Hello again. I promise to keep this short. I'd like some more reviews, please. Okay, I hope you enjoy.

The rest of the day was brilliant. Alice met my other friends Sam, Jonathan and Josie. Alex stayed very quiet and shy from the embarrassment. It felt bizarre to be talking to a famous musician. Everyone around us kept staring - Bella and her friends are not allowed to talk to famous people, their loner group is to remain loners - that was the rule of all rules. The rest of Alice's family didn't join us at lunch; Edward had a meeting and the other two were seniors that hung out with other seniors. The other family member, Jasper I think his name was, didn't join us either - he had found a cooler friend.

The minute I walked out of the school gate at 3 o'clock that afternoon, the weather changed. The skies darkened and it started to rain.

"Bella! Bella! I'm over here Bells!" Jacob's voice boomed across the busy car park.

Jacob was standing beside his Nissan as usual. I strolled over towards him and hopped in the passenger seat.

"So, how did the canteen thing go this morning?" I asked him.

"Good," He replied as he shook the rainwater out of his hair. "It paid off - Miss Bradlen was glad to see me turn up and help her. So, what do you think of the new family?" Jacob turned to face me.

"Well, they're cool. I've only met Alice and Edward. The others were off with other friends," I explained. "Alice and I are in the same History class and I met Edward. They're pretty nice."

"Yeah, I hung out with Jasper today. He wants to do something with me on the weekend. We'll probably go to the beach or something like that," He informed me.

The rain stopped and the sun came out again. Wow, the weather was moody today.

"So what are we doing this afternoon?" I asked Jacob as he drove out of the car park.

"Well, I need to do some food shopping for Dad while he's at work. What're you going to do?" He asked me, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Probably take Diesel for a walk round the block," I replied.

"Sounds good to me!" Jacob looked at me and gave me a smile.

He drove us home in silence. I wondered what he was thinking, but I didn't want to ask him –the silence was peaceful. Jacob dropped me off at home and went off on his way to the shops. I opened the front door and Diesel greeted me. Diesel was our 5-year-old Collie dog. He had a gentle character and always loved to see us. He was part of our family, like a little brother – only he was much bigger than a child.

I raced him up the stairs and into my bedroom where I got changed into a pair of jeans and a singlet. I put my joggers on and raced Diesel down the stairs and into the living room. My iPod was on the kitchen bench top so I grabbed it as I walked out the door with Diesel by my side.

We turned the corner of a street 500m away from our house when I felt a drop of water fall on my nose. I looked up to the sky, which was grey again.

"Come on Diesel, let's turn around and go home before we get drenched," I told Diesel, knowing he wouldn't understand. I didn't care.

The rain was falling heavily now, and we started jogging down the street. I suddenly got blinded from lights of a car. A shiny silver Volvo drove up the street and stopped beside me. I stopped cautiously as the driver rolled down the window. He was wearing sunglasses. I was getting ready to bolt.

"Hey, hop in," His calm voice ordered.

"I'm not allowed to talk to strangers. Goodbye," I replied as I continued walking. Diesel growled slightly and then put himself between the car and I. The car reversed and stopped beside me once again.

"Bella, I'm no stranger," He chuckled as he removed his sunnies.

I gasped as I realised who it was. The driver smiled a crooked smile.

It was Edward.

"Bloody hell Edward! You scared me!" I growled.

"Just hop in, you're getting wet. You can tell me off when you're in here, nice and dry," Edward comforted me.

I opened the back door for Diesel to hop in and I sat in the passengers' seat.

"Sorry for scaring the crap out of you Bella," His irresistible voice sounded like he meant it. "I didn't want you to get wet."

"Well, I was already wet and now I'm going to damage your car seat. You should have let me go," I responded. My heart was still beating at the speed of light.

"Don't worry about it. I need a new car anyway," His gorgeous British accent purred.

His car seemed brand new, but maybe it was a celebrity thing - a new car every three weeks, or something ridiculous like that.

I shivered as the cold water ran down my arms. Edward noticed and he pulled off his jacket.

"Here, this will keep you warm," he said, handing me his brown leather jacket.

"No. It's okay. I'll survive, really," I didn't want to make his jacket wet as well.

"Just take it," he growled, his eyes were as dark as the night sky. I shivered.

