Esme's heart silently broke as she heard the young girl's distant sobs upstairs. She'd tried to mind her own business, tried to not bombard or overwhelm Bella with all the support she wished she could convey.

It do little to ease the girl's pain now. But hearing how Bella rejected Edward's attempt to help her and how she chose to cry in silence...made her heartache for the youngest in her family.

Sure, Bella wasn't officially adopted into their family yet—not until she and Edward would get married anyway—but it may as well be said now more than ever. If Bella still wanted to be a part of the Cullen family, Esme had no objections to the girl as her daughter.

"Emmett, no," Edward said as he walked into the living room where the rest of the family, except for Carlisle, were gathered. Esme straightened and kept her attention between Edward and Emmett, who appeared to have a wordless conversation as they practically glared at each other. "Wait for Carlisle to get home."

"And let that little shit get away with this even longer?" Emmett retorted, standing up and forgetting all about the video game he'd been playing with Jasper. Not that either had been playing at all since Bella arrived. "Don't you want to get rid of the mutt for good?"

"Of course I do," Edward said through gritted teeth before taking a seat on the loveseat just as they heard another muffled sob from Bella. Edward placed his head in his hands as he murmured, "You have no idea how badly I want to make Jacob pay for what he did to her. But that's not what's important right now. I care more about her wellbeing than I do about exacting revenge."

Esme kneeled before her son and wrapped her arms around him. Her eyes stinging with venom as she looked up at Emmett with a compassionate gaze, "We all want to do right by Bella. But Edward is right. Let's wait until Carlisle returns, alright? There's no point in leaping into action now. What's important is that Bella is here, with us, and we can protect her easily. That man will never go near her again."

"If you want to call him a man..." Jasper murmured as he looked up at the ceiling, a pained expression marring his stoic face as he must be receiving another strong dose of her emotions. Jasper was across the room and walking out onto the porch before Esme could say another word. The strain of emotions took a toll on Jasper, and Esme knew he needed to get away, if only for a few moments.

When she heard the distant sound of Carlisle's tires rolling against the gravel, Esme secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Knowing that somehow, he was the one person Bella truly needed right now.

Bella couldn't get up.

Didn't feel she had the strength nor the will to feel the pain that was sure to follow from the movement either. A single tear slowly rolled down her cheek as she blinked her eyes.

She could faintly hear the sound of rain falling outside, followed by the distant rumble of thunder in the sky. Falling asleep frightened her even though she was beyond tired. The fear of seeing Jacob's face in her dreams persisted just as much as the memory of her father walking away from her did. She didn't want to see either of them—couldn't bear it.

A soft knock stirred her just as she realized her head had started to fall forward—her eyes closing for a moment.

"Bella? It's me. Can I come in?" Carlisle's gentle voice asked behind the door.

Bella straightened and attempted to sit up, her hands reaching for the bed to help herself stand.

"Y-yes..." she practically whispered but knew full well that Carlisle had heard her because a few seconds later, her bedroom door opened.

Carlisle stepped into Bella's room and stopped when his shoe hit one of her pill bottles. He looked down at them with a frown but picked it up and set it down on the nightstand.

"...May I help you get back to your bed?" He spoke softly as he approached her, slowly kneeling in front of her while assessing the girl.

Bella wordlessly agreed with a nod and tried not to flinch when she felt his cold hands wrap around her waist and under her legs. Her good hand clenched his shirt as he lifted her and walked towards the bed.

"You feel a bit warm," Carlisle observed after he placed the back of his hand over her forehead, "I'll make sure to give you something before you go to bed."

Bella sniffled, pulling the covers over her chest as she settled in her bed. She felt sick to her stomach. The guilt and hopelessness she felt created a storm inside her body that Bella didn't know how to control.

"Bella?" Carlisle frowned, sitting on the edge of the bed, "Mind telling me what's on your mind, sweetheart?"

She shrugged. Murmuring, Bella admitted, "It's nothing that can be changed...so I don't see a point in talking about it. I want to go to sleep."

"Do you mind if I keep you company until you fall asleep then?"

Bella knew he could do as he pleased either way since this was Carlisle's home, and she was nothing more than a guest.

She nodded and laid on her side, facing the kind doctor who stood up and pulled a chair close to her bed.

The silence in the room was oddly comforting, but her heart wouldn't settle down. The unsettling feeling in her chest made it difficult to breathe.

"Carlisle?" She whispered.

"Yes, Bella?"

She bit her lip out of habit and hesitation, "If you want me to call my mom and tell her to come to get me...I understand."

Carlisle couldn't believe his ears. He leaned forward, "Why would you say that? Have I made you believe you're not welcome here, Bella?"

"No! None of you have made me feel unwelcome..." she played with the frayed thread of the comforter, "But if I'm only adding stress into your lives-"

"No, Bella," his cool hand patted her hand gently, choosing with great difficulty to ignore the way she flinched, "Sweetheart, I don't think you've realized how important you are to this family."

