Author's Notes: I don't own Twilight.

Chapter 9: Shit…meet fan

BPOV

The world was a blur of green as I ran through the forest, partially because of my speed, but mostly because of the tears I couldn't keep from falling. I fell for him and it had all been a trick. The mist clung to my hair and made the ground slippery but I didn't slow down. I had to get to Charlie before they did.

The hair on the back of my neck stood up, Edward was near.

Fuck he was fast, I figured he'd be coughing up a testicle right now.

My body had always responded to his presence with warning signals. Goosebumps and chills, but I had ignored my instincts. Why?

A pretty face and a charming personality? Fucking idiot

I caught a glimpse of him in my periphery. Spinning out of the way as he lunged for me, I didn't falter in my flight through the forest. He was so fast, moving like a streak around me, but seemed to have slow reflexes. This marked the second time he'd failed to anticipate my reactions as quickly as other Agents had. I began to suspect that, like Jane and Alec, Edward relied on powers that were not working on me. I snorted, remembering Jane's face when she realized she couldn't psychically hurt me. I hoped it pissed Edward off just as much. .

He came for me again, this time from the other side. I hopped up at the last minute, leaping into a tree. The ice encrusted needles jingled together like glass bells and the branches creaked under my weight as I ran from one pine to the next. The sound covered his approach and I was too late to dodge his third attack. His fingers found my wrist and the world spun around me as I was yanked into his broad chest. His other hand flattened against the small of my back. My breath hitched and I instinctually leaned into his embrace before I remembered myself and shoved him back. My wrist still ensured by Edward's firm grip, we fell together through the open air.

The air whooshed out of my lungs as I hit the forest floor flat on my back. Emerald green eyes met mine, tight with emotion, eyebrows pulled together. A sickly pallor replaced his skin's former radiance, his hair stuck to his forehead with sweat.

I was beneath him, both of my arms were pinned over my head, his large cold hands wrapping around my thin wrists.

How many times have I imagined him like this?

A whimper left me as I realized that he was positioned with his hips between my legs. I met his eyes and the atmosphere between us seemed to charge. He might have been faking his feelings for me, but the sexual tension between us was genuine. If nothing else, he had eaten sugar at lunch.

I smiled and wrapped my legs around his waist, grinding my pelvis into his. His groan cut through the silent forest and he dropped his chin to his chest. I used the momentum against him and was met with a satisfying crunch as my forehead connected with his nose.

"Fuck, Bella!" he shouted, letting one of my arms free to touch his bleeding face.

I drove my fist into his eye. His weight shifted back as I lifted my foot between us. Channeling all of my pain, rage and embarrassment, I kicked hard into his chest. I felt the crackle of his ribs breaking through the sole of my shoe. The tree shuddered as he smashed into it, pine needles and bark showering me as I stood to run. I chanced one last look over my shoulder to see him sprawled on the ground, unconscious and alone.

I slammed the front door behind me and fell to my knees, just for a second, to mourn the loss of this fantasy. Who had I been kidding? I couldn't have a normal life. I couldn't have a home, or friends. I scoffed at myself, had I really believed that an alien fugitive could have a boyfriend?

Charlie wandered in from the backyard, his face went white as he took in my expression.

"They're agents…the Cullens…Ed…Edward. He's an agent," I said through sobs.

"Fuck!" Charlie roared. Coffee mugs clattered to the ground as he kicked over our kitchen table. "Grab the go bags. We need to leave now!"

I nodded and ran to the hall closet, grabbing our bags packed with everything we would need to live on the run again. I glanced up the stairs just once, wishing that I had time to grab any of my new things. They were just objects, they weren't worth Charlie's life. I didn't want them anyway, they would remind me of a life I could never have.

We ran out the back door, drops of ice and rain pelting me as Charlie flung the tarp off our old RV. We would have to get something else within a few days, but the priority had to be getting out of Forks alive. We climbed in and I was hit with the smell of rotting fiberglass and the chemical toilet. The odor instantly transported me to the lonely, perilous years we had spent on the road and my stomach twisted.

Get used to it. This is your life.

I steeled myself as the tires spun on the mud before they gained traction. We pulled on the road, listing sideways in the process and taking out our gate. Charlie accelerated slowly, the ice making the roads slick. I pulled out at least fifteen eyelashes as we inched down the road. We were approaching the end of our quiet street when a middle aged woman with caramel colored hair ran into the middle of the road, hands flung in front of her. Charlie slammed on the breaks, the tires locked but the RV continued to slide forward, stopping just inches from the woman. She just bent forward, hands on her knees breathing heavily.

Charlie rolled down his window and yelled, "Esme, I hate to do this, but if you don't move, I will hit you with this RV."

Esme?

"We aren't Volterra, Charlie," she yelled back, voice cracking.

"Bullshit," Charlie said, "Now move!" He revved the engine.

