DID EMMETT CULLEN JUST WALK YOU TO CLASS?

MIKE was all too happy to walk with Nova and Bella to their last class of the day, which was Biology. Nova was happy to have a break from introducing her cousin to teachers all day, so she instantly left their side and went to her shared lab table with Jessica, setting her backpack down.

"Mr. Molina," Mike called, getting the teacher's attention.

"Hey, Mike," he said before noticing the new student. "Oh yes, Ms Swan. Hi. The pass?" Nova watched as Bella handed over the pass she had to get all their teachers to sign. "Thank you. You're in your class. Here's your stuff, okay. And uh, I got a seat for you right here, so come on, the last one. Stroll along to catch up. Your cousin has adequate grades, so she can help you if need be."

Bella was led to the seat next to Edward Cullen, and Nova finally realized that he was not okay. He was sitting on the very edge of his seat, clutching the table tightly with one hand while the other was covering his nose. And his practically black eyes were glaring holes into Bella's head as she sat next to him

"All right guys. Today, we're gonna be observing the behaviour of planaria, a.k.a. flatworms..."

Nova didn't really pay attention as Mr. Molina began explaining the lesson they'd be doing — Jessica could summarize. No, Nova just glared at Edward, who was so clearly making Bella uncomfortable. Nova had been trying all damn day to make sure her cousin had a nice experience knowing how bad her anxiety was, and here Edward was ruining it. She was tempted to get up and tell him to fuck off — or at least force him to swap seats with her.

It'd be doing Jessica a favor, anyway.

If Nova expected for Edward to calm down and stop staring at Bella like she was the goddamn antichrist, she was wrong. His silent but hostile behavior continued until the very second the bell rang. Once it sounded, he was up and actively fleeing from the classroom.

With an annoyed huff, Nova gathered her things and trailed after Bella, who was walking through the hallway with her head down.

"Let's go by our lockers then drop your slip off," Nova suggested, picking up on her mood.

"The, um, the Cullens?" Bella asked, only comfortable doing so since none of Nova's friends were around. "Edward? Is he always so..."

Nova bit her lip before deciding to be honest. "Hostile?" she asked, earning a nod from Bella, who was so grateful that Nova noticed. She might've convinced herself she was crazy if not. "No. Something must be wrong with him today because you didn't do anything to deserve all that glaring."

"It was so intense," she muttered as they reached their lockers. Only a few were between theirs. "It was like he wanted to kill me or something."

"I'm sure he didn't want that," she said, shooting her a sympathetic smile while putting her books away. Then she grabbed her duffle bag which also had her clothes for ballet rehearsal. "But if it persists, I'll talk to him."

Bella raised an eyebrow while closing her locker. "Have you ever spoken to him?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," she said, holding her chin up high. "He was a total, cocky ass when he turned Jess down last year. He didn't have to like her, but he could've been kinder. So, I told him that he needed to work on not being a jerk. Seems he didn't take my advice."

"So, your only interactions with that family are calling one a jerk and bumping into one a year later in the hallway?" Bella asked, thinking it was crazy given how small the town was. How was the Cullen family so reclusive? "Impressive record with them."

"I mean, I've complimented Rosalie a few times. She doesn't say anything to me, but she smiles and nods, which might as well be a warm embrace from her," she shrugged while they headed to the office. "She's intimidating as hell."

Then they turned the corner and went through the front door of the office, only to pause when they saw Edward talking to the receptionist, Ms. Cope. And he sounded quite frustrated.

"There must be something open. Physics? Biochem?"

He was trying to change science classes in the middle of the semester. Neither girl could believe it.

"No, every class is full," Ms. Cope said before noticing Bella over his shoulder. "Just a minute, dear." Instantly, Nova noticed how Edward's shoulders tensed up almost like he knew it was Bella. "I'm afraid you'll have to stay in Biology."

"All right. I'll just... just have to endure it," he huffed before storming out of the office, making sure to glare at Bella, who shrunk in on herself.

As he passed, Nova intentionally stepped to the side, knocking her shoulder harshly into his. And that had been a mistake. Edward may have been lanky-looking, but it hurt a hell of a lot as he crashed into her and kept going. She had to bite the inside of her cheek hard to keep from whimpering, not wanting to lose face as Edward disappeared down the hallway.

