Hello there! Just a little note, since a few of you, have asked me about the main pairing in this story. As of now, I have no plan of pairing Bella with anyone (she's a child after all lol) but if I ever changed my mind once she is old enough to consider a romantic interest it would NOT be Edward.
The reason for that is that 1) he's watching her grow up and that would be odd for several reasons and 2) she's seeing him in the same light that she sees Jasper or Emmett, as an older brother or friend. Therefore it would be super strange to choose them as a couple.
Sorry for those of you who ship Bella/Edward but it is what it is haha
"Hold on tight, Bells!" Rosalie watched from the windows of her bedroom as Emmett ran about the backyard with Bella as the little girl sat on his shoulders, her fingers clutching onto his t-shirt as he held her legs–her soft giggles drowned out by his booming laugh. Edward shook his head at his brother as he joined them, the warning mirroring her very concern for the fragile human should she fall off. Emmett swung back around to face Edward with a giggling Bella, slightly dazed as she looked at the bronze-haired boy. "You're just jealous because she likes me more than you!"
"I can definitely tell you she doesn't." Edward scoffed, tucking his hands in his pockets.
The brotherly affection Jasper, Emmett, and even Edward felt for the girl was palpable. So much so that not even Rosalie could ignore it. Heck, she couldn't ignore that she felt her attachment for the girl growing every day.
Esme had effectively taken over the role of a mother for the girl, often putting her to bed, cooking for her, and taking Bella to school. A school that none of the Cullens were too thrilled with as of late. After the little spat Bella had with Jessica Stanely, Carlisle took it upon himself to talk with their teacher to ensure she'd keep an eye on them, especially since Bella was still very fragile after losing both her parents.
Alice kept a close eye on the future and foresaw that they would all be set to move back to their home in Alaska for some time without arousing suspicion from the nosy folk in Forks. It would come to be for the best since the Cullens did plan on returning to the small town in Washington when Bella was old enough.
Rosalie turned away from the window as Edward swept Bella out of Emmett's arms and swung her around with amusement laced in his golden gaze.
Maybe moving would be a good thing for all of us. If it can keep her safe from the nomad who killed Renee and Charlie Swan even more reason to get as far away from here as possible.
Despite the weeks coming and going within the blink of an eye, Bella's anxiety never got any better every morning when she had to go to school. She was constantly nervous or in a bad mood whenever Esme or Casrliel coaxed her out of her peaceful sleep. Eating was more of a chore than a choice since she barely felt hungry at all.
She knew was would happen at school. She'd run into Jessica or the other mean girl Lauren who both always took time out of their day to make fun of her and say hurtful things. Normally she can ignore them as Jasper had advised her to on a particularly difficult day when she couldn't stop crying the entire ride to school. The girl had no idea just how much it pained Carlisle and Esme as well as Jasper to see her go off to school that way.
They're just saying things to get you mad. If they see you get upset, they'll keep making fun of you. Jasper had said as he wiped away her tears before snapping her seatbelt closed, making sure the car seat was fastened tightly to the passenger seat underneath it. What will you do if they continue calling you names, Bella?
She'd sniffled and clenched his large hand in both of her small ones, Walk away and get a teacher.
The love she felt sprout in her chest when he smiled at her reassured her in more ways than she'd realized that day. And when Lauren and Jessica followed her around the playground calling her an orphan or weirdo, she did as her adoptive brother told her by spinning around before marching straight to Mrs. Arnaz for help.
When she told Jasper how she'd handled her bullies, the kind young man smiled warmly at her before placing her on his lap to give her a great big hug, You're such a strong, smart girl, Bella. Good job...
Today was harder, she knew as she sat on the swingset of the playground while the rest of the children played Tag around the courtyard. Their happy shrieks of laughter filled the school grounds as they ran from Mike Newton while he pretended to be the cookie monster, holding two chocolate chip cookies atop his head as he tried his hand at a roar. Bella hadn't been asked to play and she found she didn't want to play with anyone at all when Jessica decided to pick who would play and who wouldn't.
Apart from Bella, the other little girl named Angela had been excluded as well. They took to the swings instead, away from all the noise and enjoy in each other's company.
Bella was barely biting into the red apple Edward had given her this morning when Angela asked what her favorite tv show. Before she could answer Tom and Jerry was Emmett's favorite cartoon so it was hers as well, Tyler Crowley ran up to them along with two other little boys. The mischief on their faces made both girls stop talking.
"Is it true that if people talk to you too long, they'll die?" Tyler asked loud enough that the rest of the little boys and girls in her class all gathered around.
Bella's smile went slack as her hand dropped the apple, rolling onto the grass in a dull thud.
"N-no..." She couldn't quite find the words to deny it.
"My mommy says you're bad luck. People who see death are bad luck." Another little girl says innocently but squints her eyes at Bella with what might have been a glare.
"That's freaky...Bella." Another boy giggled before Tyler nodded excitedly.
"Oh! We should call you that! Freaky Bella!"
As if agreeing with them, another voice added to the chants.
What a nuisance you must have been...The voice of the red-eyed man echoed in the back of her mind for the first time in a long time. His nails bit into her shoulder and his cold touch made her inch of her body lock up.
Other kids giggle around her, making Bella feel like she was back in that hospital room with the gossiping nurses and doctors. Only Carlisle and Esme weren't here to rescue her. The kids grow louder as they start to dance around her as if they were playing a new game, and Bella was it.
"Freaky Bella," they all chimed, "Freaky Bella!"
Her heart started to hurt in the weird way it did whenever she thought about her parents.
