Chapter four, back to Edward's point of view and the return of the Cullen's!
Chapter Four – Stay -
Previously - Unbuttoning it, I slid her arms through it and then buttoned it up, sighing contently in victory and sending a lazy smile in her direction.
Well, that was fun………
So, what now? After such an eventful day, it seemed strange to just sit and wait – even if I did get to stare at Bella. I felt like I just had to do something, anything. There had to be some kind of preparation for Bella that I could make, for when she was finished. I could scout the area to make sure that animals were around, but that involved leaving her and I just was not prepared to make that sacrifice.
Plus leaving the house could spread my trail around enough to not only scare the animals off, but the wolves might also pick up my scent, if they hadn't already. That wouldn't end well. Regardless, there was still over two days till she was done and we would probably just go over things with her a bit first, tell her that the burn was normal as were her new instincts. The urge to kill was very strange, when you weren't actually killing that is.
I could go back to her house and pack some clothes and books for her – make it look like she had run away from home. We would have to get rid of her truck, that was probably somewhere near that cliff. I'm sure Rosalie wouldn't mind throwing it in the ocean for me. She hated the monstrosity almost as much as I did. She may not have liked Bella, but she didn't want her dead and agreed that the truck was an accident waiting to happen, one that Rosalie could probably help avoid if she was allowed to tinker with the truck. She wouldn't voice these opinions or offer her assistance, but I had caught her thinking about it on more than one occasion.
Making it look like Bella had run away from home would be a good cover. Thousands of run-away's are never heard from again, either gaining new identities of dying, sad as it is. That would break Charlie heart, but he was a fighter. He would grieve, be angry but eventually be able to get on with his day to day life, even if he never forgot. Bella would be devastated if she new how badly Charlie would react to the news of Bella 'death'. I don't think that she understands just how much he loves her. I remember passing by him just after Bella had decided to move here, and the mans usually foggy thoughts had all but screamed at me. 'She's coming! I can't believe my babies coming home/1 I hope she can be happy here – I know she can't stand this place. I should go talk to Billy about that truck….' If only I had known then how annoying that stupid truck would prove to be. How any man could buy that for his daughter, I will never know. If only I knew how special his daughter would become to me, if only I knew not to fight it. I should have listened to Alice all along, though I would never tell her that.
But even that plan had faults. One, I didn't want to leave Bella. Two, Charlie was close to the wolves, of at least the dad of one. I assumed that Jacob Black would be a wolf. He had the same last name as the old chief so it only made sense that he too would transform. The wolves would probably go to the house to see if they could help Charlie (or at least Jacob Black would. The silly pup had always been infatuated with my Bella. ) and they would catch the scent of vampire, but would they know that it was us? Maybe some random vampire came to Forks and went to Bella's house. It could happen, kinda. Bella had a superb scent, even other vampires could see that – or smell that I guess. The chances were high but with Bella being such a danger magnet it could happen.
We wouldn't necessarily have to go to her house to make it look like a run-away. That would just help. We could take the money from her account so that it would look like she had her money and leave it at that – but getting her things would be so much more convincing. Charlie knows that his daughter, like him, is a fighter. He wouldn't think that she would just run away and wouldn't give up easily on her, but eventually he would accept that she just wasn't coming home.
We could pretend that she had drowned. Her truck was near the cliff and there was blood on the rocks. This storm just kept getting bigger so it would just be thought that she couldn't handle the current – if she wanted to.
And that is entirely your fault.
Shaking my head against the grief that wanted to consume me, I kept cliff dive would be the easiest was and we would spread our scent less. There would only be one or two trails to worry about.
So that would be how Isabella Swan would die. Suicide. Jumping off a cliff.
We would have to tell Esme what had happened and she would be horrified. She would find some way to blame herself, even if this was obviously my fault – that was just her nature. Shaking my head again, I looked more carefully at Bella. There were some changes already, even if it had only been a few hours. Most of her right arm was whiter. Her neck, of course was paler so I assumed that her shoulder and the right side of her upper chest was whiter as well. Probably harder and colder too.
My Angel open her mouth and I could see the pain written over her face and in her eyes, in the way that she help herself. "Bella, love, it's alright to scream, it helps." But I couldn't bare it if she did. How selfish that inwardly I wished that she wouldn't do something that might just help her through pain that I had inflicted, in more was than one. "I'm so sorry." She'd never know how sorry I was.
