A month passed us by, so fast that it seemed unreal. Time passes in a weird way when you're a vampire. After a week of recovery for everyone while we bummed off of Tanya and lived in her house, we were all fixed up.

Carlisle had been tortured badly by Sulpicia when in captivity. He'd taken the longest to recoup, suffering bad burns on most of his body and bad breaks along his bones and skin. Esme was constantly at his side.

I spoke to him often and he explained a lot of the mate connection to me. Well, after Alice finally let me up so we could go hunting…

He told me in a quiet voice as he lay on a bed in another room of the house about it. Esme never let him talk for more than ten minutes at a time before she shooed me out and barked at him to rest. He always rolled his eyes good naturedly about it though.

"The connections of vampires is one I don't even fully understand, Bella. What I do hypothesize is that we are connected by our very cells. Each Vampriosia cell molds to its specific host. I think that each of these cells creates a certain strain of something, a protein or a ribosome or DNA strand, whatever, and that strain is linked to only one other strain in another. It's just a theory, but it's the best I've come up with so far…"

It made sense to me, sort of. I didn't really dwell on it. Whatever brought me and Alice together so effortlessly didn't need to be understood.

It was there, it was real, and as Esme said once, we didn't even need it to be drawn to each other. We just fit together, personality wise and physically wise.

I also talked to Esme about everything that had happened.

"Don't you hate Sulpicia for everything she did to you, Esme?" I asked one day and she just smiled in a way that told me she was wiser than I could ever hope to be at the moment.

"I don't hate her, Bella. She used to be the love of my life. Her past is why she was the way she was; it doesn't excuse her, but I will always feel for her in my own way. I hate who she became, not who she really was deep down beneath all the crazy and the hurt. I know you can never see it that way because she did the unforgivable and went for your mate. I understand that. I'd be upset if you didn't feel that way. But…It's different for me. Try and find some sympathy in your heart, if you can, Bella. For me?"

She was right. I still hated Sulpicia, even dead and gone.

I could barely draw up any sympathy for her, even though her past was terrible and a reasonable…Reason…For why she was the way she was.

But Esme, she was right. She went for Alice, and I could never forgive that.

I think a lot of it had to do with my instincts. Speaking of which…

Over the course of our stay with Tanya, my behavioral habits came back into the light now that there was nothing else going on to distract from them.

To put it bluntly, I was a downright brat sometimes.

But honestly, what am I supposed to do about my instincts? They're damn near impossible to control!

Oh, and Alice put a stop to Tanya's flirting real quick. We may have been staying at her house, but Alice made it very clear who I belonged to. This did nothing to soothe my instincts as seeing Alice lay down the law one day to Tanya and claim me in a ferocious screaming match that almost ended in a fist fight did wonders for my very active libido.

It ended with something along the lines of Tanya sneering, "A girl of your stature should really find someone her own size because Bella is way too much for you to handle." She gave me a sultry look at this and I squirmed uncomfortably.

And Alice snapping back, "And whores like you should really learn to mix with the desperate people who will take them. Unlike my mate, who needs first class attention." And she'd waggled the fingers of her right hand to taunt Tanya, who snarled back.

Rosalie had diffused the situation by barking that the sexual tension this was causing me would only inevitably end up in a weird lesbian threesome that she didn't want to hear, so would they both please shut up?

Which of course led to Emmett saying he would love to hear that, Alice glaring at her, Tanya scoffing and storming out of the room, Esme sniggering and me blushing with all the blood I still had left in my body.

Good ol' Rosalie…

My newborn self was very impulsive and possessive, and this mix led to a concoction that infuriated all that it touched. I knew my vampire got control of me too easily, made me react too quickly or get angry too often. I was rebellious towards Esme, short tempered with Rosalie, irritable with the boys, and Alice?

Alice wouldn't take any of my shit.

I finally understood what Esme meant when she said she'd help me with my immaturity and newborn instincts.

But this led to something neither of us had truly ever addressed in our relationship together…

Before I was a vampire, I was very much a docile person. I may have been sarcastic in my head, but I liked being kind to people and wanted to make them happy. I liked when Alice took control of me, crawled on top of me with her sexy, dominant self.

When I turned into a vampire, that all changed.

I wanted to be on top. I fought her for it when we kissed, when we had sex, and my god, there was a lot of kissing and having sex during those seven days.

Mm…

Whoa, focus, Bella.

