Chapter 9

"Are you ready for this test?" Angela asked.

I shook my head and glared at my notes, furiously trying to memorize everything I could before the test that's supposed to start in just a few minutes.

I'd been so distracted with getting the apartment ready for the baby that I forgot about our anatomy test today. The good news is it's mostly over things I already knew. The bad news is there's still things on there that I didn't know and hadn't studied.

She glanced at me sympathetically before Mr. Banner walked in.

"Alright, everyone. Take your pencils out and put your notes away. It's time for the test," he said and earned a collective groan from everyone.

I looked at the first question and felt a little more confident.

What is the largest organ of the human body?

That one is easy, the skin. I breezed through the rest of the test with only a few questions remaining when I felt a slight pain in my stomach. It didn't hurt too bad, so I finished my test. When I got up to hand it in, the cramping intensified. I took the hall pass and quickly went to the ladies' room.

Fear gripped me when I saw the blood. It wasn't a large amount but it sure wasn't small either. It's more than I should be having. I pulled out my cell phone and called the first person that came to mind, Carlisle.

"Bella? Is everything alright?" he asked worriedly.

"Honestly, I don't know. I started feeling cramping when I was taking my test and now there's blood," I responded.

"Bella, listen to me carefully. You need to have someone drive you to the emergency room immediately. You could be having a miscarriage," he explained slowly.

The fear that had started to ebb when I first heard Carlisle's voice now came back stronger than before. I cleaned myself up and saw Angela outside of the bathroom.

"Angela, I need you to take me to the hospital right now!"

She jumped at my tone but grabbed my hand and ran to her car. Thankfully, she didn't start asking questions until we were on our way.

"What's going on, Bella? Is it the baby?"

I nodded and told her about my conversation with Carlisle. Her expression hardened and she pushed the gas pedal down further. We made it to the hospital in ten minutes flat.

"Go. I'll call Edward," she commanded.

I put my hand on the door handle and turned towards her.

"No, don't tell him yet. I don't want to worry him if it turns out to be nothing."

She opened her mouth to argue but Carlisle was already running outside with a couple of nurses and a stretcher.

"Bella, now! We need to do everything we can immediately," he said in a rushed voice.

I stood up and felt another cramp, stronger than the ones before. I doubled over in pain and he helped me onto the stretcher quickly. I was rushed inside and they took me to have an ultrasound, where Dr. Crow was already waiting.

She put the cold gel on my stomach just as more pain ripped through me. She scrunched her eyebrows as she searched for a heartbeat. Every second I didn't hear it was worth a lifetime of torture.

"Ah, there she is," Dr. Crow said just as we all heard the heartbeat.

I let out a deep breath I didn't even realize I'd been holding. Carlisle took my hand and squeezed it reassuringly, looking at the monitor.

"It does not appear to be a threatened miscarriage, though. Sometimes some women just have extra bleeding. And I believe the pain you're experiencing is Braxton Hicks contractions. It's not too much to worry about, but I'll still have a nurse give you some medication for the pain. And we might have to consider bedrest for the duration of your pregnancy," Dr. Crow added.

I sucked in a breath. There was no way I could be on bedrest and be able to complete high school. And I didn't want to have to go back and get my GED later.

Carlisle squeezed my hand again to get my attention.

"Bella, just remember that we are here for you no matter what. We will get through this just like we've gotten through everything so far," he murmured reassuringly.

I wiped away the few stray tears that had fallen without my permission.

"I'll go call Edward and let him know it's a false alarm. I'm sure he's panicking right about now," Carlisle said.

I suddenly felt overwhelmingly guilty over not telling Edward in the first place.

"Carlisle, I didn't tell him. I told Angela not to tell him either," I confessed.

Carlisle paused and pulled up a chair next to me, taking my hand yet again.

"Bella, I know you are a strong independent woman. But the second you got pregnant and Edward agreed to stay, this baby became your priority. He should be involved in every part of this pregnancy. I'm not saying this to make you feel bad, but it broke his heart when you said no to his proposal. I understand why you did, but he might take it pretty harshly that you didn't tell him about this right when it started," he explained.

I looked down at my hands and knew he was right. Edward was going to be pissed, beyond pissed, and he has every right to be.

"I'll let you call him, actually. It should come from you."

I nodded and pulled my cell phone out of my pocket, first calling Angela and letting her know that everything turned out okay. I took a deep breath before calling Edward.

