Stephenie Meyer created and owns my favorite toys, I just get a kick out of playing with them.

Sorry for being a meanie yesterday, it'll never happen again. I think…

oooooOOOOooooo

Day 12:

Saturday

Edward

Having taken Rosalie back home equipped with two packages of condoms, Edward was feeling exhausted. He had been caught in his own head over dealing with Rosalie and trying not to think about Ben. It had drained all of his energy.

He needed to figure out what to do with his life.

Fumbling with his phone, Edward felt almost a compulsion to get in touch with Ben. He opted instead not to call and to give him some space. It would be so easy to call him and say that he changed his mind, but that would be wrong for so many reasons.

Life wasn't about easy, but it was about doing what was right. Going back to Ben with the false pretense of having forgotten Isabella was the easy solution, but it wasn't the right thing to do.

He couldn't help, but idly wonder what Isabella had done with her day.

Picking up the remote, he turned on the TV for some white noise to drown out his thoughts. The screen was flaring with images and updates running the bottom of the screen.

An apartment complex fire.

Burned to the ground.

In the heart of L.A.

What a tragedy. Absorbed in the news of the horrendous accident, Edward mindlessly picked up his phone on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Edward," his father started. There was a lot of racket in the background and his father sounded unusually frazzled. "Do you know a woman named Bella Swan?" Carlisle asked without further ado.

Edward frowned. "Yeah, Isabella Swan. She works for me." Staring at the screen and the complex engulfed by flames like the very pit of hell, he felt terror slither down his spine.

"She's down here at Cedars-Sinai and she's asking for you. I don't have a lot of time, but can you get here?"

"I'm on my way out the door now. Is she okay?" Edward asked already putting on his shoes, without really realizing the depth of his worry for the frail looking girl. "She was in that fire, wasn't she?" he asked, barely keeping calm.

"Yes. We're absolutely swamped. Call me when you're here."

Finding himself in the middle of the hospital's emergency room, Edward had his phone glued to his ear while scanning around for his father or Isabella. All around him were people covered in soot and minor injuries, looking absolutely shell shocked.

Edward was walking slowly through the crowds when a small voice caught him his attention.

"Edward?"

He peered down at beautiful brown eyes that he had refused to acknowledge he might never see again and if so, in what condition?

"Isabella?" he slumped to his knees in front of her. Her skin wasn't the pale and flawless porcelain, but grimy and splotched with black and gray. Isabella looked positively breakable swathed in a blanket, dwarfing her small frame. Her long hair was gathered in a braid, looking strangely tussled and amputated, but still attached like a rope. "Oh Jesus! Are you okay?" he asked turning off his phone. His heart was thundering in his chest.

"I'm okay. I have a few minor burns, but I got lucky." Her voice trembled.

"Oh, sweetheart," he mouthed, carefully grasping her bandaged hand. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm sorry to call you. Well, I didn't really. I met your father when he overheard me mentioning you. I'm so sorry to bother you like this. I wanted to call Angela, but she's away for the weekend. I lost my phone and I can't remember Jessica's number by heart. I don't know anyone else in L.A. I really didn't mean to disturb your evening, but your father insisted…" Edward held up his hand, stopping her when she kept rambling apologies.

"Isabella, it's okay. Please don't apologize for anything. Did my father examine you?"

"No, some other doctor did. I'm fine, really."

"Edward, I'm so glad you're here," Carlisle said, stepping to his side. His hair was just slightly out of sorts for his normal tidy do.

"She's really okay?" Edward asked, while concerned in case Isabella was sweeping something important under the rug.

"She appears to be okay. There was a minimum of smoke inhalation, a marginal amount of soot in her mouth and nose and a few cuts and burns on her hands and knees, but that's about it."

"So I can go now?" Bella asked.

Carlisle sighed. "No, you cannot leave here on your own," he stressed.

Bella averted her eyes, looking dejected. "I'll be fine. I'll check into a hotel or something. I really don't want to stay in the hospital. There are people who need to be here more than me."

Edward picked up the gist of the conversation. "You don't have anywhere to stay tonight?"

"I told you're father I would be just fine at a hotel, but he won't let me," Bella mumbled.

"No, Miss Swan. With the risk of smoke inhalation, you may appear to be fine now, but in a few hours that may change. You are not to be left alone. I told you this," Carlisle said kindly, probably for the fourth time. Well, wasn't Bella the martyr.

