"Bells!" Charlie called from downstairs.

"What?" I demanded groggily.

"You have company!" He called back.

"Alice," I groaned.

"Send whoever it is up!" Mark yelled. He kissed the back of my head-we hadn't moved since falling asleep the night before- and rolled out of bed. "I'm going to go shower. I'm sure the guys are waiting for me at their house."

"Okay," I said, and closed my eyes again, hoping to go back to sleep.

I had no such luck.

Alice came bounding in the room a few seconds later. She passed Mark, who was on his way out.

"Bella!" she scolded me, "You didn't even change clothes before going to bed!"

"Well, did you expect me to have the energy to after that shopping trip?" I asked.

"Well, no," she admitted. "Let's put all your clothes away in your closet!"

"Why, so I have to pack them all up again once I go back to college?"

"Bella, you're here until the middle of January. I don't want your clothes to get wrinkled."

"You mean you paid all that money for clothes I don't need, and they still wrinkle like normal, non-designer clothes?" I asked incredulously. "That's awful! You should demand a refund!"

Alice sighed. "Silly Bella. You don't appreciate real clothes, do you?"

"I don't see the need to pay so much for clothes that I'll probably never wear."

"You will," Alice promised. "You didn't bring hardly any clothes with you because you knew I'd buy you some."

"Fine," I grumbled. "Maybe I will. But I don't like it when you guys spend so much on me."

When Mark came out of the shower 15 minutes later I took the opportunity to escape. Alice helped him put his clothes away too, and then shooed him out the door and into Jasper's waiting car.

When I came out of the shower 30 minutes later-I was trying to take as long as possible so I could avoid Alice-I found a new set of clothes laid out for me. I dried my hair and put the clothes on. When I came out of the bathroom, Alice was waiting with a curling iron and make-up.

"Not again," I groaned.

Alice directed me towards a chair sitting next to an outlet in my room. "Sit," she commanded me.

"Do I have to?"

"Sit," she repeated.

"Don't I get any breakfast first?" I whined as I sat down. She wrapped a section of my hair in the curling iron before answering.

"Edward is bringing it upstairs for you," she said innocently.

"What?!" I exclaimed. The only thing that kept me in that chair was the fact that it would hurt if I moved and Alice didn't let go of my hair.

"Charlie left 10 minutes ago," Alice continued, answering my unasked question of what Charlie thought, "And Edward came over to talk to you. He just wants an opportunity to talk to you without Mark close by. He won't do anything stupid, will you Edward?"

"No," Edward answered as he entered my room with a tray of food. "I will not do anything stupid. I am sorry about the other day, Bella. I should not have tried to kiss you. I had just hoped…"

"You hoped wrong," I informed him, not wanting to hear the end of that sentence. "I don't want to talk to you."

"What's the worst that can happen?" Alice asked as she unrolled the first curl.

I turned to glare at her, grateful that Edward couldn't hear my thoughts. "The worst that could happen is that I could fall in love with him again," I thought to myself. I didn't want to do that to Mark. He deserved more than that.

"I'll be here the entire time, Bella," Alice assured me, and then turned my head forward again so she could continue to work on my hair.

"I am sorry I left, Bella," Edward said when I didn't say anything. "I… I was being stupid. I am sorry. I should have stayed. I promised, but I was so mad that we could not be together for eternity that I could not stay here. You reminded me of what I had lost, and… I am truly sorry. There is no excuse for my actions. I wronged you, and I wish I had stayed."

It was silent for a few moments while I glared at him. He looked like he really meant it, but he had promised me that he wouldn't ever leave again. How could I believe anything he said now?

Alice poked me in the back to make me say something.

"Ouch!" I exclaimed. She had poked me hard. "What am I supposed to say, Alice? I don't forgive him. I don't want to talk to him. I don't want to be in the same room as him right now. What am I supposed to say to him?"

"I don't know," Alice answered. "But you need to say something."

"I don't forgive you." I informed Edward. "I contemplated suicide because of you. Just when I'm finally happy, you decided to come back. Are you trying to make my life miserable?"

"I know you do not love him," Edward said softly, referring to Mark. "I can read his mind. I know that you two got married to keep your parents from bothering you about moving on. I know he loves you a little, but not as much as I do. If you move on, he will get over it. He will find someone else."

"But I don't want to make him go through that," I said. "He's already gone through enough without me leaving him too."

"I heard your conversation two nights ago," Edward told me. "He said he would be okay with it and that he understands. He was not just saying that. He knows how much you still love me."

"I hate you," I informed him. "I'm not leaving Mark."

"Not even if I change you?" Edward asked. I gaped at him for a few seconds.

"I… I… I don't want that anymore," I lied. "I've moved on. Why don't you?"

"You are a horrible liar," Edward told me. "I can see it in your face. You still want to be a vampire. You would love it."

