A/N: So I had all but given up on my story, but thanks to my amazing friends, and a lot of ice cream, I started back up. I would have had this up even sooner, if finals weren't approaching. Special thanks to Edwardluvermonkey52 for being the only one on here to offer me some support!

The other reason I didn't update sooner, was that I was engulfed in If Every Word I Said Could Make You Laugh, by carmelinagunn (AKA IEWIS). It's the best fanfic I've read so far, so if you have yet to check it out, you definitely should! She is also working on a sequel called More, More, More which is equally fantastic.

Chapter 9:

"Bella! Wake up! It's your first day of school and I have to make you look absolutely amazing!" I heard a shrill voice jolt me from my sleep.

"Alice, what time is it?" I mumbled, rubbing my eyes.

"7 o'clock. Now get your cute butt in the shower!"

"But I don't have class till 9. Why am I getting up two hours before my class?"

"I already told you! I have to make you look completely perfect. First impressions are very important, Bella," Alice chided.

"Ugh, Fine," I said as I rolled out of bed and stumbled towards the bathroom. I found my face wash on the counter and grabbed it as I turned on the shower. I let the hot water rush over me, granting me a much more pleasant awakening than Alice. Speak of the devil, I thought as I heard her walk into the bathroom humming, no doubt coming in to run the flat iron through her hair to get her pixie-spikes just so. "Alice," I called, "how long have you been awake?" now remembering that she was already showered and dressed when she woke me up.

"Only since six," she replied, going along with the melody she had been humming.

"Why on earth would you get up that early?"

"That's not even that early!"

"How do you fit all that energy into such a small person?" I questioned, wondering how she could run like only Alice can, on only four hours of sleep.

"It's the hair. It's an energy magnet."

"I knew it!"

"Yeah, yeah, now hurry up and finish your shower." I reluctantly turned the knob off and grabbed my towel to dry off. "Your clothes are—"

"Yeah, I figured," I cut her off. Thankfully, Alice gave me a somewhat casual look, although I would have preferred jeans. She laid out a white long sleeved shirt and a bright blue skirt with a black belt. With those, she had my black snakeskin-textured flats which survived the war she waged on my closet. I gratefully dressed in the outfit. Had someone forced me to pick out a skirt, I probably would have picked that one. Once I was clothed, I went back into the bathroom where Alice was waiting for me. She blow-dried my hair, then took the flat iron to it until it was pin straight, layers gracefully falling around my face. The makeup she did for me was similar to yesterday's: soft with browns and golds, and a peachy lip gloss. I had to admit, I was starting to get used to Barbie Bella. I mean, it was kind of a hassle to spend so much time getting ready, but Alice was really good at what she did.

"Perfect, as always," Alice mused as she looked at my reflection.

"Of course it is, Alice. What do you want for breakfast?"

"I'm good with cereal. It's almost 8:30 already." I walked over to the kitchen and pulled out two bowls and some Lucky Charms. I put a pot of coffee on, and then sat down next to Alice.

"Where's Rosalie?" I asked her, looking around for the missing blonde.

"She's at Emmett's. They wanted to um, celebrate the start of school." Alice responded, seeming a bit uncomfortable.

"With Jasper and Edward there?"

"It's not what you're thinking, Bella! Their apartment has another bedroom. That's where Emmett sleeps. Jasper and Edward share the other room.

"Oh, okay. I thought that was a little odd," we both chuckled. "Do you have class today?"

"Yeah, not till 11 though. I basically go from then until 4 though, which kind of sucks."

"I finish at 4 too. I'll cook us dinner tonight. Do you want anything in particular?"

"I'm thinking something involving chicken."

"How about Chicken Parm?" I suggested.

"Mmm, that sounds good. Damn it Bella, now I can't wait for dinner!" I laughed at her comment. Alice looked down at her watch, "You should get going, Bella, it's 8:45."

"Shoot, I hope I'm not late. Where's that messenger bag you got me?"

"On your desk. I went school supply shopping, too, so you have notebooks and stuff."

