Author's Note: progress has been made on the novel front, AND I have a new chapter of this story ready for you. I'm quite happy with that. Hopefully, you'll enjoy this chapter.

Chapter Six: Mistakes

I half expected Edward to ditch class on Monday in an attempt to avoid me and my inquisition, but I was pleasantly surprised to find him in the seat beside mine when I arrived just as Professor Poole began her lecture. That is, until the saying, "keep your enemies closer," suddenly sprang to my mind, and I grew immediately suspicious of his warm smile and his increased interest in every word which hung from the professor's lips. He had never paid that much attention in class before. I had often caught him writing something-sometimes it was musical notes that might as well have been Greek to me or notes beyond our discussion, but not today. He leaned forward in his seat until I was sure I was out of his peripheral view, watching as Professor Poole wrote on the board and called on our classmates to participate in the discussion.

When class was finally over, Edward turned to me with a cheery smile. "That was a great discussion, don't you think?"

I glowered at him. "We need to talk," I said.

"I can't right now," said Edward, already making his way toward the door. "I have a music class. See you Friday."

"What?" I asked, and then I remembered. "Why won't you be here on Wednesday?"

"I'll be out of town with my family," he said. "But I'll send you an email to verify we're ready for our project. See you later, Bella."

I attempted to follow him, but his legs were far longer than mine, and he quickly outpaced me, disappearing outside the Life Sciences Building. I briefly considered crossing the street to the university hospital and confronting Edward's father, demanding answers regarding his son's mysterious behavior, but immediately thought better of it. What if Carlisle didn't know?

I had an hour before my math class, so I decided to head back to my dorm, and, hey, if I happened to run into Edward near the Music Building on my way, it was no skin off my nose. I wouldn't normally have taken the path right past the Music Building, but curiosity got the best of me. Edward had mentioned he was considering majoring in music. Yet another thing the rich could take for granted, I supposed. I didn't have the luxury of being undeclared, and the thought of changing majors was far too complicated to consider, even if I had wanted to.

I don't know what I had expected to see as I passed by the east doors of the building, trying not to look like I was looking for Edward while I was looking for Edward, but it certainly wasn't a gorgeous girl hanging on his arm. She was tiny compared to Edward and looked to be several inches shorter than me as well, but there was no mistaking the look of admiration in her eyes. Edward said something the girl apparently found hilarious, and her tinkling laughter filled the air as her spiky black hair danced about her face in the autumn breeze. It was like a scene from a Hallmark movie, and I was the clueless townsperson, only in the scene to comment on what a perfect couple they looked to be. I turned around, completely changing my course.

All of Edward's evasive behaviors, his turning down my invitations to hang out or get coffee, his lack of a desire to be alone with me...they all made sense. He had a girlfriend, and I had been all but throwing myself at him, begging him to pay attention to me. He'd been letting me down easy, although some days he had had less patience with my cluelessness as others, like when he would sit across the room from me and ignore me. The fact that he had felt the need to ghost me, though he wasn't able to yet because we still had to do a project together, was completely humiliating. I was beyond mortified. I wanted to die of embarrassment.

Of course, someone as amazing and special as Edward Cullen deserved someone as equally special. I was plain, accident-prone, and dull. Whatever it was that set him apart...I couldn't hold a candle to it. And he was already taken anyway. What a blasted waste of time I'd spent almost the whole first month of school. I could never get that back.

But the worst part was that part of me didn't want it back. Regardless of how fleeting, I had begun to feel something I'd never experienced before. It had been exciting and new and...entirely in my head. Maybe Edward had been right. Maybe there was something wrong with me.

#

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were sunny and beautiful, with barely a cloud in sight. I did my homework outside in the shade of one of the trees neighboring Hansee Hall, trying to cleanse my mind, to create a fresh start for myself.

Admittedly I wasn't in a great headspace for studying, so I set my math homework aside for a time to read. Although I loved books, I had no desire to read the mountain of literature assigned to me, so I decided on my complete works of Jane Austin. It turned out to be a horrible way to get my mind off a boy with such a classic name. Jane Eyre was much the same.

