Bella moved through Monday dreading the inevitable encounter she would have with Angela in American lit. She had no idea what she could say or do that would make things okay.

Alice ended up giving her the best possible advice during lunch: "If you can't figure out what to say to her, just let her say something to you."

"Do you think she'll even want to talk to me?" Bella asked, gnawing on her thumbnail.

Alice stared at her, unblinking.

"Oh, right. Right." Bella tapped her temple. "Psychic, yeah. So she'll talk to me? Instead of the other way around?"

"She's thinking about it," said Alice. "I'm not like, 100% sure, but I am 99.9% sure."

Bella turned her attention to the other mentally gifted member of the Cullen family. Edward raised his hands and shrugged.

"I was around her for about five minutes earlier today. She was thinking about her Latin final."

"Very helpful," said Bella, burying her face in her hands.

"It'll be fine," said Rosalie.

"I don't know man. I did try to reach out to Leah over the weekend and she completely left me on read."

"Angela is not an overly possessive supernatural being—and I'm sure Leah will come around. You two have known each other for so long. She can't hold a grudge over an accident."

Bella tried to imagine what she would feel like if she had watched Leah slam Rosalie into a wall, accident or not. She didn't like how that theoretical scenario made her feel.

Bella and Jasper parted ways with the rest of the family, everyone heading off to their own classes. Jasper gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder as they walked down the same hallway where the incident had occurred a few days prior. They did not encounter Angela along the way this time as they discovered when they arrived that she was already in the classroom. She looked up to see who had come in and gave the two of them an awkward wave. Bella took her usual seat beside Angela and tried to think of something, anything to say.

As it turns out, the simplest words are the best.

"I'm sorry," said Bella. "About Friday. I've… I've been really tense about some… personal things… and I was startled…"

Angela held up her hands, palms facing out towards Bella, and shook her head, smiling slightly. "Don't worry. You don't have to explain anything to me. I was freaked out for sure—and, if I'm being honest, Leah made that a bit worse—but you looked… really scared. It was an accident, that's all. Leah was more upset than me in the end, but I swear I'm making her get over it."

A weight of guilt was lifted from Bella's shoulders, though her heart was still heavy at hearing that Leah was still upset. Of course she was; what seemed irrational made sense even from Bella's perspective. But she couldn't lose the trust and respect of one of her closest childhood friends over a simple mistake like this. At least knowing that Angela wasn't mad reassured her that Leah would be more likely to get over it.

"Okay, good," said Bella. "I was so worried you would be mad. And you didn't get seriously hurt or anything?"

"A little bruising, that's all. Nothing that will last."

"Again, I am so sorry."

"And again, it's okay. Don't worry about it."

Bella relaxed, and then relaxed some more as Jasper sent some calming waves in her direction. They were unnecessary, but she appreciated them all the same.

Once class was over, the three of them left class talking amicably with each other as they usually did, feeling as though everything was right in the world. They made their way outside and began heading down to the parking lot. Of course, Leah met them halfway, waiting on her girlfriend and giving Bella a slight stink eye.

Angela stopped walking and crossed her arms, looking at Leah with her head tilted down. Leah didn't let up.

"We talked about this," said Angela, walking over and touching her arm.

"Doesn't change a thing."

Angela was still treading in unknown territory. She didn't quite comprehend the gravity of the situation. Leah was being somewhat unreasonable, but in a way that Bella was capable of understanding. This was something Bella could actually handle talking about (albeit very vaguely in front of the human in question).

"Look, Leah. Trust me, I understand. I would be just as mad as you are."

"I would never do that," snapped Leah.

"No, you wouldn't. I know that. Not intentionally. And you know that I wouldn't, and that I didn't do anything intentionally. It was an accident. Youknow that."

Leah narrowed her brow and pursed her lips. She looked directly into Bella's eyes, an unspoken exchange occurring between the two of them. What passed between them was something deeper than any language could express.

