A/N:

Alright, where have I been, right?

Well, I deleted the AN that explained why I've been absent, but I thought I'd give you a quick rundown and update with everything.

On June 5th, my grandfather got Covid-19. He was already very ill, so I didn't expect him to get better. I just didn't expect it to go so quickly. Just a few days later.

After that, we found out my grandmother tested positive and my mom had to be put in quarantine. Both of them are fine now.

On May 29th, I got the news I've been accepted to The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York and that has been a roller coaster in itself. Mainly problems with getting a visa because of the pandemic. That, combine with an inability to fly to NYC and quarantine off-campus for 14 days before school starts means I'll have to take the first term online and I'll fly out after New Years instead.

As I slowly get my life back on track, I've started writing more again, building up a little collection of pre-written chapters for you! I just need to get my team back together so I can deliver them to you ;-)

Title: Love is Strange

Author: MarieCarro

Beta: Alice's White Rabbit

Pre-reader: LunaEclipse

Genre: Friendship/Romance/Drama

Rating: NC-17

Summary: Bella Swan and Edward Cullen live in the small town of Ligonier in Pennsylvania. They've been best friends since they were six years old, and not much can keep them apart. Bella wants to leave small-town life behind, while Edward is fine with whatever, but that's not the only complication in their relationship. What happens when they fall in love … with each other?

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

CHAPTER 24

A SECOND CHANCE

When Edward opened his eyes the next morning, at first, he couldn't remember why he was feeling so happy and full of anticipation, but then as the fog of sleep slowly faded away, the night before came back to him, and he smiled widely.

Then he turned his head to the side and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the bed next to him was empty and that the night's erotic adventures had only taken place in dreamland. As much as his body yearned for Bella again, his mind and heart knew they had to pace themselves.

He checked his phone for the time and decided it was time to get up. From what he used to know about Bella, she wasn't much of a morning person, but since that very well could have changed, he wanted to get out of bed quickly so he could offer her breakfast. Since he was still a few weeks away from taking his bar exam to become eligible to practice law in the state of New York, he wasn't needed at the firm's office on a regular basis, and he had the day off.

Hopefully, Bella didn't have to work either, and they could spend the day in each other's company. But if she did have to work, he'd at least ask her if they could have lunch together. He was already reluctant to part from her now that they'd finally been given a second chance, but he'd understood this older Bella valued her alone time, and if she didn't want to meet with him later, he would respect that.

As he passed the door to the guest room she was staying in, he listened carefully for any sound that would signify she was awake, but he heard nothing, so he continued downstairs to the kitchen. Maybe the smell of coffee would lure her out of sleep.

Just as the first two slices of bread popped out of the toaster, he heard almost inaudible steps approach the kitchen, and he looked over his shoulder to see an adorably disheveled Bella enter the room.

"Good morning," he said and smiled.

She leaned against the wall and smiled back. "Good morning."

"I wasn't sure what you wanted for breakfast, so I just made some toast, but if you want something more substantial, the pantry's full so—"

"Toast is great," she reassured, and then helped herself to a cup of coffee, and it delighted Edward that she was comfortable enough in his house to make herself at home. "Thank you for letting me stay here last night," she said and accepted the offered plate with the toast on it.

"You don't have to thank me. It wasn't for a completely unselfish reason," he said and took a bite of the buttered bread.

"Oh?"

"No, because, you see, the more chances you give me to be a good friend, the faster you'll fall head over heels for me." He winked at her and chuckled, and she echoed it with her own soft laugh.

"Yeah, well, that feat's already been accomplished," she said, and he immediately met her gaze.

There was so much he wanted to say to her, but he'd already overwhelmed her with the depth of his feelings and his dreams for their future, and he was scared of chasing her away if he continued.

Bella sighed, but it was a sigh of preparation. "I know I didn't straight out say it last night, but over this past month, I've realized my feelings for you never went away either. I fooled myself into believing I got over you years ago, but the second I saw you at Alice's party, I knew that was a lie." She leaned forward on the table but didn't once break their eye contact. "I still love you, too, Edward. And I want the two of us to work this time so badly, which is why we can't rush back into anything."

His heart was thundering in his chest because the words he'd thought he'd have to wait weeks or maybe even months to hear again had just fallen from Bella's beautiful lips, and the feeling bursting from within was heady. He simply needed to touch her after that, and he put his breakfast down on the counter behind him before he walked up to her.

"I understand what you're saying, and you're right. We shouldn't rush into anything, but can I still ask for one thing?"

She immediately nodded.

"Can I please kiss you? Just one kiss. Nothing more. I promise."

