And so the night continues… I won't say anymore because I'm too excited to see what happens =P …

Enjoy!

Chapter 26:

I bashed my way past the crowd as I submerged myself into the house. I took no prisoners, my only mission now was to escape, I had to get home. Only my bed could comfort me now.

As soon as I stepped out of the front door, I hurried down the driveway; I had to get away before anyone saw me. Away from the house, from my friends, and especially away from Edward. It didn't take me long to exit the neighbourhood, and as I found myself on the main road following the directions to my home, I slowed my speed down, allowing myself to become a shadow of the night, as my tears let rip...

…

My deadpan face hurt so much, the tears which I'd previously shed had frozen and hardened my cheeks. The cool air was refreshing to a certain extent, although the mist of rain in the wind was starting to chill my bones. And nothing could help my rip roaring headache from all that tension. Even so, I quite enjoyed the quiet alone time; just me and the stars twinkling down on me.

Of course, along with silence came my deafening thoughts. Although I did my utter most to block them out, focusing on each step I took, left right left, bringing me closer to my much needed bed.

Left, right, left… Left, right, Left… How could he reject me like that? TWICE!

Saying he was foolish to kiss me and then trying to backpedal and say he hadn't even meant that, probably because he'd sensed he'd hurt my feelings. What a coward! A total bastard! Maybe I didn't even want to be with a person like that, someone who could lead me on to think one thing, sparking hope within me, no matter how tiny, and then change their mind two seconds later! All I ask for is a little honesty! Is that really too much to ask for?

And even if he didn't feel that way about me, why did he have to turn all serious and make it out like we'd done something disastrously wrong? Why not joke it off, or let me down gently? Instead of beating around the bush and stringing me along for the next time I'd crash and burn.

I was starting to think me and relationships just didn't work. My dads marriage lasted all of two seconds, Emmett's relationships (if you could even define them as such a thing) consisted of one night stands… so maybe I just shouldn't even go there. Save my already-fragile heart from having to piece it back together again.

It was either that, or I was just a magnet for bad luck. Years of red faces, tripping up and fumbling over my words suggested that exactly. Because even if I'd have begged the earth to swallow me whole within a second prior to Edward's rejection, saving me from anymore humiliation and heartbreak, it wouldn't have done so. Someone really did hate me up there.

The sound of someone whistling made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. "Evening gorgeous!" A voice to my left then called over to me from behind the shadowy night. As my eyes dared a look their way, I squinted, managing to pick them out. There were 4 of them, and they were sat across the way, on a wall with a can of beer in each of their hands.

I shivered, wrapping my arms around my long sleeved shirt, as I did my best to up my pace, keeping my head forward I focused my attention on the footpath before me. I really didnt want to attract any unwanted attention. But not even ignorance could make them stop.

"Hey lady! Where you going!" I heard a different voice this time; equally as unnerving, but thankfully it didn't sound as if it was getting any closer.

"Don't be shy! We don't bite!" The first one spoke up again and then laughed out into the night, his voice was a little more vague now though, as I was practically light jogging my way back home.

I heard the distant sound of skidding tyres then, the sound and roar of an engine startling me, particularly because the road had been deserted up until now. And I found myself being closed in, not by the drunk men, but by a long shiny black car that sped to a stop in front of me. My feet, uncooperative on an average day, slid against the damp footpath as I was forced to an abrupt halt. How could I not fear for my life?

This was it. I could tell. The moment I was about to die… Bad luck really was like a magnet for me.

It wasn't until Edward jumped out, his expression telling me he wasn't amused, that I felt my heartbeat slow from a sprint to a steady jog. What a relief! And for a millisecond I was incredibly glad to see him. My irritation over him propelled however, particularly when he stormed right over to me, grabbed my arm and told me to get in the car.

"What the hell were you thinking?" he scolded me in a father-to-child-like manner.

"Excuse me!" I exclaimed, yanking myself out of his grasp. "What right do you have telling me what to do!" I straightened my shirt up as it bent a little out of shape.

"Well someone has to, clearly" he said as he stepped forward, now lowering his voice. "Do you have any idea what those lowlife's would've done to you, if I hadn't have turned up?"

