Author's Note: Very important stuff coming up in this chapter! There's going to be a lot going on. Will you be able to handle it? ;) Happy reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.


Chapter 19

I was attracting lots of attention at school. People were always coming up and asking how my trip had been, or offering their congratulations. Girls wanted to see my ring, and boys expressed their jealousy.

It was really disturbing, especially since I hated to be the center of attention. But my friends were there to wave them off if I didn't want them to come near me.

"It's been, what, two months since you came back to school?" Angela Weber asked me as we walked to Spanish together. "I can't believe people still want to hear about Edward! How is he, by the way?"

"I don't know," I said truthfully. "I haven't seen him ever since we both returned to school. You know Harvard is in Massachusetts."

Angela looked at me sympathetically. "Doesn't he call?"

I shrugged morosely. "Not really. He's busy, I suppose."

"Still," she said, frowning. "I would've thought that he would call you every day. If he claims to love you like that…"

I laughed. "You're such a good friend to worry for me, Ang. But I'm sure everything's fine. Don't worry."

Angela glanced at me, trying to smile, but still looking concerned. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right, of course. Edward wouldn't forget about you."

I smiled back, but I wasn't convinced on the inside. I had reassured Angela, but I was getting worried myself. I knew that Edward wasn't the type to forget things easily. And I would think that if he knew that he had a wife now, he would call home more often.

It wasn't just me. Emmett and Jasper had both returned to school as well, but Alice was still here. She had been due back at Paris two weeks ago, but she felt guilty just leaving me at the Cullens' mansion all alone. After all, Edward wasn't calling to keep me company with his voice.

Alice shared my concerns. She also knew that this wasn't Edward. He wasn't sloppy or forgetful. She was getting worried.

With a pang, I realized that Alice was gone too. She was finally returning to Paris today, at my urging. I was alone again.

"Bella?" Angela asked. "Are you okay?"

I nodded quickly. "I'm fine. I just remembered that Alice is gone today."

"Oh…" she said sympathetically as we entered the classroom. "You'll be all alone in that huge house. Maybe you should go live in Massachusetts with your husband or something."

I laughed as we sat down together at our table. "Don't be silly. I miss Edward, but that doesn't mean I'm going to be separated from you, Ang."

Angela grinned. "I'm glad. And you know that I didn't mean that literally, right?"

I laughed again. "Don't worry, Ang. I won't leave you."

"Good."

As the Spanish teacher began our lesson for the day, my thoughts wandered back to Edward. I missed him.


I was busy studying for the Calculus final tomorrow when my cell phone rang. I glanced at the caller ID quickly, hoping it was Edward.

It wasn't, but it was good as.

"Hi, Alice," I greeted, holding the phone in my left hand so that I could keep studying. "Aren't you on a plane?"

"Of course I am," Alice said quickly. "I'm using the plane's phone. But never mind that. Are you okay? Edward didn't call?"

I frowned. "Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"But did Edward call?" she pressed.

"No," I sighed. "I'm sure he's busy studying."

There was a pause on the other end. This wasn't like Alice. Usually she always had something to say, and she was the one babbling.

"What's wrong, Alice?"

She hesitated before answering. "I don't know if I should tell you or not. You'll just become suspicious. But on the other hand…I just can't tolerate this. Who is he to cheat on you?" She was practically muttering to herself as she said the last two sentences, but I caught it.

I sat up, wondering if I'd heard wrong. "What did you say, Alice?"

"Oh, um…" Alice sounded nervous. "I didn't mean to say that out loud."

"Tell me, Alice!" I said sharply. "Now!"

"Well…" she said, still hesitant. Finally, she took a deep breath. "Look. I'm sure there's a logical explanation for his actions. Just…don't misunderstand or jump to conclusions. I'm not sure myself, and I'm just telling you what I saw. Or rather, what I think."

"Go on," I said.

"I stopped by Harvard on my way to the airport," Alice said. "I was getting worried because I know that Edward isn't the type to just forget about you. Even if he was busy, I know that he's the type to call you at least once a week. But this…he hasn't been calling for two whole months. That's not normal.

