For a Friend

Hi. This is my second fan fiction. I know that a lot of you are probably thinking that this is very much like BrightEyes234's 'Tiny Heart', and in actual fact I did get some inspiration from this story but I was planning it before I knew it existed. It will run on a slightly different page to that story and I have received BrightEyes's approval to publish.

Quick Summary: Edward and Bella are best friends, along with Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie. They have been ever since the start of high school, but Bella has always liked Edward a little too much for just friends and no one has ever noticed.

Chapter 1: Strange Request

I climbed up into my ancient Chevy truck, slammed the door and ignored the deafening roar of the engine that announced my arrival at any destination. Pulling out of the car park to my apartment block, I headed down the road and around the corner.

I took a deep breath. I hadn't been to Edward's new house yet. I had been avoiding having to go there for the past month or so. In fact, I hadn't seen Edward himself for about two weeks now. I had known it was only a matter of time before I would have to see him again.

It wasn't that I didn't want to see him. He was probably the person who I wanted to see most in the world. No. It was his wife that I didn't want to see. Every time I saw them together was like another painful punch in the stomach.

It had never been like this back in school. Edward, Alice, Jasper, Emmett and even Rosalie at times had been my best friends. They still were, all this time later. The Cullens and the Hales were all adopted siblings. They were all together; Emmett and Rosalie, Alice and Jasper. Carlisle and Esme Cullen were their adopted parents and I had been lucky enough to be accepted into their happy family.

Ever since the first year of high school, when I had moved to Forks to live with Charlie, I had been with the Cullens. I couldn't even remember how it happened. It just seemed so natural to be with them, there never seemed to be a beginning. No doubt I had done something stupid, like fall on top of one of them.

Pretty much since I had first spoken to Edward, I had known that I wanted something more than friends. There was no question about it. But he never loved me back. Well of course he loved me- I was his best friend- but not in the way I would have wanted.

No one else noticed it and I was very good at hiding my feelings. I have done for almost nine years. I watched as girl after girl, stared at him, batted her eyelids and laughed at his least amusing comments, all the while being a faithful friend and keeping my feelings to myself.

Edward was extremely good looking. I could spend hours, days, trying to describe his face and that still wouldn't do it justice. So there was no doubt that the girls at school would chase after him.

He was a gentleman, he told them politely that he wasn't interested, but there was always one every few months that caught his eye and I would sit by and watch them together, trying to ignore the ache in my chest, until it was over and then I would enjoy the freedom until the next one came along.

Many of the girls at school shot me hateful looks as I walked down the corridors with him, or sat with him at lunch and especially whenever he grabbed my hand to pull me in a certain direction, which would make my heart rate accelerate and my breath catch in my throat. But I knew that there was nothing romantic about it. Purely friendship. And we were best friends.

I was the one he would confide in whenever he had issues with one of his girlfriends or if he couldn't decide how to ask someone out and I did what a best friend should and helped him, no matter how much pain it caused me.

Then graduation had finally come round and we had all gone separate ways. I was studying a degree in journalism not too far from the University where Alice, Emmett and Rosalie were, while Edward and Jasper went off to study medicine. I had expected our friendship to disappear after that, fade away gradually. What I had not expected was us getting together every weekend and having dinner at least once a week.

The only time the group didn't get together was when exam time came around and everyone was madly studying.

Alice, Emmett and I had all finished our degrees around two or three years back and were living very close to the University where Jasper and Edward studied. Rosalie was a bit further away, but she still managed to get here every two weeks or so. It had all worked out rather well, better than what I had ever expected it to.

It was only a year ago now that Edward had invited us all to his apartment and had announced that he was engaged. That had been the end to my hopes and dreams of ever being with him. It had taken all the strength I could muster to last for a couple of hours at his house before rushing home and breaking down.

I hadn't seen Edward nearly as much since then. I still saw him every week at our usual get-togethers, but it hadn't been the same as it was. We didn't spend time alone together and we definitely didn't have the conversations that we used to.

Around a month ago, Edward and Tanya had bought a house together about five minutes from my apartment. Edward was still studying and Tanya was a model/hairdresser but the Cullen's had always had money, so it was no surprise that they could afford it.

That had led to yet another crack in my heart and I hadn't seen anyone but Alice for the past two weeks.

We were all around twenty two now and I still hadn't let anyone know my true feelings. Edward was ten months older than me, and I was still twenty one for another five months. The rest of the Cullens had already celebrated their birthdays this year so I was the only one left to get to twenty two. Emmett liked to mention this whenever he got a chance.

This morning at around ten, Edward had called me up and asked if I could come around and see the house, and chat for a while. I couldn't say no to his voice, so that was how I came to be in the car right now pulling up in front of his new, masterpiece of a home.

