Hello there! Sorry about the wait on a cliffie! Hopefully this will answer some of your questions!

Thanks to LHarkcom & siobhan'x from PTB for making my writing look pretty, even after I wrote some of it at 1 am! Enjoy!


Chapter 8 – Nausea and Football

I needed to vomit. All I could think was that I needed to be sick. I tried to sit up to find a bucket, a bag, anything to be sick in, but as I pushed myself up with my arm, a sharp pain shooting up my arm forced me back down again.

I whimpered, "Bella! Bella!"

"Jenny! I'm right here, just stay down, okay?"

I moaned, "I feel sick!"

A warm hand grasped my good one, and I gripped it tight. I wasn't dead, but I felt terrible.

I opened my eyes, and had a good look around. I was in a hospital bed, in the middle of a busy ward. People were rushing past us, and Bella was crouched by my bed, looking up at me, with tears in her eyes.

I moaned. I felt really terrible, like I had been run over by a freight train.

"Bella…what's the damage?"

"Huh?" Bella was confused, as apparently my question didn't make sense.

"What's wrong with me?"

Bella sighed. "We aren't sure yet, they want to x-ray you. But you definitely had a dislocated shoulder, which they fixed, and a suspected concussion."

I tried to wiggle my fingers on my left hand, and I hissed as it sent pain through my arm. "I'd say it's a broken wrist," I said, bitterly.

I had been getting used to all the weird things in my life, but was surprised when I was hit with another vivid memory. I had been getting flashes and voices that helpfully reminded me of conversations and events, but it was rare that I got the full visions and scenes like I had when I first arrived.

Bella was lying in a hospital bed, her right arm strapped to her side. I was parading around with a clipboard in my hand, waving it.

"Miss Swan, as your doctor, I really must insist that you stop running and walking. You are giving me too much work to do!"

Bella giggled. "I'm sorry, Doctor Swan."

I sniffed. "It will not do! A broken collarbone should not be taken lightly! No, my recommendation is that you cease all physical activities, including walking!"

Bella burst out laughing. "What?"

I frowned and looked at the clipboard. "Yes, you are a hazard to all of us able-bodied people who don't trip over things. Don't argue with me, Miss Swan, I know everything." I tapped my temple.

Bella tried to look subdued. "Yes, Doctor Swan."

The door of the ward swung open, and a young woman doctor walked in, followed by Renee. I hastily put the clipboard back, and smiled at Bella.

The doctor was pleased. "Well, you're looking better now."

I winked at Renee, and Bella smiled. "Thanks to 'Doctor Swan', here."

The vivid memory ended, and internally I smiled. It was a nice memory, and it made me feel a bit better about letting Bella look after me.

"Yeah, sure, Doctor Swan - because you are the expert on wrist breaks." Bella tried to smile, and I felt a bit shocked. I guessed that she was trying to humor me better, but it was a spooky coincidence that Bella had just referred to a memory I had just had. Weird, but definitely a concern to revisit another time, when I didn't have broken bones and a throbbing headache.

I was really beginning to feel the pain now, and I tried to keep my breathing even as I replied, "Not. The. Time. Bella."

Bella's face became much more serious. "You knew what was going to happen."

I internally groaned. I really didn't want to have this conversation in a hospital bed with a broken arm and the potential for vomit to appear at any moment. Why was the universe throwing everything toward me at once?

"Bella…"

"I'm not stupid. You were trying to rush me away from the truck. You were trying to save us."

"Save you, Bella," I whispered, as I purposely looked away from Bella's eyes. I swear that they had some power that compelled you to tell the truth.

She frowned. "No, save us."

I shook my head. Ow, that hurt. "I didn't do anything. I don't know anything." Perhaps a straight denial would work better?

"You said that you knew Edward had stopped the van…but you were unconscious when that happened. How did you know?"

Damn, why did I say anything at the accident? Once again, my interference had caused a problem that I now had to try to solve.

"Ugh, I don't know, Bella. Maybe I'm psychic, maybe it's a twin thing, maybe I'm a crazy person. Maybe you're a crazy person." My pain was making me irritable. Where the hell was my sexy-vampire doctor?

