(Twilight theme by Stephanie Meyer)

EPOV

My still heart felt like it was heavier than ever. She is talking about me as if I were a perfect being. She is so off base. I am a monster; she saw that for herself just last night. The truth is she is too good for me. She should be yelling and calling me names. Instead she tells me that I am wonderful.

I am speechless. I love her more than my own life and if I say nothing she will think I don't care about her. She will move on with someone who can love her the way I can't. It is what I want for her, but I am too selfish to allow her to move on. He was right, I am stringing her along. I hate him. I hate myself.

She looked into my eyes with complete understanding and embraced me. Her warm skin felt like coming home. We belong together. I pulled her closer and felt her heart beating so steady and familiar. I missed the sound so much more than I knew. I could smell her strawberry and freesia scent and realized in that moment that we needed one another. Without thinking I kissed her and it sent a shock through our bodies. She didn't push me away. She kissed me back. I lost my hand in her soft hair and deepened the kiss. I felt her heart racing and it was amazing that the blood lust I felt was transformed into desire for something more. I gently picked her up and she wrapped her legs around my waist, our lips never broke the kiss. We fell onto the bed and I kissed her neck and felt her blood rushing under her skin. It sang to me, but I ignored its call. I was too consumed with the longing that built up in my body. Bella whispered for me to stop, but I felt her arms still tightly wrapped around my back. I kissed her again and she held me in that kiss. Then she pulled away and I suddenly realized I had taken it too far. It was like a bucket of cold water hit me and I jumped up.

The confusion I had been feeling returned to me like a crashing wave. I couldn't even look her in the eyes. "I'm Sorry" I blurted and jumped out the window and was running once I hit the dirt. I ran all the way to our meadow. When I reached the center of the meadow I crumpled to my knees. I had no energy to run or break anything even though there was anger flowing through me. I lay on my back watching the gloaming sky. I watched until full dark enveloped me.

Over a hundred years on this earth and I still don't have the experience to guide me to a solution. In a way I actually do feel like a 17 year old boy dealing with his first love. Then I remembered the circumstances. I am protecting her from my world. We are not the same. I have predators like James and Victoria in mine. She is too fragile too temporary. I found my legs around that time and walked at almost human speed. I walked as if there was a trail ahead of me; suddenly I knew what was at the end of the trail. I heard her sweet voice floating out her window and I sat under the tree and listened to her.

I guess it's luck but it's the same
Hard luck you've been trying to tame
Maybe it's love but it's like you said
"Love is like a role that we play"

But I believe in you so much
I could die for the words that you say
But I believe in you so much
I could die from the words that you say

I jumped into the tree and looked at her through the window. She had her guitar in her hands and I became entranced by her voice. She was so beautiful, even the sadness that hung in her eyes made her beautiful.

But you're chasing the ghost of a good thing
Haunting yourself as the real thing
Is getting away from you again
While you're chasing ghosts

Just bend the pieces till they fit
Like they were made for it
But they weren't meant for this
No they weren't meant for this

She stopped suddenly and picked up her phone.

"What do you think?" She asked hesitantly

I struggled to hear the low voice that came from the receiver. It was Tristan. "You finished it! It is finally perfect."

She smiled with relief. "Thanks, we can work on it Saturday for your show next week."

"After this I think you can pretty much go to any college you want."

"Well that is the point of bearing my soul for radio play isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's pretty awesome huh? I have everything we sell going though the account. 50/50 partner and we are doing quite well."

That is what they do all weekend? He is helping her earn money for tuition.

"I can't believe it, I just have to survive the rest of this semester and then we are out of here."

"Yeah, you can relax and work on your tan while I do the Vans tour this summer then we're off to San Francisco or New York."

She's leaving after this semester? She hasn't told anybody. Even Charlie is clueless. He thinks she will go to school in Seattle.

"My tan? You know I could spend every show in the pit without any sun block and I will still glow in the dark. I hear that the people in San Francisco don't get much sun though so I will probably fit in there. Did you send out your transfer applications yet?"

"Yes Ma'am, we are set to go. Oh I forgot to ask! How is Jacob? Have you talked to him?"

"No, I should've called him, but I was distracted."

"Distracted?"

"Yeah, Edward came by."

"How did that go?"

There was no jealousy in his tone, only concern.

"Well, instead of trying to play it cool or some other socially acceptable way to deal with a break up I spilled my guts and then we kissed."

She sounds so detached. Is that for his benefit?

"Ouch, how did it end?"

"Well of course I over thought it and I pulled away. He looked like he thought it was a mistake too and he bolted"

A mistake? It was the only thing lately that felt, right.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah . . . I think it was good to get some closure. Although I think a talk in a public place would have left less of a dent, you know?"

