Disclaimer: Alas, Twilight and Somewhere In Time don't belong to me.
A/N: Please make sure you have read my multi-chap story Come Back To Me before reading this! :o)
A/N:Well, here it is! Elderly Bella's POV of the night she gave Edward the pocket watch as she reminisces about their time together and the epic love they shared. :o)
Enjoy!
Reunited
BPOV
I heard the lively music before the elevator doors opened. I felt lightheaded at just the thought of what I was about to do, of who I was about to see. Edward. It had been over half a century since I looked into his grass green eyes or held him in my arms. My weak heart fluttered just remembering what it was like to have that kind of perfection in my life; because that's what it was… perfection. We had only a little over two days together, but we loved a lifetime's worth. My memory wasn't what it used to be. Things weren't as sharp or easy to recall and they hadn't been for a long time, but I could remember every detail about him and the brief time we had together. Not a day went by that I didn't think of him.
With perfect clarity, I could still remember the first time I saw him…
We had arrived at The Grand the day before I met my Edward. Upon seeing the hotel, Alice was practically vibrating with enthusiasm and I didn't find out why until we were out on the lawn enjoying a quiet game of croquet before dinner, just the two of us. She had been telling me for weeks of a hopefully auspicious dream she had in which I met a man who would change my life forever. Not every dream Alice had came to pass, but she always knew which ones would and I had yet to know her to be wrong. She recognized The Grand Hotel from her dream; this was where I would meet him. I was a bit nervous about Alice's dream before, but now I was positively anxious. Alice, of course, won the game easily and it made me wonder if the little minx hadn't timed her revelation to handicap me.
Every new face in the dining room or lobby raised my anxiety level further. Any man I saw from the desk clerk to our waiter, or even the male guests I passed in the hall, could be him. Even the young blond man who carried our bags to our rooms could have been the one, although he seemed to have eyes only for Alice. It was near impossible to sleep; I had tossed and turned most of the night. Would I know him when I saw him? Would he know me? What were his intentions? After breakfast I needed to have some space, I needed to distance myself from the whole situation to gain some perspective. I decided that the further I was away from the general population of the hotel, the better. I walked along the path by the shore of the lake, but there were still a few people out for their morning constitutional. I decided to step off the path when I found a lovely willow tree. It afforded me a peaceful view of the lake while it's long swaying branches shielded me from the rest of the world.
I stood there in my perfect little bubble of solitude for quite some time. The sounds of the small waves gently lapping at the shore and the willow branches swaying in the breeze had the desired calming effect. I realized that there was nothing I could do. For better or for worse, this man would change my life and all I could do was wait for him. He didn't leave me to wait for long. I felt his presence before I heard him. He stepped into my little sphere of peace and my heart jumped into my throat. I watched the sunlight dance across the water for five more heartbeats before I gathered enough courage to turn to him.
He, quite simply, took my breath away. I couldn't hide my hopeful smile, I didn't even try; he was just too handsome for words. Tall and broad shouldered but with a slight build and he had the most amazing emerald hued eyes… They were gentle and kind and so open; it wasn't hard to get lost in those beautiful green eyes. With a look of wonder and… satisfaction?... he rushed up to me so fast that it surprised me but it wasn't unsettling. I should have been more nervous, I should have been terrified, but I wasn't at all. There was just something about him that felt so right and that did scare me a bit if I was being truthful with myself. He just didn't seem real. I gave him a tentative smile and reached out to touch him, half expecting him to disappear as if he were a figment of my imagination. I didn't realize that I had spoken aloud until he answered my question. He conformed that he was the one I was waiting for. How could he know, how could he understand? Did he really know I was waiting for him?
I felt my wariness return. Alice couldn't tell me how this man would change my life. She couldn't tell me if he would have a positive or negative influence on my future. She knew he would have a profound impact on my life but yet she felt that he was somewhat neutral. It confused her but, after I had years to reflect upon it, it made perfect sense to me. Edward was the love of my life and our short time together was the happiest I had ever been or could ever have hoped to be. Decades later, just remembering those days filled my poor heart with such warmth… He was also the greatest source of pain in my life. I have never in all my years experienced such pain and confusion as I did the day I lost Edward…
My feelings for Edward where very strong and they came upon me very quickly. I think it was somewhere out on the lake that I realized that I was falling for him. He hummed me a lullaby, my lullaby, and we talked for hours about nothing and everything. It wasn't just what he said; it was how he said it. The timbre of his voice, the way he gestured with his hands, how he would raise his brow and tilt his head just a bit to the side when he waited for me to answer a question. His voice and his kind words were considerate and genuine. He didn't view my career as something for me to bide my time with until I married and started a family. He began to make me feel things that I had only played at on stage.
