Toxic Rose

Chapter Thirty One: It All Falls Apart

A/N: I promised myself I would get a new chapter out before December and here it is. I hope to get the others out in a more timely fashion but I have a couple other long running series that take up priority now and thus I don't know when I'll have time to write this. I'm aiming to get another chapter out by next month.

It had been three days since Bella and Rosalie had consummated their new relationship with one another and things couldn't be better. True, there were still some lingering issues like with Rosalie's family and in the whole having to hide a gay relationship in high school because the town wasn't very accepting of them. But, things between the two girls was good and that was all that mattered.

Smiling dreamily to herself, Bella slid the key to her house into the lock. She was thinking on Rosalie's warm kisses which had been given when they had gone their separate ways home, along with the blonde's promise of going on another date soon.

She entered the house, humming to herself happily only to stop cold when she saw her father sitting in his arm chair, drinking his beer and phone on his lap, held there gently as if it was toxic.

"Hey dad," Bella smiled at him but he didn't smile back at her. Her lips dropped and she adjusted the strap of her book bag up higher. Something was wrong. But what? She could feel his anger radiating all the way from here. "Is...is everything okay?"

His cheeks trembled as he tightened his hold on his can. It looked like he didn't know where to start, so he merely handed the unlocked phone to her. Tentatively, Bella took it, feeling shivers of unease crawl down her spine. She looked up from the phone that wasn't her father's to his face, which was waiting for her to go on.

She tapped the play button on a dark screen video and watched it play out. It was dark and the angle was bad, but it only took her ten seconds to realize what this was, as her and Rosalie's face pressed together under the glow of the moonlight streaming in. Her face flushed and her hands shook on the phone, dropping it while it still played. The sounds of her and Rosalie's moans of ecstasy filled the air, playing like a backdrop between Bella and her father. "I-I, How-that's not-" she didn't know what to say. She wanted to ask how he got that, who had filmed them; she wanted to deny it all.

"Jake came by to our house today," her father started with steel in his voice and thunder in his eyes. It was always worst when he was calm. Always. "He told me people thought he was crazy because they didn't believe him about you two. I didn't believe him either." At this Charlie looked like he had regretted not believing earlier. "And then he showed me proof."

"Dad- no-"

"You don't get to call me that!" he spat out, startling her back with the volume of his voice. "You don't get to call me that when you went behind my back and did that with her!" he rose from his chair, throwing his can aside where it hit the wall and splattered beer. "You disgust me! You willingly slept with that monster!"

Each allegation had Bella shrinking back, eyes wide and fearful. "Dad-" she tried to start, tried to plead with him.

He set his jaw as he sat back down into his chair. "Get out."

"What?" she gasped out as tears pricked at her eyes.

"I said, get out. I don't want to see you ever again." His eyes were black, burrowing holes in her heart. "And leave the truck. You no longer deserve it."

"But-but," Bella's words failed in her protestations of this situation. She felt so helpless, so alone. So betrayed.

"Get your whore to drive you," he growled out and she felt the fight go out of her. This was real. Bella was really getting kicked out of her own house. Where would she go now? She stood there, gaping at the injustice of the situation. Charlie didn't have patience for her being in the house any longer.

"Get out. Get out! Get OUT! GET OUT!" he slammed his hand onto the armchair arm for emphasis and finally Bella stirred to motion and left, numb and empty and feeling so, so alone. With cold fingers she pulled out her phone and dialed Rosalie's number, choking back the tears that threatened to fall.

Rosalie came into her room to find Bella still hadn't moved from her spot on the windowsill. She just kept staring out, hugging her knees. Rosalie set down the hot drink she had made on her desk. "I made you hot cocoa. Try to drink it. You need to eat something."

But Bella didn't respond, looking outside. Rosalie sat by her, rubbing a hand up and down her leg. "I know things seem bad right now, but they'll get better. They always do."

"He kicked me out. He doesn't want me as his daughter anymore," Bella said hoarsely. She had cried out all her tears hours ago, sobbing into Rosalie's shoulder with free abandon.

"How did he even know about us?" Rosalie asked, making sure her tone was gentle and even, even as her eyes flashed dangerously.

"Jake. Jake apparently filmed us." And how could Jake do that to Bella? She thought they were friends. How had he even known how to film them? So many questions but she didn't have the energy to deal with them right now. All she wanted to do was curl up and disappear into a ball of despair.

