Chapter 4: Bella's POV

"Do I know you?" I asked the strange boy in my room. I knew I should be screaming for my father, but there was something about the stranger. He didn't look at me like he wanted to hurt me; he looked at me with pain pouring from every crevice of him.

His agony increased as I spoke. "Bella," he said hesitantly, "you don't remember me?" His face melted into a mask of torture when I nodded, confirming his assessment. I instantly wanted to calm him. It felt like a crime to hurt an angel, and here I was, hurting him so bad that it was like I burning him with my mind.

He walked slowly toward me, his hands outstretched in a silent plea for silence. "Bella," he said in a voice that sounded like music, "what do you remember?"

I glanced down and then around the room. "I don't remember anything," I complained. My head snapped up as I thought of something. "How do you know something is wrong with me?" I demanded, my eyes narrowing in suspicion.

He chuckled quietly. "Still as observant as always." He sighed as I glared at him. "What would you like to know?" he asked hesitantly.

"Everything," I exclaimed. "You have no clue how… how maddening it is to have no memory whatsoever."

His gazed traveled over my head like he was seeing something outside of this world. "Actually, I do. I have a sister who didn't remember anything…" he trailed off. He seemed to remember that I was there. "Sorry, how about I tell you about your history today, and tomorrow I tell you about how I fit in?"

I nodded furiously which made the room spin in an unnatural way. The stranger caught before I could hit the ground. He gently placed me on my bed and my eyes started to close automatically. I didn't want to sleep, though; I wanted to continue to talk with the stranger.

"Sleep, Bella, just sleep. I'll tell you everything when you awake," he said quietly.

I started to protest, but I yawned. I decided it was in my best interest to sleep after all. I nodded in agreement and allowed my eyes to close.

"Goodnight, Bella," he spoke softly as his arms tightened around me. "Have pleasant dreams." He started to hum a beautiful lullaby.

"Wait," I mumbled, already half asleep. "What is your name?"

He stopped humming for a second to say, "Edward, Edward Cullen."

I sighed as I drifted off to sleep. Edward Cullen… what a beautiful name.

It was the middle of the night when I woke up. I thought of the stranger named Edward and decided it was a dream… or that I should be admitted to the nearest institution as soon as possible. Maybe the hit on my head affected me more that anyone thought. I decided to forget about it, and I rolled over to go back to sleep when I felt something hard and cold on my waist. I rolled back over to see what it was. My breath caught in my throat and my heart stopped.

Edward Cullen was there, gazing at me with concerned eyes. I decided to really look at him then, past his pained features. Even in the dark, his eyes were a bright topaz, his skin as white as the snow-it was almost glowing in fact. He was the picture of true beauty.

"Edward?" I asked hesitantly, afraid I was talking to a figment of my imagination.

He smiled slightly. "Yes?" he replied.

"Will you explain everything now?"

He paused for a second. "Don't you want to sleep more?" He sighed when I shook my head. "Okay, I'll explain everything."

I spent my morning listening to him tell me about my life, and whenever my mother or father came to check on me, he would hide while I pretended to sleep. It wasn't long until my father left for work and my mother to her husband. I guess it was awkward for her to be back in this house. As Edward told me the story of my life, I couldn't help but feel like he was describing someone else's life.

"So then you decided to come here to Forks," he said with a slight smile, a twinkle in his eye that I couldn't understand.

"That's it?" I demanded, confused as to why he stopped with my arrival.

"Well, I told you I would tell you everything about your history, and save the part where I come in for later…" He trailed off when he saw my expression.

I continued to give him a stern look. "Well then, would you please be kind enough to tell me about the rest of my life? I'm dying to know."

"Well, umm, you see… I-" his stuttering was cut off by a very familiar voice.

"Bella, get out here now!" Jacob yelled from outside.

I sighed and walked room my room to the house door before Edward pulled me to a stop, his eyes livid.

