Carlisle's POV
Continuing from chapter 18
Everyone eventually settled down a few minutes later. Then we decided to have a break before playing Maury.
I chuckled as I thought of Isabella's ending to the song. Anything funny that she had said or done before would never compare to it. (Until something else came up, that is.) It was downright hilarious! If I were human, I was certain that I would have nearly died of laughter.
Looking at my family, it was clear that they were all thinking something similar. They were smiling or laughing to themselves in amusement. Isabella smirked a little as she watched them; she obviously knew why they were also.
We were soon ready to play Maury afterwards. Just as we had earlier, we discussed which one of the topics we would cover.
"I don't know about any of you, but I personally think that we shouldn't do a DNA test or cheating boyfriend and girlfriend segment. I have nothing against them, though, because they are good, but they're mostly all they show on TV. It's tired," Emmett opined.
"Yeah," Kate agreed. "I'm not interested in an abusive spouse one either."
Rosalie pursed her lips. "Why don't we do one on out-of-control teenage girls? Or an outrageous acts caught on video one? We have some old tapes and DVDs here that show us doing crazy and unbelievable things," she said.
"Or we could have one of those talent shows Maury has every once in a while," Irina suggested.
"Or one in which the topic involves wearing outfits that most people don't consider respectable or appropriate," Esme added.
Isabella quirked an eyebrow. "How about we play the one with the teenage girls? Even though the things they do are unbelievable, the episodes are just as funny as the other ones can be."
"I think that is actually a good idea. The out-of-control teenage girls one, I mean," Carmen remarked.
"Me too," Jasper added.
The rest of us nodded and voiced our agreements.
Esme grinned. "The out-of-control teenage girls one it will be, then. All we need to know now is who would like to play Maury, and who would like to be a guest with their mother, father, sibling, or all three. One of us will have to be the motivational speaker, too. The rest of us will be the correctional officers and the audience," she declared.
Because Isabella did extremely well in the Irish Drinking Song, we asked her if she wanted to have a role as one of the teenagers. She thought it over before telling us that she wouldn't mind doing so. I was proud of her; I half expected her to say no, as she usually did. However, she started to become more outgoing since after the talent show.
I chuckled when Alice volunteered to be one also. It would be amusing to see her act out of character, to say the least. She was only antagonistic when she was provoked or really upset, which was-thankfully-a rare occurrence. She wasn't mean, wild, or out of control like the teenagers were on Maury either.
Rosalie and Kate decided to play as sisters, the latter choosing to be the elder of the two. This was quite fitting, as they did favor each other a little. Neither of them were malicious at heart, though Rosalie did have a sharp tongue when angry or exasperated. She had a quick temper as well, which I often had to bring her up short on.
Eleazar was going to be Maury himself, so Esme chose to act as Isabella's mother. Carmen volunteered to be Alice's, and I would play Rosalie and Kate's father. Irina volunteered be a drill instructor, and so did Edward, Tanya, and Laurent. Emmett would be Dave Vitalli.
Since there wouldn't be any audience members, everyone would be one after they were finished their roles. However, we would go back on stage-so to speak-when Emmett had to play his. Everyone except Edward, Irina, Tanya, and Laurent, that is. Jasper offered to record everything so that Laurent could have a break. He would also control the emotions of the teenagers and parents somewhat to help them fit their roles.
Once all of this was established, we left the family room to get ready. It took some time to do this because Isabella, Alice, Edward, Rosalie, Kate, Irina, Tanya, Laurent, and Emmett had to pick outfits to wear. Then Jasper had to videotape those of us who were acting as the drill instructors, teenagers, and parents separately. Plus, he had to work on the editing and graphics. We also had to make or obtain props and take care of several other things.
After a while, everything was set up, and we were ready to begin.
Most of us sat down on one of the couches or loveseats. They were facing the wall, where a projector screen was hanging up. Since Alice and Carmen were to be the first "guests", the latter was sitting with Eleazar in the middle of the room. An empty chair was next to her, for when it was time for Alice to come in. She was standing outside of the room for the time being.
Jasper turned the projector on when we had made ourselves comfortable. Maury's intro appeared on the screen, then the scenes that Jasper had recorded began to play.
"Today, on an unforgettable Maury," Eleazar announced, sounding exactly like Maury himself. Vampires were quite good at mimicking other people's voices. "These four teen girls are leading violent, destructive lives!"
Images of Alice, Rosalie, Kate, and Isabella wearing scanty clothing flickered on the screen as he said this. All of them looked as if they were irritated and in horribly disagreeable moods.
"This fourteen-year-old girl is heading down a path of self-destruction!" Eleazar went on.
Alice was shown next, scowling at the camera with a hand on her hip. Then there was a clip of her speaking.
"I've had sex over three hundred times, with over a hundred different men...!" she declared proudly.
A clip of Carmen played next.
"She's been left back in the seventh grade twice...!"
"Ooooooh!" we-the audience-groaned.
"Meanwhile," Eleazar continued. "This sixteen-year-old teen and her fifteen-year-old sister are sexually out-of-control and violent!"
Rosalie and Kate appeared on the screen then.
"If anyone gets in our face, we'll beat the [bleep] out of them together!" the former yelled.
The camera switched to Kate next.
"We sold our bodies for forty-five dollars once," she remarked.
"Ohhhhhh!" we chorused in disbelief.
After that, I was shown.
"I do not understand where I had gone wrong; they never behaved this way before. They were raised much better than that," I stated morosely.
We groaned sadly.
"And this sixteen-year-old is going on a crash course!" Eleazar announced.
