Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. Stephenie Meyer owns anything and everything relating to Twilight. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended and in order to keep it that way, No reproduction, copying, reposting, downloading, or any kind of redistribution of this story is allowed. This is to cover my arse as much as yours! And finally, the Original characters, plot, names, nicknames, songs, poems—anything I created from my very own brain—are all the property of the author of this fanfic, My-Bella. Unauthorized use of the material is plagiarism so please be kind and don't steal my creations.
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Chapter 47 – Say Cheese!
Wednesday, August 13th
Bella pushed away the loose tendrils of her sweaty hair that the warm breeze had blown into her face. It would have been more comfortable to read over the materials indoors in the air conditioning rather than this heat as she sat on the patio table but she doubted there would have been much reading happening with the current noise level in there. They'd gotten back to Gordon's Bay early and they were off tomorrow so everyone was letting loose and unwinding—everyone but her.
Day after tomorrow, she would be taking the biggest risk of her life. She would be entering the waters of False Bay with nothing between her and the Great Whites but a metal cage. And Edward. Always Edward.
He'd begun planning for this dive pretty much from the moment she'd told him she wanted to do it. Days of research had gone into predicting the optimum day for the optimum weather and the optimum sight range. When he wasn't researching for the dive, he was preparing her for it with statistics, photos, videos, and personal accounts from each team member of what it was like to face a Great White in its lair.
After taking everything he'd shared into consideration, she'd still decided the dive was the next step for her, both personally and professionally. A small part of her hoped it would put an end to her nightmares but she wasn't counting on it. What she hoped to really gain was control and experience. She had no illusions that she would have a perfect dive and never be afraid at any point. In fact, she was betting on the exact opposite, but she was also sure she could control her anxiety and complete the mission.
The patio door opening seeped into her consciousness but in a "that's a noise" way rather than a fully aware "who's coming out here" awareness.
"Bella, can we talk?" Edward asked.
"Almost done." Although she'd heard and answered the question, she had not given her full attention or she would have noticed Edward's antsy movements in the patio doorway. She wasn't being inattentive on purpose; she just couldn't pull her attention away from the detailed plan she was going over. It was the most important plan of her life so far—her entire future weighed on this event.
"Lizzy needs to go out so now would be a good time to get away and talk. We can't do it inside because of the noise and I don't want to do it out here with such a big chance of getting interrupted."
"The next walk. Promise."
"What?"
"I'll go on the next walk. I need to finish this."
"Fine but when I get back we're talking."
"Yeah, okay. Sounds good," she responded as she flipped to the next page.
She kept on reading until she reached the end and then she flipped back to the beginning to start over. She was trying to look at it from every angle the way that Edward always did, hoping it would bolster her confidence in herself.
She was in the middle of the breakdown for entering the water when she heard Edward's voice. "Bella, we need to talk."
"I thought you were taking Lizzy for a walk?" In her absorbed state what had actually been close to fifteen minutes had felt like a few seconds.
"I did that and now we need to talk."
"Can it wait a few more minutes?"
"No. I need to know."
The audible stress in his voice had her head jerking up and her eyes and attention focusing solely on him. "What do you need to know?"
He took a step toward her but then backtracked, deciding instead to stay put and sink his hands into his hair. "I don't … Things won't go wrong. I know they won't. The plan is solid. You're ready. The team is ready. But if—if something went wrong, I need to know you … Fuck, this is hard to say right!"
He looked away from her and out to the water, a behavior she'd come to know as one of self-comfort. If only she knew what he was trying to say, then she could help calm him down.
She thought humor might work now as it had in the past so she quoted Finding Nemo to him. "Look, you're really cute, but I can't understand what you're saying."
He reacted by growing tenser, his hands rolling into tight fists and making his arms look like impenetrable slabs of marble.
Since humor had failed so miserably, she went for complete honesty. "Edward, I want to answer your question but I don't know what it is yet. Could you please ask me again?"
"When we were with Colossus, and I … when I got hit, you—" He turned to face her, his misery covering his face and his words. "You were leaving. I still don't know why you didn't but you were going to leave. I need to know if things go wrong on Friday that you'll stay. I need to know you won't leave me."
She leaned forward enough to grab his fisted hand and give his arm a tug. "Come here."
He didn't budge. "I want you to execute the dive. You're ready and you'll do great and nothing will go wrong. I know that. I believe that with everything in me and I don't want anything about this conversation to wreck your confidence. I feel bad enough having this talk at all because I'm the mentor and it's my job to reassure you but that doesn't stop me from needing to know."
"If you want to know, then come here," she said, tugging at his arm again.
She got him to stand between her legs and then she hooked her legs around his and put his hands on her hips, hopefully removing any urge he might get to walk away. At the very least, it would slow him down.
"First of all, you don't have a single thing to feel bad about," she assured him. "We are more than mentor and mentee so things can't be one-sided between us. We have to be here for each other on every level.
"Secondly, my confidence is fine. In fact, it's been bolstered by this talk because I know we would not be having this conversation if you weren't still going over every single detail in your head."
She paused, having found the first two answers incredibly easy to come by. But this third had to be handled delicately because it was the big one, the one that would either put his mind at ease or set him further into his tailspin of apprehension.
"Edward, we are not the people we were when we worked with Colossus. The girl I was then, she had every intention of leaving. She was terrified of the sharks, afraid of what she felt for you, and all but certain she'd never know your true feelings for her. The reason she stayed was because you didn't want to let her go. Leaving wasn't truly what she'd wanted, just the only option she'd thought she had until you admitted your feelings."
His fingers twitched and then tightened against her hips in response to her words.
"The people we are today, Edward and Kapu, we have grown so much. We've grown together and individually, and we are far from done. I'm still afraid of some species of shark but I won't let that fear stop me. I love everything I feel for you and every feeling you inspire in me. And that oddly enough includes when you annoy me because it means you're more comfortable with me, less afraid to make some fatal mistake around me. I know your true feelings. I know you're sure. I know I'm your kapu. I know you love me so much that you will never let me go.
"Having said all that, there's something I need you to know … Edward, you are loved with that same fierceness and no bad day on the boat or in life in general will ever be strong enough to make me let go of you." Bella not only saw the release of tension in his body, she felt it everywhere they touched. It was followed by the biggest, heaviest sigh she'd ever witnessed and then a very shy smile graced his face.
"Whit must be seriously slacking," she teased. "Your conversations with him may not calm you but you're usually much more coherent."
His lips turned up in a real smile. "I didn't talk to Whit first this time. I came straight to you, even though you kept trying to ignore me."
She shrugged in response to his teasing. "You shouldn't have written such a riveting plan."
Instead of the laugh she'd expected, he reacted with a deep frown and creased forehead. "I had to make sure it was the best plan for your needs and challenges. I want this dive to be a success for you."
"It will be," she assured him. She rubbed her hands along his arms, hoping the rhythmic movement would help calm him. "Whether our dive is issue-free or something unexpected happens, it's an experience that will help me to grow. You've prepared me for this moment, Edward. We've discussed the pros and cons of doing the dive at all. We've watched videos of both clean and bad dives. We've talked about the risks physically and emotionally if the cage is battered or bitten. We've even jokingly argued about who will leave the cage with the best pictures.
