Don't own Twilight. In the immortal words of Linda Ronstadt, ''I don't know much, but I know I love you, and that may be all I need to know.' Best of luck A) getting that song out of your head, and B) reaching the same high notes Aaron Neville hits.
I know I adore JulieToo and beachcomberlc, for more than just their punctuational prowess and superb spellings.
Chapter 13
In the present...
As Jasper thumbed through the notebook that would bring on Edward's complete downfall from the band, Edward struggled to breathe. Rose was going to hit him, he was sure. If Rose didn't, then Emmett might. His mother was going to be so disappointed. He was going to break her heart almost as much as he had broken Bella's. All his life she had taught him to be honest and kind. With Bella, he was neither of those things.
It wasn't even until about a year after she disappeared that he even started to see just how awful he had been to her. It took that long for his conscience to wake him up. By then, they were laying down the initial tracks for their album Borealis. Edward was putting the finishing touches on the lyrics and rifling through the same notebook Jasper now held. It was then that he noticed that there weren't many of her poems left. He had picked through them, taking bits and pieces here and there, this line, that stanza, arranging them to his liking. To everyone else's liking as well, as they all heaped praise on him for a job well done.
At first, he got angry. Furious even. With himself and with her. Mostly with her. It took nine more months for him to realise just how stupid blaming her was. It wasn't her fault he couldn't write anything even remotely close to her work. It wasn't her fault that she wasn't there to help him with his writing process. It wasn't her fault that the guilt of what he had done began to slowly sink into his every pore.
He couldn't remember the last time he had seen her, what he had said at that time or what he had done. He vaguely remembered a brunette yelling at him and pouring a drink on him but he didn't think that it was Bella who did that. What he did remember is going to her place on Valentine's Day and being told that she had moved out with no forwarding address. The biker lady who was now renting her old place took the cheap box of candies he'd bought as a token for Bella. Bella hadn't even left him a note.
It was then that he first searched for her online. The only thing he found didn't help. In fact, it made things worse. He found a small post about the accident that killed her parents, Charlie and Renee Swan. Everything she had told him was true, according to this article, even though she wasn't identified by name.
Olympic Monthly Tribune, June
Forks Chief of Police Killed in Accident.
The people of Forks and its environs are mourning the loss of their new Chief of Police. Charles Swan, along with his wife, Renee Swan, were killed on Highway 101 just past Hell Roaring Creek. The Chief and his wife had been attending at retirement party in Queets. Due to a darker-than-normal night and very slippery curve, they were hit head on by a truck from McClanahan Lumber. No charges will be filed against the truck's driver, Tyler Crowley, or McClanahan. Our thoughts go out to the Swan's minor daughter, whose name is withheld due to age.
A memorial service will be held at the Elks Lodge on Merchants Road, next Tuesday, 8 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations to Forks Animal Shelter in the Swans' name.
"Charlie had a passion for working dogs." stated interim police chief Billy Black. "He wasn't the kind of guy who wanted to be celebrated and his wife was the same way. Real down-to-earth people. It's a real shame, they are going to be greatly missed."
Swan had been Chief of Police for fourteen months at the time of his death. His wife, Renee was very active with the North Olympic Library and their literacy programs.
Finding this article online led to a week of complete inebriation and a rather nasty cut on Edward's elbow when he fell, drunk, through a glass coffee table. Seven stitches closed the wound and Edward decided not to allow himself to drink like that again. It didn't help his demeanor and he began to pull away from his friends, family and the band. He stopped hanging out with them as much. He started spending more of his time trying to write, trying to be half the songwriter she was. Trying, in vain, to rid himself of the stirrings of guilt that were beginning to fester in his heart. He managed it for almost two years before he gave into that guilt.
When Jasper married his sister, he could see how happy they were together. It only served to show him how unhappy he was. The press, the fans and the accolades weren't enough. None of it made him happy. Nothing made him happy. By rights he should be over the moon. He was a rockstar, a member of a very popular band. He was wealthier than he had dreamed. People looked up to him, they wanted him; his body, his mind, his words. But deep down, he knew they weren't his words. He felt like a fraud. He was a fraud. A thief. A charleton. He had used an innocent young girl, stolen from her and profited from it. He wasn't worthy of any of the things he had been given lately. It made him sick to his stomach.
