Chapter 26 – Strengthening

There was no denying that Edward and I had an intense physical connection - even after making love throughout the night, I couldn't get enough of him - but I still wondered how well our personalities would mesh. I was actually excited by the idea of learning his annoying little habits, and the thought of our first inevitable tiff actually made me giddy with anticipation. I wanted to fight with him; I wanted to argue and get mad, because there was no better way to strengthen a relationship than to disagree and be able to work it out together… Not to mention the fact that make up sex was always the best, or so I heard, though I couldn't imagine it getting much better than what we just experienced.

"I think we missed class today," I said groggily that morning as we were lying in his tiny bed completely tangled up together.

He chuckled. "I bet you can afford to miss one day."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, unsure if I really had the energy to properly pretend to be offended.

"Nothing, just that I'm sure you haven't been absent much from your classes here. You seem to really have this entire college thing under control."

"Oh, is that how it seems," I asked with a lazy smile. "Well, I'll have you know that I have already missed a few classes this year."

"Really? Were you sick?" he asked, sounding legitimately concerned.

"No…I don't have to be sick to miss…I was just playing hooky….Okay, I may have been in the library studying for an exam at the time, but still."

He laughed. "You rebel."

"Mmm, I bet you like that defiant sort of thing, don't you?" I said seductively.

"I think a mix of rebel and good girl is always best, and you are absolutely perfect that way," he said with a smile before pulling me in for a kiss.

Our bodies still felt like Jello, so instead of having sex yet again, we just laid there and made out for a while, but then I noticed something so I pulled my lips from his. "Oh my god, I can't believe you have this here," I said while reaching for the small framed picture of the two of us. It was sitting on his nightstand in a position where you could only see it if you were lying on the bed, which made me blush and melted my heart at the same time.

"Uh…I meant to put that away," he mumbled embarrassed.

"I'm surprised Esme let you have it," I said as I smiled at the memory of his foster mother forcing us to take the picture so she could hang it in her family collage.

"Well she didn't let me; she didn't even know I took it until a few months after I left. She called and started yelling at me because she thought I threw it away or something…I still haven't confessed to actually keeping it."

"Are they going to be freaked out that we're seeing each other again?" I asked somberly knowing his family was well aware of everything that happened between us.

Edward shrugged. "I don't think so…at least not as much as your dad will be."

"True," I agreed. My father was definitely not going to be happy about it. "I think it would be best to save that conversation for much later…and in person."

He laughed once. "Definitely."

…

I could have stayed in that little room with him forever, but Edward refused to let our relationship mess up our lives again, so he insisted that we made our classes the next day.

I hated having to leave him to go get ready for my day, but I couldn't confuse love with obsession so that meant I needed to make time for things besides him…and that included my over-concerned roommate, and my overprotective best friend…

"Oh my god, Bella, thank god you're okay; Garrett and I have been so worried," Angela said while hugging me the moment I walked through the door.

"I'm fine," I said slowly. "Why were you worried?"

"Uh, maybe because you left that party with a guy that hurt you in the past, and then you didn't come home and you weren't in class and then you didn't come home again. I almost filed a missing person's report, and as we speak, Garrett is still out asking around if anyone's seen you. Where have you been?"

I sighed. "I'm sorry, I should have thought to text you. I've just been hanging out with Edward, you know, catching up and all," I said, trying to sound casual but failing miserably. I couldn't even stop myself from smiling when I said his name.

Angela's mouth dropped. "Oh, catching up? Does that mean…"

I nodded. "Yeah, we're giving it another go…Starting over…" My face broke out into another wide grin.

"Wow, Bella you are glowing," she cooed. "But are you sure about being with him? I mean, with your history and all?"

"We've promised to stay honest with each other, and that's what really matters."

"Well, if you're happy, I'm happy for you," she said while giving me another hug. "We should probably call Garrett and let him know you're okay."

"Good idea," I agreed.

I didn't have enough time to call Gar, so I just sent him a quick text that I was fine, and then I hurried to get ready for my day. It was partially a coward move because I was sure he wasn't going to be as supportive as Angela, and his support was important to me so I'd need to set aside some time to actually explain it to him. He had told me that I needed to find someone that gave me that feeling I had with Edward, but actually being with Edward again was an entirely different thing. Garrett was a lot like my dad in that way, he wanted to shield me from getting hurt, and I'd never be mad at him for that, but I certainly wasn't willing to stop seeing Edward because of his concerns.

