Evening dawned upon us, and we once again decided to vacate the house to give all the couples their privacy. I kept insisting Alice and Jasper only help me out to a decent spot in the woods and leave me there to read. Just like the night before, she insisted someone stay with me just in case a hapless human crossed my path. "I like Bella-sitting," Alice joked with me, but I just replied with a hiss.
I was feeling well enough to walk, but I was still drained of energy. At least my talk with Alice left me feeling better even if my new body was letting me down. But then again, it was partially my fault for not stopping or taking a break when I knew I was draining energy quickly.
Alice figuratively hovered over me as we walked through the forests at sunset. She was like a mama bear trying to make sure I was okay and able to move. Thank goodness she was shorter me because she would have literally hovered over me if she hadn't been so short.
Jasper just chuckled lightly at Alice's hovering. I know it was pointless, but I kind of wondered what they would have been like had they had the chance to have children of their own. Of course, had Jasper not been a vampire, he would have likely fought longer in the war and died or eventually returned home to debt and scraped a living with a wife he wouldn't have loved as much as Alice.
I wonder if Alice ever thought of the what if's. It seemed more like something Jasper would do than Alice considering Alice's ability to live spontaneously. Not to mention she cared little for history, and Jasper was still obsessed with the Civil War, or so I assumed considering he had a whole library of Civil War books in their bedroom.
Up ahead I heard the sound of a pair of feet coming towards us. Considering their swiftness and how quiet they were, I assumed them to belong to a vampire. The wind blew carrying the familiar scent of Edward. As I glanced over at Alice, I saw a sneaky, knowing smile that gave me reason to believe he was coming for us; at least the smile also meant this would be a decent encounter.
I was very wrong about how it was going to turn out. The very moment Edward was in view, his face hardened in anger. To a human, they would not have seen the very subtle way in which Edward's jaw ticked, but my vampire eyes picked up all the details.
Actually, I hadn't have much of a chance to really look at Edward since I changed. He was so angry, and I was so confused when I first saw him. Then I saw him only for a few seconds as he ran through the living room the next day. But now I had time to take in all the details about Edward. I thought him handsome before, but everything about him now only amplified his beauty.
My mind watched his lips purse the first second he saw us and then moved into a deep frown. His eyebrows furrowed and then arched down as his eyes narrowed. And yet it was still incredibly handsome on his face.
"What did you do to her?" his voice boomed in anger as it wrapped around the trees in the forest. Even his voice was more beautiful with my vampire hearing.
His eyes moved from me to Alice and then Jasper in an accusing manner, but ultimately they landed on Alice as he waited for her response. Alice remained calm and didn't say anything, but I assumed she was likely running through her mind the events of that afternoon in the living room. Whatever he was seeing only served to make him angrier because his eyes then darted in accusation towards Jasper.
Jasper was not disturbed by Edward's accusing eyes. That didn't mean, though, that Jasper wasn't on edge. Edward's angered state, which Jasper could clearly feel, and Edward's dislike of Alice and possibly even me at this moment, left Jasper no choice but to be ready in case he might have to defend his wife or his sister-in-law from his adopted brother, lest he make his wife unhappy.
Edward turned his attention back to Alice and lightened his stance slightly. I felt completely left out of the loop. They were having a complete conversation without words, and I was the only one without any say at this moment. Just this once I hated the idea Edward couldn't read my mind because I was screaming at him to let me in on what he was hearing.
Sure, I would have said something aloud, but given my current working relationship with Edward, he'd have probably thought I was screaming at him for other reasons. He would have mistake my confusion for anger, and I had already promised Alice I would attempt to behave around Edward for her and Jasper's sakes.
And then, as if he was acknowledging a slight defeat, Edward's stance relaxed and he conceded, "I still don't like what limits you are willing to go to. I should take care of her tonight since you can't." There was an edge in his voice, but I didn't have much time to contemplate it.
Instead, my mind wanted to concentrate on the fact Edward volunteered to spend time with me. "Sure," Alice said almost too easily before turning to me, "I hope you don't mind us leaving you in Edward's capable hands."
"You two need time alone," I said automatically without much thought. It was true, and I knew that was part of Alice's easy acceptance of Edward's suggestion.
