Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Age 15

Bella

The water dazzles under the rare sunshine

Like a million tiny facets of diamonds

Yet all fades by the sparkle in your eyes, the stunning smile on your face

You are my sunshine, and no measure of nature compares

I had the best Christmas in New York with you.

Can't wait for the summer.

Love,

Edward

My fingers glided over the paper, feeling the dents, which were caused by an eraser. I could see him in my mind, writing the poem, rubbing out his words, again and again, until they looked like what he wanted. I've read the poem over a hundred times now since this morning when Charlie dropped the mail off at the kitchen counter. I jumped off the stool and raced up to my room, placing it in my small box of gifts from my friends and family. There wasn't much in there, and more than half were from Edward – his letters and gifts, which have kept me sane and happy during the tough times at school and now, away from him.

I missed Edward so much; I missed his laugh, his smile and his unique scent, which I would bottle if I could. He came and surprised me last Christmas, with all our friends and their parents, too. It was becoming harder and harder to say goodbye to him. I had made sure I kissed him a dozen times before he left.

Flashback

I waited alone in the dining room, looking at Renee and Phil, who were laughing together, watching some comedy show on the TV. It was as though I wasn't here at all. Charlie was now going off to the airport to pick up some "unexpected guests" who I believed to be his old friends from Forks – perhaps Billy and his son, Jacob? Christmas has never been such a dismal event. He was probably going to take a couple of hours as the snow was clearing, but not fast enough it seemed. I hated snow.

I hated the wet and the cold. With both of them together, New York was like hell.

"Bella!" Charlie called.

I jumped. He was here already? As I made my way past the living room, to open the front door, I could hear loud footsteps – a lot of footsteps. Curiosity coursed through me, and I fumbled with the lock. Who the hell was Charlie bringing home? The whole population of Forks?

"Bella!" a pleasantly familiar voice said as I opened the door.

I looked up and could not believe my eyes. I looked at him in disbelief and shock, unable to form a sentence, never mind a greeting.

"I missed you so much," Edward said, his voice like soft velvet. "So damn much."

It was Charlie's gruff voice which brought me down to Earth. "Get a move on, Bells. Heaps of people coming through."

I blinked. "Sorry, Dad."

I held Edward's large hand in mine and led him upstairs.

"Edward?" I said tentatively.

He smiled my favorite crooked smile. "Bella?"

I launched myself at him, my lips crashing onto his gently, but firmly. His fingers snaked into my hair, and my hand automatically moved to his neck. The kiss was heavenly, and when we had to break away to catch our breath, I could still feel the electric-like tingle course through my body.

"I missed you so much," I murmured against his lips.

"Me, too." His sweet breath fanned onto my face, surprisingly refreshing, before pressing his lips onto mine again.

I smiled at the happy memory, lingering on the details, and slung my schoolbag over my shoulder and headed out onto the busy street. Trust Charlie to pick out an apartment that was right next to the busiest intersection in all of Syracuse. Sure, it was convenient and all, but I was sure we could both do with a small house in the quieter region of the vicinity. I didn't think it was possible that it would be the cars honking in the early morning which would wake me up, instead of my alarm clock.

"Hey, Bella!" Angela called, waving at me from the far end of the road. "Remember me?"

My eyes widened in recognition. I hadn't seen her in such a long time. She had grown out her layers, and her hair was now way past her shoulders.

"Ang!" I said excitedly, racing toward her, ignoring the curious stares of passersby. "I haven't seen you in ages!"

I hugged her tightly. I couldn't believe it had been months since I had last seen her, even though we would still keep in touch by calling each other. So much for high school; it seemed that I could never have a friend who I could always talk to, whenever I wanted.

"How's Ben?" I asked, teasing her slightly. Angela had the biggest crush on Ben the past year, but she never told me anything about it. She was just like me – shy, and a little secretive.

Angela's eyes brightened at the mention of his name. "Oh, you would never guess! He actually asked me out last month!"

"Wow!" I replied, surprised. "How come you never told me?"

Angela rolled her eyes. "You always side-stepped that topic whenever I talk to you."

I offered her a weak smile as I realized that she had noticed. "Yeah…well, I – "

"So," she interrupted, smiling triumphantly, "how's it going with Edward?"

I groaned and blushed furiously. You have got to be kidding me. "All right, psychic, you guessed right, okay?"

Angela clapped her hands and squealed in excitement, acting very much like Alice. "I knew it! You guys are so perfect for each other."

I shrugged, hoping that the action looked offhanded, wishing that what she said could make all the doubt bubbling inside me go away. I hated being so far away from Edward. It made me wonder what he was doing right now. I was glad Rose and I had parted on friendly terms, and I hoped that next time I saw her, she would still be pleasant around me.

