Hello, readers! I promised an update yesterday, sorry. But you only had to wait an extra day! Yey! I've only just finished it. So, enjoy! Let me know what you think! Review! Exclamation mark madness! Review! And review!

Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I own a number of things. Just to mention a few; insanity, an unlimited source of sarcasm and the joke, 'Big shoes.' Well, Sophie owns that too. Anyway, is Twilight on that list? No? Then I don't own it. *sigh*

Enjoy the chapter.

BPOV

I extended my hand first towards Billy.

''It's a pleasure to meet you both.'' I said, smiling. However, he did not smile. He was looking at me suspiciously. His son was a different matter entirely. He strolled right up to me and…hugged me. He was huge! I hadn't realised his sheer size until he was right in front of me. I hugged him back, albeit awkwardly, so as not to be rude.

''It's great to meet you!'' He exclaimed. The hug had taken me aback somewhat, but he seemed to be harmless so I replied, ''Yeah, you too.'', with a small smile. Charlie was beaming. I couldn't remember ever having seen him this happy. I looked at these men. These two men that made my father so happy. They were his friends. I had come to Forks and messed everything up so royally. I had gotten married to a complete stranger and then dropped the bombshell upon Charlie within a mere few days. This would be good for him. To spend some time with his friends. It would take his mind off the stressful things in his life. Namely, me.

''Well,'' I said. ''Just give me a moment to set another two places. I'm glad that I made extra.'' I smiled at Jacob and Billy. I didn't want my presence to make either of them feel awkward in any way. However, Billy simply continued to glare at me. I see. I turned to Jacob who was smiling at me so largely that I thought his face just might crack. I attempted to return the smile but no doubt came up short.

I gestured for Jacob and Billy to take a seat, Charlie had already sat down. They did so and I served them their food. They waited until I had sat down to begin eating. The dinner went well. There was talk and laughter, and even Billy began to loosen up. He and Jacob were extremely nice people. It turned out that Jacob was actually younger than me, by a year or so. This came as a great shock to me, due to his sheer size. I was sure that it had shown on my face when I found out, seeing as how they all simply burst out laughing. My cheeks reddened and Jacob began to tease me for it. It was, by all accounts, an extremely enjoyable dinner.

As I was going upstairs to get ready for bed, Charlie stopped me. Jacob and Billy had gone home not long ago.

''Jacob likes you, you know. He's a good young man.'' He said. What? He wasn't going to start this, was he?

''Dad, I'm married to Edward, remember? I love him.'' Charlie winced as I said the words, ''I'm married.'' Too early, perhaps?

''I know,'' he said through gritted teeth. ''And I am not objecting. But that doesn't mean I am accepting it completely, Bella.'' At this, he looked at me, concern in his eyes. ''You don't have to throw your life away, Bella. You're still young. Edward is a fine young man, yes. But you don't need to be tied down at such a young age. Please. Think about it, at least.'' He looked at me pleadingly as he said the last sentence. ''I love you, Bells. Goodnight.'' He finished then entered his room, leaving me alone in the hallway with my mouth gaping wide. That was the longest speech I had ever heard Charlie make. Perhaps the longest speech he had ever made. He wanted me to divorce Edward so I could……play the field? Date as many lads as possible? Something about that picture just didn't seem quite right. It was more probable that he thought I was too young to be married, still thought of me as his little girl. Which was sweet, but I loved Edward. I couldn't divorce him. I loved him. I groaned. Life got harder and harder with each passing day. I slipped into my room and into bed. I fell into a fitful, dreamless slumber, once again under the impression that I wasn't quite alone.

I woke up the next morning, refreshed and ready for the day. Today was the day. The day I would get my answers. But first, research. Perhaps the humble internet could give me some inclination as to what exactly was going on with Edward. Or maybe it would tell me that I was imagining everything, thus mentally ill. Well, either way, at least I would know.

So I set up my laptop and connected to the internet. I brought up Google and began to type. Super speed, super senses, lack of appetite, pale skin. Mind-reading? It all seemed completely preposterous written down. It was there, staring up at me. Teasing me. Telling me how foolish I was. Nevertheless, I hit the 'Search' button and began to troll through the results.

Of course, there was the usual rubbish, advertisements, chat-rooms. Etc, etc. That wasn't what I was interested in. It wasn't what I needed. Just as I was about to give up, the exercise had been completely futile anyway, I had been searching for something that probably didn't even exist, I found something promising. I clicked on the link, and it brought me to a page with a long spiel of writing. But there was one word that stood out. Almost beckoning me.

Vampire.

The cold hands, the super speed, the super senses, and the pale skin. The fact that he never ate. He wouldn't eat food. He drank blood instead. It even mentioned the strangely coloured eyes. But it said red! Red? His weren't red. They were a topaz like colour. I breathed a sigh of relief. But then I read the next sentence.

Some radical groups of vampires drink the blood of animals instead of that of humans. Therefore, their eyes are a different colour. A golden type colour.

Oh, god. This was crazy. But at least it meant he didn't feast on humans, just animals. That was good, right?

However, it is not guaranteed that these vampires will not attack humans. The desire is still there, they simply attempt to suppress it. But sometimes, the urge cannot be suppressed.