The tension the two of them were creating was making Jasper uncomfortable. He wanted to smooth out the air between them, but he was afraid that Leah would pounce on him right then and there if he even dared to use his gift.

"I do," Leah finally said, her posture relaxing slightly. "I do know that. And I know that you talked to Jake on Saturday."

Bella knew Jacob probably hadn't explicitly told Leah about their conversation, but that she had gotten it through the pack's mental connection, which meant that she had absorbed the entire depth of what they had spoken about (including a few things that Bella had to admit weren't any of her business).

"I get it," Leah said. She sighed and let her arms fall to her sides. "I completely understand. And it pisses me off a little, because I want to be mad at you so bad, but I can't."

Bella smirked. "You can't stay mad at me, dude."

"No, I can't."

Leah extended a hand to Bella, who took it and gave her a tight shoulder-to-shoulder bro hug.

"I'm sorry," Bella said quietly. "I'm working on it. I'm a mess right now."

"You're all good. I feel you. And if you need anything, you can always lean on me. You know that, right?"

"Maybe I didn't, but I sure do now," she whispered.

"Good to see that you can both be reasonable," said Angela.

"I wouldn't give Leah such high praise," said Bella, lightly punching her.

"Same here, fam," said Leah, returning the gentle blow.

"Not to hurry this along, but don't you have someone waiting on you, Bella?" said Jasper, nudging her with his elbow and smirking.

Bella looked down to the parking lot, where Rosalie was leaning against the side of her shining red BMW, smiling and watching the four of them talking on the hillside.

"It's your anniversary, right?" said Angela.

"Yep. Seven months."

"Wow. It really doesn't feel that long. I mean, god, we're almost done with the semester. That's crazy."

"Time flies," said Bella. And yet it moves so slowly, she thought. "Alright, glad we got all that worked out. I'll see you guys later!"

Bella took off down the hill, moving so quickly that she stumbled over her feet as she reached the parking lot and practically fell into Rosalie's arms.

"Eager, are we?"

"Maybe a little."

Bella untangled herself from Rosalie's arms and climbed into the passenger's seat.

"Okay, so I have to preface this by saying that Edward did make this playlist, and I didn't listen to the entire thing, so there's a slight chance that he may have played a very mean trick on me even though Alice assured me that he didn't," said Rose as she connected her phone to the bluetooth.

They said we're all gonna die, but I'll never believe it.

I love this world and I don't wanna leave it.

Said that death is a deal that you cannot refuse,

But I love you, girl, and I don't wanna lose you.

And it wasn't a mean trick. Edward was a master of musical moods, and he had stitched together a tapestry of light, gentle songs for the two of them to listen to on their trip home. The music he had selected somehow perfectly fit the picture that the two of them were painting, riding home on a spring afternoon in the Pacific Northwest, speeding down two-lane roads that cut thin hallways through the towering forests of pine that covered the mountainous landscape.

Don't want a long ride.

I don't wanna die at all.

I wanna be the man who lives forever.

I ain't never gonna die and I want you to come.

"I don't think I'll ever get tired of this," said Bella, closing her eyes and raising her arms up high and letting the wind whip through her hair as bright, uptempo beats leapt from the BMW's speakers. She inhaled deeply through her nose and swore she could smell the salt in the air from the far off ocean mingling with the scent of the pine sap.

I said life is a tale, it begins and it ends.

And forever's a word that we can't understand.

Well, I know that my life's better when we're together,

So why can't our story just go on forever?

"And what might 'this' be?" Rosalie asked, casting a quick glance at her girlfriend before returning her eyes to the road ahead.

"This!" said Bella, opening her eyes and gesturing at nothing and everything. "I don't know, babe, maybe it's just me coming from living in a desolate desert for most of my life. I've been here for over half a year but every now and then I still wind up in awe of the majesty of it all. Everything here is just so… full of life. It's magical, honestly. Even without all the werewolves and vampires. Sometimes I think that spending forever in a place like this wouldn't be so bad."

Don't want a long ride.

