Disclaimer: I do not own any characters.

If you could do me the honour of listening to Sarah McLachlan 'Full of Grace' whilst reading this, I'd be real grateful.

I had it on repeat when writing this chapter.

Enjoy!

I stepped closer to the edge and closed my eyes, preparing myself for my final decision.

His eyes.

His smile.

His touch.

His laughter.

His love.

Him.

"I love you" I whispered.

Paul POV ***(I told you to trust me - an)***

My Bella.

My beautiful Bella.

Her body wracked with sobs.

My Bella running.

The wind blowing through her thick chestnut locks.

My Bella…..

Bella POV

So I was a coward.

As well as losing my reason for living, I now couldn't even join him. Everything in me had wanted to jump, but I just couldn't.

Something held me back and I couldn't for the life of me think what it could have been. It was like an unspeakable force was stopping me from jumping.

So here I was. Once again, pathetic Bella Swan was heartbroken and alone.

I should have been used to this by now.

First Edward, who in the end turned out to be a fantasy anyway. Who in their right mind would knowingly enter a relationship with a vampire? Maybe it would have done me good to have known that little fact before we started dating. In a sick way, I knew he was never right for me. It was always like I was testing myself, pushing myself further everyday. Especially when it came to having sex for the first and only time.

I told myself that I could do it, that I would enjoy it, that it was what I wanted. It wasn't.

It wasn't until I met Paul for the first time that I truly realised what lust was. He took my breath away instantly with his awe inspiring attitude. The way he moved, the way he held himself. Paul had me captivated from the first moment.

The first night that we spent together cemented the rest of my life. I truly believe that whether he would have imprinted on me or not, we were meant for each other.

I didn't need some spirit to tell me that Paul was my soul mate, I could see that already.

We had only just begun and he had been snatched away from me.

I didn't know the details and in all honesty, I wasn't sure I wanted to. I had known that Paul was a brave man and I knew that if it came down to it he would lay his life down for his brothers. I guess I just didn't expect it. I pushed any prospect of him not coming home to the back of my mind, praying that I'd never have to revisit them.

No such luck, hey?

Maybe after I met Paul, I just thought that life would pan out for me. That I wouldn't have to worry about my path. When somebody tells you that you've been chosen for them by spirits that are thousands of years old, you tend to think that your path has already been decided for you.

Marriage, Kids. The works.

That just wasn't in the cards for me anymore. There was no way I wanted it with anyone else but him. He saved me. Not just emotionally, but physically. It had been my job to stand by him, to be there for him. Paul had once told me that imprinting worked however I wanted it to. He would be whatever I wanted him to be. Of course it had never crossed my mind to want him as anything but a lover, but I also saw that it was up to me to be whatever he needed.

He needed me to be strong for him. He had the weight of the world on his shoulders and I needed to be the one to bear it with him. I know that if I hadn't found him again, my drug abuse would have spiralled out of control and he was my reason for giving it all up. How could I expect him to look after me, be with me, if I was constantly testing his patience. I knew that he had worried about me whenever I hadn't been in his care, especially after the night he found me on the beach.

The pain in my heart grew stronger every second I had been without him, even now it still grew stronger.

I would prepare myself for it to get even worse. Knowing that I would never see him again was enough to punch a hole through my chest.

As I looked up at the stars above me, I prayed that even just for a second, Paul was looking down on me.

Before this moment, I had never considered heaven or hell. I knew that if either were to exist, Paul would be in the most peaceful place. To anybody that didn't know him, he would have seemed like a menace to society. Nobody knew Paul like his brothers and I. He was a good man and even too much peace wouldn't be enough.

I was brought out of my inner thoughts by the sound of a twig snapping behind me.

For a moment, I froze.

"Bells…"

Jake.

I said nothing back to him. Instead I just patted the ground beside me, silently inviting him to join me.

He sat down slowly beside me and took one of my hands in his, squeezing it gently.

"I understand if you don't want to talk" he whispered, almost inaudibly.

I took a moment before answering, breathing deeply before opening my mouth to speak.

"No, its fine" I whimpered, my voice clearly broken from my sobbing.

Jake wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his side. For a moment, I found myself imagining that I was in Paul's arms. They were always so warm.

"Would you like me to tell you some stories? About Paul and I?" He asked nervously.

"What kind of stories?"

"From when we were kids, I have a lot of them" Jake replied, chuckling sadly.

I smiled inwardly at the thought of Jake and Paul playing as children. Two small raven haired boys running around in the mud. Carefree and happy.

"Please" I begged, tucking myself further into his side.

Jake inhaled a huge breath before squeezing me tightly and exhaling.

"Want to know what mine and Paul's favourite thing to do was?" He asked me.

I simply nodded, urging him to carry on.

"We loved to collect crabs down at the beach. My Dad and I would pick him up on a Saturday morning and we'd head straight down here. Sometimes even Charlie would come along. Paul and I could spend days down there in the rock pools if they had let us" He laughed.

"Anyway, one day my Dad was busy and couldn't take us out there. So you know Paul, he never liked boundries being set for him, and he didn't care for them much then either. He had this idea that we'd sneak down there alone, we must of only been about eight or nine at the time"

I laughed at the thought of a rebellious Paul leading an innocent Jake astray.

