So…I need to stop working on these little weekend drabbles so I can actually get something accomplished. I tried so very hard to respond to reviews over the weekend but after I started posting 'Self Storage' my inbox filled up too quickly for me to keep track of. Like I seriously have 4K emails in there now. Crazy! But if I did not get to you…know that your words went straight to my heart.

The incomparable CaraNo and lvtwilight09 made me some spectacular banners for 'Self Storage.' They are on my facebook page if you want to check them out. They are really just amazing and I can't thank them enough!

Last week 'From my Window' came in third in the Lemonade Stand poll. Well…this week 'Search and Rescue' is in contention. It is up against some really great stories by some really great writers and I am not holding my breath to get in the top four, but you never know.

tehlemonadestand . blogspot . com

Melanie had me laughing so hard Sunday night I almost puked. I need her like a fat kid needs cake.

Dalloway5906 is posting new chapters of 'Reboot' twice a week now so go…get on that!

Ready….hold onto someone you love…

"What do you mean Esme? Was he here when the earthquake hit?" Bella asked frantically, her hands griping Esme's shoulders tightly as she struggled to stop from running into the house. Esme shook her head, trying desperately to clear the cobwebs and remember what happened right before the earth trembled.

"He was here. He had come into our bedroom to let me know he was…" Esme said, her eyes going up to the house…to the top floor where a tree was imbedded into the roof.

"He was what Esme?" Bella nearly screamed.

"He was going up to his room." Esme whispered as her eyes filled with tears. Her body collapsed and Bella knew she should stay and comfort her, but her feet were already in motion. She had just stepped onto the porch when the ground shook beneath her feet. She swayed to the side, grabbing hold of the broken porch railing. Esme screamed as Bella heard a cracking noise and watched as the side of the rood collapsed, falling perilously close to where Esme and Jake were standing. The aftershock settled and Bella was torn. She had already radioed their location in, but it could be hours before someone got there. Esme had a concussion for sure and Bella knew she should stay with her, but she needed to get to Edward. The house was a ticking time bomb.

Her decision made, Bella started towards the door, only to stop when she felt her shirt being pulled from behind. She spun around and came face to face with her best friend. Jake stood with his front feet on the porch and the back of her shirt clenched tightly between his teeth, his eyes pleading.

"I have to find him." She whispered and she could almost see Jake's eyes narrow in defeat. He released her with a huff and she kissed him on the nose before pointing towards Esme, thankful that he did not fight her, but went to sit next to Rose and Edward's mother. Bella grabbed a flashlight from her pack before she went inside the house, praying she found him…and soon.

**()*()**

Five Hours Earlier

He couldn't do it anymore. He had been avoiding everything for the last few weeks, but he knew it was time. His phone had been going off every few hours with calls from his sister and his mother. He knew what the voicemails would say.

Come home Edward…you need to deal with this.

They would not want you to live your life like this Edward.

What did you do to Bella? She is not answering any calls except disasters and even then she is like a zombie. What have you done?

Edward…stop trying to ignore what happened.

Edward knew it was harder because the anniversary of the tragedy was coming up soon. Their University had asked him to come and speak at the memorial service they held every year, but as usual, he declined. It was too hard to see his friend's families, knowing that he survived, but they were gone.

Edward left Kandahar with a heavy heart, knowing he needed to talk to Bella so she understood that it was something that was deeply wrong with him…and had nothing to do with her. If he was whole…if he was normal she would be the exact person he could see himself with. She was so selfless and kind, beautiful and delicate. His fingers itched to trace her features, begged to take hold of the gentle flare of her hips and pull her against him. He could not deny that many mornings he woke up hard and aching, his subconscious mind having shown him vividly what it could be like between them. Her skin smooth, his rough. Her body soft and pliant, his hard and unyielding. Her voice would be breathless as she begged for more and his would be gruff as he urged her on, fingers searching for the spots that would make her explode. He would wake up panting and sweaty, his heart racing and fingers searching for something he could not have…something he did not deserve.

When he got off the plane at SeaTac, his first thought was of Bella and the time he spent with her in his car and waiting at the gate for their flights. He had not driven anyone in his car since the explosion, not even his parents. He could not take responsibility for anyone else's safety. But he had not given it a second thought when he escorted both Jake and Bella into his car.

His heart clenched in his chest when he pulled into his parent's driveway, memories of his time spent with Bella bombarding him as he grabbed his bag from the trunk and started up the stairs. His mother was beside herself when he popped his head into her room. She had pulled him into her arms and held him so tightly he had trouble breathing. He felt like shit when he felt her tears against his skin, but she was all smiles when she pulled away. He retreated to his room, hoping he might be able to escape into his dream life with Bella for a few hours before he decided what he was going to do next. His boss had pretty much told him his career was over if he could not get his temper under control, but at this point he was having trouble giving a shit if he never took another picture.

His eyes were closed as he lay on the bed. When the shaking started, his mind tired to incorporate it into his dream, having naked Bella trembled so hard as she came around his cock the bed shook as well. When the tree crashed through the roof, he imagined that it was the headboard breaking in his hands as he thrust against her. And as the bookshelf that housed his music collection tumbled around him, striking him on the head, the darkness that enveloped him were her arms around him as he fell asleep.

**()*()**

"Oh God, oh God, oh God." Bella chanted as she slowly made her way up the stairs. The path had been clear when she brought Esme down just a few minutes earlier, but the aftershock had thrown pictures off the wall, covering the wooden steps with glass. It crunched under the heavy tread of her boots as she sidestepped around the expensive silver frames and priceless family photos. Edward's smiling teenage face made her breath catch as she stepped over the photos and stood on the landing. The stairs leading to the third floor were clear as she started up towards Edward's room. His door was partially open and she had to throw her entire body against it to force it wide enough so she could fit through. The room was a disaster. He had floor to ceiling bookshelves along the majority of the walls and they had all fallen over with the force of the quake. His bed, which took up most of the room, was covered with what looked to be his CD and vinyl collection. The enormous tree that crashed onto the roof cut through the room like a wall. What made her heart pound in her chest was the fact that she could not see him anywhere.

"Edward?" She called as she stepped over clothes and books, carefully getting further into the room. The beam of her flashlight swept an arc over the chaos, trembling as her hand shook. She had to find him.

"Edward?" She whispered as her palms started to sweat and her legs threatened to buckle beneath her. She walked around the far side of the bed and…

There he was.

He was on his stomach, his upper back and head buried under a piled of books, one of the huge bookshelves resting on top of him. Bella did not hesitate as she threw the flashlight on the bed and reached for the debris. She thought she heard noises from outside, but the weeping and moaning she heard was coming from deep within her chest.

"Please no." She cried as she saw the blood on the floor…too much blood.

You trust me…you trust me…you trust me…

If I make top 4 in the Lemonade Stand poll I'll give you the next two chapters early…

*Vote h00r*

Who said that?