A Love Story For The Ages: Chapter Two
A Love Story For The Ages
A Twilight Novella in 5 parts
Edward was changed in 1918 unaware that his betrothed lay dying in an alley outside the hospital. Every eighteen years she comes back to him, only to die a horrible death. Can they find a way to stop it, before it's too late?
Chapter 2
Isabella Swan had always had dreams. Dreams of a pale man with auburn hair, sometimes he had green eyes, other times his eyes were the colour of honey. But he was always the same. She didn't know his name, or why she dreamt of him, but she knew one thing; she was in love with this man.
She wasn't sure how one can love a dream except that she did. She often found herself crying as she awoke, sad to leave such a beautiful man behind, but she knew it was more than that. She was drawn to this dream man, with his soft smile and messy hair. She dreamt of him throughout time. She saw him in coat tails of the twenty's then in the smart dress of the fifties, but more often than not she dreamt of him in jeans and a Rolling Stones shirt, swaying to the sound of Led Zeppelin.
Bella didn't know why she dreamed these things, she didn't understand what happened in them; only that these weren't just dreams.
They weren't fuzzy like dreams tended to be, and they weren't quick. She could hear things in them; she knew what he was going to say though she didn't know his name, and she knew how cold his skin would be to touch when he had honey coloured eyes. To Bella they seemed to be more like memories than dreams, but she couldn't understand how she could have memories of a man, who never seemed to age, spanning a century. But the dreams weren't the issue right then because it was her first day at a new school, in the middle of the school year and she could not be more nervous if she tried.
Bella wasn't typically a shy or nervous person, however she simply hated being the centre of attention, and in a town where the population was 3246 she was bound to be noticed. She couldn't regret her decision though, she was moving for her mother, so she might be happy travelling with her new husband and not burdened by her teenage daughter.
So she moved to Forks, Washington to live with her father the police chief. She was excited, sort of, to see her dad, a man she barely saw once a year over summer and had never gotten to know as a daughter usually does her father. She was not however, excited for the weather. She was fair skinned by nature but she loved the sun. The way it warmed her skin and made the air thick. In Forks she would be lucky to see the sun a couple of weeks out of the year, their weather pattern was a little different to Arizona.
The car ride from the airport to Forks was quiet in Charlie's police cruiser. Neither knowing exactly what to say to the other. Bella didn't mind though, she didn't need the silence to be filled with false chatter; so her and her father had nothing to talk about, there was nothing new there. He helped her carry the bags up to her room, a room gone unchanged since she'd last slept in it nearly ten years before. It was definitely time for a makeover.
"I got you some new bed sheets." He muttered after placing her suitcase on the purple bed spread.
"Yeah, it's great." And that was that. He went downstairs, saying they'd go to the diner for dinner in a couple of hours before leaving her to settle in. She looked around the room, out the window to the grey cloud filled sky. So this was her life?
Unpacking didn't take long when you didn't bring a lot with you, so after less than an hour she was at a loss. What to do now? she thought, as she pulled her laptop out of the bag, waiting as it dialled up she heard a rumble. Thunder, typical. She rolled her eyes as she emailed her mother, letting her know she was okay and Charlie was great as was the town. Her mother didn't need to know she was miserable.
"Bells!" her father shouted to her from downstairs. She quickly finished the email before hopping up and sprinting down the stairs (or as fast as one can go when you're as clumsy as Bella) to see what Charlie wanted.
"Yeah?"
"Come see this." She frowned but followed.
Sitting in the driveway, surrounded by her father, a young Native American boy and who she presumed was his father in a wheelchair, who were all beaming, was an ancient burnt orange Chevrolet truck. It didn't look like it had been washed since it was new, and the bulbous hood looked like it would win a fight against any other vehicle; it was perfect.
"What do you think?"
She looked to her father in confusion, "It's great." But she didn't understand why she was being asked.
