B-POV

I watched the boy sitting across from me pluck off each topping of his piece of pizza until there was nothing left but the cheese. Then, I watched him pull that off, too. Satisfied, he picked up the triangle of crust with a bit of sauce smeared on top and took the tiniest bite.

Jessica put her arm around my shoulder and pulled me in towards her. "Isn't this cool? The perfect place to celebrate!"

I had gotten my cast off earlier that morning and Jessica took it upon herself to arrange a celebration. The celebration took place in an indoor mini golf course that kept overhead lights turned off and painted aisleways and details in glowing, neon paint. It wasn't the safest place for the uncoordinated. With my luck, I would break my other arm. "So perfect!" I agreed, anyway.

Jessica's shiny, white teeth shined purple in the black light. She leaned closer. "And how do you like Eric?"

Eric was the fourth boy Jessica invited to join our group with the hope that I would be able to replace Edward. He had long hair that swept across his forehead, most likely to hide the acne underneath, but there was no hiding the pimples that dotted his chin. He wore a windbreaker and his pants were one size too big and one size too short. His jokes were clearly lines he read online and repeated, and he didn't seem to have any worldly experience outside of League of Legends. He was nice enough but couldn't keep from looking at my chest for longer than three seconds. And, of course, his eating habits were peculiar.

To think Jessica looked at this boy and considered him a suitable replacement for Edward was laughable. The thought was unfair because there was no replacing Edward. No one could come close to him.

Or, at least who he pretended to be, I reminded myself. The personality I fell so hard for was all an act. Expecting someone to live up to that Edward was like expecting someone to live up to Mr. Darcy. An unrealistic expectation curated from fantasy.

I peeked back and watched Eric fish through the discarded toppings, add a single green pepper back onto the dough and take a bite. "Um, I don't really know him enough to form an opinion."

Jessica gave me one more pat on the arm, "Well, then get to know him!" and turned back to Mike, her golden retriever of a boyfriend.

I took a bite of the kale Caesar salad Eric insisted on splitting but never took a helping of, "So, what's your major?"

"Computer sciences with a minor in Interactive Media Design and Art." Essentially, he played video games all day. "What about you?"

"Library sciences."

He nodded thoughtfully. "I could see you being a librarian." I usually agreed that I fit the part, but he said it like he considered it to be an insult.

A buzzer went off in Mike's hand. "We're up!" He called. Then, he and Ben hurried to the window at the front to collect our balls and putters.

"Maybe you should go with them?" I suggested to Eric.

He nodded and followed after them. Without wiping his greasy pizza hands, I noticed with a frown.

With him gone, I helped Jessica and Angela clear off the table we occupied while we waited for our turn at the course. There was no food at the mini golf place, but they did allow us to bring in a pizza while we waited the full hour and a half before our "tee " time.

Angela wound her arm through mine. "This is going to be fun for you, isn't it?"

I smiled. Only Angela would think to consider my two left feet. "You may have to hold onto me all night."

"We'll be a team!" she giggled.

"I hope Ben won't mind."

"He won't. He gets oddly competitive." She pointed to where he very seriously practiced his swing with each of the cheap clubs as if one was going to be better than the rest. It was weirdly endearing. I could understand what Angela saw in sweet, quiet Ben.

Angela and I did, in fact, play as a team. We took turns holding the other from behind and swinging the club together, like a scene in a bad rom-com. Eric kept his distance, flitting between Mike and Jessica and Lauren and Tyler, which was fine by me. I was dangerously close to having a good time when Ben called Angela over to give him a good luck kiss before he took what was supposed to be a hole-in-one. We shared a laugh before she went over to humor him.

As I watched Ben and Angela be the most adorable couple, I felt a presence behind me.

"Sorry you got stuck with that all night," Tyler said from behind.

I assumed he meant Eric. "It's fine, it's not like I'm spending much time with him at all." He was currently two holes ahead with Jessica and Mike, laughing too hard at something Mike said.

"You deserve better than that."

I was used to this sort of thing with Tyler. He would slip into my solitude, whisper a few kind words. Apparently, no other boy was good enough for me, yet Jessica claimed he had a hand in picking out my prospective suitors from their dorm. I had no idea what his deal was, but I was getting tired of it.

