Chapter 2

The Gift

Damien:

Getting into the office, I saw the postings for another set of missing people. I knew what it was, but I wasn't sure how I would be able to tell Charlie about anything that was going on without telling him everything else. Moreover, getting him involved could only get him killed. I tried to figure out a way for him to stumble upon it, the way Bella had, but it was still exposure. I couldn't think of anything more to do that wouldn't put him in cross-hairs.

He poked his head into my office now, "Hey Damien, can we talk?"

I pulled away from my computer, "Sure Charlie, what's up?"

He came in, pulling the door closed behind him, "Can you explain to me why Cullen feels the need to hang around Bella. Now, I've tried to be as passive as I could about all this, but I'm a little worried now. He's been hanging around the house more than usual. He thinks I don't notice that he's here as soon as I leave. I know you've noticed, and I'm wondering why you and Bells haven't tried to have him dealt with. I get you're trying to do this out of respect for Dr. Cullen, but he's getting to be a bit much."

I nodded as I heard all this, and finally spoke, "We have a bit of an understanding, that being the three of us. He's been very vigilant, though, and I have noticed that. If it comes right down to it, I'll talk to Dr. Cullen, and tell him to deal with It directly. Until then, I'll try to talk to him, and I have been. As far as Bella is concerned, she can only tolerate his presence, but she's been trying to be civil about it."

Charlie shook his head, "That's just it. She shouldn't have to. I don't like the idea of him hanging around her at school while we're both here."

I shrugged, "I don't like it, either."

He looked around, and leaned over my desk, elbows up and hands folded under his chin, "I think, personally, you should kick his butt once and for all. Then, tell him that Bella's not into him."

I almost laughed at that, but seeing his serious face kept me from even chuckling about it, "I actually have had a physical altercation with him-"

He looked at me, with a slightly annoyed expression, "Just say fight, Damien. This isn't a police matter, yet. This is a private matter for now, unless it gets too big for you to handle, or for that matter, too big for you and Bella. Did you kick his ass, or not?"

I did chuckle this time, "Yes, I did. He doesn't bruise easily, but I did deal him a few punches, and kicks. I even body threw him."

Charlie looked like he was smiling, proudly, "How'd he take it?"

I shrugged, "He said it was a good fight."

I didn't want to tell him that Edward took this as just one battle for Bella's heart. Actually, the thought made me very uncomfortable. This because he knew what the venom was doing to me and that it was slowly but surely killing me. The venom was a double-edged sword: it gave me the abilities similar to the Cullens as well as making me hard to kill physically; At the same time, it was also doing a number on my system. What I had told Bella about Carlisle's analysis was right, about the venom having side effects, but I hadn't told her that the venomous content wasn't going to dissipate, or the toxicity would gradually decrease. It was like very bad medicine, and it was wearing me out. I still couldn't figure out why it hadn't killed me in the first place, but here I was. All these thoughts went through my head in seconds.

Charlie was looking at me expectantly, "That's it? Why's he still bothering you? I mean, look, I know you're trying to be an adult about this, but maybe you should've kicked his ass a little harder so he'd bug off. I'm getting scared for Bella, and I've seen how she looks at you when that fellow just happens to be around. She just seems to hang onto you like you're going to fade out or something."

I shook my head, "Look, Charlie, I get it. She's just afraid that if I get into a fight with this fellow, it might get pretty rough."

He gave me a skeptical look, "Listen, Damien. I like you, even love you like I would my own son, in fact. So, I really need to take this into consideration, alright?"

I nodded, "Of course, Charlie. I'm listening."

He went on, "Like I said, I know you're trying to be an adult about all this. You are in fact, too mature for your own good, because this guy wants to beat the crap out of you. Now, it's time to take off the cop gloves, and really let him have it. You're a kid, now act like it. Moreover, you're my daughter's boyfriend, and if he doesn't give you a choice, you will have to fight for her."

"I got it, Charlie. So, here's the thing. I'm going to tell you the same thing I told her. I know you think I'm rather passive about this. I'm not, and I am in fact taking note of everything he does to keep a record. He's got a few counts against him already racked up, already. I've given him warnings, but if he continues to come after me, I can add that to the tally. If I can build a case on him, I can finally just press charges, and have all the appropriate documents in place for a restraining order, like you had wanted me to. However, once I lose my temper, and go off on him, there goes my case."

