First of all, a big shout out to my team of pre-readers and beta: NimNimBonjangles, bevey99, and Fran. Thank you so much for all the help with this story.

Secondly, a big 'THANK YOU' to all of you, who take the time to read reviews.

[Edward]

"Now, you sit there and watch." The wild, crazy, black eyes laughed at me as I struggled. There was something in my mouth, and I couldn't speak. I was tied to the chair in Bella's room.

Conner was now touching her naked body. Her arms and legs were tied, too.

I struggled some more.

"I'm gonna fuck that pretty cunt until she can't walk straight." He'd said the same thing to me while we'd fought at school.

"But you know what it's like to fuck your teacher. You did it last year. Now, it's my turn." That sentence had set me off to attack him.

I helplessly stared as he touched her. She cried, staring at me with wide eyes.

"Is her mouth as fuckable as it looks?"

"How tight is her pussy?"

At that point, I understood I was having a nightmare, but I couldn't wake up. I stared at the horrific picture my brain had conjured while replaying his words from earlier.

"I wonder if she's a screamer." That had cemented my decision to kill him.

Bella's screams rang loudly in my ears as I jerked awake. She was in bed next to me...screaming and thrashing. I wrapped my arms tightly around her waist, rubbing her arm.

"Shh. I'm here," I whispered into her ear.

She flailed, trying to escape me.

"It's me, Bella. You're safe," I said louder, holding her as close as possible to me. "I'm here."

Finally, her body gradually relaxed. Thankfully, she didn't wake up. I wouldn't have been able to face the outcome.

.

.

.

In the morning, I leaned against the counter while she worked on an omelet. I'd only once told her she shouldn't go to school, and she shut me down, handing me a cup of coffee.

The silence stretching was driving me crazy.

In less than thirty minutes, she'd leave.

"Eat." She placed the plate in front of me, taking only a strip of bacon for herself. "I'll drop you off at home on the way to school."

"That's quite the detour," I mumbled.

"I'll make it there in time for my nine o'clock class. I need to stop by the gas station, too."

So today, it didn't matter if she wasn't in school at eight sharp.

"Bella, I know what you're doing. You're putting on a brave face, but it will backfire on you." I knew exactly what she felt because it was something I'd done when my parents had died.

"It could have been a lot worse," she said softly, her hands resting on my shoulders. "I'm going to be okay. Last night…" She winced. "…thank you for staying."

I wound my arms around her waist, kissing her lips. "Always. I'll always be here, Bella."

Her lips trembled when she met my eyes. "I'm going to get ready. Eat, please," she insisted.

I barely tasted the breakfast, sipping from my coffee, waiting for her to decide she wasn't okay to go to school today. Some teachers skipped a day for personal reasons. It had happened before. No one would miss anything important so close to the end of the year.

Just as I emptied my cup, Bella returned, dressed in a knee-length purple skirt and a silky white blouse. She had a pair of high heels in her hand and her phone in the other hand. The shoes fell with a loud noise on the hallway floor before she padded to me.

"I promise you; I'm going to be okay."

"I don't mind waiting for you here," I offered, cupping her cheek carefully so as not to smudge her make-up.

"You have plans at home, remember? Packing your room," she teased.

"Oh, shit. I forgot about that. Fuck." I scrubbed at my face. "Imagine how worried Esme is. Carlisle promised to downplay it all for her."

Bella nodded, chewing on her bottom lip, getting some red lipstick on her teeth. "He agreed not to go into details. She doesn't need stress in her life."

"Do this," I instructed, running my tongue over my front teeth.

Her eyes widened, and she rushed to the bathroom to inspect herself in the mirror.

Bella drove me home, kissing me for a short moment before telling me to go. I stood in front of the house, watching as she turned the car around and headed back to the main road.

I let myself inside, expecting Esme to ambush me, but she wasn't around. After checking their room and her office, I understood she wasn't home, but neither was Carlisle. That was usual since he was at the hospital during the day.

I started taking the clothes out of my closet, placing them on the bed, not sure how we were going to proceed about moving everything upstairs.

"What are you doing?" Esme's startled voice made me trip over my feet, nearly falling on the way to the bed with an armful of clothes.

