Toxic Rose

Chapter 24: Dealing with the Aftermath

A/N: Okay, okay. This is the last direct chapter of dealing with Jacob's bullshit. I had to wrap up some loose ends and while he will still be in the later chapters, he's not going to be as much of an antagonist as before. Hopefully.

Warnings for this chapter: uh...verbal violence?

Dealing with the aftermath of what had happened was not pretty. It was super ugly. And super lengthy. Jake had to be taken to the hospital to get the bullet taken out of his leg and Leah had gone too, only because she had suffered a mild concussion from when Jake had knocked her out with a cooking pan. That had been what the struggle in the kitchen was that Bella had heard. She couldn't believe the boy had done this. It was still so hard to wrap her mind around it. She still saw him as young and innocent; a wide smile on his face as he reached out a hand to help, but now she also saw the darker version of him. The one with hard cold eyes, with unrepressed fury and an obsession with getting her and Rosalie to break up.

Bella gave a strained sigh and rubbed her eyes. She was still in the living room of Leah's house. Carlisle had already hushed everything up at the hospital, adjusting some facts before filing a claim that the boy had had a mental break down and attacked others before shooting himself in the leg during the struggle of him and Rosalie fighting over control of the gun. Leah had been the one to suffer at his hands the most physically and since she was still asleep she couldn't actually vouch for herself. It was truly scary what Carlisle could cook up. He had pretty much free reign to make up whatever story he wanted. And no one would believe Jake because he was considered to be currently delusional. Billy Black had been less than pleased about all this when he first heard.

"My son is not crazy!" He pounded the armrest of his wheelchair. "He would never do such a thing. And why is she here, Carlisle? We made a pact that she would not be allowed onto Reserve territory." Billy gestured rudely to Rosalie who snapped her teeth at him. She had hidden the gun somewhere but Bella didn't know where. I have to get that gun back, before Charlie notices it is missing.

"Rosalie behave," Carlisle chided before he gave a sigh and got up from the chair he had been sitting in, careful of the puddle of dried blood on the floor that Jake had left. "Billy I can understand your anger-"

"You don't understand shit! I'm tired of you and your family always ruining everything for me and Jake! Why can't you just leave us alone?" Billy's eyes burned with anger but also exhaustion. "I don't want anything to do with you." The four in the room had been talking things out for the past hour and were not making much progress.

Carlisle sniffed and calmly folded his hands in front of himself. "As I was saying, all hospital bills will be paid and I will give Jake the help he needs. He was delusional, believing my daughter and Bella to be dating when they barely even talk to one another."

"That's not true, Jacob would never think that. He loves Bella! Why would he hurt her?" Billy slammed his fist onto the armrest once more. This action reminded Bella of the way Jake had pounded on the door as she had been hidden in the dark, waiting for him to free her. "Please, Mr. Black, don't be like this." Bella's soft voice drew their attention to her. She had refused to go for trauma treatment, insisting she was fine and that she would like to stay by the Cullen family's side, stating she felt more safe with them.

"I love Jake, he's my good friend, my childhood friend, and I don't want to see him acting this way. I don't want him to be in pain, but he needs help. He locked me into a closet and I was so scared. I've never seen him this angry before. He wouldn't let me leave. He raised his voice against me and he even broke my phone. Leah too was hurt by him. He hit her with a pan." Bella paused here to collect herself, feeling her voice wavering and tears threatening to come down her face. Rosalie who stood by the chair Bella was sitting at, resisted the urge to comfort her girlfriend. If she did it now then Billy would notice that they were more than mere acquaintances.

Bella fidgeted with her fingers before she began again. "And today wasn't the worst of it. Yesterday he attacked Rosalie too, in the middle of the night. If I hadn't been outside at the time then who knows if he would have killed her. He told me he did want to. He told me he wanted to kill her." A few tears dropped down onto her hands and she lowered her head so that no one would see the tears. "The whole reason she has that bandage around her arm was because he missed her neck by some miracle. You have to see Jake is unwell. And I'm so concerned and worried for him." Bella didn't dare pick up her head, trying to will the tears away from her eyes. Why did she have to be so weak? Why did she always cry?

"It's true. Everything Bella speaks is the truth. You wouldn't doubt the word of your best friend's daughter, surely?" Carlisle hummed. He raised a brow at Billy who was working his jaw furiously.

"That blonde bitch still didn't have to shoot him! Where did she even get the gun! She's still dangerous as always, Carlisle. I won't have her walking away freely from this while Jake suffers. What if she paralyzed him like she did to me?"

