Alternative Eclipse
~Chapter X~
I let out a loud yelp from hearing his voice, and I was suddenly sitting up in Edward's lap, my chest pressed against his. I looked over my shoulder, blushing deeply from being caught by the intruder.
"Err, hi dad." I greeted Charlie with a wince. His face was slowly turning red and becoming darker by the minute while he stared at Edward and I. "Get your shirts on now!" he barked, snarling a little. Edward and I scrambled up, looking around for our shirts. When we had them on, Charlie motioned for Edward to come closer.
He obeyed, looking a little frightened by all of this. Then, Charlie pulled out the cuffs. "Dad!" I shouted, surprised he was actually doing this. "This will teach you to touch my daughter like that, boy." Charlie barked at him, slapping the cuffs on his outstretched wrists. "Dad, you can't take him to jail!" I yelled at him, feeling tears of frustration begin to fall from my eyes.
"Oh really? Why can't I? I told this boy that he is not allowed to touch you, Bella. I'm making sure he goes away to jail for a long time for going against me!" Charlie roared at me, already pushing my vampire towards the door. I can't believe my own father was doing this to him, and yet, Edward was listening to him without fighting it. What the hell was in the air today?
Besides, I know my dad can't legally put Edward in jail. He can only do so if I press assault charges against him - which will not be happening any time soon.
"Because, I'm not pressing charges! And, you can't do so either because I let Edward do that with my consent!" I yelled at him furiously, wiping away my tears roughly.
Charlie stopped when he heard this. He had a hand on Edward's shoulder from pushing him towards the door, and it still looked like he wanted to do so. But, he knew I was right, and I know for sure he didn't want to get into any trouble if he put Edward in jail without there being any charges. Charlie heaved an angry sigh and yanked Edward back who allowed him to do so. "Both of you, sit now." Charlie ordered, pointing to the couch.
Edward and I sat down next to each other, and watched my father pinch the bridge of his nose as he sat down in his armchair. His face was returning to its normal color, but I know he was still very pissed at what he had just seen. "Dad, look, I think we should talk this out maturely, like adults." I suggested after waiting ten minutes for him to calm down.
Charlie rubbed his face with his hands, before nodding. "Mind explaining to me why I had just seen you about to deflower my daughter?" Charlie growled at Edward. Edward shrank somewhat under his gaze, but I saw determination in his eyes. "Umm well, you know how us guys are, Chief Swan. Bella is so gorgeous, I couldn't resist. And, she wasn't pushing me away and had given me permission, so..." Edward tried explaining - or at least, tried giving him the natural teenage boy answer - but grimaced when Charlie looked at him murderously.
"Dad, stop it. You know how that type of thing works, and you know that you can't stop me from making my own decisions in life. This is just one of them." I came to Edward's rescue, looking over to see him smiling at me gratefully. Charlie then whipped his fiery glare at me and asked angrily, "And you think I'm okay with you two doing it? In my own house, no less?"
"Well if that's the case, then we'll go do it over at his house." I retorted just as hotly as he asked; oh wait. I think that was not the right thing to say at this moment. Charlie's face quickly became red with anger again. "You will most certainly not being doing that at his house! In fact, I'm ordering you to stay away from him now, Bella!" Charlie barked. "What? You can't do that, Dad! You can't tell me who to date or not! That's my decision, and mine alone!" I hissed at him, my anger spiking. A tight feeling began forming in my chest; again with that weird feeling. It might have to do with what's going on with me.
"I have enough rights to tell you, Bella! You live under my roof, and follow my rules! Starting now is a new rule - you are not allowed to see Edward Cullen here, anymore!" Charlie snarled at me, standing up on his feet while scowling darkly down at Edward. "I'm fucking 18, dad! You have no right to do so!" I shouted at him, standing to my feet as well. "You're still living here with me, and what I say, goes!" Charlie growled.
"Then I guess I'm not living here anymore! Give me enough time to pack up all of my things. I'll be out of your hair for good, dad!" I yelled at him, grabbing Edward's cuffed hands and dragging him after me up the stairs to my room. "Isabella Marie Swan, get back here right now!" Charlie shouted at me as he followed us to the stairs. "No! I don't have to, now that I'm moving out of here!" I yelled at him, reaching my room with Edward in tow. I slammed the door and locked it while I began throwing things together in what little amount of suitcases I had.
"Bella, stop packing." I heard Edward say to me while he broke free from his cuffs, ripping them apart easily. "No. I'm leaving this house. He has no right to say I have to break up with you and never see you again. I'm an adult, and he can't tell me what to do like I'm five or something." I hissed at him with a huff, stuffing my clothes in a duffle bag.
"ISABELLA! STOP PACKING RIGHT NOW!" Charlie roared from the other side of the locked door, pounding on it with his fist. "NO!" I shouted, growling as I took down my pictures. "Bella, stop." Edward ordered, reaching out and grabbing my wrists in his cold hands. I looked up at him angrily, and saw his face was marred by a heavy frown. "What?" I asked him scathingly, just so pissed at my dad still.
