Thank you guys for sticking with me this far! We are just starting up, and there is a hell of a lot left to go! We are looking at one hell of a story, especially since I just lost my job a couple of weeks ago, and while I wait for one of the bunch of places I applied to to hire me, You guys are stuck with me! Mwahahahaha! Btw, just so you know, I had to do a lot of research for this chapter, I promise, I do not write from experience with this stuff. You will know what I am talking about when you get there.

Please R&R!

Disclaimer: SM owns everything.

Chapter 4: Happy

EPOV

When morning came, I didn't bother waking her up. I figured she could use the sleep. At least one of us could get some.

I never ended up going to sleep. I had never invited a girl into my room. Hell, I barely even let Jazz in here, and he was my best friend. It was my sanctuary.

I wish I could stay home too, but if I keep skipping, then I will be expelled, and probably have to take the year over in another school.

I wiped my nose to get any remnants off as I put the mirror back in my desk, making sure I left none behind. I would definitely need the pick me up. I was exhausted.

I left a quick note for her, letting her know that I went to school, and to not leave the room until I got back.

I figured I could go check on her during my study hall before lunch time, since it gave me almost two hours between the two of them.

I still couldn't believe I had brought her here. But then again, if I had just fucking left her there, I doubt she would have been okay the next day. She was fucking wrecked. I wanted to pound the fuckers who would do that to a girl. I don't care how annoying a girl is, you never lay your hands on one. If an asshole like me knows that, then there is no excuse for anyone else not knowing it.

Plus, I think another large reason why I brought her, was I knew I carried some of the blame. Had I not been such a dick, then she wouldn't have been out there in the first place to get jumped. I could have just let her hang, and not let her drink, or do anything stronger than pot, but she had fucking pissed me off the day before, and I didn't want to bother with her.

At first, I liked the fact that she didn't take my shit. I was used to everything with a vagina kissing up to me, hoping to get laid, but she had just thrown my shit back in my face that day in Bio. She intrigued me, and that's why I invited her to hang out with me at the party. Jasper seemed to like her, and so did Marcus. James also seemed interested, but I would never let that sleaze be alone with her, if I had anything to do about it. I didn't trust him, but he always had the good shit, and him and his bitch of a girlfriend were friends with Laurent.

As I made it to school, I could feel the coke start to work in my system, and grinned a little. Way better than coffee.

My first few classes raced by, and soon enough, I was back in my car, speeding back home to check up on Bella. If she was awake, I would bring her home, because honestly, I wasn't comfortable having people in my room, especially when I wasn't there.

When I got there, I headed straight up to my room. When I went inside, she was there, curled up on my bed still, but her eyes open. She looked almost as tired still as when I found her, with heavy circles under her eyes.

"Hey." I said as I walked over to her. "Got my note?"

"Yeah. Sorry about last night." She said as she sat up slowly. "I can go if you want." She said, standing up.

"Um, sure. I can bring you home. Your clothes are dry by the way. I left them in the bathroom for you this morning." I said, shoving my hands in my pockets.

"Ok." She yawns out, walking towards the bathroom. She looked a little unsteady, but not as bad as the night before.

As soon as she was in the bathroom, I set to making the bed. I hated it when my room was even a little messy. It bordered on OCD.

When she got back out, she looked guilty, holding the t-shirt she was wearing a little away from herself.

"What's up?" I asked, wondering if she made a mess of my bathroom or something.

"I'm so sorry… I didn't notice before, because the shirt is black, but I guess a cut I got on my back was still bleeding… and your shirt has blood on it. " She looked away ashamed. At first I felt myself getting irritated, then suddenly the foreign emotion of concern flooded through me instead. She had been bleeding all night? The cut must have been bad.

"Show me." She came over to hand over the shirt slowly, looking even more ashamed. "Not the shirt, the cut. It was bleeding that badly?" I said, and immediately her whole face flushed red, which was kind of adorable.

"It… It's on my back." She said quietly, shifting uncomfortably.

"Okay? If you've been bleeding that much, I want to make sure that I don't need to bring you to the hospital.

"No hospital." She said, before sighing, and turning around. She raised the shirt, letting out a whimper from the pain of the position. I was shocked when I saw the bandage was completely soaked through, and still looked wet.

