A/N: In this chapter, i modeled Rosalie's emotions after how i would feel in her situation. and what she does is supposed to represent "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned", expressed in terms of Meyer's vampires, which i view as beings of intensity. Everything about her vampire characters is extreme. Their emotions, their reactions, and even their physical appearances. So if you think her reaction is a bit overboard (which i considered), please consider what i'm saying right now. also, i'd like to say that in this story, I feel like I'mgiving to the reader what Stephenie Meyer omitted, and that is Bella's experience with being pregnant with a half-vampire child, which a few minor changes that you'll notice. So bella's pregnancy in my story is mostly inspired from hers in breaking dawn.

so please, read and tell me what you think in a review. this is my fave fanfiction i've ever written besides the one i've been planning (unsuccessfully) since september. -janepotter22

The Heartbeat

Chapter Four: Imperfect

A week had passed, and in that time, Charlie found the strength to come to terms with Bella and Edward's news. After a talk with his best friend Billy Black, Charlie found that he, himself, was actually okay with it all. Of course, he was understandably concerned with their reckless behavior, apparent casual attitude toward sex, and couldn't for the life of him, understand why they never even considered the use of a condom. But he was honestly passed all of that now.

He found himself entertaining thoughts of his future as a grandfather, balancing a curly-haired toddler on his knee, the giggles and pure, innocent fun. He secretly hoped for a boy, so he could take him fishing with him when he was older. Yet on the outside, merely for appearances, he acted on his less prominent emotions of anger and sadness.

But Bella and Edward were not fooled by his fronting. Edward easily read his thoughts and reassured Bella at the end of the day that Charlie couldn't have been more happier than if they were married and having a kid the proper way.

As Charlie reasoned with himself, everything happened for a reason, so he wasn't planning on wasting his time being let in on Bella's first pregnancy dwelling on their mistake and nagging about it.

One morning, about a week after Bella's revelation, he started asking serious questions over breakfast. Edward was there, not eating as usual. "So have you found a doctor yet?"

"Dr. Cullen insisted, actually, and I would have it no other way," declared Bella through a mouthful of cereal. She was starting to feel the effects of early pregnancy with the combination of nausea in the morning and the ravenous hunger for food. Just as Carlisle had predicted, things were moving at an alarmingly speedy rate, and he determined just yesterday that she was almost finished with her first trimester. The baby looked pretty healthy, but it was still too early to tell.

Charlie nodded and sipped from his coffee cup and watched as the two exchanged meaningful, secret glances. "Have you had an ultrasound yet?"

Bella nodded. "Would you like a picture?" That made Charlie laugh. He gave a hearty chuckle.

"Honestly Bells, I wouldn't be able to spot it. Just wait till the kid is born would ya?" She was less amused than was normal, too solemn, and dropped her gaze to her bowl. Edward's jaw locked. Charlie instantly knew something was wrong. He straightened his back and leaned forward, reaching for his daughter's hand. "What's wrong? Is there something wrong with the baby?"

Bella's head shot up, her eyes wide. "No! The baby is fine." She glanced down again, looking like she was about to cry. Charlie was fully aware of Edward in his peripheral vision looking at him intently, his arms folded tightly over his chest and his expression discerning. "But there's something you need to know, Dad…."

"Like what?" His pulse quickened in fear.

Bella was quiet for a long time. Whatever it was he had to tell him, it was harder to admit than telling him she was pregnant, still in high school and not even married. God, that scared him, and suddenly he didn't want to know.

"I gotta go, Dad," Bella said suddenly. "We'll talk later. I…."She got up, kissed him, and left, not meeting his inquiring and frightened gaze. Edward followed almost reluctantly. Charlie sat back in his chair after he was sure Edward's Volvo was out the drive, running a hand through his curls. He felt oddly relieved and unsatisfied.

--

"How are we supposed to tell him?" Bella asked Edward in the car on the way to the appointment. She was close to tears. "In about a month, I'll be big as a house and he'll know that it isn't natural, Edward. How can I tell him that… that my baby is half vampire?"

"You won't be big as a house."

Bella turned to glare at Edward. "I'm serious! Be serious!"

