25. An Impasse
Three days later and I was still sitting next to Bella's hospital bed. I'd memorized every line and crack in the bright white pain, every shadow the sun made as it tried to peep through the long vertical blinds.
Bella was propped up on the bed, covered in bandages, clear tubes across her hands that hooked her to the monitors next to the bed. An oxygen tube was taped under her nose.
The first day, Bella didn't open her eyes once. I'd studied enough medicine to know that the drugs she'd been given were designed to make her sleep. It was a peaceful sleep. No talking.
The next to days were more eventful. Bella floated in and out of consciousness. She received more medication. The second day her mother arrived.
Though Bella had talked to me about her mother, I was not prepared for the frantic whirlwind that was Renée. Like any mother would be, Renée was distraught to see her daughter lying on the hospital bed, bruised and broken. She barely looked at me, Alice, Carlisle, or the ER doctor as he tried to explain Bella's condition. More than once, she cried.
Alice, who'd made a full recovery of her own, took it upon herself to befriend Renée. She had lunch with her in the hospital cafeteria; she helped her get settled at home. She even brought her food and coffee during the long hours that Renée sat bedside, beside me.
Together, they huddled in the corner and giggled like school girls at the tales Renée told of Bella's awkward childhood. Alice also took it upon herself to reveal some of the details of my and Bella's relationship, only because Renée asked.
Now the room was without any visitors, just me and Bella. I watched as she opened her eyes, very disoriented. She gazed around the room trying to figure our where she was and what had happened. I leaned closer, hoping she'd sense my presence and calmed down a bit. Instead she tried to remove her oxygen tube.
I caught her hand gently. "Oh, no you don't."
She turned her head at the sound of my voice. Shock and…happiness flooded her face. Bruises and all, Bella was still beautiful.
"Edward! Oh, Edward, I'm so sorry!"
I put my finger to her lips. "Shhh, everything's alright now."
All the elation I felt that she was awake faded slowly when she looked into my eyes, almost black now with real thirst, only a tinge of red still showed, but still, I was embarrassed for her to see them like that.
"What happened?" Bella asked.
I moved back to my chair, dredging up the still clear memory.
"I was almost too late. I could have been too late." The words came out a tormented whisper.
Bella tried to speak. Her voice was raspy, breathless – a side effect of four broken ribs.
"I was so stupid, Edward. I thought he had my mom."
"He tricked us all," I advised her.
"I need to call Charlie and my mom," Bella realized, ever the responsible kid.
"We already did. Renée is here – well, here in the hospital. She's getting something to eat right now."
"She's here?" Bella was anxious now, struggling to sit up on the bed. I placed my hand on her shoulder and eased her back down onto the pillows. She didn't put up a fight, not that she could have if she tried.
"She'll be back soon," I promised. "And you need to stay still."
"But what did you tell her? Why did you tell her I'm here?"
"You fell down two flights of steps." I paused. "You have to admit, it could happen.
She sighed, then winced. Even breathing hurt.
"How bad am I?"
"You have a broken leg, four broken ribs, some cracks in your skull, bruises covering every inch of your skin, and you've lost a lot of blood." The words came out angrier than I meant them to. I softened my voice.
"They gave you a few transfusions. I didn't like it – it made you smell all wrong for a while."
"That must have been a nice change for you."
"No, I like how you smell."
"How did you do it," she asked, looking down at her hand. I knew what she meant at once.
I looked away from her eyes. Her face yellow with fading bruises but her eyes were just as expressive as ever, as curious and deep as they had been before. Though I was not looking at her, I could feel her stare.
"It was impossible...to stop," I whispered. "Impossible. But I did." I finally was able to look at her, knowing that I'd done the impossible.
"I must love you."
Bella smiled, a slight half smile. "Don't I taste as good as I smell?"
"Even better – better than I'd imagined."
"I'm sorry."
I raised my eyes to the ceiling in frustration. What was she apologizing for? For tasting good?
"Of all the things to apologize for."
"What should I apologize for?"
"For very nearly taking yourself away from me forever," I scolded her. Because as much as I wanted to, I could not take full responsibility for her being nearly killed.
