I ran through the backyard, my bare feet soaked from the slick and damp grass. My wet tangled hair flew behind me as I ran forward and dropped onto the yellow slip and slide. I slid across the slip and slide in my pink two-piece swimsuit.

I reached the end, but before I could push myself up, I felt a body ram against me. I grunted and looked over my shoulder to see familiar reddish brown hair and green eyes peering at me.

"Edward!" I whined.

He flashed me his infamous crooked smile. "Sorry, Bella."

I rolled my eyes and lifted myself off of the drenched slip and slide. Edward followed and we both ran back to the other side of the slip and slide, waiting in line for our turn. Our school friends: Alice, Emmett, Jessica, Angela, Lauren, Mike, Tyler, Ben and Eric were all in the backyard of Cullen house for Edward's seventh birthday party. The parents sat around on the deck as we played.

It was a rare sunny day in Forks and we were all taking advantage. Carlisle, Edward's dad, and my dad, Charlie, were grilling hotdogs and hamburgers while the other adults were sitting on the chairs and drinking freshly made lemonade. My mom, Renee, was sitting on the first step of the deck, covering her face with her hands. She looked very sad and tired recently, but every time I asked her what was wrong, she smiled and changed the subject.

Alice told me it was probably her time of the month. Whatever that meant. Alice was always saying things I didn't quite understand.

We spent the rest of the day throwing water balloons at each other, playing tug-of-war, squirting water guns and eating. Hours passed by quickly and the sun was starting to set. We decided to play hide-n-seek before our parents would decide to drag us back to our own houses. There weren't many places to hide in the Cullens' backyard, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable.

It was Mike's turn to be the seeker. He covered his eyes with his hands and stood against the corner of the house, counting to 10. We all scattered along the yard and looked for a place to hide. I saw Alice crawl underneath the deck. Emmett jumped in an empty garbage can, which made me shudder.

The others hid and I was still searching for a hiding spot when Edward grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the deck. His fingers folded over my small hand and I folded my fingers over his slightly bigger hand.

We ran up the steps, past the parents and he slid the patio door open. I cocked an eyebrow at him and he shrugged. "I don't want to play anymore." We stepped inside the house and he slid the door shut behind us. "Come on. I want to show you something."

He led me up the stairs and into his bedroom. It was like a second bedroom to me. I'd spent countless nights sleeping in here. His walls were painted baby blue, and his twin sized bed was covered with a ninja turtles comforter. Miniature toy cars, a basket ball, G.I. Joes, legos and toy action figures cluttered his floor.

He flicked the light on with his free hand and dragged me to his bed.

"Sit," he commanded and I complied.

"What are we doing?" I asked him curiously.

"I have something for you," he replied, giddy.

I opened my mouth to protest but he placed a finger to my lips. "Don't even say it, Isabella Swan. I used the birthday money my grandparents sent me and I've been dying to buy this for you."

"Edward!" I screeched. "Why did you use your money on me? That's for you!"

"It's my money," he said matter-of-factly. "I can do what I want with it."

I grumbled as he turned away from me, opened his closet door and pulled out a small box.

"Bella?" A familiar voice called out from the hallway. The door knob jiggled and the door swung open. Esme peeked her head into the room and smiled at me. "Bella, your mom and dad asked me to get you. They're ready to leave."

Edwards face fell. "Mom, don't make Bella go home!" he pleaded desperately. "Can she spend the night, please?"

Esme sighed. "I would love for Bella to stay the night but her mommy and daddy want to take her home."

Edward pouted. "But it's my birthday!"

"Bella!" Charlie's voice shouted from the bottom of the stairs. "Time to go!"

I hopped off of the bed as Edward pushed past his mom and raced out of his bedroom. "Can Bella stay the night? Please!"

Esme and I looked at each other and giggled as we listened to Edward beg my dad to let me spent the night.

"I'm sorry, Edward," Charlie told him softly. "But Bella has to come home tonight. Maybe some other time."

I hugged Esme goodnight and slipped out of the door. Edward had his head lowered and his face had disappointment written all over it.

