The next morning was the day of the funeral and Bella was surprisingly acting like it was just a normal day. After having Edward talk her into it she finally agreed to go. Even though in the back of her mind she knew it was going to be tough since she was handling everything so well at the moment. She feared once she was there and witnessing everything it would finally sink in that it was real and he wasn't coming back. At the moment it all just felt surreal to her still even if she had her moments of breaking down before. She just tried not to think about it right then while she ate her breakfast. Her mom had already been calling her off the hook making sure she would be there and still trying to talk her into going back to Florida with her.
Once done eating she washed off her dishes and took in a deep breath to keep herself under control. She would have to keep a huge mental barrier up to survive the day.
Edward kept his distance since he had no idea what to say and was afraid he might say the wrong thing. He really only spoke when she spoke to him first, but was with her if she needed him.
"I'm not going to bite your head off." She gave him a look while she turned off the water and put her dishes away. She knew he was acting different and just wanted him to know she was going to be fine.
He looked up a bit surprised and walked over to her. "I'm sorry."
Sighing she leaned against the counter and then his side once he approached. "I need to go find something to wear." That was going to be a problem since she already knew she wouldn't find anything. This really wasn't something she was planning on for years to come.
Edward stood to the side once again as he watched her endless battle with her clothes. It's not that he did not want to help her he just had no idea how. The room had become covered in her things and sometimes he had to dodge flying clothes she would toss over her head.
"Sweetie just slow down." He took a risk and spoke as he watched her temper start to flare the more irritated she got. He didn't dare go to her just yet.
Just like he predicted she snapped at him. "I've got it." She growled and threw what she had in her hand back into the closet not caring where it landed. Her head dropped into her hands as she sat on the floor and sighed in frustration. "Why can't I just have normal fucking clothes like everyone else?"
Edward moved a little closer to her to sit on the edge of the bed. "I can see if Alice has anything if you want." He bit his lip hoping she wouldn't go off on him again.
She looked up from her hands to ponder the thought for a minute and nodded. "Ok, thank you." She kept her voice quiet knowing it wasn't his fault she snapped at him and felt a little guilty.
He gave her a smile and left the room to go find Alice.
Bella flopped back onto the floor from her sitting position to now laying. Her palms met her eyes as she closed them and took in a deep breath. The stress was already hitting her and she wondered if her mental wall she was holding up was making it even more stressful. She couldn't let herself break down, at least not yet.
She rolled over to get up and noticed something under the bed. It had to of been mixed into a lot of the stuff she had been tossing around and did not notice. She wondered how it got so far under the bed and slid to get it. Thankfully it was tall enough she could fit under there without force and grabbed it. About that time she felt someone grab her feet and start pulling making her slide out. She rolled onto her back once she could and smiled up at Edward.
"Is there a reason you were under there?" He asked holding out the clothes he had gotten from Alice. She slid the object into her pocket for now and got up with his help and took the clothes to look them over.
"I don't want to do this anymore." She made a face and slumped over.
"I know." He kissed the side of her head and tried to motivate her since they did not have much time before they were to meet everyone.
Getting his hint she tried on the clothes and finally settled on something. She still wasn't one hundred percent happy with it, but it would work and she could not be too picky anymore.
It didn't take him long to find what he was going to wear and get ready himself. When he returned back to the room he noticed she had changed clothes again. She was wearing her every day clothes, something she would of worn to school not to a funeral. "You not going?"
She looked away from the mirror and over to where he was standing in the doorway. "No, I'm just going to wear this instead." She just wanted to be herself and not change who she was just because of the occasion. The object she had stored in her pocket was an old hair clip Charlie gave her when she was like 7 for her birthday. She hadn't even known she still had it until it showed up under the bed. It ended up in her hair before they left and she stayed quiet while Edward followed the directions to find where the funeral was being held.
In the back of her mind she knew this was going to be a big deal and the whole town was more than likely going to show up. Maybe if it would of been smaller no one would judge her if she changed her mind to not go. Everyone from the police station was sure to be there and if she wasn't she wondered if they might suspect something.
When they pulled into the parking lot she started getting extremely nervous and stressed out. There were so many people and it was starting to sink in this was real and these were the final moments. Bella faced Edward when he turned off the car and the look on her face stunned him. "You going to be ok?"
She shook her head unable to speak as she got out of the car. He quickly moved to her side to wrap his arms around her as they made their way inside. He could hear how fast her heart was beating and how worked up she was getting. She was keeping her cool though and struggling to hold everything inside.
Renee spotted them as soon as they walked inside and ran up pulling Bella from Edward and into her embrace. Unable to control herself any longer she broke down in her mothers arms. She had not seen her in so long and so much had happened it was just nice to finally be in her arms once again. Renee didn't let her go until she was calm again. Edward always wanting to protect her and stayed close, but did not come between them.
They caught up on things, but Bella didn't say much about Charlie and his recent behavior while they were there. She actually managed to handle herself decently during the service and not break down completely until the body was being lowered into the ground. She unintentionally created a scene when she tried to place the hair clip she had worn to be with Charlie as they were in the process of burying him. After everything was over Renee spent a lot of time convincing Bella to come visit her for 3 days, in hopes she would change her mind and decide to move there. She was extremely uncomfortable when with the idea of Bella living with Edward when she finally found out that was the friend she had been staying with. Renee made no note of inviting him along, wanting as much time alone with her daughter as possible to try and talk her out living with the Cullens.
Bella gave in not wanting to stress out anymore and defiantly didn't feel like arguing. She figured she could handle being away from Edward for the 3 days at the most. Managing to pull herself away from her mother she left the funeral home with Edward and went back to their house. He knew of the plans and the fact she would be leaving in the morning she he was going to spend as much time with her as possible.
