A/N: Thank you, thank you to my readers who have been very kind in alerting, favoriting and reviewing. You make this experience worthwhile, and I thank you very much for your support!

A huge, heartfelt thank you to the all-powerful katmom, who is faster than a split-infinitive, more powerful than the active voice! She always saves the day!

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all the characters, I'm just playing with them. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 5 – Promises

After Edward's broad shoulders disappeared behind the door, I dropped my head back onto the pillow and covered my eyes with my good hand.

"I can't believe he did that," I grumbled to the empty room. Now that I had seen this side of him, I wondered how much of that condescension had played into our relationship. He was the one-hundred and eight year-old experienced male, and I could tell he was rather protective of me, the naïve teenager. At the time, I had thought he was just being sweet. Now I wondered how much of his treatment of me were his manners, and how much was him being presumptuous?

He had refused to discuss anything about becoming a vampire, beyond relating the general facts of Carlisle's story, or those of the other family members to me. "You don't know what you're asking for," he had growled at me. If not for Alice, I would still be in the dark about vampire transformation.

From Carlisle, I gathered Edward considered himself a soulless monster, one doomed to hell despite all of Carlisle's attempts to persuade him otherwise. So, in Edward's view, he was saving me from perdition. Yet in doing so, he cast me into purgatory. Regardless of what I thought of heaven or hell, he had made the decision for me.

While I reclined in the hospital bed, still fuming, I heard the door open again and pulled my hand from my face, ready to bark at Edward to leave me alone…only to see Alice's inky locks poking around the half-opened door.

"You okay?" she asked.

"No," I grumbled. "C'mon in, Alice."

Alice shut the door behind her and resumed her chair next to my bed.

"How dare he? How dare he?" I began ranting. "What gives him the right to make that kind of decision for me?"

"You must admit, he's always been very protective of you."

"Has Jasper ever done anything like that to you?"

"No, but he can feel if I'm bothered by something he's done. Edward doesn't have that insight with you."

I felt another flare of irritation. "So? Guys have had to deal with women for thousands of years without being able to read minds or feelings. That doesn't give them any excuse to treat their girlfriends like children!"

"Easy, Bella, I'm on your side." Alice patted my shoulder gently, and I felt a little sheepish for my outburst. "I didn't like it either, but he insisted that we all move, and have no contact with you. I won't excuse what he did, but maybe if I explain something, you might be able to understand why."

Once again I relaxed against the pillow. "I'm listening," I said with poor grace.

"We're all very protective of our mates." Alice narrowed one eye and gazed at me intently. "Has Edward ever explained vampire mating to you?"

Immediately, my mind started running off, and I could feel the flush starting up my neck. "Um, no, he just said he didn't think that would be possible for us, since he's so much stronger than I am."

Peals of Alice's laughter sparkled off the walls of the room. "Not that kind of mating, silly!"

"Oh, geez!" I grabbed the blanket and pulled it up over my now flaming face.

Still giggling, Alice pulled the blanket back down. "Hey, it's me you're talking to. You can ask me anything."

I started giggling in embarrassment as well, the motion causing some discomfort in my sore back muscles and the injured side of my face. It took me a few breaths to calm down, but eventually my curiosity won out. "He did mention something about Victoria and James. Okay, then, tell me about this mating that isn't mating."

With a nod, Alice began. "Basically, even though nothing's being driven by procreation, vampires can find mates. And when they do find their one, true mate, that bond lasts for the rest of their existence.

"Part of Edward's mistake was thinking that it wouldn't be the same with you, because you're human. But it's not unheard of between a vampire and a human. Esme first met Carlisle when she was sixteen and human. She didn't marry him then because of family circumstances, but when she met him again years later the connection was still there."

I thought about that, then spoke slowly, "Edward and I are…"

"Mates."

I raised my visible eyebrow. "Soul mates?"

"What's the difference? Think about him. What are you feeling now?"

I closed my eyes and thought about him, searching for what my heart felt. Now that I had cooled off a little, the yearning that was always there came back in force, the ache only partially dulled because I at least knew where he was. At the same time, I still felt a little irritation that he was so autocratic and insensitive of my wishes. "Alice, if we're mates, how can I still be pissed off at him?"

