A|N:

Thank you for reviewing LC! I love and appreciate them all. Really, I do. As always, I am REALLY behind in review replies, but I promise I will respond. Real life keeps me so busy.

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I do not own any of these characters, or the original plot to the Twilight Series. Everything publicly recognizable belongs to their owners. I am doing this only for the pleasure I gain from writing and I am not associated with anyone or anything to do with the Twilight Series. There is no financial benefit, whatsoever, though I may wish there were.

Someone asked for a summary next time I posted. That was a great idea. Here it is:

Bella woke up lost, alone and afraid. She wandered but found no one until Alice, Esme and Carlisle found her. They took her into their home. Edward reacted as expected and ran to Alaska. Bella went to stay in the cottage, where she found some information on an Isabella Swan, but strangely that information disappeared. Edward returned home and the Cullens convinced Bella to return home.

Bella was found to have a strange talent, so the Denali coven came to meet her and find out more about her gift. It seems our little Bella is a shield, but that she can also echo other's gifts. So, she can see the visions Alice sees and hear Edward's thoughts. But it's a weaker version of their abilities, and she needs skin contact.

Bella has learned about vampire mating, but she doesn't believe that Edward feels that way about her. So, she has decided to sit back and watch what happens with him. She's spent a lot of time with him, learning to drive, learning to play piano and learning a tiny bit about her past.

Then she saw Tyler get into an accident and rushed to help, falling and blacking out.

Bella had fallen and hit her head, landing herself in the hospital. When she was about to leave, the chief of police showed up. There was some sort of connection to him, though she isn't sure why. Then there was a blowup between Edward and Bella. They both said some things that probably shouldn't have been said. Bella ended up running from the house.

Bella ran off in a tiff, eventually winding up in La Push, where she met Jake. After a few days of not speaking to Edward, she decided to do something and came up with an excuse to see Charlie.

So she met and spent time with Charlie, noticing a picture of a woman whom she closely resembled while at his house.

Weeks past and Edward paid her no attention. Finally, at the end of last chapter, Mike asked her to the dance.

Chapter 21 - Confrontations

I glanced in Edward's direction, my eyes opened wide in shock. He hadn't spoken in weeks, and now he was acknowledging my presence. Sure, he was saving me, but I couldn't help but feel infuriated. I wasn't just angry. Unfortunately, that also included irrational emotions. Like the weak child I had somehow become, I was also excited at Edward's attention. I pushed that feeling aside. Irritation was a much more logical tactic. I sat watching the interaction with a scowl on my face, figuring out my next step.

"What business is it of yours?" Mike asked, echoing my agitation while simultaneously stepping away from Edward. Even in his bravado, he still reacted to Edward's dangerous nature. It was almost comical.

"She's already agreed to go with someone." His black eyes flashed to me in warning and then back to Mike. Obediently, I stayed quiet. I wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, but if I hadn't been so desperate to get away from Mike, I would have. Still I wondered where Edward's statement came from. He knew that I hadn't accepted or made an offer. Was he playing all-conquering hero again? I internally rolled my eyes at that thought.

"Who?" Mike asked a little confrontationally, though his hunched shoulders and down-turned head screamed submission.

"Me, of course." Edward's tone was brusque and dismissive. "She agreed weeks ago."

"Fine," Mike said, shaking his head and glaring at the table—clearly too frightened to actually look him in the eye. "What about—"

"She agreed to prom as well," Edward interjected.

I wanted to jump in and tell him that he had no right to answer for me, that I was my own person and could speak for myself. However I still didn't feel comfortable with Mike, so I kept my mouth shut, glad not to be the one to have to let him down. Mike seemed like the over-persistent type, and I didn't want to have to deal with that. Maybe Edward's words would help keep him at bay.

I didn't know if I'd regret my decision later.

"Oh," Mike said, narrowing his eyes at Edward.

"Um, yeah, Mike… you didn't say no to Jess, did you?" I asked, hoping he hadn't flat out refused her.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "I told her I'd think about it."

"Good!" I tried to sound excited. "That's great, actually. So… don't mention anything about this." I gestured between us. "Just tell her yes. You'll have a lot of fun with her, and I know she really wants to go with you."