"Getting ready to move to my new room?" I said, confused.

"That's the last thing you need to worry about now. How's your hand?" She came closer. "How's Bella?"

"Where have you been?" I asked back, avoiding answering.

"To my check-up. I know what happened yesterday; Carlisle told me everything," she said softly. "Honestly, I didn't expect to see you for a few days."

"Bella went to school." I shrugged. "I guess she needs that distraction. I'm okay. My hand doesn't hurt." It throbbed like a motherfucker, but she didn't need to know that.

"Did you eat?" She steered me out of my room.

"Yeah, at Bella's," I admitted.

"Then you can take a painkiller. Carlisle said you could take up to three Motrin per day."

I gulped down the pill gratefully, downing half of the OJ carton with it.

Esme offered to help me place all my belongings in large cardboard boxes so we could carry them to the attic, and my bed would still be available to sleep in. I didn't point out that it was unlikely I'd sleep at home, especially when I knew Bella was likely to have nightmares again.

The more we filled the boxes with my crap, the more aggravated I grew at the maddening task. It gave my mind enough freedom to think about what had happened yesterday, and the more time passed, the angrier I got.

I dumped a stack of old car magazines in the box at my feet before I snatched my jacket off the chair.

"I'm going to head out," I said. "You should go and rest."

"Where are you going? You don't even have your car," she protested, following me out of my room.

"I just need to clear my head. I promise not to do anything stupid." I kissed her cheek before I went down the stairs, letting the front door slam behind me.

I started jogging, which usually helped me, but now it did the opposite. I found myself in front of the police station. The card Deputy O'Riley had given to me was somewhere at Bella's, so I didn't have his number. Talking face to face sounded like a better idea.

I spotted the officer I wanted after scanning the station a couple of times. The desk sergeant tried stopping me to ask what I needed, but I went to O'Riley. He was filing in some papers.

"Hello," I said quietly,

He looked up at me, his eyes widening. "Mr. Cullen."

"Can we continue our conversation from yesterday?" I wondered, trying not to be intimidated by all the eyes on. I'd never imagined having to be in a police station – under any circumstance.

"Of course." He led me to what looked like an interrogation room. "I apologize for the environment. We're renovating the other wing."

I shrugged, sitting across from him at the small metal table.

"Okay. What else did you remember?" he asked.

"I'd have told you everything yesterday if I hadn't …" The blood on my hands had been my undoing. It had been great while Black and Whitlock had held me back, but then I'd noticed it, and everything had gone downhill.

"Are you going to be okay?" O'Riley gestured to my right hand.

"Yeah. So…let's start over. You better grab something to write."

He pulled a small notepad from his pocket and a pen. Of course, he was prepared. "Anything you think is relevant will help…in any order you remember it."

I ran my good hand through my hair. "Okay. Like I told you yesterday, Bella Swan is my girlfriend. I was visiting her, hoping to catch her during lunch break. It turned out she didn't have a class right after lunch, but she was busy grading some papers."

I watched as he wrote down what I was saying. He stopped to look at me when I paused.

"I left her to find some flies for the carnivorous plant we have in the biology lab. When I returned, I found that fucker all over her."

"What does 'all over her' mean?" O'Riley asked his eyes on the notepad.

"Like, crowding her. He was bent over her desk; then he touched her." I could feel my blood boiling in my veins. "Bella pushed him away, right as I reached for him to get him off her. I sent him away, daring him to touch her again. I should have noticed that look in his eyes…that he wasn't going down without a fight.

"Some minutes later, Mr. Whitlock, the principal, came to see Bella. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Conner asshole had gone to spread lies about Bella. After her last class, we went to Mr. Whitlock's office together. He confirmed my worst fears; that Conner had blamed Bella…saying she'd failed him in Bio, so they'd get to the point where he'd have to sleep with her to pass her class."

O'Riley stopped writing, his eyes meeting mine. "I believe Ms. Swan isn't involved in this mess, but let me ask you one question, Mr. Cullen."

I knew I'd walked into a trap. "Yeah?" I tried not to let him see how it scared me what he wanted to know. It was clear what he was going to ask.

