September 16th ,2005
I smiled as I saw Edward standing in front of my house. It had been a stressful couple of days, and I was happy to see him after he had just up and disappeared the night of my failed birthday party.
"let's go for a walk" I nodded my head as I followed Edward into the woods. We were maybe about twenty feet into the woods when he stopped to face me. I blinked at him we were still in view of the house. Some walk I thought to myself.
"Bella were leaving" I nodded, all right I could do this, I thought I was ready, but now all thoughts racing around my head said maybe, just maybe I could push for more time. Just enough to say goodbye to my mother and father for that last time. As I opened my mouth to ask, I looked up. After seeing the intense, almost angry glare the words died on my lips, and it clicked suddenly.
"By we, you mean" before I could finish my thought, he said it for me. "yes, my family and I" each word he said sounded hard and distinct.
"I'll come with you" I blurted out, if staying here meant losing Edward then I wouldn't stay. I would follow him anywhere. He was the love of my life and I had to make him see and understand that I would give it all up for him. My parents, my friends, my future, because all I needed was him and his love, for all eternity.
"You promised, you promised you would stay after phoenix, YOU SAID YOU WOULD STAY"! I exploded at him.
"As long as it was best for you, my world is not good for you. It's to dangerous" he said as he took a step back. I matched him step for step.
"Then change me, if this is about your world being too dangerous; make me part of it, we could be together Edward, isn't that what you want, it's what I want. Don't you want that too?
He took a deep breathe and started unseeingly at the ground for a while. His eyebrows were furrowed, and his lips twisted the tiniest bit, when he looked up again his eyes were hard and cold.
"Bella, I don't want you to come with me." His cold eyes watched my face as what he has been trying to say finally registers. And suddenly all might fight has gone out of me.
"You…. don't…... want…... me." I said the worlds out loud slowly. In reality I just wanted confirmation of what he had said. I stared at him, meeting his gaze unflinchingly, I searched his eyes for any sign of what he said was a lie, that this was some misguided attempt at saving my soul, the soul that already belonged to him. I found none. Taking a deep breathe I straightened my back and squared up to Edward.
"In that case, this changes things" I was surprised by how calm I sounded, I knew it was only because I was numb. It hadn't really sunk in yet; I think all I was feeling in this moment was shock.
He looked away into the trees as he spoke his next words. "I'll always love you in a way, but what happened with jasper made me realize that I am tired, tired of pretending to be something I'm not, someone I'm not. Bella, I'm not human." When he looked back at me, I could clearly see that he wasn't human, the hard angular planes of his face and the way that his jaw was set. I could see it in the way his stance changed and the way his eyes glittered in the fading sun.
"I have let this go on for to long, and for that I apologize". He relaxed his stance slightly. Making himself look just a little smaller. I didn't know why he would do such a thing, but I let it go. I had other things to focus on.
"Don't, please don't do this" I whisper. I could feel the world closing in on me, I wasn't numb anymore, every word he spoke next hit me like a sledgehammer, breaking me down.
"You're not good for me Bella, my kind we are easily distracted, that's all you were a distraction, and I think it is time for me to move on. The family has already left. I stayed behind to let you know". It felt like acid was burning its way through my body.
"I would ask you a favor though." Who did he think he was to ask anything of me now?
"Anything" I whisper out. Because even though he had crushed the future I thought I would have with his family and him I would still do this thing for him.
"Don't do anything stupid or dangerous, you know for Charlie's sake" I nod my head I wonder if he could see me shutting down, In my state of shock. I don't think he dose because he just continues. Shattering my heart with his words that cut me deeper than anything else had. I could faintly her him now.
"And in return I will promise you something, I won't come back. You will no longer be in danger from my family and others like us. You are human, your mind is like a sieve. In time you will forget, goodbye Isabella." He kisses my forehead one last time.
The next time I look up, he's gone. He can't be gone; he couldn't have left me here. Surely this is a joke, and I am dreaming, and I will wake up and find Edward laying next to me.
I follow him, I know it was stupid, but I couldn't accept that he was gone, that he could really leave me behind. We are soulmates, that's what he said. That I was the love of his life.