I don't wanna die at all.

I wanna be the man who lives forever.

I ain't never gonna die and I want you to come.

Rosalie smiled. "Well, we can't stay here forever, but we will always come back. There's something about Forks that just… sings."

When the Cullens had first decided to return to their home in Forks, they were hesitant. Normally they would cycle through several more homes, several more decades before returning to a place where they had previously resided. The risks were high. They were only returning within a few generations of their previous residency. There would be people who would remember them.

Yet they had returned nonetheless. They had discussed it over and over and despite coming up with so many reasons that they should find a different locale instead, they were drawn back to their home on the Olympic Peninsula. Alice and Jasper were confused by the whole process, having not lived with them during their initial stay, but they had been intrigued enough by the family's fondness for Forks that they had gone along with the move without much protest.

They said life without end wouldn't have any meaning.

The journey to death is the point of our being.

Well, the point of my life is to be with you, babe,

But there ain't enough time in the life that they gave me.

"It does," said Bella, looking up at the sky.

Clouds hung overhead as they almost always did, but there was a soft light shining through that she had learned to appreciate. Most days in Forks were not gloomy, but gentle.

"I'm glad we decided to come back," said Rosalie, thinking out loud. "To Forks. If we hadn't, I…" She swallowed, suddenly nervous. "I wouldn't have met you."

Bella felt the absence of a blush on her cheeks.

"Yeah, I… I'm glad I came back too. For the same reasons. I mean, god only knows where I would be right now if I hadn't. Despite everything that's happened, I'm… I'm glad."

All their troubles seemed to turn to dust in the wind. They experienced a moment of pure clarity, of unity, listening to the tune floating from the speakers.

They said we're all gonna die, but I'll never believe it.

I love this world and I don't wanna leave it.

Said that death is a deal that you cannot refuse,

But I love you, girl, and I don't wanna lose you.

Nothing else needed to be said.

-X-

The Cullen house was almost too empty. They arrived just as Esme and Carlisle were leaving, the two of them pulling out of the garage in his Mercedes. Carlisle rolled down the window.

"We're headed up to Seattle for the evening," he said.

"Don't have too much fun, you two!" said Esme, winking.

Both girls grew flustered and barely managed to wave goodbye as the car pulled out and rolled away down the long, gravel driveway.

"So it's just us?" Bella asked as they went inside and headed upstairs.

"Yep. Carlisle and Esme are going up to Seattle for the night, Alice and Jasper are off on a date at an undisclosed location, Emmett went hunting, and Edward is spending the night at Jacob's. Genuinely amazed that Billy is letting that happen."

"Billy is probably amazed at himself," said Bella, laughing. "I think he's kinda coming around to it all. Billy's set in his ways, but he's not so stubborn that he can't change."

Bella sat her backpack by the couch in the living room and looked around. The Cullen house was massive, and it always felt a little lonely when no one was home, but she couldn't help but feel excited that she and Rosalie had the whole place to themselves for a night.

"So… I didn't exactly make any firm plans for what we're gonna do. I thought cooking dinner would be fun, but I decided to leave what we're cooking up to you because, well, you're the one eating," said Rose.

"I assume that means we're making a grocery run?"

"Yeah, in a bit. First… I'll be right back."

Rosalie disappeared in a blur. She didn't return immediately, so Bella sat down on the arm of the couch. After a few minutes, Rosalie reappeared, a large cardboard box in her arms.

"Sorry, I forgot to put a few things in before I left this morning."

"Oh god, that looks like so much," said Bella, standing up to take it from her. "You really didn't have to do this."

"Nonsense. You know I like to do what I want."

Bella chuckled and sat the box down on the coffee table. It had been lightly taped shut, so she was able to rip it open. Laid out on top of the contents of the box was a black hoodie with a rosevine pattern crawling up the sleeves and a single rose over the heart on the front. Bella lifted it from the box to get a better look at the design, and when she looked over her shoulder, she saw that Rosalie was suddenly wearing the exact same hoodie. She had the hood pulled over her head, and she tugged on the drawstrings to close it around her face before laughing. Bella giggled.

