I'm so thrilled that this story is getting a lot of hits and alerts. Please, please take just a moment to review. I need the encouragement! Thanks. :)

Oh, and of course, I don't own Twilight. Not a page, not a character, not even an autograph. Just a barbie doll, which really doesn't do Edward justice.

Chapter 5

That January in Forks was one of the coldest in ten years. Charlie was very busy working with the Forks Department of Public Works, keeping the roads cleared of snow and ice, and it felt like the arrival of spring was nothing more than a faraway dream.

Alice and I had met Ben and Mike at the gym on Tuesday, and we were looking forward to our dinner out on Saturday. It was going to be a busy weekend with the concert on Friday night, but that was fine with me. I couldn't wait to see Kings of Leon, and to spend some time with Edward outside of work. I hadn't told Edward about my date with Mike; not that I was keeping it from him, but I didn't know exactly how to blurt it out, either. And besides, it really wasn't a subject I was comfortable talking about with him.

Emmett, Alice, and I drove to Edward's house to pick him up. Growing up, I remembered the house that the Cullens had purchased, and I was amazed at how much it had changed since they moved in. His mother had been redecorating and, being a real estate agent, knew about curb appeal. Alice jumped in the backseat with me when we pulled into Edward's driveway, and he came bounding out of the house and climbed in beside Emmett.

"Hey, bro," Emmett greeted him.

"Hey, Em," he replied, turning towards the back seat where Alice and I sat.

"Hello, ladies," he said with a smile.

Alice and I both said hi, and we rode to the concert with Emmett's car stereo basically ruining any chances of a civilized conversation. I couldn't help but notice how wonderful the car smelled now that Edward's cologne permeated the air, thanks to the heat being turned on full blast.

The whole concert was amazing. The music was fantastic, and Alice had maneuvered our seating arrangement so that Edward and I were between her and Emmett. Alice and I couldn't stop dancing and jumping the entire time, and I realized that wearing my new boots was definitely a mistake, no matter how good Alice said they looked. At one point, Edward leaned over to me with a big smile across his face.

"Having fun?" he practically yelled over the music.

"Yeah, how about you?" I hollered back. He nodded enthusiastically rather than try to keep up a conversation.

By the end of the concert, my ears were ringing and my feet throbbed from the new boots. Our seats were in the thirteenth row, and we had to wait for some of the crowd to thin out before we could exit the arena and endure the long, slow process of getting out of the parking lot. We stood around talking for a few minutes before trying to leave, and Emmett was telling Edward about his upcoming date with Rose, one of the cheerleaders at school. The subject of dating must have rung a bell with him, because he suddenly turned to Alice, taking on the roll of big brother.

"Hey Alice, what's the deal with this guy that's been calling the house? Ben? Is that his name?"

"Yes, Ben is his name, and he's very nice, Emmett," Alice said, rolling her eyes. "Bella and I went on a double date last weekend with him and his friend, Mike. We're going out with them again tomorrow night."

Edward turned and looked at me curiously, as if he was wondering why I hadn't told him about Mike. I had to admit I felt a little satisfaction at this, but part of me wondered why he cared, anyway. Even though we were friends, I avoided the subject of his love life, so I didn't feel the need to share details of mine.

"So, how old are these guys? Where did they take you?" Emmett continued his Q&A session.

"Jeez, Emmett, they're juniors at Haviland. We just went to a movie, nothing major," Alice responded, giving Emmett a look that said 'mind your own business.'

"Oh, I guess that's cool, then, as long as they behaved themselves."

"Well, Bella's date got a little out of hand in the movie theater, actually, and she had to put him in his place," Alice explained, smiling. Did she really need to share that much information? I looked over at Edward, and he had that look on his face again; like he was still trying to figure out that math problem. He looked at me then, a question obviously burning in his mind.

"And you're going out with this guy again?" he asked.

"Um, yeah, I guess so. Why?" I asked.

"No reason," he said quietly, looking away. I was caught off guard by the sudden, protective tone of his voice.