"Mr. Black, Rosalie only did what she had to, to protect me. She didn't own the gun. It was Jake who had it. He was using it to get me to do things. Rosalie came in and saved me and he got shot in the process as they fought for the gun. If it wasn't for her than...than who knows how far Jake would have gone?" Bella felt bad for lying to Billy but she couldn't risk Rosalie getting in trouble for protecting her.

Billy narrowed his eyes. "Something is not adding up here. If you guys barely know each other than why did Rosalie come here to 'save' you?" He put air quotes around save, his face one of disgust.

Shit, he's got us there, Bella squirmed. What did she say now?

"Ha." Rosalie gave out a bark of laughter. "It just so happens to turn out that me and Bella had the good fortune of working on a group project together a couple months ago. Once she found out that Jake was still intent on hurting me she called me using the number we had exchanged months ago."

"And that's when he broke my phone," Bella interjected helpfully.

"And even though it's none of my business what Bella does with her friends, I owed her for saving me last night so I called up Carlisle and we both got here. There was a violent struggle, and the rest is history," Rosalie put her hand on her hip, a smug look on her face.

"I still don't like any of this, you hear. Something is not sitting right with me, and mark my words I will figure it out. Now leave my Reserve. I don't want to see you Cullen's anymore! You are a constant dark mark on my family." Billy pointed to the door roughly, like he was sending out a dog for punishment.

"If you need anything at all-" Carlisle started but Billy cut him off with a vicious, "Then I won't call you. I want nothing more to do with you. Out!"

"Very well, we will be out." Carlisle gathered up his briefcase and took Rosalie by her none hurt elbow, steering her out the door. "Come Bella, we must get you back home and tell Charlie about this." Bella nodded her head and wiped away at the tear tracks on her face.

"Bella." Billy spoke up and she waited for what he would say.

"I'm, I'm sorry for Jake's despicable actions. You are his closet friend and I have no idea why he would act like this."

Bella shook her head at his apology. She felt like she should be the one apologizing. After all it was all her fault that Jake had fallen over the edge of rationale and had acted this way. He had felt so strongly for her all this time and she had ignored his feelings. And now he had a bullet in his leg for loving her. Would he even be able to not hold a grudge on her after this? "It's okay Billy. It's best not to think about it." Then she joined the Cullen's outside, closing the door slowly behind her.

Billy was left in the dark living room, made more dark by the horror of what had happened here. He looked down at the puddle of blood that had come from his son Jake. His hands curled on his armrests and he breathed out heavily through his nose. When he had first been called by Carlisle here he had no clue what awaited him and shock had riveted his body, then disbelief and then anger and now he was merely sad, empty and drained. He couldn't believe his son had gone off the rocker. All this over an imagined relationship between Rosalie and Bella. But things did not make sense. He knew his son loved Bella deeply and never before had he ever acted this way even when Leah had hit on the girl, or when other guys had tried to flirt with her. So what about the blonde had pushed Jake to the edge? Was it the fact that the blonde was the one that had hurt Billy and he had seen the two girls working on a project and thought them to be dating?

But that was quite a big leap to make, especially if it was true that the girls barely knew each other. Billy sighed again and rubbed his face. He had a lot to explain to Leah's mom when she came in. And later he would talk to Charlie. Maybe the chief of police could do something to help out. Could offer some words that would solve this mystery.

"Bella you will have to tell your father about this," Carlisle said. "He needs to know or else he will only grow suspicious when he asks questions. We cannot keep this hidden anymore." Bella nodded her head although the thought made her sick to the stomach. What would her father say? What would she even explain to him. "Just use the story we used for Billy." Before they had called the chief of the Reserve they had made plans on what story they could use to tell him that wouldn't make them too suspect.

Carlisle got into his car and started it up, on his way to Charlie's house. Bella fiddled with her hands. She really did not want to go. Facing Billy had been bad enough and now her own father? This was not going to go well.

"Get in," Rosalie ordered as she got into the drivers seat of her Mustang. Bella got into the passengers seat, buckling herself in. She waited for Rosalie to start the car but the blonde gazed wordlessly out the windshield, her thumb making circles on the steering wheel.

"Are we not-"

"Bella, what were you thinking?" Rosalie's voice was a snarl and without even having to see her face, Bella knew the girl was pissed off-but why? "What were you thinking, going looking for him! After me and Carlisle told you he's unstable!" The blonde turned her fury filled face on the brunette who flinched back, pressing her side to the door. The blonde's anger filled the car, making it hard to breathe. "What? Explain to me what ran through that thick skull of yours?"

"I-I-,"

Rosalie lunged forward in the car and grabbed Bella by the front of her shirt, pulling her face close to hers. "I'm waiting," she said cruelly.