"This is so cheeseballs," said Bella, shrugging off the plaid shirt she had been wearing over her tank top to pull the hoodie over her head.

"Do you like it, though?"

"I love it," she said once she pulled her head through the neck hole. "It's completely not your style at all, and I love that I have the power to make you wear something that brings you down to my level."

"Hey, I look great," said Rosalie, pulling the drawstrings tighter so that only her face was visible.

"Absolutely gorgeous," said Bella, pulling the hood over her head and standing on her tiptoes to give Rose a peck on the lips. "Thanks babe. I really do love it. We look like dorks."

"I feel like I should be offended, but I'll let it slide."

The rest of the box was filled with things that Bella liked which were, for the most part, snacks and airplane bottles.

"Maybe we don't even need to go grocery shopping," she said after rifling through the contents.

"Chips and candy are not a meal. Come on, let's go to the store."

"Dressed like this?"

"Yeah, why not?"

Forks' only grocery store was pretty packed, which was not surprising for 5pm on a Monday night. Rosalie grabbed a small cart and let Bella lead the way.

"Any idea what you want?"

Bella shook her head. "Nope. We're gonna wander until inspiration strikes."

Bella hopped onto the front of the cart while Rosalie pushed it along, the two of them drifting up and down the aisles and inspecting the stock. As they passed by the shelves housing a variety of different seasoning packets, Bella reached out and plucked one from its home: taco seasoning.

"Okay, hold up, I think I got it. I made this chicken con queso skillet for Charlie a few weeks ago and it was so good. Let me pull up the recipe," she said, typing away on her phone.

Bella directed Rosalie around the store, picking up chicken breasts, green chiles, queso blanco, rice, salsa, and a dozen other things, some of which weren't even included in the recipe. When they had collected the necessary ingredients, they rolled up to the self-checkout and began scanning their items.

"I'll pay," said Rosalie, pulling out her wallet.

"I would protest, but I know it's a futile effort," said Bella, carefully bagging up the last of their purchases.

"I'm glad you've learned that I love to spoil you."

"Be glad that I've learned to let myself be spoiled."

Back at home, Bella sought out the largest stovetop pan she could find while Rosalie was tasked with cubing the chicken breasts, which were then seasoned and tossed into the skillet for Bella to cook. After the chicken was done, it was removed and rice was added to the pan, followed by half & half, queso, and salsa. Rosalie watched Bella practically salivating as she stirred the creamy mixture.

"This is making me wish I still had a sense of taste," said Rose.

"It fucking better."

In went all manner of vegetables, followed by the return of the chicken. Bella mixed it all together, then sprinkled Mexican cheese over the top and placed the skillet under the broiler. She and Rosalie sat down in front of the oven, watching the shredded cheese melt on top.

"You really gonna eat all that?" Rosalie asked, elbowing her.

"I had the idea that I would just put it in some tupperware and keep it here as leftovers, that way I have something quick and easy to eat whenever I come over." Bella grinned. "Or I could just eat all of it tonight, if this is you issuing a challenge."

"I'm not sure I want you to throw up, so I'll say it's not."

They both laughed, and Bella leaned her head on Rosalie's shoulder. The shredded cheese had started to melt and brown on top, and she knew she should get it out of the oven soon, but she wanted the moment to last a little while longer. It was the first time in so long that they had been able to simply enjoy each other's company in peace, and maybe the first time that Bella truly, completely felt at ease with Rosalie. All pretenses had been dropped. No romantic airs had been put on. It almost felt like they were just two friends, hanging out, and Bella wanted to savor that feeling more than she wanted to savor the cheesy chicken and rice that was broiling in the oven before her very eyes.

"I think it's done," said Rosalie, nudging Bella's head with her chin.

"Yeah, it is. Can you get out those soft taco bowls we bought?"

"Of course."

