The Gift

Disclaimer: Stephenie Myers owns all Twilight and the Characters

Chapter 32: A Dose of Reality

EPOV:

The airport was rather crowded for it to be a Tuesday afternoon. The holiday travelers had already come and gone home. So why was it so busy today? Taking a look around I noticed that all the Christmas decorations were down and that a little old man was putting up paper hearts all over the place. Fucking wonderful I thought to myself. In a way I was happy that I would be in New York for Valentine's Day. At least my heart wouldn't hurt as bad than it would if I was home. I couldn't help but think that I was doing the right thing. The question was, was I doing the right thing. I then remembered something that Rose and Emmett were telling me when Bella was missing.

"That's because she is strong," she said before getting serious. "When she comes home you need to be stronger than ever."

"I will," I asked her questioningly. "Rose can I ask you why, even though I will be strong?"

"She will feel off," she said looking over a wall with a straight face. "She will have nightmares, and probably won't leave the house for a while. You need to be there so she knows that everything is okay."

"What have I done," I said out loud. I let her down and I was to blame for it. I may have been the only person in the row of chairs, but the lady of the ticket counter gave me a stern look.

"Sorry," I told her as I hung my head down low. Before I could get another thought across my mind my phone started to ring.

"Hello," I said when I answered it without looking at the caller id.

"What in the fuck is your problem," they said quickly. I knew immediately who it was, and I was up shit creek without a paddle.

"Dad," I answered him.

"Do you have any idea," he said taking a deep breath.

"I don't want to piss her off," I said standing up and moving into a nearby corner.

"Bella," he said laughing. Why in the hell was he laughing? "Sucks don't it."

"What sucks," I asked him trying to piece together what he was saying.

"That you're afraid that she will take Carly away," he said in a serious tone. "Reminds me of when she thought that you were going to take Carly away from her."

"It's not the same," I said trying not to raise my voice.

"Yes it is," he said getting stern with me. "She was looking for you at the hospital today. She was looking for your car in the driveway when she got to the house. What does that tell you?"

"So," I said acting like child. "She probably just wanted to go off on me some more."

"You need to get your head out of your ass," he said before taking a deep breath. "You shouldn't have left. Alice called right before I called you."

"What did Alice say," I said becoming worried all of a sudden.

"Let's just say," he started to say before I heard him being paged to the emergency room. "It's been a rough afternoon at home."

"Why," I said rushed knowing that he would hang up soon.

"I've got to go," he said hanging up the phone.

"Shit," I said hitting the wall in front of me.

"Sir," I heard someone say behind me. I turned around and noticed that it was the same little old man who was putting out the decorations. "Are you okay?"

"I don't know," I answered him honestly. I didn't know what to say because there was so much going on.

"I may not know the situation you are in," he said pushing a ladder up against the wall. "It sometimes helps when you have an outsider listen. Come on and let's get a cup of coffee."

"Alright," I answered him. I grabbed my bag and followed him over to the coffee stand. The old man found us a table, and I grabbed the coffee. I went over to the table and noticed that he was looking at a pocket watch. "The name is Edward, Edward Cullen."

"Marcus Volturi," he said extending his hand out so that I could shake it.

"Are you related to an Aro Volturi," I asked trying to make a connection between the two.

"He's my cousin," he answered before taking a drink out of his cup. "Now what's on your mind?"

"It's a long story," I told him before I myself took a drink.

"I've got plenty of time," he replied with a smile.

So I started to tell him everything from the start. I told him how I met Bella. Hell I told him everything about her. From the type of perfume she used on a daily bases to what her favorite lines in Wuthering Heights were. I told him how I asked her out, where we first kissed and how I broke her heart for the very first time. While I spoke I noticed that he didn't say anything at all. He just sat there and listened to me speak. I went on and talked about my awful life with Tanya and the divorce. Which in the long run brought Bella back into my life and gave me the best gift in my life? I talked about Carly and how I found out that she was indeed my daughter. I noticed in myself that when I talked about my girls I could feel myself smiling. Then I talked about Bella getting kidnapped, finding her, and how I ended up here at this moment. When I was finally finished I felt like the weight was being lifted off my shoulders.

"One question son," Marcus asked speaking up for the first time since I finished talking. "Why in the hell are you here? When your girl needs you more than ever?"

"I don't want to make her mad," I said hanging my head down low.

"You'll regret it in the end," he said pulling his pocket watch out again. "Believe me, I know."

