Chapter 8
CatPOV
I must be the biggest fucking idiot in the entire world. Why did I say yes? I promised myself that I would just see him the one time and then blow him off. Where do I get off wanting to meet his family?! Am I crazy? Have I already forgotten everything that's happened?
I lied down on my bed and stared at the ceiling. I was vaguely aware of Chance slowly crawling up the bed and lying down next to me. My eyes were drifting shut, but I was not falling asleep. I was simply remembering.
It was the first day of college. I was lost, unable to find my algebra class. I was looking at my map, not paying attention, when I bumped into a human form. I looked up, embarrassed, only to be met by the most gorgeous eyes I had ever seen. For the first time in my life, I had nothing to say. I only stared. The figure smiled at me.
"Hello," he said in a deep and seductive voice. "I'm Scott."
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"Scott," I whispered, tentatively. We had only been dating for a few months, but I knew my feelings were strong.
He turned to me, his face not showing any anger, but still had a hard edge to it. I don't know why it drew me in so much.
"Yes, Catherine?" He eyes were inquisitive, but also expecting. It was almost like he knew what I would say before I did.
"I love you."
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I walked into my apartment, looking at the ground. I hoped so badly that I would walk in unnoticed. As luck would have it, however, Christy was sitting in the living room.
"What the hell happened?!" she screamed, jumping off the couch and running towards me. Chance was running behind her. He was always by her side.
She approached me and tentatively touched my cheek, which was swollen. Her fingers lightly ran over my bottom lip, which still hadn't stopped bleeding.
"It was my fault," I said. There was no use in lying to her. She wasn't stupid. I had been coming home like this every other week for the past two months.
"You need to leave him," she said, her voice hard. She never spoke like that before I met Scott. Now, it was the only way I ever heard her voice.
"I love him, Christy. And he loves me too."
Christy walked into the kitchen. She came out with ice wrapped in a towel. She led me to the living room and sat me down on the couch. She held the towel gently to my lip. I winced at the contact.
"Love shouldn't leave you bleeding," she said softly.
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Scott raised his hand to me, but my resolve didn't shake. I didn't have to stand for this anymore.
"I'm done, god dammit!" I said, screaming in his face. "You will never hurt me ever again!"
He lunged at me, but I was too quick. I moved to the other side of the room.
"You can't leave me, Catherine!" he shouted. He moved so that his body was blocking the door, my only way out.
"You don't own me," I said, my voice low. I tried to cover up the fear, but I don't think I could. "Hit me again, and I'll call the cops."
"Christy put you up to this?" he asked. He eyes narrowed with rage. "I knew that bitch would try to come between us. Can't she just see how much I love you? We're meant to be, Catherine."
"She sees how much you love me," I said, pointing to the fading bruises on my face. "I'm leaving."
I tried to walk past him and out the door. He grabbed my arm roughly, making me cry out in pain.
I turned to him, and all the things my dad and brother taught me flooded my mind. I dug my nails into his hand, forcing him to let me go. I swiftly kicked him in the groin. When he fell to his knees, I ran out the front door.
The entire way home, I prayed. I hadn't prayed in years. There was no reason to pray before this.
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I grabbed my keys. I was just going to go to the grocery store to pick up something to eat for Christy and me. I had basically been kissing her ass for the past few days. I would do anything so long as I didn't have to hear the "I told you so."
"I'll be back in a little while, Christy. You still want steak and potatoes for dinner?"
"Hell yeah!" she said, her smile practically overtaking her face. "See you in a sec."
"Bye!" I yelled, closing the door behind me.
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My face was still unbelieving as I watched the fire overtake the apartment.
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I was sitting in the back of the police vehicle. I didn't even notice the police officer approach me.
"Miss McCarty?" he asked.
"Yes?" I looked at him, waiting for the answers. No one had told me yet how the fire started or if Catherine was okay. I saw the fire, how it completely engulfed my apartment. But Chance made it out alive. Was it so bad to hope that Christy would too?
"There are two bodies. One has already been identified as your roommate, Christy Sullivan. The other body, however, is an unidentified male. We were hoping you could take a look and put a name to the face."
I nodded. My stomach dropped with dread. Please God, don't let it be him.
He led me over to a body that was covered with a sheet. He pulled back the sheet, only revealing the man's face.
I took a glance then turned away, my worst fears confirmed. "His name is Scott."
I vomited until I lost consciousness.
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"We found a note, Miss McCarty," the attorney told me. I could hardly hear him, like he was talking to me from the other side of a pane of glass.
