(A/n: Hey this is Diva posting a new story for the first time in a little while. I am very bad about keeping my stories going because I am very bad about updating...I will start this story in a similar way as I did The Power of Two, and have the first few chapters written. You can't force imagination and I am hoping that switching between the two stories will appease my boredom. I'm counting on both of these to keep me on my toes, so I am going to start with a little chapter for this story. I have been reading all of these witness protection stories and most of them are pretty good, so I decided I wanted to do my own version of this and mix it up a little bit. I really like the ideas that the other authors have come up with, but none of the stories ended like I would have ended them. While this kept me on my toes, it makes me want to do it my own way.

I'm sorry for rambling on, but I felt like I needed to get that out there. I am going to be traveling back and forth a lot for softball practices on the weekends, so I will have more time to write and I can post in intervals throughout the week, so no one gets bored!

I'm super excited and I hope you guys like this. I know that I said that most of the stories like this are good, but don't take my word for it, go look for yourself. I will try to post a few on my favorites, but I can tell you that most of them are from writers that are really good at keeping the characters true to their personalities, something that is a little challenging for me.)

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, it belongs to Stephanie Meyer.

My eyes opened to a fuzzy, white light. I couldn't remember where I was. This room, painted with a light jade green, was unfamiliar to me. My eyes opened further and I looked around futilely for my parents. I knew my eyes would not find purchase, but that didn't stop my from hoping that it had all been a bad dream. I did, however, glance upon a very muscular boy sitting in a wheelchair to my left. I looked up at this familiar face, the face of my twin, but made no expression. Maybe if I said nothing, kept my hope to wake up from this terrible dream, I would. My mom, dad, brother and I could live happily ever after.

"Bella! You're awake." My twin, Emmett, looked very pleased and called the nurse in.

I waited while the nurse checked my vitals and talked to me about what further treatment I would receive before my discharge. I said nothing to this woman. I stared at the wall and waited for her to leave.

She eventually left, muttering about teenagers and being difficult. After she left, Emmett rolled closer to me and started talking, sensing what I needed and wanted without actually being told. It was something he had always been good at and I appreciated it. I especially appreciated that he was doing this while he was hurt. Above his eyebrow was a set of stitches and some dark, nasty bruising. Once I woke up I would go and talk to him about how much I loved him and appreciated him.

"Bells, say something to me. Do you understand me?" When I only nodded, Emmett frowned, "Bella are you in pain?" I only shook my head.

"I'm going to get the doctor and have him check on you." Emmett turned and rolled to the wall across from my bed, pressing the red button, that I assumed indicated that a doctor was needed.

As Emmett rolled over, I got to see his injuries and it broke my heart to see that he had a cast on his leg in addition to the facial injuries.

Shortly after Emmett returned to my side, the doctor came in. He was tall, blonde, and absolutely gorgeous. Emmett never released my hand and that was a good thing because, the moment this man walked into the room I cringed. This made me loose my breath. My ribs burned with the effort, but it didn't matter. I hadn't ever seen him before so I saw him as a threat. I cowered into Emmett. When the doctor saw this, he held his hands up and warm smile on his face.

"My name is Dr. Cullen. I'm the one that operated on your leg and set your ribs." I looked down, and sure enough, there was an outline of a brace beneath my sheets. A heart-breaking smile appeared on the man's face and it made me relax slightly. I relinquished my grip on my brother and allowed him to lay me back down on my hospital bed. I didn't let go of his hand, because it was too much of a comfort to pass up. The doctor took another step closer and I flinched away from him out of instinct. My ribs were burning and I was feeling worse by the second. I never took my eyes off of the doctor in front of me despite the black spots that were beginning to form in my peripheral vision. My fear was greater than my pain, so much greater that I didn't even mind the burning in my stomach, so long as the man in front of me halted his approach.

"He's the good guy, Bella." Emmett said to me, "He won't hurt you. I wouldn't let him anywhere near you if I thought he would. I could take him anyway." Emmett winked at me.

I was touched with Emmett's statement and I returned to my position on my bed, not letting my twin let go of me. The doctor came a little closer, "I am going to remove your IV, Bella. You might want to look away." I held out my right arm, shaking. I turned to Emmett and he knew just what to do in that moment. His hand let go of mine, but soon after, his arms were wrapped around my body lightly. I put my face in his shoulder and trembled. I felt a hand brace my wrist and my arms tightened around Emmett. I just wanted to be released.

I felt a sharp pain and then I was freed. I scooted back toward Emmett. I was shaking hard, my ribs screamed in protest.

