Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight! I promise! I swear! Don't mob me!
Chapter Four
"Don't leave me alone,
'Cause I barely see at all.
Don't leave me alone.
I'm falling in the black,
Slipping through the cracks,
Falling to the depths, can I ever go back?
Dreaming of the way it used to be,
Can you hear me?"
~ Skillet
"Brilliant!"
All eyes turn to Carmen, who is grinning gleefully, her hands clasped together and an almost wistful expression in her eyes. The wind ruffled her perfect bob but she doesn't seem effected by the cold. "Oh, this is just brilliant," she says to herself – but we all hear her.
My mind is trying to play catch up – Izzy is trying to keep up with what's happening now. We're pulled in two directions and it makes my head pound with the effort.
I look down.
It all happened so fast – too fast. I'd stepped forward around Edward and Alice and I knew they were a few feet behind me. And then, that redheaded pyro stepped out and he was going to burn me at Carmen's direction.
But I wasn't touched.
Edward jumped – no, he used his apportation – in front of me, blocking the fire and getting himself hurt in the process.
My eyes focus and I notice strong arms – his arms – tight around my waist, the tendons in his hands tense and his knuckles white. I'm facing away from Carmen now and I know, by instinct, that Edward's back took the brunt of the fire.
His breath is heavy in my ear and he is leaning much of his weight against me – but I keep hearing his words, over and over again.
"It's you."
"It's you."
"It's you."
Tears well in the corner of my eyes when I see his hands twitching and I feel this chest heaving against my back. "Are you okay?"
"Edward?" I whimper – this is not how I wanted him to remember me.
Not like this.
Not injured.
It's not fair.
Pull yourself together. Pay attention.
Edward groans lightly and then it seems like the whole world explodes with noise – some clapping, some protests, some outrage and louder than everything, Carmen. "This is simply marvelous! The first alpha pair, children!"
It was on purpose? They hurt him on purpose.
Sick bastards.
Izzy, I don't know if I can deal with this-
You will. You have to.
You can't alter-
Not now.
I hear footsteps in the snow, rushing, and suddenly Alice is beside me, anxiously touching Edward's arm. "Brother?"
Edward makes a painful sound in response and my legs shake from holding up his nearly dead weight.
But he's breathing.
"Bella?" he rasps, managing to squeeze me tighter.
I nod, soundlessly sobbing.
He remembers. I just know he remembers.
Another pair of boots crunching the thin layer of snow and then Carmen's too-cheerful voice. "It has all worked out perfectly. Children, let's get this alpha to the infirmary," she says, smiling at Emmett and Jasper who look stricken and confused.
The other teenagers watch in silence as we maneuver Edward's arms over Emmett and Jasper's shoulders. Alice and I ghost along beside them, warily watching Edward's face for any sign of pain as neither of us can bear to look at his back. Rosalie pulls up the rear, glaring hatefully between Carmen and the redheaded pyro.
As we pass, a tall boy with coffee skin nods once at me. "He'll be okay."
Somehow, though I'm in a daze of looking at my feet and at Edward's face, we make it to the second floor infirmary that we didn't even know existed. A woman dressed in dark blue scrubs with caramel hair greets us worriedly.
"I'm Esme, the healer here. I take it he was…initiated?"
Jasper scoffs, laying Edward down on his stomach. "Fuck that. It's not initiation."
Emmett silently agrees, glancing out the windows.
Esme sighs and I notice how young she is – barely older than us by a few years, maybe twenty-one. She takes a pair of scissors from a drawer and carefully cuts Edward's coat and shirt off his back.
I gasp and look away.
There's no describing how horrible it looks.
Izzy is observing through sound and a weak frame of mind – she's absolutely panicking on the inside, though she refuses to show it.
One of us has to be in control of our emotions.
Izzy gladly takes that job if the tradeoff is not having to alter in this situation.
Injuries just aren't her thing.
Alice starts crying and Rosalie moves to comfort her; I can't move. I'm frozen by Edward's bedside, keeping my gaze steady on his large, pale hand.
I reach out and stroke his finger, pleased by the rough warmth I find there.
He doesn't respond but I think he passed out from the pain.
I'm glad for that.
Esme sighs sadly, clicking her tongue as she carefully inspects the large injury in the middle of Edward's back. "This is one of the worst ones," she says to herself. "It will require a few healing sessions-"
"Healing sessions?" Emmett questions, curiosity blooming in his voice. I knew it; he's smarter than we give him credit for.
"I'm a psychic healer," Esme replies. "A witch healer-"
"So it's all true?" Jasper demands. "We're witches?"
