you can even yell 'BOO'."

He seemed impressed at her response, which prompted a sense of pride within Morticia.

'Yeah, Eddie boy, I'm not your defenseless damsel like Bella Swan...Speaking of Bella.' She knew she had to voice her thoughts to Edward about this new development, even if they agreed to speak about it tomorrow night.

"Look, about the Bella situation-" She started but Edward cut her off.

"We've already discussed it. Alice doesn't see her arriving until well after I've controlled my thirst. I survived the car ride with you just fine, so I see no need to worry about Chief Swan's daughter just yet." He said soothingly as if the entire situation couldn't yield disastrous consequences.

"Even if that were the case, there's still the concept that she wasn't supposed to show up until after spring break! It's barely into the fall semester and she's already decided she wants to move in with her father? Edward, this could mean the timeline is seriously screwed up. I can't help you if that is the case. I only know what Stephenie Meyer wrote in her books. Anything else that happens is way out of my league." She sighed, rubbing her temples as she could feel the migraine getting ready to start.

Edward gave her a curious look and in an instant he was in the chair beside her, lightly touching her temples with his ice-cold fingers. Morticia glanced around, shocked that he would use his super-speed so flippantly in public, but thankfully nobody seemed to notice anything. Everyone else was immersed in their own table's conversations.

When she turned back to look curiously at the man beside her, he gave her an intense stare.

"Weren't you the one who said that I need to have more fun and stress less? Unless Alice says there is a need for worry then I won't waste time thinking about it. Besides, I need to put all my efforts into finishing our game, since you seem so keen on distracting me from it." His voice became very low at the end as he finally moved his fingertips from her face, but nor before he traced them lightly across her cheekbone, leaving an icy trail in their wake.

"Distracting? I can distract you? You must be joking." She said as she shook herself out of the dazzling haze he put her through.

He gave her that smile again before ducking his head as if listening for something.

"Morticia, you really have no idea the impact you have on people, do you?" He said after turning back to face her.

Not one to take compliments easily, she scoffed, "Yeah, as if I'm not the Vampire with Dazzling as a superpower. I am a simple human, sweetie. Nothing special here."

He just gave her another intense stare before sighing, "At least do me the favor of humoring me a tad?"

Morticia faked time to think it over before slyly replying, "I suppose if you insist to continue this little game."

He grinned like a little boy that was given permission to play with his new toy. "Well then, I believe we left off at our favorite seasons, so let me change the pace and ask about your musical preference."

Morticia knew he was going to ask her about this and decided to humor him even more, "I know you want me to say classical, Piano man, but I have to say I love some rock n' roll."

She could visibly see him mock a cringe and place his hand over his heart.

"That hurts, that really...hurts." He groaned, sadly.

Morticia giggled before continuing, "Although I have to say, Beethoven's 'Moonlight Sonata' is very much my scene, so I think there's hope for me yet."

He seemed to perk up after that news and decided to continue with his questioning. They started out pretty mediocre. What her favorite movies were, her favorite foods, but eventually it evolved to more worldly topics like her aspirations in life and where she wanted to travel to.

"I've always wanted to see the gloomy, dark shores of Ireland and Scottland. To see the old ruins of the castles that stood long ago. It sounds so mysterious, you'd be crazy not to go." She said with a grin. Edward seemed to take that in but before he could ask anything else, the bell rang and they had to hurry to their next class.

It wasn't until after her final class of the day that Lauren finally decided to confront her about Edward. She was standing at her locker placing her things into her bag when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

Morticia turned to see Lauren flanked by Jessica and another random girl on each arm. Lauren had a sneer that would make a Banshee jealous.

"So, it looks like the new girl nabbed Edward Cullen. What did you do to get him to notice you, offer him a blowjob in the bathroom like the piece of trash you are?" Lauren said, her voice full of hate and malice.

Morticia couldn't contain her laughter at the confident looks Jessica and the other girl were giving Lauren as if congratulating her on her little speech.

"What are you laughing at, freak?" The unknown girl's nasally voice echoed in the nearly empty hallway.

Morticia, finally composing herself replied, "Really? That's what you come up with? You had all day to come up with a witty response and all you came up with was me giving Edward Cullen a blowjob to get him to notice me? Wow, no wonder he passed on your ass. You have no fucking creativity." She slammed her locker door shut after she finished.

"Also, just a tip for you girls in the future, the best way to get a guy to notice you is to 1. to not have the fucking personality of a blow-up doll and 2. to use your goddamn brains once in a while! Seriously, if the best thing you can do is slut-shame me, you're more pathetic than I anticipated. Bye, bitches." Morticia continued, flipping them the bird as she strolled down the now deserted hallway.

