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64.Payback Sucks

BPOV

Rose, Alice and I confronted the girls on our hit list in a very public way in the cafeteria on Tuesday. I shall forever cherish the memory of my speech to Jessica and Lauren and their subsequent reaction.

I stalked over to Jessica and Lauren where they sat peacefully spreading malicious gossip at their usual lunch table. Rose and Alice flanked me to provide moral support. Since I've always hated being the center of attention, as well as served the role of peacemaker my entire life, public confrontation has always been extremely low on my list of 'things to do before I die'. My relationship with Edward was worth defending though, and my new sisters would accept nothing less. I found myself surprisingly territorial where Edward was concerned, every fiber of my being shouting 'MINE' whenever I saw any girl look his way. Rose and Alice informed me that was normal behavior for vampire soul mates, though they couldn't explain why a human would be feeling these things before the change.

"Then again, you've always been a weird one," Rose had quipped. I had given her a death glare, which had caused her to be overcome with amusement. "Oh, Bella, you're so terrifying," she had cooed, before laughing harder.

So now I found myself inwardly quaking as I forced myself to face down our grade's worst emotional and verbal bullies. I felt a sudden wave of confidence and whispered a quick thanks to Jasper. I saw him nod out of the corner of my eye.

"So, Jessica and Lauren, initially I was angry with the two of you for daring to ask my Edward to the dance, as if he might seriously consider one of you when everybody knows he only has eyes for me. I couldn't understand what could possess two girls to actually approach a happily engaged man and try to lure him away from his future wife, especially after all the times he has publicly and privately rejected both of you, even before he found me.

"Then I started thinking about it and realized how truly pathetic the two of you really were. I finally understood how absolutely desperate you must have been to approach a man who had rejected you repeatedly in the past and invite him to escort you to the dance, knowing full well he would be escorting his chosen bride-to-be, to whom he was utterly and completely devoted. I realized how far you must have fallen that not one single guy was interested enough to ask you out, leaving you to do the asking yourselves.

"I felt deep pity for you upon realizing you must have gone through the entire population of single guys here in Forks, and even the surrounding areas, and not been accepted by a single one. How embarrassing that must have been for you to be rejected so many times! Having gone through the entire list of available guys, you then had to turn to the boys who were already in relationships with somebody else, and attempt to 'steal' their affections away from their current girlfriends.

"I shudder to think of what you must have promised them in your attempts to capture their attention. You would have started with the ones who had shown some previous interest in you, ones you may have even rejected yourselves in the past, as they would have been the easiest conquests. After all of them turned you down, you would have moved on to those who had never even given you the time of day before and those you considered previously to be beneath your notice. Only after being rejected by all of them would you have been desperate enough to invite those who had already indicated they wanted nothing to do with you.

"For you to approach Edward, who has repeatedly demonstrated his disgust for both of you, you must have invited every single other male between the ages of 14 and 20 within a twenty mile radius and been turned down by each and every one. I feel so sorry for the two of you. I would never be able to hold my head up again after all of that rejection, so I admire how you can face the school knowing none of the guys want you."

We had the full attention of the entire school, who hung on baited breath to hear the two girls respond to my little speech. The girls' faces were purple with rage.

"How dare you!" Jessica spat.

"You little skank!" Lauren shrieked. I just stood there questioningly, completely unphased by their remarks. Lauren jumped up to attack me, but a glance at Rose and Alice had her sitting back down again with an uncharacteristic thump. My sisters began snickering, barely able to hang on to their amusement.

"I'll have you know Edward was the first guy I asked," Jessica retorted slyly.

I nodded my head knowingly and calmly replied, "Oh, I see. You have a fetish for rejection. Being turned down turns you on. Why didn't you just say so?"

Jessica gasped at my conclusion, enraged to have the tables turned on her once again, when she'd been hoping to embarrass me.

"Of course not!" she screamed, rapidly losing her composure. My response had drawn chuckles from many in the audience of students watching me put her firmly in her place.

"Edward would be so much better off with me than you," Lauren sneered. "I have no idea what he sees in you."

I tapped my finger on my chin, pretending to be lost in thought. "Oh, I get it. You're admitting you're one of those whores who knowingly and willingly initiate an affair with a married man in hopes of destroying his marriage and family. Well, I can see why you wouldn't want anybody knowing about that. Forewarned is forearmed after all, and now none of the respectable females in the surrounding area will let you anywhere near their boyfriends or husbands."