Though he was still behind me, I could practically feel his gaze linger on my body. His fingers twisted a loose lock of my hair that must have fallen out of my updo. His fingers grazed the back of my neck before he tucked it back into place.

Seconds later, he was gone, and the fingers that danced across my neck were laced through Lauren's.

I scowled. Were these truly the only choices I had in romance? A bad blind date, a side piece, or a joke?

Memories of Edward swirled through my mind, unbidden. All the times he made me feel special, all the times he made me feel loved. Worst of all, his confession of love. A last-ditch effort to keep his ruse going, so the final act of his performance could go on.

I gasped, unable to properly fill my lungs with air. There were too many people, crammed in this warehouse, using up all the air with their joy and happiness.

I needed to escape.

Figuring the happy couples wouldn't notice my absence, I slipped out through a back door into an alley. I closed the door shut quickly, and slumped against the cold metal. The only source of light came from a dangling sconce. It swung from the haste and force with which I closed the door.

I took a long, deep breath, appreciating the taste of the crisp night. It didn't take long for me to yearn for the cool, crisp taste of Edward's kiss.

I missed Edward. In the past six weeks, I expected my feelings for him to diminish, but they only grew stronger. I wanted his opinion on every circumstance, his advice in every situation. I wanted to hear his laugh, to see his eyes alight with pleasure when he made me laugh. I wanted to feel his hand around mine, to feel his strong, solid arm around my shoulder while he angled me closer.

A few stray tears slipped down my cheeks.

Why did he have to be such a talented actor?

There were no stars above, only low, gray clouds. There was nothing to dazzle me anymore.

After I let a few more tears escape and scrubbed my face dry, I knew I needed to get back to my friends. I often slipped away for small moments of solitude—they were used to it. Jessica wouldn't even pester me for details about it anymore. But if I was gone for too long, they would start to worry.

When I reached for the handle, there was none. only an empty doorplate with a deadbolt. I cursed under my breath. I would have to walk around the entire building back to the front entrance. In the biting, November chill. I had barely taken a step when something tugged me back, causing me to slip and stumble into the wall. The bottom of my long, suede jacket was stuck in the door.

"Oh my god!" I whined. Charlie just found this jacket for me! It was brand new vintage. It was so rare to find good vintage coats in my size that were actually for women—my leather and jean jackets were men's. I gave the coat a gentle tug, too scared to pull too hard and damage it. But it was useless. It was wedged in there, tight.

I was stuck.

"Why does this always happen to me?" I laminated to no one.

"You alright?" A voice came from the darkness.

I whirled in its direction, but caught on my coat and slammed my shoulder into the wall. I muttered an oath.

"I'm fine, just stuck," I said, then snapped my lips shut. It wasn't a good idea to tell a strange man in a back alley I had no way to escape. Especially one with such a large, bulky frame.

But when he stepped into the light, I was not afraid. He wore one of the kindest, gentlest expressions I had seen in a long time. Wide mouth, spread into a smile so charismatic, I could not help but smile back, despite myself. Dimples on his cheeks. Thick dark, curly hair.

And the eyes. Deep and golden and sparkling.

He was beautiful. A true gentle giant straight out of a storybook.

"Here, let me help you out."

He reached down and I waved my hands to stop him, "Please don't, it's vintage…"

But he wasn't reaching for my coat, but for the deadbolt lock, instead. He wrapped his hand around the bolt, and his fingers dug into the metal frame of the door, as easily as if it were made of putty. He pulled—with a grating squeak—and the entire deadbolt came out of the door, lock and all.

The door cracked open.

"H-h-how…" I tried to sputter, but he interrupted me by asking, "Woah, what's that?"

Without thinking, I turned my head in the direction he looked, and saw nothing. When I looked back, he was gone. Like he never existed at all.

But he must have existed because the door that had once been locked was open. The deadbolt was attached to the door with duct tape and a crisp hundred-dollar bill.

"What on earth…"

I stumbled back through the door, blinking hard against the harsh, bright colors. A couple brushed past me, throwing me an odd look.

"Bella! What are you doing?" Jessica called, ushering me back into the real world.

