DISCLAIMER: I do not own Twilight, all characters and recognisable plots, characteristics etc belong to their respective owners.

After the couple of years I've had, I could really, really do with a fresh start. So the warm breeze and the clean, grassy scent that hit me immediately as I opened the window of mom's old truck made me almost deliriously happy. The air felt good against my pale skin, the sunshine seemed to seep into my soul (yeah, it sounds stupid). I felt better already.

"You look better already." Mom had a funny way of reading my mind, even after all our months apart. "You don't look like such a teenage cliché…" I scowled at that, and she laughed. God, I'd missed that.

The landscape around me was shockingly different from Forks, and the stark contrast of it all added to the smile that had resurfaced on my mouth after a long time's neglect. It took me a while to remember my guilt. The smile faded.

"You can't live your life for him." My mother turned to me again, and I realised how similar we were. Okay, not so much physically, but mentally we were pretty near identical; strong-willed, headstrong and a little hedonistic…all of those things that could be interpreted in a million different ways.

"I just feel as if I've…" I struggled to find the words, "Abandoned him, you know? I should…"

"You're sixteen sweetheart, if you can't do what you want know, when the fuck will you?" She laughed again, a girlish giggle before she leant her head back against her headrest, allowing the glee at her own words to really kick in. The car swerved, which only made her laugh harder.

The sight was so comical, so carefree, that I couldn't help laughing myself. And hey, the woman had a point. What is it people say? That youth is wasted on the youth? Well fuck that. I leant forward in my seat, turning up her beaten-up stereo.

She says "hey babe, take a walk on the wild side"

I rolled my eyes and laughed some more; because I swear to god this is the only record my mom listens to.

"Doesn't this ever get old?" I raised an eyebrow questioningly. I got a light-hearted arm smack from the driver's seat.

"Never!" She claimed. Figures.

I looked at my mom then. Really, properly looked at her. Her arms- scratch that, her whole damn body- had turned a beautiful golden brown, her hair a little blonder than it used to be. She wore a slouchy grey jersey-ish vest top, a pair of seriously beaten-up blue Levi's, rolled up at the bottom to reveal more golden skin plus (and I cringed inwardly) granny-ish navy slippers…the kind with tacky flowers sewn on the front. She looked happy, though, in her old truck and Lou Reed playing, and her daughter back for the first time in too long.

I didn't know a lot about her new life, I realised. The conversations we'd had recently had been filled with seemingly endless pleasantries and although we'd spoken for ages- hours, sometimes- I still didn't feel like I'd spoken to her about the important stuff (Do you know how much I miss you? Who is the person who is making you sound so happy/sad/distracted?). But I pushed these thoughts aside because for the first time ever, I felt like I had all the time in the world. So we sang at the top of our voices the whole way home, relaxing back into the silly little vocal harmonies we'd sung when I was much younger.

Her house was the pretty much the same as it had been last time, only now I was mentally making it "our" house. Made from long strips of thick wood and painted a deep blue, it blended seamlessly with the seascape that seemed to come right up to the house's front door. A sandy pathway wound its way towards the beach, the sound of waves breaking against the shore encompassing the house. Large glass doors and windows made the most of the beautiful view, a table constructed from driftwood situated just in front of the house begging to be sat by. I breathed deeply and, again, allowed the air to reach right to the bottom of my lungs. I think the air has healing qualities here, in the warm sunshine and the salty sea air. I think it's going to be good for me here.

"So I don't know what you want to do with your room…" Mom brought me back into the moment and I realised I'd been standing, eyes closed and breathing deeply for a good couple of moments. Weird. My hand found its way to my hair and my fingers brushed through it- as I do whenever I'm nervous.

"I don't want to change your designs…"

Since we'd been apart, I knew she'd tried her hand at a stupid amount of careers, and interiors had been one of her more successful ventures. She'd done a couple of houses for friends and from what I'd heard, they'd been very popular- not that I was surprised, she'd always had a fantastic eye for things like that. Needless to say, the house was beautifully designed and the thought of my stuff cluttering one of her rooms made me feel a little uncomfortable.

"What's mine is yours, hun." She wrapped her arm around my shoulder and led me into the house.

It didn't take long for me to unpack my things. I'd never really felt much of an attachment to my belongings and as a result, I'd only brought two suitcases with me. Soon after I'd unpacked, mom appeared to tell me that she was going out, and from the look on her face (happy, a little guilty) I knew she was going to see the guy she'd mentioned a couple of times to me over the phone. Once I'd heard the truck pull out of the driveway, I put on my old black bikini under my jersey dress, shoved a towel and my pack of Camels in a bag and made my way down the pathway to the beach, which seemed to have been calling to me ever since I had arrived.

It's amazing, how little time it takes to get from the house to the beach and yet the journey was taking way too long at walking pace and soon I was sprinting down to the water, barely stopping to pull off my dress and put my bag down on the sand. My limbs seemed to be cut off from my brain completely and I ran down the beach like a madwoman, until I reached the sea. Unfortunately, my brain still hadn't caught up with my body and I fell headlong into the water, swallowing half the ocean in the process. I laughed when I resurfaced, pushing my hair away form my face. The water was cool, light relief from the penetrating sunshine. I stretched my body out in the water, lying on my back and I felt my muscles relax after the long journey. Filling my lungs with air, I went back underwater, turning a few somersaults just for the hell of it. Again I felt the magic of this place, lifting my spirits, washing away all the bad thoughts and memories that had hounded me for the last few months.

Ever since Charlie had found his "new woman", things between us hadn't been the same. Selfish, I know, for a child to feel jealous for her father's affections. All the same, though, I felt jealous of Sue, and the power she held over my dad. Of course I knew that he had enough love for the both of us, and that she wasn't trying to replace my mother, and all of the things that he had mumbled to me when he'd first told me they were getting married. I knew it all, and I believed it all, I just suddenly had the overwhelming feeling that I was…intruding.

So, after six years of awkward holidays spent with my mom, and belated birthday wishes, and polite conversations over the phone, I was back in Florida, swimming in the sea and washing away a past where things never quite worked out the way I wanted them to. Growing up in Forks had never been easy for me, and I tried to push back memories of being picked last for all kinds of school projects and sport teams, of weekends spent alone pretending to dad that I was "too tired" to go and see the friends he didn't know I'd made up for his benefit…these were memories that I was going to try and wash away with salt water and fresh air. Hey, a girl could dream.

After a while my eyes started to sting a little from the salt water, and my hands looked wrinkly from being submerged for too long. I waded out of the water and onto the warm white sand, and ran my hand through my wet hair as I realised there were actually quite a few people on the beach. Forks Bella pulled her hands around her pale waist, picked up her things and left before she felt that she was being judged on how she looked in her bikini. As Florida Bella, however, I walked confidently back to my bag as I tied my long brown hair into a bun. I pulled my towel out from my bag, put on a little sunscreen and lay down under the warm sun, allowing the fact that I was "home" to sink in.

If you've just read this, thank you very, very much. This is my first fanfiction so any comments, pointers, advice, criticism etc is gratefully received. I will, of course, try and improve from any reviews I receive and will reply to any questions asked.

A few things to note: Obviously roles have been reversed between Bella's parents in the interest of getting Bella to Florida but other than that everything is pretty much in-line with the Twilight books character-wise. Any changes that aren't blindingly obvious from the story itself will be noted in the author's notes. Also, in general, italics will be reserved for song lyrics and then noted down here. In this chapter I just HAD to include Lou Reed- 'Take A Walk On The Wild Side' because it is perfect for Bella's new resolve (and it's a brilliant song). See you next time I hope. :)

xxx