A band-aid came down on my arm and with a few soft strokes on the top of my back Emmett managed to calm me down. I felt wide awake as Dr. Cullen talked to me, "I'm glad you're awake. It is Thursday and I want to release you tomorrow. Since Emmett has already been discharged and prescribed crutches, he's okay to leave. After fitting you for a wheelchair, you too will be released. The only question is where you'll go.

"Since you are minors, I cannot allow you to leave without a legal guardian. Emmett and I have talked a little while and after he explained your situation I realized that I will have to call child services. Since they are notoriously slow on getting appointments on these types of matters, I would like to offer you an invitation to stay with my family and me. It would be only until child services arrived and it would be better than spending the weekend here on a couch. What do you think?"

"That is very generous of you." Emmett looked up at the doctor, "We don't want to be a bother."

"It's really no problem. I've come to like you over the past few days, Emmett, and the love you've shown your sister inspires me." Dr. Cullen looked at me and spoke, "He didn't leave your side, unless we made him." He turned back to Emmett. "We have spare bedrooms for when my nieces and nephews stay with us, so it wouldn't be a bother. We already have two kids, so food isn't an issue."

"What do you think, Bella." Emmett turned to me. I nodded at the wall and pulled one side of my face into a smile. It probably looked pathetic, but it didn't really matter. None of this was real. I would wake up to my bedroom at home any second.

Emmett frowned at me and then addressed the doctor, "We would really love that. Thank you so much for offering us a place to stay. Why isn't Bella talking?"

"It's no problem. About Bella, well, I want to watch Bella the next few days and make sure that we have cared for her correctly and see improvement. I think Bella might have a common form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. It doesn't surprise me one bit and after it has run it's course, I have no doubt that Bella will be able to run a normal life." Carlisle smiled at me. "We may not see any improvements immediately, but it wouldn't hurt to make sure you are on the right track for recovery. I'll leave you to yourselves for now. I'm sure you have some things to talk about."

I nodded and looked at my hands as I twiddled my thumbs. Since Emmett's arm was still wrapped around me, I leaned into him and closed my eyes.

Carlisle only smiled at my brother and I before he left.

"Why won't you talk, Bella?" My heart broke as I heard my brother speak. I wondered if he would be this nice in real life?

I didn't speak and Emmett withdrew his hands from around my body, finding my face. He stroked my cheek and I bet that my eyes could open to see his worried expression.

I didn't say anything for the rest of the afternoon. I didn't watch television. I just waited for my body to wake from this terrible dream. I thought back to what had happened a few days ago.

I parked my truck in the driveway and got out. I fiddled with the key in the door and sighed. This stupid door was always giving me trouble.

I finally got through the door only to hear the strangest noise ever. I walked into the laundry room turning on the light. I'd started a wash this morning before I'd left so I turned the knob on the dryer starting it again as I walked in the house.

I went back to my room, noticing that my mom and dad had left their light on this morning. It sounded like someone was home. That was weird. My mom and dad never came home early. I normally had dinner on the table before they got in. I yelled, "Emmett?" Maybe football practice had been canceled or something. That makes a little sense. He must be looking for something in mom and dad's room.

I sat my bags down and walked back down the hallway toward their room. "Hey Emmett!" I called, "Was practice canceled or some..." I trailed off. I had caught a sight of a person in the room.

"I've been waiting for you, Isabella. It's so nice of you to finally join me." The monster was in the center of my parents' bed, waiting for his moment to strike.

I pulled myself from the revere and shook my head to clear it. I didn't want to think about that nightmare. It had never happened. I would wake up from this dream soon and it would all be behind me.

"Bella! Are you listening to me?" Emmett's voice was worried, "I've been trying to get your attention for five minutes. I just want to know if you are in pain."

I shook my head and continued staring at the wall. It ended up being a long night. I didn't sleep and thought that maybe if I stayed conscience, I would be pulled out of this scary dream.

It was now Friday morning and I had not slept. My eyes burned, but I stayed awake. Dr. Cullen walked into the room and saw my face, "You look a little white, Bella, are you feeling well this morning?"

I nodded and just looked at the wall.

Emmett was sleeping in a chair, my hand still in both of his.

"May I come closer and see how your ribs are doing?" Dr. Cullen questioned me.

I paused and then nodded. I would have to get this over with soon, it might as well be now. Dr. Cullen approached me slowly and hesitantly raised his hands. Going slowly, he unbuttoned the front of my hospital gown. I just laid back and trembled. As he touched, my stomach I flinched and held my breath.

"Your ribs are a little swollen. Do they hurt?" Dr. Cullen continued to lightly grace my lower ribs.

