Chapter 28: Fever Dream

Bella POV:

Would it ever end? I felt I had already thrown up for a few minutes but it continued and continued. The sour flavour in my mouth felt disgusting and I felt tears forming in my eyes. Did I catch the stomach flu somewhere?

´Are you alright, Bella?´ I heard Edward worriedly ask from behind me. Damn it, he wasn't supposed to see this. He was supposed to stay in bed.

´Go away,´ I ordered him as I felt another wave of sickness creeping up and pushed my head back into the toilet. He did not leave but instead, came closer to me and held my hair in his hands, so that I would not accidentally get my vomit onto it. He sat behind me and stroked his cold hand onto my forehead and I liked the cold sensation. After I was finished, he gave me a glass of water.

´Thank you, but you should have left, just as I asked you to,´ I said to him. I was a little bit embarrassed by this. I mean, come on. Who wants her boyfriend to sit next to her while she vomits? Case and point.

´Next time, I will. I promise. And Charlie's coming,´ Edward said before he ran off and left me alone in the bathroom. Seconds later, the door opened and Charlie looked concerned at me.

´Bells, are you alright?´ Charlie asked.

´I think I have the stomach flu, Dad. I´ve been throwing up a lot,´ I said to him. His forehead creased.

´I´ll call the school tomorrow to tell them you´re sick, don´t worry. Do you need some medicine? The pharmacy might already be open, I could drive there right now.´ He mumbled while he took a step backwards, as if he was already on his way. I smiled at him to let him know I did not need that.

´It's just the stomach flu, Dad. I'll be fine. I´ll just try to sleep it off,´ I assured him.

Charlie nodded. ´If there is anything I can do to help you, please tell me. We could go see doctor Cullen tomorrow.´

´Dad, that really won't be necessary. But thanks anyway.´

After I assured him another time everything would be fine and I did not need any help right now, Charlie left to try and sleep a bit and I got up from the bathroom floor and went into my room. Edward sat on the bed and made room for me to lay down next to him.

´I really don't feel too well,´ I whispered to him, so that Charlie did not wake up. The acid made my throat burn and I felt a little bit nauseous.

Edward kissed me on my temple. ´I´ll stay with you, Bella.´

I looked up to face him. ´What do you mean?´

He placed his cold hand on my forehead and the difference in temperature felt wonderful. ´I mean that you won't have to be alone, if you don't want that. If you want me here, I´ll stay with you. I can feel you´re starting to heat up a little bit so I think you also got the normal flu, next to your stomach flu. So, if you need some company, I´m happy to stay here.´ Edward kissed my temple again.

Thinking about staying in with Edward made me feel warm and fuzzy. Thinking about staying in with Edward while I was sick made me uncomfortable though.

´Please, just go to school tomorrow. And maybe stay away for a few nights.´ I told him. ´But I want you to stay tonight.´ I nestled myself into his embrace and closed my eyes. I made sure my warm head was resting on his cold chest.

´You don't have to feel embarrassed. I want to be with you in sickness and in health,´ Edward whispered into my ear. I was so tired that I did not catch the popular wedding vow in that single sentence.

´I know, but I just want to be sick and alone,´ I whispered back.

I felt him chuckle into my hair. ´If that changes, call me and I´ll be there shortly after. I promise.´

´Perks of dating a human,´ I mumbled.

´I love you nonetheless.´

´Hmm,´ I answered, already too tired to respond back.

Edward started humming the lullaby he had made for me and I drifted off to sleep.

Edward POV:

Bella was sleeping restlessly. I hoped the coldness of my body offered her some kind of comfort, but she was still tossing and turning all night. Somewhere in the morning, I saw she grew agitated in her sleep. She was mumbling more than usual, but I could not comprehend a single word she was saying. I placed one cold hand on her forehead, hoping that would ease away the upcoming fever and made her sleep peacefully again.

As if I had burnt myself, I quickly pulled my hand away. What was that?

It couldn´t be, could it?

I… saw something. And I… heard something. I gently placed my hand on her forehead again, afraid I had imagined it all.

But I hadn't. In her head, I saw myself and I saw Bella. We were together. The image had been a bit foggy, but it was as clear as crystal that she was dreaming about me right now. But why would she be agitated about that? I then noticed we were talking and the conversation did not go as smoothly. The topic must have been a hard one. I was debating with myself if I should listen in more about her dream, or not.

I then put my hand down. As much as I wanted to know more about it, she was entitled to her own thoughts. I had no right to see them as they weren't for me to see. But oh, how much I wanted to.

