*Hey guys, I know this chapter is a little long and full of fluff, but I'd love it if you'd let me know your opinions on it. Thanks!*
With a menacing glare, Jane strained to make Edward burn. His screaming and writhing was unbearable. What had we ever done to deserve this? Fangs sunk into Jasper's face and arms, while Alice was shoved into a small room. Rosalie was cornered by three, tall male vampires and Emmett was unable to get to her without being stunned by Alec. Esme was taunted by Aro's followers about her dead baby, and Carlisle was forced to watch this all taking place. The worst was Edward. Why was no one helping him?
Why did no one bite me?
"Bella! Bella, shh, wake up! I'm here, you're safe!" Edward whispered fiercely as his hands frantically ran up and down my arms. Why was he comforting me? He was being mentally burned, for crying out loud!
"Make them stop! Jasper, Rosalie! Jane won't stop hurting-" I blurted out, before I realized how idiotic I sounded. My mind awoke with a start, but the relief I felt was short-lived. My face crumpled as I realized how childish I was being.
"We're all fine, you're safe here. It was just a dream, love," Edward softly spoke, his voice still full of alarm. I sat up in bed next to him and wrapped my arms as tightly around him as I could manage.
His arm reached around me to turn a light on. His eyes were full of dread. How much had he heard from my nightmare? He was wearing a different shirt than I last remembered; his new one was a deep maroon button down with vertical navy stripes. His hair was perfect, but his face was etched with concern.
Looking down, I noticed that I was still in my lavender sweater and jeans. I patted my head and ran my shaky hand down the length of my hair. It was tangled and matted. Tossing and turning probably was to blame for that. Edward never took his gaze off me as a surveyed myself.
"What did you hear?" I asked quietly, almost afraid of the answer. I hated it when Edward thought I was scared of his world. Being with him for eternity would eventually put an end to my nightmares, in more ways than one. The lurking dangers around me were terrifying, but staying human was the cause of it all. Why couldn't Edward just agree with me?
"You screaming. You never actually said distinct words. Except…my name." Edward answered. He seemed tense, his body was more rigid than usual. Instead of calming me like I used to when the Italy nightmares used to plague my dreams, he just sat still this time. His arms were off my waist, and he kept to himself.
"Well…thanks for waking me up. How long was I out for?"
"Bella, you slept for barely an hour. I didn't wake you at first because you desperately need sleep. Do you realize you've hardly slept in the past two days?" He said warily, as if he too needed sleep.
"I'm sorry to worry you. I'll try to sleep now, if that'll make you feel better." I said, trying to lean against him. Edward's scent and the hum of his voice was sure to lull me into a peaceful slumber. However, I met a hard rock. His arms didn't move from his sides when I tried to hold them. His ice cold hands slowly pushed me away, and his face was unreadable.
"Edward-" I started, confused.
"Stop it. If you're going to sleep, then sleep." His voice was hard. Suddenly, I was angry. Without thinking, I scooted off his high bed. My ankle painfully rolled as I clumsily tried to maneuver my way through the dark hallway. With a silent wince of pain, I still managed to hobble into Alice's room.
"I'm seeping on your couch. If Edward comes in here, let him know he's not welcome." I angrily spat at Alice as I collapsed onto her deep purple chaise longue. She emerged from her massive closet, hangers dangling from her arms. I could use her fashion expertise at this very moment, since looking into her large mirror caused me to mentally condemn myself for looking so rumpled.
"What got into you?" She questioned curiously, her head coked to one side. Suddenly, her face became vacant. I was now used to Alice's visions, but with the suspicious stranger incident I felt like I was constantly on my toes. Within seconds, a smile returned to her little pixie face.
"You are Edward are going to make up in about sixteen minutes. He feels really bad." She said, gracefully tearing off tags from clothes and hanging them in her closet. A pretty, dark blue dress caught my eye as Alice blew past me into her closet. How she could spend so much money on clothing she wore only once still baffled me, but money was obviously not an issue for the ageless Cullens. I shook my head as I pulled a pillow off one side of her sofa and hugged it to my lap.
Edward gently knocked twice on the door, and Alice smirked as she floated towards her favorite brother.
"I'm relaying the message that you are in no way welcome," her high voice sang as she relocated to another room of the house. Oh Alice. Sometimes I wondered how she could be so carefree. Edward muttered something like, "deserved that," as he silently made his way over to me. I didn't take my eyes off the floor, Alice's velvety pillow felt hot against my warm face. Tears welled up in my eyes as I relived the rejection I faced in Edward's room moments earlier. he knelt before me, and he placed his hand slowly on the pillow in my lap. He sat still for a moment before speaking.
"You being in harm's way, and myself not being able to protect you sickens me. You not being able to escape painful memories I myself caused destroys me even more. I am in love with you, Bella. But I always put you at risk.
"This beautiful face," he said, holding my chin as he forced me to look up at him, "does not deserve the horrible expressions from the nightmares I caused you," he finished, sparkling topaz eyes staring intently at mine.
"I swear, rejection from you will be the death of me, Edward."
"Interesting choice of words," Edward breathed, his face inching closer to mine, "and for the record, I could never, ever reject you in any sort of way."
"Then why did you get so angry with me? My dream was about you getting hurt, not me. The only thing I'm scared of for myself is losing my sanity if you leave again."
"Bella, will you please start acting like a typical, egotistic adolescent girl? You are entirely too self-sacrificing for your own good. As soon as you were aware of what I was you should have run off." Edward sighed, clearly knowing he was futilely arguing with me.
"Next time I have a nightmare, can you just comfort me like any other decent fiancée?" I smiled, trying to lighten the discussion. I knew how much Edward adored that word, and the fact that I was wearing his mother's engagement ring.
My plan worked brilliantly. He flashed me a gorgeous smile, and sat down next to me on Alice's couch. In a flash, I was wrapped up in a soft blanket in his lap. My right cheek was pressed firmly to his chest as his lips kissed the top of my head. One hand held my body tightly to his, as the other one began combing through the tangles in my hair. I couldn't help but sigh in happiness. I was in bliss.
"Better?" He murmured as his hand smoothed idly up and down my back. I nodded my head tiredly, fatigue getting the better of me.
"Dream happy dreams. You hold my heart, Bella. Nothing will ever alter the way I feel about you. Goodnight, the love of my existence, " were the last things I heard before I surrendered to sleep.