AUTHOR'S NOTE!: I've decided to change the story a little bit, I'm basically going to be writing parts of the 3 stories in a different way, for example, in another character's ponit of view or an alternate way of things happening. So, the story is going to be random from now on, whatever I decide to write will be the next chapter :)

DISCLAIMER!: The plots and characters of my stories are totally Stephenie Meyer's, I don't own it at all :)

A little background for this chapter...Bella never jumped off the cliff. Alice saw her jump because that was what Bella was going to do, but Alice couldn't see Jacob. He talked to Bella just as she was about to dive and he changed her mind for her, so she didn't jump. But Alice couldn't see that. She saw Bella say Edward's name and then she say her jump, yet she never saw her in the water, so she wasn't sure what happened. So, she is the one who called Edward and told him that she wasn't sure what happened to Bella and that she was going to check on her. Edward insisted on coming back with her, as he had already planned on coming back sson anyways because he couldn't live without Bella. But, he told her that he was only going to see Bella and if she was alright and happy, he would leave again and if she was dead, he was going to Italy.he didn't exactly tell her that last part, but we all know that's what he was thinking Alice, guessing this is what he would do, asked Emmet to come to, just in case. So, they head to Bella's house to check on her. They don't intend on making themselves seen...

Also, they appear at Bella's house just as she is in the truck with Jacob and he's about to walk her inside, from "New Moon", and she's thinking about what she should do: be with Jacob so she can try to be happy or continue pining for Edward and dealing with the truth that she'll never love anyone like she did him? I know the timing of all this is a bit unreal, she only just jumped off the cliff a few hours ago and Edward already came back to Alaska and then him and Alice and emmet left for Forks, but hey, they're vampires, they run fast :) Also, this is in Bella's point of view.

So, here we go...

Chapter 2-- "Darkness"

-

I was staring into darkness. Jacob's arms were wrapped around me and I could feel the warmth encircled around me and I could feel the intensity of the moment, but it didn't really matter. This moment meant more for Jacob than it did for me. More than anything, I wanted this to be enough. I wanted to be with Jacob and have it mean enough to make me happy and I'd been thinking about that a lot lately. But I didn't think it ever would be enough. "Happy" had a different meaning now and anything less than the happy I'd once felt was like a betrayal. It scared me to have the realization that no matter how much I wished it to be untrue, the moments that Jacob and I had like this would always mean more to him than they ever would for me.

I was pathetic. A moment ago, I'd seriously considered making Jacob mine. If I would have done that, it would have been the biggest mistake of my life. I would have completely crushed him because in the deepest part of my heart, I knew that it would have been a lie. Jacob did make me happy, he pieced me together when I'd been broken beyond repair. But he wasn't the one I really wanted.

Edward was the one I wanted.

It was dangerous to have these thoughts! Why couldn't I stop? I was doing so well before this, I never let my mind wander to things like that! And here I was at a terrible time thinking of him. What was wrong with me? I must be a masochist, there was no other explanation.

As I felt the hole that was permanently burned inside of me start to singe, I pryed myself out of Jacob's arms so I could see his face. I knew it would help and sure enough, when I saw his warm smile, my heart warmed and the burning hole retreated. It wasn't the same smile that had fixed me before, but sometimes I could see a shadow of that smile in the one he wore now and that was the best I could hope for.

"Jake, thanks for today. For talking me off the cliff, you were right, it would have been way too dangerous with the water like that." And I still got to hear Edward's voice, I added to myself smugly. I knew it had all worked out for the best. I got to hear Edward's voice and I was also kept from being attacked by Victoria, who had been in the water below me. The thought of just her fiery red hair gave me chills and I had almost jumped in the water where she was waiting for me, with her teeth.

"Of course. I'm just happy I got to you in time, I-I can't even think about what would have happened if I would have been too late..." He looked at me with such sorrow and relief in his eyes that my heart broke for him. I had been so close to causing him so much pain and that would have been unbearable.

"So, you should come down again tomorrow morning. I'm sure Charlie will be busy dealing with stuff for the funeral and you'll be safe at my house."

"Sure thing." I said happily. I didn't mind being at Jacob's house. It was warm and comfortable there. And it was safe.

