"People so seldom say I love you and then it's either too later or love goes. So when I tell you I love you, it doesn't mean I know you'll never go. Only that I wish you didn't have to."
- Anonymous

Bella: The drive wasn't long. The silence was only broken by small comments. Whether it was about the weather or the song currently on the radio or even how we looked. As we drove closer to her house I suddenly lost my confidence. I was nervous about seeing Alice again.

Edward could say what he wanted, but somehow I didn't think Alice would be so forgiving. I knew we were both broken hearted when I left and I had done exactly what she warned me against. I had hurt him.

"You seem nervous," he chuckled as we pulled into a very nice looking house's drive way. It was a white two story family home. Snow covered the front lawn and the windows and roof and porch was covered in simply glowing lights. A small lit tree was placed in the front lawn and a wreath was placed on the door. I almost expected to see a white picket fence around it and something told me, that it wasn't really the home I pictured for the vibrant out going Alice I had once known.

"Wow, it's beautiful, but…"

"Well the inside she got control of," he said and I laughed. He parked and exited the car. He came around and opened the door for me. I smiled and we began walking toward the house.

Maybe I should have stood home and had dinner with Jake. It was sweet that he wanted to do something like that and I was here with another guy. Having dinner with his family. I was absolutely horrible.

The door opened before Edward could insert his key. A small girl with dazzlingly bright blonde hair opened the door. Her eyes were piercing blue and her cheeks were round. She smiled.

"Eddie!" she screeched and I laughed as Edward picked up the small girl and entered the home. I followed behind him and walked into a large living room. The television was on and playing a cartoon show I did not recognize.

As I looked around I soon found that it did look like Alice's work. Everything seemed stylish and a bit out there but fit into the house perfectly. It was like looking at a puzzle. Everything went together so well.

On top of the already stylish house, everything was fashioned for Christmas. Stockings hung on the fire place. A real tree was placed in the corner decorated in lights and matching decoration.

"I told you it was Uncle Eddie, Cindy!" Alice said wiping her hands on a dish towel as she came out of the kitchen which seemed to be in the hall that went a little beyond the living room.

"I was under the impression that my name was Edward," Edward joked and placed the small child down. She then seemed to take notice of me.

"Who she?" she asked pointing a small finger at me.

"This is my friend, Bella," Edward said. I smiled.

"Hi."

The small girl seemed suddenly shy. She dipped her head and allowed her blonde hair to fall into her face. I knelt down in front of her and smiled gently.

"What's your name?" I asked even though I had heard Alice call her Cindy.

"Cindy. I'm four!" she said holding up her fingers to show me. I gasped.

"Wow! You're such a big girl. Do you go to school next year?" I asked with enthusiasm.

"Yep. Yep. Yep!" she said excitedly bouncing her head.

"Oh are you scared?"

"Uh…" she didn't know how to answer. She placed her index finger on her chin and furrowed her brow thinking it over. I laughed softly.

"School is a lot of fun. You learn a lot of things," I said and she gave me a toothy grin.

"Like the ABC's?" she screeched in delight and I nodded my head.

Edward laughed and I stood up. Alice came in smiling and patting the small girl's head.

"Hey, Bella," she said and I smiled. The girl bounced into the living room and took a seat in front of the television. Alice began to walk back to the kitchen. Edward took off his jacket and went toward the small door in the corner of the room. He placed his jacket in and turned to me. Quickly I shrugged out of my coat and handed it to him.

"Thank you," I said and he shot me a grin.

He placed my coat in the closet and turned toward me. He placed a hand on my back and pushed me gently toward the kitchen.

I followed a bit reluctantly. Alice was standing at the island chopping tomatoes. She smiled when we walked in.

"Cindy can't say Edward," Alice said pointing her knife at him. He laughed and took a seat at the kitchen table. I followed and took the one across from him.

"She's the only person I'll allow to call me Eddie," Edward said with another bright beam.

