Disclaimer: I own nothing. SMeyer owns it all.

Chapter Two - On Call

"I'm on call, to be there.
One and all, to be there.
And when I fall, to pieces,
Lord you know… I'll be there waiting"

-Kings of Leon

The week after Bella's call passed slowly. I didn't call on Monday. I considered doing it every day of the week, but didn't manage to any of those days either. Alice texted me at least three times a day. The messages started out encouragingly enough. By Friday, however, they were less encouraging and more vulgar, most of them calling me a demeaning name for part of a woman's body. I disregarded the messages for the most part… though they were true.

It was difficult for me to take that leap and call Bella back. The circumstances under which I left hadn't been good, and I hadn't seen or spoken to her since she left me in the woods that day. After our argument I had gone back to my apartment that was just outside WSU. I packed my essentials, left a note telling my roommates someone would pick the rest up, and was on a plane before Christmas Day was over. It would be a couple of weeks until I had to be in Sydney so I decided to stay in London for the remaining time. My parents had recently moved there since Alice and I were both out of the house. My father, Carlisle, was choosing to take a break from practicing medicine and had been offered a position teaching at Oxford. Meanwhile my mother, Esme, ever the interior designer, had been working with a few of the more prominent families in the city, redecorating their lavish homes.

Bella's voice triggered emotions and memories in me that I hadn't experienced or even wanted to, in a long time. Her voice made me miss things I had long forgotten. There was playing football with my best friend, Bella's brother Emmett, or fishing with Charlie, their father. I could almost smell the trees Alice and I camped under when we were kids Most painful were the memories of her, of Bella… every 'first time' we experienced together; the look on her face every time I said 'I love you', like she would burst from happiness…

It was those memories, the ones of Bella that pushed me over the edge on Friday. So far, in fact, that I shouted at the intern for making my coffee wrong (when in reality it was perfect) and reduced her to tears. I also yelled at "Larry-across-the-partition" when he asked to borrow a pencil and almost punched the janitor because the men's room was out of paper towels. After I nearly killed a pregnant colleague (accidentally, with a very heavy door) I retired home early with one thing in mind. Booze. Lots of it.

I turned off my phone, put on the most ridiculously emo music I could find, and settled on the couch, quite content with being miserable. It wasn't until after my fifth gin and tonic did I realize just how pathetic I was. I had stumbled into the kitchen to make another drink, the 'last one, I promise' I told myself. The ice maker, on the other hand, had alternative plans, such as throwing ice all over the floor.

"Fuck," I muttered and knelt down to pick up the stray cubes. I tossed a handful in the sink and when I turned to try again I came face to face with Elton John.

"Hello, Fucker." I tipped my imaginary hat to him.

He just stared.

I fixed my drink and faced him once more.

"I'll play your game." I sipped my gin then set it down, preparing. Slowly, I lifted both my hands to the edge of the counter where he was sitting. I crouched down so I was eye level with him, our noses almost touching.

He didn't flinch.

I don't know how long we stayed like that, each of us taunting the other silently, trying to urge the blinking with no avail. My nose twitched of its own accord and my limbs froze. Then, a noisy sneeze echoed through the tiled kitchen, and he still didn't flinch. I narrowed my eyes as I wiped my nose on my sleeve and turned away from him, not wanting to watch him gloat.

"Smug bastard." I sipped my gin and seethed silently. That was the last staring contest I had with the cat.

*************************

Saturday morning dawned with me sitting straight up on the couch, chin resting on my chest, drool stain on my shirt, buzz saw going through my head. EJ sat on the coffee table, his fluffy head cocked to one side.

"Go away," I mumbled as I moved to lie down and bury my face in a pillow. He leapt from the table to the couch beside, pressing his nose into the back of my head. I rolled over and made eye contact with him, laughing at the memory of our contest. That's why you don't drink such large amounts of alcohol, I thought just before I fell back asleep. Three hours later I woke up sprawled on my back with EJ curled into a furry ball on my chest. It was just after eleven in the morning so I mentally calculated the time in Forks and decided that it was now or never for my call to Bella.

I dialed.

It rang.

Once.

Twice.

"Hello?" she answered. Mother of fuck, she answered.

I panicked. And then I hung up.

"Ah, you stupid son-of-a-bitch," I muttered to myself as I dialed the number again.

"Hello?" she answered again, sounding a little annoyed.

"Uh – Bella? Hi. It – it's Edward," I stumbled over my words and tried to clear my throat.

"Edward," she breathed my name and I felt my heart stop then start again so fast I could hardly catch my breath, "Thank you for calling me back."

"You're welcome!" I said, a little too loud and bright. I closed my eyes and attempted to decelerate my breathing. Hold it together. "I mean… I'm sorry it took so long, things have been a little busy."

"It's okay," she reassured me, "I'm just glad you did."

"Really?" I asked and I could hear her chuckle softly.

"Yes. I um… I need to speak with you about something." She cleared her throat and her friendly tone changed. She was all business. "I need to speak to you in person. I'm sorry, but I can't do it over the phone."

I didn't know what to say. Part of me was ecstatic that she wanted to see me but the larger part was more nervous than the first time we had sex. Well… maybe not that nervous. What did she need to tell me that she couldn't do over the phone? She was terrible at keeping secrets and even worse at lying, her face always giving her away…

"Okay. That's okay. When? Where?" my words came out in a rush.

"Whenever you can. I know you have a job and a life there… I'm sorry. I just – I need to see you," she sighed and I swallowed convulsively. She needed to see me.

"Don't worry about it. I'll figure something out… I'll call you in a few days?"

"Thank you, Edward," she said softly.

"I'll talk to you soon," I hung up, not waiting for a reply, God only knows what stupid thing I would have promised had I stayed on the line.

My heart?

My soul?

The world?

Take it.

It's been yours for years.

A/N: Again, thanks to my beta Becca Graymoor and Messynachos - what would I do without you two?