I couldn't argue with him now. My fingers took the jacket from his hold and I slipped my arms through the sleeves.

"Thanks."

"Welcome. See, that's much better now, isn't it?" he purred.

"Yeah," I smiled and he smiled in return.

"So you're not allowed to speak to strangers?" Edward teased.

"Well, unlike you who talks to your fans that are complete strangers, no," I replied.

"You have a point. Your parents brought you up well," he looked me in the eyes.

"You sound like my Grandpa," I told him.

He laughed.

"Well, you do!" I laughed with him.

"Is that a good thing?" he asked.

"It can be. I love my Grandpa very much but he says that all the time and it gets on my nerves," I explained.

"If you love your Grandpa very much, then I'm happy," Edward smiled his crooked smile and put his foot on the accelerator. "Where are we going?" Edward was now looking at the road.

"To my house," I replied.

"Why not my house?"

"Can we drop off Diesel first, so you don't have a big wet dog in your house?" I asked him.

"Sure," he purred.

We drove in silence apart from the directions I gave Edward to get to my house. The rain continued and the only sound was from the windscreen wipers. He parked his Volvo in the driveway. There was no sign of Jacob's Nissan; he must have a very long shopping list.

"Ok, I'll put Diesel inside and can I get changed?" I asked.

"Why do you need to get changed? I think that outfit looks very nice on you," he was surprised.

"I'm wet," I replied.

"True. I'll be waiting here," he looked away from my gaze and looked out the window.

"Okay, I'll be quick."

I opened the car door, stepped into the rain and opened the back door for Diesel. He hopped out and I shut the door behind him. We ran through the rain together until I reached the front door of the house. We entered the house and I looked at myself in the mirror in the hallway. My hair was drenched. Oh crap, I just remembered that Edward was waiting in his car for me. The excited feeling of hanging out with EDWARD hadn't hit me yet. It'd felt like we'd been friends for years. It surprised me that I felt comfortable talking to him. I sprinted up the stairs and into my bedroom where I saw my English book slipping out of my bag on the floor. Oh no, I had English homework that was due tomorrow. I felt devastated.

My feet dragged down the stairs as I walked towards the front door. I made my way into the rain. I couldn't be bothered to run in the rain so I just took it easy.

"What's wrong Bella? You look upset," Edward curiously asked me as I reached his car.

"I've got homework to do that's due tomorrow. I'm afraid I can't come with you to your house. Sorry, but thanks for the ride." I felt awful. I wanted to cry.

"Oh, that's a shame. Oh well," He sighed.

"But why don't you come inside for a hot chocolate?" I didn't know where that came from!

"Sounds like a good idea to me!" He agreed and his mouth formed a crooked smile.

"Great. I'll just go and make sure I've got some chocolate first," I added.

"Bella, you are absurd," He chuckled.

"Thanks Edward. I appreciate it," I replied sarcastically.

He hopped out of his car and pressed the auto lock. Edward ran towards the front door and he grabbed my wrist and pulled me along with him. We reached the front door and I glanced down to where he was holding my wrist. He let go and looked away from my face. He seemed embarrassed.

I swung the cupboard door open and grabbed the drinking cocoa powder.

"Quite nice house you've got," I still wasn't used to his British accent.

"It does the job. At least we've got a roof over our heads," I responded as I found two mugs.

"Fair enough," He said, examining the photo frames on the walls. "Is that you when you were young?" He turned to look at me as he pointed at the picture that was taken when I was at the beach at the age of three.

"Yep, that's me," I answered.

"It's cute," He smiled his crooked smile again and his eyes were still dark in colour, even when the lights shone on them.

"You think so? You're the only person that's said that, apart from my brother who likes to take the mickey out of me all the time," I returned the smile.

"Yeah. Mind you, you've changed a lot but the photo looks like you," He said casually.

"Ah, Edward? Would you like a marshmallow with your hot chocolate?" I asked him.

"Sure, why not? It's part of the deal, isn't it?" He chuckled.

"If you say so," I replied cheekily.

I spent the rest of our afternoon showing and recounting the photos on the walls. Edward seemed very interested in my life. He also helped me with my English homework, which was good because I didn't understand what half of the questions were asking of me.

"It's about time I go home," Edward suddenly said.