"Okay." He sounded a little more enthusiastic. "Jess is cool." He turned and walked to his desk in some sort of stupor.

Way to pine, Mike.

As he sat, I turned to Edward, not knowing how the next few minutes would play out. What would he say now that he'd acknowledged my existence? When I faced him, he was staring at me, his black eyes trying to read me. He glanced down at my hand quickly, then back to my face. I pulled my sleeve down my arm, covering my skin. He wasn't getting to my thoughts that way. They were far too jumbled anyway.

I heard Mr. Banner make his way to the front of the room and start class, but I was too lost in Edward's gaze to turn and face forward, like I should have.

All the while, Edward just sat there, his eyes never leaving mine. I expected him to speak, but no words left his mouth. Pulled into the black hole that was Edward, I couldn't utter a syllable either.

"…Mr. Cullen?"

Oh no, Mr. Banner had noticed our distraction—how could he not? At least he hadn't asked me. Edward could just pick the words from his head. That was if he had noticed his name being called.

I opened my eyes wider, tilting my head slightly toward the front of the room.

"Mr. Cullen, do you have an answer?"

Edward turned to the front, releasing me from his hold. "The Krebs Cycle."

I was finally able to think clearly.

Why was I so weak? He hadn't paid attention to me in weeks. How could I allow him to have such an affect just from looking at me? Did his interest somehow absolve him from his rudeness? No, it didn't. Besides, he hadn't even spoken to me, just around me, choosing to make his presence known to Mike of all people instead.

I sat through the rest of the class readying myself for what would happen after. If he didn't speak to me, it was just more of the same I'd endured over the last few weeks. If he did, would he ask me to speak to him? If so, would I forgive him? Would I speak to him? Did I want to?

I should ignore him like he had ignored me for weeks. Then again, two wrongs didn't make a right. And though it was well within my rights to play the same game, did I want to act as childish as he had? Maybe I should be the bigger person and…

Well, all this didn't matter if he didn't speak. I was going to act like nothing had happened, just pretend everything was the same as when I'd first entered the class. I wasn't putting myself out there to have my feelings trampled again.

"Bella?"

The classroom was a jumble of students readying themselves. The noise stunned me when I became aware of my surroundings. I hadn't even noticed the bell had rung. How long ago had that happened? I really needed to focus on what was going on around me rather than enveloping myself in all things Edward.

"What?" I asked, more petulantly than I had meant. "Are you speaking to me now?" I looked away, shaking my head in anger. At whom I wasn't sure.

"No, not really... Yes." He sounded slightly desperate. "I don't know."

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and then faced him. "What do you know, Edward? Because all I know is that you've ignored me for weeks. And now, you decide to jump in and play savior. I could've handled it myself." I looked to the front of the room, set my jaw and said, "You don't need to save me."

"What if I want to?"

He spoke so quietly, I wasn't sure I'd heard him correctly, so I whipped my head in his direction. "What?"

"Nothing." His lips twitched, and he let out a small gust of air. "Bella, this… me, I'm not good for you. You know how dangerous I am."

"Whatever," I said, standing up and gathering my books. "I've had enough of this 'it's not you; it's me' crap."

"I don't think you—"

"I do, Edward," I griped, picking up my pile of books from the desk, and turned to leave the room. "I don't have all day. I have to go to class. You really need to make a decision: friendship or not. But I've had enough of this. You're going to have to fish or cut bait."

I didn't turn back to see his reaction, instead choosing to sweep dramatically from the room. Of course, I stumbled over the door frame, watching as my books fell to the floor. At least I'd kept myself mostly upright.

Why couldn't I just have that one moment? Instead my clumsiness had to take over, and I wound up making a fool of myself in front of him. It wasn't the first time, but I hoped it would be the last.

"Here are your books," he said quietly, appearing before me. He already had them piled up in his arm.

I reached out and grabbed my stuff. "Thank you."

His face fell at the chill in my voice. "You're welcome." He spoke kindly, softly, almost making me feel bad for being so rude.

I spun around and made my way toward the gym, ignoring his stricken face. He'd made his own bed; it was time he laid in it –even if he wasn't going to sleep.

Gym was typical. I tripped over my own feet, hit multiple people with the equipment and somehow wound up getting water all over my regular clothes and jacket when I went to wash my hands. As a result, I froze on my walk to the car.

