Twilight is not mine.

Thanks for the reviews and the favoriting. It's awesome.

I'll probably do another "Into the Eclipse" chapter after I do the next chapter of this story…in case you were wondering.

xXx

Chapter 3.

Edward

I missed the rest of the first week of school. Not that I was concerned; I can't even remember how many first weeks of senior year I had had. After two days in the land of the midnight sun, I knew I was going to go back to Forks. It took me two more days to convince myself I was strong enough to do it. All the while, Carlisle and Esme were taking turns calling me and begging me to come home. I tried to stop thinking about Bella, and by the time I left on Friday night; I was down to only thinking about her for half the day. Maybe I wouldn't be back at school on Monday, but I would be back. That I was certain of.

The weather was disgusting when I made it back into Forks. Of course, I enjoyed the overall dark atmosphere. It was home. I pulled up to the Cullen mansion and noticed that Emmett and Rosalie were still there. They must have postponed their latest honeymoon while they waited for me to decide to come back.

Rosalie was going to be pissed. At me.

Wonderful.

It was early Saturday morning, probably just before two. I stopped a few times between Alaska and Washington. One of those times was to hunt.

Shutting the car door, I made my way to the front door. Carlisle and Esme were happy to see me. Alice and Jasper were nowhere to be found. Before I could find Rosalie and Emmett, I felt a fist slam into my jaw.

"You're a fucking jerk, you know that?" Rosalie was pulling her arm back.

"You have a mean right hook, you know that?" I was rubbing my jaw, unsympathetic.

"He meets one stupid human girl and she sends him running," she was throwing her hands up into the air, real Rose style. Like a Hollywood diva. I rolled my eyes at Emmett, who was chuckling silently.

"Whatever," and I was walking out of the room and up the stairs. Where was Alice? Carlisle was following me upstairs and thinking the same thing.

"Edward," he reached out for me as I landed on the top stair. I turned to face him.

"I'm glad you're back."

And just like that, he was gone. That man has too many feelings, even by human standards. Needless to say, his unending humanity exhausted me.

I walked into my room and shut the door behind me. The only thing I wanted to hear right now was The Doors. Not just because the music seemed to suit my mood, but because the last time I really felt normal was hanging out with Jim Morrison. Because when you're tripping on peyote, you don't tend to notice that one of the guys you've been hanging out with is glittering under the glaring sun in the California desert.

Also, when the rest of the family heard the sound of the organ, they knew better. It meant that I was in a particularly broodish mood. Or at least pretending to be. Nobody liked to deal with me when I was being...difficult.

Whatever.

So I listened to Riders On the Storm, and thought about the last time I didn't have to hide what I was. I was left alone and watched the sun come up with Morrison crooning in the background. It made me feel morose. As if that was anything new. I needed to do something to prove to myself that I wasn't losing it.

The day was shaping up to be a good day to go sparkle in the sun.

Alone and tucked away from the human populous anyway. But I had to do something that made me feel…something. Anything. I had to face myself and what I was.

Because it was the only way to deal with this whole Bella situation.

Instead of leaving out the front door, I decided to slip out my balcony window. I didn't want to explain anything. The last thing I heard as I left was

Don't you love her madly, don't you need her badly
Don't you love her ways, tell me what you say
Don't you love her madly, wanna be her daddy
Don't you love her face
Don't you love her as she's walkin' out the door

I fucking hope not.

There was this clearing, a meadow, that I liked to visit. It was a place for me to think. People rarely hiked that far back, so I was usually able to hang out in all my monstrous vampire glory.

That was I was going to do. Sit in the sun and sparkle while I thought about what a monster I am.

I'm okay with being a monster, honestly. It's just hard to be so isolated. To be amongst your own kind and still feel different. That's how Bella made me feel. Like there was something seriously wrong with me. She made me insecure in my abilities to control myself and my surroundings.

She made me insecure.

Like , what if she could see right through me? Suddenly, I didn't like what I saw.

I laughed out loud, "she'd probably run screaming from you if she knew what you really were."

