Alcohol and Bandages

Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters. I only own the plot and the Porter's.

Monday Morning

BPOV

I woke up to find Edward sitting in front of my ancient computer with a look of frustration. We had countless discussions during our time together about my truck, and most recently my computer. He would mention that the truck and computer were too slow, loud and unreliable and that he wanted to replace both. I dislike my computer just as much as he does, but I refuse to allow him to replace it for me. He was staring at the computer, frustrated, most likely because I still had it and refused to let him replace it.

He looked over at me as I sat up and was by my side seconds later, showering me with questions about my health and comfort. As soon as he was somewhat convinced that I was alright, he placed a tiny white box in my hands, no sharp edges, or paper attached, just a simple, smooth box. He obviously didn't want a repeat of my birthday. Although it was plain, I could tell that the box was expensive, which most likely meant that whatever was inside was as well. I opened the box and found a shiny, expensive looking black cell phone and a charger.

"What's this?"

"A ce…" He began to say.

"I know what it is. Why are you giving me a cell phone?"

"You don't have one and I figured that you could use it, also in light of recent events, I thought that it would be helpful in case of any future emergencies."

"Emergencies? You or the family are always within hearing range." I pointed out.

"It would make me feel better if you had the phone."

I was about to protest, but before I before the words could leave my mouth, he had me. Since the attack he has been worried more than normal. I wanted him to be able to relax and worry less, and if accepting the phone helped, then I would bite my tongue and accept the unnecessary expensive phone.

"It's already fully charged and I put all of the numbers that you have in your address book, and my family's numbers as well, in the phone."

"I probably will never have to use it."

"You never know, you might just become one of those awkward couples that become so engrossed in their phones that they only communicate via text and totally phase-out verbal communication."

I looked towards my doorway to see Alice standing there smirking, stifling a laugh from her comment.

"When did you get here?" I asked as she made her way over to the bed.

"Just now, I'm surprised that you both didn't hear me."

"I did, I was just choosing to ignore your presence, until you made it known." He joked.

"You're such a wonderful brother. Now get out! Bella needs to get ready for school"

"But I don't want to go to school, I'd rather stay in bed all day than face Lauren and Jessica again."

"You don't have to worry about them today."

"He's right. Now, let's get you ready for school." She said, then turned to Edward and pointed to the door. "Out. Now!"

Not willing to argue with his sister, he did as she ordered.

30 minutes later

As Edward helped me out of the car, all eyes were on us. Tyler and Eric walked towards us, but turned away as soon as Edward made eye contact with them. I was more than thankful for Edward's presence; he kept most of the student body away. I wasn't ready to talk to my friends and classmates just yet. By the time we made it out of the parking lot the first bell sounded and Alice parted ways with us. We made it into our first class a minute or two after the final bell, which earned us a glare from Mr. Berty, but didn't stop taking attendance.

Edward helped me to my seat and got my supplies out for class, which caused Mr. Berty to send another unpleasant look or two our way. When the teacher was finally engrossed in the poem that he was reading to the class, Edward moved closer to me.

"By the end of lunch there will be a break in the clouds. " He whispered in my ear. Damn sun

"When are we leaving?" I asked hoping that he'd take me with him, but knowing that he'd find a way for me to stay safe without him directly by my side.

"We?" He asked. "You have already missed more than enough school. Finals are coming up soon and most of the information on them will be covered during the next few weeks. You won't be alone, I will be within hearing range, but obviously out of sight."

I didn't want to be alone, I didn't even want to be at school, but I had to be and it wouldn't help to complain about it.

"How am I supposed to get home?" Asking was pretty pointless, I already knew the answer.

"Don't worry about that. Your truck will be waiting for you in the parking lot after school."

First through Fourth period seemed to go by rather fast, which I did not want to happen. The one time I want it to go by as slow as possible, it doesn't. By the time class was over Edward was by my side with both of our backpacks in hand. He refused to let me lift or carry anything other than a pen or pencil.

On the way to the cafeteria, I had heard that Lauren didn't show up to school. I overheard someone mention that she had a very important appointment in Seattle, and that she was really there for plastic surgery. I guess she really did need her nose readjusted after the hit Rosalie dealt. Rumors about Lauren and the mall incident were spreading like wildfire, most started by her so called friends. Besides Edward and Alice, the only people who spoke to me were Angela and Ben, but I didn't have a problem with that.

