A/N: Hopefully, you'll be able to decipher Renee's thoughts. :)
"Mom!" Bella exclaimed softly.
Oh the poor boy… he's always sleeping when I come, he probably needs the rest. Does he ever leave to eat? I heard her tiptoe towards Bella's bed, taking care not to "wake" me. "He never leaves, does he?"
"Mom, I'm so glad to see you!" I cracked an eye open and watched them embrace, salty-smelling tears falling down Bella's face.
Oh, thank the Lord she's all right. I don't know what I'd do without her. "Bella, I was so upset!" Renee looked at her daughter, a mixture of pain and relief on her face. I shut my eyes, hiding from the pain.
"I'm sorry, Mom," Bella soothed her. "But everything's fine now, it's okay."
I really hope so… at least she's awake now, the last few times she's always been sleeping. "I'm just glad to finally see your eyes open." There was a slight creak as Renee perched on the edge of Bella's bed, or Bella had moved in her bed…
"How long have they been closed?"
"It's Friday, hon, you've been out for a while." Too long… she had me worrying…
Bella's voice was… confused as she responded, "Friday?"
"They had to keep you sedated for a while, honey – you've got a lot of injuries." Her mind flashed the image of Bella lying on the bed, covered in mounds of gauze and plaster. I winced. Carlisle had taken some of it off, but the majority was still there.
"I know." Bella tried hard to hide the pain she was feeling, but I could hear it, and I cringed at my own selfishness. Whatever pain I was feeling, it was a thousand times worse for her.
"You're lucky Dr. Cullen was there," Renee remarked. "He's such a nice man… very young, though."
He looks so much like Brad Pitt! I bet he's nicer than Brad though. I cracked a slight grin. It wasn't the first time I'd heard those thoughts. "And he looks more like a model than a doctor…"
"You met Carlisle?"
"And Edward's sister Alice. She's a lovely girl." With such great manners! But she does look awfully young to be married.
"She is," Bella murmured.
"You didn't tell me you had such good friends in Forks." I wonder how good friends they are… he is awfully cute, but still.
Cute? If Emmett found out Renee thought I was cute, I'd never hear the end of it. Bella moaned, and my eyes immediately went to her face. "What hurts?" Renee asked, looking at Bella anxiously.
"It's fine. I just have to remember not to move." She took a fleeting glance at me, and I went back to "sleeping".
"Where's Phil?" Bella asked.
Perfect time to break it to her! I know she's going to love it there! She has to! It's the complete opposite of Forks, anyway, and I know she must dread it there. I'm sorry that she ever moved, she never should have… and it has such great opportunities for Phil, and his new job, and Bella, too.
"Florida – oh Bella! You'll never guess! Just when we were about to leave, the best news!" Renee's voice was radiating with excitement. I tensed slightly.
"Phil got signed?"
"Yes! How did you guess! The Suns, can you believe it?" Renee asked enthusiastically.
"That's great, Mom," Bella answered in a weak voice.
"And you'll like Jacksonville! It's always sunny, and the humidity really isn't that bad. we found the cutest house, yellow, with white trim, and a porch just like in an old movie, and this huge oak tree, and it's just a few minutes from the ocean, and you'll have your own bathroom – "
If I had to breathe, I would've been hyperventilating then. Bella… in Jacksonville? As in, not in Forks? I knew I couldn't be selfish, though. Stilted conversations with Charlie and waking up every day to a gloomy overcast weren't what Bella enjoyed. I knew, deep inside, that Bella longed for the sun, for the light. And to be with Renee, too, her best friend, she'd told me once. She deserved that, I didn't deserve her.
"Wait, Mom! What are you talking about? I'm not going to Florida. I live in Forks," Bella exclaimed, confused.
"But you don't have to anymore, silly." Renee chuckled. I hope this redeems me for having her live in Forks… "Phil will be able to be around so much more now… we've talked about it a lot, and what I'm going to do is trade off on the away games, half the time with you, half the time with him." I'm glad Phil was so cooperative. I've had no time with Bella this last year; this is perfect for both of us!
