Chapter 2

Edward argued with his siblings the whole way back. He knew that he had been getting on their nerves with his constant anxiety being so far away from Bella. He wanted to race straight to her house to check on her. They all argued that they were going to get back to Forks in just barely enough time to get to school. She was probably fine, how much trouble could one human get up to?

Finally, it was Alice who convinced him. With glassy eyes, she said turned to him and said, "we should go to school first."

They rushed home and quickly changed for school, donning their student wardrobe. They piled into Edward's silver Volvo and drove to school. Edward scanned the parking lot for Bella's truck but was confused when he didn't see it. The lot was nearly full by now and the bell was close to ringing. Maybe she's running late? Edward glanced at Alice, and she shrugged.

Edward slogged through his morning classes, keeping an eye out for Bella in the hallway between classes, but not seeing her. When lunchtime came, he decided to sit with his family, pretty sure by now that Bella wasn't at school. Maybe she was sick?

Edward slumped in his chair, dejected. He had finally accepted his unhealthy obsession with Bella. To be here when she was not felt illogical.

Edward's head whipped up when her heard Bella's name. He glanced over at the table of Bella's friends, eager for information. Mike had just asked where Bella was. Edward observed Angela and Jessica exchange an anxious look. Edward was suddenly hit was gruesome images as Angela and Jessica mentally recalled what they saw last night. Edward sucked in a breath and hunched over as if he'd been punched in the gut. No! Edward vaguely heard Angela say that Bella wasn't feeling well when they were out last night and had probably decided to stay home sick. Edward was hit with an onslaught of Angela's concern and anxiety for Bella, as well as her own trauma from seeing her friend lying on the cold asphalt, barely conscious, bloodied, cradling her arm, with her pants unbuttoned and slightly around her hips.

Edward keeled forward and pressed his palms over his eyes as if to keep the images away from his mind. He let out a sound that was not human. His siblings glanced at each other in sudden alarm. Jasper was overcome with Edward's anguish until he braced himself and started sending calming waves toward his brother. Edward was barely aware of Jasper's attempts to calm him, his agony was so consuming. He barely registered strong arms guiding him forcefully out of the cafeteria.

Finally outside in the fresh air, Edward gasped and let himself fold over to brace his hands on his knees. Away from the images of Angela's mind, Edward was able to let in a bit of calm from Jasper's efforts. Edward took an unnecessary breath to center himself and stood up, determined. He looked straight at Alice and knew that she knew what he had decided to do in that moment. Alice's eyes went glassy for a moment as she looked ahead into the future for him. She refocused her gaze on him and gave him a small nod.

And he was off. He ran all the way to Bella's house. He got there in record time. Bella's truck was in the driveway, Charlie's cruiser was gone. He listened to for a moment, and could hear her heartbeat inside, coupled with some shuffling.

Edward walked up to the front door and, hesitating for a brief moment, knocked. Edward heard Bella's breath catch at the sound and her heart beat increase in anxiety. "Bella," He called out through the door. "It's Edward." Edward could have sworn that Bella's heart skipped a beat. He heard her shuffle closer to the door.

"Edward?" Bella's confused voice floated through the door. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check on you."

"I'm fine, Edward," she lied. "You should go back to school, thanks for checking on me."

"Bella, I know you've been hurt." Edward struggled to keep the anguish from his voice.

There was a pause. "I don't want you to see me like this," came her small voice.

"Bella, please. I need to see you." Something in Edward's voice must have moved her because he heard the lock click and a second later the door opened. Edward took in Bella's state. She had a cast on her right arm and a bandage around her head. "Oh, Bella," Edward's voice was thick with agony.

Bella's eyes brimmed with tears. It was too much to be witnessed when she was in this state. She wanted to turn away but stood transfixed before him.

"Oh Bella," Edward said again, with the same agony as before. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there to protect you." There was something so profoundly vulnerable in Edward's admission. Woven into his guilt was his love and affection for Bella.

Bella crumbled at this statement and surged forward, burying her face into Edward's chest. Edward hesitated for a fraction of a second before wrapping his cold arms around Bella's quaking form. Bella let out a guttural sob into Edward's chest and clung to his shirt. She didn't know why, but it felt so right to be comforted by Edward.

