Chapter Ten - Come Hell or High Water

“People only see what they are prepared to see.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Chapter Ten – Come Hell or High Water

EPOV

As usual, my thoughts were plagued by her. Truck girl. It was beginning to frustrate me to no end. Never in my life had I thought so much about one girl, then again, never in my life had I wanted one as much as I wanted her. It was throwing me off my stride.

At least I knew where she lived now. And wasn’t it a stroke of luck that she happened to be right down the hall? I didn’t want to dwell on how I had missed her all the time, or how she had managed to avoid me. Thoughts like that were sure to only piss me off.

Instead I thought about her eyes, so warm and deep. All I had to do was close my own eyes to remember how lost I felt staring into their penetrating depths. Her hair, so soft and fragrant. I could still feel it ghosting across my skin as it surrounded us both. Her lips, so luscious and full. I wanted to feel them, to taste them. Her body, so soft, yet so firm. I imagined my hands running over her, pleasuring her. Her voice, so timid and shy. I wanted to hear it again. Saying my name, whispering in my ear, screaming with desire. I shook myself out of my daze, shocked at myself and more than a little turned on. What was this girl doing to me? I still didn’t even know her name!

One thing was certain; I would make her mine. Whether she knew it or not, I did. There was no other way it could be. No way at all. I wake up every morning thinking of her, go to sleep every night dreaming of her, and spend the entirety of my days wanting her. It was getting out of control.

I glanced at my clock and noticed it was nearly 8:30. Jasper should be back with my coffee by now. It was the second best way to start my day. The only thing better would be if a certain brunette woke up beside me. But that would happen soon enough.

I walked out into the living area and was greeted by emptiness. No chattering TV, no Jasper, and the most depressing thing about it, no coffee. He was supposed to be here with my morning brew. It was our routine. It was sacred. What on Earth could possibly have been more important than our most sacred routine?

I sat on the couch and glared at the door, willing it to open. I could still faintly hear Emmett snoring away from the other room, and that only enraged me further. Who wanted to listen to that rumbling without their morning coffee? Certainly not me. I contemplated going in there and dumping him out of his too small bed, just so someone else would be as irritated as I was.

After 15 minutes of muttering and glaring, I finally heard the sound of keys in the door. I launched myself off the couch, desperate for my morning fix, but froze when Jasper walked in. He was a fucking mess. His shirt was untucked and unbuttoned, and was that coffee all down the front of him? I groaned to myself.

“Please tell me that’s not my fucking coffee all over your shirt.” I shot him my most lethal look, hoping he would be ashamed of himself for committing a crime so heinous. But he didn’t even look at me. It was more like he was looking right through me. He had this ridiculous fucking smile on his face and I instantly wanted to punch him. That fucker met a girl. I glared at him once more, and just because it would make me feel better, I punched him in his shoulder.

He turned that goofy smile toward me and beamed at me. He actually had the audacity to beam at me when I hadn’t had my morning coffee. Did he want to die? I crossed my arms over my chest

“What?” He still had that goofy look on his face, and it was apparent he hadn’t been paying one bit of attention to me.

“My fucking coffee! Tell me that’s not what’s all over your god damn shirt!” I was enraged. My routine was broken, I had no coffee, and I was about to go through the fucking roof.

He looked down at himself like he had no clue his shirt was a fucking mess. Then he smiled at me again. “Sorry about that.” Then he turned to go sit on the couch. I just stood there, stunned. What the fuck was wrong with him?

“Is that all? You’re sorry? What the fuck happened? Did you get jumped? There’s got to be a good reason you showed up here looking like that, and without my coffee!” No one would be kidding if they said I wasn’t a morning person.

“Of course I didn’t get jumped. I met Alice.” Who the hell? Just when I was getting ready to ask that, he continued, “She was behind me at the coffee shop and I nearly spilled our drinks on her. Good thing I didn’t or she might not have ever talked to me.” He looked so happy, I didn’t want to bring him down, but I didn’t have any fucking coffee.

“Okay. Trying to not get pissed off here seeing as though you didn’t replace my coffee, but who the hell is Alice?”

“The girl with the yellow Porsche.” My mind spun in a million different directions. If he met her, it was a good possibility he knew more about her.

“So… Alice, huh?” I was going to need to be sneaky about this. “And what did you guys talk about?”

“I didn’t ask her about Truck Girl, so don’t get your hopes up.” Well, fuck me. Here I thought I was being stealthy. “I did find out she lives right down the hall with her two roommates though.” His brow quirked because he knew I’d find that interesting. “She asked about you specifically. Wanted to know if I was rooming with the ‘bronze-haired guy’ she saw me with the other day.”

“Did you ask why?” My hands were starting to get clammy.

“Didn’t have to. She said one of her roommates had bumped into him the day before that. Did you happen to bump into any other girls that same day?” He was snickering at me now. Much like he and Emmett had both been since the whole story came out. They still found it hilarious that I had knocked her over in the stairwell.

“No, I didn’t. It’s got to be the same girl. What room are they in?”

“What room do you think?” Then he smirked at me, and I had my answer.

Neither of us noticed Emmett come into the room, which was shocking considering his sheer size. We both jumped a foot when his voice boomed out, “Is she rooming with the blonde too?” All I could do was laugh. We were all done for. Every fucking one of us.


I had to mentally prepare myself for my lesson tonight with Tanya. She hadn’t taken kindly to me shooting her down, and I was silently praying that she would have let it go by now. Those hopes were dashed when she walked in wearing next to nothing and slid as close to me as possible on the bench.

“So, Eddie…what did you want to do with me tonight?” Her eyes were twinkling at me and I didn’t miss the double entendre. But I didn’t want to do anything with her. I just wanted to give her piano lessons and go on my way. Why did life have to be so damn complicated? I wanted to cringe when she called me that. I hated being called Eddie, especially by Tanya.

“First thing, don’t call me Eddie. Ever. Second, why don’t we start with your scales?”

Gruff was the name of the game, and I was sticking to it like glue. I didn’t want her to get any further ideas. In fact, I wanted to find a way to shoot down the ideas she already had.

All throughout the lesson, Tanya would rub her leg against mine. She sat entirely too close for comfort, and she was batting her eyes at me. Her scent was strong, like she had doused herself in perfume before walking in here and it made me want to gag. It was overly floral, like hothouse roses just gone to wilt. I was getting nauseous and felt like I was swimming in the scent. It was nothing like hers. A small smile came to my face just thinking about her.

Tanya mistook it as a smile for her and ran her hand from my shoulder to my hand. “Time’s up Eddie. Why don’t we get out of here and go somewhere a little more… private.”

I jerked my hand away from her and glared at her. Subtlety obviously wasn’t working. Perhaps crass would. “No Tanya. I thought I made it clear that I wasn’t interested in you. Am not now, and will never be. Your type,” I gestured to her overly-provocative outfit, “shouldn’t have any trouble finding someone willing to play your games. Count me out.”

She was shooting daggers at me with her eyes and her breasts were heaving. The sight didn’t even arouse me a little. “And furthermore, if you can’t let this go, I’ll have to suggest you find yourself a new private teacher.” With that, I grabbed my things and stormed out of the practice booth and down the hall to the one I had signed up for.

My anger was taking over me and I could feel it bubbling under the surface. The music poured out, hot and angry. My fingers flew across the keys and the sound scorched the air. This wasn’t peaceful music, nor was it meant to soothe my soul. This was pissed off, fuck the world, leave me alone music.

Not too long before, I would have gladly jumped at the chance to romp between the sheets with a girl like Tanya. The difference was that a girl like Tanya wouldn’t be interested in just one romp. She had ‘calculating bitch’ written all over her. And even more, that was all before I found myself in a tumbled heap in the stairwell of my dorm with her. Ever since then, I couldn’t even see anyone else.

As my mind focused on her once again, the tune changed. The fire fizzled out and all that was left was that lingering melody that had been haunting me. Her lullaby. The passion rose and ebbed as it poured out of me. One part of my mind demanded to stop and write the notes down while the other insisted on continuing, vowing to commit each note to memory.

Once again I lost track of time while I was composing this piece. Or rather, while it composed itself through me. I had never before written anything as fulfilling and beautiful as this one piece. It seemed to overshadow everything else I had ever done in my life. I didn’t want to linger on the reason why for now.

I reluctantly gathered my things and made my way home. There was a crisp breeze that blew my hair in every direction. As I was coming up on the library, there was something else on the breeze too. A faint scent. Strawberries and freesia. I whipped my head around and once again saw her coming out of the library.

I stood there for a moment watching her. There was something about her that called to me, drew me in. Like a siren. I couldn’t take it anymore. I was tired of watching and waiting. I want her. I will make her mine. Even as she stumbled, I was still drawn to her presence. She was beckoning me.

I was certain by this point that she was my missing half, my better half. She has to be the one that can finally complete me and make me whole. Ever since she barreled into my life, it’s been brighter. She’s the reason I get up each day, just on the off chance I might finally run into her again.

I need to hold her, to know her, to love her, to possess her. I want to claim her and somehow mark her as mine. Not to spite Mike, although that will be a nice side benefit. But I want her for her. Nothing else matters. As a plan formed in my head, I silently followed her to our dorm. Tomorrow was a new day. Truck girl didn’t stand a chance.


TPOV

I followed that asshole out of the practice room and down the hall. I couldn’t believe the things he said to me. The nerve! Calling me a whore, just without the actual word. Like the meaning would slip right over my head. As if. I would just have to make him see reason.

I was shocked to hear the anger pouring out of the keys. When I had done my research, nothing had clued me in that he was so gifted a pianist. Nothing I had ever done had equaled his mastery of the keys. It made me want him all the more.

Most people thought I was a bimbo, but I knew what I was doing. When I had first started researching the men here at Dartmouth, there were several options open to me. I had narrowed it down to two guys, Edward Cullen and Royce King. Both were extremely attractive and both came from ridiculous amounts of money. What tipped the scales for me was Edward’s musical talent. I could just imagine him serenading me every night. Yes, I had chosen well.