Rather than hand her slip over, Bella just dropped it and then fled from the office, going in the opposite direction as Edward. Nova sighed and picked it up, rushing it to Ms. Cope before running after her cousin.

Despite her clumsiness, Bella had a head start, and therefore her truck was already pulling out of the parking lot by the time Nova reached her. It left the girl alone and with a pout on her face, cursing Edward Cullen in her mind.

Her eyes skimmed the parking lot before landing on a shiny red convertible. Next to it was a silver Jeep, and all the Cullens except for Edward were standing around it.

Nova couldn't help it as anger coursed through her, her more protective side winning out. So, she stormed toward the car, and the first to look up and notice her was Alice Cullen, who seemed to quietly say something as Nova saw her mouth move. Then the other three looked up as well, seeing Nova come toward them with a furious expression, not caring that all her friends were watching from by Tyler's van.

"Hi, Nova—"

Nova cut Alice's chipper greeting off, ignoring the fact that the two had never spoken and yet she knew her name just like Emmett had.

"Is your brother always such a dick?" she couldn't help but ask.

She almost didn't catch it, but Rosalie smirked before her expression returned to a stony one. Alice kept an easy smile on her face, and Jasper continued to look like he was in agony just standing there. It was Emmett that answered after letting out a booming laugh.

"In my experience, yeah," he replied. Then Emmett had to play dumb like he didn't know Edward came across his mate who also happened to be his blood singer, unfortunately — Alice hadn't seen that in her visions. "What'd he do?"

"Just - just tell him to stay away from Bella," she huffed, not going into it. "And he needs to find a way to transfer out of Bio or change lab partners or start acting normal. Get your dad to rich people that shit or something. I'm serious, or I'll make him regret being adopted into a family that came to this town."

Then, Nova spun perfectly on her heel and stalked toward her car on the other side of the parking lot, leaving the four Cullens a little stunned by her attitude.

"The nerve she has," Rosalie muttered. "She's right about Edward though. We need to talk to Carlisle."

"Yeah, yeah, hold up though," Emmett mumbled before slamming his backpack against Jasper's chest, who narrowed his eyes at him. Then Emmett took across the parking lot, going after Nova. "Hey, Nova! Wait up!"

All eyes left in the parking lot were on the two as they stopped half way to Nova's car, who was waiting for Emmett to jog to her. The longer she looked at him, the more her anger subsided, and soon, those familiar butterflies from that morning were back in her stomach as she looked up at his tall, imposing frame that towered over her once he reached her.

"Look, I'm sorry if I was rude, but—"

"Oh, no," he said, shaking his head. "Whatever Edward did, I'm sure he deserved it. You don't seem the type to just throw out threats like that."

"I'm not," she said softly. "But I'm really worried about Bella fitting in here. I don't need your brother making it harder for her."

"I'll talk to him," he offered. "But, um, I saw Bella speed off. Was she your ride? I could take you home?"

Oh, Nova wanted to die then and there. Well, not die, but she certainly wanted to skip ballet practice and abandon her precious car in the parking lot for the night just for the chance of Emmett Cullen driving her home.

But maybe that'd make her seem desperate.

"That's sweet," she said, smiling at him. "But I have my own car. And I have to get to Port Angeles."

"Yeah, what's over there?"

"My ballet studio. I have rehearsal for an upcoming recital," she explained.

Emmett raised an impressed eyebrow. "You're a dancer? On top of cheerleading? That's really impressive," he told her.

Nova couldn't help but blush as she realized he knew she was on the cheerleading squad — the Cullens never went to any sporting events, so she didn't expect him to know. Emmett seemed to notice her a little more than she initially thought, which had her wanting to kick her feet.

"Thanks," she murmured shyly. "I - I should go. I've got a long drive."

"Of course. But I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked, looking hopeful. "Maybe you could check my Pre-Cal homework beforehand? Mrs. Blake is always going on about you having the best grade in class."

"Oh, are you struggling with the material?" she asked with a frown. She was fairly certain all the Cullens were straight A students.

"No," he admitted sheepishly. "Just trying to think of a reason to meet you in the parking lot before class."