"So when we got down there, we didn't have any nets. Our great plan had been scuppered before we'd even had a chance to start. We gave on the crab fishing pretty quickly after that"

"What did you do instead?" I asked curiously, knowing this wasn't the end of the tale.

"Well, its not secret to you that Paul had a flirty nature. We stumbled across two girls around the same age as us, they were building princess thrones out of sand. At least that what they were trying to do until they spotted us. I wont deny it Bell's, I was putty in their hands" He guffawed.

"Sssh….On with the tale" I urged, jabbing him lightly in the side.

"Well, they managed to convince us to play a game. They told us that if we let them bury the two of us in the sand, that we'd each get a kiss. I'm sure you can see where this is going…"

I giggled lightly and nodded my head.

"So, naturally we agreed. They did as they promised. We helped them dig big holes before they buried us inside them up to our necks. I swear Bells, we couldn't even move our arms" He laughed.

"They gave us a peck on the cheek and the evil little witches ran away, giggling to themselves. I couldn't believe it, we were stuck there for about three hours before my Dad and Charlie figured out where we'd gone. Of course Dad had to run home and get the camera before digging us out. He always told me that my niavity needed to be caught on camera"

I was in fits of giggles by this point. Just the thought of Paul and Jake trying to flirt, badly, at the age of eight was enough to crack a smile on the face of anyone.

"Do you still have the picture?" I asked hopefully.

"Yeah, my Dad had it mounted and nailed to the hallway wall" He replied sulkily.

As we laughed a little more about the good times that we'd each shared with Paul, I found myself in tears once again over the loss of my love. I knew it would be difficult for me to create happy memories without him. He was my happiness.

"Hey…Come here" Jake whispered, pulling me onto his lap.

He began to rock me back and forth slowly as I sobbed into his crisp white t shirt, clinging to it dearly. I heard him start to whisper something into hair and desperately tried to understand his words.

"Great Spirit of Light, come to me out of the East with the power of the rising sun. Let there be light in my words, let there be light on my path that I walk. Let me remember always that you give the gift of a new day. And never let me be burdened with sorrow by not starting over again"

"Great Spirit of Love, come to me with the power of the North. Make me courageous when the cold wind falls upon me. Give me strength and endurance for everything that is harsh, everything that hurts, everything that makes me squint. Let me move through life ready to take what comes from the north"

A prayer. The most beautiful prayer I had ever heard.

"Great Life-Giving Spirit, I face the West, the direction of sundown. Let me remember everyday that the moment will come when my sun will go down. Never let me forget that I must fade into you. Give me a beautiful colour, give me a great sky for setting, so that when it is my time to meet you, I can come with glory"

"Great Spirit of Creation, send me the warm and soothing winds from the South. Comfort me and caress me when I am tired and cold. Unfold me like the gentle breezes that unfold the leaves on the trees. As you give to all the earth your warm, moving wind, give to me, so that I may grow close to you in warmth. Man did not create the web of life, he is but a strand in it. Whatever man does to the web, he does to himself."

I felt a single water droplet land coolly on my forehead. It was only when I felt Jakes chest start to shake that I realised he was crying too.

I lifted myself up off of his lap and cradled my arms around him.

We sat in silence as the dreary sunrise began.

I knew one thing for sure, the sun would never shine for me again.

Paul POV

I cant really describe death to you, as it seems that I am not there.

At first I thought that I was in some kind of purgatory, not knowing where to go next but I soon realised something that shocked me to the core.

I wasn't dead.

I hadn't been killed.

The worst part of it all? I was pretty sure that by now Bella would have been told otherwise.

When I first learnt of imprinting from Sam, I remember scoffing at some of the effects. Before Bella, I wondered how it was possible to exist for one person. I soon realised that it happens just like that. You have to exist for them and with them.

Bella would believe that she had to exist without me from now on and that was tearing me apart.

I don't exactly know how long I've been in darkness now.

It feels like weeks, but that can only mean that its been hours.

As I tried to sit up, the searing pain in my neck started to take over again.

Had she bitten me?

I reached up, my wrists still bound by chains, running my fingers across my neck. I could feel the unmistakable crescent shaped scar.

Scar?

If she had bitten me, surely I would have been dead by now. I ran my fingers over it a few more times before giving in to the ache that was getting worse by the minute. I could just about make out the bruises on my wrists from the tightness of my restraints.

Trying to break free would do no good. I doubted that I'd be able to lift up a small rock the state I was in, let alone rip apart steel chains.

Suddenly, I heard a rocks shuffling at the other side of the cave. I quickly lifted my knees up to my chest in a protective stance and waited for the onslaught of the redheaded leech. If I ever got my hands on her, I'd have her wishing she'd never met me.

Only what I saw next wasn't her. In fact, if you'd of asked me at that moment who I'd expected to turn up, this wouldn't have been my answer.

A low growl escaped my lips as I spotted the figure, dimly lit by a burning candle.

"Cullen"

Dun dun duuuuuuuuun…..

What did you all think of that? Were you expecting it? Which Cullen do we think it is?

Whoever it is, are they there to help or hinder?

Review and let me know your thoughts.

Thanks for reading : ) xx