Disclaimer: Twilight saga = Not mine. :(

A/N: Hi, I hope you all had a good week! As I said last week, Tarbecca was kind enough to rec this story on ADF, so I am allowed to post teasers on the site in Sneak Peek Monday! If you have an account, check it out :) I did one last time for this chapter too... I don't know if you guys got a chance to see it.

I'll still be putting teasers on FB (Kayla Cullen) if you prefer that.

Danielle and Melissa... Couldn't do this without you! xoxo

The next couple of chapters are definitely going to be over 3000 words. Happy reading!

CHAPTER 9

The nurses kept staring at me. They all wore different expressions, ranging from confusion to suspicion to downright amusement, but the one common factor was that whenever I was in the vicinity of a nurse, I could practically feel their gaze boring at the back of my head.

I guess they had a valid reason for their curiosity. When a guy you've known to be morose, quiet, and reticent for years suddenly starts smiling while doing the most mundane of activities, like charting, and wishing you a "good day" every time he saw you in the corridors, you're probably allowed to be wary.

This had been going on for the past six days, which was the exact amount of time that'd passed since my first date with Bella.

I did my best to give my utmost attention to my work, and it worked when I was operating, but the rest of the time, little snippets of the past six days kept slipping into my mind and they were the most beautiful form of distraction.

The day after our visit to Central Park, I'd visited Bella at her dorm. She had indeed spent the day studying, as she'd told me. I was surprised at her exhausted appearance as she opened the door for me.

Her hair was slung up in a loose knot with several stray locks framing her face, which in itself was the picture of frustration.

"What's wrong?" I asked immediately.

"Newton," she spat as I walked inside.

"Um, what?"

"Isaac Newton, Einstein, Maxwell… they are my problem! I mean, yeah, the men were freaking geniuses, deriving all these laws and proving them. Why in the world do I have to use the application of those laws, huh? Is my patient going to come and ask me about the conditions of electromagnetism? No! Why would they care whether or not I knew all of this as long as I could treat whatever was wrong with them?"

She was pacing along the length of the room as she ranted, gesturing wildly with her arms. I gently took hold of one before she managed to give me a shiner.

"Take a deep breath." I turned her to face me, holding her gaze until she complied, nodding in encouragement as the anger slowly drained out of her. I led her to the couch and we sat.

"Now, tell me. What's the matter?"

"I'm just-" She grimaced. "I'm not used to being bad at something in academics, but, mechanical and electrical physics have always been weak points for me. Still, I could manage well until high school, but this college-level syllabus has been kicking my ass."

"Well, they have this all inclusive syllabus because not everyone who gets into pre-med is sure of their future path like you." I tapped the tip of her nose and laughed when she wrinkled it adorably. "Do you mind if I take a look at it? It's been a while for me, but I could give it a shot. Maybe I can help?" I suggested and was relieved when she graced me with a grateful smile.

"You'd do that? I could really use some help."

"I'll be happy to," I affirmed. "But not for the next two hours, at least."

Her eyebrows furrowed with a little 'v' forming between them, as she looked at me in confusion. I resisted the urge to press my lips against it to see it if was indeed as soft as it looked.

"You need a break," I clarified. "So, let's have dinner first, after that we'll get to Mr. Newton and Mr. Einstein with a fresh mind."

Her gloomy expression brightened. "I got the fixings for spicy chicken stir fry from the market today."

I grinned. "Sounds delicious. Put me to work."

She delegated the chopping of veggies to me, while she spiced and diced the chicken. She was giggling away as I slowly and carefully made my way through the pile I was assigned.

I exaggerated my incompetence, delighting as she recovered her good humor while holding my hand and guiding me about what sized pieces she wanted.

I watched proudly as the fruits, or rather vegetables, of my labor sizzled in the wok and an enticing aroma filled the apartment. Bella gave me an appreciative smile and wink as we sat down to eat.

Needless to say, the next time we picked up the books, I was pretty sure Mr. Newton and Mr. Einstein were relieved to have been saved from the wrath of Isabella Swan.