"Ooh, heroic Edward saves me again…" I almost sang out, like it was the end of some romantic movie, as I threw my hands out in awe at him. "I'm not incapable you know. I can look after myself!" my face turned to what I hoped was a determined and badass expression.

"Don't be like that. I never implied you were incapable of anything. Just that you should be more careful next time".

"I am careful. I'm always careful!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, sure. Going out in the middle of the night by yourself is being careful, is it?"

"I needed some fresh air" I said in a mutter, avoiding his eye-line.

"And our garden air isn't fresh enough for you?"

"Actually, it was a little too frosty for my liking" I sneered in sarcasm, but he still held those disapproving eyes. I rolled my eyes back, growing impatient with our constant bickering. I was starting to get annoyed just being in the same vicinity as him now. And I hated how he could accuse me of being the reckless, unreasonable one! Why couldn't he just take a good look at himself for once? Maybe then he'd see that the 'unreasonable one' was a little closer to home! "I don't have time for this" I went to walk away, but his hand hooked my arm again.

"Well make time!" he told me, as he stared me down. "I'm serious Bella, you're being reckless; storming off into the night like this, what are you trying to prove?"

My mouth went to fly off the handle, but I managed to control myself. Choosing wit over continuous shouting. "Well it got you out of the house didn't it?" I answered back. "Gave you something to do, off to save the damsel in distress for the second time in two weeks" I rambled on. "Did you announce it to everyone before you left?" I looked at him with wide expectant eyes, every word reeking of bitter sarcasm.

"What?"

"Stop trying to save me Edward!" I yelled at him, cutting him down to silence. "I don't need to be saved by you, or by anyone else. I'm fine". When I was satisfied I'd gotten the message through to him, I continued on, marching up ahead to the direction of home.

Of course I would've been an idiot if I'd thought Edward would simply leave it at that…

"Where are you going Bella?" his voice was once again behind me, as he jogged to keep up with my pace. I was on a mission after all.

"Where do you think? I'm walking home. Leave me alone!"

"Oh don't be ridiculous! Its late and its dark, just get in the car…"

"Why?" I spun to a stop to confront him. "So we can talk more? 'Savour our friendship?' I don't want to talk to you Edward, I just want to be by myself," I told him, my voice more controlled now.

Once again I turned on my heel, walking off at a slightly less dramatic and strenuous pace. I needed to calm down, before I turned ass-crazy and burst a blood vessel.

But Edwards persistency wasn't helping matters one bit. "Do you really think I'm going to just leave you out here by yourself! Do you really think I'd want that?" his voice called back to me, and how could I not stop and turn around.

"I don't know what you want Edward" I sighed helplessly, my voice softening as I looked at him, stood several feet away. I felt an overwhelming feeling of sadness at that. I really was just as clueless as I'd ever been.

He too looked sombre, a mirror of my own face no doubt. He took a step forward as he pleaded with me. "Bella please, wont you just get in the car and I'll take you home" he said, as large spots of rain mingling between the mist began to fall around us.

"I can't" I shook my head back, feeling myself becoming increasingly emotional.

"Cant what? Cant move…?"

"I can't do this" I finished for him. Breathing a long and heavy exhale. "I can't do this anymore, Edward," I finally admitted. Tired of dancing around him, it was time to come clean.

"What are you talking about?" he asked me.

"I can't be around you" I responded, taking him aback.

Uncertainty followed by sadness flittered across his face, "I don't… understand."

"THIS, what we have, I can't do it" I motioned between the two of us. "Its too hard" I ended with a mutter, not entirely sure if he could hear me, not with the rain reaching a steady pour now. Not that Edward probably noticed the change in weather, not with the way his gaze bored into me.

"What are you trying to tell me, Bella?" he took another careful step forward. Not wanting to come too close, but close enough so that he could hear me.

"Oh open your eyes Edward! I'm telling you that I can't keep going on like this, putting on a brave face, being your friend, hoping some day you'll change your mind. I'm constantly wracking my brain, wondering what you're thinking, but every time I do I just get more confused. It's getting to the point where I'm just exhausted now. It hurts too badly to think of it".

