Chapter Six: Ripped Jeans

Edward's POV

"I'll see you later, Edward." She called as she walked back into the building.

"Bye!" I said as the door shut. I just took a deep breath before turning to Jasper who just raised his eye brows at me. "What?"

"Nothing," He lied as he tried to walk past me and into the building. I grabbed his shoulder though and pulled him back down. "You and Tanya just broke up."

"Two weeks ago," I shrugged. I didn't need to be reminded about the breakup. It hurt more than anything, and I had just stopped eating junk for dinner. It also didn't help that I had to call my family and friends to tell them the wedding was off. Dad yelled about how heartless she was, Mom cried for a half hour. Emmett and Jasper began planning their revenge.

It was a mess.

"I'm not over Tanya all of a sudden and into Bella." I told him. "She's cute, that's all."

"I just don't want you jumping into anything too soon." He whispered.

"Jasper, it's okay that you thought her friend was cute." I told him. "Maria's been gone for four years now." I whispered. Their life was perfect together. He had saved up enough money for the perfect ring and she said yes before he was done asking the question. Since she was still in Chicago, they couldn't get married until she was out of college and able to move to Chicago.

But, they still continued to plan the wedding. He asked me to be his best man and she asked her younger sister to be her maid of honor. They settled on a theme and sent out the Save the Date cards. Their life was going smooth for two people thousands of miles apart.

Then came the accident.

I'll never forget his scream in the middle of the night. It jolted me awake and I never heard someone scream bloody murder before. I turned the lights on and both Emmett and I rushed to his room to find him sobbing in a ball on the floor. She was having fun at a party, drinking and laughing. Then her roommate called her in tears, telling her to come home immediately.

Maria was found at the bottom of the Chicago River at three in the morning.

"I know how long she's been gone. It's something I'll never forget, even fifty years from now. I'll never forgot how long it's been since losing her." He spat. "I'm not ready, Edward." He sighed as he sat down on the step. "It's different. If she wanted to, Tanya could come back and you two could get married. Maria is never coming back to me and even the thought still makes me sick."

"She wouldn't want you to be miserable." I told him, placing my hand on his shoulder. "Look, I loved Maria too." I smiled. "You haven't forgotten who introduced you tow now, are you?" I asked. I'd known Maria since we were in diapers and she was at my house one day with her mother when Jasper came over. They'd been together since preschool. "And I know that she'd want you to be happy again."

"How can I?" He asked.

"By getting back out there." I smiled.

"What did you do to him?" Emmett asked as he walked up to us. I looked up and shook my head, warning him Jasper was in another mood. Even though Emmett was a dick most of the time, he never said or did anything to Jasper when he was upset about Maria. "I got the pizza." He whispered, looking down at his shoes.

"Let's go eat." I said, clapping my hands together and standing up. I turned to see Jasper wiping a tear away, and offered him my hand to help him up. He'd never be the same Jasper again, but I was determined to get him back as much as I could.

It was good having Emmett and Jasper around for a while. The two of them had found jobs here in Seattle so the week was more for apartment hunting, even though I said they were welcome to stay with me until they found a place. But, they both found places near by and when they left this time, I didn't feel so damn upset.

"Off you go!" I laughed as the lunch bell rang. All the first and second graders ate together and had recess together so it was a mad dash out in the hall. Seth and I ate quickly before going to the cafeteria to get them to take them outside. It was one of those rare days without a cloud in the sky and even though it was almost October, we decided it'd be good for them to go outside.

"I'll watch the playground." I told him as we got outside. "You watch the field?" I asked and he nodded. There were two other teachers out with us, but I figured it'd be better not to be together. I walked over to the mulched area and watched as they children began playing. I loved this age group. Anything could be a game and the ideas they had were endless. Girls were pretending to be gymnasts and boys were pretending to be pilots.

"You're going down!" I heard Jason yell at the top of the jungle gym, near where the fire pole was. I looked over to see him and Ava sward fighting with longs sticks they'd found and it made me nervous. They weren't supposed to roughhouse on the jungle gym.

But, Ava always like to get down and dirty with the boys. The girl had no fear. "Haaaaaaa!" He yelled as he poked Ava right in the stomach with his stick. My heart lurched when I saw her lose her balance and fall backwards off of the jungle gym.

I watched as she fell and his the ground. Hard. I heard her scream in pain as I started towards her.

"Seth!" I called as the kids began to crowd around her. When I got to her, her eyes were closed and she wasn't moving. "We need an ambulance!" I ordered into the walkie talkie they gave us for emergencies. Hannah raced to get the nurse as Seth and Jane cleared the others out of the way.

"Edward, you should go." Seth urged as they got Ava into the ambulance. "Her mom's on her way, go with her."

"Right," I nodded, not even thinking about the afternoon. I jumped into the back of the ambulance and the EMT driving sped off. I just held the little girls hand and prayed over and over again in my head. I just prayed there was no serious damage.

When we got to the hospital, they wouldn't let me go back with her since I wasn't family. All I could do was wait and every second killed me. This was my worst fear and it killed me there wasn't anything I could have done. I just hoped Bella got here soon. My stomach fell when I heard her around the corner, screaming at the nurse at the desk.

