AN: Sorry folks, I took a congratulatory trip and am just now getting into the groove of things. For your wait, I have given you a longer chapter. For those of you worried about the delay, I will not be taking a seven year hiatus again, I can promise you that. I am determined to finish this story and will be updating weekly until that happens. I am so excited to be back and you have all made this such a gratifying return. Thank you! I hope you're enjoying this journey as much as I am.

Leaving Me Breathless

Chapter 10: Changed

I could feel the warmth of the rays of sun coming through my open window as I stood in front of my closet, wrapped in a towel with my long hair dripping cold beads of water onto my shoulders. I bit my lip. Of course, today was a warm day. A warm day, in Forks! I internally scoffed at the idea and rolled my eyes.

Normally I would have relished the warmth. I would have thrown on a pair of shorts and a short sleeved shirt and set out for a day of basking in the rare sunshine. Today, however, I faced a dilemma. All of my short sleeved shirts also had necklines that would surely show off the bright purple bruise of my newly discovered hickey.

I felt my cheeks flame as I thought the word. I had never been that girl. The girl that walked around town with the evidence of her escapades evident for all to see. The thought made me shudder. I hated attention and there was no missing this bad boy. It felt like in the time it had taken for me to shower and dry myself off, the bruise had become brighter. It was a neon sign screaming "Look at me! You know who I belong to!" I shook my head, trying to clear the thoughts. I felt frustrated with Jacob. I had no doubts in my head that he had known what he was doing when he gave me the hickey, and I couldn't help but resent him the tiniest bit for bringing more attention to me than was necessary.

At the same time, I felt flutters in my stomach as I replayed the morning's events in my mind. Kissing Jacob had been so different than anything I had experienced before. I remembered the feel of him, his heat as he kept himself propped above me, the feeling of his breath on my neck, his woodsy, natural scent all around me. I also recognized the sweet feeling of relief coursing through my body as well. I had been so worried that Jacob would leave me, that he wouldn't be able to forgive me for ignoring his wishes for me to ask the Cullens to leave Forks. Maybe Jacob understood me better than I had thought. Maybe he understood that, for whatever reason, he was a part of me that I couldn't quite let go of yet. Maybe. Or maybe he just realized how pathetic I was and took pity on me. Surely he recognized that Edward was no true threat to him. After all, it wasn't like Edward was still in love with me and could return the feelings I so desperately clung to.

With that thought and a sharp exhale, I grabbed the closest shirt that my fingers touched, resolving myself to just being careful of the placement of my hair. It would be entirely too conspicuous if I wore a hoodie in this weather. I would have to make do with a higher necked t-shirt, and pray that Charlie would be his normally oblivious self today.

After I dressed quickly and combed out my hair, I rushed down the stairs to the kitchen, suddenly famished. I was surprised to see Charlie sitting at the kitchen table with the paper and a cup of coffee in his hands. I had figured that I wouldn't see him until this evening, what with the weather being so nice. He normally took off for the river with his fishing pole and tackle box at the first sign of a sunny day.

"Good morning, Dad." I said cautiously, eyeing his face, feeling unreasonably suspicious of the way his eyes seemed to flit across the same page of the paper. It almost seemed like he was pretending to read the text in front of him.

"Good morning, Bella!" Charlie boomed, far too cheerfully, setting the paper down in front of him. My eyes narrowed to the table in which he had precariously tossed the paper. It was open to the comics which only made me more suspicious. That was the only section that Charlie didn't care for. He routinely took this page out of the paper and recycled it in the morning before settling in to read the features and sports sections.

"Ehm, have you eaten? I was thinking of just making some pop-tarts but if you haven't had breakfast yet, I could throw something together." I said hesitantly.

Charlie shook his head, "That's okay, Bells. I'm actually going to go fishing in a bit with Billy and Harry Clearwater. It's a nice day out."

"Yes." I said slowly, turning to throw my pop-tarts in the toaster before sitting at the table across from him.

"Speaking of Billy," Charlie continued, suddenly looking rather uncomfortable. "Have you talked to Jacob recently?"

For a moment I froze. Oh no, had he heard Jacob and I talking this morning in my room? Suddenly my cheeks blazed as I thought of what had happened with Jacob this morning. Had Charlie heard the embarrassing noises I was sure I had made when making out with Jake? The horror that I felt was hard to hide on my face. I forced a small smile and quickly decided to lie. I wasn't going out without a fight.

