Edward POV

At the administration office I put my dazzling skills, as Bella affectionately called them, to use to arrange my new school schedule to match Bella's. Under Alice's advisement, the only class I would not be sharing with Bella was gym. Alice had sighted that due to my over-protective nature where Bella was concerned; being in the same class where there was even the smallest threat of bodily harm would not bode well for our other classmates. I had to agree with her. Given Bella's less than coordinated nature, even track and field could become a contact sport

We had gotten to the school early enough so we weren't bombarded by the inquisitiveness of other students but as the clock progressed nearer to the first bell, more and more students started to filter in bringing with them stares and ultimately questions that I really did not have the inclination to answer. Behind their prying questions, however, were accusations and memories.

I had expected this, even braced myself for it but for each former classmate I passed came on onslaught of guilt so staggering, I felt like Atlas himself with the weight of the world on his shoulders. Their memories of Bella after I had left were much worse than what I had been told.

Bella staring mutely out the window

Bella sitting alone at our old lunch table

Bella, arms wrapped around her thin body as if to hold it together.

I didn't know what affected me the hardest, the visual recollections or the accusations swirling around in the heads of every person, even the teachers, that I passed. It was then that I saw Bella at the opposite end of the hallway. She was being approached by Jessica and Angela. I knew Angela had seen me because her eyes narrowed.

"I don't care how scary he is. If he hurts her again, I'll kill him." I almost smiled at her words. She sounded like a mama bear protecting her cub and once again I was grateful Bella had a friend like her. It was the other one, I could do without. Why Bella chose to be around Jessica had always baffled me.

"Maybe I'll get a shot now. I mean he dumped her right. I am much prettier than she is…especially now." I wanted to growl at her. She didn't even compare to my Bella. Even if her features could be considered pretty, as soon as she opened her vile mouth, it branded her for the ugly vindictive bitch that she was.

Coming to stand behind Bella, my arms circled around her waist as I bent down to kiss the side of her head.

"Hello, love." I whispered to her. She smiled and leaned back into me slightly and I couldn't help but inhale her sweet scent. For some reason, it had a calming effect on me

"Hi back." She said.

Angela's eyes were still narrowed and she looked like she wanted to say something out loud to me but her mouth remained in a grim line. It didn't matter. Her thoughts were as loud to me as if she were speaking. "I won't say anything in front of Bella, but I got my eye on you mister"

Jessica's mouth had gaped open, the malicious gleam in her eyes turning to shock. I gave her a fixed stare. Did she really think she was fooling anybody, especially me, with her falsely sweet nature?

"Catching flies, Jessica?" I queried innocently. I heard both Bella and Angela try to suppress a giggle. Jessica abruptly closed her mouth. I knew she was feeling foolish and rightly so.

Satisfied that I shut her up for now, I turned my full attention to Bella. I noticed she opted for a long sleeve shirt to cover the bruises on her arms. I imagined they had not faded much for I could still feel the intense heat of them under her skin.

"Ready to go to first class?" I asked her.

She gave me a happily surprised look. "You're in my first class?"

"I am in all your classes." I told her smugly. "Well…all except gym." I shrugged. I wouldn't bother explaining to her the reason why.

Bella looked relieved. "That's great."

I heard Jessica snicker under her breath. It was so low neither Bella nor Angela heard it. "Too bad. If he saw what a klutz Bella really was compared to me he so would not be interested in her." I glared at her she instinctively took a step back.

Alice and Jasper approached us then. Be nice Edward. She warned. No matter how much you want to throw her down the hall like a bowling ball. It's bad form.

"Hi guys." She trilled happily. "I am so happy to be back. Californians are sooo fake. I much rather be where people are natural."

It was my turn to snicker. Alice definitely had a way of putting people in their place in the nicest possible way. A talent I never had the patience for.

Jasper only nodded a terse greeting to Jessica. "Hi Angela, Hey Bella…long time no see."

Bella, as if on cue, rolled her eyes. "You just saw me the other day, Jasper." She laughed and I knew she was playing along with us. Maybe she was aware of who Jessica really was a just dealt with her anyway. It was something Bella would do.

Most of the morning passed without incident although there were a few times I wanted to slam my fists into some of the other boys that still had loud vulgar thoughts about Bella even though it was clear that she was with me. If Bella noticed the tension in me every time some boy talked to her, she never said anything. I must be a better actor than I thought. It seemed all every teacher could concentrate on was college applications and driving the need to get them out promptly if they hadn't been already. I made a mental note to ask Bella, which, if any, colleges she had applied to. Maybe I could convince her to apply to Dartmouth. I always liked New Hampshire and I knew she would too.

