Hugs and kisses to you all. Thanks for sticking around.

xo

-A

-Emmett-

Un-fucking-believable, I thought as I tore through the night. He just couldn't leave well-enough alone, could he? He just couldn't accept that Bella had made her choice and it wasn't him. He had screwed up in his attempt to get her back, and was now pulling this bullshit suicide business because she wouldn't forgive him. And justifiably so; he had tried to kill her father. I took a sharp left and ducked into the forest. I know Bella wouldn't be able to deal with the guilt if something happened to Edward, even if she assured me that she didn't care. She had beat herself up over leaving him, and I couldn't imagine what she would be like if he actually followed through with this. I made a mental note to beat his ass if he made it through this alive. Stupid shit.

"Are we almost there?" she asked breathlessly.

"Soon, babe," I whispered in her ear. "Are you that worried about him?"

"No," she shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm just getting dizzy. Everything's going by so fast it's making my head spin."

"Keep your eyes closed. It will be over soon," I chuckled and picked up the pace. We had to get there in time. I wasn't going to let Edward do this to her. She wasn't going to go through the pain of loss again.

I knew we were getting close as the pungent odor of gasoline filled my nostrils. I swallowed my rage, determined to stay calm for Bella's sake, and pushed through the trees and up the familiar dirt road that led to our secluded homestead. I made it to the expansive lawn and stopped short. Bella jerked against my back with a muffled 'oomph!' I narrowed my eyes because there, just as Alice had said, was Edward. He sat on the roof of his precious Volvo, tossing a Zippo in the air with one hand and humming along to the music blaring from the open windows. He was soaked, head to toe, in the foul smelling inflammatory. Instead of that smug, holier-than-thou smirk he always wore, his expression was oddly serene. He slowly turned his gaze to meet mine, and a creepy smile spread across his face. Bella squirmed down off my back and came to stand beside me. She threaded her fingers through mine and squeezed as hard as she could. She was frightened, but trying her damnedest not to let him see it.

"What are doing?" I asked carefully, so as not to incite him further.

"You should already know," he chuckled. "You did just come at Alice's bidding, did you not?"

"This isn't funny," I answered with a frown.

"No, it's not. It's not funny at all," he grimaced. "And do you know what else isn't funny? Having your world slip through your fingers."

"She's still here, Edward, and still very much a part of your world," I reminded him.

"Part of my world?" he scoffed. "She is my world. My entire existence revolves around her. She is the sun to my moon. The bright blessed day to my dark sacred night. Or, at least she was. Until you stole her from me."

"I didn't steal her. She left on her own," I felt her stiffen beside me. I knew she was reliving the gut-wrenching decision to leave him. She slid an arm around her waist, trying to hold in the pain. I wanted to kill him for doing this to her, but I reigned in my anger and continued. "She let you in to the darkest part of her world, thinking you'd understand. But you shut her out," I flooded his mind with my memories. I watched him cringe as the vivid images of Bella's misery overtook him. Her tears as she cried in my arms for him; her conflict over leaving him tearing her apart because she didn't want to hurt him.

"That's enough," he ordered, closing his eyes.

" Not nearly. You neglect to remember what you put her through," I forced him to watch her eyes every time he spurned her advances; to make him see the hurt and rejection there.

"Damn it, Emmett, I said stop!" he stilled the lighter to press both hands to either side of his head, as if applying pressure would make the visions stop.

"No! You need to see this!" I swallowed hard. Experiencing her pain was just as hard for me. I hated seeing her that way, but he needed to be reminded. All of this, everything that had happened, was his fault. "You forget, dear brother, that you are the one who turned her away. You pushed her out and left her in the cold. If anyone's to blame for her leaving, it sure as hell isn't me!"

"I was protecting her!" he shouted.

"Bull shit!" I fired back. "She wanted you, and tried so hard to make you see that! She was willing to sacrifice our love for the sake of her love for you! And you were too blind to see!"

"Love?" he shouted and opened his eyes. " Ha! She doesn't love you."

"She does, Edward, and you need to accept that," I stated.

