Hello!
Thanks to jacobandedwardlover, janjan2009, mixmatched9, rosaliehale1994, Kstuart, Mistress Zafrina, trs1 and WeFallForever for their reviews. Thank you!
Uni work has seriously caught up with me this week, so it really is a miracle that I got this chapter out when I did. Consider yourselves lucky! Hope you all enjoy it.
The play list and banner for this story are on my profile. I also twitpic this story with TwiSherry on twitter if anyone cares.
On with it…
This chapter is named after "I'll be there for you" by The Rembrandts. This tune is a classic. End of.
Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer has yet to give me full ownership of Twilight, therefore it is still not mine.
Bella Swan's Point of View
"Edward!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, trying to be heard over the loud music, but he wasn't listening. He just kept running away from me, his direction seeming to be the exit. I called him again, fighting through the crowd of dancers to get to my best friend. I pushed, I pulled, I even elbowed one guy in the face because he wouldn't move. He began yelling and pulling faces at me, but I didn't give two fucks how pissed off he was at his freshly forming black eye.
Eddy-Bear needed me, so I had to get to him. That much was clear.
I saw Edward run through the double doors of the exit before I felt a warm hand grab my own. I quickly turned round to see Jacob looking at me with concern, his dark eyes glistening against the lights of the club. Sigh. If I wasn't so preoccupied with getting to Edward, I could probably have taken the time to appreciate how truly gorgeous Jake looked at that moment, and believe me, he looked mighty fine to me! Jeans hanging off his hips... tight white shirt showing me his strong chest and muscles... that white and toothy smile he always had... Jeez, I was going to need to be fanned in a second!
It wasn't a crush I had on Jacob; I merely thought he was hot. I mean, the guy is totally sex on fire… Okay, so maybe I have a teensy crush on him, and would loved to have danced with him for just a little longer, but Edward was in trouble, and Edward came first.
He always did.
"Bella, what's going on?" he questioned. I could totally understand his concern. I mean, I had just totally blown the guy off mid-dance to run to Eddy-Bear.
"Sorry, Jake, I need to go," I said urgently. "It's Edward. I think something's up. You don't mind, do you?"
He shook his head. "Of course not. Edward obviously needs you. I'll find Emmett. Go."
"Thank you," I said gratefully before I turned on my heel and legged it out of the club as fast as these fucking shoes would allow.
The last time I ever wear heels. And I mean ever!
The air was cold when I got outside, the condensation coming heavily from my mouth proving that. Forks was the shittest place on Earth to live sometimes, especially when you're wearing a dress like mine. I made a mental note to bring a jacket next time! The street appeared empty, but that didn't defer me. I looked left and I looked right, my eyes peeled in order to find Edward. I had no idea where he could have gone. The street the club was in was relatively small and narrow, with a number of alleyways coming off it. But the main road was just down the way and that led into Forks town centre.
He could be anywhere.
And then I spotted it, the sight quickly darting down one of the alleyways. I'd know that bronze hair anywhere, so I quickly 'ran' to him.
Bloody shoes!
I had no idea what had happened in the club. All I knew was that I was having the time of my life with Jacob, and I mean the time of my life. The guy's hands were everywhere while we danced! On my body, along my arms, he even managed a quick grope of my ass. I knew he was more than likely totally liquored up, but hey, I was taking whatever chance I could with this guy! So yeah, my night had been going pretty dandy in my opinion… up until I saw Edward dancing with that whore, Lauren Malory. What the fuck? Edward hated Lauren Malory, we both did. Bitch used to bully me like nobody's business back in middle school. I think she was jealous because she secretly liked Edward and he seemed to spend all his time with me. Regardless of her motives, she had made my life a living hell, disgusting son-of-a-bitch.
Thing was, Edward hated her just as much as I did. The guy couldn't stand the girl. He even had his face buried in her neck. Ew! If he hated the slut so much, why the fuck was he dancing with her?
But all that anger and frustration and jealousy disappeared from my face as soon as I saw the trouble he was in. He suddenly seemed… different. He tensed up, standing as still as a statue before suddenly throwing Lauren half way across the dance floor, his eyes wide and his chest heaving in massive breaths. I could see his hands trembling and I knew something was up.
But what?
