Runaway by Kibibe

Negotiation

The next morning when Bella opened her eyes again it was because she was feeling strangely warm. That was never a good sign. It instantly made her stomach tighten and a she sat up abruptly. "Alice? Edward?" She sort of shrieked. The rising panic betraying her voice as she scanned the room. They were standing in the doorway just turning to face her. They seemed to have been arguing.

"Morning Bella. I'll leave you two alone." Alice said shooting Edward a stern look obviously communicating something to him with her thoughts. She hated it when they did that. Excluding her.

"Good afternoon sleepy head." Edward greeted her as he sat down on the bed beside her.

"Afternoon? Have I slept that long?"

"About twelve hours. But that's alright. You've had stressful day and a bad night before that." He said tucking a Strand of hair behind her ear. "I have to say I'm truly sorry about what happened last night. I know there's no excuse for what I did, but-"

"It's alright. No harm done." Bella interrupted him. Edward raised his eyebrows tracing the bruises on her shoulders with his fingertips. "Not permanently anyway. I've been much worse." She brushed it off.

"You do realize how horrible that sounds."

"Can't we just let this go already? I don't wanna chew this up over and over again. We made a mistake. It's over. It's done." She tried to brush it off. The topic was making her uncomfortable. It brought back memories of the last time he had been distraught about someone loosing control – when he left her.

He raised his eyebrows. "We made a mistake?"

"Ugh Edward, let it go already! I say we're good - unless you intent to do it again?" She stared him down, daring him to disagree.

"Alright we won't talk about it anymore." He gave in. "Let's move on to another uncomfortable subject then. Shall we?"

"And which one would that be?" Bella asked suspicious.

"Well, Alice said it would be a wasted effort to try and convince you again. So call me a fool, but I just have to try." Bella groaned throwing herself back on the pillow. But Edward wouldn't let himself get put off by that. "Please just quit that job. It's all I want … for Christmas or ever." He finished leaning over her face and trying the best puppy dog look he could muster. His antics would have been funny hadn't the subject been so annoying. So she shoved his head away. "No. End of discussion."

"It's bad for you. We can take care of you. We want to." He went on anyway and Bella tugged the pillow over her head in an attempt to tune him out. "It's not that simple." She muttered into the pillow, sure he could hear her.

"Why not?" He waited for her to answer but she didn't. So he decided to try a different approach. He laid down beside her and carefully pulled the pillow from her grip, exposing her face, which she then tried to hide in the mattress. "Please don't hide your face from me. I've had to live without it for too long already." He cooed, his lips mere inches from her ear.

"I won't if you'll let this go." She tried to sound stern, but she couldn't hold that up. Not when he was so close, wearing that smile and saying those sweet words.

"Why isn't it that simple?" He almost whispered, playing with her hair.

Bella sighed. "You know I still love you. So I can't stay away, even though you might leave me again. But when that happens – let me finish." She insisted when he opened his mouth to protest. "When that happens, I don't wanna be left with nothing again. All I want is a safety net. Is that really too much to ask?"

"Some kind of safety net that is." He grumbled sitting back up. The sweet expression all but vanished from his face.

"Edward." Bella shot him a sharp look. "It's all I have."

"I could give you a better one – a safer one - if you'd just let me. Even though it wouldn't be necessary, because you would never need it." He pleaded.

"Or so you say."

He gave up hanging his head. "And that's what it all comes down to. You don't trust me anymore."

"I can't help it." She whispered, averting her gaze. She really wished to be able to trust him again. It would make things so much easier. But she couldn't. That little voice in the back of her head telling her that he would leave her again just wouldn't go away.

"I know. I'll just have to earn your trust back then." He pulled her into his arms and she nodded against his chest."Well, at least you don't want to be a monster anymore. Now you just want to hang out with them."

"I think I'd still want that, too. If I could be sure that you would want me around for all eternity." A deep frown creased his forehead.

"You know my objection to you becoming one of us was never because I didn't want you around. I do, for all eternity. I just didn't want to take everything away from you. Your life, your future, your family …" He grimaced. "Though it seems you've lost them anyway because of me."

She shook her head, tears springing in her eyes. "Don't go there … and that wasn't your fault. You're not responsible for every bad thing that happens in the world." Then before he could object, she changed the subject. "Anyway, there's another reason I have to stay human for now. I'm not all by myself anymore. There's Roxie." She sighed. "Whom I haven't heard from in …" She tried to calculate it, but soon gave up. "How long has it been?"

"Less than two days."

