DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS FROM TWILIGHT. THEY ALL BELONG TO STEPHENIE MEYER.

BPOV

I walked quickly throughout the house, calling for Edward. I knew he wasn't there, but for some reason I had to check.

Starting to panic, thinking about where he could have gone, I ran to where I had hung my jacket. He would usually leave a note when he went out, which wasn't often, telling us where he had gone and when he would be home. I had found no such note, so I was a little worried. Maybe he had thought that he would be back before we got back. But then again, he wasn't expecting me to come back to the house half way through the day.

I grabbed my phone out of my jacket pocket and was about to flip it open to call Edward to find out where he was when it started to ring. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Emmett calling me.

"Hello?" I asked cautiously, wondering what Emmett would be calling me about. He knew where I was going so he couldn't be too worried.

"Bella?" Wrong. He sounded panicked.

"Emmett, what's wrong?" I asked him, panic rising in my chest again.

"I think Edward's in trouble." He said, panting slightly. He was running and I could hear Alice and Jasper shouting at him and Rose to hurry up in the background.

"What?" I gasped. "What do you mean?"

"I just got a call from him. At first I thought he had called me by accident you know, because I didn't hear anything but rustling on the other end. I thought that he might have just pushed his speeddial without realising it." I heard several car doors slam shut and I knew that they were in the Jeep now. I didn't hear the engine start, knowing that Emmett may be a crazy driver, but there was no way he would drive whilst on the phone talking to someone. "But then I heard voices. They were clear. There were four of them, that much I could hear. One of them was Edward's, but I had no idea who's the other three were. Until I heard him say one of their names."

"Jacob." I whispered.

"Yeah," Emmett sounded confused. "How did you know?" I didn't think that he was aware of the whole situation with Jacob and Renee. Edward obviously hadn't told his family about that little detail. I hadn't really expected that he would.

"Never mind, I'll explain later." I thought hard, running a hand through my hair, another little habit that I'd picked up from Edward. "Um, where would he go where Jacob would be?" I asked, more to myself than to Emmett. I knew that he was thinking the same thing on the other end. I started pacing, thinking harder and faster than I remembered thinking before. I knew that if we didn't find them soon, Jacob could do Edward a lot of damage. Not just physically. "Where does Jacob live?" I blinked, confused at this question.

"La Push." I answered. "Emmett, I fail to see the connec-" I stopped as realisation hit me. "The beach." I whispered, almost inaudibly.

"What?" I heard Emmett ask on the other end of the phone, starting the engine of his Jeep, knowing that I had figured it out.

"The beach!" I almost shouted. "First Beach, on the reservation! That's where he is!"

"Alright!" Emmett cried. "Thank god for your brain Bells! We're on our way there. Meet you there?"

"Yeah," I didn't bother grabbing my jacket. I just shoved on my shoes and ran out of the door. "See you there." I hung up and clambered into my truck, shoving the keys into the ignition and driving down the driveway.

I pushed the truck as fast as it would go, cursing that it wouldn't go any faster than fifty-five miles an hour. I really needed someone to take a look at it. Normally I would have asked Jacob, seeing as he was the best mechanic I knew, but after his recent behaviour there was no way I was going to ask him for anything. I entered La Push and sighed when I began to see the trees thinning out slightly, knowing that I was getting close to the beach. I rounded the corner and saw that Emmett wasn't there yet. There was no Jeep, but I did see Edward's Volvo. I had been right in my guess.

Edward was here.

I parked my truck haphazardly, not really caring how many parking spaces I took up. I needed to find Edward, and fast.

I leapt out of my truck and ran to the edge of the carpark, looking over the beach. I saw them immediately. The four of them standing there. It looked like Edward was alright. For now at least. I started to make my way down the hillside that looked over the beach, not taking my eyes off of the quartet that stood a little way ahead of me. As I was walking I saw one of the figures firstly punch the one standing in front of them, knocking them to the ground. I felt my pace increase as that same figure launched themselves at the one on the ground, pinning them there.

Jacob had attacked Edward.

