Summary: Bella Swan is the epitome of innocence. Generous, curious, and kind. Edward Masen is her complete opposite. Dark, intense, and insensitive. Sometimes the people you cherish the most are the ones you never wanted to meet. The ones that unconsciously help you heal when no one else can. The ones that possess the ability to change you into a new person. Those people last forever. AH/AU/OOC Rated M for strong language, some violence (maybe), and eventual sexual situations.

Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to the amazing Stephenie Meyer. Until the End belongs to Stephanie (me), but the characters are Ms. Meyer's. The only thing we can share is our name, and even that is spelled differently *cries* Oh well...it's a nice thought :)

(A/N:) My first AU/AH story...hope everyone likes it! It's a definite change for me - for one, I've never used much swearing in any of my writing, because I don't swear at all in real life. So it was interesting - and a bit fun, admittedly - to turn Edward into the ultimate bad boy. But anyway...I don't want to start babbling. Please read and tell me what you think! And I almost forgot...have a Happy Halloween!!!

PROLOGUE

BELLA—

I didn't know where I was going; all I knew was that I was running. Toward something – away from something. I wasn't sure, and I didn't know if I would ever find out. The concept should have terrified me, but in this moment, none of it mattered. Despite the fear that clutched at my heart and caused its pulse to dance at a beat far too swift, I felt content. Despite the looming doubts and anxieties that threatened to drag me under the surface and smother me, I was at peace. And despite the valid notion that my world could collapse beneath my feet at any moment, all I could feel was love. The presence of an angel on Earth beside me, loving me and sheltering me despite the heavy scars of his excruciating past.

I didn't know what would greet me on the far away horizon, but I would find out soon enough. And no matter what it was that I found, I knew I would face it with a strong hand to guide and protect me. Just that simple knowledge alone was more than enough to put my mind at ease.

EDWARD—

I'd never truly realized how officially fucked up life really is. I always knew that it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, but I didn't know that it could get this bad. I'd dealt with pain before. I'd dealt with fear. I'd dealt with loss. I'd dealt with doubt and anxiety. Hell, I'd even dealt with a bit of love. A very powerful love, even if it had split into a lie. But that didn't matter now. All that did was that these emotional iniquities of life were being thrust at me again, but I'd never dealt with them all at once. And I was quickly learning that I couldn't do it alone.

But that's why she was there. Right at my side, encasing my heart and my mind and keeping me strong. Like a beacon of light guiding a ship to the rocky shores unharmed, she watched over me. I knew she depended on me for support and protection, but she returned every gesture I granted her without knowledge or trying. Her presence alone was enough to calm my every concern. I'd dealt with love before, but never like this. This was pure and true, and more right than the treacherous dishonesty of my previous relationship had ever been. But even that was just a small scar permanently imprinted into my skin. There were far worse, and there were far too many. But she tended to my wounds and encouraged them to heal, and I knew that I would love her until the day I died for even taking a second glance at such a messed up motherfucker as me. And despite my pleas for her to find the perfection she deserved, she always stayed. She made my life worth living.

BELLA/EDWARD—

I didn't know what was to come in the future, but I had the love of my life right with me through it all. So I knew it would be alright.