I sighed and touched his back. "I'll see you tomorrow, Edward."

He turned to face me. "That's not soon enough. Meet me at our spot tonight after your parents fall asleep."

We had secret meeting place when we wanted to be alone together and just talk. It was a dirt intersection where we'd ride our bikes during the day. It was pretty much abandoned. No one ever went there except for us. We spent many nights lying on the grass and staring up at the stars...whenever they were visible. We never ran out of things to talk about. When we were at our spot, we didn't have to whisper to prevent people from hearing us. It was just us.

We shared our secrets so our conversations were usually private, he knew everything about me and vice versa. There wasn't one secret I had hid from him. Our spot was the one place where we could just be ourselves without any interruptions.

I hugged Edward goodnight and skipped down the stairs to see Charlie waiting for me.

Once I reached the bottom step, I glanced upstairs and grinned at Edward. "Happy birthday, Edward!"

He smirked. "I'll see you later, Bella!"

When Charlie turned away, I saw Edward mouth the word, "tonight". I nodded my head as he beamed brightly.

Renee was waiting for us in the car. She was sitting on the passenger side, her head lowered and her fingers pinched the bridge of her nose. I crawled into the backseat and buckled my seatbelt silently. Charlie walked around the drivers side and slid in the car. Renee sighed loudly and I noticed that Charlie peeked at her from the corner of his eyes slyly. He reached his hand towards her but she jerked away from him and folded her arms across her chest while she leaned her head against the window. I frowned and Charlie's eyes snapped to the rearview mirror, glancing at me. His eyes looked so sad and helpless.

I dropped my gaze to my lap and my frown intensified. They weren't usually like this. Renee used to be happy and she laughed a lot. Now she was always quiet and her eyes were filled with tears whenever I looked at her. I wonder if a relative or an old friend of hers passed away recently. That could explain her behavior.

Later that night, I dressed to my pajamas and settled in my bed. Charlie tucked me in and kissed me softly on the forehead. Just like every night. But there was something different about tonight. He lingered longer than normal and his eyes glazed over. He looked so sad. Just like mommy.

After he left, I snuggled my stuffed tiger against my chest and waited peacefully for my parents to go into their bedroom and shut the door. I heard heavy footsteps walk downstairs, and a couple minutes later, distance voices were shouting. I sat straight up and tried focusing on what they were saying, but it was muffled. So I slid off of the bed, grasped Lily, my tiger. I had both my arms wrapped around Lily and I clung her to my body while I tip toed across my bedroom. I reached the door and pressed my ear against it.

I heard my name being mentioned and I picked up on a few other words but I couldn't understand what exactly they were fighting about so I reached my arm forward and twisted the door knob open. I stuck my head into the hallway and saw a soft glow coming from my parents' bedroom. The door was wide open and a lamp was on inside the room.

I heard the voices growing louder from below and it sounded as though they were in the kitchen. A faucet turned on and I quietly moved towards the edge of the staircase.

"I'm taking Bella out of here!" I heard Renee shout.

My eyes widened and I sat down on the top step of the stairs. My mom wants me gone? They're going to make me leave? Why? What did I do wrong? My vision fogged up from the tears that threatened to spill from my eyes.

I gripped Lily tighter and my bottom lip quivered. Whatever I did wrong, I'm sorry! I'll be better! I don't want to leave!

I was going to stand up and ask why they didn't want me anymore, but I heard something drop to the floor and then it shattered. I jumped and the hair on my arms stood up.

"I can't live like this anymore!" Renee screamed, and I bolted straight up when I heard footsteps stomp towards the stairs. I dashed back into my room and closed the door behind me.

I panted wildly and slid my back down against the door until I was sitting on the floor. I brought my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs. Lily was beside me on the floor.

Light footsteps ran up the stairs. A heavier set of footsteps followed.

"I don't want to end up trapped in this stupid, boring town!" Renee shouted as she stormed past my bedroom. "I hate it! I can't stay here another minute!"

"Renee!" Charlie raced after my mother. "Don't do this! Just give it more time."

