My nose was sore when I woke up on Edward’s chest to the alarm clock. It was dull throbbing pain that made me wish for the searing white pain of the previous day.

Edward removed a hand from my waist and used it to angrily slap the alarm clock at his side. He didn’t groan. But I sure as hell did. He shifted under me and moved down until he was level with my face. When I finally opened my eyes he was lying in front of me, hooded green eyes inspecting the morning after damage of James’s elbow.

He hissed.

I groaned. “Is it that bad?” I rasped. My voice wasn’t as bad as yesterday, but still plenty grating, and making me wish that I had something either really hot or really cold to drink. He ran a hand through his disheveled bronze morning hair and grimaced.

I groaned again, and lifted the covers over my obviously awful face, turning over on my back and wallowing. I heard him sigh, and try to pull the covers down, but I held them there. As if my day wasn’t going to be awkward enough, I had to stand next to gorgeous Edward Cullen looking like… whatever it is I looked like.

He sighed again when I didn’t let the covers go. “Don’t be so fucking difficult. You’re beautiful.” He muttered in his thick morning voice.

I inched the covers down just enough to see him lying facing me, propped up on an elbow. “Really?” I whispered, sounding like a stupid self conscious teenage girl. Probably because I was.

He rolled his eyes behind his heavy lids. “Yes.” He flopped onto his back and began running his fingers through his hair again. “You’re always fucking beautiful. Now get your ass out of bed.” He turned to me and smiled crookedly. I smiled by instinct, but the little Edward in my head was yelling ‘Bullshit’.

With a grunt, I rolled out of bed and made my way to the bathroom. It was just… awful. I glowered at the mirror. The swelling had mostly subsided, but a large patch of dark blue spread up the bridge of my nose and towards my eye. People were going to see me like this all day. Bella Swan… weird crazy girl with the black and blue nose. I turned away, deciding that denial was a river in Bella land too.

I stared at his shower longingly, impatient to get home so I could take one. Really hot. My muscles were still sore and aching, and I was wondering if the school had a policy against students being under the influence of pretty blue pain pills.

Edward was waiting by the door for me again when I dropped his cookies off. I shuffled over to him where he was standing against the wall, looking far more tired than I was. He smiled sleepily at me and snaked his arms around my waist, pulling me to him and leaning in to give me a small kiss on my lips. I was going to pout and pull him closer and just crush his face to mine. But I decided to save gestures like those for the pretty blue pain pills. So instead I sent him a smile and climbed down the house.

The hot shower was just…. Heavenly didn’t even do it justice. It was… Edwardly. And as I stood under the steaming stream of water that relaxed and soothed every inch of my tired, sore body, I decided that Edwardly should definitely be an adjective.

The morning at home was far more hectic than I liked. While making breakfast, I discovered that Esme had to come to the school with me to meet with the faculty regarding my incident. She kept telling me I could stay home, but I decided since it was a Friday, I wanted to get it over with. Have the weekend to recover. Because I just knew it was going to be awkward and horribly mortifying. Even Edward couldn’t stop the stares and whispers. Better to let them get it all out of their systems now, and maybe… if I was very lucky… by the time Monday came, I’d return to being the invisible girl that everyone carefully avoided.

Alice looked disappointed by Esme’s presence when she joined us for breakfast. I was guessing that she was just dying to get me alone so that she could get all the gritty details on me and Edward.

She looked at my nose and hissed as she slipped into the stool opposite me. I rolled my eyes, stifling a groan. “You know…” She chirped while buttering her toast. “I have some killer foundation that will cover that bruise up.” She said in a sing song voice.

I furrowed my brows as I sipped my orange juice because I couldn’t grimace without pain. I didn’t do the makeup thing. Ever. But there was good chance that if I showed up non-bruised, the gawking wouldn’t be as bad. I spent the whole of breakfast mulling it over beside Esme before I finally agreed with a nod that made Alice’s face light up.

And as she was gingerly applying the makeup to my nose while I sat at her vanity, I sharply informed her that it was a one-time occurrence. She smiled widely and snickered with a nod, making a comment on how lucky I was the swelling was gone.

And by the time she was done, I was ready to track down the inventor of the magic cream and give them a bag of cookies too. I turned my face in the mirror with an impressed expression. If you knew exactly what you were looking for, you could probably tell. But to the casual observer… I was just Bella Swan… weird crazy girl. The usual.

Esme smiled at me widely as I drew my hood up to walk out the door with an appreciative glance at Alice’s handiwork. Alice took the Porsche while I rode with Esme. And I pretty much spent the whole car ride slumping farther and farther into my seat, as if it could swallow me and save me from the awful day ahead.