After several long minutes of standing in the doorway like that, Bella's sobs settled into sporadic sniffles. She pulled away self-consciously and wiped her face. "I'm sorry," she murmured, suddenly unable to look Edward in the eye.

"Hey," Edward said, offering the slightest touch at her chin to get her to look at him. "You don't have anything to apologize for."

Bella felt so vulnerable, trapped in Edward's gaze. There was a vulnerable honesty in the connection they shared. She didn't know how, but he somehow knew what happened to her last night. And for some reason, he seemed to care. Bella knew that her affection for him that had been growing for weeks must have been evident in her gaze. All the walls were down between them.

Edward blinked, releasing her from his spell. Bella glanced away briefly before asking, "Um, would you like to come in? I kind of need to be in the dark." Bella winced a bit at the diffuse light seeping through the overcast sky behind Edward, still standing in the open doorway.

A surge of pained concern overcame Edward at the realization that Bella was experiencing discomfort. "Yes, of course." Bella stepped aside to let Edward into the living room. While it didn't impact Edward's ability to see around the space, Edward did note that all of the lights were off, and the blinds were drawn.

Bella stepped to a lamp with a comment about, "Here, let me put some light on for you."

"No, don't Bella," Edward said gently but firmly. "I don't need the light to see." Bella's hand stilled inches away from the light switch. It was a gentle reminder of the shared knowledge that Edward was not human, though they had not confirmed what exactly he was.

Bella stood up and turned to face Edward. There was a fresh and unfamiliar intimacy of having him in her living room. "Um, can I get you anything?" she offered awkwardly, defaulting into hosting etiquette. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she felt silly, recalling that she had never seen him eat or drink anything in all the weeks she'd observed him.

Edward gave a soft smile and replied politely, "No, thank you."

Bella stood there for an awkward moment longer before her head started to throb again. Wincing, she touched her hand to her head. Edward rushed forward a step toward her. "You're in pain," he observed. "Why don't you sit down." Edward guided Bella onto the nearby couch and crouched in front of her. "What do you need?" Edward tried to keep the anxiety out of his voice.

Bella groaned in pain as her arm started to bother her. "My pain meds are wearing off. They're on the kitchen counter." Quicker than she was ready, Edward was gone.

Edward was in the kitchen in a flash. He found two prescription bottles sitting on top of handouts from the hospital. He glanced through the leaflets. One was "After concussion care." Another was "How to care for your broken bone." The last one was titled "Raped? Help is available." Edward gripped the counter for support he suddenly felt like he needed.

A soft groan from the other room mobilized Edward back into action. Bella needed him. He resumed his study of the two prescription bottles and quickly determined the one meant for pain management. He dosed out two small tablets as directed by the bottle. He quickly found a glass and filled it with water. He was in front of Bella all to quickly again. She flinched slightly at the sudden appearance. "Sorry," he said, making a mental note to slow down around her.

Bella took the pills from his hand, noting again how cold his skin was when her fingers brushed his palms. She swallowed the pills with a slight wince, then let out a sigh. "Thank you," she handed the glass of water back to Edward, who set it down on the coffee table.

Bella eyed him for a long moment, studying him. Seeing Edward again resumed her intense curiosity about him, which was a pleasant distraction from her situation.

"Do you want to talk about what happened?" Edward asked gently.

Bella thought about it a moment. She shook her head. "No," she said. "At least, not right now." She was exhausted from having given her statement to the police for hours last night.

Edward nodded understandingly. "Is there anything you do want to talk about?"

Before Bella could stop herself, the word slipped from her mouth. "You."

Edward's face registered surprise, then his lip quipped into a slight smirk. "Me?"

Bella nodded.

"More theories?" He offered, picking up the line of dialogue that they had been on last week.

Bella nodded once, suddenly recalling the thoughts that had been swirling around obsessively in her head before her assault. The story that Jacob had told her on the beach, what she had found when she searched the internet.

Edward waited patiently in the dark room for Bella to speak. "Well?" He prompted.

"You're impossibly fast. And strong," she started, her voice quivering with the charge of the conversation. "Your skin is pale white and ice cold. Your eyes change color. And sometimes you speak like you're from a different time. You never eat or drink anything. You don't go out in the sunlight." She paused before she asked, "How old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"How long have you been seventeen?" Bella asked, with significance.

