A/N: Many many thanks to those who have followed, favourited and reviewed!
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And that's all I got to tell you for now.
First Published: 14 July 2014
Chapter 10 - Bidding Farewell
Back at Cullens' House
Edward sank back on the sofa. Leaning forward to cradle his head with his hands, the bronze-haired vampire shut his eyes. If he was still a human, Edward reckoned that he would have a splitting headache right now.
Many things happened today and he wasn't sure if he himself was able to process everything rationally.
When his family first moved to Forks, Washington, Edward was rather depressed, sullen and brooding. His family noticed it and knew that he was missing something from his life. He wouldn't even know that if he wasn't able to read their minds.
His life changed when Isabella Swan came to town to live with her dad, Charlie Swan.
When he first met her at the School Café, he felt frustrated by his inability to read her thought and was forced to listen to everyone else's thoughts about her to find out what he could, and realised that all of the boys already liked her. He still remembered that he felt very protective of her, trying desperately to rationalise his feeling of lust over her.
When Bella was forced to sit next to him in Biology, he smelt her blood and he insanely wanted to kill her as well as massacring the whole class. To avoid causing disappointment to his parents, in particular Carlisle Cullen, Edward promptly left school for Decali.
A week after, Edward returned to Forks after some persuasion from Tanya. Not wanting to leave a bad memory to Bella, he introduced himself to her in Biology, and was fascinated by her blood and by the fact he couldn't read her mind. Because of that, he wasn't quick to dismiss her like he would to any other human. She answered all of his questions in different ways than he thought she would, mostly because he couldn't read her thoughts.
Not long later, Edward saved Bella from Tyler's van and then refused to speak to her for a long period of time. By saving the new girl, Bella was already suspicious of him for his insanely fast movement. He thought by distancing himself, Bella's curiosity would die out. But after all the time of ignoring her, the other boys, Mike Newton in particular thought that nothing was going on between the two and decided to make a move on Bella. As Edward watched them, he realised that he was starting to feel jealous of Mike but he decided to dismiss it. However, after sneaking into her room at night several times to watch her sleep, and when Bella said his name, he realised that he had fallen in love with the brunette. Over the next few weeks, he started to pursue her and after open night together in Port Angeles, he discovered that she knew he was a vampire and that she had fallen in love with him too. The two then formed a deep emotional relationship. After a while, Edward invited Bella over to his house to meet his family, who except for Rosalie, immediately took a great liking to Bella.
Edward would have gone crazy with pain and guilt when he first thought that Bella was killed by James, the rogue vampire. A simple baseball game had all gone wrong when they gained the attention of some unexpected guests. He even sucked the venom out of Bella's system to prevent her from turning, though it took a high level of willpower to keep him from killing her. From then on, he was even more resolved that he wasn't going to change her into a vampire, but Bella was adamant that the discussion wasn't over.
The bronze-haired vampire rubbed his temple with his fingers when his thoughts drifted to what happened during Bella's birthday party especially the visions that Alice had.
The raven girl who woke up from a casket as well as the girl with white hair from the second part of the vision. They both had beauty that could rival with a Vampire. The pale fair skin and scarlet red eyes matched with a Vampire's features. Though from Alice's view, Edward could conclude the girls in the vision weren't Vampires because of their clear heartbeats. The Vampire was curious as to why the raven girl had woken up from a casket. Anyone in the right mind wouldn't have a casket at home, not to mention to sleep in it. But all these didn't matter to him anymore when he saw the second girl who he had hugged and kissed in the vision. The sight of the girl with white hair had sent him into frenzy. If he was still alive, his heart would probably be racing hard for her. Everything didn't matter to him anymore, not even his current girlfriend, Bella. That was when he realized the girl in the vision was his soul mate. She was the one he was destined with, not with the brunette beside him.
Speaking of the brunette, the second vision Alice was forcibly pulled to make him stopped short. Alice had the power to see into the future so when what seemed to be Bella's pasts took place, he was in shock. It was not only because it was Alice's first experience to see into the past; it was mainly because of the contrast of Bella's personality in the past and the present. The wonderful brunette girl that he always thought she was wasn't for this case.
