Disclaimer: As much as we'd like to claim these characters, nothing Twilight-related belongs to us.

A/N: Ahh, here we are. Back to the action. :) This is an important chapter, so be sure to read it thoroughly. It's got a lot of information… if some of it is confusing, please let us know. We've got a lot to say and not a lot of time. Haha.

Also, be sure to check out the story Eight Years Later by jmeyer. The link's on our profile. She's amazing, as is her story. We love being her betas. :) So go check out the awesome-ness that is Eight Years Later.

Turning Eighteen
By cALLIEfornia BENches

Chapter 9: Happy Birthday?

I awoke to kisses being peppered all over my face.

A smile crept upon my face, but I kept pretending to be asleep. I wondered how long she would keep going if I just stayed still.

"I know you're awake, birthday boy," a sweet voice said. My grin broadened, but I didn't say anything. To be honest, I had completely forgotten about my birthday. I knew it was coming up, of course, but I had no idea how many days I had been out when they had kidnapped me. Although, I guess kidnapped wasn't the right word. Time seemed to blend together, here. There was no sense of what month it was: there was just day and night. Either way, I was turning eighteen.

Isa pressed a kiss to my lips, and I immediately opened them for her. But instead of deepening it further, as I wanted her to, she pulled away. "I knew you were awake," she said. I could hear the smile in her voice.

My eyes opened slowly to see my lovely Isa laying perfectly on top of me. Her hair was disheveled, as it usually was in the mornings, and her pale skin was radiant against the lacy black camisole that Esme had bought her. They told us the day before that they were going to go shopping for us so we didn't have to wear the same clothes the entire time. We would have gone as well, had Jasper not barked at Esme that Isa and I still needed to lay low. Cops were still out looking for us.

Now, Isa leaned down and pressed a chaste kiss to my lips. "Happy birthday, Masen."

"Thank you, my love." I grinned at her, pulling her to my chest. She snuggled up to me and kissed my chest once. "Do I get a birthday kiss?" I asked her mischievously.

I felt more than heard her giggle. "I already gave you one."

I pouted. "Nuh-uh. That wasn't a birthday kiss. That was like a kiss you give your grandpa. And I am not your grandpa."

"Well I'd certainly hope not," she said, moving her face to be level with mine. The kiss started out slow, but we certainly didn't waste any time in heating it up. My lips parted and she took quick advantage of that, clashing our tongues together. She let out a soft hum of pleasure, which in turn made me groan. It had been way too long since I had heard any of those wonderful noises from her.

We had talked about a lot the night before when Esme, Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett had gone out to get us some clothes. One of the things was our… er, sexual relationship. We hadn't had sex since that weekend before we were kidnapped, and as much as I didn't like it, it was understandable. Our relationship had reached a turning point, and changed it for both better and worse.

Better, in that we knew what it was like to lose each other, but worse in that it hindered our physical relationship a bit. She wasn't quite ready to take that step—again—yet. Which was fine with me, but did she have to be such a tease? I loved her to death—I really did—but I felt like I had gotten a sip of the finest wine in the world, only to then be told I couldn't taste it until the wine was ready again. And wine can take forever to be ready.

And to top it all off, in mean time, I would have to stay in the winery, only getting tiny sips of aforementioned wine. It was enough to satiate me temporarily, but it was hard—no pun intended—knowing what it's like to have the wine to myself and still have to resist the temptation.

Nevertheless, I would wait for her. Of course I would wait for her. I would be stupid and idiotic not to. She was worth way more to me than just sex.

Even now, I thought with a loud groan as she ground her hips against mine and kept relentlessly teasing me, I had to focus on not ravaging her. That would be bad. Very, very bad.

"Isa," I growled, pulling my lips from hers and burying my face in her neck. "You're going to have to stop that. A man can only take so much."

"Sorry," she whispered lowly. "I didn't mean anything by it."

"I know you didn't." I kissed her nose sweetly and waited for a certain part of my anatomy to calm down enough so we could get out of bed. "I love you," I told her, just because I felt like I needed to. I knew that she felt bad, and never did it on purpose.

"I love you, too."

She sighed and cuddled closer into my chest. "Can we just stay here all day? Do we have to go downstairs?"

"I assume you told Esme about this?"

"Mhmm."

A grunt escaped from between my lips as I squeezed my arms around her tightly. "Then I'm afraid so. Esme may have a conniption fit if we aren't down there soon. I'm sure the whole group of them already knows we're up. It's only a matter of time before she barges up here with a cake and candles and presents and all those birthday goodies."

"Mmm," she sighed into my neck.

I rolled over so I was on top of her, gave her neck a quick kiss, and hopped over to my dresser to put some jeans and a nice shirt over my boxers. As I was finishing buttoning my last button, a tiny pair of arms wrapped themselves around my waist and a kiss was placed between my shoulder blades.

"You might want to get changed," I offered, "Unless you were planning on going down there in a tiny little tank top and shorts."

She giggled before slipping into the bathroom with a change of clothes. When she emerged, she was wearing a pretty blue sundress that hugged her at the top, but flowed freely towards the bottom. I placed a brief kiss to her lips and took her hand.