Edward and I sat at our usual table, with Angela, Ben, Mike, a nervous looking Jessica. After making sure that I was comfortable and finding out what I wanted to eat, Edward went to get it. We sat in silence, other than a brief hello from Angela and Ben, and a sigh of annoyance from Jessica. Mike seemed like he wanted to talk to me but when he was about to, Jessica glared at him. Edward returned with my food and left to meet up with Alice who was already out in the car. Once he was out of sight, Jessica stood up and walked past me, hitting me with her bag, dragging Mike along.

After the final bell rang, I headed out to my truck but along the way I saw Josh. He looked like he hadn't showered or changed in days. His hair and clothes were filthy and his eyes were red, as if he had been crying. He looked so upset, scared and vulnerable, and I could tell that he needed help. When we made eye contact, he turned around and headed down the hallway behind him. Without thinking, I followed after him, despite the fact that it probably wasn't the best idea.

The hallway was dark and narrow, it lead to the storage area and basement door. I stopped halfway down the hall when I could no longer see ahead of me. The logical part of my mind was telling me to turn and leave, but the other part was telling me to go after him to comfort him. It was crazy to go down a dark hallway alone; it was even crazier to go down that dark hallway after the brother of the man that attacked me. I decided to head back to the main hall when I felt someone grab my shoulder. Instead of letting fear overwhelm me into submission, I clenched my hand into a fist and turned, by the time my fist made it to the persons face; I realized that it was Eric.

"Ahhhh what the heck, Bella" Eric cried out as he rubbed his jaw. "I was just making sure that you're alright."

I apologized to him, and then rushed out of the school to the parking lot. I felt guilty from the moment that my fist connected with his face and I realized that it was him. I'm sure that I made a huge scene, which fueled my need to get as far as I could away from the school and everyone in it. When I felt his hand on me, it brought back the fear and memories of that night. It was like a warning light went off in my head, a warning that whoever was behind me meant to do me harm, even though that wasn't Eric's intention. My thoughts were filled with worry and guilt for punching Eric as I made my way to my truck. He was just trying to make sure that I was alright and I hit him for it.

"Hey Bella." Mike called out to me. "Bella."

As he approached me I swiftly opened the door and got into my truck but as soon as I shut the door, he was standing outside of it. He stood there waving and motioning for me to roll down the window; he looked like a complete dork.

"Oh, hey Mike." I said as I rolled my window down.

"I'm sorry about everyone's behavior at lunch. I was going to come over and visit for a bit but Jess had other plans for me."

"It's alright, I wouldn't have been much fun to be around."

"How are ya feeling?" He asked nervously as he rubbed his neck.

"Um, alright." I was actually sore and had an unpleasant headache, but if I told Mike that, I would never get rid of him. I was hoping that he didn't see what I did to Eric, but from the look he was giving me, he did.

"You pack quite a punch Bella. Remind me never to mess with you. I know Eric learned his lesson."

"I didn't mean to hurt him. Is he alright?"

"Yeah, he's just a little shocked, he's not mad or anything." He replied, then sighed "So, I heard about what happened"

"Mike, I really don't want to talk about that."

"Oh…sorry. So where's Cull…Edward?"

"He had a doctor's appointment in Seattle, so he left early. Where's Jess?"

"I don't know." He said nervously, scratching the back of his head. "So I heard that you and his sisters jumped Lauren and Jessica at the mall yesterday. Did that really happen? I've been meaning to ask you about that all day, because I know that Jess likes to gossip and has a tendency to stretch the truth a bit." Ha, a bit, more like she stretches the truth, until it's a complete lie.

"I can assure you that we did not jump them. Lauren was harassing me and my sister didn't like that much, she lost her temper and hit her once and that was all that happened. No one was 'jumped'. That was just another rumor."

"Yeah, I kind of figured that it was, I just wanted to make sure." He said, rubbing the back of his head. "There's a new restaurant that just opened up in Port Angeles, so I was thinking about driving over to check the place out. Since Edward isn't around, are you available this afternoon?"

"I have a lot of studying and homework to catch up on. Maybe some other time." Ugh, why did I just give him false hope?

"I could help you catch up" He said a little too eagerly.

