A/N: Holy shit, I'm almost finished.

Chapter 47

Need You Now

Edward's POV:

When I woke it was the dead of night, and I was alone.

I sat up feeling disorientated and felt around for Bella, almost convincing myself that she hadn't actually been here, at all. My memory was pretty foggy, but I knew without a doubt that Bella had fallen asleep with me, because I could still smell her on my sheets. I could still feel the sensation of her lips against my skin.

And I was suddenly ragingly fucking horny.

Leaning to the side, I switched on the lamp, angling the alarm clock so I could see the time.

3:15am.

Bella's phone was sitting on my side table, and I soon spotted her sweater hanging over the foot of my bed.

She had definitely been here, but the question was: why wasn't she now?

Grabbing her phone, I got out of bed and headed toward the door, rubbing the grogginess of sleep from my eyes as I went.

I felt strange. Physically I felt a lot better than the fucked up condition I'd gone to sleep in, but I still didn't feel ... completely right. It was as if something was missing—only I didn't entirely know what—and I had a weighed down feeling in my chest. This was despite the fact that I was feeling a shit ton lighter.

It was continuing to make me feel edgy, and fucking more so because I had no idea why I was feeling so edgy.

Maybe I was just feeling like a titanic dickhead for completely losing my shit. Okay, I was a little bit, but that still wasn't it...

Fuck it, I was too horny to dwell on it, and I needed to find out if Bella was still in the house.

I crept down the hall—the house was quiet apart from Emmett's freaking snoring—and paused at Alice's room. Then, switching on the flashlight app on Bella's iPhone, I slowly opened the door.

She was hanging off the side of Alice's bed, out cold.

Feeling the grin immediately penetrating my face, I quietly entered the room. When I reached her, I kneeled down beside her, taking her hand that hung over the side of the mattress. "Hey," I whispered, squeezing it gently.

She stirred, mumbled something unintelligible before her eyes slowly opened.

"Is it raining?" she asked me in a croaky voice, her sleep-glazed eyes looking straight through me.

"Yes," I replied softly, exhaling past the urge to laugh, before I helped her off the bed.

"I can't find my jumper," she mumbled, stumbling lightly against me before seeming to fall back asleep on her feet.

"It's in my room," I whispered. "Come on." I tried to get her to walk, but her feet were dragging, so bending down, I hoisted her up into my arms.

Her head flopped down on my shoulder; she was completely out to it, which pretty much put a halter on my motives for getting her back in my room in the first place.

When I laid her on my bed, she awakened enough to climb under my covers, snuggling into me when I got in beside her. I pulled her closer against me, and she curled her leg over mine, her knee suddenly pressing straight into my groin. It immediately caused a fire to erupt within me. I was beginning to become completely consumed by sexual frustration again; my only thoughts on where and when I could get her alone again with me.

Carefully, I removed her leg from around me, so I could fucking breathe again, before I leaned over and turned off the lamp.

As I lay with her, fully awake now, I listened to the sound of her breathing for a few minutes, taking notice of how she rubbed her foot up and down my leg on and off before eventually entwining her legs again with mine.

If I hadn't well and truly fucking fell apart earlier I would have seriously jerked off in the shower. I was really regretting it now; I was beginning to feel like I was amped.

I tried to distract myself, but Bella didn't make it easy for me. Her knee kept finding its way back to my groin, prodding against me—giving me a fucking knee job. Jesus, even in her sleep she teased the shit out of me, but then I was pretty much a horny bastard every minute of my life anyway.

I figured I'd be getting a lot more now that Bella and I were together, but then Prom was only a month ago.

Jesus, just a month. It felt like it was five years ago.

During the six months that I'd known Bella I'd had less sex than I'd had the six months before I'd met her. Once—with her, but fuck, it was worth the wait. Though, I could very well have had sex with slut-bag Stanley; it's not like I'd even remember. Though, Alice swore on Jazz's balls that when she'd intervened nothing was going on.