Bella put on an oven mitt and retrieved the skillet, setting it on top of the stove and watching the cheese bubble and cool. Rosalie opened up the package of taco bowls and put two of them on a plate for Bella, who loaded them down with the steaming hot chicken and cheese mix.

"Don't forget to let them cool off. You might not be able to feel yourself burning your tongue, but that doesn't mean it's not getting damaged," Rosalie chided. "You want anything to drink? There's the stuff in the box, but I also got a few other things," she said, opening the fridge and revealing a variety of both boozy and regular beverages.

"I'll have an ice, please," said Bella as she carefully poured chipotle ranch over her creations.

"And I as well," said Rose, plucking two glass bottles from the fridge.

She stood across the kitchen island from Bella, who had sat down on one of the barstools. Rosalie twisted open both drinks and slid one across to her.

"You do too much for me," said Bella before taking a sip. "Honestly, this is our anniversary, not just mine."

"Spending time with you is enough of a gift for me," said Rosalie, a dreamy smile on her face.

"One of these days you're going to give me diabetes from being so sweet. I'm serious, though, I feel bad because this seems like it's all about me."

"Well, I can't eat, so having a fancy dinner isn't really in the cards. What do you wanna do, watch me work on cars all night?"

Bella nodded fervently. "Yes. Absolutely."

Rosalie chuckled. "Okay, next time you'll sit in the garage while I take apart an engine."

"You're trying to make that sound unappealing, but I already do that all the time when I hang out with Jacob, and I think it would be a thousand times better if I was watching my hot vampire girlfriend instead."

Rosalie smiled and let herself sink down a bit, resting her elbows on the counter. Bella blew on her food a few times before taking a bite. After chewing for a few seconds, she closed her eyes and made a long "mmmmm" sound that could only mean it had turned out perfectly.

"Good?"

"Perfect! God, I'll miss eating."

"Hopefully you'll find some poor woodland creature that you like the taste of."

"You have a favorite?"

"Edward always likes to say that predator blood tastes the best, but I'm partial to elk myself. They're a bit hard to find sometimes, though."

Bella nodded and continued to eat. Rosalie took a few more sips of her drink, thinking deeply. She knew that Bella liked to drink and that she would do just about anything with Edward and the rest of her siblings. When Bella was around the Cullen house, she could be found listening to music in Edward's room, playing games with Emmett, or reading quietly with Jasper in the downstairs library—she tended to avoid Alice's studio because she didn't enjoy getting roped into being her model for impromptu designs. Sometimes she would even help Esme with cleaning (much to Esme's protests).

The few times that Rosalie had gone down the rez with her, they spent most of their time sitting outside, doing nothing much at all but talking. Sometimes they would go hiking, and of course they spent time at the beach.

If Rosalie was being completely honest, she wasn't exactly sure what Bella liked to do for fun outside of just being around other people.

"Do you really just sit around and watch Jacob work on cars?"

"Hmm? I mean, yeah. He doesn't get a lot of time off from wolf stuff, so whenever we hang out, we're usually in his garage. Actually, he's been working on these motorbikes lately, and it's really fun to watch if I'm being honest. He's been trying to teach me some stuff, but a lot of it goes over my head. And if we aren't in the garage, we usually just walk down to the beach or go bother Joy at Ateara's."

"What do you do by yourself? When you're just at home alone?"

Bella thought about the question for a moment before answering.

"Well… If I'm tired, I sleep. I do homework. I used to read a lot of books, but I've had to do so much reading for classes that I don't read for pleasure much anymore. And I used to write sometimes too, but I've also stopped doing that. I… uh… play a lot of games on my phone." She took another bite of her food.

"What's your favorite color?"

Bella laughed, a bit of rice falling out of her mouth. She wiped it away and swallowed.

"Are we playing 20 questions now?"

"Sure. I ask one, then you ask one. Let's go."

"Okay, then it's my turn." Bella scratched her chin, trying to think of a question. "What's your favorite color?"

"I'm fond of sky blue."