She didn't have time to respond when Edward swept me up in his arms. As I looked over Edward's shoulder at my sister, I saw her holding onto Jasper and smiling at him. She looked so happy as if everything in her world was falling into place.
Edward took us took us to a cave, and I leaned up against the wall while he sat in the middle with his back turned to me, staring at the entrance. At first I thought he was going to say something, but he never glanced in my direction or opened his mouth. I gave him a few minutes before I gave up and opened up my copy of Wuthering Heights.
Hours went by and I finished my book before I finally got tired of the silence. "Edward, if you don't want to be here, just leave," I snapped at him.
"I do want to be here," he informed me. His eyes were incredibly sad as he turned and stared at me. "I wouldn't have volunteered otherwise."
"You've avoided me since I awoke," I stated.
He looked away from me as he stated, "I'm not angry with you. I might be disappointed with you for turning your back on your parents, but I am not angry with you."
"We're trying to find a way to visit with Charlie. He might as well know considering he's surrounded by werewolves often, or at least their parents."
He seemed to be uninterested in that little tidbit of information since it only contradicted his main argument in regard to keeping me human. I supposed if I stayed human, he would have been able to avoid me for the rest of my life, but, now that I was a vampire, he couldn't get away from me. He was stuck with me for eternity.
"Trust me," I stated aloud, "I don't care to be stuck with you for all eternity, but for the sake of the covens, I think it's important that we should at least get along."
He looked at me again with a raging fire behind his eyes. "I have no problem getting along with you."
"Don't tell me that! You've been hostile to me ever since the day you found out I loved you!"
The fire within him extinguished immediately, and he turned back around to look at the cave opening. We both knew it was the truth, so I didn't feel bad for pointing out the obvious. Actually, it felt liberating to be honest and forward with him. I hid my love for him, and it left me heartbroken; now, I wasn't going to hide my hatred of him. This time I would be the one to come out on top. I wanted him to suffer like he made me suffer.
Yet somewhere in the back of my mind I heard a small voice telling me this was all wrong. I was hurting him; therefore, I was no better than him. And there was also a small hurt that came with knowing I had done to him what he had done to me. Of course, he didn't get as hurt as I did because he wasn't nearly as attached to me, but that thought still couldn't erase that tiny voice.
Even though it was against my instincts, I reached out to him. Edward looked at me strangely as I placed my hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry. Even though you hurt me, I shouldn't treat you the same way."
"I shouldn't have hurt you either," he said sounding completely honest. For a second, I wavered between wanting to fully forgive him and wanting to make him out to be the bad guy in every possible way. "Bella, please give me another chance to earn your respect again. If anything, please do it for the family."
I couldn't help but smile at him. "Agreed. For now, at least, for the sake of our family, we will try and get along." I offered my hand for him to shake.
"Tomorrow, to prove to you my good intentions, I want to help you with your training," he offered as he shook my hand.
A laugh escaped my lips as I thought about how relieved Garrett and Jasper would be with me blocking their thoughts from Edward's mind reading rather than Kate's electricity. "Deal."
For the rest of the early morning hours, we went back to our silence, but this time it was a comfortable silence. Alice was going to be happy when we returned and found out Edward and I had somewhat reconciled, but, then again, she probably already knew. I was sure that was a minor reason she was willing to let Edward whisk me off.
And she was very happy when we came back. "So, it seems you two are at least starting to get along again," she said, rocking back and forth on her heels. If I could have blushed, I probably would have at that moment.
Kate came downstairs with Garrett following behind her. "Oh, Edward, I'm glad you're here," she said. "Do you mind helping us with training? I think the guys would appreciate Bella training with your abilities than with mine. Maybe after she's mastered blocking your mind reading skills, we can try having her block my electricity." Edward just nodded and allowed us to use him as a guinea pig for much of the morning.
The guys were having fun with Edward because he often yelled at them to stop. His growls were easy to ignore, but I found it difficult when he snapped at them. In return, the guys acted like guys and laughed at him as they continued to torture him. I was honestly surprised when Edward didn't give up after twenty minutes and stuck with us through the day.
We took breaks often to allow me to rest and regain any lost strength and to preserve everyone's sanity. Days upon days dragged on, and the longest I could get my shield over one person was only a minute at the most. Yet I was grateful that the five of them continued to be of assistance to me, especially when I wanted to quit.