I was lost listening to his music, even if it was angry. Then, without warning, the tune shifted. It was such a sweet melody that was barely floating through the thick paned door. I peeked around, praying he wouldn’t see me, trying to catch a glimpse of him while he played. His eyes were closed and a small smile graced his cruel lips. I wanted to know what made him smile that way. I wanted to know why he didn’t smile at me that way.

When he was finished, I ducked back around the corner and waited a minute before following behind. I wanted to know more about Edward Cullen. The man I would someday marry. I had to find out his weaknesses. I had to know what made him tick. I would make him mine. He didn’t stand a chance.

I nearly balked when he suddenly stopped near the library. I was certain he had discovered me and was going to give me another lashing, but he never looked my way. Instead he was staring ahead, looking at something else. From my vantage point all I could see was some girl. He couldn’t possibly be looking at…wait a minute. He is looking at her. Looking at her with such longing, like he wanted her. But, why?

I stood there silently fuming. There was no way he wanted her over me. I staked prior claim. How could some mousy, insignificant, boring girl like that retain his interest? She doesn’t deserve someone like him. She doesn’t even hold a candle to me. How could he have turned me down, scorned me for some Plain Jane nobody like that? It just wasn’t possible.

In that moment I made a decision. I will find out who she is and I will destroy her. Nothing will stand in my way. A girl like me does her research well, and a girl like me deserves to be on the arm of a rich, successful, powerful doctor like him. And most importantly, a girl like me always gets what she wants, despite the competition. They say, ‘hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.’ Whoever ‘they’ are obviously never met me.

Chapter Nine - A Woman's Worth

“Promise me you’ll always remember. You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” ~A. A. Milne

Chapter Nine – A Woman’s Worth

BPOV

I should have known she’d gone shopping for more clothes for me. Of course, after my near breakdown on Tuesday night, she was nice enough not to mention it. But all day yesterday I had to model my new clothes to see what they liked and what was going back to the store. Apparently Alice had a very good eye though and everything she picked fit their standards. I just wish it fit mine as well.

I had to work again tonight, and by the grace of God I didn’t have to work with Mike again. Unfortunately, I did have to work with him for a few hours tomorrow night though. Thankfully his shift was earlier than mine and he would be leaving at 5:00.

I had fully expected to be dragged off to some store or another before I had to work, but when I came out of the room Alice was nowhere to be found. That was odd considering she was always back with the coffee by this time. I had gotten used to having it right when I woke up and not having to wait for it.

I looked at the clock again to make sure I had seen it correctly and confirmed my earlier thoughts. Alice was late. But Alice was never late. I started to get worried before I remember that it was bright outside already and it wasn’t likely that anyone had grabbed her. Plus, she looked fairly spunky and I was certain if someone tried, they’d find they had bitten of more than they could chew.

So where is she then? I looked around, but there was no note. Rosalie had gone down to the showers not long ago, so she wasn’t with her. No matter how many times I told myself she was okay, I couldn’t help but worry nonetheless. Just then, I heard a key in the door and sighed in relief. I knew she was fine.

It wasn’t Alice. My face must have shown my worry because Rose cocked one perfectly plucked brow at me, silently asking me what was wrong. After Tuesday night we had slowly begun to more than just tolerate each other. I wouldn’t say we were friends per se, but at least there was no longer any animosity between us anymore.

“Did you see Alice in the hall?” Her brows scrunched together in confusion before she smoothed them out.

“No. Isn’t she back yet? She said she was running right down to the bakery and coming right back. She should have been back about 10 minutes ago.”

“I know. She’s not here though. You don’t think something happened do you?” The worry was creeping back into my voice. I couldn’t stand to think of anything happening to her.

“Let’s calm down for a minute. Maybe there was a line, or she got sidetracked.” That never happens, my mind sadistically whispered to me. “Did you try calling her cell phone?”

Suddenly I felt silly. Of course I hadn’t tried her cell. When I hadn’t seen her in the room, my mind immediately went into panic mode. Again, my face gave me away and Rose smirked at me. “I’ll go do that now.”

I went back into our bedroom and picked up my cell off the bedside table. No missed calls. That didn’t mean anything though, so I scrolled through to her name and hit send. After two rings, her bubbly voice flooded my ears. “Hey Bells! I have the best news! I’ll be there in about 5, don’t go anywhere!” Then she immediately hung up.

I looked at my phone in confusion for a moment. I hadn’t even gotten word in. I walked back out into the living area, phone still in hand, to find Rosalie watching some show on TV. She glanced up at me and noticed my expression.

“Is something wrong?” Great! Now I’m getting her all worked up too.

“Um, I don’t think so…” I trailed off and looked down at my phone once more. I was still very confused and had no idea what was about to happen. “Alice said she’d be here in about 5 minutes and not to go anywhere.”

“And?”

“And she said she had the best news, but she hung up on me before I could even say anything,” Rosalie’s laughter rang out through the room.

“That sounds just like Alice,” she shook her head and went back to her show.

True to her word, 5 minutes later Alice came strolling through the door with a beaming smile. I eyed her warily, already knowing not to trust that smile. She twirled into the room, coffee in hand, and went to set it down on the table. Although she was usually very graceful already, there seemed to be a new bounce in her step.

“Good morning, my lovely and beautiful friends!” She danced over and kissed me on the cheek before making her way over to do the same to Rose. We shot each other a glance and then both looked expectantly at Alice. As usual, Rose was the first to break the silence.

“You want to tell us what’s going on?” Alice just beamed at us.

“I just went to get coffee,” she had a sly grin on her face now, and I could feel the worry creeping over me again.

“Bullshit.” Very succinct, Rose.

“What? Can’t a girl just run down to the bakery to get coffee?” She was batting her eyelashes at us and we glanced at each other again.

“Um, Alice? No one is saying you didn’t get coffee, but you’re almost 20 minutes late,” I was trying to sound firm, but I was still worried about her. She broke into peals of laughter, which confused me even more.

“It was the most wonderful 20 minutes of my life!” She grabbed Rose’s coffee and took it over to her, then sat down next to her on the couch. “I met my soul mate today at the coffee shop.”

Rose lifted one eyebrow at her. I wish I knew how to do that. “Your soul mate, eh? Really, Alice. You don’t believe in that do you?”

She looked affronted, but then a dreamy look came over her face. “Of course I do. Jasper is the one for me.” Rose and I were silent, waiting for her to continue, but she was just staring off into space with a small smile lingering at the corners of her mouth.

“Alice? Are you gonna tell us what happened?” I couldn’t handle it anymore. I just needed to know what this Jasper guy was like and how he had managed to woo Alice so completely.

“He spilled coffee on himself.” She giggled at the memory, but neither Rose nor I really got the joke. She saw our looks of confusion and backtracked to give us the whole story.

“I went down to the bakery to get coffee, like I always do and there was this guy standing at the counter in front of me. Apparently he hadn’t heard me come in and when he went to turn around, he lost his grip on the tray of coffees.” She smiled that small smile again to herself and her eyes got misty.

“Well, what happened then?” Rose wanted answers, and she wanted them now.

“The coffee was just about to spill on me, which would have been terrible considering this is a brand new sweater and it’s one of my favorites. Do you know how hard it is to find a sweater in this color and blend that fits me correctly? I nearly had to wrestle another woman in the store for this one and it was the last one!

I can’t even imagine the horror of trying to find a replacement for it if anything happened. I actually think it may have been part of a limited collection for this season’s fall line.” She stopped there for a minute, but before she could gear up to go on about the sweater again, I cut her off.

“Alice, what about Jasper?”

“Oh yeah, right. So anyway, right when the coffee was about to tilt out of his control I closed my eyes, just waiting for the burn. But he flicked his wrist around and the whole tray dumped down the front of his shirt. Have you ever heard of anything so romantic?” She had that dreamy look on her face again and she was lost in her own thoughts.

I didn’t know if I would necessarily consider it romantic, but it was clear that she did and was sold on this guy. Rose and I just continued to exchange glances, making it clear we would talk more about it later.

Suddenly, Alice perked up and gave me that wicked smile again, setting me on edge. “I almost forgot! I didn’t even tell you the best part yet.” He gaze was still locked on me and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what came next.

“What is it?” I asked nervously.

“Guess who he’s roommates with.” I felt that sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, the one I could only associate with one person. My face paled and my eyes went wide.

“No.” It barely came out as a whisper. I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. I guess in a theoretical sense, it had.

“Oh, yes. In fact, he’s rooming with both of the guys we saw him with at that pub last week.”

“Well, isn’t that interesting,” Rose purred. “And where, dear Alice, is this room full of gorgeous men?” She looked like she already knew, but in a way I guess we all had an idea after Tuesday night. Alice smirked and looked directly at me again.

“It’s funny you ask, Rose. It seems like there is a room full of absolutely stunning men right down the hall in room 412.”

I couldn’t believe it. I had hoped that we were wrong. How was I possibly going to avoid him if he was just a few doors down the hall? How could life be that cruel to me? Just calm down Bella, you’ve managed to avoid him fairly well so far. Except for the other night.

Even my mind wasn’t helping. I felt my breath coming in gasps again and turned to flee the room. I just had to get out of here. I ran in our bedroom and quickly threw on some clothes.


That evening, I couldn’t keep my mind off of Alice and her budding romance. She was serious when she said Jasper was her soul mate. Not that I believed in any of that. I didn’t need to have any experience with romance to know that stuff like that only happened in storybooks.

My entire day was consumed with these thoughts. Who really truly believed in love at first sight anyway? Despite romance novels and movies, that kind of love doesn’t really exist. Besides, who really wants a storybook romance anyway? Wouldn’t it be just a fictional and fake as the story it was based on?

It’s not like a guy would ever truly live for you, die for you, or give up everything he had for you. Chivalry and the like are dead. True gentlemen aren’t even a dying breed anymore. They are, in essence, extinct. And even if there was someone out there made just for me, how would I ever find him?