Yeah, she'd actually swore on his balls—in front of me. I think the little rat was picking up his obsession.

. . .

I dozed on and off, but with Bella's knee continuously lodged into my balls, I couldn't really fall into a deep sleep. Plus I was too conscious of her—of her warm little body pressed against mine, and of the fact that we hadn't slept together since that night in Sydney.

I was semi-conscious when Bella woke, sitting straight up in bed and looking around the room with a confused look on her face. Running her hand up into her hair, she turned to me, where her frown turned to an immediate smile.

"Hi," she said softly, her voice croaky.

"Hey," I replied and moved to sit up alongside her when she all but ambushed me, almost knocking me back against the pillows as she wrapped her arms tightly around my neck.

"How are you feeling?" she whispered, sounding all freaking engulfed again.

I released my breath before snaking an arm around her waist and pulling her back so I could see her face. Her eyes were endless again and shredded with guilt.

Always fucking guilt…

"I'm fine," I assured her, my gaze dropping from her eyes to her lips.

I leaned closer to her, but she only moved further away, staring straight down to my soul. "Tell me what happened?" She was determined to talk, while all I could focus on was how long we had until mom and Carlisle woke up.

And with Emmett next door, how to make the least amount of noise…

With a groan—that quickly manifested as sexual frustration—I dropped my face into the crook of her neck. "I'm not really sure, babe. Can you please not give me shit about it?"

There was silence. When I looked back up she was quirking her eyebrow with a half cynical smile on her lips.

"Babe?" she put to me.

With only half feigned frustration, I groaned louder sighing with it, before pulling her flush against me. Placing my lips to her ear, I teased her, "Babe, sweetie pie, gorgeous, spunk-fest Belly Welly."

Cringing, she tried to pull away from me, but I held her tighter, pressing my lips over hers when she protested, as my hands found their way under the t-shirt she was wearing—the little rat's t-shirt.

"You're such … a cornball, Edward." She turned her face so my mouth was suddenly squashed into her cheek, before pushing herself back from my chest. "Talk to me for a minute!" she insisted.

"No." And with my hands gripping her sides, I pulled her back to me so that she was sitting on my lap, having a close encounter with my morning wood. I ran my hands further up her sides, feeling her ribs beneath my fingers as she tensed in reflex, continuing to resist me.

"Ed—" she began but I shut her up by again closing my mouth over hers.

"Shhhh."

She seemed to relent, responding to me and running her hands to the back of my head and through my hair, but when I moved my lips to her neck and shoulder she again pulled away from me.

"Edward—bloody hell!" she teased me warmly, lightly, removing my hands from beneath her shirt as I dropped my head to her shoulder and exhaled heavily against her bare skin.

And it didn't fucking help that she was sitting square on my dick, but then seeming to read me, she climbed off my lap.

I only uttered some fucked up horny, defeated sound.

She moved back from me, sighing and sounding like she was in empathy with me. I kept my head lowered, letting my chin thud against my chest, before pushing the heel of my palms into my eyes.

"I'm sorry, Edward," she said softly, taking one of my hands before wrapping her arms around my waist.

I laid myself back, pulling her with me as I tried to talk myself down.

She leaned up and kissed my cheek, before her breath rushed from her, washing over my face. "I know, but Emmett's next door, and the last time Alice walked in on us, and if your mom walked in on us I'd kill myself." She sighed again before snuggling back against my side. "And how did I get in here? I'm sure I went to sleep in Alice's room…"

I grinned, pushing it shortly through my nose. "I came and got you."

She rolled over, half on top of me and snaked her arm around me, before pressing her face against my neck. "Get cold, did you?" she murmured teasingly.

"Among other things," I mumbled, sighing, still feeling strung out, and running my fingers back over my scalp.

Bella, knowing exactly what I was doing raised her head, looking at me with her forehead puckered. "I hate doing this to you, Edward, and I'm still worried about you."