"I'm sorry," she apologized again.
"I know why you did it," I explained. I didn't want to her to think that I was angry with her. "It was still irrational, of course. You should have waited for me, you should have told me."
"You wouldn't have let me go," Bella stated.
"No, I wouldn't."
Bella closed her eyes for a moment. It was a relief to not have her questioning eyes gazing at me.
However, I began to worry when I saw her wince in pain.
"Bella, what's wrong?"
She moved her head slowly from side to side. "Nothing, just bad memories."
Then she opened her eyes again. "What happened to James?"
"After I pulled him off you," – not going into details of our fight – "Emmett and Jasper took care of him," I answered. Even I could hear the tinge of regret in my voice. I had really wanted to finish him off myself, or at least helped.
"I didn't see Emmett and Jasper there."
There was a lot she hadn't needed to see, I wanted to tell her but I didn't.
"There was a lot of blood. They had to leave the room."
"But you stayed."
"Yes, I stayed."
"And Alice and Carlisle..."
"They love you too, you know.
Bella closed her eyes again...thinking...remembering. Her eyes popped open, as if she remembered something frightening, yet important.
"Did Alice see the tape?"
"Yes."
"She was always in the dark, that's why she didn't remember," Bella uttered.
"I know." I gritted my teeth. Alice's pain came rushing back, making my stomach curl. It wasn't right that she had to feel that way. She was a good person. She didn't deserve any type of pain.
Bella tried to reach out, to comfort me from the black look on my face, but the IV pulling at her hand stopped her.
"Ugh!"
"What is it?"
"Needles," she explained, looking away from the one in her hand.
Wow, Bella could be truly a remarkably frustrating individual.
"Afraid of a needle," I muttered under my breath. "Oh, a sadistic vampire, intent on torturing her to death, sure, no problem, she runs off to meet him. An IV, on the other hand..."
I looked at Bella, gauging her reaction to my sarcasm, smiling when she rolled her eyes.
"Why are you here?" she asked, suddenly.
Ow, that hurt.
But I could understand why she asked, why she would question my presence by her bedside, after all I'd done.
"Do you want me to leave?"
Her reaction was not what I expected.
"No!" she yelled, horrified. "No, I meant," she calmed herself a little, "why does my mother think you're here. I have to have my story straight before she gets back."
"Oh," I said, relaxing a little. The clarification made a lot more sense that what I'd been thinking.
"I came to Phoenix to talk some sense into you, to convince you to come back to Forks. You agreed to see me, and you drove out to the hotel were I was staying with Carlisle and Alice – of course I was here with parental supervision..." I paused, smiling at the concentrated expression on Bella's face. Was the story we'd concocted so good that even she believed it?
"But," I finished, "you tripped on the stairs on the way to my room and...Well, you know the rest. You don't need to remember any details though; you have a good excuse to be a little muddled about the finer points."
Bella was thoughtfully silent for a moment. "There are a few flaws with that story. Like no broken windows."
"Not really, I laughed. "It's all been taken care of very convincingly. Alice had a little bit too much fun fabricating evidence. You could probably sue the hotel if you wanted to. You have nothing to worry about," I assured her, running my finger along her bruised cheek.
Bella, despite her fogginess and being highly medicated, responded to my gentle touch exactly as I thought she would. Her heart monitor beeped erratically.
"That's going to be embarrassing," she grumbled. Now I wouldn't be the only one who could hear her heart's irrational responses to me.
"Hmmm, I...wonder," I hummed. Bella's heart always beat faster when I was about to kiss her. I wondered what it would do when I actually kissed her. I tended to get caught up in the moment as well and didn't pay attention during that part.
So I leaned towards Bella slowly. The beeping of the heart monitor accelerated wildly before my lips even touched her. However, when I pressed my lips against hers, with the most gentle of pressure, the beeping stopped all together.
I pulled back abruptly, relieved when the monitor started to beat again.
Bella would take the term heart-stopping to an entire new level.
"It seems that I've going to have to be even more careful with you than usual."
"I wasn't finished kissing you," Bella pouted. "Don't make me come over there."
