A/N: Here's a new one. Bella/Edward this time. Snapshots of a life together. Short chapters, updating once a week.

Meeting (1998)

"Glad the rain held off, right?"

"Um, yeah."

"I probably would have come anyway, though. Their shows are always worth it. You a Metallica fan?"

"Did the t-shirt give it away?"

"Might have. Hi. I'm Edward."

"Bella. These giggling bitches are Angie, Jess, and my sister Tori."

"Hi, Edward," they chorus.

"You ladies here alone?"

"Yeah. Girls' night," Bella replies, gazing up at his green, green eyes. She only slurred a very little bit.

"Special occasion? You seem to have been celebrating already," he smirks, reaching out to grab her elbow, holding her steady.

"Bella graduated last month. She's finally made it home," Tori shares happily.

"Damn right, I did. Finally!"

"College, right?" he asks hopefully.

"Yes. William and Mary," she laughs, not too far gone to notice the slight desperation in his question. "Williamsburg is nice, but after I wrapped up my lease, it was time to come back to Virginia Beach."

"Thank fuck," he murmurs. "Congratulations, Bella."

"Thank you," she smiles, gazing downward this time.

"Are you here alone, Edward?" asks Angie, pulling his attention away from the quietly tipsy beauty he's trying to impress.

"What? Uh, no. I'm here with friends, too, as a matter of fact. Mind if we join you?"

"Bring them over," agrees Jess. She's always ready to meet someone new.

Turning to his left, he puts his fingers in his teeth and whistles in the way that all boys can, summoning his three nearly-as-attractive companions.

"Bella, Tori, Angie, Jess," he points to each in turn, "meet my brother Emmett, his girlfriend Rose, and my buddy James."

After banal greetings, some surreptitious eyeballing from Bella's girls towards James, and some distance-closing leaning between Bella and Edward, the first strains of a hard, guitar-driven melody are heard. They sway, bounce, then, as the evening progresses, all finally give in to the urge to headbang. A slower song begins, aptly titled "Nothing Else Matters," and he moves his arms around her, emboldened by the six dollar beer. They begin to dance on the lawn of the amphitheater.

"Hey, Bella," he whispers in her ear, having moved close enough to breathe goosebumps onto her skin.

"Yes, Edward?" she whispers as she leans into the space that seems to be reserved for her.

"This is our song."

(1998)

"Is it serious? What's he like? What's he do? What's he look like?" Renee Swan asks her daughter. She's excited there's a new man in her life. There hasn't really been anyone since Riley, in junior year, that made her Bella smile like this.

"How old is he?" asks Charlie. Her father hadn't really been thrilled that Riley had been thirty years old. He did not care that his Bella had been twenty-one. He and his wife did not agree on Riley.

Bella sighs inwardly and looks across the table to her sister. Tori merely smirks, a look that says You're on your own, kid.

"He's twenty-six, Dad. Hardly another dirty old man," she laughs. Her father wears a chastised yet relieved smile. "He's an architect at Cullen Building and Design. It's his dad's company. I don't know yet if it's serious, but maybe. I don't know. We'll see. It's been a nice couple of months."

"Two months and we haven't met him?" Renee is incredulous.

"I wanted to make sure he was worth it before I subjected us both to the 'meet the parents' thing."

Tori laughs. "He's worth it, Mom. Wait 'til you see them together. And he's hot. So handsome."

"I won't wait much longer to see for myself, will I?" It is not a question, not really. Renee is issuing an order.

"We were thinking maybe next month at the lake? We could rent a couple of cabins and do the family thing. You guys were going anyway, and his parents would love it, he says. That way, his brother and his girlfriend could come down and have some fun, too. Besides, I haven't been yet this year."

"Oh, my God," gasps Renee. "It is serious!"

(1998)

"Camping, Edward?" Esme Cullen can hardly believe her son has suggested this as a serious possibility.

"Bella's parents rent a cabin at Lake Gaston every year, Mom. There's boating, fishing, Jet Skis, whatever. Emmett's all for it, and he thinks he can convince Rose. Besides, you know Dad will love it."

"But camping? In North Carolina? There are many lovely places to visit here in Virginia, dear."

Why does his mother frustrate him so thoroughly? He runs his hands through his hair to calm himself. It always calms him when Bella does it. Deciding to change tactics, he turns back to face his mother.

"Don't you want to meet my girlfriend, Mom? Meet her family? She's become very … important … to me."

"What? What about Tanya?" This is not happening, Esme thinks.

"Tanya was only ever important to you and Rose," he tells her evenly.

"She's so suitable. A very nice girl. So like Rose."

"Exactly," he mumbles. "Come meet my Bella. It's only a weekend."

"All right, dear. If she means that much to you."

"She does."

(1998)

"She didn't have to be a bitch all weekend, Edward! It was embarrassing!" Bella cannot contain her fury any longer. All weekend she had kept her tongue for the sake of keeping the peace, but she will hold her tongue no more.

Edward, however, is in no mood to catch hell for something he had, in fact, not done.

"What the fuck do you want me to do about it? I talked to Emmett. He can't make Rose be nice, and neither can I. That's just how she is. You just have to get used to her."

"No, I don't think I will."

"What does that mean?" he asks, pausing in his packing of his truck. The trip home can wait; this shit needs to be handled.

"She was a bitch to me, snide to my sister, and ungrateful toward my parents. I realize she's your brother's girlfriend, but I'm yours. I expected you to step in on my behalf, even if the rest of your family didn't."

"You have a problem with my family?" He's furious.

"Other than the fact that they let that girl treat me like shit, no. I really like your parents. And Emmett's hilarious. And you need to stop yelling at me." She's hurt.

"I'm sorry," he huffs. "I really liked your Mom, you know. She's a lot like you. Smart and a little quirky. Not nearly as sexy, though," he says, stepping closer to rub her arms, both of them relaxing with the contact. "Tori's cool; she gives Em a run for his sarcastic money. Your dad scares the living hell out of me, though. I think he hates me."

"He does. But it's because he knows you're screwing his baby girl," she grins.

"I guess we weren't as quiet as we thought in the boathouse, huh?" he laughs, smiling at the memory.

She sighs and looks up to him. "Edward, I like the way this is going. I like you. A lot. But I have to feel like you have my back. Rose and her attitude shouldn't have been more important to you than the way she made me feel. Do you get that?"

"Yeah, I do. I'm sorry. I was an ass. Forgive me?"

"Yes. Just don't let it happen again," she tip toes to his lips and finally takes the kiss she'd been hoping he'd give her.

"Thank you, baby," he says pulling back only slightly to look into those deep brown eyes and feel at home. "They loved you, my parents." Well, his dad did, anyway. No sense in alerting Bella to his mother's reservations.

"I'm glad," she hums, nestling into his chest, her favorite place to rest.

"I love you," he whispers into her hair, taking a huge breath and holding it.

"I love you, too."

"Oh, thank fuck."