A/N: Set during New Moon when Bella chases Edward through the woods in an attempt to find him after he leaves her.

Chapter 20

Bella's POV-

I waited with a bated breath; my fingers crossed as emotions that cannot be expressed in mere words crossed my mind. It had been so long since I had last seen Sam. A few months less than a year; oh, how much I had missed him! I craved to be in his presence, to talk to him, to hear his firm, yet filled with caress, voice. I craved to see him!

Yet, at the same time, fear prevailed. What if I were to lose control and harm him?

He was human. He was fragile.

It was risky.

I could not harm him.

I could not take that chance.

I had to stay away from him. I had seen the condition I had left my victim in; he couldn't be next on that regretful list.

I could not let that happen.

No.

I would have to leave. Sam would understand. Hopefully.

"Stop that trail of thought right there, darlin'." Jasper whispered in my ear. "You are prepared for this."

"But…" I began to protest, his smile interrupting me.

"You could not be more prepared than this. You will not lose control."

"It is risky…"

"It isn't." he stated. "Believe in yourself. For, I do."

I attempted a half- smile, grateful for his confidence in me, a spare thought entering my mind and capturing it entirely.

"Wait." I gasped in horror, my eyes wide. "How do I look?"

"What?" Jasper seemed dumbfounded, amusement creeping into his features the next second. "That's what you are worried about?"

"Obviously!" I waved my hands in the air. "First impression is last impression- and all of that!"

"Um," he hid his laugh. "Sad to break this to you, but he isn't about to see you for the first time."

"In this universe!" I clarified, finger-combing my hair in a last-ditch attempt to make myself look presentable. I was wearing brown contacts- had inserted them before entering the bar to play human, and while I was dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a fancy blouse, the differences were glaring in my face. I wasn't human. He would realize this as soon as he saw me. And it remained a mystery how he would react.

Would he accept me?

I wasn't his enemy, considering he was a human in this universe…but not everyone was open-minded and accepting to date a vampire. He could as easily reject me. Maybe…he would find a nice human girl and decide to settle down with her. Surely, his life would be easier then.

No. I had to stop being so pessimistic!

The waitress had mentioned that he had been searching for me. So, there was hope!

At least until he saw me…

"Bella." I turned to look at Jasper, an unreadable expression on his face. "I…" he sighed, shutting his eyes tight- before opening them and continuing, "you have my blessing…"

"Jasper…"

"I will always love you," he continued, "I had foolishly hoped that I could change your mind before this day came, or that this day never arrived. But I now know that I am not enough…"

"Jasper, please," I guiltily whispered.

He smiled, "I will find my wife, Bella. She will come back to me. And she will love me as much as I love her."

"She will." I promised, silence settling between us as we accepted the fact that this was it. We had no future together, and while I had always known this, Jasper was now realizing the truth in that sentence.

And it was a relief.

Jasper and I could be great friends, but the both of us had to be on the same page for that. It could never work if either of us desired more.

"He is here." Jasper whispered in my ear less than a few minutes later, a hand on my un-beating heart as I unwaveringly stared at the door, my eyes refusing to look away. "Best of luck."

I smiled, nodding my head. I would always be thankful for whatever Jasper had done for me, and how important he had come to mean in my life, but the path on which my life walked from this moment forward, remained undecided. It all depended on how Sam would react in the next few minutes. It could all go downhill, or it could be the best moment of my life.

Time seemed to stretch for miles, as seconds passed by like hours, finally the one I would always be glad to see, walked in through the open door, his eyes desperately searching for me through the noisy crowd, gaining accomplishment, as a sigh left his lips, and a tear trailed down his eye.

"Sam." The word had hardly left my mouth, his warm hug encasing me tight, as he repeatedly uttered my name, caressing it, tears freely flowing down his eyes, the world seeming to come to a pause.

Nothing remained but the two of us.

"I missed you so much."

My voice felt heavy, and while I no longer could cry, I pulled him closer to me, breathing in his scent and listening to his heartbeat.

He was here. With me.

Finally.

"I have been searching for you."

"I know. But Sam, you must have noticed, I am not me…"

I did not have the urge to drink from him- which was surely a relief, but I could not pull down my guards. Not yet. Not ever.

"Shh." He whispered, the bliss in his eyes unparalleled. "We will talk about this later. We will find a way. I admit I am slightly taken-aback to see you like this, but this is not the moment for that. We have finally found one another, and let's just cherish that for now. We will have time in the future for harder conversations. For now, let's just be Sam and Bella. Please."

I nodded my head in agreement, pulling him closer to me, as I let my lips meet his, desire and relief coursing through my veins like wildfire, my eyes shut as I let myself free in the moment. He was finally here. And he was all mine. He retaliated with similar force, his lips passionately attacking mine, his tongue demanding entrance. A permission I was quick to grant. His hands assaulted my breasts, a moan leaving my lips, as he squeezed my nipple, and roughly pushed my breast together. I ran my hands down his chiseled back, my nails leaving their impression for the world to see.

"Bells."

Argh. What was it?

Why was Jasper calling for me?

Couldn't he see I was rather engaged elsewhere?

"Bells." He repeated, somehow sounding like Charlie. Strange. "Wake up, hun. Morning's here."

Huh.

What was wrong with Jasper?

I pulled away from Sam, my curiosity building up, as Jasper- who stood in front of me- smiling, began to fade in thin air, a groaning Charlie appearing in his place, complaining about how he was running late for work. Frowning, I turned to look at Sam, my eyes wide in horror, as Edward Cullen, having replaced Sam, stood smirking, wiping the mark of my kiss from his face.

"Wake up, Bells." Charlie repeated, my feet unintentionally taking a step back, as my mind attempted to make sense of what my eyes were conjuring.

Where was Jasper?

What was Charlie doing here?

And I was kissing Sam? Not Edward!

My heartbeat began to pound in my ears, my eyes wide, as I stupidly stared down at my suddenly beating heart. How?

I couldn't understand what was happening.

The world seemed to fade by, the crowded bar suddenly disappearing into a white loop of monotonous nothingness….and then, my eyes opened, and I woke up with a jerk.