Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Wish I did, but alas I don't.

~~Please review. Big thanks to IncomCorporation and madmomof4! You're the reason this new chapter is being posted. I had almost given up!!~~

I couldn't seem to suppress the groan that escaped my lips as my mother and I headed out of the house. After coming downstairs, I had quickly realized that after only one week, my father had managed to run out of absolutely everything in the kitchen – except fish, of course. I'm not sure we could ever actually run out of fish. In the interest of some mother-daughter time, Renee offered to drive me to the local J&P Produce.

Now, standing in the driveway, a sudden dawning realization started to overcome me. The universe hated me. It was official. Looking at Renee's rent-a-car, I realized the true cruelty of my life. Of course, the world wouldn't let her drive anything other than a silver Volvo. Yup, there it was again, the gaping hole. I was starting to understand Juliet even more now.

"Um, mom," I surprisingly managed to mumble out. "Would you mind if I drove?"

Waving off the ridiculousness of my request, Renee began moving closer to her rental car. "Bella, sweetie, don't be silly. I'm perfectly capable of driving through a small town like Forks. Now, get in the car before you catch your death."

Apparently she hadn't realized my request had actually been to drive my truck, not her rental car, but before I had the opportunity to argue, she was already sliding into the driver's seat. Realizing it actually was raining, I quickly made my way over to the passenger door. With a deep breath I opened it and slid in to the all too familiar interior of the car. I have to say, I'm quite surprised how unfamiliar the interior actually is. Its warmth and feel are nothing like his car had been. This was probably the first time I was grateful for the lack of his comforting fragrance. I'm sure it would have driven me mad.

As Renee turned on the car and slid it into reverse, I felt myself sinking comfortably back into the seat. The unfamiliar familiarity of the car seemed to soothe me. It really was so him yet so, well, not. Every curve and divot was so achingly familiar, yet it lacked the warmth of his presence. Even though he had never really personalized the car, it still seemed to be such a tribute to him.

It wasn't until we were about three blocks from the house when I finally started tuning in to the other things happening in my surroundings. Renee was doing her best to pay attention without actually appearing to pay attention. The radio was tuned to some country station, an odd choice for Renee but I assumed just one of her newest obsessions. Listening to the song momentarily, I realized it actually sounded more pop than country. I couldn't really help my outward flinch as I finally caught the lyrics of the song.

But you were everything to me

I was begging you please don't go and I said

Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone

I'll be waiting all there's left to do is run

You be the prince and I'll be the princess

It's a love story baby just say yes

Moving involuntarily, I reached up to turn the station. Realizing my actions after I was already doing them, I mumbled something about hating country music in hopes my mom wouldn't ask any questions. Eyeing her from the corner of my eye, I briefly thought I saw a small smile turn up at the corner of her lips before disappearing just as quickly. Finally she just nodded and turned her attention fully back to the road.

Apparently a glutton for punishment, I couldn't seem to keep my mind off of the radio. Normally not one for paying too much attention to lyrics, I was surprised they seemed to be the only thing I could focus on. As I finally realized the lyrics to the song on the new station, I wondered briefly if I could get away with changing the station again. When the lyrics:

There's no love - like your love
And no other - could give more love
There's nowhere - unless you're there
All the time - all the way

Filtered into the car, I purposefully reached over and hit the 'seek' button once more. "I hate that movie" I lamely offered as excuse. Once again, Renee simply nodded her head and continued to stare straight forward.

Now, if the world had any compassion for me, I suppose I would have finally managed to find a station with some suitable song. But, of course, this is my life I'm living and that just can't seem to happen. Rather, I pulled my knees up to my chest and hugged them to me, bracing my feet against the dashboard as an all too familiar melody filled the car. Now, this song I knew. Unfortunately, knowing this song, I also knew it would only serve to tear me up even further inside. As the first lines of the chorus, These wounds won't seem to heal, this pain is just too real, there's just too much that time cannot erase, filled the car; I eagerly reached over and hit the power button on the radio.

In that moment, I decided I was officially going to give up on music. Not that any of the songs on the radio could ever hold a candle to the song he had written, but in the end, musical artists were apparently siding with the universe. So, when it came down to it, the universe, some female country artist I couldn't name, Bryan Adams, and even Amy Lee apparently had it in for me. What had I ever done to them?

It wasn't until the car suddenly jerked to the right and I reflexively reached up to grab the only part of this car I was truly intimate with – the handle above the door - that I realized I had started crying. After recovering from the impact of my left hip being slammed into the center console, I began to look around wildly. Pulling into a nearby parking space, Renee turned off the car and looked toward me. "We need to talk" was all she said before getting out of the car and walking toward a nearby coffee shop. Apparently I was supposed to follow.

Slowly moving out of the car with as much composure as I could muster, I nearly tripped over the curb before finally making my way to the door of a coffee shop called "Breaking Grounds". I had never even realized this coffee shop was here. Not that I'd really spent a lot of my time in coffee shops, but still, in a small town like Forks I should have at least realized it existed.

As my senses were assaulted by the smell of freshly brewed coffee beans, I spied Renee standing by the counter waiting for me. Other than the two employees behind the counter and a couple sitting in the back corner, Renee and I apparently had this place to ourselves. When I got to the counter, the girl, probably about my age with short black hair and the most brilliant blue eyes I had ever seen, looked at me expectantly. Apparently Renee had already placed her order and now it was my turn. Knowing my lack of tolerance for anything caffeine, I ordered a simple bottle of water. "Right, Bella." The girl behind the counter responded. Apparently I should have known who she was. I figured she must have gone to Forks High, but didn't feel the need to press the subject.

