A/N: As promised, here's Chapter 4.

This is EPOV of the aftermath.

Many thanks to my awesome-sauce beta, Melolabel, and thanks for all the reviews, favorites and alerts! I get teary eyed each time my inbox dings.

Disclaimer: I'm not Stephenie Meyer, so Twilight is not mine, but I do enjoy pretending.

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Rewind, Chapter 4

EPOV

(Early afternoon, December 30, 2010, Seattle, Washington… )

I couldn't help shaking my head as my brother pranced, yes Emmett pranced, around the hotel room.

"Guys, I'm telling you, this was the hottest fucking girl I have ever seen! I'm talking Sports Illustrated swimsuit-model hot! I gave her three passes to the show tonight. She said she had two friends, and you know how it is with hot girls; they only hang around with other hot girls. That's one for each of us."

I rolled my eyes at him and glanced over at Jasper as he snickered at our brother's antics.

"I'm serious, guys! Tonight will be our lucky night!"

"Thanks, Em, but, no thanks. I'm not into groupies, you know that." I really didn't want to burst his bubble, but there was no way I was hooking up with a random girl. I had only ever done that once and it nearly destroyed me.

"Listen, Ed. I know you've been hurt. Hell, Jazz and I have lived with your fucking angst for five years, but one of these days you're gonna have to rejoin the land of the living. No girl is worth it, man!"

"Em, leave him alone," Jasper spoke up, giving me a look of sympathy.

"Hey, I don't mean to get on your case, Ed, but you know I'm right."

I gave a resigned sigh, knowing, deep down, that he was right. "It's alright. I understand where you're coming from, but you have to know where I stand, too." We'd had this conversation before.

Emmett gave an exasperated huff, "Okay, man. Whatever. Will you at least speak to this girl tonight? Who knows, maybe something will spark between you two."

He had such a hopeful look in his eyes that I didn't have the heart to turn him down. "Okay, I'll talk to her."

Immediately Em's happy demeanor returned and he fist-pumped as he said, "Awesome!"

I picked up my old acoustic guitar and strummed a few notes as memories flooded my mind. Maybe Em was right. Maybe it was time to move on.…

(Flashback)

July, 2005, Seattle, Washington …..

Morning was just breaking over Seattle when I was awakened by sunshine pouring through the crack in the curtains. I felt the warmth of bare skin against my side and the soft body tucked under my arm.

Isabella.

I turned my head, letting my eyes drink in her beauty as I felt my heart swell. She was the woman of my dreams, perfect in every way. It sounded crazy, even to me, but I was in love with her. I knew my brothers were going to tell me I was insane, certifiable even, but that didn't matter. She was my other half, my life. It felt as if I had known her forever, not just two days. It was as if we clicked; two separate pieces of one whole being. We were only complete when we were together.

I leaned in and kissed her lips softly. She murmured something that I could have sworn was "Love you", before snuggling deeper under the covers. My heart skipped a beat or two before I whispered the words back to her. I promised myself I would say them to her later this morning when she was wide awake. I glanced at the streaming sunshine and then at the bedside clock – seven-thirty. Plenty of time for a quick run while my girl slept.

My girl. I really liked the sound of that.

I slipped from the bed as gently as possible, not wanting to disturb Isabella, and then quickly donned my running clothes. I grabbed my wallet and keys before heading out the door. With any luck, I would be back before she even turned over.

A half hour later I was completing my run, when I saw Vickie getting out of her car in front of my building.

"Just the man I wanted to see," she greeted with a smile as she stepped across the curb to stand in front of me.

"Hey, Vickie, what's up?"

"I could ask you the same thing. I've been trying to reach you since yesterday morning, but your phone goes straight to voice mail."

I remembered that I'd turned my phone off on Friday night, not wanting anything to disturb my time with Isabella. I guess I'd forgotten to turn it back on.

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that," I didn't elaborate. "So, what did you need to tell me?"

Her eyes moved across my face and down my throat, before they narrowed slightly and a tight look of anger flashed across her face. It was gone so fast, I thought I must have imagined it. Then she smiled again and spoke quickly, "Oh, I heard from the record company. They've scheduled your studio time for the first of next month. Will you guys be ready?"

"Sure! You just tell us the time. We've been ready for a while."

"Great! So... you going up?" she nodded her head in the direction of my building. I honestly didn't feel like introducing her to Isabella this morning. Vickie was territorial about the band, and I knew she had hopes of something more than just a manager/client relationship with me. I didn't feel that way about her; never had, and I suddenly felt a little ashamed for never being straight with her. I knew I was going to have to finally come clean and let her know I didn't have those kinds of feelings about her, but I didn't want to deal with her drama this morning. For now, I just wanted to enjoy my time with Isabella.

"No, I think I'll run down to Starbucks for breakfast. I'll talk to you later." I gave her a wave and jogged away, figuring Vickie would get in her car and leave while I picked up some coffee and muffins.

How wrong I was.

Twenty minutes later, my life fell apart.

I returned to my apartment, breakfast in hand, to find it empty. The only signs that Isabella had been there was the indention of her head in the pillow and her shirt lying on the bedroom floor. I still remember how I held that shirt, slept with it for months, because it still smelled like her. I had done everything I could think of to find her, but to no avail. Emmett and Jasper watched me die a little more each time I hit a dead end. Then I had to admit to myself that maybe she didn't want to be found. I think I might have died outright if it hadn't been for the music. I threw myself in to writing. It was Jasper who suggested that maybe if I could write down my feelings, it might make them easier to deal with. I had tried, and it did help a little.

