Author's Note: Thanks again for sticking with me guys! I can never forget that despite all those amazing fanfics out there, you choose to read mine.

Thank you for reading and reviews are greatly appreciated. Though cookies will do too :)

However…REVIEW, REVIEW, & REVIEW!

This chapter is sort of an explainer for why Bella is totally nonchalant about her mom's death. I know it's a tame chapter but I promise the next one will be even better.

It has come to my attention that my fanfic is similar to TallulahBelle's Elemental. I can assure you that my fanfic is nothing like that. The only similarities are the elements and the mating. However, my mating process is completely different and it focuses on dominance and possessiveness. I don't do elemental circles and my characters aren't witches. The antagonist is not a soul eater and is quite much human. Right now, the fics seem alike but as we progress, you will see that they are completely different. I could never write anything as amazing as Elemental.

I'd like to dedicate this chapter to hiddenhibernian for the kickass review. I have never ever seen such an amazing and detailed review. It just made my day. Or Week. Or life. Seriously, I'm trying to follow your advice and I swear I'll add more inner monologue next chapter.

Also, we can totally add India to our list of countries. Peru, Poland, and India….wow! I'm actually from India so it was great to see Noor's review. I know from the stats graph that this fic being read in many countries but it's still nice to see them in the reviews so we can keep a tally…a fun little game.

So March break is coming up and that means I'll be updating more often…I hope. You guys can expect an update on Friday or Saturday. Probably Saturday because I really want to write a longer chapter and add some more Edward and more of the Clan. Hope you enjoy this chapter, Cheers! (I'm a wannabe Brit)

Playlist for this Chapter:

Dream - Priscilla Ahn

Falling Away – Big Scary

Chapter 11: Forgotten Memories

[Bella's POV]

The sun was shining today, having escaped the dreary cover of the clouds. It shone unusually bright, over the colourful meadow and the sparkling river. The crackling and sizzling of the cool summer water filled the air with the essence of peace. Blue jays chirped from the light brown branches of the oak trees and the lone cherry blossom they harboured.

A little boy, no older than five, sat by the foot of the cherry blossom tree. He gazed at the tree line that bordered the meadow, waiting with a vibrant hull of impatience. He frowned when no one appeared but smiled when he thought of who would eventually. His thoughts raced to his little sister who enjoyed hogging his best friend, much to his dismay. He hated sharing…especially his friends.

Finally, after what seemed like hours to the boy but was only mere minutes, a petite figure appeared past the trees. She was a tiny little thing with russet locks that ran down to her elbows. With her blue sundress and pink-tinged cheeks, she looked absolutely lovely.

"You're late," he said and got up with a small scowl.

"Alice wanted to play with her new Barbie," she explained as she skipped over to him. "I sneaked out though. I don't think she noticed."

"I hope she didn't. She's going to come steal you from me," he told her.

"She's not going to steal me. She just wants to play with me. She says you hog me too much," she said sternly but the corners of her mouth were lifted in a mischievous smile.

"I do not. I just like playing with my best friend. She needs to get her own," he insisted.

He reached out and wrapped his fingers around hers, grinning when she squeezed his hand.

"Come on. I want to show you something," he said suddenly and tugged her hand towards the river.

"Oh! A surprise?"

The boy chuckled and nodded. "Yes, a surprise."

"I don't like surprises," she said with a shake of her head.

The boy stopped walking and turned towards her with a pout. "Not even my surprises?"

She shook her head again and whispered, "I don't like surprises."

Now it was the boy's turn to shake his head. "No. You'll like my surprise."

"I don't know," she began to say but he cut her off.

"Don't bite your lip. Mommy says that it's bad. You're going to bleed," he said seriously and then glowered. "You're going to love my surprise."

"Why? What is it?"

"It's my surprise. Of course you'll love it. It's mine," he said stubbornly.

The girl sighed and said, "Alright but you can't boss me around. Mommy says that it's not nice for a gentleman to boss around his lady."

"Are you my lady?" he teased, grinning from ear to ear.

"Am I?"

"You are. You're my lady and I'm your gentleman," he confirmed with a toothy smile. "Come on. I want to show my lady something very special."