He grinned goofily at me for a minute and then he started to open his door. "Come on, I'll walk you inside. It will add on to my age!" He said laughing.

I smiled and opened my door too. He was so tall, he'd already reached me before I even closed my door and he grabbed my hand. It felt nice but the sensation from earlier was back, the feeling of it not being enough. We started walking toward my house and Jacob was talking to me about something but I couldn't hear what he was saying. Something felt different. It felt like someone was watching me. A wave of familiarity hit me with such force that I stopped dead in my tracks.

Jacob noticed this and was looking at me curiously. He was just about to open his mouth when he suddenly stopped and tensed up. His face contorted with rage and before I knew what was happening, I was behind him him and he was standing protectively in front of me shaking.

"Vampire!" He shouted. His arms were bulging and his shaking was getting worse.

I was terrified, but not for the reasons I should have been. I should have been terrified because I was currently directly behind a werewolf that looked like he was about to phase at any second and had the strength to rip me to shreds if he lost control. I should have been terrified at the thought of Victoria lurking behind the trees in front of us, ready to attack. I should have been terrified because my life and the life of my best friend were in danger all because of me.

But none of that terrified me. No, that was nothing compared to the thoughts I was having in that moment.

Jacob was a werewolf and he could smell vampires from much farther away than we were now. He would have smelled Victoria while we were in the truck and we wouldn't even be standing here right now. But if it were a vampire whose scent was unfamiliar to him, one he hadn't smelled since he became a werewolf...that would be different.

And even though I was standing there, possibly facing death, I couldn't be scared of that. I was only scared of the thought I was having. I was having a dangerous thought, the most forbidden of thoughts. I was hoping and that was definitely not something I was allowed to do. But I couldn't resist. The familiarness that had swept over me was not for the dangerous red-haired vampire that wished to destroy me. It was for a different vampire completely. A vampire that only I could recognize the scent of- even if I was only a human- because it was the sweetest smell in all the world and it was one I had waited so long to smell again but never dreamed I would have the chance.

I slowly peeked around Jacob's shoulder, terrified that I would be right. I almost didn't want to look because if I were wrong, I'd never recover. My hope had grippled my heart and if it were proven wrong, I would slip back into the darkness and even my own personal sun would not be able to shine bright enough for me to see.

As if my life were a movie and the next moment was the painful suspense that everyone had been waiting for, the creature that lurked in the very forest that was the source of my nightmares stepped forward slowly. And the face that appeared was cruel. It was much too beautiful to torment any human with. It was a cruel beautiful because it was painful to look at. But there was more than one reason for that now.

My breath didn't exactly catch in my throat as it normally did when I thought of my unmeasurable pain, but it completely left me. Yet it was different this time. My breath left me, not for the pain that accompanied this face, but for the mere sight of it, for this face to be within my grasp again. The face I had longed to see, to hold for months and months was standing twenty feet from me and yet it had never seemed so far away.

Edward.

"Edward." It slightly suprised me that my thoughts and my words were simultaneous in this particular realization but I didn't have enough emotion to think it through more than that. I had only enough left in me to wonder if the face I was seeing was a sick and twisted way of my mind playing tricks on me, again, or if it were real. I honestly couldn't be sure anymore.

Then I heard Jacob growl, a deep and menacing sound. I still wasn't completely convinced that this was actually happening. Or at least I wasn't until his perfect lips formed a magical sound...

"Bella." That was it. That was the only thing he said and it was enough to break me in the exact same way it did all those months ago in that dreadful forest when my life had come to an end. I knew I shouldn't, but I couldn't help staring at him now that he had addressed me. For the first time, I locked eyes with his beautiful golden ones and I gasped at the sight. They were so much...more...than I remembered them. There were several shades of onyx and topaz mixed with the gold and it confused me. I was used to the gold and the topaz but the onyx was new. I briefly wondered why that color had made an appearance but again, my mind didnt focus on any kind of thought for long. I instantly went back to observing his face.

