Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.
This chapter isn't the one that I had originally planned, however, I thought about a few things that needed addressing, based upon the insight of a few lovely people. That being said, apologies if I didn't do it a service or if I've turned people off with its contents.
I don't know how I feel about this chapter so, I'll leave it up to y'all.
It had been two weeks since Bella and her neighbours had returned from Forks and she had found that much had changed. The first major thing, she finally had a story. On the first night that she settled back in San Francisco, an idea had formulated right before she had fell asleep. And, seeing as she had actually remembered it the next day, she took it as a positive sign. She called her surprised agent with her narrative and got the ok to produce a draft hours later of her proposal. For days after that, she had addressed and re-addressed the idea. She had barely slept as the race to write down characterizations and plots ran rampant in her mind. For the first time in forever, she was able to have coherent thoughts outside of her own sadness and, it felt good.
The second major thing to have occurred was that Alice had been visiting her more often at her house. Previously, the two would just randomly see each other across the road or in the street, eliciting engagement and conversations. However, seeing as Bella had made the unconscious decision to quit smoking, her small neighbour took the onus to freely visit the brunette. The relationship was comfortable, as they had settled into some sort of routine within the first few days. Alice would come over at whatever time she wanted and then make both of them a coffee. Sometimes Alice would bring over work; sometimes she would watch t.v or just watch Bella write a million things down all the while laughing at the brunette for talking to herself. They would talk and sometimes they wouldn't. There was an ease to which Alice had paced into her neighbours place of dwellings, though, Bella didn't mind, after all she quite liked her neighbours company. But ultimately, Alice would leave for the night, to go home or to go see Tanya, Bella didn't really want to know and Alice didn't tell her.
Bella smiled as she cracked the joints in her neck, loving the physical release with each popping sound. She still thought about Ashley every day, she felt her in her heart but, these little major steps assisted to prevent her from being in her previous state of perpetual depression.
Bella looked at the time and frowned; it was around 8pm on a Saturday night and it was still silent. All day she had been expecting her small neighbour to suddenly and flamboyantly burst through her front door, just as she always did.
But it was just quiet, that was, until she heard three knocks at the door.
She went to open it and was slightly surprised to see Leah standing there.
"Hey man," the dark skinned woman greeted awkwardly.
"Leah? What's up?" Bella returned nonchalantly, as if she didn't know.
In response to the blasé tone, Leah shook away her awkwardness, cocked her hip to the side and then crossed her arms "O.k, you know why I'm here," she replied with a pointed look. When her neighbour continued to give her the doe eyes, she just rolled her eyes. "Look, I'm supposed to bring you over to my place with some lie that I can't really think of at the moment or perform even if I had one. So, come on then," she all but demanded.
Bella just smirked and leaned against the threshold of her door, "Oh really now?" she asked stationary in her position.
Leah quirked an eyebrow at her neighbours rouse, "You can either come with me right now and act surprised or you can let Alice drag your ass over, either way, you're going to be there. They asked me to do this because I'm supposedly the least threatening."
In considering the ultimatum and not really wanting to deal with her small neighbour's wrath Bella chose the lesser of two evils, "Well, I wouldn't want to let your lie that you didn't even make up go to waste. Let me get my jacket," she relented with a sigh. Leah just smirked triumphantly and then waited, that actually hadn't gone too bad.
As they walked across the road Bella looked at Leah, "So, on a scale from one to Russel Crowe, how mad is she?" she asked. She knew that she was going to see Alice at some point today, but that didn't consolidate her fear.
Leah chuckled, "Not much surprisingly."
The two women had never really been alone together before, but from that one comment and from past general observations, Leah could see herself hanging out with the brunette in the future.
When they reached the door, before Bella reached her judgement, she turned to Leah for one last comment, "Just so you know, I'm using you as a human shield if shit goes down."
This caused Leah to laugh out loud, "Well, I suppose that's to be expected, all things considered," she replied. Yeah, they could definitely hang out together sometime, she concluded.
