If there were ever any lyrics that captured my Bella, these are it. I wish that I was creative enough to have come up with them, but I didn't. I also don't own Twilight.

"God, I want to dream again.Take me where I've never been. I want to go there, this time I'm not scared. Now I am unbreakable, it's unmistakable. No one can touch me. Nothing can stop me. Sometimes it's hard to just keep goingbut faith is moving without knowing. Can I trust what I can't see to reach my destiny? I want to take control but I know better." Unbreakable, FireFlight

"Second verse."

I looked down at Edward and shook my head. He was lying between my legs, his chest resting between my thighs, his chin on my stomach, and his hands curled under my hips. He was smirking, his lips curled to the side of his face. For the past hour he had been "quizzing" me about lyrics, making me repeat them, and even if it was meant to help me, I couldn't concentrate with him being this close to me.

"What?" He laughed. "What's the second verse?"

His laughter vibrated against my pelvis, making me squirm underneath him.

"Oh no." Edward shook his head as his hands tightened around my hips. "What's the second verse?"

"Edward," I warned.

He smiled before kissing my hip. "Bella."

"I can't focus with you…" I watched as he used his nose to lift the hem of my shirt and completely forgot what I was saying when his lips made contact with my skin.

"With me what?" Edward asked against my stomach. He looked up when I didn't answer and gave me an innocent smile before squeezing my hips. "Second verse, Bella."

"You're distracting me," I lamely complained.

"No," He shook his head. "I'm providing you a valuable service. You-"

I interrupted him. "So far all you're doing is teasing me."

"You don't think you could be distracted while you're on stage? I'm just trying to teach you how to work past those distractions." Edward gave me another smile before unbuttoning my shorts. I sat up on my elbows and laughed while he pulled them down my legs.

"Are you telling me that while I'm singing someone will be kneeling between my legs?"

He pulled his shirt off before crawling back up to me. I smiled when he shook his head and wrapped my legs around his hips.

"The only person doing anything between your legs is me." Edward kissed my neck, pulling the strap of my tank top off my shoulder. "And it sure as hell won't be on a stage in front of thousands of people."

"So see," I laughed. "You were just teasing me."

"Bella shut up and let me kiss you."

I laughed once before Edward's lips met mine.

xXxXxXx

"You've got fifteen minutes for soundcheck."

Jasper nudged my back, trying to move me towards the mic stand. Unfortunately my feet were stuck where they were while I looked out at the nearly empty amphitheater where the festival would take place tomorrow.

"Bell-"

"It's freaking huge," I whispered. "How… What…"

"You'll be fine," Jessica playfully hit my shoulder with hers before walking towards the drum set behind us.

"Come on." Jasper pushed on my back and I clumsily walked towards the front of the stage.

I waited as Jasper and Jessica got ready, and looked out at the enormous empty space in front of me. How the hell was I going to be able to pull this off? There weren't twenty people out there now and I was nervous. What would it be like tomorrow night when the place was completely filled?

Jessica started counting a beat and I fumbled to get my ear monitor into my ear. It wasn't but a few seconds later that Jasper joined her on the guitar, telling me that I only had ten seconds before I had to start singing. I swallowed around the large knot in my throat as I reached for the mic stand.

We rehearsed the song three times, and all three times, I messed it up. First I was singing too fast, then not fast enough. Once I even forgot the damn lyrics. If this was any sort of indication of how tomorrow was going to go, then it would be a freaking nightmare.

Jasper and Jessica were quick to reassure me but it didn't really help. Humiliating myself wasn't really something I wanted to do but I was more concerned with embarrassing the two of them. They had both worked so hard the past couple of weeks. I hated the fact that it could all be ruined because of my dumb ass.

I spent the rest of the afternoon in my bedroom listening to a track we had made with just Jessica and Jasper playing. I silently sang along, trying to memorize my leads and cues. When the bed moved beside me, I realized I wasn't alone. Opening one eye, I saw Edward sitting down next to me. He took the iPod off of my stomach and once he saw what I was listening to, stopped it and carefully pulled the earbuds out of my ears.

