This chapter wasn't written to anything in particular but it did give me the perfect idea for the next chapter. I wanted to develop the Edward/Bella relationship a little more and I think this chapter really helped move things along for our young couple.

As always I hope you like it and please let me know what you think.

Chapter 10- Confusion

POV- Bella

I woke up from a restless sleep and glanced at the small clock on the table between mine and Angela's bed. The florescent green lights said it was only 4:30 in the morning, a new record for me. I rolled over and tried to fall back asleep.

After another ten minutes it became clear that sleep was going to elude me once again. Something about this place was messing with my sleep patterns and it was slowly driving me crazy. I shuffled into the shower and let the warm water relax my tense muscles. I was going to start considering sleeping pills if I was going to keep trying to run on five hour nights.

I pulled on some yoga pants and twisted my wet hair into a bun. I pulled open the curtains and glanced out over the city. The sky was pretty dark and it looked like we might get more rain. Yippy. I pulled out my worn copy of Wuthering heights and curled into one of the plush chairs by the window and tried to lose myself in the familiar story.

"Gah." I groaned and tossed my book over Angela onto my bed. I couldn't focus on the book and try as I might I knew what was distracting me. It was the same thing that had woken me up and been the source of my wonderfully confusing dreams all last night.

We had all walked as a group back over to the hotel after the call backs last night. A bus was waiting outside to take the new cuts to the airport and friends were saying goodbye to their less fortunate roommates and dance partners.

The growing number of our group made it too hard for everyone to fit in the elevator and still let the doors close. I had offered to take the stairs and insisted that Angela and Ben get on the elevator. I knew Angela was still favoring her left leg and I hadn't wanted her to hurt herself any farther. I had just turned for the stairs when a warm, all too familiar hand had taken mine.

"I'll go with you Bella. That elevator is far too crowded for my tastes."

Edward and I had taken our time climbing the stairs in a comfortable silence and I had tried not to blush when he walked me all the way to the door of my room. I had unlocked the door with my pass key and turned back to say good night. We could hear the shower running and I knew I was going to have to wait to shower until morning. I was practically falling asleep in the hallway as it was and I wouldn't be able to wait until Angela was done.

I glanced up at him and smiled. "Goodnight Edward."

"Goodnight Bella." He had leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on my forehead before turning back to the stairwell and disappearing. I had been frozen in the doorway until my lungs screamed at me in protest of the lack of oxygen. As cheesy at is sounds, something about him always literally took my breath away.

The kiss had been short and sweet but my skin burned where his lips had touched. I backed into the room and changed into my pajamas. I stared at myself in the mirror, not quite recognizing my own reflection.

The girl in the mirror was flushed and her heart was pounding. She had my eyes but she didn't understand why they looked so much brighter than usual. She was wearing a tank-top in Edward's favorite color and when she closed her eyes she could still see a pair of green eyes watching her as she danced across the stage only a few hours earlier.

I stood up and tucked my book into my bag. I made sure the alarm was set to wake Angela up at six and slipped on my old sneakers. I grabbed my room key and shut the door behind me as quietly as I could.

The hotel was still sleeping and I didn't run into anyone as I descended the stairs and wandered into the open lobby. A woman behind the counter watched me as I crossed the room and stepped out onto the street. I had been in Las Vegas for almost a week and hadn't seen anything of the city other than the view from my window and the street our hotel was on. I was going exploring.

I glanced up and down the street but it was deserted. A few cars were on the road and the sun was just starting to peek up over the buildings. The sky looked a little less threatening but I was still willing to bet it would rain before the day was over.

I mentally flipped a coin and decided I would go left. I jogged down the street and crossed the road. We must have been in a quieter part of Las Vegas because I didn't see any strip malls or casinos with flashing lights. There were a few small bars and a ratty little strip club but other than that it was fairly quiet.

In fact, if the building had been a bit shorter and the plant life a little browner, I might have been able to trick myself into thinking I was back in the heart of Phoenix.

I checked my cell phone after I had gone a few blocks and decided I should probably walk back so I didn't wear myself down before the day had started. I'd always had good endurance for dancing but running wasn't really my strong point.

