Thanks for beta'ing, idealskeptic and prereading, K.K. Fush & TheMortician'sDaughter!
Carlisle POV:
She needed me.
It was two in the morning; my son was sleeping, it was raining heavily outside, and I was sitting up in bed, yawning and rubbing my eyes open. Despite my tired state, I would be there for her. Regardless of the weather, she would have my comfort. Emmett would be okay waking up by himself tomorrow morning if I had to stay there all night. I just had to leave him a messy note telling him I was at Renee's and to call me if there was any issues. I taped it on his door and was out in the cold within seconds.
I was drenched immediately as I grabbed my keys out of my pocket and opened the car door. I revved the engine, but my car wouldn't start. Just great!
I ran as fast as I could to Renee's house, splashing in puddles and ignoring the fact that I was now soaked to my skin. It was freezing and I was disoriented, but this was all for Esme.
I rapidly knocked on the door and there was a loud shriek, which I guessed was Esme's. Renee opened the door and let me in. "You're not Charles, are you?" she asked while shining her flashlight in my face. I squinted and shook my head.
"Okay, just checking, I didn't think you were. Esme's in a very paranoid state right now," Renee warned me. "She thought Charles rapped on the door. You should approach her calmly...she's balled up under a blanket right now."
We entered a room Renee named the teen lounge where I heard Esme whimpering softly under the covers. I bent down to lift them off of her, but she jumped when she felt my presence.
"I'm not going to hurt you." I promised. "You'll be okay."
"It's only Carlisle," Renee added and Esme slowly wiggled herself out of her sheets so just the top of her head and her eyes were peeking out.
"Oh..." she sighed with relief. "Carlisle, you came!" She brushed her hair out of her eyes and grabbed the flashlight from Renee. "You're so wet...was the thunderstorm really that bad outside?"
"You call that a thunderstorm? It was a tornado! I ran in the rain because my car wouldn't start. I had to get to you as fast as possible. You needed my help. I'm here now."
"Thank you. You didn't have to do that, really."
"I wanted to, though."
She ducked her head, but I saw her blush and smile. My heart couldn't resist doing a little flip when she did that.
"You've got to be freezing," she commented nervously and chewed on her lip.
Water dripped off my face and onto the bed. I was shivering and I tried to ignore it until she actually said something about my appearance. Footsteps made themselves known as I was handed a towel. "Thank you, Renee," I said and dried myself off.
"You're welcome. I have some matches right here to start a fire...Esme, your flashlight, please? The phone doesn't give off enough brightness."
Esme's eyes widened and she clutched the flashlight to her chest. "You should have bought two."
"That flashlight is good enough for lighting up half a room. Trust me, you'll be fine. Carlisle's here, so that's a plus." Renee reassured her.
She gulped and handed Renee the flashlight.
I really should have brought an extra change of clothes with me so I could get warm and dry a lot faster. I excused myself to the bathroom, got undressed, and wrapped the towel around my hips. I tied it tight to make sure it stayed in place. When I came back in the room with my clothes dangling from my arm, both women looked over at me in shock. Esme gasped, blushed a deep apple red and hid her face in her hands. Renee pressed her lips together and closed her eyes.
"I'm sorry, it's just that my clothes would dry a lot faster if they were...off me. I have to drape them on a chair near the fire and my skin is almost dry without those clothes. Is it too awkward, me being in a towel?"
"It's fine," Esme mumbled while Renee tried to keep a straight face and not laugh.
"I'll take your clothes," Renee sighed and I handed them to her. She wrung them out with the water creating a hiss of steam in the fire and laid them on a chair.
I helped Esme get up in a sitting position and wrapped my arms around her to both create body heat and protect her. The room warmed up as the flames appeared in the fireplace. They licked the logs and the hearth, creating a nice, calming atmosphere around us. I had to keep my little man down when she was in my lap. Fortunately, the towel was thick and I thanked my lucky stars for that. Her clothes were thin and I had to stop myself from feeling all of her soft curves under that little shirt she had on...it was so hard when she wiggled closer to me to get comfortable. I hoped she wouldn't accidentally pull the towel off...Not the time or the place, calm down, she's not even your girlfriend, idiot!