I trudged back to my dorm on Thursday afternoon, resolved to finally finish putting together my portion of Friday's Lit. presentation. The hum of my computer filled the silence of my dorm room as I opened up my saved document and began editing and fleshing out what I wanted to say.

A notification dinged across my screen. Edward's promised email had finally arrived. Just when I'd finally gotten into the groove. I ground my teeth in frustration. I was not going to fail this assignment because of some boy. That had never been who I was, and it wasn't going to be now.

Muffled voices and the sound of sobs met my ears, and I sighed long but stood up.

"What's wrong, Jess?" I asked as I stuck my head out from around my bedroom door. As I took in the mascara tracks down her face, I braced myself for her answer.

"Mike broke up with me!" She wailed.

"Again?" The word slipped out before I could edit, and Jessica only wailed louder. I bid goodbye to an early night with plenty of rest before what was bound to be an emotionally taxing day tomorrow.

Half an hour later, Angela came home to find Jessica and me sitting on the couch while Jessica recounted the details of Mike dumping her for what I was fairly certain was the third or fourth time.

"He said he's too young to commit to anything serious right now and that we should see other people," Jessica said, whipping furiously at her eyes with a tissue, then crumpling it up and tossing it on the floor. I handed her another.

"He's being stupid," I said frankly. "Commitment has nothing to do with age and everything to do with the person. If you're not willing to commit, you can't blame that on your age. Call it what it is-either fear of commitment or wanting to be able to sleep around without feeling guilty."

"I know, right?" Jessica growled. "He's such a selfish jerk."

"You deserve better," Angela said, coming to sit behind Jessica and hugging her.

"I know," said Jessica miserably. "Hey, you know what would make me feel better?"

I commenced panicking. Cheering Jessica in the past had involved dressing up and parading around Port Angeles until she had enough guys hit on her to build up her self-esteem. It wasn't exactly healthy, but it was Jessica.

"There's a party tomorrow night," Jessica began, and it took all of my willpower not to groan loudly. "It's at a house ten minutes off-campus. Come on, girls, I need this! Besides, we're in college! Isn't this part of the experience?"

Angela and I agreed reluctantly, but I regretted it the moment the words were out of my mouth. Charlie had always been trying to convince me to socialize more, to go to prom, or the parties some of the kids at school would throw. But let's be honest, no one wanted the police chief's daughter showing up at a kegger. It wasn't that I couldn't have had those experiences, just that I had absolutely no desire to do so.

"It's going to be great," Jessica said through her hiccups. "We'll get all dressed up. I'm done with younger men. I can date college guys now. Screw Mike!"

I didn't bring up the fact that Mike was technically one of those college guys now, or that college guys were just as capable of breaking hearts and acting like idiots as any other person.

"Yeah," I tried to sound enthusiastic. "I'm sure it will be great."

#

I had no idea what was covered in Biology on Friday morning, as my stomach was in knots over my impending presentation in Literary Theory. I'd stayed up late trying to finish everything, and I was sure there were bags under my eyes, but I was pretty proud of what I'd come up with.

As I could have predicted, Robby's part of the presentation was a mess. Edward and I tried our hardest to reign him back in, but he seemed confused about what our project had even been about, going on about new historicism and even covering part of Edward's assigned section. I wondered what he had going on in his life that he was having such a hard time focusing, and hoped that he didn't have a scholarship or anything upon which he depended.

Luckily, Edward's section was solid-more than solid. It was utterly brilliant. He was eloquent and composed. With each word, I felt a little less confident about my own abilities. Did he have to be so perfect at everything? As easily predicted, he took his seat after our presentation and didn't so much as glance at me. He hurried out the door after Professor Poole dismissed us, and I turned the corner to follow him, almost bumping into Jessica and Angela in the process.

"Where are you running off to?" Angela asked brightly.

"I was just-" I sighed. Edward was already out of sight. "Never mind."

"Did you forget about lunch again?" Jessica asked, looking annoyed.

"No," I said quickly, not wanting to cause an argument with Jessica when she was already stressed. "Let's go."

We made our way to our favorite on-campus cafe, and I felt myself looking about me in hopes that I might catch a glimpse of Edward.

