"What's your favorite color?"

"Blue."

"Number?"

"Eighteen."

"Why is that?"

"When I was a boy, it was an age I looked forward to. Now that I'm what I am, it's a symbol of everything I could never be."

"That's horrible, Edward."

"It's the truth."

"Moving on. Favorite author?"

"I don't like that question."

"Come on."

"Would you be able to answer?"

"That's not the point."

"That's what I thought."

"Fine. Shall I rephrase the question?"

"If you please."

"Who, dear Edward, are some of your favorite novelists?"

"Why, Isabella, I thought you'd never ask."

"Get on with it."

"I enjoy F. Scott Fitzgerald and Steinbeck. I've always felt a sort of kinship with Dante."

"Not Bram Stoker?"

"You wound me."

"My apologies."

"Accepted."

"If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?"

"Whatever kind sits outside of your window."

"That's creepy, Edward."

"Really? I think it's rather romantic."

"You would."

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean by that. May I ask you a question now?"

"Not today. Today is my day. You can ask tomorrow."

"Tomorrow it is, then."

The day went by in a blur. As each of my classes let out, Edward was always there, standing just outside the door, patiently waiting for the next slew of questions.

I tried to keep it light and fun and jocular. I didn't ask about things we'd fought about. I didn't ask about his nature, his family, or his rather extensive past. Instead, I asked about just him, just Edward, and, if the thrilled expression on his face was anything to go by, he was enjoying talking about himself just as much as I was enjoying listening.

Before I knew it, the final bell had rung and I found myself once again in the high school parking lot, this time waiting beside a silver Volvo and studiously ignoring the curious stares of my classmates as they wandered by a touch too slowly, their voices a touch too low to be overheard. I crouched down and adjusted the zipper on my boots, flattening the hem of my skirt on my way back up. Edward and I had been waiting for the rest of his family for at least five minutes, and the longer we stood there, the more uncomfortable I became.

"What's keeping them?" I grumbled, leaning back against the car.

"Another question?" Edward teased, tugging playfully on a strand of my hair.

"Seriously, Edward, it's cold out here and Alice forced me to wear this damn skirt."

His playful expression softened for a moment, shifting to one of concern as he wordlessly shrugged off his worn leather jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. It was cool from his lack of body heat, but it smelled like him, crisp and sweet and irresistible, and I found myself burrowing deeper into it, inhaling deeply.

"Better?" he asked.

"Much. Thank you."

We waited another ten minutes in a comfortable silence, watching the cars as they pulled out of the lot, nodding in recognition to the occasional brave soul who acknowledged us as they walked by.

"Seriously, Edward, where is-"

I heard my phone vibrate through the fabric of my Jansport, and I quickly bent down to retrieve it.

"It's probably Alice," Edward predicted sagely.

It was. Well, it was a text from Alice, anyway.

"She says they left after lunch and forgot to say anything," I announced incredulously, re-reading the message twice just to make sure I got it right. "Do vamp-... do vegetarians really forget things?"

"Vegetarian" was our new euphemism for "vampire." Alice had come up with it over breakfast. It was supposed to make it easier for us to talk about things while we were in public places. Really, I think she just suggested it for the sake of the inside joke.

"No," Edward replied, running a hand through his hair. He was visibly frustrated.

"Well, I'm sure-"

"They should have said something. It's freezing out here! You could have gotten sick!"

"Edward-"

"I can't believe how thoughtlessly they've been behaving lately. If you come down with even the most minor cold..."

"Edward-"

"And Alice! You should hear some of the things she's been telling me lately. I'll bet that this was her idea. This was no mistake. She did this on purpose..."

"Edward!" I finally shouted, stomping my foot like a child trying to get their parent's attention. A few stragglers in the lot turned towards us to gape.

"Yes, Bella?" he asked quizzically.

"Did you even hear me before? I called your name three times!"

"I apologize. I was... I get... I was focused."

"I could see that. Look, if we're not waiting for them anymore, why are we still here?"

"Oh. Well, um... you're right, of course. Let's get you home."

The five minute car ride that followed was tense at best. Edward was still clearly frustrated with the alleged thoughtlessness of his siblings, muttering to himself and gripping the steering wheel so hard that I feared it might snap in half. I stayed quiet throughout his private little rant, catching the odd word now and then but trying hard not to pay attention. It wasn't until I heard him circle back to the subject of my getting sick with any number of horrid diseases as a result of my fifteen minutes in the cold that I decided I needed to say something.