"I can't go back to sleep. The thunder rumbling and harsh winds outside scare me to death. The flashlight won't last forever...I don't remember the last time Renee and I used them. My mom was attacked in this kind of weather." Esme shuddered.
"I'm sorry to hear that," I told her gently as Renee handed her back the flashlight. "Let's make a fort." I was trying to be sweet so the feelings of lust would go away.
"A fort? I briefly remember doing that with Renee when I was very little and sometimes my mom would join us." Her voice cracked. "Do you make forts with Emmett?"
"He loves doing that. I bet he's done that every time he's slept over at Lily's place with Jasper and Rosalie."
Esme smiled her beautiful crooked smile I loved. "That's really awesome. You probably feel too old for forts, though."
"Hey, I'm the one who suggested it," I insisted and pulled the blanket over both of our heads. I stacked up a few pillows on either side so the ceiling of the fort could be a bit higher than where we were sitting.
"So, what should we do now?" Esme asked.
"Did you ever make shadow puppets with a flashlight and your fingers?"
"A long time ago, with Renee...I was too young for that stuff before my mom died, so I never did it with her."
We had fun making bunny ears, dogs, and even butterflies. Esme held the flashlight under her chin, making her look extra spooky but sexy at the same time. "It's time to meet your doom!" she growled in a witchy voice. "Muahahahaha!" she laughed demonically.
I pretended to be scared. "Oh my God, please don't kill me! I have a wife and children at home!"
Esme giggled. "You're funny."
"Thanks, but I'm not as clever as you."
"Ha fucking ha." Her tone turned sour as she looked down, ashamed of herself. "I'm not clever at all. That was me being babyish."
"No, that was cute," I protested while she blushed. "You're clever because Charles never caught you coming to see me at Renee's house."
"Yeah, he has no idea she invites guy friends. He thinks she has no life because she was my only friend...the joke's on him." Esme smirked. "He likes me to come here because it makes me look childish when I sleep over at a friend's house. He makes fun of me, but it's worth it, you know."
"Nobody can stop him, but at least you're having a great time. Dumbass," I snickered.
Esme giggled along with me and nodded. "Changing the subject, wanna hear how Renee got me to quit sucking my thumb?"
"Sure."
"Renee told me she'd have to break me out of that habit. She pulled out a Band Aid from her bag she had with her and wrapped it around both my thumbs. It tasted terrible the next time I tried to suck my thumb. My reaction was naturally, 'yucky!' and she asked me, 'now, will you ever suck your thumb again?' and I shouted, 'no!'. She said, 'good, because I didn't want to have to tickle you!' Of course I whined, 'no, no!'. I was giggling and squirming out of her grasp. She tickled me for a few seconds and I got her back. Pretty soon, we were laughing together. She was like, 'there's my baby sunshine,' She kissed my forehead. 'All better now, darling?' I called her my big sissy and I thanked her gratefully. I told her I loved her. She said she loved me too and called me her angel girl. Whenever I looked down, she'd part a curtain of my caramel curls to reveal my face and say, 'Hey, I wanna see your cutie pie smile...' I'd look up at her, beam, and say hi really excitedly. She'd say, 'Hi there, missy!' She'd tousle my hair and tap my nose. 'You're such a pretty girl. Mmm...'" Esme imitated her little girl's voice and Renee's motherly voice to a T.
"She rested her chin on top of my head, rocked me from side to side, and we sat there in comfortable silence. We listened to life at the park until it got too dark and she was forced to take me home.
"That was one of the many adorable moments I had with her. They were short, but sweet. I just had to tell you some melancholy things last week, just to get it off my chest before I started crying." She bit her lip and looked at the floor nervously. "Renee has a pool, but it opens in the summer." I could tell she was trying to switch topics, but I wanted her to vent to me. We were friends and we could now trust each other with secrets, good or bad. She hugged herself around her midsection and I gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze.
"You can tell me anything you want. Don't be shy. I won't judge you. It's okay, Esme. I understand your point completely. If you're more comfortable with sharing happier parts of your past, you may. She's your hero," I said with a smile.
"Yeah, I'll love her forever. Renee fixed my hair in pigtails, ponytails, half ponies, braids, or just brushed through my tangled hair. She taught me everything I needed to know and I could wear whatever I wanted when we went places."
"That's wonderful."