"Stop...I'm not-" Bella stood up from the swing, raising her hand to wave them away–
"Run away from Freaky Bella!" Jessica shoved Bella away with a shriek as if a monster were standing in front of her and not a little girl the same size as her. Losing her footing like the clumsy child she was quickly realizing she was starting to be, Bella falls face-first into the gravel, her forehead slamming into the thickest one.
Mrs. Arnaz rushed over and shooed all the kids as soon as the bell rang, "Hey! Shame on all of you! Come on, back to class!"
Angela kneeled beside Bella, patting her back as she asked, "Bella...you okay?" While all the classmates screamed, seeing how angry their teacher was with them now, they left Bella and Angela alone. Mrs. Arnaz bent down to help Bella up, patting the dirt and rocks away from her hands and knees before grimacing as the woman noticed the cut on her forehead, blood dripping down the small cut and over the bridge of her nose. That wasn't the most startling thing however, what surprised the teacher wasn't the blood but the vacant look in Bella's eyes.
No tears were flooding her brown eyes. No anger or tantrum was bubbling out of her as she stared at the ground.
It almost looked as if Bella didn't feel the cut on her forehead at all.
"Oh, dear. I'm so sorry, Bella. Let's get you to the nurse okay? We'll have a talk with the whole class about this, I promise! They're just being silly kids."
Bella nodded, swallowing the tears that had gathered before Bella bent down to pick up the apple on the grass and stared at it for a moment, catching her reflection on the shiny, bruised apple.
When the teacher attempted to pick her up in an attempt to help her, Bella shrugged the woman away and turned to walk to the school building just as the bell rang. She walked as fast as she could with Angela running to her side, a sad look on her only friend's face as she glanced at her occasionally.
After the nurse cleaned the wound on her forehead and applied a bandaid to it, both the nurse and Mrs. Arnaz thought it best to call Bella's guardians when she didn't respond at all to anything they did or said to the girl. Frankly, it started to unsettle both of them.
While the nurse phoned Carlisle Cullen to inform him of Bella's accident, she remained completely oblivious to the little girl who would not stop staring at the red apple in her hands. Her eyes never left the red skin as it reminded her of the man's red eyes, of the blood that coated her hands when she tried to wake her dead father.
People die because of you.
Carlisle was furious as he parked his Mercedes into the parking lot of Bella's school. His hands gripped the steering wheel until he blinked, releasing his hold on the leather to see five perfect indents left behind. "Great." He sighed as he attempted to calm himself, not wanting to think about his conversation with the nurse moments ago when she'd called to say that Bella had a small fight with the kids. When he knew exactly what had happened because Alice saw every, agonizing second of the kids bullying Bella. He knew that if he didn't leave work to come to pick her up, one of his children would and that would not have ended well for anyone.
Taking a deep, unnecessary breath, Carlisle opened and closed his car door swiftly and strode across the lot. Finding the girl who was a daughter to him now was not difficult as the scent of her blood called to him down the hall of the small kindergarten. The king doctor barely spared anyone so much as a second glance when he spotted Bella sitting in a chair in the infirmary.
Carlisle's heart instantly ached at the sight of her. Her nose and forehead were already bruising up from the fall and by the smell of it, her injury hadn't been cleaned properly.
"Hello, Dr. Cullen!" The nurse chimed but he merely nodded as he kneeled beside Bella and tilted her chin up until her tired eyes found his searching ones.
"I'm sorry it took me so long to come to get you, love. Are you ready to go home?"
Bella nodded, biting her bottom lip to hide that it was trembling she leaned forward just enough for him to pick her up without question. Hugging her close to his chest, Carlisle cupped the back of her head to press her face close to the crook of his neck as the tears began to fall. Carlisle kissed the top of Bella's head as he excused them from the nurse's office and walked out of the school as quickly as he could. "I got you, Bella."
As soon as they were in the empty parking lot, Bella finally let out a sob into his chest. Her hands clutched his shirt as he comforted her as best he could with gentle caresses up her back. Gritting his teeth, he realized that she'd been holding back her tears this whole time. She'd waited for him to come, to make her feel safe enough for her to cry without being ridiculed or silenced.
Making their way back in the car, Carlise sat down in the front seat with her to hold her until Bella calmed down, not having the heart to strap her in the car seat in the back where he could not reach her the entire drive home. Bella's little chest shook as she hiccuped, rubbing her face with her hands until Carlisle pulled them away, not wanting her to aggravate the cuts on her face more.
"Sweetheart-"
"I'm...s-sorry! I'm fine! I can go back to school!"
"Why are you trying to convince me? Bella, do you still want to go to school here in Forks?" He found himself asking, hoping that her answer would be the truth this time and not a lie in an attempt to make him forget how much she's suffering. It appeared that she did this long before he took her in and Carlisle wanted to gradually make her outgrow that need to not be a burden on anyone.
Bella's tears streamed down her cheeks as she sniffled and shook her head.
His thumbs brushed away her tears as he smiled, "Okay then, we can do that. We were planning on moving to Alaska for some time, for my work. We already have a nice house there and it's by a big lake. Does that sound good to you?"
"A-Alaska...?"
"Yes. We have a home there and there's also a wonderful school I'm sure you'll like."
Bella rolled her lips together nervously, her fingers fiddling with the buttons on Carlisle's shirt, "You're not mad at me?"
His tight embrace was answer enough as he kissed her temple, "I get mad when someone hurts a member of my family and that includes you, sweet girl."
And with that, the following week the Cullen family would move to Alaska along with the newest member of their family to start anew. Leaving all the pain and trouble the small town of Forks had to offer them...for now.
Time to turn over a new leaf for Bella and the Cullens! One more chapter before we'll have another time skip and Bella will be a little bit older! (Not too much, I promise lol).
Thanks for reading x