A/N: Sorry to keep you gurls waiting! And thanks to my readers who gave me their thoughts on the story and those who wrote something about themselves. Whew! I can feel the pressure. English is not my first language and it's a struggle for me all the time.

Here you are now! Nearing the end, expect more action and some lovin'.. =)

oOoOoOo

Usually, when people were finally awake from their long slumber, their eyes would flip open right away. But I wasn't an ordinary person, I'd known this since Edward had told me that I was the only exception to his mind reading talent. So when I woke up, even though I knew that my senses perked up already, my eyes stayed close.

Maybe they liked lingering in the darkness. Just like Oedipus when he blinded himself so he wouldn't see how twisted this world was.

Why Charlie? Why did it have to be him in my place? I blamed myself silently.

I sighed deeply, readying myself to be lambasted again by guilt and sadness.

I brought up my knees to hug them. Then I realised my blanket was still on top of me, warming me from the cold. There was no way it had stayed there the entire night.

My eyes flew open.

"Edward," I called out with my throaty, morning voice. "You were here? All night?"

His charming chuckle was the response I got.

"Not all night. I just got here a few hours ago."

Even though I was still looking at the lamp beside my bed, I could tell he was smiling. But there was something else in his tone. Something that sounded familiar to me.

"Can I have my human moment for a while?" I asked him.

"I'll be here."

I took my toiletries with me to the bathroom. When I finished, I headed to the kitchen where I knew Edward would be.

I stared at his broad back and smiled to myself.

"What are you smiling at?" He raised his left eyebrow. He approached me at the table and placed an omelette in front of me.

"This smells good," I told him, breathing in the sweet mixture of tomato and onion.

"That's nice to hear. It's nothing like freesia at all to me," he said huskily. He then tucked a loose tendril of my hair behind my ear. "Now eat," he ordered me gently.

I wanted to get used to this – having someone take care of me instead of me taking care of them. But wasn't this the reason why I fell in and was buried six feet in the pits after he left?

After a few spoonfuls, I managed to sneak a glance at him. He was watching me eat, looking at me as if it was the most fascinating act in the world.

I fought back the blush creeping in my cheeks.

"You know, this is nothing compared to how you eat," I informed him sarcastically.

He didn't break his stare and just smiled. It didn't reach his eyes though. I caught my breath. It was like déjà vu.

I suddenly lost my appetite. I dropped my fork with a loud clang on the plate.

"Okay, spill it." I crossed my arms.

He didn't reply. He looked as if he was memorizing every feature, no, every pore, of my face since I knew he had much greater eyesight than I could ever imagine.

I covered my face with my two hands, except for my eyes so I could still see his reaction.

"Now, can you tell me what you're thinking?"

He took my hands from my face gently. Too gentle I wanted to cry. He was always like that with me. No matter how strong he was, he could always manage to treat me like a rose petal.

"Well, first off, you'll be late for school," he finally responded.

I snorted.

"I'm saying you'll be late for school, not telling you to hurry up," he clarified. "Or maybe you should just stay at home," he said as a second thought.

My brows furrowed. I waited for him to say "Gotcha!" or something anti-climatic because ditching was definitely something that would come out of Emmett. Not my Edward.

"Is there something wrong? Why can't I go to school? I'm not complaining though."

He sighed. He brought my hands to his lips and kissed my knuckles. I shivered in reaction.

"Bella, love, I need to go for a while." He looked at me with pained eyes.

My mouth dropped open. Feeling idiotic, I shut it closed and pulled my hands away from him. I hugged my arms, bracing myself for what he was about to say.

"Bella, listen to me first." He took me in his arms and pulled me close to his chest. Funny how I'd felt so safe whenever he would gather me and lock me in a possessive embrace. But that feeling was a stranger to me now. Now it only seemed like a foreboding gesture – a consolation prize – because he was bracing me for something worse.

"Don't get mad at me." He could feel the tension in my back. "I'm doing this for you."

I pulled away from him and spoke to him angrily. "You said that already! Don't you remember?! The only difference is you have the gall to say it to me here in Charlie's house! Don't you have another excuse this time?"