Even if I did somehow manage to find him, how could anyone ever fall for someone as insecure and neurotic as me? They say in order to truly find love you have to love yourself first. Yeah, like that will ever happen.

On my entire walk home I thought more about loving myself and if it was possible. What is there to love? I’d have to overlook so many overwhelming obstacles to love me. I’m clumsy, I’m shy, I tend to live in my books, and I have an inability to articulate my wants and needs. Line up all you eligible bachelors. I scowled to myself as I trudged up the stairs.

It’s not even like I’m even remotely beautiful. I have blah brown hair, blah brown eyes, pale skin, and I’m too skinny. Gangly even. Who would ever notice someone as plain as me when there are girls like Rosalie around? Even Alice was gorgeous. I was so outgunned.

I walked into our dorm and slammed the door before I realized we had company. My steps faltered and I nearly lost my balance before I could catch myself. Sitting on our couch was a tall lanky blonde guy with soft blue eyes. He had a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips and I suddenly liked him all the better for it. Just like that the tension left my body.

I carefully made my way over and extended my hand, “You must be Jasper.”

“Yes ma’am, and you must be Bella. I’ve already heard so much about you.” His eyes were twinkling with secrets. I shot a glance at Alice but she just shrugged her shoulders.

“Oh, really?” I gave him a half smile and raised my brows. “Care to share?”

“You seem to have met one of my roommates before. Edward remembers you vividly.” His grin stretched across his face again and I knew I wouldn’t get anymore out of him.

Edward, eh? Somehow the name fit him. It may have been old fashioned, but I could see the bronze haired Adonis in the pages of Mansfield Park as Edmund or Jane Eyre as Edward. Where did that thought come from? Must have been all that talk about storybook romances.

I grinned back at Jasper and gave him a wink. “Well, you make sure to tell Edward I said hey.” Then I sauntered to our room as wild laughter broke out behind me.

I closed the door and dropped down on my bed. I grabbed my pillow and held it over my face and screamed into it. What the hell was wrong with me? Why did I just do that? Tell him I said hey? Seriously? Why not just hand-deliver him a fucking invitation? Now he was going to talk to me for sure. I didn’t want that! I can’t talk to him! My tongue tied itself in knots the last time I had tried to talk to him. Not only that, but I’m the crazy girl who knocked him down in the stairwell.

Oh yeah, we can’t forget about the whole following him home incident too. Might as well just stamp a huge S on my forehead for Stalker. Maybe I should I just take out an ad in the paper, no better I’ll hire a skywriter. My name is Bella. I’m totally lame. Did I mention I’m your stalker too? By the way, hey.

Jesus, what is wrong with me? I am so screwed. What am I going to do? It’s not like I can just run away. I have to stay and face him. If he even approaches me, that is. I’ll be calm, cool, and collected.

Who am I kidding? I’m a total fucking spazz! If I even think about him I nearly hyperventilate. Now I think I can just talk to him nonchalantly? Yeah, when pigs fly.

I groaned again in frustration. How did I get myself into this mess? Oh, right. I was just my normal clumsy self and I was rooming with Alice. This was all her fault. She just had to go and find her soul mate in his roommate didn’t she? Traitor.

I tossed and turned for what seemed like hours. I heard Jasper leave and I heard Alice and Rose come in and go to bed, but I didn’t let either of them know I was still awake. I didn’t want to talk about Edward. Even knowing his name made it worse. Now I couldn’t just refer to him vaguely. Every time I thought about him, I would think Edward.

I shouldn’t even be thinking about him. I don’t date. I don’t want to. I don’t want to get involved in a relationship. I don’t even know the guy! Here I am, thinking about him in the middle of the night and all I know is his name. And what he smells like. My mind truly was evil.

I was sure I was in some kind of trouble. I didn’t know when it was going to come, but I knew there was trouble coming. Why couldn’t I have just remained the quiet girl that sits in class? I didn’t want any attention. I didn’t want people to know who I am. I just want to get an education and a degree so I can move on with my life.

But no, now I couldn’t stop thinking about him. And apparently, he had been talking about me. Well, let him talk. I’ll leave these funky premonitions to Alice.

My skin started feeling tingly and sleep finally took over me. That was the first night I dreamed about Edward.

Chapter Eight - Not This Clown Again

“Obsession is the single most wasteful human activity, because with an obsession you keep coming back and back and back to the same question and never get an answer.” ~ Norman Mailer

Chapter Eight: Not This Clown Again

EPOV

There was a blur of activity over the past few days. Most of it was getting settled into the campus and what would be our new lives for the next year. The rest was small details here and there that needed to be taken care of before classes actually started. Then there was my big secret. The one I was keeping from Carlisle and Esme. The one that would be my salvation.

I had spoken with several people in the Music Department, had many auditions, if that’s what they could be called, and had finally proven to them that although I wasn’t a music major, I was capable enough to be a piano teacher. Today would be my first day. The first time I would actually try and teach someone else how to play. I was a little nervous.

They had decided that I would only have one student to start with, so they could determine if I was as good of a teacher as I was a player. There was no doubt in their minds that I could play. In fact, they had tried to persuade me to switch majors because they had been so impressed. It hurt my heart to tell them that wasn’t an option for me.

I remember coming home that day in the darkest mood I had been in since leaving Chicago. Part of me wanted to go home, just to strangle Carlisle for his interference in my life, but that wouldn’t do me any good. Nothing would do me any good and this was the only way I could have my peace and keep my sanity. I needed music like an addict needed their drugs.

My audition had gone smoothly. Almost too smoothly. I had played three or four different pieces at their request, and then went on to play two of my own works. Those had impressed them more than my playing the classics from memory, although I hadn’t missed the look of surprise on their faces when I began to play without the assistance of sheet music.

I didn’t need sheet music anymore. The music was in my heart. It was ingrained deep into my bones. It was a part of me. It had saved me from becoming a monster like many of the spoiled rich. I could have gone out partying every night, or developed a drinking or drug problem in high school like so many of my contemporaries. Instead, I had used music as my outlet.

I could feel the smile on my face and my mood was lighter than ever while I was sitting behind that grand piano. The music echoed, building with passion and mystery, cleansing my soul. It was one of my own compositions, one of my better ones. When the final notes were played, they were still reverberating through the room when I heard the applause. I looked over to see some of them with tears in their eyes. My music had touched their souls as well.

It seemed like that had happened forever ago when in reality it had only been a few days. A few very long days. And now I was finally going back to the Hopkins Center to begin. My student would have my undivided attention for one hour, twice a week. Tuesdays and Thursdays, to be exact. Other than that, I was free to come and go as I pleased, and since I was now a piano teacher, I would have unlimited use of their practice rooms, including the ones with the grand pianos.

I rubbed my finger tenderly over the key to the practice rooms. I had every intention of using one of those grand pianos today after I was done with my student. I had already scheduled a two hour block for myself. From 5:30 to 7:30 I would be able to lose myself in my music. I just had to get through one measly hour of teaching. Thank God I had a few hours before I had to do that.

Jasper, Emmett, and I had already developed a routine. Jasper would go for coffee, I would scowl until I had my coffee, and Emmett would fall out of bed. Jasper and I made fun of Emmett for his ‘midget-sized bed’ and Emmett and I made fun of Jasper for his obsession with the girl with the yellow Porsche. We knew he went to that same bakery every morning in hopes of running into her again. So far he’d had no such luck.

He was getting anxious about finding her. It was no longer uncommon to find him hanging out in the common room downstairs. Our big joke now was that he was stalking her, even if he couldn’t actually find her. He wasn’t nearly as amused as we were. Emmett told him if he did find her, to ask about her blonde friend. I wasn’t sure if he was really interested in her or if he was just trying to find new ways to annoy Jasper.

I still had the truck girl firmly planted in my mind. I knew now that there was no way she was a part of my society. At one point, that would have made me forget about a girl like her, but for some reason I couldn’t forget about this one. It didn’t matter that she didn’t have money. It didn’t matter that she drove a beast of a truck. There was something about her that I couldn’t seem to shake. Now I just had to find her again.

I wasn’t sure what I would say to her if I ever did find her. I wasn’t even sure if she would talk to me. That day at the bar she had once again run from me. Was she embarrassed? Was she angry? Did she hate me for knocking her down? Too many questions about her were buzzing around in my head. I was annoyed at myself for focusing on her so much. I was elated that I had possibly found someone who genuinely intrigued me. I was a mess.

She had a look of innocence in her eyes. That much was clear. Warm, engaging, innocent eyes. They haunted me. They lured me. They would be the death of me. I fisted my hands in my hair, annoyed with myself for my wandering mind. I couldn’t understand it. I couldn’t understand her. No one had ever had a hold on me like this. I had never even had a proper conversation with her and I was nearly obsessed with her.

I wanted… no, needed to know about her. What made her tick? What made her happy? What made her sad? What could I possibly do to put that dreamy, wicked smile on her face again? And what in the hell was her name? If I had that information, finding her would be a breeze, but again I had to kick myself for my moment of stupidity. I had her right in my grasp and failed to find out anything about her. All I could tell was that she was different.

In my few years of being the master seducer in school, I had never cared about a girl’s wants or needs. I had wooed them, bedded them, and gone on my happy way. These were girls in my society, some of them in the inner circle of my acquaintances. I could never call most of them my friends, because that would have been a lie. I only had two real friends in my life and I was currently living with them.

What had happened to me? What was wrong with me? Here was this girl, who obviously didn’t fit in my life, but she was the one that I wanted. For what, I wasn’t sure yet. But I knew it was more than just a quick lay. There had to be intelligence there if she had gained a scholarship here, and I was certain she was here on scholarship. She didn’t have the same polish the wealthy did, that fakeness that permeated through the ranks of those in this social class.

She was special somehow. Intriguing. Alluring. Innocently seductive. She was driving me fucking mad! And I didn’t even know her god damned name! I growled in frustration. Surely there had to be some way to get her off my mind. Something I could do to alleviate this pressure in my chest when I thought of her. Anything to ease my useless suffering.