Emmett and Alice found an opening in the crowd and were starting to ascend the stairs, so Edward and I followed behind them. There were so many people it was hard to stay together as a group. Alice grabbed on to the back of Emmett's sweatshirt so that she wouldn't get trampled under someone's feet, and suddenly I felt an electric current run from my fingers up to my right shoulder. I looked down at the source of the shock, and found that Edward had laced his fingers through mine, and was holding my hand. I looked up into his eyes with what I'm sure was a surprised expression.

"I wouldn't want you to get lost, Bella," he said with a smile, and gave my hand a gentle squeeze. We walked like that until we were out of the arena, across the parking lot, and almost to the car. I wondered if he could feel how badly my hand was sweating, or how my pulse started racing the moment he touched me. When I was no longer in danger of being separated from the group and he let go of my hand, it actually felt like a part of me was suddenly missing. I silently chastised myself for having such an intense reaction, and tried not to smile too much when Alice winked at me in the car, telling me she had been all too aware of what had just transpired.

The next night I planned to stay overnight at Alice's house, since we were probably going to be out late. Her parents were a bit more relaxed about curfews, and Alice said it was because Emmett broke them in for her. When I arrived at Alice's house, I was surprised to see Edward's car parked outside on the street. As I walked into the kitchen with my overnight bag slung over my shoulder, I was even more surprised to see Edward and Emmett sitting at the table, expectantly.

"Hi," I said to both of them.

They both greeted me with a sheepish 'hi,' and looked at each other nervously. I was about to ask them what was up when Alice came stomping into the room.

"Bella," she said, with a scowl on her face. "Did you have any idea what these two were planning tonight?"

"Nope," I answered honestly. "Should I?"

"Well," she continued, "it seems that our two protectors here want to give our dates the third degree before we leave. I already told them that if they so much as glance at Ben or Mike that they would both be dealing with two very pissed off young ladies. Right?" she asked, looking for my support.

"You were going to do what?" I asked Edward directly. He shifted in his seat, feeling uncomfortable now under my glare.

"We just wanted to check them out and make sure they seemed like decent guys, that's all, Bella," he tried to explain.

"So, I'm not a good enough judge of character to decide who I should date, is that it?" I asked.

"C'mon, Bells," Emmett tried to interject, "you know that guys can tell things about other guys that girls don't pick up on. Besides, if this Mike knows that you have big brothers watching out for you, he'll think twice about making any wrong moves."

I stood there for a minute trying to process exactly how I felt. Part of me was angry that Edward and Emmett would take it upon themselves to screen our dates. Another part of me was insulted that they, particularly Edward, didn't think I had enough brains to date 'decent guys.' And thinking of Edward as my brother just felt wrong from almost every angle imaginable.

Then there was that other part of me that was secretly thrilled. I mean, Edward was spending part of his Saturday night making sure that I was safe. And after holding my hand last night at the concert, I took this as a sign that perhaps he cared more than I expected him to, even though it would never be as much as I hoped. Still, what right did he have to choose who I dated when I had no say in his love life? I suddenly had an idea. If Edward and Emmett were determined to play the part of the concerned siblings, then perhaps Alice and I should give them something to be concerned about.

"Okay then, fine. No problem," I said, and walked past them and up the stairs to put my bag down in Alice's room. She, of course, flew up the stairs immediately after me.

"Fine? What do you mean, fine?" she asked, questioning my sanity with her stare. "You know they aren't going to leave here until we get picked up, right?" she continued.

"Trust me, Al," I said, and a look of understanding came over Alice's face as I gave her a conspiratory smile.

Ten minutes later, Alice had re-checked us both for proper makeup and hair placement, and we were waiting in the front hall, out of Edward and Emmett's view. When we saw Ben's car pull into the driveway, we headed for the kitchen. Mike and Ben knocked on the door a moment later, and Alice let them in. She gave Ben a hug and told him she was glad to see him, and he was surprised, but happy, at her enthusiasm.