"Because of your diligence, I am well aware of what can happen both good and bad, and if I wasn't a thousand percent sure I'm ready for all of the eventualities facing me, then I wouldn't even consider the dive. But I am prepared. You have given me all the knowledge I need to make an informed decision and I choose to further my career by completing this dive."
He let out another heavy sigh and then braced his hands on the table top so he could rest his forehead against hers. "Just so I know that you are completely clear about this, I'm going to say it one more time. You don't have to cage dive as a requirement of MMR. Sharks are not our sole focus and there will be other chances to join us in the water."
She softly stroked his stubble while answering him. "Just so you know and are completely clear about this, I'm going to remind us both that no matter what marine life we are studying, the fact is that sharks are everywhere in the oceans. However harmless the dolphins or sea turtles may be, there will always the possibility of a shark joining our expedition. Therefore, learning to remain composed in the water is important in all environments we enter."
"You're doing it again. Being too logical for me to argue."
She smiled and teased him by saying, "You're in a relationship now, Edward. You have to share everything with me, including the logic."
He smirked and slowly slid his eyes along her body. "What about what you share? Do I get to pick? I've got plenty of ideas."
She smacked his shoulder. "Behave. And no. You can't be trusted with so much power."
He grew serious once more. "You're really okay with me needing your assurance?"
"Yes because I know this isn't about trusting me. This is about loving me so deeply that you can't help but want to protect what we have above all else. You had a legitimate concern based on my past behavior and you brought it to my attention so we could talk it out together. That's exactly what you're supposed to do in a balanced relationship."
The patio door slid open and Whit stumbled out of it laughing and cursing at Gopher. He took one look at Bella and Edward's position and smirked. "Maybe my job won't be that hard after all. I was sent out here with the very formidable task of getting you two to stop working and come spend time with the family. Do a little dance, make a little love—in your own room later—get down tonight. What do you say?"
Bella snorted. "With a tempting offer like that, how could we refuse?"
"Like this—No," Edward said as he pressed down on Bella's hips to keep her on the table top.
"Mase, your lady love wants to have some fun. Who are you to deny her that?"
"Her boyfriend. Now go away. We'll be in when we finish talking."
Whit looked between them a few times before fixing his focus on Bella. "Please tell me his overprotective ass is talking to you about his concerns."
Bella gasped and then smacked Edward in the chest. "You told me you didn't talk to him."
"I didn't," Edward defended. "He just knows shit." He leaned to the side and tried to punch Whit's shoulder but he was just out of reach. Whit's laughter for the miss nearly drowned out Edward's words. "He always knows."
"I see all, I know all," Whit promised. "And I know you two need to enjoy some quality family time and give your brains and bodies some relief and time to recuperate before the big dive."
Bella tugged at Edward's shirt to get him to look at her. "He's got a point."
Edward sighed and gave in. "Give us a few minutes to finish our discussion," he said to Whit.
"You get five and then Gopher and I are coming out to haul you in." Whit headed back inside, closing the door behind him.
"What else did you want to talk about?" Bella questioned.
Edward's response was further proof he was looking at all sides of this because it was about feelings and not logic. "Actually, I wanted to know if there was anything you needed to hear from me."
She smiled and caressed his stubble with her palms. "Two things. That you'll be right there with me and that you love me."
"Aloha Au Ia 'Oe, Kapu. I'll be with you every single step of the dive and do everything in my power to make it a good experience."
She pulled his lips to hers to seal his promise with a kiss and he did not disappoint, diving right in and quickly rendering her senseless with the intensity of his passion. The warmth of his hands on her lower back felt so good and she suddenly wanted nothing more than to feel those hands in other places on her body.
"Time's up," Gopher bellowed from right beside them, making them both jump.
"You. Are. Dead," Edward said in a scary calm tone.
"Oh, shit!" Gopher cried, already turning tail and running toward the doorway.
Edward was faster and grabbed him by the shoulders before he could get a foot inside. Gopher shrieked like a pre-pubescent boy and they basically fell into the house in a heap. Bella jumped up from the table and ran after them, finding them rolling around on the floor with Whit yelling out wrestling moves for them to try.
Bella took her binder inside and tucked into a shelf for safe keeping, and then quickly crossed to the safe zone of the kitchen where Lee had her music turned up while she prepped dinner. "Is this really what they consider quality family time?" Bella questioned.
Lee snorted. "This is how they let off steam. Another half hour of that and then they'll be docile, sweet boyfriends who only want to cuddle with us while watching a movie."
"So the human equivalent to a whale buffet for sharks. Interesting."
Lee stopped what she was doing and stared at Bella in disbelief. "You made a shark joke."
Bella shrugged. "It seemed more like an accurate comparison to me, but I'm good with you taking it as a joke."
"Oh, Guppy," Lee said with a laugh. "I'm so damn glad you're sticking around permanently."
"Me too."
"Bella, we need an impartial referee," Whit beckoned from the living room.
"Hey!" Alice cried. "I'm standing right here."
"And you'll vote White even as he's being counted out," Edward told her.
"Alice, you can help by tapping that foot of yours to keep count," Gopher offered.
"There's still time, you know," Lee murmured to Bella. "You can decide to run from all this crazy instead of embracing it."
Bella grinned. "I'd be crazy to even try leaving all this."
"Good answer, Guppy. Damn good answer," Lee said as she hooked an arm around Bella's shoulders and gave her a quick hug.
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Thursday, August 14th
Masen initially believed the ringing sound was coming from his dream of losing another phone to the ocean. But the feel of Bella's knee in his back and her mumbled yell of "Make it stop" convinced him it was very real and coming from his actual phone.
He reached out blindly and managed to snag the device on the second try. He popped one eye open to check the caller ID; Esme's name had him sitting up in a hurry and fighting to untangle his foot from the twisted bed sheet, a reminder of his long and satisfying night with his kapu—and the reason for him sleeping so hard this morning.
Finally out of the bed, Masen hurried over to the door, planning to take the call outside on the patio so Bella could sleep and he could talk to his mom without interruption.
He flung the door open and was stunned into stillness.
Esme lifted a finger and placed it over her huge self-satisfied grin. She took hold of his arm and led him out to the patio where Carlisle was sitting in the dawn's soft light with Lizzy perched in his lap and three cups of steaming coffee sitting on the table.
Masen finally came out of his stupor and grabbed hold of his mom, hugging her so fiercely that her feet completely lost contact with the ground.
"Woah, Kid. Don't squish the merchandise so hard," she cautioned while laughing.
"You're home," was all he said as he eased up enough to set her feet down.
She now had the ability to get her arms around his neck and she did just that, hugging hard and whispering "missed you" to him. She kissed his cheek and then released her hold but his held just as tight as ever. "Sweetheart, you can let go. I'm home for the rest of the expedition."
His hold remained but he did release what was going through his mind. "I didn't know how much I needed you to be here until I was hugging you."
"Lucky for you my mom senses were tingling," she joked. She then gave him another hard hug. "I'll always be here for you when you need me."
They hugged for a little while longer and then joined Carlisle at the table. Masen had to wrap both of his hands around his coffee cup to fight the need he felt to hold his mom's hand.
Esme either picked up on his tension or felt some of her own because she pried one of his hands loose and kept it in hers on the table top.