I felt the blood drain from my face. I was not safe. Nobody in Forks was safe. I was in love with… a vampire? No! I shook my head. The idea was preposterous, ridiculous, insane, crazy, ludicrous, absurd. Edward couldn't be a vampire. The mere idea was…. Impossible, improbable, implausible. I was dubious. It explained a lot of things. I shook my head once again. Stop it Bella! Your so called explanation is impossible! It cannot be true. It's like saying that gravity doesn't exist and the fact that we stay rooted to the ground is the work of little men in tutus and fairy wings. Snap out of it! And even though I knew that the logical option was to dismiss the absurd idea that Edward was a vampire, I simply couldn't shake the sensation that it was the truth.

I was jolted from my thoughts by a rapping on the front door. Loud enough to be heard, but not so loud as to be rude. Edward.

I never thought there would come a point where I wouldn't want to see Edward, but... this was it. I was afraid to open the door and Charlie wasn't here. If Edward truly was a vampire, he would know I was here. I grabbed a baseball bat, not that it would do me much good, super strength. But it gave me some peace of mind. I placed it within my reach and took a deep, cleansing breath. Then, I opened the door.

He was standing there, looking as perfect as ever, his mouth forming a perfectly crooked smile. The website had mentioned that too, inhumanly good-looking. To lure their prey. I gulped. Edward noticed and his smile faltered somewhat.

''May I come in?'' He asked hesitantly. I was unsure, and contemplated for a moment. What would he do if I refused? Perhaps he wouldn't dare to do anything during the day. It would be worse if we were inside, behind closed doors. Wouldn't it? He was looking at me intently, waiting for my answer. I was nothing but a meal to him. A snack. I bit back a whimper. Logic had left and didn't seem keen on returning. I nodded unenthusiastically and walked into the living room. He followed me and sat down beside me on the couch. I inched away from him. The thought of being near him made my stomach turn. He noticed this and looked extremely hurt. It's an act, I told myself. He doesn't really care about you. The thought made my eyes prick. I needed to pull myself together. I had no proof. It was all conjecture, and a website that gave me the information I wanted. Probably created by some twelve year old with nothing better to do. Purely coincidental. This thought calmed me. I would go to the bathroom, pull myself together, then apologise to Edward for my behaviour. Then, everything would be fine.

I smiled at him and his eyes lit up. ''Please excuse me.'' I smiled.

''Of course.'' He replied, grinning. The sight made my stomach flop, in a good way this time. I made my way up the stairs, thinking to myself, Vampire? Pshh! Ridiculous. I went into the bathroom and attempted to tame my wild hair. No such luck. I sighed. It would have to do. Fortunately, my decent night's sleep had eliminated the bags under my eyes. There was a smiling girl in the mirror facing me. She looked happier and healthier than I could remember. I smiled even larger. I was so silly. Vampire. The mere thought made me laugh. I brushed my teeth vigorously. Perhaps, too vigorously, my gums began to bleed. I took that as my cue to stop. I wiped the blood away with the sleeve of my shirt and rushed out the door. Back to Edward. In my haste I ad forgotten how clumsy I was, therefore I didn't take my usual precaution. I tripped and went sailing down the stairs. I closed my eyes, preparing for the impact which, never came? I opened my eyes to see that I was being cradled in Edward's arms. He wasn't there when I had fallen. There was no way he could have gotten out here in time. And, yet, he did.

Super speed.

The words swam around in my mind and I paled. Here I was, in Edward's arms. I would be unable to escape. His eyes were filled with concern, but that could be feigned. Or maybe he didn't want his dinner damaged. His nostrils flared and his eyes went wide.

''You're bleeding!'' He exclaimed. Normal people could not smell blood. I jumped out of his arms and launched for the baseball bat. I must have surprised him because he made no move to stop me. I brought it up as quickly as I could and hit him over the head with it as hard as physically possible. The bat….snapped? In half. The wood splintered and broken. And Edward? He was still standing, an inquisitive look upon his face. He should be dead, or at the very least unconscious. But no, he was still standing, not a bother on him. I began to tremble. Now, now he would kill me. He must know that I knew. Goodbye cruel world, I barely knew thee. I opened my mouth, with all intention of screaming bloody murder, when I felt a strong hand clamp down upon it. Maybe it would be better this way. If I was to scream, then someone would come to investigate and they would be involved too. Edward would most likely kill them too. I struggled against his grip. Maybe I could get away. Unfortunately, he was much too strong. His arms encircled me tightly, as if to embrace me. I knew that the end was near. Maybe I would be lucky, and it would be quick. As painless as possible. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly as I felt his mouth descend towards my throat, my pulse going a mile a minute. I waited for the searing pain that would erupt as my life source flowed rapidly from my veins to sustain this…leech! But it never came. I opened my eyes, confused. Was he toying with me? I could feel his breath in my ear.

''You know, don't you.''

Oohh, another cliffy. Do you hate me? Heeehehehee. I promised an update for yesterday, but I was having difficulty writing it. Well, it's written now and I will soon start on the next chapter. It wasn't that long a wait. Was it? I only got like 4 reviews for last chapter. So please review loads for this chapter. It's the only way to find out what happens next. I love cliffies! Well, in my own stories at least. Now if you just cannot wait for me to post the next chapter to find out what happens next, a sneak peek of it will be posted on my blog later on.

http://elliotandjd4eva1sblog (dot) blogspot (dot) com/

Check it out. Until next time. Review and give me the incentive to update more quickly. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Thanks,

Kate

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