Esme laughs a bit, taking off her gloves. "I didn't believe it at first, either. But, yes. Witches."
"Are you…are you here willingly?" Alice whispers.
Esme is silent and I think we all know the answer.
How long has she been here?
I don't give two shits, as long as she makes Edward wake up.
Not lover boy?
Shut up. I'm feeling sentimental.
After a beat of silence, Esme hums tunelessly under her breath, rubbing her hands together – my eyes are drawn to the warm orange tint of her palms, almost like a flame but softer and lighter and just resting on the surface of her skin.
Watching her hands, I'm able to stomach seeing Edward's back, especially as Esme's hands barely ghost over the red, blistered and charred skin. A few seconds under her hands and his skin seems to mend itself quickly, turning bright pink and smooth, like a fresh scar that mares his perfect pale back.
It's at this point I notice the tattoo – the dragon that sits on this left shoulder blade with the tail curling around his torso, disappearing under his stomach. The tattoo itself is beautiful but I can't help noticing the fact that it's a dragon.
Renee said they called the alphas dragons…
Coincidence. It has to be.
Esme's hands lose their glow and she takes a step back, her breathing slightly quickened.
"They called me a psychic healer," Rosalie says quietly from behind me. I turn to see her looking directly at Esme. "Teach me."
Esme looks up, her brows high on her forehead.
Even Jasper – whose face is normally either impassive or mirthful – looks surprised.
Rosalie tilts her chin up. "He's important. We need Edward. I'm a psychic healer, so I should be able to do what you do. Teach me."
"Now?"
"The sooner he's recovered, the better," Rosalie says firmly.
Huh. Maybe she's not a Barbie after all.
Esme doesn't waste anytime; she quickly sits Rosalie on the other side of Edward's body so that there is a healer on either side of him and shows Rosalie how to bring up her, well, her healing light. There's no other way to describe the pink tinted glow that covers Rosalie's hands.
Together, they pass their glowing hands over Edward's back, slowly lowering their palms on each circuit until they are firmly pressing their hands into his skin – it almost looks like they are wiping away the pink scar skin, revealing perfect pale flesh. During the entire ten minuet process, Edward doesn't stir; he remains unmoving, breathing deeply, though the sweat that had begun to build on his body disappears.
Rosalie sits back, her face flushed from exertion.
Esme smiles. "He's all better, now. It would have taken me a week to do that myself."
Rosalie smiles. "I'm just…glad I can offer something to this group."
"You offer so much more than that, Rosie," Emmett whispers.
They exchange a heavy look and my heart flutters because, as snobby as Rosalie can sometimes be, she's so utterly real that Emmett is her genuine perfect match.
In the back of my mind, I briefly wonder if their attraction is all part of what Dr. Marcus has been planning since our parents' time.
But I refuse to believe that my own connection with Edward has anything to do with that history.
It's just not possible.
Even though it's very fucking possible?
We're so much more than all that.
Emmett draws Rosalie to him and I hear him say something about getting her a drink in the kitchen; they disappear down the hallway, hands clasped.
Almost at the same time, two people enter the room – one is Carmen, who I dread seeing. The other is a man not much older than Esme wearing a crisp white lab coat with startling white-blonde hair and bright blue eyes. There's even a stethoscope around his neck.
"Carlisle," Esme says, greeting him.
Carlisle smiles warmly. "Esme."
They share a look that confuses me – friendly on the surface, attraction hidden just beneath, but a sort of intelligent, stoic wisdom underneath. I immediately wonder what they know – or what they're planning.
Alice, Jasper and I are standing near the wall beside Edward's bed; Jasper is tense, glaring at Carmen, who hardly notices.
Carmen looks at Edward and claps. "Oh, Esme! He looks so healthy!"
I see Esme's jaw twitch before she smiles. "As a horse."
"You've done a marvelous job."
Esme's eyes dart to Carlisle's. "Thank you, ma'am."
Carmen waves off the title. "You know to call me Carmen, dear," she says, suddenly sounding motherly even though she's hardly more than ten years older than Esme.
I'm so confused watching this power play – Esme and Carlisle seem to be on the same team and Carmen sort of seems to realize this, but she's also blatantly ignoring it, too.
What the fuck is going on?
I wish I knew. God, do I wish I knew.
"Well, I just came to check on our newest alpha," Carmen continues, smiling that robotic bright smile. Her eyes turn and rivet on me. "And his little alpha witch!"
I furrow my brows, wanting to open my mouth and demand why she's looking at me like I hold the keys to the universe – and why she's suddenly made a relationship between me and Edward, calling me his.