Isabella appeared next, frowning with her arms crossed.
"...I sneak out almost every evening to go to all-night parties." The screen flickered several times after that. "I smoke, I drink, I have lots of sex. I get into fist fights, and I've stolen over a thousand dollars worth of stuff!"
"Ooooooh!"
The camera switched to a tearful Esme afterwards. "I'm so afraid that someone will kill my daughter, or that she'll get an STD," she sobbed.
All of us groaned a second time.
"Can we save these girls from their destructive ways, or is it already too late?" Eleazar concluded as Alice, Rosalie, Kate, and Isabella were shown again.
Next, they were shown running and exercising while the drill instructors barked orders to them.
"I know you can do better than that!" Tanya shouted.
"Left, right, left, right, left, right!" Edward chanted.
Finally, a clip of the girls hugging their mother or father played. The projector turned off after that, and the lights came back on.
Eleazar faced us. "Everybody, I would like you to meet Carmen," he declared.
She smiled a little and nodded to us as we applauded.
"Carmen is the mother of fourteen-year-old Alice."
At this, a clip of the latter standing backstage-so to speak-was played.
"Now, Carmen says that when Alice had lost her virginity at the age of twelve, she became addicted to sex. Since then, she has had sex over three hundred times with more than one hundred men."
"Ohhhhhhhh!"
"In fact, she has been so preoccupied with sex that she has neglected her education and fallen behind in school. And when Carmen confronts or tries to get help for her, Alice either ignores her or curses her out. One time, she actually punched her in the face."
"OHHHHHH!"
Eleazar nodded to the projector. "Here is what life has been like for Carmen during the past two years. Have a look."
A video of Carmen was shown after he said this, with somber music playing in the background.
"When my daughter Alice told me that she had lost her virginity two years ago, I just couldn't believe it. She's too young to even be thinking about having sex, let alone doing it," she murmured in a cracking voice.
"I've learned since then that she has had sex with more than a hundred people. Her classmates and the people in the neighborhood call her a whore, slut, tramp...It makes me sick to my stomach. The worst part is, though, is that she doesn't care at all...
"Every time I try to get her to stop, she yells at me. She calls me a bitch, whore, slut. On one occasion, she punched me in the face so hard that it was bruised for a week.
"Alice used to love going to school. She has actually been on the honor roll nearly every year since first grade. Now, she's so obsessed with sex that her grades started to slip. She's been left back in the seventh grade twice, not only for that reason, but also because of her behavior! She rarely goes to school, and when she does, she's often suspended because she either gets into fights or is caught having sex."
In the next clip, Carmen was facing the screen.
"Please stop doing this to yourself, Alice. I love you with all my heart. I just want you to be the sweet, caring girl you used to be. You are too smart to be going down this road, and it kills me that you have chosen to."
The projector switched off once more, and we groaned in sympathy.
Eleazar turned to her again. "Wow. The last two years have clearly been quite rough for you."
She nodded. "Yes, indeed. I am at my wit's-end, and I don't what to do anymore. No matter what I say or do, she just refuses to listen to me."
He pursed his lips. "When did Alice tell you that she lost her virginity?" he inquired.
Carmen sniffed. "A year ago, and it was only because she had gotten suspended for..." She let out a sob. "...for have oral s-sex in one of the school's bathrooms," she responded.
"And how did she react when you confronted her about it?" Eleazar prodded gently.
"She didn't care. She said she would do it again if she ever had the chance."
We booed or shook our heads at that.
Eleazar waited until we were quiet before resuming the conversation. "Tell me about the time she punched you in the face."
Carmen blew out a huge breath. "Well, one evening about eight months ago, I caught her trying to sneak into the house around four in the morning. When I confronted and grounded her, it turned into an argument, and she lost her temper and punched me. I had to wear cover-up for a whole week."
A photo of her with her left cheek bruised was shown on the projector after that. It looked so convincing that I was certain that I wasn't the only person who winced. Jasper had done an outstanding job with the graphics.
"What did you do after she punched you?" Eleazar queried next.
"I gave her a good spanking..." she replied.
All of us applauded at this.
Eleazar nodded thoughtfully. "You gave her a good spanking, but? I feel like there's a but to this."
"But it didn't change her behavior. If anything, it seems like she gets worse every time I discipline her," Carmen sighed.
"Oh, my. Well, before we bring your daughter out, she has something to tell you first," he announced, waving his hand to the projector again.
Dramatic music could be heard this time as Alice's video was played.
She was facing the camera again, scowling in rage.
"My mother is nothing but a meddlesome bitch, and she needs to stay out of my [bleep] damn business! I'm addicted to sex, I love it, and there isn't anything that she can do about it! I've had sex over three hundred times, with over a hundred different men, and if any of you don't like it, you can kiss my [bleep]! I'm fourteen years old, and I'm old enough to do whatever I want," she sneered.
"Oooooooh!" we groaned.
The video continued.
"I have sex whenever I want and wherever I want. I've had sex in my school, my room, the park, and any other place I happen to be. There's not a damn thing anyone can do about it, and nothing anyone tries to do will stop me.
"Mom! You need to stop crying like a little bitch all of the time and leave me alone! You aren't the boss of me, and you're just jealous because no one wants your old, ugly ass anymore! Mind your own business and keep your face out of mine! I won't have a problem with punching you in it again if you don't!" she concluded with attitude.
After that, the projector turned off.
Eleazar shook his head while throwing his arm out. "I just can't wait to meet her! Come on out, Alice," he announced.
