Neither Rebecca nor Twilight nor any of the characters belong to me… just in case you weren't sure.

Saturday, August 28th

Sleep was never really fun for me… not that it's necessarily barrels of fun for anyone else either, but… Well, when I was younger, it seemed as if I could never really sleep. Not for long anyway and definitely not peacefully. Its not that I was constantly subjected to nightmares or sleep terrors or those dreams where you lay in your bed feeling paralyzed – although, I have experienced them. It was nothing like that. I was normally caught in the place between waking and sleeping. Never fully awake, but never achieving sleep. That stage that Tinkerbell talks about in Hook – the one where she swears she'll always be waiting for Peter to come back to her. Only I had no Tinkerbell waiting for me.

No Peter, either.

Eventually, the problem got better. Just as the doctors had said: I grew out of it. Or at least that's what I led everyone to believe. There were still bad nights, they were just less frequent than before.

There are things I can avoid that will make the night go easier on me. Usually, being somewhere new disrupts my healthier sleep pattern, making it harder for me to get a full nights rest. But until last night, Tempe had proven itself to be be different. It wasn't the worst night that I've had, by any means, but it was the first one since I've moved. After the phone rang, I had been able to fall asleep fairly quickly. But my dreams were numerous and ridiculously vivid. The kind of dreams that make it hard to distinguish that they weren't true. Vivid dreams aren't really out of the ordinary for me. But the subject normally orbits around the day's events, high school, my dad, or something stupid like the back seat of my car having a built-in foot massager and Snuggie.

Last night's dreams had nothing to do with Friday's events or my father. In fact, last night, my dreams… all of them… orbited one person. One person that I was particularly annoyed at. Annoyed at for his attitude, for his looks, for his glorious yet completely false words, and for the fact that my dreams last night had been the most intimate, exciting, freeing, and sensual experience of my life.

And it wasn't even real.

Don't get me wrong, I've had those kinds of dreams before. They've just never been that real.

To wake up in my bed, without him next to me as he had just been in my dream, well, that was the most frustrating thing. But the next most frustrating thing was that when I woke up, I wasn't quite sure what to do about it. I could take it into my own hands, but like I said, I've had those types of dreams before. Trying to manually relieve myself had never worked for me in the past. No matter what I had done. I highly doubted my body would just decide to work for me today.

I could go take a very cold shower and push down whatever ridiculous fantasies my subconscious had brought out during the night.

Or, I could go hunt him down, strip, and beg him to fuck me until his name was the only thing I knew for sure.

***

I stepped out of the shower, still shivering slightly from the icy water. Quickly, I changed into some old sweat pants and a hooded sweatshirt then I pulled my wet hair back as I padded my way to the kitchen to make a grilled cheese.

I lounged around for most of the day, reading the book that I had just started. I hadn't quite figured out how I felt about it just yet but the story was just beginning to get interesting. The nasty, old maid had just confirmed the nameless main character's suspicion that her new husband didn't love her. Ouch. That it was obvious to everyone that he was still very much in love with his late wife and he would never, could never love her. Double ouch. Mrs. Danvers, the evil maid, was suddenly intense and slightly frightening. She began talking about how the new Mrs. de Winter should kill her self when bells began to ring out of my phone, making me jump.

"Hello?" I breathed, a little shaken from the sudden interruption and a little miffed that I didn't know that Mrs. Danvers hadn't push the heroine down the stairs at Manderley.

"Bella!" Alice chirped into the phone, "I have the most fantastic idea!"

"Oh do you?" I replied, highly amused with her enthusiasm. I had no doubt that she had an idea. But her description made me laugh a little. I was quite sure there would be something less than fantastic about her most fantastic idea.

"Of course, I do. We're having a sort-of party and I'd really love it if you could come." She said sweetly. And just like the night before, she left the option up to me. I could say no if I felt led to.

"A sort-of party?" I questioned, feeling hesitant. "What exactly is a 'sort-of' party?"

"Well, it's Em's birthday. It's not going to be huge deal or anything. It'd be a great chance to meet people in a non-threatening environment, one in which you could leave at any moment you wish. There's food and beer …and caaaake." Alice was stressing the last word for my benefit. She had discovered my weakness for cake the night before. I should have known she'd use that to her advantage.

"That… and I'd really like to start apologizing to you sooner, rather than later. You don't even have to come if you don't want to. But it'd be more fun if you were there. You could see were we grew up and if it's too much you could hide out in my super amazing childhood bedroom." She started rambling about all the perks that were to come if I decided to show and all the benefits I would have if I got there and hated it. When she started talking about how Emmett wouldn't mind if I wanted to hide in a fort that the boys made when they were 10, I cut her off.