I decided to go for a walk. I only had another hour before I had to be at the Hopkins Center, and it would clear my head enough before I had to take on a teaching role.

I saw Jasper in the common room. Big surprise. He was sitting in one of the wingback chairs, reading a book about US History. Another big surprise. I had to shake this sarcastic mood. I calmed my breathing and made my way over to sit next to him. He looked up as I plopped myself down, still scowling slightly.

“Hey Edward.”

“Hey Stalker.” He frowned and I laughed. This was never going to get old.

“It’s not funny. And you shouldn’t be talking. Don’t think I haven’t seen you looking around every corner, peeking out the windows, and pacing around this dorm looking for truck girl.” My scowl deepened. Damn if he isn’t right.

“Anyway,” I brushed it off. I was trying to get out of this mood, not intensify it. “Had any luck?”

“Not yet.” His eyes saddened for a moment, but then they cleared and he looked back at me. “But it’s only been a few days. She has to come through here at some point, right?”

“Sure. Of course she does. Her car’s been parked here everyday since we first saw it here. This would obviously be the dorm she lives in.”

“Exactly. So I’ll just sit here and read. Eventually I’ll find her.”

“You do that. And don’t forget to ask about Blondie for Emmett,” I teased, making him crack a smile.

“Oh yeah, because I really want to subject one of her friends to Emmett. Wouldn’t that be like shooting myself in the foot from the get-go?” We both laughed at that and I heaved myself out of the chair.

“I’m taking a walk before I have to be down at the center. I should be back by around 8 or so.”

“See you later then,” and he immediately went back to his book. I smiled and shook my head at him. How was he ever going to find her if he had his nose buried in a book about the Civil War? It was possible she had already walked by him several times because of that, but who was I to point that out? Instead I made my way out into the crisp September air.


By the time I was sitting in front of the upright, I was calm enough to meet my new student. I didn’t have any information on them; I was just told that they would meet me in the assigned practice room at 4 PM. It was now 10 til and I was doing a breathing technique to loosen my tense muscles. I had found that it helped relax me so the music would flow through me easier.

A few minutes later I heard the door open and looked up to see a beautiful girl coming into the practice room. She had curly strawberry blonde hair and big blue eyes. She smiled at me flirtatiously and held out her hand. “Well hello,” she purred. “You must be Edward. I’ve heard so much about you.” Then she winked. I didn’t know what it was about her, but I felt revolted. Was this how I made women feel when I admired them so openly?

“Yes. I’m Edward. And you are…” I trailed off, waiting for her to supply me with her name.

“Tanya McKinley. It’s so wonderful to finally meet you Edward. I’ve been looking forward to it for the last few days. I just know we’ll become wonderful friends.” This was going to be difficult. I didn’t feel any kind of attraction toward this girl and now I was going to be stuck with her for an hour, twice a week. She left little question as to where her interests lay with me, I would just have to steer her in the right direction, quickly.

I just kept thinking about the use of the grand piano and decided I’d grin and bare it. She was going to quickly become a necessary evil in my life. “Well Tanya,” I started in a very businesslike tone, hoping to quash her hopes of bedding me as soon as I humanly could. “It looks like you’ve signed up for lessons twice a week. Have you ever played the piano before?”

By the look on her face, I could tell she felt insulted. I wondered briefly if she had ever been shot down by a guy before and instantly figured not. Girls like her didn’t have to beg for attention. They garnered it and acquired it with little to no fuss at all. It was something that girls that looked like her got used to. Most of them turned it into some kind of game. But that was a game that I wasn’t interested in playing.

“Um, yes actually.” She was momentarily stunned. Not used to having men not fall at her feet had thrown her off her stride. “But not until recently.”

“Oh? Why the recent interest in learning to play?” Getting to know her reasons might help me form some kind of lesson plan for her. It would tell me the type of music she wanted to play, and her reasons would give me an insight into how hard she was willing to work.

“I’m a music major here, but vocals are my forte. If I want to be taken seriously in the music industry at a later point, I’ll need to know how to play.” It made sense, and for a moment I despised her for being able to do what she wanted. Since that wasn’t a luxury that I would be afforded, I needed to brush it off and move on.

“Well then, let’s see what you know and that will give me an idea of how hard you’ll need to work.” I moved over on the bench, allowing her room to sit next to me. When she did, she sat entirely too close and batted her eyes at me.

“Where would you like me to start?” Her purr was back and it seemed she regained her stride. This was definitely going to be a lot harder than I thought it would. Why couldn’t they have given me someone less confident, or maybe someone nerdy? Those kinds of people wouldn’t spend the majority of the lesson flirting with me instead of getting to the task at hand.

I moved away from her slightly and raised a brow at her. “Let’s start with your scales. C Major.” And with that, my life as a piano instructor had begun.


When my lesson with Tanya was over, I had a pounding headache. She had shamelessly and relentlessly flirted with me. She was not subtle about it at all either. She made it abundantly clear that she was sexually interested in me and had the audacity to pass me her phone number and dorm information when she left. She had said it was in case I needed to get in touch with her before the next lesson, but I hadn’t missed the emphasis she had placed on getting in touch with her. I groaned inwardly to myself.

The lesson had run about 10 minutes over, something I was going to surely rectify in the future with an egg timer. My old instructors had used one, so it wouldn’t look unusual if I decided to as well. And as an added benefit, it would keep my time spent with her to the absolute minimum only. But now was what I had been waiting for all day.

When I went to sign in for my own practice time, the log showed that my room was available early. Instead of only having two hours, I would have about 15 minutes more. After today’s lesson it would be much needed. I also decided to book the room for the same time period for the next day I had lessons with Tanya. It was apparent that I was going to need them.

I got my blank sheet music out of my bag and placed it in front of me. There was a tune that had manifested in my dreams that I needed to put down on paper. I didn’t know where it had come from, but it was such a hauntingly sweet melody that I had a need to write it. None of my previous works had come to me as strongly as this one had. And none of them were as passionate and compelling.

I closed my eyes and let my fingers move over the keys on their own. From the opening bars, I was entranced. This was going to be my finest work. I got through the first 10 bars and hit a sour note. My eyes flew open and my teeth clenched. No. That’s not right. But I couldn’t seem to find the correct notes. In my dreams it had flowed so serenely and quietly, like a lullaby. But I had never written a lullaby nor had the desire to in the past.

Perhaps I needed to find where my motivation had come from so that I could know where the music was supposed to go. I closed my eyes again trying to think back to when I had first had the dream. It hadn’t been in Chicago, so that narrowed it down to the past 4 days. But what had happened in the last 4 days that would have prompted a lullaby? Again my eyes flew open, but this time in shock.

Truck girl. She was the only interesting thing that had happened to me since I had gotten here. Could she be the inspiration for this new piece? How could that be though? I didn’t even know her or anything about her for that matter. How could she have inspired such an amazing piece of work? Did she even like lullabies? Now more than ever I needed to find her and find out what made her tick.

I sat there working over the piece little by little. It was far from finished, but it was coming together by small degrees. I glanced at the clock and was shocked; I had gone over my time by almost 15 minutes. No one was waiting outside for me, so I figured that I must be the last person here for the day, but I didn’t want to push my luck. I packed up my bag and made my way out of the building. It was a nice night and the moon was already out, peeking out from behind a cloud.

I had never really taken the time to admire the scenery since I had arrived. I looked around and for the first time noticed how nice the campus actually was. The lawns were tended well, the trees were just starting to change with fall, and some of the flowers were still in bloom. There was beauty all around me that I had never even looked at. It shamed me to think that I had been so lost in myself that I had neglected to notice these little things.

A little voice in my head hissed at me viciously, ‘when have you ever?’ I stopped, shocked at the revelation. I hadn’t. My entire life I had never once really noticed my surroundings. Other than the girls, I had never looked at nature or the sky. I had never noticed how a flower tilts its head toward the sun. Never saw the butterflies flitting their way along. Didn’t see the changing of the leaves in the spring and the fall. Or how beautiful the barren winter landscape could really be.

Was I really that shallow? Was I so self-centered that nothing mattered but what was happening in my own little bubble? And why was I suddenly starting to notice these things now? Nothing had really changed for me. I was still bitter about where I was headed in my life. I still hated my parents for their lack of attention. Still sour over their indifference to my music. An angry voice brought me out of my trance.

“You have a nerve don’t you.” I glanced over in the direction of the voice and my breath caught. There she was. Truck girl. And she was yelling at someone. “No Mike. I won’t have coffee with you. Not now, not ever. I wasn’t kidding when I said I wasn’t having any kind of relationship with you. Good night.” I looked closer and noticed who she was yelling at.

I had to chuckle. Mike Newton. I shook my head at the irony of the situation. I had completely forgotten that Mike was also enrolled here. He was a year ahead of me and we had never gotten along. In fact, he hated me with a passion. Who could blame him though? In high school he never seemed to have any luck with the ladies, something that Jasper, Emmett, and I had made sure of.

He was the whiny son of one of the local business owners. It wasn’t as if any of the girls would have really wanted him to begin with, we were simply doing them a favor by taking him out of the equation. But it was something that he always held against us. I figured leading a life doomed to sloppy seconds would have made me bitter as well. And of course he would find her and try his luck. Looks like we’ll have a repeat of high school. I was certainly up for the challenge.

She noticed me watching her and she froze in her tracks. Not wanting to make myself known to Newton yet, I decided to just head on back to the dorm. Maybe if I played my cards right I could figure out where she was staying. I just had to be clever and not spook her. So I just put my head down and walked with purpose. Not too slow, and not too fast. Just enough that I knew she’d keep pace with me.

Every once in awhile I would peek back to make sure she was still there. Sure enough, she made her way silently behind me. I started up the stairs and made sure to take notice what floor she stopped at. When I got to the landing between the second and third floors I was bombarded with the memory of her in my arms. I almost lost my resolve at that moment and turned to speak to her, but I didn’t want to scare her away, so I continued up.

