Thanks for reading and reviewing. First of three posts today. The epilogue will be the only thing left to post tomorrow.


Chapter 28: The Volturi Trial

11th of May 2011

The beginning of the year has flown by really fast. Jack has kept us informed on the matters involving Aro and his family. A few weeks ago, he let us know about the upcoming court hearing. The case was scheduled to start on the second of May; we got up that morning to find that Forks was once again was headline news. Bella and I have ignored the news as much as possible. We are getting our information straight from Jack and Martin.

Bella's picture has again appeared in the news, and of course the talk that follows. They used the picture of her that was obtained when she went missing. We both hate the publicity. My parents' murders have also been in the news, now that they have confirmed the killers. Thankfully no one knows that I am their son, for now my identity is still a secret.

So far we have been told that out of the now sixty-seven that have been arrested, twenty-three have plea bargained. With the plea agreements, they received reduced sentencing in exchange for willingly testifying against Aro and his brothers. Each will only have to serve about seven years of a fifteen year sentence. That is a good deal for them since most of them were facing forty years, or more.

Twenty plead guilty to everything they had done; they all got a reduced sentencing as well. They each were sentenced to twenty-five years, without chance of early release. If only they had been smart, they would have gotten out sooner, but they refused to give evidence against Aro and his brothers.

Rose's father was also offered a plea agreement originally. Jack was not happy about that at all, and fought it tooth and nail. None of us liked it, because of the part he played in Rose's attack. Jack dug and dug and finally found evidence that voided him of a plea. Mr. Hale was hands on involved, and took part in the slave trading side of Aro's business. Jack was disgusted to find that Mr. Hale had also used sex against some of the girls to 'help' them. Some girls were also raped, since most of the girls were sold into sex slavery we already knew that would be an issue, but didn't expect to find Rose's father involved in it.

Rose puked learning that one of the girls her father had raped was only seventeen. After everything was done the Judge held back nothing on him, giving him a double life sentence. He will never see freedom again. Rose asked Cole to arrange it so she could speak to her father before he left the court. Cole organized it for her, but told her that he was going to be in to the room too. Rose was about to argue the point, until Cole give her a look that made her shut up before a word was out of her mouth. I really need to get him to teach me those looks. I know him well, but his looks can be very intimidating and scary.

Rose's mother, after hearing the evidence, and finding out what her husband had done could not face him. She tried hard to talk Rose out of talking to him. Rose felt that she needed closure and did not want to have to go to a prison to get it. Rose came out of the closed court room fifteen minutes later. Rose got everything off her chest, she didn't hold anything back. When her father opened his mouth to pull her down verbally, she hit him, hard. He went to retaliate, only to have Cole stop him. Rose said Cole whispered something in his ear, and whatever it was apparently made Mr. Hale piss himself. We all have asked Cole what he said, but Cole has refused to tell us.

Fourteen of the people arrested were minors. They were mainly into the drug running side of things. They were all over the age of sixteen; seven of them were tried as adults because they refused a plea agreement. Those seven were given fifteen years in prison and five years of probation. The remaining nine minors are incarcerated at Echo Glen Children's Center, in Snoqualmie. It is a maximum security juvenile detention center. They have to remain there until they are the age of eighteen. Upon the age of eighteen they will be released on probation for a period of no less than five years. At the end of those five years their records will be sealed. That was the plea agreement they were offered.

There are only nine others of the original sixty-seven left to prosecute. Six of the nine left are actual family members in the Volturi brothers. The other three have been a part of the Volturi family's crimes since they first moved to the States. As they are facing several federal charges, the cases have been classified as closed. Because they are closed federal cases, we are unable to attend the actual hearings. Neither of us wanted to be there, and we were both relieved to know we did not have to be there. Martin and Jack have to appear in order to testify.

