-1Haha, look how quickly I updated! You should all be worshipping the keyboard I type on! (lol…) I actually started writing this last night, after my update then, and finished it tonight.

There were mixed feelings about our Princess and Hyde last chap. Some were on Hyde's side, other's on Bella's, and a few thought both were pretty much being idiots, lol. In about 24 hours, I got a lovely 40 reviews. I was planning on replying to you all, but, eh. I figured you'd all want an update more. ;) Was I right?

I had something I wanted to comment on…. What was it….? Oh, yeah! (I actually spent ten, fifteen minutes thinking about what I wanted to say.) So, I'm sure you all want to know what Hyde does as a 'job' for James, and I got to say. You're going to find out.

Just not yet.

AFTER BELLA'S GRADUATION, IT WILL BE SOON. And Bella's graduation is in… a month and a half, two months. Something around there. Edward's is two weeks less than that, which makes me think it's two, not less. I know you all are curious, but I have left a few hints, feeble though they may be. Correct guesses HAVE actually come in, but I won't even tell them they're right. And no, I won't tell you. ;) Be patient, dovies!

Enjoy!

BPOV

I scrubbed my hands over my eyes and blinked blearily at the pages of words before me. My history grade was… lacking, and with finals less than a month away, I needed to get the material down soon. I hadn't spoken to Edward since he came to my room so late Friday night, and I felt horrible about it, but….

I knew he needed time to heal from a tragedy of the magnitude of losing his mother, whom he had worked so hard to keep well, and I knew that I couldn't expect everything to be perfectly normal any time soon. I'd be surprised it he were better by the end of the summer. But….

It hurt me, drained me, having to deal with the shit he sometimes threw my way. I wanted to be the perfect, understanding girlfriend, I really did, but I simply couldn't. Everyone has issues and faults, and mine happened to be holding grudges and becoming somewhat easily frustrated with people, among many others. No one was perfect, not even Edward, and I accepted that. I knew that. It didn't make it any easier to work with, though. I could only deal with so much before I myself started feeling the effects. I was a person as well, and though I wished I could simply let him treat me like this because of his grief, I couldn't. I was only human.

A part of me wanted to call him now, to apologize for my slightly harsher than necessary words Friday, but another felt I had to wait for him to come to me. I had been putting my foot down; yes, he was grieving, but that didn't give him leave to treat people like things to use when he needed them only. I was torn, and Rosalie was now sitting with me, making sure I didn't call.

She glanced up at me right then. "Bella," she sighed. "Just give him time to think it over. It's gonna take a while to get through his fogged, pain-controlled brain right now, but he'll realize that he was being a jerk-ass of a boyfriend and come to you. If you go now, it's not gonna get better. Likely, it'll get worse."

I groaned. "I know that, Rose. You've been saying that since last night. But… what if he went and did something reckless again?"

She rolled her eyes. "I told you; Alice would have learned about it one way or another and told us."

I bit my lip and tried to study some more. We had a test tomorrow, and I wasn't that ready for it. Concentrate, focus. Think history, not Edward.

That didn't work for long. Soon my thoughts drifted back to Edward, and my fears that he would have done something stupid. Again.

"Jesus Bella!" Rose huffed, making me jump and blush. She pulled out her cell phone. "Hey Emmett. Listen, Bella's practically freaking here since she and Edward haven't spoken since Friday night cause he was an ass and all. She seems to think he may have done something stupid, so can you…." She trailed off, frowning. Casting a glance at me, she got up and walked out of the room.

I paled and got up to hurry to my bed, grabbing my cell phone and calling Edward. It rang and went straight to voicemail. I dropped it, shoulders slumping. I knew he'd do something stupid. That, or he was ignoring me. Maybe he was really angry about Friday. If I were him, I might leave. Would he leave?

Rosalie came back in, noticed the cell phone at my side and sighed, coming over to sit next to me, her hand rubbing my shoulders.

"Emmett said he went off without telling anyone where he was going yesterday morning, and hasn't been back since. Esme told the school he had a bad day so they wouldn't get mad missing the finals today, but she's worried sick. If he's not back by tonight, they're calling the police to file a missing persons report. It's not your fault sweetie."