"Sure, Alice," I giggled a little at her attempt to convince me. "What time do you want me where?"

She fed me the need-to-knows and let me know that if I wanted, she would happily come over and help me get ready. I just laughed and told her she was more than welcome to come over, but that I was planning on dressing myself. She grumbled slightly but said she'd pick me up in approximately two hours.

I got up slowly from the comfy spot I had spent all day breaking in and leisurely made my way to the closet. Jeans, definitely. I knew that if I tried to wear a skirt or dress, it would no doubt end up over my head by the end of the night because that's the kind of luck I have. Luck of the Irish, my ass. I probably should want to dress semi-girlie. I started grazing for a cute-ish shirt, not sure if I even had anything that Alice would consider cute. What about my hair? I should probably put some effort into my appearance tonight. I knew I should want to try, but I didn't know what kind of people could be there. It was very likely that I wouldn't care about my appear…

Suddenly, I did know what kind of people would be there. I knew exactly what kind of people and I was absolutely stupid to not have realized it earlier. She said "we". And "we" always meant everyone. Brandons and Masens. (Alice had dubbed them the "Brandsens" long, long ago and she was very proud of her creation.)

Everyone meant Edward would be there.

For a brief second, I felt the urge to call Alice back. I wasn't sure if it was in order to cancel or to have her rush over here and dress me.

But just as suddenly as the urge came, it went.

I just … didn't care. He didn't want me and though my subconscious and my body disagreed with me most ardently, I was pretty sure that I didn't want him either. It was a mutual not-wanting… thing.

I looked back at my closet, slightly bitter, but not caring what I grabbed and threw my clothes on. Glancing at the clock, I saw that I had approximately 40 minutes before Alice would be on her way. I figured since it was Emmett's birthday, I could at least get him a card. I slipped on my flip-flops, grabbed the keys, and headed down to the car.

I made it back from the corner store with a few minutes to spare. Soon, I was back in my room attempting to make my hair do something in the remaining minutes. But quickly decided it was hopeless. After putting it back up, I added a touch of eyeliner to my eyes and brushed my teeth a little haphazardly. Alice's sporadic knocks collided with my door just as I was setting my toothbrush down in its place.

Alice greeted me with a bright smile that almost immediately dimmed when she saw that the hole in my jeans wasn't strategically placed by the manufacturer and the green t-shirt was something she probably wouldn't even sleep in on even her sickest days. She quickly recovered as I pushed her out the door, telling her I was excited to meet some new people.

Okay, so it wasn't the truth of the truth. I wasn't exactly thrilled to be meeting new people when the last time had gone so hideously wrong. But it surely couldn't hurt to try again... right? I could have a beer if I wanted to take the edge off and I wouldn't be so quiet and shy. Maybe it would make things less awkward when I saw Edward if I could be a little buzzed. Or maybe, it'll allow you to lose all your inhibitions and ask him to fuck you… just like you wanted to earlier… like you want now.

I felt my face warm at the thought of him and the way my current thoughts were going. My mind was busy bringing back the all too wonderful very, very vivid dreams from early this morning.

We were at the Brandon's house after a short drive. The Brandon's freakin' huge, brick house. In my short time in Arizona, I had noticed that bricks were few and far between here. Every thing was stucco and everything was tan. But that was because the Brandon's house was crafted completely out of deep red bricks… obviously not leaving enough for anyone else in the entire state. The large house stood tall and bright. Every light seemed to be on. The long, circular drive was packed and I really hoped that all these cars were not all for Emmett.

Of course, my hopes often go unfulfilled.

Alice pulled into her garage on the side of the house. The space was massive. Surely this garage could hold several very large cars, but currently, the only vehicle inhabiting any of the space was Alice's Audi. We walked inside through a tiled laundry room and towards the thumping bass. She took a deep breath and smiled brightly at me before she swung the door open and began to work us through the crowd, into the living room, and in the direction of a large porch where there was an even larger mass. Alice pointed out people, as we grew closer to the group, giving me little tidbits of information, letting me know whom she thought I'd get along with best. She pointed out a girl with light brown hair named Angela who was talking to a girl with short curly hair named Jess. I quickly saw Emmett standing next to the Masen twins. I took a sigh of relief when I didn't spot any bronze colored hair but felt a small pang in the pit of my stomach that I chose to ignore. I'd have time to get used to my surroundings before I would have to deal with Edward. When we arrived at the group, Alice introduced me to the ones she pointed out and quickly pulled me over to say hi to Jasper and the rest. I smiled meekly, feeling slightly embarrassed now about my reaction on Thursday night.

