Emmett dropped Rosalie, Bella and Jasper off at the Swan house. "He's not here," Jasper noted.
"Is that good or bad?" Bella asked nervous.
"Neither," Jasper answered. "He probably didn't want to come too early. Don't worry about it Bella. Everything will be okay."
Bella still wasn't sure but didn't comment. She opened the door and let Jasper and Rosalie inside. "Do you know where the myth that vampires can't come inside without an invite comes from?" she asked curious.
Rosalie shrugged. "My guess, fear. Humans figure it gives them more power."
"That would be my guess. It's a reasonable explanation," Jasper added. It was a good enough reason for Bella.
"Do you guys need anything?" Bella questioned politely.
Rosalie laughed and wrapped her arms around Bella. "We're fine Bella."
They headed upstairs to Bella's bedroom. Jasper sat in Bella's desk chair while Rosalie laid down on the bed with Bella. Jasper got up and opened the window as a way to let Paul know he could come inside.
Bella was comfortable in Rosalie's arms. She didn't want to move. Sadly she didn't have a choice as not five minutes later Rosalie shifted so she could stand up. Bella pouted and Jasper laughed. "You've done it now Rose." Rosalie leaned over and kissed Bella's cheek.
"He's here," Jasper announced.
Rosalie covered Bella's mouth with her hand to stop her from screaming as Paul jumped into the room.
"It's just Paul," she whispered in Bella's ear. Bella relaxed when she saw it was in fact Paul.
"Paul," Jasper greeted offering his hand.
"Good to see you Jasper." Paul shook his head. "Bella, good to see you too and you, Rosalie."
"Paul," Rosalie greeted, holding Bella close.
Paul studied Rosalie and frowned. Her eyes were different. They were red. Paul growled. "Enough," Jasper commanded, calming Paul down.
"She's fed on a human," he spat.
"I know but you need to calm down. You don't know the whole story." Jasper stood in front of Bella and Rosalie. Paul shook from his anger. "Paul you will hurt Bella if you don't calm down."
Paul took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The shaking eventually stopped and Paul was a lot calmer. "Explain," he demanded.
Rosalie glared at him and held Bella close to her. Bella's fear had come true. Paul was angry and wanted to hurt Rosalie. Bella couldn't lose her.
"Calm yourself Paul." Jasper glared at him.
"Bella," Rosalie said softly. "Do you want me to tell him?" Bella nodded against her. Rosalie turned to Paul. "Friday night I was sent to Port Angeles by Jasper's mate. She said Bella was in danger." Her arms tightened around her mate. "When I got there I was too late. There were four—" She trailed off when Bella whimpered.
"You don't have to continue," Paul said shaking, this time from anger at what he knew happened to Bella. "You killed them, didn't you?"
"They hurt my mate. They deserved to be punished," Rosalie growled.
Paul nodded. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to overreact. I… I understand you wanting to protect her. I knew there was something wrong when I met her. I had a feeling I knew what it was but I didn't expect four…" He looked at Bella. "Is she okay?"
"She was worried you would try to attack Rosalie," Jasper told him.
Rosalie pulled Bella back on the bed. "Is this my fault?" Paul whispered horrified at what he had done.
"A little bit," Jasper said honestly. "She's been avoiding thinking about what happened. It's how she was able to cope but now, now she can't avoid it. All the memories are back." He winced at Bella's emotions. "I think we should go and come back later when she's doing better. Rosalie's really the only one that can help her."
Jasper stood at the window, waiting for Paul. Paul glanced at Rosalie. "I'm sorry," he said again, before following Jasper out the window.
"Bella." Rosalie stroked Bella's hair. "Talk to me."
"I can still see their faces," Bella muttered. "I can still feel them on me, in me." Bella shook in Rosalie's arms.
"I'm right here Bella. You're safe." Rosalie rocked Bella back and forth, trying to calm her distraught mate.
"If y-you hadn't found me…" Bella shuddered at the thought.
Rosalie cupped Bella's cheek. "I will always protect you my Bella," she swore.