When I rounded the corner to head up to the fourth, I was certain she was stopping at the third. Wouldn’t I have seen her again already if she was on the same floor as me? There was no way I would have missed her. Or could I have? No, impossible.

I kept on, still taking notice of whether or not she exited to the third floor, but she didn’t. She was still right there behind me. Was she following me? Was it possible that she wanted to talk to me? I again thought about turning around to face her, but then decided against it. I would give her the chance to approach me first then she was less likely to run away before I found out at least her name.

I walked down the hall and turned the corner to head to my room. I knew she had followed me out of the exit, so she should still be right behind me. I thought I heard someone gasping for air, but it was drowned out by the sound of a door slamming. I had about had enough of the wait and I wanted to know why she was following me to my dorm. I spun around, ready to face her down.

“Can I help y…” there was no one there. But where could she have gone? It wasn’t as if she could have just vanished. But where could she be? I walked back toward the corner and peeked around, checking to make sure she wasn’t standing there, waiting for me to get to my door before coming up behind me. But she was nowhere to be found. I could hear the sound of someone shouting, but their voices were too muffled to make out the words.

Girls. Always fighting with each other. Why else would the girls in 408 be yelling? I walked closer to the door, trying to make out what they were saying. It sounded garbled, but I could faintly hear “--lla!” Hmmm. Doesn’t sound like arguing. What are they talking about? I shrugged it off and made my way back down to my room, still wondering what could have happened to her.

I unlocked the door and found Jasper and Emmett sitting on the couch watching ESPN, as usual. “Hey guys. What’s up?”

Emmett looked up and shrugged, “Nothing much. Just watching Sports Center.”

“Anything good?”

“Nope, just recaps. How was your lesson?”

I groaned again, reminded of the insistent Tanya. “You wouldn’t believe it if I told you.” That got Jasper’s attention.

“What happened?”

So I told them all about Tanya and her over-confidence. We all agreed on how unattractive that could be. It made women seem too easy if they were that bold. Why else would she basically tell me she wanted to sleep with me? Not only that, but it went against everything we had agreed to look for in a girl. Tanya was definitely off the list of possibilities. But right now, the only person I had on that list was her. Which reminded me…

“Did I mention the fact that I saw Newton?” They both cracked up laughing and wanted to know how I managed to run into the weasel so quickly.

“Seems like he’s taken an interest in truck girl too. Good thing for me she doesn’t return that interest though.”

“Poor Mike,” Jasper said, but without any sympathy. None of us had ever liked the guy. Misplaced confidence was nearly as bad as over-confidence. Maybe I could find a way to hook Newton up with Tanya.

“Yeah, they were standing outside the library and she basically told him to get lost. Apparently he was bothering her earlier and had her cornered again to ask her out for coffee. After she had already told him she wasn’t interested. He can’t even buy a clue.”

“So you saw her again?” Jasper was sympathetic with me; after all he was still looking for his girl too.

So then I told them about the walk back to the dorm and how she was right behind me the whole way. I could see Emmett’s eyes lighting up mischievously, but before he could get anything out I told them about her sudden disappearance.

“I just can’t figure it out! I know she was right behind me. And I know that she was heading the same direction as me. I just can’t figure out where she could have gone…” then I remembered the slamming door. And the raised voices. Could it be?

“What? You just thought of something, I can see it in your eyes.” Jasper could always pick up on emotions and read them on your face.

“Well, it didn’t dawn on me at the time, but when I turned the corner I thought I heard someone gasping for air. But right about the same time I heard a door slam and then raised voices coming from room 408. Do you think?”

“You mean she could be right down the hall? All this time you’ve been looking for her and she’s only four doors down the fucking hall?” Emmett’s eyes were wide with disbelief. Then he turned serious, “you think she could be roommates with that blonde girl?”

I went over the floor plan in my head, trying to figure out the singles, doubles, and triples on our floor. As it turned out 408 was a triple. There was an unholy gleam in my eye when I turned back to the guys. “I think all three of them are right down the hall.” Now we’d just have to do a little investigating.

Chapter Seven - He's Raving Mad

“’Mad’ is a term we use to describe a man who is obsessed with one idea and nothing else.” ~Ugo Betti


Chapter Seven: He’s Raving Mad

BPOV

I managed to get through the past few days with Alice and Rosalie. I wasn’t sure how I managed, but I did. While Alice had seemed interested in everything I said, Rosalie did not. She was hot and cold. Sometimes she would smile at me and seem like she meant it, others she would scowl and make me feel small and useless. But I didn’t let it get to me. There was nothing I could do to change rooms, and I wasn’t going to buckle and give in to her absurdity.

It lightened my mood that I would only have to put up with her for one school year. The only downside to that was the idea of losing Alice. Somehow the little pixie had wormed her way right into my heart. I loved her like a sister, the sister I had always hoped I would someday have. She brought out the best and the brightest in people. Even Rosalie.

Today was the day that I would start my job at the library. Most of my classes would be morning classes with the exception of one. The library staff had been gracious enough to work around my schedule, meager as it was, and allow me to work the late afternoon shift into the evening. The bonus in that was that most of the students didn’t want that shift anyway. They would rather be hanging out with friends or partying instead of being stuck at the library all night.

Though I had begged for more hours, stating that I didn’t need the time off, they were insistent on me only working three days a week with an optional half day on Sunday. That meant I could escape Rosalie on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday nights. She didn’t seem to care either way.

Alice on the other hand seemed disappointed that I would be spending every Friday evening at the library. She seemed to think that I needed a much rounder social life. I wasn’t as convinced. I had survived Forks with little to no social life at all. And I reiterated the point over and over that I hadn’t come here for dating and partying. I came here to get my degree and to better my chances of obtaining a good job.

The degree in English would open up so many options for me. I was considering either going into journalism or editing. Then there was that secret desire in the back of my mind to write my own novel. The creative writing courses would indeed assist in that aspect, but my shyness and self esteem were too low for me to consider opening myself up for criticism that way. Sure I could hold my own in an argument. Especially with the likes of Rose, but when it came to me and my life, I was extremely cautious.

I pushed those thoughts aside as I examined my newly revamped wardrobe. I was still a little irked about losing most of my more comfortable clothing. Most of the items left were more revealing than I liked and looked far from comfortable like my sweaters and sweatshirts that I had brought with me. The sweaters Alice had purchased were all cashmere or angora, or similar blends, and while they may be extremely soft, they didn’t have the same appeal to me that my cotton ones did. I wasn’t even going to think about how tight they all were either.

I settled on a light blue one that seemed to be slightly less divulging as the rest and grabbed my favorite pair of jeans. I decided on wearing my most comfortable pair of boots as well since I would be on my feet most of the evening. I had put my foot down on Alice replacing my shoes with heels and dress shoes. No matter how she had tried to bribe and coerce me, I stayed firm on not losing all of my shoes. Of course she had still bought eight new pair for me anyway, but I felt better that she had let me keep all but three pair of the ones from home.

I pulled my hair back into a braid and made my way to the main room of our dorm. Rosalie was sprawled across the chaise, as usual, perusing a fashion magazine.

“Where’s Alice?” Rosalie glanced over to me and gave me a once over, something else I was getting used to.

“Hmmm… I would have gone with a different pair of shoes, but overall you look adequate.” I rolled my eyes at her. I guess I wasn’t entirely used to having someone critique my appearance on a regular basis as I had initially thought.

“Gee thanks. Now where’s Alice?”

“Oh she’s out and about. Said something about a sale at one of those little boutiques we visited the other day,” she said, waving me off. I cringed inwardly, hoping that she wasn’t buying me anything else.

“Well, I’m off to the library.” I wasn’t sure why I told her, but I wanted to give her the common courtesy of knowing where I was. Old habit from Charlie, I guess.

“Yeah, whatever.” I ignored her and made my way out and down the stairwell.

Ever since my run-in with the bronze-haired Adonis, I had been anxious every time I went downstairs. I didn’t want to run in to him again. It wasn’t like I was trying to avoid him, but I couldn’t get over the humiliation of our first encounter. Aside from that, I couldn’t stop thinking about him and I certainly didn’t need any distractions while I was here.

When I told Alice I didn’t want a man I wasn’t lying. Or exaggerating. First of all I had absolutely no experience with relationships. Secondly, I didn’t want to give that much power to any one person. If you gave someone your heart, you gave them the means to break you or hurt you. I had no intention of letting either of those things happen to me.

Not only that, but what if something happened to them? My whole life I had been witness to Charlie’s torment over losing Renee. My memories of her were very vague and hazy. She had been so sick for so long, and she died when I was only 3 so I hadn’t really suffered overly much. As sad as it was, it was almost as if I didn’t have a mother at all. But Charlie remembered Renee. Charlie still held on to that memory now, even fifteen years later he still held on to his precious memories of his deceased wife. There was no way I would put myself in that position. I was content to go at it alone.

But for the first time in my life, there was a man that I just couldn’t shake. Sure there had been annoyingly over-attentive guys in high school, but I paid them no mind. Usually I just ignored them or told them I wasn’t interested. After the first three years, most of them had left me alone, labeling me as the ‘Ice Princess.’ Not that I cared. The few that still persisted were all still systematically deflected. It was the way I had wanted things.

Was I changing? There couldn’t be any possible way. I told myself over and over that there was absolutely no way I was going to get involved in a relationship. The bronze-haired Adonis was no different than any other guy. And that was final.


When I walked into the library I stopped in my tracks and just basked in the splendor and majesty. Nothing in my life, other than Charlie, could compare to my love of books. The few friends that I did have would all tease me about the fact that I’d rather spend a Friday night curled up with a good book than out gallivanting around the town. They called me a bibliophile and a nerd, but I didn’t care. What could be better than a good book?

I slowly made my way to the main reference desk looking for Mrs. Cope. She was my supervisor and was the one who would tell me what was expected of me. When I approached the desk, I saw a medium height blonde guy behind the desk, checking in the huge stack of books that lay on the counter. His name tag read ‘Mike.’