When Bella is not in gym classes, she is working with a student that has dyslexia; she is helping him write his final essay for English. I am in helping Miss Maggie O' Conner, the biology teacher, with the freshmen classes today. "Just to re-cap," I hold up the pointer to the first picture on the screen. "A negative blood has antigens which look like this." I move to the pointer to the second picture. Just as I am about to speak again, there is a loud knocking on the door.

Knock…Knock…

As the teacher gets the door, I continue on teaching the class the differences in the antigens in blood. I notice Miss O'Conner re-enter the classroom, and I know that something is up, as she approaches me at the head of the class. "AB is easy to recognize, as it has both A and B antigens." I show them the picture. "O has none of these. Now we are going to test our lab partner's blood type. Wear your provided gloves..."

I am cut off by Miss O' Conner. "Edward, Mrs. Cope would like a word with you." I look up and nod. "Okay class I have to step out now. Remember that after we put our blood in groups we then can look to see if the person is either positive or negative. If we are positive then we have the Rhesus factor, which is the monkey gene. If you do not find the Rhesus factor, then the blood type is negative." I walk away and head for Mrs. Cope who is waiting outside the classroom door.

"Edward, take your things," Miss O'Conner says, as she has collected my belongings and is bringing them over to me.

I start to feel on edge, worried over what is going on. "Thank you," I say as I take my things. She gives me a small nod before I head out to find Miss. Cope on her cell phone. When she sees me, she tells the person on the other end that she will call them back.

"Edward, Chief O'Conner just came to the school. He has gotten a court ordered summons by fax. He is not sure why, but it is an order for Bella to appear in federal court immediately. He called and confirmed that they want her there, and they want her as soon as possible."

My heart just about stops beating. I can feel the stress boiling through my veins. I look at her unsure of what is going on. "But, why? We were told that we were not needed, that we would not be called."

My rambling is cut short when Mrs. Cope places her hand on my arm. "I don't know, Edward. Mrs. O'Conner, gave her husband an earful, because he didn't know why either. Since Bella had to leave immediately, because Chief O'Conner was ordered to bring her himself, Mrs. O'Conner went with Bella. They left only five minutes ago, I haven't been able to reach Bella's grandfather or uncle so I came to you. You go find them, and here is Mrs. O'Conner's cell number. I would drive you, but I can't leave until the final bell."

I hold my hand out taking the number, and run out of the building. I run to my car and put on my hands free, so that I can drive. I bark out the name of Cole's office, into the voice dialer and wait as the connection is made. I know that Cole is in court, so his phone will be off. Once I get a hold of his secretary, I tell her to get hold of Cole immediately, I told her to call interrupting saying it was a family emergency. Once that was done, I try to get a hold of Grandpa. I am unable to get a hold of him. I know he has gone fishing and the cell tower is not good out there. I then call Sue, and ask her to find him. I tell her why, and ask her to have Harry take him to the courthouse in Seattle.

After screaming at other cars 'to get the fuck out of my way', I call Garrett. He was surprised, and told me that both Jack and Martin were out of the office. He assures me that he is sending out people to find them. When I was I about to ask why he was not going, he said that he will head straight to the courthouse to find out what is going on.

"For crying out loud, it's green, you moron move it," I start beeping my horn at the fucking stupid bitch in front of me. As I pass her I shout. "It's the vertical pedal on the right asshole!"

Ring… Ring…

I press the button to answer the phone. "What," I bark out. "Stupid, God damn slow drivers," I yell.

"Edward, what the hell wrong with you?" I hear Cole over my ranting.

"Chief O'Conner came to the school, he took Bella. Mrs. Cope said something about her being summoned to federal court. What the hell is going on Cole? I thought we weren't getting called? How can they just pull her out of school? Fuck she is still a minor! How can they do that, Cole, without giving her guardian notice? I mean fuck…"

"EDWARD!" Cole yells through the earpiece of the phone.