He gave her a grateful smile in response. He also remembered his manners—and what Esme would do to him for forgetting. "Carlisle, it's good to see you. I know Bella and Alice will be happy to have you here."
Carlisle smiled while looking to Esme. "There's nowhere more important for us to be."
It dawned on Masen that Carlisle was here for Bella the same as Esme was for him. "Carlisle, I promise no one pressured Bella into this choice. In fact, I think I did a better job at discouraging her than Alice and that's saying a lot."
Carlisle chuckled. "Oh, I'm well aware of what Bella has been told by everyone here. I received a full briefing, two rants, and five requests to give my blessing under the condition that I truly meant it."
Masen winced. "Was I a rant?"
"Oh, you were most definitely a rant," Esme answered with a laugh.
"But not for the reason you might be imagining," Carlisle cautioned. "Bella greatly appreciates the way you've presented her both sides of the coin—or dive as it were. It was being locked out of your project room that had her displeased."
Masen honestly couldn't stop himself from snorting. "I'm going to guess she didn't tell you why she got locked out."
"No, no," Carlisle replied with a chuckle. "She admitted her folly. She had no choice once I asked for her thoughts on what had caused your reaction. I may also have reminded her that I've spent enough time with you to know your choices are rarely split second decisions."
"Such a rookie mistake," Esme mused. "Asking questions during the creation of the rough draft is absolutely poking the shark with a spear."
"Her curiosity has often gotten her into trouble," Carlisle shared.
Masen nodded in agreement. "Her need to know completely overrules everything else."
"Answer me honestly, Edward. Is that happening now with this dive?" Carlisle questioned.
"Not at all," Masen assured him. "She doesn't want to dive just to know what it's like. She wants to step out of her comfort zone, test all of the skills and controls she's learned this summer. I think more than anything, this about conquering her fear in a way that lets her finally have what she's always wanted—to work in the ocean."
"I noticed in the plan that you have an entire section devoted to instinctual anxiety-driven reactions. I'm curious as to why the suggested way to handle it is the same for all instances—to surface immediately."
Masen licked his lips, trying to pick alternate words to speak to a concerned father and not an informed teammate. "In any area of life it's always more dangerous to have a reaction completely outside of your control. When you add in a rush of adrenaline, the danger increases ten-fold because the rush can mask other sensations, such as pain from an injury or stress to a heart. While I have seen remarkable progress from Bella on controlling her anxieties, I don't believe it's safe to test her control during her first cage dive. I would rather have us surface and remove her from the situation than risk any emotional or physical harm coming to her. She was angry with me for placing this condition at first, but after I explained how a bad reaction could lead to a complete set-back, she agreed with my decision."
"Sounds like Bella's head is in the right place," Esme said as she gave Carlisle a reassuring smile.
"It was never that I doubted you, my love," he replied while slipping his hand around hers.
"Of course not," she agreed. "We all need a little reassurance with our loved ones about to embark on such a huge adventure." She then turned her attention to Masen. "What about you, Kid? Where is your head?"
Masen ran a hand through his hair and let out a breath. "I'm trying. It's hard to balance safety and protection this time. But I'm doing my best and Bella and I talked about what happens if things go wrong." He shrugged and said the part that felt truest at the moment. "I'm trying."
"What's troubling you the most?"
He took a moment to organize his thoughts. "The possibility that she has a severe enough setback that she wants to leave. She promises she won't and I trust her, I do, but at the same time I've seen how unforeseen circumstances change people."
"No, sweetheart. You've seen circumstances reveal people and that is a very big and very real distinction," Esme corrected, giving his hand a calming squeeze.
"Masen, you know our Bella well enough to have seen the depth of her conviction in all of her choices. What do you imagine the multiplier to be when you consider your role in her life is much more than a choice?" Carlisle questioned.
"Think about it, Kid," Esme encouraged. "You aren't with her simply because you made a choice. You made a commitment and that holds enough power to ward off all kinds of mishaps and mistakes."
"But this isn't a simple dive, Mom. It's facing her past, furthering her future, testing her resolve, putting her self-confidence at risk—It's a fifty-fifty shot either way."
He felt Bella's hand on his shoulder a second before he heard her voice. "It's not fifty-fifty, though." After greeting her uncle and Esme—and taking Lizzy into her arms—Bella sat with Masen in his chair and directed her comments to all of them. "Nothing's ever so cut and dry that it can easily be split down the middle. While the pros and cons might measure up on paper, the final results never fall so squarely.
"So let's just say that we have our worst case scenario and a shark rams the cage. We're going to surface. That's been non-negotiable from the start for Edward. I can't imagine I wouldn't be upset but I also know I'll have my team and my family right there to help me calm down.
"I'll be able to say I braved shark infested waters, which Gopher has assured me is a very prestigious statement to make." She paused just to let Masen see her smile. "I'll also have had an experience that many people spend their whole lives dreaming of and wishing they could have. Most of all, I'll know that if I could do it once and survive it, then I can do it again. Not right away. Probably not within the same year. But one day, when I feel ready again, I'll know I can trust myself to do it."
"Bug, it sounds as though you are sure this is the right course of action for you to take," Carlisle said, looking very much a proud father in that moment.
"I am. I'm sure it's what I want and I believe it's going to be worthwhile for me and my team."
"Well then," Carlisle said as he stood. "You're going to need your favorite wetsuit for this."
Bella's eyes widened. "You brought it?"
Carlisle chuckled at her exuberance while nodding. "Along with your flippers and mask. I know there's plenty of equipment on the boat but I thought having your own might be good luck."
Bella handed off Lizzy and hopped up from Masen's lap to go to her uncle, throwing her arms around his neck and nearly knocking them both over with the force of her hug.
"Careful, Bella. I still need him for a while yet," Esme joked.
"And you'll have me, my love," Carlisle promised her. "Come on, Bug. Let's go unpack your things."
No sooner than the patio door closed, Esme was leaning on the arm of her chair and putting her face right in Masen's. "You were sleeping."
Masen snorted. "Yes, it's a required function of being human."
"Pffft! It's never been more than a guideline for you. So you sleeping can only mean one of two things … that you had a night worth remembering with your kapu or you wore yourself out with your worrying. Which is it?" Esme forced her eyebrows to raise and lower in quick succession. "Did you rock her body all night long?"
"Did you—" Masen threw his hands up in the air out of a mix of shock and frustration. "Why? Why would you quote a Justin Timberlake song to me?"
"Why would you know a Justin Timberlake song?" she countered.
"I have Lee in my life. I don't have a choice once she decides I have to listen to something."
"This is true," Esme conceded. And then she jumped right back to her original question. "So about that reason for your sleeping?"
He couldn't help his cocky smile, not while remembering his hands on Bella's tan skin and the breathy way she'd said his name. "We made some memories. That's all I'm going to say."
"I can tell from that smirk they were good ones. I personally made quite a few myself. In fact, I'd say I exercised plenty on my excursion to Florida."
He smirked and shook his head at her love of sharing with him. "Does Carlisle know you so freely share news of your sex life?"
Esme chuckled. "Yes and he blushes the most adorable shade of petal pink I have ever seen. Of course, he also stands a little taller too so I feel no qualms in being my normal over-sharing self."