"Ooh, me too."

"Alright, what's your favorite movie?" Rosalie asked.

Again, Bella had to think hard about her answer.

"I'm not a huge movie person, if I'm being honest, but… maybe Jennifer's Body?" she said, and then immediately got embarrassed.

"Really? We should watch it tonight then."

"No! That's such a terrible idea."

"We're gonna watch it," said Rosalie, grinning. "I've never seen it."

"How have you never seen Jennifer's Body? It's a classic!"

"It came out in 2009. That's hardly classic."

"It was an instant classic. We had to sneak into the theater to see it. I was only like, thirteen."

"Yeah, we're definitely watching this."

Bella rolled her eyes. "Okay, well, what kind of music do you like?"

"I listen to a bit of everything, but if I had to pick a genre, I'd say indie pop."
"Figures."

Rosalie grinned and raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

"I dunno, you just have this… vibe," said Bella, wiggling her fingers.

"Okay, whatever. What's your favorite food?"

"I like a lot of Mexican food, which shouldn't be a surprise coming from someone who spent most of their life living in Arizona." Bella raised a half eaten taco bowl and winked before taking a huge bite out of it. "My turn again. What's with all the questions all of a sudden?"

Rosalie's smile fell a little bit.

"Do you ever… Do you ever feel like we've done everything wrong?"

Bella sat down her dinner and pushed the plate out of the way, leaning across the island towards Rose.

"Yeah, absolutely. Like, from the very beginning. But I do think about this a lot. We hadn't even met each other yet, and the universe looked at the two of us and basically put us into an arranged marriage. Two people with the messed up histories that we have… What else would we have done? How were we supposed to react to this any differently?"

Bella sat back and began to pick at the skin around her cuticles. No longer were her nail beds constantly sore and bloody; nothing she did to them hurt anymore, and any injury inflicted was not sustained, closing up almost immediately. There was no blood left to flow.

"I don't know if it's different for you, because you've been a vampire for so long," said Bella. "But it's been freaky this whole time for me. Everything's changing. I'm changing. It's been so hard for me to reconcile my own feelings. I think that, in any scenario, two people who suddenly get told that they're soulmates are probably going to have some problems. And we do. We have a lot." They both chuckled. "We stumbled. We fell. And… I think we were so confused in the beginning that we just decided to throw caution to the wind. We fast tracked everything and it can leave us feeling like we jumped the gun sometimes. It's been seven months and I just learned what your favorite color is."

"Edward said something similar last night," said Rosalie, looking at the marble countertop, at the veins of grey running through white. "Essentially, he said that we might have done a lot in terms of romance, but not really in terms of… friendship."

"Yeah. I was just thinking something like that. I love you, Rose, but I don't think I've learned how to vibe with you yet. We're on slightly different wavelengths." Bella took a swig of her ice and sighed. "We've got plenty of time to work on that, though. Forever, in fact."

"Let's not waste any time, though. I'll go get Jennifer's Body up and running," said Rosalie, pushing away from the counter.

"Can we not watch something else?"

"Why? Are you embarrassed?" said Rosalie, spinning around to look at Bella as she walked to the living room.

"Maybe a little!"

"Good! I think that's cute."

Bella bit her lip before taking another drink.

After she finished her dinner, Bella poured the leftovers into a big tupperware container and put it into the fridge next to all the other food that was only really there for her (and sometimes Jacob). When she made her way to the couch, she found that Rosalie had laid out all the goodies from the box on the coffee table. She picked up a package of sour gummy worms and tore into them.

"You just finished dinner!"

"Dessert stomach's still empty."

Bella sat down next to Rosalie, who laid a blanket over their laps and pressed play on the movie.

It didn't take very long for Rose to pick up on why Bella was so fond of the flick.

"This is pretty gay, babe," she said, snuggling up closer to her.

"It gets… worse? Better? Let's say both."

