Co-written by Nothingtolose15 and phnxprncss.
Summary: Bella and Jasper Swan are sent to live with their father Charlie in Forks, Washington after the untimely death of their mother and stepfather. Neither of them had seen Charlie since they were 7 years old and Renee had cut off complete contact between the children and their father. Now here they are in a place they don't remember at all trying to get on with life. But to make matter's worst Bella Swan has not spoken a word since her mother and step-father's death. Will Jasper be able to protect his sister? Or will she have to go down her own road to find herself again?
Disclaimer: we do not own Twilight or any of its characters.
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Emmett's Point of View
They didn't want me.
That's the only thought that kept going through my mind as I thought about my paternal grandparents. They only wanted Edward and Alice, that's why they waited so long to do anything about it. That's why they left us to suffer in that home with their bastard of a son. Edward and Alice kept asking 'why now' and all I could think was 'because of me, because they don't have to worry about taking care of me too.' There was a fleeting thought in my head that I was painfully mistaken, but I just couldn't stop those thoughts. I looked at my brother and my sister – one face full of pain and the other face full of hope – and I just felt … sick. These people thought that they could just waltz back into our lives like nothing had ever happened – like they hadn't just abandoned us all those years ago – but they were painfully mistaken. Edward wouldn't go quietly, nor would he leave without Bella and Alice wouldn't go anywhere without Jasper, period.
I left the house in a hurry not wanting to talk to anyone there – not my brother, not my sister, not Bella or Jasper and definitely not my parents. There was only one person that I needed right now and I fully planned on going to her and staying with her because I knew that she wanted me. I got into my jeep and drove down the road, too many thoughts running through my head and none of them making any sense. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed Rose's number, her parents made her go straight home after school and I usually understood but today was a different story.
"Hello?" she answered sweetly, "Em is that you baby?"
"Rose I need to see you right now,"my voice held no emotion what so ever.
"Of course, Emmett. What's wrong? Do you need me to come over?" I could hear the panic seeping into her voice and I instantly felt remorse for making her worry.
"No, I'm not at home and I'm not going back there right now. Can you meet me somewhere Rosie, please?" Though I'd never admit it, I wasn't above begging at this point.
"Anywhere you want, just tell me where and I'll be there."
I told her to meet me at La Push beach and she told me she'd be there as soon as possible. I only had to wait about 10 minutes after I showed up for her car to pull in beside my jeep. As soon as it was in park she jumped out and came over to me as I leaned against my car with my hands buried in my pockets.
"Baby what's wrong your voice on the phone I've never heard you so – "
"My grandparents have tried to contact us. My paternal grandparents."
"Oh sweetie, I – "
"They want Edward and Alice."
I watched Rose as she cocked her head to the side and furrowed her eyebrows like she was trying to work through a difficult math problem and it was just so fucking cute. "What do you mean 'they want Edward and Alice,' Em?" She asked, confusing lacing her tone.
"I mean that they want to try and gain custody of my brother and sister; they specifically said they wanted Edward and Alice." I didn't know when it'd happen, but the pain was starting to claw at my chest and I had a feeling that unshed tears were gathering in my eyes. I hadn't cried for years and I didn't want to start that shit again now so I fought them back. I wasn't going to look like a pussy in front of my girl.
"They can't do that though, right? I mean, they haven't even been around all these years so what makes them think they can just jump back into your lives like all that other shit never happened?"
"That's not the point, Rosie. I know that they won't get Edward and Alice no matter how hard they try. The point is that," I paused to take a deep breath, once again willing the tears to stay put. "They don't want me."
Rose reached up and put her hand on my cheek, "You don't know that, maybe they just – they have," she sighed morosely but didn't complete her sentence.
I knew she was trying to make me feel better just like she always had. Even before anyone knew anything about us and she would see me down she would always whisper the most reassuring words to me and it always got me through the day.
"What do Edward and Alice have to say about all this?" She murmured, after a few seconds of silence.
"They haven't said much, but I can tell you that Edward is not happy. He's always been the one who's showed the most resentment over it all. It's safe to say that he doesn't like this."
