A/N: I can't remember how many reviews said something along the lines of "Finally!" That cracked me up, big time. Anyway, I got a whole lot of reviews for last chapter, so thank you all, again. Sorry if I took long to update – I got a virus on my computer about halfway into the chapter, which I had not yet saved. I got pretty mad…couldn't write for a couple days. But I got over it.

Hope you like it. Read and review, folks.

-Lisa

A Different Decision

By: Twilighter

I pulled away with a great amount of reluctance, figuring that I would have to sooner or later. Judging from the experience, I decided that given the choice, I would gladly spend the majority of my time kissing Edward. Even though I had nothing to compare it to, there was no doubt in my mind that it was incredible. He was incredible.

Since I was still practically on top of him I moved to sit by his side instead, not wanting to intrude on his personal space. Not that he had seemed to care much a moment ago, but I was trying to be polite.

I sat on the ledge and let my feet hang into the open air; I had stopped being uncomfortable with heights several months ago. Edward stretched his legs out and leaned against the vertical part of the outlook, watching me. Every time I looked at him, a silly smile came to my face. I didn't even have the capacity to be embarrassed by my behavior; I was too far gone. And it helped that he was looking up at me in much the same way.

There were questions in his eyes, but he remained quiet, serenely tracing his fingers up and down my forearm, making me feel ticklish and jumpy, but in a good way. It was very odd – all of the earlier awkwardness was gone, like it had never existed in the first place. We were left in our own happy, comfortable little bubble.

"Don't you think it's strange?" I asked quietly. "I mean, I expected us to need time to adjust to this," I said, gesturing in between us.

"I would have though so too, now that you mention it," he said. I reached out my hand to comb my fingers through his hair. It was in a greater state of disarray than usual – possibly because my hands had found it while we were kissing.

"We don't, though…it's as if we skipped the transition period. It seems like it's been this way all along. But it feels…natural."

"Yes." He tilted his head. "Friends often make the best lovers."

I blinked at him. Lovers? I processed the word at arm's length. I would have to get used to that. I wondered how he meant it – merely as a title? I still had no idea just what he felt for me – or I for him. Not really.

"We already know each other so well," he continued. "There are no big, dark secrets between us, like…places we've been, people we've killed, and such."

I raised an eyebrow curiously. Usually he didn't mention those sorts of things so cavalierly. It seemed that nothing could darken his mood right now. I could relate – I was sure that cloud nine was no better than this.

Suddenly inspired, I grinned mischievously. "Are you sure about that, Edward?"

He smiled. "You've been keeping things from me?" he asked, pretending to be affronted.

"Stop being sarcastic," I snapped impishly. "I could be related to the Mafia, for all you know. You don't have any idea what you could be getting yourself into."

He snorted. "Yes. I'm sure that the Mafia had an outpost in Forks, of all places."

I rolled my eyes at him. "And how am I supposed to know if you've kept anything from me?"

"Other than being especially talented in knowing other people's secrets?"

"Why are you avoiding the question?" I shot back.

"Fine. Secrets. Like what?"

I folded my arms across my chest. "I don't know, take your pick. Government assassinations, money laundering, larceny…a secret girlfriend or two," I suggested, my intent blatantly obvious.

He laughed. "Is that what you're getting at?"

Indignant, I refused to look at him.

Edward sighed, still amused. "No government killings, though Alice does know who really assassinated Kennedy. She'll tell you, if you really want," he baited.

He reached up, presumably to toy with my hair. But I impatiently brushed his hand away. I heard the smile in his voice as he continued. "And yes, we have laundered money – but only our own, and for security reasons. It's really a hassle to transfer all of our assets each time we start over, you know," he informed me. "And whatever we've stolen was covertly repaid, so we're not really thieves in the traditional sense of the word."

He gently tilted my face back to look at him. I let him, this time, only slightly unwilling.

"However, I think anyone can testify that you're the first girl who's ever caught my eye," he said softly. "I told you, Bella. I've never felt this way before."

