Alright guys, here is Chapter 9! I'm kinda bummed that the number of reviews is going down each chapter. I hope I did better in this chapter. Anyway a big thank you for those who did review. So thanks, Kady4, 101Twilight fan, Flora73, elyse.s2, and Little-Miss-Giggle-Fit. Anyway, hope you Enjoy!
"The truth is rarely pure and never simple"
Quote by Oscar Wilde
Edward POV
I confidently walked into my favorite place in the whole wide world—the bookstore.
I'd be damned if Bella's dad could keep me from seeing my Bella.
I quickly followed the path to Bella's chair. On the way, however, I couldn't stop myself from looking over my shoulder to make sure Emmett wasn't behind me or Charlie was standing there with a gun. Thankfully, so far the coast was clear. I realized, though, that I spoke to soon when I did not see Bella sitting in her red chair. Instead there sat Alice and Jasper. I groaned out loud. Great.
When Alice saw me, she jumped up and charged at me. I braced myself for the punch or slap that would eventually come. But instead she hugged me—hugged me like we were old pals.
"Hey, Edward," she chirped happily. "Long time no see." She really is one strange lady, but something about her, maybe her energy or her angelic blue eyes, drew you in.
"It's um nice to see you too, Alice," I said while patting her hair. She let go of me after awhile and beamed up at me.
"Hello, Edward," Jasper greeted from behind Alice.
"Hi," I managed a slight smile, "What brings you guys here?" I asked like I had no idea what they could possibly want from me.
"We want to talk," Jasper answered.
I blanched. "Okay," I agreed nervously. I looked around quickly for exits.
"Let's sit over there," Alice suggested, pointing to a table with chairs around it. So we walked over there and sat down.
"What do you want to talk about?" I asked, getting straight to the point.
Jasper ignored my question. "Why are you doing this? What do you get out of it?
I looked down. "I don't know," I answered truthfully, but then looked him in the eye. "But wouldn't you gladly go through all the hardships and pain just to be able to talk to the one you truly love? Even if it is just for a few hours, wouldn't you want to spend every possible minute with that person, despite those obstacles? I would jump throw pits of fire just to see Bella's gorgeous smile, just to hear her beautiful laugh. So don't you dare, don't you dare tell me I can't see her. You have no right, absolutely no right," I stated forcefully, but then I softened. "Please, please, don't say I have to stay away from her. I-I can't. I can't go through that again. Please," I begged desperately. I knew that they could keep Bella trapped in her house and never let me see her again. I also knew that without Bella, my life would be meaningless.
"Do you love her?" Alice questioned. She sounded as if she already knew the answer.
"If what I feel for Bella isn't love, then I don't know what love is," I said sincerely and firmly. Alice squealed happily and very loudly. There goes my hearing. People around us glared.
"Honey, let us not forget that we are in a bookstore," Jasper reminded her, putting a hand on Alice's shoulder.
"Sorry," Alice whispered. She leaned into Jasper and Jasper in turn squeezed her gently. What I would give to be able to communicate with Bella like that.
"Edward," Jasper started, turning back to me. "I can tell you love Bella very much." He took a deep breath. "And I accept that fact and give you my blessing."
"Yeah, do what your heart tells you to. Just promise me you won't hurt her," Alice added.
Happiness swelled inside me at their acceptance. Bella can still be a part of my life. "I could never hurt Bella. You have my word." She looked at me closely, trying to find any trace of a lie. I was being completely honest and had nothing to hide so I stared back. She nodded, satisfied with the sincerity of my statement.
"Good, because if you hurt her physically, mentally, or emotionally I will make sure you pay," Jasper warned.
"Trust me, if I hurt Bella in any way then I will gladly let you guys have your way with me," I answered truthfully.
"Good," Alice nodded. The thought of Alice hitting me almost made me laugh out loud, but then I imagined Alice attacking me with her 5-inch heels. Ouch.
