It's a nice long chapter for y'all!

BPOV

"Bye, Renee," I said stiffly, staring at her stony-faced.

"Yeah, bye, Isabella." She turned around and hoped in the passenger side of the car, not having to do anything because I'd put her bags in the car upon her request, and my dad drove away. I should have felt sad and depressed, but I was totally excited and giddy by this fact. It meant a safe pass for me. Freedom. A life for a week, and that meant a lot these days.

The girls and I could be free to live without my parents as restraints, even if it was for just a week. It was one of those many times that my parents left and tried to allow the girls that most normal life I could give them, because they didn't have the life most girls' their age did. I wanted them to have that, but I didn't know how to give it to them. I think what hurt most was that they could never just be the average girl; they never got what most little girls did. That hut me a lot when I thought about it.

During the early years of Caitlyn and Melly I always felt so bad that I could never give them all those toys they should have got. They never got the latest Barbie doll or little toy baby, which had had me crying myself to sleep at nights.

They were worth it, all four were worth it all, and I couldn't give them everything. The only thing I had to offer was love and sometimes that's just not enough.

Emma is better but Sophie's sick now, a turn of the tables. When Sophie's sick she has such bad mood swings, you'd swear she's PMSing. One minute she's running around, the next she's crying out for her "mama" and wants to cuddle. I had a brief bout of being sick on Wednesday but was better for the sake of all the girls, thankfully.

But, it being Friday, I didn't go to school because of Sophie's being sick. Emma still attended daycare as usual and Caitlyn and Melly went to school.

I hoped Edward still knew we were on for tonight, even though I hadn't been there to remind him, but I hoped he would show. It was planned, after all.

With my parents gone I ordered pizza as a special treat for the girls. It was a rare occasion that they get something like this and, knowing they deserved it, they were incredibly thankful for it. Even if they didn't have the perfect lives they were still very grateful for everything, even the twins sometimes.

"And then Michelle told me she didn't want me to be her friend," Caitlyn said in her seven-year-old squeaky voice. It was laced with sadness. "Its not fair."

"That's not good," I said, using my usual dramatic voice as I usually did with them all. "Did you talk to her – Oh, Emma, don't," I sighed, picking up the piece of pepperoni form her hair gingerly. She squealed, flailing her arms and slapping the top of her highchair.

Caitlyn shook her head in response to my question. "She won't sit next to me at lunch."

"Cait, just talk to her," I advised distractedly. Reaching over with a napkin I wiped Melly's sauce-stained mouth. She could be such a messy eater when she wanted to.

"But I—" she started, but a knock on the door stopped her.

My stomach immediately flipped because I hadn't been been sure if he would be coming or not. I felt pretty bad because this would be hard night for us to work and it was a very last-minutes thing, and it was all my fault. I felt bad that I had to curse him with a possible bad grade because of my other responsibilities. The girls all began shouting nonsense things, stating the obvious that there was someone at the door. Caitlyn looked at me as she continued eating.

I sighed as I stood from the table.

"Who's here?" Melly shouted, her voice high-pitched. I didn't understand why she talked so loudly, but from what I'd been told, she was quiet at school.

"His name is Edward," I told her, though I knew she would forget in seconds. "We have a project to work on."

Emma shouted incoherently, "Ah-ah-ah-mama!" Sophie was doing her own mix of gibberish as I went for the door.

Rarely did I have interactions with kids my age so I felt like I was headed for uncharted territory. I didn't know how to talk to someone my age. I didn't know what to say. I'd never even had much interest to talk to people in my age group because of how immature that could be. I'd had to grow up so fast that I didn't seem my age, so I couldn't hold a conversation with another seventeen year old. What would we have in common in the first place?

I had to remind myself that I wasn't have a friend over – I was having my Biology partner over on Friday night so we could work on a project together that was due the following Monday; I mean, we weren't even friends really. I didn't know him. We hardly talked. I couldn't even be friends if I wanted. What would b the point in having a friend if you couldn't hang out with them? What was the point if you didn't even know how? I groaned inside my throat in frustration.

To be truthful, I was pretty nervous.