"Alice, you're a saint. I'll see you tonight!" I hugged her quickly as I hurried out the front door. I tossed the black messenger bag that held my notebooks for class into the cab of my truck and hopped in. I drove the short distance down to the English building. Luck was on my side, for once, and there was a spot right in front. I rushed into the building, looking for room 120. As I stepped into the room, I checked the clock; it was only 8:55. Oh good, I thought, I'm not late. I scanned the room, hoping that someone I had met the other night would be in my class. I couldn't find anyone, however, so I took a seat in the front of the class. I was really hoping that I wouldn't be completely alone on my first day, but it wasn't looking good at all. I pulled out a notebook and jotted down the date: September 9th. Lazily, I looked around the classroom, waiting for my professor to walk in.

After a couple minutes, I heard a familiar voice, "Hi, Bella!"

I looked up to see Angela smiling at me. I greeted her with a warm grin, "Angela! I'm so glad that someone I know is in this class. Here, have a seat next to me." I motioned toward the empty seat on my right. Before she could sit, I heard another, deeper voice.

"Bella! Sweet, you're in my class." Oh no, I said to myself.

"Hey Mike," I responded unenthusiastically. He plopped down in the seat on the other side of me. Great.

"That party was crazy. Man, what a way to start college."

"Yeah, you didn't look so good when you left though."

"Nah, I was fine. Yorkie was overreacting."

"Angela," I tried to turn the conversation away from Mike, "when did you end up leaving?"

"Like one or so, I think," she responded, "My roommate, Jessica, drove me home."

"Yeah, I definitely left the party too early," Mike cut in. He was really starting to get on my nerves. I knew I wasn't being fair to him; he was trying to be friendly, but something just annoyed the hell out of me. I ignored him and continued with my conversation with Angela.

"What are you up to today?"

"I don't know yet. I'm in class pretty much all day."

"I get out at 4 and then I'm making dinner for my roommates. Do you want to meet up for coffee around 7 tonight? We can talk about our first day."

"That sounds great!"

Just then, our professor walked in. "I'll call you when we finish eating," I whispered to her. Professor Martin only kept us for an hour, since it was the first day and we weren't really learning anything. I scanned the syllabus; I would need a lit anthology from the bookstore. I hoped that the money in my account would suffice for all the books I would need. If not, I knew Rene and Charlie would help me out, but I hated having to ask my parents for money; we weren't incredibly well off, and I could take care of myself. The coursework didn't seem too terrible for this class. We had three papers to write, a midterm, and a final. I knew that there wasn't much Professor Martin was saying that was of importance, so I filtered pretty much everything out that didn't have "exam," "paper," or "grade" in the sentence. I had doodled in the margins, little flowers, faces, and hearts.

"That's all for today, I will see you all on Monday," Professor Martin concluded the class. The sound of notebooks closing and backpacks opening filled the room, but I didn't move right away. I was finishing drawing a rose on the upper right hand corner of my syllabus.

"You know, Bella, doodling flowers are a sign of a gentle personality," Mike leaned over my paper, observing the drawings on it.

"Oh, really? How do you know that?" I asked. Hmm, I was actually intrigued in something Mike was saying.

"I read a book on doodle interpretations. See, on your faces they all have big lips? That means you have some sort of frustrated desire."

I blushed furiously. "Thanks Mike, that's pretty cool. I have to get going though." I swooped my notebook and my syllabus into my messenger bag, and hurried out of the room. I didn't want to get into my "desires" with Mike Newton. I caught up with Angela in the hallway, "So I'll call you later, Ange."

"Yeah, that'll be perfect. Sorry, I didn't mean to leave you all alone to fend for yourself back there. Mike is a nice guy, he's just extremely friendly. He seems to have taken an interest in you though."

"I know, and I'd rather he not, to be perfectly honest," I told her.

"Has someone else caught your eye?" she asked, somewhat timidly. I could tell she was actually interested, but didn't want to pry.

"Um, kind of, I guess, yeah," I stumbled out, "You remember Edward that I introduced you to Monday night?"

"Oh yeah, he was really sweet. You have a thing for him? Good choice," she beamed at me.

