Chapter 4: Family
(Bella PoV)
I cried for a long time, I don't even know how long. Edward held me the entire time, rocking me gently and whispering sweet nothings in my ear. Eventually though, I calmed, the sobs quieting down though the tears continued to fall from my cheeks. Edward wiped them away tenderly, kissing my forehead before lifting me in his arms. He laid me down on the comforter, kneeling beside me, his eyes on my stomach once more. I leaned back into the pillow as his hands being to run over my abdomen. His eyes held an emotion I have never seen before, an awe and a pride. His eyes met mine.
"It just feels surreal. I can see it with my own eyes and yet…." he trailed off.
"You don't believe it's really happening," I finished for him. He nodded. I tucked my arm underneath the pillow as he continued to run his fingers over my skin, our eyes never wavering from each other's faces.
"How are you?" he asked, hesitant. I shrugged, partly because I did not want to worry him, but mostly because I didn't really know, and I didn't want to admit that to him. He noticed my reaction and frowned, his fingers momentarily leaving my abdomen to brush under my eyes where dark circles lay, my collarbone where the skin was thin you could feel every bone, my upper side where my ribs were clearly visible. He sighed, saddened.
"Neither of us took care of ourselves," he said as I noted his eyes, blacker than I had ever seen them. I reached out and laid my hand against his cheek, stroking underneath his eyelid. I sighed too.
"Where is the family?" I asked.
"Outside. Why?" he asked, confused. I sighed again, my exhale unsteady from both fear and fatigue.
"Go hunt. Please," I added as he began to protest, "Both of us are in bad health and you can recover much quicker than I can. And one of us has to be at full strength. Please. Just until you're full. It will do no good for you to be weak. Besides, I need to sleep. The family will be here. You don't need to go far."
Edward's eyes were panicked; mine were too at the thought of separation after just being reunited. But I knew we both needed to get fed. Edward saw that in my eyes and, after a long moment, he nodded. He made to get up, pressing his lips to my belly momentarily—and I thought I was going to start crying again—before kissing me gently.
"I love you both. Don't stay awake too long," he murmured against my skin. I smiled, nodding and sitting up as the family entered, all ten of them filing in. Edward kissed my forehead once more before vanishing, wanting to hunt and get back as quickly as possible. I turned warily toward the Cullens. Alice took a tentative step toward me; I opened my arms for her. She darted into my embrace, hugging me back tightly.
"I'm so sorry, Alice," I murmured as I buried my face into her shoulder. She pulled back to look at me.
"It doesn't matter now; you're safe. Just don't ever scare me like that again," she said sternly. I smiled and laughed slightly, nodding. Alice looked down at my stomach and I sat up more, taking her hand and placing it to my stomach. She rubbed against my skin gently, mesmerized.
"It feels so odd," she said. I smiled.
"For a human pregnancy or for a vampiric pregnancy?" I asked teasingly, settling back into the pillows. She shrugged.
"I've never touched any pregnant woman's stomach before so I don't know," she admitted. At that moment, Carlisle stepped forward, his eyes silently asking for approval. I nodded and Alice moved toward the center of the bed as he sat on the side. He placed his hands on my belly expertly, feeling for abnormalities.
"It certainly is unique. There is no give from your uterus as there is for human pregnancies. It may be the placenta has some of the makeup of vampire skin," he said, his eyes far away as he reveled in the intellectual hypotheses. After a moment though, his eyes changed to a similar proud feeling.
"Thank you, Bella," he whispered, almost too low for me to hear.
"For what?"
"Making me a grandfather," he said simply. His eyes rose to mine and I smiled, blushing gently. I looked up and met Esme's eyes. I reached out to her and she came immediately, one hand going to my cheek while the other went to my belly.