Esme stood up straight, put her hands on her hips and cocked an eyebrow. "Helen Burke is alive and well in Toledo. She moved there three years ago. Her previous address was in Austin, Texas, where she lived for four years. Before that she was in Chattanooga, Tennessee. If I was working with the Agency and trying to lure you into a trap, I would have moved on her years ago. Long before Phoenix was this capable," she said.

"But, I'm not working with the Agency. I escaped with those kids before those bastards could hurt them anymore than they already had. That's why they think your mother is dead, while I know that she participated in a pie eating contest at her church this weekend. She got third place, you should be very proud."

I looked over at a slack jawed Charlie. "How many did she eat?" he asked.

"Five," Esme said with a smug smile.

He pulled out his burner, dialed and held it up to his ear. "Hello, this is Billy from Geico. I am calling to speak with Mrs. Douglas" he said, nodding to himself as Helen responded. " I just wanted to ensure that you have been receiving excellent customer service. Do you have time to complete a quick survey? Uh-huh, yep. That sounds great. I will call back another time. Have a wonderful day, Mrs. Douglas." he hung up. This was a typical conversation between Charlie and his mother when he wanted to covertly check in. They had faked her death, a skiing accident, a full year before he ran with me.

"Grandma's fine, Esme might be telling the truth. What do you want to do kid?" he asked me. His hand gripped on the gear shift, ready to throw the RV into reverse and get us out of there.

They might not be Agents? Edward!

I felt the color drain from my face.

I poked my head out the window, "Esme…is Edward, is he okay?"

"I don't know, Rosalie came to get me so I could try to stop you. Why?" she finished, her eyes narrowing.

I burst into tears, "He chased me, I…incapacitated him."

"Fuck," she said, "How bad?"

"Nothing lethal, but I made sure he couldn't follow," I cringed.

She sighed, "I'm going to get the others so we can find him. 3333 Northwest Quimby street . Come if you want, we'll talk." She turned and left.

I turned to Charlie, "I think I need to know for sure, "

He nodded, "Okay, but we're going in armed."

To the teeth.

Charlie and I sat perched on the edge of the Cullen's white loveseat. The flamethrowers on our backs made it impossible for us to sit back. They probably wouldn't kill anyone if the Cullens turned to attack, but lighting one of them on fire would give us the lead we needed to get away. Charlie ran his thumb back and forth across the barrel of the anti-tank rocket launcher across his lap.

The house was beautiful. The wall of glass to our left let in cool light filtered through the forest surrounding their home. From here, I could see the meadow they called their front yard. I noted that I could also see down the lane and would be alerted to anyone approaching long before they drew close. Esme and her partner, Carlisle, sat on a larger white couch across from Charlie and me. A low, live edge coffee table set with a tea service acted as a barrier between us as we stared with blatant distrust. I glanced behind them, seeing a raised platform in one corner with a baby grand piano, polished and reflecting the misty light. I jumped at the movement at the edge of my vision, hand poised over the handle of my flame thrower.

Relief washed over me as I saw Edward's glorious smile, but the feeling twisted into guilt as I took in the rest of his appearance. His arm was slung over Emmett's shoulder as he was helped to the couch. Rosalie draped a blanket across his shoulders, kneeling down to tuck it tightly around him. She crawled under a side table to plug it in. Alice brought him two ice packs, and he blushed as he discreetly placed one on his groin and pushed the other onto one of his blackened eyes. That was the side I had punched.

Dried blood was caked under his nose, pine needles and mud in his hair. Both of his eyes were blackened and I could see purple blooming on one side around the ice pack. The funny part was, even though he looked like he had been hit by a truck, he wore a breathtaking smile and the eye that wasn't swollen shut was bright and shining. It was the expression of a little boy on Christmas morning. If I hadn't been responsible for his injuries, I might have laughed at the sight.

"Wow, there isn't a scratch on you," Emmett said to me, then looked down at Edward. "You didn't land a single punch?"

"I didn't throw any," Edward answered, "Why would I have?"

Jasper chuckled from his place at the bottom of the stairs, "Self-defense might have been advisable."

I thought back to the fight, my eyes widened. Edward hadn't thrown a single punch. He was just trying to restrain me. In my previous encounters with Agents, they'd never held back. It was clear that the Agency wanted me captured and didn't care how badly I was injured in the process. Hell, Jane had lit me on fire and tried to blow me up. I inspected my wrists where he had grabbed me, there wasn't a single mark.

"So, what's the story?" Charlie asked.

All eyes turned to Esme and she sighed and patted Edward's knee. "I've known that Charlie was alive for the last thirteen years," she confessed.

"What!" Edward shouted. His face went from bright and joyful to a mask of pure rage in moments. He rounded on Esme. "You knew that Phoenix was alive and you didn't tell me!"

She put up both hands in surrender, "I didn't say that. I knew that Charlie wasn't dead, or at least that the charred body they showed us wasn't his. I had no idea whether the little girl was Phoenix or not, there was so little left." A collective shudder rippled around the room, they all must have seen it. "But, the man's body had all of its toes," she shot a warm smile at Charlie, and he chuckled. She met my eyes to explain. "I was the psychologist for Chicago P.D. when Charlie was hired. He was well seasoned, just out of the military, but one of the other rookies had an accidental discharge. The bullet went right through Charlie's boot," she giggled at the memory. "He was so pissed, especially when they sent him to me for mandatory counseling. That's how we met. No one else at the Agency ever knew, only one of our old buddies from CPD could have caught the discrepancy."

