Hi again! Thank you so much for all the faves, follows and reviews! I forgot how totally addicted I am to hearing from you all so thank you times a million.

Just so you know, I hope to update weekly on Sundays or Mondays going forward. As it happens, I'm away at a wedding tomorrow and Monday so am posting a bit early this week.

And to clear up a couple of things: this isn't set in Forks, but a small city in Minnesota called Two Harbors (a real city with a similar population to Forks – thanks Google Maps!). And I am English so please forgive any 'wrong' spellings or odd, British words! Also, this IS endgame Edward/Bella, just as a reminder…

Chapter 2 – Time Cannot Heal All Wounds

Edward POV

Our dramatic exit from Scotland wasn't a regular occurrence in our efforts to blend in. Usually, the humans were blissfully unaware of us beyond registering us as strange or slightly different. Perhaps we should have predicted that Loch Ness wouldn't be the ideal location for us, simply because if the entire townsfolk believed that an enormous water-dwelling dinosaur lived in their humble lake then it shouldn't have been much of a stretch for them to think the odd new family in town had something of the supernatural about them.

To be fair, the majority reacted to us normally: a little fear, then convincing themselves they were being ridiculous before moving on to a begrudging acceptance. But one girl in our high school, Isla, observed too closely. Fancying herself a photographer, she liked to look at the usual and find what was unusual about it. One day, she saw Alice staring straight ahead and acting strangely, and then later convinced herself that Alice had moved way too fast to catch a pen she'd dropped. A few days later, this kid happened to notice that Jasper, Alice and I had not consumed a single bite of our lunch despite our convincing efforts to the contrary. I gave them the heads up and the next day at lunch all three of us forced some vile slabs of pizza down to keep up appearances. But it was too late: the seed had already been planted. Isla thought we were odd and now she was on the lookout for proof. Of course, we never gave her any, but we all knew things were getting a little too hairy when she tried following us home to find out where we lived (she lost us, of course; Alice's uncanny ability to direct us down streets where the lights would go red just behind us helped us to get away inconspicuously).

I spoke to Carlisle, and he made his excuses at the local hospital (a dying parent, I believe), and we emptied out our house and made our exit, gone by the next morning. I was sure Isla would be disappointed to never prove her theory, but she wasn't the first and certainly wouldn't be the last.

It had been Alice that suggested Two Harbors, a small city half an hour down the coast from Duluth, Minnesota. It wasn't quite as rainy and overcast as Forks – no place in the USA could beat that town for poor weather – but its northern location did lend the town to more sunless days than sunny ones, so it had been a sensible suggestion, if a bit out of left field.

"Why Minnesota?" Carlisle found himself asking, wondering about her sudden interest in the state we'd not considered before.

We all looked to her, and everyone's thoughts were an echo of Carlisle's, including my own.

Alice simply shrugged. "Don't you think it's time for a change? I want to try somewhere different, and the US always feels like home."

"Then home it is," Esme said with a smile, always easily won over by one of her 'children'.

Carlisle hesitated and I saw my own bored face in his thoughts, heard her name pass through his thoughts before he could hide where his concern was headed: so close to Forks… to Bella…

My empty chest seared with pain, and I winced, looking away.

For once, I was grateful when Rosalie spoke up, self-concerned as always. "Well, we won't be coming with you. Emmett and I will stay in Ambleside; our cover hasn't been blown and I like it there. It's quaint." The two of them had split away from the family for the latest move, choosing to live as a young couple in a tiny, chocolate box village in the Lake District in northern England rather than join us in Scotland. It didn't have a big impact on the family, though; the island nation of the UK was so small that, despite being in different countries, Rose and Emmett were really only a half an hour's run from us. This would be a considerably further distance but hardly a challenge for creatures who could swim the Atlantic without needing to stop for so much as a single breath of air.

"Fine," Carlisle said, nodding slowly. He sighed. "Edward?" I'm sorry to bring it up, I hate to cause you pain, son, but do you think it will be too tempting for you to visit…

"It's fine," I said flatly, pushing away his concern. It didn't matter where in the world I was. I knew where she was and I knew that she'd moved on, just as I'd wanted for her. Despite that being my intention when I left the love of my entire existence, it didn't hurt me any less to remember the sight of her, laughing barefoot in a tiny, warm kitchen in La Push, Jacob Black – of all people, Jacob Black – blowing soap suds at her. That had been seven years ago, and I hadn't found it necessary to torture myself further by returning. It was enough just to wonder whether they might have gotten married, had children, forged a real future together… to go back and see that come to fruition might just kill me. I knew Alice still occasionally attempted to tune into her current path, but it was hard for Alice to visualise because of the constant presence of a werewolf hampering her skill. Regardless of what small glimpses Alice saw, I told her to keep it to herself. I didn't want to know anymore.