Nova couldn't help the little surprised smile on her face. "Well, too bad. I have cheerleading practice in the morning. But I bet Rosalie can check that homework of yours."

"Damn, I hope not. She's a really mean tutor," he said in a joking tone. "Um, I guess I'll let you go. Have a good rehearsal."

"Bye, Emmett," she said, waving a bit as she backed toward her car.

The smile on his face was so impossibly handsome. "Bye, Nova."

☽︎

Nova and Bella had a plan. A plan to confront Edward the next day at school. Nova even left cheerleading practice five minutes early for it, only for Edward to dare not to show up to school.

So, Nova had a lot of pent up, negative energy inside of her as she got her books out of her locker, a pout on her face. But when she shut the locker door with her shoulder since her hands were full of books, her frown faded to a look of surprise.

Because Emmett was standing against the lockers, clearly there for her.

"How was practice?" he asked her. Then Emmett held out his arms, like he was silently asking for her books.

Nova eyed him skeptically for a moment before handing them over, making him smile. "Good. We're ready for Mike's basketball game on Friday."

"I didn't know Mike was on the team," he said, making casual conversation as they walked toward her government class, where Bella was already waiting. Truthfully, Emmett didn't know anything about any of Nova's friends except their names.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Captain. Of the football team too. So it's great to always be cheering on my best friend. Honestly, I'm surprised you're not on any of the teams."

"Ah, I'm not really a team sports guy," he said casually. "Love to watch them though. All sports, honestly."

"Me too. Baseball is my favorite, though that's probably my uncle's taste rubbing off on me," she told him. Then she eyed him from the side, which he noticed.

"What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"This is weird," she admitted with a sheepish smile.

He let out a huff of a laugh. "What is?"

"This," she said while taking her books back from him as they reached the classroom. "But thank you, Emmett. I'll see you in class."

He remained in the doorway until Nova was seated in her back-of-the-room desk. And once he was gone, Jessica, who'd been eying his every move, pounced on Nova, grabbing her arm.

"Did Emmett Cullen just walk you to class?" she asked intensely as Angela and Bella just listened in.

Nova, who'd was still in a bit of a daze, let out a hum. "I think so."

"Omigod," Jessica said quickly before taking a deep breath. "It's happening. It's actually happening. He likes you."

At that, Nova rolled her eyes. "No way. He's probably just looking for friends outside of his siblings," she said, not really believing that someone like Emmett would decide after more than a year of being here that he wanted Nova of all people. "Don't read too much into it."

"Please," Angela chimed in with a smile. "Jess practically has a degree in reading too much into things."

Bella smirked over at her cousin. "Jess, you're not reading too much into it. You're just doing some literary analysis for your degree."

Jessica's eyes brightened as Bella contributed to boy-talk. "Exactly — analysis. Thank you, Bella."

☽︎

DEAR DIARY,

Not to be dramatic, but Emmett Cullen has walked me to my first period class the last three days in a row — Jessica is certain he'll be waiting at my locker Friday morning too. I'm not really sure why he's been carrying my books, but I won't get my hopes up. Maybe he's just being friendly since Edward was so rude to Bella.

Edward, who still isn't back in school. I asked Emmett, and he said Edward has had a bad migraine that's lasted days. It supposedly started in Biology, which was why he was so weird toward Bella. Well, if it's true, I think he deserves it. And he'd better have a big apology for her when he gets back. If not, I'm fully prepared to carry out my threat.

I'm in the living room with Uncle Charlie, and he's watching the weather. I thought the cold weather was mostly done for, but it's supposed to be really icy tomorrow — good luck to Bella and her uncoordinated feet. I just know she's gonna complain as soon as she wakes up.

I know she hates it here still, especially the weather. But I talked to her about it the other night. She wants her mother to be happy with her new boyfriend, who travels for baseball or something. That's very admirable, but sort of irresponsible of her mother to let her be so willingly unhappy. Bella is seventeen. She needs to be worrying about her own happiness, not her mother's and some guy named Phil.

But whatever. It's not my business, and she's here. At the very least, I think she's getting along with everyone well enough. And she's cooking for me and Charlie so that we don't have to eat at the diner just about every night — god knows I can't cook.

Speaking of, I can hear the oven beeping. She's making lasagna, and it smells delicious.