Alice gave a knowing smile and shook her head a little. "Just because you're mates doesn't mean you can't have the ups and downs of a relationship. We're not zombies in a constant state of goo-goo eyes because of the mate bond, you know. I can't tell you how many times Emmett has been in the doghouse because he irritated Rosalie, and she irritates easily. But in back of all that, there's the strength of that unconditional love, keeping the two of you together. That's what you're looking at here."

Unconditional love. That was a good word for what I felt. Thinking back over the last few months, no matter how much it hurt, I still cared for him, still wanted him to come home to me. Still, it left me with one question.

"Why did he leave me if he loved me?"

"Everybody reacts differently, but again, it goes back to that bond. We will go to great extremes to protect those we love – sometimes completely illogical extremes. If you were a vampire, the choice would be simple; he would defend you to the death. But in this case, the threats he was protecting you from were himself and our family. That, combined with his assumption that you were human and couldn't bond the same way we do, led him to his decision."

"Oh," I muttered stupidly. "So, he didn't really want to leave me?"

"The way he behaved while you two were apart, there's no other explanation. He wouldn't stay with the family, but I kept tabs on him while he was away." Alice shook her head and sighed. "Before he settled down and started hunting Victoria, he caused quite a bit of destruction in some forests up in British Columbia."

I frowned, not understanding what had been driving him. "He was–"

"He was very unhappy," Alice concluded with a shrug.

News that he hadn't actually been pursuing distractions while away from me came as a relief. Perversely, Alice's comment that he had been unhappy during that time, gave me a hint of satisfaction.

One of the more painful memories I had – guaranteed to send convulsions rippling through my body – was Edward's look of disdain, and the frigid dispassion in his voice as he told me he didn't love me. Before, I had always seen in him the beauty one only saw in classical statues. On that day, he had taken on the inhuman qualities of a statue – cold and unfeeling stone. Now, Alice's comments held that memory up to a different light. His love was still there, only buried behind a mask of his own making. It still wasn't pleasant to reflect on, but at least I was able to bring it up without crying.

The thought that we shared a deeper connection than even he understood, made sense considering how I had felt during the months of his absence. I knew without a doubt I had this bond to him. If he had the same rapport with me, his actions were not driven by condescension, but by love. My irritation at his actions seemed rather petty in hindsight. Then I remembered my own last words to him and groaned, my heart sinking back into my stomach. I grasped Alice's sleeve, with a sickening feeling.

"Oh, Alice!"

"What's wrong?" Her golden eyes grew concerned at my sudden wail.

Barely audible, I moaned, "I kicked him out. I sent him away. Do you think he's mad at me?"

Alice's brows knitted together in concentration, then she focused on me again. "He's not in the hospital, but I don't think he's angry."

"Where is he?"

Her nose wrinkled as well as she tried to see more, then she shook her head. "He's running full-tilt through the forest, I just can't tell where. Do you want me to get him?"

I desperately whispered, "Please!"

Alice pulled out her phone, muttering about cell phone service in the forest. Then a devilish smile spread across her face and she stopped mid-dial. She leaned in and spoke conspiratorially. "Now, just because you've realized you're his mate, doesn't mean there can't be some ground rules." She continued to speak, and I listened with renewed hope for the future.

= = O = o = P = =

It had taken some time for Edward to pick up Alice's message, as he had been running in a fairly remote area. Alice had assured me that this was a good sign, as he often went running when upset. However, the fact that he was upset didn't make me feel that much better. While we waited for him, Alice filled me in on what she had found about her history.

"You have a niece?" The thought of a vampire having living relatives didn't quite compute to me. Though it wasn't impossible for distant descendants to exist, the way the Cullens lived outside of society made normal family ties seem like a foreign concept.

"I had a younger sister named Cynthia." Alice leaned back, gazing out the curtains that Charlie had left open. "Her only daughter lives in Biloxi with her family now. Part of me is curious, to see what she remembers of her mother, or of her grandparents. But that would be a little awkward."

"If any pictures of you existed, you'd freak them out."

Alice nodded in agreement. "I suppose it's a good thing there wasn't any information on why my parents had me committed to an asylum. There must have been something fairly awful happening for them to do something like that."

"Nothing in the news?"

"My family wasn't high enough in society. There's a wedding announcement and some birth announcements, but that's all. We were pretty average folks."