"Beth did always say the right guy would overlook your embarrassing ways," Masen teased.
Esme hugged his arm and laid her head on his shoulder. "She also said her special boy would find someone who could love him for his perfection as much as his flaws. I don't know about you, but I'm really fucking glad she was right."
He snorted at her cursing and then kissed the top of her head. "I'm really fucking glad too."
"She'll be watching over you and Bella tomorrow when you dive."
For once, Masen didn't let the comment pass in silence. "I think she's going to be really proud of me."
"Always, Edward. Beth and I are always proud of you."
"One of us has to make her proud since you have the market cornered on embarrassed," he teased.
"You know I can still whip your ass, right?"
He laid his head on hers, smiling with a heart full of love for her. "Thanks for coming home, Mom."
"No place else I'd rather be, Kid."
"~~~^~~~~^~~~^~~~~^~~~^~~~~^"
Friday, August 15th
Esme's POV
It was an early and busy morning aboard Galeos. Edward, Whit, and Lee were going over the plan, Gopher was rigging up a last minute idea of Edward's, Bella was making coffee, and Alice was sleeping in while Esme and Carlisle watched over all of the action from their seats at the kitchen island.
"Lizzy, no!" Gopher admonished, leaning down to put his face near hers. "No means no, young lady. Stop it or you'll end up downstairs."
Lizzy licked his cheek and then sat down beside him. Esme could tell from the look on her face that the puppy wanted another go at the thick rope, but she stayed put and watched Gopher continue his check of the knots in the rope.
"Again." Edward's voice had Esme focusing her attention on him. He was still pacing in front of the booth where Lee and Whit were sitting. She doubted he'd sit down, much less sit still, until sometime late tonight.
"First task is to verify the conditions," Whit relayed. "Gopher and I check our gear and tanks, suit up, and go in the cage. We take note of visibility, drag, and temperature. We surface, get our gear off, pull the cage out, and report our findings."
"Meanwhile I go over the current weather conditions and pull the latest forecast reports and compare them all to last night's projections," Lee added. "Any deviations are immediately reported."
"And once we know the weather is cooperating, Masen and I re-check the cage and re-verify every nut and bolt is in place and tightened to its maximum capacity," Whit shared.
Edward stated his task while continuing his pacing. "After that, Gopher and I will be checking the air in the tanks and inspecting the scuba gear. Bella's going to use her own gear this time and I want to make sure it's all up to our standards."
Carlisle lowered his newspaper and leaned in to ask Esme a question. "How many times do you think Masen will ask them to repeat themselves?"
"This will probably be the last since no one has missed a word of their task. With so many personalities on the team, Edward had to find a way to prepare that worked for everyone. For this team it turned out to be 'repeat it until you remember it'."
Bella approached the booth at that moment with a tray of coffee mugs. "Do you want me to repeat mine again?" she asked as she settled in beside Whit and Lee.
Edward nodded while taking a big gulp from his mug. He suddenly came to a complete stop and then proceeded to spit the coffee back into the cup. "I thought you said you were making coffee? This crap is not coffee. Where's my caffeine? I need my caffeine."
Bella was unfazed by his behavior. "You need to drink up because that's all you're getting."
"This is bullshit," he muttered as he set the cup down on the table.
Bella gave him a smile that was equal parts amusement and kiss-my-ass. "The words you're searching for are 'Thank you, Bella, for looking out for me like the loving, supportive, awesome girlfriend that you are'."
Whit and Lee finally lost their hold on their laughter and cackled gleefully. Gopher only smirked from his spot by the sofa, knowing this was not one of those safe times to jump into the fray. Esme kept her lips pressed together, fully aware that her laughter in the mix would only make her son more stubborn and agitated. Carlisle looked completely confused on how to react and ended up settling on laughing behind his newspaper.
While all of that was going on, Edward and Bella were locked in a stare, him fuming and her smiling. She lifted her eyebrows and widened her smile, daring him to continue his stubborn behavior. Esme worried for a moment that he might but then she saw his shoulders relax.
Bella nudged his coffee cup toward him. "You know full well that Whit changes the coffee on the days when you are ramped up."
"I know," he relented. And then in a purposeful mumble he added, "Didn't think you knew it."
"You're not the only one capable of making and cataloguing observations," she replied. She nudged the cup closer to him and when he still didn't take it, she told him, "It's gonna be worse cold."
Wearing the saddest puppy dog face Esme had ever seen him make, Edward picked up his mug and drank some of his coffee.
Carlisle chuckled beside her. "Those two living together is going to be quite the experience for them."
"Oh, that's putting it so mildly," Esme replied, keeping her laughter quiet.
"Is this his usual behavior on a day when they're diving?" Carlisle asked.
Alice was the one to answer. "No only when it's a new situation or Bella dives." The poor girl's eyes were red and she looked like she hadn't had much sleep at all. While she was outwardly supporting her sister, she was very clearly struggling on the inside.
Esme put her arms around Alice and gave her a tight squeeze. "Perfect timing, sweetheart. You can help me convince your uncle we need his omelet making skills this morning."
Alice perked up slightly. "Did he make you his cheesy bacon omelet with sweet potato hash?"
Carlisle snorted. "She had three helpings."
"Two helpings," Esme refuted. In that same mumbling tone Edward had used earlier, Esme made an admission. "And not quite half of his."
"You must have two stomachs to have eaten all of that," Alice joked. "I usually have to eat one or the other and save the rest for later."
"In my defense, it had been a long time since we'd last eaten and I was famished," Esme shared.
Alice looked between Esme and Carlisle and then grinned cockily. "I get it. Refueling. And you probably burned away at least half the calories right after."
"Oh at least," Esme agreed, giving a conspiratorial wink to Carlisle.
He immediately turned that adorable shade of petal pink she loved and cleared his throat. "Yes, well, shouldn't we be listening to the preparations going on?"
"Why? You can just read about it if you really want to know," Alice told him as she fixed herself a cup of coffee. "That big expanding file folder over there will tell you everything."
"How do you know that?" he questioned.
Alice had just swallowed her coffee and was in the middle of reconciling the taste she'd expected with the one she got. "Decaff. Masen must be wired for sound this morning."
Esme couldn't hold in her laughter at that. Her son, her beautiful, brilliant, confident son thought he was such an enigma and yet these Cullen women had him pegged so perfectly.
"Are you okay, my love?" Carlisle asked, looking truly concerned.
Esme nodded. "Fine. Fine. Just got my funny bone tickled is all."
"Was it something I said?" Alice asked.
"Errant thought," Esme assured her. "You were explaining the folder to your uncle," she said, hoping to redirect their attention. Edward would have an absolute fit if he caught them laughing at his expense this morning. His usual ability to laugh at himself disappeared completely whenever he was severely stressed. While she believed he had the utmost confidence in his plan and in Bella, he was also well aware of how quickly plans went astray and it was that small chance of something happening to his kapu that had him so stressed.
"Oh, yeah, so there's one for every day, though they usually aren't so thick," Alice relayed. "There's the plan for the day, at least two backup plans, a list of pros and cons of all the assignments, and then stuff like weather reports and current maps and some other stuff I'm not too sure about. Today's plan has a bunch of extras though because he's been planning this dive for like two weeks."