Edward sighed and thought for a moment. "Tell him only what he needs to know. This child will not be any normal child. It'll be special. If he asks why, tell him that I am not what I appear to be, that I am not… normal. Normal according to the standards of humans." He did not have to look at Bella to read her expression in order to know what she was thinking. He knew her so well that he expected her reaction to be one of concern for him and his family. Concern for whether or not Charlie will react negatively to this other news. "But don't worry Bella, honey. Like I said, you take after your father; you're accepting of things like this, and so is Charlie. Everything will be okay."

He surprised her by stopping the car. They were already at the house. He turned in his seat to look her full in the face, and she shifted accordingly. They leaned closer to each other until their lips met. But Edward pulled away - too quickly for Bella - and declared: "Carlisle's waiting for us. We shouldn't keep him waiting." Bella blinked multiple times, and turned back around, clearly dazed. Edward couldn't keep from smiling, and he thought about how much he wanted her again. His thoughts drifted to that weekend, when they conceived the baby within Bella's womb… and he wanted to do it again. Right now. He opted for a deep breath instead, as if it would cleanse those thoughts from his mind so that he could concentrate on the task at hand.

As soon as he and Bella were inside the house, standing before the glass wall, Edward felt Jasper calm his urge to whisk Bella away to some place much more private than this, and he visibly relaxed as well as Bella. The vampire in question then made his presence known, following behind Alice, who danced toward the expecting mother. They chatted for a while, about trivial things in order to distract Bella from how stressed and worried she was while Edward went on staring at the brilliant forest before him, waiting for his father to return from the hospital.

--

Deep in the Alaskan wild, far from any sort of civilization, a menacing scream sent a tsunami of sound waves forth from the vicinity of two pale figures for miles of radius. Immediately afterward, an old and venerable tree was ripped from its roots and swung round with such force that it splinted and snapped with a sound like the sharp clap of thunder in a particularly tumultuous rainstorm, as it was hit against the trees that were unlucky enough as to be in its way. And yet, no one could feel more pity for the trees than for the pale and exceptionally strong woman causing their demise. Certainly they could be frightened, but there was not a trace of anger on her face. Her countenance was as sorrowful as if the man watching her with as much agony as she felt, her mate, were dead instead of her ability to have a baby.

Rosalie Hale was in mourning. She was suffering from intense jealousy, something she couldn't quite come to terms with. She'd only been jealous once, but that mere echo of what she felt now had died away with the knowledge that she was capable of obtaining what that person had. Rosalie now felt more jealous than she thought was possible. If she could cry, she certainly would have cried herself dry of venom, her heart was that heavy with sorrow. It seemed that nothing could make her feel better.

That pathetic excuse of a human was getting a gift she neither deserved nor wanted. Rose just couldn't get over the fact that none of them knew it was possible. She felt cheated. Carlisle gave her eternity, but for what? Initially, nature intended for her purpose to be that of making a baby, and that was what she truly wanted from her life. But as soon as her heart stopped, so did her ability to grow a new life.

She laughed humorlessly to herself as she ripped up another tree, breaking its limbs one by one, imagining them to be those of everyone she hated. Those filthy pigs who raped her, one after the other, beat her and left for dead. And Bella, the one whom she was jealous of, the weak and ungrateful human that was chosen by Nature herself to be the mother of a special child. Rosalie deserved that title and so did Esme and Alice. But not Bella! A sobbing noise escaped her lips with her next thought:

It was entirely unfair that male vampires alone were able to procreate, if not with a vampire, with a woman who was human. It logically and scientifically made sense, but it was not fair. Rosalie sobbed harder, angrier that she couldn't even cry, as she glanced over at her husband and mate.

Emmett. He was her heart, but she couldn't help feeling resentful over the fact that even Nature favored him over her. He was perfect. He was beautiful, strong, charming, and could even make a littler version of himself. But she… she only looked perfect. Rosalie was beautiful, yet she was incomplete.

With a deep breath to muster another outraged scream, she continued her rapid demolition of the beautiful and ancient trees until her thirst ruled her actions and not her emotions.

--

Bella was exhausted. By the time she got home that evening, she didn't even have energy to cook dinner. The recent development in her pregnancy as well as the pregnancy itself were stressing her and draining her of energy. She'd already begun to lose weight, no matter how much she ate. That in itself was enough to make her want to sit down more often than was per usual for her. So for the past few days, Edward had been driving her everywhere he was able, and practically carrying her more than guiding her wherever they had to walk. For once Bella didn't think he was overreacting, and that scared her a little.