"Happy birthday!" Esme yelled as we descended the stairs. And sure enough, she had a cake in one hand and her cell phone clutched in the other. The cake was white and vanilla, my favorite. How she knew that, I'll never know, but I smiled at the eighteen candles on top.

"Make a wish," Isa whispered into my ear.

I closed my eyes, not sure what to wish for. I had everything I wanted. I just… As much as I loved it here, I wanted to go back home. I wanted things to be back to how they were before all of this. It was easy then. I wanted to go back to then, back home to my family. So that's exactly what I wished for.

I wish things could go back to how they used to be.

I opened my eyes to Esme's smiling ones staring right back at me, urging me to blow the candles out with a single breath. I thought of my wish again as I drew in a deep breath and let it go over the cake, extinguishing the candles on my cake.

Esme smiled, and the two I grew to know as Rosalie and Emmett clapped lightly along with Isa.

Rosalie was nice, to an extent. She seemed to dislike Isa and me, for some reason unbeknownst to us. She was never outright mean, but she was definitely never outright nice either. She just seemed to avoid us, and only spoke to us when and if we spoke to her. Emmett was just the opposite, though. He was always happy and excited and cracking jokes about everyone and everything. I liked Emmett a lot. It was easy to feel comfortable around him, especially if Rosalie was in the room. They balanced each other perfectly.

"We've got presents, right over here," Esme said as she headed toward the kitchen to cut up the cake. "Just give me a second to cut the cake."

I moved to head toward the living room, but I couldn't help but overhear Rosalie talking in a quiet voice to Esme. "Has he called yet?"

"No," Esme said. "It's been weeks, now. I'm beginning to get worried. I wasn't even able to tell him in person that we found Bella and Edward. I had to leave a voicemail, and even then he hasn't called back. Rosalie, I'm terrified that something happened to him. He never waits this long."

"Carlisle will be fine. He knows how to defend himself."

"I sure hope you're right," Esme said, clutching her phone a little tighter in her hand, as if that would make the phone ring. When there was a loud crack, though, signaling the crack of the screen, she let up with a loud sigh.

Isa, Emmett and I, with Rosalie a few seconds behind, made our way to the living room where a huge stack of presents was piled on the coffee table. "Holy cow," I muttered. "You guys didn't need to do this for me."

"We did," Isa said. "You're turning eighteen today."

"Yeah, it's officially illegal to sleep with Isa now," Emmett added with a broad smile and a clap on my back. "Congratulations!"

I chuckled and Isa blushed, hiding her face in my shirt.

Suddenly, Esme was in the room again. She was carrying two slices of the cake with her, too. She handed one to me and one to Isa and we sat down on the couch to open presents.

"Where's Jasper?" Isa asked.

"He went to meet with someone. He'll be back shortly," Esme said with a tight smile. It seemed as though they were hiding something, but neither of us questioned it further. There had been a sense of finality in her tone, ending the conversation.

I spent a good amount of time opening my presents, which included a lot of clothes from the Esme, the newest Guitar Hero from Emmett and Rosalie—though, something told me Emmett simply got it for himself—and a lovely photo album from Isa. It was half photos of my life growing up in Seattle—Esme had gone and taken some pictures from my mother's collection back at the house—and the other half were pictures of my life as Edward.

The final page in the book was a side to side picture of Isa and me on our four month anniversary. I had taken her out on a ferry boat, which we rode all day, going from harbor to harbor until we nearly fell asleep on the deck. The picture had been taken by a bystander sometime in the afternoon when the rare Seattle sun was high in the sky. My arms were wrapped around her from behind and I was kissing her cheek, my eyes closed. It almost looked like I wasn't aware there was a picture being taken, even though I definitely did. Isa was smiling and laughing, her arms resting lightly over my own.

The second picture was of Edward and Bella. It was the one that Jasper had thrown at us when he was trying to prove that we really had once been vampires. I liked the picture, as did Isa. It was a nice representation of what we had been, and what we would most likely be again some day.

"Thank you all so much," I said. "Isa, would you like to join me for a walk outside? It's a beautiful day," I asked, squeezing her hand.

"Why don't you go without me this time. I'm going to help Esme and Rosalie pick up the cake and the mess in here. Emmett's going to go set up Guitar Hero. It's gorgeous outside. Go take a little walk around the house. I know you've been getting restless lately." She kissed me lightly. "I love you," she said as she stood up, following the others out of the room.

As much as I didn't want to go without her, I knew she was right. Being confined to a house for a few weeks really had been taking a toll on my muscles. I needed a little fresh air.

I stood and stretched my arms up into the air, enjoying the view from the window. It was a lovely mountainous range, all capped with snow, reflected against the bright blue of the cloudless sky. It was a perfect day.

I made my way to the back door and stepped out gracefully, following the small rock path that led toward a small forest trail. I had followed this path dozens of times before. It was just a big "U". It would eventually lead my right back to where I entered. But it was a nice scenic trail that was great for thinking.

The Cullens were great and I loved being here, but there just seemed like there was so much wrong with it. I wanted to be back with my parents. I never even really got a good chance to say goodbye to them. And Isabella, my dog, had to live with just my parents now. I shuddered that the thought. They didn't know much of anything about her. I needed to be there with her and them.