I hadn't so much as said a single word to them when we had met for dinner. They probably thought that I was a nut case for saying what I had and then storming off. I felt my blush warm my face again. I nervously wished Emmett a happy birthday and handed him his card rather awkwardly. He smiled bigger and told me he was happy I gave them another chance while Alice, who had apparently left my side for a quick moment had returned, was back and handing me a beer and ushering the present Brandsens and me outside.

The porch was much larger than it had originally appeared to be. And of course, it opened into a large backyard that contained a pool/spa, a koi pond, and a half sized basketball court. Several groups inhabited the court, the pool, and the spa, but a majority of the parties' attendees were crowded around a large table covered in cups. Emmett and Jasper were goading each other about who sucked worse at beer pong. Rose and Alice sat talking quietly; I stood holding my beer watching others, inadvertently eavesdropping on several side conversations, trying to look entertained, and smiling politely at people that were introduced.

About an hour into the party, I had met everyone that was present. There were a couple guys who had come by to introduce themselves. One guy in particular had asked where my boyfriend was and I blushed in response. Tyler, the guy now making the scene, had overheard the exchange and dove in, offering his "boyfriend skills" for the night – "free of charge". I blushed more at that. Then, he took it upon himself to teach me the rules of beer pong.

During Tyler's explanation, Edward had shown up. I didn't make a move towards him or to avoid him – and he was doing the same. He milled around on the other side of the large table, surrounded by girls yet completely ignoring their presence. Just as I was doing to him. Just as he's doing to me. Although, I seemed to have a little trouble with not looking in his direction. Often times, when there was a lull in conversation, my eyes would gravitate his way. It was like he was the center of my being and my physical body had to point in his direction.

It was beyond annoying.

"No way, man." Tyler, who had been standing too close to me since his introduction, bragged to his friend... and anyone else within earshot. "There's no way that anyone could beat me at 'the pong'."

"Sure, Tyler," Jess said obviously unconvinced. Several of the girls around her giggled causing her to smirk.

"No. Really," he exclaimed looking around the group, "ask Masen. He knows." I felt my eyes try to look towards Edward, but I forcefully redirected them to Jasper. Hoping that he was the Masen in question.

But, like I mentioned earlier, my hopes mean nothing.

There was a light chuckle that made my insides warm. Well, warmer. Not only was it August in the desert but I had drank through my fair share of Coors Light in an attempt in trying to take the edge off, trying to talk to strangers more, trying to stop my mind from reliving dreams that would never be.

"I don't know, Ty. High school was a long time ago." Edwards smooth voice cut through the parties roar effortlessly.

"Oh, come on, man! Ya know I still gots it." Tyler bragged. He stood up and encouraged anyone who would like to challenge him to step forward.

"Sure ya do." Edward goaded him a little more as he laughed. "I'm sure anyone here could drink you under the table."

That's when Jasper perked up.

"Oh, oh, oh, brother. I'd love to see this."

"Yes, Edward. We'd all love to see this. Why don't you put him to the test?" Rosalie challenged him as she and Jasper both lifted their eyebrow at him in true twin form.

Edward's face paled an infinitesimal amount but his smirk grew more pronounced. He stood up to his full height, probably a full foot taller than me, and stepped closer to Tyler in acceptance.

"Alright, Crowley. Let's do this." He said, cockily.

The rules were set up, new cups were placed and filled, chairs were loudly scooted closer, and I'm pretty positive that several bets were taken. Tyler walked over to Edward under the pretense of good sportsmanship and shaking hands but while their hands were clasped, Tyler leaned into him and mumbled something in his ear that made Edwards face turn a livid shade of red. I watched Edward step back while his lips angrily mouthed something back at Tyler. Tyler just smirked in response. Edward looked as if he were about to stand up and leave when Jasper put a hand on his shoulder to push him back down. Again, Edward was being whispered to, but his brother's words seemed to calm him rather than to rile him. The angry red soon faded in his cheeks, allowing them to go back to their normally pale and freckled selves, but his ears remained bright. His eyes were alight with a different sort of determination then he had started with. Whatever had been said also seemed to make said eyes flit towards me for just a second.

