B-POV

The long drive to campus felt routine, even after a long winter break. I could let my mind drift as my body drove the familiar, winding roads, as if on autopilot. Though it was only my second semester of college, I was going in with more confidence than I had in my senior year of high school. I passed my first round of classes with flying colors. I had a solid group of friends who already reached out to make lunch plans. And—most importantly—Edward Masen awaited my arrival.

The mere thought of him spread warmth through my entire body—pooling lower and lower.

Edward and I spent most of our winter break apart due to prior commitments with our families. Charlie and I had our holiday traditions while Edward's family traveled to Alaska, where they spent their holidays with another coven of like-minded vampires Edward affectionately referred to as his cousins. We talked on the phone as much as we could, testing our families' patience every day.

Before we split up, we had two more dates. Both—thankfully—were less absurd than the first. It was comforting that Edward could be reined back. The second was ice skating which, after I made a huge fuss, I thoroughly enjoyed. Only because Edward never once took his hands off me. The third date was at another antique fair, where I had to stop him from buying every small trinket or bauble I expressed interest in. Both dates ended with a goodbye kiss as short and sweet as the one after our first date. Edward never came up to my room again, though I knew he had the ability to do so.

"Be patient, my love," he purred the night before he left for his trip, after a painfully chaste kiss. His hands ran down my back, stopping right before they reached my backside. "We have all the time in the world. Enough time to keep things slow…" his lips spread into a wicked grin, "…and seductive."

Though it was difficult to disagree when his voice was slow and seductive, I wasn't sure how much I agreed with the sentiment.

We were together, for crying out loud. Finally, together. That was something that should be celebrated with a bit more passion. Like our kiss at the restaurant when Edward was clearly overtaken by affection and all but devoured me. Since then, he remained completely, maddeningly in control of himself.

It gave room for unwanted insecurities to grow. To insist that Edward did not want to move slowly, but instead, he wanted to delay the inevitable. To laugh when touch remained respectful, taunting that he did not yearn for intimacy. Luckily, those sprouts of doubt were plucked before they had the chance to flourish by Edward's obvious devotion, which was particularly obvious when I joined him at our arranged meeting spot outside the commuter lot.

He looked at me like I was the only person on earth.

I thought I had exaggerated his beauty in the many, many fantasies I entertained while we were apart. Absence made the heart grow fonder, after all. It seemed my mind had downplayed his appearance, unable to replicate true perfection. His bronze-colored hair, always perfectly tousled. The sharp edge of his jaw, balanced by the soft curve of his lips. His broad shoulders, emphasized by his classic wool trench coat.

He pulled up one corner of his mouth into a half-smile so dazzling my knees buckled. He caught and steadied me before I could collapse in the snow. Then, pulled me up and into a tighter embrace.

"Have I told you how cute you are when you're bundled up like this?"

He had, but I wanted to hear it again. I feigned ignorance, which he saw though, but played along anyway. "If it didn't sound like a line from a horror movie coming from me, I would say I could eat you right up."

I laughed at his absurdity.

While he fiddled with the pompom on the top of my hat, I placed my hands on either side of his face for a kiss. He pulled away immediately, disappointment marring his beautiful face, "It's too cold out here."

"I don't care," I tried again, but he was stronger, faster, and taller than me and slipped from my grasp.

He wrapped his long fingers around my mitten and led me down a path toward the nearest building. "I have a plan, don't you worry."

"What do you think is going to happen?" I griped, petulantly. "That my tongue is going to get stuck to your skin?"

"It might," he grinned. I made sure to exaggerate the sourness of my frown as he looked back at me, so he knew just how ridiculous I found the whole thing. Still, I wanted nothing more than to force that smug smile off his mouth using my own.

We wound up in the exhibition center of the art building, still adorned with last semester's final projects. I worried that we would get caught, but remembered Edward's built-in radar detector before I could voice my concern. No one could get close without Edward knowing about it. He stopped at the first portion of the wall that wasn't covered in canvas or plaster and pushed me up against it. I gasped. My bag slid from my shoulder and landed on the ground with a thud.

"Isabella, my world," he murmured as the back of his knuckle skimmed down my cheek, "my only wish is to make this whole thing as safe as possible for you."

It was difficult to argue with him when he spun his voice like silk.

As light as a feather, his lips fluttered against mine. I thought that was all I was going to get, but Edward dove back in with vigor. His thumbs grazed across either side of my jaw as his hands went to the back of my neck, anchoring me to him.

