Chapter, um, 6, right? I already lost track. LOL so...And yeah, always in BPOV unless otherwise mentioned. Super long chapter, I deserve some review cookies for this one! Oh yeah, and in my story, since it's AU and I can do pretty much whatever I want, Bella's blood isn't too much more attractive than anyone else's. I saw that as an almost unnecessary complication in the story, although it added plenty of angst to the storyline.

Disclaimer: I don't know how I'm going to get into the Cullens' house. I mean, they have super-sensitive hearing, and I'm not exactly a vampire...or am I?

-Breaks down door-

Everyone turns to look at me, and pounces.

Me: Crap!

Rosalie turned onto what I assumed was the Cullens' driveway. It was long, but I could see a white house standing proudly at the end.

Alice had bombarded me with questions the whole ride, and I was laughing by the time we were halfway here. She had asked me about any boyfriends I had in the past, and I had replied with a story about a boy named Cameron who had followed me shamelessly like a puppy, practically stalking me. I had ended that by getting suspended after punching him in the face, with good reason, of course. At the time it had been annoying, but now it was laughable. We were still giggling when we got out of the car, and Esme and Rosalie were now laughing, too.

"I can't...believe...he wrote you a song...and performed it...at the school dance," Alice managed to get out between fits of giggles.

"I was so embarrassed!" I laughed, "He said my name in the song, and everything, if there was somebody who didn't already know he liked me! And then after, he just sat there with his head down, like he was in some poetry coffee shop or something!" This caused a whole new round of giggles, and by now the boys were looking at all of us and grinning.

Emmett walked over, slinging an arm around Rosalie's shoulders, and asked, "What's so funny?"

I explained the actions of my stalker, and by then everybody had gathered in the middle of the Cullens' driveway. I didn't know about everyone else, but I was freezing my ass off. Alice noticed me shivering, and suggested that we go inside.

Carlisle opened the door, stepping inside and gesturing for me to come in. I got about three steps inside before I stopped short, and I was aware of Edward standing next to me. The inside was just as glamorous as the outside, with a spiral staircase, and from what I could see of the furniture they had most likely hired an interior designer. It was a pristine white, and I worried that just sitting on the couch on a regular day would stain it.

But I probably wouldn't have to worry about staying here long enough, for there to be a day that I could test my theory.

"Come on! Let's go see your room!" Alice said, taking my hand and pulling me upstairs. We walked down a hallway and stopped in front of the the second-to-last door. Alice opened it and dragged me inside, and everybody else drifted in behind us.

The room was huge, bigger than any of the rooms I had ever had in one of my other homes. The color scheme seemed to be dark purple, with purple curtains and wallpaper, and a purple comforter on the bed. A nightstand with a clock was on one side if the bed. There was a beanbag chair in the corner of the room, and two doors on one wall. Presumably one led to a closet, and the other I would explore later.

Suddenly realizing how tired I was, I sat on the edge of the bed. "I love it," I told Alice. "When are we going to go shopping?"

I had never really liked shopping all that much, but I needed new clothes. I didn't hate it, I just didn't see the need to stand in a store for hours, looking at random pieces of clothing, when you could just find something you liked in your price range and buy it.

"How about tomorrow? Er, today?" Alice replied, looking at the clock. "You can sleep now, and when you wake up we can go to the mall."

"Sounds good." I consented, nodding. Alice shooed everyone out of the room, and closed the door behind her. Too tired to get under the covers or change into one of the other outfits I had brought with me, I flopped back onto the bed. I was halfway asleep before I realized what time it was.

This is normally when Damien would be coming home, I thought to myself, dragged back out of sleep. But I'm safe here, I argued with myself, Right?

Edward POV

I had pulled into the driveway ahead of Rosalie's BMW3 and behind Emmett's monster Jeep. Carlisle and I climbed out of my Volvo, while Emmett and Jasper were getting out of the off-roader. I look over to Bella, and she was laughing with the rest of the girls. I hadn't been able to read her mind, and still wasn't able to, but from reading Alice's thoughts it seemed that she had acquired an unwanted admirer in one of her old schools.

Bella was like an angel when she laughed. Her head was tilted back, and I could hear her musical peals of laughter. Her mahogany hair was beautiful, hanging down her back in messy curls, and I could tell that she was happy in that moment, despite all that she had been through.

I had no idea why I was obsessing over this human girl, but just seeing her happy made me smile. I realized the whole family was smiling also, especially Jasper, who had a goofy grin on his face from the happiness that was no doubt emanating from the girls.

Leave it to Alice to make Bella feel like a part of the family already, Jasper thought jovially.

Emmett swaggered over to wear the girls were standing, and wrapped an arm around Rosalie's shoulders. The rest of us followed him to join the group. "What's so funny?" he asked.

Bella explained, "When I was going to Langford High, there was this boy named Cameron that was following me around. He liked me, obviously, and apparently decided the best way to show me his love was to write a song for me-which he then sang at the school formal, embarrassing me enough for two lifetimes, since he actually said my name in the song. And after, he sat there for a while, looking at the ground with his eyes closed, like he was expecting applause or something...the whole room was silent for almost two minutes, and he just got up, walked off the stage, and kissed me on the lips!" I barely contained my growl, and Jasper slid a look at me, although he still had the goofy smile on his face, which made me start laughing with Bella. "And then I gently reminded him, with my fist, that I didn't appreciate him stalking me and he should probably stop." she finished, and I couldn't help but admire this girl's courage. She stood up for herself, and that was before Damien. She must have been tough her whole life, which wasn't all that surprising considering everything she's witnessed or experienced.

She shivered, and Alice said, "Let's go inside. I'm sure you're tired, Bella." I realized that we would have to wait until morning to hear more about this girls life, which was intriguing at worst and riveting at best.

We got inside the house, and Bella stopped a few steps inside the door, mouth agape, looking around the room with wide eyes. I stopped beside her, and Alice tugged on Bella's hand, pulling her upstairs to her room. We all followed, stepping into the room while Bella looked around. She sat on the bed, suddenly looking more tired than usual. "It's beautiful. When can we go shopping?" she asked, surprising me. Some people did not survive Alice's over-the-top shopping trips. But Bella didn't know that yet, since she had just arrived. She barely knew our family. We would have to fix that.

"How about tomorrow?" Alice said, then looked at the clock. Crap, it's already past midnight. "Er, today?"

I started playing with a tune in my head, and suddenly Alice was in front of me, pushing me out of the room. I turned to walk out, after sneaking one last glance at the girl on the bed. She suddenly looked weak, almost impossibly skinny, and was almost as pale as a vampire. She also had bags under her eyes like a vampire who hadn't hunted, and I briefly wondered if she was a vampire. But no, I could hear her heartbeat, and I could smell her blood.

Walking into my room, I realized Damien had done those things to her, and felt a wave of anger. How could anyone be so cruel? I know I had seen Alice's vision earlier, but it hadn't mattered as much then. I had felt a pull towards the Bella in the vision, but dismissed it as sadness at the man's behavior. If he had lived in my time, he would have been shunned by society.

I didn't know of any other visions Alice had about Bella, so I wasn't sure what had triggered this chain of events, and my mind wandered back to the pull I had sensed while seeing the vision. I realized I was feeling it now, too. I didn't recognize this feeling, as I had never felt it before. I could feel the tug in my chest, in my heart, whenever I was away from her. I hadn't noticed it in the car, but I knew I must have felt it then, too.

Bella was provoking many unknown and unfamiliar emotions in me. When she had talked about that boy, Cameron, kissing her, I had felt jealousy. And my anger at Damien was stronger than I had ever felt before. And that tug in my chest...was it love?