I bent down to retie my shoe and the scar on my ankle from when I had broken it glared at me like an ugly reminder of my biggest mistake. I stood back up swiftly and decided to screw walking. I was perfectly capable of running back to the hotel.

It had been almost two years since I had broken my ankle and I'd worked twice as hard since the accident to make sure my dancing didn't slip because of it. My physical therapist and my doctor back home had been amazed at how well it had healed, but I never took any chances with it. Another break and I would never dance again. I jogged down the street and had to weave around the people who were starting to emerge from their homes.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I ignored it and pushed myself to run faster, trying to clear my head of everything but my heart beat and the steady breaths I was taking. It buzzed again and I pulled it out to see who was calling me this early, it was Summer. I flipped the phone open and felt my mood improve marginally.

"Hey Summer, what's up?"

"Don't you 'what's up me'. How dare you hold back juicy gossip from your best friend! We're practically sisters. How could you not tell me?"

She sounded close to appalled and I stopped running so I could talk to her better.

"We've hardly spoken in the last four day's Summer. I've been so busy working for the callbacks. What are you talking about?"

She huffed and I could just picture her rolling her eyes at me.

"Sam's told me all about your new friends. Why didn't you tell me about them?: The little Jazz dancer from New York, the big guy who knows how to shake his hips, the twins from Austin?!? You've been holding out on me."

I chuckled and leaned my back against the closest building.

"Yeah, I know them all and I've met some other dancers too. They're really nice for the most part. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."

"Don't worry. You're already forgiven, but there is one thing I can't believe you didn't tell me about. I almost didn't believe Sam when he told me but we watched the audition tapes together again so he could point out the dancers he recognized and he swore it was him but-"

I cut off her babbling hoping she would hurry up and get to the point.

"Sam told you what?"

"You've got the hots for that Edward guy. The one who did that sexy ballroom number for his audition with that blond girl. He's so attractive Bella, I'm almost-"

My face flushed and I made a mental note to kill Sam slowly when I got home. I was going to relish in his pain. "I do not have the hots for Edward."

She tsked at me from the other side of the phone and I could see her shaking her head back and forth. The way she did when she thought she knew something so obvious that I didn't.

"Sam also told me you were in some major denial about it. Apparantly he talked to Emmett and he thinks that Edward really likes you too. That's why I called you. I figured you would want to talk about him."

"You shouldn't believe everything Sam tells you."

She ignored me and continued with her previous stream of conversation. "What's he like? Tell me all about him. I bet he's nice. Sam told me a little but he didn't know him that well. He seemed to believe you two were a lot closer."

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. Maybe I should talk about it and there was no one I would rather talk to than Summer. She would blab to the entire state of Arizona but she wouldn't be able to get her hands on any of the other dancers to gossip about me.

"I don't really know too much about him yet Summer, but he is really nice." ...and kind and polite and beautiful. He was a great dancer and he loves his family. He plays the piano and has starred in almost every dream I've had since my first night here. Could it be true that Emmett told Sam, Edward liked me?

"Just tell me what you do know and I'll help you translate it."

I sighed and started at the beginning. I told her about how I had first met Edward and Emmett and gave her the basics of all of my new friends including Angela, and the cunning little Alice with her devious plots.

"- and then the next morning he showed up at my hotel room at five in the morning because Emmett had kicked him out in his pajamas."

She howled with laughter and I waited for her to regain control of herself.

"Did you let him in?" She asked and I could hear the suggestion under her question. I knew the stupid look that would be on her face and the way her eyebrows would wiggle as she suggested what had happened with Edward in my room.

I decided to play ignorance and answered her honestly. "Of course I let him in. He was in his pajamas. I wouldn't have made him sit in the hallway."

"And what did you two do while he was in your hotel room at five in the morning."

"We didn't do anything Summer. My roommate was still sleeping in the same room. Honestly, Summer get your mind out of the gutter."

She chuckled. "But my mind likes to be in the gutter, it's so much more fun there."

"You're incorrigible Summer."

"No, you had totally hot, totally available Edward Cullen in your hotel room and didn't do anything with him. Even with your roommate there you could have done something, anything. You're telling me you didn't even try to make a move on him?"