"Well, I still wish you would enforce Uncle Eddie. If you don't do it now, she'll never get use to it," Alice warned. He shrugged and she huffed as she turned her attention to me.

"Have any kids, Bella?" She asked with a bright smile.

"Yes. About 30 of them each year," I joked and Edward chuckled. Alice raised an eyebrow in question.

"Bella's a first grade teacher," he informed her.

"Oh, wow! No wonder you were so good with Cindy! It took me about 3 dates to get her to even smile at me," Alice said and I stared at her confused. Was Cindy not hers?

That would explain why the small child didn't look at all like Alice.

"Cindy is Joe's kid. Joe is Alice's husband," Edward said and I nodded.

"Which you will have the lovely pleasure of meeting, when he gets home," she said sarcastically. I laughed.

"I won't be offended if you decide you don't like him. I don't like him half the time anyway," she said with a bright grin. Again I laughed.

"So it's been a while since I've seen you," Alice said and smiled softly. I felt my cheeks heat.

"Yes it has. Thank you for inviting me to dinner," I said and she waved her hand.

"Hey it'll be nice. I've been stuck with him and my oh so lovely husband for about two weeks. Cindy's no help either," Alice joked and rolled her hazel eyes.

"Cindy, Mommy is talking about you!" Edward yelled and Alice sighed with irritation. I heard small thumps march their way to the kitchen until the incredibly small young blonde child stared at Alice.

"Not nice! Not nice!" she said and wagged her finger at Alice. I tried to hold back my laughter as Alice stuck her tongue out at the girl.

Suddenly the angry expression melted away from her face and she straightened. A bright grin showed off her small white teeth.

"I'm so happy!" she screamed and ran back into the living room leaving us laughing at her sudden mood change.

"She is precious," I said in between my giggles.

"Eh, I married her. Her dad was just part of the package," Alice said and I laughed again. Suddenly the sound of a door closed and a tall lean man came into the kitchen. He had the same colored hair as his daughter and the bright blue eyes.

I was surprised how much he resembled…Jasper. Huh.

"Yet another thing to add the long list of why I love my daughter," he said and came behind Alice encompassing her in a hug.

Edward laughed.

"Hey Joe," he greeted.

"Hey," he said and his blue eyes landed on me. I blushed.

"This is Bella. Bella that's Joe," Edward said introducing me to the tall gentleman who looked a bit too much like my cousin.

"Hello Bella," he said and crossed the room to shake my hand. I shook his.

"Hello," I greeted and he sent a bright smile my way.

"Well, dinner is done. Shall we move into the dining room?" she asked and we did.

Dinner was filled with talk about Joe's work and how he and Alice met. She asked about my job and then we talked about Edward's. They told jokes of the past and Alice asked if I was seeing someone. That caused a bit of an awkward situation as I realized Edward hadn't mentioned that.

"Um yes actually," I said pushing the mash potatoes around in my plate.

"Oh?"

"Um Jacob Black. We uh well we were friends for a long time and then it just seemed like a natural next step," I said and shrugged my shoulders. Edward had grown quiet.

"What does he do for a living?" Joe asked seemingly unaware of how awkward it was to talk about Jake.

"He's a mechanic. He's very good. It's his passion," I said and Joe laughed.

"Cars are every man's passion," he joked and I smiled.

"So how do you guys know each other?" Joe asked looking between Edward and me and there it was.

The question that involved the past. I had no idea how Edward and I cleverly avoided discussing it the past week, but we had. Edward cleared his throat and sat up a bit straighter.

"We…"

"They dated during high school," Alice said quickly.

"Oh. Wow it's amazing you guys are still friends," Joe said taking a bite of his food. I looked toward Edward and smiled. It was amazing. He shot me a grin.

"Belly and Eddie! Belly and Eddie!" Cindy sang as she poked her chicken with a spoon. Edward laughed and ruffled her hair. I took a deep breath and tried to block out thoughts that really didn't belong in my head. Not now. Not anymore.

"So Edward have you heard anything with the hospital?" Joe asked. Edward shook his head.