"Wouldn't it be out the window with your last fight?"

I shook my head, "It was an act of self-defense, and I have a few witnesses that can attest to that, including Bella."

He looked aside, pensively, "Alright. Well, that works. I guess you haven't been letting things go the way you appear to be. That's good to know. Just don't let him go too far. A corpse can't press charges, you know?"

I looked at Charlie a moment, and prodded, "You think he's that dangerous, do you?"

"I kind of see it when he looks at Bella, and then the way he looks at you. He's not quite off the deep end, but he's a kid, he's unstable, and he doesn't have full control of his emotions yet."

"I know that, Charlie. I've got it covered."

He let himself relax a little, "You know, I guess I've complained about you and Bella being so close, but I really am happy for her. I want to thank you for how happy you've made her, and if for some reason you want to ask for her hand in marriage, or something like that...Well, you have my permission to propose to her."

I bowed my head, "Thank you, Charlie. It would be a great honor to propose to your daughter, and I'm very lucky that she wants me around. So, this really makes me feel better about the whole proposal thing. I haven't gotten to that point, yet. When I do, I will take it very seriously. For now, I know she's still in high-school."

He nodded, "Well, I'm glad you're going to wait for Bells to graduate. I know that's going to be rough for you, having to wait."

"It is rough, but I know how much I love her, and my feelings for her won't change anytime soon. So, having to wait a year is no problem."

"Damien, has she mentioned getting married to you?"

I hesitated, speaking slowly, "Eh, a few times. I told her we'd wait, and she agreed to that for however long it takes until we start planning for it."

He got up to leave, "Well, don't wait too long. You don't want Cullen to try beating you to it."

I made a really sour expression, "Oh, Hell No."

He chuckled at that, "That's my boy. Isn't today your day off?"

"I just wanted to make sure I had everything I needed to work this case at home, so I would be able to come in tomorrow with some kind of plan for the search party, since I'm walking point on this case."

He inclined his head, "I'll have someone take over for you today. Go home, sleep in, play video games. Be a kid, for god's sake. I've never seen anyone actually try to hog work."

I laughed at that, "Well, all play and no work makes jack a dumb kid."

He looked a little puzzled, "I don't think you quoted that just right, but get yourself home, and get some sleep. Don't think I haven't noticed that you've been a little under the weather. Just take my daughter out, and show her a good time."

"Will do, Charlie. We-"

He put his hand up, "Ah, stop. I don't need the details. Just go have fun…but not too much fun, now."

Bella:

I heard the news on my way to school, hearing about the three hikers missing. I knew Damien was already trying to find a way to explain it away to my dad. I felt bad for him having to do that, since it would definitely jeopardize his position on the force. It wasn't fair, I was wishing the accident never had to happen so we could go on with our lives, but now we were brought into it, full on plunged. I was pulled in that day. Then, he was attacked by those three rogues. Thinking about it just made me feel scared of what was going to happen to us. Whatever happened, I promised myself I wouldn't let it drive us apart, but I could see it was already putting a strain on our relationship when I decided what I'd do. Of course he didn't like it. I couldn't blame him and he wasn't taking it as well as I had hoped he would. I mean, he still backed me up, but doing that with my decision was a little harder. I changed the radio from the news to some music.

When I got to school, the gang was waiting for me, asking if I had done the essay. I just flashed my thumb up, and asked them if they'd mind taking a picture. They all gathered up, and posed so I could use my camera. I thanked them as I was done with it, and Mike pointed out the Cullen was walking over to me. I looked over, and saw him as he approached me. He wasn't just walking over, he was swaggering over to me, and it took all I had not to start giggling because I thought of a 100 year old man trying to wear teen style clothing, and trying to look in place.

Edward smiled, greeting me with open arms, "Morning. Happy birthday, Bella."

I raised my arms to the air, and yawning exaggeratedly. I was stretching so he wouldn't have any way to attempt a hug. Much to my dismay, he waited until my arms were all the way up, and wrapped his arms around my waist. He leaned in close, resting his head on my shoulder, "You should be so lucky, Bella. Not many girls get this kind of attention from me."

I rolled my eyes, "Oh, really? So girls go for being hugged by a hundred year old high school student? I thought most would be thoroughly repulsed by it." I reached around him, giving him a brief hug, and then patted his back so he'd let me go.

