A/N - Remember to review, people! Thanks :)

Disclaimer - I do not own Twilight or its characters unfortunately, but hey, dreams are free.

Chapter One

I woke up to rain pattering on the tiled roof of the house, which wasn't exactly unusual, considering my location in the world. I still hadn't managed to drag myself out of the dreary and dismal town of Forks, and the constant rain only added to my depressed and lost state of mind. Mike had already risen and gone to work at the camping shop, which he took over from his parents just over a year ago. He usually shook me awake at 5.30am every morning so that I could get up and make him a full cooked breakfast while he took a shower, but he must have been feeling remotely human today, letting me sleep in for once.

I sat up and pulled the sheets back, and as I did so, a wave of nausea spread over me. I ran out of the bedroom and into the bathroom down the hall, only just making it in time before I vomited into the toilet.

When I had emptied my stomach of more than I even thought possible, I rinsed my mouth out with water and showered, turning the heat up as high as I could stand. I stood under the steady stream of water, easing out the knots in my muscles, and inspecting myself to see what new bruises I needed to try and hide today. I sighed, Why me? I thought to myself. What have I done to deserve this? I reached out and turned the shower off, drying myself gently with the old towel. I winced as I brushed over a tender spot on my shoulder, tears springing to my eyes. I didn't bother wiping them away, walking over to the mirror above the basin and towelling the condensation away, staring at my reflection. I was a shadow of my former self, barely recognisable as the same Bella Swan that was once deeply in love with her soul mate, or so I had thought at the time. My once sparkly brown eyes were lifeless, my once rich hair had become dull, my skin looked ghostly and drawn, my cheeks no longer filled with rosy blush, instead sunken and pale. I continued looking down my body, seeing countless bruises, some old, some new. I turned away, disgusted at what I saw. I trudged to the bedroom and quickly dressed in grey sweat pants and a black long sleeved top, pulling my roughly dried hair into a loose ponytail as I continued into the kitchen.

As I waited for the hot water to boil, I walked towards the window and gazed silently out into the rain, thinking about how drastically my life had changed since Edward had left. Although it still hurt to even think his name, it was a small price to pay for the moment of happiness it brought to my day when I pictured his face in my mind. I smiled as I remembered his wonderful scent, his gorgeously messy hair, and his eyes. No words could describe how magnificent those topaz eyes were. The whistling of the water jug snapped me out of my daydream, and I tumbled back down to reality.

I reluctantly wandered back to the bench, got a mug from the cupboard and poured myself a strong coffee. I had a feeling it was going to be a long day. I sat down at the table and opened the newspaper. It had become a morning ritual, sifting through the latest headlines, searching for any news that could be vampire related. As stupid as it sounded, it was the only thing that kept me going, the faint glimmer of hope that came with knowing they were still out there somewhere, maybe even coming back some day. Deep down I knew I was kidding myself, but it helped to keep me sane, so I hung onto it tightly. When I was satisfied that there was nothing suspicious about the current events of the Olympic Peninsula, I settled myself at the computer and began my work for the day. I was enrolled at the University of Alaska for online courses in Law. It was tough, but it kept me busy, and my mind off other more distracting things. It also enabled me to have some degree of a life, meaning for once I could actually do things my way. I knew Mike hated me doing it. The fact that it was law probably didn't help either, he was sure that one day I was going to come and get him for abusing me constantly, which only made him beat me harder. But I enjoyed doing something new and interesting, one day I hoped to become a lawyer for women who were going through what I was, god knows somebody needed to stand up for them. I looked up at the clock on the wall and cursed silently under my breath. Mike would be home in 30 minutes. I shut down the computer, rinsed my cup out at the sink and began preparing dinner. Just as I had put the vegetables in the oven to roast, I heard the car approaching the house.

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Mike POV

I sped up the driveway; gravel spitting out behind my tires. My day had been pretty good so far, but no doubt my Bella would find some way to ruin it for me. She always did, the ungrateful bitch. Ever since I had rescued her and given her a better life she had been nothing but difficult. Why couldn't she just accept that we were meant to be together? But no, she was always talking back, showing me no respect. Who did she think she was? She needed training up in how to really be a good partner. Number One rule: respect the man. Thank Christ it wasn't a test, or she would already be failing miserably. Just add that to her already huge list of failings in life. Wow, what a catch Mike, I thought to myself.