There were deep circles under his eyes, but his pupil color indicated that he wasn't hungry. His face was set like stone and for the first time, I noticed he was staring back at me with an intensity that I had never known. Beyond his eyes yet right there visible in them was...happiness. I don't know how I could tell it was there but it seemed right. He looked happy and I couldn't, for the life of me, imagine why.

"Bella." He said my name again only this time, he took a small step forward. As he did this, Jacob took a large step back and growled once more. For the first time since Edward's appearance, he looked at Jacob. The happiness so clear in his eyes just a moment before was replaced by curiosity and defense. He looked like he was sizing Jacob up and then he slightly smiled. He looked between Jake and I and realized that he was trying to supress a laugh. This made me mad, incredibly mad.

"What are you doing? Why are you smiling?" I demanded furiously. This was the last question I should be asking him. I had so many more important ones that were far more crucial to my well-being but I couldn't stop the rage fighting inside of me. Here he was, back in Forks completely out of nowhere after leaving me alone to face my worst fear and he had the nerve to smile?!

He looked back at me and though the corners of his mouth still twitched, he instantly looked regretful.

"Bella, I'm sorry. I don't mean to laugh but the situation is quite unexpected. Yet in some ways, it makes complete sense." He was looking at me with that fierce intensity again and I couldn't understand it. I also didn't understand his answer.

"I don't understand," I replied quietly. This seemed to be an appropriate answer. I didn't understand, anything. I felt silly for saying it so early in the conversation because I was sure I would be using the response a lot more, but maybe it would provoke him to explain other things.

"Bella, when I...left, I was expecting you to stay out of danger. That was the purpose of the promise you made me. But I overlooked the fact that you are you and danger will incontravertably find you. The vampires leave town and the first new friend you make is a werewolf." He explained this all while still trying to control the temptation to smile but he did it well.

He thought that my being friends with Jacob was dangerous? All I did was attract danger? If it weren't for Jacob, the ultimate danger would have won me a long time ago.

And he had brought up the promise. The promise I had been breaking for months.

And then I knew why he was here. Why they were here; I finally noticed Alice and Emmett standing slightly behind Edward with him at the front center position. There could only be one reason why they would come back and there was no need for me to waste one of the many questions I had for him on the most present matter because I already knew the answer: Alice saw me on the cliff.

I instantly felt a twinge of regret. I had made them all come back because of a stupid impulse. But I still didn't understand why it mattered enough to make him come back. Alice could have come to check on me herself if they were really worried about me. Why did Edward come back then? He didn't care about what happened to me. I was more sure of that than anything else in my life for the simple reason being that he had said it to me himself. I always believed everything he told me.

"You came back because you thought I jumped off the cliff, right?" I voiced my thoughts out loud ready to hear confirmation. I took a small step to even myself with Jacob's side and he looked at me angrily. He didn't apporve of me being anywhere other than behind him where he was convinced I was safe. I knew better than that. The three vampires in front of me would never hurt me. At least not physically. That was a reality I was still unable to face and though I ahdn't gone frther with the thought, the hole inside of me seared. Painful memories...

It was Alice who answered me this time.

"Yes, that's right. And I should kill you for even thinking about it Isabella Swan!" Jacob tensed even more and snarled louder than ever at the word "kill" but I placed my hand on his arm to calm him. His body loosened a fraction of an inch but his eyes were still dangerous.

"How could you even think of doing something like that?! Did you even think about Charlie? Did you think of what would have happened if you wouldn't have come up from the water? And by the way, how exactly did you come up? I couldn't see you! I only saw you whisper Edward's name and then you just flung yourself off! I panicked when I didn't see anything else and that's why we're here. I wasn't sure if you were even..." She didn't finish her sentence. She glanced at Edward and saw that he had flinched in pain. Again, this made me curious.

"Alice...I'm sorry. I didn't know that you- I didn't jump. Jacob stopped me right before. I was doing it because- I thought it would be fun." I finished quitely. I knew that my answer was nowhere near enough to satisfy her but I was getting tired of standing here like this. Jacob was very close to phasing and all these questions were insignificant to the matter at hand.

And more than anything, I wanted to stand closer to him. I wanted to tell him how much I missed him and how much I loved him. I wanted to be strong enough to keep a hold on him forever. I wanted to tell him how sorry I was that I was that he always had to protect me. And most of all, I wanted him to stay.

