SM Owns Twilight

Chapter 3

Edward had been playing Bella's lullaby when he read Alice's mind: Bella's future disappeared. Immediately, the panic took over and he dialed Bella's cell. When she didn't answer on the first ring like she normally did, he dialed Charlie's house, his mind trying to fight the panic bursting through his chest. As waves of calm spread over him, he realized Jasper and Alice had joined him in the room, her vision still blank.

"Hello," Sue answered the phone.

"Sue, hello, this is Edward. Is Bella there?" he asked, desperation seeping into his voice.

"Oh, hello Edward. No, she went to visit Emily down at the reservation. She should be back for dinner. I'll have her call you."

"That would be great, thank you," Edward replied somewhat hastily. "Please tell Charlie I said hello."

"I will Edward, and please tell your family we said thank you for their hospitality."

"I will, goodbye Sue." Edward hung up the phone, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Jasper, please stop trying to calm me down."

"Jasper's just trying to help, Edward, and you know she's safe with the dogs," Alice chimed in.

"I know she is, I just panicked."

"What else is new?" Jasper teased. Alice smacked him before turning back to talk to Edward, who had moved towards the window and stared out into the forest beyond their yard.

"Are you worried about Bella meeting Jacob?" Edward didn't answer immediately.

"You know she hasn't asked me to change her since we left Forks? I thought we would be married by now; she wanted to have a physical relationship and I told her we could after we were married. She hasn't tried to pursue a physical relationship with me since we left Forks. I used to be the one who had to pull away when we kissed, but she pulls away now."

Alice and Jasper looked at each other silently. Clearly, Edward wanted to get some things off of his chest.

"I've seen her stare off into the forest so many times during the past four years; it almost seemed like she was waiting for something, someone," he said quietly.

Alice didn't say anything, but instead, thought of all the times she had seen the same far off look come over Bella's face. Jasper remembered the feelings he felt emanating from her on the rare occasions he was present for some of Bella's 'staring off' moments. She yearned for something, longed for it so much, that it always took him by surprise, how strong Bella felt about things.

Edward read their minds, but didn't react to what he had seen. He continued to stare out of the window, remembering when the change in Bella started.

The day after newborn fight

Edward had been spending time at his house, playing chess with Jasper when the vision came in. Alice had been looking through a magazine when she saw Bella and Edward, holding hands and walking to class at Dartmouth.

"What is it, Alice?" Jasper asked, noticing the look on her face.

"She's staying human," Edward answered. 'What else do you see Alice?"

"Nothing. Just that the both of you are going to Dartmouth."

Soon after Charlie left, Edward snuck in through the window to find Bella looking at her acceptance letter from Dartmouth. Bella looked up at him and smiled cautiously.

"So you know?"

"Yes."

"Do you think it's a good idea? What if I fail out?" Bella asked.

"Of course I think it's a good idea. I always wanted you to go, and you won't fail, I promise."

"Edward, I can't take your money to do this."

"It's too late. Alice has already taken care of everything." Bella bit her lip, wondering how to bring up the topic.

"Bella, what are you worried about?" Edward asked, sitting next to her on the bed. Bella looked up at him, trying to figure out what to say and how to say it without hurting him.

Since she was now going to college and wouldn't be changed into a vampire anytime soon, there really was no reason for her to go through with getting married. Initially she agreed to it so Edward would be the one to change her; then she decided to go through with it so Edward would have sex with her, but now, she saw no point in it.

As she continued to look into his eyes, she realized that Edward hadn't exactly promised her that he would have sex with her, just that he would try to. Knowing him as well as she did, she knew that he would try, but wouldn't go through with it because he feared for her safety. At first, she didn't care if he lost control and bit her; it would be better that way. Now, she wasn't so sure. She knew how he would argue this out-when she felt the rejection washing over her, he would simply tell her that he promised he would try and that he did, therefore, he kept his promise.

She would already be married at this point; he would get what he wanted, and she wouldn't.

"Bella, what is it? What are you thinking about?" Edward asked impatiently. He really hated not being able to read her mind, but he knew her expressions well enough to know that something was amiss.

"I think we should leave soon. It gives us time to settle in."

"What about getting married?" he asked earnestly. Bella sighed loudly.

Damn.