He sort of growled then, and pulled back with his arms around my waist, "You really are just making this hard for me, you know?"

I looked away from him, and motioned for Jessica to come over, as I turned to him, "I think you have me confused with someone who cares what you think. Let go of me, or I scream bloody murder."

He released me with a grimace, and Jake was suddenly behind me. He gave me a birthday greeting, and pulled me in for a hug, too. There was no escape, so I just gave in to it, and smiled as we parted.

I made a comment on his build, "Um, you do know steroids are bad for you, right?"

Jacob shook his head, chuckling, "I'm just filling out, Bella. If we hung out more, it wouldn't be such a shock."

I gave him a quizzical look, "Hmm. That might have something to do with me having a boyfriend, I think. Anyway, good for you."

He shrugged as he handed me a charm, "Got you a present. It's a dreamcatcher. It keeps bad dreams away. I made this myself. Your dad told my dad, and all that."

I nodded, "Of course. Well, this will definitely come in handy. Thanks."

Jessica came over, and told me, "I did want to ask you something. Can we talk for a bit?"

Edward was looking over, and glared at Jess, but she shrugged it off since he was pretty rude to her anyway, and walked off to join his siblings.

As he walked away, I turned to Jessica, "Oh my god. Thank you for that. What'd you want to ask?"

She looked around, and got in closer, "Isn't your boyfriend going to get pissed if he sees that?"

I nodded, "He doesn't get pissed at me. He just wants to beat the crap out of Edward, and it pretty much drives him nuts that he can't be here with me."

Jess smiled, "Well, you should probably know that if you had been dating Edward that would've been news…which would've died after a few months. Since you're dating a cop, someone that works for your dad, it's been huge news that hasn't died down to this day. Everyone knows about how rich the Cullens are, so it's no big deal. Damien, though, is a big mystery. Even when I talked to him, he didn't say much. He was a lot more polite than Edward, that's for damn sure."

I shook my head, "I really don't want to hear all the gossip around that. I don't think it's fair for people to say things about my boyfriend if he's not even here to defend himself."

Jess did a calming motion, "Wait a minute, now. It's actually kind of cool gossip because your guy has been doing stuff most of us only dream of."

I looked at Jess seriously, "You don't want to do what he does. It's a dirty job, and he's constantly in danger. I hate it, personally, but it can't be helped."

Jess insisted, "No, no, no. What I meant was the fact that he's like a 17 year old genius who's actually out there with a Job, a Car, and a girlfriend, like within months of being here. I can tell Mike is really jealous of him."

I looked away now, "Yeah, sorry about that."

She laughed hard at that, "No way. You've said no to him so hard that when he came to me, it gave me the upper hand because for a few days, he was trying to stumble all over asking me out. I've got to thank you for that."

I looked over at her, "Wow, I never thought of it like that. I guess he took me saying no pretty hard. He did start to bug me after a while."

Jess gave me a sly look, "I know, right? But thanks to that, he couldn't come up to me, and try playing it cool. He was hoping he could do the Edward and ignore me, but I did it right back to him."

I dropped whatever cheer I had at hearing that, "You mind not mentioning him? I'm still kind of queasy around him. He makes me nervous."

She nodded as we arrived at English class, "I can tell. If he's bugging you, you should probably tell someone."

I looked around, making sure he wasn't around, "My guy is building a case against him, so if he makes a few more wrong moves, he's in trouble."

She held my shoulder, "That's got to be the best part of dating a cop."

I smiled, "There are lots of perks. I just don't like to brag about it all that much."

She looked at me excitedly, winking, "Is there a lot to brag about?"

I gave her a sly smile, "Oh yea, a lot, but I don't think I should talk about it."

She squeezed my shoulder, "I totally get it. Your secrets are safe with me."

We got into class, and while my whole gang sat together, I had to look for a table for myself, much to my disappointment since Edward hadn't arrived yet. Predictably, when he saw an empty seat next to me, he sat right there, even tried asking politely if anyone was sitting there, but his tone was a tad smarmy. These were one of the times I wish Damien were going to school with me. It was frustrating knowing that he was at work most days, and had a million things to do on his end. He didn't have to worry about homework, or essays, or Edward Cullen sitting next to him, trying to act cool. Even as I thought this, Edward was sitting next to me. The class was watching Romeo and Juliet. We were halfway through, as I heard him speak.