"How," I asked and he passed me the watch to look at. On the inside of the pocket watch was a picture of a young man and woman. The two of them looked so happy and in love by the way he was embracing her. "Who are they?"

"Her name was Athenodora," he said looking at the picture again when I handed it back to him. "She was my one true love, and still is to this day."

"What happened," I asked him wanting to hear his story.

"She said that she," he started to say as his voice started to crack a little. "I ended up having to work late one night. Instead of me driving to her house afterwards, she decided to drive over to my place. She was half way to my house when she was hit head on by a drunk driver. She was in a coma for two months, and I never left her side. When she finally woke up, she ended up blaming me for her wreck. She said that she never wanted to see me again, and so I left."

"Did you ever go back," I asked when he finished.

"No," he said as I saw tears start to fill his eyes. "If you get on that plane tonight, then you'll never come back."

Before I could say anything my phone started beeping. I pulled it out of my pocket and noticed that it was a text message from mom. I opened it and it only had two words: I understand. After seeing that text message I knew then that I was starting to rethink my decision.

"What happened to her, Athenodora," I said trying not to butcher her name. I tucked my phone back into my pocket and waited to hear his answer.

"She eventually married," he said looking down at his cup. "After hearing your story it made me realizes something. You and your Bella are just like my Athenodora and me. So don't make the same mistake I made all those years ago. I'm telling you don't do what I did."

"What if she gets mad," I asked finishing my cup of coffee.

"You fight," he told me. "You have to show her that she is the one. The one you want to spend every day with, and that you're not going anywhere."

"If you could," I said before taking a deep breath. "Would you go back, and change things if you could?"

"I would have left work on time," he answered. "If I would have left on time then she wouldn't have been in that wreck."

I watched him drink the rest of his coffee and noticed the time on my watch. It was almost seven o'clock and I needed to come up with my decision.

"What are you going to do," he asked. I guess that he could read my facial expression.

I didn't give him a clear answer right away. I did think about what he said. He was right about Bella and I. We were acting just like him and Athenodora. My new fear now was getting on that plane and not coming back to my family. I had already missed so much of Carly's life. Could I possibly miss the rest of it by getting on that plane? Fuck no! I won't be making the same mistakes that Marcus did all those years ago.

"I'm going home," I said standing up from the table.

"Good," he said standing up as well. "Go and fight for your family."

"Thank you," I said shaking his hand.

I grabbed my bag and raced out of the airport. I got into the Volvo and start on my way back to Forks. I didn't want to call my family because I wanted this to be a surprise to them. There was one person that I needed to call and that was Alec. He was gracious enough to let me crash on his couch. Now I needed to tell him that was no longer necessary.

"Edward," he said when he answered the phone. "Please don't tell me you are already at the airport."

"No," I said as I passed the Welcome to Port Angeles sign. "Actually I'm on my way home back in Forks."

"Man," he said shocked. "What the hell?"

"My girls," was all I said to him.

"You're whipped," he said laughing.

"No, yes, maybe," I said laughing along before turning a little serious. "My girls are my everything. I can't leave without trying to fight for them."

"Alright," he said a little bummed. "If you ever need to get away for a little while and need a couch to crash on? You know where to find one."

"Okay," I said and we both hung up the phone.

The rest of the ride home I kept thinking about Marcus. To think that I almost ran away like he did and lose everything that mattered to me. Like he said I was going to have to fight for her until she saw the truth. I wasn't going to let them slip through my fingers again. It was a little after eleven o'clock when I pulled into the driveway. From the outside the house looked completely dark, and I knew that everyone was probably in bed. I quietly closed the front door, and left my bag near the hall closet door. The only light on the first floor was coming from the kitchen. Truth be told that I should have probably gone to see if anyone was awake, but there was somewhere else that I needed to be. I walked upstairs to the second floor going to the first room on the right. Opening the door as quietly as I could and stepping in I was illuminated by a nearby night light. The room was painted pink and purple with butterflies hanging from the ceiling. There were toys scattered all across the floor, and new pictures were taped to the wall. Mom, Alice and Rose got this room together for Carly, while Bella was in the hospital. They converted one of our spare guest rooms into a bedroom for her so that she had her own space when she visited. I walked over to her bed navigating myself around the toys and sat down on the edge. I didn't move an inch, afraid that I was going to wake her up. I just sat there and watched my sweet little girl sleep.

"Daddy," she said turning around facing me.

"Hey," I said in an almost whisper. I brushed a stray hair out of her face.