Bella leaned into Rosalie's hand. "I want to forget Rose. I want to move on from this."
"I know. I felt the same way but you can't pretend like nothing ever happened. It will only make it worse. I'm here for you, if you need to talk." Rosalie ran her hand through Bella's hair. "We still need to talk about today."
"What about today?" Bella wondered.
"You're beautiful Bella," Rosalie said softly. "I hate that our existence makes you insecure. Our looks… it's not normal. Our beauty is a way to bring in prey. You… you are more beautiful than any of us. You're warm and soft while we're cold and hard. I love your mind, your beauty, your compassion. I love everything about you. Please, remember that the next time you tell yourself I'm too perfect for you."
Tears fell down Bella's cheeks. "I'll try to remember," she promised.
Rosalie gently kissed Bella's cheek. She pulled away and cocked her head to the side. "Paul wants to know if he can come back. He regrets his reaction without giving me a chance to explain."
"You said he wouldn't be upset," Bella mumbled against Rosalie.
"We expected to have a chance to explain before he overreacted," Rosalie admitted. "He's calm now and he's feeling guilty."
"He won't hurt you?" Bella asked softly.
"He won't hurt me," Rosalie assured her.
"Okay," Bella agreed.
Jasper and Paul jumped back through Bella's window. "Bella." Paul walked slowly over to Bella. He stopped when Rosalie growled. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make things worse for you. I shouldn't have thought the worst of Rosalie. The Cullens have always taken the treaty seriously. I should have known Rosalie would only break it if something happened."
"Apologize to Rosalie," Bella demanded.
Rosalie grinned. Paul turned to Rosalie. "Rosalie, I'm sorry I thought worst of you."
"It's fine. If situations were reversed I doubt I would have been much different," Rosalie admitted.
Jasper sat on the bed, on the other side of Rosalie. Paul sat in the chair at Bella's desk. "So," Paul said awkwardly. He had no idea what to say to two vampires and Bella.
"So," Bella repeated. She held Rosalie's hand and looked at her perfectly manicured fingernails. "Do you ever have to cut your nails?"
Rosalie laughed. "No Bella, we don't. They never break or grow."
Paul stared at Bella. "Bella's been really curious about us," Jasper explained. "She asked us about the myth of vampires needing an invitation before you got here."
"She really is the strangest human," he muttered.
"She is," Jasper agreed. "I know you don't really care about us but you do care about Bella. Why is that?"
"Did you ever hear about what made me change, or how the change begins?" Paul asked. Jasper shook his head. "It starts with a fever. Our temperature skyrockets, and never lowers. After that we feel sick for a few days. Once we start feeling better every little thing upsets us until finally we explode." Paul glanced at Rosalie and Bella and found them listening to his story. Paul took a deep breath and continued. "After three days I started feeling better. I went back to school and everything was fine. Until I got home. I found my father," he spat, "raping my younger sister. I snapped and phased right then. I killed my father before Sam could get me to phase back. My sister wasn't the same after that. When I first met Bella, I recognized the look she had. It was the same look my sister had."
"What happened to your sister?" Bella whispered.
Paul looked to Jasper, not sure if he should finish. "Go ahead," Jasper nodded.
"She killed herself about six months ago," Paul said sadly.
Bella scooted closer to Rosalie. "I'm sorry," she mumbled against Rosalie's side.
"It's okay. I'm okay now. She didn't have the support she needed. I was never enough, no matter how much I wish I was. I feel happier knowing she is in a better place." They sat silently for a few minutes. "Would it be rude if I asked you for some food? I'm starving."
"Probably but when has that stopped dogs," Rosalie smirked.
Bella smacked Rosalie's arm. "Be nice," she scolded.
Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Yes dear."
"I can order a pizza, or two," Jasper offered. "Bella didn't eat much for lunch. I'm sure she's hungry."
Bella's stomach growled and she blushed. "Pizza is good."
"Sure," Paul agreed. "Uh, make it three. I missed breakfast and lunch."