"Fuck.. " I walked over, and started undoing the bandage as carefully as I could. When I took it off, I saw a ton of cuts, some big, some small. There were small pieces of glass sticking out of some of them still. The biggest one though was deep, and was still bleeding. "I think you're going to need fucking stitches."

"I said no hospital. I just need to wrap it tighter." She said. Then I noticed her ribs. Just like her arms, her whole torso was covered in bruises and cuts, and some of her ribs looked like they were broken, at the wrong angle, plus she was way too skinny. I could see her pelvic bone, spine, and ribs far too clearly. I chose not to say anything though… yet.

"Sit down. You have glass in some of these still." I said, pinching the bridge of my nose before I went to grab a pair of tweezers from my desk. I held them to my lighter for a few seconds to disinfect them before I went over to her. She sat on the floor, so I leaned down behind her. "This is going to hurt." I said, and she simply shrugged a little.

I spent the next ten minutes getting out all the pieces of glass, before I cleaned all of the cuts with hydrogen peroxide, and rewrapped it firmly with some of dad's medical wrapping.

"Thanks." She said after she replaced her shirt and hoodie.

"No problem, just be more fucking careful. You know, avoid stairs, and tripping hazards. And don't fucking go walking around at night. It's not fucking safe for a girl."

She scoffed a little, but nodded. Something in her eyes told me she wasn't going to listen though, but I dropped it, again, for now.

"I still have some time before I have to get back to class. I am gonna grab some takeout from the diner. Do you want to come with me?" I said, remembering the fucking bones jutting out.

She looked completely surprised, but nodded, a hint of a smile playing at her full lips.

"Okay, then we need to get going so I am not late to Bio." He said, pulling his jacket back on.

"Actually, I think I am going to go back to school with you, I feel much better." She said. "Besides, there are only two periods left. It will give me something to do."

"Seriously? You just had the shit beaten out of you, and you have been fucking bleeding all night. I think you should go home and fucking relax for awhile." I said, irritation clear in my voice.

"I'm locked out of my house. I left my keys at home, and Ch- I mean Dad, won't be home until like five. So as I said, it will give me something to do." She said

I sighed, shaking my head. That at least explains why she was outside in the first place last night, and why she didn't want to go home.

"Fine. But take it easy." I said in a disapproving voice before we headed out.

BPOV

I couldn't believe I had just spent the night, or some of it in Edward's room. I was convinced just yesterday that he hated me, but I guess I was wrong. He really was very confusing.

At least though, I was fairly certain he was buying the excuse of getting jumped. Honestly, I was worried that he wouldn't believe me, considering that this was Forks. The biggest baddest thing in this town was probably it's chief of police, Charlie. Although, no one even knew about him, because he played the part of good cop too well.

I still felt like complete shit, but I was better off than yesterday, and so I knew I would be fine. I would just be avoiding my house like the plague for the next few days.

We drove off to Fork's Diner, where he got two burgers for pickup, and gave me one. We ate them in his car on the way back to school. He didn't say a word in the car though, and the silence was uncomfortable. I wasn't about to complain though. Free food, a warm ride, and a warm safe bed last night. It was more than anyone had done for me, possibly ever.

When we got to school, I stopped into the front office to let them know I was in, and tell them I accidentally overslept because I wasn't feeling so hot. It wasn't really a lie, and I am sure with my freakish pallor right now, they didn't doubt me. Hopefully that meant they wouldn't call Charlie, if they hadn't already.

We made our way into Bio, where we watched a movie. Edward continued being silent, though I got the feeling that other than the first day where he talked to me, that he wasn't really intending on speaking to me in school. I was starting to figure out that if Edward was in a bad mood, like school generally put him in, you didn't try to talk to him. Maybe that was the key to being friends with him, knowing when to keep your mouth shut. Alas, that was not one of my strong suits.

When Bio finished, I went to gym, where I opted to sit out, or at least tried to. Since I couldn't very well say anything about my injuries, I had no choice but to participate when he wouldn't let me sit out, especially since I already used my period as an excuse last week. Luckily, I managed to not hurt myself or anyone else too bad, a small victory.

As I left gym class, I was completely exhausted. I headed out of the building, and was about to leave when I felt my arm being grabbed. I half expected to see Edward there, but was surprised when it was James who had stopped me.

"Something I can help you with, James?" I asked, trying to smile politely, but he kind of scared me for some reason.