"I feel fine, you know," I said to nobody in particular when Edward came to a stop in front of my house.

"I'm sorry?" he asked, confused.

"I feel fine. I'm not sick."

"You can't possibly know that yet."

"That's true, but I seriously doubt that I've come down with pneumonia in the past half hour," I huffed.

"Still, they put your health at risk by making us-"

"We could have waited in the car, you know."

"What?"

"You could have turned the heat on in your car. We were standing in front of it long enough, there was absolutely no reason why we couldn't have waited in it."

"Well, but-"

"But nothing, Edward. They're your family and you love them. Now forgive them for this tiny little inconvenience and quit fixating already."

"But-"

"I'm going inside. Are you coming?" I asked, already halfway out of the car and striding towards my front door. By the time my key was in the lock, he was standing directly behind me with a contrite look on his face.

"I get focused," he explained by way of apology.

"I know," I said, reaching out and squeezing his forearm gently before turning around and stepping inside.

Silently, Edward followed me into the kitchen where I poured myself a glass of water. He watched as I checked the messages on the machine. Without a word, he reached out and caught me when my foot caught on the leg of the coffee table in the living room. Noiselessly, he followed me up the stairs to my attic, pausing only briefly at the door of my room before continuing in behind me and leaning stiffly against the door frame.

"I wish to apologize," he began rather formally.

"For what?"

"I lost my temper earlier. I should not have done so, and I wish to apologize."

"Don't be silly," I said incredulously, waving him off. "You did nothing wrong."

"I was angry."

"If one of us has to apologize every time we get angry, this is going to be a very boring relationship."

"You are being too kind. I did not-"

"Just stop, Edward. You were concerned for me. I understand and appreciate that fact. If you apologize again, I'm going to have to kick you out."

"I'd like to see you try," he replied with a quirk of his lips.

"Now there's the Edward I know and love," I teased back, my cheeks flaming as I fought the implications of the last word. "Anyway, why are we still standing? Pull up a chair. Stay a while."

I gestured towards my desk chair and he acquiesced to my suggestion, dropping gracefully onto the proffered chair as I scrambled inelegantly onto the wood of my desk top.

"Why do you always sit up there?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Makes me happy," I replied with a shrug. "You're not supposed to be asking questions."

"I was under the impression that the rules only held within the confines of Forks High School."

"I don't remember making any such distinction."

"Yes, well, I'm rather sure you did. You must have forgotten. Lucky for you, we vegetarians are blessed with perfect recall," he said with a smile, tapping his forehead with a long, pale finger.

"I suppose I should just take you at your word, then."

"Oh, most definitely."

We grinned at each other like idiots for a moment, and as we did the small niggling doubt that I'd gone to school with this morning, the one that told me that I was too messed up to trust anyone, that nobody would want me anyway, got a little bit quieter. It didn't go away entirely, but it was easier to ignore.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked as my smile faltered.

"Nothing," I replied, shaking my head. "You know, it just occurred to me that I left all my things at your house."

"Oh, that wasn't a mistake. Alice told us this morning that you'd be staying another night."

"Did she now? Would've been nice if she'd told me."

"Yes, well that's Alice for you, always leaving people out of the loop."

This time it was his expression that darkened, and before I knew what I was doing, my fingers were smoothing his hair back from his forehead.

"Don't frown," I admonished softly, rubbing at the crease that had formed between his eyebrows. "You're too beautiful to frown."

The minute the words were out of my mouth, I wished desperately to take them back, but I couldn't. I took my hand back instead, yanking it away from his face as though I'd been burned, grimacing as I felt my face flush in embarrassment.

"You're the beautiful one, my Bella," Edward said, his amber eyes aflame. "I just look like the rest of them."

"The rest of who? Vegetarians?" I was trying to keep it light, trying to get our levity back. If the grim expression on his face was anything to go by, it wasn't working.

"You can't even say it, can you? Can't bear to pronounce the word. And you shouldn't. You shouldn't demean yourself by speaking it."

"Edward, what happened? We were having a good time, weren't we? We were just talking. What happened?"