I shook my head. No, I needed to be here. The Cullens needed me. They—

A noise sounded ahead of me and I immediately ceased my thoughts. "Hello?" I asked. "Is anyone there?"

There was no answer, so I moved forward towards where I had heard the noise. It was probably an animal of sorts, but I could never be too sure. Now that I knew there were vampires out there, things seemed to be a little more real.

I cautiously stepped around a tree to where I thought I had heard the noise. And there, leaning against the tree, was Jasper. He looked exhausted, which was difficult for a vampire.

"Jasper, what's wrong?" I asked, rushing over to him. We hadn't been the greatest of friends, but he used to be my brother. I figured we had to have gotten along somewhere down the line.

His head shook and he leaned it back so it hit the tree with a resounding thud. "You're so lucky, you know?"

I blinked. "What?"

"You're so lucky you have Bella. In both of your lives. You don't have to deal with all this shit of trying to convince the love of your life to love you back." We were both silent for a moment before he continued, the only sounds being the occasional rustle of leaves being tossed around by the wind. "Esme told you about Alice, I suppose? Or, well, Alison now?"

I nodded.

"I've been visiting her a lot the past year. I want her back, I won't lie. But it hurts, and she doesn't see that. It physically pains me being that close to her and not being able to love her. I go every Monday and Thursday and visit her at her flower shop, hoping she's changed her mind and wants to come live with me."

"That's a pretty big step, Jasper. Speaking from experience, it's hard to adjust to the fact that you were once another creature entirely. You can't expect her to just accept the fact that she used to be 'Alice' and go on with her life with you like nothing happened. It'll take time."

"I know that. But it only took you and Bella a few days. It's taken her over a year. I'm running out of ideas here, Edward. I've tried everything I can think of to convince her she used to love me: pictures, facts, videos, everything. And she doesn't get it. I risked our entire species by telling her about what we were. And now I don't know if she's ever going to accept the fact that she's one of us. It's bad, Edward. Really bad," he said, sliding his back down the tree and landing softly on the forest floor.

"I've debated leaving so many times. To do what you and Bella did, to have myself killed. But I'm too afraid that I won't be able to find her as a human, and I won't remember who she is. I can't risk it. She's too important to me."

"Why don't you kidnap her, like you did us?"

He shook his head and I sat down next to him. "Because," he said like it was obvious, "I just can't see myself as the one responsible for ruining her life. She obviously doesn't want it, and forcing her into it will only make it worse. I can't do that to her. So I'm stuck doing the only thing I can: waiting. I can't do anything but wait until she decides to give in. Until she decides to love me. I can't—and won't—interfere with her life." His face directed toward the floor. "Besides," he murmured, "she waited for me. It's only fair I do the same now."

"You're a good person, Jasper."

Again, he shook his head. "I feel terribly guilty. Part of me feels like I've burdened her with this misfortune that she needs to leave everything behind and simply leave with me. And that's selfish. But I can't live without seeing her. Her death, before we knew she was human again, nearly killed me. I couldn't survive without her.

"But now that she's back in my life, she's almost too addicting. I have to go there twice a week, or I stop functioning right. I should stop—I know I should, she's already refused more than once—but I feel like if I give up, it'll just be like losing her a second time. And I don't know if I could do that again, you know? I'm so torn."

I took a deep breath. "You love her, right?"

He looked at me like I was crazy. "That's a stupid question. Of course I do."

"Then don't give up. She'll be worth it, I promise."

"I know you're right, it's just frustrating to be trying so hard and not getting—" He cut off mid-sentence and was immediately on his feet, sniffing at the air.

"Shit," he cursed under his breath.

I opened my mouth to ask what was happening, but any breath I may have had was knocked out of me by a powerful blow to my stomach. As I struggled to get the air in my lungs to work properly, I took in my surroundings. I was flying at the speed of light through the forest, a steel arm wrapped around my waist.

Jasper had thrown me over his shoulder, and was now running back to the house.

Before I could process this completely, I was in the car with Isa, Esme, Emmett and Jasper. I had no idea where Rosalie was.

"What's going on?" Isa was asking.

"Not now," Jasper growled. He hissed something under his breath to Esme, who shook her head quickly and tightened her grip on the steering wheel.

"Where are we going? Why won't you tell us anything? We have a right to know. You can't just freak out and throw us into a car, expecting everything will be okay. We want answers, and we want them now. What are we running from? Where's Rosalie?"

Again, no one said anything.

"Please," she pleaded, taking a hold of my hand and squeezing hard. "I'm scared and worried. Why can't you tell us what so scary that we had to flee without any time to pack anything. You guys are vampires. If you're scared of this, what should Masen and I be doing?"

"Shut. Up," Jasper growled from in between clenched teeth. "We don't have time to explain. Just do as we say."

"Masen," she whimpered. I pulled her closer to me and held her protectively. The car was speeding at an alarming rate, now, and we weren't even slowing down for turns. I don't think they remembered that Isa and I were, in fact, still breakable.

Through the tint of the car, the high sun in the sky still brought small shimmers across the bodies belonging to the Cullens.

I should have been awed and intrigued at the beautiful spectacle, but I wasn't focused.

My thoughts were elsewhere.

