A/N: I had originally meant for this to be a 500 word drabble for a contest over at sortofbeautiful, but it didn't take me long to realize that 500 words was just not going to cut it. It's a bit longer than I usually write, so I'm going to upload it here in installations. None of them will be very long, but I think that altogether they'll definitely be too long for one big "chapter." Enjoy!
"I'm back!" Bella shouted, her voice reverberating off the high ceiling of the Cullen's spacious home. "I still don't understand why you guys made me go out for hot chocolate—it isn't that cold in here—but I'm glad you did. I needed it!" There was no answer, and she looked curiously back out the door at Alice, who was still walking up from the car. "Where are they?"
"Honestly, I have no idea," Alice answered walking up the drive, her delicate brow furrowing. "I haven't been able to see anything since we left."
"Guys?" Bella called again, knowing it was unnecessary to raise her voice. "I know you can hear me!" Alice's eyebrows rose sharply as she crossed the threshold, her nose wrinkling and her beautiful butterscotch eyes, eyes Bella hoped to possess for herself one day, widened even more largely than usual. "What? What is it?"
"Bella," Alice said quickly, "you've got to get out of here. Come on, we've got to go. I'm bringing you home."
"No!" Bella cried, becoming worried. "Alice, what's going on? Is Edward okay?"
"Bella, you've got to—"
A rough yelp of pain followed by more than one cry of despair cut off her words. Bella took off running, making her way across the room and slipping on the floor, still soaked from the snow melting off their shoes. The hot chocolate went flying from her hand, and Alice was by Bella's side before she'd even fallen.
"No!" She scrambled back to her feet, bursting into the next room, from which she could now hear panicked muttering. "What's going on?"
She stopped dead in her tracks, almost falling over again. There was more red on the floor than she cared to process, and she could barely make out the six vampires rushing around at top speed, too obviously trying to cover up something they did not want her to see. A metallic smell filled her nostrils and, once her mind had registered that it was blood, she threw up. She could hear a great deal of moving about as she retched and Edward was by her side in an instant, turning her away from the grisly sight.
"Edward," she finally gasped, struggling for breath. "Edward, oh God, you're alright. You're alright." She dragged the back of her hand over her mouth and clung to him, weeping. "What happened? What's going on?"
"Bella," Edward said calmly, "I really think that we should—"
"I'm not going anywhere until someone tells me—" She threw up again, and Edward rubbed her back. When she had finished, she looked up at him again and saw clearly his pained expression, realized what the blood was doing to him. "Fine," she managed. "Let's go."