First Time

EPOV

"Where did you find that?" Carlisle asked, that being the first sentence spoken since Alice and Jasper walked in with the note.

"Outside. It was attached to a tree facing the house," Alice answered, visibly shaken. She bent the paper and made the holes left by tearing it down more obvious.

How does he know already? Bella asked frantically. We just decided this morning! How does he know?

"The question might be more like how has he known all this time," I said. "We've never seen him, and yet he knows all about us."

"That's a good point," Carlisle said, "but do you remember what Bella said about him being able to look or be anyone? We could have met him a long time ago and never known it." I nodded looking down at the floor. I tried to think of anyone we hadn't really gotten along with since Bella and I came to Forks, but only one face came to mind.

"It has to be Lucas," I whispered, talking to myself. Bella turned to me, hearing what I said. I felt the gazes of the others land on me as well, but only looked at her. Her gaze was questioning and I sighed heavily.

"It has to be him, Bella. Think about it. Who gave me trouble as soon as I started at Forks High? Who only got worse once I met you? Who was the person who constantly attacked us whenever we were together? Who is the only person who seems to have a problem with us being together?" I asked, not giving anyone any time to respond.

"You said he has powers, many of which you don't know about. Who's to say he didn't see us getting together and decided to attack me before you even came to try to get me to keep to myself?" She nodded slowly, knowing I was right.

But what about how he knows so soon? How can he possibly know that we are staying together when we haven't seen Lucas in so long? Bella asked.

"Who was it that mentioned your bond to him? That the only way to free you was to break that bond? Was it Billy?" I asked. "Well, whoever it was, maybe they gave us the answer to that. What if he can tell what's happening to you through that bond? What if he can read your emotions through that bond like Jasper can read ours with his power?" I finished, not noticing my voice rising as I spoke. She nodded again, closing her eyes as tears welled up again.

"And that would only be the best case scenario," I continued. "What if he can see what's happening through your eyes? Just like he was you? We don't know the extent of this bond between you two, but we do know that it can be broken. All we have to do is find out how to break it."

That's a lot easier said than done, she responded. I gave a half chuckle and squeezed her once.

"We'll figure it out. Somehow, we'll do it," I said, trying to give her some hope after my pessimistic ranting. I looked at everyone else for the first time and saw determination in every single pair of golden eyes. I gave a sad smile, knowing it wasn't going to be easy for us, but our family was behind us in this. As far as I was concerned, that's all we needed.

The next day was December 22, and the whole day was spent decorating the house. Jasper, Carlisle, Emmett and I got all of the boxes of decorations from the attic and the girls decorated. Danni tried to help and Bella raised her up whenever something was too high for her. I was just handing different things out and watching as all of them agreed on where one little thing should go. I told Danni what each thing was as I handed them to her and she attempted to say their names until she got close. We stopped around noon so Danni and I could have lunch, Esme insisting on making it, before we finished downstairs and went upstairs.

Each of the bedrooms was decorated by the people who slept in it, but most of the decorating was done on the first floor. We were done by eight o'clock that, but it was worth it. The whole house, inside and out, looked like something out of a Christmas movie.

There were lights outlining the ceiling, the ones in the living room flashing every now and then. Garland was hung from the ceiling as well, like sparkling vines weaving around the room. There were also strands draped across the windows and doorways. Everything was either green and red or draped over by something those colors, transforming the house into a fairytale. Danni came running over and grabbed my pant leg, shaking me to get my attention.

What about the tree? She signed after she let go.

I looked at Esme, who pointed at the door just as it opened and Jasper walked in. He was followed by a huge green pine tree and Emmett's triumphant face as he looked at everyone else. Danni squealed and ran over to him, her head barely meeting the bottom of the tree branches hanging from Emmett's shoulder. She threw her arms out in exclamation and came running back over, pulling on my pant leg and pointing frantically.

Is that ours? It's so big! What are we going to put on it? She asked, not giving any of us enough time to answer. I had to resort to grabbing her hands to get her to stop. I gave her a questioning look and she looked back innocently. I smiled and shook my head, slowly letting go of her hands in case she tried to go off again.

"What are you going to put on it?" I asked her. She looked at me wide-eyed and then turned to everyone else. They just smiled at her and Esme gestured to the boxes full of decorations.

Danni squealed and ran over, going up on her tip-toes to look in each of the boxes. She grabbed something out of one and ran over to another, not pausing as she started collecting what she wanted. Her arms quickly filled and she put what she had collected in a careful pile on the floor. She kept running from box to box, stopping only to put her choices down so she could pick more.