"You're not listening. Let me finish –"

"No, you listen to me!" I interrupted. "You told me you were never going back. And now here you are, and now you're telling me you're leaving again! What are you doing to me, Edward? Coz it's definitely not fun on my part!"

My chest was heaving as I finished. Tears were already spilling down my cheeks but I was glad my voice was still firm. I still wasn't finished with him.

"Look at me, Edward. Look at me!"

He did as told. I could see the pain in his ember eyes and I was selfishly glad. Because at least I knew that I could inflict that much hurt in him as well.

"If you don't want me, then I don't want you either!"

He flinched at my words. I wanted to take back what I just said but I knew it was already too late.

"I'm sorry…I didn't mean that." I spoke more softly this time. The force of my earlier words quickly vanished all my deep anger.

"Bella," he said. His voice was hoarse. I realised it sounded that way whenever he was sad that he wanted to cry but couldn't.

He approached me again and tentatively touched my waist. When I didn't pull back, he encircled his arms around it and held me closer to him. I couldn't remember what just transpired or what I'd just spat at him minutes ago as I looked into his anguished eyes.

"You never need to apologise to me, Bella. Never. But I need you to understand something. I don't think I can manage to do what I need to do if I leave you still hating me."

He smelled my hair. "I want to bring your scent with me in my journey. Is that okay?"

I could only nod. I couldn't trust myself to speak and ruin this moment, I just wanted him to never stop talking to me like this.

"I want to put this in my memory." His fingers lightly roamed from my temple to my cheeks then to my chin. As an automatic response, my cheeks reddened.

He chuckled softly. He brought his face to the crook of my neck and inhaled deeply. I threw back my head to accommodate him.

"Isn't it ironic that I feel connected to you even though I couldn't read your little head?" He brought his head down to listen to my beating heart.

"Because I can always read your heart. Right now, it's like a hummingbird." He looked at me again and smiled.

"I know your feelings for me never changed, Bella. I know you still love me. And I love you."

"But you said –" I disagreed.

"I lied when I said I didn't love you or want you any more. I could feel the fires of hell reaching up for me from beneath the earth when I said the most repulsive lie in my whole eternity. But I love you and I don't want to leave knowing that you believed in the lie and not the truth."

"But why are you leaving?"

"We want to hunt down Victoria and put an end to her ill-plotted manoeuvres," he explained. His face turned more serious.

"But you could get hurt! What if…what if…" My mind struggled to voice out the different scenarios of what the red-haired antagonist could do to him.

"Ssshh," he whispered to my ear. "I'm going with Jasper and Alice. You think she had a chance against us three?" He dared to lighten up the situation.

Before I could manage a retort, he continued, "Bella, this isn't just for you. It's also for Charlie."

"Will you bring him back? Safe?" I asked hopefully.

He nodded once. "We'll do our best." He hugged me again. "I want to see you really happy, Bella. You have to let me go so I can make you complete again."

As selfish as I thought myself to be, I wanted it all. I wanted him. I wanted Charlie. I finally gave him my consent.

"But please. I need you back here too," I told him.

"I will," he promised. "Because I'm not whole without you either."

He looked down at my lips then back to my eyes. I knew he was asking for permission.

"Kiss me," I murmured.

He simply pressed his lips against mine. He kissed them lightly once, twice. Then he opened my lips slightly and breathed into me. It was a heightened experience. Soft and butterfly-like but my toes immediately curled at the sensation. My tongue explored his mouth and I heard him hiss slightly. Afraid that he would end it abruptly because of my eagerness, I pulled out my tongue and settled on gliding the tip on his cold lips. I was tasting him. I could taste him. I wanted to have everything in him within me. Like a keepsake.

But like all good things in this world, the kiss came to an end.

I bit my lip shyly and blushed. I knew I took the lead kissing him and he was smiling looking down at me.

"Why did you stop?" Chuckling, he pulled me into his arms and next thing I knew we were in the couch.

oOoOoOo

Edward and I were still lounging on the loveseat, kissing and talking, unaware of the outside world, when I felt him suddenly tense up. He hissed something unintelligible and stood up.

"Is someone out there?" I asked, standing up beside him on the open door.