"Yeah, well he took me to breakfast after the party, and yesterday we went on a picnic. It was adorable."

"That's so cute! I like him already. When are you going to see him again?"

"Actually, we're meeting for lunch again today."

"Well, I want to hear how that goes tonight for sure. I gotta get to my next class though. I'll see you later!"

"Bye, Ange!" I called as I walked back through the hall, which was starting to fill with students leaving their classes.

It was another nice day out. I ambled along, feeling the sun warm my skin as I made my way back to my car. About halfway to my beloved truck, however, I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather. I turned and instead headed toward the bookstore, figuring that I might as well buy my anthology today while I was already out. It was a short walk, for which I was thankful because I only had to concentrate on not falling for about five minutes. Even so, I still stumbled over a crack in the sidewalk once, cursing my stubbed toe under my breath. On my walk, I marveled again at just how green Washington was. Nothing could beat the greenness of Forks, but this was close. I guess with Edward around all the time, I hadn't looked at much else. I liked it though, even though I used to think it was too green. Maybe Edward was right; if the green of Washington was growing on me already, it was only a matter of time before the wet did too. I'd have to let Rene know when that happened; she'd be shocked. I chuckled to myself, which garnered me a few looks from the people around me. Of course, my cheeks flushed. I quickly ducked into the bookstore, finding the required text for my class—my face fell when I discovered a used copy was $150. I knew that I wouldn't have enough money for the rest of my books, so I set it back on the shelf and resolved that I would buy it online somewhere.

I decided to look at the other books they had. I found The Sun Also Rises by William Faulkner. The discussion that Edward and I had had the day before persuaded me to buy it. I found a small bench out in the sunlight and sat down to begin my new book. Just then, I felt my phone vibrate in my bag: a text from Edward.

I've been excited about lunch since I finished breakfast .

I smiled at the words on my screen. Edward was so cute sometimes. Well, actually, Edward was pretty cute all the time. I texted him back, still grinning.

Such a man, always thinking about food.

I giggled at my joke. The truth was, though, I had been thinking about lunch since our picnic yesterday. Clearly I couldn't tell Edward that; he would think I'm some sort of crazy person. My phone buzzed again.

Well, I'm no Emmett, but I try. Plus I'm looking forward to who I'm having lunch with, not what we're having.

You should be excited at what we're having. I typed my response, I'm making a fabulous buffalo chicken pizza.

I had decided upon this last night, while I was watching 30 Minute Meals on Food Network. That Rachel Ray has the most irritating voice, but the best recipes, and her buffalo chicken pizza looked really good. I wanted to try it out, and I figured my lunch with Edward would be perfect. Buzz.

Mmm, now I really can't wait!

I relaxed on the bench, focusing on the world of Faulkner, hoping it would help time pass until I needed to be back in my apartment to make Edward's and my lunch. Unfortunately I only got about ten pages in before I heard a certain pixie voice call out to me.

"Ow, Ow, who's that sexy girl on the bench?"

Even though there was no one around, I felt my face flush. Alice bounded up to me, Rosalie in tow. Rose let out a low whistle, "Bella, you look hot. Eddie's gonna be floored when he sees you."

I smiled at the compliment, focusing on keeping my cheeks from becoming redder. "What are you guys doing out here?" I asked, "Don't you have class, Alice?"

"What? We can't come see our roommate?" Alice feigned hurt.

"Of course you can, I just wasn't expecting to see you."

Rose laughed at Alice and me. "I need something that says WSU on it for my class. My professor emailed us saying we're doing impromptu speeches about an item from the bookstore."

"That sounds, um, fun," I responded, making a face. Public speaking is definitely not my thing, but it's perfect for Rosalie, who will without a doubt end up on the big screen somewhere.

Alice and Rose giggled at my expression. "Bella, it's not hard. You just have to talk," Rose explained to me as if it were easy as tying your shoes.

"Yeah, for you. I, on the other hand, turn beet red like it's a hobby and trip over air. So having me perform in front of people is a recipe for disaster."

