Sometimes we don't say a thing,

Just listen to the crickets sing,

Everything I need is right here by my side.

I know everything about you, I don't wanna live without you.

I'm only up when you're not down,

Don't wanna fly if you're still on the ground.

It's like no matter what I do.

You drive me crazy half the time,

The other half I'm only trying to let you know,

That what I feel is true.

I'm only me when I'm with you.

Chapter 15: You Have A Soul

Emmett POV

I sat there with Bella in the library, massaging her leg while she did her homework. Now that she knew I was a vampire I didn't need to spend as much time doing my homework, though she still insisted I do it. It was comical really, this little human teenage girl made me, big bad 103 year old vampire, do his homework. I didn't mind though, she made it fun. It had been two weeks since Charlie came to stay with us, and Bella started talking to us again. Once she had seen that her dad was comfortable she no longer felt guilty. It made her feel better to know that she didn't have to be a vampire as well. For some reason…it gave me a pang of anguish knowing Bella would grow old and die one day. I didn't want her heart to stop beating to become like us…but I didn't want her heart to stop beating of natural causes or an accident either. It was a lose – lose situation really. I was so deep in thought that I didn't notice Bella watching me.

"What's the matter Em?" I looked to her face and saw nothing but concern. I realized I was frowning. I shrugged.

"Hey now, I know you better than that. You can tell me." She put her textbook to the side and watched me. I kept myself concentrated on her leg.

"I just…well…ugh! Only you can do this to me." I chuckled and she looked at me confused.

"Vampires don't have trouble getting words out. Yet for some reason you make me so…human." I told her with a poke to the side. She laughed and shoved my hand away, rubbing her side.

"Hey now, watch the scar." She smiled. I sobered. I let my curiosity get the best of me.

"Can I see it?" She looked at me with a weird expression on her face. She looked thoughtful for a moment but nodded slowly. She stood up and lifted her shirt. I got up on my knees so I was face to face with her neck, needing to crouch down some so I was face to face with her stomach. There on her right side just below the bottom of her ribcage, off to the side was a thick bumped up scar that was about four inches long. It was twisted slightly, clearly showing that it was a circular branch that had punctured her. I ran my fingers over it slowly and she shivered. I pulled my hand away quickly, but she caught it and placed it over her scar.

"It's alright, just startled me." I nodded and looked back down at the scar.

"So…breakable." I whispered. I felt tears welling in my eyes, though I knew they would never fall.

"Hey…what's the matter? I'm alright." She whispered putting her warm hand on the side of my cold neck. I nodded.

"Yeah, for now. Bella…you're not always going to be alright." I looked up to meet her warm brown eyes. They were glistening with tears as well.

"You're going to die someday." I whispered so quietly I wasn't sure she would hear me. The tears escaping her eyes let me know she had. Both of her hands came to rest on either side of my neck. I stood up onto me knees and she looked into my eyes.

"Yes…someday I will die." She said and I closed my eyes, refusing to let a sob escape my lips. I felt her gently pulling on my shoulders so I leaned into her and she wrapped her arms around me. I rested my head on her shoulder and we stood there hugging. I felt myself shake slightly, crying tearlessly. She only held me tighter.

"Em…this is the way life goes. I'll pass one day…but it's alright. Everything will be okay." I stayed still, knowing, for some reason, that it wouldn't be okay. A world without Bella was the worst fate. I didn't know where the sudden flow of feelings came from but I was in shock. 'You're falling for Bella.' I shut my eyes tightly. This couldn't happen. I couldn't feel for someone that will have to leave me at some point.

"I want you to stay with us forever." She stiffened and I sighed, knowing I shouldn't have said that. I pulled back and she placed her hands on either side of my neck again, her fingers lightly fingering through my hair. It felt amazing.

"Part of me…wants that too." My eyes opened instantly to look into her chocolate pools, swarming with tears.

"But…I can't…my dad…if I never aged, how could I be with my dad? If…okay… if the only way to keep me alive was to change me so my dad didn't have to bury his daughter…then I'd beg for the change. I can't put my dad through that. But I can't live in a world where I could never attend my dad's funeral or go on our father/daughter dates in public, because I selfishly asked for immortality. I…I'm sorry Emmett. You have no idea." She finished in a whisper. I nodded silently and watched her face. She had dropped her gaze to her own hands, still playing with my hair. How was I possibly going to say goodbye to her when the time came?