Edward looked into Bella's eyes. "A while." He watched this confession land into place with all the other details Bella had observed about him. This was it. There was no turning back now. Bella knew.

"I know what you are," she confirmed.

"Say it," he challenged. "Out loud."

"Vampire," Bella breathed.

Edward looked into her eyes, trying to gauge her thoughts, frustratingly elusive to him. "Are you afraid?" His words were confirmation to her theory.

Bella leaned forward and gabbed his cold hand in her good hand, enveloping it in her warmth so that it felt like a flame to Edward. "No. Because I know you won't hurt me." Bella spoke with an absolute confidence in this truth.

Any other day, Edward would have argued with her, would have tried to convince her how much of a threat he was, that she should stay away from him. But seeing Bella like this, hurt so profoundly by humans, confirmed her words. It turns out that there are greater threats than vampires. Humans can be so cruel and evil. Bella needed his protection against them and he failed her by staying away. No, he would never hurt her. He didn't know how, but he would never leave her unprotected again.

"I love you, Bella," the words came from his lips involuntarily. Bella gasped.

Bella looked down. "You don't want me," she said, taking Edward by surprise with the self-loathing in her voice.

Edward ducked down to try to catch her eye. "What are you talking about? I want you more than you can possibly comprehend. I thirst for you, though I do everything in my power to control that urge. I think about you constantly, I want to be with you every moment of every day to protect you and keep you safe. I will never forgive myself for leaving you unprotected last night. And I won't blame you if you never forgive me either."

Bella looked up at Edward in surprise. Bella registered with a start that Edward was telling the truth. He loved her. And he was blaming himself for what happened to her last night. "I don't blame you. And you shouldn't either." Edward pursed his lips, not ready to shed his guilt. Bella looked down at her lap, suddenly fidgeting with a loose thread on the blanket. "It's my fault anyway."

Edward forced her chin up with his finger. "Hey, don't say that. This isn't your fault."

Bella's eyes pooled with tears again. "I shouldn't have gone off on my own. I should have gone with Angela and Jessica. I should have brought the pepper spray Charlie gave me."

Edward gathered Bella to his chest again as she started to cry. "None of this was your fault. The man that attacked you is at fault."

"Men. There were four of them" Bella mumbled into Edward's shirt. He stilled with horror. "They… took turns raping me." Edward closed his eyes, overcome with an intense anger at the absolute violence of what Bella experienced. Bella sobbed into his chest. Edward rubbed her back as gently as he could, having to work extra hard to contain the rage welling up inside of him.

"Bella," Edward said gently. "I'm so sorry." It carried the weight of so much. He was sorry that she was raped. He was sorry that he wasn't there to protect her.

Bella sniffled and started to pull away from Edward's chest a few inches. "So you see, Edward. You don't want me. You may have wanted me, but now I'm damaged. I won't blame you if you never want to have anything to do with me now."

Edward felt a mixture of emotions. Shock, concern, indignation. "Bella, you wound me if you think that this changes how I feel about you."

Bella still looked down. "I don't know how long it would be before I felt comfortable doing… anything intimate."

Edward surprised her by laughing. She looked up, fearing the worst. She was confused when she saw amusement on his face. "Oh, Bella. I've got all the time in the world." He smiled at her kindly.

Bella ducked her head again, a blush coming to her cheeks. "I love you, too," she mumbled into her lap.

Edward's heart soared at her words. While this was never the circumstances that he ever envisioned for them to admit these words to each other, he was elated to hear them.

Edward leaned forward to offer a soft kiss at Bella's forehead. "I love you," he repeated. They sat like that for a long while, until Bella started to sway slightly from fatigue.

"You need to rest," he insisted. "Let me carry you to your bed." Bella's eyes were heavy from the pain killers that were starting to kick in and mumbled her consent.

Edward easily lifted Bella's fragile form into his arms, holding her away from him so she didn't get cold from his chest. He laid her on the bed and tucked her into the blankets. He turned to leave when he heard her soft voice, moments from sleep, speak out. "No, don't go. Stay."

Relieved, as he did not want to leave her side, took up residence in the rocking chair opposite the bed, content to be exactly where he was.