"I shouldn't be here. Alice wanted you to pack some fresh clothes for tonight, but you can do that on your own. Your truck is still here. I'll leave you to it," he had risen from the chair and begun backing towards the door. His hands were in his hair again. It was like he hadn't heard me at all.

"Edward, please tell me what happened? Talk to me. You must talk to me."

"If you'd prefer to spend the night with someone else's family... Angela Webber, maybe..."

"Edward, STOP," I demanded, jumping from the desk and crossing the room to stand in front of him. I reached up and wrapped my fingers around his hands, trying to pry them from his hair, but his grip was too tight. "Edward, look at me. Look at me."

I stepped closer and moved my hands down his torso, wrapping my arms around his waist and looking up carefully into his eyes. His expression softened for a split-second, and I squeezed him tighter in response.

"That's it, Edward. Just look at me. Concentrate on me," I coaxed and, after what seemed an age, his eyes, which had previously been darting wildly around the room, settled on my face.

"Isabella," he breathed, dropping his arms to my shoulders and drawing me into his body. "I'm so sorry."

"What did I say about apologizing?" I asked quietly, sighing as he buried his face in my hair.

"I don't know what happened," he whispered, holding me tighter still. "I don't know what's happening to me."

"We'll figure it out," I reassured him with what I hoped was a confident tone.

"We will," he agreed, pressing his lips against my forehead for one brief and heart stopping minute before drawing back entirely, making me feel bereft.

"Shall we go back to my office?" I asked after the silence had stretched out too long. He cracked a smile, a weak one but a smile still, and followed me back towards my desk, this time settling himself next to me by the window rather than taking the chair.

"I'm not afraid to say it, you know," I said quietly, not looking at him. "I've said it before."

"I know you have," he agreed.

"It wasn't me who suggested we-"

"It was Alice's little game. I know."

"I'm not afraid to say it," I repeated firmly, this time looking straight at him. "Edward, you're a vampire."

Time stood still for a century before the hard line of his mouth morphed into the barest of genuine smiles.

"I know."

"Yes, well, I just thought I'd tell you again."

Outside it began to rain, tiny droplets beating weakly against the window pane before quietly beginning their descent down the glass. I concentrated on the sound, trying to hear each individual drop as it landed, but there were too many. I was overwhelmed.

"I dreamed about you, you know," I said suddenly, apropos of nothing.

"In the meadow?" he asked.

"Leaving," I answered, looking up to find that the rain on the window was casting shadows on his face, dark trails and splatters projected onto his marble white skin. "You were packing a bag to leave."

"Carlisle stopped me," he said, his jaw tensing for a moment.

"I'm glad he did."

It began to rain harder. I considered wryly just how often my life tended to change during rainstorms.

"Why did you lie to me that day?"

"I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't tell you the truth."

"Couldn't or wouldn't?"

"Can it be both?" he asked plaintively. "You know our secret now, but it was not mine to tell."

"And the only explanation would have involved betraying your family's secret?"

"It sounds like an excuse, but at the time, it was the only thing I knew to do. I'm sorry that I lied."

"Will you tell me now?" I asked, leaning forward to prop my chin on my hands.

"You know of my... gift," he began without preface, mimicking my pose. "My gift is crucial to my family's survival. Our physical beauty makes us appealing to humans, but our true nature makes us off putting at best. This bad feeling coupled with the fact that we do not age, that we act differently than most... I must be constantly on alert to know when people are growing suspicious of us."

"People are afraid of you? Naturally?" I clarified.

"Everyone but you," he said, smiling wryly. "For some reason, you have no sense of self-preservation at all."

"Maybe it's my gift," I offered with a small laugh.

"Or curse," he said darkly, his smile fading, his eyes shifting away again.

"Edward," I prompted, nudging him with my foot. He got the point.

"In any event, in all places we live, it becomes imperative that I keep an ear on things, so to speak. The day you found yourself in the school parking lot happened to be the day of a faculty meeting."

"I remember," I interjected suddenly. "There was a note on the library door. It was closed for the meeting."

"Yes, well, that's where I was. I hide in the stacks, listening in on things and making sure that my siblings and I are not in danger of making spectacles of ourselves. When I left, there you were in the parking lot, and... I saw the car, heard Crowley's thoughts... he didn't know you were there, he was concentrating on something else, and then the animal crossed his path and... You cannot die, Isabella. I will not let you," he finished fervently, his eyes fierce.