"Bella! I've been looking everywhere for you. Where the hell are you?!" he yelled.

I flinched at the yelling, I couldn't imagine how he was about to react.

"I'm at the hospital, Edward. But everything is okay," I responded.

I was greeted with dead silence, the only indication of Edward still being on the phone was his heavy breathing.

"Why are you at the hospital? Is the baby okay? Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.

I cradled the phone between my cheek and shoulder before I started biting my nails, a bad nervous habit I had picked up over the years.

"Yes, everything is okay. I'm fine and the baby is fine. I was taking my anatomy test and started having some pain that got worse. When I went to bathroom I saw blood so I called Carlisle, who told me to come to the ER right away. Angela drove me," I added in a small voice.

"I'll be there in a few minutes," he replied flatly and hung up.

He made it to the hospital in just a few minutes as he had promised. I had only seen this furious expression on his face once before, and it hadn't been directed towards me.

"Isabella, what the fuck were you thinking?! You should have called me on the way over! I could have been here for you! And what if something bad had happened to the baby, huh? Would I have even been able to help? God, you're becoming so selfish!" he screamed so loudly a security guard came over and asked if everything was alright.

I waved him off but he glared at Edward one last time before walking away.

Edward started pacing and tugging at his hair. Anytime anyone yells at me, it makes me cry. And I was trying as hard as I could to keep the tears at bay.

"Edward, I'm sorry. You're right and I don't know what else to say besides that I'm sorry," I admitted.

He paused in his pacing to look back at me with pain in his eyes.

"I'm not wrong about how selfish you've been lately, Bella. I have done everything that you've asked of me. I've been to every doctor appointment and I'm there for you through it all. The only thing I had asked of you is to marry me, to make us officially a family. I respected your decision but this has gone too far. What the hell gives you the idea that you can just come here by yourself when that's my child too?" he said in a much quieter voice than earlier, which was much more threatening.

I didn't have an answer and that made him even angrier.

"Did you sign the discharge papers? Because I'm not staying in this damn hospital longer than I need to," he stated.

I nodded and put my regular clothes back on. Instead of helping, he just watched helplessly from the corner. As we were leaving the hospital, I reached for his hand but he pulled away. The drive home was silent and awkward, his anger still tangible.

Once we arrived to the apartment I looked over my discharge instructions. Dr. Crow had decided not to put me on bedrest, but I couldn't do more than go to school and work. She explained that since my job only took place at a desk that it would be fine, as long as I didn't try to lift anything more than five pounds.

Edward took the papers once I was done reading and slammed the bedroom door behind in. I sat on the couch and put my head into my hands. Angela had been right from the beginning and I should have listened to her. Since I got the feeling that Edward would be holed up in the bedroom for a while, I decided to call my mom and ask for advice.

"Bella, it's so nice to hear your voice! What's going on honey?" she asked.

The familiar warmth that I always got from talking to my mom returned. Even though it wasn't ideal for me to live with her, just talking to her made me feel at home.

I explained everything that had happened that day, and after reassuring her several times that the baby is okay and that I am too, she took a deep breath.

"Edward was a bit harsh in what he said at the hospital, but it doesn't sound unjustified. Charlie and I promised that we would raise you to be independent, which you are. But there comes a time in your life where you have to learn to rely on someone else, and that's not always a bad thing.

"I wish I had learned to rely on your father more after you were born, but I'm a very stubborn woman. And I think that's partly what led to the divorce. I still love your father, Bella, and I wish it could have worked out. But it just wasn't in the cards. But you and Edward have a much stronger bond and it wouldn't surprise me you're soulmates. Give him some space to sort things out in his head, then go to him and explain everything once he's calmed down," she explained.

Even with my mother being on her third marriage, she sure had a way with words. I thanked her and told her how much I loved her before walking back out into the living room. I jumped slightly when I saw Edward sitting on the couch.

He looked up at me and I could tell he had been crying. I walked overly slowly and wrapped my arms around him, and he wrapped one around me in return.

"Bella, you know I love you. You scared me to death when I got your phone call, and seeing you in person brought out all of that anger that I had been repressing lately. So, I'm giving you an ultimatum," he murmured.

I looked up at him curiously, slightly afraid of what it would be. He rubbed his face and moved over a little to give himself some space.

"I will always be here for my child. I love her and nothing will ever change that. But if you want to continue what we have, you're going to have to marry me, Bella. Otherwise, I'll still live with you to help raise her, but not as a couple," he stated flatly.