A door burst open, and another stretcher was wheeled into the room. I already knew who it would be, which idiotic daredevil was tearing around Forks, hitting girls with his van. Tyler Crowley. His head was covered in bandages, which were starting to darken with blood.

"Bella, Jen, I'm so sorry!"

I let Bella respond. "I'm fine, Tyler. You look awful, are you alright?"

The nurses were unwinding his bandages, and the smell of blood was just too much for me in my weakened state. I pulled on Bella's sleeve, trying to get her attention.

"Bella, Bella!"

She took one look at me and grabbed a small dish that was on the ground. Bella shoved it under my face, and I retched into it. It's hard to be classy when you're vomiting, but I tried my best.

When I finished, Bella put the dish aside, and smoothed my hair.

Tyler's mouth was hanging open. "What's wrong with her?"

"They think she has a concussion. Don't worry, you didn't hit her. She hit her head on the ground when we got out of the way."

"I thought I was going to kill you both! I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong…" Tyler winced, but continued. "How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and I could have sworn I hit Jen, but then you were gone…"

I closed my eyes. Bella would do the right thing, just like she did in the book.

"Umm…Edward pulled us out of the way."

"Who?"

"Edward Cullen – he was standing next to us." Bella's lie was terrible. I knew that, in the future, I would have to take the reins. Bella was just too honest for her own good.

"Cullen? I didn't see him…" Tyler went off on his own little mumbling tangent, which I tuned out.

Through my foggy haze, I had to work out how I would handle the situation. Bella wanted answers, and I knew she wouldn't rest until she had them. Edward and his family would also want answers, and with their super human powers, anything I told Bella now would be within Edward's hearing.

Bella shook me a little. "Jen, tell me quick. How did you know?"

I had to do this before Edward entered. "Get me a pen and paper," I whispered.

Bella rummaged through her backpack, which has miraculously made it's way into the hospital. She pulled out a scrap of paper and a pen, and handed them to me.

I scribbled furiously (thanking God that it was my left arm I'd injured, not my right.)

Don't react. There's something different about Edward.

Bella's eyes widened, and she nodded at me. I continued writing.

He wasn't standing next to us.

Bella nodded again, understanding what I meant.

I remember what happened, but you have to tell Edward that I don't remember.

Bella's eyes widened. "Why?" she mouthed.

Later, promise. But tell Edward that I can't remember.

I waited until Bella gave a tiny little nod, before taking the paper and shoving it deep into the waistband of my jeans. Bella's eyes were narrowed, and I knew she would be expecting a decent explanation later. The main thing was that I had spared myself the scrutiny of the Cullens for a bit. As long as Bella said I couldn't remember what had happened, my knowledge of the crash and my words while we were trapped by the van would be able to be explained by my concussion. Hopefully, that would be enough to fix my mistake.

A nurse came in to look after me, finally. What poor service! No tip for her. Rather than examining me, the first thing she did was scold Bella for taking her neck-brace off. Bella, with her over-protective tendencies, wouldn't stand for it.

"Look after my sister! She's been vomiting, for Christ sake!"

I smirked at Bella's cussing, and after that it didn't take long for them to X-Ray my head and arm, and wheel me back into the ward. A radiologist came in to tell me that I had a minor concussion, a dislocated shoulder which may have caused some tendon damage, and a broken wrist. My blossoming volleyball career was in tatters.

While we were waiting for a doctor to examine me, Edward sidled into the room, a smirk adorning his perfect face. Why couldn't there be any humans with decent looks to even come close to Edward or his family? It was slim pickings, and unfortunately for me, I had already given Bella first dibs.

Bella had been hovering around me, trying to make me feel more comfortable, but the second Edward entered the room, her whole demeanor changed. It was as though she was hard-wired to his presence, and it had only been a week. Jeez.

On closer inspection, I realized that she wasn't being disgustingly lovesick – she was glaring at him. Edward was smirking, standing at the end of my bed, while Bella was by my head, giving him a death stare.