Mike came over to me then and said, "Hey, Bella. Wow, you look nice tonight." He looked at me from head to toe, and that feeling from the gym came back to me.

"Thanks," I said, attempting to give Mike a seductive look and putting my hand on his shoulder. "You look pretty handsome tonight, yourself." At this Mike gave a broad smile, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Edward shift in his seat again.

"Ben and Mike, this is my brother Emmett and his friend, Edward," Alice stated, pointing to them. All four guys offered a quick hello and nod of their heads, and then it got very quiet. I swear that Edward and Emmett were looking at Mike and Ben to see if they recognized either of them from America's Most Wanted. It was time for us to leave them to their own thoughts.

"Okay then, our Princes have arrived, and we are off to the ball," Alice stated, lacing her arm through Ben's. I wrapped my arm around Mike's waist and we headed out the door behind them. Once we were outside, though, I heard the door open again and footsteps behind us.

"Excuse me," Emmett said as he grabbed Alice's hand and pulled her back around the corner, effectively stopping all of us in our tracks. "So where are you going tonight, exactly?" he more demanded than asked.

"Well," she said, following my lead, "we are going to dinner, and then maybe go for a drive to check out the full moon tonight. Who knows?" she said coyly. Emmett looked at me, and I just raised my eyebrows and shrugged, as if to say anything was okay with me. I heard a frustrated sigh come from Edward, and immediately felt as though my mission had been accomplished.

"Goodnight, Em," Alice said quietly, and she wriggled loose from Emmett's grip and we both got into the car with Mike and Ben.

Ben and Mike took us to a nice restaurant just outside of Seattle called Les Restants. The atmosphere was very French and romantic, and the food was excellent. I was happy to see that all of the menu items were listed in English, because I didn't feel that my first year of high school French had prepared me for the complete immersion experience yet. All through the evening we ate and laughed, and generally had a good time, but my thoughts still kept drifting to the concert the night before, and to Edward. It felt wrong to be dating Mike when my heart really couldn't belong to him, but at the same time it felt wrong to put my life on hold for someone whose heart couldn't belong to me. This definitely came under the category of "life isn't fair." After dinner I excused myself to go to the bathroom, and Alice followed me in there a few moments later.

"Bella, the guys want to go somewhere after dinner. What do you think?" she asked, biting her thumbnail.

"Like a movie, or something else?" I asked.

"Definitely something else," she said, eyeing me sheepishly. "I think my earlier comment of checking out the full moon is close to being on target."

Oh God, no. I should have seen this coming. Of course they would have taken our earlier actions as a promising sign of…something. I looked at Alice, and it seemed like she had made up her mind that this would be a good thing, and I didn't want to ruin her night. But I just couldn't see myself with Mike, even if Edward didn't exist. The thoughts of fighting him off in the back seat of Ben's car made me nauseated.

"Alice, I can't. I mean, it's fine if you want to go with Ben, but I don't feel that way toward Mike. Are you okay with that?" I wished so badly at that point that we had taken two cars instead of one.

"Yes, I understand. But, can I ask a question?" she asked hesitantly.

"Go ahead," I replied.

"Is it because of someone else?" That girl knew me way too well for me to even pretend that didn't have something to do with it.

"Partly, yes," I said, "and partly no. I honestly don't think Mike's someone I want to keep dating long term, and I don't want anything to get awkward between you and Ben if things are working out, you know what I mean?"

"Yes, and I'm fine with that. I just want to make sure that you aren't hanging onto a dream and waiting for your Mr. Perfect."

"I know," I said as I gave her a hug. "So what do we do now?"

"I think Ben and I should leave the two of you alone for a little bit so that you can talk, and then we'll head back to Forks. Something tells me I'll be seeing Ben again soon, anyway," she said, smiling.

I was happy that things were going so well between Alice and Ben. But I also dreaded the conversation I was about to have with Mike, and didn't hold much hope that our evening would end as well as Alice's.

I was both very right and very wrong.

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