Thank you so much to everyone who took the time out to read, review, follow or favorite this story. It means a lot.

In response to anabell1856's question- At the moment I will only be writing in Edward's POV, but after all the chapters are done I will write an outtake of the entire story in short from Leah's perspective. Thanks for the review.

Here's presenting chapter 4-

X-X-X

Breaking the hard shell that surrounded Leah was far more difficult than I had imagined it to be. Leah was an exceptionally strong person emotionally and mentally, something I truly admired about her, but still at the moment was the bane of my existence. She did not 'need' anybody in her life, and she made sure that everybody knew that. She did not like attention. She did not crave it, unlike the other girls in our class, and so needless to say- she never went out searching for sympathy. In fact she hated it that so many people back in La Push were a witness to what had happened between her and Sam. She loved her privacy…. and more often than not, I felt like crap for invading said privacy by reading her mind. But in my defense it was not like I chose to read minds. Still I often zoned out when Leah started thinking of things that I had no business being privy to- like when she had been thinking of her spent private moments with Sam. Yeah, I had no business knowing of those memories. I knew she had a past, and I respected that, but I was not going to go finding details of what all she did exactly in said past. Some things were just meant to remain private…

But coming back to the topic, getting Leah to talk was like climbing the Mount Everest, when I had been human. It was difficult and exhausting, but totally worth it once you realized what you had achieved. I started of slow- like real slow- like snail pace slow- like tortoise slow in the hare and tortoise story- like…. okay I am out of examples here, but you get the point. I started of real slow. The first few days I would just sit with her during lunch, ignoring the thoughts of all those self centered, shallow girls who were jealous of Leah, wondering of why she had won my attention, and would just concentrate on the beautiful girl that sat beside me. We would not talk of anything in particular, just baseless topics like how much the cafeteria food 'sucked'- her chosen word of preference. I would talk to her of studies, as that was one of the safe topics, and we would talk of the common classes we shared- unknown to her I had changed my schedule to be similar to hers. I would tell her funny secrets of our teachers and classmates from reading their minds, harmless secrets but indeed embarrassing ones. I knew it was wrong but it brought a hint of a smile on Leah's face and so was totally worth it. Luckily for me she believed it when I told her that I had sharp ears and could even hear whispered conversations from afar. It was total bull, but she believed me, or at least she had nodded her head in acceptance of the answer.

The first few days were tough. It was like taking a small hammer and trying to break down a massive wall, but I had a feeling that I was going somewhere. Even Leah had stopped raising an eyebrow in question when I sat beside her in class or in the cafeteria. It was almost like she had accepted my presence around her, which was good because like I said before I was not going anywhere. She was not very responsive, but at least she listened when I talked, and the sarcastic comments were down to a minimal. That was progress, wasn't it? I was still unsure of the road ahead, but I was for now taking the smallest of baby steps possible.

The actual breakthrough though came in the form of an angel on earth- Ms. Green, our creative writing teacher. Now, she was actually no angel on earth. That was a massive exaggeration, but she had been responsible for today and for Leah coming over to my house. It was her assignment that had led to this impossibility becoming possible. Creative writing was never a course that I wanted to select. Alice had forced me into it with some ridiculous story of how I just needed to join it. Of course, no surprises there- Bella Swan was in this class and that was the actual motivation behind Alice's action, but unluckily for her and luckily for me, even Leah was in this class, and needless to say I stuck to Leah's side throughout the class.

She had told us to divide ourselves into pairs of two and had given us two weeks for the simple in her eyes assignment of writing one original poem between the pair. As soon as she had declared the assignment to the class, everyone had quickly made their pairs.

Samantha with Tyler

Jessica with Angela

Mike with Bella

Ben with Eric

… and me with Leah

She was the only one I really wanted to work with and from the expression on Leah's face; I knew that I was the safest person to work with in her eyes. We already spent time together in the cafeteria. We could easily complete the assignment during those hours- was her thinking. Me, not so much. I was going to prolong this for as long as possible, writing the shittiest- pardon my language- poems possible.