Tyler spoke up, and both their heads whipped in his direction. I didn't bother to look – my head hurt too much. "Hey, Edward, I'm really sorry –" he began.

Edward grinned. "No blood, no foul." He sat on the edge of my bed, and I shivered at my close proximity to him. I was only blankets away from a real life vampire.

As It turned out, it wasn't the close proximity that made me shiver, and Bella hastily thrust another dish in front of my face.

When I finally finished making another disgusting mess, no one was smiling any more. Edward's nose was wrinkled, and Tyler was looking away.

"So," Edward began, "What's the verdict?"

Bella stroked my hair back, as I tried to make my body obey me. My stupid concussion was making me vomit, and it was ruining everything.

"There's nothing wrong with me at all, but Jen, here…they say she has a concussion, and some broken bones."

Edward grimaced. Maybe he felt guilty he hadn't gotten me in time as well? It must have been close. Why didn't he save us both at the same time? Somehow, I got the feeling that my life had been an after thought, and that saving Bella had been his number one priority. That hurt a little, but it was my own doing. I couldn't complain, but it still felt horrible.

"I want to go home!" I moaned at Bella. I felt terrible, and I just wanted to get away from all the drama.

"Hang on, Jenny. We're just waiting for a doctor to see you."

Edward smiled again. "Well, this is where I can help. Hold on." He stood up, and left the room. Within minutes, he was back, and followed by a blond, pale, stud muffin of a doctor. Yum, yum.

"Miss Swan, Miss Swan. The Chief's daughters!" Carlisle nodded at us.

"Doctor Cullen." I nodded back. Crap. Bella and Edward's faces flashed towards me again, and I tried to hide my faux pax by moaning and looking sick.

Carlisle didn't seem to miss a beat though. "Okay, Jennifer, I'll start with you. How are you feeling?"

"Like poo. Dr. Cullen, can I go home?"

Edward smirked and Bella spoke up. "Dr. Cullen, she's been complaining of nausea, and she's vomited a few times. Her wrist is hurting too, and her shoulder is throbbing." When did I say that?

Dr. Cullen nodded. "I see. Jen, I'm just going to feel your head, and I want you to tell me when I find the sore spot."

His fingers felt my head, sending tingles through my scalp. I giggled, "Your fingers are so cold-ow!" wincing when they found the sore spot above my temple.

Dr. Cullen frowned, and with my X-Rays in hand, went to the light box. "Jennifer? Can you see this?"

He put the X-Rays in, and they swam a little bit in front of my eyes. "Yes, I can see them," I lied.

Bella nudged me. "Jen! Tell the truth!" How the hell was she doing that?

I sighed. "Tell me, Doctor, what's the damage?"

"It seems you have a concussion, and your other X-Rays indicate a broken wrist. Your shoulder was dislocated, but the EMTs put it back into the socket. I'm going to examine your shoulder for tendon damage." Dr. Cullen gingerly moved my arm around, and I was happy to feel that it wasn't too painful.

"So, my shoulder's okay?

"Yes, it looks like you were lucky there." Dr. Cullen smiled, and my heart fluttered a little bit. I know that Carlisle is always written as a father figure, but DAMN, he's only twenty-three, really! Still young enough for me to lust over.

"Now, I'm going to examine your wrist. Tell me if it hurts too much." His cool fingers were probing my hand, but his face was watching mine for my reaction. His beautiful, smooth, vampire face and his golden eyes…his fragrant smell…who needs pain killers when you can just stare at a vampire?

I shivered. "Your hands feel nice. They're so cool."

Bella snorted, exasperated. I guess she was used to this kind of behavior from me. Carlisle hadn't been with Esme that long, right? Maybe I had a shot?

His fingers found the broken part, and I hit the roof, cussing at him and pulling my hand away. Dr. Cullen didn't look too impressed, and my chances with him were blown. Darn.

"Well, Miss Swan, we are going to have to put your hand in a cast, and you will be out of sports for at least six weeks. Your concussion doesn't look too bad, and I'm actually surprised at the level of nausea you're experiencing. Take it easy, have some Tylenol tonight, and I'll give you a script for something stronger for your wrist."