"Oh, okay," I couldn't ask him to stay a bit longer.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate, it was the nicest one I've ever had," he congratulated me.

"I don't believe you," I protested.

"You don't have to, but I know it's true." The crooked smile reappeared. "Anyway, will I see you tomorrow?" Edward asked me on his way out the door.

"Probably, if you hang out with us you will. What happened to the ditching of your sister?" I teased.

"Alice?" He asked.

"Yes, she was looking out for you at lunch," I explained.

"I had to go to a meeting," Edward told me.

"Will you come with us at lunch tomorrow?"

"If I don't have another meeting."

"Ok. See you then."

"See you later Bella."

"Thanks for the ride!"

Edward hopped into his car and started the engine. He reversed out onto the street and drove away. I waved until he was out of sight. Well, now was the time to catch my breath. Wow, I had just spent my afternoon with Edward. THE Edward. The one every teenage girl was talking about. And I'd see him again tomorrow. Yay! I struggled to hold back a little shriek.

I just about had enough time to clean and dry the mugs, when Jacob walked in.

"So, did you have a long shopping list or did you just get lost in the aisles?" I asked him sarcastically.

"Neither. I met this cool chick. She started talking to me, so we talked…a bit," He shrugged.

"A bit?" I hadn't missed the last part.

"A bit," He agreed.

"Ok."

"And what did you do?" He asked me suspiciously.

"Well, it's a long story. Long and the short is that I was walking Diesel and I bumped into Edward. He drove me home and then came over. Edward helped me with my homework and we had a hot chocolate. The end," I responded.

"Okay," He smiled smugly.

"It's not like that, Jacob. Edward and I are friends; nothing more," I replied.

"If you say so," He had the same smug look on his face as he packed the cold groceries into the fridge.

"I say so," I agreed.

Compared to my short afternoon with Edward (it seemed to go by so quickly yet I had spent a few hours with him) the night dragged on. Jacob and I prepared dinner, Charlie came home, we ate, showered, watched TV and went to bed. I lay in my bed, staring at the ceiling. There was no way even a lullaby could get me to sleep now. Even the butterflies in my stomach hadn't gone to bed. I lay with my head on the pillow, just staring at the ceiling, thinking about the day that had just been. I thought about Edward and the way he scared me. What a stranger! I felt really stupid now. Even thinking of the way he stopped his car beside me made my heart speed up again. Calm down, Bella, I thought, you'll see him tomorrow. You'll - see - him - tomorrow...

There was no sun peeping through my curtains the next morning. Instead, I could hear the light pitter-patter of the small raindrops on the roof. Not another wet, slow day. Argh!

I crept down the stairs and saw Jacob sitting alone and sad at the table.

"Jacob? Are you okay?" I asked quietly. He looked up. Jacob seemed depressed.

"Yeah, what makes you think I'm not?" He asked.

"I don't know; you look depressed?"

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Oh."

"So are you?"

"What?"

"Depressed?"

"No."

"Oh. Okay," I shrugged.

I dragged my feet across the cool floor, into the kitchen where I found a bowl. I filled it with cereal, and made my way to the table. The seat was cold, so I sat on my legs.

"What's wrong Jacob?"

"Nothing you need to worry about."

"I'm not going to give up until you tell me."

"Really? Oh, I'm sorry. Have fun with the disappointment then."

"Ha ha. Just tell me, please?"

"I've got an assignment due today and I haven't finished it yet. How's that?"

"Guess what? I don't believe you!"

"Guess what?! You should!"

"Just tell me Jacob! WHAT'S WRONG?!"

"Nothing, Bella. Nothing's wrong."

"I know there is. Please just tell me?"

He remained silent for a moment, taking deep breaths and re-filling his lungs with the cool, clean air.

"It's just that I'm upset that I'm nearly finished school. You know, I'll miss my friends and the routines. I don't know what I'm going to do after school. Go to University? Travel? I don't know." Tears filled his eyes, so I thought I'd give him a hug.

"Jacob, you can do whatever you want to do. It's your life. Just promise me you won't go to schoolies and get pissed like the rest of them. Please?" I held out my little pinkie, waiting for him to make his promise. He considered it, and finally shook my little pinkie.

"Okay, I promise."

"Thank-you Jacob."