Hearing my approach, he glanced up from what he was doing and dropped the book he held in his hands, eyes wide, mouth hanging open. I immediately looked over my shoulder to see what could have cause such a reaction, but there was nothing there. I glanced to the left and right, still trying to determine what could have caused that look on his face, but like behind me, there was nothing around.

‘Mike’ still hadn’t come out of his daze, so I decided that I should probably talk to him. “Umm… hello?” That seemed to break him from his stupor.

“Can I,” his voice squeaked out and he cleared his throat to try again. “Can I help you?” I’m sure he thought that his voice sounded sexy and alluring, but it only made my skin crawl.

“I’m looking for Mrs. Cope.” If I kept my tone with him businesslike and straightforward maybe he would leave me alone. By the look in his eye I could tell it wasn’t going to work though.

“Of course…” he trailed off, waiting for me to supply him with my name.

“Isabella Swan. I’m supposed to be starting work today.”

“Of course, Isabella.” He tried purring my name, but it ended up sounding scratchy and forced.

“Bella, please.”

“Right this way then, Bella.” He opened the pass-through that led behind the desk. I wasn’t certain whether or not I should follow him though. The thought of being trapped behind the reference desk with him wasn’t very appealing, but I wanted this job and I could handle him if he got out of control.

I walked past him and waited for him to lead the way. He came up beside me and placed his hand at the small of my back, intending to lead me to the office, but I side-stepped him easily and gave him a haughty stare. I sincerely hoped that I wouldn’t have to start shooting down advances so quickly. His cheeks pinked up some and he ducked his head and led the way back.

When we got to the door marked ‘Office’ he gave a couple quick raps before opening the door. Behind the desk was sitting a short heavy set woman with wild red hair. Her glasses were slipping down her nose, but she had a warm smile on her face. “Is there something you need Mike?”

He stepped to the side to allow me to come into view. “Isabella Swan is here.”

“Bella.” I corrected him again and had a sinking feeling that I might have to do so continually before he got the picture. “Please, call me Bella.”

“Well hello, dear. My name is Mrs. Cope. Please come in and sit down.” I made my way past Mike, who was still standing in the doorway. My body brushed his as I tried to get by him and I heard him inhale softly, like he was sniffing me. I gave him another sharp look before finally getting into the room and went to sit in the chair across from Mrs. Cope.

She had a knowing smile on her face as she looked past me to where Mike was standing. “I think you can return to your station Mike. I can handle things from here.” She said it kindly, but you could hear the order behind the words. Mrs. Cope was a no-nonsense kind of woman. I immediately liked her better for it.

His face fell and he sent me one more longing glance before closing the door presumably making his way back to the reference desk. She turned her gaze back on me and the smile still lurked at the corners of her mouth. “You’ll have to excuse Mike. He’s a nice boy and he seems fairly harmless, if not a bit… odd.” I smiled and laughed softly at her description. She made him sound more like a golden retriever than a person. It was an apt comparison.

“Thank you Mrs. Cope.”

“Oh, dear. We aren’t that formal around here. Please call me Shelly.” She made me think of what a grandmother might be like, had I had a living one to compare her to. I did like her, very much.

“Okay Shelly. Thank you.” I gave her my brightest smile.

She rummaged through the piles of paper on her desk and pulled one out, as if she knew exactly where it had been the whole time. “I understand you worked in your high school library all four years you were there. Is that correct?”

“Yes ma’am. I also volunteered in the town library on the weekends.”

She smiled at me, looking very proud. “Then you won’t be needing very much training. I appreciate a worker that knows what they’re doing.”

“I love libraries ma’am. I love being around books and knowledge.” I wasn’t sure why I was opening up to her so much, but she just had that comfortable aura around her.

“Shelly, please. For now I’m just going to tell you a little about what’s expected of you, and then I’ll leave you to Mike for the tour.” I cringed a little at that and she giggled. “He really is harmless Bella. I’m sure if you tell him you aren’t interested he’ll understand.” I guess I wasn’t the only one that noticed the looks Mike was giving me.

After going over my schedule again, she gave me the rundown of how she liked the library to operate. It was very similar to the way the libraries back in Forks had been run. When I told her this, she seemed relieved again that I wouldn’t need extensive training. After only half an hour or so, she was ready to let me get started. She walked me back out to the front where we encountered a very eager looking Mike.

“Mike, please show Bella where everything is.” She beamed at me and then looked back at Mike, “and make her comfortable.” She gave him a very pointed look at the last statement. It was clear to me that she was telling him not to hit on me, but I could tell it went right over his head because he was staring at me once again.

“Yes Shelly. I’ll make sure Bella is very comfortable.” He was nodding excitedly, but there was no way to miss the emphasis he had put into his statement. Her warning had indeed gone right over his head. Shelly just sighed and shook her head before making her way back to her office.

“So Bella, you ready for the grand tour?” I just nodded my head and tried to follow behind him. When he tried to put his hand on my back again, I shook my head and glared at him coldly.

“Excuse me.” I was really trying to make it clear that I didn’t want to be touched or hit on, but this guy seemed pretty dense. Or he thought I was playing hard to get. If he didn’t knock it off, he was going to find out just how hard I could be.

He tried to look abashed, but I wasn’t buying it. He still had that glint in his eye that told me to keep on my toes. I just wordlessly followed him over to the main desk so he could show me their computer setup. He hummed and hawed for a good 10 minutes, trying to make a show out of what he was doing. I wasn’t sure if he was trying to impress me or not, but it wasn’t working.

Finally he moved to the side to let me have a look at the system. I was able to maintain myself and didn’t laugh in his face. This setup was more archaic than the one back in Forks. I was trying my hardest not to mention that fact, until he came up right behind me and tried to reach around me, sly like, to help me figure out how to work it.

“Now if you click here, you’ll see how to check books in and out.” He was going to continue, but I side-stepped him again and looked right in his eye.

“Yes, I’m aware of how to use this system. The one from the library I worked at in my hometown is more up to date than this one is.” For once in my life, I was able to thank the small-town committee that took so much pride in said town. “In fact, this is the exact same program I learned on 4 years ago. That is, until they upgraded after my first year there.”

He looked so upset, and I knew I was right about him trying to impress me. Too bad that wasn’t going to work out for him. “Well, okay then. How about I just show you where each of the sections are? That way if someone comes to the reference desk, you’ll be able to point them in the right direction.”

I wanted to tell him, once again, that I was familiar with the way libraries operated, but I didn’t want to talk to him more than necessary. We just walked around the library and he pointed out each different section, from humanities to biographies, the law section, medical books, etc. Each section was clearly labeled, so it wouldn’t be too hard to find my way around.

More than once, I had to move away when Mike got too touchy. He would either try and take my hand or touch my arm. A couple times he tried to lead me by putting his hand behind me. Each time I would step out of the way and shoot him a look, but it was becoming more and more obvious that I had to be more brazen to get my point across.

All the while, Mike chattered on about himself. He was a sophomore here and an only child from a wealthy Chicago family. His parents owned several sporting goods stores there in Chicago and he was majoring in business so that he could one day take over the family business. I kept my mouth shut and didn’t offer him any information, even though he tried to wheedle it out of me time and again.

The time was coming to put dear Mike Newton in his place. Fortunately for him, he survived the entire tour of the library, which I’m sure he dragged out as long as possible. When we were approaching the reference desk again, he tried to guide me yet again, but this time I stopped dead in my tracks and glared.

“I don’t think you’re getting the hint Mike.” I tried to put as much venom in his name as possible, and when he shrank back I was sure I had hit my target. “I have tried to be polite, and I’ve tried gently to let you know I’m not interested. Either you’re too stupid to see it, or you think I’m being coy. I can assure you I am not. And I will tell you this. Do. Not. Touch. Me.

I don’t need to be guided like a child and I don’t want your hands on me. I don’t want to be your new conquest, and I’m certainly not interested in developing any kind of relationship with you.” His face was turning several different shades of red. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was angry, or because he was embarrassed due to the audience we were gaining, either way I plowed on. “And if you touch me, one more time, I promise you it will be the last time you ever have use of that hand. Do I make myself clear?”

All he could do was nod and walk away. Wise choice Newton, wise choice. But this was just absolutely fan-fucking-tastic. Now I was in a bad mood, and Mike had done the one thing no one else in my life had ever been capable of. He had spoiled my time in the library. All I knew was that I was taking a long, hot shower as soon as I got home.

The rest of the day seemed to pass by uneventfully. I was able to regain my pleasant mood that libraries had always brought me in the past and had nearly forgotten about dear old Mike. That is, until it was time to go home.

Apparently Mike’s clock out time was the same as mine. Oh joy! So I would have to deal with him at the end of the shift every time I worked with him. I made a mental note to compare my schedule with his so I would be ready next time.

I gathered the few things I had brought with me and made my way back to the front. Mike was standing there outside the entrance. Waiting for me. This was sure to be a bad thing. I squared my shoulders and made my way to the exit. I had stood up to him once, I was surely able to do it again.

As I made my way out, he looked me over again. This was really going to get old. If he didn’t learn to control that, I was going to have to gouge his eyes out or something. The way he checked me out made me feel dirty, like he was mentally undressing me and fantasizing about all sorts of nasty things. I shuddered slightly but looked him dead in the eye.

“Was there something you needed?” I was as haughty as I could be. Maybe I’d have to ask Rosalie for some pointers at some point or another.

“Umm, well…” he stammered out. When I let out an impatient huff, he gathered himself and tried again. “I was wondering if you wanted to go get a cup of coffee or something.”

I stared at him in blank shock for a minute or two before laughter overtook me. He had to be, hands down, the dumbest person I had ever met. Was he seriously thinking that after my little tirade this afternoon that I would go and have coffee? Apparently he was. I caught my breath and shook my head at him.