"Edward, I-"

"You are too important to die, and I had only just found you. I did what had to be done. Luckily, the consequences of that action appear to be minimal."

"Consequences?" I asked, dazedly.

"I could have been seen. Someone could have noticed me. I could have compromised my family."

"But you didn't, right? Nobody saw you? You're fine?" I asked, concerned.

"I moved so quickly that I would not have been easily discernible, anyway, and Crowley was too upset to notice that anything additional was amiss. I believe my family and I are in the clear."

"That's good," I said, my mind struggling to process the gravity of the situation I had unwittingly forced Edward into. "You could have left me there, you know?"

"That was not an option. Do not say such things."

"It's just... I don't want to put your family in any danger. If anything like that happens again, you need to think first, Edward."

"You need to think about what you're saying right now, since clearly you've taken leave of your senses. You're saying I should have let you die."

"You don't know that I would've died."

"No, but you do."

Thunder rumbled in the distance, echoing the shift in mood that seemed to have overtaken us.

"Why does this always happen?" I asked ruefully, gesturing between the two of us.

"The antagonism, you mean?" he clarified, eyes searching my face.

"Exactly. One minute we're fine, and the next we're..."

"At each other's throats?" he supplied helpfully, his eyes glittering.

"Try not to look so pleased with yourself, Edward," I muttered, trying not to smile and failing miserably. "But that right there... that's my point. Just a minute ago we were making each other miserable, and now we're-"

"Happy," he finished. It was a statement, not a question.

"Happy," I echoed, glancing out the window again. "What is it with this place and rain?"

"Missing Arizona?"

"Surprisingly enough, this weather reminds me of it more than anything," I said, his puzzled expression encouraging me to explain further. "It seldom rains in the desert, but when it does, it goes all out."

"Interesting. I must admit that that particular area of the country is one of the few I've never spent any great amount of time in."

"Why is that?"

"Our presence disturbs the ecosystem too greatly. There aren't a great number of desert-dwellers we can adequately feed on, and the constant sunlight is more of a liability than anything else."

"Not a big fan of lizards, then?"

"While the blood of herbivores is far from appealing, essence of reptile may be one of the most disgusting things on the planet," he confided, his lips quirked up into one of those half-smiles I was coming to love so well.

"So a pet gecko would be the way for me to go, then? If I were ever inclined to get a pet to begin with, that is."

"Your gecko would be safe. You have my word," he said solemnly, bringing a hand to his chest in a mock pledge.

"Thank you for that."

"It is my pleasure, Isabella."

Outside, lightning tore the sky in half, the following thunder sounding so loudly and quickly that I jumped, losing my balance and falling backwards. Edward, of course, got there first, his arms wrapping around my torso and caging me in as he drew me onto his lap.

"Comfortable?" I asked shyly, dangerously aware of every inch of his body as it cocooned me.

"Eminently," he purred quietly, his voice suddenly deeper, richer, almost tangible.

"Th-that's good," I stammered, tentatively resting my cheek against his chest. "What are we doing, Edward?"

"We're sitting together, Isabella. I should have thought that was obvious," he replied silkily.

I shifted slightly in his lap, unable to stop myself from fidgeting, and he responded by turning my body sideways so that I was draped across him, his arm supporting my back and my legs dangling off the side of the desk.

I turned my head again, this time blatantly burrowing my face into the fabric of his shirt, breathing in his scent without thought or care. A cool finger glided across my forehead, descending down my face to trace my eyebrow, my cheek bone, my nose, my lips...

Of its own accord, my tongue darted out to touch the pad of his finger and my entire body shuddered at the taste of him, cool and sweet and so incredibly addictive.

"What are you doing to me, my Bella?" Edward whispered. "What have you done to me?"

His fingers were doing tantalizing things, stroking first my top lip, then my bottom, his palm caressing the side of my face. My body felt like it was ready to burst into flame, every nerve set alight.

The arm supporting my back shifted a bit, and I felt myself slide just a bit lower, looking up slowly to find his molten eyes directly in front of me, seemingly boring into my soul.

"Edward," I whimpered, surprised that I was even able to form his name with the feelings that were wracking my body.

There was a tremendous crack outside, a deafening clap of thunder coupled with the unmistakable sound of breaking wood...

But then Edward's lips were pressed against mine, and I knew nothing else.