Well, a lot of things are happening! Good things, more than likely! The end of September is around the corner, and soon comes Halloween! What are you guys dressing up as?
Have a good read, fellows.
Bella - Wednesday
"Shiiit, I've been asleep for way too long." The brunette yawned as she climbed out of Alice's bed, "But it was nice while it lasted."
"You're already awake?" Jasper peeked into Alice's bedroom and grinned, "So you've become an early riser?"
"Of course." She grinned back, "Got used to it when you guys were there."
"Whenever you're ready to go, we'll head over to the hospital." Jasper ducked out of the room and closed to door, leaving her to her morning musings again. She shrugged and grabbed her duffel bag, yanking out the clothes she had in her bag, frowning.
"I could have sworn I packed more normal clothes than this..." She groaned aloud, pulling at her hair with both hands. "I knew my mother would have done something like this!"
She placed her hands down on the scraps of cloth her mother had repacked for her. "Nothing but dresses, heels, bathing suits and board shorts! Not a single pair of jeans or underwear!"
Snatching her phone off of the dresser, she flipped it open and pressed speed dial three. It rang a few times before her mother groggily answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Mother, you will be the literal death of me!" Bella whined into the mic, "Dresses? Heels? Not even a single tee shirt or jeans? What happened to my vans? I packed them up, because I wanted them!"
"I'm sorry, baby! I just wanted you to wear cute clothes for when you saw Alice again. That, and you're in Florida, honey. On the Keys. No way in hell was I going to let you strut your stuff out there in jeans. No ma'am." She giggled, "Besides, I know Alice will appreciate my work when she sees you. It had been hard enough to get you to wear those cute purple sandals when you left for the flight."
"Great. Thanks mom." Bella grumbled, "I've gotta get ready. Call you tonight."
"Bye, baby. Have fun."
'Yeah. Fun. Seeing my probably comatose girlfriend in the hospital most definitely is my definition of fun.' Bella thought glumly as she snapped her phone closed.
After a few moments of debate, she sniffled and grabbed the dress closest to her. It was a pretty pink and white floral beach dress made of cotton with flower patterns on it. She grabbed a pink bikini set and stomped off to the attached bathroom, showering quickly, but not too quickly. She took a few moments to smell her love's shampoo before freaking herself out and all but falling out of the shower.
She dried off and dressed quickly, smiling at how the dress hugged her tight curves. She'd gotten thinner and leaner, and she looked great. She ran a brush through her hair as she blow-dried it and curled the ends with her fingers.
She bit her lip as she eyed herself in the mirror. She could use a little something extra...she supposed. Of course, her mother had packed her a small bag full of makeup products that were brand new. She would tap into that today.
She took a black eyeliner pencil and a tube of expensive mascara and applied it. She also used a little pink-tinged lip gloss. Nothing too over the top.
She snatched the pink and white heels, pulling them on, scowling. Since her mother had found out about her surfing, she pushed something on her. If she could surf the ocean with grace, she could walk in heels.
She took a deep breath before snatching her bag and carrying it with her down the stairs. Rosalie was sitting in the living room with Emmett, going over a booklet of baby names that she liked, and they weren't paying any attention to her at all. She walked almost silently to where the front door was and was busted when Jasper walked out of the kitchen.
"Wow, Bella. You sure know how to dress up." He eyed her, and she glared at him.
"This wasn't my choice!" Rosalie glanced over at the shouting brunette and her eyes nearly bugged out of her head. It was a funny sight, indeed.
"Bella is wearing a dress!" Emmett's jaw dropped.
"And heels!" Rosalie's blue eyes teared up. "She's all grown up now!"
"Hey, come on, guys." The brunette pouted, "My mother sabotaged me! I have nothing normal to wear! Only dresses and heels!"
"Then when she wakes up, Alice will think she's gone to heaven!" Jasper giggled.
"Take me to the hospital now, Jazz!" Chocolates narrowed. "Don't make me hurt you. I may not look it, but I can kick serious ass in heels as high as this and higher."