Rose nodded, "Well of course, from what I've known of you all Edward has had the hardest time grasping things and he's only starting to feel happy now that he has Bella. What about Alice?"
"I have no idea how she feels. She keeps asking questions like she actually wants to talk to them but every time she says it, it just sets Edward off more. Neither of us has ever snapped at Alice before, but today he did. I could tell that afterwards he felt like hell for doing so, but it was like he just couldn't control it."
"This must be so hard on all of you."
Overwhelming silence came over us again and I leaned back against my jeep staring off into the distance. I almost felt like calling these grandparents and asking them why they didn't want me, but I was sure that if I did, they'd just lie anyway. They'd tell me what Carlisle and Esme keep saying and that would only upset me more. It shouldn't matter if I'm almost 18; almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. It wouldn't hurt for them to try regardless. Not that it'd change the way I felt about that whole situation, I wouldn't give them the time of day if they asked. My conflicting emotions were beginning to really wear me out and I found that I was fighting even harder to keep my emotions in check. I wouldn't let Rose see me cry over those people; they weren't worth the energy an emotional breakdown would consume.
"It's okay to, you know," she whispered as she came closer to me, putting her small beautiful hands on my arms.
I looked up and met her eyes, "to what?" I asked, already confused and not in the right mindset for any riddles.
"To cry," she murmured, her face nuzzled into my broad chest. "It won't make me think any different of you."
Her voice held such warmth and conviction that I had no choice but to believe that it wouldn't change her opinion of me. That didn't change the fact that I wouldn't cry, around her or alone, over this. It just wasn't worth it. I wrapped my arms around her and buried my head in her hair, breathing in her scent. "I love you Rosie, I really do."
"I know," I felt her smile into my chest as we just stood there holding one another. "I can't lose you Emmett, I won't lose you, ever."
I knew that she meant every word she said wholeheartedly, and I knew that I felt the same. Both my brother and sister had found their loves – dare I say their soul mates. And even if I wasn't entirely vocal about it, I had found mine as well and I wasn't about to let her go.
We spend another hour sitting on the beach watching the waves rolling in. It was a calming experience that I'd never really taken stock of before today. The beach had just been a place to go and have fun swimming and tossing the football around, but now it held an entirely different meaning to me. It wasn't until my phone began ringing that we noticed the chill in the air and decided that it was time to head home. Rose had called her parents and let them know that she'd be spending the night "with Alice" and she'd see them on Sunday and I just fell even more in love with her right then and there.
When we arrived back at the house Carlisle and Esme were in the middle of cooking dinner. It was weird walking into the house and not seeing a bright smile on my mother's face like I normally would.
"Hey," I said lowly as Rose reached over and took my hand in her own.
"Hi son," Carlisle smiled slightly at me; I could tell he was happy I came back. "I hope you guys are hungry."
Rose was the one who decided to answer, "Yes Dr. Cullen, we're famished. Even just sitting on the beach makes a person hungry."
"Rose," he chuckled, "I've told you numerous times you can call me Carlisle."
"Oh yes, I'm sorry. It's just my parents – " she shook her head. "I hope you don't mind but I asked my parents if I could stay here for the weekend."
Esme smiled, "Of course sweetie, you are always welcome."
I cleared my throat, "Where is everyone?"
Esme's smile faltered momentarily and she turned away from me before answer. "They're all up in their rooms. Alice asked us to let you know that she and Edward wanted to talk to you when you returned."
Even with everything that I was feeling – all the conflicting emotions that were fueling my internal struggle – I couldn't bear to see Esme looking so heartbroken. Reflexively, as if it were the most natural thing in the world – which, let's face it, it was – I crossed the kitchen and wrapped her up in one of my trademark bear hugs, lifting her up off the floor in the process.
"I love you, mom," I whispered into the top of her head before setting her back down on the floor.
"Oh Emmett, I love you too," she said as she hugged me back fiercely, crying happier tears now.