Again, I thought he would pull away when he removed his hands, but he lowered them down my body, keeping our lips locked. His graceful fingers unzipped my coat. He chuckled under his breath when he found there was a second coat, but pressed his lips back to mine as he undid the buttons. I gasped with pleasure as he pushed his hands under my sweater, where the only barrier between our skin was the thin fabric of my t-shirt. I shivered, but not from the cold hands on my waist. Edward seemed to understand and deepened the kiss.

"We will never be apart that long again," he vowed, between panting breaths.

"Thank god," I mumbled, my head spinning too quickly to think of anything clever.

He released me, only to catch me again before I slid to the floor. My head was woozy. My knees were wobbly. I fumbled with the buttons on my coat twice. Edward took over and had me zipped and bundled in a fraction of the time. He slung my bag over his shoulder and beckoned me to venture back into the winter morning.

"Edward?"

He turned obediently, his lips and eyebrows pinched as if he were prepared for a scolding. As ruggedly handsome as he was, he could also be so adorable.

"I love you."

His face lightened and lifted into a glorious smile. "I love you, too."

Edward walked with me across campus to my first class. Outside the door, he removed my tote bag from his shoulder and carefully placed it on mine. I marveled at Edward's ability to ignore the crowd of students surrounding us. I only had to deal with their quizzical expressions and leering eyes—he had to deal with the thoughts that inspired their looks. I tried to keep my focus on his golden gaze and ignore the world around us, as he seemed to.

"I have officially carried your books to class."

He seemed so proud to have done so and I expressed my gratitude as I bid him farewell. Right before I stepped into the room, I turned back to say something else, but was distracted by the small, back Moleskin notebook he pulled out of seemingly nowhere. Brow furrowed, I watched as he opened to the middle of the book, checked something off with a red pen, and closed it.

"What is that?" I asked as he slipped it back into his pocket.

"Nothing of your concern."

"You're not allowed to keep secrets from me."

It must not have been too terribly secret, because he allowed me to fetch it from his pocket when we both knew he could have made it impossible. At a quick glance, the entire thing was filled with his elegant script. Then, I realized it was a list, comprised of things like kiss on a long-tail boat in Thailand and wear the same color.

"I lived with three couples for the past century," he sighed. "Not only that, but I've also experienced their thoughts, their cherished memories. There are things I was jealous of—things I wanted to do if I ever found someone to do them with."

"You want to do all this with me?"

"Well, I'm rational enough to understand that we might not be able to. But ambitious enough to want to try."

"Or romantic," I offered, tucking it back into place.

"Or delusional." He kissed my forehead. "Either way, making you late to class isn't on the list. I'll see you in an hour."

My first class was a different section of the classic literature course I dropped the previous semester. It was taught by another professor with a more promising reading list. Even with Dickenson's name floating around, I wasn't sure how I was supposed to concentrate on anything after all that. Class passed in a blur. I didn't realize when class ended—I just noticed when the students around me stood and ambled toward the door.

Edward was right outside, waiting for me. Over winter break, we rearranged our class schedules to include courses we could take together, and our next two classes were the same. When we weren't separated by desks, Edward's hands were on me: wrapped loosely around my shoulder, playing with the tips of my hair, fiddling with the belt loops of my jacket.

It was heaven.

At lunchtime, he walked with me to the student center where I was due to meet up with my friends. From there, I would wait for him to finish his last two classes of the day. It was only fair, for he arrived at school a full hour early simply to walk me to my first class.

Halfway to my usual lunch spot, Edward pulled me out of the flow of lunchtime traffic into a small nook. He lowered his lips to mine for a deeper kiss than I was expecting in this crowded building. His hand lingered on my face even after he broke the kiss and turned to leave without another word. I missed him the moment his hand left my skin. After a deep, calming breath, I turned to join my friends.

And I was met with six incredulous stares.

Angela and Ben looked away immediately and returned to a conversation between them, but Mike, Jessica, Lauren, and Tyler continued to gawk. As I approached, I noticed my little public display of affection caught the attention of several other tables. Students snuck a peek at me or strained to see Edward's retreating figure.

I did my best to ignore them as I took my usual seat.

"Hi guys," I said, with a bit too much enthusiasm, "How was your break?"

Jessica laughed. From the wild look in her eyes, I could tell I was about to be hit by one hell of a verbal assault, but Angela was quick to pick up on my mood.

