Three sides of every story
Bella was lying on her front with her arm dangling off the side of the bed as she slowly came back to consciousness. She opened her eyes and looked at the little alarm clock next to her bed. 12:03. She exhaled deeply, slightly shocked at the time. Her head felt fuzzy so she closed her eyes again. Yawn.
'Time to get up!'
She started turning to her back and bumped into something. She opened her eyes and was met with Edward's smile. She gasped in surprise and the events of the evening started flooding back.
Sushi, club, music, lyrics, stage, car, dancing.....kissing... passion.
She smiled back. He leaned in very, very closely and brushed his lips gently against hers. His cold lips felt like a burn. It felt good.
"Good morning, sleepy head!" he said cheerfully.
"Hey...so, you're not a figment of my excitement-starved imagination." Bella tried a joke. 'I'm not going crazy! That's a good start.' and then she continued out loud. "Were you here the whole night?" Edward nodded.
Bella got up. She was wearing her oversized tee and not much else. She was oblivious to Edward's admiring glance and started looking for something to wear. She was feeling quite emotional as the full impact of last night finally hit her. And then she remembered what Edward promised her and she turned to him.
"It's time to talk..." he nodded again, and smiled.
"I promised, I'll tell you whatever you want to know about everything that happened since I left you on our meadow" Both of them flinched involuntarily when he mentioned this, but chose to ignore it. "And I would appreciate the same courtesy...."
*******
They were sitting on a bench in Hyde Park. It was an overcast Saturday afternoon and it looked like rain. Even though it was the weekend, the park was half empty. That was perfect for them. Not many people, overcast skies and a quiet spot. So far not much was said. They both sat quietly, Bella staring ahead into the Lido and Edward staring at Bella. Bella kept silent as she was still trying to figure out what to ask first and Edward was just happy to be around her; he had all the time in the world.
"OK, let's start with a simple question. Nothing big, I'm not ready for the big stuff yet" Bella started reluctantly. "Was that you in the blood bank yesterday?"
"No, it was John". Edward responded matter-of-factly. Bella gasped in understanding what it was about John that she found so interesting.
"Ah...I was right. John IS a vampire....I kinda thought he might be. I mean, his voice was completely mesmerising. And he did seem to glow yesterday in the club... " Bella was pleased with her skills of deduction.
"Yes, he is. I can get into all of that now but you should probably know how it all happened, so we can cover the basics, maybe start at the beginning....." He stopped as Bella lifted her hand to stop him speaking.
"As I said, not really ready for the full story. Let me ask the questions, OK? Alice? Where is she? Where is your family?"
"They are all fine Bella. But, really it will make more sense if we start at the beginning...And...erm... Bella, I need to warn you that you may not like some of the things you hear...." He replied, trailing off at the end.
Bella exhaled deeply ('How many dramatic exhales can you have in a weekend?') and conceded defeat.
"OK, let's start at the beginning...WHY did you leave me? Edward, you completely crushed me!..... I lost months of my life pretty much catatonic and then trying actively to kill myself because I felt you didn't love me..... I know, it was all very teenage drama queen, but that was the only way I could hear you...in my head..." She stopped. Edward looked pained by her words.
"Bella, I thought I was protecting you from myself...af...after what happened with Jasper I...I... was petrified that any one of us could do the same...."He trailed off again, looking over to Bella. She stared in front of her at the lake and the swans walking around begging for food. She was intrigued to see they were avoiding their bench. 'Clearly a lot smarter than me and know to avoid danger...'
Edward continued.
"Please try to understand that I spent almost a century on my own..... a shell of a man, with nothing to look forward to......And, and then I meet you and....fall in love....for the first time ever I had a purpose...... you became the most important thing in my life.... The thought of you dead....." He stopped again. 'this is not going to be easy and we haven't even gotten to the hard part...'
"So, I pretended I didn't care, I left and thought you would move on. I was wrong. I am so sorry for the pain I caused you.....But....." he flinched at the thought of what he was going to say next "you did have Ja...Jacob...". Bella looked at him sharply and wanted to say something.
"Please don't stop me. Let me tell you what happened...." Edward pleaded.
"After I left you, we all went north to Alaska to stay with Tanya and her sisters - they are 'vegetarians' like us. They are as close a thing to family that we have. Irina, one of her sisters had fallen in love with Laurent - remember him? He was with James and Victoria when they came to Forks." Edward's expression went glacial when mentioning them and it didn't escape him that Bella flinched.
"He....he...tried to kill me..." Bella whispered.
"I KNOW! Alice saw it too late! I was enraged and started running to Forks, but she stopped me. She saw you alive and well...so I stayed away...It was very difficult to do that....and then we lost you. Nothing, not a single image. Alice could not see you at all. I was worried sick...so I came back to find out what happened. I saw you with Charlie at his house. You were alive. That's all that mattered." Edward stopped. He was agitated. His eyes were black.
Bella stared at him. She was in disbelief. And in pain. It wasn't easy to hear this, to relive those miserable days. Edward smiled at her gently and touched her cheek.
"So, I left again....convinced that it was best for you for me not to be there...." he continued slowly.