"No I didn't. We just talked."

I could see her rolling her eyes again. "And what did you talk about? I bet it was completely innocent and boring just like the rest of your love life."

I rolled my eyes again, what love life? I didn't have one. "We talked about family and friends and our lives back home. It was a very nice conversation."

"Have you done anything more fun with him?"

I could hear her emphasis on "more fun" so I decided to toss her a bone. She wouldn't be satisfied until she got something juicier to talk about.

"Well, I should make you wait until it airs next week-"

She cut me off. "Until what airs!?! What is it? Tell me! I can't wait another two days. I'm going crazy for information here. Everyone keeps asking me how you're doing and I don't have anything to tell them. I always have something to tell them."

"Summer slow down."

I heard her take a deep breath.

"I would much appreciate it if you didn't spread things around about my time here. Let everyone else see it on TV, especially my mom. I don't want you to spoil it for her."

"Tell me what?" She demanded slowly and I could hear the strain in her voice as she struggled to calm herself down.

I smirked at the phone, glad I finally had something to hold over her. I had valuable information for Summer's gossip line and I should really demand some kind of payment for what I was about to share with her.

"I got to dance round four of the callbacks with Edward."

She squealed and I held the phone away from my ear until she was done. "What kind of dance?"

"It was a contemporary number by Chris Skobel."

"I've heard of him. He's supposed to be pretty scary. What song?"

"He was terrifying. Love again by: Cascada. It was a dance about two lovers struggling to admit their feelings for each other."

She squealed again. "Perfect, And?"

"And nothing, it was a beautiful dance. Edward's a great dancer and I had a good time working with him. We really got to know each other better as dancers-"

She cut me off.

"And there's something you're not telling me Isabella Marie Swan. I'm your best friend and I can tell when you're lying to me so don't even try it."

"I'm not lying. It's the truth."

"Then there's something you're not telling me because it's not the whole truth."

I huffed at her. There was something I hadn't told her about. Something I hadn't told anyone about and I wasn't sure I was ready to yet.

"Bella." Summer said in her 'stern' voice.

I sighed and chewed on my lip. "I don't really know Summer. It was probably nothing."

"What was?" She insisted.

"He walked me back to my room last night."

"That's whats got you all worked up? Did he at least try to follow you into your room once you got there?"

I shook my head even though I knew she wouldn't be able to see it. "No, that's not it. He's a gentleman."

"That's a shame. You could really use a dose of bad boy for your sex life."

I paused for a second and decided to just say it. I was sure it didn't mean anything anyway. Why on earth would he possible be interested in me anyway? It was clear that Tanya liked him and she had known him so much longer than I had.

Summer didn't like my attempts to stall. "Bella?"

"He kissed me."

I practically heard her jaw drop and regretted telling her at once. She was going to make a big deal about this and I really just wanted to move on. I couldn't afford any distractions right now and Edward was turning into a bigger distraction than I would have thought.

"He did not!?! Tell me you kissed that boy back. He is super fine Bella. You would have to be some kind of fool not-"

I checked the time on my phone and jumped when I saw it was 6:30. I had been out too long and if I didn't hurry back I was going to be late. I didn't know what would happen to me if I was late and I really didn't want to find out.

"Summer, I wasn't watching the clock. I've really got to go. I'm sorry. Call me later."

I hung up my phone without waitting for her to say good bye and shoved it into my pocket. I turned quickly and started racing down the road. The sidewalks were starting to fill up and there were a lot more cars on the road as people headed to work for the day.

I wasn't paying attention to what was going on around me and by the time I heard the horn blaring at me a big blue van was practically on top of me. I froze on the crosswalk and watched as my life played out before my eyes. I briefly thought about my mom and how she was going to kill me for dying but then my thoughts centered on a pair of green eyes.

"Bella, Move!"

Something warm and hard crashed into my side and I was thrown backwards. Two strong arms locked around my waist as we hit the ground and I heard tires screech to a stop on the tar. I hit my head as we fell and another horn went off as we rolled across the road.

The breath was forced from my lungs and spots bloomed in front of my eyes as my vision blurred. People on the sidewalk were yelling and whoever had grabbed me was kneeling over me calling my name. At least I think it was my name, my ears were ringing. Why was everyone yelling?

