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Chapter Text

The first day of school was wet and miserable for Bella, but it was what she'd expected. She had never liked Forks --- with its incessant rain and dismal small town vibe, it was a poor comparison to Phoenix, her home, where the sun shone so bright you could feel the warmth even after it had set. It she hadn't moved to Forks for the weather, or the people. She had moved to Forks for the roof over her head while Renee, her mother, traveled the country with her new husband.

Maybe she might enjoy the extra time with Charlie, her Dad, too.

Bella sat awkwardly in the cafeteria and fidgeted with her long-sleeved shirt. Even before she moved to Forks she'd preferred to keep her arms covered --- she had a weird soul mark, and she hated having to answer questions about it. It was longer than usual, for one, and written in an old fashioned, loopy cursive. It had taken her years as a kid to finally muddle her way through the words so she could understand what was written. She'd even learnt cursive herself, just so her handwriting could match her soulmate's. Bella had been a romantic kind of kid.

Next to her, Jessica Stanley reeled off a list of names and gossip. She was a friendly girl, very chatty, with thick curly hair. Bella hoped to stay friends with her, even if her own introverted nature might make that hard. Across the table, another girl, Angela, joined in with the conversation every now and then; she seemed just as shy as Bella, but kind. Bella appreciated it. As much as she hated being the new kid, she realised it could have been a lot worse.

Lauren --- an intimidating taller girl --- could have stayed sat with them. Thankfully, she had moved off pretty quickly. Apparently Lauren had detention, though Bella couldn't help but feel like she had something to do with Lauren's departure after the glare the other girl had sent her way.

Bella looked up as the door to the cafeteria opened. In walked five strangers --- all incredibly, devastatingly beautiful. From the small, pixie like girl at the front to the bronze haired boy behind, they looked like they belonged in an art gallery. Bella stared a little too long to be polite, her mouth hanging open.

"Who are they?" She interrupted Jessica's stream of gossip.

"Oh, them?" Jessica giggled, eyes alight. "They're the Cullens. Super rich, super hot, all adopted by Dr. and Mrs. Cullen. Don't waste your time on them, though. They think they're too good for anyone in this school."

Bella hummed. She was still staring at the Cullens, though she tried to make it at least a bit more subtle. She couldn't tell who was the most beautiful --- the bronze haired boy, maybe, or the golden haired girl? She settled on the latter after a minute.

The girl was tall, confident and drop dead gorgeous. She had luminous golden eyes and the kind of body that poets raved about; her hair fell in soft blonde ringlets down her back, and she was dressed in a striking red. She was intimidating, the sort of girl that looked like she'd slap you as soon as help you, and when Jessica told her the girl's name was Rosalie, it didn't surprise Bella. It felt exactly right.

***

Edward was the first Cullen Bella met in person. He was weird, and dorky, and he kind of hated her at first, but they quickly became friends. Once he got over whatever his problem with the smell of her strawberry shampoo was, Bella realised he could be pretty sweet.

When he saved her from those creeps in Port Angeles, she was grateful, if a bit weirded out that he'd followed her there. Their friendship was rocky at the start, but once Bella figured out he was a vampire, everything fell into place. It made sense, their relationship. Edward had suggested it first as a cover story, but eventually he started to hold her hand, privately, when no one was watching.

Bella didn't mind. It was nice. It made sense. It was what she was meant to want. She was very aware, though the first sentence Edward had said to her was "I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to introduce myself." It was not the sentence on her wrist.

Still, she played along. Edward's mark was pretty standard, an innocuous sentence that Edward swore she had said, at some point, said while passing him in the corridor. He did have vampire hearing, after all, and Bella couldn't remember. She didn't want to ruin the relationship, anyway, so she kept her wrist covered.

***

Rosalie was so gorgeous, it wasn't even fair. There had to be some cosmic force in charge of doling out good looks, and whatever it was had given far too much to Rosalie, Bella was certain. She had gym with Rosalie last period, and it drove her crazy every time she saw Rosalie running across the gym with her beautiful blonde hair swishing back and forth.

Once or twice, Angela had caught her staring and subtly poked her in the ribs, but it hadn't done much good. Bella was sure Rosalie had seen her anyway --- what else would explain the smirk on her perfect lips as she ran past, or the playful twitch of her eyebrow when she got out of the gym showers and caught Bella's eye? No, Rosalie was a vampire, and that meant perfect senses. That meant knowing when she was being looked at.

