Author's Note: Here's the next chapter for you all. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.

Chapter 6

I slid next to Rosalie's M3 on Monday morning. I cut the engine and got out.

"Hey, guys," I greeted Rosalie and Jasper, who were waiting for me. "How was your weekend?"

"Fine," Jasper said, smiling. "How was yours?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't even want to talk about it."

"Emmett told me," Rosalie said. "Edward didn't let you out of your sight?"

"He didn't," I confirmed. I leaned on the back of my car, next to them, and sighed. "Looks like they aren't here yet."

"Alice called earlier," Jasper said. "Edward had a hard time waking up this morning. So they're running a bit later than usual."

"Not much," Rosalie said. She glanced at her watch, then looked up. "Here they come now."

Sure enough, the silver Volvo came crawling through the narrow parking space, then slid next to my Audi.

"Hi, guys!" Alice chirped brightly as they all got out of the car. "What up?" She flounced towards Jasper, and they hugged. Emmett, too, went over to Rosalie, they kissed passionately for a few seconds.

I made a face and looked away as Edward appeared by my side. "You guys already saw each other during the weekend. Is this really necessary?"

"Get yourself a boyfriend, and you'll do this too," Alice said, her voice muffled by Jasper's broad chest.

I glanced at Edward for the first time, and was immediately alarmed. "Edward! What's wrong?"

"What?" Edward asked, freezing. His eyes were wide. "What did I do?"

He was pale and his eye looked worse than ever. He looked extremely tired. Like he was a zombie. Though, I had to admit, a very handsome zombie. How was he able to pull off every look?

"Are you sick?" I asked, reaching up to feel his forehead. "You don't have a fever."

"Do I look off?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowing. "I didn't know that."

"That's 'cause you didn't have time to look at a mirror this morning," Alice said, finally tearing herself away from Jasper. "He woke up really late."

"I couldn't wake up," Edward scowled. "It's probably because of those strong painkillers you guys fed me at one in the morning."

"Oh," I said sympathetically, patting his arm. "I'm sorry, Edward. You scared me for a second there. I thought you were going to die on me."

Edward gave me an amused look. "Never."

"Oh, shoot!" Rosalie said suddenly. "I forgot to call around and ask if anyone was interested in cheerleading! There's a game on Friday, and we need one more person! She'll need to learn all the moves before then… Who do I get?"

I blinked, remembering my promise to Tanya Denali. "Rosalie. I almost forgot to tell you. I found someone who's interested in joining the pep squad."

She perked up. "Really? Who?"

"Tanya Denali. You know, the new girl."

"Tanya?" Rosalie asked, looking thoughtful. "I guess she is the cheerleading type. Did she say she had experience?"

I nodded. "She was a cheerleader at her old school. I promised her that I would talk to you for her last Friday. I met her at the game."

"Tanya Denali…" Rosalie murmured. "I'll need to see her. She should audition. Can you bring her to the table during lunch?"

"Sure."

She smiled, relieved. "Lifesaver. Thanks, Bella."

"This is why I don't do pep squad," Alice said dismissively. "Too much stress and gymnastics. You're jumping high into the air most of the time."

"Is that why you take ballet instead?" Rose teased.

"Ballet is historical!" Alice said defensively. "Modern dance was built upon ballet. And it stands, therefore, in a very high senior position. It tops cheerleading. Duh!"

Suddenly, I cursed under my breath, and shoved Edward in front of me. "Hide me!"

"Huh?" Edward looked up and saw Austin and Mike sauntering toward us. His expression hardened.

"Don't start anything!" I warned. The others looked amused, though I didn't see what was so funny.

"Hey, guys," Mike greeted us when they arrived. "How was your weekend?"

"Pretty good," Emmett said. "How was yours?"

"Okay," Austin shrugged. "Your eye looks pretty bad, Edward." He made a face. "You alright?"

"It feels fine," Edward said. "I'm good."

"Really?" Mike asked doubtfully. "Will you be better by the game on Friday? If not, I could sub in for you." He looked hopeful.

"Hey," Emmett said. "I'm the captain of the football team. I'll decide that, thank you very much."

Mike held up his hands in surrender. "Just saying." He frowned. "Bella?"

"Hi, guys," I squeaked.

Austin laughed. "She's hiding from us. Maybe she really likes us."

"I do not," I mumbled.

"Then come out, why don't you?"

I sighed, then stepped out of the way. "Fine."

"You don't look so good," Mike said, frowning. "Are you sick, Bella?"

"I'm fine," I said. "Edward's the sick one."

"You do look a bit pale, man," Austin said. "Maybe you should just go home."

"I'm fine," Edward said, his eyes narrowing. "I'm just tired. Come on, Bella. Let's get you to class."

To my surprise, he grabbed my wrist firmly before walking me away without even limping. He was walking so fast that it was all I could do to keep from tripping.

"You're not limping," I said, when I could finally walk properly.

He smirked. "I told you I was fine."

"I'm glad. I really didn't want to be your crutch."

