I don't own Twilight, or any other authors cited in this story. I own the rest, and I'm fighting everyone who tries to take that away.

23.

Edward's POV

Whirling around, I breathe in deeply when I see her standing there. She stares at me in complete shock and confusion.

"What are you doing here?" she asks. I try to tuck the little white flowers behind my back but she sees the movement and her eyes narrow in on the gesture. "What's that?"

Letting out my breath, I hold up the tulips in surrender and give her an embarrassing smile. "I...brought her flowers," I tell Bella gently, motioning to her mother's grave.

Bella's eyes dart quickly between the grave and my hands and I step out of the way so she'll come closer. "You have white tulips."

Just then I notice the same flowers in her own hands, and I smile a little. "They're supposed to be a sign for -"

"Purity and forgiveness. . .it's the same reason I brought these."

A deathly quiet fails between us and my feet start to sway from one foot to the other. This is the first time we've really had a chance to talk.

As she starts to say something so do I. "Well I really should let you do this alone-"

" ==I hate to be rude but I'd like to have a minute -"

And then we both laugh. "Bella, listen, I-"

"Please, just. . .don't."

And I can't deny her anything when she looks at me with those deep brown eyes, making me fall into a kind of warmth that I will never know again. "Yes, of course."

I walk away from her toward some other tombstones and try to block out her voice as it carries. That discussion is hers alone. Instead, I focus on the past dates of those that were allowed into the heaven that I was not, But then, I wouldn't have met Bella. The sound of Jasper enters my head, "The soul of man is immortal and imperishable."

I wouldn't have known any of them.

My thoughts are suddenly watered down by a blood curdling shriek of pain and I whip around, panicked, to see Bella curled up in a ball on Renee's resting spot. I no longer care who watches as I sprint as fast as I can and make my way over to her. Getting down on all fours, I crawl through the mud soaked ground and gather her up in my arms. "Bella, are you hurt?"

Her puffy eyes poke up over her jacket at me as she says, "I told her I didn't need her anymore, Edward. I told my mom I didn't need her. . .and then she died."

I carefully draw her into my chest and rock us back and forth.

"Why does it hurt so much?"

"Because you loved her so much," I chock in a whisper, smelling the strawberries in her hair. As I look up, I hear a car door slam and see Charlie entering the gate. When he sees us, he nods at me, leaning back against the fence.

"The place where you made your stand never mattered...only that you were there, and still on your feet." -Stephen King

West End Closes: Twisted Employees Facing Indictment

A teardrop lands on the gray paper and smears the small black print just a bit. After all this time, after all the waiting and the worrying, Confetti had done it. There are voices - tenors, altos, sopranos - all creating a symphony in the background. Another tear drops from my eyelash and a hand rubs my back. It's small and cold but the feelings inside me are heating up the outside as though I'm a small sun that radiates happiness.

I could melt the cold with the warmth coming off my skin. Looking up, I glance around the small table in the crowded yellow kitchen of my dad's house. Today is September 13th, 2006 and I'm 19 years old. One year ago, that would have bugged the hell out of me.

"Dad, did you help? How did he. . .?" I trail off in a whisper, directing my attention to Charlie.

"Well, we were supposed to be saving presents for later but since you found the paper. . ." He arches an eyebrow at Alice, who giggles. Rolling his eyes, he looks back to me and smiles softly. "There's someone here to see you."

Quickly the panic squeezes in my chest but Jasper manages to throw some calm my way. I breathe in a sigh of relief and grin at him, knowing he might be the only thing to get me through this evening -an odd parallel compared to one year ago. Alice continues to stand by me, rubbing my back. "Who? I don't really know anyone else besides -" but when a stomping sound resounds from around the corner and I turn, looking up into the familiar face of an old friend, my sentence ends and my jaw goes completely slack.

"Hey, Brown Eyes."

"Happy Birthday, Bella," Charlie says gently and before I realize what I'm doing there's a scraping sound of the chair sliding across the linoleum floor. People laugh in jingles and I launch myself in Confetti's arms, holding on for dear life. He thrusts a CD in my face and when I pull back the words, Van Morrison cross the front of the album cover.

"I wasn't really sure what to get you when your dad invited me over. He told me about your birthday," Confetti explains shyly, looking down.

"It's absolutely perfect," I say, tearing up.

Alice walks up beside me and thrusts out her palm in offering, "I'm Alice!" She chirps cheerfully and Confetti chuckles, taking her hand.

"It's great to meet you."

"Here, Bella, I'll put it on so we can listen to it," she offers and I hand her the case. "What's song?"

Oddly enough when it comes on the first thing that plays is Brown-Eyed Girl.

As the piano and fast beat tune waft through the house, I start tapping my foot. Alice grabs Jasper's hand and they twirl their way around the kitchen and out to the living room. Emmett grabs Rose by the waist, making her slap his hand playfully, and they do the same. I glance back at the others. "So wait, how do you guys know each other?"

"He and I have been working on getting the facility shut down ever since we pulled you out, Bella," Charlie tells me, taking a sip of his beer.

Confetti nods. "That night the Cullens and your dad came, I was in the office with Thompson. I also happened to have a tape recorder on me. I got it from one of my old co-workers on the force in Seattle who came to see me every now and then. After you left, I went deeper. I started sneaking into the offices with lock picks. . ."

Charlie pipes up. "Mel here was able to do us all a huge favor - well that's not the right word but I suppose we did get a bit lucky in the end. One of my old deputies from the department here was transferred to Seattle some years ago and he and Mel got to know one another. That day I came to see you in July, Bella, I ran into him. He started to fill me in on some things. When Mel would see him -"

"You were able to give him the tapes and such?" I finish, tears welling up again.

"Yeah," he laughs. "What's weird is that I can't remember always getting everything I needed but somehow they ended up in my hands anyway. I still can't remember getting everything. . ."

Putting a hand over my mouth, I look over to Edward who is absently fiddling with the edge of the tablecloth. He meets my gaze and some small ember stirs behind them, scorching the tiny pores of my skin alight.