Scene 1, Take 2

Chapter Five

Scene 1, Take 2

Chapter Five

Edward POV

I couldn't decide if the sun being out for three days was good or bad. On one hand, we couldn't go to school, which meant we couldn't know where Bella was and if she'd left. On the other hand, it gave us three free days to try and find out as much as was possible about her.

On Monday, Carlisle called in on the school office, and asked for any information they had on Isabella Swan. Surprisingly, they were more than willing to hand it over. As we suspected, most of it was fake. Her cover story was that her parents were dead and that she had gotten permission from the government to live alone underaged. I'll say this, her files were very convincing. We did get a phone number and an address. We drove to the address as soon as we saw it, and all we found was a lonely mailbox on a huge turf. We assumed that she'd given this address only for the purpose of mail. The phone number however was real. Alice confirmed that for us, though she said that if we'd call Bella would be furious, and probably leave.

Alice and Jasper had taken to search up any records of her from the past fifteen years. She was very good. There was nothing about her anywhere. Esme and Carlisle asked around about her. They found out that she'd been living here for a year now, and that she normally kept to herself.
Some people told them that a lot of times she would seem like she's in pain. They said that out of the blue she would hunch over, wrapping her arms around herself as if she was holding herself together.

It seemed that all we found led us to learning just about how deep we'd hurt her. Something told me that it was far worse than what we knew. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know.

Emmett and Rose scanned the area, covering miles and miles; searching for her scent. They found faded traces of it all over town, strongest at the school. But it never lead anywhere. They found no traces of her in the forest either. She must have been keeping herself inside, letting the rain wash away her scent.

Again, she was surprisingly good at covering her tracks. I wondered who taught her how to do it.

Thursday came around and we didn't have much. We hoped that we'd see her at school, though we knew chances were she'd run off the second she saw us.

We waited in the school lot, waiting to see if she'd arrive. One of the few pieces of information we'd been able to gather was that she had been parking her car in the same spot for over a year now. Also, sitting in the same chair, at the same table in the cafeteria. From my side of things, it seemed people were scared of her.

We arrived early, because we had no idea when she usually came. Time flew by as we waited anxiously for her to show up. We were just about to give up when a white Volkswagen parked in her spot. She stepped out, looking more graceful than ever, and headed towards the school. She didn't even glance our way.

As much as that pained me, she decided to stay. She wasn't running away. She was still here. That was what mattered.

My siblings and I walked into the school building, not sure what to do now. We decided to just go on with our day, and talk to Bella if we got the chance.

I arrived early to each class, waiting to see if she'd share any one of my classes with me. To my great disappointment, I didn't see her until lunch.

I caught her on the way to the cafeteria, and quickly jogged to her side.
"Bella" I breathed. The concept of her still being alive was just unfathomable to me. It shocked me to be able to say her name without thinking of her death. She wasn't dead. She was standing right next to me.
She glanced up at me, and I could tell she was trying very hard to make herself look unbothered, even bored. I didn't know what to say next.
We'd continued walking this entire time, and were now nearing the doors to the cafeteria. My siblings waited for me there, and were shocked to see Bella at my side.
I just stared at her like a creep. I tried to convey my emotions but I had no idea how.
I saw in her eyes how my eyes grew wide and soft, and I hoped she could see the love I felt for her pouring out of me.
"I can't do this" she mouthed, then quickly entered the cafeteria without me. Again, I could tell she had made her voice sound uninterested and distant.