"Edward" Her beautiful, mumbled voice spoke to me. My eyes snapped open (how do I keep closing them without realizing?) and my mouth opened in shock.
"Err…umm…..Bella? Did you… did you just? Speak. Did you just speak or am I going insane, again." Only this girl could get me to stammer, did she have any idea how great her effect on me was? But still, she spoke. Going through a vampire change and the woman speaks. How did she do that?
"Wolves back, you broke…."
"The treaty?" I could see how much talking hurt her. She must be trying not to scream.
Her returning nod was small, but any movement made by her attracted my eyes..
"Yer, I know but that doesn't matter, we can deal with that later. We will have to leave town, probably never come back. If you want, we can say that somebody else changed you and we found each other again." I couldn't resist touching her, and her cheek was so close. I wondered if she could see the adoration in my eyes. "We can figure something out. The others will be here soon and they probably have some ideas."
She looked confused.
"Later?"
"Yer, after the change is complete and it's easier to think." Would I go with them when they left, or would I be on my own again? Without anyone – without Bella. The thought was painful and Bella had enough of that going on. I cleared my face and prepared myself for the worst, but not expecting her almost immediate wail.
"Bella, Bella!" My hands flew back to her face and she appeared to get better. Throwing her a look of pure concern (I couldn't stand that look on her face, and the scream just came from nowhere, she hadn't even been whimpering.)
"Yer, later. After you change, when you're a new born, your thirst is really strong, control is very difficult but it's harder when you're on your own. I think that you should come with me and my family to – wherever we go. I think there all living in Ithaca but don't know if they are planning to stay there. I know that they all miss you and that they can't wait to see you, and that they would be more than happy to take you in, permanently even, if that was what you wanted. If your not, erm, comfortable around me when you wake, than I could leave for a while." I couldn't let her see the pain that that caused me, the thought of being away from her again.
But, Ireminded myself, you're not letting go this time. You won't let go. You will come back and she has to know that.
"But I would come back," My head rose to look her in the eye. "I let you go once and that proved absolutely pointless, what I didn't want to happen I realized wasn't so bad, and then he happened anyway – by my hand no less. The whole separation was a complete waste of time, time I could have spent with you. Can't believe I was so naive in the first place." What was I thinking and why couldn't I have listened to her about my soul. Why hadn't I taken everyone else's advice and why couldn't I have made my new revelation before I left – I wasted so much precious time that I could have had with human Bella. I looked back in her eyes to memorize the exact colour; I wanted to be sure that I had it right. I made sure to breathe through my nose, so that I could capture her scent, I didn't want it to change – even if it had to in order for her to be with me forever. I listened to her heart beat, thumping away in her chest, getting ever closer to its final beat.
Bella's eyes turned away from my own and looked at the phone, on the table next to the television. It took me a moment to realize that it was ringing, because I was concentrating so hard on her heart beat.
I raced over and picked up the phone, Thanking God that it ws cordless, desperate to get back to Bella. "Hello?"
"Edward, we'll be there in a few hours but how is she? How are you?" Carlisle's anxious voice was getting playful. "How did you handle the whole undressing her thing?" I could hear the laughter of the rest of our family in the background..
"Thankyou Alice." More laughter.
"Bella is doing alright, she's only screamed a few times and hasn't thrashed or anything as far as I've seen. But it is amazing. She can control her voice enough to stop her whimpers and she can control her actions, her movements. Well at least she could I don't know if she still," She raised her un-infected hand again, to touch me cheek, giving me the answer I hadn't known that I so desperately wanted. "Oh yer, she can still control her movements. You have to be careful on your way here, The wolves are back in La Push and they probably caught me scent. Did Alice tell you what happened?"
"No, we just know that there was an accident." Carlisle replied.
"Well, yer," I could not tell them this over the phone, the people on the plane would probably have heart attacks from their reactions. I can imagine the crying and screaming and yelling and blame and I was not looking forward to that. "The accident happened in La Push, so I had to cross the border, break the treaty. I smelt wolf and I don't know if they caught my scent, it's raining really hard now, my scent could have washed away. We'll have to leave the area very very soon, either before the change finishes or just after she's hunted, we will have to drive in the night, so that not that many people are out, and we will take as many deserted roads as possible, or we can try and run to Alaska or Canada. What do you think?"
