Chapter 13 - Awake
Jacob jumped off of me, Emmett was a little slower to react.
"Bells! Is it you?"
Who else would it be? I thought, forgetting for a moment that I had found my voice.
"Who else would it be?" I repeated, out loud this time.
I tried to sit up, my cast was in the way. I reached out to Emmett and Jacob, "Help a lady up, will ya?"
They each grabbed a hand and pulled me up slowly. The cast crunched and crackled a little as it readjusted to my new upright position. I looked down at it and growled.
"Can I take this thing off?" I asked no one in particular.
No one said yes, but no one said no either. I grabbed the cast at the bottom near my waistline and started ripping it in half. No one told me to stop. I kept ripping. It was off, I was free. I breathed a giant sigh of relief, my chest flared with the familiar and unwanted burning sensation. I frantically grabbed for the cast and pulled it back around me. It didn't make the burn go away, but it kept the air from fanning the flames.
Through tearless sobs I cried, "Where is Carlisle? I need him to put this back on. I need him to make the pain go away."
I could feel the darkness creeping it's way back to me - this time I was prepared. I'd spent the last couple decades loving Edward. We have a daughter, a home, I finished his sentences, and sometimes I even started them. For twenty years I have studied every facial expression, anticipated every move, memorized every kiss we've shared. Even though every moment we are apart feels like a lifetime, I know we'll be together again. There aren't enough floorboards on the entire earth to hide my memories under now.
I pushed back the sobs, it was going to be okay. "I can do this." I said out loud to myself.
Even if I couldn't, I would tell myself I could. The darkness retreated. I still wasn't whole, when half of you consists of another being, and they're gone, half of you is missing. But I was better. At least the part of me I held, was trying to hold itself together.
I felt the familiar arms of my soon to be son-in-law, and current best friend, his warmth wrapped around me, my personal sun, shining bright and hot. "He'll be back." Jacob whispered into my hair.
"I know," was all I could say.
Not a moment later a herd of footsteps came barreling toward us. The rest of my family and a few extended family members pushed their way into the office. Renesmee first, followed by Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Seth, Leah, and lastly Jasper. All of them with smiles on their faces, except Jasper. He looked a lot like I imagined myself to look, lost, confused, pretending to be hopeful. It's hard to deny your instinct that you've been left to replace it with your knowledge of love, which you could never live without and can't imagine they'd be able to either.
Nessie wrapped her arms around me and Jacob, the family followed. We all stood in a giant vampire-werewolf-humanish group hug, a true test that love transcends all.
"I missed you Mom." Nessie whispered. We all could hear it whether she whispered or not, but it seemed more appropriate in that moment to hear those words through a small airy breath.
Carlisle found me next, he pushed a few of the hands away gently, "I need to examine Bella, if you will all give us a minute."
Slowly they all left the room, except Nessie, I held on to her hand and pleaded to Carlisle with my eyes.
"Okay, Nessie can stay." He said, giving in, or giving up. Carlisle doesn't have it in him to fight about simple things.
There was a light knock at the door, Esme allowed herself in.
"I brought this for Bella."
I had been so wrapped up in the pain I didn't even notice that I no longer had a shirt on. When I ripped the cast off I was left in just my bra and a pair of jeans. Esme held out a blue shirt to me.
"Thank you."
"Your welcome sweetie, I'm glad you're back with us." Then she left.
Carlisle started by feeling each of my ribs, he went through the motions, as I recalled them from days previous. Everything seemed to be healed.
"So am I good to go, Doc?"
"It appears that way, but be careful. It's hard to tell just by feel."
"Don't worry, Grandpa, I'll take good care of her." Nessie promised.
I hope that doesn't mean I still have babysitters. I thought to myself. Before I could even make a face showing my disgust with the thought Nessie had begun pulling me out of the room. I frantically pulled the shirt over my head before we were down the stairs. She pulled me all the way to the cottage where we were greeted by Jacob, and his pack - all of them. And for the second time in fifteen years I saw him shake with fury.