Ten minutes later, the crowd was jeering at Tyler, an apparent sore loser. When he had seen how close Edward actually was to beating him, he conveniently slipped and haphazardly dove onto the table, causing 95% of his full cups to jostle and fall to the ground in hopes that the game would have to be forfeit.

Unfortunately for him, the crowd was far more aware than he had guessed and instantly named Edward the winner. Edward walked over to Tyler with a smirk in place and an offer to a rematch in which they would actually finish the game. Tyler just glared at him before looking around the large group of witness with a sour look upon his face.

Edward's smile had already been brilliant but when his eyes latched onto mine, the rest of his face caught up with his smile. There was something in that look that made him looks exponentially more joyful than he had all night. The look that had my body felt as if it were buzzing. Not from the alcohol in my system, but more of a … thrumming. Like electricity was pulsing through my veins. The gravitational pull towards Edward was growing rapidly.

And as much as I would have absolutely love to run up to him and make good on the fib that we had told Tanya, the pulsing of my veins was making me nervous. Not the good kind of nervous that ends in an awkward but grand goodnight kiss. The kind that made you breaks out in to a sweat, and twisted your stomach. The kind that made you feel nauseous.

Abruptly, there were far too many people around me. They were far too close. It was far too warm. There was far too much saliva in my mouth. I was going to be sick if I stayed standing where I was for far too much longer.

I forced myself away from Edward's gravitational pull and headed to the bathroom. After almost falling on my ass due to Tyler's "brilliant" plan that had left the floor completely wet and covered in red plastic cups, and pushing through the heavily populated house, I finally made it to the quiet, cool room. I locked the door behind me and pressed my back against the cold wall and slid down slowly. I tried to remember what my dad always did for me when I would get sick, but all that would come to mind was putting my head between my legs for dizziness.

I sat for a few extra minutes after I was sure I wasn't going to vomit, just to stay away from the loud, congested area. Taking deep breaths, I worked on sobering up so my Sunday wouldn't be wasted on a horrible headache. Finally, when the room had stopped jiggling each time I moved my head, I slowly stood up and turned to exit. However, opening the door only brought back the rush of anxiousness. But instead of locking myself in the bathroom for the rest of the night, I chose to go find Alice and let her know I needed to get home.

Once again, I braved through pushing through the swarm and avoiding the large spill. I found Alice and told her I was ready. After studying me for a second, she agreed. She said she just needed to make a quick round of goodbyes and she'd be right there. Deciding that I was done with the crowd, I told her I'd wait out front for her and that there was no rush. She nodded and then smiled at me and I took off for the sanctuary of the quiet inferno.

The crowd thinned as I made my way closer to the front of the house. The entry way was large and empty. There was a public staircase that curled up the rooms' wall that looked cooler and far more comfortable than going outside seemed. As long as the room stayed empty, I figured that this was better than outside. Smiling and excited about being able to sit down while I waited, I plopped myself down on the bottom step and stretched out. I closed my eyes, taking in deep breaths, and I felt all the anxiety that had built up so quickly inside begin to evaporate. My limbs felt lighter. My annoyance faded. My breaths came easier. My palms weren't soaking or clammy.

"Bell-Uhhh!" a males voice called out.

My body immediately tensed back up and all the progress that I had just achieved flew out the proverbial window. I let go of a heavy sigh and promised myself a bath whenever I got home. I opened my eyes back up to see who was calling me, only to see Tyler sitting too close and smiling too big. He had apparently gotten over losing while I had hidden myself in the downstairs bathroom.

"Hey pretty lady." His breath covered my face and the smell of alcohol attacked my nose. I forced a smile, trying to be happy to see him.

"Hey…Tyler. How's it goin?"

"Well, ya know." No. I didn't know.

"It could be a lot better." He looked at my from under his lashes. I couldn't be sure, but I think he was hitting on me. He sat down on my step and scooted closer. I moved closer to the wall trying to recover my personal space from the intruder. Unfortunately, his body quickly closed up the fresh space that had purposely been put between us. I tried hard to suppress a sigh. Yep. Definitely hitting on me. Great.

"Bella, I know your type." I looked at him, confused. My type? What the hell was he talking about?

"What do you mean, 'my type'?" I asked not bothering to hide the confusion in my voice.

"Mmhmm. I knew it. You're the kind of girl who's all shy until you get to knoooow her. She plays sweet and kind and just seems absolutely loveable. But there's something about you that you won't show anyone else," he said, grinning mischievously. "Have you ever heard the term 'Lady on the streets, freak in the sheets?'"

I'd never heard it, but I wasn't ignorant. I felt my face turn into a glare that I aimed right at him.