"Fuck Cole, I think you just burst…"

"Shut the hell up Edward! Jeez boy, give me a chance here okay?" I stop talking realizing that I have not given Cole the chance to answer anything that I have asked, and maybe not even given him time to register what is going on.

"First of all Edward, calm down. I can hear that you are driving and getting yourself killed will not get us any answers for this issue. Now, things like this do happen from time to time, but it is very uncommon. However, the judge would only grant the order if there was good reason. I am here right now; I will see what I can find out. Since she is a minor the judge will ask to see her in his chambers first, before she will go into the courtroom. He will tell her why she has been called, if he feels that she's not up for it, or she can't add anything to the case he will refuse her as a witness. If he feels that she has something of importance to add, he will offer her the choice to either come back another day or give her testimony today since she does not have her legal guardian with her. Have you spoken to her, is she okay?"

I sigh getting more frustrated that I still don't know what the hell is going on. "No, I thought that it was better to get a hold of everyone first. I was about to call Mrs. O'Conner's cell phone when you called," I sigh out.

"Take some deep breaths before you call her. You don't want her to get worked up about you, also calm the fuck down! I will see you when you get here."

I start to speed up now, on the highway there is much less traffic. "Call Bella," I say and hear her phone ringing.

"Edward," her voice is small. I can hear how scared she is.

"Hey baby, don't worry I'm on my way. I shouldn't be too far behind you; you're going to be fine." There is silence on the other end from Bella, but I can her Mrs. O'Conner's voice. I can't tell what she is saying. "Bella, Baby girl, talk to me please," I plead with her.

"Edward, why? I don't know what they want from me; I mean what can I tell them, that some other person can't?"

I frown at what she asked. "I am not sure baby, but I will be there okay? You don't have to do this, you can tell the judge it is too much for you. You can even get him to call Peter; don't feel obligated to do anything. Cole is already there; call him when you are parking, and that way he can be right there to go in with you. He is your legal counsel of record, therefore he can be present with you, to assure that your best interests are being watched over. Baby, don't let those bastards intimidate you."

I hear her sigh a little. "When will this shit stop? It seems like every time we get past one hurdle something else is throwing another in front of us. Sweetie, I need to call Cole now, we are already here. Chief O'Conner is pulling into the courthouse parking ramp now. I love you, I will see you soon," she says.

I look at my clock working out how long it has been. She must have been gone longer than five minutes before Mrs. Cope got me, because I am still almost an hour from Seattle.

"Okay, baby I am still a hour away, but I'll be there as soon and as fast as I can. I love you so very much my little one," I say before hanging up and speeding up at the same time.

I go over what Bella had said about what she can tell them that no one else can. Each time I get a sinking feeling that the only thing she can tell them that no one else can, is what happened during my parents death. It is the only thing I can think of that she has information on. Cole had said that it was only hearsay. However, he was also worried that the graphic details that Bella was given and the death of Caius after he told her, it can be considered in federal court as a dying declaration. It only takes me another forty minutes to get to the courthouse, where I am met by Martin and Jack.

"Where is she? Did Cole manage to talk her out of going in?" I ask loudly, as I run down to them.

They both shake their heads. "No, she is in there now giving her testimony to the court. She has been in there for about ten minutes as of right now. Both Mrs. O'Conner and Cole are also in there with her," Jack tells me.

"But, why was she called? Did you see her before she went in?"

He shakes his head at me; as he pulls me down to sit. "This is Heidi," Martin says pointing to the women across from us. "She is Cole's secretary, she was here. She was actually here when you called her, his line was forwarded from the office to here, which is how Cole was able to call you back so fast. She is the one who let us know that they had gone into the courtroom, we just got here five minutes before you."

We sit and wait, well I am pacing up and down the hallway. Martin, Jack, Heidi, and Garrett sit on the benches along the wall. Grandpa has called, and he's on his way, but it will be at least an hour or more. It has been about thirty minutes, when suddenly there is a large commotion. We see federal officers running down the hall, and entering the courtroom.