"Don't worry about me," I mumbled, having a panicky sudden feeling that last night might have stalled shit between us.

She smirked, propping herself up on her elbows against my chest. "Do you want us to turn into Alice and Jazz? They have sex every day—Alice actually told me that."

I groaned—it was pure impulse—closing my eyes, completely fucking missing what she had just implied. "Please remember Alice is my sister, babe—I really don't want to know what her and that pissant do together."

When I opened my eyes her brow was quirked cynically again, but anticipating her, I clamped my hand over her mouth, before rolling her completely beneath me. She continued to smirk to herself even as I lay flush on top of her, but that was probably due to the fact that the pen in my pants was completely fucking obvious.

"Want to fool around?" I asked, flashing her a sly grin.

"Are you going to be able to pull out of it?"

"Probably not," I admitted lightly, thinking I could charm her into it.

As usual, if she fell for it she gave nothing away. Completely owning my ass, she simply half shrugged, giving me that knowing freaking smile again. "Sure."

We lasted fifteen minutes and it turned into fucking torture. As far as we went, and as much as she gave me, all my mind could process was more. She let me totally grope her—I was basically fucking dry humping her, but she was holding back. It was obvious she was holding back because compared to how she'd been yesterday she was acting like a nun.

A nun that I was violating.

If that wasn't enough to immediately deflate me, it was the sound of my mother knocking on Alice's door and calling out to her and Bella. Not to mention the absolute horror that was suddenly reflected on Bella's face.

I was beginning to suspect that Bella viewed my mother as some kind of saint. I wonder how she'd feel if she knew Mom wanted to put a stopper on the two of us. Hell, she'd probably agree with her, because I was also starting to suspect that Bella was beginning to see me as the horny primitive bastard I really was. I mean, she'd made a veiled comment about us having sex everyday—what the fuck was that supposed to mean?

Did she want to; didn't she…?

I was beginning to think I knew less about Bella the more time I spent with her. After all, all I wanted from her lately was her body. Or maybe being sexually frustrated turned me into a paranoid fucking pussy.

All I needed now was another break down.

"Get me back into Alice's room!" Bella whispered sharply, her tone completely compromised with alarm

"Shhh, she only knocks. She never comes in," I reassured her, wiping a strand of her hair away from her face.

Famous last fucking words.

In the next instant Mom knocked on my door, called out to me, before the door knob half turned, then stopped and began jiggling.

I'm not sure if Bella threw herself off the side of the bed or I pushed her off, but as I launched myself off the bed to stop my mother from walking in on us, Bella suddenly landed flat on her ass on the other side of it.

She was still topless, then throwing on her shirt, she picked herself up off the ground and bolted into my bathroom with more agility than I'd ever seen from her.

The door knob jiggled again. "Edward?" Came my mother's increasingly suspicious voice.

Fuck! Oh fuck—it was locked! Thank fuck I'd locked it! I almost died on the spot of fucking heart failure, grabbing my chest instinctively.

"What?" I asked, beginning to feel irritated, while trying to disguise my voice as croaky from sleep.

"Why is the door locked, Edward?" she demanded.

"Why do you think?" I replied hotly after reefing it open and glaring down at her.

She blatantly looked past me and around my room; I huffed sharply, but then maybe that was just to cover my guilt. "Looking for something?"

Her eyes met mine then softened, before she placed a hand on my cheek. "How are you this morning, sweetheart?"

I turned my gaze away from her, feeling more and more fucking guilt ridden. "I'm fine. I-I just didn't get much sleep last night."

"You hungry?"

I shrugged. "Yeah."

"Okay, I'll see you downstairs soon." She turned and headed for the stairs without looking back.

I closed the door, released my breath, raking my hand edgily through my hair, before I turned toward my bathroom door. "She's gone, babe."

