Disclaimer: SM owns all things Twilight. I own the rest of this twisted little tale.

A/N: So, so sorry for how long it's taken to get this chapter out. And I hope you don't mind, but it's coming to you unbeta'd because, well, you've waited long enough.


Chapter 29: New Realities

BPOV

As we pulled into the parking lot of the movie theater, my chest started to tighten. The silly banter and distractions during the ride there had relaxed me to the point that I almost forgot what we were doing. My mouth became dry as I watched clusters of people seamlessly join and separate from a larger group entity at the front of the theater, like water droplets on a window as they link and then divide. In the short silence following the cutting of the engine, I worried that everyone would be able to hear how loud my heart was pounding. Maybe if they did, they would realize that this wasn't such a good idea after all, and we could go home.

A small squeak escaped my lips and I jumped in fear as my door was suddenly pulled open.

"Oh, love, I'm so sorry," Edward said apologetically with his hands raised in front of him. "I didn't mean to startle you."

I took a moment to compose myself before I could respond. "No, it's ok. It's my fault for not paying attention. I know better than that."

Edward regarded me carefully, and I watched as his expression darkened slightly before he turned to the others.

"Alice? Jasper? Would you mind going to get the tickets while I talk to Bella for a minute?"

"Sure thing. C'mon darlin'," Jasper replied as he threw his arm around Alice's shoulder and began leading her towards the box office. She threw a concerned look back over her shoulder, but at the slight nod from Edward she offered a half smile and leaned into Jasper, allowing him to take her away.

Edward and Rosalie exchanged a brief look before she took Emmett by the hand and lead him around to the back of the car to give us a little privacy. I was glad though, that they didn't go very far. I turned in my seat so that I was facing Edward but, a little embarrassed, I just couldn't seem to lift my eyes from my clasped hands resting in my lap. Strong, warm hands picked up my small, cold ones and held them with a comforting pressure.

"Hey," he said softly. "Look at me, please." He ducked his head lower trying to see my bowed face, but it wasn't until I raised my head just enough to meet him halfway that he smiled. "That's better."

I felt my face redden at his praise, and I tried to hide it again but his hand caught my chin and held it with light, yet firm pressure.

"Nope. You don't get away so easy." The smile in his voice matched the small one on his face instantly putting me more at ease. "Please tell me what you're thinking."

Pulling my bottom lip between my teeth and furrowing my brow, I thought about what I should say. My mind swirled with so many things that I wasn't sure which one I should share. Glancing over my shoulder and out the back window of the car, I could see Rosalie and Emmett talking quietly to one another, sharing thoughts and feelings. Turning my head back and looking past Edward, I could see Alice and Jasper as they waited in line to buy the tickets. Even at this distance I could see them smiling and enjoying one another's company. I felt Edward squeeze my hand slightly as he waited patiently for my answer. With a deep breath and a sigh I released my lip and looked into his loving eyes.

"I want that," I said, gesturing to Rosalie and Emmett. "And that," I nodded towards Alice and Jasper. "I want that with you, but I am so scared." It was almost a whisper by the time I got it all out and I quickly dropped my gaze as my face heated in an all too familiar fashion.

Wordlessly, he helped me down from Esme's oversized vehicle so that I was standing in front of him, and pulled me to his chest. My nose burned and my eyes stung as I forced myself to believe this was real. He was warm, and strong, and I felt so safe as I pushed myself as close to him as I could. I could feel the contours of his chest beneath my cheek and hear his heart as it thrummed in a perfect pace.

After a moment, his head lowered, his breath hot on my neck, delivering and odd, yet pleasant sensation as he spoke softly in my ear. "You can have anything you want. I know you're scared, but I promise I will always be here for you. I love you, Bella. And that will never change."

"I love you too. I'm sorry I can't be better for you right now."

With that he let go, the immediate loss monumental, before his hands quickly cupped my face, his thumbs wiping at tears I didn't know were falling. His gaze was intense and I was shocked to see what appeared to be pain in his eyes before he closed them slowly and took a deep breath, before opening them again just as slowly.