It had been exactly thirty minutes since I had taken my eyes off the dashboard, numbly watching the speed never falter below 120 miles per hour as Esme continued to drive away from the house. Anywhere but there. Occasionally the needle would flicker down to 110, before hastily shooting back up, as if afraid that anything less than two times the normal speed limit would lead toward an imminent death.

Perhaps because it would.

The silence inside the car was both uncomfortable and reassuring. Even without diverting my hard gaze from the dashboard, I could sense the rigid and stiff postures of every Cullen. The tension that leaked from every pore and orifice was incredibly suffocating, and the maddening silence from the intense concentration of all the Cullens was deafening. If someone so much as sneezed, the intemperate atmosphere would burst like the pop of an overinflated balloon. But the stillness was able to numb my panic. Without the need for conversation, I didn't need to think about it. About vampires. About my life. I could just simply sit motionless in my seat, with my eyes burning holes into the speedometer.

31 minutes.

I urged mutely for the car to go faster by deepening my gaze. My mind mentally shot the vehicle much faster. Because it seemed 120 miles per hour just wasn't good enough anymore to distract me from the problems. I wanted the wheels to rotate so fast, the ground would give way to sky, and the car would nimbly float effortlessly away. Maybe then, I willed myself to think, I could forget all about the trouble following us.

Isa's hot breath under the crook of my neck instantly defrosted me from my detached volition, and I diverted my attention finally from the now useless distraction of the dashboard.

Her wet eyes held onto mine, silently communicating with me. Her gentle brown eyes shined their way into my dark emerald pools.

I knew what she wanted me to say. That it would be alright. That we had four vampires on our side to be protected by. That the reason why all of them were so serious and stoic was simply for precautionary reasons. That we could always outrun this.

She needed me to calm her.

I didn't have an answer for her, however. I could assure our lives and that of the Cullens. I could tell her it would be alright. I could say anything positive and hopeful to make her feel satisfied.

But the thing was that I wouldn't. Because I couldn't promise her that any of those things would be true.

And I wasn't about to make promises I couldn't keep.

So instead, I kissed the top of her head, and held her tightly in my grasp.

She stayed silent after that.

We had been nearing forty minutes, and I decided to no longer stare at the little speedometer that signified what little control we had at the moment. Outside the car, the images of greenery and grey sky blurred and melded together in an abstract kind of art; it gave me a headache. Finally, with nothing to do, I slowly closed my eyes, unaware until darkness clouded my vision that I was incredibly exhausted. The sound of tires on smooth road and the subtle rocking of the car carefully brought me closer to slumber.

A woman with dark and soft chocolate eyes peered into the kitchen. Her face had no make-up on today, her clothes were wrinkled in a disarrayed fashion, and her chestnut-brown hair was sticking up in a few places this morning. And yet, she could not remove the silly, lazy smile she wore on her lips. Looking around, she flipped on a switch, sending a comfortable lighting to glow across the room.

She smoothly padded by the sink, and started to sift through the nearby refrigerator, looking curiously for eggs she had recently purchased at the grocery store. Finally, having found the ingredients, the woman began to turn on the stove, all the while with a wide smile on her exhausted face.

The woman cracked open the eggs, mixing numerous in a bowl filled with appetizing peppers, basil, and cut-up bits of bacon. She poured the mix into a heated pan, letting the excited sizzles and cracks erupt from the stove in delicious sounds. The woman peered at the stove clock, finally noticing just how early she had woken up. But she couldn't be blamed for being so incredibly excited...

"You're up early," sounded a velvet voice behind her. She smiled even further, and tended to the meal in front of her, pretending not to have noticed the charming voice behind her.

The man chuckled at the woman's appearance as he made his way behind her, softly, but firmly pulling her towards him. He set his hands on the sides of her hips, and he ducked his head down to the curvature of her neck, breathing her in. His wild and messy bronze hair ticked the skin of the woman, and she giggled. He did this everyday.

"Hmmm... omelet. Smells heavenly," the man exclaimed as his attention turned to the wafting meal still on the stove.

"Yeah, well, I couldn't sleep. I thought I'd make you a nice breakfast before you went to work. I haven't done that in a while." The woman grabbed a nearby spatula and expertly dropped the omelet onto a plate she had just taken out of the cupboard. "Come to think of it, I've never woken up early for you to cook you breakfast on the weekday..."

The man smiled at his wife crookedly, before placing a quick kiss on her lips. "I appreciate the honesty, Isa. But you've only woken up this early for her. Not me," he replied, a teasing tone present.

"I can't help it! I'm so excited!" she exclaimed, looking happily at Masen. He made a pout with his lips, and she playfully scoffed before softly slapping his shoulder in mock annoyance. "If I blink she's going to be a grown up...," she muttered to herself.

The two lingered in the kitchen in comfortable silence, with the occasional groan of pleasure from Masen as he engorged his omelet. Everything about today was going to be perfect.

"Okay, love. I need to get going, or else traffic will be terrible." He wiped a napkin quickly atop his mouth before grabbing his wife for a quick kiss on the lips. Surveying her state of attire and hair, he grinned once again.

"Bye, beautiful."

Suddenly, a pair of small footsteps echoed into the kitchen, and a disgruntled little girl appeared by the woman's legs. A tired frown was set on her features.