She could hear Lauren's screech as she all but floated down the hallway.

'That's what you get for trying to slut-shame, bitch. You can take your little posse and shove it up your ass.' She thought happily as she entered the parking lot to see the Cullens standing by their respective vehicles and Alice was nearly vibrating with excitement.

As soon as Morticia reached the Volvo, Alice exploded, "Oh my god. That was the best thing I've ever seen! Rose has been wanting to tell her off for years! You were awesome."

Emmett chimed in with, "Hell yeah! The little human's got some fight in her! Can we keep her Rosie?"

Rosalie just gave him a dull look and slapped his shoulder, "Shut up Emmett," she said teasingly.

Morticia just shrugged nonchalantly, "The bitch had it coming! I mean really, slut-shaming and then to try and intimidate me with the little posse? I take offense just at the thought. I'm a chick that runs with vampires, did she really think that would scare me."

That seemed to get a laugh out of everybody present, even Jasper, who still looked wary around her.

"Hey, Jazzy boy. Give me a heads up will you if she's feeling murderous, alright? I want to get a head start on my defense." Morticia ordered teasingly to the southern man.

Jasper just smiled lightly and tipped an invisible hat in her direction, "Will do ma'am," he said with sincerity that put them all into fits of laughter again.

Edward took the initiative this time to grab Morticia's attention by leading her towards the Volvo.

"You'll have plenty of time to continue with your plan of attack on Lauren and her squad tomorrow." He murmured into her ear as he opened her door for her.

"I bet it killed you that I didn't let you open my door this morning." She said knowingly as he visibly deflated.

"I knew you'd catch onto that." He said with a shake of his head then gave her a dazzling smile, "But now you know to expect it."

Before Morticia could give him a response he had glided over to the driver's side and was already behind the wheel.

'I really hate when he does that.' She thought, annoyed as she bucked her seatbelt before giving him a glance.

He was staring at her with an unreadable expression, he seemed to be giving her a bunch of those lately and it was starting to eat at her a little bit.

"What? You're looking at me funny." She said uncomfortably as she shifted under his gaze.

Edward visibly shifted as he noticed her change in demeanor. "I'm sorry, If I make you feel uncomfortable, it's just...you're so different to anyone that I've ever met and I'm trying to figure you out. It's very frustrating not to be able to know what you're thinking." His voice was soft as if he was worried he would scare her if he raised it any higher.

"You really don't want to know what's going through my brain. It takes complicated to a whole new level." Morticia told him before glancing down at her lap and fidgeting with the rings on her hands. It was a nervous habit that she picked up when she was young.

Suddenly she felt a hard and cold hand grasp hers and pull it away from her lap. She glanced up at him, shocked at how much he chose to touch her. 'Didn't it take him and Bella weeks to get to this level of comfort?' she thought as she took in the sight of him.

Edward held her hand so delicately within his own as if he were afraid to make any sudden movements. She knew he was thinking about how fragile her humanity was and how much of a monster he was, and she thought it best to nip those thoughts in the bud right now.

"I know this is so cliche to have this conversation in a school parking lot but... stop thinking what you're thinking about right now. Just stop it." She said adamantly as she watched his brows furrow.

"Are you suddenly a telepath now?" He asked as he turned her hand over in his grasp, lightly tracing the lines of her palm as he spoke.

"You're thinking about how fragile I am and about how strong you are. You think your strength ultimately means you are a monster." She said as she watched him focus solely on his task, his fingers never leaving her skin as he spoke next.

"No, I think the blood-drinking and the marble skin deem me a monster." His gaze was hard as he met hers, the tiny cab of the Volvo suddenly became very warm as Morticia felt the intensity in his gaze.

"The only thing that should be afraid of you is Bambi, or should I say any mountain lions in the area. I'll be sure to put warning signs in the forests later." She knew sardonic humor was not needed at the moment but that is how she coped with stressful situations.

Edward didn't seem to appreciate the sass and his grip tightened just a tad, "You have no idea how hard it is not to unleash my entire strength...to just let go and have my instincts take over."

Morticia was unaffected by his attempt to scare her and leveled an equally challenging gaze at him. "Then do it. If you think you're such a monster, kill me. Break my neck so I won't scream and drain me before I go cold."

He looked at her shocked and slightly mortified as he jerked away from her. "What? How can you be so flippant about something as precious as your life?"

Morticia grinned, knowing that she had him right where she wanted him. "And that is exactly why you aren't a monster. You value human life. Even though you crave my blood, you'd never let yourself have a taste because you'd never jeopardize your family or my life. A monster would take pleasure in killing me and draining me of my blood with no remorse. Remember after you went AWOL after you changed? You went back to Carlisle. You chose not to give in to your instincts and instead chose to be apart of something bigger."