"She's my daughter and she's in the ER!" She yelled as she came into my view. "Let me the fuck back there!"

"Ma'am, calm down!" The nurse argued.

"Calm down?" She asked. "Let me put your fucking seven year old in the hospital! See how calm you feel!"

"Bella," I whispered, walking over to her hoping to calm her down.

"Hi," She cried as she spun around to see me. "Where is she? Why can't I see her?"

"She's with the doctors." I explained. "You should be getting an update soon."

"How did this happen?" She asked. "The woman on the phone just said there was an accident, but last time she had an accident...they told me to go to the school not the hospital and why can't I see my fucking daughter!" She screamed at the nurse, losing it again.

"She was playing on the jungle gym with another boy, they were sward fighting." I told her. "The kid poked her in the chest with the stick and she lost her balance."

"She fell off..." She couldn't even finish the sentence. She just collapsed in a puddle in my arms. I didn't know what to do. She was the mother of a student and we weren't exactly encouraged to hug them or be physical with them. But, her daughter was in the emergency room, all I could really do was hold her and pray for a doctor soon.

"I just...I just want my daughter to be...okay." She sobbed as I held her. "Is it too much to get a little information?"

"They're just trying to be thorough." I whispered.

"Miss Swan?" A doctor asked as he came into the waiting room. She jumped to her feet and ran over to him. "Ava is doing well. She has a broken wrist and a concussion, but she's okay."

"Thank God." She sighed in relief.

"We gave her some heavy pain medication so she's a little groggy, but if you and your husband want to come back and see her, you can."

"We're not married." She told the woman. "He's...he's her first grade teacher and he...he rode with her to the hospital."

"Oh, well then in that case, you're going to have to stay here, sir." The nurse told me and I sat back down. She turned back towards me and grabbed my hand, pulling me to my feet.

"My parents are stuck in traffic and I'm not going in there alone." She said as we ran through the hospital halls. We finally reached Ava's room, and Bella froze. "My baby's the one in the hospital."

"I know," I whispered.

"The last time my baby was in the hospital was when she was born." She argued. "I...I don't know what to do."

"You're her mother." I reminded her. "You'll know what to do no matter what happens." She looked up at me with those beautiful brown eyes and nodded. She turned the doorknob and walked into the room. Ava was wearing an oxygen cannula and her arm was in a cast, but she looked good for a kid who'd just fallen off a jungle gym.

Bella ran over to her and sat in the chair beside her bed. I stepped back and gave her some time with her daughter. I knew how much Bella needed this, so I wasn't going to interfere.

Not long after we got into the room, Ava's eyes slowly opened. She looked around the room confused, and Bella broke into silent sobs.

"Mommy?" Ava cried and I decided to wait outside while they talked. I sat down on the floor next to the door, and stood up when an older man and woman approached the room.

"Is my grand baby in there?" The woman asked and I shook my head. She burst into tears and ran into the room, but the man stayed behind.

"Who are you?" He asked me wearily.

"Edward." I answered. Edward Cullen. I'm Ava's teacher...I was with her when she fell."

"So, you let this happen?" He asked and I just hoped this wasn't going to follow in a law suit. That was the last thing I needed.

"Sir, I let the kids have freedom on the playground." I explained. "I told them the rules for the playground on the first day, and I trust that they follow them."

"So, why is my Ava in the hospital?" He demanded.

"Her and another boy weren't following the rules." I explained. "They aren't supposed to push or roughhouse on the jungle gym and they did it anyway." I told him. "They were playing knights or something and they were using sticks for swards. Jason poked her with the stick and she lost her balance."

"Were you going to tell them to stop, or just let them disobey the rules?"

"I want to give them a chance to fix their mistake." I told him. "Most of the time, they realize they're breaking a rule and they stop...there was no time for Jason to realize he wasn't following the rules."

"You're just lucky she was okay." He huffed before opening the door and walking inside. I looked in the small window and smiled at them. They were so happy together and it made my stomach clench. I wanted that so badly, but Tanya didn't.

I was afraid Tanya was it for me and I'd never have that family I'd always dreamt of.

"I don't think Tanya and I will ever be together again," I sighed as Emmett, Jasper, and I sat at the bar that night. I didn't care that it was only Tuesday or that I had to be up early the next morning. I needed a drink and time to clear my head.

"The break-up wasn't enough?" Emmett asked. A stupid grin on his face.

"I was hoping sometime when we had time to think...we could get back together." I shrugged as I took a sip of my beer. "I don't know. Seeing Bella with Ava today made me think."

"Think about what?" Jasper asked. His inner psychologist was coming out.

"That I never really saw Tanya with kids unless it was her sisters, and even then she wasn't very affectionate towards him." I explained. "And she never discussed what names she liked or cooed over baby clothes when we were shopping."

"Doesn't mean she never wanted kids," Jasper sighed. "She's just one of those people who want them, but won't make a big fuss about it."

"And that's fine," I nodded. "But...I want someone who wants exactly what I do."