"She couldn't go to college until Bella was two and she and her boyfriend decided to break up. Secretly, I was glad, but I did want her to get her teaching degree as soon as she could. I still needed her and her boyfriend Charlie was too busy with his cop job." She paused and thought some more.
"I hate to interrupt you, but Charlie arrested my parents when I was fourteen and he was thirty. Bella was six."
"Renee was twenty-nine and still caring for me when I was fifteen."
"You're so good with kids, by the way. It was like you were made to be a mother." She smiled at my compliment. "In fact, do you have children of your own?"
"Sadly, no...I can't have children..." she trailed off with a sniffle. I was afraid I just offended her. My question brought on Esme's sudden tears.
"I'm so sorry."
"Don't be. It's my fault..." she wept. "I lost my baby to SIDS and the rest were miscarriages. I couldn't keep any of them alive."
"Esme, please stop blaming yourself. Did you drink alcohol or smoke during your pregnancy?"
She shook her head no. "He kicked me multiple times all over…I guess that was the cause of all my miscarriages and the first one dying suddenly. I did things that made him mad…I deserve it. It's my punishment." She broke off into sobs. "There wasn't even a funeral! He made it into ash."
"It had no right to do that to you."
"Oh, God, look at me, I'm crying on a gorgeous morning…" Esme wailed.
"Hey, don't worry about it...come here." I pulled her in my arms again after a few hours of sitting side by side. I didn't realize how hot it was until Renee made the sheet collapse on us. She threw it to the side of the room immediately.
"Sorry, I was watching the fire all night. Hope you two didn't suffocate."
"We're all right," I assured her, and Esme hummed in agreement.
"I got a little upset, that's all. Having babies is a sensitive subject for me. It's okay, Carlisle, you didn't know."
Renee put out the fire and gave me back my clothes. "The lights just came back on...the storm's over with...congratulations, you two just survived pulling an all nighter. I need to take a nap." She yawned loudly and exited the room. "Wake me up at noon, Esme, please."
"I will, don't worry. I'm tired as well," Esme sighed and leaned back into the pillow. Pretty soon, I had to set my phone alarm to wake us all up at eleven so Esme wouldn't get in trouble for being home late. After I changed back into my now dry clothes, we had a deep sleep, only a six hour nap but it was better than nothing.
At promptly eleven, I woke up and let the women sleep a while longer. Lily picked me up at quarter to twelve with the kids in tow. Apparently, they begged to come so they could say hi to Esme and Renee. My birthday weekend was one of the best I've ever had. From that night on, I slept over at Renee's house whenever Esme did. The girls slept in the teen lounge and I was in the guest room.
The boys wanted to sleep over at Peter's house while Rosalie was spending the night at Vera's one of the Fridays, so Renee invited Lily and Will to sleep over as well. That particular night, I had to sleep on the couch since Lily and Will were taking up the guest room. I woke up to quiet footsteps down the stairs and the girls laughing silently. Esme and Renee said good morning to Lily and it sounded like they were scooting chairs into a table to sit down and talk. I wanted to eavesdrop since they had woken me up.
"The girls are up before the boys, I see," Renee commented. "Let's make chocolate chip banana pancakes!"
"With whipped cream?" Lily asked excitedly.
"Yes!" both Esme and Renee answered in unison.
Lily laughed. "You guys are awesome. You remind me of sisters."
"That's cuz we are," Esme stated proudly.
"I wish I had a big sister like you are to Esme, Renee."
"You grew up an only child?" Renee asked.
"Yeah, did you two?"
"Mm-hm," Esme said as I heard bowls being plunked down on the table. They were starting to make the pancakes now.
"Thank God for my big brother. I don't know what I would have done without him."
"You can be in our little group. We'll be like the Charlie's Angels," Renee giggled.
"Yeah, or Carlisle's angels...since he befriended us all," Esme contradicted her.
I loved when she talked about me behind my back in a nice way. It was so sweet of her to think of me.
"I'm his oldest friend. Not sure who he's known the longest out of you two," Lily announced.
"Well, he met me first...just seconds before he saw Esme," Renee told her.
"That's true, but he and I talk a whole lot more. You help us out by giving us a place to talk," Esme added. "I really like him, you know. I told him my whole story and he just stood there and let me beat the shit out of him.
