Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed, alerted, and fav'd. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. I don't always get back to everyone, but I try. I assume you all would rather my words than to hear me say "thank you for the review" every chapter.

Thanks to Kitty Cullen for beta'ing this for me!!

Disclaimer: I still don't own!


"That's not right." I shook my head in annoyance. It was the fourth time Edward had gotten the answer wrong and I all but spelled it out for him. We only had two weeks until exams and we were getting nowhere.

"What the fuck am I doing wrong?" He ran his hands through his hair and turned on the stool to face me. He looked genuinely upset, which quickly washed away my annoyance.

"It's alright, look let's work through it again and if you don't get it, we'll move on to something else for a while, okay?" I asked, placing my hand on his shoulder and rubbed it gently. It was meant to be comforting, something that came natural to me, but it seemed to make him uncomfortable, so I stopped.

"Bella…" he trailed off. He shook his head before laughing. I'm sure my confusion was apparent, but he didn't comment. He put his hand on my knee and looked me in the eye. I knew that look. It was the "Edward Cullen wins again" look and I hoped beyond hope that it wasn't directed towards me.

"We can work on it tomorrow, Bella. Would that be okay? I need to get going. He started trailing his fingertips over my knee and up my leg. I grabbed his hand and looked at him with wide eyes.

"Actually, Edward, I have plans with Jasper tomorrow afternoon," I said with a grimace as I shooed his hand away from my leg. He chuckled.

"The next day then." He stood up, gathered his books, and kissed my cheek before heading for the door. That wasn't as surprising as the way he was trailing his fingers over me, though. Edward had always been friendly. A natural flirt, I guess.

I watched him dart out the door, not giving me a chance to respond. He really didn't know anything about Chemistry, so I would continue to help him and let the leg incident go. Perhaps I gave him the wrong impression when I tried to ease his worry over his exam. Unfortunately, I was known for sending mixed signals, especially when it came to Edward Cullen. Alice told me, before I got with Jasper, that she was sure I it was Edward that I was after. She was clearly mistaken. The Cullen- Hale girls were damn good at making assumptions. Rosalie proved that.

Thanksgiving breakfast was going great. I was thrilled when Rose started talking to me. The conversation started off pleasant, with both of us giggling and smiling, but the second Jasper walked away her demeanor changed. Thinking back on it, I should have known she was just waiting for the opportunity to call me out on something.

"So, Bella, you're from Washington?" Rosalie asked, shocking the shit out me and everyone else at the table.

"Uh… yeah… Forks." I mentally slapped myself for stumbling over my words. I sounded like an idiot. Everyone was staring at us, just waiting for something to happen.

"Never heard of it. Is it a small town?" She cocked her head to the side as she spoke, looking genuinely interested.

"Extremely small; it's about four hours outside of Seattle."

"We're from Austin." She waved her hand between her and Jasper as she spoke. Of course, I already knew where they were from, but it was nice to be having a conversation with her.

"Do you like New Hampshire?"

"No," she said flatly. I noticed Alice bristle beside me. What did I say wrong?

I heard Edward ask Jasper if he could talk to him for a minute and started to panic when they got up to leave. Alice and Emmett were still sitting with me, but still, it felt like I was being thrown into the lion's den. Alice gave my knee a quick pat. I turned to look at her and she gave me a small, encouraging smile.

"You sound like you liked living in Washington. What made you decide on New Hampshire?" Rose's voice brought me back to reality, giving me hope that all wasn't lost.

"Um, honestly, I'm not sure. I was accepted to a few different places, but Dartmouth had a lot more to offer. I thought it would be the best choice, just in case I decided to change majors or explore my options."

"That's understandable." She nodded, taking a sip of her water. "You seem to be pretty close to Edward and Alice." The smile was gone from her face. I wondered where the statement came from, but answered her anyway.

"Yeah, they have been very welcoming."

"That's nice." She didn't sound like she thought it was nice at all. "Tell me about living in Washington. Did you leave lots of friends behind? A boyfriend?"

"No. My best friend and really only friend left Washington the day after I did and I've only dated one guy other than Jasper. He ended things before summer."

"He ended things. Are you still friends?" She picked up her water and began sipping it like we were having a conversation over tea.

"I guess. I don't harbor any resentment or anything. Mike's a good guy; he just wasn't ready for a commitment."