This time she let him lead her with a wide smile and many giggles. He came to a stop by the edge of the river, holding her hand tighter when she ever so slightly slipped on the wet, smooth, rocks that decorated the bank.

"Watch this," he said excitedly and dropped her hand. Then, he kneeled down and leaned forward towards the water. Dipping his hand into the water, he stared intently at it and his brow creased with concentration. A few excruciatingly painful seconds later, the girl gasped as a small wave lapped against the current. The boy lifted his hand out of the water and raised it in the air in front of her. Slowly, a small trickle of water began to rise. It coiled around itself as it rose in the air and dance gently to the beats of their hearts.

"Oh my gosh! That's so cool!" The girl squealed animatedly. She clapped her hands together and vibrated on the spot. "How did you do that?"

"Mommy taught me," he told her and puffed out his chest proudly, as he let the water fall back down. Wiping his palm on his pants, he leaned forward on his heels. "Cool, right?"

"So much," she assured him.

The boy's pleased smirk changed into a shy smile and his eyes smoldered hers. She noticed his sudden change in demeanor and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Can I hug you?" He asked softly, tilting his head to the side as he watched for a response.

She bit her lip again and nodded. In an instant, his small arms were wrapped around her even smaller frame. She was caught off guard at how quick he was to pull her into a hug but then she hugged him back.

When he pulled away, the boy was beaming from ear to ear. He pulled the girl closer to the riverbank and began repeating the first trick. The two giggled and laughed at their antics until, suddenly, the sun went behind the clouds.

A new figure appeared at the edge of the trees and called out loudly, "Edward!"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

I groaned and smacked my arm along my left until I hit a certain savior button labeled 'snooze'. The blaring alarm cut off and dove under the cover of my blankets, hoping to hide from the bright sunlight that glared through my window. It was an odd day that the sun shone in Forks but I still couldn't help but despise it. I had seen enough of the sun in Phoenix. All I wanted right now was the cover of darkness so I could go back to sleep.

It was a few moments before I managed to summon the courage to drag myself out of bed. The path from my tempting bed and the waterfall like heaven under the warm water in my shower was agonizing. I really could spend all day in my bed. After all, it was summer vacation. That thought brought along a gloomy one as I realized that school would be starting soon.

With a unhappy bounce in my step, I headed down to the kitchen but stopped cold when I saw the sight that greeted me. Emmett was waiting at the breakfast table with a huge pile of pancakes before him. He smiled abashedly at my suspicious look as I walked over to him.

"What is this?" I asked sharply, yesterday's abandonment fresh in my mind.

"Um – I made breakfast for you because…well…I wanted to apologize," he began awkwardly. "You probably don't want to hear it but –"

You're right. I don't," I said bitterly.

"All right but you still need to hear it," he said and swallowed hard. "Look, what I did yesterday was wrong on so many levels. First of all, I shouldn't have lashed out at you in here. You're entitled to your own opinions and it completely slipped my mind that you're new to all this. It wasn't fair that I took mom's anger out on you. You don't deserve it. You're so much better than her."

"Wait! What?" I shouted, throwing my hands up angrily. "Are you serious?"

How could he? He just apologized for snapping at me but the reason it hurt was because he had insulted mom. He had insulted her yesterday and now he was doing it again. What the hell?

"Whoa, Bella! Listen up," Emmett interrupted my glaring. "I'm not finished. Just like you're entitled to your own opinions, I'm entitled to my own. We see mom in two different lights and that's fine. Well, it's not but I can live with it. Okay?"

Reluctantly, I nodded. He had a point there.

"Secondly, I want to apologize for leaving you alone all day. It was really stupid of me to just walk out on you when the house is completely bare. You starved because of my stubbornness and I'm so sorry for that. It was also stupid of me to not give you my number. What if something had happened? You could've died." He hung his head and started at the ground morosely. "It hasn't even been a week and I already failed you. You could've died because of me. I'm the worst older brother ever."

My heart broke at his pitiful expression and I could tell that he honestly regretted his actions. He was beating himself over yesterday when in fact nothing happened to me. I was perfectly fine. Emmett loved me. He didn't mean to hurt me.

"Em, it's okay," I said softly and he looked up at me with confusion. "I'm fine. Nothing happened. It's okay. I forgive you."

