Dilemma at Dawn
The last time Bella had been with all of the Cullen's was on her 18th birthday. The party had been a catastrophe. Bella had survived another near-death experience. Edward cringed at the memory. Several of his memories with Bella had been more unpleasant than they had been pleasing. He hated himself and would never forgive himself for that. Yet, despite all the horrors Bella was put through, she still loved his family and she still loved...him. Edward opened his eyes for the first time in hours. The darkness was fading as dawn neared. Overnight, the wind had blown away the clouds leaving the early morning sky undimmed. The stars shone brightly now, and far towards the east orange mixed in with the dark navy of the sky as the sun began to rise on the horizon. Edward thought of his family now. He knew that the arrangements he had made would break their hearts. However, they would never know the gruesome details because Alice would never see it happen. Edward was glad about about. He didn't want Alice to have the violent image of his death stuck in her memory. He thought to leave his family without saying goodbye. To leave them, only, with what little information Alice had to give them. However, his conscience tried to convince him otherwise. Edward had already decided to go home either way, not because of nostalgia, but because he realized that he couldn't leave his car parked in a cemetery. He didn't want there to be any unnecessary attention cast on his family when his car was impounded for sitting idly in a cometary parking lot for days. But, Edward feared going home. He feared that they would be waiting and he didn't know how they would react...or how he would react to their reaction. It was so much easier for him not to have to face them. It was easier for him to just...disappear. It was a dilemma, but he had no choice, he had to drive his car home. Edward quickly stood to his feet. He took one last look at her engraved name and whispered, "I love you."
Without giving it another thought, Edward darted through the rows of graves and reached his car in a matter of milliseconds. With the same speed, he opened the car door and was behind the wheel. With futile hope, Edward drove his car with reckless speed in an attempt to catch Alice off guard. When he came within a mile from his home he realized just how futile his attempt was... He could sense them, all of them, and because all of them were there, he knew that it was because they were waiting for him...