Grinning, I did as the invalid wanted and kissed her again. Much to my amusement, the monitor went wild.
Only too quickly I had to pull away.
"I think I hear your mother."
"Don't leave me!" Bella panicked unnecessarily. I wasn't going anywhere.
"I won't," I promised then smiled. "I think I'll take a nap."
I moved from the chair next to her bed to the turquoise leather – Alice referred to it as pleather – chair at the foot of the bed. I leaned it all the way back and closed my eyes.
Renée was in the hallway now, talking to a nurse. Her voice was tired. I knew why. She rarely left the hospital, competing with me for the right as Bella's caretaker. I heard the door crack open.
"Mom!" Bella whispered.
Though my eyes were closed, I could feel Renée's eyes on me. She always looked at me when she came in the room.
He never leaves, does he?
"Mom, I'm so glad to see you!"
Renée placed her can of soda next to the bed and hugged her daughter.
"Bella, I was so upset!"
"I'm sorry, Mom. But everything's fine now, it's okay," Bella comforted her mother.
Renée sat on the edge of the bed and straightened Bella's blankets.
"I'm just glad to finally see your eyes open."
"How long have they been closed?"
"It's Friday, honey," Renée informed her. "You've been out for a while."
"Friday?" Bella sounded shocked. But she should not have been. I'd explained her gravity of her injuries.
"They had to keep you sedated for awhile, honey," Renée replied. "You've got a lot of injuries."
"I know," Bella said miserably.
"You're lucky Dr. Cullen was there," Renée stated. "He's such a nice man..."
Very young though. And he looks more like a model than a doctor.
I grinned to myself. I'd forgotten to tell Bella about her mother's small crush on Carlisle.
"You met Carlisle?"
"And Edward's sister Alice. She's a lovely girl."
"She is," Bella agreed.
"You didn't tell me you had such good friends in Forks."
Bella didn't say anything. What could she say about her 'friends'? Instead she moaned.
My eyes flashed to her face. Thankfully Renée's back was to me.
"What's hurts?" Renée demanded anxiously.
"It's fine," Bella assured us. "I just have to remember not to move."
I lapsed back into my phony slumber. I wanted Bella to be able to have a private moment with her mother but I was not willing to leave the room. So I did my best not to listen to their conversation.
Instead, I let my mind wander. I started thinking about every thing that was important to me and realized there was only my family and Bella that I honesty cared about. I was eternally in debt to every member of my family for risking everything for the girl that I loved.
Even Rosalie had been helpful. The female could have just as easily turned on her instead of running away. The situation with Rosalie was strained enough and I was treading on very thin ice with her. But I made up my mind to do something to make our relationship better. I had to.
I was so caught up in my own thoughts that I missed the entire conversation between Bella and Renée until Renée's mental voice, now alarmed, caught my attention.
Why is she staring at me like that? Is she okay?
"Wait, Mom," I heard Bella shout. "What are you talking about? I'm not going to Florida. I live in Forks."
With my eyes closed, I paid close attention to every word now, hoping to catch up.
"But you don't have to anymore, silly," Renée laughed. "Phil will be able to be around so much more now...we've talked about it a lot, and what I'm going to do is trade off on the away games, half the time with you, half the time with him."
"Mom," Bella hesitated, perhaps trying to let her mother down easy. "I'm already settled in at school, and I have a couple of girlfriends...and Charlie needs me. He's just all alone up there, and he can't cook at all."
"You want to stay in Forks?" Renée was bewildered. The idea was inconceivable to her. "Why?"
"I told you – school, Charlie."
"Bella, honey, you hate Forks," Renée reminded her.
I had been expecting this conversation. Renée had been thinking of it for hours, about the house that she and Phil had found, how Bella would love Jacksonville because it was always so sunny and she would have her own bathroom again. And I'd almost missed it.
"It's not so bad," Bella told her mother.
"Is it this boy?" Renée whispered.
I waited eagerly for Bella's answer. This was not the type of conversation she wanted to have with either of her parents.
"He's part of it," she admitted. "So, have you had a chance to talk with Edward?"
"Yes," Renée answered. "And I want to talk about that."
