I'm back! Thanks so much for the great response to the last chapter, guys. I got 19 reviews! *tears up* Let's aim for 20 this time round, yeah? And by the way, my new one shot is up. It's called Vulnerable and it's basically about Bella fixing Edward for once instead of always Edward comforting Bella. Do read that one too and thanks for the support! I feel so loved.

At time of writing I have just received news that Michael Jackson is dead. The King of Pop is no more. That is so sad and honestly, incredibly unbelievable. I was a huge fan of Michael Jackson and he's become a household name, much like Madonna. R.I.P M.J. You'll always live on as The King of Pop.

Payback's A Bitch
Wednesday
Bella

I looked so happy last night that Charlie actually asked me if I was feeling alright over fish and chips at dinner. Of course, being me, I just blushed and waved it off with a noncommittal 'mmm'. The look on his face almost gave me hysterics. He looked as though I was messing around in the back of my pickup.

I woke up at six thirty thanks to Charlie's bizarre clumping around and his traditional goodbye shout. He always shouted bye to me regardless if I was awake or not. It was actually kinda sweet. I'd have to do something nice for him soon. He was a bizarre dad, but a good one.

The drive to school was...interesting. Interesting because I tripped four times between the kitchen to the door, and interesting because the sun looked as though it might just make a surprise appearance today. But mostly it was interesting because of what happened at the entrance to the school parking lot.

There was only one way in and one way out from the school, and that was the narrow piece of road that was only about fifteen feet long. After that it widened out into the parking lot. When I arrived, the scene I saw was hilarious. I had to press my hand to my mouth to keep from cracking up.

Rosalie Hale was positioned gracefully under her M3, lying on a skateboard she had probably borrowed from a hormonal sixteen-year-old teenage guy. Emmett's huge bulk was next to Rosalie, and Edward and Jasper were having a screaming fight with him as gas steadily pooled at their feet. All this was taking place at the mouth of the little road.

Add that very funny scene to the ten or so cars blaring their horns and screaming at the Cullens to move their butts, and I was almost peeing in my pants. I hit my horn as well, and tried to control my giggling. This was a way of starting a day that I could get used to.

.xXx.

I strolled to first period clutching my books to my chest, humming under my breath. Before I reached class, though, I saw Emmett's imposing bulk at the end of the long hallway. I grinned, inventing up a jibe for the performance this morning. Then I saw Edward's muscular figure flanking him on one side and Jasper's recognizable tall frame on the other, and quickly reconsidered the thought.

"Time to go," I muttered, turning to take a detour.

"Hey!" Emmett's loud voice boomed behind me. "Bella! Wait! We have a bone to pick with you!" At that Jasper and Edward started laughing.

I stopped and inhaled. You brought this onto yourself, Bella, I reminded myself, and turned to face them. I plastered a fake smile on my face. "How may I help you?" I asked politely. At least nobody could accuse me of being rude, though my tone did remind me of that woman voice you get when calling customer service and want to smack in the face.

"I heard you were tattling to Carlisle yesterday," Emmett thundered, his voice echoing off the walls. Edward and Jasper snickered.

"Um...yes?" I bit my lip. No point denying it. I only hoped the Cullens were big on payback. I could only imagine the horrors Carlisle punished Edward with, and judging by this, Jasper and Emmett too.

"Do you know what he did to me?" Emmett whispered, bringing down his mouth to my ear. I thought I saw Edward frown momentarily, but it was gone in an instant. I shrugged it off and shook my head no to Emmett's question. "He made me clean the toilets!" Emmett bellowed suddenly, making me jump.

I stared at him for a moment before cracking up laughing. The thought of bulky, imposing Emmett cleaning the toilets was amazingly hilarious. Emmett stared at me. Apparently he had been expecting me to fall to my knees and grovel for mercy or something equally humiliating, because I could easily see the surprise on his face. That and the fact that Jasper was banging his head on the lockers repeatedly and Edward was smirking at Emmett murmuring, "I told you so."

Emmett let out a loud whine. "Aw, come on, Bella! You were supposed to apologize!"

I raised my eyebrows. "Why am I the one to apologize? Blame Eduardo over there for spending so much on me I felt the need to blab to Carlisle." Edward's jaw dropped and he shot a death glare my way. Jasper was still smacking his head on the lockers. I could see the skin around his forehead turn red. Emmett pouted at me.

"Because of you blabbing to daddy, I had to clean the toilets and get my Jeep taken away!" Emmett complained. "And now I just lost a bet to Edward!"

"You played for money?" I couldn't imagine what these immensely rich folks wanted with more money.

"No," Emmett said, sticking out his lower lip and looking like my baby cousin on a bad day. "I have to lug around a ridiculous blow-up doll Eduardo calls Betty."

I stared at Emmett, and then at Edward. "Betty?"

Edward ignored me, looking at Edward. "Betty is not ridiculous. She is as alive as Thomas."

"The train?" I asked, giggling. Edward rolled his eyes at me, stepping a little closer as more students poured in.

"No, not the train, although that's better than what Emmett thought. He thought Thomas was the crazy old man that hung out in front of strip clubs in Seattle," Edward said, snorting. Emmett held up his hands in mock surrender. "In his defense he is a dickhead, so I can excuse that for once."

"Hey!" Emmett protested. "Old strip club lover man is better than the Thomas you thought of. He thought of Thomas Jefferson, can you believe him? What kind of old artsy fartsy guy thinks of Thomas Jefferson when you say Thomas?"

I giggled again, looking at Edward. "Edward, didn't you say Betty was as alive as Thomas Jefferson? Um, FYI, Thomas Jefferson died in 1826."

Edward groaned loudly. "Betty is alive! Fine! She's as alive as...as...Alice!" He stared at me, daring us silently to contradict him. Emmett stifled a laugh.

"Um, Edward, Alice is a pretty common name..."

"My great grandmother was named Mary Jane Alice," I piped up. Edward glowered at me as Jasper finally stopped trying to mutilate himself on the lockers. He came over and seized Edward and Emmett, grabbing a fistful of their hair.

"Would you stop discussing the lifespan of my girlfriend and get to point already?" Jasper shrieked, sounding half-demented. Edward smirked at Jasper.

"Why's he so moody?" I asked. Jasper was usually the calm one from what I saw.

"Oh, just because he has to carry Betty around today. Which reminds me..." Edward darted into a nearby janitor's closet and reappeared with a huge doll. My eyes widened. No wonder Emmett and Jasper hated the thing so much. She looked like...like a stripper, actually. Part of that was because she was almost naked except for a towel around her body and a few strategically placed soap suds. Apparently she was meant for bathroom company. Another part was because she looked like the gossipy girls that stayed in the girls' room for hours breaking down the facial features of a boy.

"That's Betty? She looks weirdly like Jessica," I said, naming one of said gossipy girls. Edward scowled at me and seized Betty, hugging her. I pitied his future wife if he was going to lug around that doll.

"Can we get to the point?" Jasper asked wearily.

"What point?" Emmett asked, and upon seeing the death glare Jasper sent him, quickly backtracked. "Oh! The point! Bella, we're getting revenge on you." Jasper groaned loudly, smacking his hand on his forehead.

"Emmett, you weren't supposed to tell her that!"

"Oops," Emmett said, winking at me and sauntering off as the bell rang. I stared after the three of them-the tall honey blonde hailing from Texas, the intimidating and ridiculously childish clown, and the sex siren grasping a life-size blow-up doll complaining that it was said clown and blonde that should be lugging the thing around.

God, they were weird. And they were starting to grow on me.

Oh, help.