I was sitting in the bleachers, legs drawn up to my chest and arms hugging them there, everyone buzzing past me as I wondered if I should let Tyler take me to the dance and if that was still an option. Meanwhile, I watched for Isabella and wondered what she would be willing to tell me.

"Hey, Swan."

I looked up to see Mike Newton coming toward me. He looked to be in the same mood.

"Hey. What's up?"

He shook his head in disbelief. "Bella went home."

I felt a little blip of guilt starting to well up. "What? Why? Is she ok?"

"Blood testing. Apparently she faints at the sight of blood." Mike sighed and I knew this was not the whole story.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. And guess who drove her home." Mike's face was pinched with dislike. "Edward Cullen."

"Cullen?" I let my feet drop to the ground and spread my hands in disbelieving irritation. "But he hated her! It was hate at first sight! I saw it! You saw it!"

"The guy is nuts, Gen." He shook his head again. "Mental."

"Birds of a feather." I muttered, growing angry with my sister again.

"Yeah, but let her know I told you, ok?" Mike asked. "She wanted you to know where she was."

"Good." I snapped. "That'll be a very useful trait for when I finally decide to kill her." But really that simple fact was already starting to cool my anger, or at least to drop it back down to its normal level of confused frustration. I was ok with this: I still had Cullen to freak out at later. I frowned: was he in my Spanish? No... No, I'd have to wait until English tomorrow.

I sighed and jumped up.

Only basketball could cheer me up in mood like this.

Luckily, that's what we were playing.

I had one or two more classes after that and all I could think about were Tyler and Edward. By the time practice got out, I was pretty hyper and ended up leading the whole team in tone deaf rendition of 'We Will Rock You' after Annalise gave us the info for our game the next Thursday. I hummed it all the way to the car at which point I pulled out my cell and found a text from Tyler.

I stared at the little letters of the notification, hunching over to protect the small screen from the rain. My phone didn't tell me any of what was said, just a little script with '1 Message from Tyler C.' popping up on my tiny background.

Oh, no. Ooooh, no. He hates me. He's telling me he hates me. I paused and bit my lip.... Or he realized he's in love with me. I smiled and gave a small laugh as I closed my phone. It was both too scary to read right now and nicer to have the chance to daydream about what he could say. I'd open it at home.

I climbed in the car and tossed my stuff in the passenger seat with a grunt, pulling down the mirror to check that I didn't look too hideous after my quick rinse in the gym showers. Whether it was likely that I'd see anyone on my way home wasn't really relevant: I just liked to look my best, I guess. As it was I found Austin Marks glancing at me through my rear window just in time to awkwardly catch my eye.

I looked down immediately and, distracted with trying to act like I hadn't just been spying on one of Tyler's teammates, picked up my phone to mess with. The notification popped up again but before I could absorb this and throw my phone away again, Austin was knocking on my window.

I rolled it down a crack: I wasn't quite fond enough of rain to let it in my car.

"Hey." I said. It came out with a hint of question.

"You going?"

"What?"

He smiled awkwardly. "We're trying to get a count for the beach... for food and stuff. Transportation. Are you coming?"

I stared at him for a second and then rolled my window down a bit more. "Beach? Food? What are you talking about, Marks?"

"Tyler said you were one of the people he texted." He looked pointedly down at the phone in my hand.

"Oh." I stared down at it. "I was literally just about to read that." I lied.

"Oh... well, LaPush. Saturday. We're getting the gang together." Austin shrugged casually: he was a weirdly chill dude. And since when was I part of his 'gang'? Had I ever talked to him without Tyler?

"Oh. I'll have to talk to my boss. But I'd guess I can come." I offered a tentative smile.

"Cool." Austin ruffled his sandy blonde hair and gave me a nod. "See ya later, Swan."

"Um. Yeah. Ok. I'll let you guys know." I said, taken aback. "Bye, Austin."

"Bye." He turned away and started to walk off, making his way carefully past my side mirror.

I looked down and fiddled with my keys, finally finding the right one and starting my car just in time for another knock on my window.

"Yeep?" I asked, not looking up. I hadn't bothered to close it.

"Hi, Genevieve."