We booed and jeered loudly as she entered the room. She put up both of her middle fingers before running over to us.
"Shut up! Fuck you! You don't know me! You don't know me! Fuck you!" she yelled.
Isabella, Rosalie, and Tanya stood to either insult her or criticize her behavior. Alice argued back until Carmen got up to hold her back. It was hilarious to see how well they did in making it look as if they meant what they were saying. I could tell from Jasper's stance that he wasn't even controlling their emotions. Not for the time being, that is.
Eleazar stood as well to calm everyone down. "All right, all right. That's enough. Alice, please have a seat," he requested.
Alice did so after greeting him and shaking his hand. Carmen perched on the chair next to her.
Bella's POV
I liked how everything was going. It was almost as if we were actually on Maury. The only differences were that Eleazar wasn't Maury, the family room looked nothing like his studio, and a projector was used instead of a flat-screened TV.
Preparing for our "show" took more than an hour, but it was turning out to be worth it so far. Jasper was doing an excellent job with the videos and all. Everyone else were doing their parts well, too.
I had to laugh when I saw my own brief clip. Unless I was really pissed off, I was never that aggressive. Nor was I interested in drug or having sex with anyone other than Carlisle. Still, it was amusing to see me act unlike myself. I only hoped that the rest of my performance would be just as good later on.
With that in mind, I sat down again. Rosalie and Tanya did as well.
Eleazar cleared his throat. "Alice, do you love your mother or care for her at all?" he questioned.
Alice scowled. "Yes, I do love her and care about her!" she replied.
"Then why did you punch her in the face?" he prodded indignantly.
"Because if she hadn't gotten in mine, I wouldn't have had to punch hers!"
We booed Alice a second time, and she glared at us.
"Shut up!" she growled.
Eleazar shook his head at her. "That does not sound very loving or caring to me," he remarked.
"Too bad," she snapped.
He leaned back in his chair with a disapproving expression at her behavior. "You said that you lost your virginity at the age of twelve. Is that correct?"
Alice nodded. "It sure is."
"And you have been addicted to sex ever since."
"Mmm-hmm. I can't help it. It feels so good, and I love it!"
Pursing his lips, Eleazar commented, "The only things you need to love right now are your family and your education. You're too young to be loving sex, let alone having it."
"Whatever!" Alice retorted as everyone else clapped.
"Now, Carmen," he began when we quieted down. "Alice had a secret that she wanted to reveal to you."
Carmen grew tense.
"Here it is," Eleazar declared.
Another video of Alice played as he said this.
"Mom, you're right to think that I sneak out of the house at night to have sex. But what you don't know is is that I'm actually selling my body. I have made over two thousand dollars, and I've also been given clothes and a phone for sex," she stated.
We either booed her or exclaimed in disgust and outrage.
Alice waved her hand us dismissively. "Oh, shut the hell up! You would be doing this too if you had a gorgeous body like mine!"
"Gorgeous, my ass!" Tanya snorted. "Slimy is more like it."
The rest of us howled with laughter as she flipped her off, looking bored.
Carmen was burying her face in her hand. "My God, Alice. Please tell me that this isn't true," she sobbed. Then she turned to her. "Why would you do that to yourself? You're worth more than all of that! Plus, you could have gotten killed! You could have caught an STD, or you have and don't even know it!"
Alice rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I don't care what you think. I get paid good money for it, so I'm going to keep doing it. You can't stop me!"
Eleazar faced them. "Well, we shall see if we will be able to by the end of this show. We'll be right back."
We applauded again, and Alice and Carmen joined us in the audience.
The projector's screen flickered on after they did. "Coming up next," Eleazar's voice said. "The rebellious behavior of these two uncontrollable teenagers is driving their father to the breaking point."
A clip of Rosalie and Kate standing next to each other looking irritated and impatient played as he said this.
"Will we be able to help them, or have they reached the point of no return?"
The video ended then, and Carlisle kissed me on the temple. "Looks like it's our turn now," he murmured as Rosalie and Kate stepped out of the room.
I smiled. "Yeah. I can't wait to see how your part goes."
"Well, you certainly won't be for long."
Snickering, I kissed him back, and he went to sit in the chair that Carmen had occupied a moment ago.
He and Eleazar high-fived one another before the latter turned to speak to us.
"Welcome back, folks. I would like you to meet Carlisle," he announced.
I cheered loudly as everyone else clapped. He waved to the others and winked at me.
"Now, Carlisle is the father of fifteen-year-old Rosalie and sixteen-year-old Kate."
The same clip of Alice and Rosalie standing backstage played a second time.
"Carlisle said that ever since his wife had abandoned them a year ago..."
We groaned in sympathy at this.
"...his daughters' behavior had taken a turn for the worse. In the past eight months, they gotten into at least seventy fist fights and began having sex. They have run away from home over twenty times, and he suspects that they may be stealing and selling their bodies when they do," Eleazar concluded.
"Ohhhhhh!"
"Now, this is what he has been going through during all of this time," he said, waving his hand to the projector.
It turned on, and Carlisle appeared on the screen. The gloomy music in the background played again.
"When my wife left me a year ago, my daughters-Kate and Rosalie-and I were devastated. None of us could understand why she did so suddenly and without an explanation. To this day, she has never contacted us. We don't know of her whereabouts, or if anything had happened to her either.
"I have tried to bring semblance back into our lives, but everything only became worse. My daughters' behavior spiraled out-of-control despite my efforts. They have begun to act out at home and school. They disrespect me and call me names. They argue with me if I don't let them have their way. They get into numerous fights, and when they sneak out of the house, they are gone for days at a time.
