A/N: Hi everyone! Thank you so much for your kind reviews and follows and… well, everything. The reviews give me the …umph? To continue with this story. Please read and review your feedback guides the story. I'm fairly sure this will stay in EPOV with perhaps one or two BPOV chapters, but 'tiz the season for EPOVs, right?

We are pushing forward. Alice needs to have a 'carefrontation' with Edward.

I have an innovative idea of where this is going, but there are some canon messes to take care of. I said this fic would be more romance than angst… but I have never liked Bella giving Edward a pass or being passive aggressive with Jacob. Like, is she unintentionally punishing Edward?

Hint: Edward will do something idiotic to prove a point about Jacob … Jealousy is such a potent motivator; it does not seem that Bella understands that… but it might just help. Still something stupid! Something to look forward to!

This week was rather sobering, I gave myself a concussion in my sleep… and then I spent the rest of the week waiting around for my COVID-19 test results, after I found out I was exposed to the virus. Ya know what sucks? Self-isolation! It came up negative and that is the good news.

Other good news? Midnight Sun finally landed on my doorstep! I have had the version that Stephenie Meyer had on her website for all these years, and I loved it. It was my favorite. This published version, (the official version, all 600 pages of it.) Midnight Sun really shows how much she has grown as a writer, and there are a lot of noticeable differences because of cultural norms evolving over the last 15 years… despite it taking place in 2005.

If you have not checked out the dedication page, you should because it is so what makes Stephenie Meyer an impressive author. She never discounts her fans, nor her characters! She makes Edward look less … creepy? Also, much of what we read in the first version takes almost no time to get through, to dedicate a lot more time to what we have not read. I have a feeling there will be a new generation of writers and readers. I cannot wait!

So Mrs. Meyer, if you ever come across this. Thank you! I am an official writer because of you, so I will always pay it back to this community in spades.

Disclaimer: Though I may play with Stephenie Meyer's characters when I am finished, I put them back on the shelf where they belong, because I do not own a thing.

Chapter Four: Carefrontation

(Edward)

Alice fancied up the hospital room Carlisle had put Bella in. Pillows, nicer sheets, a comfortable blanket, and god knows what else. The room looked and smelled like a metaphysical shop. I'm sure Bella will love that. Despite Alice's overzealousness, Bella's room was sanitized and sterile. Alice was very thorough and had yet to confront her own guilt.

I could not say I had either. What I got from Bella was already devastating.

"What do you think?" Alice asked, leaning against the door.

"That the nurses will talk about Carlisle playing favorites and wonder why we came back. They think we left because Bella wasn't in my league," I growled. "How did it go?"

Alice tilted her head, and smiled, Charlie knew, he's as intuitive as Bella. Bella looks healthier with COVID than she has in months. She gave her dad comfort because there was not a hint of doubt in her words. Charlie was glad to hear her assert herself.

Stop being so sullen, Cullen! Here, I will show you what I saw before sneaking out.

Alice's memory.

Bella: "Dad, I know deep down you know that Edward loves me, and you know I love him. Like you never stopped loving Mom, he's it for me. Edward is… complicated. He constantly worries about me; he worries that he's not good enough for me. That's why we broke up when Carlisle got a new job in L.A. He wanted me to have a shot at finding someone who lived in the same state. I followed him into the forest. I'll never be okay with how he managed it, but neither of us has done this before."

Bella takes a deep breath; an uncomfortable truth was about to come out of her mouth.

Bella: "The truth is Dad; Edward and I were on that road, anyway. It was only a matter of time before we broke up, there was too much between us. Edward and I share a common trait, stubbornness. We had a few issues that turned into a stalemate, we were just not on the same page. We are now—and I believe him. Neither of us are skilled in the art of compromise, although it's improved, because we are both trying."

Charlie: "You're sure, kid?"

Bella: "We are working things out, no we aren't perfect, but there is a will to move past this and start over. No matter what, even if we don't. I will be okay, Dad, you focus on getting better."

