I made it to PA in record time, even for me. I always liked to drive fast but tonight I was a little reckless. But I had a small window in which to act: Alice's vision had been of Bella while the sun was setting, so the longer I waited after sundown the harder it was going to be to find her.

I parked near the pier I'd seen in Alice's vision several minutes after the sun dipped below the horizon. I waited several more minutes, fidgeting in my car, just to be sure, then slipped out and walked quickly down to the water.

Apparently watching the sunset from the pier was a popular activity; several couples and small groups were heading away from the pier, back to their cars. I took a few steps to the side of the main group, scanning the crowd for Bella.

Instead, I saw another face I recognized: the man I'd seen meeting Bella in the vision.

I quickly walked several steps sideways, putting more distance and more people between us. I also kept my mind to myself. It was reasonable to assume this man was also a 'shifter,' like Bella, so the last thing I needed was for him to notice me.

Thankfully he didn't so much as glance my direction. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding and continued making my way to the pier.

Bella was exiting the pier just as I reached it. She caught sight of me and stopped dead, going pale. "Edward!" she hissed. She looked around quickly, then grabbed my hand - the sudden warmth was almost a shock - and pulled me in the opposite direction the man had disappeared in, putting the structure of the pier between us and him.

After we'd gone about fifty feet she stopped and, after throwing another glance over her shoulder, dropped my hand and faced me, less than a foot from me. My hand was tingling. I could feel her body heat radiating toward me. Her scent, heightened by her agitation and the faint flush on her skin, pooled around us. I swallowed down excess venom, but it was fairly easy today to keep her humanity in mind; my throat was barely burning. I struggled to collect my thoughts and focus on Bella's distressed expression.

"What are you doing here?" Bella asked urgently, her voice pitched quite low.

"I was worried about you," I said, matching her volume. "We had visitors this weekend, friends of Jasper's. I wanted to be sure they didn't cross paths with you."

To my surprise, Bella laughed a little. "Really. And here I... never mind. Wait -" she frowned. "How did you know where to find me?"

"I was there when Mike invited you," I pointed out, trying to stall. Usually I was good at talking my way out of things, but her closed mind and physical proximity were making it incredibly difficult tonight.

She wasn't buying it. "Sun's been down what, ten minutes? You found me pretty quick for a town this size."

"Bella..." I hesitated. She raised an eyebrow. I gave up. "I have some things I need to tell you."

Bella groaned, putting a hand to her face. "I'm not going to like this, am I."

"Probably not," I admitted.

"And how long is it going to take?" Bella looked out at the darkening horizon. "My friends will be looking for me. They wanted to leave after sundown."

"It is after sundown."

"I know." Bella tugged on the neckline of her sweater - blue today, it went wonderfully with her pale skin - as she thought. "You can't give me a short version?"

"There is no short version. We could try tomorrow after school."

"I don't want to wait that long." To my surprise, I found I didn't either; now that I was going to tell her I wanted to get it over with. "How about… would you mind giving me a ride home?" She glanced at me, looking uncertain.

"I don't mind." Understatement. I hadn't seen her for days. I didn't want to let her go.

"Okay." Bella looked down, thinking. "We'll go find my friends, and you read their minds so we can get them to leave me with you without it looking weird."

"I'm not sure how possible that is."

Bella smiled a little. "I know. But we can try."

Bella had left them earlier in the evening promising to meet them for dinner at a food stand near the water; it was likely, even though she'd stayed longer than she'd meant to, that they'd still be in the area. "I'm sure you can track them down if need be," Bella said as we headed that direction, walking close enough for her arm to occasionally brush the sleeve of my jacket. I found myself wishing she'd hold my hand again. I didn't dare try to take hers.

"Wouldn't they have called you by now, if they were leaving?" I asked.

"Um." Bella cleared her throat. "I don't have a personal phone. Actually I'm not allowed to have one."

"Not... allowed?"

"Don't worry about it." Bella began to walk faster.

It was just as well that she didn't explain; we were nearing the food stand in question, and not only were there more people here in general but some of them were looking for us. I spotted Mike's blond head easily as he stood in front of the food stand, looking back and forth with an uneasy expression. I honed in on his mind. Where could she be? Should we call the police?