"Bella, Bella are you ok?"

I closed my eyes and pressed my fingers to my temples as I tried to catch my breath. My ears had stopped ringing and all the voices were becoming painfully clear and loud as my head throbed. I opened my eyes and waited as my vision came into focus and I found Edward kneeling over me. Those same green eyes watching me as I tried to put together what had just happened.

"Edward?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose and blew out a breath that he must have been holding. He had pushed me out of the way. I wasn't dead, I could smell blood but, I wasn't dead. Why was he out here?

"Thank god." He glared down at me. "What the hell are you doing out here? You almost got yourself killed. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

I tried to sit up and he pushed me back down so I was lying on the hard road.

"Don't sit up. You hit your head pretty hard."

"I'm fine."

"Don't be stubborn Bella." He snapped at me as he folded his sweat shirt up and placed it under my head. The shirt smelled like him and I took a couple deep breaths to try and calm myself down. He held his finger in front of my face and told me to focus on it.

He checked my pulse and then gave me permission to sit up, slowly.

"Are you crazy Lady?!? What the hell were you doing in the road? Didn't you hear the horn?"

I jumped and regretted it instantly as my head pulsed. The blue van that had almost run me over was stopped on the street, along with a few other cars and we had a nice little group of onlookers watching as the driver of the van yelled at us.

"Have you ever heard of looking both ways? Holy hell chick."

I opened my mouth to apologize, but Edward spoke up for me, turning on the driver as he descended on us.

"You were turning left at a green light asshole! Haven't you ever heard that pedestrians have the right of way? You're lucky I haven't called the police yet. You could have killed her!"

The driver blanched for a second. Then glanced at me. I looked down at myself and saw what he was seeing. My clothes were covered in dirt and my pants were torn at the knee. My arms were cut up and the palms of my hands were scraped up. I was bleeding from a gash on my arm and the smell was starting to make me sick. Ugh, and I was dizzy.

"Are you ok?" He asked appearing to see me for the first time.

I nodded and Edward stepped in front of me blocking me from his view.

"I'll take care of her but; I think it would be best if you left now."

The driver apologized before getting back into his car. Once the onlookers had heard I wasn't seriously hurt they had all started moving on and traffic was starting to move again. I got my feet under me and tried to push myself up.

My head pounded with the movement and I wobbled as the street lurched in a way that had to be impossible. Was the street moving or was it me? It was probebly a good thing my stomack was empty or the motion of the road probebly would have made me sick.

"Bella, don't try to walk yet."

Edward wrapped his arms around me as I fell forward and he carefully lifted me up bridal style. It must have been me falling, rather then the road moving because the street came back into focus right where it had been before once I wasn't moving.

"I can walk Edward." I said stubornly as he started walking down the road.

"Sure didn't look like it. My father's a doctor remember. I know a little bit about head wounds. Emmett was a very accident prone child. It was always my job to make sure he didn't get into trouble."

I chuckled at that and my head throbbed again. Note to self, no more sudden movements. Edward's arms tightened around me and I rested my head against his chest, trying not to bleed on him. "Thank you."

I glanced up at him and he held my eye. He let out another long breath and nodded slowly.

"No problem."

I rested my head against his chest again and closed my eyes. I shouldn't have gotten up so early, I was so sleepy. I could take a nap right here and- Edward shook his arms and I groaned as my head throbbed again. Why did he go and do that?

"Hey, no sleeping until I get someone to look at you. Bella, look at me. Bella?"

I looked up at him again and forced my eyelids back. I focused my vision on his eyes and tried to calm my pounding head. The sun was so bright now. Where had all the nice dark clouds gone?

"I'm ok."

He shook his head. "You hit your head harder then I thought. I'm going to have one of the show medics look at you. I want to make sure you don't have a concussion."

I kept my eyes on his face and the pounding started to recede a little. He had such a beautiful face. I was almost jealous. I hadn't realized we were at the studio until he was walking through the doors. A crew man in black descended on us in a panic when he saw our dirty clothes and bloody arms.