She turned and looked at Edward, " I never shared what I knew with anyone, even Carlisle," the blond man next to her squeezed her hand. "I had no reason to believe that Phoenix was alive. I got word that the Agency was tracking an asset, it could have been a weapon, or Charlie or computer tech. It was a shot in the dark, but I just started sending warnings, telling him to avoid ambushes using a code only he would understand," she shrugged, "I sent the messages for eleven years, never knowing if they had been received." My eyes went wide.

Eleven years?! We'd only noticed them a year ago.

"After we got the kids out and had lived here for three years without incident, I realized that we could hide you too," she nodded her head toward Charlie, "With all of the kids' psychic abilities, you could be assured of some safety. I sent the invitation, never expecting anything to come of it," she touched Edward's cheek, "I hoped," she looked at me, eyes sparkling with unshed tears, "but I never once allowed myself to believe that Phoenix had survived."

"I go by Bella now," I whispered.

"Oh, god! I'm sorry. Of course you do, sweetheart. Why would you want to go by the call sign they gave you?" she said as her tears finally started to fall.

These people aren't agents.

I turned to look at Charlie, he nodded, having come to the same conclusion. I shed the flamethrower off my back and he set down the bazooka. I felt Edward's gaze on me and looked up to see a warm expression on his battered face.

"Fuck, Edward. I'm so sorry," I swept around the table and took the spot next to him. Rosalie let out a feral snarl, which I ignored.

I leaned into him and he let his forehead touch mine. An overwhelming sense of relief filled me and a sob racked through my chest. I could still have a normal life, be a normal teenager with a normal boyfriend. His fingers snaked through my hair, pushing my head into his. His cool breath touched my cheeks.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," I wept, letting my fingers brush the bruise around his eye.

He chuckled, "That's not the worst of it by far, but you don't need to apologize. I would have done the same to protect my family," he pulled his face away, cupping my cheeks in his hands and his dark green eyes bore into mine. "It only makes me like you more. You were kind of a badass. I think I'm training with him from now on though," he finished, tilting his head towards Charlie.

Charlie chuckled, "Anytime kid."

"Yes sir, I can hear people's thoughts," Edward said, answering a question that had not been spoken.

"Yep, that won't work on her, she's a shield" Charlie said.

A collective, "oooohhh," filled the room. Edward's face was awash with relief, the expression was mirrored on the faces of Alice and Jasper.

I let my fingers ghost across Edward's nose, tracing the path of blood down his chin. "We need to get you into a bath," I suggested.

He cocked an eyebrow and his lips pressed into a line, the corner of his mouth twitching, "If you insist."

Charlie cleared his throat. As if he had just remembered his presence, Edward's head snapped over to my father, his eyes wide.

"Sorry sir!" he said.

"I'll let it slide since I think you might be concussed," Charlie said, pulling the bazooka back into his lap, "but I take my role as her father very seriously." I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"On second thought, training might be an excellent excuse to get me alone in the forest. Accidents happen," Edward whispered so quietly that only superhuman ears could hear. Alice snorted.

"I can train you if you want," I said to Edward, his silky hair sliding through my fingers. He leaned into my touch.

He nodded, "I think that would be wise."

"Yeah, since she kicked the shit out of you," Emmett said.

I chuckled when Edward flipped him the bird.

"I don't have to figure out how to tell you I'm an alien," I whispered. "You won't run in the opposite direction when you find out that I sleep underwater in a bathtub?"

"You sleep in a bathtub? What a weirdo." He feigned getting up, "A hot tub is the only way to go."

I laughed, "I should have expected a hot tub with this boujee ass house."

"Language," Charlie said, his eyes twinkling. I shook my head, he had dropped the F-bomb at least ten times in the last two hours.

Edward wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I leaned into him, resting my head into the crook of his neck. I had never felt more at home. At last, I had a normal life. We knew who had sent the messages, we were safe and I could start a semi-typical relationship with a boyfriend that was scared of my dad.

Wait, is Edward my boyfriend now?

I sighed, there would be an awkward conversation in my near future, but I couldn't handle that right now. My eyelids grew heavy from the stress of the day.

"No!" Edward's sharp voice broke through the serene atmosphere that had settled upon us. I jumped, looking around me for the danger.

"Emmett, no!" Alice shouted.

"Are we going to tell her about the mate thing?" Emmett asked.

Edward sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Mate?

Author's note: Thank you for reading this. Right now I am reading In the Weeds by DazzlinSparkle05. It's just a few chapters so far, but I am hooked.

Tonight Edward is listening to "She's Always a Woman" by Billy Joel on repeat. Based on a suggestion by one of my reviewers, he will be wearing headphones to avoid his family's commentary.