"I wasn't looking for him at all," Bella lied. She had been kind of looking for him but the blonde didn't need to know that. "I was looking for Leah."

"Why?" The hold on her shirt tightened, as the blonde searched her face for lies.

"I was mad at her. She's the one who spilled our relationship to Jake and I wanted to go yell at her, to make her feel bad and I ended up punching her." Bella admitted this last part shamefully. She hadn't meant to hurt the girl like that, but she had.

Rosalie's eyes widened at this. "You did not," she said in disbelief.

"I did. It hurt me more than it hut her." Bella raised her bandaged fist into view. Rosalie's eyes shot to it, before they came back to Bella's face. A small smile broke out of her face. "That's pretty impressive Bella. You amaze me more and more each day." Her voice was soft and she let go of Bella's shirt. Bella felt a small blush spread on her cheeks at the praise. "But don't ever do something reckless like that again!" Rosalie said more harshly as she finally turned on the car and pulled them out of the driveway. "I was worried for you. I thought the worst had happened and if it had then, your best friend or not, I would have killed him."

Bella didn't doubt the blonde's words.

"Dad, I'm home," Bella called out tentatively as she entered the house. Sounds of the football game playing greeted her ears a second before her father's voice did.

"Bells where have you been? I've been calling your phone all day." He got up from his chair to met her and stopped in his tracks when he saw who was following her. "Carlisle Cullen. Rosalie." His mouth twisted under his mustache and the hand holding the can of beer tightened, crinkling the metal.

"Hi, dad," Bella said awkwardly, scratching the back of her head in discomfort. "I, um, brought guests over."

"What's going on here?" Charlie instinctively reached for the gun on his belt, needing to feel more control over the situation, forgetting he had taken it off earlier and put it up by the door. "Are you hurt Bella?"

"I'm fine-"

"Charlie Swan, apologies for intruding on your game, but there is something we must discuss that addresses both our children."

"I swear if Rosalie is bullying Bella I will take legal action and will fight no matter how hard you try to cover it up! I will-"

"Dad stop, it's not that," Bella shouted out, embarrassed by her father's blatant dislike for Rosalie and suspicion of her.

He looked a bit disgruntled to have his rant cut off. "Then what?"

"It's about Jake." Bella twisted a lock of her brown hair as she admitted to this.

"And what about Jake?"

"You may want to sit down for this," Carlisle offered.

"I'll stay standing, thanks." Charlie frowned. "Now what's going on?"

Carlisle gave a quick run through of what had happened, not only today but last night as well, with Bella and Rosalie coming in on the right moments to offer their own words. Bella watched as her father's face went from pale, to red to pale again. The beer can in his hand was crumpled up and he was forced to put it down when some alcohol spilled over his hand and onto the floor.

"Bella, why didn't you come to me yesterday?" Charlie rubbed his face before he pulled his daughter into a hug. She let herself sink into, glad that his reaction was so mild. She expected him to question her on why she had called Rosalie first but he was more focused on the fact she was okay, and on the fact that Jake had dared to hurt Bella like this. "I'm so glad you're okay. My little Bells." He rubbed the top of her head soothingly.

"I'm so sorry to be the bearer of bad news Charlie, but me and Rosalie have done our best to try and straighten out the situation on Bella's behalf. I have no doubt Billy will try to get in contact with you about this. If he does, please consult with me too." Charlie gave a begrudging look at the two Cullen's who stood apart from the two Swans.

"I suppose I owe Rosalie a thanks for protecting Bella." Charlie swallowed hard, fighting with the disgust at having to thank the blonde. He never thought the day would come that he would have to do such a thing.

Rosalie raised her chin haughtily. "Damn right you do. If it wasn't for me who knows what would have happened to Bella. I'm sure Jacob wouldn't just stop at a kiss if I hadn't arrived." Charlie's face hardened at this.

"Rosalie don't antagonize him," Carlisle rebuked, shooting her a reprimanding look which she ignored as she tossed back her hair.

"Come Charlie, tell me. Bow before me and tell me how eternally grateful you are to me for saving your precious daughters life. Do it," she goaded, wide grin splitting her face. "I know how much you despise me, how much pride you'll have to swallow to do it."

"Keep acting like that and the only thanks you will get is a restraining order against you."

"Oh goody, another one. I love collecting those. Not that they work anyways. You can't keep me out-"

"Rosalie, stop it!" Bella cried out in panic. Her father's arms had tightened greatly around the brunette, making it harder for her to breathe. But she was more worried about the blonde ruining the fact that they had convinced Charlie with their story. If she kept talking Charlie could get angry and then insist on knowing more-info they couldn't provide because most of what they had said had been half lies and half truths.