"Aw, honey. Don't look at me like that. I have an idea. Hows about we skip the lady and head straight to the fah-reak?" My eyes narrowed even further and just as I was about to tell him what he could go do with his idea, his lips collided with mine.

I was frozen. And completely disgusted.

However, my body soon thawed and my disgust quickly shifted to something like "fucking pissed". He moved his hand up to the back of my neck and started to try to pry my lips open with his repulsive tongue. I ripped my lips from his, grabbed his hand, and twisted his fingers until I heard a popping sound.

"Get the fuck off me, dill hole!" I said with as much venom in my voice as I could inject.

Unfortunately, the popping fingers didn't do much more than crack his knuckles. There was also must have been something in his inebriated brain that told him I didn't mean my words because he came closer and forcefully turned my face back to his, ramming him saliva covered tongue in my mouth. I pushed as hard as I could, but he had wrapped both of his arms around me. I was trapped. I began to panic and my pushes began to get more frenzied, but didn't grow in strength. I tried desperately to make any kind of sound that would tell anyone passing by that this was not pleasurable or wanted, but he just shoved his tongue further into my mouth, muffling all the noise. Tears started to well up in my scrunched up eyes as I tried my best not to whimper. I had mistakenly done that once already and fuckface had mistaken them for moans. It had only spurred him on and made his grip tighter.

Just as his hand began to grope and descend down my body, I was abruptly free. My breath was raged and I was pretty positive that I was hyperventilating. To my left, I heard a string of angry expletives followed by several dull thuds. Tyler was quickly replaced with Alice by my side as I felt the silent tears leak out to make paths down my face. Her arm was around me and she was speaking softly but I wasn't paying any attention to what words came from her mouth. My attention was latched onto a body that had appeared right in front of me. I wasn't sure when they got there, or why I suddenly felt the way that I did. I would have thought that I should have been more annoyed at the sight of him. But as I searched my feelings, all I could find was deep relief.

Edward Masen was kneeled in front of me, hands in front of him as if he meant to embrace me, but had stopped short of actually making contact with my skin. His face was worried, his eyebrows had pulled together, and the frown on his face was deep. I wanted to tell him to smile, because gods should never frown but it didn't seem appropriate. Little by little, I felt the fear, tears, and panic leave as I sat gazing into his green eyes. They were beautiful and full of emotion. His jaw clenched repeatedly and his upper lip twitched, something my dad used to do when he was angry. His crunched eyebrows said that he was worried. His stance showed he was unsure, perhaps regretful. But his eyes said only wonderful things. Beautiful things that inspire.

As I sat there, in Alice's arms, hearing Tyler's pitiful cries, staring into Edward's eyes, I felt something inside me move. Something shifted, though I wasn't sure what. I needed to move. Slowly and carefully, I removed myself from Alice's grasp despite her objections. I lowered myself in front of Edward, mirroring his kneeling state, watching his eyes follow my movements, and tracking the expressions that kept layering themselves. Confusion, shock, disbelief, and fear. I scooted closer to him gradually, just in case he wanted to get away. When we were finally close enough that I had to look up at him and he down at me, I put my arms around his waist and hugged his lean body. I rested my head on his chest and took a deep breath. As he hesitantly placed his arms lightly around my shoulders, every thing else fell away.

All the panic.

All the distress.

All the sounds.

All my worries.

All my annoyance.

They were all gone.

All because of Edward.

I suddenly had a sense of déjà vu. But it was strange. I knew I had never been in this position before. But there was something that gave the feel of coming home after being away on a long trip.

Edward felt like home.

I'm not sure how long we stayed like that. Me, resting my head close to his heart with my eyes closed. Him, rubbing soft circles into the shirt on my back while rocking us very slowly. But I felt muscles in his chest move and I lifted my head up, finally, to see what was happening. Alice was still on the step, talking to Edward, and he was nodding to whatever she had said.

"I'll take her." He said quietly. When he looked down at me silently asking for approval, all I could do was notice that his face had smoothed. No more traces of any negative emotions were anywhere on his face or in his eyes. I must have nodded my head because he sent me a tiny smile and helped me up.

