Chapter 16

I woke up in a little curtained cubicle, déjà vu swept over me. Unfortunately, I was no stranger to the hospital emergency room. Thanks to my many minor injuries as a kid and teenager due to sheer clumsiness, hospitals had become all too familiar territory. My head and left side were aching. I curled up on the gurney as much as I could and closed my eyes, trying to remember how I had gotten here. I could only remember grabbing my phone and feeling it vibrating in my hand before I heard a strange noise and then everything went black.

"Bella?" I opened my eyes to see Alice cautiously looking at me. Seeing her reminded me of something else. I don't know if it was the trauma of the accident or seeing the warm concern on my friend's face, but I suddenly felt irritated and guilty.

"Oh no, the food!"

"What?"

"I had just gotten our lunches before... I guess they're splattered all over the street right now."

"Hey now, better the food than you!" Her voice was a little shaky, as though she had been crying. Now I felt guilty again, but for another reason entirely. "I had a feeling that something bad was going to happen, and I tried reaching you at home and calling your cellphone. I'm just thankful it wasn't worse. The food is easily replaced, you're not!"

I sniffed. "Sorry."

She smiled and leaned forward to hug me gently, giving a short laugh. "I'm so glad you're okay. Worrying about the food, Bella, really!"

I pulled out of her embrace. "Did I mention it was your favorite?"

"Baked lasagna?"

"Mmhmm."

Her eyes got big for a second, but then she said, "Nope, you're still more important." We both chuckled and had a moment until the curtain pulling back distracted us. A female doctor walked in with a clipboard. She was a pretty strawberry blond with bright blue eyes and Dr. Tonya Carter was monogrammed on her coat.

She spent some time writing on her clipboard before she finally looked up and asked me if I could remember anything from earlier that day. I told her everything I could recall and she filled in some blanks for me.

"The owner of the restaurant told the EMS workers that you were side-swiped by a van. The driver was a young man who apparently hydroplaned and lost control of his vehicle. He only just clipped you, but you seemed to get the most damage when you fell and hit the pavement."

"Oh," I said, unsure of how to respond. "And the driver?"

"He was the first one who called 911," she replied. I was actually wondering if he was hurt also, but figured he was probably okay if he was able to call for an ambulance.

"You have a sprained ankle and wrist. I will wrap them for you, and you'll need to rest both for at least 48 hours, and keep them compressed. For pain and swelling you can ice them for 20-30 minutes every few hours, and you can take an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory painkiller as needed."

I was going to ask for something now, but she was gone before I had a chance. I thought she would be back soon, but she was taking her sweet time getting back to me. My head was throbbing at that point, and what was likely about ten to fifteen minutes felt like hours. She left the curtain open, and we could see her pass by many times, either looking away from us or at that damn clipboard. Alice called out her name to get her attention once, but she had suddenly gone deaf in her left ear. And then her right ear, the second time she passed.

She did eventually return with a bandage and set about wrapping my left wrist and then my ankle. As she turned to rush off again, I asked her for a pain pill. Her eyes narrowed and she eyed me suspiciously like I might be an addict who went to all this trouble just for some meds.

"I'll see what I can do," she said before heading out again. Baby aspirin would have been welcome at this point.

Alice started digging into her handbag. "I'm going to go call Jasper with an update. I was going to have him over for dinner at the house tonight, but you're probably not up to it, are you? No biggie, I'll just postpone –"

"No, don't! Don't change your plans for me, Alice. I know you've been missing him all week, and I'll be all right. The doctor even said it was just minor injuries, and god knows this isn't the first time I've been injured."

"Bella, are you sure? It really is no problem, and I absolutely do not mind taking care of you tonight or for however long you need it."

"I will be all right," I repeated. "It's not even my dominant side; I'll just be a little gimpy for awhile. I'll probably make it an early night tonight anyway, but I would also like to see Jasper."

