For Dawn.

Rule #7: Don't get jealous

Edward: I need to talk to you.

Bella: It's going to have to wait. I'm on a date, remember?

Edward: I'll be waiting.

I turn my phone off, choosing to study the menu while I wait for Ben to show. Luckily, I don't have long to wait, and the smile on his face when he walks up to the table is worth it.

"Hi. I'm so sorry." Ben's apologizing and, instead of choosing a seat across from me in the four seater, sits to my right. It's not the norm, and I like it.

"No, I understand. Do you think everyone is okay?" I ask as he settles and gives the waiter his drink order.

"Yeah, everyone was out of the cars. It was just a rear end that everyone wanted to look at." He shrugs, smiling at me. "I'm really glad we're doing this. You look really nice. Thanks for being here."

I laugh. "Do you thank all your dates?"

"For showing up? Sometimes." Ben laughs as the waiter drops off our drinks. "Dating is, at best, tolerable, right? Sometimes, you ask someone out, and by the time you get to the date, maybe you've decided that you don't really want to be here, or maybe they do."

"That's when you just cancel beforehand, right?"

"If you're lucky, they do! That's why I'm thankful you're here." Ben smiles a lot. Usually that sort of thing makes me uncomfortable. Mostly because I just don't think smiling is natural. It's a me thing, and I'm aware that I don't smile much, but I can feel my cheeks are already straining because Ben makes it feel natural. He puts me at ease, and we chat through our meal before he all but begs me to split a dessert with him.

It's much later than I realized, but Ben and I take a walk around the area—a cute but touristy place in the city. "Do you ever get out and do the tourist stuff around town?"

"I love to do it, but I don't as much as I'd like to," I say as we pass a busker with an electric violin, playing a remix of "Halo" by Beyonce, who draws my attention. "It's things like this," I say as I pull a five-dollar bill out of my wallet and drop it in his case, "that I love about this city."

Ben grabs my hand and spins me into his arms, something that would have embarrassed me to no end before. But this feels … right, natural. We sway for a few minutes with the music, and when it comes to a stop, we applaud the musician, and I make sure to capture his Instagram so I can follow him.

As we move on, Ben keeps my hand in his, linking our fingers together, swinging lightly between us. "How was brunch with your roommate? You never said anything?"

"Ah, it didn't go well." I glance over at him. "You don't want to hear about it."

"Well, sure. But only if you want to talk about it." He squeezes my hand lightly. "I've had my fair share of terrible roommates, so I can empathize. But he's also your best friend, right?"

I give him a very brief rundown of what went down earlier, and he winces when I say that I don't exactly feel comfortable, so moving out is definitely a priority now. "I didn't even realize that I felt uncomfortable until now. Wow, I'm sorry. This is heavy stuff for a first date."

We've been making our way back to the lot where I parked. "Bella, I asked. I want to know about you. That's what dating is about."

I smile. "Thank you. I think I want to know about you too." We reach my car, and Ben tells me to let him know I get home all right, and I take the chance to press a kiss to his cheek. He smiles that sweet Ben smile before he dips his head, chastely pressing his lips to mine.

"I'll see you later, Bella."

When I let myself in the door, I pull out my phone to text Ben and remember that it's been off for the better part of four hours. I turn it on, and as soon as it boots up and I enter my passcode, it blows up with notifications: three voicemails and twenty-two text messages.

TWENTY-TWO!

I sigh, quickly firing off a text to Ben and telling him that I'm going to bed. I'd rather stay up and text with him for a bit, but I'm fairly certain that's not in the cards for me. Taking a deep breath and girding my loins, I climb the stairs into the dark, quiet house. Jasper's car was missing, and I assume he's still with Alice. I didn't see Jake's or Embry's car, and I don't care.

The living room is dark, although I half-expected Edward to be sitting under a lone lamp like a psycho, waiting for me. The kitchen is quiet, and the lights are off in the back yard and the den, so I move swiftly down the hall to my room and slip in, closing the door.

"So, did you have a good time tonight?"

I gasp, spinning around to find Edward lying in my bed, reading.

"What the fuck are you doing in here?" I'm heaving, trying to catch my breath. Edward scared the shit out of me, and now, I'm pissed. "You can't just be in my room."

"You weren't responding to me. I was worried about you." He shrugs and turns his attention back to his book.

"Bullshit. What do you want?" I haven't moved from my spot by the door. I'm not nervous or scared, but I had a really nice evening. I don't want to ruin that feeling.

"How was Ben? Was he everything you dreamed he would be?" His voice drips with sarcasm, and I roll my eyes.

"Is that what this is about? Are you worried I'm going to end up with a boyfriend, and you're going to be left out in the cold?" I scoff out a laugh, shaking my head. "You're absurd. Get out."

He shifts to sit up on the edge of my bed. "Are you telling me that you didn't go on this date tonight to get a boyfriend?"

"Why are you so obsessed with relationships and the idea of having a partner? Who hurt you?" I stare at him, willing him to answer me.

"So what, are you going to date this guy and still fuck me?" His gaze is boring into me; I'm not sure if I'm surprised or not.

"That's what this is about." I drop my purse and kick off my shoes. "You're really only worried about yourself, aren't you?"

"You can't have your cake and eat it too, Bella." He stands up, pulling himself up to his full height. I know he's peacocking in a way that used to turn me on; now, it's disgusting me. "You can't have a boyfriend and a fuck buddy."

"I'm very aware. My end goal in life is to be happy, Edward. Whether that's with a partner or a committed sexual relationship or whatever. I just want to be happy. Our relationship isn't going to make me happy forever. You're such an asshole, but there are so many great things about you. I like that version of you."

"You like the asshole too." He takes a step toward me, and I know what he's trying to do.

"I do … when I need to get off." The whole picture of Edward is a mess; he doesn't trust anyone enough to let someone in, he's a perpetual child who, when push comes to shove, won't move out and be on his own, but is considering moving back onto his ship. "The nice parts of you, the sweetness you show … I actually like that Edward Cullen. I'd like to date that Edward Cullen. But the asshole Edward Cullen doesn't want that. You can't trust that you could be happy with anyone else or successful. You don't think that a relationship could be fulfilling, do you?"

He's silent, but his nostrils flare, and he breathes unevenly.

"I think it's obvious that this"—I wave my hand between us—"has run its course."

"That's it? That's how you end it? You tell me you have feelings for me, but you're still going to go after that guy?"

"Maybe I'll continue to see Ben. Maybe I won't." I shrug, suddenly feeling tired about everything. "Maybe I'll meet someone else or maybe I'll be single for another year. I don't know, but I do know that I'm not going to feed into this anymore. It's not healthy for me, and I'm not going to help you continue to be like this."

"Fine."

I don't say anything as Edward brushes past me and into the hall. "You'll come back to this."

"I won't, Edward. I think as friends, we need some time apart as well. I'll miss that." I move to my door and grab the handle. "But I won't be the one crawling back to this."

Before he can say anything further, I calmly shut the door and flip the lock.

This chapter is over. Edward Cullen and I are finished.