AN: Sorry this has taken so long to post. I was putting some extra loving in it. I won't lie: this is my favourite chapter so far... and so far the longest at almost 3,000 words and 7 pages! Yay! Just so you know, school starts for me in a week, so updates might slow down. Hopefully not too much, though... But enjoy!!


When I woke up, the scene had changed drastically: Charlie was asleep in one of the uncomfortable-looking orange chairs and Edward was 'asleep' half in another bed that had been pushed right up next to mine with his head resting on my arm. Our hands were entwined and held each other close to my heart.

I didn't dare move too much, afraid that Charlie would wake up. I didn't know how much sleep he had had the last few nights. So I rested for a while longer. Not sleeping, but letting myself forget what was happening. I daydreamed Edward and I were going on our honey moon. We were in Florida on a private beach. Edward was half naked and sparkling. We were laying together in the sand. And he was about to kiss-

My day dreams were interrupted as a small nurse walked in. It was strange feeling for me, but I wanted to explode at her for disrupting my happiness. But I managed to keep quiet somehow. Maybe it was the gentle squeeze Edward gave my hand.

Her motions were loud enough to wake Charlie from his sleep with a loud snore. He looked around wildly for a minute, before he spotted that I was awake. Then he put on a small smile.

"Hey, Bells…"

"Hey, Dad. Did you sleep well?" I tried to smile back.

"Yeah, but why didn't you wake me up? I wanted to see you…"

I moved up my shoulders in a small movement, but the pain still spread. I tried to hide it by not speaking right away. "I didn't know how much sleep you'd had… I don't want you to pass out from sleep deprivation on the job."

His eyes fell to Edward, feigning sleep beside me. "Gotta give the kid credit… every time I've been in here, he's stayed right beside you. Glad he finally decided to sleep."

"Me, too, Dad." I rubbed Edward's hand with my thumb. I knew that the simple touch would reassure him at least a little bit.

"Um, Bells? There's something I've been wanting to tell you…" Charlie's face flushed a little and he looked down, clearly embarrassed.

"What's going on, Dad?" I asked.

"I wanted to let you know that, um, I've been thinking about Edward while I was at work. And I just wanted to let you know that, well, I've forgiven him for what he did to you." It was so touching to see my dad was going to try to make my life a little easier.

I started to cry a little. Finally, my dad and the one I planned to spend the rest of my life with were going to be able to get along better than they had been. Charlie jumped forward, thinking that he'd done something bad.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Bells. I didn't mean to…" He reached forward to grab my hand that wasn't touching Edward's, but, as I flinched from the thought of the contact, he stopped and settled for resting it on the rough sheets.

"No, I'm happy. I was so afraid that you were always going to hate him. It's just such a relief to me…" I sniffled.

I could feel Edward stiffen up and move a little closer to me, his grip on my hand almost becoming painful. So, to pretend that he was as human as I was, I reached over to shake him awake from a 'nightmare'.

"Edward, wake up! It's a nightmare. Wake up!"

I had to admit that he was a very good actor, because he really looked like he had woken up from a nightmare. His eyes were as wild as a caged animal when they met mine. He moved quickly- not quickly for a vampire, but for a human- to wrap me in his arms.

My voice shook. "What's wrong, Edward?"

"Nightmare…" He kissed my hair.

Charlie cleared his throat, embarrassed yet again.

Edward turned towards Charlie, spine still tense. "Oh, sorry, sir. I didn't know you were here…"

"It's ok. The nightmares have been going around… I understand. Just make sure you don't scare her… Don't do anything that would make her uncomfortable." Charlie was trying to be better with Edward, but the stern sound of a worried father was in his voice.

"I know, sir. My… biological older sister was raped, too. I was really little at the time. I didn't really understand it at the time, but I do remember some of the things that I couldn't do around her. Of course it's different with every case, but my sister used to get this strange look in her eyes when something triggered a memory or made her feel uncomfortable. I remember it and I'm watching for it. I love Bella and I wouldn't hurt her…" Edward still looked strangely… terrified as he spilled this lie I assumed was about Rosalie.

Edward's arms tightened again around me as Carlisle walked in quietly, carrying a small bag. I felt a new wave of paranoia pass through me, knowing now that this was what Edward had scared. What if he had come to tell me that I was dying? Or that I could never have sex, or that I had some horrific disease from him…? What if something was more wrong with me than I had originally feared.

Carlisle gave me a small smile as he began to speak. "Hello, Bella, how are you feeling?"