"Yeah? Well it's yours, a homecoming present." She couldn't quite tell behind his thick moustache, but she was pretty sure he was smirking, the cheeky old man.
"Dad, that's….wow…thanks so much." She was overcome really, it was such a lovely gesture, from a man she hadn't seen in nearly a year.
"It's good to have you back Bella, Charlie's been going on about it since he found out you'd be coming home." The old native in the wheelchair spoke. Bella recognised him, but just couldn't put a name to the face.
"You remember Billy Black?"
"Oh yeah, course. How've you been?"
"Still dancing." She laughed along with him, he had a pretty black sense of humour when it came to his accident.
The men got to talking, something about a game on TV but she didn't take much notice, she was left with the boy, he looked only just younger than her, he couldn't have been older than sixteen, if that.
"I'm Jacob." He said, as though it should mean something which, she was ashamed to say, it didn't, "You'd come over to play with my sisters?"
"Oh right. Rachel and Rebecca. I remember now." She didn't really.
Soon after the Blacks left, Charlie and Bella headed to the diner for a quiet meal. People greeted her, telling her they were glad she was finally home, she thanked them and didn't once say how Forks didn't feel like home. When Charlie brought up the fact that most nights he ate there, or just ordered in she felt duty bound to tell him she could cook, partly for him but mostly for her. No way was she going to be eating out every night.
The following day was her first day at the new school and for once she was hoping she'd have a quiet dreamless night before she went. She didn't think she could deal with heartache her first day.
~O~
The school was just as she imagined it would be. Small and not nearly as busy as her school back in Phoenix had been. After parking her incredibly loud truck she moved quickly to the office building, hoping it would simply be the first one she came to. The receptionist she found was a lovely middle aged lady named Mrs Cope, who knew exactly who she was after she first set foot in the office; they were expecting her.
"And this is the map of the school and your timetable. If you have any trouble don't hesitate to ask someone, every one here's real nice." Bella nodded and shoved the paper into her bag, before turning and heading out into the foray.
Her first classes passed in a blur, in English she sat next to a girl called Jessica who talked her ear off and seemed to decide to "take her under her wing". Straight off Bella could tell she was a gossip. But at least she now knew someone, and had someone to sit with in the cafeteria.
At lunch she was introduced to Jessica's friends. She didn't remember all the names, but was told the boy named Mike had biology with her next so he could show her the way. As if she could get lost in this tiny place.
She was picking at her food, thinking over the dream she'd had last night. He'd had green eyes, and had been down on one knee. It was a dream she'd never had before, but it was undeniable what was happening. He was asking her to marry him. She'd awoken crying again, sad that this wonderful man wasn't real and wasn't in fact asking her to marry him, which was such an absurd thing to be crying over really. He wasn't real, it was a dream, and she'd long ago given up on the idea of marriage after seeing her own parents dissolve.
However it was while she was thinking this over that the door to the cafeteria opened. She might not have noticed if it wasn't in her line of sight, though how she could have missed the entrance of such beautiful people she didn't know. For from the door twirled in a tiny girl, laughing and smiling, holding the hand of a blond boy, with a look of supreme concentration covering his face. But it wasn't just their pale skin and graceful natures that drew Bella in; she knew them. She'd seen them, in her dreams. How could they be here?
Following them was another couple, a beautiful blonde girl, though she was more woman than girl, wrapped in the arms of an equally beautiful large dark haired man. Again she knew them, she knew their pale skin and stoic expressions. But most of all she knew that close up their eyes would be honey coloured.
She was staring at the door, waiting. If they were here what was to say he wouldn't be. The man literally of her dreams. If his family were here, for she was sure they were his family, where was he?
"I see you've noticed the Cullens," Jessica whispered. The name sent chills down Bella's spine, she knew that name, she was sure of it. "That's Alice, Jasper, Rosalie and Emmet," She continued, not caring that Bella wasn't looking at her, "Not sure where Edward is though."
