Alice half expected Bella to be fidgeting nervously in the passenger seat of her car considering where they were heading, but instead, her best friend was looking out the window as they drove along the streets of DC towards Edward's building.

She didn't realize that she herself was a ball of nervous energy and was fidgeting around in her own seat till Rose reached from the backseat and put her hand on Alice's shoulder and said, "Jesus, Alice, calm down!"

Rose was a bit nervous herself, but in her usual manner she was channeling all the nervous energy into anger. It was going to take a lot of self-control on her part not to give Edward Masen a piece of her mind, but she knew that she couldn't and wouldn't do that, this was something that Bella and Edward had to handle on their own…whether they worked it out or not. Looking towards Bella she pondered on how ironic it was that Bella was the calmest of the three of them.

Of course, Rosalie had no idea of the inner turmoil that was raging within her friend's mind and heart.

Bella's mind was telling her one thing while her heart was telling her another. Her mind was angry and more than a bit bitter from the betrayal she had experienced at Edward's hands and, while her heart was in pieces, it was still not as shattered as she thought it would be. In fact, it was still intact enough to give her hope.

Her heart hoped that there was an explanation.

Her head was telling her she as an idiot for even being willing to listen.

Despite the war raging within her, Bella looked calm as she stared out the window, watching as they got closer and closer to Edward's flat.

The lingering silence became too much for Alice and she filled the silence in the car with an overly cheery voice, though there was nothing that was cheery about the situation at hand. "So this is the plan." Alice always had a plan. "We go in and give Bella and Edward time to talk…" Rosalie snorted in the backseat, obviously not in agreement with this part of the plan, but Bella had insisted. Alice continued as if she hadn't heard Rose, "…and while they…talk…Rose and I will go into the bedroom and start packing up your things. According to Bella there shouldn't be more than two suitcases full. Is that right, Bella?" Bella merely nodded and Alice continued without missing a beat. "We'll pack everything up and Emmett, who's already at Edward's, will haul it downstairs for us."

Bella didn't even bother to respond to Alice and Rose just frowned grimly and nodded in response. In truth, Rose didn't like the idea of leaving Edward and Bella alone, and she liked the idea of Emmett leaving the apartment, even for just a moment, even less.

Alice was also a little put off by the idea, but she had Jasper on standby, but of course that was only as a last resort. The last thing this situation was bringing Jasper into the mix, that was turning an already volatile situation into something akin to a nuclear holocaust. And, while Alice did have the tendency to exaggerate, with the mood that Jasper was in she wasn't too far off.

Jasper might not have approved of Bella's relationship with Edward, but in all honesty, he had started to come around. It was his own situation with Alice that had allowed him to see how having someone to love and care for made all the difference. As he and Alice had started to patch things up, he had become more open to the idea of Bella and Edward being together. The thing that affected him most was how happy Bella seemed to be. After what had happened Alice had been the one that had kept Jasper from seeking out Edward. And, while he had been upset about the whole debacle with the speech, it was seeing how hurt Bella had been that had almost sent him on the rampage.

As they pulled in front of Edward's building and found a parking space, they all just kind of sat there, looking out the window at the building. Alice continued to fidget in her seat, blinking rapidly while Rose scowled at the brick and mortar as if it was Edward Masen himself.

Bella sat there a moment and taking a deep breath she finally broke the silence that surrounded them, "Well, let's get this over with." Stepping out of the car she made her way towards the building, using her keys to let herself in. Behind her, Alice and Rose scurried out of the car, following close behind. As they made their way into the building and to the elevator, Rose shifted the empty duffle bag she brought with her on her shoulder. Alice looked at it questioningly and Rose shrugged, "Just in case it doesn't all fit in the suitcases she has in there."

Alice just nodded and then jumped as the elevator dinged as if finally reached their floor.

Stepping into the elevator, the trio was silent as the numbers changed on the display as they went up towards Edward's floor.

Alice was still fidgeting, shifting her wait around and tugging at the hem of her shirt nervously all while ignoring the exasperated looks that Rose was giving her. Bella didn't pay attention to either one as she steeled herself for what was to come.

When the elevator finally reached Edward's floor they stepped out behind Bella and headed in the direction of his door. All the while, Bella was wondering if she should just use her key or knock. She knew that he was there, Emmett had verified that to Rose, but even as she pondered what to do and even considered turning around and running, they had reached the door. Before she could take action the door swung open and Edward stood there.

He looked sick, tired, and disheveled, but in Bella's mind, his appearance, as bad as it was, didn't come close to how she felt.

Looking at her through heartbroken, red-rimmed eyes, he merely whispered, "Bel…," but before he could even get the last syllable of her name out his voice was cut off by a resounding slap as her hand met his cheek.

I would sincerely like to apologize for making you all wait for this installment, but I honestly have a very good excuse. I've already explained how busy my schedule is with 3 jobs and closing on a house, but this leave of absence had nothing to do with that.

Three weeks ago I was on the treadmill on a Sunday night when I felt something was "off." I couldn't finish my run so I thought maybe I pulled something. That night I couldn't get comfortable in bed and didn't get any sleep. After a restless night, the next day I skipped my full-time job, but I still ended up going to teach that Monday night and attend another classroom observation at another institution. I still didn't feel well and people asked why I was limping. I said it was nothing and that I probably pulled a muscle. The following day, Tuesday, I made myself go into work since I had a very important meeting where I was going to do some work with the board members of my college for the president of the institution. I fell ill, but told myself I would go into the clinic after the meeting. Considering my uncle is my physician, I decided I couldn't wait that long and asked him to see me during my lunch hour. Long story short, I needed surgery and had an emergency appendectomy that night. As you can imagine that threw me for a bit of a tizzy. No board meeting, no work, nothing for a little while. I've been trying to get back on a normal schedule for a few weeks now and I'm actually just beginning to feel caught up.

All that being said, you won't have to wait long for the next installment!

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