Author Notes:

This chapter and the next one will explain a lot of things. I have left a lot of open clues. They will be longer than usual because I need to get a lot in before I can continue on. Another thing is that Bella and Edward are slightly OOC. Not majorly. They are still our Bella and Edward. Its just some of their decisions will be different, than in the series and it is AU.

I had trouble deciding where to cut this, and since I wanted to update now I cut the chapter after BPOV. I have half the next chapter written, so it should be coming tomorrow.

Thank you soo much for the alerts, its really encouraging to check my email and see all the alerts. The reviews have been… few and far between… but extra thanks to those have reviewed. It is very much appreciated.

Bella

Opening my eyes, I found myself staring at the ceiling. Again. Now what the HELL was with Forks and their funky coloured ceilings? Unless Charlie had somehow been assigned to painting the ceilings in every building…

Dizziness rippled down my body as I tried to lift my head from the pillow. The pounding that I could only vaguely remember had been masked, by a hard shot of morphine. My forehead felt strangely tight, like someone had tried to stretch my skin tighter over my skull. Shuddering at that slightly gruesome thought, I reached my hand up to touch the gauze plastered to my face.

"Well don't you look stunning" A musical voice called from the door. Dr Carlisle's face appeared seconds later above mine. Seconds later, Alice's bright face appeared on his shoulder, winking mischievously at me.

"Morning sunshine" She laughed sweetly as she winked at me again.

"Alice, I can't treat her with you hanging off me like a monkey. Where is Jasper?" Carlisle mentioned playfully. Jasper was Alice's old and dangerous boyfriend, whom I had never met. Something I was glad of. I had spent many hours being pulled around shopping centres looking for the latest fashions; I cringed at the thought of spending time with her and her boyfriend. The word obsessive came to mind. Ugh.

"Alice tells me you took a nice spill in your bathroom yesterday. Can you tell me what hurts the most?" His eyes watched my expression as his fingers gently prodded my forehead.

"Everything" I breathed slowly as the pain grew under his gentle fingertips. He pulled his hands away to flick through the mound of paper work stuck on my clipboard. "But mostly my head" I offered, trying to be helpful. He moved to the foot of the bed to angle my bed to a more upright position.

"Bella, you have a fairly serious concussion which explains the pain, as well as 7stictches to close the laceration to your forehead. You'll need to stay with us for another day or so to confirm there are no more serious injuries. I'll be back later to check on you" Carlisle smiled at me, before giving Alice a warning look as he headed out the door and down the hall. I liked Carlisle, he was less grumpy than Charlie.

Alice settled down beside me, sitting cross legged on the baby blue hospital sheets. At least they were a pretty colour, unlike the ceiling. Despite not being able to remember much of the previous day, or exactly how I ended up with a concussion or 7 stitches in my head, I still had fleeting memories of Edward being in my bathroom while I had been semi conscious on the floor. I had decided these weren't a product of my imagination. Alice was my best friend, and our last conversation had proved that she had been keeping a lot from me. Best friends deserved the truth.

"So since you ruined your last decent top with blood, I was thinking that we could drive down to Olympia when you get out…"

"Stop Alice" Giving her what Alice often described as a 'death stare'. "I want answers Alice. I'm not as intelligent as you are, but I'm not stupid. And you know more than you're telling me" Alice stared at me for a long moment, before simply closing her eyes and rested her head in her hands. I waited. She had done this before; it usually meant she was thinking.

"Alice… The truth isn't hard. It's just a bunch of simple facts mashed together that you don't tell everyone. But you do tell your best friend." I waited. She didn't move. Propping myself on my elbows, I felt the dizziness invade once more but I ignored it.

"Alice…" Nothing. From this angle it did not even look like she was breathing.

"Alice I'm sorry but I just want to know…" Nothing.

After a long moment, she shuddered and lifted her head from her hands. Relief washed through me as I saw she wasn't upset. Instead worry played across her face, it surprised me. Nothing ever worried Alice. She was always so optimistic and sure of herself and her decisions. Jumping up from the bed she headed for the door.

"No Alice wait…" but she simply shook her head and shut the door. Her expression didn't change as she pulled a chair up next to my bed and curled herself into it.

"Bella…" Taking a deep breath, she stared into my eyes, like she was trying to read my soul. It was mesmerising, I couldn't drag my eyes away. "The truth isn't always easy. There is a lot about me and my family that you don't know. That nobody knows. I'll be honest and say that a lot of it you were never intended to know. But Edward has complicated that. I have never had a friend like you, apart from Jasper and my adopted brothers and sisters. But there is something very important you have to understand… some things you are better off not knowing and your knowledge of any of this cannot be repeated to anyone. Understood?" Her eyes pleading for the correct answer.

My mouth was dry, and unexpected tears welled in my eyes, so I simply nodded. I was confused. Alice's words didn't seem to connect with what I really wanted to know. Why had Edward been in my bathroom, and where he had disappeared to? Leaving me unconscious and in need of some serious medical attention.

"Edward turned up at your house shortly after you went to take a shower" She took a deep breath before continuing. Edward was there? He really was. A smile played across my face.

"He heard you hit your head, he heard you scream, so he went to make sure you were okay. Like a gentlemen" Strangely enough, I knew this wasn't going to end with a happily ever after. Alice looked like she wanted to curl herself into a ball and sleep.

"You didn't answer the door. So he knocked it down, worried for your safety. But there was blood everywhere, you were semi-conscious. Edward doesn't deal with blood very well, and he thought it would be in your best interest for him to leave. So he did. He shouldn't have Bella, and he regrets it. Its more complicated than you can imagine. Please don't hold it against him" She was pleading with me to FORGIVE him? I opened my mouth to speak, I wasn't entirely sure what to say but she shook her head and continued.

"Bella, my family and I, aren't like any other family in Forks. Not because we were all generously adopted by Carlisle. We are different. Just like everyone at school whispers." She took my hand, and for the first time I recognised how cold her skin was. In Forks, with the cosy combination of zero sunlight and constant rain, everybody's fingertips were cold. But even in this heated hospital room, she was cold.

"I know you have noticed things about me, and those members of my family that you have met, that are different from everyone else" Alice shook her head impatiently. Alice has never been afraid to speak her mind, and she never said the wrong thing. A trait that I wish I could box on sell. Yet now she seemed like she was forcing each word out with an immense amount of effort.

"Alice… Just say it" My heart thumped erratically in my chest, as Alice continued to keep her eyes locked on mine. Her eyes pleading, for me to drop it? My understanding? My forgiveness?

"I'm… We're not human, Bella" I froze. I couldn't breathe. I waited. The tears welling behind my eyes. Everyone was human. But although Alice had never told me everything, I knew she cared enough to never lie to me.

"We're…" She broke off, her tiny body shuddering "We're..V" The door flew open and smashed against the wall, as Edward flew into the room stopping inches from my bed. I dropped my eyes to my hands, a blush rising from my neck to colour my cheeks in a deep red. He placed one finger under my chin, gently coaxing my face up to meet his gaze. His fingertips, like Alice's were ice cold. Just like his lips had been. Unexpected anger raged through me. But I was frozen, waiting for someone to finish that sentence. And he did.

"Bella, I'm a vampire"