"Bella, do you not understand what you mean to me? You're everything to me, and perfect exactly the way you are. I don't want you to be anything other than what you can be, and that will always be enough for me. You're the boss here. You call the shots at your pace. What we have is better than what everyone else has, because we have you. And I wouldn't trade you for anything in the world. So I hope you like me, because I've decided that you're pretty stuck with me." The corner of his mouth drew up into an almost arrogant looking crooked grin to which I was powerless to resist smiling back as I shook my head in partial disbelief and partial relief.

"What I ever did to deserve you, I'll never know," I mused almost to myself.

"Hey, that's my line," he said sweetly before kissing me gently on the forehead. "Now, what do you say we go find out who won the opportunity to pick the movie?"

At the mention of the movie, I couldn't help but stiffen. Edward's brow immediately furrowed as he looked at me questioningly, obviously waiting for an explanation.

"It's just . . . there's a lot of people." I felt almost ashamed admitting it. Everyone was being so patient with me and I didn't want to cause them frustration. Edward's face relaxed and that cocky little grin reappeared.

"Don't worry about that. We have a plan," he said as he winked at me. "Shall we?"

It was my turn to look confused, but I did trust him, so I tried to swallow the lump in my throat, hoping it would fall down and fill the empty pit in my stomach, and allowed Edward to lead me forward. Their plan became pretty obvious very quickly as Rosalie came up and slipped her arm through mine, sandwiching me between her and Edward. Emmett fell in step just slightly behind Rosalie but mostly behind me, and as we approached the front of the theater, Alice and Jasper took the lead and walked just ahead of us. I was surrounded, but this time it was a wall of protection. To anyone who looked at us, we would just appear as a group of friends, but to me it was a shield and my heart nearly burst with love for this family.

Jasper held the door as we entered the theater and my senses immediately exploded as if I had suddenly come out of sensory deprivation. In a way, I guess I had. The smell of buttery popcorn filled my nose, as the dull roar of countless conversations mixed with the dings and silly music from the arcade games in the lobby. My eyes were wide with wonder, as a distant, almost dream-like memory of happier times, came to life in front of me.

Edward's grip tightened on me slightly as we approached the ticket-taker and he handed him both of our tickets. He looked to be about sixteen, with dark hair and eyes, and a fairly advanced case of acne. His eyes brightened a little when he looked at me, but Edward quickly maneuvered us so that he was between me and this boy, whose eyes widened slightly as they appraised Edward before darkening back to their previously dull state.

"Theater four, on your right," the boy, whose name-tag read Dan, said with bored tone.

"Thanks, man," Edward said briskly before leading me past the ropes and into the main lobby area.

Once everyone was successfully past Dan, I was encircled once more and ushered towards our destination. What only could be described at this point as my posse, wove through the crowd with all the synchronized precision of a well choreographed dance. But my fascination with what they were doing was rivaled by my enthrallment with the long, colorful rows of neon, the bustling concession counter, and the large poster displays and cardboard cut-outs advertising future films. I felt almost hypnotized by the lights and noise, recovering myself only when Emmett spoke.

"Hey, we just passed the theater," he announced.

"No, we didn't," Rosalie replied. "We're going to theater four, that was only two."

"But the digital signboard outside two clearly said it was showing that new action flick, The Showdown. Isn't that what we're seeing?" he asked, clearly confused.

"Sorry, dude," Jasper said sheepishly. "You know I can't say no to Alice." Alice stuck her tongue out at Emmett playfully before snuggling into Jasper's side. Jasper just looked at Emmett and shrugged before kissing Alice on top of the head.

"That's the last time we send Little Boy Whipped over here to do a man's job. OW!" Emmett mumbled before getting smacked in the back of the head by Rosalie. "Fine. What is it that I am dee-lighted to see tonight?" he asked through gritted teeth and a fake smile, while rubbing the back of his head.

"What was that about someone being whipped?" Jasper teased a glaring Emmett, as everyone else laughed.

"It's Bella's night out, so it's girls' choice," Alice chimed in. "We're seeing the new rom/com, The Silent Heart."

I looked over to see Emmett's priceless expression of disbelief. "A chick flick?" he stammered. "They might as well call it Honey, I Shrunk Emmett's Balls!"

After that, I couldn't help but join in the laughter at poor Emmett's expense.

