A/N: I think this will be the last update for tonight. I've reached my last completed section in my notebook. I have a half-day on Friday and I'm not busy all week, so expect another update within the week. Drunken will (probably) be updated then, as well.

What I think cemented my feelings for her happened last year at Christmas, when Emmett brought Rosalie home for the holidays. All of us "kids" spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day with each other. Jasper and Alice had just become an item the month before, so they were in the early stage of a relationship, Em and Rose had been dating for a year or so and they were head over heels for one another. That left Bella and I, but we didn't mind. We were sprawled out in our basement, still digesting the feast Esme prepared for all of us hours before.

"You know what we haven't played in a while? Truth or dare." Alice said, leaning back on her elbows next to Jasper on the floor.

"What are we, Alice? Little kids? Well, I'm in." Emmett said, rolling off the couch and onto the floor.

"Of course you'd play it, kids or not." Rosalie grumbled, settling down between Em and I.

"Rosalie hasn't played before, so here's a quick spark note version of the rules. We write down our truths and dares and pick them out. It's also kind of like spin the bottle as well, because you have to write down the name of the person it's directed towards. Got it?" Alice prattled on as Bella and Jasper got pens and paper.

"I'm fairly sure I'll get the hang of it." The basement was silent as we all jotted down our questions and demonstrations.

"And since I thought of this, I'll go first." Alice picked out a slip of paper from Emmett's dress shoe and skimmed it quickly. A grin appeared and she gracefully got to her feet.

"Bella, I dare you to take off three articles of clothing. Off of me." Oh, so this was how we were going to play. Bella smiled as well. She and Alice were thick as thieves and had stripped down on numerous occasions with each other (Alice told me this one afternoon, right out of the blue.) Rosalie began humming stripper music and I knew instantly that Emmett had found his soul mate. Bella proceeded to remove Alice's socks, sweater and undershirt, leaving her in a camisole and jeans. Jasper, always being the gentleman, slid close and draped an arm across her shoulders.

"Okay, who's next?" This went on for a while and before we knew it, we were on the last slip of paper. It was Bella's turn and with the little help of alcohol, her face had a lovely glow to it as she slowly read the paper.

"Edward," She said, her voice low and husky. There was all of a sudden a loud buzzing in my ears and my heart raced.

"I dare you…to kiss me." There was a new sensation in the basement and I knew everyone could feel it.

"Who wrote that?" I heard Rosalie murmur to Emmett. He shrugged his shoulders and continued to stare at Bella and I.

"You can't back out of the dare, Edward." Alice reminded me quietly.

"Who says I was backing out?" I mumbled and scooted closer to Bella. I licked my lips nervously and I was surprised to see Bella's eyes flicker down to my mouth. I don't know if it was the alcohol talking or just my own self-esteem, but damn. Knowing that she might want this as much as me was really boosting my ego.

"I'm not getting any younger here, people. Get it on!" Emmett whined, earning a shush from Rose. I sat in front of Bella, my body angled towards hers. I lifted a shaky hand up and brushed a stray strand of hair off her face. She moved so I was cupping her cheek. Her eyes were wide open as I leaned closer. Our breaths mingled momentarily before Bella's lips touched mine. I felt like I was flying, my mind reeling at the feel of her on me. My other hand rested on the nape of her neck and I pressed her closer to me. I gasped when I felt her tongue touch my closed mouth. She shifted she straddled my lap. Her fingers went into my hair and tugged ever-so gently. My eyes rolled back in my head at the sensation. I angled my head to get better access to Bella's mouth and groaned quietly when her tongue met mine. I repositioned my hands, so they were gripping her hips. She straightened up so her head was above mine. My right hand ghosted up her side and she moaned quietly. I did it again, harder. She pulled away slightly, to catch her breath. I brought her back for a few more kisses before someone cleared their throat. Loudly.

"Uh…game over, I guess." Alice said, her voice full of surprise. Everyone else's eyes were glued on Bella and I, still wrapped up in each other. I dropped my hands quickly and backed away. I had to, because if I didn't, they'd all be getting an encore performance. Bella slid off of me and I bit my lip as she did. A certain part of my anatomy was grazed by a certain part of hers. I took a few deep breaths to collect my thoughts. I stiffly stood up, shoulders hunched.