"Well, if you're sure." I nodded. "All right. I'll be back in a few," she said, closing the curtain and going down the hall to wherever you're allowed to use cellphones in the hospital.

I closed my eyes again and tried to will my headache away, thinking only good thoughts. Red velvet cake. Fresh strawberries. Rocky road ice cream. Puppies. Edward.

Edward.

I heard Edward's voice. I knew Dr. Carter didn't give me a narcotic, so maybe the pain was making me hallucinate? Or maybe I had passed out and was dreaming. A very vivid dream, because I swore that I could smell his cologne. Clearly this was like one of those mirages thirsty men get in the desert, swearing they see the oasis and can taste the water even though they are just surrounded for miles by nothing but barren sand.

I heard a nurse say, "Isabella Swan? She's just back there."

The curtain was pulled back and there he was, in the flesh. Or in the flesh in my dreams. Frankly I wasn't even sure anymore. Whichever he was, his eyes were blazing as he stared at me. Wait, wasn't he supposed to be out of town? How did he get here? How did he know that I was hurt or even where I was?

Dream Edward was a mind reader, because he answered these questions before I even had a chance to say them out loud.

"Jasper called and told me that an ambulance was bringing you here. That you were hit by a car? Jesus Christ, Bella!" He roughly ran a hand through his hair, making it look nearly as messy as I'm sure mine did. He took in my disheveled appearance, starting at my feet and up to my scratched up face, with a mixture of concern and annoyance. I'll take the former, thanks. "What happened?"

My brain took a minute to catch up with the situation after the shock of seeing him here and what he was saying, so I didn't answer right away. He came over to my left side and stood, looking as though he was either too afraid or too disgusted to touch me. Again, I preferred the former.

"Somebody lost control of his vehicle, hydroplaned and knocked her down," Alice said, coming back into the cubicle. She took in the sight of Edward standing tensely by my bedside, gave him a once-over, and then looked at me with her eyebrows raised.

Too sore to figure out what secret message she was trying to send me, I said, "Fell down, passed out, then woke up here." I attempted a pitiful smile.

They both stood awkwardly staring at me as though I had a concussion. Oh god, did I have a concussion? Alice knew all about my accident-prone history so probably accepted this as more of the same, while Edward just looked baffled that I had let this happen to myself. Not to take this lying down, I ignored both of them and their scornful looks and sat up.

That was such a bad idea. My headache intensified to the point that I cringed and gasped.

"Bella, what is it?" Alice asked.

"This damn headache," I said as I rubbed my forehead with my good hand and tried to speak through the fresh waves of pain that were now stabbing me in the head. "I asked for something for it, but still haven't –"

"Doctor!" Edward called out just as Carter was passing by.

Ha, like she'll listen.

For Edward, she did. Dr. Carter stopped and started walking towards us. Alice and I shot each other incredulous looks as she came directly into our now crowded cubicle.

"Yes?" she replied, in a much nicer tone of voice than she used earlier with me.

"She needs something for pain," he said, pointing at me.

The doctor came to my other side. "What's hurting, Miss Swan?"

I forgave her short-term memory, just glad to have her attention. "I am sore all over, but my head is pounding right now."

She leaned forward to check it, touching me gently until I winced at a particularly sensitive spot. "Yes, I think you're probably going to have a nice bruise there. Should quit hurting by the next day or so, but I'll get you something for now and to take again at bedtime if you still need it. Advil or something similar will cut it from tomorrow on."

"Thanks," I said, looking up at her. She smiled then darted a glance over to Edward. I turned to him and noticed he was looking intently at me.

Suck it, Doc.

"I'll send a nurse in with your pills and paperwork, and then you'll be all set to go."

She turned and left and this time I noticed Edward's eyes followed her.

Sigh.