"You're welcome." A small smile appeared on his face. I liked making my older brother happy. It made me feel older, more mature, grown up...and loved.

"So...are you driving me to school today or am I walking in the rain?" I asked Jacob.

"Second option." He made a cheeky face.

I gasped. "How could you do that to me?"

"Do I know you?" He laughed. As soon as he said the words, it reminded me of yesterday and Edward acting like a stranger.

"Thanks for that! I believe you're my brother?!" I laughed with him.

"Really? Maybe you were adopted?" He cheekily added.

"I don't think so!"

"Are you sure? Did you know your real name was Isabella Marie Cullen?"

I gasped again, speechless. "No. It. Wasn't." I was over the laughing at this stage.

"Yes it was!"

"No. It. WASN'T!"

"Yeah, I know. I was just joking."

"I should hope so." I was pissed off. How could he make fun of me like that? Just because I had spent ONE afternoon with EDWARD CULLEN, how could he tease me like that?! I didn't know.

I took one spoonful of the cereal from my bowl and shoved it down. I didn't understand why Jacob bought this stuff when it wasn't even tasty. When I had my own car, I could go wherever I wanted to at whatever time I decided to. I could go to the shops and get quality food.

I whistled for Diesel and I soon saw him coming down the stairs. Boy was Diesel sleepy this morning. He was slow, but then hurried up as he saw what I had planned for him. I scraped the cereal onto the wooden floor, and Diesel started to eat it up.

"Alright, I'm going to get dressed," I let Jacob know.

"Okay. Then we'll be off, hey?"

"Absolutely," I said as I made my way to the kitchen to clean my bowl.

The kitchen was very dark this morning, so I pulled up the blinds. I cleaned my bowl, left it to dry on the rack, and skipped up the stairs. I got changed into my uniform and went to the bathroom to brush my hair. I wasn't the type of person that spent hours looking at myself in the mirror and I didn't really care what my hair looked like; at long as it was comfortable, I was happy. I liked the slight curls and waves in my hair though, yet all my friends told me I should straighten it. Stuff them. My hair was my hair. If they wanted to burn their hair until it was as wiry as a man's moustache (not that I knew what a man's moustache felt like) they were allowed to. I straightened my hair once, and it made me look ugly. I had nothing against the straightening of hair, I mean; the first time Josie did it to me I was quite excited. It was just that I didn't have time to straighten my hair every morning; I preferred to be at school on time than looking at myself in the mirror for 20 minutes just to make sure that I looked good. I ran the hairbrush through my hair, removing all the knots.

"Come on, gal!" Jacob's voice boomed from downstairs. "Or ya'll be walkin' in the rain!"

"Comin' Jake!" I yelled back.

I brushed my teeth vigorously and went to the toilet. Then, I turned on my heel and jogged down the dark hallway and into my bedroom. I grabbed my bag from the floor, and slung it over my shoulder. I quickly ran out of the room, and leapt down the stairs. Today I would see Edward again. Today I would be happy, I promised myself. The front door slammed behind me.

My fingers curled around the door handle of Jacobs' car. I leapt into the passenger seat and put my seatbelt on.

"Let's go," Jacob said.

"Okay."

"Hold on to your underwear young lady. We're going to do a bit of sport driving."

"NO. WE'RE. NOT." I didn't like it when Jacob put our lives in danger by driving like a hoon. He drove around tight corners thinking he was superman. I didn't like this at all. His foot pressed on the accelerator and the tires screeched before launching us at high speeds. The road flew underneath us.

"SLOW DOWN JACOB!" I yelled.

"Hey Bella, I'm sitting right next to you. You don't need to scream in my ear, for crying out loud!" Jacob looked at me and continued driving at horrifying speeds.

"Keep your eyes on the road, idiot!" I yelled a bit softer this time.

"Fine," Jacob gave in and slammed on the brakes at the red light. We were both sent forward and his head bumped the horn on the steering wheel. He laughed and the passengers in the car in the next lane looked at us strangely. I tried to hide my face from their view but I couldn't help laughing from the look on their faces.

We arrived in the school carpark. The rain continued and a bit of wind picked up too. I stepped out of the car and into the bustle of high school. Jacob waved goodbye and went on his way to find his friends. I strolled casually towards my locker, and bumped into the schools' richest group of friends.

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