Branson101

PG

Edward/Bella

Twilight

A/N:

This is just an alternate way that New Moon could have gone.

"He Will Come Home"

He'll come back. I know that he loves me. Everyone thinks that I am crazy, but I'm not, I'm really not. I just know in my heart that ours is a love that will never die. Sigh. Never die, just like him. Just like me when he changes me.

He is just scared. Carlisle told me that he is just worried about damning my soul. Doesn't he realize that he is my soul? He is what gives me life and one day, I hope that he will be the one that takes my mortal life away and gives me my immortal one.

He will come back and I will be waiting. I expected him to come home on Thanksgiving. I sat up almost the whole night, but he did not show. What is he waiting for? He knows that I love him and he knows that he loves me.

But, it was Thanksgiving night sitting up in the dark that gave me my ideas of how I truly wanted to welcome him home. I put the first part together that weekend. I drove up to Port Angeles to shop for some new nightgowns. Alice would be so proud of me. They are lacy and sexy without being too revealing or trampy. But they will get his attention, that's for sure. The second part of his welcome home was stashed under my bed. I am so glad that he cannot read my mind because I need this to be a complete surprise.

So here we are on Christmas Eve. Charlie is working tonight and tomorrow morning. It means more to his deputies with small children to be home for that part of the holidays. We will celebrate when he gets home in the afternoon.

The nightgown that I have chosen for tonight is red satin with a white fur trim. It's cliché I know, but I couldn't resist. I made sure that the window was unlocked and open just a crack. But with his perfect vision I know that he will see it and know what it means. I sigh again, it's almost midnight so I reached down and picked up my book from the bed. I am reading "A Midsummer's Night Dream" one more time.

I have barely read two pages when I can feel his presence. I know he is out there somewhere. I look over at the clock; it's midnight now, Christmas. I look over at the window and he's there. He is sitting at the window sill, looking at me lying on my bed, on top of the covers. He is immobile as he stares at me in my nightgown with my hair pulled up into a messy bun. He doesn't say anything. He just watches me.

"It's about time you came home." I finally say to him. He just looks at me sheepishly and gives me that crooked grin that I love and have missed so much.

"I'm sorry, love." He says but he still hasn't moved from the window sill.

"Are you going to just sit over there all night?" He gets up and is slowly walking toward me.

"Sorry, I needed a moment to acclimate myself to your scent again. Don't worry though; I hunted on my way over." He reached the bed and sat down beside me. He reached out and ran his finger down the strap of my nightgown. "This is new." He says quietly.

"Yes. I have a whole collection of nightgowns like this." He looked at me for a second before closing his eyes. I sat patiently and when he opened his eyes he looked right into my eyes and said, "I hope that I get to see them."

"Perhaps, if you're a good boy you will." He smiled again, laying down facing me and reaching out to me again. This time he put his hand on my face. "You are so beautiful. I am so sorry. I was stupid to think that I could walk away from you and never see you again; never getting to hold you again. Can you ever forgive me?"

"I forgave you a long time ago. I know that you love me. I knew that you would return to me. I have something for you. Close your eyes, it's a surprise." He obeyed me and closed his eyes. "No peeking." I leaned over and reached under the bed and grabbed the wooden handle. I swung it hard and fast before he could hear it and got him right across the head with my new Louisville Slugger. He jumped up in surprise crying in pain.

"I would have used my hand but I would have only hurt myself that way. I may have forgiven you, but I am still angry with you. You lied to me. You ran from me out of fear. You may think that you are some great liar, but you cannot lie to me, Edward Cullen. You tried to hurt me, to betray my trust. You made a major life decision, about MY life, without my input. You will NEVER do that again. You were scared and you ran, and I let you. You had to see what I already knew. Neither of us can truly exist without the other." He stood there, rubbing his face where I got him with the bat, looking completely remorseful and repentant.

I got up and walked over to him. I moved his hand from his face and ran my hand over his cheek. I looked at him and smiled; "I feel much better now that I got that out of my system." I grabbed his hand and started to lead him back to my bed.

He hesitated, "You aren't going to hit me again, are you?" I shook my head no and he followed me, lying down beside me and kissing me passionately.

After a few minutes, we pulled away and just laid there in silence for awhile. "Now that we have that settled, there is only one more thing that we need to discuss."

"What's that love?"

"When are you going to change me?" I asked.

"Soon," he replied, "Very, very soon if you insist on wearing nightgowns like this." He said pulling me closer to him and holding me tight. I knew then, just as I knew all along, that he was never going to let me go again.