Bella POV

Looking down at Emmett I felt something… I never wanted to say goodbye to him. He was all I could ask for…I was falling…so hard…so fast. One look into his golden eyes, glistening with tears he could never cry…was all it took. He was devastated at the thought of losing me…and I struggled to do the right thing. It would be wrong of me to want anything but my normal human life. Forever is a long time to feel regret. And if I walked out on my dad…I would never forgive myself.

I looked back into his eyes, knowing it wasn't in my best interest, but I needed it. He looked into my eyes, almost begging me to change my mind, but I knew he wouldn't. I didn't understand where all of this was coming from, but over the last two weeks, we were inseparable. We did everything together. Alice scolded him daily for not sharing me with her and my dad, and he would just smile and stay close while I spent time with them. It was strange to me how fast you could connect with someone, but spending all day everyday with someone seemed to progress friendship by ages. I didn't think I could live without Emmett and Alice. Alice became like a mother to me…yet the sister I never had…and the aunt I thought I would never meet. She became a huge part of my world.

Telling my dad that Alice was actually Alicia Clarke was actually a little humerous. He didn't believe it at first, but the old newspaper clip was all the convincing it took. He was blown away that seventeen year old looking Alice was really 52, eight years older than him. Hearing the real ages of everyone shocked him. I wasn't sure why he and I were so easily accepting the fact that they were vampires…maybe not forgiving at first…but accepting. We were really good with weird. I knew my dad also saw how much time Emmett and I were spending together, though he wouldn't comment.

In the back of my mind, I could see Rosalie glaring at me for hugging Emmett right now. The thought made me pull back. He looked into my eyes, hurt flashing across his face.

"I'm sorry… I just…Rosalie…" He shook his head, standing up tall. I looked up to him and he held the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger.

"Rosalie isn't anything you should worry about." I looked down to my wrist, now free of the cast, and spoke as casually as I could.

"Yeah, for now…but she'll come back sooner or later…right?" I heard Emmett start pacing around and looked up to him. He walked aimlessly around the library.

"No, she isn't coming back." He whispered. I felt so guilty. All this time he has been there for me, and I wasn't there to help him through his breakup.

"I'm so sorry Emmett." I told him. I wasn't sure what else to say. I was hoping he would talk, giving me more to work with. Of course, he did.

"Don't be sorry, I think I've known for a while that it was over. I just loved her so much…I didn't want to accept that she didn't really love me back." He said, sitting in his usual chair. I sat down beside him in my usual chair.

"How long were you two together?" I asked. He looked to me and gave me a sad smile. I held out my right hand to him and he took it in both of his large, cold hands, drawing lines on the creases. He had told me the other day that the warmth of my skin calmed him.

"Since the day I woke up from the change. She rescued me from the bear. Took me to Carlisle…Carlisle changed me. Eighty-three years later… I'm getting divorced." I felt my eyes pop.

"You guys were married?" He nodded.

"Yes. See, vampires mate for life. We find our mates, and when we find them…it doesn't matter how long you have known them, you know you will never find anyone more perfect for you. It's a pull…it's like you are drawn to the person and no matter what you do…you can't stand to be away from each other. I guess…I was wrong. She isn't my mate…she didn't love me." I stayed silent for a few moments, letting him play with my hand.

"Then she is crazy…she'll never find anyone that can measure up to you. You're an amazing person Em." He shook his head.

"I'm not a person…I'm a vampire." I looked at him confused.

"Is there a difference?" He nodded casually.

"Vampires don't have souls." I took my hand from his grasp quickly, causing him to look up to me in surprise.

"You have a soul." I whispered. He shrugged in response.

"No, Emmett. You have a soul. I don't care what religion you are… what your beliefs are…your soul is your essence. Do you feel?" He nodded.

"Yeah, I never used to think of it as feeling, but Jasper said that he can feel what we feel…and it is human emotion. But I'm still not me. I'm not the person, Emmett McCarty. I'm a shell of him." His words brought tears to my eyes. I stood up and looked at him sitting in his chair.

