Chapter Twelve: Help

I sat on the couch staring blankly at the letter in my hand. I didn't know what to make of it. I was in shock if I was being honest. I had already read it about three times and each time, it just seemed more unreal to me.

The first week at the Cullen house had gone relatively well. I still hadn't gotten a chance to go home yet (more accurately, I was avoiding going home), so Alice kept finding me outfits of hers for me to wear. They were all super expensive, but fit relatively well, so I was satisfied. Every morning when I woke up, I could smell whatever delicious breakfast Esme had been making. I'd walk down stairs to find everyone in the kitchen, eating their food quietly. The only ones who were morning people were Alice and Esme. Edward rarely said a word during breakfast, but always smiled at me and would pat the spot next to him. I'd walk over with my plate and he'd kiss me-whether it is on the cheek, the lips, or the forehead. I'd blush. He'd laugh. It was like a routine, and I enjoyed it…I craved it.

School was interesting. It seemed Edward was determined to let everyone know that we were together. Monday morning, he started off by coming around to my door of the Volvo and opening it for me. And then he laced our fingers together and walked me and Alice to our English class. I got envious stares from many of the girls such as Lauren and Jessica. Angela, being one of the only supportive friends I had outside the Cullen family, smiled widely when she saw us together. Mike was also one of the ones who shot envious looks, but they were shot towards Edward. I couldn't help but laugh about that. Maybe now he'd get the hint that I wasn't interested.

We didn't show a lot of public displays of affection. We'd hold hand and once in a while, he'd give me a peck before leaving me to go to his class. But it still let everyone know that we were together and let everyone know they should back off of Edward, like Lauren. Of course she didn't back off, but whenever she hit on him now, he'd put his arm around me, effectively shutting her down.

After school, I'd come home to find Esme prattling around the house. Dr. Cullen had been out of the house a lot lately at the hospital, so whenever we saw him, it was during dinner and after that, he'd head back out. We had dinner together each night though, and I loved it. We'd sit around discussing our day and anything interesting that had happened. After that, we'd all go our separate ways in the house. Sometimes, Edward, Alice, and I would go into the living room and do homework together. Sometimes, I'd go curl up on the couch in Edward's room and read while he plugged his headphones into his keyboard and worked on something. I still haven't heard him play yet, but he promised me soon. He was working on something he wanted me to hear, and he wanted to play that for me before anything else.

Sometimes, I'd go into Alice's room and we'd just talk or listen to music, relaxing. Emmett normally called at least once a night. Even though he was a full grown man, you could tell that he loved his family and wanted to stay very much connected with them. And after the phone conversation, no matter who he spoke to, they would tell me "Bella? Emmett says 'Hi, Bells'." I liked Emmett a lot. He was like the big brother I had always wanted.

Everything was going pretty well for once. The only hitch I had was Charlie, as usual. I hadn't spoken to him since that day outside of Carlisle's office, but that didn't stop Charlie from calling each day. He only left one voicemail on Wednesday, and it broke my heart. He was so drunk I could hardly understand what he was saying, but I got the gist of it. It was more of him comparing me to my mother because I had left him. He said he could n ever forgive me for that. He finished saying that I had to come home sometime and demanding to know where I was. "I'm your father!" He slurred. "I have a right to know!" And then he hung up. I received the call and the message at about two in the morning. I couldn't sleep after that, so laid in my bed, crying. At about two thirty, I heard my bedroom door open. Edward had heard me and came into my bedroom to see what happened. I couldn't explain at the moment, so Edward just held me to him and let me cry it out.

After that day, I didn't hear anything more from him, and I wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing. The only reason I ever enjoyed hearing from him before was because I knew he was still living. I knew that he was alright. But now…I don't know what's become of him.

That is until Carlisle came home from work one day, a white envelope in his hand.

"Bella?" He called. I was sitting in Edward's room reading when I heard him. "Can you come down here for a minute please?" I doggy eared my book and got up.

"I'll be right back, Edward." I said.

He looked up from his keyboard and smiled. "I'll be here." He said simply.

I walked out of Edward's room and downstairs where I found Carlisle, standing in the living room.

"You called?" I said with a smile.

He smiled back at me. "Yes. I have something for you." He held out the envelope to me. I cocked an eyebrow but reached out and took it from him.

"Who's this from?" I asked. But the question was unnecessary. My name was written across the envelope in a messy scrawl I would know anywhere. This was from Charlie.

I looked up at Carlisle with wide eyes. "I'll be in my office if you need me." He said with a half smile on his face. I nodded and watched him walk away.

I walked over to the love seat and held the letter in my hands. I didn't know if I wanted to open it. This stupid little envelope felt like it weighed 20 pounds in my hand. I just stared at it for a few moments, not sure what to do. At least I knew that he was still alive now. Was that enough for me?

After another minute or so, I decided I had to open it. Obviously, Charlie had wanted me to know whatever was in this envelope pretty bad if he tracked Carlisle down to give it to me.

I slowly slid my finger under the flap, opening it cautiously. I pulled the letter out and unfolded it. With a deep breath, I began reading.

