Always

Chapter Three: A Month Later

Jessica Stanley

I set my alarm each morning for six as all my morning glasses started at eight and I'd use my free morning time to work out or catch up on some test notes. This morning luckily I was all caught up to speed on everything for my classes this week. I'd gotten up, made my bed, organized my laundry making sure to get it down to the laundry room before any other early risers got in ahead of me. I returned to my dorm and collected my work out clothes which consisted of a blue sports bra, blue short shorts, and a pair of trainers. I'd packed a towel and a bottle of water into my bag and headed down to the college gym.

The gym was empty as it was a Saturday and the majority of students liked to sleep in as late as possible. I put on my earphones and connected my phone to the Bluetooth.

I'd found an 80s playlist and it was perfect for a jog, the music was fast-paced and upbeat, and the lyrics were easy to remember. I'd gone into the gym, done a few warm-up stretches and then hit the treadmill. I'd gone for a three-mile run and it felt great. I'd never been worried about my weight but I did like to keep my fitness up. I changed after high school, no much additional classes or pressures, no volleyball or anything that made me feel like I was still living in Forks. I had put myself under so much pressure back then to be perfect and that just wasn't who I was anymore. Perfect people don't do the things I did and now that they were done there was no going back. I could either let my actions consume me with guilt or I could learn from my mistakes and be a better person and that's what I was doing now.

I returned to my dorm room where I'd left my phone as I never liked to be one of those people who got so wrapped up in the screen that they forgot they were on a freaking treadmill. I picked it up to put it onto charge when I found I had a missed call from Angela. I activated my voicemail and I smiled hearing her voice on the line as I hadn't heard from her for a few weeks.

"Hey Jess, it's me, listen, don't worry everything is fine but, Mike got into a bit of a scrap on the weekend. He's crashed his dad's truck, so he's in the hospital back in Forks. I just thought you'd like to know since you are close enough to visit. He's okay from what I can gather but I'm sure he'd like to see you. Uh, call me when you get this if you have time. I have to go right now cause I have class. But um, yeah call me at some point."

The voicemail ended there.

I'd not seen Mike for a long time and I hadn't been back to Forks since I returned for the Cullen wedding. I'd have to call Mike or send him something at the hospital as sadly I had no intensions of going back to Forks. From what Angela had told me Bella hadn't been in touch with any of the Cullens, she had only called her mom and even then it was an entire week after the wedding when she finally made contact. She was fine but she wouldn't say where she was, apparently Bella left Forks once and Edward and his dad tracked her down to convince her to come back and Bella didn't want that happening again.

Every time I thought about Forks I would get these vivid flashbacks of that day. The way Edward's fingers felt inside of me, his breath on my skin, and the sound of his voice when he said Bella's name. I shook those thoughts away as there was no sense in getting worked up about it now, it was over. What I had done wasn't smart but what I did afterwards was, I went to my doctor the next day and got the pill and a complete work up. I wasn't the type of girl to trap a guy, I was the type of girl starting her life at college and I had been responsible. Besides something in my gut assured me that Edward and Bella would find their way back to each other. What Edward and I had done together was a way for him to cope with the pain and loss and it was something I was okay with, I didn't know what that said about me as a woman.

What I'd learned from being out here on my own and seeing other people's way of life beyond my sleepy little town was that things can easily consume you. Forks was a sinking ship and one I was not going down with.

I'd made a mistake and slept with someone who didn't love me. I'd done it because in that moment there was no one and nothing I wanted more. I hadn't tried to contact Edward and I wouldn't. I hadn't heard from him and the truth was I never once expected or hoped to.

It was over and yet every single night, I dreamt of Edward Cullen.