"Really?" I couldn't help but ask.

He nodded. "Yes. Ask Emmett – he delights in that fact, and frequently reminded me of it before you came along."

I frowned. "Emmett teased you because you were alone?" I asked, feeling defensive of him.

He tugged one of my hands down, pressing my knuckles to his lips, effortlessly replacing my smile once more. "Don't worry about it; before you, I was alone – but not lonely. There's a difference. I just laughed it off whenever he tried to bother me. I was arrogant enough to think that I wouldn't ever need anyone the way my family all loved their mates."

There was that word again.

I decided then that I needed to know what I was getting into before this went any further. I needed to know what he felt about me, what I was to him. We needed to go into this with our eyes open. All I knew was that I must have been special in some way, though I didn't know why – after all, I was the only one for him in over a hundred years.

I took a deep breath. "You think I'm pretty. You wrote me that song. You kissed me, Edward. Is this…I mean, is this like –" I was unable to properly phrase what I wanted to say.

His eyes bore into mine as my words drifted to a halt. "No," he whispered.

My face fell and I stiffened, but he was already speaking again. He lifted my chin with his fingertips. "Please, Bella. Let me finish." His thumb lightly crossed my lips, effectively silencing me. "No, I don't think you're pretty – I think you're beautiful. You inspired me to write that song, like nothing else ever has. And that kiss…I don't want it to be the last, not even close. I feel so selfish with you. I've taken your choices, your life…and now I'm asking for your love, too?"

"You love me?"

"I – yes, I do." That was what I needed to hear, but now I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do with that knowledge.

My lips were parted, ready to speak, as I searched for something to say. I was frozen. Did I love him? Sure, nearly my every thought was fixated on him. There was no doubt in my mind that I was obsessed with him, to an unhealthy level. But love? I didn't know how to label what I felt for him.

I could tell he was waiting, not impatiently, for me to gather my thoughts. He let me take my time, drawing me into another kiss, his arms not letting me pull back when he broke away. "All this time I've walked this earth, thinking I was complete in and of myself, not realizing that I was really searching for you," he whispered. "And now that I have you, I wonder how I ever managed to live without you. You are my life, now."

For all he made me feel alive, I could barely breathe.

"Like I said, you're the first girl to catch my eye. The only girl who will ever catch my eye," he swore to me.

The way he said it, it was so final. I could feel it too, in my bones. We were made like stone – we rarely changed, but when we did, it was permanent. Like this. That permanence, that irrevocable feeling stronger than anything I'd ever felt…I realized that it couldn't be anything else but love.

I was a fool. How can I not have realized this sooner?

"We're all fools in love," I whispered against his lips. The cliché line fit perfectly to describe what I felt. I kissed him again with all the fervor of my epiphany. "I love you, Edward."

"And I love you," he murmured back. He shifted us so that I was lying on my back, on top of him. His arms circled me, and I relaxed into his embrace. The warmth I was feeling had nothing to do with the bright sunrise, which cast us in a mixture of bright red-orange and pale yellow. We watched the stars fade.

I sensed that we would have to leave, soon. We couldn't stay here forever, as appealing as the idea seemed.

He sensed it too, shifting behind me. "I suppose it's time to go?"

"Yeah," I said, though my tone implied the opposite. I mourned that this had to end so soon. I didn't want to let go of this free, peaceful feeling just yet.

He was just as unwilling as I was. "Don't worry. We can take our time, love."

I kissed him again…and again. I felt greedy – I couldn't get enough. "Okay. I'll hold you to that."

He kept his word.

We walked – walked – the miles home. The distance seemed to stretch itself longer under our feet. It was no small trek, taking us most of the day to cross it. This was good; I was sure that neither of us wanted to endure what was waiting for us at the house. I cringed at the thought of every 'I told you so,' that would be directed our way, verbal or otherwise. I felt doubly bad for Edward, knowing their thoughts.

