Chapter 9: Immaculate

im·mac·u·late [ih-mak-yuh-lit] - free from moral blemish or impurity; pure.

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The remainder of the week passed both slowly and quickly. At times when they were silent and just enjoying the moment, time seemed to slow down, giving them enough time to fully enjoy the moment, fully enjoy the feelings that coursed through their bodies caused by the sensations of being newly mated. At times when they were talking with their family, in ways to fully get to know each other, it was as if time sped up, never giving them enough time to ask Bella all of the questions that were running through their mind.

Bella had patiently answered each and every question that came her way – from Edward or another member of the family - fully understanding that they would want to know just what type of person had joined their family. If it had been the other way around, she would have felt the same way about getting to know Edward. As it were, it wasn't the other way around, so she answered every question with ease, trying to ignore her own embarrassment as much as she could. It hadn't completely worked – it was impossible for her to ignore the constant flowing blood to her cheeks – but she had tried her best.

By Sunday evening, Edward and the others new almost everything there was to know about Bella – there were, however, a few questions they had avoided in order to not make her feel uncomfortable. Emmett enjoyed listening to stories about Renee's attempts at parenting, while Esme and Rosalie enjoyed hearing about all of the silly things she had done as a kid. Edward enjoyed hearing it all.

The family had also told Bella many things about themselves, so she had very few questions left to ask them. She would have time for that in the future, she knew, so it wasn't a major priority to have them answered. She was thrilled to find herself a part of Edward's family – she loved them just as much as she loved Renee, Phil, and Charlie. Though, looking at how they acted around each other, it was hard not to love them. They were the poster family for familial love.

She was truly and completely happy here, with the Cullens, with Edward.

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Monday came much too quickly, much to Edward's distaste. All he wanted to do was spend forever lying around with his mate in his arms. How much his life had changed in just a week; his world had stopped revolving for a mere second, and when it had started again, all darkness was removed and it no longer revolved around the sun. It revolved around Bella Swan. Even though she was a fragile, tiny, child-like girl, he loved her. He would spend his entire life protecting her, ensuring that nobody – especially himself – would ever hurt her. She was too precious to be harmed; to harm her would be to commit the blackest blasphemy. Nobody should be allowed to hurt an angel.

Especially his angel.

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Bella could feel it shifting. With the reminder of school, and the fact that she would be returning to reality again, Edward became more protective. She had no doubt that he was thinking of all the people that might try to befriend her, and therefore monopolize some of her time. She didn't know how to tell him that he needn't worry, because all she wanted to do was stay by his side for the remainder of eternity; she made up for this silence by gripping onto him tighter, pushing herself closer to him. It seemed to relax him, if only slightly.

The day had already begun a little hard; Alice had decided to wake them up, because she was excited to be able to dress up her new sister. Edward hadn't liked that. It had taken a lot of convincing from Bella for him to let go of her, and even then he was glaring at Alice every chance he got. She wasn't concerned – as long as Alice kept her in one piece, Bella knew that Edward wouldn't attack – but she didn't like making him angry, even if it wasn't exactly her fault; she had gone along with the plan.

Once Alice was done with her makeover, she walked silently and carefully downstairs, where she could feel the pull, telling her where her mate was. Edward could feel it getting bigger, and looked towards her when he felt that she was in the room. He smiled, feeling better now that she was in his sight and he could protect her once again, scooping her up into his arms and burying his face in her hair. She giggled, but still grasped onto his shirt, letting him know that she had missed him, as well.

Esme smiled at the two, bringing them breakfast. She had cooked a full meal for Edward – buttered toast, scrambled eggs, and bacon – while she had filled a small bowl with fruit salad for Bella. The little lamb smiled brightly at her, happy that her new 'mother' understood her eating habits so well. Esme returned it, before bringing cups and grape juice to the two. Edward finished his food in record timing, which made Bella gape at him. He spent the rest of the time watching her eat slowly. She only ate about half of the little bowl, which made him frown, but he decided that he would make sure she ate a bigger lunch.

He pulled her up and led her towards the garage. Her car had been put away with the others, so he decided to take his Volvo. His siblings wouldn't mind taking Rosalie's car – and she would definitely enjoy the chance to show off her baby to the people of Forks. Carlisle hadn't liked standing out, but he had no choice, now. Edward's Volvo could only seat five, and there was the fact that nobody really wanted to be cooped up in a vehicle with a newly mated couple. They would already be tense because of the fact that they couldn't exactly be in each other's arms when one of them needed to focus on driving. Edward certainly wasn't looking forward to that.

"Nice car." Bella said softly. He smiled at her. "What kind is it?" She asked as he opened her door for her, helping her get settled in the passenger seat.

"A Volvo S60R; it's 6-speeds of smooth riding." He answered as he reached over her to buckle her seat belt. He knew she was perfectly capable of doing it, but he wasn't taking any chances with her. He was also confident in his driving skills, but, just in case...