"Emmett. You are not a shell. You feel…you care…you have wants and needs…you are one of the most amazing people I have ever met. I don't know what your definition of "person" is, and I didn't know you as a human…but the change did not take your soul. It did not make you any less of a person." I finished, heated. I was now crying standing in front of him. Everyone came into the library to see what was wrong.

"Do you think you are soulless?" I asked looking around at them. Emmett was now standing in front of me and I moved around him. The Cullen's and my dad stood in the room watching me.

"Well Bella, it depends on your perspective. Some of us think we have souls…some of us don't." Carlisle replied. I shook my head.

"You have a soul." I cried looking around at Emmett.

"If you had no soul you would have left my dad and I for dead. You have a conscience. You have a heart…" I said placing my hand on his broad chest. "Even if it doesn't beat anymore." I looked up into his eyes and sniffed.

"The only thing the change did was freeze you in time. You aren't a shell Emmett…" I was quickly pulled into his arms and he held me tightly to his chest.

"It hurts so much hearing you talk like that…like you guys are…nothing." He rubbed his hands up and down my back.

"I agree with Bella. I would never think of your family as soulless." I heard my dad say. I just stood there with Emmett, falling into the feel of his arms around me. The coolness of his skin soon soothed me and I just relaxed in his embrace.

"Thank you Bella…so much." He whispered. I pulled back from him to look at his face. He was smiling at me and I smiled back. I then noticed we were alone.

"Where did…" He chuckled.

"You lose track of time better than I do. They filed out after a few minutes. Been gone for about twenty minutes now." I blushed.

"Oops." He laughed and poked my cheek.

"That used to drive me crazy." I touched my cheek as well.

"What did…"

"Your blush. It makes the scent of your blood more noticeable. Used to be hard to resist." I laughed.

"What, now I smell bad?" He smiled rubbing my cheek.

"No, you smell amazing…I mean…uhh…not like that…ummm…" I laughed, forcing myself not to give into the cute moment we could have had.

"I thought vampires didn't stutter." I told him with a smirk and he pushed me lightly.

"Oh shut it, Isabella. Get your homework done. Alice will rip my arm off and beat me with it if I keep you too late." I laughed and picked my textbook back up, getting back to work.

I was done all too soon, in my opinion. We were gathering our books when a thought occurred to me.

"Hey Em, you said…you 'loved' Rosalie. Do you not still love her?" He looked into my eyes for a few minutes before sighing and shaking his head.

"Her last words to me were enough to crush what I felt for her."

"What did she say?" I knew I could ask Emmett anything. I just felt comfortable with him…I couldn't explain it. He looked into my eyes again.

"She made me choose. Save you, or keep her. Anyone that would make me choose like that…doesn't deserve my love." I felt awful. I had broken them up. I lowered my head and felt a cool finger tilting my chin up.

"You did nothing wrong. You were worth it Bella. If I had to do it over again, I wouldn't have even stopped to think about it." I nodded silently to him and he chuckled, getting up and opening the door, revealing Alice, about to knock on the door. I smiled at this. Stupid vampire hearing. I was transferred to Alice, and we headed up to my room, poking our heads in to say goodnight to my dad.

"So Bella…what was with your little outburst." Alice smirked. I laughed, pushing her. She laughed when she didn't even budge. I grumbled a bit.

"You guys can't even pretend to move can you." She laughed shaking her head. I sighed.

"Well…I just don't like seeing someone with less confidence than they deserve. My dad and I owe you and your family so much…it killed me to hear Emmett say that he was just a shell with no soul. You all deserve more than that." She smiled.

"Bella this is what makes you amazing. You don't see what's placed in front of you." I gave her a confused look.

"You see what isn't there. You see the person for what is inside, what they can offer, what they present as their personality. Not their status. You don't see rich, poor, intelligent, uneducated, colour…human or supernatural. You go beyond that…that is why you make us feel so alive." I smiled at that.

"I make you guys feel alive?" She nodded.

"Bella, before you, we were almost the shell Emmett was talking about. You gave us hope that maybe we were more than just an animal. We always fought to control our inner monster, we don't feed off humans, we go to school, we live in houses…we consider ourselves a family instead of a coven. It has crossed all of our minds…why bother? Why fight against what we are? Then the answer walks into our lives. It's for people like you." I gave Alice a big hug.