For some reason, that bothers me, even though I am his.
It's because Carmen's a nut-job. Whatever she's saying comes with a price.
Carmen winks at me and Carlisle shifts, stepping closer to Edward, his eyes carefully inspecting his back as Carmen continues talking. "You'll be moving in with your alpha as soon as Carlisle releases him," she tells me.
Suddenly, my mind flashes to my time in the Phantasm earlier – they put Charles and Renee in the same room.
"Our love was inevitable."
And then I came along.
What the fuck? Are they…?
It would seem like it…
Fucking Christ.
Esme nods at me slowly from behind Carmen's back and I realize again that there are so many different things taking place in this room.
So, I nod at Carmen, mimicking Esme – because I have no idea what's going on and it's the only thing I can do.
And Carmen smiles, winking at me again and leaving the room.
A collective sigh fills the room when she's gone.
"Thank fucking Jesus," Jasper says. "That lady gives me the creeps."
Even though I completely agree with Jasper, I ignore him, looking at Esme with beseeching eyes. "Is he really okay?"
"Oh, of course. Esme is very good at what she does," Carlisle says.
I nod, instantly believing him. "Why am I being put in a room with Edward?" I whisper, half-afraid of the answer.
Again, Esme and Carlisle exchange a look that somehow puts me on edge and at ease at the same time.
Carlisle clears his throat. "They announced that they would begin pairing off the alphas and betas this week," he says.
"And how do you know? What do you do?" Jasper demands, his entire body tense again.
I was beginning to notice that Jasper truly did have a problem with authority.
Carlisle leans against one of the pristine white counters in the room, crossing his legs in front of him. He looks much older than mid-twenties all the sudden – stress and the weight of the world obviously on his shoulders.
"I'm a psychokinetic," Carlisle says. "With a specialty in chemicals. I'm sort of like the scientist here."
Jasper scoffs. "Okay, Mad Scientist, then care to explain what the fuck is going on?"
Carlisle's shoulders drop and he looks once at Edward. He sighs. "The short story is that I was born to a poor family who somehow managed to get me through high school at twelve and Stanford at fourteen. I graduated with a job in the government as the head chemist of several projects. When I was twenty, I met Esme," he says, smiling at her with endearment that spoke nothing of the love that was clear in his voice. "We got pregnant. And…we lost the child. Somehow, Esme's parents found out about the miscarriage and she was sent away to a boarding school in South Carolina. I was so distraught. And, during that time, Denali came to me and offered me something I couldn't refuse – to get Esme back. All I had to do was come work for them. So, I did. It wasn't until a year later that I realized they only wanted me for the heritage I discovered and for what Esme could do. We were the first recruits," he says sadly, grasping her hand tightly. "I regret it to this day."
Esme carefully touches his cheek. "No regrets," she says firmly, turning to us. "Once we figured out what Denali was really up to, we knew we had to stop it."
My stomach, which had dropped during the story, fluttered again.
They wanted to stop this, too.
Good. We need all the help we can fucking get.
Jasper's voice is still hard. "So, what? You're part of the board or something?"
"Unofficially. I know things that most people don't, but I'm not involved in the decision making."
Jasper nods once. "When will he wake up?"
Esme looks thoughtful. "Soon, I would think. You kids might as well go get something to eat or take a nap."
Carlisle nods in agreement and smiles at Esme. "I have to get back to the lab. I only came with Carmen when I heard about what happened." He kisses her cheek and hurries out the door.
Jasper grabs Alice's hand and pulls her towards the hall. "Let's get you something to eat, okay?"
Reluctantly, Alice nods.
Esme turns to me with a raised brow. "You're not going?"
I let my eyes linger on Edward. "I can't," I whisper.
Knowingly, Esme smiles and slowly backs out of the room. "I'll be back, then, to check up on him."
And then, she's gone and the door is closed and all that is left is Edward's steady breathing and the chaos of catch-up in my mind.
God, what has happened this day?
Well, we woke up-
Izzy! Really? Can we have a serious moment?
Izzy scoffs. Princess, I'm serious all the time. I'm seriously hating these stupid dresses. I'm seriously thinking Denali is nuts. And I'm seriously waiting for lover boy to wake up so you can kiss an apology out of his sorry ass, because we totally deserve it after what he said the other day.
You're impossible.
I'm right.
I move to sit down on a stiff white chair beside Edward's little hospital cot, letting myself slouch, my shoulders falling forward as I look around the little room.
