*DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to the Twilight Saga and it's characters. This is purely artistic fiction drawn in inspiration from Stephenie Meyer's words.

*There will be content warnings at the beginning of chapters to signal sensitive material for readers such as but not limited to: (abuse depictions/eating disorders/sexual content/trauma). Please enjoy my work and take care of your mental health!

*Hiiii there! If you're looking for drama and crazy action, this fic is not for you! While there will be some interesting turns, this is mainly fluff with some lemon-zesty goodness later on. I hope you enjoy and stay a while! : )

*Vital background info for this fanfiction for ease of understanding:

- Edward is the villain in this story, but a grey one at that. He doesn't try to kill Bella, etc. He is detached from humanity and acts accordingly.
- Jake is only four months younger than Bella and they are adults in this fanfiction.
- All pack members do not change personalities after shifting, nor are they prone to huge outbursts/abusive behavior/anger. Paul is a minor exception as he is described as a "hot head" with a traumatic background. In my fic, however, he is secretly a big softy and you will see this. I refuse to cater to the stereotype cast on indigenous men, and won't tolerate it.
- There was never a kiss between Bella/Jake during the canon events of Eclipse (especially not a forced one).
- Speaking of Jake, he does NOT turn into a huge d-bag. He maintains his soft, sweet sunshiney personality but he is older and more mature now. He is now reigning Alpha as depicted in Breaking Dawn.
- There is no vamp baby arc for Bella, and more importantly, no baby IMPRINTING!
- Imprinting only happens to both parties after they turn 18. There are NO huge age gaps (ex. 4 and 16), and it happens between anyone regardless of gender or sexual orientation. I have written it as more of a two souls merging thing rather than genealogical/weird breeding kink that Smeyer seems to paint it as. It is random, for the most part.
- The pack does not cut their hair out of respect for their personal and spiritual beliefs. It does not affect their transformations.
- Bella is stronger in this story, and she understands she needs help rather than bury her trauma/problems with a relationship. Jacob doesn't COMPLETE Bella, he helps her heal and they are better together!

A multitude of thoughts crashed around the confines of her mind. Most of them centered on what she was going to do now that she had her life back. There was so much, and she had zero ideas on where to start. The endless amount of possibilities overwhelmed her, and yet secretly thrilled her. She was free.

Four painful, cumbersome, and long years disappeared off the calendar. Bella Swan (previously Cullen) was no longer a child and had grown into a fully matured young adult. She wasn't innocent and naïve anymore, time had weaved its special magic on her—for the better.

In hindsight, getting married at the tender age of eighteen wasn't the smartest choice, but she resented that inescapable fact. Matrimony wasn't even something she wanted. Certainly not that young, let alone so early within her very first and only relationship. She was coerced into it, just like most things involved with her previous marriage...

Edward Cullen was a textbook example of a sociopathic narcissist. At the start of their relationship, he was successful at hiding his controlling, manipulative, highly volatile personality. He concealed it well under the guise of promised love, false narratives and sugar-coated words. Bella was seventeen when she met him, blissful and ignorant; she consequently viewed him as this perfect, ethereal, intelligent, and God-like man. He wouldn't dare hurt her—she was the one, his own personal brand of heroin, the solace of his eternal suffering.

Unironically, he warned her about his sadistic nature, but it served a different purpose: fuel for the metaphorical fire. She didn't see the warning signs. His earth-shattering, soul-rending love for her and her alone was nothing more than a fervent, hungry attraction. He was obsessed with the hollows of her collarbones, the smell of her blood that thoroughly intoxicated him, and the silence her mind provided in the perpetual sea of noise. Nothing else. He couldn't risk changing her, losing interest once she was drained of her blood. As a predator on top of the hierarchal food chain, it was too easy for him to lure her into his arms and keep her in a state of compliance.

However, in time, Bella found out what other atrocities he was capable of and was conditioned into being afraid of who she was without him. Insignificant, puny, alone. Human. She craved immortality and the over-hyped resplendence of vampirism. He dangled that impossible reality on a glittering string just out of her reach. Truth be told, it's why she married him—he vowed to change her after. It never happened, and she struggled under the crushing weight of unequal treatment. They were from two different worlds, and he reminded her of that every chance he got.