"Bella, please listen to my father," Edward said. "You'll stay with me until we figure something out."

"Edward, it really isn't necessary…"

Edward turned to his father, who seemed impatient to move on as Bella started to be absurd again. "What do I need to look out for?" Edward asked, while transferring into the doctor's son mode that had inadvertently been ingrained into him since birth.

"Nausea, vomiting, coughing and sleepiness, first of all. If her voice starts to go hoarse or she becomes short of breath, call me immediately. Okay?" Carlisle said when he was already backing away and aiming for his next patient.

"Got it, Dad."

Ignoring her protests all the way back to his place, he couldn't believe that she survived. He was itching to ask about what happened, but Isabella didn't seem to want to talk about it. After she stopped apologizing for being an inconvenience, she fell completely quiet.

Standing in the bathroom in the only clothes Bella now owned, she started to pick at the ponytail holder and undoing the long braid. She didn't seem to notice Edward as he turned on the shower and began fishing out to big fluffy towel for her.

When she gasped, Edward, who had tried not to stare at her being so lightly dressed, looked over. "Do you have a pair of scissors?" Bella barely whispered when from her hands large chunks of hair flowed to the floor. "I needed a trim anyway." Edward was sad to see portions of her long hair had been singed off.

"You sure you want to do that?" Edward asked warily.

Despite Bella's torment, a small smile curled at the corners of her mouth. "I'm not going to go all Britney Spears on you. But this…" she fingered the shorter side of her hair, "is just a no go."

Watching carefully and relishing the effortlessness between them, Bella snipped off the length of hair still tumbling below the mid of her back. It just reached past her shoulders now.

Edward sat on the couch glancing sideways at Bella who had showered and tended to the mild burns with the crème Carlisle had supplied from the hospital. Her stare was absolutely vacant, void of any kind of emotion as she sat unmovable beside him.

"I hope the clothes are okay?" he said for something to kill the deafening silence. He missed seeing that small, but oh so powerful smile she had worn when cutting her hair off.

"It's fine," she answered evenly. She was dressed in a pair of his boxers, sweats and t-shirt. It was all he could come up with at this time at this hour.

"Are you hungry?" he tried asking, seeking some kind of interaction with her.

"No, thank you." she pulled her legs up, resting her chin on her knees. It was like he sat here, losing all connection with her.

"You want to catch some sleep? I made up the bed in the extra room."

Bella winced. "Not right now." She started picking her nails as she held her legs to her chest.

"We can watch some TV?" he suggested, reaching for the remote. At least, that would take care of the all-consuming silence. It was becoming unbearable.

"Sure."

Keeping an eye on Bella, it was clear that she wasn't watching the movie. She was picking at her nails and it became almost obsessive and the flicking of her fingers was just as neurotic.

He couldn't help but reach out and put his hand over hers. Somehow, it snapped her out of the dark place she had been sucked into. Her eyes shifted to Edward, they were deep, dark and terrified.

Without warning, she tilted to her side, landing instinctively in his arms. He held her. His arms circled her, while pulling her as close as possible because he was desperate to comfort her despair.

"I almost died. I almost burned to death. Oh, God! Edward, I didn't want to die. I was so scared." She sobbed, when the damn suddenly broke.

Edward stroked her hair and was glad to see all her suffering came crashing out. He was happy that she wasn't going to bottle up her what happened and let tragedy fester in her heart. She desperately needed this out of her system.

Soothing her and encouraging her to just spill whatever was on her heart and mind, he couldn't help, but notice how his shampoo and his body wash smelled on her skin. The combination was almost euphoric.

Listening to her sorrow, he couldn't escape the devastating thought that he might have lost her before he got a chance to even know her.

oooooOOOOooooo

So have any of you ever been caught in a tragedy, knowing the feeling of absolute despair?

Okay, I might as well let the cat out of the bag. Some serious Edward and Bella time is on the horizon.

I'm sorry I didn't get around to answering your reviews, but it was either that or the next chapter. I opted for the chapter. (Roon0 and Twllife2011 were hounding me on Twitter this morning, just be glad the chapter is here at all girls. Just saying. LMAO.)

As always thanks to Chartwilightmom and Dazzled Eyes22, you rock.

I hope to get to post tomorrow, though I can't promise anything. (Our food fest and present marathon is on the 24th)