Thank you for all the reviews! They're greatly appreciated and inspires me to update faster! Special thanks to dvrondran, for the awesome review that made me happy! Also, if you don't have an account, I still love anonymous comments!

disclaimer. All recognizable characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. All characters are human in this story.

Recap: His eyes flickered opened and I realized he was staring at me with an intense glare. I looked up and couldn't shy my eyes away from him. My heartbeat started ringing in my ears. My mind was telling me to break away from his gaze.

The song ended and his wild fire eyes dimmed, as I stood there alone wondering what I had done wrong.

Chapter Three – A Round of Drinks

Alice lightly tugged on my hand, snapping me out of the trance his emerald eyes put me in.

"Hey Bella the museum is closing soon," she said. "Come on, we're all meeting at Jasper's apartment for some drinks and to celebrate!"

I groaned. There would almost certainly be people there who I would have to force myself to talk to for the sake of conversing. I really found these parties pointless because in the end, no one really cared what you had to say.

All I really cared about at the moment was the guy that had been playing the piano. When I glanced back to the stage, he was gone ...maybe he would be at the party? Pathetic, Bella, stop it! He probably wouldn't talk to me even if he were there.

--

We arrived at Jasper's apartment a little while later and I admired its simple and sleek furnishings. It wasn't your typical bachelor pad with playboy posters on the wall or a place to have beer and pizza for dinner every night. That was definitely more of Emmett's style.

I looked around and noticed that there were people from the museum and some students from our school who couldn't make it to the show earlier. I searched for that pair of beautiful green eyes among all the others in the room. I didn't want to look for him, but I couldn't help it.

I still didn't understand why he was glaring at me. Maybe the paranoid side of me had taken over and he didn't even notice me. So many questions raced through my brain and it was driving me to the edge. All I wanted was reassurance that I didn't cause him those harsh emotions.

I walked towards the bar area in the kitchen to grab a drink. I needed to calm my nerves.

"Hey, Bella!" Emmett's booming voice alarmed me. He gave me a big bear hug until I couldn't breathe. "Let's get drunk!"

I laughed lightly. It felt so easy being around him sometimes. "No thanks, Em. I just want a little drink."

Jasper and Alice joined in the conversation.

"Haha, Bella's a lightweight! Wine coolers make her drunk!" Alice mumbled and laughed. I could tell she was already drunk by her cheeks, which had turned a light shade of pink. I shot her a deathly glare.

Jasper gave me one of those "please-forgive-me" looks.

"Remember that one time when Bella--" Jasper laughed.

"NO!!" I yelled too loudly. I felt the blush rise on my cheeks as I remembered being drunk and waking up with my head on the toilet seat. Jasper stayed that night with Alice. He had laughed so hard when he saw me that I woke up and banged my head against the counter.

Emmett grabbed me a glass.

"Aww come on, Bells, it's all for laughs! We all have embarrassing drunk stories," he teased.

Normally, Jasper was calm and collected but when he started drinking he was like a new person.

He put his arm around Emmett. "Yeah especially you man!" he continued. "For his twenty first birthday, we decided to fly to Las Vegas. Everything was going fine until we landed at the club. Emmett had one too many "birthday shots" and passed out. We couldn't carry the big guy so we had to beg the hotel to let us use one of those luggage carts that the bell hoppers used!"

Everyone busted out in laughter and I couldn't breathe from giggling so hard.

"No, that's not the best part," Jasper continued. "Rosalie was so pissed off at him because he promised he wouldn't drink on their special night that she made him sleep outside their hotel room in the cart with only his shirt on!"

Rosalie joined in with an evil smirk on her face. "In the morning, I heard him knocking on our neighbor's door and yelling for my name. The person opened it thinking it was house cleaning and..."

Emmett covered his face with his hands.

"A man opened the door and winked at me! He asked if I was the escort he called for! It was the worst experience of my life!!" he said, almost yelling now.

A few other people listened in and were laughing along with us and asking him questions. Emmett raised a glass towards me.

