Fiction Title: Second Best

Chapter Title: The Shock of the Century

Author: Krissy

"Isabella Swan..." Jacob sank down onto one knee, making my heart race. I immediately knew what he was doing and I was already choking up. Well done Bella, I congratulated myself.

"Isabella Swan, you are my life. I've loved you since the first time I met you, and I don't know what I would do without you. You're my best friend, the one I want to be with forever. Will you marry me?" He looked up at me, holding my hand in his.

I opened my mouth to answer, and nothing came out. I couldn't make myself respond. Instead, I nodded once, hoping he saw.

He did, because the next thing I knew, he swept me up in his arms, and was hugging me tight.

"Jake, need to breathe," I coughed, laughing.

"Sorry Bells," He commented, letting me down.

I looked deep into his eyes and saw the happiness. I leaned up and kissed him softly, shyly.

Then I woke up. It was very cold in our bedroom. It always was. I snuggled closed to his side and sighed happily.

Jacob stirred and wrapped his arms tight around me, kissing the top of my head. "Good morning," he said quietly. "How'd you sleep?"

I smiled to myself. "I slept very well, you?" I asked, forcing myself out of bed and going across the room to shut the window. We left it open every night so that I wouldn't die of heat while we were sleeping.

"Me as well," Jacob smiled, getting up and following me into the kitchen like a puppy. He went into the fridge and grabbed the carton of eggs. "You want some help before I go check in with the guys?" he asked me, wrapping his arms around me from behind.

"Nope, it's all good," I said happily, turning my head and kissing his cheek then spinning out of his embrace to grab that bread.

Jake smiled and headed out the front door, ditching clothes as he did so. As soon as I was alone, the pain came back. I thought I had been rid of it, at least a little bit when I started hanging out with Jake. But as soon as he proposed, it started again. Every time I was alone, the pain was every bit as bad as it was the day he left me.

Jake and I had been married for about a year now. It's been about four since he left me. I haven't seen any of the Cullen's since Alice came to visit me, all those years ago when she thought I had committed suicide. Last I heard, he had heard about that. Tried to kill himself, but joined the Volturi instead. Okay, so I was talking to Alice once or twice, but not since Jacob proposed. I couldn't handle that.

The hole in the middle of my chest burned, to intense to ignore. So I sat in a kitchen chair, thinking about Jacob, trying to drive him from my mind. After maybe ten minutes, I was able to function again, so I continued on with breakfast, placing it on the table just as Jake came sprinting in the door.

We enjoyed our nice quiet breakfast; Jake didn't seem to want to talk. But that was okay, because I didn't really either. I didn't know what I would say if we were talking. It wasn't unusual for Jake and me to have awkward conversations after he had left. I think he knew what happened to me whenever he left me alone for a little while, and he tried to avoid doing so. It caused more than a few fights about my independence. But still I was happy. Not as happy as I would have been with him, but happy enough. I love Jake almost more than anything.

While I was cleaning up, Jake looked tense and fidgety at the table. I didn't understand why, so as soon as the dishes were done, I sat on his lap, giggling when he jumped. "Sorry love; didn't mean to startle you," I whispered, kissing his cheek.

"Don't worry about it," Jacob whispered, his arms automatically snaking around my waist.

I waited for him to say something else, but he remained silent, his eyes empty and distracted. I didn't understand, but my first guess what that he was probably tired of my continuous pining over a vampire that I had lost four years ago. I wouldn't blame him, because honestly, I was tired of it too.

"Are you alright Jake?" I asked, twisting in his lap and placing my hand on the side of his face.

Jake nodded carefully, not looking from the spot on the floor he was staring at, his lips pressed in a tight line. He didn't make any verbal response, nor did he look at me.

I pecked him on the cheek quickly, and decided that he probably needed some alone time. "I have errands to run okay? I'll be back in a few hours, I have my phone," I said, then kissed his lips once, getting up and going into our bedroom to get dressed.

I wandered around the supermarket, a metal wired basket hung over one arm, my list in my other hand. I was almost done shopping, but I still had a few other places to stop on my way home. I had my mp3 playing softly, using only one earphone, in case somebody tried to talk to me, but I wasn't really paying attention.

Until I heard a voice that made me freeze in my tracks. I stopped so suddenly that the person pushing a cart behind me bumped into me, knocking me over. I fell flat on my stomach, on top of my basket.

I scrambled to my feet, red in the face, my ribs throbbing. I looked at the person behind me, nodding acceptance as he mumbled apology. Awhile ago, Mike would have gone nuts over knocking me down, insistent on helping me out, and then probably asking me out. But since Jacob and I started dating, I think he got the picture that I don't like him. He had barely acknowledged my existence since Jacob and I got married.

I didn't have time to care about that right now; I busied myself in searching for the owner of that voice. That velvety voice that made my heart go wild. I wasn't even positive that I'd heard it, it could have been one of my messed up hallucinations that I had occasionally.

When I didn't see any of the six people I had been looking for, I felt oddly discouraged. I had gotten excited for a few minutes. I wanted to see them; any of them at all would have sufficed. Even Rosalie would have been better than the disappointment I was experiencing now.

Shaking my head I continued on to the check out counter, deciding the rest of my errands could wait until tomorrow. All I wanted right now was to go home.