Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all characters, of course.

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"I've been waiting,

I've been waiting for this moment all my life,

But it's not quite right."

-Silversun Pickups

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"Oh, Bella, your hair looks so pretty!" Angela gushed, as she fingered one of my curls.

"And your lipstick is perfect. I told you it would match your complexion," Jessica remarked, indignantly.

I blushed, looking down at the floor.

"Out of my way. Maid of honor coming through," a tinny voice barked.

Both girls parted quickly to make room for Alice, my best friend. I'm pretty sure they had become deathly afraid of my maid of honor throughout the whole planning of the wedding. She could come off as a bit...intense. I'm pretty sure she almost bit Jessica's head off when the bridesmaid critiqued the cut of her dress.

"Oh, Bella," she smiled as she stopped in front of me. "You look so beautiful. Jake's gonna fall in love all over again."

I sighed, gazing at myself in the reflection of the mirror.

'Beautiful', they called the sparkling white dress that dragged on the floor; the hair that had been styled for hours, just so that it would look 'natural'; the makeup that was plastered to my face; the heels that I would no doubt trip in. I did not see beautiful. I saw a girl in a white dress, feeling more out place than she'd ever felt in her entire life.

In less than a half hour, my name would be Isabella Marie Black.

My hands shook and my palms began to sweat. I tried to take a few deep breaths so that my nerves would not escalate into a full panic attack, but it was as if there was not enough oxygen in the room to fill my lungs.

The door creaked open and my mother, Renee, popped her head into the room. "Hey, girls," she smiled. "Could you give Bella and I a minute? I'd like to talk to her."

I was appreciative of this interruption. Maybe I wouldn't have to faint just yet.

Alice did not hesitate and quickly grabbed Jessica and Angela, dragging them out of the room.

Renee shot her a grateful glance and strode over to me.

"Oh, Bella...," she grabbed both of my hands, squeezing them gently. "There are no words to describe how gorgeous you look right now."

I smiled, mumbling my thanks.

"You're really doing this, huh? My baby girl is actually getting married." Her eyes sparkled with tears.

I was afraid to respond. Too afraid of my answer.

She sighed, running her fingers through my hair. "You must really love him. I know that your father and I never set the best example for you, as far as marriage goes, but I want you to know that marriage is very special. It means that you love the person more than the whole world; that you can't think of anything you want to do more than spend the rest of your lives together. When I married Charlie, I never felt that way. Ever. And it was a mistake to marry him, knowing that I didn't feel for him the way that I should." She sighed, sadly. "I am so happy for you though. This is the best day of your life." She smiled, a tear running over her cheek.

I felt my eyes well up too, but not out of happiness.

'What if I don't feel that way? What if I don't love him like I should?', I wanted to ask. But I couldn't. The words would not form on my tongue. I didn't want her to be dissapointed that I wasn't as happy as she thought.

There was a knock at the door and Alice came in. "Sorry to interrupt, but I think we're going to get started soon."

"Oh, alright," Renee answered. "Well, I better go get seated. I love you, Bella. No matter what." She gave me a serious look, before hugging me tightly and leaving the room. Perhaps she knew more about what I was feeling than she had let on.

"Are you ready, Bella?" Alice asked.

Was I ready? I tried to take a deep breath, but I still could not get enough oxygen. God, what was up with the air in here? Someone should fix that.

Oh, no...oh, no. I was not ready. I was ready to run, go anywhere except down that aisle.

Oh, Jake. I loved him. I did. But I knew in my heart of hearts that I did not want to spend the rest of my life with him.

I could not marry Jacob Black.

These thoughts hit me like a ton of bricks.

"Bella? Bella, are you okay?" Alice asked, frantically.

I was hyperventilating and my body would not stop shaking.

I ignored her question and grabbed a post-it and pen from the desk. I scribbled a short note. It was hard to read because my hand was shaking so much, but it was enough. No, of course it wasn't enough. No words would be enough to explain how I was feeling to the only man that I had ever loved.

