A/n: This chapter is dedicated to a very special reader of mine. She actually wrote a song for the last chapter of this story, can you believe that? I was floored by how well she grasped the tension and romance between Rosalie and Emmett - and the amazing song itself. This is all for you XSweet96!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight series, Modanna's "Material Girl", Bonnie Tyler's "Holding Out For A Hero", or Michelle Branch's "Everywhere".

Sing Your Heart Out

"You make me feel out of my element, like i'm drifting out to the sea. Like the tides pulling me in deeper, making it harder to breathe." - Aly & Aj, "Chemicals React"

Alice took my arm as we stepped out of the van. A tiny frown marred her face as she looked me over. "Bella, honey? Are you okay?"

The honest answer was no, but who the hell ever said I had to answer honestly?

Our time at the Aquarium had long since passed by now; we had covered two hot spots since then - Roller Coaster at New York-New York and strolling the peer on the edge of town at twilight. Both were usually fun times for me especially. But not this time.

I felt distracted during both stops. Someone would talk to me and I would hear white noise. I couldn't even properly recall the thrill of the coaster that sent you hurling over major parts of the city. Did I even go on the ride? I couldn't recall. And all I knew of the stroll along the dock and boardwalk was that Jasper held my hand in content silence. It was like I hadn't even been there, like it was someone else and I merely was watching the show without seeing.

And I knew the cause behind my inattentiveness; I just didn't know the reason behind the cause. I couldn't get that moment out of my head, but I didn't have the faintest clue as to why that was.

Yes, I was still thinking about the way Edward had held my hand back at the Aquarium. I was pathetic, overanalyzing the whole twenty seconds on repeat. My mind just clung to the experience at the Aquarium, refusing to let me move on. And there was not a thing I could do to stop it. My head reeled with the texture of his large hands, with the slight cologne that hung to his skin, with every insignificant word he spoke to me.

I wasn't some stupid little girl who mistook each smile for true love, though. I knew that what had happened then was basically nothing.

At least, a part of me did.

The other part of me... well, the jury was out.

I had always been the type to look for deeper meaning in the tiniest things – it was something I had picked up from my favorite novels, ones where you had to keep both eyes peeled for hint or clues. The ending of the book could revolve around those tiny moments all the way back in chapter 3. Everything was a tool of foreshadowing, and it was up to you as the reader to keep that in mind even as you read the most trivial information. Otherwise you would be beating yourself up a few chapters later when those little things you over looked came back to bit you in the butt.

So here I was, sitting with Jasper in the back row of the van, conjuring up the feeling of my hand in Edward's, assessing what the moment could have meant. And apparently the fact that I was not all with the group didn't escape Alice's keen eyes.

I cleared my throat to cover up my silence. "Oh, I'm fine Alice. Just zoning out." A tiny crease over the bridge of her nose let me know that Alice was still skeptical. It was time for evasive action. "So, how excited are you for the next stop, Alice? It's our spot, after all."

Her eyes softened, and I knew she had given up on grilling me. "Do you realize that this makes almost two years since I met you guys, since I moved out here? I only planned on staying here for a month or so and then head for Cali. It's so strange to think of it like that now – I honestly can't see myself away from you girls anymore."

I reached over to her, fluffing her hair. "Same here, Alice."

"How did you girls meet?" Jasper asked then, his eyes shifting between mine and Alice's. "You say that you met only two years ago, but it feel like you are all a lot closer then that. I've know Edward and Emmett for 20 years and we're still not as in sync as you ladies."

"Do we resent that?" Emmett asked Edward from beside Alice.

I laughed. "We've been through a lot together, Jasper. The experiences we got each other through have made us as close as we are. Actually, the way I met Rose and then met Alice really shaped our friendship right from the get-go."

"Both events were ground shaking. It's an epic tale of man-whores and alcohol for me and Bella," Rose joked from up front where she was giving Edward directions. "But I'll share that one when we get to the place where I picked her up. Alice, tell them yours and Bella's story."

"Someone's feeling nostalgic," I whispered to Jasper.

"I really am curious, though," he replied, wrapping his arm around my shoulders as Alice turned around in her seat.

