Changing Our Forever

by Lillian Marie Hope

What happens when Bella and Edward receive the Twilight books from a Psychic-also known as Stephenie Meyer? What happens if the Cullens befriend the Quileutes before it's too late? The Cullens and Quileutes work together to save a damsel in distress AND a Quileute from being attacked in the mall. Read the story to find out. Disclaimer: I don't Own Twilight :(

9. The Crash

Chapter 9

BPOV

I awoke early Tuesday morning, surprising Edward. Well, he had been aware of me preparing to wake, but he was surprised it was at 6am. I had been having a dream about snow and Tyler's van. I remembered the van accident had been when Edward revealed himself for the first time, in the process of saving me.

"Has it been snowing?" I wondered. Edward smiled at me.

"Yes, it has," he murmured in amusement. "I know you don't like the cold and the wet, but snow can be such fun for vampires. You must know how much I love you that I am here with you instead of playing in it with my siblings."

"You could have left."

"Oh, silly Bella. Don't you know that when I am holding you in my arms, there is no place I would rather be?"

I smiled, touched by his romantic drivel. I pulled his head down to mine, and we kissed passionately. I moaned into his mouth and ran my tongue over his bottom lip. His lips parted, and his cool, sweet breath washed over me, intoxicating me. His cold tongue slipped into my mouth, dancing with mine. He pulled my lower body closer to him, so our chests were touching, without the blanket in-between us. The coldness of his skin through his shirt and through my thin pajamas was enough to cause a reaction. He groaned, and I knew he could feel the pebbles brushing against his marble torso. Abruptly, he pulled away, gasping for breath.

"If I don't stop now, I won't be able to stop at all."

"So don't stop," I encouraged, trying to pull him closer to me again. He rolled his eyes at me.

"Now is not the time for this."

I pouted, but he simply swooped in to plant a quick kiss on my lips, before climbing out of bed. I still had an extra 45 minutes to kill before my usual time to rise and shine. I knew how I wanted to fill that time, but apparently by gorgeous vampire boyfriend wasn't going to comply. I sighed and remembered my dream. I guess we could spend the time talking at least.

"Edward, do you remember from the first book what happened on this day?"

He frowned. "Yes, you almost got squished by Tyler's van, but I saved you, revealing my inhuman abilities in the process. But don't worry. It's not going to happen. You're not driving your truck. You'll be riding with me instead, so everything is already changed."

"But Edward, nothing has changed for Tyler. We know he is going to crash his van in the parking lot. It would be irresponsible of us to allow that to happen."

Edward gave me a stern glance. "It is not our place to play God with other people's lives."

"What? We already have! Not only have we changed things for ourselves, but we've changed things for everyone around us. The wolves, your siblings, even Angela and Ben. What is this really about?"

"Well, how much should we tempt fate, interfere in the way things are supposed to be?"

"You've heard of the butterfly effect haven't you? That if you went back in time thousands of years and killed a single butterfly, that change could massively affect how the world works today, right? So, we have already made massive changes. We're talking a herd of elephants, not just a butterfly. With all the things we've already done, to refuse to prevent injury to someone we know just because is awfully hypocritical. Does this have anything to do with the fact that it brought me to his attention, and he thought he was taking me to prom? Are you jealous?"

He wouldn't meet my eyes, so I knew that it was true. "How petty, Edward. I mean, get real. Don't worry, I'll make the call for you."

He brought his eyes up to mine and grabbed my hand. "What call?"

I rolled my eyes. "The call to Tyler to warn him to take it slowly this morning when coming into the parking lot."

"How are you going to explain that you are suddenly calling him out of the blue to warn him about speeding on the ice?"

Hmmm. Good point. "I'll think of something. I don't want to talk about Tyler any more. I'm going to go take a shower now."

"I didn't want to talk about him at all," he muttered.

"Whatever. Why don't you get a life? Take a chill pill."

Edward smirked. "I already took a chill pill, in case you haven't felt my body temperature lately. That's the reason I need to get a life. Since I don't have one, I'm borrowing yours. What are we going to do once you're changed? Then neither one of us will have a life."

I couldn't help chuckling at his goofy humor, which brought a grin to his face. No doubt it fed his ego too. Edward finally let go of my hand, and I gathered my clothes for the day. I went to the shower and started brainstorming about what to say to Tyler without sounding completely insane. I was enjoying the feeling of the hot water spraying down on my back, when I heard a loud banging on the door.

"Don't use all the hot water, Bells. I still need to use the shower too, so wrap it up, please," Charlie yelled through the door.

Ugh. How embarrassing. I quickly turned off the water, hoping there was enough hot water left for his shower. Usually my father hops into the shower before I do. I wondered what time it was and how long I had been in there. I towelled off and dressed rapidly, fumbling a lot with my increased pace. I grabbed my brush, deciding to use the mirror in my room instead so the bathroom would be available. I dashed into the hallway, almost knocking Charlie over. I hadn't expected him to be waiting there. I must have really been pushing the time for him as he looked stressed.

"Sorry," I gasped. "I lost track of time."

He grunted and headed straight into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. That's one of the disadvantages of living in an old house with only one bathroom. I like the more modern houses with one bathroom per bedroom. Some of the larger ones even had more bathrooms than bedrooms. How crazy is that? The Cullens were smart enough to design their house with enough bathrooms for each bedroom, plus a guest bathroom on the first floor. It was quite amusing, seeing as how they didn't use the toilet, but they did all enjoy showers and baths. I hadn't seen for sure, but I was willing to bet that all the bathrooms for the couples included massive soaker whirlpool tubs built to accommodate more than one person at a time.

I slipped back into my bedroom and was shocked by the time on my alarm clock. I had been in there way longer than usual. In fact, I was going to have to rush a bit to get ready on time. Poor Charlie only got a five minute shower. I heard him curse as the water turned icy. Oops. If I got up early again, I would find some other way to spend my time. It wasn't fair to him.

Edward took the brush out of my hands and began to calmly brush my hair. I loved the way his fingers felt against my head as he held me in place. He would periodically run his fingers through my hair. I didn't have time to blow dry it this morning. I would have to let it dry naturally. Hopefully, it wouldn't freeze outside. I didn't think it would really be cold enough to freeze my wet hair, but coming from Phoenix, I didn't have any prior experience from which to draw.

"We can't leave your hair wet like this. I don't want you to catch pneumonia."