In all honesty, Bella didn't even know why she stared so much. Was it because Rosalie was the only Cullen apart from Edward that she had a lesson with? Was it just jealousy? She had never been the jealous type, and she usually didn't give two hoots about her looks, but with Rosalie it was different. Just looking at Rosalie made Bella feel weird.

She decided she would talk to Angela about it later. Angela always had a way of making things make sense, and she didn't pressure Bella to talk. It was something Bella admired about her -- the fact that she was okay with silence.

***

One morning, as Bella was washing her pride and joy, her one true love, her reason for existence (in other words, her truck), Edward hopped down from a nearby tree and landed on the bonnet.

"Hey, could you at least try to be normal?" Bella laughed. "I've got neighbours, you know."

Edward hopped down beside her and placed a baseball cap on her head. "I want you to meet my family today," he said with a grin.

"Your family?"

"Yes. There's a thunderstorm later so we're going to play baseball. I'd like for you to joined us."

Bella pretended to think about it for a moment. "I don't know..." she said. "Can I grab a Pop-tart before we leave?"

Edward sighed. "Yes. Though I don't know why you'd put that trash in your mouth."

"Hey, don't knock it blood-boy. You eat a deer every other week."

Bella sidled back into her house and slid a Pop-tart into the toaster. When it pinged up again, she took it out and led Edward back to the truck. The Pop-tart was too hot to eat, but that didn't stop her from taking a huge bite, much to Edward's horror.

"Ah bernn mah tomh," Bella said with a hiss. She felt all her taste buds shriveling up inside her mouth as Edwards looked on with wide eyes.

"What?"

"I burnt my tongue." Bella grimaced. "I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? Maybe you should put down the Pop-tart?"

Bella's grip on the still hot pastry tightened defensively. "I swear, Edward, if you try to take this away from me I will dump your ass so fast even your speedy vampire legs will be surprised."

Edwards chuckled. "Alright, love."

They pulled up to the Cullen residence just as Bella finished her snack. She still felt hungry, though -- it was her first meal of the day and it was nearly lunchtime. She was distracted pretty quickly, however by the house stood before her.

It was sleek and modern, with the front of the house made entirely of glass. It was larger than any house she'd been in --- it was a mansion, really --- and it stood against the rocky slope of the driveway like a castle against a mountain. The house was bold but not imposing, and it seemed to encourage the limited light available, so that all the rooms were visibly well lit, even from Bella's spot outside.

"Wow, the Cullens really do not play around with architecture," she said, her voice low and reverent.

"Esme, my mother, designed it, actually. She's a very gifted designer."

"You don't say. This is so cool -- your mom is really talented. I was not expecting your house to look like this."

"What were you expecting? A medieval castle?"

"Not medieval. Maybe baroque, though." Bella laughed.

Edward slid his arm around her and they stepped away from the car. "Your heart is beating like a mouse's," he murmured against her ear. Bella fought the urge to step away from his cloying breath. "Are you nervous."

"A bit, maybe. What if they don't like me?"

Edward laughed again. He seemed to find Bella's concerns very amusing, and she had to restrain herself from slapping him. "Of course you'd worry about that," he said dismissively.

Bella paused suddenly. "Edward, can they hear us?" She whispered.

He nodded.

"Oh, I wish the ground would swallow me up now," Bella groaned. "Is it to late to turn back?"

"Yes, it is. Come on, they're waiting for us."

***

As they stepped into the kitchen, all conversation ceased. It was a tasteful, pleasing room, with a granite counter and several islands in the middle. It was big and airy, with pictures on the non-glass walls and an abundance of cooking utensils scattered by the sink. Bella could see the boxes they came in sitting by the bin.

"Bella, it's so lovely to meet you," said a woman Bella had never met before. She was beautiful in a sweet, old fashioned way, with billows of caramel hair and big, wide eyes. Bella felt like she was talking to a Disney princess.

"This is Esme, my mother for all intents and purposes," Edward introduced them.

Esme wrapped Bella in a hug and squeezed her tightly. Bella could feel her take a long sniff of her hair, but she didn't comment on it. Instead, she hugged Esme back and enjoyed the warm feeling that grew in her chest as Esme welcomed her.