"Would you stop calling me that!" Bella blurted out, opening the door brashly, looking ruddy faced and flustered.

I only grinned, trying not to laugh at her as she scowled up at me.

"She totally knows I'm in here!" She ran her fingers rigidly over her forehead looking genuinely upset.

Walking over to her, I slung my arm over her shoulder as she stood with her forehead leaning against my chest. "Pixie-stick would have covered for us. She knows she owes me—god only knows how many times I've covered for her and Jazmina."

She only exhaled deeply, letting her shoulders drop as both her hands came up to grab fistfuls of my t-shirt.

I pressed my lips down to the top of her head momentarily, before asking, "Tell me why you don't like me calling you babe?"

"I already told you," she mumbled, without raising her head.

"Yeah … but I no longer believe it," I teased her lightly, before gauging her more seriously. "Was it something your mother said?"

She tensed, it was only slight, but enough that I immediately registered the shift within her. "Not my mother—her boyfriend."

This time I fucking tensed. She'd never mentioned any boyfriend before. "Bella—Jesus, please tell me…" I left it unspoken.

She raised her head, suddenly looking horrified. "No—God no! He was just a sleazy asshole who used to perv down my shirt every chance he got, hoping I was like my mother. But yeah, he called my mother babe, and he was beginning to start calling me it, too. It doesn't bother me that much. It makes me cringe slightly—which you're well aware of." She flashed me a wry grin, elbowing me softly in the ribs.

I chuckled. "Why didn't you ever tell me this?"

She sort of half laughed to herself. "I was hoping telling you Jake called Nessie the same thing would turn you off." Then before I could respond, she leaned up on her toes and planted a soft but rushed kiss on my lips. "Sneak me back into Alice's room."

But right at that moment there was a second knock at my door, followed by Alice's half teasing, half sarcastic voice. "Rise and shine, lovelings."

I pulled open the door to the little rat flashing me a smug look. "You so totally owe me!" she declared.

I only scoffed. "We're not even close to being even, you little ferret."

"Nothing happened," Bella insisted walking past me out of the room, before looking over her shoulder and flashing me a warm, teasing grin. "Edward was just feeling cold."

Alice snorted. "I'm sure he was."

I groaned beneath my breath before walking out of my room and closing my door.

Not only was it fucked up how much I was thinking about sex, but it was more fucked up that my pain in the ass sister knew all about it.

Bella and Alice walked down the stairs together, while I trailed a few feet behind.

"What did you tell your mom?" Bella asked Alice, sounding anxious again.

"That you were brushing your teeth—it's cool; she believed me," Alice answered simply.

"Yeah, that's why she completely scanned my room afterwards," I added dryly.

"Well, she's not completely naïve." The little rat rolled her eyes at me over her shoulder.

. . .

We ate breakfast with Mom's fucking eyes constantly on me and Bella. It was more than obvious and made Bella so twitchy it was clear she couldn't wait to get the fuck out of there. As it was, mom and Carlisle's proposition from the night before started today. When Carlisle entered the room, the first thing he did was look over at me and comment that I wasn't dressed.

"What, you're making me start today?" I demanded, suddenly fucking pissed off again, but then again that was probably due to sexual frustration. I had planned on getting Bella alone fucking somewhere during the day.

"Yes, I thought that was understood?" Carlisle replied.

"I didn't even get to have a shower last night," I grumbled, while Bella only glanced at me with her eyebrows drawn.

"Well go and have one now, Edward," my mother said, sighing.

I stood up from the table roughly, with a huff before leaving the room, hearing my mother telling Bella how hot headed I was, as I left.

Fucking great…

Okay, I was acting like a bad tempered asshole. I didn't know why I was feeling so edgy, but I was, but then jerking off in the shower did make me feel calmer afterwards. Actually I almost fucking exploded, but then immediately felt mellow, realizing what a dick I'd been.

