Bella wasn't ashamed to admit, at least in her own mind, that she stared after Edythe as she left. She wasn't the only one—practically every one in the room seemed startled by Edythe's brief appearance.

"You know, I don't think she's ever sat with anyone but her family, as long as she's been here," Eric said thoughtfully. "Can I sit with you at lunch, too?"

Mike frowned. "Sure, whatever. Hey, I thought we didn't have homework in biology. Do you guys have another class together or something?"

"Um, no," Bella said, finally glancing over at Mike. "Maybe it's an extra credit assignment or something like that."

Mike didn't really seem convinced, but Bella elected not to care. After all, she wasn't convinced, either. There definitely wasn't any work for the two of them to discuss. It was more likely that Edythe had just made up an excuse to come talk to her.

She felt her face warming up again and took another drink of her latte. So Edythe really did like her, then.

"Isn't she like a genius, though? Why would she need extra credit?" Eric wondered.

Bella thought about it that carefully. It wasn't really something she had considered before then. Was Edythe smarter than average? Certainly. But maybe that was just because she never seemed to forget anything, at least as far as their text messages seemed to go. And if she was also functionally immortal, than she'd probably gone through high school enough times that she remembered most everything. As much as knowledge might change over the years, Edythe could probably keep up with it if she never forgot anything at all.

Bella frowned slightly. Who the hell wanted to keep repeating high school over and over? It sounded awful. The Cullens—if they were all as immortal as Edythe, which she suspected they were—must be a special sort of masochistic.

"I don't know," Bella said aloud. She didn't like the idea of anyone else solving the mystery of the Cullens. She'd need to dissuade Mike and Eric from figuring this out. "Maybe even geniuses worry about keeping their grades up."

Before Spanish started, Jessica grabbed her arm and pulled her close, so they were leaning across the aisle between their desks. "Hey, so Edythe Cullen—" She stopped, having noticed the nearly finished latte on Bella's desk. "Where did you get that? I didn't see you at Mocha Motion[1] this morning."

"Oh," she said, suddenly feeling shy. "Um, Edythe got it for me."

Jessica's mouth popped open, but no sound came out. Abruptly, she shut it, a series of thoughts seeming to cross her face. "Oh. That's nice." She then released her arm and turned to face the front of the room.

Even though her arm had been released, Bella was still leaning across the aisle. One of Jessica's most notorious characteristics was her nose for gossip, and this had to be juicy, but she had just...stopped.

Jessica glanced over at her. "Class is about to start," she said simply.

There were still two minutes before the final bell would ring, but Bella sensed she wouldn't get any more of an answer for the moment. She leaned back into her own chair.

A strange thought crossed her mind. Had Jessica figured them out? Was she cutting Bella out of her friendship? Or was she being respectful?

It was way too weird, and Bella didn't think she would find anything out, at least right then. She resolved to text Jessica about it after school if she didn't find anything out before then.

For now—well, class was about to start.

Lunch came both faster and slower than Bella would have liked. She was nervous about seeing Edythe, and nervous that her friends would find out what was really going on. It wasn't that she was ashamed or anything, but she really didn't know what the mood in Forks was in regards to queer people. Would she even have friends at the end of this lunch?

But...she was also desperately excited that Edythe was choosing to spend so much time with her, and in person, not just over text (which was great, but not the same).

Jessica walked with her, excitedly talking about an upcoming dance. "I know its early, but I was really wondering...well, I was thinking about asking Mike to come with me," she said.

"That's a great idea," Bella enthused. In one sense, she was selfishly happy that if Jessica asked Mike, he might be too distracted to bother her any more, and they could actually be friends. But she also loved the idea of the two of them together. She thought, in their own way, that they would really work together. They were both so upbeat and chatty.

"Really?" Jessica said, pulling Bella to a stop so she could search her face. "I thought you might want to ask him."

"No, really!" she said reassuringly, touching Jessica's arm. "I only think of Mike as a friend. But I think you two would be really good together."

She was suprised to see Jessica's slight frown, but it was quickly hidden with a smile. "Okay. Thanks so much, Bella." She looped her arm thought Bella's and tugged her along to the cafeteria.

When they reached the double doors that opened into the loud room, they split up, Jessica going straight to their table and Bella joining the lunch line. Jessica always brought her lunch, because there weren't enough kosher items available for her to eat at the school[2].

Edythe joined Bella in line. "Hi," she said, softly. She smiled at her dazzlingly, and Bella sucked in a sharp breath. Was it even possible for someone to be so beautiful? "Would you mind if we shared lunch today?"