Emmett shook his head and said, "But you could've died. God, I really fucked up!"

Now I was the one shaking her head. "No, you didn't. I'm perfectly fine. No blood, no foul. Stop beating yourself up over this. You're the most dang amazing big brother anyone could ever ask for. I have no idea how I got this lucky."

"Seriously?" He looked at me dubiously and I nodded.

And just like that, we were good again. We had no reason to fight over anything that had already happened. We had already missed so much in each other's lives so it was kind of silly to waste the time we now had together on frivolous things such as fights.

After we finished breakfast, Emmett commented on how the house hadn't looked cleaner in years. I blushed at his compliment and mentioned how if oafs like him didn't stop making messes, it would go back.

Around noon, Emmett left, claiming that he had plans with Edward and would be back for dinner. I didn't like that he would be away again but at least he left me his number. I really didn't want to be alone so I set lasagna in the oven and called Alice. She picked up on the second ring.

"Hey Bella," she greeted excitedly. She sounded way too perky for only midday…or maybe I was just really lazy.

"Hey Alice." Since I only knew her for a few days, despite her claims that we were best friends once upon a time, I threw in some pleasantries. "How are you think fine sunny day?"

Alice giggled and replied, "I'm doing pretty good. It's nice to see the sun every once in a while. Edward and I had a fight over my Lucky Charms but it's safe to say that I won. What about you?"

"Emmett made me breakfast and apologized. He looked pretty upset so I caved. Um, actually those pancakes just looked awesome and I couldn't resist," I admitted with a few chuckles of my own. "I'm glad you kicked Edward's butt. We Lucky Charmers need to stick together."

Alice gasped and cried, "You too?"

"Yup," I popped the 'p'.

"Oh my gosh! This is so awesome! It's like we were born to be best friends!"

"Best friends?" I repeated, a little confused.

"Well yeah. I was under the impression that we're best friends forever. No such thing as no communication for ten years is going to stop us. We're B.F.F.A.E.N.M.W.H!" she got out in one breath

"B.F.F.A.E.N.M.W.H?" I wondered, a little amused, but also a little excited myself.

"Best friends forever and ever no matter what happens," she said impatiently. "Come on Bella. Get your head in the game."

"Please don't tell me you like High School Musical," I said with a groan.

"No way. I'm all for Harry Potter," Alice corrected. "What about you? Brainwashed for crappy, songs sung by walking stereotypes or totally awesome enough to love J.K. Rowling's magical creations?"

I laughed at Alice's descriptions and nodded. Then I realized that she couldn't see me and I was answering 'yes' to a question that required me to pick 'a' or 'b'.

"Harry Potter all the way Alice," I said with a chuckle.

She squealed and said excitedly, "This means that we can totally hang out today! My place or yours?"

"How about mine? I'm making lasagna and there's more than enough for the two of us."

"I'll be there in half an hour," she replied assertively. "See in a while B.F.F.A.E.N.M.W.H!"

I shook my head at her antics and humored her, "Of course B.F.F.A.E.N.M.W.H."

I set to fixing up little things all over the house. I don't know why but I felt like impressions mattered. I really liked Alice and I didn't want to risk losing her friendship.

True to her word, Alice rang the doorbell exactly half an hour after our phone call ended. I hurried to the door but tried to make it look like I wasn't desperate.

"I have a confession," she declared as she walked in. "I'm only in this for your food. I'm totally using your friendship for your cooking skills. I admit it."

I snorted and shook my head before following her to the kitchen. We both dug into the lasagna and garlic bread with much enthusiasm. For a while, all that could be hard were our moans and groans of appreciation as our taste buds blew up from happiness.

"This is kickass, Bella," Alice said matter-of-factly as she took her third helping. The girl was tiny yet she could pack so much.

"Thanks. Mom had me take a cooking class with her when I was little. She got bored and moved on to pottery but it just stuck with me," I told her. It didn't escape my notice how her smile fell slightly at the mention of my mom but I didn't comment on it.

Alice was quiet for a minute before she said pensively, "Hey Bella? I was wondering…."

"Yeah?" I prompted.

"You – you talk about your mom so casually. I mean, doesn't it hurt to even think about her?" Alice asked quietly, watching me worriedly, as if afraid I would lash out or break down.