"Yes. Emmett…and Rosalie are here." His voice turned lower as he spoke of his sister's name.

I never had any feelings for Rosalie. I knew she strongly disliked me and I just shrugged it off knowing that Edward was always there to defend me from her. So my knees almost literally gave out on me when I heard what he was about to say.

"The two of them will be acting as your guardians, love." He looked at me as if he was asking my permission…no, more of understanding.

"Edward! I can stand Emmett always teasing me and laughing at me whenever I fall flat on my face! But Rosalie?!"

I should have just kept my mouth closed when I heard her cool, detached voice right at the porch.

"Don't kid yourself. I didn't ask for this either," Rosalie said icily.

I didn't want to irritate her any more so I just looked at Edward. He looked like he wanted to get angry but given the circumstances, he couldn't. He needed Rosalie to watch frail, human me.

"Rosalie, you don't need to speak to Bella while you're here," Edward informed her firmly.

Emmett's booming voice suddenly appeared in the living room.. "Come on, Rose. At least we're back here in Forks! Isn't this what you want?" He threw his arm around her shoulder and squeezed her.

He turned to me after. "How are you, Bella? Long time, eh? Edward asked us to stay with you here so you won't break your neck!"

I winced at the morbid words he used given the complicacy of the situation.

"Emmett," Edward said, warning him in a mild tone.

"Woah, woah!" Emmett replied, raising his hands across his chest defensively. "Don't worry there, Eddie. Not even a mosquito can take a bite out of her." He winked at me.

I saw Edward pinching the bridge of his nose so I went to him to comfort him. "I'll be fine even without them. You said so yourself that Victoria is in another state right? In Texas?"

He nodded. He didn't take his eyes off me despite the presence of his siblings. "It will really make me feel better knowing that they're here."

Rosalie gave a loud snort and went to the kitchen.

Emmett sighed and looked at Edward, communicating something. Edward just nodded, probably so Rosalie wouldn't hear.

Emmett spoke again. "Are you sure you don't want me to go with you, brother? We can just ask Alice to stay here. I'm bored with irate grizzlies already!" Then he stepped backwards and threw punches in the air. He was showing off since he had me as his audience.

Edward rolled his eyes. "Speaking of grizzlies, how long since you've last hunted? You look like you could use one." His arm tightened around me.

Emmett burst out laughing. "Come on, Eddie. You think I could ever hurt little Bella?" He looked at me smiling.

I smiled back. He was a really warm person behind his comic and burly exterior.

"Okay. But you do need to hunt later. I don't want you testing your self-control," Edward muttered.

"Fine!" Emmett said good-naturedly. Then he went and joined Rosalie who had gone upstairs – probably in Charlie's room.

I turned to Edward. "You think they're okay here? Your house is so much bigger…"

"I know you prefer staying here in case you hear some news about Charlie so I asked them to be with you here. It may be a little uncomfortable for them but it's only for a few days probably." He shrugged.

"Will it take days?" I asked him. I didn't want an indefinite number.

"Alice can't tell her exact location. She's a nomad. She never stays put. We're planning to scout the morgues and trace her scent from the corpses." He smiled confidently.

I frowned at that.

"It's not that glamorous to be a vampire, is it now?" He kissed the tip of my nose. "No worries. That will work only as a last resort."

"Just come back home soon. Okay? I need you here."

"I need you too." Then he kissed me until I forgot what I wanted to say to him.

oOoOoOo

Hours passed.

Edward had left an hour ago, and even though he promised that he would be back for me, I couldn't erase the sinking feeling that something was going to go wrong. Perhaps it was just my skeptic mind, not wanting to rely on false hopes.

Alice and Jasper had calmed me down thoroughly but I wondered if they were just saying it to make me feel better.

"You need to let Edward go, Bella. It's the least he can do to make it up to you," Jasper had told me when we got our chance to be alone. Alice and Edward had taken to the forest to hunt as a precaution. They were making sure that they would be strong enough for the encounter.

"Can you blame me for worrying? If something happened to any of you, I swear I wouldn't endure it again. I'd rather die!" I knew I was being melodramatic but this was the soap opera of my life!