"Et tu, Bella?" He said to me in mock pain while pulling an imaginary dagger out of his chest, causing me to laugh even harder. I gasped for air, yet never felt more alive.

"Oh, c'mon, ya big lug," Rosalie said, rolling her eyes. "It's not like we're gonna watch it anyway." She raised one perfect eyebrow at him before dropping her voice a little lower. "And don't worry, I'll make sure your factory is producing at maximum capacity. No down-sizing for you."

Emmett's face slowly morphed from shock to a lust filled grin as he followed Rosalie straight through the door of theater number four, without one more word. Edward and I followed after, both of us chuckling and shaking our heads at the enormous puppy in front of us as he panted after Rose, while Jasper and Alice entered quietly behind us.

The theater was typical, I suppose. High backed red chairs staggered steeply up in stadium style, separated by armrests equipped with drink holders, and dimly lit by the rope-lighting on the stairs and several sconces on the padded acoustic walls. There was soft music playing and a slide show of trivia being shown on the screen as patrons filed in and selected their seats. Choosing a row near the back, we all began working our way across. The ripping sound of sticky shoes on cement increased as each of us in turn stepped in a patch of spilled soda that was never mopped up. I tensed for a moment as the thought of what such an infraction would have cost me in Charlie's house, and of course Edward noticed immediately.

"You okay, love?" he asked quietly so that only I would hear.

I thought about his question for a moment. Was I okay? But looking at him, and realizing where I was, a sensation of freedom came over me so strongly that my answering grin was unavoidable. I squeaked my sticky shoe purposely on the ground and smiled wider at the sound. Looking up at Edward's confused smile, I answered honestly. "Yes, Edward. Never better." His lips pressed gently to my forehead before we continued to our seats.

"Ew, gross!" Alice exclaimed behind me. "We need to tell someone to clean that up."

"No. Don't," I spun on her. "Please leave it."

Alice's eyebrows pinched in puzzlement, and I could feel everyone's curious stares on me.

"I'm sorry, I can't really explain it. But I really just need that to be left alone."

"Okay, Bella," Alice's tone was as if she was placating an upset child, but I didn't care as long as she did what I asked. "We'll leave it alone."

Unexplained relief washed through me as I thanked Alice and watched as she and Rosalie exchanged perplexed looks and shrugs. It was weird, on some level I felt like I had just rebelled somehow by refusing to have that spot cleaned. There was a certain level of giddiness, as my nerves calmed and adjusted to my new reality. I was tracking something sticky all over the floor, and I was going to walk out without fear of any sort of punishment for my crime. I felt lighter, and even happy, as I continued to smile after we took our seats.

The couples were all spaced out with a few seats in between. The armrests raised up, allowing me sit close to Edward without obstruction, and bright-eyed with new discovery, I soaked up everything I could about this experience, from the previews, to the sound system demonstration, to the feature film itself.

The theater was far from full, and I was only vaguely aware of Emmett and Rose slipping into the empty row behind us, while Alice and Jasper seemed to alternate their attention between the screen and each other. But even so, I felt that pang that I had felt in the parking lot earlier. I wanted what these other couple's had with Edward. I was nowhere near ready to do what they were doing, but hoped that someday I could. It was with that hope, that I found the courage to reach up and kiss him on the cheek, but just as I did so he turned to look at me and our lips met for the first time in weeks. The shock of it broke us quickly apart as we gazed at each other with wide, surprised eyes. But what was surprising me more, was that I didn't feel any fear. It was strange and confusing, but I watched his eyes grow even wider as I inexplicably leaned in to kiss him again. His lips were warm and soft as they moved hesitantly and gently against mine. My hand trembled as I lifted it slowly to his face, feeling along his strong jaw before sliding it back into his unruly hair. Only the slightest of pressure joined our lips, but the weight of the love conveyed was heavy.

Breaking off, I leaned my forehead against his and lost myself in his pools of green.

"Bella," he whispered almost reverently. "I love you."

Tears pricked my eyes, and my heart pounded as I felt the full truth for the first time.

"I know you do."