I still wasn't at peace with my decision to leave, tortured myself over whether it had been the right thing every day. But her safety was paramount and so I could never bring myself to completely regret it, especially not now that she was safe, loved and happy. It had been… harder, in the earlier years. When Alice's visions showed her mourning a loss that seemed almost insurmountable to her. When I hadn't always been strong enough to stay away and would sit on the outskirts of Forks, hear Charlie's fierce anxiety for his daughter in his thoughts. I never got close enough to see her or hear her anguished sobs, but Charlie's memories of it had been enough to make me crush my steering wheel between my fingers, the mangled plastic ruined in an instant.

I had run then. I still couldn't say where I went. Everywhere and nowhere all at once. I fed only to survive. I got no pleasure from anything. For six long years, I was nomadic, absent, focussed only on moving; the pain felt better when I was running, almost like I could run from it. Eventually, though, I realised how pointless it was. Esme missed me desperately, as did Alice, and I found that I missed them and the rest of my family. So I returned, told them I didn't want their sympathy. That part of our lives was over, and we'd go back to normal. I told them I was going to attend high school once again with my siblings (we subsequently spent nine years matriculating through the Russian education system, attending high school, university and exploring the country) and that I'd use the rest of my time to learn. It took me a while to decide what would be a useful thing to know and eventually committed myself to environmentalism, a path I had not really expected to pursue. But by learning and then utilising my accreditations (under a false name, of course) to make actual change for our long-suffering planet, I convinced myself that at least my existence was a good thing. By simply continuing to exist, I was making a positive change that would have an impact on the future of the planet… and of Bella. I couldn't be with her, but perhaps indirectly, from a distance, I could help her – and any future generations she produced.

"That's settled, then," Carlisle said after a short, uncomfortable pause. "We'll go to Minnesota. Esme, can you make a phone call to the local high school and register Jasper, Alice and Edward under the name…" He hesitated for a moment, frowned, considering a new surname for us to assume. We had felt it necessary after leaving Forks, now that there was a human who knew the truth of our world and had motive to seek us out. The internet was a wonderful human advancement, but it did make complete and genuine privacy harder to come by.

"Ooh, can we use my human name this time?" Alice chirped. "I've always wanted to try it out!"

"Brandon?" Esme smiled. "It's a lovely name. I can be Mrs Brandon for a few years."

"Fine, register us as the Brandons. I'll get in touch with the hospital there. And Jasper can you get back in touch with Mr Jenks? We'll need new identities again, and quickly."

And that was it. Now, here we were, a short distance from the beauty of Lake Superior, from the wildlife-filled forests of Minnesota, and starting our first day at a new high school. I hadn't completed a junior year on the American curriculum since Forks, which made me concerned that the material would remind me of her, but I hoped I could zone out and focus on other things if it became too painful.

Before I could settle myself into the life of ignoring the thoughts of everyone around me, I had a job to do. I had to monitor peoples' thoughts for anything that could put our family in the spotlight or, worse, in danger.

It very quickly became apparent, however, that no one cared enough to look closely, as was usually the case. Some people stared, astonished by our apparent attractiveness, but without Emmett to intimidate people with his abnormal size and Rosalie's ethereal beauty and accompanying bitterness, we almost blended right in. Jasper beamed out an air of dullness to make our fellow students too bored by us to analyse the odd whiteness of our skin or the strange gold colour of our eyes. I had double Chemistry in the morning and two boys managed to escalate a small error of calculation into a full-blown fistfight and so I basically faded into obscurity. Then PE and the coach was mildly impressed by my athletic ability but that thought set him off into a bitter mental trajectory about how he'd have been that good if it weren't for that motorcycle accident in his sophomore year of college…

By lunch, I was already bored of the humdrum and mundanity of it all. Alice and Jasper were already seated in the corner of the cafeteria when I arrived and they were chatting – well, Alice was – about Jasper's English class. "That's such an interesting book choice, I've not heard of that taught in senior year before. At least that's something different to look forward to next year." In her mind, Alice was reciting every book she'd ever read as part of a school curriculum, and I tuned out of her brain; sometimes Alice's mind was too hectic to keep up with.