"Mommy. Where's my breakfast?!"

The woman laughed before picking up the little girl into her arms. "I made you something too, honey." The little girl clapped happily.

"Are you ready for your first day of kindergarten?" The girl squealed before dragging her mother from the kitchen to inspect the backpack again that she loved.

The man sighed in contentment, grabbing his suitcase and opening the door to his car.

"They're gaining on us."

My eyes snapped open, and my body seemed to cement into stone as I jolted up from my indented spot on the cushioned seat. Isa, whose head sleepily had been resting on my shoulder, sparked forward as well to the dead and cold voice of Jasper. It was the first thing said out loud in the car.

I was momentarily shocked, as my eyes adjusted to the time I had been asleep. It was now approaching sunset, and the recent blur of green, gray, and blue was now replaced with the golden-orange of the lowering sun. Quickly staring at the clock, it read close to seven in the evening; I had slept almost two hours.

I wished I was still asleep.

"I know," muttered Esme, whose grave utterance matched Jasper's own tone. Looking at the speedometer, it read 155. There wasn't much more speed this car could handle.

"What's going on?" cried Isa. She slightly trembled beside me. I meekly looked in her direction, jostled by the contrast of my dream and our current situation.

"The Volturi," Emmett grounded out. It sounded weird coming from him. This was the first time I had seen him so serious. "They're following us. We don't know why, but Carlisle hasn't been calling. We think they have something to do with it. Maybe Carlisle's warnings weren't so out of the park after all." He took a deep breath and stared out the window, looking for something. "They definitely don't seem so friendly this time."

"And Rosalie?" she asked.

"Right behind us. You could probably see her if you had our vision. She's just trailing the car to make sure they don't get too close."

No one spoke for a while, and the suffocating atmosphere returned at an astounding full force.

"I don't know if we'll be able to outrun them," Esme whispered enough for everyone in the car to hear. Her topaz eyes reflected in the rear-view mirror, checking Isa's reaction. "They were following us rather slowly at first, since it was so bright outside and they were afraid of exposure. I thought we might have been able to get away. But their sent is trailing closely behind now. They have moved much faster now that the sun is beginning to set. We only have about thirty minutes until the sun is gone."

I didn't try to interpret the tone of voice Esme had issued. I was simply absorbing every single syllable like a sponge pulling in water; I was hoping dearly that I had heard wrong. That each word uttered from her mouth was an illusion, a mirage.

"They're here!" bellowed Emmett. His eyes were cast at a sideways glance toward the back windows and his posture stiffened again. Quickly, I turned my head to meet his stare, but was met with only the emptiness of the road we had speedily driven across. The setting sun cast long shadows against the trees, shrouding the pavement in dark obscurity.

Jasper, who was sitting to the left of me, seemed to understand my confusion. "They're moving too fast for you to see," he exclaimed. "We're only about a mile ahead of them." Turning to Esme, Jasper's dark face was terse.

"We have to prepare. You know what to do." Esme simply nodded, keeping her eyes on the road, but failing to divert our glances from the small tears nestling beneath her eyelids. I was too busy holding Isa and staying calm to try and place my hand on her cold shoulder for reassurance.

"What do you think they're going to do?" whispered Isa. She had decided not to intrude with any further questions toward the Cullens since the beginning of the ride; she was afraid to be a burden as she had heard Bella was seen as towards the end of her life.

I looked over at Isa. "I don't know. But whatever happens, I just want you to–"

The car lurched towards the right lane abruptly, causing me to lose my balance and shift my body involuntarily unto Isa. I felt cold and stone-padded arms hold onto my shoulders, slightly steadying me. Another extreme lane change to the left at 140 miles per hour tossed Isa and me into my original spot. The seatbelts, failing to secure us properly, were beginning to bind slightly to my neck; it was hard to breathe.

"What's happening?!" shouted Isa. Emmett was beside her, holding her in place while the car continued to veer from side to side. Esme was constantly peering into the rearview window, looking behind us. I was too numb by now to look. My neck hurt from the constant tugging of my seatbelt.

Suddenly, the car swerved its final transition towards the right lane when a figure seemingly dropped from the overshadowing trees above, and landed gracefully on the pavement of the road. Directly in front of us.

Everything happened much faster than anticipated, and yet I was able to capture each and every moment possible as if the moment were indeed slowed.

Esme futilely tried to swerve back towards the middle lane, anticipating the figures appearance much earlier than I had. But the distance between the car and man was too small, and Esme would not be able to miss hitting him. Jasper's mouth continued to move in an incredibly fast and low manner, directing his words to only the other vampires in the vehicle. And immediately after, my entire body felt bonded with cold stone, and I was pulled into a human ball. My hand that had been intertwined with Isa's was now companionless, and I began to panic. I closed my eyes.

That was before the car collided head-on into the unmoving figure.

A sickening crunch of metal combined with the whizzing of flying shrapnel and sparks filled the air, effectively twisting my stomach in anticipation for pain. For death. For another disaster.

But I didn't feel anything but a soothing cool sensation encompass and wrap itself around my body. There was no pain inflicted on me that I could feel. I was comfortable and holding my knees tightly in my arms.