I didn't let the prospect bother me, thoroughly enjoying the time we had left. I twirled, lighthearted, skipping in circles around him as we walked, conveniently forgetting that I couldn't dance. He watched and laughed with me, sometimes spinning me like a dance partner. We talked about little things, simply appreciating each other's company. He paused every now and then, capturing my body to hold me still as he kissed me deeply.

I basked in the warm rush I felt each time he did this, thoroughly enjoying the complete lack of boundaries we had up around each other.

Gradually the terrain grew much more familiar. We were nearly at the house, maybe a mile away. He took a hold of my wrists, pulling me close, and I thought he meant to kiss me again. But instead, he spoke.

"Don't be too upset with them, Bella." He could hear their minds from here, I remembered. "They've been waiting for this for a long time, apparently." He leaned forward, resting his cheek in the juncture of my neck. "It seems that we were the only ones who didn't see this coming."

I shivered at the feeling of his breath, his lips on my throat.

I laughed shakily. "And it still seems so hard to believe. You're a dream, I'm sure."

"A nightmare," he corrected, his mouth moving against my skin with his words.

I heartily disagreed. "Never. But this still seems so impossible." His mouth moved further up, to the corner of my jaw, below my ear. My eyes closed of their own volition.

"Mmm," he breathed. "And why is that?" he asked, his voice husky.

He had no right being able to make me feel this way. Half-incoherent, I replied, "Because you love me."

He pulled away. I almost groaned at the loss of contact. "What are you doing?" I whined. "Come back."

"No," he said sternly. "First tell me why it is so impossible to believe that I'm in love with you." I sighed. Why was he making a big deal out of nothing?

"It's just that you're better than any dream I could have imagined. I don't know what I did to deserve someone like you. You're amazing," I told him. He could never be told enough. He was perfect.

"I think you're amazing, too. I also think that the way you regard me is ludicrous," he added.

"Seriously?" I asked. "You're really quite dense, for someone who reads minds." He was like the ideal guy, in so many ways. But he was better than that – he was also flawed, and real, which made me love him more.

"If you say so," he said dryly.

"Really, Edward. Any girl would bless her luck a thousand times over if they could have you." He shook hid head. "For someone to not appreciate you…she'd have to be a fool not to see how remarkable you are. Either that or blind and deaf. Maybe not even then, actually."

"The girls you speak of are those who never look any deeper than face value. If they knew me truly they'd run away, screaming as they go."

I tsked at him. "I'd like to think that I know you very well, and I never ran away from you."

He smirked. "It's not my fault you have bizarre reactions to everything. You hardly ever act in your best interests. But still – you never answered me."

"What do you mean?"

"Why do you find it so impossible that I love you? We've gone over my insecurities. Now let's go over yours."

I grimaced at him. "Now?" I complained.

"You said that you don't know what you did to deserve me."

"Yes, I did say that," I acknowledged, not knowing where he was going with it.

"Why would you think you had to anything? Just being you is enough," he informed me seriously.

I scoffed.

He decided to take another direction. "Did you know that, at first, I was resistant to Alice's theories about your gift? She'd been formulating it for a while before she told you all, and I'd had my doubts. Do you know why?"

I told him I didn't.

"I thought that if you could feel other people's hidden secrets, you could surely feel mine, obvious not only in my thoughts, but in the way I acted around you….But you never said anything. I didn't know if you kept silent out of kindness or out of ignorance. You really didn't know?" he asked, unsure.

"No. I told you: it seemed – still seems impossible. I never thought you could be interested in someone like me."

His eyes saddened. "Maybe your own misguided perceptions about yourself biased you against what you could have realized about me. Maybe you wouldn't let yourself believe that I loved you," he said, his voice gentle, but somehow troubled at the same time.

I ran my thumbs across his lips, trying to smooth away the frown. Why did it matter to him? We were together now, and that was all that counted.

"I've felt this way for a while, you know. I've felt it since nearly the beginning."

We had that in common, at least. "I did too."

He asked one more question. "Have I ever said something to make you believe I think you're anything less than perfect?"