"Martin that's courtroom six. Bella is in courtroom six," Heidi whispers out.

I start running down to the courtroom door. "Look sir, you need to step back, and stay away," the armed officer says. He is standing guard outside the door.

"But my girlfriend is in there, please let me in."

The guy shakes his head and gives me a sad smile. "I am sorry kid, but I can't let you in. They are clearing the courtroom." My hand goes to my hair and I start to panic, fuck!

Fuck! Fuck! Shit! What the fuck is going on!

Ring… Ring…

"Edward you need to calm down till we find out what is going on," Martin says grabbing my arm.

Ring… Ring…

"Hello…" Heidi says and starts waving her hand at us. "Okay, we will be there momentarily." She hangs up her phone and quickly comes over to us. "They're in the judge's chambers we can head over there right now, but we need to go the long way. Follow me," she says and at that she takes off toward the judge's chambers. We all follow her, and I am first in line wanting Bella beside me right now. "Okay here we are. I am going to stay out here and wait for your dad to get here, and I will stay out here with him. Cole says the judge plans to sequester you all in his chambers until the hearing is completed," Heidi tells Martin.

The federal guard outside the chamber door asks us all for ID and he checks us through the door after several minutes on his radio. Finally when we are let in, my heart breaks when I see Bella is curled up on Cole's lap. Mrs. O'Conner is rubbing circles on her back, and trying to soothe Bella. I make my way to her immediately and pick her up from Cole's lap. She quickly winds her arms around my neck and I can feel her warm wet breath on my neck. I sit on a sofa along the far wall, and whisper words of love to her, while trying to listen to what the man in the black robe is saying.

"I need you all to stay in this room for the next hour or two. No one leaves, or comes in. It is the only way I can tell you what has happened. All that is left to do in the case is closing statements, which will be wrapping up within the hour. Once the Jury is retired, I will be back in here until they reach a verdict. There is a restroom there," he points to the corner of the room. "There is a refrigerator here with drinks and snacks in it." He opens what looks like a panel of the wall and there is a fridge and microwave, along with what looks like a fairly well stocked food supply. "Please make yourselves comfortable. I don't think we will have wait too long for the verdict, but until we have one, she is to stay here. I can't let her leave, due to what happened in the courtroom. I think it is best that you know, I will allow Cole to fill you in so I can return to the courtroom." The Judge turns and points to a security guard. "Ben here will stay with you, but until the hearing is over he will be holding onto all of your cell phones. I've been informed that Charlie Swan, Bella's grandfather, will be here within the hour and Heidi is going to take him elsewhere until she hears from me."

"Baby girl," I say as I hugs Bella close to me, trying to get her attention. I need to see into her eyes. "Do you want something to drink my love?" I ask her. Cole has moved over beside me and sits down. I transfer her to him, so I can get her a sugary drink, hoping to keep her from going into full blown shock. As soon as I stand, she leaps off of Cole's lap and into my arms. The momentum of her movement sends us both to the floor. I had her tucked into me well, so I know she is not hurt. I just cuddle her into me, and hold her and let her know that I will not let her go. Cole gets up and brings me a bottle of apple juice, and a bag of M&M's. I coax Bella to take a few sips, and kiss her lips lightly. I look up see Mrs. O'Conner wiping her eyes, I smile at her, but the room remains silent for now. It only takes ten minutes until Bella's breathing evens out and she falls asleep. I know that the stress has caused her to more or less pass out, but just telling myself that she sleeping is easier.

"Okay, now that Bella is resting, what happened? Start from the top," Martin says, looking really angrily at Cole. I notice that Martin too, would rather think of Bella as resting instead of passed out.