"EDWARD, PLEASE COME BACK, PLEASE I CAN'T DO THIS WITH OUT YOU". I screamed out at the top of my lungs "please come back, Please". I wondered around the forest calling out his name for hours. For hours I searched and screamed and cried.
I continued screaming for him to come back, even after my voice had gone. I reached up to rub the tears out of my eyes. I shouldn't have done that, because as soon as I touched my face, my foot got caught on an uprooted tree. I threw my arms out to catch myself, but it was to late, on my way down I hit my head.
When I came to it was pitch black and I could feel cold pellets of water hitting me in the face. I didn't feel like moving so I rolled over and covered my face, I just wanted to die, out here in the forest. He's gone, he's really gone. I cried myself back to sleep.
"BELLA, BELLA, ISABELLA!" I came to again, and faintly heard my name being called, I couldn't feel my toes, or my fingers I tried to wiggle them, I cracked my eyes open and could faintly see beams from a flashlight, I raised my hand and waved it, trying to get their attention but the light was fading, and my voice no longer worked from all the screaming I had done earlier. They faded out of sight so I put my arm back down I think I had faded out again because now I could here something getting close to me.
I could hear the animal sniffing around me, and I hoped that if it were going to eat me, that it would do it fast and put me out of my misery. I opened my eyes just a little bit and was slightly startled by the piercing silver eyes that met mine. I blinked and the glowing silver eyes were gone.
"Bella, have you been hurt" I could hear my name, it was a deep rumbling sound, but it was my name all the same. I rolled over and looked up, I could see a large brown hand reaching down toward me. I stared at it, what was I supposed to do with that.
He's saying something I think, I should probably listen "Charlie"? that struck a chord in me, Charlie my father. Charlie, I had to get up for Charlie. The man's eyes appraised me before sighing. He bent down and scooped me up. I hung there in is arms a limp like. He was so warm thought. In one swift movement he had me all bundled up in his arms.
"He's gone, gone, gone, gone" I whispered. I had no idea who this man was but I he found me when no one else could. I didn't know where he was taking me. something about this should have upset me, being carried off into the forest by a stranger, but there was nothing else I me to be upset so I just let it happen. I fell asleep again against the warm naked chest as the man walked. A while later I could her noises coming from in front of me.
"I GOT HER !" my savior bellowed as we broke the tree line. Instantly all the chatter stopped. "no, I don't think she's hurt, she just keeps repeating that he gone." he said to someone coming up to us.
"BELLA" I could hear the worry in Charlie's voice as he hurried over, "I have her Sam" my father muttered as he took me out of Sam's arms. I felt him stumble a bit as my weight was deposited onto him fully. I smelt the supple leather of Charlies sheriff jacket "Bella, baby are you alright," he whispered to me.
"He's gone" I whispered to my father. I tucked my head against my father's chest and closed my eyes. I didn't want to see the sea of faces that had come out to find me. I didn't want to see the pity or the sympathy from these people. They gathered around us shouting questions at Charlie. It felt like a parade, as we walked through the crowd of townsfolk.
"Is she okay Charlie" I heard a voice by my head ask. Was I okay? That's the million-dollar question. Was I okay? The answer is a resounding no. how could I be okay when my soulmate has left me. how could I be okay when my heart was just broken and trampled on by the love of my life. I don't think I would ever be okay again. How could I be okay with my heart missing. It was still in the forest shattered into a million tiny pieces that was embedded into the ground by Edwards shoes as he ran away from me. I felt my self being lowered onto the couch in the living room. I clung to my father as he put me down, I didn't want him to leave me too. I think I started crying again because Charlie tried to comfort me.
"Shhh it's okay bells, its going to be alright. The blankets are in the closet at the top of the stairs" he said to someone behind me.
"Bella" I tunned my head slightly to see who had called my name. oh, I knew that face. "Dr. Gerandy" I mumbled.
"that's right dear, are you hurt?" the words sounded vaguely familiar like the one that my savior had asked Sam, I think his name was. He had asked me Have you been hurt not are you hurt." Bella"? he was waiting for me to answer.