"Can I ask you a question?" I asked after a minute of silence. "What is going to happen? Ten years from now Bella is going to look into the mirror and realize that her whole body has aged overnight. "
"I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we worry about that every damn day of our live,." Jasper stated while Alice bobbed her head sadly in agreement. We sat in silence for a few more minutes. I looked at Jasper and Alice with a new found respect. Not only them, Charlie, Rose, and even Emmett. They all try so hard, so damn hard, but they can't stop Bella from aging. One year, down the line, she is going to look into a mirror and see a wrinkled old face staring back at her. Then what? How do explain to someone that there appearance has aged while they were sleeping? There had to be a way, an easier way, than lying to Bella.
"Um, so where is Bella?" I asked, not wanting to keep on thinking depressing thoughts.
"She's at our house, taking care of Tyler," Jasper informed. Sadness imminently washed through me. I wasn't going to see Bella today.
"Edward," Alice said with a twinkle in her eye. "Would you like to come over and say hi?" she questioned.
"Yes." I answered simply, restraining myself from adding a 'duh'.
"Great! Let's go!" Alice exclaimed, grabbing my hand.
Bella POV
I sip my coffee slowly, savoring the taste. I am so incredibly sleepy. All because Alice decides it's a good idea to wake me up at six! She dragged my half-asleep body over to her house and asked—more like demanded—me to babysit Tyler. When I asked her where she was going, she said that she and Jasper had to run some 'errands'. Psh, yeah right. I've known Alice enough to know when she is lying. And plus, she had that 'I'm up to something' twinkle in her eye. When you that twinkle in Alice's blue eyes, you better watch out.
So here I am in Alice apartment, sipping some expensive coffee in a floral coffee mug. Tyler is still asleep—not that I blame him, it's now only 9:30—and Jasper told me not to watch TV because it was broken. Hmm, what to do? I guess I could read the newspaper and see if the Seahawks won their game yesterday. With that on mind, I forced myself to walk to the front doorsteps and grab the newspaper that was on the front porch. As soon as I sat down in a comfy chair, in the living room, I unconsciously looked at the date.
April 23rd, 2009. Wait, WHAT! It's March 18th, 2008.
Right?
I jump off the couch quickly and turn on the TV. It zooms to life. TV is broken, my ass. I quickly turn to the morning news.
"Welcome, today is April 23rd—" Flip channel.
"You know what they say, April showers, bring May flowe—" Flip.
"This April—" Flip.
"2009 is turning out to b—" Flip.
"It's almost May and—" Flip.
"Hello, it's April 23rd, and we are in for another rainy da—"
"What is wrong with this TV!" I scream. It's March, it's March, I repeat in my head. It has to be.
I remember the coffee mug slipping from the ground splattering glass and coffee everywhere before I sank into darkness.
Jasper POV
I hold onto Alice's hand tightly as I unlock our front door. Edward is standing behind us, lost in his own thoughts. I step inside quickly and call out to Bella.
"Bella, we're home! And we brought a visitor." I wait for Bella to come and greet me and then scold me for screaming and possibly waking up Tyler. But she never came. Strange. I look at Alice curiously, but she just shrugs. Edward is oblivious. I walk into our living room with the other two trailing behind me. I feel my mouth drop in shock as I take in the scene. Bella is on the ground, unconscious, in front of the TV. Damn it! The TV is on. I lied to her and said that the TV was broken so she wouldn't turn it on. I see a broken mug next to her and the…newspaper. I forgot to hide the newspaper. It's obvious what happen here. God, I am such an idiot.
"Bella!" Edward and Alice scream at the same time. They both run to her side.
"Alice, you need to call Charlie, Emmett, and Rose!" I order. Alice looks reluctant to leave Bella, but eventually grabs the phone. I run to Bella's side and bend over her. Her eyes are shut closed, but it is clear that she is still breathing.
"What the hell happened?"" Edward asks dangerously. He is glaring at me with anger, but under the anger I can see the pain and worry. He is gently cradling Bella to his chest.
