AN: 'I'm Ready – Jack's Mannequin.' Ah, I simply love this song, don't you? Not quite sure of the connection to the chapter…

I can't believe how many reviews I've gotten so far! Quite a few people seem to like the story, which is kind of weird seeing as I started writing this on impulse! I am glad to hear I didn't totally butcher Edward's POV! I hope this chapter is up to par as well…because it is in Edward's POV as well! Heh, sorry. Sorry if he is OOC and is just too sarcastic…I tried to not make him so like that but that's just how I naturally roll day-to-day so it was hard.

I also don't know the methods that are involved in rehab. I tried to do some research but…they weren't very informative. Or I'm just not good at researching…that might explain the grades I'm getting in school ;)…so, in conclusion…once again, totally making everything up to better fit the story.

EPOV

I awoke only to find myself curled into a tight ball. What is with this place being so bloody cold? I sighed heavily and uncurled, looking at the clock to see that it was 6:57am. From what I could remember from the fascinating welcome speech by Dr. Reid yesterday, in three minutes I'd be getting my wake-up call by my Room Advisor.

Until then, I continued to lie there, still not quite finished my exciting task of sulking from yesterday.

Just as I thought, at 7:00am on the dot, I was snapped out of my trance by…Alex, I think, "Hey, get up! Now!" Well, hey, at least it was short and to the point.

Today was a Friday, which meant that I would be enduring some form of school here since we weren't able to go out into the real world for public school. They just loved making us feel normal here it astounded me.

I threw on a pair of jeans and a random t-shirt and slowly meandered down to the cafeteria. By down, I actually meant down. This place was quite big, having three floors.

The cafeteria wasn't as crowded as it was at dinner last evening. So the people here aren't morning people. I received my breakfast and headed to an empty table once again. Minutes later, I noticed a blond haired kid walking towards my table and he seemed to be excited about something.

"Hi, I'm Mike Newton!" Wow. "You're new here, aren't you?" he asked as he stuck out his hand.

"Edward…and yeah I am," I replied, hoping that would suffice his inquiring mind.

"So, what're you here for?" It didn't. It was a bit unnerving how forward this Mike guy was being. Wasn't that question a bit personal? I guess not to him.

I settled for, "I'm a drug addict," as I tried to keep out the 'Duh' that was on the edge of my tongue. This response seemed to only irritate Mike. Well, he could join my club then because I was definitely annoyed by him.

"What drug?" I knew I would regret telling him, I just knew it. So why did I tell him? I'm still trying to figure that one out.

"Heroin," I finally told him.

"Ah," was what I got in reply. What? After this whole ordeal with the Spanish Inquisition all I got was an 'ah'? For someone who was excited just seconds ago, he didn't seem at all interested with this fact. I really did not understand how this guy's mind was working (IF his mind was working. I snickered at the thought.) and at that moment I silently wished I could read his mind, though I'm sure I'd be more than frightened with what I'd find.

I slowly started to stand, "Yeah, so I'm just—" but I was cut off by Mike who was obviously oblivious to me trying to escape his presence.

"I'm addicted to cocaine, myself," he said, as if he was talking about the weather. I bit my cheek from saying something like, 'good for you', because it obviously wasn't something to be praised about but I'm sure if I had said that it would only burst his confidence in some way.

"Oh," two can play the monosyllable answer game.

"Hey, who's class do you have?" Oh god, please don't let me be in the same classroom as this guy. He's obviously desperate for friends or something since it seems I'm his new best buddy. "Mrs…Williams'…?" I answered hesitantly. I could see Mike's face physically brighten.

"I'm in her class as well! We'll walk together," he said as he stood up with his tray. By the way he said this, I knew I had no choice. Okay, so if there was a god, they obviously hated me. Well, the feeling's mutual as of now, I thought sourly, as I realized I'd be spending most of the day with overly friendly Mike here. I walked silently to the classroom as Mike nattered away into my ear.

We entered a room that resembled a normal classroom with the desks and blackboard. I hastily left Mike by the entrance and walked up to a woman who looked to be in her late fifties.

"Um, I'm Edward Cullen and I'm new," I told her quietly, not wanting to draw attention.