Edward left the room briefly so that I could change back into my own clothes, with Alice's help. He came back just behind a nurse with some papers in her hand. She was a short barrel-shaped woman who had a much better bedside manner than the one before her. Even better than that, she came bearing pain meds, a cup of water, and my discharge paperwork. I took the pills and found my pain dulling after about a minute. I signed the paperwork, was given a few extra instructions, and then was told that I was free to go.

When it was just the three of us left in the room, things felt awkward again.

"I'm parked illegally; better move so I don't get towed!" Alice gave me a quick peck on the cheek. "See you at home!"

That left me and Edward, who I assumed was now my ride home. I started to scoot myself off of the bed, and he came over to help me. Now that the pain had started to subside, I became horribly aware of how awful I must have looked. My clothes were torn and filthy, my hair was damp with sweat, my face was scuffed up and dirty, and I'm sure my deodorant had long since worn off. Trying not to feel even more self-conscious, I leaned on Edward just enough for support without having to get too close or raise my arm very high.

He gently led me out of the hospital and deposited me into his car, buckling me in. We drove most of the way in silence, slightly less comfortable than usual because I could feel how tense he was. I felt slightly guilty that my dirty self was sitting on his clean leather seats and said as much, but he just shook his head and said nothing.

We got to the house and he helped me inside. Alice was on the phone when we came in, but she waved as we walked by her in the direction of my room. Edward said he had some calls to make and went outside after leaving me outside the bathroom. I hobbled in and got a washcloth to try to freshen my face up a bit.

I managed to get back to my room and got my pants off. Edward came back in time to help me out of my bloody shirt and into a clean one.

"I'm sure you're tired."

I yawned before I could help it. "A little bit. Must be the pills."

He leaned forward to help me lay gingerly on my good side. "Here."

"Edward, what about your business trip? Do you still need to go?"

"It's just been postponed, Bella. Everything is fine."

"Are you in trouble at work? I'm sorry if –"

"It's okay, really. Just please relax, Bella."

I thought about this for a minute. "If you need to go, I understand. I mean, you've been a big help already and I can't believe they called you and that you came when you had to work, but Alice and I can take it from here. I don't want to uproot you any further from your life or – "

He cut off my rambling. "Do you want me to go?"

"No!" I said, maybe more emphatically than I intended.

"Then I'm not going anywhere." He laid behind me and lightly put his arm around my waist, and I fell asleep that way.

I woke up by myself a little later and feeling a little less rotten, so I wandered into the living room. Edward was on the couch, talking to Jasper. They were laughing and having an animated conversation. While I stood there quietly watching, Alice came up behind me.

"Hey, I was just coming to wake you. How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been hit by a car," I said, attempting to be witty.

Alice looked bemused. "Right. Well, I am sure you're hungry. Dinner will be in about fifteen minutes." She turned towards the living room. "Edward, you're staying for dinner, right?"

He looked at me, and I felt my cheeks redden. "If it's no trouble, that'd be great. Anything I can do to help?"

"No trouble whatsoever. If Jasper needs help grilling the steaks you can do that, but otherwise I've got it."

He smiled. "Sure." Jasper hopped up and went into the kitchen behind Alice to get the meat, leaving Edward and I alone in the living room. He looked very comfortable on our couch, much as he had done the day before. I smiled and stood in the hallway.

"Do you want some help?" he asked me, concern on his face.

"Oh," I said, realizing he expected me to sit down. "I, uh, sure. That would be…helpful."

After everything we'd done together, I could still sometimes turn into a blathering idiot around him. He rose and helped me over to the couch, sitting beside me.

"How do you feel? How's the headache?"

"Better, thanks. Kind of a dull throb now, but completely manageable."

We sat there for a few seconds or so before I blurted out, "Edward, I'm sorry" just as he said, "Bella, about before – "

We laughed at how we ended up talking at the same time again. "You first," I said.

"I'm sorry if I was rude in the hospital earlier. I was running behind getting ready for this client and then Jasper called with the news and just…it was all a bit overwhelming."

