A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing! I'm sending off the first chapter of my new story (still untitled) to my beta this weekend. I hope to start posting it within the next two weeks.

The beginning of the year had started off decently enough. Esme and Carlisle had gotten married in a sweet but simple wedding, and the Port Angeles police had arrested one of the guys that had attacked Rose.

Not only had the asshole been bragging about it to his friends, but his DNA matched the scrapings that had been taken from Rose's nails.

Two days after celebrating New Year's, Dad, Rose, and Emmett drove to Port Angeles where Rose and Emmett positively identified the guy. His name was Marcus Riley, and he was wanted in connection to several rapes and sexual assaults throughout Washington. Then Dad learned something even more interesting. Turned out that Marcus was friends with and had been arrested with James once before.

Dad hung around while the police questioned Rose's attacker and then Dad asked him if he knew James' whereabouts. Marcus denied knowing where James was, but he let it slip that James' father had a hunting cabin a few miles north of Forks. That was all the information Dad needed, so after dropping Rose and Emmett off at home, he and his deputy headed toward the cabin.

Mom, the siblings, Edward, and I all hung around the house trying to occupy ourselves. A little after seven that evening, Dad came home looking tired and a bit defeated.

He sat down in his recliner and gave a sigh before explaining that James wasn't at the cabin.

"It looks like someone's been living there, but we can't be sure if he's still staying there or not. Sadly, we don't have the manpower to do surveillance on the place. That being said, Mark is going to keep an eye on the place, since he lives out that way. He said that he'd drive by every so often."

I hated that James seemed to be able to evade the law.

"Rose, Emmett? Riley gave up the names of his two friends that were with him. The Port Angeles police have warrants for their arrest. Once their brought in, you'll have to identify them and once charged, the legal process will begin. I'm not going to lie. It's going to be long and tedious at times."

They both nodded in understanding.

Rose's therapist had told her that sometimes the hardest part was the trial. Defense attorneys would try and make her out to be a loose girl who was a tease and whatnot. Of course, Megan's Law would prevent any previous sexual history being brought up, but Rose's therapist said the defense attorneys would do anything they could to make her seem like she was leading the boys on.

I knew that once the trial began, things would be difficult for Rose and Emmett, but we would be there for them. They were there for me when I was dealing with James.

The month of January passed by quickly and soon we were into February and Valentine's Day was coming up soon. Everyone was making a big deal about it, but not me. I honestly didn't care for it. It was just a marketing ploy by the stores to get you to buy flowers, cards, and candy.

"Has Edward asked you to the dance yet?" Alice asked me as we made our way to class one morning.

I shook my head causing her to stop dead in her tracks.

"What the hell?! What's wrong with him?"

I rolled my eyes at her outraged tone. I knew that if Jasper hadn't asked her, she'd have flipped out on him, but I didn't much care for dances.

"It's no big deal, Al," I told her, and she stared at me as if I'd grown an extra head.

"Of course it's a big deal!" she screeched, causing me to wince. "Valentine's Day is a huge deal!"

"Not to me, you know that."

"But—"

I covered her mouth with my hand and shook my head. "I'm not like you and Rose. I'm not all about Valentine's Day. When I say it's no big deal, I mean it, so let it go. Okay?"

She nodded, pouting after I pulled my hand away. Thankfully, she dropped the subject, but it seemed to be all that the school was talking about.

I was putting away my books in my locker before lunch when I overheard Lauren talking to Jane and some of her friends, if you could call them that.

I wasn't trying to listen to them, but I couldn't help but overhear. Especially once Edward's name was mentioned.

"He hasn't asked her yet?" Jane asked.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lauren shake her head.

"Nope, and you know what that means? He's going to break up with her. If they were really as together as she claims, then he would've asked her to the dance by now," Lauren said.

I scoffed at their foolish theories. They truly were idiots, the whole lot of them.

Slamming my locker shut, I headed toward the cafeteria, ignoring the inane chattering of the group behind me.

After grabbing a ham and cheese sandwich and some fries, I headed toward my table. The rest of the family was already there, but I frowned when I didn't see Edward.

"Mrs. Shapiro wanted to talk to him for a second. He'll be here soon," Jasper told me, noting my worry.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, I saw Edward make his way through the line, a scowl on his gorgeous face.

"What's wrong?" I asked as he sat down next to me with a huff.

"Lauren," he spat.

"Enough said," I told him.

