I don't own Twilight or its characters. Stephenie Meyer does.
Cheryl and Gabby, thank you for pre-reading, and April, thank you for editing. Any mistakes left are my own.
Ch. 22
Edward blinked a few times before he was able to answer me. "I…I can't."
I only responded with a nod and headed into the apartment. I was disappointed, but I also knew my idea was a long shot.
I don't know what made me suggest he should come with me. I knew he probably wouldn't, but I had to try. Now that my anger had melted, my eyes were open to really seeing Edward. He wasn't happy, and he deserved to be. In our private moment in the office, I knew it was me who'd make him happy. So, I took my chance to get him away from this path—it was starting to destroy him. I wasn't saying I was ready to be in a romantic relationship. But if we could get away from this place, there was a chance we could.
There was something not quite right with his father and uncle. And I was pretty sure it had to do with their crusades. The others had found their way out. But if Edward was left behind, he may end up like his formers. I knew I couldn't let that happen. I had to find a way to convince him of it.
I stopped short when I found something unexpected in front of me.
"Bella, wait," Edward called.
"Why is there a tent in the middle of your living room?" I asked.
"Why is there a what? Emmett," he muttered.
"You always blame him," I said with a sad chuckle.
"Well, if it wasn't him, the only possibility is Jasper. Rose and Alice don't know how to put up a tent. Tanya hasn't been to the apartment in a while and she's clueless too," he pointed out.
"There's B.B," I joked, looking down at the kitten, who was trying to climb Edward's leg.
He laughed as he scooped her up. "I think she'd need opposable thumbs." His face grew more serious. "Can we talk some more about this?"
"I'd like to take a shower and toss back some pain killers first, if you don't mind," I told him.
"I could use the same. I also need to feed this one before she decides to eat us." He scratched her head affectionately.
Days
I returned to the living room before Edward. The hot shower had relaxed me; however, instead of feeling revitalized, I felt exhausted. I snorted when I looked at the tent. Edward was probably right. It was most likely Emmett who did this. He hadn't been too shy about his desire for me and Edward to be back together.
I knelt down and crawled into the tent. Inside, a large air mattress and a two-person sleeping bag covered the entire floor space. I stretched out and looked up at the ceiling. I thought about how many times Edward and I spent in this tent, talking about nothing or more serious things.
"Bella?" I heard him calling me, his voice etched with concern.
"In here," I yelled back.
A few moments later, the fabric of the tent rustled, and Edward's head appeared. His hair was still damp and in disarray from the shower. He almost had to crawl on his belly to get fully inside.
"I think the tent shrunk," he commented.
I laughed. "Actually, I think you've gone through a growth spurt or two."
"Why are we in here?" he asked.
"I'm in here because I was reminiscing about our childhood. Back when things were less complicated," I said.
Edward rolled onto his side, facing me. "I can't leave my mom. Someone needs to stay with her when my dad and uncle leave."
"What did they do when you were too young?" I asked, not about to give up.
"One of them always stayed behind," he answered.
"Then they can do that again. Or at least, Edward, stop going yourself. Do what you want in life and still be there for your mom," I suggested.
"I'm confused. You asked me to come with you. I thought for a second…" He shook his head. "This isn't about us. This is about you thinking I'm too weak for this."
"You're not weak. I never said that. This is the second time you've accused me of thinking it. Have your dad and uncle called you weak? Because they're not only wrong, but they're not thinking clearly. Heck, you saw them earlier. They thought it was funny I broke Peter's nose. That's not normal. My caring that something will happen to you doesn't mean I think you're weak. Just concerned something bad will happen to you," I said in exasperation. "What does your mother think about all this?"
"She hates it. She's always scared one of us won't come back," he admitted. "You think I should stop for her."
"Partially. You should stop for you. I've already told you that you deserve to be happy," I insisted.
He smiled ruefully. "We already established that's not possible."
"It's me isn't it?" I asked softly.
"You know it is. Do I really have to say it out loud when you don't want the same thing?" He covered his eyes with his arm.
I bit my lip, knowing I was about to take a leap of faith and it scared the crap out of me that it would end badly.
"What if we did want the same thing?" I asked nervously.
He didn't answer me right away and pushed up into a sitting position but had to hunch over due to low ceiling. Without looking at me, he responded, "It was only this morning that you only wanted to be friends. I get what you are doing, okay.? I'm not mad, but…don't give me false hope either."
I sat up and touched his arm. "Ed…Teddy, look at me."