"Holy cripes!" I yelped, knocking a knee against the steering wheel as I jumped in surprise. I turned to glare up at my good friend Dick. Also known as Edward Cullen. "What do you want?"

"Just checking on you." He said smoothly, glancing over at the school across the empty parking lot.

"Yeah? Where's my sister?" I asked, a bit rudely.

"Fine." He said, smiling slightly.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Where's my sister?"

"I brought her home. Alice and I were just driving past from dropping off her truck." He added the last part as I began to frown, reading on my face that I'd realized it was ridiculously late for him to be at school.

"What do you want, Cullen?"

"Are you going to the beach on Saturday?" He asked.

I stared at him in dumbfounded irritation. Why the hell did he care?

"That's none of your beeswax, Edward." And stay away from my sister. She's weird enough as it is.

He was frowning at me now, squinting with that nearsighted look again. "Are you going?" He asked again.

I gave him my best exasperated teen girl look and rolled my eyes. "Yes. Edward. I am. Going. Tothebeach. Why."

He opened his mouth and for a second I could have sworn he was going to tell me. Then he shook his head and gave me a disarmingly attractive smile. "Just trying to decide if it's worth going." He said.

Oh, yeah right.

"Is Bella going?" I would have thought that would have decided it.

"Yes." He sighed. "Mike invited her."

"Mike, huh." I said. And then, because I thought saying something nice might make him more willing to leave me alone, I added. "Not much competition if that's what you're worried about. But I'll keep Bella distracted."

"Oh." He seemed pleased at the thought and surprised to be. "Thanks."

"That doesn't mean I'm rooting for you." I pointed out.

"No. I know." He smiled slightly as he pulled away, turning to head back to his car in some other deserted area of the parking lot. I barely heard his next words, only catching them as I leaned to the side to close the window:

"I'm not either."

What?

...

When I got home, I was greeted by the sight of Isabella lying in wait for me on the couch, a copy of Macbeth raised ready for use as a weapon should I disagree with whatever was about to come out of her mouth.

"Yes?" I asked tiredly. I wasn't really in the mood to talk. What with being rejected by Tyler and talking to Cullen and all.

She stood up and walked over to me before she spoke, her voice hushed. "Don't tell Charlie." She begged, eyes on the kitchen door.

"I really could not care less but I feel obligated to ask..." I dumped my things at the foot of the couch and landed with a thwump in the spot she'd been occupying. "Don't tell him what?"

Bella came to lean over the back of the couch. "That I was sick. And that Edward."

"Ok." I yawned. "I won't tell Dad that Edward."

"I'm serious, Gen." Bella said.

"And I'm not." I said. "But you're secrets safe with me. Hurray." I closed my eyes. "Speaking of..."

"Yes?" Bella's voice came from nearer the kitchen now.

"He's not going to the beach?" I asked, fighting back a yawn.

"No..." She said uncertainly. I opened my eyes and twisted awkwardly as I tried to see her face but she had fled before I could turn. She sounded thoughtful, like there was something more to this thrilling tale of Edward and the 'not visiting the beach'. Ugh, girls and their first boyfriends. And boys and their first girlfriends for that matter, I thought as I remembered Paul again.

I frowned: when had I been thinking about Paul? Oh, right Jacob.

"Hey, Is." I called. I heard her coming out of the kitchen. "You see Jacob since you been back?"

"Before you, actually." She told me. "They brought the truck up."

"The monster, you mean." I grumbled. "I can't believe you were going to take that to Seattle."

"Mmm." Bella replied.

"My car should be ten times better for that." I babbled on, trying to keep her in the room but not really wanting to talk about anything we actually had in common—such as Tyler, for one thing. "Though it's still a bit of clunker. Honestly, you'd be better if you could borrow someone else's car. Most girls won't need them, right? With the dance and all? And you could-"

"It's fine, Gen." Bella said. She sounded embarrassed: was it because I kept trying to take care of her?

"Oh." I said. I looked down at my hands and frowned, running a finger over the small scar on my wrist. "Yeah."

"Want some dinner?" Isabella asked.

"Yes!" I declared, jumping off the couch to emphasize my enthusiasm at her willingness to forgive my nosiness. I knew I would be angry at her again within three or four minutes, but it was another thing to have her annoyed with me.

You never want your cook to be miffed with you, that's what I always say.