"She found out. She freaking found out!" I state angrily in self-hate. This is my entire fault.
Edward seems to understand what I'm trying to say and breathes in deeply. "What now?" he questions, sadly staring at Bella.
"Now? Now, we tell her the truth."
He hugs Bella closer to him like if he held her close enough, he would be able to protect her from the painful truth that she was about to learn.
Charlie, Emmett, and Rose show up at the same time Bella wakes up. For the past ten minutes, Edward hasn't let go of her. He wouldn't even let Alice touch her. So imagine Bella's surprise when she wakes up in the arms of a complete stranger.
"Who are you?" she asks, blinking open her eyes.
"I'm Edward," he states, staring deeply into her eyes. She stares back, looking mesmerized.
"Are you an angel?" she questions.
He chuckles humorlessly. "No, you silly girl," he denies gently.
"You look like an angel," Bella insists.
"Trust me, Bella, you're the angel," Edward says strongly. Bella blushes. He then bends down and kisses her forehead lightly like if he pressed to hard, he would end up breaking her.
"Don't ever scare me like that again," he orders softly but firmly.
They gaze into each other's eyes. Charlie clears his throat awkwardly. Edward and Bella glance at us, surprised, like they were in their own world and forgot all about us.
"Hi, guys," Bella greets, looking at all of us.
"Are you okay?" Rose questions immediately.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I?" Bella asks, searching each our faces, tying to find the answer to her own question.
"Sweetie, you just fainted," Alice tells her gently. Bella looks confused but then must have realized something because she jumps up. She rushes to where the fallen newspaper is and studies it.
"Can someone please tell me why the newspaper says it is April 23rd, 2009?" Bella demands, eerily calm. We all glance at each other, begging each other to be the one to break the news to her. Charlie finally steps forward.
"Bells, um, it kind of is April 23rd," he states nervously. The Chief of Police is nervous—great, just great.
"What?" Bella looks lost.
"Um, let's sit down," Edward suggests, still sitting in the spot Bella left him. So we all plop onto a couch or sofa. Bella's eyes beg for someone to tell her what is happening.
"Bella," I start. "Um, last year on March 18th, you were in an accident…"
We each take turns explaining what happen and her new condition. Except for Edward. All he does is stare at the ground. Bella looks miserable. And not the 'I just lost my puppy' miserable. No, the 'my life is over' kind of miserable. When we finish explaining, she runs out the door. Edward jumps up after her but Emmett stops him. Edward struggles; it looks like nothing was going to stop him from comforting Bella…until Charlie put a hand on his shoulder.
"She needs to be alone," Charlie tells him calmly. Edward suddenly stops trying to break free and bends his head in defeat.
If you were outside at that very moment, you would see Bella run through the pouring freezing rain, running from her problems, running from the truth, just plain running. You would see Bella drop to her knees in defeat, her knobby knees taking the impact of the ground. You would see Bella stare angrily up at the sky with her fists clenched. You would see Bella let out the most agonized scream you have ever heard, screaming "WHY" at the top of her lungs, asking God, or anyone who could possibly answer her question. You would see Bella let out painful sobs at such a force that she could hardly breathe. You would see her ask continuously "Why, why? Oh god, why?" You would look behind her and into the house. You would see her family looking on with miserable eyes like her pain was their pain. You would look more closely at them and see the hopelessness and regret in their eyes. You would walk away, knowing there was nothing you could do. But the image stays in your mind for the rest of the day.
A beautiful girl on her knees in gut-wrenching pain.
A beautiful girl who just had her life snatched right before her own eyes.
I know, sad way to end the chapter. But next time we meet Carlisle and Esme! If you want a sneak peek at what happens, review! I also set up a poll. I'm interested to see how many of you have actually seen the movie so I would appreciate it if you go on my profile and vote! And remember, I love reviews! Oh, and guess what! I'm graduating from 8th grade in an hour! Yay! Anyway, please review!
Until Next Time,
Valerie
