"Guests, please welcome NFL football star Jacob Black and his girlfriend, Isabella Swan, to the Vicki Laurent show on this wonderful Monday morning."

The applause from the crowd is deafening, and it takes everything in me to continue walking toward the sofa in the middle of the stage. I don't like the politics of live television. Every question or piece of gossip is exaggerated and played upon to make the most impact and raise ratings. Typically I leave anything having to do with the media to Jacob because despite my relationship with the world's highest paid quarterback, I hate being in the spotlight. The only reason I'm here now is because he begged me—something about needing to make an announcement.

"So Isabella—"

"Bella, please. Only my parents still call me Isabella," I interrupt the fiery red head.

Vicki nods. "So, Bella, you and Jacob were high school sweethearts, right?"

I'm puzzled with her questioning but decide to indulge her for Jacob. "Yes. We met in high school during our junior year."

"How long have you two been together?"

I smile and look over at Jacob and our intertwined hands. "We'll have been together for eleven years tomorrow."

"Isn't that sweet, everyone? How great is that?" Vicki says to the crowd, and once again they erupt in applause. I look at the faces around me and can't help but feel a heavy sense of apprehension building the more I sit here. "You guys have a child together, right?" Why is she only addressing me? I thought this was an interview for the two of us. I turn toward Jacob, silently communicating that I want him to jump in.

"Yes. We have a seven year old named Isobel," I respond when Jacob does nothing but smile nervously at me.

"I think I speak for everyone here when I ask: why aren't you and Jacob married?"

I bristle a bit at her question, and the answer comes out colder than I would have liked. "With all due respect, that is something between the two of us."

"Well, Bella, Jacob has something he would like to share with you." Her thin smile turns cold and calculating. What could he possibly have to tell me in front of millions of people?

"Bella, you know I love you…but I'm not in love with you." I can feel the blood drain from my face as I snatch my hand away from his.

"Jake? I don't understand. What are you saying?" The hot white lights are trained on me, and I feel as if I'm suffocating in my skin. The dress I'm wearing feels as if it's made of the scratchiest material possible. I think I'm going to pass out.

"Bella, it looks like Jacob is breaking up with you." The red-headed tramp adds, putting her two cents in.

I can't process everything that's happening right now. Breathe, Bella. Stand up and leave. Put on the mask and walk away. Don't let these vultures see you break down.

As gracefully as I can, I get up off the sofa and struggle to put my façade back into place. I know a smile is impossible at this point, so I just try not to grimace. I have to get out of here. Alice. I need my best friend right now. Thankfully I see her beckoning me over toward the side exit.

"Bella, wait!" Jacob calls, and the sound of his voice stops me in my tracks. "There's more."

I stand with my back to him, facing the side exit. A part of me still hopes this is all just a joke. He'll wrap his arms around me, tell me he loves me, and apologize for being so tasteless and cruel. The other part of me knows that this isn't a joke. Jacob is humiliating me on TV in front of millions of people and now he's telling me that there's more. I cannot deal with more. More will destroy me.

With a deep breath he says, "I cheated on you with Leah and she's… she's pregnant."

"You cheated on me with one of my best friends?" I say in disbelief, sounding much calmer than I feel. The three of us were like sisters; Leah, Alice, and I had been best friends for just about all of our lives.

"I'm sorry, Bells. I never meant to hurt you."

I can't take any more. It's all too much. The audience is yelling and screaming. Vicki Laurent is sneering at me. And all I want is to go back home, hold my child, and hide. I tear the microphone clip off my dress and throw the tiny device on the sofa, just missing Jacob's head. A second later I'm running from the studio and into the arms of Alice as she half carries me out the door and into the parking lot.

/HF/

"Bells, I'm really sorry, but the video of you and Jacob has gone viral and the press is demanding a statement from you. We have to tell them something if you ever want to have some peace and quiet," Alice tells me while I'm packing up everything that belongs to me and Isobel.

It's only been a day—one day since my entire life exploded in front of millions of people.

"What are they saying about me?" I ask out of morbid curiosity.

"The 'Ice Queen' seems to be the general consensus. They were expecting you to scream and yell, and when you didn't give them that they decided to make it seem like everything was your fault. Jacob came out looking like a fucking saint. " Disgust and hatred are clear in her voice.

I was never the media's golden child, but I wouldn't have expected them to kick me while I was down.

"Can't I just mourn the loss of my best friend and lover without those parasites intruding? The tears on my face haven't even dried yet. I mean, what do they want from me? Do they want to hear how fucking heartbroken I am that the man I thought was the love of my life cheated on me with my fucking best friend? Or do they want to hear about how heartbroken my daughter will be when she finds out her daddy left her mommy on national fucking television for her Aunt Le-Le? Oh God, there's no way for me to hide this from her!" And that realization scares me the most. If I don't tell her, though, someone else will.

"Easy on the language and yelling, Bella. You don't want to wake up Izzy."

I look over at my sleeping daughter on the couch and give Alice a curt nod.

"Okay, so let's talk about your plan. What are you going to do now that you know Jacob is a cheating asshole?"

Leave it to Alice not to mince words when I just got my heart ripped out.

"God, Allie, I just don't know what to do anymore! I spent my entire life loving Jake. I don't know how to live without him. All I know is that I need to leave this house and possibly burn every single piece of clothing the bastard owns."

"Alright, I can work with that. First, you will not burn his clothes. I don't want to bail you out of jail for pulling a 'Left-Eye'. You can, however, pour bleach all over them. Second, I'm going to tell the press that you're going on sabbatical in Europe to reevaluate your life and fix your broken heart. Third, you're actually going to take Izzy and go back to the quiet little town of Forks and stay with your dad. I'll join you there in a week, after I tie up all the loose ends here." She looks at me expectantly. "Think about it. The paparazzi would never expect you to go back to the place where you and Jacob met. It's foolproof. "

Forks. I haven't been back to my hometown in almost eight years. Maybe going home is the answer. Let's face facts here: my life can't get any worse.

"How soon can you book a flight out for us?"

I already booked you and Izzy a flight for Friday at noon, and I arranged a moving company to come for your things by three tomorrow. Everything should arrive in Forks by Saturday. I also took the liberty of having the bigger items kept in a small storage facility in Port Angeles, and I'll try to have a real estate agent ready to show you some houses maybe by Sunday. "

"Thank you, Allie. You are an absolute godsend." Not only will she get the media off my back, but she also managed to set everything up so I'd be settled in Forks in just a week. All I have to do is call my father to let him know we're coming. It would be the first of many fun conversations to come.