Disclaimer: We in no way shape or form own Twilight or any of Stephenie Meyer's characters. We also don't own any pieces of music, movies, and other random things that might show up. We do this purely for the joy of expressing ourselves and having fun while doing it.

Authors' Note: Katie M Cullen here! Bemylullaby too! We're posting together, epic right? So, it was MY lovely idea to post on Tuesday...because it's already tomorrow in Australia. That or she was just a little lazy and didn't want to post tomorrow. So this one's for miztrezboo and her Gin Wednesday! Yay! Hooray! She gets to celebrate it on her day. Yes, just for you cassikins, because we all know how she loves her some Gin Wednesday. So for those of you who are still dealing with your Tuesday...well lucky you! Yes because my Tuesday was full of heat, whiny kids and annoyed parents. Lucky me.

Also...has anyone seen those wolf pack pics? Let me point out that Katie wouldn't have seen them if I hadn't freaked out and shared with her she wouldn't have seen them until later on. So, I win. *fans self* Oh goodness...my heart was beating really fast. Let me also add that I a) stopped breathing b) couldn't remember my name c) I think my brain turned to mush. And those ABS! gosh...I think they may just make New Moon an even more eye-candylicious movie. And Alex effin Meraz…November 20th seems sooooo far away.

Team Paul…speaking of Paul. Let me take this time to pimp out the contest I'm co-hosting (if you guys haven't already heard). It's the Forbidden Love Affair Contest…for more details see my profile or the profiles of Goldentemptress, Kyla713, Miztrezboo, or Nostalgicmiss. I wrote a one shot in a pairing I've never seen before, and I don't think anyone else has seen either, Paul and Bella. :D Yes…

So now…on with the chapter…let's do this!

"Like autumn turns leaves, winter will breathe, cold on our necks, snow in our paths.
Wherever she goes, all that I know about us is that beautiful things never last,
that's why fireflies flash."

-"Fireflies" by Ron Pope

Bella's POV:

"I know. Fuck, Jacob," I hissed bitterly, leaning my arms across my chest and leaning back in my chair.

It frustrated me to the brink of insanity that I was letting something like this get to me. It was only Leah Clearwater. What is she going to do?

"Bella, you don't mean that," Edward said. "You wanna talk about it?"

I shook my head. "No I don't want to talk about it. Can we just watch a movie or something? This might be the last free weekend I have in awhile. I don't want to spend it thinking about Jacob and Leah."

"Don't bottle up the emotions, Bella."

"Don't bottle up the emotions, Bella," I mocked Edward.

"I'm just trying to help, la mia vita. You know that's what I do, I'm here for you. You name it, I'll do it." He scooted closer to me from his spot on the couch. "Don't let Jacob get you down Bella. I'm sure there's an explanation for it. You guys grew up together, he's best friends with her brother, they-"

"Don't Edward. Just please, movie?"

"I'm just saying…" he looked at me, egging me on to talk about the whole situation.

"And I'm just saying I want to watch a movie. End of story, end of conversation."

"Okay, Bella," Edward said defeated.

Edward's POV:

Two weeks.

Two weeks had gone by since Bella really talked to Jacob. Ever since that conversation where this Leah girl was mentioned their conversations became shorter and always the same.

"How was your day?" "Mine was good." "Work is fine." "Tell my dad I love him." "Take care, Jacob." "I love you, good night."

Two weeks had gone by since Bella started working at Doggie Style. Which cut Bella and Edward time in half, if not more. We continued our daily routine. We'd walk to the coffee shop before class, I walked her to class. We met up for lunch where we would argue over who got to pay. I usually won and Bella went off to pout at a table, sometimes she called Jacob, sometimes she just sat there mindlessly staring into space. I met her after she got out of her last class and we walked back to the dorm.

She would spend an hour attempting to do whatever homework she had. Most of the time Emmett bugged her to play Raving Rabbids with him on the Wii or Alice talked her ear off about their much needed shopping trip. So her hour of free time rarely was used for homework.

When it was time for her to work, we walked together and talked about random things. When she got home from work we usually ate dinner together, sometimes we were joined by the others, but most of the time it was just us. After we ate it was homework time. Eventually we would fall asleep on the couch. Some nights she would actually make it to her bed, but most she fell asleep cuddled up against my body, wrapped up in a blanket.