"Oh, he did that with me too!" Lily said giddly. "He's such a gentleman, isn't he?"
"He is," Esme agreed in a softer tone than what she was speaking in before.
"One of the great reasons why he's my best guy friend."
"That's funny, Lily, he's mine, too," Esme muttered coldly. "How long have you known him for?"
I stifled a chuckle when Esme talked sharply with a hint of envy in her voice. She had no need to be jealous. Still, it was cute.
"We met in college, medical school to be exact. We both had kids born out of incest. We have so much in common that it's scary."
Renee must have felt the tension in the room because she interrupted them. "Well ladies, these pancakes aren't gonna cook themselves. Mind flipping a few over?"
"Oh, sure," they mumbled.
"So you guys are co-workers?" Esme pressed for more information.
"Yeah. Would you ever wanna be a nurse?"
"Nah, I'm sticking to teaching. Blood and guts are not for me! Freaks me out!"
"Oh well, every woman for herself. That's your choice."
"So you guys see each other every day, twenty-four seven?" Esme demanded, her voice going higher and higher with each word. Something clattered to the floor and Esme said innocently, "Oops, that was an accident!"
"Making wild hand gestures isn't always the best idea, Esme," Renee scolded her gently. "I'll clean this up."
"It's only flour on my socks. No big deal," Lily murmured.
"I'm sorry, Lily. It's just...hard for me to...imagine him with...someone else. I-I know you're just longtime friends, but sometimes...that can change."
"Relax, I have a husband! We can fuck like animals..." Lily insisted.
"Alright! I believe you! Now shut up!" Esme cut her off and all three women burst out laughing.
I decided then that it was time to intervene. I stretched and yawned loudly, pretending I had just gotten up. At the same time, Will shouted from upstairs, "Do I smell breakfast?"
"Yes, you do!" Lily hollered back at him and ran up the steps to help him down. Meanwhile, Esme left Renee's side and entered the room I was in, so I quickly sat up and rubbed my eyes all the way open.
"Good morning, Esme," I said sleepily.
"Morning to you too." She sat down next to me. "Did we wake you?"
"Oh, no, not until everyone was laughing," I lied.
"Yeah, we were joking around, you know...Lily was telling us about her sex life and Renee was bitching about her nonexistent love life. I was just...being quiet, I guess. So you and Lily seem to be best friends. That's nice for you guys."
Esme was beating around the bush, but I just wanted to get to the point. "Esme, Lily and I have been friends for a long time. We met through traumatic experiences but we've both gotten good things out of it."
Her face fell. "Oh. That's cool. Your kids...I understand. The bond would be...tight." She looked down at her lap and tucked some hair behind her ear.
"Do you want to know how she met Will?"
"Um, sure, that would be okay." Esme glanced at me for a second and bit her lip.
"She was his nurse and I was his doctor. He used to be in the war, but then he was paralyzed from the hips down. One look in each other's eyes and they fell in love instantly."
Esme smiled a little. "Aww, that's sweet. What about you? Anyone special?"
"Nah...I don't waste time going out with someone who I'm not that attracted to. Not worth my money either."
"Do you like...Renee?" she whispered.
"Yes, because she's helping us be friends behind Charles' back. I like her as a friend, though, not in that other way. I don't really like anyone romantically."
"You're a player," Esme joked, but there was some hurt in her voice.
"I have guy friends too, you know!" I defended myself.
"Like who?"
I felt like I was being interrogated, but I answered her anyway.
"Charlie, Will...I don't have that many friends. There's my co-workers who are men, but they're not close to me. Lily and Renee are sisters to me."
"You and Lily have known each other for four years..."
"But I feel like I've known you forever. Lily is still important, but I felt that way about you in such a short time, whereas she had to wait."
"Why do you feel that way?" she asked, hiding her blush with her hair.
"We've talked a lot...Lily acts like a guy when we're alone together, but the two of us...we seem like a man and a woman, not two dudes joking around at some bar. She's boisterous, you're not, really."
"What am I to you? A more girly friend?" Esme put her hand on her chest and looked at me quizzically.
"Yeah, you're more...innocent." I tried to word it correctly and prevent her from being offended.
"Innocent?"
"Soft-spoken, gentle...you're not like any other woman I've met before."