I was getting dressed when Bella knocked on my door. Throwing my shirt over my head quickly, I opened it. "You don't have to knock, babe—"her brows immediately bunched—"fuck, I'm sorry—sorry!"

She only broke into a grin, pushing me playfully as she did. "I suppose you can call me babe if you insist on it. Anyway, I have to go. My dad's leaving tomorrow and he's taking me to Port Angeles." She threw me a teasing pout before grabbing my t-shirt and pulling me closer. "You over your hissy fit?"

"Ah..." I brought my hand to the back of my head, instantly feeling like a giant dick. She had a way of bringing me straight back down to earth. "Yeah..." I mumbled, dropping my eyes to her feet.

She suddenly threw her arms around my neck, almost pulling me down on her. "I'm only joking, you big dag. I'm going to worry about you all day. You freaked the hell out of me last night." Her tone turned soft and serious.

I felt like shit. Sighing deeply, I moved back to look into her eyes. "I'm okay. I swear to you I am," I promised her, before I kissed her briefly. "Just give me a minute and I'll walk you out to your car."

. . .

Once we reached her jeep—she'd parked it fifty feet away like she usually did—she kissed me softly, wrapped her arms around my waist then fucking burst into tears.

"What's wrong, baby?" I asked her, feeling my heart quicken, wondering what the fuck I'd done to upset her this time.

"Nothing. I mean, it's just ... so much has happened that sometimes I don't know how to process it, and ... my dad's leaving"—she never called him dad—"and I feel terrible that I dragged you into the train wreck that's my life."

I bowed my head against hers for a moment, holding her tighter against me. "Bella—you never dragged me into your life. I kind of forced my way in—remember?"

She inhaled back her tears, breaking into half a laugh at the same time, nodding. "I remember."

I bent my head trying to see her face; she kept it squashed against my chest. "If you need me tomorrow when your dad leaves, call me and I'll come right over."

"Won't you be working with Carlisle?"

"Tomorrow's Saturday, baby," I teased her.

She chuckled again, nudging me. "Shut up."

"Hey? Look at me," I instructed her gently; she did—reluctantly. I took a deep breath before continuing, "Thank you for coming over last night. I don't know what the fuck happened but ... anyway, I'm sorry I freaked you out."

She smiled at me warmly, a hint of her playfulness sneaking into it. "You did, but it was my pleasure."

"Sap." I grinned.

"Cheese ball."

"Go the fuck home, woman—Jesus."

She threw me that cynical smile again before I cupped her face and kissed her. She tried to deepen it, but I had to almost literally force her back. I didn't have time to whack off again, after all.

With a small sigh she brought her lips to my ear. "I'll take care of you soon."

I immediately tensed, before my eyes closed as I struggled to hold back the all-out horny groan from becoming audible.

Oh, God, please make it be so…

When I didn't respond, Bella did this half sigh, half chuckle thing, before kissing me quickly on the cheek. "Later, gator," she said before jumping into her car.

I only grinned at her like the goofy bastard I was before walking over to where Carlisle was waiting for me in his silver Merc, with the second coming of my freaking morning wood..

. . .

Carlisle used me as his fucking runner boy, because obviously he felt that modern technology—like emails—weren't as effective. All I did was go back and forth through the hospital, delivering messages, handing out mail, or picking up supplies for him. Then in the afternoon when he was doing his rounds he forced me to tag along. I had to stand there trying not to puke when he inspected various patients stitches and surgery wounds. When he pulled a fucking ten feet tube from some old guy's stomach, I almost passed out cold on the spot. He promptly ordered me out to the vending machines to get him a coffee. I kept on walking right out of the building, pulling my phone from my pocket and texting Bella as I did.

Baby, this shit is going to kill me.

She replied about half a minute later, lol poor baby. You'll be fine.

I wasn't so confident.

When I walked back into the hospital, I'd lost track of Carlisle, but where ever the hell he was I sure as hell wasn't going to follow.