"Edward, you've been through medical school twice now. You know very well that is an old wives tale. Pneumonia is caused by germs, not wet hair." Really, he could be so ridiculous some times.

"Esme is an old wife," he chided, "and she certainly seems to know what she's talking about."

"Why? Did she tell you that you would catch pneumonia if you went outside with wet hair?"

"No, but my human mother did," he responded quietly. I sighed. There wasn't any argument I could give now. I certainly wasn't going to tell him that his cherished human mother didn't know what she was talking about, even if it was true. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around my pony tail, then squeezed with his vampire strength. When he removed the towel a few seconds later, the towel was soaking wet, and my hair felt nearly dry to the touch.

"Handy," I muttered, impressed. "You're much faster than a blow dryer. Reason 213 for keeping you around."

"Reason 213? What are the other 212?" he asked with a grin.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" I teased. "But I'll never tell."

He gave me a sad look, then tried the pouting and puppy dog eyes. My breath caught, and I almost gave in, but then I remembered what he had told me the other day.

"Sorry, Edward, but Alice already uses that expression on me, and she has really quite mastered it, so you're going to have to try a lot harder if you want me to get rid of my inhibitions," I snickered, gleefully.

He growled at my response. Then he tried to dazzle me. I was prepared for it this time, so I purposely kept my gaze on his nose instead of falling into his compelling eyes. He put his finger under my chin, trying to get me to lift my gaze to his. My stomach growled just then. Saved by the growl. He gave up trying and let me go downstairs to grab some breakfast, while he jumped out the window to get his car. I grabbed a Pop Tart, not even bothering to toast it. It wasn't flavorful or nutritious, but it was edible and fast.

I grabbed the phone book, amused once again by how thin it was. Compared to the ones in Phoenix, this one was merely a magazine. I did appreciate the fact that there was only one listing for Crowley, so I didn't have to waste time trying to figure out which one was correct. I dialed the number and waited impatiently for someone to answer.

"Hello?"

"May I please speak to Tyler?"

"This is Tyler. Who is this?"

"This is Bella Swan. Listen…"

"Bella? The new girl?"

"Um, yeah, that's me. Listen, it's really important that you take it easy coming to school today, particularly when you're coming into the parking lot."

"You called me to tell me to be careful of the ice? Are you worried about me or something?" I heard a bit of interest in his voice. Great. Just what I didn't want.

"I just noticed your tires looked a little bald yesterday. I was going to say something to you about it later, but when I realized the roads were so icy, I was concerned that the van would slip and slide, and someone might get hurt."

"So you were worried about me. That's so sweet." No, no, no! This wasn't the way I wanted it to go.

"Oh, well, don't read anything into it, Tyler. Edward and I are together. Period. End of story. I called a few other people I thought might have trouble too, so I'm concerned about everybody, not just you."

"Uh huh, fine, right. No problem, Bella. I'll see you later, okay?"

I sighed, resigned. "Fine." I hung up, not wanting to hear any more bull crap from him.

I heard Edward knocking on my door, then letting himself inside. Charlie had already left, and it was past time for me to leave too. That phone call had put me behind schedule. Well, really the shower had put me behind schedule, but the phone call only made it worse. Edward was going to have to drive like a lunatic to get us to school on time. I knew he would never crash the car, but what about everybody else on the road?

EPOV

I was holding Bella's hand, our fingers intertwined, as I drove to school. I was having fun speeding so quickly over the ice, but I knew Bella was terrified, so I tried not to express my enjoyment too openly. I knew she could sense it though. So little time together and yet she already knew me so well. I brought her hand up to my mouth and began pressing soft kisses on the back of it. I was murmuring soothing words to her, hoping she would relax and keep her eyes off the speedometer. Unfortunately, her eyes had been glued to it since we left the driveway. She was completely unaware of her surroundings, not even noticing how pretty everything looked covered over with a white blanket. So clean and pure, glistening and sparkling like diamonds.

My phone buzzed, startling Bella, whose gaze jumped to my pocket. I sighed and dug it out. Seeing Alice's number on the caller ID, I reluctantly answered it. Not wanting to let go of Bella's hand, I chose to steer with my knees. Thankfully, Bella was too focused on the phone to realize what I was doing.

"Yes, Alice?" I answered, a bit of irritation in my voice. This had better be important. It was interrupting my Bella time.

"Bella! Tyler! Van!" she yelled anxiously.

"Relax, we've got that under control. She called him this morning and warned him to drive carefully," I grumbled quickly.

"Edward!" she screamed loudly.

Suddenly, someone else's thoughts shouted loudly in my head. Oh, SSSHHHIIIIIITTTT! Huh? I turned in the direction of the thoughts were coming from, just in time to lock eyes with Tyler Crowley as his van plowed into the passenger side door.

EPOV

Sheer horror overtook me as I realized even vampire reflexes would be too slow to prevent the impending crash. I flicked my gaze to Bella's and watched her comprehend my horror. Before she or I could respond to it, the van smashed into my Volvo with incredible force. I heard the bending and tearing of metal, reminiscent of the sound of dismembering a vampire. I saw the side impact air bag inflate as if in slow motion and saw it hit Bella and deflate. I saw the corresponding backlash as her body fell back toward the door, her head smashing through the shattered window. Though it was safety glass, somehow it still managed to gash her forehead.

Head wounds typically look worse than they really are, because they tend to bleed like crazy. Sure enough, the warm red blood started pouring out of the gash, dripping down the side of her face. The scent of her freshly spilled blood in the close confines of my car instantly overwhelmed me. I felt the growl rumble up inside of me, and I was thirstier than I had ever been in my existence. I was pure vampire now. This glorious elixir of life was MINE, all mine, made especially for me. The sweet, salty scent sang to me, called to me, begged me to drink, to savor. I knew I would never taste or smell anything finer than the delectable wine dribbling out in front of me.

I heard something shouting, "EDWARD, NOOO!" I looked down at the silver object in my hand. How dare it tell me no? And who was Edward anyway? I crushed it easily to powder, and the noise disappeared, leaving me in blissful silence. Not wanting to be interrupted, I spared a glance for my surroundings. There was another prey, also bleeding nearby, slumped over a steering wheel. It was not moving, though it was still breathing. It was not a threat. It could wait.