"How does that work?" Bella asked sitting up. "It is even possible for your stomach to hold three pizzas?" Rosalie snorted and Jasper laughed. Bella blushed. "Sorry I didn't mean to insult you."
Paul waved away her apology. "I'm not insulted. You're certainly not the first person to ask. Our metabolisms are so fast that we burn through food almost as quickly as we eat it, especially after patrolling."
"Is there any type of pizza you prefer?" Jasper questioned.
"I prefer meat but whatever Bella wants is fine," Paul answered.
"That's fine," Bella said. She didn't really care. Jasper excused himself to go order the pizza. Bella turned her attention back to Paul. "Is it kind of expensive to feed one of you, let alone an entire pack?"
"It is very expensive," Paul admitted. "Sam's fiancé usually feeds us. As of now there are only three in the pack so it's not as expensive as it could be but sometimes I wonder how Emily does it."
Rosalie frowned. "If you guys ever need money for food. We have more than enough."
"That's nice of you," Paul said surprised.
"Bella likes you," Rosalie shrugged. "I'm not going to let you starve." Bella kissed Rosalie's cheek. Rosalie grinned.
"Thanks. I'll talk to Sam. I know he would never talk your money but maybe you could go grocery shopping with Emily." He glanced at Bella. "Or maybe have Bella go shopping with her."
Bella looked at Rosalie. "Am I allowed to go back to La Push?" she questioned. Jasper slipped back into Bella's bedroom.
"Bella, I'm not going to stop you from going to La Push," Rosalie told her. "If you want to go then you should go. At least I know Paul will look after you and as long as you're safe I don't mind being away from you."
The doorbell rang. "It's too soon for the pizza," he frowned. He stood up. "I'll see who it is."
"Should I be worried?" Bella whispered.
"It's not a vampire," Paul and Rosalie said at the same time. Rosalie cocked her head to the side. "It's Angela."
"Who is Angela?" Paul asked curious.
"My friend," Bella answered. "She's the nicest person at Forks High. I wonder why she is here."
"You're about to find out. Jasper invited her to stay and do homework and eat pizza," Rosalie said.
"Is Jasper going to be okay?" Bella asked. Bella felt Jasper's gratitude and affection. Apparently he was touched that she cared about his wellbeing.
"He will be fine," Rosalie promised. "We'll leave the window open so there will be fresh air."
"Will you be okay?" Bella asked concerned.
Rosalie kissed Bella's forehead. "I will be fine. Your scent will overwhelm hers because you're so close to me so there is no need to be worried."
"So you all can handle being around humans, even when you just had human blood?" Paul asked curious. Despite their… alliance of sorts the wolves still didn't know much about the Cullens.
"Honestly, human blood makes our control better. But even in normal circumstances we can control ourselves around humans. It is much easier for me because Bella is my mate. I am physically unable to hurt her and being close to her makes it harder to focus on the scent of other humans," Rosalie explained.
Paul frowned. "We've been wrong about you all along."
"We have always been enemies," Rosalie reminded him. "And if it wasn't for Jasper saving that young boy's life we would still be enemies."
"You're right. I am sorry about that. If we had just taken the time to see your side of things then maybe Brady's life wouldn't have been in danger in the first place." He stood up and offered Rosalie his hand. "Truce?"
Rosalie shook his hand. "Truce."
Jasper pushed open the door and entered the room, with Angela right behind him. "Hey Bella," Angela greeted, happy to see her friend.
"Angela, hey," Bella greeted.
"It's good to see you too Rosalie. I…" She caught sight of Paul. "Hello, I don't believe we have met. I'm Angela Webber." She offered Paul her hand.
Paul looked at Angela in the eye and froze. No longer did gravity hold him down. This girl, Angela, did. He felt his life intertwine with hers. Nothing mattered other than Angela's safety and happiness. "I'm Paul, Paul Lahote. It's nice to meet you Angela." He took her hand and kissed it.
"What's going on?" Bella whispered confused.
"Paul just imprinted on Angela," Rosalie whispered back. "Angela is his soul mate."
"Wow," Bella said amazed and happy for the both of them.