Behind Esme stood Rosalie, a salad bowl in hand, and Emmett, who waved a knife in greeting. Bella took in Rosalie's glare and stiff, unnatural stance --- how could she be so beautiful while still scaring the pants off Bella? Surely it wasn't allowed. Rosalie looked like an angel come down from Heaven to reek revenge on this sinful human.

Bella shifted nervously and fidgeted with the cuff of her shirt.

"We made you Italiano," Esme gestured to the pasta frying on the grill. Carlisle stood behind it, and he gave a little wave when Bella looked over. "I hope you're hungry."

"Very," Bella said, her mouth salivating. The smell of the mushrooms and tomato sauce had filled the room and made her even more hungry than before.

Edward gritted his teeth. "She already ate--"

There was a loud crack as the salad bowl in Rosalie's hands shattered and fell the floor. Bella jumped, eyes wide, as she watched the fallen lettuce and tomatoes cover the wood by Rosalie's feet. Rosalie glared at her, golden eyes now molten, like boiling lava.

"Just ignore Rosalie," Edward said with a scoff. "I do."

"Yeah, let's just keep pretending like this isn't dangerous for all of us," Rosalie spat, venom laced through the honey-rich sound of her voice.

Bella stilled.

"If something happens, there will be implications for the entire family!"

Rosalie stepped closer and Bella's heart rate doubled. She couldn't believe what she'd just heard. In front of her, the entire family watched. They'd noticed Bella's sudden stillness, and they could see the panicked look in her eye. Something wasn't right.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything?" Rosalie yelled. Her mouth turned up in a cruel smirk as she took in Bella's wide eyes and open mouth. Bella looked more like a mouse than a person in that moment. "Do you understand what I'm telling you?"

Bella didn't say anything. Instead, she lifted her arm up slowly, and pulled the edge of her sleeve down to reveal her wrist. No one said anything as they read Bella's soulmark.

Yeah, let's just keep pretending like this isn't dangerous for all of us.

Rosalie gasped. She held up her own wrist, where the words 'Who are they?' were scrawled in messy handwriting. It had seemed coincidental, but she now remembered them as the very first words Bella had spoken in the cafeteria.

Somehow, Rosalie got even paler.

Chapter Text

"This can't be right," Rosalie said, "I'm not... I can't..." She looked around at her family for answers, but they were all staring with the same gobsmacked expression. None of them could believe what just happened.

Rosalie turned and ran, her figure just a blur. Bella watched her go, eyebrows high against her forehead.

"Well, guess I'm a lesbian," she finally announced to the room. "Didn't know that before."

Edward stared at her. His mouth opened once or twice like a fish, but there wasn't anything he could really say.

"Does this mean we have to break up?" Bella asked.

"Yes!" Edward said, his voice verged on a shout.

"That's a shame."

Esme stepped forwards, concerned. "I understand this must be difficult to process, dear, but you just found your soulmate. Congratulations."

Bella looked at her almost as if she didn't quite understand. "I don't think it's right." She felt strangely light headed. This wasn't how it was mean to go; she was meant to fall into her soulmate's arms and kiss them and cry and feel relief. There was no relief in what Bella felt.

"I think she's going into shock," Esme murmured.

Bella just stood there.

"Maybe someone should go talk to Rose?"

Emmett waved a hand in the air. "I'll go." He was her best friend, after all. He blurred out of the room and Esme put a hand on Bella's shoulder.

"I think you need to sit down, dear." She led Bella to the couch and told Carlisle to get her a cup of hot chocolate.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. When Edward left the room, Bella didn't even blink. Eventually, Carlisle came to sit with the hot chocolate.

"This wasn't how it was meant to happen," Bella said as she took the warm mug in her hands. "I'm not... I'm not a lesbian. I really do like Edward."

"Do you love him?"

"I thought I did. Apparently not." She glanced at her wrist. "But it can't be right, can it? Rosalie hates me. She can't be my ---" Her voice broke before she could say the word.

Esme placed a reassuring arm on her shoulder and squeezed. "Rosalie can be a little cold, sometimes. She just need time to come around. You'll see."

Bella wasn't so sure. She had seen Rosalie's glare before she had left and she knew there was no love there. She wasn't convinced Rosalie could tolerate her, let alone love her. It had been too much, she realised, to hope for a nice, normal soulmate -- maybe she was just unloveable.