Their bedroom slammed shut and their voices were muffled again. Clearly still shouting at each other, though.

I wiped away my tears with the back of my hand and grabbed Lily. I didn't know what was happening but I needed to see someone. I needed Edward.

I opened my bedroom door and glanced across the hall, at the other bedroom. Shadows danced underneath the door crack and voices yelled at each other. I sniffed and trotted down the stairs, gripping the banister for support.

Once I reached the bottom step, I sprinted towards the door, yanked it open and fled the property. Our spot was approximately a ten minute walk. It was located directly between my house and the Cullen house. It took Edward and I each the same amount of time to get there, although we lived on opposite sides of town. I ran as fast as I could and the wind blew my hair behind me, still dressed in my pajamas and only wearing a pair of slippers.

My small legs pumped faster and I raced against the breeze that slammed into me. Gravel crunched beneath my feet and the moonlight provided enough light for me to see where I was running. I sharply turned into an alley and then ran past a group of trees. Not far from our spot.

I saw an unmoving body lying on his back on the grass, hands folded beneath his head. I ran towards the boy and skidded to an abrupt stop, I tripped and fell to my knees ungracefully.

Edward jolted straight up and rushed over to me, he grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet. "Are you okay, Bella?"

I sniffed and swiped my hand across my cheek to wipe away my tears.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, panicked. "Are you hurt? Let me see."

He began inspecting me but I held my hand up. "I'm not hurt."

"Then why are you crying?"

I choked on a sob, turned away from him and sat down on the grass. I brought my knees to my chest and hugged myself once again. He sat beside me and draped an arm around my shoulder.

"What's wrong, Bella?"

I twisted my body towards him and buried my head against the crook of his neck. He wrapped both of his arms around me and pulled me closer to him.

"Tell me what happened. Was someone mean to you?" His voice grew hard, serious. "I'll pummel them!"

I shook my head. "I think my mom wants to get rid of me."

"What do you mean?" he asked slowly. "Tell me everything."

I lifted my arm and wrapped it around his neck as he squeezed me gently. My body shook and I felt his lips brush over my forehead as he planted a kiss there.

"I don't know," I mumbled. "I'm so confused. I don't want to talk about it."

"Bella." He leaned back slightly to look into my eyes. "I won't let anything happen to you. Ever. You're my best friend, and I will always be here for you." He wiped away a tear that fell from my eye. "I love you, Bella."

"I love you too, Edward."

He smiled at me and placed my head underneath his chin. "If your mom tries to make you leave, you can come and live with me. My parents will adopt you and we will be brother and sister!"

I chuckled and held onto him tighter. "I wish you were my real brother."

"Someday," he spoke in a hopeful tone. "Your mom will have another baby and so will mine and they will get married and we'll be related!"

"Or," I suggested. "We could get married we get older."

I could practically hear him smile. "That would be better. Let's make a promise right now. You and me will get married after we finish school and move away from here."

I smiled. "We can get married the same day as Alice and Emmett, and it'll be a big double wedding."

"And," he added. "We can all buy a big house and live together and raise our children in the same house."

"Yeah," I agreed. "And our first kid will marry Alice and Emmett's first kid so we can all be related."

"Yeah," he said softly.

We sat in silence for a few minutes, hanging onto each other as if our lives depended on it.

"Oh!" Edward spoke excitedly.

I was startled and jumped. He unwrapped his arms around me, dug into his pocket and pulled out the small box that he held earlier. "Your present!"

He handed the box to me and I reluctantly accepted it.

"You didn't have to buy me a present, Edward. It's your birthday."

"You're my other half." He smiled at me. "So it's practically your birthday too."

I smiled at his logic and opened the box to reveal a silver bracelet. I gasped and held it up. "Edward! It's beautiful!"

He smiled, pleased with himself. "It's a charm bracelet."

He took the bracelet from my hand and clasped it around my wrist. We both admired it for a few moments.

"Oh, I almost forgot! Your first charm is in the bottom of the box."