Lauren went completely ballistic. "You dare call me a whore, you whore! Edward's going to get tired of your little 'girl next door act' and then he'll come running to me. You won't be able to satisfy his needs, and then I'll show him a good time the way a real woman does."

"Am I a whore or the girl next door? Make up your mind," I drawled.

"Whore!" Both Lauren and Jessica yelled furiously.

I laughed. "Actually, I'm a virgin and will be until my wedding night, when my husband, Edward, will be my first and only lover. It's too bad you can't offer the same gift to your future husbands."

I could see something flicker in the eyes of some of the human boys around us, as if they suddenly realized how precious and valuable the gift of virginity could be—to know their wives had never shared something so intimate with another man. Those boys looked at Lauren and Jessica in a whole new light, one of disgust, for their trampy ways. I watched the two girls splutter in indignation. Then their eyes turned evil as they attacked me once again.

"I knew you couldn't satisfy him," Lauren taunted. "He'll be coming to me before long."

"Ha! He doesn't want you; you're too ugly for him to take to his bed. No wonder you're still a virgin," Jessica laughingly condescended.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I felt another wave of confidence blast through me and glanced over to our usual table. All three of the guys were tense, but Jasper and Emmett were now physically restraining Edward to prevent him from coming to my rescue. I smiled faintly and turned back to the annoying sluts insulting me. I shook my head pityingly.

"You two just don't get it, do you? If Edward wanted what you had to offer, he would have accepted it two years ago. I am still a virgin because he is a gentleman and respects me. He will not treat me as anything less than the lady I am." Lauren and Jessica scoffed, but I could see the embarrassment underneath. "It has become obvious to me that you are either mentally deficient or completely oblivious. Either way, I've decided to break this down into small words so you can understand." I paused, making sure I had their full attention. "Edward is MINE forever and always. He will never be yours. Never, ever. So get over it."

Their jaws dropped, as my voice turned menacing. I spun on my heel and stomped away. Rose took the lead and marched over to give a similar lesson to the two girls on her hit list, and finally, Alice gave a speech to the two on hers. We were invincible. In fact, when we were done, the whole cafeteria burst out into spontaneous, wild cheering and applause. We each bowed to our fans and then hurried back to our beloved soul mates before the bell rang to signal the next class.

Now it was Friday afternoon, and I sat in Biology with Edward chatting quietly since our lab work was already finished. I wouldn't hesitate to admit that Edward and I make a great team.

"Do you really have to leave right after school today to go clothes shopping in L.A.?" he pouted, giving me his puppy dog eyes. "Why do you have to be gone for three days? I'll miss you."

I snuck a quick kiss on his full, pouty lips and sighed. "You know I promised Alice, and besides, Esme is looking forward to it. I couldn't possibly disappoint Esme," I murmured, pointing out the obvious. "Besides, you're going to be going hunting with the guys, so it's not like you'll be pining away in your room, twiddling your thumbs in utter boredom. If you get nice and full this trip, just think how much more time we'll be able to spend together before you have to leave again to go on another one."

He gave me my favorite crooked grin. "That's true, but how will you ever fall asleep without me snuggled up next to you?"

I smiled internally, but maintained my nonchalant expression. "I'll just have Alice curl up with me. She has already volunteered to be my temporary snugglebunny."

He growled low in his chest, just loud enough for me to hear. "It won't be the same," he promised, his jealously and possessiveness kicking in even over his own sister.

Alice had forewarned me about this conversation though, so I was prepared. "I don't expect it to be the same, my darling Edward. I'm sure I'll find Alice's embrace comfortable enough though. It'll be different, sleeping with a woman, but you're always wanting me to try new experiences, right? Besides, Alice is quite beautiful in her own way, and I have a special connection to her. I believe Rose and Esme expressed their own curiosity and willingness to each take a turn sleeping with me, so I won't be all alone in my bed, Edward. Don't worry."

If anything, he looked more worried than before. "Why didn't anybody tell me?"