Alice glared at me and was about to, undoubtedly, yell at me again, but Edward stopped her. He held his palm out to her and he faced her, whispering something incomprehensible to me.

Then he turned and faced me.

"Bella, I'm sorry. I'm sorry that we came back. You have to trust me, I didn't intend on you seeing us. I only wanted to come and make sure you were safe but it seems that your new friend has prevented this from happening. I'm sorry, I broke my promise." He was looking at me with sorrow in his eyes and his words rang with sincerity but they meant nothing. I couldn't believe what he was saying. He said that he was going to come and check on me without even letting me see him?

And again, the pointless promise was brought up again, though his was more pointless than mine had been. That, more than anything that had happened in the last few minutes, provoked emotion in me. It provoked sheer anger.

I took several steps in front of Jacob and I could feel his arm trying to pull me back but without even looking at him, I yanked it away. My gaze could not be broken from the vampire directly in front of me.

"Your sorry for breaking your promise? Is that some kind of joke? Your promise meant nothing, Edward! Your promise was broken before you even made it! Can you honestly tell me that you thought it was a promise you could keep? What do you think I've been doing since you left? Do you think I woke up the next morning and just skipped off to school and completely forgot about everything that happened? That I forgot about you? I haven't forgotten you for a single second since you left! Your promise was one you could never keep!" I was screaming at him now but I didn't care. I could feel tears threatening to spill and hard as I worked to control them, I knew the battle was soon to be lost. Rage burned inside me more than the painful hole had ever managed to. I could feel the regret I knew I'd have when I was not so angry, he didn't deserve to be yelled at like this, but I couldn't help it. I should be yelling at myself, it was my fault. Everything that happened was my fault. I was a human who fell in love with a vampire, a beautifula nd perfect vampire and I had stupidly expected him to love me back. It wasn't his fault that he didn't feel the same way. He had graced me with his company for so long and I should feel grateful for that. But the rage would not subside long enough for me to see reason.

He was looking at me with the most tormented of expressions and the guilt that I had expected to come a little later was now washing over me. I didn;t want to see him in pain. If nothing else killed me before, that would.

"Bella, I'm truly sorry. I'm- Of course, I'm more than sorry. That promise was the only good thing I could do for you. I wanted it to be true, I wanted you to forget me. I'm sorry that I didn't have the power to do that for you." He was still looking at me with that ancient sadness. His hands moved as if he were about to reach out for me, but it was false hope.

The guilt and the anger I felt were now switching themselves and I clenched my fists at my side.

"'The only good thing you could do for me'! You were the only thing good for me! You were my everything Edward, my whole life! How could you even think that I could forget you! It's not- I don't understa- how could you do this to me?!" Before I knew what I was doing, I was hitting him. I was punding at his chest with all the force I could summon. I didn't care that my hands would be terribly bruised later. The only thing I could feel was his body against my hands and even though it was nowhere near what I as used to, I still sighed inwardly at the sensation of it. I could feel the sobs escaping from my chest and I suddenly realized that the tears I was holding back were now streaming down my face. And I still didn't care. The only thing I cared about was him. I was beating into him every pain that I had felt since he left me. It wasn't right and it wasn't fair but I couldn't stop. "You left me to face this all alone! You told me-you promised-you'd never leave! I actually...believed you when you said...when you said-" I couldn't make sense of what I was saying. Nothing around me made any sense. There was only the two of us in the world. I could feel the last piece of my heart, the one that had stayed safe all this time with just the tiniest bit of hope that he still wanted me, the piece that I had protected with my life, break into a million pieces and there was nothing keeping me together anymore. The only thing keeping me alive was the feel of his ice cold chest that my hands were beating into. If I stopped, I wouldn't breathe again.

Finally, after what felt like an odd peaceful eternity, he gently grabbed my wrists and cuffed them together with his stone cold iron grip. I had no feeling left in me so it didn't take any courage to look up at him. When I did, his eyes were closed and I swear, if I didn't know exactly how impossible it was for him to cry real tears, I would think he was trying to supress them. But when he finally opened his eyes, I could see he was trying to shiel his pain. He wasn't successful.