She parked closest to the administration building, saving me the immediate humiliation of the student parking zone. The looks I received as we entered the small office weren’t much better than the ones I got in the halls. The adults didn’t see me as some novelty or joke. They looked… scared. I wasn’t sure what they were scared of, nor could I decide which reaction I preferred. Either way, I kept my hood up and my head down as they led us into the principal’s office.

I lifted my head just enough to find the furthest chair in the corner to slump into. Esme took the seat closer to the Principal’s desk, where I assumed he was sitting, and making wary glances at me as I kept my head down.

I was thankful for the principal’s excess use of state money once my teacher’s began filtering in. His office was so big that everyone remained a… mostly comfortable distance away. I listened in morbid interest as they discussed my issues as if I weren’t even present. Esme began throwing words out there that I loathed. Technical medical terms for my ’condition’ that I couldn’t even mentally hear without misspelling.

I listened in horror as they began encouraging educational alternatives such as homeschooling. Which was absolutely preposterous. Like it was something we had never discussed and ruled out. Esme told them so. And she also made a very witty and sharp reference to that excess use of state money that came out of her paychecks. The principal stuttered and stammered. Not expecting a dainty woman such as Esme to put him in his place.

Instead of pushing the matter any further, the principal hastily instructed all of my teachers to make careful changes to my seating arrangements, and agreed that the faculty would ‘accommodate’ me to the best of their abilities. I was both thankful and impossibly more mortified by their efforts. It was only bound to bring me more attention if I was found to be treated differently. And as if hearing all of that wasn’t horrifying enough, they eventually they began discussing… emergency situations.

“In the case of any future incidents,” Esme started in a tight voice, making me cringe into my hoodie at the thought of any such thing. “You have my immediate permission to allow Edward Cullen to attend to her in any way possible.”

My head snapped up, finally allowing me to absorb the scene in front of me as I gaped at Esme in her seat across from the balding principal. It was an unexpected comment, to say the least. She shot a sideways glance to me where I sat in the far corner of the room. She looked uncertain, so I gave her a small smile, reassuring her that it was a good idea.

The expressions on my teachers’ faces were fairly priceless. I got the feeling they rarely wanted to allow Edward Cullen to do anything. The room was eventually filled with a general nod of agreement to her request.

And by the time the meeting was concluded, Esme looked rather smug as we exited the administration office.

She gave me a kiss on the cheek before she got back into her car, shooting me one last pointed glance. She was giving me an out, telling me with her eyes that this could be the end of my school day if I really wanted it to be. But I just smiled back at her. I was never much for procrastination, even when it was a mortifyingly uncomfortable situation.

The bell rang indicating the ending of first period as I watched her car disappear from the parking lot. With a deep sigh and a resolve I didn’t even think myself capable of, I made my way to class.

The doors began emptying as I started towards the quad with my head down. I looked up enough to make my way around, but no more. I couldn’t see the stares, but I could practically feel them as I made my way across the middle of the quad. I shoved my hands into my hoodie pockets and clenched my fists tightly.

They were looking and whispering and sometimes even snickering. But they were still avoiding; granting me a careful distance as I passed, staring at the wet concrete with a red face.

And then I felt it.

Tingles.

I smiled at the concrete and slowed my steps minutely, wondering if I should look up and go to him.

I didn’t need to. I felt an arm snake around my waist with the surging pulse of electricity that was Edward as I halted my steps. My stiff posture immediately eased with his touch. I sighed and finally lifted my head to the person at my side.

Edward was standing beside me in his leather jacket with his messy bronze hair blowing in the soft breeze of the morning. His piercing green eyes were boring into mine as I smiled and leaned into his side cautiously, not knowing how close we could be. He smiled back at me crookedly, leaning down to place a soft kiss on my forehead. I smiled wider, turning my body into his chest and closing my eyes while his lips lingered momentarily on my skin.

When he finally leaned back up, he made a pointed glance at the hood on my head. More like a glare really. I never could understand his grudge against it. Maybe he liked my hair, I didn’t know. He seemed to sense my unwillingness to allow its removal because he didn’t make any move to.

He scrutinized my nose with pursed lips. “You heal pretty fucking quick.” He smirked, moving his free hand to cup my cheek lovingly. I chuckled and rolled my eyes. But my eye roll changed my field of vision momentarily enough for me to notice the people surrounding us.

I let my gaze slowly wander over the expressions of the students, who were multi-tasking as they walked and gaped at the vision of Edward cupping the crazy girl’s cheek simultaneously. Edward’s thumb began a soft caress of my cheek, relaxing me while I turned my attention back to his green eyes. But he was glaring at the passersby, a stark contrast to his loving caress.

I sighed, gaining his attention, and smiled back at him. “I’m kind of used to the whole staring thing by now.” I shrugged honestly. It didn’t mean I was comfortable being gaped at, but I had built a resistance to it somewhat.