I began to run down the hillside, which for me was not a good idea and I knew that I could trip at any moment. As I ran I saw the two figures that were with Jacob trying to pull him off. I recognised them as Seth and Embry. I thanked the lord that they were there, trying to get Jacob off of Edward, because if they weren't then.....then.....I didn't want to think about what could have happened if they hadn't been.

"JACOB BLACK!" I screamed as I ran towards the four of them. Jacob hadn't moved from his position on top of Edward. I saw that Seth and Embry were still trying to get Jacob off of him, with no success. I knew that when Jacob was angry he could become like a brick wall. Almost as immovable as Emmett, but not quite. I silently cursed them for not getting here yet, but I knew that the school was further out than the Cullens home was, so it would take a little longer for them to get here than it had me. "Jacob!" I had almost reached them now, and I slowed down to a walk. "Get. The. Fuck. Off. Of. Him. Right. Now!" I spat every word at him, emphasising each and every one.

He didn't look up from Edward's face. I saw that Edward had a bruise forming already and his lip had been split. "Sorry Bells." I heard him sneer, his gaze never leaving Edward's face. I was standing directly over the two of them now. I could see that Edward's face was composed and yet his eyes conversed a look I knew all too well. I knew that look he had from our time in the clinic. It was fear. He had had that look just before he had had the feeding tube fitted for the first time. When he had finally told me about his parents. When I had had to tell him that I had to leave. I would never forget that look.

It was there now for a different reason. He knew as well as I did what Jacob was capable of. I hated Jacob more than I could express. I could see through my peripheral vision that Emmett, Alice, Jasper and Rose had arrived and were now running down the beach, looks of terror on the girls faces and looks of hatred and anger on the guys. Emmett and Jasper were pissed. I knew that Emmett was not going to let this one lie. He would kill Jacob, given the chance.

"He said some stuff and I need to teach him a lesson." Jacob sneered again, his gaze still not leaving Edward's face. I knew that he was going to hit Edward again and I knew that I couldn't let that happen. He was already going to have a bruise and had a split lip, but really, it wasn't Edward physically I was worried about. It was Edward mentally. Who knew what effect this attack would have on him.

I looked up quickly to see Emmett running around to the side of Jacob, who was still so wrapped up in Edward beneath him, that he hadn't noticed the four new arrivals. Embry and Seth noticed Emmett's change in direction as well, and gathering what he was going to do, jumped back from Jacob just as Emmett ran full force at Jacob, throwing him off of Edward and sending him flying several feet away.

I didn't pay attention to the scuffle that was happening between the two of them, but knelt immediately next to Edward. I could see that he had obviously been unable to breath since Jacob had been kneeling on his chest as he gratefully sucked in breath after breath.

I placed my hand underneath his shoulders, between his shoulderblades and helped him up gently. Once he was sitting up I saw him look over to where Emmett and Jacob were still scuffling. I glanced at Alice who knelt down immediately and handed Edward a tissue, to wipe away the blook that was running from his split lip. I didn't look at it or allow myself to think about it, because I knew that my passing out or getting sick right now was not what Edward needed.

I was watching Edward now. Making sure that he was okay. I couldn't help but kiss his cheek. It was his uninjured one. I knew that he would have a big bruise on that cheek the next day, thanks to Jacob, and I also realised that it must be hurting him a lot. I looked around at where Emmett and Jacob were. I didn't want Emmett to hurt Jacob, not because I cared about Jacob, but because I didn't want to think about the repercussions of Emmett's actions if he did get into a fight. Though nothing would happen on the law side of things - I would ensure with Charlie that nothing would happen there - there would be repercussions throughout the family. And I couldn't let that happen, no matter how little Jacob meant to me.

The phrase "I couldn't care less" popped into mind when I thought about Jacob.

I stood up and walked over to Emmett and Jacob, lightly placing my hand on Emmett's shoulder. He looked up at me and I saw the anger in his eyes. He wanted to seriously hurt Jacob for what he'd done to Edward. As much as I wanted to let him, I couldn't. If anything did happen, and if Emmett were the one to start it, I didn't know what kind of effect that would have on Edward. I tried to tell him that with my eyes, knowing that if I said anything out loud, Edward would hear, and I didn't want him to.