The arrogant and bitchy side of Bella portrayed in the vision made Edward feel reserved around Bella now. He wondered why Bella lied to him saying that she volunteered to come to Forks even though she was clearly kicked out by Renee and Phil. And all the disgraceful things she had done repulsed the vampire greatly. He could tell that his face was contorted in disgust when he looked into Alice's vision. He always thought that Bella was still a virgin but it was clearly not the case. He didn't mind that but a relationship was based on trust. Even after dating for so long, even after Edward shared almost everything to the brunette, Bella wasn't honest with him at all. And that was the problem. But this doubt was eventually dismissed when Edward reasoned with himself that Bella probably needed more time to tell him of her troubled past.
Then again, the brunette was probably seeking a new start and she didn't want to reveal her past so people could judge her. Edward hoped that it was the latter. After spending almost half a year with Bella, Edward had fallen so deep in love with her that he didn't want all these to be a lie. His heart still belonged to Bella but a large portion of it now belonged to his soul mate he had yet to meet. Since he had yet to meet with his soul mate, Edward thought that he was able to avoid her. Just from the Alice's vision, Edward could already feel a tug to his heart. Edward couldn't imagine how strong the mate pull would be if he was to meet the girl with white hair. The vampire initially wanted to give up his soul mate for Bella, since he had been with her for quite long. As long as he didn't meet his destined girl, he could still be with the brunette. He couldn't bear to hurt Bella at all, the girl he had fallen in love with.
And of course, things would not go well when a human mixed with a coven of vampires. A simple paper cut that Bella got, made Jasper lost control. Although members of the Cullen family managed to hold the Texan vampire back, Bella had received an arm laceration when Edward pushed her, sending her crashing against the wall. Jasper's instinctive hunger for Bella's blood reminded Edward of the continual danger their relationship put Bella in.
A sudden pat on his shoulder made his head shot up in alert to meet the eyes of Carlisle.
"Are you all right?" The blond doctor asked in concern. Esme was also kneeling down in front of Edward in worry. The rest of the Cullens had also gathered in the living room with him. Rosalie was tugged at Emmett's side, filing her nails like nothing had happened. Poor Jasper was situated at the corner of the room with Alice by his side to comfort him.
Apparently when Edward sent Bella home, Alice took the initiative to account everything she had seen in her visions, including Bella's pasts.
Shaking his head, Edward sighed before looking at Jasper. "Jasper, I don't blame you so please," Edward's voice became soft at this point, his eyes soften at the guilty look Jasper had, "P-Please, don't hate yourself for it…"
When Jasper continued to blame himself, Edward had reasoned with him again saying that it was because of the fact that he was an empath, Jasper had to feel the hunger of all of them. If they wanted someone to blame for, everyone would be responsible for it. Edward was relieved when Jasper felt slightly better after his reasoning.
"If you listened to what I had said in the first place and stayed away from that human, you wouldn't have caused this mess in the first place," Rosalie sneered, while still filing her nails.
"Rose!" Carlisle and Esme lightly reprimanded the blonde for her blunt statement.
"What?! " Rosalie jumped up from the seat in an instant before exploding. "I'm not at fault! Everyone in the room is! Acting all so familiar with that human," The blonde hissed at the word before continuing her ranting, "We all know that human isn't his soul mate." Rosalie pointed a finger to the bronze-haired vampire before flailing her hands wildly. "She's just his singer. But guess what? Every single one of you does not give a damn at all! Saying that Edward deserved to be happy for once blah blah blah. It is clear that that human has a motive staying close to us. I keep pointing this out to all of you only to get brush off. Can't you see she just want our money and immortality? And see what happens now?"
Rosalie might be narcissistic and self-centred, but she was extremely loyal to her friends and friendly. She admitted that she might be very shallow at times and naïve as a result of the attention and love caused by her beauty as a human. She knew the mind-reader wasn't a great fan of hers. So she didn't expect him to listen to her in the first place. What hurt the blonde most was that the rest of the Cullens didn't care much of her opinions when that human found out about them. It hurt her when her sister cum best friend and adoptive parents sided with the human. It was worst when her soul mate, Emmett even took a liking to that human. She voiced all these out on the spot in anger to everyone present.
