Hey guys! New story, I know, I know. I will still be working on my other ones, mainly (Not As It Seems, Hear You Me, and hopefully, A Great October).

So, please take a few minutes out of your day and read this, and let me know what you think. Thank you!

11:02 P.M, Monday, October 14th, 2010

Five.

That was the number of times that he had shot his gun.

I closed my eyes as I felt another tear leak between my eyelids and roll down my cheek.

He was yelling again. He was probably going to find someone else to take to the backroom.

He would pick one of us and then decide. He would decide if we were good enough to live.

There were seven of us left. I don't remember how many of us there were when this first started. I remembered coming in from the cold, crowed street of Chicago, and opening the door to the diner that I was now in.

I worked at this diner—Anne's Diner—was the name. I just started last week—I never thought something like this could happen at such a nice little place—but it did.

I didn't notice I was dry sobbing until Edward pulled me to him and started whispering in my ear.

"It's going to be okay, Bella." He told me softly. But I could hear the tremble in his voice—knew how not okay it was going to be.

"If I make it out of this, the first thing I'm going to do is kiss the closest guy I see." I cried, rubbing my eyes with the balls of my hands. But now was not the time to get into that again—into everything that I might never be able to do—like kiss a boy. Start a new life. Find somewhere better to stay than that motel three blocks down the road that is no safer than living on the streets. Hell, it wasn't even clearer than living on the streets! But I didn't have the money for anything else, and it was all that was keeping me from the direct cold and even more dangerous street. I felt Edward pull away slightly, and didn't even have time to worry that I was finally too messed up and he just now figured that out before he was looking into my eyes. His eyes were that same leaf green that I came to love so much in the hours that we have both been here—the hours that he had been here.

"I won't let him hurt you, Bella. I'd die before I'd let him touch you." I felt my eyes water at the promise, and closed them, not wanting to believe that this was real—that any of this was real. All I wanted was this moment to be real—Edward Cullen looking into my eyes as he brought both of his soft hands to my face, cupping my cheeks and running his thumbs along my cheekbones as he continued to stare into my eyes.

"Ed—"

"Shh…" he said softly, still looking into my eyes as he leaned forward, catching my slightly parted lips in the softest kiss there ever could have been. My eyes closed. He pulled away, and I could feel him before I opened my eyes and could see him still looking intensely at me.

"I'm next, Bella." He said calmly, his eyes only closing for the slightest point of a second before they were back on me.

"And then it's you." And the dry sobbing was back, and I was back in Edward's arms. I didn't care that there were still people in here with us—that they were watching me cry and kiss and live. Because I had been watching them do all of that, too.

"It's fine." He whispered in my ear.

"But I wanted to be your first kiss." His whispered voice told me.

"And I want you to be my last." He told me calmly. And then I was full on sobbing, crying painfully loud and wet on his shoulder, his weird but soft hair tickling my arms as I wrapped them around his neck.

And then I heard it. We heard it. It rang out through the destroyed diner like past gun shots—His gun shots.

The door to the freezer opened, and his boots were heavy on the white, cold floor. The floor used to be white, but was now marked red.

Dark blood and light blood—it was still blood, and it was cold. As cold as the murder that caused it.

My sobbing stopped at once—I don't think I had it in me to sob any more, and not in front of him.

His steps only got louder as he got closer, and soon they were so close I had to close my eyes. They finally stopped, right in front of us.

"You." Was all he said, and I knew what that meant. One more sob came from me, and Edward's arms tightened as he pressed his face into my hair.

"If I don't come back to you—you will be of my last thoughts." he whispered, kissing my ear as he stood, and walked, slowly, let strongly, away. He smiled at me through his black mask, all I could see were his pale lips as he smiled.

"You're next." He told me. I tried to hold his soul-less eyes as I answered. I had to answer. I didn't want to die knowing I begged for my life, and being scared. So even thought I was scared—beyond what I ever knew fear to be—I replied.

"I know."

So… what do ya think? Any thoughts? Leave a review please, and I'll start working on the next chapter if you all like this!

There will be more information in the next chapter, but just to clear a few things up:

Bella is eighteen, and living in Chicago.

Edward and Bella did NOT know each before this—you'll see how they meet in the next chapter.

This story will be told from different P.O.V.s, not just Bella's.

This probably won't be a happy story, but will have some scenes that can make you smile.

It won't be a long story, but not short, either. I don't know HOW to do SHORT.

So please review, and let me know what you think! Thank you!

-Angel