I took any time I could get with Bella, even if it was just for a few minutes. I found myself needing Bella like I needed air. I was way into deep with the whole situation, but there was no way to escape how I felt. I knew I was just asking for heart break, but I didn't care. I would do anything to make Bella happy, even if it ended in my heart breaking.

I never mentioned Jacob's phone call again, it was an unspoken rule between the two of us.

"I still can't believe I let you talk me into this Edward," Bella whined as she walked along the beach, her bare feet creating imprints in the sand.

"I like to treat my friends out for a night out on the town. You're my friend, are you not?"

It was my excuse, treat my friends out for a night out on the town. It wasn't a date, just two people enjoying each other's company over dinner. If you asked anyone else they would tell you it was a date. Hell, I might even consider it a date, but I couldn't tell Bella that. That would be crossing the line between just being and actually dealing with what was happening between us.

It was Friday, the only day Bella had off from school and work. I was determined to make the best of this day and any other Fridays to come.

"Yeah well, usually a night on the town involves a restaurant, maybe a movie or dancing. Not a picnic at the beach." she gestured to the blanket strewn across the sand a few feet away from us.

She could complain all she wanted to, but I knew she was enjoying herself.

"Well, I know how much you love the beach, Bella." I caught up to her grabbing her hand twirling her around to face me.

"The beach reminds me of home. Especially this beach, Edward. The cliffs," she whispered drawing her hand away from mine.

"I thought you would like it. I know how much you miss home. I wanted to bring home to you, well as much of it as I could." I pulled her into my arms in a comforting hug.

Home was sore subject for Bella. She missed her dad, her friends, and Jacob. No matter how much she played off the fact that she was upset with him I knew she missed him. He was all she ever knew. Naturally, she would miss him.

Although, as selfish as it may sound, I'm taking this little riff in their relationship and running with it. Bella was upset with him, leaving her to lean on me for support. Thus meaning more Edward and Bella time, more time with la mia vita.

Jacob was a complication. The one thing standing between us, between crossing the line from just being, to being together. I would never make Bella chose. As long as she was happy I would be happy. Even if it meant sitting in the background as she lived her life happy with Jacob. I would do it, just because it made her happy.

"I do like it, Edward. I appreciate the gesture but…"

"But what, Bella? Tell me what you're thinking." I interrupted her.

Her head looked up from its spot on my chest. Her brown eyes were glazed over and watery.

"It's just, I don't know anymore, Edward. Sometimes I feel like life would just be easier if I was home."

"How so?"

"Just because at home everything is there for me. I never have to worry about anything. My life is there, everything I've ever known is there. Whereas here…"

"Everything is unknown." I finished for her in a whisper. "That's why you came down here though. To see what else was out there, right?"

"Yeah, but I didn't think it would be so hard. I mean, I never thought there would be so much…" she paused almost regretting what she started to say. Her eyes looked like she was searching for something to say.

"Complications?" I offered. "So much more out there?"

"You could say that. It's just, here in California I feel like a different person. I mean back home I was Bella Swan, Chief Swan's daughter, Jacob Black's girlfriend and best friend. I was that girl that was always with the boys. Here, I'm just plain ol' Bella Swan. There's nothing else attached to it. Although I like the attached, it's just what I know."

"You're comfortable with attached. You're comfortable at home. It's common. Here with us, you're out of your element. Everything you do, everything you encounter is new to you. I would expect your mind to be a little mixed up."

"It is. Then there's…" her eyes shifted towards the crashing waves of the ocean. She was staring out into the horizon. The sun was setting, the sky a beautiful mixture of reds and oranges.

"Bella?" I whispered in attempt to gain her attention again.

"Things here are just complicated," she sighed pulling herself out of my arms.

She walked a few feet away from me towards the water. She buried her toes in the sand, the waves crashed up against her bare skin. She looked lost, like she was looking for an answer. Something to tell her what to do.

It crushed me deep down inside knowing that there was a good chance I was the blame for her confusion. If she was going through anything remotely close to how I was feeling, she had every right to call "California" complicated.