"I'd just arrived when I saw Emmett. He seemed surprised to see me, but he told me that he hasn't seen Edward for two weeks now. Both of them were busy, he said.

"I decided to do some more investigating, and coincidentally, I met a professor in the hallway who taught Edward. I asked if he knew where he was, and the professor offered to bring Edward to me. I told him that I didn't want to talk to him. I wanted to see him. He was confused, but he told me that Edward was in the library.

"So I snuck into the library and looked for him. Sure enough, he was there, but…" She trailed off.

"But what?" I asked impatiently.

"But he wasn't alone."

I blinked in confusion. "What do you mean? You mean he was with his friends or something?"

Alice snorted. "I don't think she's a friend of his. Maybe something more special."

"She?" I repeated incredulously.

"Bella, don't misunderstand," she pleaded. "It's just my intuition, but there could be a logical explanation for him being with her. She might be a classmate, and maybe they're working on a project together."

"Fine," I said stoutly. "Did you talk to him?"

"No, I wanted to watch him," Alice replied. "And here's why I think she's someone special to him. I sat in a chair right behind them and pretended to be studying. And I heard their conversation. It was too…intimate, to be something casual. It was something people would discuss if they were dating."

I exhaled sharply. "Are you sure it was Edward?"

"I'm positive."

I couldn't believe it. No, I refused to believe it. Edward wouldn't do that. He was the most honest, most loyal person I knew. He wouldn't be unfaithful to his own wife. Not when he got married to her only a few weeks ago.

I was angry with Alice for telling me lies. How could she not trust her own brother?

"That's enough, Alice," I said sternly. "I don't believe you. Edward wouldn't do a thing like that."

"I know what I saw, Bella," Alice protested. "It was definitely him."

"How could you not trust your own brother?" I asked. "You know Edward isn't the type to do things like that."

"I know he isn't, but he's doing it right now! Please, Bella, you have to believe me. You have to stop him before it's too late!"

"Stop it, Alice," I snapped, abruptly cranky. "I'm not going to believe you. That's ridiculous. You're just overreacting because he hasn't called me for weeks. I'm sure he was just busy."

"Bella," Alice pleaded. "Please. You have to consider the evidence-"

"Never mind," I interrupted. "Have you told anyone about this?"

She was silent again.

I sighed. "Who'd you tell?"

"Emmett and Jasper. That's it, I swear."

I closed my eyes briefly before opening them again. "Fine. Don't spread rumors anymore, Alice."

"They aren't rumors, Bella! It's the truth!"

"Goodbye, Alice. Have a safe trip."

She sighed, resigned. "Fine. Don't believe me. But I warned you!"

"Bye, Alice." And I hung up.

I sat there, staring blankly at the wall in front of me. Had Alice been right? Was Edward really cheating on me?

Suddenly, I didn't feel like studying. I felt so tired that I couldn't keep my eyes awake. I would study before school.

Yawning again, I trudged to my bed and collapsed on it. My eyes closed, and I was asleep instantly.


"Bella!" It was Alice, calling for me frantically, but I couldn't see her. Where was she?

"Alice?" I called. "Where are you?"

"You have to stop him, Bella!" Alice yelled back, her voice fading away. "You have to convince him to stop seeing her…" I couldn't hear her anymore. What had she meant by that?

I looked around. I was at a familiar place that Emmett had shown to me in pictures before. It was Harvard.

I was standing on top of a huge staircase. I shuddered when I looked down. The ground was so far away that I felt dizzy. If I fell down the stairs…

I turned to find another exit, only to find a pretty young woman scowling at me heavily.

"I'll do what I want!" she said.

I frowned, confused. "What?"

"Butt out of our business, Swan!" she said. "You won't be a Cullen much longer. I will. Can't you see? I've seduced him. He doesn't love you anymore!"

I saw Edward behind her. He was staring at me with frightened eyes.

"Bella," he whispered softly.

I couldn't take my eyes off of him. While I was distracted, the girl pushed me forcefully…and I was tumbling down the long stairs.

After what seemed like eternity, I was finally at the base of the steps. There was a pain in my abdomen.