"I do not understand where I had gone wrong; they never behaved this way before. They were raised much better than that," Carlisle remarked.
The screen briefly darkened, then showed him facing it.
"Kate and Rosalie, I love you both so much. All I want is for you to change. You are both too precious to be doing these things to yourselves, and I hope that you will come to realize this before it's too late."
After this statement, the video ended. I pursed my lips as everyone else looked morose.
Eleazar did also as he turned to him. "Oh my. I am sorry that that happened," he said. Then he crossed his ankles. "So, you told me before the show that you think Kate and Rosalie are behaving the way they are because your wife left?"
Carlisle nodded. "Yes. I know for a fact that they feel betrayed and heartbroken that she had because they told me this themselves. They don't understand how she could have just abandoned us like that any more than I can. In addition to that, I know that they are furious that she did, and I cannot blame them. I feel upset about it too. Nevertheless, they are handling their emotions in the wrong way."
I and the rest of the audience clapped in agreement.
"Do you think that they may be using drugs?" Eleazar inquired.
Making a face, Carlisle replied, "I haven't caught them in the act so far, but I could believe so. It would explain their behavior."
"And as a result of everything, you have come here as a last-ditch effort to save your daughters and help them change their ways?"
"Yes, Maury. I have done everything in my power to help them and set rigid boundaries, but it has been all for naught. I cannot stop or control them any longer, and my worse fear is that something terrible will happen to them. That is the last thing that I want."
"I understand how you feel. Well, we are going to meet his daughters in a moment, but before we do, have a look at this," Eleazar declared.
The dramatic music played once more as a video of Kate and Rosalie was shown. Both of them were glaring at the screen as the former spoke first.
"I'm tired of our dad being overprotective all of the time, and he needs to lay off!" she yelled.
"My sister and I stick together so that we can protect each other! We don't need him to do that for us!" Rosalie added. "If one of us does something, the other comes along so that we can look after the other."
"We will beat the [bleep] out of any [bleep-bleep] who tries to hurt us," Kate proclaimed as the camera then showed them standing back-to-back.
After that, the screen flickered, and they were next to one another again.
Kate went on with her speech. "My sister and I lost our virginity on the same day. Our first time was at an orgy, and we had so much fun...!" she said as she smiled happily.
"Oh, my God," Carlisle gasped in horror and despair, burying his face in his hands. The rest of us, except Eleazar, "Ohhh!"-ed loudly in disgust.
Rosalie spoke up next. "We don't care if anyone disapproves of the things we do, not even our father. We can do whatever the [bleep] we want! If anyone gets in our face, we'll beat the [bleep] out of them together!" she snarled.
"Oooooooh!" we jeered as the video ended.
Eleazar gestured to the family room's entrance. "Here are Kate and Rosalie! Come on out, ladies."
We as the audience booed loudly as they raced in. They shook Maury's hand politely when he greeted them before scowling at us.
"Go to hell! Whatever! Fuck all of you!" Kate sneered.
"Kiss my ass, bitches! Suck a fat one!" Rosalie hollered.
"Stop sucking fat ones, whore," I jeered.
"Fuck you, bitch!" she retorted.
They eventually sat down after giving us more insults, and Eleazar began to speak to them.
"Kate, let me ask you something. Do you really think that you're setting a good example for your sister?" he queried.
She shrugged while pulling up her halter-top. "She's old enough to do whatever she wants. So, if she wants to join me, I'm not going to stop her," she responded petulantly. "Who cares anyway?"
Carlisle frowned. "I do. You know good and well that you're not suppose to be leading your sister down the wrong path, much less having sex or getting into fights," he scolded.
"That is true," Eleazar concurred. "Your job is to be a supportive and caring sister and daughter, especially since your mother is no longer in the picture."
Kate rolled her eyes. "Whatever. And fuck that bitch. I don't give a damn that she left anymore. That happened a year ago, and the fact that she did no longer matters."
"Yeah!" Rosalie agreed.
However, I noticed that their bottom lips trembled as they said this.
Pursing his own, he focused his attention on the latter. "Rosalie? What do you think of your sister? Do you think that what she's doing is cool?"
"I love her. We have always been close. And as long as we protect each other, I don't mind what she does."
I shook my head at this.
"So, you don't consider that what she's involved in is dangerous?"
"If I did, I wouldn't bother doing it."
Eleazar leaned back. "Why do you two get into so many fights?"
Kate scowled. "Because people are always getting in one of our faces or talking shit."
"Do you start any of them?"
Both she and Rosalie giggled. "Some. And before you ask, we've won every single one!" the latter announced proudly.
We laughed at them mockingly or snorted in disbelief. They got up and stormed over to us.
"Shut the fuck up! We'll beat all of your asses right now!" Kate shouted.
"You don't want to mess with us!" Rosalie added loudly.
"Come over here, bitch! Try us!" Alice yelled tauntingly.
"You couldn't beat shit!" I scoffed.
Meanwhile, everyone else jeered at them until Carlisle pulled them away. They yanked their arms out of his grip, but sat down again when he eyed them sternly.
Eleazar continued as if nothing had happened. "You two didn't really lose your virginity at an orgy?"
"Yup. We sure did," Kate huffed.
"And the both of you are proud of that?"
"Damn proud," they said at the same time.
"Well, we shall see how proud you will be in a moment. Carlisle, your daughters have some secrets that they want to tell you. Here's the first one."
Carlisle turned to look at the projector screen with unease.
Another video of Kate and Rosalie standing side-by-side played.