He eventually sent me a message, go take a break and meet me in my office at 4.

I was surprised he knew how to text.

I spent it in the hospital cafeteria, eating a fucking disgusting premade sandwich and lurking on Facebook on my phone until the battery went dead. I dragged my ass back to his office fifteen minutes late, and for the rest of the day Carlisle had me photocopying shit.

At 6pm the day was over, and I was fucking exhausted, but then on the way home Carlisle decided to play fucking psychiatrist and attempt to get me to open up about my feelings and why I was often so angry.

"Do we have to do this now, Carlisle? I'm tired. Ask me again Monday," I grumbled, pulling out my phone and shoving in my earphones only to realize it was dead.

"Monday? You're not coming tomorrow?" Carlisle put it to me calmly with raised brows.

"What? You expect me to work on weekends?" I burst.

"I thought that was understood. Do you have plans with Bella?"

"No, it wasn't understood. I'm not a fucking mind reader. And I thought you and Mom were trying to stop me from seeing Bella?"

Yeah, like that was going to fucking happen.

"No, we're not stopping you from seeing her at all. Tell me about Bella. You seem very close," Carlisle said, turning to me as he stopped at the intersection to turn onto the Olympic Highway.

I sighed, only half beneath my breath. "She's my girlfriend—what do you want me to say?"

"Do you find it easy to communicate with her—or do you bottle your feelings from her?"

Pushing the heel of my palm into my forehead, I answered—reluctantly. "She knows how I feel about her."

"Have you told her?"

"Jesus!" I burst. "Am I going to be charged by the fucking hour?"

"I'm just trying to help you find an outlet to release your emotions, Edward," he replied quietly.

He kept on at me, all the way home. I don't know what he wanted to achieve, but all he succeeded in doing was grating on my last fucking nerve.

The next day—yes he and mom made me work Saturday—Carlisle suggested that because I wasn't so receptive to talking to him, I should keep a journal to document my feelings about shit in hope I would be able to recognize certain triggers to my anger and frustration.

My anger... Apparently from the moment I'd met Bella I had become some kind of angry, obsessive compulsive sociopath. It was news to me. I realized I was more on edge, but I didn't know how else I was supposed to act with this level of sexual frustration suddenly competing with the urge to start sprouting fucking poetry every time I was near her; not to mention the constant anxiety I had that I'd fuck it up and lose her.

So, humoring Carlisle, I bought a journal that afternoon during my lunch break—ironically from the stationary store in Port Angeles where I'd bought all the pink pens. I picked up a packet of those too; Bella only had one left, after all.

I called her during my afternoon break, knowing her father had just left. She kept up a brave front, but it was obvious how upset she was.

"Do you still want to go out with Alice and Jazz tonight?" I asked her, hoping like fuck she didn't. Alice had arranged a double date—because that's exactly what I wanted to do on a Saturday night; feel up my girlfriend with my sister watching.

She sighed, sounding more miserable by the second to the point that I could feel myself growing tense. "I'd rather stay in. Do you want to hang out here? Uncle Billy's on night shift, so we'll probably have to babysit Jake and Ness. Is that okay…?"

"That's fine, baby. I'll get the little rat to drop me off."

She broke into soft sounding laughter. "You really shouldn't call your sister that, you know."

"Why, she is a little rat." I chuckled along with her, as I set out back to the Olympic Memorial Hospital.

When I reached Carlisle's office there was a note left for me on his desk:

Edward, I'm going to be about 15-20 minutes late. Entertain yourself until I get there. Did you buy a journal?

How freaking obvious. I snorted cynically, before opening up the damned notebook I'd just bought.

July 29 2014

So I realized today that one of the things that pisses me off is Bella getting upset. What does that make me? A normal fucking sap who loves his girlfriend. I also just want to have sex with her. It's all I can think about—even when she's upset. What does that make me?

Male.

Well that was fucking easy.

