Partings ways and bidding goodbyes, Jessica, the others and I went our respective ways, promising another lunch date soon.

I more like, waved my hand and mumbled something, but they could never hold me to a promise.

On my way back to the office, I profoundly apologized to Alice, telling her I didn't mean to ditch her, but Jessica was too strong for a girl-.

I would have continued but she shushed me and told me it was alright.

:::::::::_:::::::::::::::_:::::::::

Sitting behind the desk, I was surprised when someone knocked on my already open door.

Jumping, I looked up and saw Bella sheepishly standing against the door frame, hands folded over her chest, and a small smile on her face.

"Hi." She smiled wider.

I put down my pen, "Hey."

She looked down, then back up at me. "Um," she let herself in before I could even think to object. Taking slow almost hesitant steps, she twined some locks of hair around her index finger.

Glancing down, then back up at me shyly, she took a seat in the chair across from mine. I finally raised my fingers from the keypad I had been typing the information for some unknown person on and stared at the look almost etched on her face.

A silent uneasiness hung in the air and I was never a good conversationalist to begin with.

I usually started a conversation with a 'Hey', to which the other person replied 'Hi', and that more likely left even more uneasiness in the nonexistent conversation to begin with. So I sat and waited patiently for Bella to begin.

She fidgeted and looked around nervously, until our eyes finally made contact, and her melted chocolate irises connected with my light brown orbs.

"How are you Jake?"

How was I?

Well, I had a wonderful job, now, and a sexy boss walking around free to be ogled. I was friends with good people here, including said boss' sister, who actually when you think about it looks at you funny as if trying to decipher a brain crushing puzzle with the words that came out of your mouth, well when she wasn't talking that is.

"I'm fine." I tried to put it simply.

"Did you know that eighty percent of the time we use that phrase, it signifies major personal and social problems, also high brain activity." she blurted out.

I stared at her strangely, and she stared back just as oddly, as if wondering where that came from.

A millisecond later, she giggled, and then her hands flew up over her mouth.

A chuckle escaped my lips, and with that, the dam broke.

Laughter bounced off the walls of the office as we laughed until the uneasiness subsided.

A controlled clearing of a male's throat had me almost falling off my chair with surprise.

Judging by the way she bounced out of her chair; I assumed that Bella was surprised too.

And there Edward Cullen stood, in all the glory that the Cullen people seemed to have. Arms crossed, and leaning against the office door, with his green eyes surveying the room with suspiciously he locked sights on me.

Bella, as red as a tomato, muttered a soft, "Good afternoon Mr. Cullen."

"I need to speak to Jacob." He countered.

With a hushed 'goodbye', Bella scurried out of the office.

He stood there with calculating eye, efficiently having me squirming under his gaze. With a last look he said,

"Alice needs to speak to you." Then he left.

*Sigh* I just had to drag this chapter out my closet, kicking, screaming, howling,*Looks in mirror* DEAR GODS IS THAT A SCRATCH MARK! Stress is the turning point in every teen's life. *Throws hands up in defeat and despair* *Heavy sigh* review.

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