As always, sorry for the wait. On the plus side, I have the next chapter already written! Yay!

The song for this chapter is Slow Dancing In A Burning Room by Tyler Ward. This song is so tragically beautiful.

Also, please note that I will soon be starting a vlog with my best friend. That's going to be fun.

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Disclaimer: I own the rights to these characters about as much as I own rights to Jensen Ackles or Misha Collins…. That would be NOT AT ALL.

Chapter Nineteen: Slow Dancing In A Burning Room

BPOV:

"Edward? What the hell are you doing here?" I didn't try to keep the shock and venom from my voice. He moved into the room and in those few steps, Jasper was in front of me protectively. I placed a hand to his tense arm comfortingly and he smiled sheepishly at me. Unlike the worm in front of me, Jasper recognized that I was strong and independent enough to stand up for myself. I moved forward and his arm moved until it was around my waist, holding my hip comfortingly.

"What do you want, Edward," Jasper growled quietly and Edward's eyes flickered to his in annoyance.

"I'd like to talk to Bella," he said. "Or are you her keeper now?"

"I don't need a keeper," I said heatedly. "Unlike you, Jasper respects me." Edward narrowed his eyes at me.

"Bella, can we… can we speak privately?" He moved forward hopefully but stopped when Emmett growled and planted himself in front of me.

"It's okay, Emmett," I said. "I can handle this." I turned back to Edward. "There is nothing I have to say to you. There is also nothing that I want to hear. If you want to talk to me, you can do it here." He looked around the room uncomfortably.

"I'm so, so sorry for what I did to you. I was so lost in my grief after Alice died, I didn't think you could understand, that you could relate. I didn't realize just how much she meant to you. I should have been there to offer you comfort, as you would have done for me. And I should have been the one to tell you she died. I shouldn't have left Carlisle the responsibility to tell you that your best friend –a sister even –had died." Jasper frowned and I felt my blood chill in my veins as Carlisle stepped forward.

"I hate to interrupt," he said, not looking sorry at all. "But I didn't call Bella to tell her about Alice. I thought you had," he said, looking at Edward.

"I didn't even think of it," Edward admitted. "But you were at the house," he said in confusion, turning to me. "And you knew. You'd been yelling for Alice. Who told you?" I turned to Jasper, my eyes taking in his confused, hurt face before darting down to lock on my feet.

"She called me," I mumbled softly but I knew they heard.

"That's not possible," Jasper said. "She was on the phone with me when she –when it happened. She couldn't have called you unless-" he stopped and I could feel the shock and outrage rolling off of him like an ocean tide.

"Unless she called me first," I whispered, tears forming in my eyes. I could feel it all crashing around me, this beautiful joy that we had found falling and crumbling against me as I desperately tried to hold it together.

"She called you," Carlisle asked blankly. I nodded.

"She told me what was going on. She told me she had to tell me something before she called Jasper. She told me-"

"How could you not tell me about this?" Jasper's pained voice was quiet, broken. "After all this time, why would you keep this a secret?"

"She made me promise," I said through a sob. "It was the last thing she asked me to do and I couldn't betray her."

"So you lied to us? To me," he demanded.

"I promised Alice not to tell you. I can't even count how many times I've wanted to tell you, how many times I've woken up at night having relived that phone call over and over."

"Your nightmares… they were about Alice?!"

"She was reminding me that I had to keep my promise/ I've relived that night so many times, I couldn't forget it if I wanted to. And I've come so close to telling you. I had to physically silence myself a thousand times to stop from breaking my promise!"

"You lied to me," Jasper shouted and I flinched back at his words. "You lied to me about my wife! You lied even though you knew it was wrong, that it would kill me when I found out!"

"I couldn't have told you! Alice made me promise! What would you have done?"

"I would have been honest," he shouted. The house fell awkwardly silent, still resounding with his raised voice. "All the guilt, the nightmares, I thought it was survivor's guilt. I should have realized that there was more to it. I… I loved you," he whispered brokenly. "I loved you after Alice. And you lied to me. I can't…" He turned and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?" He stopped.

"I can't even look at you," he whispered.

"Jasper, you can't… you can't leave. You can't leave me," I sobbed. His eyes met mine before he turned and walked out the door before I knew what was happening.

And just like that, in one easy, inconsequential gesture, my life ended.