Realization dawned on the woman's face as she replied, "Oh! Oh, yes, of course. I'm Mrs. Williams; I will be tutoring you, along with your fellow classmates, on all of your subjects so we will be seeing a lot of each other. I hope we can stay on good terms." She was a very upbeat person but at the same time intimidating.

I nodded and she then pointed me to an empty desk by a pair of girls who had their heads together talking quietly and…Mike. I think I would have rather gone a whole week without a snort of heroin instead of dealing with this ever-growing issue that was Mike. Yes, that's how serious this was. As I got closer, however, I noticed he seemed to be focusing all of his attention on one of the girls I had mentioned earlier.

With this thought, I sat down happily in my seat. Sadly, my good fortune all too soon came to an end.

"Edward! Hey, man!" Mike exclaimed. I wearily smiled and turned to see who the other two girls were that I was sitting by. Anyone would be better than Mike at this point, heck, if they were a psycho killer I think I'd humbly welcome them with open arms, just to be rid of Mike. I also noticed Mike turn his eyes back to a brunette who was intently doodling in her notebook. A curtain of hair blocked me from viewing her face, but she looked familiar.

I was then met with a small hand stuck in front of my face. The hand was attached to the arm of a small pixie-like girl with short black hair.

"Hi! I'm Alice Brandon," she said with a bright smile, which I found had me smiling in return as I shook her hand. She quickly turned to her friend and gave her a supposed inconspicuous nudge, who still had her head in the direction of her notebook. At the jab to her ribs, she snapped her head up and connected her brown eyes with mine. That's when it hit me. This was the same girl I had unabashedly stared at yesterday whilst waiting to see the doctor.

"Edward Cullen," I finally said. I waited to find out what this beautiful girl's name was.

"Bella Swan," she said almost too quiet for me to hear. Bella, I thought, her name doesn't lie. I continued to look into her chocolate eyes. Not at but into, for they were immensely deep and looked like they held a great amount of knowledge, unlike most eyes that appear flat and lifeless. She began to blush like she had done the previous day and I grinned at the fact that it was my doing.

I looked back to Alice who now seemed to be practically bouncing in her seat, looking between Bella and myself with a devilish grin.

"I hear you're new here, Edward, correct?" Alice asked.

"Correct."

"Well, welcome! We'd be more than willing to show you around, right Bella?" Alice turned to Bella. I couldn't help but laugh at the look on Bella's face because she seemed nervous about something. She quickly composed herself, however, and agreed, "Yeah, definitely!" She smiled and I mentally noted that I would have to make her smile more because it really was a glorious site.

"That sounds great," I replied, but I was really only directing the response to Bella. I could tell she was going to say something but she was rudely interrupted by Mike who was quickly making his way to the top of my hit list. Not that I had one, but I'd gladly make one in his case.

"Hey Bella, tonight's movie night, would you like to go with me?" The hope clear in his eyes. I felt a quick pang in my stomach as he asked this to Bella but just as quickly pushed the feeling away. Who was I to stand in between Bella seeing…Mike? Ugh. My worries were washed away when I looked to Bella who was clearly annoyed. I inwardly smiled at the thought of her turning him down.

"Sorry Mike, I said I'd sit with Alice and Jasper, right Alice?" Bella looked at Alice daring her to disagree.

"Right!" Alice confirmed, nodding her head.

Mike's face fell from rejection and turned back to the front of the classroom, mumbling incoherent sentences.

"Edward, you can come as well, of course!" Alice suddenly offered.

"And what is it that I'm agreeing to go to? I thought we couldn't go anywhere outside of this place…" I was now confused.

"Oh, that's not true! No, well, tonight is movie night and it's held here in the cafeteria. Every Friday night they show some lame movie. However," she paused dramatically, "tomorrow…they're taking us to the mall!" She squealed as she began to bounce in her seat once again.

"What?!" Bella nearly shouted, eyes widening. "I thought we went last weekend!"

"No silly, last weekend we went to the museum. We haven't gone shopping in two weeks." She added sadly.