"Well we're hoping you get it. Cindy will be crushed if you leave," Alice said and Cindy looked up at that sound of her name.

"Eddie no go! Eddie stay here with me! Right Uncle Eddie?" she asked widening her blue eyes and pouting in a completely heart breaking expression. Edward smiled softly.

"I hope so kiddo," he said.

"But I mean even if you don't get it, which I hope you do, is going back to Forks so horrible? I mean you would have a secure job and I mean it can't possibly be so bad when the Swans no longer live there," Joe pointed out.

"No, but Forks holds memories," Edward said and I stared down at my plate. A quiet came over us. The only sound was the forks scraping across the plates. Even Cindy had stopped her humming to chew contently.

"So Bella what brings you here?" Joe asked after a while to start the conversation. I smiled politely.

"I'm visiting my cousins," I answered and he nodded.

"How do you like it so far?" Alice chirped.

"Bella believes it's too cold," Edward answered for me and I shot him a look into which he only shrugged and offered a smile. I rolled my eyes at him.

"Well it can get pretty hot here. Once we had a summer where the temperature was near the hundreds. Cindy got so hot she stripped out of her clothes and ran around outside," Joe said laughing at the memory. I glance at her. She smiled her toothy grin.

"I chased her down the block," Alice said with a frown but shot her a loving look.

"I was like No David only it was No Cindy," Cindy giggled in her high chime. Alice laughed along with her and the conversation took a new turn. Dinner wasn't so long after that. We talked more about Cindy's misadventures. When it was over we went into the living room. I watched Edward hold and play with Cindy as if she were her own. It reminded me of my dream.

I was surprised how calm I was watching this. It came so natural to him and I knew one day he would make a great father. It was clear Cindy was head over heels for him. I smiled as I watched them and then Edward disappeared upstairs to put her to bed. Alice sat next to me on the couch.

"He really loves that little girl. I can't wait until he finds out about my own," she said and I widened my eyes in realization.

"You're pregnant?" I whispered though we were the only ones in the living room. Joe had gone to clean the kitchen. She smiled brightly and looked down at her glass of water.

"Yeah. I just found out about a week ago. I just haven't found the time to tell him. If he does have to be sent back to Forks, I don't want him to feel bad because he'll miss out," she said absentmindedly patting her stomach.

"He'll be happy either way," I assured her.

"Oh, I know. He's just too sweet and loving not to. Cindy never had to warm up to him. She loved him as soon as she met him. Emmett however scares the crap out of her. Every time she sees him she goes running for cover," Alice said and laughed at her own memories. I managed a smile.

"So how is Emmett?" I asked.

"Oh, he's good. He got into the construction business. Has Edward told you?" she asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, he enjoys hunting a bit too much. Other than that he's the same old Emmett," she said and rolled her shoulders around.

"I never did find out his reaction," I mused.

"Oh that," she laughed a bit before continuing, "He gapped like a fish for about five minutes after you left. I had to explain everything. He was angry about it, but when Edward came home that night he couldn't find the anger to yell at him. But I supposed it doesn't really matter what he thought. You left as soon as he found out anyway," she said nonchalantly and shrugged her shoulders.

I bit my lip and looked away.

"I had to leave," I said softly.

"I know. Edward knew. Why he broke it off I still don't understand. How you understood was beyond me. I mean I thought for sure you guys would have tried to make long distance work, but I've been wrong before," she stated and took a sip of her water. I snapped my head toward her.

"He broke it off?" I asked.

"I know. He told us," she said unaware of my shock.

He had lied to them. He told them he had ended it. I sat on the couch. I didn't know how to respond. He had lied. Why?

"Uh…"

"I mean I could see why he did it. He was always the kind of person that put other people before himself. I mean he said he didn't want you waiting around for him. He used his own weakness against him," she said shook her head.

But he didn't. I had used his weakness against him. Not the other way around. I couldn't seem to grasp this.