I had thought chauvinistic playwrights were exaggerating when they wrote of women getting all starry eyed and swooning over a man, yet, there I was, proving them right. I tried my best to keep the blushes to a minimum, failing horribly, and did my best to tone down the giggling feeling I felt bubbling in my chest to mere smiles. Oh, how my cheeks began to ache by the time he escorted me back into the hotel. I just couldn't seem to stop smiling at him; it would have been embarrassing but I couldn't help but notice that he was having the same problem… until we reached my door.
I remember the electricity in the air at that moment. I wanted so much to ask him in but I knew, I knew, that I shouldn't. I became mesmerized by those deep green eyes and it was hard to focus on his words. He wanted to talk. I didn't believe him for a second. I was terrified and thrilled all at the same time. He didn't want to part any more than I did. Edward seemed almost desperate for me to delay our separation. Looking into those handsome pleading eyes, how could I deny him?
That first kiss. It was amazing. I had been kissed before but it was nothing like that. Clumsy boys had stolen a few kisses in my adolescent years and I had even allowed a beau or two to press their lips to mine as an adult. Nothing compared to Edward. My heart hammered so hard I was almost sure he could hear it. The room seemed to become almost uncomfortably warm and small as he loomed over me. My fingers itched, I wanted to touch him so badly that I had to will my hands into fists and lock my arms to my sides. When he took me by the chin and gently tilted my face up, I waited for his kiss but it never seemed to come. His touch was so light but his presence was almost overwhelming. I was so flustered. His lips were so close but he seemed frozen in time as though the reason for his proximity was simply to memorize every detail of my face. I lost all shame in that moment. I'm almost positive I begged him to kiss me, to touch me, to do anything as long as he did something. I saw the spark that flared up in his eyes and then he finally, finally, lowered his head.
It was so slow. He lightly dragged his lips along mine, back and forth, setting off sparks like static electricity from one corner of my mouth to the other. I couldn't help but lean into him silently begging for more. I had never felt more alive than I did in that moment. I had no experience in the things he was doing or the way he made me feel. I simply tried to mirror his movements and I knew I was doing the right thing when he pulled me to him as if he, too, could feel that pull between us. Even practically crushed to his chest I could feel it wasn't near close enough. Then as he surprisingly dragged his warm wet tongue along my swollen bottom lip, a completely licentious thought flittered across my mind with a wantonness I didn't know I possessed. Maybe, just maybe, if the barrier of our clothing were removed we would then be close enough. I felt my entire body flush with heat at the thought.
When the knock came at the door I didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the interruption. As furious as I was at James Meadows for insinuating to Edward that he had a say in who was permitted in my company, I was honestly thankful for the interference. The feelings I had for Edward had completely overpowered my common sense. The argument that followed with my once valued manager was eye opening for us both. As I made it clear to Mr. Meadows that my personal life was for solely me to dictate, I was able to sort out my feelings for Edward.
I was unusually quiet as Alice did my hair and helped me into wardrobe for my performance that night. I don't think she even noticed I was smiling before she ever started her romantic tale. She was telling me all about a young man who worked at the hotel, the same one who saw us to our rooms and carried our bags. She was voicing her excitement over meeting him and we both wore matching grins. She was as torn as I was over what would happen after the play. Life traveling with a theater company didn't leave much room for attachments. She had come to the same conclusion I had, we were both going to ignore the ticking of the clock and enjoy what little time we had left with the men who had caught our attention. I envied her in that, while I had to spend a large portion of the evening working, she would be watching the play from off stage with Jasper. I tried not to think about the time lost on stage when I could be spending it with the man I loved.
I loved him. I loved Edward. I could feel it with every fiber of my being. I couldn't wait until I saw him again so I could tell him. I didn't care that he might not be ready to hear such a declaration from a woman he had known for only one day. Something in the way he looked at me, though, told me that he might be surprised but he would welcome such news. I had a hard time concentrating on my lines. We were putting on a romantic comedy and timing was everything. I tried to deny the pull I had to look into the audience for Edward. Every time I faced the patrons of the theater I couldn't help but scan the crowd for him instead of looking over everyone's head and delivering my lines like I normally did. I knew I was in trouble the moment our eyes met.
