(ALL READERS WHO DEMAND TO KNOW WHY I'VE BEEN GONE FOR SO LONG, PLEASE READ THIS AUTHORESS' NOTE)

I'm back! I know, I know. I've been gone for two whole weekends without warning. It isn't because I forgot; I think about Fanfiction 24/7, so it's pretty much impossible for me to forget. So why didn't I update last weekend? Because I was at a hotel at Disneyland for the whole weekend! If I had received any warnings in advance from my parents, I would have stayed up late on Friday to update, but my dad just decided to go to Disneyland all of a sudden on Saturday just as I was turning on my laptop to update. I tried to update over the week, but I was busy all week! On Monday, I had to go out somewhere with my mom; on Tuesday, I had quite a bit of homework; on Wednesday, I had a tiring GATE field trip so I had to rest all day; on Thursday, I had a terrible headache; on Friday, I had to study for a math competition; on Saturday, I had the math competition and went out until 10 PM. I know that these sound like miserable excuses, but they're true. I also had light headaches throughout the week like icing on the cake.

I think you've had enough of my excuses. Let us move on the the List of Gratitude. First, my reviewers: -X-Jake's-Girl-X-. AugustFirst, OtterPop23, I Wish I Was Mizz Cullen, Haylie Winchester, jacob black rulez, xXPeaceBabesXx, Brianna-May Sims, Charmedfan90, MissColly, and TwilightDarkRose. Next, the reader who added me as their favorite author: xXPeaceBabesXx. Third, the readers who added my story as one of their favorites: xXPeaceBabesXx, Brianna-May Sims, and keanniea14. Lastly, the readers who added my story to their "Story Alerts" list: OtterPop23, Brianna-May Sims, DarkenedRoseThorn, Angels Falls8, merie, and Jilliana. Thank you, everyone!

Before I start with the chapter, please remember that all settings, characters, etc. belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer. However, the plot belongs to me, and I intend it to stay that way.

We walked out of the theatre together. I tried to put some space between us-after all, we were exes-but Edward stuck to my side like superglue. I finally gave up, sighing.

I didn't notice where we were going until the light was cut off. I looked around and finally realized that we were in the forest behind the theatre.

"Are we going to talk here?" I asked after a short period of uncomfortable silence.

Edward deliberated for a short second before grinning his crooked grin. I noticed that his even though his grin was the same grin from before, there was a subtle difference. Before I could think more about it, it disappeared.

"No," he answered. "We're going to our meadow. Hop on." He came one step closer and crouched in front of me.

I hesitated, but my curiosity got the best of me. Whatever he was going to tell me must be important, considering he came all the way to Forks to tell me. Besides, it wasn't like he was going to kiss me or anything. He was just offering me a ride.

I hopped on his back and wrapped my arms securely around his ice-cold neck. I wrapped my legs around his torso when he stood up to keep them away from his legs.

"Ready?" he said, excitement clear in his voice.

"Yes," I whispered.

Then, I was flying through the dense forest. I wasn't afraid of hitting the trees-I knew Edward never would. Like he said on our first trip to the meadow, running was his second nature. I laughed at the familiar feeling of the wind whooshing past my face, my hair blowing crazily in the wind, and the way Edward's feet only barely touched the ground, making it really seem like we were flying.

When my neck started to cramp up from straining it to stay up, I relaxed, letting my head fall. As my head made its way to the space between his neck and shoulder, my lips brushed against his neck. The familiar tingling feeling made me freeze in place.

Edward stiffened as well, but didn't stop running. I forced my head back up, ignoring the pain at the back of my neck.

I realized that Edward was still stiff. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "It was an accident."

That didn't make him relax as I had been expecting it to. I sensed a strange air of anxiety and confusion in the atmosphere. I frowned.

I gasped when Edward suddenly came to a stop.

When Edward didn't continue running, I looked around us. A another gasp escaped my lips, and I loosened my grip around his neck and torso. I landed softly on the damp grass.

We were in our meadow. Even though there was no "us" anymore, the traces of all the days we had spent here were everywhere.

I turned in a full circle, taking everything in. The small tree he had unsprouted to show me how strong he was, the red swing hanging on the sturdiest branch of the biggest tree here, the carving of our names in a heart on the ancient tree that still produced the most beautiful flowers every year . . .

I suddenly remembered that I was not alone in this magical place, and turned to see what Edward was doing, only to find that he was staring intently at me.

I felt the familiar blush color my face. I dropped my gaze to my shoes and mumbled, "What?"

From the corner of my eyes, I saw Edward approach me slowly and hesitantly. I looked up, still warm on the cheeks.

"Would you like to come sit on the swing with me?" he offered.

I nodded and followed him to the swing that we had built together out of real oak. We had painted it red in the Cullen's garage, making a huge mess, accidently getting some on his Volvo . . .

Edward patted the space beside him when I reached him. I sat down, smiling when it shook gently.

I turned to him. "What did you want to talk about?"