Edward came running down the stairs at that moment prohibiting me from finding out anything else.

"Well, I put her to bed. I think I'll take Bella home now," he said with a smile. I cleared the expression of confusion off my face and nodded. I stood and he went to get the coats.

"It was great seeing you again Bella," Alice said standing and bringing me into a hug. I hugged her back and when we pulled apart Edward handed me my jacket. I quickly pulled it on and walked toward the door.

Edward kissed his sister on the cheek and said he would be back soon. I waited until we had driven for awhile before I spoke.

"Why did you tell your sister that you broke up with me?" I asked and he glanced at me.

"What?" he asked.

"You told Alice that you were the one who broke up with me. Why?" I repeated.

"Gosh, I don't know. It just happened. I just thought it would be easier. I told her it was a mutual break up. She just took it as the fact that I broke it up and you understood. I just never felt the need to correct her," he said and shrugged.

"Was it a mutual break up?"

"Do you really want to get into this?" he asked and I watched as he tightened his hold on the steering wheel.

"Yeah sure, why not!" I argued and folded my arms over my chest.

"No, Bella it wasn't mutual because you knew from the start I didn't want us to end. You ended it. According to you, you couldn't wait, do you remember?" he shot back and I was stunned. I stared at him.

"I ended it because it thought it would be easier for you!" I shouted.

"Well from now on, don't do me any favors," he stated in a calm voice which I knew meant he was very angry. I bit my lip to stop myself from saying anything else. He parked a few apartment buildings away from Rose's. I opened the door swiftly and climbed out, closing his door a bit too roughly. I began to walk down. I heard the car door close.

"Bella!" he called stopping me.

I turned. He was standing on the driver's side looking at me from across the car.

"Take a quick walk with me?" he asked his eyes pleading in the dim light.

"I don't think it's a good idea.

"Please," he asked again. I sighed loudly.

"It's cold. And dark," I said watching the frosty white breath form in front of my mouth from my words.

"Just around the block," he said again and I felt my shoulder's sag.

"Fine," I said and he came around. I walked toward him and we began to walk instep together.

"I'm sorry. I was out of line," he apologized after a moment. I bit my lip and nodded.

"Yes, but it was expected. I'm sorry I did what I did, but everything I said was a lie. I only broke it off because I wanted you to go to college and have a life. I wanted you to date and live normally instead of having a girlfriend in another state. One that was supposed to be your enemy," I said and he laughed a humorless chuckle.

"I didn't date throughout high school," he shared and I blushed.

"I did date through College though. I had one serious girlfriend and a couple flings," he said and I cringed because I didn't really want to know.

"I didn't date through high school either. I went on a few dates during college but nothing serious. It was for appearances, really," I said as we rounded the corner.

"You told me you didn't want to be attached," he said and dug his hands into his pocket.

"It was a lie. Everything I said was a lie, I just knew it would be better. I never wanted it to end," I said with a heavy breath.

"Then why end it?"

"I already told you," I said angrily.

"That's bullshit. Nothing about that breakup was good for me," he shot back.

"It got you into college. It got you a job. How could you say that?" I said my voice rising.

"It didn't get me you."

"You would have grown to resent me for it. It wasn't easy for me, Edward. It hurt like hell but somehow in my disillusioned mind I thought you would have came looking for me. I thought you would have tried to make it work after everything was settled like you once promised me!"

"So now it's my fault because you left me. You broke up with me. You told me you couldn't wait!"

"I already know I did wrong! I already know I screwed up! I know and I've had eight years to deal with that!" I said anger making hot tears form in my eyes.

Then he came closer grasped my face into his hands and kissed me. I was shocked.

His lips moved hurriedly against my own frozen ones and he took another step closer bringing our bodies closer together. He tilted my head and demanded a response from me. My eyes fluttered closed at the familiar feeling of his lips on my own. Blood rushed to my face and the tingling began on my lips. The one that felt like an electric current.