"Every single one of you is so occupied with that human that you failed to notice her motive to get close to us," Rosalie was breathing hard after her long rant. Technically she didn't need to breathe, but old human habits were hard to change. Combing through her long hair with her fingers, Rosalie rolled her eyes. "I don't even want to see any of you right now." With that, she sped back to her room, not forgetting to slam the door shut loudly.
Everyone had their heads down in shame when they heard Rosalie's rant. All these while, they had brushed off her concerns so easily for Bella. They didn't even know they had upset the blonde so much. Silence filled the whole room when all of them reflected upon their actions.
"It's true. Bella may have a motive getting close to us," the depressed empath first spoke up. When everyone was directing their attention to him, Jasper straightened himself up and elaborated further, "I feel greed and desire whenever she is around. It is always this way." The Texan vampire had never felt acceptance from the brunette at all. Jasper could understand when Bella felt fear since she was in the presence of Vampires who could kill her easily, so he usually dismissed all these negative feelings away. He didn't want to point any of these out to disappoint Edward, as well as his family. He had enough being the family's weak link. He didn't want to be the one to spoilt Edward's happiness by revealing that Bella didn't love them at all. The Major wanted to keep this as a secret forever but he changed his mind due to Rosalie's rant. With Alice's visions as proof, the feelings he had felt from Bella were most likely her true feelings toward them.
"B-But I had a vision about Bella and me becoming good friends and that she will be together with Edward," Alice whispered to herself in scepticism. She was having a hard time processing all the visions she had today. She felt very guilty since she was the one who insisted to befriend the human. Unknowingly, she even hurt Rosalie in the process.
Carlisle patted the pixie's head in comfort. "This isn't your fault, Alice. You do know that your visions are subjective and aren't definite. The outcome will change if there is any change made to it." Rubbing his chin in concentration, the doctor deduced, "Judging from the vision you have earlier, the raven girl that you saw plays an important role."
"Important role?" Esme repeated in bizarre.
"Like I said, the outcome will change if there is any change made to it. If I'm not wrong, having the girl waking up in a casket changes everything."
"So…" Emmet spoke up for the first time after his wife stomped away in anger. He wanted to chase after the blonde but knowing his wife's pattern, the blonde probably preferred to be left alone for the time being. Listening to Carlisle's deductions, the burly vampire tried to rephrase, "You're saying seeing Edward's soul mate and Bella's pasts are because of this raven girl?"
Carlisle nodded his head solemnly. This was the only explanation he could offer for now. If it wasn't for this then the doctor didn't know what caused Alice to see someone's past. It seemed that the raven girl changed many things.
Esme hugged Carlisle's right arm and leaned her cheek on his shoulder. "So what happens now? It is clear Bella isn't the right one. But she knows of our existence…"
"We leave," Edward suggested in a hard tone. It was because of him to make such a mistake. Staying any longer in Forks would only endanger his family and Bella. Bella didn't belong to the supernatural world at all. He shouldn't let her get involved in the first place. After hearing Rosalie's and Jasper's confessions, Edward was losing his trust for Bella. He even wondered whether Bella did love him in the first place. If what Rosalie said was true – Bella getting close to them was for money and immortality – then some things made sense then. Edward could now understand why Bella kept pestering him to change her. And when Edward refused, there was always annoyance flashing in the brunette's eyes. Edward could feel his heart being broken.
"Are you going to find her?" Alice asked. She had tried reading into the future to find out more about the raven girl and Edward's mate, but to no avail. It seemed that the visions she had about them today were a one-time thing.
Edward knew which 'her' Alice was referring to. His mind drifted to the girl with white hair. Edward couldn't help but notice how superior and perfect his soul mate looked. As compared to his soul mate, Bella was clearly lacking, by a lot. Bella's forehead was too wide. Her eyes were too widely spaced. Her lips were a bit too full for her slim jawline. Edward could only point out Bella's flaws right now.
The bronze-haired vampire sighed. He just had his first heartbreak; he wasn't ready for another relationship. Not to mention, his soul mate was a human, he didn't want to have another 'Bella' and caused misery to his family. Shaking his head, he continued, "We should leave as soon as possible." He left the living room immediately, leaving the rest with no chance to challenge his decision.
Edward made up his mind and he didn't intend to change it. Bella might not have loved him at all, but he would still want to keep the brunette safe. Leaving Forks seemed to be the right choice for her, him and his family.
