A/N:

If I haven't said it before, I will say it again. This story is a slow burn type of fic. If you're looking for instant gratification, well…this ain't it. Thanks.

Beta is Lindz26. Pre-reader is Renas40.

"You get one call. Make it fast."

I moved past the officer to get to the pay phone. He'd never taken his eyes off me for one minute since he'd arrested me and brought me here to this stupid police station. He kept trying to intimidate me into admitting to shit, but I hadn't done fucking anything.

Picking up the phone, I dialed the only number I could. I was going to be in so much fucking trouble, but I couldn't think of that now. I just needed to get the fuck out of here. After a few rings, someone answered.

"Hello?"

Shit. It was Jasper. Just my fucking luck.

"It's me," I said.

"Who's this?" he asked. Fucking idiot.

"Edward," I said through gritted teeth, trying to control my temper.

"Oh…what is it?"

"Get my mom," I ordered.

"Can't. She's not here, but Uncle Carlisle is here," he replied.

I groaned, dropping my forehead against the pay phone. I didn't want to deal with my father. He'd flip out. My mother was the better option. "Where the hell is she?"

"I don't know," he answered indifferently. "Where are you?"

"None of your business," I snapped quickly. "Just call her cell phone."

"Why not do it yourself?"

I took a few deep breaths. He wasn't fucking making this easy and I was running out of time. "I can't." I tried to stay as calm as possible. "I need you to call her and tell her to come get me."

"Alright," he agreed, sounding wary. "Where should I tell her to get you?"

I cleared my throat, noticing the cop was scrutinizing me intensely. "Forks Police Station," I mumbled into the receiver.

He didn't speak for a moment, and I wasn't sure if he'd hung up. "Are you in jail?" he asked slowly.

"Stop asking me fucking questions, idiot, and get a hold of my mom," I growled angrily.

"You know what," he started, sounding fed up, "I don't have to do you any favors. Have fun."

Shit, he was going to hang up. "Jasper—" I began to say, but before I'd even finished his name, he'd hung up.

Incensed, I slammed the phone back in place. The cop smirked at me, and then shoved me back towards the holding cell.

The afternoon turned into night and no one still had come to get me. Jasper would've told my mom, right? He couldn't have been that fucking petty by just leaving me here. Though as hour after hour passed, I was realizing that he probably was that petty.

I didn't fucking understand. I'd apparently been arrested for having stolen car parts, but how the hell would they even know something like that? They were full of shit. Not to mention, I didn't fucking steal anything! Fucking cops.

Sitting in this holding cell by myself, all I could do was think. I thought about the day and how everything had been so great and then it all had gone to shit. Right about now, I was supposed to be meeting Bella at the shack, but here I was, in fucking jail.

I kept going over whether what Black said was true. I didn't want to believe it, and a huge part of me didn't, but there were so many damn reasons to believe the fucker. She even admitted that she was hiding something. Maybe this was what she'd been hiding.

No. There was no fucking way Bella would be engaged to that dickhead. Who in their right mind would get engaged at our age? That would fucking be insane. He was blowing smoke up my ass and I was slowly falling for it.

Fucking jail cells making me think.

Where the fuck was my mom?

More hours passed, and I was growing tired. The cop that had arrested me went home, and now there was some other douche keeping an eye on me. I couldn't fucking go anywhere, if they hadn't goddamn noticed. They were acting as if I was going to magically escape. Sure, all I had to do was fucking jam myself through the teeny tiny window near the top of the holding cell that didn't even have a way to goddamn open it. Fucking dumbasses.

I tried to keep my eyelids open, not wanting to fall asleep for one second, just in case. I missed my fucking bed at home and there was no way I was going to sleep on some cold, ugly ass cell bench.

My eyes became heavier and heavier, and soon I was nodding off while sitting, my last thoughts of wondering if Bella was waiting for me at the shack.

When I woke up next, my neck was stiff, and the sun was shining through the small window. Looking around, I noticed the cop that arrested me was back and I was still here.

No one had come for me.

That fucking hurt me as well as made me want to punch something. No one gave two shits about me that they wouldn't bail me out? What was I supposed to do? I couldn't stay here forever.

