A/N Hey yall! Ok, so I've gotten a few complaints about my story not being lemony enough. Now, I'm not mad or anything about this comment. It's ok if you think that as long as you like my story as a whole. The only thing that I would like to say about comments like these is that I would like you to keep in mind that I am 16 years old.

I have only ever had one partner and that is my current boyfriend, and we've been together since ninth grade. I'm a junior now. Just keep in mind that I'm not super experienced, and I'm going on what I've read, what I've seen in movies, and what experience I do have. Thanks guys.

Love,

Lynn

Edward POV

Bella hasn't spoken in the last few days. She can't even help Carlisle with the funeral arrangements. She also hasn't touched anyone but me lately. She'll let the rest of the family touch her it's just that she doesn't initiate the contact except with me. Sometimes she'll crawl on my lap and rest her head on my chest, or she'll grab my hand. Other than that, she's been almost completely detached.

I don't know how to help her. Bella won't talk to me. She won't eat or sleep. She doesn't even cry. She just stares at nothing. I've never felt so weak, so helpless.

Bella was sitting on the couch in our room and I was on our bed watching her. She turned and looked at me. She had that blank look in her eyes again. That look that shows me that she knows I'm there, but she's just not focused. Bella got up and walked over to me. I opened my arms and she climbed on my lap and buried her face in my chest.

'Edward' I heard Bella say my name. My eyes widened. That was the first time she had spoken directly to me in days.

"Yes, love?" I answered, excited to hear her voice again.

'Can you hear me?' She asked, seemingly shocked.

"Of course I can hear you. You're speaking to me."

'Uh, not really."

"What do you mean?" I asked, not understanding.

'I haven't spoken a word to you.'

Confused, I pulled Bella away from me and looked in her eyes. They still had that unfocused stare to them. Her lips were white. It seemed as though she hadn't opened her mouth at all.

"Bella?" I asked, wary.

'Edward,' Bella answered back, without moving her mouth at all. I wasn't sure if I should be scared or excited, so I settled on an awkward fusion of the two.

"What's going on?" I asked, surprised that I had let my fear/excitement show in the shakiness of my voice.

'I don't know,' Bella answered. There was this dreamlike quality to her voice that I just noticed. It had a perfect tone in my head, but it was like it wasn't there. My fear started to outweigh my excitement as I continued to stare at Bella. She was so unfocused, so dazed. She couldn't possibly be speaking or even barely thinking. She was clearly in a catatonic state. I started to fear that because of my fear that she wasn't coming back to me, that I was becoming delusional and was hallucinating her voice in my head.

"I'm loosing my mind," I muttered under my breath.

'No, you haven't,' Bella answered me.

"Then how am I able to hear you, when you are so clearly in some sort of waking coma?"

'I don't know. I've been trying, but I think I'm lost. It's like I can't find my body.'

"That doesn't make any sense. If you're lost, how did you find me?"

'I don't know. There has been this line. It kind of looks like smoke, or a wind I can see. I can't explain it, but I've been lost inside my own mind. I figured that the line would lead me out so I followed it, only instead of it leading me out, it lead me to you.'

"Why would it do that?" I asked, getting a headache. I couldn't make sense out of any of this. It seemed too far-fetched.

'It could be because I need you more than I need to get out of here. I'm scared to leave, wherever it is that I am. I need to know that you'll be right here when I find my way out.'

"Bella, love, I wouldn't be anywhere else, just please. Please, please, come back to me," I said on the verge of sobbing. 'Talking' with Bella while it doesn't even seem like she's here is a devastating feeling.

'That's just the thing. I'm not sure how'

I heard a knock on the door, interrupting Bella's conversation and mine. Or at least I think we were having a conversation, I'm still not completely sure.

"Edward, we have been calling for you for at 10 minutes now. Why haven't you answered us?" Alice said, gently yet I could hear the irritation in her voice, entering the room.

"I didn't hear you," I said honestly, and starting to contemplate that maybe I wasn't totally insane after all.

'Told you that you weren't going crazy' Bella said. I looked at her, but she still had that distant look in her eyes. It was creepy.

"What? What do you mean you couldn't hear us?" Alice asked confused.

"I was talking to Bella. She had more of my attention than I thought she did, I guess." I said, not completely sure what to tell Alice because I still wasn't sure what to make of the situation.

"Bella talked to you? Really?" Alice asked, suddenly excited to have her friend back.

"Well not exactly," I muttered, but it was too late. Alice had already hopped on the bed with us and was hoping that Bella would talk to her also. But then she looked at Bella and got the same look of skepticism that I had when I 'found' out that I could hear her. Which I still wasn't sure if I could actually do or not.