I grabbed my prey's head in my hands, careful not to crush it. I didn't want to waste a single drop of my delicious dinner. My prey was still and unmoving. Good. It wouldn't feel anything then as I drained its life to fuel my own. Ever so delicately, I stuck out my tongue, touching the trail of blood where it ended on its jawline.

At the first taste of the blood on my tongue, my taste buds exploded. My vision dimmed, and I saw flashes of light behind my eyes. I was in heaven. Pure bliss. Sweet euphoria. It was the most incredible taste I had ever experienced, a hundred times better than any other blood, better than I ever could have imagined. I licked up the side of its face, following the trail of blood up to the wound. The blood coated my tongue, causing mini-shocks throughout my system, like mini-orgasms. There is no way I would rush through this experience. I wanted to stay connected to this feeling forever. I never wanted to stop drinking.

Ever so softly, I brought my lips around the gash, caressing the flesh around it. Gently, gently I sucked in a small mouthful, allowing it to coat the inside of my mouth. The fire in the back of my throat was a raging inferno, but the moment this incredible drink hit my throat, it was as cool as the rest of me. The sheer satisfaction and contentment I felt when that one small swallow hit my stomach was more powerful than I had ever felt before. Yes, this was heaven. This was where I belonged. I suckled gently at the wound moaning with pleasure as the mouthwatering elixir flowed sweetly down my throat.

Suddenly, I heard an answering moan from my prey. I pulled back to assess the situation. Was it still alive then? I peered into deep, dark, chocolate eyes. Those eyes triggered a sense of alarm. Something was wrong. I pulled back a little further, staring intensely at the prey. There was pain in those limitless eyes, and that bothered me. How odd. I did not like for my prey to suffer. Had I not snapped its neck like I usually do? Something else struck me. This prey had no thoughts. It was alive and stirring, but I could hear nothing in its head. The non-animal prey always had thoughts, thoughts of fear, of guilt, of regret, of prayer. Always thoughts. Why did this…human…have no thoughts?

"Edward," the human whispered weakly. I frowned. The human did have thoughts then. Yet I still couldn't hear them. And I had heard that voice before. Speaking that name. My name. I was Edward. The human I couldn't hear was…who? I frowned even deeper in concentration and confusion. Alarm bells were ringing up and down my body. This was important. I could sense it. There was great danger here. Something that could cost me my entire existence. But what?

I looked at the human's whole face. It, no, she bit her lip. Instantly, her name came to me. Bella. This was Bella. BELLA! My MATE! I was drinking from my MATE! I was killing her! My bloodlust disappeared as my brain recognized that my love, my life was injured, maybe dying. If anything happened to her it would be the end of my existence. I would follow her into oblivion as quickly as possible. I rapidly took in the scene, noting Tyler was still unconscious. I was glad he hadn't witnessed any of my disgusting behavior. I reached for my phone to call 911, and saw the pile of dust that was all that remained of it.

I remembered Alice had been on the other end of the line when I lost it. She had tried to warn me, but I didn't listen. I hoped she had called the ambulance for me. I owed her one. I removed Bella's seatbelt, and gathered her to my chest. Her eyes had closed again, but I could still hear her heartbeat.

How much had I drunk? How could I have done that to her?

I heard sirens in the distance, police, fire, and ambulance. Alice had called then. I carefully extracted Bella from the mangled seat, pulling her out the driver's side door and up into my arms. I stood there, cradling her against my chest, waiting for the ambulance to arrive to take us to Carlisle.

EPOV

The sirens were getting closer, and I stopped to think about how things would look. I wondered if my eyes were red. Had I drank enough of Bella's blood to change the color? I couldn't allow any of the humans to see me with red eyes. I reached back into the car and grabbed a pair of sunglasses from the pocket in the door, slipping them awkwardly onto my face. I had plenty of strength to hold Bella with one arm, but she was unconscious, so I had to be careful to keep her properly balanced as well. Plus, I was concerned about jostling her too much with her head wound. I thought about how I would look, standing there holding her, with little or no effort. The humans might become suspicious if I demonstrated such strength. I moved to rest her body weight on the undamaged portion of the trunk, still keeping her in my arms. I wanted to place her on the stretcher myself, not trusting anyone else to hold her.

A tiny, very tiny, portion of my brain was bemoaning the loss of my precious Volvo. It had served its purpose though in helping to protect my darling Bella from injury. I could buy a dozen more cars tomorrow if I wanted, but Bella was irreplaceable. So I let the Volvo go.

Another tiny portion of my brain was ready to finish the job on Tyler Crowley. The idiot had been speeding on an icy road, downhill, headed toward a stop sign. What the hell did he expect to happen? I chose to ignore the fact that I had also been speeding on the icy road, driving with my knees, talking on the phone, and holding hands with my mate. I was a vampire, doggone it. Yet my vampire skills had been useless, and the danger my nature had presented had almost cost Bella her life. I didn't want to take the time to look at my own faults at the moment. There would be plenty of time for beating myself up later, once I knew she was safe. For now, I'd settle for fantasizing about beating up Tyler instead.

I couldn't believe the bloodlust was completely gone. I had continued to breathe, and though my throat still burned a bit, I had no desire to quench my thirst. I wasn't even bothered by Tyler's blood. The majority of my brain was consumed with thoughts of Bella. I couldn't let her die. I would change her if need be, but I would not let her die. My personal monster was firmly chained in his cage, though he was fairly satisfied at the moment, having drunk the most perfect blood ever created.

The first vehicle to arrive at the scene, lights flashing, sirens blaring, was none other than Chief Swan's cruiser. He got out of the car grimly, concentrating on the wreckage and the accident scene, which told its own story. I tried to listen for his thoughts, but merely got the basic gist without the details. He had already determined the guilt of Tyler Crowley, having easily surmised that he ran the stop sign and crashed into the car that had the right-of-way. He could see by the skid marks and distance travelled that Tyler had been exceeding the speed limit, though he didn't know by how much. His eyes were taking in details everywhere, all in a matter of seconds as he approached. His eyes then swept over Tyler, assessing the damage to his body and to his van. Then his eyes came to us. I saw the recognition flicker in his eyes upon seeing me, and then a mere second later the connection was made, and his eyes flew to Bella's limp form in my arms. His mind didn't want to accept what his eyes were telling him.

"Not my baby girl," he whispered, distraught. I could sense the fear and anguish crowding his mind as he noted her stillness. "Bella?" His eyes came back to my face, though he couldn't see my eyes through my sunglasses.