"Hey, Dad. If you think that we're doing drugs, you are absolutely right. We have smoked marijuana, shot heroin, did crack, meth, popped pills. You name it, we did it," Rosalie confessed.
"And that's not all. You remember when you asked us where we got so many new things? You're right to think that we stole most of it! As for the some of the other items, you'll find out really soon," Kate remarked. "Oh, and I have one more thing to tell you. If you were wondering what happened to your grandparents' wedding rings, guess what? We pawned them for money, and we won't give them back."
"BOOOOOOOOOOOO!" we yelled as the screen flickered off.
Carlisle stood up, looking outraged. "What do you mean you pawned their wedding rings?! You know how much those meant to me!" he exclaimed. "And you two must be out of your minds for thinking of even smoking a cigarette, much less using drugs! Both of you are going to start rehab as soon as we have returned home!"
They just rolled their eyes at him as we cheered.
"Ugh. Whatever," Kate mumbled.
"Here's the next one," Eleazar stated once he had settled down.
A second clip of them played.
"Dad, you wanted to know if we have sex for money when we run away. Well, guess what? Your suspicions our true," Rosalie affirmed.
"We have made a lot of money. We sold our bodies for forty-five dollars once! That was how badly we wanted sex! And not only that, but we have received food and jewelry for it too!" Kate remarked.
"OHHHHHHHH!"
Carlisle facepalmed as the video ended. "Oh, my God," he repeated in anguish. Then he gazed at Kate and Rosalie. "Why would you do that to yourselves? You're better than that! Seriously, you could have gotten taken advantage of! You could have gotten an STD! Someone could have killed one or both of you! I love you so much. You are all I have left now, and if I lost you two, it would destroy me."
This struck a nerve in Kate and Rosalie. The former bowed her head, and a tear started to slide down the latter's face. He noticed and hugged them tightly.
"Awww!" we cooed, applauding as they returned the embrace.
Eleazar smiled at them gently and faced us. "I believe that there's hope for these two yet; they aren't as far gone as they seemed to be. And we will make sure that Carlisle will be able to get back his rings. We'll be right back."
We clapped again, and the projector turned on after Carlisle, Rosalie, and Kate rejoined the audience.
"Up next," Eleazar's voice began. "This sixteen-year-old is wreaking havoc in her wake."
A video of me standing with my arms crossed was shown as he announced this.
"Will we be successful in getting her to change her ways, or will it be all for naught?"
With that ominous question, the screen flickered off, and I stood up.
Now that it was my and Esme's turn to perform, I felt a bit nervous. Carlisle saw that I was and kissed me.
"Don't worry, love. You will do marvelously. I know it," he whispered encouragingly.
I grinned a little. "Thank you."
After kissing him back, I left the room, and waited by the entrance.
Carlisle's POV
Esme sat next to Eleazar this time as Isabella walked out. He waited until we were all quiet before addressing us.
"Hello again, everybody. This is Esme. Welcome her to the show," he announced, gesturing to her.
She grinned a little and waved as we applauded. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Edward blow a kiss to her, which made her smile widen. I chuckled.
"And this is her sixteen-year-old daughter, Bella," Eleazar continued as a video played of her standing backstage. "Esme says that when she fell in with the wrong crowd three years ago, her behavior became increasingly self-destructive. Like Rosalie and Kate, she gets into fights and has used all kinds of drugs. She drinks vodka and liquor every day..."
"Ohhhhh!"
"She shoplifts whenever she has the chance, and she began to have sex at the age of thirteen."
"Ohhhhhhhhhh!" we yelled.
"Let's take a look at the heartache that her daughter's actions have caused for Esme," Eleazar stated, nodding to the projector's screen.
It turned on to show Esme looking away from the camera, her face streaked with tears. The melancholy music played once again.
She cleared her throat. "Before my daughter Bella turned thirteen, she was the sweetest girl in the world. She was loving, caring, and very intelligent. She had been a straight-A since Kindergarten.
"After Bella started the eight grade at a new school, though, everything just fell apart. The friends she made were nothing like the ones from her other schools. All they liked to do was skip school or class and smoke, drink, and do drugs. It wasn't long before she started to do the same.
"A few weeks after meeting her new friends, she lost her virginity, but I didn't learn of this until the following month. She has slept with ten people that I know of, but I'm afraid that it might be more.
"Now, three years have passed, and they have been a living hell. She still passes her classes, but just barely. And not only is she still having sex and doing drugs, but she leaves the house just about every night without my permission. She steals from stores and people as well. Every time I turn around, she always has something new in her room. She gets into a lot of fights, and several of them had involved weapons. I'm so afraid that someone will kill my daughter, or that she'll get an STD. I'm also afraid that she'll end up in jail," she wept.
In the next clip, she was facing the screen.
"Bella dear, please go back to the way you had been before all this. I don't want anything bad to happen to you. If something did, it would kill me. You are too young to be throwing your life away like this. You have so much that you can and want to accomplish, and I know you're able to do it," she concluded.
The video ended then, and we groaned sadly.
Eleazar looked sympathetic as well. "Oh, my. You certainly have been going through hell. I suppose that, like Carmen and Carlisle, you haven't been able to get Bella to change her ways either?" he asked.
"No. I'm really scared for her, Maury. She's always getting into some form of trouble. It's a wonder that she hasn't been locked up yet, or that she hasn't been caught shoplifting. She's also lucky that she hasn't been seriously hurt or worse, or caught a disease too," Esme remarked.
All of us snorted in agreement. If this were real, we would have wondered how she hadn't ourselves.
