WARNING - The next few chapters are kind of dark (I had no idea I had such dark plot bunnies - seriously). They involve violence, murder, death, attempted suicide and I guess gore (if you warn for that). The rating for this story has changed from T to M.
A/N - Thanks as always to everyone who read, alerted, favourited and reviewed. Especially those who reviewed. I hope the baseball lives up to what you guys expected, I ended up not writing a lot, simply for the fact that I don't know a lot about baseball and I wanted to get the group back to the Cullens house.
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Chapter 11
Vampire Baseball
"Hello, Bella."
"Hey, Jasper," I said, looking up and smiling, as Jasper walked over and sat down. The girls in front of us turned and glared at me for a few seconds, before turning around and whispering to each other.
"How are you?" he asked, giving me a knowing grin. I groaned and dropped my head into my hands.
"You know, when Edward warned me that Emmett was going to 'pester' me all day, I just thought that meant at lunch," I said, looking up at him. "But he keeps showing up after every class, at first he at least said hi, but now he just starts talking about baseball and how awesome it is, and how much fun I'll have, cos this time I'll be able to 'experience' it properly."
Jasper chuckled, ducking his head, as the teacher glared in our direction.
"He's impossible to be annoyed at though," I continued. "He just smiles at you and keeps on talking. And you just listen, the annoyance ebbing away."
"So," he said quietly. "Does that mean that I have baseball to look forward to this afternoon?"
Groaning, I turned back to the front of the room, where the teacher was still throwing us dark looks.
"You're in on it, aren't you? The whole 'let's pester Bella all day until she says yes'?" I whispered. He shot me a quick grin and shrugged.
"I love baseball," he replied, before turning his eyes back to the front.
Class seemed to fly by, with Jasper casually bringing up why playing baseball tonight would be a good idea. It wasn't that I didn't want to play, I just wasn't sure if the rest of my family would and I didn't want to say anything before talking to them. Besides, it was fun hearing Emmett, and now Jasper, trying to convince me.
As the bell went, I grinned as Jasper picked up my bag.
"You know, I would think you were being a gentleman," I said. "If I didn't know that you're only doing it to stop me from getting away quickly."
He laughed and followed me out into the corridor.
"So … baseball tonight?" Emmett asked, appearing suddenly in front of us.
"I already told you," I said, for what felt like the thousandth time today. "I'll have to check with the others."
"Sounds like fun," Sandy piped in, appearing next to me and giving the two men a smile. "You should see George pitch."
Emmett chuckled and looked over at Jasper again.
"That sound like a challenge to you, bro?" he asked. Jasper smiled and winked at the both us, before Emmett continued. "We'll see you tonight, ladies. Be prepared to lose so bad that you'll be begging us to take pity on you and end the game early."
I snorted and shook my head. "You forget, I've seen you guys play. You haven't seen us play at all. Therefore, we have the advantage."
I grinned, as Emmett just shook his head and walked past, Jasper following him. My smile faded as they walked away and I felt a familiar tightness forming in my chest.
"It's okay to enjoy being around them," Sandy said quietly, looping her arm through mine and steering us toward the exit. I frowned and studied her face. She always seemed to be able to sense what others were thinking.
"I just feel like I'm betraying them," I replied quietly, shaking my head. "But when I'm around the Cullens, the more I see them, the harder it is to stay angry at them. How can I just forget about what happened to everyone I cared about? How can I forgive them?"
"Charlie and the others wouldn't want you to be angry your whole life, Bells," Sandy said, just as quietly. "And you're right, you shouldn't forget what happened. But they would want you to be happy. And Bells, you light up when you're around them, even if you're trying to distance yourself, its small, but its there."
I sighed and gave her a small smile.
"You might be right," I said.
"I know I'm right, Bells. Now, what should we wear to this baseball game?" she asked, as we headed to the car.
**
"Wow!"
I couldn't help but smile as Will looked up, impressed, at the Cullens' house. It was easier than I thought, walking up to the house that had been a second home to me all those years ago.
"Our house is nice, but this is just … wow."
I threw an arm over Will's shoulders and chuckled, as we lead our family up the drive to the house. Even though storm clouds were rolling in, we had decided that running there would be a lot easier for everyone. It also gave everyone the chance to calm themselves.
"Seriously," Will added.
"Yes, we all heard you, William," Jenny replied, her tone tense. Will looked over his shoulder and winked at her, making a small smile cross her face. Before we even reached the steps up the porch, the door opened.