Bella jumped as though electrified, "Bella, are you okay?" Jessica asked, but she didn't hear. All she could hear, see and feel were images. Edward. That was his name. With his bronze hair and cold skin and honey coloured eyes. Though sometimes they were green. They were green when they first met, she realised. The first time they met he had green eyes, every time after that his eyes were gold. What had changed?
She remembered burning in an alley, burning in her bed, burning in a tent surrounded by these beautiful people. She remembered screaming, and searching, always searching. But what for?
Her head was pounding and her heart was thundering, what was going on? Who was this boy and how did she know him in so many different time frames?
Then they stopped, her breathing stopped, her heart skipped a beat and all thought paused. She couldn't hear Jessica asking her worried questions nor could she see the worried glances Alice was shooting her way, for her eyes had landed on something much more glorious.
There, framed in the doorway, was her dream. His hair messy and his body clad in black, a strict juxtaposition to his family who donned shades of alabaster and cream. And he was staring straight at her. A frown on his forehead and shock twisting his mouth. He didn't move but simply stood there, staring. Before long though he shook his head, seeming to mutter something under his breath and moved off to the table with the rest of his family.
Why had he broken the contact? she thought, as her breathing continued and she shrunk into her seat. Why was her heart breaking? Why did she suddenly feel so sick she could barely stand to look at the food before her? Why had he ignored the current flowing between them?
She was jolted from her thoughts when the bell signifying the end of lunch rang and she followed Mike quickly into the corridor, barely restraining the urge to look back for Edward.
"Are you okay, Bella? You look a little pale?" Mike was a nice boy she realised, if a little fresh faced. She nodded she was okay and passed quickly by him to hand her slip of attendance to the teacher.
"That's great Miss Swan, if you'd just take the seat next to Mr Cullen and we'll get started."
She bit her lip and closed her eyes as she turned, but as she opened them she realised she wasn't dreaming, and she hadn't misheard the teacher. The only empty seat in the room was next to Edward, and her heart was already doing cartwheels because of it. She couldn't stop the movement of her body as she walked steadily towards the back of the room where his desk was, staring transfixed into his eyes as he watched her every move.
"Hello." She murmured as she sat, observing how his hands clenched into fists on the desk.
"Hello." She gasped at his voice. A voice she heard in her thoughts every night, ever since she could remember, she'd heard that voice. Like velvet stroking her to sleep. She couldn't deny her dreams were real, that she had met this man before.
"Edward-" She stopped as he turned the full force of his gaze onto her. What was she to say, "Have we met in another life?" How crazy would that sound? She opened her mouth to speak, to ask him why she was feeling this way, what her dreams meant and why she felt this longing and a hole she'd never noticed closing with his mere presence?
She didn't speak though, and sighed sadly as he turned his frowning face back to the teacher who was just beginning the class. She wasn't getting any answers today.
They were silent throughout the rest of the lesson, each sticking to their own sides of the desk and ignoring the tension between them, and when the bell finally rang Bella was out of her seat and out of the room faster than a bullet from a gun. Of course when she looked at her timetable to find her last lesson of the day, she wished she'd taken her time. She had gym, the most dastardly and despicable lesson of all time when you're as balance challenged as Bella. She was the most uncoordinated person she knew, and she did not enjoy gym.
Two hours and a few bruised shins later, the whole class knew just how incompetent Bella was at football. Next week was badminton, though she really hoped the coach rethought the idea of giving her a racket. She shook her head as she half limped to her truck, she should have a note or something permanently excluding her from something so embarrassing.
Her bag was thrown onto the passenger seat and she was just about to hoist herself up into the truck when she was stopped by Alice Cullen tapping her shoulder. Up close she was even more beautiful than Bella remembered from her dreams. Her eyes were shining and she was tiny, surely she hadn't been so small before. Jasper was with her, his face pulled into one of confusion and suspicion. So he recognised her too?