I was still an emotional mess when the blow up with Vickie happened. I was having a really bad day, which had followed a really bad night before, when even booze couldn't keep Isabella's memory away. It was a couple of months after she disappeared, and the band was rehearsing for our tour which was starting right before the holidays. Vickie had been hanging around a lot lately, and I mean A LOT, and had become really touchy-feely with me. I'd finally had enough and I blew up at her.

"Vickie, will you just give it a rest! I'm not into you that way!" I really didn't mean for it to come out that harshly, but my nerves were stretched paper-thin and I didn't think before I ranted.

Her eyes flashed with rage as she retorted, "What the hell are you waiting for, Edward! Do you think that little tramp you had in July will be back? I don't think so!"

The room suddenly got very quiet as I turned slowly to face her.

"What did you say?" I asked, enunciating each word carefully.

Apparently she was so enraged that she didn't notice the change in atmosphere. "That little slut you slept with in July. Did you think I didn't know? I saw that mark on your neck that the whore left on you! I got rid of her. Did you really think I would let someone like her ruin what you've worked for? You had to keep your eye on the prize. You didn't need any distractions from someone who didn't understand your music or the lifestyle that goes along with it."

"You did what? What do you mean, you got rid of her?" I was too stunned for a moment to give into my fury, and I was almost afraid of what I was going to hear.

"I told her that you sent me to get rid of her. That she didn't belong in your life. Don't you see, Edward? I did it for you. You don't need a groupie hanging on to you. She would only drag you down!"

Oh, my God! She was totally delusional. How had I missed it? I was still too shocked to reply immediately, and she must have taken that as a sign that I agreed with her.

The smile she gave me was slightly off, as she said, "Don't you see, Edward? I understand you. I understand your music. You belong with me."

I stood gaping like a fish as I tried to wrap my mind around what she was saying. I finally found my tongue and said the first think that popped into my head, "You're crazy!"

By this time, Emmett and Jasper were flanking me as the three of us stared at her as she continued her insane ramblings.

"Edward, you know you belong with me. Emmett, Jasper, you know it, don't you?"

"Vickie, I'm only going to say this once, so you better listen closely." I was having trouble hanging on to my rage and I was shaking with the intensity of my feelings; I was really close to losing it completely and doing her bodily harm. Jasper seemed to sense this as I felt his hand close around my bicep, giving me silent encouragement.

"Don't you ever, EVER speak about her that way… No, wait, don't you ever even THINK about her again. Do you understand? Do you?" I was shouting by this time. Jasper and Emmett moved closer to me, knowing I was seconds from committing murder.

"You're fired. Get your stuff and get out of here. Don't ever even think about coming back."

"But Edward... I did it for you. Don't you know that? You need me. You need me!"

Her tears did nothing for me. I couldn't stand to look at her one moment longer.

"All I need is for you to get out of my sight. GET. OUT!"

"But..."

"You heard him, Vick," Emmett spoke coldly. I don't think I'd ever heard him speak in that tone before. "Leave!"

"You'll be sorry," she yelled as she gathered up her things. "Do you really think you'll make it in the music business without me? Do you? Just wait, you'll see. You'll be begging me to come back within a week." She stalked out of the rehearsal studio and that was the last time we saw her.

Two days later, we hired our current manager, Jay Jenks. He was a seasoned professional and had worked wonders with our career.

. . . .

Time passed and each day I was able to push the pain of losing Isabella a little farther down, until it only surfaced when I was alone. I only pulled out her shirt when I'd had an especially shitty day and needed to feel her presence. But after five years, I was still no closer to finding her. For all I knew, she could be married by now. I cringed inside at the thought of her with someone else, but I also knew I had to face facts. Five years was a long time. Maybe Em was right. Maybe it was time to move on.

Right then I made a decision. Tonight was the last gig on our current tour. I'd been ending each concert with a message to Isabella. If she didn't show tonight—here in Seattle where it had all began—then I would attempt to put my life back together without her.

The show tonight was awesome; it was, hand's down, the best we'd ever had. There was something different, sort of like a subtle charge in the air. I was still floating on that high when we came to the close of our set. Like always, I made my plea to Isabella, telling her, once again with fifteen thousand witnesses, what I hadn't been able to tell her that morning five years ago – that I loved her.

"Thank you, Seattle, for a great homecoming. You're an awesome audience!" I felt the energy surge with the applause. I felt my heartbeat rush as I opened my mouth to say the words for the last time ...

"Isabella, if you're out there, I still love you."

I sang our closing song—the one I had written when the pain of her leaving had still been fresh and everyday I felt like I was dying— to her. I couldn't seem to get her out of my head. When I looked up to sing the last line of the song, there she was. At first, I thought I was hallucinating, that I had somehow conjured her likeness up out of thin air.

"Isabella?" Then I knew. She was real. She was there, right in front of me. "Isabella!"

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A/N: There it is, Edward's take on the whole breakup. I hope it didn't disappoint. I know some were thinking it might go another way and Edward would be a little more OOC, but you need to remember, this originally a one-shot, and I'm a sucker for a perfect Edward.

Last chapter will post tomorrow!

Rock On!

** BM **