Chapter 36

Alice and I stayed up most of the night talking; she told me all her relationship woes, and I told her mine. But by the next morning I was exhausted and refused to take another day off of work so soon, so I got showered and dressed in a foggy haze of grogginess.

And then my cell buzzed with a text…

Step One - no contact, complete. Step Two – texting… Good morning beautiful, I've missed you – E

Once again, I smiled at my phone. That was definitely just the thing I needed to knock me out of my morning stupor and get me going for the rest of the day.

I missed you too, more than you know, but I thought you said Jasper's step program didn't work – B

Well I didn't exactly stick to it before and I'm willing to try anything. I just started seeing a new therapist today and he likes the program and asked me to give it another go, but there's no way I'm starting over with the no contact part. We've been cut off long enough. – E

Agreed. How soon before we can actually see each other? – B

Not soon enough. Maybe a couple weeks – E

I sighed.

Maybe you should see a mystic healer instead – B

I meant it as a joke, but was actually pretty serious. I knew, probably better than anyone, just how different the soul and physical mind could be, so perhaps Alice's idea of a medium or psychic getting in touch with his spirit could actually be beneficial.

Is Alice there with you? I know she and Jasper are going through a rough patch. I feel bad that they were fighting about me – E

Yeah, she's here. But their issues aren't really about you at all, so no need to feel bad about anything – B

We continued texting about anything and everything throughout the day, and as it continued into the evening, Alice certainly noticed.

"Did you tell him?" she asked as we were sitting down for Chinese delivery.

"Tell him what?" I asked in a brief moment of stupidity.

"The baby!" she nearly shouted.

"Shhh," I hushed her as if Edward could hear through the text. "No, I haven't told him. That's not exactly something I wanna say via text message."

"Oh! Maybe we should throw him a 'you're going to be a dad' surprise party. We'll do it all up with blue balloons and streamers, and even have baby shower type games. We could invite everyone so you don't even have to send out announcements."

"I think it would be best to tell him privately. Speaking of everyone, does your family know about Edward's issues and the fact that we're even sort of together? I mean, the last time I was at your parent's house it was all a little…awkward."

"No…Well, Carlisle knows Edward was messed up in the past, but he never really knew why. And they kind of know something 'strange' went on between you two, they might have even believed that Edward was out of body, but since he doesn't remember any of it I think Carlisle and my mom are both in denial. But its fine, I'm used to their skepticism."

"And Jasper doesn't believe it either?"

"I thought he did, but his recent remarks about it all being fluff would suggest otherwise. It's like some people, especially doctor types, just have a hard time believing in anything intangible. I just don't get it; most kids believe, at what point do people lose it?"

"Does Bree still see her dad?"

"Yeah, but who knows how long it'll last for, especially with the grown-ups around her discouraging it."

"I really hope she never loses that ability; I wish I could talk to my dad."

"You can. I'm sure he visits you all the time, you just have to be open to it."

"Well, I wasn't open to Edward, but he still came…In fact, I was downright resistant towards him."

"He's your soul-mate, so you were open to him without even realizing it. You know what I do when I want to talk to my grandma? I go to sleep with her on my mind, and then I end up dreaming about her. Sometimes a dream is just a dream, but more times than not, the dream world is a place that spirits can safely cross into and communicate with living loved ones."

"Really?"

"Yeah, give it a try tonight. Think about your dad as much as possible. If he's your last thought before you become unconscious, then he may show up… Now if you remember it when you wake is up to you."

"How do I make myself remember?" I asked anxiously.

"If you want to remember something enough, you'll remember it."

"Thanks Alice," I said sincerely.

It was hard to think about my dad while I was lying in bed that night. I loved my dad and missed him like crazy, but in my current state, my mind was consumed by Edward, Bree, and our baby. So I did the only thing I could think of; I put my father's picture on the nightstand and got out the old home movies. Watching the video of my dad doting on baby me was very emotional and made me think about Edward and our baby even more, but somehow I was still able to put my present life aside for a short time, and fall asleep with the warm fuzzy feeling that only a dad could give…

At first there was nothing…and then a park. I stepped into the playground and was so happy to see Charlie pushing baby me on the swing. I was giggling and babbling, and it was such a strange thing to witness but definitely made me feel comforted. Suddenly my dad kissed the top of my baby bald head and then turned to look at present me straight in the face.

"Bella?"

My eyes welled up. "Hi dad."

He smiled widely. "You're all grown up."

I nodded. "I've really missed you."

"Oh Bells, I've always been here," he said emotionally.

"I know… But it's good to finally see you again."

Suddenly the scene before me became fuzzy and began to skip in a weird way, almost like a scratch in a DVD or video tape. When it became clear again, I was no longer in the park; instead I was in a war torn city with broken buildings and explosions on either side of me.

"Help!" someone called out. "Please help me!"