My mood increased greatly when I saw that Tanya's car wasn't in the garage, meaning she must be out. I took a deep breath and jumped down out of the truck. The door to the house opened before I had taken two steps and I couldn't help the huge grin that spread across my face as Edward walked out to greet me.

"Bella!" he yelled as he pulled me into a huge hug.

"Hey Edward!" I said happily. I couldn't help but be happy when he was around.

"Come inside." He said, grabbing my hand and pulling me through the door.

"Wow." Was all that I could manage as he pulled me through the house, giving me the grand tour. We walked around for about ten minutes as Edward showed me the bathroom, the kitchen, the lounge, the three bedrooms and the study. I didn't understand why they needed three bedrooms when there were only two of them in the house.

We finally ended up back in the kitchen and Edward said excitedly, "So what do you think?"

"It's... wow Edward, just wow." He grinned happily and walked over to the fridge.

"You thirsty?"

"Just water thanks." As Edward busied himself with the drinks I wandered into the living room and stared around with wide eyes. Everything in the room looked brand new and modern. There were leather couches sitting in front of a large plasma TV and a fire place set into the opposite wall.

I jumped slightly when Edward tapped me on the shoulder and handed me a tall glass of water.

"Thanks." I said lamely. Edward gestured to the lounges and we sat down opposite each other. As I took another sip of water I couldn't help noticing that Edward seemed a little tense, like he was nervous about something. I observed his hand which was cupped around his glass of water, holding it too tightly to be normal. The tendons on his wrist were standing out.

I looked up at his face and momentarily lost my voice as his eyes met mine. I blinked a couple of times then managed to say, "You ok Edward?" He didn't answer for a moment then looking away from me and fidgeting slightly he said,

"Actually Bella, there was something that I wanted to talk to you about." I frowned when he still didn't meet my eyes. This wasn't like him at all, something must be wrong.

"What's up?" I asked, putting down my glass and staring at him in concern.

"Nothing's up exactly, it's just... well..." He still wouldn't look at me. What could possibly be that bad?

"Edward, you can talk to me about anything. You know that right?"

"Yes, I know... it's just, I don't know how to say something like this." Now I was really confused. If nothing was wrong, why couldn't he just tell me? I had just opened my mouth to speak when he beat me to it.

"Well, you see the other day Tanya-" I winced at her name, "and I went to get some tests done." He said all this very quickly and I had to think for a moment before I actually got what he had said.

"Tests?" I asked, still very confused.

"Yes... well the results of those tests told us that... well... Tanya's... infertile."

I sat where I was as my brain processed this new information. I wasn't thinking about the test results at all, I was merely thinking about why they must have gone to have those tests done... I had no idea that they had been... trying.

My breathing hitched as this realisation hit me. Well that was a perfect way to top off a perfect month. The room seemed slightly fuzzy as I tried to contemplate this new information. This was really happening. Tanya and Edward. It was happening. I took a deep steadying breath -I could break down about this later- in an attempt to calm myself. Edward wouldn't have told me this if he wasn't upset. He needed me.

I looked up and found him finally looking at me and the expression on his face told me that that part of the conversation was not what he had been dreading the most. He still looked uncomfortable, rather than relieved.

"Umm... Edward I'm sorry, do you need me to do anything for you. You must be well... upset." My voice sounded hoarse even to me, but Edward didn't seem to notice. He looked even more anxious at me comforting him than when I had said nothing at all. Alright now I was really confused. What was going on?

"Actually Bella, that's why I'm telling you, there is something that you can do for me, well... for us." He looked away from me again, I frowned. What did he need? He knew that I would do almost anything for him.

"Anything Edward, you know that." I reached forward and squeezed one of his hands. He gave a nervous laugh and said,

"Actually, I'm quite sure that this isn't included in your 'anything' category."

"What is it then?" He was starting to scare me a little. I couldn't contemplate why he was so nervous.

He glanced around the room a couple more times then finally looked me in the eye. It seemed to take a huge effort.

"Bella, we've been friends for a long time now right?"

"Right..." I said slowly, frowning at him in confusion.

"You know that you're my best friend and that I would trust you with anything right?"

"Right..."

"And that I wouldn't ask you to do something unless I thought that it was the only way, or that it was completely necessary?"

"Edward, where are you going with this, surely it can't be that ba-" but he cut me off before I could finish.

"Bella, I'm asking you to... if you would consider... being a surrogate for me and Tanya."

How you all like it. Please let me know what you think and whether or not I should continue. Thanks again to BrightEyes. I'll post again soon if you guys like it.