"Yes Alice?" She asked before thinking. Her eyes widened, was she supposed to know their names? In a school so small surely everyone knew everyone else's names, and it's not as though they blended in. She calmed slightly, it would be perfectly fine for her to know her name.
"You're Isabella, Isabella Swan?" Alice asked, a pleading tone to her voice and Bella watched as Jasper flashed a look over his shoulder, she followed his gaze and found Edward almost being restrained by the large one, Emmett.
"Yeah but call me Bella." She replied, her eyes focused on Edward, it was as though they were magnets, naturally drawn to each other.
"Well it was nice meeting you." Alice replied, the largest smile over taking her face as she turned and left, Jasper in tow.
How strange, she thought, before hopping into her truck and driving home.
~O~
That night she dreamt. All her memories of Edward culminating into one.
They started at the beginning when he had green eyes and they played chess, or drank iced tea on her porch. But her favourite was when he snuck into her window and kissed her, truly kissed her. He wasn't held back by chaperones and being respectful in public. He kissed her with all the passion he had and she kissed him back. Then he asked her to marry him and then he was dying.
He was dying she remembered, the Spanish influenza. It had killed his parents and it was killing him. She remembered burning, running through dark, dirty streets and burning. Twisting and screaming in agony as she burned, but she needed to see him, to get to him, to find him. Then there was nothing.
The next memory was later, she could tell because he had honey coloured eyes and his skin was cold. He would tense when she touched him unexpectedly, but he was polite. She only had one memory of him like that, in his pale grey suit and dark green tie. They were walking, walking her home she realised. And they'd said goodbye on her front step. But that was it, because then there'd been pain, and itching and a burning deep inside her. But this time she couldn't move to find him. She couldn't move to do anything. Then darkness fell again.
The next set of memories rushed by, as though her brain was trying to make her see before the night was over and she would awaken. Flashes of music, of flares and bright colours. Of New York skylines and fields. Dancing and singing and smoking. Of him laughing with her, not eating. He didn't eat, she noticed that then. Why didn't he eat?
Then she'd burned and she'd known. She known as she'd burned in that tent, surrounded by them, as Edward cried for his father to do something. She'd recognised him - his father. He was the doctor who saw to Edward in the hospital. Where had it been? Chicago. Chicago was where it started.
After the darkness consumed her again but before she woke up she had a moment of clarity. She was Isabella Swan, who had died, so many times before and nearly each time had known this man named Edward Cullen, and at one point was going to marry him. But he had been dying, so how did he survive? And how did he still look the same?
Except he wasn't the same was he, she thought. He had changed, his skin was colder and paler, his eyes a different colour and if possible he was even more beautiful.
She needed to know what was going on. She needed to speak to Edward Cullen and find out exactly what was happening to her.
~O~
There was of course one flaw to her plan, she realised - she was terrified.
What if it was all a delusion; a farce created by her mind? What if she was going insane? She would make such a fool of herself, but wouldn't it be better if she knew?
For what if it wasn't a farce, what if it was real and she really was the same girl from Chicago, back when he had green eyes and soft features?
She found herself hysterical in the shower. Soaping up her hair and body as it seized and jolted with uncontrollable laughter till tears rolled down her face and she dissolved into scared sobs. Bella simply couldn't believe this was happening to her, that she may be the reincarnate of a girl who'd died so many times before, each time after meeting such a beautiful man she really knew nothing about.
Her life was so ordinary. She was a dreamer, who lived in fantasies of being swept off her feet by Prince Charming, who would take her away to a far off exotic land where they would live happily ever after. But for something extraordinary to actually happen to her, it was absurd. She was the plainest girl she knew, she had generic brown eyes and brown hair, she was average height and weight. There was nothing distinguishing about her, so why should she have such an other worldly back story?