"No, I meant what I said," she said. "If you see it from my point of view, whenever he looks at you, it's like he's looking at something endearing."

"Thanks, Ang," I said gratefully. This was why I sometimes preferred spending time by myself or with Leah, the quiet girl who I managed to suck up the courage to talk to this year. Angela was too perceptive.

"Well, I guess we both have school now, right?" she said, her voice miserable.

I nodded. "It was nice to see you again. Maybe you could come to Forks with me sometime and catch up with our friends. Edward misses you, and so does Alice."

Angela grinned at me. "Wow, really? Thanks for the offer. Dad's been badgering me about holiday plans now that there is about two weeks 'til school finishes."

"Well, I hope you can come along. Charlie won't mind."

Angela suddenly laughed nervously. "Um, Bella?"

I looked up from the ground and saw that Angela was biting her lip, looking like she was deep in thought. "What's up?"

I saw her suck in a deep breath and I frowned. "You know you can tell me anything, even if it's about boy problems or something like – "

"Bella," Angela suddenly said. "Do you think it's okay if Ben tags along? I mean…" she trailed off, embarrassed.

I laughed. "You seriously thought I was going to say no? Oh, Ang! Of course Ben can come along! I'm sure you both could bunk together with me if you like."

"Thanks, Bella," Angela said, hugging me tightly. "I really appreciate it. Thanks for being such a good friend to me."

"You, too, Ang," I whispered back. "Thanks so much for sticking up for me at school and being my friend."

"Meet up after school?" she asked hopefully.

"You bet. I miss our old ice frappe times." I laughed.

…

I was restless with excitement all day at school, and it wasn't because the summer vacation was drawing nearer. It was just that I wanted to see Angela again.

"Miss Swan?" Mr. Banner's sharp voice cut through my reverie. "Answer to question six?"

"Uh," I said, looking down at the textbook in front of me and realizing that I wasn't even on the right page.

"169," Leah whispered so discretely Mr. Banner wouldn't have noticed.

"169," I replied, hoping that I sounded convincing.

Banner looked down at the notes in front of him and raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Correct, Miss Swan."

I saw Lauren whisper something to Jessica, who smirked back, but I breathed a sigh of relief and mouthed a "thank you" to Leah, who smiled back timidly. I hoped that this little interaction in class could lead into friendship; after all, I didn't have any friends in this school. I wasn't technically a geek – I made the track and volleyball teams–but I getting good marks were too off-putting for the queen bees of the school.

Lauren and Jessica were on the cheerleading squad, who hung out with jocks like Mike.

"So, little miss perfect, aren't you?" Lauren said snidely as I hurried to my final class of the day.

"I…uh," I stammered, stopping to look at her in the eyes and wished that I hadn't. "I have Bio next."

The way I said it sounded pathetic, and I wanted to hit myself in the forehead. Why did it come out like an excuse? I wasn't scared of Lauren, was I?

"Do you think I give a shit what class you have next?" Lauren laughed cruelly. "Jess and I overheard the conversation with your friend Angela today. So…who's Edward?"

I tensed up. This I was not expecting. "That," I emphasized firmly, "is none of Jess or your business."

Lauren snorted. "Yeah, sure. So…he's some dumb geek you're madly in love with back in Forks?"

Anger raged through my whole body. Who did this ignorant bitch think she was? How dare she talk about Edward like that? "If you must know, he is not some dumb geek. He's the best person I've ever met," I said coldly, keeping calm instead of doing something rash, which I would regret later. Half of me wanted to add on the additional information about his attractive physical appearance, but I knew that the more she knew about him, the more she would badger me, which I certainly didn't want because Edward spent a lot of time with me now.

"I need to go to my next class," I added harshly, pushing into her and ended up jogging into the classroom with everyone staring at me.

"You're late, Miss Swan," Mr. Molina said sharply, peering over his glasses to look at me sternly.

Oh wow, thanks for the clarification, but I'm pretty damn sure I know I'm late when the whole class is already seated. "I'm sorry, sir," I muttered instead, clenching my fists tightly.

"Please take your seat," he said in a bored tone.

I went quickly to my seat, only to find that the seat next to me was no longer empty. Apparently Molina decided to make some stupid new seating arrangements, I thought glumly.

"Wassup, Bella?" Mike said loudly, grinning cockily at me.

"What…the…hell…are…you...doing…sitting here?" I asked, outraged that the teacher could assign me with the worst Bio student in the entire school history. Mike's head was thicker than a troll's, and I was willing to bet that he couldn't tell the difference between a prophase and a prometaphase mitosis.

Mike laughed. "Howdy, partner."

"Is there a problem here, Miss Swan?" Molina asked, obviously frustrated and annoyed now.

