A/N: I wrote this for the Writer's Anonymous contest for the months March and April 2008 ;-) It was very exciting :-D LOl. By the way, the title is supposed to be Hope for the Damned, but . . . I wasn't sure if that would be appropriate to post as the title. So I decided to just call it that inside the actual one-shot and use a more appropriate word on the outside ;-) So anyway, enjoy:-D

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of its characters. Stephanie Meyer does.

Hope for the Damned
By SpacePirateGirl

The sky was cloudy as always, of course, and no tint of sunlight reached through the gray overcast—the eerie feeling of the time before dawn was always present in Forks. There, Bella stood next to her giant, red truck. She stared down from the cliff toward the deep blue lake as if she was in deep thought.

A storm was brewing—the currents would surely be affected in the sea down below. Even raindrops were already falling from the sky. I tried to scream at her, demand what in the world she was thinking. But I was too late . . . Bella had already launched herself off the cliff into the dark sea.

With a noise that sounded closer to a splat than a splash, Bella fell through the water . . . She didn't resurface.

I waited for what seemed like eternity, but soon I felt the vision fading . . . I couldn't stay any longer, no matter my strong desire to wait. Bella just couldn't have died! I had to see her resurface! The thought never occurred to me that she would actually drown. But before I could make sense of this new danger, I found myself returned to reality.

"Alice? Alice!" exclaimed a familiar, worried voice. "It's okay, it's okay . . ."

Jasper, I realized . . . It was nearly impossible to see through my blurred eyes (though no tears would ever escape as long as I was a vampire), but I could recognize Jasper's voice and his warm arms wrapped around me. It was only then that I realized I was sobbing uncontrollably, and he was trying to comfort me.

Jasper seemed to realize that I was aware of my surroundings again. "Alice, what's wrong? What did you see?"

"Jasper," I gasped, clinging even tighter to him as if he was the only one keeping me standing—which wasn't far from the truth. I would've already fallen onto the floor if it weren't for him. "Where's Edward? Go get Edward!"

"Alice . . ." Emmett's usually excited voice was slow, careful. "Edward's not here . . . Remember?"

Oh, yeah. Right. That ignorant dumb-ass had abandoned us all when he had made the choice to leave Bella . . . I managed to remain happy on the surface for my family, but, deep down, I really missed them both so much! "Phone. Somebody get the phone!" I mumbled stupidly in between sobs. My eyes were still full of never-falling yet blinding tears. Somehow I heard quick steps, and then suddenly the requested phone was in my hands.

Instantly I dialed Edward's cell phone and prayed he would answer just this one time . . . just this one, damn time . . . He was my brother; he would know what to do.

The four, unanswered rings passed so quickly. I shut the phone off before I could begin cursing at him in one of his always unread messages.

"Alice . . . What's wrong?" Jasper asked again, sending waves of calm at me.

With Jasper's help, I regained my composure and saw Rosalie and Emmett, staring at me nervously. "B-Bella," I stuttered before breaking into another unintentional, dry sob. "She . . . jumped off a cliff . . . I think she's dead . . ."

Silence overtook the troubled room as I tried not to watch my family's broken expressions—or in Rosalie's case, indifference, which was just as heartbreaking. I was still cradled in Jasper's strong arms.

Rosalie finally shook her head. "We promised to Edward that we wouldn't interfere—"

"She'sdead, Rosalie! How can we possibly be interfering now?!" I shouted.

My shaky voice echoed in the , once again, silent room. What could I do?! I didn't know where Edward was, no matter how much I longed o see him again. And Bella was dead . . . But still, she was the only person—dead or alive-whom I could still find.

"I'm going back to Forks," I suddenly declared.

This time, Jasper protested. "What could you accomplish with that? Alice, please don't go back . . . There's nothing you can do. And besides, we promised."

"I know . . . But still . . . I won't just sit around nad do nothing," I argued as I gained the strength to grab the keys to my yellow Porsche . . . and, as always, felt the pain of the memory of my brother, Edward. He did buy me the car, after all, so that I would keep Bella safe from the werewolves . . .

Jasper must've felt my emotions, for he restrained me before I could leave. "I'm driving," he said simply.

I nodded—it didn't matter anymore . . . I couldn't really think clearly enough to drive anyway.

Except, one thought was still pounding in my head . . . One thing did matter—if Edward found out about Bella . . . "Wait," I breathed to Jasper, who was nearly dragging me along. I glanced back at Emmett and Rosalie, who still hadn't moved. "Don't tell Edward," I warned.

Rosalie glared. "Why not, Alice?" she hissed, a hint of jealousy in her tone. "Scared that he'll get mad at you?"

I felt too numb and helpless to think up a good retort. "Please, Rose. It's better if he doesn't know."

"You want us to lie to him?!"

"Rose," Emmett said, grinning sadly, "she does have a point. You know how Edward is . . ."

Jasper nodded in agreement. "It's not like he'll ask us for the truth anyway. He doesn't even answer our phone calls anymore . . ."

Thank God, Jasper knew how to control emotions . . . He managed to stop everyone from arguing. As we began to leave again, I saw a vengeful and envious look in Rosalie's eyes. She didn't agree; after I grew fond of Bella, she never really liked me much anymore, always found some way to argue over every little thing . . . I never could figure out why.

But I didn't care right then. As long as Edward refused to answer all phone calls, everything would be fine . . .

Except for Bella, who had probably already jumped by now.

As he drove me to the airport, Jasper remained silent. I was thankful really—he must've sensed my anxiety. I didn't think I would be able to carry on a conversation, despite my usual need to chatter endlessly . . .

I was surprised how quick the ride seemed. Before I even knew it, Jasper had already parked. I could see very clearly that he intended to come with me.

"Jasper," I started cautiously. "Stay here . . . I don't want Edward angry at both of us . . . And somebody has to make sure Rosalie doesn't call Edward."

He appeared relieved. I knew it had been a while since we both hunted, and going on an airplane full of people probably wasn't the best idea, especially for him. Plus, there was the fact that he didn't agree with any of this . . .

"Are you sure?" he still asked, overprotective as always.

"Yeah." I have a half-hearted smile. "I'll be fine." I felt more convincing to myself than to him, so, before he could argue, I jumped out of the car. "Thanks for driving, Jasper."

Then I ran, not stopping to see his face, only hoping that he would understand. I was never sure why I was running. Maybe I felt distracted . . . I knew very well that there was no possible way I could make it in time.

But, nevertheless, I still felt myself hoping. Hoping that Bella was somehow still alive; hoping that Rosalie would listen to me, justonce; hoping that Edward would come back home, wanting to see Bella again. I missed the way things used to be . . .

So I was hoping in general. Because hope was all any vampire had left.