How could this be possible? I had never seen or heard Bella's thoughts, so why could I see them so clearly now? Was it because of her fever? Maybe Carlisle had a theory about it. As I could no longer touch Bella's forehead, I wrapped my arm around her.

´Why can't you just love me, Edward, right now? We don't even have to talk about me staying human or becoming a vampire. Why can't you just stay with me and love me for a few years? I don't want to be constantly afraid you´ll leave again sooner or later.´

My eyes widened and I let go of holding her. This time, I heard and saw Bella very clearly. Was this her dream? Would this dream portray to me her fears and concerns? My heart was no longer beating, but the pain in my chest felt all too real. I wished I could jump into her dream and tell her that I did love her right now and that I would love her forever. And that I would never leave her again, and that it didn't matter to me if she would become a vampire or stay human since I would not go anywhere. If she would want me by her side, I would be there.

I ran my hands through my hair. Longing to hear more about her dream and fighting the urge to listen in, I got out of bed. Bella's dream wasn't meant for me and maybe, if I would not be touching her, I would not hear or see it.

So I sat down in the chair and hoped I would offer her some comfort this way. She had said she wanted me here tonight so I would not go home. My family would see me all day and night anyway since I wouldn't be with Bella for a few days.

And that stung. I would miss her tremendously but I understood she might feel slightly embarrassed about being sick. Even though she had absolutely nothing to be embarrassed for. I simply hoped that once Bella felt a little bit better, I could come to visit again.

As if she missed my presence, Bella rolled over to a colder side of the bed. Even from our distance, I felt her fever had gotten higher. And even though I was no longer touching her, her dream became more vivid to me due to the rise in temperature, I suppose. I wanted to leave her room to give her some privacy, but I remember she asked me to stay the night.

So I saw us in her dreams. No, I saw us and all the events that had happened to us in the ten months through Bella's eyes.

Her birthday party and how surprised she was with all the effort Alice went through to make it a night Bella could never forget.

How horribly wrong it ended and how she loved the gifts she received from us.

The horrible things I've said to her when I tried to distance myself from her and how she handled the aftermath.

Our reunion in the hospital while she thought she had head trauma and did not believe me when I told her I loved her.

Her demand to leave her alone and how annoyed she was that we waltzed back into her life.

Our second reunion when we had to work together in Biology, how touched she was that there was food for her in the fridge.

Our talks.

Our kisses.

My beautiful Bella, who did not belong in my world because she simply was the centre of my whole universe. My love showed me right here and right now, that the feelings she had for me simply matched my own.

My heart swelled up. She might have forgiven me for leaving her, but it still made her feel slightly insecure and I hated that I was to blame for that.

I was going to fix that somehow.

Bella POV:

I woke up and felt horrible. My body was warm, I was nauseous and my head was throbbing. I felt the stomach acid burn in my throat and I knew I would be spending most of my day with my head inside the toilet seat.

And I instinctively missed Edward.

I looked up to see him sitting in the chair. That surprised me as he was always laying next to me if he stayed over. Would my fever be too hot for him to lay next to?

´Why are you sitting there?´ I asked him.

´Don´t worry, love. I was simply admiring the view.´ Edward gave me one of his crooked smiles and I knew something was up. He simply looked too innocent, so I knew he wasn't telling me everything.

As if he sensed my resistance - of course, he did - he walked over to the bed and kissed my forehead. He then gave me a glass of water and a painkiller, which I gladly took.

´I love you, Bella and I´ll be missing you. Call me if you need anything and I´ll be there. Please get well soon.´ Edward kissed my forehead again and went away.

I thanked my body, because when Edward went away, I felt a sudden urge to vomit again. I got out of bed and ran towards the bathroom. One would think my stomach would be empty right now, but nope.

As I was finished, Charlie knocked on the door.

´I´ll be going now, Bells. Are you good on your own? I can also call in sick so you have some company. Tell me if you want that.´

Hearing my dad this distressed made me almost smile. ´Thanks, Dad. I´m good. I´ll just be sleeping all day.´

I brushed my teeth to wash away the horrible flavour in my mouth and I heard Charlie leaving the house. I was alone. And I was tired. So I hopped into my bed and drifted off to sleep.

The sound of my cellphone had woken me up. I looked at the caller ID and saw that Jessica was calling me. I also noted the time. Oh my, I had slept until 3 in the afternoon.

´Hey Jess,´ I answered my phone.

´Did I wake you up? You sound sleepy. My God, I´m so sorry,´ Jessica apologized to me.

´You did. But I slept until now, so I´m feeling a bit better anyway,´ I explained to her.

´If you need me to come over and tell you that you don't look sick, just say the word.´

´Then you would be lying. I'm constantly throwing up so please stay away for now.´ I laughed. I heard Angela in the background. ´Is that Angela?´

´Yes. Here, I´m giving the phone to Angela.´ I heard some noises.

