Chapter Two
Gone?
Grace Cullen
Forks, Washington

As soon as the last bell rang, I locked my classroom door before going to the office to sign out. The feeling of overwhelming dread still hanging on to me.

"Miss Cullen!" Mrs. Cope cried out as I entered the office. "I thought you would've gone home with the rest of the Cullens. You look like you're not feeling well." She frowned at me.

"I'm not." I sighed. "Maybe I should've gone home with them." I chuckled half-heartedly as I signed out and handed her my teacher ID badge.

"Well, get to feeling better. If you think you're even a little under the weather tomorrow, call me and I'll get you a substitute." She smiled.

"Thank you." I smiled back at her gratefully as I turned to leave the office.

"Oh! Miss Cullen! I'm so sorry." Bella apologized, knocking into me as I opened the door of the office.

"It's alright, Bella." I smiled down at her. "How was your first day?" I asked her, hoping she wouldn't mention Edward.

"Fine." She nodded. "Is Edward okay though? He seemed really off during biology."

Damn.

"Oh, he'll be fine." I smiled enthusiastically, hoping to fool her. "The entire family has been coming down with something. You know how it is, with a houseful of people when one person gets sick everyone else does too." I laughed.

"Right." She nodded. "Well, I hope you all feel better soon. I'll see you tomorrow, Miss Cullen." She smiled softly as she stepped past me and let me leave the office.

I hurried to Emmett's Jeep and got the spare key out of my purse before climbing up into the drivers seat. I drove home in a panic, not even bothering to paying attention to my speed, and cursed when I saw red and blue flashing lights behind me.

I pulled over and straightened myself out, hoping I would be able to flirt my way out of a speeding ticket.

"Do you realize how fast you were going back there?" The sherifs deputy asked me. "90! Twenty five miles over the limit."

"I'm so sorry officer." I cooed. "My kids are sick and I'm trying to get home as soon as possible. I didn't even think to look in my panic." I teared up a little just for show.

"Oh goodness." He shook his head, obviously falling for my act. "I'm sorry to hear about that ma'am." He sighed as he handed me a slip. "Make sure to get that paid on time. Hope your kids get to feeling better." He wished me as he walked back to his car.

"Damn." I cursed, throwing the ticket up on to the dashboard and pulling back on to the highway.

I sighed as I pulled the Jeep into the garage, happy to finally be home, but then I gasped when I realized Edwards Volvo wasn't in the garage.

"Grace!" Esme called my name as soon as I rushed through the back door. "Have you seen Edward?" She asked me, rounding the corner and coming into the kitchen.

"No." I shook my head. "Last I saw him, he and Alice were headed out to the car. I sent all the kids home in fourth period today." I explained. "What's going on?"

"He put all of us out at the road and sped off back towards town." Alice explained, coming into the kitchen behind Esme. "We thought he may have headed back to talk to you. Or go kill the Swan girl one."

"Alice, don't be so crude, please." Esme shook her head. "Edward could really be in trouble."

"I shouldn't have sent him away." I sighed, feeling a desperate panic set into my bones. "I should've gone with you all and kept him from doing something drastic."

"Okay, lets calm down Grace." Esme cooed. "No sense in getting worked up yet. He may have just taken a long drive to clear his mind." She offered an explanation.

"No, I should've staid with him." I shook my head. "I'm going back out to try to find him." I told her, grabbing the keys to my car before heading back out of the door.

"Carlisle?" I questioned him as he got out of Edwards Volvo, and I stopped myself from leaving the doorway. "You're early." I frowned at him.

"I have some bad news." He sighed. "I didn't think you would appreciate me telling you all over a phone call." He spoke with such dread that my stomach turned.

"Edward has decided that it's best if he leaves for a short time." He explained as he led me into the house and into a chair at the dinning table.

"Leaves?" I cried out. "No, no, that is not happening. I'm going to go get him."

"He's already gone, Grace." He sighed deeply and my heart sank in my chest.

"What do you mean he's gone?" I asked him.

"He came to talk to me, explain why he was doing what he was doing, and I had to respect his decision. I had a full tank of gas, so I let him take my Martin vanquish. I gave him a head start before heading home to tell you all." He explained, sounding like a guilty child.

"Brother!" I cried. "You let Edward go off somewhere on his own in the middle of a crisis?! Seriously?!"

"Grace, sister, calm down please. Don't be mad at me. I was just trying to do what I thought was best. Edward said he needed some time to clear his head. He said he needed to re-evaluate if he was strong enough to withstand the temptation this Swan girl has over him. I decided to give him that time." Carlisle told me desperately, trying not to let me get too mad at him.

"Well, where can I find him?" I asked him. "I am not going to make the same mistake we did when we let him go rebel against us those awful few years. He is not losing himself if I have anything to say about it."