After dressing she ran outside to her truck, without snagging anything to eat. She was way too nervous to be bothered by food. She still had no clue what she was going to say to him. She didn't know how to process what her brain was telling her was true. She lived in the real world, not one of fantasies and fairytales. She wasn't particularly religious either, she definitely didn't believe in reincarnation, and yet, wasn't that exactly what had happened to her?
So many questions and no time to answer them. She needed to talk to Edward and find out who he was, and how she knew him.
Before she really had any time to prepare for what was coming, she had arrived in the school parking lot, with absolutely no recollection of driving there, lost in her thoughts as she was. She was shaking and was pretty sure she was going to be violently sick, which would be so embarrassing. But she could see his car, though none of the Cullens were near it thankfully, and she just knew that somewhere in the building was Edward. And she still had no idea what she was going to say to him.
She walked numb through her classes, not hearing her teachers or Jessica chattering in her ear. At lunch she ate nothing, too transfixed thinking of what she was going to say to the beautiful man sitting only a few yards away at the formica table with his family. She couldn't understand how she knew them, but she had come to accept it. She'd simply realised it was 'one of those things'. However she needed to know if this was mutual, did he too know her? Or was it all in her own mind?
She got sick on the way to biology, petrified of facing him. She almost chickened out, but knew for the sake of her sanity (what was left of it) she needed answers, and the only way to get them would be to speak to Edward. They were silent as they sat next to each other at the worn desk, each very aware of the space between them and how little effort it would take to close the gap. She didn't understand how she was drawn to him, though she realised it probably had something to do with the fact she'd known him so long, even if she didn't remember it fully.
A minute before the bell signalling the end of the lesson was to ring, as everyone was packing away the slides they'd been using, Bella grasped what little courage she had and placed a shaking hand on Edwards frozen arm.
"Edward, I need to talk to you," she whispered, too afraid to raise her voice any louder, thankfully he heard her and nodded ever so slightly before leading the way out of the classroom. Bella trotted along quickly to keep up with his long strides through the corridors and around the side of the gym to a secluded spot on the edge of the tree line. Maybe she should have felt scared about being alone with a boy who she really didn't know, but she couldn't help feeling safe in Edwards presence, at least until he spoke.
"Well, what is it?" he asked tersely, arms folded defensively across his chest. His eyes, Bella noticed, which in her memories always looked so warm and welcoming, today looked like cold chips of jet. She wasn't afraid, simply uneasy.
"Do I know you?" she started, before realising how utterly ridiculous she sounded and qualifying, "I mean, before yesterday. Do I know you? I swear I do." Bella was almost begging him with her eyes to tell her the truth, to tell her she wasn't crazy, and these dreams weren't dreams at all, but memories. Of course her begging was all for naught.
"I'm sorry but I hadn't seen you before yesterday," she watched as his mouth tightened into a thin line, and his muscles tensed almost imperceptibly, but Bella was looking. She watched every move he made, almost without being able to help it. He was lying.
"You're lying," she called him out, frowning and shifting so she stood closer to him, invading his personal space. She wasn't about to let him get away with this, "I know you are. Why won't you tell me the truth, Edward Cullen? That you know me, and you know why." She was sure of it now, he knew something. It was in the slight crease in his forehead and the tensing of his jaw, as though he was trying to keep a secret inside. He knew about the memories, and why she had them.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, sorry." She almost said something, before he apologised, but seeing the utter helplessness on his face she realised maybe he was sorry, and surely she could forgive him.
Thinking about it, if her memories were true and this was the same boy from all those years ago, who had green eyes and got down on one knee, wouldn't he be hurting? If he'd been there every time she'd died? She couldn't imagine what he might have gone through, watching, what she supposed was, the love of his life dying over and over. So maybe she could cut him some slack, but she wouldn't let him off the hook completely.
She frowned before smiling, "Sorry, I must have been thinking of someone else."
"Must have," he muttered, before turning to leave, but how could she let this boy walk away?
"Wait, Edward!" She called, running to catch up where he'd stopped, "Seeing as we're already late, do you fancy ditching last period and getting some ice cream? It would be nice to get to know someone in this town."
