Recap of Chapter 35:

The Cullen Brothers are off to the will reading, but Jasper and Ben are confused as to why they were invited. They leave and when Jasper is left alone, he reaches out to his sister and Alice, begging to try and have a meeting with them in private. There, it's revealed that Jasper has known for awhile about Bella's and Edward's secret relationship, weighing heavy on his mind as he tries to sort out his emotions. When he meets with the girls, it goes about as well as he expected. The two are obviously upset and try to deny the fact that there is a photo of the two of them together, as well as try to push off Jasper's story of hearing them on the ski trip. Rosalie is left reeling with her temper flared at an all time high, while Alice looks to be trying to take the rational route as much as she is also hurt over the betrayal of trust. After Jasper had sent out a text to include Emmett in on the discussion, Emmett replies back later eluding to a bombshell of his own. Before long, there's new preparations to be made over this and the teens wait for the second round of confrontations that is bound to happen.

A/N: And we're back with another installment.

We'll be picking back up with where we left off after the initial will readings ending.

Let's begin!

Chapter 36

~Bella~

When Edward and I had rejoined the others in the parking garage, we split away from each other with a quick squeezing of our hands and went to our respective rides. I could see Esme and Carlisle sending me small encouraging smiles, as they were supportive of Edward and I this whole time. Ever since we had met way back when my dad had inquired about Edward getting a gun, they chose to be there for us and support our choices in dating and only wished the best for us. Now that our secret was revealed out loud to Emmett, they chose to still be there for us - at least on the surface it would seem so.

Of course now, with the knowledge that in reality they've known me for a lot longer than I ever realized, I guess they always supported me in some aspect if they actually cared about me as if I was one of their own. They had fallen in love with Emmett back then when he was hospitalized for his cancer, enough so they were willing to take on the burden of his surgery costs and the aftercare involved that Charlie and Renee couldn't financially handle. They did so much for us now as much as they have done too throughout the years for us, without any of us ever truly realizing it, and they did it all with a smile. Carlisle and Esme were truly wonderful. After today, with the knowledge that now Emmett was my brother as well as the fact they were Edward's aunt and uncle, I was grateful for them. They've done so much to support the two of them, care for them and ensure their happiness. I knew it still stung for them in how Emmett reacted to the news and that they withheld the truth from us. I could see it in Esme's eyes that she was upset by how he was lashing out at all of us, and Carlisle was hurt as well from his reactions but neither of them pushed him to accept the news any faster or to get over it. They were always patient and understanding from the little time I have interacted with them. Edward's always told me he's looked up to the two of them growing up. It made so much sense now. So I was appreciative of the fact that now our secret was out, they were showing their support still for Edward and I.

I waved goodbye to them, with Edward winking towards me. I could feel my cheeks heat up from the action. Emmett had already chose to sit in the family's SUV, so if he saw our interaction I couldn't see how he reacted to it. I turned and slid into Jacob's Rabbit where he and his father were inside waiting.

"You alright Bells?" I glanced at Billy through the rearview mirror to see him looking up towards me with concern apparent in his dark eyes.

I inhaled slowly and nodded my head. "I think I am."

"Scared shitless?" Jacob asked with teasing evident in his voice. Billy grunted at his son and I snickered to myself.

"Jacob..."

"Dad I'm only teasing her." Jacob waved off his dad's warning and I rolled my eyes at him.

"To be honest, yes I am." I murmured, twiddling with my thumbs while Billy reached forward to clasp a hand on my shoulder in comfort. "I know for a fact that Edward and I are about to face massive backlash and ridicule from the school as soon as the word starts spreading around. I have no doubt that Emmett is going to tell this to our friends as soon as we return to the school and it's going to be ugly." I explained quietly, to which Jacob nodded to acknowledge that he was listening intently.

"You're always welcomed at the reservation still Bells." Billy reminded me, offering me a safe haven away from the school incase things become overwhelming.

"Thanks Billy."

"I'm also here for you B, just a phone call away."

"I know, and thanks Jake."

For the remainder of the ride, I let Jacob and his dad just talk amongst themselves as they were planning on what to do when they'd get back to the reservation. Jacob promised me that he'd continue taking care of Scooter for me and that we can find time for us to work together on training him through his pup-hood hurdles. While they talked, I took a moment to text Angela and Jessica briefly, informing of the mishap that happened today and that no doubt I was going to be heading into the lion's den soon with Emmett going to find the others to start spreading the news he found out today. Angela and Jessica were shocked to hear about what I had done, but as always they were the best supportive friends a girl could ask for, vowing their loyalty still to Edward and I and that they'd be there in a heartbeat when things are about to go down. I still didn't feel right in letting them take the fall with us, but they had reassured me that they cared about me as well as cared about Edward. They were our best friends and they'd stick it out for us, not giving a damn about the resulting fires that is sure to come our way. They reminded me they'd be facing the same amount of ridicule for the fact they two had been dating their respective guys in secret just like Edward and I had been, which I agreed with them on that point. I told them that no doubt as soon as the three of us return to the school, we'd be led away to Jasper, Rose and Alice for the resulting confrontation, to which I said I'd let them know for sure if we'd need their aid or not.

It took at least almost an hour to head back to Forks due to the weekend traffic, but the closer we got to the school the more the dread built up inside me of facing the impending doom that was heading my way. I didn't think I'd have to be facing my friends today in discussing the lies I had put forth for all of these months I've been going to school. I had it stuck inside my head that Edward and I would have time to finalize what all we'd say to them, and then come together just before Valentine's Day to tell them the truth. It wouldn't have made it any easier still to wait until then just like it wasn't any easier that it was happening today soon as we made it back to the school. A small part of me had hopes that perhaps Emmett would wait until another time to gather up Rosalie, Alice and Jasper to discuss this, but I had to be realistic too.

When we finally pulled up to the school behind the Cullens' SUV, I felt my breath hitch. "Remember Bella, you got us at the Reservation if you ever need support or help. Take it easy today. You and Edward might have lied to your friends, but that was honestly the only thing wrong - you guys dating is not all that wrong." Jacob spoke to me then just as he heard me start to panic when we pulled to a stop on the curb in front of the school. I glanced over to see him giving me an encouraging smile. "You two are so in love I get a stomach ache, yet I know that two are going to pull through this if you stick together and be there for one another."