The tears slipped down my face. "I chased him off."

She snorted. "Hardly. Don't worry. I'm sure he'll turn up."

I sighed, leaning forward to lean my head on my knees. "I feel sick." I said lowly.

"Lie down," she sighed. "I doubt anything is going to stick in your mind any longer."

I crawled under the blankets, feeling sick to my stomach. Dreadful scenarios of what could have happened played out behind my lids, making horrid nightmares that woke me up in the night. When I glanced at the clock, and realized it was only half an hour later - nine forty, I growled into my pillow, then threw off the blankets, going to sit in the desk chair under the dim glow of the lamp and study some more.

About an hour later - and barely any history sticking in my brain, I heard a buzzing noise.

Glancing around, I saw the lights of my cell phone flashing. I got up so quickly I stumbled to my knees, then crawled part of the way to my cell. I grabbed it and answered as one of the last vibrations neared the end.

"Hello?" I asked breathlessly.

"Bella, I need to see you."

I relaxed at the sound of Edward's voice, even tight and obviously angered as it was. At least I knew he was safe. That was so terribly important.

"Where?"

"I'm outside your school."

"Okay," I agreed. Quickly, I scribbled a note for Rosalie in case she woke up and freaked out over where I was, then yanked on a jacket over my tank top, slipping on flip flops and running out the door. My pajama bottoms would thankfully keep me warm in the cool night air; I had started sometimes wearing little cotton shorts to bed, but hadn't tonight.

Edward's Volvo was right outside, and I had to force myself to walk to it. I opened the passenger door and turned apprehensively to look at Edward.

Instead, I ended up gaping. Bruises scattered over his face, dried blood was on his shirt, in his hair, and staining the bandage wrapped around his left hand. I wanted so badly to reach over and unwrap that bandage, see the damage under it, but also felt nauseous at the thought. What the hell had he been doing the past forty-eight hours?

He grimaced as if he knew what I was thinking, but quietly said, "Seatbelt, Bells."

I buckled in as he pulled out onto the street. He drove to the small blocks near the public library closest to the school, silent. I wanted so badly to break it, but was afraid to.

He stopped, then got out of the car; I scrambled to do the same, and was surprised to find him opening my door for me as I turned to do so. I think he noticed, because he smiled slightly dryly, then firmly wrapped his fingers with mine as we walked towards the benches.

As we sat down, I finally gathered the courage to speak. "Edward, what happened? Where have you been? Esme was going to - or maybe already did - file a missing persons report."

He grimaced. "I called her earlier this evening, for a few moments, to tell her I'd be home later tonight."

A stab of pain lanced through me. He called Esme, which was good, but he didn't have time to at least send me a text saying he was safe?

His injured, bandaged hand came up to brush my cheek, then cup my chin, turning it to face him. "I know you want to know what I've been up to. And Bella, I want to let you in. You have no idea how much I do. But… I can't. I have to protect you from this, at the very least, and you have to accept that," he explained desperately. "I don't want this to tear us apart, but I can't tell you."

I stared at him expressionlessly. "You were on another 'job'."

He nodded, face pensive.

"It's why you're so beat up."

He grimaced, but an angry light filled his eyes. "The circumstances weren't fully explained to us, and that's why I'm so torn up. The bastard…." He glared over my shoulder for a while, into space, then his eyes drifted back to mine, resolve firming in them. "It's over now, Bella. I'm not going to do anymore of his work. I quit, and he knows why." Both his hands cupped my face now, and he searched my eyes desperately. I kept them blank, not wanting him to know what I was thinking, not really even knowing what to think.

"I'm serious this time; I promise to you, I'm not going off on these jobs anymore. He went too far this time, and I'm not going to be in on it. But I can't tell you about any of it, Bella. It's for your safety, and everyone's, that no one knows. Just… trust me on this. I know I haven't done much to ever earn that kind of unconditional trust, but please. Please."

I sighed, looking away. I didn't know what to make of this. So instead of facing it, I avoided it, moving on to something else. Grabbing his hands, I pulled them away from my face, then flipped over the bandaged one, looking it over.

