Okay I am really sorry for not updating… my aunt was in the hospital so I spent all day Thursday and most of Friday in the Roswell hospital. Then, of course, the storms knocked out our power… but now here is the next chapter.

Here is a quick note about this chapter. Chapter 11 ended with a scene between Edward and Bella and, upon further review of it, I decided it was a bit too short. So this chapter will start with the extended version of that scene. So I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Bella's POV

"I'll meet you guys at the apartment in fifteen minutes," I said as I helped Rosalie into the car. "Don't worry, Rose. We're here for you." She gave a small smile before dissolving into tears again.

I walked to a nearby bench and sat down. I buried my head in my hands. How could this happen? I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Edward.

"Is she going to be okay?" he asked.

"Rosie's tough, but… this is going to take her some time," I said sadly.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his bright green eyes filled with concern.

"She's like my sister," I said, looking down. "As long as I've known her, I've never seen her this hurt. It kills me to see her like this. Alice, Rosalie, and I have always been there for each other and I can't tell you how many times Rose has let us cry on her shoulder. Now she needs us and I don't know how to help her."

"Bella, you have been a wonderful friend to her. She needs support and you have always given her that. Just keep doing that and you'll be helping her more than you know." he finished with a small smile.

A moment of silence passed between us.

"Bella?"

I looked at him.

"I love you."

My heart skipped a beat. "It feels so fast, but truthfully, I was just about to say that to you."

He took my hand. "So you love me?"

"Yes, Edward, I do love you."

He kissed my hand tenderly and looked into my eyes, cupping my face in his hand.

"Do you believe them?" I asked softly.

"No," he said firmly. "I've known Rosalie all my life and this is the last thing she would ever do, especially to Emmett. Something's not right here. Someone's lying, but who?"

"I don't know."

"I promise, Bella, we will find out," he said, taking my hands in his. I nodded sadly. "Now, can I have a smile?" he asked, his lips turning upwards into a small smile.

I looked at him and gave a small, genuine smile. I couldn't help it. Even though I knew so many things were going wrong, at that moment, being with Edward, I felt a spark of happiness.

"Come on," he said, pulling me to my feet. "I'll take you back to your apartment. I want to talk to Rosalie."

He pulled me against his chest, kissing me softly, before taking my hand in his and leading me to his car.

Mike's POV

"You should have seen their faces!" I laughed as I finished telling Eric, Jessica, and Lauren what had happened at lunch. "It was even better than we had hoped for!"

"Well, what do you think will happen now?" Jessica asked.

"I'm not sure," I replied, thinking. "I suppose their little group is broken up for good. Our plan succeeded!"

We all congratulated each other. We had done what we set out to do.

Edward's POV

Bella and I drove back to the apartment complex in comfortable silence. I held her hand as she looked out the window, deep in thought. We got out of the car and walked up to the girls' apartment. Bella opened the door and we saw Rosalie sitting on the couch with Alice's arm wrapped around her and a box of tissue in front of her. Bella walked over and wrapped her arms around her sobbing friend.

"I'm so sorry this happened, Rose," she said. "I love you and I'm here for you."

Rose nodded her head, throwing her arms around Bella. As they pulled away, I stepped forward to stand next to Bella in front of the couch.

"Rose, I believe you," I started, sitting on the table in front of the couch. "I don't know what happened, but Emmett was, is, wrong."

"Thank you, Edward," she said, sniffling. "It means a lot to me."

"What are we going to do?" Alice said, putting her arm around Rosalie again.

"This whole thing is hard for Emmett, too," I said. "I could tell that he was really hurting. I know that may be hard for you to believe, but he was. He would never admit it, but he still cares for you. He just thinks that the person he loves betrayed him."

"I don't know how this happened!" she cried. "I was her by myself all night! I only left for half an hour to pick up some medicine."

We lapsed into silence. I tried to think of some solution, some way to fix this. I knew that Emmett's heart was broken, but he would continue to treat Rosalie with animosity. I formed a plan in my head.

"I have an idea," I said, looking at the girls. "We will tell everyone that you've run away. If Emmett thinks that you are putting yourself in danger and hurting, he will start to feel guilty for what he did. Eventually, the truth will surface and this whole thing will come to an end. Then we can reveal you to Emmett."

They looked at me. "Do you think that will work?" Bella asked.

"Yes," I said confidently. "Trust me. In the meantime, I will do everything I can to find out what really happened."

Rosalie nodded. "Thank you, Edward." she whispered.

"I've got to go," I said, standing up. "I've got to go tell Emmett that you're gone. Don't worry, things will be okay."

Bella stood up and walked me to the door. I bent my head and kissed her softly. "I'll call you." I whispered.

I walked out the door and shut it behind me. I leaned against the wall, shutting my eyes. I could still picture Bella's face, smiling slightly, in my mind. I loved her. It had seemed impossible when the notion first popped into my head, but now it just seemed… natural. In the midst of the chaos around us, I found peace in her…

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I'm sorry this chapter isn't very long. I will try my hardest to post the next chapter tomorrow. After that, my next post may not be for a couple weeks, as I explained earlier.

By the way, I got two anonymous reviews and would just like to say thank you since I couldn't reply via message. Also, thank you to QueenSheba94 since my mail was screwing up and wouldn't let me reply to your review.

Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed! I really appreciate it!