Was I dead?

Eventually, the loud noises of the collision no longer rang in my ears, and I slowly opened my eyes to the scene before me; I almost expected to see my ghostly body float up and away.

But that was not the case. My gaze met with the steel, cold arm of Jasper Hale, who had, before the collision, placed his invincible and indomitable self atop me, effectively shielding me from the impact of the collision. I was perfectly fine.

Looking around, Jasper had quickly removed us from the wreckage; his shirt was in shreds from the flying metal ripping apart the only perishable thing on his body. I quickly glanced back at the wreckage, not surprised to see a large piece of black metal that was once the car lying uselessly in the middle of the road. A human-sized hole was visible at the front of the car.

Where's Isa?!

Frantically, my eyes darted anywhere I could possibly see.

But suddenly, my thoughts were divided and temporarily ignored as all my breath escaped me through the sudden tug of my body at inhumanly fast speed; Jasper was running away from the wreckage.

The pressure to my lungs ceased, and I greedily gulped refreshing amounts of air, sputtering onto what was the forest floor as Jasper dropped me to run back. My stomach tightened. The fight had begun.

"Isa," I managed to croak. Where was she? She needed to be safe. What would I do without her?

"It's okay," replied Esme, who appeared beside me. I looked up. Her face was livid, her calculating eyes menacing. "Come with me."

I wouldn't. Not without Isa. I stayed on the ground, catching my breath. Esme, as if reading my mind, crouched down low until her eyes leveled with mine. "Trust me."

But before I could protest once again, I felt myself being carried, and the familiar tugging of my stomach told me I was in her arms, traveling at anything but a snail's pace. I willed myself to open my eyes; I needed to see where Esme was taking me. I also was looking frantically for Isa.

The world around me was cascaded in a color of bright orange and dark green, mixing into the speedy pace I was currently going. Shapes of trees entered my vision before me, only to animate back into the conglomeration of colors. The sun, now golden, gently perched just over the horizon, like a ball touching the ground. It was so beautiful.

It was also reaching sunset.

Esme held me tightly as she ran quickly in between trees, occasionally circling a few times to perhaps lessen her scented trail. Her tight turns jostled my form, and I could only cling on for dear life. Finally, the dizziness lessened, and the variety of colors around me started to solidify into trees, the ground, and the orange sky.

That was before Esme started to climb on of the larger trees around.

She made quick work, rushing to incline further above the forest floor. Bits of bark ripped off from her steady arms, but she continued to tread on. Finally, with the sun almost eye level to us now, she stopped at a nearby branch, large enough for two or three bodies to comfortably stand on. Curiously, I looked down; we were so high up, the lower branches of the tree looked too small.

Esme set me down, and a small gasp of shock sounded behind me. I immediately swiveled around, only to be hit with a careful force that staggered me back on the thick and sturdy branch. Arms flew around my neck, and my nose was covered in scented freesia, with brown hair covering my eyes.

"Isa," I cried, relieved. She stepped back, and I noticed her tear-encased face. Her clothes were relatively the same from when inside the car, with a slightly more disheveled appearance.

"Stay here," Esme asserted. "Don't let anyone know you're here. Don't trust whatever you hear or see. Talk in quiet voices. And I repeat: stay here." A dead look set upon her face when I realized she had to fight. To protect us. Tears continued to fall around Isa's face, before Esme gathered herself. She was going to survive this. Esme was strong. She was brave.

"It's going to be alright," she assured us.

As if seeing right through her very own words, Esme briskly walked towards us until she reached for both our hands. A watery smile slowly crept on her face, but it never touched her eyes. "I love you. Both of you. And as long as I can walk, I will hurt anyone who tries to take you two away from me. I promise." She embraced the two of us tightly, giving more incentive for Isa to shake in grief. We had both finally accepted our fates. This family. We had begun to learn and love every part of this existence.

It hurt indefinitely to have that loosen in our grips.

Without hearing for a reply, she climbed down the tree at vampire speed, never looking back towards us. I held Isa close to my side. Neither of us was right for talking now. There was so much to be said and at the same time, nothing at all needed to be. Any words uttered from our mouths would only verify what was processing through our heads.

Far off, the sound of clashing mountains caught my attention briefly before I shut myself off to its sound. I didn't need to know the play-by-play of the fight.

The sun was finally beginning to set, and the orange in the sky intensified. In a few minutes, the sun would set, and the real fight would start.

"Isa," I said quietly. She curled into me instinctively, and my arms wrapped around her.

"Masen, I'm scared," she told me, burying her face into my neck.

"I know, love, I know."

"Can you talk to me about something? I don't really care what, just start talking. I need a distraction."

"Of course," I told her. "I had a lovely dream on the way over here," I said. "Would you like to hear what it was about?" She mumbled something into my skin, which I assumed was something that resembled a yes, so I continued. "It was a dream of a future. Of you and me. We were a little older, maybe in our late twenties or early thirties. We were married. We lived in this wonderful little house in a neighborhood. It was great for our little five-year-old."

"We had a kid?" she asked, looking up at me. There was a gleam in her eye that had been missing the past few hours. She was happy. And knowing that she was happy about our future made me happy.