Ever since Charlie began his abuse to the end and until now he had not went a single day without seeing her. In the back of his mind he really did wonder how this change would effect his emotions. She was the love of his life and he felt the need to be with her and protect her, even more so in her current state. With her being hundreds of miles away it worried him, which he did not even think it was possible for him to feel that way. Just another reminder of how much he really loved her and still ceased to amaze even himself with that.
Once they returned home they went inside and Bella began the process of packing and looking through everything she would need for the three days. She didn't say much at all the days events still fresh in her mind and the endless battle of her uncontrollable emotions continued. She didn't want to leave Edward and wished he could go with her, but the day light was not in his favor when it came to Florida.
The packing didn't take long since she was a pretty simple person and did not need a ton of clothes or other things to please herself. She gave Edward a kiss and grabbed some clothes letting him know she was going to take a shower. Just wanting a little time to herself and her thoughts. She really wanted her mood to be less depressing while she spent her last minutes with him before she left, so she needed this.
Edward took this time to go play his piano and not let the thoughts of her being gone get to him. He would of went with her instantly if she had invited him to shower as well, but knew she needed the time alone and let her be.
All too soon did the hot water run cold in what felt like a short moment. Her mind had wandered under the soothing feel of the water hitting her skin making her lose track of time. She had finished what she needed to do and got dressed. Taking her time she ran a towel through her hair to dry it some and started brushing it out. She sighed when she tried to look in the mirror and reached out to wipe it off. Once the vision was clear she jumped and ducked when she saw a fist coming up from behind her and the mirror shatter under the hit.
She stumbled back to regain her balanced and turned around seeing Charlie standing there. He looked just like he had the last day she had seen him and just as angry. His yelling was hurting her ears more than she would of imagined it to and he took a swing at her causing her to scream and run for the door. What the hell was going on is all she could think. She honestly didn't think she was that crazy. Her hand slipped off the door handle when it wouldn't open and she began to panic.
"Open the door!" She cried out and pound her fist against the wood. "Please, somebody!" She started to cry then and fumbled with the lock thinking maybe she had locked herself in, but still couldn't managed to pull the door open. "Edward!" The lights went out in the bathroom then causing it to become pitch black. Her breathing picked up and spiked her panic even further as she continued to pull on the door handle with one hand and beat on it with her other hand. "Let me out!" She never had the courage to turn around and find out if she was still imagining him since she was too afraid.
The only sound that really stood out in her head was how hard she was breathing and the feel of her face soaked with tears. She couldn't understand why no was was trying to help her until she heard an unlikely voice.
Jasper was the first one to the bathroom door having heard her cries from where he had been in the house. Edward was still in the music room with some headphones on unaware at the moment of what was going on. Jasper pulled on the door and even under his vampire strength couldn't seem to open it. "Bella are you ok? What's happening?"
She was just happy the voice she heard she knew and didn't care what it was saying, she just wanted to be free. "Open the door please!"
Jasper tried again using all he had and it didn't budge. He started to worry at the panic in her tone and the fear he could feel radiating off her. He tried to manipulate her mind to calm her down while he tried to figure out how to get her out and yelled for Edward loud enough to where he would hear, but didn't hurt Bella's ears.
Edward jerked up at his yell and ripped the head phones off darting in the direction of them. He knew something was wrong with a cry like that and stopped at the door where Jasper was standing. Instantly he picked up on the situation when he could hear Bella on the other side in a panic.
"Jasper let me out!" She screamed then as she was knocked to the floor by an unseen force and her only defense was to curl up into a ball against the wall since she couldn't see to defend herself.
Edward's heart broke at the distress in her voice and the fact he couldn't do anything. With another try and no effort at all the hold on the door broke and the light from the outside shined in on Bella on the floor. He was quickly to her side and pulling her into his arms to get her out of the bathroom.
She clung to him once she felt his presence and felt safe. He placed her on the floor and bent down to her level to cup her face and get a better view of her condition. After kissing her forehead and brushing her wet hair out of her face he spoke. "It's ok, you're safe now."
With the work of Jasper in her mind she quickly calmed and turned to face him. "Thank you...Not just for my mood...For everything." It still really surprised her that he came first and actually cared. Over the time she had been there yes they had gotten a lot closer, but she still could never figure him out. Never too sure of his intentions when he was around and if he was even ok of being in her presence and not being tempted. It meant a lot to her.
He just smiled and gave her a simple nod before turning to leave.
"Jasper wait." She pulled away from Edward gently and went over to him giving him a hug. She saw Edward tense out of the corner of her eye and honestly did not even think of her actions. Jasper tensed a little as well, but only because of her smell and held his breath. Edward trusted Jasper, but couldn't let his guard down.
Bella pulled away and blushed a little at making him tense. "I'm sorry, I just really am grateful."
He chuckled slightly. "Your welcome, really." He was able to turn and leave that time.
She watched him leave and quickly turned back to Edward's waiting arms. She inhaled his scent deeply and let her nerves calm again.
"You going to be ok?" Edward spoke softly and kissed the side of her head. He felt her nod against him.
"What happened?"
She shifted to look up at him then. "I think my imagination got the best of me..." Thats when she noticed the broken mirror all over the bathroom floor. Maybe she really wasn't going crazy.
He followed her look and saw the shards on the floor then looked back at her to make sure she hadn't been hurt. Other than emotionally stressed she didn't have a scratch on her.
"I'm just glad you are ok." He really had been scared to death at her cries and when he had no control over helping her. She lifted herself up on her toes to give him a kiss and wrapped an arm around his neck. Just wanting to be closer and feel his touch and know she was safe in his embrace.