AN: All characters in this story belong to Stephenie Meyer, I can only take credit for the story itself.
The following was a story I submitted to a swap a few months ago. The person who requested the story wanted fluff with a little angst and did not what Bella or Edward as the focus. Here is the story I wrote for her. I hope you will enjoy it – it will be 7 chapters long.
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Chapter Three - Alone
The first two years after my death were spent in loneliness and despair. Not only had I lost my life, but I had also lost my family who I'd always been close to. The existence I had been thrust into, through no choice of my own, was alien and unwanted. I had a good life before Carlisle terminated it. I cherished my family and they cherished me. This new family didn't really know me, and I felt like they never really tried to understand me. I wasn't anybody special to them and I resented that fact. They stole the best thing in my life that I had, and then didn't bother to replace it with something meaningful and special.
There were days when I hated Carlisle for what he had stolen from me. I resented being separated from my family and then being left alone as the members of this family went off to pursue their individual interests. I resented feeling abandoned. What did I have but emptiness, an eternity of emptiness? Carlisle and Esme had a special bond, Edward had his beloved piano and what a queer love affair that was – me, well I had nobody. I was facing an eternity without anyone to share it with; nobody to love or who would love me; nobody who found me special or would treat me special, which meant, in my mind, that I was nothing special to anybody. I resented the fact that I had no choice in what was done to me, and I resented the people who made the choice for me.
As a result, I ended up retracting into myself and became a solitary individual. My hunting habits were no different. After the first time I had hunted with Carlisle and Esme, I choose to hunt alone because I felt more comfortable. I didn't like to have anyone watching me when I became so feral, and I didn't want them to think I needed them even if I did.
This particular day was no different. Carlisle was at work, Esme was painting, Edward was playing his beloved piano again, and as usual, I was alone. I felt ignored, little more than a nuisance where they were concerned. Esme had encouraged me to take up a hobby or learn a new skill to help occupy my time, but that didn't seem fair. If they wanted me as part of the family, then they should pay more attention to me; they should be helping to fill my time and keep me company, that's what my real family would have done, but no, it had become blaringly obvious to me early on that this family would never treat me like my own family had. I would never be as important to them as I had been to my family.
Nothing about my transition was easy. I had always felt that Carlisle had stolen my human life away from me. I hated him at first and Edward too. I still harbored the belief that if he had taken me to the hospital, I would have recovered. Even though he has reassured me multiple times that I wouldn't, I still couldn't help but feel he was too hasty and if given a chance I would've recovered. I later learned that he wanted someone for Edward, but Edward was such an arrogant individual that it was hard to develop any feelings for him besides loathing and resentment. He always felt as if he knew everything; of course, it didn't hurt that he could read minds but it didn't mean he had a right to act superior. I knew from the moment we met that I didn't like him but it still galled me that he wasn't even the least bit attracted to me. I was beautiful as a human and heads turned when I walked into a room. Boys wanted me and I could see it in their eyes while most girls despised me. It wasn't my fault I was beautiful, but after the transformation, my beauty became indescribable.
I knew Edward wasn't immune to beauty because he was always telling Esme how beautiful she looked. I had also observed him watching a sunset one evening, and the beauty he had witnessed in nature mesmerized him. But as far as I was concerned, I might as well have been invisible. Maybe that's why I felt so resentful toward Edward; he seemed oblivious to my flawless features and exquisite stature.
I also knew Edward was capable of love because he really loved his piano, but there were times when I hated that piano. Edward dedicated long hours to that instrument playing, practicing, and composing music, but he never choose to dedicate any of his time to me. He hadn't ever taken the time to get to know me or to discover who I really was or what interested me. At one point, I had thought about slamming the cover shut on his hands as he played, but I laughed at the thought thinking it wouldn't do much good. It wasn't as if it would hurt him physically, and I wasn't even sure if he would understand why I did it. Sure, he could hear my thoughts but did he understand those thoughts, did he really understand how I felt and how it all affected me.
Edward cared more about his music than me. Sometimes his neglect made me feel like screaming, another reason why I preferred to hunt alone. It was the only time that I could freely vent my feelings. When Edward was listening to or playing music, he was impervious to everything else around him. I felt like I could have walked up to him and done the dance of the seven veils and he wouldn't have even looked up after I stripped naked. That realization infuriated me even more; Edward could be so thoughtless, so cruel and he didn't have any valid reason for being ignorant about my feelings.
As if it wasn't bad enough that he was musically talented, there was his other special ability. I wanted to scream to the heavens that it wasn't fair. He got two enhanced abilities, and what did I get – drooled over by lecherous old men, pawed by overly excited middle-aged men, and ogled by younger fools who thought they could impress me while he totally ignored me. Since he was able to read minds, he had to know his rejection hurt even more after I learned Carlisle had planned for us to be together. Even as much as it irritated me that he rejected me, I found the thought of being with him in any romantic way even more revolting than the rejection.
Today was one of the days I just had to get away from the house and the family. I needed time to vent my feelings, so I had run deeper than ever before into the mountain's range of thick trees seeking the solitude that I needed. As I wondered aimlessly for hours, I raged within myself, once again, at the unfairness of him ripping me from my family and never allowing me to see them again. I missed my parents and my two younger brothers. I missed being with them, I missed feeling special, and I missed being treated as if I was important. It had been two long years and the desire to see them sometimes overwhelmed me.
Usually, braking little branches and uprooting undersized bushes was sufficient to assist in the release of my pent up anger, but today it wasn't enough. Today I was more livid than I had ever felt before; there was to be a school dance and I wanted to go, but not with any of the boys from school. So, I asked Edward if he would take me. He just laughed and said he had no interest in attending any school dance. He had rejected me and laughed at my request. How could he do that? He had to know how much I really wanted to go, how could he not; it wasn't as if I had tried to close my mind off to him; in fact, I had specifically focused my thoughts on how much I wanted to go. My desire had been out in the open. I wanted to go and he should take me; it was that simple, and still he rejected me.
All of these feelings boiled up to the point where I could no longer restrain my anger and the little damage I had inflicted to vent my rage had not satisfied me, so I took a deep breath and released as much anger as possible in the loudest and longest scream I could emit. I didn't stop screaming until my lungs were bereft of air, but I didn't feel cleansed of my anger. As I was contemplating another scream, I heard a slight rustling in some underbrush to my left and I shifted my focus on what might be lurking there. I finally spotted two eyes and instantly knew they were human. 'So,' I thought, 'someone thinks they can sneak up and spy on me.' Of course, I didn't want to admit to myself that this human had done just that. I had been so consumed in the releasing of my pent up fury that I hadn't heard this individual's approach; the fact that he or she was still watching angered me even more, so I confronted the human.
"I don't know who you are, but stop hiding and show yourself," I growled.
What emerged from the underbrush took the little remaining air from my lungs. He was amazing and that was saying a lot for a human. He was well over six feet tall, he had dark curly hair, and he was amazingly handsome without being a vampire. In fact, I found him very alluring; perhaps his muscular physique captivated me a little. His eyes shone in amazement and wonder, and I noticed he was about to speak, but I instantly realized how thirsty I was; without hesitation, I turned and fled from his sight maybe too quickly for as I retreated I heard a quick intake of breath as though he were surprised or shocked.