Carlisle studied Edward for a moment and then shifted his attention to Esme. "It appears the only thing left to chance is the behavior of the sharks."
"Not quite. He has those requirements for surfacing as an attempt at an off-set for their unpredictability," Esme reminded him.
"He truly is a brilliant young man, Esme. You've done a remarkable job raising him."
"That's not his brilliance so much as his need to protect. We are his world and he will be damned if he lets anything take us out of it without a fight."
Alice snorted. "Then those sharks better play nice because when Masen fights for what he believes is right, there's no off switch for that guy."
"Why, Alice, I believe that's the most complimentary statement I've heard you make about Masen," Carlisle told her. "Are you two finally friends?"
"More like frienemies," she answered with a chuckle. Her eyes landed on Edward and after a few seconds of silence she said, "But if I ever need him to have my back when I'm in the right, he'll be there. That's pretty cool."
Esme grinned. "Now do you believe how very loved you are?"
Alice smirked. "Uncle Carl, you better hang on to her. She's pretty awesome."
Carlisle put an arm around Esme and hugged her close. "Don't worry, sweetheart. I have every intention of not letting her get away."
"Pffft," Esme replied. "As if I'd try. That ain't happening."
Alice laughed. "Then just get married already."
"You know, that's not a bad idea," Carlisle replied. "But perhaps it can wait until I've had a chance to ask her properly."
This time Alice snorted loudly. "If you're gonna be proper about it, you'll need to ask Masen for his blessing. Just promise I can be there for the show 'cause I know it's going to be entertaining."
"Now, Alice, what makes you think my son would be difficult?" Esme asked jokingly.
She waved her hands in Edward's direction, indicating all of him.
"Yeah, but we still love him," Esme replied.
"Yeah," Alice agreed. "I don't know what kind of voodoo that is, but it's damn powerful stuff."
Carlisle cracked up at that comment.
Esme looked over at her son, watching him drink the decaf coffee Bella had given him and seeing his secret smile as he listened to Bella flawlessly relay her duties. Elizabeth really would be so proud of him—and his father too. Esme was sure of that even though she'd only known him for a short time. But since they couldn't be here to see the wonderful man their son had become, Esme would just have to be proud for all three of them. "We're lucky to have him."
"And each other," Carlisle added, giving Esme another hug and adding a kiss to her cheek.
"~~~^~~~~^~~~^~~~~^~~~^~~~~^"
With the full scuba gear on, Bella could only hear her breathing and she focused on keeping it even and regular while waiting for her turn to enter the water. This moment was it—her last chance to back out. If she stayed aboard Galeos, she was assured that nothing would happen. She would not come face to face with a shark. She would not be at risk for an injury from a shark. She could pick either of the back up plans and her day could be just like many she'd had already—her day could be predictable.
But she didn't want predictable. Not today. Today she was ready in her head and her heart. Today she was confident. There was no guarantee these feelings would follow into tomorrow or be nearly as strong. There was only this moment and the knowledge that Edward would support her no matter what she chose.
Edward's gloved hand took hold of hers and his voice came through the headset she was wearing. "Kapu, it's time."
She appreciated so much that he hadn't phrased it as a question or asked if she was sure. He had done all that earlier after the morning meeting when they'd reassured each other that this was their path for today. Now he was following her lead and expecting her to do a good job.
"Together," was all she said as she squeezed down on his hand.
He nodded and then they stepped up to the edge of the platform together.
Whit and Gopher were already in the water, waiting to escort them to the cage. They'd do the same later when it was time for them to surface—if they weren't forced to surface early for some reason.
Edward released her hand, turned his back to the water, and then launched himself backwards and into the water with a huge spray. He surfaced quickly and joined Whit and Gopher, waiting for her at the boat's edge.
Bella turned herself around and was just about to jump in when her father's face suddenly filled her mind. He wore his proud smile, a smile she'd earned so many times with good grades and great marine sightings and interesting journal entries. Her opinion on Esme's earlier comment immediately changed and she believed it without a doubt now—her father was watching over her today. And he had good company because Elizabeth was too.
"Guppy, everything okay?" Whit asked into the radio.
She wasn't sure how to answer that so she asked her own question. "Count me down, please?"
"Three. Two. One."
On the one Bella dropped into the water, watching through her mask as she traded light blue sky for greenish-blue water. She came back up and slowly turned until she was facing her teammates and then she swam towards them. Together they dove down and made their way to the metal cage that would be her protection for the next hour.
Edward entered first, as they'd discussed, and then she lowered herself inside, his hand on her hip the entire time until she was beside him. She heard the clack of the metal on metal as Whit and Gopher latched the cage door closed above them. The guys would head back to the boat straight away and then it would just be Bella and Edward in the water for the rest of the time.
"Steady breaths, kapu," Edward directed as he passed her camera to her.
She hadn't realized her breathing had quickened and she immediately forced it to even out. "Which direction should we watch?"
"All until we hear from Gopher. Ten second intervals and always opposite from me so we cover each other's backs."
Gopher would be in charge of Edward's latest invention—a giant tug-of-war rope for a shark that Gopher would wield from the deck of Galeos. Edward had gotten the idea night before last from one of Lizzy's chew toys. He'd outfitted an extra boat tie-off rope with inflatable balls and huge knots. The way it would work was that Whit and Lee would search for sharks from the crow's nest. Once one was spotted, Gopher would deploy the rope and try to use it to lead a shark toward the cage. No chumming, no items harmful to the water or the sharks, and light enough to be moved all around without Gopher getting fatigued or needing to be in the water.
In addition to the cameras, Edward had also brought along a tag. He hoped to get a third tag today to give them enough data to be able to make a firm conclusion on what he'd noticed with the very first tag—the sharks were diving down far deeper than what anyone had previously recorded. If this dive hadn't been taking up so much of his time and attention, she was sure Edward would be talking non-stop about the potential ramifications of such a huge discovery.
"Shadow will appear on your left in max thirty seconds," Lee announced.
"Three seals. Look to be heading straight for the island so they shouldn't come any closer," Whit added.
Bella counted silently and at the twenty-eight mark she saw the water darken on her left side. She didn't care for the way the shadow was completely indistinguishable to her eyes. She had really thought it would be easy to tell a pack of seals from a shark; she would have to admit to Edward how right he had been about shapes losing their definition in this water. Thank goodness for Whit and Lee's sharp eyes and the excellent range on their binoculars.
"Ready to admit I was right?" Edward asked. She didn't need to see him to know he was smirking, proud of being proven right with the first sighting.
"I may have over-estimated my ability to adjust to the distance," she allowed.
"Shark coming in from behind you," Whit informed them. "Too small to be a white. Probably a dusky."
"You feel up to being on point for this one?" Edward asked her.
Bella nodded and lifted her camera into position while Edward moved to stand directly behind her. He would literally have watch over her back and sides while she waited for the shark and attempted to photograph it.
It took nearly ten minutes for the shark to finally meander its way close enough to the cage to be photographed. It had a short, pointed snout and a very distinct tail with a large top and short bottom. Its pectoral fins seemed disproportionate to the body, hanging down low and looking more like flappers than fins. The shark also had a deceptive mouth, looking small and not very scary but Bella knew that if it wanted, it could unhinge that jaw and dig into prey with razor sharp teeth. The teeth appeared smooth and falsely led you to believe the only point was at the tip. The truth was that little serrations covered each side of the tooth, a useful design for tearing and rending flesh from bone.
