"Bella, my sweet, it is almost time to wake up."
The brown haired woman moaned in a troubled sleep, her face sunken, her body thin and fragile. Under the glass lid, her skin was yellowed and her cheeks were gaunt and sunken. The feeding tubes carried a pale liquid into her wrists every few moments and a bag between her legs carried away the waste.
"Have a nice night, Bella. Sweet dreams," he said with a laugh.
"Renesmee Cullen, will you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"
From the pews, Bella looked on, a smile forced upon her face. Her hand on her forehead.
"Bella, are you okay? Is it the headaches?" Edward whispered, leaning close to his wife, clutching her hand.
"Yeah, but I'll be fine."
From the altar, Renesmee took a quick glance to her mother, beaming with pure joy. Then to Jacob, she gazed into his eyes, taking his hand in hers. "I do."
"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride,"
Renesemee and Jacob came together and their family and friends rose. Applause broke out among the isles.
A tear rolled down Bella's face.
Edward clutched Bella's hand tightly and then it happened.
All at once, her eyes fluttered, her knees buckled, and her head throbbed, worse than it ever had in the past two years. She fell forward, her hand slipping out of Edward's and she landed on the cold hard marble with a thud. The tile cracked under her hand, the other cradled her head. She cried out as the pain waved in and out, as her vision wavered between a blur and total darkness.
"Mom!"
"Bella!"
Bella reached for Edward, her hand faltering. "Edward! Ed...war-"
Her body lay on the floor of the church, curled into a fetal position.
"Bella...Bella...wake up...Bella..."
Voices came to her in the darkness, echoing, distant. She could not see anything but the darkness and she felt nothing. The headache was gone.
"Edward?" Her own voice she could not recognize, it was weak and cracked. She had to force the words out of her throat.
The sound of a monitor beeping came to her from the dark. A slow, dull beeping, it was almost soothing. The sickly sweet smell of medical alcohol and various drugs filtered into her nose.
Her body felt dull and weak. What she thought was her arm she could barely lift. She felt so...human. No, not even that. She felt below human. As she tried to move her limbs in this dark, cold world, she felt a new kind of pain. A dulling, aching pain, a pain that tired and beat her.
The back of her lead hand hit a smooth, hard surface.
"Good morning, Bella." The voice was familiar, a soft soothing male voice that gave her comfort to hear.
"Car...lise? Edward, where is...? The wedding...Renesemee..."
"Oh, your daughter and husband will return soon. Relax, Bella, you've been through a long operation, you'll need the rest."
"I...missed the wedding...my daughter..."
She heard footsteps scrapping against the ground, the sound growing as Carlise seemed to walk to her. "Oh don't worry, everyone's fine. How are you feeling? Your eye sight, your strength, how are you?"
"My eyes...I can't..." She was aware of blinking but no sight came to her.
"Bella, it was an unfortunate side effect of your condition. I'm sorry, you will not be able to see for quite some time."
"Blind?" A tear rolled down her cheek. "I'm...blind?"
"Now, not for long. I can fix your eye sight but it will take time. I can't attempt the surgery until you recover."
"So I will see again?"
"Someday. But now you must rest."
"When...will I see...Renes...me?"
"She is fine. Just rest, Bella. I will move you to a more comfortable place and then you can talk to Nessie sometime later."
Bella relaxed her aching body against the hard plastic of her coffin. Oddly, she felt a foreign feeling she had not felt since she was human, sleepiness.
Bella lay on the hospital bed, finally asleep, her body sprawled out like a starfish. She was snoring with some difficulty but otherwise her sleep was peaceful.
"Sleep now Bella, your dreams are waiting for you," Carlise smiled, flashing white teeth. He lay his hand against her forehead and closed his own eyes.
She stirred for moment, then relaxed, smiling in her sleep.
Carlise removed his hand and opened his eyes, watching as Bella fell into her dreaming.
"Sleep tight, love, and don't let the bed bugs bite."