Bella grinned for a second and then sighed, "Let's get this over with," she said, twisting the doorknob.
As soon as the door opened she was assaulted with raucous applause and streamers, causing her to shut her eyes at the attention.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" she heard multiple exclamations.
Bella opened her eyes and was extremely surprised to see Jake there with a party hat on his head; he rushed up towards her and engulfed her in his trademark bear hug.
"I didn't think that you were going to come down," Bella stated in joy, disregarding the nauseous feeling at being twirled around.
"What? And miss my Bella being all growned up? I would have seen you earlier but I only got in like, two hours ago. I'm down here until tomorrow night though," he replied with fervour. Bella rolled her eyes at the age remark because she was older than Jake by at least a few years.
He finally put her down so that she could properly greet her neighbours and an additional woman, who she remembered and knew to be Tanya. Everyone was standing there watching the display with smiles on their faces, yeah, even Rose was smiling at her.
"Thanks guys," Bella said.
She popped a hand under her chin in thought, "Gee, I wonder who set this all up," she commented in the most sarcastic voice she could muster.
Ignoring Bella's earlier comment and much like Jake, Alice practically jumped onto her neighbour, "I can't believe that you didn't tell me, I only found out because of Jake," she squealed wrapping her arms around the taller woman.
Alice squeezed tightly and then levelled herself to Bella's ear, "I am going to reprimand you so hard later," she whispered. The comment was delivered as sexual as it sounded and for a moment Bella's traitorous body shivered.
Alice retracted and smiled at her neighbours dumbfounded look, "Come on, let's get this party started," she said, earning a loud wooop from Jake.
At the display, Rose and Leah gave a meaningful look to each other whilst Tanya just frowned.
After the compulsory cake and presents were done, Alice and Jake demanded that they all visit a club in celebration to Bella's birthday. When Bella had refused, Alice smashed cake onto the brunette's clothes and then innocently cited that since her neighbour needed to change anyway, she may as well change into 'going out' clothes. The logic was lost on the brunette, but Jake intervened by laughing and then dragging Bella out of her neighbours house to prepare.
They entered an alternative club mixed pub, much like the one that they had first visited all those months ago; the only difference being the music genre. Whereas the last club issued techno and dance sounds, this venue echoed gritty bass notes, crisp electric guitars on distort, unforgiving percussionists and singers with voices as harsh as the cigarettes they smoked. Bella knew that this was her friend's way of compromising, on the one hand, there were many people mulling about at the bar and on tables, but on the other, and despite the music, there was a crowd dancing on the floor and on the stage in a drunken haze of bodies, sweat, alcohol and rock music. The brunette just knew that her friends were going to join in the fray, but she was appreciative of the gesture.
Alice, with an attached Tanya and Jake immediately took to the stage together. Whereas Rose, Leah and Bella excused themselves for the moment by stipulating that they were going to get a table and a drink.
Two hours had passed by and each of the members of the group had intermitted joined Bella for a drink and a breather at the table. She didn't want to dance and you couldn't make her, it's her birthday and she can sit if she wants to.
That was until Alice challenged that notion, "So, you going to dance with me or what?" the short haired woman asked her neighbour with an eyebrow raised and stance akimbo. At the present, Rose, Leah and Jake were dancing together, whilst Tanya went for a bathroom break and then another round of drinks.
Bella looked at her neighbour and shook her head, "Nah, I don't have my blue suede shoes on tonight," she replied.
Alice rolled her eyes but forfeited the debate; she took a place next to Bella and watched the crowd with her. The brunette however, was acutely aware that her neighbour was perspiring and breathing rapidly, causing her chest to heave in and out.
In and out.
Alice began to play with the label of her drink, "I hope you don't mind that we're celebrating your birthday Bella, but you're just so special that we couldn't not do anything."
Bella grimaced at the double negative but took her neighbours words in stride, "It's fine, I mean, I suppose it could have been worse, you could have invited Emmett and then we'd have two drunk and dancing beef cakes to worry about. And anyway, I know how you are Alice, ostentatious is your middle name," she replied with a smirk.