"Right." I said simply, taking another deep breath. Jacob was right of course. Edward and I did have this, as long as we stuck it out together and weathered the hate that was to come our way. We had each other - we loved each other and nothing was going to tear us apart. It'll be hard facing the hate from every single student but we had each other. I had only the smallest bit of hope that over time the others would get over the anger and hurt from us lying, and move on. If those that we cared about really cared about us and our feelings, they'd grow past their anger and I could only wish for them to be able to find forgiveness in us. I didn't want this hurt to last for a long time as I know I'd be exceedingly crushed if I lost Rosalie and Alice as my best friends for an extended period of time. And I know Edward would feel the same about the guys.

Jacob helped me out of his Rabbit just as I could see Emmett and Edward exiting their SUV. Jacob gave me a quick hug before he retreated back to his warm car. I gave a shivering wave to the Blacks before they pulled away from the school. The Cullen's SUV also drove off from the curb and I walked carefully over towards Edward as Emmett pulled out his phone to send a text to someone. It was still wintery out here - not nearly as bitingly cold as it had been in the past few months, but still cold enough for me to start to feel the freezing effects. "Hey." Edward murmured to me just as I stopped beside him. I hummed and he smirked at my shivering. "Cold?"

"A little." I muttered back and Edward chuckled at my tone. "Glad you find me starting to freeze my ass off, amusing." I grumbled which caused him to snicker at my bitter attitude. Stupid hot boyfriend and his natural body heat; he can withstand the cold temperatures like it was just a normal sunny day.

"Ahem." We jumped at the sound of a throat clearing, before we glanced up to see Emmett looking over at us with a stony expression. "It's time we get this over with and have a chat with the others."

Edward frowned at his demands, and I gulped.

"We're really doing this right now?"

"And what? You think putting it off is going to make it any better?"

"Alright." I cut in, not wanting them to start arguing again. Emmett glowered briefly at Edward before he turned towards the school gates. Edward huffed but didn't say anything either. He turned towards me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders, starting to rub my arm with his hand in hopes of warming me up. I smiled up to him, grateful for the attempts. "Thanks." I whispered and he winked down at me. I turned back towards Emmett who had glanced back over towards us, as if waiting for us to give him the cue of when we'd be ready to go. "Let's just get going then. Where is it that you'd like to hold this little meeting?" I muttered to him.

"I told Jasper I'd like to have us all meet up in the auditorium. He also told me he's already there with the girls - I guess they've had a chat of their own today." I balked at his admission, as did Edward. Emmett shrugged his bulky shoulders before he waved to us to start following after him. There we began to trudge through the light snow and carefully walk on the icy sidewalks into the school. It was a quiet Sunday with no students hanging around outside. I wasn't surprised by the lack of students still, as it was still winter. It wasn't nearly as completely snowed over on campus as it had been last month, but it was still relatively cold that any sane person would remain indoors where there was heat. I stuck close to Edward's side as he led us after Emmett.

"Are you alright love?" Edward whispered to me after a moment or two of silence. I glanced up at him to see him staring down at me with worry evident in his emerald eyes. I blushed a bit under the intensity of his stare which caused a smirk start to crack on his face, but I nodded to him briefly.

"More or less, yes I am." I whispered back, sighing. It had been a tiring day as is after everything that was unloaded onto us at the will reading, and I was truthfully dying to escape back to my dorm room and crawl under my covers. I wanted to sleep and wish that today had been nothing more than just a terrible dream as I couldn't still wrap my head around everything that I found out today. Emmett being my blood related brother was the biggest shock of my life and something I don't think I'd ever really come to fully grasp. There was still a small inkling of hope that perhaps someday we could talk, joke and have an actual brother-sister relationship that wasn't strained like it is now. Of course it's hard to forget the cruel jokes and insults he had liked to fling my way ever since the school year had started. I couldn't just ignore all of that so easily. But I hoped that maybe over time I'd recover from it. On top of that bombshell, there was the fact as well that it was revealed to me, to all of us, on what actually happened to Charlie. He was murdered because of his fatherly protection over me - and it's all thanks to Joshua's and James' crazy obsession with me. They let their insanity and desires to get to me, boil over into taking away my father from me. They eliminated one protector in hopes to have a better shot at reaching me.

I knew my life was more in peril now that my father way gone. But I still had Edward here for my protection. I was beyond frightened at the fact that my father was killed essentially because of me and now that left Edward; his life was in more danger than before because of his association with me - of being my boyfriend. James and Joshua could see him and how he reacts whenever they're near me, they must've made the connection by now that Edward cares enough about my safety. They'll see him as a threat and Edward would be their next target. It was all my fault. With disregard for his own safety Edward is still willing to stand in the way of the two of them in order to protect me with his life. I was beyond upset with his choice but this was Edward after all. I loved the fool to death and he felt the same way about me.

I had to protect him as best as I could, but how I'd achieve that I wasn't sure yet. I could only hope that the idea would come to me sooner or later.

I had sent a quick text to Angela and Jessica about the incoming confrontation we were about to have, and it didn't take us long to trek through the school to arrive at the auditorium. Emmett went inside first and held the door open slightly, long enough for Edward to catch it. He ushered me inside before he followed behind me, sticking closely to my side. We continued to walk after Emmett, entering the large and empty auditorium. It was only occupied by three other people - Rosalie, Alice and Jasper. When we entered I could see all three of them sitting up on the stage waiting for us. All of them snapped their gazes up to us when they heard us enter and I wanted to immediately run from them once I noticed their expressions. I could tell right away Rosalie was pissed with how hard her brows were furrowed along with the sour frown that marred her beautiful face. Alice held a look of hurt and worry, her black eyebrows turned down and a pout on her small face. Jasper was the only one to try and look passive while he watched the three of us trudge through the rows of seats and up the slope that led to the stage. I was completely lost on what brought the three of them together earlier today, consider Emmett hinted they already had a chat of their own before we came back to the school. I didn't know exactly what that chat was, but I guess I'd be finding out shortly here.

"Well, good to see you made it." Jasper decided to break the ice and speak up first once we had joined them on the stage. Emmett nodded his head whilst Edward huffed, but we said nothing.

"Why are you three here already?" Edward spoke up a minute later, raising an eyebrow up at Jasper, Rosalie and Alice. I glanced over to see Rosalie give a huff of her own as she shifted angrily from one foot to another. Alice bit her lip yet looked away from us.