Holding on to my hand tightly, he pulled me close to him. Shoulder to shoulder, we began taking extra slow steps, ascending the fancy stairway to the Brandon's second floor. We passed closed door after closed door in silence until we reached the end of the hall to a smaller, less impressive stairwell to another floor. We continued to climb the stairs until we ran out. Edward, without dropping my hand, flipped a switch on the wall. When the lights came on and my surroundings came into view, I felt a smile try to fight it's way onto my face. We entered a loft-like room that was probably an attic originally. The room was longer than wide. The walls were two toned and speckled here and there with windows that surely lit up the room during the day. It was obvious that a lot of work had gone into the comfortable atmosphere up here. Closest to us, there were several squashy looking chairs that surrounded a flat screen that had been attached to one of the walls. The entertainment center under the mounted television seemed to house every gaming console imaginable, from the original Nintendo to the new Wii, along with a plethora of games. On the opposite wall, there was a black leather couch and lamp with shelves of books on both sides. The poor shelves looked as if they were about to buckle under the weight of all the pages they held. At the far end of the room, several changing screens had been pushed together, leaving a sizable chunk of this room out of view of where we were standing.

"Alice thought it'd be best if you stayed here tonight." He said softly. Edward gently led me by the hand towards the end of the room. I looked towards the bursting bookcases was we passed them, trying to see if I could spot any books I was familiar with but the lights weren't bright enough to see properly. I'd have to remember to check them out in the morning.

Edwards's hand quickly left mine once we reached the screens as his long legs took him to the side table to turn on a small lamp. He sat down on the bed and looked at me expectantly as he patted the empty space next to him. I tentatively went to sit near him. Both of our hands were in our own laps, both sets of eyes were carefully avoiding each other. After he had dropped my hand, the contact had severed that we had and I was beginning to feel uneasy… nervous. I wasn't sure what to say to him.

Congratulations on beating a douche at a drinking game!

I see you escaped Tanya unscathed.

Thanks for holding me right after fuckface attacked me.

This may be poor timing, but I had the best wet dreams about you last night. That's right. Dreams. Multiple. Why don't you come on over and we'll see if we can make those dreams come true?

I stared down at my feet with a hot face, feeling a little more than awkward and embarrassed that I was thinking of a naked Edward after what had just happened. His warm hand cupping my chin, wordlessly asking for me to look at him, I slowly lifted my eyes and looked into his. I felt my blush grow warmer as I took in the intensity of his stare.

"Are you okay, Bella?" he asked sincerely. I nodded demurely and swallowed hard. Why did he have to be so … good-looking? His lips turned up into a small smile as he grabbed a hold of my hand and squeezed. I felt my face brighten as the contact had been reformed.

Home.

For a moment, we just looked at each other. In my mind's eye, flashes of Edward's life fade in and out. He was smiling and laughing, but the look in his eye was significant – it was serious in the best way. Dressed all in black, he waited anxiously next to another man at the end of an aisle. He was lower to the ground than normal, running toward someone with his arms wide when suddenly a little girl with curly, reddish hair came in to view running full speed back at him. He was stirring the pot in his hand, apron tied around his waist, brilliant smile in place as he mouthed to someone, "I love you."

"Come on. Let's get you to bed." He said with his half-smile twisting at his lips.

We both stood. Edward allowed me to continue clinging to his hand while he awkwardly pulling the blankets down from their place. Then, turning to face me, he lifted his free hand as if he were going to touch my face. But like earlier, he stopped before making contact. A strange expression overtook his features before he spoke a quiet goodnight. A feeling of panic shot through my body as I felt his grip loosen on my hand as he turned to leave. I felt my chin quiver where he had earlier touched my face and I called out for him.

I couldn't quite explain it, or why I did what I did right after, but I felt as if I didn't call out for him, something bad would happen. I needed him near me. His body froze under my stare and then slowly turned to listen. I felt my face heat up again at the thought of what I was about to ask him. I didn't want him to get the wrong idea, but thinking about being by myself tonight made my stomach clench.

"Would you… do you think you could maybe… stay? With… me?" I rushed. The embarrassment didn't beat out the need for him, but it was still there. It was still strong. His eyebrow raised and his face looked surprised.

"You don't have to, I just…ya know, it's a big room and who knows who could come up here at any time… I would prefer not to be alone tonight, and I don't know where I am, and I don't like the dark …"

"Sure." His short answer cut mine off completely. His surprised expression slowly returning to his half smile. He helped me out of my shoes and into the spot where I was to sleep before pulling the blankets back up and around my shoulder.

Suddenly drowsy, I felt myself sink into the warmth and comfort that the bed provided. Before sleep took over, I heard a door slide shut, two distinct clicks followed by footsteps, and then the lamp beside me was off. As I drift off into a comfortable, uninterrupted sleep, a soft, warm voice whispers lovingly:

"Sweet dreams, little Bella Swan."