Charlie: "Well, that kid better be sorry. I'll haunt him for the rest of his days if he's not good to you. You've always fought for what you love. Bells… I am glad you came to live with me. I was never a father to you; it was my job to help you through bad spots. Don't be upset or angry about this last year. I couldn't be prouder of the woman you are right at this moment. It tells me I must have done something right."

Bella: "You did a lot right, Dad. I love you."

Charlie: "I love you too, Bells always will."

Bella's face lit up with a smile.

I shook my head from Alice's thoughts, "What does that mean? She wanted to break up with me before this?" I could hear the alarm in my voice.

"I got flickers of that possibility, when you guys were ignoring each other, or you were ignoring her. I saw that Bella was thinking through all the implications of your continued impasse, she'd come close to forming resolve. It really was a matter of time, although this was so much worse. I also got flickers of you somewhere else, someplace we are never supposed to be. I am not sure why I kept seeing you taking your shirt off in Volterra as Bella and I raced to save you from killing yourself, idiot! What is up with that? Did you lose your mind?"

I looked down at the ground as Alice started searching.

"Edward! What? No! That will not happen! You'd kill yourself if she died? Yet, you left because of that wish! Not that she would die, but that she would die like a human. You must have known that was a foolish idea. You went crazy about all the things that could harm her. I believe that when she met you, her ticket was up that day in Biology."

"What? You're not making sense! Should I have killed her the first day?"

"Ay, dummy! Don't get all emo on me. I share Carlisle's belief about Bella's destiny; otherwise wouldn't this all be a cruel joke? Her destiny was set in motion when she was born. They set these circumstances and outcomes long before she knew you. Charlie's destiny was set when he became a cop. If the pandemic hit, he wouldn't be spared. Her mom, well, moving to Florida with a baseball player."

"The cafeteria, biology. It would always happen. She would always be one of us. You just kept screwing up the timeline. So technically, Bella pulled the vampire card. Now, you may think you deserve punishment, but Bella doesn't. The odds? You, sir, are 119 years old. You wanted war, not love, you were waiting for the right person… despite the fair share of ahem… interested parties. Then this girl randomly moves in with her absentee parent, to make the other absentee parent happy. Phoenix to Forks, this most unusual girl, as pale and pasty as we are, in this little insignificant town. Like Carlisle said, she's always accepted you for you, never tried to change you! She loves you, and the inner monster, and your family of monsters. She never freaked out about the entire vampire going to high school in Forks. Because that's just Bella…"

"You are so blind to women; it took someone whose mind you could not read, whose blood tempted you enough to run to Alaska, knowing how impossible it is for most vampires, Emmett for example. She ends up in the one class, with no choice than to sit next to you. The electric current, making you aware that you've met your mate. Everything about Bella was designed to get your attention! You need Bella's silence! If it were my significant other, I wouldn't want them to have access to all my thoughts, especially since Bella is such an introvert. But you had to learn a few things, go through some darkness, before she was born. Bella has in every way physically manifested vampire traits as a human. Ask Jasper, Bella has been irrevocably altered too! Can you imagine how intense that will be when she's changed! Edward, you never thought the worst that could happen, the only person who could hurt, devastate her was you, but that is the truth. She's not a damsel in distress, she's a human in distress! She'll be a kick ass vampire, that's for sure. Does she know about your plans?"

"I'll have to think about that one," although it did make a lot of sense. Too many coincidences. Esme fell in love with Carlisle while she was human, their love only magnified when she changed. They still give each other gooey eyes. Rosalie fell in love with Emmett as a human, dying Emmett. If anyone knew about fate, meeting your mate, and your family, it would be Alice. She was waiting for Jasper, and then she found us.

"That wasn't the question, Edward." Alice grumbled.

"Yes, I told her, the day of her birthday. I am not sure if she believes me."

"Then you better turn her soon. Edward, please take this advice, when you no longer have to worry about the danger she faces, when you two can be together without restraint. The day she'll be able to fight her own battles, and you utterly understand how perfect spending eternity with her will be. I'm not sure what you'll do. I mean, you might just end up satisfied with how your life worked out? That's a game changer."