Carlisle
"As you can see, Bella, she's been unconscious like this for a few days now, and we don't really know how to break her out of it." the blond father sighed aloud, running his hand through his hair. "She can wake up. She has a sense of her surroundings. She just won't wake up."
"She will, though." Bella sat on the edge of the bed where her girlfriend was lying. "Or I'll kick her ass from here to the foot of the throne of Hades."
"She has some major wounds on her back from hitting the reef rather hard. It sliced clean through the skin, and we're worried about the cuts getting infected." He rubbed his chin in thought, "Let me show you. I have to rebandage her anyway."
He gently rolled her over onto her side and took a pair of scissors, cutting away the bandages. When he pulled the protective gauze off the cuts, Bella gasped and lightly touched the skin that wasn't inflamed or hurt. "It looks like someone too a sickle to her back!"
"Probably feels that way, too. I did my best to stitch them all up, but they still look horrible." He frowned. "Can you hand me the salve that's on the shelf there? It'll kill off any pain she's in."
Bella rushed over to the shelf and snatched the jar off the shelf, running back to Carlisle. He thanked her and pulled a glove on, asking her to open the little jar. She unscrewed the lid and held it out. His fingers dipped into it and came out with the white substance, smearing it evenly on her shredded back. "She's going to be upset about the scars."
"More scars." Bella bit her lip.
Bella
When Carlisle left the room a few hours back, Bella was at a loss. What do you do with your time when the one you love is unconscious and you're in a room with her? She dug into her bag and produced a surfing magazine. She's subscribed to a few of them a couple of days after Alice had left Washington.
She glanced up at the waxy figure of little Alice Cullen and sighed. She opened the magazine to a random article and read the title of it.
'The Untamable Heart of Alice Cullen' Bella snorted. Who wrote this trash? She looked at Alice once again and grinned. That was definitely something she could do to pass the time.
"The Untamable Heart of Alice Cullen: Article by Patricia Skwarsky." Bella spoke clearly and loud enough for Alice to hear her. If she had heard, she made no indication. "For the past fourteen years, we've watched the little spitfire of The Cullen Five grow into a woman proudly, earning trophy after trophy, award after award for her surfing skills and exceptional beauty."
"What is one thing we haven't seen from this talented surfer, you ask? Why, a lover!" The brunette giggled, "We've seen her hunk of a brother Emmett Cullen and his wife Rosalie get all cuddly on the sand, and even her brother Edward Cullen got a few smooches in with Jasper Hale at a few competitions. So where is all the love for Alice Cullen? Perhaps she is waiting for the right person to come around? We all know we are waiting eagerly for her to announce a hint of a love interest! Alice, get on the ball, girl!"
The pixie visibly sighed on the bed, her arms moving slightly. Bella smiled. She glanced at the next column, "How to get noticed by The Cullen Five'. That's just stupid. I won't bother reading that one, even to myself."
Emmett
"So how was she?" The bear asked as he dropped down onto the sofa Bella was relaxing on. "She looks like the dead, doesn't she?"
"She didn't look that way after I washed her." Bella bit her lip and sighed, "She was sweating like crazy. She even looked a little waxy to me, but I tried to get a little more color in her."
"Oh, Bella." Rosalie smiled at the girl, "You did some nurse training back in Forks or what?"
"No, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how to sponge bath a person." She laid her head back on the soft sofa. "I just hope she wakes up soon."
Bella – Thursday
"I have yet to see any kind of super change in you, Ali." Bella whispered as she kissed the girl's warm hands, "I want you to wake up soon, love. I need to hear your voice and see your beautiful eyes."
When there was still no reply, Bella sighed, leaning back into the recliner Emmett had brought in for her. She bit her lip and looked out the hospital room window. She could see the blue ocean, and it made her heart flutter. She hadn't been out surfing since before Alice's accident. That was over a week ago.
