Chapter 11: The Healing Piece
A week after Edward visited Edward Masen in jail, things were slowly falling into routine. Edward would meet up at Bella's house with Bree to take both girls to school. Everyday, Bella was sitting in her room waiting for Edward to get her.
Slowly, ever so slowly, the two of them were becoming close friends as they had eleven years ago.
One day, Bella walked out of the house, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Hey," Edward greeted smiling.
"Hey," she answered.
"Hey Bells," Bree greeted.
"Hey, Bree," Bella answered as she got into the car.
Edward smiled as he started the car up and drove off to the school. "You know, you don't have to keep picking me up. I'm able to drive myself," she commented wryly.
"I know, but if we were as close as you say we were kids, why wouldn't I?" he suggested.
She smiled a little, biting her lower lip. "Yeah, but Edward likes you more than a friend," Bree said in a singsong voice. Edward shot Bree a small glare, but then Bella blushed at Bree's declaration.
"Did you finish your Hamlet paper?" Edward asked, changing the subject.
"Um…yeah…" Bella replied slowly, "Shakespeare's not so bad."
Edward shrugged his shoulders a little. "Not really," he agreed.
When they pulled up to the school, Bree jumped out after Edward let her out. Bella got out, letting out a deep breath. "Bella," Edward called.
"Yeah," she replied.
He walked over to her, clearing his throat. "Sorry…for what Bree said," he told her.
"You mean liking me more than just a friend?" she asked, raising her eyebrow.
"Yeah…that," he replied awkwardly.
Bella smiled a little, patting his arm. "You have nothing to worry about," she assured him. He let out a deep breath, making her laugh. "Come on, we're going to be late for biology," she told him, going upstairs.
"Bella…" he started, but she was already inside the school.
Edward let out a sigh as he dragged his fingers through his hair before going up the stairs after her.
During English class, Edward was tapping his pen against his binder. In front of him was a letter he had been trying to write for the last few days since his return from Chicago. The night he returned, he had the strangest dream, or so he thought it was a dream. He wasn't quite sure yet. He just knew that it dealt with Bella and he felt that she was a key to him remembering.
Later that day, it was lunch and Bella sat next to Edward again when she saw that he was distracted with something. "Hey…you okay?" she asked. He lifted his head, pushing his tray away.
"Yeah…can you meet me after class today?" he asked.
"Sure, you are my ride home," she replied with a half-smile.
He chuckled lightly. "True, but I'm going to have Emmett take Bree back home so it's just going to be the two of us," he informed. She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
"No…I don't know…I just need to talk to you," he replied.
"Okay, after school we'll talk," she agreed.
Edward nodded when the bell rang. "I'll see you later," he told her. Bella nodded as she watched him dump his trash then leave the cafeteria. She dragged her fingers through her hair, she wasn't sure what Edward wanted to talk about, but it scared her of what it might be.
After school, Bella walked outside to find Edward waiting by his Volvo. "Hey," she murmured as she walked over to him. Edward let out a deep breath, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Take a walk with me?" he asked.
"Um…sure," she replied.
She slowly followed him into the forest behind the school. They were walking for awhile, Bella nearly tripped a few times, but Edward easily caught her. "Edward, what is it? Will you just talk to me?" she asked when they finally stopped. Edward let out a deep breath, sitting down on a fallen log.
"Bella, can you tell me anything about my past life?" he asked.
Bella gave him a quizzical look as she kneeled in front of him on the dirt floor. "Like what?" she asked.
"I know my dad told you not to tell me anything, because he's hoping I'll remember on my own, but I just can't stand it. Bella, I just need to know something. Did you come searching for me in the forest the day I went missing?" he asked.
Bella stared at him with wide eyes. "Yeah, I did," she replied. He stared at her.
"Can you tell me what you remember about that day?" he asked.
The young woman bit her lower lip as she twisted her moon ring around on her finger. "That was probably the most difficult day of my life Edward, difficult," she said softly. She let out a deep breath. "We were playing baseball and Jasper had hit the ball, making it go in the forest. Rosalie went to go get it, but you told her she was…" she started.