"Bella," Esme said, stepping out and smiling down at all of us. "And you must all be Bella's family. I'm Esme."
"Nice to meet you," Mark said, walking forward and shaking her hand. "I'm Mark and this is, my wife Jenny, our sons Will and George, our daughters Sandy and, of course, as you already know, Bella."
Esme smiled at everyone, as Mark introduced them.
"We're so glad you could come," Esme said. "We had planned to have a nice meeting indoors, however, my sons thought it might be nice to play-"
"Baseball," Emmett crowed, walking out of the house. "Right?"
"Right," Sandy chirped. "Sounds like fun."
Emmett whooped, before jogging back inside, Esme watching him with a bemused smile, shaking her head slightly.
"You'll have to forgive Emmett, he's obsessed with his sport," she said, voice full of amusement.
"Well, it sounds like fun," Mark said, as the rest of the Cullens came out of the house.
"Hello, everyone," Carlisle said, nodding and smiling at us. "I'm glad you decided to come."
"Alright!" Emmett said. "Let's get this show on the road. You guys can follow us to the field."
"So I guess this means Emmett managed to pester you enough then?" Edward said, appearing beside me. I gave a little laugh and shrugged, looking up at him.
"Well, it turned out Emmett and Jasper were in cahoots," I replied, looking over and seeing Jasper give me a wink. Shaking my head and looking back at Edward, I rolled my eyes as I saw the glaring that was going on between the two men next to me.
"Edward," Will greeted calmly, a small smile on his face.
"William," Edward replied, through gritted teeth.
"Now, now, Edward, even though we're not in school, I'd prefer it if you'd call me Mr. Grace," Will said, clearly, to anyone who knew him, having trouble keeping a straight face, as he baited Edward.
"I'll just leave you two to it," I said, rolling my eyes again and pushing past the both of them, to stand next to Sandy and George.
"Should we go?" I asked Emmett, still ignoring the other two men. Emmett chuckled, a huge grin on his face, as he looked between where I stood and where Will and Edward still stood.
"Hells yeah!" Emmett said. "Follow me."
I followed Emmett, as he ran towards the field, hearing the others not too far behind us. Seeing Emmett slow down in front of me, I took in the field that had changed my life all those years ago.
"You know, Bells, I've really missed you," Emmett said quietly, looking off into the distance, before turning and giving me a cheeky grin. "You bring so much entertainment into my life."
Snorting, I punched him in the arm, looking up as a flash of lightning lit up the sky.
"Time to start playing," Jasper said, coming to a stop next to us, glancing over at Alice, who beamed at him and nodded.
"Let's play ball," she said.
"Who's batting?" Sandy asked, gracefully stretching and looking around.
"Well," Emmett said. "Since you're the 'visiting' team, you pick."
"What do you think, hun?" Mark asked, glancing over to where Jenny stood quietly, staring off into space. Shaking her head, she gave a small smile.
"Bat," she said, winking at George. The Cullens all smiled, Edward and Emmett bumping fists before both raced gracefully to the outfield, Rosalie pulling her baseball cap on and following them, while Jasper stood infield, Alice on the pitching mound and Carlisle the catcher.
"You're not playing?" Jenny asked Esme.
Esme shook her head, a small smile gracing her face.
"Oh, no, I much prefer to referee. I like to keep them honest," she said, echoing the same words from all those years ago.
"There won't be any cheating," Sandy said, a smug smile crossing her face. "Trust me."
"Batter up!" Emmett called, from his spot in the outfield, stopping whatever question Esme had been about to ask. Grinning, I picked up the bat and walked to the plate, unable to hide the excitement that was racing through me.
"Alright, Bella's first up!" Emmett cried.
"This oughta be good. Think we should move in?" he asked Edward, chuckling.
Holding the bat, I watched as Alice gracefully pitched the ball, timing it just right that the ball hit the bat square in the middle, sending it soaring over everyone's heads, far into the woods. Dropping the bat, I ran as fast as I could, and was surprised to find I made it to the home plate, just before Edward threw the ball to Carlisle.
"Safe!" Esme cried.
"Damn, girl," I heard Emmett call, making me laugh in delight, as Will helped me up.
"I told you," I threw over my shoulder, high-fiving my family, "we have the advantage."
I bit my lip as Emmett snorted, standing back to watch the rest of my family bat.
**
We ended up playing for hours, both teams equally as good as the other, and the scores remained close through the entire game. Surprisingly, Emmett and George found a new respect for the other, ending up playfully bantering with the other through the last few innings, while Will and Edward, continued their posturing from before.