"Are you excited about the party tonight?" Jessica asked, practically bouncing with excitement. "It's going to be epic. I'm pretty sure a senior is throwing it, so it should be good."

"You're pretty sure?" said Angela apprehensively. "You don't know the person throwing the party?"

"It's fine," Jessica said, waving her hand as if to brush off the comment. "This is college. People go to parties when they don't know the host all the time.

"I'll have to meet you guys there," I said. "I have to finish my shift at the library first, and I won't get off until nine."

Jessica stuck out her bottom lip in a pout. "Are you at least going to go home and freshen up first?"

"I can, I guess." Having to put more effort into attending an event I was dreading was not my idea of a fun weekend, but Jess needed it. This was her coping method. I silently prayed that she and Mike could just be done for good so that we could stop dealing with the drama, but I assumed if it weren't Mike, it would be someone else.

"Ben said he could drive us," said Angela.

"Ben's coming?" Jessica sounded annoyed again.

"Of course," said Angela. She looked nervous that Jessica would ask her not to bring her boyfriend.

"I just don't want to be the third wheel," said Jessica. Then, turning to me, "Bella, you should try to see if you can get off early."

"I'll do my best," I promised. I kept telling myself that it was just one night. One miserable, awkward night that I would hate every minute of, but still...just one night. "We'll make sure you have a great time, Jess. Don't worry."

#

I asked my supervisor, but there was no way I was getting off of my shift early, and I didn't complain. Honestly, I was just happy to have a job still. I'd been up to the third floor several times, even when I was assigned to a different help desk, just to look at the last two rows of shelves on the far wall. They sat perfectly straight, the books in their proper places, with no indentations in sight. Honestly, if I knew I had seen what I did and would have thought I dreamt it. But even my wildest dreams couldn't conjure someone as mysteriously perfect as Edward Cullen.

After work, I hurried to my dorm, tossing clothes from my cupboard in an attempt to find something "party-worthy" as quickly as possible. I hated the idea of Jessica sitting there alone with Angela and Ben, feeling miserable. I opted for a nice, white sweater Charlie had given me for Christmas the year prior and hurried back out the door. The house's address wasn't too far away from campus, so I figured walking would be my best bet. I needed to save my gas for the next time I had time off to drive home to Forks. I was also fairly sure that there wouldn't be parking available. It took longer than I thought it would to walk there, and I was sure I got lost a time or two in the process.

"Bella!" Jessica called as I awkwardly walked through the open front door. My heart sank. It was a costume party. Of course, I should have realized, what with tomorrow being Halloween. Not only did I have to deal with the general discomfort of being at a party, but with being completely out of place. The music was blaring, and I could feel my eardrums vibrating. The front room of the two-story house had been cleared of furniture, and it was currently filled with people, red cups in hand, kissing, dancing, shouting to be heard...I hated parties.

"What took you so long?" Jessica shouted over the music. She was dressed as a cat with bright pink kitty ears and her nose and whiskers drawn on with makeup-not very original, but very Jessica. "Angela and Ben are hiding over there in that corner being complete party poopers. They didn't dress up either. I thought you'd never get here."

"I couldn't get off early," I said. "Sorry, I tried."

"That's okay," said Jessica. "Kyle here kept me company."

For the first time, I noticed the tall, lanky boy hovering over Jessica's shoulder, although Jessica didn't seem to mind his proximity.

"Jess, are you drunk?" I asked, leaning in so that I wouldn't have to shout. I could smell the answer before she replied.

"No, no, I just had a few sips," she lied smoothly. "It's no big deal. I'm good."

My night had just become a lot more complicated. Angela and Ben apologized several times for not being able to reign Jessica in but kept a close eye on her from their place in the corner of the room.

"She was just fine until Mike showed up," said Angela. "He's still around here somewhere, flirting with some girl who is way too old for him."

"You guys relax for a while," I said. "I'll hang out with Jess."

Jessica insisted on introducing me to everyone, even if she had to ask them their names first. So, essentially, the night was turning out to be my worst nightmare.

"Bella, this is...what's your name?" She asked a guy who looked to be a few years older than us. He had dark hair and eyes and was what I'm sure Jessica would describe as "really hot." He had either not gotten the memo about this being a costume party, or his costume was too subtle for me to recognize.