I was on goddamn edge. A cigarette was what I needed. Actually, a fucking decent family was what I needed.

Some unknown amount of time passed, when one of the officers came by the cell, saying I had a visitor. However, I was stunned to see someone I didn't expect.

"Sam?" I questioned as he walked up to the bars.

"Hey," he greeted in a whisper, looking over his shoulder. "Look, I heard what happened."

I narrowed my eyes. "Your car got me arrested," I snapped.

He nodded, as if understanding why I'd be angry at him. Well, he fucking better. "I know. One of my buddies works here and he told me that you were taken in for stolen parts," he said.

"So, what, did you steal them and then thought you'd give the car to me so that I could get arrested?" I spat in question. I'd spent a lot of time in here, and the more and more I'd thought about it, the more it made sense that he'd just given me the car so he wouldn't get arrested.

"No; I swear," he assured, and then glanced over his shoulder again, before lowering his voice. "I bought those parts cheaper than they should've been, so I didn't steal them, but the guy I got them from could've. I didn't even think about it when we traded cars."

"Well, what the hell am I supposed to do now?"

"Like I said, I know a guy who works here. He'll fix this."

I raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "He can do that?" I asked

He nodded. "It'll probably take until tomorrow, though."

Fuck. I didn't want to spend another night in this shit hole.

"And when you're out, stop by my place some time," he offered. "We'll have some beers, smoke a joint. It's the least I can do."

When Sam left, I felt a little more at ease, yet I knew I couldn't rely on him. But who did I have, really? Definitely not my own family. So, he was my only shot at getting out.

More time passed, and I was starting to get hungry, not to mention I was fucking bored out of my mind. I felt disgusting, too. I needed a fucking shower and my hair was probably falling out because I was pulling so much on it.

The stupid cop who arrested me came to my cell a short time later with some keys. I sat up straighter as he opened the cell door.

"You're free to go," he informed, and then smirked. "Looks like someone finally came to get ya."

I quickly walked out, fucking ecstatic that I was free. That didn't last, however. When I saw the face of my father waiting for me, I wished I was back in the cell.

We didn't say a word to each other as I collected my confiscated items and my father signed some things. My Mustang, however, was gone, and I probably wouldn't get it back. I was angry that I didn't have anything to drive. How the hell was I going to get around?

My dad was pissed, obviously, but wasn't showing it as he kept quiet. How the fuck did he find out? If it was Jasper, I swear to fucking God I was gonna—

"Get in," my dad ordered as we got to his car.

We drove out of the police station, tension filling the car. Normally, he'd have a million fucking things to say when I'd screw up, but now, he didn't. It was making me uneasy. I almost preferred the yelling to the silence.

"Dad," I began, unsure why I was speaking, but feeling the need to, nevertheless

"Don't, Edward," he spoke, his tone tight. "We'll discuss it when we get home."

We didn't say another word to each other after that.

The house began to come into sight, and he pulled into the driveway. Instead of getting out, he shut off the engine and merely sat, staring straight ahead.

"You're mother is in there right now," he said. "When we go in, the first thing you're going to do is assure her that you're okay, because all she's been doing is worrying."

I didn't reply, except offer a silent nod.

As soon as we got in, my mother, who had been pacing by the door, flew at me, her arms instantly wrapping around me.

"I was worried sick!" she exclaimed desperately.

"Mom, I'm fine," I spoke dully, hugging her back. I missed the shit out of her.

After a moment, she pulled back, tears running down her face. "How could you do this, Edward?" she questioned.

"I swear; I didn't do anything," I told her.

"That's not what the officer told me," my father interjected, causing me to clench my jaw.

"Oh no," my mother said quietly, her face paling as she stared at my father.

"He not only ran a stop light near the school, but his new car was being tracked for some time now due to stolen parts," he revealed.

My mother clamped a hand over her chest as she turned to me with a horrified expression. "Edward," she gasped.

"I ran the stop light, but I didn't fucking steal anything," I shouted at her, frustrated.

"Don't curse at your mother," Dad scolded.

