A/N: I just want to thank my reviewers for their warm recpetion of Roxanne. I thought I was going to get flamed for giving Edward someone new. Thank you for accepting her.
EDWARD
I was driving to pick up Bella. I was so excited that she was coming with us tonight. She needed the break. I knew how stressed out she had been since her father's death. She was thrown out on her own less than a week after she graduated high school. It wasn't any easy thing for any eighteen year old to do. She had so much to worry about now. She needed a night where she didn't have to think about anything.
I was slightly apprehensive about taking her tonight. I still hadn't forgotten what happened the last time we had nomadic vampires in Forks. I was worried history would repeat itself with the one whose been hanging around for a few weeks. Alice said that she didn't see anything bad happening but with Bella's luck, we could never be too sure. I was going to be on my guard all night. I wouldn't risk anything happening to her.
Jacob was just starting to trust me with her life. I didn't want to give him any reason to take that trust back. I didn't know how far he would go if he didn't think Bella was safe with my family. Would he stop her from seeing us? The last time we tried that, the family almost fell apart. I wasn't prepared to watch that happen again. I wouldn't give Jacob a reason to believe that we can't protect Bella. We loved her as much as he did and had a hard enough time proving it to him. We didn't need to lose his trust.
The thoughts that greeted me when I pulled into her driveway made me cringe. They were the thoughts that made me hate Mike Newton. The only difference was, Jacob was actually acting on the thoughts. I was about to go in there and tear him off her until her reactions regisetered in his thoughts. She was getting pleasure out of what he was doing.
I wasn't sure how I felt about this. I mean I was happy that she had someone that she could do this with but at the same time, it hurt that I still couldn't be the one doing it to her. Besides, it's not like I didn't know she was doing sexual things with him. I just wasn't sure how far it had gone. I had been wanting to ask her if they were having sex but I didn't have the guts.
I pushed Jacob's thoughts out of my head. Listening made me feel slightly peverted. I wasn't sure what I should do. I didn't want to interrupt them but Bella and I needed to get going. The thunder wasn't going to wait for us. Jacob's thoughts suddenly jumped back in my head, solving my problem.
"Damn bloodsucker." He mentally cursed. "Great now I have to take care of this myself."
I laughed to myself at that thought. I heard him curse me outloud and knew it was my cue. Using my vampire speed, I got to the door and knocked within a second.
"I'll be right there, Edward." Bella said in a high pitched voice.
I could imagine she was about thirty shades of pink. I heard her scrabbling to get her clothes back on. About two minutes later, the door opened and I was face to face with a red face Bella. I noticed she was looking everywhere but in my eyes. I didn't understand why she was so embarassed. Sex was a normal activity for humans her age. Nothing to be ashamed of.
"Hello, Edward." she gasped.
"Did I interrupt something?" he asked.
"Sorry." I mumbled.
She didn't have anything to apologize for. I mean I knew she still felt guilty when I caught them doing couple was something I had a hard time understanding. I left her and she moved on. Once again it was completely normal. She had nothing to feel guilty about. I knew the position I was in right now was entirely my fault. I supposed it was just Bella though. Always thinking of everyone else's happiness before her own.
"Don't be." I said. I grabbed her chin between my thumb and forefinger and lifted her head. I gave her no choice but to look me in the eyes. "I've always had bad timing when it came to the two of you." That was very true. I didn't come back until after she fell in love with him. Then I always seemed to pop up at awkward moments. "Besides, I am glad that you found someone you can do those things with."
That was also true. I wanted her to have a normal human relationship. Granted, Jacob wasn't exactly the human I was hoping for but it was better him than me. I knew he'd probably have better control than I would. His strength scared me a little though. I hoped he wasn't unintentionally hurting. Maybe I should talk to her about that.
"Thank you." she said with flaming cheeks. I smiled. I would never get sick of seeing that blush.
"He's not hurting you, though, is he?" I had to know.
"No." she replied. "He's very careful."
"Good."
I heard footsteps and turned to see Jake coming down the stairs. I noticed that he had taken care of his little problem. I was also thankful to find that all dirty thoughts of Bella had disappeared from his mind.
"Hey Edward." he said.
"Hello Jacob." I replied and turned my attention back to Bella. "Well, you ready?"
