Chapter 8: A New Home
After the long flight, Bella let out a sigh as she followed her father out of the airport. "How are you doing Bell?" he asked.
"I'm just a little tired," she replied.
He placed his hand on her shoulder as they walked through the parking garage when Bella saw the cruiser sitting in the parking space. "You…drove your cruiser here?" she asked.
"Yeah, I couldn't leave Sue stranded without a car," he replied.
They got their things into the trunk of the car before getting in. Bella bit her lower lip as they drove out of the airport. "Sue and I will get you enrolled at the middle school there tomorrow," he informed. She nodded her head slowly, letting out a sigh. "Sue's anxious to meet you," he commented.
"What's she like?" Bella asked.
Chuckling softly, Charlie glanced at his daughter. "She is a headstrong woman, but also the kindest and sweetest woman I have ever known as well. She's a member of her tribal council, she took her late husband's place after he sadly passed," he explained. Bella bit her lower lip as she started playing with the leaf charm with a small smile. Emmett's smiling face appeared in her mind, his smile even in her head was a comfort.
After awhile, they pulled up to the house and Charlie got out of the car. Bella climbed out of her side of the car, looking at the house. After helping her father with their bags, they went into the house. "Sue?" Charlie called. Sue walked out of kitchen with a smile.
"Hey," she said smiling, hugging her husband.
Charlie hugged her back before she pulled back, kissing him briefly. Bella flushed, feeling like she was intruding on an intimate moment. Charlie let her go with a smile. "Sue, this is Bella," he told her. Sue was grinning from ear to ear.
"Oh she's so beautiful," she commented smiling.
"Um…hi," Bella answered holding out her hand.
Sue shook her hand with a smile. "Hello Bella, nice to meet you," she told her girl.
"Nice to meet you," Bella answered.
"Well, would you like to meet the rest of the family?" Sue asked.
"Sure," Bella replied slowly.
Sue smiled before walking over to the stairs. "Seth! Leah!" she called. Charlie wrapped his arm around Bella's shoulders as Seth hurried down the stairs. "Seth, this is Charlie's daughter, Bella. Bella, this is Seth," Sue informed.
"Hi!" the boy greeted enthusiastically.
"Hi," Bella answered smiling.
Sue looked down at her son. "Where's your sister?" she asked. Seth shrugged.
"She won't come down," he replied.
Bella cleared her throat. "That's ok, can I just get my bags upstairs?" she asked.
"Of course," Sue replied smiling.
Charlie grabbed Bella's suitcase. "As soon as Charlie knew you existed, I think he used whatever spare time he had to decorate your room," she commented as they went up the stairs.
"Leah doesn't like that Bella gets her own room," Seth blurted out.
Sue sighed. "But she's getting her own room downstairs," she muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. Bella bit her lower lip.
"I'm sorry, I'm being such a burden," she murmured.
"No, Bella don't think that," Sue answered.
She walked over to the bedroom door and knocked. "What?" a voice called on the other side.
"Leah Skye, don't you give me that attitude already," Sue scolded her daughter.
Sighing, Charlie led his daughter to her room. Bella walked in, stopping short. "I wasn't sure what you liked as in color wise, but I figured from starters that pink is more of bringing home a baby," he commented chuckling. He put the bag down on the floor. "So…I just repainted the walls green, you can change it if you want. The lady at the store picked out the bed stuff, hopefully you like purple," he added nervously.
"Purple's cool," she answered.
She bit her lower lip. "Thanks dad," she told him. Charlie nodded before hugging her gently.
"Welcome home," he murmured.
She nodded her head slowly with a small smile before he left her alone to unpack. Once she closed the door to her room, she sat down on her bed with a heavy sigh. Lowering her head, she moved her fingers through her hair, biting her lower lip. She started playing with the leaf charm on her necklace. Letting out a deep breath, she lied back on her bed staring at the ceiling. Getting up from the bed, she went back down the stairs.
After she finally found the phone, she started dialing their number. Leaning against the wall, she moved her fingers through her hair. "Hi, you have reached the residence of Anita, Shawn, Tara, and Emmett. We are unable to get to the phone right now so please leave your name and number and we'll call you back as soon as we can," the answering machine played. Biting her lower lip, she let out a sigh.
"Hey…guys…it's me. I just wanted to let you know that I made it here safely. The town's small, but kinda interesting. I guess I'll talk to you guys later, bye," she murmured before hanging up.
Resting her hand against her forehead, she let out a deep breath. Tears were pressing against her eyes as she walked back up the stairs.
Once she was back in her room, she lied down on her bed, chewing her bottom lip. Wrapping her arms around herself, she curled up in the fetal position with a small sob. She closed her eyes as she let out a shaky breath. Biting her lower lip, she curled even further into a ball with tears falling down her face. "Emmett," she whimpered softly.