Being back in a high school cafeteria did indeed make me think of her. I thought of the bottle cap that had travelled around the globe with me and now resided by my music collection, sitting in front of the Clair De Lune record I hadn't been able to listen to in fifteen years. For the first time in a long time, I allowed myself to recall her and the way she had looked sitting across from me a lifetime ago in the Forks High cafeteria: pink cheeks, excited eyes, soft lips. Her stunning yet inaccessible mind throwing out questions I hadn't anticipated; her dark sense of humour quick to make light of the impossible situation we found ourselves in. Laughably, I knew that I wouldn't find another close to her likeness even if I lived for the rest of eternity. Which I could – but never planned to. What would be the point in continuing my existence if she weren't out there, somewhere, to benefit from it in whatever small way I could provide?

The pain that ricocheted through my empty body reminded me why I should never allow myself the impossible pleasure of remembering her. It was astonishing enough that emotion could cause physical pain in a living, human body. It was all the more impossible that it could inflict agony on my lifeless corpse in motion. My memories were so strong that I could even remember the pain of my thirst for her with such clarity. My senses were overwhelmed with her: I almost felt as though I could smell her, as if she were in the very same room…

A gasp nearby ripped me from my memories and my instinct was to scan the minds nearby, fearing a human had noticed something. But quickly I realised that it was my own sister who had gasped – Alice, the unassailable, had been surprised. When I saw the face in her mind, I thought she'd had a vision of my love in a far-off place, something unexpected or terrible in her imminent future. But then I noticed the surroundings of Alice's vision – too familiar – and then I saw the vision play out, her beautiful face full of anguish and fury, as though she couldn't decide which to choose. And all this emotion was directed at… me. It hadn't been my imagination at all: she was, actually, in this very room.

I heard Jasper asking Alice something and some distant part of my brain noted that his mind was clueless. He genuinely had no idea what was coming, and that was something, I supposed. Proof that Alice hadn't meticulously planned this out to torture me.

But the majority of my mind and body thrummed with her closeness, both craving it and dreading it. I could feel her eyes on me now, could feel that anger directed at me as the lamb once again took on the lion, her bleats ineffectual against my roar.

Then, before I had time to even decide how to proceed, Alice's vision played out live in that cafeteria. Her voice, which I had yearned to hear for so long, was behind me, full of ferocious rage and pained confusion and glorious, untainted human life: "What are you doing here?"

The question was not joyful, as though this were a happy reunion. She sounded… appalled. Disappointed.

I glared over at Alice, questioning.

Edward, I had no idea, I swear, she insisted silently.

Jasper simply observed, sending out waves of calm though they had little effect on my riotous emotions.

Barely a nanosecond had passed before I steeled myself and stood, turning to face her. Her beauty floored me: had I been breathing she'd have knocked me breathless. It was true she had aged, but this hadn't affected how beautiful she was. Her face had lost the roundness of youth and her creamy skin was marred by a few microscopic lines, but her dark eyes portrayed not only her intelligence and her kind soul, but also the wisdom and experience that came with years well-lived. She was still slim but in a less chaotic, teenaged way. Her body was looked after, moulded into form; her muscles were firm in all the right places, not the willowy seventeen-year-old I had last seen. Her long, chestnut hair had a few greys creeping in, barely noticeable to the naked, human eye, but flowed loose around her shoulders, the light picking out the different tones of brown. She looked, quite simply, incredible.

As I took her in, her eyes skated up and down my form, stunned, and I knew she must be taken aback by how exactly the same I was. Another way in which she bettered me: she could change, adjust, improve. I was this, a boy on the cusp on manhood, forever more.

When I spoke, my voice was low, calm and composed. Miraculously. "We should talk… later."

Her jaw clenched and I was reminded of the teenaged girl who wouldn't take my half-answers about villains and adrenaline rushes, demanding more from me. Demanding truth. "Oh no you don't," she hissed, her face clouding over with resentment. "Get rid of me so you can take off again without a backward glance? You owe me this. What are you doing here? Why are you here? You want to uproot my life again? You got bored so you came back to bat around your plaything a bit more?"

"Bella," I murmured, and my body thrilled to say her name again. "You are right, of course you are right. But…" I looked pointedly around her at the confused high school students watching the exchange with narrowed eyes. I realised from their thoughts that she was a teacher here. Of course; her compassion, intelligence and humour made her perfect for the role. "Let's at least go somewhere more private."

As if suddenly remembering where she was, Bella blinked, startled. She glanced around and forced a calm smile for the children. Then she turned back to me, mouth pinched. "Fine. Outside."

She turned and walked away, expecting me to follow, more confident than I'd ever seen her.

"Alice," I muttered under my breath, "you had better have the best damn explanation for this when I come for you later."

Edward, I didn't know she claimed again.

"If you think I believe you, then you are utterly deluded," were my almost-silent parting words to my sister as I followed the love of my life out of the cafeteria doors and across the car park to a small, tree-enclosed green.