He seemed to pause, observing the scuff marks on his shoes before he tilted his head to the side, peeking those eyes, that were slowly lightening to their normal honey tone, at her through the mess that was his hair, "I don't eat ice cream."
"So, you can take me for ice cream then. Come on Edward, be the courteous gentleman," she laughed as she started walking towards his silver car, but stopped when she realised he wasn't walking, but instead was looking at her with wide eyes and pursed lips. If she wasn't so confused it would have been comical.
She couldn't understand what had been said until she thought back and it clicked. She'd said that in one of her dreams, back when she wore flowered tops and bell bottom jeans. So he did remember.
"Come on," she prompted, deciding to leave the past for now. Right now she wanted to get to know this Edward, looking so much like he does in her dreams.
Finally he joined her and they walked quickly to the car, in case they got caught and jumped in before Edward tore the car out of the lot, off onto the highway.
"So where're we going?" Bella asked, relaxed with her feet propped onto the front console.
"Port Angeles, that way your Police Chief father won't know we're playing hooky." And for the first time he smiled, really smiled, flashing those brilliant white teeth her way, the skin around his eyes crinkling with joy, so she couldn't help but laugh with him. She felt so carefree, so liberated. Her eyes closed in contentment, letting the sounds of Led Zeppelin from the stereo wash over her. She was in heaven.
~O~
Edward on the other hand, was sure he'd found purgatory. How could she be here again? In this town, in this year, hell how did she end up in his car? He thought he was dreaming when he first saw those deep brown eyes staring at him in the cafeteria, but then she'd sat next to him in biology, and he knew he couldn't be dreaming. She was real and once again she was here, but how would it end this time?
It had been nearly unbearable to lie to her, when his every instinct was shouting at him to tell the truth, but what could he say to her? He could hardly tell her he was a vampire and had been in love with her for near ninety years, even if she did appear to have an inkling into what had gone on.
But getting involved with her again couldn't be good. Last time he had to watch her burn Carlisle had compared it to a vampires change, so surely it had something to do with him? However Edward drew a blank when thinking of how he could have influenced his poor Bella.
Eventually they reached the ice cream parlour, the occupants of the car silent the whole way. He'd snuck glances of Bella resting her head against the seat, her eyes closed, as she listened to the sounds from the stereo. She had looked so beautiful. They didn't speak again until they reached the counter and Edward bought her a large tub of raspberry ripple ice cream, and they'd found a table to sit at under the window.
"So why did you move here?" He asked, surprising her by speaking first.
"Well my Mom, Renee, remarried so I figured I'd move in with my Dad. Give them some time to be newlyweds you know?" Bella replied, before concentrating on her ice cream. She wasn't usually so open with someone she barely knew, but thinking about it, she did know him. It was all so confusing.
He laughed though, which in turn made her smile, "Yeah, I can understand that."
They talked more, though Bella noticed it was really only her talking and telling him about her life. He was an expert at avoidance, and she realised he'd done it before. It was like her dreams were repeating themselves, so would they all end the same? She desperately hoped not.
Before long Edward had to drive them back to school, his siblings would be waiting and surely they would have a ton of questions for him. He'd tried so hard to stop Alice from going to Bella yesterday, but Emmett had been against him and had held him back. What must Bella have thought of Alice? If she remembered him, could it be possible she remembered everyone else? How he wished he could read her mind.
They said goodbye at her truck and he watched in silence as she drove away. That thing was a death trap, and he was just a little more than wary of Bella driving such a dilapidated vehicle. Edward didn't speak on the car ride home and refused to engage his family in conversation when he got there, choosing instead to run quickly to his room and lock himself inside, a sure sign to everyone that he needed to be alone.