"There is such a thing as too much practice, Bella." He wound the cord around the player and set in on the bedside table before looking at me. "Jasper called me."

That wasn't really surprising. "Yeah?"

"He said you were a little high strung when you guys finished the soundcheck."

For obvious reasons Edward hadn't been able to go with us today. I was both thankful and resentful for that. I would have loved for him to be there to support me but I'm also glad that he didn't see me make a complete fool of myself. I looked down at my lap until Edward squeezed my thigh.

"Talk to me."

I sighed before sitting up and looking at him. "How do you do it, Edward? How do you stand up in front of all of those people and let them judge your music?"

He shrugged. "I just don't think about it."

"That doesn't help me at all."

"No I mean," Edward shook his head before starting over. "It isn't about what they think of the music. It isn't what they think about me. If one person hears that song and it helps them through something or helps express feelings that they can't deal with then it's all worth it."

"You don't get nervous?" I picked at the knee of his worn out jeans.

He laughed. "Are you kidding? I used to get so nervous that I would throw up before I went on stage. Everyone gets nervous, that's a natural reaction."

"Then how do you get past it?"

Edward looked at me for a second before getting off of the bed and holding his hand out for me. "Come on. I'll show you."

I took his hand and let him lead back into the studio. He told me to wait by the door, so I stood and watched as he moved around the room, arranging the mic stand and putting a CD into the player.

"Okay." Edward smiled and motioned for me to come to him. "You stand right here." He took my shoulders and gently moved me so that I was standing behind the microphone. Once I was in place, he kissed the back of my head. "Ready?"

I nodded and nearly jumped out of my skin when he used the remote to start the CD player. Jessica's drumming filled the studio, followed by Jasper's guitar. It was already loud but Edward turned it up to where you could feel the base vibrating the floor.

"You're going to piss off the neighbors!" I yelled over the sound.

"Fuck the neighbors," Edward yelled back. He moved so that he was standing in front of me and smiled. "What do you feel?"

I shrugged and looked down at the floor. He lifted my chin before shaking his head and moving his hand to rest of my chest. "Tell me what you feel."

"I feel the base." I answered loudly.

"You feel the music," Edward corrected. He turned the music off and smiled. "Now shut your eyes."

I sighed. "You're making me feel stupid."

"Trust me." He leaned forward and quickly kissed me. "Close your eyes."

I did what he asked and smiled when I felt his hands on my hips. "You wrote this song, Bella. You know the music, you know the lyrics. The only reason why you're messing up is because you're thinking too hard."

His hands let go of my hips and I felt him move behind me.

"You're focusing on the audience and not the music. You're distracted by fear instead of living in the moment." Edward's lips pressed against the back of my shoulder. "Don't be scared. Just let go and feel it here." His arm wrapped around me as his hand pressed against my chest. "Don't think. Don't hesitate. Just feel it. Okay?"

I nodded as he kissed my neck.

"Sing for me," Edward whispered. He kissed my ear and turned the music back on before I had a chance to respond.

With his arm wrapped around me and his hand pressed against my chest I sang through the entire song perfectly, twice. If only I could stand on stage with Edward Cullen wrapped around me. Then I wouldn't have any worries.

Once he turned off the music I leaned back against his chest and sighed. "I wish you could be on stage with me."

Edward kissed the top of my head. "Just because I'm not physically there doesn't mean that I'm not with you."

I turned around in his arms and hid my face against his chest. "I know."

Maybe it was childish to want him with me, treating him like some sort of security blanket, but Edward made it so much easier to forget everything else around me.

"Here," Edward reached around me and grabbed a Sharpie marker off the top of the keyboard. "Give me your hand."

I watched as he turned my hand over before pulling the cap off of the marker with his teeth. When he started drawing a blue heart on my palm I smiled. "What's that for?"

"Now you have a piece of me with you." Once he finished coloring it in, he smiled before blowing on the drying ink. "You hold my heart in the palm of your hand, Miss Swan."

"You are so adorably cheesy, Edward."

He smiled before leaning forward to kiss me. "And you love it."

xXxXxXx

I stared at Edward, watching as lips moved, giving me words of encouragement. I tried to focus on what he was saying but all I could hear was the thump, thump sound of the blood rushing through my veins, pounding behind my ears. I swallowed several times trying to fight off the nerves that made my stomach churn.

