Author: .Forever Frozen.

Rated T.

Disclaimer: I don't own twilight. I don't have enough drugs for that.

This was originally going to be a one shot, but i got a few reviews asking for more chapters. I sat down with a laptop and after nearly falling off my room, decided, hell, why not? So i wrote this. I also decided on a story line for this, but i'm sad to announce it's not really going to be happy. rather depressing when it comes down to it. And Bella will be insane for most of it. But i wrote this out, and i hope it's not terribly dissapointing. I really hope that, since this has clogged my mind, rendering me inable to write out my other fan fiction or original story...

Enjoy.

It had been a year. A year since Bella had jumped (the first in a series of the most painful days of Charlie Swan's life) and a year since the prolonged search for her had started. It'd been a year since he'd learned the truth about Jacob Black, that the boy was a werewolf—which he still wanted to deny the existence of at times. He'd known Jacob as long as the boy had been alive. It couldn't be true.

Six months had passed since Charlie realized that those helping him look for her truly believed that Bella was gone. He had made it a point, day after day, to tell each and every one who opposed him that she wasn't. That she couldn't be. But six months ago, none of them had the heart to tell Charlie that he was holding onto a ghost.

Four months had passed since the state had abandoned the search for his only daughter, deeming her officially dead. For those four months, Charlie Swan didn't find himself with dry eyes a single day. But he refused to believe that she'd died. Something in him knew she hadn't—she was his daughter, after all. His own flesh and blood. He'd know if she was dead. He'd know…

Two months had passed since his dear friend, Billy Black, had been buried alongside his wife. Billy was sick, Charlie knew, but still he could not understand how he could just leave…Charlie needed him. Jacob needed him. They'd both lost the woman who held their hearts with such a strong grip in the palm of her hand. They both couldn't bear to stay for the entire funeral. The day of the funeral, the both of them had instead visited the very cliffs that Bella had jumped from, and both confessed that they had seen the signs, but denied them.

Now it has been a year since Charlie Swan last saw his daughter. If he'd known then that he was going to lose her, he never would have let her go. He would have said something, anything, to hold her back; to keep her from leaving on that fateful day.

Charlie hadn't been sober for three weeks. Three weeks, he'd called in sick to work, and no one questioned him. He was the chief of police. And they all knew what anniversary was coming close.

So everyone was surprised when he showed up on the very day that his daughter—the perfectly innocent Isabella Swan who could do no wrong—had killed herself the year before to his work. That day Charlie had completely emersed himself in his work, not letting even the smallest detail of the day slip by.

That was the day that Charlie Swan decided he wasn't going to give up.

-

It had to have been those damn bloodsuckers. Jacob knew it. He could smell it, so strong, on the cliff because for the first time in the whole year since she'd jumped, Jacob's mind was clear. He could think rationally. He supposed that losing two of the most important people in his life made that happen. His father, the girl he loved…

But he hadn't really loved her, Jacob realized. At least, not the way he thought he had. When Bella jumped, he had wanted to be with her for the rest of his life, for them to grow old together, he'd hoped that maybe one day she'd love him as much as he loved her and in the same way. But she loved the leech. And today, on the mark of day she jumped, he said that without any animosity to the vampire.

Because Jacob Black realized he'd loved her like a sister. Sure, she was beautiful and fun—when she wasn't depressed—but when it came down to it, that was all there was. He cared about her deeply, he always would, but she never made his heart sing. She never made him truly want to go out of his way to make her happy, like how Sam did for Emily. He wasn't sure if it was just infatuation at the time. But now, looking back, Jacob figured it might have just been in spite of the vampire.

The leech had loved her and had left her. He hated the leech. So if he loved her and stayed, she'd surely see that he was better…

Wouldn't she?

It hadn't worked. The date engraved on the headstone on the face of the cliff was solid evidence that his theory was complete bullshit. But he didn't mind that.

He just cared that his best friend was gone. And, if what he smelled in the lingering winds was right, it would be better for both of them that way.

But that didn't make it hurt any less.

-

It had been a year since Bella had thrown herself over the cliff with absolutely no intent of making it out of the water alive. For five months after that, Bella was nearly comatose, holding herself in a corner of her room muttering the same thing. If she'd suffered from newborn bloodlust, she was a hell of an actress with the way she hid it. But none of it was real, so why would the burning be?

Carlisle had grown weary. Every day he had to bring her something to drink, sometimes having to go so far as to force her to drink it, just so that her body wouldn't completely reject itself. With her current state of mind, a feeding frenzy was the last thing any of them could tolerate.

But after the fifth month, Bella had laughed at herself. She sat in the corner and held her hands in front of her face and laughed. Edward had been sitting across from her, talking softly, humming her lullaby, trying desperately to reach her, when he heard a tinkling sound emerge from the frail girl's throat. She looked over at him and smiled.

He thought that perhaps she had finally realized he wasn't in her mind.

But he'd never been able to read her thoughts.

Bella shifted onto her knees and stared at him for what must have been hours. Her orange eyes looked over him, taking in his face, his eyes, his body…then she laughed.

He didn't want to say anything, lest he break whatever was causing her to respond.

She looked around the room. "This is strange…"

Edward frowned. "What's strange?"

Bella smiled. "I could tell that Charlie was going to ship me off to a mental institution. I just didn't know that I was this bad." She sighed and ran her hands through her hair.

His brow furrowed. "Bella, you've not been committed."

She arched a brow and nodded, the corner of her mouth lifting in amusement as her eyes went wider. "See, that's exactly what you'd be telling me. Because you just say what I want to hear."

Edward realized that she hadn't come to terms with this. He shook his head. "You're not imaging me, Bella."

Bella straightened up, and waved her hands around. "See, you'd say that too." She waved her hands around the room. "See, this room isn't real. And you're not real. It's in my mind." She tapped on her temple, acting out her words as if explaining it to a child. Then she laughed again.

"But I guess you're all I have to talk to. And I wouldn't want to go mad without someone to talk to while I'm insane, would I?"

Well, i'd like to know what you think. I'm continuing this, but not all teh chapters will be this...similar, i guess. but i don't think the writing style will change. Bella will slowly be regaining her sanity, though. I feel bad for carlisle :(

Reviews are appreciated.

xx Echo