´Hey, Bella. Please get well soon. We miss you. And I´ve written notes for all the classes we take together so you won't have to be worried about missing something. You might need to ask Edward for his Biology notes, though. I'll email them to you,´ Angela said.

´Thank you, Angela. I'm sure it will be fine,´ I said to her.

´Ange, she's sick. Missing a few days of school won´t be such a bad thing,´ Jessica said to Angela.

´I´m only trying to help.´ Angela snapped back.

I laughed. ´Hey, don´t fight. I really appreciate the help from both of you. But for now, I'm only sleeping and throwing up. I might watch a movie later as I´m feeling slightly better. So I'm sure I'll use your notes in a few days, Angela.´ I yawned. ´I´m going to stop calling now. I'm sure I'll see you both soon. I will try to eat a banana or something. Miss you too.´

´Bye Bella, love you,´ Jessica yelled in the background as Angela was still holding the phone.

´Get well, Bella. We´ll miss you,´ Angela said before closing the call. And just as I had said on the phone, I went downstairs and ate a banana. I noticed I was a little bit hungry as I hadn't eaten that day, so it was a welcome little snack.

After the banana, I settled on the couch and started watching a movie. After an hour, I felt another wave of sickness so I ran to the toilet just in time. I was tired again so I went to bed.

Charlie coming home was what woke me up the second time around. I went downstairs to watch a little bit of tv before I went to bed again. This time, I slept peacefully.

Waking up in the morning felt better than the day before. I got out of bed without throwing up and I even showered a bit. Still, in my pyjamas, I went downstairs and turned on the tv to watch the end of the movie I started yesterday. I brewed a cup of tea and forced myself to eat a dry cracker.

Around lunchtime, I saw someone standing in front of the door. I quickly noticed it was Jacob, but I had no idea why he was here. Didn´t he have to be at school just as everyone else? I got up and opened the door for him. That seemed to catch him off guard.

´Hey Bells, I was just checking if you were awake. I didn't want to accidentally wake you up,´ Jacob said while smiling down at me.

´Yeah Jake, I just saw you. You could have been a burglar, checking out my house, you know.´

´You aren't exactly in the right shape to fight me off right now, as much as you want to.´ Jacob lifted an eyebrow at me. I smiled since I knew he was right.

´Well,´ Jacob continued. ´I have to say. There are easier ways to get out of school.´

´Speaking of, shouldn´t you be in one right now?´ I asked him.

Jacob grinned. ´Classes ended early so I thought I might check out how you´ve been. Clearly, all my worries were for nothing. The way Charlie spoke about you, I really thought you had already died.´

I rolled my eyes at him but I had the nagging feeling he might have been right. Dad was already very worried each time I saw him, offering me painkillers and asking me if we should go visit doctor Cullen. I could only imagine how he spoke about me being sick to his friends. ´Just for your information, I´ve been throwing up a lot. So if I feel the need to do so right now, you´ll be an easy target. But I'm still sick, I just slept a lot so I´m temporarily a little bit better.´

´Good. I even brought you a present to help with your sickness.´

´Really?´ That certainly was unexpected.

´Yes. Here, some fresh herbs from our garden so you can make fresh tea. It's supposed to help against the stomach flu. So use your superpowers, Bells, and get well soon.´ Jacob gave me a little pot made out of glass, with some unfamiliar herbs in them.

´Speaking of superpowers, I feel as if I´m the only one who doesn't have supernatural powers in this town,´ I gave Jacob a half-smile.

´You made the vamps and the wolves work together. That´s a great power to have. A true miracle, actually.´ He winked at me.

´Do you really mean that, Jake?´

´Of course, Bells. I wouldn't be telling you if it weren't true. You know me long enough for that. It turned out that having a shared enemy was all that it took for both of our species to work together. And I guess we both want you to be safe.´ Jacob looked at me and I knew he was talking about Edward.

´Thank you, that really means a lot to me. If I could hug you, I would, but I don't want to contaminate you.´ So I instead smiled at him.

´And I don't want to keep you up too long. Take care of yourself. And drink the tea, it really helps.´ He waved at me and left. I watched him as I saw his car drive away before I went back inside. I brewed myself a cup of his tea. It was quite bitter for my taste but I hoped it did the trick.

During the day, I noticed I indeed had to throw up less than yesterday so I was very pleased with that. Charlie came home early and I wasn't as tired as I was before, so that was also good. I told him about this magic tea I received from Jacob and he only had to laugh at that. Apparently, Billy was notorious for his little tea gifts and since he strongly believed in the healing powers because it has grown in his own garden, everyone who received it started to believe in it as well. But, it was just normal tares. Nothing special about that.