"What about?" Bella asked.
"I think that boy is in love you," she said it like it was a bad thing. To Renée, it was.
"I think so too," Bella stated.
"And how do you feel about him?" Renée poorly concealed the raging curiosity in her voice.
Please don't say you love him too. Please, oh, please.
"I'm pretty crazy about him," was Bella's simple response. It sounded like something a teenager with her first boyfriend would say.
"Well, he seems very nice, and my goodness, he's incredibly good-looking, but you're so young, Bella..." Renée's voice was unsure and sad. Since Alice first introduced me as Bella's boyfriend, Renée had been hoping that things were not that serious.
It was as if Bella was reading her mother's mind when she answered,
"I know that, Mom. Don't worry about it. It's just a crush."
Crush? I laughed to myself. She wishes.
But I guess it was the right word to use for Renée's benefit. She would have been devastated to know that her daughter was in love at age seventeen. Renée had fallen in love with Charlie at a young age. Married and pregnant before the age of twenty was not the future she'd envisioned for her own child.
She doesn't have to worry about that second part, I thought as I resumed listening to their conversation. Renée had mention that she had been spending the night at the hospital which had upset Bella.
"Crime?" I heard Bella ask in alarm.
"Someone broke into that dance studio around the corner from the house and burned it to the ground – there's nothing left at all! And they left a stolen car right out front. Do you remember when you used to dance there, honey?"
"I remember," Bella answered.
"I can stay, baby, if you need me."
"No, Mom, I'll be fine. Edward will be with me."
That's probably why I should stay.
"I'll be back tonight," Renée stated. It sounded as much like a warning as it did a promise.
"I love you, Mom."
"I love you too, Bella. Try to be more careful when you walk, honey. I don't want to lose you."
My eyes stayed close but I was laughing hard inside. Emmett would get a kick out what Renée said as well, when I told him.
I waited until the room was empty again and sat back in the chair next to the bed.
"You stole a car?" Bella inquired, raising her eyebrows. The antics of teenage vampires took some time to get used to.
"It was a good car, very fast."
"How was your nap?"
I stared down at her, a bit of pink showing behind the yellowing bruises on her face.
"Interesting," I answered.
"What?"
"I'm surprised. I thought Florida and your mother...well, I thought that's what you would want."
Bella stared at me, confused. "But you'd be stuck inside all day in Florida. You'd only be able to come out at night, just like a real vampire."
A real vampire. It was cute the way she said it. But that wasn't what I was curious about, it wasn't what bothered me.
"I would stay in Forks, Bella. Or somewhere like it," I explained. "Someplace where I couldn't hurt you anymore."
My words did not register at first. She continued to stare blankly but as the words I spoke began to make sense the beeping of the heart monitor increased and Bella's face became pained. Her mouth moved but no words formed.
I was beginning to think that she was in more physical pain than I'd realized. Once again I found myself wishing that not only could I take away the pain, but I could hear what she was thinking.
A nurse, her regular RN, walked purposefully into the room. I stayed still, watching as she took in Bella's expression with a practiced eye before turning to the beeping monitors.
"Time for more pain meds, sweetheart?" she asked kindly, tapping the IV feed.
"No, no," Bella mumbled. "I don't need anything."
"No need to be brave, honey. It's better if you don't get too stressed out; you need to rest."
Bella shook her head and the nurse sighed.
"Okay. Hit the call button when you're ready."
The nurse gave me a stern look, -- she had a feeling that I was the source of Bella's discomfort – then left the room.
As soon as she did, I slid closer to Bella and touched her face. "Shhh, Bella, calm down."
"Don't leave me," she pleaded.
"I won't. Now relax before I call the nurse back to sedate you."
But the monitors kept beeping and her heart kept racing.
"Bella," I spoke soothingly, trying to calm her gasping and her racing heart. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right here as long as you need me."
"Do you swear you won't leave me?" she whispered.
How could I leave now? Not when she needed me to stay with her. Not when she still wanted me. I could bring that type of hurt on her. She did not deserve it. And I did not deserve her.
I placed my hands on either side of her face and bent closer until we were eye to eye.