"Nah, but I missed you last night. I wanted to show you something cool, something that will take the edge off." He said, grinning a little.

I studied him a moment, assessing his intentions. He hung out with Edward, so chances are, he wasn't all bad. I was fairly sure he meant something stronger than pot, which honestly, I wasn't opposed to. Shit had really started going downhill with home life. Something to take the edge off was sounding more appealing by the second. I figured his reason was to get a new customer hooked, so he would make more money. However, once wouldn't hurt, would it?

"Sure. Count me in." I said, feeling my stomach flip a little.

"Cool, just ride with me. We are all meeting up with Jasper in a few hours, but I can bring you by a little early, so there is no pressure."

I felt relief at the idea that it would be at Jasper's house, which meant that Jasper would be there too.

"Okay, lead the way." I grinned a little.

We made our way to his car, which was a beat up old station wagon from the 80's. He helped me into the passenger seat before he took off. It wasn't long before we made it to Jasper's house. We both got out, and made our way inside. Jasper was waiting for us in the living room.

"Hey guys, you're early." He said. "Sorry we missed you yesterday, Bells." He said, coming over and giving me a warm hug. I smiled a little. I don't know why I believed Edward yesterday when he said no one wanted me here. Jasper seemed to like me just fine.

"Yeah, I thought the little lady could use a little bit of a pick me up before we all start." James says with a grin, eyeing me.

"Yeah, shit, Bella, you kind of look like shit. What happened?" Jasper asked, guiding me over to a comfy looking couch.

I decided to stick with the story I told Edward, since he surely would bring it up anyway. "I just got jumped last night. Not a big deal." I said, trying to sound nonchalant about it.

"What the hell?! Bella, are you okay?! Who did it?!" Jasper asked, looking me over like a worried mom.

` "I'm fine. I am very accident prone, so I am used to having injuries. And no, I don't know who did it. Just some guys."

"Where did it happen?" He asked

Shit, I hadn't thought about a where. Because Edward had never asked. "Um, down near.. the park." I said. Jasper watched me, but something in his eyes told me he didn't believe me. There was no way he would figure out what really happened though. Luckily, he didn't call me out on it."

James then pulled out a baggy filled with white powder. "Anyway, so obviously she can use some cheering up."

Jasper looked at him a moment, then back at me. "James, is that what I think it is?" he asked, looking a little leery.

"Finest smack around." He grinned.

I wasn't sure what smack was, but I could tell by the look on Jasper's face that he wasn't pleased.

"It's harmless if you don't get addicted." James said seriously, watching me.

"Dude, I don't know. She hasn't even had anything else. Don't you think that's a little intense?" Jasper said, disapproval lacing his tone.

"It will be fine. Just don't do it regularly. What do you think, Bella? IT will make you feel really good, like you are swimming in pillows, and super happy and content." James said, a grin on his face.

I looked at him, thinking about it. It was obviously something kind of hardcore, since Jasper was actually protesting, but that sounded amazing. I don't think I even knew what it was like to feel happy, and the more I thought about it, the more I wanted it. Everyone else was happy, why couldn't I be? Even if it was just for a little while? Didn't I pay my dues? I knew chances are it was risky, but what part of my life wasn't? I was no stranger to danger, just this time, it would be my own choice, and may even have a reward.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized I wanted to try it. Even if it was only once.

"Alright, I'm game, but only this once. I don't want to get some sort of addiction problem." I said. James grins before he pulls out a spoon and a lighter. He puts some water on the spoon with the white powder, and then cooks it with his lighter for a few minutes until it turns to all liquid. He then puts some in a syringe, and some in another syringe. He looks over at Jasper, but Jasper just shakes his head. Obviously not one of his drugs of choice.

James then leans over, and gently puts a tourniquet on my upper arm, making my veins push up.

"Do you want me to do it, or do you want to?" James asks me. I am starting to tremble, a little scared, because I am fairly certain that Smack is another name for heroin after seeing him cook it down. Once won't kill me though.

"Bells… you don't have to if you don't want to." Jasper said gently, occasionally shooting James an irritated glower.

"I'm fine, it's only once." I say, then say quieter. "happy sounds too nice to pass up."

James then takes my arm and injects the stuff into my vein. It feels like ice going in, freezing my blood in its tracks.