The truth revealed itself and I went to bed. On the third day of my sickness, I noted my fever was still as present as ever, but that my stomach flu hopefully went away. So I sat down on the couch, made myself comfortable and I watched a series on television.

Around three in the afternoon, the doorbell rang. I got up to see who was there. I smiled a little bit as I had never received so many guests before, so being sick really had its perks. I opened the door and was surprised to see Jasper standing there.

´Hey Jasper, what brings you here? I've been sleeping very well these last few days so your services are not exactly needed,´ I said to him. Wait, that might have sounded a little bit too harsh but I was simply stunned to see Jasper here, alone, in front of my house.

He sheepishly smiled at me. ´Hello Bella, how are you?´

´I still have a little fever. And please don´t think of me rude, I didn't mean to sound so sharp.´ I apologized to him.

´Oh no, Bella. I completely understand why you are surprised to see me. I feel your emotions, you know?´ Jasper winked at me. ´And, that's actually the reason why I'm here. I haven't had the chance to apologize to you personally for putting you to sleep without your permission. I should have asked you before I used my powers on you and let you decide for yourself if you wanted to feel calmer that night or not.´

I signed. ´Jasper, I completely understand why you did it. I felt really guilty and scared that night. My head was probably a mess. So you're forgiven. We were under a lot of stress. Is that why you came here? To apologize to me?´

Jasper nodded. ´Well, yes. It was my fault so I wanted to apologize to you personally.´ He started laughing. ´And it helps that the house is rather small now that Edward is there constantly. The brotherly bickering truly never ends.´

Hearing Edward´s name made my heart flutter. My mouth curved into a smile and I needed to hear how he's been.

´What do you mean?´ I asked Jasper. He raised an eyebrow at me because he knew I already knew the answer to that question. And he heard and felt my heart react to the sound of Edward´s name, so my own emotions weren't exactly closed off either.

´Well, he misses you obviously. So he is rather grumpy, but don´t tell him I told you that.´ Jasper explained to me.

I giggled. ´Is it really that bad?´

Jasper nodded. ´Today, we couldn't take it anymore so Alice took Rosalie out for some shopping and the rest went hunting. Edward stayed in his room, while sadly playing the piano.´ Jasper laughed.

´I don´t believe it!´

´I´m just mocking him and the shopping trip was already planned. But yes, he really misses you.´

´I´m also missing him. But if he´s misbehaving I might have him waiting a day longer.´ I wickedly smiled.

´Oh Bella, please. We´re begging you. We can´t handle him.´ Jasper sarcastically put his hands together as if he was really begging me and I started laughing a bit louder. I felt as if this little mockery at Edwards expense really brought Jasper and me a little bit closer together.

´Alright, Alright. Bring him in tomorrow.´ I winked.

´We are forever in your debt.´

Jasper and I talked for a few minutes until he noticed I was getting tired so he left. I took a lukewarm shower to ease away my fever and went to bed, as I was eager for the next day to arrive.

The next day, I woke up and wondered when Edward would show up. Charlie already left for work and I was awake and my fever was under control. I thought I could better make myself comfortable on the couch and watch a movie, than to wait here on my bed so I did just that. I brewed some tea from Jacob and felt a knot appearing in my stomach.

I hadn't seen Edward in three days so I was excited to see him again. Luckily, I did not have to wait for long as the doorbell quickly rang. I jumped up from the couch and almost ran to the door. I opened it and there he was.

My Edward. With a worried look on his face which he tried to mask with a crooked grin. Holding a pan in his hands.

´I've made homemade chicken noodle soup. Isn´t that what you´re supposed to eat when you're sick?´ I still needed a little second to process Edward standing in front of me, holding something to eat. As if my stomach heard those words, it started making noises.

I smiled at him. ´That sounds lovely. Please come in, I´ve missed you. And apparently, I´m also hungry.´

He instantly looked a lot less tense. ´I´ve also missed you, more than you know. And how are you feeling, Bella? How is your stomach?´

´I still have a little fever but I feel much better now. The stomach flu is gone, luckily, thanks to some tea Jake had given me.´

Edward and I both entered the kitchen and he warmed the soup for me. I took a sip and as expected, it was delicious. I quickly ate the whole plate and Edward kept smiling at me, obviously pleased with how satisfied I was with it.

´I´m happy to hear that you´re feeling slightly better.´

´So, what have you been up to?´ I asked him, since I noticed there was something he wasn't telling me.

´Bella, I´ve seen your dream.´ Edward blurted out.