"I swear."
Beneath my cold hard hands, she began to relax. Finally the beeping returned to a normal pace.
"Better?"
"Yes," but there was a hint of caution in her voice.
I shook my head. "Should have expected a complete overreaction," I said to myself in a low enough pitch that Bella couldn't have heard me.
"Why did you say that?" Bella whispered. "Are you tried of having to save me all the time? Do you want me to go away?
This wasn't about what I wanted. What I wanted was for her to be with me forever, as long as her forever was. What I wanted was to be able to touch her and hold her without fear of killing her. What I wanted, I could not have.
"No," I said to her. "I don't want to be without you, Bella. Of course not. Be rational. And I have no problem saving you, either – if it weren't for the fact that I was the putting you in danger...that's I'm the reason that you're here."
She frowned at my words. "Yes, you are the reason...the reason I'm here – alive."
"Barely. Covered in gauze and plaster and hardly able to move."
"Why must you do that, Edward?" she asked, somewhat irritated. "Why must you blame yourself for everything? Because I wasn't referring to my most recent near-death experience. I was thinking of the others – you can take your pick. If it weren't for you, I would be rotting away in the Forks cemetery."
I winced at her words. The van...Port Angeles...no, those incidents had nothing to do with me. But this one...this was the very thing that showed me that Bella, no matter how much either of us loved one another, was not part of my world. No matter how much I tried, she would always be in danger if she stayed with me. It was clear that she'd never understand that.
Not to mention the taste, her blood now flowed through me. I'd carry that memory forever and what if, after tasting it, I was not strong enough to resist?
"That's not the worst part," I explained. "Not seeing you there on the floor...crumpled and broken. Not thinking I was too late. Not even hearing you scream in pain – all those unbearable memories that I'll carry with me for the rest of eternity.
"No," I choked out. "The very worst was feeling...knowing that I couldn't stop. Believing that I was going to kill you myself."
"But you didn't."
"I could have. So easily."
She needed to stay calm but my words were having the opposite affect. I could see the panic in her wild eyes.
"Promise me," she whispered.
I feigned like I'd forgotten what she asked. I could not make such a promise. I would leave before I killed her. There was no other way.
"Promise you what?"
"You know what," she said angrily.
I looked down at the broken but beautiful girl that I loved. I felt my muscles tighten. I had to be strong, to convince her that she'd won, if only to get her to calm herself.
"I don't seem to be strong enough to stay away from you, so I suppose that you'll get your way...whether it kills you or not."
"Good," she sighed. I don't know if she realized that I had not promised. But at least she was calmer, though still angry.
"You told me how you stopped...now I want to know why."
"What?" I repeated warily.
"Why did you stop? Why didn't you just let the venom spread? By now I would be just like you."
Two emotions hit me at the same time, surprise and infuriation. The way Bella spoke of her life ending, of being a monster like me was upsetting, to say the least. At first I was angry at her but then I realized that someone must have explained how it happened. How else would she have known about the venom? I was always extremely careful not to discuss that with her.
And I refused to answer such a ridiculous question.
"I'll be the first to admit," Bella spoke again when she realized that I had no intentions of answering. "But it just seems logical...a man and woman have to be somewhat equal...as in, once of them can't always be swooping in and saving the other one. They have to save each other equally."
I folded my arms on the side of the bed and rested my chin against them. This conversation was slowly killing me and Bella couldn't see it.
"You have saved me," I said quietly.
"I can't always be Lois Lane," she insisted. "I want to be Superman, too.
I stared at the edge of the pillowcase, not willing for her to see the hurt in my eyes. I wanted to kill Alice and/or Jasper for filling her head with this nonsense.
"You don't know what you're asking."
"I think I do."
I sat up. This was absurd. She had no idea no idea what she was asking for. An eternity of being a freak, an undead creature, doomed to drink blood and walk the earth forever. A lifetime of never changing. Endless nights. And if there was such a thing as an end to our kind, it meant being condemned to burn for the rest of eternity.
"Bella, you don't know. I've had almost ninety years to think about this, and I'm still not sure."
"Do you wish that Carlisle had not saved you?"