"When did your relationship with Ms. Swan start?"

I refrained from rolling my eyes. I was still good at reading people, even cops, apparently. "Shortly after I graduated last summer." I'd talked about this so much, sometimes I even believed it was true, but I knew better. I knew the moment we'd given in to our desires had been during my last basketball game in Seattle. "She had car problems. I was behind her when I saw her car pulling into the safe lane. It was late at night, so I gave her a ride home. From there, we had to keep meeting…you know…I helped her with the car since it wasn't a mechanical problem. She invited me up to wash my hands …" I felt my ears reddening.

"I see." His amused smile led me to hope he believed my story. "How did you find yourself alone with Mr. Conner yesterday?"

"I had to leave Mr. Whitlock's office. Bella wanted to talk to him in private. I'm not the most patient guy," I admitted, shrugging. "I was leaving the school building when Conner started taunting me. Do you really want to know what he said?" I winced, not ready to recall every atrocious word he'd spewed about Bella.

"Try to sum it up. I already spoke with Mr. Black. He told me in detail the part of the conversation he witnessed."

I nodded. "Before Coach Black or Mr. Whitlock appeared to stop me from punching Conner, he'd managed to call Bella horrendous names, saying I wasn't the only one to fuck a teacher and that he couldn't wait to get her alone. He asked if she was a screamer." My breathing came in pants as I grew angrier the more memories invaded my brain.

O'Riley nodded solemnly. "The hearing can be held next week. None of you have to be there. I can already tell you what the outcome may be. Mr. Conner will be eighteen by then, and we've dug into his not-so-clean record. He's facing up to five years of prison."

I sighed in relief. "Thanks."

"Just doing our job," he said seriously. "If Ms. Swan is ready, she can speak to us; please let her know I'm ready for her statement whenever she is."

"Is that…mandatory?" My stomach twisted at the idea of Bella having to relive what happened while she told him.

"It will help with the process. I will need her statement by the end of this week."

"I'll let her know," I mumbled, not happy about it.

"Thank you for your time." He stood, which clearly indicated I was dismissed.

After saying goodbye, I left, making my way to the school. I had the keys to my car in my pocket, and I could drive just fine with one hand.

Sadly, I arrived just as school let out. Black happened to see me approaching my car.

"Do you plan on driving without both hands?" he asked, slightly amused, but his tone reminded me of the way he used to scold us during practice for messing up.

"It's an automatic, despite the fact I usually choose to drive it as a manual."

"Can't you survive without your car for a couple of weeks? How did you get here?" His eyes narrowed.

"I walked," I muttered, realizing I wasn't going to win the argument. I pocketed my keys, scowling at him.

"Now, you can walk back," he joked.

Thankfully, I spotted Bella going to her car, deep in conversation with a girl.

"Looks like my ride is here," I said to Black, dodging him and going to Bella.

When I arrived at her car, she was just dismissing the girl. Our eyes met above her roof. She appeared surprised to see me there.

"How did you get here?"

I rolled my eyes, getting in the passenger seat. She joined me in the car, stirring her soft, floral scent around the enclosed space. "I walked, okay? I had a chat with that police officer about what happened; then I decided to come and get my car." I glared out the window at Black, who was now straddling his motorbike, engine roaring loudly. "Someone thought it wasn't safe for me to drive with an injured hand."

Bella followed my line of view, laughing softly. "Of course, it's not safe. I was planning on coming to get you later, silly."

I scowled. "Of course, now I'm silly."

"You know what I mean." She took my good hand in hers. "What did the police say about Conner?"

"He's facing prison, up to five years."

She nodded, starting the engine, before strapping the seatbelt over her chest.

"O'Riley wants to talk to you about this. I mean, about Conner."

"I expected as much. Do you still have his card?"

"Yes. It's at your place."

She smiled a little, slowly backing away from her spot. She met my eyes at a red light.

"I'm going to be okay, Edward. Please, stop looking at me like I'm going to break out in hives."

"But you should," I argued.

"Maybe I don't function like that. I already pushed away the incident. Nothing happened. It was just like when you touched my breast without my permission."