"Mine was great," she chirped. She glanced in Edward's direction once before she launched into a story about her winter break, taking the conversation away from me before it could even start. I owed a lot to Angela's ability to pick up my cues. She was a true friend. I would have to ask Edward about a double date with her and Ben.

Ben tacked on a story after Angela, and the conversation progressed from there. Before I knew it, half the group needed to leave for their next class, and Mike and Tyler had to get back to work. Only Jessica and I remained at the table. Like a mouse locking eyes with a snake, I sensed the onslaught but had no idea out to avoid it.

"Do you have a class to get to?"

I considered lying but didn't want to get tangled in a web. "No, I'm going to get some work done in the coffee shop while I wait for…" I was too nervous to mention his name, so I left the sentence unfinished.

Jessica narrowed her eyes for a second before she forced a cheerful smile. "Do you mind if I come with you? I could use a latte."

My returning smile was just as forced as hers. "Not at all!"

Jessica waited until we both had our drinks, got settled at a table in the corner of the shop, and I pulled out a notebook, before she finally said, "What the hell are you doing with Edward Cullen?"

I should have known this would happen. If I had a single thought in my brain that didn't center around Edward's body all winter break, I would have laid down the groundwork for our relationship with my friends. The last thing they knew, Edward pretended to date me, and I vowed never to speak to him again.

"I know this seems out of the blue…"

Jessica raised her eyebrows in a way that said that was the tamest way she would describe the news.

"…but Edward and I are officially together."

"Are you insane!?"

Not in the way Jessica was asking. It was definitely insane to willingly acquaint myself with a vampire, and even more insane to enjoy the thrill of his teeth so close to my neck. But, all Jessica needed to know was that Edward had my best intentions in mind. Which he did. Possibly more than I did.

"We were wrong about him. I was wrong about him."

Jessica crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat. She had heard that before. The words possibly came out of her own mouth at some point. "I don't know, Bella. I can't shake the feeling that there's something off about him."

"There's nothing wrong with him. He's shy and sweet. Just because you don't see it doesn't mean it's not true."

Jessica theatrically tapped her finger to her chin, "I seem to remember you saying something very similar. Right before a date with him that ended with you in tears."

I gripped my coffee cup too hard, forcing the steaming liquid to bubble through the mouthpiece on the lid pool into the crevices. "That was a misunderstanding."

"Oh, I'd love to hear this."

"You should!" I hissed, uncharacteristically. Her skepticism made me defensive over something I shouldn't have needed to defend. Edward was my boyfriend—I didn't need her approval. "Especially since it was because of you and your serial killer nonsense. I spent that entire night misreading his behavior. Doubting his intentions. Creating mountains out of mounds. It wasn't fair to him."

Jessica was unrepentant. "What's different now, Bella? Because to me, the question remains the same: why would that boy only want your attention?"

"He loves me, Jess. As impossible as it may seem, it's true."

We took sips of coffee in tandem. "What did he do to convince you to give him a second chance?"

"Nothing. Even though I was downright cruel to him, he respected my wishes and stayed away from me. His mom works at the same school as my dad. I went in to help him decorate his classroom and ran into her. The subject of school came up, then she brought up Edward. After we made the connection, she was thrilled to meet me because of how much her son cared for me." The tale was close enough to the truth that my voice didn't once falter.

Jessica's face softened slightly. She fiddled with the lip of her cup. "I suppose if he told his mom about you, then your relationship wouldn't have been a joke to him."

"That's exactly what I thought," I nodded, pleased Jessica came up with her own reasoning, and I didn't need to force more half-truths into the story. "So, I gave him one more chance, right before winter break. Our date was so lovely and romantic." I sighed, unable to stop myself. "He was a gentleman stepped out of a story and he never gave me grief about dumping him."

"So, I guess he really cares about you, huh?" It was clear she didn't share my enthusiasm.

"He does, Jess," I insisted, "He really does. I know that he's a bit of an odd duck. I like that he's an odd duck. Can you please be happy?"

She sniffed, "I'll try. But just know that I don't like it and I don't like him."

I supposed that was the best I was going to get. I had given a reason for my relationship that Jessica could believe, and she could not see it from any other angle. In her eyes, a romance between Edward and me could only be a cruel joke. His love was an impossibility.

"Sounds good."

Her eyes brightened, and for a moment I thought she had come to an epiphany about Edward, but she said, "Do you want to know what Mike got me for Christmas?"

Not after she insulted me with her doubt, but there was no need to stir the pot any more than I already had. "I'd love to."

