Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. Stephenie Meyer created it all.

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Chapter 20: Bella- Dangerous

My views on marriage changed with immortality. Now, my views of a wedding haven't, I still dreamed of something simple. I wondered what my mother would say. I felt a pang in my chest as the guilt I felt that she still thought I was missing rang through me again. It was still dangerous for Charlie to be in my life, but that bell couldn't be un-rung. He would be arriving in a few days and I was nervous but excited to see him. He talked on the phone a lot but I still wanted to see him. The way we had to leave was heartbreaking, and I don't really think he understood. I hoped he didn't think I was vacationing up here! The UPS man still came everyday and it got more and more comfortable. Well, that's the wrong word, it got more and more tolerable. It still hurt like Hell, literally, I'd imagine.

I told Alice, I insisted, nothing major. If it couldn't be done in less than a month it was unnecessary. I daydreamed of the perfect wedding. All I needed was just Edward and me, and Emmett to officiate. Those were my bare needs, but I wanted my family there, too. But that's all, just people. I didn't need golden arches, flowers, seating arrangements, or fancy dresses. In fact, I'm not really sure why I gave Alice a whole month... There was one thing I wished for and no one, not even Alice, could get for me; I wanted my mother to be able to be here. One day... oh, hell, I don't know. Did Edward get to say goodbye to his cousin that survived the flu epidemic? No. I didn't get to bend the rules for my benefit, people would only end up dead.

"What's got you deep in thought?" Laurent asked as he flopped down on the couch next to me. I still refrained from doing things like flopping, jumping, or sudden movements, especially in the house.

"Just thinking about getting married, and my mom." I leaned my head on his shoulder.

Jacob used to get jealous, but Laurent always enjoyed showing him how much he loved only him. I was funny to watch how Laurent, who was almost a head shorter then Jacob, wrapped Jacob his finger justlikethat. If anyone got to be jealous, it was me, my inner five-year-old said he was my friend first. I sighed.

"I still miss my mom, I can't believe I can't remember her name," he confessed. I loved it when he told me stories of his mom and growing up.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I'm really glad I told you about my life before you turned me. Do you want to get married?"

Surprisingly, he shook his head. "Declaring my love to the world is not necessary. Only Jacob needs to know." I wished Edward and Alice would let me get away with something so simple.

~o~x~o~x~o~

My dad arrived today. He looked around the house at all the vampires and looked completely daunted. All my preparations really paid off. Having him here really wasn't any worse than receiving a fresh box of clothes. The only difference was the heartbeat and it didn't egg me on like it would before. Gingerly, I hugged him. On top of everything I was scared that I would squash him.

"Hey, your eyes look better!" He said as he returned the hug.

"I missed you!" His skin felt as delicate as philo dough. Edward came over and shook his hand and introduced him to everyone present.

"Charlie this is about half of our family in Alaska. Over there is Carmen," he gestured to her standing in the open kitchen preparing food with Esme, "and this is Eleazar," he gestured to the man that was making his way over to shake Charlie's hand as well.

"It's nice to meet Bella's human father. It's so rare in our world for parents to still be living and still have contact. Most of us are so old, our human families have been dead for hundreds of years. Thousands, in Tanya and Kate's case. Where are they, anyways?" Eleazar asked as he ignored Charlie's eyes as they bugged out.

"Tanya, Kate and Alice went shopping." I chimed in, "Wedding details, they said. They should be back soon."

Edward whispered in my ear that Charlie wanted to talk to me privately. It wasn't something I could really give him, but I could make it look that way.

"I'll show you to your room." Everyone stay downstairs to give us some 'privacy'.

I showed him to a room that Esme had decorated with rich outdoor themes and colors. It was luxurious, however underused. Charlie would be the first to sleep in the cherry frame bed. I took his suitcases and situated them on the luggage rack. I remembered the first time I saw one, I tried to figure out what it was before reluctantly asking Edward. He explained that you set your luggage on it instead of taking up the bed. It still amazed me what the rich did with their money when they were bored. Of course, Edward reminded me that his money was our money now. Technically, I couldn't complain about the eccentricities of the rich anymore.

I went and sat in the window seat while my dad unpacked. The sun shone weakly through the windows making the skin on my shoulders shimmer slightly.

"What's on your mind, Dad?" I asked after a few minutes of silence.