When Carlisle arrived at his office he immediately took note of the journal sitting in my lap and smiled to himself.

I guess he didn't expect me to take his advice.

"Oh good, you did get yourself a journal then," he commented, sitting himself behind his desk and clasping his hands together—fucking consultation mode again.

"Yeah." I shrugged.

He paused, seeming as if he was waiting for … something. When I didn't volunteer anything else, he extended his hand, asking, "Do you mind?"

The hell?

"Uh—yeah!" I stated matter-of-factly.

"Fair enough," he said, withdrawing his outstretched hand.

I sighed and tossed the journal on his desk, conceding—if only to get him off my back.

Putting on his reading glasses, he opened the book before a small smile lit up on his face then disappeared. "Very good, Edward," he said lightly, clearing his throat.

He didn't bother me on the ride home that afternoon; though, he made some veiled comment about being sexually responsible when he talked about the sixteen year old girl he saw that afternoon for Gestational Diabetes. I only smirked to myself, half rolling my eyes before agreeing with him. In truth, I wasn't too concerned about it. Bella was going to be the militant one about it—considering her obvious aversion to pregnancy.

"Bella's on birth control," I admitted casually. "I didn't pressure her into it or anything; she went and got it herself. I think the idea of getting pregnant freaks her out." And I had a sneaking suspicion she was more concerned about protecting herself from pregnancy than she was about having sex with me, but then again, sexual frustration did make me this pathetically fucking needy and paranoid.

I have no fucking idea why I decided to disclose all this to him. I guess it was a ploy to get him and Mom off my back by admitting that Bella, at least, had her shit together. Even if I didn't.

He turned to me with that freaking consultation, pay-by-the-fucking-hour expression on his face again. "Bella's a smart, responsible girl, Edward."

"I know," I said simply with a small smile. "Besides, our baby's coming in the mail."

. . .

"Brother Dearest…" Alice said smirking as she swung inside my room by the doorknob. "You ready?"

"Do you ever knock, you little ferret?" I replied, half rolling my eyes. "I'll be a minute."

This damn t-shirt made me look gay. Dragging it over my head and throwing it to the floor, I rummaged through my drawer looking for my "Big Pen" shirt, while Alice waited impatiently, huffing out her breath intermittently.

Fuck, it had Coca-Cola stains all over it!

"You are not seriously going to wear that, are you?" the little rat commented, folding her arms across her chest with a raised brow.

I threw it at her, smirking to myself as it hit her square in the face, and pulled on the next shirt I picked up.

"Since when do you care how you look?" Alice asked after I'd shoved her out of my room, closing the door behind us.

"Since when is it any of your business, pixie-stick?"

She only snorted.

. . .

"Do me a favor and drop me off before you pick up Jazz. I really don't want to have to sit through your fucking need to express your love for each other every thirty seconds," I muttered as I pulled the seat belt over my shoulder.

"You're such a barrel of sunshine, and need I remind you that I had to listen to Bella tell you multiple times last night—in the most sickening of ways, mind you. I wuv you, Eddy Weddy, honey bear."

Fuck!

I guess there was no point in telling her that Bella was only mocking me, mocking her jackass cousin and his girlfriend—who I'd have to fucking endure tonight.

"She was joking, Thumbelina," I said dryly, lowing my head and pushing my hand back through my hair.

"Yeah, yeah..." she mumbled, putting the key in the ignition and starting the engine. She drove for no more than fifty feet down the driveway before she stopped again and put the car into park.

I turned to her quizzically. "What?"

"I want to talk to you," she replied, turning to face me squarely.

I released my breath in one large frustrated gush. "Are you kidding me?"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh shut up. I heard Mom and Carlisle talking about you earlier."

"What about this time?" I asked dryly, only mildly curious.

"Carlisle was sticking up for you, actually. He told Mom that you were right when you said this is who you are, and she should stop worrying about you."