"Bella, I'm not letting you move out of this house on terrible terms with Charlie. Think how hurt he'll be, and you'll just be as equally upset and sad. You'll regret your choice if you do this, and I refuse to let this drive a wedge between you and him." Edward explained to me sternly. I thought over his words, and eventually realized Edward was right.
Charlie meant a lot to me. I love him deeply and have been taking care of him ever since I've come to Forks to live with him. He's awkward, stern and really not that observant when I lie, but he loves me, can make me laugh at times, and I know that leaving him while we're fighting over him finding me and my fiancé about to have sex in his living room, is something I'll regret in the long run.
I couldn't let that happen. Besides, I wanted to be able to tell him I'm engaged with Edward before we begin sending out the invitations to the wedding - which I'm probably sure Alice will do after I resolve this mess with Charlie.
I looked up at Edward, ignoring my dad's yelling and pounding. "You'll help me with this, right? You'll help me get him to see reason and help me telling him that we're going to be together forever - won't you?" I asked him in a quiet whisper, terrified at the aspect of telling Charlie the truth all of a sudden.
I don't know why I had a sudden change of emotion, but it's probably me just realizing that I needed my dad in my life for as long as I can have him, before I was about to get married and spend the rest of my existence with my vampire.
Edward bent down and kissed my lips for a romantic peck. "Of course I will, my sweet angel. Just promise me you'll patch things up with him. He's so hurt and angry that your growing up fast - already having sex with her boyfriend before you can tell him. He feels like he's losing you to me, and wants to keep you as his little girl forever." Edward said to me, explaining my dad's anger.
I understood that my dad wanted me to stay young forever, but I was human - or at least, as human enough, what with the strong powers and abilities I was gaining - and he knows that I'll get older and be moving out soon.
"ISABELLA!" My dad roared from the other side, bringing me out of my thoughts. I sighed when I heard him, dropping the picture I had in my hand on my bed. Edward walked with me to my bedroom door, where I unlocked it and opened it slowly. Charlie still stood there, fuming visibly. "Dad," I began solemnly, trying to contain the small amount of anger I had in my still after remembering he was yelling at me to break up with Edward, not long ago.
"Finally decided to listen to me?" Charlie asked me, looking a little smug. "No. But, the talk we had downstairs was not considered really a talk." I replied, and Charlie scowled again. "So, let's all go down there and try talking again." I stated to him. I took Edward's hand in mine and we walked down the stairs together with my dad following right behind us. We entered the living room again and Edward and I sat down on the couch while my dad took the armchair again.
"Now, please, just listen, dad. I know you're not a big fan of him, but I love Edward, dad. I really do. You saw how I was without him last year." I stopped when Charlie grunted, looking away. Edward had flinched upon the mention of our dark era, so I looked back at him and kissed his cheek, patting his hand that was still in mine. "You know I was nothing more than a mindless zombie. I didn't eat, couldn't sleep, didn't talk. I was nothing without him. And from what I heard from Edward's family, Edward was just as equally depressed as I was."
"If he was, then why didn't he just come and get back together with you, instead of you running out on me to talk to him?" Charlie wondered out loud, interrupting me. Crap; what do I tell him? I thought to myself. Love, let me handle this one. Edward's thoughts came into my mind. I tried holding back my jump of fright, as I sort of forgot that Edward and I could read each other's minds now.
"The reason why for that, sir, is because I had to stay away from her. I thought it would be for the best if Bella and I stayed away from each other, and forgot about one another. It was me trying to keep her safe from me. I didn't think I was the best choice for Bella, yet she didn't see that. I wanted her to move on from me, for her to be happy without me. But, apparently that wasn't the best choice, for Alice had called me and told me just how depressed Bella was. I refused to go back, knowing if I did, I would probably be hurting her and that she might fall for me again, when really, I wanted her to be happy without me. Though, you know Bella can be, and after hearing from my sister that I was so depressed I was about to... err, rid myself, Bella and Alice came to LA to talk me out of it.
"I'm very glad that they did. If they hadn't, I would most likely not be here at this moment. For what they have done, I realized that my leaving was the most foolish mistake I had ever made in my life. I knew I couldn't live without your daughter being in my life anymore, and after asking her if she could forgive me, and telling her that I loved her deeply, she took me back. Though, I'm still puzzled myself as why she did, after all the hurt I caused her during those horrible months." Edward paused to look at me inquisitively and raised a hand to stroke my cheek.
"The point I'm trying to get across here, sir, is that I love your daughter and she loves me back. We had talked to each other, wanting to know when we could spend the rest of our lives together. I didn't want to have sex with Bella before we get married, because my parents had taught me to treat a woman with respect and wait for that stage after we're married. But, Bella had convinced me otherwise, so here we are." Edward concluded, looking firmly over at my dad.