It was better than I had expected, but still awful. I nodded at Dr. Cullen, feeling subdued.

"Now, Miss Swan." He looked at Bella. "Your X-Rays all look fine. Many old injuries though…"

I laughed, and Bella shook her head. Carlisle continued. 'It looks like you were very lucky."

Bella's lips tightened, and I could feel her annoyance. We both knew that luck was a very small factor in our survival. Unless luck went by the name of 'Edward', and no one had told me.

Bella spoke up. "Lucky that Edward happened to be standing right next to us."

Just like the book, Carlisle looked away. "Oh, well, yes." He swept over to Tyler's bed, and Edward took a step closer to us. This was my Oscar winning moment to play up my memory loss, and I decided to ham it up.

"You were next to us, Edward? Ugh, I don't remember that." I groaned and closed my eyes.

"Well, I was next to you." I opened my eyes and Edward was staring me down with his golden eyes, willing me to challenge him.

"Jen-" Bella started, but I cut her off.

"I don't remember anything after we got out of the truck." I made my voice shake a little, and glanced at Bella, trying to look nervous. There was a tense moment where I wasn't sure I had convinced him.

Edward's voice pierced the silence in the room. "You don't remember the accident? Or…after?" His lips moved slowly, emphasising every syllable.

His eyes were boring into mine, trying to read my mind. I could almost feel his attacks on my brain. I stared right back, though he kept shifting. Damn concussion.

"No..." I tried to make myself sound a little hysterical, but I don't think it came across. I decided to play super dumb. "…what do you mean by after, anyway? Isn't after here, at the hospital?"

Edward pursed his beautiful lips, annoyed at my lack of cooperation. These vampires were very good at making people ogle them; did they even realize all the sexual signals they sent out all the frigging time? Regardless, I hoped I had done enough to convince him I was clueless. The last thing I needed was a coven of irate vampires 'silencing' me in my sleep tonight.

A nurse bustled into the room, pushing a trolley loaded with scary looking contraptions.

"You?" She pointed at Edward. "Are you injured?"

Edward shook his head. "No, I'm not."

The nurse pointed at the door. "Out." She then turned to Bella. "And you?"

Bella looked at me. "Do you need me to stay?"

I tried to smile reassuringly. "No, Bella. I'll be fine. This is your chance to escape, go."

Bella grinned. "Be nice to the nurse, okay?"

"I will. Go reassure Charlie that we're alive."

"Oh God, Charlie. I completely forgot about him. Okay, I'll see you later, Jen!"

The nurse hustled her out of the room, and proceeded to work on my cast. Another two nurses were working on Tyler, stitching up his head. I hadn't even noticed that Carlisle had left, but I guess my attention had been focused elsewhere.

"Jen, I'm so sorry about the accident." Tyler's worried face was watching me, despite the needles going into his face. Ick.

"Tyler, it's okay. I'm starting to feel better already. I think Bella's worrying made things worse."

"But, it's my fault. I shouldn't have been driving so fast."

"Hey, I'm okay. We're not dead. Stress less."

Tyler continued his stream of apologies, probably encouraged by my period of vomit-free coherence. I tried to tune him out, and think of something else instead. It seemed like I didn't get to relax completely, because my mind was overtaken, for the second time that day, by a vivid memory.

"…and Jen nearly died! But you saved us. You owe me an explanation."

Edward shifted uncomfortably, before looking into Bella's eyes. "I saved your life - I don't owe you anything." His voice was unfriendly and cold.

Bella recoiled, but continued nevertheless. "You promised."

"Bella, you hit your head, you don't know what you're talking about."

"Jen's the one with the memory loss, not me." Bella's lie was much more convincing now, probably spurred on by her anger.

"And you're sure she doesn't remember a thing?" Edward's eyes were boring into Bella's, but she stood her ground.

"Yes. But I want to know the truth. I want to know why I'm lying for you."

The vision went in and out of focus, as I had the uncontrollable urge to vomit again. I groped around for a dish, and came up empty. Taking deep breaths to try to quell my nausea, and I tried to return to the vision that was bordering on the edge of my sight.