"Don't, Bella; it's not safe," Edward explained in a hiss as he pulled me away from the door.

"What's not safe?" I demanded, but he remained silent. "I need to see him, Edward. He found me and probably saved my life."

His arms were like snares; they refused to release me no matter how hard I struggled.

"Let me go!" I yelled at him. I started to call him all sorts of colorful names. He apparently never heard me swear like that before, because he froze in shock. His arms loosened a little which gave me the chance to break free. Before he could stop me again, I yanked the door open.

Jacob stood outside the door, but he looked so different: his hair was cropped and he had a tribal tattoo on his right arm. He pulled me to him, and he felt like he was running a fever. "How is it possible," he whispered. "It's all over you…" He trailed off as he caught sight of Edward. "You," he growled-he literally growled.

"Get away from her," Edward snarled back.

He smirked at him. "No… I don't think I will. Even if she can't remember all the pain you caused her, I'm sure she will choose me over a vampire."

All three of us froze. "What?" I whispered, unable to find my voice to talk louder.

"Now you've done it dog!" Edward snarled at him again. "You broke the treaty before you believed in your legends and now, here you are a part of it all, you break it again without a second thought. Besides, Bella would never want to be with a werewolf like you either, Black, especially with all the dangers it involves."

Vampires? Werewolves? I was so confused; I couldn't wrap my head around it. Since when have the myths ever been a part of our world? Maybe they both needed to be committed, but then I thought of Edward's inhuman beauty… It was all too much. The world suddenly started to spin again, and soon I was enveloped in the all too familiar darkness.

When I regained consciousness, I was aware of the yelling and accusations. It was so loud that it hurt my ears. Boys were never considerate.

I opened my eyes to find myself lying on a couch with a blanket around me. Huh, maybe they weren't as bad as I thought. I became more aware of the argument, and I rolled my eyes. They were accusing each other of making me faint.

I slowly stood up and looked at both of them. They ignored my presence so I decided to speak. "Can I say something?"

"No!" they both shouted at me, taking only a second break to yell at me before continuing their argument. My temper flared when they yelled at me. What the hell did I do? I continued to glare at nothing in particular as I went to the kitchen to get the necessary supplies for my revengeful tactic for getting them to shut up.

I put the liter bottle of coke on the ground and took out a package of mentos. I took one and shoved in in the bottle before I quickly screwed the lid on tight and hurried to safety. Neither of them seemed to have noticed what I had done so they both jumped a mile in the air when the bottle finally exploded and showered everything in soda.

I came quickly out from behind the couch when I was sure the couch was clear. "Now will you two-" I stopped when I saw Edward's expression. I laughed so hard that I started crying.

"What's so funny?" they both demanded.

I got a hold of myself as fast as possible, though it was difficult. I pointed at Edward with a shaking hand. "The look on your face," I couldn't help but laugh again. "You look like you're going to be sick."

Edward huffed in annoyance. "Of course I am; it's disgusting. I now have human food all over me."

I froze. "You two were serious about all that?" They both nodded as they studied my face. When I figured out that they were serious, I started laughing again. They looked so shocked.

"Are you sure that I'm the one who hit my head?" I demanded between my giggles. "Vampires and werewolves don't exist. They are only myths and legends used to scare little kids into behaving."

Edward groaned. "Of course. Of course when she loses her memory, she starts acting like a normal human. I'll prove it to you," he promised.

Jacob interrupted him. "No. She doesn't believe it, right? She's not supposed to know anything about this correct? It's safer for her to be in the dark? Then let's leave her in the dark. Problem solved."

"And when she gets her memory back, then what?" Edward demanded, his voice growing more agitated by the minute. "She'll remember everything and be furious with both of us. If you don't want her to know the truth, then leave. Go to your own land. You've already broken the treaty twice. Go!" Edward said this all in one breath.

Jacob glanced at me, uncertainty in his eyes. "Go," I told him. He looked shocked and wounded that I would send him away. "Go. I want to hear what he has to say without you two arguing. I also have to clean up my house." I looked around the room at the mess I've made. I guess I really do have a bad temper.

