Title: Like a Broken Rose

Rated: M (for violence)

AN: Written for a fic exchange at heorinexchange, this was a request to be dark. This is my second Bella x Edward fic. Be gentle.

Disclaimer: Ms. Meyer owns them.

The smell.

He could taste it in his mouth, almost feel the liquid slipping down his throat, brushing the desire with a wild touch that only had him wanting more.

This was what he had wanted for so long. What continued to plague him the moment his eyes fell onto her angelic face as she stared in wonder at his strange actions.

Delicate, shaky strokes touched his face and stirred his attention to focus on the girl holding him tenderly in her arms.

It had happened so fast. The Volturi had snuck on them while their guards were down for the wedding. Alice had been blocked. She was busy trying to help Jasper find Esme. Carlisle was lost. No one knew what had happened to him.

Bella brushed a finger across his cheek, kissed his lips. "Y-You'll be alright," she whispered, but the statement stood in a question and Edward wrapped his arm around her waist, bringing her down to him.

The bloodstained grass of the meadow the Cullens' used for their baseball games had been the perfect place for the fight. However, Edward still couldn't fathom how the results turned out like they had.

Footsteps. Someone was coming closer to him and his beloved. A low growl rumbled in his throat a second before he could detect his sister, though he still couldn't staunch the need to show his mood.

"Edward," it was Alice, her eyes were cast down. They had found Esme? Even as he tried to grasp the stirrings of her mind, his heart, which hadn't beaten for centuries, finally skipped. He was dying. Again.

With a soft touch to Bella's shoulders, Alice stirred the girl to listen. She mirrored her saddened look but listened and before his sister could open her mouth, Edward knew.

"Don't you dare Alice!" He seethed and winced when the pain lacerated him in two, so deep that he could almost feel his blood rushing throughout his body – if it were even possible for a dead soul.

Her eyes darkened, but the determination didn't wither. She took in his warning look, then turned her attention back to Bella – this time no longer hesitant.

Suddenly, Edward felt a surge of energy and he went to reach for Bella, to block her away from the words about to be spoken to her, but she had her hands on his chest, pushing him back down. He wasn't sure what shocked him more, the fact that she tried to push him down or that he was actually overpowered by her.

Dread. Please Edward; it's the only way to save you and Bella, Alice thought as she moved her lips, already conveying her plan to Bella.

The young woman paled for only a second with the mention of blood, but it quickly faded and a set of eyes turned on him, glowing with willpower. "Bella no," he whispered. Why was it so hard to speak now?

Bella closed her eyes and he could see tears cascading down her cheeks, splashing against his skin. "Edward, there is no other choice. "If you don't, I'll die."

His mind seized up at the thought of this woman dying. No, she couldn't die. He wouldn't allow it. But how in the world was he going to save her when in the end he would be her Angel of Death?

Almost as if sensing his inner turmoil, Bella kissed his lips, her tongue slipping into his mouth and tangling with his. The heat radiated throughout his body. There were sounds beside them, footsteps retreating. They were alone.

"Bella," he breathed, her name catching on the end as he watched her unbuttoning the shirt, loosening the collar around her neck. Her pulse point bobbed and his eyes were entranced.

Cupping his hands up into hers, she kissed his knuckles before placing them exactly at the spot on her neck he'd been watching. He unconsciously licked his lips, suddenly parched and wishing for a drink.

"No!" He shouted, sickened from the thought and pulled his hand away, but it was quickly caught and brought back to the smooth path of skin.

Bella whimpered when his skillful fingers skimmed her chest, her breasts peaking out from the undone blouse. Edward bit his lip. Could he even stop himself once he finally tasted euphoria? Could anyone?

She was so delicate, like the frailness of a red rose's petals. Her cheeks bloomed crimson and again he couldn't stop himself from the thoughts that invaded his mind. Lips crashed mixing and mingling, the taste of her mesmerizing.

"Edward, please," Damn her and damn that word. It was like an unorthodox and enchanting call that pulled, calling him to listen to each and every word that followed after like a spell. She placed his fingers at the apex of her throat and hugged him, allowing his nose to brush up against her skin. "Do it. I want only you Edward. Please don't allow me to feel anymore heartache. I'm not that strong, no matter how you might see different."

It was a plea.

He didn't want to, even felt the need to push her away, but the smell brought his instinctive senses and he licked his lips once more.

"You won't hurt me."

He nodded, but did he believe it?

Was it even possible for someone like himself to stop from feeding on what was the most internal desire in their legendary species? No. Just the taste of Bella's lips had proved that. There was something more important, more desirable in his life than what flowed through the veins of humans and it was currently nibbling his bottom lip, her body hovering over his. A strange overwhelming need to touch her bare skin passed through him and before he could stop the thought, he lips touched the line of her collarbone. He heard the intake of breath from the girl and smirked. Even with the thirst burning his throat, this still seemed to give him a sense of pride.

A slip of the tongue against the heated flesh had her moan. "Edward, stop teasing me senseless." But he could hardly even think of stopping with the lush taste of her dancing along his taste buds.

It was damn near impossible to think straight with her so close, tempting and alluring.

So blinded by the woman's aroma, he never realized his mouth was inching towards her neck, already wishing for the crimson of his rose.

The startled gasp was what told it all as Bella shuddered, her arms tightly wrapped about his shoulders, fingers twisting into the black material of his shirt. Her eyes remained squeezed shut, droplets of tears crystallizing on the tips of black lashes. She could smell her own blood. It clouded her mind and she tried to solely focus on the feel of Edward's body. The bite didn't hurt as much as she had thought it would and if she remained still, the pain dulled.

Edward's lips mouthed against the pearly skin, a lone drop of blood shimming down its path. Not at all feeling quite like his normal maintained self, he couldn't stop the urge to lick it away. Bella felt the warmth of his tongue against her throat and a moan bubbled.

Where had that come from?

A smirk pulled at his lips, confidence slipping into the cracks of doubt as he did it again, feeling the shudder of her under him as a means to continue.

"E-dward?" Her voice sounded hoarse. Her eyes darted to his and he held himself above her, thinking to himself. "I don't feel any more pain. I thought it was painful when you trans-." Her words cut off with a gasp, and her entire body went still beneath him. Edward held her tightly close to him as her body spasmed with the sudden pain he knew she was feeling.

Bella moaned. "I'm okay," she gasped, gritting her teeth, her eyes watering. "I'm okay, Edward."

"Edward," Alice's voice overshadowed Bella's pain filled moans and Edward turned to find his sister giving him a look of sadness – but also curiosity.

"She'll be all right, you know," she said, even as she frowned. Red. Your eyes.

A frown was all he could manage before something overtook his body, stealing away his mobility, and his eyes lost focus. Alice looked shaken but there was nothing she could do to help him.

He had broken the oath to never drink blood from a human.

He had broken a beautiful rose and now...

Fin