After they married, everything in her life was decided for her: her clothes, what car she drove, how her hair and face looked. He paid special attention to how she interacted with people, severely limiting her autonomy. She learned rather fast that her opinions held little value in his world. He would gaslight her into oblivion if she dared to make her own choices. So she would often relapse into her learned coping skills. She changed her mind, felt guilty, became sullen, withdrawn, and avoided questioning him for months until she mustered the courage to try again. Bella remained stubborn despite his repeated attempts to break her of that trait.

Three years passed before she recognized the seemingly ineluctable path she was on. Eventually, she deciphered the pattern of emotional/psychological abuse brazenly superseded by wave after wave of romantic, loving gestures. She was isolated from her family and friends, starved in every sense of the word which resulted in her shriveling down to a sickly eighty-two pounds. Her skin grew lifeless, hanging off her bones. Bella suffered various forms of trauma at the hands of Edward.

All of that, along with his inability to respect any of her boundaries, ultimately caused her to have a mental break. Their marriage stunted her maturity and limited her potential in almost every way. Bella hadn't gone to college like she originally planned, as she simply "wasn't allowed". She didn't have a job because he refused to spend any time away from her. Once the idea clicked into place that she needed to leave her failed marriage, she had no financial independence to fall back on. She was damaged goods...

It took over a year to convince her ex-husband that she was serious about divorce before he even processed her pleading. Bella was checked out already. Physically. Mentally. All the above. In her limited free time the past few weeks, she had sought a lawyer and drawn up her detailed get-away plans. None of her words sunk in. By the time he saw the proceedings stacked on the counter in a neat rubber band bow, she was long gone. The only things she elected to keep were her rusty old Chevy truck, a handful of clothes, and sparse personal items from before their wedding. She didn't even care about the fallout between her and his family. They were all enablers. She knew they wouldn't truly care if she disappeared. That made it easier to break away.

Bella was a divorcee without a single penny to her name, but she was free and she liked it that way. It hurt like hell, uprooting herself from the only love she'd ever known. Or was it? Reflecting on her entire relationship with Edward Cullen, what once was her entire world was steadily crumbling to reveal a stark truth. One that she was nervous to confront. She was a survivor—a victim—in many ways.

As predicted, him and his family had taken off to God knows where once the dust settled, leaving her to pick up the fragile, jagged pieces of her life yet again. He would find another singer to drain, either her lifeforce or her body. She hadn't even unraveled the warped mess that was her perception of love. Bella hated love... whatever led her willingly into Edward's web. It was all a lie.

There she was, sitting in her father's driveway for the second time. Unsure of her next step. Tired, frustrated, and mentally exhausted. Lost.

She could finally breathe.

A soft tap on her driver's side window disturbed her inner monologue. The breath in her throat hitched; the knock wasn't loud, but it startled her.

"Hey Bells," Charlie's gravely voice was muffled from behind the glass. His tired eyes reflected a sense of relief upon seeing her. Bella fought to roll down the creaky window. Despite trying her best to hide it, her face was puffy and red. The trip from Rampart to Forks was brutal. She'd spent the drive fighting back tears and failing. Her chestnut brown eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep, and her disheveled bronze hair was barely held together in a messy, low hanging ponytail. She put on her best fake smile—for his sake.

"Hey, Dad—" Bella Swan was twenty-one years old. She didn't have a degree or a stable career, and was living under her dad's roof again. Goddamn, that sounded pathetic. Starting over sucked.

"Lemme help you unpack," he muttered. "I haven't touched your room. It's still the same." Charlie reached through the space where the window had been and opened her car door for her. Bella rung her hands together, her rampant anxiety already building.

"There's not much. It's all strapped down in the bed." She shuffled out of the cab and subsequently was drawn into a tight and sudden embrace. It made her feel even worse, but better at the same time. In a small, hidden way. For the moment, this hug held her together again. She was home.

"How're you holdin' up, kiddo?" He whispered against her mess of chestnut-brown hair.

"G-good. All things considered," Bella said flatly.

"Listen, hey—" Charlie pulled back from their shared hug, "I know exactly what you're going through, but you don't have to talk about it if you don't wanna."

"Yeah, I know Dad. I'd kinda like to start over again." Her mouth formed into a hard line, and she sniffled. "Clean slate."

"Sounds good, Bells. Just remember I'm here if you want to talk about it. Always." He pressed a kiss to the crinkle lines on her forehead and they promptly separated.