"Actually, no. I haven't talked to Jacob since the party." I said slowly, doing my best to look sad. It wasn't hard to fake it. I thought of the week in which Jake refused to see me or talk to me and I didn't have to fake a grimace.

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about, Bella." Charlie said, clearing his throat. "Now, I've been talking to Billy."

"What else is new?" I muttered under my breath.

Charlie ignored me and continued. "Billy says that Jake's been having a hard time. Now, I don't know what happened between you two but if you did something to upset him, maybe it is time to apologize." His voice was suddenly stern and very paternal. The paternal protectiveness seemed directed more at Jacob, however, than me, his only daughter.

"Why do you think that I did something wrong?" I protested, angry at their assumptions, even while knowing that Jacob and I had already begun to mend from our argument.

"Well," Charlie said slowly, "It just seems like Jake left your party in a rush and he was really upset. Billy said he's been moody all week. He said Jake has been a mess. I guess he hasn't been sleeping!"

I flinched at that. Why wasn't Jake sleeping? Was he really that upset over the Cullens being back? Or was it the new knowledge that Victoria was coming for me?

I froze again, realizing with a sudden, gut wrenching feeling that I had never gotten around to telling Jacob about Victoria. I had discussed her return with the Cullens at the party after he had already left. Then, we had fought and I hadn't had a moment to tell him!

Was it possible that I had forgotten to tell him? Was I so sure of the Cullens offering their protection and watch that I hadn't mentioned the mortal danger I might be in to my boyfriend? I felt my jaw drop open slightly at the massive misstep I had made. Oh he was going to be so pissed and I knew I deserved everything he threw at me for this one.

Then I felt my stomach lurch in fear. I had been so preoccupied with the return of the Cullens and my fight with Jacob that I had neglected to take Alice's vision seriously. I had neglected to even think of Victoria let alone her teeth ripping into my throat, destroying me. What if she found Charlie? The fear spread out of my stomach and I could feel it ripple throughout my body. Alice knew she was coming, but when? How long did I have? Would the Cullens really be able to protect me? Could I really put Jacob in danger by letting him in on the news that a rabid vampire was out for my blood?

I was ripped from my horrifying train of thoughts by Charlie's voice, "Oh come on, Bells. There's no need to panic. I'm sure that Jacob is okay. I didn't mean to upset you." His voice was gruff, and I could tell that he was embarrassed, thinking his words were the cause of the horror that must be apparent on my face.

"I didn't mean to hurt him." I said quietly, with a stab of guilt. I was far too familiar with how I had hurt Jacob, how I was hurting him every day that I continued to refuse to ask the Cullens to let me be.

"I know you didn't, Bells." Charlie said, his features softening. "Whatever it is can't be that bad. Maybe you should just call him and apologize."

I nodded but said nothing. Charlie, catching on to the fact that I was obviously not willing to say more on the subject sighed and then heaved himself up from the kitchen chair. "Well, I think I'll head down to La Push now, then." He stopped on his way past me to lay a heavy hand on my shoulder, "Cheer up, kid. It will all be okay." I just nodded again, keep my head down as Charlie made his way out of the house.

The sound of the toaster popping brought be back to what I was doing. I tried to shake the unpleasant thoughts of Victoria out of my head but it didn't seem possible. Now, very suddenly painfully aware of my misstep, I couldn't seem to stop worrying about the danger that we were all in. Had I really been so preoccupied with the return of the Cullens that I hadn't been worried about my safety? Or Charlie's? Jacob's? How could I have been so reckless? How could Alice have let me be so reckless?

Alice. She would know what was going on, what I hadn't even thought to discuss since their return. She would be able to tell me the decisions that were being made about my demise. I reached for the phone on Charlie's wall and began dialing the familiar number. I felt myself hesitate. It wasn't that I didn't want to see Alice, she had been like a sister to me at one point, after all. I just felt like things were so different now. Could I call her without coming off as needy or pesky to him? Surely Edward would know it was me on the other line after he heard her thoughts. I sighed and replaced the phone in the cradle.

I bit my lip, contemplating my next move. I really did want to talk to Alice about Victoria but I did not want to have to call her. I smiled when my plan formed in my mind, rushing to the front foyer to throw on my shoes.