Before I could make it past the corner of the gym, I noticed a tall figure leaning against the brick façade. I faltered, then recognized Eric Yorkie's black hair.

"Hey, Bella," he called as I neared.

"What's up?" I asked, not liking the hint of hesitation in his voice. Why was he nervous?

"Um… well, I was… um, are you going to the dance?"

Oh no. "Yeah, I kind of already have plans." I still wasn't sure they were plans I wanted to keep. It wasn't like Edward had even asked. It wasn't like he'd even spoken to me about his announcement.

"Oh, okay." He looked crushed and I hated being the one who'd done that to him, even if I wasn't interested. Suddenly his face lit up. "But there's still prom."

"Um… I don't know—"

He seemed oblivious to my attempt at evasion, still grinning gleefully. I hoped I hadn't given him the wrong impression.

"All right." He turned and walked in the opposite direction from the parking lot. "Bye."

"Yeah, bye," I said weakly, hoping he'd forget about his offer.

I thought I was home free once I turned the corner. Then I got halfway across the building.

"Bella!" I heard a boy yell. "Bella, wait up."

Ugh!

I looked behind me to see Tyler jogging in my direction.

I stopped and waited for him to catch up.

"Bella," he said when he neared me.

"Tyler."

Now that we have introductions down, let's get to the reason you're talking to me.

"So, um, I was wondering…" All his usual overconfidence was gone, his usual swagger all but nonexistent as he took the last few steps.

"Y-yeah?"

Please tell me this is not happening.

He stopped, squared his shoulders and plastered on a confident smile. How quickly he regained his arrogance, no matter how fake. "So… would you ask me to the dance?"

Well, that was blatant.

"No, Tyler, I'm already going with someone else." I tempered my voice. He didn't know about all the problems this stupid dance had caused me today.

"Oh, I'd heard that."

And yet you still asked?

"Um…"

"Yeah, I thought maybe Mike was making it up. That you were letting him down nicely."

"No, Tyler, I'm wasn't." I didn't mask my frustration at all.

"Keep your schedule open for prom," he said, then strode off haughtily. Why did all males think they had the right to tell females what to do? That surely seemed the case here, no matter how old they were. I had examples ranging from seventeen to one-hundred three.

I walked the rest of the way to the car muttering to myself, all thoughts of depression having left. I wasn't going to let any of them rule my life any more.

"Bella!" Alice stood beside Emmett's car, a smirk on her face. As expected, the Volvo was nowhere to be seen when I reached the lot. "What's up?"

From her grin, I knew she'd seen everything that had happened.

"You could've warned me, you know."

"What would've been the fun in that?" She laughed. "Besides some situations need a swift kick in the butt to get started."

"Huh?"

"You'll see." She opened my door. "Let's get going."

"Alice, you know I hate it when you manipulate the future," I said when she closed the door behind her. "Can't you just let stuff happen naturally?"

"Trust me, Bella. You are going to be happy."

"Well, I'm not happy."

"I know," she said quietly. "If I could say more, I would. But no matter how I try, I always mess things up." She sounded so sad, so dejected. "Honestly, Bella, you know I don't want you to suffer."

"I get it," I said, more irritable than I'd meant. "But why do you have to play with my life? I have so little to begin with."

"I'm not playing with your life. I'm just helping you along the path I've seen will make you happiest in the end."

"I'm not arguing about this anymore," I huffed. "I see how it is. You won't stop meddling, and I'll always be your pawn."

"You're not my pawn, Bella." She sighed. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

"Well, that's just the way it is for me."

"No, you're very strong," she stated. "You just don't see it."

"Thanks for that vote of confidence."

"Listen, this upsets you. You'll see how everything is going to play out. Let's talk about something else."

"Like what?" My anger was apparent.

"Edward seemed in a better mood this afternoon."

"I wouldn't know." I looked out the passenger window. "He didn't really talk to me."

"He asked me to let you know that he had to go out for a little while. He'll be back tonight. And he's asked you to wait up for him; he won't be too late."

"It seems I'm always waiting for him." I sighed, still staring out the window. She'd already made it half way home during our short conversation. "Maybe I've had enough. Maybe I don't want to wait anymore."

