Hello, everyone!

Just a friendly reminder that there are a lot of very mature themes in this chapter so please read at your own discretion. This chapter is nowhere near as graphic as the last chapter, but still isn't an easy read.

Trigger Warning: Sexual assault, abuse, smoking and and mentions of drinking.

EPOV

"Did you know?" I spoke when I closed the door to the my father's study. I didn't know what to do with myself. Her words just kept playing over and over in my head like some sick, twisted, broken record.

"That sometimes I can still hear him grunting, moaning on top of me..."

"I caught him in a bad mood and he decided he needed to teach me a lesson..."

"That the man my mother married is a complete monster..."

"That he'd come into my room whenever Renee was gone and he felt like getting off..."

Unfortunately for my mom's roses, I'd thrown up the second I got out of my car. But even after that I still felt sick to my stomach. Now I was in front of my father trying to make sense of everything.

"Edward?" He looked up from whatever medical book he was reading.

"Did you know?" I practically yelled. There were tears stinging my eyes as I felt so many emotions running through me all at once. Each one of them running higher than I'd ever felt before.

"Edward, please take a breath and-"

"Did you know about Bella?" This time I wasn't kind of yelling, I was full on shouting. It all made too much sense now. That's why she tried breaking things off with me the day of the 'almost' accident. My father had been the one to treat her, I'd asked him that day if she'd done home or if I could see her. He said she'd gone home. I remember seeing him look troubled as I said goodbye and told him I was going to find Bella. I didn't think much of it, being a doctor was hard. There were a lot of nights the he came home looking troubled. Sometimes it was a patient dying, maybe a cancer diagnosis, it could have been anything. In hindsight, it was almost exactly the same look he had when he picked me up from jail. Even that night I knew that the pained look hadn't been for me, it was for Rosalie.

"Sit down, Edward," my father spoke sternly. I obeyed but only because I needed answers. He took a breath and then looked at me. "What about Bella?"

I swallowed the knot in my throat. "Did you know that her stepfather sexually abused her- that he-he raped her?" I asked with tears in my eyes.

"Yes," he sighed solemnly with the same pained look on his face.

A tear of anger and sadness fell down my cheek. "And did you know that he got her pregnant?"

He licked his lips and nodded. "Yes."

I had never felt more confused in my life. I felt betrayed, I knew if she had told him as her doctor, there was nothing he could tell me. It didn't change how I felt, I was so angry. I felt like I could strangle someone with the amount of intense, burning rage I had flowing through me. I could strangle the guy that hurt my Bella. My hand gripped the leather chair so tightly that I thought it was going to leave permanent hand imprints. "And did it ever occur to you that this is something that I should know?" I knew it was an unfair question. That my father was an ethical person, and I understood that he'd made the ethical choice. But the anger in me was irrational, the hurt was irrational. It refused to hear the rationality of my father's moral standing.

"You know that I couldn't, Edward. I couldn't even tell her father unless she was okay with it."

My mind raced with questions. How did things like this happen? Especially someone as good as Bella? To Rosalie? Just why? How far along was Bella? Did she ever think about telling me everything? Was it selfish to wonder that? Was she healthy- Bella and the baby growing inside of her? So many questions and no answers. I lifted my knees onto the chair and hugged them. How was this world so fucked up? I didn't even know what to do with myself at this very moment. What about Bella? Was she okay? How could she be after everything she'd been through? What about us? Was it wrong to think about us when she was going through all of this? I was so far gone that I didn't even remember any of the coping mechanisms I'd learned in the past few years.

Then I thought about that cigarette burn. Even with my eyes squeezed shut, I could still see that burn on her hip. He branded her. It almost made me physically sick again. But the image wouldn't leave my head. My traitorous brain fixated on it. The act of putting out a cigarette on someone's flesh. Pushing the lit end into Bella's hip. Searing and burning the skin until it was charred. Permanently marking her. All because he was a sadistic prick. A pathological abuser. I couldn't stop thinking about the way it would feel. Knowing what was coming and never being able to fight him off. Watching as he pressed the end of his cigarette into her own skin. I pictured her screaming and thrashing as she fought and fought, I could feel the bile rising in my throat. Did she get medical attention for what must have been a third degree burn? She said there'd been others- plenty more where that came from. How bad did it get for her? I was so lost in thought that I didn't realize my father had pulled a seat right in front of me.

