A/N: Well thank you guys for the wonderful reviews. There weren't very many for the last chapter, but I like to thank all of the people who take the time to review each chapter. You guys rock my world. The title for this chapter was taken from my absolute favorite song. The first to name it gets cookies!! (Virtual ones, that is.)

Seven

Baby, It's A Fine Line

BELLA

I groaned loudly, pulling back a bit as Emmett bound through the front door. "What is it, Emmett?" Edward demanded, looking frustrated.

I found it difficult to appear angry, however, being happy as I was at that glorious moment. Edward Cullen had been seconds away from kissing me. Whether it was a heat-of-the-moment reaction or not, that had to mean something.

Emmett stood, frozen, extremely embarrassed, by the look on his face. "Am I interrupting something?" he asked, a smile playing with the corners of his lips.

"Yes, you are," Edward said indifferently. "So if that's all you needed…" He tried to shoo him away. I couldn't help but laugh at his reaction.

"No problem, no problem," Emmett agreed, holding his hands up defensively. "I can see when I'm not wanted. I just wanted to come by and ask for a stapler. I just finished a ten page essay, and I'd hate to lose all of that work on the street or something…"

"A stapler?" Edward asked, staring at his brother incredulously. "You come barging in here, interrupt our almost… for a stapler?!"

Emmett nodded, obviously confused. "Yeah. So, do you guys have one to spare?"

Edward growled, rushing to the counter and back, producing a stapler. "Here you go. Now if you don't mind…"

"Wait," Emmett interrupted. I rolled my eyes dramatically.

"WHAT?" Edward and I exclaimed unanimously.

"It's just… before… you said 'almost'… almost what?" I felt a deep blush creeping up my neck and settling on my cheeks.

"Nothing, Em," Edward said, pushing him toward the door. "It's over now."

"Sorry for interrupting!" Emmett's voice boomed right before the door closed behind him. I sighed.

"Edward, was that… I mean, did you…"

"Yes, Bella," he said solemnly. "I did. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

The urge to kiss him became overwhelming, then. I deserved some sort of comfort, even if I did have to stay with Mike.

I rushed forward without a second thought, cutting him off mid sentence. My hands wrapped involuntarily around his neck and through his hair, and I felt his own strong, muscular arms clinging to my waist as my lips crashed against his.

I realized that this was my first time ever feeling like this. I'd only ever been kissed by Mike, whose antics were somehow very, very different. Kissing Edward felt like floating, whereas kissing Mike felt like being restrained. Edward's arms were a safe haven; Mike was the essence of what made me feel scared.

Edward placed another soft, lingering kiss on my lips before pulling back way too soon. "I… Bella… you…" he stuttered, flustered.

I smiled sadly. "Thank you, Edward," was all I could say.

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EDWARD

"Thank me? No, thank you, Bella…but…why did you-"

"YOU KISSED ME BACK, didn't you, Edward?" she grinned, her eyes closed.

"Of course I did, Bella. Couldn't you tell? I've been dying to do that," I said admittedly.

She shook her head, keeping her eyes tightly shut, that insanely beautiful grin still plastered on her face. "No. But I have too… You should know that."

I nodded, taking her hands and pulling her toward me. She finally opened her eyes at this, cocking one eyebrow briefly, but not protesting, when I kissed her again. And again. And again. After all, this was quite possibly the first and last time I'd ever get to do that.

"Edward… I… wish… it… were… different…" she said in between short, sweet kisses.

I stopped. "Me too."

"But Mike… You have to understand…" She looked ready to cry again.

I felt an overwhelming urge to improve her mood, but I'd no idea how to go about doing that. "Bella," I whispered, wiping away the tears that had begun to fall inevitably. I had prepared myself for them, but still, it pained me to see her hurting like this.

"I'm so sorry, Edward," she sobbed, placing her hand on my chest lightly. "I… I'm so stupid and helpless… and I put all of this on you…"

What was she talking about? Where was this coming from? Wasn't I the one who'd initially tried to kiss her? "Bella, stop," I ordered with a bit more force than I'd originally intended. She stopped talking long enough to look up at me. "You didn't bring anything on me. Don't you think if I wanted to back out of your melodramatic life, I would have done so by now?"

"I-"

"But I haven't," I continued, looking at her pointedly. I needed to get this out. "Because I care about you too much to just leave you to fend for yourself."

She huffed. "I can take care of myself," she muttered. "No one asked you to come barging into my life. Before you came here, I was perfectly content being… with Mike…" She was a horrible liar.

"He could have killed you, Bella," I whispered quickly, reaching out for one of her hands. Her legs began to shake, and I guided her to a nearby booth, where we sat together, on the same side.

"He hasn't yet," she said bitterly, crossing one leg over the other with much effort. Her face was ghastly pale, and I wondered if she didn't need medical attention.

"Bells, are you feeling alright?" I asked randomly.

"Stop trying to change the subject, Edward!" she snapped. "Mike has never… it was never… just sort of…"

"Don't try and tell me that what Mike did wasn't bad, Bella," I said, clenching my fists. "He hurt you. Is hurting you, Bella… why won't you let me help you?"

"Because I don't need your help," she argued persistently.

"Okay, well, have you ever thought that maybe I needed to help you? For me, Bella?"

"What do you mean by that?" she asked curiously.

"It hurts to see you in pain, Bella," I explained. "It's not easy. I don't like the feeling that I get when I don't know where you are, if you're with him, if he's hurt you in any way… So you don't have to require my help. All I'm asking is that you let me take care of you for my sake."

"I… I… I…" she staggered, her breathing uneven.

"Bella, say something," I said urgently. "Speak to me."

"My…it's…I'm…"

"Do you want me to take you to the hospital?"

"To the… my head… yes… please… I think… good idea…"

"Okay. Let's go," I said, stepping out of the booth and throwing on my jacket.

"Umm… Edward?" she called; I was already halfway to the door.

"Yeah?" I asked, turning around to see that she hadn't moved from the table.

"I can't… walk… dizzy…" She swallowed.

"Right." Why was I so stupid? I sprinted back to her, picking her up bridal style. "Okay. Now we just have to make sure… BELLA!"

She was lying in my arms, her head lolled to the side, eyes closed. This wasn't happening… couldn't be happening to me… to her. I racked my brain. What had I learned about CPR in high school? Put her down, Edward, I reminded myself.

I sat her on the floor carefully, breathing into her open mouth carefully, pinching her nose. I pulled back after an enormous blow and pressed my hand against her chest twice. "Bella, can you hear me? Bella, say something please!"

She coughed once, but did not speak. I felt helpless. "Bella, speak to me!" I shouted pointlessly. "BELLA! Please, I need you to help me! What's happening?" What a stupid question!

I blew another breath into her mouth and pushed down on her with such force that I was sure she would break. Nothing. "Bella, can you hear me?"

"Edward?" she mouthed. It was a soundless gesture, but it meant progress. I'd take it.

"I'm here, Bella," I said frantically.

"Mike… he…" My stomach lurched at the mention of his name.

"Mike's not here, Bells. Please, I need you to help me," I begged, on the verge of tears. How had this happened so fast? She had been perfectly normal and then… this…

"No, Edward, he…" she began.

"He what, Bella? What did he do?" I urged. She shook her head over and over.

"I can't do this! Mike's… he'll…"

"No, Bella, Mike isn't here!"

"Oh, really?"

No! It couldn't be… but it was… this was bad… Really bad…

A/N: Alright, mini cliffy. Lol. Please, please, please, please, please review this chapter. And then you'll get another one. So it's a win-win situation, don't you agree?