To Speak One Word

1. Family meeting

We were waiting on Alice and Jasper to come home from hunting. The room was horribly still and silent, even for us. Esme was sitting in a soft leather chair with Carlisle behind her, both looking in my direction, concerned. Esme's thoughts were all over the place, while Carlisle tried his hardest to not think. Rosalie and Emmett were looking at everything other than me, trying to not freak me out even more. They were hungry, so they barely cared.
I shifted my weight onto the other foot, leaning against the wall as I heard Alice's light footsteps finally enter the home, with Jasper a split second behind her.
"Sorry," Alice said with an embarrassed tone, looking away from me, "we're home now."
I rolled my eyes, "I can see that."
She wrinkled her eyebrows, her thoughts called me a quick and harmless insulting word. I didn't have the energy to even smirk at it. She noticed that, too.
"What's going on, Edward? Seriously." She demanded.
"Edward, I'm starving. Can we get to the point?" Rosalie had an awful tone, not even looking at me. Her mind was simply a hungry vampire.
"Rose, relax. Let your brother speak." Carlisle snapped back, with utter authority.
"I wish he would!" She almost whined.
"Okay," I started, basically ignoring every piece of that ridiculous conversation, "I think we should leave Forks."
No one said a word. I continued, "I can't forgive myself about what happened at Bella's birthday party, and I can't help but realize she's-" I stopped, interrupted by Rosalie's thoughts.
I sighed, "Rosalie?"
"You want us to pack everything up and leave, just so you don't have to deal with an ex-girlfriend?" She was nearly growling at me. The last words of that question got every pair of eyes on me.
"You're breaking up with Bella?" Alice was devastated.
Rosalie stood up, facing me. We starred at each other. She loved to think she intimidated me.
"I told you this was going to end badly." She crossed her arms.
I nodded, "That you're actually right about."
"And now, you break up with her and we all disappear, with a human now knowing basically everything about our kind and our family, Edward. What happens when she gets angry and tells someone?"
No one responded.
"I don't think she would." Esme finally spoke, staring at the wall.
"Oh okay," Rosalie loudly sat back down, "problem solved then I guess. Esme doesn't think she would."
Carlisle shot a look at her, "You need to relax."
Rosalie finally stopped talking, but her thoughts about killing me didn't. Emmett put his arm around her, whispering to her.
"Continue." Carlisle with his hand pointing to me.
"I can't even fathom the amount of danger I've put her in, in such a short amount of time," I shifted my weight again, "and this solution is a lot less dramatic than what would have to happen if she-"
"I agree." Carlisle stated, not wanting me to think about what I was about to say.
Jasper's mind was loud. I was waiting for him to pitch in. He was blaming himself horribly, and not understanding why I wasn't.
"Jasper," I finally had to address it, "I'm blaming myself and not you, because I'm the one who brought her into this. I'm not even slightly angry with you."
He didn't say anything, but didn't look any more relaxed or convinced.
Alice's mind then jumped to changing Bella.
"And that's not going to happen, Alice." I shut it down quick.
"Why not, though? I've seen already that it happens."
"No, you've seen the possibility of it happening, therefore I am cancelling all of those possibilities right now."
Silence again.
Carlisle cleared his throat, "Well, people at the hospital are noticing I look incredibly young, and we always find our way back to our favorite place," he put his hand up, gesturing to the house, "I'm okay with leaving, Edward. I trust that you think this is best. I think Bella will be safe."
He didn't want to say 'safer' to hurt me, but that is what he meant. I nodded.
"We can take another honeymoon for a few months, babe, while Carlisle and Esme get settled." Emmett said lightly to Rosalie. Her mind immediately and finally got off of me, and started thinking about where Emmett would take her.
"I would only agree to this if truly, Edward, this is what you want." Jasper sounded genuine. I nodded at him.
Alice was stone silent. Her thoughts were telling me that she wanted me to be happy, but every future she saw of mine, was with Bella. She wasn't sure that this was the best idea, but Alice was very loyal to me.
"When are you going to..." Alice trailed off. She was hurt by this.
"Tomorrow." I answered.
Carlisle put his hand on Esme's shoulder, "Let's start packing?" She nodded reluctantly.
Rosalie got up without saying a word, and was out the front door in less than a second.
"She's starving." Emmett explained, shrugging his shoulders.
"Is that so?" Carlisle joked.
Emmett smiled, and followed the same path Rosalie took out of the house.
Jasper appeared in front of me with Alice.
"I'm not sure about this." Alice stated blankly. "I'm not sure this is the answer."
I got cold, "What other solution could you possibly think of, besides changing her?"
Like I had to ask. Her mind was sure changing Bella was the answer. She didn't respond. Her eyes were warm but sad. Hearing Bella's name over and over again in Alice's mind was driving me crazy.
"Please, just- stop thinking about her so much." I closed my eyes tightly.
Alice sighed, looking down, "I guess I'm the only one doing that right now." She vanished.
And those words hurt me. This was the right decision though, at this rate I'd have Bella killed in months. I was thinking of only her, always. With my own thoughts drowning me, I didn't realize there were no other thoughts around me. I looked up to a completely empty room.
I went up to my room, and in a matter of seconds, I emptied it. Carlisle's mind in a few rooms over told me to leave the boxes there, he would take care of it.
I took a quick leap out of the window, and climbed up to the top of my favorite tree. The moon's reflection over the lake was incredibly bright. Images and memories of Bella danced through my mind. I had to make sure I was as stone cold as I was tonight, with her. It will make it easier. Especially for her. I wanted her last memory of me to be cold, stone-like and frigid. Just like exactly how I am, how she always refused to see me. The word 'memories' got me thinking, though.
How was I supposed to live with my family, after they all met and fell in love with Bella, as well? Their minds were not going to forget her, and I would not be able to live with hearing and seeing their minds playing those memories of her.
I jumped from tree to tree, back down into my room. Luckily, Carlisle didn't touch my packed up items yet. I quickly rummaged through it all, packing things either into a bag, or back into the boxes. I packed an escape bag. I was going to go off on my own. I ran back up into the trees, and left my escape bag there.
Now, to prepare for the worst part of it all.