I reached over and squeezed her hand. "You'll never be just average to me."

"Thanks, Bella." Alice's megawatt smile washed over me, and reminded me how much I had missed her when she was gone. My best friend, the vampire.

Apprehensively, I looked at the clock. Eight-fifteen, almost an hour since Alice left her message on Edward's voice mail. "Are you sure he's coming?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Cell phones are only as good as their coverage. Trust me, wild elephants couldn't keep him away."

"Don't you mean horses?"

"Do you think horses could hold him?"

"Oh, I guess not." I looked down at myself. "How do I look?" I wondered.

Alice glanced at the bandages on my face and snorted. "Like a patient."

Out of reflex I smoothed my hair with my hand, but it was pointless – I was all bandages and fiberglass casts wrapped up in a lovely hospital gown. "Ooh, maybe I should talk to him another time."

"Nonsense, you're in a hospital, he's not going to care that you're wearing bandages." Alice laughed. "Trust me, you're talking to the style police. This is perfectly appropriate for the season and this situation."

At 8:37 a.m. there was a knock on the door, precisely when Alice had predicted. Alice quickly got up, gave me a meaningful look, and opened the door. Edward looked much the same as he did from earlier this morning, except his hair was damp and swept back, as from the passage of wind. He stood there, looking at me from the doorway, a mixture of hunger and pain in his eyes, and I felt a twist of guilt that I was the source of his anguish. A cough from Alice brought my attention back.

"Come in, Edward," Alice greeted him. "I'm going to call Jasper and see how he's doing with the arrangements. Call me if you need me, I won't be far." Edward stepped across the threshold and Alice quietly closed the door behind her.

"You wished to see me?" His tone was quiet, and very polite, as usual.

I nodded and tried to keep my voice steady, although he was certain to have heard my fluttering heartbeat even without the monitors. "Sorry I got mad at you. I kinda went off without thinking."

He shrugged in a resigned fashion. "It's understandable."

"Why don't you sit over here?" I indicated the chair closer to my bedside. As he approached and sat, I noticed his eyes, which had been dark earlier, were now golden-yellow. "Did you go hunting?" I asked, equally as polite.

"I thought it best to make myself safe for you, just in case you might change your mind about speaking with me." He clasped his hands, and leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on his thighs. "I understand if you are angry with me."

I waved a finger slowly in a circle, and he watched it move. "You know, in a way, you did this to me."

Edward dropped his gaze to the floor. "Yes, I know, and I am sorry for that," he admitted softly.

"Not just this. I'm talking about the last six months. You decided what was best for me, and you left me without once asking what I thought we could do about the situation."

He raised his head and looked at me helplessly. "Yes, you're right."

"You said you lied about not loving me when you broke up with me." I said that as calmly as I could, not wanting to sound too shrill about it.

Edward's jaw muscles flexed briefly. "Well, technically, I said I would always love you...in a way."

I rolled my eyes at that. "But you did say you didn't want me."

"I said I didn't want you to come with me," he corrected. "Honestly, would you have let me go if you thought I still loved you?"

I held my hand up. "This isn't about me, right now, but you. Why did you leave like that, if you still cared about me?"

Edward considered that silently, his hands folding and unfolding. "In my defense, it seemed to be the only thing I could do. You've not been the most rational person in this situation. I'm still a predator, and you're still my prey. Most people instinctively recognize the danger we present and run away from that danger. Not you! You embrace that danger, you run towards it!

"My family still associates with immortals who practice the traditional diet. Sooner or later, you would have come in contact with them, and I assure you, none of them are in any way hesitant about satisfying their thirst. The ones we call friends oblige us by not hunting within our range, but the risk to you was still too great."

He shook his head with his mouth open, and his voice came out strained. "I had to try. I had to try to save you from me, from my family, from my world. To do nothing would have been unconscionable. I thought, given time, you would be fine once I left, because you're human. You would forget. As long as I kept Jasper and my family away from you, you would be safe."

"Well, you're wrong on both counts." I took a deep breath, gathering my thoughts. "I almost died without you. I must have gone kinda crazy myself because I can't even remember what happened in the first four months after you left. And that's without Victoria thrown in. Just because you took yourself out of my life, doesn't take me out of your world. It's all around us, just not everybody knows that you exist."