Her revelation shocked him into silence and all he could do was stare at her in disbelief.

"How can you stand to be around me after knowing all my sins?" He asked, seemingly breathless.

"There's a lot you don't know about me, Edward Cullen. But know that I 've seen monsters in this world...You may be slightly damaged but you are most definitely not a monster." She said with a look of understanding before continuing, "Now as much fun as this little therapy session has been, I really need to get home to make sure Tony didn't burn the house down. You can pick my brain again tomorrow, ok."

Edward gave her a look of astonishment before composing himself and quickly driving out of the parking lot on route to her home.

As Morticia was gathering her belongings, she felt Edward open her door and gave him a knowing glance. "You're nowhere near being done with your questions, are you?"

He gave her a boyish grin, "You said yourself, I know nothing about you Morticia Addams, but I'd like to change that."

She rolled her eyes and quickly made her way to her front door.

"Morticia." She heard Edward call and quickly turned around. "Thank you... for what you said today." He said, almost as if he were stumbling over his words.

Morticia gave him a smile, "Anytime, but I'm not sure if you can afford my hourly rates if we have any more sessions." With a wink she hurriedly ran inside the house, unable to hide her giggles.

She stayed, with her forehead pressed against the door for a few moments before her happy bubble was popped by Tony.

"So, I take it your day went well," Tony said, teasingly as Morticia spun around quickly.

"Jesus, Uncle Tony! Don't scare a girl like that!" Morticia breathed, placing a hand on her erratic heart.

Tony just chucked, "If that blush on your cheeks is any indication, I'd say you were smitten with that Cullen boy."

Morticia tensed up, "What? No, we're just partners for that project, like I said this morning."

Tony quickly threw up his hands to show he meant no offense, "Hey, I'm just sayin' you chose well. The Cullen's are nice folks. Dr. Cullen is the best Doc we've had in a while and as much as I hate to admit that Edward boy seemed like quite the gentleman. I approve." He said teasingly as he backed into the kitchen.

"I DO NOT have a crush on Edward Cullen," Morticia said lowly. Her uncle didn't seem deterred as he gave her a knowing glance over his shoulder, "That may be true but what about him kiddo. Boys don't just give rides to their 'partners' for school projects. I was a teenage boy once too and I can spot the signs of a budding romance when I see one. I'm not that old ya know." He said with a chuckle.

Morticia was too shocked to form words. Was her Uncle really trying to tell her that Edward Cullen had a crush on her? No, that's impossible. He's destined for Bella Swan, the woman who literally had no character growth the entire franchise.

"You can't be serious." She finally uttered, after she regained her witts.

Tony gave her a thoughtful gaze, "I'm telling you kiddo, Uncles and dads know these things. That boy had hearts in his eyes when he picked you up this morning and was practically giddy when he got in the car a minute ago."

"Wait, were you watching us?!" Morticia shrieked, mortified once more. Her uncle looked sheepish and blushed slightly.

"Well it was getting late and I just happened to be looking out the window as you pulled up! Don't change the subject! Look, Morticia. I know you're trying to be strong since everything that happened with your parents, but it's ok to let yourself be happy with somebody. You don't have to take care of everybody else, let someone take care of you for a change." Tony said as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

Morticia felt tears welling up inside her eyes. Even back home she hadn't let herself have any fun since she was taking care of Damon and her parents. Maybe this was the universe's twisted way of giving her a wake-up call. Wait, what was she thinking, take a chance with Edward Cullen. No way in Hell. Besides, he'd never be interested in her, right? Her uncle was just reading things wrong, for sure.

She gave her uncle a bone-crushing hug before murmuring, "Thanks for looking out for me, uncle Tony. I really appreciate it."

Tony rubbed circles into her back, replying, "of course, Kiddo. Anytime, just promise to never tell me any details of your dating life. An old man can only handle so much."

Morticia pulled back and socked him in the shoulder, "Ok, enough mushy stuff. I'm going to bed."

As she made her way upstairs she heard her uncle's voice follow her, "Have sweet dreams of your darling Edward, Tisha!"

Morticia groaned as she threw herself on her duvet and smashed her face into her mountain of pillows.

'What the hell was Tony getting at? There's no way that Edward was going soft on me. I just cracked his stony shell, that's all. Yeah, that makes sense. He has to like me a little since I'm helping him with Bella. It's gratitude and nothing more. Nothing at all...' She thought to herself as she tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable.

She had no dreams that night, as she couldn't get into a deep enough sleep to dream. Her brain was too active with thoughts of what was to come and what could be...