He sighed and drooped his hand, returning to my side and snaking his arm around my waist once again. “Come on, I’ll walk you to class.” He smiled, leading me across the quad to the doors. I relaxed into his side as we traveled past all of the stares and whispers. He tightened his grip on my waist as we entered the halls of the school and the whispers were easier heard.

I ignored them as I leaned my head against Edward’s shoulder, letting his love and electricity ease me thoroughly. He stopped me at the door to my second period class, pulling me aside to the wall, and backing me up against it as he glanced around the halls nervously.

He sighed and placed one of his palms on the wall beside my head, leaning into me in an oddly protective stance. “Make me a promise?” He whispered, inches away from my face with his brows slightly furrowed in concern. I nodded without hesitation. He took another wary glance around the hall before finally facing me again. “Wait for me at your desk after class?” He asked in hushed voice and an expression that suggested he intended the promise to be made after every class.

I rolled my eyes. “Edward, you can’t possibly walk me to every class.” I said rationally. As appealing as the idea was, it didn’t make sense for him to take the extra time to cross campus and risk constant tardiness at my expense.

He rolled his eyes back at me, leaning his face into mine further and gazing into my eyes intensely. My breathing hitched a little as he came closer, until his lips were barely resting on mine. Without my permission, my breathing began speeding up as he lightly took my bottom lip in between his, never breaking my gaze. I wanted to kiss him back, but the way his eyes were hypnotizing me as they bore into mine rendered me completely paralyzed.

He released my bottom lip as he slowly smirked against it. “You just fucking watch me.” He whispered against my lips, raising his eyebrows and leaning back with the same wry smile plastered on his face.

I nodded. Quite profusely.

He chuckled and stepped aside, waving a hand towards the door and watching as I walked inside. I took the new seat the teacher pointed out to me in the back of the class. When I looked back at the door, he was gone, but I still had a little grin. And when all the students filtered in and began looking at me, all I could think about was seeing Edward in one hour.

I glared at all the people I passed as I made my way to my second period class. Bella was naïve. She didn’t understand how much power these people had over her. All it would take is one asshole who was too curious. And she’d be fucked. Nothing was stopping me from protecting her completely now. If I thought I could really get away with it, I’d just fucking transfer into all her classes and never leave her side.

Of course, walking her to every class was as much excess as I could possibly get away with. So I’d do it. People were staring at me more, not that I really gave a shit. Usually that kind of attention would make me fucking restless and pissy. They’d get over it eventually, once the novelty of us wore off.

Once the bell rang for second period, I was the first motherfucker out of that door and crossing the quad back to my girl. She was good. Sitting in her seat and waiting for me just like I asked. She lifted her head when I appeared in the doorway and smiled at me, picking up her bag and shuffling over to me.

I really wanted to ask her to take that goddamn hood off, but I knew better. There were too many people here for her to do that. And I didn’t want to make my girl uncomfortable, so I just put my arm back around her little waist and walked her to third period. She leaned into my side as we walked the halls, breathing in deeply on occasion and smelling me. I was doing that shit a little too. Flowers and cookies. Fucking divine.

I still fucking glared a little as I steered her around the people in the hall. They stared, I glared. I dropped her off at third period with a soft kiss on the top of her head. She smiled up at me and walked into class, looking back at me as I made sure she got to her desk without being fucked with.

By the time third period was over, I was certain that everyone already knew. The whispers in the halls were a little fucking ridiculous. Nothing even remotely original. When I walked to her classroom door, I peeked inside, taking a moment to inspect her face carefully to make sure the whispers weren’t getting to her as she walked towards me.

She was being quite the little champ about the whole thing. Still fucking holding her head down and leaning into my side as we passed the people, but she was doing it. She probably had the chance to stay home today, avoid it for as long as fucking possible. But that’s not how my girl worked. I was beginning to see that more and more every day.

I walked us to the lunch room after third period, pausing at the door with my arm around her waist and furrowed my brows… a little fucking uncertain. I didn’t know where to sit with her. I eventually decided to take her to my table. If Brandon and Jazz wanted to sit with us, they could. And even though it would bug the shit out of me, if Rose and Emmett wanted to come and sit with us too, I’d keep my fucking mouth shut about it.

She looked a little surprised at first when I led her to my table, but didn’t object to my choice as I pulled a seat out for her. She smiled at the ground and sat in the seat timidly, taking her cookies out of her bag as I took my seat beside her. Then she did something I had never expected her to do on her own. She reached a hand up and slid her hood off, letting all her long brown hair free. I smiled pretty fucking widely at her, glad to have the hood gone, even though I was pretty sure she’d put it back up after lunch. It was still a big step. My girl was comfortable with me beside her.