Once Renee had her Non-fat Soy latte and I had my bottle of water, we made our way over to one of the many empty tables. I sat down across from Renee and waited patiently. If there was anything I could trust from my mother, it was that I wouldn't need to speak first. She had never really been big on the comforting mother-daughter talks. Not that there had ever really been a need for them before, but whenever Renee had something to say, you could be certain she was going to share it with you.

"It's okay, not to be okay." She started, looking at me across her coffee cup. "No-one expects you to just be over all of this. Knowing you, I don't think I ever fully expect you to get over this. And that's okay. But you need to start talking, sweetie. You need to get some of this off your chest."

The compassion in her eyes was almost unsettling. Settling into the role I had chosen for this moment, I prepared myself for the conversation I knew we were about to have. "Really, mom, I'm okay." As I watched her face fall and her mouth open to protest, I quickly started again. "So, maybe not okay, but I'm on the path to okay. After all, he was just a boy and it was just a silly high school crush, right?"

"If there's anything I believe to be further from the truth, that statement right there would be it." A wry smile crossed her face. "No part of me believes Edward was just a boy or that your feelings for him were that of 'just' a high school crush."

"Aren't you supposed to be arguing my point and I yours?" I couldn't help the sarcasm in my voice. "I mean, typically, shouldn't you be trying to convince me that this too shall pass while I try to explain everything he meant to me?" Spinning the bottle cap on the table, I was suddenly transported back to the conversation he and I had in the cafeteria after I discovered what he truly was. It's almost funny how a small thing like a bottle of water can bring back such vivid memories. Pulling myself back to the present I gave my mom a small smile. "I'm too young to know what real love is, right?"

"If I were a normal mother and you were a normal daughter, I would absolutely agree with you. I saw you two together in Phoenix last year though and even in all my years I've never seen two people so in synch with one another. The way he looked at you, Bella, was unlike anything I've ever seen. It was like you were the only thing in the world to him. I have never once had a man look at me the way Edward looked at you."

And the tears were flowing again. Why couldn't she just be like a normal mother? Time heals all wounds for your kind. He had once said. Apparently my mother hadn't read that cliché. "Yeah, well, things change. People change. It's not his fault he stopped lov-caring about me. You can't control who you fall for and I wasn't that for him. It's better this way, really. Now he can move on and find someone he can love with everything he has to give. So that girl wasn't me. That's life I guess."

"See, I don't buy that either" Renee began, leaning forward on the table looking at me intently. "I find it completely impossible to believe that Edward didn't love you. It's incomprehensible. Nobody can look at someone else the way he looked at you without being in love with them."

Laying my head down on my folded arms, I couldn't seem to suppress the second groan for today. Why was she doing this to me? Couldn't she just let me pretend I was doing okay? Why did she need to torture me? Was she finally siding with the rest of the universe in their 'get Bella' campaign? "He doesn't love me. Never did. And he left because he didn't want me anymore. Can't we just leave it at that?"

"No." was her simple response. Lifting my head from my arms I'm not sure the expression on my face could have been more incredulous.

"What do you mean no?" I questioned without thinking about it.

"You want me to drop the questions?" I could see the wheels grinding in her mind. "Fine, I will. But you have to do one thing."

"What?"

"Say his name." The statement catches me off guard and I'm unsure what she means by it. Surely I had said his name since he left. Why would it matter now, of all times? I had said it before, right? I'm almost positive I had. We've talked about him several times today and it would have been nearly impossible not to have said his name at least once.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Say his name. It's not that difficult of a request. At least it shouldn't be for someone who's so suddenly over everything and dealing so well."

Fine. If she wants me to say his name, I'll say his name. It's not that hard, right? It's just a name. A name that speaks to my heart in a way no other ever could. A name that could never be as sweet or velvety or beautiful as the man it belongs to. A name for everything I had ever hoped for and dreamed of in my future. Right. It's just a name. With a deep sigh, I braced myself for what I was suddenly sure would be the most difficult two-syllable word I would ever say again in my life. And as the name "Edward" slipped beyond my lips, the dam broke again. How many nervous breakdowns is one person allowed to have? Especially in just one day?

Once my tears subsided, I couldn't quite bring myself to meet my mom's gaze. I knew she wasn't going to say anything further. She would have now deemed this as my time to talk and knowing her, she wouldn't push it any faster than I was ready for. Surprisingly, I startled even myself when she didn't have to wait long.

What I said, however, caught even me off guard. "Does it ever get easier?"

Renee looked taken aback by my question. Apparently expecting me to vent and share rather than question. "Does what ever get easier sweetie?"

"This hole in my chest. The longing I feel every moment of every day. The fact that I can't breathe. That my heart just wants to stop beating because then maybe it won't hurt so much. The pain of knowing I have to go through even one more moment without him by my side. The true and unquestioned knowledge that I will never again love anyone with my whole heart and soul the way I love him. The unbearable pain of knowing he stopped wanting me, or never truly wanted me in the first place."

The pained look on her face was nothing more than a mirrored expression of my own, I was sure. "What do you want me to say, baby?"

My answer was the only one I could seem to muster. "Lie to me."