His eyes snapped to me in surprise.
"I'm not trying to give you false hope. I was…I am confused and scared about my feelings for you. I had buried them for so long, I didn't want to admit to myself that I still love you. I'm terrified I'll get hurt if I give into them again. But—" I took a deep breath. "I saw the possibility today. If you were to step away, then there might be a chance for us. Especially, if you wanted it too," I said honestly. "But maybe it's me who's selfish."
"Is it really selfish, if it's what we both want?" Edward asked. He cupped my cheek and was looking hopeful.
"I can't take you from your mom," I told him as I leaned into his touch.
"She would want me to choose you. Emmett's not the only one hoping we would get back together. Maybe we can compromise. I promise this is my last trip, but we stay close by so I can be there for my mom when needed," he suggested.
"I still want to finish school. I can't guarantee I'll be staying in Chicago," I told him.
He nodded. "I understand. We've done the distance thing in high school, and we made it work. That was until I became a huge idiot."
"I think it would be best to start off slow," I admitted.
"Slow is good. As long as I get to kiss you that is." He grinned, leaning in closer.
Instead of responding, I pressed my lips against his. He reacted enthusiastically, wrapping his arms around me. I was gently lowered on to my back with Edward on top of me. I broke the kiss and lightly pushed on his shoulders.
"This isn't slow." I smirked, ruffling his hair.
"Sorry. I tend to get carried away with you." He kissed my forehead, then rolled off me. "We probably shouldn't stay in the tent tonight."
"Probably not," I agreed.
I kissed his cheek before I crawled out of the tent. I glanced at the clock and yawned. I was more than ready for bed and good night's sleep. Edward hugged me from behind and I leaned my head against his shoulder.
"Before I forget to tell you, I've talked with Alice. She'll set up a call for you around nine tomorrow," Edward told me.
"That will be great. Phil should be at work then." I smiled.
Days
I sat up fast and tried to catch my breath. My dream had been so realistic that it took me a few seconds to realize it wasn't real. I was excited about it, I jumped out of bed and hurried across the hall to Edward's room.
He was lying sprawled out his back shirtless. His sheets twisted around his torso and he was snoring lightly. I was momentarily stunned before I approached the bed.
"Edward?" I called to him softly.
"Bella, are you okay?" Edward woke up and turned on his beside light.
"Yes. I'm fine," I told him, sitting on the edge of his mattress. "Do you think dreams can be prophetic?"
His eyebrows furrowed. "I suppose. Why?"
"I think I found a way to help my mother in my dream. Without waiting to go to Florida for all the girls," I told him.
He yawned and pushed himself up on his elbows. "Okay. Let's hear it."
"What if I was in a car accident?" I paused when his eyes flew wide awake.
"No—"
"Let me finish. Obviously, it would be a fake accident. But if I were in one, my parents would be called as my next of kin. So, if Carlisle called her to Boston or some other location we could set up, we'd get her away from Phil," I explained.
He hesitated. "It's not a bad idea. But what if Phil comes with her?"
I frowned. "Then you guys take care of him...or better yet. You can get the information we need from him. Lie to him and promise immunity or something for his help."
Edward stared at me wordlessly.
My mood deflated instantly. "You think it's a dumb idea, don't you?"
"On the contrary, I think it's a great idea. It may just work." He started to smile. "However, we would have to involve your dad. Although, I doubt he'd have a problem with it."
"Has my dad ever been involved with your missions?" I had been dying to know.
Edward tilted his head from side to side. "A few in his area. He refused to do anything that would compromise his job or you. But he has helped us rescue a few people and get them to safe places."
"I never knew," I said.
"It's probably why he's always been so adamant about you learning self-defense." He brushed a lock of my hair behind my ear. "Let me call the others and get things moving."
I glanced at the clock. "It's three in the morning. Maybe it can wait a few hours. I'm sorry I woke you."
"I'm not. You can run into my room dressed like this any time." He winked at me.
I looked down and blushed, realizing I was in a form-fitted tank top and undies. I scooted off the bed prepared to leave. "I should…is that bruise from Jasper?" I caught sight of a large mark on his torso.
"He was teaching me a lesson for not paying attention." He groaned when I touched it.
"Does that hurt?" I asked in concern. "Your good uncle should've taken a look at this."
"My good uncle," Edward said with a snort.
"Well, they are like night and day," I huffed and prodded.
"Hey…" He shifted away from me.
"Sorry. I'm trying to see if you broke anything," I said.