"That's right, my apologies, I only endured enough shopping to last me a lifetime," Bella retorted sarcastically, narrowing her eyes at Alice. I laughed at her remark and how cute her face looked until she turned to me.

"Oh, you laugh now. You haven't had the pleasure of shopping with Alice Brandon." Alice's eyes lit up.

"Ooo! Good idea, Bella! You'll have to join us tomorrow when we go to the mall. Don't worry, Jasper will be there. I can't wait for you to meet him, I know you two will just hit it off," Alice said excitedly and for some reason, I didn't doubt her.

"You're doomed, Edward," Bella muttered from beside me. I was too dazed at the moment by the sound of her saying my name to take her warning to heart. But when I snapped out of it I looked at Alice who I could tell was now eyeing my obviously slobby outfit with distaste. "She has the word 'makeover' written all over her face. Trust me when I tell you that is not an experience you want to go through," she added quietly. From that statement and the fear in her own eyes, I knew Bella had had an Alice makeover, possibly numerous times. It was now my turn for my eyes to widen. I gulped for effect which made Bella giggle.

Luckily, Mrs. Williams decided now would be a good time to start teaching, as I could see Alice forming a plan in her head, still sizing my clothes up. Why didn't I grab a nicer shirt?

Since all of our classes would be in this room (I couldn't help but crack a smile at the thought of having all of my classes with Bella), we got ten-minute breaks in between each change of subject so we could get a break from the stuffy classroom. Thankfully, though, the "school" day didn't last as long as a regular school day would and it passed by quickly and to my surprise, easily. They seemed to have a somewhat easier curriculum here, which I wasn't complaining about, pleased that I would have no trouble with the schoolwork.

Like Alice promised, her and Bella showed me around the Center. I was more than pleased with this, knowing that Mike probably would've done the task if Alice hadn't offered. They were both extremely easy to talk to and I found myself opening up to them. To an extent. I mean, let's not get carried away here, I just met them a few hours ago. I was relieved that they weren't like Mike and being so forward with the personal questions. They didn't even ask why I was here, which I was glad for, I was still a bit uncomfortable talking about it. I supposed it wasn't anything to be ashamed about; we were all here for the same reason, basically, but there was still something holding me back.

My tour had to be cut short to my dislike to visit Dr. Reid. Apparently I'd be having these lovely chats with him. Every. Day. So you could see why I was just giddy with excitement. I tried to make the meeting as quick as possible with my short answers. I really didn't see the point of me having a meeting so soon, what could have possibly changed in 24 hours?

However, I misjudged the Doctor. He wasn't slow.

"How are you feeling, Edward?" he asked.

"How am I feeling?" I asked skeptically.

"Yes," he confirmed.

Oh. "Fine…?" Where was he going with this?

"Mhm," was all I got in reply. "You're not feeling nauseous or dizzy?"

"Nope," I popped the p, as I remained stubborn. Only when he continued to stare me down did I speak up, "…should I be?"

"That's exactly my point, you most definitely should be."

"And why is that?" I admit I was being rather rude, but he was annoying me.

Dr. Reid sighed, "Mr. Cullen, you have been snorting heroin still." This wasn't a question but a statement.

"What? No, I—"

"Edward, I'd appreciate it if you did not lie to me at this time. You should be experiencing withdrawal symptoms at this point, that is, if you were discontinuing to use which you most definitely have not." Damn.

"Oh," was my brilliant reply. Smart bastard.

So I was sly enough to sneak in some heroin. They just obviously didn't search my bags hard enough. In conclusion of my meeting with the Doctor, my heroin was confiscated and I was now being watched like a hawk. To put it bluntly, I was screwed. I really didn't know how I'd be able to survive. This time, I wasn't being over dramatic; I truly was starting to panic.

The only thing that calmed my nerves a bit was the fact that I had just snorted some heroin in the bathroom before I entered the office, so I knew I was safe for a while. I would last until at least tomorrow, I hoped. I liked to think I wasn't that dependant on the drug.

The rest of the day consisted of small group meetings where we basically talked about our feelings and ways to "overcome our problems to make us upstanding citizens in our communities". Not my words.