"You came back? You were there? I could have seen you?" She asked impatiently. Edward looked pained. She continued relentlessly.
"So..if you left then, how did you know about Jacob?" He looked up sharply.
"I saw you" He said simply. She looked back at him questioningly. "I saw you kiss in Charlie's house."
"So you came back again? Why?" She was getting really annoyed at the story and the fact that she was in the dark about so many things. Edward sighed.
"Bella....I...we couldn't see you for months! Nothing, not a single image...I was going out of my mind. Literally. I was harassing Alice to tell me about you - she wasn't getting a single image. And then, one day she sees you jumping off a cliff and Victoria in the water... you were drowning...I thought I lost you Bella! FOREVER!" Now, Edward was very agitated and his eyes turned completely black as if he was ready to pounce on his pray. In this case, that could well be Bella. His personal brand of heroin.
Bella flinched and got up quickly, to break the moment. Edward immediately calmed down.
"I'm sorry, Bella, please forgive me, I....it's still very painful for me to think about that day" He was pleading.
Bella sat back down and held his hand. He smiled insecurely and continued.
"I had been hunting Victoria for months, but she kept escaping me. You have to understand; I was half crazy by this point. Rosalie wasn't helping...she was taunting me about having to leave Forks. She hates to move. Anyway, I digress... I decided to come and see for myself. So I came to Forks. And followed your scent. I couldn't smell you. Everything stank of DOG.....I ended up in front of Charlie's house....and saw JACOB....kissing you. And. You. Kissed. Him. Back. And then you twirled. You looked so happy.....I....achieved....what I wanted.....I guess...I ...you....moved on and were happy."
Edward went quiet. He stopped. For the first time, Bella realised his side of this messed up story. She finally realised that he loved her. He left her in that meadow, because he truly loved her. It came as a bit of a shock. All these years, she felt sorry for herself, being abandoned...and now she realised his pain. She pulled closer to him and held his head on her chest and kissed him gently on his forehead. He looked up at her and kissed her back.
"Please, don't stop..." She said gently.
"I was confused. I ran into the mountains, north, towards Seattle. I needed to process what I saw and figure out what I would do next. I must have sat there for hours. I picked up a scent. Victoria - she was moving fast, in the direction of Forks. I jumped up and followed her." Edward's body tensed up as he talked.
"I focused on the scent and just ran. She was fast and relentless. I was so focused on her, I stopped paying attention where I was and suddenly, I was surrounded by reek of dogs. The little Quileute pack surrounded me." Edward was now completely tense and he suddenly stood up. Bella flinched involuntarily at his sudden movement and comprehension crept into her mind.
"One of them, with long shaggy hair walked right up to me and started growling. He was ready to attack...He was so easy to read. Little Jacob...." Edward sneered. He stopped and looked at Bella again. The wind picked up. It started to rain.
******
"What are you doing here, LEECH? How dare you come back? After you treated Bella so badly? You bastard!...And you are on forbidden territory? Or have you forgotten our arrangement so quickly?" Aaaah, little doggy is upset with me....
"Hello DOG! Why the hell are you surrounding me, when Victoria is probably at Bella's house by now? You idiots!"
Ok, at least one of them seems to have some sense. GOD, the smell! I'm going to have to stop breathing.
"I am Sam, leader of the pack."
He seems reasonable. Pretty annoyed at me though. Ah, I can see Laurent, Bella. He was there! Ah...they killed Laurent and saved Bella. OK, remember that Edward. Still, Jacob is really annoying....
"Sam, you need to control your puppies. Jacob here is getting irate."
OK, below the belt, but Jacob is just SO irritating.
"Can you blame him? He's been picking up the pieces of your mess for the last 6 months. What are you doing here?"
What mess does he mean? Bella? But she looked happy...in love...with...Jacob. Focus, Edward!
"I was tracking Victoria, she was headed this way. I was almost on her and then you surrounded me. You should really send someone to Bella's house to check that she's OK. She is determined to kill her!"
These dogs are really slow!
"We have someone guarding her house 24/7. You know, she's been a bit irrational lately, so we decided to make sure she's OK. But thank you Edward for being so caring, after leaving her on that meadow in a catatonic state. That is really thoughtful..."
What? What does he mean? I didn't know! Alice never said anything...Bella, my sweet Bella...
"I....I....didn't know, I thought it would be best if I left....I....I thought I was doing the right thing......" Sam sniggered at me and Jacob wolf growled even louder.
"You bastard LEECH! You broke her heart!" Jacob was really upset. Now he was showing teeth. I guess I deserved it...
"Jacob, enough!" Sam shouted. "I agree...she's better off without you. And so is the rest of Forks. Cullen, I want you to leave. We can deal with one Leech quite easily. And Bella is well protected"
Oh, I don't think so Wolfy!
"Sam, I respect your position. But, I will not leave until Victoria is dead. She is here because of me and I do not want Bella, or anyone else for that matter, to get hurt. With all due respect, she is a very strong vampire and she is very, very motivated."
Jacob growled some more. This boy needs to develop a richer vocabulary.
"You don't have any right to do anything for Bella, you disgusting Leech! You had your chance!" His thoughts were quite clear.
