I didn't talk to Elijah again for the rest of the night. Instead, he and Michelle left for something, and I was alone in the house.

While they were gone, I looked around. Since I'd probably be staying here awhile, it would be wise to get to know what the whole place looked like. It was as I expected: small, simple, and plain. It was friendly enough, and as I passed into the living-room, I saw the piano.

Gently, I walked over, and stroked the keys. They were dusty, and looked sad, all alone in this dark room. I glanced up, and saw a picture set carefully on a shelf by the piano; an image of four people, two little kids and a mother and father. The family was attractive and happy.

I reached out, and softly took the image off its place, gazing at it. I brushed away the layers of dust on its glass face, and looked into the eyes of a much younger Elijah and Michelle, and then at their parents. For some reason,
I felt a gnawing, bitter shame when I looked at them. It was my kind that had ended this happy family; that had left Elijah and Michelle orphans.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to the mother and father in the picture.

Only silence greeted my words.

* * *
Elijah and Michelle didn't get back until dark; by then, I was already in the guest-room, and I didn't bother to come out and say hi. I couldn't face Elijah. Not yet.

Sighing, I listened as they talked, then bags rustled. Clearly they'd gone shopping or something, and I realized he'd probably used the time to tell her what was going on. Or, at least, most of it.

I pressed my face into the pillow that came with the bed. It smelled like an attic, but it was woody and warm, and I relished the scent. My arms curling under it, I brought the cover up over me, closing my eyes. Sleep was hard, but I had to try. I had to take what peace of the night I could to prepare for another endless day that would lead to another, and another, in this hell called Forks.

It grew quiet, and I felt myself drifting when there came a creaking noise, and a swift foot-step. I blinked my eyes open, and sat up, staring into the dark.

There, at the foot of my bed, was a pair of gleaming hazel eyes.

"What the f-"

"Abigail."

I froze, and shakily reached over, my fingers stumbling to find the switch on the lamp by the guest-bed. It switched on, and I stared, horror-struck, to where Edward Cullen stood at the foot of my bed.

"What the hell are you doing in my room?" I screeched.

Edward quickly walked over to sit on the edge of my bed. He reached out, eyes swirling, and touched my lips, motioning for me to be silent. I ripped away, baring my teeth at him like an angry lioness.

"Shh, Abigail, relax-"

"Relax? You're in my freaking room. You stalker!"

"I'm not a stalker!" he told me firmly. "Please, calm down, I don't want to alarm Elijah or somebody."

I took deep gulps of air, feeling anger and disgust engulf me. "Edward. I- what- you have no- rapist-"

"I'm sorry. I just- I had to come find you. I haven't seen you all day, and it was driving me crazy," he breathed, hazel eyes swirling. "I wanted to watch you sleep."

I stared at him, flabbergasted. "Yeah. When I meet a stranger, that's what I feel, too!"

He sighed. "Do you want me to go?"

I couldn't quite get the words out fast enough. I resisted the urge to hit him and cuss him out, because if Elijah or Michelle came in to find another stranger in their home, well, let's just say that was one awkward situation I
wanted to avoid. "Hell yeah! God, Edward, I know we're, like, friends or whatever, but this isn't normal!"

He looked away, and seemed genuinely ashamed. "I know."

I continued taking deep breaths of air. "Have you considered, like, psychiatric treatment or whatever? You don't just follow someone home and watch them sleep. How'd you even know I was here?"

"I just... knew. And why are you staying with Elijah Maley?" Crap, that was jealousy coloring his tone. God. And why wasn't he gone yet?

"Yeah, because- he's my- cousin..."

"Abigail," he said seriously. "I- I came here for more than just to... to see you. We have to talk. I know you're not cousins, and I know your name is not Abigail. What's going on?"

I stared at him. Ah, yes. Mind-reading. Beautiful. "I... I can't tell you. You're not a part of this," I growled. "Now get out."

He stared at me. "Please, it's driving me crazy. I- I have to know what you're thinking."

I glared at him. "I think you're a freaking stalker for coming here. How'd you even get in?"

"The window. And I'm sorry, really I am. I don't want to offend you. It's just..." Edward hesitated, appearing to be struggling for the right thing to say. "I- I don't understand you, but... you fascinate me. I... want to know you better.
I've never felt- like this before."

With each word, I felt another wave of nausea wash over me. This was so wrong. My dad was sitting on the edge of my bed, practically declaring his love for me. I wondered if he knew incest if I spelled the word in front of his freaking face.

Suddenly I remembered something else.

In the stories my parents told me, when I was a younger vampire, apparently Edward had gone to Bella's house at night, to watch her sleep, because of his fascination with her.

But this time, I was taking Bella's part. He had mistaken his feelings for Bella as feelings for me (after all, guys are idiots, vampire-guy or not), and was intent on being with me. Wow. How the heck was I going to fix this disturbing situation? But before I could come to a conclusion about what to do, Edward spoke.

"My family wants to meet you."

I gazed at him, blinking. "They... do?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I know you... don't like this, us, yet. But please, do it for them, if not me. They're very excited about the prospect of another vampire in Forks." He smiled slightly. Alright, all creepiness incest stuff aside, my dad's got good looks. I guess that's why my mom fell for him. But still... this is too much. Meet his family? My family?