He had this far off dreamy look in his eyes and he was wearing that crooked smile that I loved so much. I started with the correct lines but I went on a complete tangent telling Edward, right there in front of everyone, that I loved him. No one in the audience knew that the sentimental speech was not part of the script. I don't think Edward did either, but he was moved by my words which were so very clearly directed towards him. I wove the speech into the play somewhat seamlessly despite the change of my tone and demeanor. Once the first act was over everyone backstage congratulated me on the save, telling me that all great actors flub their lines at some time. Only James Meadows knew differently, as was apparent by the steel in his eyes. He had glared at me indignantly before storming off into the night instructing two stage hands to follow in his wake.
I couldn't find Edward after the play. He tried to see me during the busy intermission but he didn't even get close enough to speak to me before I was escorted away for my hair and wardrobe change. We were at least able to share a smile before he returned to his seat. This time it wasn't hard to find his smiling face in the audience when the curtain came up. Moments after I had stepped on stage, I saw him curiously get escorted out by an usher and that was the last I saw of him that night.
Two hours after the play ended, I had Alice and Jasper still searching frantically for Edward in my stead while I fought with Mr. Meadows. He met me backstage immediately following the last bow with my bags packed and was demanding that we depart immediately, ahead of the rest of the company. I refused to leave without first talking with Edward. Mr. Meadows became as livid as I have ever seen him. He accused Edward of using me for nothing more than a dalliance. He told me that I owed him my success and everything I had and then had the gall to accuse me of being a gullible slattern.
Realizing that I had nothing heavy or sharp to throw at his head, I slapped him soundly before giving him a piece of my mind. I informed him that it was my talent that gained him his success and that he owed me everything he had. I told him I let him use me and mold me as he saw fit all these years because we both had the same goals. I never had a reason or want to question him until I met Edward. I had hired him to manage my career and that in no way, shape, or form was he ever sanctioned to rule my personal life.
He then tried to make me feel guilty and ungrateful by telling me I didn't appreciate all he had done for me, all he had sacrificed to further my career and keep me happy. He tried to make it sound as though I was completely beholden to him.
I told him that everything he did or sacrificed to further my career was for the greater good of James Meadows and no one else. His pride made sure that everyone knew the he discovered me, he 'molded' me, that he was the driving force behind my talent and burgeoning stardom. Then I fired him. I reminded him that he was not my father, but an employee who had well overstepped his bounds and was well deserving of his dismissal. He lacked the authority to speak to me in such a manner or demand anything from me.
His parting remarks were meant to cut deep. He told me that Edward cared nothing for me and that his absence was proof of my foolishness.
That was the last I ever saw of James Meadows. He had unthinkingly lost his temper backstage and there were enough eavesdroppers and onlookers to witness our altercation. Word travels fast in the entertainment industry. What little fame I had fueled the gossip of his very public dismissal and made sure that any and all future clients knew of what a tyrant he could be. His career was ruined at his own hand and I held no remorse for him.
Alice and Jasper approached me after Mr. Meadows stormed off and informed me that Edward was nowhere to be found in the hotel. His room was devoid of luggage and personal items, but they were able to find the usher who escorted Edward from the theater. He had told them that a balding man he didn't recognize with red hair and an unkempt mustache gave him an urgent note for Edward but he neither knew what the note contained nor where Edward went after leaving the theater.
I was worried for Edward more than anything. I knew I wasn't the only one who had strong feelings for the other. He wouldn't have just left without some explanation. Mr. Meadows was wrong; I wasn't being foolish. Edward's absence proved nothing. I tossed and turned all night when I was finally able to fall asleep. I awoke feeling less than rested and more than anxious. I quickly cleaned up and dressed and fled from the hotel as the sun was just starting to rise. I walked along the shoreline path and remembered all the time I had spent with Edward.
