A/N: Okay so I felt Edward's POV needed a little more attention. This is really the second half of chapter 6 and we'll get back to Bella and Bree next time.


Chapter 7 – Love Somebody (pt2) – by Maroon 5

"You're such a hard act for me to follow.
Love me today, don't leave me tomorrow"

Edward

"And Edward has officially entered the Guitar Case of Shame!" Emmett announced when the band reconvened.

"Daum, was that your chick that just ran outta here a minute ago?" Jasper asked impressed. "A real librarian type, huh?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I asked confused and unsure if I should be offended or not.

"You know; cute, quiet, smart, but wild and sexy as hell in the bedroom."

"Why don't you just keep your mouth shut about her, okay," I warned him as gently as I was capable of, but if he didn't knock that shit off I wouldn't hesitate to pop him one.

"Whoa, what's wrong, buddy?" Carlisle asked, surprised by my subtle threat.

"Nothing, I'm just tired about the shit talking that constantly goes on around here," I told him.

"Alright, enough!" Aro yelled at us. "I have all the arrangements made for New Orleans. We leave this afternoon, so go pack your belongings."

"This afternoon?" I questioned. "You said we weren't leaving until Wednesday or so?"

"Well, now we're leaving this afternoon. I got a great deal on plane tickets. Is there a problem?" Aro asked me challengingly.

"After New Orleans we're coming back to New York for another gig, right?" I asked, refusing to answer his question.

"I haven't confirmed that venue yet, but if New Orleans goes well, I have an investor lined up for a European tour."

"Holy shit!" Emmett said excitedly while giving Jasper a high five. "We're hitting the big times, now."

"It's only a matter of time," Jasper added.

"Edward, are you okay?" Carlisle asked me; he must have noticed the very large issue I was having.

"Yeah, fine," I said through gritted teeth before turning and heading to my room to pack my stuff. I had no idea what I was going to do, but I knew leaving without seeing Bella again wasn't going to happen; I didn't tell Aro, but if the band was flying out afternoon, then I'd just have to find my own way to New Orleans after I talked to her. I loved my band, but for the first time since we got together, something else became vastly more important and I would do whatever it took to make it work with her.

"You sure about this?" Carlisle asked concerned after I begged him to cover for me.

"I know this seems…crazy –"

"More like insane," Carlisle interrupted me.

"I know, but I have to do this. I never felt anything like this before, and I can't just stand her up. I need to talk to her…I don't know, get her to wait for me."

"So you want a girl you just met to commit to a long distance relationship with you?" he asked incredulously.

I paused as I thought about it, and then nodded. "Yes. Look, you don't understand, and that's fine because I don't really understand it either, but…this thing I'm feeling…I know she was feeling it too, so…I really don't think she's going to be that shocked by my request. Carlisle, I would marry this girl today if she'd agree to it."

He stared at me blankly for a minute, and then he laughed.

"I'm not kidding," I said irritated.

"No, I can see that you're not…I actually think this is an amazing turn of events."

"Really?" I asked confused.

"Yes. Finally, you have something real to write about. I really truly hope it works out for you," he said sincerely.

"Thanks man…I appreciate it. So you'll cover?"

"Yeah, and here…" He reached in his pocket and pulled out a wad of cash. "Just get your ass to New Orleans as soon as you can…Hell, bring the girl with you if you want."

"Really?" I asked surprised. "But she's a student, so I doubt she could leave."

"Who knows…maybe she'll surprise you."

"I'll pay you back," I promised as I rushed out of the room. It was nowhere near four, but I had to hurry out of the building if I wanted to escape Aro's wrath when he found out.

I walked around the city for a while, just soaking in all the magic it had to offer, and it wasn't long before I found my way to the park I was meeting Bella in. It was still early so I spent the next two hours daydreaming about the kind of life we were going to have. It was absolutely insane of me, and if the me from the day before could see the me now, I would have laughed and then kicked myself, but I didn't care either. In fact, I felt myself rapidly not caring about anything except for her. Was it an obsession, or something so much more? Perhaps fate had finally gotten a hold of me and was showing me exactly where I needed to be….I should have known it would never be that easy.

"What the hell are you doing?" Jasper said as he unexpectedly showed up in the park.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him. I looked down at my watch and saw that it was 3:50, and the last thing I wanted was for Bella to show up with Jasper there; the dick would probably say something to make her uncomfortable.

"What am I doing here, what are you doing here? Carlisle said you were meeting a girl…What the fuck Edward?"

Since Jasper and I grew up together he thought he could say whatever the hell he wanted to me, but I wasn't going to let anyone or anything get in the way.

"If Carlisle already told you what I was doing, then why are you here asking me?"

