Warning: This chapter contains tough subjects. If you are uncomfortable then I suggest you skip this chapter.
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Chapter 12:
A rapid, frantic knock sounded at the front door, breaking Bella from her stupor. For a moment her mind flashed to Edward but it quickly left. She hadn't spoken to him since yesterday and had a feeling he wanted nothing to do with her. She couldn't blame him though if that wom- Carmen told him everything.
She laid on the couch that was too lumpy and soft, considered answering the door but Charlie beat her to it. Bella had stayed at Charlie's house for the night much to her father's delight. It was a small one-story white house with five rooms and one bathroom. The kitchen was a bit outdated, reminiscing the 1930's look. The green-tiled floors and bluish-green cabinets were a bit too bright for her taste. There was no food in the refrigerator besides beer and fish so last night for dinner, pepperoni pizza had been ordered. It was awkward at first between the both of them. Neither was keen on talking or sharing their feelings. Bella didn't seek out comfort and Charlie didn't offer.
"Hey, Rose!" Charlie's voice boomed.
Bella sat up, momentarily confused, and then heard her perfect voice that she had come to envy. Rose was the last person she wanted to see. The golden-haired beauty would see right through her lies and half-truths. No doubt she had gone to the Cullen's house first or she wouldn't be here right now.
"Hey, Charlie! I was hoping Bella was around?" she asked, hopeful.
"Yeah, come on in!" he exclaimed. "She's just resting on the couch- Bella!" her father called out causing her to block her ears. She didn't have time to respond because suddenly Rose was standing at the doorway, grimacing at the sight of her grease-stained sweatpants and oversized sweatshirt.
"When is the last time you showered?"
She felt like a scolded child.
"The bathroom's upstairs." Bella scowled, refusing to look at her.
Rose exhaled rather loudly and sat down beside her on the very edge of the couch. She held her designer bag close to her chest, smoothing out her short flowy dress, silently judging.
"You're different." her voice had softened considerably. "You're quiet. You think before you speak… you're almost tolerable."
Bella chanced a glance and rolled her eyes. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"
"You hate when people pity you. It pisses you off to no end. I'm not about to cry with you about how sucky your life is at the moment. The old you would be laughing in our faces right now." she said. "What are you so upset about?"
"Like you don't know." Bella scoffed.
"I don't," Rose admitted. "Edward is more upset that you ran off and won't talk to him. I think you owe him an explanation."
"He's the one with trust issues." she snapped. "He already doesn't trust me because of your brother and now that woman… I'm surprised he hasn't left me yet." Bella fought back tears. She barely knew him and everything she remembered screamed a toxic relationship. But she still cared for him, more than before, and couldn't help but feel this entire mess was her fault… which it kinda was.
"Have you tried to call him?"
"No…"
Rose gave her a pointed look and Bella's cheeks reddened, knowing she was right once again. Content, Rose stood up staring down at the crumped mess of a girl. Crossing her arms over her chest, she said, "we've got to clean you up. You can't see Edward looking like that."
An hour later, They sat in front of the mirror in the downstairs guestroom as Rose tried to clean up her appearance.
"Owww!" Bella grimaced as Rose tugged the brush through her thick hair.
"Quit whining, you're going to thank me after."
Bella shot her a dark look, not pleased in the slightest. "Why are you even helping me? I thought you hated me."
"We've talked about this, I don't hate. You, Emmett, and my brother were always there when I needed somebody… and I wasn't there for you. I'm making up for it now."
Bella didn't respond and Rose continued to painfully tug on the knot at the back of her head. They finished in twenty minutes. Bella, looking like a brand new person, couldn't help but silently admire herself. Rose had done her hair up in a french braid and was now dressed in a blue cashmere sweater and faded navy jeans. It's the best she looked since… well, she can remember.
"Don't you feel better?" Rose smirked, seeing her expression in the mirror.
Bella's cheeks blushed pink and nodded her head in confirmation. All she could say was, "Thank you."
Rose simply ignored her. "I know a lot about avoiding difficult situations and it never turns out well in the end. Edward regrets what he said more than you know… he loves you, Bella."
Her eyebrows furrowed together thinking in deep concentration. She was still pissed with him but he deserved an answer… right? But then she'd have to tell him everything between her and Jasper- which was something she did not want to do.
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"Bella."
"H-hello." her face paled.
Jasper gulped.
Alice glowered in the background.
It turns out Edward wasn't home. He went running at the track.
She didn't expect to see Jasper and Alice hadn't expected her to come back. Everything was going fucking wrong.
"I wanted to talk to Edward." she sucked on her bottom lip, tasting the slightest bit of blood. She wished the earth would swallow her up into a large hole. Alice had her suspicions… although mostly wrong and Jasper was just too chicken to confess what had happened between the two of them. But she had her suspicions as well.
"I'll tell him you stopped by," the pixie's lips pursed together. Her eyebrow delicately lifted and her eyes narrowed at her and Rose. It was plenty clear that they were not wanted at the moment.
