"I... uhm, I guess I can delay a little with my work." I pressed my lips into a thin line and let her enter.

"We'll see you guys later," Rosalie said as she led Alice & Emmett out. She shook hands with Edward. "It was nice meeting you."

Edward returned the gesture before giving his full attention to his mother. "Mom, would you like something to drink?"

"Tea, please." She responded.

Edward frowned. "I don't know where the tea bags are—"

"That's okay, I know where the tea is. It's mine, after all." I spoke up. I held Edward by the arm gently before leaving for the open kitchen. I could see them take a seat at the ottoman and shook my head, distracting myself with finding the tea bags. I placed a tea bag inside one of the black ceramic teapots there was and added hot water with sugar in it. I tried not to listen to their conversation and I felt both their pairs of eyes on my back as I continued dissolving the sugar. I grabbed three cups and served the teapot and cups on a tray.

"Bella," Esme started, catching my attention. "I'm so sorry."

"About what?" I frowned momentarily.

"Edward told me about... your mother."

I tried to laugh. "Well, nothing like a little Romeo & Juliet, huh?"

"I really empathize with you, mon chérie." She sighed. "I am so sorry. I came here not knowing what your situation was. I came here to talk to you and Edward about... something. Bella, please know that you are already like a daughter to me, and I am so happy Edward's found you. It's unfortunate that your mother—"

"My mother's just a minor problem, that's all." I brushed off as I carried the tray to the family room and poured some tea into all three cups. "Edward & I've worked out something."

She cracked a small smile. "Then I guess I feel a little better. I came here regarding Carlisle, actually. He wanted to come here on his own to do it, but I decided to do it for him since he has an urgent matter to attend to."

I could see that Edward immediately tensed up when Esme mentioned his father. I knew that any talk about him ever since what happened last week frosted Edward to no end. I wanted to stop Esme from continuing upon seeing the utter discomfort on his face but we had to hear what message Esme was trying to convey to us for her husband who couldn't make it today.

"He... wanted to apologize for what happened," she pressed her lips together in a thin line, looking down at her hands as they played with the hem of her dress. "I pretty much scolded him for what had happened and we didn't really talk for a few days until he finally spoke up last night about it. We wanted to invite you both over for dinner tonight, but seeing that Bella cannot come since she has a flight to catch, I just wanted to pass the message over to you; no hard feelings."

"Well, t–thanks." I stuttered out of shock. "I... I don't really know what to say."

"That's okay, sweetheart. I also thought that you'd like this. Consider this a farewell present since you're going away, but come back soon." She said, opening up her black leather bag and taking out a velvet jewelry box and passing it to me. She smiled at me. "I hope you like it."

I unlatched the box and there inside sat a simple emerald pendant necklace. "Esme, you didn't need to—"

"I just thought you might need something to remember us when you go away." She explained. "You are already like a daughter to me, and I'd really like to see you again."

I stood from my seat and hugged her tightly. "Thank you so much. I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, darling." She replied when suddenly my cellphone rang in my bag. I reluctantly pulled away from her maternal hug and turned on the screen. It was a text message from Renée.

I made sure the movers left a couple of dresses and pairs of shoes for you back at your house. Pack up. I'll meet you at 2000 hours.

Below was the flight information and I sighed. I only had less than two hours to see everyone that mattered most in New York.

I met up with Rosalie, Emmett & Alice at HQ before heading to the airport alone. It all finally sank in— I was moving to another country in another continent all together.

When I was a child, I used to go to England all the time to visit my grandparents from my mother's side, but being dragged to England unwillingly had changed my feelings towards it. I didn't even have a say in this.

Once I had checked into the airport with a small suitcase, I met my mother who was waiting for me at the airport bar. She had a glass of whiskey in her hand and stood up when I came.

"Your things will arrive at the new house in two days." She said.

"Anything else?" I glared.

"Bella, you can't be mad at me forever. Even though I couldn't be there for you physically, I still got you the penthouse as a present and paid for your university fees that includes your tuition fees when you wanted to go to Yale. You wouldn't actually have lived in a beautiful home and gone to university if it wasn't for me and your father." She stated firmly.

