Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Suggested Listening: "Rearrange The Art" by Sarah Jarosz
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Pushing through the front door of her childhood home, Bella was immediately greeted by the strong, pungent scent of coffee and cheap after-shave. It was a smell she knew, and one she never missed until it filtered into her nostrils, making her realize just how much she actually did.
Smiling, she stepped aside, making room for Maddie to pass. Pushing the door closed behind them, Bella brought her hands up to her lips, blowing on them once and rubbing them together briskly to warm them.
"Dad?" Bella called out, glancing down to see Maddie already had her coat unzipped and was struggling her way out of it.
"In the kitchen, Bells!"
Smiling again, Bella unzipped her own coat, glancing down only to find Maddie at her feet, holding up her jacket and grinning at her mother.
"Hang up, Mommy?"
Cocking one incredulous eyebrow, Bella abandoned her task. "No, Mommy will not hang up, but Maddie can hang it up," she corrected, stooping down and hoisting the little girl up by the waist until she could reach the tall coat rack in the entryway.
"Thank you," Bella said quietly, placing her daughter back on two feet.
"Welcome," she murmured, little legs carrying her toward the kitchen.
Before she could get there, Charlie appeared in the doorway, crouched down, hands extended in front of him like claws. A muted growl ripped from his throat as Maddie jumped, shrieking before dissolving into a fit of hysterical giggles.
Bella couldn't help but smile as her father straightened his face out, reaching out and scooping Maddie into his arms before he stood.
"Well, if it isn't little Miss Maddie come to see her favorite grandpa," Charlie said jubilantly, placing a series of butterfly kisses on the little girl's cheek. "'Bout time, I say. Was starting to forget what you looked like." He grinned as Maddie poked his cheek with her index finger.
"We were just here last week, " Bella chimed in with a raised eyebrow, hanging her own coat up on the rack.
Charlie rolled his eyes playfully. "Yeah, yeah. I suppose you're right." Propping Maddie against his hip, Charlie held out his other arm for his own daughter. Bella didn't think twice before walking into it, allowing Charlie to pull her into his side with a tight squeeze, landing a quick kiss on the top of her head.
"Happy Valentine's Day, kiddo," he murmured, his mouth moving against her hair.
"Sorry you had to give up yours," Bella whispered, reaching out and tickling her daughter, causing her to bury her face in her grandpa's shoulder.
"Well, to be honest, I can't think of a better way to spend Valentine's Day than with my two favorite girls," Charlie soothed, squeezing Bella one last time before releasing her.
"What about the third one?" Bella asked quietly.
"Who, Sue?" Charlie asked, bending at the waist and depositing Maddie on the floor. "You know where the remotes are, kid. Go watch some 'toons." Bella barely had time to blink before her daughter disappeared through the dining room en route to the couch and Charlie's flat-screen. "She's working tonight," Charlie continued, "and even if she wasn't, we'd both be sitting around watching TV trying not to fall asleep before the nine o'clock news. It's an exciting life around here, Bells."
Sue Clearwater had been dating Bella's father for a couple years. Only recently had she decided to move in with him, leaving her home in La Push in the hands of Leah and Seth. Bella had been thrilled when their relationship began, mostly because she honestly couldn't think of anyone better to take care of her father.
"So...what's for dinner?" Bella asked cautiously as Charlie moved to the refrigerator, opening the door and pulling out a beer.
Cracking open the can, Charlie's mustache furrowed before he glanced at her. "What are you making?"
Bella rolled her eyes, following it with a shake of her head. "Valentine's Day with a catch, huh?"
Charlie shrugged before taking a swig of his beer. "Well, if you plan on actually eating tonight, I'd recommend it."
Releasing a sigh, Bella offered her father a tight-lipped but fond smile before she approached the fridge. Pulling open the freezer, she stared into its depths for several moments before retrieving a package of hamburger.
"Spaghetti and meatballs?" she asked without checking to see if Charlie was still in the room.
"Sounds great, Bells."