Alice giggled at this, but, when Bella's words registered in her mind, something within her clicked, causing her to suddenly reach out for her neighbours arm, "Wait, you know that Alice is my middle name right?" she asked seriously.
Bella just looked at her blankly, ignoring the grip on her, "Umm, what?" she replied.
The smaller woman saw the genuine confusion in her neighbour's eyes and then slapped her own forehead, when she realized what she had unintentionally done. "Jeez, I thought I had told you, I mean, I guess that I just forgot because I usually don't tell people but, I had thought that out of everyone, I would have told you," she rushed out in embarrassment.
Bella just continued looking at her blankly, trying to decipher what she was saying, so she continued, "Alice Cullen isn't my full name, I was born Mary Alice Brandon. But, when I was a teenager I changed it to Cullen in respect and love for my adopted family, they didn't force me, I chose it. My official name now is Mary Alice Brandon-Cullen," she professed, feeling badly for unconsciously lying to her neighbour.
Bella could feel Alice's distress at the admission, so, in return she just looked at her neighbour queerly, "Woah woah woah, hold the phone there. Mary?" she asked theatrically.
In return, Alice felt relieved that her neighbour had taken everything in stride and then she rolled her eyes, "Eugh, there are just so many times a girl can be asked, 'how does your garden grow?'" she replied, remembering how annoying kids where when she was growing up.
Bella burst out laughing, causing Alice to scowl, "I thought Isabella was bad," the brunette commented.
After a pause Bella looked at Alice, "So, Mary Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?" she recited salaciously with a wiggle of her eyebrows and then proceeded to laugh again. It wasn't even that funny, by admission her joke was really lame, but it was one of those moments where the stupider something was, the more hilarious it became.
Alice felt elated at hearing her neighbours boisterous laugh, even if it was at her own expense, she took a sideways glance at her, "You're lucky it's your birthday, first, you refuse to dance with me and now you laugh at my name. How are we even friends?" she replied dramatically.
Bella just rolled her eyes at her neighbour's theatrics, "Because you love me and don't deny it, you already admitted it," she said impishly. This caused Alice to be silenced, as her neighbour was correct.
Bella took a serious look at her neighbour, sobering from the playful atmosphere, "I'm lucky in many ways Alice and I've only just remembered this," she said slowly looking at Alice straight in the eyes.
The admission confronted Alice and her face softened, "Bella…" she began, but she didn't know where to go from there.
Bella just smiled, knowing that she had rendered her neighbour speechless by her comment, however she frowned when she realized something, "When you changed your name, why did you leave the Mary as your official first name?" she asked curiously and effectively changing the topic.
Alice just smiled that dazzling smile, "Because even though I may not like the name, my parents loved me enough to give it to me and that's something that I can't forget nor would want to get rid of," she replied easily.
Her companion nodded her head and felt humbled to have been given such a raw answer; it was things like this that made her really appreciate and respect the small woman in front of her.
Before anything more could be said between the two Tanya cut in, "Here are the requested shots," she beamed, placing the three small glasses onto the table containing a questionable mix of liquids.
Bella picked up one shot glass and studied the pink mixture within it, "Thanks," she said.
Each women held their shot into the air and before they gunned it down their throats, Alice smiled at Bella, "Happy birthday Bella, may you always continue to recognise the love in front, inside and around you," she toasted, giving her neighbour a wink.
They all clinked glasses and downed their drink in one gulp, finishing with a satisfied sigh.
Bella took a swig from her beer bottle, not ever being one to appreciate sickeningly sweet alcohol.
Alice looked at Tanya, "Let's dance," she requested.
In response her girlfriend just shook her head, "You go on ahead, I'm going to take a breather," she declined. Alice pouted and only went away when her girlfriend kissed her on the forehead, which caused Bella to inexplicably look away.