"You home," she said rubbing her eyes.

"Yes," I said taking one of her little hands into my own and squeezing it. "Daddy is never leaving like that again."

"Good," she said turning back around and closing her eyes.

"Night sweet girl," I said to her. Before I got up I leaned over and kissed her forehead.

On the way out of her room I couldn't help but think that I almost gave this up. As I neared the stairs that led upstairs to my floor, there was screams. When I heard the screams I could feel the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Then it hit me I knew that scream from anywhere.

Bella, I said as I raced up to the third floor.

When my feet hit that top step I ran to the right since that was where the guest room was. Opening the door I noticed that there was no one in there. Where in the hell would she be?

"Please stop," she screamed again. "Please stop."

I heard her scream again and again trying to piece together where she would be at. The more I heard her scream the more my heart broke. I ran out of the room and back into the hallway. Then it hit me. The only other room that she would be would be my room. I ran across the hall passing mom and dad who were at the top of the steps. Looking over at the bed I saw her tossing and turning. I ran over and sat down on the bed beside her.

"Stop," she said screaming and tossing from side to side.

"Bella," I said shaking her slightly. "Love, wake up it's only a dream."

After shaking her slightly a couple of more times she opened her eyes. Seeing her eyes open for the first time melted some of the cracks in my heart back together. After I gazed into her melting chocolate brown eyes I started to get up from the bed. I felt her tug at my shirt collar causing me to look down once again. Before I could say something I felt her lips upon mine. Her lips were soft, warm, and welcoming against mine. I pulled her closer to me wrapping an arm around her waist. I knew that I had to be gentle with her at the time being. After what seemed liked forever in this bliss she pulled back and looked up at me breathing heavily.

"Hey," I said smiling at her.

"I'm sorry," she said hugging herself closer to me. I held her there close to me and she started to cry.

"It's okay," I told her as I held her. I didn't know what else to say to her at the moment.

"Edward," I heard dad say. I glanced over and noticed that him and mom standing there. "Is everything alright?"

"It is now," I answered him as Bella started to sit up.

"Do you want some tea Bella," mom asked speaking up. Bella didn't speak up but instead nodded her head in agreement.

"I'll come with you," I said standing up.

"Stay please," Bella whispered moving towards me.

"I'll be right back," I told her leaning down and giving her a quick kiss.

"I'll stay with you," dad said coming over towards the bed. "I need to check you bandages from where you were tossing and turning."

"Okay," she said looking back over at me.

Mom and I headed down the stairs and were into the kitchen before anything was said. I noticed that she had taken out three cups for tea and the kettle. I knew that Bella never liked tea in fact she hated it.

"She won't drink that," I told mom getting some milk out.

"I guess you're right," she said with a small chuckle. "What made you come back?"

"I met someone at the airport," I said pouring the milk into a pot and placing it on the stove. "It was actually Aro's cousin. He told me that if I had boarded that plane than I would never come back."

"Why would he say that," she asked kind of shocked getting the teabags from the cabinet.

"He went through something similar," I said going behind her and getting the coco powder. "He told me how he lost the one person he loved more than anything. She was hit by a drunk driver and was in a coma for two months. He never left her side and when she woke up she said that she never wanted to see him again. So he left and never went back."

"That's awful," she said pouring the water from the kettle into the cups. "That also reminds me of something that is going on right now. Didn't I tell you not to leave?"

"Yes," I said pouring the milk into the two cups I had gotten out. "I guess actually listening to someone else who went through something like this. Then to actually see the outcome with my own eyes and how alone Marcus is today. I couldn't see myself following in his footsteps and losing my family."

"That is a sad story," she said throwing the teabags away. "I'm glad that you actually understand where you belong. You ready to go back upstairs."

"Yeah," I said as I finished drizzling the chocolate syrup on the whip cream.

I grabbed my two cups and followed mom upstairs. When we made it back to my room Bella was calm sitting up against the headboard of the bed. I put the two cups on the night stand and sat down beside her.

"Here you go," I said handing her one of the cups.

"This isn't tea," she said with a smile.

"Nope," I said taking a drink out of my own cup.

"Now," dad said interrupting us. "We are going to head on back to bed. Remember Bella take it easy with your bandages, especially the one around your stomach."

"Okay," she said as they left the room. Once they were out of the room things became quiet between the two of us. We both just sat there drinking our hot chocolate. "How long are you staying?"

"How long are you going to be mad at me," I responded back to her.