Closing the freezer door, Bella realized Charlie was sitting at the kitchen table, chin propped on one hand while the other held up the sports section, eyes squinting at the fine news print.
"Where are your glasses, Dad?"
"Upstairs, on the nightstand."
"Good place for them," Bella retorted sarcastically, unwrapping the package of hamburger.
"Hey, now. If I wanted to listen to Sue tonight, Bells, I'd go have dinner with her at the hospital cafeteria…"
"Okay, okay," Bella backpedaled with a chuckle. Depositing the hamburger on a plate, she popped it into the microwave to defrost. "We just care about you, Dad. It's probably half the reason Sue's stuck around as long as she has."
"Because I'll fall apart if someone isn't here to take care of me?"
"Pretty much," Bella teased, pulling a pot from the cupboard above the stove and moving fluidly to the sink. Switching on the faucet with a flick of her wrist, she placed the pot below it to fill.
"I suppose then I'm pretty damn lucky I have so many girls that want to take care of me, huh?" Charlie muttered.
"Even if you never listen to them," Bella countered, glancing at her father and lifting her eyebrow challengingly when he looked back to her.
The mustache twitched again.
"I do, I just don't let you two see it when I do. Gotta keep my man card from being revoked, you know...or something."
"Dad," Bella groaned abruptly, shaking her head as she shut off the faucet. Placing the pot on the stove, she switched the burner on high. Pausing for a moment, she released a sigh before realizing she had a few minutes to spare.
Pouring herself a cup of coffee, Bella barely noticed the silence as she moved fluidly around the familiar kitchen. A handful of moments later, she slid into the chair directly across from Charlie, who hardly moved a muscle when she sat down.
Clutching her mug between both hands, Charlie eventually peered over the top of the paper.
"So how you doing, kiddo?"
Bella took a sip of her coffee, buying herself a second.
"I'm doing okay," she answered honestly. "More good days than bad...finally."
Charlie released a deep breath, even though he didn't look up from his paper. "That's good. Maddie getting along alright?"
"Yeah," Bella replied, clutching the mug tighter between her palms. "No more nightmares." Bella was thankful and she could see the relief on Charlie's face too. "She has a lot of good people who care about her, though."
Smiling, Bella remembered what she'd stumbled on when she walked through her front door of her house after work. To an impromptu tea party in the middle of their living room with a guest list of two - her three-year-old and one oversized man, both of whom were decked out in every single feather boa, piece of costume jewelry, and princess tiara Bella was sure Maddie had stashed in her room.
Quil had taken to watching Maddie more during the week since the marina had cut back on his hours for the season. Coming home to sights like that were nothing new, but still, Bella sometimes took a moment, leaning against the doorframe and watching as Quil effortlessly carried on a theatrical conversation with her little girl, complete with a dramatic accent from a part of the world she couldn't quite place.
She only had a few moments before Quil had spotted her, and she was pretty sure she saw a deep crimson blush permeate his copper cheeks. Disappearing a second later when he threw his hands in defeat and offered her a grin.
Blinking, Bella hadn't realized she was lost in her thoughts. She hadn't realized Charlie was talking to her from across the table. That he'd stopped talking and was now peering at her expectantly.
"Sorry, Dad. What'd you say?" Bella finally pushed out.
Charlie tried to hide his eye roll. "I asked who was taking care of you these days?"
The question caught Bella off guard, and as all the air left her lungs, it became blatantly obvious she'd missed a large part of what Charlie said leading up to the question. Still, she couldn't help how her stomach lurched when he repeated it, because she had a feeling she already knew...
Still, she didn't say a word, gaping at her father over the rim of her mug instead. Lowering it, her lips parted in dismay.
"What do you mean"
Charlie's Adam's apple bobbed against his thick swallow. He glanced at her briefly before looking back to his paper, trying like hell to feign nonchalance. "Are you...dating anyone these days?"
"DAD!"