***

The next few weeks were hell. Edward barely spoke to her, Jessica kept asking why they broke up, and Bella was left surrounded by a cloud of misery. Rosalie returned to school after a few days, but she ignored Bella completely. Once, in PE, Bella caught Rosalie glaring at her. It only lasted a second, and yet it crushed Bella.

Nearly a month passed before anything changed. Bella was in the locker room, the last one to get changed back into her clothes, when she heard a noise behind her. She spun around and there was Rosalie, dressed in a short red skirt and black heels, looking ready to kill.

"When are you going to do it?" She growled. She stepped forwards and Bella backed away until her shoulders hit against the lockers.

"When am I going to do what?"

"Don't play games with me --- when are you going to tell all your little friends about our stupid soulmarks?"

Bella stared at her. Her brain couldn't quite compute with the fact that Rosalie had talked to her. "I'm---I'm not."

Rosalie raised a perfect eyebrow in disbelief. "Oh really?"

"Yes. I know you don't want this. I'm not going to tell anyone or risk your secret getting out, and I'm not going to force this whole thing when you so clearly don't want it." Bella looked away.

"What, because you want it so badly?" Rosalie said, her voice dripping sarcasm. She crossed her arms across her chest.

"I don't know, Rosalie, I don't know if I want it or if I'm supposed to want it or what! I thought I had a good thing going with Edward, but now he barely speaks to me because he doesn't want to upset you, and now I also have to figure out if I'm a lesbian or bi or whatever, and I never even considered that before."

Rosalie inhaled sharply.

"And it really sucks that you won't talk to me, because I really want to figure this out."

Bella didn't know it at the time, but that was the exact right thing to say.

"I'm not a lesbian."

"I figured," Bella said, face blank.

"Good. I'm glad that's settled." Rosalie swanned out the locker room, leaving Bella with only the smell of vanilla and roses and a sinking feeling in her stomach.

***

Over the next few months, they developed a good routine. At school, they would ignore each other. At the Cullen's house --- which Bella began to visit frequently, after Alice had befriended her and Edward had recovered from his broken heart --- they would also ignore each other. Sometimes Rosalie would ask whoever was with Bella a question that was aimed at her and Bella would answer it, but that was the closest they came to speaking directly.

What was strange, however, was how often Rosalie was in the same room as Bella. When she and Emmett played video games, Rosalie was sat on the couch. When Edward tried --- and failed --- to teach Bella the piano, Rosalie would be sat just outside, on the patio. Even when Alice tried to get Bella to let her do her makeup in Alice's room, Rosalie was sat in her own room across the corridor, door wide open.

Bella put it down to curiosity. She was curious herself, after all. They were meant to be soulmates, and Rosalie wanted to know just how much she was entitled to hate Bella for it. It seemed to be a lot, because Rosalie's attitude towards her was just as cold as on the first day they met.

One day, though, Bella's truck broke down before she left the Cullen's house. All of the Cullens were out except for Alice and Rosalie, and Alice said she desperately needed to go hunt after being around Bella for hours that day. Rosalie would have to drive Bella back.

"It's okay, I can walk," Bella said when Alice told her.

"Bella, it's nearly two hours from here to your house. It'll be dark by the time you get back, and we don't want you to get mauled by a grizzly bear." Alice tutted. Her eyes were a dark onyx black, but Bella still suspected she'd planned this.

"But---"

"Just suck it up and let her drive you. She doesn't bite, you know."

Bella raised her eyebrow but didn't argue. There weren't any other options, and Alice could be pretty scary when she wanted to. Besides, it might give Bella that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to actually talk to Rosalie.

Bella threw herself back against Alice's bed and groaned.

"Well, aren't you the picture of gratitude and grace?" Rosalie said from the doorway, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Bella winced at her nonchalance.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it like that, I just---"

Rosalie didn't look up from her nails, which she was examining with an air of indifference. They were painted a perfect red, naturally. "Whatever," said Rosalie, "just get in the car already so I can get this over with."

Bella nodded and said a quick goodbye to Alice---who was, of course, smirking---and sped down the stairs. She didn't see Rosalie move, but by the time Bella was in the garage, Rosalie was already in the driver's seat of a red Lamborghini. Bella slid into the passenger seat.