I shook my head and tried my hardest to keep in my tears. By the time the doctor had finished, my tears were running down the side of my face. When he began re-buttoning my gown, I let out my breath.

He looked up at me and his satisfied expression turned horrified, "Bella, I'm sorry, but I had to check to make sure your ribs were doing okay. I didn't mean to upset you."

I shied away from him and let out a sob that sounded pathetic even in this half-awake state. He hadn't hurt me, but I still felt pain. I was scared. I was suddenly scooped up into a pair of arms and I let out a sob. A woman held me in her arms and I continued to cry.

It only made me cry harder when I realized that this woman wasn't my mom. I would never see her again. No. I would see her again. This was only a dream. I was dreaming.

I hugged the woman closer for a moment and then I let her go, feeling more tired than I had before. I looked at her beautiful face and it was a vision of sadness. She sat next to me on the bed and wiped the tears from under my eyes, "Hello little Bella. I'm Esme. Carlisle here is my husband." Esme gestured back to Dr. Cullen, "He said that you guys had accepted our invitation and that you could leave the hospital today." Her voice was gentle and sort of hypnotizing, "Would you like that honey?"

I nodded fervently. I hugged her again and a few more tears fell. I had missed this human contact. I had Emmett, yes, but I didn't have a mom anymore. It wasn't as if I had ever needed my mother. I had always been the independent child, the opposite of Emmett, who was a "momma's boy" to the core.

Now, all I needed was a mom, and here one was being offered. I wasn't stupid enough to pass it up. Not even when I was in this stupid dream.

"Now before we can leave, Carlisle is going to take a look at your knee and were going to have to get some paperwork done. Alright?" Esme asked. When I nodded, she continued, "We're going to go home then and I'm going to fix you anything you want to eat. Do you like the sound of that?"

I nodded enthusiastically. I smiled up at her and her face went a little blurry. I yawned. She kissed my forehead, "I bet you're tired. Go to sleep, Bella, and when you wake up, we'll be all ready to leave." She reached over and turned off my light and my eyelids sagged. I fell asleep before I knew what hit me.

When I woke up I heard voices, "It'll be okay Emmett, Bella will talk again soon. Many of my PTSD patients recover within months. Sometimes it takes years, but I've only ever seen that with the patients who experience amnesia. Speech patients normally bounce back, but just don't expect it tomorrow or for it to happen all at once. It's going to be hard and you're going to have to stay strong. Don't pressure her to talk and don't make a big fuss. Give her a little while to feel what she's feeling. After a week or so, when she's sorted it all out, I'll make sure child services knows her need for a therapist. As her doctor, I can recommend a good one and they'll have no choice but to have Bella go to them instead of whatever crappy one they would have sent her to. You guys better go on home and get some food. I bet Bella will be starving."

"She didn't sleep at all last night. She just sat there and stared at the wall. Is that right? Is that supposed to happen?" Emmett's voice was streaked with worry.

"Well, Emmett," Dr. Cullen's voice said, "All rape victims react differently. Some people never go back to normal and some people recover quickly. There are a million shades of gray in between those two options, so there's no telling how quickly she will recover. All you can do is support her and be strong for her. Like I said, it's going to be hard, but you can do it. It's possible.

"All the paperwork is done. I'll trust you can wake her without scaring her, Emmett. I'll be back with the wheelchair I've ordered. Esme, honey, you can stay here with Emmett. Bella seems to like you. It'll be good for her to have a motherly figure, if only for a little while."

Time passed and the paper work was filed. The nurse had helped me settle into a wheelchair and Dr. Cullen pushed me through the door. I began to worry and looked around for my brother, who had gone to be fitted for crutches. I frantically tried to stand up only to be pushed down by the hand of my twin. I sighed in relief and sank back into the chair. I heard the comforting murmurs coming from him, but they just floated above me, not meaning anything. I looked over to see him, looking down at me, worried, from the tall height at which he stood. The extra tall crutches were quite comical, but not one smile came to my face. I kept it an empty slate, reminding myself how much I truly loved my brother.

We left the hospital without much more delay and before I knew it, I was in a black Mercedes, pulling up to a huge mansion. I was helped out of the car and into a wheelchair by Dr. Cullen and wheeled up to the house. After maneuvering my wheelchair up the stairs, I was rolled into the most beautiful room I'd ever seen. While I looked around, my face showed no emotion, contrasting to my mind which was amazed at the view before me.

"This is my home." Dr. Cullen said to my brother and me, "I will give you the tour of the bottom floor. This is where your bedrooms will be. I thought we'd better keep you down here, for wheelchair accessibility. Let's go to the living room. I think the rest of my family is waiting for us."

