A/N: Did anybody else see the new scene from the Rome Film Festival? If you haven't you've missed out on probably one of the best bits released so far. Lol Alice was portrayed exactly as I imagined her.

Thanks to:

F-Clearwater

Ivory76

Luvntwilight

twilight-is-lovee

twilightfanatic9

bloodredeclipse

lgr42293

Breeze.x.x

InLustWithEC

Ashweena200966

bells2014

KeithHarkinFan

And thanks to Shining Eclipse for taking the impossible job of putting up with and validating my story (and listening to me rant about ff's alert system)

"It's gonna take a long time to love
It's gonna take a lot to hold on
It's gonna be a long way to happy, yeah
Left in the pieces that you broke me into
Torn apart but now I've got to
Keep on rolling like a stone
Cause it's gonna be a long way to happy"

'Long Way To Happy' by Pink

Dec 22nd

Bella Swan

Five hours.

300 minutes.

18,000 seconds.

I have resorted to timing myself. To see how long it takes for me to wake up from this nightmare; to return back to normal.

Usually my dreams can be a bit… strange, but this has gone beyond the normal nightmare-barriers and into Loonyville, USA. Population: me.

I had to admit though, my imagination had improved vastly in the sensory department. Everything seemed so real. From the authentic hospital surrounding, to Edward's scent, to Charlie's frustrated groans.

In the past twenty minutes I had been taken off the machinery and brought to Carlisle's office. I tripped twice and was caught on both occasions by Edward, much to my delight and dismay. It would only make it harder to wake-up now that I knew how Dream-Edward felt and smelt like.

"Now Bella, I want you to tell me anything you can remember from the past four or five years," Carlisle said, sitting on the other side of the vast, mahogany desk. "Anything at all. Even what you had for dinner last week."

Charlie was sitting beside me; glancing constantly between Carlisle and I, never settling on the one face for too long. He kept shifting in his seat and fidgeting with his jacket. Every so often, he would make an involuntary groaning noise and excuse himself from the room. When he did this, Edward took his seat immediately.

The situation with Edward was strange. I had only met him the other day when Alice came over, and yet I felt like I knew him. He acted strangely as well. He would shift closer to me every time he sat down or moved from his place beside the bookshelf. He kept running his hands through his bronze hair over and over again. At one stage Carlisle told him to put a hat on or sit on his hands.

I tried to answer Carlisle's question, and was surprised that my mouth acted on auto-pilot.

"Last week, on Thursday we had lasagna that was leftover from Tuesday's dinner. I spent most of the week in my room. I wore sweatshirts and jeans everyday and woke at half six every morning."

Even I was stunned; I didn't remember any lasagna. Charlie stared open-mouthed at me, his hands falling limp into his lap from their constant position at his chest. Carlisle nodded and smiled while Edward's reaction made me embarrassed. He froze in his place and then shifted closer to my side immediately. His intense stare was unsettling, as if what I said and was about to say could determine his life.

"Okay, now Bella I know this is going to sound strange, but did you actually remember those things or did your mouth just… spurt them out?" he smiled as he spoke. In all honesty he could do really well in police investigation, with that whole 'making you feel comfortable' persona.

I shuffled in my seat, twisting myself away from Edward and closer to Charlie. Staring out of the dark window which gave a bleak view out to the heavy rain outside, I began to speak.

"My mouth just spurted them out," I sighed and decided that this was not a dream anymore, it definitely was reality.

That realization scared the crap out of me. That meant that all of this was real.

The whole thing with Mom's death didn't bother me that much. Sure it hurt to understand she was gone, but in comparison to everything else, it was much easier to deal with.

I had no clue about the last few years, how they just… suddenly went by without any memories or understanding. I could vaguely make out some details of the first two years, but the last two, especially recently, were completely blank.

The way my mouth opened and said things that I had no idea about was freaking me out. I must have looked like some sort of creature from a horror movie. I was surprised Charlie didn't get a bucket for the pea soup that was about to spew out of my mouth.

The thing that bothered me the most was Edward. I felt… a bond with him but I couldn't understand how that bond came to place. He was always around me; close to me. He hadn't left the hospital at all. Every time I moved, he was there with me. He constantly shifted towards me like I was a magnet. It honestly was beginning to scare me.

"Crap; this isn't a dream," I groaned and let my head fall into my hands. I heard Charlie reaching over to me but didn't feel his touch. Edward moved closer again until he was leaning against the arm of the chair.

"You thought that this was a dream Bella?" Carlisle asked.

I looked up tentatively and gulped, choking out a "yes" while avoiding both Charlie's and Edward's stares.

Carlisle sat forward and placed his hands under his chin. He pushed his notepad and my file away from him with his elbow.

"How long did you think that you have been in a dream, Bella?"

