Title: Unknown Comfort
Fandom: Twilight
Characters: Edward and Alice, mentioning of Edward/Bella
Synopsis: Edward is worried about the future, but doesn't really want to admit it. Lost in thought, Alice comes to him and gives him something he didn't even know he needed.
Rating: G
Word Count: 685
Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters, just playing in Stephenie Meyer's world.
Edward stood in his room and stared at the wall. Bella asked for some space and time with Charlie, and he was happy to oblige. He would be seeing her in a few hours in her room, though every moment away from Bella felt like an eternity. He moved from the window where he had been brooding and walked over to the huge bed that he had bought for Bella. He sat down on the bed and ran his hand over the comforter. He inhaled deeply, Bella's smell still lingering in the air. He thought back to the last moment she had been on this bed, how desperately he longed for her and how proud he was that she told him to wait. She was sacrificing so much for him, a debt he could never repay, regardless of immortality and damnation.
A soft knock on the door drew Edward out of his own thoughts. "Come in," he called out to Alice, hearing her mind and recognizing the feeling of her nearness.
"I just wanted to check on you, you've been kind of quiet lately," Alice said as she waltzed lightly into the room and took a seat on the bed, bouncing softly.
Edward shrugged and sat down next to her, staring at his hands. He flexed the muscles in his hands and stared at how deceptively normal they looked. What looked like a normal human fist had enough power to crush someone's head inside his hand. Several moments they sat in silence before Edward spoke. "I'm nervous, Alice."
"I know," she quietly responded and reached out for his hand. Edward looked up into her bronze eyes. Her hand reached up towards his face. "Our life is dangerous, and Bella knows that, she's ready to accept it as her own."
"That's just it. It's hard, it's dangerous, it's never ending lies and deception as people we know come and go out of our lives. We stay frozen as our friends die."
"And Bella knows that, Bella wants this path because she wants to spend eternity with you."
Edward stood and crossed the room, he could feel the weight of her eyes on him.
"Edward, just let her love you."
The words hit him like a ton of bricks. He stopped breathing it was such a powerful blow. Alice was right and he could not deny it. He turned and looked at her. "Regardless of what I say, the decision has already been made hasn't it?"
He saw a flicker of something across Alice's face. She knew he didn't like to have all of her secrets revealed. He could hear her screaming some song in a language he did not understand in her head.
Edward smiled. "Thanks, Alice. Could you answer one question though?"
"Sure," she said, bouncing slightly on the bed.
"Is she safe and happy?"
Alice jumped up and crossed to him, beaming. "Edward, she has me to spend eternity with, of course she's happy. And with all of us around keeping an eye on her, plus being able to defend herself and fight alongside us, she is definitely safe."
Edward gave her a look, wanting something a little more substantial, and Alice quailed a little beneath his stare.
"It's going to be hard at first. She's going to miss her family and struggle, but her and Jasper are going to learn strength together, Rosalie will eventually accept her as the sister she never had, she's going to be an integral part of our family, and she will be the same Bella we all know and love. It's going to take time, though. We'll all have to be patient, but in the end, we will all be safe and happy."
Edward nodded and smiled. Alice squeezed his arm before sauntering out of the room. He turned and watched the last bit of daylight fade behind the trees. He reached over and grabbed the keys to the Volvo and left the room. He had a date to keep, and he had never felt so happy to go and see Bella as he did at this moment.
