Saturday
POV: Bella

"Hey, Miss Klutzy," Emmett chortled at me as he passed by the living room. "What's with the long face?"

I glared at him, relaxing back against the comfortable pillows Esme had kindly stacked up to support my back.

My leg was stretched out in front of me on the footrest that Edward had demanded of Alice on buying separately. It was completely unnecessary; the soreness in my leg was fading rapidly and I no longer winced whenever I put my weight on it.

True to Edward's word, Carlisle had cheerfully announced this morning that my days of torture were now over. An appointment had been made at the hospital for later this evening. I'd frowned a bit that we couldn't remove the brace here at the house, but Carlisle had insisted that it was a required hospital procedure.

"Well, if you were forced into wearing this bulky thing for weeks in a row, you'd be having the same face, you know." I snapped irritably.

Edward, who was sitting beside me on the couch, rubbed my arms soothingly while shooting his brother a look.

It was Saturday afternoon. Edward had brought me to his house as soon as Charlie had left for work since he hadn't wanted me to be alone. I had been only more than happy to comply.

Just then, Alice flitted down the stairs gracefully and appeared in the doorway to the living room. She grinned at me briefly before turning to glower at her brother.

"Edward, it's been more than two weeks." Alice informed him in a no–nonsense tone, no "hello", "hi", nothing. "You should hunt."

Edward's eyes were completely black now, and though I was incredibly impressed that he hadn't lost and wouldn't lose one bit of control around me, I knew that he was putting himself through extreme pain just to be here for me.

Edward clenched his jaw tightly. "Not today, Alice. I'll go sometime next week."

Alice shook her head firmly. "Esme says that you can't afford to skip any more days of school especially since you and Bella already missed those days . . . before prom."

Even now, Alice still had trouble talking about the Phoenix incident. I understood that it was as sore of a subject for her as it was for me. Her past connection with that vile James … anyone would have been troubled.

"Besides, I've seen that there aren't going to be any sunny days, so it's not like you'll have an excuse to stay home anyway." Alice continued sharply.

Edward sighed impatiently. "Then I'll go after school finishes."

"Edward, you can't hold out for that long. I know you're thirsty; just go and get it over with. Stop being so damn stubborn and stop arguing with me."

"I'm not leaving Bella, Alice." He gritted his teeth forcefully. "Besides, her cast is going to be removed today."

"Well, it's not like you'll actually be physically present there when it happens, Edward." Alice snapped at him. "Remember? Charlie's going to meet her at the hospital, so you're not going to be allowed in the room anyway."

I could see how much this affected Edward. I watched his expression as he visibly tried to keep away the frustration.

"You should go," I encouraged, stroking the purple lines under his eyes. His dark eyes flickered to mine and stayed there. "Alice is right, Edward. It's been several weeks. I don't want you putting yourself in unnecessary pain."

"I'm not in any pai –"

Alice nodded in agreement, abruptly cutting him off. "Good God, Edward, it's not like you'll never see her again. Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie are also taking a trip in a few minutes. Go with them, have a good time, don't overstuff yourself, and return peacefully."

"I have to be here," Edward insisted, his arms tightening around my shoulders. "Bella needs me."

"She can hardly move!" Alice exclaimed in exasperation. After a moment, she added, "No offence, Bella. And what do you think – that you're the only one helping her? What about Carlisle, Esme and I? Are we doing nothing for her? We'll take good care of her while you're gone. By the time you return, she'll be as good as new."

I knew Edward was close to conceding. He needed just a little push. Putting my hands on his cheek, I stared into his eyes, pleading, "Go, Edward," I urged. Sure, I was unhappy that I'd have to survive several days without him, but if it meant ridding him of his pain, I wasn't going to complain about it. "Alice will take care of me. Go hunt some mountain lions for me."

Edward shot me a disapproving look, the way he normally did when I talked so freely and nonchalantly about his diet, but his eyes were shining with some amount of amusement.

"Fine, fine." He held up his hands in surrender, pressing a sweet kiss to my neck. Feeling my pulse throb against my skin, he pulled away sharply, not daring to breathe. Those black orbs seemed to glow darker. "You win."

"Me, too," Alice added with a haughty smile.

"Never bet against Alice," I reminded him in his ear.

He chuckled gently and carefully lifted himself off the couch without jostling me despite my numerous assurances that my leg felt much better now.

Alice came to sit next me with a wide smile, which I played off as just her normal cheerfulness, as Edward breezed through the house, calling his remaining siblings to leave the house for their hunt.

I absently watched whatever fashion shows Alice selected on television, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Alice's commentary and suggestions for each article of clothing.

In a sudden blur, Edward was in front of me, gently taking my hand and kissing the back of it. His eyes burned when he looked at me, but his smile was beautiful.

"Bye, sweetheart. I'll be back as soon as I can." he promised me softly.

Ever since we'd returned from Phoenix, he'd hardly ever left my side which made me feel immensely happy and guilty at the same time.

"Don't," I shook my head. "Don't rush because of me. Take your time. Spend time with your family, too."

Edward rolled his eyes, as if my suggestion was absolutely ridiculous, and lightly sprang out the front door, his siblings already waiting for him. I listened intently for the purr of the engine, and a deep rumbling later, they were gone.

"Well, goodbye to you, Edward!" Alice sarcastically shouted after him before closing her eyes deliberately.

I knew what was happening. She was having a vision. Apart from the obvious fact that she could see the future in the first place, it was interesting that she could look into the future as well.

Fascinated, I stared at her without moving or speaking.

A moment later, she regained her composure. A huge, devilish smile took over her features and her golden eyes opened and turned mischievous.

She turned to me.

Uh–oh.