She shivered at that last observation and decided she had captured enough pictures of the shark. "Your turn, Edward."
"On three, we switch. One. Two. Three."
They smoothly transitioned so that Edward studied the shark while Bella watched the open water.
Right away Edward began dissecting what he was seeing. "Estimated to be six-and-a-half feet long. No visible scars or hook marks. Typical bullet-shaped pupil for this species." Edward paused for a long moment. "I take back the earlier scar notation. There's a thick scar running across the lower lobe of the caudal fin. May have been a bad hook by a fisherman. Could also be from having gotten caught in netting and tearing itself free. Overall, beautiful specimen of a dusky."
Edward grew quiet again and after some time passed without him speaking or the shark swimming past her, Bella took a quick peek over her shoulder—and could not believe what she was seeing. Edward had his arm outside of the cage and was brushing his gloved hand along the side of the shark as it swam parallel to the cage.
She opened her mouth to scream at him and ask him what the hell he was doing but she stopped herself and pushed her lips closed. She wanted to close her eyes too but she had to keep watch, especially now that her shark loving boyfriend was freaking petting a shark in the wild. He is not in danger, she told herself. He is not technically doing anything dangerous. He would be doing this with anyone else in the cage with him. This is a good thing. This means his work isn't being impacted by my presence and—
"Coming around to your side, kapu," Edward warned.
The shark stuck around long enough to circle the cage twice and then swam off into the distance.
"The dusky is gone," Edward informed the rest of the team. "Anything else spotted yet?"
"Possibly but still a little far out to tell," Lee replied. "Give us a few minutes for it to get in range."
"Kapu, how are you?" he asked.
"I'm fine." She winced at the squeak in her voice. She felt his tap on her shoulder and turned her head to see him.
He set his camera on the cage floor and used his hands to sign, "If you're done, that's fine. You did great and have a lot to be proud of."
She shook her head "no". She was determined to stay long enough to at least see a Great White.
He gave her a thumbs-up then picked up his camera and went back to watching over his side of the cage.
She appreciated him asking privately and not over the radio for everyone to hear. She didn't want to call him out on petting the shark and have him know she'd stopped her watch for those seconds. On the boat, he'd be completely understanding of why she'd done it. Down here, he might take it as inattention and call for them to surface.
Whit's voice came through the radio and Bella was pretty sure the crack in his voice wasn't a reception issue. "Uh … Masen?"
She couldn't see him, but she certainly felt the water around her move from Edward switching to full-alert mode. "How big?" he asked.
"She's an adult for sure. Lee and I—Masen, she's at least sixteen feet."
Edward gripped Bella's arm at the elbow and turned her to face him. "Your call."
"So she's big. So what?" Bella sounded far more confident than she felt but that didn't change her surety that this was the right choice.
"She'll be the width of the cage," Edward warned. "If she so much as nudges the cage, we are damn sure going to feel it."
"I have a good feeling about this," Bella assured him. And she meant it too.
"Alright," he agreed with a nod. "We stay. Whit and Lee, I want constant updates on her location and direction. Gopher, get ready with the rope just in case."
"I'm ready," Gopher responded. "Bella?"
"Yeah, Gopher?"
"You've got this."
She smiled at having his full support behind her. "I'll give her your regards."
"I appreciate the sentiment here but with a shark this large, we need to keep the radio clear for updates," Edward announced.
Bella gave him a thumbs-up for now but as soon as they were on the boat, she would let him know exactly how proud she was of him for phrasing that so nicely rather than just ordering everyone off the radio like he would have done in the past. His people skills had improved so much in the last few weeks.
"Closing in at a slow, measured speed," Whit shared. "She'll be coming up on your right."
"Make that your right-front," Lee corrected. "She seems like she's just out for a stroll, not really staying on a steady course."
"How long?" Edward questioned.
"Two minutes tops at her current speed. You should see her shadow in less than half of that," Lee reported.
Bella's body tensed, ignoring her commands to remain calm. She set her camera down and shook out her hands, hoping it might force her limbs to relax. I have to get it together and it has to be now—right now—because if I'm this tense before we can even see the shadow then Edward is going to call this off and I'll miss my chance to see this shark.
The words "too late" flashed in her mind at the feel of Edward's hand on her shoulder. As she turned her head to meet his gaze, she was all but sure he was going to call for them to surface.
"Go past the immediate thoughts and think about the reasons you want this dive. Find your center," he instructed. "Use your skills," he added, pointing at the camera resting on her flipper covered feet.
Bella nodded and picked up her camera, taking her time to look over the readout and check her settings. When she was done with that, she aimed the camera in the direction the shark would be coming from and watched for it through the viewfinder. I am a researcher. I am here to photograph my subject. I will photograph my subject.
The shadow popped up on her screen and Bella came to a complete stop for a split second. She quickly and calmly recovered, even taking a moment to look straight at the shadow and watch it approach without the aid of the camera.
"She's turning slightly so she may come head-on at you two," Whit cautioned. "It's like she knows you're there and just wants to see what you are."
"She's slowing," Lee informed them. "Could be closer to the two minute mark before she's close enough for her outline to appear defined to you."
It was a little after the two minute mark when the shark turned from a shadow blob to the familiar shape Bella knew from all of her work this summer. Another thirty seconds after that, the shark was close enough to make out its snout and fins. Holy shit! If she's this big blurry, what the hell is she going to be like up close? Bella wondered. I have to get a picture of her. Jacob and Leah will never believe I was in the water with her without a picture. Hell, I'm not going to believe it!
Bella began snapping photos while Edward relayed what they were seeing to the team. "She's approaching us head-on at the moment. She's moving slow, being cautious. From the look of her snout and her pectoral fins, the sixteen foot estimation looks spot on."
"She's beautiful." Bella didn't realize she'd spoken until Edward agreed with her.
"No visible scars at this point but she's not letting me see much of her body," Edward continued. "Hopefully she'll turn once she's at the cage."
"She's slowing again," Lee announced.
"She's watching us," Edward replied. "She's just gliding along and watching us."
In the back of Bella's mind, she was screaming at herself, asking what she thought she was doing, but the rest of her ignored that hysterical voice and moved right up to the bars of the cage to get a better photo.
The longer Bella stood there, the more it seemed the shark was swimming straight towards her. When the shark was almost close enough for Bella to reach out and touch its snout, it opened its mouth just enough to appear to be smiling.
"Fucking unbelievable," Edward shared with laughing. "I swear she's smiling at us. I can't wait for you guys to see these photos. She's gorgeous."
"On your right, your right," Whit yelled. "Came out of nowhere and moving fast."
The shark in front of them turned its head to the right for a moment and then jerked its entire body around, its tail smacking the corner of the cage in its haste to turn and run. Bella gripped the bar to steady herself while waiting for the cage to stop moving.
"Thirty seconds," Whit warned. "It's not slowing, Mase."
Bella swiveled to face the incoming shark, flicked her camera into burst mode, and pressed down on the shutter button.
"Bella, get behind me," Edward ordered.