I turned on him, glaring daggers at him. "I just spent almost twenty-four hours in a goddamn cold, uncomfortable jail cell. I can say or do whatever the fuck I want at this point, especially since no one fucking came for me yesterday."

"I thought you were an adult and could handle your own situations from now on," he said.

I stopped breathing, my face reddening in anger as his words clicked. "Wait a minute," I started slowly, "did you know I was in jail yesterday, but didn't come until today?"

"That's exactly what happened," he confirmed, crossing his arms in front of him.

I chuckled bitterly and ran a hand over my jaw, feeling the rough stubble. "So, you just decided to teach me a lesson or some shit."

"Edward, stop this," my mom scolded.

"Why would I try to teach you a lesson?" he asked, strangely calm. "You're clearly an adult now and if you're arrested, you should be able to find a way out. I did you a favor. Your mother was near the point of having a panic attack, so I used my own money…"

"Oh, I'm so sorry you had to use your own money," I spoke over him cynically. "I'm sure you had that all saved up to buy useless shit. It's just awful you had to waste it on your fucking son."

"Edward, Carlisle," my mom shouted, causing us both to tear our glares from each other. "Please, stop arguing." She pressed a hand to my cheek gently. "Honey, I'm just so happy you're home." She moved her hand to my forehead, a worried expression beginning to form on her face. "You're burning up. Did you come down with something?"

I was too pissed to care if I'd gotten sick. My father had known I was in jail and had purposely left me there, trying to prove some sort of fucking point! Did he even give a shit about me? I could've died for all he knew, but no, he had to be fucking selfish and only care about making me suffer for his own ego. Who the hell was he? Why couldn't I have gotten a father who gave a damn about me?

I realized, in that moment, how much I hated him. There was no love in me for someone as fucked up and uncaring as he was.

"Honey, take off your jacket. You're sweating," my mother said. She walked behind me and began pulling it off for me. But as soon as it was off, she gasped, dropped the jacket on the floor, and clamped a hand to her mouth. "Edward, you got a tattoo?"

Aw, fuck.

She was staring down at my arm in horror. Of all the weeks I'd been trying to hide it, I had to forget it was there right now.

My dad was shaking his head, as if I'd done another thing wrong. Fuck him.

"Yeah, I got one," I answered smugly, just to shove it in his face. However, it practically destroyed my mom as she began sobbing uncontrollably. My face fell slowly. "Mom…" My tone was soft, wanting to comfort her.

She shook her head, closing her eyes. "I don't know my son anymore," she choked, and walked toward the kitchen.

I couldn't have felt more heartbroken in that moment. But as soon as I saw my dad was still standing there, my anger began to come back. We remained in a stare, both analyzing the other.

After a solid thirty seconds, he walked off to the kitchen, without a single word, leaving me in the entryway.

I could hear my mother crying softly and my dad trying to soothe her. It was all too fucking much for me, so I went up to my room and locked the door.

All the emotions within me were swirling around like a cyclone, and all I wished for was something to numb those feelings. The only time I'd remembered feeling numb was when I'd taken ecstasy. I'd never wanted it more than I did now.

X-X-X-X

It was past midnight and I couldn't sleep. My mind wouldn't fucking shut up. The more and more I thought about Bella, the more I was convincing myself that she was with Black. It was things like her avoiding kissing me in public, or her denying anything going on between us to others that were making me skeptical of her.

If she was engaged to that fucker, then why was she with me? Was I just sex to her? Something new that she'd mess around with and then tell to fuck off when she was bored? Maybe she had a whole slew of guys she was with…

NO.

She couldn't be like that. I knew her. When I was with her, it was only us. If she was with other guys, as well, she'd be showing them the shack and her cliff spot. Those things she showed to me because we had something special together. There was a connection and heat that I'd never felt with anyone else but her. I was sure it had to feel the same to her.

But what if it didn't feel the same to her and I was just trying to convince myself that it did?

Fuck. I needed to sleep.

I flipped over on my side roughly, kicking the blankets off. I was fucking sweating and I felt like shit, in more ways than one.

