HE LEFT ME!!

just in time

Edward

"No!" I roared, struggling fruitlessly against Emmett and Jasper. I had willingly left Bella's side at Alice's request, retreating into the woods to wait for the worst to come. Alice had swore that Bella would not be harmed and that everything would be fine so long as I left the house. I should have noticed the cloudiness of her mind, her attempt to block certain thoughts from me. When I pushed through the trees, I saw her waiting, flanked by Emmett and Jasper.

She smiled apologetically, "I saw that you were going to be difficult."

She was right.

It all happened so quickly that, even with my speed and heightened senses, I could hardly keep up. Bella's sobbing screams reached me, terrible and broken. My body responded, instinctively lurching forward, back toward the house. I slammed into Alice who, having predicted my reaction, stood in my way. Jasper and Emmett grabbed my arms and pulled me back.

"No!" I screamed, fighting against my captors, "He's going to hurt her, isn't he?" My eyes flashed in anger as they flickered to Alice's face, "You took me out of there knowing he'd hurt her! You're going to let him-"

A white hand flew out and smacked across my cheek. My head whipped to the side from the force of the blow, my eyes widening in shock. I turned, slowly, to stare at Alice. Her breathing was heavy – her normally cheerful face twisted into an anger that I had not seen before.

"How dare you," she breathed. I stopped struggling, incapable of anything but shock. "I care about Bella, Edward! You, of all people, should know that! I could never,would ever, do anything to hurt her!"

"Alice-"

"I am doing this for her, Edward," Alice urged on, "I'm not worried about you. I know they're just humans. I know that you can handle them. They would arrest you and you would just break out. Then we'd have to run and hide. You'll just make it harder to protect her!"

"Alice-" I tried again, but she was not done.

"Yet you think I want to hurt her! You don't understand that this is the best. It hurts now, it's hard now... but it's for the best," she was rambling now. There was amusement in my eyes, I knew it.

"Alice," I spoke louder now, a chuckle in my voice, "I was going to apologize. I overreacted – you're right. I was wrong to say that to you."

"Edward," her voice was once again a twinkling of bells, "I know you were going to apologize. I also know that you'll overreact in thirty seconds from now. I'm trying to prevent that."

"Is it working?"

"No," she answered, her voice frustrated.

I began to realize how much this entire situation was taking out of Alice. She was normally such a happy person. It was a very rare occasion in which she shouted or even became angry. She had done both of those in the past five minutes. She was as upset as the rest of us and this time she wasn't able to hide it. Bella's pain had taken its toll on her.

"I'll try to stay calm." It was a hopeful promise that I knew I would break. After her words, I was on edge, waiting for those thirty seconds to pass. I tensed, my muscles tightening as I readied my escape. Alice stared at me expectantly. It wouldn't be long now.

"HIT ME!" I heard Bella's voice shriek from the house. All thoughts left my mind and my body, once again, tried to move of its own accord. Jasper and Emmett were nearly ripped to the ground as I tried to forcibly pull myself from their cage of arms. I was unsuccessful, snarling and ripping viciously as I tried to get towards the screams of my love's voice.