Bella, I don't blame you.

The other thing I like about the meadow is that it's so secluded; I can usually let my mind wander. There aren't as many thoughts to catch out here. I started thinking about going back to school on Monday. What kind of story I'd have to concoct for missing an entire week so soon. Then I finally settled on thinking about Bella.

And then I caught a meandering thought. It was about 30 or 40 miles away. They were wondering about a girl walking down the side of the road. Judging by the thoughts, I gathered it was a man. I caught a good glimpse of the girl he was thinking about. It was Bella. What was she doing?

Bella

So, Charlie says "stay away from the woods." Suddenly, going to the woods sounds like a better than smoking as far as the levels of teenage rebellion go. I might make myself into a fantastic model of teenage angst perfection if I don't watch it.

I had been out here for about two hours. There was no way I was going into the woods, since I didn't know the area. I would, however, hang around close the road and inspect the perimeter. I wasn't finding much, but at least it got me out of the house.

Some douche bag in a green El Camino honked at me and made a rude gesture with his tongue. I flipped him off. El Camino's are ridiculous cars and people that drive them deserve the bird anyway. Not that I'm some kind of car buff or elitist. El Caminos just piss me off. They look stupid. Be a truck or a car. Don't be both.

I was just about to get back in my red pile of rust and drive down another few miles when I saw him.

Haphazard and disarrayed bronze hair and shining golden eyes. Really mad looking golden eyes, I might add.

He stayed carefully close to the woods, probably trying to decide if he wanted to approach me. After about a minute or two, he must have decided on a game plan. He started walking toward me. I guessed he was going to say something to me. Although I didn't know what I could possibly be doing that might offend him. He didn't get too close.

"What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here. It's not safe," he looked about as unmoved as he sounded.

"Well, thanks dad," I shrugged.

"It's dangerous to be around here by yourself."

"Well, I'm not by myself. Now, I'm with you."

He looked at me very hard.

"Go home, Bella."

"I'll leave when I feel like I have accomplished what I came here for," I stared back at him. Who does he think he is, telling me what to do?

"If you don't want to leave, fine. But don't say I didn't warn you," he started walking away from me.

"For the record, Edward Cullen, I don't care much for being told what to do," I yelled out to his back. He stopped for a second. I figured he'd keep going, but then he surprised me.

He turned around and came back. This time without the angry eyes.

"I'm sorry," he shrugged as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Whatever," and I went back to walking towards my truck. It was about a mile and a half down the road.

He was following me. What was he up to?

"I don't need an escort," I stopped and looked at him. It was clear to me by the tone in his voice and look in his eyes when he came out of the woods that he wasn't in the mood for friendly chit chat. Why was he sticking around? Maybe he was thirsting for my blood. If that were the case, whatever kind of day he was having that put him in such a bad mood was going to get a lot worse.

"I don't mean to be rude," he stopped, sensing that I was uncomfortable with him following me.

Rolling my eyes, I turned around and faced him. He looked confused. Like he didn't know what he was doing any better than I did.

"It's fine. I was thinking about heading back home anyway. Maybe I'll see you at school on Monday," I wasn't really thinking about heading home until about the time Edward started following me to my truck. I wasn't sure if he was warning me about him or something else, and suddenly I wasn't really interested in finding out.

"Yeah," was all he said. He watched me get in the truck. Once the engine started, he disappeared back into the woods. I would just have to wait until Monday to see what he game he was running.

Monday came too soon, and the birthday countdown was back on. Renee texted me bright and early in the morning. All it said was T minus 5 days and counting! I hadn't slept in a few days. Between birthday anxiety and the dreams I was having about Edward, there was hardly any reason to even close my eyes at night these days. I was hoping things would settle down a little after Saturday.

So the waiting game begins.

I took the time to brush my hair this morning. Maybe it was because I thought I'd see Edward in Physics. Or maybe it was because I slept on it funny and it wouldn't just pull up like it usually does. It was another sweatshirt and jeans day. Which was almost every day. I was saving the real traffic stopping stuff for when I needed to shock Jessica's crew or catch some unwanted attention.