I could see both Carlisle and Rose smiling at me as we broke the hug and my mouth twitched minutely in response. I took a deep breath, "I should probably go talk to Alice and Edward."
"I'll help your mom with dinner," Rose smiled at me as she pressed a kiss to my cheek before going over and helping my mom with whatever she needed.
I quickly made my way upstairs, heading to Alice's room first since I knew she would be more willing to talk. I knocked on the door and she opened it in an instant making me glad that I hadn't caught her and Jasper in some compromising position, otherwise I'd have to kill him and she wouldn't like that very much.
"Hey, Pixie."
Alice smiled widely and threw her arms around me, "I'm glad you're back."
I nodded, "Rose is downstairs with mom, you wanted to talk?"
"Yeah," she nodded, "We should get Edward though."
"I'll go call him and head downstairs with Bells so you guys can talk," Jasper volunteered.
"Thanks, Jazzy!" Alice chirped while bouncing over to him to give him a kiss on the cheek.
It didn't take long for Jasper to get Edward, because shortly after he left the room, Edward came waltzing in looking anything but happy. "What? Jasper said you guys wanted to see me."
"I thought we should talk about what's happening, just the three of us." Alice said as she went over to her bed and sat down, patting the spots next to her for the two of us.
I knew Edward would be a hard ass so I closed the door and went over and to sit next to my sister. "Just get over here, Edward; we're going to have talk about this eventually. Might as well get it out of the way now," I said, giving him a pointed look.
He huffed in aggravation but made his way over to the bed anyway. "Well, what do you guys want to talk about?" He asked with irritation.
Alice looked over at him and her previous lighthearted mood quickly dissipated. "I just wanted to know what you guys thought about everything," she whispered, staring at her hands as if they held the secrets of life.
"I'd have thought that was pretty obvious by now," Edward shot back with a disgruntled look on his face. "Why should we even bother wasting time thinking about it at all? Where the fuck were they, Ali? They didn't even show up at the funeral. Hell, they didn't even bother to call until now."
A fire blazed in Ali's eyes as she turned her full attention to him. "Don't you think I know that, Edward," she spat, clearly pissed off. "I was there too, you know, and so was Em. It's not like you're the only one that knows what that felt like."
"You think I don't know that Ali!" Edward growled at her. "Jesus Christ."
"Edward, shut the fuck up, your attitude is not needed." I gritted through my teeth, before smoothly bringing the attention to myself. "Well, we already know they don't want me around," I voiced with, I was happy to note, only a slightly melancholy tone.
"Emmett," Alice reached over and put her hand on mine. "You know that's not true, they just – " she sighed softly, "Well I don't really know what exactly they are thinking but – "
"There's no 'but's' about anything Alice," I said, feigning indifference. "You, on the other hand, act almost as if you want to see them."
Edward snorted at that before nodding in agreement, "you got that right. Now tell me, what was with all the 'what if we wanted to talk to them' round of questioning, dear sister?"
"It was just a question, Edward; you don't need to be such a condescending ass about it. Dad and mom were trying to be honest with us about everything and you were just being a prick. It's not their fault that our wonderful grandparents decided to come calling." Alice was fuming as she sat there breathing heavily and glaring at Edward.
"I'm sick of this!" He growled again, "I seriously think you would move in with them if you had the chance? Would you really leave Jasper that easy? Hell would you leave Emmett or me?"
"Edward stop trying to turn everything around on me!" Alice made her hands into little fists and I was pretty sure she would punch him if he kept it up. "Jasper was even saying that when he turns 18 he'll get a place for him and Bella."
"Hell fucking no!" Edward seethed, jumping to his feet and glaring down at Alice.
"Hell fucking no what, Edward?"
Edward's eyes roamed the room, flitting from one thing to another without even giving him a moment to take in what he was looking at as his hands raked through his hair relentlessly, making it even more unruly. "He won't – he can't. I – I need her," he finally stuttered out in a defeated whisper and dropped down to sit on the floor.