If was a mix of the interruptions we'd have for working on our assignment and everything that this house was to me. If Edward was any normal person he would know there was something up. He would know that I was not happy – because anyone with an ounce of common sense could take one glance at me and know I lived a horrible life.

Hopefully, we wouldn't touch on that kind of subject and he would know that this wasn't me.

There was one more knock on the door before I opened it.

Even if I didn't get out much or do activities kids my age did do, I knew for a fact that Edward Cullen was the most beautiful person I'd ever seen. He was just... the perfect visual of perfection. That golden of his was like a big perfect mess, and his eyes...Oh, his eyes. The most gorgeous shade of green.

"Hey," he said, laughing once when I just stared.

With a flush of embarrassment, I smiled. "Hi," I said, gesturing him inside. Edward had his backpack with him, which he dropped by the wall as he slid off his shoes. Now, what kind of teenager would actually do that? Just as a confirmation of what I already thought of him, he's not like other guys.

There were loud noises from the kitchen before we could get much further, followed by loud shouting and jumbled words. The twins were at work with their "talking." I think Emma is closer to talking then Sophie because while Sophie is all "ab-na-na-la-dee," Emma is "hiiii" or "kisss," always elongating her small words. I smiled slightly up at Edward and his amused face.

"Your lucky," I said teasingly, leading the way to the kitchen, "this is their most active time of day."

He laughed as we entered the kitchen. And Emma, being the chipper and excited one she is, said, "Hiiiiiii" drawling it out and smiling toothlessly. I couldn't help but laugh at her.

"So this is why you were too busy to work during the week?" he mumbled to me, and I was worried at first that maybe he didn't want to work on our assignment because of the distractions. But the amusement was all over his face as he looked at the girls and the mess they made.

"Yep." I walked over to stand behind the chair I'd been sitting in. "Edward, this is Caitlyn and Melly, and you already know Emma and Sophie." I looked at the older girls; they at least had manners. Sort of. "What do you say?"

Being the bold one she is, Caitlyn jumped off her chair and walked right up to Edward. Tilting her head back to look at him fully, she smiled and stuck out her hand. "Caitlyn Swan," she said proudly, grinning even wider as he smiled down at her.

I'm sure he would have had a different response if she hadn't been to tight and formal about her introduction.

"Edward Cullen," he said as he shook her head.

I looked down at Melly expectedly. "Melly, could you please say 'hi' at least?" I asked, knowing she was a very shy young girl; I really couldn't expect her to act as Caitlyn did. She just glanced at Edward and continued to eat. I sighed, looking up at him. "She's shy," I told him, shrugging. "Um, why don't you take a seat, I just need to clean up a few things and then let the animals lose." I gently tapped Emma's chin and she pushed my finger away as she squealed.

God, did she ever make my heart melt. They all did, actually.

Edward sat in the extra chair beside Emma and Caitlyn, and was immediately engaged in a story told by the boldest girl in the room. I smiled slightly as I started clearly the table. The girls didn't get much for social interactions because of the tight hold we were on from our parents. Even if it was someone over a decade older than them, at least they were getting some kind of new interactions around here instead of just me.

The talking started again and filled the room as I cleared the pizza box off the table, along with plates and napkins and cups. Things were always a mess here at the end of the day, I just hoped we would get most of our project done. Thinking that we probably wouldn't set an empty feeling in the pit of my stomach. I did not want to fail this, and here I am risking Edward's, a new kid here in Forks, grade. What was wrong with me? He should be headed headlong for the hills by now.

"All dee!" Emma's shrill voice shouted behind me. She'd picked that up as her short form for "all done" from a two year old at daycare.

"Okay," I said, drying my hands as I walked back over to the table. With a wet washcloth I wiped off her face and hands, then removed her messy shirt and set her free on the house. Next was Melly and then Caitlyn was gone too. I heard the TV on in the living room and only hoped it was appropriate programming.

Sophie hung around as she picked at her food. She really wasn't eating and that bothered me a lot, so I kept her in that chair until she would eat a considerable amount, which took a while in the long run. So I finished cleaning the food from the table and floor as well, and Emma's tray. When I was done I noticed Sophie hadn't made a dent.