"Judge Harris called her in chambers; he said that both I and Siobhan could stay with her. He explained that this was to do with the murder of Mr. and Mrs. Masen. He explained that there was more evidence needed and that the prosecuting attorney knew that Bella had knowledge of the murders. Because of Caius telling Bella about it all in great detail, he was asked to call her in to present a dying declaration. There was not enough evidence on some of the charges to get a complete guilty verdict. Your parents' murder being one of them, she agreed to give testimony on the happenings that she had knowledge of. The judge said he would call her to court the next day, and she asked for him to do it today, that she wanted it over and done with." He sighs rubbing his face, taking a drink he begins again. "Bella was determined to do it, both Siobhan and I were sworn in and were allowed to go in with her. Judge Harris ordered her to tell the court of everything that Caius told her about the murder of Mr. and Mrs. Masen. The judge ordered that the lawyers could not interrupt her, and that all of their questions for her, would have wait until she gave full testimony. Bella did well, going through everything. She had a few shaky moments, but all in all she did very well telling everything that happened that Caius told her. Jones, the prosecuting lawyer, said he had no questions. I promise you this; I will be having a fucking word or two with that stupid fuck very soon. Anyway the dipshit of a defense attorney stood up, he had a couple of questions," he said.

I could see that Cole was really agitated remembering this part, so I did my best to take a deep breath and remain relaxed, as to not disturb Bella, still sleeping in my arms.

"He asked Bella about what happened when Caius died. Bella went into great detail explaining how she ran away and he chased her. How she fought him off and hit him with a rock. The defense attorney interrupted her and asked her how it felt to have killed someone, and how she lived with herself being responsible for the death of another person. He even shouted out that she had already killed her own father, and now to kill an innocent man who had trumped up charges brought against his whole family. He went on to say that Bella was being paid off to lie about the Volturi family. Judge Harris jumped in at this point telling him he was out of line, and that the jury should not take anything the defense attorney just said into any context. Fuck, I was so mad at that point, I don't know what happened. One minute Aro is handcuffed in his seat, the next he's not and has bolted over to Bella. Thank God Judge Harris is fast, he pulled Bella behind him. He got hit in the process and that is where that shiner he is sporting came from."

I think back quickly, I didn't even notice the judge had a black eye.

"Anyway, he kept her behind him, as Aro was tackled by the guards. The whole time, Aro was screaming how he going to kill her, and kill you, Edward. He was stupid during his outburst, because he went on to say that you should have been dead along with your parents and would have been if he had found your hiding place that night. He gets away from the security guards again, and goes for Bella, but that time I stopped him."

"You did more that stop him Cole, you knocked the fucker unconscious with one hit," Mrs. O'Conner says.

Cole shrugs his shoulders. "Aro was carried from the courtroom, and Judge Harris cleared the courtroom, and allowed me over to her and let us use his chambers for her." Cole's voice broke at the end. It's clear that he is really upset over what happened. Martin is really pissed and I am struggling to keep calm but as I have Bella in my arms it's a little easier. I hear a sniff and see Mrs. O'Conner wipe her eyes again; I smile at her and thank her for being there for Bella.

Judge Harris allowed us to use this room, Bella woke up after sleeping for an hour. She stays in my lap. She is very quiet and doesn't talk much, but is worried over Grandpa. Cole laughs saying that Heidi is keeping him entertained and wiggles his eyebrows.

It's three hours later and we are told the jury reached a verdict. It only took an hour and a half. At this point Grandpa comes into the room with a smile and Heidi's holding onto his arm "See I still got the charm" his smile says as it all as he looks at Bella knowing now that something happened. He hugs her asking what was going on.

"Later Grandpa, did you have a nice dinner?" Bella ask sweetly. He nods his head and sits down as Cole looks over the charges. His face breaks into a smile. "Guilty on all charges, every single one. Good old Harris pulled the whole sentence them on the same day thing. I have to admit I love it when they do this. They got 306 years in total, each to be served at ADX Florence Supermax Facility in Florence, Colorado." We smile, knowing that it is by far the most restrictive of all prisons in the United States. There are only 490 beds in the facility and for the first full year there a prisoner is in solitary for all but one hour of each day. There are no interactions between prisoners and there are no telecommunications allowed in the facility whatsoever. We had all hoped that Aro and his family would be sentenced there, and are relieved to know they are.