She paused at one box, her hands clenching the sides as she made a surprised sound. She reached in slowly, like it was something delicate, and Esme leaned over to see what she had found. She smiled, expressing an old sadness, but didn't say anything about it. When Danni pulled it out, all of us but Esme and Bella reacted the same way she did.

It was a brilliant silver and gold star. The main part of the star was silver with shiny gold garland outlining the outside. There was a small set of gold angel's wings set in the middle of the star and a silver halo around the top point. Little Christmas bulbs were hidden in the silver and gold garland, with the outer bulbs ranging in color. The center bulbs were clear or tinted yellow to make a soft gold color when they were turned on.

"Oh, it's gorgeous!" Alice exclaimed breathlessly. Danni walked over and held it up to me, her eyes asking. I looked at Esme, who smiled and nodded once. Carlisle walked over to her and wrapped his arm around her waist. She leaned into him, her eyes watching something only she could see. The rest of us looked away, letting her have her moment.

"Is that the one you want to use?" I asked Danni. She nodded enthusiastically and I smiled softly. "Put it on the counter and we'll put everything else on first. This way there's no chance of it being damaged while we're decorating the rest of the tree." She nodded and Carlisle took it from her, slowly setting it down behind him.

She took my hand and pulled me over to her piles. She let go of my hand and did the same to Bella, making her stand next to me. She grabbed us and pulled us down with her so that we were at her level and started sorting her one large pile into smaller ones. She moved one small pile towards Bella and another towards me. She kept a pile next to her and made two others off to the side. There didn't seem to be any connection between the items she grouped together, but I just decided to let her be.

Edward, you are going to put those ones on the tree, she signed, pointing to my pile. I nodded and she turned towards Bella. And I want you to put these ones up. Bella smiled and nodded, even though it looked like she could barely see what Danni was signing. I told myself to ask her about it later and focused on the task Danni had just given to me.

I picked up a couple of the ornaments in my pile and went over to the tree. Bella followed suit, slowly feeling the separate ornaments for their hooks. I started hanging them, moving this way and that around the tree until I was on my last. I looked over at Bella, who was feeling for a free branch, and then at her pile. It was still mostly full.

"Do you want help?" I asked, lightly placing a hand on her shoulder. She turned towards me and nodded, her eyes searching more frantically than usual. I watched her for a few seconds and noticed her hands shaking slightly. I couldn't hear her breathing, but it seemed like she was breathing faster, like she was panicking.

"Bella, are you okay?" I whispered softly. She nodded sharply, but she looked down towards her feet. I wasn't convinced, but I let it go for now.

I kissed her cheek and she smiled before turning back to her evasive branch. We finished up her pile together and Danni helped with the last few. She stood back and gave the tree a once-over before turning around. She scanned the stacks of boxes, like she was looking through their contents with her mind, and ran over to one on the far side. She moved the boxes in front and took the one off the top and searched until she had what she was looking for.

She came back with a large bag of silver tinsel and raised it up to me, asking if we could use it. I looked at Carlisle and Esme, who just waved their hands to give the go-ahead, and smiled at Danni. She handed me the bag and observed as I put the tinsel on. She tugged on my shirt when I put enough in a certain spot and pointed at areas that didn't have enough.

We ended up using half the bag before she was satisfied and Emmett lifted her onto his shoulders so she could set the star on top. She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck to steady herself. I handed her the star and she took it carefully, cradling it in her arms as Emmett carefully moved to the right spot for her to put it on. She raised it up and moved the small elastic band around the top of the tree to secure it. Alice reached up towards her with an extension cord and Danni attached it to the small plug. Esme walked over and flipped the switch once Danni had moved her hands away and the room was filled with a soft golden glow, even with the sunlight streaming through the windows.

"It's beautiful, Danni," I said, moving next to Emmett so I could look at her. She tilted her head to the side in confusion. I smiled and repeated myself, signing so that the words and motions matched up. Comprehension dawned across her face and she nodded enthusiastically, looking back at her masterpiece. Emmett moved her onto my shoulders and she squealed in surprise. She laughed and hugged my head once she realized what was going on and I chuckled, patting her leg. She then proceeded to mess with my hair, pulling on the parts that had decided to rebel. She laughed every time I flinched and I gave Emmett a warning look as his booming laughter filled the living room.

"What?" he asked innocently, the mischievous spark in his eyes telling me he knew what I meant. Bella walked over and linked her arm through mine, her hand lightly grabbing my arm before she slipped it through. I looked at her worriedly and Esme gently took Danni from my shoulders.