I chanced a glance around the lunchroom where everyone was pretty fucking much still gawking. I rolled my eyes and scooted my chair closer to my girl, worried that they were making her uneasy.

I slid my hand under her hair, cupping the back of her warm neck and caressing it softly with my thumb.

She shivered and turned her head to me, blushing with a small smile. I snickered at the blush and kept stroking her neck as we ate our bag of fucking delicious cookies in a silence that was far more comfortable than one would have expected as we remained under the scrutinizing eye of the cafeteria.

Brandon and Jazz walked in the room ten minutes later, looking particularly fucking unkempt. Their hair was all over the place, red swollen lips, straightening their clothes as they glanced around the room. Brandon got a flash of panic in her eyes as her gaze fell upon Bella’s empty seat. Rose and Emmett were present, but too caught up in each other to notice anyone missing. Eventually her gaze slowly wandered to our table… and me. I could see her fucking huff from all the way across the room. I smirked at her as she made her way to the table with Jazz.

Jazz and I had a conversation on the way to school. It was strictly a ‘bros over hoes’ speech. I was to keep my fucking mouth shut about what he knew, and he was to save my ass if any castration was going down. He sat across from me at the table, just like always, leaving Brandon the seat next to him as she glared at me a little. I was guessing the whole grateful bit went out the window when I was discovered to be the boyfriend.

She eyed my hand that was hidden under my girl’s hair as I caressed her neck softly and took a bite of my cookie. She eyed Bella with a serious expression. "Are you two sleeping together?" She asked bluntly.

Bella and I both choked on our bites of cookies simultaneously, coughing up crumbs and turning red. I think I realized first that she meant sex... and not actual sleeping, so I shook my head, still trying to clear my airway.

My girl was not pleased. I watched as they began shooting each other weird pointed glances, and finally recovering from the choking fit. Brandon shot a dagger at my hand, still rubbing her neck, like she didn't want me touching her. Bella narrowed her eyes back. A silent debate that Brandon was apparently losing as she huffed and slumped in her chair.

That was some interesting shit. Curious about this odd new development in which Brandon couldn’t bitch at me for touching my girl, I leaned my head into Bella’s pressing my nose to the side of her hair and breathing in with a smile.

“Oh for the love of god.” I heard Brandon mutter from her seat. I chuckled into my girl’s hair and pulled back, smirking at Brandon. I really wanted to do more, like kiss her neck right in front of her, and watch her have a fucking coronary. But I never would. It would make Bella uncomfortable, so I settled for the soft stroking of her neck as we ate.

Brandon had no trouble settling into our table. She was pretty much the only one talking. Jazz, my girl, and I were quiet people.

I furrowed my brows at her as she began excitedly discussing Valentines Day plans with Jazz. Poor bastard. That shit was over a month away, and she already had everything planned. And even weirder, Jazz didn’t seem to really give a shit, watching her vibrate with enthusiasm over the event with a small smile flirting at his lips. Fucking smitten.

Somewhere into listening to Brandon bluntly suggest her own Valentines Day gift and top three choices of preferred flower arrangements, I felt a hand on my knee. I looked over at my girl who was staring intently at the table top as she ate with her free hand and rubbed my knee with her other.

I smiled and caressed her neck a little firmer with my thumb, just showing her that the gesture was okay with me.

We walked to Bio together after Bella got her hood up after lunch. I held her waist firmly as we meandered the halls, already used to the staring by that particular point. Mr. Banner wanted to change her seat, but she didn’t listen, sitting down at our lab table as he looked at her with a frustrated expression.

My girl sat with her lab stool close to mine, scooting closer once class had started. I didn’t mind one fucking bit. In fact, I took her hand again; bringing it under the table and holding it until she needed it back to write with. I could see Newton two tables a head of us, just fucking dying to turn around and analyze us like everyone else was doing. Including Mr. Banner. Which seemed a little fucking inappropriate if you ask me.

Even under the close stares of the entire classroom as we sat close to one another, my girl seemed completely relaxed next to me, taking my hand again when she was done writing her assignment. When the bell rang, I waited for everyone else to exit before I led my girl out of the room.

I was worried about gym. I didn’t fucking want her going in there. Not with James, not with Stanley and her hyenas, not even with that stupid as shit gym coach. And as we stood by the double doors, I told her so.

She sighed at me and glanced around nervously. “I’ll be fine. The coach has already made…” She paused and grimaced, holding up air quotes. “’accommodations’.” She finished dryly, looking down at the ground and fiddling with her hoodie sleeves.

It still didn’t placate me one fucking bit. Especially when I spotted Stanley walking up with her group. She looked me right in the eye and smiled at me… attempting to be seductive but really only succeeding in making me fucking nauseous. I quickly turned back to my girl, who was staring at Stanley with an odd expression that I didn’t quite understand.

