Chapter sixteen.

"There is no way in heaven, hell or earth that I'm wearing that dress", I said firmly shaking my head and crossing my arms.

"You're going to wear it, Bella", said Alice smirking cunningly, "one way or the other. You're going to wear this dress."

I flinched back by the sound of her voice. Sometimes, I swear she was pure evil. Makeup had been slapped all over my face, courtesy of Rosalie and my hair was done in a high ponytail. I wanted to wear jeans and a top but Alice had already picked out an outfit for me.

It was a red one-strap dress with small frills. It went up to a bit higher than my knees and hugged my curved. But it was a bit too formal for me. I wanted jeans!!!

"Hurry up, Emmett's getting impatient", Alice snapped. She shoved the dress into my hands and pushed me into the bathroom.

I sighed and made with what I got. All I wanted to do was call Jacob and apologise about what had happened earlier. He'd been trying to call but Edward and Emmett were guarding the house phone like hawks. And coincidently, my mobile phone had gone missing.

I put on the dress and went downstairs, hoping not to trip or anything. Thankfully, I got to choose my own shoes, which was some simple red ones with a small bow on them.

"Food! Here we come", Emmett exclaimed as soon as I touched the last step. Something had grabbed my arm and I was being pulled out of the door faster than lightening.

"You look nice", said a voice from behind. I turned to see Edward there, smiling crookedly.

Did he just compliment me?

I thought he was mad.

"Er…thanks", I said blushing.

"No time for that", snapped Emmett, "I'm hungry and I want food inside me. Jump in a car and let's go!"

"Seriously Emmett, sometimes I really wonder about you", chuckled Rosalie rolling her eyes. Jasper silently took Alice's arm and led her to his car. I decided to follow them but something caught my wrist.

"You're still wearing it?" mused Edward staring intently at my neck. I flushed red again and suddenly jumped when a car engine had already started. Emmett and Rosalie were speeding away.

"We're going to La push restaurant, see you guys thereeeeee….", called out Emmett as he disappeared out of sight.

"Emmett! Slow the fuck down or I swear, I'll –" I didn't get the hear the last of Rosalie's threat as she screeched at Emmett.

"You're stuck with me then", said Edward already toying me towards his shiny Volvo. Alice and jasper had already begun to drive away. I shrugged and followed him.

Somehow I expected him to hate me. To think that I was a slut or something. For kissing the first guy I saw. I thought he would be mad. He certainly was before, but somehow he was more formal now.

And more of a gentleman.

Edward held the passenger's door open for me and gestured me in. I walked in and sat down, feeling pretty spoilt but hey, I liked it.

We drove in silence for a couple of minutes then I recognised the music playing in the background.

"Is this Clair De Lune?" I asked curiously. Edward smiled.

"You know Debussy?" he said with an arched eyebrow.

"I know some classical music", I explained, "only my favourites though."

"This is one of my favourites too", Edward said smugly. I smiled in returned and turned back to the window.

When we arrived, Emmett had already ordered. Oh yeah, he was a hungry boy.

Rosalie's POV.

"Are you trying to kill us?" I demanded jumping out of the car and slamming the door shut. Emmett grinned ruefully and kissed me on the cheek.

"No, babes, I'm trying to feed us", he explained in a 'duh' tone. He grabbed my hand and led me to the restaurant. We were walking so fast it was as if the food would disappear if we didn't get there soon enough.

Food was the only thing that distracted Emmett of something he hadn't noticed. That Bella and Edward were arriving together.

If I said there was nothing going on with Bella and Edward, I would be lying. I was sure something had happened. It was the way he looked at her.

And the way he reacted to her.

When Bella had kissed Jacob earlier on, Edward looked absolutely shocked. Completely hurt. I felt sorry for him.

I could see something developing in his eyes. Something growing. He liked Bella, but did Bella like him back?

Emmett's POV.

Food.

Food.

Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food.

Oh crap, Bella!

Ah, food…

Bella's POV.

"Are you ok, how did you get here? I'm sorry I forgot about you", Emmett said all in one breath. Well, it was hard to figure out since he had a spoonful of pasta in his mouth at the same time.

Nice mental picture.

"She rode in with me", said Edward pulling a chair for me. I sat down and shrugged indifferently.

"You rode with jasper, right?" Emmett asked turning to Alice. She nodded furiously and turned back to staring into jasper's eyes.

The waitress came over and took the rest of our orders, batting her eyelashes much to Rosalie's frustration and mine. Jasper and Alice were in some kind of trance where it involved them staring at eachother without blinking, without moving, just staring. And occasionally breaking away to nibble their food. Then going back to staring.

It got a bit freaky after a while.

"Snap out of it", barked Emmett finishing his third plate of pasta. I stared at him, wondering how much he could eat.