Our first day at lunch had been when she had raised the topic of starting to write a poem and I had easily complied, taking out a pen and a paper to jot it down.

The first poem that I had written though had been something like this-

'Roses are red

Violets are blue

You like soup

and I like stew'

Amazing, right?

Leah had just rolled her eyes before showing me her talented side in poetry- a side I had never even known existed, and fortunately so.

'Roses are red

Violets are blue

I thought Voldemort was ugly,

but then I saw you.'

To which my response had been "Did you know Violets are not actually blue?" I had gone on to tell her of why in the phrase they were said to be blue, at the end of which she had called me a 'dork' and rolled her eyes.

Wait, I was not really a dork, right?

So, this was how our first week of the assignment deadline had gone by- forming pathetic poetry. I made sure that nothing ever worth submitting was written in our lunch hour, and I was never free to stay back after school hours or spend time in the library. I had a plan here and it was important that we end up running out of time for it to succeed.

Finally at the end of the tenth day of our fourteen day deadline, Leah came up to me and told me that in order to complete the assignment which held substantial marks, we would have to meet up after school at either of our houses. We did not have much time left now.

I had grinned to myself. This was exactly what I had wanted. The conversation that had followed had gone something like this-

"Leah," I said hesitantly, rubbing the back of my neck "Can we meet at my place instead of yours? You know my family is not permitted on the reservation, right?"

She had sighed, realization striking her "Oh yeah, of course, old shitty legends and all." She had waved her hands in air, as if disregarding the truth of the legends.

It was not her fault though that she did not believe in the legends. I had seen it in her memory of how her father- Harry Clearwater had always reinforced it in her that these were only stories and there was no truth in them. This was done in order to avoid even a trace of suspicion, and so Leah had never come to really believe in them. In her eyes these were just stories that held no truth to them. She had heard the stories of the cold ones but she did not believe in them, and belief as you know is a very strong factor for an individual. You can convince your mind to believe in something and then disbelieve anything or anybody that goes against said belief. I had also lost a bit of respect for Harry Clearwater in the process. He had lied to his daughter for her entire life, just so that his tribe secret would remain a secret. He made sure that she strongly believed that these were just ridiculous tales of the past. In a way I saw it as a brainwash, purposefully done to her mind. She obviously did not know the actual reason for us not being allowed on their lands, but in her opinion it was to do with the old prejudices and the fact that in every community there are orthodox people who refuse to adapt with time. She did not like it a bit, and I fell in love with her a bit more for that.

"So, my place," I had asked, smiling when she had nodded her head. I had given her my address, telling her the exact route of reaching the house, before going home to prepare for her visit.

And so here I sat wearing my best pair of clothes waiting for the clock to strike five. I kept stealing glances at the time. It was going much much slower than usual. Why does it always go, so tremendously slow when you want it to flow?

Hey, that rhymed!

Anyways, keeping my genius self aside, It is true- keep staring at the clock and it will go slower than you could even imagine.

"Edward…. Edward," Esme's panicked voice reached my ears. I got up from the couch instantly, trying to read her thoughts in order to get a hint of the problem, but her thoughts were a jumbled mess at the moment.

She soon came running out of the kitchen, looking more panicked and anxious than I had ever seen her before in life.

Okay, now I was really worried. Had something happened? Had Alice seen a vision that I had somehow missed?

"Esme, is everything….."

She interrupted me before I could complete, saying the last thing I had expected to hear

"Does Leah eat spaghetti?"

"Excuse me," I had stared at her with my eyes wide. This was her reason for panic?

She raised her eyebrow in question when I didn't answer for a few minutes. She was waiting for an answer. One I really did not have….

"Umm, I guess." I said, unsurely. I had no idea of what kind of food she liked. All food tasted like dirt to me.

She sighed audibly, her tone taking on a scolding edge to it "Edward, now what am I supposed to make for the girl? Oh, does she like cookies?" she asked excitedly, changing the subject faster than my vampire brain could process.