I furrowed my brows and lifted my hand to put my fingers under her chin, turning her to face me. Her big brown eyes met mine with an odd mixture of determination, love, anger, and that same fucking bitterness that I had seen in her eyes before.

And before I could even fucking question her about any of it, she shoved me hard up against the double doors with a strength that I didn’t even think my girl capable of. I hit the doors with a hard thud, and I looked at her in shock, and a little bit fucking hurt.

But instead of just slapping the shit out of me, which was what I was truthfully expecting given the rough shove, she pressed her body against me and crushed her lips to mine. And then it all fucking clicked.

I fought to hold back a smirk against her lips as I slid her hood off and tangled my fingers into her soft hair, darting my tongue out across her bottom lip. I figured if I could get my girl any kind of vindication against that tramp, I was going to do it right.

And we definitely did. She parted her lips to shove her tongue in my mouth, but I wouldn’t let her. Instead I plunged mine into hers, pushing off the doors just enough to turn her around and press her against them.

She fisted her hands into my leather jacket, pulling me closer as she tilted her head to deepen this kiss further. I was worried about hurting her face as I cradled her head in my hands, trying to stop her from being so fucking rough. But she wasn’t having any of that shit. She brought her hands to my hair, pulling my face closer to hers and pressing against my tongue urgently with hers. My eyes rolled back a little when she pulled my hair, and then suddenly, we weren’t doing the kiss for anyone but ourselves. I pushed her back into the doors harder, just fucking needing to be closer to her. She moaned into my mouth as I pressed against her, breathing heavily and pulling my hair harder. Because she just figured out I liked that shit. I gasped, pressing against her tongue more fervently. And then she fucking did it again. I groaned breathlessly into her mouth. And that was pretty much my cue to back the fuck off. I slid my tongue out of her mouth and eased off of her from the door.

When I opened my eyes and met hers, she fucking smiled at me. And I smiled back, panting a little from the kiss, but happy as hell to see all that bitterness completely gone. She chuckled at me and leaned up to give me one last chaste kiss on my lips. It felt a whole lot like a thanks. As if the kiss wasn’t plenty fucking thanks enough for me.

I cleared my throat and backed away from her as she drew her hood back up over head, still fucking smiling. And when I turned around to see Stanley, it really was fucking priceless. Jealousy was the understatement of the century. Her face was red as she fumed silently from the concrete walkway; starring daggers at my girl that made me want to fucking stab her again.

My hard on completely fell in my pants when I realized she had just made shit worse on herself. With a curse under my breath, I turned back to tell her to be careful, but she was already walking in the doors and out of my sight before I could.

---

When the last bell of the day rang, I threw all my shit into my bag carelessly and damn near sprinted towards the gym, fucking praying that my girl wasn’t going to walk out crying again. Or worse.

Luckily by the time I reached the doors, she was already exiting. Tear free. I let out a sigh of relief and walked over to her, snaking my arm around her waist. She looked up at me with a weird blank expression and a smile that looked completely fucking forced.

I groaned as I walked her towards the parking lot with her. “Did they fuck with you?” I asked, pretty fucking aggravated at the thought of it. She shook her little head against my shoulder, but didn’t say anything. Making me think she was probably lying.

I stopped when we reached the gravel, grabbing her arm and turning her towards me, lifting her chin with my finger again. “Jazz can ride with Brandon if you want to come with me.” I suggested quietly, hoping that she could talk to me about it once we were alone.

Her eyes got wide. “No!” She yelled, looking into my eyes all panicked and scared. I frowned down at her, feeling a little fucking hurt and rejected by her vehement refusal. She sighed and shook her head, glancing around the parking lot. “I mean, I just wanted to get some time alone with Alice.” She pleaded with her eyes as she gazed into mine. I nodded, deciding she wasn’t lying about that fact, and leaned down cautiously to kiss her forehead.

She smiled at me as I leaned back. And I was somewhat reassured because it seemed real, so I led her to the Porsche where Brandon and Jazz were waiting. We split after that, getting into our two cars without another word, and going home for the weekend.

---

When I got home, I was so fucking thankful that Emmett had practice. Because I just knew he was going to drill me about all that shit. But before I could even go up the stairs to my bedroom and relax, someone knocked on the door.

I groaned and turned around on the stairs, walking down and throwing the door open angrily. And, of course. It just made fucking sense. That Brandon would be standing on my doorstep fucking glaring at me with her arms crossed over her chest.

“What?” I snapped, not feeling particularly up to her bullshit at that moment. Instead of answering me she ducked under my arm, walking into the house like she fucking owned the place. With a frustrated growl, I closed the door. Hard. Just so she knew she really wasn’t welcome.