E-POV

"There's that scowl." I flinched at the sound of Emmett's voice, my aforementioned scowl growing more pronounced. I didn't turn to check and see if his teasing was verbal or mental, so I didn't respond. "You've been so happy lately; I was worried we'd never see it again."

I shushed him, short and sharp.

Chuckling, my brother joined me at the empty table outside of the coffee shop where I was due to meet Bella after my classes ended. My last class of the day was cut short—the professor was as eager to get home as much as the students were. I was almost through the door when I heard my name hissed scornfully, then backtracked out and ended up here. On the other side of the wall, I listened in as Bella's friend Jessica shared her opinion on our relationship.

"I don't know, Bella," Jessica continued, "I can't shake the feeling that there's something off about him." And I can't stand the idea of you being with him, she added, internally.

I shared a trepid look with Emmett, who was now listening along with me. He seemed unphased. "There are always one or two humans in every group who watched too many scary movies. Or as Rosie says, 'are more in tune with their natural instincts'. It's nothing to worry about. It'll go away once they like you."

That was my issue—no one liked me. "How important is it to a human girl for her friends to approve of her boyfriend?"

Emmett laughed, loud and boisterous—the only way he did anything. He swung his arm around and slapped my bicep so hard it shook me and the table. "As important as it to you that your friends like her."

"I don't have any friends," I muttered.

Emmett placed his hand on his heart, feigning hurt. "Low blow, man. I won't tell Alice you said that."

"You know what I mean. You're my family, first. Not only is there no reason for you to disapprove of my Bella in any capacity, but you all would have approved of her regardless. You would have been happy for me if I brought home Bigfoot."

Emmett released a low whistle. "Happier, probably."

I scanned the room for Jessica's thoughts again, but a fresh wave of customers came through and the bodies in the room more than doubled. With all those voices, in addition to the external chatter, I could barely pick out my own thoughts, let alone find Jessica's again. I growled and muttered an oath. Giving up, I pushed back every sound until it became a low hum, down to the rustle of the fabric of Emmett's sleeve as he placed his hand on my shoulder.

I watched his lips as he said, "You have to chill. It's not a big deal."

"Of course, it's a big deal!" My voice sounded too loud against the hum, even in a whisper. "Bella shouldn't have to face any repercussions by being in this relationship."

I was so selfish. No, I was stupid. I considered the risks of being public with Bella, yet I pursued her against my better judgment. I couldn't let her be pushed to the outskirts of society for associating herself with me. It wasn't fair.

"We already went over this in Alaska in painful detail. You're going to let Bella approach you when she's ready to suck some blood, and none of us are allowed to say anything."

That was another problem with our relationship. On top of being a social pariah, I was a monster in the most literal sense. I selfishly hadn't considered what that would mean for Bella until I arrived home after our first, honest date, and the same question repeated through everyone's mind: when is Bella going to turn?

It horrified me to discover that Bella might feel pressured to change for me. I never wanted to negatively affect her in any way, so I toned down that vampirism for our next few dates. Originally, I had a few splendors planned to impress Bella that would have utilized my speed, wealth, or musical talents. I pulled the plug on those and took her on the dates I thought of while I was still playing human for her.

However, no amount of playing human was going to help if Bella's friends were terrified of me. If she lost any of her human connections because of me, I would never forgive myself. Frustrated, I pinched the bridge of my nose between my forefinger and thumb. "Why is she with me?"

"Because she likes you, dude. She's already proved that she wants you as a mind reader and as a vampire. Her dumb, human friends aren't going to change that. If it bothers you so much, bring her to the house. Let her be around the people who like you, too."

It was a tempting offer. Acceptance was on the tip of my tongue, but I ultimately shook my head. "I'm struggling enough as it is to seem normal for her. I don't need mom pulling out pictures of me as a human or your tales from the 1980s."

Emmett grinned, unashamed. He'd been loudly considering which of my embarrassing stories he was going to share with Bella.

"Maybe she doesn't need you to seem normal. How do know you she's not into the vampire thing? I say you lean into it. If you want, we can all wear black robes, dig up some coffins, chant."

I didn't see how that was possible. I rubbed my eyes with the heels of my hand. "Look, I'll think about it. I'm just not sure…"

Emmett perked up and jutted his thumb at the wall, "Did you hear that?"

I shook my head. I opened up my mind to receive Emmett's thoughts. Hundreds followed, but I knew my brother's mental voice well enough to find him immediately. Then, he played a memory of my favorite voice in the world saying, "I know that he's a bit of an odd duck. I like that he's an odd duck."

