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Bella would be lying if she said hadn't been curious about the people who lived next door. She would stand just inside her bedroom, right next to the window and watch them in the backyard. She saw five of them, though she thought there might be more. Three boys and two girls. Around her age, but freer than she could be.

She felt like she was prisoner inside Charlie's house. She'd arrived seven days ago, and except for a trip to the local Wal-Mart for more acceptable clothes, i.e. pants, long sleeve shirts, a heavy coat, and granny panties, she hadn't left the house. And neither had Charlie.

She suspected Renee had given him a warning, that if she left the house she might break the rules, do something stupid, but who would she do anything stupid with? She didn't know anyone inside the small little town of Forks, Washington.

She was standing just inside the window again when the girl with the long black hair came out of the house, her eyes roaming around the yard like she was expecting someone to be there. She was smaller than Bella, and beautiful. She had pale skin and dark eyes. She stopped and looked up at the window, right at Bella and smiled.

A beautiful smile.

A warm smile.

She brought her hand up and waved, but before Bella could wave back, she heard Charlie stomping upstairs. She hurried away from the window, sitting on the side of her bed just seconds before the door to her bedroom was thrown open. Charlie didn't like closed doors. It was something she would need to remember.

He stopped in the doorway and looked at her before crossing his arms in front of his chest, stern expression on his face. Charlie didn't have any other expression, she figured. Not when it came to her at least.

"You got five minutes to get dressed."

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I said so," he quipped. "We're going out."

"What if I don't want to go out?" she challenged, standing up.

Charlie tilted his head to the side. "I didn't ask, did I?"

And before she could say anything else, Charlie was gone. Her door was still open, so Bella hurried over and closed it, leaning against the heavy wood and taking a deep breath before walking back over to the window. The girl was still in the backyard, only this time one of the boys, the blond one with shaggy hair, was with her. They were seated at the picnic table, their backs against the table, and they were laughing. They were carefree, and she envied them, their ability to be happy.

With a heavy sigh, Bella turned from the window and walked into her closet. She stripped out of her sweat pants and T-shirt and into a pair of dark jeans and a long sleeve sweater. She added a pair of worn out vans and ran her brush through her hair before walking out of her bedroom and going downstairs.

Charlie didn't say anything as he led her out of the house and down to his car. She looked at the house next door for just a second before climbing into the passenger seat, and pulling on her seatbelt. Charlie started the car and drove away from the house. He pulled into the parking lot of the local steakhouse a few minutes later, and climbed out. She didn't really want to go with him, but knew he would never let her stay on the car. What if she had fun?

When they walked in, she knew immediately why Charlie had insisted she be ready to leave. Sitting at a table in the back were Charlie's best friend, Billy Black, and his son Jacob. Charlie had gone on and on about Jacob, who was a year older than Bella. Didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on. Jacob Black was a good boy, someone who would keep Bella out of trouble.

"Hey, Billy," Charlie called out, sounding friendlier than she had ever heard him before. He walked up to the man, sticking his hand out like they were meeting to discuss business. "Jacob."

"Chief Swan," Jacob said, shifting his eyes toward her. "You must be Bella."

"The one and only," she quipped.

Charlie turned and glared at her, but before he could reprimand her for being rude, the doors to the steakhouse opened and they both looked back as the queers from next door came waltzing in. There were six, each bold and beautiful. The boy with the shaggy blond hair was standing next to a boy with wild auburn hair. There was a tall, leggy blond girl with her arm wrapped around a big, brawny male with curly brown hair. Next to them were the oldest of the six, Bella assumed, a man with perfectly styled blond hair and a woman with auburn hair that hung in flowing curls down her back.

"Oh, great," Charlie groused, grabbing Bella by the arm but before he could turn her away from them, the door opened again, and she walked in.

Just as Bella had assumed from her perch at her upstairs window, she was smaller than her, petite in a delicate, spectacular way. She had long black hair that framed her face and dark sensual eyes that landed on Bella. Her ruby red lips curved upward into a sexy, seductive smile, and immediately, Bella was smitten with the queer girl from next door.

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