My mother would barely look at me without tears forming in her eyes. I didn't know what to do, and with just one look, my father would make me feel even worse for clearly hurting her. I'd avoided them all night. I didn't want the stress. No one bothered me, either.

To be honest, I thought I was going to get a lot more flack for getting arrested than I actually got. My father, of course, didn't hide the fact that he was disappointed in me, but he didn't ground me or tell me to pay back the money he had to cough up for bail. Overall, he remained indifferent and calm. I didn't fucking like it. He was trying to guilt me or something. Well, screw him.

My thoughts were running wild again, and I tried to allow my mind to not think of anything. It worked for one minute, but then images of Bella in a white dress, walking down the aisle to Black flooded my brain.

I groaned, clenching my fists. Why couldn't I stop thinking about this if I was sure it wasn't true? And why, more than ever, did I feel the need to confirm this? I trusted Bella. She would never have lied or kept this from me. If I asked her outright, I was positive she'd get pissed at me for even believing something like that. That thought was settling, even if she would be angry at me. I preferred the anger to her usual silence. At least with the anger, she talked to me, but when she refused to open up, I hated that more than anything.

Where was she now? It was late, but I still wished I could see her. I just needed to know this all was a joke, so that I could sleep easier, so that I could get over this, and so that I could be able to look at her without imagining her with Black.

I had to see her. Right now. I was going out of mind because of her and was infuriated that I was even starting to believe that she was engaged. But I couldn't deny the fact that there was something off about this whole situation.

With my mind made up to see her, I got out of bed and went into my closet to throw something on. Everyone was asleep right now and wouldn't know I was even gone.

As I made my way out of my room, down the steps, and to the front door, I realized something crucial. I didn't have my car. Fuck, how was I going to see her now?

There were three car keys on the key rack—my mom's, dad's, and Jasper's. Well, I'd driven Jasper's car before, and I definitely wasn't going to risk taking my parents' cars, so Jasper's it was.

When I got into his car, I had a moment of doubt. What the fuck was I doing? Was I going to confront her angrily? Ask her if it was true? Was I just going to see her, kiss her, and then forget everything? I really didn't know.

Turning on the engine, I resolved myself to just winging it.

I wasn't sure where I'd be able to find her, so I decided to go to the place I knew she usually was. If she wasn't there…well, I'd worry about that after.

After fifteen minutes of driving, I pulled into the parking lot.

She was here.

Her truck was the only one in the lot as it sat in its usual space. My palms were sweating and I was feeling ridiculously hot, but I forced myself to step out of the car and walk to the bushes.

This was crazy. I had nothing to worry about.

But what if I did…?

Fuck! I needed this settled right now.

Step by step, I walked through the woods. I didn't need any sort of light as I trekked toward the shack. I'd already been down this path several times and it felt like routine now to be here.

I could barely make out the shack in the dark. It wasn't lit at all, and that was already a sign that Bella probably wasn't in there. But where would she be? The guys said she'd sometimes be in the clearing. Was she there now?

On instinct, I decided to check out the shack, just in case. My footsteps were quiet, tentative as I stepped up to the doorway, peering in. The entire interior of the structure was shrouded in darkness. I couldn't see a damn thing.

Taking my lighter out of my pocket, I ignited the flame. It wasn't possible to see too far into the shack, so I lit one of the candles on the table. As soon as I finished, however, there was a heavy sigh as well as rustling.

Looking toward the brief noise, my heart hammered in my chest and broke all at the same time. There were several blankets laid out on the hard floor at the opposite end of the shack. Bundled up in the blankets was Bella, asleep. Her breaths were even and her face was slightly illuminated by the candlelight.

I didn't know whether to be angry or be worried that she was sleeping out here, by herself, in the middle of the night.

Setting that aside, I walked to her, the floorboards cricking. She didn't wake up, surprisingly.

I bent down near her head and just watched her sleeping peacefully. Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, drawing my attention to them. They were wet. Had she been crying?

I didn't want to wake her up, but I also needed to. I had to get some answers right now.

