Author's note: Thanks to everyone for the reviews and follows, they make me happy!

Chapter seven

The padding of shoes, swishing of white coats and rolling of trolleys and beds were all sounds that created the soundtrack of a typical hospital ward. Forks Community Hospital was no different and I gazed absently at the people milling around as Angela and I waited to be seen by a doctor. Carlisle had disappeared right after escorting us to the emergency room and I hoped to see him again before I left, if only to offer thanks for what he'd done.

A kindly looking middle aged nurse called Angela's name and I made my friend promise to give me a call when she got home, if I didn't see her before leaving. When she was out of sight, I let out a deep breath. What a day! My head was still throbbing, so I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees as I rubbed my temples. I hoped my wait wouldn't be too much longer-all I needed was some Tylenol and my bed.

The same nurse that had called Angela returned for me and I eagerly followed. She led me to an unoccupied bed, where another nurse waited to perform my check up. The examination was carried out fairly quickly and she was confident that I would be okay, but insisted I ensure my dad kept an eye on me for the next couple of days.

My pocket vibrated during my stroll back towards the waiting room and I pulled out my phone to read the text Angela had just sent.

Mild concussion, nothing serious. You?

I replied to tell her my diagnosis was the same and she promised to meet up in a few days. The phone was slipped back into the pocket and, as my eyes looked ahead, they saw Carlisle's tall form gliding towards the exit. Before any hesitation had time to hit, I called his name and he stopped, before turning to face me. I quickened my pace to meet him. During my approach, I noted the stains decorating his black coat and trousers. It made me glance briefly at my own attire to see what sort of state I was in and immediately wished I hadn't; pale grey jeans were a bad choice if you planned to sit on wet and muddy ground. Looking back up, I saw that Carlisle's hair was still mussed and had to admit that, coupled with the stained clothing, the effect was a little jarring against his seemingly unnatural perfection, yet did little to diminish his unusual beauty. What it did a lot of, however, was remind me how relatively unscathed he seemed to be after such an accident. From what I could tell, he took the brunt of the impact, but was nowhere near as affected as Angela or I.

"Are you alright, Bella?" he asked, interrupting my thoughts. "What did the nurse say?"

"I'm fine," I assured. "Nothing a few painkillers won't fix."

"Good. And your friend?"

"The same. Our parents have gotta keep an eye on us, though."

Carlisle nodded, as though agreeing with the diagnoses. "It may seem like a pain," he said. "But it's better to be safe than sorry." His eyes did a quick scan of the environment. "How are you getting home?"

"My dad's picking me up," I explained dismissively, before moving to more urgent matters. "But what about you? Are you okay? I mean, I saw the state of that windshield after you guys hit it. That must've hurt."

"The windshield makes it look worse than it was," he insisted. "And my back took the brunt of the force, so I'm lucky enough to leave with little more than bruises." His lips curved into a small smile. "As you said, nothing a few painkillers can't fix."

"Oh," I replied, thinking it through. And I thought I had been lucky. My smile mirrored his as a random thought pooped into my head. "Maybe we should start calling you Superman," I quipped.

Carlisle chuckled. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves-you haven't seen me fly, yet."

His remark painted an amusing image into my head of him clad in blue and red, swooping through the air to save Angela, which immediately merged with my memory of the camera footage. "You're not far from it. You ran towards that car pretty fast." I kept my tone light-tried to, anyway-but there was a burning curiosity fuelling the words. If anything, it was an excuse to find out a little more about Dr Cullen.

The smile turned self-conscious as he replied. "My sporty college days are betraying me, I fear. I used to run track at college, but that was a while ago. Thankfully, I wasn't too far away, so I was able to reach you pretty quickly."

But he was far away, at the other end of the street, in fact and I had proof-well, Angela did now. Maybe he didn't realise how far away he'd been, or, maybe I had gotten it wrong. I tried to mentally recollect what I'd seen on the video camera. I was so sure of his position when we crossed the road. Could I have gotten it wrong? A tendril of discomfort snaked through my mind as I pondered the possibility that he was lying. What possible reason would he have for doing so? No, from what I'd seen, it seemed far more likely that he was simply being modest-although I admittedly didn't know him well enough to completely quell the doubts. The ability of Dr Cullen's presence to raise more questions than he answered was becoming habitual.

