The Call
By: Sincerely Scarlet Rose
Chapter Eight
Song: All You Want, Dido
"I'd like to watch you sleep at night
To hear you breathe by my side
And although sleep leaves me behind
There's nowhere I'd rather be."
Fall 1918
The fire lasted for eternity. It burned me as if someone was scraping their nails against the back of my skin, and replacing my bones with burning hot wire. My face had melted off, and my lips were no more. I was sure I was in hell. Dead. But when the pain lifted, I realized that it was the exact opposite. Though I would have spent 100 days with the sickness compared to those last three, when I awoke from the pain-filled nightmare I felt more perfect than I had ever before. More perfect than I could have ever imagined possible.
Was I dead? I didn't think so. Death to me wouldn't be like this. I opened my eyes looking around at the scantly decorated bedroom I was in. It had cream colored walls, and a wide window with sunlight peaking around the drawn shudders. Suddenly my eyes were met gold as an oddly familiar face poked into view. "Isabella?" he whispered. I fought to remember who this was, and did a moment later after searching through my foggy memory.
"Dr. Luvett?" I whispered and clamped my mouth shut. This wasn't my voice! No, this…this song coming from my lips was anything but my voice!
"You're awake…good. It's over now." He said patting my head, he didn't seem to notice how beautiful my voice had just sounded. Maybe it was just my imagination. I noticed that his usually cold fingers felt warm against mine. Maybe the fever had made me imagine this trait about him? Whatever it had been I remembered ice cold fingers and now they were normal to my skin.
"What's happening?" I asked quietly referring to the burning in the back of my throat. It was as if I was hit with a brick wall of pain shooting through me, the source which seemed to come from my throat. As if I hadn't drank anything in over a hundred days, and needed to find water. The need to end this pain was so desperate that I would kill to make it stop.
"You're thirsty?" he questioned.
I suppose I could summarize that feeling weakly as thirst. It was intense and painful and I wanted it to stop. I nodded looking at him cautiously, questioningly.
"Come with me then, I'll teach you everything you need to know…"
And he did. He taught me everything about being a vampire—which came as a ridiculously harsh shock to me since supposedly (as I had been raised) we were demonic creatures that served and did the devils work, if we were even real. Well that could be possible for some vampires...but for me. Well I liked Andrew's methods. Andrew was Dr. Luvett's first name.
He fed off of animals, and never killed humans, and he was living proof that it was possible. He said that he had heard about it from the Volturi, some royal like group of vampires that reside in Italy. They said they at one time had a friend who discovered this way of living and had lived on it ever since. He tried it out and took it up, becoming a doctor again after so many years, finally able to withstand blood.
I felt more comforted when I had arrived back but I had to ask him, "Why did you…Why did you save me?" I whispered. I did feel saved, in an odd way. I wasn't ready to die, but now I knew it would never be able to work between Edward and I, not that he hadn't already told me he wasn't coming back in the first place.
He sighed sitting down and motioning for me to take a seat, "Bella, I've been alone for a very long time. I haven't had anyone to talk to openly, or to be friends with. I've always had to leave the biggest part of me out in a conversation with a human, which was pretty much full of lies. I was tired of denying myself a companion. I needed a friend. Then I couldn't decide how to do it. Let me rephrase, I knew how to create a vampire, but I didn't know who to choose. It felt horribly selfish to just choose someone off the streets, with their whole life ahead of them. Maybe a family at home waiting…I needed to find someone who would be saved by this. There was my first check mark about you.
"Next, I had to enjoy that persons company…intellect. I enjoyed speaking with you very much Bella. You are wise beyond your years, and I saw how caring you were around the hospital while you could still help. Most would run from the call that you took as a duty. As it should be. You gave until you couldn't give, and then continued to focus on the two people who meant most to you. There is three other check marks or so right there.
"Then. When I read that letter…" He fought for words I believe he thought wouldn't hurt me as much, "Death can't touch an angel. I decided you were my angel. The one that could save me. When I read what someone else thought about you, all of my assumptions on your personality were confirmed. You were a perfect person to save. Young, with potential, caring, and most importantly someone I enjoyed being around."
I thought for a very long time over his words and finally spoke with nervous lips, "When you say companion?" I whispered nervously. I feared the idea of being romantically involved with Andrew since I knew my now unbeating heart still belonged in a way to Edward...At this point in my life I don't think that I could see myself ever moving on.
"I am sure to say that it isn't in a romantic way Bella, if that's what your concern is…I simply need someone to live with, not be with. I need someone that enjoys my company as much as I enjoy theirs. However if you would like to leave…then be my guest. I will not hold you here. That is not what I desire at all…"
And that was the beginning of the relationship between Andrew and I…My best friend and I. I couldn't imagine these years without him. He was my rock. He didn't laugh when I would grow upset over Edward, he didn't shun me when I messed up once, or when I left for a few weeks because I didn't think I could handle his ways…He accepted me, for me. And that was what kept me going through everything. This was the beginning of a new chapter in my life...more like the sequel to my previous story all together, and I knew that Andrew was going to be a big part in my life...but what I didn't realize till much later was how big of a part he would actually play.
Thank you for reading and hope you enjoyed! As many of you have probably guessed this is NOT an AH story. I hope you all will continue to review with your thoughts. As always, thank you for reading, reviewing, alerting, and favorite-ing!
Also, for those of you who follow the song listings for each chapter, I am aware of the meaning of the song, but if you think about it, I so think it works for Bella's situation right now too! Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Scarlet Rose