"It's so easy for humans to end their life. You have so many options: Gun, knife, or poison. If only Juliet knew how good she had it."

I made a sound like I was waking from a nap, and turned to him, "I'm sorry. What nonsense are you talking about now?"

He turned to me, "I was just saying that I'm envious of how easy humans have it as far as ending one's life."

I rolled my eyes, "Oh my god. You're point being?"

He gave me a somewhat sad look, "One of us would have a very hard time doing it. The only way one could possibly commit suicide is by going to the Volturi and asking them to destroy you."

I sighed, "Why the hell would you need to do that?"

He reached up to touch me, "Well, I had to consider it once. If you were gone, I don't know what I would've done if I hadn't gotten to you in time."

I moved in my chair so I could pull away from him, "I told you not to touch me, didn't I?"

The teacher looked over, pausing the movie, "Ms. Swan. Is there a problem?"

I shook my head, "No, sir. I'm sorry."

"Ms. Swan, would you give me an overall perspective of the central themes in Romeo and Juliet? And don't mention the whole 'star-crossed lovers.' That's too easy."

I sat in my seat for a moment, and then I remembered this morning, "Those children being forced into desperate paths due to social politics. This resulted in them taking desperate measures to remove themselves from the equation, thus, bringing about the much-needed peace to their families."

Our English teacher was almost aghast, and nodded, "That's rather bleak…but correct. If you would please continue watching, Ms. Swan. You may be well mature beyond your years, but I expect everyone else to reach their own conclusions. Eyes on the screen people."

Edward turned to me, "Did you hear that from him? He's a ray of sunshine, isn't he?"

I turned to him, "You mind? I'm trying to watch the movie." Thankfully, I was able to ignore him the rest of class.

As we walked out, he followed me out, and asked, "Why do you have to be like that with me?"

I kept walking, not even glancing at him.

He suddenly asked me, "So, Jacob Black gets to give you a present, and I can't?"

I sighed, "I really don't want anything from you, actually."

"You did ask me for something."

I nodded, "I know that. That's a last resort, though. In case everything else doesn't work out, and even then, I'll have to think about it."

He inclined his head, "Well, I'm glad someone talked some sense into you."

I turned on him, "Ok. Let me make this clear. You don't get to comment on my decisions, or judgments. There's only one person that can do that."

He rolled his eyes, "Let me guess. Damien, right?"

I looked away, "No. That would be me. Even Damien doesn't like this, one bit, but it's ultimately up to me. He's agreed to back me up on whatever I decide."

He grabbed my shoulder, "Well, then he's a fool, and a fraud. He's only saying that because he's getting what he wants from you. You've given yourself to him, and he's telling you whatever you want to hear so he can keep you happy, and under his control. He's manipulating you, don't you see that?"

I snarled at him, "You're only mad because it's not you. Look, if you're going to be like that, just forget my birthday. Just don't even think about it."

He let go of my shoulder, "Bella, you give me everything just by being alive."

I turned away, "You're not the one I want to hear that from. I'm going to my next class."

He kept pace, "Alright. That last comment was out of line. But think about what it would be like if his and my position were reversed."

"With him chasing me like you do?"

He nodded.

"Damien doesn't chase people. He has a life, and he doesn't act like he's still in high school."

Edward growled, "He's also still not as all together as you might think."

I walked faster, and almost bumped into Alice as she came over to me, "Oh, whoops."

Alice just gave me an extravagant hug as she said, "Happy Birthday!" She turned to Jasper, who was holding a package for her. She took it and handed it to me.

I was already waving my hands as she did so, "Um. You didn't have to, really."

Alice gave me a broad smile, "I already had a vision of you opening it, and you love it. I want you to wear that to a party at our house."

I shook my head, "Damien already had something planned for us tonight."

Alice insisted, "Then, you can make a quick stop at our house. Please?"

I resignedly nodded, "What time?"

Alice smiled, "Seven, sharp, and tell Damien to dress nicely."

Edward spoke now, "Alice. Damien's not invited."

I spoke up, "Oops, then you can cancel everything right now, because I'm not coming without him."

Alice gave him a scowl, and he quieted, then she turned to me, "It's ok. Just come over with him by seven."