"Thanks for the offer, but Edward is going to help me when he gets back from Seattle." I said as I started the truck. "Well I have to get going, I'll see you tomorrow."

As I pulled out of the parking lot, I noticed that Mike stayed in place, but Jessica soon came and they walked to his suburban. I noticed Edward running and sometimes jumping in the trees along the road that I was driving on. He was running at the same speed as my truck, which had to be frustratingly slow for him.

As soon as I stopped the truck in front of my house my phone vibrated 3 times, I flipped open the phone expecting to find messages from Edward, but the turned out to be from Alice.

--Charlie will be there in ten minutes with FBI agents--

--Keep Edward calm. One of the agents will aggravate him. Don't worry, if he gets too out of control we'll be there right away to stop him--

Stop him? Stop him from what? I don't want to think of what he might do if pushed far enough. I know that he wouldn't kill anyone, but he might do something drastic enough to expose himself and the others.

--Don't worry everything will be alright. I'll be by in a few hours.--

I closed my phone without replying and went inside the house. Edward was waiting for me by the stairs, wearing my favorite crooked smile. He carried me up to my room and gave me my medicine, as I told him about my dad being home soon. After taking my medicine we went back downstairs to wait for Charlie and the FBI agents, which was a dreadful wait.

EPOV

While we waited for Charlie, I decided to talk to Bella about what I saw while watching from the trees. It was a weird sight, her punching Eric Yorkie. I didn't feel entirely bad for the guy; he kind of had it coming. He knew the rumors, and he still decided to approach her from behind. Invading an attack victim's space, especially without warning isn't exactly the best idea. A few months after Rose had joined the family, I had made the mistake of touching her shoulder. She nearly tore my arm from both her shoulder and my own. Bella was embarrassed about what happened with Eric, so I didn't force the conversation, but I did ask about Mike bothering her in the parking lot. I offered to scare him out of town, but she declined the offer stating that she already lost enough friends for the week.

When I heard Charlie's cruiser turn onto their street, I let Bella know. She jumped up and rushed into the kitchen like she was on fire. I followed. I could tell that she was alright, but I was still worried. She went from being calm and deep in thought to full of energy and practically running out of the room. Her sudden burst of energy caught me by surprise. That was the most I've seen her move in over a week. She had the freezer open and was fumbling around with something inside, when I entered. Seconds later she placed an icepack in my hand.

"Hold it on your head when they get inside." She told me, as she pulled out her schoolwork.

It didn't take me long to figure out the point of the icepack and the reason why she rushed to make herself look preoccupied with her school work.

"Bells" Charlie called out as he entered the house.

"In the kitchen, dad." Bella called out.

Charlie walked into the kitchen, preparing to tell her about the agents that he brought with him. He was thrown off track when he saw me standing in the middle of his kitchen, with an icepack on my head.

What the heck is going on? Hmm….I wonder if she hit him. That'd be kind of nice, maybe they're breaking up. Eh who am I kidding? With my luck they're getting married. He loves her, she loves him just as much if not more. Hmm… maybe I should be less harsh towards him. He took a look at Bella and me then around the room. Well at least he's a positive influence, making sure the homework is getting taken care of.

"What happened, Edward? Finally get on Bella's bad side?" He joked, and received an annoyed look from Bella.

"No Dad, I opened the cabinet a little too rough and Edward just happened to be next to me. It was an accident."

"I'm sure it was." He said in a semi-sarcastic tone, and then his tone changed. "Listen Bells, I know that you would much rather forget that the past few weeks ever happened, we all would, but there are still a few loose ends. Legal stuff. There are two men from the FBI here to see you. They have a few questions, and once they're done here we're closer to putting this all behind us."

I hope this doesn't upset her more.

We followed Charlie out into the living room. Just as we entered the room, two men wearing dark suits, stood to greet us.

The first man to stand was obviously the younger of the two. He was easily 15-20 years younger than his middle-aged partner. His features, while masculine, were also gentle. When he saw Bella his thoughts were filled with sorrow and sympathy. His thoughts were pure and genuine, a lot like Angela Weber's thoughts. He wanted to close the case, for Bella, Charlie and all of the other victims and their families. He wanted to end their pain and shame. The older agent, on the other hand, just wanted to close the case so that he could go home to his Lazy-boy and flat screen.