"Note?" I asked, shaking my head. "What note?"
"It's a note from Scott. A suicide note," he finished. "It said…" I held up my hand, trying hard not to let the tears fall from my eyes.
"I don't want to know."
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"Don't leave."
I turned and looked at Brad. I hated to see the pain in his face.
"I have to leave," I said. "I can't be here. There's just too much pain, too many memories. I miss her so bad, Brad. And it's all my fault that she's gone."
He walked towards me, his arms slightly open.
I ran away.
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I opened my eyes and wiped the tears from my face. Chance, sensing my sadness, drew closer to me. He dragged his warm tongue over the palm of my hand.
"Gross," I muttered, wiping his slobber onto my shirt.
I stretched and pulled myself off the bed. I grabbed Chance's leash which hung next to the front door. When he heard the familiar jingle, Chance jumped off the bed and ran towards me. His tail was spinning rapidly in circles. I laughed and threw the collar of his leash over his head.
I don't know how long I walked with Chance. I do know, however, that he may have peed on every single tree, pole and fire hydrant in a five mile radius of my apartment.
My thoughts were consumed with my confusion. I couldn't help but analyze over every single moment Emmett and I had together. It wasn't love, or even a crush. I didn't have a single romantic feeling for the guy. And, I'm pretty positive he felt the same.
So… why was I acting the way I was? Why did I act like I've known him my entire life?
I shook my head as if I was trying to shake the answers loose. Maybe he reminded me of Brad. It's true; they do act a lot alike. Maybe it was my brotherly feelings that I had towards him that caused me to open up to him.
By the time we got back to the apartment, both Chance and I were dragging ass. I was so tired; I felt like I could sleep until Sunday.
EmPOV
I was super excited about today. Today is the day that Catherine gets to meet my family! And vice-versa, of course.
Esme has been restless. She was running back and forth between the kitchen, where she was cooking… something, and the rest of the house, where she was cleaning. I could tell she was frazzled, but I could also see the small smile on her face. She loved this.
The rest of my family was relatively calm. I'm pretty sure it had something to do with Jasper.
"You gonna be cool, dude?" I asked Jasper. I hated that I had to ask, but I couldn't risk him trying to eat my niece.
Jasper turned to Alice, asking her with his eyes.
"You won't hurt her, Jasper," she said, her voice tinkling with anticipation. I rolled my eyes. When have I heard that before?
Edward scowled then smiled at me. His grip on Bella's hand tightened a little bit. She turned to him and smiled.
"Excited, Emmett?" Bella asked, trying to hide her smile. She failed.
"Yeah. I know you and Edward have met her, but I'm still really excited to have her meet the rest of us."
I glanced at the clock. I called Catherine yesterday and told her I would pick her up at noon. The clock read 11:45. Normally, it would take about 45 minutes to get from her apartment to our house, but my driving was anything but normal. I would have to argue that my driving is awesome.
I hopped in my Jeep and turned the stereo on. I was flipping through all the music before I found something I was happy with. It was a heavy rock song I wasn't familiar with. But it had a good sound, so I couldn't complain.
I was racing down the road. I couldn't wait for Catherine to meet my family. I couldn't quite place a finger on why it was so important to me. Maybe it's because my past and my present are coming together for a new future. Does that even make sense? I don't know.
I reached Catherine's apartment exactly at noon. I knocked on the door, her dog, Chance, was growling and barking his head off.
Okay, I know that dog/vampire relationships are strained, for obvious reasons, but geez. That dog hates my guts! I can only take comfort in the fact that he would do anything for Catherine. I know he's keeping her safe.
The door opened swiftly and Catherine stepped outside. I noticed something shiny in her hand.
"What's that?" I asked, reaching for the object in her hand.
She pulled her hand away from me then held the object up. "They're the keys to my car. I'm driving today."
I shook my head. "No way, Jose. I'm driving. I can't trust you to not kill me." I smiled a little at my joke; there's no way I could ever die in a car accident.
She looked at me with defiance in her eye. It was a pretty pathetic attempt at defiance, but nonetheless, it was effective. I couldn't stand to not give her what she wanted, not after all that she's been through.
I glanced around; trying to guess which car was hers. I saw a truck and started walking towards it. She's a Texan, don't all Texans drive trucks?
"Where are you going?" she asked. She started walking towards a small Honda Civic.
"You drive that?!" I asked. There is no way I'm going to be able to sit in that thing and be comfortable.
"Yes, this is my baby," she said, running her hand over the hood. She opened her door, slid in then unlocked mine.