"Yeah." she said. I waited while she gave him a quick kiss. "I love you."
"I love you too." he said.
She walked out the door and headed toward Emmett's jeep. I turned to follow but Jacob grabbed my arm.
"I want to talke to you for a minute." he thought.
I sighed and stopped. Bella turned back to me for minute looking confused.
"Jacob wants to talk for a minute. I'll be right there." I told her.
She looked a little worried as she climbed in the jeep. Once she was safely inside, I turned back to Jacob.
"I want you to know that I haven't forgot what Bella told me about the last time." he said.
"Neither have I." I replied.
"Good. Because if anything happens to her tonight, the truce will be over and I'll be watching your every move. Just waiting to call the pack in when you screw up." he stated.
I laughed to myself.
"Don't worry." I said. "If anything happens to her tonight, I'll give the pack a reason to come after me and I won't put up a fight. She's in good hands with us. I swear."
"I trust you but she means so much to me." he replied.
"She means a lot to us too."
"Then I'm glad were on the same page." He stuck out his hand.
"When it comes to Bella safety, we will always be on the same page." I shook his hand as we stepped out the door.
I headed to the jeep and he ran to the forest.
"So what was that about?" Bella asked as soon as I got into the car.
"Nothing, really." I answered. "He just wanted to make sure that you were gonna be safe."
She laughed.
"What?" I asked.
"Nothing. You just wouldn't believe how much like you he's becoming."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean I had to fight with him for twenty minutes before he would agree to let me come. There was a time back when he would be right there with me facing the danger. Now, he tells me that even riding motorcycles is too dangerous for me."
I could tell by the tone of her voice and the look she shot me that she thought I had something to do with it. Which I didn't. I didn't like the idea of the motorcycles, I'll admit that, but there relationship wasn't my business. If Jacob wanted to let her do things, that was between the two of them. I was glad, though when Bella told me he was becoming more protective. It meant I didn't have to worry so much.
"Hey," I said indignantly. "I didn't say anything to him. Your guys' relationship is none of my business. If he wants to let you ride motorcycles then he can. I'm glad he's not letting you any more though."
We fell into silence. I could tell by the look on her face, she didn't believe me. She let it drop though. I began to contemplate the sex question. I knew it wasn't my business wheher or not they were doing it. However, as her "older brother" I felt it was my job to make sure they were being responsible about it. I knew we were going to have the coversation sometime. I figured now was as good a time as any.
"So have you guys had sex yet?" I blurted out.
She was silent for a few minutes. I, once again, wished I could read her mind. She seemed unsure of how much to tell me.
"What happened to our relationship being none of your business?" she finally asked in a teasing voice.
"It isn't but as your big brother, I think I have a right to know if you're being safe and if he's treating you right." I replied.
She smiled. I was slightly taken a back by the look on her face. It was like she couldn't quite believe I said that. I was slightly insulted. I had done the "big" brother thing before.
"Well, no. We haven't had sex yet." she replied blushing. "But we're getting close which is why I'm on the pill. And he treats me very well. He's always so gentle."
"So he doesn't try to push you to go any further than you're comfortable with?"
"No. When I say stop, he stops."
"Good." I was glad I didn't have to kill him
I figured she was relieved when I put the jeep in park. I was sure she was embarassed by what she just revealed. I didn't think she wanted me to ask anymore questions. I ran to her door and opened it. Once she was out, I crouched down and she crawled on my back. Less than two minutes later, I was sitting her down in the field. I was surprised that she didn't fall
The family was scattered around the field. Each one waved and called to her as they noticed her presense. She waved back. Esme come over and put her arm around Bella's shoulder before taking over over to their spot. They were in charge of calling the gamre and keeping everyone honest. I took my place on the outfield as the first hint of thunder rolled through the sky. Jasper stepped up to the plate, bat in hand, and the game began.
We played for a good half hour or so before Alice yelled for us to stop. I watched her vision and the new girl coming towards us. I was at Bella's side in a second. We still had time to get her out of here.
"Edward, wait." Alice said. "It's okay. She's safe."
She was stuck on what she had seen earlier. She was absolutely convinced that this girl meant us no harm. Even though her visions weren't always accurate.
"How do you know for sure?" I asked.
"Just trust me." Alice replied.