"She's still alive, though she's unconscious. She's hit her head. The ambulance should be here any second," I started sobbing. He continued walking to us, needing to feel her pulse for himself, needing the comfort of her warmth, her breath, her life. "I'm so sorry Charlie. There was nothing I could do. By the time I saw him, it was too late to react. I think the side air bag may have helped, but I don't know for sure. It did inflate. Oh, Charlie, she's got to be okay!" I was still sobbing, throughout the speech, resting my forehead on top of hers. "We've just got to get her to Carlisle. He can save her. I know it. If we get to Carlisle everything will be okay. He can fix anything," I promised softly, my words and tone filled with sorrow and desperation.

"Please, Bella, hang in there. Don't die. I need you. I love you. Don't leave me, Bella. Please don't leave me. Stay with me, Bella. Wake up, darling, please," I pleaded, not caring if her father heard. I would do anything for her. Anything.

"Edward?" she whispered weakly. "Don't cry, sweetheart. What's wrong?"

Her eyelids fluttered, but she did not open her eyes.

"Don't try to talk, love. You've been hurt. Just stay with me. I'm going to get you to Carlisle, I promise."

"Edward? Don't leave me. Promise me you won't leave me," she demanded, her words weak, but her determination strong.

"Bella, I won't leave you now, not while you need me, but there's too much danger. You have no idea how dangerous it is for you to be around me."

"Promise me you won't leave, Edward," she growled at me. Her heart rate was accelerating. She was getting disturbed, frightened.

"I promise, Bella, I won't leave you."

She gave a sigh of relief and fell back into unconsciousness. I wanted to shake her, but I knew how disastrous that would be, so I refrained. "Wake up, Bella! Please wake up! You have a concussion. You really ought to stay awake, at least until Carlisle has examined you." I felt Charlie's hand on my shoulder, his other hand caressing her cheek. I lifted my head to look in his eyes, forgetting for a moment my sunglasses. I saw myself reflected back in his pupils, the epitome of grief and worry. He didn't speak, but a new thought hovered along with his own grief and worry. Acceptance. The stirrings of familial bonding. He was acknowledging to himself the depths of my feelings for his daughter, and of hers for me. He was accepting that I would be a large part of his life with her.

He dropped his hands wordlessly and approached Tyler's van. His thought patterns had shifted into authoritative disgust and anger. He was concerned for Tyler's well-being, but he was angry about Tyler's reckless driving behavior that had endangered the life of his only daughter. Tyler would likely be facing a ticket or charges in addition to his injuries.

Just then, the volunteer rescue squad pulled up from one side, and the fire department's ambulance pulled up from the other.

I carried her quickly over to the rescue squad, eager to get her loaded up and on her way to Carlisle. I desperately needed for him to check her out and assure me she would be okay. I would have to explain what I had done and endure his disappointment at my lack of control. He would have to determine whether or not she would need a transfusion.

The paramedics had the back of the ambulance open, and I didn't wait for them to remove the stretcher. I simply climbed up into the back and set her down gently onto the little bed. The paramedics already knew me, so with one look at her prone form and another at my face, they had no complaints. They simply climbed back into position themselves, not denying my right to stay by her side on the way to the hospital, and rushed off to the emergency room. I saw Charlie watching as we pulled away and understood that he trusted me to see to Bella's safety. If I had tears, they would be streaking down my face. He trusted me, the one who almost killed her.

Carlisle was waiting for us at the ambulance entrance, just as I suspected he would. I could hear his thoughts as we approached.

I will take care of Bella. Alice called me. You fed from her?

One look at my sunglasses told him the answer. I had no need for words. If Jasper had been here, he would have been on his knees from the force of my guilt and shame.

Quickly go and hunt, son. How much did you take? Never mind, I'll know soon enough. Get some contacts from the house, if need be. You'll need to be on hand to answer questions, so go as fast as you can. I will do everything in my power for Bella.

I nodded in agreement, understanding his wisdom, and trusting him like no other to provide Bella with whatever she needed. In the confusion surrounding her unloading and being wheeled into place in the E.R., I slipped away, running through the forest, moving faster than I ever had before. I was racing to get back to my Bella. Blood and contacts, blood and contacts. That's all I needed and then I could be back by her side, where I belonged.

CPOV

My surgeries for the day had been cancelled due to the ice on the roads. Nobody wanted our patients to have an accident on the way to the hospital. It was unspoken, of course, but the staff was also expecting to need to deal with accident victims. It didn't snow very often here in Forks, due to the proximity of the ocean, so the residents weren't as comfortable driving through snow and ice as our neighbors to the north and east. I hoped nobody was seriously injured. So far, everything that had come through the E.R. had been minor, not requiring my advanced skills, so I was pretty much twiddling my thumbs in my office waiting for something to happen. Suddenly, my phone buzzed. I checked the caller ID. Alice. When would I learn to stop feeling bored? Whenever I did, something bad seemed to happen, always leaving me wishing for boredom again.

"Yes?"

"Carlisle!" she whimpered. Uh oh, that can't be good. Alice is almost never distraught.

"What is it?" I snapped, the tension in my voice audible to even the most casual observer.

"Bella!" she sobbed, whimpering again. Oh, no. Please, no. Edward was happy for the first time in over eighty years. Please don't let something have happened to his soul mate.

"Alice," I pleaded. I needed answers, and I needed them now. Preferably before I had a heart attack. I smiled weakly to myself at my mental joke. I heard her take a deep breath and heard Jasper murmuring to her in the background, trying to help her calm down enough to tell me what was happening.

"There was an accident. Tyler ran into the Volvo at high speed, right into the passenger side door, right into Bella." I actually felt my stomach drop at her words and braced myself for her to continue. "Her head went through the window, and she started to bleed from a gash on her temple." Oh, no. That was bad. I could sense where this was leading. Edward had excellent control, but she was his singer. Her blood called to him, and he had only known her for a week and a half. They were in a confined space together, where her scent would be so strong, even with a broken window. I closed my eyes, my fertile imagination easily picturing the impending disaster. "Edward, he…well, he…he lost it. He was overcome by bloodlust and started to drink from her wound. I had a vision," she sobbed, "…a vision of him draining her, killing her. When he realized what he'd done… Oh, Carlisle! But then I had another vision, of him holding her in his arms, with sirens in the distance, waiting for them, and she was still breathing, though she was clearly unconscious. So I called 911 and reported the accident anonymously." She started sobbing uncontrollably.