He slowly brought my hands up to his face and gently kissed them. The feel of his lips on my skin was more than I could ever imagine heaven could feel like. the feel was so familiar and so precious, more tears spilled out for the sacrity of the moment. He then brought my hands to his face and slowly turned the outside of my hand where the side of my pinky was turning purple to it and held it there as if to ice it.

"Your going to hurt yourself, Bella. I've already caused you enough pain and the thought of adding your hands to that enormous list is unbearable. Don't let me be the source of a broken hand because I'm far from being worth it."

And that was it. I crumpled into him. I drew my hands from his face and placed them on his chest as I let his arms embrace me as tightly as he could without suffocating me. I don't know what finally broke me. It could have been his words, it could have been the gesture of stopping me from causing myself any harm, it could have even been the fact that I wasn't going to last any longer with being that close to him without really feeling him around me. Whatever it was, I was grateful for it. The feel of him was something that nothing else could even hope to rival. So I just cried. I knew that it was weak and it was human but it was what I needed. I cried and I let myself feel my broken heart. He stood there the entire time never letting go of me and never even loosening his grip. He smoothed my hair, kissed the top of my head, rubbed comforting circles into my back, and whispered to me that it was okay, that I was okay.

It was all very simple and even though I knew there were many more explanations that were coming soon, I forgave him. If I were completely honest with myself, I knew I had forgiven him the moment I saw him because just the sight of him made me feel whole. He didn't fix me, he made me complete, there was no need to fix me. I wasn't sure about what was going to happen next. I wasn't sure if all of this changed anything for him, I still was mostly convinced that this wouldn't last for long. But that was why I needed it so badly now. If this was going to kill me later, than I was going to make sure that it was worth it.

As long as I could feel him around me, I didn't worry. And as I felt him pick me up and carry me to what must be my bedroom, I briefly wondered about what happened to Jacob. I nearly voiced this thought out loud but Edward beat me to it.

"Don't worry love, your werewolf friend is gone. He has to obey the treaty." Edward said quietly and I was about to ask more but thenhe layed me down on my bed. I was scared out of my mind that this was it, that I wouldn't get a chance to ask him any questions or worse, that he was leaving again, but he didn't move. He set me down just long enough to get my blanket and wrap me in it and then he climbed behind me and once again, wrapped his arms around me in a protective embrace. I felt more safe and deifinitely more happy with my face buried in his chest so I could inhale as much of him as I was capable of. I turned my body to his and pressed myself tightly to him. I could feel his smile and he kissed the top of my head. I looked up at his face and I refused to look away. I wanted to memorize his beauty or at least try. I had to keep this memory of him forever because it was going to be the last one I had of him and I was determined to make it great.

"It's okay, Bella. Everything is okay. Just breathe in deep, breathe me in. I'm not going anywhere. Just keep breathing, you have to keep breathing." He looked down at me with such a fierce desire in his eyes that it smoldered me. My forever was in my arms and I was never letting go. And as I buried my face in his chest again as I felt a new wave of tears come, I took his advice and breathed him in.

My breath had been restored. Life had meaning again.

-

AUTHOR'S NOTE!: Haha, how'd you like it? This isn't the last part of this whole Edward and Bella reunion thing, their going to talk and he's going to reassure her that he loves her in the next chapter but this was just the right place to end. I put in the, "breathe in so deep, breathe me in", as a commencement to the inspiration of that part of the story. It's a part of the song "Fall For You" by Secondhand Serenade and every time I hear that part, I think of Edward and Bella. I also want to let you know that I am completely and totally 100 perfectly fine with the way Edward and Bella were reunited in "New Moon". I totally believe that she would have truly forgiven him that way and that's how I saw it, but I got inspired to write the reunion like this from another story. I wrote it my own way, but the other story got me thinking about it like this. I thought it was incredibly interesting writing it like this because I cried like 6 times becasue I felt horrible for writing Bella's pain. It's intense. Especially when she's beating on his chest...wow. But, I hope you liked it and keep a weather eye out for the next chapter :)