When Bella went off to gym, the period before lunch, I went out to my car to sit out the 45 minutes until I saw Bella again. I inserted Vivaldi's Four Seasons hoping that it would put me in a better mood. From my rearview window, I could spot her antiquated Chevy truck whose only redeeming quality as far as I was concerned was it would barely sustain any damage if in an accident. I cringed at the thought of Bella driving down an icy Forks road, swerving and hitting a tree. It occurred to me then that while the truck wouldn't be harmed, Bella would. The thing was so old, it didn't have air bags.

I pressed Emmett's number on my cell phone, an idea coming to my head.

"Emmett. I need you to do me a favor." I said speaking quickly.

"Hello Edward, I'm fine and how are you?" He said sarcastically.

"Sorry" I apologized.

He snickered. "What do you need bro?"

"Do you think you can ask Rosalie to put install airbags into Bella's truck? She owes me."

"Are you insane? Why don't you ask her yourself or better yet just buy Bella a brand new car?"

I rolled my eyes even though Emmett couldn't see me. "As if Bella would ever let me do that. And Rosalie might do it if you asked her."

"Yeah and bears don't shit in the woods." Emmett could be so crass sometimes.

"Please."

"Fine but then you are the one that owes me."

"Done." I said quickly.

He let out a loud guffaw and hung up the phone most like amused at his own private joke. It didn't matter, as long as I knew Bella was safe, that was all I cared about. I closed my eyes letting the music soothe me.

There was a soft knock at the window of my car. Turning to view the intruder of my peace, I saw Angela, she looked both determined and frightened. I lowered the car stereo and opened my window to her.

You can do this Angela, you must. For Bella. Suddenly I got it. She was on a mission of warning.

"What can I do for you Angela?" I asked trying to be as unintimidating as possible. She backed up a couple of steps, no longer looking so determined. Then she straightened her back in her resolve. I was almost amused.

"I just wanted to say if you intend on hurting her again or leaving her again, you might as well go back to where you came from and not look back."

"I'm not leaving her again." I told her sincerely. As far as not hurting her, I did not know how to promise that. It seemed that I was always hurting her, no matter my good intentions. Yes, the road to hell was definitely paved with good intentions. Hadn't I already proved that?

She nodded stiffly. "Well, that's that then. I'll be watching you." She threatened and turned away. It was then that I felt the need to ask Angela what when on in my absence. After all, besides Alice, she was Bella's closest friend and probably would have more information than Charlie. She would also be brutally honest, not trying to spare my feelings. Knowing Bella, she would have tried to protect him from her pain. Who better to ask? I didn't question why I felt the need to torture myself this way.

"Angela" I called to her as she was walking away. She pivoted on her heel and looked at me warily. "Please tell me what happened to Bella when I left."

Should I?I don't think Bella would want him to know that. Maybe he should hear it. It would serve him right.

Angela strode up to me and looked at me very seriously. "Do you know what it's like to watch a person die a slow death?"

The dim human memory of my mother came back to me. Her will to live diminished with each wracking cough that tore through her sick body. I watched helplessly just a few days behind her from the same fate. Mutely, I nodded at Angela.

A sympathetic look came over her features. Oh he must be thinking about his parents. Should I even continue? Despite her internal uncertainty, she went on. "That's what it was like." She said gravely. "After the search party found her, she was out of school for a week."

This new piece of information shocked me to my core. "Search party?" I asked managing somehow to get the words out of my mouth. Why was it necessary to have a search party to look for her?

"Yes…er…on the day you left, Bella kind of disappeared. Charlie was frantic. No one knew where she was. Ben and I even helped to look. She was found later that night, deep in the forest by one of the Quileute boys. Physically she was okay with the exception of a few scratches but it wasn't her physical state that scared everybody." Angela shuddered from the memory and I saw what she had seen. Bella being carried out of the woods. Her eyes were open but looked like they saw nothing. One would almost think she was dead except she was speaking. "He's gone. He's gone"

How could she have gotten lost in the woods that day? I had spoken to her within full view if her house. Unless…unless she tried to chase after me. Again it struck me what a stupid fool I was to have ever left in the first place.

