Now that I've finally finished up some of my other stories, I decided that it was finally a good time for me to post this one. It's been in my head since late April, and I'm really excited to finally get it out to all of you. I haven't seen a story like this one before, so I'm hoping that you guys are into it and find it different and interesting. So enjoy, and I would appreciate if you would let me know what you think!

……

I don't know how many people in the world have experienced a first day of school quite like this one. Moving from Seattle to Forks was absolutely necessary in our case, which went without saying. My dad had lived here before he moved to Seattle and married my mom, a few years before I was born. And this was a small town, with just over 3,000 people, so it seemed like everyone knew that Charlie Swan and his daughter would be moving here, but they didn't know the finer details of my situation. And the kids at Forks High School thought that, since our parents had been friends, it meant we should be friends too. But I'm only here to finish out high school. Unlike most members of the senior class, my life has already started. All I want to do is get my diploma and get on with it.

Other people didn't understand that.

"Hey, Isabella, there's going to be a party at my house on Saturday night. You wanna come?" Mike Newton was the most persistent of my new classmates. The moment I had walked into the building this morning, he had stuck to my side like glue, insisting that I would need a tour guide. So I had let him walk me to my first class. Then, it had turned out that we had second hour class together too. And so he was still sticking to me, and I was about ready to swat him off.

"It's just Bella, Mike." I corrected him for the fourth time. "And I don't think I'll be able to make it…I'll still be settling in and stuff, you know…unpacking." I said, hoping to let him down easy. It would be nice to at least make some friends in high school, right? I didn't have to totally isolate myself just because of how different my life was than the typical high school students.

Mike nodded, looking disappointed. "Well, you should try and make it, if you have the time." He said, and I simply nodded, not wanting to pursue the subject any further. There was no way in hell I would be going to that party, not if you paid me to. By the time lunch started, I was about ready to wring Mike's neck. He was going on and on about the party, which I was still refusing to attend. And then, as we walked across the lunchroom towards the table, he dropped the bomb. "So…do you like, have a boyfriend or something?" Mike asked. I was about to reply with a nasty comment, but then I saw the light blush creeping up his neck to his ears. "I was just asking because-"

"It's complicated." I said softly, giving Mike a small smile. He nodded wordlessly, the blush slowly fading as we approached the table. There were several people already sitting there, and Mike introduced all of them. Jessica Stanley, the curly haired brunette, didn't stop talking the entire lunch period, and the snotty blonde, Lauren Mallory just picked at her lunch while shooting me dirty looks the whole time. I decided to just keep to myself, and Mike eventually backed off.

By the time last period was over with, I was on pins and needles. When the bell rang, I burst out of my seat and out of the classroom, probably looking like a maniac. But I didn't care. I grabbed my bag from my locker and shoved my books inside, and then I burst out of the doors and into the parking lot. I scanned the area quickly, looking for the tell tale silver Volvo. I caught sight of it quickly, a smile spreading across my face as I hurried over. The driver was out of the car, leaning against the side with the back door on the passenger side open. As soon as he looked up, we made eye contact and his face broke out into a grin as well. I was at his side in a split second, throwing my arms around his neck and holding on tightly. "Hi." I mumbled against his soft lips right before I kissed him.

He chuckled softly and then pulled away slightly so that only our foreheads touched. "Hi." He murmured back. "How was your first day?"

I was about to respond, and then I saw that Lauren Mallory and Mike Newton and Jessica Stanley were standing by the building, looking at us. "Edward, let's just get going. I'll tell you about it on the way home." Edward followed my gaze and his jaw tightened when he saw the three students looking in our direction.

"Alright, let's go." He said, closing the door to the Volvo and then opening the passenger side door. "But there's a certain someone in the backseat who is anxious to see you." He said, and then closed my door and walked over to the driver's side.

At his words, I eagerly lifted myself up to look into the backseat, a huge smile on my face. "Hey, you." I whispered softly, reaching into the baby carrier and moving the blankets to the side so I could see my daughter's pudgy face. "Did you have a fun day with daddy?" I asked, just when Edward got into the driver's seat.

"She had a long nap." He informed me, checking behind his shoulder before easing out of the parking spot. With our daughter in the car, Edward was extremely cautious, unlike his usual erratic driving. "And she was an angel for the rest of the day."

"Of course she was." I murmured, glancing into the backseat one last time before facing the front. "How was your day?" I asked.

Edward sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "Mostly pretty boring, since she was asleep for most of the afternoon. I have to work at ten tonight. What about you? Did you have a good first day? I saw that you already had some followers." Edward said with a crooked smile, obviously talking about Mike and Lauren and Jessica.

"I think my day was more boring than yours." I said, reaching over and tousling his hair gently. "People already have their noses in my business." I added with a huff, and Edward laughed, looking at me briefly before turning his attention back to the road. "They all think that because my dad knows their parents, we should be friends. It ridiculous. I didn't even want to come back to school…I only did because of you and my dad."

