AUTHOR'S NOTE: You guys are just beyond awesome with all your reviews and praise! Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know how you guys are taking this new story. Y'all are probably going to want to kill me soon, but part of the story is me drawing everything out. Bare with me, I hope to make it all worthwhile in the end.
Stephenie Meyer's the genius, I'm just playing in her sandbox.
Chapter Four:
Opening your eyes to new surroundings always takes some getting used to. Especially when the first thing you feel is the pain that morphine is no longer ebbing.
Groaning as I shifted slightly, I couldn't force back the wince that contorted my face. I couldn't remember the last time I felt as stiff as I was right then, my muscles not wanting to work with me in the slightest. My back felt like it was on fire, reminding me very much of that night. It still hurt to think about the sequence of events that cost me my last remaining family, but it was unavoidable. I couldn't get away from that night if I wanted to.
"Baylee?" Esme's soft voice suddenly felt like a lifeline and I actually gasped in surprise when a pair of hands gently began to lift me out of my sleeping position. Once I was settled into a sitting position with my legs curled up underneath me and the blankets protectively drawn around me, I reached up and carefully rubbed the sleep from my eyes and looked up at her.
"Mornin'." I drawled out, smiling blearily at her in spite of how I felt. A movement out of the corner of my eye shocked me into complete awareness. She wasn't the only one in the room. Two figures were practically crowding the doorway. Okay, guess I was meeting more people today.
Esme seemed to notice as well and turned to frown at the shadowy figures. "I told you to wait outside! She's just woken up. Let her get her barings."
"And some painkillers." I muttered out so low I wasn't even sure she could hear me. But she reached over me and lightly tapped the call button on that ridiculously large remote attached to my bed. "I was just kidding about that." I sputtered, suddenly not wanting the woman standing beside me to think I was growing dependent on drugs. That would go over so well.
"You're in pain, Baylee. There's no reason you should sit there and suffer just so we don't think badly of you. Not that we ever could." She added on thoughtfully and lightly dragged her hand over what was left of my hair. "I'm sure none of us have been as severely injured as you are."
God I hoped not. This kind of pain...well, it was something I wouldn't have wished on my worst enemy. There were times, times I refused to admit or even think about, where I wished I'd died right along with my mother and step-father. The group of women that had plagued the funeral were right. It was a miracle I'd barely escaped the burning house with my life.
I winced again when flashes of that night forced their way onto the back of my eyelids. With my back and side burning as badly as it was, I had no trouble remembering the heat. I could still hear the crackling as flames licked their way through the house, destroying everything in their path. I cringed again and yelped loudly in pain when my body jolted.
One of the figures that had been hovering was suddenly beside Esme, staring at me with eyes filled with concern and sympathy. Great. The one thing I hadn't wanted to see in the eyes of my new family of sorts. The girl now standing beside Esme was tiny, shorter and slighter than me. Her jet-black hair was a little longer than mine and styled perfectly in a haphazard array of spikes. Her skin was just as creamy and pale as her adoptive parents' and her eyes were a dark sort of hazel that I'd only seen on one or two people in passing. "Hi." She murmered in a striking tone of soprano-hinted bells and leaned over to give me a quick kiss on my cheek. "I'm Alice, it's so nice to finally meet you."
So I'd been right. The Cullens knew more about me than I knew of them. No doubt, Carlisle had shared my entire past with his family in preparation for my arrival. "You too." I murmered unconvincingly. My voice was still shaky with the tremors rocking through me, my face tight as I tried to keep the pain I felt internalized. These two women didn't need to sit around and listen to me writhe in agony.
Before anyone could say anything, Olivia suddenly burst into the room. The other person that had been standing beside the door finally came in further and I gasped aloud when I got a good look at the person's face. The boy looked no older than I was, with tousled bronze hair, sharp cheekbones and a clearly defined jaw. His cheeks looked hollowed, like he was overcoming the stage where baby fat was dropped for the adult characteristics. He was tall, probably over 6' and very lean. The pale blue tee shirt he wore over darker jeans stressed perfectly over his frame, outlining faint hints at muscular definition. The only word I could use to sum him up was...beautiful.
His eyes suddenly met mine and I was struck breathless all over again. His eyes were what got me, the most striking shade of green that I'd ever seen. They were also so expressive, even with the distance still between us. He looked so sad standing there, leaning against the wall directly in front of my bed while Olivia messed with the tubes and electrodes connecting me to several machines.
"We need to change your bandages then I'll give you a mild sedative. Does that sound like a good plan?" My nurse's voice quietly broke the trance I'd fallen into with the boy's appearance. I glanced up at her guiltily and nodded. I didn't want to continue sleeping as much as I had so I was grateful that she suggested a light tranquilizer instead of the knock out they usually gave me.
Esme and Alice joined the nameless boy as Olivia bent to try and pull me from the bed. But I must have turned too much in my sleep, the blankets were twisted around my legs and kept them flat on the mattress beneath me.