Rose just didn't give a fuck. "What crawled up your ass?"
A flicker of emotion flashed across her face. Alice faltered for a moment, glancing between the two of them. She clenched her jaw. "This doesn't concern you, Rose."
Her voice was polite but a storm brewed below the surface. She was like a firecracker and the tiniest thing could set her off at any moment. No one wanted to be in her line of fire.
"Then I suppose we'll take our leave," said Rose, equally polite.
She glanced at Jasper and he glanced at her. Bella's stomach churned uncomfortably and Rose dragged her out the door. They drove off, the tires screeching in the process. The house became smaller and smaller until it was invisible.
"Where are we going?"
The outside blurred together as Rose drove with intent, her foot heavy on the gas pedal. "The track," she said. "You're going to confront Edward and you're going to tell him how you feel. He is going to do the same with you and then everything will be fine."
It didn't work like that. They couldn't fix their problems with a simple flick of a wand. The car slowed twenty minutes later. Her stomach was in knots and her shoulders tensed once again. The anxiety never seemed to fade, only increasing with each passing second.
They could see Edward from the parking lot, his entire body sparkled. Ok, no- he was sweating but her mind liked to make up different scenarios to purposefully distract herself from what she was about to do. It was lightly drizzling and the sky had turned an ominous grey. Bella pushed herself across the track and Edward froze, his green eyes narrowed into slates. Rose stayed at the car much to her annoyance.
"Bella."
He was right in front of her now.
"Hello."
Perhaps she should've planned what to say. She was terribly conflicted.
"How'd you know I was here?"
"Alice." her name was bitter on her tongue. "I went to your house but you weren't there."
"I needed to run."
"You hate running." she blurted.
They froze. Edward's eyes widened a considerable size.
"I don't know where that came from," she stammered.
"You remembered."
Yes. her jaw clenched. Unfortunately.
She stared at his muddy shoes. Her hair hung limp in her face, the rain coming down harder. You could hardly tell she was crying. "I… I love you, Edward." her voice broke. "I know, I kinda overreacted and I'm… I'm sorry about that."
Was she sorry? No. It was mean and awful and cruel what he said but she was tired of fighting.
"I had no right to say that to you. Of course, I trust you, Bella. I'm trying to imagine what you're going through and how hard it must be." he whispered. He ran his hand through his hair, tugging at the ends. "How about from now, no secrets. We'll be completely honest with each other if something is bothering us."
"Yes," she felt numb as she lied to him. "No more secrets."
"You're going to get a cold," Edward said worriedly. She wasn't wearing a jacket and the rain was icy cold. "Let's go home. We can order some pizza when we get back to the house-"
"I'm not going back to your house, Edward." she interrupted him. His face fell and she quickly worked to clarify. "I want to try with Charlie, really try this time. I'm going back home."
"That's great!" he tried to sound excited but she couldn't help but note the hint of disappointment in his voice. "Charlie loves you, you know."
He does. She thought. He really does.
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"We agreed to no more secrets."
Rose kept her eyes trained on the road in front of them. There was no reaction besides the clench of her jaw, barely noticeable. Bella knew she was wading into dangerous territory here.
"Secrets only keep us apart, don't you agree?"
She gulped and didn't respond.
"You're the one who forced me to work things out with Edward," she said. "Yet you won't even talk about your own problems with me."
"Then why didn't you tell him about the baby?"
The silence was deafening. Her heart stopped as she stared at Rose, wide-eyed. It felt as the world was crashing down around her.
"Of course, I know." she rolled her eyes. "You had an abortion, Bella. That's kind of a big secret to hide."
Rose was deflecting, trying to turn the conversation away from her. It was working.
"After your appointment, Jasper was going to take you home but you almost had a panic attack. He ended up calling me and then brought you to our house. It was then you spilled everything."
They stopped at a red light. Rose placed a hand over hers. She was shaking. Bile rose in her throat, threatening to come out. Bella pulled her hand away.
"All you wanted was to forget," she said. "Your mom got pregnant young and you knew it would kill your father if we were to find out. You didn't want to hurt him or Edward."
"Is that your excuse? That I didn't want to know?" she scoffed. "Who wouldn't want to know that they got an abortion? It was my baby!"
She pressed her lips together, them disappearing into a thin line. Rose didn't say another word as they drove past her neighborhood.
"Take me home!" tears burned at the back of her eyes. "Rosalie stop the fucking car!"
"I thought you wanted to know everything." she coldly said. "All will be explained soon. Maybe then you'll stop bitching about how awful your life is because I'd do anything to forget. You're not the only one with a fucked up life."
No more secrets. It's what they agreed to and Rose seemed to be at her end's wit. Perhaps this hadn't been a great idea.
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Authors Note:
Hello everyone! I'm back! I apologize that it's been so long since I've updated! I've been really busy with some other stuff but hopefully, I'm back now. This story is not going to be abandoned! I hope to update again soon but until then I hope you all have a happy holiday to those who are celebrating!