I never wanted to be beneath her. It brought out something primal in me; I wanted to be the one on top. Sometimes I would out wrestle the pixie and take control, but usually she kept me pinned and we ended up having angry sex with lots of growling and frustration on both our parts as I never really, truly submitted.

Our lovemaking, essentially, had become a war.

And as good as that war felt, as amazing as that war felt, it was also tiring and left both of our instincts on constant edge.

Even during normal day activities, my instincts called for me to be the dominant one. I hated being told what to do, by Esme or Rose or Alice or anyone who had the gall to request something of me.

It was ridiculous, and I had no control over it. I was not a dominant person, everyone knew that. I was Bella, shy and naive and innocent, not this raging hormonal vampire with a desperate need to be in absolute Alpha female dominance of everything.

The thing is…That doesn't work with Mary Alice Brandon.

She may be short. She may have a petite frame.

But she is anything but submissive.

Alice's personality took up a whole room. She oozed suave confidence and sometimes, yeah, a little arrogance. Not that it wasn't rightly deserved. But still, she had always been the top in our relationship. With vampires, it's much more common to see an established top and bottom role. Alice was always the one that took that dominant role and it worked for us. We liked it that way.

But my instincts prevented that.

And one day, she had enough of my newborn need to take her dominance from her.

We were hunting when it happened. Or supposed to be, according to Alice. I didn't really get why she wanted to as we'd both fed only a day or two before. She'd just muttered something about spending more time together and I'd agreed happily to her wishes.

I was walking ahead of her through the woods about a mile from Tanya's house, trying to pick up the scent of a deer, when she shoved me.

Like, both hands, full out, shoved me from behind.

I nearly face planted, but thankfully, my grace had finally kicked in and I only stumbled forward a few steps before whirling in shock, my eyes wide and a growl rolling out of my chest.

What was her freaking problem?

"Alice, what the hell-"

I cut myself off as I caught her expression. Her head was tilted down slightly, so that her amber eyes were piercing me, challenging me. She was all bowed up with her shoulders back and her hands out to the side, claws extended.

My vampire recognized it instantly. I felt my instincts flare up hard.

She's challenging me for dominance. Take control. Dominate her!

I growled once, a warning in the back of my throat.

So this was her plan to settle our fighting? A full out, physical test to see who would be on top?

Like when we'd been sneaking onto a plane so long ago, she met me with one of her own feral rumbles. I was dropping to a crouch before I realized it, preparing for what was about to happen. My human side melted away as my instincts took control.

"You want control so badly, Bella? The big, bad, scary newborn wants to be on top? You think you're good enough to top me? Then come and fucking do it!" Alice hissed at me.

Dear god, if I had been human, the sound of her husky, demanding voice would have made me faint in arousal.

Slickened instantly and feeling the challenge strike something primal deep inside me, I bared my fangs at her and bowed up too.

And then I lunged.

We crashed together with a clap of thunder, hissing and snarling.

Don't mistake it for domestic violence; that's not how it works with vampires. We weren't trying to hurt each other as Alice sent me sprawling and we went rolling through the grass. We were just fighting for control, fighting to get the other to back down.

Because vampires are still animals in their own way…

Alice was deceivingly strong. I may have had all these fancy powers, but powers don't come into play with your mate. It's all about brute, physical strength and experience, and honestly, I didn't really have that without lethal provocation and I definitely had less experience than her.

Not that I would ever use my powers on her, never. That was the point; it wasn't about hurting each other, but beating each other in this power play.

We were wrestling on the ground, kicking up leaves and dirt as I tried to roll on top of her and pin her down, my vampire calling for dominance despite how much the true me didn't really want it.

It was no good.

She was too good.

Alice's legs wrapped around my waist and pulled, hard. I was yanked down her body with a surprised yelp, and then I felt her surge up and suddenly she was mounted on my waist.

I snarled up at her, baring my teeth and was met with a slap that wasn't meant to hurt me, only stun me. It did its job as Alice caught hold of my flailing arms and slammed my wrists into the ground next to my head.

Well.

Fuck.

There was no getting out of her iron grip. How was she so strong?

I wriggled and struggled and snapped my fangs at her and bucked but nothing would unseat her. I could not get out from beneath her for the life of me, despite my best efforts.

"That's it, baby. Let it all out," Alice sneered down on me, her eyes and her hair wild, looking unbelievably sexy and completely in-freakin'-control of the situation despite her look. She rode my rocking waist like a cowgirl in a rodeo and I couldn't shake her. Her fangs glinted at me and my instincts roared defiantly.

