Well that's just great. My first night in Washington and I'm run over by a police officer!

Fan-bloody – tastic.

We go through the rigmarole of checking for injuries and he ends up calling for an ambulance and giving his name as the guilty party.

At the hospital they run all the usual tests but are confounded by my not having a registered blood type.

So I'm stuck here for a few days.

I was surprised to find that the man didn't run off as soon as he could. I wouldn't have blamed him. It's never fun hanging around a hospital. Especially when you don't even know the person properly!

To give him credit, he seemed a decent guy. He even went so far as to retrieve my belongings from the motel. For that, I would be eternally grateful.

And so began my stay in hospital.

Thanks to Charlie Swan, I had my laptop back and so I spent most of the day in touch with my friends in New York. After hearing about my accident, they wanted to fly over immediately but I put them off. They had their own troubles to deal with. The day's monotony was interrupted by the Chief's regular visits. For some reason, he had grown attached to me and I didn't have the heart to refuse him.

It made things interesting and distracted me from the reality of the situation I was currently in.

The Nurses and Doctors here thought me an enigma. They couldn't understand why I wasn't compatible with any of their blood supplies, thus I became their lab-rat.

When Charlie introduced me to one of his oldest friends, I knew I was in trouble. His attachment had become so much more and I knew that I would hurt him when the time came for me to move on. It was unfortunate as I had grown fond of the Chief. He really was one of the most decent men I've ever come across.

Luckily, Fate had decided to step in.

My blood type apparently matched his ex-wife's. It did seem far-fetched that we were linked but the guy seemed desperate to believe this and I went along with it.

When his theory proved correct, I didn't know what to think. I hadn't let myself believe that we could be related.

Still, a police chief had to be better than two abusive druggies as parents. Didn't they?

After his ex proved that she wasn't a candidate for mother of the year and nor was she running for wife of the year, I thought that Charlie would want to end this strange relationship we had settled into.

Apparently not.

Not only did he want me in his life, but he also offered me a place to stay.

"It's not much but I have a spare bedroom that you're welcome to until you can get back on your feet."

Pun unintended.

Maybe it was wrong of me, taking advantage of this man's generosity. After all, it wasn't like we were related. However, he was persistent in his pursuit of me and I gave in.

What can I say? It takes a lot of work being stubborn.

And really, what harm could it do, bringing some modicum of happiness to a man that considered me his daughter? His only request was that I not mention the true result of the paternity test. In his excitement, he had told Billy Black that I was his daughter and could not bear to shatter his illusion.

It was the least I could do.

When the hospital finally discharged me, we loaded my things into Charlie's cruiser and began the journey to his hometown of Forks. I had spoken to him about getting some wheels of my own. His home was a simple, two-storey building with two bedrooms and one bathroom. It was simply decorated, although I did see some brightly coloured cupboards in the kitchen.

A relic from his marriage?

He showed me to the guest room and allowed me to unpack without his presence. So he wasn't a fan of hovering? Awesome! This might actually work.

XxX

That evening, Billy arrived with his son Jacob. He seemed an alright person. A little star-struck perhaps but what else would you expect from a fifteen year old kid? Talk focused around the red truck in the driveway.

"So what do you reckon?"

"It's pretty awesome. The engine looks rebuilt. Classic American."

I noticed that Jake seemed pink around his ears as I praised the truck.

"You did this?"

"Sure did."

Charlie's smile was contagious. "Well, what do you think Bella?"

"It's great."

"I'm glad you like it."

It took a while for things to properly sink in."You bought this?"

He shrugged. "You need a vehicle, Jake fixed this up and Billy is eager to sell."

He pulled out the keys. "Here you are. Welcome home Bella."

Seriously, can this man get anymore awesome?

So there you have it. I am now a resident of Forks, Washington. I was now the proud owner of a red 1958 Ford pick-up truck! I also had a father figure, two great friends and a bright new future ahead.

Sounds too good to be true doesn't it?