"Yes, we did. A little girl. She had your hair and cute little button nose," I said, tapping her nose once.

"I hope she got your eyes and your grace."

"She did, from what I saw. Though I happened to be very fond of your big brown eyes. I wouldn't have minded if she got them. They're beautiful," I told her.

"They're boring," she said with a short laugh. I opened my mouth to protest, but she cut me off. "Tell me more."

"Well you were making me breakfast. An omelet, just the way I like them. You looked beautiful, of course. A little tired, but happy. You definitely looked happy."

"Of course I looked happy," she said with a smile. "I was with you."

I kissed her forehead before continuing. "It was our daughter's first day of school, and—"

"What was her name?"

"We never really said it. Do you have any names that you like?"

Her lips twitched in thought. "I like a lot of names. But Masen… I don't know if we should be thinking about baby names. I mean, realistically, do you think we'll ever have a chance to have kids? It seems to me, the way things are going now, that we're going to end up as vampires. As much as I love to think about having a child with you, I don't want to set myself up for disappointment, you know?"

I sighed into the top of her head. "I know. But it's a nice thought. It would be fantastic to see your belly grow, and know that I helped to create that." I stroked her stomach lightly, even though we both knew there was nothing in there except birthday cake. "But if I get to live with you for eternity, I hope you know that that's more than enough for me."

"I know," she said quietly. "I love you. No matter what happens today, I want you to know that."

"I love you too, Isa. Just as much, if not probably more."

A silence fell over us as we listened to the battle below.

Suddenly, a resounding snap of a twig echoed below us on the forest floor. Fear iced my veins, thoroughly freezing me within Isa's arms. Esme? I looked into Isa's eyes, quieting both of us. The sun was already lowering, with half of its luminous orb now engulfed by the horizon.

Neither of us spoke. We were too afraid to. But a part of me had so much left to do. And with the realization that death was just below me, it became clear of just how many things I still needed to do. That I needed to say goodbye. To California and Seattle. I needed to wave away my friends and family. My teachers and my dog. Even Mindy. I still wanted to visit Alki Beach, and ask Isa's hand in marriage.

This was it, wasn't it?

But tears flooded my eyes as I drifted back to my last dream. To the happy family I had the opportunity to forget, one with the most beautiful woman in the entire world, and a child we would both love. I was waving goodbye to the lovely house and comfortable kitchen. I had no control over what happened anymore.

As if by fate, I heard the distinct sound of bark crumbling to the floor. Someone was coming up. Could it be Esme? I strained my ears to listen.

The snaps of twigs and branches grew audibly louder now. Each noise brought me closer over the edge of dread.

I did the only thing I could control, then.

I backed Isa and myself slowly toward the corner where our large branch met the trunk of the tree, and scooted Isa behind me. I wasn't going to let her get hurt. Not until I couldn't help it anymore.

Finally the sounds stopped, and the silence was gnawing at my ears. There was stillness in the air and the stillness in our breaths. I couldn't even hear the once distant sounds of avalanches and clashing mountains. Everything was silent except the unstoppable pounding of my heart in my chest.

For a few more moments, everything was silent. And the sun, whose retreat was more evident by the minute, only appeared as a sliver in the sky. The rest was gone. Pink skies began to form above and a deep shade of golden orange lined the horizon. It was so incredibly beautiful; twilight.

"Masen!"

Isa's piercing scream broke the silent barrier, and brought me to my senses.

A pair of crimson eyes, magnified by the orange and pink sky, stared at me from the very edge of the branch. They weren't topaz, nor did they bring with them a feeling of security, of warmth, and comfort. The ruby orbs were menacing and feral.

They were also hungry.

"Finally," the vampire sneered, stepping into the small patch of remaining sunlight. His skin sparkled like diamonds, only adding to his frightful appearance. He had an olive complexion which looked odd combined with his chalky pallor and dark hair that waved to his shoulders. He was incredibly tall and lean. There was a sense of lethalness in his stride.

This was it.

The vampire was eyeing Isa with a glint of predatory hunger. He's going to choose her. I had to do something. Anything. Isa was not going to die while I could still put up a fight. She trembled slightly behind me; she had so much more to live for.

The red eyes stalked closer, and I did the only thing I could do.

"Take me first."

A smirk of amusement set on his lips as he looked me up and down; a piece of prey for examination. "Now who said anything about your choice?" he exclaimed, "Last time I checked, Edward, you were no longer 'strong' enough to bargain. You've run out of chances and daring escapes. Not even Carlisle could escape us."

He must have seen my shocked face at the mention of Carlisle. Esme had no idea where he was. "Let's just say that ol' Carlisle is being treated to the great accommodations you were given during your stay at Volterra," he laughed. I didn't have time to think further before the vampire continued to toy us with his words.

"I guess I could grant your wish. It will be last, anyway. It's not like I can kill both of you. Aro has some things he wants to investigate." His tone turned to disagreeable at the chance to only kill one of us. I shuddered further.

Investigate. I already knew what he meant. He was wondering how 'Edward' and 'Bella' were still alive. And human.

Suddenly, my vision blurred, and a forceful hand pulled my arm, cleanly dislocating it in the process. I was steadied to my feet, with Isa screaming behind me. Pain shot up my arm, and I muffled a cry. I needed to stay strong. There was no need to let Isa know how horrible this was.