Everything she said was unfortunately true. The only things I paid for was my car, my clothes and other things I couldn't exactly think of right now. Even the furniture back in the penthouse was already there the moment I moved in a few years ago.

I sighed, crossing my arms. "I'm sorry." I bit my lip.

"I'm sorry too." She told me.

"Mom, I—" I stopped what I was about to say then took a deep breath. "I'm really in love with Edward Cullen."

She nodded, and she seemed tired of talking about him. "Okay."

"Mom, you can't necessarily just make me move to Oxshott with you at such a short notice. I want to stay in New York. Please."

"Bella, do you not understand?" She pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "I just want to make up for all of the time I didn't spend with you but I can't do that because I just don't feel at ease when I'm in New York! This country isn't my true home. England is. I want to share it with you and hopefully, one day, you'll find someone that will make you happy that I approve of."

"I've already found someone that makes me happy— that makes me happy beyond what I can say and you just aren't thinking about how I feel! Dad approves of us. Why can't you?!"

"Because I don't want you involved with whatever he is involved with! Eventually, if you stay with him, you'll lose sight of what is right and wrong. Down the road, when you marry him and come back home everyday from missions, you will know that you've done something right but Edward has done something wrong. You take down terrorists and other corrupted people, but the greatest enemy you will have will be the one living with you— Edward."

"Mom, I truly don't want to talk about this anymore." The more she talked about Edward, the more I felt like I was really dating someone who was wrong for me. I kept my tears in as I tried not to break down in public.

Thankfully, she stopped but she knew that she had already knocked some of her opinions into my mind. A part of me agreed with what she had said— maybe I was just young and naïve. Maybe I just got mixed up with the wrong company.

"Come on, you don't want to miss our flight." Renée said softly, tugging onto my arm after she paid for her drink.

My heart felt heavy as I walked along with her. I may have been a brave and outspoken secret agent, but that was to make up for the other side of me that was a weak and naïve teenage girl affected so much by her past. Everything was starting to crumble.

I took out my cellphone and dialed Alice's number. She immediately picked up.

"Bella?" She said. "What's going on?"

"I, uh...," I started and felt myself tearing up. "Let's just cancel the whole plans to meet in Monte Carlo, okay? All the plans."

"Bella, is there something wrong?" Alice asked worriedly. "Did Mom get to you? Is that it?"

"It has nothing to do with Mom, Alice." I wiped the stray tear on my face. "I just think that what we're doing— sneaking around Mom— it isn't right."

"Bella! Are you being serious right now?! You can't back out now—"

"Goodbye Alice." I had my eyes shut tightly. "I love you."

"Bell—"

I hung up on her before she could continue. Renée was watching me silently.

"Mom, I think that I need to go to the bathroom. My mascara's running—"

"Go, Bella. I'll be waiting." She nodded with a thin line set across her lips. I briskly walked to the nearest bathroom and got ready to make another call.

I stood at the corner of the bathroom so that I didn't disrupt any lines waiting for the cubicles to be available. I reluctantly pressed the call button and waited for a response.

"Hello?" My voice cracked as I heard Edward pick up the phone.

"Bella," he sighed in relief. "Good god, I miss you already."

"Edward, we can't do this to each other." I told him. I could see the black marks on my fingers made by the mascara that ran with my tears when I looked at my hand. "I think we should break up."

"No, Bella, what—"

"We weren't meant to happen, but I won't regret what we had." I shook uncontrollably as my face was frozen in a grimace. The tears just kept flowing without any sign that they were going to stop. "I love you so much."

"Bella—"

I turned off my phone and placed it in my handbag. As I snatched some toilet paper to wipe my smudged black mascara, I moved to the sinks and my thumb just played with the promise ring on my left ring finger.

Sorry for the late update! I kinda decided to take a break for a week from writing and now that I'm back, I can think more clearly. And the chapter above was what came up when I could think clearer. Whoops.

You guys can bash me up or whatever you want because I broke them up officially but... yeah. Like I will always say to my readers— I'm just following my plot for the story.

xx