Paul managed to tear his eyes away from Angela. "Have a seat," Paul said pointing to the desk chair.
"Thanks." Angela pulled off her backpack and sat down. Paul went downstairs with Jasper and grabbed two kitchen chairs. Jasper positioned his chair by the window while Paul sat his near Angela. "Is it okay that I'm here? I thought maybe we could hang out and do homework together but I didn't realize you had people over." Angela stood up. "Maybe I should leave."
"You don't have to leave," Bella said quickly. "We can do homework. We were already planning on doing it anyway."
"Are you sure?" Angela asked.
Bella sat up. "Yeah, stay, please." She said it more for Paul's sake then anything else. She did like Angela but she would have been perfectly happy only hanging out with Rosalie and Jasper. Bella reached for her backpack but frowned she didn't feel it. "Rose, I think I left my backpack in the Jeep."
Jasper pulled out his phone and pretended to text Alice. Alice had already texted him telling him she was coming over to bring their bags. "Alice is bringing it after she runs some errands and wants to know if you want to work on your project."
Bella sighed. Alice was not going to let that go. "Fine we can work on it," she agreed.
Rosalie kissed Bella's cheek. "You don't have to if you don't want to," she whispered.
Bella shrugged. "We could at least figure out what we are going to do for our project."
"You're too nice," Rosalie muttered, shaking her head. She loved Alice but she didn't think she would have time patience to deal with Alice pressuring her.
"Bella, I heard about what happened in P.E.," Angela said. "I'm sorry about Lauren. Honestly I think she's jealous that the Cullens like you."
"It's fine Angela. It's not your fault," Bella assured her.
"It's not fine," Rosalie hissed so Angela couldn't hear her. Bella squeezed her hand and Rosalie took a deep breath.
"So, Angela, we're having a bonfire Saturday night. You should come. You should come too Bella," he added as an afterthought.
Bella looked at Rosalie. "If you want to go then you should go," Rosalie whispered.
"Okay," Bella agreed.
Angela frowned. She didn't know exactly what Rosalie said but it looked like Bella was asking for permission to go to the bonfire. It didn't seem right to her.
The doorbell rang. "Pizza must be here." Jasper stood so he could head downstairs and answer the door.
"I'll go," Paul offered.
"I'll go with you," Angela said standing up.
Jasper handed over the money for the pizza. Paul and Angela headed downstairs. "Are Bella and Rosalie involved?" Angela questioned.
"I don't think so," Paul answered. "I know Rosalie has feelings for Bella but I'm not too sure about Bella. Why?"
"They seem close," Angela said carefully.
Paul opened the front door and handed over the money. "Keep the change." He grabbed the pizzas and shut the door. "They are close."
"It's just… it looked like Bella was asking Rosalie for permission to go to the bonfire." Angela followed Paul to the kitchen. "It seemed weird and worrying."
They walked into the kitchen and started digging through the cabinets looking for plates. "There's soda in the pantry," Bella called just loud enough for Paul to hear. Paul went to the pantry and pulled out a couple two liters.
"I'm sure Bella appreciates your concern but there's nothing to worry about. Rosalie and Bella were supposed to hang out over the weekend," Paul explained. "Bella was probably just making sure it was okay to bail."
"Oh." She felt guilty for thinking badly of Rosalie when Rosalie had been nothing but nice to her. "Do you know what happened with Edward? Bella seemed to really like him."
"I have no idea," Paul said honestly. He was going to have to ask about that.
Angela and Paul grabbed the food, plates, cups and soda and headed back upstairs. They sat everything on Bella's desk. "Are these all the same?" Angela asked.
"Yeah, they're all meat lovers. Hope you don't mind." Paul opened the first pizza and pulled out two slices to start with.
"How many do you guys want?" Angela asked.
"One," Bella answered. Angela pulled a slice out of the box and handed the plate over. "Thanks."
"Rosalie? Jasper?" Angela asked.
"None for us thanks," Jasper said politely. "We're allergic to gluten," he added sensing her curiosity.
"Oh, what about Alice? Will she want some?"