"You would have been creeped out by me when I was in my emo stage...I was all rough and harsh. I hated myself, the world, and everyone in it. I've punched people out of my way before and given them the finger."
"I'm sure they deserved it."
Esme grimaced. "Hardly. They asked me why I hurt myself because I looked so sweet or something."
"You are sweet."
She rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Okay. They were concerned for me and I just...pushed everyone away."
"But you didn't do that to Renee."
She shrugged. "Why would I?"
"Let me rephrase it. You never pushed me away. And those people were just being nosy idiots."
"You never forced me to tell you my story. That's why I let you be my best guy friend. Lily's right, you are a gentleman. You didn't even wolf-whistle at me or look down my shirt. You're probably the best doctor in the world." Esme stared at me with a dreamy look in her eyes. "I've never met a man with such compassion for anyone, especially kids. Wow, I-I must be growing your ego, huh?" She blushed brightly and looked away.
"Don't let me get a big head," I teased her.
"I would never. Guys like that are not my type."
"Have you been asked out when you were in high school or college?" I wondered aloud. "It was so rude of me not to ask you previously."
"No, no, it's fine...I wasn't really liked by anyone. Or hated...I was basically ignored. When they paired people up to do projects, nobody picked me."
"I would have picked you," I stated warmly.
"Yeah, we all know you're different." She waved my interruption aside with a grin. "My fellow students didn't groan when the teacher was like, 'go sit with Esme' or something, but that was only because they didn't have a partner either. It was always awkward. They were just a loser because they were antisocial and they wanted to be left alone. I was an antisocial loser because of my life. Maybe there was a special reason they were always by themselves, but I was too afraid to ask.
"I was nominated for homecoming queen as a joke, but luckily, I wasn't dumb enough to believe I would actually win because I didn't even run. This group of immature boys invited me to their smoke-filled houses and catcalled at me, but I just passed them without a word. I took this really well. When I was cornered, I told them my uncle didn't let me date and they threw their heads back and laughed. Thankfully, they ran away before anything horrible happened. What occurred at home was bad enough.
"Inside, I was screaming and crying like a banshee, but on the outside, I pretended like it didn't even bother me. I was icy in elementary and middle school, but in high school, I was nonchalant. College was better, people weremore mature there. Besides, I was away from him for a long time. I visited Renee on my breaks. It was cool."
"I really wish I was at your high school so I could knock those assholes out of your way and show them what I was made of," I said bitterly. My protectiveness was taking over and I felt the need to swoop her in my arms while slaying all of her dragons from the past and present.
"Don't worry, only my uncle hurt me, nobody else," she said quietly. "It's over and done with."
"You're still dealing with him now. I can tell you won't back down without a fight. You're strong in your mind and in your heart," I told her honestly. "You know what you want and you will stop at nothing to get it."
"I don't feel that way." She curled her knees up to her chest and buried her face in her hands.
"If you were weak, would you rebel against Charles by coming here?"
"I would be too scared to...I still am afraid he'll swing by here or something." She shuddered and gasped as she released her knees. "That's why Renee picks me up and drops me off here. Charles doesn't know where she lives and he doesn't care."
"See, that just shows you're not a wimp. Come on, Esme, you are brave, you just don't know it."
She looked at me sheepishly. "Well, I did rescue Alice from the Chokey," she admitted. "He was standing right there and he did nothing to punish me...maybe he's waiting for the right time to do it. Maybe I'm courageous, deep, deep down inside."
"Breakfast time!" Renee called to us and we both got up to join her for chocolate-chip banana pancakes. We had them with whipped cream and strawberries and they were the most delicious things in the planet, besides waffles.
Still, I couldn't stop looking at Esme as we ate. Every day, I fell harder and harder for her charms. I couldn't wait until the day she confessed she had feelings for me.
Please check out K.K. Fush's new story White Picket Fence and The Vampire in the Mix by TheMortician'sDaughter!
YAY over 100 reviews! Thank you to reviewers TeamCullenx, livi harkness, idealskeptic, Just4Me, that kiwi chick, MileneLiraB, K.K. Fush, CarlisleandEsme, TeamCarlisleandEsme8, TheMortician'sDaughter, and MrsCarlisleCullen13!