Alice's timing was perfect. She had just finished with a curl as Edward finished his sentence. I seized the opportunity to stand up.

"Out!" I hissed. "I don't want to talk to you anymore! I do not love you, I do not want to be a vampire, and I do not want to see your face anymore! Get out of my house, or… or… or I'll jump out my window so I don't have to be in the same room as you!"

"She's serious, Edward," Alice informed him. "Maybe you should go."

"Very well," Edward agreed. "I will see you later at home, Alice. Bella, I am sorry. Please just know that I do love you, and I will never leave again. If I have to follow you to the end of the earth, I will do it. I wish I could do it as your husband, but apparently that position is already filled. I am so sorry I did not stay long enough for it to be me." His golden eyes smoldered into my brown ones, and I felt myself going weak at the knees. Alice pulled me back into the chair so I wouldn't fall, and Edward left.

As soon as I knew Edward was gone I started to cry. Alice set down the curling iron and came to kneel in front of me.

"Are you okay, Bella?" she asked worriedly.

"No," I sobbed. "Why would I be okay, Alice?"

"I'm so sorry," she murmured. She tried to pull me into a hug, but I jerked away.

"Why don't you go too, Alice?" I suggested.

"Bella?" she asked, confused and hurt.

"I thought we were best friends, but best friends don't do that kind of thing to each other," I informed her. "Just go. Don't tell Mark. Let him have some fun. I just need to think for a little while."

"Okay," Alice responded quietly. She stood up and started to pack her beauty supplies. She, luckily, had finished my hair, so at least it wasn't half curled. She was gone a minute later.

I threw myself on the bed and cried my heart out. I wasn't ready for that conversation, and it tore me apart to be mad at both Alice and Edward. I had never been mad at them both before, but this time I was. It made me wonder if I really was moving on. Could I have healed enough that I really didn't need Edward? Was Mark right about how I was getting better? Could I live without half of my heart?

No, I couldn't. Who was I fooling? Just because I seemed to be getting better, didn't mean I was. I just had practice trying to fool people. I used what I had learned about trying and pretending to stay whole when Edward left the first time and improved on it until I was even fooling myself.

Suddenly I thought of Jacob. I hadn't seen him in several years. I wondered if he was still in La Push or if he had gone to college. There was only one way to find out.

The phone was in my hand before I even knew what I was doing. I dialed the familiar numbers and put the phone to my ear.

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ri-

"Hello?" a gruff voice answered mid-ring.

"Hi, is Jacob there?" I asked, trying to sound like I hadn't been crying.

"This is he," the voice answered, this time a little more smoothly. I recognized his voice, only it was deeper.

"Hey, Jacob. It's Bella," I said, and held my breath.

"Bells," he breathed. "What's wrong?"

"I- nothing," I lied. "Can't a girl call an old friend for no reason?"

"You haven't ever since he came back that time," Jacob pointed out.

"He's back again," I admitted, and started crying again. "He says he still loves me, but I'm married now. I'm just so confused."

"Is he with you?" Jacob asked.

"No," I answered. "Can I come down to La Push and see you? I just need to get away."

"What about your husband?" Jacob asked.

"He's at their house playing video games," I said. "I'll leave him a note that says I went to go see an old friend. He'll understand."

"If you want to come, I guess you can," Jacob said uncertainly. "I'll have to tell my wife we'll have a guest."

"Oh, you're married now too?" I asked happily. "That's great, Jake!"

"Yeah," Jake responded, and he actually sounded happy about it. "She's a great woman. Wonderful wife. She'll be glad that you're coming. She's been bugging me to clean up the living room for ages."

"I'll give you 30 minutes to get it cleaned up," I laughed, feeling better already. "Are you still in the same house?"

"Yeah, it gets crowded with my Dad and Helen here too, but we manage." Jacob answered. "The council agreed to build us a new house, though, so we're just waiting for it to get finished."

"That's great, Jake," I repeated. "I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Yeah," Jacob agreed, "see you in a little bit." He hung up, and I did too. I straightened out my outfit and grabbed a rain coat. I wrote a quick note to Mark saying that I had gone to visit an old friend and that I had my cell phone, and then left.

A/N: You guys had better love me. This is two chapters in one day. My mom will kill me for not getting my homework done…

And in answer to the question I received, "Will this be an ExB ff or a BxM ff?" my answer is that I don't know. I'm just kind of writing as I go. I think I know where I want this to go, and I have an idea for a good ending, but I'm not sure if that's where it will end up. If anyone has any ideas for me, just let me know, and I'll give you credit if I use your idea. I just kind of let the story write itself, and if I try to plan ahead of time, it doesn't come out on paper like I wanted it to. So, there is practically no pre-planning. I just sit down and write, so I suppose when Bella finally has to decide, it depends on my mood that day.

However, I am leaning towards BxE. I love those two together too much to split them up. :)

Until the next chapter,
Addie