In my vampiric state, I threw all my power into my hips and bucked as hard as I could, unsettling her hips and her grip on my wrists enough so that I could spin in some haphazard, last ditch attempt to get out from under her and keep fighting for dominance, but Alice was already on me again.

Jesus, she was unrelenting. It still sends shivers through my spine thinking about it.

Her hands snapped closed around my wrists again and they were wrenched around my back and pinned to the lower half of it. I felt her lovely little body flatten mine out on the ground and her hips dug into my ass as I was pinned, wholly to the earthy floor.

I whined helplessly, feeling the desperation flood me. I writhed, but my legs were sprawled out between hers and useless, and my arms were held in her death grip, going nowhere.

"Mm, tell me all about it, Bells," she groaned into my ear. I continued squirming, crying out in frustration as she effortlessly owned me.

It was done, whether my newborn instincts would accept it or not. I struggled fruitlessly for another minute as Alice held me down and slowly raked her fangs along the tender skin where my neck met my shoulder.

I keened vulnerably and just like that, I was submitted.

Alice had finally wrangled control of my newborn need to top her.

I felt myself go limp beneath her as she growled into my ear and breathed her sweet breath into the back of my neck.

Her body just felt so good covering mine…What could I even do to fight it anymore? I didn't want to fight her anymore.

"That's it, Bella. Good girl, such a good girl," Alice whispered patronizingly into my ear. I moaned wantonly, aroused beyond belief by our wrestling and finally being able to just give in to her.

It all just felt so good when Alice took control…

"Hmm, is that it, Bella? Was that all you could do? I expected more of a fight from you after all your newborn swagger behavior…" Alice giggled coquettishly, still speaking directly to my eardrum and letting her seductive, sexy voice rebound off of it until I was dizzy with need.

I was still too vamped out to speak. I lay there, panting into the ground with the cool dirt pressed against my cheek.

Slowly, her grip on my wrists loosened and she pushed my arms out above my head, straightening them until our fingers were laced tightly, her palms to the backs of my hands. It was another sign of her complete control as I didn't fight her at all, let her move me in whatever way she saw fit.

"God, I always did love it when you let go like this, when you just let me love you," Alice murmured against my cheek as she resettled herself against my back, her soft, small breasts pressing between my shoulder blades and making me long for her, making me yearn.

"Poor, poor Bella, all worn out and helpless…Fuck, you smell good," Alice suddenly groaned and I felt her buck her hips, felt the rugged scratch of her jean shorts through my thin cotton t-shirt.

I felt the promise in the slow movement of her hips that sensually rolled against the base of my spine. I had given into her, and she was going to reward me with pleasure.

Why did this have to be so animalistic and good?

And why did she always have to talk when we did this?

It never changed. Her voice was my aphrodisiac, pulling at my insides and drawing me up higher and higher until it was the only thing I could hang on to.

And using this whole power play between us struck that instinctive cord inside me, made it twice as effective.

"Did you really think…That you could top me, Bella? No, sweetheart, no, that's not how this works…" Alice hissed against the corner of my mouth. I moaned again, needy as she kissed me roughly, over my shoulder and straining for my lips. Her tongue darted into my mouth, teased at my sanity as I remained pliant to her hunger.

She pulled away and I whined for more, my mouth tingling with our venom. She only giggled against my lips.

"I'm on top, Bella. Not sometimes, not occasionally, always. You will always be my sweet, shy Bella. Being a vampire doesn't change you as a person. You are still that needy little bottom, aren't you, baby? Don't worry; I'll take care of you. I always do…" Alice promised as her lips trailed back over my shoulder and her hands unlaced from mine.

It was true, all true. I wasn't meant for the life of a top; I liked having her hold me and take care of me and give me everything she had before taking whatever I had left to give for her own pleasure. We had always had that kind of sexual dynamic, and although being changed had thrown it off, she was resetting it now.

It was driving me insane with need.

Her hands trailed a blazing, tingling path all the way down until she gripped my left shoulder tightly in her left hand and hissed "Keep them there."

I obeyed without question.

It was the hottest thing ever as she completely owned me, whispered filthy things to me and pushed my shirt up over my back, even though it was pinned down on my front side. I arched at an awkward angle and cried out sharply as her nails raked along my back, the pain only driving me into an even slicker state than before. I fisted leaves and mewled as she crooned in my ear, murmuring insincere apologies and rubbing the smooth muscles of my back.

I was going to die. Alice was going to kill me and I was going to love every second of it.