As for his soul mate… A large portion of his heart already belonged to this stranger, no matter how hard he wanted to resist. It was nothing he had felt for Bella. The love for Bella seemed nothing as compared to his soul mate. Edward knew he wanted his soul mate very much. He decided to let things happen by itself. If they were meant to meet, then they shall meet. But he was sure he wouldn't change his human soul mate to become a vampire. He didn't want to take away his angel's soul. Worst come to worst, he would stay until she died of old age before ending his own immortal life to join her.
Now, Edward had to think of how to break the news of his family's departure to his soon-to-be ex-girlfriend…
With Bella
Bella dropped dead on her bed in exhaustion. Her room was once again in a mess after she threw her things across the room to vent out her frustration. Huffing out loud, Bella became deep in thoughts again.
For the past two days, Bella barely saw the Cullens. They didn't even turn up for school. Bella had sent messages to them, but none of the Cullens replied her. Bella could sense something was definitely wrong with Edward from two days ago. After kissing her, Edward's eyes betrayed his actions. Bella could tell that Edward was distancing himself emotionally from her. While she dealt with an emotionally disconnected Edward, Bella was also slapped with the news that Alice had left with Jasper, because of the horrifying events of her birthday party. She would have no clue as to what happened to the Cullens if not for Charlie's information.
She was starting to worry by now. Did Edward choose the bitch in Alice's vision over her? Did the rest of the Cullens not want her around? Did they purposely let the accident take place so that they had sufficient reason to dump her? Doubts filled her mind as she chewed on her nails hard. She was dreading what would happen later. Pulling her hair aggressively, Bella screamed in annoyance. Bella was trying her best to cling on to a life that she longed desperately to be a part of, only to get shut out by Edward at every turn. The brunette only hoped that the visions Alice had wouldn't make things worse for her. If not, she would definitely seek the raven bitch out to settle the score with her.
The brunette snapped out of her vengeful thoughts when Edward slid her window open. Bella's eyes widened at the sight of her boyfriend. Jumping up to her feet, Bella soothed out her hair and clothes. Walking closer to the vampire who refused to meet her eyes, Bella broke the silence first.
"Hey," Bella darted her eyes at the mess in her room, "Erm, I was having a hard time looking for something…" Bella didn't want her boyfriend to know that she had a habit of throwing her stuff to vent her anger.
Bella's smile dropped when Edward didn't offer his usual sexy smirk for her. Today, her Edward looked tense and brooding, more than usual.
"Just come take a walk with me." With that, Edward jumped back to the ground.
Bella narrowed her brows. Usually, Edward would be a gentleman to offer her a hand to help her out. So Bella was stunned to find out Edward expected her to take the long way out from the front door. Tucking her hands in her jacket, Bella huffed in annoyance before stomping to the front door to meet the vampire. Following behind Edward, Bella eventually found herself being led to the forest.
"We have to leave Forks."
After 10 minutes of silence, this was the first thing Edward said to her. Bella was dreading the reason but she still proceeded to ask him, "Why?"
Edward paused for a while to think of the best way to explain to the brunette, "Carlisle is supposed to be 10 years older than he looks and people are starting to notice."
Nodding her head absently, Bella felt a little elated. Leaving Forks would mean that they had made up their mind to change her. Supressing her excitement, Bella said, "Okay, I've gotta think of something to say to Charlie." Eyeing Edward for his lack of response, she knew something was wrong. "When you say 'we'…"
"I mean my family and myself," Edward corrected her. He didn't miss how Bella's lips quirked up when he said that they were leaving. Without having to read her mind, the bronze-haired vampire knew that Bella had mistaken that she was leaving with them as well. She probably also thought that she was about to change into a vampire too. Everything about Bella that he knew seemed so fake right now.
Bella stared hard at Edward's eyes. It was free of emotions. Bella couldn't let them leave. They couldn't just leave her alone here without changing her. She didn't want to age and die ugly. Eyes darting left and right, Bella bit her lips in panic. "Edward, what happened with Jasper, it's nothing."
"You're right. It was nothing," Edward looked at the ground and said casually, "Nothing but what I always expected and nothing compared to what could have happened." Edward furrowed his brows in sadness when he recalled Jasper's and Rosalie's confessions about Bella. Hurt was al he felt when he came to face with the brunette. "You just don't belong in my world, Bella. "
"I belong with you," Bella insisted. She knew Edward was dumping her but she refused to accept it.