Charlie followed the driver's side cab to the truck's bed and gawked at how little she had. One half-full, clear plastic tote, and two medium size cardboard boxes. All were neatly labeled with permanent marker on a swath of duct tape. Bella grabbed her worn-down Jansport backpack from the passenger seat and a smaller, plain toiletry bag. All she had were some clothes and books. Mostly. The more substantial things were tucked away in the tote.

"This is all you brought back?" Charlie scratched his head, undoing the ratchet strap. He shuffled the extremely light boxes toward the edge of the tailgate.

"Yeah... It's a lot of junk." She shrugged.

"I doubt that." He chuckled and stacked the cardboard boxes under one arm.

Bella grabbed the tote, haphazardly dropping it on the ground in the same motion. As always, she was clumsy. At least that hadn't changed. She tried to close the tailgate on the Chevy, but it didn't latch. Irritation got the better of her. She tapped into some of her unchecked, bottled anger and slammed the bulk of her shoulder against the flat metal hinge. It locked into place the second and final time with a residual metallic groan. There would be an enormous bruise on her shoulder later. Bella ignored it.

"It's not like I had a lot to begin with." She meekly smiled.

"That's true. You've never been one for material possessions." Charlie stacked the boxes on top of the tote he took out of her hands and they headed inside. It wasn't much, but it was everything she had.

Bella stared at the bare contents of the fridge; a few condiments and Tupperware containers with questionable contents littered the semi-clean shelves inside.

"It's nice to see you haven't changed." She rolled her eyes and shut the door with a lop-sided smirk.

"What can I say? I'm a man of simple taste. I like cheeseburgers from the diner." Charlie crossed his arms over his chest, "it doesn't require any cleanup after."

"You really need to watch your cholesterol, Dad. When's the last time you got your levels checked?"

"I already saw the doc for my yearly checkup. Said I'm as healthy as a horse."

"Riiight," she stifled a hearty laugh, "but did you get blood work done?"

"Didn't need to." Charlie frowned.

"Okay, well, you definitely need to eat more than just red meat." Bella shook her head, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I do. I have a salad maybe once every other week. I think..." he paused thoughtfully.

"Wow. I'll pretend I didn't hear that. What about vegetables?"

"There's lettuce on a cheeseburger, Bells." His brows furrowed, "and tomatoes."

Bella grimaced, "Ugh."

"What?" He stared at her, a clueless expression plastered on his face.

"Nothing. I'll go to the grocery store for you, so we'll have stuff for this week. It's only Tuesday."

"What? Now? It's nearly six. It'll be getting dark soon." Charlie grumbled. "Let's just order a pizza for tonight."

Bella paused and glared up at her father. "Just for tonight?"

"Yeah, you can get stuff tomorrow. I'll leave some cash on the table for it." He picked up the stationary telephone and dialed his favorite pizza place. The only one within the tiny radius of Forks. After he ordered, they retired to the living room.

"Thanks, Dad. I'll call around and see if I can get some interviews for this week." Bella curled up on the large green sofa she'd grown to miss while away. She felt lost in the sea of soft apolstry, tucking her knees against her chest. It was bad enough staying here again. The least she could do was give him money for groceries/rent. Knowing Charlie, he wouldn't take it. Not without a fight, anyway.

"Don't worry about that right now. Focus on gettin' your bearings and settling in... and eating." Charlie replied.

That wasn't good. Charlie hardly noticed anything. It meant that her dad was more than worried about her, and he had every right to be. She was in the safest place possible, though. Bella nodded weakly and her attention flitted to the flatscreen, which revealed some local football game. She wondered if any of her friends from high school still lived in Forks. Another thought pinged into the forefront of her mind... what had become of Jacob Black? Their last conversation at the wedding reception didn't go over so well. She felt sick about it the entire honeymoon. Leaving him didn't feel right, but she didn't have another choice.

"Dad?" she muttered softly. "Can I ask—well—err, how is Billy doing?"

Charlie squirmed in his armchair a tiny amount. Billy was fine. It was more or less Jacob that wasn't.

"He's fine, Bells."

"Oh, good. And... what about Jake?" She was pushing the envelope.

He adjusted so he could look at her. "He went through a big rough patch after you left Forks."

She grimaced, "what do you mean?"