"Okay, okay, make me a drink and quit your whining!" I giggled, feeling comfortable for once.

The drink was very fruity and sweet. I couldn't even taste the alcohol with all the different flavors mixed. I ended up having two more drinks and decided I was okay for the night, feeling too lightheaded.

I left our little crowd and stepped outside to the balcony to catch some fresh air. I was surprised when I managed to not trip in my heels or run into people.

It was dark outside, casting dark blues all across the starry sky. Only the streetlamps from below and the lights from the party were visible now.

I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw his lean form against the rail. My breath hitched and my heart raced, making it impossible to even move my legs. He was standing outside alone looking like a nicely chiseled statue.

I walked over to the other side of the balcony and casually took in the view of Seattle. I glanced at him a few times through my hair. I was completely mesmerized by his presence and felt like my stomach was in knots.

I really wanted to talk to him but was afraid. The alcohol in me gave me some courage.

"Hey..." I said with a shaky voice.

No response. Maybe he didn't hear me?

"I...I enjoyed your piano piece a lot," I said, a little louder.

His feet shifted across the scratchy floor.

"Yes, thank you... uh," he trailed off in a velvety tone. I could only see his dark form and he was only inches away from me now.

My hands were beginning to get clammy.

"Oh, it's Bella. My name is Bella Swan," I supplied nervously and stuck out my hand.

"My name is Edward Cullen. Pleasure to meet you, Bella. Sorry, I didn't have a chance to properly introduce myself before," he said with a smile in his voice and shook my hand.

I felt an electric shock pass through us and we both let our hands go as if we both grabbed a burning pan. I ached for his warm touch but instead I shoved my hands deep in my coat pockets.

I was dizzy and couldn't fathom all of what was happening at the moment. The alcohol struck me harder than I thought I could handle and everything seemed to blur.

EPOV-

I felt the piano keys slide beneath my fingers as I played the most recent song I had composed. I was at ease, closing my eyes and letting the melody take over my broken soul.

My mind drifted to the main reason why I had composed the song in the first place. My unstable ex-girlfriend Jessica told me off one night when I didn't bother on calling her back.

"Edward Cullen, you're so selfish. Edward, all you care about is yourself. You don't deserve me or anyone else. Edward... you don't know how to love."

It was all too true. Her words kept echoing in my ears as I pictured her thrashing side to side, throwing anything in sight at me. I've always known myself to be a monster. What she said only confirmed what I already knew. I hardly felt any real emotions or felt a connection with anyone.

I didn't love her and I didn't understand how I had ended up with her. Our relationship only lasted for two months before leading up to the big fight. She tried to contact me everyday to apologize but I didn't want anything to do with her. I knew she wasn't sorry because I heard she moved on the next week to another guy.

As the piano solo was coming to an end, I opened my eyes to see the crowd. I immediately saw this beautiful girl with brown eyes staring back at me with a certain longing.

I couldn't break away from her tantalizing gaze and it was frustrating. I could not ruin another person's life again with my selfishness and I knew that if I went after her, that's what would happen. I didn't even know her, but I knew I didn't deserve her and it would be best if she didn't know the real me.

I left the stage in search of Jasper to let him know I was heading home.

"Great show, Jasper," I said, shaking his hand.

"Not bad yourself, man. Hey, a couple of us are going down to my apartment to celebrate since the museum is closing in a few minutes," he continued. "You should come, Edward, it will be fun."

I debated on going mostly for my new motivation. I knew that she would be there with her friends. Logic took over and reminded that I shouldn't go. It would be a big mistake.

Jasper, however, took my silence as a yes.

"I'll see you at my apartment in a few minutes," He said.

I couldn't back out now that he was expecting me to be there. I went to my silver Volvo and turned the engine on with the soundings of Yann Tiersen filling the air.

I arrived in a few minutes and walked towards the apartment building. I quietly opened the door of the home, not wanting to be noticed. I instantly saw her giggling and smiling at some story that Jasper was telling.