She stood up, kissing the pixie's forehead softly. "I love you. I'll be back to see you tomorrow."
The brunette moved away from the bed quickly, slinging her bag onto her shoulder and opening the hospital room door, glancing back at her love. She sighed, and felt her heart twinge painfully.
She was supposed to be here with Alice, not running off to the beach as soon as she felt like it...but what good would she do sitting in this room with Alice, who was still very much catatonic? She knew the tiny surfer would not appreciate her sitting in this room rotting away on a recliner and being bored.
When she exited the hospital room, Emmett was suddenly there, grinning at her.
"So...where are you going?" The bear waggled a brow at her, and she laughed, hands clutching at the hem of her dress.
"I want to go to the beach." She tilted her head as she turned her chocolates to his baby blues. "Feel like going?"
"Why not? Let me find Jasper, he's out here, too." He poked his head into the men's bathroom and shouted, "JASPER! BELLA WANTS TO GO TO THE BEACH! LET'S HIT IT!"
"You don't have to yell, Emmy." Bella shook her head, chuckling. "He can hear just fine."
Jasper
"Alrighty, Bella." The blond man unfolded a beach chair and sat it down a rather far ways away from the water. "You're all set."
"Wait, did you bring Alice's board?" Chocolates looked up into confused ocean blues.
"Er...yes, it's in the Jeep. Why?" He eyed her suspiciously, but shrugged when she smiled. She turned around and ran back to where Emmett was, pulling out his and Jasper's surfboards. She poked him slightly, and he turned around, grinning.
"Can I help you, little lady?" He went back to pulling Jasper's board out of the back of the Jeep, and she watched him get it down. "Jasper already set out your chair, right?"
"Yeah, he did." She pursed her lips, "Can you hand me Alice's board?"
"Err...why?" When she didn't answer, he just reached into the back and pulled it out, handing it to Bella, "Gonna try to learn to surf on your own, little Bella-bear? I wouldn't recommend learning with that beast."
"It's okay." She smiled at him again cheekily before turning around and taking the board with her, grinning the whole way to where her chair was. She slipped her purple sandals off, putting them up on the chair. Jasper was getting his board from Emmett and wasn't watching her.
She pulled her blue dress up over her head and dropped it onto the chair atop of her sandals and looked out onto the water, her fingers absently brushing over her tattoo. She looked back, and could see that Emmett had turned on the huge sound system in his Jeep, music blaring onto the sand, and out onto the ocean.
'You're the boy who murdered love...' Bella's head snapped to the Jeep, where Emmett was frowning. He tried changing the song, but it refused to be changed.
"Rose and her stupid music." He grumbled before shrugging it off and grabbing his board. Bella followed suit and lifted the bright blue board over her head, running toward the water in her bright red bikini. "Bella, what are you doing?"
"Having fun!" Bella splashed into the water and began to paddle out to a calmer area of water. Jasper was already freaking out that she was in the water. Now, he was practically shitting bricks that she had managed to paddle a shortboard to flat water. Emmett was standing next to him, doing the same. They looked hilarious. "Are you guys getting out here or what?"
Emmett snapped out of it first, and paddled out as quickly as possible.
'You're the boy who murdered love, Cold hands and a heart of stone, You're a midas in reverse, You're the king of pain and hurt, And the stars turn into fire, And the roses change from red to black, You encourage my desire, then you put the arrow in my back, and I'm, Shot, shot, shot, shot, shot like a bullet...'
Bella couldn't help but shake her shoulders with the song and laughed when Jasper was still gaping at her. When they caught up to her, she tilted her head to the side in an adorably innocent fashion.
"Ready?" She ran a quick hand through her hair before paddling to a relatively large (for the area, anyway.) wave, and hoped up to standing, shouting in excitement as she rode the wave out, turning and going back the other way, past Emmett and Jasper.
"Wha? Jazz? Did? What?" The bear of the Cullens couldn't seem to find the right words to make an actual conversation.
