DISCLAIMER: I do not own twilight

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I also updated two more chapter's of my other story. I'm actually kind of excited about the last chapter so if you want to you could read that one too. Read and review like you always do. Thanks!

-EPOV-

James had Bella cornered when I arrived at her last class. I felt a snarl rip from my chest as I watched her step back until her back was against the wall of the home-ech building.

"I have a date for the dance. Thanks anyways." she whimpered.

James scoffed.

He knew very well that she had a date for the dance and that she had a boyfriend for that matter. Not to mention she had already turned this invitation down once before. He simply enjoyed the chase. He found joy from watching her squirm.

"Is there a problem here?" I asked, while I wrapped my arm around Bella's waist in a proprietary way.

James looked at my arm and smirked.

"No problem at all."

I looked at James with pure, unadulterated, anger and hatred. It was that powerful. Anyone who represented a threat to my Bella was an enemy.

"I am sure that's how you see it." I replied coldly. "But I really only find interest in how Bella sees it."

I looked down to see Bella burying her head in my chest.

"I'm fine." She mumbled.

I glared at James.

"You should find relief in the fact that Bella is a forgiving person."

James smirked.

"Love?" My voice softened noticeably as I turned my attention to Bella, kissing the top of her head. "Please wait for me in the car."

I kept my composure flawlessly but I knew the second Bella was out of my sight I would lose all the composure I had once claimed and I would deal with this frivolous bully once and for all.

"Edward…" Bella said nervously as if she knew my secret plans.

I hugged her tight as I kept my eyes trailed deliberately on James.

"It's alright." I reassured her. "I will meet you at the Volvo in ten minutes." I sent a murderous glare to James. "It shouldn't take any longer than that."

She bit her lip as she deliberated and I sighed but eventually she did walk away, looking back twice as she made her way to the car. She listened to me? That was a first.

"James." I snapped roughly, drawing his attention back to me, as he had previously been watching Bella walk away.

"This is going to end." I told him without a hint of doubt in my voice.

He scoffed but I continued to speak, determined not to be deterred from my message. Although it would be much easier to beat the message into his thick skull something in the back of my mind told me I would be even less deserving of Bella if I rearranged his face… no matter how deserving it was.

"You are making Bella feel uncomfortable and you need to leave her alone." I stated plainly, trying desperately to control my tone so it sounded effortlessly calm.

"Who's going to make me?" asked an overly confident James.

I growled. Before I knew what I was doing I had James's collar in my fist and he was pinned against the home-ech building. A part of me idly wondered if he realized the irony of the situation, seeing as he had Bella back up against this same wall only moments before. I tightened my grip on his shirt at the memory.

"Let me make this perfectly clear." I spat. "I'll speak slowly so you can understand."

James was wide eyed and the color was draining from his face as he realized he had not only underestimated my strength but my feelings for Bella.

"Bella is mine. I feel very protective of her so forgive me if I found your actions today slightly unsettling."

James wasn't only pallid. He was no longer breathing. I wasn't sure if that was a reaction to my threats or an effect of dangling from my fist by his collar.

"You will leave her alone." I said intentionally slow, enunciating every word so there was no miscommunication of some sort.

I was not making a request. It was a demand.

James swallowed but didn't respond so I pushed him a little further up the wall so that his feet weren't touching the ground.

"I'm going to need you to clarify that you're understanding me here James."

This was not who I was but the determination to keep Bella safe was unmistakable.

James nodded and I let his tiptoes touch the ground but no more.

"So we have an agreement?"

James scowled and clenched his teeth, not one that easily gave up or to admit that someone had the upper hand on him. He was not too thrilled, to say the least, but he nodded reluctantly and I set him down and stepped back.

"Feel free to share the message that Bella is unavailable that night. To be perfectly honest she'll be unavailable every night, as far as anyone besides myself is concerned. No offense. And I'm sorry to ruin your plans." I knew I didn't sound sorry in the least. (AN: What Edward says here is taken from page483 of twilight when he's talking to Tyler Crowley.)

"Yeah yeah." James replied casually as he rubbed the back of his neck and I walked away with a smirk.

