Chapter 3:

To Forgive

As Bella lay in her bed, sleeping, the figure inched her window open and crept inside.

Bella slept as she normally did these days: tossing and turning, and sometimes screaming. Tonight wasn't a night she screamed on. In fact, she slept almost as well as she had previous to—previous to a certain someone's prolonged absence.

These days, Bella skipped over his name, not even realizing, anymore, that she did so. It was just her instinct—her survival instinct. Because Bella barely survived when she heard someone else speak his name. If that was hearing someone else say it, how much worse do you think she would get hit if she actually dared to think it herself? Even her subconscious avoided any thoughts pertaining to him, for just that reason.

Bella didn't even dream of him, anymore. So there was no chance that the figure could hear his name said by the sweet-smelling angel that had captured its attention. It stood there, all night, and into the morning, waiting to hear that name come from those delicate lips of Bella's. But the name it was looking for did not come forth.

As Bella stirred, beginning to wake, the figure left the way it had come, easing the window shut and stealing one last glance at the beautiful human inside. It watched from the shadows amid the trees as Bella woke fully and went to school.

It paced in the cover of the trees as it waited for school to let out, so that Bella could return.

Bella's day went as it usually did: she got up, ate breakfast, and went to school. At school, she sat through her classes, the teachers not even bothering to call on her any more; it's not like she was paying attention in the first place, and even if she had been, she wouldn't have cared enough to answer. At lunch, if she actually went to the cafeteria, she would sit the first place she saw, not caring what anyone else thought, any more. If she didn't go to the cafeteria, she would sit in her next class, waiting for class to start so that school would be that much closer to being over. After classes let out, she would make her way to her truck and drive home, alone with her thoughts.

She followed this same pattern today. When school finally released her, Bella ran to her truck, almost tripping several times. For some reason, she was anxious to get home today. Ever since yesterday, she had been feeling strange. The drive home went as usual, and she got home in the same amount of time as she usually did.

Bella killed the engine, and pulled the key out of the ignition. But instead of getting out, like usual, she sat there for a few minutes. Nothing seemed amiss, but something in the back of her head told her to wait. So she did. But after a few minutes, the feeling went away, and she climbed out of the 

truck. She unlocked the door and went inside, automatically walking to the stairs and going up them. She walked into her room and shut the door behind her. She sat her books on her desk and sat on her bed. Staring at the floor, Bella noticed something different. One of the floorboards was slightly raised, as if it wasn't secured. Curious, Bella kneeled on the floor next to it.

She pressed her fingers to the raised sides, hoping to pry it up. She tugged at it, but it didn't budge. She turned around, searching for something to use, like a crowbar, to pry up the board. Finding nothing, Bella turned back to stare at the raised floorboard. But the board was no longer raised. Bella ran her fingers across the smooth floor, trying to find a loose spot. But she didn't find so much as a crack.

Mystified, Bella sat back on her heels. She closed her eyes and shook her head ever-so-slightly, once. As she sat there, her eyes closed, she smelled something. It was just a hint of something, but she decided to follow it. She opened her eyes and stood, following the scent to her window. She took a moment and suppressed the memories that wanted to surface before easing the window open. It hadn't been that long since it had been frequently used, but it creaked all the same as it slowly opened.

Leaning her head outside, Bella caught the same scent, only slightly stronger. With a start, she realized what it was that she was smelling, and she yanked he head back inside and slammed the window shut.

Bella sank to the floor, her face filled with horror. First she imagined images. Now she imagined smells. What was next? Imagining that he was standing right next to her, trying to comfort her like he used to?