I walked outside to the balcony to collect my thoughts. Being here felt very wrong. I didn't belong here, especially when I really wanted to go meet that beautiful girl. She was so innocent and had a glow radiating from her that made me feel exceptionally ugly.

It was getting colder and the rain poured even harder now. I heard the sliding door open and saw her small form standing there for a minute before walking across to stand on the other side of me.

I really need to get out of here, now! My subconscious screamed at me.

"Hey…" I heard her soft voice.

I didn't respond for a moment because my brain was telling me loudly to leave. She would be better off not knowing me.

She continued with a louder tone, "I enjoyed your piano piece a lot."

I walked closer to her, wanting to be near her warm body. I didn't want to be rude so I responded the best way I could without being a jerk.

"Yes, thank you... uh..." What was her name?!

"Oh, it's Bella. My name is Bella Swan," she answered.

"My name is Edward Cullen. Pleasure to meet you, Bella. Sorry, I didn't have a chance to properly introduce myself before," I said, smiling.

I shook her outstretched hand and as our hands met, I felt my pulse racing hard. We both dropped our hands, slightly backing away from each other.

She looked up at me, staggered.

"How long have you played for?" She asked.

"Since I was four years old," I said automatically.

She moved closer to me and I almost felt her chest against mine.

"What?! Sorry, I can't hear you through this rain," she yelled.

I bent down towards the hollow of her ear and repeated the words. She shuddered and nodded quietly.

I smelt the sweet strawberry alcohol on her as she took small breaths. I neared her mouth wanting to taste it.

My logical side took over however and I backed away from her. No, she doesn't need a demon in her life.

She stroked her temples and grabbed onto the rail of the balcony. "Uhh, excuse me, Edward, I don't feel too well..." Bella said weakly.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?" I panicked.

"My head is spinning. I'll be fine. I just had a few drinks," she said, trying to calm down.

I grabbed her arm lightly, wanting to go inside.

"Bella you need to sit down for a second. Let's go inside and I'll grab you some water," I commanded.

"No, there are too many people in there. I'll just call a cab and go home," she mumbled and pulled out her cell phone.

I felt frustrated and was worried about her, but I didn't know how to comfort her. I just wanted to take care of her more than anything.

"That won't be necessary," I informed her. "I'll be more than happy to drive you home."

Her eyes were unreadable.

"Please just stay here, I don't want to ruin your night by taking care of me. I'll be okay once I get home," she pleaded.

She couldn't possibly ruin my night even if she tried.

"Bella, it's not a problem. I want to make sure you get home safely," I insisted.

I helped her through the sliding door and back to the party. She was even prettier up close than I what remembered her to be from just a few hours ago. But right now, she looked a bit more pale and flushed than was probably normal for her.

Alice ran up to us and immediately started to worry.

"Bella! What's wrong? Are you okay sweetie? Edward? When did you get here?" she asked rapidly.

"Yeah, I just feel a bit dizzy. I'll be fine Alice," Bella answered complacently.

I heard Emmett's boisterous laugh in the kitchen.

"Can't handle it, Bella?" Then Rosalie slapped his arm. "Ouch…I'm sorry, Bella, feel better!"

Alice and everyone else seemed too drunk to be driving.

"Would it be alright if I took her home? I haven't had anything to drink and you can't drive her either," I asked, meeting her eyes.

Her eyes flashed towards Bella making sure it would be fine with her. Bella smiled and nodded.

"I'll meet you at home tomorrow. You have fun okay?" she told Alice weakly. "Don't worry about me."

With that, we said our goodbyes and were followed by many get-well wishes as we left Jasper's apartment.

Thank you to LadyAkako for being my beta, always the icing on the cake! Everyone go check out her awesome AU story "New Kiss". You can find it in my favorite stories in my profile!

Review and I will send you a small sneak peek into chapter 4! Feel free to ask questions, thoughts, or have ideas what will happen in future chapters!