Angela waited while I absorbed what she had said and continued. "From what Charlie had told me, Bella had given up all together. She didn't eat, didn't talk and on those rare occasions where she actually slept, she suffered from horrific nightmares that made her wake up screaming. I visited her that week she wasn't at school hoping to coax a response from her but…there was nothing. It was Bella's body but Bella was gone." She sounded sad as if recalling the memories were going to make her cry. Hell, I wanted to cry if I could.

I saw her through Angela's eyes, rocking back and forth on the rocking chair in her room, arms wrapped around herself, a dead, haunted look in her eyes. I recognized that look. It was the same one that had been on my own face since I had left. All the time I had been away, I never once thought that Bella would wear the same expression. And once again I wondered how I could have been so blind.

"Surely she improved after time." I said. I couldn't believe, wouldn't let myself believe that Bella could be like that for seven months even though I had been, even though her attempted suicide was what provoked our reunion in the first place.

"It depends on what you mean by improve." Angela said wryly. "She did come back to school and went through the motions, only speaking when spoken to trying to stay below the radar of any potentially concerned teacher and most especially Charlie. Every day, at lunch, she would sit at your old table, alone. Like she was waiting for you. As I said, Bella but not Bella."

It very nearly broke my dead heart to hear this and I almost asked Angela to stop but I didn't. I had to know. It was very painful, extremely, so but nothing, no torture could ever compare to what I felt when I thought Bella was dead. So I let Angela resume, masochist that I am.

"This went on for a few months. Then out of the blue, she asked Angela to go to a movie in Port Angeles with her." I wished she would have asked me instead…maybe then… "Well the next day Jessica seemed kind of freaked out about the whole thing."

That in and of itself didn't surprise me, Jessica would freak out over a hair out of place, she was much like Rosalie in that fashion; consumed by her own appearance except Rosalie lacked the ditz factor but it was the tone of Angela's words that set me on edge. "What happened?" I couldn't help myself from asking. Judging from the expression on Angela's face, did I really want to know?

"Jessica told me that after the movie Bella approached this group of guys on motorcycles, claiming she knew them."

That threw me off guard as I remembered the night in Port Angeles, the night everything had changed for us. I had just rescued her from a group of ruffians that had intended her harm. Was this the same group she thought she was approaching that night? I was glad that Angela could not see my hands as they were surely making holes in the leather of my seat.

He looks very angry. Perhaps I should stop. "Should I go on?" She asked tentatively sensing my mood.

"Please" I whispered hoarsely fighting to retain my composure.

"She took off with one of them on the back of his motorcycle. Didn't come back for 20 minutes. Angela yelled at her of course but Bella really didn't seem fazed by it. It was after that night that Bella started hanging out with one of the boys from the reservation, Jacob Black, I think his name is. Anyway, she appeared to get a little better, more like Bella but different in many ways. I almost fooled myself into thinking she was better but I knew that wasn't the case."

"How could you tell?" I asked curiously. My mind reeled. Bella on a motorcycle with a complete stranger? Just the images of it and the possibilities of what could have happened made my guts churn in dread.

Angela smiled sadly then. "Every once in a while her mask would slip and I would see that girl again, the one that was broken and found in the forest."

We were both silent then as Angela. It was not a pretty tale and not an experience I would wish on my worst enemy and here I sat, the one that claimed to love her above all else and it was me that had put her through that.

"So now you know." Angela said nearly whispering.

"So now I know." I murmured repeating her words. And I wished I didn't.

"Uh, Edward, I have to go and meet Ben before lunch. Please don't tell Bella that I told you all this." Knowing her she would feel guilty that I told him about the pain he caused.

Apparently I wasn't the only one who knew Bella was selfless. No, these were not things that Bella would tell me on her own. "Don't worry. I won't. "And Angela? " I called to her as she turned away. She looked back at me. 'Thanks."

She nodded once and walked away leaving me with my guilt and my shame. Shame because I had accused her for lacking faith in my love; that she could so easily believe the lies I told her when in fact it was I that lacked faith in her love. I had foolishly let myself believe that she would forget and move on like others of her kind would do. Since when had Bella ever been like other humans? Wasn't that part of the reason I loved her so much? I had underestimated her once again.

The ringing of my cell phone distracted me from my morose musings. It was Alice.

"Get your brooding butt to the cafeteria, Edward."

"I'll be right there." I replied. It was time to see my Bella again.