"No. You don't."
"I'm coming," Bella said firmly.
"Bella. I don't want you to come," Edward stressed every word to her, hoping she would get his point already. The more she tried to argue with him, the more Edward felt that Bella only wanted to stay with him for immortality.
Bella could feel confidence breaking down, "You don't want me?" Every guy wanted her, so why didn't Edward want her?
"No."
"That changes things a lot," Bella said flatly. She could feel anger rising within her.
"But if it's not too much to ask, can you promise me something," Bella's head shot up in hope, "Don't do anything reckless. For Charlie's sake. And I'll promise something to you in return." Bella thought that she could ask something from Edward in return. She would definitely ask for immortality but what Edward said next destroyed her hopes. "This is the last time you'll ever see me. I won't come back, and you can go on with your life without any interference from me. It will be like I never existed, I promise."
"If this is about my soul, take it. I don't want it without you." With immortality, Bella didn't want to give a damn to her soul. She just wanted to look young and be wealthier than the rest of the Cullens.
"It's not about your soul. You're just not good for me." Edward didn't need a calculating girl by his side. The only girl he deemed worthy was his soul mate. He might not be worthy for her, but she was all he wanted. He would probably give up everything just to be with his soul mate. Now, he was even sure that Bella wasn't meant for him. His broken heart no longer had any space to fit Bella back.
Bella echoed in disbelief, "Not good enough for you…"
"I'm just sorry I let this go on for so long."
Bella huffed, "Please… Don't…"
"Goodbye."
Edward stepped closer to press his lips to Bella's forehead. This last kiss would mark the end between the two of them. Edward was ready to let Bella go and moved on with his life. He was shocked when he found it to be so easy. It seemed that he was ready to meet his soul mate… Sparing one last glance to the brunette he once loved, Edward sped away leaving her in the forest.
"Edward," Bella called out to her boyfriend. She couldn't believe him. Did he really mean everything he just said? If that was so, then she would no longer be able to turn into a vampire. There would be no immortality for her.
A desperate run after Edward through the forest leaved her lost and crippled emotionally beyond repair.
She panted heavily as she tried to catch her breath. Despair then converted to anger. Balling her hands into fists, Bella punched the air in frustration all the while shouting.
"Fucking Edward!" Bella delivered an uppercut to the air, "Not good enough for me?" Bella imitated Edward's tone before continuing, "You should be lucky that I even look at you, you stinking moving corpse! Fucking vampire! Can't you just give me what I want instead of being an ass?"
Bella pulled her hair hard before chucking a medium size rock as far as possible. Apparently she had overestimated her strength; the stone she threw only landed few feet away from her.
"Fuck! Even a stone pisses me off!" She roared before stomping toward a random direction, hoping she could make her way out of the forest.
And of course, her clumsiness just had to kick in to bite her in her ass. She tripped over a protruding tree root and lost her balance. Not having a fast reflex, she failed to stop her fall. Bella fell flat on the ground and her head collided on the same rock she had thrown earlier.
"F-Fucking rock," Bella groaned in pain. Black spots were forming in her vision. She got so dizzy and weak that she just lied on the ground motionlessly. "I-I don't want to age… I want to remain young forever… T-Turn me… I-If I can't, I will rather die…" Bella choked out as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Bella didn't know how long it had been. As she laid there on the forest floor, she could hear the voices calling her name, but she didn't have the strength to reply to their calls. She was drifting in and out of consciousness. But she could remember vaguely that a man with long, rounded muscles, copper skin, cropped black hair and a very deep voice. The man had carried her in bridal style and passed her to Charlie when they made their way out of the forest.
Bella didn't know what was installed for her in the future without the Cullens by her side but she was very sure she would kill the one responsible for her misfortune.
With Ren
After Billy had received a distress call from Charlie, he started to gather more people for the search. Jake knew that he was needed to drive his dad over to Forks so his time with Ren had to be put to a stop. Knowing how well Ren's sense of direction was, Jake volunteered to take Ren home first while Billy called for more manpower. Jake was a little disappointed to say. He had waited for so long to spend time with his crush but it had to be put to a stop because of Bella Swan.