Jacob stared at me for a second more before stomping furiously out of the room, and out of the house. I turned towards Edward expectantly.

He sighed. "Okay, I'll start with the easiest way to show you."

In the next second he was behind me and then back in front of me again. I stared at him in shock, but quickly shook my head. "I hit my head earlier; I'm missing stuff all the time," I argued.

He huffed in frustration, mumbling about how much harder this is than before. He walked over to the couch I was lying on before and picked it up with one hand.

I rolled my eyes. "There are other people in the world who could do that." His eyes narrowed. He was gone and back in less than a second with a gun in hand.

I stared at him with wide eyes, afraid of what he would do. He raised it and pointed the barrel towards his head. I finally realized what he was going to do and I shouted "Don't!"

He pulled the trigger and I screamed in fear for his life. There was no way he could survive that. I couldn't believe he would shoot himself just because I didn't believe him. What kind of a psycho would do that?

It took me a moment to realize he didn't die, he wasn't on the floor in a puddle of blood. I looked down and saw instead something on the floor by his feet. I bent over and picked up the object and saw it was a bullet. It was almost completely flat. I stared at him in shock, but he simply stood there waiting patiently for me to take it all in. I took a step toward him and bend my head down, setting it on his chest right where his heart would be beating. I heard silence.

I pulled away and looked into his eyes finally believing the truth he tried to tell me all along.

"Who are you to me?" I asked when I found my voice again.

He smiled sadly at me. "Hello, love."

I continued to stare at him. "What?" I asked bluntly.

He looked down at the ground. "Hello, love," he repeated in a barely audible mumble.

"So we were…"

"Boyfriend and girlfriend," he finished for me.

I shook my head. "I don't believe you," I said with a hard edge to my voice. He was lying to me and I hate it when people lie to me. His head snapped up so he could meet my eyes. "I wouldn't forget my own boyfriend!" I exclaimed."

He sighed sadly. "You couldn't even remember your own parents. Why would you remember me?"

I continued to glare at him. "Oh, I don't know, maybe because my mother ditched my dad when I was an infant, taking me with her. Or could it be because she wasn't fit to raise me, but she still refused to give me up which caused me to not have a normal childhood, because I was too busy making sure she didn't end up killing us both.

"That's probably the same reason I don't remember anything about myself; It doesn't sound like I had a good life. I bet you everyone hated me, so I became a loner," I laughed. "It would be hysterical if I guessed right."

He stared at me. "You know that's not true. They both love you, and you love them."

I felt the sting of tears reach my eyes. "No, I don't know."

He gazed at me regretfully. "Bella, I'm so s-" he stopped abruptly. "Charlie's here. See you in a bit, l-Bella."

Before I could respond, he was out of sight. Something tugged at a long lost memory. I was confused as to why I was in agony from his sudden absence.

"Bella," Charlie called as he came into the room. "Hey, sweetheart, I have a few pictures for you to look at. It might help jog your memory."

I looked at Charlie blankly for a moment and slowly nodded. I wasn't sure my voice would work.

He led me to the living room and laid all the picture on the little coffee table. I looked at them, and couldn't believe that this was my life.

There were some really embarrassing photos in the mix. There was one I guess was a school photo where I had a huge smile with a mouthful of braces and funny hair. I looked to be about nine. In another picture, I had a pimple the size of Mount Saint Helen smack dab in the middle of my forehead. To say the least, I was mortified.

To make matters worse, it didn't to anything for my memory; I still couldn't remember anything.

"It's no use!" I screamed. I threw the pictures back on the table. I stalked passed Charlie, who looked like he went into shock. I ran up into my room and, on my way in, I tripped on something and went flying. I luckily was able to catch myself on my bed before I could do any damage to myself. I looked back to see what I tripped on and stared at the floor in confusion. One of my floorboards was out of place. I quickly got off my bed and walked over to investigate.

