A/N:
This chapter is dedicated to the wonderful grandmachix, a very lovely reader and member of our Twilight fandom, who sadly passed away last weekend. She was a big supporter of many writers, myself included. In fact, she was one of the first people to leave a review on my very first story that I wrote last year, as well as every story and chapter I wrote since then, and for that I will cherish her memory. She was such a very kind woman who will be missed by many. May she rest in peace.
As always, a big THANK YOU to each and everyone of you for being interested in this story. I can't say how much it means to me for you to be a part of this journey for this silly story.
Now let's see how Charlie is doing after walking in on Bella...
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Charlie's POV
"Should have put a lock on that door." I say under my breath as I walk away from Bella's room.
Feeling a sudden headache coming on, I rub my forehead and make my way to the bathroom. Quickly I open the medicine cabinet, grab the bottle of Tylenol and pop it open. Taking two pills out of the bottle and trying not to drop them in my trembling hand, my thoughts are on my daughter. I'm dazed and confused but I can only imagine how Bella is feeling right about now. Poor kid.
My head is pounding and I feel so bad, I should have knocked before I entered her room. It's easy to forget she's growing up, I still think of Bella as my little girl who would close her door to read in peace instead of...well. . . Yeah, I never thought I would walk in on something like that. I definitely won't ever enter her bedroom without knocking and getting her permission before putting my hand on the door knob again.
Feeling shaky and trying to think about what to say to Bella about this...um...incident. I replace the bottle of Tylenol back where it belongs and quietly shut the medicine cabinet. Taking one long look at myself in the mirror, I blink. I don't look too well. My face has lost all color and looks really pale. I look a little ill. Or maybe how someone might look when they have seen a ghost.
A cold chill runs up my spine, making me shiver at the same time I fill a cup with water, plopping the pills in my mouth and downing them with a mouth full of water. Trying to rid myself from the flash of the nightmare I saw seconds ago, I splash my face with cold water. The water against my face is cool and refreshing but it doesn't rid me from that horrible memory.
After a minute or two I turn off the faucet and dry my face. Walking out of the bathroom and over to my room, I unwillingly remember an unfortunate moment from my youth. Back to when I was a little younger than Bella is now, and my parents walked in on me with my pants off, humping my pillow, while looking at a Playboy magazine that was lying on my bed. Not really a proud moment of my life. Especially after my parents made a big deal about it instead of letting it go. It was a different time back then and they were older and from a different generation. To say they didn't take kindly to what I chose to do behind my closed door, was an understatement.
Changing out of my uniform and into a comfortable gray shirt and blue jeans, I remember how humiliated I felt back then. Pulling my shirt on I think about the long drawn out talk I had to go through when I was a kid and the mixed messages my dad gave me. At one point he had said it was fine to "indulge" once in a while then turn around minutes later and said it was very disgusting and unhealthy. I was even told I would go blind if I kept "playing with myself" or humping pillows. It was all very strange. Not to mention that they dragged it out longer than necessary. Things between my parents and I were awkward and didn't go back to normal for about a month. It was all very uncomfortable. I never want to repeat that.
Fully dressed, I put on my shoes and sit on my bed. As I tie my shoes my brain is trying to figure out what exactly happened when I got home from work, of course I know. Though, there's this small part of my brain that thinks it might be better to ignore it - not acknowledge it. To just act natural and go on with our usual daily task and not make things more awkward than they are.
Out in the hall I hear one door open and another one close. If I had to guess, I'd say Bella opened her bedroom door and went into the bathroom. I sigh. I definitely don't want to repeat history and make her listen to a long speech about...well...that. I cringe at the thought of the word I don't want to say. I really don't want to associate the word "masturbation" and my little girl in the same sentence. It's too strange.
I weirdly shrug that off as I walk out of my room and step into the hallway. Walking through the hall I notice that the door to Bella's room is open but the bathroom door is not, she's still in there.
"Bella," I knock on the bathroom door. "Almost ready to go?"
I feel a bit nervous, though I'm trying to keep my voice casual. The last thing I want is for her to feed off of my emotions and get anxiety.
"Yeah, I'll be ready in a minute." She replies. Her voice is unusually high.
"I'll be outside in the car." I announce as I begin walking toward the stairs.
"Alright." Bella replies.
Trying to fight this headache and hope that the Tylenol kicks in soon, I walk down the stairs, out the door and get in the cruiser. Turning on the engine, almost immediately I come to the conclusion to deny everything in an attempt to show her I'm not mad. I'll just pretend she was just stretching - doing yoga maybe...and nothing more. Yeah, that could work.
"Yup it was just yoga." I say to myself, putting my hands on the steering wheel. "They have the strangest yoga poses nowadays." I lightly shake my head.
That's right, I'm going with yoga. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. One might say I'm in denial and that's true, but in rare situations sometimes it's better than accepting the truth. This is one of those cases.
