BPOV

Sound was the first thing that I was aware of. I could hear familiar, warm voices around me, directing their words to each other. I searched through them for one.

Somewhere in the near distance I heard his voice. It filled me with unfulfilled hope; a sort that shouldn't exist when I was simply looking for support. He was searching for something to keep me warm - a quilt, or similar.

Another person spoke closer by me, at my feet, someone with more knowledge in their tone and lyrics. I didn't want to open my eyes, to interrupt their conversation. Instead, I focused on what they were saying.

"Dad," Jacob asked, his tone surprisingly shaken. He sounded more like a child, vulnerable and needing guidance. "She's going to be okay, right?""Don't worry about her." I could feel both of their gazes fixed on me. "She needs rest. I called Charlie to explain …" He trailed off, and I felt my heart stutter. I prayed that Charlie hadn't said anything about the few hours before. I had to tell Jacob myself. It took a minute for Billy to continue. "She's been through a lot, he was saying."

I cringed, quickly hoping they wouldn't notice any change in my expression.

The conversation halted before Jacob spoke up. I could imagine the tense look that would accompany his sentence; his eyebrows would be furrowed, his eyes dark and searching, jaw clenched. "What do you mean, 'been through a lot'?"

"You didn't even think why she might be wearing such formal attire?" The room fell into another silence, though it lingered in the air, heavy and prolonged. "You should get her that blanket, she's shivering."

I hadn't realised that my arms were shaking until Billy had pointed it out. It felt as if there was a cold breeze in the room, hugging me tightly. I tried to press the thought out of my mind and picture instead the warmth that was quite suddenly pushing it away.

"She'll appreciate that when she wakes up."

"I know." Jacob's voice was alarmingly close, directly above me. I snuggled closer to the warmth, feeling the duvet cover on the back of my hands and under my chin. It felt so reassuring.

"I'm going to head to bed."

"Okay." He had moved too far away for my liking. "I think I'm going to camp out here, to be sure in case she wakes up late."

"I'll see you in the morning then. Sweet dreams."

I heard light laughter, a brilliantly gleeful noise. "You too dad."

The door closed very softly. And then there was silence again.

I heard him shifting around the room as if wandering aimlessly. I opened one eye with a small a viewing space as possible.

The light in the room was duller than I had imagined, much less artificial and more earthly feeling. It warmed my senses with its soft amber glow.

Lying on the sofa closer to my feet, Jacob was on his back, staring at the ceiling. I watched the systematic rise and fall of his chest, matching my nervous breathing to his calm. I shifted to get a better view.

The movement was too obvious. He glanced over at me. "Bella?" His eyes were wide and he was beside me in an instant, crouching by my head. I slowly opened both of my eyes.

Jacob sighed and smiled weakly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "How are you feeling?" His deep eyes searched mine for the truth.

"Fine," I croaked. I swallowed, my mouth and throat scratchy, to attempt to repeat myself more clearly.

He placed a finger across my lips. "Ssh, don't try and speak now. You need your beauty sleep. Charlie knows you're here and you can rest for as long as you like. I'm staying with you … I'm not going to leave."

I ran my hand along his jaw line, trying to memorise every tiny feature. He closed his eyes against my touch and sighed again. I retraced the same line, from his ear to his chin, over and over. Only when he held his hand against mine did I let mine slowly recline to my side. "I'm not going to leave," he repeated with more determined force. "I'm still here for you."

I watched as sadness spilled into his eyes, making them lose their wistful twinkle. I watched as his hand hovered over mine for a moment as he finally decided not to take it in his. I watched as he stood to his full height, glancing at me only once more with an expression so torn that it broke my heart in two. I watched as he stretched across the sofa once more, back turned to me.

I felt the back of my eyes begin to sting and my vision blur. I bit my lip to stop the moisture from turning me into a blubbering wreck. It only made matters worse and I felt the first tear run down my cheek and onto my lips. The salty taste burned my tongue.

'Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry …' I repeated to myself hopelessly. As another tear streaked down my face, a soft sob wracked my body. I squeezed my eyes shut and pulled the duvet practically over my head. I let the lack of light attempt to calm me. Another cry shook me through.

I kept my breathing as even as I could manage when I heard footsteps padding across from the other side of the room. Arms pulled me into their vice grip, keeping me secure. "I'm so sorry Bells if I upset you. I heard today was hard for you. Please don't cry."

I pulled the covers away from me and turned to face him. I sniffled as he dried my tears with his thumb. "Hey, hey, we don't need anyone upset in this house." Jacob smiled comfortingly and I tried to do the same in return. I thought it turned out more like a grimace.

"Do you want to talk about what happened tonight?" He was sincere, not forcing me to give anything away.

I shook my head immediately, the thought of his perfect features, his crooked smile that lit up my world in an unexplainable way, still too difficult to think about.

Jacob pulled me closer. I placed my forehead against his chest, letting my tears flow freely. "Thanks," I whispered quietly.

"You have no reason to thank me. I'm the one that should be happy that you turned up. You really made my day."

I glanced up at him. He was gazing down at me with the same wide smile still painted on his lips. Surely me turning up, a complete wreck, tortured to the point of collapsing on his doorstep, wasn't his idea of making his day complete. Yet he looked genuinely content, more perfect than I gave him credit for.

He pulled me onto his lap, cradling me like an infant. He brushed back my tousled hair. "I'm always here for you. When you feel the need to talk, I'll be waiting in the sidelines."

I buried my face into his chest again. I knew that he was telling the truth, I just didn't know how well I could believe it. So simply, I nodded.

EPOV

I had to see her. No matter how long it took me, I had to make sure that she was okay. Because I certainly wasn't …

The world seemed empty without her smile. The stars seemed dark without her twinkling eyes. My life was incomplete without her. Full stop.

Her light, cotton jacket was lying in the passenger seat beside me, limp. It should have been her sitting in that seat. We would be holding hands, stupid smiles stuck on our faces not just because we could, but because we had the best reason in the world to.

"Don't," I told myself firmly in the darkness, washing away the beautiful picture.

I pulled into a lay-by, barely noticeable in the dim light, and turned the engine off. I sat in the darkness, listening to my own breathing. I squeezed my eyes shut and crossed my arms over the steering wheel, resting my forehead on my arms. I needed some time to think before I went to Charlie's house. If I arrived and she was there, how would I explain myself? How would I cope with seeing her quite suddenly all over again?

So I decided. I would leave it until we were both able to cope, after a good night's rest. Hopefully, we'd both be more awake in the morning.

I would only have to wait another seven hours before seeing her again.

There was a distant glow of headlights but it didn't matter to me. The vehicle would be too far away.

I had plenty of time to turn around.

I'm excited myself about writing the next chapter! What do you think will happen?

Unfortunately, I'm not sure how much longer this story is going to continue for ... :C

I'm aiming for at least five more chapters before I even consider wrapping this up. If anyone has any complaints concerning this, please write either in a review or to me and I'll try my best to somehow reorganise the plotline to make it last that little bit longer.

If five people write a review for any of my current chapters, I will put up a sneak peek for you all. I swear, I personally think it'll be worth it. I'm going to try and make the next chapter keep you on the edge of your seat!

I hope you all have an amazing day.

Love,

xXxGoldenFlowerxXx