"Hmm it feels like it's been ages. However, she's in a very bad place right now and I don't know … if I desert her now, I don't know, I'd might have her blood on my hands." Saying those words, she could feel the guild creeping up. Here she was moaning about her one true love and the family she always wanted trying to come back into her life, while her best friend had been exiled by her own mother. Some friend she was, throwing herself a pity party when Roxie needed her most.

"Yeah, given your last conversation you're probably right to be worried." Edward said thoughtfully. "You can't desert her now. So I'll just have to come with you to New York." A smile spread across Bella's face. "I'd love that." She wouldn't have to leave him behind when she had to go back to school. He was really trying. "You could stay in my room."

"I'd be delighted." He leaned down to kiss her. Maybe she could somehow make this work and live with Edward and Roxie in New York. Maybe the rest of the Cullens would move there too, or they could visit them here. The only problem was her job.

"There's just one thing," she mumbled against his lips.

"And what is that?" He cooed.

"Well, what are you gonna do when I'm … you know … at work?" She winced at her own question, wondering if this would push him over the edge again. He'd been quite carefully controlled so far.

His expression hardened and it took a lot of self control to not let his temper get the better of him again. "I'll think of something." He said through his teeth before he got up. "Maybe you should try to call Roxie now." 'And with that he left the room.

Bella winced as the door shut behind him. Here it goes again. He hadn't lost his temper, but he was positively fuming. She tried not to think about that now, though. Roxie was more important right now. So she was going to look for her phone, when she saw it on the night stand. Alice must have put it there for her. Always looking ahead.

She picked it up and pressed the speed dial button. It went straight to voice mail. "Damn." She muttered. The phone was probably dead. Roxie never turned it off, ever. But she left a message anyway.

"Hey Rox. Call me back as soon as you get this. I'm worried." She just hoped that Roxie would still be in a condition where she'd be able to notice that her phone was dead and recharge it. All kinds of horrendous scenarios popped into her head. She tried to turn her mind away from those thoughts. But every other subject was just as uncomfortable. So she still sat there wondering why everything had to be so freaking difficult when the door opened and Alice walked in. "Hey, brought you breakfast." She held up a steaming bowl.

"Great." Bella tried to force a smile and took the dish, then gazed at it in confusion. "What is that?" In the bowl was some kind of grayish gooey substance.

"It's something called porridge. A breakfast dish. I made it myself." She smiled proudly. But the smiled faded when she saw Bella staring at it with disgust. "… and you hate it." She pouted.

"No no, it probably tastes a lot better than it looks." Bella tried to console her. It did not, but she made an effort to not let it show. It was a distraction from her thoughts at least. She wasn't a very good actress, but luckily Alice misread her discomfort.

"She's okay, Roxie I mean. Well, you know, considering the circumstances." Off course Alice could've told her about how Roxie was. Why didn't she think of that.

"What did you see?"

"Well, I can't really see her that clearly." Alice explained. "I've been tapping into you're future and she's there in New York with you. So she's alive, seemingly unharmed and …, well, she's not laughing, but she doesn't look too distraught either."

"Sounds peachy." Bella remarked grimacing. Alice shrugged. "You don't see her returning my call?"

"Well, no because she hasn't made that decision yet. But she might." Bella wished that she could have something of Alice's optimism. To her the future just seemed like a huge dark wall. So frustrating. What would happen with Roxie now? Could Edward really love the person she turned out to be? How could she reconcile her new life and her relationship with Edward?

"You're brooding." Alice stated, pulling her from her revelry.

"Yeah well, everything just seems so difficult." Bella let herself fall back onto the bed with sigh.

"It doesn't have to be. That's just in your head." Alice chirped leaning over her.

"Okay, why do I feel like you're Edward in an Alice costume now?"

That caused Alice to burst out laughing. Then she was suddenly serious again, leaning in closely, her mouth just inches from Bella's. "Really? You're attracted to me?" Bella gulped, unable to look away.

"Stop it, you're giving Jasper ideas again." She protested halfheartedly, the heat rising in her cheeks.

"That didn't sound very convincing." Alice purred. "My first girl crush. Hmm …You think Edward would mind …?"

That broke the spell, however. Reminding Bella how he had left earlier. "I don't know. He was really mad before," she grimaced.

"Okay, mood killer …" Alice huffed, sitting back up. "You know he can't be mad at you for long. He's just frustrated like you. Like we all are. But I do know a lost cause when I see one. So I'll just wait and let the chips fall where they may." Alice said ominously and Bella couldn't shake the feeling that Alice had a pretty good idea about where they were going to fall and she seemed content with it. Otherwise she'd try to avert it. The question was if she'd like it too.