"No! I don't wish that. But this is different. My life was over. I wasn't giving anything up."
"You are my life," Bella stated, using my own words against me. "You're the only thing it would hurt me to lose."
I shook my head. "I can't do it Bella. I couldn't do it in the ballet studio and I won't do it ever. I won't do that to you."
"Why not?" she questioned, now more angry than frustrated. But what she was asking was a crime. "Don't tell me it's too hard. After today, or I guess it was a few days ago...anyway, after that, it should be nothing!"
"And the pain?" I asked, glaring at the gauze and her cast, remembering how she screamed. No, Bella would not be able to endure three days of burning. Even if she could, I could not.
"That's my problem," she said bravely. "I can handle it."
"It's possible to take bravery to the point where it becomes insanity."
She rolled her eyes. "It's not an issue. Three days. Big deal."
There was no way, now, that I wasn't going to have a really severe talk with my little sister. She had no right to divulge that information to Bella. None, whatsoever.
"Charlie?" I asked curtly. "Renée?" Was she so ready to leave her family to join a family of vampires? Was she so ready to give up the love of the only two humans in the world who truly cared about her? Minutes passed as she struggled internally with my question. I was right. She wasn't ready.
"Look, that's not an issue either," Bella muttered but her voice was unconvincing as it always was when she lied. "Renée has always made the choices that work for her – she'd want me to do the same. And Charlie's resilient. He's used to being on his own. I can't take care of them forever. I have my own life to live."
"Exactly!" I snapped. "And I won't end it for you!"
"If you're waiting for me to be on my deathbed," Bella fired back, "I've got news for you! I was just there!"
"You're going to recover."
We started at each other, neither of us relenting. But I would not compromise on the subject of Bella's life.
"No," she said slowly. "I'm not.
"Of course you are. You may have a scar or two..."
'You're wrong," she cried. "I'm going to die."
For the love of God! Was it the pain medicine that was making her this irrational?
"Really, Bella...you'll be out of here in a few days. Two weeks at most."
"I may not die now," she said, her teeth clenched. "But I'm going to die sometime. Every minute of the day, I get closer. And I'm going to get old."
I frowned as what she was saying started to sink in. This was irritating for lack of a better word. But she wasn't understanding me. I never thought of Bella as dramatic, but I was wrong.
"That's how it's supposed to happen. How it should happen. How it would have happened it if didn't exist – and I shouldn't exist."
"That's stupid," she snorted. "That's like going to someone who's just won the lottery, taking their money, and saying 'Look, let's just go back to how things should be. It's better that way.' And I'm not buying it!"
"I'm hardly a lottery prize," I growled.
"That's right. You're much better."
I rolled my eyes, deciding that it was the pain medication or lack of it that was making her talk to so foolishly.
"Bella, we're not having this discussion anymore. I refuse to damn you to an eternity of night and that's the end of it."
"If you think that's the end," she asserted, "then you don't know me very well. You're not the only vampire I know."
"Alice wouldn't dare," I told her. Alice wouldn't defy my wishes like that.
"Alice already saw it, didn't she? That's why the things she says upset you. She knows I'm going to be like you...someday."
I shook my head. Bella had no idea what she was talking about.
"Alice is wrong. She also saw you dead, but that didn't happen either."
"You'll never catch me betting against Alice," Bella said decidedly.
And you'll never get the chance, I thought.
We stared at each other for a very long time. It was quiet except for the whirring of the machines, the beeping, the dripping, the ticking of the clock on the wall. Finally Bella spoke.
"So where does that leave us?"
"I believe it's called an impasse." Stuck between a rock and a hard place. But Bella had no idea who she was dealing with. On this issue, I would not be moved.
She sighed. "Ouch," she muttered.
"How are you feeling?"
"Fine," she lied.
"I don't believe you."
"I'm not going back to sleep," she insisted but I could see the pain in her eyes.
"You need rest. All this arguing isn't good for you."
"So give in."
"Nice try," I said and reached for the nurse call button.
"No!" Bella protested but I ignored her. She wasn't winning this one either.
"Yes?" the speaker on the wall squawked.