"The wolves! Their back? But I thought that they all died, that the gene wasn't there anymore. Alice, did you see this?"
There was a slight pause but the Carlisle continued. "Alright well we will have a think about it and then call you back later. We will be landing in a few hours so we will call you when we land. We'll get bigger cars incase we need to drive anywhere."
"Thankyou Carlisle, I'll see you all soon." And then I hung up
"See, everything will be fine, no need to worry." I told Bella soothingly, stroking her cheeks and hair softly, smiling adoringly at her.
"Alright." She nodded, and then lapsed back to being quiet while I continued to stroke her face and hair, running my fingers across her still soft lips and memorizing her scent, her heart beat, and her still somewhat human features.
Her head was still bandaged in my t-shirt, but the smell of fresh blood had gone stale, meaning that she was no longer bleeding. I went upstairs momentarily and got another two hand towels, racing back to the kitchen and grabbing a small bowl, filling it with water and racing back to Bella.
I pulled of the bandage and her eyes slowly opened, looking at=t the bowl, and then me, with confusion.
"I went and got them quickly while your eyes where closed, sorry but we can't have the smell of blood in the house with everyone else coming back." My voice darkened with the reminder of what had happened last time blood was spilt, in this very living room none the less. She nodded and allowed me to wash away the dried blood in her hair and on her forehead. I liked this, being able to take care of the woman I loved.
Just hope she still needs me when she's, strong and indestructible. Surely then she will realize how much better than me she is, and how much more that she deserves.
Bella clamped her mouth shut again but kept her eyes focused intently on me. They were shining with unleashed tears, probably the last tears she would ever shed. I put the towel back in the basin and stroked her cheeks again. I just couldn't keep my hands off of her.
"It's alright to cry, love. You probably won't get another chance soon. You may not like the tears now, but you'll miss them later, when you can't shed them anymore." I cooed, and that was all it took for the flood gates to open. She wasn't over dramatic about it. She did it in true Bella fashion. The tears made silent trails across her cheeks and dropped onto my hand, which I had placed just under her face. The salty little drops of water splashed onto my hand and I didn't even bother trying to wipe her tears away, not just yet. Insane as this sounds, she would miss the sensation of having them on her face.
She pulled herself together after a while, shaking her head and closing her eyes. The venom hadn't reached her head yet, if she could still cry. Warning her why and what I was about t attempt, I loosened her arms from her torso, and pulled her shirt up, just a bit. Her stomach was pale and hard and cold, her normal skin tone coming back just above her waist. I now understood why she had chosen then to cry. The stomach was one of the most painful parts of the change, after her head and then her heart.
I had no idea what the time was, but it was dark out. Iwas starting to wish that we hadn't turned everything off at the wall when we moved, when I heard cars roaring down the driveway. Undoubtedly, Alice was behind the wheel of the first car, the girls drove faster than me. The two cars pulled to a stop just near the door.
"Edward Cullen what did you do to my front door!" Esme's scream of outrage could probably be heard on the other side of town, but this I had expected.
Alice answered before I could open my mouth, but her reply wasn't the bit helpful. "You should see Carlisle's office!" She giggled.
"What!" Esme and Carlisle.
"I was in a hurry! And I only broke a phone up there, no big deal!" I defended. "The phone was Alice's fault; she should have waited to call."
"Blaming your problems on other people, I've taught you well, little brother." Emmett boomed his approval and I rolled my eyes.
Alice was next to me, bouncing away, clapping and chanting "Bella! Bella! Bella!" You had to smile at her enthusiasm; even Bella had a slight smile on her face. Alice reached in to awkwardly hug Bella, no couch would get in her way.
"Bells!" Obviously Emmett, but at least he didn't hug her. He simply smiled and plopped down next to me. Alice grabbed the bowl full of the blood and water just as I turned to get it. She winked at me and turned away.
Jazz wouldn't have done anything, he has gotten much better since we left, even ask Carlisle.