I climbed out of my car, a beautiful wee Toyota Echo, 2002, 1.2 litre, blue, ahhh... my baby. Sure, it was no Cullen car, but that tosser had more money than sense. Or maybe not, seeing as he left Bella. Might've been smarter than I gave him credit for. I pushed through the front door and walked into the living room, dumping my bag onto the coffee table before crashing onto the couch. I stretched my feet out, resting them on the coffee table and relaxed back, switching the TV on to the sports channel where the latest baseball game was being played.

"Beer," I said. Not a moment later, I heard the quiet shuffling of feet on the kitchen tiles, the fridge opening, and tops being popped. Not long after, my Bella appeared, holding two beers.

"Take your time next time would you? The rate you move, the beer will already be warm," I hissed at her.

Nodding to me, she left the room and continued clattering around in the kitchen.

I continued watching the game and drinking beer for the next hour, and I was growing increasingly irritated as the team I was rooting for fell further behind on the score board. "Stupid team," I muttered to myself. I got up and made my way into the kitchen where Bella had just finished dishing up dinner.

I grabbed my plate and returned to the living room, plonking back down onto the couch to watch the remainder of the game, hoping for a miracle win for my team.

It had become my routine in life – get up, go to work, come home from work, watch TV, go to bed. It wasn't exactly the great job or fulfilling life I had hoped for when I was younger, but then again, neither was marrying the town's biggest fuck up. I was still bitter when it came to the topic of Bella. On the one hand, I was glad that I finally had ownership of the one object of my desire, but I was also eternally peeved about the fact that she was so resentful of me. She thought she could do better? Pfft. Whatever. A girl like her had no hope when it came to having a family; she was damned lucky that I took her in. She should be glad that I, out of the kindness of my own heart, had been there for her in her time of need. Yeah. Damn straight.

I burped loudly as I finished off my beer, and tossed the bottle down on the floor, where it landed with a clatter amongst the five others lying empty.

"Oi, would you come here and pick these up? I shouldn't have to ask you, woman," I shouted into the kitchen. Once again I heard the shuffling of feet on the kitchen floor as Bella made her way out to collect my empties.

Before long I had grown tired of watching sport, and after looking at the clock and realising it was getting late, I made my way to the bedroom to get ready for bed. I glanced at the bed, which had the duvet pulled back, ready for me to jump into. Bella had obviously been here and organised everything for me at some stage during the evening. At least she was good for something. I pulled off my shirt and gazed at myself in the large mirror, which hung on the closet door. I still looked hot. My stomach wasn't quite as toned now that I had given up playing the sports and taken to watching them on TV instead, but I still had a reasonably good physique. Not bad at all, I thought to myself. I sauntered over to the bed, sliding my hand under the sheets to check that Bella had turned the electric blanket on, and I felt my anger immediately rise to its usual level when I felt the coolness of the sheets.

"BELLA!" I yelled.

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BPOV

I winced as I heard my name being shouted loudly down the hallway. I knew what was coming next, although I wasn't sure what reason would be behind it this time. I walked briskly towards the direction Mikes voice had come from, the bedroom I was guessing. The faster I got there, the sooner it was over, and by coming as soon as I was called, the better the chances were of a lighter beating.

I walked into the bedroom and waited patiently for the yelling to begin. That was the easy part, compared to what came afterwards.

"What do you call this?" He spat at me, pointing to the bed.

"Ummm…. A bed?" I replied cautiously.

The punch that followed my reply came quickly and I didn't have time to prepare myself, and I fell to the floor as his fist struck my face. I cried out in pain, and felt tears trickle slowly down my face.

"Bitch, what have I told you about being a smart ass to me? Show some fucking respect!" Mike yelled furiously. "But no, always talking back, when are you going to learn? Turn on my fucking electric blanket and get the hell outside, you don't deserve to sleep in the house, under the roof that I have put over your head, you useless slut."

I silently walked to the bed and turned the electric blanket on. As soon as I had done as he had asked, I felt my hair being pulled roughly as Mike grabbed it and started towing me down the hallway, before opening the front door and throwing me onto the cold concrete.

"And don't you DARE think about trying to get inside!" He said, pointing his finger at me while he looked down at me in disgust. With that, he slammed the door and I was left in the cold darkness of the wintery Forks night.

I curled up outside the kitchen window, the soft light from the night-light inside spilling gently out the window and onto the dewy grass, providing me with some degree of comfort in the frosty conditions. I felt sick, my clothes providing little, if any protection against the frigid wintery air that surrounded me. I had stopped being able to feel my hands and feet long ago, and as my shivering began to slowly cease, I closed my eyes and fell into a dreamless sleep.

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