It was a long, quiet drive. Miley wanted several times to ask where they were going but her mouth seemed to dry up with worry. Edward never made the slightest attempt at conversation either. What was it he wanted to talk about? Was it anything serious? Was he very ill?
After what seemed like days, even with Edward's fast driving, they arrived at the same road Miley had stopped at a month before when she accidentally hit Jacob Black, a handsome Native American boy, with her car. The two got out of the car.
"Where are we going?" Miley asked. Edward looked into the trees. Miley was confused at first, but then she seemed to understand a little.
"Surely we're not…not going…in there?" she said. He looked back to her and grinned faintly. He took her hand in his and they walked through the foliage. It was hard walking, as she tried not to touch anything in fear of discovering poison oak. But, thankfully, they were at their destination soon enough.
It was a very dense part of the forest; there wasn't that much sunlight, except for a small circle that shined through the treetops. Edward stayed away from the light like he was afraid of it.
"Edward?" Miley asked, "What is it you want to say?" He looked much more serious than in the car; he wasn't chuckling anymore.
"Miley," he said, boring into her with his golden eyes, "I was thinking about how much we care about each other. And I realized that if we truly love each other, secrets would just destroy our relationship." She cringed. Oh my gosh, she thought, terrified, He knows I'm Hannah Montana!
"How'd you find out?!" she asked.
"Find out what?" he asked.
"That I'm-" she started to say, but stopped. He didn't know! He was the one with a secret. But she had already started, and Edward was right; secrets would destroy their relationship. So, slowly, she finished.
"I-I'm Hannah Montana." He stared at her a moment, as if he hadn't heard. Then he did the thing Miley least expected.
He laughed.
"B-But it's true!" she squealed, "Don't laugh! It's true!" He looked at her with a grim smile.
"I believe you." he said, "It's just that you think your secret is shocking."
"What's yours that's so shocking?" she asked, thinking nothing in the world could be more surprising than discovering a regular Tennessee girl like her was a pop star.
"I'm a vampire."
She stared back at him with a look of pure terror. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were bulging. He heard her breathing come in quick pants.
"You're joking." she said unsteadily.
"If you don't believe me, I can't believe your Hannah Montana." he replied coolly.
"But that's true!"
"I'll bet it is. And I'm also telling the truth." She stopped speaking. She simply gaped at him. He expected her to run off screaming, but she didn't.
"I love you, Edward," she simply said, "I don't care." He could hear in her trembling voice she cared immensely, but the fact she would put it aside made him feel so much better. He stepped forward and hugged her. She seemed reluctant, but that was understandable. When he pulled away, she looked very nervous.
"Would you like to go home?" he asked. She gazed up at him with her scared but beautiful blue eyes.
"No." she answered. He let a smile cross his lips.
"So," Miley said, "Why'd you want to tell me out here?"
"I don't know, really." Edward replied, "Just…seemed like the right place." Then he realized something. This was Alice's vision. He was in the forest with a girl other than Bella. He tried not to grin.
"It's getting late." he said, "Maybe I should take you home." She seemed rather relieved. That's okay, he thought, I mean, of course she'd like to be away from a vampire! But the fact she still loved him pleased him.
They traveled through the forest again. When they arrived at the car, Miley got in very quickly. As he drove her home, he noticed she kept the window down and was edged farther from him than the seat looked like it could allow. She sprinted up the driveway when they got to her house.
"Bye, Edward!" she called from the porch. He pulled his car out of the drive and sped off to his own house.