Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews, they mean a lot.

Nice reviews are better than chocolate, unless maybe you're licking that chocolate off someone.

Two

September 28th, 2008

The services were Sunday morning, closed casket. Edward stood in the back. It rained all day. At the cemetery, the women's heels stuck in the soil. Dirt ringed the bottoms of his trousers, caked his shoes. A huge spray of white roses sat on top of the casket. She liked lilies the best. Pale pink stargazer lilies. Edward held one in his hand; it was the one bit of personal information he was privy to. He listened to everyone speak, watched the procession, then people hugging, talking, leaving. He couldn't go through the line, put his flower under the ground too. He backed off after everyone left, watched them lower her into the ground, cover her up, break down the chairs, take everything away. Walking closer after the cemetery emptied, he stood next to the headstone.

Beloved Daughter And Friend

He put his flower on it; the lily was crumpled in places from being held all morning.

"A friend?" Edward turned toward the voice. A slim, older woman stood directly behind him, he must not have heard her footsteps over the sound of the rain. He looked her in the eyes, her expression said she already knew the answer to her question. She looked to be in her sixties, her silver hair hanging in waves to her shoulders. She wore a light blue trench coat and carried a white umbrella.

"Yes, you could say that," he hesitated, not sure if he could turn back around or not. He was positive he hadn't seen her during the funeral.

"If all the right choices led you to this moment, what would happen if you made a wrong one?" She spoke quietly, thoughtfully. "A different one?"

Edward looked at her, perplexed. "I don't mean to be rude, but I'd really like to be alone right now." She touched his hand and he looked down.

"You've never thought about that? What would happen if you skipped the part where you're scared? Where excuses get in the way?" She paused, like she was considering something. "Things will look different in the morning," she said with sympathy. She nodded a goodbye and walked toward a car parked on the path.

Edward stared at the ceiling, glanced at his clock, 2:30a.m. He sighed and tried to blank out his mind, but all he could see was her face. During the services, Edward realized he'd barely known her really. He'd read her book, knew about her school plans, possible career plans, that she preferred hot chocolate over almost anything, especially when it was rainy, but that was all. There was no reason he should be like this. His heart was broken, the pieces sending stabbing pains into his lungs, stomach. The sheets looked like twisted hands, dragging him downward. When he finally fell asleep, he dreamed of somebody pulling him away, out of his life and into the ether.

September 29th, 2008

Edward's alarm went off at 6 a.m. He groaned and turned it off; the English department had decided to make today's work day optional and Edward couldn't bear to walk past Bella's empty desk.

By 7:00, he'd gotten out of bed. He couldn't decide which was worse, laying in bed and seeing her face or going to work and not seeing it. He showered, dressed, and set out to the university. It took him twenty minutes to find a parking space and even then he'd still had to walk another ten just to get to his building. He ran a hand through his hair, which was always a little messy, but today it was disheveled even by Edward's standards. He took the elevator to the third floor of the building toward the large computer room that was for the graduate students. He had to pass Bella's office on the way, out of some strange masochistic need, he looked in; it was empty. Outside the door to the graduate student area, he saw his advisor walking in his direction down the hall. "Darrell," Edward was a little surprised to see him; he figured he'd be the only one around here today. "I didn't think you'd be in today."

Darrell tilted his head to the side, "why wouldn't I be?" He paused, taking in Edward's appearance. "Well, someone had a rough night last night. Entertaining company?" Darrell raised an eyebrow, a smile playing at his mouth.

Edward looked down at his clothes. He had on old jeans that used to be a dark wash, but had since faded, the hems ragged. He wore a grey t-shirt and well, he knew what his hair looked like. He'd also seen the dark circles under his eyes. "No, but…yesterday was, well, you know."

"Yesterday was what? Hey, aren't you late for class?" Darrell was beginning to look at him strangely.

"I don't have class until 11," he looked at his watch, almost a quarter after eight.

"You have English 335 at 8, don't you? It's less than a month in and you're forgetting already," Darrell chuckled. "I'll see you later." He left Edward feeling vaguely confused. Slowly, he walked toward Bella's office. A different girl was sitting behind the desk now; she had a name plate on her desk, Ashley.

"Um, excuse me? I have kind of a stupid question."

"Stupid questions are my specialty," the girl smiled at him brightly.

"I uh…forgot, well, do you happen to have a list of my classes?" He tried to make it sound less dumb, he wasn't sure he'd succeeded.

"Oh, sure," she tapped a few things onto the keyboard and the printer groaned to life, spitting out a single sheet of paper. She grabbed it and handed it to him. "That has everything, class name, when, where, all of that. Are things getting rough already?" She looked at him with compassion and he decided he liked this girl.

Edward faked a laugh, "yeah, you know how it can be. Thanks for this," he held up the paper. After he left the office he studied the list. He was due to teach a class at 8:10 a.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; he had another at 10:10 a.m. on the same days. What the hell is going on? He had to get some air. He took the elevator down to the first floor and walked outside. He left campus, walked in the direction of downtown.

Edward found an empty outdoor table at a coffeehouse. He took his coffee and sat down with the sheet of paper still in his hand. It had his job title on it, Assistant Professor. He wasn't an assistant professor; he was staff and that was a faculty position. He hadn't even gotten his graduate degree yet. It had a room number on it, his office that he didn't have. Setting the paper down, he looked up in the direction of the bookstore across the street. There was a sign in the window for a book signing that was happening later that afternoon; Bella Swan.

It took a moment for it to sink in, he read it again, it was like some cruel cosmic joke. The old woman from the cemetery flashed into his memory. She was nobody, right? A woman walked past him with sunglasses on, as she passed his table she tripped on a chair leg; she caught herself by touching his shoulder. She blushed and let go, taking a step back. "Sorry, I'm something of a hazard. Thanks for the shoulder." Edward looked up as she turned to walk inside; she slipped off her sunglasses and went through the door.

Bella.

Edward jumped up, not sure what he was going to do. He looked inside the glass doors to see if she was real. She stood in line, looking at her watch. He could still feel the heat of her hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, excuse me man," Edward spun around. A man stood there, eyeing Edward curiously. Edward mumbled an apology and stepped aside. Once alone again, he looked back inside, his heart racing. His mind couldn't focus, it spun out in all directions. All he could see was her. Bella.

The man walked up behind her, touched her arm. She turned and smiled, he leaned down and kissed her lightly on the mouth.

Bella.