It's actually not that little – it's quite spacious, really, an open concept room with narrow double doors in the middle that leads out into the hallway. Everything in this room is either white or silver, including the bedding, the floors, the walls, the counters, the containers of sterile needles, cotton balls and band-aids. Half of the room is devoted to all sorts of new monitors for the heart along with a wide white set of cabinets that I assume are filled with all sorts of medical supplies – though why anyone would need any medical supplies with Esme around, I'll never know. The other half of the room is dedicated two three standard issue hospital cots and sheer white privacy curtains.
As I'm staring at the curtains, I realize how much the white walls are getting to me – I feel cold in my soul because of this sterile room.
Not hesitating, I reach up and pull the privacy curtain around Edward's bed, closing us off from the narrow windows and the silence of the hallway.
That feels better but I won't know how to feel until he wakes up.
He remembers, Bella.
"It's you."
I sigh, closing my eyes for a moment.
And then, I hear the best sound in the world – the one I had been anxiously anticipating.
Edward's tired groan.
It's the one he makes when he's waking up because he wants to sleep more.
I know it well.
Luckily for me, his head is turned towards my chair; I think the first thing he sees when he blinks open his eyes are my bare knees.
His pupil is much larger than it normally is, but I attribute it to lingering pain and just waking up.
He licks his lips.
Blinks again.
Focuses his eyes up at me, the brilliant color of his iris somewhere between blue and green.
"Bella."
And then, I'm crying, my hands covering my mouth as his hand moves to my knee, soothing me softly.
I move, kneeling down beside him, reaching my arm over his shoulder and burying my face in the crook of his neck.
"Shh, sweetheart, it's okay. I'm okay," he murmurs, moving his arm to lock around my waist.
Nothing about our position is comfortable but I don't care.
Nothing matters more in this moment than his arm around me.
He remembers. God, he remembers.
I cry for a while, unable to stop myself.
Edward let's me, eventually moving so that he is propped up on the fluffy pillows, holding me against his strong, broad chest.
I feel like he's grown stronger since the last time he held me – and then, I remember it must have something to do with whatever they injected us with in the steel room in Albany.
As soon as the thought enters my mind, it flees and I focus on the feeling of his warm hand rubbing my back, one long circuit from the back of my neck to the bottom of my spine and back.
He feels so fucking good.
He always has.
And he remembers. It's good to have lover boy back.
I press my lips to his neck.
And then, I do it again.
And again, slower, letting my mouth open against his skin.
I feel him swallow, his throat bobbing underneath my skin while his hand stops moving, pulling me to him.
I kiss him with my open mouth, tasting him, moving down his neck to his shoulder and then to his Adam's apple.
Edward tilts his head back, giving me room to do as I please and I take advantage, turning my body even further into him and moving my mouth to his chin, carefully kissing each inch of his jaw.
Gently, he turns his head to me, meeting my lips softly.
I've missed him.
I think we've missed all of him, Bella.
His hand moves to the back of my neck, tilting my head so that he can fully taste my mouth.
We kiss until we can't breathe.
It's like saying hello.
He rests his forehead against mine, kissing my nose once, his eyes locked with mine.
"I missed you," I whisper.
Edward smiles a tiny bit. "You know? I missed you, too. I just…didn't understand it."
"So, you remember losing your memory?" I ask, frowning at how the question sounded – so odd.
"Yes," he sighs, his breath washing over me. "I remember thinking you were beautiful, too. Because you are."
My face heats up and I kiss him softly.
"But I also remember wanting to kick James's ass for touching you. And I remember watching you this morning," he says, pausing. "I also remember that pyro guy getting ready to burn you and only being able to think, not her."
I close my eyes. "You got hurt because of me."
"And I would do it again, sweetheart."
Tears fill my eyes again as I remember Charles and Renee – he got himself killed for her, for my mother, and she still died. I shake my head. "Don't say that."
"Why not?"
I'm silent.
"Sweetheart, talk to me."
I bite my lips.
We have to tell him sometime. Might as well get this shit over with.
And so, I tell him – everything about the Phantasm and about Carlisle and Esme.
About his grandmother.
And how Dr. Marcus is apparently his grandfather, to which he says, "You've got to be fucking with me."
I shake my head. "I wish I was."
"I'm related to that creepy fucker?"
He tilts his head up to the ceiling, frowning.
By now, we've moved to laying down on the narrow cot, my head on his chest and his arms tight around me.
"Well," he says after a moment. "That's a complication we didn't anticipate."
I nod, silent.
"But it doesn't change anything."
"It doesn't?"