"I think we need more pain medication," I spoke aloud, ignoring Bella's furious expression.
"I'll send in the nurse."
"I won't take it," Bella declared, more like a defiant three year old than a seventeen year old hospital patient.
I pointed to the IV beside her bed. "I don't think they're going to ask you to swallow anything.
Her heart rate started to climb. I read the fear in her eyes and sighed in frustration. Was she really scared of a little needle?
"Bella, you're in pain. You need to relax so you can heal. Why are you being so difficult? They're not going to put any more needles in you now."
"I'm not afraid of the needles," she mumbled. "I'm afraid to close my eyes."
Again, I leaned close to her and placed both of my hands on her face.
"I told you, I'm not going anywhere. Don't be afraid. As long as it makes you happy, I'll be here."
She tried to smile back but it was painful. "You're talking about forever, you know."
"Oh, you'll get over it. It's just a crush."
"I was shocked when Renée swallowed that one," she shook her head. "But you...I know you know better."
"That's the beautiful thing about being human," I told her. "Things change."
"Don't hold your breath."
Her anger was amusing. She was so serious about something that was never going to happen. I was still laughing when the nurse came in, brandishing a syringe. I got up and crossed to the end of the small room, leaned against the wall, waiting for the nurse to finish. Bella, still unnecessarily apprehensive, kept her eyes locked on me.
"Here you go, honey," the nurse smiled as she injected the medicine into the IV tube. "You'll feel better now."
"Thank you," Bella mumbled, unenthusiastically. The morphine started to work instantly.
"That ought to do it," the nurse muttered as Bella's eyelids began to close.
"She'll be sleep in a few seconds," the nurse informed me before leaving, as if I couldn't already see that.
When the room was clear I went back to the bed, to Bella.
"Stay," she whispered. The single word was slurred.
"I will," I promised. "Like I said, as long as it makes you happy...as long as it's what's best for you."
"'S not the same thing," she slurred.
I laughed. "Don't worry about that now, Bella. You can argue with me when you wake up."
That brought a strained sort of smile to her face. "Kay."
I bent to her face and whispered in her ear. "I love you."
"Me too."
"I know," I laughed quietly.
She turned her head slightly, searching for me. My lips touched hers gently.
"Thanks," she sighed.
"Anytime.
"Edward," she struggled to say my name. Sleep was overcoming her.
"Yes, Bella?"
"I'm betting on Alice."
I gazed at Bella as sleep overcame her and soon she was in a deep, restful slumber.
"Is she asleep?" Alice whispered from the door.
I nodded and my entire family, Esme and Rosalie included, entered the room, as quiet as church mice. I was surprised to see them all.
"Surprise!" Esme whispered, smiling. "How is she?"
I stood up and hugged Esme, then Rose.
"She's alive. Why are you guys here?"
"Carlisle said that you were going to be down here for at least a week," Rosalie answered. "Ten days is a rather long time for us to be away from you all." She smiled and glanced down at Bella's sleeping face.
"Plus, we wanted to see that she really was okay...with our own eyes."
"That's very sweet of you," I replied.
Alice slipped beside me and put her arm around my waist.
"We heard what Bella asked," she confessed. "I know you didn't want her to know. I'm sorry, Edward."
But I couldn't be stay angry at Alice, especially after all she'd been through.
"It's okay," I replied. "I'm not angry. I could never be angry at any of you after what you did for me. Thank you so much."
"Happy to do it, bro," Emmett answered for everyone.
I turned to Alice.
"Alice, I'm going to need you to watch out for Bella, rather closely," I added. "She tends to be magnet for trouble and since you're going to be her best friend and all..."
She smiled brightly. "Got you covered, brother."
"You know," Esme spoke softly, running her fingers lightly over Bella's bandaged head. "You and Bella are like Romeo and Juliet."
Take it for Esme, a true Shakespeare fanatic, to identify us with that pair of star-crossed lovers. To this day, she still wishes that she had been alive to meet the infamous playwright.
I grinned at Esme and placed my hand on top of hers. I looked down at Bella.
""Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow...That I shall say good night till it be morrow."