"Oh, darling, you scared me. You need to get nourished, starting tomorrow," she insisted. I nodded, pressing my cheek into her hand, the tears starting to fall. Esme shushed me gently, wiping away the tears. She moved aside as Rosalie and Emmett approached, both their eyes wary. I bit my lip as I met Rosalie's gaze, ready to flinch away from the harshness in it. There was none though, just a tenderness and a wariness equal to my own.
"Rosalie…." I murmured, unsure. She approached me carefully, taking Carlisle's spot.
"I'm sorry, Bella. For what happened when we left, for the way I've acted," she murmured quickly, her golden eyes wary and guilty. I stared at her, shocked and confused, before reaching out to touch her hand. She accepted my touch and met my eyes.
"The first part isn't your fault; as for the second part, you're forgiven," I told her softly. She smiled tentatively at me and I returned the gesture. I took her hand and placed it against my belly. She rubbed her hand gently, a small smile on her face.
"The baby deserves an aunt like you," I murmured. Rosalie smiled wider.
"Hey! What about me?!" Alice exclaimed and everyone laughed.
"You're going to torture the poor kid with clothes," Emmett interjected. Alice stuck her tongue at him and we all laughed harder. It was the first time I'd ever really laughed since they left. Rosalie leaned sideways to allow Emmett to press a hand to my belly.
"It feels so weird; especially when she laughs," he said childishly, which just made me laugh harder while Rosalie slapped on the back of the head. Alice leapt from the bed, pulling Jasper from his rigid position, dragging him to the bed. His eyes were uncertain as he sat beside me.
"Bella, I…" he began.
"Don't continue if you're going to apologize," I interrupted. He stopped and Alice's smile was wry.
"I don't blame you, Jasper. It was a paper cut. It was my fault," I said.
"If I can't blame myself, you can't blame yourself, darling," he insisted, brushing the hair from my face gently. I smiled at his remark as he looked down at my stomach, unsure. Alice encouraged him and he complied, pressing his palm to my stomach delicately. I smiled before fighting a yawn, leaning back into the pillows. Carlisle murmured quietly to allow me to sleep and the vampires gave me space, allowing me to fall into a deep sleep.
The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the cool arms curved around my hips and hands laying against the skin of my stomach. I stretched, curling further into Edward's embrace. He chuckled, kissing my forehead in greeting.
"Good morning, Mommy," he murmured in my ear. I laughed softly as my hand joined his on my belly.
"Good morning yourself, Daddy," I replied, cuddling into him and my eyes drooping. He kissed my cheek before gently pulling me up into a sitting position. He leaned back against the headboard, his legs on either side of me, my head tucked underneath his chin. I exhaled slowly, turning onto my back and snuggling back into his shoulder. His hands gently over my abdomen endlessly, stroking my skin.
"We'll be leaving soon," he said casually. I turned my head up to look at him curiously.
"We are getting a house somewhere warm and remote; we all need a vacation and time away from the world. Carlisle thinks it would be a good place to be to help you relax. We can stay there your entire pregnancy, if you want." He continued. I turned his arms, lying sideways with my head against his shoulder.
"That's sounds really nice," I said, nuzzling his neck as I fell back into my oblivion.
Hey guys! Sorry for taking so long! So much dram at school!
Sorry for the weird ending, btw. Very awkward, I feel :/
Ok, I'm doing somethings different this time. I am having a hard time coming up with ideas for this story because the ideas are being transferred to my other story Neverland and its sequel. There are two parts of this:
Try to guess the title of Neverland's sequel from the list below:
-Lost Girl
-Secret
-Topaz
-Mystery
-We Can Fly
-Pain
-Amethyst
-Surprise
-Rise of Dawn
2) Comment requests of what you would like to see in this story. I've done Miracle of Love and I chose what I wanted to include in Bella's pregnancy and now I'm giving you the opportunity for me to write what you want to your idea and describe it so I have an idea and I will pick ideas at random and write a chapter or two. I already have a rough idea for the birth but I would love your suggestions!
To everyone in the US, Happy Thanksgiving!
~Melinda :)
