So, this is chapter is kind of starting to set things up. Sorry for taking forever to write this one.
. . .
"Do we simply stare at what's horrible and forgive it?" - Richard Siken
"Rose, what… what happened to us?"
Rosalie's shoulders tense up, jaw clenching. She doesn't know what went wrong; she doesn't know what's ever been right. "I don't know," she looks up briefly. "We haven't uh, been working together for a while, huh?" Her laugh is short and hollow.
Emmett is in front of her, crouching down while she sits on the bed. Her breath catches at the look in his eyes.
Everything is falling to pieces around them and he's still trying to make sure she's safe.
Rosalie's chest constricts. Oh God. No. Please. Can't hear this. Can't breakup with me. Can't divorce me-
"No," Emmett agrees with the shake of his head, curls swaying along with her heartbreak. "We haven't, Rose."
"Emmett, I've been trying," Rosalie's voice cracks, desperation seeping through. She can't lose him. He's been her rock for as long as she can remember and she doesn't know what she's going to do without that foundation underneath her.
Except she does. She'll fall. She'll collapse and disintegrate into a pile of rubble. She thinks of Bella and how wasted she is, and thinks I'm going to be one of the broken.
"I know you have, Rosalie," he clasps her small hand in his large but solid ones. "You always have tried your hardest, you've been so strong." Emmett swallows, his heart was breaking in his chest, but God he had to do this. He had to make sure that they would both be truly happy. Rosalie makes a sobbing sound, hand smothering her mouth, and he flinches hard. This was killing him.
But after years and decades, they both deserved to be happy.
"Don't do this, I love you, Emmett. I'm in love with you." Rosalie pleads harder than she ever has in her entire life. Harder than when she begged Royce and his friends to not do that to her. Harder than when she screamed at Carlisle to kill her. Rosalie's ribs were cracking and caving in on themselves.
"Rose, I love you, too" Emmett warbles out a heartbroken laugh with angst and pain etched into every crevice of his face, mouth trembling as he tried to be her anchor one last time. And she remembers hours spent tracing, memorizing those same lines, the crows feet in the corners of his eyes. She remembers looking into his eyes and seeing love there, seeing safety and awe there. "But we both know that neither of us love each other the way lovers are supposed to." His eyes are gleaming. Rosalie dry sobs into her hand, ripping the other away from him so she can try to alleviate the pain that was seeping into her pores.
Rosalie's dam breaks free, lithe body wracking with tears she'll never be able to shed. She was suffocating.
Emmett was doing any better, he was crying too, looking up at Rosalie with memories of the two of them flashing in front of his eyes. Seeing her hurt was hurting him.
The two end up hugging, sadly grasping at clothes and scents for one last time. Rosalie has her face pressed into the crook of his neck, dry tears washing away decades of happy memories. Emmett's body is shaking, unsure hands smoothing out the back of Rosalie's hair.
"I will always love you, Rose, thank you for giving me life." He kisses her forehead, cheeks, eyebrows, hairline, anywhere he could reach one last time, trying to savor her taste, and he picks up his bags - everything he's ever had with him - and then he's gone.
Rosalie slides down the wall behind her, mouth smothered with her fist.
That's how the Cullens and Bella find her days later.
. . .
Seeing Rosalie in a catatonic state was killing them all.
From the empty places sports posters were supposed to be, they all gathered that Emmett had finally left.
Esme ran out of the house, not sure how she was supposed to deal with the loss of a son and a devastated daughter at the same time. Jasper was trying his best to send rather numb waves of feeling towards Rosalie, and Alice curled herself around her sister, tugging and trying to bring the blonde back into reality. Carlisle sat beside her and held Rosalie's hands while Edward relayed what Rosalie was thinking.
Every word pierced Bella's heart in ways that were unimaginable, and she could do nothing but watch helplessly, kneeling in front of Rosalie and placing her hands on her face.
It was all for naught. Rosalie Hale was dead to the world.
. . .
"What are we going to do?" Bella whispers, tears gathering in her eyes as he watches the woman she loves become a shell of her former self. "Can we make her feed? It's been a month…"
"Bella," Carlisle starts to explain, hand rubbing at his neck, looking very lost. "Rosalie is still most likely coming to terms with everything that has happened. She just lost the person she thought was her mate-"
"Thought?" Bella asks, ears perking with curiosity, "Emmett's not her mate?"
He levels her with a gaze, one filled with warning and a hidden message. He whispers, "mates are not able to leave each other. They will die."
The news hits Bella harder than concrete to the face would. Edward is wrong.
Bella glances towards the limp goddess in the corner of her dark room. She'll save that for another day. Right now, she has more things to worry about. Like how they're going to get Rosalie to eat.
"But still, she has to eat…"
"Yes, you're right Bella." Carlisle sighs, years of sadness come to the surface, almost breaking through. "I'll think of some things, but for the meantime, would you possibly consider keeping Rosalie warm? Heat helps us immensely."
Bella nods fast. "Yes of course." He kisses her forehead and leaves the room.
She breathes hard, shaking out her hands and moves to sit next to Rosalie.
"God please wake up, soon," Bella whispers, taking the despondent hand in her own, slightly curling into Rosalie, resting her head her shoulder. "Everything is falling apart without you. We miss you Rose. I miss you."
Faintly, Rosalie's finger twitches.