"Edward, she still looks the same. And she hasn't even acknowledged that I'm here. How did she talk to you?" Alice asked.

"Well she didn't exactly speak. She… um…" I stuttered trying to find the right word, "thought," yeah that's it, "to me."

"Edward, Bella's obviously catatonic so I doubt that anything that she's thinking is coherent, and you can't 'hear' Bella. Her mind's closed to you, remember?"

"Apparently she found a… a… a line to me. She's scared and doesn't know how to find a way out of her mind, back to her body," I said, feeling like a crazy person.

'I promise you're not crazy. If it'll make you feel better, I'll find a way to sever the line. But it'll suck to be alone in my head again.'

"No, don't do that. It's been hell to not be able to talk to you, and it's good to know that you're ok, wherever you are." I said.

"Are you talking to Bella?" Alice asked.

"Yeah," I said, suddenly sure of myself. I was suddenly sure that I was not having some delusional conversation in my head, no matter how dreamy Bella's voice seemed. Something about the desperate plea in her voice made me aware that she was still here.

"Why did she hide in her head in the first place?"

'I started to feel myself pull away as soon as I found out Charlie died. It was a numbing feeling, like I was being taken away from the world. The more you all talked, the farther away I felt myself being pulled. When I passed out I found this place in my head. It was completely wall less but it had a window. I could see you guys, and was still somewhat aware. After I found out about Jacob's involvement I closed the window. I couldn't find the window so I followed the line. Now, I can't even find my way back to the room.'

I repeated everything Bella told me to Alice. Alice looked from me, to Bella, and then back at me again. She stared at us in wonder.

"Come on. We've got to tell Carlisle."

I picked up Bella and ran her downstairs to Carlisle's study.

"Hello, what can I do for you three?" Carlisle asked. I could hear his thoughts. He was thinking about how disturbing the look in Bella's eyes were, something that everyone in this house had thought at one point or another.

"Bella's talking," Alice, said, but the way she said talking was sarcastic.

"Really. And how are you doing Bella," Carlisle asked, with that same skeptic look that Alice had earlier.

'Scared,' Bella answered.

"She's scared," I answered for Bella. Carlisle looked at me with that let-her-speak-for-herself-look.

"And why are you scared?"

'Apparently I'm catatonic, and I can't find my way out of my head,'

"She can't find her way out of her head." I answered again. Carlisle looked as though he was about to say something to me, and then he processed what I just said.

"What?" Carlisle had a very confused expression in his eyes.

I repeated everything that I told Alice. I'd never seen so many emotions play across a person's face at once. Carlisle went from excited, to confused, to intrigued, to almost scared, back to intrigued all in a matter of the few seconds that I talked to him, but I guess it was better than stoic.

"Bella," Carlisle started, "Do you want to leave your head?"

'I do, but I'm scared.'

"She does, but she's scared." I answered for Bella.

"Why are you scared?" Carlisle asked.

'People are getting hurt because of me. I don't want people getting hurt. I just want this to all go away.'

I repeated everything Bella said to Carlisle. He had a calculating look on his face.

"Bella do you think that Charlie would be happy with this?" Carlisle asked.

'No,' I repeated the answer for Carlisle.

"Don't you think that he would want you to come out and face this? You need to be strong. If not for yourself, than for Charlie."

I watched as the silent tears started to cascade down Bella's face. They were the first tears that she had shed in days. And though her eyes were still disturbingly far away, this was a start.

"Charlie wants you to be happy. You need to get over this fear and trust that we, your family, will help and take care of you. You need to trust that we are always here for you. You need to come back to us," I said, "You need to come back to me," I whispered. I thought I saw Bella's eyes flicker. It was all I needed. I kissed her. I showed her all of the love that I had for her, and all the fear that she was causing me. She went still and then I felt her start to kiss me back. I ran my tongue over her smooth lip and she opened her mouth and allowed me entrance.

As our tongues wrestled I felt her hands tangle themselves in my hair. It excited me and I wanted so much to go on. I was so happy to have Bella back after all this time.

"Ahem," Someone cleared his throat behind us. I pulled apart from Bella to see Emmett standing with his arms folded across his chest and a smirk on his face. I looked at Bella and she was staring at me. This time though, I could see the life in her eyes and I knew that she was focused, completely focused, on me.

"Bella?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes Carlisle," Bella answered.

"It'll be ok. Victoria will not get away with what she's done." Bella took a deep breath through her nose; she seemed to be processing this again. She took another deep breath, and then another. The more breaths she took, the shakier they got. I could tell that she was trying to compose herself before she had another break down. I pulled her on to my lap and stroked her back as she started to sob again.

"No more hiding. I'm going to deal with this," Bella murmured through her sobs.

"I'll help you," I whispered in her ear.