BPOV

"You're not the only one with regrets, Bella. Think about that."

With that statement he stood up to leave. He was out of sight in merely seconds but somehow I knew he was watching from the shadows. He was too protective to leave me alone. I sighed and made my way to my truck.

I slept at home that night. Edward was there as usual but instead of holding me as he had in the past, he sat in my rocking chair. I fell into a fitful sleep as he absentmindedly hummed my lullaby.

It was still dark when I awoke. Edward was gone.

"Not again!" My heart pounded as fear rose in my chest. He had left me again.

"Yes, again." A figure stepped out from the shadows and spoke.

Rosalie.

"What are you do-" She silenced me with a cold stare. "He is gone now and he will be gone everyday. Everyday, for the rest of your human life." She emphasized the word human as if to taunt me. "He will never come back and you will always be alone. You know as well as I do that you will never be able to love another man the way that you love Edward. Every time you look into someone else's eyes you will see his face. He will forever be in your heart and mind. You know this." Tears of anger and of sorrow began to fill my eyes; she was right.

"How does that sound, Bella? I hope you like the idea because that is how it is going to be unless..." Her voice trailed off, inviting me to question her.

"Unless what?" The tears now trailing down my cheeks belied the challenge in my voice. What was she even doing here? Where was Edward? He had told me he would not leave me again. Though I was lying on the couch, unable to respond, I had heard him. He promised.

Rosalie whipped her head around and faced me; her eyes were dangerously black. "Unless you fix whatever has gone wrong between you and Edward. If you truly love him then you will work to fix whatever shit you started. He is more than willing, Bella. It is you that continues to shut him out – you are the one keeping secrets – not him. People have fights, Bella, couples break up, that's just life. But when you love someone you work through that. That's what love is."

Her voice turned to a fierce whisper and her obsidian eyes flashed. "If you don't do something then you could damage this relationship beyond repair. You have one shot to make this work. Use it." She moved toward the window and then turned, as if she'd had a second thought. "By the way, I'm doing this for Edward's sake, so don't even bother ever bringing it up." With that, she was gone as swiftly and silently as she had come.

I sat up the rest of the night. It was so confusing to me. I thought Rosalie hated me. She had been hostile to me from the very beginning. It was Rosalie that had told me the truth about my transformation while we were in the forest. She had not even tried to soften the blow, rather, she seemed to enjoy the cruelty in which the news was delivered. Now, thanks to her midnight speech, I knew what it was I had to do.

EPOV

She tossed and turned incessantly, murmuring detached phrases. She sighed and suddenly her speech became more clear. "Sorry. I'm so sorry. Edward." She moaned softly, clutching the comforter to her chest. I knew I could not afford to lose her, no matter what, even if that meant changing her. Bella's heart was still unstable and beat almost imperceptibly while she slept. I would take no chances. Rosalie agreed to come and make sure she was alright. It was strange for her to consent to anything involving a close proximity with Bella, but I wasn't going to question the favor. I had an errand to run.

BPOV

I went to the Cullens when the sun finally decided to make an appearance. Edward wasn't there but it didn't bother me, it just made my job easier. I hadn't told Alice or anyone else what I was doing. There was no way Edward would be able to find out from anyone's thoughts. This was my surprise.

I left notes in his room on his stereo, directing him to his closet, where I had laid out clothes for him. It was fun for me to be the one dressing him up rather than vice versa. He looked especially good in black, though he rarely wore it. I left several other notes from there, directing him to various locations around his house, just for fun. I had no idea when he would be home; I could only hope it would not be too late for me to surprise him. Emmett and Jasper left me to my business once they discovered that, for once, no amount of pestering could make me reveal my secret. I was finishing up at their house when Alice bounded to my side, a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"I'm guessing you saw it?"

She squealed excitedly, "Bella, it's perfect! Don't worry, I won't let it slip." She tapped her head meaningfully. "I do get to do something though." She stuck out her jaw defiantly as a grin tugged at her lips. There was no getting around this one.

"Fine. As long as I get to at least have a say in the outfit."

"Deal!"

An hour later I was dressed in designer jeans and a form fitting Henley sweater in just the right shade of blue. Alice had added accessories to dress up the ensemble. An oversized gold belt was slung around my waist, matching the bangles that clinked musically on my wrists. Simple gold earrings and metallic gold ballet flats made the outfit look like it had popped off of a magazine cover. Alice insisted on makeup but I made her keep it light and simple. I did my hair myself, pulling it into a loose, but sleek ponytail. Alice was incorrigible, however and I finally allowed her to add some accent braids to hide the ponytail elastic. Everything was set.

He was to meet me at a diner-of-sorts in Seattle. I had made reservations at the dinner/dance place. I had been there once before and thought it very eclectic. It was a casual, little known place with some of the best food around. Though I would be the only one eating, I knew Edward would enjoy the dancing. I always put up quite a good fight when he had asked me to dance with him in the past. This would be so different from most of our dates. I was planning, I was paying. It was satisfying. For once I felt like I was giving something back to him. I had arrived early. I knew once he found my notes he would be alarmed that I had gone to Seattle, taken a bus no less, by myself. He would compensate for his worry with speed.