"She...she..." His blue eyes were wide with shock. Isabella Swan was surfing. She was surfing. "Oh my god, she is surfing!"
"So I'm not really going crazy or seeing things." Emmett screwed his eyes shut tight and opened them again, blinking a few times. No, she was still surfing. "Ali is gonna flip."
"I'm not telling her." Jasper crossed his arms over his chest, his heart still thumping painfully under his ribs. "No way in hell."
"I'm sure as hell not telling her!" The oldest Cullen child squeaked, "She'll hurt me down there and accuse me of being a lying, blasphemous and totally idiotic mental patient. No way am I going to do that."
"Hey guys." Bella had paddled out to where they were again, a huge grin on her face, "The surf here isn't too bad, but it's not that great, either."
"Swan, please explain your sudden ability to surf." Jasper's eyes centered on Bella's face, and she squirmed uneasily. "Because you shouldn't be able to do any of this, especially not on a board like that."
"That's the thing." The brunette cracked a small smile, "I learned how to surf in five weeks. It was a really fast process, by the third week or so I was using these." She tapped her hand on the board lovingly. "Last week, I went and bought myself a pair of sweet boards. A short and a fish."
"Who taught you?" Emmett asked curiously, a little over the whole 'Bella can surf' thing.
"Leah and Seth. They were really patient with me, and if I'm honest, I spent almost all of my time at the beach learning. I didn't stop for anything, unless my mother would come to town or the surfing competition was on." The brunette shrugged, "I went to parties and stuff, so it wasn't all beach, though."
"I don't know what to say..." The blond boy smiled a little at the ridiculousness of the whole thing. "I kinda want to see Alice's reaction when you tell her."
"Oh, no." She laughed, swatting at Jasper, "I'm not going to tell her. She'd kill me."
"Wait, you aren't going to tell her?" The black-haired brother gaped, "You can't hide this from her! She loves surfing, and she'll bring you along. If you think staying on the beach while other surfers are surfing is fun, you're dead wrong!"
"Yeah, I agree with Emmett. It's best you tell her." Blue eyes regarded her gently. "Besides, I think she would be ecstatic that you could surf with her. With us."
"That's another thing." Bella bit her lip, "I am going back to Forks after this. I'm not going to surf with you guys outside of Washington."
"Why not? We could be The Cullen Six and a half!" Bella cocked her head in confusion at Emmett's 'and a half'. "The baby. Duh."
"Oh, yeah." the brunette blushed, palming her forehead because she'd forgotten about the pending bouncing baby that was currently swimming in amniotic fluid in the bombshell Cullen surfer. "Sorry if it seemed like I forgot."
"So, Bella." the girl's face turned to Jasper, who was smiling. "Care for some tips? I noticed something about your feet placement. Would you mind if I helped you correct it?"
"Correct away." She grinned. "I could always use help to get better."
"That's the spirit!" Emmett slammed her on the back, sending her face first into the water. She broke the surface, gasping and glaring at the bear, who had began laughing hysterically.
Bella – Friday
"Of course, the little bear said," Bella turned the page of the book she was reading, "I would love to join you for tea and cake. I especially love the red velvet that your mother makes, little bunny..."
A shuffling alerted the brunette to movement on the bed, and she looked up to see Alice smiling a little, her hands smoothing out the sheets subconsciously.
"The turtle should be here soon enough, little bear. Before he gets here, we should blow bubbles in the afternoon sun, and perhaps play in the stream..." The reader could only sigh in happiness. Since she'd started coming in and reading to Alice, there had been more and more movement from the girl. That in itself made her insanely happy. "Little bunny, I have taken the chance to invite the little mouse to our party. He has promised to not steal crumbs from the table if I give him half of my slice of cake. Imagine that! A little mouse eating a whole piece of cake and a half! He would be bigger than a rat after he'd eaten it all!"