He sighed and stuffed another article of clothing into the open drawer, "It's just been so hard since you left. I was worried to death that something bad happened to you. I'm the chief of police, damn it! I should be able to stop these things from happening." He sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Part of me is glad that you left that note, I would have gone crazy thinking that you were abducted in your sleep. Then I find out about all this crazy vampire and werewolf business, Bells, my head's spinning! And then I go back to work after I find you, and people are looking at me like I'm crazy 'cause I look happy, but I can't tell them why. Then they want to know why I stopped looking for you when I couldn't tell them that I found you. Then I couldn't even see you really, and then you moved here. Bella, it's all too much. I don't know how to deal with it, and it's not like I can talk to anyone about it!"

It was the most I've ever heard him say in one sitting, "What about Billy?"

"I just didn't want to burden him, you know?"

"No, I don't know, Dad. That's kind of stupid. Not to be corny, but that's what friends are for."

"The worst part is when Renee called and filleted me from here to the ends of the Earth for not caring enough to keep looking for you. She thinks I don't care, that I just let you go! What was I going to tell her? The truth? It's all so crazy." He sat on the edge of the bed and cradled his head on his hands. Was he crying? Venom prickled at my own eyes and I walked over and sat by him.

"I'm so sorry that my leaving did all of this." I was torn, I could never entirely regret my decisions, but seeing my father hurt like this crushed my heart again. "If I could do anything to make it better, I would."

I heard from downstairs the return of Alice, Kate and Tanya. I sat with my dad a few minutes, we were never good at expressing ourselves, especially to one another. I let my presence sooth him for a few more minutes before suggesting that we go back downstairs to meet the rest of the family.

"Dad, this is Kate, and this is Tanya. Tanya, Kate this is my dad, Charlie." I watched a familiar spark light up Tanya's eyes. Charlie was her favorite kind of person, a human male.

"Pleased to meet you, Charlie," Tanya purred in the thickest Russian accent I've ever heard from her. I swear I was fine until Charlie's heart started race.

Edward busted out in a loud guffaw across the room.

Charlie leaned in and whispered fruitlessly in ear, "She doesn't look like she's thousands of years old." His mental images of his expectations must been what spurred Edward to lose his poker face.

Similarly, I leaned in to whisper back, "There's no point in whispering, everyone in the room can hear you." He blushed a deep scarlet blush that was reminiscent of my own human blush.

"Relax Charlie," Tanya cooed as she laid it on him thick, "don't think of it as age, think of it as experience," and she winked.

"Careful Dad, that's a dangerous woman." I warned playfully before I had to turn away as my father was unknowingly trapped in seduction by the original succubus.

I walked over to Edward and crawled into his lap and buried my nose in his chest. He wrapped his arm around and enveloped me in warmth.

"At least you're not hearing their thoughts."

"Their thoughts?"

"Oh yeah, both of them. You know it's been a really time since-"

I cut him off by stuffing my fingers in my ears. I don't care how natural it is, or how long it's been, he was my father and it was not something I wanted to hear about.

"Can we please just go for a run?" I begged.

He patted my leg and we got up together and headed for the door. We called out our good-byes as we left.

We ran to a stream that had frozen over. It was my favorite place to come with Edward. We would sit on top of the ice and watch as the fish scurried underneath us. It was like sitting on top of an aquarium.

"So what do you want to do about your birthday?" He asked.

"Really? Nothing, I just want to be with my family. I want everybody together just like they are right now."

I leaned over to kiss him, slowly I tried to deepen it and surprisingly he let me. I moved to straddle him just as I was starting to feel a frenzy start, but he pushed me away.

"Ugh! I swear you do that for ascetics!" I whined.

"Shhh, somebody's coming." Who could be coming that he wouldn't want to hear us?

"Oh, shit!" He swore, a seldom occurrence, "We have to go!"

Before I could process his words, he grabbed me and tossed me over his shoulder and was running faster than I could have. When we were about a mile from the house he put me down so that we could run the rest of the way together.

"Laurent, Tanya, I need to speak with you both.. outside," Edward said somberly yet hastily.

I listened from inside as he whispered so that Charlie and Jacob wouldn't hear. It made me sick to hear what he told them.

The decision that I made when I left with Laurent put in motion so much pain for everyone. The consequences of my actions were far reaching, and the one thing that was for sure was that it was all my fault. I sat there and spiraled back down to a place I thought I'd left long ago, only this time Laurent wouldn't be there to pull me out.

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