Coming to a stop in front of Ren's house, Jake eyed their intertwined hands before rubbing his thumb in circles on Ren's. Jake then lifted their joined hands to his lips and kissed the back of Ren's hand. It seemed so natural to show affections to Ren that he had forgotten they had just met the second time only. A faint blush was decorating his cheeks. Of course, this was what he felt. He didn't know if Ren felt the same as him. His heart was beating fast, afraid that the raven girl would reject his affections straight away.
Well, similar to Jake, Ren also found it to be natural and relaxing with the Quileute teen. Whenever she was near the teen, Ren would feel weird. Warmth seemed to spread within her chest when Jake flashed his charming smile or when he showed little affections to her. Despite all these being foreign to her, Ren didn't dislike the feeling. The raven girl offered a small smile to Jake to show that she wasn't offended before heading into the house.
"W-Wait!" Jake stopped her suddenly. Shuffling his feet on the spot, Jake hesitated.
'Should I?' Jake eyed the girl who was staring at him curiously. 'Do or die…' Nodding to himself, Jake began to break into a small run toward Ren. He suddenly threw his arms around Ren and pulled her to his chest. Tucking his head at the crook of her neck, Jake could smell the lavender scent from Ren. Even though she was 5'8, Ren looked so small in his arms.
Jake then separated himself from her and stared into Ren's eyes. Seeing the stunned look and the blush on Ren's face, Jake broke into a bright smile. Ruffling her hair, Jake decided to push his limits again by pressing a kiss to her forehead. Deciding not to stay to face Ren's wrath, Jake ran away but not before bidding a farewell to her.
Ren stood rooted to the ground. She stared in the direction where Jake had disappeared to. Lifting her hand slowly, Ren placed it on her forehead before lowering it down to stare at it. A small smile formed on her lips. Dropping her hand to her side, Ren turned on her heels to head back to the house only to meet up with Frankenstein.
Judging by his widened eyes, Ren could only guessed that the blonde had witnessed everything Jake did. Ren tried to put on a poker face but the blush on her face betrayed her.
"M-Master," Frankenstein stuttered. Originally he just wanted to head back home to rest after finishing the interview at Forks Hospital. It wasn't tough for him with his experiences so he expected himself to be accepted for the vacant position. He didn't expect to witness the scene before him.
When the blonde first saw the russet-skinned teen pressing a kiss to Master's hand, Frankenstein felt anger rising within him. 'How dare the kid disrespect Master…' Dark aura seeped out of him, wanting to punish the teen for it. And when the teen hugged Master and even pressed a kiss to her forehead, Frankenstein saw red. He wanted to kill the teen for doing that but seeing Master's face, the blonde abandoned his thoughts.
.
.
.
"Frankenstein," Ren called out after taking a sip of tea.
"Yes," Frankenstein bowed his head slightly. He hoped it wasn't because of earlier.
"This world has changed… Humans are incredible." Ren closed her eyes appearing to be deep in thoughts.
"You were sleeping for a long time after all," Frankenstein pointed it out.
"…" Ren tilted her head to look at Frankenstein who was standing beside her. "Jake has something I do not."
'Jake? Is Master referring to the teen earlier? Isn't there a Union Agent who shared the same name? Even the teen has an irritating name…' Dark aura seeped out of Frankenstein when he found another point to dislike the teen. Snapping out of his thoughts when Ren cleared her throat, Frankenstein continued, "Master?"
"He said that if I had it, I would not get lost. I just need to call…" Ren drawled out in uncertainty. She remembered the suspicious-looking rectangular device Jake showed her when he found out that she had gotten lost for 5 hours. She didn't know how that piece of device could help her.
'Is she talking about a mobile phone?!' Frankenstein was alarmed. He didn't thought of that for his Master. 'That little rascal must be asking for Master's number only to discover that she don't have one. Smart kid to resort to this…' Frankenstein didn't want to get a phone just so that the kid could get his Master's number, but for the sake of his Master, the blonde relented. "M-My apologies," Frankenstein bowed his head in apology, "I will prepare a phone for you immediately."
Ren sipped her tea again. "He played games with it too."
"I'll make sure to buy the most recently released one…"
A/N: So how was it? I liked Jake/Ren moment here. So cute and awkward.