The situation between Edward and I was…complicated. We weren't married, we weren't engaged, and we weren't in love, but we had a beautiful six month old daughter together. And we had only known each other for a little over a year, because Avery Marie Cullen had been conceived when we were both drunk at party. I wasn't ashamed of the way my daughter was brought into the world, because I loved her more than life itself. But Edward was a good person. When I had tracked him down and told him I was pregnant, he took initiative. The first problem we had to take care of was the fact that Edward had been twenty and I was only seventeen at the time. Abortion wasn't an option- I could never do that. And I thought about adoption…but eventually decided against that as well. So here I was, and eighteen year old high school student with a daughter. Edward had gone to my dad, who had been understandably pissed off. Wouldn't you be, if a legal adult got your seventeen year old daughter knocked up?

Charlie was mad, to say the least. But he knew that I couldn't raise a baby on my own. Edward and I barely knew each other, but we wanted to at least try and stay together for the sake of our unborn child. So Charlie laid down the law. As long as I got my high school diploma, he would allow Edward and I to live together and raise Avery together. Our relationship was legal now, as I had just turned eighteen two months ago, but we still relied heavily on my dad to babysit Avery on days when I had to go to school and Edward had to work.

So far, no one in Forks knew the scandal of the police chief's daughter. Edward and I were extremely low key- we lived in a small apartment right near my dad's house and mostly kept to ourselves. But now that I was eighteen and we were situated in Forks, hiding our relationship was no longer necessary. Although my dad would prefer for us to stay under the radar, I no longer really cared, except for when it came to the kids at school. I didn't want people to just think of me as the girl with the baby. Like I said, I was only in high school to complete the promise I had made to my father.

My mother and father were divorced, and my mom still lived back in Seattle. She didn't want much to do with me and Edward, or her granddaughter for that matter. But I didn't care. If she didn't want to be around me, then she wasn't worth the trouble. Charlie and I agreed on that fact.

"What time do you think you'll be home tonight?" I asked Edward quietly, and he shook his head.

"Probably not until midmorning." Edward said, scrunching up his eyebrows as he pulled the car into the parking lot of our apartment building. "You'll have to talk Avery to your dad's house for the day."

I nodded, biting my lip. "What are we going to do when Charlie has to work or is on a fishing trip? We don't have enough money to pay for a daycare." I reminded Edward. "And there's no one else who can watch her." I said as we got out of the car. I opened the back door and unstrapped Avery's carrier. Edward didn't say anything in response, so I just slammed the car door shut and handed Edward the baby carrier so I could hold my book bag. "We don't have to worry about it now- we'll figure it out when we need to."

We climbed the stairs up to the fourth floor, and Edward waited patiently while I fumbled in my book bag for the keys. When I finally got the door open we walked into the apartment in silence, and I was once again reminded that Edward and I did not have a real relationship. He was the father of my child. We kissed, we slept in the same bed on nights that Edward didn't have to work, and we had a child together. But he didn't call me his girlfriend, and I certainly didn't call him my boyfriend. We paid the bills together and grocery shopped together…but was that a real relationship?

I didn't know. But for now, that was more than enough more me.

……

"Shh…hush, baby!" I hissed, desperately rocking Avery and forth in her carrier as she continued to cry and scream. She had been teething for the past week or so, and every single night had been as bad as this. Unfortunately, Edward had said he would be working all night so I was home alone with a screaming child as I tried to study for my biology test. "Why won't you be quiet?" I asked urgently, almost ready to cry myself. It was past midnight and I was nowhere close to being ready for the test I had tomorrow after lunch.

Another hour or so passed, and Avery was still crying, although it had diminished slightly. I was slowly losing my mind, unable to concentrate on anything other than the crying baby sitting in her carrier by my feet. And then my salvation came.

I heard the key in the lock and the front door creaked open, and then Edward quietly walked in through the door, holding a bag of takeout food in his hand. His tee shirt was rumpled and he looked almost as tired as I was. "Hey. What are you still doing up?" He asked, and I raised my eyebrows at him, gesturing to the open book in front of me and the notes scattered across the coffee table.

"I have a test tomorrow." I explained in a flat voice, and then continued to rock Avery's carrier with my foot. "She's teething, I think, and she won't go to sleep or even stop crying."

Edward knelt down and picked Avery up, shushing her as he cradled her tiny body against his chest. Edward walked into the kitchen area and opened the freezer door, rooting around until he found something. "The other day when you told me she was teething, I put these in the freezer. It's just something I heard about." He explained, holding up the frozen washcloth.

"Oh. Thanks." I said, leaning back on the couch as Avery contentedly chewed on the washcloth. After only several minutes her dark green eyes started to droop, and in no time at all she was fast asleep.

"I'll go put her down." Edward murmured, and then disappeared down the hallway towards Avery's room for a few minutes. When he emerged, he checked the time on the microwave and ran his hands through his hair. "I'm going to bed…I probably won't be awake until later this morning. Have e good day, and you and I can pick Avery up from your dad's house when I pick you up from school."

And that was it. He turned away and walked into our room, leaving me alone in the dark living room.

......

Well…what do you think? I'm really busy this week so I don't know when I'll update again. It shouldn't be too long.

Xoxo- Melodyella aka Mellie