Closure?

"Izzy, it is good to feel the pain. If not you will end up sealing it inside and no one can survive that. It takes time."

This guy is getting annoying. He sees her better than I do. He sees her hiding her pain. He sounds sincere when he talks to her. Not like that cocky jerk I met last night.

"I know. I have seen it; I guess I am just getting impatient. I am tired of being broken and sad all the time."

"We will do something exciting this weekend, ok?"

"Thanks Tristan. I am going to spend some time with Charlie. I will talk to you tomorrow."

"Sounds like a plan. Love you So."

She laughed at his parting words and answered with "Love you Mo'" Yet another part of their relationship that I do not understand. She hung up and then ran downstairs.

I ran to my house and was greeted by Carlisle. "Alice told me you may need to talk."

I shook my head thinking of the medaling pixie. "I have spent so much time thinking and I still have nothing. What would you do in my situation Carlisle?"

"I don't know son. It is a tough decision to make. You know we think of Bella as a daughter. We would love to have her as a part of this family. I do understand that you want her to live her life, it is a precious thing and all of us were deprived of that experience. I think you should let her live her life the way she chooses."

"You didn't answer my question."

"It is not my decision to make. It is something that you and Bella need to discuss."

"I think I may have lost her already."

"You have only lost her if you give up son." He placed his hand on my shoulder and walked back into the house.

I followed him after another moment. When I reached the living room I saw Alice. She looked confused. I searched her mind and saw the vision she just had.

Vision

Snow lightly falling on the school parking lot, but it is different because something is missing.

The vision becomes unclear and disappears

Jasper is back and he brought Eleazar to see Bella?

She is so pale, she is, a vampire?

The scene becomes hazy and

ends.

Alice met my eyes and says, "It is getting closer Edward."

"I have not made my decision Alice. It is impossible"

"It is going to begin snowing any day now. How much longer do you think she has Edward?"

"Have you seen anymore about Victoria?"

"No, she seems to have changed her mind. I don't see her anywhere. Did you talk to Bella?"

"Alice, you know that I did."

Her thoughts flashed from our disagreement to the kiss. Her thoughts had a hopeful feeling to them.

"I just thought maybe something had changed?"

"Yeah, Bella has decided to leave Forks in January. She is going to live in some big city for college with Tristan. "She made a face when I said his name. "I hate that I cannot see her when she is with him. It gives me a headache." I smiled at her and she continued, "I didn't know about her plans to leave. Why wouldn't she have told me?"

I thought about Alice's frustration and I remembered something from my conversation with Bella earlier. "Alice, have you ever seen werewolves?" She looked at me as if I were crazy."Remember the story we told you about the Quileute's?" She nodded."Well Bella spends her weekdays with one of them. She smelled like him today. She told me that Tristan is only around on the weekends. So I think it might be werewolves you cannot see.

"Okay, but Tristan is not a werewolf. He smells human."

"What if he is like Bella? They smell similar, still human just a little different because of their similarities. She is immune to my ability…"

"And he is immune to mine?!" she finished my thought.

"Twin souls perhaps?" A voice said from behind us. It was Jasper and Eleazar they must have been listening to our conversation.

"Twin souls?" Alice asked Eleazar.

"Yes, in Aristophanes it was thought that humans were joined in the beginning back to back, you know four Arms, four legs, two faces. They were powerful beings. Zeus feared their power and decided to split them up. The idea of a soul mate or twin flame came from this same idea, but it is not always a romantic relationship. The best partnerships in history were people with twin souls. It was said that people who have twin souls are stronger when together. I came across only one set in my time with the Volturi."

"How can we determine if they have twin souls?" I asked him.

"Their powers are complimentary. Like Jane and Alec would be a good example. She can make people feel pain and he can do the opposite. The two of them are not twin souls, but they work similarly. The pair I knew was very close; you would think they were twin brothers. Their abilities were also complimentary, but they also were able to amplify each other. They were human when we found them. I saw the glimmer of their abilities and now that I think about it they smelled similar as well. We think it was because of a blood bond they shared during war. We decided to change them and their abilities became very strong. So strong that Aro feared them and he ordered that they be destroyed. He burned one alive and the pain and loss of the twin broke the other to the point that he surrendered and they burned him also. It sounds to me like Bella and Tristan are the same. She can block an attack of the mind like a shield and He can penetrate an attack like a sword. Alice's ability is like that attack, she can see what you are going to do and stop it. He has rendered her power useless in her presence leaving her vulnerable."

I took in all this information and it made sense. The closeness they shared and their ability to block us when they are together. It fits together. It also made them a target if anyone found out what we know.

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(A/N: Do you like the direction this is going? Feedback always appreciated. Thanks!)