"Um, no," Bella said. She tore her eyes away, certain that if she stared any longer, she might faint. "Is vegetarian food okay? I don't really trust anyone else to cook meat for me."

She laughed, mostly to herself. "Yeah, no problem. I hear its better for the environment, anyway."

They moved through the line slowly. Bella picked out more food than she normally would, since Edythe was going to be sharing with her.

A PB&J sandwich, split in half.

Edythe was close enough to her that she could reach over and grab her hand.

Cucumbers, carrots, and tomatoes to dip in ranch.

She carefully moved her arm to brush her fingers against Edythe's cold fingers softly.

Edythe froze, but didn't pull her hand away. How could anyone stand so stiffly? Why were her hands so cold? The weather wasn't nearly as bad today, still cold, but not cold enough to do this.

She traced her fingers over Edythe's knuckles ever so slightly, intrigued by the temperature and the smooth texture.

They moved forward in the line, hands falling apart, and Edythe seemed to come back to life.

A scoop of mashed potatoes and green beans. It should be enough, since she'd go home in just a few hours and could get a snack there, too. Edythe picked up a coke, a water bottle, and a pint of chocolate milk when they reached the cooler, and then paid for the food before Bella could get her wallet out. She also swiped the tray from Bella's hands. "Where to?" she asked.

She didn't really need the question answered, of course—Edythe had been in Forks long enough to know where Mike sat at lunch.

Jessica appeared to be championing them; she'd put her purse and her backpack into two seats next to each other, at the edge of the table, and had sat herself down between the two chairs and Mike, who obviously looked put out. As they drew closer, Jessica was saying, "They have work to do, Mike!"

Angela greeted them as they sit down. She was across from Jessica, watching the two of them bicker with a look caught between amusement and...something Bella couldn't quite identify. Protectiveness, maybe.

She didn't get time to wonder about it, though. People have noticed Edythe sitting down at the wrong table, including her family, who mostly look annoyed, and in Rosalie's case, worried. Everyone else just seems flummoxed.

"So, what was the homework you wanted help with?" Bella asked, loudly enough that the nearby tables could hear it and spread the word. She really did feel protective of whatever their secret was, and she wasn't going to let everyone stare them down and figure something out.

Edythe smiled and opened the water bottle. She nudged the coke and the milk towards Bella before sipping the water. "Hold on," she said. She grabbed a carrot, stuck it in her mouth, and then leaned down to open her backpack.

She couldn't help but stare. Had Edythe just... spat the carrot into a box?

She sat up, no carrot in her mouth, but a binder in hand.

Okay, she definitely had. Did she not eat anything? Like, ever?

She frowned, but didn't say anything. She could ask her about it later, when no one was listening in. "How did you know my favorite drinks?" she asked, opening the milk first. Maybe they were obvious choices—who didn't like chocolate milk? And coke, of course, was a classic. But... there had been a lot of options.

"Just guessed," Edythe said, but she didn't look at Bella, staring instead at her binder. She seemed almost...shy. Maybe she had been watching Bella, the way Bella had watched her.

She felt a curl of pleasure, that was accompanied by a blush, because why wouldn't it be? She waited as Edythe flipped through a few pages and opened up an English assignment. "I noticed that you had your own copy of Pride and Prejudice. I was wondering if you could help me come up with a unique essay topic for this."

Bella leaned over and started to read the assignment. Her arm pressed against Edythe's, so she felt how still Edythe went against her. Once again, she was startled by it. She was so still she may as well have been a statue sitting in the seat next to her. Was she even human?

Of course, once she had the thought, she couldn't unthink it. She barely processed the reading assingment, needing to read it three times before she got through it. "Um, that's a good question," she said thoughtfully. She always liked more open-ended prompts, and this one definitely fell under that category.

Before she could come up with anything, though, Eric arrived at the table, dropping into the seat across from Edythe. "What's up?" he asked the table at large.

"Lunch," Mike said, and flicked a green bean at him.

"No!" Jessica snapped, grabbing Mike's arm before he could any other food flying. "No food fights!"

"Yes, please don't," Angela said to Eric, not unkindly.

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, mom." Then he turned his attention to Edythe and Bella. "So, how's homework?"

"We were just starting," Edythe said. Her tone had a slight edge, but when Bella glanced over at her, her face was impassive. She "ate" another carrot.