I opened my door, but instead of getting in, I looked at her incredulously. "You expect me to fit? I can't fit in here?"
"Oh, please, get in the car," she said, rolling her eyes. Hold on just a moment… yep, it still irritates me like it did when my little sister did it. Glad to know some things don't change.
I got into the car, grumbling the entire time. She looked at me with a smile in her eyes. "Thanks. I haven't really been able to drive since I've been here. I miss it."
"Well, enjoy the ride. We are quite a ways outside of town."
She smiled at that bit of information. When she turned the key in her ignition, it roared to life. I mean, it roared!
"Whoa, lady! What's up with the engine of your car?" I asked, bewildered.
"Brad and I fixed it up a little," she said with a sly smile on her face.
We drove for a few minutes in silence. Honestly, I was disappointed. Catherine was driving the speed limit, which to me was achingly slow. What was the point of a badass car without taking advantage of it?
I tried taking in the scenery. We were taking the back roads to the house. It was really the only way to get there. We were on a two lane highway that was practically deserted. I'm sure it wasn't even on most maps. The scenery wasn't doing much to distract me.
"I want to get there today, Grandma," I said. I looked at Catherine who was rolling her eyes. Then, I saw a change. A smile spread across her face, but this was no ordinary smile. It was the smile I usually donned when I came up with a great way to prank Edward or Jasper.
"Grandma, huh? Would your grandma drive like this?"
Catherine threw her car into gear and slammed down the pedal. The engine roared and leapt forward. The speedometer climbed faster and faster. Catherine leaned over to her stereo and turned on some music. It was some obscure punk band, loud and fast. I didn't pay it any attention. All I could think about was how exhilarating the experience was. I leaned my head out the window.
"WHOO!!!" I shouted, pumping my fist in the air. I could hear Catherine laughing next to me. It was a laugh I had never heard from her before. It was dripping with happiness and excitement.
Catherine didn't let up on the gas. Our rate of speed was climbing. The only people I ever knew to drive this fast were vampires. Normally, I couldn't trust a human to drive this fast, but I figured if something were to happen, I would have the reflexes to stop it.
A slow moving truck appeared around the corner of the bend in the road. I thought Catherine was going to hit him. Right as she was about to slam into the rear, she swerved away and around him. Her reflexes were amazing.
"Where did you learn to drive like this?" I shouted over the noise.
"My brother, of course. What else is there to do out in the country?!" she shouted next to me.
I saw the entrance to the road that led up to our house. I pointed towards it and Catherine made a hairpin turn down the road. The road was narrow and had many curves. But, she still didn't slow down. We were flying down the road, the entire time we were laughing and hollering.
As we neared the house, the road opened up to a large concrete area. In front of the house were Rose's M3 and Edward's Volvo. The rest of the cars were in the garage. As soon as we reached the open area, Catherine slammed on her brakes and turned her wheel hard left, causing the car to go into a spin.
The car spun and I was sure we were going to hit Rose's car. My family was already outside the house, watching us. I could see Rose's and Edward's eyes widen at the sight. I was already prepared for impact, when the car stopped. We were perfectly parked next to the M3.
Catherine threw open her car door and started laughing. I got out of the car and stood next to her, unable to control my own laughter. When we were finally composed, we beamed at each other.
"How's that for Grandma driving?" Catherine asked with her amusement still evident in her eyes.
"You are just full of surprises, McCarty," I said, throwing my arm around her shoulder and tussling her hair.
My family approached us. Most of them had amused looks on their faces. Rose and Edward, however, appeared quite livid. They didn't say anything, but Catherine could tell they were angry.
"Edward, I wouldn't have hit your car in a million years. I'm sorry to have worried you. I was just having a little fun with Emmett," Catherine said, trying her best to defuse the situation.
Edward's face softened a little bit. "It's okay, Catherine. Just… don't do it again."
She continued to smile at him until he smiled back at her. When she finally saw his smile, she playfully punched him on the arm.
"No one can resist the McCarty charm," she said.
"Apparently not," he said in return. Bella laughed and leaned her body towards him. He kissed the top of her head, still smiling.
The group fell a little silent. My eyebrows furrowed and I looked at Catherine. She looked at me expectantly.
"What?" I asked her.
"Aren't you going to introduce me to your family?" she asked.
"Oh yeah, sorry," I said, a little embarrassed. I saw Jasper glance at me out the corner of my eye. I scowled at the smile on his face.
"Catherine, these are my parents, Carlisle and Esme." They stepped forward. Carlisle held out his hand and Catherine shook it. Esme pulled her into a hug, which surprised Catherine. She let out a small laugh then hugged her back.