"Oh, they were probably worried you'd overreact. I can't imagine what give them that impression," I answered, tongue in cheek. "I think they said something about you being a prude and what you didn't know wouldn't hurt you," I continued, adding fuel to the fire. "Rose mentioned something about their husbands all being jealous of all of us women being together on the same bed but none of them being allowed to watch. Why on earth would they want to watch us sleeping together? I just don't get it."

I saw his eyes widen as he processed my words. Then his brows lowered. He looked incredulous, like he either couldn't believe what he was hearing or that I was naïve enough to not know what I was suggesting. I was sure my sisters were eagerly listening in on our conversation and wondered how they were managing to keep themselves from cracking up in class. I glanced over at Alice to see how she was handling my revelations and saw her literally biting her hand to keep herself from laughing. Edward was glaring at her, and I knew she was blocking her thoughts. I also knew it was to keep Edward from guessing our little joke, but he would think it was about this weekend, which would make him even more suspicious.

I could tell Edward was rapidly approaching the end of his limits and linked my arm with his to help him calm down. "Don't worry, Edward. I'm yours, only yours, forever."

He squeezed my hand gently and narrowed his eyes at Alice. "Mary Alice Brandon Cullen, tell me what is going on right now or so help me I'll mutilate all of your credit cards and soak your clothes in cheap perfume!"

Frankly, I was impressed with his threat. It was rather creative and personalized for maximum effect. I saw Alice's eyes glaze over as she processed a vision. Her eyes widened in horror, and she stared at her brother as if she'd never seen him before.

"You wouldn't," she whispered, shaking her head.

He nodded, eyes glinting with malicious intent.

"Wal-Mart brand perfume?" she wailed almost silently. "And how did you know about my secret stash of credit cards?"

Edward merely grinned evilly, baring his teeth in a threatening way. She gulped and quickly backed down, letting him into her thoughts.

"You were just messing with me?" he grumbled. "So funny, ha ha."

He leaned over to whisper in my ear, his fingers deftly slipping under my shirt to tug at my waistband. "I'll punish you later, little Miss Innocent."

He felt me shiver and knew it wasn't from the coldness of his touch. He chuckled, which went right through me in the most pleasant way.

Esme was all set and ready to go when we got back to the house. Alice had made sure our bags were all packed before we even left for school that morning. Once he knew that Esme was going too and that it would only be us girls, Charlie had been more than happy to send me on my way. We were taking the SUV so we would have enough room for all our shopping to return home with us. I knew Alice would have no trouble completely filling the rear compartment.

All we had left to do before leaving was to kiss our gentlemen goodbye. Each couple chose a semi-private spot to exchange our intimate sentiments. Edward swept me into his arms and began turning on both the heat and the charm. I had a few moments to wonder what had gotten into him, before all conscious thought deserted me, rendering me prisoner to passion and desire. By the time Edward pulled back to look down into my eyes, his lips and hands had left me dazed and speechless. I clung to him like a vine and never wanted to part. I was ready for us to throw all caution to the wind and let him make me his right there on the side of the house. I was practically throbbing with need and desperately grinding myself against his thigh. He waited patiently for some semblance of reason to return to my eyes. As soon as he saw I would understand his words, his velvety voice caressed my skin. He smiled against my lips and proclaimed, "Sweet dreams, love!"

Then the bastard pulled away completely and walked toward the SUV, waiting to help me into my seat. He left me a screaming ball of nerves, desperate for more, for friction, for release. I stared after him, unable to believe he would be so cruel, speechless and rooted to the spot. He turned around and smirked at me.

"Payback sucks, eh dear?" he challenged, letting me know he deliberately started this and just as deliberately didn't finish it. He was a dead man. I was so furious, I was seeing red. Yes, payback sucks. I would find a way to etch that concept into his brain so deeply he would never dare cross me again. I crossed my arms over my chest and stomped over to the SUV. I threw myself into the seat, ignoring the idiot standing by my door. I didn't even bother to speak to or look at him as he kissed my temple chastely, whispered a smug goodbye, and shut my door.

I knew the other females had figured out what he had done. It was fairly obvious, considering my flushed face, swollen lips, heaving chest, rapid heartbeat, and scent of arousal, combined with the level of my ire.

"Oh, Rosie, dear," I called sweetly, knowing the guys would hear, and also knowing Rose would be most likely to play along with me. "I need a favor."

She met my eyes in the rearview mirror and grinned as she read my expression. "Yes, Bella, how can I help you?"