Jasper ruffled my hair which surprised me a little but I didn't show it. He wasn't normally touchy, except to Alice.

"Then what? Waste everybody's efforts by killing yourself? You're mad, woman." He shook his head jokingly. "You're starting to sound like Catherine Earnshaw."

That made me laugh. "So you have read Wuthering Heights, haven't you?"

"Out of curiosity only. And please, you don't need to mention it to Edward." If he could blush, he probably did already.

"It'll be our little secret," I promised, raising my hand for the scout's honour salute. "Scout's honour."

"Ppssh… You were never a scout, Bella. You're more likely to need first aid."

I wanted to frown at him but I emitted a loud giggle instead. Thanks to his power.

"Okay, enough making fun of me. I still got Emmett for the next days – and nights to come." I rolled my eyes.

"Thanks, Bella," he said. Then his face turned serious. "You know, I've never told anyone this. Not even Alice. But I assume Edward knows but I know he wouldn't tell you -."

"Say it already!" I cut him off.

He laughed softly. "You were never the patient type." He shook his head and continued, "I've always felt like the outsider of the family but with you, at least there's now the two of us." He grinned.

"Wow. Thanks Jasper. You sure know how to make a girl feel better," I said dryly. I gave him a gentle slap on the arm. "Why would you feel that? Carlisle and Esme love all of you equally."

"Well, except for Alice and me, they were all connected in a way, though not by blood."

I looked at him expectantly. "By what then?"

"Carlisle created all of them. Somehow, there's that feeling of kinship making their bond stronger."

"Oh, Jasper."

"I love all of them – although I don't feel quite comfortable around Rosalie, but she's supposed to be my twin, so…" We both laughed at that. "But there are times when I feel like if Alice weren't there, I'm not sure if I would even be welcome in the family at all."

I hugged Jasper tightly. "See? I can hug you and you don't think of me as food right?" He smiled. "When you stayed here in Forks with me, I already trusted you and loved you as if you were my own brother. Please remember that."

He grinned. "Yeah, I hope my brother will be happy to hear that." He looked behind me and I saw Edward and Alice looking at us. Alice looked elated but Edward's eyebrow was raised while looking at us close together.

"Just tying some loose ends before we go," Jasper explained and walked to Alice.

I heard Edward growl a little then at a dizzying speed held me tight and kissed my temple. They were leaving now.

Alice's eyes looked concerned. "Bella, you'll be okay. But still stay safe okay? And listen to your babysitters." She winked at me.

Rosalie wouldn't be happy to hear that, but fortunately for me, she and Emmett went out to the grocery to buy me human food. It was ironic that they were the ones choosing my own meal. But Edward insisted that we stayed together while there was still time.

"Thanks Alice," I said and gave her a big hug. "You all come back for me okay? I can't expect anything less."

"I promise." She kissed me on my cheek and said, "They'll be zooming in in 5, 4, 3, 2,…"

Then the soft purr of Rosalie's BMW was heard outside.

"Okay, it's time for us to go," Alice sang. She and Jasper met with Rosalie and Emmett and talked about what the latter bought.

Edward held my head tightly as he kissed me. "I'll be back for you." He stroked my cheek. "And I'll never let you go again. Do you hear me?"

"Y-yes."

"Let's do our best to be alive and well for each other. Do you understand?" He was making me promise not to do anything stupid.

"Yes, I'll keep myself away from harm," I managed to tell him. My brain felt like it was freezing. In a few moments, he'd be leaving me with an unknown risk.

Then after kissing me one last time, he spoke to his siblings. I couldn't make his words completely. But the general plan was easy – not to let me out of their sight.

Next thing I knew, he was gone.

And I was left with Emmett and Rosalie.

oOoOoOo

I never knew how much I'd missed Emmett when we finally sat down and played Xbox together. Yes, he was kind enough to bring his video games to my house telling me that I deserved some good entertainment. But I silently thought he just didn't want to be bored at a house he could easily roam within five seconds.

Emmett was literally beating me at his own game. As if a mere human could ever win against him. And unlike Edward, Emmett wouldn't let me win just because I was a girl. I sighed. I wondered how he survived PE when he couldn't even throw a game.