He seemed to understand my meaning, because moments later he shoved Jacob's head back into the sand and stood up, walking over to where Edward was still sitting, watching the whole exchange.

He held out an arm and Edward took it. I saw his muscles tense slightly at the contact, but I knew that that gesture was involuntary. That was something that Edward wanted to get over, as he knew that it would seriously inhibit him in later life. But it would take a lot of time, and Derek had told him that he might never fully overcome his fear of contact.

I walked over to the two of them and wrapped my arms around Edward's waist, and smile up at him. He gave me a small smile in return before I turned to glare at Jacob.

"What the hell did you think you were doing Jacob?" I hissed at him as he stood up and walked over to stand in front of the six of us, probably still thinking he had a chance at winning this confrontation. News to Jacob, you don't! I thought, not breaking my stare. "Well?" I snapped and he shrugged. That shrug was really going to send me off the deep end one of these days. "You think that's a good enough answer?" I knew exactly what the aim of today was. He knew that I knew as well, so I was going to dwell on it and emphasise how wrong his theory was. "You think that it's alright to hurt Edward just because you're jealous? You really think that if you hurt Edward, I'm going to come running?" I felt the anger welling in my chest as I said these sentences out loud, knowing that I was spot on with each of my accusations. His lack of response only reinforced my suspicions. "You know what Jacob, grow up!"

I put my hand on Edward's chest now, gazing up at him, showing him that I was his and his alone. Just as he was mine. I hoped that my eyes showed him how much I loved him. "Are you okay?" I whispered, before I stood up on my tiptoes pressing a lingering kiss to his jaw, knowing how much he loved it when I kissed that particular spot. I felt him nod against my lips and he moved his head so that our lips connected in a loving kiss.

As he broke our kiss I saw Edward's gaze shift to Jacob and a perplexed look flashed across his face before a small smirk broke out. I was confused as to what he was smirking about, but I understood immediately when I saw Jacob's expression. I saw that he was looking at my hand.

He had seen the ring on my finger. And he was not happy about it.

As I said before. I couldn't care less.

"What the hell is that?" He spat, glaring at Edward and then at the ring.

"This?" I snapped, holding up my hand and wiggling my fingers so that the sunlight reflected off of it, illuminating its size and obvious worth. Not that I cared about anything like that, but it was a good way to get underneath Jacob's skin. "This is an engagement ring, Jacob. Edward and I are engaged." I could tell that he was getting even more pissed off now, as his fists were clenched even tigher than before and he didn't seem to be breathing. I saw his face turn at least five different shades of red, which was something to see against his dark skin. I knew that it was probably a bad idea, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to get underneath Jacob's skin even more. "What? Are you going to run off and tell my mommy about that too?" I put on a fake innocent voice that I knew would anger him even more.

"Wait, what?" I heard Emmett shout from Edward's other side.

Shit. I forgot that they didn't know that it was Jacob that had phoned my mom, telling her all the crap about Edward.

"That was you?! You told Renee about Bella and Edward!?" I couldn't help but glance at Emmett. I could see that he was about to explode. Or implode. That would have worked too. I looked at Edward and saw that he had the same expression on his face that I must have had. He looked worried about Emmett's reaction. But there was something else behind his expression as well. Somthing I couldn't quite place. "You're ruining my little brother's life because you're jealous?!"

I watched as Edward rolled his eyes and thought that this was a little bit of a weird reaction to Emmett's words. What he had said was true. It was because of Jacob's petty jealousy that I was being shipped back to Phoenix. Did he not care as much as I thought he did? I wondered if that was true. I had thought that his asking me to marry him and what had happened between us last night was enough to show him that I cared about and loved him more than anything else in the world. I wondered if he felt the same way. I watched as he went to say something to Emmett before Alice walked up beside her brother and silenced Edward with a wave of her hand. Something he did not look happy about.