Despite having seen the movie a dozen times over, Bella still jumped at the occasional startling moment, but she was never scared. Jennifer Check had never scared her. Rosalie's grin grew bigger as they continued to watch the movie, and by the time they reached the makeout scene, she was doing everything within her power to hold in her teasing until the end.

"Tell me again how old you were when you first saw this?" Rosalie asked quietly as Needy leaned down to continue kissing Jennifer. "Oh god, this is much longer than I thought it would be."

An alive Bella would have red all over.

"I… I can't remember exactly… Like twelve or thirteen."

"Twelve or thirteen, huh? Formative years."

Bella put her hood up and pulled the drawstrings tight, trying to hide from both what was being displayed on the television and from her girlfriend.

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that maybe, just maybe, this movie gave you a bit of a type?"

God in heaven, Rosalie was so close to her. She had leaned over and her face was less than an inch away from the side of Bella's head.

"I hate you so much," Bella murmured, barely audible.

"No you don't."

"No I don't," she admitted even quieter.

Rosalie reached up and pulled the hood down, forcing Bella to look at her, to see the cocky smirk running from ear to ear.

"You little monsterfucker."

Bella practically squealed as Rosalie closed the gap and pressed their lips together just as Needy and Jennifer separated on the screen above them. The kiss they shared was as ravenous—no, perhaps more so—than the one depicted in the movie. Bella could tell that Rosalie was amping things up a little.

"I thought we were just having a conversation about deepening our friendship?" Bella gasped when their lips parted.

"Sure, sure. Just like them. Best friends," she said, nodding her head towards the TV.

Before Bella could say another word, Rosalie was back on her with an almost animalistic enthusiasm that she couldn't help but return. There was no denying that this was something Bella had thought about, maybe even dreamt about in the past, but she could barely process that it was actually happening.

Rosalie's lips left hers but didn't quit, instead trailing kisses down the left side of Bella's neck until they reached the bite scars that she herself had left months before, and then the beginning of the wholly marred flesh of her shoulder. The scarred skin was cooler than the rest of Bella's already cold body, radiating an icy aura not unlike that of Rosalie's own shimmering skin.

"A-as much as I'd like for this to keep going, and I really do," said Bella, regaining her senses. "I kind of do want you to finish watching this movie first."

Rosalie pushed herself up, sighing and smiling as she looked down at Bella, her golden hair tickling her girlfriend's cheeks.

"Okay. We'll finish the movie. I was the one who decided we were going to watch it anyways."

Both of them sat up. Bella did her best to readjust herself, but she was so flustered that she could barely pay attention to what was happening on the screen. Rosalie, on the other hand, was able to devote all her attention to the movie and watched all the way through the final moments in the credits.

"That was… much better than I expected it to be," she said after it was over.

"It's a shockingly good movie, and you never would've been able to guess that based off the marketing at the time."

"Truly. I paid it no mind." Rosalie turned to face Bella once more, that same expression on her face from earlier. "So, timid little human girl makes out with a monster and gets bit on the shoulder in the end," she said, reaching out and slipping her hand under the collar of Bella's shirt.

"Well, Needy doesn't die, so she's already doing a bit better than me," Bella said, her voice wavering more than she expected. "I really did not expect this kind of response from you."

"I am nothing if not theatric," said Rosalie, using that same hand to push Bella back down against the couch. "And I have done my own boy-killing."

"For a good cause," said Bella. "God, this is really not ever a situation I saw myself being in."

"Being trapped underneath a vicious, bloodthirsty vampire?"

"Unfortunately, I lost all of my good blood in an unfortunate accident." Bella did her best to keep up with the banter.

"I think I could find plenty of other things to eat," said Rosalie, baring her teeth.

Bella felt a sudden surge from deep within, and she lunged forward, pushing Rosalie back and down with a burst of super strength. It was her turn to gloat. She leaned down, putting her lips to Rose's ear.

"Maybe your prey isn't as helpless as you think it is," she whispered, and felt Rose shiver underneath her.

That made Bella feel indescribably good.

