Hey Guys! I'm so sorry this took so long! I've been SUPER BUSY!!! ANYWAYS. Here it is, and I hope you like it! Reviews maybe??
Everything belongs to S.M 3
BELLA POV
I woke up beside Rose, her thick blond hair tickling my nose. I rolled over, stretching to my full length in bed, and groaned. It was Sunday. I had work on Sundays. I climbed out of my warm covers and shivered in the morning cold. I quickly took a shower and got dressed, pulling on some sweatpants, a t-shirt and a heavy sweater. I shook Rosalie awake, she frowned at me.
"What?" she said, grumbling.
"I gotta go to work, kay? Can you check on Edward today? I don't have time, but I want to make sure he's okay...you know, make sure he doesn't have pneumonia." I said worriedly. Rosalie waved me off.
"He's fine Bella..I'm sure." she said closing her eyes again.
"Rose!" I said sharply, glaring at her.
"Fine..whatever...I'll do it." she said, turning over. I sighed in gratitude, and closed the door quietly behind me. I hated working at Newton's Outfitters, but it had to be done, I needed money. The worst part were the days when Mike was there, constantly talking, and asking me out on numerous occasions. I headed downstairs, scarfed down a granola bar, and grabbed my work bag, all the while dialing Edward's number. I held the phone with my shoulder as I went out into the freezing cold, and fumbled to unlock my truck door.
"Bella?" he answered, sleepily.
"Hey, good morning sleepy head!" I said, chuckling. He groaned on the other end of the phone.
"Good morning, beautiful. You know it's only like 8 right?" he asked me.
"Yup, I have work." I said, holding the phone normally now as I hoisted myself into the cab of my chevy. I started the engine, reving it a couple times, warming it up.
"Oh." he yawned.
"Are you okay? I was worried when you left last night."
"I'm okay I guess. My mom made me some soup, and won't let me get out of bed until 12, which suits me fine." he said, and I knew he was smiling on the other end of the phone. I giggled.
"Okay, sounds good. I'm sending Rosalie over to check on you later anyways." I said.
"Ugh, Rose? Why can't it be you?" he complained.
"Because I'm working silly, remember?"
"Oh yeah." he said, yawning again.
"Okay, go back to sleep Masen. I'll come by after work, at around 7?" I said, pulling out of my driveway.
"Can't wait. See ya, Bells." he said, yawning and hanging up. I smiled, chuckling to myself, and driving along the highway. Even the inside of my truck was literally frozen, and my hands were numb on the steering wheel. I cranked the heat, shivering. By the time I arrived at Newton's, the truck had warmed up considerably, and stepping out into the cold was a shock. I rubbed my hands together and breathed on them to warm them up as I braced myself against the cold, walking up to the front of the store. I entered, and warmth surrounded me. Smiling, I peeled off my jacket and hung it on a hook behind the counter, and then pulled on my Newton's smock. The store was empty, not being open yet, and everything was placed in a unified way on the shelves, nothing close to what it looked like at the end of the day. Sigh, the end of the day. It was so far away, I had a long shift today and would only be finished at 7. came around the corner just then, adjusting her hair.
"Oh Bella! You're here, that's great. I'm going to have to ask you to mind the store for a couple hours, I have some errands to run, is that alright?" She asked, bustling about gathering her things.
"That's fine ." I said agreeably.
"Oh good. And we're closing at three today, due to low stocks, we won't be getting new stuff in until tomorrow." She informed me, and I grinned.
"Awesome." I said, smiling. This way I could surprise Edward. She smiled gratefully and left the store, climbing into her shiny Mercedes. I fixed my name tag lazily, and switched the Closed sign to Open. I sat behind the counter, pulling Wuthering Heights from my bag, and preparing for a boring day.
I only saw about a dozen customers through the whole 6 hours I had been at Newtons. I checked the watch around my wrist and gasped, it was three thirty already, I was supposed to leave half an hour ago. I cursed and flew around the store, organizing items that had been misplaced, and straightening displays. I pulled off my smock and shoved it beneath the desk, pulling on my heavy jacket. I switched the sign back to Closed, and opened the glass door that led outside. Shivering, I climbed quickly into my truck, and started the engine. I could see my breath, and I drove quickly in the direction of Edward's house. I pulled up in their spacious driveway, and hopped out, worried about Edward. I knocked quickly, dancing with cold from one foot to the other. To my intense relief, Carlisle opened the door, and pulled me inside.