I pushed myself closer to him and ran my hands into his hair tilting his head a bit to make it easier. Our lips molded around each other. His hand left my face and came to hold my waist bringing us impossibly closer.

My lips shook softly from a small vibration and I realized I had hummed in response to the kiss.

The kiss.

I broke apart hastily and stepped away from him and held my hand to my mouth. I shook my head and ran a hand through my hair.

"We can't, I can't do this," I said walking back the way we had come. He grasped my arm.

"Bella, I know you still love me," he said and I twirled on him. His face was unreadable.

"I don't think that matters much," I whispered still shocked at what I had done.

"What do you mean it doesn't matter?" he asked his voice rising.

"I'm getting married, Edward. I can't… we just can't…" I couldn't find the words to explain. I needed to leave.

"Do you love me, Bella," he asked as he grasped my shoulders and made me look at him. Staring into his eyes, I knew the answer. I had never truly stopped. Reconnecting had only allowed me to fall in love all over again. What I had with Jake was nothing like this.

"Yes, but…"

"You wanted me to try and make it work, we could try now," he said and his pleaded with me.

"No we can't. It's too late now," I said and felt the tears slide down my cheeks.

"No! It's not too late, we can…"

"How? I can't just leave my job. I can't just leave Jacob. I have roots settled. I have responsibilities. I can't just give it all up for a maybe," I said and tugged free from his hold.

"We're not a maybe."

"Yes! We are. There are no guarantees. It is too late. You've had seven years of chances Edward and I waited and now, now it's just too late," I said.

"You told me once that you wouldn't give up on me!"

"I can't do this Edward! I love you, I do and I will most likely always love you, because what we had was special, but I can't," I whispered and tried to walk away.

"Bella!"

"No, just don't!"

"Meet me at the corner of the restaurant. Where we first reunited, do you remember? When you found me? I'll wait there for you. Meet me at three O'clock tomorrow," he said and I shook my head because I knew where he was talking about. I imagined going and finding him there. Starting all over and pretending everything would be okay.

"I can't do that, Edward," I said and felt a sob shake through my chest. I didn't dare turn to look at him.

"This is our second chance! This is fate telling us we were meant to be!"

"Fate screwed up! Fate threw in my grandfather's death and moving away. Fate threw in Jacob and my job. Fate made us enemies!" I said and swiveled once again.

"Fate made us fall in love. Fate brought us together again. Fate is giving us another chance," he replied smoothly.

"A chance I clearly can't take!"

"A chance you're afraid of," he stated and I shook my head.

"Yeah, I am afraid. I have a steady life and you're asking me to risk it all to run away with you? It's insane," I said and he shook his head.

"So spending your life with someone you clearly don't love is something someone sane would do?"

"Sane people have done it their whole lives," I shot back and winced. I had just admitted that I didn't love Jake, but that wasn't true either. I loved Jake, just not in the way I loved Edward. I couldn't love anyone like that. He shook his head at that.

"I love you, Bella. I want to make us work again. What we have many people don't find. Don't…let it go," he begged and I felt a fresh round of tears take over.

He was offering everything I had ever hoped for. He was offering us again and I felt the tears freely from my eyes because I couldn't. Everything was so wrong. Life wasn't a love story. Life wasn't a movie. Life was real and you paid for the choices you made. Things didn't end after the happily ever after kiss.

"Don't wait for me, Edward," I whispered and ran away from him.

Fate had brought us together.

Life was pulling us apart.

. . .

BLACKHAWKS! WOO! We won that sh*t! Sorry for the Philly fans or non sports fan but I gotta give my team props! I mean…c'mon it was pretty awesome! And I think you should thank them too cuz this chapter's early posting is becuz of them! ;) Chicago is boss! Hehe!

Okay so it's safe to say you know what Edward was talking about two chapters ago. Um the next Chapter will be the last, depending whether or not I do an epilogue and I'm a fan of epilogues, but… I don't know…you think this story needs one? Eh, tell me next Saturday. June 19th, 2010!

Review!

-T. Tanya