He was talking very loud and I closed my eyes, tucking my head back into Edward's chest as he explained everything. It wasn't exactly a lie. He just failed to mention the fact that I had gone out for an early morning jog and that it had been my fault we had both almost been killed.

"Some idiot in a van almost hit us down the road. I'm fine, but Bella hit her head pretty bad. Where's the medic?"

"Down the hall. Follow me."

Edward started to walk again and he must have noticed I shut my eyes because he shook me again and disturbed my attempts to fall asleep. His arms were very comfortable.

"Bella, open your eyes. Look at me, no sleeping."

I did as he asked and kept my eyes locked on his face as he walked us to the medic's room. A chair scraped across the floor as we entered and I winced at the sound. I had a pounding headache but my vision was clearer and I wasn't having any trouble breathing.

"What happened?"

The crew man spoke to the doctor and Edward sat me gently on one of those bed things doctors have with the crunchy paper on it. The room was white and looked like a cross between a makeshift hospital and my high school nurse's office. I had spent more time than I would like to admit in the nurse's office with walking related injuries.

The doctor came over and checked my pulse. He did the same thing with a flashlight that Edward had done with his finger and asked me if my vision was clear.

I nodded and did my best to ignored the pain in the back of my head.

"I'm ok. I just have a headache."

The doctor nodded and checked Edward quickly before giving me a few pain killers for my head.

"It could have been a lot worse. I think you were very lucky Bella."

I nodded and glanced up at Edward who was still standing next to me. He hadn't left my side since the accident. "I know I am."

The doctor had us wash our arms in his sink with some special antibacterial, funny smelling soapy stuff and then he wrapped the largest of my cuts, a deeper gash on my forearm, with gauze before declaring us fit to leave.

"I want you both to take it easy today and Bella if you start feeling dizzy I want you back here immediately, understand? Don't try to be brave. If you start feeling really sleepy, I want you back here."

I nodded. "Yes Sir."

He smirked. "Good girl. Edward, you too. Anything at all and you come back."

"I'm fine." Edward said and he wrapped an arm around me. "I'll watch her."

Edward was helping me to my feet when the door to the medic's room opened and Nigel walked in with the crew man who had helped Edward and I earlier.

He glanced us over taking in our dirty clothes and my bandaged arm and nodded to himself.

"Jeff told us there had been an accident, are you both ok?"

We nodded and Edward kept his arm wrapped around my waist as I wobbled momentarily on my feet.

"Just a little shaken."

A camera man followed him in and I flushed when the red light on his camera turned on. They were going to tape this for the show. My mom and Summer were going to flip out. Not that I had landed myself in the hospital, but at the fact that Edward was the one who had saved me. I knew very well Summer was going to tell Renee all about Edward and this was only going to make them gossip worse.

Nigel asked us what happened and filled us in on what we had missed in the auditorium. The last round was going to be solos. We could do any song we wanted and any style of our choosing. The studio was open for use and they would be filming at the same time as they did everyday.

"I'm afraid we can't give you any extra time even with your accident and you're already a bit behind the others. I want you both to do your best and I will inform Mary and our guest judge about your accident. We will take it into consideration when you perform."

Nigel turned to the doctor. "I am assuming of course that you haven't benched them. They can still dance, can't they?"

The doctor didn't look like he was too happy about it but he nodded. "Yes, they can still dance but I want you both to take it easy, end of story."

Nigel and the camera man disappeared and Edward helped me into the lobby. We sat down on a bench along the wall and he looked me over again.

"Are you sure you're ok Bella?"

I nodded again. "Thanks to you. That van would have crushed me if you hadn't pushed me out of the way."

He ran a hand through his hair and rubbed his neck. "What were you even doing out there?"

The memory of his kiss flooded back to me and I looked away from him. I had been trying to clear my head of him but I certainly wasn't going to tell him that.

"I was just running, trying to forget about the competition for a little while. Summer called and I got distracted. I didn't realize how late it was so I was rushing to get back." A curious thought crossed my mind and I glanced up at him. "What were you doing out there?"

The tips of his ears turned pink and he ran his hands through his hair again. "I was looking for you. You didn't answer when I came to see you this morning so I though maybe you were finally catching up on your sleep. When Angela came down for breakfast, she thought you were with me. When we couldn't find you in the hotel or the studio, I went looking for you. I thought you might have wandered outside and lost track of the time."