He looked ahead, fighting a smile, as we walked through the hallway.

"Hi, Edward!" several cheerleaders said brightly as we passed their lockers.

Edward ignored them, as if he hadn't heard them at all. They all looked disappointed.

I glanced back. "Aren't you going to say hi to them?"

"No. It'll only give them the courage to ask me out. Why would I do something so stupid?"

"I can't believe you're being so mean, Edward," I said disapprovingly. "It's your fault that they like you."

"My fault?" he prompted. "How so?"

"You're handsome, smart, popular, and a gentleman. Who wouldn't like you?"

He looked at me seriously. "You're right. But apparently, there is someone who doesn't like me."

"You mean that girl?" I scoffed. "I'm sure she does. She would be insane not to."

He looked amused again. "Why did you say that you would talk to Rose for that new girl?"

"Because," I said, shrugging. "It's something that I can do. I'm Rose's friend, and she'll listen to me." I smirked. "Tanya seemed interested in you, Edward. She asked what your jersey number was."

"So you told her?" Edward asked, looking bothered. "What if she does become a cheerleader? She'll come after me."

"She seems really nice. Why don't you ask her out?"

His eyes narrowed. "You of all people shouldn't be saying that to me. I thought I told you to butt out of my love life?"

"I'll do whatever I want," I retorted, smiling. "So deal with it."

"I try not to interfere in yours, you know," he said.

"Mike?" I raised my eyebrow.

"That's different."

"How is it different?"

He pursed his lip. "You're right. It's not different."

"Exactly. I'll introduce you to her."

We stopped in front of my first period classroom. Edward turned to look at me, frowning slightly. "Don't."

"I thought you were going to go out with other girls?" I challenged. "That's part of getting over that girl you like. I'm trying to help you."

"Don't," he repeated. "No matchmaking. Promise me."

"No," I said, frowning. "Come on, Edward. You don't even know Tanya. How do you know you won't like her if you haven't met her?"

"I just have a feeling," he answered. "It feels wrong."

I rolled my eyes. "Don't worry." Then, I smiled reassuringly. "I'll bring her to our lunch table, and you can meet her, okay?"

"Bella," he warned. "No matchmaking. Seriously."

"Go to class, Edward," I said, ignoring him. "See you later."

He looked frustrated as I walked inside.

Why couldn't he understand this was all for him? I was doing it to help him forget that girl. He'd said so himself that he was going to give up. Then what was the problem?

I entered the cafeteria during lunch and looked around.

Tanya was sitting alone in the corner of a cafeteria, texting on her phone. I walked toward her.

"Hey, Tanya," I said, sitting right across from her. "How's it going?"

She looked startled. "Bella!" Then, she smiled. "I'm fine."

"Great," I said warmly. "Listen, I talked to Rosalie this morning. She still has a spot open, and I told her about you. She wants to see you. Are you okay with that?"

Tanya's face brightened. "Of course! When?"

"How about now?"

She looked apprehensive. "You mean your lunch table? But there are so many popular kids."

"They're all nice," I reassured her. I paused. "Well, there are a couple unfriendly ones, but it's fine. I'll protect you." I winked. "They all want to be on my good side, you know."

She laughed. "Thanks, Bella."

We walked over to the loudest table in the cafeteria. Emmett had just told a joke, and now, everyone was laughing.

"Hey, everyone," I said lightly. "How's it going?"

"Hi, Bella," everyone chorused, looking up and smiling. Tanya looked impressed.

"Guys, this is Tanya Denali," I introduced. "You all know her, right?"

"The new girl," Austin piped up. Everyone snickered.

"That's right," I said, smiling. "She'll be joining us from now on, so be nice to her, or you'll have to answer to me. Understand?"

"Sure," Mike said. He waved. "Welcome to our group, Tanya."

Tanya looked shy. "Hi, everyone."

On purpose, I sat across from Edward, and said, "Tanya. You can sit next to Edward." It was the only empty seat left.

Edward looked up, his eyes narrowing at me. I ignored him and watched at Tanya sat down eagerly.

"Oh, Tanya," I said. "This is Rosalie Hale, the captain of the pep squad."

Rosalie, who was sitting next to me, smiled. "Hi, Tanya. I heard you were interested in becoming a cheerleader. Are you any good?"

Tanya looked embarrassed. "I don't know. I mean, I've been doing cheer since freshman year so I guess so."

Rosalie nodded. "Great. But you'll need to audition for me before I can decide whether to put you in or not. Is that okay with you?"

Tanya nodded.

"Is today after school okay? We have practice every day after school until five-thirty. Plus, we have a game on Friday, so if you get in, you'll need to work extra hard to memorize and perfect all the moves. Do you think you can do it?"

She nodded. "I'll see you in the gym, then."

"Sounds good." Rosalie sighed in relief. "Thanks, Bella."

"No problem."

"We should introduce ourselves," Alice said. "You probably know everyone here is pretty popular, but still. Names." She smiled. "I'm Alice Cullen. That guy over there is my idiotic older brother, Emmett, who is also dating Rosalie, and the one you're sitting next to is Edward, my younger brother."