I could see the cogs ticking over in his head, if he didn't realise my feelings for him by now, then I may as well give up. But when silence was all that passed between us, I chose to bite the bullet, for my own sake if nothing else. "I think you should stay away from me," I told him, and I wasn't sure if it was the rain in his eyes, or his glistening tears, but hearing me say those words noticeably pained him, and for me, it was like someone had ripped my heart out.

I watched as he swallowed hard, his Adams apple rising and falling in his throat. "Bella, you're one of my best friends" he tried to reason with me in a soft and troubled voice.

"And there lies the problem…" I attempted a smile of sympathy. "I'm sorry Edward, the last thing I want is to hurt you, but I can't be your friend anymore… not just your friend anyway" I could barely look into his eyes at that last part. "It's not enough…

And I'm worried that if we keep going on like this, we'll end up hating each other … I know you have a lot of things you need to work through, fears and insecurities over your past, and I'm sorry for that", his eyes momentarily flickered away, before they rejoined mine as he listened. "But they're not good for you Edward. You have to let them go. They're taking over your life, affecting your relationships and any chance you have at being happy, and maybe not with me" my gaze once again found the ground below, "but with anyone. Why can't you see that?" I turned back to him, to find his eyes had now fully dropped to the floor, his head also slumped more so than usual. And I sensed he knew deep down that I was right.

"…I think you need time by yourself" I went on. "To work through everything… and to tell you the truth, I think I need a break as well… So if you care about me at all, then you'll understand; you'll let me go".

And that was that, I'd said my part, my cards were well and truly on the table. And beyond almost bursting into tears, I felt a wave of relief wash over me; I only wished I'd been honest from the start.

I mustered the smallest of smiles, very little energy left in my body for much more than simply crying, before I turned on my heel, walking the other way, mildly content with how things had ended.

"Fine then!" But his voice called back to me, and I paused, my heart racing, before I slowly turned back around to face him. He was still standing where I'd left him, but he looked a little more confident than the shell of a man he was before. "Fine, I don't care about you" he said. And I frowned back, a little hurt but mostly confused by his words. "Now get in the car!" he ordered me.

"What?" I blinked hard, baffled by his motives.

"You just said, that if I care about you at all, then I'd let you go. Well I'm saying I don't care about you. Now get in the car Bella!"

That was it, I was furious! Too stupid to think I'd actually gotten somewhere with him. I stormed the other way, marching to my destination like a bull to a gate. But no matter how fast I was, he still caught up, and it wasn't long until I heard his rapid footsteps suddenly right behind me.

"Where are you going!" he spun me around, grabbing me by my arms to look at me. It was then that I heard the sound of distant sobbing. I realised a moment later that it was coming from me, and the tears from my eyes now flooded my face, mixing with the thundering rain.

But I wasn't alone, Edward looked shattered, broken. His face crumpled up in a way I'd never before seen. "Why are you doing this to me?" he cried and shook me once; never did he hurt me though, always careful, even with a grip so tight.

"Why won't you just let me go?" I hushed back through my tears. My vision closely becoming distorted from all the water.

He lightly shook his head. "Because I can't… because if I let you go, then I've lost you. And I'll never forgive myself for it ... I hurt you so much, but you have to know that I never meant to, I just can't help it" his grip on me loosened as he looked off to the floor at my side. "You should've given up on me ages ago. Anyone else would have ... And yet you didn't, you still came back. Why do you do that Bella?"

I could barely look into his eyes as his stare felt so intense on me, it could pierce my face. "Because I love you" I finally spoke the words without thinking, "and because it hurts too much to be apart from you" I mumbled, and I almost choked at hearing myself speak with such honesty.

The crease across his forehead grew faint at my declaration of love, and the smallest of smiles crossed his face. "I feel your pain" he admitted. The emotion I felt inside me, like an array of fireworks in the sky, or fizzy pop being shuck in a bottle, ready to explode in its release, was overwhelming. I couldn't think, I couldn't move.

I almost went to cry, it came out more like a hurried spurt of breath though, and as he removed his one hand from where it clung to my arm, cupped my wet cheek and pulled me close, he kissed me. Planting the most passionate kiss I could ever imagine. It felt like a movie kiss, and my legs almost gave way at the intensity of it.