"I had to chat with my sister and her friend over something important." Jasper began to explain, shoving his hands into his pockets. He looked over to Edward and I, his blue eyes roaming between us inquisitively. "Something that involves you two."

"What?" Edward grumbled, crossing his arms.

"And of course I wanted us all to get together, because it's something that can't be ignored." Emmett interrupted then, and we all looked over to him when he spoke up. "I guess it helps that your topic coincides with mine."

"Oh?" Rosalie snarked suddenly, whipping her blue eyes angrily to Emmett.

"Rose -"

"No Alice." Alice stopped short when Rosalie cut her off from trying to speak up. "The time to try and be calm about this, to be nice, is over." she growled under her breath and glared directly at Edward and I.

Oh no.

"You... You know then?" I whispered, cringing when she rolled her eyes harshly.

"Jasper found out about you two, and told Alice and I today about it." she grumbled, glaring.

"Well that makes my job easier then." Emmett muttered and the others whipped their gazes to him. "Bella let the secret slip about her and Edward when we were at the will reading." he continued and Alice's frowned deepened while Rosalie let out a small scream of fury.

"Of course, the big buffoon that is Emmett finds out because my supposed best friend spilled it to him before she even thought to come to us to tell us." Rosalie hissed and I balked under the severity of her tone. "I can't believe this - I had hopes, this little shred of hope, that maybe my brother was just yanking my chain to try and cause shit between us Bella." Rosalie snarled then, whipping her blue scowl back to me. "How could you keep this from us?! You've been lying this whole entire time to Alice and I, to all of the girls at the school! You were supposed to be leading us in this feud. This whole entire time we looked up to you for strength in imposing the feud, in fighting off the advances from the guys. And yet this whole time you were lying to us!" Rosalie snapped at me, nostrils flaring in her rage.

"Rose -"

"Fuck off Jasper!" Rosalie growled at her twin.

"Hey, seriously calm down Rosalie." Edward growled back, looking severely unhappy at Rosalie's unhinged rage.

"Like you get to try to tell me to calm down, you prick!" she shot back, and I glared at her throwing her rage now at Edward. "You were no better in lying to the guys about this too!"

"Trust me, I'm just as pissed as you are toots." Emmett muttered then, not even flinching when Rosalie's eyes darted to him in her fury. "I already had my argument with Edward about this when we were out."

Edward scoffed at his adoptive brother, and I could see Alice's frown deepen even more if that was possible.

"You aren't denying it then." Alice stated weakly, looking between Edward and I. I bit my lip when she looked at me with those sad grey eyes of hers - it looked as if her heart was being ripped out. I knew that this was going to hurt them when they'd find out about us, but I think it definitely rubbed more salt into the wound with the fact they found out through Jasper rather than it coming from me directly. It still would've hurt regardless even if I talked with them about it, but still the sentiment lies there if it comes from the source versus them hearing about it from a third party. When she continued to stare, I looked away from her sad gaze. "Why did you never think to come and talk to us Bella?"

"Because," I started, reaching a hand up to my hair and running my fingers through my curls with anxiety building up within me. "We are gearing up for this silly little feud because you two were so impassioned by what happened to me when Edward had pulled that stunt on me in the hallway. It just... happened all so fast too with Edward." I began to try and explain our case to the group, noting that Edward quickly looked away in shame when I mentioned yet again the incident that was the catalyst for this gender feud. Without even thinking twice about it, my hand shot out to grabbed onto his large calloused hand to comfort him. The usual sparks lit between us when we touched, and I welcomed them as I squeezed his hand. Edward turned his head back towards me and looked down at me with his eyes swirling with sadness. I know he was still forever beating himself over the stunt he pulled on me all those months ago, and at the time he had no idea just how much the joke affected me because he had no clue about my past. I have since forgiven him time and time again but I knew the boy would feel guilty over it for a whole lifetime. I gave him a small smile to show I was not upset with him on it still, before I continued. "He realized just how bad it really affected me when he pulled the stunt and he came to apologize to me in person over it, before he offered a chance for us to be friends. It was only a couple days later that he asked me to go out on a friendly dinner with me and I agreed to it, even if it was just us being awkward dorks to each other."

"And the next day you two were sick." Emmett cut in then, once again reminding us of the same detail as he did when we were at Jenks' office. The others glanced at him in shock, as if surprised he would remember such a negligible detail. But he waved them off.

"When we were sick the next day and we were alone in that nurse's office..." Edward spoke up then, still not looking away from me. "We realized that being friends wasn't enough to define what we really felt for one another. I'm not going to beat around the bush and deny the fact that as soon as you ladies stepped onto campus, I was instantly attracted to Bella." he murmured and I could feel the blush rising once more to my cheeks. "I was a complete dickhead for the stupid stunt I pulled on her in that hallway and I will never let myself forget it - but if I had known about her past I never would've thought of pulling it in the first place." Edward continued to explain to himself, before he suddenly turned to the others. "I never wanted to act like a douche either to you girls when you arrive. I gave into following Emmett's lead just because I was stupid and had no experience around girls or how to talk to them in the first place. I didn't need to listen to anymore of Emmett's ridicule if he were to suddenly turn on me and shit on me for acting like a decent guy to her."

"Oh sure, blame me for this." Emmett growled, scowling at his adoptive brother.

"Face it Em, you have a way of being a huge piece of shit naturally and not even fucking caring about your actions." Edward growled right back, leveling an equally scary scowl to him. "You cannot deny the fact that you chose to shove your foot into your mouth and your head up your ass the minute the girls arrived to our campus. It would take not even kill you to actually think for one second about what you should say, and yet you willingly chose to act like a massive asshole to the girls."

"Got that right." Rosalie retorted out loud, and Alice nodded her head in agreement, to which Jasper sighed and rubbed his neck awkwardly at the route this conversation was going.

"And I already know that, considering you and Carlisle wanted to get into it with me over it during our trip up north." Emmett muttered angrily. "But that doesn't excuse the real root of the problem here still - the fact that you lied to us guys about your relationship with Bella. Both of you are in the wrong for keeping this a secret from us."

"As if we're fucking trying to deflect that!" Edward cried out suddenly, and I jumped from his sudden yell. "We know for a fact what we did was wrong. We sat there for months with the guilt sitting heavy on our shoulders! We didn't want to keep it from you all for as long as we did - but what choices did we have?!" he shouted in agitation, shaking his head angrily.