Alice became entangled in the dance orgy occurring and Tanya took a seat across from Bella, to say that it was awkward would be an understatement. Tanya took a generous swig from her beer; it was her fifth one for the night. She could feel the liquid boosting her confidence, signalling the tell-tale signs of oncoming intoxication, but that didn't really bother her, in fact, she welcomed it. She looked at the birthday girl and couldn't help the assortment of feelings that erupted within her.
"So, what's working with Alice like?" Bella asked Tanya curiously, trying to make conversation. She didn't mind that the other woman was there, for it was the perfect opportunity to suss out her neighbours girlfriend.
Tanya disregarded her feelings and smiled at the mention of Alice, "Well, she's different but the same as to how she is on the outside. I work in a different area to her but, from what I see, she's more focused there, she's determined, I would describe her as a true professional, but perhaps I'm biased," she finished. She glanced over and her smile grew wider at seeing Alice dancing with as many bodies as she could.
"On the outside she's more relaxed, but she still has that innate determination as if there's nothing that could ever get in her way," Tanya further added.
Bella gave a nod in agreement and thought about her words, she knew that Alice was a force to be reckoned with, but she hadn't realized how much of that personality was injected into other aspects of the small woman's life as well.
Tanya looked at Bella and remembered how fervently her girlfriend had been towards welcoming the brunette hours earlier. She took another large gulp of beer and then began toying with the label, "Just saying but, watching you two is kind of enough to make a girl jealous," she confronted.
Bella almost swallowed her own tongue at that comment, "Excuse me?" she asked flustered.
The other woman just gave a sideways glance, "She's different with you," Tanya clarified.
"Umm…" the brunette hadn't been expecting that comment nor did she know how to reply to it.
Tanya gave a sad smile, "I've seen her as a professional, as a girlfriend, as a friend, as a roommate to Rose and Leah but, I've never seen when she's with you, not really. I've never seen her light up before like that."
"I don't…" Bella began, but before Tanya could lose her courage, she interjected, "She's not in love with me, I know she isn't and don't lie to me and say that she might one day, I know that it'll never happen," she finally articulated after months of silence.
Bella stayed silent, briefly wondering how much alcohol the other woman had consumed, on the one hand, she wanted to stop the woman from saying things that she may regret, on the other, she suspected that the other woman needed an outlet to say these things for her own benefit and sanity. Obviously she hadn't talked to Alice about this and Bella had just somehow been caught in the crossfire. So, she stayed silent.
When Tanya knew that the brunette wasn't going to interrupt or say anything, she continued to speak, "With me, she's…distracted, she always has been. It's like she's forcing herself to be with me in order to get her mind off of other things. At first I thought I was just imaging it but, I know why that's the case now." She gave a meaningful glance at her companion, and Bella still stayed silent, not trusting ability to speak.
Tanya finished the rest of her beer and went for another that had just been sitting on the table, not really caring that it had belonged to someone else; at the moment she needed a vice.
She sighed as thoughts that she had been dying to articulate had finally come to the forefront, "The first time I ever asked her out, it was a year ago, she said no because she said that she doesn't mix business and pleasure. So, imagine my surprise when she randomly asked me out all those months ago, of course I immediately said yes, I was thrilled, elated to be going out on a date with the Alice Cullen you know?" Bella gave a slow nod to demonstrate that she was listening, half wanting to scream 'but Alice isn't even her real name!' just, anything to distract the woman long enough to run away.
Tanya however, had other plans, "She asked me out around the same time that she saw her ex at that club that she went to with you," she stipulated.
Bella frowned, "I don't really see how this all fits," she stated a bit confused. Conceded, a kiss had conspired that night, but Alice had been quite adamant that it had meant nothing.
Tanya's lips turned upward, "Alice is the honest type, so, when she told me about what happened between you two, I didn't think anything of it; instead, I concentrated on how she was using me as a rebound from her ex. It didn't even register to me that that wasn't the case at all. Seeing you two today and just, from the shit that I've experienced with her, it's just confirmed that she asked me out and has stayed with me this long, in order to get her thoughts away from someone, more specifically, you," she took another drink from the unmarked bottle and grimaced.