"Sophie," I said warningly, "eat something." Please don't say it, please don't say it, please don't...

"No!" she screamed, shaking her little head wildly from side to side.

My patients was running low. I hated to do this, but she needed to eat something. I went to the cupboard and pulled out a fudge pudding with a baby spoon.

"Here, Sophie," I said, giving up and setting the pudding in front of her. "The least you can do is eat!" To my anger, she threw the spoon across the room while shouting "no's" at the top of her lungs. Her little hands went for the pudding cup but it was suddenly out of her reach.

"Wow, you have fast reflexes," I told him, suddenly glad I didn't have an extra mess to clean up.

Edward laughed. "Thanks. I do have a brother with a wicked punch," he said teasingly. I smiled as I sat down next to Sophie. "So she's sick?" he asked, opening the small cup. I nodded, watching what he was doing. With one of the spoons on the table – one that had been used for Melly's yogurt – he offered it to Sophie, holding it up in front of her face. She studied it for a few minutes before reaching out and grabbed hold of it, and Edward released it to her grip. Sophie stared at it, almost confused.

As was I. "What are you doing?" I asked, laughing once.

"The trick is to be gentle, just let them have control." His voice was low and husky, and so much more gentle then anything I'd heard in awhile. Edward held the cup out to her nonchalantly and casually, watching her intently.

I wish he would stare at me with those eyes.

Oh God, where did that thought come from? My eyes went wide with the started thought as I looked down at my lap to cover the blush. Boy, that's embarrassing. Having dirty thoughts about the new kid.

Sophie stuck out the spoon, squinting her small dark eyes in concentration, and plunged it into the pudding. A smile lit her face as she looked up at Edward. He grinned back. I knew he had to like her, judging by the look in his eyes. Then Sophie pulled it out and stuck it in her mouth. "Mmmm!" she hummed, pressing her lips together in a tight smile. We both laughed in response. It took about twenty minutes for Sophie to completely finish the pudding and Edward didn't even seem slightly annoyed by her pace. He actually seemed quite interested and intrigued. Like he was enjoying this. But it wasn't quite what I had in mind for us.

It was about eight o'clock before we even got to work, and Edward was a good sport through it all. He volunteered to help me bathe them and get them ready, and I didn't hesitate to allow him because I never got this kind of help, and I really liked it. At one point we tried to start working but then Sophie got sick all over the floor and Melly was grumpy, and all just went to hell. Edward neglected any source of apology from me, which I couldn't understand, and helped me clean up and everything. I'd never had this kind of help and it was sad I couldn't get more used to it.

Edward is new to Forks, so maybe he's just trying to make friends, but I wasn't the right one for him. I wasn't the right one for anyone. I had to keep that in mind whenever I looked at him. I felt comfortable around him and I always wanted to talk to him, but I knew I couldn't get close to anyone.

It was embarrassing enough that he had to be subjected to my life for one night, a whole other that we were pushing the limits of time for this small assignment, but it was even worse that he had to see me at my most frustrated state. No one ever sees me when I'm annoyed and frustrated like this. Lucky him – he comes to do a project and this is what he gets in return.

"I don't...I'm not tired," Melly whined as she clutched her teddy bear and looked at me with sad, pleading eyes.

"But its too late for you to be up, Mell," I said gently. "I don't want to deal with a grumpy little girl in the morning." I tickled her belly and she smiled for a second but pouted again. "Melly, please don't make this a struggle," I begged, grabbing her hand and tugging her toward the stairs.

Her voice rang out as she screamed against. I didn't want to pull to hard so I gently released her. Everyone else went to bed quite easily, save for sick Sophie, and I didn't want her to wake them up. Then we would be screwed for our project.

"You can stay up for an hour, all right?" I asked, suddenly frustrated. She nodded and headed for the living room.

I turned to Edward and tried to soften my exasperated face. "Well, you ready to get to work?"

Now, I've decided to try and hold off on EPOV until it becomes necessary, so....Review!

-Mickey