"You could've came forward and talked with us - at least with me man." Jasper muttered, and Edward looked away guiltily.

"And you could've come to me Bella." Alice murmured quietly, ignoring Rosalie huff of irritation. I looked over at her with a shake of my head.

"It wouldn't have made a difference -"

"You don't know that."

"But I feel like I do Alice." I interrupted her, hating that I cut her off and the resulting pout made it worse. "Every girl and every guy was all gung ho for this feud because we were too stubborn and prideful to end it. Both sides are guilty for it. I hated that I kept this from you gals - believe me when I was sitting there stressed out of my mind for so long. You two are my best friends and I hated that I was sitting here lying to you both about how I felt and acted about Edward." Rosalie huffed again and crossed her arms angrily over her chest when I said this. "I did, Rose! I felt the heaviest sleight of guilt on me every single day that I was hiding this from you all. But what choice did I have - what choice did we have?! We knew that regardless if we told you sooner or not, or if we even told you we were talking as friends when things were starting up with the feud, you all still would've been hurt with us, been pissed with us and not want to be our friends anymore! We were damned if we did and damned if we didn't, regardless of how soon or late we'd tell you the truth." I shook my head with my shoulders slumping. "You two have to realize that at first I wanted to deny my feelings for Edward but it wasn't something I couldn't ignore..." Rosalie and Alice whipped to look over at me with mild shock, as did the guys. "After everything I had been through regarding my ex," I paused again to swallow the emotions that were welling up within me. I pushed them down before continuing. "I was made to feel worthless with him for years, and after facing that abuse, I felt like I could never find love again or that I'd be worthy of love. So imagine my surprise when I got feelings for Edward... I thought he was just another douchebag like Joshua with his stupid stunt he pulled. But when he came to me to apologize for it and that he wanted to be friends with me, it was like I had stepped into another universe - that not all guys were jerks." I stepped back to stand closely next to Edward where I wrapped my hands around one of his. I looked up at him and made sure to hold his gaze as I continued to speak, not caring if the others were scrutinizing us. "Edward's made me feel so loved and cared for once we've gotten together as boyfriend and girlfriend. I feel so safe with him, I feel like I'll never be harmed again by Joshua or James again. I've never felt so happy in my life, and it's all thanks to him." I turned now to look over at Rosalie's face which was looking stony as ever. "Doesn't my happiness matter to you girls?"

Rosalie snorted briefly, which Alice looked over at her with sadness evident in her eyes. Alice was listening intently the whole time to what I was saying, but not speaking up much or commenting on anything. Emmett looked over at Rosalie when she snorted, and Jasper grimaced at his sister's reaction and looked away. Rosalie shifted on her feet and held her chin up indignantly. "Sure, cared for is one way of putting it in describing Edward just fucking you."

I blanched at the word she used while Edward snapped his eyes to her, widened in shock.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me." Rosalie hissed at him, rolling her eyes. "Don't try to deny it considering you have a witness." she motioned to her twin. Now I felt my cheeks flaring up in embarrassment at what she was implying, as Edward cursed under his breath.

"You heard us? When?!" Edward asked Jasper, his voice marred with shock and a hint of anger.

"Not like I wanted to hear anything like that!" Jasper cried in a defensive tone, his cheeks turning pink. "Jesus, no one wants to hear their friend getting it on with a chick, man!" Jasper shook his blond locks and rubbed at his neck once again. "I was coming to check on you dude when you two had fell into the ice that day, but when I came up to your room, I heard... you two at it..." he trailed off, closing his eyes in agitation.

"Christ..." Edward growled, his cheeks flamed as he looked down at the ground. I was mortified realizing now that we had someone hear us that day. Neither of us were exactly quiet with one another.

"Pfft, you two fell into the ice and not long after, you thought it was a good idea to bone each other?" Emmett's teasing voice boomed then, and I looked over at him to see him sniggering to himself with a shake of his head. Alice's cheeks were tinted pink at hearing this and she looked away, whilst Rosalie rolled her eyes at Emmett's summarization of the news. "You're thinking with the wrong head man." he added, and Edward growled angrily to himself.

"Fuck you, what I do with my girlfriend is only between us. Yeah I was being crass with thinking about that when it was just the two of us and I thought it'd be a sufficient way to warm up, but why should I have to explain that considering I thought we were alone with no one nearby to hear us?" Edward snapped at him, his cheeks still dark with the admission.

"As I said, totally taking care of her." Rosalie remarked bitingly and I glared at her. "Yes glare at me Bella, but you really can't deny it either. Should I believe that this is an actual relationship or you two just deciding it's cool to get with each other and fuck around?" she snorted off my anger and I felt even more hurt at her cold attitude, but I also knew that I should've expected this.

"I could be a real bitch you know and just lovingly dump everything that we've talked about too, you know, Rosalie. About the fact that you have shared lovely and explicit secrets with me." I muttered in a hiss.

"What?!" Rosalie snarled and began to stomp towards me. I matched her energy and we were soon standing in front of each other with mere centimeters separating us. Jasper reacted quickly in holding his twin back, while Edward raced forward to hold me back by both of my arms. Alice squeaked and scuttled off towards Emmett, who was guffawing at the sight. "Come on then bitch, go ahead and spill it! Let's see how far you'd get when I'm right here in your face." Rosalie challenged me, ignoring Jasper's hisses to knock it off.

"Bella -"

"No Edward, you all should hear every little stupid detail this girl wanted to swear me to secrecy. Like the fact she 'hates' Emmett's guts yet admits that she is turned on by his sheer size and height, along with drooling over his muscles. Or that she likes how you looked when you were all sweaty and tired after a singing practice, Ed." I snarled out, feeling a flare up in my chest when I recalled that detail. Rosalie had at some points throughout the school year, had private talks with me whenever the other girls weren't nearby. She loved to spew hatred for the guys and loved to drag on and on about her animosity for them, but there were times where she'd admit out loud to me about how she felt about the guys at times, in fleeting passing moments - and she had sworn me to secrecy that I can never tell a soul about her thoughts about them; she especially didn't want Alice finding out considering two of her secret pining involved Alice's adopted brothers (and well I guess now, my brother in this sense). Rosalie's nostrils flared even more as I continued to spill her darkest secrets about the boys. "Shall I keep going then Rosalie?" I asked her in a snarky tone.

