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Chapter 23: The Phone Call

December 22, Wednesday

Forks, Washington

Emmett

I don't want to be here right now.

A text from Rose comes through my phone, a selfie she's taken of herself at her company holiday party, looking anything but festive. Beautiful as always, with her blonde curls trailing down her shoulders and stopping just above her shoulder blades, except this time she doesn't plaster a smile on her face like she usually does with her work colleagues. She's always been the perfect employee, and this last year she has shown tremendous progress in showing the company what she's worth. They don't know, nor do they give a single fuck, that she's sacrificed herself and her marriage to get where she is, all in an attempt to keep herself and her mind occupied and off the loss of our baby.

I sigh as I recline in the chair next to Dad, his light snores from his afternoon nap the only sound in the house at the moment. Ma has been in and out of her home office all day, every so often reappearing to check on the dinner simmering on the stove. It's quiet, for now, but it's only a matter of time before the peace is disturbed. Alice and Jasper are officially off work for the holiday as of this afternoon, and with Edward and Bella arriving together from Seattle last night, our parents wanted to officially welcome us all into town with a hot meal, as Ma always insists on.

Rose's absence is screaming at me, possibly at everyone else, also, but sitting here without her makes my heart rip even more than what it had been back home. I would take the icy stares or the dead silence over the thousands of miles between us right now. And even though we've been talking here and there, texting throughout the day, it's not the same as having her here next to me.

We've spoken more in the days I've been gone than we have in months, and I try not to focus on thoughts like that, knowing it will just bring me down.

Is it wrong to tell you I'm glad I'm not at that stuffy party with you? I've always hated those people.

She answers me back quickly with a laughing emoji. I think I hate them, too. And no one is dancing.

I roll my eyes at the obvious reason why. It's because I'm not there.

Always the life of the party, Em.

I sigh at her response, my hands running down my face in defeated exasperation. What am I supposed to do? Keep talking to her like nothing is wrong? Or run the risk of scaring her away by telling her how I really feel?

I've walked that line over the past few days as we've talked back and forth, and she hasn't run yet.

Maybe she's ready to run to me instead of away from me.

Fuck it, I think to myself and begin my reply. What else do I have to lose that I haven't lost already?

I wish you were here.

"Hello to the house!" Jasper's voice breaks through my internal suffering, and I stuff my phone in my pocket, not ready for her response just yet. Instead, I walk into the kitchen only to have the wind knocked out of me by a football thrown by none other than my brother. Even though I'm caught off guard, I still manage to catch it easily.

"You up for a game?" Jasper asks, already rummaging through the fridge as Alice rolls her eyes and places a few grocery bags onto the counter.

"Yeah, man." I agree. "It's been a while since I kicked your ass."

. . .

We wait until Edward gets back from picking up Bella from her dad's place, and Dad wakes up from his nap to make the teams even. While it's late in the evening for Rose in New York, daylight is still on our side here in Forks, and we use it to our advantage. Still no snow in the forecast, but it's still cold enough for us to don our hats and gloves to protect us from the chill, even though Jasper worries about things like maximum ball handling with a pair of gloves on.

How we were picked to be on the same team, I'll never know.

It's straight bullshit if you ask me.

"Why are you on the ground again?" I hiss at my brother as I watch Edward expertly catch a ball in his designated end zone. Bella, our other teammate, runs after him to give Edward the boos he deserves. I look at Jasper below my feet again. "Every time I look at you, you're on the ground more than the grass!"

"You missed your block," Jasper says through gritted teeth, hobbling his way back to his feet. He turns to look at me like he isn't the one whose fault it is we're down by two touchdowns.

"Look what you've turned Bella into," I say, ignoring his false accusations. He turns to look across the yard as Bella jumps on Edward's back, effectively destroying Edward's touchdown dance.

"Pretty sure that," Jasper huffs as we watch the entertainment in the end zone, "has nothing to do with us."

We watch in silence as the two of them carry on, their laughter echoing throughout the yard as the minutes trickle down.

"Hey, we're ready to play some fucking football whenever you're ready!"

"Eh, let them have their fun," Dad says, clapping our backs as he moves to stand between the two of us.

"Yeah, says the guy on the winning team," I say, jokingly shoving his arms off us. "There's still time to beat you, you know."

Carlisle Cullen laughs and easily catches the ball Edward throws back to him. He points to the two of us as he walks back over to his team of Edward and Alice. "Don't forget who taught you both everything you know."

"Well, someone clearly forgot everything today," I say pointedly at Jasper as we form another huddle with Bella.

Ignoring me, Jasper goes straight for Bella. "Bella, go long, and right before Emmett throws it to me, go stand in front of Edward and flash him. It'll work. Trust me."

"I heard that!" Alice shouts from her side of the yard as she waits for us to make a move.

"So did I!" Edward adds. He points to a spot on the grass a few steps away from where he stands now. "Bella, I'll be standing right over there when you're ready for your next play."

By the time Jasper and I finish arguing and agree on a play, Ma calls out from the house that dinner is ready, and we all agree that a hot meal right about now wins the game for all of us. We all head inside, Dad heading in to help in the kitchen, Alice consoling Jasper on our loss, Edward and Bella together lost in a world of their own.

I follow behind in silence, my hands thrust deep into my pockets, wondering what I need to do to make it right.

Picking up the phone may be a good start. With a furrowed brow, I reach into my pocket and pull out my vibrating phone, accepting the call when I see my wife's name and picture appear across the screen

"Hey."

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