Jasper shook his head. "She's lactose intolerant," he told her. It was the easiest way to explain why they didn't eat around the humans.
Angela wondered why Jasper bought them pizza when neither he nor his family were going to eat it but she didn't comment. She poured three glasses of coke and handed them out. "Did you guys want a drink?"
"I'll take one," Rosalie said in order to appear more human. Jasper shook his head. While they could drink soda it didn't taste good and he wasn't going to put himself through the torture.
Angela poured a glass for Rosalie and handed it to her. "Thanks Angela."
Whenever Angela wasn't looking Rosalie would tip some of the soda into Bella's glass. She did make sure Angela saw her drinking some of it.
Alice pulled into the driveway a few minutes later. Jasper went downstairs to unlock the front door for her. "Hey guys," Alice greeted walking into the room. Jasper had his and Alice's backpacks on his shoulder.
Alice sat Bella and Rosalie's backpacks on the bed. She took a seat on Jasper's lap. "So what do you want to do for our project?" Alice questioned.
"Alice don't rush her." Rosalie glared at her sister.
"I don't know. I haven't really thought about it," Bella said honestly.
"What do you have to do?" Jasper asked curious. His suggestions would be more helpful if he knew exactly what they had to do for their project.
Bella dug through her backpack and pulled out the page with their assignment and handed it to Jasper. "Mrs. Light said we can do anything, we just have to have at least one visual and one written representation," Bella told him.
Jasper quickly read through the assignment. "I suggest doing a diary based on the life of a solider. You can add pictures drawn by the solider." Jasper handed the paper back. "You did great with the journal entry from the World War II solider."
Bella glanced at Alice. "Whatever you want to do Bella. I don't care," she said.
"Sounds good," Bella agreed. "Can you draw Alice?"
"Yep," she said proudly.
"I'll do the writing then," Bella offered. "Since I can't draw."
"Sure," Alice agreed. She could already see their finished assignment and it was perfect.
"You two have Mrs. Light for history?" Angela questioned. Both nodded. "So do I but it have it 6th period. What war did you get assigned?"
"Civil War," Bella and Alice answered at the same time.
"Dang, I got the Korean War," Angela said disappointed they wouldn't be able to work together.
"Who is your partner?" Bella asked.
"Eric," Angela replied. Paul growled too softly for Bella or Angela to hear. "He finally realized I don't want to go out with him. I heard him say he was going to ask you out now that Edward's out of the picture."
Rosalie growled and pulled Bella closer to her. "I'm not going to go out with him," Bella whispered. "You can relax."
Alice rolled her eyes at her sister. Rosalie sure knew how to overreact. It reminded her of Jasper. Both were extremely overprotective. It was only a matter of time before Bella lashed out at Rosalie because of it.
Bella jotted down some ideas for the first diary entry. She handed it over to Jasper. "What do you think about this?" she asked.
Jasper scanned through the page. Bella's idea was to first start with the solider joining the army, then move onto his experience as a solider, followed by the end of the war. "This is great Bella. I would be sure to include which side he's fighting for and maybe his thoughts on the war."
Jasper handed back the paper and Bella wrote down his suggestions. "Which side do you think he should fight for?" Bella asked.
"I would say the Confederates because then you could get his feelings about fighting for them, and then how he felt when they lost the war," Jasper replied.
Bella flipped the page of her notebook and started the diary entry. She was halfway through the first entry when she heard a car door. Alice peered out the window. "Charlie's here."
"I should go," Angela said standing up.
"Are you sure?" Bella asked. "You're welcome to stay."
"Thanks Bella but I should go. I have some stuff to do at home. I'll see you tomorrow." She turned to Paul. "I'll see you Saturday."
Paul nodded. "See you then. Do you need a ride?"
"We can ride together," Bella suggested.
"Sure," Angela agreed. "Bye Rosalie, Alice, Jasper."
"Bye Angela," they said at the same time.
Angela walked out of the house just as Charlie was walking in. "Angela," Charlie said surprised.