The engine revved and Rosalie backed out of the driveway. Bella watched as she gracefully spun the steering wheel, her shoulders tense despite the low stakes situation.

"So..." started Bella

"No."

"What?"

Rosalie glanced over at Bella, her expression mocking. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you lack basic listening comprehension---I said no."

Bella scowled. "To what? To a conversation?"

"I'm glad you understand."

Silence reigned supreme for a long, heavy minute. Bella squirmed in her seat. Her sleeve slipped down to reveal the cruel, traitorous soulmark that had caused the situation; she hurried to cover it up.

"Are you ever gonna speak to me?" Bella asked. It was quiet, almost a whisper, but she knew Rosalie could hear it.

For just a second, Rosalie's eyes softened. Before Bella could be sure it was real, Rosalie's expression shuttered again.

"I've spoken to you three times now. That is more than enough."

Bella sighed. "Not like that, I mean properly! About the soulmarks." Bella held up her wrist so Rosalie could see the neat cursive.

"Why would I ever want to talk about that with you, " Rosalie hissed. "It doesn't matter. It means nothing."

Bella opened her mouth to speak again, but Rosalie cut her off with a glare. Bella wilted back into her seat and the rest of the car ride was in silence. When they finally pulled up to the Swan house, she braved a goodbye.

"Go away, Bella," said Rosalie.

"Sure. Have a good night."

The door clicked shut behind Bella before the car pulled away. It was a small victory, at least.

Chapter Text

The office was empty, for once. Esme worked in at a big architectural firm in Port Angeles, and her office was right next to the big, open plan office space where the less tenured employees worked. Rosalie dithered outside the door, uneasy. It was the lunch hour on a Sunday, so there was no one there beside her and Esme, on the other side of the wall.

Rosalie could pick up the quiet shuffle of papers and then a sigh. "Come in, Rosalie," Esme called. There was no need for her to speak loudly.

Rosalie opened the door and stepped into the bright, clean office.

"How can I help you?" Esme gestured to the chair opposite her and Rosalie sat down.

"I don't know."

Esme raised her eyebrow.

"I don't... I don't understand what I'm meant to do," Rosalie said. The skin on her forehead creased and her mouth, usually still and impassive, was turned down. "She confuses me."

"She?"

Rosalie scowled. Esme knew exactly who she was talking about. "Bella."

"Ah, I see." Esme tapped her pencil against the sheet of paper on her desk. "What about her confuses you?"

"She doesn't make sense --- I'm rude to her all the time and she doesn't get angry, all she does is take it. She hasn't tried to tell any of her little friends about the soulmarks, even though it would make her life easier, and she keeps trying to talk to me. Doesn't she have a spine?"

"I've heard her talk to Edward," Esme laughed, "she definitely has a spine. It's possible, you know, that she's trying to be nice."

Rosalie snorted. "Nice? That's what you call it? Nice?" She threw herself back into the seat.

"She knows you're upset."

Rosalie ground her teeth together. "I'm not upset."

"Mhmm."

They lapsed into silence. Through the tall glass window, Rosalie could see the cars humming their way through the city below. The people were so small, so unreal in their little metal boxes; they were like the beetles that scurried up the bark of the baobab tree Rosalie had seen the first time she visited Africa. That was a lifetime ago, and she hadn't been back since, but the image stuck in her mind. The stout, powerful trunk, the messy root-like branches, the way life seeped into its every inch. After the rainy season, when the leaves were shed and the days hot and dry, the branches had grown heavy with long, sweet smelling fruit. It was a testament to the trees tenacity, its will to survive and bring life.

The beetles, which marched uniformly up and down the tall trunk, became food for the birds that nested up above. The fruit was eaten by monkeys and the honey was scraped from inside by humans. It was beautiful, and it was a world away from the reality Rose found herself in. The cars, more uniform than even the beetles, were drab and headed towards an unhappy job or tired home-life, and none of them cared for their watcher from above.

Rosalie glanced back at Esme, who was focused on the graph paper, and sighed. She'd gone to Esme for help because she was the most kind and the most impartial; Carlisle, like Rosalie, was too clinical, Emmett and Alice didn't understand the problem, and Jasper kept telling her things she didn't want to hear. Rosalie had taken to avoiding him almost as much as she did Edward. At least with Edward it was mutual.