Which reminded Bella that she actually did need to eat some of this food. She grabbed half of the sandwich and stuffed it in her mouth, partially to avoid having to say anything. She honestly felt a bit out of depth. As much as she wanted to allay suspicion from her friends, she also didn't really know how to. She knew well enough how to act straight, but protecting Edythe's inhuman (or maybe super human?) nature was proving to be too much of a challenge.

"Is it for bio?"

"No, the upcoming English essay on Pride and Prejudice."

"Ohhh, that," Eric said, frowning slightly. "I haven't even finished reading the book yet. Aren't we only meant to be three chapters in?"

"Yes, but I like to work ahead." Edythe seemed to be relaxing slightly, though her face showed no difference at all. Maybe she was just as nervous as Bella was. "And I knew that Bella was a big fan of the book."

"Really?" Angela asked.

Bella quickly swallowed the bite she had taken and nodded. "I think I read it the first time when I was 12."

She smiled in response. "That's nice. I've tried a few times, but I've never been able to get past the parts with Wickham."

"That's fair," Edythe said.

"He's a real asshole," Bella agreed.

The smile on Angela's face, already gentle by nature, seemed to become even softer. "I'll give it another try, since you like it so much, Bella."

"And because it's an assignment," Jessica jumped in, laughing.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Mike sighed. "I haven't even started."

The conversation devolved after that. Since Edythe was acting normal, everyone else seemed to follow suit, just treating her like an unexpected guest, rather than a museum exhibit. They looped her in and out of conversations while she and Bella discussed the prompt.

At one point, Edythe moved her chair closer to Bella, enough that their knees were touching. Her knee was still cold, but she was relaxed instead of stiff, and Bella couldn't help but smile.

"Oh, Edythe!" Jessica said suddenly, leaning around Bella. "Why don't you come with us to Port Angeles? We're going to go shopping for dresses for the dance."

"Oh," Edythe said, frowning slightly. "Um, when are you going?" She glanced over at Bella, like she was looking for permission.

"I'm not going to the dance," Bella said quickly. "But I'd be happy to help you pick out dresses, of course."

"Why aren't you going?" Mike demanded, leaning around Jessica, who was still leaning forward. His shirt nearly touched his mashed potatoes.

"I don't dance," she said simply.

He frowned at her. "But I thought—"

"She isn't going," Jessica said firmly, though she looked disappointed, and Bella was very certain that this wouldn't be the last she heard of it, at least not from Jessica.

"Do you just not have someone to ask?" Eric asked. "Because you could always ask m—"

"It's not that," she said hastily. She needed an excuse, stat. "I'm...going out of town on the weekend of the dance."

"Where?" Mike asked.

"Seattle." Another random answer, but it would do well enough.

Jessica was obviously becoming irritated with the conversation, which Bella was honestly grateful for. She was irritated, too. "She's not coming. Anyway, Edythe? Do you want to come with us?"

"Who all will be there?" Edythe asked slowly.

"Just me, Bella, and Angela[3]."

Edythe searched her face, then glanced at Bella, who smiled encouragingly. "Okay," she agreed. "When would this be?"

"Next friday," Angela said, smiling.

She nodded. "Okay, but I think I'll need to drive up after you guys that day... I have a meeting with a teacher after school."

"We could wait for you," Jessica said.

"No, really, I don't want to take any time away from you guys. I'll just text you when I make it to town and meet up with you," she said swiftly.

Bella was kind of reeling from Edythe's agreement. She hadn't actually expected it, but she found that she was happy about it. Not only was Edythe choosing to spend time with her, but her friends like Edythe enough to invite her along. And Edythe was willing to come, even if she obviously just wanted to drive herself.

She nudged Edythe's knee with her own and smiled at her. "Can't wait."

A/n: [1] I looked up coffee shops in Forks just out of curiousity, and this name was way too hilarious/adorable not to use.

[2] I saw a headcanon about Jessica/Jeremy being Jewish (based mainly on their hair!) and I absolutly loved it. I also love the idea that they are black and Jewish, so I'll probably confirm that later in the series. :)

[3] Lauren who?

(Sadly, linking footnotes doesn't work on multi chaptered works)

So this took a different direction than I thought it would as I wrote it, and as I mentioned in a reply to a comment, I lost my initial draft. But I really like this, actually, though it's more dialogue based than thoughts based, which is a bit different than the previous installments of this series.

Edit 8/12/18: There was previously a typo where Erica was called Erica. It has been removed. Big thank you to DracoOblivion for catching the error!

Edit 1/7/19: Toward the end, Bella now begins referring to Jessica as Jess. Basically, they become close enough friends to the point that Bella, although internally, gives her a nickname.