Leaning back in his chair, Eleazar continued, "You mentioned earlier that Bella had gotten into a fight not very long ago that ended terribly."
"Yes," she affirmed with a sniff. "She was at a party, and the girl she had a fight with accused Bella of wanting to sleep with her boyfriend. From what I understand, the other girl actually started it by shoving Bella. By the time the fight had been stopped, she had broken the other girl's nose, and she had to be taken to the hospital."
"OOOOOOHHHHHHH!" we chorused in disapproval. I also had to keep myself from chuckling, amused that that-if nothing else-was a true story.
Eleazar shook his head, being of the same mind. "Well, we happen to have found a video of the altercation Bella was in. Here it is," he declared.
The screen turned on the show Isabella and Jessica fighting. There was a lot of shouting as a few people tried to break them up. However, they were unsuccessful; Isabella accidentally elbowed or hit them, knocking them to the ground. A moment later, Isabella lifted Jessica up and threw her onto the opposite wall. Then she repeatedly punched the latter in the face before I yanked her off and carried her out of the house.
Nearly everyone exchanged stunned glances as the video cut off. I could tell that none of them could believe that Isabella had actually managed to picked Jessica up, hurl her onto the wall, or break her nose.
Eleazar and Jasper nodded to me in thanks. I was the one who found the video. It had been uploaded online, but was taken down not long after. I managed to download before it was.
I inclined my head in return.
The former cleared his throat to catch our attention after that. "Bella will be joining us shortly, but before she does, this is what she has to say," he announced.
Another clip of her played, this time with her facing the screen.
"Listen up because I'm only going to say this once: I'm not thirteen years old anymore. I'm sixteen, and I'm old enough to do whatever I feel like doing. If anybody tries to get in my way or stop me, they're going down! I have no problem with teaching anyone a lesson; I have done so plenty of times before, and I will do it again if I need to.
"If I thought my life was great before the eighth grade, I was dead wrong. I realized how boring it actually was after I met my new friends. I was always the good girl and doing the right thing. A lot has changed since then. Now, I sneak out almost every evening to go to all-night parties. I smoke, I drink, I have lots of sex. I get into fist fights, and I've stolen over a thousand dollars worth of stuff!" she declared as a few of the words she said appeared on the screen.
"I love the way my life is now, and I'm not going to change it for anybody. Not my mom, not my dad. Anybody. I don't care if no one else likes it. Everyone can suck my [bleep] for all I give a [bleep]. And to those of you in the audience, you can get in my face if you want to. I will beat all of your [bleeeeep] and put you through the wall like I did to this [bleep] one. After. The other!" she threatened.
We "Ohhh"-ed loudly as the video ended. A few of us also snorted, as if they wished she would try to "put [them] through a wall."
Eleazar waved his hand. "Everyone, let's welcome Bella to the show! Come on out, Bella!" he announced.
All of us stood up and booed as she dashed into the room. Eleazar reached out to shake her hand, but she ignored him as she stood in front of us.
"Oh, fuck off, bitches! Eat me!" she hollered.
Not a good thing to say to a family of "angry" vampires.
"Say that again, and you will get what you are asking for! You ought to be ashamed of yourself for doing these things to yourself and embarrassing your mother!" I yelled rebukingly.
Isabella flipped me off. "Shut up! I don't care about anything you have to say!"
"You need to care, you disgusting tramp!" Rosalie shouted.
"Kiss my ass, slut!" she retorted.
They got into each other's faces and proceeded to "argue" some more. It became so bad that I was certain that a "fight" would have ensued if Esme hadn't intervened.
"Bella, stop! Sit down!" she commanded, trying to lead her over to one of the chairs.
She yanked her arm out of her grip. "Get off of me! I can do it myself!"
Turning away, she did so before acknowledging Eleazar. "Hi Maury," she grumbled while shaking his hand limply.
"Hello, hello," he returned. He sat down also, then spoke to her once more. "Bella, ignore them. I want to ask you something. Your mother said that you were once a straight-A student, correct?"
"Yeah. So?" she inquired.
Eleazar rose an eyebrow. "What do you mean, 'so'?" he demanded incredulously. "If you were a straight-A student, you should have been intelligent enough to not make friends with the wrong people."
We applauded and cheered in agreement.
Isabella just rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"You said that you like the way your life is?"
"I do."
"You enjoy doing drugs, stealing, and having sex?"
"Mmm-hmm."
"How many people have you slept with? Your mother thinks it's more than ten men."
Isabella smirked. "Well, she's right."
Esme frowned at her. "And you're proud of that? You should be ashamed of having sex with anyone at your age."
All of us clapped again.
"How many people?" Eleazar repeated.
Pursing her lips, Isabella responded truthfully, "About...sixty, I think, but no more than that."
Esme's jaw dropped in horror and despair. "What do you mean, sixty?! How could you, Bella? You're only sixteen!"
"Aww, whatever. Who cares?"
Irina leaned forward. "You ought to be washed out with Clorox!" she announced.
Isabella turned to her with a scowl. "Shut up, haggard bitch!"
At this, the audience practically exploded. Some of us "Ohhh"-ed loudly while Carmen tried to keep Irina in her seat. I could tell that the latter wanted to get up and teach her a lesson. I myself was really trying not to laugh at this point, and I wasn't the only one. However, we managed not to. Her comeback was hilarious, though.
We settled down after a moment or two, and Eleazar addressed Isabella once more.
"And of the sixty men you have been with, were any of them eighteen or over?" he queried.
"Most of them weren't, but about eleven of them were."