I couldn't stop the goofy smile that spread across my face. It was the tamest description of me I had ever heard, and possibly the sweetest.

Emmett matched my smile with one of his own. "You see that? Nothing to worry about, Duckie."

There was still plenty to worry about, but hearing Bella defend me felt too good to ignore. Not even the newest addition to Emmett's arsenal of embarrassing nicknames for me could dampen my mood.

"Thank you, Emmett."

"What you do need to worry about is how your girlfriend is going to react when she finds out you and your brother eavesdropped on her private conversation."

My eyes widened in horror as Emmett's smirk grew more pronounced. I stood, immediately, and hurried into the coffee shop.

And froze the second I saw her again.

As my every thought became her.

Worry was replaced by the graceful way she cradled her neck in her hand. Concern was swept away by the tilt of her lips as she took them between her teeth. Fear was conquered by her soft, supple curves, tightly wrapped in a sweater. The sweater I wished to tear in two in the art building…

Bella caught me staring like an oaf. "Edward!" She waved me over to her table.

"Hello, sweetheart." Approaching her, everything felt right again. I had been away from her for too long—that was my problem. Nothing was right when we were apart. Next to my beautiful Bella, all the promises Esme made to me in the past rang true. My love for this human girl was enough that everything would work out. Enough for me to force fate into a path where I remained at her side. I grinned at Jessica, knowing that she would never fight as hard to break us apart as I would to keep us together. "Hello, Jessica."

Bella checked the time on her phone. Across the table, Jessica mimicked her. "You're here sooner than I thought you'd be."

"My last class was cut short. We were released early."

"Lucky." Bella gave me a bemused smile, then shared it with Jessica. Jessica might have said something, but I didn't notice. My eyes refused to leave Bella's lovely face for me to check.

"Shall I join you?"

"No need. I'm ready to leave." Bella hopped up from her seat too quickly—she stumbled and bashed her hip on the corner of the table. I caught the table by the edge and Bella by her elbow.

"Careful," I warned, in a low voice.

A blush spread over her cheeks. Bella's gaze flickered to Jessica, and the pink darkened into red.

The girls went over the plans for the rest of their weeks as I helped Bella into both her jackets, then took her bag and her empty coffee cup. Jessica stood and gathered her belongings as well. Her thoughts were loud, and featured her old fantasies much more than I would have liked, but I was able to ignore them for the most part by focusing on Bella's sweet scent, instead.

Warm, woodsy, and floral. The scent of encountering honeysuckle during a summer stroll through a forest. Every encounter with Bella was just as gentle and dreamy.

"See you later, Jess."

I mumbled a similar dismissal in her general direction. Whatever Jessica was thinking, I was better off not knowing.

"Would you like a refill?" I asked, holding up Bella's empty cup.

"That would be lovely, thank you."

Hand-in-hand, we got back in line, and I ordered another coffee for Bella.

"Where should we go?" she asked, while we waited at the other side of the shop for her order.

My first instinct was the library or her house. Anywhere where we could be together and I could have a semblance of quiet, unlike in this bustling shop. However, I was close to bursting with unfamiliar confidence and was inclined to take Emmett up on his earlier offer. I should introduce her to some of the wonders of my world. It didn't hurt that most of those wonders were vampires who would put me in a better light than her human friends. "What do you say to coming home with me?"

"Your house?" she blinked in surprise. "Would your family be there?"

Struggling to understand her expression and tone, I offered a vague answer. One that she could interpret whichever way she liked. "Most of them, yes. We'll breeze past them and head up to my bedroom."

Her eyes brightened, intrigued. I wasn't sure which part of the statement inspired that reaction. "Sounds wonderful."

"Great," I grinned, using the hand that wasn't wrapped around her mitten to text Emmett in my pocket.

Bella's name was called, and she took her coffee from the pick-up counter. Wrapping her arm through my elbow, she took a sip, leaned into my side, and agreed, "Great."

Boy. These filler, fluff chapters are either the easiest thing to write or the most difficult, and there is no in-between. So sorry for the long wait! I'm far along on the rest of the chapters, so I don't there will be this long of a wait again (because I avoided working on this chapter by working on the rest…)

For those interested in what will happen next, we have one more fluffy chapter then we'll start the B plot where we will be introduced to Jacob (10 points if you can guess what his role will be—hint: I despise love triangles).