I looked up at him, proud of his explanation. He stood up to my father, explained to him the best way he could of why he left me, and was telling him that he wanted to be with me forever, and there was nothing that could separate us anymore. I was a little uncertain if his explanation would really make sense to my dad and fully answer his question, but I believe his answer was heartfelt and would probably put my dad in his place.
Charlie thought over Edward's answer, looking down at the ground with hard eyes. His thoughts were all over the place, thinking over Edward's answer, and after hearing about him saying he didn't want to have sex with me in the first place before we get married, it seemed like he was focusing on that while looking at my ring.
I think he knows I'm engaged to you. I thought at Edward, feeling my heart stutter in place. This was probably not going to end well if he's beginning to piece things together. I know, my angel. But, we have to let him figure this out first before we tell him. Edward thought back at me, squeezing my hand to reassure me.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour but was rather only a few minutes, my dad looked over at us, his gaze hard. "You're marrying him, aren't you?" Charlie asked me, though from his thoughts, he was hoping he was wrong.
I squared my shoulders, sitting up straight and looked at him firmly. "As much as you don't like him dad, yes. I'm marrying him." I told him. "Gah." Charlie blanched, his face becoming pale from hearing me admit it out loud. He hung his head, shaking it back and forth. Is he going to be okay? I asked Edward through my thoughts, hoping my dad would take this maturely. He'll be fine, love. He's just shocked to hear that you really are marrying me. Edward thought back at me. He'll be yelling at me soon too, once we tell him just how soon we're getting married. I thought back, feeling my fear rise up within me once more.
"Bells, please just tell me you're not pregnant and that's why you're marrying him. Tell me you're not pregnant, that you're using protection." Charlie pleaded with me in a sputter, his thoughts a jumbled mess between anger that I had kept yet another secret from him, and worry that I was pregnant and only marrying Edward out of wedlock. His face was red once more, and I could feel my own face becoming red in embarrassment.
"Dad, trust me, I'm not pregnant. We're using protection." I assured him. Okay, so the last part was really a lie; Edward hasn't used a condom ever since we started having sex, and I was not on any birth control pills. But, we figured that since Edward is a vampire and vampires couldn't reproduce, then we had no worries about not using protection of any sorts.
"Okay, good." Charlie replied, the red in his face slowly going down. "When's the big day?" Charlie asked next after an awkward moment of silence, his face in a grimace when he mentioned it. I could tell it was going to take him some time to get over the fact that I was engaged to be married to a boy that he didn't like so much. And, when we tell him when the wedding is going to be held, I know for sure he will not be pleased at all.
"Um..." I trailed off, before Edward took over. "We're hoping to have it sometime in two months, sir." Edward answered politely. Charlie looked up at us, shocked. "Two... months?" he asked, stunned and sounding a little angry again. "Yes, dad. Two months." I repeated, sighing. "Why though?" Charlie asked with a huff. "Dad, Edward just explained that he loves me. I love him just as much, and we know we can't wait." I answered him shortly, mentally rolling my eyes. Charlie would not be changing my mind at all about the date. He just needs to accept it.
Charlie sighed. It seemed like he was finally accepting it. "Alright, fine. Before you even ask, you have my blessing. But, I expect you to tell your mother about this, Bella. It's your business, and she needs to hear it all from you." Charlie stated to me, where I can hear from his thoughts, he was hoping Renee would be able to talk some sense into me in setting the wedding date at a later day.
"That reminds me... Dad? Can Edward and I go visit Renee, so we can tell her in person?" I asked him, and he got red in the face again, only this time, it went away just a quickly. No use in trying to fight this off any longer. Besides, I know for sure she hasn't seen her in a long time. Charlie's thoughts came into my head.
"Wait until the weekend, okay Bells?" Charlie asked of me. "Of course we'll wait, sir. Thank you for letting us go." Edward answered for me politely. Charlie nodded, and stood up, heading off into the kitchen.
"Well, I'd say that went well." Edward whispered to me, and I rolled my eyes at him.
He should know the worst has yet to come - telling Renee about all of this is going to be much worse.
A/N: Err... I don't know if the beginning was really all that serious, and if it was funny near the end. I'd say it was rather serious-angry in the beginning, and then as it went on, just became serious, and then near the end it was a little funny but still held a serious edge to it...
But, I'd like to thank Ana Cecilia and AFL4ET (You know who you are with those intials...) for the suggestion of how the chapter should go, as well thanking AFL4ET for a brilliant idea for future chapters, to explain Bella's odd happenings of how she got her abilities and such. ;)
Reviews would be greatly appreciated, and I would like some votes to the new poll on my profile. It involves The Animal In You, and I would really like it if any of the readers could go and vote for it.
Bye for now,
~*Lady Lily of Darkness*~