I ran down the alleyway and quickly found him by an old dumpster, crouched down with his back to me. His hands were fisting his hair so hard that I feared he would rip it from his head. I felt my heart rip in half when I heard his frightened sobs and whimpers, and saw his entire body trembling. Lord, I'd never seen him like this before.
The worst time I've seen him break down was when his grandfather died three years ago. But this? This was insane.
Edward looked utterly broken.
I fought my tears back, knowing I had to be the strong one here, as I stepped cautiously towards him.
"Edward?" I asked gently, my feet tapping lightly on the ground below. He stiffened immediately. "Edward… what's wrong?"
"Go away," he said warningly. "Bella, you need to go away."
I continued walking. "Talk to me, Edward. What's wrong?"
"Bella… please. If you know what's good for you, you'll go away and leave me alone."
As if I was going to do that! My best friend was in trouble and he needed me. Edward could be a stubborn ass sometimes.
"You know I can't do that," I said as I finally reached him, crouching down at his side. "Please, talk to me, Eddy-Bear."
He refused to move, his hands still in his hair, his face still covered and out of view. With a determined face, I reached out and put my hand on his cheek, gently pulling his face round to look at me. Bad idea. I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth, my body jerking away and recoiling, its own natural reaction to what I saw.
Holy fuck…
This… This wasn't real. No. It couldn't be real. If this was real, then I was the Queen of fucking England. And guess what? I'm not, so what I saw could not have been true. I didn't know if it was the darkness of the alleyway, the angle at which I was seeing Edward's face, or the wine I'd been drinking all night, but something was seriously affecting my vision. This just was not happening.
I slowly back up along the floor until my back hit the opposite wall of the alleyway.
His eyes, which were once green and then red, had become as black as coal and as wide as the moon. His skin was as pale as ever, almost like paper that would rip at the softest of touches. But those weren't the things that scared me the most.
It was the fangs protruding from his mouth that caused my sudden shock and fear.
Holy lord…
With my heart threatening to pound right from my chest, I could do nothing but stare with a gaped mouth at those two pointed teeth. You could see they weren't fake, they were as real as the nose on my face. My Edward had fangs… This was all sorts of fucked up, and I mean fucked up. I had no idea what I was expecting when I came outside to find him, but I wasn't expecting this.
He just stared at me, allowing me adequate time to take everything in. I knew that I'd have to be the first to speak.
"Edward…" I tried, not daring to move from my spot against the wall. I pulled my trembling knees up to my chest, keeping a safe distance between us. "I don't… what… how?" My head knew exactly what I wanted to say - I wanted to know what was happening, who wouldn't? - but my mouth didn't seem to be following my brain's instructions.
Fucking great time for me to get my words confused, huh? Well done, Bella!
He looked away from me then, his eyes focusing on the cold hard ground below. The grasp on his hair seemed to lessen somehow as his crouched body slumped down into a sitting position, his legs spread out in front of him. Edward had always been tall, so the feet on the end of his longs legs almost reached my curled up and defensive body. I subconsciously moved just a little further away.
"I didn't want you to know," he said, his voice deep and miserable. "I wanted you all to be kept in the dark about this, you should never have been able to find out, and I did everything in my fucking power to make sure nobody did…" He began to smirk. "I should have known you'd be the one to get it out of me in the end."
"G-Get what out of you?" I pressed. I had no real reason to fear him, he was still my best friend, but I still couldn't stop the slight fear that flooded my body.
He looked to me then, the blackness of his eyes making their depth seem never ending. "I wasn't in Seattle that week, Bella. I was nowhere near it."
Huh? I'm sorry, what?
My eyebrows furrowed. "But… I don't understand. You said-"
"I lied, Bells," he said with regret. "I had no choice but to lie. I couldn't have anyone knowing the truth, it would have destroyed me and everyone around me. But now you've… seen me, I guess I have no option but to tell you everything."
I began taking heavy breaths, my body anticipating whatever the hell he had to say. He was scaring me now. If he wasn't in Seattle, then where the fuck had he been? "Then… where were you?"
He took a deep breath. "I was attacked," he answered, my eyes widening and a whimper leaving my mouth. I was about to question him, when he raised a hand to me to let him continue. I reluctantly allowed him. "There were three of them. I was outside the library when it happened. Never saw the fuckers coming. They just… attacked, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop them. I thought I was a goner. Thankfully, Doctor Cullen and his children managed to chase them away before the worst happened."