I tried to swallow past the lump of panic in my throat but failed as my voice came out strangled. "Like I think I'm supposed to be feeling… Not the best."

He nodded back in understanding. "Yes, that is normal. Do you need more pain medications?"

Not trusting my voice again, I shook my head no. Whatever he had to say, I wanted to hear being totally conscious.

"Alright, well, the test results are back. I know that you weren't awake for the tests, but they were just checking to make sure nothing had got into your blood, if there were any STDs, or any resulting or previous pregnancy. I didn't want to announce the results until you had woken up for sure. You are almost 18, you deserve to know the results at the same time as your father. However, if there had been something life threatening, I would have announced it to you, Charlie, but…"

"It's bad, Carlisle. Isn't it?" I started to cry.

He seemed to move with hesitation as he shuffled his feet against the floor. "It's not as good as we had hoped, Bella. I'm sorry."

For the first time in minutes, I heard a reaction from Charlie. He slammed his fist into the arm of his chair, which made me flinch further into Edward. "Sorry, Bella, I just- I don't know what…" He ran his hands through his hair, his nervous habit.

I took a deep breathe. "What is it, Carlisle? What's wrong with me?"

Edward whispered, so low that Charlie couldn't hear him, "I'm so sorry, Bella…"

Carlisle clenched and unclenched his left fist, the one that wasn't holding the papers. "Bella, you tested positive for pregnancy."

I felt my world fall around me in that instant. Now he had got what he had really wanted: Edward wouldn't want me after this. He'd leave and stay away this time. I could hear myself moan 'no, no, no, no", but I didn't even know I was saying it. The room started to spin a little…

Edward seemed to cradle me in his arms. I could hear him whisper that he wouldn't leave me, that he'd always love me. But I couldn't believe him… He knew I was about to lose it, so he moved so that our faces were almost touching, allowing his cool breath to fan my face. My body relaxed completely after a few seconds, making my mind clear enough to focus on the… thing… growing inside of me.

Charlie really erupted this time. "It wasn't you, was it?" He was standing up, glaring down on Edward who was holding a very distraught me in his arms.

"No, sir. I don't believe in sex before marriage. And I would never put Bella in that position. We're too young." I knew that the tremble in Edward's voice was very real: this was what he'd been dreading.

"I'm so sorry…" I whimpered.

Edward started to comfort me again. "Shh… it's alright. It's not your fault… It's alright; I'm here. Shhh…"

I could feel the bile rise up in my throat, so I pushed away from Edward to lean over the side of the bed. There was nothing in my stomach to throw up, so I was dry heaving until I got up the small amount of bile that I did.

Edward held me up so that I didn't collapse off the bed and get a concussion. He also held my hair back from my face. Even Charlie got up to hold my hand, and when I didn't flinch away, he seemed to calm down a little.

"Are you done?" Edward whispered when the sound of my puke hitting the floor was replaced by the sound of my heavy breathing.

My throat burned from the acidic taste in my mouth, so my voice sounded as if I was a chain smoker. "Water…"

Carlisle already had a glass of water in his hands, which he passed to Edward who held it for me to drink.

When my breathing calmed down and I was back on my bed laying as I had been before, Carlisle continued. "Bella, I'll call a nurse in a minute to clean it up. But before I do, you need to know that you have options. You do not have to continue this pregnancy if you do not wish to. You can have an abortion, if you like. Or you could continue with the pregnancy and choose to put the baby up for adoption. Or you could keep it. Think about it; you don't have to answer today. Make sure you're sure with whatever you chose."

Edward squeezed my hand. "Whatever you choose, Bella… It's going to be alright."

I leaned my hand against Edward's shoulder. "How long do I have to decide…?"

"It's recommended that the abortion be done before the end of the first trimester, for health safety reasons. Adoption, well, that can be decided after it is born, if you like… As for the other choice… you can decide to keep it at any time. It's your body, Bella, it's your choice."

My mind was racing with thoughts, but my mind could think one thing straight. That I needed Edward to survive this whole thing. I needed him 24/7. Every second of every minute. Every minute of every day.

I swallowed loudly. "Dad, you know that Edward is the one I plan to spend my life with. And even though I'm really the one who is going to decide, I want to hear what he has to say about this. And, Dad, I need him. I need to be near him every day. He's the only one who can help me get better. I can't get through this without him. Please, can't we make it that we… I don't know, live together? For a while, maybe until I get better…"

Carlisle, always one to help, said, "Charlie, Bella is always more than welcome at our house. For however long she needs. My family would be delighted to have her live with us…"

Charlie was running his hands through his hair, internally debating whether it was safe for me. "I trust Edward, but I know what it's like to be a teenager. The hormones… will you make sure that nothing happens, Carlisle?"