Rosalie sniffed but shut her mouth.

"Now Charlie, I hate to extract your daughter so soon after you learned the horrific events that occurred but I must. I have to take her so I can examine her mental health."

"But doctor I'm fine." Bella really did not want to do a mental health test.

"Standard procedure." The doctor smiled apologetically. "It'll only take a little bit."

"Dad?" Bella looked to her father for support. The man was still staring hard at Rosalie who had taken to examining her nails. They were flawless, a bright red. Bella wondered if the girl ever painted her fingers any other color than that.

"I don't like this but go with them Bella. I'd rather make sure you're fine. You've undergone a lot of stressful events recently and at your young age, your brain is still developing so it is better to check." Charlie looked reluctant as he dropped his arms from her and took a step back.

"Thank you," Carlisle smiled.

"But don't keep her too long," he wagged a finger at them in warning. "I need Bella so that we can file a report on this, figure the business out with the cops."

Something flashed across the doctor's face at this. "I think we should discuss that more Charlie, and between you and me. I'm currently responsible for Jake's well-being and I can tell you he is mentally ill. There is no reason to file a report when he was not mentally capable of restraining his actions."

Charlie frowned at this, his hands coming up to his hips. "Mental illness is not an excuse." His glare was pointed and the doctor knew the man was talking about his daughter and he smiled thinly. Rosalie's lips twitched at this but she said nothing.

"Yes, but I am a doctor. It is in my interest to protect those who are ill, physically, emotionally or mentally."

"Even if those who are ill have hurt others?" Again this was a barb aimed at Rosalie and the girl took an aggressive step forwards to the chief of police. "Rosalie stop!" Bella got in between the two, her hand on Rosalie's shoulder stopping the girl. Rosalie breathed hard through her nose and swiveled on her heel and left the house, slamming the door on her way out.

"I think it would do well if you did not speak of Rosalie's illness around her. She is coping with it and people like you who do not understand the finer workings of such illnesses have no right to ignorantly speak of them. I will bring Bella back as soon as I am done with her. And I will also be keeping in contact with you until this whole thing blows over. Good day." Carlisle followed after Rosalie. Bella gave her dad a look but he wasn't looking at her, only angrily staring at a spot of the wall in front of him. Bella gave a sad smile and then left after the Cullen's.

The test was quick like Carlisle promised but that didn't mean Bella hated it any less. She felt it was intrusive, divulging information that the doctor did not need. He already knew so much about Bella's personal life. More than anyone else had in such a short span of time. But he wouldn't let her leave so she had to stick through with it until it was done.

Once she was done, Rosalie waited outside for her in her Mustang, ready to drive her back to her house. Bella gathered up her jacket and put it on. She still couldn't believe all this had happened. Ever since she had met Rosalie the world had gotten a bit crazy. Looks like she's rubbing off on everything in my existence, Bella thought tiredly. She didn't know if she liked this. The blonde had come into her life and stained everything she touched with red. Even Bella had changed ever since she had met the girl. Bella could sense the change inside her. All her pent up resentments were surfacing up and she was having more trouble controlling her anger. She had also become a liar to protect the other, and this bothered her the most. She had lied to others so many times, caused others to be hurt because of her like the blonde caused others around her to be hurt too.

Maybe we're more alike than I thought. Maybe she didn't change me; she just brought these things out of me. They were just there the whole time.

Bella had finished buttoning up her jacket when the soft patter of feet alerted her that she was no longer alone in the room. "Alice," Bella breathed out, shocked to see the pixie in front of her. Alice hadn't changed at all over the weeks of their separation. Her hair was a bit longer but that was it. Bella had hoped the girl would be as bothered as Bella had been by the ruined friendship but she gave no sign of it. Instead her face was neutral now, her eyes glimmering with some unreadable emotion.

"This is all your fault."

"What?" Bella had not expected those to be the pixie's first words after their period of silence.

"Rosalie's getting hurt because of you." Alice strode forward at this and grabbed Bella roughly by the elbow. Bella gave a little squeak of pain at this rough gesture. "Ever since you two started dating Rosalie has been attacked by Jake twice, once almost losing her life. You're too dangerous for her." So apparently the pixie had found out. Had she been eavesdropping on Bella's and Carlisle's conversation the whole time? It was likely.

Bella's eyes bulged open and she began chuckling, amused by the absurdity of all this. "I'm too dangerous for her? What are you talking about Alice? Don't you remember telling me she was dangerous and unstable?"