Jasper looked over at me, but said nothing as he followed Alice. Probably best because I really couldn't take one more person wishing me a happy birthday when someone was hell bent on pissing me off.

Damien:

I walked over to Forks High School, wearing a semi-formal suit, as Bella came up to me. She pulled me into a hug, so I wrapped my arms around her.

When she pulled back, she looked aside, "I've got some bad news, and some good news."

I gave her a half-smile, "Uh-oh. Bad news first, then."

She looked me in the eye, "We might have to delay our plans and go over to the Cullens tonight, Alice's idea."

I blew out a breath, "Hmm, ok. I got it. Do you want to go?"

She shrugged, "I think Alice is trying to be nice, and I don't want to make her feel bad. I mean, I know Edward will be there, but the Cullens are going out of their way for me."

I nodded, "Alright. If this is what you want to do, let's go."

She gave me a sly smile, "Oh, so now you're letting me do things?"

"Touché, babe. I guess I just don't want you to be uncomfortable." Then I pulled her into a kiss, and she reached up to hold my neck.

When she pulled back, she sighed, "I want an encore of that tonight."

We walked over to her truck, and Edward was there, waiting for her. He looked over at me, and scowled.

He glared at me, "I need to talk about tonight to her."

I shrugged, "You can tell her, now."

He seemed to growl, and turned to Bella, "I'm going to pick you up tonight. I'm guessing Damien will probably have work tonight. He's got a very important case that he's leading on."

I looked over at him, "How'd you know about that?"

He continued looking at Bella, trying to pretend I wasn't around, "Charlie told Carlisle about him being on the case. He's probably going to be busy for the next few weeks, I'm guessing."

I shook my head, "I've got the night off, dude. So, I'll be with her. You can take off, now."

He shot me a look, "I wasn't talking to you. If you can't protect her, that duty falls to me, and I would gladly do it."

Bella tossed me her keys, and I opened the door to get in, and opened the passenger door, so she could also get in. Edward was gracious enough to open it for her.

He leaned against the passenger door, "I'll see you tonight."

She didn't even look at him, "See you over there. I got a ride."

I looked over, starting the truck, and revving it, "This is me taking care of her. Would you let go? I don't want to drag you with us when I drive off…Well, I do, but that wouldn't be very nice of me."

Bella looked over at me, and did a hick accent, "Let's see if he can hang on, Cletus!"

He seemed to turn paler than he already was, and let go of the truck. I heard Bella laugh hard as we drove away.

I did a bit of a southern accent myself, "Mah goodness, Miss Scawlet. I didn't know you had a streak of crazy in Yawl."

She kept laughing, and held my shoulder, "Oh my god, stop before I wet myself."

I nodded, and turned to her, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

I turned to look at him, kind of upset now, "You're not getting all bossy on me now, are you?"

I tossed my head to one side, "Not what I meant. That was really uncomfortable, and you looked really scared. I know that face, Bella. That's why I'm asking."

She sighed, and looked over at me, "I'm sure. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. It's just that I'm starting to feel like people are not trusting my decisions, including you."

"I know it seems like that. I just want your birthday to be special, like you did for me."

She leaned over, kissing my cheek, "You're sweet. Thank you, I needed that. I've been trying to figure out how you handle being at work all day while I'm at school."

I looked at the road intently, "I envy that you get to see people looking forward o the future. I bear witness to the other end of it. I meet or see desperate people, broken dreams, and lots of other not so nice things."

"Then why didn't you just transfer into school with me-" Just then, she stopped short, "Oh, baby, I'm so sorry. I just forgot."

I smiled wanly at her, "It's ok. I've made peace with my past. Truth be told, I'm not sure I could handle sitting in a bunch of classes with your friend, Jess."

She nudged me, "What's wrong with her?"

I shrugged, "I don't know. I think she's a bit…chatty."

"High school girls are chatty."

I considered that, and shrugged, "I guess that's true."

She turned to me and gave me a playful shocked look, "Oh hey."

I laughed as I looked over at her, "Hey, you said it, I didn't."

She nodded, grudgingly, and relaxed on my arm, "You know, he tried to talk to me, today."

"Colon? What'd he have to say?"

She gave a sour look, "Just dumb things, like how easy it was for humans to commit suicide and all that."

I whistled, "What a ray of sunshine. What brought that cheerful topic up?"