"It wasn't!" I shouted, making her jump. "Stop comparing my behavior from last year to what this asshole attempted yesterday!"

"I'm just saying it was similar to that. In both cases, nothing else happened. Case closed. I don't want to talk about it again," she said seriously.

Wait until your nightmare wakes you up tonight, I wanted to say but refrained. She wanted to play tough, but this wasn't the time for that. Bella was right, of course; nothing had come out of Conner's attempt. My brain couldn't stop thinking of the 'what ifs.' It took a personal effort, taking a leaf out of Bella's book, but I pushed the incident to the back of my mind.

We spent the evening watching movies before we got in her bed for the night. Surprisingly there were no nightmares for either of us, which was a relief.

.

.

.

The days leading up to the end of the school year were spent moving my belongings to the attic. It had taken a lot of effort from both Carlisle and me to move my bed up the narrow staircase, but we'd accomplished the task with a minimum amount of bruises.

Now my old room was bare, unrecognizable.

With all my stuff in the attic, the place had lost its charm. It felt suffocating, like the walls and ceiling were closing in on me.

I was sprawled on the couch, my laptop on my stomach, as I scrolled through the real estate of New York City. Kate had emailed me some studios, but I wouldn't be able to afford any. The ideal option was to pay at least fifty percent of the rent from my own salary, while Carlisle would cover the other half.

My salary was still something I was working on.

I wasn't going to try getting a job at the Thriftway, and Dawn wouldn't hire me because I was under twenty-one, as per their own policy.

I clicked on another tab with jobs near Forks because I was willing to try Port Angeles, even though that would mean gas money. The only thing that looked remotely appealing was Dog Walker, but the pay was eight dollars per hour. I wouldn't make much, because how long could one walk a dog?

"Edward!" Esme opened my door so violently; I nearly knocked over my laptop.

"What?" I turned to her, checking if she was okay.

"You wouldn't believe it! I just bumped into Simone at the store. I might have found you a job." She looked so enthusiastic; I didn't bother to tell her I had no idea who the hell Simone was, or that I wasn't interested in working at the store. Esme seemed on a roll anyway, as she continued, "How would you like to teach someone to play the piano?"

I stared at her upside down, over the arm of the couch. "Don't I need a teaching license or some shit for that?"

"It's just the basics before this girl who starts her classes this fall."

"Who?" I asked, hoping it wasn't someone I knew. Trust Esme to ruin my carefully built façade.

"Simone's youngest daughter – Lilian." As if that said anything to me.

"Do I know them?" I finally turned around, placing the laptop next to me.

"The Hales, Edward."

"Oh." How the fuck was I supposed to know Rosalie's mother's name? Or her sister's? She'd mentioned her, like, twice during our conversations.

I could only imagine how Emmett would lose his shit if I became his girlfriend's sister's tutor. That would mean her daddy would pay me with the money he wasn't willing to use to help him, and Rosalie get their own place in Seattle.

"I don't know." The idea was so tempting and easy and fun. I'd enjoy my time, even though I didn't know shit about kids.

"Well, think about it. I told Simone I'd answer her tomorrow. You don't have to do more than teach her the basics."

"The whole summer?" I checked.

"It's not every day if that's what you're fearing. You'll still have time to see your friends and be with Bella," she said softly, coming to sit next to me.

"Does Carlisle know about this? He's been against me getting a job," I mumbled, not sure why I was stalling, except for the fact that I risked my friendship with Emmett.

"He understands that you want to be independent. Maybe now more than before." She touched my good hand. "You'll be out of the cast in a few days. What do you say?"

"Okay. Christ. Since when did you become such a nag?" I groaned but chuckled, nonetheless.

"I know how much you'd enjoy it."

"I don't know shit about children," I pointed out.

"Here's a tip: They don't like being treated like children. Talk to her like she's an adult, don't baby her."

"Got it." I rolled my eyes. "Tell Mrs. Hale, yes."

Esme hugged me tightly before leaving me alone. Emmett was due back in two weeks. I'd wait until he arrived to tell him. That is unless he found out in the meantime.

There will be no drama involving Conner, so don't worry about it. The police will deal with him. We'll focus on Edward and Bella's complicated relationship.

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