Hey guys! I'm so so sorry for taking so long! I had a ton of stuff going recently, and I've had NO time to write. I apologize. SO, all you awesome people who reviewed, thank you. For those who did not review, thank you for reading, and I would LOVE if you did review. I accept anonymous. OK, that's it! Thanks! Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER! As much as I wish I owned Twilight, I don't :P

Chapter Three

I looked at the table with a mixture of horror and fascination. She was back, so that means I didn't drive her away permanently. I walked quickly over to my table, where Jessica and MIke were waiting. I forced myself to keep my eyes away from the Cullen table, and I was almost successful. I only slipped once, and when I glanced over, no one was looking at me. I reached my table and plopped down into the nearest chair.

Mike scooted his chair away form Jessica reluctantly and whispered to me, "Edward! Jessica said yes! I'm taking her to the dance!"

"That's great Mike!" I whispered back. I smiled as genuinely as I could.

Mike must have seen something in my expression, because he looked worried when he asked, "You- You're OK with this, right? You don't mind that I asked her?"

"What? No, of course not! I told you, I don't like her that way."

"OK. . . good." Mike smiled, and I felt confident I had done away with his ridiculous fear of me being into Jessica.

My eyes shifted again to the table across the room. I gave a small gasp when I saw Bella looking at me. Her expression was not hostile, like I had expected. Her face seemed curious. . . and different from before. I couldn't pinpoint the difference. Maybe her face simply looked friendlier, rather than the hate-filled looks I was so afraid of.

"Hey, Edward! Did you hear what I just said?"

I looked up, startled out of my reverie. I saw Jessica looking at me expectantly. "Oh, um, no sorry. What?"

Jessica tossed her hair back, "I asked what you were going to Olympia for."

"A piano." I smiled a little, "My dad doesn't have one, and I like to play. Now that I don't have to buy a car. . ."

"You play piano?" Jessica blinked at me, and Mike's face was torn between angry and hurt. I had to change the subject quickly.

"Kind of. I'm not good." I lied, "Sort of a hobby."

"Well that's cool still." Jessica pouted.

I frowned, "Not really. Anyway, Mike, what are you up to this weekend?"

Mike's face looked grateful, "Well. . . "

As MIke talked, I zoned out and glanced again at the Cullen table. As I looked, the blonde boy, Jasper, got up and left the cafeteria. I was puzzled when I saw his still full lunch tray, but then I was distracted by the gaze I felt boring into me from the table Jasper had just vacated. I reluctantly turned my head a fraction to glance once more at Bella.

I was expecting the wrathful gaze of before, but it was still absent. When I met Bella's eyes, She glanced quickly away, said something to her slight sister, and swept out of the room. Her grace was unparalleled as she glided across the room. I watched her until she disappeared through the doors.

"Dude, I'm telling you, drop it. You saw what hitting on her did last time."

"Mike, I didn't hit on her! I didn't even talk to her. And I'm not pursuing her either."

Mike looked at me with a somber expression, "I think you are. You should see the way you are looking at her."

"Looking at her how? Seriously, I'm just glad she's not glaring at me anymore." I defended myself.

Mike sighed, "Whatever you say."

The bell rang then, which was nice. I didn't really want to go any deeper into this with Mike. I was confused enough already with Bella's mood swings. I headed out of the cafeteria, and hunched my shoulders against the cold rain. I got to my Biology door, and I stopped short. Bella was in this class. How could I forget? I took a deep breath and pushed the door open, trying my hardest to swallow my fear.

I walked into the classroom with my head down. I hung up my jacket and walked slowly to my lab table. I stubbornly refused to look at my lab partner. I didn't allow myself even a glance. I kept my eyes focused on Mr. Banner, who was talking about a lab we were doing today. Wait, a lab? No! That means I have to work with Bella. My stomach dropped. Mr. Banner started walking around the room, handing out microscopes and slides. He explained the lab as he went, telling us that we were supposed to arrange the slides, which were out of order, into the correct order of mitosis. I'd done this lab before, so hopefully, I could do it quickly. Mr. Banner handed out the supplies to our table, placing them in front of Bella. I glanced at her quickly, and when she didn't reach for the microscope or slides, i slid my hand quickly across the table and snagged them. I loaded the first slide quickly, and took a took in the microscope.

"Um, hello," said a melodious voice, "I'm Bella Cullen. It's Edward, right?"

When she spoke, I jumped so bad that I jammed my eye into the eyepiece of the microscope, I raised my head quickly, rubbing my smarting eye, "Yeah, Edward Masen."

Bella looked away awkwardly, and I turned my attention back to the slide. I got a good look this time, and identified it as anaphase. As I was about to unload the slide in preparation for the next one, Bella spoke again, "Mind if I look?"

"Um, no. Go ahead."

Bella looked at the slide for a shorter period of time than I had thought possible, but when she pulled away, she wrote 'anaphase' on the sheet in perfect flowing handwriting. "Do you want me to do the next one?" She asked my politely.

"Sure, if you want to."

Bella smiled and her perfect, white teeth flashed, "I want to. So, are you going to the homecoming?"

I snorted, "No way, I don't dance. Besides, I'm going to Olympia that weekend. You?"

"No, I'm not going. Why are you going to Olympia?"

I didn't really want to tell this strange girl why I was avoiding the dance, but I figured I'd do it anyway. What did I have to lose? "I'm going to buy a piano. I was saving up for a car, but my dad got one for me, so I can spend my money on a nice piano. Plus, I don't really have any interest in the dance." Why did I have to ramble?

"You play piano? That's cool. I never had the inclination to start."

This conversation sounded strangely like the one I'd had with Jessica, but Bella didn't like me, in fact, she might hate me. "Yeah, it's not easy. But I really like it."

Mr. Banner called the class to order then, and I was slightly grateful because no matter how nice Bella had been to me, she still confused me, and I wasn't sure what to expect next.

The rest of my day flew by until I found myself in the kitchen preparing to make chicken enchiladas for my Dad and I. The process was long, and it took my mind off of my bizarre conversation with Bella that afternoon.

When Dad walked in, his face was confused. "What's that smell?" He asked as he unloaded his gun and took off his shoes and jacket.

"Enchiladas. You'll like them, promise."

He looked at me for a second, then shrugged and went to sit at the table, "Anything I can do to help?"

"Nah, I've got it all set. Thanks though."

We sat down, and Dad tried a bite. I could tell immediately that he liked it, because he made that happy Dad face that I remember from my childhood. The stress line around his mouth and on his forehead disappeared, and a small smile appeared on his lips. I laughed, and we finished dinner in a comfortable silence. After dinner, I did the dishes, then went up to my room to e-mail my mom. I wrote to her about all of my new friends, but I didn't mention Bella. I figured I'd keep that mystery to myself until I knew whether Bella hated me or not. After that, I was tired enough to sleep, so I put my iPod on shuffle and lay down. The first song that came on was The River Flows in You by Yiruma. It was a beautiful piano piece that had been the first classical piece I had learned. It was still my favorite. I fell asleep quickly with the piano drifting softly in my ears.