"Bella!" He said, looking concerned.
"Hi Carlisle, I'm just here to see Edward." I said, smiling and relishing the warmth of their house. A worried look crossed his face, and he hesitated.
"He's not here right now. We took him to the hospital this morning." He said, biting his lip.
"What?! No one called me?!" I shouted, angry and scared.
"Bella, calm down. He's okay. He has pneumonia, and when that happens the patient is supposed to be under proffesional care." He said, looking serious.
"Why couldn't he stay here? You're a doctor!" I said, bewildered.
"Yes, but all my material is at the hospital." He said, grabbing his coat from the rack. "Come on, I'll take you to see him. He's been asking for you all day, and is incredibly bored." I nodded, and followed him outside to the car. The only other time Edward had been in the hospital was when we were 12, and he had broken his leg. The doctor had let me stay with him and watch them put on the cast. I remember that time so well, I barely slept, and when I wasn't at school, I was with him at the hospital, playing monopoly. He insisted on being the car, because that way "he didn't need legs to get around" I slapped him when he said this, and told him he would always have legs, because if he didn't, then he couldn't press the piano pedals. This shut him up.
Carlisle drove silently, and his car was warm and comforting. I was the first to break the silence.
"Carlisle, what happens when you have pneumonia?" I asked.
"It means the little sacs filled with air inside his lungs are filled with fluid, and it makes it hard to breathe." He said, looking straight ahead. I breathed in sharply, and tried to calm myself down. He was going to be okay. We pulled up in front of the hospital, and I hopped immediately out of the car, my stomach knotting with worry. Carlisle led me inside, and waved at the secretary.
"Good afternoon ." She said politely, nodding. I followed Carlisle down a variety of hallways, and into a section labeled "Pneumatic Ward". We turned into one of the rooms.
"Beautiful." Said a weak voice. It was a voice I would know anywhere. "You came." He lay on a hospital cot, propped up with pillows, and layered with blanket after blanket. His pale face was even whiter, and he had circles under his eyes. An I.V was attached to his arm, and was dripping steadily. A tear rolled down my cheek, seeing him like this, and I rushed to his side.
"Oh Edward!" I said, leaning down and hugging him tightly. He chuckled, and wrapped his arms around me as much as he could. I burried my face in his neck, and cried softly, not wanting to let go. Carlisle smiled, and left silently. I sniffled, and Edward scooted over, motioning for me to lay beside him. I did so willingly, curling into our signature sleepover position, tucked against him. My face lay on his shoulder, and there was a wet spot from my crying.
"Don't cry Bella. I'm fine, just sick." He said, stroking my hair.
"I know, it's just scary seeing you like this." I told him.
"I know Bells, I couldn't imagine seeing you this way." He breathed, a disgruntled look crossing his features. I smoothed the lines between his eyebrows, and smiled.
"Edward?" I looked up at him.
"Mmm?"
"Remember when you broke your leg, and you had to come here, and we sat just like this, playing monopoly?" I asked him.
"How could I forget?" He said, chuckling.
"Well I was thinking maybe we should do that again." I said, and he smiled.
"I'm game." He said, grinning.
"Okay, I'll get it." I said excitedly, leaping up out of the cot. The board games were in the patient lounge, down the hall, and I remembered how to get there from last time we played.
"Bella wait! I want to come! I've been laying in bed all day, and the nurse said I could take short walks if I'm bundled up and with somebody." He said, innocently. I giggled.
"Okay sick boy, come on." I said, helping him sit up in the bed. He breathed in. Just then, a young nurse walked in.
", are you taking a walk? Who's this?" She asked pleasantly, gesturing to me.
"Oh hi Melanie." He said, flashing her a dazzling smile. I rolled my eyes. "This is my best friend, Bella." He said.