Once again, his velvet voice cut through my thoughts. "How long did you say your father would be?" he asked, his eyes searching through the glass of the sliding doors. "Having to wait here isn't going to do much for your head. I'm more than happy to drive you home if need be."

Helpfulness appeared to be yet another family trait. Getting home just that little bit sooner was extremely tempting, but I knew Charlie wasn't far away. "I wish I could, but Dad's already on his way and pretty anxious to see me."

"I can imagine," he said, that gentle smile of his lifting the corners of his mouth.

The entrance doors opened as a fraught woman helped her limping teenage boy walk into the hospital and, in the distance, I saw the all-too-familiar cruiser enter the parking lot.

"Seems you don't have to wait that long, after all," Carlisle commented and his lips widened into a grin. "I hope our next meeting is less dramatic, Bella."

"Me too," I agreed.

He turned and started walking away. I absently watched the hem of his coat sway from left to right with each stride, before suddenly remembering something. "Carlisle, wait!" I called, forced to trot over to him yet again. "I'm sorry, but I need to thank you."

It seemed to take him a moment to realising what I was referring to. "Oh, no, Bella, that's not-"

"No, it is," I insisted, cutting off his modest protest. "You saved Angela's life. If she could, she'd thank you herself." A gentle blush stained my cheeks as I added, "And, I guess you also saved mine, too. I mean, words aren't much, but-"

"Please, Bella," Carlisle interjected, hands raised as though pleading for the praise to end. "Don't think any more about it. Honestly, just knowing you are both safe and well is enough."

He obviously saw that I was unhappy with this because he stepped closer and put a reassuring hand on my bicep. It was the first intimate gesture he had ever given me and muddled my senses a little as his cool touch seeped through the fabric of my sleeve.

"I'm a doctor, remember? It's my job to help others." His hand withdrew from my arm. "Now, go home, take some painkillers and rest, Bella-doctor's orders."

I couldn't quite think of anything else to say, so decided to quit the argument and watch him leave. Without him to occupy my senses, the rhythmic thudding of my brain returned and I languorously walked towards the advancing Charlie. I wanted my bed.

000

News of the accident spread fast, with every person I came into contact with on the Friday asking about it. Nobody's concern could top Alice Brandon's, though, as she skipped into Thunderbird and Whale mere moments after I got there.

"Carlisle told me all about it," she said, her large, honey eyes wide with alarm. "I can't believe how lucky you are!"

That made two of us, although Angela was the luckiest of all. Recollections of the event replaced my yellow dream as they had plagued the two previous nights' fitful slumber. Charlie hadn't had a peaceful couple of nights either. He'd decided to take the nurse's advice to heart and wake me every few hours throughout the night to ensure I hadn't slipped into a coma or something. Sadly, I don't think he realised it was only necessary for the first night after a minor head injury. I stifled a yawn as Alice poured every ounce of her concern into a tight hug.

"Are you free for lunch today?" she asked and I nodded. "Good. Do you mind if Jasper joins us?"

I suddenly wished I'd made other plans. As far as first impressions went, Jasper's hadn't been the best. Then again, it also hadn't been the worst, so perhaps I was being a little unfair. I couldn't help it, though, he was a bit odd-courteous, sure, but odd. Would it be like our first meeting, where he stood as silent and still as a creepy statue? Maybe he was just a little shy. God knows I wasn't the most talkative of people myself and I put all my hopes on Alice to ensure the lunch break wasn't filled with awkward silence.

"Bella, I know he isn't the most animated of people," she said, meaning she must have sensed my hesitation. "But that's because it takes him a while to get used to people. I promise, after meeting him a few times, you'll warm up to him."

"I can understand that," I replied, reassured just a little. "I'm not that great with new people, either."

"Really?" she asked, her brow creased in genuine astonishment. "You didn't seem to have that much trouble with me."

"That's because you make it impossible for anybody to be introverted around you," I explained with a chuckle.

"Hmm," she murmured, considering my statement. "Well, in that case, I shall see you in a few hours." She waved goodbye to Jerry, before sauntering out of the bookstore.

Thankfully, my shift was as uneventful as could be expected. Jerry had decided to go easy on me that day, so I spent most of it serving the customers, while he worked the stock. The day had a peaceful ambience to it, with time neither rushing nor dawdling and the arrival of one o clock seemed to be at exactly the right moment. Alice was stood outside the dress shop, her back to me as she faced Jasper. They seemed oblivious to their surroundings as she craned her elegant neck to meet his bowed head, giggling as they conversed.