"Well, I seem to be in a bit of discomfort at the moment and was wondering if you'd be willing to comfort me?" I asked, giving her a wink.

"Why, certainly, Bella!" she exclaimed. "I'm sure we can comfort each other and both feel much better afterward. Esme, would you mind driving for a bit while I take care of Bella's needs?"

Esme eyed us both with amusement. "Of course, Rose, I'd be happy to do that. It's good to see the two of you getting along so well together. I'm glad you've realized how much pleasure can be derived from meeting Bella's fragile human needs."

Rose, Alice, and I all snorted. Mama Cullen could run with the best. In the blink of an eye, Rose and Esme had changed places, so that Rose was now seated in the back with me.

"These pants look awfully snug on you, Bella. That can't be comfortable for you. Maybe you should slip them off?" Rose suggested seductively, reaching for my waist. On that note, Esme peeled off down the driveway, leaving our menfolk in the dust. Their smug expressions had rapidly changed to astonishment over the course of my conversation with Rose and Esme, and at Rose's final suggestions, all four of their jaws had dropped.

As soon as we were out of earshot, all four of us burst out laughing.

"Thanks, Mom, you're a real champ!" I praised Esme, gratefully squeezing her arm.

"My pleasure, honey. You can always count on me," she responded lovingly.

Alice went into a vision and came out laughing hysterically. "They're all despondent. They keep reassuring each other that we were only kidding, but they keep getting bummed out anyway at the idea they might be missing out on something interesting. Well, except for Edward, who is having a conniption fit, thinking maybe we're better at 'certain things' than he is."

We all giggled at the thought of our guys working themselves up like that. Rose grinned. "I've got a naughty idea. Why don't we really drive them up the wall?" she suggested, holding up her cell phone. We all nodded mischievously, and she pressed send before setting the phone on the center console.

Rose started moaning, and as soon as we heard Emmett pick up, Alice and I added our own heavy breathing, gasps, and groans.

"Ohhh, yes…yes…Oh, Bella!" Rose pretended.

At the same time, Alice added her own script. "Mmmm, Bella, you're a natural! You're even better than Rose, and I thought she was talented!"

"Esme, why don't you pull over and join us?" Rose invited with a playful moan.

Esme chuckled, "Don't worry about me, darlings. I'd rather wait until we get to the hotel where you can all shower me with your undivided attention."

The three of us all moaned and groaned invitingly as if excited by the idea.

"Rose, darling, is your phone on?" Esme asked.

"Oh, crap!" Rose exclaimed, pretending to scramble for the phone. "I hope nobody heard that!" Then she pressed end. We all burst out laughing again and looked expectantly at Alice.

She checked her vision then and came back snickering. "They're frozen in shock! Emmett had it on speakerphone, and they're all sitting around the living room staring into space, frozen into statues. The first to recover will be…Edward. After 22 minutes and 13 seconds, he's going to storm off into the forest and start taking out trees. The next will be Emmett, 14 minutes and 25 seconds after Edward leaves he'll race up to his bedroom and use some toys to relieve his physical stress. It'll be hours before he's done. Carlisle will move next, 3 minutes and 18 seconds after Emmett. He'll go lay on his bed unmoving for the rest of the night. Don't worry; he's not upset, just lost in his own thoughts. I'm pretty sure he knew you were bluffing, Esme. Finally, my Jasper will stir himself, after another 36 minutes and 42 seconds. He's going to swim to Alaska and back." She couldn't stop giggling at the thought of how her husband was going to 'cool off' his fantasies.

"I guess we ought to call them all later and reassure them we were only teasing," I decided with a sigh. "I don't want Edward to still be angry when we get back.

"I don't know, Bella," Alice cautioned. "I think this might actually work in your favor, now that he's got a standard to live up to and all."

We all started laughing again. I loved my family and wouldn't trade them for the world. To think, the weekend had just begun.

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I rather enjoyed that... Did you guys too? :)

Well, THANK YOU FOR BEING PATIENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I finally upoaded and I've just been waaaaay too busy.... Soooo... I hope y'all are good, and i'll cya then next chapter!

GOAL (You dont have to reach it... I put it for fun, not blackmail. Even if yall gave me like 2 votes, i'd upload)- 100! I reeeeeally wanna see how long it takes! Its just a random challenge....

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