"I'm going to bed." I said woodenly (no pun intended) as I hurried out of the basement.

I went into my bathroom and took the longest cold shower in my life. It didn't help that the moment I got myself under control, my traitorous mind drifted back to the basement, the taste of her still lingering on my lips.

"Shit." I grumbled and rested my forehead on the cool tile of the shower wall. I turned the water off and wrapped a towel around my waist. Scrubbing a hand over my face and opened the door leading into my bedroom. I flicked off the bathroom light and had to wait a moment for my eyes to adjust to the lack of light in my own room. And when they did, my stomach dropped and my attempts of moderate control I worked so hard on (pun intended) disappeared.

Bella was waiting for me in my own bed.

"What are you doing here? Why aren't you with Alice and Rose?" My voice sounded so loud in my room, when everything else was quiet.

"I was wondering if I could spend the night with you. Alice and Rose are sharing their beds with Jasper and Emmett and Charlie isn't home tonight." Her quiet voice drifted towards me and I sighed. It wasn't like we hadn't slept together before. When we were younger, we always slept in the same bed during sleepovers or if one of us was having a hard time sleeping, we'd climb out of our windows and into each other's rooms.

"Yea. Just let me go change. Make yourself comfortable." I went to my closest and stood in the dark, collecting my thoughts. I slipped on my boxers and a wife-beater and walked out. Bella was curled up on her side, under the covers, already asleep. I slid in as slowly as I could, not wanting to disturb her. I stretched my arms and legs and sighed, closing my eyes. Bella rolled over and slung an arm across my waist and tucked her head in the crook of my arm. I bent my head to press a light kiss into her hair.

"Sleep well, Bella."

I woke up the next morning, alone. My head pounded, my hangover soon on its way. I buried my face into my pillow with a low groan. The pillow smelled like strawberries and a flood of memories hit me like a ton of bricks. Truth or dare in the basement, Emmett proposing to Jasper, my fingers trailing through Bella's long hair….

I got out of bed, pulled on a pair of sweat shorts and headed downstairs. My parents were sitting in the breakfast nook, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper.

"Edward! My, you're up early. Want me to make you some breakfast? I was going to wait for the others to get up, but…" My mom got up and began rummaging through the fridge. My dad looked at me and shook his head ruefully and continued to read the paper.

"Mom, it's all right. Wait for the others. I was just wondering if you knew where Bella was." Carlisle put the paper down and Esme placed a carton of eggs on the counter.

"She left about an hour ago, sweetheart. She said she wasn't feeling well and went home."

"She looked fine to me, though. A little flushed, but other than that," Carlisle said, taking a sip of coffee.

"I offered to make her breakfast and she left without an answer." I sat down at the table, covered my face with my hands.

"It would've been nice to see her before I left," I mumbled sadly. I wasn't going to be spending my entire winter break in Washington. I had to go back to Chicago and begin my internship next week at the hospital. I was leaving later tonight on the red eye.

"I know, darling. I know." My mom wrapped her arms around me and kissed my cheek.

I spent the day packing and saying goodbye to Alice and my parents. Jasper opted to drive me to the airport; Carlisle had to go in for an emergency surgery and Esme was never one that was good with goodbyes. As he drove, I stared gloomily out the window. He slowed down in front of a house and parked by the curb.

"What are you doing? My plane leaves in less than an hour."

"Make it quick." He unlocked the doors and pointed to the house. Then it downed on me where we were. I scrambled out of the car and ran up the front yard. I pounded on the front door with my fists, then remembered Charlie wasn't around. I sprinted to the side of the house and nimbly climbed the lattice up to her bedroom window. I knocked lightly and peered in. In the dim light, I could see her in her bed. But the figure in the bed was too big to be just Bella. I watched in almost slow motion as Bella rose above the person in her bed and let down her hair. The figure reared up and began kissing her neck. I knew that face anywhere. She was back with James.

I climbed down slowly and numbly walked back to the car, where Jasper was waiting patiently for me.

"What happened? Did you see her?" I nodded and closed my eyes. I was in love with Bell and she was screwing another guy.

Even I feel bad for Edward! I'm watching Employee of the Month right now and I think that I want to write a one-shot on it. It'd be really funny. Would any of you read it? I love that damn movie!

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