Jasper was the first to acknowledge my approach as his eyes flew up to meet mine. The intensity of his gaze caused my step to falter, but, within seconds, a hesitantly friendly smile played on his lips. Damn right he takes a while to get used to people, I thought, as Alice turned to greet me with a hug.

"How are you doing?" she asked, still concerned about my welfare, despite my earlier assurances.

"Alice, you need to stop worrying," I told her. "I'm fine."

She eyed me sceptically and I couldn't help but appreciate the concern. She released me from the embrace and, to my surprise, Jasper stepped forward, offering his hand.

"It's nice to see you again, Bella," he greeted.

I looked at the outstretched hand and clasped it gently with my own. A little formal, perhaps, but it was a start, at least. Alice must have had a word with him.

"You too," I reciprocated and saw the beaming smile on my pixie friend's face. I could see it was important to her that we get along and I decided to make an effort to ensure we did so. "Um, how are you?" I asked him, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Very well, thank you," he replied. "And yourself? I hope you're recovering well after your accident."

It was the most I had heard him speak so far and allowed me to locate the accent I had wondered about during our initial meeting. Although not broad, his voice held the unmistakable twang of the south and I was extremely grateful for it-it provided a topic should conversation start to dwindle at any point. The three of us made our way to the diner Alice and I frequented during lunch breaks and Alice started chatting away about the new range of evening gowns that had just arrived in the dress shop. Despite possessing full knowledge of my self-confessed lack of fashion sense, I think she still lived in the vain hope I may one day change my ways. I hoped she wasn't holding her breath.

The table we usually occupied wasn't free, so we opted for a booth by the window. Alice rarely ate during our lunch dates and Jasper followed suit. I, however, opted for a hearty club sandwich to go with my large soda, feeling like I could do with some calories and sugar. As time wore on, my previous fears of conversational issues proved unfounded, yet I was too curious to allow the subject of Jasper's origins to go to waste. He hadn't spoken much during our time in the diner, offering only the occasional comment here and there, which meant I wasn't entirely sure how to broach the subject. I didn't want to appear nosey and scare him off. I gave it a while, hoping we might fall on a topic that allowed me to slide the questions in, but it didn't happen. Eventually, I was forced to bite the bullet and ask outright. I waited for a rare moment of prolonged silence from Alice before I began.

"I hope you don't mind, Jasper," I began hesitantly, blushing as I feared his response. "But I was just wondering about your accent. Where exactly are you from?"

Surprise crossed his features briefly as he evaluated my query, seemingly surprised to receive any attention. Sitting down, his posture was much more relaxed than standing and he had spent most of the time leaning back, his arm draped around the back of Alice's seat. Now, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. Seeing the expression on his face made me wonder if I should retract the question.

"I-I'm sorry," I apologised. "I didn't mean to pry. It's just...the accent..."

"No, its fine," he drawled. "I was born in Houston."

"Oh, really? What brought you to the Northwest?" Now I'd started my impromptu interrogation, I didn't want to stop.

Jasper's gaze shifted to his right as honey met gold and the ghost of a smile graced his handsome countenance. "Ms Brandon, here," he declared softly.

Nothing short of utter devotion passed between the two, like a cord holding them together and I had to look away, feeling like an intruder in a very private moment. That instant, however, had done more to warm me to Jasper than anything else he, or anyone, could have said or done. Although I had only known Alice a short time, I felt a little...protective of her. I didn't mean it in a condescending way, I was well aware she could take care of herself. I just hated the idea of anyone taking advantage of her sweet nature and could imagine her being a target for a no good player type of guy. But, the way Jasper looked at her radiated pure, unadulterated love. It was subtle and only visible within those swirling pools of amber, but, if you managed to catch it, the emotion was unmistakable. Sure, he needed to work on his people skills, but, after hanging out with him that afternoon, I was more than willing to get to know him better.

"We met in Philadelphia," Alice began, clearly more than happy to expand on her partner's explanation. "It was in a diner, actually, much like this one." Her eyes scanned the restaurant as a whimsical expression adorned her face. I couldn't keep the smile from my face-she really could be quite adorable at times.

