If this story was real, this chapter would have our six characters evacuating the hurricane, since Irene made landfall at Cape Lookout, NC, which is extremely close to Emerald Isle, where our story is set.

We don't own Twilight; Our hearts go out to those in the path of Hurricane Irene and we hope they remain safe.

Chapter Song: One and Only by Adele

BPOV

The mood around the house was unmistakably somber considering how silly and rambunctious I knew all six of us could be.

Charlotte was looking at the pictures on her camera, Kate was putting cushions back out on the deck furniture after yet another mid-day summer storm, and I was in the kitchen taking inventory so the boys could make a final run to the ABC store.

Final.

I hated that word.

A few days ago, we were on a boat without a care in the world. Now all I could think about was how it was almost over. We were supposed to leave tomorrow. Tomorrow. Less than 24 hours from now. I felt sick to my stomach.

I knew that I said that I wasn't worried about what was going to happen between Edward and me after the summer…and I wasn't. Except that I was. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect something like this would happen between this summer. Ahhhh, Edward.

I didn't even know he existed until the day we met, but now I can't imagine him not being in my life and a part of me felt pretty certain that he felt the same way. I had seen glimpses in his eyes or in the way he looked at me when he didn't know I was watching. Our night in Beaufort though, when he massaged my achy feet, that was when I knew, or thought I knew. Hell, I didn't know, or did I?

I couldn't help the half-hearted laugh that escaped as I realized how completely ridiculous that sounded, but it was true. All too soon I wouldn't be able to find him in the next room, tease him about his hiccups or wake up with him in my bed. He'd be somewhere else, somewhere I wasn't, and I hated that. It made my heart hurt.

"Get out of your head, Bellaboo. I plan on having a good time tonight and I don't need you bringing the party down." Kate appeared beside me, grabbing the list from my hand and adding a few things to the list.

"Everclear? I don't think they sell that anymore," I replied as I shuddered, remembering a previous experience with the stuff. I hadn't touched it since the fateful night I threw up on my date's shoes in a parking lot, but then again, my taste had come a long way since freshman year when I was ID-less and I was at the mercy of the over-21s.

"I think they sell it in hardware stores actually, as a solvent. No lie. There's one in the same shopping center. I'll get Garrett to look. Like I said, I plan on having a good time tonight and I'm not gonna let any of this," she waved her hands in my direction, "depressing shit get in my head."

We stood there in silence for a bit, adding to the liquor list and starting on the grocery list of our barbecue needs. Charlotte came over from her perch on the couch and the three of us stood side by side just staring into the pantry, none of us saying a word, because nobody wanted to talk about what we were all thinking about, as much as we didn't want to think about it. It was the gigantic pink elephant in the room.

I don't know how long we stood there staring at nothing, but it seemed like a really long, long time.

"Fuck this." I turned in shock and looked at Charlotte, because while she certainly wasn't a prude, it was rare for her to just bust out with the random f-bomb.

"You okay, doll?" I asked, knowing the answer to the question before she even responded. She nodded her head in the affirmative even while she verbally answered no and that was the trip wire that set us off. Suddenly, all three of us were sitting on the floor of the kitchen with tears, but I honestly couldn't tell you if they were of sadness or of laughter.

My best guess was that they were a little bit of both.

Eventually though, the tears stopped, but we stayed on the floor, talking about things that had happened over the past weeks. The last thing I would have predicted that first chaotic afternoon was that three girls would meet three boys, all of them drastically different in personality, and nobody would end up in the Emergency Room. In fact, I was so convinced that I had the number to the nearest Urgent Care on my phone's speed dial.

Only when we realized that the rest of the house was suspiciously quiet did our conversation stop, and we all looked over to find our own version of the Three Stooges standing just outside the sliding glass door staring at us and looking at us like we had completely lost our minds.

Nope. Just our hearts. Even Kate.

As if she could read my mind, Kate extracted herself from our pile on the floor, causing me to not so gracefully bang my head on the floor. Note to self, add mop to grocery list because the floor was utterly disgusting. Even with the maid service that 'Lazer had coming in here on a weekly basis, the guys were friggin pigs.

Ew.

"Are you okay?" Kate asked, pretending to care as she wrapped herself around Garrett and clung to him like Velcro. He started whispering into her ear before he began running his fingers through her hair and down her back.

Peter and Edward walked into the house, all sweaty and sandy from their boy time on the beach, and helped Charlotte and me up from the floor. I was still watching Kate and Garrett in amazement and Edward teased me a bit about voyeuristic tendencies.

"Watch it buddy, or one night my webcam might suddenly be 'broken'," I did the obnoxious finger quote thing that I hate so much and his eyes widened.

