I don't own Twilight.

Chapter 2: I Love You

E.P.O.V

"Carlisle!" I yelled, horrified. But he looked calm.

"Relax, Edward, she just fainted." He replied smoothly. I couldn't hear any trace of a lie in his voice.

Who's Jacob? I wondered. What could this man be that could cause such a strong reaction? Then a thought hit me that was like a punch in the gut. I gasped, bending over.

"Edward?" Carlisle was instantly by my side. "What's wrong?" He asked. I shook my head back and force. No. NO. This can't be right. I gasped again, and then ran to the bathroom. It was empty.

I leant over the sink, staring at myself in the mirror. The same familiar pale face stared back at me, my bronze tousled hair hanging over my eyes from bending over. My eyes looked terrible from crying when I thought she was dead. Odd though, that this was so much worse, but not a single tear fell into the sink.

What if?... I shut my eyes. No… What if… Jacob was… Her…

"Boy- Boy- Boyfriend?" I choked out.

When I returned, she was awake, and sitting up. Carlisle was nowhere in sight. When she looked at me, I expected her to faint or something, but she just stared.

"Uh… Sorry about me fainting. That was kinda… Stupid." She said. She had looked away again.

"I'm Bella." She added. I was sitting on the bed in an instant, her chin in my hand. I made her look at me.

"Don't you DARE apologise." I growled. She seemed a bit shocked by my approach, but at least she didn't pull away. I removed my hand and sat at the end of the bed.

"Umm… I don't mean to be rude, but… Who are you?" I smiled at her.

"I'm Edward."

"Oh." An awkward silence followed. After a few moments, I spoke.

"Bella?"

"Yes?"

"Who?..."

"Yes?" I forced it out.

"Who is Jacob?" She gasped.

"How do you… Know HIM?" I was a little surprised and happy to hear her resentment towards even the mention of his name.

"Have you been crying?" She asked, her voice full of worry. I knew this was a deliberate change of subject, but I let it go.

"I… It's a bit personal."

"Tell me."

"Bella, you're not going to like why."

"TELL me."

"I cried because I thought you were dead." She gasped.

"What?" She looked sort of angry now. But then the anger melted away.

"Edward, we need to talk some more, but this place isn't right. When I'm… Better, I'd like to talk somewhere."

"Come to my place." She nodded.

"Okay." I scribbled the address onto a piece of hospital stationary, and placed into her outstretched hand.

"I'll see you in…"

"Two weeks. Tuesday?"

"Yeah. See you there."

2 Weeks Later, Tuesday

E.P.O.V

"Bella, I know a place we could go."

"Okay." I took her hand, and she flinched, pulling it away.

"I'm sorry." I whispered, turning away. She briefly touched my face, then pulled away, realising what she had done. But in that shirt time I leaned into her palm, loving the feel of it.

"Oh, Edward." She murmured. KISS HER! My mind screamed, but I shoved the thought away. That really wouldn't help if I ever wanted her to… love me.

When we left in my car, she turned on the radio to avoid conversation. The trees flew past us until we eventually reached a path which we followed, until we made it to the meadow.

B.P.O.V

I really had no idea who Edward was, but I felt safe with him. When we entered the meadow, I gasped and swayed a little. Edward caught me just before I fell.

His arms tightened around me, no longer just a catch. It was an embrace. I gave up and leaned into him, hiding my face in his chest.

"Sorry, I faint a lot." He chuckled. We sat down on the grass amongst the tiny flowers, and he brushed a strand of hair away from my face. I edged away, knowing that this was a sign that he was about to kiss me. Once I got a good distance between us, I settled down and broke the silence.

"So why did you cry because you thought I was dead?" He flinched.

"I think you explaining about Jacob first would help." I sighed.

"Edward, you probably aren't going to like this a lot." He glared at me.

"I don't care. Tell me."

"Jacob used to be my boyfriend. I don't know how to explain this, but he's something not human, like us. I can't really say what this is, but I can say that there is this thing that happens with his kind. It's called an imprint. It could happen anytime on anyone."

"He imprinted on you?" Edward guessed.

"Not exactly." I sighed again.

"An imprint is something which ties you to a person so much, with such love that you feel like you can't be separated from them. We thought we had imprinted, but we were wrong." My mind wondered back to that horrible day two weeks ago.

"Jacob drove me to some cliffs. We kissed a bit, but I could tell he wasn't really into it. And then he stepped back, and… Said he had imprinted on someone."

"At first I didn't get it. I thought he meant he had imprinted on me, or it was just a joke. But the look on his face was serious. He told me we couldn't be together anymore."

"I just shook my head and took a step back. No, I said. I said it over and over, getting louder and louder, each time taking a step back. I don't know what had gotten into me. I screamed it, no, and took one last step. But I fell of the edge of the cliff. And that's how I ended up in the hospital." I finished. He was staring at me.

Wow, he's so handsome… I slapped the thought away. What? I didn't love him, and he didn't love me. We were just friends at the most.

"Did you deliberately fall?" He asked.

"I think so. I didn't think I could live with knowing that." I answered quietly.

"So why did you cry? I was nearly dead, but you never knew me before then. And you don't seem like the kind of guy who would just cry over every death in the hospital, even if your dad worked there." I grinned at his expression.

"You can learn a lot in two weeks." His expression didn't leave.

"Edward? What is it?"

"I don't feel like I can tell you now." He whispered.

"What? Hey, you said you would. Tell me!" I demanded. His eyes met mine, unblinking, not moving.

"I love you."