Edward nodded numbly, and pushed a wayward lock of hair out of his eyes. "I'm so sorry all that pain was for nothing."

"For nothing," I repeated. Looking sadly down at my broken body, I had to work harder to keep hold of Alice's reassurances. "So what now? Are you staying, or will you only be here until you decide to leave me for my own good again?"

Edward steepled his hands over his nose and mouth, taking a deep breath before taking them away. "You seem to have an uncanny ability to find my limits. I thought the hardest thing I had ever done in my life was to stop drinking from your wrist after James had bitten you. This was harder. Every single day away from you, I heard you calling to me to come back. I was already starting to cave when Alice called me."

"But she said she had to convince you."

"Only because you were human. I didn't think it possible that you could feel the bond between us as strongly as I did. In most of the human relationships I've witnessed, hardly any of the couples are equally matched in the depth of their feelings. One half of the couple always feels less or more than the other person does in return. So I thought there was a possibility you might be the same way."

"I did say you were wrong about that."

"Believe me, I truly wanted to come back to you, yet I was also afraid you might have been too hurt to take me back. Part of me was afraid to face you if that were the case. I'll accept your scorn, if you truly wish to have nothing to do with me. If you've moved on with that Jacob child, that is your right and my just desserts."

I wondered what he might have heard of Jacob, but wanted to stay on track, and set it aside for later. "So I'm to believe that you're coming back and this time you'll stay with me? How do I know you're not lying now?"

"I hope you will believe me that I have no agenda, other than loving you." Then to my surprise, Edward pushed the chair back, settled to his knees, and took both of my hands in his, holding the cast carefully with his left.

"I can only tell you what I feel, and hope you will accept it as truth. I never stopped thinking of you, love." I felt a jolt run up my spine when he said that term of endearment I hadn't heard in far too long. He frowned and I realized my face must have reacted when he said it. "Forgive me, though I have no right, I still think of you that way."

He plunged on, in his agitated way. "I keep saying it because I know no other way to express it. I never stopped loving you. There wasn't a day, an hour, a single minute that wasn't filled with thoughts of you. I even saw you everywhere. Every time I saw a young woman of your approximate height and build with long brunette hair, I was reminded you were not with me and the pain was paralyzing. I couldn't listen to music, I couldn't drive a car. I had to avoid populated places after a while because the slightest swish of long, chestnut hair would set me off again. There was no distraction, nothing at all with enough power to erase you from my thoughts, or to ease the agony of being away from you. Hunting Victoria was the only thing that gave me enough motivation to move, because that was done in your service.

"If you are too hurt, too angry to take me back, I completely understand. I won't bother you if that's what you want, because I deserve every ounce of your disdain. But I just couldn't stand on this earth for one more day with you believing the lies I told. I love you, and I'm so sorry, so very, very sorry that I hurt you. I will wait forever for the slightest hint of your esteem, and if you let me, I'll spend every moment trying to prove–"

As the look on his face became more and more tortured, his voice seemed to thicken and stick in his throat. So help me, the need to comfort him grew and grew, welling up in my chest. With each word of love that dropped from his lips my resistance evaporated like frost before the noonday sun. Heedless of Alice's advice, before I knew it, my hand freed itself from his grasp, reached out and grabbed a fistful of his shirt, pulling him toward me. "Edward, shut up, and kiss me," I muttered.

His eyes flew wide, frozen in surprise for an instant, which must have been an eternity for him. Then suddenly he blurred and his face was up close, his lips moving softly on mine, and only now did I realize how much I had missed that cool, sensual smoothness. Instantly, the remaining pain in my chest was gone, replaced by a golden glow that slowly spread outward, my heart beating loud and strong once again, my lungs once more filled with sweet life.

I didn't care that his clothes were very weathered and smelled of the outdoors from living rough for the last six months. The movement of my cheek muscles set my injury aching, but I ignored it in favor of savoring the sweetness of his lips. Pulling in a deep whiff of the heady, spicy scent that permeated his skin, I luxuriated in the feeling of returning home. Gone were the scratchy hospital sheets, the monitors, bandages and IV tubes. There was only him, and me, the play of his lips on mine, and the sensation of weightlessness as I kissed him hungrily.