"No."

"Exactly. Nothing. And you told me you trusted me – I think you're perfect, and that's all that matters," he said, with a note of finality in his voice.

I smiled. "I think I can deal with that." Anything to get him away from this topic. Especially since it wasn't very important.

"Good. Now let's go face the firing squad. I'm sure they're anxious to see us."

I ruffled his hair. "Like you'd have to guess."

He grinned crookedly. "I suppose not. Let's go."

We were ambushed as soon as we opened the door.

"Welcome home, dear ones!" Tanya sang from the top of the stairwell, her voice echoing around the entrance hall.

Jasper, much more dignified, stood near the stairwell, a buffer to ward off the brunt of the attack. "Alice couldn't keep it to herself," he said apologetically. He smiled at us, subtly easing our nerves. I looked at him gratefully.

"We weren't wrong to expect this, then," I said, smiling wryly up at Edward.

Kate appeared at my elbow. "Come," she said, tugging on me. "You simply must tell me everything!"

"Tell us," Tanya corrected. I saw a flash of light blonde hair behind her. "We want to know how Edward went about wooing you. Was he charming? Or did he act like an ungainly teenage boy?" she laughed.

Edward threw her a scathing look, tightening his arm around my waist.

"Really, Bella! I imagine he was very gallant about it. But Tanya's convinced he was a bumbling, nervous wreck. And Alice won't tell us a thing." There was that, at least, to be grateful for.

"Maybe because it's private, Kate," I rebuked.

"Nothing is private in this house, lovely Bella," Tanya corrected. "Not with all the mind-reading and clairvoyance and all the other voodoo that's floating around in here."

I saw Esme peek in from the arch that led to the living room. She was the typical, nervous mother hen, wanting desperately to know what was going on, but loath to do anything to upset the situation. Carlisle appeared at her shoulder, nodding at us before smiling and pulling his wife back. "They need some room to breathe," I heard him whisper.

"Let's go hide," Edward urged.

All too willing, I disengaged myself from Kate and started to drag him towards the staircase. "Bye, Kate," I said, ignoring her disappointed face.

"I could make you!" she called after me.

"But you won't," I said back.

Before we made much progress, a streak of black hair and white skin met us at the foot of the steps. "Bella!" she sang. She threw her arms around me. Holding me tight, she whispered in my ear. "I guess that now you're really part of the family. Not that I ever doubted it to begin with."

I grinned into her spiky black hair, returning her hug. "Thanks, Alice."

Edward pulled Alice away by the scruff of her neck, like a wayward puppy. "Goodbye, sister dear," he said, prodding her gently aside as he fled up the stairs with me in tow.

"Don't worry, Bella. We'll talk later. You, too, Edward!" she sang. I heard her and Katrina chattering excitedly, not loud enough to make out the words.

"They act like we've gone and eloped, for God's sake," I giggled, taking the stairs two at a time to keep up with him. "They really are pushing their bounds as third-party observers." We reached the hall.

"I agree. Yet I find it hard to summon up any unhappiness with their behavior… I'm far too content," he murmured as he nuzzled my neck. I had to admit, I liked this new, silly and affectionate side of Edward – I was all the more besotted by him.

"This isn't fair," Irina muttered angrily as we passed her and Tanya.

Tanya hushed her. "Be happy for them, Iri," she scolded.

"I am happy for them," she whined, pouting. "I just don't like to lose," she said, accentuating the last word with a stomp of her foot.

"You'll get over it."

I smiled into Edward's shoulder as we fled down the corridor to his room. I knew she wasn't really upset – the sisters never formed strong emotional attachments to anyone, besides anything platonic. I'm sure their collective romantic history was summed up by serial one night stands. What really disappointed her was that she'd lost the chase; they had a simpler, more epicurean outlook on life, and the thrill of the hunt was what they all lived for. She was just less adept than her sisters in recognizing a lost cause.

Or maybe not so lost, come to think of it.

Because Edward was finally mine.