A/N: I HAVE HORRIBLE NEWS. I probably won't be updating in the next few days (From tomorrow until Sunday D: ) I am going to try as hard as I can to update, as in, taking my laptop with me everywhere, but I am not making any promises okay? So, as asked for, this is update number 2 for today, and possibly the last until next week.

DON'T LOSE HOPE! I will not forget about this story. I am currently too attached to the character personalities and I am attached to you guys, so of course I am not going to stop writing it. And I promise also to start the regular updates again. If I don't update by Monday lunch time, I want you all to tweet me okay? If you have twitter just be like OI BEE WHAT IS GOING ON? My twitter is bleex_ and I am able to reach that 24/7. Also- if you guys have any questions I am more than happy to answer them on there. I also love to just chat to people

Don't give up on me or the story? I am going to try and update okay? I will TRY but I won't make a promise to do so over the next few days. But here we go- a long update to get you through!

BPOV

Had I gotten lost and driven for twenty minutes to end up at the wrong house? The house which also happened to be the right house for all sorts of different reasons. The most perfect person in the world was standing in the open door way, staring back at me with relief clear as the light I stood on painted all over his face. My heart thudded unevenly and I felt happy tears brewing in my tear ducts and I breathed shallowly. I was so happy to see him, so happy in fact that I didn't even notice the people behind him, one of which was screaming my name.

"Bella! Bella, Bella, Bella, oh Bella I am so happy you're here!" the sound of Alice squealing ripped my attention away from Edward, and I felt a small amount of chagrin towards her, my only friend before I'd met Edward. I smiled at her and side stepped around Edward, careful to make a brief amount of eye contact and mime the words 'we need to talk'. He nodded and smiled slightly and I felt my entire being burst into flames due to the utter euphoria I felt.

"Alice, hey" I said, sounding too enthusiastic, but knowing that my enthusiasm was just leaking out of the happiness I felt about Edward, and the amazing feeling I felt about seeing Alice again. I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her and she hugged me a little too tight, causing friction on my burns. I yelped quietly and pulled away, a blush shading my face. I felt Edward behind me, holding my arm to steady me, because he knew I had a tendency to end up on the floor when pain hit me.

"Bella, what did I do?" Alice asked, looking as if she felt terrible.

"Don't worry about it Alice, really" I breathed and she seemed to relax a little.

"Did you hurt yourself again? Classic Bella" said a big, burly looking guy who I instantly recognized as Alice's brother, Emmett.

"Hey Emmett, and yeah. I had an accident when making dinner" I tried to joke but it came out sounding sad. I noticed Alice's head cock to the side and she walked over to me.

"We should talk" she murmured, and I nodded. I followed her up the stairs, turning and thanking Edward and had him nod in return. She walked up to the second floor of the house and I was continuously stopping on the way up the stairs, to stare at the photos that donned the walls. The one that I had trouble taking my eyes away from was one of an obviously very-young Edward, smiling a massive, toothy grin, sitting at a giant, grand piano. The fact that he was smiling wasn't even the thing that had me gawking, although I attempted to imagine him that way now, and I found it very difficult. No, the thing that kept me rooted in my place wasn't the smile, or the age of him, it was that he was smiling at me from the photo, his face unmarked by the burns that now occupied it.

I felt tears prickling again, but this time they were mourning tears for the happy little boy who looked like he had everything he would ever need while sitting at that huge piano.

"Bella" Alice called impatiently and I nodded and pulled myself away from the picture. I walked into the room she'd walked into minutes beforehand and she sat on the bed in the same position she used to sit in when she wanted me to tell her something. I slowly closed the door, almost unwilling to be in this situation even though I knew what she wanted to know.

"So…" I started the ball rolling and she looked at me almost appreciatively.

"What have you done to yourself Bella?" she eyed me sceptically and I bit my lip before telling her to close her eyes. "I don't understand why this is necessary" she huffed as her eyes were shut and I removed my clothing until I was just in my underwear.

"Okay" I whispered, "open your eyes".

When she did, her eyes didn't just open to their normal size, but widened to a point that could have been classed as unhealthy. Tears welled up in her eyes and her hand flew up to cover her gaping mouth that had let out a loud gasp.

"Bella… when you said accident, I thought you'd accidently cut yourself with a knife, I didn't think you meant-" I cut her off.