"Anyway, I'm gonna get out of here for a while, and go speak with Esme. It was a depressing conversation since Charlie knows he will die. He gave Bella a folder with Forks PD across it. I guess that's where all the paperwork she'll need is. They prepare cops. Carlisle came in to tell him what he wanted to do to treat Bella, and that they would put him on a vent. He explained possibly discharging her early with one of us staying with her until it cleared. Charlie agreed."

"He also asked Carlisle to help Bella with his affairs. I offered mine and Esme's help to fix up the house and make Bella's room into a sanctuary. He insisted she move into his room and accepted the offer for a good asking price home makeover. That was when things got too heavy for me, so I split."

Alice was searching, again

"She'll be able to live comfortably as you two work it out. Then when she's changed… she'll adapt to the lifestyle better than you think. Talk to her about your fears. You guys are in a lot of trouble if you haven't ironed out these communication issues."

"Do you think she'll ever want to be official… official?"

"Married?" Alice asked.

I nodded.

"Yeah, I'm glad you agreed to her change. Bella is a product of divorce, and you are a product of the 20th century, when women couldn't even vote. My advice Edward, take a walk in the other person's shoes. She's good at that, explain your side, what values you were brought up with. Give her the information she needs to make an informed choice, but you also have to take her experience in."

"We'll talk later! She's coming and not looking for me. She needs you."

Alice was gone not three seconds before Bella walked in, searching for me. Before I could make it to her, the dam broke. I'd only seen Bella so bereft once, and even then, it wasn't this intense.

"I'm so sorry Bella," and I was, "It isn't fair." It wasn't.

Bella's arms wrapped around my torso, her face buried in my shoulder, my shirt wet with hot tears.

"Come," I whispered.

Bella nodded, but didn't move.

"Don't be angry at me for this." I frowned but picked Bella up as if she were a bride, placing myself on the bed first, and then carefully laid back. Bella followed me like a magnet. Stroking her hair while she cried made me feel utterly useless. There wasn't anything I could do or say to ease her pain. I felt it, and I remembered it. I briefly considered asking Jasper for help. Carlisle was right, her pain was necessary. Hopefully, soon, we'll be in that space we sometimes occupied where I was just a boy, and she was just a girl who liked each other. I would tell her about how our emotions play into who we become as vampires. I lost everything I knew, and I was dying. Worry, fright, and sadness became a part of who I am. My past transgressions only added a century of regret and darkness. Until I met Bella, I learned entirely new emotions, good and bad. She changed me in such a profound way. I changed her. We could be happy… We would be happy.

"I'm sorry," Bella whispered.

"Why?" I asked.

"Your shirt is all wet!"

I barked a laugh, "That makes no difference. I will help you through this. I wish I could take the pain away." Misery punctuated each word. "Should I call Alice to help?"

"No," Bella said, shaking her head. She unzipped a black hoodie, revealing whatever gown Alice had tucked into yoga pants. "Will you help?"

"Of course, Love."

Carefully, I moved off the bed, removed Bella's shoes, then socks. She lowered her pants to reveal a form-fitting white cotton, open backed… hospital gown?

Alice…

Bella's lids were heavy, and I knew the nurses would be in soon. She was in her own head and she moved without instruction, allowing me to tuck her in.

"The nurses will be here soon. I'm not supposed to be. They need to get you checked in and hooked up. I believe I heard Esme. Are you okay with me leaving to see her? I haven't since I've been back."

"You'll come back when they're gone?" Bella's worried, doubtful tone cut right through me.

I tucked a tendril of hair behind her ear. "I'll always come back, for as long as you want me around. Even if I have to turn the world into ash."

That made her smile.

"I believe you."

"I'm glad because it's the truth. Bella, you're not alone. I'm with you every step of the way, to support you however you need me to. I know this is a lot, just remember I love you. Partners, right?"

"Yep, that sounds about right. Get out of here before you get caught. I'm sleepy anyway."

I gave her an understanding smile, kissed her forehead, and zipped out of the room to find my mom.

A/N: I really hope you like what you are reading, and if you have any suggestions, please let me know! Reviewing is the best way to keep the embers of this fire going. Stay Safe everyone!