My first few classes dragged on agonizingly slow, but as my lunch break approached my butterflies picked back up at full speed. I couldn't wait to see Edward again; I only hoped we made it through eating without attacking each other and being forced back to his dorm room.

We agreed to meet outside the cafeteria so I practically ran there, but when I arrived I was surprised to see that he wasn't alone.

"Hey," I said awkwardly as I approached them. Garrett must have figured it all out and found Edward, because the two of them looked to be locked in some intense conversation. I was so scared that it was going to turn into one of those things where I'd be forced to choose…and I really wasn't looking forward to giving up my best friend. "What's going on?"

"Everything okay?" Garrett asked me protectively.

"Yes. Angela said you were worried, and I apologize…But I'm a big girl and I can handle myself," I tried assuring him.

Garrett stared at me for a minute, and then he did the last thing I was expecting – he shrugged and the smiled at me. "Cool. Good to hear." Then he turned back to Edward. "So, you're really going to talk to her about it?"

"I said I'd try," Edward told him. "I really don't know if it's such a good idea though. She's not really a hundred percent yet, and I kind of think it would set her back if I just sprang something like that on her."

"Hold on, what are we talking about?" I asked confused as I automatically clung to Edward's side and grabbed his hand.

"How was class?" Edward asked me sweetly before kissing me, but noticeably ignoring my question.

I kissed him back, but refused to be detoured for too long. "Fine... I missed you….But what are you talking about? What am I not ready for?"

"No, we weren't talking about you," Garrett explained quickly. "I've been sort of…talking to Kate over the phone and online lately, and I was hoping we could finally get together in person."

"Kate? You mean…"

"Tanya's sister," Edward confirmed. "I know her personally through Tanya, so Garrett was hoping I'd convince her to go out tonight with us."

"Like a group thing?"

"Exactly," Garrett said excitedly. "I met her last year, but it never went anywhere because she was involved with Professor Aarons at the time. We've recently reconnected and I really think there could be something more there if we just gave it a shot."

"Wow, cool," I said, relieved everything seemed to be fine with him. And I sincerely hoped that it worked out with Kate; Garrett deserved someone special, and if anyone knew how to be supportive of someone with an emotional problem, it was him.

Edward invited Garrett to lunch with us, but he said he had somewhere to be, and I was grateful. I loved Garrett, but I didn't want to share my Edward time at the moment.

After making out like teenagers through our lunch hour, Edward walked me to my next class...

"So…are you going to talk to Kate about tonight?" I asked him before we parted.

He shrugged. "I'll call her…but maybe we could arrange something for next week. Tonight I'm taking you out on our first real date."

I smiled. "Really?"

"Oh yeah. Flowers and the whole shebang…as promised."

I bit my lower lip. "Okay, but I have to tell you, I don't do the whole sex thing after a first date."

His face fell into an adorable pout. "Well if we can't have sex after the date, can we find a time to do it during the date?"

I giggled. "That all depends on how good you are."

He smirked and then pulled me into him. "Oh, I can be very good."

He leaned in to kiss me, but I pulled my head back. "Oh yeah? I can't wait to see you prove it," I challenged him before giving him a quick peck and then escaping from his embrace. There was no way I was going to go to class if he kissed me again. "Pick me up at six tonight," I told him before hurrying away.

...

Our date night was absolutely perfect; it was fun, and romantic, and everything a wonderful night should be. At the end of the evening there was no way that whole "no sex" thing was going to stick, so I ended up going back to Edward's room, and I started to wonder how I'd ever sleep without him again.

Over the next several weeks, we grew so irrevocably together that I honestly felt like he was the other half of me. We were beyond comfortable with each other, and yet, I never felt bored or complacent the way I did in my previous relationships. Those radioactive butterflies only became more nuclear with every passing day, and I sincerely hoped that fire never got extinguished.

But as crazy as we were for each other, we refused to let it cross that line into unhealthy obsession. We managed to spend some evenings apart, and tried to maintain friendships away from each other. And there were definitely things about him that annoyed the hell out of me – Like when he refused to let me buy my own dinner, or when he'd get a little huffy every time a new guy showed the slightest interest in me, platonically or otherwise. He was definitely protective to a fault, but despite protesting some of his old fashioned chivalries, secretly I loved that aspect of him because I knew he only acted that way out of his love for me, and there was nothing better in the world than being loved by him.

