A/N- Ok so good news and bad news. I got a job! I'll try to keep up with at least 1 post a week, but I can't guarantee it now that I'm not a full time stay-at-home cat mom. I have loved each and every review and I smile at every favorite and follow! Please let me know what you think, as it really is the best encouragement to get writing out.

Thanks as ever to Dollybigmomma, my lovely beta and story coach! Check out her work if you can!

Edward

I sat at the kitchen table, not too patiently, already finished with the breakfast my mother, Esme, had made. I was dressed, but my hair was all out of sorts. Not because I had only just rolled out of bed, but because I had been running my hand through my hair every few minutes, impatiently waiting for my siblings to be ready to leave.

"Why do they run late every single day? Especially when the time never changes or sneaks up on them. School starts at 8:30 a.m. every day. Haven't they had enough practice making it to school?" I grumbled, and Esme smiled warmly at me, used to my curmudgeonly ways.

I hated being late, but my siblings didn't share that particular pet peeve. Yes, on their schedule, we would arrive before the bell rang, but we would get one of the last parking spots, and then make it to our first classes as the bell was ringing. I didn't like that, it made me feel out of control.

"Edward dear, you know your siblings aren't like that. Especially after a week away, they have a hard time adjusting back to school sleep schedules."

"Maybe if they weren't up all night while we were away, they wouldn't need to adjust back. Not to mention they act like this most of the time anyway."

This time, she rolled her eyes and shook her head, taking my face into her hands. "How is it that my teenager is already middle aged, huh? How did I raise you so differently from your siblings that you aged so quickly?"

It was mostly a joke, but I wondered if she had asked herself that question genuinely more than once. It was true that I was very different from my siblings, and maybe it was unusual for someone my age, but I considered it a blessing. I was rational, in control of myself, and successful in school and in my piano playing. Maybe my social skills left something to be desired, but who needed friends when one had as many siblings as I did? Especially ones who were as close as mine were. Esme might not have birthed us all, and of course, we all were violently different, as though we were each other's foils, but we enjoyed each other. Most of the time, anyway.

I didn't answer, as she expected, and I checked my watch again. "That's it, I guess I'll go on my own if they insist on being late."

Esme wished me well for my day and sent me off with a hug.

I left the kitchen, letting myself get lost in my thoughts. We would have a fair bit of makeup work, since we had been gone for all of last week and yesterday, but it wouldn't take too much effort to catch up. At least, for me anyway. I was sure Emmett would let it wait until the last possible minute, as per usual.

I went to the garage, unlocking my car and jumping into it. The satisfying growl of the engine brought a small smile to my face, as I drove out of the garage and down the path through the forest. I was secretly happy my siblings had been running late. I loved this drive, the full coverage of the trees working to almost transition me from our hidden and private home to the public road once more.

The path to our home wasn't paved, and I wanted to cherish the views anyway, so I kept a more meandering speed. Reaching the road, however, I sped up. I tended to follow most rules, but the speed limit was not one of them. I loved the feeling of accelerating, my body pressing into my seat, watching the world pass by me faster and faster. I used to be a runner, loving the nearly insulated feeling of going so fast my thoughts seemed unable to keep up. Once I started driving, the appeal was lost. It was practically a high, and I couldn't get that with simple running anymore.

All too soon, I found myself approaching the more populated area of town, and I had to slow down.

Getting closer to the school, I saw someone on the sidewalk, maybe a petite girl or a small freshman. They were in a hoodie, so I couldn't really tell. Had they worn the hood down, I likely could have named them, that was how small our school was. It only stood out to me because it was raining, as per usual, and most people would have gotten a ride or at least taken the bus if they were close enough to walk.

I put it out of my mind. Why did I care if some freshman got rained on? They should have carried an umbrella or wore a raincoat or something.

Once I parked, I sat there for a moment. I liked taking my time in the morning, and whenever I was with my siblings, it was always such a rush. I enjoyed being able to finish my song on the radio or go see a teacher before classes. Hell, even dropping off some books at my locker was a luxury I didn't get when I had to drive with my siblings.

I took my sweet time walking into the school and making my way to class. When I sat down in my English class, I started mindlessly flipping through the assigned reading, reminding myself of the text, as though I didn't have it nearly memorized at that point.

Another early student joined me after a while, but I only looked up when they sat in the seat usually left empty that was in front of me and a row over.

In that spot was a girl, someone so familiar and yet so much of a stranger to me, I didn't even know how to react. After not seeing or hearing from her for nearly ten years, my childhood best friend was finally haunting me. What must've been her ghost also pulled out her own copy of the book, much more worn and loved than mine.

Her position gave me a view of her face mirrored in the classroom door window. She looked…empty. There were dark circles under her eyes, much darker than the usual high schooler. She was pale, more ghostly pale than even she should be. She was in baggy clothes, but I could tell by the glance I got of her wrist that she was painfully thin under those layers. I realized then that she must've been the person I had seen walking earlier, as I realized how wet her hoodie was. There was no way she would've gotten that wet had she just gone from a vehicle in the parking lot into the school.

I found myself watching her, mesmerized. I was afraid that if I looked away, she would disappear like she had all those years ago.

I almost thought I was imagining her. Perhaps I was. She kept her face downturned for most of the class period, and while most students who avoided eye contact with the teacher got called on, she instead was left alone.

She said nothing the whole class period. I didn't often speak in class, not unless no one else was, and the teacher looked desperate. But not today. I barely noticed class happening around me today.

When the bell rang, I tried to make it to her, but she left the classroom just as quickly as she had come, disappearing into the herd of students in the hallway.

A ghost. I had just seen a ghost. There was no way I hadn't. I slowly moved to my next class, trying to stop thinking about her. I'd been hurt by her before; if she was really here, that wasn't good news for me, was it?