"Bella." His voice was a soft command. My eyes moved off of his mouth to find his eyes. They were pleading. His hands gently held the sides of my face as he nodded his head. "You can do this."

"I can do this," I repeated slowly.

Edward smiled before leaning forward and kissing my lips. My eyes slipped closed and I tried to focus on this, on the feeling of him, of us.

His forehead leaned against mine. "Don't be nervous." He kissed me again.

I nodded, wishing that it was that easy.

"Bella, it's time," Jasper said quietly.

I heard the stage manager talking, heard Jessica and Alice moving behind me. Slowly, I opened my eyes to see my reflection in Edward's eyes. I smiled, he smiled, and I hoped that he was right, that I could do this.

My hands fisted in the front of his shirt. "I love you."

Edward gently pulled my hand away and kissed the faded blue heart on my palm. "I love you."

I smiled again before letting him go. After a quick drink of water, I nodded to Jasper and followed him towards the stage. As I was walking away Edward grabbed my hand, making me look back at him.

"Remember what I said, Bella. Feel it in here." His free hand was placed over my heart. "And don't think."

Alice stepped to his side and looped her arm through his. "And have fun." She smiled and wished Jasper good luck before squeezing Edward's arm.

The look on Edward's face was the last thing I saw before turning around and letting Jasper and Jessica lead me through the mass of people to the side of the stage.

"You know the cue," Jasper said quietly. "If you need the music to slow down, you know what to do."

I nodded and Jessica gave me a reassuring hug before helping Jasper pull the guitar around his shoulders. "You've got this, Bella."

The previous band had cleared the stage and the crew was working to move their equipment and set ours up. I watched in a numb silence thinking about everything that I shouldn't be thinking about. The fear, hurt, heartache… it all flooded my mind. I waited for the same hollow feeling to take over my body but there was something else instead. The doubt that those memories normally produced became one word, a question. Why? Why had it all happened, why did any of us have to go through it? Why did it have to hurt as much as it did? Why did it have to leave scars on our hearts?

"Are you okay?" Jasper asked.

"Yeah," I smiled and nodded my head. "Yeah, I'm fine." Maybe it wasn't a lie; maybe I was fine because I finally knew the answer. I finally understood. I reached over and squeezed Jasper's hand as we were introduced.

"Ready?" I asked him. He nodded and smiled before leading me out onto the stage.

Jessica started counting a beat and my eyes found Edward, standing at the side of the stage with Alice. When Jasper started playing, I took a step forward. My hand didn't shake as I reached forward and held onto the mic stand. My breath didn't shake as my lungs filled and my voice didn't break when I started singing.

The second that I started singing I forgot about everything but the music. I didn't see the crowd. I didn't see their reaction to the song. I sang because for so long I had been silent. I sang because I needed someone to hear me. I sang because this was why everything had happened.

This was me, the broken mess that didn't have any idea who or what she was. These lyrics were my fears, worry, struggles, heartache, dreams, hope, and desires… everything. I wasn't hiding behind a band. I wasn't pressured into performing. It wasn't someone else singing my lyrics. It wasn't someone else telling my story. These words, this music… it was me. This was mine.

For years I had fought for control. I tried to plan every step I took to avoid feeling lost. I hid away part of myself to avoid feeling vulnerable. I had blamed my problems on mistakes from the past to avoid seeing what my real faults and weaknesses were. And now I was letting go. I was opening up my heart and soul; letting it fly with every word I sang. I put aside my fears of never being good enough because in this moment, I was. I stopped blaming my ghosts of mistakes past and realized that my biggest enemy was me. It wasn't Edward's behavior years before. It wasn't the social phobia that I'd surrendered my life to. It wasn't Garrett and Sam. It wasn't anything but me.

