AN: Thank you to my girls for everything they've done for this story. As usual, there was tinkering, so any remaining mistakes are my own.

Musical inspiration: A Thousand Years by Christina Perri.

I have died every day waiting for you
Darling, don't be afraid
I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more

AN2: So a couple of you guys guessed EXACTLY what happens in this chapter. Now I'm afraid my docs may have been leaked? ;)

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 29. Volturi Records

~o~

NOW

~o~

Volturi Records Tower. Downtown Seattle, Washington. Thursday, December 5th, 2013

Edward holds Bella's hand as they walk out of the elevator on the 7th floor of the Volturi Records Tower. A secretary greets him by name at the lobby and walks them to the office.

"Edward, darling!" The guy behind the large desk greets him, getting up from the chair, and walks around the desk to meet them. He is in a three-piece suit, but the collar of his shirt is unbuttoned, dark chest hair peeking from underneath. His black hair is long, down to his shoulders, but with a pretty large receding hairline. His neck is adorned by a thick gold necklace.

Bella gets the creeps immediately, and as if he could feel it too, Edward tightens his fingers around her hand.

"So this must be Isabella…" The way the man—Mr. Aro Volturi, Bella guesses—says her name sends a shiver down her spine.

Before she can move out of his reach or Edward can intercede, Mr. Volturi's hands cup her face. "Beautiful," he almost sings, making a slurping sound in his mouth afterward.

"Mr. Volturi," Edward starts, pulling Bella back, and extending his hand to him, effectively releasing them from Bella's face. "Nice to see you again."

"Please, call me Aro!" He shakes Edward's hand without looking at him, his eyes still on Bella.

"Nice to meet you," Bella says, once it's her turn to shake his hand.

"Okay, okay, let me show you kids around, then we sit down for business, yes?" Aro claps his hands together in front of him, his fingertips tapping.

What follows is a rollercoaster of people and information that neither Edward nor Bella were ready for. The Volturi's design team has already drafted album covers, letter patterns, you name it. Edward and Bella met with marketing, public relations, and every other person Aro threw at them.

It felt unreal to be quite honest. Like a dream. Or a nightmare, depending on who you asked.

"Last stop before we sit down for business," Aro says, opening the double doors to what seems like a photo studio. "Let's talk image." He turns to them as they walk in and reaches both hands to Bella's hair, pulling it over her shoulders, his fingertips running down to the end of the hair. "I'm sure Jane will work some magic with this. I'm thinking platinum blond?"

"Absolutely not." Bella laughs, not sure if he is serious or not.

"Okay, I tried. So, what do you think?"

Aro steps closer to the center of the studio, where all the lights and cameras are pointed to. It appears as if a photo shoot is in process. There are three guys there already. A guitarist and bassist, who look identical, and a drummer sitting at the back.

"They look like Calvin Klein models!" Bella whisper-yells to Edward.

"I know, I'm thrilled," Edward adds sarcastically with a sigh.

"So, what do you think, Bella?" Aro stands between the identical twin models, arms stretched with a hand on each of their shoulders. "C'mere, let's see how it looks."

Her eyes travel to behind Aro and the teal custom Gibson Les Paul on a stand in front of the drums. She almost squeals as she approaches the stage, her fingers itching to touch it. She grabs the guitar in her hands with a gasp; it has to be worth at least ten grand, if not more.

Guitar strapped, she walks to the mic in the center of the stage.

"She's a natural," Aro says, turning back to Edward.

The most bizarre thing happens then. They turn on fans that blow in Bella's direction and the musicians around Bella start to move, as if they were playing, only no sounds come out. Bella laughs out loud, as her hair flows behind her with the air coming from the fans.

"Ah!" Aro exclaims, looking through the camera pointed at Bella. "How extraordinary!"

With the lights on her, Bella squints her eyes to look at Edward who still stands behind the cameras. His arms crossed over his chest. He smiles sweetly at her and nods in encouragement.

She begins to play. It's all fake though. The guitar isn't plugged into anything. Neither is the microphone.

She sighs and looks back at Edward, catching him off guard. She can see it in his eyes, in the tight set of his jaw, in his hands now in fists at his side.