"Evan," his deep voice boomed just as the current song ended. Evan and I laughed a little awkwardly until he reached out to shake my hand.

"Nice to meet you, Bella," he said with a warm smile. "Do you go to UW too?"

I nodded, trying not to show how awkward I still felt with the situation.

"What are you studying?" he asked as Jessica flirted quite scandalously with the guy standing beside Evan, holding onto his arm and complimenting his biceps.

"Literature," I said, bracing myself for the same old joke.

"Cool," he nodded, taking a sip of his drink. "My sister is a Lit. major. You must love to read."

"I do," I nodded, pleasantly surprised not to have to defend myself. "What about you? What's your major?"

"Economics," he said. "Hey, can I get you a drink?"

"I'm okay," I said. Aside from the whole police chief's daughter thing and the need to keep an eye on Jessica thing, I was also self-aware enough to know that alcohol and I would be a hazardous combination.

Evan and I chatted for a while about my favorite books. He claimed not to be much of a reader.

"Never have the time, what with all of my assignments," he said. "I'm hoping to get an internship here soon, so I'll be even busier. You sure I can't get you something to drink?"

"I'm really fine," I said politely, my attention torn between Jessica and Evan. It was then that I noticed Mike making his way towards Jessica in the crowd. I tried to think quickly, stepping closer to Jessica in hopes that I would block their view of each other.

"Hey, Jess," I suggested. "Why don't we go outside to the patio. Get some air."

"Yeah," Evan said, catching onto my panic. "It's really stuffy in here. Come on, Jason," he said to the newest boy on whose arm Jessica still clung.

I wanted to breathe a sigh of relief once we were outside, but it seemed just as crowded outside in the backyard, not large enough to hold the fifty plus college students mulling around. Everywhere I looked, it was more of the same-chaos.

"You look stressed," Evan said, handing me a cup as he returned to our group now huddled in the corner of the backyard. I took it distractedly, watching Jessica's reaction.

"I'm fine," I said for what felt like the hundredth time tonight, holding up my drink. "But I don't drink."

"Well, I figured, since you're a freshman," he said. "It's a Coke."

"Oh," I said. I hadn't expected him to be so thoughtful. It felt good to have a decent conversation with someone who didn't seem to have multiple personality disorder.

"Here, I'll get your friend something different to drink, too," Evan said and was gone the next minute.

"Isn't this the best party?" Jessica giggled.

"Not really," I mumbled, taking a sip of my Coke. My ears were still vibrating uncomfortably, even though we'd moved outside and away from the speakers. Evan took a while to return, and I wondered if he'd found someone more interesting to talk to. I couldn't say that I blamed him. So far, we'd only really talked about me and my boring love for books.

"What are you doing?" a voice hissed in my ear, and I jumped as my drink was ripped from my grasp as I took another sip. I almost spit out my drink in surprise but was able to keep it together as I quickly swallowed and then stood gaping.

Edward Cullen stood beside me, looking absolutely murderous. For a split second, it looked like he was going to take a sip of my Coke, an odd thing to do when you're about to murder someone, but instead, he held it to his nose, sniffling lightly.

"Do you have zero sense of self-preservation, Bella?" he growled.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about, Edward," I snapped, still trying to calm my racing heart from the shock of seeing him here.

Edward was looking around us as if searching the crowd. His face looked pained when he looked back at me. "This drink is laced with ketamine. Do you know what that is?"

I felt all the color drain from my face as I nodded dumbly. I'd had enough lectures from Charlie about how to stay safe in certain situations. Per his request, I kept a small container of pepper spray, which looked like a pen in my pockets at all times. But ketamine was an anesthetic and a hallucinogen. My pepper spray wouldn't do me any good if I weren't mentally or physically capable of using it.

"How much did you drink?" Edward demanded harshly, eyeing my cup as if he could measure the missing liquid with his mind. Actually, based on what I knew about Edward, I wouldn't have been surprised.

"A few sips," I said, my eyes wide with fear. I looked to Jessica, who was close to passing out in Jason's arms. "Will you help me?"

"Anything," he vowed, and I felt my breath catch in my throat at the sincerity of his voice and intensity of his gaze. He wasn't dressed up either, but he wore a grey button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up past his elbows. He looked...more than nice. He's taken, he's taken, he's taken. I tried my best to drill the thought into my head before any side effects might hit.

"I need to find my roommate Angela and her boyfriend, Ben. They were in the house last time I saw them. I need them to take Jessica home."

"Have they been drinking?" Edward asked, still looking livid. I tried to breathe, but it was difficult to, knowing he was so angry with me.

"No, and I think Ben drove them here in his car if we can find it."

"Bella, your friend is coming back," Edward said with clenched teeth, practically spitting at the word 'friend.' "And I don't know if I can be here when he does. I'm afraid of what I'll do to him."

The indentation in the library bookshelf flashed through my mind, and I quickly nodded. "Go find Angela for me. Jess and I will be there in a minute."

"Hey," Evan said a moment later, handing Jessica a drink. "Sorry about that, the kitchen was crowded."

"That's okay," I said. "We were just leaving. Come on, Jess." I worked to pull Jessica away from Jason carefully, but she was fighting me.

"Don't spoil my fun," Jessica was saying.

Angela was there the next moment, followed by Ben, who put his arm around Jessica, supporting her weight.

"You have to leave already?" Evan asked, looking slightly panicked.

"Definitely," I said. "The sooner, the better."

"But we barely had any time to get to know each other," he pouted.

"I think I've learned quite enough about you, thanks," I said, making a show of dumping the drink he had given me onto the lawn. His eyes darkened, and his smile instantly disappeared.

"You messed with a cop's daughter tonight," I said, my voice sounding a little too loud for my ears. I fiddled with the pepper spray in my pocket, but I couldn't quite get it out. I needed to leave and now. Now that Ben was safely helping Jessica, Angela moved forward to take my arm and place it around her shoulder.

"I need to get out of here," I said. I started to feel funny, like my feet weren't quite connecting with the ground as I walked.

Edward was waiting for us outside on the lawn, but he wasn't alone. The black-haired girl-his girlfriend, I reminded myself sternly-was holding onto his arm, quickly speaking to him. He still looked murderous.

"My car is a couple of blocks over," Ben was saying, but I couldn't concentrate. I could only see Edward. Edward and his girlfriend. My hero...and his love. Not that I knew they were in love. Maybe it was just a one-semester thing. Or a fling. My mind was starting to feel...fuzzy.

"Here, I'll take her," I heard Edward murmur to Angela, who had slowed down, probably because I was having a hard time walking in a straight line. Not that that was anything new. My hold on Angela's shoulder was replaced with Edward's cool one, as he held me bridal style. I wondered briefly if his girlfriend was jealous.

I heard a tinkling of laughter beside me, followed by more murmuring.

"Bella?" Edward asked as he walked smoothly beside my friends. "Are you lucid?"

"Define lucid?" I said.

"Never mind," he said. "It will keep."

When we got to Ben's car, Edward kept his hold on me.

"I'm going to take Bella to the hospital," he was saying. "Who knows how much of that drug was in her drink, especially if it is taking effect so quickly."

"Are you sure?" I heard Angela ask hesitantly. She was such a good friend, always looking out for me.

"She can drive with you if you prefer," said Edward reluctantly. "I can meet you there."

"I'll drive, Edward. I mean, I can do with Edward," I said, once again my voice was too loud.

"I think…" Angela was saying slowly. "She should go with us. We'll meet you there."

I felt Edward nod. "I'll be at the ER entrance."

"You promised no ER," I whined.

Edward chuckled, carefully placing me in the passenger's side of Ben's car, as Jessica was already sprawled across Angela's lap in the back seat.

"That was last time," he said. "It wasn't a blanket promise, Bella. I'll see you in a few minutes." He had buckled me in and closed the passenger side door before I could think of a retort. Stupid, infuriating, incorrigible, gorgeous, fascinating, heroic, mysterious… My mind was too foggy to realize that I was trying to list all of the reasons I hated him instead of the reasons I definitely didn't hate Edward Cullen.