"I said she was too slow," he answered.
Bella nodded her head slowly. "Yeah…so you went to go get it. You were gone for a long time. I went to go searching for you and I only found your hat and the ball," she told him quietly. Edward stared at her when his head started pounding. He reached up, rubbing his forehead, willing the headache to go away. "Do you remember that day?" she asked, hope resounding in her voice. She sat up on her knees, resting her hands on his knees. "Edward, do you remember?" she asked.
"I don't know…bits and pieces," he replied.
Edward swallowed hard. "My head hurts," he muttered. Bella reached up, resting her hands on the sides of his head, rubbing his temples, making his eyes widen as a memory flashed in his head.
Edward sat on the front porch, rubbing his forehead. "What's wrong Edward?" Bella asked, sitting next to him. "My head hurts again," he muttered, "Emmett keeps turning that stupid videogame up and it's giving me a migraine." Bella smiled as she sat up on her knees. "Here," she said softly, rubbing his temples, "I do this for my dad when he has a headache."
Bella smiled a little as she massaged his temples softly. "I do this for my dad…" she started.
"When he has headaches," he finished.
Feeling her heart pick up its pace at his words, she looked at him. "Do you remember me? Edward?" she asked, hoping it were to be true. Edward looked at her. "You remember me?" she asked. He continued to stare at her.
"I remember that day, Bella," he told her.
"Which day?" she asked.
"I remember bits and pieces of the day I went missing," he replied.
Her eyes widened. "What do you remember?" she asked, holding onto his hands. Edward held onto her hands, letting out a deep breath.
Edward opened his eyes again, staring at her. "You were screaming for me," he said softly. Bella nodded her head slowly.
"I did," she answered.
"You kept screaming for me," he said softly.
"You heard me?" she asked.
He nodded his head slowly. "Why was there blood on your hat?" she asked.
"I-I don't know," he replied.
Bella bit her lower lip, hugging him tight. "Every time I look at you, Bella, it triggers something. A familiar feeling," he told her as he hugged her back.
"EDWARD! EDWARD!" he heard six-year-old Bella's voice screaming in his head.
He let out a deep breath as he pressed his forehead against her shoulder. Bella ran her hand over his back, smiling a little. "You're remember Edward, you're remembering us," she whispered. Edward was silent, smiling a little. Pulling back, his green eyes locked with her brown eyes.
Her heart missed a beat as they stared into each other's eyes. Edward closed his eyes suddenly, reaching out to touch her face. Bella bit her lower lip as she closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. He brushed his nose against hers, letting out a deep breath. She shuddered a little under his touch, moving her hands over his arms. He leaned forward, taking in her scent. "Freesias and strawberries," he said softly.
"As always," she answered smiling.
Edward took in her scent, the familiarity of it rushing through his system like a waterfall. He wanted to take in every bit of her beauty in. Just to feel every inch of her face and hair, the softness of her skin beneath his fingertips almost felt like heaven. Their lips were close together, their eyes were still close. They were both beginning to shake in anticipation. Moving to kiss her, they were suddenly interrupted when Edward's cell phone went off.
They both let out disappointed sighs when Edward reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. "It's my mom," he murmured. He flipped his phone open, holding it up. "Hello," he answered. Bella ran her fingers over his knee, smiling as he continued to caress her hair gently. "I'm with Bella mom, don't worry," he assured her, "I'll be home shortly." He hung up and let out a sigh. Bella slowly got up off the ground, brushing the dirt off her knees. "We should get back," he told her.
"Yeah, I think we should," she agreed.
He smiled, lifting her up in his arms suddenly. Bella let out a shriek when she was on his back. "What are you doing?" she asked, laughing.
"Wouldn't want you to fall," he replied with a smile.
Bella laughed, wrapping her arms tightly around his torso as he started walking back to his car.