*0*0*0*

As the credits began to roll up the screen, Edward leaned over and asked me to stay seated for a moment. He wanted to wait until the other patrons gathered their things and left before we followed suit. Alice was chatting animatedly about the film to Jasper, who was simply smiling at her and playing with the short hair on the back of her neck, while Rose and Emmett, looking a little flushed even in this dim light, were working to correct their disheveled appearances.

When everyone else was gone, we exited the same way we came in. Once through the door of the theater, they all resumed their positions around me and ushered me back through the lobby and out to the car. Everyone was hungry, but realizing that there was quite a difference between a dark movie theater and a crowded restaurant as far as my nerves were concerned, it was decided to just pick up some pizzas and head back home. Emmett and Jasper volunteered for the task, and headed in to a local pizzeria. While we waited, I tried to pay attention to the conversation Rose and Alice were having, but couldn't seem to think straight once I felt Edward's warm hand encase mine, sending my heart racing for unfamiliar reasons. I looked up to find him staring at me with adoration in his eyes, and just the slightest hint of a grin. My face heated under his gaze, effectively disconnecting my brain from my mouth.

"Thank you for the movie," I said lamely, mentally rolling my eyes at how inept I am at this kind of thing.

"You're welcome, love. First of many, I hope," he replied sweetly as he lifted our joined hands to his mouth and kissed the back of mine. Odd heat radiated from where his lips touched my skin, up my arm, and spread slowly throughout my body, tingling and comforting me as it enveloped me. There was so much I wanted to say to him, but before I could make any sense of the chaos in my head, Emmett and Jasper emerged with several pizza boxes and two six-packs of soda.

The smell of gooey cheese and pepperoni permeated the car causing my stomach to growl in anticipation. I'd been so nervous about going out that I hadn't had much of an appetite earlier today and my body was registering its protest. I smiled a little at the thought that just a few weeks of regular meals could erase my body's conditioning to years of regular starvation. Was this what it felt like to heal?

The pizza box heated my lap as I held one for Edward and I to share. The conversation was light and fun as we made our way back home, relaxing me so much that it even overpowered the small tightening in my stomach when we passed the "Welcome to Forks" sign. Edward slowed and drove cautiously so as not to draw any attention to us, but remained casual and winked at me to let me know that everything was okay. And it really was. We were almost home and everything had gone perfectly. It was such an amazing night and I felt on top of the world.

Edward and Jasper had accepted Emmett's challenge to eat a whole pizza each, and I was enthralled with watching slice after slice disappear. I'd never seen anyone eat so much and I could tell Edward was getting quite full, but refusing to back down to his brothers, he requested yet another slice. Feeling giddy with freedom, and anticipation of our near completion of a successful outing, I couldn't help the fit of giggles at Edward's mini cursing tirade over the glop of pizza sauce running down his shirt as his sixth slice decided to not go down without a fight.

Scooping it off his shirt with his finger as we rolled to a stop at the town's only traffic light, he looked over at me with a wickedly playful gleam in his eye.

"Think that's funny, do ya Swan?"

I squealed and squirmed in my seatbelt, laughing hysterically as I tried to retreat away from his advancing sauce covered finger. Closing my eyes tight in expectation of a sauce attack, it took me a moment to realize that not only had it not come, but that Edward had become silent. Peeking cautiously up at him, fear instantly began to overtake me as I took in his posture. He was frozen in place, his sauce covered finger still hovering in the space between us, but his eyes were narrowed and zeroed in on something to our right. His expression was a mixture of fear and rage, causing my chest to bubble with shallow breaths and gripping anxiety.

Slowly, as if pulled by some unseen force, I followed his gaze to the police cruiser sitting in the turn lane of the cross traffic. My eyes widened, and dizziness swept through me, as they met the cold, steel eyes of James. Violent tremors ripped through me as ice spread through my veins. The cruel twist of his mouth as he winked at me, the only reminder I needed to know that I would never truly be free.


A/N: I hope you enjoyed this little nugget that I chipped off the writer's block. It may be slow going right now, but I promise I will NOT abandon this story. Thank you for sticking with me. You all are awesome!

Thank you to CatMasters, Hev99, and Nostalgicmiss. You ladies are amazing and I could not be more grateful to have you.

Special thanks to ethans mom. You know why.