Not that she cared, as she bounced to the living room and flopped onto the couch, leaning back and looking entirely too fucking comfortable. I quirked an eyebrow at her, just wanting her to get it over with.

She rolled her eyes at me. “Oh, relax, I’m not here to castrate you or anything.” She teased with a smile as she ran her finger down the arm of the couch. I huffed and walked to the nearest chair, flopping down and looking bored as fuck. Which was a total bluff. Because the gleam in her eye when she said the word was scary as hell.

She pursed her lips at me for a moment as her expression turned serious. “My cousin loves you, you know?” she whispered quietly, clasping her hands in her lap.

I was pleased the words came out of her mouth quietly and calmly, so I nodded at her. I knew she loved me. “I love her too.” I shrugged in honesty, feeling a little fucking offended when Brandon got all wide eyed and shocked at the words coming out of my mouth. I rolled my eyes. “Not that it’s any of your fucking business or anything.” I muttered, shaking my head and glaring at my boots.

Brandon’s lips remained pursed for a moment as she tilted her head at me. “And you make her happy.” She said as a statement, and in an awestruck tone that was just further fucking offensive. I rolled my eyes again and nodded. I liked to think I made my girl happy.

She nodded, bobbing her little head and looking around the room before sitting up straight on the edge of the couch and looking me right in the eye. “Here’s what you’re going to do, Edward.” She chirped with a smile and a tone that just fucking dripped condescension. “You’re going to come over tomorrow night for dinner. Meet Esme officially as her boyfriend.” She said in a matter of fact voice with a smug expression. Like if I didn’t there’d be hell to pay. She stood up then, rocking on her heels. “You’re going to be polite, and you’re going to bring Bella flowers.” She nodded decisively.

And I kind of fucking gaped at her. It was a little pretentious for her to be telling me how to treat my own girlfriend. Instead of explaining herself, she smiled at me sweetly and skipped towards the door, throwing a wave over her shoulder.

“See you tomorrow at five!” She sang as she exited the house, leaving me in the chair, raking my fingers through my hair in utter frustration. Fucking bitch.

---

Emmett eventually cornered me in the hall that evening. I just gave him the now perfunctory “Yes she’s my girlfriend, no I’m not fucking her” speech and locked myself in my room before he could question me any further about it.

I flopped on my back onto my bed, ridiculously happy to be away from everyone. I didn’t know how my girl could handle so much fucking attention all the time. Everyone always staring at her and waiting for her to do something weird. I was fucking exhausted after only one day of it.

I was waiting for her when she came at ten, hungry and wanting to question her about gym. And kind of fucking ready to shove my foot up an ass if need be. When I heard her tap on the door, I opened it hastily, leading her in out of the cold while I slipped her hood down.

She turned to me with a smile that eased my fears as I leaned down to kiss her softly, cupping her cheek and rubbing it with my thumb the way she liked. She sighed and tangled her fingers into my hair, pulling me closer and trying to deepen it the way she always did. I sighed back, taking her tongue into my mouth and massaging it slowly with my own.

I ended it quickly, in attempt to make our night more comfortable. We did have a pretty long fucking day. She sighed and turned back around without looking me in the eye, and unloaded my meal onto the bed. I furrowed my brows at her weird sigh and followed her, flopping onto the bed and inspecting her expression carefully as she removed her hoodie and climbed up beside me.

I began eating the fucking delicious Teriyaki Stir-fry while she leaned against my shoulder silently, just waiting for the right moment to ask her what the fuck was bothering her. I studied her expression as I ate, looking for any signs of distress or discomfort.

“What kind of cookies did you make tonight?” I asked casually while I chewed the stir fry.

She shrugged against my shoulder. “German Chocolate Inferiors.” She responded quietly without looking up at me. I furrowed my brows at the beef and vegetables in my container, trying to figure out what the fuck made my girl feel inferior.

Eventually I was fed up. I covered the container and turned towards her. “Okay, tell me what the fuck happened in gym today.” I sighed, putting my fork down.

I watched as she grimaced, falling onto her back and covering her face with her hands. “It’s stupid.” She mumbled through her hands.

“Bullshit.” I said simply. And it was. “Nothing that bothers you is stupid.” I told her, watching as she peeked through two fingers at me. She slowly slid her hands of her face with a deep sigh. And she was fucking blushing.

I furrowed my brows at her red face. The same thing was bothering her was making her blush. That’s new. I quirked an eyebrow at her lying before me on the bed.

She grimaced again, slowly lifting herself to a sitting position in front of me and eyeing me carefully. “It’s really none of my business, or my place to ask.” She replied quietly, pulling at her long sweater sleeves and gazing into my eyes with a look of caution.

I frowned at her, watching as she picked at her sleeves in a way I knew all too well. “You can ask me anything.” I whispered coaxingly, and kind of fucking hurt that she even had to think twice.