He had come looking for me? They had all been so worried about me. I was touched at how much these people cared about me after only a few days.

"I'm glad you did Edward. I wouldn't be here right now if you hadn't come looking for me."

He glanced down at me and I tried to read the emotions playing out on his face. He shook his head and took my hand again, holding it in his larger ones like he was confirming the fact that I was really sitting here next to him.

He stared at our hands for a little while before he spoke again. When he spoke again his voice was soft and he squeezed my hand again.

"I thought I was too late." He looked up at me and I blushed under his powerful gaze. "I called your name before you ran into the street but you didn't hear me. When I saw the van turn the corner, I panicked." He brushed a strand of hair out of my face and I leaned into his hand.

"I'm fine Edward. You got there in time."

He nodded. "When you didn't open your eyes right away I thought maybe you had still somehow been hit."

I leaned into his side and rested my forehead against his shoulder. My heart was pounding and I took a few deep breaths to calm myself, breathing in his sent. I couldn't describe the scent with any words. I'd never smelled anything like it before, but I loved it. It was just Edward and the scent comforted me in strange ways.

I glanced up at him and found him sitting with his eyes closed, much like I had been. He seemed to be enjoying my company as much as I enjoyed his. I took a deep breath and mustered my courage before leaning up farther and kissing the underside of his jaw. He seemed startled by my move and when he glanced down at me his eyes seemed to be a darker shade of green.

"Thank you, Edward."

He grinned and me and placed another kiss on my forehead. "Anytime"

"Bella! Edward? What the hell happened to you guys?"

I jumped and pressed my hand against my forehead to calm the pounding after the sudden movement. Angela, Alice and Jasper were standing over us and Alice's eyes were fixed on my torn clothes and bandaged arm.

"Are you guys ok?" Angela asked sitting down on my free side and looking me over.

I nodded and let Edward talk as he explained about our almost car crash and the visit to the medic.

"Did you get his name? Are you pressing charges?" Jasper asked. It surprised me how upset he was at our accident. I hadn't had much of a chance to get to know Jasper yet, but seemed to care about us just as much as Alice or Angela.

I shook my head. "No, it was as much my fault as his. I didn't look before I jumped into the street."

"But are you ok Bella? You look awful." Angela asked.

"I'm fine. I could have been a lot worse."

Alice grimaced as she looked me over again. "You guys need to change. Those clothes are history."

I nodded and glanced over at Edward. He helped me to my feet and offered to walk me to the hotel and back so we could both change. We convinced our friends that we were ok and Alice set off on a mission to let the others know what had happened to us.

Edward picked me up and carried me across the street. He dropped me off at my room and left me to get changed so he could run up to his room quick.

I picked though my clothes and found a clean shirt and a new pair of dance pants I could work in. I brushed out my hair and shoved my room key and I-pod into my pocket. I selected a pair of cloth flats to wear. With the problems I was still having with balance, I certainly wasn't going to try dancing in heels today.

Edward knocked on the door and let me walk as we headed back over to the studio. We found some space in a small studio upstairs where Angela, Ben, Leah, and Erik were all working. They each had their I-pods plugged in and were dancing to their individual music.

They welcomed us in and we had to retell the story about the van for Leah, Erik and Ben before they would let us start working. I convinced Edward I was ok and sat down in the corner to stretch. I turned on my favorite play list and let it start running through songs.

As I flipped through the songs, hunting down the right one to dance to, I stretched. I was sore from lack of sleep and from the van mishap but I forced all of that out of my head. I took a ridiculously long time to stretch out my whole body and loosen all of my tense muscles.

Edward was working just across from me and every time he caught me watching him I would blush and glance back down at my toes. In my own defense I caught him watching me just as many times. By the time I was ready to actually start working I knew exactly what song I wanted to dance my solo to. It was perfect and I wouldn't be dancing just for myself this time around.

~Darkrose

This chapter is my favorite so far and I'm very pleased with how it turned out. Please let me know what you think and I hope to have the next chapter up very soon. I know exactly what song I want to do it to.