"No Edward." She said, stepping forward and glaring at Jacob in the same way everyone else was. "That is what he is doing. He is effectively taking everything away from you because he can't have what he wanted. Have you ever thought, Jacob, that Bella wouldn't want to be with you, even if Edward hadn't come along? Hence the fact that she wasn't with you before we moved to Forks." She had hit the nail on the head. I looked up at Edward again and saw that the anger had begun to leave his face but it was being replaced by something else. Something I couldn't quite place.

"Exactly." Rosalie snapped as she approached my other side, Jasper following closely behind her, completing the line we had been forming against Jacob. I'd noticed that Seth and Embry had stepped back, not really wanting anything to do with this. I guess that they'd found out Jacob's real reasons for his vendetta against Edward. "That should be enough to tell you that Bella isn't interested and never will be. She's with Edward, so nothing you do will have any effect. And yes, they are getting married."

I felt a small smile approaching my lips as I looked away from Edward to Jacob, seeing his face form into a disbelieving mask. "And you know what?" I asked Jacob, rhetorically, hearing the anger in my own voice. "It really doesn't matter if you call Renee, because I will be eighteen when I come back, and I won't need parent's permission to marry Edward. Which is what I plan to do as soon as I return." And that is exactly what I planned to do. Nothing and nobody was ever going to stop me from marrying Edward. He was all I needed in this world. He made everything alright, again.

I looked up at Edward and saw that he wasn't really paying attention to what was happening. I zoned out, watching him. There was something serious going on in his mind. His expression kept changing in a way that I didn't like. It was the way his expression changed when he was overthinking something. The way he thought when we was worried about something.

I saw him shake his head ever so slightly, the way he did when he was trying to rid of some nagging thought that was in his mind. I wasn't really listening to what the others were saying. All I knew was that they were still throwing insults at Jacob. I thanked the fact that they were leaving Seth and Embry out of it, as they had been trying to get Jacob off of Edward before we'd gotten to the beach.

I looked back to Jacob briefly and saw that he was still glaring at the ring that rested on my finger. I didn't care about him or what he thought. All I cared about was the impact this could have on Edward.

I felt Edward remove himself from my grasp and walk towards his car slowly. "Edward?" I called to his retreating form. "Edward?" I called a little louder, following him for a few steps but not going any further. He wasn't answering me and I knew that he wanted to be alone. But why? The reason I wasn't too sure on.

"Aw, what's wrong?" Jacob asked in a mocking tone but I didn't turn around to face him. I was too interested in Edward. Even though he had made it clear that he wanted to be alone, I still wanted to run up behind him and find out what was wrong. I would try and find out later on tonight when we sorted this mess out with Jacob. "Widdle baby gone home to momma?"

"That's it!" Emmett shouted before launching himself at Jacob. I heard them start to fight behind me and I took another couple of steps towards Edward and away from the brawl that was happening behind me. I didn't want to see the two of them attacking each other. It was not on my list of things to do today. But then again, this whole little escapade hadn't been on my list of things to do today either.

As I watched him approach his car I saw Edward stop and gaze over the beach, looking at the scene that was unfolding. He was obviously taking in the fact that Emmett and Jacob were fighting behind me and I still wanting nothing more than to run up there, hug him and climb into the Volvo with him before he drove off. I didn't want him to be alone, even though I knew that he needed this time to himself.

As he got into his car and drove off I turned around to see the two of them still attacking each other. I could feel the anger bubbling up inside of me. The other five were trying to get them to stop, though none of them really had the courage to get involved physically and it was obvious that they weren't listening to anything anyone around them had to say.

To me it looked as though Emmett had the upper hand, he was bigger than Jacob was, and I knew from stories that he had also been the best wrestler on the team at his old school in Chicago. Even though he seemed to be beating Jacob I knew that he was going to be supporting some big shiners in the morning. I didn't want him to get hurt so I knew that I had to stop this. Now.

"Will you guys just STOP!" I screamed at the two of them. They both instantly stopped fighting and looked at me, shoving away from each other, with all the force they could muster. I looked at Emmett. "Emmett, do you really think that you fighting with Jacob is helping Edward? Do you really think he wants to see you fighting, or to see you get hurt? He's been living with guilt for the last ten years, and seeing you getting hurt on his behalf is only going to add to that guilt. It's not the best plan."

