Hey guys!

Mulit-POV chapter coming up, yippee! It's all coming together now, of which i am superly glad, even if it is moving fast.

I promised myself I would update Mind The Gap before I re-updated this, so i might not be updating for a while, this chapter has to last for the next few days, so read SLOWLY!

DISCLAIMER - I don't own Twilight. Not bothered to joke i'm too tirred.

Read on, my brave warriors!


Alice's POV

"Well, that's done!" Emmett wiped his hands together then clapped, "Good work everybody!"

Rosalie shot him a glare, "How can you JOKE about all this?"

"Awh, Rosie, you're just annoyed that everyone stole our engagement's thunder."

"Am not!"

I turned back from my clothes-organising and smacked myself on the head. "Oh, guys, I'm so sorry! I completely forgot!"

"What?" Rosalie furrowed her brows, then her face cleared, "Oh, don't worry, Alice, it's nothing! Emmett's just being stupid."

"Yup yup!" Emmett grinned and saluted Rosalie, "Stupid fiancée, reporting for duty!"

"Shh!" She looked back at me, "Alice, seriously, don't worry about it; you four are more important right now." I didn't miss how her words sounded a little forced.

"Right!" I said decisively, "When this is all worked out, we're going straight back into serenade-Rosalie-and-Emmett's-engagement mode! And I mean parties, presents, gift registering, parties – oh wait, I already said that…Anyway. We can call it Operation RAEE."

"What about Christmas?"

Rosalie sighed, "Emmett, I don't think Christmas really counts if we only have three of us." Edward had already left for Forks.

"But still! They'll all be back for Christmas, I know it."

"What're you expecting, Em? A Christmas miracle?" I felt the same as him; I had always loved Christmas, and I missed being able to shop until I dropped. But somehow I didn't feel that into it this year.

"Well, Christmas is very miracalistic."

I snorted and Emmett stuck his tongue out, "You can talk, Miss I-Can't-Think-Of-Good-Names-For-Operations. I mean, RAEE?"

"Rosalie and Emmett's Engagement!"

"That sucks!" Emmett shook his head, "It should be called Operation Flying Bride!"

"Operation Flying Bride?! That sucks!"

"Does not!"

"Does too!"

"Why don't we just call it Operation Wedding and be done with it?" Rosalie suggested.

"I can live with that."

"Can I be 007?"

Jasper's POV

"Jazzy! Breakfast, darling!"

I trudged down the stairs from my room; my moping interrupted, and smiled at my mom. "Thanks."

"No problem, kid." She tilted her head and stared at me as I stabbed at my toast, keeping my head down to avoid her gaze. "You know, it's only two weeks until Christmas. What are you getting Alice?"

I shrugged moodily; she sighed and sat down in the chair beside me, grabbing my large hand in one of her tiny ones. "Jasper, please, talk to me. What's wrong?"

I looked at her hand as I spoke; it so resembled Alice's, "Nothing, mom. Everything's fine."

She scoffed…so like Alice, "Right, that's why my 25 year old son has been here for two weeks, why he turned up with no explanation other than 'I've come to visit?'" I laughed at her weak impression of my voice, "And that explains why Alice isn't here!"

I stiffened immediately, "Ah, that's it, isn't it? It's Alice." I shook my head and refused to answer and she squeezed my hand tighter, "Come on, Jazzy, talk to me! Please?"

Was I going to tell her? "Nothing's wrong…" I didn't even convince myself.

"Jasper, I'm your mother, of course I know when you're having problems. Tell me, and maybe I can help you! That's what mother's are for, dear."

"You'll hate me if I tell you."

"Why would I ever hate you?"

"I don't like myself very much at the moment."

"Why?!" She sounded a little desperate.

I stood up, my chair scraping across the linoleum floor, "Because, mom! I've done something terrible, and everyone hates me!"

"Jasper! What's happened?"

"Alice is pregnant!"

There was a beat of silence, then mom whispered, "Oh."

I slumped back down, resting my head on the table and resisting the urge to bang my forehead on it. "Jasper…" She stroked my curly hair, pulling at it and twisting it,

"What're you doing here?"

"To be honest, mom," I shook my head, my forehead scraping across the table, "I don't really know."

Bella's POV

Being pregnant sucks. And I was only two weeks into it.

I curled up in bed again, too cold to move; I'd forgotten how cold it could get in Forks in the middle of December.

As I shivered and tightened my arms around myself, trying to keep warm, I imagined what I would be doing if none of this had happened. Probably wrapped up in my bed with Edward, both of us anticipating Christmas (that and New Years were our favourite holidays), and both of us waiting for me to be dragged out of bed by a shopping-hungry Alice.

It was strange to think that Christmas was only two weeks away…I wondered what everyone else was doing. I hoped they weren't as depressed as I was - though no one could be as depressed as I was.

The cold wind rattled around the house again, and the window creaked, then blew open, hitting the wall with a crash that rocked my whole room. The wind shrieked and I was immediately engulfed in cold air. I shrieked and dove under my covers, which did nothing except get me tangled up in my sheets. I thrashed for a bit then, suddenly exhausted, I flopped down and began to sob yet again.