A knock at the door made Bella pause, looking up from the colorful picture book. It was Carlisle and Esme. They went over to Alice, smiling happily when they could see how relaxed and happy she was at that moment. She turned back to her book and read out again, "Oh, look! The little turtle and the little mouse have arrived! Hurry! The party hats and matching napkins must be set out! I know that the little mouse would be upset if the table did not match the decorations!"
Esme giggled lightly at the words. She could tell who in the room would be the 'little mouse' and couldn't help herself.
"What is this? The little mouse's scarf has tangled with her ears and whiskers! Little bunny, please help me help her!" Bella chuckled at the picture of the two fuzzy creatures attempting to help a little mouse out of it's scarf.
"Bella," The brunette looked up at the doctor, who had spoken to her softly. "We are very glad that you are here doing this for her...for us."
"It's no problem, Carlisle. I'll do anything you need for her." She smiled lovingly at the bedridden and barely responsive girl, "I love her."
"We are well aware." Esme smiled, "You know, she's been getting better with every day that passes that you've been here with her."
"I'm glad. I can't wait for her to wake up." She sighed, closing the book softly before placing it on the table next to Alice. "She doesn't deserve to be here, hurt and living her days out in unconsciousness."
"She should awaken fairly soon." Carlisle guaranteed, blue eyes shining.
"Thank you." Chocolate eyes took in the sleeping figure and she smiled, leaning down to place soft kisses on her forehead, eyes, nose and mouth. When she was finished with her usual goodbye, she nodded at the parents and walked out of the room, back to the beach. She couldn't go back to the villa so soon. She needed a little time to herself to think about Alice.
She glanced at her phone's clock and sighed.
'Happy Twenty First Birthday, Bella.' She thought to herself sadly.
Bella – Saturday
"Yeah, thanks mom. I'll be home in a few days." Bella chuckled as she pulled her dress to cover her face, the sun glaring down at her. She squirmed on the sand, unable to really get comfortable. "How is Sherlock? You've been feeding him, right?"
"Of course I have! As if I could let a cute little thing like this die of starvation!" Renee clucked, "So, baby girl, what are you going to do later today? Go bar hopping? Strippers? Or maybe get your first prostitute?"
"Gross, mom." The surfer couldn't help but laugh at her mother's words, "You know I'll be back at the hospital on my self-appointed sentry duty again. There's nothing I'd rather do."
"I know." The mother smiled on her end of the line, "You have another surprise waiting for you when you get home, darling!"
"What is it this time? A mail order bride?" Bella snorted, laughing.
"Of course not! It's another car." The surfer choked, "I picked this one out personally."
"A-Another car, mother? It's bad enough I have the Lamborghini! I attract so much attention with that beast! What did you get me this time?" the daughter groaned, squeezing her eyes closed.
"I think I should be buying you a house or something...but I wanted to get you another car. Is that so bad of me?" She could practically hear and feel Renee's pout. "Stop whining. It's already sitting in the yard next to where your Lamborghini is supposed to be parked. You left it at the airport, right?"
"Yes. I would never trust anyone with it, but the airport security are more than capable of watching it. Considering I'd parked it right next to the security booth." Both females laughed heartily at that. There was no way a person could hot-wire the thing, much less steal it. It was a foreign car, for God's sake.
"Well, I bought a Ferrari." She ignored the pained squealing from her daughter, "I bought a nice car for myself, too. Anyway, if you don't like having both of them, you can give one to Alice as a pre-wedding gift."
"That isn't a bad idea..." The brunette was currently pulling her hair out, jumping when her phone was buzzing. She had another call. "Hey, mom, someone's calling me. Probably more birthday wishes. Can I call you back?"
"Sure thing. Call me soon, baby!" Renee cheerfully said her goodbyes before hanging up on her daughter, who just looked at her phone as if it had offended her. She shrugged and clicked the talk button to accept the other call.
"Hello?" Bella winced when the sun hit her eyes directly.
"Bella!" Carlisle.
"Yes? Is something wrong, sir?" The girl sat up instantly, her heart clenching. "Is Alice alright!"