I found myself once again under the willow tree where it all began. I couldn't have been mistaken. Every word he spoke, every look he gave me, every smile, every touch… they were all sincere. I was sure of it. I could feel it to be true. I made up my mind to do everything I could to find him. Logically, I felt I should start in Chicago. I could send a telegram to the theater company in Denver and let them know that I would not be there for tonight's performance and that my understudy, Jessica, should be made aware that I might be leaving the tour altogether leaving her to take my place indefinitely. As I walked back towards the hotel I tried to form a plan and not to let the doubts seep in. I tried not to find any truth to Mr. Meadow's parting words. All I knew of Edward was what he had shown me yesterday. I knew him but I really didn't know anything about him. He could have a whole other life outside of this hotel. I caught myself beginning to panic at what that life might entail… or who… I pushed away those thoughts and focused on what my heart was telling me instead of my mind. I needed to find him.
I didn't have far to look. I would recognize that unruly, unfashionable mop of hair anywhere. The sun was hitting him in such a way that he looked to be wearing a fiery red halo on his downturned head. It's hard to mistake that wonderfully unfashionable suit of his either, I thought with an internal giggle. I called to him as loud as I could and just smiled. My heart was in my throat and my feet were frozen to the ground. He stood and when that dazzling smile lit up his face it just drew me to him. I ran. I picked up my skirts as high as I could and I ran to him. He caught me on the stairs and we held each other so tight. He thought I had left him. Never. I would never leave willingly. Never.
Edward's arm was wrapped around me and his hand had a firm hold on my hip as we ascended the stairs. I was in heaven. I must have floated into the hotel and across the lobby. Reality came crashing down on me when I saw his hand as he reached for the room key. The skin on his knuckles was broken and there was some bruising and swelling, too. I knew how men's knuckles came to be in such condition. I immediately snapped my head up to look at his face, to really look at his face, and not get lost in those beautiful green eyes for once. Oh, his face. Who had done that to him? He wouldn't tell me. I felt a fierce need to protect him, to nurture him, even to scold him. I bit my tongue and pulled him into my room. Having taken care of my brothers injuries in their hot tempered youth, I knew what needed to be done. There was a thin layer of some kind of dust or dirt on his coat and I could see it on his face, too. He was filthy, really, and smelled of… hay? I sighed internally when I saw the wincing as I forced his coat from his shoulders. Stupid men and their stupid need to resort to physical violence.
I was such a hypocrite because when he told me that James Meadows was responsible for this, for hurting and bruising my love while he lied to my face in an effort to keep us apart, I saw red. James Meadows was a very lucky man. Had he remained in this hotel last night, had I known where he was at that moment, I don't think anyone could have stopped me from having another 'altercation' with him. I may be small but I was pretty good with a croquet mallet and I knew exactly where to find one.
Then Edward and I were bickering… and I loved it. He was here with me and bellyaching worse than any two of my brothers combined as I cleaned him up and checked for broken bones. When I asked him where he didn't hurt, I never expected him to answer my flippant question. I had asked without expecting an answer and spoke only for the sake of emphasis. He pointed to his elbow with a smug look on his face thinking he had won with the last word. I don't know what came over me. I was just so happy he was here with me and I was having a hard time concentrating on anything other than the broad expanse of his chest staring right back at me now that his cuts and scrapes were tended to. I wanted to kiss him again so badly. So, I did… on his elbow.
In seconds, I was in his arms again and his mouth was on mine. I just wanted to be closer to him. I was shocked when his tongue entered my mouth. I didn't know what to do; it was alarming and thrilling at the same time. Once the shock passed, I was able to feel. His strong hands held me to him while my hands pulled at his bare shoulders. His warm wet tongue moving against mine was so foreign but so welcome. He leaned into me and he held me just a bit tighter when I moved my tongue against his in response so I must have done something right. He tried to pull away from me but I brought him back. He thought he was taking advantage of me but his hesitancy only endeared him more to me. I wanted to feel his tongue in my mouth again. I wanted that tingling feeling it brought to return so, in a bold move, I kissed him.
I was utterly stunned when he took his mouth from mine and set me aside to escape from our embrace. He respected me enough to stop when neither one of us clearly wanted to. I have to smile when I think about how brash I was back then. That man really got my blood boiling.
Out of all my friends back home, I was the only one yet unmarried. Actually, I was the only one without children, too. I had met unmarried women in my profession, even younger women, who were nowhere near as naïve as I was. It wasn't too uncommon for unattached women of a certain age to take a lover. I had never understood any of it until now. I had never come to feel near the amount of need or wantonness that I felt for Edward. I wasn't about to let him go.