"Dropping a pot of boiling water on myself? Yeah, I didn't think you would guess that. Classic Bella right?" I tried to joke and then it all came crashing down on me. The emotions that I had been hiding from everyone else came bursting through the flood gates I kept them behind and I fell to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Bella, Bella what's wrong?" Alice hurried over to me to wrap her tiny arms around my shaking, nearly naked form.

"Look at me Alice" I whimpered, "no one could ever love something like this. Who would? I'm hideous even to myself" I whaled and she rubbed soothing circles on my arms while whispering that I was okay, it would all be okay.

"You are not hideous Bella" she comforted and that brought on another round of sobbing because I knew that she would say that, she had to, she was my best friend.

"Yes I am. I can't even look at myself in the mirror anymore without breaking down and being filled with hate at what I see. I can't even wear shorts Alice, not that it's ever the weather for it but the choice to wear that has been taken away from me. No one will ever want to be with this" I cried and then stopped abruptly when I realized that I had just done exactly what Edward always did. I'd referred to my burns as 'this' rather than 'burns'. I had gestured to myself and referred to the way I looked as 'this' in such a harsh negative light that it caught me off guard and my heart sank. I knew what Edward must feel, I only felt it to a certain degree I knew, but I knew he felt it too, so much more intensely than I did and that knowledge made it hard to breathe. He shouldn't feel like this, he should know the overwhelming hatred I felt. I couldn't think of him hating himself when I felt for him in such a way that his entirety was loveable.

"Someone will love you. Trust me, scars or no scars, skin isn't what makes a person beautiful.It's their heart and their personality that make them beautiful Bella and you have one of the most pure of both that I have ever seen. Here," she said, standing up and giving me a dress out of her things, "put this on, I'll be right back".

Alice dashed from the room and I put on the dress. A few minutes later a soft knock was on the door and Alice's quiet voice flowed through it.

"Are you dressed Bella?" she asked.

"Yeah" I responded in an equally quiet voice. She opened the door and stepped through it, her hand extended to hold the hand of a guy I vaguely remembered seeing downstairs.

"This is Jasper" she said fondly, "my boyfriend" she beamed and I smiled despite my reverie.

"Nice to meet you" I said, almost hurt that she would be rubbing in that she had someone.

I looked away and began playing with the hem of the dress, quietly humming to myself, no tune in particular. I heard a slight ruffling and then Alice's voice broke my concentration.

"Look Bella," she said I looked up, gasping. Jasper had taken off his button up shirt and jacket to reveal a singlet. What shocked me was that from his left fingertips, all the way up him arm, all the way across his chest and down to the middle of his right bicep were scars. He looked at Alice and she nodded and he lifted up the bottom of his shirt to reveal that the scars continued down to just above his naval. I also noticed that he had a few scars on his neck and that one or two encroached on his jaw line. I stared at him, mouth agape and he smiled politely at me.

"A dog attacked me when I was nine years old" he explained and I cringed as I thought of how much his torn up skin would have hurt.

"Oh" was all I could manage and then Alice leaned over and kissed his left shoulder.

"See Bella" she began, "skin doesn't matter in what makes a person beautiful if you love them. I promise" she smiled and then kissed Jasper gently on the lips before gesturing for him to leave. He put his shirt and jacket back on and dipped his head in farewell, before exiting the room.

I felt like I was going into shock.

"Wow" was my opening line and Alice giggled.

"I'm telling you Bella, someone will love you exactly the way you are. I mean, did you see my cousin Edward downstairs? I could go get him to talk to you about scars, but he's never interacted with other people so I guess that would be weird…" she muttered to herself and I shook my head.

"Wait, what?" I asked and she eyed me curiously.

"My cousin Edward has scars too" she said and I shook my head again.

"No, about the interaction thing" I clarified and she nodded in understanding.

"Oh right, sorry" she smiled sheepishly. "I don't know why, but ever since he… well he doesn't like me saying what happened so I'll skip that part. Ever since it happened, he just shut himself off. It's like the world died to him the day that he became like that. I mean, he always spoke to Emmett and me, but it was weird because he wouldn't even speak to his own parents. He's never had a friend, so he can cross getting married off the list for the next few years" she rambled, rolling her eyes. I suddenly felt a spike of clarity in the way that he always seemed to not know how to respond when I treated him the way a friend should.