I quickly folded it and shoved the note into Alice's hands. "Please give this to him."

"What? To Jake? What is this? Bella?" Alice looked terribly confused, but I couldn't explain it to her. I could barely explain what I was doing to myself.

I shook my head. "Please just give this to Jacob, Alice. Please. I'm begging you." My eyes were pleading.

Alice set her lips in a tight line. "Okay," she murmured. "But why? Just explain it to me, Bella. You're my best friend. You can trust me."

"I know. I'm sorry, but I can't. Please." I wasn't going to be able to speak much longer before I passed out.

Alice gave me a hurt look before leaving the room. Finally, I was alone.

It would be easy to leave; there was a side exit door right next to the room.

They really shouldn't make it so easy for brides to escape. Bad planning.

I quickly threw off the heels I was wearing and replaced them with a pair of Chuck Taylor's.

Finally, I made it out of the door and into the frigid cold outside. I shivered as the wind hit my cheeks.

And then I ran. Away from the church; away from my friends; away from my Jacob; away from the future that had been so certain until now.

Tears streamed down my face and still, there was not enough air in my lungs.

I don't know how long I ran for or how I didn't trip and fall along the way, but I had to stop. I was freezing and tired and I felt as if I were about to collapse.

The building I had stopped in front of was a small bar. It looked dark and empty inside, which I suppose would be expected at noon on a Saturday.

I wasn't exactly the bar type, but I made my way inside, nonetheless. I had to get out of the cold and sit down before my legs crumpled beneath me.

Inside, there were not many people. A few stragglers from the night before, I presumed, and a couple sitting in a booth, were all I noticed. I took a seat on the barstool and ordered a drink. I wasn't a big drinker but I was pretty sure that running away from your own wedding was a good cause to let loose a little.

I sipped the alcohol, ignoring the stares. I knew I probably looked crazy in my wedding dress and sneakers, but I hardly cared.

Next to me, someone sat down, the bottom of their stool scraping the floor.

"Excuse me, miss?" the person said. His voice was velvety and smooth. I was about to turn and tell him to screw off until I looked at him and was met with a shocking sight.

The man was beautiful. He had tousled bronze hair and bright green eyes. He was tall and muscular, yet thin. He smiled gently when I turned towards him.

"Curiosity ate the cat but do you mind me asking why you are wearing a wedding gown in a bar, by yourself? With Converse, nonetheless?" He smirked.

"I'm supposed to be getting married, right now." I replied, looking down, ashamed.

"Change of plans?" He raised an eyebrow.

I grimaced. "Something like that."

"Well, if it helps...my girlfriend just dumped me like yesterday's trash...also dumping my clothes out of the window of our apartment on the fifth floor. Not exactly the easiest to clean up. I guess I'm just happy that she didn't throw me out the window."

I couldn't help but laugh at the picture he'd put in my head. "I'm sorry." I gave him an apologetic look.

"Don't worry about it." He shrugged. Suddenly, the song, 'Cold Hard Bitch' came onto the sound system. The man laughed; it sounded lovely. "Ah, perfect song." He grinned and began to sing along, making his voice sound unnaturally out of tune.

I couldn't help but giggle and began to sing along with him.

We had finally finished the last chorus and were both doubled over in laughter.

I was perplexed by this stranger who had so easily changed my mood from dour to cheery. Well, not cheery....but at least I didn't feel like jumping off a cliff any time soon.

He smiled at me, a twinkle in his eye. "I'm Edward Cullen."

"Bella." I replied, blushing.

Edward smiled, reaching a hand out towards me. I held my breath, not understanding what he was doing. His hand touched my cheek before brushing a piece of my hair behind my ear. I exhaled.

Suddenly, I could breathe again.

-

"I've been waiting

I've been waiting for this moment..."

-

A/N: This is my first attempt at a chaptered fic, so I'd really appreciate reviews and such. Hopefully, this wasn't too bad heh. Anyways, the song is "Lazy Eye", by Silversun Pickups. Great song - I think it fit this chapter perfectly.