Bella,

I don't know where to start with this. I know you probably hate me right now, and honestly I don't blame you. What I said to you that day was awful and you didn't deserve it.

What you said that day still haunts me because it was all completely true. I haven't been a father to you. You've been taking care of me for all these years when I should have been taking care of you. It was my job, not yours, but I made you do it.

I wanted you to know how truly sorry I am for everything that I've put you through. I'm going to try my best to get better. I'm in rehab now, thanks to Dr. Cullen. He's been trying to help me out since a few days after you left and I just realized that I need to do this. For you and for me.

I'm not going to ask you to come see me. I'll understand if you don't. But if you do want to, ask Carlisle to bring you. He's a good man, Bella. I know that you'll be taken care of as long as you stay with them.

Take care baby girl. I love you.

Love,

Charlie

And so that's why I'm sitting on this couch, trying to process everything. My dad was in rehab…he was trying to getting better. And not just for me. For himself too. That's something I have been waiting for since…5th grade.

I reread the letter once more and I found myself getting even more chocked up as I read the part about Carlisle. I now understood where he had been all this time, why he was always leaving. He did it for me. The tears spilled over.

I stood up and ran upstairs, tripping over myself, but not letting that stop me. Once I was at the top of the stairs, I saw Edward who was just coming out of his room.

"Bella? What happened?" He asked frantically.

I smiled slightly through my tears, handing him the letter. After he took it from me, I ran to Carlisle's office and opened the door, knocking quickly as I did.

He looked startled, but after he saw it was me, he stood up quietly. I ran to him and through my arms around him.

"Thank you, Carlisle." I sobbed as he held me.

He wrapped his arms around me and started shushing me. "It was the least I could do. I truly believe that your father can get better. You helped him realize that."

"He's in rehab!" I said with joy. "He's going to get help."

Carlisle nodded and then pulled back to look at me. "I'm confident that he'll get help, Bella, but it's not going to be easy. He's going to go through withdrawal. He's been drinking so steadily for so long that it's not going to be easy for him. There could be some pretty severe after effects." Carlisle's voice was gentle. I knew he wasn't trying to be a kill joy. He was just informing me of the harsh reality.

I nodded. "When can I go see him?" I asked.

Carlisle hesitated. "You may want to wait, Bella. He's going to be…rough for a while."

"I know. I just want to see that he's…okay. And to let him know that I'm going to support him, no matter what." I said, whispering the last part.

Carlisle smiled at me. "I don't know if this means anything, but I'm very proud of you Bella. You've taken everything in stride and are still willing to show forgiveness to someone who's hurt you."

I wiped another tear that began trickling down my cheek. "That means more to me than you will ever know."

"I can go tell Edward where the rehab center is and he can drive you down there." Carlisle said as he squeezed me once more. "I'll inform them that you are coming. You won't be able to stay long because it's not a visiting day, but they'll make an allowance this once."

I nodded and let go of him. "Thank you, Carlisle. This is one of the nicest things anyone has ever done."

He waved me off. "Don't even mention it."

I followed him back out into the hallway and when he began talking to Edward, I went into my room, grabbing a hoodie and my cell phone. I through my shoes on quickly and then I looked in the mirror, making sure that I didn't look like too much of a wreck. Once I was satisfied, I walked out of my room to see Edward waiting for me. He already had his shoes on and his keys were dangling from his hands.

"Ready to go?" He asked, holding the letter out to me.

I nodded, suddenly nervous. "Yeah, let's go." I said quietly.

He grabbed my hand and intertwined our fingers. "It'll be all right, Bella. You can do this." He said encouragingly. Then he started leading us down the stairs, out the door and into his Volvo.

We didn't talk much on the way there. The rehab clinic he was at was about 30 minutes outside of Forks, so I had a decent amount of time to freak myself out. I hadn't actually seen my dad since the day I freaked out on him in our house. I didn't know why to expect when I saw him. Would he even be coherent enough to know that I was there?

As if sensing that I was worrying myself, Edward reached over and turned the radio on, putting it on a playlist of songs that he knew I loved. Once the song "I Dare You to Move" by Switchfoot started playing, he reached over the center council and grabbed my hand again. He rubbed his thumb soothingly over the back of my hand. I tried to concentrate on the electric feel that was shooting through my body at his touch and I found it did sooth me. Edward was here. I could handle this.

Once we pulled into the rehab center, my heart started pounding. I had to do this, but I was trying to find the courage. I had to do this.

Edward looked over at me, sensing my hesitation. "You know Bella, you don't have to do this right now. You can always come back. It's not that far away. I'll bring you back whenever you want."

I shook my head. "I have to do this." I reiterated out loud. "I can't have him worrying about me while he's trying to get better. He needs to focus on himself, not me. He needs to know that I'm supporting him and that I'm okay." I didn't let him say anything else. I got out of the car the minute I finished speaking.

Edward got out quickly and, hand in hand, we walked towards the entrance. Once inside the doors, Edward walked me up to the lady at the front desk.