She laughed. "I know that's not true."

"I'm not so sure." I shook my head. "I'm sick of the constant mood swings."

"I'm sure you are, Bella. But he's new to this. He doesn't under—"

"He's new?" I screamed, whipping my head in her direction. "I'm new to everything. I don't have a hundred years experience, only a few months. And I don't act like that."

"No, you don't. But he's been confused. I think he's sorted it out, now."

"I'm so glad."

"Sarcasm doesn't help anything."

"I know," I huffed, turning back to the window. "I just never know what to expect, and I've had some time to think over the last few weeks. I just… don't know. I'm at my wit's end." A few minutes passed in silence. "Do you think you could help me with some research this afternoon?"

"Of course," she said through laughter. "So we're looking for a Renee Swan."

"Yes. You knew all along and didn't help?" I asked acerbically. "Do you all think I'm incapable of doing anything, or are you all that controlling?"

"Bella, you didn't decide to ask me until a few seconds ago. I didn't know you wanted to find out more information."

I rolled my eyes, knowing she couldn't see it. "So what do you see?"

"Not much," she said. "At least not tonight. But maybe it'll help us move closer to finding out something."

I sighed. "Yeah, maybe."

As I already knew, betting against Alice was a sure sign of insanity. She had predicted that we wouldn't find anything and of course, we didn't. The trail ended a few months prior, in Arizona. I knew there had to be something I was missing, something that was staring me right in the face.

"We can ask Jazz to look tomorrow," Alice suggested. "He's great at this stuff."

"Okay."

"I'm going to go upstairs and spend some time with him." She pointed to the ceiling. "We'll take this up again. Please stay down here and wait for Edward to come home. He needs to talk to you."

"I'm going to get a book and read down here."

"Great!" she exclaimed, blurring up the stairs.

I followed, climbing the stairs slowly. I grabbed my copy of A Tale of Two Cities. Perhaps surrounding myself in revolutionary era France would distract me for a little while.

I tried to lose myself in the book, like I usually was able, but my efforts were fruitless. Words melded into phrases and sentences, eventually blending into meaningless paragraphs that I found myself reading over and over. No matter how many times I read the same passages, I couldn't understand the context of the words. My mind was too busy preoccupying itself with Edward.

I wanted him to return, so that we could resolve the issue and become friends again. I wanted him home, so I could scream at him and ask why he'd ignored me for so long. I didn't want him there because I was frightened of what he would say and that this would be the end of any relationship. His mercurial temperament and flair for the dramatic made me wonder why I even cared. I had enough to worry about without throwing his issues onto the ever-increasing pile, but I couldn't pull away. In many ways, I didn't want to.

After a while, I plugged my ear buds into my ears, hoping the music would drown the echoing doubts and questions battering the inside of my head. I was able to lose myself slightly in the beats, but not completely.

I noticed the cool breeze that blew by, but I didn't acknowledge it. Goosebumps rose beneath my sleeves and my heart rate picked up, but I tried to remain impassive. I kept my eyes firmly glued to my book, hoping for a few moments of calm before the inevitable storm.

He was here.

I ignored him as completely as he'd ignored me these last few weeks, my nose firmly buried in my book. Was I being childish? Probably. But he'd been worse.

"Bella?" Edward called from my right, his voice muted. I finally lowered my book, looking up. He was there, crouching down to my eye level.

"Sit down, Edward." I moved over on the couch. "You should be comfortable." I worked to keep my voice level.

"I'm fine. I don't ne—" he began to protest.

"Sit." I gestured to the sofa. "You're making me uncomfortable."

He lifted the sides of his mouth, moving to sit on the couch. I slid closer to him when his weight hit the cushion, so I moved away again, pulling my feet up on the sofa and putting them between us as a barrier.

"I—I don't know how to start this, Bella."

"I guess I can start by thanking you for taking care of Mike this afternoon. It was… chivalrous of you. Thanks." I let a tiny bit of sarcasm slip through, though I was grateful.

"I could see he was making you ill at ease." He inclined his head. "Besides I was… well, I felt… I don't know how to say it."

"Just spit it out."

"I didn't like the thought of him going to that dance with you." He shook his head, a look of astonishment on his face. "I couldn't stand it."