The rest of lunch passed quickly and, as often happened during time spent with Alice, I wished it lasted longer. I followed the beautiful pair as they exited the diner, which gave me an opportunity to briefly observe them. In some ways, they were very different: she was light, quick and springy; he was tall, measured and reserved. Yet, they fit somehow, like the opposing polarities of magnets, drawn together. I was glad she had found someone, not many people were that lucky. I was more cynical about love. I didn't believe in the whole "there's someone for everyone" philosophy-reality just didn't work that way. I figured, if you managed to find true love, enjoy it, but don't be shocked if it doesn't last, or you never attain it. My attitude wasn't borne out of bitterness, but I knew that as people grew they changed and, sometimes, the other person didn't grow in the same direction. That wasn't to say I wouldn't welcome love if it came knocking on my door-I'd embrace it with arms wide open-but I wasn't focusing my whole life on finding The One.

My shift came to a close as the evening drew in and I looked forward to getting home for a nice hot bath. The asshole commonly known as Fate had other plans. I got into my car, turned the ignition key and advanced twenty yards, before the vehicle ground to a stuttering halt, followed by a loud bang. The deafening sound scared the life out of me and smoke started billowing from underneath the bonnet.

"Dammit!" I exclaimed, angrily smacking my fist on the steering wheel, before getting out of the car.

I tried to inspect the damage, but the smoke hindered my approach, making me cough as I fanned it away from my face. I worried that something might be on fire, but the smoke wasn't dark enough for that and it soon started to dissipate, leaving me stranded yet again, in the middle of Port Angeles. Hands on my hips, I tapped my right foot angrily. My first thought was to curse Jacob Black's name to the heavens, but it quickly passed. I knew this wasn't his fault; my car had been living on borrowed time for quite a while. Unfortunately, Jake and I were still not on speaking terms and I didn't have the gall to call purely for his mechanic services. Knowing I couldn't just leave the vehicle sitting there overnight, I grabbed my phone and called Charlie. I was sure he'd know the number of a tow truck company.

It took almost an hour for the tow truck to arrive and, unfortunately, Charlie wasn't able to come and get me as he was overloaded at work. I watched my sorry heap of scrap metal get dragged away and lamented my-possibly permanent-lack of transportation. I dejectedly walked over to the bus stop and waited for the next one to arrive. I remembered Alice's offer of a ride to work the last time my car broke down and wondered if it still stood. I couldn't bring myself to ask, though. I hated owing favours or being a burden on anyone. I'd been the same when Jacob first offered to fix my car. I'd felt too awkward saying yes and it wasn't until he actually yelled at me for unnecessarily paying out like an idiot that I submitted. I could live with catching busses, so decided to only call Alice if it ever became absolutely necessary.

The bus was pretty empty when I boarded and I plugged in my headphones to make the hour-and-a-half journey pass quicker. Roughly halfway through, a couple of young guys about my age got on and occupied the seats opposite mine. I saw they were in a roguish mood the moment they stepped on the bus and groaned inwardly. I slouched a little in my seat, hoping to make myself as inconspicuous as possible. Sadly, there weren't enough other people on the bus to let that happen. The first few minutes were okay, but then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw them muttering to one another and stealing occasional glances my way.

For fuck's sake! I silently sighed. I had about forty minutes of my journey left and I didn't want to have to spend it enduring the immature behaviour of idiotic boys. I turned up the volume on my iPod to drown out their voices, refusing to make eye contact when they started calling out to me. The one on the right-clad in black hoodie, jeans, with short dark hair-started waving to get my attention, but I continued ignoring it. When a pair of hands clapped together loudly inches from my face, I jumped and let out a gasp. Black hoodie's friend-black bomber jacket and curly blonde hair-found this hilarious and slapped his thigh in amusement. I blushed at the humiliation and begrudgingly pulled one earphone out.

"So, you're not deaf?" Black hoodie said, a smirk on his lips. "I asked if you had a light."

"No, sorry," I replied abruptly, looking away to return to my music.

"Perhaps you should start," he commented. "Could chill someone like you right out."

I rolled my eyes in annoyance and ignored the remark. Unfortunately, that just spurred him on and he moved to sit behind me, arms folded as they rest on the back on my seat. I shifted away from him, the faint whiff of alcohol reaching my nostrils. "What's your name?" he asked.