I didn't answer right away, instead taking time to put my plate away in the sink. I cleared the table and followed Alice into the living room with her plate. She settled onto one end of the couch with her lasagna and I took the other. Pulling my knees up to my chest, I wrapped my arms around them and placed my chin on the top. Looking at the photos that rested on top of the mantle, I whispered, "It does. It hurts more than you can imagine. Every thought of her is like a knife slashing through my heart."

"How do you do you?" Alice mumbled, hiding the curiosity well but I knew her.

I shrugged and mumbled, "I don't know. I mean, I just pretend that she and Phil are just on vacation and they'll be back in two years. It's easer to pretend that they're alive and happy than to sit and wallow. I just can't handle the wallowing. It drives me up the wall. My days in the hospital were just horrible. I could do nothing but sit in bed and think about their death. The fact that I saw their bodies –" My breath caught in my throat and I choked on a sob. "I kept seeing the same images in my head on loop. They never stopped. It was so scary. It still is. I'm afraid that I'll let the images back in and then I won't be able to let them out. I'm scared that if I just let myself sit and cry about it then their deaths will be real. Right now, I'm doing everything to keep it at bay. I won't be able to handle it. I just can't."

Alice moved over and pulled me into her tiny arms. I didn't stop her but I did wipe furiously at my cheeks, trying to prevent the tears from falling. I couldn't cry. Not now. Not here.

"It's okay to cry, you know? It helps," Alice murmured.

I shook my head and said hoarsely, "It won't help me. It'll just make it worse. More real."

Alice nodded and didn't say anything else. I appreciated that she accepted my decision to lock all my tears and pain into a safe and throw the key away. I knew she didn't approve but as my best friend, she supported me.

The rest of the evening was pretty subdued. We watched TV and joked around but there was a little heaviness in our hearts. We knew that, just for today, we weren't happy. Not on the inside.

Around six, Emmett walked into the house, yelling, "Honey, I'm home!"

Alice and I rolled our eyes and snickered at his Emmett-like behavior. When he walked into the living room, he pulled both of us into tight hugs. I might have been imaging things but it felt like Emmett was trying to put all his love into our hug.

"I guess I should go now," Alice said with a sigh and reached for her purse.

"Edward's waiting in the Porsche," Emmett told her and she gave him another hug.

I was a little flattered when she hugged me longer than Emmett, but I couldn't help but flinching when she whispered into my ear, "Hold on."

Emmett sent me questioning looks all evening, even during dinner, until Charlie finally put his fork down and said, "Emmett, quit looking at your sister like she robbed a bank. Bella, this is delicious."

I couldn't help but grin at Emmett's pout as I thanked Charlie. When I got to my room though, my smile dropped. I took one look at my bed and shivered at the memories that assaulted me. Up until now, I had been able to successfully ignore last night's dream. Now, I couldn't. I needed answers and I needed them now. The hunger for the truth was eating at me and I didn't know how much more I could take.

Unfortunately, there wasn't much I could do. Alice had told me that Carlisle would tell me more this weekend, during my welcome party. Well, it was actually the end of the summer party but they just included my welcoming into it.

I tossed and turned in bed, way past till I could hear Emmett and Charlie's snore. It felt like déjà vu as I finally succumbed to the ever-growing thoughts in my head. I sat up in bed and stared out the window, my mind going crazy now. I had an option but the real choice was whether I could handle it. I could just wait a couple more days, until the party, or I could find out now. Or at least try to. There was no guarantee that he would give me answers.

Then again, I wouldn't know unless I tried. Internally berating myself for the choice I was making, I slowly headed to my closet to change into more appropriate attire. Once I was dressed, I crept downstairs, tiptoeing on the step that creaked the most. When I finally slipped out of the house, I let out a sigh of relief. Back in my bedroom, it had seemed so easy. Now, standing on the porch, looking out into the darkness of the night, it was oppressing. I couldn't find it in me to make my feet move.

"I happen to come here every fucking night so technically you're the intruder."

Taking in a deep breath, I screwed up my courage and stepped off the porch. I couldn't believe what I was doing. I was going to pay a visit to Edward Cullen.

Oh boy. What have I gotten myself into?