"Did any of them end up in jail? You know that counts as statutory rape, right?"
"So, what? I don't care. I enjoyed every minute of being with them!"
"And I suppose you enjoy beating people up, too?"
Isabella nodded. "Damn right. If people leave me alone, I won't have to do anything to them."
Eleazar shook his head in disapproval. "Just as you liked beating up this girl?" he asked, gesturing to the screen.
The video of her and Jessica fighting played again. She watched it impassively until it ended.
"What do you think of that, Bella? Are you proud of what you did?" Eleazar queried next.
"Yup! I think that that bitch got exactly what she deserved. She shouldn't have gotten in my face or accused me of sleeping with her boyfriend."
"Did you?" Esme prodded.
"Hell no," she replied earnestly. "Her boyfriend is a disgusting creep."
Edward, my children, and I harrumphed at this. Mike certainly was.
"Well, we're going to see if we can turn all of this around and make sure you can become a proud, upstanding citizen instead. And if you can remember their names, I want you to tell me who the eleven men are. We'll be back after this," Eleazar stated.
"I'm not telling you shit," Isabella snapped.
"Oh, yes you are, young lady. And stop cursing before I wash your mouth out with soap," Esme reprimanded.
Everyone applauded, and the projector turned on yet again.
"Coming up! We have a few surprises in store for these teens," Eleazar's voice claimed. The camera showed four people standing in silhouette. "Will these surprises aid the girls in changing their ways, or are they already beyond help?"
Bella's POV
When the video ended with that ominous question, the other "guests" joined us "onstage" while Emmett ghosted out of the room. Eleazar faced the remaining audience after we were all sitting down.
"The last hour or so has been quite an incredible one. We have talked to four young women who are out-of-control. They are wild, violent, and have no respect for the parents or other people. Nor do they have any for themselves. Well, we are going to show them what will eventually happen if they don't change their destructive ways. Here is Special Ops expert and motivational speaker, Dave Vitalli!" he declared.
Each of the parents and the audience clapped as Emmett walked in, flexing his muscles. Alice, Rosalie, Kate, and I groaned in irritation. However, I wanted to laugh, and I could tell that they-especially Rosalie-did too.
He hovered over us a moment later, his gaze filled with sternness. So different from how he usually was.
"All four of you should be ashamed of acting the way you have and embarrassing your parents like this. They deserve your utmost respect, and the fact that you are repaying them with the behaviors that I had seen just now is abominable," he scolded.
Then he stood in front of Rosalie and Kate, who shifted uncomfortably.
"I definitely have a bone to pick with you. What kind of big sister, as your father said, are you that you would lead your sister down the wrong path? Your job is to make sure that you set a good example so that neither of you go down that path at all," he added to Kate. "Imagine if something had gone wrong during that orgy you had went to, or when you were out in the street prostituting, and your sister had gotten seriously hurt...or if you had lost her forever. What do you think that would have done to you and your father then, especially since your mother is no longer around?"
She must have been doing a good deal of imagining because tears started to run down her face once more. She bowed her head, but didn't answer him.
Emmett pursed his lips. "You are the big sister. As with your father, it is your responsibility to keep her safe from harm and help her do the best she can in her life. It is not to do anything that will put her in danger!"
We applauded as he turned his attention to Rosalie next. "You seem like you're a pretty smart girl, so what I want to know is this: Why did you allow yourself to be influenced by your sister? She may have chosen to go down the wrong path, but you should have had the sense not to follow her. Now, if you did it to protect her, I understand. However, you would have protected her better by convincing her to do the right thing, and informing your father of her doings."
Then he addressed them both. "Your father loves you two very much. He's trying the best he can to bring some normalcy back into your lives, and your actions will destroy everything you hold dear if you keep doing what you're doing. And as Maury said earlier, we are going to make sure that you find your grandparents' rings. You two are out of your minds for even thinking of pawning them in the first place!"
Everyone clapped again, and he walked over to Alice. "Listen, sweetheart. You are too young and too precious to selling your body and sleeping with all of these men! Each one that you have sex with decreases your worth. It also increases your risk of getting pregnant or contracting a disease, especially one that you can't get rid of. Look at your mother right now," he ordered.
She glanced at Carmen before turning back to him.
"That woman loves you more than anything. You may hate the fact that she disciplines you and cares too much about what you're doing, but it is for your own well being. She doesn't want anything to happen to you; it would destroy her world if she woke up one day, and you were no longer here."
After that, Emmett faced me. "And you. Miss WWE fighter," he began sarcastically.
I blushed and rolled my eyes as the others howled with laughter. Esme rubbed her mouth to hide her chortling.
"You may think that doing drugs, stealing, having sex, and getting into fights is fun and cool now. But I can guarantee you that it won't be when, like I told Alice, you get pregnant or catch a disease. Nor are you going to like it if you overdose on drugs, get seriously injured, arrested, or taken advantage of; that's where you're headed if you continue going down this road. You need to get rid of your pals because with friends like them, who needs enemies? If they really cared about you, they would have left you alone entirely. You would likely have better friends, and you wouldn't be doing any of this!"
He backed away and put his hands on his waist. "Right now, what I want each of you to do is hug your parents. They brought you here to get help because they love you very much. If they didn't, none of you would be here because they would have given up long ago. You should all be grateful that they didn't," he announced.
I wrapped my arms around Esme, who hugged me back tightly. Over her shoulder, I watched as Alice and Carmen embraced each other. Carlisle, Rosalie, and Kate shared a group hug.
