Hey Guys! Listen…

So sorry about not updating. You blame me; I blame the fact that I have a life. XD

I really want to get back into the whole "Replying to Reviews" thing. I'm really bad at that. Sorry. And to all the reviewers – THANK YOU! You make my day. And sometimes make me laugh. For which I am grateful. Much Love from Mary.

I don't own.

Ch. 7

It had been two days since Jessica had called.

She still wasn't answering my phone calls and I decided that leaving four messages was taking it a bit far. Jess was one of my best friends, and without her or Alice, there was nobody to talk 'girl talk' with, besides Rosalie, and she didn't want to talk to me. Of course I had Edward, but when I called him at six in the morning to tell him about a dream I had about becoming the next Mrs. Jack Carpenter, it didn't go over well. After that, he was kind of distant for some reason, and that furthered my bad mood.

All in all, I was really moody without my girl friends around.

Just as soon as the thought entered my mind, the landline started to ring. I slowly walked downstairs to the kitchen counter and looked at the Caller ID.

Alice Cullen

Oh, wow. Fate was on my side today.

"Alice!"

"Bella? Oh my gosh! Hi! How are you? Is Jessica being a prick? Has she talked to you? Have you had any fun without me? Why aren't you answering me?"

"Alice! Slow down! Jeeze… Let me get a word in!"

"Sorry… So what's going on with Jessica?"

"Well, she got all pissed because I was hanging out with Edward in your Pool House."

"WHAT?"

"Yeah! She started to yell at me and then it got so ridiculous that I chucked my phone across the room."

"Oh, Jeeze, Bella! I'm sorry! Jess needs to cool it a little bit. But Edward wasn't supposed to show that to you until I was there! Ugh. Remind me to stab him when I see him, okay?"

I chuckled. "Okay, Alice."

"Okay, now tell me everything that happened with Jessica."

I sighed, and then went into an extremely detailed account of what had happened two days ago.

"…And now, she's not answering any of my calls and she's ignoring me. Knowing Jessica, she's probably talking trash about me! Alice, what do I do!?!"

"Hm… I think you should just let her be all jealous. If she wants to hang out with Edward, she should talk to him. It isn't your fault that you're his friend."

I sighed. "Yeah, you're probably right."

"And as for her talking trash about you, well… just let her do her thing. She only embarrasses herself. Trust me, I know."

"How do you know, exactly?"

Alice snorted on the other end. "Yesterday, she called me in New York at two in the morning. Totally ignorant of the time zones, but that isn't my point. She calls me and starts screaming into the phone about what a total back-stabber you are. And I said to her, 'Listen, Jessica… You're my friend, and I love you. But Bella and I are soul sisters. To insult her is to insult me.' And I hung up the phone. It was totally awesome."

At that moment, I fully appreciated Alice and what she has done for me. I knew, in that moment, that she was one of the best things that had ever happened to me. So much that I felt a tear trickle down my face.

"Oh my gosh, Alice, I wish you were here so I could give you a hug!"

"I'll remember that when I see you next time."

Dangit. Someone started knocking at the door.

"Listen, Alice, I gotta go. But I'll call you later, alright?"

Whoever was there was knocking again.

"Bye," I said as I hung up.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Patience is virtue, Jeeze…" I said when I was close to the door. As if to prove me wrong, the person behind the door started banging on it again.

I wrenched it open and almost started yelling at the short, pixie-like fourteen-year-old girl standing in front of me.

"ALICE!!!" I screamed. "Oh my gosh, what are you doing here?"

"Where's my hug?"

I screamed again and as I dropped the handset onto the hardwood floor, we hugged. I was so relieved to have Alice here so I could talk to her about everything.

But then I was mad.

"Mary Alice Cullen. You did not get thrown out because of me!"

"No, silly! I got thrown out because I was yelling at Jessica."

"Alice! That isn't funny!"

"But seriously, it's no big deal! All the shows were crappy and everyone was falling and tripping over their dresses and such. I was actually debating on coming home anyway."

"Awh, Alice, I love you lots. But I'm still mad at you for getting yourself kicked out," I teased.

"Love you, too, Bella." She got up from her chair at the kitchen counter, and I gave her a hug. We sat in silence for a moment, for which I was grateful for.