Alice beamed. "It's really not that long of a story, but it's one of my strongest memories. And it all took place here," she added, turning her attention out the window. We had just pulled up to the old fashioned karaoke joint. "You see, I came here – to Vegas - to look for some much needed excitement. After I graduated high school, I needed to get the hell out of Mississippi for various reasons." Alice's smile faltered slightly, but she quickly recovered. "I went to NY first. You know, city of excitement.

"I thought I could find what I was looking for there, but I was mistaken." She shook her head. "No, wait, that's wrong. I didn't know what I was searching for back then. I thought I wanted to just start over somewhere new, somewhere I could have a fresh start. Las Vegas seemed like a good place to chill out, so I packed up my apartment and flew down here. I was going to head to California afterwards because I didn't think anything around here would keep my attention for long. I was very wrong, though."

Alice paused her story as we made our way into the karaoke place. It hadn't changed much since I had first stumbled in here; there was new upholster on the chairs and the karaoke machines looked newer, but other then than that, it was like I had stepped back in time.

My eyes found the table I had sat at that fateful night immediately. In my mind, I saw my 19-year-old self bawling my eyes out on the very same table. I was younger then, and definitely move naïve. Back then, I has believed that I could protect myself form getting hurt by staying in my shell. I could have laughed at my own foolishness.

Edward must have caught my wistful look because he released Rosalie hand and made his way to my side. "Are you okay, Bella?"

I tried to keep my eyes on the floor - really, I did - but somehow I ended up looking him directly in the face. His eyes, almost the exact color of emeralds, seemed clouded as he returned my gaze. I tore my eyes away from his face, stretching my will to its limit. "Where does anyone ask that question? The answer will always be 'I'm fine', so why bother asking?"

"Because you don't seem fine."

"Really, you think?" My replied was sharper then I had intended it to be, but it served my purpose fine. I didn't want to talk about why this place was a bittersweet memory for me, and least of all to Edward.

He picked up on my mood easily, raising his hands in surrender. "Sorry, didn't mean to upset you Bella. I'm just worried about you. You've been acting strange all day."

"That's none of your business." I was going to add more cutting words, but they faltered on my lips as Edward's face fell. I had to remind myself that Edward was only trying to be nice; that was hardly a good reason to bite his head off. "I'm just in a weird mood today, Edward. Don't take it personally." Before he could reply, I walked over to the rest of our group and sandwiched myself between Alice and Jasper, effectively ending our conversation.

The karaoke bar had changed hands recently, now belonging to a pair of Romanians who had come to the country only months ago. They were older gentleman, but found Alice interesting enough that we had no problem convincing them to let us use the private booths in the back. They left us in silence after setting up the microphone systems and getting us a round of beers.

These backrooms were generally used for private parties. A raised stage took up the left side of the room while a curved, cushioned booth took up the rest of the space.

Alice, Rosalie and I filed into the booth in the tiny room with little difficulty while the guys sat opposite us, looking pretty nervous. We girls exchanged quiet giggles; we came here often enough that even my shyness had melted away. But for anyone else we took with us, this was usually a stop that rubbed them the wrong way. Ben, Angela's boyfriend, for one, hated looking silly in front of Angela when we made him take the mic. But, if there was one thing that Alice had taught me, it was that feeling comfortable in your own skin meant not caring if you make a fool of yourself in front of friends.

"Singing?" Emmett groaned, eying the karaoke machine as if it were a viper. "Aw, come on!"

"This is a very important place for us," Alice argued as she searched through the book the owners had provided for us. It listed the songs available on the machine, and Alice was already picking her favorite ones out. "You just don't understand the importance of music, not like I do. There is something cleansing about being able to sing without inhibitions. You feel freer, lighter. after all, music is a form of expression free of judgment. So, in that aspect, music is the only real way to see into a person's mind, heart, and soul."

"She's right, you know," Edward, the pianist, agreed.

Emmett rolled his eyes. "So you say."