Edward watched expressionlessly, waiting for me to speak. I moved to the tie holding it together, then paused, looking up at him. He nodded once, and I gently untied it, unwinding the wrapping until it fell away to reveal his bare hand.

The skin on his knuckles was torn away, cut and nearly shredded and bloody. Long cuts glanced down the palm and back, but they were for the most part shallow.

"What happened?" I asked quietly. "If you can tell me." I added, glancing up at him.

He looked so torn, so pained. "I… don't think I can. It would lead to more questions, and I can't answer those, Bella."

Letting out a soft sigh, I glanced back down at his hand, rewrapping the bandage slowly around it. His knuckles seemed to have suffered the most, and I couldn't imagine what had caused them so much damage.

"You can't tell me anything about your appearance right now, can you?" I asked quietly, saddened to realize I already knew the answer.

He sighed heavily. "I'm so sorry Bella."

I shook my head and stood up, wrapping my arms around myself. "Take me back to school."

He nodded, moving as if to grab my hand. I tightened my arms around myself, not sure if I wanted to let him in again just yet. I think he flinched, but it was hard to tell in the dark and I decided to ignore it. We got into the Volvo and he drove me silently back to school, stopping and hanging his head as I unbuckled.

The pain leaking off of him tugged at my heart. It was so hard to stay mad at him when I loved him this much. He'd have to turn into some crazy, villainous monster for me to leave him.

I reached over, touching his hand gently, and he looked up, tears in his eyes. My heart - soul - gave a painful yank, and I felt my own eyes fill with tears.

"I'm sorry," I said softly, trying to keep the water-works at bay.

He shook his head, not saying anything, and pulled me to him. I hugged him close, tightly, unmindful of his bruises. I started crying, and held him even closer.

"I'm so sorry Edward. I- I didn't m-mean to be such a bitch. I ju-just was so t-t-tired of you ignor-noring me." I gulped in some much needed air before continuing. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head, clutching me back as well. I felt the warm tears from his eyes hit my neck, where he had buried his face. "No, love. I'm sorry," he said, voice thick and husky. I felt him swallow thickly before continuing. "I knew I was hurting you as well, I could see it, but I didn't stop to try to work on controlling my reactions." He pulled back to look in my eyes, his red and glistening. "I distance people, Bella. It's what I've always done to keep them and myself safe. It's not the best method, but it's always worked for me. Please, try to be patient with me, and I'll work harder at letting you in. After tonight, no more secrets."

I nodded, choking out a laugh as Edward childishly crossed our pinkies in a pinky swear. From now on, we wouldn't hide things. Or so we said now; I knew how unrealistic that was in actuality, but it felt nice and comforting to say. I smiled as Edward leaned forward to seal it with a kiss, which almost instantly turned heated. After not seeing him for three days, and being distanced from him two weeks before that, I was in desperate need of some closeness to him.

"Stay the night," I asked him on a whisper between kisses, my arms around his neck and his around my waist. He paused, looking into my eyes, then smiled gently. "Of course," he murmured, then kissed me again. He parked his Volvo in the parking lot guest spot, then we snuck into my dorm room. Rosalie was still sound asleep, and I picked up the note to throw in the trash. Edward slipped off his shirt, then paused to glance at me.

"I've been in these jeans since Saturday. Would it bother you if I took them off?"

I looked down, cheeks flaming, but shook my head. He chuckled.

"You sure?"

Bravely, on my part, I lifted my gaze to meet his. "Yes."

He chuckled again, but I swore his eyes grew that heady dark green as we maintained eye contact as he drew off the dark, grubby jeans. His boxers, I noticed after a sparse, speedy glance, were black and silky. My cheeks flamed even after such a short look, and Edward laughed softly again, coming over to wrap his arms around me.

"If this bothers you," he whispered huskily in my ear. "I can always put them back on."

I shook my head quickly, then stammered, "I, I, um, don't want… grim. On my sheets."

He chuckled, but nodded, pecking my lips and then holding my hand to lead me to my small bed, really only meant for one person. I fondly remembered the last time Edward had slept in here, when we'd all watched a movie together. Such happier times….

