I know I said that the story was winding down with only a few more chapters, but I lied. This is it, the grand finale. I haven't had as much time to write as I thought I would but I still want to finish before Friday so I crammed it all into this chapter. Enjoy it while it lasts everyone!

Bella POV

I don't consciously remember waking up. I only know that he was there, and had been there, all the while I slept, however long that was. I didn't want to stir from the comfort of his arms, I didn't want to be separated from him ever again. Without warning, he let out a breath that I hadn't realized he had been holding in, and a shiver ran down my spine. I knew he was grinning, and I didn't care. I only snuggled deeper into his embrace, where he gladly let me stay for some amount of time.

When he did whisper in my ear that it was getting late in the afternoon, I realized that Charlie would be home soon from fishing, if he wasn't already. We slowly made our way downstairs, where bright light streamed in through the glass walls. Apparently, the storm had passed while I slept, but that didn't stop Edward from carrying me through the woods in a roundabout way to my backyard. He set me down on the forest floor, but I left my arms around his neck and pulled him closer for one last kiss.

"I'll see you tonight," he murmured, his eyes still closed. When he opened them, I noted that they were darker than I had ever seen before.

"You're thirsty," I stated the obvious, and backed away a fraction of an inch. "You should hunt, until it's dark enough for you to come back." He nodded miserably in agreement, and I knew that it pained him as much as me when we weren't together. We shared one last chaste kiss before parting ways, him to hunting, me to laundry.

The late afternoon dragged on, and it seemed like eternity before Charlie's cruiser pulled up into the driveway. I said hello as he walked through the doorway, followed by the massive form of Jacob Black. I froze in the middle of folding my favorite pair of sweats, eyes widening in horror. It would be hard to explain to Charlie if Jacob started asking questions, and I would hate to be the first to tell him that not only was Edward back, but we were together. I shook my head as inconspicuously as possible, and he raised his eyebrows, but didn't say anything. Charlie invited Jacob to stay for dinner, lasagna tonight, and he obliged. When it came time that decency demanded he leave, I followed him out the door.

"Are you going to tell me, or should I just guess until I get it right?" he wanted to know, and I couldn't find the heart, or the words, to tell him. "Fine. He came back, you forgave him for the living hell he put you through, and you never want to see me again." The pain in Jake's voice was obvious, and his expression was just as dejected.

"Jake, I will always want to be friends with you," I tried to convince him. "Kind of like I will always be in love with Edward." If I was trying to cheer him up, I was failing miserably. He walked away without looking back, ignoring me calling his name. I hoped that he would come around sooner rather than later, I just wished that he would let me help him. I went up to my room without a word to Charlie, and found Edward sitting in the rocking chair. I crawled wordlessly into his lap, and he held me, just like the old times. Sometime after the tears had dried on my cheeks, he carried me to the bed and kissed the top of my head. I turned my face upward to him and his lips claimed mine. His arms were still wrapped around my waist, and some part of me melted in his embrace. Before the kiss could get too heated, he pulled away and had the we-need-to-talk look written all over his face. I pretended to pout, but the look only worsened.

"Can't we just agree to go back to how things were?" I pleaded desperately.

"Going backwards is never productive," Edward stated wisely. "Just because you don't want to iron out the details of our relationship, doesn't mean it's unnecessary."

"What kind of details were you thinking off?" I wondered aloud, thinking back to earlier in his bedroom. My smirk must have given my thoughts away, because he admonished me quickly.

"I am still firm about some aspects," he articulated, "however, others are up for negotiation."

"Such as," I prompted. He collected his thoughts for a minute before continuing.

"What are our long term plans, Bella?" he asked carefully.

"Long term, as in eternity?" I replied with just as much caution. When he didn't argue with me, I bit my lip in anticipation. "I'm a vampire, of course. That's the only way to be with you." He didn't look happy at my announcement, but he didn't argue either.

Edward POV

Why, why did she insist on being so difficult? Couldn't she see that this was the one thing I couldn't give her? New cars, expensive jewelry, vacations to Fiji, all were at her fingertips, but she had to ask for this. No, she wasn't even asking. She could assume that I would give her what she wanted, and how can you refuse those big brown eyes? I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs, no, never, I can't, but I didn't want to spoil our new found happiness.

"Why do you want this so badly?" I asked, to satisfy my curiosity and possibly distract her.

"Because there is no alternative," she replied stubbornly. "I can't live without you, and I certainly won't let you be seventeen forever while I get older every day. It just isn't fair. Plus there is my clumsiness, my lack of coordination, bad luck, whatever you want to call it. That isn't something I want to live with. Unless you know another way to gaining immortality?" She raised her eyebrows, but I sighed to let her know that I got the message.

"Are you sure?" my voice was lower than normal, the seriousness seeping through. She nodded her head vigorously, probably not trusting her voice. I groaned helplessly, the image of me biting her frozen in my head.

"I love you," she whispered and I turned my eyes to her.

"Always," I paused, "and forever."

I'm sorry this is so short. Please forgive me! Really, there is just too much to do in the next 31 hours (its 5 pm right now, Thursday 7/31), and writing is not that high on the priority list. Definitely not my best writing, but I think I tied up all the loose ends. After the release, I might come back and redo the ending. Maybe. But probably not.