She didn’t ask me anything though, just whispered two words into her lap. “Lauren Mallory?”

I blinked at her a few times, just wondering who I had to kill for even telling her about that. But really, I should have told her myself. I was always fucking priding myself on how honest we were with each other, and I just so happened to let that little piece of information slide by unmentioned. So instead, I grimaced. “Oh.” I answered lamely, not denying it like I really wanted to.

She peeked up at me with a red face. “It doesn’t matter to me or anything.” She whispered in a sad tone that was completely fucking unconvincing. She pulled her sleeves harder, still glancing up at me cautiously as I grimaced and nodded in confirmation with a sour expression. Her face fell a little before she was able to catch herself and smile at me reassuringly. Not that it was the least bit reassuring.

I sighed deeply and raked my fingers through my hair. “If I could change all that shit I would.” I muttered without meeting her gaze. It was probably the first time I felt ashamed for fucking Mallory. It was really no big deal to me. It wasn’t romantic or any shit like that. It was barely intimate at all. When I finally met her gaze again, she was staring at me, biting her lip and still pulling at her sleeves nervously.

So that wasn’t all.

I sighed again and quirked an eyebrow at her expectantly. Might as well get it all out there in the open.

She darted her eyes around the room nervously, avoiding my gaze. “Are there more?” She asked in a tiny whisper I had to fucking struggle to hear.

I breathed a sigh of relief at the only question I could answer right. “No.” I answered honestly.

She looked relieved by my answer as she finally met my gaze, still beet fucking red.

I attempted a smile at her, still feeling a little ashamed. “That shit really doesn’t bother you?” I asked skeptically. And of course I was fucking skeptical, because if it were her, that shit would bother me. A lot.

She shook her head. “No, that doesn’t bother me.” She replied quietly before looking back down at her lap, still pulling her sleeves. “It’s just…” she trailed off with a sigh, finally ceasing her pulling of her sleeves and looking me in the eye. “I’m not like those girls.” She whispered with a sad expression.

And I couldn’t figure out why that would make her sad. Who wanted to be a skanky bitch?

She must have noticed my obviously confused expression because she huffed at me, rolling her eyes. “Its stupid, I already told you.” She muttered, shaking her head in a way that indicated she didn’t want to continue with her line of thought.

I was getting impatient. “Just fucking spit it out, Bella.” I said exasperated. I didn’t have this kind of experience with girls, and it was really fucking frustrating that I didn’t know what was bothering her so much. And that she was afraid to tell me.

She began pulling at her sleeves once again, chancing an occasional peek at my frustrated expression. “You treat me differently than you treated them?” She asked in question form, not meeting my gaze as her long brown hair shielded most of her face from my view.

And I fucking snorted. “Of course I treat you differently. I’d never disrespect you like that because I love you.” I added sincerely, scooting back to lean against my headboard while I let that shit soak in.

She peeked up at me through her lashes and hair. “That’s the only reason though?” she whispered skeptically, biting her lip.

I raised my eyebrows and nodded at her. “What other reason would there be?” I asked incredulously.

She looked back down and shrugged one shoulder, playing with her sleeves still. I watched her for a few moments with pursed lips, trying to piece together the clues to figure out why she was so upset since she wouldn’t just fucking tell me. I treated her with more respect than those other girls. She seemed sad that she wasn’t like them. She felt inferior.

And when the notion finally seeped into my slow ass brain, I snorted again.

“You don’t think that I wanted them more or some shit.” I scoffed as a statement, trying to make it true. Because the thought was just so fucking ridiculous. She shook her head at her lap, not looking me in the eye, and basically confirming my suspicion by doing so.

My whole heart fucking sank. I pushed off the headboard and scooted in front of my girl, folding my legs beneath me and grabbing her by the waist. She didn’t look up at me as I lifted her into my lap so that she was straddling me. I grabbed her red face in my hands and forced her to look me in the eye. I gazed intensely into her sad brown eyes; using all the love I had for her to fucking cement my next statement in utter sincerity. “You’re right. That is really fucking stupid” I whispered, shaking my head.

She grimaced and closed her eyes. “I know it is.” She sighed in a regretful tone. She opened her eyes and rolled them at me. “Just forget I said anything.” She muttered, still fucking blushing and obviously embarrassed as she stared into my eyes.

But that wasn’t something I could just fucking forget. I was constantly fighting to push the lust away to make her comfortable until we were even ready to consider it. I knew Bella got carried away in the heat of the moment some times, but I had no fucking clue she even wanted me to take shit any further. I wanted to tell her I jerked off to stupid shit like her collar bones and curly hair because I wanted her so fucking badly, but decided to save myself that humiliation.