I stepped out of Charlie's front door and smiled slightly when the rays of warm sunshine hit my face. I took my time with the lock on the door, knowing that it would take several minutes for my plan to begin to unfold.

After locking the door I paused on the porch, unsure of what to do. I stood there for a moment, feeling slightly silly as I listened for an expensive car coming down the road. I knew Alice would see my decision to talk to her about Victoria and would come looking for me. All I had to do was wait.

I decided that the weather was too beautiful to just stand around on the porch, so I began walking toward the trail that began at the edge of Charlie's lawn. Once under the canopy of the trees, there was a slight breeze which felt wonderful on my flushed face. I meandered a few paces onto the trail, thinking of how my conversation with Alice would go. She would likely tell me that I was overreacting and that the Cullens had some super watch on the house.

It wasn't until I stumbled slightly on a tree root that I realized where I was. Only a few feet onto the path, where I could still see Charlie's house. I hadn't been on this trail in months. I stood, rooted to where I had stopped walking, as I suddenly felt a sharp pain in the hole in my chest. Nearly a year ago, I had stood frozen in this very spot as I waited for Edward to return and tell me that he had only been kidding about the whole "I don't want you" bit. It seemed ironic and very fitting that I should be standing in this spot again, waiting for a different Cullen to show up.

The sense of longing that I suddenly felt in the pit of my stomach was so intense that I gasped audibly. How I wished that it were that day and that Edward had been kidding. That we had never walked this stupid trail to begin with. That I was good enough for him.

I desperately tried to shake the thoughts from my mind, knowing that they would do me no good in the long run. It did not help me to dwell on what could have been with Edward had I been good enough for him. Had I not been a helpless human that he couldn't entertain any longer. I grimaced at the thought and when I turned to leave the godforsaken trail and head back to the house, I yelped aloud and flew back, stumbling over the tree root again and nearly landing on my ass. If it weren't for the two icy hands that caught me, I would have surely had a bruise.

"Alice!" I gasped.

"Did I startle you, Bella?" She asked me, eyes curious.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I was just doing some thinking." I mumbled, not wanting to meet her gaze as I tried to quickly compose myself and hide the traces of pain from my features that my memories were sure to evoke.

"Yes, I imagine you were doing some very deep thinking." She mused, "I called your name twice and you didn't respond." She looked thoughtful and I suddenly had a sneaking suspicion that Alice knew exactly what I had been thinking about on this trail. I felt wildly uncomfortable under her gaze and felt my cheeks flush at the thought of her having seen Edward's plans to dump his loser girlfriend and force his family to move. Mortified, I realized that Edward would hear about our meeting later and draw some of his own conclusions. I felt a deep sense of shame for bringing her out to this path. Pathetic, I internally mused again.

I cleared my throat and tried my best to look composed, trying to salvage some of my dignity. "I'm sure you know why I wanted to talk to you."

"Yes." Alice said quietly, "But first, Bella, are you okay?" She asked in a quiet voice, very much unlike her usual tone.

"Of course." I replied automatically, slightly surprised. "Why?"

It was Alice's turn to look embarrassed. "He told me not to look for you, you know? He told me that he didn't want us to interfere in your life. 'She should go on as if we never existed.'" Alice scoffed at the idea as I cringed internally at her impeccable impersonation of Edward's words to me. "But once I'm attuned to someone, I can't help but see their future. Of course, I couldn't see how you would react to Edward's words after he was gone, something I knew wouldn't be a conscious choice or decision on your part, but I saw in my head his words." She suddenly choked off.

I stood motionless where I was, stunned by the guilt in her words.

"I should have warned you. I should have tried harder to change his mind. I just really didn't see it, you know? He had me partially convinced that maybe he was right to leave. I'm an idiot." Her eyes flashed with intensity. "I've been wanting a moment alone with you since the day we arrived back in Forks, Bella. I am so sorry for what he did to you. I am so sorry for my part in that. Can you ever forgive me?"

The pain in Alice's eyes mirrored the feelings I had been carrying with me for the past several months. "Alice," I groaned, resisting the urge to launch myself at her. It hadn't just been the loss of Edward that had hurt me. She had left me too. Could I forgive her for that?

"Bella, I will regret agreeing to Edward's demands every day for the rest of my existence. Please, you have to believe me."

Looking into her pleading eyes I did believe her. I felt my eyes well with tears, "You knew it was going to be horrible?"