He was afraid that he couldn't provide for me. I had to convince him that Edward, the man, was all I ever wanted of him. I knew I had money. It wasn't a fortune but it was more than enough. I knew that Edward didn't come from means the second I laid eyes on him. No matter how well he wore that tailored suit, it was hard to miss how out of date it was. Maybe by twenty years. My father, who was in law enforcement, taught his children to look beyond often superficial exteriors and actually see the person underneath. I assumed his suit might have belonged to his father because surely Edward was a little boy when it was made. If anything, I was glad for Edward's lack of funds that his clothing advertised. He received enough attention from the female populace as it was without women thinking he was well to do. I didn't care where or how we lived as long as we were together. He finally believed me.
There are no words for what happened next. Edward touched me and kissed me and made me feel things I never thought possible. After what we shared I knew that I would never let him go. I never have. He was the last man to kiss these lips. The last man to hold me or love me. It's a bittersweet thing to remember those times and even after all these years the thought of that morning makes my heart flutter and brings a warm blush to my cheeks. When I've felt lonely, I would remember the love he made me feel and it would make me smile as it brought tears to my eyes. I'm amazed my poor heart has lasted this long but I knew I would see him again. I had his precious watch, after all.
I had hoped that the watch held some secret, a clue to tell me what happened that evening. We had the most amazing morning and I was looking forward to a lifetime of such days. We were both so happy. We were to be married. I don't think either one of us could stop smiling; I didn't believe that it had a thing to do with the wine. I freed his pocket watch from his waistcoat to check the time. We had been abed nearly all day sleeping off and on and neither one of us had any idea.
That watch was probably the only thing he would have been able to keep if Alice had any say in the matter. She had been dying to get her hands on my 'gentleman friend' and his wardrobe since she first laid eyes on him. I toyed with the fob chain and broached the subject. He was a man, after all, and I hoped he wouldn't be so prideful as to not allow me to spend money on him. He then proceeded to sing the praises of his beloved, one and only, ridiculously out-of-date, brown suit as he modeled it animatedly for me. The pleasure I felt in that moment, watching his antics and loving smile, was such a contrast to the horror that followed.
His handsome face drained of all color and his smile fell quickly as his gaze fell upon something small that he had taken from his pocket. The look of agony on his ashen face when he looked into my eyes scared me like nothing has ever in my life. Edward was a vibrant, healthy man then, suddenly, he began trembling and fell to his knees in apparent weakness. I had heard of men being suddenly struck down by stroke or an episode of the heart. Almost immediately I realized that this was something altogether different and yet I was just as helpless to stop it from happening.
The room seemed to bend and flex around him like fat ripples moving across the surface of the lake when a stone had been cast into it. I was frozen in my spot unable to comprehend what I was seeing. I could see him gasping for air but the sound of his labored breathing seemed to come from so very far away. He reached out to me and I called to him desperately praying that he would make it stop. Just as I made the decision to run to him, to take him into my arms and drag him away from whatever it was that was happening… he disappeared. I screamed for him but there was no answer.
I didn't know what had happened. I was terrified, surely I had gone mad. People didn't just vanish. Was I having a nightmare? I had slept so fitfully last night, maybe I had yet to wake up. I raised my trembling hand to my forehead and that was when I realized what was still clutched in the palm of my hand. Edward's gold pocket watch.
Alice found me hours later curled on the floor clutching the timepiece to my breast staring vacantly at the corner of the room where I last saw my love. I willed him to return. I prayed for it. I begged. Alice didn't know what to do with me. I didn't know what to do with me.
For days I had the watch clasped firmly in my hand so as not to lose it in the same way I had lost my Edward. It was all I had left of my love. It was the only physical proof that he hadn't deserted me during the play. That the day we had spent loving one another did, in fact, happen. That he came back to me.