Edward broke first and whispered hoarsely against my cheek, "Oh, how I've missed you." He lay soft, rapid kisses on the unhurt side of my face, my nose and finally came back to my lips.

"Same here," I answered, when my lips had a chance, then I smiled as my fingers returned to where they'd always felt at home – twining through his tousled, bronze hair. Suddenly, a loud chirp came from Edward's pocket. He ignored it and continued kissing me, but another chirp resounded. With a frown, he sat back and pulled his phone out. A very confused expression came over his face, and he handed the phone to me. It was a text message from Alice that read:

Bella…FOCUS!

I giggled, at the expense of another twinge in my face. I could easily visualize Alice's expression – hands on her hips, eyes flashing as she glared at me. How well she knew me. She did, however remind me of the other things that needed to be said.

"Meddling sprite," Edward groused, and I suppressed another laugh.

"Yes, Edward, I still love you, but that doesn't excuse what you did," I began after I had calmed down. I was momentarily floored by the intense relief I felt at being able to tell him I loved him again, something I had despaired of doing not so long ago. To focus myself, I took my fingers out of his hair and grasped his hand.

"You decided what was best for me. And even though it involved me – intimately – you never bothered to discuss it with me. Those last three days when you were moping around, giving me the silent treatment, you never thought to talk to me about it. You just decided and threw me away. I thought we had gotten beyond that when we started trusting each other with our secrets.

"If you love me, and want to stay with me, this 'as long as it's best for you' stuff has got to stop." I spoke as earnestly as I could, holding his gaze intently. "It means you hold all the cards, and the ultimate decision over you and me belongs to you only. You've left yourself an out. How am I supposed to take you seriously that you love me if that's hanging over my head?"

Edward absorbed that silently, then nodded. "What would you have me do?"

"You can respect my concerns, and talk to me about what's bothering you. This is a partnership, and we continue because we both want it. If we continue, I have to be an equal participant. I'm not so foolish to think things will always be perfect between us, but it means we try to work things through. If something happens that bothers us, we talk to each other.

"Maybe it wouldn't have made any difference if we'd talked, and you still would have left. But you didn't even give me a chance. You didn't give us a chance. You just did what you thought was best and look where that got us! I feel like you just gave up on us, and it was easier to run, than to try."

I took a breath, and steadied myself, then placed my hand along his cheek, brushing his cheek bone softly. He turned and pressed a soft kiss into my palm. "I need to know that, when the going gets rough, you won't run away from me. And I need to know that you won't make decisions that affect me, without my say so. If you love me, I don't think that's a lot to ask."

Finally coming to a close, I gazed into his eyes, expectantly. Nervously, I took my bottom lip between my teeth, waiting for his response.

Edward seemed to study the patterns on the blanket for a time before he addressed me. "You're right, love, that was wrong of me, and I'm sorry I acted that way. It won't be easy, you know. The instinct to protect our mates is almost on par with the hunting instinct. I automatically shy away from anything that might be dangerous to you."

He placed his hand along my face, and I automatically rubbed my cheek against his palm. Edward kissed me on the tip of my nose before continuing. "Do you remember the argument I had with my family before we started dating? Right after Tyler almost killed you with his van?"

I shook my head.

"I almost got into a fight with Jasper."

My eyes widened with my surprise. On the night of my birthday party, while Jasper had been struggling to get free, he hadn't really attempted to strike or hurt any of his siblings. I didn't want to think of what might happen in a real fight. "Really? Not an argument, but a physical fight?"

Edward nodded. "It almost came to that. At the time he saw you as a threat to Alice's safety. He was ready to kill you to protect her, and I wasn't about to let him harm you."

"What happened?"

"Alice stepped in and told Jasper she'd be very annoyed with him if he killed you. She already knew you were going to be best friends."

"Good thing."

"Yes, but my point is, we'll do almost anything to protect our mates. Even though it would have been wrong to kill you, a complete innocent, Jasper was ready to do it. Likewise, because of that bond, I'll do anything to protect you."

"I understand that, and if you think about it, I'd do the same for you. Just don't use it as justification to do something without my knowledge, even if it is for my own good. That's all I'm asking."