I crawled in next to Edward, sighing contently as he wrapped his arms around me and cuddled me into his chest. One hand stroked the length of my hair and down to the small of my back, while the other he kept twined with mine and over his heart. His lips pressed to my nose, and I tilted my head and leaned up to press mine to his for another kiss. This kept on for a while, until I yawned, making him smother a laugh in my neck. He always laughed when I yawned during our nightly making out. It wasn't my fault he seemed to need so much less sleep than the average person. What was he, a vampire?

Rolling my eyes at the stupid thought, I closed them and breathed in deeply of his scent. At least he was safe now, was my last thought before sleep.

His scent lingered on my pillow the next morning, and Rosalie laughed as I held it to my nose again. Childishly, I stuck my tongue out at her.

Throughout the day, I received a text from Edward when he had breaks between finals testing, then again when he got out of school. My phone was almost taken away because of the consistency of my pulling it out, but I really didn't care too much since I got to keep it in the end. I felt lighter than I had in days, simply because Edward wasn't going to go off on those 'jobs' anymore and we had talked things out and were on good ground again. I practically skipped out of my class to my room, changing into something more comfortable and flopping down onto my bed. I crossed my ankles in the air and flipped rather pointlessly through my history book again.

About ten minutes later, the door opened and Edward stepped in with a smile. I grinned, shoving the book back into my backpack and dropping that dead weight onto the floor. Edward turned on the television and popped in the DVD, then as it started reading the disk, he kicked off his shoes and joined me. His arm wrapped over my shoulders to play with a strand of my hair until the main menu screen appeared and he pressed play, turning up the volume quickly.

"I love this movie." I told him, taking a bite of the candy bar I'd found in the fridge.

He smirked. "It is pretty hilarious."

I rolled my eyes. The Breakfast Club was beyond hilarious; it was the Best Movie of All Time.

Rosalie came into the room with Jasper not twenty minutes after it started, and they both grinned and joined us, Jasper sitting on the floor and Rose sprawling on her bed. When we were at either of our houses, we'd play the movie on Saturday morning's after making probably hundreds of chocolate chip waffles. After that would be Ferris Buller's Day Off - Rose's favorite, then Spaceballs, which was Jasper's. 80's Movies Saturdays. Even though today was Tuesday, and not Saturday, didn't mean we could just walk away from The Breakfast Club.

"Did you know Alice has never seen this?" Edward mentioned about halfway through the movie, when it became obvious all three of us had watched this movie probably one too many times; we were quoting it with perfect timing.

Rosalie and I gaped, then glared at Jasper. "How dare you date somebody who has not experienced the glory and wonder that is The Breakfast Club. You better be initiating her quick, Jaz."

He rolled his eyes. "Will do, girls."

I nodded, then quickly paused the movie, struck by a thought. "You've seen Spaceballs, right Edward?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Bella."

Rosalie narrowed hers. "What about Ferris Bueller's Day Off?"

He hesitated just a moment, but it was enough for all of us to groan. "Edward…" I gave him a reproachful look.

He at least had the decency to look sheepish. His hand rubbed the back of his head, and he offered up a half shrug.

Rosalie screeched at her phone. "Emmett, you asshat. How can he have not seen Spaceballs? That movie had to be tailor-made for him," she muttered, texting him quickly.

I heaved a sigh. "It seems like we're in for an 80-MS."

Rosalie and Jasper nodded gravely.

Turning to Edward, I said, "On Friday, all of us are going to Rose and Jaz's parents' house to stay the night, and the next morning, you and Emmett and Alice have to watch our favorite 80s movies with us. If you don't show up, I will sadly have to shun you." I nodded solemnly.

Edward was obviously fighting a chuckle; I was as well, but still. Yet, at the same time, a pained look crossed his features.

"I'll be there. Now can we finish the movie?"

It took me a few moments of thinking to realize what had caused the look of pain. After I remembered, I felt like a horrible person for not knowing right away, but I was an avoider by nature; if I could find another way, I would avoid painful or confrontational situations. Edward's mom's funeral was definitely going to be painful on Sunday.

There ya go! Short? Maybe. Good? You tell me! Review!