"Nothing's broken, I promise. I've broken a rib before, so I know what it feels like," he told me.
"That doesn't make me feel better." I frowned.
"Come here, then." He pulled me into his bed.
"Edward—"
"Just cuddling, I promise. I think we'll both sleep better." He nuzzled the top of my head.
"Okay, I'll stay." I laid my head on his shoulder.
I felt him drape the covers around me as I fell asleep.
Days
I woke in the morning with Edward's arms loosely wrapped around me. I slowly got out of bed. I stopped in my room to get dressed before I made my way to the kitchen. I scouted around for something to make for breakfast. Edward didn't have much, so I had to settle for a bowl of dry, stale cereal and a glass of water.
He walked into the kitchen a few minutes later and gave me a sheepish expression when he saw my breakfast. "Sorry, I don't have much food in the house. We could go out to breakfast, then food shopping."
"This is fine for now. I don't want to miss my chance to call my mom," I told him.
He glanced at the clock. "Wow. It's later than I thought. So, your leaving before I woke wasn't any indication that you regret last night?"
I shook my head. "No, I don't."
His smile grew. "Good." He leaned in to kiss me, but before he could, the lights flashed. "We have company."
"Rise and shine, kids," Emmett bellowed.
"Why are you here?" Edward asked, sounding irritated.
"Hey, be nice. I come bearing gifts. I thought I'd be the world's best husband and make my wife breakfast in bed, and apparently, it's the devil's food." He placed a large platter of eggs, bacon, and pancakes on the table.
"What did you do to it?" I asked. It smelled good.
"Nothing. Eggs are apparently on the shit list, and the others had to go by default. I knew Edward would have nothing since he usually free-loads off us." Emmett smirked.
"I do not," Edward grumbled, getting some plates and silverware.
"It smells delicious. Thank you, Emmett." I scooped some food on my plate.
"Bella Boo, my main kitty." Emmett smirked down at the cat.
My fork froze half-way to my mouth. Boo! That was the B I was missing. I completely forgot Edward called me that. I glanced at him and he looked completely mortified.
"What do you think of your namesake, Bella?" Emmett grinned at me.
"Actually, I would be her namesake since I was named first. And I fail to see why you think it's funny," I challenged.
"So, you knew." Emmett looked disappointed.
"Of course, I did." I shrugged, lying.
He looked between us. "So are you two—"
"Morning, all." Jasper walked into the room, yawning. "Why did I need to come as soon as I woke up?"
"You." I pointed my fork at him. "Did you have to hit him so hard?"
Jasper looked flustered. "It's not my fault he wasn't paying attention. Be grateful it was me and not my father."
"Bella, I'm fine," Edward tried to placate me. "It doesn't even hurt."
"I saw the bruise. You could've broken a rib." I narrowed my eyes at Jasper.
"You saw Ed naked?" Emmett snickered.
I shifted my glare to Emmett. He shrunk back in his seat and shoved his mouth full of egg. He looked away from me to the ceiling, avoiding my stare.
"I didn't mean to hit him that hard. But I can't apologize for trying to get him to stay focused. When we go after the Costas, he could get himself killed," Jasper defended himself.
I flinched. "I know. Which is why I'm not going."
Both Jasper and Emmett looked extremely relieved to hear my news. Edward reached over and placed his hand on my knee. We locked eyes and I gave him a small smile.
"We need to tell you about the idea I had to help my mom," I excitedly started to explain my idea, filling them in on everything I'd told Edward.
"It could work," Jasper agreed. "I think we should get Aro in on it though. He could get Renée and maybe even Charlie into a safe house."
"I agree. Now we just need to tell my dad and the uncles. Do you think your dad will help?" He looked at Emmett.
"Yeah, I'm sure he won't mind making a call." Emmett nodded, then turned to me. "My dad usually sits out of the missions. He abhors violence but has always helped with victims."
Jasper's phone beeped. "Alice says as soon as you are ready, you're good to call."
"Great. Tell her I'm ready now." I hopped out of my seat and walked into the other room.
I called her number and then looked out at the skyline as I waited.
"Bella?" she answered.
"Mom." I sighed in relief.
A/N: Thoughts? Bella and Edward continue to take steps in the right direction. And what do you think about Bella's idea to get her mom out?
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me.
Other note:
An Picture is Worth a Thousand Words is having a holiday edition. We hope to include all holidays from Thanksgiving to any that fall in January. Only a 500 word count. For details check out. Our Facebook groups. groups/460094101314978