I cried and cried, for everything I'd lost and everything I was about to gain. Crying never helped - I would know, I'd done a lot of it in the past few days - but still the tears carried on. Anything set me off, but now, unlike other times, I just couldn't stop myself.

Weak cries scratched my throat, my hair blew about in the wind that was roaring through my window, and I shuddered with a mixture of cold, fear, dread and pure grief. Every time I stopped to take a deep, hollow breath, the tears just kept on flowing. I was completely overwhelmed with my own pain, brought on, I supposed, by the cold wind and shrieking noise.

I wasn't surviving well on my own; that much was certain. But I couldn't go back…yet I couldn't go forward either. I was stuck in my own personal limbo – or could you call it hell?

This thought brought on fresh tears, bordering on hysterics, and I had to just retreat into my mind and let my body cry itself out. The pain lessened as I backed away from it, but it was still there, like a sharp ache in my side.

I tried to think clearly, well, as clearly as I could in that moment in time, but nothing seemed any more clear or precise than it had yesterday…or any of the other times I'd lain here, crying my heart out. I couldn't think straight, I couldn't even remember if I was hungry or not. The only thing that I could see was Edward's face; it was as if he was imprinted on the back of my eyelids.

Even if he didn't know it, he was the only one who could help me, because I missed him so much. I needed him more than I ever had these past four years, and I wished more than anything that he could be with me. I didn't even care about the pregnancy anymore; all that would be bearable, even a joy, if he could just be with me.

At least he could help figure things out…he was always good at that.

"Edward…" I sobbed to myself, coming back to reality with a jerk, "Edward, please come back to me. I need you!" I knew I was talking to empty air, and this made me want to say it more, "Edward, please!" My voice broke, hoarse as it was, and I gave up, crying into my pillow again.

Who knew one body could hold so many tears? I didn't even know I could cry this much. The wind still howled; the window was shuddering on its hinges, making a loud crashing noise every time it swung around, and the rain was getting heavier, scaring me all the more. This was the one reason I hadn't liked Forks – The storms.

It must've been hours; or maybe minutes, my sense of time wasn't exactly on top of its game. "Edward," I mutter-sobbed to myself yet again, as if just saying his name enough would make him appear right on top of me. "Edward!"

A broken sob, or one of my broken sobs, I couldn't be sure, and then a velvet voice said, "Shh, love, I'm here. Please stop crying, shh, I'm here!" Achingly familiar arms pulled me across my bed and I was enveloped in warmth, crying into a soft, lemon-scented material.

I was too far gone to tell if this was just a figment of my imagination, crying was the only thing I seemed to be capable of. I certainly knew who it was, apparition or not apparition. "Edward, please don't leave me!"

"I won't Bella, I promise, I'll never leave you!" Edward's voice sounded strangely cracked, as if he was trying to hold back tears as well. I wouldn't hold for him crying at all, so I tried to control myself. I breathed deeply, taking in his unique sweet, washing powdery, lemony scent; and it didn't fail in calming me down, as it always had. I found that I was immediately able to think again, and my tears slowed.

When I was calm enough, I looked up into his face, barely able to believe it; yet here he was, his eyes red-rimmed from exhaustion, his face pained and desperately concerned, and his hair wonderfully messy. His bronze locks were full of little droplets of water, and his face was wet, as was his shirt. He must have been outside in the rain.

Unable to keep back a relieved smile, I reached up and fingered the circles under his eyes.

"You look tired."

Edward's POV

I realised as I hurried off the plane, one of the first to passport control, that I had no idea where Bella's house was. I nearly shouted at myself, wondering where I had been all that time when Bella had practically lived with us.

This couldn't be too hard…she lived close to our house; I knew that from when Alice had mentioned it. I debated on calling her, but it was late, and I didn't want to bother her.

As I finally managed to find my way out of the airport, I realised the wind was blowing fiercely and the rain was torrential. Bella hated storms…who knew how terrified she was? I had to get to her.

"Excuse me," I asked a driver who was standing by the wall, smoking, "But do you know where the old Swan house is?"

"Sure do, it's by the old Cullen house."

Oh, it WAS closer than I thought. I looked out at the rain again, judging whether I could walk there. The driver cut in again, "You won't get there in this weather without a car." He gestured to his, and I sighed, exasperated.

"Fine, fine, but can you get me there as quick as you can?"

I threw myself in and the driver revved the engine, obviously very excited at this late-night speed rampage. I buckled my seatbelt and gripped the seat tightly, not wanting to die on the way.

"If Emmett were here," I thought wildly as the driver speed off, "He would be having the time of his life."

The driver screeched round corners, turned water on the side of the road into tidal waves, splashing a few unlucky people who were walking home…I hid behind the door when I realised I recognised more than one of them.

We skidded to a halt outside of my parent's house – or my old home, whichever way you look at it – and I took a deep breath whilst the driver turned and grinned manically at me. "That alright?"

"Yeah, thanks." I grimaced at him then threw some money his way, jumping out of the cab without a second glance. I hammered on the door, and my mother opened it, a bleary-eyed expression on her face which quickly changed to surprise.