Edward's peaceful expression was clouded over by a melancholy frown the moment the words left my mouth. I bit my lips nervously at his reaction. Was something terribly wrong? Had something happened to the Cullens? I flinched at the thought.

"Edward? What's wrong?" I demanded.

Edward's sad expression quickly turned into one of irritation. He hissed angrily. I frowned at this sudden change.

"Jacob Black, do you mind backing off a few miles? What I want to tell Bella is for her ears, not yours. You have no right to listen," he shouted at the forest.

Edward waited for a moment, then turned to me. He sighed. "Nothing happened, Bella. I just . . . saw the light, I guess you could say."

"What do you mean?" I felt my eyebrows pull together.

He sighed. "Bella, when I left you last fall, I didn't leave because I didn't love you." He paused, letting that sink in.

My eyes widened. I couldn't say anything.

"I left because . . ." he stopped, then everything spilled out. "I left because you were, and still are, the most important thing in my world. I had always known what a danger I was to your life, but when I saw it in action at that terrible birthday party, I couldn't stay. I needed to get you away from me and my family-my kind. The only way I could do that was by leaving. But I couldn't leave knowing that you wouldn't move on. That's why I told all those lies. That I didn't love you. That I didn't want you. As if that were even possible! Bella," he grabbed my hand almost roughly, staring into my eyes, "I love you. I want you. I need you. I can't live without you. I know that sounds very cliche, but it's true. Please, please, please take me back."

I felt my heart beat furiously against my chest. It was so loud that it was almost embarrassing.

"Bella, say something!" Edward pleaded anxiously.

"I," I croaked. I cleared my throat. "I don't know what to say. Why did you come back if you wanted me to move on?"

"I wanted to be strong for you. But Bella, it was the hardest thing to do. I had to leave my family because of all the pain and sadness I was causing them. I couldn't move, or even think. I was like an empty shell. When I came back to check on the family, Alice finally tried to check on you for me, but she couldn't see you. I had to see that you were okay. That you weren't . . . dead. I got here this morning, and I was going to check your bedroom, but I smelled something disgusting. It was the dog. I heard that you were going to the theatre in Port Angeles, so I followed. I meant to stay away, but you caught me," he explained in one breath.

I stared at him, trying to organize my thoughts. I started speaking after a long period of silence. "Edward, when you first left me, I was like a corpse. I moved around the house like a zombie, I didn't talk unless I was spoken to, I didn't pay attention to anything happening around me, and I stayed that way for the first few months. I couldn't think about you, or my whole body would shut down.

"Then, one day, I found that I could hear your voice when I did something reckless and stupid. That's why I decided to try riding motorcycles. But I needed a mechanic to fix them up, so I went to see Jacob again. I later found that when I was with Jacob, the pain of losing you numbed a bit. I started spending all my time with him. Even after I found out he was a werewolf, I stayed. I had already met a whole family of vampires-what difference did a pack of werewolves make?

"On January 27th, when Jacob was hunting Victoria with his pack, I decided to go cliff-diving. I wasn't trying to kill myself. I had seen the pack do it, and I wanted to try. However, thanks to my bad luck and the freezing water that I had paid no attention to, I almost drowned that day. On that same day, Victoria was killed. On that same day, I finally realized that Jacob was more than just a friend to me.

"We've been together ever since. We'll be celebrating our two-month anniversary next week," I smiled towards the end at the part about our anniversary.

"Why are you telling me this?" Edward whispered.

"Edward, I'm happy where I am right now. I don't want to give Jacob up."

Edward looked down. "Bella, you can't know that. He is a werewolf. He might imprint on someone else. He won't be able to stay with you in that case. It seems that many of his pack members have already imprinted. You can't know that he won't."

I didn't have an answer to that. Edward looked up, victorious.

"Edward, I love Jacob. You left me, and he healed the wound you gave me when you left. I 'm not blaming you for leaving me because you gave me Jacob when you left, but you can't try to take away what you made happen."

Edward stood. "I'm not asking you to choose today, Bella. I can wait. I have an endless amount of time. Just think about it, please."

I sighed. "Fine." Then I shivered. It was getting chilly.

Edward unbuttoned his jacket in a flash, and handed it to me. I put it on, mumbling a quiet, "Thank you."

When I looked up, I gasped involuntarily. The sweater he wore inside his jacket clung to his body, emphasizing his lean muscles. Also, the sun was shining in from the tiny gaps in the trees, and his face was glittering like a thousand diamonds.

I realized that I was ogling him with my mouth hanging open. I snapped my mouth shut, and dropped my gaze, blushing furiously.

I heard him chuckle. "See? Just think about it, Bella. I'll be here, waiting. But would you like to leave now? It's going to get dark soon."

I nodded silently, my eyes still glued to the ground. And I knew, as much as I hated to, that I would think about the option he had provided me later, as I slept.

How was that? I tried to make it long, but it didn't turn out as long as I intended it to. All reviews are appreciated! Thank you!