He hates this too.

Her worries are confirmed as they are back in Aro's office looking at the contract he has prepared for her and her alone.

Bella skims through the pages, numbers and clauses, until she reaches the end, gulping at the final number—way more than they could ever get from Charlie's house—but realizing Edward's name is nowhere to be found.

"No," she simply says, taking a deep breath before looking up.

"Bella—" Edward starts, but she interrupts him.

"No, not without you," she says through her teeth.

"Is there a problem?" Aro clasps his hands together over the table, his eyebrows raised, his attention on Bella.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Volturi. This is a very generous offer. But it's both of us or neither of us," she says, her hand waving in the space between her and Edward.

Aro nods in understanding, before flashing her a sleazy smile. "Oh, sweetheart, I already explained this to Edward yesterday. I don't do bands. I only exclusively do solo artists. Bands are messy." He laughs in earnest. "Too many egos."

Edward looks down, knowing he's busted, and scratches the back of his head.

"Then I'm sorry to have wasted your time." Bella gets up from the chair, excuses herself, and leaves the room without waiting for Edward.

~o~

It's drizzling out when Bella storms out of the building, Edward trailing quietly behind her until they make it to his car.

"What the hell was that?" She turns to him, pulling the hood of her jacket over her head.

"I'm sorry," he says. "I didn't think he would be that creepy."

"That's not what I mean, Edward!"

Hands in his jeans' pockets, he exhales through puffed cheeks, looking down. "That was a good offer, Bella. A record deal. It would put you out there. There'd be no stopping you."

"I don't want that. I don't want any of that. I don't want any of it without you."

"It might not be exactly what you want at first, but for the second record, you'd have more control over everything," he rambles, shaking his head.

She can see him closing off. She reaches for his face as he looks down. "How could you even think I would take our songs—the songs you wrote, for me—and just go on a fucking tour without you?"

"Bella, your voice… your playing, is what made them what they are. H-he recognized that. I—"

"Bullshit. He wants me in a tight top with my tits showing and pressed behind the guitar. He wants to dye my hair blond!" Her laugh is humorless, and her hands go on top of her head, as she gapes at him.

"You could negotiate out of that stuff... I'll be there with you, Bella. I-I'll help."

"Are you even listening to me? I don't want it. Even if it was my style, our style. If you're not part of it, it means nothing to me."

"C'mon, it's raining. Let's get in the car." He unlocks the car and reaches for the door handle on her side.

"Edward, talk to me. Please."

"Bella, get in the car." His eyes are in agony as he holds the door open, the rain pelting on him. "Please."

"Not until you talk to me." She pushes the door closed with her hand, and he curses under his breath, running his hands in his hair.

His defeated look breaks her heart, and then it clicks for her. Her anger almost immediately dissipates.

"You still don't believe me, do you?" She reaches for his jacket, stepping right in front of him, pulling him to her. "You think I'm going to change my mind? Have regrets? Not about the studio, but about you?"

He looks down, his eyes in a tight wince, and he pinches the bridge of his nose.

"Edward." Her voice breaks as she wraps her arms around him, under his jacket. "The only regret I'll ever have is all the time I wasted without you."

She hugs herself to him, and he wraps his arms around her, kissing her forehead. "Let's get in the car, please, you're getting soaked."

She sighs and steps away, so he opens the door again. She gets in and peeks at him through the side mirror. He doesn't make his way around the car yet. Instead, he clasps both hands on the roof of the car, and his head falls between his shoulders.

It looks like he takes a couple deep breaths, water trickling down his hair onto the street, before he pulls himself off the car and makes his way to the door.

Once he's inside, he turns the ignition and shifts the heat to the max.

He rests his head back, running a hand down his face, shaking some of the water off and taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry I blindsided you like this," he starts. "I just knew you wouldn't agree to even meet with him if you knew I wasn't part of the deal."

"You're right. I wouldn't."

"I just wanted you to see what's out there, what options you have." He still faces up, a string of rainwater flowing from his hair, down his temple and onto his neck.