"Do you want to help me make some cookies, dear?" Esme asked her, surprising both of us by signing. Danni smiled and clapped her hands, nodding her head repeatedly. She took Esme's hand and skipped into the kitchen.

I entwined my fingers with Bella's and gently pulled her towards my room. She didn't resist, hanging her head as we walked. I looked back at the others and saw worry on each of their faces, all of them noticing the same changes in Bella that I had. I pulled her in after me and shut the door slowly.

She let go of my hand, letting her fingers slide through mine as she walked over to the bed. She sat in the middle of the bed and brought her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and burying her face. Her body shook with constricted sobs and I sat next to her. I put my arms around her and she leaned into me, turning her face into my shoulder. I gently moved her so that she was sitting in my lap.

"Bella, please tell me what's wrong," I pleaded into her hair. She brought her arms out so I could see her hands, but she was shaking too much to sign. I gently brought her arms back against her and hugged her tightly to me. Her reaction to whatever was going on worried me, but I wasn't going to pressure her. I could tell that she wanted to tell me, but she couldn't. At least not right now.

So I held her. I held her as she cried. I held her as she fought with her emotions. I held her as she wrestled with whatever had consumed her so fully. I held her as she fought with herself to tell me what was wrong.

I pressed my lips to the top of her head and then her forehead. She turned her face up and caught my lips with hers, frantically kissing my mouth like it would be the last time. She cupped the side of my face with her hand, not letting me turn away, so I kissed her back. I kissed her until she collapsed into tears again, my breath ragged. I took her face in my hands and turned her towards me, wiping at the tears pouring down her face.

"He's coming, isn't he?" I whispered. She closed her eyes tightly and nodded. She tried to look down again, but I didn't let her.

"Your vision is getting worse as he gets closer, isn't it?" She nodded again, but didn't open her eyes.

"Bella, how bad is it?" I asked her gently, rubbing her cheeks with my thumbs. She leaned back and I let my hands drop to her sides. She wiped the stray tears from her face and opened her eyes. Her hands were still shaking when she raised them, but she tried anyway.

I can't see anything now…Just blurs of grey, black, and white…No shapes...And everything is getting darker by the minute… she signed. I took her hands in mine and kissed her fingers. I kept them against my chest as she laid her head on my shoulder and looked out my window. A bright pink sunset streamed in through the paned glass and I could smell Esme and Danni's baking downstairs.

"I'm not going to let him hurt you. You or anyone else. I promise you that. He'll pay for what he's done to you and Danni," I said quietly. I didn't think I convinced her, but she just nodded her head and buried her face into my neck.

I felt her press her lips to my skin and heard Alice's voice outside. She was telling Danni that they were going to play with her for a while. Bella kept moving her lips around my neck, making it impossible for me to think about anything but her. I let out an involuntary groan and she smiled against me. Two and two finally clicked together and I froze, understanding what she was doing. She felt my tension and drew back, her almost sightless eyes pleading with me.

Please…While we still have the chance…While I can still see… I hesitated for only a second before bringing my mouth to hers. She gently pushed me back so that I was laying down and settled herself on top of me.

Bella and I took what could have been our last chance to be together that night. It was one thing that nothing would ever take from me, nothing I would ever forget.

APOV

I looked up at their bedroom window and then at Jasper. I smirked at him and he smiled back, looking over to where Danni was playing with Emmett. I wrapped my arms around him from behind and he put his hands over mine.

"I told you," I whispered into his back.

"This is why I never doubt you," he said. I hummed in victory.

"I just hope it helps. We don't know what we're up against here, and from what I can tell, we only have two days to figure it out. And that's two days at best, one at the worst." I sighed and Jasper pulled me around so I was in front of him.

"It makes sense that it would. Their pasts, their friendship, their restrictions, their need for acceptance…All of those things brought them to this point. Maybe all they need to win this is each other. If that's the case, now they're as close as they can ever get," he said. I laced my fingers together behind his neck and leaned back.

"I think that's the most you've said in a long time," I said, half laughing. He smiled and laughed, hugging me to his chest and pressing his lips against mine. I leaned back and looked at him.

"Come on. We have a child to entertain."

A/N: SOOOOOOOOOO sorry for the wait, but the past few weeks have been ridiculous. The good thing is my graduation was Saturday, so I'm officially DONE with high school. Hopefully this frees up more time, but I can't promise anything.

Also, I tried to keep it as close to T rating as I could, so please let me know if it went a little far. It was barely anything, but I just want to be sure.

The song for this admittedly shorter chapter is First Time by Lifehouse.

Please review!

Class of 2K10! 3