A day after that incident, I was trying to work out a difficult parabolic function, whilst sitting in the dining room with Edward. It had been translated, reflected, stretched and compressed, inverted and doubled in both the x and y axes and I wasn't even sure if it was a function anymore. I was going around in circles, trying to figure out what to do with it. Eventually I gave up, slamming the book onto the table. Edward looked up from the leather notebook he had been writing in. His music book.

"Something wrong?"

"I can't figure out the question." I sighed. He came over and sat beside me, working through it with me, until I understood what it was supposed to look like. He even gave me a few more examples, to practice on. After only an hour of him tutoring me I was confident enough to finish the entire chapter. How oddly I responded to him.

He still seemed to feel guilty. He was always hovering, trying to help out when he could, trying, I assumed, to make up in some small way for what he did to me. I didn't mind. I had started developing my own notions and feelings about him.

One of the days was particularly boring. I had turned on my iPod, to block out the noises Rose and Emmett were making from their room. Esme and Alice were debating colour schemes in the kitchen, while I was sitting the dining room again. It was peaceful there, calm and rarely used. Carlisle and Jasper were hunting. I had no idea where Edward was, but my gut told me that he wasn't far.

A few pages of Trigonometry, calculus, French, Spanish, English, history, and geography later, I was bored and wanting to do something. I helped Esme with the decorating, as did the others. Jasper and Emmett preferred to do the 'heavy lifting' even though we could've all done it, me especially so. I was pretty sure I could lift the house if I wanted to. I stood, staring at the wall, trying to picture that, when Edward's voice sounded behind me.

"Did you forget how to paint?" he asked. I looked at my hand. It was covered in paint droplets, from the brush I had been holding to the wall. Holding, but not moving.

"No, I was just thinking about whether or not I'd be strong enough to lift the house." I shrugged away the thought, only to hear a cough from Edward. It looked like he was trying to conceal a laugh.

"Oh you think that's funny do you?" I asked, chucking the paintbrush at him. He didn't expect that. It hit his dark blue shirt and left pale yellow spots all over the shirt and splattered up part of his neck. A single drop was on his cheekbone. I bit my lip, after realising what I had just done. Despite the silliness, he still looked hot. His eyes flashed, almost angrily for a moment.

Before I knew what had hit me, the paintbrush had splattered me with paint also. I calmly clicked my tongue and sat down, pretending to be embarrassed. My hand inconspicuously slid into the paint tray.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." I said, looking like I was about to cry. Edward knelt beside me, a frown on his face.

"You didn't – I was just..." he started to explain, but my hand – as if of its own accord - ran itself through his hair, down the side of his face and then pulled away, patting his dark black jeans. The yellow looked ridiculous and Edward was nothing short of completely shocked.

God what had I done? Surely he would never forgive me. Toppled with the fear and regret was an immense desire. I was trying to stay calm, but his hair had felt so soft, I wanted to touch it again. A wicked glint came into his eyes.

"You didn't." He said, growling. I backed away, unsure if he was playing or actually angry. He began to crawl towards me, menacingly and I backed up into the wall. He then smirked and stopped his advance. What? As I began to move I felt the gentle tug on my hair. Wet paint. He had backed me into a wall of wet paint. How evil.

"Steve, get him." I muttered.

And it happened.

Edward laughed.

It sounded like the laugh of a dozen angels, as his ethereal voice resounded around the acoustically perfect room. My breath caught as I smiled. I had gotten him to crack. I was so glad I had. Only a week had passed since I had sworn to get him to laugh.

We had watched movies, talked a little about some books and he had graciously tutored me through the homework I was subjecting myself to. He had always seemed distant, still anguished about his mistake. Finally, with three little words I had made him laugh. Alice and Esme came running into the room, to see what on earth had Edward laughing. I pulled myself away from the wall and tried to imagine how we looked now. I curtsied to Edward as his laughing quieted down to a simple crooked smile. What I wouldn't give to see that smile again.

"I need a shower." I said. I was instantly rewarded with another crooked smile.

"So do I apparently."

I let the warm water engulf me as I tried hopelessly to get the paint out of my hair. Alice came in a few moments later, offering her services. It took our combined efforts and ten more rinses to get it all out, and I wasn't quite sure that we even had it completely out. Alice assured me that none of my hair was yellow anymore.

Edward was having the same trouble apparently, except no one was helping him. I sighed, feeling guilty and found a pair of black boxers from the bags of shopping Alice had recently brought home. I had no idea who they were supposed to be going to, but I knew who was going to end up in them. I took them upstairs with me and entered the bathroom where Edward was showering. My eyes were firmly closed as I threw the boxers at him.

"What the-?"

"Put 'em on. It'll be safer if you're the one covered. With my eyes closed there's no telling where my hands could stray." Purposely or not.

"What are you doing?" he sounded angry. I could top that.

"Feeling guilty. Put the damn boxers on or God help me I'll just come in there and not care." I heard the fabric being picked up from the floor of the shower. I assumed he put them on because he resumed questioning.