For weeks I wasted away in my hotel room waiting for Edward to miraculously return. I had so many questions left unanswered. I replayed the events of those few days in my mind over and over trying to find answers, any answers at all. Certain things stood out to me as I dissected every word spoken, every smile, every hand gesture. His mannerisms seemed off just a bit. The way he spoke at times and even his body language… I couldn't name exactly what it was that didn't fit. I had dismissed anything odd at the time but after what had happened, I could no longer deny that there was something very different about Edward Masen. He told me he was from Chicago and I believed him. He had just a hint of an accent. It was subtle but it was noticeable. Alice had lived in Chicago her whole life until a few years ago and she pronounced and enunciated her words the same way, if a bit more pronounced. He was from Chicago yet on more than one occasion he had stressed how very far away he had traveled to meet me. It made no sense…
I traveled to Chicago when I was finally able to gather my wits about me. I had hired a private investigator and he had found an Edward Masen in the city, but he was just a little boy. It was all I had to go on, so I went to the Masen's and introduced myself. Joseph and Abigail Masen lived in a very modest home just outside of the city and were kind enough to invite me in and answer my questions. They knew I was looking for an Edward Masen of Chicago and told me that Edward was a family name. Joseph told me that they had named their son after his grandfather and great-grandfather. They didn't know of any Edwards in their family who were the correct age and physical description of my Edward.
I began to question what Edward had told me. Was anything he said truthful? It was a disheartening experience to talk to Joseph and Abigail until their son walked into the room. I had noticed Abigail's green eyes but it was unsettling to see them in her son. Little Edward Masen had his mother's green eyes and his fathers dark red hair. He looked as though he could be the son of my Edward or perhaps even Edward himself as a child. I didn't know it at the time but I was meeting my Edward's great-uncle. His grandfather, Anthony, wouldn't be born for almost another ten years.
It truly was decades before I realized what had happened; before I allowed myself to truly believe it. Edward had mentioned something called a zipper becoming popular in fashion. I had forgotten all about it until I finally saw one a few years after his disappearance. It took almost twenty years until zippers were on nearly every garment sold as Edward had implied.
Edward had mentioned the name Dr. Carlisle Cullen when we were out on the lake. He said that Dr. Cullen gave him the means in which to travel to meet me. I had assumed he meant money at the time supposing what I did of Edward's financial status. Then, about thirty years ago, I finally met a young Carlisle Cullen, a brilliant student who had difficulty earning the respect of his peers due to his preoccupation with time travel.
Time travel.
I tried to find any other reason for what I saw the day Edward disappeared. He knew what was happening to him. He wasn't shocked by the event that took him from me but he was clearly pained by its happening and desperate for it to stop. Edward knew he was leaving me. Time travel was the only thing that made sense as impossible as it seemed. Finding Carlisle further supported my theory. In that same year Edward Masen married Elizabeth Stewart. I knew what was to come and so I waited. Four years after they wed, Elizabeth gave birth to Edward Anthony Masen. He had his mother's grass green eyes in lieu of his father's stormy ocean green and his mother's fiery red hair gave him a more coppery version of his fathers auburn locks.
The birth of Edward was positively surreal for me. I watched him grow slowly looking more and more like the man I fell in love with. I tried to stay away. I truly did. I still found myself checking in on him from time to time, from a chubby toddler playing at the park near his home all the way to the young man who stood before me today.
My favorite day of the year to 'visit' him was the day after Christmas. I didn't see him every year, but the years I did warmed me and helped make the holiday far less lonesome for me. He was always so happy on those days. His brilliant smile at any age was reminiscent of our time together. It brought me some measure of true happiness again when I watched him joyfully riding a shiny new bicycle or playing with a new remote control car. I near had a heart attack when I saw him fall off his skateboard that first time. As he grew into a young man, I saw him less and less. Partly due to my failing health and partly to due with the fear I had that I could, or would, somehow change his future in such a way that he would never find me. As strange as it sounded, even to me, I knew that as the years went by he was getting closer and closer to finding me and I waited with bated breath for our reunion.
It did strange things to my heart to see him again as a grown man. It had been almost two years since I'd seen him in person. I knew that I wasn't long for this world; I could feel it. I had to make sure I saw him one last time and the concert afforded me the perfect opportunity. It was the greatest joy I've experienced in over a half century to attend his concert and to hear his music. I had waited over sixty years for him to fulfill his promise to play for me. I might have quietly cried through the entire performance. I lingered at the stage entrance hoping to catch one more glimpse of him when I overheard his good friend Emmett giving directions to some critics so they could meet Edward at the after-party. The temptation was too great. I had my driver park outside the apartment building for hours while I debated whether or not to go upstairs. I just sat in the car holding and stroking the pocket watch as I watched for Edward to leave the party. I was so tired. It wasn't just the physical fatigue that was weighing me down; I was tired of all the waiting.