"Mike is rather concerned about you," I murmured. "He's thinking about going to the police."

"I told him I might be late! He doesn't have to freak out about it," Bella muttered back, annoyance in her tone.

I couldn't help smiling at this response, and it was at that moment that Mike noticed us. His relief in seeing Bella was quickly marred when he saw me close beside her. He waved, trying to keep a scowl off his face. What the hell is he doing here?

The others in the group looked up as we approached: Angela, with a smile and wave; Eric, with only mild interest before he returned his attention to his phone; and Jessica, who smiled with narrowed eyes. Why is she with him? Did they plan this? Is this a date? She was torn between curiosity and jealousy at the thought.

"Bella!" Mike said as we got within earshot. "We were getting worried." Did he follow us up here? I knew I shouldn't have talked about this trip in front of him!

"I'm sorry to worry you," Bella said. She gestured to me. "I met Edward over by the pier, and we lost track of time talking."

Jessica raised an eyebrow. Sure you did.

"I'm sorry, but we ate without you," Angela said, sincere as always. "I'm sure you could get something to eat in the car, though."

That gave me the perfect opening. I turned to Bella, who looked at me, and spoke in a gentle voice. I had only this short speech to counteract my reputation for being standoffish, rude, and vaguely threatening. I didn't want them worried about leaving Bella with me. "I'm so sorry I made you miss dinner with your friends. I haven't eaten yet either; how about we get dinner together and I drive you home so your friends can still leave on time?"

Bella's eyes widened slightly, and even though I wasn't looking at her Jessica's thoughts became incoherent. I realized with chagrin that I'd laid on the charm a little too thick; apparently I'd have to work on finding a balance between 'standoffish' and 'come-hither.' "Yeah, thanks," Bella said, her voice slightly higher pitched than normal. She looked back at her friends. "I'll see you all at school tomorrow, then."

"See you," Mike said brusquely. Stupid Cullen! Why can't I be that smooth?

"Bye!" Jessica said with fake cheer. This is so a date. She'd better tell me everything tomorrow. That voice...

"Good night, Bella," Angela said with a smile.

"'Night," Eric said without looking up from his phone.

They all gathered their things. Bella waved as they began walking away, and the two of us stood for a while, watching them.

Once they were decently out of earshot Bella turned to me. "It seems like that went well."

"Well enough," I agreed. "Jessica is going to grill you for details tomorrow at school - she assumes this is a date - and Mike thinks I followed you all up here because he made the plans in front of me and hates me for it. But I'm sure you can handle the two of them."

"Probably." Bella sighed. "Okay, so where did you park?"

I raised an eyebrow. "I meant what I said about taking you to dinner."

"Oh." Bella blushed a little. "You don't have to, I can just eat when I get home."

"Bella. I want to take you to dinner."

She blushed harder. "O-okay. Somewhere here, or...?"

"Come on." I began walking, away from the stands and the water. It was a good bet that there would be sit-down restaurants somewhere nearby, and I scanned nearby minds to see if anyone had gone somewhere they'd enjoyed tonight. Bella followed me.

Within a few minutes, guided by a recommendation someone didn't know they had given me, we arrived at a small Italian place. It was perfect - nice enough to make me feel like I was actually treating Bella, casual enough for her not to feel uncomfortable, and empty enough that we should be able to have a corner to ourselves.

I suggested to the hostess that she seat us in a secluded booth, far from the other patrons scattered around the establishment. I used the same voice I'd used before when with Bella's friends, and again it worked almost too well; the hostess fumbled over her usual greeting and naming our server, and even as she left her thoughts were scattered.

Bella clasped her hands lightly on the table, her lower lip caught between her teeth. "You're biting your lip again," I said. I curled my hand into a fist rather than reach out and touch her as I had last week. Would she blush again as she had then?

She quickly pressed her lips together, then spoke, not looking at me. "You probably shouldn't do that."

"Point out when you're biting your lip?"

"That syrupy voice. It gives you an unfair advantage. Turns everyone to mush."

"Do I turn you to mush?" I asked, only half teasing.

