As she sat at the wheel of her truck behind a red light, Bella Swan's eyes darted towards the forest beyond the road she had been traveling on. As her eyes focused on the swaying trees, her mind quickly wondered back to the person who had broken her heart months ago.
Edward, she thought with a sigh.
He was a vampire but he and his family were vegetarians, only drinking the blood of animals and refusing to hurt any humans. When Bella had first met him, she had thought him to be breathtakingly beautiful. It had been love at first sight for both, but neither knew it at the time. Although he had initially tried to stay away from her, he had eventually returned to school and she had confirmed her suspicions about him and the rest of the Cullens. He had been honestly surprised when she wasn't afraid of him or what he was. Thinking back, Bella smiled softly. How could she ever be afraid of him?
They had begun an unorthodox relationship and Bella soon came to realize that she couldn't live without him. He started spending the nights with her in her bedroom and she always curled up on his chest, feeling warmth and safety in his cold embrace. When James and Victoria had attacked them, Bella realized that Edward had been more afraid than she had been; only he was afraid for her instead of himself.
Edward, she sighed again.
Prom night had been the best night of her life up until that point. If Bella would have said that before moving to Forks, she would have immediately laughed at the thought. But she had spent that night secure in his arms as he slowly moved her around to the music. She had wanted him to turn her into a vampire so she could be with him for eternity, but he had refused to end her life. As afraid as she had been during her confrontation with James, staring into his sad eyes that night made her realize that something scared her even more: not being with Edward.
Edward, she sighed once more.
Next came her doomed birthday. Despite Bella's best efforts, Alice and the Cullens had thrown her a celebration and that's when everything changed. She had gotten a paper cut and Japser, the newest member of the Cullen family, had attacked her. When Edward had pushed her aside to keep her safe, she had landed in glass causing even deeper cuts and this had driven Jasper mad. Although she didn't hold any blame towards Japser, she couldn't change what had happened.
After her birthday, Edward had kept mostly to himself and hardly spoke to her. Even though he still spent every night in her bedroom and every day with her at school, she realized that something had shifted within him. She simply braced herself for what she knew deep down was coming. But when he broke up with her days later, he had been almost cruel. He had told her he never loved her and had been rather convincing with his words. She had always thought that she, a mere clumsy mortal, had never been good enough for him but hearing the words was too much to take. When he left her standing there in the forest, she had felt as if her heart and been ripped right out of her chest and torn into shreds. The Cullens had disappeared quickly after and that had been the last she had seen or heard of any of them. That had been the last she had seen him.
Edward, she sighed a final time when the honking from the car behind her brought her back to reality.
Stepping on the gas, she made a left turn and began heading towards her home. After going through the motions like a zombie the past few months after his disappearance, she had managed to pull herself together for Charlie's sake. To give him some piece of mind, she had begun spending time with Jacob Black who had quickly grown into her best friend. As time passed and she and Jacob spent more time together, she started feeling more like the old Bella. They had fun together and spent most of their days joined at the hip, but she knew that something was missing. Jacob had been more than forward about his growing feelings for her, but looking into his eyes, she couldn't say yes to him. She knew he'd make her happy and he'd never leave or hurt her, but a part of her still craved for what she couldn't have. If she had been truthful, her entire heart still craved for him.
Bella had insisted to Jacob that she wanted to remain friends and nothing more, knowing that if she were to start dating him, she'd eventually hurt him. Her heart couldn't be faithful because it still longed for the person who had hurt her months ago. Even though she'd never voiced these thoughts to anyone, especially Jacob who despised the Cullens and Edward in particular, she couldn't help but secretly long for him. She knew that he would never return, but if by some miracle he did, would she forgive him for leaving her? Would she forgive him for hurting her so badly?
Bella was unsure what her answer was as she pulled her truck into her driveway. It was almost four in the afternoon and Charlie wouldn't be back for a few more hours. Getting out of her truck, she began walking towards her front door when Jacob suddenly appeared, cutting her path off.
"Hey!" he exclaimed.
"Jake, I'm so glad to see you," she replied with a genuine smile. "What's going on?"
"Well, I was wondering if you had any plans tonight," he began casually. "Did you want to catch a movie and dinner or something?"
She stared at the boy who had become her best friend over the past few months and sighed.
"Jakeā¦," she started but he cut her off.
"Just as friends," he insisted before closing the distance between them. "I said I'd wait for you to be ready, Bella, and I meant it."
She smiled softly at him before finally nodding. "Sure, sounds good."
As he turned and walked away with a wide grin, she thought back to everything she had learned about Jacob and his family. They were descendents of a clan of werewolves and Jacob had begun his transformation weeks ago. She had been with him one night when she had seen him transform and the site had scared her terribly. Even at his most ferocious when he was battling with James, Edward had never scared her. She had never been afraid of him.
Jacob had disappeared for a few days, desperate to get his transformation under control and with help from his father Billy and a few friends from the reservation, he had been able to do just that. He had apologized to Bella for scaring her and once she had forgiven him, they had gone back to their normal daily routine.
Bella thought about the idea for a moment before laughing dryly: her best friend was a werewolf and she was in love with a vampire. She really was a freak.
Suddenly pausing at the words, her smile slowly disappeared. She hadn't voiced those words for months but had always known deep down in her heart that her feelings for Edward had never changed. He was the first thought she had every morning and the last face she'd picture every night. She felt empty after he had left her. Even though Jacob gave her a reason to wake up in the morning, she knew she'd never be whole again.
Edward, she thought for a final time before walking inside her house and shutting the door behind her.