Bye for now. I'll keep you updated on the Cullen situations.

♡︎ Nova

☽︎

"Bundle up, Bells," Nova said as she shoved a piece of toast with peanut butter in her mouth. Bella was still half asleep, sitting over a bowl of cereal. But Nova had to leave early for cheer practice. "The rain from last night froze this morning."

"Great," Bella sighed, a miserable look on her face.

Nova just smiled while grabbing her sweatshirt with the school's mascot printed on it. "You'll survive one day of ice, I fear. I'll see you in class."

"Yeah," she mumbled before forcing a smile. "Have a good practice. I don't know where you get all that coordination from. Not Charlie's side of the family."

"Guess we'll never know," Nova shrugged while finishing her breakfast, both knowing that she was clueless when it came to her birth parents. All she'd ever known was Charlie as a father, and he was all she needed. "Bye. Drive safe."

After Bella mumbled out a sleepy goodbye, Nova rushed out of the house, stepping carefully on the icy front porch. Bella's truck was gone and Charlie's cruiser was there, so Nova correctly suspected he'd taken the truck to get chains put on the tires last minute, which Bella would appreciate.

Cheerleading practice went as it normally did, the squad perfecting the new dance routine they'd break out during halftime at the basketball game that night. Then Nova changed back into her warm clothes and headed to the locker to grab her books.

And as she'd predicted, Emmett Cullen's large and imposing form was leaning against the lockers, him looking like some kind of male model as he waited for her. Nova couldn't help how her heart fluttered at seeing him there again for the fourth day in a row.

"Morning, Emmett," she greeted softly while putting in her combination.

"Good morning, Nov," he said with a smile. "Did you have a good night?"

"A great one," she beamed. "I got down this move I've been struggling with in my pointe class. Then Bella made us dinner — she should be a chef. What about you?"

"It was fine," he shrugged as he took her books from her one at a time as she unloaded them from her locker. The action made her smile at the ground. "Played some video games with Jasper before Esme made us do our homework."

"Hmm, Jasper doesn't seem the type to put off homework," she said even though she didn't know the boy at all. Perhaps she was just reading too much into his quiet, tortured presenting personality.

"Well, I'm known as a bit of a bad influence," he said with a grin.

"Yeah, right," she laughed as they started walking toward her class. "Charlie goes on all the time about how well-behaved all of you and your siblings are. You had the station real worried you'd be nightmares when you moved here."

"Nice to know I have his approval. I plan to need that one day," Emmett said, smirking a little bit. He watched how her cheeks heated up, glad to know that the subtle flirting was working.

Rather than ask why he'd need Charlie's approval and risk being disappointed, Nova just moved on. "Thank you for carrying my books this last week," she told him. "It's sweet of you."

"So, I'm sweet and not weird now?" he asked hopefully, thinking it was progress.

She pretended to think it over, the corners of her lips turning up. "Weird in a sweet way. You're still a Cullen," she reminded him. "Everyone thinks this is weird."

"Not Jessica," he pointed out. "She said it was romantic in your English class."

Nova just raised an eyebrow. "How'd you know about that?" she asked curiously, since Emmett wasn't in that class for eleventh graders.

"Well, Alice overheard her yesterday," Emmett lied easily — he'd been the one that overheard. "She's a gossip."

"She looks like one," Nova nodded.

"So, do you think the same?" Emmett asked hopefully as they stopped outside the classroom. "That it's romantic?"

Nova smirked and grabbed her books from him, letting her fingers brush the outside of his hands as she took them. "In a weird way," she said before backing into the room, leaving him with a smile on his handsome face.

☽︎

Nova felt like a third wheel as she trailed behind Eric and Bella, heading toward Biology. It wasn't awkward yet, but Nova knew Eric, and so she knew what his nervous rambling about Prom was leading to.

He was going to ask Bella to go with him.

"— Prom Committee is a chick thing, but I gotta cover it for the paper anyway, and they need a guy to help choose the music... so I need your playlist," he went on before taking in a deep breath to prepare himself. "Hey, listen, um, I was wondering, did you have a - a date—"

It was like Mike could sense it as well as he overheard Eric, just a few steps behind Nova. So, he sped up and squeezed his way between Bella and Eric while taking off his rain-soaked ball cap.