She huffed a little, still not looking at me. Well, that was a kind of answer. "How about that explanation?"

"What was it I was explaining again?" I said, trying to keep the atmosphere light. As much as I wanted this conversation over, I was still worried about it happening. Our friendship was still so fragile. Could I tell her anything without scaring her away for good?

"How did you know where to find me?"

Well, here we go. "I assume you know that vampires -" I hesitated only a little on the word - "all have some form of power."

She nodded. "You can read minds."

"Yes. And all of us have a different one. My sister Alice, for example, can see the future."

"Oh."

"Most of her visions come to her unprompted, usually when someone close to her - usually emotionally, but sometimes proximity also works - makes a decision that creates a distinct possible future. However, if she wants to, she can try to see a specific person's possible near future."

Bella's eyes narrowed. "So you asked her to spy on me."

"No! Well, not exactly…"

We both settled back in our seats as the waitress approached. I hadn't even realized we'd started leaning toward each other over the table. The waitress named the specials and asked what we'd like to drink. Bella, looking startled, requested a water and the first special the waitress had listed. I said I wasn't ordering anything with a smile that showed a few more teeth than was strictly necessary. The waitress left in a hurry. Good.

Bella stared down at the table. "Not exactly?" Her voice was hard.

"After I got home on Wednesday, Alice had a vision of Peter and Charlotte - those friends of Jasper's I mentioned - coming to visit. They know they're not supposed to hunt in the area, but I was worried about you anyway, since you… smell so good." I paused to gauge Bella's reaction, but she didn't flinch. "So I asked Alice to check if there was a possible future where they crossed paths with you."

"And there was?"

"No."

Bella sighed sharply, clenching her hands together. "Then why are you here?"

"Because when they left they said they were heading up north."

"But you just said there wasn't -"

"I asked Alice to look days before Jasper's friends arrived. Things can change, and Alice can't foresee them all, even if she tries." I hesitated, but there was no point in trying to keep this from her. "And… things happened, before they left, that made me particularly uneasy leaving it up to chance."

I fell silent as the waitress approached with waters - she'd brought one for me, 'just in case,' and wanted to know if I'd changed my mind about ordering. It took more restraint than I would have liked to admit to be polite until I got her to leave.

"Go on." Bella's voice was shaking, her knuckles turning white. I hated seeing her so upset, and took the risk of reaching across the table to place my hand atop hers. She jumped, but didn't move away; in fact, her hands relaxed slightly under mine. I took a deep breath and continued.

"Before they left, Peter mentioned they'd caught a strange scent in the woods, and asked if we knew anything about a 'shifter' in the area." Bella paled instantly. I swallowed, dropping my voice. "I realized almost immediately that they must mean you."

"What did you tell them?" Bella whispered.

"As soon as I realized, I spoke up to throw them off. My family was confused, but I managed to get Peter and Charlotte to believe that we knew what they meant by 'shifter' and that there couldn't be any nearby. They themselves admitted they might be mistaken - something about the scent being faint and fairly close to human."

"But your family?"

"My family, of course, knew I was lying to them, and they quickly figured out it was you I was lying for. Our friendship has not gone unnoticed by them." To put it lightly. "They demanded an explanation. Especially because Peter had implied that shifters, whatever they are, could be a threat not only to vampires in general but to us specifically."

Bella pulled her hands away, wrapping her arms around herself as if she were cold. "What happened?" she asked.

I hesitated. I wanted to be direct, but that didn't mean I had to share all the details, did it?

But I waited too long. Bella looked up. "They wanted to kill me." It wasn't a question.

"Jasper. Just Jasper." Bella opened her mouth, but I hurried on. "He was created to fight in vampire wars. He can't help but take any threat very seriously."

"And he thinks I'm a threat."

"Not any more."

"You're that convincing?"

"I did my best, I assure you. But in the end it was Alice. Her attempts to see the future were blocked by Jasper's determination, but once Carlisle - our father - agreed with me that you should be left alone, Jasper hesitated. That hesitation allowed a vision through, of you and Alice hugging." I pushed down my own remembered jealousy, that it had been Alice hugging Bella and not me. "She was sure this meant you two were going to be great friends."