"I don't want to have a human soulmate," said Rosalie. To anyone else her displeasure was terrifying, but to Esme she must have sounded like a petulant child.

"So don't act on it," Esme said.

Rosalie scowled.

"You don't have to have a relationship with her, you don't even have to talk to her, sweetheart. Not if you don't want to."

"What do you mean?"

Esme smiled. "Soulmates aren't binding. They're not a promise or a contract or a conviction. They're just the person you fit the best with. If you want to wait, to find someone else, then it wouldn't be any different than when you dated Emmett."

"I could just... choose not to?" Rosalie said slowly.

"Yes," Esme nodded, "I know you hear about the pain of it in movies and books, but that's hyperbolic at best. That kind of pain only comes years down the line, if you can't make it work after you fall in love. In the end, it's just like any other relationship, just more... certain, I suppose."

Rosalie bit her lip. What Esme had said changed things, it gave her options, it gave her freewill. Nothing was more important to her.

"That makes it easier," she said after a moment.

Esme raised her eyebrow for the second time. "I don't see why. Ignoring her is self sabotage, Rose. It's all very well if there's someone you like better, or some big reason you can't be together, but there isn't." Esme paused. The clock on the other side of the room ticked on, each move of the hands painfully slow. "If you don't at least try, Rose, you have to ask yourself why."

Rose stared at her. "I... I don't know," she said after a moment. There was no other answer to give.

Esme smiled --- the same warm, understanding, accepting smile she'd worn all afternoon. "You deserve happiness, dear," she said, "I promise. You deserve to be made happy."

Chapter Text

"Look, I know she's your sister and everything, but surely I get best friend privileges? It's, like, part of the deal." Bella pouted.

"Nuh uh," said Alice, "not when it comes to Rose. She's too scary."

"You can say that again."

Bella threw herself across the car seat so that her head rested in Alice's lap. They were parked in front of the school, maybe ten minutes before the bell rang, and Bella was having yet another Rosalie-related freak out. A stray beam of sunlight filtered through the tree above them and reflected lightly off Alice. It was soft enough to be unnoticeable, easily explained by body glitter or a trick of the light, but Bella knew what to look for, and she knew that what she was looking at was beautiful.

Bella had spent the two days since her and Rosalie's last conversation in a state of anxiety induced disaster. In Phoenix, she'd always been the calm one --- a breath of fresh air in comparison to her flighty, harebrained mother --- and she hadn't been sociable enough to get into any real drama. Hell, she'd never even dated anyone before Edward. So, when it came time to talk to her brand-spanking new soulmate, she was utterly unprepared.

"Has she spoken to you, then?" Bella asked, "she seemed kinda... ruffled, I guess, when she drove me home."

Alice snorted. "Rose? Ruffled? I almost don't believe you."

"I swear on my life!"

Alice looked down at Bella with a kind of far away fondness --- the kind she'd mostly left behind in the early days of their friendship. It was a strange look, one that reminded Bella very abruptly of her ability to see the future, that while Alice loved her now, it was mostly built on the love she had for Bella's future self. With each week that passed, those looks got more and more rare. Bella figured Alice was starting to like her independently of her potential, and the thought of that, at least, made her happy.

"I'll hold you to it," Alice said.

"I'm sure you will."

Alice sighed, and her voice lost all levity. "Are you okay, though, Bella? Really. You laugh and joke around with us, but sometimes I just can't read you."

"Yeah, I'm fine." Bella shrugged as best she could from her spot in Alice's lap. "Usual teenager stuff, I guess. I'm not the most... socially adept person, in case you haven't noticed, and I just don't know how to deal with Rosalie."

"None of us do." Alice laced her fingers through Bella's hair and lifted the mess of it away from her face.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"What happens in the future?"

Alice rolled her head back with a grin. "Well, next Saturday you let me give you a makeover, and the Saturday after that we go to the shops in Seattle, and then the Saturday after that---"

"Okay, enough! I hope you know I'm never going to do any of that stuff. I meant what happens between me and Rosalie? All this drama isn't good for my fragile human heart."

Bella felt Alice's legs shift as she sighed. The hand that had been stroking Bella's hair dropped and moved to the side of her face.

"Sorry, Bells. Sister code." Alice looked down at Bella, and there was that look again. "It's all very undecided anyway. I hate it when it's like that --- could go any which way, and I won't be prepared."