"Edward?" I looked up at him with tears still in my eyes. He wrapped me up in one of those fatherly hugs that made everything better in that very moment. "I'm sorry, Edward."

But what about Bella? Who was apologizing to her? Who was fighting for her?

It had been days since I'd seen Bella- actually today marked a week. Since she told me everything. She wasn't answering her phone. Showing up to school. When I showed up to her house, Chief Swan said she wasn't feeling good. The lattice I used to climb to get to Bella's window had been moved. Complete radio silence.

With each passing day, I became more and more panicked, more irritable, more anxious. Bella was by every standard of the definition a flight-risk. For all I knew, she could have packed her things and left. Along with the raging panic and storm of other emotions battling in my head, I realized how badly I'd let her down. I'd done the very thing I swore I never would. She told me about her past, about her 'baggage', and I ran. I asked her for a chance and I blew it. There was no other way to put it, I took my chance and literally tore it up right before her eyes. I still felt sick to my stomach about everything. I couldn't sleep after she'd told me everything- and I was certain that there was more, so much more. I could barely bring myself to act like a normal human. I wanted to rip my hair out thinking about that night. Why did I leave? Why didn't I say anything? Literally anything would have been better than what I did- nothing. I did absolutely nothing. How could I ask her for her trust when at the moment of truth I broke her heart?

That was another sight that plagued me. The look in her eyes when I confirmed everything she believed. The look of heartbreak and despair when she flung her bedroom door open. "I fucking knew it." She believed that I would run and I affirmed every belief that she had held the last however many years. I couldn't count how many times she told me that she wasn't a good person. That she had done things that would terrify me. That I shouldn't trust her. She said it so many times, but I didn't see it that way. She was probably one of the best people I knew- she was fun, charming, smart, wise, and so many other things. She was still perfect in my eyes. It didn't matter though because when push came to shove I'd made her believe that she wasn't worth holding on to. That this changed the way I saw her.

It was Monday when I noticed her pickup in the school parking lot. Like a crazy person, I spent the first half of the day craning my neck trying to get a glimpse of Bella. Still nothing. And now that Bella wasn't by my side and taking all of my focus, the whispers and rumors got a lot louder.

The bell rang for lunch and I sprinted to our spot, not caring about any of the looks of the people I'd bumped into on the way. She wasn't there. I waited and waited and she never showed.

I ran to the library.

Scoured the hallways.

Nothing.

I thought I caught a glimpse of her backpack walking into the cafeteria, so I followed.

She stood in front of a table with Jessica Stanley, Mike Newton, Angela Webber and other obnoxious students. I remembered Bella saying that Angela had been pretty nice to her, but why would she sit at a table with Mike and Jessica? Two people she vehemently detested. It also occurred to me that there was no where else for her to sit. I watched her put her bag down and grab some food. Her steps were slow, unsure. I still hadn't seen her face yet. I was too busy standing here watching her like an idiot.

As she approached the table, I approached her.

I was too far away from the table to hear what they were laughing about. But I heard Bella. "Were you guys making fun of me?" Her voice was small, tired. She flipped the tray, sending food flying all over the table and snatched her bag up. She turned sharply, right into me. Her eyes were bloodshot and glassy, bags under her eyes. She looked like hell.

"Bella," I choked out. But she was already walking away from me.

Damn it.

The heaviness in me turned into white-hot rage. My eyes snapped to the table in front of me. At least Jessica and Lauren had the good sense to look away. Not Mike, not Tyler. They looked all too smug.

"You are all such fucking assholes," I spat. Then I turned around to find Bella.