"Rose!" Alice cried out in shock.

"Fuck you Bella!" Rosalie screeched, her hand jolting up getting ready to slap me. Jasper caught it in time just as Edward yanked me behind him in protection.

"Try it Hale." Edward hissed at her as Rosalie spat at his feet.

"Ed, don't even!" Jasper shouted, looking angry at his remark.

"Damn sweet-cheeks, all you had to do to let me know you liked me was say something." Emmett boasted stupidly, ignoring Jasper's murderous glare as he pulled his sister back roughly.

"Eat a dick you shithead. As if I'd ever really admit I liked you!" Rosalie shrieked, heaving heavy breaths as she tried to fight off her brother. "If there's anyone around here you liked it's Swan considering you loved to target her day in and day out with your fucking sick insults and jokes. But considering you only ever liked to hurl them her way, it tells me enough that you like her and want to fuck her!"

"As fucking if!" Edward snarled angrily, his eyes darkening considerably at her notion.

"Yeah yeah, react in jealousy you prick!" She had no idea that she was so off base.

"You've got it all wrong Rose!" I snapped at her, shaking my head in disgust.

"I think I've hit the nail on the head. You just went to Edward since he was right there and chose to fucking spread your legs for him first since you couldn't work up the courage to weasel Emmett under your ways!" Rosalie's screeching had me seeing red as soon as the words slipped from her mouth.

"Rosalie!" Alice shrieked in shock and disgust at her words.

"Oh she did not just say that." I seethed, barely registering Edward's scoff of disgust.

Emmett cringed at her words, his joking expression dissipating as he scowled. "Newsflash princess, I never saw her like that - and frankly after today, I would never see her like that in a million years!"

"Oh what?! Did you find out she's like your fucking fifth cousin or something when you went to this little will reading today?" Rosalie raged, ceasing her struggling against her brother's hold on her as she shook her blond hair out of her face. I grimaced and looked down at the floor as Edward made a noise to himself before looking down as well. Emmett closed his eyes tightly and turned his head away. Alice looked at our reactions, her black spiky head shaking back and forth as she looked between us over and over. "What?! Did I guess right or some shit?" Rosalie pressed on with her probing, not liking that neither of us were answering her right away.

"Not a cousin." Emmett begin in a mutter. "Bella's my sister."

"What?!" Alice gasped, and Jasper's jaw dropped.

"What the fuck?" Rosalie shouted in hysterics, slumping against Jasper.

"I'm her fucking brother." Emmett growled, crossing his arms. "Yes I'm just as shocked as you all are."

"Wha -" Jasper blubbered, shaking his head. "How?!"

"He was given up by my - our parents, when he was younger." I murmured, wincing at the reminder.

"I had cancer when I was younger - brain cancer." Emmett cut in then, his voice taking on a cold, stony and detached tone as he spoke of his past condition. Jasper and Rosalie looked shocked to hear this, but since Alice had been adopted into the Cullen family much like Edward had been, it wouldn't come to be a surprise to me if she knew of Emmett's cancer. "I was too far out of it in and out of comas and procedures to really remember who my actual parents were, but today I found out through the will reading..." Emmett began to explain, sighing unhappily. "Charlie and Renee Swan are my parents - well, Charlie was." he stopped briefly to cast a look over at me. "And through all of the medications and therapy, I never remembered my sister. We were both too young at the time to ever truly remember one another. Not to mention, what all Bella went through growing up."

"So she told you." Alice murmured sadly, referring to my past.

"Yes. At least the important parts that matter, and it explains why she wouldn't have remembered me." Emmett muttered, shaking his head. "She was also put on beta blockers, with Renee and Charlie trying to block out memories of me because to them it was easier to try and quell their remaining kid's crying and they didn't want her confused as to what happened to me." he muttered in as a further explanation for me not remembering him growing up. I frowned at his comment but in some aspect I couldn't exactly argue it either since Charlie had explained it that way in the video during our will reading.

"Fucking hell..." Jasper breathed, dropping his hold on his sister amidst his shock. Rosalie was finally calming down from her initial freak out on me from earlier, still heaving yet she turned her glares away from us to stare down at the stage floor. Alice released a sound of surprise as well, shaking her small head.

We were all silent then for some time, with the others trying to process what all Emmett had explained regarding our actual relationship. I tried to relax into Edward's side, who was trying to still calm down from Rosalie's accusations. I wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my face into his chest, to which Edward responded by wrapping his arms around me and leaning down to kiss the top of my head. "I love you." Edward whispered to me quickly and I could feel the smile splitting across my face to hearing his declaration of love. Through this ugly confrontation, Edward was reminding me that nothing was still going to change on how he felt about me. Despite us being yelled at by our friends who were rightfully hurt and upset with us, he was showing me and telling me that he was still going to be here for me and love me. I nuzzled into his chest, humming quietly to respond to his declaration.

"So," Emmett suddenly broke the silence, and we all turned to stare at him. He had his arms crossed over his chest once more. "Where do we go from here?"

"That's up to those two." Rosalie hissed, looking over in our direction angrily.

"What do you mean?" Edward grumbled, not keen on the acidity laced behind her tone still.

"What I mean is," the blond began again, reaching up to whip some of her hair over her shoulder. "You two have to decide at this point on what you'd like to do."

"What are you fucking implying?" I growled, scowling over at her.

Rosalie matched my scowl but continued. "Either you two decide that you'd like to keep seeing each other and ruin the friendships you've built at this point with the rest of the student body, or you break this off and we can let this blow over and continue acting like we hate each other."

"Rosalie what the hell?!" Alice yelled at her, shocked at the options she gave us.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Edward snarled at the blond angrily, his fists clenching behind my back.

"Rose -"

"Save it Jazz, I can't believe you and Alice are fine with this!" Rosalie snapped at her twin, glaring at him where he backed off and looked away in anger. "You heard me. You have that choice to either break off this relationship and we can just keep this between all of us. If you care so much about our friendships and care about our feelings like you claimed, then you could easily end this secret relationship and we go back to how it was before - hating each other and just getting through this school year acting as if nothing fucking happened." Rosalie bargained coldly, placing her hands on her hips. "But if you choose to just stick together and choose your relationship over your friends, then this secret is over and the whole school will know. And you can forget about us being friends with you two after today."