"I've got this," she argued, shrugging his hand off and re-centering her camera. The blob in front of her was quickly gaining shape and she was not going to miss capturing it on film.
"We've got plenty of photos."
"Not of this shark."
"Fuck you're hard-headed." He hooked one arm around her waist, his camera dangling down against her leg, and used his other arm to grip the bar of the cage.
Gopher's voice was suddenly filling their ears and he did not sound the least bit happy. "Come on you, fucker. See the rope. See it you, angry bastard."
Right as Bella registered what her teammate was saying, she saw the end of the rope dangling to the side of the cage.
"Gopher, back down. Back down now," Edward ordered. "It's too risky. If it grabs that rope, you could go in."
"He's anchored, Mase. Whit and I have him," Lee promised. "Gopher, don't you dare stop."
Bella wasn't sure Gopher had heard any of that exchange because he was still cursing at the shark. "That's it, you little fucker. Follow the rope. Get your angry ass away from that cage. Get away from my family."
The shark missed the cage by a hair, rocking it just with its wake. Bella and Edward watched it chase and bite at Gopher's rope a few times and then the rope suddenly disappeared. The shark circled the spot it had last been, twisting its body back and forth to see all directions at once. Suddenly the shark straightened out and darted toward Galeos, going under the boat and heading for the opposite side.
"Ha ha! I've got this fucker. You two get them out," Gopher commanded.
"We're not leaving you alone," Whit argued.
"I've got this. Get them out before this fucker decides he'd rather go after the cage."
"That's not—"
Whit's voice was replaced by Carlisle's. "I'll stay with Gopher. You two get Bella and Masen out of there."
"What's going on up there? Report," Edward demanded.
Lee's breathless voice answered. "Carlisle's got Gopher's back. We're starting the winch now. Hold on tight and we'll have you right out."
"Take both cameras," Edward directed Bella. As soon as she had them clutched in her hands, he locked his legs around hers and pulled her against his body, locking them both against the back of the cage. "We're ready, Lee."
There was a slight jerk and then the cage began to smoothly rise toward the water's surface. Bella counted down the seconds just to keep her mind occupied; she wasn't ready to process what was going on and it would be safer to do it on the boat anyway.
The cage was halfway out of the water when the angry shark returned. It rammed its snout against the bottom of the cage, right where Bella and Edward's feet had been moments ago. Now she understood why he had them anchored so high up the cage wall.
"Make sure the bumper is in place and tied tight," Edward instructed. "This last bit is going to be a bumpy ride."
"Sorry, Mase. I just couldn't keep him interested," Gopher told him.
"You have nothing to be sorry for, Gopher," Edward replied. "You did everything you could and it's thanks to you that only this last bit will be rough."
"Guppy, how are you doing?" Lee asked.
Bella answered honestly. "All I know for sure is I'm ready to be on the boat."
The cage hit the bumpers more than once and even after it was out of the water the shark tried to grasp the cage in its jaws. It even stupidly rammed the side of the boat! It must have stunned itself that time because it bobbed along the surface a couple seconds and then slowly dove under. Bella watched it all happen through the bottom of the cage while waiting for the top to be opened.
The loud clang of metal on metal had her looking up, her view filled by a large, familiar arm. She had to pass Gopher the cameras first and he made quick work of passing those on.
"Squeeze as hard as you can," Gopher told her as he clamped his hand just below her elbow. "On three. One. Two. Three." He pulled her up while Edward boosted her from below and within seconds she was out of the cage and being passed to Whit and Carlisle.
They both tried to ask her questions and get her gear off but she pushed them away to get to the railing. She had to make sure Edward got out okay.
There was no way Gopher could pull Edward out with the weight of his gear so Edward had to get his gloves, mask, headset, flippers, and tank off all on his own and pass them up one by one. With the gear gone, Gopher was able to pull Edward up and out of the cage. Edward waved everyone back and then he jumped to the deck with Gopher following right behind him.
"Get it off," Bella demanded, pulling at her mask. Her gloved hands slipped right off and she growled in frustration.
Edward's chuckle filled her ears and she looked up to see him using Gopher's headset. "Calm down, kapu. The hard part is over."
Gopher and Whit removed her tank, Carlisle popped off her flippers, Lee and Esme worked on her gloves, and Edward got her mask and headset off of her. Once she was free of her gear, Bella attacked Edward with a fierce hug, wrapping as much of her body around him as she could.
He brushed his lips along her cheek until he reached her ear. "We're fine, kapu. No harm, no foul. Everyone is fine."
She hardly got a chance to enjoy their hug before it became a family hug; Esme and Lee piled on first and were quickly followed by everyone else on deck.
Bella extracted herself from the pile in hopes of getting a moment alone with Edward but she ended up in Esme's arms instead. "I am so damn proud of you, sweetheart. You did such an amazing job and held your own all throughout."
Bella nodded in response, hoping Esme was right about that but not having a clear picture of all that had happened in the last few minutes. Her brain wasn't processing at its usual speed and she figured it was probably some kind of internal panic-prevention mechanism her mind had decided was necessary.
"Bug, are you sure you're okay?" Carlisle asked, getting hold of her and hugging her fiercely.
She wanted to reassure him but she also wanted to be truthful. "I'm alive and uninjured."
"You nearly gave me a heart-attack, you know."
"Pretty sure I nearly gave myself one too."
"No more diving for a year, right? That's what you said?"
"Diving with the intention of seeing a shark," she corrected.
"If my hair turns gray—"
Esme interrupted at that moment. "You'll look debonair and it will be even harder to keep the looky-loos away from you."
Before they all headed inside, there were more separate hugs for Bella from Lee, Gopher, and Whit, and then another group hug with just the MMR team, and one more hug just between Bella and Edward.
Lizzy met them at the door; she went after Edward first and once she got a couple good licks in to his face, she deserted him to give her affection to Bella. Bella couldn't help laughing at Edward's pout, knowing it was easily a fifty-fifty mix of teasing and seriousness.
With Lizzy settled in her arms, Bella noticed Alice waiting for them. Her little sister was vibrating in place with tears streaming down her face—she must have been listening to the radio chatter. Bella braced herself for one hell of a hug and found it was only half the force it usually was because Alice was hugging Edward as well.
"Towels!" Alice loudly announced through her sniffles. "I have towels for you two." She grabbed them from the back of the booth and passed them over. Bella tried to get it around her but Lizzy thought it was a game and kept tugging it off until Esme stepped in and took the puppy.
"Should we sit?" Carlisle asked, adjusting Bella's towel on her shoulders. "Can you sit? Is there something else that's supposed to be going on?"
"A breather is in order after all of that," Edward responded. "Sit, stand, whatever makes you feel comfortable."
Carlisle dropped down onto the sofa and let out a long breath. "What a day."
Lee snorted. "We're just getting started. We've got another dive planned for after lunch."
"Do you want to sit?" Edward asked Bella.
"Do you?" she countered.
"Hell no," he said with a laugh. "Too much adrenaline."
"Same here." Bella blew out a breath and as she did, it really hit her that she'd photographed that angry shark instead of bracing for impact—and Edward had let her. "What is wrong with you?" she yelled, trying to slap his chest and instead having her hand slip off his wetsuit.
He laughed at her. "What did I do?"