She had a goofy grin on her face and wouldn't let me see her vision. I didn't like that she was hiding things from me. Yet, something in her eyes told me that everything was going to be fine. I was convinced that Bella was safe but taking precautions, I crouched in front of her. The family assembled around us. After a few minutes, the second most beautiful person, human or vampire, walked out of the trees.
She didn't look too much older than fifteen or sixteen. She was around five foot six and weighed no more than one hundred and twenty pounds. She had beautiful pale skin and long limbs. I noticed the faint traces of scars on her body. The venom had done a decent job with them but I could make them out clearly with my heightened sight. I found myself wanting to find out who gave them too her. I was angry and wanted them to suffer for it. I had no idea where it came from. I pushed those thoughts away and took in the rest of her.
Her brown hair fell in layers past her butt. Her face was the last thing I notcied. She had full pouty lips that would make even Angelina Jolie jealous. Her eyes were a beautiful butterscotch color. I relaxed a little when I noticed this. It meant that she was like us. I noticed the sadness behind the color too.
I was mesmerized by her. She was breathtaking. I tried to push away my confusing feelings to get inside her head. Her thoughts were racing. I wasn't able to concetrate on one. I noted what little things I could pick out. I tensed when her thoughts finally landed on Bella.
"The human looks nice. I hope she wants to be my friend. It would be nice to have a human friend. It'd be nice to have any friends. I've been so lonely ever since Kyle..." I saw her visibly shuddered and skipped to the next set of thoughts. "They look nice enough. I hope they like me. I'm not so sure about all those boys though. What if.." She trailed off again. I could see her how scared she was. "I think maybe I should say something. I don't want them to attack."
She raised her hands as if in surrender and walked toward Carlisle.
"I won't harm you, your family, or your human." she said.
I relaxed a little more. Her thoughts matched what she was saying. She really didn't want to hurt anybody. She just wanted someone to be her friend. She was so lonely. I heard that in her thoughts.
My focus was solely on her thoughts but I knew Jasper was going through hell. I could feel the calm he was trying to send her but she wouldn't accept it. However hurt her, screwed her up mentally. Her thoughts were full of nothing but fear and anxiety. I could see her trembling as she continued to walked toward Carlisle.
Her words were followed by a shocked silence. We weren't sure what to make of her. We wanted to trust her but weren't sure if we could. This could all be just be an elaborate plot to destroy us. I didn't think that was the case but I knew we weren't going to take the chance. Especially not with Bella here. She wouldn't be able to defend herself.
"Okay, that didn't work. Maybe I should introduce myself." she thought.
"I'm Roxanne." she said. "I've been looking for you for awhile."
"Hello, Roxanne." Carlisle spoke with an incline of his head. "I'm Carlisle Cullen and this is my family. Can I ask why you were looking for us?"
"It's quite the long story actually." she replied.
She thought was going to add the word sad but she thought she alreadt looked pathetic. I had to disagree. It took a great deal of guts to do what she was doing. It wasn't easy open yourself to a group of vampires. Especially after one had hurt you the way she had been hurt. That was the only thing I could gather from her thoughts. She was hurt by the man she loved. A vampire.
Those thoughts popped into her when she thought about how scary, the males in our family looked. She pushed them back quickly trying very hard to keep her composure. She didn't want to have a break down in front of all of us.
"Then why don't we go back to our home and we can talk there." Carlisle suggested. Roxanne nodded. "Esme, Rosalie, would you please escort Roxanne to the house."
I noticed her relax just slightly.
"At least he didn't ask the boys." she thought.
"Emmett, Jasper you go too. I'd like to speak with Alice, Edward, and Bella."
Panic broke out in her head. If I didn't know it wasn't possible, I would've thought she was headed for a panic attack. "Calm down." she thought. "These are nice people. They won't do what he did."
She repeated those words in her head as Esme walked over to her. They disappeared into the woods. Rosalie a short distance behind them. I turned my concentration towards Jasper, hoping he picked up on her fear of men.
"I'll have to tell Emmett to keep his distance. I don't think she's too comfortable with males." he thought as he and Emmett followed Rose.
I finally let my guard completely down but continued to stare after her. I was vaguely aware that Bella moved to stand beside me.
"Edward, did you get anything from her?" Carlisle asked.