Alice's face softened and she went over to him, "I know Edward, but sometimes – "
"Sometimes nothing Alice, I love her! You don't even understand guys. You always were so much better at handling things then I was. When I met Bella she made me feel whole again, she made me feel like I had a purpose in life."
"Edward," Alice reached out to touch his shoulder but he pushed her away.
"Don't touch me!"
Alice recoiled as if she'd been slapped as her eyes brimmed with unshed tears. "I'm sorry, Edward. I – I don't want to fight with you or with Emmett, especially over this. I just – I guess I – I don't know. I thought maybe if we talked about everything we'd all feel better. I'm just – I'm sorry."
"He knows that Ali," I sighed. Edward had always been the worse when it came to dealing with his emotions. "Guys they are going to keep trying to talk to us, or at least you guys and I don't know what to do. We need some kind of a game plan for the next time they call."
Alice nodded, "I know."
"I'm not saying I want this, because I don't want to be separated from you guys." I sighed and ran my hand over my face, "But maybe if we do talk to them and tell them we don't want this, that we don't want to be separated, they'll respect our wishes."
"Highly doubtful," Edward finally spoke up. "If that were the case, they would've taken the hint when they spoke to Carlisle and Esme or when they realized that we weren't going to be marched off like sheep to slaughter."
"Maybe they thought that was just Carlisle and Esme though. Maybe that's why they're so adamant about talking to us personally," I thought out loud, pointer finger tapping contemplatively on my chin.
"That's possible," Alice finally responded. "I don't know if I can talk to them though. They hurt my brothers – my best friends – and I don't take too kindly to that at all."
The look on her face was about as frightening as a newborn kitten, but it was enough to elicit a boisterous laugh from me and breaking the tension and awkwardness that had been a fixture in the room since I'd closed the door. "Ali, you're five foot nothing and barely a hundred pounds, how many people do you think you actually scare?"
Edward joined in on my laughter, finally seeming to ease his tension as well as his foul mood. "Really Alice, you are about as scary as … as … as Tinkerbell." He chuckled and reached out to put his hand on her shoulder, "but we love you nonetheless."
Alice pouted slightly, "Gee thanks guys." but her own laughter wasn't able to be put aside. She plopped down fully next to Edward and let him drape his arm over her shoulders, "What are we going to do guys? Why do you think they never even came to the funeral?"
"One word," Edward rolled his eyes, "Dad." He spat out that last word with such anger and hate that I half expected fire to come from his mouth. "Don't you guys remember the last time we saw them – when dad was starting to have those massive breakdowns and the way he was treating mom and all of us," he paused for a moment, the memories always too hard for us to bear, even now. "Mom cried to them I remember, asking them to take us away but they refused." The venom was back in his voice and his eyes once again burned with barely contained ire. "They didn't even care when mom told them everything, just brushing it – and us – off like we meant nothing."
Alice's mouth turned down into a well-defined pout. "I don't remember that," she said quietly, almost as if she were speaking to herself. "Why don't I remember that?"
"You were asleep already, Ali. Emmett and I were sitting on the stairs listening to moms' conversation with them. We listened to mom cry and beg with everything she had and it was all to no avail."
I inclined my head slightly as I recalled the memories of that night. "After that, we went back up to your room to check on you. You were curled up in bed with your little pink blanket, looking so innocent and unaffected by everything. We just couldn't mar your views on them by telling you what we'd heard. We wouldn't do it."
Alice's eyes began to swell with tears, "You guys have always protected me, why? Why wouldn't you tell me about that? I would've handled it the way I did everything else. You two did not need to carry the entire weight of that on your shoulders."
"You didn't need to know Alice. You didn't need to see the monsters that dad came from the way that Edward and I did. The way they just walked out that door, leaving mom curled up on the floor in tears. You were – and still are – too pure for that." I grimaced, remembering the first time that he hit me; the first time that I realized that he was no longer my father.
"I miss mom," Alice said with a sniffle. "I know that near the end, she wasn't the same person any more, but that wasn't her fault; at least she tried."
"I miss her too, Ali, but I miss who she was before all that stuff happened; I don't miss who she became."