"She's perfectly fine..." He chuckled, "She's awake, and asking specifically for you. She refuses to speak to anyone else. She knows you're here."
"Alright, I'm on my way. I'm just a few blocks away." Bella stood up and dusted herself free of the sand that clung to her, "Tell her to sit tight."
"I will." The doctor laughed before hanging up. Did no one remember what it was like to say 'goodbye' or 'thank you, bye!' ?
Alice
As soon as the pixie had opened her eyes, she had felt an intense stabbing in her eyes, courtesy of the sun. someone had left the curtains open, and whoever did it was in trouble.
"Ugh." The girl whispered, whimpering when her throat ached. She glanced around the room, and sighed. A hospital room, of course. She clicked repeatedly on the button on the side panel and frowned. She clicked it again and again, and still, nobody showed up.
'This is like that show The Walking Dead, isn't it? Everyone is a bunch of mindless, brainless zom-' Her train of thought was cut off when she saw a book sitting on her bedside table. She picked it up and opened the cover, smiling.
'Alice's Hospital Book. Do NOT Read to her! Thank You. Bella.' Of course Bella had written that little note in a thick black sharpie across the baby blue inner cover. Hard to miss that way.
Her door opened and a nurse entered, looking at her with a smile. Alice didn't want to see a damn nurse. She wanted her father or Bella here.
"My dad...?" Alice winced again, coughing harshly. The nurse handed her a cup with water and turned around to call Dr. Cullen. When he swept in, she took his appearance in. Messed up, greasy hair; bags under his eyes. He probably hasn't rested well at all. "Daddy."
He threw his arms around his baby girl and openly wept. After a few seconds, Alice's mother came in timidly, throwing that out the window when she saw Alice's bright golden eyes. She ran over to the bed and practically dove onto it, laying kiss after kiss on every surface of the teenager's face and head.
"Bella.." Alice shook the book that was in her hands, "She's here, isn't she?"
"Yes, she's here." Esme wiped tears from her eyes, "Of course she'd be here. She must have fallen asleep somewhere in the villa...I didn't see her last night."
"Can you call her over? I really want to see her." The tiny surfer pleaded with her father, who pulled his cell phone out and called the brunette. He left the room to talk to the girl, leaving Alice and her mother alone together.
"How long have I been out, mommy?" Alice snuggled into her mother's side and smiled happily, "My head kinda hurts."
"You've been out for a little over a week, darling." Esme kissed her hair, "We've been waiting for you to wake up."
"Well, I'm awake now. Where is everyone else?" She glanced around, sad that she didn't see any of her siblings at all. "Have they been here to see me today?"
"They...hadn't come to see you at all, sweetheart. They were afraid." She whispered it softly, not wanting her child to get upset after just waking up. "They'll be here in a few minutes after I call them. I figure you'll want alone time with Bella before being openly tackled by your brothers and sister and cousins."
"Good plan." Alice giggled, covering her mouth with her hand, "Do you think I can have some more water?"
"Yes, darling, let me get that for you." The caramel haired woman stood up, taking the cup and leaving the room to get more water for her daughter. Carlisle came in shortly after she'd gone.
"She's on her way." Alice couldn't help but squeal and clap her hands excitedly, "I need to go to the bathroom, daddy. I don't even want to know how they've been taking care of me, but I need to pee now."
He nodded and helped her off the bed, leading her to the joint bathroom, leaving her there on the toilet alone to do her business with the door closed.
Muahahahahahahaaaa! They've still yet to come face to face! HAAAA! (Imagine the huge grin on my face as you read this.)
Sorry about cutting it short, but the chapters, I believe were cut off at an even margin. Not even I knew that they wouldn't meet this chapter. I was almost certain that they would. Oh well. Next chapter, I suppose. Thanks for reading and reviewing! I hope you guys have a good night and an even better Thursday. I'll be working all day until I can drag my happy ass home on a stretcher. Joy!
