Previously: She knew that Brady had already experienced things as a wolf that no kid his age should have to deal with and that's precisely the reason why she wanted to safeguard whatever innocence he had left.


Chapter 10: Wildflowers

"Hey, how are you doing?" Emily asked as she walked into the kitchen and leaned against the counter.

Bella was studiously dipping her tea bag in and out of her mug at the table, avoiding Emily's gaze. "Oh fine, thanks. How's your work going?"

"I'm done, so I have all day to focus on you and why you're upset."

Bella's hand froze and her eyes flicked up to Emily. She had her hand on her hip and was giving Bella a pointed look. Bella sighed.

"What did you hear?"

Emily shook her head. "I didn't hear anything—I had my headphones in—but I've been where you are enough times to know what it looks like when your imprint said something that hurt you."

Bella winced. "It's not his fault. I'm just taking things too personally. He didn't really mean it."

Emily pulled out a chair and sat down across from Bella. "I know he didn't mean it," she said softly. "Wolf shifters tempers are no joke, but the imprint bond won't let him leave you hurting for long. When Brady wakes up, he'll be just as motivated to reconcile as you and it'll all be over. Just trust me."

Emily's dark eyes were kind and soft, imploring Bella to believe her. Bella desperately hoped she was right. The ache in her heart was painfully close to her zombie days and she never wanted to slip into that abyss again.

Apparently satisfied, Emily said cheerfully, "That's one problem solved. What about Edward? Have you heard from him since this morning?"

Bella opened her mouth to answer and then hesitated. "You promise none of this will get back to the pack?"

Emily mimed zipping her lips. "Mum's the word."

Bella nodded and looked down at her phone, thinking of the texts Edward had sent.

"He keeps asking me to come home and at this point I've stopped responding. He already knows what I'm going to say." Bella put her head in her hands, feeling like a horrible person for ignoring Edward. He didn't deserve that.

"We can't keep going on like this," Bella mumbled, almost to herself.

Emily must have heard because she asked carefully, "What do you mean?"

Bella pulled her head off of the table to look at Emily. "Edward still hasn't accepted the imprint—not really. He argues whenever I come to La Push. He lied to Brady about me wanting to see him. God! He nearly broke the treaty! What on Earth was he thinking?"

Bella took a deep breath and her anger quickly melted into fear. Quietly she said, "I'm worried he's never going to be ok with the imprint. I don't know what else to do to make him accept this."

Bella was so lost in her own thoughts and worries that she didn't realize Emily hadn't said anything for several minutes. "Emily?"

She looked up questioningly.

"What do you think I should do?" Bella asked, hopeful that her friend had some answers.

Emily fingered her long braid and smiled wryly. "I don't think you're going to like what I have to say."

Bella's face fell but she steeled herself. "Tell me anyway."

"In a relationship, you can't make your partner accept something. They have to do it on their own. Unfortunately sometimes people have irreconcilable differences and there's nothing you can do but..."

"Break up?" Bella supplied angrily.

Emily shrugged.

"You're right." Bella swallowed an uncomfortable lump. "I didn't want to hear that and I'm not breaking up with Edward. He's the love of my life."

Emily held her hands up. "That's fine. I'm not saying you should."

"Then what are you saying?" Bella bit out in frustration. She should've known Emily would be anti-Edward. She's a wolf girl after all.

"I guess what I'm saying is that you should decide how important it is that Edward accept the imprint. Can you live the rest of your life with him being hostile to the wolves? Maybe you can, but if you can't, then you should tell him that. He deserves to know so he can try to make it better. At least, that's what I would do."

Emily got up and told Bella she'd be in the living room if she needed her.

Bella was still skeptical of Emily's advice considering she suggested breaking up—which Bella would never do—but she couldn't deny that Emily made a good point about telling Edward how she felt. She needed to be open with him about how much it hurt her that he didn't accept the imprint. Maybe once he realized the pressure he was putting her under, he'd drop his hostility.

Feeling emboldened, Bella texted Edward. "I plan on staying in La Push for a couple more days until Brady's on his feet again. I hate being away from you, but it's important to me that I help him. I'm his imprint and I need to be here for him. Please respect that."

Bella sent the message, reread it, and then decided to add, "I'll call you tomorrow. I love you."

Edward never replied.

Later that afternoon when Brady woke up, Bella let him know that Collin stopped by while he was sleeping. She'd planned on bringing up their argument, but she was too intrigued by Collin's gift to wait. "He brought you this. You never told me you played."

Brady's eyes widened as they landed on the guitar case. He didn't seem as excited as Bella expected. In fact, he looked a little green around the gills.

Bella popped open the case and held out the instrument like a guitar-shaped olive branch. She desperately wanted them to be friends again. "It's pretty. Acoustic, right?"

"Yeah," Brady wheezed. He made no move to grab the guitar from her and looked at it like was a snake.

Bella frowned. "Was Collin joking or something? Do you not play?"

Brady finally pulled his gaze from the guitar and noticed Bella's confusion. He gulped and looked away. "I do," he mumbled, "but I don't like to play in front of other people."

"Oh!" Bella was disappointed but she of all people understood not wanting an audience. "No problem. I'll go in the other room and you can play undisturbed."

Bella made a move to get up, but Brady stopped her.

"No wait. I want to play for you—just—don't laugh, ok?" Brady's voice was so small and vulnerable. It tugged on Bella's heartstrings.

"Of course I won't laugh," she promised. He looked so nervous; Bella couldn't help but say, "You really don't have to play for me if you don't want to."

"I want to," he assured her.