"Why?" She breathed out an exasperated breath that left Carlisle rather perturbed. She tilted her head up to try and look at the spot where she heard him, "why am I important? All I do is cause trouble, and now I'm—I can barely do anything for myself. I'm so..." a tear ran down the side of her face and onto the pillowcase. "I don't think I can do this, Carlisle."

"Bella-"

"I'm sorry! I know I'm supposed to be stronger...it shouldn't matter so much, but," Bella's voice cracked as she struggled to take on a shallow breath. Finally, a silent sob slipped past her lips as she admits, "How can I do this if I can't see? I'm useless now!"

Carlisle's lips parted and closed as she turned her head to look at him, her eyes shining with unshed tears that slowly rolled down her cheeks like delicate raindrops sliding down the glass of a window. He could practically feel his heart shattering into tiny marble pieces, witnessing the pain that poured out of her.

"Bella, no. No," Wrapping his arms around the crying girl, Carlisle pulls her up gently into a sitting position and holds Bella close to his chest, and keeps her in his loving, protective embrace. Carlisle rested his cheek atop her head as he rocked them back and forth, "No, sweetheart, you're not useless."

She gripped the back of his shirt as hard as she could with her one good hand and curled into herself to stop the sobs from continuing. She hated this. Feeling so weak and powerless.

If she'd thought being a human was a burden, her being this was now was even worse.

Useless...

"I want to see again! Please, Carlisle...I want to see..." Bella's sobs tore through Carlisle's heart, and unbeknownst to the girl in his arm, the rest of his family felt the same way.

Carlisle sat on the edge of Bella's bed and held her as tightly as he could without hurting her. Gently soothing her by rocking them back and forth to calm a crying baby that needed its mother or father to love them.

With a great deal of sadness, he whispered after placing a kiss on her head, "I promise to do everything that I can. I promise, Bella."

"Please..." Bella's pleading voice reached Edward in the living room where his siblings and mother had joined him. The pain his mate emitted was slowly piercing his skin, cracking his bones, and destroying his heart.

"Jazz," Edward practically begged his brother as he shut his eyes tight, gritting his teeth through the pain that increased in his chest.

Sorry...

Jasper said in his mind before focusing on restraining his gift from seeping out of him like waves crashing through shattered glass. The empath hadn't realized he'd been sharing Bella's emotions with the rest of the family, and Edward honestly couldn't fault his brother for it.

It's just too much.

Looking up, Edward forced a smile in Jasper's direction as the latter battled with the need to ease Bella's sadness and allow her to feel what she'd denied herself for some time now, "Thank you, Jazz."

Jasper merely nodded before standing up from his seat and disappeared down the hall. The sound of his footsteps fading upstairs and Bella's door opening and closing, told Edward what his brother was trying to do. Trying to ease Bella and Carlisle's fragile emotions when her breathing became strained once more.

Rosalie had been the first to leave the room—not wanting to be near a situation the reminded her so much of her past. Emmett excused himself shortly after, patting Edward in passing with lament. Alice and Esme had remained in the room; however, both women appeared to be in a complete trance, filled with their own haunting memories and regrets.

Edward didn't have it in him today to do anything other than wrap his arms around his mother and hold her close, hoping that he could be there for her in some small way. Esme had suffered a great deal before entering her immortal life—before becoming a part of his and Carlisle's lives. Now it would be impossible to imagine a world without her. Esme's constant love and patience was incredible...

"I didn't mean to crowd her...I don't know what to do for her." He admitted

Esme gently captured his face in her hands and said, "It's not your fault, Edward. You can't save her from everything."

Alice's whimsical voice was now gentle and low—as if the whole house could come down if the silence inside the Cullen's home was disrupted, "She feels bad for how she reacted. She's not pushing you away on purpose, Edward. Bella just needs to know that you won't abandon her like everyone else has."

Like her father has.

Edward lifted his gaze to meet his sister's and saw nothing but sincerity in her golden eyes. He nodded, grateful for his family and all they've done for him and his mate.

It wasn't long before the sound of Bella's heartbeat slowed and her breathing was less labored—her sobs stopped completely.

"She finally let me help her calm down," Jasper murmured when he appeared in the doorway once again, sounding rather exhausted as his voice was hoarse and deeper than usual. Alice was beside him and taking his hand, knowing exactly how to help her husband by taking him up to their bedroom and comforting him with her loving emotions and unconditional support.

Edward and Esme remained in the living room until Carlisle was heard walking down the stairs. When the doctor walked into the room, sporting a pained expression on his face that he could not hide—Edward caught a glimpse of how Bella looked through his father's eyes.

Defeated, embarrassed, broken...and alone.

"She's asking for you." Carlisle barely got the words out before Edward stood up and started making his way towards the stairs. The pained look on Edward's face matched his father's after involuntarily looking into Carlisle's mind.

She's not angry with you, Edward. She needs you, more than ever, son.

"Thank you, dad." He forced out when he heard his father's words and as he stood outside Bella's bedroom door, he hoped he could truly help Bella the way she needed.

Not realizing himself that Bella needed him more than ever.

Thanks for reading x