I took a deep breath. "Okay," I finally relented. His eyes smiled, and I fought the urge to roll my own. "When?"

"Tomorrow. I'll come by in the morning and pick you up."

"Wait... what about school? I mean, you go."

Edward chuckled. "The forecast is supposed to be sunny tomorrow... so it would be a great chance to stay inside and introduce you to them. I know you'll like them," he added.

I looked down. It would be great to see them, but it would be sad. They did not know me the way I knew them. They would only appraise me as a curious stranger, new to their family. A sudden, horrible thought struck me.
What if they thought I was supposed to become Edward's mate? Would they ask about our "relationship"? Oh, lord...

Edward smiled at me for a moment, then took a step back, moving towards the window. "I gues I should go."

"Yeah. Guess so," I sarcastically agreed, not looking at him.

He looked over at the wall for a moment, eyes narrowed, then put his hands in his pockets, and turned, then paused, half looking at me. "If I were you, I'd find a new place to sleep. The guy in the room next door is just as interested as I am."

I stared, confused. "You mean... Elijah?"

Edward's shoulders tightened, then he moved, and in a blink of an eye, he was gone.

For several long moments, I sat there, trying to process everything I'd just gone through. Especially the last part. I knew he could read minds; did he mean that... Elijah liked me?

I blinked, not quite sure how I felt about that.

All I knew was this: as soon as I got out of here, I was never going near an antique shop again. In fact... if I ever see one again, I might just set it on fire.

* * *

After I managed to crash after that whole disturbing situation, I didn't wake up. It was a deep, dreamless sleep, and I was truly knocked out. Had someone walked into the room, they might have wondered if I was either dead or stoned.

But I was grateful that I didn't dream. I didn't want to know what sick, twisted stuff the gutters of my brain was coming up with ever since the whole Edward problem had grown, and I figured dreams could be twice as mentally scarring as the real thing.

I awoke to the purr of an engine outside Elijah's little house. My eyes flashed open, and glanced at the clock by the guest bed. The glowing numbers informed me it was way too early to be considered "morning", but I grumbled and got up anyways, fixing my clothes and putting my curly hair into a sloppy ponytail.

When I softly padded through the rooms, I passed by Elijah's room. Smirking, I cracked open his door, and saw the over-grown kid snoring in his bed, his hair rumpled, the bed a mess, and an arm and a leg tossed over the side of the bed. I chuckled to myself, then realized he'd wonder where I'd gone. Sighing, I turned, grabbed the nearest piece of paper and pencil I could find, and wrote in my elegant script, Gone to visit the bloodsucker's family, I'll be back before dark. And work on getting rid of that snore, it's not attractive.

I was out the door within seconds, and through the early-morning darkness, I saw a shiny Volvo sitting perfectly still at the end of Elijah's driveway. Sighing, I walked quickly, and suddenly he appeared, opening the side-door with a smile.

"You look nice," he snickered, eying my messy hair.

"Ass," I muttered, getting into the car and slamming the door. He was in his own seat in a heart-beat, and he shut his own door gently, revving the engine.

"The car doesn't like it when you slam her doors," Edward said, as if interpreting the car's noises for me. I glared openly at him, making it obvious there were a million other things I'd rather be doing right now than going to meet his family.

"Well, you can tell the car that I don't really give a-"

"My, you're a potty mouth," he remarked as he smoothly slipped the car from the driveway and onto the road, picking up speed as he went.

I sighed. "Certain people bring it out in me."

He chuckled, and I wanted to throttle him. The idiot thought that my annoyance was veiled flirting, and the idea that I wanted to flirt with my father was enough to push me over the edge. I sat there for a few moments, silently seething, clutching the seat.

"So are you worried to be meeting the Cullens?" he asked after a brief period of silence. He was driving very fast, and at this rate we'd be there in minutes.

I smiled dryly. "Why should I? They don't bite, do they?"

He chuckled darkly.

After what seemed like five minutes in the car, we were there. I gazed longingly at the beautiful trees and finally, the huge, breathtaking house that I had been to so many times... I closed my eyes, willing my sadness not to show.

"You okay?" Edward asked suddenly, frowning at me as he parked the car with one hand.

I nodded stiffly.

The car shut off, and we got out, slamming the doors (I purposefully slammed my door hard, inwardly shooting vile thoughts towards the car-who-has-feelings). As we approached the beautiful home, cloaked by a canopy of dark, springing trees and subtle shadows. Edward reached for the door, and as he made a move to touch my waist and guide me through the door, I dodged his hand and grimaced.

"Edward!" came a shout. I looked up, taken aback, as I saw two achingly familiar boys galloping down the stairs. Well, one galloped, the other sort of walked slowly and gracefully, like a cheetah.

"You brought your girl, I see," said the burly one, my good old uncle Emmett. I froze at his words, and was immediately wrapped in a bone-crushing hug. I chuckled, returning the favor.