I nodded my head in surprise "I guess everybody likes cookies." At least the people whose mind I had read did like them.

"What kind?" she asked in all seriousness.

I shook my head. I had no answer to that, absolutely no answer to that.

"Edward," she sighed, running a hand through her hair "I am cooking after decades. I don't even remember how to cook. What if I put salt instead of sugar? I don't even remember how to bake properly. Oh, my god! What am I supposed to do now? She is coming here for the first time and…."

Okay, Esme was panicking.

Wait, can vampires get panic attacks?

Something to research about…..

"Esme, calm down," I said putting my hands on her shoulders "We can always order a pizza. She doesn't expect you to cook for her."

She sighed, looking disappointed "I wanted to cook for her."

She looked so upset at the moment that I could not help but smile at the childish unnecessary worry on her face.

"Esme…. Mom," I rarely called her mom. Only when I knew she needed to hear the word "She will like you even without all of this, nobody can not like you or Carlisle. It is just not possible. Now, Emmett is a completely different matter."

A small laugh crept onto her face. Ahh, victory!

"I will order the pizza," she winked at me before leaving the living room.

I have the coolest mom, indeed.

"Son," Carlisle's voice resounded through the house.

I frowned. What now?

He came and stood opposite me, a tense mask on his face, and I could even see indecision in there.

"Yes," I said, crossing my fingers in hope. Please don't let him be giving me any sort of bad news. At least his thoughts that were surprisingly blank didn't convey any such worry.

"Where should I be?"

Okay, I really don't have any idea what this is about.

He sighed seeing the confused look on my face, before opening his mind for me to read.

'Son, I was wondering if I should be in my study when she arrives and then come downstairs to meet her once she's settled, or if I should be here with Esme when she arrives.'

"How… how does it matter?" I asked totally confused.

He shook his head 'I don't want to overwhelm her. I want her to be comfortable. From what you have told me about her, she would not like to be hounded.'

I nodded my head at that. His intentions were good, but unfortunately I had no answer for that.

"Do what you want." I said with a final shrug.

He nodded his head before leaving the room.

What is wrong with my family? They are a bunch of crazy, though in their defense a human is going to be walking into our house after….. well for the first time. We have never had guests over.

Oh, God! What have I done by calling Leah here? My family does not know how to behave in front of guests.

"So, I am ready," said Emmett bouncing down the stairs, a big grin on his face. See what I was talking about.

Okay, I just had to ask.

"What are you ready for?"

His grin became wider and his arm came to wrap around my shoulder "To meet my new sister."

"Who on earth, or whichever planet you believe yourselves to be from, told you that you can be here when Leah comes?" I questioned sarcastically. Emmett was the last person I wanted to be here when Leah arrived. I could even tolerate Rose for once.

He pouted "That is just mean."

I shrugged in reply. I was trying for that.

"Emmett," Rose came walking down the stairs "Come on, I am hungry. Let's go for a hunt."

She took his hand and started pulling him out of the door as he kept protesting. He wanted to be here for the 'fun' was what he said.

"Do you want to go without sex for the next entire year?" Clearly Rosalie was at the end of her patience.

"I will see you kids later," said Emmett, smirking at me before he left the house with Rosalie.

I rolled my eyes. Forget an entire year I doubt they could live without doing it for even an entire day.

Alice and Jasper were also soon out of the house, fortunately without any drama. Alice was feeling a little low since morning, and Jasper who clearly believed in making his wife happy was taking her out shopping.

They were the perfect example for a study- how to spoil your spouse with unnecessary gifts.

I sighed in relief. At least they were out of the house now. Carlisle and Esme were okay. They were not going to do anything to embarrass Leah. Well, hopefully not.

I soon heard the noise of her car approaching and like the impatient person that I was, opened the front door and stood waiting for her.

Her red Nissan soon arrived and parked in the driveway. She was extremely proud of owning this car. It was a second hand and had belonged to her mother, but it was a gift for her sixteenth birthday and she absolutely loved it. It was no Volvo or Mercedes which were my top two, but it was a decent car. I could appreciate that much.