He must have misinterpreted my sigh. "Would you stop worrying Bells? My brother can take her with one hand!"

I smirked at him. "Can he beat you with one hand?" I asked teasingly.

He let out a belly laugh and slapped my back with his hand.

"Ouch!" I yelled out.

"Oh sorry Bells," he said between his chuckles. "Was is it really that hard?"

"Yes. Like remember when you got whacked by that grizzly bear? That painful."

"Sorry," he apologised again. "But that was just funny, what you said. Look at me." He pounded his chest twice. It sounded like a battering ram smashing the wall. "You think he can beat this powerful bomb?"

"Yet you sounded so confident of him beating Victoria single-handedly," I said matter-of-factly.

"It's different. Victoria's a woman," he whispered sardonically.

"Emmett!" Rosalie's irritated voice resonated in the house. Apparently, she heard everything.

She suddenly appeared in front of us, blocking the television.

"Women are meant to be taken care of, not beaten up! I haven't finished yet, baby." Then he gave Rosalie a kiss on the cheek.

She was unfazed. "Don't you think you can use some blood?" She eyed me meaningfully.

I was flustered. She intended to annoy me but in fact, I found her funny.

"I know. I was waiting for Bella here to go to bed but she wanted to play so I kept her company." He grinned and winked at me.

I took it as a cue and went along with him. "Yeah, actually we just had our last game for tonight."

"I'll be back in an hour or two. You'll see me in your rocking chair when you wake up." He was making fun of Edward's watching me as I slept.

I seethed in anger, wanting to defend the love of my life but I just bit my tongue. I didn't want to cross him under Rosalie's venomous watch.

"See you later," I told him as I got ready to go upstairs.

They talked for a while in a fast, whispery tone that I just simply ignored to give them their privacy. I was at the middle of the stairs when Rosalie surprised me by calling my name sharply.

"Bella! Wait!"

I twisted my right foot to turn to her but it was a fatal error on my part. I lost my balance and was about to kiss the landing when I felt Rosalie's cold, hard arms holding my waist.

I straightened up as fast as I could. It was romantic being saved by Edward. But Rosalie? I felt downright stupid next to her graceful, ladylike movements.

I uttered my thanks and started to climb the stairs again.

"For some reason, your clumsiness has oozed its way to my family to bring us down," she said haughtily. "Like rust corroding the metal pipes of a car. It's quite contagious."

I controlled myself. I owed it to Edward at least. I turned my back to ignore her.

"I don't know what Edward has seen in you but with his know-it-all, holier-than-thou attitude, I'm not surprised."

"Is this your pompous, self-absorbed way of telling me that you don't want me in your family?" I asked her, my voice rising. "Because, you know, I'm not affected. I don't care what you think. Everyone has accepted me and welcomed me so quit treating me like I'm unwanted!"

Rosalie gritted her teeth and balled her fists. For a moment, I was afraid she would strike me.

"I'm not gonna play babysitter to my ass of a brother's petty human!" She said then stormed out of the room. Her luminous, blonde hair bouncing at her wake as she slammed the door.

She left me. Despite Edward's firm instruction to keep me within eyesight, she truly disappeared.

The coldness of the room finally enveloped me. Funny to feel cold just when the vampires were gone.

I opened the door again not knowing what to expect. I had really pushed Rosalie's buttons and I knew she wouldn't be back anytime soon. I silently hoped that Emmett would be back to accompany me in my room. I shivered. I felt like I was being watched from the dark trees ahead of me.

I closed the door shut and was about to go back to my room again when the phone rang. The sound was like a knife cutting the tension in the air. I fervently prayed that it wasn't Edward because I didn't want him to worry that I was alone.

I was in luck. It wasn't him. But it was someone else. Someone I didn't recognise.

"Bella Swan." A young, male voice spoke. Probably around my age, I could tell.

"I've got your father."

A/N: Sorry! Didn't mean to kill the story with a cliffie! But I'm having a hard time writing the action part of the story. Just want to make sure it's spotless, so to speak. I know you gurls know every page in those books so well. =)

Pls do read my other story, "I Love My Green-eyed Bully". It's AH and light-hearted, and basically meant to entertain female hearts with high school romance.