But the stupid phone started ringing again.

I sighed as I picked up the handset. "What?"

"Sorry… is this a bad time?"

"No, it's fine. Sorry. Who is this?"

"Bella! I'm shocked you don't remember the sound of my voice. It's only been what… two days since I called you last?"

"Oh! Hey, Jake. Sorry. I'm just kind of irritated."

"Like I said… Is this a bad time?"

I quickly glanced over at Alice. I didn't want to talk on the phone all the while she was here. She seemed to be preoccupied with her cell phone, so I continued.

"No, no! It's fine!"

"Well, that's good. Guess what I'm doing right now!"

"What?"

"I'm packing!"

"Packing? For what?"

"Bella… I swear. You can be so slow sometimes. I'm coming home!"

"Oh my gosh, Jake! That's awesome!"

"I'm glad you think so."

The tone of his voice made me question him.

"And you aren't?"

I heard voices in the background.

"No, it isn't that, Bella. I'm excited, too. But I got to go."

And the line disconnected.

Humph… I set the phone on the counter, not wanting to hang it up in case somebody called again. I wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone.

"So… What's with Jake?"

"He's coming home!"

"Oh, that'll be awesome! Why didn't you let me talk to him?"

"I dunno… He kind of sounded like he was in a hurry."

"Oh, okay."

"So…" I said as I sat back down on the chair.

"Yeah?"

"When, exactly, did you get in this morning?"

She shrugged. "I don't know… Maybe eight this morning? Dad picked me up from the airport. When I got home, Edward and Emmett were all moody and depressing." She made a face, "so I asked Mom if she could bring me over here."

"So why is Emmett in a bad mood?"

She shrugged again. "All I know is it had something to do with your sister."

Oh! I laughed. "Rosalie? She went to a dance last night. She said she had more fun than she's had in a long time. She danced with our cousins from out of town most of the time, but she still had fun."

Alice started laughing, and said, "I think Emmett is Jealous of your cousin."

"What?"

She started to laugh harder. "Emmett is like, in love with Rosalie."

When the laughter died down, I questioned her again. "What about Edward?"

Alice's expression changed. "He says you haven't been answering his calls?"

"What! He hasn't been calling me!"

She raised her eyebrow. "He was leaving you a message when I walked in the front door."

"Has he been calling my cell?"

She shrugged. "I suppose. Why?"

"That explains it. I washed my phone in my Jeans the other day and my mom had to ship it off to like Japan or something."

Alice rolled her eyes. "The idiot," she said, and proceeded to take her phone from her bag. She thrust it into my hands and said, "Call him."

I sighed and dialed his number without thinking about it. As he usually did, Edward answered on the first ring.

"Hey, Alice."

"Wrong!"

"Bella? Oh my gosh! I'm sorry, I-"

Before he could get the chance to start to ramble, I decided to intercede. "Edward, no. I'm the one who's sorry. It was my fault."

"How so?"

"I should have taken the stupid phone with me."

"Bella…" he hesitated. "Bella, I have something to tell you. I heard you tell me not to answer it, but I was… curious. I thought… Well, I thought it was someone else, other than Jessica. I'm sorry."

Surprise colored my voice as I answered. "So it is your fault!"

"Bella, I am SO – "

"No, I mean, I'm not mad at you or anything."

"Wait… What?"

"I'm not mad. I seriously needed a break from Jessica. These last few days have been… oddly peaceful."

"Okay, then. But why haven't you been answering your cell?"

I explained. "You could have called the house, you know."

"Yeah, but I figured that if you didn't want to talk to me on the cell, then the landline wouldn't change anything."

I paused. "Yeah, I guess that if I was mad at you that would have been best. But, as that isn't the case, you and Emmett want to come over? We're going to have a little… 'planning meeting.' Because Alice is back with all of our stuff."

"Planning meeting?" he asked skeptically. I wasn't usually the responsible one, and he did all of our planning for us. We used him, and he deserved a break.

"It was the only way I could get my mom to agree to it." I laughed.

"Spoons tournament it is, then." I laughed. He knew me so well. "You know it!"

"So what time?"

"I don't know… Whenever, I guess. Just call me before you leave, alright?"