I could have stayed in New York and worked things out with Edward. I could have never left Seattle and come to Texas. I could have forgiven and forgotten a lot sooner. I could have gone to the concert that Edward had played on my birthday. I could have listened to his warnings about Sam and Garrett. I could have done a lot of things differently but I would have had to let go. That's why all of this had happened. That was the understanding that had washed over me. I was my own worst enemy because I couldn't let go of the past and my own insecurities. I used the fear as a crutch and all it had done was blind me to the reality of my life. But finally, on this stage in front of all of these people, I finally let go. I was free.

I opened my eyes as the song ended I found the only thing that could have made this moment any better. Looking down and to the left of the stage I found a wide smile and a pair of brilliant green eyes and I realized nothing else mattered.

Backstage my eyes searched through the mass of people that were waiting. I nodded at their words of encouragement but couldn't focus on anything but finding him. Jasper's hand was on the back of my neck, guiding me through the throng of people while Jessica took care of the equipment. My body was shaking from adrenaline while my heart was absolutely aching to feel him. I needed Edward.

"There," Jasper yelled above the noise. "They're over there."

I could barely see the top of Edward's head over the people in front of us but that didn't stop me. Pushing through the group, I started running. I should have apologized but I couldn't stop long enough.

Once Edward saw me, he left Alice standing there and ran to meet me. I thought I would cry when I finally felt his arms around my body and his lips against mine, but I didn't. I laughed and smiled, holding him against me.

"I knew you could do it," he whispered against my ear. "I'm so fucking proud of you."

I squeezed Edward tighter and turned my head to kiss his neck, his jaw, and his lips.

"Do you need anything? Water?" He slowly pushed away from me, keeping his hands on my shoulders. I shook my head when Edward leaned down to look me in the eye.

"I just want to go home," I answered. "Let's go home."

Edward laughed quietly. "What about the results? You don't want to know if you won?"

I shook my head and pulled him by the front of his shirt back towards my lips. "I've already won."

xXxXxXx

I was letting the shower warm up as I brushed my hair out when Edward sat a thin box on the counter in front of me. I looked up at his reflection in the mirror and laughed at his excited expression.

"What did you do?" I looked at the box and then back at him.

He shrugged before tapping the box with his fingers. "I got you something."

It was hard not to copy his contagious smile and giddy attitude. Adrenaline from the performance was still running through my body, leaving me jittery and hyper, which only added to the euphoric atmosphere in our bathroom.

"Open it." He nudged the box towards me and watched in the mirror and I pulled the lid off.

I'm not really sure what I expected, but I stared down at the piece of paper, neatly folded in the box, completely confused. Edward picked it up and handed it to me. As I read the print on it he kissed the back of my shoulder.

"Plane tickets?" I asked him. He nodded and moved his lips to my other shoulder. "To where?"

His eyes met mine in the mirror and he smiled. "Anywhere you want to go."

I turned around and looked up at him. "Are you serious?"

Edward laughed and pulled the paper out of my hands, dropping it on the counter behind me. His hands made quick work of the belt of my robe and gently pushed it off of my shoulders, letting the fabric puddle at our feet.

"Seattle wasn't really a vacation, was it?" He quietly asked me. "We both need some time away from everything and everyone. I don't care where we go as long as we're alone."

I reached down to remove whatever sort of clothing he was wearing, only to realize that he was naked. I looked back up at him, hating and loving the cocky smirk that sat on his face.

"You think you're so sneaky, Edward Cullen."

He shrugged and carefully pushed me back towards the shower. "Do you feel like you're body is humming? Like you've had about eight Redbulls and you have no idea what to do with the pent up energy in your system?"

I stepped backwards into the steamy mist and nodded as Edward shut the shower door behind him. He smiled before leaning forward and capturing my mouth with his. His lips were greedy with mine, his tongue forceful and domineering. I finally had to break the kiss, panting with want and desire. He smiled down at me before speaking.

"I'm going to work it out of you." One of his hands held my hip against the shower wall while the other slowly slipped between my legs. "All night long."

A/N: Yeah I know… cockblocked twice in one chapter. I'll make up for it in the next one, maybe. Thank you, thank you, a million thank you's to everyone who has read, reviewed, rec'd this story. I am horrible at responding to reviews but please know that I read each one of them and love ninety percent of them. Massive amounts of hugs and kisses to all of you. I am eternally your groupie. JFI