"Shh, shh, Bells…Mm, I know what you want. Do you want me to do it, Bella? Do you want me to give you what you want?" Alice laughed teasingly to me and kissed my neck wetly as I clung to whatever sanity I had left.

Whatever came out of my mouth was something completely inelegant and garbled, a desperate plea.

Charming, I'm sure.

"What was that? Use your words…I don't care if you're vamped out right now, I want to hear your voice, Bella," Alice growled commandingly to me.

Fucking…

She actually grabbed a fistful of my hair in her hand and yanked it back, pulling it at the roots. None came out but the resulting sting was even better than the sting of her nails on my back.

Goddamn.

Just…Goddamn.

I mewled again, a pathetic kitten, just as she'd named me. I felt her teeth sink into the column of my throat as she lurched over my right shoulder to get at it.

I think I orgasmed a little, right then. She had never been so rough and demanding of me, but it was all that I could do to get more of it. It was freeing, exhilarating, amazing how good it all felt as I squeezed my thighs together, struggling to soothe the aches of pleasure shooting through my sex.

Vampire sex was more than I could have ever hoped for.

"Please," I got out through a weak breath, trying to find the ability to talk through my haze of need.

Alice kept my head pulled back and her lips close to mine.

"Please what, Bella?" she purred and I almost lost it.

"Please, Alice, please, touch me. Touch me, you said you'd take care of me, you promised. You wanted control of me and you got it so just take me, Alice, please," I gasped out, finally recalling my human senses because I knew if I didn't, she'd never give me any sort of relief.

Is it sad if that is the dirtiest response she's ever gotten from me?

…Yes.

But whatever, it worked, definitely worked for Alice.

She growled roughly and kissed me swiftly before pulling back across my shoulder until she had sunk her hips down beneath mine. I felt her hands latch onto my elbows and jerk my arms back until she held them there at my sides. She released one, only briefly to reach down and rip my shorts and soaking underwear off, exposing me to the air before she had my arm clamped back in her palm.

And then, like a cool breeze on a hot Summer's day, I felt her strong, toned thigh pushing up between mine.

I cried out like the newborn I was as her naked skin met mine. With her thigh wedged snugly against me, Alice began to rock into me. I felt her jean shorts rubbing roughly along the back of my own thigh as she pulled it between hers.

"You want it, Bella? Then take it," Alice hissed into my ear and we both moaned as she rutted into me, like an absolute animal.

"So fucking-fuck, so dirty, Bella, so wet. You love this, humping like animals in a forest, don't you?"

Stop talking, stop talking, stop talking!

I couldn't take the sound of her voice. She always said the things that would embarrass me and therefore gratify me the most.

I was gripped in nothing but the stroke of her silky cool skin along my sex, the way I slid effortlessly down her leg and coated her in my pleasure.

So good, so good, so good…

I bucked against her, moaning and mewing and praising her, deities, whatever left my mouth. I dug my nails into the earth as we rocked, forward and back, the rhythm driving me mad. She moved her hips like a fluid dancer, driving me up higher as her pale thigh slid over me, again and again, my clit gliding along her length. She moved as if she could actually fuck me, and the thought practically sent me over the edge as her sex pressed against me, too, damp, even through the fabric of her shorts.

She had me mounted as if I were her bitch in heat.

She kept pushing me higher and higher and I had no idea how she could still speak coherently anymore because I was already out of my mind.

The things this girl does to me…

"Say my name, Bella," Alice breathed against my neck. Her voice was strained, the sound of bliss so close to her heart. I loved the way she sounded when she was close…

"Say it!" she growled out and I rutted against her leg, shamelessly.

"Al-Alice-Alice, I-oh fuck, Alice!"

Her wish was my command. Her name flew from my lips in a never ending mantra as our movements reached a fever pitch. She was hitting me in the best spot, perfectly, riding me hard into the earth.

I was right there.

"Alice, Alice, Alice!" I cried as the intense pleasure flooded me. I quaked beneath her, trapping her thigh in a vice like grip. I squeezed her with everything I had and felt a flash of pain as she bit into my shoulder and moaned her own ecstasy around it.

The bliss of her pheromones flooding my brain let loose the endorphins in my head. I flooded her leg as I seized, whimpering through the unstoppable spasms claiming my most intimate muscles.

It was the dirtiest sex we'd ever had as we came to a slow stop a minute later, the push and pull of our hips slowing as we rode it all out.

When it was all said and done, we were totally silent except for our needless panting. She rolled me over gently and her sweet lips touched mine immediately. We kissed languidly as she settled down on top of me, sighing into my mouth as I swooned.