"It's not our fault your girlfriend's such a slut, Cullen."

Suddenly the room got quiet. If it weren't for the rage pounding in my ears, I'm sure you could've heard a pin drop. Mike stood up, he'd been waiting to fight me since freshman year. I was giving him exactly what he wanted and I couldn't care less. "What did you just say?"

He got closer. My fists tightened and I was ready to swing. "I said, your girlfriend's a slut. I'm willing to bet you're not even the father."

I took another step toward him, one hand curling into a fist and the other pointing right in his face. "If I were you, I'd keep your fucking mouth shut, Newton."

"Or what? You're going to try to rearrange my face like Warren's? End up in jail again?" He laughed. He was right. I was still under supervision, this could ruin everything for me.

A hand grabbed my shoulder- Emmett. "He's not worth it," he whispered in my ear.

I gritted my teeth and loosened my fist. Emmett grabbed my arm and started pulling me away. I didn't make it easy for him either. My feet were practically rooted to the floor until Jasper blocked my intense glare. Jasper stood right in front of me, taking my place in defending Bella as Emmett pulled me away. "How about we just tell Chief Swan what you said his daughter? I think he'd be interested to know what you've been running your mouth about."

The large double doors kept me from hearing how the rest of that conversation panned out.

"You're an idiot," Emmett said, after pulling out of the cafeteria and gently pushing me against the wall.

"So, I've been told," I muttered. The bell rang and I suddenly became hopeful that I'd get another chance to see Bella.

"Go fix it," Emmett sighed.

I nodded and sped over to the Biology room with a reignited anticipation. I walked into the Biology room more hopeful than I'd been all week. Bella was here. And I could fix things.

Except she didn't even show up.

I thought really hard about what my next move should be. How would I find her when she was clearly very elusive? She needed to do that stupid monologue. And last time, she didn't blow that off either. I was going to drive myself insane trying to remain hopeful that Bella and I could reconcile. But stupidly, I did believe there was a chance we could get back to where we were. But then what? Bella was going to have a baby. An actual baby. Did she want to put it up for adoption? Or raise it here? So many unknowns, in fact there was only one thing I knew for certain: I missed Bella. I missed her so much that it physically hurt. I wanted to be with her with or without a baby. The cynical side of me realized that I said that now, but babies changed everything. I shook the thought away, I wouldn't allow myself to not try out of fear. I had to at least try.

I walked into my next class fully expecting to be watching the door the entire time. The class was already half seated when I walked past the threshold. I was taken aback when I saw Bella sitting there in her normal desk. Her head was down and I saw a wire poking out of her sweatshirt. Headphones, I assumed. I didn't think that this was the place to talk, so I sat down and thought of everything I'd say.

I'd apologize over and over. One for the accusations. One for the way I left. One for the way I let her down.

I'd tell her that I didn't see her any differently.

That knowing what happened to her didn't change how I felt.

The ticking of the clock seemed to go slower and slower- and we hadn't even started class yet.

Most of the class was a blur, until I heard Bella's name get called. I was about to nudge her to let her know she was being called on, but apparently the headphones were just a means to avoid me. I'd given my monologue sometime this week, it was hard to tell since all the days sort of melded together with Bella gone. Something was different about Bella, not even in what she wore, but like the glow she emitted dimmed. She didn't flounce the up the row like she did the last time. No, it was more of a reluctant shuffle like the rest of us. I didn't like it.

I looked at her closely, she wore an oversized hoodie, leggings, and the same red Chucks that she normally did. Now that I was paying attention, I guess I could kind of see the vague outline of a baby bump. Bella stood in front of the class and came alive. The only difference was I saw through the entire charade. She was exhausted, upset, frustrated and probably a million other emotions that I could only begin to understand. But she stood there, tall and proud. And it made me love her even more.

"There she was, my new best friend
High heels in her hand, swayin' in the wind
While she starts to cry
Mascara running down her little Bambi eyes
"Oh, how I hate those guys."