Bringing my hand to her face, I rubbed her smooth cheek gently. She breathed in through her nose deeply and stirred. I watched as her eyelids opened. She seemed in a daze for a moment before she registered that someone was in the room with her. However, she didn't seem alarmed as she looked up at me.

"Edward?" she breathed, as if in awe.

"Yeah," I affirmed. There was a lock of her silky hair on her cheek, so I moved it out of her face, tucking it behind her ear.

She sat up and turned her body toward me. There was confusion and...hurt ridden on her face. "Why are you here?" she asked, her voice filled with sleep.

"I came to see you."

Her eyes fell to the blankets. "I waited here yesterday night for you…"

I frowned, hoping she wasn't too upset that I hadn't shown up. "I couldn't make it. I got in trouble." She didn't respond as she kept her sight on the blankets. "I was arrested."

Her head snapped up, and her eyes widened. "What?" she asked incredulously, all traces of sadness fully evaporated. She got on her knees and sat against her heels. "What do you mean you were arrested?"

"They thought I stole car parts."

Her mouth wet agape slightly, and she brought a hand up to her forehead, looking exasperated. After a few seconds, she moved to me. She brought her small hands up to my shoulders, resting them lightly on them. "Are you okay?"

I nodded, feeling comforted instantly. It'd been such a rough couple nights, but she'd immediately made it better from her touch. Hell, even her presence.

Her eyes became distant, as if she was in thought. "Sam knows someone down at the station," she said, and stood up quickly. Not wasting time, she walked over to the other side of the shack. Her orange backpack was there, and she quickly unzipped it, taking out a cell phone. "He can fix it. I know he can."

I stood slowly, watching her. "I already talked to him."

She stopped, staring at me. "Oh," she said, and set her phone back in her bag. "Well, that's good."

"Why do you care?" I questioned. I didn't mean to sound cold, but I honestly just wanted to know.

"What do you mean?" she asked in reply, seeming confused.

I took a few steps over to the corner she was standing in. "Why would you want to fix it?"

She blinked several times with a blank expression. "I don't want it to go on your record," she admitted. "You don't deserve that."

"What do I deserve, then?" I inquired. All I wanted to know from her was that she did give a damn about me, that I wasn't the only one who cared.

She shrugged. "A clean record," she said. Her eyes flickered down to my lips, causing her brow to furrow. She brought a finger up, running it across the scar that had formed there. "What happened?"

That was when everything from the past couple days crashed down on me. My mood changed, and my body went rigid.

Instead of answering her, I picked up her hand that was resting by her side. Staring into her worried eyes, I let my thumb rub over her knuckles before I moved it to her index finger. I could feel the cold metal of her ring there, and I fought not to clench my jaw.

I tore my eyes from hers, dropping them down to her hand. I'd always noticed her wearing that ring, but I'd never really thought about its significance.

Slowly, I slid it off her finger, then brought it up to her face. She glanced at it with a raised eyebrow, but I could also see a hint of nervousness there.

"What's this?" I asked boldly.

I could hear her swallow as the silence filled the shack. "It's a ring," she answered quietly, her voice almost a whisper.

I rubbed the ring in between my fingers. Her eyes never left it. "What kind of ring?" I questioned.

"Just a cheap ring from a pawn shop," she spoke, but she refused to meet my stare. "Can I have it back?"

Ignoring her, I continued questioning her. "Who gave it to you?"

She didn't respond, her face showing no emotions. I wasn't sure what to make of her lack of response. It was a simple question. That alone had me worried.

I turned and took a few steps away, needing a little space to think. She didn't move a muscle, but I could feel her eyes on me.

"You want to know how I got the split lip?" I asked rhetorically, my voice hard, and then I turned to look at her. "Black gave it to me when we got into a fight."

Her face paled considerably, but she still remained frozen. The normal reaction would've been to be shocked or get mad. Hers was off.

"You know what he told me?" I queried, goading her. The unresponsive expression she was giving me was making me angry, and my tone was reflecting it. "He told me to stay away from you. Actually, no. He told me to stay away from his fiancée."

I watched as a slight crease formed on her forehead, and her eyes darted away. That told me everything.

It was true.

Bella was engaged.