I was checking my purse so be sure I still had the tickets for our after-dinner outing when the door banged open, causing several heads to turn. I didn't even have to look up to know that Edward had arrived. I met his gaze with a grin, he was wearing the clothes I had picked out. He rolled his eyes when he saw me.

"Like black much?" he asked.

"Only on you."

We talked about nothing for several minutes while I waited on my food. I had chosen my meal and paid in advance so Edward would not be able to pay even if he wanted to. He watched me as I ate. His topaz eyes burned with something I had never seen before, something that, though I was afraid to ask about, I knew I liked. I swallowed the last of my water. It was now or never.

"Let's dance."

Edward took my hand before I could say a word and led me onto the floor. We were both silent for a while. I watched the couples we passed. They were almost all over fifty. Despite my best efforts my thoughts wandered to Edward and his immortality. The knowledge that he would never age had caused me to dread my looming eighteenth birthday. To most people, birthdays were something to look forward to, to be happy about. From now on, I would see them as something to be feared, for every birthday I experienced would be one step further away from Edward and the possibility of an eternity with him.

"Something is bothering you."

It was a statement not a question. Rather than tell him exactly what I had been thinking about I plunged into the reason for our date. I rambled on, telling him everything that had happened the past week, even delving into the painful events leading up to it; all the while he never took his eyes off of mine. When I finally stopped to take a deep breath, I noticed a small smile playing on his lips.

"Are you even listening to me?"

"Of course!" He must have been able to sense my irritation because he grazed his lips along my cheek, making his way to my mouth.

"I know what went on Bella, you are already forgiven." His eyes met mine, warm and reassuring.

"Let's go talk." He led the way outside. "Bella, you don't have to explain yourself to me. Please know that. But I don't want you to feel like you have to hide this from me either. I love you and that is not based on what you have done, it's because of who you are." He sat down on a stone bench, pulling me onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around my waist as I leaned against his shoulder.

"Before all of this happened, I was seriously considering changing you. I had come to realize that what you had told me so many times before was true. By trying to protect you, by refusing to change you I was condemning you. We would never be happy apart from one another. And I, being the selfish creature that I am, do not like to be unhappy." I grinned at the matter of fact way he said this and I could hear the smile in his voice as well.

"And then there was so much chaos that went on, you were turned, I left, I came back and you were human again and completely unconscious. Then things got a little tense and I wasn't sure what to do." He turned me around so that I faced him.

"You still talk in your sleep." I could feel the blush rising in my cheeks.

"What did I say?" I was dreading his answer. Sleep talking is embarrassing at its best.

He answered nonchalantly.

"Just something that made me realize what I would have to do in order to get what I truly wanted." He smirked, "Don't worry it wasn't anything humiliating."

"Just great," I mumbled, "But there are so many other horrible things it could have been."

Edward stopped my grumbling, taking my face gently in his hands.

"Bella, I love you. Do you still want to be like me, a vampire?"

I had expected something along the lines of, 'Do you want to give our relationship another shot?' This was so much more than I could have asked for.

I leaned in to kiss him, "Stupid question." I murmured.

Before I realized what was happening he picked me up, my legs still wrapped tightly around his waist, and carried me to his car.

He broke off the kiss, opened the door and set me gently inside. He was in the driver's seat before I could buckle my seat belt. "We are going to plan it this time, ok?" He raised his eyebrows at me. "Fine with me," I said sighing, "I'm all out of spontaneous surprises." He grinned and took my hand. Tonight was lovely by the way. Thank you." He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. "We need to go dancing more often."

I rested my head against his shoulder. "We have plenty of time."

The Next Day

I sat at the kitchen table, pushing my breakfast around with my fork. Edward and I had decided to wait until summer to change me again. I would go on a two month 'vacation' with his family so I could get used to my new abilities away from the confines of Forks. I had slept soundly last night, in the arms of my angel. He had left to discuss thing with Carlisle and Esme. The slam of a door made me drop my plate in the sink, causing it to shatter.

"Hey Bells! Did I scare you?"

"Hi Char-er-Dad! I forgot you were coming home today. How was your trip?"

"It was alright, glad to be home though. How were things around here? Anything exciting happen?

I smiled to myself at the question. "Nothing much. You didn't miss a thing, it was pretty boring actually. I'm going to go upstairs – my room's a mess. Call me if you need anything!" I laughed a little at his familiar response,

"I took care of myself for seventeen years, Bella. You go on ahead."

Edward met me in my room. "Nothing much' and 'It was pretty boring actually?" He shook his head. "That was how you described this past week. "You, my love, are incredible." I flopped down beside him on the bed.

"I love you. And after this summer..."

He continued my sentence, "We will be together."

"Forever." I finished. His lips met mine in agreement and I knew then that it really would be forever.

"Hey, Edward,"

"Hmm?" He traced my jawbone with his lips, breathing softly on my cheek.

"I can't wait."

A/N: That's it! Just because the story is through doesn't mean you can't review. Please let me know what you think of this chapter as well as the story as a whole. It's my first attempt so constructive criticism is appreciated as well. Thank you t all those who have reviewed – it really kept me going!