"Hello Bella." The nurse said, looking at me strangely. "Do you need me to help with detaching the I.V for a while ?"
"Yes please, Melanie." Edward said, sighing. She took it out, and then plastered a fake smile on her face, walking out of the room. I helped Edward stand up, and wrapped a fleecy blanket around his shoulders. He smiled down at me. "Thanks Bells, it feels good to be standing." He said, looking happy.
"Good! So let's go Masen." I said, smiling back at him. He shuffled forward slowly, we linked arms, and I led him at his own pace down the hallway. He was attracting looks as we made our way there, as much as I hated to say it about my best friend, I wasn't afraid to admit that he was drop dead gorgeous, and he knew it. He didn't flaunt it though, he just knew how to get what he wanted.
We arrived at the lounge, and I opened up the game cupboard. I searched through the games, but couldn't find the one I wanted. I groaned in frustration.
"Edward it's not here!" I said, frowning.
"Bella, look." He said, pointing to a table where three children sat. They looked about 7, and we're all wearing hospital robes like Edward's. One was bald, and the other two looked very weak and waxy. My heart melted. They were playing monopoly.
"Oh the poor things!" I exclaimed. "We can't take it away from them!"
"Then we'll just have to wait!" Edward said, grinning, pulling me slowly towards a cozy looking couch, and sitting down. I sat down close beside him.
"Are you feeling okay?" I asked him, my hand on his forehead. He swatted me away, rolling his eyes.
"Yes Bella, I'm fine. Stop worrying." He said.
"Ya right, I'm not going to stop worrying until you're completely better." I said. He leaned into me.
"Thanks Bells." He said.
"It's what best friends do." I said, giggling. Just then, Carlisle walked in. He saw us, and walked in our direction.
"Hey guys, I was wondering, Alice wants to know if you want anything, she's in the cafeteria now." He asked us. Edward and I looked at each other, and smiled.
"Smarties!" We said in unison. We had a thing for Smarties, every chance we got we ate them, we even seperated the colours. I only ate the purple, green, orange and brown ones, and he would eat the blue, yellow, red and pink.
"I shouldn't have asked." Carlisle said, rolling his eyes.
"Thanks Carlisle." I said.
"Thanks Dad." Edward echoed. Carlisle chuckled.
"No problem kids, Alice will be down soon." He said, checking something on his clipboard, before hurrying away. Edward sighed, leaning back into the couch and closing his eyes.
"Tired?" I asked, and he nodded. I snuggled into his side, and waited. Before I knew it, his breath grew even and calm, and I smiled, he was sleeping like a baby. I was content in the position I was in, and decided not to wake him by adjusting. I played with the hole in the knee of my jeans, and waited for Alice. She arrived shortly, prancing over to us. She grinned, and held out a box of smarties to me.
"Thanks Alice, I love you." I said quietly, not wanting to wake Edward.
"No problem Bella." She said, planting a kiss on Edward's forehead, and skipping off. I opened the box of Smarties, and peered inside. Looks like Edward hit the jackpot this time, there was alot of yellow. He woke up, and smiled sleepily.
"Yum." He said, as I popped a blue one into his mouth.
"Have a nice 10 minute nap?" I asked him, and he nodded.
"Let's see the results." He said, gesturing to the Smarties.
"You won this time." I said, dumping them out onto the table in front of us. We sorted them into their respectful groups, and proceeded to eat them quickly, unable to resist. My glance strayed over the table where the kids had been playing monopoly before, and it was now empty. I squirmed out from underneath Edward's arm, and hurried to the cupboard. I grabbed the game and raced back over to the couch where we were sitting.
"Finally!" He exclaimed, taking the game from my hands as I sat back down. He set it on the table, and opened the dog eared box. This game was an old one, and I can't ever remember it being new. He unfolded the game board, and gasped.
"Bella, It's still here." He said, pointing to a spot on the black back of the board. It was the spot where we had carved our names, and written 'Best Friends Forever' underneath it. I smiled, touching it with my fingers. His writing was tidy and blocky, and mine was messy and loopy.
Thanks guys! BTW the kids that were playing monopoly had leukemiaxox