Disclaimer: Emmett is my bodyguard. Jasper alerts me to fake friends and backstabbers. Edward completes my science homework. Carlisle is my on call doctor. Esme does my chores for me. Alice picks out my fabulous wardrobe. Rosalie fixes my make-up and hair daily. And Bella provides the comedic relief with her klutzy human stunts. I got the idea for this disclaimer from a Gilmore Girls fanfic and in case you haven't realized I don't own Twilight.
A/N: Who's ready for more from Bella's crazy brain? Enjoy and review?
BPOV (Bella's POV)
I walked into the building where my new therapist was supposed to be. This Dr. Esme Cullen came highly recommended; I hoped she could keep up with my freaky brain.
The receptionist told me that Dr. Cullen was running late, so I took a seat in the waiting room. It felt like something was staring at me, so I looked for the source without success. However, there was a feeling in the pit of my stomach that told me something was wrong. I kept twitching at the slightest noise and I could feel a cold sweat start to cover my face. Thankfully the receptionist told me I could wait for Dr. Cullen in her office, I think she thought I was an agoraphobic, but I was just happy to be away from the cold feeling.
The instant I walked into the office I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I took a seat on the couch and glanced at the pictures and diplomas hanging on the wall. I was going to stand up to look at a family photo, because one of the men looked very familiar when the feeling in my gut told me to sit down.
One of the most beautiful women I have ever seen entered the room. She had a warm, motherly presence.
"Hello, I'm Doctor Cullen, but please call me Esme. I so sorry I'm late; I had a bit of a family emergency."
For some reason I felt like I should be wary of this woman, but I pushed the fear to the back of my mind as I fulfilled my curiosity. "Its okay Esme, is everything alright?"
"I'm not entirely sure, but I think it will be. But that's enough about me, let's talk about you." Well, that was probably the most cryptic answer ever, I dully thought, as I absentmindedly scratched my right arm.
"Well, the doctors in Chicago and New York City all gave up on me, because, apparently, I'm just too crazy."
"Well, Ms. Swan, let's see if we can't reach the root of the problem," she replied with a cheerful expression, I hope she wasn't one of those doctors that saw the world as a place full of rainbows, candy and butterflies, because if she is I think I'm going to have to tell Charlie I refuse to come back here.
"Well, the first part of my life's story is really boring so I'll just tell you the good stuff." I paused for a moment, a stray thought crossing my mind. "This session is completely confidential, correct?" I ask.
"Yes, Ms. Swan. The only exception is if you tell me that you plan on hurting yourself; then I'm required by law to tell your family."
"Alright, then, where to begin? Well I think I should inform you that you are my fourth therapist in two months and this is my fourth home in two months, though neither of my parents know it." Esme's face was filled with shock, but she immediately covered it with the calm therapist façade. I decided to go into more detail to help her understand my brain.
"You see first one was in my hometown of Phoenix, the doctor was nice and all, but after my mom married Phil I wanted to give the newlyweds some space to do newlywed things. I planned on shipping myself to Forks in the fall.
"But I got this really weird dream telling me to get out of Phoenix immediately. I have absolutely no clue why I listened to the voice, but I did. I told Renee I called Charlie and arranged to head to Forks earlier and she got me a flight that had a stop in Chicago I just got off the plane. I lived in Chicago for a month, then New York for a month before coming to live in Forks with my dad. As far as I know neither of my parents knew, and the only indication would be my considerably smaller college fund." I decided that was a sufficient explanation, but like all therapist Esme wouldn't accept my response.
"Now you said a dream possessed you to leave Phoenix early."
"Well not a single dream, it was dream after dream after dream. It was exactly the same. It was almost like a prophecy telling me what to do."
"But why did you listen to it?"
"It wouldn't leave me alone," I stated, rubbing my arm.
"Even so, you said you had a therapist in Phoenix who you could have talked to."
"But he would have told my mother and then I'd be stuck with the newlyweds."
"So you decided to lie to your parents and live in two different cities with no family nearby?"
"Something bad was going to happen if I stayed in Phoenix."
"How do you know that?"
"I just do!" I shouted. I was rapidly losing my temper with Dr. Cullen. She was supposed to help me understand myself, not aggravate me.
"No, you don't know. You believed so because a voice in your head told you so."
"Her name is Marie," I stated sulkily, before realizing that I have just made myself seem schizophrenic.
"You've named the voice in your head."