"And you are?"She raised her brow.

"Yes, I am." I retorted honestly.

"What makes you so sure that Jasper's ready? I mean, you are his first girlfriend. Who's to say that once he realizes he doesn't have to settle he won't want to move on, too." My heart sunk with every word she spoke.

"Stop it, Rose." Emmett snapped.

"No. She needs to know. Don't get too invested in my brother. I don't see it lasting long," she said smugly. She knew she was getting to me.

"I said stop, Rosalie."

Emmett grabbed her arm and she turned to face him. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes, but couldn't pull my gaze away from Rose. What the fuck had I done to make her dislike me so much? Alice was trying to get my attention, but I didn't want to be bothered. Everything Rosalie said confirmed my fears. Jasper would leave. I don't know what Emmett said to her, but she turned back to me with a deadly glare.

"Well, it seems like you have every snow balled, but-"

"Rosalie," Jasper yelled, interrupting her rant that hadn't even begun. He moved quickly to my side, but I couldn't look at him. I loved him so much it hurt and the thought of losing him was tearing me up inside.

"What happened?"

"I don't know. We were talking and she kept asking me about living and Forks. Then she asked me if I ever had a boyfriend before. I don't know what I said to make her so mad." His hand reached out to stroke my cheek and that was it, the flood gates opened. Tears streamed down my cheeks. I wanted to tell him that nothing happened, that everything was okay, but I couldn't lie, not to him.

"She's not over him." My head shot up. Did I say something to give her that impression? I didn't understand.

"Let's get out of here, okay?" Jasper asked, putting his finger under my chin and lifting my face to look at him. I nodded, unable to form a response. My eyes shifted to an invisible spot on the wall. I couldn't look at him.

"I'm coming with you guys." I heard Alice, but I didn't want to deal with anyone. If she came, she came. I stood up and followed Jasper to the opposite side of the table. He took some money out of his wallet and threw it down on the table.

"I'm sorry." I had never heard Emmett sound sincere until that moment.

"Don't apologize for her." Jasper's tone was harsh, but it wasn't directed towards Emmett and we all knew it. We had to get out of there before things escalated.

"Can we please just go?" I still hadn't looked at anyone. I couldn't. I was embarrassed. Not only had I ruined Thanksgiving breakfast, but I cause yet another rift in Jasper's relationship with his sister.

Jasper wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me into his body. I laid my head on his chest as we walked out of the restaurant. Alice, oh sweet, amazing, loving Alice pulled me in the back seat with her when we got to the car. She played with my hair and told me funny stories about her childhood, trying to take my mind off of what happened. It worked until we were back at the dorms and out of the car. I could see the disappointment on Jasper's face. He was upset by what happened, and even though I knew he wasn't upset with me, it still bothered me that he was thrown in the middle of Rosalie and me.

Alice told me to call her if I needed to and said her goodbyes. I wasn't ready to deal with Jasper yet, so I went straight to the dresser, grabbed my pajamas, and then headed for the shower. While I let the stream warm my body, my mind played my conversation with Rosalie on repeat. Don't get too invested in my brother. I don't see it lasting long. Over and over again. It took me a couple of minutes to come to the conclusion that if I wanted to be with Jasper I would have to just deal with the fact that his sister would never like me, and one day he decided to leave with me, well, then I'd just have to deal with that when it happened. The continuous worry would only cause it to end before it really had the change to being. I owed it to myself and to Jasper to give us an honest try and not run away at the slightest hint of trouble. In no way was I okay with the way Rose had treated me and I was still concerned about what the future would hold, but I wouldn't hold it against him.

I got dressed and solemnly made my way out of the bathroom, not fully ready to face Jasper yet, but ready to get it over with. The minute his face came into view I felt a little better. When I reached him I immediately sat down in his lap, looking to be comforted. He didn't disappoint, wrapping his arms around me securely and letting me hide my face in the crock of his neck. We sat in silence until I was ready to talk.

"She's never going to like me, Jasper," I said, talking into his neck. He was quiet for a minute, so I wasn't sure he heard me.

"Please, just give her some time. Rosalie isn't an easy person to get along with, but she'll come around." His words sounded convincing, but we both knew there was always the possibility that she may never come around.

"Thank you," I whispered. Jasper pulled away from me and gave me a curious look.