"Yes, I do say. So suck it up. You will be singing - you all will be." That shut Emmett up. "Oh right, the rest of the story." Alice took a gulp of her beer, her eyes locked on the stage. "Well, I moved here on impulse, so I didn't have any thing set up. No job, no place to crash – nothing. It was a pretty stupid move-"

"But that's always been just who Alice is," Rose interrupted. "Too caught up in the future to give two shits about how she get's there. We love that about her, but, yeah, it gets her into heaps of trouble."

Alice made no move to deny Rosalie's tangent, only shrugging it off. "My stuff was due to be shipped in two days, so I had to boogey to get a place for the stuff to go to. But I was so distracted by the sights here." She shook her head at her own foolishness. "Everything was bright and shiny to me, so I put in some sightseeing as I roamed from apartment complex to apartment complex. I loved what I saw, guys, I loved everything. I knew that Vegas was just where I needed to be.

"Later that night, I found this cozy little place. I had belonged to a musical ansemble back in Mississippi because I loved to sing. So I was compelled to stroll in here and check it out. It was a good thing I did, too." She winked at me. "The mood is all happy and upbeat with all the tourists singing and bopping. I skipped over to a table near the stage and just soaked in all the energy – until I hear this couple behind me. The tables were so close that I couldn't help but to eavesdrop," she explained nonchalantly. "The couple was talking about some kid in the back that had wandered in a half hour ago and was crying up a storm, but wouldn't talk to anybody about it. Poor thing. She was so distraught."

I suddenly became very interested in my beer as Alice and Rosalie turned to look at me, directing the guys attention to me as well. Whenever Alice told this story, I always got embarrassed; she made me out to be some pitiful little girl.

"Now, I'm not the type of person who can handle crying people well," Alice admitted in a jolly tone. "It makes me sad, too. So, I did what I do best: I bounced onto the stage and sang."

I recognized it as my part to contribute to the story. At least if I told this part, I could mostly skip over the details as to why I was crying that night."I had just broken it off with this guy and it wasn't my proudest moment. I was… overcome with sadness and I just couldn't hold it in." I always had difficulty explaining my emotions that night. It seemed so far away and fuzzy now that I was past it. Funny how the mind blocks unpleasant memories. "Alice has a very beautiful voice, of course. As she sang just for me, I felt as if a weight was being lifted from my shoulders. It was like she was saying that she was here for me and that made me feel light."

As if that were her cue, Alice scooted out of the booth and begand to fiddle with the karaoke machine.

"After that, she came and sat with me and we talked for hours. By the end of the night, Alice became part of my family here. She moved in with me and Rose and we've been inseparable ever since." I gestured towards Alice as she took center stage. "This is her place. So it's tradition that Alice always gets the first song when we come here," I explained as Alice grabbed the little microphone like there was not a more natural thing in the world. "It's not only because she sings like an angel, though that should be reason enough. This correlates with how Alice became a part of our lives."

"We can get pretty sentimental," Rosalie said after a swig of beer. "Every place on the list has a memory behind it. This place is one of the dearest to us though, this place and the first bar we'll be going tonext as well."

"What's the story behind the bar?" Emmett asked, clearly curious now.

"Nah-uh, not yet," Alice giggled over the microphone. "That is a story you will have to wait for. Right now, it's my time to shine." The blue screen on the machine began to roll through the credits for the song. She twirled the mic in her hands while the rest of our group got situated. "My first song of many tonight will be a classic. So sit back and enjoy!"

The music picked up then, and I snickered, my eyes finding Rosalie, who was nearly in stitches as she recognized the song. Of course, leave it to Alice to start the night off with a song like "Material Girl". She would never admit it, but Alice adored music by Madonna.

"Some boys kiss me, some boys hug me; I think they're okay," Alice began in a low, alluring voice. With the hand that wasn't holding the microphone, she twisted a lock of her short hair. "If they don't give me proper credit, I just walk a-way-ay…"

While Alice serenaded our party, my eyes strayed over to Edward, only to find him watching me with a strange look on his face. I raised an eyebrow at him as a nonverbal form of say "what?". In return, Edward took a quick glance at Emmett and Jasper before sliding his phone out of his pocket for me to see. I was mildly confused, but I mimicked him in taking out my cell phone as well.

A few seconds later, my phone vibrated. "You okay? –Edward."