"Yeah?" I said, raising my eyebrows, almost impressed.

"Yep, though Mom's still worried about you. She thinks you and Bella will rush off and get married as soon as you graduate—if you even make it to graduation, that is." She snorted back her laughter, obviously finding great fucking amusement in it.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I asked in semi disbelief.

"Yep."

"Why the hell would she think that?"

Alice shrugged. "I dunno. She thinks whatever happened in Australia has made you and Bella unable to live without each other, or something."

I shook my head to myself, beginning to feel aggravated. "Well that's just fucking ridiculous."

"Not really, Edward. Do you realize how much you've changed since you met Bella?" she asked quirking her brow at me.

"How?" I retorted mockingly.

"Seriously, think back to before you met her. Do you remember when we went to the Grand Canyon and you hooked up with what's-her-name? The red head? Rochelle?"

"Something like that," I muttered, fucking disturbed that Alice knew way too much about my sex life.

"You were a complete whore, Edward. You slept with anything with a pair of legs. Then suddenly Bella comes along and the biggest slut in school, Jessica Stanley, couldn't even get you to budge." She stared at me, expecting me to respond, only I had no fucking idea what she wanted from me, and the fact that she'd brought up whore-house Stanley made me want to openly cringe.

"What the fuck is the point you're trying to make, Alice?" I burst.

She half smirked to herself, ignoring me. "Bella saw you coming a mile away."

I sighed, but despite my present aggravation at the little rat, I felt myself smile. "She did," I agreed, quietly.

"Do you see how much you've changed?" Her tone turned soft.

I shrugged one shoulder, conceding begrudgingly.

"You have no idea what the hell you're doing, Edward, because you're so far out of your comfort zone that you might as well be in Siberia." She was beginning to sound concerned this time, but all it was doing was pissing me off.

"You too, Alice?" I said sarcastically. "You don't think I know how to handle this?"

She only smiled at me sympathetically—pitifully—and I wanted to strangle the little rat. "Not really…"

"Are you my fucking mother, Alice? Because between you and her I don't know who's fucking worse!" I snapped, turning myself violently away from her, huffing to myself.

She sighed shortly, suddenly sounding pissed off herself. "My god you're such a hothead! No one can say anything to you!"

"Bullshit!" I ran my hand roughly through my hair, thumping it back down on the dashboard before turning to her again. "I'm just sick of you, Mom and fucking Carlisle making out I'm some kind of fucking defective who is incapable of having a fucking girlfriend!"

"No one has ever said that—stop being so melodramatic!" she lost it and started yelling.

"Stop fucking yelling at me!" I hollered back, almost choking before breaking into a reluctant smile when the little rat eventually grinned.

She laughed, half shaking her head before she shoved me playfully. "No one thinks that you're defective, Edward. We're only worried about how much you've changed."

"Would you rather I was still a complete whore?" I added sarcastically.

Whore? Other than Bella I'd had sex with five girls. That didn't make me a fucking whore!'

Maybe it was six.

Or seven. Possibly eight…

Fuck me sideways.

"No, that change is good. Except that you're so moody and uptight. That's why Mom's worried you're going to do something stupid—like get married." Her lips twitched, despite the serious charade the little rat tried to put on.

I snorted. "Yeah right. Where are we going to live? With the Chief and Jacob? I'll fucking pass thanks."

"Jesus, you swear a lot." She rolled her eyes, starting the engine again.

"Yes, Mother."

She tutted, and proceeded down the rest of the driveway toward Jazmina's street.

Jazz climbed into the back seat, and before molesting my sister he turned to me. "Jeez, dude, could you look any hornier?"

I half grinned, exhaling shortly. "See, Jazz gets it."

"T.M.I!" Alice protested from beside me, before Jazz shut her up by slopping all over her.

Five fucking minutes later and before I burst an aneurysm in my brain, we were finally heading toward Bella's house.

A/N: Oh Edward, typical male!