"Well, I hope you enjoy disappointment."

"Why did you even bother?"

"I don't know…"

Edwards walked off, and Bella took slow deep breaths, before making her way to the waiting room to find Charlie.

My eyes snapped open, and I jerked away from the nurse working on the cast.

'Well, look what you've done! I'll have to start again," she sighed.

Tyler had still been talking at me, and had noticed my jump. "Jen, are you okay?"

"Yeah…" I wasn't okay at all, but I needed to fake it. "I fell asleep and forgot where I was."

The nurse chuckled at me. "You won't forget tonight, sweetie. They've pumped you up with drugs now, but when they wear off, you'll be pretty sore."

"Ugh. I've had worse." I'd been in enough bitch fights at school, and had enough drunken episodes to know how I'd feel the next day.

I was more worried about my 'memory', that wasn't a memory at all. There was no way that that conversation was in the past. No way in hell. That conversation had happened NOW, and I had been able to see it.

It was a direct Twilight conversation, just as Stephenie Meyer had written it, but with obvious mistakes. The most notable ones were the parts that included me. My name should not have been in there at all!

It was also a scene that had existed in the present, not the past. Every memory up until now could be set at some point in time before I was transported into the Twilight world. I had always assumed that the memories were a convenient quirk of being in the AU, which had so far worked to my advantage. This conversation was completely different to the 'Doctor Swan' memory that had played out earlier, it had more clarity, and the images were sharper. But I couldn't feel the nuances behind the memory. When I was seeing Bella in the hospital, I could feel her annoyance at being incapacitated yet again, and her amusement at my jokes. I could only feel the more obvious feeling this time – Bella's anger at Edward's hostility was pretty much it.

The nurse was starting to pack up the trolley. "All finished now. Chief Swan will be in soon to collect you. He's pretty frantic out there, but we have a strict no visitor rule."

"What about Edward? You let him in." I tried to shift my left arm, and it felt heavy, encased in a stiff cast. That was hot pink. God, I hated the AU sometimes.

The nurse giggled. "Well, he is Dr. Cullen's son. Who wouldn't let him in the wards?"

True that. Who wouldn't want a babe vampire wandering the halls of a hospital? This world was messed up.

It wasn't long before Charlie and Bella were in the ward, helping me get up and standing. The first time I tried I was overcome by dizziness and had to sit back down on the bed. According to the nurse, the painkillers I was on had that kind of effect, but that didn't exactly make me feel better. Bella's laughter at my Barbie colored cast didn't improve my mood either, and I suspected that she had somehow arranged the monstrosity.

It was all too much - the pain, the nausea, the shock of being in a car accident. Then there were the crazy supernatural things, like Edward saving us, and trying to convince him that I didn't remember the accident so that he didn't hunt me down to protect his family, and my crazy Phoenix memories, not to mention my new live action memories, and even the mysterious November life changing event. As well as the fact that I was actually an Australian girl who had been slaughtered in a train accident then magically transported to a fictional world.

And for what? To make sure Bella and Edward got together? So far, almost nothing had changed. Edward still refused to tell Bella anything, and I could tell that he would continue to push her away for the next few months. All my scheming, planning, and attempts at making the plot run smoother had only resulted in me getting injured.

As Charlie and Bella helped me to the car, I made an important decision. I was going to stop trying to change things.

Who was I kidding? Bella and Edward didn't need my help, they were following the plot just fine - if Bella wants to play baseball and get attacked by James? So be it. Stephenie Meyer had already given them a happy ending, and my attempts to make it a 'better' happy ending hadn't had any effect on Bella and Edward's relationship. It was cruising along at the same pace as the book.

I was going to be selfish, and focus on me. I had a broken wrist and a concussion. That was more than enough physical pain for the moment. If interfering meant adding more, then I was out.

Bella and Edward were on their own. I was going to ignore the vampires (even Rosalie) and act as if they didn't exist. I was going to make better friends with Lauren and Angela and even Jessica. Even though the guys weren't as hot as the Cullens, I was going to stop drooling over them, and start taking advantage of all the boys who weren't attached.