The drive home is long. Grandpa rode with Bella and me. Mrs. O'Conner rode with her husband, but is still not on speaking terms with him. It's not that it was his fault that Bella was summoned; he was only doing his job.

20th of May 2011

The town of Forks has finally calmed down. All the news crews have left. Aro and his family were transferred to their new home yesterday, and I feel so much better. I am actually feeling calmer than I have in, well since I can remember. I think it is because I am finally able to put the ghosts of my past behind me.

I am at school again; I am heading to lunch happily knowing that I get to see Bella again. Since I only see her at lunch, gym, and football practice, this is one of my favorite times of the day. She still goes to gym and football practices, even after she made up all her missed time. Rock was happy, and sad about that. The guys on the other hand love it because she makes the most amazing muffins and brings them, along with juice to eat and drink after our workouts. Rock is sad, he has started to complain that it's not healthy and this and that, but it didn't stop him eating three or four of them each time.

I am sitting here looking around the room at my classmates; most of us have all grown up together. I have known almost all of them since first grade. Some came here after that, but most I have known for at least eight years. In our grade, Bella is the newest member, and she has been with us for six years. It's strange looking back at what I have gone through here in Forks and at this school. I am still finding it hard to write the speech I am supposed to. I really don't know what to say, or tell them. Life is fucking hard, and there will always be something unexpected waiting around the corner. Only two things really count, how you handle the things around each corner, and who is beside you to help you face those things.

I let out a sigh looking at my watch thinking that Bella should really have been here by now.

"Edward," I look up as I see Seth waving me over to him. I get up and head over.

"Jacob just turned up. He cornered Bella when she came out of a class room, but me and the guys were in the next classroom. I left them with her to come get you, he's still there demanding to speak to her," Seth says really quickly. He drags me down the hallway, and as soon as the word Jacob comes out of his mouth, I speed up. As we get there I am fucking surprised that the whole football team is there standing in front of Bella, keeping Jacob away from her. The biggest surprise is who is in front of them, talking with Jacob. Standing there is Jasper, as we get close I hear what is being said.

"Jake, she said that she forgives you, and that she will read your letter, but, she doesn't want to talk to you, or be alone with you. You have to respect her choice; I have the letter, you need to go now. You're not allowed here, and you know this," Jasper's tone has sound of authority to it.

Jacob huffs and tries to step around Jasper. "Bella we're friends. I am your best friend, come on. I need you, why won't you talk to me. I just need to talk to you, to tell you I am sorry, please."

I try and keep my temper under control. I see Jacob start to shake, as Bella shakes her head at him.

"I have already told you that I have forgiven you, but I can't talk to you. Not now, not for a long time from now. I won't be friends with you again; I don't want you in my life." Bella is trying to sound confident, but I can hear the hurt in her voice.

"For fuck's sake Bella, you're such a self-righteous bitch. What are you doing now, gang-banging the whole second string of shitty players on the football team?" By now I am right there standing with the rest of the team, as I go to hit the fucker in the face. Jasper grabs me and pushes me behind him. "What the fuck do you want Cullen? This has nothing to do with you, so fuck off and take those shitheads with you!" Jacob nods in the direction of the football team. "I need some time with my best friend," he says. He looks right at Bella. "Bells, come on you can never stay made at me. Look, I will try and keep my hands to myself, and take things slow. I will be your pussy ass friend, and be all sweet and goofy for you, but you have to give me a chance. You know we belong together, you are MINE!" Jacob chooses then to step forward, only to have the team push him back by stepping forward too.