"You wouldn't!" He stumbled back a bit, clutching at his heart and I nodded solemnly.

"Just try me."

"Isn't there something in the Constitution about cruel and unusual punishment?" I shrugged and went back to the grocery list because I couldn't lie worth a damn and the best thing I could do at this point was change the subject, but Edward wasn't having it.

"You aren't joking about the webcam, are you? You do really have one right? Because, well…"

Damn it. I gripped the countertop and refused to look at him, the words on the list getting blurry from the tears I refused to let fall and I just nodded because I knew that if I opened my mouth to respond, I wouldn't be able to do anything but squeak.

"That's all I needed to know." He moved to stand directly behind me, our bodies flush together from ankle to the tops of my shoulders and I gathered strength from the way we fit together. I was so not planning on this...falling in love with him...happening, but it did and it was almost over and I needed to get out of this house before I just crawled into a closet and decided to never, ever leave. I was turning into the queen of denial and tomorrow was looming over my head.

Looking around, Peter and Charlotte had returned to the camera, quietly laughing at something on the screen and I had no idea where Kate and Garrett had gone. We had so many things to do to get ready for tonight and nobody seemed to want to do it. So, I made an executive decision because I was so authoritative and in charge like that.

"Cullen," I snapped, because we were going to have fun tonight damn it. We were.

"Yes ma'am!" He grinned and saluted after he had moved in front of me. He looked like the dork I had grown to love over the past several weeks.

"You…go shower off. Meet me downstairs. Charlotte…you and Peter do…something and tell Kate and Garrett to help. Stop laughing at me." I shrugged and grinned and couldn't help but start laughing at myself but really, moping around like a bunch of lumps wasn't doing anybody any good and if we wanted to have a good time tonight, then we needed to get moving.

Edward met me in the garage, still smelling like sunscreen, but without the sand and sweat, and I waved the grocery list in front of him. It felt a bit ridiculous to be going grocery shopping when we were leaving the next day, but we needed a few things for dinner, and a whole lot of cleaning supplies. Sure Kate's dad had a cleaning service scheduled to come in, but I had been raised to leave a place in a better condition than I arrived and those boys were completely disgusting.

Yes, even Edward had his flaws.

We raced up and down the aisles with our squeaky wheeled carts, being completely obnoxious and earning more than a few rolled eyes, but I didn't care. At one point, Edward ended up riding in the cart, arms and legs sprawled over the sides because he was so tall and lanky, and he was using the mop as a pretend oar. He took up so much space that it was hard to find room for the few things we really did need to buy, but I found places for everything.

And no, we did not hit the ABC store on the way. That was our second stop, and why I needed Edward to go with me since my ID, while adequate for the few restaurants and bars we had visited, wasn't that good.

Unlike our grocery list, the list for this stop was massive since we figured that whatever didn't get finished off we could just divvy up and take back to school with us. It took Edward three trips to the car and back to get everything. Thank goodness for the elevator otherwise we were going to be eating in the garage.

Once everything had been moved inside and unpacked, Edward and I decided to go for a quick walk on the beach.

We met Kate and Garrett on the beach where they had set up chairs to establish our territory, so to speak. The plan was to have a small, yet still impressive, bonfire type thing, well as much as we could get away with and assuming the winds cooperated. With the recent wildfires that had plagued the NC coast all summer, we needed to be really careful.

Eh, I would be happy with a few candles on the floor inside. I just wanted to spend the evening with my friends and forget that tomorrow, reality was going to slap us full force in the face.

"This looks really great, y'all," I said, grinning at my use of 'y'all'. Every time I went back to Washington, people made fun of my newly acquired 'accent', which was funny considering everybody at school said I talked funny.

I was really glad they took my 'do something' instructions to heart. There were chairs and towels all arranged, and coolers were full of ice and bottles of Gatorade...the beer was hidden underneath and there were beer cozies and cups so we could be 'discreet.' If there was any beach patrol, you were good as long as you didn't flaunt the fact that you were drinking.

We weren't stupid.

Once the beach cleared out a bit, we'd be able to spread out a bit more and maybe turn up the music a little bit louder. We wanted to be away from the house and the deck as much as possible, sort of wrap ourselves up in this little bubble where there were as few distractions as possible and we were all together to just relive the summer and make the most of the time we had left.

That didn't mean though, that alone time was prohibited, because Edward and I were most definitely going to get our alone time…

EPOV

The party was in full swing, we had all eaten our fair share of burgers, hot dogs and even Charlotte chowed down on two tofu burgers. I thought it was rather inventive, and economical, of us to try and eat our way through the food in the fridge before we left. It would be a major waste to throw it out the next day.

