I do not own Twilight.


Bella Cullen walked home through the streets of Chicago, guilt written across her face. She really shouldn't feel bad or at least have gotten over it by now. For months she had been doing it, without getting caught by her husband. So why did she feel like skum? Why did she feel like the bottom of the food chain? The breezy Chicago air seemed like a wakeup call to her, making her shiver and shake, from the coldness or fear, she wasn't quite sure. Her hands were dug to the bottom of her black cloth coat.

"Mrs. Cullen," Jacob, the doorman, greeted her.

"Jacob," she replied. "How's Renesmee?"

"Good, good," he said. "Actually, we're expecting our first."

"Congratulations!" Bella exclaimed. "Wow, that's incredible!"

"Thanks," Jacob said, a huge grin covering his face. "Yup, I'm going to be a father."

Bella smiled. "Well, I gotta go. Congratulations again!"

He tipped his black cap. "Thanks! Have a fantastic day!"

Bella sighed as soon as she walked through the glass doors. A child was all she ever wanted. The day the doctor told her she could never conceive was heartbreaking. Perhaps that was the day she gave up. Trudging up the stairs, she entered her penthouse.

"Edward?" she called, shutting the door and hanging up her jacket. "Edward, I'm home!"

She turned the corner to see her husband with his head in his hands. He was angry, that was evident. But... why?

"Edward!" she exclaimed, racing to his side. She began to probe his head to check for illness. He held up a large hand to silence her.

"I'm not sick," he said simply.

She raised an eyebrow and stopped her examination. "Then why--"

He held up another hand. That's how they sat for a while--silenced. An intent gaze was shared between them, one of which Bella could not comprehend.

"You're going to have to give me some answers," she murmured after a few moments. It broke the silence of the dark room. Edward looked up, his green eyes furious. This made Bella step away from the chair in fear.

Then, very quietly, Edward murmured through gritted teeth, "How long?"

She examined her face with her chocolate brown eyes. "How long what?"

His face became blank as he held her stare. "How long have you been cheating on me?"

At that instant, her heart stopped dead. He knew. She was trying to hide it, but he knew. How? How was her hard work broken?

"Edward," she managed to force out. "I... I'm sorry."

His eyes were sad. "Sorry doesn't cut it."

They were silent. Nothing was thrown. No words were passed. They just... existed. Together.

"You never answered my question," Edward pressed after a moment.

She let out a small sigh. Her eyes avoided his as she stood up and walked to the large oak bureau in the corner of the room to pour herself a drink. The deep purple wine reflected off the glass. A heavy drink was needed before she responded.

"Three months," she replied quietly, staring at the contents of her drink.

The shock was well masked for Edward. You see, he had many drinks before she arrived. He nodded and stood up, heading over for another. They avoided each other's gaze or touch as they passed. Bella's eyes were trained on her glass. Edward's eyes were trained on the wine bottle in the distance. He poured himself another glass of the purple poison.

"Who is he?" he asked quietly, not wanting the answer, yet still wanting it at the same time.

She laughed quietly through her sadness. "You really don't want to know."

He looked up from his pouring. "Oh, I think you're wrong."

She met his eyes and knew she owed it to him to tell him. With a sigh, she looked at the floor and admitted "Mike Newton."

She wanted him to throw the wine glass at her. She wanted him to attack her. He should have thrown her out! But instead he simply nodded and asked "Why?"

This puzzled her. "Why what?"

He looked back at his cup and continued pouring. "Why did you feel like you had to cheat?"

This struck a nerve inside her. The truth was, she thought since she couldn't get pregnant with Edward, maybe she could get pregnant with Mike. But to tell him that... it would break his heart. So instead she shrugged and said "I don't know."

She didn't have to say it. Edward already knew. Lies would help nothing.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She had to ask.

"So where does this leave us?" she asked.

He turned to look at her. The sadness his eyes held said everything. She nodded and sat back in her chair. Edward headed into the room they once shared and fished out the suitcase he had packed earlier. With a quick farewell their eyes shared, he left.

And that's how our first marriage fell apart. A loveless marriage. Lies. Deceit. And now they're paying for it.

Author's Note: This one is sad. It's probably going to be six parts, how they fell apart and how they ended. So yup, this is a really short story. The song below just started playing when I was writing this.

No we're not gonna work this out tonight. No we're not gonna make this right. So I'll give a kiss and say goodnight. 'Cause we're not gonna work this out, tonight... Reviews? Comments? Click that button!

--Lauren :D