"Kids?" Emmett asked. "You want someone who loves kids as much as you do?" I nodded. "I just don't get it. You and Tanya loved each other..."

"Yeah and I might always harbor feelings for her." I told them. "But, I couldn't ask her to do something she genuinely didn't want to do. I mean, I wouldn't want her to ask me to give up kids."

"I get it, but it just seems so weird." Emmett shook his head. "I mean, you talked about kids before getting engaged, right?" He asked and I nodded sadly. "I just don't get what changed so quickly."

"She's a crazy bitch, that's what changed." Jasper snarled and both of us couldn't help but laugh. Jasper was always so calm and collected so to hear him say things like that was always funny. "I'm sorry, but she kinda was."

"Tell me how you really feel," I smiled. I knew Tanya wasn't exactly Jasper's favorite person, but he didn't press me on it. He told me I needed to do what was best for me and he'd eventually follow. He hadn't quite started to follow me by the time Tanya broke it off.

The three of us finished at the bar and called a cab to head home. But, when I got home I couldn't sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Ava falling off that jungle gym. I tossed and turned for two hours before finally getting up to grab a glass of water. It wasn't until I was padding back to my room that I realized how many pictures and trinkets I still had up from my relationship with Tanya.

So, I grabbed a box from the back of my closet and began to clean up. Pictures of us at football games and date nights. Ticket stubs from movies and letters we wrote to each other when she left college. I stuffed them into a box and shoved it in the small guest bedroom's closet.

And then I realized how empty the apartment was. Mom and Dad gave me a decent amount of money to get started, so I bought a nicer apartment. I bought a big one because I thought we would be living together and starting a family. And then I got really sad. So I did what I always did when I was sad.

I called my parents.

"Edward?" Mom asked sleepily when she answered the phone. "You okay, monkey?" She asked and I had to smile. Even though I was grown up and out of the house, she still called me by the nickname she did when I was a baby.

"Fine." I sighed. "Rough day."

"Why didn't you call earlier?" She asked, sounding more awake. I assumed she left the room so dad could sleep.

"I talked to JAsper and Emmett." I explained. "I thought it was okay."

"What happened, kiddo?" She asked. I launched into the story of Ava falling off the jungle gym and the conversation I had with the guys at the bar. She told me it wasn't my fault that she fell and that it was the right thing for it to be over with Tanya. By the time I said goodbye, I felt a lot better.

I crawled back into bed, determined to get some sleep before school the next day.

It was a difficult day. I was exhausted from the lack of sleep and Ava wasn't in school. Each time I looked at her empty desk, I felt this pang of guilt in my chest. I was on my way to tell them to stop when she fell, but I should have told them no from the beginning. I shouldn't have given them a second chance.

"Mr. Cullen?" Jason asked as I sat with him at recess. I told him he had to sit out of playing until Ava was back in school, which wouldn't be for a week or so.

"Yeah, Jas?" I asked, turing away from the playground and looked at him.

"How's Ava?" He asked. I could see the tears in his eyes and I knew I couldn't blame him. He had been doing something he wasn't supposed to, but he didn't mean for her to fall. I wrapped my arm around him and hugged him.

"She'll be okay, Jason." I assured him. "She hit her head and it has to heal a little bit before she can come back." I explained but he still looked unsure. "I was going to go see her today if you wanted to join me...if your parents are okay with it." I told him and he gave me another small smile.

The afternoon passed more quickly than the morning had and Jason's parents agreed to go to the hospital with me. Ava was doing fine when I had left yesterday, but they were just making sure everything was okay by the time she left. I led Jason and his family to the room she was in yesterday.

"Come in," Bella's voice said softly once I knocked. I walked inside, followed by Jason and his mom and smiled at her. "Hi,"

"Hello," I smiled and Jason walked past me. "I brought someone who wanted to see how you were doing, Ava."

"Jason!" She squealed. I sighed in relief that she wasn't angry with him or anything. But, the two were best friends so I didn't think she'd be angry with him.

"Hi, Ava." He said softly. "I sorry I made you falled."

"It's okay." She shrugged. "I got this cool cast!" She laughed, holding up the purple cast on her wrist. Jason went and hopped onto the bed with her and Bella got up to give them some room.

"Thanks for bringing him," Bella smiled at Jason's mother, Angela. "I appreciate it."

"He wanted to see her yesterday, but I figured it was best to wait." She smiled. "I really am sorry about this. We had a long talk last night about when it's okay to play rough."

"She's okay so...it's fine." She sighed. "I understand Jason didn't mean it, and I'm not blaming him." She smiled. "What are you doing back here?" She asked, turing to me.

"Oh, I brought Ava this." I smiled, holding up the coloring book and crayons. "It always helped me when I was sick to color so I thought it could be of use."

"She'll love it," She smiled, taking the book from my hand. But, when her hand brushed against mine, I felt electricity racing through my body. I gasped and looked up at her. She was looking at me wide eyed, so I knew she felt it too. "Wow," She whispered.

I nodded as I took a deep breath.

I was in so much trouble.