"I know." He said, looking at me, remorse in his eyes. Not for Jacob. I knew he didn't feel anything for Jacob at all. No. The remorse was for how he could possibly make Edward feel. Or how he could feel if Emmett got hurt. He didn't want anything to hurt his little brother, physically or mentally.

"I know you do." I whispered as I placed a hand on his arm, smiling at him reassuringly. He only meant to do good. The only trouble with Emmett was, he tended to think with his fists rather than his head. Other than that, he was as harmless as an overstuffed teddybear with a heart made of gold.

I turned to Jacob, all kindess gone. "And you!" I pointed at him, storming over to where he stood, hatred and anger dripping from my voice. "Did you really think that this little stunt was going to get me to come running? Get it into your thick skull Jacob! I. Am. Not. Interested." I emphasised each word, even though I knew that it wasn't going to have any kind of impact at all. "I love Edward, Jacob! You attacking him will not change that at all! The only thing that you attacking Edward is going to do, is make sure that I hate you even more. I didn't think that was possible after you phoned my mother and told her all those lies about Edward. You had no right to call her and tell her anything, especially all those lies. I really didn't think that I could hate you any more than I did before then, but obviously that was the wrong thing to think!" I poked him sharply in the chest. "You, Jacob Black are the lowest form of human being I have ever met. You used to be my friend. And I want that Jacob back. I don't want this Jacob. This Jacob," I gestured up and down his body with my hand. "Is someone I don't want to know. He is low, and degrading and to be quite frank the worst kind of person I can think of. I don't want to see you again. Ever. And, I don't want you to talk to my Dad either, and don't worry, he will be told of what has happened here today. I don't care about Billy. Billy can do whatever the hell he wants. But you, Jacob Black, are to stay the hell away from my families. Both of them. If I hear a whisper of you being anywhere near any of them. And I mean any of them, and yes, that does include the huge guy over there who I just stopped from kicking your ass, there will be hell to pay. Mark my words. And you know, I don't threat. I promise." I glared at him. "Now, if you don't mind," I caught myself before I finished that sentence. "Actually, I don't care if you do mind, because it's not going to stop me anyway. I am going to go and comfort my fiance." I smirked at Jacob as he winced when I called Edward by that term. I knew that it would get to him. That's one of the reasons I used it.

I walked away from the group and instinctively knew that the Cullens were following me. They were calling after me as I walked away from the three Quiletes, not looking back. I didn't stop until I reached my truck. I turned around and saw four Cullens standing there behind me, grinning from ear to ear.

"Bells," Rosalie almost screeched. "That was amazing!"

"That was ace, Belly." Emmett cried. He had a nice shiner coming up on the side of his face. The same side that Edward had a bruise forming. In the morning they would probably have identical war wounds. Though it wouldn't have as big an effect on Emmett as it would on Edward.

"Come on," I said, not sharing their enthusiasm. "Let's get back to yours." They all nodded in agreement.

I had climbed into my truck, turned on the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot before they had all gotten into the Jeep. I knew they would catch up to me in no time, so I didn't worry about waiting for them. All I wanted to do was get back to Edward. I knew that he would have gone home, and retreated to his room. It was the only place he really felt safe. I just hoped that he would be willing to talk about what happened. He had seemed okay after the last encounter that we had had with Jacob, but then again, nothing physical had come of that confrontation. This time it had.

As I had guessed, Edward's Volvo was in the driveway when we got back to the Cullens. I parked the truck and ran up to the door, miraculously not tripping at all. There was something about Edward being in danger or upset that improved my balance and coordination tenfold. I shoved the key into the lock and didn't even bother to take my shoes off - something that I knew Esme would kill me for later, but at this point in time, I really didn't care - and ran up the stairs to Edward's room, the others following closely behind.

I attempted to open the door to Edward's room, but found it locked. I looked at Alice and she looked worried. He never locked his door. Apparently the last time he had was when he had tried to kill himself. I didn't even want to comprehend that idea. "Edward?" I called, hoping that he would answer the door to me. "Edward, love, open the door. Please?" There was no reply.