She nodded solemnly.

"How could you not tell me, Alice? How could you let him blindside me that way?" I choked, angrily brushing away my tears.

She looked pained as she responded, "He's my brother, Bella." She looked torn. "How could I choose between his happiness and yours? And I did. I'm so sorry!" She wailed.

I looked at her then, utterly miserable and wracked with guilt for the impossible position she had been put into. Agree to her brother's wishes, someone she would have to deal with for eternity, or sacrifice the feelings of her human best friend with the hope that she would forget the pain quickly? It was an impossible decision and I suddenly felt pity for the girl before me.

"Alice, I forgive you. I'm sorry that you were put in that position. Of course you had to choose Edward! I understand." I attempted a smile. "Of course I wish you could have told me, but I understand, I really do."

"Oh Bella!" She cried, throwing her arms around me and brining me into a tight hug, "Thank you."

I nodded silently, resting my chin on her shoulder and patting her back. I smiled and hugged her tighter, realizing that I had been longing for this moment since she had returned. Our real reunion, just the two of us. I felt my eyes prick with tears again.

I sighed and pulled away as I remembered why I had wanted to talk to her. "You see her, don't you? How much danger are we in?"

Alice rolled her eyes, easily. "We aren't in any danger, Bella. She's not going to get anywhere close to you. We are taking turns patrolling the house every night. We are all familiar with her scent and with me watching for her decisions, it will be easy for any one of us to catch up to her on our own and end this. You have no reason to be worried."

"If it were that easy, Alice, you wouldn't have all returned to Forks! You're not telling me something," I accused.

"Bella, how do you think any of us would be able to live with ourselves if we left you here undefended and something happened to you?" She asked shrilly.

"I'm not defenseless." I pointed out.

Alice rolled her eyes again. "You should be just as worried about the dogs as you seemingly are about Victoria, Bella." She saw me bristle against the term 'dogs' and softened her tone. "They are dangerous."

I shook my head. "Jacob would never hurt me."

Alice sighed. "On purpose," she concluded.

I couldn't object to her statement, my mind drifting to an image of Emily's face.

"I've been wanting to ask you about that, actually," She said, interrupting my thoughts, "How are the wolves reacting to us being back and town and the possibility of Victoria coming?"

I glanced away and didn't say anything.

"You haven't told them." She ventured.

"I kind of forgot to mention it to Jacob." I muttered.

"You forgot to tell your boyfriend that a crazed vampire is after you?" She repeated, disbelieving.

"I've had other things on my plate to deal with, Alice." I said, meeting her gaze.

Her features softened as she looked at me. "Well, maybe it is best if you don't tell them. It might complicate things to have them try to guard the house. I assure you that with me watching we have a better chance at seeing her coming. If the dogs are here though, I apparently can't see a thing. Even with their protection, it would be more dangerous."

I nodded quickly. "Okay, I can do that. I know they run nightly patrols in La Push anyways, so if she went there, they would catch her scent regardless. La Push might be the safest place for anyone to be, at the moment."

"Aside from Charlie's house." She reminded.

"Yes, I suppose that is true now." I said, slightly relieved after having talked to Alice. I felt a pang of guilt, knowing I would have to continue to lie to Jacob. Well, was it a lie if I simply did not pass information on to him? It felt like one. I knew, however, that if I did tell him, he would insist on guarding the house himself. Without Alice's visions, it would put him in immediate danger. I couldn't risk losing him. I would lie, to protect him.

Alice was still at the house several hours later. We spent the day catching up and chatting, just like old times. She listened intently as I explained all of the high school gossip she missed after she left. She laughed as I told the ridiculous story of Mike and Jessica's break up and reunion as I made a pot of spaghetti for dinner. It was nice to be around Alice like this. The last several times I had seen her had felt so formal. We weren't quite back to how things used to be between us, but I wasn't sure if we ever would be. This felt nice though, and I was disappointed when she announced that she had to leave.

"I don't think it would be good for Charlie's heart for him to walk in and see me sitting at his kitchen table. I'm assuming that you haven't told him that we have returned to Forks yet?" She asked, her eyes slightly amused.

"I wasn't sure how long you would be here." I stated simply.

Alice grimaced, "You can tell him, Bella. We will be here."

Until Victoria is taken care of, I added mentally.

"I should still go. Talk to Charlie, and we can see each other again soon." She promised before exiting the house in a flash.