With a hard jaw, he shakes his head, resolute. "Not at all. We will be getting out of here. Denali, Carmen, they just gave us an opportunity to plan without realizing it. We'll be sharing a room, sweetheart. We'll be able to plan and protect each other better."
I smile a bit, because I hadn't thought of it that way.
And then, I frown. "But they're trying to breed us."
Edward laughs, his hand moving down to my hip and then slinking from my thigh to my knee, pulling my leg to hitch over his narrow hips. "You don't want me?"
My face hot and my heart pounding, I bite my lip. "I didn't say that," I whisper, letting my hand slide over his chest so I can feel his heartbeat.
Edward's hand slowly travels from my knee to my backside, where he squeezes me softly. "Good. Because, not all of our time can be spent planning, you know?"
"Oh, it can't?"
He smirks. "If we plan all the time, we'll get burnt out and then our plan will never work."
He leans down to kiss me sweetly, pulling back with a playful wink.
"Of course," I reply breathlessly, my mind whirring with images of our bodies pressed together, courtesy of Izzy.
Edward yawns and I move my leg off him, sitting up on the edge of the cot. "You need to sleep," I say.
"I'm fine."
"Sleep," I whisper, kissing the corner of his mouth. "You need to rest to heal."
He rolls his eyes but eventually agrees, his breathing becoming slow in just a few moments.
I sit, watching him, for a while.
I can't take my eyes off him.
Izzy can't, either.
Sometime later, Alice shuffles into the room, pushing aside the curtain to stare at her brother sleeping on his back. "He woke up?"
I smile, pushing stray hair off my face and behind my ears. "He's good as new. And he remembers."
Alice smiles, a genuine one, before her expression becomes grave and thoughtful.
Alice turns towards me, looking away from her brother with large, flat eyes. "You know what's really odd, Bella?"
I meet her gaze. "What?"
"If your mother was nineteen when she died, after she had you, and my mother was just born not soon after…wouldn't that make you my mother's age?"
My back tenses, my spine straight and stiff.
Oh, God. How did we miss that before?
I'm…not sure. We should be in our thirties, then?
Yeah. Something's not right here, Izzy.
You can say that shit again.
A/N: So, my come-back is super strong ;) HE REMEMBERS! And, they made out soo…yay!
Reviews:
Krystalwinds1990 – HE REMEMBERS!
SrslyGiGi – Hmm…Does Marcus know? Good question! I haven't decided! Lol
Love M Go Blue – Ha! Didn't mean to pressure you lol Yes, Marcus want's everyone to have popsicle babies ;) Nah, I just….didn't think about it when I was writing. As for James, his parents aren't important. He's just…a creepy guy!
Twilight Rocker 12 – Evil evilness? You don't say? Lol Of course you're awesome!
Twivampchick – Oh, my God did your review make me blush redder than a tomato! Thank you thank you thank you! I'm so happy to have you as a Rioteer!
CdrIvanova – I typed out this chapter before I got busy, so I win on life, right? Lol
LunaDiSangue85 – Oh, snap. You're the only one who caught it lol I have a very good explanation!
Dinotopian- Thank you!
james3142 – Luff back! ;)
Kimmie41 – Oh, do share the theories! Sorry, no EPOV again! He just had to be sleeping all chapter long, the lazy boy! Lol
Midnight Angels Say GoodNight – Oh yeah, they have to uhmmmm reacquaint themselves? lol
solidae26 – Sadly, there was no face breaking!
Vikilover – So many great questions that I don't have answers to lol Uh, let's see…Felix is kind of a psycho, so he just killed them to kill them…Marcus is a devious, smart man so the chances are he does know, even though I haven't decided yet…And why take Bella? That, I simply cannot tell you…yet lol
Dreamzuvedward – pssh, yeah lol I had to give Aro a break . Poor guy is gonna catch some major shit in the next two stories I'm writing lol
YesMyRealNameIsBella – Oh, my God lol Should I just updates on the weekend for you? You gotta be rested and stuff for school, girl!
Kaygou – Did you know I kind of love you? Lol "Update and I don't care how long it takes!"
Welcome2MyWorldxoxo – Annnnd….there was the next chapter!
Debslmac – Loving it, too! :D
And to the first review of the last chapter, an extra special shout out to Valentine Rain – Lol I'm sorry! I had to end it there!
Well, Rioteers, I'm looking forward to some Coffee Heath Bar Crunch and the Emmy's tomorrow night, Sunday September 23, 2012 at 8 PM on ABC (yes, dears, I did just advertise for the Emmy's lol It's awards season and that means pretty clothes!)
As always, be brutally honest. I can take it.
~cupcakeriot