Bella's brow rose, "That's a bit of an accusation you have there," she commented.
Tanya just scoffed, "Is it really? The first time we met, you basically threatened me not to hurt her and she always talks about you, she just doesn't stop, but it's more than that, it's in her eyes, you know as well as I do how expressive they are. Dammit, I wish she had never told me what happened that night," she finished, she was more hurt than angry but the alcohol didn't assist to express that.
She shook her head from the oncoming fuzziness and stared directly into Bella's eyes, "Right now, I'm not even looking at her and I know that it's not me or us that she's looking at, it's you," she spat.
Bella fought everything within herself to not verify the woman's claim, "So, why don't you break up with her if that's the case?" she reasoned defensively.
Tanya gave a humourless laugh, "I'll stay for as long as she needs me, surely you can understand that." She placed her head on her hand and blinked away the feelings that were waiting to burst.
Bella's eye furrowed, but she understood, after-all, love was an emotion that she had felt before too, "The heart has reasons that reason does not understand. I'm sorry, I never meant, I mean, I don't think she…I just don't know," the brunette replied.
A silence filled the ensued; Bella didn't know what to say as her feelings towards Alice were just as complicated as Tanya's thoughts. However, she didn't need to say anything as Alice's girlfriend decided to speak, "Not everyone can let go of their lover. I guess I'm just a selfish coward like that and she's just so scared that she's become blind to seeing what's going on right in front of her. For someone who's so hell bent on love, in her search for it, she's missed it completely," she finished. In saying this, the irony was not lost on Tanya and, it was in that instant that she finally confirmed that her current relationship with Alice was based upon the other unconsciously using each other to some extent.
"What the fuck am I supposed to do with this information?" Bella asked. Tanya had just in a really strange way, confessed Alice's feelings towards her; however, the second hand information prevented her from allowing her to hope. Bella frowned at that last thought, why am I hoping for anything right now? She asked herself, she had just been able to put herself together again, wasn't it too soon to be having of this line of thinking? Would it ever be ok to have that hope?
Tanya tsk'd her tongue at her companion's idocracy, Jesus, they're as blind as each other, no wonder she was with me for this long, she thought to herself. Albeit, it had hurt confronting and confirming particular suspicions tonight, but at the same time, she just couldn't fathom how two people who spent so much time together, couldn't or just refused to see each other.
When she caught Bella's innocent eyes beseeching her for guidance, she couldn't help her next decision. Just for tonight, she wouldn't be the self-confessed coward that she believed herself to be, she would be the girlfriend that Alice had wanted, "Well, you can start by being honest with yourself and then you can take it from there," she offered.
Bella frowned, "Why are you telling me this?" she finally asked.
Tanya looked at Bella and shrugged, "Maybe it's the alcohol talking, or maybe it's because I heard her whisper your name last night," she finished.
Her stomach coiled and, she wasn't sure if it was due to the memory or the alcohol, regardless she reached for another bottle.
There, it's done she thought with an air of finality.
Alice was at the bar watching Bella and Tanya engaging in conversation, she was happy that her girlfriend could talk to her neighbour, she knew that the brunette wouldn't be completely dismissive, but she was nervous just the same.
"Oh look Alice, your girlfriend is talking to Tanya," Rose commented audaciously, breaking Alice from her thoughts.
Alice frowned, "Rose," she replied warningly.
The blonde just gave her sister a sharp look, "Don't Rose me in that tone of voice, you know it's true," she retorted.
"I'm with Tanya," the smaller woman defended; however, the blonde wasn't accepting it.
"You may physically be with Tanya, but in every other aspect you're with Bella and you know it. Alice, cut the shit, you can lie to everyone here and maybe even yourself, but you cannot lie to me. There's so much tension between you and Bella that even I'm beginning to get high strung," Rose articulated a little hotly.
Alice stared into the bar top and then the blonde realised how her words had affected her little sister. She hadn't seen the smaller woman look this vulnerable since the first time they had met when they were kids and this caused Rose's heart to bleed a little as well as chastise herself for her lack of tact.