There were so many young people in the apartment but there was only one I was interested in. Emmett's boisterous laugh caught my attention and there they were, to my left, standing no more than thirty feet away. My heart fluttered again at the sight of his crooked grin and I felt a little more lightheaded being that close to him. I hadn't been that close in over a decade.
I was torn. I wanted to go to him and tell him everything, but I couldn't. He would think me a crazy old woman and his dismissal of me would be so much worse than his indifference. He and Emmett were arm in arm and holding raised glasses of champagne as someone took a picture. Someone must have said something funny because they broke out in laughter. His laugh was breaking my heart. I haven't heard his laugh since he was a child. This laugh had the deep rich timbre of a man, though. I tried to blink back the tears that were threatening to spill as memories of our last morning together forced themselves upon me.
I never thought I'd hear his laugh again.
Before I gave it any thought, I closed the distance between us. I gently pushed people aside until they all seemed to make a path for me leading straight to my Edward. I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have approached him. I was breaking so very many of my self-imposed rules at that very moment, but I couldn't find it in myself to care. If that was to be the last time I ever saw him, I wanted to, no, I needed to be closer. He turned and looked right at me and I couldn't look away. I just stayed my course and, determined, I walked right up to him. He was there, right in front of me. He was so close I could reach out and touch him. Oh, to touch him again. I raised my hand to his face, half expecting him to disappear, much like I had all those many years ago. He looked at me obliviously, a mask of confusion with a hint of sadness on his face.
"Come back to me," I whispered desperately. Then I pressed his watch into his hand and closed his warm fingers around my most prized possession.
My chest ached when I looked down and saw the timepiece returned to him, the fob dangling from his large hand. It was too much. I needed to leave before any questions were asked of me. I turned and was easily folded back into the small crowd and made my way to the street and my waiting car. My hands felt so empty on the drive to my apartment near Edward's childhood home. I never went anywhere without the watch myself. It was the one small tangible piece of him I had left. I missed the weight of the warm metal disk in the palm of my hand. My fingers itched to trace the filigree again as they were want to do most days. I smiled as I thought back on the first time I held it in my hand.
We were in the gazebo on the back lawn of The Grand Hotel and Edward had a peculiar look on his face. I remembered how his breath caught in his throat, how his body language changed as he looked upon me holding his watch and caressing the scrolls and arabesques. He told me someone very special to him gave him the watch and that he never went anywhere without it. I dismissed his behavior then but I understood it now. I had given him his precious watch. He was reacting to seeing me reunited with the timepiece much like I just reacted to the sight of the watch in his hands once more.
The soft smile didn't leave my face as I readied for bed. I had an immense sense of completion. This was what I had been waiting for; I just didn't know it. I felt as though a great weight had been lifted from me. I slid between the cool crisp sheets and sighed in satisfaction. I knew that, by giving him the watch, I had just set Edward on the path that would one day soon lead him back to me. I dimmed the lamp on my bedside table and gazed lovingly at my music box as the tinkling melody of Edward's music lulled me to sleep once again. The song whisked me away to a small wooden boat drifting lazily on the water. With the expanse of The Grand as his backdrop, I could see my Edward smiling his crooked smile as he sat across from me humming the melody.
My lullaby.
A/N: Read & Review!
PHEW! What'dya think of that? Please send me some love if you think this POV worthy. This was a tough one to turn out. I just had a hard time trying to convey everything I wanted without reliving the entire story through Bella's eyes. As it is now, this side shot is a little over a third the size of Come Back to Me! LOL Everytime I tried to proofread, I had to change everything around and add another couple hundred words or so. I was beginning to think it would never be done! LOL
I hope no one is too disappointed that I skimmed over the lemon. It was a four thousand word lemon as it was and it's scary to think how long this POV would have been if we had to relive it again. ;o) I did enjoy writing up BPOV of the first kiss, though… :sigh:
I hope I did Bella justice. I'm not sure when I will post another sideshot. Please let me know what sideshot/POV you would like to see next and I will see what I can do. :o)
I've been ignoring my AH/AU story, Baby Love, and I need to get back to it so I can start posting it soon. I also have a rough outline for the CBTM alternate ending that I will be working on and hope to get posted relatively soon as well. ;o)