That morning at her appointment with Carlisle, they found out some very telling news. The baby, of course, was just as healthy as it could be, if not, more. Perfect, was what Carlisle had said. But the vision on the ultrasound was getting fuzzier everyday, the image harder to discern.

"Eventually," Carlisle had said, "Even our perfect vampire vision will not be able to know what image is on this screen."

"Why?" Bella asked.

"The membrane surrounding your child is hardening, taking on the characteristics of the skin of a vampire. The sound waves can no longer penetrate it so easily." Bella looked worried, but Carlisle quickly calmed her fears. "Don't worry, Bella. This is a good thing. The only drawback is that we won't know what the gender will be until it is born. But it's a very good thing. The child is protecting itself, and its taking on vampiric characteristics already. Vampires are near perfect creatures, so I suspect the child will be perfectly healthy for an infant."

This bit of information definitely calmed Bella. By that afternoon, they could still see through the membrane in the ultrasound, but it was definitely fuzzier than that morning, since she knew what to look for. That afternoon, Bella also mentioned the fatigue that had been her companion for the past few days, which worried Carlisle.

"You are very hungry aren't you?"

"Yes. And I eat and eat and I feel like I should be getting fat! But I think I'm losing weight. This kid is just taking all the food for himself." She'd meant it as a joke, but Carlisle only looked more worried. "Oh no…. Oh God, Carlisle what's wrong?" She'd instantly become worried, but Jasper calmed her down a bit. The last thing she needed was to stress out and hurt the baby.

"Bella…." Carlisle paused, choosing his words carefully, and Edward, having heard the full extent of his thoughts, tensed ever so slightly and rested his hand comfortingly and protectively on Bella's shoulder. "Take it very easy from now on Bella. Don't do anything that would expend any extra energy. Eat as often as you can, meat mostly. And you might have to go on bed rest soon, until you give birth, Bella. I want you to…." He stopped again, then spoke very slowly. "I want you to be prepared to leave school at a moment's notice and to not return. Do you understand?"

Bella nodded, though she did not understand completely. She would ask Edward later. She was in a state of shock at this news, and she still was when she returned home. When she remembered that she had to inform Charlie, she returned to her previously exhausted state, if not more exhausted.

She and Edward went straight to the kitchen, though Bella did not even attempt to start dinner. Charlie was not there, but he arrived shortly after they were settled. He joined them around the table, looking grave, mentally prepared to hear what Bella needed to tell him.

--

They'd been on the move and in the wild for more than a week, and Rosalie's sorrow and resent and anger and jealousy was relentless. As every day and night she rampaged, destroying everything in her path and growing thirstier with every passing twilight, Emmett steered her away from humans at her request. But it broke his heart to see her like this. Hurting. He understood her perfectly, and though he needed to be there to support her, he also needed to keep his distance.

When at last, their eyes were black with thirst, she stopped with her tirade at the first whiff of wild moose miles ahead. It all happened rather suddenly. Midday on their tenth day away from Forks, Rosalie was dry-sobbing on the damp foliage, Emmett holding her and saying nothing, when a northward gust of wind brought with it frigid Alaskan spring air and the smell of warm blood. Moose was hardly a bear, but it was the nearest animal for miles, and if they didn't get sustenance soon, they would likely seek out the nearest human settlement and massacre a whole town.

So Rosalie succumbed to her senses, burying her emotions, and pursued the herd of moose. She consumed four grown moose, Emmett six, and it was enough to keep them strong enough to resist until their next meal.

"Rose," said Emmett at present. They were currently headed back toward Denali, running beside each other, their hands linked. Rosalie slowed to a stop. They stared into each other's eyes for a moment, Emmett communicating to her how sorry he was for her pain. They inched toward each other, taking their time to close the gap, making sure their eyes told each other everything they couldn't say. They silently resolved to put behind them what happened in the wild, and Edward would also get the message when he next saw them.

Rosalie edged even close to him, leaves and pine needles in her hair, her shirt tight-fitting, filthy, and the sleeves were torn off. Her jeans were frayed and muddy at the bottom. They were both wearing exactly what they had the day they heard the heartbeat of Bella and Edward's miracle baby, except for their shoes, which they'd discarded early on in their journey. Emmett suddenly closed the distance between their bodies in a fierce kiss. Everything he did with Rosalie was intense and this kiss was one of the more tame. It ended rather quickly and was followed by a hug. A rattling breath came from Rosalie as she let it all go.