Edward's other hand was busy caressing my thumb where it protruded from the cast. "You shouldn't have to ask me for something that's only right to do. And I'm thinking at this point, no promise I can make is good enough to atone for my misdeeds. Only over time, will I be able to show you that I mean what I say. But as long as you will give me that chance, I will make good on this promise. I'll never leave you again, and I promise to treat you as an equal partner."

I smiled when he finally spoke the words I wanted to hear. "Thank you," I breathed, happy to gain his acceptance. I reached up, pulled his face down towards me, and lost myself in his kiss again. Unfortunately, my broken cheek had other ideas, and I pulled my head away when I could no longer ignore its protests.

"Ow," I winced.

"What is it, love?" The concern in his eyes was for me, and the thought of that set my heart singing now.

I placed my hand against his chest to reassure him. "I can't kiss you enough, but it makes my cheek hurt when I move a certain way," I pouted. That motion, at least, didn't aggravate my injury.

"Ah." He grinned, greatly amused. "Well, don't move then. Let me do the work."

He lowered his head again, and I did my best to resist following the intoxicating dance of his lips on mine. After a while, I couldn't help myself, and let the tip of my tongue peek out shyly to graze his gently moving lips. He tasted just as good as I remembered, and before long my heart was pounding in my ears, my breathing growing labored. The only remaining drawback was my broken hand, because the cast was rather awkward when I tried to pull him closer.

When Edward finally pulled back a little to let me breathe, we stayed like that for a long time – him leaning on the bed with his face close to mine, the two of us drinking in the sight of each other and basking in the glow of finally being together again. My chest, which had once seemed cold and dead, carved out in its entirety, now blazed with warmth, singing with energy and lightness.

Edward traced the outlines of my face with his index finger and solemnly remarked, "I thought I'd never see your face again." Then he laughed. "And after all this time, I only get to see part of it."

I laughed too, a little self-consciously. "We meet on a hospital bed too often." Though it was pointless, I pushed aside the hair on the un-bandaged side of my face. Edward's eyes followed the movement, then he frowned. He pointed at the cut I had received from falling off the motorcycle.

"This isn't from last night," he observed.

"No, I got it about a week ago."

"What happened?"

I looked away for a moment, while another flush crept up my neck. Of course, he noticed.

"What's embarrassing about getting a cut on your head?" His voice remained velvet-smooth, but was rather puzzled.

I briefly considered lying about it, but felt that would be the wrong way to start our new, equal-partner relationship. And Edward should know what kind of girl he had saddled himself with. "I, um, fell off a motorcycle," I said as my face flamed again.

Edward's eyes widened. "Who was driving it?"

"Me."

I didn't think he could look more surprised, but he did. "You were riding a motorcycle?" His voice rose slightly.

"Yes, but not very well." I gave a nervous laugh, trying to distract him.

Edward snorted. "Obviously. What possessed you to do that? A motorcycle isn't exactly practical in Forks. Is something wrong with your truck?"

"No, nothing's wrong with it, I just–" I sighed, and resigned myself to the truth. "You're going to think I'm nuts."

Edward instantly smoothed out his expression to one of concerned interest. "No, I won't. Tell me, love."

A whisper of his sweet breath momentarily addled me, and I put it out there. "Well, I did it so I could hear your voice."

I was impressed that he didn't react, and merely continued in a concerned voice, albeit a little confused. "You heard my voice while riding motorcycles?"

"Well, it wasn't just motorcycles – that was just one way to get there. You see, I wanted to remember everything about you – the way you looked and acted, what we had done together, and all the things you had ever said to me – but it hurt too much when I would try to think of them.

"Then somehow, I found that when I was under an element of danger, with the adrenaline going, your voice would come to me, like you were still protecting me, and you still cared. It didn't hurt when I heard your voice that way, so I kept trying to find ways to bring that back."

Edward absorbed that silently, then spoke very deliberately, "You were risking your life to hear my voice?"

I shrugged helplessly, and nodded. "It was all I had left of you," I whispered.

He took a breath, closed his eyes, then he collapsed forward, burying his face in my chest with a sound like a sob. "I am so, so sorry," his muffled voice resonated against my chest and I lay my hand on the back of his head, making shushing noises and trying to soothe him.

Then he raised his sorrowful face to me. "My poor angel. I am so sorry for all you've been through."