"Stupid delusional girl!" he growled as he tore apart the orange that was in his hands. "I don't know how many times I have to tell her that I'm not interested!"

I took the mangled orange out of his hands and handed him a napkin. Sighing, he thanked me as he wiped his hands.

"I'm sorry. She just pisses me off to no end."

"I know, babe. I know."

Over lunch, Edward told us how Lauren had caught him as he was leaving Mrs. Shapiro's classroom and had asked him to the Valentine's Day dance. Of course, he politely declined, reminding her yet again, that he had a girlfriend.

"Not that she listened. She just talked right over me, like I hadn't said a word," he said, setting down the slice of pizza he'd been nibbling on.

Unfortunately, there was nothing that either of us could do that would convince Lauren that Edward wasn't interested in her.

By the end of the day, I was more than ready to head home. I'd had to listen to Jessica and Lauren gossiping and making comments about how Edward was obviously breaking up with me. I knew it wasn't true, but that didn't stop their talk from being more than annoying.

"I'll see you later?" I asked, giving Edward a kiss on the lips.

"Can't. I've got to go to dinner with Esme and Carlisle. I guess Esme's brother is in town."

I didn't bother to hide my disappointment.

"I'm sorry, sweet girl," he said, cupping my cheek in his hand. "I'd get out of it if I could."

"No, it's fine," I told him, kissing him one more time before getting into Emmett's Jeep.

Work that night was slow enough that it allowed me to work on all the homework that I had. I couldn't figure out why all of our teachers seemed to be piling homework on us, but they were.

"Any plans for Valentine's Day?" Mrs. Stanley asked me later that evening.

"I don't think so. Edward hasn't mentioned anything."

"Hmm. Maybe he's going to surprise you."

I shrugged. "Maybe."

It was more of the same when I got home. Mom, Alice, and Rose all wanted to know if Edward had said anything to me about Valentine's. Sighing, I told them no, yet again.

"But Bella, it's in two days!" Alice whined, and I finally snapped.

"Enough!" I roared causing my sisters to cringe. "I'm so freaking tired of everyone making such a big deal about this stupid holiday! I've never been a fan of it, and I never will be. I don't care if I go to the stupid dance or not, and I don't care if Edward and I do something romantic. I just don't freaking care!"

"She's upset because Edward hasn't asked her to the dance," Alice whispered to Mom.

I'd never wanted to hit my sister before, but I was getting there.

"No, Alice, I'm not. Don't presume to know things that you know nothing about," I snapped before stomping down the hall to my room.

I rarely got mad at my siblings, but Alice was beginning to drive me nuts. It pissed me off that she assumed that I was upset because Edward hadn't asked me to the dance. I wasn't. I could care less about the stupid dance. I was pissed off because everyone else was making such a huge freaking deal about it.

I slept poorly that night and was still in a bad mood when I woke up. Thankfully, Emmett and Rose were smart enough to keep their mouths shut and leave me to be bitchy in peace. The ride to Edward's house was quiet, and even seeing his beautiful, smiling face didn't help my mood.

"Hey. You okay?" he asked as he slid into the seat next to me.

I shook my head. "I'm annoyed with Alice and all this Valentine's crap. Everyone seems to making a BFD about it, and I just don't see why."

Edward reached over and took my hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"I don't get the appeal either. It's all a marketing ploy."

"Exactly!" I exclaimed, glad that he got it.

"That being said, I would like you to go to the dance with me on Friday."

I paused before answering, and I saw his face fall at my hesitance.

"It's not that I don't want to go, I just—" I paused for a moment to gather my thoughts. "I don't like dances. I don't like getting all girly, putting on makeup, and making a fool of myself while attempting to dance. It's not my thing."

The car was eerily quiet after my little speech, and I was terrified that Edward was mad at me. He didn't let go of my hand, but he didn't say anything either.

We arrived at school and once in the hallway, Edward mumbled a goodbye, and I felt my heart sink.

"I fucked up, didn't I?" I asked, turning to Rose.

She gave me a small smile. "I think he really wanted to take you to the dance, but now he probably feels like if you go, it'll be under duress."

I groaned, tempted to bang my head against the locker closest to me.

"How do I fix this?"

"Talk to him, Bells," Emmett told me, throwing an arm around me and giving me a hug.

I barely remembered anything that went on in my classes. I was too busy worrying that I'd screwed everything up with Edward.