"About five hours, since I woke up basically," I muttered.

"Why did you think this was a dream?" he asked simply.

Again, my mouth operated without a command.

"Because Mom's dead, I can't remember the past four years properly, I can only barely remember the beginning of those four years, I'm only realizing now that I am seventeen and what I'm feeling for Edward right now is really, really frightening!"

I started sobbing towards the end of my rant and ended it with a shriek. Banging my head against the heel of my hand, I muttered, "Why does my mouth have an auto-start feature?"

Throughout my fit, I was hyperaware of the people around me.

Carlisle stood up from his chair only to sit back down and observe me quietly. Charlie groaned and muttered something about even when I was out of it I was still thinking of 'that boy'. Edward looked as though he could start crying himself. He gripped the arm of the chair tightly and was now inches away from me.

It took me about half an hour to calm down. Nobody moved from their places during that time and everyone was silent. When my sobbing died down, Carlisle started to speak.

"What we realized back before you found the ornament, before you reverted back to childhood, was that your brain completely blocked everything about Edward out. After you found the ornament, your brain was forced to access those memories and so, in attempts to defend itself, it basically brought you back to a time when you thought about him least."

He observed all three of us as he spoke, pausing on myself and Edward.

"From what I can see, when you were thirteen you still kept thinking of him, and that is why you still feel connected to him and you probably see some things that may relate to him," he took a deep breath and paused for a moment, "But from what I can see here, your brain is digging up parts of recent memories."

It was Edward who spoke this time. "How so?"

Carlisle sighed and glanced between us again. "The relationship between the two of you was strongest during the past months; before all of this. There is no way she could be frightened of feelings for you when she was thirteen or younger-"

"Wait, relationship? I don't understand any of this. How was Edward in my life before? What happened recently?" I interrupted him.

Charlie groaned. "I was hoping this wouldn't be brought up when I was in the room." He grimaced, "It was bad enough knowing the basics of it and now I'm probably going to hear the whole story."

Carlisle smiled sympathetically. "You should try having a daughter like Alice; she shares everything with us about Jasper."

I frowned. "What are you talking about Dad?"

Charlie looked as though being dragged over a bed of hot coals would be less painful than answering me.

"Well… you and… him… kinda dated," he spat out each of the words as though they were caught in his esophagus.

Carlisle smiled smugly while both Edward and I radiated heat. I think he may have been blushing more than I was.

It was bad enough knowing that I had some… insane connection with Edward, but to know that I had been somewhat dating him was illogical. And completely embarrassing considering I couldn't remember anything and my father was in the room.

An uncomfortable silence fell on the room and Edward shifted slightly from his almost crouched position over my chair to move a few inches away. Charlie sat nearly fuming in his seat with a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment. The only person at ease was Carlisle who sat back in his large chair with his hands resting on his lap.

Incredibly enough, it was Charlie who broke the silence.

"Do we start from the very beginning or recently?" he asked in a rough, forced voice.

Sitting forward, Carlisle contemplated for a moment on which option to choose. He glanced over to Edward and nodded slightly.

"The beginning would probably be more beneficial to her and easier to piece together rather than starting recently."

Charlie let out a deep breath and looked extremely relieved. I looked at him curiously until he threw his hands up and admitted what he was anxious about.

"I want to know about what's going on in your life Bells but I draw the line at relationships. Knowing his daughter has a… a boy-… a boyfr-," he threw Edward a frustrated glare and spat out the rest of the sentence. "… someone in her life is way too much information for a father to know."

"At least you're not as bad as Dad," Edward chuckled hoarsely, "He threatened Jasper with an estrogen booster injection if he ever mistreated Alice and then spent three days locked in his office trying to forget about Jasper completely."

Charlie laughed nervously and his eyes started to dart about the room. I groaned out loud.

"No! You did not use the gun as a threat," I half-shouted, twisting in my chair to glare at Charlie.

"I didn't use the gun; I just may have insinuated that an arrest might be…"

"What?!" I shouted. I didn't even remember Edward being my sort-of-boyfriend but this was unacceptable, even for Charlie.

"I actually remember that day," Carlisle mused. "You were as white as a ghost, Edward."

I shook my head and clamed myself down. I knew that I could kill Charlie some other day for doing that but for now I needed to get my teenage memories back.

"Right, where are we starting with my memory?"

Six hours, and two years of my past later, Charlie and I walked out of the hospital.

It had gotten below forty, and the water was beginning to turn to ice beneath our boots. I was glad I wasn't driving tonight, even if I could remember how. It was one of the things I wished I could remember.

Carlisle and Charlie had explained as much as possible to me about the time when I was thirteen and fourteen. We were getting to my fifteenth birthday when Edward mentioned the time.

