Chapter 26

Edward's POV

So this was bigger than I'd thought. A whole lot bigger. I couldn't quite remember what I'd initially thought being the cause of Bella's heartbreak, but it wasn't this. Even though I'd never been in love myself I imagined that being dumped by your high-school sweetheart and best friend at the same time must hurt. Like hell. And probably, or most definitely it was something that took time getting over. That's what you get for being stupid enough to fall in love, Edward Cullen. And even when she got over him, there were no guaranties that she'd be looking my way anyhow. I pondered the facts for a short while. No, to be honest things were not looking too good right now. She'd literally just told me that she was off the market and that she wouldn't be budging on that for a long time.

But could I really just be friends? Was that even a possibility at this stage? I glanced at her sideways as she sat next to me on the log, looking at the stars. No, that probably wasn't an option anymore. I had it bad for this girl and that wasn't going to just go away because I wanted it to. I'd just have to ride this one out and hope for a happy ending that involved me.

"So… have you heard anything from this guy since you moved here?", I suddenly heard myself asking.

If I was going to have a chance of winning Bella I reckoned I'd be better off knowing who I was up against.

"Dan. His name is Dan. And no, I haven't heard anything for a long time now. He sent me some guilt trip email a couple of weeks ago about my not informing him about moving here, but I don't see how that is any of his business. I never finished reading it anyhow, so I don't really know what he was saying".

"Oh…", was all I could bring myself to say. So at least this guy wasn't present in her life right now, that must be a good thing, right?

"And I'm not expecting him to either, so that's not what I'm hoping for anyhow. I'm just trying to move on", she continued.

"I think that's wise. Even though I don't know what you're going through right now. It sounds smart."

Captain Obvious saves the day yet again, could I've said anything more obvious than that? God…

"Yes, you are right", she said and suddenly smiled at me.

Maybe I did have some Dr. Phil- qualities after all?

"I'm actually quite glad I came to Forks, it's made it easier for me to get away from the constant reminders in Phoenix. And anyhow, by the time it's time for me to go back to Phoenix for college I'll most definitely have forgotten about all of this."

So she's going back to Phoenix? The sunset state wouldn't be kind to me with all those sun hours… Whoa, just chill, Edward Cullen. You can't even get a date with this girl, you shouldn't be thinking of moving across the country because of her. Just stop it.

"I'm sure you will", I said, wrapping up the topic.

I was in for a rough ride, and I wasn't quite as optimistic as I'd been before.