The next day, we spent in downtown New York City, walking down the avenues with the most gorgeous festive displays and visiting the Rockefeller Center to look at the iconic Christmas tree. Wrapped up warm and tight in her thick coat, scarf, gloves and beanie, Bella's eyes sparkled with delight and her pink cheeks glowed as she browsed the decorations. I'll never forget the way her hand reached out and grasped mine as she pointed out at one of the shop windows.

Judging by the look of surprise and awe on her face, I'm sure the display was very beautiful, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was about. My thoughts focused solely on the little hand encased in my larger one.

The fabric of her glove prevented me from feeling her skin against my own and yet, my heart thrummed happily at just sight of our fingers woven together. At that moment, I thought that life couldn't possibly get any better than that.

I was wrong.

It did get infinitely better when she didn't let go and we walked hand-in-hand for the rest of the evening.

The fourth day was spent mainly in the hospital since I was scheduled for a couple of craniotomies and Bella had to come in too for her final check-up.

She was already in the exam room with Jasper when I rushed there straight after my surgery.

"Hey," she greeted me with a smile as I walked to the bed and pressed my lips to her forehead.

Jasper looked at our exchange with a smirk, opening his mouth to speak, but I silenced him with a look.

Lately, I'd been rushing back home, or to Bella's place, the minute I was done with my work in the hospital, so I hadn't had a chance to fill him in on what the specifics of what had happened so far between Bella and me. The last time I'd talked to him was when she'd agreed to give this, us, a chance. I didn't know if Bella was comfortable with people knowing about us just yet, and Jasper wasn't the most tactful person. The last thing I needed was a thoughtless remark from him hurting her, even if it would be unintentional.

He took the hint and stuck to making small talk with Bella about Charlie and Alice, while he palpated her abdomen for any spots of tenderness.

Ten minutes later, Bella was given a clean bill of health. We celebrated it by having the thickest, most delicious hot chocolate in the city at Jacques Torres' Chocolates. Bella grabbed a promising-looking cookie mix too and I was waiting eagerly for the treat.

One thing that stuck in my mind was that as soon as her back was turned, Jasper mouthed to me "Details later."

I swear my friends were turning more and more into teenage girls since I'd found my girl.

Your girl? Is she really your girl?

I sighed. I'd been terrified of bringing up that conversation with Bella. She'd promised to give this a try, but we'd not talked any more about the official status of our relationship.

I realized that the two of us were at completely different points in our lives. While I was committed to her in every way, even if she didn't know the extent of my feelings just yet, she was still starting out in her life and I was willing to wait for her for as long as she wanted. In spite of all that, even the thought of her rejection was enough to make me extremely nervous about bringing up the topic with her.

I'd asked her to spend this entire week with me and today was the last day of it, as well as the last day of the year.

Several times this week, I'd turned toward Bella to find her already looking at me with a thoughtful expression. She'd snap out of the stupor with a smile, but I never missed the whirlwind of emotions depicted in her eyes.

Maybe she'll tell me about her decision tonight.

I could only hope.

Since this was her first New Year celebration in NYC, we had decided to go to Times Square to see the ball drop.

Knocking at Bella's door had become one of my favorite activities in the past week. Well, other than holding her hand, seeing her smile, hugging her…

I did say one of my favorite activities.

Anyway, the anticipation before she opened the door, the excitement of seeing her beautiful face as she would take a peek first and then the breathtaking smile that would light up her face as she would see me and invite me in… I'd come to enjoy it all so much that I wasn't sure how I'd cope if I had to give it up.

She was wearing a bright blue blouse today, the cut of the neck accentuating her delectable collarbones and I felt the strongest desire skim my nose along their lengths and nibble on them.

Where the hell did that come from?

I shook off that thought as quickly as I could.

Physically, Bella and I hadn't gone further past chaste kisses on the cheek or forehead. The closest we'd been so far was last night when she hugged me when we came back from our date. Her slender arms had wrapped around my waist, her strawberry scent enveloping me as I hugged her back.

It was my own personal heaven and hell.