She softened and touched her sister's arm, catching her attention, "Alice, I love you and I just want you to be happy, I know that loving people is pretty much your thing, but love shouldn't hurt other people."
Alice looked at Rose and then blinked slowly, "What do you mean by that?" she asked.
The blonde stood closer to her sister in a semi hug, "It means that you're with a woman under false pretences and it's not fair on her, on you and certainly not Bella," she said gently.
Alice she felt something crack within her and suddenly became very tired, "Bella's just…Bella, I can't explain it any other way than that," she replied.
Rose's lips pursed in understanding and then she looked at her own girlfriend, who was currently sandwiched between two large males. If anyone had ever asked her to describe Leah, the blonde knew that there would be too many things with too little words to fully encapsulate her.
"Why did you ask Bella to go with you to mom and dads?" Rose finally asked and then patiently waited for the answer. At this point, she wouldn't accept anything except an honest answer, it's not that she needed to hear it; she just needed her sister to think about it.
Alice thought about the question, at first she had thought that she asked Bella to come because she was the first person to calm her down in her moment of distress. This was an amazing feat in itself as Alice usually hid away from people when she was suffering, but that day, her neighbour had rushed in again to save her and Alice had actually accepted the help.
But now, provided the time, when Alice was able to really think about the answer, it still confused her. Out of everyone in the world, all the people that she knew, was friends with and even Tanya, Bella was the only one that she wanted there. If she were to choose again who she wanted to be there for her, she'd choose Bella.
Rose looked at her sister, knowing that things were slowly but surely falling into place, "Alley, I'm sorry that you're in this predicament, I'm sorry that you've had to wait for so long and have had more negative than positive experiences. But, be honest, wasn't the prelude worth the main event?"
Alice looked through her sister in thought, although it is said that it is the journey rather than the destination that is important; the smaller woman realised that Bella wasn't the endpoint. Instead, Alice suddenly found that she wanted to continue her life's journey with Bella. This moment of clarity, this epiphany caused her heart to drop.
"Rosie, I don't know what to do," Alice said morosely, tapping her head on the bar top. "I don't know what I'm doing with her and yet, I have never been more myself than when I am with her," she finally admitted in a whisper. Perhaps it was cliché, but it was true, the mysterious brunette across the road simultaneously brought the best and worst out in her. She had used her girlfriend and her friendship with Bella to protect everyone from what she really felt and that caused her guilt. Bella had just accepted her wife's death and Alice didn't know if she was ready for another relationship, she had no intentions of replacing Ashley, but would Bella understand that now? She shook her head, even when she was thinking about others; her thoughts ultimately lead to Bella.
Rose just patted her back, "I know Al, I know," she replied as comforting as she could.
"Hey Alice, you should probably get Tanya home, she looks ready to puke," Jake suddenly interrupted.
Rose and Alice looked up and, when Jake saw the look on the small woman's face he instantly became concerned, "Hey, are you ok?" he asked her.
Alice rubbed her face with her hand and smiled, "Yeah, just tired from all that dancing, I'll call Tanya a cab," she said.
The man quirked an eyebrow and looked to Rose who gave him no further information, "Why don't you and I walk home? We can't all fit in the cab and it'll give us some time to talk about tomorrow?" he suggested.
Rose smiled, the young man had a care, perception and wisdom that could rival Emmett's and she knew that he would protect her little sister, Alice nodded her head, very much inclined to the idea.
"Great, I'll let Bella know what the go is and round everyone up, I'll meet you up front," he planned and then left the two women to finished their drinks in silence.
After a wobbly Tanya was placed into a cab with Rose, Leah and Bella, Alice and Jake decided to walk the cool streets of San Francisco together.
"So, how you been little squirt?" Jake asked, when he noticed the small woman deep in thought.
Alice smiled but she didn't really feel it, "Can't complain," she replied.
Jake chuckled, "For a second, I thought that you were going to say, 'same shit different day,' just like Bella," he said, causing the short haired woman to frown.