It wasn't until my Biology class that I saw her again. She was sitting in the spot that had usually been empty. The spot that made her my lab partner.

I walked over to my seat tentatively, like a single draft would blow her away. She had her head in her notebook and refused to look up, even when she heard me sit down.

It felt crazy to be next to her again. How many times in our youth had we sat side by side? But it was all different now. There was a tenseness, and I didn't know which one of us was giving it off. I didn't feel mad, but I certainly had a reason to be.

I tried to pay attention in class, but it was a wash. I just took notes as well as I could, and I promised myself I would study them later.

The bell rang all too soon, and ghost Bella got up quickly, dashing out of the room like her life depended on it, like we were magnets, and she was repelled from me. But there must've been something wrong with my magnet because I felt drawn to her, all my attention following as she left.

I realized I hadn't moved at all, and by the time I got into the hall, there was already a swell of students. I fought my way through them, and from behind me came, "Hey, Eddie boy." Emmett came up, trying to give me a noogie.

"Get off me, Em, not now," I snapped at him, my eyes still searching for her, as we walked towards the cafeteria.

"Whoa, what's wrong with you, Eddie?" He looked somewhat genuinely worried for me, a seriousness in his face that I hadn't often seen.

"I think I just saw-"

"Did you hear the news?" Alice came bouncing towards us, interrupting me.

"What news?" Emmett asked before I could.

"Bella's back," Alice chirped, like it was no big deal. Like she hadn't just confirmed my wishes and fears. I still hadn't really believed she was back, since it seemed like no one else had seen her.

"Whoa, really? Looks like Eddie is getting his girlfriend back," Emmett teased.

"She wasn't my girlfriend," I said automatically. I endured more teasing until Alice mercifully changed the subject in the line for food. When we got back to the table, Rose and Jaz were already there.

"Hey, did you hear Bella's back?" Rose said, Emmett sitting next to her, but she didn't sound excited like Alice had.

"Oh, he heard, did she insult you already?" Alice responded, but she gave her a teasing grin.

Rosalie scoffed, picking at her food. "I haven't even seen her yet, but when I do-"

"Well, why are you so pissed?" Jaz asked.

"I remember what she did, even if the rest of you don't anymore," she nearly growled.

I, of course, remembered. After Bella had left, we had called each other every now and then, and eventually, we had started emailing. The calls and emails had become more frequent when she had stopped coming to Forks over the summers. That was until one day, when she had written me back after what had seemed like a perfectly normal email.

She had sent me one final email. It was scathing. She had told me I was annoying her, that she knew I had a crush on her. She had taken all the information we had talked about, all my secrets and insecurities, and rubbed them in my face. It was more than I could take at that age. It was already humiliating being acknowledged at that awkward stage in life, and then someone I had trusted so implicitly had turned on me. She had ended it, saying I needed to leave her alone.

So, I did. I changed, I stopped talking about her, and I started closing myself off. After only a few days, Rosalie could tell something was wrong, so she broke into my email and read the cruel message from Bella.

Rose hadn't told anyone exactly what Bella had written, and for that I was forever grateful. She had just gathered the others and told them that Bella was dead to us, that she had sent me an evil email, and she was never to be forgiven.

Over the years, everyone else had forgotten, probably because they never saw all the things she had sent me, but Rosalie never forgave, and she never forgot. We never talked about it, but every once in a while, when I had started moping, she would tell me that I was better than Bella, and that she wasn't worth my time. Rosalie was the only reason I came back out of my shell after that.

Rose was the sibling I had the least in common with, and we usually could barely tolerate each other, but she had my back after that, and I would always remember that. I was sure she was about to get very, very annoying.

"They remember, Rose, but it was a long time ago, and-" I started, but she interrupted me.

"No. I will not have you making excuses for her. If she was able to be that cruel to you…well, that's something about a person that doesn't change." She was gripping her silverware so hard that Emmett had to gently pull the fork out of her hand, laying his hand over hers.

We were all silent for a moment, but I noticed Alice watching something. I turned to look where her gaze was locked, and I saw- Her.

Bella wasn't a ghost, but very nearly. It was the first time I had seen her interacting with anyone. She was sitting at a table with Angela, Mike, Jessica, and a few others. She barely seemed to be taking up the space her body was in. She said nothing besides short things, probably just encouraging the talkative girls in front of her. She had no tray in front of her, though the table had food scattered. I kept watching, but I didn't see her eat anything.

My mental evaluation was interrupted by a sharp, "Eh hem!" from Rose, who gave me the stink eye when I turned to face her again.

She held my stare until Alice interrupted, starting to drone on about some subject in a class of hers, but I couldn't really focus on her chatter for the rest of lunch. I kept stealing glances at Bella, then getting shit from Rose about it. Rinse and repeat.

When lunch was over, Rosalie pulled me aside, making sure our other siblings were out of earshot. "Edward, I know you're not going to listen to me, but I have to say this. Bella is not good for you. If she was able to say things like that, then she's downright evil. I know you all think people can change and grow, but that's not something you can grow out of. I don't trust her, and you shouldn't either. If you give her the opportunity, she will hurt you again, and I don't want to have to pick up the pieces again."

I waited a moment, then sighed, "Are you done?" She huffed at me, which I took as a yes. "I'm not a kid anymore, Rose. Besides, I'm not trying to become best friends again or anything, I just don't want to be angry at her the way you are."

"Fine, I can be angry enough for the both of us, at least until you realize that she's that same monster who hurt you." Rose stormed off, heading to her next class. I wasn't sure if I had lied to her or not. I wasn't sure what I wanted from Bella, but if she was really, truly back, I knew I wouldn't be able to keep myself away from her.