He had no clue of what to do. His whole being was screaming at him to go to her, to see her, if only from afar. To watch her and protect her, to make sure nothing happened to her. And ultimately to love her, and make her love him in return. But a small part of him, which was managing to overrule the majority, whispered to leave her be. It wouldn't be good for either of them to be involved again. But then what if she was going to die like before? He'd noticed finally the significance of the dates she died, always on the same date, always a month before her eighteenth birthday. So for this Bella that would give her five months. So shouldn't he cherish it? Relish in the time he got to spend with her, of that his whole self was in accordance.
So the next day he met her by her truck. She seemed shocked at first but quickly got over it. They swapped pleasantries and separated for their first lessons. When he saw her in the halls he couldn't help but smile at her, or talk to her, no matter who she was with. He simply gravitated towards her. In biology he was courteous and funny. They laughed together, which made him feel better than he had in a long time, it had been a while since he'd laughed so freely.
Then he did the same thing the next day, and the next, until it became routine, and Bella would meet him by his car. And she would greet him in the corridors. He realised that she wasn't simply letting the fact that they knew each other go, but he was happy she wasn't mentioning anything for the moment, and he hoped things would continue that way.
He enjoyed watching her, and rejoiced when she did something he expected. Like tripping over thin air, and talking with her hands. She was just as energetic as she'd always been, and even more curious and independent.
Bella too had loved getting to know Edward again. All the little nuances and habits that were so intrinsically him. How he would pinch the bridge of his nose when frustrated, or run his hand through his hair when worried or nervous, and his smile. How could she ever forget his smile. It was simply breathtaking.
She'd also become reacquainted with his family, mainly Alice, who would often say the strangest things to her, often to the annoyance of Edward. Like the day Bella turned up at school wearing a canary yellow top over her jeans, Alice had commented saying. "Oh Bella you look lovely. You always did suit bright colours," as though she'd known Bella previously. Which if Bella took her dreams to be real, she had. Everything was so jumbled up though, and so twisted in her mind she didn't know what was real anymore.
However she didn't just spend all her time with the Cullens, she also got to know some of the girls from her classes. Jessica simply never let go once she'd become attached it seemed, Bella was the shiny new toy that everyone wanted a piece of, so Jess saw it as a chance to boost her popularity, Bella could see right through her false smiles. However there was one girl that seemed lovely, Angela Weber was in her English and Spanish classes and was a God send. Like Bella she didn't need silence to be filled with inane chatter, and she never pried like Jessica. She was simply kind, and just the sort of person Bella needed to balance out the crazy in her life.
She also spent more time with Jacob down at the beach on the reservation. He showed her rock pools and where some of the older boys would jump off the cliffs into the stormy water below, Bella thought they were crazy to even contemplate doing it. She found she enjoyed being around Jacob, he was warm and incredibly friendly, he didn't make her confused. The only problem she found was that she knew he liked her as more than just a friend, and she knew she could never feel that way for him. How could she when she was in love with someone else.
It was after being in Forks a month, and spending most afternoons with Edward that she realised she loved him. She was shocked she could feel so strongly for someone after knowing them for such a short while, though she supposed she shouldn't be. She had loved him in all her memories, she was going to marry him in the beginning, so why shouldn't it be easy to fall back in love with someone?
He was still keeping something from her though, that much she knew. He knew her, he didn't need to tell her that. This was something else, something more shocking, and she had a feeling it would explain the change in her memories. At the beginning of June she was sick of the silence, of the one way conversations and this secret that she knew would tear them apart.
So she made a list. On it she wrote everything about him that she knew had changed. His eye colour; from green to gold. His skin temperature; he was incredibly cold all the time. His face structure; it had become sharper somehow. His overall appearance; he was somehow more beautiful. And he didn't eat. After she made her list she wracked her brain to think of some reason for all these changes, and why he could still look the same after all this time, but it was late and she was tired so she couldn't think. She decided that the next day she would show Edward her list, to show him that she knew something was different, because she was sick of the lies. And as she went to sleep she hoped he would finally tell her the truth.