I could easily understand her fear and concern. I was filled with it myself. My children were hurting. Edward, my son. Bella, my daughter. I could not lose either one. As long as she was still alive there was hope, I would cling to it with every particle of my being. I would not give up, and if I needed to change her, I would. I would do whatever was necessary. I would not allow Esme to suffer by losing another child ever again, as long as I could do anything to prevent it. I knew she already considered Bella a daughter, and would be devastated by the news of the accident. I also knew that if we lost Bella, we would lose Edward too. I didn't need Alice's power to know that. I had lived a long time and knew well the power of the bond between mates.

"Don't worry, Alice," I soothed. "I'll take care of everything from here."

"Thanks, Carlisle. I'll see you soon." I took a small amount of pride in knowing how much my words had comforted my daughter. She trusted me to make everything better. I just hoped I could. My brain kicked into overdrive, making plans for every possible contingency, starting with Edward. If he had drunk enough of her blood, his eyes would be red. He would need to wear contacts to cover the color.

Alice had hung up, so I called Esme, filling her in on the news. I asked her to find contacts for Edward and prepared her to be ready for him when he arrived. Then I went down to the E.R. entrance to await the ambulance.

Once they had arrived, Edward had slipped away into the woods. Bella was settled into her little cubicle and I began to examine her. The nurse took a blood sample to run some tests. I was amazed to find that the contusion and gash on her head were her only real injuries, aside from heavy bruises resulting from the seatbelt and the door. I knew she would be feeling the pain and discomfort in her shoulder and hip from the force of being restrained by the seatbelt, but that was a small price to pay compared to what would have happened if she hadn't been wearing a seatbelt. She would surely have died without it.

I left the nurses to attach the heart monitor and insert the IV. I returned a few minutes later with a small surgical set. I quickly cleaned her open wound, wincing as she flinched even in her unconsciousness. I stitched her up quickly, with tiny tight stitches so they wouldn't leave a noticeable scar. I wrote orders for an x-ray and went to examine Tyler. He too was unconscious when he arrived. The EMTs informed me he had been unconscious when they found him. I looked him over carefully. He had not had an airbag as his van was an older model, so he had hit his head fairly hard on the steering wheel, giving him a concussion. He had been covered in broken glass when the windshield shattered, which resulted in multiple small cuts on his face and hands. None of them needed stitches and would heal in a matter of days. He also had bruises on his shoulder, chest, and hips from the seatbelt. Like Bella, he too would have died without it, likely being flung right through the windshield. The only other obvious injury was a swollen wrist. I issued the orders for x-rays for both his wrist and head.

There was nothing to do but wait now, until the x-rays and the blood test came back, so I could discover the extent of the damage. I found myself pacing, just like a human, impatient and helpless.

"Dr. Cullen?" I looked up to see Charlie Swan addressing me. He was clearly upset and looking for answers. I stopped pacing and held out my hand.

"Chief Swan, I'm so sorry about the accident," I responded immediately. He shook my hand and attempted a smile, though it looked more like a grimace.

"How is she?" He cut right to the chase.

"I won't know for certain until I get some results back, but she is stable. Her vitals look good. Her head is the only real injury, other than some hefty bruises."

He looked relieved. "Oh, and Tyler?" He growled just a bit at the end. I really couldn't blame him, though I knew Edward was just as guilty. I had no doubt Edward had been speeding, cocky that his vampire reflexes would keep them safe from harm. Then again, the thing that was worrying me the most at the moment was whether or not she would need a blood transfusion, which was all on Edward's shoulders. Tyler could hardly be blamed that Edward wanted to eat his own girlfriend.

"Tyler appears to be in much the same boat as Bella, plus a sprained or broken wrist and some minor cuts."

Charlie nodded, relaxing a bit. He looked around the room, including the waiting area. Then he looked back at me with confusion. "Where's Edward? The way he had her cradled into his chest at the scene of the accident, I was sure he wouldn't let her go. I didn't even bother to try to take her from him. When she awoke briefly, they only had eyes for each other. Frankly, I'm shocked he isn't attached to her side."

I smiled at him in understanding. "I had to force him away, I'm afraid. He wasn't physically injured in the crash, nothing serious anyway, but he was in shock. Medical shock. I had to insist he get something to drink to get something into his system. Then I made him get a little rest, forbidding him to come back to Bella until Esme could tell me he was okay. I knew then he would have to rest at least as long as it takes Esme to get here from our house and make her way to him. He didn't want to listen, but he's a good boy and didn't argue with me. He's had enough time and experience with me to know I'm always right." I chuckled and winked at Charlie to show him I was kidding about the last remark. He grinned at me.

"Father knows best, eh?"

"Well, nobody's perfect, not even me, but he recognized the wisdom of fulfilling my orders without complaint."

Charlie shook his head. "I really admire you Carlisle, you and Esme both. I don't know how you do it. I'm a bit at a loss myself, trying to raise my one and only teenage daughter. How on earth have you two managed to raise five of them? It's beyond my comprehension."

"I guess you just learn to accept the challenges life gives you and try to make the best of whatever hand you're dealt. Believe me, there are times I feel like running screaming into the night, yanking out all my hair in the process, but the love we all share as a family is worth all the sacrifices, the frustrations and irritations we suffer through daily. I wouldn't trade my family for anything."

Charlie smiled at me. "I'm glad you feel that way, Doc, because I have a feeling you and I may be related someday."

"Oh?" I queried, my eyebrows raised in surprise. "What do you mean?"

Charlie squirmed, feeling a bit uncomfortable. He even blushed, not meeting my eyes.

"The looks I saw on our children's faces today—the love they shared was obvious. I'm pretty sure my

Bella is going to take after me, as far as love goes. She's such a constant little thing. Once her mind is made up about something, there's no budging it. I've only loved one woman in my life, Carlisle. I loved her eighteen years ago, and I love her still. There is nothing I wouldn't do for that woman, including setting her free to find her happiness elsewhere. Even letting her have custody of our precious daughter, accepting miniscule visitation rights, just to bring her joy. Now my Bella is becoming a young woman herself, and there's nothing I wouldn't do for her either. I was her age when I fell madly in love with Renée, and that love has never faltered or died. I have never even looked at another woman. I can't regret the love I gave to Renée, even though she didn't return it, because it gave me Bella. I do hope my daughter will not suffer as I have. I see that permanent kind of love shining in her eyes today, and I realized it's already too late. She will love Edward forever. I can only hope he feels the same way about her. I couldn't see his eyes, but his words and his body language indicated he treasured her above all else. I don't know how you feel about that, seeing as how they're so young."