As I was rolled into the next room, I caught the sight of the most beautiful family in existence. Esme walked past us into the room and introduced everyone, "These are my kids, Edward and Alice." A beautiful boy and girl around my age smiled at us.

"It's nice to meet you." The girl, Alice, said to me, "We're going to be good friends."

I looked down at my hands again, not knowing what to do.

Emmett came to my rescue, "Bella's just a little shy. She'll come around. I'm Emmett and thank you all for having us. You don't know how much Bella and I appreciate it. Don't we Bella?"

I nodded, still not looking up. I just wanted to run and hide, not be introduced to strangely beautiful people in an equally beautiful house.

"Bella has a run of post-traumatic stress disorder." Emmett explained, "She'll start talking again soon, won't you Bella." Emmett questioned me like I was a child who had done something wrong. The tone of his voice upset me and made me feel like I was an imbecile.

Tears came to my eyes and I hung my head even lower than before. I was acting like a child, but I was still 16 and deserved to be treated better. I didn't make a sound as they spilled over, but kept my head down and looked at my hands which were blurry through my tears. It embarrassed me that Emmett could upset me like this, and that I was crying in public. Even in this dream, it was mortifying.

"Oh shit." Emmett whispered as his face fell. "I'm sorry Bella, don't cry. I didn't mean it." He managed to kneel even with his giant crutches and grabbed my hand. By the time he kissed the side of my face, he was already forgiven. I didn't want to be mad, but only let him know that what he'd said had made me sad and upset.

I kept my head down, hoping to stay out of the conversation. The tears still fell from my eyes, as my body realized how much pain I was in. My ribs burned and I had began to feel a dull ache when it came to my knee. My hands moved up to my ribs and I tried to control my heavy breathing. I looked up at Emmett, who had stood up, and kept my hands on my ribs, making no move to brush my tears away.

Esme saw this and she quickly came over to me. With hands on either side of my face, she spoke to me, "Are you in pain? Can I get you something for it?"

I nodded at her and she turned to her son, "Edward, honey, could you go get the bottle of Advil from the bathroom while I get Bella and Emmett something to take them with?"

Edward replied with a "sure" and ran upstairs two at a time. I must have looked pitiful. I was wheeled into the kitchen backward and a tall glass of ice water was placed in my hand soon after that. Emmett was beside me as Edward came back into the room. The kitchen was large, but it still had no room for the space I wanted between Edward and I. While he had been nice to me, I still didn't know who he was. I backed my wheelchair as far as I could in the corner and shielded my face. I didn't want Edward to approach me, but my heart sank as he walked toward Emmett and I and handed the bottle to Emmett.

Emmett took two pills from the bottle and tried to kneel down again. Esme would not have that and insisted Edward help me. Edward opened his hand and spilled two out, holding them out to me. I tried to push myself even farther back into my seat, cringing away from him.

"She's not very fond of men yet Edward. I apologize." Emmett turned to me, "Quit being silly, Bella. Edward is your doctor's son. He isn't going to hurt you." His voice softened, "I promise. You can trust him, now hold your hand out." Emmett frowned at my actions and I felt ashamed once again.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I didn't mean to scare you. My name is Edward and I swear I didn't spike your Advil." As I looked up at him he winked. I smiled, a real, somewhat shy smile, up at him and held my hand out for the pills. I tried not to blush, but it was imminent.

I took the pills he gave me and chased them down with water. I already felt a little better, now that I was less tense. I drank the rest of the water given to me by Esme. She asked if I would like another glass and I nodded. I half smiled up at her in thanks and drank the rest of that glass too. Esme asked me if I wanted another glass, but this time I shook my head.

"Thank you." Emmett told her and smiled down at me, ruffling my hair. I found myself patting my hair back down before I realized it didn't matter. Soon I would wake up from my dream and have to fix it again.

"Are you guys hungry for dinner? I've had Edward fix pasta." I nodded to Esme's words, sensing my twin's excitement. It had probably been a while since he'd eaten. Even if it hadn't, the smell coming from the stove was enough to do him in. Emmett had never been one to skip meals.

We were moved into the dining room and Edward pulled out the chair that would have been mine and Esme rolled me up to the table. Emmett didn't hesitate to sit beside me. Emmett hadn't always been taller than me, but now that he'd grown into a man, our heights were separated by feet instead of inches. If that weren't bad enough, my wheelchair sat lower to the ground than did the dining room chairs. This stupid chair made me look tiny and frail. Too bad those were probably the best words to describe me at the time.