"He took off to Canada for a long while without saying a damn word. Almost gave Billy a heart attack when he showed up on his doorstep months later."

"R-really? That doesn't sound like him." Bella winced. It was her fault he left...

"Yeah, all I know was he was heartbroken by you getting married. Doesn't excuse what he did, but Billy says he made up for it."

"What did he do when he came back?"

"He runs a shop on the reservation with some of his friends. I heard from Billy that Sam Uley straightened him out real good. Guess he runs some sort of program for troubled kids on the Rez."

She remained quiet and nibbled her lower lip in concentration, mulling over what to do. Should she try to see him? Would he hate her guts? There was too much to consider. She pictured walking up to Billy's house, all nonchalant in her approach. The thought made her stomach drop like a lead weight into the bottom of her stomach.

Charlie continued, "Bells... promise me you're not gonna try to jump straight into another relationship right now?" His brow furrowed.

Goosebumps peppered her skin; she hadn't been thinking about dating him. But she missed her former best friend. She needed someone—anyone besides her dad—to talk to.

"No! No... I promise I'm not. I was just curious." Bella murmured. She told the truth. Or a lie that she told herself.

He sat quietly in his recliner for a few more moments before responding. His eyes softened and fixed on the game on the TV.

"It wouldn't hurt if you went to see them. Billy's always considered you like another daughter," Charlie leaned back further in his armchair. "I'm sure Jake misses you, too."

She remained silent for a few more seconds. He didn't know about the vampires, werewolves, and everything in between. How she was hunted by not one, but two rogue vamps...

"I'm not so sure about that." Bella wrung her hands together, swallowing uneasily.

"Well, nothin' wrong with dropping by. You are livin' under my roof again. Billy's practically family to me—us," Charlie relaxed a little more. "That and Jake's not a kid anymore. He's a grown man. Lots' changed since you left."

"Yeah, I guess so, Dad."

The doorbell went off and startled her. She felt like she might jump out of her skin.

"I'll get it." Charlie stood from his chair, shuffling to the front door to pay for the food.

The conversation died down once they started eating. She didn't mind that. Charlie wasn't a talker like her mother, and speaking of, Renee hadn't reached out to her since she told her about her divorce. She sounded worried, but that was drowned out by mild annoyance. Maybe it was the fact Edward was rich, and Bella was willingly walking away from that. She knew her mother would come around.

Once the clock struck nine, Chief Swan trudged up the stairs half asleep. His early shift started at 5AM, meaning he'd leave the house by 4:45 sharp tomorrow morning.

Bella put the pizza leftovers into the fridge, separating some for her dad to take for lunch tomorrow. She only ate the crust and a few bites of one slice... her appetite would come back. Healing takes time. She had a lot of it on her hands now.

When she finished in the kitchen, she tiptoed up the stairs to her old room to do some light unpacking. Despite all the noise in her mind, she remained quiet in her pursuit of putting her meager belongings away.

She lifted a tiny shoebox out of the bottom of the plastic tote, shifting the cardboard lid off to the side. There, under the fraying material of an off-white, embroidered handkerchief that was a wedding gift, lay the wooden dream-catcher Jake had given her. It was just as pristine as the day she packed it away. Bella laced her thin fingers around the small trinket and when she tried to lift it out of the box, a silver bracelet spilled out with it onto her violet-colored comforter.

She narrowed her eyes, grasping the chain between her right index finger and thumb. The metal tinkled softly as she turned it, coiling it into her other open palm. Under the soft glow of her bedside lamp, she observed the miniature, delicately carved wolf standing proudly at the end of the bracelet. Her heart ached upon viewing the charm. She scooped up both the jewelry and the dream-catcher, setting them carefully on her nightstand. It was late, she needed sleep.

Bella curled up under the covers, turned off her light and attempted to shut off her mind. As the hours ticked by, she tossed and turned listlessly. When Charlie left for work in the morning, she finally fell asleep, albeit briefly.

Her dreams were empty, a preferred occurrence over her usual roulette of nightmares. It was a quarter past noon when she forced herself out of bed. She had plans today—a quick, simple drive to the grocery store and back. It would help her feel a shred of normalcy again.

What Bella didn't know was that she'd run into someone that she least expected at the supermarket...

*How you likin' the rain, gurl? :P Stay tuned for the next chapter sometime soon!

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