Doctor Cullen? Jeez, this was getting better and better.
"Why was…" But I couldn't finish my sentence. I needed him to carry on.
"I don't know, but they helped me, they saved my life, Bella… but not before the others bit me."
"Bit you?"
Edward rubbed his hand over his face and ran his hands through his hair. It seemed he was struggling with this as much as I was listening to it.
I didn't understand. Who the hell would attack my Eddy-Bear? If I ever found out, I swear to god, the bastards wouldn't be worth keeping alive. Nobody does that to my Edward, and they'd be fifty shades of fucked up once I'd finished with them.
"I wasn't in Seattle because I was with the Cullens that week," he finally got out, his words slow and wary, testing my reaction to them. Of course, it was confusion.
"Why? You could have come home, Edward," I tried. "We could have taken care of you. If you were attacked, we could have helped you. You know that. Why didn't you come home?"
This was hurting my head. If Edward was attacked and hurt, he should have come home to his family and friends. There were no other people better to help him than us. We knew him better than anyone else, we loved him better than anyone else. Sure, Doctor Cullen could have healed him and shit, but why wasn't he brought home? Why weren't we even informed of his condition? Doctors are supposed to do that, right? Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure that's the way it usually works! If my best friend had been hurt and injured for a week, I wanted to know the fuck why I hadn't been told about it.
"Because I couldn't, Bella. You don't understand," he argued.
"What's there not to understand?" I said, getting slightly angry. "You were hurt, Edward. We should have at least been informed. What the hell was Doctor Cullen thinking?"
"It's not as straight forward as that. I was hurt, but not in a way that you could have helped me. I needed the Cullens, Bella."
"Why?" I yelled. "What the fuck could they have done that we couldn't have?"
"Everything," he shouted, his temper flaring up. We both pretty much ranked even on tempers. It's why we never fought. Neither one would ever back down, so our fights could go on for days without one of us yeilding. So we simply never fought. Case closed... until now, that is. "There was nothing you or my parents could have done, Bella. You have no idea how much I wanted to go to you all, but I needed the Cullens more than I needed you right then."
Okay… that hurt. That seriously fucking hurt.
Edward has never said that to me before. He's never not needed me, and he's certainly never needed someone else more than me. If I was honest, I never thought I'd hear those words leave his mouth. Guess I was wrong, huh? I guess he didn't really need me now. We were 20 and 21, after all. We weren't kids anymore.
"Why?" I whispered, the anger in my voice disappearing as sadness took over.
I was not expecting his answer, I don't think anyone could have expected it.
"I… I think I'm a vampire, Bella."
I just stared at him, not saying anything. I didn't even know what I'd say to him. What possible answer can you give to that… well, apart from asking him whether he was slightly demented and a little insane? Edward Cullen, university student and perfectly sane human being, had just admitted to me that he might be a vampire…
Nope, not a single thing came to mind.
Realizing that I wasn't going to say anything, Edward repeated his words. "I'm a vampire, Bella."
I hesitated before finally allowing something to leave my lips. It was an amused snort. "Seriously, that's the best you can come up with? Jeez, Edward. At least come up with something inventive like I hate you or I don't need you anymore or Rosalie Cullen is my new best friend."
His serious look clearly showed that he wasn't amused by my remark. He really needed to lighten up. His eyes were hard, his lips set into a tight line.
I rolled my eyes. "Oh, come on, Edward. Vampires, really? You cannot be serious. What are you, 8?"
Again, he said nothing. He just stared at me, his face completely composed. I began to feel a little uneasy under his intense glare. And then he pulled his lips back, showing me those fangs, a gasp leaving my lips again.
Yeah, suddenly I'm not so amused either.
He had fangs… Fuck.
"You really are serious, aren't you?" I asked. He nodded. All the air in my lungs suddenly left me. "Oh my god…"
"I didn't want you to find out this way, Bellsy-Boo, I swear. But it's true."
"You're a vampire, Edward. You're a fucking vampire."
"I know."
"And the Cullens?" I enquired, not trusting my own voice.