"No, Jacob I am his," Bella says running her hand down my arm and taking my hand. "I am not yours, and I never was. I. DO. NOT. LOVE. YOU. I just can't, there is too much that happened. You have done too much for me to let you back in my life, and even now what you are doing, shows that you have not, and will not change." Bella leans into me, taking my hand from hers and putting it around her.

I hold her close, and she holds my other hand now that my arm is securely around her body. Jacob reacts to her cuddling into me, and lunges for me. This time Jasper stops him, and has him on the floor as the other guys all help restrain him. It feels like minutes later when Chief and Mrs. O'Conner come running up to us, followed by two other office staff.

Jacob is taken away as Mrs. O'Conner comes to check on everyone. Bella tells her she is fine, and we are all given an extended lunch period due to the fact that we all missed it. I pull Bella aside, as I want to know what happened before I got there. "What happened Bella? Did he hurt you before I got there, if he..."

Bella cuts me off by placing her hand over my mouth. "No, I was coming out of the classroom with Seth, Richard, and Simon behind me. Jake grabbed my arm and pulled me, the next thing I knew Jasper pulled me away placing me behind him. He called out to all the guys to block me. Jacob just kept saying the same things you heard. Once a few more of the guys were here Jasper nodded at Seth to go and get you, and Richard went to get Mrs. O'Conner." I am breathing hard, as I try calm down. "I am fine, and I have faced most of my demons. In a way it's a good thing, because I can leave this stuff here when we go to college." I nod my head at her, and we head to the cafeteria.

"Thank you all, so much, for helping me out there," Bella says in a small voice as we join the rest of the guys. I know she is touched by what they did for her. I know I am fucking proud that they did that for her.

"Like we were going to let anyone, or anything come in between us and our muffins. I mean team helper," Ben says as the rest of the guys laugh nodding their heads at what he said. "No, just kidding, but really Bella, you're one of us now. We look after each other, both on and off the field. Well, and you do make fucking amazing muffins," again they all laugh. I watch as Bella walks over to Jasper, who is sitting across from us. They talk for few moments, before she comes back over to me. I look over at my former friend; all I can see is sadness.

Bella gives me a small push in Jasper's direction, as she turns, talking to the guys again about making them a special dinner to thank them. They are almost drooling, as Seth tells everyone how great of a cook she is.

"Hey, can I sit here?" I ask, looking at Jasper as I speak. He nods his head and motions with his hand to have a seat. "I just wanted to thank you for helping Bella back there, and for not letting him hit me." My voice is beginning to give away the emotion I feel.

"No problem, as I said to Bella, he was out of line. Not that I am changing the subject, but I am sorry for being a dickhead. I was a dirty, rotten, horrible jerk, and I was the last thing you deserved when you needed a friend. I know that I don't deserve it, but I sure do miss my best friend. If you can find it in your heart to forgive this good for nothing, low life scoundrel, I'd sure appreciate it."

I laugh a little about the name he gave himself. "How are you getting on?" I ask trying to size him up, and see if he is telling me the truth.

"Shit man, I am really not doing the best. This is so fucking hard, but as Bella said, anything that easy to get into is always hard to get out of, but not imposable. Just take one step at a time." I nod my head at him, but stay quiet to let him speak. "I really don't know what to tell you. I started taking stuff mainly as an upper, after Maria and I broke up. I just felt so fucking down. I took more to make myself happy. I felt so fucking bad; it felt like I could only be happy when I was taking drugs. Then, Alice asked me out, and I was so drugged out that I didn't even think before I said yes to her. Don't get me wrong, I like Alice. I fucking love her, but I fucking hurt her. Not only that, but I hurt my two best friends who are her brothers. I should have spoken to you first; I know you would have helped me. It was a shitty thing to do to you, Emmett, and especially to her."

Jasper stops talking for a few seconds, and I can see that telling me all of this is hard, but he has to do it.