Charlie was still blushing and looked like he couldn't believe he said so much. I wondered briefly if that was the longest speech he'd ever made. I'd always heard he was a man of few words, but loyal and good as they come. He loved his job, his town, and his people. His honesty and integrity were well known.

"Charlie, Esme and I have already come to think of Bella as a daughter, as part of our family, even though we haven't known her long. She's charmed every single one of us into loving her. My children, with the exception of Edward, all consider her a sister and would protect her as one of us. Edward has never had a girlfriend before. He has been approached by females desiring his company so many times I've lost track, so he has had plenty of opportunity. He has never been interested. Not that he's been interested in males either, please don't misunderstand. He was just content with the love of our family and the companionship we provided. He never seemed to want anything more. Since Bella came along though, he's been completely different. He wants to be with her all the time. He's joyful, playful, ecstatic… He's happier than I have ever seen him. It's like he only existed before and now he's alive. She is his whole world, his meaning in life. He greets each day with a smile now. He used to be such a loner, but he is becoming social now. He's even made friends with some of the boys from La Push, which is something I never thought I'd see."

"Really? From La Push?" Charlie seemed staggered. I wondered why. He couldn't know of the treaty.

I nodded. "Yes, apparently they've all decided to work through some misconceptions each had about the other and are now getting along fine. I am very happy to see it, but I'm not sure how happy the tribal elders are going to be when they find out. I'm hoping for the best."

"Good for you," Charlie encouraged. "I've told Billy before that if he would just take the time to get to know you, then he'd realize his fears and superstitions were nothing but nonsense." He clapped me on the shoulder and then had to answer a call that came in over his radio.

The nurse approached with the x-ray films. Excellent! I put them up on the x-ray board and turned on the light. I sensed Edward's approach, and he came up behind me to look at the films over my shoulder. I examined Bella's first. This was good news. Though the bone had cracked, it hadn't broken all the way through, so there was no real damage to the brain, aside from a bit of bruising from it colliding with the inside of her skull at the time of impact.

I moved on to Tyler's films. Also, excellent. The concussion was mild; the bone in the forehead being one of the stronger bones that encased the brain. His wrist was merely sprained, not even broken. I was feeling rather hopeful at the moment, the injuries relatively mild considering the force of the accident.

One of my nurses handed me a chart with the blood test results. I held it so Edward couldn't see it, wanting to know myself, before he could react. I started blocking my thoughts, running my eyes down the list at vampire speed. My dead heart flipped over. I looked at him over the chart, my expression blank, my eyes serious.

"I am so…PROUD…of you, son," I whispered. He looked at me in shock. I noted his eyes were an orangey-yellow. They would likely be back to normal with one or two more feedings. I smiled. "According to the numbers, she's only down about half a pint, nowhere near a critical level. The Red Cross takes more than that from blood donors. You showed incredible restraint. While it was incredibly risky to taste her blood at all, and truly she could have died so quickly, you actually pulled back from the bloodlust, from your singer no less, before you did her any real harm. It's absolutely amazing! I don't know of any other vampire who could have demonstrated such overwhelming control."

Edward was amazed by what I was telling him. I could tell he had expected me to be disappointed. He blamed himself, seeing only what he did wrong and not what he did right. I didn't want to argue with him here in public, so I decided to let it go for the time being.

"Why don't you go sit with her now, Edward, and see if you can coax her out of her unconsciousness. I'm going to go and give Charlie the good news."

His face lit up with the idea, not only of being with Bella, but of doing something useful to help her. He quickly moved to her side as I approached Charlie.

BPOV

Ugh. My head is hurting. Why is my head hurting so badly? Okay, what is the last thing I remember? I was in the car, on the way to school. There was ice and snow. We were running late, and Edward was speeding worse than usual. I couldn't take my eyes off the speedometer as I watched it steadily climb, chanting repeatedly in my head "vampires don't have accidents."

Let's see. Hmmm. Edward's phone buzzed. It was Alice. She shouted something about Tyler and his van. Edward assured her we had taken care of it. There's something odd about that. But what? Oh, well, I'll come back to it. Then Edward had looked my way and his face flashed with horror. Next, there was a horrendous sound. Yep, that's pretty much all I remember. No wait, there's more. A dream. A dream of Edward staring down at me with black, hungry eyes showing no recognition, only confusion. His lips had been redder than usual. I had felt him kissing my forehead, but my brain was dizzy from the feeling of a head rush. As he had continued to stare into my eyes, his confusion grew and the blackness of his pupils began to recede. But there was something wrong with the picture. The blackness wasn't replaced by his topaz irises. No, his eyes were red! Red!

I crinkled my forehead and felt tape wrinkling on my skin, right where his mouth had been. Who am I kidding? He wouldn't be kissing my injury to make it all better! I must have been bleeding, and he must have been drinking from me. That would explain the feeling of the blood rushing to my head. He had been sucking it out. How do I feel now? My vampire boyfriend had been sucking my blood. Actually, it didn't sound so bad considering I had lived to tell about it. After all, I knew he was a vampire before I started dating him. I knew I was his singer, and he would have a harder time resisting my blood than any other human's blood, yet I still chose to ride in the confined space of a car alone with him.

Oh, no. He'd been drinking my blood. I knew what that meant. He'd be blaming himself, calling himself a monster, and making plans to leave me for my own safety. What a load of malarkey. If he left me, I would personally chase him down and have Emmett rip his legs off and hide them. I'd like to see him run away without his legs. Hah! Don't even try me, Angst Boy! I read what happened in New Moon, and there was no way in hell I was going to let him do that to me for real. Forget it.

Something was tugging at the back of my mind though. Something about Alice's phone call… Wouldn't she have seen my decision to call Tyler? Why would she call about that so long after my actual call? Why had she sounded so panicked, when it had already been handled? Wait a minute. Had we ever given Alice the details about the accident as described in Twilight? I couldn't remember doing so, and Edward didn't seem to like to divulge anything from the books to his family.