"Why are you coming in here at all?"

"I messed up your hair. It took two people to get all the paint out of my hair, and since none of your siblings have rushed to your aid and I am the one who put the paint there..." I was interrupted by a harsh laugh, it sounded almost strained. Not the right kind of laugh.

"You have nothing to worry about."

I opened my eyes and went over to him, sliding the door back a little. Thankfully he had put the boxers on. I grabbed his shampoo from him and poured it over my hands. He looked at me incredulously. I simply half stepped into the shower and turned him around, focusing only on his paint soaked hair. He had gotten about half of it out, but I got nearly all of it out, within a minute of standing there. I had to try and focus strictly on his hair. It took conscious effort not to run my fingers over his beautifully muscled back, where my eyes wanted to absorb every inch of him. I focused on the paint, until I had the majority of it out.

"Done." I said and shoved my hands into the stream of water. I washed off the shampoo and retreated quickly, before he could say anything. I dried off my hands and looked at my half wet half dry clothing. Gosh I was ambitious now. Had I been human I would never have gone near a naked boy, let alone protested when he tried to throw me out.

The feeling of bravery was probably Jasper's doing. Wait – Jasper was hunting. Had I done all of that? My emotions were approaching mortified as I sat in my room, until a quiet knock sounded on my door. It wasn't Alice, her knocks were fast, and she opened before you had a chance to respond. Jasper's knocks were always calm and rhythmic, Esme's were gentle and rapid. Carlisle simply asked, Emmett would barge in and Rosalie wouldn't even be visiting, so it had to be Edward. Great, more chances to make an idiot of myself.

"Yes Edward?" I turned towards the door. He entered, clothed and mostly dry. He was frowning slightly, but smiling a little also. Sheepish. That was how he looked.

"Thank you. Were it not for you that would've taken ages to get out."

"Were it not for me, you wouldn't have had to get it out in the first place." I smiled back. He hesitated for a moment before looking at my pile of untouched schoolwork.

"Is that Emmett's homework?"

"Yes. Care to help me? I can't figure left or right of the trig." Edward came in and picked up one of the books. His eyes scanned the text briefly, before coming to rest on me. I was sitting on my bed, hands in my lap, staring at him. A thousand thoughts crossed my mind. Some that probably shouldn't have.

Edward was still looking at me and I was sitting on my bed, thinking about touching his hair again, seeing his perfect body glistening with water. I was so glad I wasn't human. The telltale blush would've ruined everything at this point. I motioned to the bed and he sat, perching himself on the side, as if ready to make a quick getaway.

"I don't have fleas." I muttered. He frowned and chuckled again.

"You never say what I expect. Maybe I can't read your mind because, as Alice said, it's convoluted."

I shrugged and pointed to a few questions in the book he was holding. He pulled himself farther onto the bed and I moved beside him, so that we could both see the questions. He walked me through a few of them, and once confident that I was getting them I stole the book from him. My hand flew across a piece of lined paper as I worked out the math. I didn't usually need a calculator. I stopped at one of the questions. It was both a radical and a decimal. I tried to work it through, a few times but couldn't.

"Thirteen point zero, sixty-five, eighty-two." Edward mumbled. I looked up at him and he was just sitting there, watching me work. Again, glad I couldn't blush. I'm sure that my face portrayed some level of embarrassment though because he smiled.

"You're...interesting when you work. You talk to yourself, and bite your lip." As if by command my lip shoved itself into my mouth.

"Well we can't all be perfect." I muttered, not letting go of my lip.

His eyes flashed darkly and he got up, leaving the room, pausing, only to mutter; "I'm far from perfect."

He was still punishing himself for what he did to me. How could I ever get him to see that I was actually happy? A little sad that I'd left Charlie and Renee, but I really liked my new family. What could I do in the next few days to cheer them up? What did I used to like doing when I was human? Reading. Listening to music. Fantasising about things I couldn't do... As soon as the idea entered my mind I heard Alice squeal.

"Gosh I love you Bella!" She screamed and only seconds later I heard her car pull out of the driveway. I resumed my work, only to find that my mind was elsewhere now. I was – what was the word? – antsy. I wanted to do something. I stood up and vaulted down the stairs, marvelling at my balance. Balance. I could test my balance. I found a spot outside and tried some simple things I had been barely able to do when I was younger. It started with a simple somersault. Then a cartwheel. And another. Then I tried a handstand. I was perfectly balanced, completely upside down, not wobbling an inch. And I was perfectly comfortable. I tentatively raised one hand, so that I was balancing on one limb. I kept expecting to topple over at any minute, but I didn't.

I took a deep breath and then switched hands. I wasn't quite as good with my left hand. I wobbled a fractional amount, focusing on my balance, well aware that my shirt was now riding up my stomach (or down my stomach, depending on what direction you were looking from) and that it had started to snow lightly. Could I do flips? How to do that without making a complete idiot of myself?

"What are you doing?"