Charlie entered the house a few moments later carrying his fishing gear. "Hey Bella!" He called out from the entry way.

"In here, Dad." I called from the kitchen.

Charlie shuffled into the kitchen, his eyes bright with the excitement of a good fishing day.

"Catch any big ones today, Dad?"

"Plenty." He smile widened. "Harry Clearwater caught the biggest salmon today though. Just massive, that thing." He mused.

"Sounds like fun." I grinned at his enthusiasm over an activity that sounded so dreadful to me.

"How about you, Bells? What did you do today?" He asked absently, walking over to fill his plate with a heaping pile of spaghetti.

"Actually, Dad," I sighed, bracing myself for his reaction. "I hung out with Alice Cullen today."

Charlie's back stiffened and he was silent for a moment. "Alice Cullen is in town?"

"Well, actually all of the Cullens are in town." I said slowly, "Apparently Dr. Cullen's wife didn't enjoy Los Angeles very much, and so they decided to return to Forks."

Charlie's eyes snapped to mine and he looked panicked. "All of them?"

I cringed away from his stare. "Yes." I said quietly.

"Poor Jacob." He said and, startled, I met his eyes again.

"Poor Jacob?"

"Well with the Cullen kid back in town, no wonder he's been so broken up."

I scoffed and stood quickly from my chair.

"Oh come on, Bells. I didn't mean it like that."

"You have an awfully bad habit of taking Jacob's side over mine, Dad." I accused.

Charlie took a step back. "Now listen here, Bella. I don't want you running around with that Cullen kid." His voice was suddenly stern. "He hurt you once before and I don't want him hurting you again. The gall of that kid to show his face around here after what he did to you."

"Ugh, Dad. I'm not hanging out with Edward, okay? It isn't exactly like he wants to see me either. It's mostly just Alice. I only told you because she will probably be around more often at the house and I didn't want you to be alarmed if you came home and she was here."

Charlie relaxed visibly at my words. "Oh, well alright then."

"Alright. Look, I'm going to go read in my room for a bit."

Charlie nodded, lost in his own thoughts. I was suddenly very glad that I did not share Edward's talent as I knew where they had drifted.

I lay in my room that night replaying the day's events in my mind. I let the guilt overwhelm me. I was lying to Jacob, knowingly. If he found out about this, would he be able to understand? Would he know that I was acting to protect his privacy? Or would he assume that I was lying for other reasons? Was our new relationship strong enough to withstand a test like this? I gnawed on my lip as I worried about hurting Jacob further.

No, my internal voice chided, you're doing the right thing. You have to protect him. I let out a long sigh. I felt a pang of frustration at Victoria, all of a sudden. If she just paid attention, she would realize that hunting me meant nothing. Even if she killed me, torturing me before draining my body of blood, it wouldn't have the affect she wanted it to on Edward. This all felt like one big inconvenience and it was beginning to be a massive pain in my ass.

I huffed as I rose to grab a hoodie from my closet, still miffed at my vampire predator. The night had grown chilly with the setting of the sun, and a slight breeze blew through the open window in my room. I grabbed the hoodie and threw it over my tank top, zipping it only midway. I went to sit on the bench in front of my window and looked outside.

It was dark now, and I sat there gulping in the cool air, trying to clear my thoughts. My eyes automatically scanned the trees, searching for a sign of which Cullen was protecting mine and Charlie's lives this evening. My eyes zeroed in on a clearing in the trees and I felt my heart skip a beat. If my eyes weren't so attuned to his beauty, I may have overlooked him entirely. My memory would never forget the shiny bronze of his hair, however, and so as my eyes skimmed the trees they immediately latched onto that color. The rest of his features were blurred by the distance and the night, but I knew instinctively that he could see me and had no doubt that he was watching me now.

I chewed my lip as I battled out my two desires. One part of me demanded to call out to him, to invite him to join me, to relish in whatever attention he was willing to grace me. The other part of me begged to not be pathetic and to shut the window tightly and not look back.

"I know you're here." I said quietly. Apparently I was more pathetic than even I thought.

There was a short pause as he decided his next move, and then he was there, sitting in front of me on the bench beside my window.

I simply looked at him for a few moments. His gaze was intent on my face, cautious, as though I may start yelling or crying at any moment.