"Do you want to go back yet?" She knew he was talking about Forks.

"I'm not ready." She started off at a run, continuing southeast, toward Denali, but Emmett caught up to her quickly. They clasped hands once more and smiled at each other as they neared the coven with which they were on friendly terms. Rose didn't need the familiar friendly faces to help her once more be at peace. She needed only Emmett, ever. But she wasn't anywhere near ready to return to Forks, to face the new reality that caused her to leave in the first place. She needed an echo of what her life was like in Forks, a reminder of who she was in her sound mind. She didn't want to lose her mind like that again, to return to that dark place full of pain and suffering.

Rosalie truly loved Edward as her brother, and she was going to support him, no matter what.

--

That night, after their conversation with Charlie, the atmosphere was light, with a bit of awkwardness, and Bella was relieved with Charlie's reaction.

Naturally, he was shocked. But like Edward said, he accepted it without question.

"Edward is different, Dad," Bella said. "But he's a good person and I love him."

"So your baby is different?" Charlie asked tentatively.

"Yes, he is."

"It's a boy?" Charlie couldn't keep the mild excitement from his voice, despite the fact that he was freaked the hell out. Edward smiled at him.

"We don't know for sure," said Bella, looking down at her stomach with a smile. "But I like to think that we're having a baby boy." She looked back up at him. "Dad, there's something else. About him being different. Um, I just found out I was pregnant, a day before I told you. But I'll be showing soon. Carlisle suspects I'll have the baby in the next few months. I'm already half-way through my first trimester, and I've only been pregnant two or three weeks." Her voice shook as she looked her dad square in the eye. "Dad, because Edward is… not human, we didn't know that I could even get pregnant, when we…. But the point is that this is much more than some mistake that could've been easily prevented, not that I'd ever think of a child as a mistake…. But I just don't want you to be angry with us."

"I'm not angry at you, Bells. Not anymore. I understand now." Charlie gave a short laugh and then became serious again. "So uh… is he - the baby - is he… human?" Bella was taken aback, and couldn't answer at first, so Edward answered for her.

"He's half human. But that makes him all the more special and unique, Charlie."

Charlie nodded, eager to get his next question over with. It was things like these that demanded he be a parent first. "So are you two planning on marriage, maybe? In the future?"

They exchanged glances and Edward answered first. "The pregnancy will be very short… and very dangerous for Bella, so until after the baby is born, we haven't planned anything. But Charlie, I would love nothing more than to marry Bella. She is the love of my life, and I fully intend to make her my wife." Bella seemed a little surprised by this, and secretly pleased. She blushed as did Charlie, and then bit her lip.

"Is that a proposal?" asked Chief Swan.

Edward shook his head. "Not quite. Not yet, sir. Do I have your blessing?"

Charlie smiled and Bella mildly felt as if they were making a business deal. However, she wasn't opposed to the idea of marrying Edward. She blindly searched for his hand and found it. Charlie saw the hopeful look on her face. How could he say no to her? "Yes. You two have my blessing."

"Thank you Charlie," said Edward. Now I think I should return home. Bella needs to get her rest."

Bella was more than willing to oblige. She was exhausted from the events of the past week, and the patter of rain seemed to lull her closer to unconsciousness. Presently, she waited in her bed for Edward to arrive. Even in her drowsy state, she hadn't forgotten what she wanted to ask him. When she felt his cool body suddenly pressed against hers, she jolted awake, not realizing that she had drifted to sleep.

"Edward," she whispered. "What did Carlisle mean when he said that I should be prepared to not go back to school?" Edward was silent for a while.

"As I said to Charlie earlier, this pregnancy is very dangerous for you. We don't know how strong this kid will be, as it takes on more and more qualities that are in nature vampiric. It's already draining you of so much energy, Bella. It… this could kill you."

"Kill me?"

"I won't let it," he declared. "I'm prepared to do whatever it is to save you, when the time comes, Bella. You need to know that." Bella began to comprehend. As she fell asleep, she understood that Edward was starting to view their baby as something bad. She wanted to protest that she didn't want him to hurt the baby, no matter what he believed, but she never got a chance. He hummed her lullaby and she slipped into unconsciousness once more.