"Jesus what bug crawled up your ass?" Edward muttered under his breath while I made a noise of disgust at her options.

"Rosalie how the fuck are you okay acting like this?" Alice snarled at the blond, upset with the ultimatum she was giving us. Tears began to pool behind her grey eyes.

"I'm with blondie on this." Emmett muttered, which had Alice, Jasper, Edward and I snapping our scowls to him in shock. "As much as blondie and I are sworn enemies, she's right to be upset over this. You two want to claim that you cared about our feelings, acting like we're your best friends and that we matter to you. But obviously that's a far cry from the truth if you've decided to keep up with this lie behind our backs and date each other rather than being mature and telling us the truth." Emmett explained coldly, looking away angrily. "I at least expected something from my brother if he wanted to tell me the truth and yet now this is what we get in return."

"At least we can agree on something for once." Rosalie remarked with a snicker, and Emmett rolled his eyes.

"I can't believe this!" Alice shrieked, throwing her hands up in disgust.

"If you think I'd ever remotely consider breaking up with Edward, after everything you've said today about me Rosalie, and think I could just go about ignoring everything I've shared and been through with him - then you're utterly delusional!" I snarled at her, whirling out from under Edward's arms to begin stomping towards the blond in wanting to throw a punch to her face. Edward was quick to catch me once again in his arms to stop me. I couldn't believe what I was hearing; Rosalie had flipped completely from being my best friend and was acting like a major bitch. I get she was angry, that she was beyond hurt over my deception and felt utterly betrayed. It didn't excuse her words that she had hurled my way in talking shit about my relationship with Edward, accusing me to be using him merely for sex and that I was spreading my legs for an "easy target" - in layman's terms at least. It was infuriating that she'd imply that, even more so she'd go as far as to accuse of something more going on between Emmett and I before the knowledge came out that we were brother and sister. It was sickening to see this in her, and I never felt more hurt in my life that someone I once called my best friend was acting like this.

It briefly reminded me of a past bully I had, much of which I had repressed over the years due to the past trauma I had faced in Arizona. But the way she was acting brought up nasty memories of it all.

Rosalie had started to stomp back towards me when she saw I was rearing to go again with another standoff, but Jasper caught her by the arm which she tried to jerk out from under his touch. Her cold glares never wavered from my face. "Then I guess I have my answer."

"She's not going to be without friends, Rosalie!" I jumped from hearing the shout and we all wheeled our heads to see to the newcomers joining us in the auditorium. Angela, Jessica, Mike and Ben were storming into the building, running up to the stage to join us. Emmett and Alice shuffled over towards Rosalie and Jasper while all four of them looked on in surprise when they joined us. Angela and Jessica came up to stand beside me whilst Ben and Mike stood behind Edward. "Ed and Bells have us and we're going to stand behind them." Jessica spoke in a strong determined voice, having been the one to defy Rosalie's cold attitude when they were first storming into here.

"You four knew about all of this?" Jasper questioned in shock, looking between all four of them. The look of betrayal came back ten-fold the more he looked between each of them. I could see Alice's eyes were now looking watery as she looked even more hurt at the fact that Angela and Jessica knew of this. Emmett looked even angrier at this notion whilst Rosalie's disgust was returning to her face.

"Yes we did." Ben answered, with Mike nodding his head firmly.

"And you chose to keep it amongst yourselves." Rosalie muttered angrily, glowering down at Jessica and Angela.

"Jess and I had caught them first." Angela spoke up, not wavering under the cold gaze Rosalie was throwing her way. "I had caught the two of them together when the singing competition was originally a talent show, and had it confirmed to me when I found them together on Edward's birthday. Jessica happened to be walking by when Bella and I were chatting about their relationship, and we swore her to secrecy." Angela explained, with Jessica nodding her in affirmation.

"And Edward had told us about it too." Mike spoke up then. "Angela had a crush on Ben as soon as the school year started and the two of them started dating in secret to which afterwards I got with Jess." he added in, shrugging his shoulders under Emmett's scrutiny as he narrowed his eyes at his admission.

"All of you were in on it." Alice murmured sadly as she looked between us. I was feeling regret at seeing her reaction since she looked utterly hurt that we kept this a secret from her - I hated seeing her hurt like she was but at the time I had no options and knew that telling her the truth wouldn't have ended well as much as choosing to keep it a secret from her and the others as long as we did. I wished that in some universe I could've told her and Rosalie about the truth and how I felt about Edward, about how we had begun to date in secret. It felt wrong back then that I never could tell her the truth because I had grown so close with Alice and Rosalie, quickly might I add especially when we first arrived to FSA. They were like a pair of sisters for me when we arrived to the school as they were so welcoming and friendly as soon as we all met. We eased into our friendship and they stuck up for me every time I had interactions with Joshua and James. They did everything to protect me from the guys, and gave me confidence to be the lead singer for our singing group. They gave me confidence in myself as my best friends when I had no confidence within myself for years. After it had been squandered back in Arizona after I had been raped, and had to flee from my old school life, I had no faith in myself and felt hideous after the years of abuse I had suffered from.

Now seeing our friendship destroyed as my secret is being discussed with them, was tearing a hole into my heart for sure.

"Yes. They were." I answered Alice, and my heart continued to get crushed as her tears started to spill over due to her being as hurt as she was.

"And we still have your answer then." Emmett muttered, and I glanced over towards him to see his scowl hadn't lessened this whole time while he glared towards us.

"Yes." Edward answered shortly, standing his ground. "You're batshit crazy if you think I could just break things off with Bella after everything that's happened between us. I'm completely and irrevocably in love with her, and nothing is going to separate us from one another. Especially considering you showed us your true feelings on the whole situation, we could never go back on that and put up with this game anymore that we hate each other." Edward spoke with conviction, scowling back at his adoptive brother. "You're allowed to feel hurt and angry with us. But we care too much about each other to break our relationship up."

"Fine then." Rosalie huffed out, throwing her chin up at us in defiance.

"I can't believe you'd just put us on the spot like this." I hissed at her, disgusted with her actions.

"Sure act high and mighty like you're above me, Swan." Rosalie snapped, her blue eyes narrowing into slits. "You fucking lied to us - to all of the girls, to the guys, to the whole school about this whole entire thing and think you're above it all. You're completely fake with it." she sniffed in disgust while Alice looked away from her angrily. "Like I can honestly believe a thing you've said all this whole school year - I can't even trust you now of what you said about your ex."

