EPOV

After I frowned at Bella and walked off, I tried to get a grip on my emotions, but still tried to monitor her through other people's thoughts. It wasn't easy. Jessica had misinterpreted my response to Bella and her mind was filled with thoughts that made me angry, so I switched to watching through Mrs. Cope. It wasn't much better because she said hello to Bella, then became distracted with helping another student. No one else in the office noticed her and there were too many people talking in the building to be able to hear her.

It felt like hours, but Mrs. Cope finally greeted Bella and I had a clear view. She looked tired, maybe even sick, and definitely distracted. I was worried. Since I returned, Alice and Jasper tried to convince me Bella loved me. Jasper relayed the words he heard Bella speak and the emotions he felt. It gave me hope, but Alice warned me to take things slowly. She believed that if we kept our distance, Bella would make the first move in opening up communication. I anxiously awaited her return to school, but my reaction at seeing her shocked me. I had been watching her for weeks, sometimes as close as an apartment wall separating us, but being in her presence again, coupled with an ounce of hope, affected me deeply.

I hadn't tried to manipulate Bella's schedule and was anxious with each class, hoping to see her. I didn't have to remain in suspense very long. Alice started screaming at me as first period began. "Bella is in my English and Gym class. She's in Psychology with you!"

After fourth period, as I walked to lunch, Alice ran and linked arms with me.

"She won't be in the cafeteria, I just saw her go into the library," she said sadly.

I had been jumping from person to person, trying to keep tabs on Bella and saw her through the librarian's eyes.

I nodded. "She's catching up on homework."

We looked at each other, and Alice's thoughts confirmed my own.

"Is she trying to avoid us?"

No one was watching Bella and it made me nervous to have her off my radar. I sat nervously in our usual spot in the cafeteria, neither Alice or I bothering to pretend eating on this day. She tired to make small talk to distract me.

"Emmett and Rosalie called last night – they're in the Congo. They should be home for Christmas…."

I couldn't handle it. "Do you see anything Alice?" I asked impatiently.

She focused and shrugged. "Nothing of consequence, Bella will go home afterschool and do her homework."

"Should I talk to her? I have to talk to her."

Alice looked sad. "There are too many variables…Bella is still difficult to read…her future is mostly fuzzy. If you feel like you really need to, you should try, although I have this vague impression that Bella will make the first move…."

I sighed. "And the future changes all the time, with every decision that is made or not made. If I talk to her, that might scare her away from me. If I don't talk to her….so frustrating…."

"It's going to be okay. Bella loves you. I know his. And I still see…." her mind drifted to a thought of Bella being one of us.

Alice was hesitant at first, but when I didn't protest she raised her eyebrows.

"Have you changed your mind?" she asked excitedly.

I frowned. "I don't know. When I saw Bella this morning, it was the first time I had seen her face to face in weeks….and something snapped. I finally allowed myself to consider the possibility. It scared me."

"You could be together forever…" she reminded me.

"It's selfish," I grumbled.

"The heart wants what the heart wants," she replied, with a shrug.

Alice paused and her mind flashed with an image of Tanya.

"Guess who's picking us up from school?" she thought, with slight annoyance.

I rolled my eyes.

After lunch, I was able to relax slightly because Alice was in class with Bella and I had a perfect view. Alice carried on a one sided conversation with me for two hours and then Bella entered our Psychology class.

Almost every child in the classroom was aware that Bella and I had broken up and were anxious to see how both of us would respond. When the teacher suggested she sit by me, I was mildly amused, but more annoyed when the children laughed and embarrassed Bella. She chose a seat in the front row, which didn't surprise me, and sat in a rigid pose the entire class. I was worried that being near me was making her uncomfortable, so when it was time to go, I left the class first.

In the parking lot, Alice was waiting for me by the Volvo.

"We're not leaving until Bella leaves, right?" she asked, with a smile.

"You know me, well," I replied, not returning the smile.