I flew up, angry, not caring about the pain for once. "Dad, I freaking pregnant! And less than a week ago, I was raped. What do you seriously think is going to happen between us?"

Charlie's face was covered with shock. "Bella, I'm sorry. I'm a dad. You're a teenager. You want to live with a boy. It's a father's natural instinct to say that. I'm sorry…"

I had calmed down, leaning back against Edward's chest. I was shocked that I, a normally placid person, had snapped at my father who was just being a good dad. Tears came into my eyes and overflowed onto my cheeks. "I'm sorry, Dad. I don't know why I yelled at you like that…."

The package in Carlisle's hand crinkled as he shifted on his feet. "It's your hormones, Bella. It's normal. Pregnant women have that problem. It's alright. However, I have to go. There is another patient that I am meant to check on. I'm sorry I have to leave like this, but I get the feeling that the patient is going to need me soon…"

Carlisle walked forward to the end of my bed and handed Edward, who was closer, the paper bag. "Bella, this is from Alice. She said that she had meant it to be a graduation gift, but that you might like it now… She also said that she was sorry that she couldn't visit you because Jasper is not feeling well and she's taking care of him."

Edward handed it to me, his hands lingering on mine. My voice was still a bit dry, but I whispered, "Thank you, Carlisle. Tell Alice thank you, when you see her. Make sure she knows that I'm not upset that she didn't come."

Carlisle nodded as he started to back out of the room. "I will, Bella. Stay rested. I'll have Alice come over for your things if Charlie consents. I will be back in a few hours to see how you're doing or if you have any questions…And I'll have a nurse come clean the mess up." And with that he was gone.

The room was silent as the door swung shut. I could feel that Charlie wanted to talk to me, but I wasn't ready to think about the fact that I was pregnant. The fact was too shocking, to horrible for me. So I was going to pull a child's trick.

Charlie whispered. "Bella, what do-"

I pushed away from him and turned into Edward. "I'm really tired, Dad. I think I'm going to sleep now… We'll have to talk tomorrow." I yawned for further effect.

There was silence from his chair, but then a few moments later I heard him shuffle in his chair to get up. "I'll be back tomorrow, Bella. If you don't want to talk about it, then we won't. I just want to be sure you're ok. I don't want to think I'm losing you again…"

I didn't move, too afraid to meet his eyes. "Alright… see you tomorrow, Dad…"

I heard the door creak open, and Charlie whisper, "Bella, you can stay with Edward. I think you'll be happier if you do… Take care of yourself, Edward. And take care of my baby girl…"

I cringed at the word baby, but otherwise remained still on the bed as Charlie left the room. Edward held me, rubbing circles into my back. It wasn't until his hands met my lower back that I realized that it was exceptionally sore. I hit me with such an intensity that my eyes whipped open and I gasped.

"Bella? Did I hurt you?" His voice was ruffled with fear.

I moaned. "No, I'm fine. I just didn't realize how sore I am… Could you just put your hands flat on my back?"

Edward immediately complied, letting his cool seep through my clothes and into my back. "Like this?"

I nodded. "Much better."

I shifted in the bed again and bumped into the paper bag that I had forgotten. "What is it anyway?"

He moved one hand from my back and grabbed it. "Care to open it?"

I took it from his hands. "Guess I could… But this had better not have been expensive…"

My wish was not granted: I pulled out a 8 GB ipod with a beautiful blue case. "Why?"

"Alice wanted you to be able to hear your lullaby. She thought you might like it. You do, don't you?"

"Oh, I didn't mean it to sound like I didn't want it. I love it. It's too much, of course, but Alice isn't going to listen if I object. Might as well enjoy it… Could you turn it on for me, Edward? And put it on my lullaby, please? I've never been this close to one of these before."

Edward quickly moved through the menus and the controls, only to stop once to ask if I wanted it on repeat (to which I said yes). Then he gently took the ear buds and placed them in my ears. I could immediately hear the beautiful grand piano playing my favourite song in the world: my lullaby. It was quiet enough to still be able to hear Edward explaining how to function the volume controls and how to switch the song if I got sick of my lullaby (at which point I rolled my eyes).

When he was finished, he returned his hands to my back. I pushed closer to him, totally relaxed, and not once thinking about the baby that was about to change our lives and time appeared to fade away from me.


AN: Review? Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed this! It means so much to me! *hugs everyone*