She sighed softly and nuzzled into Edward, "Do you guys really think she slept with all those people?"
I saw Edward stiffen out of the corner of my eye, "Why do you ask Ali?"
She shrugged noncommittally but her eyes betrayed the indifference she tried to portray. "I don't know, just wondering I guess."
Edward, not having seen the look on her face or the minute change in her posture, sighed while pinching the bridge of his nose. "I don't think that's something we'll ever really know for sure, Alice. She's the only one who could answer that question and making assumptions on her possible immoral and deplorable character flaws won't do us any good.
A deep, resentful, sigh escaped me as I pondered everything that we'd learned and talked about today. "Guys maybe we shouldn't talk about mom and dad anymore and try to really figure out what to do about our Gran – about Mr. and Mrs. Masen."
"You were named after him Emmett," Alice sighed sadly, "and I have her middle name."
"I know Ali," I groaned as I lay back on her bed, looking up at the ceiling. Maybe it would be better to just not talk about this at all. It had caused us too much pain and almost cost us the only things that we had to lean on, our family. It'd probably be a better idea to just forget it all. They didn't even deserve our acknowledgment of the situation and we could just continue to go on as we'd been all this time – blissfully unaware of them even existing anymore.
"Alice, you and Jasper haven't – uh – done anything on this bed, have you?" The words popped out before I'd had a chance to stop them and I sat up quickly to gauge her reaction.
"I – uh – no," she stuttered out, looking everywhere but at Edward and I.
"Ali," Edward jumped in, an edge to his voice. "Have you and Jasper done anything at all?"
Subconsciously, my hands curled into fists at my side and I was seconds away from bolting from the room and having a nice chat with him. It took every ounce of will power that I possessed, and even a whole lot of will power that I had to draw from some other source, not to act on my immediate reactions as I waited for her to ease my worries on this subject.
"I – uh," Alice looked down at her hands before snapping her head back up, her gaze flitting between Edward and I. "You both can't even talk! I know you and Rose have had sex, Emmett. As for you Edward, I've heard you and Bella."
"You're lying!" Edward got mad as he released his hold on Alice and looked at her, "There is nothing to hear."
I sat up and looked at both of them, "Edward have you and Bella done anything?"
"Hey this talk is about Alice and Jasper, not about me and Bella." He was getting flustered and my brother never gets flustered.
I broke into loud, unrestrained laughter as I looked at his flush face, the annoyance and embarrassment warring with each other was apparent in his features. "Edward," I choked out in between my guffaws as I struggled to regain my composure, "dude, it's literally written all over your face."
Before he could deny anything again, Alice injected herself into the brotherly banter, "besides, Edward, even if Jasper and I had done anything – which, I have not admitted to, by the way – you'd have no right to overreact and go all protective caveman on me. Bella is his sister and you're … doing whatever you're doing with her."
"You haven't denied it either, Ali," I cut back in. "And unfortunately for both you and Jasper, Rose isn't related to anyone that lives in this house. So while Rose and I may have already had sex, that holds absolutely no bearing on Jasper claiming my baby sisters' innocence."
As Alice was about to respond to me, a timid knock came at the door redirecting her attention there. "Come in," she chirped jovially.
The door opened slowly, revealing Bella standing there uncomfortably. "I – uh – your mom asked me to let you know that dinner is ready and to come downstairs and eat." Her gaze never left her hands as the blush that we'd all become accustomed to slowly crept up her cheeks.
"Good, all this serious talk was making me hungry!" I jumped up off the bed, quickly scooped Alice up into my arms and tossed her playfully over my shoulders before making a mad dash for the stairs – and by proxy, the kitchen – with her bouncing happily on my shoulder.
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A/N: Emmett, oh Emmett. The beginning of this chapter made me all morose. I don't like a sad Emmett – like, at all. I do, however, like the sibling bonding that started towards the end, even if it were at Alice and Edward's expense. But, hmmm, wonder what had Bella blushing? Any ideas? Oh, and even more sibling bonding coming up in the next chapter from Jasper's POV.
Review, please? They make me smile.