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This is unbeta'd. All mistakes are mine.

Prompt: Proud

By the time the landing gear was tucked safely inside the body of the 767 I was on, I finally felt like I could relax. The last several days had been long, tedious, and tiring. After getting to Emmett's and crashing, I woke up to two sets of bright blue eyes and curly pigtails staring up at me from the edge of the bed.

"I think he's awake," I heard one of the girls whisper.

"But his eyes are closed."

"No they're not. I saw them open."

"Nuh uh."

I grinned. I let them keep talking, pretending to sleep until my bladder was screaming. With an over exaggerated groan and stretch, I opened my eyes again and popped up with a loud, "Boo!"

The girls jumped and screamed. I grabbed them both around the waist as they tried to run off and pulled them up onto the bed with me. I dug my fingers into their little bellies and laughed as they giggled and swatted at my hands.

When they couldn't take anymore, I gave them both a squeeze and set them free.

"Mommy! Uncle Edward got us!" Suzie said as she scrambled out of the room, followed closely by her sister, Emma.

I chuckled, grabbed some clothes, and got ready for the day. That was the routine for the remainder of the week. Snuggle time with my goddaughters, breakfast with the entire clan, work, and apartment hunting. By Friday, I'd found a great apartment with a great view and was looking forward to getting settled, to finally having a place of my own.

Don't get me wrong, Emmett and Rose were more than accommodating, and the girls were sweet. But all the upheaval in my life was making me anxious. I liked being settled, having a home base, and I wanted to make sure I had some stability before I left for Seattle.

On Friday morning, I called Vic and told her I was coming by for the rest of my stuff. Our call was short, just like every one of her responses. To be honest, I didn't think she'd be there when I went to pick up my stuff, but her car was sitting in the middle of the driveway instead of her usual spot on the left.

Moving on already.

I didn't begrudge her that. I was, too. I raised my hand to knock, but before my knuckles could make contact with the door, she pulled it wide open. My eyes practically bugged out of my head when I saw her. She was wearing her almost see-through cream robe and nothing beneath it. Her long, red curls were flowing freely down her back, and by the cock of her hip and the tilt of her head, I could tell she was up to something.

"Hey, baby," she purred as she stepped forward and put her palms on my chest. I was so caught off guard, I didn't immediately respond. It wasn't until her arms wrapped around my neck and her lips began to descend that I put my hands on her shoulders to stop her.

"What are you doing, Vic?" I asked, the rapidly growing sense of unease I felt making me stumble over my words.

"Saying hello," she said sweetly as she tried to press against me again.

I pressed my hands into her shoulders. "Stop. We're not going to do this. I don't want to do this."

"But… come on, Edward. You can't possibly be serious about moving out. What happened to love and the future and all our plans?" she asked, her voice starting to get tinny with emotion.

I pulled her arms from around my neck and moved her backwards into the house. I may have seen all she had to offer, but the neighbors hadn't. We may be over, but I still had enough sense and respect for her to keep all this between us.

Once I'd closed the door and taken a couple steps away from her, I turned to see her shoulders slumped in defeat and her face hidden by her hair.

"Look at me, Victoria." I waited. "Hey," I said softly, brushing my hand against her shoulder. "Look at me."

When she did, her normally beautiful blue eyes were filled with tears and her jaw was trembling.

"I'm sorry things ended the way they did, but you and I both know things hadn't been going well for a while. We deserve better, to be happy, to not fight all the time. I don't want that for me, and I don't want it for you."

"But-"

I stopped her. "No buts. I meant what I said Tuesday. I'm done. I don't want to do this anymore."

I waited. In some sense it was like the scene from earlier in the week was replaying itself, and I had no idea what to expect. When her eyes finally met mine, the steely woman I knew and once loved had replaced the sad woman in front of me.

"Just get your stuff and get out." Her voice was cold, detached, and before I could hesitate or say anything else, she turned and walked out.

So much for ending on good terms.

I quickly packed the remainder of my stuff in the car, left my key and garage door opener on the table in the entryway, and walked out of the house for the last time.

By Saturday, I'd unpacked everything and put it all away. I'd even put together a couple bookshelves, hung some pictures on the wall, and made my bed.

As I stood back and admired my handy work, I felt good – proud, even. This was my place, my chance to start fresh, and I was definitely looking forward to it. Pizza, beer, and an impromptu poker game with Emmett, Peter, and James was exactly what I needed to christen the place and fully make it mine.

I glanced out the window of the airplane and thought about the load of work that awaited me upon arrival. I'd spent some time on Sunday afternoon rereading and thinking about the report Ben had given me and was hopeful this trial was in fact part of the answer to the clinical trials my own team was running. We needed a breakthrough on this liver drug.

"We are beginning our final descent into Seattle. Please ensure your seatbelts are fastened, your seats are in their full and upright positions, and your tray tables are stowed and locked. We'll be by to gather any remaining service items."

I shifted in my seat, tucked the book I hadn't even opened back in my bag, and closed my eyes. As the plane dipped through the clouds, I realized I hadn't been back to Seattle since I'd graduated ten years ago. Over the years I'd kept in touch with a handful of my college buddies who still lived there, but beyond a random email, Christmas card, or Friend Request on Facebook, I hadn't given any of them much thought.

But once I started down memory lane, the floodgates opened.

Parties at the house with Jasper and Jacob.

Long talks with Dr, Andreski and late nights in the ChemE lab.

And Bella.

I wondered how she was doing, what she'd been up to since we'd parted ways, if she was still in the city, if she was happy…

The plane touched down, jolting me out of my thoughts, but as I stood and gathered my belongings, I decided to do what I did best – research.

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