Many of you have assumed that Bella is the one Edward is talking to in his thoughts and that's... interesting.
It's interesting that the majority of you assume that it's Bella, but is she really?
I haven't mentioned the color of her hair or eyes, not even her name, yet you all think it's her.
Also, please notice that there is only one character listed, so where does it come from?
My advice to you is to please keep an open mind, and read carefully. Bella is IN the story, there is no doubt about that, and there will be clues on who she is, but you haven't met all the characters yet, so save your pick until the end, which is when you will find out.
I'm aware I'll probably lose readers because of this, but I don't mind. The only two people I really care what they think are 100% behind me on this, and they don't even know too. In fact, NO ONE knows who Bella is but me. I haven't even written the last chapter yet.
That's all, and to all of you that remain, enjoy.
3.
The mansion felt empty, but soon it would be filled with loud conversations and laughter once the family arrived. Mae informed me my uncle would be home later that day, just in time for dinner. He had just come back from a month-long trip to Europe, so he had work to catch up on.
I wondered if you had gone to Europe the past months. You mentioned you wanted to go to Italy but never really had the opportunity. I had told you I would take you in jest, but inside, I meant every word. But for that to happen, I had to find you first. Maybe I could go back to that coffee shop, ask around, leave a note with the cashier, do something to bring me a step closer to know where you were.
Mae brought me out of my thoughts by asking me to help her with dinner.
Not wanting to miss on sampling her delicious food, I eagerly followed her to the kitchen.
The walls of the mansion were covered in art work and family photos; some new, some old. I spotted a big collage of black and white photos covering a entire wall of the dining room, and I knew immediately who had taken the photos.
"I see Jay has been busy," I commented, fingering the frame of one particular photo that had been taken years ago during a trip to Hawaii.
Mae smiled proudly. "He's so talented, isn't he?"
I nodded, agreeing and remembering when my cousin received his first camera. It was an old thing, one of those that needed a new light bulb every time the flash was used, but he loved it. At the age of 23, he now had a collection of old cameras of all sizes and shapes. He would always try to use them at least once every now and then.
"He'll be here tonight. I should call him. Sometimes he gets lost in his work and tends to spend hours inside that dark room, just like someone I know with their laptop." She gave me a pointed look.
I grinned back and shrugged. "I guess it's in the family."
She laughed, agreeing, knowing we were all cut from the same cloth.
A photo caught my eye; this one was older and clearly not taken by Jay. A woman in her late twenties stood with two toddlers, her small bump showing the beginning of a new life growing inside of her.
It was my aunt Katherine.
I remembered very little about my mother's step-sister, but she had been a lovely and caring woman. It hit the family hard when we found out she had been killed in a car accident, the culprit being a drunk driver who sped down the street like a maniac.
Thanks to my uncle's attorneys, that man was now in jail.
I came to live with my aunt and uncle when I was only six years old after my mother had passed away. She had lost the battle against cancer, and since I never knew who my father was, I was welcomed into the Cullens' home. My aunt and uncle raised me like I was their son, and my cousins were like my siblings, even though we didn't share any blood relation.
We were a family, and I was happy to have come back to Chicago for at least this week. I had missed them all very much, almost as much as I had missed you.
Thanks to my beta MariahajilE. I truly appreciate your help.
You can now find me on twitter: Riv3rBoy84
Thank you for reading.
-JR