My lips ached to kiss hers; my arms itched to pull her so close that I could feel her heart beating in tandem with mine. Until she gave me some sort of an indication, I was reluctant to make a move, lest I pushed her for more than she was willing to give me.

"Ready to go?" The object of my affection pulled me out of my musing.

I smiled. "Yeah."

We'd reached about halfway to our destination when my phone rang. I recognized by the ringtone that it was a call from the hospital. Connecting it via Bluetooth to the music player, I answered.

"Dr. Cullen? It's Katie Marshall. She has just been brought in with a stroke. Dr. Howard is working on stabilizing her, but you need to come in right now, Sir," the nurse informed me.

My heart skipped a beat and I could feel the blood draining from my face. Without another thought, I immediately signaled and turned sharply at the first break in the road, revving the engine and driving toward the hospital as fast as I could.

I disconnected the call after informing them that I was on my way.

"Damn it, Katie!" I muttered, frustrated. I mentally reviewed her history while weaving through the lanes of traffic like a man possessed. My sole thought was about getting to the hospital in time.

"Edward?" The softest of voices reached me through the haze of frustration and anxiety that plagued my mind, the only voice that could have pierced it so effortlessly.

"I'm- I'm sorry, Bella. I need to get to the hospital immediately." I honked and mentally cursed at the driver ahead of me as he refused to get out of my way.

"Yeah, I gathered that. What's going on?" There was nothing but concern in her voice.

I emptied my lungs in a gush, composing my nerves to the best of my ability. "Katie Marshall is the eight year old daughter of Jenny and Steve Marshall. Jenny's family has a genetic mutation that makes them more susceptible to brain aneurysms that the average, normal person. They've been my patients ever since I completed my residency. There are hardly any prophylactic measures we can take to prevent the aneurysms from happening, but we did our best. I operated on Jenny two years ago, when she had a berry aneurysm that ruptured." Shaking my head, I continued. "And now, Katie has been brought in with the same presenting symptoms as Jenny had then."

"Oh God!" Bella's hand flew to her lips as she looked at me in shock. "A little girl with a..." She trailed off in despair.

"Yeah. It is rare, but it can happen. Especially if there's a familial predisposition."

She rested her hand on mine as it lay on the steering wheel. "You'll save her, Edward. I know you will." The conviction in her voice was just what I needed to clear my head of the anger at the unfairness of life. The warm prickle that always seemed to travel up my arm when Bella touched me calmed me immensely.

I gave her a grateful smile as I pulled into the hospital parking lot.

I ran into through the emergency wing, my eyes immediately landing on Dr. Howard, resuscitating the patient who I assumed was Katie.

"Oh, thank God you're here," Jenny said to me as soon as I reached to their side.

Howard nodded at me, narrating the vitals. He'd gotten her stable enough to move, so they started pushing the gurney toward the elevator, while I turned to the terrified parents beside me.

"Jenny…" I was at a loss for words as I watched her sob helplessly while Steve held on to her.

"We know. You have to do the surgery," he told me, taking in a shaky breath. "We've signed the consent forms already. Just, please, please save our baby."

"I will try my best," I promised them and turned to Bella, who'd been standing inconspicuously at one side, her expression desolate as she watched Steve and Jenny. "I'm sorry, Bella. I have-"

"Don't worry about me," she immediately assured me. "I'll hang around here. You do what you have to do. I'll be here," she said again. She took my hand, squeezing it gently and giving me a small smile before letting go.

As quickly as I could, I changed into my scrubs and rushed to the OR. When I made my way inside, the nurse had finished prepping and draping Katie as I took my place at her head.

Before beginning, I sent out a prayer for the sweet, innocent girl whose life hung in the balance. I held out a hand to the nurse beside me.

"Scalpel."

I took in a deep breath, turning my head sideways to unlock the knots in my neck. I'd been so thoroughly focused on the surgery that I'd forgotten to change my position and the muscles were complaining now, having been stretched for… how long had it been? Two hours? Three?

A look at the vitals monitor told me that Katie's BP and pulse had stabilized. I checked the anastomosis once again, it was holding.