"Edward come on." Jasper was standing next to me. He placed a hand on the door and we listened for an answer. Any kind of movement from within. Again we got nothing.

"Edward!" Alice whined. She had silent tears flowing down her cheeks now, as did Rosalie. They were obviously thinking the worst. I knew that I should tell them to stop being so stupid and that he wouldn't do something like that again, but honestly, after seeing his face when he walked away from us at the beach, I had no idea what was going through his mind, or what he would do.

Emmett was starting to lose his cool. I could see in his eyes that he was really worried. He started banging on the door, making us all jump. "Edward! Come on! This isn't funny, man! Open up!" He yelled, giving the four of us an apologetic look for making us jump. I could hear the panic that was welling up in his voice. Obviously he was thinking the same thing that the others were.

I realised that the reason he wasn't answering could be that everyone was here, waiting for him to open the door, so they could pounce on him. Maybe it was a good idea for them to wait downstairs.

"Hey you guys," I said, turning around to voice my thoughts. "Maybe he's not answering because everyone is standing out here, ready to pounce on him. Maybe there's a better chance that he'll open the door if you guys go and wait downstairs. I know you want to know that he's okay, Emmett." I held up my hand, silencing him as he opened his mouth to protest. "But I think that he might be a little intimidated, by everyone being here. I hope that I can get him to come out. If not, then we can try one at a time." I shrugged sheepishly.

"It's a good idea Bells." Jasper whispered. "I mean, come on." He looked at his siblings. "If it wasn't for Bells, he would be in the clinic still. She was the one who managed to convince him to open up about his parents, or at least give him the courage to do so. It's because of her that he's here. It's obvious that he at least trusts her more than he does us. We should wait downstairs." He looked at me. "Do what you can to make him feel better Bells."

The others nodded at me and they walked down the stairs. I watched them go before turning back to the door. The only thing standing between me and my love. "Edward, love?" I called softly, hoping that he would answer me now that everyone else was gone. "Please open the door. I just want to know that you're alright. What happened babe? You just walked off. What's wrong? You can tell me, you know that right?" I hoped to god that he realised that.

I didn't get an answer, and that tore me up inside. It hurt to think that even after all we had been through, he couldn't trust me enough to tell me what was wrong. It was obviously something to do with what happened on the beach. I knew better than to question him though. I knew that I would never get him to come out or give me any answers that way. It had to come from his end. That was the only way that he would part with any information.

"I'm not going anywhere." I said, letting him know that I was still as stubborn as ever. As if I would let him forget. "I'm going to wait here until you talk to me." I know I had completely contradicted every thought that had just gone through my mind but it just slipped out. I had meant to say that I could wait as long as he could, but it came out wrong. I mentally cursed myself for saying that. Now he would never come out. I turned and leaned my back against his door, and slid down it, preparing to make myself comfortable, because I knew I was in for a long wait.

I didn't know how long I waited before Esme came home. I heard Rosalie and Jasper explaining to her what had happened and she came up the stairs, a small smile on her face. I could see that it was forced, but it meant that she was trying. She knelt down beside me, and rested a hand on my forehead.

"Come on sweetheart." She cooed in my ear. "We both know how stubborn Edward is. Maybe it would be best to wait for Carlisle to get home. He knows the best way of dealing with Edward when he's like this." I couldn't say that I agreed with her choice of words in that sentence but I knew what she meant. Carlisle was a lot better adept at looking after Edward when he was like this. "Come on. Let's get some dinner."

I nodded and allowed her to help me up. I warned Edward that I would be back later, again with no response and followed Esme down the stairs, stretching out my cramped legs.

As I reached the bottom of the stairs, the others looked at me and I shook my head, telling them that I hadn't had any response from Edward at all. This was something that worried me, because normally, he was able to talk to me, no matter what the problem was. We didn't have any secrets. Hell, he even knew about the job I had when I was fifteen. When I had to dress up as a penguin, doing a stupid walk and handing out balloons to kids at the park. And nobody here, and I mean nobody other than Edward knew about that. That was one of my most closely guarded secrets.