Eleazar took the floor once we moved away from one another a minute afterwards. "Now, Mr. Vitalli. You have a treat for these girls, don't you?" he questioned with a smile.
Emmett nodded. "I sure do," he replied before peering at us again. "This is one of the places that you will end up if your life continues to go the way it does. Young ladies, we will be sending you to boot camp!"
"And also joining us are Sergeants Edward, Laurent, Tanya, and Irina," Eleazar declared.
At this, all four of them entered the room wearing camouflage outfits. The parents cheered and clapped when they noticed them.
They stood at attention in front of us, and Edward spoke.
"Now, I want you girls to listen to me, and listen real good! We will be going to the training grounds in a few minutes. Before we do, I'm going to lay down some ground rules. When we leave, you will line up in an orderly fashion and go out to the van. While you are with us, you will follow each and every rule and command we give you! We do not tolerate any back talk, misbehaving, disrespect, or any other form of mutiny!" he barked.
I covered my mouth to keep myself from snickering. The military accent he used was just too funny.
He saw this and pounced. "Wipe that darn smile off of your face, little girl! This is no laughing matter! You may be able to get away with that from your mother, but you aren't going to pull that off with us! Straighten that face right now!" he snapped.
Biting my lip, I managed to stop grinning.
"We're ready to leave now. Get on yer feet, and let's go! Move it, move it, move it!"
I, along with Alice, Rosalie, and Kate stood up and filed out of the room amid another round of applause. Edward, Laurent, Irina, and Tanya barked more orders to us as we did.
After that, we put our regular clothes back on and joined the others in the family room again. We all sat down, and the projector's screen turned on one last time.
Just as Eleazar had with the other videos, he narrated this one too.
"Once Alice, Bella, Rosalie, and Kate left our studio, they were taken to a remote location for boot camp."
The video showed us getting into a long, white van. The next clip showed a field with several buildings here and there.
"Each of them were processed upon their arrival and changed into their military outfits. Then they were given more instructions," Eleazar stated.
"You are to report to breakfast at oh-five hundred hours. After that, you will begin your training and morning exercises," Laurent barked this time, pacing before me and the others. Us women were sitting at a table while he and the others stood. "I'm warning you right now: failure to listen to our orders will result in immediate disciplinary action! You are not at home now, and we are not your parents. We are in charge, and you young ladies had better remember that! You will not get away with any of your shenanigans here!"
All of us had a good chuckle over that. He was really good.
"Sure enough, at five o'clock the next morning, their training commenced. The girls had quite a time of it as they performed rigorous exercises and undertook several obstacle courses," Eleazar went on.
"Left, right, left, right, left, right!" Edward chanted as one of the clips showed us running.
"What are you two slowing down for?! Keep going!" Laurent hollered at Rosalie and Kate when they lagged behind the group.
"Move faster!" Irina yelled to Alice, who was making her way through a series of tires.
"I know you can do better than that!" Tanya shouted as I did push-ups.
"I'm trying to!" I protested.
She scowled. "And I suppose you can try doing twenty more for talking back to me! Get to it!"
Pouting, I continued to exercise.
Even I laughed at that. Carlisle did also while kissing my forehead.
"It wasn't long before they were worn down, and they finally began to see the gravity of the situations and feel remorse," Eleazar remarked.
The next few clips showed us with tears on our faces or turning away from the camera as we wiped our eyes.
"Mom, I love you, and I'm so sorry for everything. I won't ever cause any more trouble. I'll stop having so much sex and turn my life around. I promise," Alice sobbed. Tanya rubbed her back.
"Dad, we apologize for all of the things that we did," Rosalie murmured. "I understand now how wrong I was to go along with Kate..."
"And I was wrong to allow her to. I should have kept her from doing so," Kate added, looking down. Then she faced the camera. "We both plan to change and help you in getting everything back to the way it was before Mom left. I know where I pawned off your parents' rings, and I will do what I can to return them to you."
"We love you, Dad," they concluded in unison.
"Mom, this place frightens me. I don't want to be here any longer," I wept when my scene came up. "I swear that I won't do any more drugs, get into fights, steal, or have sex with any more people. I don't want to end up here again, or somewhere worse. I love you, and I'll make it up to you."
"The girls were eventually reunited with their parents after four days," Eleazar said as clips of us tearfully hugging and kissing our mothers or father were shown. "We wish them the best of luck in all of their endeavors. Until next time, America!"
With that hopeful conclusion, the screen flickered off, and the "show" was over.
All of us got up one by one to take a bow or curtsy after that, the room echoing with a final round of cheers and applause as we did. Then it was time for me to go home. It was nine 'o clock in the evening, and I had to wake up early for school.
"It has been a pleasure to meet you, Bella," Tanya remarked. "Come back soon."
"Have a safe trip home, dear," Eleazar stated.
"And don't forget to call me when you get home," Carlisle said next, pecking me on the lips.
"I won't," I assured as I kissed him back. "It was good to finally meet you all, too. And don't worry. You'll see me often enough during your visit," I added to Tanya, Eleazar, and the rest of the Denalis.
I hugged and kissed the others and nodded to Laurent. After that, I said good-bye and headed home.
I smiled to myself as I sped down the driveway. The weekend had been an awesome one. I couldn't wait to find out what else would be in store for the next two weeks.
(A/N: Please review! My apologies for not updating this story for an incredibly long time. I hope that you enjoyed the chapter, and I also hope that it wasn't too long. And stay strong everyone. I know that many of you are currently having a trying time what with everything that has been going on, but I wish all of you the best, and hopefully, it will all blow over soon! Until next time!)