"Wassup Arizona? How you likin the rain girl?" Mike asked while shaking the cap over Bella's head, who cringed as the drops hit her.

"Yeah, Mike, you're real cute, man," Eric muttered in annoyance.

"The cutest," Nova said with a grin, bumping her shoulder into Mike, who was quite smug that he'd gotten in the way of Eric's plan. "Come on, Newton. Time for lab."

As Mike and Eric went to their seats, Nova glanced at Bella, only to see that the girl had come to a full stop. Nova followed her line of sight and saw why she now looked like she'd seen a ghost.

Edward was back in class and sitting silently at his seat, eyes fixed on the tabletop.

So, Nova leaned in close to Bella and whispered so no one would overhear. "I can stab him in the face — make that migraine seem like a little bump on the head."

Bella cut her eyes to an amused Nova and just sighed, the corners of her lips turning up. Though she dreaded sitting down next to the boy, knowing she had Nova watching over her brought Bella some comfort.

Rather than reply, Bella just went to her seat while Nova went to her own. And as she sat, Nova stared holes into the side of Edward's head, who was slowly facing Bella.

Be nice.

Be nice.

Be fucking nice.

Maybe her subliminal messaging worked, because Edward actually greeted Bella without glaring at her. "Hello. I'm sorry I didn't get the chance to introduce myself last week. I'm Edward Cullen. You're Bella."

Bella, now that Edward was being civil, looked at him the same way that everyone looked at him — in awe. She was shocked that he was having a complete attitude adjustment.

"Um...yes," Bella mumbled with a nod.

Before Nova could listen in more, Mr. Molina loudly got all their attention, ready to start the lab for the day. "Onion root tip cells! That's what's on your slides right now, okay? So, separate and label them into the phases of mitosis. And the first partners to get it right are gonna win — the Golden Onion."

Nova cheered as Mr. Molina grabbed an onion that was spray painted golden. She wanted it more than anything but knew Biology wasn't her best subject despite Jessica, her partner, being top of the class — Nova's only B was in Biology. It'd probably go to Alice and Jasper or, admittedly, Edward and Bella. Bella told Nova after the first day that she'd been in an advanced Biology class at Arizona and had done most of this already.

They got through the lab together but it took a while because the two best friends stopped to gossip every now and then. And when Jessica was taking her turn with the microscope, Nova would watch Edward and Bella carefully. The two seemed to be talking civilly, but Nova had no clue what about.

In the end, Nova was right, and Bella won the Golden Onion. It put a pout on Nova's face, who joined Bella's side as the bell rang. And much to her suspense, Edward remained with them.

"Nova," Edward greeted her with a cordial nod.

Nova narrowed her eyes at the boy, but then Bella stomped on her foot, so she plastered a smile on her face. "Hi, Edward. Glad you're feeling better from your headache."

"Thank you," he said stiffly. Then he nodded toward the door where everyone was filing out, ready to go for the day. "After you two."

If walking down the hallway with Emmett was weird, walking with Edward was astronomically uncomfortable for Nova, but Bella seemed entranced with him as he kept asking her questions about her life, continuing their conversation from class.

"Why didn't you move with your mother and Phil?"

"Well, Phil's a minor league baseball player, and uh, he travels a lot, and my mom s - stayed home with me, but I knew it made her unhappy, so I figured I'd... stay with my dad for a while," she replied with a frown.

Nova held back an eye roll as they reached their lockers. She barely remembered Renée but didn't think very highly of her for not considering Bella's happiness. And Edward seemed to notice the same thing.

"And now you're unhappy," he noted.

Bella hesitated before lying. "...No."

Nova just shot her cousin a sympathetic look while grabbing her duffle bag from her locker.

"I'm sorry," Edward said with a frown. "I'm just - I'm just trying to figure you out. You're very difficult for me to read."

Rather than respond to that, Bella just tilted her head and studied his handsome features. "Hey, did you get contacts?"

"No," he said, clearly confused.

"Your eyes were... black the last time I saw you. And now they're like... golden brown."

Edward, on instinct, closed his eyes for a moment. "Uh, yeah, I know. It's the uh, it's the fluorescents, um. Um..."

Nova and Bella watched as Edward suddenly walked away. The older of the two cousins just scoffed and shook her head while shutting her locker.

