As he walked through the doors leading to the parking lot outside, Edward Cullen released a heavy sigh of release. He felt such elation that a smile actually played across his features, making him look very odd to anyone who could see him. Edward Cullen didn’t smile often, and when he did it was usually because of one of his family members, but even then it was short lived and it only happened about as often as the sun shone in Forks. But he was actually grinning to himself. He felt very accomplished, and terribly relieved. If Jasper had been nearby, he would’ve picked up on it, and he knew already that Alice would be comforted by her own visions, which would be clear of any disaster. Yes, today had been a clear victory for Edward.

As the lunch bell sounded and he marched his way to Biology class, he wondered whether or not he should even tempt fate so soon. After all, it was days ago when he nearly killed all of the students in his Bio class, and he wondered if maybe that would happen again. But after all the encouragement from Alice, who was certain, she said, that he would be fine and that his future was clear. It was strange to be told what to expect, or not in his case, but it comforted him none the less. Even with her fairly accurate predictions, it was hard to believe, especially with how things went last week. He was hopeful though. His entire family was on stand-by, which made him feel somewhat awkward. Jasper, on the other hand, felt some relief that he was not the center of everyone’s worries. Edward was glad to help him in that way, though he would have preferred it if neither of them had to be baby-sat.

But he waited to go into class until all the students were seated. He wanted to give Bella time to sit down first, so that if he did have to make a timely exit, he would do so without her feeling awkward. He would know he had to leave before he sat down. He didn’t want her feeling more awkward around him than she must’ve already. His behavior must have made her think she repelled him, even though it was the complete opposite. But that was simply speculation, because her mind was still locked away from his, which had yet to be explained. One thing at a time, he thought.

He approached the doorway, and even from this distance her scent started to gently hum to his senses, not quite sing yet. But when he caught her scent, even from so far away, he was determined to master it. It was as if her Blood Song were independently thinking and acting, because as he thought that it hit him full-force. To combat that he simply stopped breathing as much, but enough to pass for normal. It seemed to help, and he decided it was time. He was going in.

He walked casually to the lab table that the two of them shared, debating on what to say or how to say it. His stomach seemed to remember the feeling of anxiety, and it turned nervously within him. Nervousness...that was pretty new to him too. He rarely felt fully anxious about anything. So he settled on a simple “Hello.” As soon as he had said it, he felt like he had broken through some wall of turmoil, because that simple word made him relax. He had spoken to her. She in turn seemed to stiffen, possibly in surprise that he spoke to her. Again, just assumption. He didn’t really know.

He had a mantra for the entire class, and it was, Act natural, idiot. You know, normal. Don’t be awkward. You’ll make her uncomfortable. Just...smile and be polite. You can get through this, you have to.

Miraculously, that seemed to work just fine. He introduced himself, he was polite, and he got to know her just a bit more. There was one moment of agony for him when he caught her hand his his. His ice-cold skin burned with her heat, and he had felt the venom in his mouth then, but simply ignored it and kept going. But he was careful not to make the same mistake again. There were other things that happened that made him grin now that he was walking towards their car to go home, like the fact that she picked up on his eye color. Observant girl, aren’t you, Bella? But when the bell rang and class was over, he departed, not wishing to push his luck any more.

But he had made it, he hadn’t done any harm. She was alive and well, and she seemed still uncomfortable around him but everyone was. Still, he walked to his car quickly, and was the last one there. He said nothing as he slid into the driver’s seat, and tried to dim down the smile that seemed stuck. As he shut the door, he watched Bella go to her red truck, and continued to watch longer than necessary through the rear view mirror. He turned to Alice triumphantly, and laughed at her comment. “True.” He quipped. “And that machine roars like a lion.” He chuckled as he reversed and drove, rather quickly, out of the parking lot.

No one spoke much on the way home, but he knew their minds were all itching with questions. Especially Alice, she wanted to know everything. The others would wait fro Edward to tell them anything, but she was a persistent little woman. He parked the car quickly and they all dispersed into their own areas of the house. He quickly made his way to his room, knowing Alice was there. When he spoke, excitement tinged every word he said.

“Alice, I did it.” he said happily. “I made it through the day. And...And I talked to her! She’s a bit shy, and I wish I could hear what she was thinking but...” He choked back the rest of that sentence, realizing he just let the proverbial cat out of the bag.