Edward had kept his word and convinced Kate to go out with Garrett, and it wasn't long before they too became a strong steady couple. Some of my favorite times were when Edward and I would go out with Kate and Garrett, and Angela and Ben. We all got along really well, and I was so happy to have made some real and true friends that year.

Without even realizing it, months had passed and it was time for spring break, which presented Edward and me with our first big challenge as a couple.

"My dad knows I have two weeks off, and he's already bought my bus ticket home," I told Edward one afternoon. I wasn't obsessed with Edward, but I certainly didn't want to spend two weeks away from him either so I was practically begging him to come home with me.

"Bella, your dad hates me…Most of Forks hates me," he argued.

"That's not true, why would most of Forks hate you?"

"It's a tiny town, they all know our relationship screwed you up, so of course they hate me for it. Plus they all blame me for getting the Blacks arrested. They were practically the royal family around there."

"They're important in La Push, not Forks. Besides, I spoke to Jake last year about everything, and he doesn't blame you one bit. He knows it was his dad's fault…Everyone knows it was all Billy's fault, even my dad. I'm sure it will be fine."

"If you were so sure it would be fine you would have told your dad about us already," he rebutted.

Crap, he was right. "Okay, I am a little nervous, but not because Charlie hates you…I just, I know he thinks it's a bad idea for me to associate myself with any contributing factor to my breakdown. He didn't want me talking to Jake either."

"But he still brought him to see you. Do you know what he said when I asked him how you were doing? He basically told me to go lay on some railroad tracks."

"Oh, he did not."

"Yes, he did. He said that if I ever tried to contact you again, he'd bury me in the woods somewhere no one would ever find me. True story."

I laughed once. "Well I guess you didn't take his threat too seriously, did you."

"I didn't follow you to this school, Bella. I was here first, so this is your fault," he joked.

I rolled my eyes. "Look, we're going to have to tell him eventually… I mean, unless you plan to break up with me in the near future."

He pretended to think about it. "Can we break up right before you leave, and then get back together when school starts again?"

I punched him in the arm.

"Okay fine, you go alone for now, and tell your dad about us. Give him time to let it sink in, and then I'll go down there next week for a tense, not so friendly visit…Or maybe we should give him a little more time and I'll go this summer."

"Coward," I teased him.

"Yes. Yes, I am," he agreed. "Your dad is absolutely terrifying."

I whined. "Please just come with me. He's retiring, and there's going to be a big party for him."

"All the more reason to not go; I really don't want to ruin his day. Where would I stay there anyway? Your dad would never let me stay at your house, and the only hotel in town is owned by Black's cousin. I just don't see it working this time."

"We can figure it out….Oh, you know what, Waylon has that room above the diner's kitchen, I'm sure he'd let you stay there… I bet he'd even let us stay there together," I told him seductively.

"Babe, I want to go, really I do, but Esme wants me to go to Alaska over the break," he said, pulling that excuse straight from his ass.

"Two weeks," I reiterated. "You know you're going to miss me."

"Of course I'm going to miss you, but think how great the sex will be when we come back," he said playfully.

"Sex with us is always great," I said somberly, knowing he wasn't going to change his mind.

When the day I was set to leave arrived, I refused to let my sudden feelings of separation anxiety overtake me. It was okay to miss Edward, but I had to learn to handle those emotions. However when he came to say goodbye, I nearly had a panic attack when I saw that he had a suitcase of his own.

"Wait, you really are going to Alaska?" I asked anxiously. Having him three hours away was one thing, but any further than that was horrifying.

"Uh…no," he said sheepishly.

My heart jumped. "You're coming with me?"

He smirked. "Well, to be honest, the Cullen's are moving back there this week and asked if I could go there to help them unpack and all."

"They're moving back?" I asked excitedly, but surprised.

"Yeah, I guess they missed it. Plus the Chief of Staff position at Forks Mercy just opened, so Carlisle jumped at it."

"Wow! So… you were willing to go for them, but not me?" I asked, feigning hurt. I really did understand his reasons for not wanting to go, but I would think those reasons would still be valid with or without his family there, so I wasn't sure why he changed his mind about going back.

"The Cullen's house is out in the boonies. With them being there I can just hide out and not have to worry about all that small town crap.

I bit my bottom lip, and then I exploded. "I'm so glad you're going to be there with me!"

I really didn't care how or why he was going, I was only grateful I didn't have to go two whole weeks without him. Being back in forks together was going to be strange, but it was just one more thing that we needed to get through that would surely strengthen our relationship - at least, that was my hope…