𝑺𝑶𝑳𝑺𝑻𝑰𝑪𝑬 [𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑹𝒀 𝑷𝑶𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹/𝑻𝑾𝑰𝑳𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻]

𝐴 𝑁𝐸𝑊 𝐻𝑂𝑃𝐸

𝑻𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝑾𝒆𝒆𝒌𝒔 𝑳𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓 [𝐵𝑟𝑎𝑧𝑖𝑙];

Edward took his time wandering around Rio de Janeiro, in order to be close by to Isle Esme in case he was needed. He held out in the apartment he owned, using the evening and night to wander around one of his favorite cities. The distractions were endless in the beautiful country; the panoramic views and scenery that you could not find anywhere else in the world. However, despite as beautiful as his favorite country was, at the end of each appreciation for the beauty surrounding him, his thoughts always went back to Gwen Organa.

Alice and Esme kept their promise of keeping Bella safe and keeping him in the loop with simple "everything is fine" updates every day. However, the lack of details in their messages was loud and clear: he was no longer needed in the country, and to do what his heart desired. In fact, they noted that they would most likely be leaving back to Forks and for him not to follow. At least, until Bella had more time to accept what had happened.

And as the days continued on with his newfound life not chained by duty, the yearning to be closer to Gwen reminded him of the thirst that used to control him. It was demanding yearning, too impossible to ignore.

He really had no experience in this department, as his mind continued to wander to Gwen. He remembered when he had first fallen in love with Bella; it was compulsive, obsessive, and he had tethered his entire lifeline to her. With Gwen, there was a sense of serenity that came to him with the yearning.

But even so, it had been quite embarrassing for him to admit that without his duty to Bella to fulfill, his world now suddenly seemed to empty without Gwen in it.

It was easy enough to understand, though, really. After eighty years of the same thing every day and every night, any change became a point of absorption. Bella was certainly a turning point for him. But Gwen? She was an utter climax. The hope, compassion, and the endless desire to experience life had drawn Edward to her, and continued to do so.

But he would not destroy Gwen's future. If he was destined to love her, then wasn't avoiding her the very least he could do?

Edward frowned as he replayed her last words to him over and over in his head, attempting to find some reason to stay away from her. To come up with the perfect excuse to leave her alone forever.

But as the days passed, he went back and forth, back and forth in his head as he continued to play around with the idea of seeing her. Of making it known that he had left Bella. That he was no longer bound by duty. That what he had felt for her was honest and true...Making it known Gwen had another option.

But then reality would sink in once more; what could he even offer her? If not more disappointment.

It was all the more confusing because Edward had never felt so human in his whole life as he thought about life with Gwen—not even when he was human, as far as he could recall. In those days, his thoughts had all been turned to a soldier's glory. The Great War had raged through most of his adolescence, and he'd been only nine months away from his eighteenth birthday when the influenza had struck.

He had just vague impressions of those human years, murky memories that became less real with every passing decade. He remembered his mother most clearly and felt an ancient ache when he thought of her face. He recalled dimly how much she had hated the future he'd raced eagerly toward, praying every night when she said grace at dinner that the "horrid war" would end.

Edward had no memories of another kind of yearning. Besides his mother's love, there was no other love that had made him wish to stay.

The feelings he felt for Gwen were entirely new to him. He attempted to draw parallels with Bella, but there was no comparison to make. He had known that a part of himself knew when he met Gwen, that it was her. She was it. And his entire existence had changed in an instant.