Lunch came around and after grabbing an apple, I headed toward our table. Edward was already there, and he gave me a small smile as I sat next to him. I returned it, but nothing was said between the two of us. I could see my family shooting worried glances at us and at one another, and I figured Rose and Emmett must have filled Jasper and Alice in on what had happened.

As the bell rang, I got up to toss my half-eaten apple, and Edward's hand reached to touch my arm.

"Can we talk?" he asked quietly.

I nodded, and we walked outside, neither of us saying anything. I prayed that he wasn't taking me outside to breakup with me.

We came to a picnic table underneath a large tree, and we sat down across from one another, neither of us said anything. Then we both began to speak at the same time, breaking the silence.

"Go ahead," he told me.

I took a deep breath before blurting out, "Please don't break up with me!"

That wasn't what I'd planned on saying, but that was what came out.

Edward looked stunned by my words. Reaching across the table, he took my hands in his and squeezed them.

"Bella, I love you. I'm not going to break up with you. I'm just a bit disappointed that you don't want to go to the dance."

I hung my head. "I'm sorry, Edward. I had no idea that you wanted to go so badly. I hate dances. I always feel awkward and out of place."

"Then we won't go," he said. "I'm sorry that I was so standoffish this morning. I was taken back by your feelings regarding dances. Had I known, I never would've suggested we go."

I shook my head at him, squeezing his hands this time. "Don't apologize. I should have told you about it in a nicer way. Alice has been bugging me all week about it, and I finally snapped. We can go to the dance if you really want to."

It was his turn to shake his head. "No. I don't want to do anything you aren't comfortable with."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Yes. We'll find something else to do, okay?"

I agreed and smiled when he stood up and came over to me, wrapping me up in his arms. I clung to him, pressing kisses into his neck, and told him that I loved him.

The rest of school went quickly as did work. Edward came over to hang out and asked if he could drive me to school in the morning. I quickly agreed.

A little after seven the next morning, Mom let Edward into the house where I found him trying to politely decline one of Mom's protein shakes. Lord only knew what she put in it, so I thought I'd better rescue him.

"Morning," I told him, pressing a quick kiss to his lips.

"Good morning. You ready?" he asked.

"Yep," I told him, saying goodbye to Mom and grabbing my bag.

As I went to get into his car, I saw a small box sitting on the seat. I picked up and turned to him.

"What's this?" I asked.

He looked a bit sheepish as he rubbed his hand on the back of his neck. "Now, don't get mad at me. I know that Valentine's is nothing but a marketing ploy, but I got you something."

"Edward," I said with a sigh.

"Sorry, love. I couldn't help it."

I rolled my eyes and climbed into the car, the small box on my lap.

"Are you going to open it?" he asked after he got behind the wheel.

Slowly, I untied the ribbon and opened the box. I hoped that he hadn't spent a lot of money on me.

Nestled inside the small box was a gift card to the bookstore in Port Angeles. Now, this was the kind of gift I didn't have a problem accepting.

"Thank you!" I said, leaning across the console and kissing his lips.

"I take it you approve?"

"Very much so."

We arrived at school, met up with my siblings, then headed inside. It looked like Cupid had puked all over the hallways. Hearts, ribbons, and an obscene amount of pink were spread all over the place, and it was enough to give you indigestion.

"This is ridiculous," Edward whispered to me.

"No kidding, and I can guarantee that Alice had something to do with it."

Alice was the head of the decorating committee for all things school related, and I had no doubt that all this lovey-dovey crap was her doing.

It seemed that the whole school was caught up in the spirit of love. Classes were interrupted by students delivering flowers and lollipops, and the teachers finally gave up trying to teach us anything.

Roses and cards covered lockers up and down the hallways, and I grimaced when I saw several flowers decorating my locker. Snatching them off, I looked at the cards attached to them and saw that they were from various boys that I had no interest in.

Sighing, I tossed the flowers in the closest garbage bin and made my way to the cafeteria.

"Hey, sweet girl," a velvet voice crooned in my ear.

Smiling, I turned around to find Edward behind me.

"Hey, handsome. How's your day going?"

He made a face. "I'm sick of all these damn flowers and cards. I could barely get into my locker there were so damn many on there."

I knew the poor boy's locker would've gotten covered in flowers. The idiots at this school didn't seem to care that he was taken. Although, if they thought a few flowers were going to win his affection they were more than wrong.