"I've told you I can handle myself."

"It wasn't that," he said. "I—I was jealous, I guess." He looked down to his lap. "I've seen it through other's eyes, but never my own. It was so strong. I couldn't stop myself."

"So you wanted to go with me?" I hated the hope that squeaked in my question.

"Of course, Bella." He sighed and looked up to meet my gaze. "I'm not the easiest person to get along with, I know that. But I always want to spend time with you."

I tried to calm myself. That one sentence had me flying high, even through my exasperation at his actions. I needed to center myself, instead of acting like a giddy schoolgirl.

"You haven't shown that recently."

"I haven't," he agreed. "Like I said, though, I'm not the best… friend for you. You deserve so much better."

"I don't think so."

"I know you don't." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "But I don't think you're the best judge of what's dangerous for you sometimes."

"Excuse me?" I shouted. "You think I can't make decisions for myself, so you make them for me? What are you, my father?"

"No," he groaned. "No, I didn't mean it like that. I'm not saying the right words. I did make a decision without your input. You're right. I was wrong."

"At least you can admit it," I grumbled, settling down.

"I can." He nodded. "I apologize for the way I've treated you recently. Do you think you can forgive me?"

I sighed. "I'm not sure. You just stopped talking to me… for weeks. Now you expect to come back, and I'll just act like nothing happened. And you won't even tell me why."

"Yes," he breathed. "I know it isn't much—"

"Much?" I yelled. "It's nothing, Edward. Nothing. How can I be sure you won't do something like that again? It's not the first time."

"I promise you that I won't make decisions for you." He leaned down so that he was eye level with me. "I'm sorry for how I've hurt you. I thought I was doing the right thing. But I wasn't. I won't do it again."

"I don't know," I whispered. "It's just too much. I can't take this constant up and down, never knowing what's going to annoy or upset you."

He reached out and cupped his hand around my cheek. I hadn't realized until now how much I'd missed his touch, even with its chill, until I felt his skin against mine.

"Bella," he said, my name sounding like it burned him. "I can't stay away from you. I can't fight this anymore. I don't want to. I never did, but that didn't stop me from trying. Everything I did was for you, even if it backfired horribly."

"I don't understand."

"No, you don't." He moved closer, almost blurring in his proximity. His eyes burned with their intensity. "I don't like the horrors you're exposed to just by living with us. But by being with one of us…" He closed his eyes and shook his head. "And I'd be the reason…"

Why couldn't he just finish a thought? His actions and words seemed in direct contrast, thoroughly confusing me. I could have just touched him, but there were so many thoughts running through my mind that I didn't want him to know.

"Being with one of you." I searched my mind trying to make sense of him. I was with one of them all of the time. "What do you mean?"

"Yes. Bella, with one of us. Can't you see? I'm in—"

"Hold that thought," Alice yelled from the kitchen doorway. "We've got more pressing issues."

Edward pulled back, pressing the inside corners of his eyes. "What could possibly be that important that you had to… Oh! When did this start?"

"What?" I asked. "What's going on?"

"I'm not sure." Alice's words were stilted, halting. "It's just… it's…"

"Our future disappears in a few seconds. Rather abruptly. It frightened her."

"What does that mean?" I asked, sounding hysterical.

"I don't know," Alice whined, flashing over to us. "It's only happened once before when—"

"Why didn't you tell me about that?" Edward growled, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"You really weren't around to tell now, were you?"

"Whatever's coming, I don't think arguing is going to help," I said, trying to placate the two of them. "Let's try to figure out what's going on."

"We don't need to figure out anything at all." Edward looked to the door. "The cat's out of the bag. They know and they're here."

"Cat?" I asked, walking into Edward's line of sight. My voice had lost all intonation. "What cat?"

How much more could I handle?

Suddenly, something or someone thumped against the front door.

End Notes:

Thank you again for getting to the end of this chapter. I love you guys.

I hope you don't hate the characters—or me— after this.

RL—health issues, work, family, etc.— has totally monopolized my time. I apologize for the delay.

For any questions/theories, please visit the thread on Twi'd: http:/twilighted(DOT)net/forum/viewtopic(DOT)php?f=33&t=7526&start=120

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