My years as a thirteen and fourteen year old were mainly the same as the previous two years. Phil abused Mom and hit me. I had no friends and school was my only outlet. I visited Charlie in California and spent most of the summer with him. I didn't return to Forks.

Those two years were easy enough to remember. I was grateful for that. At least now it was two down, and another two and a half to go.

The drive home was quiet but comfortable. I was exhausted and ready to fall asleep on the nearest available couch or bed. The forests zoomed around us in the blackness of the night and the sly was vacant because the moon hid low behind the trees to our right.

We were driving through town when someone blew past us at a reckless speed.

"Kids," Charlie huffed as he switched on his sirens and followed.

I sunk down lower into my seat, hoping that the person would outrun Charlie or not be someone who knew me. Having a cop as a father was now beginning to take its toll.

The massive Jeep pulled over immediately and I could see two figures in the front seats. Charlie got out of the car and walked over, pausing at the driver's window. His face almost broke into a grin before resuming a professional façade. I cracked the window to hear the conversation.

"… well you were going a bit fast there Emmett."

Emmett. Emmett Cullen, Edward's brother. I knew that Jeep was familiar. I could now see the passenger's blonde head turn slightly and recognized the face as Rosalie Hale, girlfriend of Emmett and twin of Jasper.

My first week at Forks High was slowly creeping into my mind. Visions of holding notebooks and feelings of manic depression worked their way into my mind but did not stick. Something else was occupying their previous space and would not budge. I tried to see what that thing was but it was too dark and blurry to make out.

Charlie finished talking to Emmett and let him go without a ticket or warning. He strolled back to the car and climbed in quickly.

"That was interesting," he laughed.

I smiled. "Yeah, Emmett is interesting in his own way."

Charlie fumbled with the keys and almost dropped them. He recovered quickly and nodded. "Yes he is interesting. Hmm…"

He trailed off in thought for a moment and started to mumble incoherently to himself. I settled for watching the now familiar forests and houses flash by instead of worrying over what Charlie was thinking.

We pulled into the drive and got out of the car quickly, both eager to get inside. Charlie ran straight for the phone, ignoring the fact that he still had his coat and wet boots on which left damp footprints along the hallway.

I paused on the stairs and listened to him. He quickly dialed a number and sat heavily into his chair. Whoever it was picked up immediately.

"No, nothing's wrong," Charlie sighed. "I think I might have found something that may help her though."

The person talked for a moment while Charlie nodded.

"Yeah. Remember when she had the fits? They were caused by triggers, by things that made her remember? Well earlier I caught Emmett and Rosalie speeding along the highway, trying to get home before curfew and she actually remembered Emmett. Well, I was thinking, what if we took her around, showed her things that would help her remember?"

The person spoke again and Charlie broke into a grin. He cleared his throat and spoke in his 'cop' voice. "Well if you are going to help, you do realize I want parental supervision at all times now?"

My mouth fell open and I almost ran into the kitchen. He was saying that to…

"I'll talk to you later, Edward. Bye."

He hung up the phone and started to walk towards the door to hang up his coat. I stumbled up the stairs and caught my foot on the third step from the top, causing me to fall onto the landing.

"Bells, are you okay?" Charlie said as he ran to the bottom of the stairs. I quickly shifted myself around so it looked like I tripped coming out of my bedroom.

"I'm fine, just tripped over a shoe," I explained as I pulled myself up.

Charlie smiled and hung his coat on the last hanger, only for it to fall to the ground.

"Just be careful. We don't want you falling down the stairs."

I nodded and walked into the bathroom. I sat down on the floor for a few minutes and decided to take a shower. I needed something to do before I went to sleep anyway. Grabbing my old tank top and shorts from the basket on the shelves, I quickly toweled and dressed.

The television could be heard from the landing as I made my way into my room. I wondered why Charlie was watching it at midnight when all he ever watched was games.

My room was dark and I didn't bother turning on the light or pulling down the blind. I made my way cautiously over to my bed and fell onto it. I was too tired to pull back the sheets and get under them. The heating was on anyways, so I wasn't worried about being too cold.

My mind slowly began to shut down as the black shroud of unconsciousness covered me, paralyzing my limbs. I welcomed it and slipped into a deep sleep.

A/N: It's actually hard to write the point of a near-amnesiac… I only realized that after I was halfway done this chapter.

We're coming to the end of this story so I have to get to the big finale-thing and then end it, so (in the story timeline) this should be finished after New Year's (story timeline as said before). I think I'll have it done before mid-December, early January. It all depends on my exams and if the story gets more reviews (I have a small idea in mind if I was to continue on as an extra to this or a sequel but it all depends on the response to the story)

In case I can't get another update before it, have fun watching the movie. I won't get to see it until about December 19th (stupid Irish film system, why do we have to rely on the English release date??)