"Isa, close your eyes," I murmured. I knew what was coming up. She didn't need to see it.

A cold hand pushed my head, exposing my neck.

This was it.

I could feel the vampire's body inching closer. He even furiously chomped his teeth in mock preparation.

Dying for the one I love: true to my nature, apparently. I waited.

"No!"

Her voice rang clear across the treetops, simultaneous with a new kind of pain that pierced from my neck and stemmed all across. It shimmied from my neck, to my bones, to my head. Everything about me hurt. I tried to voice my pain, but no sound escaped my throat. A slow burning was filling my veins.

This is only the beginning.

He was going to suck me dry. And a part of me wanted it. To end the sizzling sparks igniting inside my body. I never experienced pain like this before in my life.

But suddenly the creature bending over me was gone. Through the haze of my pain, I looked over to see her on his back, trying to fight him off. Trying to save my life. But it was no use. She was thrown off like a feather, landing with a sickening crack on a large branch by the trunk of the tree.

ISA!

This wasn't happening. I was in this pain for her. She was supposed to live longer. Fire danced over me, and every inch of my arms and legs felt present in a heated oven. This had to stop. Unusually, I seemed to be conscious of the entire scene before me.

"Annoying bitch," sputtered the vampire. He stalked back towards me, leaving and crumpled Isa in his wake. She wasn't moving. Her body wasn't lifting and falling; she wasn't breathing.

Wake up! Wake up, wake up, wake up!

Her back was arched oddly, and I noticed little else before a wave of flames engulfed me. The pounding of heavy footsteps made their way to me.

Would I live another life? With her?

I slightly leaned my head away, exposing my neck again. I needed to rid myself of this pain. The hollow feeling inside my heart as well as the fire piercing my skin. I awaited red eyes.

But they never came.

Four figures appeared quickly and gracefully, all synchronized. Their bodies were poised to attack, and the distant red pair of eyes before me were outnumbered. By that of topaz. All four newcomers descended at lightening speed upon the vampire who destroyed Isa. My Isa.

I closed my eyes, moaning desperately to the whips of searing burns lashing at my chest. Through my ears, I could faintly hear the rips and snarls of anger surrounding the tree. I softly screamed; the fire was growing within me, as if someone had decided to feed it with wood and gasoline. Why wasn't I ash? Why wasn't I dead?

Kill me.

The growls ceased suddenly, and I felt a pair of cool hands rest themselves like icebergs on my chest, effectively holding me down. I hadn't realized I was seizing. I hadn't realized much of anything.

"He's bitten, Esme. He's changing. There's nothing I can do to save him," replied a soft and deep voice. I opened my eyes, only to see the color of orange and pink clot my vision; I could faintly recognize Emmett beside me.

The sun was already gone, but the soft aftermath of color still blotted the sky.

"Isa," I heard Esme say. With all my might, I turned my head to the sound. The fire in my stomach was growing and there seemed to way to extinguish the pain. Feet away from me, there lay my Isa. Her back was still oddly shaped, and she still wasn't breathing.

"Her back's broken. Demetri must have snapped it when he threw her into the tree. She's unconscious right now from the pain, but she'll die if we don't do anything soon," Rosalie calmly affirmed.

"You need to bite her, Esme," Emmett replied.

"I-I don't know if I can. I'm not Carlisle."

"You have no other choice," commented Rosalie coolly. "If you don't, she dies."

Was I selfish to want to scream for Esme to sink her teeth into Isa?

Esme sighed, and swiftly nodded. Turning her attention towards the crumpled body, she exposed the neck, wrists, and ankles.

I noticed Jasper was no longer present.

My heart suddenly started to beat fast as it tried to naturally recognize the inferno within me. Shots of embers rolled on me like waves, roasting me to insanity. A faintly heard the sound of Isa's soft screams before my eyes effectively closed.

Before the darkness welcomed me, my vision was filled with orange and pink. Of twilight.

And the flames still continued to burn.

A/N: We're finally getting to the meat of things. :) The next chapter is going to be really long, but then the next two or three will be fillers until the climax, and then two to three more chapters plus the epilogue. So we're looking at 6 to 8 more chapters in the story. It's winding down. :( And we're sad, but at least we'll get to spending more time on Cursed, and maybe start updating that twice a week. We'll see how things go after this story ends. Haha.

Anyway, bad news. We won't be updating this coming week. We've got our first semester finals so neither Cursed nor Turning Eighteen will be updated next week. Sorry, darling.

Ben's A/N: How did you like it? I invested quite some time in trying to make it perfect, because this is the turning point of it all. Masen is officially eighteen, and his change has begun. Sadly, this is the last time you will ever see Masen in the story, as with Isa. I have grown to love them as characters, almost independent from Edward and Bella. But the best if yet to come. Just a quick side note: The kitchen dream sequence 'Masen' has simply signified another sacrifice that would be made in his change. He would be leaving that family he wants, a child, and a human future. I just hoped you didn't that was random...

REVIEW please. It always helps to hear the opinions of our readers, and not just a loyal and selected few who are faithful to review every time.

Until next NEXT week,

cALLIEfornia BENches