Her beautiful smile once again stretched across her face as she stood up from her seat, and then reached up to place her hand on his neck before standing on her toes to press her mouth against his.

Edward didn't care how cheesy it sounded, but he was certain he both felt and heard fireworks in the distance as he once again got to experience the wonderful feeling of having the woman he loved in his arms. His memories of their time together as teenagers had never faded, but just as he'd discovered the new deeper level to his feelings for her, the sensations of having her lips move with his in blissful sync felt even more powerful than he remembered.

He never wanted to let her go, but he realistically knew he had to. When they parted and she opened her eyes, he could see that he wasn't the only one who'd been affected by their connection.

"Wow. That was ..." She trailed off, as lost for words as he was.

He just nodded in agreement.

A phone chimed, and since Edward didn't recognize the signal, he understood it was Bella's. She fished it out of the back pocket of her jeans and checked the message.

"Do you have to go to work?" he asked.

"No, it's not work," she said, and her voice sounded a lot less happy than it had a minute ago.

"Is something wrong?"

"It's George," she answered and showed him the display of her phone. "He's been texting me all night. I just turned the sound back on."

Edward scrolled through the countless "I'm sorry"'s and "I love you, please, text me back!" He hummed to himself, not voicing his concern over the man who refused to back down. Edward had studied one too many cases of lawsuits and violated restraining orders between partners not to see a couple of red flags. "He's persistent."

Bella pocketed her phone again. "Like you wouldn't believe. He asked me for a date for three years before I relented."

He grimaced toward that revelation. "Bella, I don't want to assume anything because I don't really know the guy, but it sounds quite alarming that he can't accept a no."

"He's not violent," she said, but at the same time as she, sort of, defended him, Edward took notice of the slight waver of her voice that told him there were parts of George's personality she didn't agree with.

As a lawyer, Edward had become an expert at reading body language, especially in those who tried to hide something or alter the truth since he needed to know everything if he was going to represent a client in court.

But he didn't want to push Bella right now. He had to trust that she knew how to handle George, but he also made a silent promise to himself that he'd be alert of any changes whatsoever.

Edward already knew George had a somewhat irrational way of thinking. The fact that he'd turned up at Edward's house uninvited that night almost a week ago spoke of that, and he'd projected a lot of suppressed aggression during the housewarming party.

"If you say so," he said now to let Bella know he trusted her. "But will you let me know if he doesn't stop?"

"If he doesn't stop bothering me, I'll tell Rosalie, and she'll have his balls," she said and snaked one arm around Edward's waist to hug him. "You don't have to worry about anything."

He yielded. "Fine, then. I trust you."

"Thank you."

They finished their breakfast, and Bella didn't appear to be in a rush to leave, which Edward had nothing against, but he still felt the need to ask.

"Do you have any plans today?"

She shook her head. "No. Before I went to Vermont, I cleared my schedule for at least a week. It means I'll have to work twice as hard next week because I'm incapable of saying no to assignments or new bookings but"—she gave him a small smile and reached out to play with his fingers—"I'll work on it. I suddenly find myself having this yearning for more free time."

He engaged in her game of what looked like itsy-bitsy-spider while his other arm was comfortably slung across the backrest of the couch they were occupying. "I don't want you to start neglecting your work for me," he said. "You've worked so hard on getting yourself to where you are today."

"True," she agreed without taking her eyes off their fingers entwining and then releasing. "But technically, I don't have to work as hard as I have been. I could easily live off either my job at the Chronicle or my freelancing. I've just kept myself busy because then Dad won't ask me to visit home." She looked up at him as their fingers froze.

"Still not a fan of Ligonier, huh?" he said as casually as he was able to, but it fell flat. It was still a somewhat touchy subject.

"Honestly?" She waited for him to meet her gaze. "Now that I've established my life here in New York, I'm not as averse to it as I once was. I was avoiding going home for another reason."

He was already quite certain what that reason was, but he waited for her to say it anyway.

"Up until a month ago, I was convinced you'd gotten married and hated my guts. I had no idea if you still lived in Boston or if you'd settled down in Ligonier. The mere thought of the possibility of running into you with a wife on your arm and maybe even a kid terrified me."

Edward furrowed his forehead in confusion. "Why?"

"Because it would remind me of everything I didn't have," she said, and then continued in a much lower tone. "And possibly might never get."

Once again, confusion held Edward in its shackles. "What do you mean? Why wouldn't you get it?" He specifically remembered he'd told her he wanted to have a family with her one day, so maybe it was just an old fear of hers, but then why did she look so sad?