"Edward, I love you, but you know I really don't want to get married…"she wanted emphasize the words never ever somewhere in her previous statement, but now she couldn't because of the look of pure hurt etched on Edward's face, so she simply said, "right now."

Edward nodded like he understood, but his dead heart was breaking. He so wanted to make her his wife, for the world to know that she belonged to him. Before he could mope some more, Bella sat up on her knees and kissed him on the cheek.

"I'm sorry," she whispered against his cheek, before hugging him tightly.

"Don't be. We have time to get married later on."

Bella was thankful that he wasn't looking at her face when he said that. She was sure her grimace would have hurt him even more.

As he continued to stare out the window, he began remembering how Bella had acted these past four years. When Bella stopped pursuing a physical relationship and started to pull herself away during their kisses, he deluded himself into thinking that she was trying to make things easier on him. She knew what he could and couldn't handle, and acted accordingly.

Now, he realized that she could have pulled away for another reason, another person.

The feelings coursing though him at that moment bought Jasper to his knees.

"Edward, stop!" Alice screamed, trying to comfort Jasper. Edward didn't turn back; instead he made his way out the back door before running into the forest, scaring every little creature in his path.

As he ran further into the forest, he heard the thoughts of Emmet, Rosalie, and Esme coming closer to him. They had been off hunting and were just returning to the house. He didn't want to talk to anyone, so he took off in the other direction, hoping for some quiet so he could decide what to do.

Eventually, he stopped at the clearing the middle of the forest. He sat down against a tree and closed his eyes, images of Bella flashing through his mind.

What could he do now? Should he fight for her? Or do the honorable thing, the one thing he had failed to do time and time again…leave her-for good this time? -

When Billy told Jacob that Bella was in Forks, all he felt at the moment was pure rage.

He ran out the door and got into the car, driving as fast as the car could go to get to Forks. It would have been better for him to have run there, but he didn't want anyone else to know what was going on in his mind right now.

How dare she come back here like this? She left, without so much as a goodbye, no

e-mails, no letters, no phone calls. He assumed she was a vamp, running through the woods, sucking the life force out of animals.

She left him without closure. Now she comes back, hugging his father, bringing home the smell of strawberries.

He was going to give her the verbal bashing of a lifetime. He didn't care if the leech was with her, but he would get it all off of his chest. No one ever called her out on her selfish behavior.

Jacob would be the first. He would do it in such a way that the only thing to make it better would be to see her cry and suffer, just as he had all these years.

As he got to Charlie's, he got out of the car without turning it off. He ran up the stairs and rang the doorbell, breathing heavily, trying to control the tremors creeping up his spine. Sue answered the door, took one look at him, and said,

"She's visiting Emily." Jacob swore, stormed down the stairs and got back into his car. His car practically flew back to the rez. He couldn't believe Bella Swan's antics.

She not only deserted him, but now she comes back and the first person she goes to see is EMILY! He was not going to let her get away with that either.

He pulled up to Emily's house, and ran up the stairs to the door when it opened from the inside.

All of the anger he had been carrying with him since seeing his Dad earlier had melted away at the sight of her. His heart thudded so loudly, he was sure it would break through the stone wall encompassing his heart. His fists clenched at his side, his eyes bore into hers, drowning in the brown eyes.

He wasn't sure how long he stared at her before removing his eyes from hers and glancing down at the rest of her. Bella Swan was no longer a sullen teenager, she had bloomed into a beautiful woman. Her hair was shorter this time, her breasts-fuller, her hips curvier, and her lips; well, they seemed fuller to him, but probably because they were calling out to him. He watched as she blushed, her mouth opening to lick her lips. It took every ounce of self-control he possessed not to step over the threshold and kiss those luscious lips senseless.

She was beautiful, just as she had always been.

She smelled like strawberries. Still.

She was blushing. Still.

She was human. Still.

As she stood barely a foot away from him, he breathed in her scent once more, all anger vanishing. The only thing that remained was the constant thudding of his heart against the stone wall. It threatened to break free at any moment, and Jacob wasn't sure he would stop it. They continued to stare at each other.

She took a deep breath, almost as if she was trying to breathe in his scent the way he had breathed in hers. If he hadn't been paying attention to her eyes, he never would have registered the change.

She blinked, her expression blank. Then, she opened her mouth to speak to him the first time in four years,

"You should take a shower, I can still smell her perfume all over you," she said coldly.