Disclaimer: I am not Stephenie Meyer nor Summit Entertainment. I do not own anything Twilight related.
The Cullen clan returned to their house, the atmosphere relatively light compared to what it had been earlier. There seemed to be a release of tension and gloominess, to be replaced with a new beginning. The Cullens could sense it and each breathed a sigh of relief.
Carlisle turned back to his family, standing next to the chair. "I understand that what has happened today may take some time for everyone to deal with in their own time. However, we have a bigger issue to deal with at the moment. We couldn't save Bella and that pains me to the core to say it, but it is the truth. We can help Charlie. I have no doubt that Bella would want us to do something to help her father, however little it may be. But, before we do that, we need to discuss our living situation for the time being."
Emmett walked forward. "I vote for staying here. I know we normally move around instead of one place for too long, but this town has grown on me. It has reminders of Bella here and it's the safest place that we've ever encountered since I've been travelling with you all."
Rosalie and Alice nodded their agreement. Jasper remained to the side, his eyes glancing over each vampire, checking their emotions. He gave a short nod of his head. Esme turned to Carlisle. "I go wherever the family would like. I am, though, partial to staying here."
Carlisle nodded his head. "Then we stay. If anyone asks where Edward is, we say he left to pursue other interests in a different state. Now that that has been settled, we need to go pay Charlie a visit."
Charlie groaned softly at the knock on the door, his hangover not having the time to recede fully. He stood up slowly and opened the door, revealing the rest of the Cullen clan. He didn't even have the will to order them off his property. "What can I help you with, Carlisle?" He asked in a soft, gruff voice.
Carlisle gave a nod of recognition. "Hello, Charlie. We came to talk to you, if you don't mind. May we come in?" Charlie warred with himself for a few seconds before he nodded and opened the door a bit wider for them to pass through.
The Cullens made their way through the doorway one-by-one, walking into the living room silently. They stood near the television, Carlisle in front. Charlie shut the door and went back to the living room, taking up residence on the couch. "Well?" He questioned curiously.
"Charlie, we came here to apologize. We did not have any idea about Bella. It seems Edward lied to us as well, telling us that Bella did not want to see us anymore. We did not question this, a fatal mistake on our part. We know that we cannot change what happened, nor do we expect you to forgive our behavior, but we wanted you to know that we are sorry for what happened." Carlisle replied in a soft tone.
Charlie looked down for a moment, running a hand over his cheek as he thought over this new development. He looked up at the six figures standing before him and nodded. "I do forgive you. It was not your fault. It was Edward's and he is the only one to blame for all of this. Speaking of that no good rat, where is he?"
"He left to pursue other interests in another state. We know not where, all we know is that he has left." Carlisle said, his face remaining void of any emotion that would give him away.
"Well, good riddance. My apologies. That was out of line."
"None taken. He did what he did for selfish reasons, so I see nothing wrong with that statement."
Charlie nodded as he stood up. "Thank you for coming by." He said as he held out his hand.
Carlisle raised his hand, shaking Charlie's for a few seconds before releasing it. "We are glad that you've been so understanding in all this, Charlie. We do appreciate it. We don't want to see a good soul go down so soon." He said with a raised eyebrow.
Charlie sighed as he nodded. "I understand that. I'll get better. You'll have your Police Chief back in full force soon. That much I can promise you."
Carlisle nodded with a small smile. "It'll be good to have you back, Chief Swan. We'll be taking our leave now. Goodbye, Charlie."
Charlie nodded his head and showed them to the door, closing it once they had all left the threshold. He locked the door and turned back to the empty house. "Bella, wherever you are, I promise to get better. I'm sorry that you aren't here any more, baby girl, but you will be happy to know that you will once more have a father to be proud of." He whispered with a small smile on his face. He knew it might take him a while to get back on track, but he could tell the future was a bit brighter now.
Outside, the Cullen clan gathered into one of the family cars and were silent for a few moments. "Where will we be heading now, Carlisle?" Alice asked in her bell voice.
"We're going to go play baseball, Alice. I think Bella would want us to finally finish that game of ours, don't you?" Carlisle asked with a smile, putting the car into drive.
You have reached the end of 'Empty'. Thank you all for your kind reviews and constructive criticism. I hope you have enjoyed the story. I'll hopefully be putting out more stories soon. As always, leave constructive criticism in a review if you would like. All my love to you readers out there.