My big breakthrough didn't come while I was training. Every night Alice, Jasper, and I would always vacate the house. When we weren't hunting, Alice would insist on Bella-sitting and Jasper would tag along just because. Those nights Edward would go as far away from us as he possibly could. After a week, he finally offered to help, but he only did so after we had settled in a spot for the night.
"You could have offered sooner," Jasper grumbled after Edward's offer. I was not a guy, so I could only imagine he was missing Alice terribly.
Edward got in Jasper's face as he countered, "You could have asked someone else to help."
If I had not been a vampire, I wouldn't have been able to comprehend what had happened next. Alice must have thought something because Edward turned and snapped at her. In less than a second Jasper threw Edward against a tree by his throat. Instinctually I threw my shield over Alice to keep Edward from seeing any more of her "offensive" thoughts.
Edward's attitude changed suddenly as he yelled, "Jasper, stop." In confusion at Edward's sudden change, Jasper dropped Edward just as quickly as he had picked him up.
My shield snapped back to me now that I didn't need it any longer. It was strange that I could have moved it that easily when I had so much difficulty earlier that day.
"Jasper, project a strong protective feeling onto Bella," Edward directed Jasper sounding just as casual as he had when he asked Jasper to stop. As Jasper threw protective feelings my way, I heard Edward tell me, "Bella, try throwing your shield onto Alice and Jasper."
I closed my eyes to concentrate on my shield as I felt it easily slide over towards Alice. Once she was covered, I extended it in the other direction towards Jasper and held on without effort. It was an amazing feeling of accomplishment, and yet I still had no idea how this was happening.
"It's protectiveness," Edward explained as if it explained all the secrets of the universe. "When Bella feels protective, that's when she can use her shield."
I felt my shield come back to me easily as I willed it to. A quick check revealed little to no drainage of my energy.
"You figured it out? That's awesome, Bella," she said as she pulled me into a tight hug. "You should try with a bigger group tomorrow, and then maybe you can protect us from Kate's ability."
But the next morning most of the household wanted to go hunting, so we had to wait until evening to get any more training in. This time, with Jasper's help, I was able to easily manipulate my shield to cover all of the people I wanted to cover without any effort, including against Kate's abilities.
It felt exhilarating to finally get somewhere with my training. I even learned to manipulate the shield to move around people so I could cover certain individuals and leave others vulnerable.
Tanya showed up to help only after her family encouraged her to join us. "I don't want to get zapped," Tanya whined, to which Kate's reply a jolt of electricity sent only to Tanya. When I covered Tanya with my shield, she relented and got into the ranks with everyone else.
Half an hour later, we all decided that was enough for the night since it seemed I no longer needed training. As we made our plans for the night, Alice suggested to Edward that he take me hunting since I hadn't been hunting in a couple of days. He was about to answer when Tanya asked him, "Edward, do you mind spending time with me tonight? I don't really want to hang out with the humans." She gave him a flirty smile, and I could see Edward literally make up his mind at that moment.
"Yes, Tanya, I'll spend time with you this evening."
That was all he had to say to make things clear to me as to how I ranked in his life. My heart was now stone, but that didn't mean that it lost its ability to ache. And right now I felt that same aching sensation as when he broke my heart, telling me that he could never love me.
Without a word to anyone, I fled the house and ran as far as I could. I didn't care I could come across some helpless human or I hadn't hunted in two days. All I needed to do was get as far away from there as I possibly could to nurse my broken heart.
Half an hour later, I finally stopped and threw myself upon the ground. The need to sob came upon me strongly, but my tear ducts were unable to produce the salty liquid my body needed to relieve the pressure of my aching heart. I was in complete misery physically, emotionally, and mentally.
There was, unfortunately, one conclusion I could make from my reaction to Edward's words: I was in irrevocably in love with Edward. No amount of anger or hurt could erase those feelings. And now I was going to spend an eternity around the one I loved who couldn't love me back.
A/N: I want to thank all of you who are reading my story. One thing I've learned from posting this story is that it's not the number of reviews that measure how good the story is but the number of people reading it, adding it to their story alert lists, and adding it to their favorite stories lists. So once again, thank you for reading my story, and I promise we are approaching the conclusion.