Charlie started, but he finally lowered his paper at the sound of Bella's startled reprimand. "Bells, it's just a question." He blinked rapidly, taking in her deep frown. "I worry about you being all the way out there by yourself, and it's almost been a year...it would be okay if you were. And then...well, at least I'd know someone is looking out for you."
Bella closed her eyes, shaking her head wildly as she rose to her feet, miraculously not tripping over the chair legs when she did.
Of all the ridiculous things her father had ever said to her, that was by far one of the worst.
"We're not having this conversation, Dad…"
"Oh, come on, Bells," Charlie sputtered, and she heard the newspaper land on the other side of the table. "Don't be that way. I'm just asking."
"I'm not being any way, Dad, it's just...I don't really feel like discussing my dating life." She drifted off, throwing a withering glance over her shoulder, eyes connecting squarely with her father's. "My non-existent one, for that matter, with my father…
"Well, you know it's okay if you're thinking about it...dating, I mean. It's been a year…"
It's been a year….
The words recycled themselves in Bella's head, repeating over and over.
A year...
It would be a year to the day the following week.
And her father said it like a year was her deadline for a starting over. That by this point, Bella should be thinking about dating and other men and moving on, when in reality, it felt like she just figured out how to move.
Dating…
She loved her father - more than anything - but the thought alone made her want to laugh. There were still days she got up in the morning and her head and heart were in an entirely different place. When she'd almost leave the house in two different shoes. When she'd put the orange juice in the pantry instead of the refrigerator.
There were still days when she'd pull out that old, white t-shirt she saved from the donation box and kept in the bottom drawer of her dresser. When she'd take off every single piece of clothing and slip that shirt over her body, feeling every inch of it cover her skin. Pretending it was him wrapped around her…
There were days when she swore she could still smell Embry on the fabric, when other days, the scent was nowhere to be found.
And her father thought she should be dating.
Bella wasn't even sure she remembered how to date - what it required, what she'd have to do to start that arduous process, even if she was ready. Closing her eyes, she tried to picture it. She tried to imagine how the conversation over dinner would start out. How she'd patiently listen to the man recount a synopsis of his life. How he went to college, how he got a good job. How he did the right thing for the environment and bought a hybrid car. How someday he wanted a white house with red shutters and two-point-five kids.
Then it would be her turn.
When it was, she'd tell the man she was a single mother - not by choice - of a three-year-old. That she still couldn't take off the engagement ring given to her by the little girl's father, and how he died protecting his people from a coven of sadistic vampires.
That she'd left all her emotional baggage at home for a shot at free dinner.
Bella could also imagine how the probability of a second date would forever be slim to none.
Even so, it wasn't just that. It wasn't just about her.
It was about Maddie.
There would be more to her end of the conversation - one that would possibly come with time. She would have to be up front, and he had to know what he was getting into. It needed to be someone she could trust around her daughter. It had to be someone who could take her and take Maddie and everything that came with them. To accept it, and never try to change it.
Most importantly, though, he had to love her daughter.
And Bella couldn't think of a single person who would overcome everything else before he got to that.
Ignoring the dull throbbing in her chest, Bella opened the microwave door with a huff, staring holes through the lump of hamburger as she pulled it from the appliance.
"Well, Charlie," she responded firmly, knowing her father hated it when she called him by his first name, even though it was the only way she knew of to convey when she was upset or angry or didn't want to hear what he had to say. "I'm not thinking about dating...not even a little bit. And it might be awhile before I do."
Charlie chewed on her response for a moment, and Bella was still holding her breath when he finally released his. "Okay, kiddo, I got it. Didn't mean to make you mad."
Closing her eyes, Bella drew in a calming lungful of air, releasing it slowly.
"I know, Dad," she whispered. "I'm not mad." Reaching out, she grabbed the box of spaghetti noodles from the counter, running her finger under the cardboard flap to open the box.
Giving her father a few more words - the only explanation she could, but the only one she needed.
"I've got Maddie to worry about, and she's all I really need."
Oh, Bella...can't imagine who would ever fit that description... ;)
Thoughts?