oOo

"It's just…" Bella shrugged. "I was so proud that he thought I was pretty enough to be included. That I was special…"

"You are special," Alice said. "Oh, how I'd like to give him a piece of my mind!"

"He's an artist, Alice, and he can't base his decisions on personal affectations."

Bella took a deep breath, She had managed not to cry so far, and she wasn't going to. That could wait until she was at home.

Leah gave her hand another squeeze.

"Hey, girls." Jasper joined them with three plates. "I got you a little bit of everything from the buffet."

"Thanks." Bella smiled wanly. "But I'm really not hungry. I guess I should find Edward and tell him I'm leaving. I don't think this night is going to get any better."

"We'll give you a ride," Jasper offered immediately. "Just tell us when you're ready to go."

"Thank you." She gave her friend a hug. "I'll be back in a moment."

And with that, she set off to find Edward.

Crossing the room, she passed fashionable, young people in freaky outfits, elegant women with pearls around their necks and Botox in their faces and their rich husbands, collectors and genuine lovers of Edward's art. She saw Zafrina and her posse, drinking champagne, laughing.

Esme waved from another corner of the room, a warm and cheerful gesture. Bella waved back. She couldn't bear to walk over and explain why she was leaving early. She knew that Edward's mother would be disappointed with her for not staying. She didn't want that, and there was no way she was going to explain to her that she was hurt because Edward had chosen not to exhibit his painting of her in a dreamy meadow, sparsely dressed.

Bella had reached the second room. The gallery representative and her assistant were placing a dot on one of the paintings. Bella couldn't even begin to imagine how much money was being made right now – not just for Edward, but for so many people: His agent, the gallery and its associates.

"Bella!"

There was a hand on her arm and instinctively, she pulled back, but when she turned around, it was Michael. Edward had introduced them earlier, and Bella had immediately taken to him. She knew that Edward had been working with Michael for a long time, and that he trusted his agent.

"Where's Edward?"

His baby blue eyes were filled with excitement. He was dressed in a tailored suit with a Burberry pattern and a bow tie.

"I don't know," Bella shrugged. "I'm looking for him, too."

"Dang it, I need him. There's this guy from the Ephraim Palais in Berlin. They're interested!"

"That's great." Bella forced a smile.

"Was he drunk?" Michael asked with a sudden change in his expression. "When you last saw him, was he drunk?"

"No. No, he wasn't. He switched to water after Carlisle's toast."

Come to think of it, Bella hadn't taken note at the time that he had stopped drinking alcohol.

"Where is he?"

Suddenly, her chest felt tense and her mouth was dry. What was going on?

Where was Edward?

oOo

Hmm… Ideas, anyone?

Thank you so much for your support and well-wishes! Everything went okay with the tooth (that is, after the extraction wound was bleeding all night and I had to make another trip to the dentist's.)

For those of you who are interested: I posted a short outtake for "Wake Up and Dream" about Tanya. It's Bella and Edward-free. I wrote it some time ago and felt like posting it.

Hope you all had a great weekend, and thank you again for all the reviews, recs, PMs and overall loveliness you're showing me and my story!

Your

harperpitt