"Vampires," he replied. Them too? Shit!
Guess that's why he needed them more. Okay, I'll give him that one.
I let out a sigh, my shoulders falling, my mind whizzing at a hundred miles an hour. I felt like I had no energy, like I was completely deflated in my shock and fear.
Right, lets see if we can figure all this out, shall we? - Edward was not in Seattle as he previously told us. No, he was, in fact, living with Doctor Cullen and his family. The reason for this was because he was attacked that night, and was bitten before turning into what seems to be a vampire.
Yeah, this sounds insane.
Completely and utterly insane.
I was getting a headache.
My eyes slowly moved to look up at him. He was looking back at me expectantly. I swallowed. "So," I began, biting my lip. "What happens now?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I'll leave and just go back to living at the Cullen's house and-"
I suddenly got my energy back.
"No!" I exclaimed, diving towards him without even thinking, jumping into his lap and wrapping my arms around his neck, embracing him and holding him to me. He wanted to go, he actually wanted to leave. Fuck off!
"Don't you fucking dare, Edward Cullen or, so help me God, I'll rip those fucking fangs from your mouth with my bare hands!"
"Jeez, Bella," he chuckled, wrapping his cold arms around my body and holding me back. "Dramatic much?"
"I can't help it," I said. "I just can't let you leave me, not again. Visit the Cullens all you want, but please, don't leave again." I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes at the very thought of it. One week without Eddy-Bear had been enough, but forever? Well, you may as well kill me and stick me six feet under right now.
A life without Edward wasn't a life worth living, so the idea of him leaving to live with the Cullens was completely out of the question. End of.
"I'm a vampire, Bella. I'm dangerous."
"Edward, I don't care what you are. You're still my best friend and I'll stay with you forever. Just please, don't leave me again."
He held me tighter and buried his face in my hair, sighing. "Bella, you know I'd never leave you. No matter how bad things get for me, I'd never find the strength to leave you."
"Good," I answered, sounding like a spoilt child. Hey, I didn't care! Edward meant too much to me, so if I did sound as pathetic as I did, so what?
"But I still need to visit to them and go them, I need their help. There's so much I need to learn, and only they can teach me. I'm a vampire for fuck's sake, this stuff is kinda new to me."
"Then let me come with you," I replied, pulling away from the hug and looking at his face, brushing my thumbs over his icy cold cheeks. His eyes weren't black anymore, they seemed red again. "I can help you… I don't know how, but I can. You need me Eddy-Bear. Please."
He smiled then, pressing his forehead to mine. "I always need you, Bellsy-Boo, vampire or not."
I giggled. "Damn straight. I just want to help you in anyway I can."
"Fine," he chuckled. "If you insist."
"I do insist," I replied, causing him to chuckle a little more.
"And you're not freaked out about all this?" he pondered.
"Are you kidding? This is completely fucked up, Edward, in every possible sense, but I don't care. You're still Eddy-Bear, whether you're human or… vampire. It doesn't matter to me. I'll stay with you through it all, I promise."
"Any other person would have run miles away by now," he observed.
"Not from you they wouldn't," I smiled.
"You still have the chance."
I shook my head. "I'm staying, no matter what."
He buried his face in my neck then, my body shivering as his lips lightly kissed my throat where my pulse lay. Surprisingly, it didn't freak me out or scare me. I closed my eyes, needing my best friend close to me.
It was true. My best friend was a vampire, no matter how crazy it sounded… and it didn't bother me a single bit. He still looked like Edward, he still sounded like Edward, he still acted like Edward. I did not care one bit what sort of creature he was, because I'd stay by his side regardless. It was going to take a bit of time to get round to the idea that Edward now drank blood for a living, but I knew I would. At the end of the day, my best friend of seventeen years needed me, and I would never forgive myself if I wasn't there for him.
"You're too good to me," he whispered, his breath fanning across the skin of my throat as his arms held me against his chest.
"Aren't I always?" I smiled, running my fingers softly through his hair.
"Hmmm," he replied, kissing my neck sweetly again. "Love you, Bellsy-Boo."
I giggled and rested my cheek on top of his head. "Love you too, Eddy-Bear."
I'm also on Twitter if anyone cares. I'm rachydoodle03. Link is on my profile.