"Okay… Probably be within the hour. Is that alright?"

I glanced at the hanging clock, which read 1.45 PM.

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Okay. Listen, I'll call you later, alright? I got to finish some homework."

"Okay, talk to you later."

"Bye," I said as I snapped the phone shut. Alice held out her hand. When I gave her the phone, she asked me, "Bella! Why did you do that?"

I shrugged and said, "Dad went fishing, and Mom said that we should have one sooner or later. Now seemed like the perfect opportunity. Sounds like fun, right?"

"Bunches."

"What? Did you have plans or anything?"

"Not exactly…"

"And now you do! Let's go tell my mom."

Alice sighed and got up from the table. "Renee! Bella wants to tell you something!" she shouted. My mother came running into the kitchen from the living room and beyond and said, "What is it? Who died?"

"Nobody died, mom. I just wanted to ask you something."

My mom signed and pulled her long hair into a hair tie. "Yes, Bella?"

"Well, are you doing anything today?"

"Oh, nothing. I was going to go into town and run some errands. Why?"

"Well, I was wondering if I could have a couple of friends over?"

Renee sat at the table, which was never a good sign. I should have stuck with the planning meeting thing. She started thrumming her manicured nails on the table. "Like who?"

"Oh, you know… Just Alice's brothers."

"You're not sixteen."

This was embarrassing. "Rosalie is, mom!"

"That's what I'm worried about…"

"Well, you can call every half hour to see if we've blasted the house down or done something else bad." I looked at her straight on the eye. Eye contact was crucial when trying to persuade my mother.

She caved. "Oh, alright, alright! But make sure you keep the house clean. I have the Clearwater's coming over for a dinner party tomorrow."

"Okay. Thanks, mom! Now have fun going shopping," I said as I helped her from her chair. "What? I'm not go-" I interrupted her and said, "Don't spend too much, either." We were at the front hall. I could tell she really didn't get that I was shoving her out of the house. I opened it and she walked outside. "Here are your keys." I took them off of the hook and threw them to her. "Bye, mom! See you later!" and I slammed the door.

Alice was somehow behind me. "I take it she said yes?" I nodded and said, "Hey Alice… Would you run up to Jaspers room and tell him to be down in like an hour?"

"Bella, I don't think that that is such a good idea…"

"Why not?"

"Well, he is your brother, and if I just exploded through the door…"

I rolled my eyes. "You wouldn't be exploding through the door. There's a thing they invented called 'knocking,' see?" I knocked on the counter.

"Bella! Come on… Can't I just go tell Rosalie?"

"What's wrong with Jasper?"

"I just… Please, don't make me!"

"There is a reason you won't go. I will find out, or my name isn't Isabella Marie Swan, fourteen year old private eye."

Alice rolled her eyes. "Private eye? Right. So are you going to tell him?"

"Fine." I got up from my seat and trudged up the stairs. "But I'm warning you, Alice, I will find out. Muahaha!" So much for evil sounding. As I got to his bedroom, I could hear him talking on the phone.

"… okay, that's cool! So do we have a plan, then, or what?"

"Knock knock."

Jasper turned around on his swivel chair and motioned for me to come in.

"Hey, I gotta go, Emmett. Bella needs me," and he hung up.

"Oi. Why are you and Emmett planning something that sounds dangerous?"

He rolled his eyes. "Never you mind. So what do you need?"

"Just wanted to tell you that in an hour, Emmett and Edward are coming over."

"Yeah, I was just talking to him. So I know. But what about Alice?"

"She's already here, actually…"

"She is?"

"Yeah… Why?" I was suspicious.

"No reason… I just wanted to make sure she didn't need a ride over, or anything."

"You were going to give her a ride?"

"Only if she needed it."

My brother could be the most loving person on the earth, and he could also be so odd and secretive.

"But Jazz, you can't drive yet…"

"Okay, time for little sister to leave!"

He stood up and pushed me out the door. "I'm only younger by like two minuets, okay? What difference does it make if you decided not to be a gentleman and let me go first? That's just rude, I think!" I said, and he slammed the door in my face.

Something was going on here, and I, Isabella Marie Swan, fourteen-year-old private eye, was going to find out.