"No, I lied. they were true enough. I don't think that the pain I was feeling is what they were asking about, they wanted to know if I was physically hurt. Not emotionally hurt.
"What happened to you?" he asked. I was aware of the other people in the room also waiting for my reply. I could see three other tall men in the corner of the room. I could also see Mr. Newton and mike, Mr. Webber along with Angela. I turned my head slightly and rolled my eyes when I saw Jessica there. I can picture it now; the entire forks student body would be buzzing with this gossip for a while.
"Did you get lost?" he asked me. I blinked and nodded my head "Yes, I got lost in the woods. I went for a walk with Edward after school. He left me in sight of the house, but I tried to follow him. And the I got lost." I could gently feel him probing the glands under my jaw, and it felt weird I was so used to Carlisle cold hand that I forgot that most doctors didn't have the same temperature hands. Dr. Gerandy's hands were a bit to warm, a bit to human, so I flinched away when he put it on my forehead.
"Are you tired" He asked me. I nodded my head yes, I was tired, so, so, so tired. I closed my eyes and leaned back ash the doctor turned toward Charlie.
"I don't think there is anything wrong with her, just exhaustion. You should let her sleep it off and I will come back to check on her tomorrow". He looked down at his watch. "Actually, I'll be back in a couple hours, it is already Two in the morning". After he said that I felt kind of guilty. I had worried all of theses people and they had been looking for me for hours. But I was so tired now. I drifted off as Charlie and Dr. Gerandy talked.
It was about an hour later when I heard hushed voices in the kitchen. "I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't sent those boys up from the reservation, thank you so much Billy." I couldn't hear anything, but I assumed Billy had answered him because the next thing I heard the phone being hung up after a quick whispered goodbye. I heard Charlie heading into the living room and decided to sit up. He blinked a couple times when he saw me sitting there in the dark. He turned the lights on before he sat down next to me.
"Hey there Bells, how are you feeling? "I was a little shocked at first because usually Charlie tried to avoid feeling like the plague.
"Tired" I told him. He asked if I wanted to talk about it, but I just shook my head no. I didn't feel like going through the pain of having to remember that my soulmate left me. instead, I told him that I wanted to go back to sleep and that I was going to my room. On my way up the stairs, I turned around.
"thanks Ch- Dad, for coming to find, and I am sorry for worrying you". He looked up from hi spot on the couch and smiled at me. "you're my daughter," He said. I will always come for you, and I will always worry". I smiled and then turned around to finish walking up the stairs.
When I got to my room, I closed the door behind me. I was so tired, and cold and still slightly wet. So, I striped out of my clothes a d just blindly grabbed whatever shirt I had laying on my bed from this morning when I was getting ready for school, and I threw that on. Along with the shorts I was wearing. I would shower in the morning. All I wanted to do was lay in my bed and cry myself back to sleep. I woke up again at around seven when Charlie came into my room to tell me he was going into the station for a couple hours and that he had called the school and told them I wouldn't be there today. He also reminded me that Dr. Gerandy was coming by in a couple hours to check on me. I nodded my head and took a sip of the water that he had brought with him.
"I love you bells" he said as he walked out of my room and closed the doors behind him. "love you too dad" I whispered back but I don't think he heard me; he was already gone. As soon as I heard the cruiser pull of I started balling my eyes out. Now I could suffer in peace and not have anyone here to hear me. i cried myself back to sleep where I slept fitfully.
I could feel cold hands running all over my face, my eyes, my cheeks, my lips, and I smiled. I knew he would come back. I knew he couldn't live without me. he loved me too much to let me go.
"Edward" I breathed out and smiled again. Before I could open my eyes, my heart froze as I heard a voice that wasn't Edwards. It was too high pitched to musical, to feminine.
"I'm not who you think I am." My eyes Snapped open, what was that whooshing sound, was that my heart beating that fast. Before I could process what was happening, she had her hand around my throat.
"Victoria" I whispered.
Authors note:
Boom Cliffhanger
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