I looked back at the box and saw something glimmering at the bottom of the box. I picked it up and studied it underneath the moonlight. It was a silver heart.

"Look at the back," He whispered.

I flipped it over and there was something engraved on it. I squinted my eyes and tried to read it with the minimal light.

'Edward & Bella forever'.

I smiled and a happy tear trailed down my cheek. "Edward! It's perfect!"

He hooked the charm on the bracelet and I placed a quick kiss on his cheek.

"Hey, Bella," he spoke nervously.

I peered at him from the corner of my eyes. "Hmm?"

He swallowed and I raised an eyebrow. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

I blushed and smiled shyly. I'd never been interested in boys and I knew I was too young to have a boyfriend, but since Edward and I already agreed to get married when we'd grow up…why not? "Yes," I whispered.

He smiled widely and leaned his head down to mine and kissed my lips lightly.

We hugged and said goodnight because it was getting pretty late. It was probably close to midnight by now and we'd both get in big trouble if we got caught sneaking back inside our houses. I ran back to my house with a goofy smile etched on my face and a silver charm bracelet around my tiny wrist.

I tip toed up the walkway and slowly opened the front door. Loud voices filtered through the house and I realized that my parents were still fighting. I sauntered up stairs and crawled into my bed. The moment my head contacted with the pillow, my eyes closed and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I heard a thud and my eyes popped open. The light in my bedroom was on and it was still dark outside. I tried adjusted my eyes to the bright light and blinked a few times. A shadow passed in front of me and I sat up. Renee had an armful of my clothes and stuffed inside a suitcase. No! They're really sending me away!

"Mommy!" I cried. She froze and looked over at me. "Don't make me leave! I'll be good!"

Renee sighed and moved to sit next to me on the bed. "We have to go, baby."

I sniffed and rubbed my eyes. "We?"

"Yes, baby." She pushed my hair behind my ears. "We're going to live in Arizona with grandma."

I widened my eyes. "But why?! We can't! What about school and the house…and Edward!" I shook my head. "Mommy, I can't leave Edward!"

"I'm sorry honey, but we have to go."

Tears streamed down my face. "Can we bring Edward with us?"

She looked at me sadly and shook her head. "It's just you and me, Belle."

It took me a moment to comprehend. Just me and my mom? But wait…Charlie. "But…what about dad?"

"Daddy is staying here."

"No!" I screamed and jumped off the bed. I ran out of the bedroom, down the hallway and into the other bedroom. Charlie was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands and his shoulders were shaking.

"Daddy!"

His head shot up and his eyes were bloodshot. I gasped as I stared at the tears running down his face.

"Daddy, I don't wanna leave!"

He extended his arms out to me and I jumped on his lap. He cradled me against his chest and I sobbed loudly.

"I don't want you to leave, either," he whispered.

A door closed down the hall and I heard my moms voice. "Come on, Bella. We're leaving now."

I cried harder as Charlie stood up and carried me in his arms. He carried me downstairs and I saw Renee waiting by the door. Suitcases were piled up near the door. I glanced at the clock and noticed it was just after two in the morning.

Charlie sat me down on the couch and walked over to Renee. "Don't do this," he pleaded weakly. "We can work everything out. Just wait until I can save up more money and we'll-"

Renee shook her head forcefully. "I've waited long enough." She picked up the bags. "Come on, Bella."

I slid off the couch and walked over to my parents. Renee tried opening the door but Charlie slammed it shut.

She sighed and looked at him. "Just let me go, Charlie."

Charlie's face fell and Renee opened the door again. She didn't look back.

She packed our bags into the trunk, and when it was full, she placed the rest into the backseat of the car. I slid into the front passenger seat, tears rolled down my cheeks and I clutched my wrist. I ran my fingertips over the bracelet.

Renee slipped into the driver seat and placed Lily on my lap. I pressed my hand against the window as I stared with wide eyes at Charlie, who was leaning against the door and sobbing. My hand slid down along the window as Renee sped off. Forks blurred past us, and before I knew it, I read a sign that had 'Now Exiting Forks' written on it.