"Mom…" Bella trailed off. "I want to live in Forks. I'm already settled in at school, and I have a couple of girlfriends, and Charlie needs me. He's just all alone up there, and he can't cook at all.
An image flew through Renee's mind, so fleetingly I almost missed it. A young man with curly brown hair, maybe a year older than me, stood in front of a small stove which I recognized at Charlie's stove, looked helplessly in front of a smoking pan. I winced, and then made a mental not to not let Bella eat anything Charlie cooked.
She said girlfriends, what about "boy" friends? I winced again. I was hoping she would put this off for a while. And she's so miserable here! What happened to the little girl who would stamp her foot and yell at me until I let her stay in Phoenix?
"You want to stay in Forks?" Renee asked incredulously. Would it be because of…? "Why?"
"I told you – school, Charlie – ouch!" My eyes flickered open for a split second, and I saw Renee patting Bella's forehead.
"Bella, honey, you hate Forks." More pictures this time: Bella, probably eight years old, yelling at her mom at the airport; Bella, a teenager, walking away from the terminal as Renee called after her…and it went on. Pictures of Bella, showing her reluctance of Forks.
"It's not so bad," Bella said truthfully.
I knew it! It was Edward! She's going to fall into the same trap, I swear. I can't let that happen! But I do want Bella to be happy…she's been nothing but supportive of me and Phil, I should extend the same courtesy to her.
"Is it this boy?"
"He's part of it," Bella said reluctantly. "So, have you had a chance to talk with Edward?" I could hear the apprehensive note in her voice.
"Yes. And I want to talk to you about that." Very nice young man, but so young to be in love! Renee had hit it on the dot.
"What about?"
"I think that boy is in love with you," she told Bella.
"I think so, too," Bella confessed. I wonder how much time they've spent together! If he has a decent career ahead of him, how his mother is with children…
"And how do you feel about him?" Renee asked curiously. Bella sighed.
"I'm pretty crazy about him." Pretty crazy… that was a good thing, right? I'd had no experience in the romance department, and it was showing.
"Well, he seems very nice, and my goodness, he's incredibly good-looking, but you're so young, Bella…" And certainly much too young to get pregnant!
"I know that, Mom. Don't worry about it. It's just a crush," Bella reminded her. Just a crush? I'd dissect that thought with Alice later.
"That's right," Renee said, relieved.
"Do you need to go?"
"Phil's supposed to call in a little while… I didn't know you were going to wake up…" Renee hesitated.
"No problem, Mom," Bella told her. I could hear the relief that she tried to hide in her voice. "I won't be alone."
"I'll be back soon," Renee said. "I've been sleeping here, you know."
"Oh, Mom, you don't have to do that! You can sleep at home – I'll never notice."
Should I tell her? Or would that make her feel even more nervous? "I was too nervous. There's been some crime in the neighborhood, and I don't like being there alone."
"Crime?" Bella asked.
"Someone broke into that dance studio around the corner from the house and burned it to the ground – there's nothing left at all! And they left a stolen car right out front. Do you remember when you used to dance there, honey?" Oops. That would be the car Alice stole. I guess we forgot to take it.
"I remember."
What's wrong? I shouldn't have told her, I knew it. "I can stay, baby if you need me."
"No, Mom, I'll be fine. Edward will be with me."
Maybe I should stay, and have a nice little talk with both of them once he wakes up. But the poor boy! He's only 17, he needs his rest. "I'll be back tonight."
"I love you, Mom."
"I love you, too, Bella. Try to be more careful when you walk, honey, I don't want to lose you." I grinned. The irony of it all… the one time that it wasn't Bella's clumsiness…
A nurse came into the room as Renee left. "Are you feeling anxious, honey? Your heart rate got a little high there."
"I'm fine," Bella said.
"I'll tell your RN that you're awake. She'll be in to see you in a minute." The nurse began walking towards the door; I could hear her heels clicking towards the door. Time to talk…
A/N: Meh. I hate that ending. There's one more chapter after this, the "talk" between Bella and Edward. Aren't we all looking forward to that? So, umm... review. :) :)