Bella stared at me, her mouth open. "She was hugging me?"

I nodded.

Bella clapped her hands over her mouth, smothering a sob. I sat helplessly and watched as tears ran quickly down her face and her shoulders shook. This must have been too much for her. Was I losing her?

The initial sob was the only one. Within a moment or two, Bella had slowed her breathing again, and began using her sleeves to dry her tears. I silently unrolled my silverware from the napkin and handed it to her. She took it carefully and resumed drying her flushed face. "So that's it? Alice says she's going to… to be my friend, and everyone else backs off?"

"Jasper would never go against Alice."

"Oh." Bella turned away as the waitress approached with her food, trying to hide the evidence of her tears. Thankfully the waitress hurried off this time without a word.

Bella dropped my crumpled napkin on the table, sniffling a little as she looked down at her plate. "What did I order?"

"Looks like some kind of ravioli," I said, surprised. "Forgive me if I'm not quite up to speed on human foods."

"Ravioli?" Bella stabbed one with a fork and examined it carefully.

"It's a kind of pasta."

"Oh. I know what pasta is." She tentatively put the speared food into her mouth, chewed a moment, sniffled again, and swallowed. "Not bad." She stabbed another.

I waited, letting her process and eat, not even sure what I had left to say anyway. I felt drained.

Bella looked up after a minute or two. "You… you look upset," she said quietly. Already the flush of tears was fading from her face.

"I'm worried about you," I admitted. "I'm sure that was a lot to take in. And without being able to read your mind… I'm not sure what you think of it all."

"I see." Bella looked down again, pushing pasta around her plate with her fork. "Honestly? I'm not sure what I think of it all." She sighed. "I suppose, under the circumstances, it went rather well."

"You think so?" I asked cautiously.

Bella shrugged. "Your family agreed to not kill me, vampires who know exactly what I am were purposely misdirected, and Alice…" her lips trembled in an unsteady smile. "Alice is going to be my friend, apparently."

"And you're happy about all that?" I was cautiously allowing myself to hope, but needed to be sure.

The smiled grew. "I'm very happy no one is currently planning to kill me." She stabbed another ravioli and continued eating.

"And about Alice?"

Bella looked at me and laughed a little. "Is that what you're most worried about?"

"Your response didn't exactly inspire confidence," I replied, my mood continuing to rise. "There were tears, remember?"

"You'd just told me I'd had two brushes with death today. I had a lot of feelings."

"I get the idea you're deliberately eluding me."

Bella looked confused. "Eluding?"

"You're not giving me a straight answer. On purpose."

"Oh. Right." She ate another ravioli.

"Bella," I groaned.

"Okay, okay," she said. "I'll tell you." A pause. "In the car." She looked down, suddenly shy.

Then, it seemed, it was nothing bad; just something she was embarrassed about. I sighed in relief. "I was just worried you were upset about it."

"Why would I be?"

"Oh, I don't know," I said a little sarcastically. "You're sitting with a vampire who told you his vampire brother wanted to kill you today and his vampire sister wants to be your friend. I would think you might be a little hesitant about the latter."

"'Latter' means the second one, right?"

"Yes." We really needed to work on her vocabulary.

"Well." Bella paused to chew and swallow. "I'm friends with you, aren't I?"

Warmth, happiness, blossomed in my chest. I had to smile. "Yes."

She smiled back, even the corners of her eyes crinkling - she didn't usually smile so widely. "And you're a vampire."

It took me a moment to gather my scattered thoughts. That smile was doing strange things to me. "But look at you. Just sitting there calmly just after all this happened. And you were crying."

Bella reached across the table and patted my hand. "If only you could read my mind," she said with a mocking sigh.

The waitress appeared with the check before I could formulate some kind of response to Bella's sass. I quickly pulled out a bill and sent the waitress off with a 'keep the change.' "Are you ready to go?" I asked. The sooner I got Bella in the car, the sooner I'd get some answers out of her.

"Sure." Bella popped the last ravioli in her mouth and slid out of the booth. "Tell me… what are you writing your English paper on?"