Twilight: blood & brimstone

Bella was different now.

She still didn't realize it, but I did.

She walked slower. Thought longer.

Laughed less.

Edward's absence weighed on her like a phantom limb—something she expected to feel but never did. She kept waiting for him to reappear, for him to remind her why she had been so sure of him.

But the longer he stayed gone, the less she remembered what that certainty felt like.

And the more she turned to me.

Forks High – Parking Lot

I was already leaning against her truck when she stepped outside.

She wasn't surprised anymore.

Didn't flinch.

Didn't hesitate.

She just sighed, tightening her jacket around herself as the cold wind curled through the parking lot.

I smirked. "You always look disappointed when I'm the one waiting for you."

She rolled her eyes. "That's not true."

I raised a brow. "Isn't it?"

She hesitated. Just for a second.

Then— "No."

I chuckled. "Good answer."

She sighed, rubbing a hand over her face. "Did you need something?"

I tilted my head. "Did you?"

Her jaw clenched.

Because she had been thinking about me.

I knew she had.

She just didn't want to admit it yet.

I exhaled, my tone turning softer. "You're waiting for something that's not coming, Isabella."

She swallowed, her fingers twitching slightly. "You don't know that."

I stepped closer, just enough for the space between us to shift.

"I do."

She looked up at me then, her brown eyes searching mine, looking for something she didn't even know how to name.

"You don't understand," she whispered.

I smirked. "Oh, but I do."

I leaned in slightly, lowering my voice. "You're waiting for him to prove you right. Waiting for him to come back and make all of this make sense again."

She inhaled shakily.

I tilted my head. "But he's not coming back, is he?"

She bit her lip, looking away.

Because deep down, some part of her—the part she tried to ignore—was starting to believe me.

I let the silence stretch between us, let the weight of my words sink in.

Then, I stepped back, smirking.

"Let me take you home."

She blinked, surprised. "What?"

I gestured to the truck. "You're tired. You've barely slept. Let me drive."

She hesitated.

Because she knew what saying yes meant.

It wasn't just a ride home.

It was a step. A small one, but a step nonetheless.

And then, slowly—

She handed me the keys.

I grinned. "Smart girl."

She rolled her eyes, but there was no real annoyance in it.

And as I slid into the driver's seat, feeling the quiet shift happening between us, I knew—

She had already started choosing.

She just didn't know it yet.