"What does this mean, Edward? This book? These are our lyrics but this is not your handwriting, is it?" Jasper snapped the book shut and tossed it on the table. Edward lunged for it, and when he had it back in his possession, held it tightly in both of his hands.
"Where did you get that?" Rosalie motioned to the book.
Edward looked at her. They both knew the question was rhetorical.
"What have you done, Edward?" Esme stood to wrap an arm around him. Edward allowed her comfort, he let her lead him to a couch and when they were both seated, he lay his head on her shoulder. He felt like a fucking idiot for what he now had to confess.
"The book is Bella's," Edward mumbled, confirming everyone's suspicions. "I got it from her and used the poems inside to write our songs."
There was a palpable silence in the room. Edward could feel the anger from all their stares like pin pricks all over his scalp. He wanted to vomit. They hadn't even heard the worst of it.
"Why didn't you tell us? Wait, don't answer that, it's an asinine question. How could you do that to her, Edward?" Emmett asked.
"I didn't think it through and it got worse over time." Edward started on his explanations.
"Why are you looking for Bella now?" Rosalie asked
"The band is finished, ruined, thanks to you. There's no way we can go on once this is goes public." Emmett spoke over Rose, drowning her out.
Edward avoided their questions.
"I've scheduled an interview. I'll let everyone know that it was just me, you guys had nothing to do with it. And I'll pay any penalties or legal fees if she sues. I just want to talk to her, to apologize and make up for what I've done. There's other stuff but that's between us, it has nothing to do with the band." His idea did nothing to assuage their concerns, in fact it added fuel to the fire.
"Nothing to do with the band? Are you out of your fucking mind, Edward? It has everything to do with the band. We used to be friends, some of us are family. You pissed that away. You're now telling us that the songs we sing, the songs that made us famous were written by someone outside of the band. Someone who has been given no credit, no acknowledgement and no royalties." Jasper stood up and took over Edward's pacing track.
"Do you mean to tell me that every time I got up on stage and played, every time I fulfilled my childhood dream of being a performer, every time I stood in front of a paying audience I was stealing from my best friend?" Rose whispered.
"I'm going to come clean to the world in the interview. Set the record straight and all that." Edward tried to be consoling with this information but it only fueled the anger towards him. Alice joined in the fray.
"Are you aware of the legalities of what you've done, Edward? If you do this interview and confess, not only the band will be ruined but the label as well. And they'll sue you as fast as they fucking can. They'll take everything from you and all of us by association. You've fucked us all, Edward, your bosses, your audience, your friends and your family." She whipped out her phone and began searching for legal websites to gauge the ramifications.
"Is this part of the reason you treated her like shit whenever she came around? What were you afraid of? That we'd kick you out if you didn't produce material? Do you really think us that disloyal and fickle, Edward? We were tight, but you were the one who pulled away. How the fuck are we supposed to trust you now? You've trashed our dream and fucked us over. Are you happy now?" Jasper stood behind Edward and spoke quietly.
"What about this Bella?" Esme interjected, all eyes turned to her. "Has she ever said anything to any of you about this?"
Rosalie faced Esme and talked to her as if they were the only two in the room. She ignored the sighs and huffs coming from both sides of the fight.
"No, she...we keep things about the band compartmentalized. If we talk about the band then it's in generalities, concert dates, tour schedules, stuff like that. It's nice to have an interaction that's outside the everyday, mainstream shit. She's my friend despite the band and the fame, not because of it. She helps keep me grounded and I'd like to think that I do the same for her."
"I can't place her, did we ever meet?"
"The Hallowe'en party when Jasper proposed...that song I sang for him? Remember, she accompanied me on guitar." Alice joined in the conversation. Edward sucked in a sharp breath.
"Oh, yes, I remember. Sweet girl. So, if the songs are hers and they've been played over and over again, in the media and in concert, why did she never come forward and claim them?"
Esme asked the question they all had been wondering.
AN: Thank you for reading. It is a wonderful delight to receive your reviews. I have the best group of Facebook friends, just sayin'. They kick-ass and don't even bother to take names. That's all.