"Are you going to her house?"

"I'll drive us home first, then go on foot."

She nodded. "Esme and Carlisle miss you."

I sighed. I was in a bad mood. "I know. But, Bella is my life. Until things are at peace between us, she will be my total focus."

"We all understand."

I rolled my eyes. "Not all of you…."

Alice sniffed the air. "Tanya."

Our cousin emerged from the woods and quickly walked through the parking lot, making all the boys and some of the girls, fill with lust as she sauntered toward us.

"Zdravstvuj!" Tanya greeted in Russian. She kissed Alice on the cheek and then moved towards me. I stepped back.

"Tanya, what are you doing here?" I hissed, without moving my lips. Thanks to decades of practice, my facial expression and body language remained neutral, although I was deeply annoyed.

She threw her arms around my neck. "I missed you," she breathed. I glared at her.

"Get your hands off me," I warned.

Tanya smiled. "Only if you let me drive," she countered.

Alice, leaning against the car, sighed, seeing my decision before I answered. "You never let me drive."

I didn't have the strength to argue. As Tanya arrived, Bella walked out of the school She was talking to her friends for a moment and then they began watching us. When Tyler, that insipid boy, declared Tanya was my girlfriend, just as she put her arms around me. I relented. I wanted to get out of there as fast as humanly possible.

"Fine. Let's just go."

Tanya kissed my cheek and ran around to the driver's seat.

I was thankful that Bella knew that Esme, Alice and even occasionally Rosalie kissed me on the cheek. It was a sisterly, familiar thing. I was also glad Bella wasn't the jealous type. I knew she would find the idea of Tanya being my girlfriend just as ridiculous as it sounded.

As we left the school, driving by Bella and her friends, I was caught off guard by Bella's response when Tanya looked at her. The hurt in her eyes was unmistakable. Even more so, for a brief second I saw an image of Tanya in Bella's bedroom. It was obvious Tanya didn't realize the memory escaped because her mind turned to singing a song in Russian, something she seemed to lately whenever she was in my presence.

What the hell was Tanya doing in my Bella's bedroom and why didn't I know about it?

"Uh oh," Alice piped up from the backseat, apparently seeing what was coming.

I gripped the handle of the door, boiling in anger. I breathed deeply.

"Um, Tanya, you should stop the car," Alice warned.

Tanya was confused and glanced at me and then Alice. "Why?" she asked.
"Pull over!" Alice screamed.

As Tanya did, I bolted out of the car and started running. I didn't care if a human saw me, if I didn't separate myself from my cousin I was going to decapitate her. And despite my anger, I needed her alive to answer my questions.

Tanya was very, very good at guarding her thoughts, but I saw a piece of what I was sure was a very large puzzle. I analyzed the fragment. Tanya was sitting on Bella's bed, Bella looked heartbroken, and she was nodding. It was just a slice of a memory, but the picture was pretty clear to me. Tanya was talking to Bella about me.

I ran home and knocked down the front doors. Esme, who was upstairs in her study, came rushing down the stairs.

"What's wrong dear?" she asked, shocked by the pieces of the door hanging off it's hinges.

"I want to know exactly where Tanya was the night she came to visit with her sisters. I took Bella home and the four of you went hunting. Am I right?"

Esme was confused, wondering where the question was leading. "Yes, that's right."

"You were together the entire time?"

"No….we separated for a few hours…but, that's how we always hunt in a large group close to home…."

"That BITCH!" I screamed, pounding my fist on a table and smashing it to pieces.

"Edward," Esme chided me for the foul language. "What happened?"

I started pacing back and forth in the room, at vampire speed. "Apparently, Tanya went to visit Bella that night. The very next day Bella left unexpectedly for Jacksonville and refused to talk to me or see me. When I did see her, she broke up with me. Now what do you think caused her behavior and feelings to change so dramatically?"

Esme gasped. "She wouldn't!"

I shook my head. "She did."