I released a sound of shock, floored by what she was implying. After I had poured my heart out to Alice and Rosalie all those months ago, letting them in and hearing my past, she decided to throw that back at me and claim I had lied about it. I reopened old wounds that I had tried to push through and move on from my past when I found myself in a new school, a new town that didn't know who I was beyond Bella Swan the girl who changed the all-boys policy to the best boarding school in the area. Alice and Rosalie sat there that night and listened to me retell my story, they made me feel like they believed me and cared about me when I was hurt, when I was broken. They promised as much that they'd never let me get hurt and they'd make sure any boy who tried anything like that again would be facing a painful punishment. But now when it suited her to unleash her wrath, her hurt after I had lied to them about my feelings with Edward and that I was secretly dating him, she decided to use this against me and claim she doesn't believe me anymore. This is beyond cruel.

"Rose!" Jasper hissed, sounding just as appalled. Alice shook her head at Rosalie in disdain, tears flowing faster now as she heard her speak. Emmett kept to himself and looked away, eyes closing tightly.

"You take that back you fucking cow!" Edward growled, shocked she'd accuse me of that.

"Hey!" Jasper growled at Edward for the insult he just hurled at his twin sister.

"Don't act like you're fucking okay with her throwing those types of accusations around Jasper!" Edward snarled, coming to my defense.

"I can't believe you..." I whispered in muted fury, completely in disbelief. Rosalie shrugged her shoulders indifferently, not taking back what she just said. "You are such a huge bitch, Rosalie Lillian Hale. I get you're fucking pissed with me for lying about everything, keeping everything a secret behind your back and not having the fucking courage to come to you myself to tell you and Alice the truth." I began, starting to find my voice as I took slow steps towards her. Edward kept a loose hold on my arm yet let me walk towards her, while Angela and Jessica grabbed ahold of my other arm. "But for you to throw those kinds of implications around so freely - after everything I've fucking told you with hopes you'd have my back and be there for me - you just suddenly want to turn around and think I lied about that?" I hissed, my eyes beginning to well up with tears. "Let me tell you something Rosalie Hale, I would never lie about being fucking abused and raped just for shits and giggles!" I screamed at her, the rage rapidly building more and more from inside of me. "You're sick and cruel to even think I'd lie about that - don't even think about interrupting me right now!" I shrieked as soon as I saw her start to open her mouth to try and interject. Jasper, Alice and Rosalie jumped from my outburst, staring at me wide-eyed. I could feel Edward's hand tightening on my arm as he wanted to desperately pull me back, but he still let me stalk towards my now ex-best friend. "You are the biggest bitch in this school Rosalie Hale, and I cannot believe I ever thought to call you my best friend! I thought we were like sisters - the three of us, closest best friends than I had ever seen. But you're no better than the three bimbo cunts we make fun of all the time. I wouldn't wish the abuse or rape that I've faced on anyone, not even the worst bully that I had before coming to this school - the one who actually 'spilled the whole thing to the entire school that Bella Swan had been fucking raped! I had felt the lowest of lows when I was in that school when everyone looked at me like a fucking skank because I had been forced against my will to have sex with a boy that beat me down physically and emotionally! I wouldn't even wish what I faced, on her. But after hearing you spew that fucking bullshit... I'm starting to think maybe you should have a taste of what I fucking felt!" I screeched at her, the tears flowing down my cheeks in my rage.

Edward suddenly pulled me back and cradled me in his arms, with Ben, Mike, Angela and Jessica also huddling around me to offer comfort. I sobbed loudly into Edward's chest while letting all of the emotions of how I felt when Rosalie uttered that accusation towards me. I didn't even think about lifting my face to see their reactions, but I could at least hear Rosalie's undecipherable noise of shock from what I had screamed at her. "We're done here. You all got your answers from us. We don't give a damn about how the whole school is going to react - learn to get over yourselves after this because we're not splitting up over this." Edward spat at the four who wanted to see us torn apart, before he turned us away and led us off the stage. Ben, Mike, Angela and Jessica followed after us.

"Bella -!"

"Don't even think about it Alice." I could hear Alice trying to call after me when Edward led us off the stage, but Rosalie's growl kept her in place since I didn't hear her running after us. He hurried us out of the auditorium and our little group walked quickly through the snow. I didn't even care if students could see us as we hurried through the snow and tried to find a place for us to talk in private, I was still crying with my head down. My heart for my friendship with Alice and Rosalie had been torn out from within me, shredded and stomped upon as Rosalie threw our friendship to the fires. Yes I won't deny she has the right to be upset with me for lying to them - but goddamn did it hurt to see her turn into what she was back there: being the biggest cunt I've ever seen, implying I lied about everything that I had been put through by Joshua.

Eventually Edward led us to the quad next to the giant fountain that sat behind the school. It wasn't nearly as cold as it had been from earlier, yet it wasn't exactly warm either. It was just decent enough outside that we wouldn't be absolutely frozen if we sat near the cold water fountain. It wasn't running at this time of the year, but the ice that had formed on the topmost layer of the water's surface was beginning to melt already as January was reaching it's end. Edward sat me down on the edge and cuddled me close into his side, whilst Mike, Ben, Jessica and Angela formed a loose circle around us. They stood there over us while Edward did his best to calm me down from my sobbing. It took awhile as they stood around listening to my broken sobs and loud sniffling. Eventually the cries had subsided and I was wiping at my face angrily with the back of my hand. Edward sat next to me with a frown but said nothing.

"You okay Bells?" Angela then spoke up quietly, breaking the silence.

"No." I mumbled with a loud sniffle. I felt like I had been asked that question at least a hundred times today, and maybe even a thousand times over within the past two months. But after today, I don't think I was okay anymore. "I'm hurt, angry, and wanting to fight someone." I growled, my fingers clenching the side of the fountain.

"Love..." Edward murmured, squeezing my side. I glanced up at him to see his green eyes were looked concerned.

"Thank you." I whispered to him, sniffling again. Edward's face, whilst mostly looking concerned and sad for me, gave way to a small smile of love and adoration.

"You know nothing's going to tear you away from me." he murmured back, leaning down to kiss my wet cheek. The kiss managed to get a smile to come up on my face.