I made a show of looking up at him and rolling my eyes. He smirked and then looked back down at his phone, tapping the buttons quickly. "Let me rephrase. You seemed a bit down as Alice told the story of how you met; why is that? –Edward."

His eyes missed nothing. I glanced at Rose to make sure she was absorbed in Alice's song before texting my reply. "Why wouldn't a girl get depressed when talking about an ex? He was a big part of my life, and everywhere we go seems to remind me of that. –la Bella." I kept my gaze at my lap as I waited for Edward's reply; I might have revealed too much of my feelings in that message, and I wasn't sure how he would respond to that.

The phone vibrated again. "Would this ex happen to be the same one in the photos from the Chapel? –Edward."

I kept my text short this time, merely affirming his assumption.

His reply was much longer by comparison. "I'm very sorry that coming here reminded you of him. It hardly seems fair that this guy's memory is taking away from you enjoying being with your friends. Is there anything I can do to cheer you up, Bella? –Edward."

I couldn't help but marvel at the fact that Edward seemed to genuinely care. I don't know why, but I didn't expect that of him. Instinctively, I looked back to the stage where Alice was finishing her song. Being so kind to a stranger… it was something that both Edward and Alice had done. It was another sign that they were a perfect match.

Alice looked at me curiously as she wandered back to the table, no doubt catching a glimpse of my phone before I could hide it from her. "Well, Bella, you want to go up next?"

"I haven't decided on a song yet," I hedged, gesturing towards the book of songs in front of me that I had yet to open. "Rose, you want to go up instead?"

"Fine," she stated coolly as I slid out of the booth to let her go to the stage. She took the mic from its stand, flipping her hair back. "I'll follow Alice's example and start off with a song from the 80s." She paused, her eyes falling on Emmett, who gave her a big thumbs up. "This is a hit song from Bonnie Tyler."

Rosalie took a deep breath as the music started to play, her hips swaying in time with the opening keys. She licked her lips once before singing the first line, her hands both gripping the microphone. "Where have all the good men gone, and where are all the gods? Where's the street-wise Hercules to fight the rising odds?"

Rosalie didn't have the same melodious voice that Alice did by a long shot. But there was still something lovely in her soft voice. Her voice had a similar quality to Anna Nalick – rich and low and pleasant. Her voice took on a strong quality as she turned into the chorus, clearly getting wrapped up in the song. I smiled at her briefly before returning to my texting.

"Really, Edward, don't worry about it. I'm pretty used to someone bringing Jacob up by now. He wasn't just my boyfriend – he was a friend to all three of us. I try not to get too upset by someone talking about him anymore." –la Bella."

Edward gave me a disapproving look after having read my text. I shrugged at him, returning my attention to stage stage.

Like Alice, Rose liked to make a big show – mostly because Rose loved to be the center of attention. She strode across the stage as she sang, making big gestures and dancing at the same time. "I need a hero! I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light. And he's gotta be sure, and he's gotta be soon, and he's gotta be larger then life!"

Emmett was clearly enjoying the show. He was cheering and making cat calls whenever Rosalie was close to the stage. Once, he even swatted her ass. And she winked in reply! Her voice turned sultry as she leaned down towards Emmett and stroked his hair. "Racing on the thunder end rising with the heat. It's gonna take a superma-an to sweep me off my feet!"

I knew that I had missed something important between these two; somewhere in all my own mess, my best friend seemed to have fallen in love. Imagine that.

I had never seen Rosalie in love before – she had fallen for Royce long before I met her and had been very careful with her heart ever since. There was no denying that she looked different, I realized as I watched her. There was an unfamiliar light in her eyes, one I had rarely seen. And she was smiling, the expression making her face young and angelic. It was startling to see her disposition so significantly different – it was even more startling that I found I could not remember when the change had taken place.

I quickly looked at Alice to see if I could find the same change in her.

She had the song list in front of her and was discussing one of them with Jasper heatedly – but she was the same. No big changes in her face or attitude. Then again, how could I be sure that love would make her look differently? Alice was not like Rose, who had always closed off her heart. No, I knew that if Alice was in love, it would be harder to see a difference in demeanor. For all I knew, she could be in love right at that second.