"Anyway, when Alice and I started dating she was so happy. I started taking more stuff to try and keep up with her. The road just went to hell from there. By the time you left for music camp, I was taking uppers, smoking pot daily, plus taking steroids. When the whole thing about Rose came out, I was still pissed at myself for what I did to you and what I was doing to Alice. I took everything out on you; I used you as my punching bag so to speak. Rose and I have talked; she gave me a good kick in the ass. I am not going to ask forgiveness, because I was in a bad place. But I am sorry for using you and Rose to vent my anger. To leave this on a high note, I am still struggling to keep clean, but I go to a support group, and I'm still graduating. I've got enough credits to get into the local college. I am not better yet, far from it actually, but I am on the road to recovery."

He clears his throat, nods his head, and gets up and goes to leave. I grip his arm, to stop him in his tracks.

"You may not have asked for it, or want it, but you do and will always have my forgiveness. If you need me to have your back then I will, I know you can get through this. One step at a time." Jasper nods his head, and walks out.

We finish off the rest of the day without anything else happening. Bella and I are watching the television, when the phone rings. It is Jessica, and Bella takes the call in the kitchen. I paused the DVR so Bella doesn't miss anything important, and when she comes back into the room, she has a huge smile on her face.

"She had a baby boy this morning. He weighs five pounds and three ounces. He is on the small side, but plenty big for being four weeks early. She sounded so tired, I told her to get some rest. She mentioned that she had been in labor for sixteen hours, but she still sounded happy." The whole time Bella is talking to me, she is watching her phone intently. When the phone she is watching chirps, she gets all excited. I can see the excitement rolling off of her. "Oh my God, he so cute," Bella says.

She shows me the picture of Jessica's baby and she's right, he is a cutie. "Yeah he is, has she named him yet?" I ask, as I hand her back her phone as another text comes through.

"No. She called Mike to let him know they took the DNA test on the baby. She is hoping once Mike does his part and it comes back as his, he may change his mind and want to take part in naming him. She said that they were getting the test fast tracked, and they should have the results in four days. But right now, she is calling him Junior."

I hope Mike doesn't screw this up, but fuck, it is Mike Newton we're talking about, so of course he will. I watch as Bella looks at the picture Jessica sent her, until she makes an odd face. "What was that face for?" I ask with a chuckle.

"Poor little thing, he looks just like his father in this one." Bella gives me her phone again, and I can see what she means right away. It is like a baby faced Mike is looking right back at you, even the same blue eyes.

"Shit, I don't think the DNA test is really needed. I can't believe I said something that looks like Mike was a cutie." Bella smacks me on the arm for the last comment. "So, are we all set to send Jessica's presents to her?" I ask, and Bella nods her head.

"You get on the phone and get the first part sent there so it arrives tomorrow. I will make sure that the other stuff arrives on Monday." Bella smiles at me, before going back to looking at the picture of the baby.

Bella and I got a $250 gift card each for Jessica and her baby, to buy new clothes and supplies they would need. Bella also picked out ten books for him, and got me to pick out some decent classical music. Bella insisted that we had to make sure that the baby had a good start in those departments. Right now I am ordering a large bouquet of flowers and balloons to be sent to her room tomorrow morning, along with a large candy and fruit tray.

I just got off the phone, as Bella hugs me from behind. "I know that I'm only seventeen, but after seeing those pictures, I can't help thinking about what our babies will look like. I do hope we have one with your eye color."

I turn around look at her, and looking right in her eyes I smile. "I can't wait until then either, but I want our baby to have your beautiful brown eyes. So to be fair, I guess we have to have at least two babies." I lean in and kiss her deeply. With the movie long forgotten, we make our way to bed, still discussing what our family will have and how we hope they will look. God, I love this girl, and she is made for me. We are a perfect match.


A/N: So Jasper steps up and protects Bella, and finally talks to Edward. Jake is a bit of a loose cannon still, but at least Bella is well protected. What are your thoughts?