Yes, and the reason is the dumb blob of crap assigned to sit right next to me…oh, and it's all because of you, I guess. "Yes, is it possible for me to sit next to…Leah?" I asked. My probing eyes finally landed on a spare seat right next to her.

"I'm afraid not, Miss Swan. Mr. Yorkie is absent today, which explains the spare seat. This is a biology class, not the cafeteria. My class is not designed for enjoyment, but concentration and hard work," he said sternly. Was he really going to try to make my life more miserable? I wasn't asking much, was I? I was a straight-A student, not some good-for-nothing space-waster like that Newton guy.

Turning back to the class as I slumped into my seat reluctantly, the teacher continued. "As I was saying, this assignment will be completed evenly with your assigned partner, who is sitting next to you. I have given all of you a log, which must be completed everyday, stating what you did each day."

I stared at the clock, ignoring Mike, who sat smiling at me like a fool, and counted down the minutes until class was finally over. I had never felt so relieved for the bell to ring. Luckily, the lesson turned out to be a lecture, and I didn't even have to bother gathering my stuff. I stormed out of the classroom as fast as I could.

I took the short cut to the coffee shop, hoping that I wasn't late. One of the things I noticed about this place that was different from Forks was the number of traffic lights and crossings. There were seas of people on every street, and as I squished past them in a hurry, I could feel their eyes burning into my back, probably wondering if I was crazy.

I came to a stop in front of the crossing to the café, catching my breath.

Already there? I texted Angela.

Yeah. Look into the glass window on the right. She texted back.

I looked up to see Angela grinning at me, and I waved back, jumping up and down in excitement.

As I walked toward her, I heard a car honking and some people yelling. I looked to my right and saw, horrified, that a black sedan was speeding out of control toward me. My legs were stiff and frozen, and I did the one thing I possibly could – I cringed and waited for the collision.

Everything was suddenly happening in slow motion. The car's driver was yelling at someone or something, but it was too late – I felt a horrible pain in my lower left leg and an ache in my forehead which made me see red, blurring my vision. The last thing I saw before I blacked out was Angela's horrified face in the café glass window.

…

"You think she's okay?" a worried voice asked. "She's not…uh…what's the word…paralyzed or something?"

A dry chuckle came out of a man's throat. "No. Just give her some time. Morphine has been given to sedate her, which explains why she's so still right now."

A breath of relief from the woman, who had obviously been crying. "Oh, gosh! I was becoming so worried!"

"I'll leave you with her now. Just call me in if anything happens, if she moves a little or shows a sign of waking up."

"Thank you so much, Dr. Gerandy," the woman murmured in appreciation.

"You're welcome."

A door closed quietly and I felt the woman's warm hand touch my cheek.

"Oh, Bella!" she sobbed. "I was so worried about you. Charlie called me and the next thing I did was take the next plane to New York."

Don't cry, Mom, I tried to tell her, but I was too weak to even move a finger. My head felt heavier than a blue whale. I'm fine.

"You've been in a coma for three days and finally today the doctor saw some signs of improvement. Charlie just left to get a cup of coffee when I arrived," Renee rambled on before sighing again. "Oh, Bella."

My brain was fighting against me relentlessly. I wanted to open my mouth and soothe my mother's worries, but I was still too drowsy. I tried to catch on to what she was saying next, but I only caught "doctor...memory…affected…" before succumbing back into dark murky waters.

…

"Bella!" someone whispered, and even though the voice sounded horrified, it was still smooth, soft, velvet-like. An angel's voice.

A large, cool hand touched my fingers, which weren't bandaged, and I was soothed by the touch, but I was brought almost back to the surface when a sharp pain burned my stomach.

"Ah," I gasped out as an involuntary response but no one seemed to have heard me.

I'm right here. I can hear! I wanted to scream. It seemed like this was what it felt like to be in a coma. I had watched countless hours of medical dramas on the TV on the Saturdays that Charlie decided to leave the quiet house for work.

The door opened and the weight sitting on my bed disappeared.

"Dr. Gerandy," the velvety voice said. "Is it possible for me to ask you something?"

"Sure, why not?" the doctor said in an amicable voice.

"Do…" the angelic voice said, troubled. "Do you think that Bella is aware…that she can hear us?"

The doctor sighed. "She might be able to, some bits here and there, but the drugs to keep her painless will affect her brain, making her a little drowsy, and dragging her back into sleep again."

"So," the soft voice asked, thoughtful, "so it's okay if I talk to her because there might be a chance that she can…hear me?"

"Nothing's wrong with that. For all we know, she might be listening all this time…just waiting for enough energy to fully wake."

"Thanks for your time. I appreciate it." The angel was courteous, and I could hear a rustle of papers.