---

Bella looked at me expectantly as I got into the Volvo but I simply shrugged.

"I believe James will be able to behave himself now." I told her confidently.

She watched my face as I pulled out of the parking lot, no doubt looking for signs of what happened.

"Are you free tonight?" I asked pleasantly, attempting to distract her.

She wrinkled her brow and I chuckled. She looked so adorable when she was confused.

"Why?"

I grinned and laced our fingers together on the center consol.

"I do not believe we have had our first date yet."

Bella blushed and I kissed her knuckles before letting our hands rest back on the consol. It would never cease to amaze me at how easily she would blush. I loved her blush but sometimes it was brought on by the littlest things.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

I chuckled.

"It's a surprise." I told her smugly.

I knew she didn't like surprises but I hopped she would like this one.

"I hate surprises." She groaned.

"I know but I have been planning this one for a long time so humor me."

I looked over at her and she pouted but didn't say anything more.

"I'll pick you up at five." I told her and she sighed but then her eyes lit up.

"Okay." She replied and I watched her quizzically.

"Why the sudden change in mood?" I asked suspiciously.

She blushed and looked down at her hands.

"I'm always happy when I know we'll be together." She whispered.

My heart soared with her words. I still couldn't believe she loved me, that she had chosen me.

I tilted her head so that she had to look at me. I didn't want her to feel embarrassed by telling me such things. She had to realize I loved her more than she did me.

"I love you." I told her and I knew my eyes were smoldering with all the love I felt for her. She called it dazzling but she was the one who dazzled me.

"I love you too."

I smiled and looked back to the road. Driving came second nature to me but with Bella in the car I couldn't be too careful.

"Now." I said. "Would you like to tell me more about your brother?"

She nodded and I smiled to myself. She had had a miserable time when I had first suggested this to her but she had kept at it. She had struggled through the bad memories that were no doubt more clear so that she could find the happy memories and she told me all that she remembered no matter how difficult the process had been for her. I was so proud of my angel.

I had always thought of her as weak and fragile, someone who needed protecting, and to an extent I was correct. But she was also stronger than I would have ever guessed.

I believe the process was actually starting to help too. It had been almost a month since she had shared that first memory with me. She had cried all the way home because of the bad memories it had brought with it. I cringed and swallowed around the vile that left a threatening lump in my throat as she had told me those memories as well.

She told me about the day she found out her brother was never coming home, the call she had gotten and how her mother had gone numb as soon as she heard. She was still in that state Bella told me. She told me about how she had to identify the body because her mother was too far gone by that time. And she told me about the girl, Emily Strut, who had held her hand at the funeral on one of the coldest days in the history of Arizona. I yearned to find that woman and thank her for all that she had done for my Bella because as little as that gesture may seem to her, Bella still remembers that out of all the other memories of the funeral.

I wish more than anything on this earth that I could have been there to comfort her when she needed it the most. But I would have to be satisfied being the one who held her hand as she sifted through all of these memories, sharing in her joy on the good days when she remembers the good times, and sharing in her pain when she found the ones that were easiest to find.

As hard as it had been for her in the beginning, and for myself as well to be perfect honest, she had kept at it and it seemed to be getting a little easier at least. Every time we were alone, whether it was on the way to school or spending time together in our meadow we would continue where we had left off and Bella would delve back into the confines of her mind. There were less and less bad memories to share as the days wore on but they were still there.

I also had a growing appreciation for the man that she had lost as I learned more about him. He had been very spontaneous. He had gotten into a lot of trouble I had learned, and he had hauled Bella through most of it with him but she always spoke of their adventures with enthusiasm and fondness. She had seen things and gone places that she never would have had the opportunity to if he hadn't convinced her and she never spoke with even a hint of regret. She spoke as if they were gifts from Zach. And I suppose they were since they had all made it into the good memories file. Zach may be gone but a big fraction of him lived on because he was a big portion of who Bella had grown to be.

AN: Please review. I love seeing what you guys are thinking of the story. There are probably only five more chapters at most. But I was thinking of doing a sequel. What do you think?

No preview of the next chapter this time because I don't have time but check back tomorrow or the next day for the next chappie=)