Chapter Twelve
Bella's POV
I heard the door of Chris's car open and shut and then the back door open and shut as he got Brandon out. I had been so happy to remember to remember my real family that had forgotten for a moment about my other family. Chris and Brandon. I had no idea what to do. I wasn't sure what to tell them. They thought I had died in a car crash. Should we just keep it at that? Edward looked nervous as we listened to two pairs of footsteps walk up to the house. Renesmee-Nessie, I had to correct myself, walked up behind him and gripped his hand.
"Dad, don't do anything stupid," she whispered. I forgot that she knew him better than anybody. They had told me about their life in Wisconsin, about Nessie's friends and her dog. And Jacob. Apparently, he had imprinted on her. Something I wasn't very fond of, but she seemed to really like him, and it finally felt like Jacob fit in. Now Chris was here, to ruin everything that was starting to seem so perfect. There was a knock at the door. We all stood there for a moment. I had never really seen anyone in this family at such a loss for something to do. Finally, Edward walked up to the door. Alice had her eyes closed, she was trying to see what would happen next.
He opened the door, and Chris and Brandon stood there. I felt kind of bad for little Brandon. I knew he was still my son, and I couldn't just cut him out of my life. Chris's eyes bulged out of his head.
"Bella?" he said, and his face was a mixture of confusion, shock, and relief. Brandon let go of Chris's hand and ran across the room to me. He had zero impulse control.
"Mommy!" he shouted. I picked him up and hugged him, even though he smelled delicious.
"Hi, sweetie," I said, putting him down. I looked back up at Chris. "What are you doing here?" I asked, and I could tell he was startled by the difference in my voice and probably the red eyes we had no time to hide.
"I was going to see where the crash was, and I saw this drive. It was obvious that you were coming off the drive when you got hit, so I had to come see who lived here. I sure as hell didn't think I'd find you."
"It's a long story," I said, glancing at Edward. "Why don't you sit down?" I jerked my head at Nessie, and she, Edward, Chris, Brandon, and I sat down in the living room.
"Chris," I began. "These are my real family. The people I couldn't remember. This is my husband, Edward, and our daughter, Renesmee. The other people were various other family members. After I recovered, I just remembered everything. You always said the brain works in mysterious ways. This is a great example of that, I guess." Brandon was still sitting on my lap. He glanced over at Nessie.
"So you're my sister?" he asked. He picked up on everything. Nessie smiled at him.
"I guess so. Hi, Brandon," she said. He smiled at her. They looked kind of the same. They both had my eyes and my face. Chris didn't say anything at first. I looked over at Nessie.
"Nessie, why don't you show Brandon around, and we'll talk in here," I said, not wanting the situation to get ugly in front of a three-year-old. She nodded.
"Sure, mom," she said, and took her little half-brother's hand. "C'mon, bud," she said, leading him towards the door.
I turned back to Chris. "So you don't want anything to do with Brandon and I?" he asked, sounding angry, yet scared at the same time. I shook my head.
"Of course not, Chris. I love you and Brandon. Just not in the same way. This is where I belong. With my real family. But I still want Brandon to know me and his sister. I still want to be a part of his life, because he is still my son."
Chris looked down at the ground. "You look...different, Bella. What the heck happened to you? You were dead, I saw it happen. I was there. Then your body was stolen from the hospital, and now you're here, alive even after I heard the monitor go flat. You were dead, Bella."
"I know, and it's really hard to explain, I can't tell you, not now. You just have to trust me. But I think we should spend some time apart," I said. "You can decide what to do with Brandon. I would love to have him visit me here sometimes, and I hope that one day we can be a family again. But I just don't think that that can happen right now."
Chris sighed. "You know what?" he said. "I think I'm going. Me and Brandon are moving back to New York with my sister, and we won't be back." He only looked angry now. "I hope that Brandon never sees you again, because I don't want him to be anything like you!" Edward stood up then, looking angry. I grabbed his hand and yanked him back down.
"Not now," I whispered. "Please don't make this worse." I nodded to Chris.
"Fine, I'm sorry this couldn't work out," I said. I really did. I loved my son, believe it or not, and I didn't want him out of my life. But it wasn't my choice.
"Nessie, bring Brandon in here," I called, and she walked in a minute later, pulling Brandon with her. I patted my lap, and Brandon crawled up onto it.
"You and your daddy are leaving," I said, and looked at me with big sad eyes.
"Why?" he asked.
"Well, Daddy doesn't want to be my friend anymore, so you're going to live with your aunt."
He nodded, and I slid him off my lap to go Chris. "Bye, sweetie, I love you," I said, as they began to walk to the door.
"I love you, too Mommy," he said, as him and Chris disappeared out the doorway.