I helped Esme made dinner, even though it wasn't anything overly complicated. Chicken noodles. It was something that kept my hands busy, and I could tell that Esme was glad for the company. She was glance at me and smile every now and then. It was nice. She was the understanding mother that I wished Renee was. If only I could get her to see the real Edward. Well, not the Edward that was locked up in his bedroom now, because that certainly wouldn't help our case, but the Edward that was normally so strong and willful. The Edward that I love and the Edward that I knew Renee would love, if only she gave him the chance. But now, thanks to Jacob, we would never get that chance.

Carlisle arrived home just as Esme and I were draining off the noodles and finishing the sauce. The others all pounced on Carlisle, telling him what had happened that day, and how Edward was locked in his room and hadn't answered to anyone, not even me. He told them to stay in the living room after they had finished explaining and he entered the kitchen with a grave and worried look on his face.

"What should we do?" Esme asked him, and he sighed.

"I'm going to go and talk to him. Or at least try to talk to him." He ran a hand through his hair. Maybe he was also to blame for my picking up that habit. "I'm going to take a bowl of noodles up for him as well." He had spotted what was for dinner and went to get a bowl out of the cupboard. "I know I'm breaking the rule but, if it gets him to eat I don't really care. I can't imagine that he's up for eating with everyone else tonight." I nodded knowing what he meant. Edward could become very self-conscious, very easily and it was best not to push him when he was like that. If he was self-conscious then it would be best for just him and I to eat on our own, as he was used to me being in the room when he ate. Something that was left over from the clinic I guessed. He could switch so easily, it was hard to keep track sometimes.

After serving out a portion of the noodles and chicken sauce into a bowl, Carlisle grabbed some cutlery and went upstairs to talk to Edward. I knew that he had a key to get into Edward's room, just in case something like this did happen, and it was needed. He and Esme had one each, as well as Edward. Though they had them, they only used them when it was necessary. And this was the first time Carlisle had had to use his.

We waited for about five or ten minutes before we heard a door slam and lock and Carlisle reappeared downstairs. I stood up guessing that it hadn't gone too well with Edward.

"Honey, what happened?" Esme asked as we all approached Carlisle. He shook his head, solemnly.

"He told me that he feels he's being smothered. Like he doesn't have any freedom. And it's true. He doesn't." He looked at us. "Like you kids today. He was grateful that you got Jacob away from him, but he also felt that you could have left it from there. He says he feels like you're always fighting his battles for him, and that he doesn't feel like he's accessing the independence part of his recovery." He sighed and looked at Esme. "Maybe we need to tone it down a little." She nodded.

I was confused. "Wait, what do you mean tone it down a little?" I chuckled darkly as I realised what they meant. "You guys are still doing the whole "watching him" thing, aren't you?" Nobody answered me. "Did you really think that he wasn't going to figure it out?"

"No, I knew that he would. But I'd hoped that we would be able to tone it down naturally until then." Carlisle sighed again. "We were only watching him like before to make sure that he was okay. We didn't want him to feel like he was being watched."

"Well," Esme sighed, fiddling with Carlisle's tie. "At least he has something to eat, right? I mean, the noodles."

Carlisle shook his head. "No. He accused me, saying that the only thing I cared about was whether or not he ate. He told me he didn't want anything to eat and threw it on the floor. He refused to eat it. I don't know what we're going to do." He sighed again. I could see him starting to worry now. This could be really bad for Edward. And the rest of the family.

"Can't we just wait until he's hungry?" Emmett asked, hopefully. "I mean, when he is he'll come down right?"

"Emmett," I replied softly. "You're talking about someone who has ten years practise at self-starvation. He's not going to be broken by a couple of hours of "being hungry". It doesn't work like that." I could see the despair growing in his face. It was the same look as that that was present in his parents and his siblings faces. I was also sure that it was present in mine as well. We all knew what had happened here.

Edward had taken a step backwards.

Will Edward snap out of it?
You'll have to read the next chapter to find out.
I know there was quite a lot of an overlay in this chapter with the previous one, but I wanted to get the beach scene from Bella's POV as well as Edward's.
Hope you enjoyed :D
Please review
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