"Hey, it's okay. It's over now and we're together again. That's all that matters."

He nodded fervently and gazed deeply into my eyes. "Yes, it is, thank goodness. If I ever needed an indication that you feel the bond as strongly as I do, that would be it."

I breathed a mental sigh of relief. "You don't think I'm crazy?"

"No. I think traumatized is more accurate. The mind does many things to protect itself when injured."

His eyes were still haunted, and I wanted to soothe him. He should know it wasn't a big deal to me. "Anyway, you wanted to know how I got that, and that's the story."

"So, how did you stumble on this? I thought I asked you not to do anything reckless or foolish. Adrenaline sports don't exactly qualify." Edward's voice was a little disapproving, so he seemed to have pulled out of it a little bit.

"I know, but you also said it would be like you had never existed, and there was no way you could keep that promise the minute you made it. For you to never exist would mean I would have to go back to that girl who never met you in biology class. Just by meeting you, I've been changed as much as you were."

"So you bought a motorcycle."

"Salvaged, actually. The Marks family was getting rid of two old bikes, so I took them."

He looked at me dubiously. "I don't remember mechanical skills being among your many talents. Dowling's must have been expensive."

"Nope, couldn't afford Dowling. Jake helped me find parts and he rebuilt them."

"Jake? You mean, Jacob Black?"

"Yeah, you remember him, right?"

"The boy that came to see you at the prom. His father is a Quileute elder." Of course he would remember, it was silly of me to ask.

I nodded. "He's kind of my best friend. Pretty good mechanic, too."

"Do you still feel the need to ride your motorcycle?" I briefly thought Edward might be jealous of Jacob, but fortunately, he was more concerned with my safety.

"As long as you're with me, I have no reason to. So that's one less thing you have to worry about."

He seemed to accept that. "And we won't have to worry about living without each other either."

"Not right now we don't, but eventually we'll have to consider it."

Edward's jaw muscles clenched in determination. "No, I swear I'll never leave you again."

"You might not, but one day, I will."

His jaw suddenly dropped open, then he blurted out, "What do you mean? I thought you could feel the bond as strongly as I do."

"Not that way." I tapped my chest with a finger. "Still human, remember?"

"Oh." The frown was back on his face. "This issue, again."

"It's not going to go away, and it's the one elephant left in the room between us. I can still be hurt, and I can still die."

"Don't remind me."

I shook my head at him. "You can hide from it all you want, but it's true."

"Yes, I know it's true. However, if you don't mind, I'd rather not discuss that with you at the moment."

I opened my mouth to object, but he placed his fingers on my lips.

"Forgive me if I'm being a little selfish, but I'm still feeling rather giddy that you've agreed to take me back. I'd rather not spoil that feeling with rancorous words, just now. I promise we'll discuss this – as equal partners – just, not right now. Please?"

He gazed at me with those eyes of his, and I felt my spine begin to liquefy. I barely managed to nod my head; I realized I was enjoying our reunion too much to want to spoil it with arguing. We had some time. Even though I was, in one way, a year older than he, we were both still teenagers. We definitely had some time.

Edward smiled and brought my hands, one after the other, to his lips, placing soft kisses on the knuckles of one hand, and the thumb sticking out of my cast. I giggled at his old, courtly gesture.

"That's nice, but do you know what I'd really like?"

"What's that?"

I patted the bed next to me. "Come here, please?"

He waggled his eyebrows at me, an outrageous imitation of Emmett. "The nursing staff would never approve."

I suddenly found myself wanting to see Edward's mountain of a brother, as well as Carlisle and Esme. Heck, even Rosalie, if that meant the family was back in town. But I put that aside for later. I, too, could be selfish, and I wanted more Edward time.

"I'm pretty sure you can hear them coming. Come here." I patted the bed again.

Edward smiled that lopsided grin that soon had my insides melting along with my spine. "Your wish, my command."

Edward lowered the railing, gently shifted me over, and settled down next to me. I snuggled into his chest and, as his arms closed around me, for the first time in a long time, I felt absolutely at peace, and happy beyond words.

= = O = o = P = =

To be continued...

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was where I had originally planned to end it for the contest. Not exactly going to fit in 15K words, eh? Thank you so much for reading! There will be more! :-)