Rosalie's blood began to boil at hearing Jake's name. That stupid man! She would kill him, she would-she got up but Bella's hand on hers pulled her back down. "Don't go. I need you by my side."

And so Rosalie swallowed down her black anger and pulled Bella into her arms once more.

Things were fragile at best ever since that. Rosalie had driven Bella back to her house when Charlie wasn't there so she could get her things and move into Rosalie's room.

"You don't have to stay in Rosalie's room," Carlisle said, smiling at Bella after she had told him what had happened. "You are a welcome guest here. Even a part of our family." He along with Edward, Emmett, and Jasper looked happy to see her here. Only Esme and Alice cast sour glances, huddling their heads together as they schemed.

"It's fine," Bella declined the offer graciously. "I don't want to be more of a burden than I already am."

"Nonsense, we do not mind." And Bella wished her father could only be as understanding.

Bella wondered, how could things fall apart so easily just when they had been at their best? She hated being away from her father, hated having his disappointment. It took a toll on her. She ate less, barely concentrated in class, and it took her hours to do her homework- brain sluggish and limbs weary and weighed down by melancholy. And all Rosalie could do was be by her side, gently encouraging her to get through all this. And when she wasn't aching at seeing her girlfriend sinking in a pit of despair, she was out on the streets, attempting to hunt down the asshole that had done all this to them.

What Rosalie wouldn't love but to put her foot so far up his ass that he choked on it. But sadly, he was impossible to find, even with the cops attempting to track him down. But Rosalie had a sneaking suspicion that Charlie was somehow protecting the feral boy and the last thing Rosalie wanted to do was storm into Charlie's house with accusations and make him hate her and Bella more.

Rosalie felt guilty in a way, as if it was her fault that Bella was shunned by her father. Logically she knew it wasn't. Just because she had a bad reputation didn't mean she couldn't be a better person; she was trying to be one but the road wasn't easy. If only there was a way she could convince him, to prove to Charlie that she truly loved and cared for Bella even if her intentions hadn't been clear at first.

So she drove around town in her mustang, hands white knuckled on the wheel as she peered out the window looking for Jake and on occasion hovering across from Charlie's house, staring at the dim house, and wishing she could find a way to make him see reason.

The other Cullen family members tried to make Bella feel more at ease as well. Emmett dropped by, told her jokes, challenged her to video game battles. She made weak attempts to laugh at his jokes and to play his games, because she felt like she owed it to him for trying. He could tell he wasn't winning her over entirely but he knew that change took time. He had seen it in every one of his siblings, and while Bella wasn't as broken as they that didn't mean these scars could heal as easily.

Jasper would sit with Bella and regale her with tales from the books he was reading. That worked better, for she could lose herself in a world that wasn't hers, could lose herself in drama and issues that had nothing to do with her own problems. Edward would come in and teach her how to play guitar and piano for he said that music was medicine for the soul and that any laments she had could be expressed with angry piano chords or sad guitar strumming. And that worked a bit too, but not entirely.

Surprisingly, Alice showed her face as well. Bella hadn't been expecting that at all from her. Not after they had stopped talking to one another.

"Hey, Bella," she knocked on the door to Rosalie's room timidly. Rosalie was out of the house, gone to get some ice cream to cheer Bella up.

"Alice? What do you want?" Bella said rudely, not in the mood to see the pixie girl. Another failed friendship and one that Bella had given up on. She felt like giving up on everything nowadays.

"I came to see if you were okay." She clasped her hands in front of her stomach, looking and sounding like a small girl.

"I'm fine," Bella huffed out and hugged her legs tighter to her chest, glaring out the window.

"You're not fine. I want to help make you happy again. I want to help fix you." Alice strode in, halfway into the room.

"I don't need that. And I don't need you."

But Bella's acidulous tone did nothing to dissuade the pixie. She made way to the cushion Bella was on and sat there, one small warm hand on Bella's ankle. "I know better than anyone how it feels to be broken and struggle to pick up the pieces."

"I don't need your sympathy." Bella curled in tighter on herself.

"Maybe you need a friend."

Bella snorted at this. "You lost that chance. I don't want to be friends with you."

Alice did not diminish at those words. She only grew bolder. "You're going to need a friend to get through this. And Rosalie is not a friend."

"Are you still on that? Are you still trying to separate us?" Bella's voice grew harsher, eyes darkening.

"No...I'm not here for that. I'm here to try to cheer you up."