"You're really freaking me out with this talk about options. Why? Why do you want me to consider these opportunities? Especially ones that don't include you."

He sighs, his eyes still trained on the roof of the car.

"Is there something you're not telling me? Have we moved too fast, too soon? Are you the one second guessing us?"

"Bella, no." He turns to look at her, his eyes pleading. "That's absolutely, 100% not it."

"Then what is it? Why are you so concerned with my options?"

"Because it's a big fucking sacrifice you're making..." His voice is loud and it resonates inside the car. "And I am terrified you'll regret it later and resent me for it."

"So, you're just as afraid as I've been of me becoming Renee." Even saying it hurts, and Bella's arms wrap around her midsection.

"That's not what I'm saying at all." His voice is softer, and he reaches for her arm, peeling it from her body and holding her hand in his.

"That's exactly what you're saying."

"Bella…"

"I really did a number on you, huh?" She turns her body in his direction, crossing one leg under herself. "I'm really sorry, Edward. I'm working on it. I'll fight it every day so that I don't become her. I don't know what else to say to you. I love you. I am 100% committed to you." She wraps her fingers around his hand, tightening her grip with purpose.

He remains quiet, staring at their intertwined hands.

"This doesn't feel like a sacrifice to me," Bella continues. "It doesn't feel like I'm giving anything up. This is a dream. We can have our own place. We can make our own music. Help others with their music as well. And I get to do it all with you."

When he looks up, the anguish in his eyes is almost palpable. His eyelashes are wet, but she's not sure if it's from tears or the rain. At least it seems she's finally breaking through to him.

"You're going to have to trust me." She brings their clasped hands to her chest. "But I can only show you one day at a time."

"I trust you." He sniffles. "I fucking trust you. I'm so sorry." He takes a breath, puffs his cheeks as he exhales. "Fuck, I need a minute." He pulls his hand from under hers and runs both his hands over his face. "A whole future without you flashed before my eyes while we were in there, and it tore me in two." He stares at the windshield, avoiding her eyes.

"It's not happening. That… in there? That is not me at all." She suddenly contemplates if she would fit between him and the steering wheel, feeling the urge to close the distance between them. "And even if it were, it means nothing without you. What would you have done if I had said yes to that deal?"

He shakes his head, avoiding her gaze.

"Answer me, honestly."

When he speaks, his voice is a defeated whisper. "I would have hated every second of it." He turns to her again, his face composed. "But I would have gone along with it if I thought it was what you wanted."

"Even if it made you miserable."

"Even if it made me miserable."

"We need to change that." She smiles, swinging a leg over his lap until she's straddling him, her back against the steering wheel and her knees pressing against the seat. "I need you to tell me when you're unhappy." She cups his face in her hands, drying some of the rain with her fingers. "I never want to make you miserable again, okay? I want to make you happy."

"You do make me happy." His voice is in a whisper, but she can see through him. He is melting with each one of her touches.

"You make me happy too." She brings her lips to his in a soft peck.

"That's all I want," he says against her lips.

"Then let's do the studio." There is a glimmer in his eyes, honest truth in there; he really wants this too. "It's what I want. And I know you want it too."

He takes a deep breath and she can see his face transform right in front of her. Nothing but relief in his eyes. As if he's been holding on to that fear for way too long. His lips stretch into a grin, one hand clasped on her waist while the other reaches for her face.

"Okay…" His voice is almost a whisper as he brings his lips closer to hers.

"Yeah?"

He nods softly, pressing his lips on hers. The kiss turns heated quickly, until he stops, which is probably good since they are still parked on a downtown street.

"Bella?" He takes her face in both hands as he slowly opens his eyes. "I don't know if I will ever be able to show you what you mean to me; I know I fail at putting it into words, but I can promise you this: I will work my ass off to make this dream come true, for you, for us." One hand circles around her neck, and he pulls her lips to his again. "You are my life," he whispers against her lips. "You have been since the moment I met you."

She melts into his hands, struggling to find the right words to say to him, the right words to match all she's feeling inside. "You mean everything to me, Edward. I will show you every day of forever."

~o~

AN: Thank you so much for reading! See you Friday!