"Go ahead. Try to scare me," said Rosalie.

"I think I already am."

Lips met lips and introduced tongue, hands roamed about and began travelling south, and discoveries were made. Aggressively yet gently so, everything happened with fervor and with care.

-X-

"I don't know what I expected to happen tonight, but it was not that," said Bella, staring up at the ceiling.

She and Rosalie were laying on the living room floor underneath the blanket they had shared on the couch. Rosalie lightly touched her own lips, deep in thought.

"If I'm being honest, I thought I was going to, uh, back out," Bella continued. "I was getting so worked up thinking about it, I thought I'd just…" She drew herself out of her head and looked over at Rosalie. "Rose?"

"Yeah?"

"You good?"

Rosalie blinked a few times and turned her head to face Bella.

"Yeah… I… I don't have the words right now, if I'm being honest. But I'm good, I'm really good."

That was all Bella needed to hear. She rolled over and snaked her arms around Rosalie's waist, nuzzling into her neck.

"Good."

Rosalie smiled and kissed the top of Bella's head before taking a deep inhale. The scent pervading the room was enough to drive her wild all over again, but she was content to lay here and hold Bella, hold her mate, hold her lover. That was enough.

They laid in silence like that for some time. Bella may have briefly fallen asleep, but it was far too early in the night for her to stay like that. She eventually awoke from her catnap and found Rosalie in the exact same position, like a loving statue that adjusted to hold her perfectly every time she moved the slightest bit.

Bella untangled herself from Rosalie's arms and sat up, stretching out her back. Rosalie watched the blanket fall away, her eyes trailing along her lover's many scars. There was no erasing the fact that they were ghosts of painful memories, but, for once, Rosalie's heart didn't ache when she looked at them.

She thought they were beautiful, like veins in marble. Blue-silver veins that would shimmer when they caught the light at the right angle.

"I'm, uh, real thirsty. Gonna grab some water," said Bella, standing up and awkwardly rummaging around on the couch to find something to cover herself with. She found a hoodie; she was unsure if it was hers or Rosalie's, and she didn't really care, pulling it over her head before walking over to the kitchen.

Rosalie sat up and ran her fingers through her hair several times, smoothing out the tangles. She watched Bella mull about in the kitchen, retrieving a glass from the cabinet, putting ice in it, getting water from the fridge. Her eyes followed Bella as she walked back over to the living room and plucked a bag of chips from the spread of food before rejoining her on the floor.

Rosalie hadn't known what to expect from tonight either. It was certainly not what had happened, but perhaps it was best that everything was unplanned. That had sort of been her plan—for things to be unplanned. For them to just wing it, and figure it out on their own. And they had, in some strange, strange way.

As important as this was for the two of them, it was even more important for Rosalie. She had done something she was never sure she would be capable of. She had played over a million scenarios in her mind over the years, but none of them had helped, nor had they prepared her for the reality. She had been so horribly anxious, so afraid that any kind of intimacy would send her spiraling back.

And it hadn't. In fact, it had done the complete opposite. The entire time, she hadn't even thought about it. None of it.

Vampires can't forget. This was one of the many curses they carried, part of the terrible price of eternal life. Rosalie was brought into her new life at the height of the most traumatic thing that had ever happened to her, and she would never be able to forget that that was the reason for her conception.

Vampires can't forget, but some memories do fade over time, if only a little. Things blur just a bit. They are called to the forefront of the mind less often.

Since she had met Bella, Rosalie thought less and less of him. She had more important things to focus on.

She had a future ahead of her. Dark or bright, her past was not a part of it.


i just wanted to drop in at the end to say that i actually did not see jennifer's body until october of 2019 so it had less influence on this fic than i would have liked it to if i had known about it earlier! also, this was also not at all how this chapter was originally supposed to go! sometimes characters will completely get away from you and do whatever they want, and it's usually best to just let them do that. they know what they want better than you do

also, i know that excessive use of lyrics can be cheesy and cringe but sometimes i just don't care uwu