Alice must have had a vision. The accident must have happened anyway! But how? The look of horror! The horrible sound! My head injury! Somehow, Tyler must have crashed his van into us, probably into my side of the car. I hope he was okay. Oh, no! The Volvo! Edward must be crushed! He has it backwards as usual. He's the one who isn't safe with me. I must literally be a danger magnet. How else could we deliberately avoid an accident, only to be met with a worse one involving all the original players?

"Bella?" an anguished voice murmured at my side. I felt a hard, cold hand squeeze mine. It felt like lifting elephants, but I eventually managed to pry my eyelids open. I saw Edward's grief-stricken face staring down into mine. I refused to be like those goofy people on TV who always came out of a faint wondering what happened. I had already deduced what had happened. Sure enough, the eyes staring intensely down into my own were a cross between orange and yellow. I knew he had consumed my blood, but I wasn't burning, so he hadn't shared his venom with me.

"Oh, Edward," I wailed. "I'm so sorry about your Volvo! I know how much it meant to you."

He looked at me in shocked surprise, clearly questioning my sanity. "It's just a car, sweetheart. There's hundreds more out there. I can easily get another one just like it. Besides, it wasn't your fault. You didn't wreck the car."

"I know, but I still feel bad. If I wasn't such a danger magnet, nothing would have happened."

He looked irritated for a minute, but quickly settled back into grief and shame. "Bella, I have something I have to tell you. Something I must confess." He couldn't meet my eyes. His fingers idly picked at the blanket covering me. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Edward, if this is about you drinking my blood from the gash in my head, I already know."

His eyes flew open and gazed at me in disbelief. "You do? But how?"

"I sorted through my memories and sort of put two and two together. Besides, your eyes aren't gold anymore."

He started to sob. "I'm so sorry, Bella. I can't believe I am such a monster to try to devour the woman I love. I need to leave, Bella. It's not safe for you to be around me!"

I glared at him, grabbing his hand with both of mine. "Don't you even try to start that bull, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, or I will personally kick your ass to kingdom come!" I yelled angrily. He stared at me in surprise again, shocked to hear me speak to him that way. "Do you remember New Moon? Do you? Crap, I cried just reading about you leaving me. I refuse to actually experience it. I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth. I will fly to Italy by myself, if need be and go say hello to Aro." A strangled cry left his lips at that last threat. He continued to stare at me wide-eyed, momentarily speechless. I rather liked it, I had to admit, that I could do that to him. I decided to take advantage of the fact and continue my rampage.

"If anything, you are the one who is in danger from me. It's too dangerous for you to be around me. I don't like you getting hurt."

He scoffed, finally regaining control of his facilities. "Don't be ridiculous, Isabella," he dismissed with a wave of his hand. As if nothing I said mattered. Well, doggone it. It mattered to me, and I wasn't going to back off of this one.

"I'm a danger magnet, remember? If I had kept my distance in the first place, your Volvo would still be intact, and you wouldn't be kicking yourself now."

"You're being absurd, Bella."

"Did you ever have an accident before you met me?" I demanded.

He grimaced. "Well, no, of course not."

"I rest my case!" I shouted, tasting my victory. He rolled his eyes.

"Okay, you're right. You are a danger magnet. Only you could get in a car accident with a vampire driving," he admitted.

"Ha! You admit it! Fate is out to get me! So who is going to protect me if you leave? Jacob?"

He growled, suddenly gripping both of my hands in his. "No! I won't let that dog have you! You're mine!"

"Absolutely!" I smirked. "About time you remembered that little detail. I am yours. Your soul mate, your danger magnet, your responsibility. So stop moping and get with the program."

He released my hands, falling back into his chair with a groan. "Fine, you're right. I can't leave. But I can't afford to be alone with you anymore. I would die if I ever harmed you again."

"You know, Edward, I'm feeling pretty good, except for some bumps and bruises, which are NOT YOUR FAULT, so really I can't see that there was any harm done. I'm still alive, I'm still here. You didn't drain me dry, you didn't change me. So I really don't understand why you're still beating yourself up over this. It's over. It's done. Move on already. Sheesh. I forgive you. You're a vampire. I already knew that. You responded instinctively, yet your humanity overcame and allowed you to pull away."

He looked at me intensely. "I can't take risks with your life, Isabella. You are far too important to me."

Brainblast! Did I really just think that? That's what I get for watching the 'Jimmy Neutron' marathon with Emmett the other day. It was pretty funny when Emmett kept comparing Jimmy to Edward, from the weirdo hairstyle, to the big head, to the know-it-all explanations. It was also pretty funny when I asked Emmett if that made him Carl or Sheen. I remembered the look on his face when I asked that question. Complete outrage. It was hysterically funny, and suddenly, he stopped making jokes about Edward.

"Edward, we simply have to look at the problem objectively. We should use logic to solve the problem, instead of just giving up as if it is insurmountable."

He looked at me in surprise, then turned rather sheepish. "You're right. I haven't even thought there might be another solution to the problem. What other option is there? Either I stay or I go."

"Silly vampire. Use your superhuman intellect for once. I'm only human, and I have ideas. Sheesh.

Now who's being absurd?"

"Look, if you're just going to insult me, I don't see how this could possibly be a productive conversation," he huffed indignantly. I rolled my eyes again. He is so melodramatic sometimes. How on earth had he lived for over a century without gaining a bit more maturity?

"It's simple really. We'll just have Carlisle take a few blood samples periodically, and then he'll expose you and the others to them gradually in controlled environments. If he was able to become immune to blood, I don't see why the rest of you couldn't also. Hopefully, it won't take two hundred years for you to master it, since I certainly won't have blood for that long, so it would be a moot point. I'm hoping since it is only one person's scent you have to resist, and since Carlisle discovered whichever techniques worked best for him and can help and guide you, that it will only take a few months or so to be able to resist a small wound. You simply have to train. Mind over matter, right? You've already managed to get used to my smell when I'm not actively bleeding. Now you just need to work on maintaining control around my spilled blood. And you know how much I really love you when I suggest this, because you know how much I hate needles."

Edward just sat there in shock, staring at me with his mouth open. I raised an eyebrow. What was his problem? Carlisle glided over just then, grabbing my hand and grinning with excitement.