"There's the happy Bells we all know and love." Mike teased quietly once he too saw the smile; the six of let out light chuckles at the statement, but the four of them nodded in agreement.

"We're so sorry we didn't get there sooner Bella." Jessica apologized to me but I shook my head.

"It's okay guys, it wasn't going to end pretty anyways if you were there or not." I muttered, sighing. "I just didn't expect Rosalie to turn into... that." I mumbled sadly, and Edward squeezed my side again.

"But don't believe a thing she says Bella." Ben tried to cheer me up. "You know we've got your guys' backs in this whole thing - we told you as much when you told us that you two were going to be there for you two."

"I know." I sighed, frowning. "I'm sorry that you guys are going to be facing the same backlash as us." I motioned to Edward and I when I said that.

"Not like we care." Jessica waved it off and the others murmured their agreement. "It doesn't matter to us what the school thinks; you two are our best friends and you guys matter to us more than some petty teens and their opinions about this whole thing. Yeah we'd know that they'd be pissed and hurt at the deception and lies. But if they were bright enough they'd grow up from it and be mature, move past it as soon as the initial BS wears off." she rationalized, shrugging her shoulders. "If they choose to continue being petty, then it's their loss."

"Fair point." Edward murmured in agreement, and looked down to me. "If Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie and Alice were our real friends then they'd just need time to get over their initial anger on the matter - it's the best case scenario if they do and they can learn to forgive us for this. What matters more to me is our relationship, our happiness Bella. I'm not giving you up as much as I hate losing my friends. I'd choose you over them, any day of the week. You're what matters to me, and if I lose them permanently over this - if they can't look past the initial deception and can't realize that you're what makes me happy, then were they really ever my friends to begin with?" he spoke to me, reminding me of why this whole thing matters to us. He reached up and grazed my cheek with the back of his hand, caressing it softly where I leaned into his touch. "You know what happened to you, and I believe everything you've said that you've gone through. We all do. Rosalie is just using any hurtful tactic to get you to break under the pressure - even if her hitting that kind of low is uncalled for."

"I know." I whispered, sighing sadly again.

"We're here for you B." Angela murmured and stepped forward to give me a quick hug. The others followed suit and murmured their promises of being there for us. It ended with Edward pulling me into him and kissing me tenderly on the lips. I wound my hands into his hair and deepened the kiss, at first ignoring the awkward coughs from the others and the short chuckles they gave when they saw that we weren't stopping. Finally Angela snorted and cut in. "Alright alright you two! Quit sucking face and come back to earth to us!" This brought laughs all around, resulting in Edward and I pulling apart gasping for breath.

"Can you blame me for it? We've had to hide us for months and this is the first time I've been able to openly kiss her at school." Edward retorted and I giggled.

"Like we want front row seats to the make out session." Mike teased back, ducking away from Jessica's attempts to hit him in retaliation.

"Well, I can't blame you for it man." Ben teased while taking Angela's hand in his. Angela rolled her eyes at us but we all laughed it off.

"Tomorrow is definitely going to be a shit show, if tonight's not already going to be one." I muttered out loud then, and the others nodded their heads in a unified thoughtful manner.

"One step at a time love." Edward said simply, squeezing me once more. "We'll take the bull by the horns just one step at a time as it comes our way."

"That sounds like a perfect idea."

I nodded my head to the notion, and we let the conversation drop then before we settled into our little bubble at that fountain, talking about next to nothing or mundane topics. They all were trying to calm me down further after the whole confrontation we just endured with Rosalie, Alice, Emmett and Jasper, but also to distract me from the impending anxiety that was looming over us. Our secret was now exposed to our once former friends and at any given point, it could start to spread like wildfire. It likely already could have been starting to spread if Rosalie felt like rushing off to the girls' dorm and wanted to start talking with the rest of the female student body. I didn't know if she would or if the four of them would at least have the courtesy of waiting for Edward and I to out ourselves to the whole school for everyone to see. I honestly didn't know but in that moment I didn't really care if we were about to have the world come crashing down upon us.

I knew today would be a mess as soon as I had let our secret out when I spilled it in that will reading. I knew there'd be fallout and that likely I'd lose Alice and Rosalie as friends. I knew they'd be completely and utterly hurt, betrayed and even angry with me for keeping this a secret. I didn't expect for it to end up as tumultuous as it did as I had hopes we could plead our case to them and that they'd hear us. They at least had the decency to be quiet, but the fact Rosalie flipped the switch on who she was and acted the way she did stung me, hurting me to the very core. I had no inclinations that I'd leave that meeting we just had with a horrible hatred for her now. I didn't want to leave the room hating any of them, especially be it Alice or Rosalie as they were my best friends. But as soon as she wanted to fling those insults my way the way she did, all hope was lost in trying to salvage our friendship as I don't think I could easily forgive her for what she said. The same way that I had a hard time trying to accept that Emmett was my brother and that I had that deep rooted doubt in that I don't think I could ever forgive him for the cruel insults and jokes he hurled my way for all of these months, the same now could be said about Rosalie which hurt so much.

Now, the rest of this school year was going to be facing the resulting backlash from the rest of the student body, but at least I could say with confidence that I had a great support team standing behind me. I obviously had Edward who would be in the same boat as I was, yet he would be there giving me all the love he held for me - and I'd be showing him the exact same amount of love and then some, as now we could just be ourselves without holding back. We both had two of our friends who had also been dating in secret, yet it'd be friends that understood us and supported us regardless of what all has happened so far. They'd be there for us, and we'd be there for them. We knew it was going to be a rough second half of the school year but we were ready for it.

For now, we'll take solace in this last bit of quiet - the calm before the storm that'd be upon us soon enough.

A/N: Hasty ending? Shit ending? Or a good chapter overall detailing the ultimate confrontation over everything? Maybe a healthy mix of all three, who knows. I'm my own worst critic after all.

I think I bounced quite a bit around with emotions, but tensions and everything were high with something like this so *shrug* maybe I did it justice.

For now, the current big drama has reached it's climax and we're gonna go right into a couple more chapters before we'd hit another spout of conflict here and there. At least from how I see it and how I've planned it out. Stick around as we probably have a couple filler chapters coming in but I'll just to keep it juicy and entertaining.

As always any feedback and critique is welcomed. I try my best to proofread as I go but mistakes are bound to slip by. So apologies for any mistakes, misspellings or errors!

Until the next chapter,

~Lady Eleanora~