Well.

That took care of that.

"Was that too much?" Alice inquired as soon as we broke apart and she looked down at me uncertainly. "Did I hurt you, Bella? Did I make you uncomfortable? I didn't mean to go so overboard-"

"No, that was awesome. Really, really awesome. We should do that again some time. Like…In the next five minutes. When I can feel my legs again," I replied like a dork, babbling up at her as I continued to bask in my post-orgasm afterglow.

How could she even think I hadn't enjoyed that?

Alice smirked down at me, eyebrow quirking.

"I never knew how kinky you were, Ms. Swan. Why didn't you tell me this before? We could have been having so much more fun," Alice purred and I blushed lightly.

"I'm not, I mean…I'm sorry I've been such a brat lately," I quickly changed the subject, completely mortified.

I was not…Kinky.

I wasn't!

…Shut up.

Alice only raised both of her eyebrows, gave me a knowing look, and then let it go, thankfully.

So. Damn. Embarrassing.

"It's fine, Bella. I'd be surprised if you weren't. You're still a baby as far as vampires go. I'm sorry for pushing you. And…Well, starting our little wrestling match. I didn't know how else to get your Alpha need under control…" Alice apologized and I smiled fondly up at her.

"It's fine. We both know I've never been much of a top," I confessed and she smirked than damn smirk at me again.

"Clearly," was all she said before leaning down to kiss me again.

The kiss was soft and sweet and tender like our kisses always were after our lovemaking. It made me purr deep in my healed chest as she rested her elbows next to my head and gently explored my mouth.

"I love you," she whispered to me when we parted after a long, deep kiss.

My heart soared as it had always done when she said this to me. I would never get over this girl. I would never get over how completely and utterly in love I was with Alice Cullen. She was so, so amazing to me.

As I stared up into her darkened golden eyes and watched her short, messy hair fall over her lovely jaw, I knew that everything had been worth it.

All the pain, all the suffering and heart ache I'd gone through, all the shit with Sulpicia and everything else we'd been through was worth it.

Because I had Alice, everything was worth it. I would never trade her for anything, wouldn't go back and change a thing.

She was my mate, my lover, my everything.

"Alice," I said her name quietly; afraid to break the trance we were in. Her eyes twinkled down at me.

"Hmm?"

"You once promised me you'd give me the whole galaxy and all the stars in it; that you would prove to me that no star would ever make you burn as brightly as I do…" I murmured her words back to her, watched them echo across her face as she furrowed her brow before lighting up cutely in recognition.

"Yeah…"

"You did it," I chuckled, suddenly teary eyed. "You did it, Alice. I believe you. I'm so fucking glad I gave you that chance. I will never regret anything that happened between us, or how we got here because I have you, and it was so worth it, Alice, so worth it…"

Alice's face softened impossibly, her eyes filling almost immediately.

It was melodramatic and we both knew it by the way we giggled at each other and she lowered her forehead to mine, our eyes close, intimate.

"I want to do the same for you. I want you to feel as amazing as you have made me feel, Alice. I want you to feel what I feel so badly that it hurts. I need you to know that I love you as much as you love me and more," I admitted, trying to convey the weight of my heart to her even though I'd never been good at verbalizing my love.

Was there even a way to let someone know about a feeling like this? This undying feeling that consumed all of me?

Alice's eyes screwed shut and she released a shaky breath that puffed across my lips. When they opened again, my breath caught and my stomach flipped at how brightly golden they seemed to be.

"God, Bella, you don't know how you make me feel, do you? I have loved you for so long and it only gets stronger and stronger because you are so, so…Amazing. What you just said is everything I've ever hoped for, what I need, Bella. And I know it, I know it by the way you're looking at me right now. Don't ever doubt that I love you, and I will never, ever doubt that you love me. Everything you've gone through proves it to me, the same as what I've been through proves it to you. I love you, Bella, I love you…"

My heart was gone. It lifted right out of my chest and touched to hers, cliché as it sounds. I was a part of Alice and she was a part of me and it was so perfect that I just wanted to die right there with that feeling pulsing through me.

So perfect that I wanted to die. Wow. I sound like those preppy teen girls in commercials always do when they talk about boys.

Ugh, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

I loved Alice, loved her beyond measure…

We kissed again for a long time. Whispered sweet nothings to each other as the sun warmed us gently through the tree canopy.

We only moved when it started to go down.

"What am I going to do about clothes?" I sighed and pulled leaves out of my hair as we both sat up.