"What are you thanking me for? It's me who should be thanking you, Bella. You have no reason to put up with Rosalie, yet, you do. That means a lot to me."

"I love you, Jasper. There isn't much I wouldn't do for you." It was the first time I told him I loved him, but I needed him to know. Without any way of knowing how things would work out, I had to tell him just in case. He beamed up at me. I don't think I had ever seen him smile so bright.

"I love you, too." The words rolled off of his tongue so easily that I knew they were true. He didn't think about, or second guess himself. It wasn't the way I thought we would declare our love, but it was perfect. We both needed to say it.

We sat there in silence, staring at one another until my stomach growled, letting me know it was time to eat. We ordered a pizza and watched movies. All and all, sans Rose, it was a great Thanksgiving. I could tell Jasper was still upset, but wasn't exactly sure why. When we went to bed that night he held me tighter than he ever had.

Things seemed to go back to normal after that. Rosalie called Jasper numerous times the following day, but he wasn't ready to talk to her. I couldn't blame him. When she called for the fourth time on Saturday I could tell that rejecting her calls was taking a toll on him and begged him to answer. He did and she apologized. She promised to be more civil during Christmas break, but neither of us believed her. I wasn't sure how I felt about Rose. I wanted to like her, but the way she treated me made me despise her. She had my curiosity peeked before I even stepped foot in New Hampshire and even after all she was putting Jasper and me through I still wanted to get to know her.

I heard Jasper's keys rattle in the door and jumped off of my stool, excited that he was home. When the door open a smile spread across his face as he noticed that I was waiting for him. He didn't have time to put down his things before I wrapped my arms around his neck and attacked his lips with mine. Once our kiss was broken he chuckled.

"Miss me?"

"Mhm. Did you have a good day?"

"It was good. I'll be glad once exams are over with, though. How about you? What did you do?"

"Went to morning classes, and then to yoga. Edward came over to study, but wasn't here very long." I watched for his reaction, but there wasn't one. He walked over our desk and sat his down, just like usual.

"Well, I'm glad you're in a good mood. Want to do something tonight?" He asked, walking towards me. I let my eyes take in his appearance. His disheveled jeans and tight v-neck sweater complimented his body so well. I couldn't believe that he was mine. He slipped his hands onto my waist and looked down at me.

"Like?"

"Whatever you want." He shrugged. It was unlike Jasper to be so laid back around test time, but I knew he was doing it for me.

"Should we be studying?" I raised an eyebrow, challenging him.

"Studying it is." He turned away and went into self-made-mini-kitchen. I laughed, knowing that studying is exactly what he wanted to do.

We sat together in front of the muted television, with books and papers scattered everywhere, and studied. Both of us could have afforded the night off, but I was a strong believer in the "better safe than sorry" policy anyway. The first semester would be ending soon and I wanted it to end on a good note. I left Forks to start fresh and that's exactly what I did. The only negative thing about my Dartmouth experience had been Rosalie, so I thought I was doing pretty well. There was only two weeks and two days until Christmas break and I couldn't wait. I was looking forward to spending some alone time, away from the dorm, with Jasper and was even excited to get to know the rest of the Cullen's. While we were sitting there I realized that I hadn't told Jasper about the Edward, hand, leg situation. He made me promise him that if Edward tried anything I would come and talk to him. I let it go, not really considering what happened a big deal. I was a little nervous about Edward's earlier behavior and knew if something similar were to happen again, I would have to say something.

A couple hours into our study session Jasper asked me if I wanted to go grab a bite to eat. I eagerly agreed, ready to get out of the room. We walked hand in hand down to the campus sub shop. We were standing in line when I heard Alice call my name. I turned around and saw her, some girl, Edward, and Kate, a girl I recognized from English, sitting in a booth. I smiled and waved before holding my finger up to tell her I'd be there in a minute. Before I turned around to order I noticed Edward's hand intertwined with Kate's. I let out a breath, relieved that maybe earlier had been innocent if Edward Cullen was in public, with a sophomore, holding her hand.


Could it be? Is Edward actually interested in Kate and not Bella? Hope this answered some questions. Reviews are always nice.

Christmas break begins next chapter. Woot! I'm excited.

I have two new stories posted if you're interested.

Voting for the Forgotten Femmes Anonymous Contest is now open. Some good Jasper pairing. Go check them out http://fanfiction (dot) net/ ~theforgottenfemmes

Until next time.