His gaze softened on her, "It's funny how much people can impact our lives huh?" and Alice could only nod her head in agreement.
They continued walking for a few paces and, with every step, Jake suspected that his tiny companion was either figuring or had figured out her feelings.
"Did Bella ever tell you that I used to have a thing for her?" he suddenly asked Alice.
The abrupt question made Alice break from her thoughts and almost miss a step, "What?" she inquired wondering if she had heard correctly.
Jake could almost laugh at the look he was receiving; he looked around the street and noticed that there weren't any people around. So, he stopped walking and sat in the doorway of a closed store, he wasn't obstructing any pathways, but he just thought it was best to have serious conversations whilst sitting down and it helped that it was a nice night. This prompted Alice to sit down next to him and momentarily distract her from her own thoughts.
Jake looked up into the sky, a wave of nostalgia hitting him as he recounted the memory from so long ago, "Yeah, back in the day when we were teenagers and I thought I was straight," he smirked and looked at Alice who was just staring at him, "Ha, yeah, I know, when you're growing up, you usually experiment with the same sex, not the opposite. But then again, love is fluid and sexuality is subjective, depending on how you want to look at it," he looked up again watching the stars flickering.
"Anyway, when we were younger, we used to spend so much time together and she just got me, she was the only one that did at the time, so yeah, I kinda fell for her. I told her my feelings in high school and whereas she accepted them, she told me that she couldn't return them. She said that I was too much of a brother to her and, well, you know, the whole gay thing," he added with a chuckle.
He continued on as if Alice wasn't there half gaping at him, "She said that she didn't feel that way about me and that she would never be able to. And then, do know what happened? She apologised to me, she apologised to me for loving her."
At the time it had confused the shit out of him why his best friend would apologise for such a thing, but then as the years went on and their relationship became stronger, he realized why she had.
"Bella just, gets people you know? Whether she does it intentionally or not, she has this never-ending capacity to understand people. Even though things may make her feel uncomfortable, she's one of those people who will try to do the best she can to alleviate the pain of someone else, because that's the way that she's been wired. Ha, maybe that's why I fell for her," he looked at Alice this time and knew that she understood what he was saying, after-all she too had been subjected to his friends unyielding care.
"I was scared shit less the day I told her but, I'm glad I did, it's allowed me to appreciate her more as my friend and, she didn't yell at me or refuse to see me ever again. I still love her, but I'm not in love with her, because my friendship with her surpasses that," he added hoping that she'd believe the truth. His companion had stayed silent the entire time and he knew that it was a good thing.
"Alice, you don't stop loving someone, it might change or you may wish you never did, but you don't stop, you can't. And, you can either let it flourish or you can let it sit, deep within the recesses of your heart, where you know it will always be." he finished hoping that she would consider the meaning behind his words. It was already there within her, the things that she had tried so ardently to avoid and hide were beginning to make their way to the surface.
"Jake…" Alice began, but she wasn't quite ready for words yet.
Jacob Black looked into his small companions eyes, "Alice since Ashley died, you're the only one that has gifted her with every opportunity there is to become the person that she was and the person that we know that she can be. And that, right there, that means something."
He grabbed her hand to implore her with one last request; he knew that his next words were going to be unfair, especially after all that she had done. However, seeing as he couldn't always be there for his, now two closest friends, he wanted to impart one last bit of wisdom before he went back home the next day.
"Don't let it go Alice, don't let her go."
Alice stared at Jake and then realized why she had found an instant kinship with the young man, it was because of Bella.
Everything reverted back to Bella.
The small woman fished out her phone from her jacket and dialed a number knowing that it would go to voicemail. That was perfect, it would give her some time to think about what she wanted to say.
"Hey, call me back," she looked at Jake with fear, but he gave her an encouraging nod,"we need to talk," she finished.
She hung up, placed her phone back in her pocket and sighed a sigh that spoke of relief and hope.
She smiled.
Alice knew what she had to do.
Thank you for reading, the reviews, the favs, followers and support.