AN: You guys sure know how to make a gal feel all warm and fuzzy inside! Thanks for all the lovely reviews. Here´s a bedtime snack!

Approved by the DreamTeam!

DISCLAIMER: I OWN NUTHIN!

That´s What Little Girls Are Made Of...

Chapter Seventy-Nine

BPOV

Monday came, and with it, a sense of foreboding.

Edward´s birthday came and went without a single word from Carlisle or Esme.

As much as he tried to hide his feelings, it hurt him deeply.

Emmett, Jasper, and Edward spent the majority of the night having hushed conversations over in the corner. I got the distinct feeling that they were keeping something from me, but Rose and Alice assured me that if it was something I needed to know, Edward would tell me when the time was right.

Trust, they said.

It was one of things we´d talked about the night before.

I had to trust that Edward would always have my best interest at heart. Even when he did something stupid in the name of protecting me, it was a lot to take in, but I was willing to give it a try.

Also, they explained that Edward viewed Jacob as a threat. No matter how innocently I thought of my friendship with Jake, Edward would always see him as competition.

"Whoa there, tiger," Rose chuckled when I gave her a look of incredulity. "Hear me out first. Who is the first person you call when something´s wrong?"

That was easy. "Edward."

"And, who it the first person you call when you have good news to share?" This time it was Alice who asked the question.

"Edward," I responded, with a `duh´ tone lacing my voice.

"And who is the first person…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." I threw my hands up in exasperation. "Edward, Edward, Edward...it´s always Edward!" I took a sip from my heavily diluted margarita and sighed. "So what now? Am I not supposed to have friends, because Edward´s a jealous ass and doesn´t approve of them?"

"On the contrary, my young sister," Alice giggled. Clearly the girl was a little bit more than tipsy. "You use it to your advantage. Drive him mad! Beat him at his own game!"

"Damn straight, sista!" Rose guffawed, giving Alice a high-five across the table. "It´s called, using what you can, to get what you want! Women have been doing it since the dawn of time. Just look at what that bitch, Eve did to Adam in the garden. Poor sap didn´t even know what the fuck hit him!"

Letting their words sink in, I smiled to myself.

Maybe there was a chance for Edward and me after all.

"Penny for your thoughts, pretty girl?"

Looking up, I smiled. "Well if it isn´t the golden boy; Jacob Black, how are classes and summer training going?" I asked, making room for him to sit with me at the table.

Dropping his bag on the floor beside his chair, Jake ran a hand through is short dark hair. "Meh...okay, I guess." For some reason, I got the feeling that something was bothering him; he wasn´t his normal cheerful self.

Reaching over, I grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. "Hey, Jake, you know you can talk to me, right? I mean if something´s bothering you, I´m here." Leaning in a little closer, I whispered. "I know what it´s like to feel alone. Don´t feel like you´re here all by yourself, your family may be back in Hoquiam, but you´ve still got me."

Turning our hands so that they were now linked, Jacob leaned over to give me a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Bells, you have no idea how much that means to me."

The week flew by, and for as well as things were going for me at school, things with Edward could not have been worse.

By that I mean, Edward often didn´t return my phone calls, suddenly he was unavailable to have lunch with me, and the worst thing of all was when he called to inform me this morning that he had to go out of town, and I needed to stay on campus this weekend.

Not that I minded spending the weekend with my new friends, it´s just that it hurt not to be given a choice in the matter. Edward was shutting me out, and I had no idea why.

Thank God, I had my roommate, Angela Webber, a nice quiet girl from St. Louis, Missouri, Jake, and Jake´s best friend, Seth Clearwater, who just so happened to be from the small reservation, La Push a few miles away from Forks.

Talk about a small fucking world, his dad, Harry, and mom, Sue, were actually friends of Charlie´s. He used to go out and fish on their property. I was never much into the great American outdoors, so that would explain why I didn´t remember any of them. It was good that I had them, because, I hadn´t seen any of my other friends in a couple of days.

Now that I think about it, Rose, Alice, Emmett, and Jasper were all acting strange as well.

They were all hiding something; of that I was sure.

Now what that was, I didn't know.

I´ll be expecting lots of love waiting for me when I wake up in the morning! Good night my lovelies!

Krazi

xoxo