I was getting used to being treated like a pariah at school and started spending lunch in the library. The wall across from the last shelf of books had become my lunchtime home, and this is where I was Monday. This is where things started to get weird. Well, weirder than usual.

Leaning against the wall and sitting on the floor, I was reading some book off the list for English. I don't even know what it is, it was that uninteresting. Probably Steinbeck. I felt a strange surge of electricity, and sat up straighter. I continued reading then I heard a voice.

"I love literature, but I can't stand the standard American Literature curriculum," I jumped and turned to see who the voice was coming from. Our faces were almost touching. The wide look in my eyes made Edward grin as he slowly backed away from me.

"Jesus! You can't sneak up on someone like that," I breathed, my heart beat slowly returning to normal.

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't watch you read that without commenting," he smiled.

"You almost gave me a god damn coronary," I whispered and he chuckled quietly.

"I see that while I was away, you found my secret hiding place," he was leaning his head against the wall.

"I didn't know this was already your fortress of solitude," I offered. I was still feeling an electric current pulsing through me, and I wondered if maybe my fear gave me some kind of anxiety attack.

"Not to worry," he turned his head to look at me, "I should really be spending my lunch breaks overseeing operations at LexCorp."

It was my turn to chuckle.

"What are you hiding from?" he asked me.

"Jessica Stanley and her homies," I laughed as I heard it out loud. A look crossed his face, but it was gone before I had a chance to place it.

"What has she done to you?"

"Nothing yet, but it's only a matter of time before her and Lauren dump a vat of pig's blood on me."

"What'd you do to them?" there was some incredulousness in his voice.

"I was born. Then I was more awesome then they are. Oh, and there was the part when I heard them talking about how I was a big lesbian in the locker room," I sighed and he looked at me, "and then I proceeded to act like one just to freak them out." He laughed.

"Lauren is a bitch. Jessica is…well I don't know what Jessica is. Shit for brains comes to mind," before the bell rang, he stood up and offered me his hand. I took it.

The electricity from our palms touching almost knocked me backward. He held tighter and pulled me up. As soon as I was upright, he let go of my hand. By the dumbfounded expression on his face, I could tell he felt it too.

Edward

It was bad enough that I could hear her pulse calling to me whenever I got anywhere near her. But I could have really done without the added electromagnetic force between us. It was also annoying to know that it affected her too. Because I could really do without her following me around like a puppy dog or asking me a bunch of questions I can't answer.

And I still hadn't seen Alice or Jasper. I guessed they were avoiding me because Alice was trying to hide more potentially dangerous information from me. The idea of skipping the rest of the day occurred to me, but I couldn't think of a good reason to leave. When I did find Alice, she was going to get it.

I walked into Physics class and knew Bella wouldn't be there. She was left standing in the library. Because I am a pussy. Because Edward Cullen is losing his fucking mind.

I sat down at my desk and got a few sneers from Newton and Crowley. Lauren was sitting in the back of the classroom wondering how Bella couldn't find me attractive.

Again, I will never understand women. Of course, it would help if I could read Bella's mind.

Newton was talking about what a prick I am and I was about to throw a pencil at him when she walked in. Looking like nothing had happened. Looking absolutely beautiful. I wanted to touch her arm or put her loose hair behind her ear.

Jesus. Get a grip.

She sat next to me and said nothing for a few minutes. Fisher started droning on about inertia. Finally, after I assumed she thought I was some kind of freak, she turned and looked at me. I returned her gaze.

"So where were you last week," she whispered.

"Strep throat. I was highly contagious," I answered, keeping my eyes locked with hers. Trying to ignore the thoughts around the room, I kept talking. "I'm allergic to penicillin so my father made me stay home longer. Just in case."

"Sorry to hear that. Well, let me know if you want to borrow my notes or get together and go over anything," she took her eyes off of me and returned to the lecture. I wasn't so sure she bought my explanation. There was something about the way she turned away from me that left me wondering.