Everyone had just finished eating. To my surprise it wasn't as boring as I thought it to be. Edward was the one to speak to me all night, telling me jokes and stuff, which was nice of him.

He acted totally kind and formal as if what had happened earlier, didn't happen at all. I was very surprised.

"We don't want you", the woman sneered.

"Yeah, why would we?" the man added.

The two people I was looking at were very familiar. Yet distant somehow.

"You're not wanted, Isabella! No one wants you!"

"You're a horrible little nuisance, that's why you were abandoned", snapped the man, "that's why we left you."

"And that's why everyone else is going to ditch you as well", the lady continued, "Edward's already started to leave you, that's why he didn't kiss you. And he was only being nice out of pity. He's leaving you…"

"Then Alice and jasper", the man carried on, "then Rosalie and Jacob and Esme and even Carlisle. They're bored. They don't want trouble. They don't want you. You're going to get chucked away!"

"And last but not least", laughed the woman. She fixed her eyes on me, "big brother Emmett, Isabella. He's tired of looking out for you. He's going to leave you Bella. Dump you right where he found you. He's going, Bella…Emmett's going…you've been abandoned."

"Bella! Bella wake up!"

I felt something shake my shoulder. My eyes flung open and bright light blinded me for a couple of seconds. My throat was dry and my heart was thumping.

Cold sweat plastered my hair to my fair and pure fear and hurt ran through me.

"Are you ok?" asked Alice. She was standing over me, looking down curiously, "you were screaming out Bella."

I gulped and stared at her.

"It…it was just…oh, Alice it was just a dream", I sighed realising everything suddenly. She still looked concerned.

"Sounded more like a nightmare to me", Alice muttered, "What happened though? What was it about?"

"What did I shout out?" I asked. I knew that I spoke in my dreams, but most of the time it was just mumbles. No one could make it out.

"Well", said Alice sitting down on my bed, "at first you were just saying…Edward's name. You starting muttering about Edward's formal personality. Anyway, then suddenly you were…shaking. You were actually shaking and shouting out 'don't leave me! Emmett, don't. Alice, jasper, no don't leave me.' That's when I woke up. And you were just flapping around shouting 'don't abandon me, please'."

"Oh…", I breathed, still pretty shocked, "anything else?"

"No, I don't think so", said Alice shaking her head, " but seriously Bella, what was that about? Are you ok? What did you dream of?"

"I dreamt I was being abandoned", I said slowly. A sad isolated tear trickled down my cheek.

Alice's POV.

"I dreamt I was being abandoned", whispered Bella brokenly. Her eyes watered and slowly tears came pouring out. She looked up at me, her hair in a knotty mess; stick up at ends because she was close to battling in that nightmare of hers. Her face looked worried, panicked, scared and sad all at the same time. Her eyes were of pure desperation.

"I'll never abandon you, sweetie", I whispered sitting close next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "I'm here for you. Me and Emmett and mom and dad. We love you Bella."

"They left me", she said shaking her head, "they just…left me Alice. Do you know how it feels? To be abandoned? To be ditched because the people who gave you life don't want you anymore? No, Alice, you don't. Because you've always had people here for you."

"So have you", I insisted, "until a week ago you didn't even know about all of this. It didn't bother you, why? Because you were loved and cared for, like you are now!"

"It's not the same", hissed Bella. She threw off my arm and stood up abruptly. I could see that this was affecting her. Knowing that her biological parents didn't want her, it affected Bella.

She looked troubled and disturbed. She tried to put on a brave face to avoid questions from everyone, but inside she was hurting.

This wasn't the first time she had had these 'dreams' either. And I had a feeling it wasn't the last.

Emmett's POV.

I heard her again. Crying out in her sleep. My room was right next to Bella and Alice's so I could hear mostly what was going on.

And I heard Bella.

Her frantic panting and short breaths. Her little yelps of pain.

It was worst this time. It actually woke Alice up. I could hear her flapping around, muttering and mumbling.

I wanted to help. To hold her. To tell her things were ok. To say something that would make her not dream these horrible things. But I couldn't. Because she had to figure it out herself.

"Dude, you zoned out on me again", said Jasper's voice snapping me back to reality. I looked around to realise that I was in the garden.

Edward, Alice and Rosalie all sat around the garden bench table deep in conversation about something. I realised by the way that Jasper was now looking at me, that I had been talking to him.

In the corner of the garden, on an isolated chair sat Bella. She was playing about with that silver necklace. Her head was bowed.

Whilst everyone else was wearing light clothes to soak up the sunlight, she wore a blue long sleeved sweater and some running tracksuits.

My only thought was that how sad and alone my baby sister looked at that moment.