"We were watching Romeo and Juliet. I think he was trying to sound all casual about it, too, because, I don't know, he thought he could impress me, or something."

"Didn't you say he was turned at 18? That's probably why. This is his world. He's never gotten past that stage of thinking."

She looked sadly at me, "Oh and you have? You're still brood a lot you know? You don't think I notice, but I do. How did you get through it, though?"

I took only a moment to think about it, "I think it was mostly the thought of trying to get from one day to the next. I didn't learn everything because I thought it would impress anyone, or because I thought it would make me worldly. I was literally created to destroy. My programming was so that I could learn as much as I could so I'd be able to destroy everything in my path. At the same time, I was doing it so I could learn to be human, and learn how to fight someone like me if it ever became necessary. In essence, everything I did was for survival. There is no interpretation there, or room for some deep analysis. You fight, or die. There is nothing else. Well, there was nothing else, until I met you, and Charlie."

She moved her hand up and down my arm, "It's ok. I'm here, now."

I looked over at her, and realized my eyes were getting irritated, and I reached up to wipe them quickly, thankful that the road wasn't crowded.

She squeezed my shoulder, "Alice wants you to dress up, too."

I made a bit of a drawn face, and she playfully nudged me, "Be nice."

"Ok, ok. What time?"

She kissed my neck, "It's at seven, so we got plenty of time."

I looked over at her, giving me that sly smile, "Are you sure?"

She smirked, "Charlie's not going to be home for a while. So we've got time for a little love, some in the shower, and even if tonight takes long, we're pretty well set."

I looked over at her, "Will that be enough?"

She wrapped her arms around my neck now, "If it isn't, there's always tonight for an encore, after the party."

"Yes, ma'am. Once we get home."

She put one hand on the wheel, licking her lips, "Let me drive. I'm really burning up for it, now."

Bella:

I did end up driving us home, and we spent the rest of our time in my room, and on my bed. By the time 6pm rolled around, we were just waking up from a lot of love. Still, we had a shower, and then got dressed. We barely arrived at the Cullen mansion by the appointed time. We drove his Impala over, and he was looking over at me, holding my face as we walked in. Edward came out to greet me, and gave Damien the usual cold treatment. He now found it laughable, and followed me in as I pulled him in, grasping his hand. I asked Edward about the Volturi, whom he had mentioned earlier. The elders of the vampire world resided in Volera, Italy. They only had few rules, but what they did hold dear was that the secret never be revealed to outsiders, and that would be Damien and I. The Cullens risked being destroyed because they had brought us in. Damien listened to everything Damien said without much interest. I guess he figured Edward might not tell everything he knew since Damien was there. I guess he would ask Carlisle, and that would be wiser, anyway. Carlisle had no reason to lie to Damien, so he already might've gotten a good amount of information on them.

Alice came to get us, asking us to join the group. Everyone was gathered there; Carlisle and Esme, Alice and Jasper, Rose and Emmett, and of course, Edward.

Emmett gave Damien a broad smile, "So, what took you so long?"

I shook my head, "Emmett, don't."

Rose turned to him, and nudged him, "Leave them be. You remember when we were like that."

Emmett shrugged, "Come on. Tell me you've tried out some of your abilities for that. Break a lot of stuff?"

I was deep red now, "You mind?"

Alice broke the mood by handing me the gifts, which I took, gratefully. After the first few, I took Carlisle's and Esme's and cut my finger on the ribbon. I don't know what happened, but the blood was too much for Jasper to resist. He tried to charge at me, making Edward over react and push me aside brusquely into a table with glass plates.

Damien had actually gone forward, and had Jasper bite his arm, "Go ahead, take it. Just remember who you are. You're Jasper Hale."

He was being restrained by Emmett and Carlisle, but he calmed down as he heard Alice calming him, and Damien reminding him of who he was. After a moment, Jasper calmed, but left the room quickly, Alice following.

Edward tried to come over to me, and asked if I was alright, I snatched my arm from him, "Get away. I'm fine."

Damien looked over at Carlisle, "Can we borrow your med-lab?"

We sat in the med-lab while Carlisle gave me stitches, and looked at the both of us, his face ashen, and drawn. "I'm sorry about all this. You mustn't blame Jasper."

I shook my head, "I don't. I need you to know that."

Carlisle nodded, "You have both been very tolerant of our condition. You've been very understanding."