"No, she told me."
"Ms. Swan, I have to inform you that this information is not normal." I could see her getting that look in her topaz eyes that my other therapists had, they want me in a mental hospital. It's time to change tactics.
"No, Dr. Cullen, she told me in a dream, where it is perfectly normal to hear voices accompanied with faces, and I connected the voice in my dream to my subconscious." I smiled sweetly and hoped she would just accept my explanation and move on. Dr. Cullen gazed at me suspiciously.
"Alright, Bella, I'll let the fact that you named the voice in your head slide for now. However, I still cannot believe that you listened to the voice."
"Well, I did. I'm fine. I might have been wrong, I might have been right, but regardless I made my decision and it's over."
"But it was incredibly stupid. You could…" My frustration reached an all time high.
"I know what could have happened, Dr. Cullen. I spent weeks deciding if I was going to listen to the voice, but in the end I listened. I don't have a time machine. All I can do is change for the future. But until then stop beating a dead horse!" I shouted, standing up to let my frustration be known, as a burning sensation encompassed my right arm.
I sat down with a huff and crossed my arms over my chest childishly. Esme gave me an appraising look, before responding. "We are out of time for today, so I suggest we let this discussion end for the day. We shall pick it up during a later session. Based on what I've seen today, I think we should make our sessions bi-weekly. So I'll see you next Tuesday."
"I can't make that appointment, Dr. Cullen," I stated with a clipped tone. Esme Cullen was getting on my nerves.
"Pray tell, why not Bella?" She replied, I could tell I was getting on her nerves as well.
"Charlie can't drive me down more than once every two weeks, maybe once a week, because of his job. My truck can't make it up here from Forks, so I guess we'll have to change our meeting patterns." Dr. Cullen gave me a smile that didn't bode well with me.
"Actually Ms. Swan, we don't have to change our patterns at all. You see I live in Forks as well, so I can talk to my husband about letting us use the hospital for our bi-weekly meetings."
"But…" I began.
"I'll see you then. And since your dreams seem to be where you get a lot of your information, how about you create a dream journal and bring it to our next session so we have something to talk about."
I nodded and grabbed my purse to head out. "Good-bye Dr. Cullen."
"Good-bye Isabella. And remember that this meeting is confidential so my children will know nothing about you when you meet them in school on Monday."
I walked out of the room glumly. This psychologist was acting the same way as the others, something about her didn't agree with my instincts, and now my arm was hurting. I saw Charlie waiting for me in his police cruiser.
"How'd it go Bella?" he asked, acting like the concerned father.
"It was different than I expected," I replied, hoping he'd leave it at that. Dr. Cullen wasn't different than I expected, what I said was, but he doesn't need to know that.
"Good Bella, I think that therapy with Dr. Esme Cullen will be good for you." I nodded. Charlie reached over to ruffle my hair. "It's great to have you here, kid," he said. The rest of the drive to Forks was driven in silence.
The instant the cruiser pulled into the driveway of our house; I exited the car and sought refuge in my room. I threw myself on my bed and screamed into a pillow. I typed up an e-mail to Renee before grabbing my diary to write about my day.
I turned in for the night, hoping for a dreamless sleep. Maybe if I wished on a star it would have come true, but how are you supposed to see stars in between the rain clouds.
A searing pain ripped through my body. I saw the woman who bit me hovering over me as she called companions to her.
"What do you think of this one?" the red-head asked the male.
"I'll think she'll be an excellent addition to our team," the male replied over my head.
"I agree, as long as the tramp doesn't try to steal my man like the last one," the blonde replies as the man kisses her deeply.
"And to think, you were both obsessed with your human loves just two months ago," the red-head responded.
"Thank you Maria," the other two replied respectfully. What did the woman I now know as Maria mean by 'human' lives?
"Now quiet, the both of you. The transformation is complete." As soon as Maria spoke these words the burning left my body. I couldn't hear my heart and my senses were heightened.
"Welcome to our coven, my child," Maria called lifting up a mirror, as the other two leered in the background.
All that I saw in the mirror was a pair of piercing blood red eyes.
I woke up with a start, another dream about Maria. Who is she? I rolled over with a groan and picked up my dream journal. I don't think I'll share this with Esme, but if I'm going to figure out what the hell is happening to me I need to be logical.
I knew I should be concentrating on my dream, but all I can think of is the burning red pattern etching itself onto my right arm.
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