"He said he was headed to Alaska. The wilderness will do him some good." Carlisle nodded. "If he's not back in a week you and I are going after him, right?"

"You better believe it." I huffed, standing from my chair and marching upstairs to my room.

I was turning through the pages of a scrapbook full of family photos, many from Edwards first few years of this life. We joke that it's his baby album. It was bittersweet, to see the beginning of our relationship. He was so headstrong and belligerent back then, still is, but over time he came to really see me as a mother figure and I was more than happy to embrace him as my son proudly. I love my family so much, and my boys hold such a special place in my heart, if anything ever happened to them I don't know what I would do.

"Mom?" Emmett knocked at my door. "Can I come in?" He asked me.

"Of course, the door's unlocked." I told him and smiled at him as he entered my room and sat in the chair at my vanity. "What's on your mind?" I asked him.

"Well." He sighed deeply, suddenly seeming very mature. "I just wanted to let you know that you didn't do anything wrong." He stated firmly.

"What are you referring to?" I asked him.

"I know you. You beat yourself up over every little thing. I could see the wheels turning in your head when Carlisle told us Edward wasn't coming home for awhile. You think you could've done something to help him. By somehow choosing to come with us you would've been able to stop him." He explained. "But we both know how stubborn Edward is." He laughed, easily breaking the heavy mood of the conversation. "Nothing you could've said or done would've stopped him. He made up his mind and you were not going to be able to change it."

"Thank you, Emmett." I smiled at him lovingly, my heart swelling with pride. "It's very sweet of you to come check on me. I needed it."

"I know." He smirked at me. "I'm used to you by now." He chuckled.

"I would hope so." I laughed. "Do you think your brother will be okay?" I asked him quietly.

"Edward? Oh yeah." He laughed loudly. "He's stiff but he's got a good head on his shoulders. He's smart, so he'll be back." He spoke confidently.

"Alright, if you're sure." I smiled at him.

"I am." He smiled back sweetly at me. "Now, hand over those embarrassing pictures of Edward." He laughed, jumping into my bed and tackling the album out of my hands.

The next morning, I felt less confident about Edwards wellbeing without Emmett by my side. I was a bundle of nerves, dazed as I thought through every possible outcome, and so I was in no condition to teach seven classes.

For the first time ever, I unlocked my classroom door and took a seat at my desk. My students looked stunned to see me sitting at my computer and not waiting to welcome them at the door.

"Aunt Grace?" Alice stood at my desk. "Are you feeling alright?" She asked me.

"Fine, Alice." I nodded.

"You know, with Edward being so sick, maybe you're coming down with it too." She told me loudly, trying to establish the cover story about Edwards missing school.

"I'm fine, Alice." I shook my head. "Please, take your seat." I directed her and she nodded before going to sit down by Bella.

"I'm sorry class, but I really don't feel like discussing Romeo and Juliet today. Would you all be too terribly upset to have a study hall today?" I asked the room and they responded with resounding enthusiasm.

I buried my nose in a novel, not really focusing on it as I couldn't get Edward off of my mind. All alone in the Alaskan wilderness and struggling with his existence. I got so caught up in my thoughts, that I didn't realize class had ended until Bella Swan was standing in front of my desk with an empty classroom behind her.

"Bella!" I chirped in surprise. "Is everything alright? You're not switching to the regular class are you?" I worried.

"No, I'm not switching classes." She shook her head. "I'm fine, I just wanted to see if you were okay? You seemed so bubbly yesterday, but you're so down today. I was just worried about you."

"Oh, how sweet." I smiled at her. She's intuitive, we'll have to be careful around her. "I'm okay. Edward has some reoccurring health problems. He was sick quite often when he was younger, but we thought he had grown out of it. It seems we were wrong. Carlisle's not sure when he'll be able to come back to school." I explained.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." She frowned. "It must be awful for you to sit here and worry about him all day."

"It is." I laughed sadly. "Thank you for asking about me Bella, it's very kind of you." I thanked her.

"Of course, I'll see you tomorrow." She nodded before leaving the class

I went through the rest of the day trying my hardest not to think about Edward. Every time my mind started to drift towards worry I would busy myself with some small task.

I was more than happy when the end of the day came and I could escape to my car.

"Hello, Grace." Esme greeted me at the door. "I worried when the kids came in and you weren't with them. I didn't realize you took your car today."

"Yeah, I'm just not feeling right today." I sighed.

"I know." She hugged me tightly. "I miss him too. But, Eleazar called this afternoon and said that he sent Tanya to talk to Edward. So, maybe we'll get lucky and he'll run home to get away from her." She giggled.

"We can only hope." I laughed, imagining my poor boy being hounded by that vixen.