Bella held out the guitar to him again and he took it, looking right at home with it. He asked Bella to get a couple things from the case and did some adjusting to the strings. For Bella, who'd never played an instrument before, it was fascinating to watch him work.

When Brady was done adjusting, she smiled encouragingly at him. He looked so nervous that Bella was prepared for him to sound awful. She knew he wouldn't be anywhere near Edward's level but she didn't care. She was touched that he would share this with her at all.

Brady checked his fingering, took a deep breath, and started strumming the intro to a song that sounded vaguely familiar. Maybe something Charlie listened to. Then he closed his eyes and started singing.

"You belong among the wildflowers

You belong in a boat out at sea

Sail away, kill off the hours

You belong somewhere you feel free"

Bella was slack-jawed. Brady had an amazing voice. It wavered a little at first from his nerves but he had a unique style that captured her attention. The song itself was quiet, sweet folk music.

"Run away find you a lover

Go away somewhere all bright and new

I have seen no other

Who compares with you"

Brady became more confident as the song progressed and his voice grew stronger. When the song was almost over, he even dared to take a peek at Bella. Her bright smile encouraged him to sing the last verse directly to her.

"You belong among the wildflowers

You belong somewhere close to me

Far away from your trouble and worry

You belong somewhere you feel free

You belong somewhere you feel free"

Brady looked back down at his hands as he strummed the beautiful outro. Bella was struck by his talent and the sentiment of the song. She almost wanted to cry, it was so moving.

"That was amazing!" Bella gushed when Brady finished and his cheeks darkened at the praise. "What song is that?"

"Wildflowers by Tom Petty. It's one of my mom's favorites."

He learned it for his mom? How sweet. "It's beautiful and you played it so well."

"Thanks." Brady fidgeted and stoked his guitar. "I…well… We were talking the other day about you wanting more agency in your life and it reminded me of that song."

"That's so thoughtful." Bella couldn't stop smiling. "Thanks for playing for me. I loved it!"

Brady was clearly uncomfortable with the praise, so Bella offered to grab him some food to give him a reprieve. She came back with a plate and the guitar was already put away. No more music today, she supposed.

When Brady was nearly done with his food, he put his fork down. "I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier. My ribs were hurting and I just snapped. I'm so sorry."

"It's ok," Bella told him honestly. "I know this recovery has been tough. How are you feeling now?"

"Better—a lot better. So you're not mad at me?"

To think, Bella was worried about him being mad at her. "No of course not. I get it, but I think we should talk about what you said."

Brady froze. "I take it back. I didn't mean any of it. Please stay!"

Bella offered her hand and calmly reassured him. "I'm not going anywhere. I promised, remember?"

Brady took her hand, threading their fingers together, and relaxed.

"Were you upset that I called you a kid?" Bella asked.

"I don't want to fight," Brady mumbled, squeezing her hand.

"We don't have to fight. We can just talk." When Brady didn't say anything, Bella continued. "I want to understand where you're coming from, Brady. Please."

Brady sighed loudly and frowned. "I hate that they call me the pack baby. It sucks. I'm out there running patrols just like them but they don't think I'm good enough because I'm smaller." Looking up at Bella, he said, "I don't want you to think of me like that."

Bella was so glad that he confided in her but she knew she needed to tread carefully. The teenage ego was very fragile. "I definitely don't think you're a baby or any less than the other wolves. Honestly, I think you're the most impressive because you're so young. You have so much on your shoulders and you've handled it so well. It's amazing."

"Yeah?" Brady smiled tentatively.

"Yeah," Bella confirmed. "Have I told you that I used to live in California?"

"No…" Brady looked confused at the abrupt subject change.

Bella smiled ruefully. "That's where we ended up after my mom left Forks. She was just starting out as a teacher and we lived in this terrible apartment-nothing like yours. The place was tiny, neighbors were loud, and something was always broken. It was awful, but the worst part was the landlord. He'd bang on the door and yell at Mom when the rent was late. It scared me so bad I'd hide in my room and cover my ears with a pillow so I couldn't hear them."

Bella pulled out of her memories and noticed that Brady looked stricken. She gave him a reassuring smile and shrugged casually. "After that, I was always worried about money. I stopped asking for candy and toys. I'd bug Mom about paying the bills until I finally took over and paid them myself. I got really good at imitating her signature, let me tell you.

"I love my mom—don't get me wrong—but some of the stuff I took on as a kid was messed up. A thirteen year old shouldn't have to worry about paying bills. They should be worried about getting good grades and hanging out with their friends."

Bella gave Brady a pointed look and he rolled his eyes. "Wow I should've seen that coming."

"I got you, didn't I?" Bella held back a smirk. "Just think about it, please. I know the guys tease you about your age but when I treat you like a "kid" it's for a totally different reason. I want you to be able to have as normal of a life as you can-school, friends, sports, video games, whatever. I care about you and I don't want you to miss out on things because you have too many responsibilities. Growing up is not all it's cracked up to be."

Brady sighed. "I'll think about it, but I still don't want to be called a kid."

"Ok." Bella held back the laugh the bubbled up at his petulant tone. "Can I call you a teenager?"

He thought about it for a moment. "I guess that's alright since we're both teenagers."

Bella smiled.

When dinner rolled around, Brady was able to sit at the table and Seth and Collin came to join them. The boys stayed to watch a couple episodes of their favorite comedy. It warmed Bella's heart to see them hanging out and having a good time. It was everything she wanted for Brady.

Meanwhile, a nurse at the Fork hospital was having a surprising conversation with a young man who seemed to know more about her son's whereabouts than she did.