"I'm so lucky to have found you Alice." I laughed.

"We are the lucky ones Bella. Thank you for not turning us away. I'm glad you took the time you needed, but I'm really glad you let us back in." I smiled.

"Me too."

"So…boys…" I held up my hands and rolled my eyes.

"No boy talk Alice! You know what, you're as bad as my mom sometimes!" She laughed and we settled into my bed to watch a movie before bed.

Emmett POV

I was sitting on the couch playing video games when Alice came and sat beside me.

"Movie done?" I asked, giving her a nudge. She nodded and curled into my side. I knew she would talk sooner or later. Something was on her mind, she'd talk when she was ready.

"Em?" I looked down at her and she looked up at me with a smile.

"I've seen some things…up here." She pointed to her head and I laughed. Fifty-two, stuck at six.

"Oh really? Like…moving pictures?" She laughed and pinched me, I faked pain.

"Yes, some very…interesting moving pictures." I looked to the screen, waiting for the next section to load.

"And are you going to tell me what they are?" She shook her head.

"Nope. It's a surprise. I just have some advice for you." I nodded and paused the game once it had loaded. Her face sobered and she sat up straight, looking me dead in the eye.

"Be careful with her." I looked at her in confusion before I finally understood what she meant.

"Bella?" She just smiled and stood.

"Consider that a death threat from the Aunt." I watched her walk away and heard her talking to Jasper soon after. Be careful with Bella? What was I going to do with Bella? I played my game for a few more minutes thinking. I was still stumped, so I shut the game off and headed up the stairs. I knocked on the door and heard a muffled 'come in'. I opened the door to see Bella sitting on the bed crying.

"Hey! Hey what's the matter?" I rushed to her side and she shut her eyes tightly.

"Ch-Ch…Charlie horse in my leg!" She cried, pointing to her recently healed leg. I moved to her leg immediately and began massaging it carefully. Soon, her tears subsided and she laid back down on the bed. I continued rubbing, looking up at her.

There she lay, with her eyes closed. She was wearing short red plaid pj shorts and a white tank top. Her hair was splayed out over her pillow and she wasn't wearing even the slightest bit of makeup. Her cream coloured skin contrasted drastically with the navy blue sheets and comforter. She was beautiful. I rubbed her leg, noticing how smooth it was.

"Its been a really long time, but aren't girls supposed to have prickly legs by nighttime?" I asked with a laugh. She smiled, her eyes still closed. She gave me a lazy answer.

"Should be…but I wax." I smiled and shook my head. The silly things girls do. I felt her small, warm hand pulling at my shirt and I looked up to see her eyes open.

"That's so much better, thank you." I nodded, getting up from the bed.

"Stay and watch some TV?" She asked, looking up at me. I couldn't say no if I wanted to, but I didn't want to say no. I smiled and sat down on the bed beside her. She laughed and nudged me.

"You have to get under the blankets silly!" I chuckled.

"Bella I'll make you cold." I told her, shaking my head. The smile slipped off her face.

"You like the cold don't you?" I asked with an amused smile. She smiled softly and I shrugged, climbing under the blankets with her. She grinned at me and I couldn't help but toss my arm around her and pull her into my left side. She snuggled into me comfortably, resting her head on my chest. I put my right hand out and held it open, waiting for her hand. Like always, her little hand graced my large one and I began playing with it like usual. We watched back to back Family Guy episodes, and Friends was just starting. I noticed her hand had gone limp and looked down to see her asleep, her even, slowed breath music to my ears. I smiled and tried to carefully pull myself from her. Her arm curled around my stomach and she cuddled further into my side. I felt my dead heart swell a little and got comfortable, wrapping my arms around her. She sighed at the contact and I smiled. This had just become my favourite place to be. I listened to her heart, feeling it against my side when my eyes became wide. This is what Alice had meant…

"Be careful with her."

Had she seen me with Bella? How could that be? I could never be with Bella…it would be too easy to hurt her… and she didn't want immortality… how was this even a possibility?

"Em…" She sighed in her sleep, grasping my shirt in her tiny hand. I smiled, feeling what humans would call 'butterflies'. 'Oh. That's how.'

Hope you guys enjoyed that ;) YAY!

Song:

I'm Only Me When I'm With You – Taylor Swift