She was getting defensive. I hadn't meant to offend her. Up until then I hadn't even thought about what effect the blood would have on anyone, I just wanted to make Bella more comfortable. Alice saw my explanation and mentally sighed.
Sorry I am just frustrated that I haven't been able to see to much. She's there but I think she's confused. I see her with us and then running alone. I see us moving and still together twenty years later
The hope came back full force here.
But then I see newborn Bella running and coming across a hiker and well,
Bella was running, graceful and beautiful as ever, she took a sharp turn and growled. She ran until she reached a hiker, about 40 with a broken leg.
"Well, hello gorgeous, don't suppose you've got a phone on you, do you? I need to call for some help and – "
He never finished his sentence. She was quick and efficient about draining him, but looked so shocked when she'd done. So cover her mouth and backed away, before letting out an earth shattering scream.
I had that exact vision again, but this time you can catch up with her and she comes home.
And now the hope was just sitting there, unsure of what to do but getting slowly dulled by the shock.
"But would she come back?" The others had entered the room by now and had said their greeting's to Bella and they all turned to me, even Bella moved her eyes towards me, and I kept them locked there.
"I didn't see that far, but something happens to make her go. She's still confused about something – that has her undecided, even if she doesn't know it."
It was very quiet for a moment until Bella's whisper came through. "Me?"
Everyone turned to look at Bella, mouths open and eyes wide. I just smiled.
"I know right? How does she do it?"
Emmett started to laugh at my use of 'I know right?'. Apparently Bella being a modern day teenager has started to rub off on me. Rosalie and Jasper looked impressed, even if he was slowly edging himself towards the stairs. Esme and Carlisle were still in shock and Alice dropped the bowl in the kitchen sink.
"Well, that was unexpected. You can talk while you're going through the change?" Bella nodded at Carlisle, how now looked delighted at an opportunity to gain new information. "Does the change still hurt for you Bella? Is it full out pain or just a sting?"
"It's the same as everyone else Carlisle, excuse me." Jasper responded for Bella, and then dashed up the stairs as fast as his long legs could take him.
Alice ran into the room and pushed me out of the way, breaking my eye contact with Bella.
"What are you undecided about Bella? We want you to stay with us, you're family." Alice finished with her award winning pout and Bella closed her eyes, but Alice jumped up and started to dance. "She got clearer, much clearer! Yay! Jazzy guess what?" And she run up the stairs to find her husband, leaving the rest of us just staring after her. You never fully got used to Alice's mood swings
"So, on the plane we were discussing what to do next and, assuming that Bella will come with us, we decided to move back to Ashland, remember that small town, the one were I you met Esme?" Carlisle turned to me, the smile on his face growing more pronounced with every word. As if I could ever forget Ashland, or the events that took place there. I was so shocked when he brought Esme home, that I cowardly ran away, even if it was only for a day. Of course, Carlisle hadn't met his wife there. No, they had met ten years earlier, when she was only sixteen and had broken her leg falling out of a tree. They had already fallen in love, not as much as they were now obviously, but the feelings were still there. When she had jumped from the cliff and Carlisle had recognized her, he new that he couldn't just let her die. He changed her and they have been together every since, almost. It took them months to tell each other how they felt, even if I did have to meddle just a bit.
We would all drive out of state were Bella, Alice, Jasper, Carlisle and myself would all get out and run to Ashland. Rosalie, Emmett and Esme would all drive back to Port Angeles, drop off the cars and then fly back to Ithaca then get everything shipped over and then fly back to Ashland.
He and Esme left after they explained everything, up to his office or their bedroom or something, and Emmet and Rose followed them. I think they realized that I wasn't going to be much help in making conversation – that I just wanted to be with Bella, who was still just staring into my eyes, as I was her.
She couldn't leave the family. I wouldn't allow she to. I would if leave if it was what she so wished, but she had to stay. It would make her happy and safe, But I wanted to stay with her, I needed to. She was my only reason to live and there was no point being away from her. I cupped her cheeks with my hands and rested my forehead against her own I whispered on word.
"Stay."
Another tear trailed across her cheek and onto my hand She nodded. Small and simple, but it made my world light up.
Alice's victory call could surely be heard over the state border.
Chapter five will be up sometime this week. Thankyou to all the people who added this story or me to their alerts or favourites, you made my day. Please Review!!