"Absolutely brilliant, Bella! Of course!" Carlisle exclaimed. "I don't know why I never thought of that. I guess because we haven't really needed it, though I should have tried with Jasper at least. We'll get started on that right away! Thank you, dear." He beamed at me and left again, presumably to check on Tyler. I was starting to worry about Edward. He hadn't even moved yet. He was simply portraying a shocked statue. I squeezed his hand.

"Edward? Are you okay, honey?" He finally snapped out of it enough to comment.

"That's such a smart idea, Bella. I can't believe none of us ever even considered it. I'm really quite embarrassed. Still, though that protects you from me, it still doesn't protect you from other dangers in my world." He sighed, looking downcast.

"Edward? Do I need to remind you again about the rapists in Port Angeles, both by the warehouse district and at the mall? There are dangers in my world too, and you and your family help keep me safe. I could just as easily get raped and murdered in the human world as get injured in your world. Not to mention I just got hit by Tyler's van. We both know in the alternate future the van would have killed me without your intervention. Unless Tyler's van is a Transformer or something, you can't blame that on mythical beings." His lips quirked at the idea of the van being a Transformer out to get me.

"Maybe I should have Rosalie take a look at it," he murmured in amusement. Then he got serious again. "Even though we changed the circumstances, we weren't able to truly change the future with regards to the van accident. It still involved you, Tyler, and Tyler's van. The results were different, but still similar. You ended up with a head wound. Only this time, I drank your blood too. It would have been better if we had left it the way it was."

"I'm sorry, Edward. If we hadn't changed it, your precious Volvo would still be intact."

He rolled his eyes at me. "Whatever, Bella. I don't care about the stupid Volvo. I would smash a hundred Volvos to keep you safe."

"Still, I always thought I had the worst luck. What if instead of being persecuted, I was being protected? What if the way things happened was the best possible outcome? What if changing things only makes it worse?"

He closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I don't know, Bella. I don't have any answers for you. In fact, I'm starting to think you're smarter than I am, even though you're only human, and I've been around for over a century. Your mind never ceases to surprise and amaze me." He opened his eyes again, staring at me intensely. "My big question is what do we do about James, Victoria, and Laurent? They'll be here in a little over a month. I thought it would be as easy as just keeping you out of the baseball field, but now I'm not so sure."

I frowned at him in disturbed comprehension. "It's time for a Plan B, I think. I just have a sneaking feeling that if we try to avoid the confrontation the way Meyer presented it, it'll just happen a different way, when we aren't surrounded by your family. We need to think this over for a few days, and then have a discussion with the whole family about it. If they're going to be risking themselves for me, I want them to go into it with their eyes open and not be forced into it by circumstance, like last time."

"I have no problem discussing it with everyone, but do you really think any of them would refuse to protect you? You're part of our family, Bella. It's one for all and all for one."

"I thought you were the Cullens, not the Musketeers," I teased.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up."

"Well, they do say laughter is the best medicine. Maybe we should get Jasper here and tickle him until he cures the whole hospital," I quipped. He chuckled.

"Vampires aren't ticklish, my dear," he protested.

"There's a first time for everything," I muttered, determined to test it out later when he least expected it. "As fun as it is to stay in this miserably uncomfortable hospital bed, hooked up to this noisy monitor, with this annoying IV inserted into the back of my hand, do you think you could pull some strings and spring me?"

He grinned. "I'll see what I can do."

While he was away, working his magic, I hoped, Charlie came in to see me. He gave me a gentle kiss on my cheek and squeezed my hand.

"How are you doing, Bells?"

"I've been better," I griped with a smile. "I'm actually pretty lucky I think. It could have been so much worse."

"I'm glad you had Edward there to take care of you. I can see you two really love each other, but you need to be smart. I don't want you getting pregnant before you even finish high school like Renée did. I don't think you're going to have to worry about your relationship falling apart like mine did, but you still need to think about the future. If you guys are doing anything, I really don't want to know, but don't throw your life away before it even begins. You've got a great mind, and I'd really like to see you go off to college, even if you and Edward go together," he lectured, unable to meet my eye. Both of us were as red as tomatoes. I couldn't believe we were having this conversation at all, much less here and now.

"Dad! Please! What if somebody hears you? Are you trying to kill me?" My heart monitor was beeping like crazy, with my heart rate and blood pressure skyrocketing rapidly.

"Just think about it, Bells," he muttered sheepishly. "And calm down before you give yourself a heart attack."

Carlisle and Edward both came rushing in right then, looking from me to the monitor and back again. Edward's eyes were wild, and he was panting, which I thought odd considering he didn't even need to breathe in the first place.

"What's wrong, Bella? Talk to me!" he demanded, panicking. Carlisle was busy checking my vitals. I was so embarrassed. I certainly had no intention of repeating my conversation with Charlie. I was surprised they hadn't heard it in the first place.

"It's nothing, really. Just a disturbing conversation. I guess I overreacted," I confessed. I was calming down, and my bodily reactions were gradually returning to normal. Carlisle and Edward both glanced over at Charlie and then shared an amused look with each other. I guess they must have heard at least some of it after all.

"Umm, Carlisle, can I please go home now?" I begged. He chuckled.

"Aren't you enjoying our pleasant hospitality, dear?" he teased.

"Yeah, sure. Can I go now?" He chuckled again.

"If you let Edward keep an eye on you until Charlie gets home, I'll let you go. If you have any problems, I want you back here pronto, understand? No playing the martyr and pretending nothing's wrong," he instructed. I tried to give him an innocent expression, but he looked at me knowingly. Right. Nothing gets past Carlisle. "Just let Edward take care of you. You need to rest. I don't want you walking up and down stairs by yourself today. With your balance and current dizziness, I'd most likely see you back here with a broken limb or worse. Nothing strenuous today. I'll check in with you when I get off work later tonight, and we'll see how you are then before I give you your prescription for tomorrow." He wagged a finger at me. "No funny business, young lady. I'd better find you resting comfortably, well hydrated and well fed, when I arrive later." I blushed and nodded. He gave me his stern paternal look, which conveyed beyond a doubt that he meant what he said, and that I wouldn't appreciate the consequences of disobedience. There was no way I was going to disappoint him after a look like that. I thought I probably just got a glimpse of how he keeps the rest of the family in line so easily. He turned to address Charlie.

"If you'll fill out the paperwork on your end, I'll fill it out on mine."

"It's a wonder there are any trees left considering all the paperwork we have to fill out these days," Charlie grumbled. We all smiled in agreement. I couldn't wait to get out of this place.