"She doesn't and I don't," he retorted like a petulant child.

"I'm not arguing with you on this," I said evenly and shook my head.

" I'm not arguing either," he shrugged. "But one night of pity sex doesn't mean she's in love with you," he turned his attention back to his lighter and began flipping it in the air again. My anger boiled over. I swore I wasn't going to sink to his level but he had just pushed me right over the edge.

"Pity sex?" I growled. "What would you know, you hundred and seven year old virgin!"

"Better than being a man-whore," he smirked.

"Go fuck yourself."

"You first."

"Would you two shut the hell up? You're giving me a fucking migraine!"

-Bella-

Arguing over me was just pouring salt in the already open wounds. I had had enough. They both turned their eyes to me, astonished.

"Babe," Emmett raised an eye brow.

"How else am I supposed to get your attention?" I released his hand. "You two are fighting like teenagers and it's fucking aggravating. Not to mention pointless."

"Pointless?" he asked.

"Well, okay, not pointless," I amended. " You have succeeded in at least one thing."

"And what would that be?" Edward asked and slid the lighter through his fingers again.

"You've both managed to piss me off. Stop referring to me in the third person! I'm right here! If you've got something to say to me, Say. It. To. Me." I folded my arms across my chest

"Sorry," Emmett mumbled, then leaned in to kiss my forehead. Edward just ignored me. "Won't happen again."

"Better not," I glared at him, then winked. "Why don't you let me handle this."

"I don't know, babe," he frowned, and tucked a stray hair behind my ear. "He's very unstable."

"He won't hurt me, Em. I'm his world, remember?" I captured his hand in my own and placed it over my heart. His expression softened slightly, but his brow remained furrowed.

"Bells, I really don't think-"

"I'll be fine, I promise." I held his hand on my heart and reached up with the other to caress his cheek. He leaned into my touch. "I love you."

With that last promise I let go of Emmett and slowly walked over to Edward. He remained perched on top of his car, flipping the lighter casually through his fingers. His stony eyes followed my every movement, like a barn owl stalking a lost field mouse.

"You're going a little overboard with this don't you think?" I asked as I stopped a mere three feet away.

"No, not really. I mean, how else am I supposed to do it?" he looked right through me, his expression blank. "I can't stab myself, the knife would break. I can't shoot myself, the bullet would bounce off," he ticked off the options on his fingers. "The only other way is decapitation, and it's a little hard to take off your own head."

" Be serious," I frowned.

"I've never been more serious," he hissed. "You just don't get it, do you? You destroyed me, Bella. When you left, you took away my only reason for carrying on with this otherwise miserable existence."

"I haven't left," I reasoned. "I'm right here."

"With him," he nodded his head toward his brother. "You're right here, with him."

"But-"

"No. You're with him. You've left me to be with him," he cast his eyes down and stared at the lighter. "You're gone."

"It doesn't have to be this way," I sighed.

"I'm afraid it does. There's no hope for me without you," his voice became sad.

"There's always hope," I tried to reassure him. "Please, come down."

"Can't," He shook his head, his expression grim. "This is the way it has to end."

"It doesn't have to end. We can work this out!" I cried.

I knew there was no stopping him as he continued to shake his head. My attempts at reason had fallen on deaf ears.

"I'm sorry," I choked back the tears as I took a few steps back.

"Sorry…" he repeated almost inaudibly. "You're always sorry…"

"I do love you, Edward. I always will. Just not the way you want me to," my voice quivered and I turned away. I heard the soft click of the metal as he flipped the lighter open, but I didn't bother to pause and continued to walk. I looked up at Emmett, my eyes stinging with tears. I had almost made it to him before I heard the clang of the now-lit Zippo hitting the engine. It rattled around as it dropped into the block, and I watched Emmett's face fall as the flame hit the fuel line and the car caught ablaze.

-Emmett-

The explosion caught us both off guard. Bella had been far enough away to avoid getting burned, but not enough to avoid the shrapnel. I couldn't get to her in time.

A piece of the frame flew off, knocking her in the back of the head. She dropped like a bag of sand.