Instead, I brought her face to mine and crushed my lips to hers. She was taken aback but returned the kiss as I slid my tongue in between her slightly parted lips. I deepened the kiss this time, pulling her face closer and tilting mine to drive my tongue deeper into her mouth. She sighed and tangled her fingers into my hair, and fucking pulled it with her fists as she brought my face closer. It really didn’t take long for me. I removed my hands from her face and grabbed her hips as she fought against my tongue, bringing her closer to my body as I pushed her down into my rather obvious boner. She moaned into my mouth as I pulled my face away from hers.

I was breathless as I stared into her hooded brown eyes and rested my forehead against hers. “See” I breathed into her face, pushing her down harder just to emphasize my point. I felt her breath hitch as her grip on my hair momentarily tightened, making my eyes roll back a little bit. She nodded against my forehead and writhed her hips against my dick again, making my eyes flutter closed as I groaned loudly. That really wasn’t my intention, so I tightened my grip on her hips to make her stop. I opened my eyes and looked at her all fucking disapprovingly. “My point was,” I breathed as she looked at me confused, leaned against my forehead. “That even though I really fucking want you, I hold myself back.” I concluded in a whisper against her face.

She furrowed her brows at me, loosening her fists in my hair to stroke it gently with her fingertips. “Why?” She whispered quietly as she looked into my eyes.

I sighed into her face as she stroked my hair softly. “Because it would fucking kill me to make you uncomfortable.” I said honestly while gazing into her confused brown eyes.

She snorted. “That’s it?” She asked incredulously, rolling her eyes as she backed off of my forehead. I quirked an eyebrow at her and nodded. It seemed like a pretty fucking good reason to me. She chuckled shaking her head. “Christ Edward, I’ve been basically throwing myself at you since…” She trailed off with another chuckle that kind of fucking annoyed me. “Since Phoenix, definitely.” She nodded and chuckled some more.

I rolled my eyes as she chuckled and flopped onto my back. “You let yourself get carried away in the moment, Bella. Doesn’t mean you’re ready for all that shit.” I raised my eyebrows at her as she sat on top of me still.

Without warning, her chuckles died, as anger flashed in her eyes. “I’m not a child, Edward.” She glared down at me, holding her chin up and rounding her shoulders back indignantly while she narrowed her eyes at me. I fought the urge to smirk up at her as she fumed at me, because she just looked so fucking cute. I’ve seen kittens that were more frightening.

She huffed, staring down her nose at me. “Just because you happen to be more experienced than me when it comes to-” She paused; fucking blushing and making me want to smirk more, because she was just proving my point. And she must have known because she lifted her chin higher. “sex,” She spat down at me. “Doesn’t give you the right to be so condescending.” She went on, looking like she was dying to stick her tongue out at me. “I’d know what I was ready for better than anyone.” She snapped, glowering down her nose at me still.

And I couldn’t fucking take it anymore. I laughed. Kind of hard too, making her bounce on top of me with every hearty chuckle. She got even more furious as her eyes widened. Realizing that she thought I was laughing at her reasoning, I sat up, wrapping my arms around her waist, trying to stop my chuckles, and buried my face in the crook of her neck when I couldn’t.

“I’m sorry.” I chuckled still, shaking my head in the crook of her neck as she sat rigid atop me. “You’re just so fucking cute when you’re pissed off.” I snickered, still shaking my head. I could practically hear her rolling her eyes at me as I let my snickers die off.

When I was certain I wouldn’t offend her further by erupting into another fit of laughter, I eased back and looked into her eyes. She still looked a little pissed off as she held her chin up, refusing to be thought of as a ‘child’. I rolled my eyes at her. “I wasn’t trying to be condescending.” I stared into her eyes apologetically as her posture minutely relaxed. “I was just trying to take shit slow.” I whispered pleadingly.

She frowned at me and nodded, bringing her arms around my neck and hugging it softly. I tightened my grip on her waist, burying my face into the crook of her neck again and breathing in deeply. She shifted again against me, unintentionally stirring me back into a full fledged erection. I sighed into her neck, wondering if it would hurt her feelings if I pulled away. I figured it probably would, so I eased us back and rolled us over onto our sides in sleeping position with her leg still hitched over my hip.

But her nose was still too hurt to sleep like that, and I was already tired from the long day of being fucking gaped at. So I rolled onto my back, easing her cheek onto my chest, and fighting the urge to groan as her thigh rested right on my crotch.

I figured she was just as tired as me since she didn’t object when I turned out the light. I tightened my arms around my girl as she hummed me to sleep softly, vowing to do everything in my power to make her feel as superior as she truly fucking was.

Lots of love to the guys over at Twilighted! I used your stir fry! Thanks for the meal suggestions.

Reviews make me tingly too.