"I found my project for this year!" Alice squealed. I look at her, utterly confused, prompting her to explain. "Bella, I'm going to make you so self-confident by the end of the year, you'll be rivaling Rose and me."

Still confused, I just said, "Good luck, Alice."

"I wouldn't fight it, Bella. It's going to happen. Once Alice picks a project, she finishes it. And always by deadline."

"Okay," I conceded, still not convinced. I'd need to be a supermodel to not feel inadequate in a room with those two, and even then I'd still be nervous.

"Eek!" Alice cried as she checked her watch. "I'm going to be late for sketching!" And with that she half-ran to the design building, calling "Love you! See you later!" as she shrank off in the distance.

"So, wanna help me pick out something in the bookstore?" Rosalie turned toward me.

"Sure, I've got some time before I have to go make lunch."

"What's the deal with you and Edward, exactly?" she asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," I said, looking down at the ground. "I like him, probably more than I should, but I don't know how he feels about me, other than as a friend."

We walked in the bookstore and headed to the section with all the WSU gear.

"Alice told me that if you said anything other than how Edward is completely in love with you, to 'slap some sense into you.'" We both chuckled, knowing that if she were here, she probably would smack me. "She's right though. I don't know if I know Edward well enough to gauge if he's in love with you, but he definitely has strong feelings for you."

"What scares me though is that I barely met him a few days ago," I found myself admitting, "and I already feel like I've known him my whole life. I've never been so comfortable with someone before."

"Yeah, I think the Cullens have that effect on all of us," she said seriously now. "I think that's how you know someone's important in your life though. I was the same way with Emmett. The first time I saw him in Trig I was smitten. He was a big oaf back then, but he was charming and funny, and everything about him just drew me in. It was like I had to memorize his face that first time, or else he might slip away." Rosalie was absorbed in the memory now, absentmindedly picking up a maroon sweatshirt that had Washington State Cougars in white lettering across the chest. "He walked over to me, with this swagger in his step that made me laugh and said, 'Let me get your chair, m'lady.'

"I knew he was trying to be a clown, so I pretended to be unimpressed, but secretly I loved it. I was so excited that he was near me, and then he sat down next to me!" I could see the fifteen-year-old Rosalie in her eyes that was still excited to have Emmett talk to her. "Of course I had crushes before Emmett, but they were nothing like how I felt around him. I wasn't sure how to deal with it, so I resorted to what I knew—acting like I was too mature for his antics and being cold to him. It felt all wrong, though. I wanted to laugh at every joke and hold onto him and never let go. He introduced himself as Big E and informed me that one day our children will be the best athletes this side of the Mississippi." I had been trying to let her continue on with the story, but I let out an audible laugh at that.

"That's such an Emmett thing to do," I interjected.

"I know." she smiled with me. "I swear he's on a different wavelength than the rest of us."

"Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt the story. Go on."

"Oh, don't worry about it. Big E's ridiculous antics can be enjoyed by all. Well, I figured that, like most class clowns, I was just his material for the class. But when lunchtime came around later that day, Emmett plopped down at our table, next to me, and yelled, 'Honey, I'm hoooome!' Of course Edward, Alice, and Jasper gave me confused looks, and I imagine I had the same expression on my face. Big E introduced himself to the group as 'Rosie's future baby daddy' and I had to stifle a giggle because I was still giving him the cold shoulder obviously." She rolled her eyes remembering how silly she was as a teenager. "He looked at me and told me that he would get me to laugh and that when I did, I was accepting his invitation to winter formal. After that day, he was relentless. He sat next to me every day in Trig, doing anything to make me laugh. I almost cracked about a week after he started his game." She paused, thinking back.

"What did he do?" I asked.

"We were sitting at lunch one day, when Emmett strolled in wearing a dress. Of course Alice, Jasper, and Edward were rolling with laughter. I was literally chewing on the inside of my cheek so I wouldn't laugh. He went to the salad bar and made the exact same salad that I ate everyday for lunch and then did a runway walk over to the table. Between laughs, Alice asked him what he was doing. He set the tray down, and lightly sat down next to me. I was still trying to keep my laughter in, when he mimed flipping his hair, and started mimicking my every move. He kept it up the entire lunch period. The principal came in and gave him detention for cross dressing."