Damien put his hand on Carlisle's shoulder, "You're our friend. As a matter of course, we understand. I understand now why you wanted me to know about this. You must've been trying to figure out how to deal with this, and know that one day you'd be investigated. That's why you brought me on board, right?"

Carlisle nodded, "I'm very thankful that it was the both of you that were brought into our circle, as you have become like family."

"Well, if we're family, it's not a matter of tolerance. We're here because we're your friends."

Carlisle finished up with my stitches, "I have long feared that our condition might bring so much damnation to those around us to the point where we end up damning everyone around us."

I shook my head, "You're not damned, Carlisle. You couldn't be. He's right. We're not just your friends, we're your family. We're here when you need us. Don't sweat this. It was going to happen, now or later. I made up my mind not to hold it against you."

Edward walked in, "If you have plans, Damien, now would be the time to get to them."

I took Damien's hand, and looked at Edward, "We do. Thanks for reminding us. Carlisle, thank Alice for the party. Please let her know not to feel bad."

Carlisle inclined his head, and we left.

Damien wasn't saying much as he drove.

I finally spoke up, "This is why I have to change. Don't you see?"

He let out a breath, and looked over at me, "It's your decision, Bella. I'm just trying to think through all this."

I faced him, "Do you know that while I'm human, anything could separate us? It could be disease, accident, or even another incident like before."

He shook his head, "I'm not arguing about this, babe, because I knew you would try to use this to justify your decision. I don't want to fight about something when I'll just end up losing you."

I reached over to the wheel, and told him, "Stop the car."

He looked over at me, and I could see how wiped he was, but I needed him to understand me, and my reasons. He told me, "Let me get us some place first, ok?"

I nodded, and he drove us to the old house we visited on his birthday. The window was still broken, and he parked in front of it.

He looked over at me, "This is the house I want to live in. This is the house I want to bring my wife home to. This is the house I want to raise children in, with my wife."

I touched his hand, "I know, baby."

He took in a long breath, "I just want you to think about that, before rushing in, ok? That'll be the end to this argument for now. Mention vampire to me, and I'll mention this house. I know it seems unfair, and a dirty trick on my part, but I want a life with you. This whole situation isn't forever. If I figure a way out of it for us, I will. We will maintain our contact with Carlisle, but we will be an outside party, ok?"

I nodded, "Because it's always best to observer from afar before jumping in, right?"

I saw his shoulders sink in relief, "God, babe, yes. That's what I've been trying to tell you. I know this wasn't cool of me, but I need you to understand my perspective, alright?"

I hugged him tightly, "No, I understand. It's just that I want to be with you so damn much, and it seems like things are getting too big for us to just dodge this bullet. At least you can protect yourself, but I can't take watching you face someone you can't beat, and there will have been nothing I can do for you."

He pulled back to look at me a moment, "If I find a way for us to be able to watch from the outside, will you think about this house? About us? Living a normal life?"

I nodded, "Like you said. It will be the last resort, right?"

He gave me a resigned look, "Yes. Last resort."

I pulled him into a kiss, but I realized how hurt he was by me not forgetting about being turned, and here was nothing I could do to comfort him on that. I would not change my mind because all I could think about was James hurting him, or Edward breaking his arm. When we parted, he gestured for us to get out of the truck. He looked around on the ground, and found me a rock.

"So, I get to make my wish now?"

I handed him the rock, and shook my head, taking his hand, "I don't need it. My wish has come true already."

We did kiss this time, deeply, and there was no anger in that kiss, or sadness, or fear for my fate lingering there. It was just the two of us glad to be together, despite what was happening. Still, I took the rock, and tossed it with one hand around his neck, breaking a first-story window.

He whistled at that, "Awesome throw. You didn't even need to wind up for the pitch."

I sighed, "And that's one thing I'd beat you at."

He kissed my neck, "Are you going to tell me what you wished for?"

I giggled, "You'll find out…much later."

"As Charlie said? Much..much later?"

I nodded, and we stood there, leaning against truck, my arms around his neck while he held my waist. This reset the whole day, and my day became perfect again, because of this one moment.

Continued…

Phew! I know that was a long chapter. It took me a while, I know, but it is so worth it. Just so some know, I am trying to deviate. I think as some of you notice, some of the situations have changed, and some of the circumstances have changed as well. Hopefully, ya'll can give me some feedback.