I looked down. To my shock, my stomach was swollen and blood was dripping from between my legs. The pain got worse.

I started screaming.

I woke with a jolt. Cold sweat beaded my forehead, and I was panting like I'd just run a hundred miles.

The sky was getting light already. The sunlight was peering weakly through the windows.

I stared up at the ceiling of my room, trying to catch my breath. I realized that there were tears in my eyes. The dream had seemed so real…

I'd been dreaming strange dreams ever since our honeymoon. But this one was so vivid. And it gave me something slightly shocking to think about.

I remembered one specific detail from the dream while others just faded away. My stomach. It had been swollen as if I'd been…

It couldn't be. It just wasn't possible.

I thought back to my strange behavior in the past two months. I'd been eating like a pig, and had had cravings for sour things lately. I realized that I'd been cranky to Alice and Carlisle and Esme, not to mention to Renee and Charlie. I got tired easily, and dreamt strange dreams. When I woke up, I would still feel exhausted, like I hadn't slept for days.

All the symptoms were there. Except…

Had I gotten through my menstruation in the last two months?

No, I realized. I started counting. But I couldn't concentrate.

Finally, I got up from bed and picked up my calendar that had been sitting on my desk. And I counted properly.

I was nearly two months late. Panic attack.

I started breathing heavily again. It couldn't be. No way. If it was true, then that meant that I had gotten that way on my honeymoon. I'd been so stressed and occupied with schoolwork that I'd completely forgotten about my monthly cycle.

There was only one way to know for sure.

I was in a rush now. I hurried to the bathroom and took a quick shower. I glanced at the long mirror as I was dressing. Was I imagining things, or did my stomach look slightly different?

Frowning, I dressed in jeans, a boring shirt, and threw on a hoodie to cover my lopsided stomach, feeling self-conscious. Had anyone noticed me gaining weight?

I hurried down the stairs and entered the kitchen. Esme was already awake, making breakfast for me.

"Good morning, Esme," I greeted her, kissing her lightly on the cheek.

"Good morning, dear," Esme said, smiling. "Sleep well?"

I hesitated, wondering if I should tell her about my dream. But I wasn't sure about my hunch yet, and one quick glance at the clock told me that I was running slightly late. Maybe not now.

"Yes," I answered, smiling as best as I could. "Um…Esme? Where's Carlisle?"

"Oh, he had to leave early this morning," Esme answered. "One of his colleagues called in a sick day at work today, and he had to leave for Columbia to fill in for him. Why?"

"Will he be at the hospital all day?"

"Yes," she answered, looking at me strangely. "I'll be picking up some paperwork for the business for him today. Is something wrong? Are you sick, Bella?"

"No, no," I said quickly. "I was just wondering."

She smiled, then set down a plate of toast and eggs in front of me.

I suddenly felt the urge to gag. The smell was revolting. I stopped breathing through my nose instinctively.

"What's the matter, honey?"

"N-nothing," I said, slightly shaken. I bit my lip before smelling the food again cautiously. It smelled fine now. Sighing, I picked up my fork and knife.

"Thank you, Esme, that was delicious," I said when I'd finished wolfing it down hungrily. "I've gotta go. I'll see you later."

"Bye, dear!" she called as I fled out the front door with my backpack slung around my shoulder.

As I started my new Audi that Carlisle had bought for me, I felt nauseated. My hand flashed up to my mouth and I retched, twice. The smell of the sausages was bothering me again.

As soon as I felt back to normal, I opened all the windows to let the smell out. I was definitely stopping by the hospital after school today.


AN: Most of you left comments about the exhaustion chapter. About how virgins can't get pregnant that fast. But this is a story, remember? Totally fiction…so please just ignore all that stuff. Let's dive deeply into the world of fantasy, my loyal fans… ;)

Also, I'm so sorry I didn't update this story last time with the others. I just totally forgot about this one. I don't know how, don't ask me. :/ But anyway, I hope you enjoyed it!

Reviews, please! Let's get this story up to two hundred before the twentieth chapter! Pretty please, with the cherry and chocolate syrup and gummy bears and pistachios and peanut chunks and sprinkles on top? ;)