At dinner I sat with Alice, Bella, and Jasper, Alice's boyfriend. He was fairly shy and didn't talk much, so you could see why I was secretly ecstatic to have him as a guy friend. Reserved Jasper…or follows-you-around-like-a-lost-dog-until-you-want-to-rip-your-hair-out Mike. Who would you choose? My point exactly.

At dinner, I was now getting medication. I grudgingly took them, though I knew they'd help with the withdrawal. Everyone else at the table seemed to be taking some sort of pill as well.

"What's wrong, Edward?" Bella, across from me, asked softly so only I could hear. Alice and Jasper were having their own conversation.

I at first did not want to tell why I was all of sudden back to my mopey self but strangely, I felt comfortable in confiding with Bella. That was a first.

"Dr. Reid knew I hadn't given up my…drugs," I mumbled.

She nodded in understanding, "It's for the better really, the sooner they think you're safe to rejoin your 'community' the sooner you can leave. But I can see why you'd want to put off the detox, it's almost as unpleasant as shopping with Alice," Bella smiled and winked, making me laugh. "But after that, if you're sly enough you can pretty much fool them into thinking you're clean."

She saw my puzzled face and added as she leaned in, "I hid a stash of cocaine at my house for when I'm allowed to go visit."

I smiled a crooked grin as she blushed. I had to give her credit, she was sneaky.

Soon it was time for the movie but we first had to clear out of the cafeteria so they could move the tables out of the way and bring in the projector and whatnot. You were asked to attend in your pajamas so the girls quickly ran off to change as did Jasper and I, minus the quickly running off part. I got my plaid pajama pants but didn't change my t-shirt. Since apparently it wasn't up to Alice-standards to wear in the daytime I figured I'd christen it a new pajama top.

I met Bella, Jasper, and Alice at the entrance to the cafeteria. My breathing hitched as I saw Bella was dressed in a tank top and a fairly short pair of shorts. She looked beautiful of course, but I could tell Bella looked slightly uncomfortable so I presumed that Alice put her up to it.

Alice wasn't kidding when she said they played lame movies so I wasn't paying too much attention to the screen. Of course, how could I when I was sitting mere inches away from Bella who looked to be engrossed with the movie.

From my peripheral vision, I could see Mike a few rows and seats over looking back at us every few minutes. He was embarrassingly obvious. If he was a spy, he would have been shot by now. Preferably by me. Are you sensing the hate vibes yet?

I chuckled quietly to myself as I saw him now glaring at me. I was apparently much more stealthier as he hadn't noticed yet that I noticed he was looking. Maybe if I'm lucky he'll hate me enough to beat me up and not want to be my friend anymore. I could only hope.

As the night progressed, I couldn't help but notice how drastically my mood had changed for the better. I liked to think that it was Bella's doing and I smiled, suddenly having a new fondness for this place.

AN: Bahaha, so yes, enter Mike Newton. I know I know, shocker much? I literally had to force my fingers to type his name but I just thought he should be in there. Why not some comic relief, right? I'm sure he's probably OOC but let's just say… this is druggie Mike Newton…haha, okay, we'll go with that. Now, some of you are probably thinking, "why does annoying Mike Newton get to be in the story and not Emmet and Rosalie?" I know you're thinking this because I had some question if they'd be in it but as of right now…the answer is no, they're not. I have absolutely nothing against them because I love Emmet (and Rosalie…but Emmet more), but I just didn't see how to fit them in and I don't think I'm talented enough to write Emmet dialogue. Let's face it, I'm not that funny, at least not Emmet funny. (Sorry to Argetlamgirl who personally asked this. I realize how much you love Emmet :( )

I hope this chapter was okay. Sorry if the Bella/Edward meeting was lame. I have a feeling you readers are going to be having some awkward moments when reading this story in the future, once Bella and Edward get closer, so brace yourselves! I'm not one for being all mushy and romantic…too bad that's what this story is basically about…huh….pointers are welcomed in reviews…

Thanks and please review! Also, (I know, when do I shut up, right???) I thought I'd spoil the surprise and say the next chapter is Bella's POV of the events from this story. I figured I'd just alternate each chapter from each POV but if this is too boring and a bad idea please let me know…

--blinding-rainbows