When James pulls the needle out, he injects the other one into himself.

"James, Edward is going to fucking kill you, you know that, right?" Jasper says with a sigh.

"Don't worry. What he doesn't know won't hurt him. She looks so fucking miserable all the time, thought I could help.

"If anything happens to her, its on you." He says with a sigh.

"Jasper, I'll be fine, really." I smile, anticipating feeling happy.

"Alright, but you can't leave here until you come down, okay?" He says, and I nod.

We sit around and chat for a little while, and after a little while, I realize I am grinning like an idiot. I am just… Happy. Euphoric even. I don't even necessarily have a reason, I just feel happy, safe, warm. It's like I am in a safe little bubble with my new friends, where for once, nothing can touch me, no one can hurt me, no one can damage me. It is so amazing, I start feeling tears prickle my eyes as I start to cry. It is the first time I have allowed myself to cry in years, and it's out of pure joy.

"Thank you, so much. I love you guys, this is just.. amazing." I stand up, barely even feeling the pain of my body as I spread my arms wide. I barely even notice the guys watching me. I am floating through my mind, free as a bird in the sky, with nothing holding me down for once. I have never felt like this before, just so happy, and content.

I look over when I hear a muted soft chuckle. James is laughing. I quirk my eyebrow at him.

"Glad you like it." He says.

I glance over at Jasper, and he is studying me with an intense look. Why isn't he as happy as we are? He needs to feel happy. Jasper is so nice, and deserves to feel like this too.

"Jazzy… you should try some, its amazing."

"No, I'm okay. It's not really my thing." He said quietly. He shot another look to James.

In the distance, I hear the sound of a door opening, and slowly walk in that direction, feeling drawn there. Then I see Edward, and my smile gets even bigger.

"Edward." I sigh in contentment as I walk over to him and hug him. The first person who has ever taken care of me. I don't understand why I could have possibly ever been angry with him. He helped me last night, and took care of me, like no one else has since my mother… It's best not to think about her right now, since I am so happy. I don't want to ruin it.

"Bella?" I hear him ask, looking confused and a little bewildered, just standing there as I hug him, not hugging me back.

I notice Jasper come over, and whisper in Edward's ear. As he speaks, I notice Edward looks less happy by the second, so I hug him tighter, hoping to squeeze the negativity right out. He deserves to be happy too.

He wraps one arm around my back protectively, and I smile, leaning my head on his chest. He smells so good.

Edward then sighs, and gently peels me away from him, and looks directly into my eyes. "Bella, I want you to go with Jasper for a little while. He wants to watch a movie, and would really love some company. Would you mind?" he says, using a gentle voice I have never heard him use.

I don't want to leave him, but I nod, because he made it seem like Jasper needs me, and I don't want to let any of my new friends down, because I love them so much.

"Alright Edward."

Edward nods, and looks at Jasper seriously, before Jasper takes my hand and leads me to another room with a large TV.

He puts in a movie, and I curl up, feeling like I am in a fluffy cocoon.

Some time into the movie, James bursts into the room, his nose bleeding and his eye black. "I am going to fucking kill you Hale! You fucking told him!" He dives right at us, and suddenly, I am terrified. I run to the corner of the room as fear fills me. Edward, Laurent and Marcus then run in, and grab James, pulling him away. I hear shouting from the hallway afterwards, and then the sound of a car driving off.

Edward walks over to me and kneels in front of me. "Are you okay?" He says, looking stressed. I nod slowly, before suddenly, I feel nauseous. I get up, and run past him towards the bathroom I remember passing. I make it just in time to empty out the contents of my stomach until I am dry heaving. A few minutes later, a strong pair of arms scoops me off the floor and washes my face off. I am suddenly just sleepy, and I lean my face against the soft fabric of his shirt, and recognize the smell. It's Edward. I open my eyes and look up at him, but he isn't looking at me, he's glaring at Jasper, though I don't know why. This night has been so confusing.

He carries me back to the room with the TV, and sits down with me still in his arms. He lays me over his lap, holding me to him protectively.

Sometime after that I fall asleep into a nice dreamless sleep, the first in years.

Thank you guys so much for reading! Please R&R! it makes my day! Pretty pretty please with cherries on top! (and don't hate me pleaaase for what I just did to Bella.)