"I just wanted to apologize," I said slowly, "For last night. I got drunk and I was stupid. I'm sorry that I made you feel uncomfortable. I know that you were surprised to see me at the house."

Edward's eyes widened in surprise. "You're worried that you made me uncomfortable?"

"Weren't you?" I mumbled, looking away from his gaze.

"Why would I be uncomfortable?" He genuinely sounded confused and so I snuck a glance at him.

"I was in your house." I said slowly and his look of confusion did not ebb. He waited for me to finish. "And you came home from hunting and I was there. Then I watched you play. And you had to take me home!" I flushed with the words as they became increasingly mortifying.

"Bella, I told you that you were a welcome guest in my family's home yesterday." He said uncertainly, "And you watched me play as you have on several other occasions. Yes, I would have preferred you did not get drunk, but who am I to judge your actions?" He asked calmly.

I sputtered. What? Last night he had acted like I was crazy for watching him. He had acted like he didn't want me there. Why was he suddenly acting like it was no big deal, like this is something we did regularly together?

It used to be, I reminded myself.

"Um, okay." I said slowly, my head spinning with his flip flopping reactions. Sometimes it felt like Forks was the last place on Earth that he wanted to be, and other times…

"You seem confused." He stated simply.

"I am!" I scoffed.

"I've decided I have been too hard on you, Bella. I've expected too much. It hasn't been fair."

"What does that even mean?" I groaned, putting my face in my hands.

"It means that I'm going to accept that things are not… as I left them. You have changed, Bella."

You made me! My internal voice roared. I beat her back, trying to understand his words rationally.

"I have." I stated simply, knowing that this was a major understatement. I had been shredded and then pieced together like a patchwork quilt. Of course I had changed.

"I realize now that this is what I had wanted for you. I have no right to judge your decisions now, whatever those are." He said in a formal voice.

"Well that is, um, kind." I said awkwardly. I brushed my hair away from my neck absentmindedly, still trying to make sense of his words.

Without notice, Edward grabbed my chin roughly in his hand and held it still, leaning toward me, his eyes wide and fierce. "What is that?!" He hissed, poking lightly at my bruise.

Oh shit.

"It's nothing," I said quickly, trying to free my face from his grasp. He maintained his hand on my chin, glaring at the bruise as though it had personally offended him.

He snarled at my words. "That is not nothing, Bella!"

I jumped at his tone and he released my face. I met his eyes and they were wide and dangerous.

"Did he do that to you?" He asked darkly, eyes flashing to the bruise on my collarbone.

"Yes." I said, fearful of his dark, wild eyes.

"How did he hurt you?" He demanded.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Did he put his hands on you?" He growled.

"Jacob would never hurt me!" I asserted angrily.

"Bella, look at your neck. Did he put his hand around your throat?"

"What? No!"

"Then what is that?" He hissed again.

I sighed and my face flushed with my embarrassment at the realization of his misunderstanding. "Edward, it isn't a bruise. It's a hickey." I said quietly.

He sat still for a moment, making sense of my tone of voice and obvious embarrassment. He stiffened, straightening in his seat. "I see."

I glanced at his face in that moment and could see a look of pure disgust. I dropped my eyes quickly, horrified. Of course he was disgusted. How could a man want me that way? He never had, not even when I had been so sure that he loved me. He had always kept that boundary between us. The signs were all there, I was just too obsessed with him to see them for what they were. He wasn't attracted to me, physically. At least, not to my body. He was disgusted by the idea that someone was.

"I didn't mean for you to see that." I said meekly.

"There's no need to apologize, Bella. I should not have assumed that he harmed you. I apologize for my mistake." He said in his formal voice, his face a mask again.

"S'okay." I mumbled again with a sigh. This Edward is the one that hurt the most. Detached, emotionless. So unlike the man that I knew once. Not my Edward.

"Things really have changed for you." He murmured, attempting a smile that did not come close to meeting his eyes.

"Edward," I said slowly, feeling a stab at his words. Was he admitting what I already knew?

"That wasn't fair. I'm sorry." He said quickly. "I should go. I'm supposed to be on watch now anyways."

I nodded, giving him the out that he needed to retract from the situation that he so clearly found repulsive.

"I understand. I'm sorry." I said again.

"No need to apologize, Bella." He said with a pained look. "Like I said, who am I to judge?"

With those words he leapt from the window and I shut it quickly with the hopes that he would not hear me cry.