Bella's mouth scrunched up in an angry frown. "You know, it's really not helpful when you all gang up on me like this."

"We're not ganging up on you."

"Except you are, though. You refuse to tell me anything, and then you put me in awkward situations with her." Bella huffed. "Jasper keeps messing with my emotions, you won't tell me what your future vision says, and don't think I don't notice when you're talking really fast so I can't hear. If that's not ganging up on me, I don't know what is!"

Alice carded her hand gently through Bella's hair, and Bella had to work not to feel like the human pet.

"And do you know what the worst bit is? I can't even talk to any of my human friends about it. If I can't talk to them, and I can't talk to you, then what am I supposed to do?"

"I don't... I don't know. I'm sorry, Bells." Alice's eyes flitted away. "I wish I could give you a nice solution, but sometimes doing the right thing isn't nice for everyone."

"I don't think 'right' is how I'd describe this dynamic."

Alice laughed, but the sound was humourless. "Maybe not. Time gives you more perspective on these things, though."

"Whatever." Bella sat up. It was nearly time for first period, so she grabbed her bag from the space by her feet and flung open the door. "I think I just need to forget about Rosalie. That feels like the healthy thing to do."

"What do you mean?" Alice frowned. This wasn't how she saw the conversation going, and it unnerved her.

"Exactly what I said. I'm going to move on; no more Rosalie-related freak outs for me."

She marched out of the car and across the parking lot, her face fixed with a look of steadfast irritation. Privately, Bella was resolved to more than just 'forgetting' about Rosalie. She needed some time away from the Cullens, away from unfair vampire power dynamics. Perhaps she'd go to the movies with Angela and Jess, or down to the reservation to visit her friend Jake. She hadn't seen him in a while, and, honestly, the further she could get away from her own failure at having a soulmate, the better.

***

From the other end of the parking lot, Rosalie looked on in interest as Alice ran to catch up to Bella. She'd caught the tail end of their conversation --- something she wasn't proud of, but a certain amount of eavesdropping was unavoidable for a vampire --- and it left her confused. Had her family really been that obvious with their schemes?

After decades of living with Alice and Jasper, she was used to the consequences of their gifts. Rosalie frowned, her mind turning over every interaction she'd seen Bella have with her family. She'd never considered it before, but it was obvious --- to an outsider, those powers were intrusive. No wonder Bella was upset.

It didn't matter, though; at least, that's what she told herself. So what if one human girl had a bad experience when it came to vampires? Wasn't that kind of the point? Really, Bella was getting off lucky; most humans who get close to vampires would have been dead by then.

Still, Rosalie resolved to have a conversation with Jasper. Alice couldn't necessarily control her powers, but Jasper was another matter. Rosalie was all about free will, even in the case of Bella Swan.

Beside her, Edward dithered. They were lent against the back of his Volvo in an effort to look like normal teenagers, bad posture and all, though they weren't doing a good job of it. Rosalie, for one, was stony faced and stiff, while Edward just looked like he was in pain. To be fair, he might have done a good job of blending in with the emos if his fringe was just a bit longer.

"Just spit it out," said Rosalie. She could tell he was just bursting to say something.

"Are you going to speak to her?"

"Who?"

Edward sighed dramatically. "Bella, obviously. Your thoughts are practically consumed by her."

"Get out of my head."

"But are you going to talk to her?"

"Not at the moment. I don't see the point."

The bell rang, but they didn't move. "There's lots of reasons to talk to her," said Edward. There was a faint swell of pain in his tone, one that spoke of all the time he'd spent talking to Bella. Rosalie wondered idly if he still loved her, and decided he probably did.

"Like what?"

"It would be kind." Edward pushed himself off the Volvo and walked away, probably eager for his first period class with Bella and Alice.

Rosalie stayed still, but her face moved an inch. Not many people thought she was motivated by kindness, but Edward... well, for all she complained about his abilities, Edward knew her on a level that was hard to match. Mind reading didn't lead to much depth of knowledge, but it could be truthful. Maybe he was right.

Rosalie pulled out her compact mirror and adjusted a few strands of her flawless hair. Maybe it was kinder to bow to Bella's wishes and have that awful conversation. Maybe a thing didn't have to be useful to have value in someone else's life. Rosalie frowned again. Maybe she should leave the philosophizing to Edward.