Ah...the next day. The only thing currently weighing on me and ruining my evening.

Bella had been uncharacteristically quiet in the morning and then she seemed to have some sort of change of heart, and was bound and determined to see everyone have a wonderful final night at the beach. Of course, all I wanted to do was corner her somewhere quiet and figure out what would happen after tomorrow.

I may have had fears, primarily because we were both avoiding the topic, about the future. I wanted her in my life, in whatever way she was willing, but did she feel the same? From the way she looked at me, I could assume so, but you know what they say about people assuming, right?

I had done all the calculations in my head – how long it would take to drive from UNC to Wake Forest, how much I could afford in phone calls each month and how often we could feasibly see each other. I had all the arguments covered, I just had to get in front of Bella and plead my case. However, I was hoping none of this was necessary and that she would agree wholeheartedly and after we graduated, we'd live happily ever after and all that shit.

"Edward, did you bring the marshmallows?" asked Bella as she fidgeted on my lap and I sucked in a breath while willing my cock to go down.

"Yeah, they are in the bag behind my chair. I think the sticks are over on the deck though." Garrett offered to get them since he was heading back into the house, but then Charlotte came down from the desk with them in her hand as Bella reached behind me, her breasts pressed against my chest firmly, as she kissed my cheek before lifting the bag onto her lap. "You are evil."

"You love it," she giggled as I brushed a few stray hairs behind her ear and kissed her temple.

"More than anything," I replied without regret, as Bella's eyes grew large and we stared at each other for what seemed like a long time. I wanted her to understand how I felt, but she just seemed to be confused. Thankfully, Charlotte interrupted us by dropping the fancy marshmallow roasting forks that Lazer had ordered from Bed, Bath and Beyond, or some shit like that, onto Bella's lap. Lord knows, Lazer couldn't just use regular sticks to roast marshmallows, could he? Nothing but the best for this guy.

"Thanks, Char," Bella replied as Garrett suddenly showed up on the deck dressed in nothing but a towel. God, I had wondered where he had gotten to in the last hour. The sun had faded and the flames from our bonfire lit up the sky, but Garrett made enough noise to make it sound like there were thirty of us on the beach, not six.

"I'm going skinny dipping. It's my last hurrah," Garrett declared as he stepped out onto the beach and dropped his towel, running awkwardly towards the ocean. "Who's coming with me?"

I was shocked when Charlotte stood up from her chair and pulled off her clothes, screaming out something I couldn't understand, and chasing Garrett. Within seconds, Peter and Kate had joined them both, as Bella and I remained nestled in our chair.

"Peter has a seriously pasty ass, but I'm baffled as to why Garrett's is so tan," Bella remarked as her arms snaked around my neck, holding me close.

"Do you remember the day you girls went into town for some final souvenirs?" I asked as Bella simply nodded her head. "Well, Peter and I were attempting to do some laundry and when we came out, we found Garrett buck naked lying on a deck chair on his stomach while reading Maxim."

"Ewww... which chair?"

"The long one that currently has no cushions on it," I said with a laugh while Bella cringed and became stiff in my arms. "Oh don't worry. The cushions were washed and we made Garrett scrub the entire chair before you girls got back. However, that's all besides the point to me. Why were you looking at their asses?"

"Better their ass than their junk, right?" Bella questioned with a sly grin as I shrugged my shoulder. Yeah, I guess she was right. "You know, now that we have a few minutes of peace and quiet, it would be a great chance to slip away." I had to fight back a laugh as Bella waggled her eyebrows. Subtlety was not her style.

"Let's go," I replied as our friends played unabashedly in the surf, the moon lighting their stupidity, as we climbed up the stairs to the deck and slipped inside the house quietly.

As we walked up the stairs to her room, our fingers were interlaced and it seemed like we were both holding on tightly, like we had a death grip on the other. Bella's door was wide open, so we walked inside and I locked the door tightly behind us, before I eased my arm around her waist and began kissing the bare skin of her shoulders.

"We need to talk," Bella mumbled quietly as my body froze. Those words were never good. Never fucking good. "It's not bad, though. Well, I don't think it's bad."

"Wow, way to ease a guy into breaking up with him," I stammered, the frustration clear in my voice as I backed away from Bella and she turned, looking at me with shock clear on her eyes.

"I'm not breaking up with you," she replied simply. "Did you want to break up with me?"

"Fuck no," I stated firmly as a look of relief crossed her face. "I've spent the last two weeks trying to figure out how to make us work even though we will be apart."