Did I look different, I wondered to myself as Rose concluded her song and blew a kiss to Emmett. Was I in love?

A smile stole over my mouth as Jasper looked up at me. I honestly didn't know if I was in love with him yet. All I knew was that I liked being around him. That didn't mean I was necessarily in love with him or that I ever would be, but it was a start. There was something there, something that bonded me to him. I definitely got a warm feeling when I looked at Jasper.

But with Edward?

As if he had read my mind, Edward's piercing green eyes turned to me. The warm feeling I had when Jasper looked at me faded away to be replaced by a sudden fire. I was burning, that was the only way to explain it. My cheeks, my heart, my body – all aflame as he looked at me. It was a frightening sensation, one I had never experienced before. What had this man done to me? I wanted to turn away to recover, but found myself locked in his gaze.

Eventually Alice called his name, releasing me from his eyes as he turned his head.

My heart was thumping wildly, my breathing chaotic. And suddenly, I was exhausted. Just what in the hell had this man done to me?

Alice tugged on my hand then. "Bel-la! Come on!"

"Huh?" I let her pull me to my feet, confused. "Wait, what?"

"It's your turn, silly! Get up on stage!"

I froze, blood draining from my face. "B-but I still haven't picked my song!" And I was still recovering from whatever haze Edward had put me in.

Alice stomped her foot. "No more of that, missy! Get up there and find one. Now." She shoved me once in the back towards the stage.

I stumbled onto the platform, sighing. Alice really wasn't giving me a choice, so I turned to the karaoke machine, browsing through the available songs.

I really wasn't the world's strongest singer, but I wasn't completely horrible either. My clumsiness had prevented me from doing a lot of things as a child, like youth sports and joining the YMCA drama club. But my mother discovered one thing I could participate in that wouldn't end in any broken bones. That thing was joining the school singing group. I wasn't saying that I was a singer like Alice, but my voice was decent enough to be in a choir, at least.

I found the first easy song I could, hit the bottom, and glared at Alice. "Well, since Alice is forcing me to go up now. Just for the record, I'm not going up here again by myself."

The acoustic guitar cued the beginning of the song for me. I rolled my shoulders back once to calm myself before jumping into the soft song. "Turn it inside out so I can see the part of you that's drifting over me," I sang as the lines of the screen lit up. I found that I remembered the song from memory (it had been played to death when it was popular in the 90s) that I could focus my attention on the audience. "And when I wake you're never there, but when I sleep you're everywhere. You're everywhere."

I threw my hair over my shoulder. "Just tell me how I got this far . Just tell me why you're here and who you are . Cause every time I look you're never there, and every time I sleep you're always there." Jasper smiled at me encouragingly, giving me a boost of confidence as I drifted into the chorus.

As I belted out the lines of Michelle Branch's one-hit wonder, my eyes fell on Edward. Suddenly, I was singing just for him. He and I were alone and the song was more then a song; it was a confession. "And when I touch your hand - it's then I understand the beauty that's within. It's now that we begin." His eyes drew my soul in and there was something flashing behind those green orbs. Emotions that I couldn't always catch but that I somehow felt too. Like my confusion was reflected in Edward.

The song winded up slowly with the last line, another one I directed completely towards Edward. "You're in everyone I see. So tell me: do you see me?"

I ducked my head as my friends applauded me. I wasn't embarrassed that I had just sung a ridiculous love song in front of my best friends and guys I had just met; no, it was much more mortifying that I had basically bared my confused soul to the one I was trying to hide from the most.

Because as I sang, I had one of those moments of clarity. Everything became obvious and clear to me as I lost myself in a whirl of feelings that I didn't know had existed beforehand. Suddenly I knew exactly why my crush on Edward wouldn't leave me alone, why it felt so different when he touched my hand, why I hated feeling vulnerable around him, why his glances set my insides burning. It was so obvious now, and I hated it.

All the stupid little clues had finally come together, and I could have smacked myself in the head for not seeing it all earlier:

I was in love with Edward.

A/n: Please review if you have time. I'm a bit nervous about how this chapter came out. =/