"That's so sad" I mumbled and she nodded.

"Yeah, it'd be good for him to get to know some new people. Would you like me to introduce the two of you?" she offered and I couldn't stop the hesitant laugh that burst from me. "What?" she asked as if I had insulted her.

"I'm sorry Alice, but I already know Edward" I smiled and she nodded.

"That would make sense, seeing as he goes to school here. But I mean, I would really love it for you two to be friends" she pleaded and I laughed again.

"We are friends Alice" I sighed sadly at the loose title and she noticed that.

"You like him" she gasped accusingly and I launched forward to silence her with my finger.

"Alice" I hissed and she slapped her hand over her mouth.

"But Bella that is so exciting" she whispered excitedly and I was suddenly hyper aware of the fact that people may be able to hear us.

"I've only just realized it and Edward and I are currently not on speaking terms so please, please be quiet about it… Please" I begged and she sighed, annoyed.

"Fine, but you need to talk to him again" she declared and I rolled my eyes.

"I know" I said and she laughed, reaching out and hugging me more gently than she had before.

"I have really missed you Bella" she sighed happily and I gratefully returned the hug.

We spent another hour in her room catching up and before long we were called to dinner. I walked downstairs behind Alice and stopped when I heard a piano being played above us.

"What's that?" I breathed, getting lost in the beauty of the melody I had never heard before.

"It's on the third floor. Go have a look" she smiled and then skipped downstairs. I did as she said and went up to the third floor. The sound got louder as I approached a door and I quietly turned the handle, cracking the door open just a fraction and peered inside. This was a bedroom and I felt bad for intruding, but I could take my ears away from the sound that was coming from inside. I opened the door a little more and I stared blankly when I saw Edward playing skilfully on the same grand piano from the picture before, and I blanched when I realized this must be his room.

I leaned more against the door and it squeaked slightly and Edward stopped playing very abruptly. He swivelled very quickly on his seat, looking angry and deep in thought. His expressions softened when he saw it was me that had interrupted him.

"Hey" I whispered and my heart rate increased. He stood up, running a hand through his hair, tussling it into even further disarray.

"Hey" he breathed back and that was what triggered it. Just like before when I'd been talking to Alice, I broken down; only this time I didn't fall to the floor. I rushed forward and crushed myself against him, wrapping my arms around him and burying my face in his chest. Seconds later, his arms cocooned me and made me safer to cry.

He held me like that for a long time, swaying softly side to side, putting his face against my hair every now and again and eventually, my tears began to stop and I began to calm down. When I was finally calm enough to stand on my own, he held me at arms-length; only this time I didn't just stand there, I had my arms up and my hands were wrapped around his wrists.

"Are you okay?" he asked me almost too gently. I gave him a half-nod, not sure if I could trust my voice. "Are you sure?" he prodded and I deliberated on whether or not I would use my voice.

"I think so, thank you" I finally murmured and his eyes turned sad. "Please, don't give me that look" I whispered and that threw him for a minute.

"What look?" he asked and I looked down, shying away from his scrutinizing gaze.

"That one. It looks like pity, but I don't want it. Just, please don't" I mumbled and I heard him start to chuckle. My eyes widened and I looked up to see him truly laughing, and his smile was bigger than I had ever seen it.

"Oh, Bella, I so trust you" he laughed again and then pulled me in to hug him tightly. I was extremely confused by the turn of the conversation, but I was content in listening to his heartbeat.

"I'm sorry" I mumbled.

"Hm?" he said, sounding detached.

"I'm sorry for ignoring you these last few days. Isn't it funny that I thought you hated me? Carlisle told me you didn't and I've been trying to talk to you, but I am such a freaking coward and I-" he cut of my rambling with a sigh.

"In future, please just talk to me? I much prefer that over the distance" he said and I felt my stomach flutter as if it were filled with a million tiny butterflies. "Deal?" he asked and I smiled.

"Deal".

A/N: I KNOW YOU MUST HATE ME NOW BUUUUUT-… Guess who has a sequel plaaaaanned? ME. So, once this story is finished, I plan on having a sequel, so please, like I said prior to horribly teasing you with the end of this chapter, DON'T GIVE UP HOPE. This is going somewhere exciting… Stayyy tuned 3

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