The girl that I was into and cared about to the point of insanity was engaged.

And she hadn't even bothered to tell me.

I was enraged, inflamed, pissed, and beyond furious. Did I mean anything to her?

"So, is this what you fucking do?" I spat in question. "You fuck me, and then you go to him afterward?"

Her face fell, finally showing some emotion, and she looked at me pleadingly.

She'd fucked him.

FUCK.

I fisted my hand, the ring buried deep within my palm, while my other hand grabbed at my hair, pulling on the roots. She'd been with Black, and she'd also been with me. Only, with him, she was engaged to him, and with me, she was…fuck…she wasn't anything with me.

"You used me, Bella," I accused. "You'd fucking use me, and then you'd run off to him."

"That's not how it is!" she exclaimed, finally speaking.

I stepped right up to her, our bodies inches apart. "Then tell me what the fuck it is, because I'm going out of my goddamn mind trying to understand you," I seethed.

"I…" she began, trailing off, but didn't continue. She looked in turmoil, most likely because she'd been caught.

I couldn't believe I'd fucking thought this wasn't true. Of course it was true. That thought was nearly catastrophic. I didn't want it to be true, and I had no idea why she was with me if she was with someone else.

"What do you want from me?" I asked, my tone softening briefly.

I wouldn't allow myself to be in this fucked up situation. I wasn't her fucking toy. Either she was with me or she was with him, but she couldn't be with both. I needed her to decide.

"Me or him?" I asked bluntly. "Choose."

"Wh—what?" she stuttered. Her eyes were shimmering with moisture, but I couldn't feel sorry for her.

"You heard me. Make a fucking choice," I growled angrily, causing her to blanch.

A single tear streaked down her cheek. I didn't know why she was crying, but my expression automatically grew soft at the sight. I reached up and brushed the tear away with my thumb, then cupped her cheek. Her shimmering eyes stared up into mine, and I knew then that I couldn't lose her. I needed her to be mine.

"Bella, you and me—it's indescribable," I whispered. "You feel it. I know you do." I rested my forehead against hers and listened to her uneven, soft breathing. "I want to make you happy, and I'll spend every waking second trying to, if you just let me."

I brushed my lips against her wet cheeks, then her plump mouth. I captured her still top lip in a gentle kiss, needing her comfort. However, she didn't respond; instead, I could hear a quiet sob from her, and more tears slid down her cheeks.

"Choose me," I breathed against her lips.

A full minute might've passed before I pulled away slightly, needing to look into her eyes. They didn't have the same light in them they normally did when she was around me. They seemed lifeless and cold. She was an entirely different person right now.

"Please, give me the ring," she demanded.

I'd never been stabbed before, but I imagined it would feel something like this, because right now, I felt as if twenty knives had been jammed into my flesh from all angles. The worst part was, it was all because of her—the one person I cared for unconditionally.

I wanted to run, shout, do anything to ease this feeling of utter pain. There was a hardness in her eyes and her lips were formed in a thin line. She was decided.

She'd chosen him.

Maybe it'd always been him.

The mixture of anger and betrayal swirled within me as I observed this person I never really knew. With a force, I threw the ring behind her. It ricocheted off the wall and clattered to the floorboards loudly. She didn't make a move to pick it up. All she did was remain in a stare with me, her emotionless eyes speaking the truth about who she was.

She was a two timing, heartless bitch.

"Thanks for breaking my heart, Bella."

I turned away from her cold exterior and fled out of the shack. I was angry. I was destroyed. She'd played me, and I'd fallen for it so fucking easily. What did that say about me? I wasn't going to let anyone do that to me again. Enough was enough. Bella was as good as dead to me, and right along with her was my heart that she'd shredded into a thousand pieces.

A/N:

Sorry, guys. Yes, Jake and Bella are engaged. If you don't remember what the ring looked like, the picture link is still on my profile from an earlier chapter.

I'm hoping to get the next chapter out next week, but there's a big chance I won't. I have a lot going on right now and haven't had that much time to write. I'm going to try my best, considering the way this ended.

If you review, you get a teaser.

Twitter: xrxdanixrx