Tanya nodded, stealing a glance at Edward, who was now playing with his granola bar, looking bored.

"Oh, and don't mind his eye," Alice said quickly. "He got punched at the football game on Friday."

Tanya giggled. "Okay."

"This is Jasper Hale, my boyfriend and Rosalie's twin older brother…" She continued on, introducing all the football players and cheerleaders.

"And of course, you already know Bella," Alice concluded. "She's like our peacemaker of the group. And the intelligent one. And she's always ready to help, so if you need advice or something, don't hesitate to come to her."

I rolled my eyes, picking at my burger. "Unless it's boy trouble. You can go to Rose or Alice if that's the case."

Tanya smiled. "Thanks for letting me into your group, guys. But what if I don't make it into the pep squad?"

"You probably will," Edward spoke up, his tone bored. He was looking at me as he spoke. "If Bella introduced you, then Rosalie will probably take you in right away."

Rosalie laughed. "You're probably right. Bella's always right."

I sighed. "Hey, number two. Why don't you eat something?"

"I'm not hungry," Edward mumbled. "Why aren't you eating?"

"I'm not hungry," I repeated. He cracked a smile.

Tanya glanced back and forth between us, her eyebrow raised.

I gave Edward a meaningful look, then kicked him under the table. He didn't flinch or anything, but he looked annoyed again.

"Where did you transfer from?" he asked politely, but I could hear the reluctance in his tone.

"Seattle," Tanya said, looking thrilled that he was talking to her. "My dad is a lawyer there, but he thought I should go away on my own for a while. I was having some trouble at my old school."

"What kind of trouble?"

She looked abruptly uncomfortable. "Um…nothing much, really. You know how high school gets. Wild and untamed." She smiled.

"So you're living alone right now?" I asked, concerned.

"Yeah," Tanya said. "But it's okay. I like being alone."

"What about your mother?" Jasper asked.

"She died when I was really young," she replied. "And I don't have any siblings."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Rosalie said. "Aren't you afraid to be alone, though?"

Tanya shrugged sheepishly. "Sometimes." She paused, then said, "So…who's dating whom here?"

Alice perked up. "So you like to gossip, huh? I can tell we're going to be good friends."

Tanya smiled. "I'm just asking, so I can avoid the ones that are taken."

"One of those girls, eh?" Rosalie asked, her eyes sparkling. "Are you any good at flirting?"

Tanya merely laughed.

Alice began rattling off the few couples on our table. "And I would avoid my older brother if I were you, 'cause he's taken. Just remember this. The captains on the football team and pep squad are dating each other, and you should be fine. Don't antagonize them." She winked.

Rosalie laughed. "That's right." She snuggled closer to Emmett.

"You don't have a boyfriend, Bella?" Tanya asked, surprised. "Why not?"

"That's what I've been asking her for years," Alice said, rolling her eyes. "She goes out once in a while with boys in our group, but she never went steady."

I shrugged nonchalantly.

"What about you, Edward?" Tanya asked coyly.

Edward looked at her briefly. "No."

"Why?"

He merely shrugged like I had. "There's no one interesting."

"Then how about you go out with me?"

The entire table was silent. They were all shocked. There had been many girls that had asked Edward out, but they had never been so straightforward.

But to my surprise, Edward was as cold as ice as he replied without missing a beat, "Sorry, I'm not interested."

How did he do that? If someone had asked that to me suddenly, I would stutter and blush. And eventually end up going out with them.

Tanya smiled, unaffected. "That's fine. I don't like it if boys consented too early. Where's the fun in that?"

Edward glanced at her again, his eyebrows creased slightly. He looked bothered. Really bothered.

Alice looked shocked and was speechless for the first time. Rosalie was staring at Tanya in a new way, and Emmett and Jasper looked wary.

I thought I was the only one who was amused. I was the only one smiling amusedly.

Edward looked at me suddenly. His eyes narrowed as he said, "Bella. We'll be late for Biology."

My smile widened. "Look who's talking, Mr. Tardy."

He didn't look amused. He looked more exasperated. "Come on, Bella," he said in a dangerously sweet voice. He got up to dump his lunch tray.

I pursed my lip, still amused, then got up to follow him. "Good luck, Tanya." I winked at her.

"Thanks," she said, smiling mischievously back. She knew I wasn't just wishing her luck in her audition later.

I followed Edward out of the lunchroom, now laughing silently. I really liked that girl. Why couldn't I be more like her?

AN: So how did you like it? It was so long for me, even though it wasn't long at all. When I was editing, it was pretty much hell.

UPDATE ABOUT NEW STORY: Some fans wanted me to finish all my stories first before I start a new one. But honestly, I've already started, and when I get started, I can't stop. So since Golden Lifestyle is coming to an end (only like, two more chapters?) I decided to post the first chapter of the new story after it's totally done. It will be called Desire, so look forward to it! I hope you'll all go read it when it comes out! Thanks, and reviews, please!