I rejoined Angela at the hole we were at. She had to carry the team, for my mind was elsewhere. Replaying the bizarre interaction again and again. Dissecting the uncanny feeling of déjà vu that twisted in my gut.

The inhuman strength.

The super speed, undetectable by sound and sight.

And most importantly, the golden eyes set in a perfect porcelain face.

It wasn't until the drive home that I realized the interaction wasn't dissimilar to my horrendous date with Edward. Edward didn't exhibit super strength, but I did witness the speed. From my embrace, out into the rain, and back into the venue all within a few seconds. Perhaps the stranger was like Edward. A super enhanced being. Where Edward could read minds, that man had super strength. If that were the case, it would mean Edward had been telling the truth all along.

My heart beat so rapidly, I felt it in my throat. I had to pull over the truck to the side of the neighborhood and put my head on the steering wheel to calm myself down.

Could it be true? Could Edward have been telling the truth?

I wanted to believe him. More than anything in my life, I wanted a reason to believe Edward. And here it was. Gifted to me by a stranger with dark curls and a wide grin.

I remembered the doctor, who had also reminded me of Edward. Perhaps he had a healing ability. That morning, the doctor who had removed my cast praised the skill and precision exhibited, and he was unsurprised that Dr. Cullen had been the one to set it.

Gold eyes, cold, pale skin, perfect features. Those must be the markings of whatever super-enhanced creatures they were.

If Edward was telling the truth about his mind reading, that meant the rest of our relationship had been real. His comfort in my presence. His promises at the antique fair. Even his confession of love, spoken in a desperate plea. My heart tightened at the memory. I never understood how I allowed myself to be fooled so easily. But it was only because there was never any act.

Edward loved me.

The elation over the discovery was short-lived as I recalled the circumstance in which Edward's speed was revealed. Out of revulsion when his hands first touched my body. I slumped back into my seat and restarted the engine.

At the end of the day, it didn't matter that Edward was telling the truth. There was no superpower that would force him to run away in the middle of a kiss and break my heart.

oOo

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of Christmas carols. It struck me as odd, because Charlie had a struck No Christmas Before Thanksgiving rule. Rubbing my eyes, I ventured down the stairs to see what his problem was. All the Christmas decorations had been brought up from the basement, yet they remained in their boxes.

Then, a spool of craft paper was shoved into my hands and a Santa hat was placed on my head. "Charlie," I complained.

"In the truck," he commanded, "We have a very important task today and there is no time to explain."

"No," I whined. I had planned a double date with a new cookie recipe and a Bonte novel.

"We'll stop and get those breakfast sandwiches you like on the way," Charlie promised, raising his pitch as he sweetened the deal, "The ones with the hashbrowns on them."

"Alight," I reluctantly agreed. "But let me change first. And get a coffee ready for me."

"We'll get one on the way."

I narrowed my eyes at my father. "I have a suspicion it's going to be a two-cup kind of day."

On the drive over to the school, Charlie explained that there was a classroom decorating contest at the school. Apparently, the contest had started with just doors like had always been in the past, but one of the second-grade teachers extended the decorations inside the classroom. "She's trying to be an influencer or something," Charlie tacked on with a flippant wave of his hand. The kindergarten teachers decided they would surprise the girl by doing the same.

Word had gotten around. When we arrived at the school, there were more than just the kindergarten teachers in the school, with sheets hung over their doors to hide their decorating progress. I was about to voice how ridiculous it was to hide behind a sheet before Charlie stuffed one in my hand and told me my first task.

As I hung up the sheet for Charlie, my eyes drifted over to the classroom across the hall. Like the others, its lights were on. Mrs. Cullen's classroom. The doctor's wife.

I bit my lip. If there were another like Edward, Dr. Cullen, and the curly-haired boy, it would be her. I could check. Swing in, say hello, and check her eye color. I would have to be careful. I already mentioned Edward around the doctor—I couldn't make the same mistake again. It could be dangerous to make them more suspicious of me. Edward was hesitant to reveal his secret—I had to assume the others would be as cautious as Edward. Though—I thought with a wry smile—it would be just like Edward to be the most careful of the group.

Thinking of Edward reminded me that it did matter what color her eyes wore. Proof of Edward's telepathy did not justify his actions.