The game was finally called to a halt, as the rain started to fall, saturating all of us, and convincing us to take the rest of the meeting inside the Cullens house.
Laughing, I looked around at both families as we walked back to the Cullens' place, feeling a sense of happiness and contentment as I saw the others getting along. Sandy and Alice were talking about the latest fashion, Carlisle, Esme and Mark were talking about the latest news, Rosalie and Emmett were both bantering with George, who was trying not to laugh, and Will, Edward and I were walking in front of them, in silence, but they had both, at least, stopped trying to antagonize each other.
The only person who wasn't talking or walking with anyone was Jenny. She was walking off to the side, a frown marring her forehead, as her eyes flitted around. I tried to catch her eye, as I looked back, but she just continued to look around, worried.
As we got closer to the house, I saw Jenny walk past us quickly, her face full of worry.
"Jenny?" I called, almost running into her as she stopped dead in front of me. "Jenny?"
Following her line of sight, I felt the bottom of my stomach fall out and dread fill me, as I took in what was strewn across the Cullens porch. Stepping in front of Jenny, I shook off the hand that tried to grab for my arm, my eyes taking in the blood and mess.
Walking closer, I felt like I was walking towards one of my nightmares from the past, as the large mass in the centre of the porch became recognizable. I felt sick, as the blood lust rose up in me.
It was human.
Someone had tortured and torn this poor person, and then left it here for us to find.
Just like before.
Images raced across my mind and it felt like no years had passed, I was back there, in the nightmare that had been my life, those few months before Will had changed me. When my friends and family had been hunted and toyed with, like a cat playing with a mouse.
I didn't even realize that Will had come forward, didn't realize he had his arms around me, that he was whispering urgently in my ear, pulling me back down the driveway, until the Cullens house was just a speck in the distance. In a daze I saw the others in my family, Mark and Jenny were talking urgently with Carlisle and Esme, Sandy walking up to them and interjecting quietly.
George and Emmett shared a look, before both disappeared, along with Rosalie and Jasper. Alice was following us quickly down the drive. And Edward was in front of me, holding my face and looking between Will and I.
"Bella! Just breathe, Bells." Will's worried voice finally broke through the haze and I took a deep shuddering breath, whole body shaking as I was torn away from the memories. "Bells? Are you back with us?"
Turning, I buried my face into Will's chest, taking deep breaths, as I tried to control the shaking and ignore the blood lust. In the back of my mind, I wondered how everyone was handling their own lust.
"They're long gone," I heard George say, as a hand started to rub up and down my back. "They went up to Canada and looks like they kept going."
"How many?" Will asked, his voice a deep rumble under my ear.
"Two, maybe three," Emmett replied.
"George, I need your help," Sandy called, and I felt the hand disappear.
Taking one more calming breath, I pulled away from Will's chest and looked up into his worried face. I tried a weak smile, though I'm sure it came out more as a grimace.
"Are you okay, Bella?" Edward asked quietly. I turned and took in the others, all staring at me in concern, before I looked back at Edward. He went to reach out and take my hand, but dropped it mid-air, a look of pain crossing his face.
"I think we should all head back to our house," Jenny said, as the rest of the group joined us. Nodding, I pulled further out of Will's embrace, giving his arm a squeeze as I stepped away.
"I'll show you the way," Jenny continued.
"What about Sandy and George?" Esme asked, worriedly, looking back towards the house, where the younger two still were.
"They'll be fine," Mark replied. "They'll take care of the … mess and meet us back home."
Jenny and Mark both ran off, the Cullens turning and following them. Before, following the others, I reached out and took Edward's hand, a sad smile crossing my face as I looked into his worried, but surprised face. Without a word, we both followed Jenny as she led us all back to our house. It didn't take long for everyone to find a seat in our lounge room. We sat in silence for a few minutes, before Sandy and George both walked in.
"It's all done," Sandy said, hand gripping George's tight, as she walked over to sit on the steps leading to the back patio, pulling George down with her.
"Well," Mark started, voice unsteady. "I guess we should-"
"I can tell it Mark," I said quietly, standing up and walking over to the fire place, wringing my hands, I turned back to see everyone looking at me in concern and bit my lip.
"Are you sure, Bells?" he asked, standing up and walking over to me. I nodded and swallowed, taking a deep breath.
"It all started a few days after you left," I began.
*
A/N - I hoped you liked the baseball (even though it was very short). There may be more later on (a lot later on). Let me know what you thought :D.