She faced outwards, towards the cage of trees we found ourselves in, and kept her back to me. I had forgotten how insanely trusting she was. Didn't she remember how close she had come to death in my presence? How dangerous I was to her? I surely didn't; each breath I took now was a battering ram, an invitation to drain her veins.

I waited.

Eventually, she turned. She stared at me, her eyes swimming with confusion, and I understood. I felt it all too, having never expected to come face-to-face with her ever again, and I had the advantage of rapid processing that had taken in the situation much quicker than she would be able to. Her lips parted, but no sound came out. She swallowed thickly and tried again, her voice a whisper: "E… Edward. Why are you here? What do you want?"

I kept my voice calm, determined not to startle or worry her any further. "We were just starting over again. I'm sorry, Bella. We had no idea you had set up a life here. We'll move on and leave you in peace." I hesitated. "I truly am… sorry."

She stared over my shoulder, her eyes distant now. Then, she nodded slowly. "That would probably be for the best." She returned her gaze to my face. "You lied to me, you know."

I frowned, puzzled.

She didn't wait for me to ask for the explanation: "You said it would be as if you never existed, but you took everything from me." She straightened herself up, as if to make herself more intimidating to me, a vampire. "You hurt me."

I knew. Oh, how I wished I didn't, but I knew her pain better than she realised, and it burned me, a fire hotter and stronger than the violent, primal thirst. I knew. "I know. I'm sorry."

That lit a fire in her eyes. "Is that it? You're sorry? You were… the only person I'd ever loved. You tore my life apart and you're sorry?"

Somewhere in the distance, a bell rung.

I didn't know what to say to her. Words couldn't explain the depth of my feelings, and wouldn't the truth hurt her more? But how could I lie to her again? I couldn't even blame the naivety of youth. "Bella, I-"

She shook her head, and her eyes were beginning to shine with tears. "I- I can't." She stepped around me and started walking away, back towards the school building. She hesitated and turned back to look at me. Her cheeks were wet now. "You broke me, Edward. I will never be fixed. I can't do this." And then she walked away from me.

I was assaulted with memories of her begging me not to leave her: drugged eyes in a hospital bed pleading with me to stay while James' bite shone brightly on her wrist; sleep-slurred promises to love me forever; a stammered, broken whisper in the woods, offering me her soul for me to stay in Forks with her, her stunned face a dagger to my frozen heart. But now, in contrast, she walked away from me.

I had been foolish to leave her that way and expect time to heal her. But what choice did I have? I couldn't see her come to any harm from my world, and she wouldn't have sent me away. I had hurt her to save her, and it agonised me to see that time cannot heal all wounds. Even after fifteen years, she still believed the lie that I didn't want her. Her face was still etched with pain, an echo of the girl I left in the woods, and it was all my fault.

Alice and Jasper were waiting for me outside the cafeteria. Alice's thoughts were shouting at me, a stream of apologies and as soon as I was close enough to hear her, she picked up her stream of thought and communicated it verbally so that Jasper could hear too.

Edward, I am so sorry, I couldn't see her, so I just assumed she was still with Jacob Black, back in La Push. I had no reason to think… "that she would be anywhere near here. I wouldn't put you through that, either of you, I can't believe she's here. She must still be with him; they must have moved together. I definitely sensed that she was in the close proximity of one of their kind…"

"Enough, Alice," I spat, turning a vicious glare on her that was so animalistic it made Jasper take a defensive stance between us. "You fucked up. Big time. We're leaving. Now."

No, her mind cried, anxious. "No, Edward, you can't leave it like that. She still loves you."

"In case you haven't noticed, Alice, I'm still a vampire and she's still a human. There's nothing we can do about that. She doesn't want us here, and neither do I. We have to go."

"You're so pig-headed, Edward," Alice growled, her mind producing words she didn't want to say out loud. Like coward, wrong, apologise. Like heartbroken. True love. Meant to be. Bella's white face, red eyes, golden eyes. I hissed at her, baring my teeth.

"We should at least see out the rest of the school day, to avoid suspicion," Jasper chimed in flatly, clapping a hand on my shoulder in warning. "We've already left one town under odd circumstances."

I glared at him, frustrated at his common sense. I fished the paper timetable out of my pocket and checked my next lesson: double English with a Miss IS. Absolutely not. "You do what you want," I growled. "But we're leaving this city. Tonight."

I turned my back on them and stomped over to the tree line, breaking into a sprint as soon as I was safely out of sight. And it felt like I had gone backwards because here I was once again trying to outrun a loss that was never going to leave me. The wind whistled past my ears, laughing at my loneliness.