I tried not to let my panic show with his choice of words, but my face must have given it away. His eyes got wide. "Not in a bad way, Bella, I just – well, it was unexpected in an already tense situation. All of it." He paused and seemed to be lost in thought. "But that's why I may have been a little short when I first saw you."

That was a little better, but not much since I really had no idea what he was talking about. "You did seem angry," I said quietly, putting my head down.

"If I was, it was not at you. You didn't do anything wrong." He lifted my chin gently with two fingers. "Okay?"

"Okay," I said, looking at him.

He smiled reassuringly at me. "Now, what did you want to say?"

"I just wanted to apologize, I guess."

"I told you work is fine, you don't need to – "

"Well, I never meant to take you away from work, or for you to be upset or worry or whatever. I'm sorry for all the…confusion." I exhaled sharply, looking down at my lap. "Maybe this is a sign that I shouldn't ever have a free day from work?"

He chuckled warmly. "I really am glad that you're all right, Bella." Something in his tone of voice made me look up. His eyes were intense with some emotion I hadn't seen before. "I'm growing rather fond of you."

I looked down at those soft lips that I had come to know so well and started to lean in at the same time he began inching closer.

"FIVE MINUTES!"

We both startled from Alice's bellow, the moment gone. Edward dropped his hand and I cleared my throat.

"Suppose I'll go see if Jasper needs any help with the steaks. Do you want anything?"

God yes. "No, I'm good."

He kissed my forehead, then stood up and walked out of the room, leaving me alone with my muddled thoughts.

A few minutes later, Edward, Alice, Jasper and I were sitting at our dining room table to a dinner of steaks, roasted vegetables, bread and salads. Edward contributed a nice bottle of rosé that he had in his car. I was a little curious why he'd need a bottle of wine for a business meeting, but decided to stop that train of thought before it darkened my good mood. I was having a great time with great company.

"So, hey, Edward," Alice said after finishing her second glass of wine. "Jasper tells me that your firm deals mostly with divorce cases." He nodded because his mouth was full. "Does working in that sort of environment put you off of marriage?"

Luckily I wasn't drinking anything just then, as I'm sure I would have done a spit take. It looked like Alice decided she wasn't done grilling for the night.

Edward wasn't bothered by the question. "Not at all," he said between mouthfuls of food. "I still hope to get married some day."

I'm sure he probably will eventually, given his stable of women to choose from. Stupid cynical inner voice.

Alice's eyebrow raised at that response. "Well, that's reassuring." She quickly glanced at me and I shot her a disapproving look. Jasper must have been feeling generous or just bad for me, because he changed the subject shortly thereafter.

I discovered that Edward's ultimate career goal was to have his own practice some day. He also spoke of a desire to leave the city eventually.

"The city is definitely the place to be when you're young and first sharpening your teeth, eager to prove yourself. I understood that; it's just part of being a successful attorney."

"But?" Alice asked before I could.

"BUT, I could certainly do without the traffic, the crowds, and the noise. The goal is to move away from here one day, ideally once I have my own practice. I'd like a nice secluded house in the woods. Somewhere that's easier to think and just…be." He turned to look at me, an unspoken question in his eyes.

"Sounds pretty perfect," I said, smiling at him.

Edward left a couple of hours later. I asked him to call to let me know he got there safely since he would be driving at night, and he said he would. I dozed off around 10 and was woken up several hours later by my cell phone ringing. I scrambled over to grab it off of my nightstand.

"Hello?"

"Sorry to wake you up, I thought I'd just be leaving a voice mail."

"No, it's okay. I was awake." My voice clearly indicated otherwise. "Sorta," I added.

He chuckled. "I've safely arrived and am about to check in at the hotel."

"Glad to hear it. Thanks for calling me."

"No problem. Go back to sleep, sweet girl, and I'll talk to you soon."

"Good night, Edward."

"Night, Bella."

I fell back to sleep with a big smile on my face.

Thanks again to my great beta! R+R please!