Edward Cullen POV:
I'm such an ass, I thought to myself. I'd made her run, cry and I had pretty much convinced her that I hated her and that I didn't want to be her friend anymore. What a liar I am.
What would she have done, I wondered, had I taken her into my arms and told her she was the most beautiful thing that ever could, will and did exist in my world? What would she have done if I had I done what I wanted, and held her and kissed her until it wasn't sadness but something else in her eyes? Not knowing would kill me but I knew that I had done what needed to be done. No, Bella didn't want someone like me in her life - she needed someone like Mike Newton I thought, as I opened the door to my Volvo and quickly realized that someone else was in my seat.
Oh God, give me the strength not to ring her little neck, I silently pleaded with God, my hand leaving the handle of the door and my feet taking me back a couple of steps as she stepped out. I sighed, looking at her through my sunglasses. "What are you doing here, Alice?" I was too drained to even glare at her. "And could you tell me just how you got into my car? There was no key.." I trailed off, seeing her expression of smugness and absolute anger. She's certainly pissed today, I mused. She jumped out of the car and all hell broke loose.
"How dare you, Edward? Just how dare you! What gave you the right to crush her like that? To hurt her so badly that she had to leave me? Shes my best friend, Edward, or should I say she was my best friend?" Her finger landed on my chest and started jabbing and poking me with it. I looked at her, my heart pounding with fear. Please don't let her be talking about Bella..
"What do you mean, 'she had to leave me'? I don't understand one word you're saying, Alice." my voice wasn't steady and from the way she stopped ranting and looked at me I knew she realized this.
".. Edward, Bella left." She said softly, gently touching my arm with her hand. The bottom of my world suddenly fell out beneath me, causing me to fall. "When?" I forced the question past the block in my throat and through my stiff lips.
"About twenty minutes ago. She was crying her eyes out and manged to tell me that she'd told Charlie that she wanted some girl time with Renee for awhile."
If my heart had began breaking the past weeks with the things I'd said and done to Bella, it was now well and truly shattering. What have I done to her? Oh, God, what have I done?
Bella Swan POV
One year later:
So much has changed, I thought looking out the window I'd last looked at a year ago today. How was I able to survive without him? I wondered drawing my knees up on my chair and resting my head on them. I sighed. Face the truth, Bella, he's gone. He's been gone for a year. You're seventeen, grow the hell up already. I got off the chair and decided the voice inside me was right, I needed to move on since he'd obviously been able to. I remembered the day that I had come back home, crying so hard and trying desperately to hold on to my slippery edge of control and sanity, but to no avail. I had fallen into a coma, if you will. I had gone through all the motions of everything, yet it all seemed surreal; like a dream. I had somehow gotten myself to stand up from my porch from where I had collapsed, ran to my room and packed my bags within an hour. Then I called Charlie and said I needed some girl space with Renee because I missed her and had questions only a girl could answer.
From the fact he could probably hear the tears in my voice and that he thought I was talking about my period and sex, he agreed to send me to Renee's. I then called Alice and said I was leaving for awhile and after being badgered with questions and demands from her, I relented and told her the reason I was leaving. I'd stayed with Renee for a year but it really didn't help, since everything got worse. Soon my usually stellar grades started dropping, along with my clothing size and before you knew it, I stopped sleeping as much too. All I did was dream of Edward, and remember the good days when we'd been friends and it had been so easy to love him. I hadn't realized I needed to leave until one day when I saw myself in the mirror; I looked like a ghost, like I'd fade away. I was so pale and thin that I suddenly knew why Renee and her husband kept giving me concerned, worried looks every time they saw me. Suddenly, I knew I needed to go back to my home, to go back to Edward.
So here I am, one year later and one year older.
He's forgotten you, Bella, I tried hard to convince myself, not for the first time. I sighed, and started to walk to the kitchen to see what I'd make for dinner when the door bell rang. Slanting a look at the clock I saw it read 3:30 PM. I sighed. What the hell, I figured, and stalked to the door to open it, throughly annoyed with myself because my heart started to pound, hoping it was Edward at the door. The door bell was still ringing.
"All right, all right, all right, all ready! Will you please SHUT UP? I'm coming!" I ran the rest of the way to the door, and unlocking it, I threw it open with a look of impatience...
Only to have my heart stop beating, my legs go weak, and tears burn my eyes.
God must really have a sense of humor.
Hey guys, I know it's short and I'm pretty much a week late but hey - better late than never, right? xD
So let me know what you think of the new chapter, and if you have any ideas.
I dedicate this to:
James - for being there for me when I need him.
Alex - for making me smile and laugh.
Damon - for being him.
and Tara - for pretending that she has Adam Lambert locked in her bathroom. 3
I love you all so much. 3
- Misty 3