During lunch, I noticed Edward and Alice were whispering, sliding a piece of paper back and forth. I leaned over Edward to try and get a better look, but he quickly snatched the paper away and stuck it in his pocket.

"What'cha talking about?" I asked, curious as to what they were up to, and they were definitely up to something.

"Nothing," they both said.

I narrowed my eyes, but let it go.

Friday rolled around, and I fully expected Alice to start bugging me again about the dance. When she didn't, I began to suspect something was off.

"Okay, what's going on?" I asked her as we ate breakfast.

"What do you mean?" she asked, trying to look innocent.

Pointing my fork at her I said, "You're up to something. You haven't bugged me once about the dance or dresses or anything. Spill."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she said before leaving the kitchen.

I spent all day keeping an eye on her and more than once, I caught Alice and Edward talking in hushed tones. I hunted Emmett down and questioned him because I knew that he couldn't keep a secret to save his life.

"I don't have a clue what's going on, Bells. You know no one tells me anything."

I even asked Rose, but she claimed that to have no idea. She was lying. I was sure of it.

After school, Edward took me home, and I was more than surprised that we had the house to ourselves. We hung out in the living room watching cheesy movies and making out, when Edward got a text. He read then, turned to me.

"Mind if we head to my house?" he asked.

"Not at all. Is everything okay?"

"Yep. Everything's perfect," he said with a grin and a mischievous look in his eye.

Less than fifteen minutes later, we pulled up to his house, and I could hear music coming from inside.

He opened the door to the house and a large banner hanging from the ceiling stated, Welcome to the Swan/Cullen Valentine's Day Dance.

I turned to look at Edward, completely shocked.

"I hope you don't mind, but I figured since you didn't want to go to the school dance, perhaps you wouldn't mind a dance here at home."

"Is this what you and Alice have been whispering about?"

"Guilty as charged," he said, a light blush on his cheeks. "Are you upset with me?'

I shook my head. I was a bit floored to be honest.

Moments later, Alice and Rose came from the living room and snatched me up. They dragged me upstairs to Edward's room where a beautiful blue dress lay on his bed.

I turned around to ask Alice a question, but she spoke before I could.

"Please don't argue with me. Please. Edward really wanted to dance with you and since we knew that you wouldn't go to the school dance, we decided to have our own private dance. Please just put the dress on and Rose and I will do your hair and makeup."

I nodded, still in a bit of shock over the whole thing, and quickly stripped out of my jeans and sweater. Moments later, I was wearing a dark blue dress with lace, and I was amazed at how much I loved it.

"Sit," Rose said, pointing to the edge of the bed.

I complied and within minutes, my hair was straightened and makeup was applied. I had to admit, my sisters knew what they were doing.

Alice handed me a pair of kitten heels which I slipped onto my feet, and I was deemed good to go.

With Alice and Rose behind me, I slowly headed down the stairs, grasping tightly onto the railing so that I wouldn't fall and make a fool of myself.

I saw Edward standing at the bottom of the stairs, and he'd obviously changed at some point. He was wearing a pair of dark slacks and white button down shirt. He looked amazing.

"Wow!" he said as I approached the bottom step, and he walked toward me, holding out a hand.

I clasped his hand tightly in mine and allowed him to twirl me around.

"Stunning. Just stunning," he said with a smile before placing a sweet kiss on my lips.

I felt a blush on my cheeks and I thanked him, telling him that he looked fantastic.

With my hand in his, we walked into the sitting room which had been cleared of all furniture except a loveseat in the corner. Music played from an iHome set up on the mantle over the fireplace, and there were pink ribbons hung around the room. It was quite classy.

"Dance with me?" Edward asked as a slow song came across the speaker.

I stayed wrapped in his arms for hours as we danced to anything and everything that came across the iPod. Slow songs, fast songs, goofy and inappropriate songs that Emmett had snuck onto the list.

It was one of the best nights of my life, and I was glad that my sister and Edward had conspired to come with the idea for the dance. I felt much more comfortable at Edward's than I ever would have at a dance.

A little after nine, we all took a break from dancing to snack on finger food that Esme had made and drink some punch. At least here, I didn't have to worry about it being spiked.

Our dance lasted until a little after midnight. Edward, being the gentleman that he is, drove me home, despite the fact that I could've ridden with my siblings.

Once we arrived at my house, Edward walked me up to the door and gave me a kiss goodnight. A perfect ending to a perfect night. I truly had been one of the best nights of my life, and I could only hope that there would be more to come.