"I'm just here to check her blood levels, and to monitor her progress so far."

"How's she doing?"

"Better than expected. She's a strong one, she is," the doctor added.

The angel chuckled. "She's always loved sports, and she's very stubborn, too."

Dr. Gerandy sighed. "Well, I'm off to the children's ward," he said, before muttering, "Broken ribs, a broken fibula, a head wound, this kid's had a handful."

His explanation made sense to me; I could feel some soreness around my chest, but a broken leg? How was I going to compete in the track trainings next year? Or try out for the girls' basketball team? It was the first time I was thankful that studying didn't need to involve any movement, or I was going to fall behind in everything when school starts again in September.

The cool, soothing hand touched me again, and I felt a bit of the pain in my chest disappear.

"Bella," the angel said, his voice filled with tears. "I'm really worried about you. I was going to surprise you next week, but I guess, you kind of beat me to the punch."

I felt him press a gentle kiss onto my cheek before continuing. "All I want is for you to get better. I'll be back tomorrow," he murmured. "Please, Bella. Please get better. I don't want to let go of the best thing in my life."

A warm tear dropped onto my eyelid, and it stung a bit, but what hurt more was my heart. I didn't want my angel to cry. It was wrong for him to do so.

A shuffled footstep and the door closed softly. I was all alone again, but wait…there's still a quiet, on-going sniffle at the foot of my bed. I listened harder. Who could it be?

"Bella?" It was a girl's voice. So soft and gentle. Angela, I thought miserably. I didn't know what she saw lying in this bed, but I was almost certain it looked a lot worse than it seemed. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to rush you or anything. I know it's my fault you're here."

No, I thought desperately. No, don't think that. Angela – it's not your fault.

I wanted to tell her it wasn't her fault, that it was my bad day which caused me to be so unfocused. I wanted to shake some sense into her, and not let her continue to wallow in guilt.

"I really hope you're okay, and if you're listening, I just want to say I'm sorry," she gushed on. "A…friend of yours sent some flowers in. They're a light blue color, kind of pretty…from Mike Newton."

I wanted to laugh, scream and cry out with mirth – Mike Newton, sending me flowers? What kind of joke was that?

"Anyway, he wishes you good luck on your recovery, and hopes that you will get better soon so that the science project can be done on time."

I had never been a violent person, but right now, I really wanted to bash Newton's head and hope that it will also squash his inflated ego to zero. Who the hell did he think he was – the stupid, dumb jock? I had no idea why girls like Lauren and Jessica like to hang out with him and his gang, but I guess to them, popularity was more important.

Frustration was wearing my brain down, and I lost the battle with my body, falling back into the infinite darkness.

…

This time, when I drifted back almost to the surface, I immediately knew something was different. Sure, my head was fuzzy and I felt disoriented and my mouth felt so parched it seemed like my teeth had turned into sandbags, sucking up all my saliva, but I felt energized, and stronger. With elation, I realized I could now feel my lungs inflating and deflating. I could also feel something else – a large hand encasing my bandaged one.

A footstep and the door opened again.

"We've discontinued the use of anesthetic agent. All her vital signs are improving, so she's going to be okay. Bella should be able to hear us all now, if not before."

"That's good news," the velvety voice said, letting out a deep breath. "So when will she wake up?"

"Any time now, but don't hurry her. She'll wake when she's ready."

The door closed and a weight shifted to the edge of my bed.

"Did you hear that, Bella? Everything's okay now," the voice whispered, his breath tickling my ear. "I'm here every day, and I pray every night, hoping that you're going to be awake the next time I visit you. I…Bella, I love you. I love you, and I hope you're going to be okay when you wake up."

My breath hitched, and this time, I was certain that he could hear it. It was Edward. It was always Edward. And suddenly, I just needed to let him know that I could hear him. I wanted so badly to say the same words he uttered tentatively more than I've ever needed anything in this world. I was weak but was strong enough for this. I could do this.

I pushed through the darkness, searching for the light, and I felt my eyes flicker. The brightness in the room seared into my mind like a laser beam. I pictured Edward sitting right next to me, grasping my hand so tightly like it was a lifeline between him and me.

"Ed…ward," I managed to say out loud.

"Bella?" the angel asked, and I opened my eyes.

My clouded vision cleared almost immediately and Edward's beautiful face came into view.

Edward. He really was here, waiting for me. All this time.

His sparkling green eyes shined as they met mine, and I was rendered speechless. Again.

A HUGE thank you to all the readers and the people over at PTB, especially my two lovely betas Angelz1114577 and Mel.

This is a bit of an early update because it is only part 1. Part 2 should be up soon, but may be unbeta'ed.

Review?