Our moans, well, cries actually, interlaced in the fierceness of our kiss, and our hands desperately clung onto each other to maximize our level of closeness.

I felt him push me back, my legs thankfully doing as they were told as my brain had disengaged from my body, manoeuvring me under a tree to shelter us from the rain, and as my back hit the tree trunk our kiss slowed down. The sobs died down and we melted into each others mouths, his wet hand cupping my cheek, as urgency and hastiness faded away, sealing us in the most sensual and loving embrace.

We pulled away as breathing became an issue, and I panted, feeling as if my lungs were about to collapse beneath my pounding and heavy heart.

Still, I couldn't speak; I just gazed into those eyes that stared straight back at me. He cleared my face from my wet and stringy hair, and as he kissed me once again I surrendered to him, my body went weak, and I'm fairly certain it was only because of his hands around my waist that I remained standing.

I was getting the hang of this kissing thing. And even though I'd only engaged in several kisses throughout my life, I considered myself pretty good at it now. Edward wasn't backing down like he tended too, so I figured I was finally doing something right.

His hands were around my hips then, travelling further beneath the curve of my bum, and within a second I felt him hitch me up, our bodies grinding into each other, bringing forth the most delightful yet tormenting sensation down below, I felt a gasp catch in the back of my throat and for a moment all I could do was feel him, enjoying that tingling sensation down below.

I could've quite easily ripped our clothes off then, Edward's first of all, and let him have his way with me, right up against this tree. I wouldn't have cared if anyone saw us; I would've been too caught up in the motion.

I could see it now, our little love nest.

But clearly Edward thought otherwise, and in retrospect I was probably being irrational. No one had sex against a tree trunk! Not unless we wanted to get arrested. Or this just so happened to be an alternate reality, where sex in public places wasn't frowned upon. Besides, I didn't want my first time giving me butt splinters.

He released me a few seconds later, and I found strength in myself to hold back. He took my hand then, which I gripped onto as if my life depended on it, before he pulled me along, and we briskly jogged back towards the car.

The rain was unrelenting, no longer a steady pour but a heavy shower that threatened to wash us away. But I honestly didn't care. I found it all rather sexy actually. Sure, I probably looked like a drowned rat, my head was hurting from all that strain, my trousers were clinging to me, my hair was in my eyes, my face, and I could barely see past what was two feet ahead of me, but I couldn't have been more turned on, particularly when he'd shoved me against that tree trunk as we'd sheltered.

*Slam*

The two doors slammed shut in unison as we jumped inside; I closed my eyes as I leant against the leather headrest, getting my breath back. My shirt was drenched, seeping into my skin making me that much colder and my forehead throbbed like never before. But as I opened my eyes, I found him looking straight back at me, a small but exhausted smile on his face... and the physical pain no longer seemed a problem for me.

"Déjà vu?" he announced in a gravelly voice, almost unheard beneath the pounding of the rain on the windscreen, while he glanced at me with a small twinkle of hope in his eyes.

I laughed a little, as much as I could manage anyway, unable to believe the same thing had happened twice. It was exactly like my birthday, when we'd watched Disney On Ice and we'd had to run to the car as it rained, well, Edward ran, I did my part by lying in his arms and staying quiet.

We were friends back then though, and things were a lot less complicated. Now, things had changed, not ten seconds ago we were half way there to making love, that surely meant something had changed.

Whacking the heater onto max I sunk further back into my chair, my head tilting towards Edward as I smiled, completely content.

"So" he exhaled a soundly breath, "what should we do now?"

Well, I had a few ideas...

A/N: And what should they do now people? xP

Ok, so it's been a really long wait for you guys (so sorry about that btw, I never meant to drag it out this long lol), but I hope that was worth it?

These two have been through a lot over the last month or so, so I think they deserved one mega rain filled/sexually frustrated climax! =] Please let me know what you think, I thoroughly enjoyed writing that chapter so I hope it came across. And maybe, just maybe you'll get a little more action in the next one ;) Ok, not maybe, I promise you will :) xxx