"It's not like you go to Duke or something stupid like that," Bella rationalized as she sat down on the edge of the bed and I sat beside her, my hand reaching out and gripping hers. Fuck, we were really horrible at this emotional shit. We could do the friend thing with ease. Hell...romance came even easier, though it took a while for us to get physical, but now that we had crossed that line in our relationship, we were fucking awesome together. However, talking about our emotions...we were morons.

"You're an hour away from me, right?" Bella nodded shyly. "We can take turns driving to the others campus. Maybe every other weekend we can alternate or something."

"Every weekend?" Bella asked, her voice sounding so hopeful and excited.

"We can play it by ear, I suppose," I said with kiss to her temple.

"You can be with your friends during the week and focused on schoolwork and all that shit. On the weekends, you can come to me, or vice versa. I'd love to show you Wake and I'd love to see UNC and Chapel Hill."

"I can't believe you've never been to Chapel Hill, though maybe I should be glad you haven't had a reason to before now. Oh my god, there are so many things we can do!"

I smirked as Bella continued on telling me about the music scene, all the bands she had fallen in love with since arriving for college. My eyes grew wide and my smile grew huge. It was so cute to see her so excited and I wanted to be a part of it. Too bad it was too late to transfer to UNC for the fall semester.

"Oh, and obviously we'll go have Blue Cups at He's Not, and Top of the Hill, and Bubs, and there really isn't anything better than sprawling out on a blanket in the upper quad on a sunny day to just veg. We can go to Breadmans for breakfast, and Peppers and I can try and get us tickets to a basketball game - but not when we play you guys. That would just be uncomfortable because I tend to get a little bit excited during the games and, well, I obviously wouldn't be so happy if you won." She paused before grinning and whispering, "Not that your Deacs would be able to beat us."

"You are absolutely adorable and a little misguided, since our team is ten times better than yours, just saying."

"Give it up. We will kick your asses." I grinned and leaned in, kissing her sweetly on the lips as we both sighed. "Part of me still can't believe you're real."

"What's not to believe?" I asked, somewhat confused as I watched a blush creep up on Bella's sunkissed cheeks.

"Doesn't this all feel surreal to you? Ending up here for the summer and falling...for some random housemate?" I could hear the hesitation in her voice as she paused, unsure how to say what I knew she wanted to say.

"No, it feels very real to me. I came on vacation, hoping to have a fun time with my friends and just enjoy myself, and instead I fell in love with the most beautiful girl," I said sincerely and I heard Bella gasp quietly as my fingers stroked her cheeks. "I am totally, and completely, head over heels in love with you."

Bella was speechless for the first time since we walked in the room, and though I wanted to hear her tell me she loved me, I had faith not to push her. However, when she grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me down to her for a searing kiss, her actions told me everything I wanted to know. I knew she felt the same.

Within seconds I was rolling us onto her bed, my body hovered above hers as I slipped the straps of her dress down her smooth shoulders. My mouth didn't hesitate and latched immediately onto one of her pert nipples as Bella's hands threaded through my hair and she moaned softly, causing my cock to stiffen. I lathed attention on both of her breasts, now proud that I knew how sensitive Bella was there.

"Oh god," she purred as I kneeled back and shimmied the rest of her dress off of her, before leaning back down to kiss across her stomach gently. "I'm going to miss this, so fucking much."

"We'll just have to switch to quality, baby," I replied as my teeth gripped onto the waistband of her tiny blue thong and I pulled it from her excitedly. A writhing and eager Bella was a sight to behold. Her hair was lying across the pillow, her cheeks flush and her breasts heaving. The sweet noises coming from her made it all the more difficult to not rush and simply push inside of her. I quickly undressed and climbed back into bed, pulling the sheets over us since it seemed like someone had turned the air conditioning on arctic.

My fingers teased her as I felt her hand wrap around my shaft and it didn't take long before we were both so close to the edge of release that slipping inside of her set us both off. Bella was a picture of perfection, her voice slightly hoarse from moaning as she grabbed my face and kissed me hard and fast.

"I love you too, Edward," she said fiercely as I let out a small sigh of relief and kissed her once more. I still couldn't believe I had fallen in love with the most beautiful, charming and sexy girl in the world, in just two months. How did I get so lucky?

For the rest of the night, it seemed like Bella and I were one. When we weren't making love, we were holding hands, lying together and discussing the future. Sure, it seemed like we were moving a bit too fast, but when you know it's right...you don't want to wait. It's like that line from When Harry Met Sally, which Charlotte had made us watch a few days ago, 'When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.'

As far as I was concerned, our senior year was just a test, a stepping stone of sorts, to see if Bella and I were truly meant to be. After we graduated, I knew whatever we did, we would be doing it together.