"Hello Isabella, I'm Special Agent Bradford and this is my partner Special Agent Perez." The middle-aged man greeted.

"She prefers Bella." I interjected.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name, who are you?"

"Edward Cullen, Bella's boyfriend." I said extending my hand to him as a civil gesture, moving the ice pack to my other hand.

He ignored my hand, but Agent Perez shook my hand instead. Agent Bradford was clearly not very polite, but his partner seemed to make up for his rudeness somewhat. Agent Perez was appalled by his partner's behavior and wanted to speak up about it, but didn't because Agent Bradford is his superior. I was rude as well; I didn't realize it until Agent Bradford refused to shake my hand. He wasn't just being rude as a reaction to my rude behavior; he was a naturally rude man.

Cullen? Where do I know that name? Oh right! The Doctor that treated the girl, Carlisle Cullen.

"Cullen? Any relation to Dr. Carlisle Cullen?" Agent Bradford asked.

"Yes, he's my father."

Hmm the rumors about this boy being the one who raped her might be true and his father might have tampered with evidence to cover for him. Agent Bradford thought.

I wanted to set him straight about what he was thinking. How could he believe I would do such an awful thing to Bella?

"Well Edward, we are here to question Bella, not you"

"What my partner is trying to say is, we need to speak to her alone." Agent Perez said.

"Please don't go." She pleaded with me then turned to the agents. "I need him here."

"We really…" Agent Bradford began to say.

"Agent Bradford, can I speak to you for a moment?" Charlie asked.

He nodded and followed Charlie into the kitchen. Agent Perez stayed behind in the living room with us, and didn't speak. I was thankful for his lack of conversation, because it would have been slightly annoying for me to hold up a conversation with him, while trying to listen to Charlie and Agent Bradford.

"I respect you and your department, but kicking Edward out of the room while you question Bella isn't a very good idea."

"And why is that Mr. Swan?"

"Chief Swan." Charlie corrected. "Edward has been Bella's rock throughout this whole ordeal. When it comes to answering your questions, she won't be very helpful without him by her side. Edward Cullen is a good kid, keeps out of trouble and takes care of my daughter. He won't cause any trouble"

"Alright, but if he causes any trouble whatsoever, I am holding you responsible." Agent Bradford said after a moment of weighing his options.

This guy is an ass, I'll be glad when he's out of my house and out of town. Just because he's some big shot FBI agent, he thinks he rules the world. Charlie thought as they entered the room.

"The boy can stay." Agent Bradford said as he sat down next to his partner.

Boy? Ha, I'm old enough to be his grandfather.

BPOV

I heard a slight growl coming from Edward after his father was mentioned and another after Agent Bradford referred to him as a boy. The growling reminded of the text messages from Alice. I needed to keep him calm. I placed my free hand on his chest the second time, which calmed him down a bit, but not all the way. I silently prayed that Alice and the others were nearby in case things got out of hand.

"Your father has already filled us in on his department's investigation, but we would like to ask you a few questions of our own. We would just like to ask a few questions about that night." Agent Perez stated.

"You already read my statement, right?" They nodded. "Can't you just get whatever information you need from that?"

"We would just like to hear it from you." Agent Bradford began to say, but was interrupted by his partner.

"It's proper protocol for us to interview you ourselves. It gives us a better idea of what happened, which will help us solve and close the case." Agent Perez said.

I let out a frustrated sigh, and then motioned for the questions to begin.

"What happened between the time you left school on Friday afternoon and when you were brought into the hospital?" Agent Perez asked.

"I went to a party with friends. Left the party. Was attacked. Blacked out. Woke up here, and was brought to the hospital."

"That's a bit too vague. We would like the detailed version." Agent Bradford stated

"After school I came home…." I began to say.

"Alone?"

"What does that have to do with what happened to me?" I replied.

"We would just like to get a better idea of the events leading up to what happened." Agent Perez stated, before his partner could speak. I have a feeling that whatever Agent Bradford was going to say was going to be harsh and less sensitive.

"No, I wasn't alone, I was with Edward. I wanted to spend as much time with him as I could…"I said only to be cut off by Agent Bradford, which seemed to be his talent.

"I thought that you were out of town with your family." He asked Edward.

"I was, but before we left, I spent some time with Bella."