"La mia vita," I whispered taking a few steps closer to her, until I was standing right behind her. I brought my hands up to her bare shoulders, running them down slowly. I could see her chest rise up and down as she took deep breaths. Her eyes were closed shut.

"Edward," she sighed barely loud enough for me to hear. She brought her hand up to her shoulder placing it over mine. That refreshing feeling I got the last time our hands touched washed over me. "What am I supposed to do?"

She turned around to face me. Her eyes were watery and glazed over. She looked up at me begging for an answer. The smile on her face was gone, her lips pulled down in a frown.

"Whatever you need to do to make you happy, Bella. It's your life." I reached up to tuck a stray hair behind her ear, letting my hand slip down to her cheek, cupping her face.

Just like she had done earlier she placed her hand on top of mine, this time lacing her fingers between mine just a little.

"I don't know what I want, Edward."

A gust of wind blew, blowing her hair in the wind. In this light with the sun setting, she looked beautiful. Even if her face was sad and confused, she was still beautiful.

Whatever happened now I knew I would never regret.

"La mia vita," I breathed again.

"Edward." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

I leaned in closer to her using my free hand to wrap around her waist pulling her body closer to mine.

Then our lips met.

I couldn't have prepared myself for the emotions that surged through my body as she deepened the kiss. I expected her to pull away, to run away, but she didn't. In fact she did the opposite. Her arm flew around my neck in attempt to pull her body up closer to mine.

I would remember this moment for the rest of my life. The way her soft pink lips felt against mine. The way her tongue dashed across my lip. The way it felt when her hands wound themselves into my hair. The way my body reacted to hers when I pulled her even tighter against my body.

I never wanted it to end.

I didn't want to let her go. I didn't want to give her back to Jacob, but she wasn't mine. She wasn't mine to spoil, to love, to cherish. She was his, she would always be his.

I would have this moment though. The moment where all the questions of "what ifs" disappeared and it was just Edward and Bella on the beach. The waves crashing in the background, the sun setting, the wind blowing. It would always be our moment.

"Bella I can't, you can't." I pulled away from her.

Everything beautiful has to come to an end.

Looking up at me she bit her lower lip and nodded. She knew, she knew what we were doing was wrong. Her head rested against my chest, her arms wrapped around my body. Holding on like she never wanted to let me go.

We would always have this moment. The moment when we both knew in an instant how the other felt, how right we felt together.

"Let's get you home. You have to work in the morning." I leaned down kissing the top of her head softly.

"Okay."

Bella POV's:

"So it's a good thing you haven't killed a pet yet," Edward smirked as we walked down the hallway to our dorm.

"I've only worked there for a weekend, two days, it's still early."

I was afraid that after that…kiss…we shared things we be awkward, but they weren't. We fell right back into the groove of our friendly banter, like it never even happened. There was the look on his face every time he would glance over at me from the driver's seat.

It was the same look I got when I watched him subconsciously as he studied or watched TV. It was a look I should be saving for Jacob, my boyfriend.

I had no idea what was going on. I had no idea what I even wanted to happen, all I knew was that my head was getting ready to explode from all the thinking.

"I have faith in you." Edward smiled down at me as he put the key into the door. "Besides, I don't think you could ever live with yourself if you killed a harmless little puppy."

"Edward!" I exclaimed as he pushed the door open. The loud booming laugh of Emmett was the first thing I heard coming from the living room. "You're so mean!"

The room went silent as soon as Edward slammed the door shut. Our roommates were all huddled around sitting on couches in the living room.

"Hey guys," Edward said setting his keys on the counter.

Rosalie and Emmett were looking at us. Alice and Jasper quickly turned their heads towards the door and that's when I noticed there was one other person in the dorm.

I stopped dead in my tracks as his head turned around. He had a smile on his face, but it was a fake façade. He was upset and he had every right to be.

My heart stopped.

Everything I knew and loved with in this room now.

My two worlds collided.

He was here, here in California, in my coed dorm.

"Jacob…" I breathed, clutching my hands against my heart.

dun, dun, dun…and Katie, hun, I leave you to deal with that issue…have fun with that! Thanks Aileen, thanks.

Reviews are like first kisses as the sun sets.