"Nice. I like my car – I mean, it is a classic – but this has to be one of the nicer, newer ones." She looked around, gently swiping her hand across the leather interior. He enjoyed seeing how careful she was; and not just with his car, with everything. It seemed as though she thought everything was as fragile as a soap bubble, but, really, she was probably the most fragile thing in the area. It looked for the entire world like if you breathed on her too hard, she would shatter; like silk over glass.

"Yes, I noticed your car. Where did you get it? I haven't seen a '72 Camaro in such good condition since, well, since '72." He joked with her, but she could tell that he was serious with the questions.

"Um, Phil, my stepfather, it was his first car. He kept it in good condition, and when I came here, he sent it up for me, as a surprise." She smiled nostalgically. "He'll make a good father, when he and Renee are able to have children of their own. He's done a pretty good job with me, I suppose."

"I think he did an amazing job. Anybody who had any part in making you who you are today is on my good list. You're perfect." He kissed her cheek, smiling when she blushed, then closed her door, careful to make sure that no part of her would get hit by it. He practically ran around the front of the car, getting in his door as quickly as possible and picking up her tiny left hand in his large right one. He sighed automatically in relief; even those few seconds without her touch had made him feel like he was burning in pain. Her presence meant everything to him; she meant everything to him.

And he would spend the rest of their lives showing her just how much he loved her.

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The car ride to school was spent with quick glances at each other, but a comfortable silence. Edward had to let go of Bella's hand to keep it on the gear shift, but she seemed to sense his discomfort – or maybe she was feeling it, herself – and reached over to lay her hand on his arm, instantly soothing him. Something as simple as her touch made him feel whole.

The night before, as he had watched an angel sleep, in the moments before he fell asleep himself, Edward was thinking. He was thinking that if he felt so much pleasure from merely holding Bella's hand, how would it feel to kiss her? He was going slowly with her, not sure how she would feel if her entire world changed anymore than it already had. First, moving from the town she had grown up with to live with a father she barely knew. Then, after just getting settled in with said father, finding her soul mate and moving in with him and his family. It must be quite a shocking thing for somebody to go through all within the length of two weeks.

He could see that she was comfortable with his family. She had begun to laugh at Emmett's jokes, speak freely with Jasper, put up with Alice's insanity, and had even relaxed around Rosalie. Esme and Carlisle treated her as another child, though – her being a lamb – you could see the hesitancy in their actions. They had never had to deal with someone as delicate a lamb before. Foxes, bears, and lions were definitely no easily-harmed animals, but a lamb could be harmed easily. When Esme patted Bella's shoulder, you could see that she was holding herself back so that her touch would be as gentle and loving as she could possibly make it. However, since none of his family has brought it up, he assumed that they didn't want Bella to realize just yet that they were treating her slightly differently than the others. Edward's siblings seemed to understand why they needed to be careful; Edward was grateful to realize that his family would never let her be harmed.

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The kids of Forks High had had a week to get over the miraculous mating situation. But, of course – true to Forks fashion – they were still gossiping about it as if it had just happened an hour before. When Edward pulled into the parking lot, everybody automatically stopped talking. Stepping out, he was met with silence, and it was still silent as he moved around the vehicle and helped Bella carefully step out onto the pavement, remembering how she had almost fallen that first time he had saw her. She smiled up at him brightly, silently thanking him for helping her, and he tried to portray to her with his eyes that he would always be there to help her. By the way her smile widened, he knew she understood.

Angela Webber was one of the only kids truly happy for them. She stood beside her mate, Ben Cheney – lightly holding his hand – and watched as the strange but perfect couple made their way to their first classes. She could tell just from the look on Edward's face that he was infatuated with her, as most were with their mates. Though their coupling was odd – and had not previously been heard of – Angela did not question it. It was easy to see that the two belonged to each other, completely and rightly.

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Lauren Mallory did not agree with Angela's opinion of the couple. Jealous, she spent the past week and week-end thinking of reasons why Edward would possibly pretend to be Bella Swan's mate. It didn't make any sense. What did she have that Lauren didn't? Since they weren't the same 'tier in geist', they obviously couldn't be real mates, so they had to be pretending. Of course, Bella probably believed him, so he must be the one acting as if he had feelings for her.

Maybe he's trying to make me jealous, so that I'll stand up for myself and ask him out. She mused, smiling. Yes, that has to be it.

So, she resolved that on Wednesday – she would give him time to worry that maybe his plan wasn't working, and he would be stuck with Bella after all. He would be so relieved when she finally 'gave in' and told him that he didn't need to pretend anymore, that she knew he was in love with her.

The perfect plan, Lauren smirked, watching as the 'couple' made their way into English class. Don't worry, Edward. We'll be together soon.

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So, Angela is sweet and Lauren is insane. But, we already knew that, didn't we?

I apologize for the length of time between updates, but at least I'm updating now, right? I'm officially on summer break, now, but I also have work and volunteering to do this summer, so we'll see how that turns out. I hope this satisfies you for now, and I'll leave you with this:

"I wasn't at all focused on school, and I didn't achieve much. But I've got a sense of urgency now. I feel I can't let any more time waste away." –Robert Pattinson

Review, please!