"I can help if you want." He finally spoke and his voice was so smooth and velvety that I had to remember how to breathe properly. The heart monitor behind me started annoyingly, recording the spike in my heartrate as he slowly advanced toward the bed.
Olivia looked at me for approval and I just nodded slowly. As much as I hated the thought of this boy, whatever his name was, touching me; I couldn't get out of bed without his help. Even though the head nurse in charge of my case was strong by most definitions of the word, I'd been able to work with her before. Now, I was pretty much incapacitated.
"My name's Edward Cullen." He practically breathed into my ear as he bent at the waist to gather me up into his arms. My head bobbed ever so slightly, a wince clouding my features when he put one arm underneath my knees, the other winding around the worst part of my back. He must not have known the extent of my injuries, but I still felt bad when a broken scream escaped my lips as he lifted me off the mattress. I worried instantly that he was going to drop me, I could already feel the muscles in his arms shaking slightly under the addition of my weight. But he didn't waver. Olivia broke in swiftly, yanking the blankets off my legs right as Edward twisted to settle me into the wheelchair that didn't leave my room now. I still hadn't been given clearance to walk, even though I could probably hobble a few steps. Then again, that was implying the hopping I'd have to do wouldn't jostle my charred flesh too badly.
I breathed an audilble sigh of relief when I was seated and Edward was rising back to his full height. "Thank you." I murmered, not letting myself look up at him as the nurse appeared behind my chair and began to wheel me toward the bathroom. Because I couldn't lean back against the chair, I had no leverage to wheel myself. The only reason I was allowed to sit up at all was because I'd made a promise to stay as perfectly straight as possible. The only time I relaxed was when I was laying on my stomach, or momentarily free of bandages.
"You're more than welcome." I looked up in time to see Edward Cullen smile warmly at me before his expression went curiously blank and he went back to his mother's side. I knew I looked confused as Olivia wheeled me past them, explaining quietly that I would be out shortly if Esme wanted any of the others to meet me while I was still lucid.
Another sigh of relief rang through the air once I was safely locked up in the bathroom with Olivia. She smiled patiently at me and moved me to the stool in the middle of the open shower stall. I'd long ago gotten over my embarrassment of being naked around complete strangers. Besides, it was unavoidable at this point.
That didn't mean I had to share my wounds with anyone else in my new family. I had no idea how long I still had left as an in-patient, but I could only speculate at how my home care would go.
"You're going to need to include at least one of them in this." Olivia spoke softly once she'd unbandaged my neck, back, and side. "You need to pick which one is going to be taught how to take care of your skin once you go home."
"I know." I sighed, dejectedly and slouched as much as I could without hurting myself. I'd never thought I would take simple movements for granted. It had always been something I could do, sitting however I wanted, laying and sleeping in whichever position felt most comfortable. Now I knew better. I wasn't going to take anything else for granted again. I missed normal so much more now that I was trapped in a weakened and fragile body.
Just as my nurse bent to start rebandaging me, once my shower had been completed and I felt a little more human, I reached out to gently stop her. "Wait, you're right. I guess now's as good a time as any to get them used to all of this."
Olivia nodded sympathetically and disappeared long enough to retrieve one of my new family members. I could only assume which person she picked out of the small grouping I'd left in the main part of my room. It surprised me a little when Esme walked in right behind Olivia, her beautiful face carefully arranged in maternal determination. Alice and Edward were right behind her, probably trying to get a rare glimpse of me without my bandages on. But as soon as I saw Alice wince, I yanked the shower curtain by my feet and hid myself from view. "No!"
Everyone jerked to a stop on the other side of my flimsy protection. My movements had been so sudden and unexpected that I was itching to know the thoughts flowing through everyone else's minds. More sounds followed from there and I relaxed my grip on the shower curtain when I heard the door click shut.
"Who's on the other side?" I asked uncertainly, wishing I could peek around to make sure they were going to tell me the truth.
"Just your nurse and me." Esme answered, her tone clear and calm. It was nothing like the stressed tones I knew were lying to me.
With a sigh, I relented and let Olivia push the curtain back into the left corner of the stall. "Sorry." I muttered sheepishly, directing my apology at Esme.
If she was offended by my obvious rudeness, she didn't let it show. "Perfectly all right, Baylee. Alice and Edward weren't thinking when they followed me in here."
"I know." I muttered and found more words bubbling on the tip of my tongue, escaping before I could stop them. "I just...it's tough for me to let anyone see me like this. I hate that you have to, I just want to keep the number as low as I possibly can."
"I understand." She stated again and even smiled bravely to strengthen her words. "No one will see you without your bandages until you're ready for them too."
I chewed on her words for a second, determined to find the tiny seed of deceit that always accompanied a promise being offered to me. But I couldn't find it and sighed as I slouched yet again. I dutifully eased around on the stool so that my back was facing the door now, tears unexpectedly springing to my eyes when I heard the loud gasp that fell from Esme's lips.
The damage was worse than she'd imagined. I'd bet what remained of my skin on that. She'd been placating herself this whole time, not seeing just how challenging having me come to live with her would be.
Maybe it wasn't too late for her and her husband to change their minds.