"Where did he get the dress?" I knew I would have to tease Emmett about wearing a dress later. We walked back out of the bookstore and made our way back down to where my car was parked, which was on the way to the Theatre Building where Rose needed to go.

"I still have no idea, he never told me."

"So what made you finally crack?"

"The stupidest thing. I only lasted another week. He sat down next to me in Trig, like he did every day, and instead of pulling some big stunt, he just smiled and asked, 'Why do farts stink?' Still playing it cool, I asked, 'Why?' to which he replied, 'So deaf people can enjoy them too!' I lost it. I couldn't stop laughing, no matter how hard I tried."

I looked at her, dumbfounded. Rosalie? Perfect Rosalie laughing at a fart joke? I broke out into laughter, "Rose, I would never expect you to laugh at a fart joke."

"I know. I don't even think it was the joke so much; it just caught me off guard and I was so tired of pretending I didn't like him. I think I would have laughed at pretty much anything at that point. You have to admit though, that joke is pretty funny."

I chuckled, "I guess. It's pretty classic."

"So, anyway, I went with him to Winter Formal that year and the rest, as they say, is history."

"That's awesome. I wish I had a funny story about how I met the love of my life," I said, sighing a little bit.

"Well, I mean, he did almost run you over with his car," Rose muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. I gotta go, Bella. I'll see you tonight! Alice said you're making chicken parm. That's my favorite!" And with that she hurried off toward the Theatre Building. I knew exactly what she said, but I couldn't believe she said it. I don't know why everyone was so concerned with Edward and me becoming soul mates and living happily ever after. I mean, from what I knew, he was perfect, and I wouldn't mind it, but it's just not realistic. I couldn't help ponder what Rosalie had said about the first time she saw Emmett, though. She had described exactly how I felt the first time I met Edward. You're just being crazy now, I thought to myself and hopped into the cab of my truck.

I picked up some stuff from the grocery to cook lunch and dinner tonight. Checking my phone, I realized that it was already 11:45 and Edward would be at the apartment soon. I rushed home, and threw the groceries on the counter. I then worked quickly to put the pizza together. Before I knew it, it was after noon, and the doorbell sounded. I stepped into the bathroom to check myself in the mirror before answering the door, knowing that Edward would look amazing.

"Hi," a velvety voice greeted me as I opened the door. I was taken aback by his face. It had been a whole day since I had last seen him, and his beauty overwhelmed me a bit. My knees went weak, and I started to fall. I braced myself for the impact of the ground, but instead all I felt were arms wrapped tightly around me. "Bella, am I going to have to spend my life catching you when you fall?" Edward asked me as he set me right, still not letting go of my waist, and flashing me a crooked smile. I swear I could feel my knees weaken again, but I forced myself to stay vertical.

"Maybe," I replied a bit sheepishly, my cheeks reddening.

He finally let go of me and my heart sank in my chest. "You look absolutely stunning," Edward told me.

"Thanks," I said, "so do you," not realizing that my eyes were still stuck on his face. I forced my eyes downward. He was dressed in slightly distressed jeans, a simple black t-shirt that was just tight enough to show his defined body, and black Vans slip-ons. I never realized how amazing a simple outfit could look.

"This is for you," he said, extending his right hand to me. I hadn't even noticed before that he had something in his hand. I took a white flower from him. It was beautiful, but I don't know anything about flowers, so I had no idea what type it was.

"This is absolutely gorgeous. What kind of flower is it?"

"It's a Cala Lily," Edward simply stated.

"I love it. Thank you so much." I turned to find a tall glass, since we didn't have a vase to put it in. As I was filling the glass with water, I noticed that Edward looked a little flustered. "Edward, is everything okay?"

"I should have brought you a vase."

"It's fine, don't worry about it. The flower alone is more than you needed to give me." I half-scolded with a smile.

"Are you sure? I can go get you one."