I blinked a couple times just to make I was back in my right mind.
"Everything she said was true." I said. "She's not here to hurt anybody."
I left out everything else I picked up. I wasn't sure how much she wanted us to know. I wasn't going to betray her trust before it was even gained. She didn't deserve that again.
"She knew Bella was a human, obviously but what did she think about that?" Carlisle questioned.
"She thought it would be kind of fun to have a human friend." Edward answered.
I heard Bella's heart speed up just slightly. I knew she was contemplating what I meant by fun.
"Is that James's kind of fun or Emmett's kind of fun?" she asked.
"Emmett's." I answered with a chuckle.
"Alice, have you seen anything involving her?" Carlisle asked.
"Yes." Alice answered. "She won't hurt Bella."
She had the same smile on her face that she had when she told me to let Bella stay. She still wasn't letting me in on the vision and it was annoying me. I looked at Bella, maybe she knew something. She was looking at Alice with the same smile. I looked back at Alice and she winked at Bella. That was enough to tell me that Bella was definitely in on it.
"All the same," Carlisle continued. "I think Edward should take Bella home."
I laughed to myself. We both knew that there was no way Bella was going home. She'd want to know what was going on. I knew if she couldn't convince us to let her, she'd find a way. I gave him a look that clearly said this.
"I won't risk it." he thought. I shrugged. It was his funeral.
"But Carlisle.." she whined. I laughed at how much she sounded like a five year old.
"No, Bella, I'm not going to put you in danger not when it can be avoided." Carlisle stated.
"But Alice says nothing's going to happen. And you heard Roxanne. She doesn't mean any harm." she complained.
"Yes, but as your eighteenth birthday proved, accidents happen. And in this situation, accidents can lead to us losing control. I will not risk one of my daughters lives like that." he stated firmly.
That wasn't right. We shouldn't always tell her that we consider her family if she can't be part of family decisions. If Bella was indeed one of us then she should be able to get to know Roxanne. And be part of the decision of whether or not she joins the family.
"That's not right Carlisle." she voiced exactly what I was thinking. "You guys are always claiming that I'm family. If that's true then don't I have the right to be there and have a say in whether or not she joins us."
I gave him a look that said I agreed with Bella.
"She got a point there, Carlisle." Alice offered.
"Jake will never forgive us if this turns out bad." he thought but sighed in defeat. "Fine but you don't leave Edward's side." he told her. She nodded. "And Edward, keep tabs on her thoughts. If anything goes wrong, get Bella out quickly."
I mentally rolled my eyes. I didn't understand why they were being so protective. There was nothing about her demeanor, thoughts, or words that indicated danger. She was just lonely and sad, that's all. I could hear it in her thoughts.
"We'll see you at home." Alice said as she and Carlisle ran toward the woods.
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Within a few minutes, Bella and I were in the jeep driving toward the house. I drove in silence. I wasn't sure how I felt about her coming with us. I knew that I had fought Carlisle on taking her home. Yet, even the slightest possiblity of danger to Bella made me nervous. Especially since we were walking on eggshells with Jacob and the pack.
She didn't say anything. She was staring at me with that smile she had when she looked at Alice. It was annoying, even more so because I couldn't read her mine. I tried to ignore it but curiousity got the better of me.
"What?" I finally yelled in frustration.
"What do you mean what?" she asked.
"You're looking at me with this goofy smile. Like you know something I don't." I said.
"You like Roxanne." she said in a sing song voice.
Damn. She was way to perceptive for a human. I didn't even know how I felt about her. I knew I felt a pull towards her that I haven't felt since Bella. I wanted to rip apart whoever hurt and destroyed her. I wanted to sheild her from the rest of the world. I wanted to believe that it was just the humanity that Bella helped me get back but I wasn't sure. I decided to feign ignorance.
"I don't even know her." I replied trying to sound indignant.
"What you've never heard of love at first sight?"
"I don't believe in it."
That was a lie, of couse, but she didn't need to know it.
"Not even with me?"
"No, you were intrigue at first sight. The love came later."
That was partly true. I was first intrigue by the fact that I couldn't read her mind. I realized months later, that I had been in love with her since the first time I saw her. It was just that the other emotions clouded it. I hoped I hadn't her feelings by saying that.
"I see." she replied sounding apathetic about it.