Alice's lips twisted up cruelly. "She is, but she was fine until she met you. She had stopped acting out and was going back to normal and then you had to show up in her life and you're making her act this way."

"I'm not making her act any way that she doesn't want to act!" Bella yelled back and jerked her elbow free of Alice's hold. "She came to protect me. That was her own decision. She could have easily called the cops. And I protected her too. That night when Jake attacked her, if I hadn't been there she would have died!"

"Exactly. But if she hadn't known you at all then Jake would have never attacked her in the first place!"

These words struck a chord with Bella. She had been thinking them too, thinking that it was her fault for what happened between Jake and Rosalie. But she wasn't going to have Alice guilt her. The girl was as guilty of hurting Rosalie as Bella was. "And what about you?"

"Me?" Alice seemed taken aback by this. She blinked her eyes in confusion.

"Yes. You. How about all those times you hurt Rosalie by taser? I'm pretty sure that hurt her more because you, her own sister, was doing the harm to her. So don't blame me for any pain caused to Rosalie because I will readily admit that yes, things have happened after we started dating. But I wasn't the sole one hurting her. You hurt her all this time before I even knew her." Bella was trembling in rage. "So you're the one whose worst."

Alice took a deep breath at this, her eyes flashing. Her hand snapped out and caught Bella on the cheek. The brunette's head went to the side from the force of the hit and her hands came up to the offended cheek. Alice had hit her! Alice, of all people!

Regret shone in Alice's eyes at her impulsive action. "Bella I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Just leave me alone Alice," Bella viciously whispered, close to tears. She turned on her heel and left the Cullen mansion.

"Bella wait-"

"No!" Bella slammed the door shut behind her.

"What's wrong?" Rosalie asked as soon as Bella got into the passenger seat.

"Nothing, just Alice being stupid." Bella shook her head and looked at her lap. "Let's go home before Charlie freaks out."

"What did that little bitch say to you?" Rosalie's voice was low and she knew the blonde was angry. Not wanting to anger her further Bella shook her head once more. "It's fine really."

"It's not fine. You're crying." Bella cursed her tears for slipping out from her eyes. Rosalie cupped Bella's chin and brought her face up even as the brunette tried to keep her head down. "That bitch hit you too." Rosalie said, noting the red mark on Bella's cheek. She dropped her chin and moved to get out the car but Bella's hand on her arm stopped her.

"Rosalie, please stop. Don't go fight her. Don't be angry at her."

"And why not?" Rosalie was pissed off. No one touched her Bella. Not even her sister! The urge to hit Alice ran through her veins.

"Because I don't want you to fight for me anymore. You always get hurt because of me." The brunette's voice was pleading at this and Rosalie felt a tinge of sadness tug at her belly.

"What did Alice say to you? Did she accuse you of hurting me?" Rosalie knew how persuasive the pixie's words were. She had fallen victim to them many a time.

"No-"

"Don't lie to me Bella. Not about this."

Bella was quiet, her hands coming together to fiddle nervously. Rosalie stopped them with her own hand, squeezing them comfortingly. "Its just that because of me Jake came after you and -"

"Bella." Rosalie did not have the patience to see the girl so self-deprecating. "I've been getting hurt all my life. This is nothing new for me."

"But he wanted to kill you!" Bella burst out, fresh tears coming down her face. "And it would be all my fault! I couldn't stand to see that happen. You don't deserve that."

"It wouldn't be the first time someone's tried to kill me," Rosalie said wryly. "You can't stop people from wanting to do that. Why, I bet even your father would like a go at me. I know he would. All that matters is that you helped me Bella. You stood up and fought for me. That's more than anyone has ever done for me." Rosalie stopped at this, feeling her voice was going to break from emotion too. She hadn't realized until she had tried to comfort Bella that these words were true. She had never paid much attention to it before, but Bella was the only girl who had tried to help Rosalie without a higher malicious motive. Carlisle did it because he wanted to feel better about himself by adopting a broken child and fixing them up, much the same reason as Alice although she went about it with a more hands on approach.

"Don't say such things," Bella blubbered, tears coming more freely down her face now.

Rosalie didn't trust herself to speak more so she did the next best thing. She gently kissed away the tears coming down Bella's cheeks, the girl's sobbing calming down a bit. Then she kissed the red cheek. "Did Alice hurt you anywhere else?" Bella nodded her head at this.

"My heart." Her voice was more steady now and Rosalie smiled softly as she kissed the brunette's lips and then bent her head down to her chest, her hand sliding up under her shirt.

A/N: What's up with Alice grilling Bella like that? It's not like she likes the blonde anymore, anyways. Or...? What is the pixie scheming?