"I can see why the Cullens don't talk to anyone. They're worse at talking than you are," Nova told Bella. "Proud of you for not, like, passing out because a hot guy was talking to you."

Bella just rolled her eyes as they walked toward the exit. "I thought about it," she joked, making Nova laugh. "Does this mean Jessica is gonna do that overbearing thing she does with you about Emmett?"

"Well, that depends," she shrugged.

"On what?" Bella asked as they stepped outside, careful on the icy patches that were still working on melting.

"Do you have a crush on Edward like I have one on Emmet?" Nova questioned.

Neither noticed Emmett, who'd been by his Jeep. His eyes went wide and his jaw dropped as Nova so openly admitted to having a crush on him. Jasper was unfortunately standing between him and Alice, both of whom began smacking his chest in excitement.

"What? N - no," Bella denied, shaking her head. "We've talked once. And he was horrible the first time we met."

"Good," Nova nodded. "Hold that hostility against him. A migraine was no excuse. Even if you get married, I'll hold this grudge on your behalf."

Rather than point out that she and Edward weren't getting married, Bella just let out a huff of a laugh — Nova and Jessica really were best friends.

"Do you have ballet today?" Bella questioned as they reached her truck. Nova's car was parked right next to hers, but the two stood by the bed of the truck to talk a moment longer.

"No, not on Fridays," Nova said with a smile. She didn't know how she'd survive if she was busy rehearsing every single Friday. Her social life would be nonexistent. And as she thought of a social life, she looked across the parking lot at Emmett, who was already watching her. He smiled when he caught her eye, which she matched.

"But you should come to Mike's basketball game," Nova kept talking, looking back at Bella. "I know it's not your thing, but Charlie loves to go and eat the concession stand food—"

Very suddenly, the sound of tires screeching sounded throughout the parking lot, so loud that Nova stopped talking. Her head swiveled as she tried to find the source, only to see Tyler's van swerving uncontrollably on the ice and heading right for Bella's truck. Heading for them.

Her eyes went wide as she grabbed ahold of Bella's wrist. "Oh, sh—"

Coming from seemingly nowhere, strong and cold arms wrapped around Nova, pulling her out of the way. As her savior hit the ground clumsily, Nova's head smacked the asphalt harshly. Her vision flashed white for a moment as pain shot through her before she opened her eyes once more, seeing just in time as Edward, who'd somehow gotten Bella out of the way, reached out and stopped Tyler's van with his palm, the metal denting from the force.

Nova took in a shaky breath and looked from Edward and Bella to the person that had their arms still around her. She couldn't hear the commotion of people screaming as she looked at Emmett through dazed eyes — her head was pounding from hitting it.

Emmett was saying something to her as he pulled her into a sitting position, but she couldn't hear at first. Finally, he pressed his freezing cold fingers to her temple, and it felt as relieving as an ice pack.

"Nova?" Emmett tried again, a worried expression on his face.

Already, people were crowding around the truck, and Edward had fled, not that Nova or Emmett noticed. They were so focused on each other.

"Emmett?" Nova questioned slowly. She shut her eyes tightly, trying to focus on anything but the pounding in her head. "Where'd you... where'd you come from?"

"I saw the van. I ran for you," he said, shaking his head. "Someone's calling an ambulance for you and Bella."

"Oh, god, Bella," she murmured while turning in Emmett's arms. Already, Mike and Angela were at Bella's side, who'd been abandoned by Edward. "Bella?"

Bella looked at her cousin and her eyes went wide when she saw the already red side of Nova's temple — no doubt, there'd be a bruise. "Nova, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said while moving to stand. Only to sway, and Emmett easily pulled her back down to a sitting position. She leaned weakly against his broad chest.

"She's not fine," Emmett huffed. "Stay down."

"Okay," Nova said weakly. Then she reached for Emmett's wrist, confusing him. Only for him to understand when she put his cold hand to the side of her forehead. "Let me borrow this for a minute."

Emmett smiled down at her, readjusting his hand, knowing it was as good as any ice pack that the approaching paramedics would give her. "It's yours for life, Nov."

[ I made a gif banner with three people! doing it with three is so hard so I consider this a win even if it's not my best work or coloring ]