"Then you can do that by leaving. Thanks."

Alice sighed, sensing no more traction could be gained. "Very well. Don't forget that I tried Bella, and that you pushed me away."

Bella snorted again. As if Alice could guilt trip her. She wouldn't. Alice got up reluctantly, as if Bella would change her mind but when she saw the brunette didn't, she left the room quietly and went down the stairs. Rosalie was waiting for her at the bottom, glaring daggers.

"Are you really doing this shit? To Bella?" Rosalie felt like she would explode from anger. She could barely contain her voice so that she wouldn't end up in a screaming match.

"Doing what?" Alice casually said, though her voice was pitched down and not anywhere nearly as nice as it had been to Bella.

"I know you. I know your addiction. You like to fix broken people up, like to build them before you destroy them. And I won't let you do that to Bella." Rosalie got up close and personal and Alice held her back straight; didn't back down.

"Don't be delusional. Bella needs all the company she can get," Alice sniffed.

"I'm not being delusional. Keep away from Bella or I'll make you regret ever being born." With that threat, Rosalie shoulder checked Alice roughly and then went up the stairs to give her girlfriend some ice cream. She could feel Alice's heated glare on her back which only meant her assumptions had been right. Rosalie would make sure Alice never saw her plan reach fruition.

Two weeks passed in this manner. Bella was surprised the world could still move even when she felt frozen. Charlie had made no attempt to reach out to her and that hurt worse than his anger. She'd rather be screaming at him then have this radio silence.

She wondered if her mother knew what had happened, but no, even if she did she probably wouldn't care.

So Bella floated around, untethered, only Rosalie holding her down. And Rosalie was kind and patient with her even when others would have lost their temper. "Why are you so good to me?" Bella wondered one day after she had had her tenth breakdown in the past three days.

"Because...you were good to me even when I didn't deserve it. And the least I can do is be there for you. Plus, I know how this feels, how being lost and hated feels," Rosalie answered, eyes soft on Bella and that prompted Bella to cry again, except this time, they were tears of happiness.

After three weeks, the pain had begun recede. Bella began to feel more like herself. She ate more, she smiled more, and she could tune back in to the school life happening around her. She didn't tell her school friends what was happening because it was too private of an issue to breach. So when they asked her if she was okay, she lied and said she was merely ill.

Bella refocused herself on her work, on herself, and on occasion she would burst into tears when sudden loss gripped her but she was able to deal with it; it wasn't as deep and aching as it had been before. She had everything she wanted with Rosalie. Love, affection, understanding, and a place to stay and sleep. Bella wanted to be able to repay Rosalie for putting up with her mood swings and she decided it was about time to finalize something that had been in the plans since the beginning of all this. Even if Bella's home life was a wreck, it didn't mean that Rosalie's had to be. Bella was going to fix the situation between Rosalie and her long estranged father. She was going to help her girlfriend. So she got back on the computer and decided to finally arrange a surprise meeting between Rosalie and her estranged birth father.

She didn't say anything to Rosalie, only took her to the local park where the man had insisted on meeting up with them. At this hour not a lot of people were around, the area was practically abandoned and that would serve well to give the two of them some peace and quiet in which to talk.

"Where are we going?" Rosalie asked, obediently following Bella.

"It's a surprise," Bella said with a secretive smile, her heart beating in her chest with anticipation. She wondered, how would Rosalie react. Would she be happy to be reunited? Would she be angry at him for leaving her? As they drew close to a man sitting on a bench with his back to them, the last expression Bella expected Rosalie to have was fear.

He rose when he heard their approaching footsteps. He was a man with long black hair slicked back from his forehead and a smooth face that looked like it had been painted on an eggshell. His eyes flickered over them with odd interest. He didn't look anything like Rosalie, was Bella's first assertion. Behind her Rosalie stiffened and let out a choked noise.

"My my my," the man chuckled and Rosalie's eyes flew open wide, her face going pale. "How beautiful you have grown to be. And what a lovely friend you have as well," his eyes hungrily raked over Bella who didn't like that one bit.

"Aro," Rosalie breathed out, body shaking like she was convulsing.

"Who?" Bella breathed out next to her, worried about this reaction. This wasn't right...something was off! But her thoughts were cut short when Aro pulled out a taser from his coat pocket.

"Good night my dears," he said warmly and then lunged forwards.

A/N: This plot point has been in the very making of ever since the beginning of the series. It feels nice to have finally reached it.