A/N: Not mine. All characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.

This is the re-write for my story. I was planning on waiting until Sunday to post, but I'm not a very patient person. Well I can be, but I just get excited, and now I'm rambling. Hope you enjoy the re-write.


My Life. My World. My Love.

My eyes were closed, but I was not sleeping. How could one be expected to sleep when one's world was destroyed. I wanted to escape this joke of a reality. Knowing that my wife laid beside me her eyes were closed as well. How could I be given something so wonderful just to have it taken away again. It's like a child who has a beloved toy or some candy or something and taking it away from them. You just shouldn't do it. Yet I knew I would never have her back. My love.

This was no ordinary relationship. We were no ordinary couple. We went through all the emotions and ups and downs that were typical of any relationship. Okay, I admit, we were an ordinary couple, except for one thing. We knew we were meant to be from the moment we laid eyes on each other. It was love at first sight. It was true love. We were soul-mates.

I was in eleventh grade and she was in ninth when we met. Fourteen and seventeen years old. She wanted to marry me she said. I wouldn't deny her that, but I asked her to wait. No rush to get married. To be honest, now that I think about it, I ask myself, why did we wait?

When she was seventeen, in the quiet of her bedroom, she got down on one knee and asked me to marry her. I told her to wait until she was at least out of high-school. She laughed at that, but I could also see the self-doubt in her face. Always quick to doubt that I wanted her. Silly girl. She wouldn't take no for an answer. I should have said yes, my life.

In April of that year, two months before she graduated, my world, our world, fell apart. She hadn't been feeling well. She was tired all of the time, and she couldn't keep anything down. She was deteriorating very quickly. Her family admitted her to the hospital to have some tests done. I knew she was in good hands. My father would make sure she had everything done that was possible. When the test results came back my heart sank She was sicker than anybody could have imagined. My heart broke in two that day we found out what was causing her to be so sick. It was cancer. My world.

We were told then to make the best of her life, of the time we had left with her. Between rounds of chemotherapy and her parents being too stubborn and insistent that I stay away, she was slipping away. I begged with them to let me be with her. I pleaded with them. They finally agreed to let me be with her, only because she wouldn't have it any other way. She was denied nothing, and we needed each other. She was my strength and I was hers. My love.

At first she appeared to get better, she even started to fill out some, even though she was constantly sick to her stomach. She somehow managed to find extra energy, even though I could see how tired she was. It was nice to pretend, her attitude said. She did home studies in hopes of finishing school, which she did. I helped her to study. I didn't want her missing out on any life experiences. I was going to make sure of it.

The evening of her graduation, in the quiet of her room, I got down on one knee and proposed. She giggled and asked what took me so long. She said yes. I knew she would. We got married two weeks later, in the same church my parents were married. I know her parents didn't approve, but I could not bring myself to care. It was a small, quiet service, held in the company of our families. The bridesmaid was her best friend, my sister. Alice couldn't help the tears that escaped her eyes. There really wasn't a dry eye in the church.

I brought her to the house that I had bought for us. She looked tired, she looked weak, I put a smile on my face and tried to act as happy as I felt. It was only after eight in the evening, but I brought her to our room. I slowly and gently stripped her clothes off, never taking my eyes off of her own eyes.

Once her clothes were off, I took a moment to admire her beauty. I could tell she was feeling a little shy, a little nervous. I understood, it was our first time. I slowed down a little more, savoring and worshiping her body. Her skin felt clammy, her lips were slightly blue. I wanted to stop, she told me to continue. I didn't deny her. My world.

We made love that night, only once, I wouldn't overdo my beautiful woman, she was already so weak. I held her well into the morning, letting her sleep in my arms I woke her up at sunrise by whispering in her ear. She was breathing too shallow and her skin was cold to the touch. It wouldn't be long now. I didn't want to think about it, what those signs were pointing to.

We watched the sunrise, both of us content. She shivered and asked me if I was alright. I chuckled lightly and told her I should be asking her that. She leaned on me heavily now. She said, that yes she was alright. She was expecting the end of her time on Earth and she wasn't scared. She only regretted leaving me. She blinked slowly several times, struggling to keep her eyes open. I kissed her forehead, that single kiss speaking more words than I was capable of at the moment

"Edward?" she mumbled

"Yes love." I answered

"I love you" was all she said, then closed her eyes and they didn't reopen.

"I love you too, my Bella" I answered.

I held her for the rest of the night, it's what she would have wanted. I could not, I would not, deny her anything.

It's been twenty long years since I lost the love of my life. My world. When I close my eyes, I still see her face, still smell the scent of her shampoo. My love, frozen forever at eighteen, forever in my heart I haven't necessarily moved on, but I am in a relationship with the mother of my children. I just couldn't bring myself to remarry.

"Be happy" I hear her tell me.

"I'm trying. I will" I reply.

"I love you, Edward"

"I love you too, my Bella"

The End


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