I don't have to wait long until Bella walks out of the house, locking the door behind her. Usually she's happy and energetic on days when we go shopping, it's something to look forward to. Especially after we get home, put all of the groceries away and order pizza or Chinese Takeout. However, today she's dragging her feet. Her face is blanched, she looks uneasy and is keeping her eyes on the ground. Poor kid.
Without a word she yanks the car door open, taking a step forward she trips and tumbles in. Automatically I ask if she's alright, she only nods, giving me a silent 'yes'. With a little huff she slams the door forcefully. Normally I would say something about it, reminding her to be gentle, but instead I don't. Looking out the window she puts on her seatbelt as I look over my shoulder. Backing out of the driveway I try to think of things to talk about so there won't be awkward silence throughout our ride.
"You okay?" I ask when she keeps her head turned towards the window.
She shrugs her shoulders, still not looking at me. Her hair is draped over the side of her face, shielding my view of her.
"You don't have anything to be ashamed about. I should have knocked." I say, hoping to put her at ease. "You were just doing yoga anyway."
"Yoga?" Her tone is very doubtful.
"Yes." I answer, driving down the road.
"What?" She says. I can tell by the sound of her tone that it's a rhetorical question.
Her voice sounded so skeptical. I can only guess that she's thinking I lost my mind. Before she can question that I think of the most normal thing a parent can say to their child.
"How was school?" I wonder, turning the corner.
"Good." Bella speaks softly.
"Anything interesting happened at school today?" I ask, hoping she'll talk more.
Suddenly she turns her head and looks at me. I glance at her, wondering why she has a shocked expression and is blushing all of a sudden. Since she says nothing at all and her behavior is making me curious about what could've happened at school, I ask again.
"Well," Bella gulps. "I think I embarrassed the boy I like without meaning to."
"Is that so?" I ask, looking at the upcoming stop sign that's fifty feet away.
"Yeah and I feel bad about it. I know what it feels like to be terribly embarrassed by something…" She lets her voice trail off.
With my foot on the gas, I can see her from the corner of my eye. How unsure and embarrassed Bella looks. I can only imagine that she's comparing her previous situation to his. She is always one to do that, put herself in other people's shoes. She definitely has a lot of compassion for the way others feel.
"What's his name?" I question, trying to sound casual and less like a cop that wants answers. But I can tell by the frown on her face that I'm failing miserably.
"Dad, are we really going to talk about boys?" Her voice is so disbelieving it makes me laugh.
"Yes." I answer too quickly.
Playing with a strand of her hair she's automatically quiet as she bites her lower lip and I wonder why. Does she assume I won't approve of who she likes? Wanting to keep the line of communication open with her as well as to make it like old times where neither of us are thinking about an awkward moment, I give it another try. I ask the same question, only differently this time.
"Alright." She mumbles. "His name is Edward Cullen. He's in my grade and the same age as me. He's really nice."
I nod my head in response.
With that name I now understand why she didn't want to say it right away. Growing up with Billy, Harry and Quill I've heard the legends of the Cold Ones and the tales about the Cullens, she's heard them too. Though they are just old folk tales, I don't believe the superstitions for a second and that's why Billy and I are not on speaking terms and haven't been since the new doctor and his family arrived. He believes the Cullens are some coven of dangerous, mythical creatures that are right out of the folk tales and I don't. They look like a normal family to me.
Besides, I met Dr. Cullen not long after he first moved here and he seems like a very pleasant man, I don't see that he's anyone to fear. When I briefly talked with him I only saw an upstanding citizen. Especially being in his early 30s and adopting all those children. I can't even imagine what it's like for him and his wife with raising five teenagers. I only have one and sometimes that feels like a lot, though I would never trade her for anything.
"So what happened? How did he get embarrassed?" I wonder, wanting more info.
Boys are not my favorite topic to talk about, by any means. But she's a teenage girl, this topic is almost unavoidable at this point in her young life. Besides, I would rather her talk to me about this sort of thing than for her to just sneak off with a boy and end up dating him behind my back.
"Well..." She hesitates. "It's not really my place to say. But let's just say he had boy troubles and leave it at that."
"Oh." Is all I say.
Stopping at the stop sign I glance at her, her face is as bright as a tomato. I have no idea why she added the last part but I have a good idea what she means about 'boy troubles'. Anyhow, I don't want to talk about that. I quickly decide that this conversation has reached the end. Looking both ways for oncoming traffic before I proceed, I rack my brain for a safer topic, one that has nothing to do with boys and possible erections, oh definitely not at. Stepping on the gas, I got it. I'll talk about work. Yeah. That's a very safe topic.
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Thanks for reading.
This was my first time writing from Charlie's POV. I hope it was okay.
I know in canon Charlie doesn't hover or pry into Bella's life. But the Charlie in this story has raised Bella since she was nine years old and is more involved, therefore is closer to his daughter than canon Charlie is. I hope by writing this chapter, I captured that close dynamic between father and daughter.
If you enjoyed this chapter please leave a pleasant review, I'd love to hear from you.