Having hot, dirty sex is only fun before you have to start peeling twigs out of your hair.

Alice grinned at me, sheepish. I raised my eyebrow and she only giggled.

"Um…I kind of expected one of us or both of us to need a change of clothes, so I kind of stashed some in that tree over there yesterday. And some blankets," Alice admitted, pointing to a nearby oak tree and I laughed at her audacity.

Of course she knew we would need a change of clothes. She didn't need to see the future to predict what was going to happen when we finally had to work out our problems.

"Blankets?" I inquired curiously and she only looked at me as she stood and offered her hand.

I grabbed it and she pulled me up, dotting a playful kiss to my cheek and slapping my naked ass as I turned towards the tree.

I turned as red as a vampire can go and she snorted adorably as I glared at her. I melted immediately and rolled my eyes at her.

I will never get used to that. I don't think I ever want to get used to that.

"What are the blankets for?" I asked again.

"What do you think?" Alice grinned as she pulled me towards the tree, floating in her effortless gait.

"Why, Ms. Brandon, is this your way of asking me out on a date?" I laughed as she pulled a large bag out from behind the tree she'd indicated.

She looked adorable as she ruffled her already wild sex hair up and pursed her lips as if in deep thought.

"Only if you're saying yes," she finally replied and I giggled like a school girl with a crush.

With Alice, I pretty much am.

"Yes. A thousand times yes," I nodded as she pulled out a fresh pair of underwear for me and some green sweatpants of hers.

Alice beamed at me as I started pulling them on and she traded her own ripped shirt for one of my old black hoodies.

I was stricken dumb for a second at the sight of her breasts bouncing out before they were stolen from my view again.

Nope.

Never gonna get over her. Never ever. Ever.

I didn't even look away when she met my eyes with that coquettish eyebrow raised up again.

"Now if only I'd brought some towels. My leg is dripping," Alice hummed and I choked on my own venom, blushing as much as I could.

"Shut up! Whose fault is that?" I balked and she laughed her lovely laugh before throwing the duffel bag over her shoulder and wrapping her arm around my waist, bumping our hips as she did so.

"Come on, wild thing. I have somewhere I want to take you. Oh, wait, I already did that," she said with an air of realization and I scowled.

Some things never change, and that includes her ability to always, always beat me in a battle of words, especially when we're flirting.

I rolled my eyes at her as she led me deeper into the forest. We were laughing and talking merrily together as she held me close and I had never felt so at peace with the world. We were together and we were safe, able to finally just be with each other.

There were questions I still had, but they all disappeared as Alice led me through a break in the trees and the sound of roaring water met my ears. Tanya's house wasn't far from the mountains, but I hadn't expected to be met with a waterfall and the smell of wet rock and grass.

We had reached the mountains and Alice smiled at me awestruck face as I took in the massive falling water and the clear, clean pool it fell in to. She pulled me gently towards a flat area of grass a little bit away from the trees and then set about the task of pulling out the blankets.

I was still staring when she pulled me down on the blue blanket and kissed me tenderly on the lips as she wrapped her arm around my waist again.

"This is…Beautiful," I breathed out and turned my eyes to her as she laid her head over mine. She peered down on me as the sky darkened, shade by shade and minute by minute. It would be dusk soon.

She looked as serene as I felt.

I snuggled close to her, brushed my nose along her neck as she kissed the top of my head.

"Only beautiful places for beautiful people," she replied easily and I fell that much more in love with her as I wrapped my arms around her and leaned into her, turning my gaze back to the glorious cascade of water roaring down.

I couldn't believe it had all worked out like this.

Things weren't perfect, but they were damn close. I couldn't go back to Forks, but I knew I could still contact my father. I still had the option of reuniting with my mother, and though I would miss my friends, I knew I was right where I needed to be.

I could go anywhere in the world with Alice, do anything with Alice, just be with Alice, for the first time in…Well, ever.

I was, absolutely, irrevocably, in love with her.

And for the first time in a long time, I felt as if the equilibrium of my life had been restored. I had Alice, I had peace, I had everything I needed, no matter what it took to get there.

And as I really sat there and thought about it while Alice gushed over the fireflies that were lighting up the night slowly and coming down on us and rejoiced in her happiness and the way we were starting to shimmer together in the moonlight, it was a pretty epic journey.

Like hey, I met a girl and she was a vampire. We saved the world, sorta, and took down an evil mastermind and then had hot, mind blowing sex.

You jealous?

I chose not to dwell on the fact that all of this was started by a piece of chewing gum…