"Look, Emmett told us what he saw on the roof between you and the girl, and we all saw her running out of the place this morning, so I'll ask again, what the hell are you doing here? A chick like that isn't going to leave all her snooty friends to follow us around. Think about it."

"I have been thinking about it, I've thought of nothing else since she left this morning."

"Come on Edward, you were the one who tried convincing me to leave Maria. This is ridiculous. You don't even know this girl…but you know what, I do."

"You know her?" I asked skeptically.

"No, not her personally, but I've known plenty spoiled little rich girls just like her. I bet her dad is some lawyer or big business owner who bought his little princess's way into college. Girls like that…they don't end up with trailer trash like us. They may take a dip in the gutter, but they certainly don't stay there. Don't let this chick fuck you up."

I took a deep breath. "She's not like that…that's not what's going to happen…you don't understand."

"Then explain it to me."

"I…Fuck, I can't explain it…I feel things with her…I don't know how, but…she saw me….She saw right through me, and we have a connection that I never knew existed."

"Gah, you sound like you've been reading too many teen novels."

"I love her, Jasper," I said, shocking both of us.

"You don't even know her," he said quietly.

"I know enough…Just, go to New Orleans. I'll be there tomorrow."

He shook his head. "Why don't I believe you?"

"I will be there," I insisted.

"Well, then I'm going to wait with you and make sure you get on that damn plane."

"Fine, whatever, just go wait over there. I don't want you scaring her off."

"Okay, but hate to break it to you, it's already 4:10 and I don't see her anywhere."

I looked at my watch. "She'll be here. She's probably just running a little late."

4:30 came and went, and the longer I sat there alone, the tighter my stomach tied itself into excruciating knots.

"Sorry, but like I told you, princesses don't end up with guys like us," Jasper said while clapping me on the back. "Come on, let's get to the airport."

I thought about it for a long minute, but as I went over our time together in my head, I knew she had felt the same thing I did so there had to be another reason for her no show. "No," I told Jasper before taking off running towards Columbia University. I didn't know if Jasper was following me or not, but I didn't care either. I had to find Bella, there was no way I'd be able to move on if I didn't.

When I arrived at the college, I just stood there and looked around at the throngs of people walking by. I was never afraid of a crowd before in my life, but those people terrified me. They were so different than me, so polished and perfect that it made me start questioning everything. What if Jasper was right, what if Bella was too good for me?

Like a beacon of light, I turned towards the street and saw Bella sitting in a cab staring back at me. I had no idea what I expected to happen, but when that cab continued to pass and eventually drove out of sight, something died inside of me. Everything I thought I felt, every note of music I once heard, it all disappeared like a raindrop in the ocean. How could I have ever been that stupid? Of course Bella was too good for me. She was a college student studying to become a doctor, I was nothing more than a struggling musician who was too stupid to know when to give up.

"Hey, come on Ed, let's go," Jasper said out of nowhere. I guess he had followed me after all.

"What's the point?" I asked emotionlessly.

"Don't you dare start that shit!" he yelled at me. "We are so fucking close, and you're not going to turn into a little bitch on us now because of a fucking one night stand."

Of course he was right. What the hell was wrong with me anyway? I was better than the sniveling loser I was acting like. So the chick I screwed didn't want to see me again, it was better that way anyway. There was no way in hell I was going to let anyone bring me down, especially not a woman I just met.

"Okay, let's go," I told him as unaffected as possible. I kept giving myself a mental pep talk – calling her every name in the book for ditching me; a bitch like that was the last thing I needed. But the farther away from her I got, the more I felt like I was leaving myself behind. Who was I anymore anyway?

It was pathetic and ridiculous, not even the end of a long term relationship was worthy of that level of anguish. So I went to New Orleans and tried to forget about her, but the moment I stepped onto the stage to preform, I knew the change in me was irrevocable. For my band's sake, I forced myself to play the set we scheduled, but it was all lackluster at best, and the livid off expression on Aro's face afterwards said it all.

"What the hell was that garbage!" he shouted at me back stage.

"Sorry, I did my best," I said honestly; I really wasn't capable of anything better anymore, and I was beyond pissed. I hated Bella, I hated myself, hell, I hated the fucking world. Nothing seemed to matter anymore, not even my music.

"Well, I suppose everyone has a bad day," Aro said, surprisingly supportive. "You just need to get back into the studio and practice more. We'll try this again in a few weeks."

But no amount of time or practice could help me. A few weeks later I still felt hollow, and I knew it wasn't going to change. "I can't do this anymore," I finally told my band. "I'm sorry, I just don't have what it takes." And with that I walked away from them, and couldn't even find the will to look back.

There would be no huge success for Cullen…at least not with my involvement. I needed to find something else…something different…something that didn't require feeling anything. I hated that I let my friends down, but at the end of the day, I was only bringing them down further the longer I stayed….