Agent Bradford flipped open one of the folders quickly searching for something, most likely a copy of Edward's statement.

"But you were back before the end of the night, just in time to take her to the hospital? That had to have been a rather short camping trip, huh?" He asked smugly, after finding what he was looking for.

"Hey wait a minute, I thought that you were here to question Bella, not her boyfriend. He has nothing to do with the case." Charlie questioned.

"It's alright, Chief Swan." Edward said, then turned his attention towards Agent Bradford. "As a matter of fact, it was cut short. My father brought me back early."

"And why was that? I want the detailed story, not your side-notes, kid."

"He had a case that was bothering him and he wanted to get back to the hospital to check on his patient. My father noticed that I was eager to get back home to Bella, and offered to take me with him. My mother and siblings didn't want to be without us, so we decided to cut our trip short. My father and I left before my mother and siblings; they stayed behind to pack up our gear."

"What happened when you got to the Swan residence?"

"When we pulled up to the house Chief Swan's cruiser wasn't in the driveway, which was strange for that hour, but Bella's bedroom light was on. I had a feeling that something was wrong. As I approached the door, I saw that Bella's keys were on the ground in front of the door, but the door was closed and locked. She would never leave her keys just lying there, at that point I knew something was wrong. I motioned for my father to come inside with me, in case there was trouble."

"Why would there have been trouble?" Agent Bradford asked.

"Well, the fact that Bella's keys were on the ground outside of her door and she wasn't answering my calls gave me reason to worry. Other than that, at the time I had no idea why there would be any trouble whatsoever. "

"Alright, then what happened?" Agent Bradford asked obviously annoyed.

"I knocked on the door as we entered, but there was no answer. I called out for her a few times but there was no answer, but I heard muffled crying coming from upstairs. We went upstairs towards the source of the crying which was coming from the bathroom. I knocked, but there was no response, just the crying, I told her that I was coming in, waited a few seconds then entered. Bella was sitting in the shower, crying and shivering under the running water. I turned the water off, then wrapped a towel around her." he stopped talking and looked like he was going to cry, well if it was possible for him to do so.

"When I pulled her out she was shivering and her crying died down a bit. My father entered the room and checked her, as much as she would allow. We tried to calm her a bit then took her to the hospital."

"So, now that we know what happened when Edward found you, why don't you fill us in on what happened prior to that?" Agent Bradford said with a smug look.

"I went to a party with friends, left the party. Was attacked. I didn't see his face. I was hit over the head, the blow to the head knocked me out and woke up on my front lawn. I went inside and ended up in the shower. That's it!"

"We need the truth! Not some lie that you tell yourself to help you sleep at night."

"Excuse me!? Just who the hell who do you think you are? You can't come into my house and speak to my daughter like that. No one and I repeat, NO ONE comes into my home and speaks to my daughter like that, ever. I don't care if she is lying, or if she is omitting any important aspect of that night. Hell, I don't care if she keyed your car and kicked your puppy, you have no right to speak to her like that."

Agent Bradford was absolutely stunned and didn't have a chance to speak, because as soon as Charlie's protective outburst was over, their phones went off. They were called into the station; there was an emergency that involved the case and the Porters. Before leaving Agent Bradford made sure to warn me that he would be back to finish the questioning as soon as he was finished with the 'unfortunate interruption'.

With the Agents and Charlie gone, the room was silent and for the first time it was an awkward silence. I felt guilty for keeping Edward in the dark about what happened. Being alone with him after the questioning turned interrogation made me realize that it wasn't right to keep it all to myself. Like Rose had told me on the previous week end, I needed to talk about what happened with someone. Talking about it would be a step in the right direction; it would lead to me being able to heal. I wanted to tell him before the agents got it out of me. I would rather tell him alone, in case he got upset and displayed some of his superhuman capabilities. I had to tell Edward everything; well I would try to leave out the details of the assault. I knew that it was now or never.

"Are you alright?" He asked rubbing my back gently.

I shook my head and cut him off before he could question me.

"We need to talk."

A/N: Thank you to those who reviewed or added this story to your favorites and alerts. Sorry for any spelling or grammar mistakes.

I know that it has been ages, and I apologize for that…life and the lack of an internet connection are to blame. I'm not too happy with this chapter, I know that it could be better.

Please Review, they really help speed up the update process.