I continued to blank him, but he was having none of it. He rapped a fist on the back of the seat. "Hey," he demanded. "I asked you a question. It's not polite to ignore people, you know."

Moving seats was something I contemplated, but wondered if it would cause more trouble than it solved. Perhaps if I just answered a few questions, they'd get bored and leave me alone. God, I hoped they would!

"Brenda," I eventually replied, earning several guffaws from blondie.

"Brenda?" he repeated, incredulously. "Your parents didn't like you much, did they?"

"Hey, asshole," admonished black hoodie, although there was amusement in his voice. "Leave her alone." His attention returned to me. "Besides," he continued, his voice lowering. "You don't need a pretty name with a face like that, huh? You live in Forks?"

I shook my head.

"Then what brings you this direction at this time of night? There's sure as Hell no nightlife in that shitty town."

"Visiting a friend," I mumbled. How much longer?

"Boyfriend?" I chose to ignore that question. Black hoodie wasn't deterred. "I only ask," he clarified. "Because, if not, I live in Forks and you're more than welcome to visit me anytime."

Did those kinds of lines ever work on a woman? If they did, I'd hate to have to have a conversation with her.

"You don't have to be so shy, sweetheart," my assailant said. "I don't bite." He slid out of the seat and perched next to me. My heartbeat sped up as I warily looked for an escape route. I wondered how far away the next stop was, more than happy to walk the rest of the way if need be.

"Yeah, don't be scared," blondie joined in, replacing black hoodie on the seat behind. The stench of booze was even stronger on him. "We're not so bad when you get to know us."

I felt like a mouse being cornered by a pair of weasels. I wanted to run, get away from this pair of losers and regret flooded my veins as I wished I could rewind time to call Alice. Black hoodie inched closer and placed a hand on my thigh, giving it a squeeze. That was my limit. I jumped up from my seat and told them to leave me alone.

Black hoodie held his hands up in surrender. "Hey, babe," he drawled. "Don't get those panties in a twist, I'm only being friendly."

A voice from the back of the bus piped up and a suited man, roughly in his forties, stood up. "I think you should leave the girl alone," he said.

Blondie got to his feet. "And who the fuck asked you?"

The man in the suit stepped forward, his stance authoritative, but not yet resorting to threat. "Come on now, boys, no one's looking for any trouble. You've had your fun and the girl's obviously upset, so just let her be, alright?"

"Why don't you mind your own fucking business? We'll talk to whoever we want."

"Not when it's upsetting the person you're speaking to."

At that moment, the suited guy was my hero. I wasn't sure what would've happened had he not spoken up. My two antagonists didn't seem to appreciate the chivalry, though, Blondie, especially. He lunged forward, reaching for my saviour's coat lapels, but missed and simply shoved him backwards. Being more sober than his friend, black hoodie realised the situation was getting out of hand and tried to restrain his friend. Blondie, unaware of who was grabbing him, bucked and sent black hoodie flailing to the floor, knocking me over in the process. This was when the driver finally decided to actually do something and exited the driving booth, after hitting the brakes.

"You two," he bellowed, pointing to Black hoodie and blondie. "I want you off this bus, now!"

Blondie was itching for another fight, but his friend knew to quit whilst they were (sort of) ahead and grabbed him by the arms to drag him off the bus. He threw one last glance my way and hostility rolled off him in waves. The vehicle doors closed and the driver went back to his booth. With a jolt, the bus started moving again and the suited man stepped over to help me gather my belongings, before escorting me to a seat.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah," I mumbled, thrown by the unexpectedly hostile end to my day. "Thanks."

He nodded, satisfied that I would be okay and went back to his own seat. With slightly trembling hands, I ensured I had my purse, keys, phone and iPod, before leaning back and looking out the window. I could see the stumbling forms of the two jackasses shrinking into the distance and a shiver of worry ran through me. Black hoodie had said he was from Forks and I wondered if his friend was too. I hoped to God I wouldn't ever have to face either of them again and, if I did, I prayed they wouldn't recognise me.

A/N: There's a line in this chapter I cannot claim for myself, when Carlisle mentions track running-it was provided by the wonderful DGarofalo84. This chapter was hard to write and I got stuck a couple of times, but it's finally done and dusted. It's mainly filler, but I promise the good stuff will come in the next chapter, so please bear with me! See you all soon :)