“You have a nerve don’t you.” He looked hopeful for a moment, like I had just given him the greatest compliment, then I continued. “No Mike. I won’t have coffee with you. Not now, not ever. I wasn’t kidding when I said I wasn’t having any kind of relationship with you. Good night.”

I turned to storm away from him and caught sight of a head of bronze hair, watching me from a little ways down the street. My stomach sank and I was afraid I would be sick. Please God, please don’t make me have to face him right now. I don’t know how much more bravado I have. God apparently does in fact answer small prayers, because Adonis turned and made his way toward our dorm.

I followed behind at a safe distance, and kept my head down, hoping that he didn’t stop or turn around to talk to me. I just put one foot in front of the other, over and over, until we made it to Russell-Sage Hall. He was still a bit of a ways in front of me, mostly because I had walked as slowly as possible, trying desperately to keep as much distance between us as I could.

I thought I saw him hesitate a few times, like he was debating whether he should talk to me or not. Thankfully he continued to move forward and didn’t pause long enough for me to catch up.

The stairwell was again torturous and I felt my cheeks flush from the memories of our first encounter. Was I ever going to be able to walk these stairs again without thinking of him? If that was going to be possible, it was probably going to take some time. I would just have to be diligent about not getting caught too close to him again.

I could smell him. The faint smell of him lingering behind as I made my way up. He smelled like… was that sunshine? With undertones of honey and… orange blossoms? I groaned to myself. Was it possible for someone to smell that good? There was no way that was cologne. This smelled too natural to be something as artificial as cologne. He honest to God smelled like sunshine, honey, and orange blossoms. Translate that to mean he smelled like sin.

I shook my head. I had to get thoughts like that out of my head or I was going to run up and jump him. I didn’t even know I could have thoughts like that. I was so inexperienced with men that I made nuns look bad. Maybe that’s what I would do. I would run away and join a monastery. Then I wouldn’t have to face him again and be assaulted by such a heavenly scent. Heaven and sin. They seemed to be interchangeable words when it came to Adonis.

When we finally reached our floor (yes, he was headed to my floor, help me God) I was nearing panic mode. I sincerely hoped he didn’t think I was following him, or worse, stalking him. That’s all I needed now. Not only would I be the freak that knocked him down on the landing, but I would also be the crazy girl that followed him around like a puppy.

Somebody please just shoot me now. My head was still ducked to my chin and I saw him round the corner. I made a mad dash for my room, key at the ready, and slammed the door shut behind me. My breath was coming in gasps and I could see black spots forming in front of my eyes. I vaguely heard someone calling my name, but I was too afraid I was passing out to care.

Small arms wrapped around my waist and lead me to the sofa, gently guiding me down. I put my head between my knees and tried my hardest to regulate my breathing before the hysterical laughter burst forth. Suddenly the room was filled with sound. So much sound it made my ears hurt, so I slapped my hands over them while tears rolled down my face from my laughter.

I opened my eyes and saw both Alice and Rosalie staring at me with worried looks on their face. “He smells like sunshine. Fucking sunshine. And honey with a touch of orange blossom. I swear to God he’ll be the death of me.”

They were looking at me like I was crazy. I’m pretty sure at this point they may have been right, but I was too relieved to care. I had managed to make it to my room without any more incidences, except for the recent hysterics. Alice approached me very slowly, hands out, trying to make me more comfortable.

“Bella? Are you alright?” More giggles poured out of me. I couldn’t seem to stop it. Maybe I was losing my mind.

“No Alice. I’m not,” I was finally able to choke out between laughter.

“Oh honey, are you hurt? Did someone attack you?” I was finally starting to understand. They thought I had been assaulted and were worried for me. I launched myself off the couch and grabbed them both in a vice-like grip. Rosalie didn’t even try to break away.

“Thank you guys. I love you so much. Thank you for just being here while I lose my mind.” Rose just stroked my back gently, trying to soothe me as best she could.

“Where are you hurt Bella? Do you want me to call the Campus Police?” It was the first time I had heard her speak to me in such a kind way. It brought more tears forth.

“No Rose. I’m okay, I promise. Nothing happened. I was just taken by surprise after a really shitty day.” They pried my hands off of them and sat me back down. They exchanged more nervous looks before asking me to tell them exactly what happened.

I told them all about Mike Newton of the wandering hands and how I had tried to put him in his place. Then I told them about him asking me out for coffee after work, which they both gasped at appropriately. I was getting to the end of the story when my breathing started becoming labored again.

“So I turned on my heel, trying to make a dramatic exit when I caught sight of him.” Neither of them had to ask who I was referring to. He had been such a hot topic of discussion, well him and his friends, in our dorm room that there was absolutely no question. Alice broke the silence first.

“Did he talk to you?” I sat back and sighed. I wasn’t sure now whether I was grateful or disappointed. I had to mull it over before I answered.

“No Alice, he didn’t. But he’s somewhere on this floor. He was heading to one of the rooms down the hall. When he turned the corner, I made a mad dash for the room and well, you saw the results.” This time Rosalie spoke.

“So wait a minute. You mean he is somewhere on this floor? Like right down the hall?” Her laughter bubbled out. “Bella, the way you two keep running into each other, it has to be fate.” I scoffed at her. Fate my ass.

“No Rose, I think it’s just chance.”

“Chance. Fate. Whatever. I think you need to talk to him.” She couldn’t be serious. There was no way I’d ever get up enough nerve to talk to someone like him. So I just rolled my eyes at her and got up to make my way to the bedroom.

“No Rose, I don’t. Thanks for the ear guys, sorry I worried you. I think I’m going to bed now.” And I left. I could hear them murmuring to each other through the closed door, and I was sure they were talking about me. I didn’t care. I just wanted today to be over.

Chapter Six - You Can't Be Serious

“I have no trouble with my enemies. I can take care of my enemies in a fight. But my friends, my goddamned friends, they’re the ones who keep me walking the floor at night!” ~Warren G. Harding


Chapter Six: You Can’t Be Serious

EPOV

I couldn’t get that girl out of my head. This was very unusual for me. I had never in my life had so much of my attention focused on one single girl. It wasn’t even like she was the most beautiful or alluring female I had ever met. Not to mention the fact that I had barely spoken with her and the brief conversation we did have wasn’t anything to base a very informed impression of. If fact, if I were to go by first impressions alone, she wouldn’t be rated very well. She had stuttered, blushed, stammered, and fled.

But there was just something about her. Something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Then there was the introduction of the mystery girl that Jasper and Emmett kept yammering about all night. It made me uneasy to think that there was a very real possibility that the girl that drove that disgrace of a truck was the very same girl I couldn’t get off my mind. She was an enigma and a puzzle. If anything, I could say she had piqued my curiosity.

I had woken up this morning with a vague dissatisfaction of where my life was heading. I wasn’t looking forward to classes starting next week, and I wasn’t looking forward to being trapped. But if I were to be honest with myself, I had to admit that I had little choice in the matter. I decided that if I was going to try and make the best of it, the first thing I needed to do was find an outlet here on campus.

Jasper was sitting on the couch watching ESPN when I came out of the bedroom. He was already dressed for the day and I didn’t want to know how long he had already been up. It wasn’t that I didn’t care, I just wasn’t really a morning person. He looked over at me briefly and gave a nod to acknowledge me before turning back to the TV. I noticed coffee on the table and trudged my way over, silently thanking the Gods that Jasper was a morning person.

After I had finished about half my cup, I was alert enough to have a decent conversation with someone. I walked over and sat down next to him on the couch. “Thanks for the coffee.”

“No problem man. I know how you are in the morning, so I figured I might as well make it easier for you. Besides, it gave me a chance to roam for awhile this morning.”

I glanced over at the clock and realized that it was already nearly 9. He must have been up for a few hours already. “Oh yeah? Find anything you liked?”

“There’s a bakery not too far from here. That’s where I got the coffee.” He had a far off look in his eye, which was normal for Jasper, but the fact that he didn’t elaborate more wasn’t.

“Find anything else, other than the bakery?”

“Well, I noticed a couple girls leaving the bakery when I was heading in that direction…” a loud crash from the bedroom cut him off. It was followed by Emmett shouting and swearing. Jasper and I exchanged a look before we started laughing. Emmett came barging out of the room looking extremely grumpy and he had a red mark on the side of his face. Realizing that we must have been laughing at him, he shot us a glare.

“What the fuck are you girls laughing about?”

Jasper recovered first, “Well good morning to you too, Sunshine.”

“Fuck you.”

“Aww Emmy, what’s the matter?” Jasper was using a baby voice, which only made me laugh harder.

“Beds in this goddamn place are made for midgets, that’s what’s the matter!” Emmett roared at us. “Man my size needs a bigger bed. I could hardly sleep last night trying to get comfortable in that tiny thing. Then this morning, all I was trying to do was roll over and I fucking fell right out of the bed.” That explained the red mark on his face. And his sour mood. He wasn’t nearly as amused as we were. “Ooh, is that coffee?” He stomped off to the table to grab a cup for himself.

“So, what did you guys have in mind for today?” I asked after we had settled down some.

“I don’t know. But I’m hungry.” Emmett was whining, so he must not have damaged his head too much in the fall.

“You’re always hungry Emmett, tell us something we don’t know.”

“Just shut up and decide where we’re going to get food.” He took his coffee back in the bedroom to get ready.

“He’s such a baby.” Jasper nodded his agreement, but still didn’t say much. “So Jazz, you were about to tell me about some girls.”

“Oh, it was nothing really. Just saw a couple girls leaving the bakery, like I said.”

“And?”

“And what? They were heading in the opposite direction of me.”

“What did she look like?”

“What’s that supposed to mean? I told you there were two of them.”

“Yeah, but if you’re still this caught up, one of them has your attention.”

“One of them was blonde. Tall and blonde. Statuesque, I guess you’d say. From a distance, she looked like a runway model.” I knew that wasn’t the one that he had noticed. Jasper liked smaller girls. He was tall himself, so he liked feeling like the protector.