"What makes you think I like her, anyway?" I asked.
"The look on your face when she was in the field."
"What look?"
"The look that says I'm totally in love with and devoted to you. The look you used to have when you looked at me." she said.
Yup, she was definitely too perceptive for her own good. I was concentrating so hard on her thoughts that I didn't even think about what I looked like. Was Bella right then? Did I like Roxanne? I really didn't want to think about that right now. So once again, I played ignorant.
"Like I said. I don't even know her. Why would I look at her like that, already?" I questioned.
"Love's a crazy thing. Most of the time we don't understand the who, when, where, or how. We just feel it." she stated.
I wasn't sure how to reply to that so I stayed silent. She continued to study me. The smile was gone but she was waiting for an answer. I didn't want to say it because of what it would mean. Yet, I knew I wouldn;t get out of it until I did/
"Okay, fine!" I finally shouted in frustration, as we were pulling up the drive. "I think she's beautiful. I want to get to know her. And I see potential for a future. Are you happy now?"
"Extremely." she replied still smiling.
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When we got to the living room of the house, the others were already waiting for us. Roxanne was sitting on one side of the couch. She had her hands folded in her lap and was staring down at them. Her thoughts were still running rapid. She wasn't sure what or how much to tell and Carlisle were on the other side of the couch. Leaving room for only one more person. Carlisle's arm was around Esme shoulders and her head was on his shoulder. Emmett was sitting in the armchair with Rosalie on his lap. Jasper was sitting on the floor against the entertainment center with Alice between his legs. His arms were around her waist. I could sense tension and curiousity from everyone.
I could hear tension in everyone's thoughts. Well, everyone's, except Alice's. She was mentally singing Mary Had a Little Lamb in five different languages. She was doing it with a great amount of cher though. Everyone looked up when we walked in. My eyes locked with Roxanne's and I was, once again, mesmerized. It took me a minute to realize that Bella was no longer beside me. She walked right over to Roxanne and stuck out her hand.
"I'm Isabella Swan but you can call me Bella." she stated.
"Hello Bella, I'm Roxanne Martin." she replied shaking Bella's hand. "It's nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too." Bella replied and sat between Roxanne and Esme. "This doesn't make you uncomfortable, does it?"
Her thoughts didn't seem it the least bit tempted. In fact, she was concentrating very hard on keeping her stomach from churning.
"No. Honestly, human blood has absolutely no appeal for me." she answered.
"How is that possible?" Bella asked.
"What an unique human." she thought. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone quite like her."
"Because when I was human, I had an aversion to it. I'm assuming it only intensified with my transformation." she answered. She then voiced her thoughts, "You are quite the unique human. Most, who don't even know our secret won't come within five feet of us. Yet, here you sit in a room with eight and having a friendly conversation."
The family laughed. I felt the tension start to disappear. Something, I was sure, Jasper had nothing to do with.
"Bella's always been weird like that." I stated sitting on the the other armchair. "She seems to lack the impulse most humans have that tells her to stay away."
The family and I laughed some more.
"Well, I seem to remember that you weren't very good at staying away from me yet." she countered.
I was glad that we could joke about the things that happened in our past now. We had moved on and talking about our relationship didn't hurt any more.
"Well, getting to close to you wouldn't endanger my life." I replied.
"And yet, if I didn't get close to you, I would be dead several times over."
The whole family laughed. Roxanne joined in this time. Her laugh was a beautiful as her voice. It sounded like wind chimes.
"If I didn't know any better, I said there was more to their relationship than meets the eye. They're too comfortable with each other." Roxanne thought. "It sounds like the two of you have an interesting relationship." she said after we stopped laughing.
"That's another long story." Emmett said. He empahsized the word long.
I shot him a dirty look.
"Well, it's true." he thought.
"One for another time." Carlisle said. "Roxanne, why don't you tell us yours?"
A/N: Okay, that was meeting Roxanne from Edward P.O.V. I hope you liked. I know the stuff about Roxanne is a little confusing but her head is a jumbled mess right now. And if you're wondering, the stuff that happened to her happened while she was human. But as we've heard from Rosalie's experiences, the bad ones are the ones that don't fade. The next chapter is Roxanne whole story. Please Review. I love all of my faithful reviewers.