Though, it would be nice to know if I was right.

Curiosity got the better of me. Once Charlie was safely behind his sheet and preoccupied with tinsel and fairy lights, I tiptoed across the hall.

Mrs. Cullen did not put a sheet over her door. I understood why immediately. There was no chance any teacher would live up to this perfection, so she had nothing to hide. The shabby, school classroom had been transformed into a winter wonderland. Evergreen garland was stapled around the whiteboard and bulletin boards on either side. One side of the room had been covered in cardboard pine trees. Stuffed polar bears dominated one corner of a room, a few large enough that a child could sit in its lap.

"Hello." I knocked lightly on the frame of the door.

Esme Cullen stood on her desk, hanging paper snowflakes from the ceiling tiles. Even in jeans and a loose, flowy top, she looked elegant and put together. Her long, caramel hair was tied back in a ponytail. She looked back towards the knock with a demure gasp of surprise. Just as I suspected, she had the same golden eyes and a perfect, porcelain face.

"Oh, my goodness! You must be Bella! I have heard so much about you." She finished with her knot and leaped off the desk with enough grace that would shame a ballerina.

"Me too! I was in the neighborhood and thought I would say hi."

"Well, I appreciate you stopping by. It's nice to have a face to the name. And such a lovely face, too. Charlie always jokes that he had to change your name from Astuta to Bella as you grew up, and now I see why."

I hid my grimace. The joke that Charlie changed my name from smart to pretty had always embarrassed me.

After we shared another smile, Esme wiped her hands, adjusted her stack of snowflakes, and boldly stated, "You've come to ask after Edward."

I balked.

She picked up another snowflake from a pile on a desk and began trying another string to it. "Don't be coy. Once you figured out the truth about Edward, you correctly assumed the same about my husband, then myself. And you decided out of all of us, the kindergarten teacher would be the safest to approach."

I was completely lost, but a small voice in the back of my head—either common sense or survival instinct—told me it was better to play along. "Yes."

Her smile widened. "Clever. It's no wonder he adores you as he does."

"So, it's true?" My heart tumbled about in my chest, as if it were performing a celebration dance.

"Yes, it's true. And you are in no danger from him, or from any of us."

Danger?

I mulled over the word with confusion. Never would I associate Edward with danger. Unless it was to say I was in danger of falling helplessly in love with him.

Thankfully Esme did not pick up my confusion. She continued to tie little pieces of string onto each snowflake as she spoke. "We feed exclusively from animals. The last of us to have a mouthful of human blood was nearly forty years ago, and that was to turn Emmett."

The baby hairs at the back of my neck rose. Goosebumps rose on my arms, making my skin itch.

"And though he would never say it, Edward has remarkable control. His only kills were deliberate and almost a hundred years ago. But that's his story to tell," she met my widened gaze with her golden eyes, "Vampire or not, he's the dashing hero of the tale, but of course, he'd never say that either."

My knees quaked, and my breath rushed in and out in rapid succession.

Esme finally noticed my reaction. "Oh, dear," she muttered and hurried to my side. I yelped a bit at her touch. The cool skin was expected but now marked her as dead. Unalive. A dead alive vampire. "Come on. Come into the calm down corner."

Numb, I allowed a literal monster to guide me into the corner with the mountain of stuffed polar bears, where I settled in the middle. Surrounded by soft, white fur, I did feel a bit calmer.

"It's one thing to suspect something," she empathized, handing me a smaller polar bear. I hugged it to my chest. "It's another matter to hear it confirmed out loud."

Esme pulled over a small, plastic chair the size for a child and perched on the edge, gracefully. She was beautiful. They were all beautiful. Beauty meant to trap and ensnare unsuspecting victims like me.

"Maybe it will help if you say it out loud. Acceptance is one of the stages of grief. Let's give it a try. Edward…" Esme gave help out her hands and gave a wide-eyed nod, coaxing me to finish the statement.

"…can read everyone's mind, but my own."

"Yes, my darling, and what else?"

He never ate human food. His skin was pale and cool to the touch. He moved at a speed, undetectable by the human eye. He had vast knowledge and flawless skill in almost everything.

He was beautiful. He was graceful. He was the love of my life.

"Edward is a vampire."