She got out of the driver's seat looking as beautiful and perfect as ever. Her simple jeans and t-shirt were comfortable rather than out to impress. Her waist length thick black hair was tied in a ponytail and she had a small clutch bag on her.

Her tall, slender figure complimented her russet skin tone, and I could not help but think that she was a Goddess come down to earth. She had the power to steal my breath away, even without taking the effort to do so.

"Hey," she said softly, standing in front of me.

I mumbled something that sounded like 'hey' but I couldn't be sure. I was hypnotized by her presence.

"Why are you standing outside?" she asked, her face furrowing in confusion.

Gosh! Could she look any prettier?

I shrugged. I did not trust my voice at the moment. What would be her reaction if I just blurted out that I was in love with her? Was it worth taking the risk?

Luckily for me, Esme chose that moment to interrupt and save me from making more of a fool of myself.

"Edward," said Esme, walking out of the front door as if surprised to see me standing here "And, you must be Leah," she said with a smile as she faced the prettiest woman in the world "I am Esme, Edward's mother."

Leah smiled a small genuine smile "It is nice to meet you, Mrs. Cullen."

"Oh dear, please call me Esme."

Okay, this was going better than I had expected it to. Carlisle, who had decided to introduce himself with Esme, mumbled a polite 'hello,' before he went back to his study.

"So, do you want to go to my room to start working on the poem?" I asked, turning to look at Leah. I would call us acquaintances or even on the verge of becoming friends. I could not wait for us to become more, though.

"Okay," she nodded her head.

We had hardly walked two steps ahead when Esme's voice came from behind us "Keep the door open you both."

I turned to look at Esme in shock. From which movie had she picked up that dialogue. I heard a soft giggle from beside me and slightly turned to glance at Leah. I had thought that she would have been embarrassed, but she was giggling here.

"Sure mom," I said a bit rudely.

Leah and I walked up to my room on the third floor of the house, before I pushed open the door for her to enter.

"Wow, you have quite a collection." She said, her eyes pointing towards the music that lined my walls.

I shrugged "I like to collect them, have collected them for years now."

She smiled, but did not say anything ahead. She was warming up to me, but still there was a slight push that we needed.

"So, should we get started?" I asked.

She nodded her head as she sat on the desk chair in my room and I sat on my bed.

"I have actually written something." She said hesitantly. She was nervous. I had never seen her nervous before. "Actually I couldn't sleep last night, so….."

"Yeah," I interrupted her with a smile "Read it for me."

She nodded her head. Her eyes telling me that she was thankful for how calm I was being at the moment.

"So, it goes like this-

'I have not felt the heat since you last touched me.

I have not felt joy since you last smiled.

I have not felt love since you last kissed me.

I have not felt anything.'"

Oh, Leah! Just give me one chance to make you see how much I love you. You will not regret it. I promise.

"How is it?" she asked, meeting my eyes. She really wanted to hear my opinion. I could see it in her eyes.

"Wow… it is really good."

"You think so?" she asked in a whisper.

I fervently nodded my head "Yeah,"

She smiled "I just thought of writing what was on my mind down. I was scared that it would be total crap."

I shook my head in disbelief "It is quite the opposite."

"You are very sweet."

"And you are worthy of every praise."

A blush broke onto her face. Such moments had increased between us.

"So," I said when silence had settled over us "Actually even I have written something down."

"Really?" she questioned in surprise.

I nodded my head. It was a lie. I had not written anything down, but there was something I had in mind to tell to the girl in front of me.

"Sure, tell me."

I took a deep breath before starting, keeping my eyes on her. I had no paper written in front of me. I did not need it. Her picture was in my mind, and that was all I needed. My eyes stared into hers as I said what was in my heart-

'I can't even hold your hand,

But I love you with a love

That no one can understand.'

A/N: The poems belong to their respective owners. I don't own them.