Emmett took a step back, apparently unhurt by my strong hug, and grinned at me. "Hey, Abigail. I'm Emmett. I saw you at school earlier this week," he added.

I nodded, feeling dazed. "Right. Hey."

"Hello, Abigail." I turned to the soft voice of Jasper. I grinned at my uncle, his messy gold hair falling into his eyes as he approached to give me a tentative hug.

"Hello," I said after we broke apart. There came more foot-steps, and Edward and I looked up to see Alice, Rosalie, followed by Carlisle and Esme, walking down the stairs towards us. I felt a surge of joy to see my family, and
I was sure they couldn't understand the odd excitement in my eyes as I went to introduce myself. Edward was clearly mystified, as I was incredibly at ease, more than he'd probably expected.

"Hi, I'm Alice," the pixie-like vampire smiled. I smiled back, my teeth gleaming in the lights, as I hugged her.

"Good to meet you," I said.

I went on to greet the rest of the family, and after all the politeness was aside, we stood there, in a somewhat awkward silence. Esme's eyes flickered at the space between me and Edward, as I was standing a good three feet away from my creeper father.

"So we're very excited to know of another... vampire, in Forks," Carlisle said at last, smiling at me. I noticed it did not touch his eyes, and this puzzled me.

"Yeah. It's pretty cool," I agreed.

"But it's good because, like, now Eddie's got a girl. No more jealousy, huh little brother?" Emmett asked, grinning broadly. I found myself with the sudden inspiration to smack him, and Edward's eyes darkened.

"Moron," Rosalie muttered.

"We're really just friends," I said coldly. "I'm not into finding a-" I swallowed hard, "-mate yet. Just traveling and hanging out."

"We were told you're staying with a human... Elijah Maley," Esme said, motherly face concerned. "Is that safe? You might hurt him, after all."

"No, it's cool. I can control my thirst, and because I'm only half vampire... it doesn't affect me as badly." I realized these guys were gonna have a hell of a lot of questions I had no idea how to answer without getting in trouble.

"That brings us to the next question." I almost expected that. "You're a vampire, yet you're only half. How is that possible?" It was Jasper who asked this, his voice quiet and curious. It was impossible to be annoyed at him for asking, though, so I answered carefully.

"My mother was a human, my father was a vampire. They're both dead, though... so I've traveling alone. It's a long story," I added through gritted teeth, hoping they'd take a hint and not push me.

Alice was gazing at me, and my heart-beat quickened suddenly. She could tell the future; had she seen me? Did she know the truth? But as her golden eyes met mine, I calmed. No... no, she had no idea.

"It's great to meet you, though," Emmett said with a crooked smile. Rosalie smacked him.

"Er... yeah, you guys, too. Edward just wanted us all to meet, so... here we are." I looked at him, wondering what was supposed to happen now. Even if he couldn't read my mine, he seemed to see the urgency to get out of here in my eyes, and he nodded, clearing his throat.

"I'm going to take Abigail up to my room," he said, looking around at his family with warning in his eyes. I noticed Emmett mutter something into Jasper's ear, and the latter nodded. "You're on," he whispered to Emmett, eyes bright as he looked between me and Edward. Feeling repulsed (I had a pretty good idea what they were betting on), I turned away, and began mounting the stairs.

"I'll see you guys later," I said despondently as the stairs creaked under my feet. Edward chuckled and climbed after me. We were upstairs in second, and he whisked me to his room, the room I'd memorized. The room Bella and him belonged in, not me and him.

"Nice room," I weakly commented, glancing around.

"Thanks," he chuckled. It was a pretty awesome room, but I'd seen it so many times in the past- I mean, future- that it was just another part of my mind I'd expected. "Some music?" he suggested, turning to the stereo. I watched, eyes flicking over the piles of CDs he had stacked on the wall. Apparently, some interests don't die (he still collects hundreds of those things).

He pressed a button on the CD player slash radio. A girl's voice rang out of the speakers, and I blinked, listening to the words. "You know you love me... I know you care... just shout whenever, and I'll be there..."

I stared in horror, realizing that was not a girl's voice. "You listen to Justin Bieber?"

Edward looked sheepish, trying to laugh it off as he stabbed the CD player's numerous buttons. More songs threaded from the black speakers... "Somebody to love..." "She keeps on looking from left to right..."

That was the day I realized that Edward Cullen was gay.

"Oh my god," I groaned, putting my head in my hands. Edward laughed nervously and finally shut the CD off. "Um... must have forgotten that in there. Uh... that is, not me, uh, Rosalie... ha..." He scratched the back of his head, and blinked at me.

The CD abruptly began singing again, as if on it's own accord. "Alright, here we go. Together, together, together everyone...!" Before the CD payer had a chance to keep singing High School Musical, however, Edward violently knocked out a hand, and snapped it in half as it fell to the floor, his gaze never moving from mine.

"Hah," he said

Okay, okay, so I'm not sure if Edward really listens to Justin Bieber and HSM for real, but hey. The guy probably gets bored of listening to Bach and stuff.

Anyways, I don't own the lyrics to the songs, so nobody sue me...

Thanks for all the support, it really means a lot to me and this story. And wow, this felt like a long chapter... (: