Chapter 1

Earlier this morning, Edward had opened his window with the surprise of the cold snow that met the same cold touch of his hand. The cold weather, and now winter, had indicated that the holidays were quickly approaching.

To be honest, Edward was the only one who chose to live in this cold and beautiful city of Paris, France. Even James, the child they had adopted two years ago, wasn't particularly pleased with the idea of Paris.

He looked at the carefully handmade English-inspired wristwatch he had received from Carlisle as a farewell gift. It says seven in the morning, which suggests he had worked overnight. He went downstairs to find his son James already sitting beside the fireplace. It was kind of hard for James, as a human, to resist this kind of climate.

"Morning dad," James said sleepily, "What's for breakfast?"

"What do you want? Have you been up all night? You look kind of worn out."

"Oh. I was trying to sleep, but I think they're sort of doing something out there… It seems they've just finished it. They were really noisy, these people were."

Just as they were having a conversation about the weather and the people and about how Paris is and how their life is going to be, Bella entered the room. As graceful as ever she walked, that it made almost no sound at all. She wondered whether they had noticed that it is almost noon, for the boys seemed to not notice the time pass by as quick as a flash, and their conversation grew more and more interesting by the minute.

"Hey, Jacob and Nessie will be coming over." Bella said, "And maybe they'll stay here in Paris for a few weeks, for Jacob has important matters to deal with in this place. Have you eaten a healthy breakfast, James?"

Beside the table, James was sitting, waiting for his lunch, which seemed to come longer than it should already have.

"I haven't eaten yet. I wasn't able to sleep well, either." James whimpered, "Maybe this place is simply not meant for me."

Then James frowned curtly. Bella always knew how he felt about this place, and he doesn't feel really good about it. But this is what Edward had decided to do. And they had a deal about moving there, and Bella didn't want to ruin Edward's happiness when she agreed to move.

Bella looked at the calendar: December 15, 2105. Time was a curious little thing. Fast, and mysterious. Dangerous when meddled with. Bella has never dreamt of a life like this. But as long as she with Edward, she knows it will be fine. She cannot even remember what life was like before the most recent one hundred years of her existence. Youth did come, then her love, and now comes life. Eternity seemed so long, yet seemed to come quickly. Then came Bella's epiphany of what the last one hundred years was like. Charlie died, Jacob and Nessie got together, and everything about the Cullens seemed to be the same, except that now they have a human companion, James, who, of course, knows the secret of their existence. Edward now works as a doctor, for he almost got tired of school life. Doctor he may be, but he enjoys a passion for music and photography.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Bella moved closer toward the door, where she saw Carlisle stood, young-looking and gentle as ever.

"I just passed by today, and I'll be back to Forks later." Carlisle said rather gently, and Bella was wondering why he came to France for.

"Come in."

"Thank you. Is Edward here?"

"Yes. Why don't you come in and wait for him for a while?"