I felt that peculiar sensation of being watched, so my eyes instinctively flew up to the gallery and what I saw was something I would never forget. Bella was sitting there, wearing scrubs and smiling down at me. From what I could see, it was awe that shone in her eyes, and a hint of pride, maybe.

How did she get in there?

An incessant beeping brought me back to the situation at hand.

"What the hell happened?"

"BP's falling."

I checked the artery once more. There was nothing wrong. It was somewhere else.

"Damn it," I muttered. "Where is the bleed?"

It took a couple of more minutes, but I managed to find the culprit. The walls of the vessel were so friable that I wondered if the stitches would be able to hold them together.

"Clamp. Clamp now! Don't give up on me now, Katie. Hang in there for just a moment," I whispered, ligating the best I could and hoping that sutures held.

The entire OR breathed a collective sigh of relief when the bleeding stopped.

"Pressure's coming back up," Howard informed me. "Good save, Dr. Cullen."

I looked up at Bella and saw her wiping away the tears on her cheeks.

"Let's close up."

I walked out of the OR, pulling off my scrub cap. Jenny and Steve rushed to me as soon as I'd reached the waiting room.

"She's going to be just fine," I told them with a smile, watching as they both sagged with relief.

"Thank you, thank you so much," Jenny whispered, coming forward to hug me.

"You can see her in a little while. A nurse will take you to see her and I'll come back in an hour or so for a check-up."

"Thank you." Steve held out a hand and I shook it, clapping him on the shoulder.

Once that was done, I walked to where Bella was leaning against the wall, waiting for me.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" She sounded baffled.

I sighed. "This is not exactly how we'd planned to spend New Year's Eve. All our plans-"

"Are you kidding me?" she interjected. "I just watched you save someone's life. A little girl who was…" She shook her head. "Seeing you like that… so focused, determined, and calm even in a crisis… You truly have a gift, Edward. You saved Katie's life. I can't think of a better way to ring in the New Year."

"You wanted to see the ball drop," I protested weakly.

"On second thought, I don't think I'm a fan of crowds." She shrugged flippantly and I cracked a smile.

"How the hell did you manage to get into the gallery?"

"Dr. Whitlock… Jasper found me in the hall, asked me about what was going on and when I told him, he got me these scrubs, and sneaked me in." She giggled. "He said he knows all about my love for medicine as he put it. Did you tell him?"

"Uh, yeah." I cleared my throat. "I mean, I told Emmett and he relayed it to Jasper."

She hummed. "He also asked me about our relationship."

Damn him. I groaned. "I'm sorry if he made you uncomfortable, Bella. I'll kill him for-"

"Oh, there's no need for that. I answered his questions."

All the breath left my body in a whoosh. "You did?"

"Uh huh. I wanted to tell you something."

"Yeah?"

My voice cracked and if I hadn't been nervous to my bones, I probably would have been embarrassed.

"I called Jacob yesterday," she said. Her voice light and casual, but my heart plummeted as I heard the words.

Called Jacob? For what?

To arrange another date?

She's given up on me… on us?

Why? What did I do? What didn't I do?

"Oh, get that look off your face, Edward! How you can be so brilliant and yet so silly sometimes is a mystery to me."

I finally found my voice. "You're making absolutely no sense to me. Just… Just tell me what you're trying to do here," I pleaded.

"I am trying to tell you that I called Jacob yesterday. I called him because I had to tell him that I couldn't date him because I am in a relationship with someone else."

Jacob… Relationship… Someone…

I heard the words but they wove together, along with the ever-present fear of losing her, into such an entangled mess in my mind that I could not make out the essence of what she was trying to tell me.

Bella sighed, stepping closer and framing my face in her hands. "Edward, I want this. Us. You and me."

The hallway, the patients, the nurses… everything around us disappeared and all that was left was Bella… looking into my eyes and telling me…

She wants this.

"You- you do?" I whispered, not wanting to break the spell of the moment.

She nodded. "I do. And you know what?"

I blinked. What else?

"It's midnight, Edward. Happy New Year," she whispered.

I stood there, still shell-shocked, as her soft lips pressed against mine.

A/N: Oh, Edward... Clueless much? *giggles*

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