I sat cross-legged on the floor and slowly moved the floorboard aside. I saw two plane tickets, a blank CD in a clear case, and two pictures of Edward and I. My mind clouded over and a scene played in my mind.

Charlie threw me the camera he got me for my eighteenth birthday. Being as clumsy as I was, I missed it and it went off my fingers. Before it could break on the floor, Edward had caught it.

Charlie congratulated Edward on the save, and told me that I should take pictures for my mom to see. I suddenly turned the camera on Edward and took a picture for fun, telling them it still worked. Edward was in a good mood then. After a few days, it all changed.

As soon as one memory was done, another one took its place.

I came home to see Edward's lifeless gaze on the TV. I took pictures of everything in the house thinking I was leaving with Edward. I took pictures of Edward and Charlie, and Charlie complained about being on film. Edward and I posing together in a painfully formal way.

The strongest flashback had nothing to do with the pictures, but everything to do with my life, with my being.

Edward told me he was leaving without me. He was abandoning me. I remembered the rest of the horrific moment, but only certain words and phrases caught my attention.

"I don't want you to come with me."

"I'm tired of pretending to be something I'm not."

"I have let this go on for too long."

"This is the last time you will ever see me. I will never come back. I won't put you through anything again. You can go on with your life. It will be as if I'd never existed."

"It will be like I never existed."

"...never existed."

"Edward!" I gasped out as my mind came back to the present. The memory of Edward's departure was fresh in my mind, a new wound.

He promised that he would never come back, yet here he was, trying to convince me that we were still together.

Overcome by anger, I thought, Fine! Since he broke his promise, I'll break mine.

I ran back down to the living room, and headed to the hall where Charlie kept his equipment. I picked up his gun and pointed it at my head. I thought better of it at last second and lowered it… and pulled the trigger. The last thing I remember was how it felt to have a bullet go through my chest and a roar of fury.

I slowly regained consciousness, but I was floating, flying. I'm dead, I thought. I could feel my hair whipping around my face, the sharp pain in my chest. I felt like I was dying all over again. Great, I'm in hell.

"Please," I heard the beautiful voice of my angel beg. "Please be alright; you have to be alright."

I struggled to open my eyes: it took me a few moments before I succeeded. I saw the face of my angel, the only person on heaven or earth that I would ever want to see.

"Edward," I croaked, and I started to cough. It wasn't one of those tiny coughs where you put your hand over your mouth for two seconds before it passes. No, this was one of those coughs where you feel like you will cough up a lung. I could taste a metallic flavor in my mouth that could only be one thing: blood.

"Shh, Bella. Don't talk; we are almost to the hospital. Your dad's at home, and Alice is on her way to comfort him. You're going to be okay, Charlie's going to be okay. Focus only on yourself. Carlisle should be at the hospital by the time we get there."

I couldn't think straight; all I could think about was trying to fight off the eternal sleep trying to take over me. It hurt so much that I was about to give up. The only lifeline I was given were Edward's words. "We're here."

He slowed down so he could pass as a human sprinting as fast as possible. He started barking orders at the lady running the front desk. She called in a stretcher after she got over her initial shock. The doctors ordered Edward away from me, but Edward refused.

It wasn't much later that Carlisle showed up and started to work on me. Carlisle told everyone that Edward could stay. No one argued with what he had to say for he was the most reasonable person anyone has ever seen. Carlisle was working as quickly as he could, but I could tell he was frustrated that he had to work at human speed. He had to keep up appearances after all.

Carlisle finally told Edward to help, and Edward followed his instructions, both verbal and mental. I was surprised my blood wasn't bothering him. I was bleeding way more than when James tortured me. I felt something jab into my arm and I was out faster than I could say, "Ow."

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry if it was really long for some of you. I couldn't stop writing. Next chapter is going to be from Edward's perspective. Have a great day.

~JerinAnn