“And the other?” I looked over in time to see him blush. I knew now that he was going to develop a thing for whoever the other girl was. Jasper only blushed when he felt too deeply. Being as charismatic as he was, he generally had excellent control over his emotions.

“There really wasn’t that much to her. I didn’t get a good look from as far away as I was.” He was avoiding now too… a dead giveaway. I couldn’t help but laugh at his discomfort.

“Come on man, I know what’s about to happen. You might as well tell me.”

“She was little, okay. Really little. Hard to tell from the distance, but probably no more that five feet. She had really short, inky black hair. And she had a spring in her step. Almost like she was bouncing around.” He trailed off and got that far off look in his eye again. He was a goner. And he didn’t even know her name.

“How are you going to find her?”

He groaned in frustration. “That’s just it. I don’t know. By the time I came out of my daze, they had turned the corner and were gone. What if I never find her Edward?” He started to panic. I chuckled and he sent me a glowering look.

“There are plenty of other girls Jasper. But who knows, you could get lucky and see her again really soon.”


We walked around the campus all day, just wanting to familiarize ourselves with our new home. At least for the next 9 months or so, before we had to go back to Chicago. I didn’t want to think about that though, so I pushed it as far out of my mind as I could. I still needed to find something here where I could relax and calm down.

I looked up and immediately noticed the Hopkins Center. I knew from my research of the campus that this was where the Music Department was located. I wondered vaguely if they had practice rooms and decided it would be worth checking out. It was on the opposite side of the campus from the Medical School, but still not too far from my dorm.

After making arrangements to meet back up with the guys later for dinner, I made my way into the building. I just had to know if there was a piano here I could use. I walked around the building for an hour, marveling at the beauty around me. This was where I belonged.

I wound my way around, still dazed by my discovery when my breath came up short. Right here, in front of me was my salvation. An information board with details on getting practice space.

What I found both renewed my spirits and dashed them at the same time. There were practice rooms available for use by the students. Eleven in total, and four of them with grand pianos. The only downside was that in order to use a grand piano, I either had to be a Music Major or a student taking piano lessons.

The cost of the lessons wasn’t what bothered me. What bothered me was the fact that I didn’t need lessons from anyone. While an upright piano would do in a bind, it wasn’t what my soul desired. The sound made by an upright was no comparison to a grand piano.

I debated for only a few moments before making up my mind. I would do whatever necessary to ensure I had a key to a practice room with a grand. Nothing else would do. It was what I needed, what I craved. It was the only thing that would help me make it through the torture I would have to endure here.

I got the information I needed from the Administrative Assistant in the front office and walked out with a much lighter step. I knew I had made the right choice for me. I would worry about the consequences later.


We decided to go to Murphy’s on the Green. It was a restaurant/pub that wasn’t too far from campus. In fact, it was just on the outskirts of campus, so it was a perfect spot. We sat in the bar area so we could watch football on the big screen. It was still pre-season, but it looked like the Bears might actually have a real chance this year.

We debated and talked about the team and what we felt would make them better. Lovie Smith was obviously still a good choice for Head Coach in my opinion. Although I wished we still had Mike Ditka, there wasn’t much that could be done about the man being fired all those years ago. We all agreed that those were the glory days, even if Ditka did seem to have some sort of meltdown.

We continued to talk about their chances, and what the Super Bowl loss in 2006 had done to us. It was a black day indeed, for all Chicago fans. On one hand, I wanted to cheer that Manning had finally won a Super Bowl. Even if he wasn’t a Bear, I still liked the guy as a player. I just couldn’t believe that he had taken the win from my beloved Bears.

As the night wore on, talk moved from football, to girls, to life. I told them about my find at the Hopkins Center and they were both wide-eyed at my plan. Both knew that I may have to face the wrath of Carlisle, and they tried to reason with me, telling me that if I pissed him off he might make a trip here in person. Nothing would sway me though. He might have control over what classes I was going to take, but he had no control over my free time.

My mind was made up and nothing anyone could say or do would change it. I was feeling pretty good, thinking fate had finally smiled on me. I would give Carlisle what he wanted, at least for the next couple years, and then I would go my own way. Even better, I wouldn’t have to give up my music completely. It really was a red letter day for me. To top things off, I thought about that girl again and the feelings she had invoked in me.

No one, in all my memory at least, had made me feel the warmth she had. While I was still wary about love and commitment, perhaps I had found someone that could understand me. There had to be something there. Even God wasn’t merciless enough to finally make me feel only to have that someone refuse me. Now all I had to do was find her and charm her. Surely there was no way that she could snub me. Society had yet to show me a girl who was resistant to me.

As I was sitting there thinking about her, I started to feel an odd tingling sensation down my spine. It felt like I had gotten to close to a live wire. It wasn’t painful, but more of an odd feeling. It felt a lot like when I had touched that girl’s hand. A jolt of knowledge. Of recognition. Certainly not recognition in the sense that I knew her, but that somehow my soul was attached to hers.

Suddenly Emmett started laughing again. “Well looky looky Jasper. If it isn’t the hottie herself, in the flesh. And she has some fine looking friends with her too.”

I knew who he was talking about immediately. This was the girl with that horrendous truck. As soon as I turned around, I would be able to brush off that sinking feeling that I was longing for some poverty ridden girl. Fate couldn’t be that cruel.

I turned slowly in my seat and gasped. “You can’t be serious. There is no fucking way.” I just kept shaking my head over and over, trying to rid myself of the awful notion. Fate was indeed a cruel and heartless bitch. There before me, in all her glory, was the girl from the stairwell. I could only sit there and gape.

“What the hell’s gotten into you?” Emmett was still laughing, but I could see he was also checking out the girls that were making their way to the door.

“Life can’t be that cruel, can it?”

“What are you blabbing on about Edward?”

“That girl. The one with the brown hair. Surely she’s not the one with the truck, right?”

“Yep. The one and only. I told you she was hot.”

Hot was an understatement. Had I really thought that she wasn’t that beautiful? Had I said she wasn’t all that alluring? Because I was wrong. Dead wrong. On both counts. She was a vision. An angel perhaps. She was splendor and magnificence all wrapped up in a pretty little package. And the package, oh dear Lord the package.

Her jeans hugged her curves to perfection, highlighting her long shapely legs. Her tiny feet were encased in little black slippers. But her shirt nearly made my tongue wag. It was a deep blue color that looked fantastic with her skin tone. It seemed to make her glow. It dipped down in the front and gave me a wonderful view of her pert little breasts. I was sure I would start drooling soon. Aphrodite had nothing on her.

She had a lost look on her face. Like she wasn’t very sure of herself or her surroundings. But she had a small smile gracing her pouty lips nonetheless. It was a wicked smile, but still oozed innocence. She had no idea the effect she was having on me. Hell, she didn’t even know I was here.

Just then, I noticed one of the other girls point over in our direction. The goddess glanced over and her eyes grew wide with trepidation. The lost look was gone, but in its place was a deer in the headlights look. I distinctly saw her mouth form the words, “Oh no. Please God not again,” before she turned and fled with the other two hot on her heels. I was barely aware enough to notice them pile into a bright yellow Porsche before it whisked away, and she was gone.

Emmett’s booming laugh was what brought me out of my trance. I was still shaking my head, which was clouded with lust and longing. I could see him saying something, but my mind wouldn’t wrap itself around the words. He reached over and thumped me on the back, hard enough to topple a grizzly. I’m not sure how I remained upright, but my head was finally clear.

“What the hell was that for asshole?” I snarled at him.

“You looked a little shell shocked man. Much like Jasper does right now. I’m gonna have to thump him too.” I moved away a little, hoping that Jasper didn’t fall out of his chair. But he too was able to keep himself composed.

“You two want to tell me why you look like you’ve been struck by lightning?” I wanted to smack the smirk off his face, but I was afraid he was right. Jasper spoke up first.

“It was her Edward.” Confusion set in. What was he talking about? Hadn’t we already established that the goddess was the one with the truck?

“Yes, I know Jasper. I’m smart enough to realize that she’s the one with that damn truck.” Now it was his turn to be confused.

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about the girl you saw last night, the one getting out of that wreck. The hottie in the truck? Remember?” What the hell was his deal?

“Oh. Of course. Yes, that was her. But that’s not who I was talking about before. The little one that was with her, she’s the one from the bakery this morning.” Ah, realization dawned on me. That’s why Jasper was dazed. He had seen his girl again, and by some weird stroke of luck, she had been with my girl.

“Well it seems I was right about your luck. You saw her again.” He had that frustrated look on his face again.

“But I still didn’t get her name, or even talk to her for that matter. Do you know how lucky I would have to be to find her again? Twice in one day was chance, it would have to be fate to see her a third time so soon.” I could see his point. But with a campus this small, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a yellow 911 Turbo.

When I pointed that out to him, a grin stretched across his face. He finally had a way to find her. I knew he’d come up with a plan. My only problem now was how I was going to find that girl again. I had to talk to her. Suddenly her truck didn’t matter so much. I just had to talk to her.

Emmett was rambling on about the ‘buxom blonde’ that was with her and talking about how incredible it was to find three such extremely attractive girls all together. When he realized he wasn’t getting any comments from me he asked what was on my mind.

I told them briefly about my encounter with the truck girl in the stairwell, causing much laughter and rude commentary. “So, you knocked down a hot girl in the stairwell and didn’t even get her name?” Emmett was cracking up at the irony of who she was.

I wanted to smack him, but even more I wanted to smack myself for my ineptitude. He was right. I had been lying on top of her, feeling her body pressed to mine, and I didn’t even get her name. I was a moron.

As we drove back to the dorm, we made plans on how we would find them. Emmett wanted the blonde, of course, and Jasper was trying to come up with a plan to find the Porsche. I already knew that she lived in our dorm, I just need to come up with a plan to find out where in our dorm.

We pulled into the lot, each of us filled with different kinds of hope and wonder when I heard Jasper’s sudden intake of breath. I glanced over in the direction he was looking and started laughing. There, across the lot, parked next to the truck was a bright yellow car. It must be fate indeed.