I was going to focus on my relationship with Charlie and Bella, because they were my family, but when it came to the supernatural stuff, I was out. I was even going to try to ignore the memories. They weren't real, and they were all in my imagination, that's what they had to be. If I ignored them, they would go away. No more supernatural.

It was a tough call, but I had to go with it. Pain makes you change your mind about things.

I spent the rest of the day at home, sleeping in bed. Bella helped me get into my pajamas, but she wasn't anywhere near as attentive as she was in the hospital during the day. I think she was distracted, or maybe in shock. Car crashes were scary, and it was still hard to believe that we had both survived. Though if I was honest, I should have done more to prevent it. 'Your fault!' My head kept screaming.

I probably slept for about eight hours, waking up some time after dark. Bella was asleep next to me in the bed, mumbling away in her sleep. I hadn't really noticed her talking too much, as I was such a heavy sleeper myself, but she seemed to be reciting essays or something tonight; she just didn't stop mumbling, and it was really annoying.

My arm was really starting to give me trouble. The pain injections must have worn off, and that was the reason I had woken up. I groaned, swung my legs out of the bed, and stumbling, I felt my way out of the dark room and down the stairs.

Charlie was still up, watching sports in the living room. I got a glass of water from the kitchen, and took a couple of the pills Carlisle had given me. I then staggered into the living room, and plopped on the couch next to Charlie.

"Hey, kiddo. Feeling better?" Charlie's eyes were anxiously watching me, reflecting the light off the television.

"No, not really. My arm woke me up, and Bella won't quit talking." I couldn't help but feel annoyed at her intrusion into my sleep. Sure, it was the pain that had broken my sleep, but Bella's talking had made it unbearable.

Charlie chuckled. "Yeah, that sounds like Bella." He paused, and looked back at the television, tyring to act casual. "You, er, gave us a bit of a scare there, Jen."

I shrugged, trying to downplay the crash. "It was nothing. I'm just lucky."

Charlie shook his head. "No, Jen. I mean with everything… when they rang me at work, it was just like last year all over again…just… please don't scare us like that again, Jenny. I know today wasn't your fault, but please. Just try to be safe from now on, okay?"

"Ok."

We sat in silence for a little while, watching the television. It was football, the American football, and I didn't understand the rules. It was a bit boring, but I didn't want to break the silence first. The mystery of "what happened in November" was eating at me, and had somehow worked it's way back onto my 'to do' list.

Finally, knowing that I couldn't sleep properly until Bella stopped talking and the painkillers kicked in, I decided to speak.

"Hey, Dad. I don't really get the rules. What does it mean when they stop the play?"

Charlie looked at me sharply. "You don't know what that means?"

"Nope." I snuggled into the couch closer, hugging a pillow to my chest, and curling into Charlie a little. It was nice to be so close to my Dad. "Can you teach me?"

"Sure. You're lucky I already listened to this game on the radio, though. I don't like my sport to be disturbed."

Charlie spent the next forty-five minutes explaining the rules of American Football to me. It was quite cosy, Charlie pointing at the screen and explaining which players were the most important.

He wasn't impressed when I pointed out how much of a wuss the players were.

"But, Dad, look at all the padding they wear? What pansies!"

I resolved to find an Australian network on our cable, and show Charlie some real football. I missed watching my beloved Magpies play, and as a sport connoisseur, I knew that Charlie would immediately take to AFL.

I must have fallen asleep at some point, as I woke up the next morning on the couch, with a blanket draped over me.

Last night had been a great bonding moment for Charlie and I, and that was what I was going to focus on, building relationships and making the AU a nice place to live, sans injuries and supernatural beings.

Of course, I still needed to discover what happened in November, and the reason for my memories, and what the new ones meant…and as I would find out very soon, no matter how much I tried to stay away from the supernatural, it still seemed to find me.


First time in a while it hasn't been a cliffhanger - did you enjoy it? Questions? Comments? You know what to do! (Review lol)