"And that's where the beginnin' of the end begun
Everybody knew that we had too much fun
We were skippin' school and drinkin' on the job
With the boss"

"Sweet sixteen, and we had arrived
Baby's table dancin' at the local dive
Cheerin' our names in the pink spotlight
Drinkin' cherry schnapps in the velvet night..."

"We were the prettiest in-crowd that you had ever seen

Ribbons in our hair, and our eyes gleamed mean
A freshmen generation of degenerate beauty queens
And you know somethin'?
They were the only friends I ever had
We got into trouble and when stuff got bad
I got sent away, I was wavin' on the train platform
Cryin' 'cause I know I'm never comin' back."

Her voice was hoarse, slow. It almost made her monologue more theatrical, still I knew that wasn't the real acting. Not by a long shot- the real acting was standing there and pretending to be okay. This time she scurried back to her seat before anyone could say or do anything.

The more my anticipation grew, the slower the clock ticked.

"Isabella Swan?" A voice called. I hadn't noticed Ms. Cope poking her head into the classroom. Silently, Bella collected her things and walked out of the room. Damn it. I wanted to bang my fists on the desk or throw a temper tantrum on the floor. Couldn't I get one freaking second to fix things with Bella? I resisted the urge to bang my head on the desk and groan loudly. I just needed to keep it together for a few more minutes then I could find her.

The second the bell rang I was off. I decided to skip looking for her and wait for her at her car. She couldn't leave without her truck. I made myself comfortable leaning against her truck as I watched car after car filter out of the lot.

"Are you just going to wait here?" Alice asked sadly.

"Yeah," I sighed. "I'm going to wait."

I handed Alice the keys and told her to take off without me. The lot was empty and still no sign of Bella. Maybe she saw me and decided to walk? Although she didn't really strike me as the type to be that easily intimidated. I couldn't see her actually hiding from me. She'd probably get into her truck and then run me over without ever slowing down. I wouldn't even blame her if she did.

I raked my hand through my hair and finally let out that frustrated groan earning me weird looks from the few remaining stragglers. I was almost glad Bella wasn't around to hear me sound like a dying animal. I kicked off from the car and started patrolling the halls again. I only had like 15 minutes before they kicked me out of the building.

I slowed down when I recognized the song that came from the music room. It was strange considering that only the band kids ever came in here and me when I used to have piano lessons. I just vaguely recognized the song that carried through the hallway.

"There was a time when I was alone

No where to go and no place to call home
My only friend was the man in the moon
And even sometimes he would go away too
Then one night, as I closed my eyes
I saw a shadow flying high
He came to me with the sweetest smile
Told me he wanted to talk for a while
He said Peter Pan that's what they call me
I promise that you'll never be lonely
And ever since that day

I am a Lost Boy from Neverland
Usually hanging out with Peter Pan
And when we're bored we play in the Woods
Always on the run from Captain Hook

Run run Lost Boy, they say to me
Away from all of reality
Neverland is home to lost boys like me
And lost boys like me are free
Neverland is home to lost boys like me
And lost boys like me are free

He sprinkled me in pixie dust and told me to believe
Believe in him and believe in me
Together we will fly away in a cloud of green
To your beautiful destiny
As we soared above the town that never loved me
I realized I finally had a family
Soon enough we reached Neverland
Peacefully my feet hit the sand and ever since that day..."

Hello, again!

First, thank you to everyone who's followed, favorited, or reviewed. I appreciate it so much.

Guys, don't be too mad at Edward! I saw some people upset with the way he left last chapter, and just keep in mind that he's only 17, practically a kid! And he's human! I'm trying to make this as realistic as possible, he just got told some really awful things about Bella, after first believing that she lied to him. His world was effectively turned upside down in the middle of an argument. I don't agree with his actions, but I think anyone would be overwhelmed with that influx of information. At least he realizes what he did was wrong and is trying to fix it.

Right? *insert ominous background music*

Let me know what you guys think!