"You let me keep taking pictures of that crazy shark."
"Let you? Kapu, do you need me to play the audio back for you? 'Let you' wasn't even an option. And besides, you didn't do anything any other team member wouldn't have done."
"Not me," Lee piped up. "My ass would have been hiding behind you, Mase."
"I'd have stood my ground but I can't guarantee I wouldn't have soiled my wetsuit," Whit admitted.
"What about you?" Edward asked Gopher.
Gopher grinned. "Pleading the fifth."
"Say what you want," Edward encouraged. "No repercussions on this one."
Gopher's smile widened. "I know we don't advocate the attempt of it, but I would have put my fist in the path of that little bastard."
Edward and Whit looked at each as if asking the other to confirm they'd really just heard those words. "This guy," Whit said, chuckling as he pointed his thumb at Gopher.
"I have no words." Edward looked to Gopher and then chuckled. "As entertaining as it would be to watch you try it, I feel it's my responsibility to tell you that you'd most likely do more damage to your hand than the shark at the speed he was moving."
While Bella was giggling at the image of Gopher punching a shark, the weird calm that had been surrounding her all this time suddenly evaporated and the enormity of all that had happened crashed down on her, causing her to become light-headed and sway on her feet.
"There's the crash I was waiting for," Edward said as he lowered her onto the sofa next to her uncle.
"Those sharks—that one was so big and could have done anything it wanted. And the other! The other was psychotic! What if it hadn't followed Gopher's rope? Why was it acting like that at all? What if it hadn't let us get the cage out of the water?" Bella could feel her eyes were too wide and her voice too high but each time she almost had control of herself, a new scary thought hit her and knocked it away.
"Breathe, Bella," Edward ordered, kneeling in front of her and rubbing her hands between his. "Just breathe and listen to my voice. Try to understand what I'm saying. The big female could technically have done anything but she didn't. She was respectful of us, just like we were respectful of her. The smaller male—pretty sure it was a male with that much aggression—it was probably being territorial. He wasn't very big so he probably goes for a big flashy show to protect his turf. I know the shark seemed capable of doing a lot of damage but I promise the cage could have taken it. As far as getting out of the water, it would have happened one way or another. If we'd had trouble getting the cage completely out, we would have gotten up high enough to climb out the top."
"Don't focus on the scary part," Lee said, laying her hand on Bella's arm. "Focus on the outcome. You had a successful shark dive. You completed all of your researcher duties and then some. You worked side-by-side with Masen and neither of you were distracted even for a moment."
"I did." The first time she said it, Bella didn't completely believe it. But as parts of the dive replayed in her head, her belief and her confidence began to grow. "I did," she said again, this time in a strong voice and looking directly at Edward. "I was successful. We were successful."
"We were," he agreed, gifting her with that same proud smile he'd given her the day she'd touched Bruce.
"I'm freaking out a little," she admitted.
"I think it's just your brain catching up with everything that happened. Either way, it's not a panic attack."
"No, it's definitely not." She felt the smile forming on her face and felt the urge to pinch herself to make sure all of this was real and not a dream. "I did a cage dive with three sharks."
"Hell yeah, you did," Edward agreed with a chuckle. "High five right here," he added, holding his hand out to her.
Bella managed a pretty good high-five for having shaky limbs.
"Oh I want some of this!" Gopher exclaimed, putting his big hand right in front of Bella. "Give me a good one, Guppy."
She did just as he asked, laughing at the noodle feel of her arm as she smacked her hand against his.
"Guppy, I'm jealous," Whit announced. "Your first cage dive and first shark dive and the damn girl poses and smiles for you. Fess up! How'd you do it? Did you tell her to say 'cheese'?"
Gopher chuckled and said, "That was just her way of letting Guppy know sharks are friends, not food."
"A shark smiling for my sister," Alice said, looking as completely outdone with the situation as she sounded. "I can't even begin—just … whatever."
"Why are you so shocked?" Lee asked her. "Of course Bella's first dive would include a friendly, smiling shark. How the hell else could we convince her to do it again? And again. And again. And—"
Alice actually had the balls to toss a throw pillow at Lee. "You're kind of an ass sometimes, you know."
Lee snorted and tossed the pillow back to Alice. "That's all charm, little sister."
"This is either really good or really bad. I can't tell," Bella said as she looked from Lee to Alice and back again.
"Forget them," Edward told her, gently holding her face in his large hands. "How are you?"
"There's so much in my head—I don't know where to start," she admitted.
"I'm listening whenever you're ready," he promised.
"I know, I just—" She set her elbows on her knees and hid her face behind her hands, hoping a little isolation might calm her enough to explain herself.
"Masen, might I make a suggestion?" Carlisle questioned.
"Of course," Edward answered.
"Distraction often helps to refocus her mind. Asking her what she liked about the first two sharks will help alleviate her anxiety over the third and give her perspective."
"Kapu," Edward called, coaxing her hands apart so he could see her face. "What do you think about sharing your thoughts on the dusky shark and the female Great White?"
"I'd rather talk about you petting the dusky," she countered.
He grinned and there was actually a little guilt lurking in the corners. "Saw that, huh?"
"Did you feel that was an acceptable risk because it was on the small side?"
"That entered into the choice but it was more the calmness of the shark. Had it jerked away at the first touch, I would have left it alone. But it seemed like it actually enjoyed it since it passed against my hand twice before moving on."
"I don't like how deceptive it looked. It seemed almost innocent with its small mouth, like the kind of shark most swimmers and divers wouldn't fear because they wouldn't know about those serrated teeth it has."
Edward took a moment to consider her point of view. "I understand your view but it also doesn't make much sense to me. Maybe because I know there's no such thing as a safe shark?"
"Maybe. I appreciate you trying to see it from another viewpoint."
"That's thanks to you, kapu. You reminded us that not everyone sees sharks the way we do."
Bella looked around at all of her teammates before centering her focus on Edward again. "And you all taught me that I don't have to and I can still be just as good of a researcher."
"I just love it when a master plan of mine comes together," Esme announced, smiling wide.
Edward snorted. "You would take the credit."
Esme smiled the same shitty grin Edward often did. "My misfits, my props."
Edward shook his head at her and then got to his feet. "So who's ready to review camera footage?"
Everyone—even Alice—replied with a resounding "me" and they all moved into the TV room where the laptop was hooked to the television, ready and waiting to share Edward and Bella's photos with the team.
She had taken pictures of three sharks, one of which she was convinced had been psychotic. Had anyone told her that was in her future, she would have sworn they were crazy. To be honest, she wasn't certain she wasn't a little crazy herself to want all of this. But she did. She wanted all of this and more. And the man currently holding her hand would help her achieve it and so many other dreams. Being less afraid of sharks was an absolute blessing but sharing the love she had with Edward truly made her the luckiest woman alive.
"~~~^~~~~^~~~^~~~~^~~~^~~~~^"
A/N: Hello, you lovely readers! We hope you all were able to picture yourselves beneath the surface with Guppy for her first cage dive! It didn't go exactly according to Masen's plan, but everyone survived and Gopher got to save the day for his team. We hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it! Pictures of the sharks are on our blog for those interested.
Thank you all for your continued support of this story and us. We truly appreciate all of you.