Chapter1

Mom and dad are fighting again. Lately it seems more frequent. Dad seems to get set off really easily these days. But of course mom doesn't help any by coming in late and dad not knowing where she is. What dad doesn't know is that mom is having an affair with one of the deputy's. Crash. That sounded much like a vase against the wall. I have to get out of here.

I'll go to Alice's; her parents have treated me like one of their own for the last year. The Cullen's moved here last year when Alice's dad, Carlisle, was offered the Chief of surgery. Their house sits on the out skirts of town. Alice's mom, Esme, is an interior designer that works out of her home. She has treated me like a daughter since the night Alice found out about my parents.

11 months ago.

Alice came over to spend the night at my house. Renee was out "with the girls." That meant she was fooling around with Phil, Charlie's Deputy, behind Charlie's back. Charlie brought home pizza for us and Renee came home at 10:30. Apparently one of the women she was supposed to be out with had called for her. That was the first night they got in a fight. Alice took me to her house where I was greeted with open arms.

I shoved my keys and cell phone in the back pocket of my jeans. No need to pack clothes, Alice furnished my room at their house with plenty of clothes and other necessities. I scrambled out my window and climbed down the tree. Once inside my SUV, l pulled out my cell phone to let Alice know I was coming. Damn voicemail. "Hey Ali. Another fight so I'm on my way to your house. Bye." Maybe I should call her mom just so she isn't surprised when I show up. "Hello Mrs. Cullen. Is it all right if I stay the night again?" She told me that I didn't have to call, that I had a key and I could come over at anytime.

Every time I pull up to the house, I still can't believe the beauty of this house. It is a three story mansion with a wraparound porch. The entire southern facing wall on the back side of the house is one giant glass window that overlooks the river that runs through the property.

"Esme? Mom? I'm home," it was our joke seeing as how she always wanted another daughter.

"Ah my Bella darling how was your day?" A woman with wavy chestnut hair came walking out of the kitchen, enveloping me in a hug.

"Where are Ali and Emmett?"

The smile on her face disappeared and she glanced at the floor. "They're up at the hospital. Before you freak out they are both fine, they are just visiting Edward." I had only heard about Edward a few times. He was in a car accident when he was 16. He has been in a coma for two years. Carlisle and Esme don't have the heart to take him off life support.

10 months ago.

I had used my key to get in and decided while I waited for Alice to come home I would explore. I had been practically living here for a month and had only seen the first two floors of the house. I have also decided something is up with the Cullen's; they have no family pictures on display. I climbed up to the second floor and came across the only door on that floor that hadn't been opened. It was the staircase that led to the third floor. There were only two rooms up there. I went in the one to the left first. Opening the door revealed an almost empty room. The only thing that occupied the room was a baby grand piano covered by a sheet. I crossed the hall to the other room. I opened the door and discovered another bedroom. The black bed had a plush golden comforter that matched the golden carpeting. The room faced south because the glass window took up the entire back wall. One wall was covered entirely with CDs and expensive stereo. The biggest thing that caught my attention was a picture on the desk. It was a picture of the Cullen family except there was an extra person in this picture. In between Alice and Emmett in the picture was a bronze haired boy with sparkling green eyes. My musing was cut short by Emmett.

"What are you doing up here Bella?"

"Sorry Emmett I was just curious about the third floor and no one told me not to come up here so I did," I rambled. He noticed the picture I had clutched in my hands. He grabbed it out of my hands and sat on the bed. "Who is that Em?"

"It's my brother, Ali's twin. Edward was in a car accident 14 months ago and he's been in a coma since then. That's part of the reason we moved here. Dad thought Edward might have a better change of waking up with better doctors and technology." I could see the pain in his face and realized why I hadn't heard about him. They were still suffering too much to talk about him.

"Today is the 2 year anniversary of his accident. I haven't been able to bring myself to go see him today," she said with tears steadily streaming down her face. I pulled her into a hug.

"Do you want me to go with you to see him?" She looked at me with a watery smile.

"Oh honey would you? I would be so appreciative if you went with me. Alice and Emmett are going to meet Jasper and Rose after they spend some time with Edward." I had never been to the hospital to see Edward because I felt like I was intruding on a private family moment. But I couldn't let Esme go alone to see her son today.

She grabbed her purse and a set of keys from the hook by the door. She led me out the door to the garage. I had never been in here. Alice's car was always waiting for us in the driveway when we went out, and I always parked out front. The garage is large enough to hold 6 cars. There were 3 empty spots that I assume belong to Carlisle's Mercedes, Alice's Porsche, and Emmett's Jeep. Esme's Lexus was parked in here along with two cars under covers. She must have seen me looking with a puzzled look on my face.

"Those are Edward's cars. Emmett took it on himself to fix the Volvo after he found out Edward was in a coma. However after he finished he couldn't stand having the car fixed but not Edward. So it has been under the cover ever since then, along with Edward's baby, the Aston Martin. Maybe we should take the Volvo out. Can you help me with the cover?"

I helped her take the cover off the car right next to her Lexus. Under the cover was a shiny silver Volvo. "Esme do you want me to drive?" I asked after noticing her hands beginning to shake. She handed me the keys as she pulled me into a hug.