"Stop it, Mom," I said with mock humiliation in my voice. Esme laughed and the pulled back. "You know my brother and sister, Bella." They waved at Catherine and she waved back.
"This is my other brother and sister, Jasper and Alice," I said. Alice danced towards Catherine, causing her to laugh.
"It's nice to meet you," Alice said, giving her a small kiss on the cheek.
"It's nice to meet you too, Alice," Catherine answered. She was rubbing the back of her neck and had a half-smile on her face. "You sure are affectionate."
Alice giggled and took her place next to Jasper. Catherine looked at Jasper and held out her hand.
"You must be the one from Texas," she said.
Jasper shook her hand quickly. "Yes, ma'am," he said, his Southern drawl just a little more prominent than usual. He had a small grimace on his face. It must be due to his lack of control. I shot him a look that said, Eat her and I will kill you.
I walked up to Rosalie, who was hanging in the back of the group. I pulled her forward, my hand intertwined with hers. Catherine looked at her and our hands with curiosity.
"Catherine, this is my wife, Rosalie," I said, giving Rose a small kiss on the cheek.
Catherine's eyes widened momentarily. She looked like she was in a panic. I looked at Edward, who had an odd look on his face.
Rosalie gazed at Catherine expectantly. Catherine shook her head and then planted a smile on her face. It was the fakest one I had ever seen from her.
"It's nice to meet you, Rosalie. Emmett has told me a lot about you," she said, holding out her hand.
Rosalie took her hand tentatively and spoke, "It's nice to meet you as well."
The group grew a little silent as Catherine continued to stare at Rosalie. Esme, sensing the strange atmosphere spoke.
"Come inside, Catherine. I made some brisket and barbecue ribs. I figured it would remind you of home."
Catherine gave her a warm smile. "That's really sweet of you. Thanks."
We all walked inside together. I tried to throw my arm around Catherine, but she dodged it. She refused to meet me gaze. What the hell is going on?
I tried to walk inside with the rest of them, but Edward pulled me back.
"Hey—"I started.
"Why is Catherine freaking out about Rose?" he asked, speaking at vampire speed.
"I don't know," I said. I was trying to think of a reason, but I couldn't. "What is she thinking?"
"Her thoughts are racing. She keeps picturing some angry looking guy and chanting in her head things like, 'I'm an idiot' and 'They're all the same, I can't believe he didn't tell me.' Did you not tell her about Rosalie?"
I thought back to all the conversations we had. "I can't remember," I said honestly.
"Well, she didn't know you are married and for whatever reason, it's making her a little crazy," he said.
"She's not crazy, Edward!" I near shouted. Edward shushed me and sent me a dirty look.
"Jasper," I whispered. I could hear Jasper excuse himself and walk towards us. When he arrived, he cocked his head towards me.
"You need to be quieter," he said. "It's by some crazy miracle that she didn't hear you. Now, what do you want?"
"I want to know how she's feeling. Is she crazy, like Edward said?" My voice sounded worried.
"She's not crazy," he said, relieving my fears. "However, there's something… I don't know, strange about her. Every one of her emotions is appropriate. She was elated while driving, embarrassed when Alice kissed her, surprised and panicked when she met Rosalie. But there is this underlying… ache in her. She's constantly carrying around this intense emotional pain. It's quite crippling for me, actually."
Now I definitely couldn't hide the worry in my voice. "I know she's been through some rough stuff. I don't know… sometimes I feel like she hasn't told me the entire story. I don't know what to do guys."
Jasper and Edward shrugged. Suddenly, there was a clatter from the kitchen.
I'm sorry, I have to go. I heard Catherine say from the kitchen. She rushed out of the house and headed towards her car.
"Wait!" I said, running after her. "Where are you going?"
"I'm sorry, Emmett. I truly am. Have Edward or someone drive you back to get your car. I have to get out of here," Catherine said, her voice high and unstable. She sounded like she was about to snap.
I tried to say something else, but she climbed in her car and slammed the door shut. She started her car and took off like a bat out of hell. I could hear the car's engine taking her farther and farther away from me.
"What the hell happened?!" I screamed turning towards my family. Esme, Carlisle, Bella, and Rosalie had the same look of shock on their face as I did. Jasper was practically crumpled over with pain. Alice's eyes were glazed over; she was having a vision.
"Oh my God, we have to stop her," Edward said, running after Catherine. I was running next to him.
"What's going on, Edward, what did you see?"
"Emmett, Catherine is going to die."