"Edward? What're you doing here?"

Carlisle came up behind her, "Alice called, Edward. I tried ringing Bella, but the phone lines are out."

"What's going on?"

"No time to explain, Mum. Dad, have you heard anything?"

"I didn't even know she was there until just now."

"What's going on?!"

We ignored her and Carlisle grabbed my bags and pushed me back into the rain, smiling gently, "Go on, she lives right across the street."

How did I not know that?

I heard Esme shriek as the door closed, "Carlisle Cullen, you tell me what's going on right now or I'll…" I would've laughed if I hadn't been so consumed with fear and worry over Bella.

It was the first time I had actually looked at her house; I'd passed it many times, but never actually stopped to see it. It was exactly how I would imagine her home to be; whitewashed slat walls, a black tiled roof, and not too small, but not too big either. I tried to judge the best way to get in, and decided that knocking on the door first could be a start.

I was completely soaked by this point, but I didn't care. My hair, wet and windswept, clung to my face as I knocked on the door loudly; but I could see there was no sign of Bella through the glass. Where could she be?

She would be asleep by now; it looked like I was going to have to wait until morning, and I didn't want to wake her up.

The wind increased, and suddenly one of the windows on the first floor swung open inwards with a crash, and there was an audible scream from inside.

"Bella!"

The tree was the only way up; I didn't care if I was illegally breaking in, I felt like I would die if I didn't get up to her now. I was desperately worried about her, especially when she was in this condition. What if she'd fallen? What if the window had hit her?

Steeling myself, I ran to the tree and jumped for the first branch, swinging on it, thanking for the first time the gymnastics classes Alice had forced me to go to with her when I was 10. I supposed all that basketball I had done in my last three years of high school helped too.

I swung a leg over the branch, pulling myself over and onto it, before grabbing for the next one. The tree was wet and slippery, and I tried to forget about the fact that I would definitely break something if I fell. That didn't matter now; all that mattered was Bella.

"Ouch!" I swore quietly as a sharp, short branch scraped my ankle, carving an inch deep gouge. I ignored it and kept climbing, no doubt trailing blood everywhere, my clothes now soaked as well. After five minutes more I had reached the windowsill and I hauled myself up and over, praying that Bella would be there.

Sure enough, she was, tightly entangled in her bedcovers, her beautiful face turned towards the window; twisted up in unbearable pain. She was weeping uncontrollably.

Everything else disappeared in that moment; all I could see was her. The longing to go straight over there, curl up next to her and hug her close to me as I could ached in my chest, but I couldn't do it. What if she didn't want me…didn't need me there? I was torn; watching her cry was unbearable. I felt like crying myself, like her pain was mine, whatever she was sad about.

Though of course I knew why she was sad, and that hurt all the more.

The rain was pounding down on my face, and I wasn't sure whether this was the source of the wetness on my cheeks or not. "Bella…" I whispered; I wanted so badly to be next to her.

"Edward!" she cried, as if answering me, "Edward, please come back to me! I need you! Edward!" Bella turned her face into her pillow and sobbed harder; and I was sure something inside of me broke, right then. Maybe it was my heart.

"Edward! Edward!"

I threw myself in through the window, not caring anymore, the pain in my chest growing stronger as she cried for me. My voice broke as I lay down next to her, ripped off the tangled bedclothes and wrapped my arms around her tightly, pulling her into me, not realising how much it had hurt without her there until she was.

"Shh, love, I'm here. Please stop crying, shh, I'm here!" I tried not to cry, for her sake, kissing the top of her head and holding her even closer, trying to calm her down.

"Edward, please don't leave me!"

My heart broke in two again as I heard the desperation in her voice, "I won't, Bella, I promise, I'll never leave you!" Her scent was all around me, and I felt better than I had in weeks, despite Bella crying in my arms. That hole in my chest was gone, and so was that depression which had pressed down on me since she'd left. Everything seemed better when she was there; even now, when Bella was sobbing and I felt powerless to do anything, the future looked brighter than it had five minutes ago. I buried my face in her hair as she clutched at my shirt, and I swore to myself I would never ever be without this wonderful woman again.

Bella's tears slowed, and her arms wound around my torso, gripping me tightly and she rested her head on my shoulder. Slowly, she looked up at me, her eyes cautious, and I looked back at her, waiting for her reaction.

Even when her face was covered in tearstains, her hair was messy and tangled, and her eyes were red, she was still the most beautiful creature in my world. She meant everything to me; seeing her like this, and knowing it was my fault, made me hate myself. How could I have done this to such a caring, loving, breathtaking girl?

I was frantic with concern for her, but she just smiled blissfully, and she reached up to stroke my cheek gently.

"You look tired," she said in her angel's voice; then she wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged me tightly again.

"Oh, Bella," I sighed roughly despite myself as she twisted her fingers into my wet hair, "I'm so sorry."


There *smiles happily* that's a good place to stop!

As I said, this'll be the last for a few days. I'm really sorry! Keep reviewing, I love hearing your thoughts!

Mind The Gap will be updated vair soon, i promise.

TTFN folks!

Love, ATO xxx