"Edward, sit." I pointed to a chair at the table. "I don't need you to get me a vase. Now, I want to hear all about your day so far." I walked to the kitchen to grab two plates, and take the pizza out of the oven. "So how are your classes so far?" He took a seat, sighing in defeat. I was not going to let him beat himself up for giving me a beautiful flower.

"I've only had my Bio lecture so far. I liked it though. My professor sounds like he knows what he's talking about. I have my lab after this."

"That's good. What do you want to drink?"

"Water's fine." I pulled down two glasses, and filled them with water. I tried to balance the pizza, plates and water as I walked over to the table, but I spilled water everywhere. Edward got up and grabbed the pizza and plates from me. "I've never met someone as accident-prone as you, Bella," Edward laughed, "And here you are trying to walk while balancing food. You are utterly absurd."

"So anyway," I said, ignoring his teasing, "Do you know anyone in your class?"

"Not really, there were a couple of people that I recognized from the party, but no one that I really remembered." We both sat down and Edward cut the pizza, giving himself and me each a piece. "How was your class?"

"It was okay. I have to look up the anthology I need on Craig'sList or something though, because it's $150 in the bookstore."

"Yeah, all my science books are ridiculously expensive. Did you know anyone?"

"Actually, yeah. Do you remember Angela from the party?"

"Yeah, that girl from Granite Falls, right? She seemed really nice."

"Granite Falls, that's where she's from! I couldn't remember. But yeah, she's really sweet. She's in class with me, and so is Mike Newton."

"Newton, eh?" Edward raised an eyebrow as he took a bite of his pizza.

"He's only slightly less annoying sober than he is drunk," I said with a laugh. "I don't really want to talk about Mike, though. How's the pizza?"

"This is delicious, Bella. Alice said you were a good cook, but I underestimated you."

"I'm glad you like it. This lunch must be pretty boring without Emmett though."

"What are you talking about?" Edward looked concerned; as if he thought I meant I'd rather Emmett be here. Of course that wasn't true. I quickly explained.

"Rose told me all about Emmett's method of courting," I giggled.

"Oh yeah, that was a fun couple of weeks," he replied, visibly becoming relieved. "We all knew immediately he was exactly what Rosalie needed, but of course she wouldn't 'lower herself' to respond to Emmett."

"I still can't believe she laughed at a fart joke."

"I know, it was the oddest thing. I mean, we were all laughing at everything Emmett did, but when they walked to the table together that day, we just kind of looked at them. I couldn't believe that she finally cracked. I knew she was close after the cross-dressing day, though."

"Do you know whose dress that was?"

"No idea. If I had to guess though, I'd say it was Kate Denali. She's almost as big a prankster as Emmett, so she would be the one to lend him a dress."

"Was she a good friend of yours?" I asked, slightly more interested. He never mentioned any other girls from his high school, especially not by name. Although, I suppose I would have to be an idiot if I thought that the only people he talked to in Forks were the ones who were here with him now.

"I don't know that I would call her a good friend. We had some of the same friends, so we would all hang out, but that was really it."

I wasn't convinced that was the whole story. Something told me that Edward was trying to hide a bit of his past from me. "So she was a friend of Alice and Rosalie?"

"Sort of. Her boyfriend, Garrett, was on the football team with Emmett, so they would double date sometimes or hang out with the whole group."

Edward's voice was off. I tried to convince myself I was just imagining it, but there was a nagging feeling I just couldn't shake. There was more to this story that I would have to get to the bottom of. I glanced at the clock. It was already 12:45. I wouldn't have time to unveil the whole truth today. I started to grab the plates and take them to the kitchen, but Edward wouldn't let me. "Please Bella, let me. It's the least I could do after you cooked me this fantastic meal." He hurried to the sink to wash the dishes. "Do you want a ride to your next class?" he asked me.

"That would be great, Edward. Thanks." I had all but forgotten that feeling that something was off. I grabbed my school bag, and dropped it on the couch before going to the bathroom quickly.

When I emerged, I saw Edward standing by the door. "Ready to go?" he questioned, spinning his keys around his finger.

"Sure," I responded, grabbing my bag and leading him out of the door.