I looked towards the pleading and found a man buried under the rubble. "Oh my god, here, let me help you," I said as I frantically dodged flying debris to reach him. I began pulling the wreckage off his body, but then he placed his hand gently on mine to stop me.

"There's no point, it's too late for me," he whispered painfully.

"No, I'm going to help you," I tried assuring him.

"You want to help me?" he asked, and suddenly I noticed a strange familiarity in his face; it was something in his clouded green eyes, but I couldn't quite place how or where I knew him.

"Yes, I'm going to help you."

"Just never stop fighting," he said strangely, and then he moved my hand onto his ID tags hanging from his neck. "Please, take these back to my daughter. Tell her I'll always be with her…" He gasped for air, and then he became still and I knew he was gone.

My chest tightened, and I had no idea what to really think about it, but as I gently removed the metal tags from around his neck, I couldn't help but glance down at the name scribed there… 'Garrett Masen'

I couldn't believe it…he was Bree's dad. It was no wonder his eyes looked familiar to me, he had the same eyes as Edward and I was surprised I didn't realize it right away, but I suppose dreams were always a bit confusing.

I stood and looked around the war torn city and wondered how I got there or how I'd get home, but as another explosion blasted in front of me I was instantly transported to another place. I was sitting on a cliff overlooking the ocean with the sun setting in front of me…and I wasn't alone…

"How am I supposed to let go, when things are so unsettled?" the woman asked.

I turned and looked at her and instantly knew who she was; her face was identical to Bree's, but instead of dark hair, Kate had blonde loose curls that blew wildly in the wind.

"I don't think anything in life ever really settles. The world is constantly moving and changing; all we can really hope for is to find a way to navigate through it all," I told her, feeling a strange sense of comfort that I had never felt with a stranger before.

She smiled somberly at me. "Bree knows I'll always be with her…but I need to know that you will too. Edward can take care of her basic needs…but she's really going to need a mother to get her through life's rocky roads."

I could feel my eyes welling up. "I promise you, I will never mess up."

She laughed once. "Of course you will, all parent's do at some point…but you'll get it back together…I can tell you're not the type to give up."

"I used to be…but not anymore."

She nodded. "You're going to be a really good mother, Bella…You already have the most important quality of it."

"And what's that?"

"Unconditional love…. I wish I could be there for her…not just spiritually, but really be there for her…but since I can't, I'm so thankful she's going to have you."

And then we were both in tears.

I went to go hug her, but I suppose that sort of thing could only be done with a soul mate because the moment I should have made contact, she disappeared. I quickly stood and looked behind me, and my tears of sorrow turned into tears of joy as I saw Bree's parents standing there together, arm in arm.

"Take care of our little girl," Kate said looking beautiful and healthy.

"And don't let my brother get you down," Garrett added with a smirk that looked way too much like Edward's. "It's really not his fault, pigheadedness runs in the family."

"It's true," Kate agreed.

"Well, so does unhealthy levels of obsession," Garrett added while looking lovingly at his wife.

"The Masen men do seem to have one track minds," Kate said with a giggle, and then she got serious again. "We'll always be here…watching our baby grow up and waiting for the day we'll all be reunited again. Thank you Bella, for taking over where we left off. We don't have a doubt you and Edward will create a happy loving family for our little girl."

"We will," I promised. I meant to say goodbye, but I had a feeling that it wasn't necessary. Like they said, they were always going to be there, and I was grateful. After that I was overcome with an incredible sense of peace, and I knew without a doubt that everything was going to work out.

The next thing I knew, Kate and Garrett were gone, and Charlie was there in their place.

"I'm proud of you, kid. You've sure come a long way from that lost broken girl you were when you first returned to Forks."

I smiled. "Thanks dad. You know, I'm actually proud too. Edward found me and pieced me back together, and now it's time to return the favor."

"I'll always be here."

I nodded. "I know."

….

It seemed like a moment later I was awaking in darkness to the sound of my phone buzzing and low knocking on the front door. For whatever reason I ignored my phone and chose to get to the door instead. I threw on my robe and then hurried down the hall towards the front room; along the way I noticed two things – Alice was still sound asleep in the guest room, and the illuminated clock on the TV read 'four am'.

A part of me wondered if I was even awake, but the moment I opened the door I understood. Edward was standing there with his phone in hand looking rather distraught, and Bree rushed in and wrapped her arms around my waist as she cried into my stomach.

"Kate just passed," Edward whispered. "Bree said she just wanted to be with you."

I nodded to him and then leaned over to kiss the top of Bree's head. "Come here," I told Edward. It was more of a demand than a request, but he willingly obliged. He wrapped his arms around Bree and me, and the three of us just held on to each other as if our lives all depended on it.

In an instant it became us against the world, and in that bittersweet moment, I knew Edward and Bree were home to stay…

***THE END….LOL, just kidding. That would have made a good ending, but nah, we still have a little way to go :) More to come soon….