"Can I help you?" She asked as she snapped her gum. She was an older woman, but that didn't stop her from checking out Edward. I stifled a laugh despite the situation.

"Yes, we're here to see Charlie Swan. I believe Dr. Cullen called about the situation?" Edward said smoothly.

She thought for a moment. "Right, right. Go on in. I'll buzz you through. He should be in his room. It's down corridor B, room 204."

"Thank you." Edward said as he walked me over to the doors that led to the rooming areas.

"Okay, corridor B…hmmm…" Edward said as we stood at an intersection of hallways. My mouth felt incredibly dry. I couldn't speak. I located the hall for corridor B before he did, so I tapped him to get his attention.

He put his arm around me as he led me down the hallway. "It's going to be all right Bella." He said soothingly as I watched the room numbers pass by.

"I hope so." I squeaked out.

My heart pounded painfully once we got outside room 204. I was so nervous that I could barely breathe. But somehow, I found the courage to lift my hand up and knock.

"Come in." I heard Charlie say quietly. I felt my eyes watering so I quickly wiped the tears away. I grabbed Edward's hand, silently telling him to come in with me, and then twisted the door knob.

The room was small. The walls were all gray and depressing looking. There was a small dresser on one side of the room. On top of it, I saw a few pictures, mainly of me and a few of him and Billy while fishing. The bed was a twin sized bed with a dark blue comforter on it. And on top of that bed sat my father in an oversized gray t-shirt and black sweatpants. I swallowed thickly.

He hadn't looked up when we entered, but I already could see some of the physical differences. He was much paler than he was before, his skin looking lucid and unhealthy. He was holding his hands together as he sat, staring out his window. His hands were shaking terribly and, knowing my father, that was probably very frustrating for him. I could see the sweat trickling down the side of his face and I briefly wondered why they didn't give him shorts to where instead of those sweatpants.

After a moment of me just standing there, clinging to Edward, Charlie turned and I got a full view of his face. After I got over the shock I saw in his eyes, I noticed the dark purple bags under his eyes, showing me that he hasn't slept well in quite some time. And he was blinking a lot. I didn't know if that was him getting over the shock of seeing me or if that was part of the withdrawal.

"Bella?" He rasped out quietly.

I nodded as I tried to stop myself from crying. "Yeah dad. It's me." I walked a little farther into the room, dropping Edward's hand. He stayed near the door, watching me cautiously.

"You came." He whispered, stunned. "I didn't think you would."

I went over to a small foldable chair that had been placed near his bed and sat down.

"Of course I came. You may have messed up, but you're my dad." I said simply.

He smiled a very weak smile at me. "Bella, I'm so sor-"

"Not now dad." I interrupted. "We can do apologies and stuff later. I can't stay very long because of the rules they have around here, but I had to come. I just want to let you know that I'm going to support you through this whole thing." I promised. "No matter what. And that I'm okay. The Cullen's are taking good care of me. You don't have to worry about me at all. Just focus on yourself."

He looked at me sadly. "That's all I've ever done." He shrugged and before I could stop him from the self blame, he continued. "Dr. Cullen is a good guy. I'm glad that you found them." His eyes wandered over to Edward. "Who is this?" He asked.

"Oh this is Edward Cullen, Dr. Cullen's son. And uh…my…uh, special friend?" I made it sound like a question. And to my surprise, both Edward and my father laughed.

"Hello sir. I'm Bella's boyfriend. It's a pleasure to meet you." Edward said, stretching his hand out.

Charlie took it and gave Edward a firm handshake. "You be good to my baby girl." He said sternly and I wanted to cry. That sounded like something my dad would say…my real dad.

"I will. I promise." Edward said with conviction. I smiled over at him.

After a few more minutes of Charlie and I talking about my arrangements and me promising I'd come back sometime in the next week during a visiting day, Edward and I had to leave.

"Thank you for coming." Charlie said, and in his eyes, I saw the father that made me the sick island and made a little campout for me when the power went out. "Both of you. I'll see you soon?"

I nodded. "Yes, I'll be back. I promise."

Charlie nodded. "Okay. Goodbye Bella." He said quietly.

"Bye Dad." I said in the same hushed tone.

Edward and I walked out of his room quietly. Neither of us said anything until we were outside.

"How are you?" Edward asked, stopping us in front of his car.

I smiled at him. "I'm good. I'm really good. He's okay, Edward. We're going to be okay."

He smiled at me and pulled me to his chest, kissing the top of my head. "I'm so happy for you." He said.

I pulled back and smiled at him. "I should be happy for you. You have a girlfriend?" I teased. Edward and I hadn't officially given anything between us a title yet, so when he introduced himself as my boyfriend, I was quite joyous.

He smiled at me sheepishly. "Right, I was going to ask you about that…are you okay with that?"

I smiled widely. "Of course. I'm more than okay with that."

He smiled and leaned down to kiss me and I internally wished that I could have a million more moments of this. Edward and I together, defeating whatever got in our way. As long as we were together, I knew that there was nothing that could stop us.

Yet another chapter finished. Let me know what you all think! Review! That's what gives me the energy to write more!