"Hi Chief Swan," Angela greeted. "I was just leaving."
"Is Paul here?" he asked. "He was supposed to be visiting Bella today."
"He's upstairs with Bella, Rosalie and Jasper Hale and Alice Cullen," Angela told him. "I'll see you later Chief Swan."
"Bye Angela, you're welcome here anytime." Charlie was surprised to hear three of the Cullen siblings were here. He knew Bella was friendly with them but she thought it was Rosalie that Bella was friends with.
"Thank you Chief Swan."
Charlie headed upstairs. He knocked on the bedroom door, getting everyone's attention. All but Paul was focused on homework. Paul was reading a book. "Hi Dad," Bella said looking up from her work.
"Hey Bells," Charlie greeted. He was surprised to see her relatively happy. Maybe there wasn't anything wrong with Bella. Maybe she just needed some sleep. He turned to the pizza. All that was left was half a pizza. "Dinner already?"
"No sir," Jasper said respectfully. "Paul was hungry and Bella didn't really eat lunch so we ordered pizza. I hope you don't mind. There's some pizza left if you want it."
"Thanks Jasper, that's nice of you," Charlie said surprised. He grabbed the half full pizza box and the two empty ones. "I'll take care of this so you can do homework. Are you guys going to stay for dinner?"
"Our parents want us home," Alice answered for her siblings.
Charlie nodded in understanding. "Maybe some other time. What about you Paul?"
"If it's okay, sure." He glanced at Bella and she nodded.
Bella frowned. "I don't have anything planned for dinner. I'll have to go to the store."
"I'll go with you," Paul offered. "It's the least I can do if you're going to feed me."
"Sure. Dad is there anything in particular you want?" Bella asked.
"Maybe some steak and potatoes?" Charlie suggested. He was craving steak and potatoes.
"Okay Dad." Bella sat aside her book and climbed out of bed so she could get her shoes on.
"There's money in the kitchen," Charlie said before heading downstairs to watch the game.
"We should go," Jasper said standing.
Alice dug around her bag and pulled something out an envelope. She handed it to Bella. Bella opened the envelope and frowned. "A credit card?" she asked in surprise.
Alice rolled her eyes. "Don't be so surprised. We told you this would happen. We only have one credit card for you now. Jasper needs aliases before he can have more made."
"I can't accept this," Bella protested trying to hand it back. Alice backed away from Bella.
"Bella," Rosalie said softly. "Take the card. You don't have to use it but at least you will have it. I know you don't have much money and gas for your truck isn't expensive. Please, use the card for gas if nothing else. Besides, feeding the wolves won't be cheap. There's no reason Charlie should have to pay for that."
Bella sighed. Rosalie made a good point. She wouldn't be able to afford gas for too much longer. "Fine. I'll use it because I have to. It would help if Charlie didn't have to pay for food anyway."
Rosalie grinned. "Thank you Bella." She leaned over and kissed Bella's cheek. "Alice, Jasper and I are going to go now."
"Will you be back later?" Bella asked hopeful.
"Of course. I'll be back when you come back upstairs," Rosalie promised. She pulled Bella against her body. "Be safe my Bella."
Bella kissed Rosalie's cheek. "I'll be fine. Paul will look after me."
Paul nodded. "She will be fine Rosalie," Alice assured her. Alice closed her eyes. "On second thought, you need to bring Bella another sweatshirt. By the time she gets home she will start feeling the separation."
Rosalie tensed up. She didn't want Bella to be in pain over their separation. "Maybe I shouldn't leave," Rosalie said unsure.
Alice shook her head. "You need to go hunt. Your hunt got cut short last time." She closed her eyes again. "She will be fine for a couple hours without you." Alice sighed. Her vision showed Rosalie not hunting to hang around Bella. "You can take Bella her sweatshirt and then hunt."
"Go home Rosalie," Bella told her. "I'll be okay for a bit."
Alice and Jasper left Bella's bedroom. Rosalie grabbed her backpack. "Look after her wolf. If something happens to her I'll hold you responsible."
"She will be safe with me," Paul promised.