We said nothing to each other for the rest of the class. When the bell rang, she left me sitting at the desk all by myself. Now I knew how she felt last week.

The other classes I had were inconsequential. More so than my other classes. No one interesting and not one solid thought I cared about. I left my last period a few minutes early to wait for Alice out by her car. She got to school before me, but I knew she'd never leave the Porsche behind. Even if I was waiting for her. There must have been an announcement before the last bell because all the students were buzzing about the homecoming dance. Newton and Crowley were both thinking about asking Bella.

I saw her gliding across the parking lot to her truck. There was some kind of assurance in her that I didn't understand. She was so deliberate. Her head was held up and I watched her slow down to exchange a few insults with Lauren. There was something creepy about the way I was watching her, but I couldn't stop. She was flushed from gym class and wasn't wearing her sweatshirt. Her ponytail was pulled off her neck.

I wanted to breathe her in at the moment, but I resisted the urge. She answered her phone and I could tell she was irritated by the person on the other end. She threw her backpack in the cab and leaned over the edge of the truck with her back to me. I desperately wanted to watch her expressions.

Then I saw it. A minivan careening out of control trying to avoid hitting a few younger students who weren't watching what they were doing. It was like watching a bad action scene in slow motion. I realized where the van was heading. Straight into Bella's truck, and she wasn't paying attention.

I did the only thing I could do.

Save her.

Not just for her. But for me. Because if even one drop of her blood was spilled, there was no way I was going to be able to resist.

Bella

My mother just would not quit. I was getting ready to start screaming at her when I sensed something wasn't right. The white noise around me seemed to disappear, and I turned around expecting to see the school on fire or something just as unbelievable. Instead, I saw the side of a red van coming straight towards me. I was going to drop down and roll under my truck. Hoping that I could do it fast enough.

As soon as I hit the ground, I felt the air rush around me. I was too late. There was no way I was getting out of this. I was going to be crushed between two of the ugliest vehicles in the parking lot. I laughed at the stupidity of my last fleeting thought. There was a loud crash around me.

I realized I wasn't dead and I looked up.

Edward Cullen was staring at me, bewildered. His body shielding me and one arm holding the van out about a foot behind him. He said nothing and disappeared almost as quickly as he came. Then the crowd gathered, and I knew I wouldn't get my chance to ask him why. Not yet, anyway.

It was embarrassing. To ride in an ambulance and sit in the ER and be the center of attention when there wasn't a visible mark on my body. I felt ridiculous. Charlie showed up at the hospital about ten minutes after I did. He was livid and on a mission to find the owner of the van that almost killed me. It was Tyler Crowley. Unfortunately for Charlie, Tyler looked worse than I did. So he left the poor guy alone.

Charlie was playing the role of overly concerned father when the doctor walked in. Something about the doctor was familiar. His name badge read C. Cullen, MD. I decided it must be Edward's father. But that still didn't explain why he was giving me serious déjà vu moments. He checked my chart then looked at me and smiled.

"How are you feeling, Isabella?" he smiled at me and I immediately felt at ease.

"I'm fine." And I was. Near death experiences come with the territory. What I wasn't fine about was Edward and why he risked exposure to save me.

I wondered if it had to do with the literal sparks that flew between us. Doctor Cullen did the usual doctor things. Told me to take it easy for a few days and probably take off the next few days from school. In case I was going to have some post-traumatic stress. I snorted.

Charlie told me I needed to call Renee. She had heard the whole thing and was worried sick. I excused myself and walked down the hall, dialing my phone and not paying attention. My lack of consideration landed me smack into the back of someone.

Well. Something. More like one Edward Cullen. He turned around and I took a step back.

"Sorry," I mumbled, trying to maneuver around him.

I think he expected me to ask him what happened or to threaten him with a front page in the tabloids. But, I knew he wasn't going to tell me here and now, so I continued walking outside to call my mom.

He brushed past me as he left the hospital in a huff.