"You are right Jacob, and the last thing I want is to....interfere...with you ...and...and Bella. I just want her to be happy."
I feel as if my soul will be ripped right out of my chest. I will help this DOG be happy with the love of my existence....
"Jacob, shift back." Sam ordered and Jacob obeyed. He came back from the wood.
"OK, Edward, you are allowed to help us. Only you. We do not want any others to come here. And I don't want you to be seen. You and Jacob will work together and the pack will help you bring Victoria down."
So, I'm working with the one person I would love to rip to pieces. Jealousy will not help here....And Bella can not find out....But at least I can see her....from a distance....
And so it begins.
****************
Bella gasped with comprehension. Edward sat quietly and waited for her reaction. And he knew she would not be happy.
"Wha'.....You're telling me you and Jacob worked together to track Victoria? And the pack? Sam and Jake were working with you. You? You were in Forks for how long? When? Did you see me? Jake told me that....he....I....but....he said....they...all told me that there was no sign of any covens....any vampires.....he....he....LIED to me! He lied....and...I...you...you were...there...I...." Bella was stuttering. She could feel the anger grow and it was about to burst out with full force. She jumped up and started running along the lake. Tears started coming down her face uncontrollably. She just ran. She avoided the swans and ducks. It started raining again. She was getting soaked.
Edward let her go. 'Oh dear....this will not be easy....at least the worst part is over...I hope'
Bella ran out of steam a few hundred yards away from Edward. She was at the other side of the small lake. She looked up to the bench they were sitting on. He was not there. He was standing right next to her. She jumped when she saw him next to her.
"Bella....you need to understand. It was the best thing to do. You were happy with Jacob. He told me all about what you did. I felt even worse and I was even more determined that you should not know I was there. We both wanted to make sure you could live a normal....well, mostly normal life." He stopped.
'I am actually trying to make that DOG look good! How did it come to this?' Edward was in disbelief.
"Oh, that makes it all right then! Edward, don't you see? I'm not some damsel in distress that needed to be rescued all the bloody time! And Jacob lied to me! The one person I always relied on as the most truthful and kind and sweet person, LIED TO ME! For YEARS! He said there were no other covens coming through, that it was peaceful, quite dull! He was wondering about this....No covens, no vampires....And he used the BLOODY Victoria card, when EVER it BLOODY suited HIM. He even BLOODY used it before I left for London to try to BLOODY stop me!" She shouted at him and the few people in the park were starting to stare. She was furious and she was pulling an almighty strop. She continued
"And I would guess.....considering that you have not been around for a while, I guess Victoria is dead? You succeeded in your quest?" She continued angrily.
Edward couldn't help by laugh at the display of anger. And then immediately regretted it. 'Mistake!'
Bella was even more furious and starting fisting Edward. He laughed harder.
"How is that funny? How? Is any of this funny? " She shouted at him. The rain kept pouring down. She was completely wet. Edward stopped laughing and stifled the last few giggles.
"I'm sorry Bella..... Yes, we did....I'm sorry that Jacob lied to you. I'm sorry....I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry that you feel betrayed. I'm sorry....Please let me tell you the rest of the story....but first, we need to get you inside. You are completely wet. There is a cafe of there, let's go in; get you something warm to drink. OK?" Edward put his arm around her and Bella didn't resist. She calmed down and suddenly realised just how wet she was. And cold.
******
"So? Pray continue..." Bella was holding a cup of hot chocolate and felt better. Edward looked at her anxiously as if he was trying to organise his memories prior to speaking.
"It took another year of hunting. Victoria realised what was happening and ran off again. I mostly did it on my own. I only spoke with Sam a few times I tracked her for months. She finally settled in Seattle and started creating a new army of vampires..... It was a mess..... She didn't train them, she didn't care for them..... All of us had to work together to keep it quiet - Carlisle called in some favours. As you know, we have to keep our presence secret and she made it difficult. She managed to escape with a couple of young soldiers. We caught up with them in the woods north of Forks, in the mountains. It took all of us and the entire pack to take them down. You know, young vampires are VERY strong and it was not easy....." He stopped for a moment looking serious. And then he looked at Bella with tenderness.
"It was around the time of your graduation.... Sam allowed me to stick around. I mean, Jacob was really unhappy with this, but that was the deal... I...I even indulged myself...and came to see you one night...I just sat there as I used to before...just hearing you breathe was a huge comfort. I'm sorry to admit that I went through your papers. I saw that you accepted your position at University of Washington in Seattle. Biology... I was so proud!.... And it was obvious that Jacob cared for you, so..... I knew you would be fine." He stopped again. His eyes were sad.
"I left that night.....I never came to look for you again.....I ran far and never looked back."
Edward stopped for the last time. He ran out of steam....He looked ahead back to the lake. The rain was pouring down. Now it was Bella's turn to stare at him. She was trying to process all the he said and the facts he revealed.
The fact that he really did love her.
The fact that Jacob loved her enough to lie about Victoria.
The fact that both of them lied to her.
The fact that the truth is always so much more complicated than you think and that there are always several sides to every story.
And the fact that she was completely puzzled about what would happen next.