"Ever since—" she started but stopped because talking about the miscarriage she'd had with Alice was completely different from talking about it with Edward now. The two of them had never mentioned it while in each other's presence—only over the phone—and she realized it was more difficult than she'd anticipated. She swallowed and started again. "Ever since I … uh … miscarried"—Edward sat up straighter in anticipation—"I've had this fear of actively trying to start a family."

It was so quiet in the room. The only thing Edward could hear was their breathing and his own heartbeat. He would be lying if he said he hadn't wondered from time to time what would have happened and what his life would have looked like if Bella had given birth and the baby had lived.

"I'm scared of going through that again because even though I wasn't emotionally ready for a child and didn't even know it existed, losing it took a toll on me," she continued, and Edward finally got to do what he'd wanted to all those years ago when she first told him the sad news. He got to hold her in his arms and comfort her. "A part of me also believes it was my fault."

Edward vehemently shook his head and tightened his arms even further around her. "No, Bella, you can't take the blame for something like that. It's more common than some would think."

"I know, but with the issues I've always had with my period, I can't help but wonder if I, perhaps, might never be able to carry a baby to term."

"You still haven't gotten any answers on what might cause your problems?" he asked incredulously. He would have thought there would be gynecologists who were more progressive in New York and could give her a diagnosis.

"No, I have," she said, her head comfortably tucked under Edward's chin. "Apparently, I have polycystic ovary syndrome. The only way to alleviate the symptoms is the pill."

Edward nodded to himself. He could recall that diagnosis as one of his dad's suspicions even early on. He didn't know anything about it himself, so he couldn't reassure Bella her diagnosis wasn't a cause for the miscarriage. "And what exactly does that mean … you know … in terms of reproduction?"

He wanted kids. He'd always known he wanted to be a dad eventually, and if it turned out Bella couldn't carry their biological children, it would feel like a hard blow, but he also knew pregnancy wasn't the only way to start a family.

"There's nothing definite about it. Either it could be really difficult for me to get pregnant or it could be the opposite and happen very easily. It could even mean infertility." She extracted herself from under his chin and looked away as if she were ashamed. "I know you want children in the future, so if the uncertainty you'll have with me is more than you're prepared to handle, I'll understand."

"Hey," he said softly and gently made her turn her head back to him. "We said we wouldn't rush anything, but I won't deny that whenever I imagine my eventual family, you are always in the role of my wife and the mother of my children. Whether that means biological or not … well, we'll handle that when the time comes."

It elated Edward beyond comprehension that Bella didn't flinch or appear even shocked toward his admissions. For someone who used to be scared of committing to serious long-term relationships for the sole reason she might lose the person, she had come such a long way and matured so much.

Not even twenty-four hours earlier had they agreed on a second attempt at their relationship, yet she had no problem discussing their future together. The concept of "if" didn't exist in her mind when it pertained to the two of them anymore. Now, it was only "when."

"I see you haven't lost your sweetness with age," she said, and then leaned over to place a light kiss on his cheek. "Thank you, Edward. You've always had this innate ability to make me feel better about pretty much anything. I don't know how you do it, but you're amazing."

They didn't do much that day. They pretty much stayed inside all day, talking and getting reacquainted with their feelings for each other, remaining in their own little bubble. They cooked lunch together and watched an old favorite movie of theirs from their teenage years, laughing and commenting about stuff they thought were ridiculous now.

It wasn't a real first date, but it was so much better in Bella's eyes. She preferred being with Edward in a relaxed state, and it could never have been achieved if they had gone out for dinner at some restaurant where they had to consider the fact that they were out in public.

And throughout the day, they refrained from kissing each other again. It was important to the both of them that their re-budding love wasn't based solely on physical affection but had a solid base of camaraderie, comfort, and trust.

Not until late afternoon did Bella announce that she thought it was best she headed home. Both of them were not eager to separate, but they couldn't start out again by immediately spending all their time together and becoming dependent. They needed to process the turn of events by themselves to make sure they remained as positive about it when apart.

Bella turned just outside the front door to face Edward one last time. "I guess I'll see you around."

He stood with his hands in his pockets to keep himself from pulling her back inside. "You bet you will."

She nodded and moved to leave, but Edward couldn't let her go without giving her a quick, and rather chaste, peck on the lips, and she eagerly reciprocated.

"Bye, Bella," he said with a content smile.

"Bye, Edward." She slowly descended the stone stairs down toward the street and looked over her shoulder as she walked away only to see that he didn't close his door but watched her leave.

The couple was so enraptured with each other, neither of them noticed the furiously shaking man standing on the opposite side of the street, watching them with dark intensity.

A/N:

Uh oh …

Please, give me all your thoughts and opinions on this! I really need to hear it after such a long time away :)

Until next time,

Stay Awesome!