Hello readers,

First I would like to apologise for my late update. Reasons will only delay this author's note and I would not rather write down my 'excuses', if you will.

Second It has taken me a while to write this chapter, also I have sort of lost the plan in my head, there is a vague idea but not a solid, well thought out plan. I am trying got work out the kinks in my tale but I cannot remember most of the things that are going on, to have been going on for that matter.

I hope you are enjoying where this is going.

xoxo

Live Long and Prosper

My Degree of Sarcasm

CHAPTER TWO

"Isabella!" I heard Alice Cullen calling my name, I turned around, she was walking down the hall to me, she was with a tall man, he has curly caramel brown hair, and golden eyes that peer at me, I smile at Alice, she embraces me. "Oh Bella, this is my boyfriend, Jasper Hale, Rosalie's brother." She said addressing the man, I smiled, he took my hand in his and raised it to his lips.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Isabella." He said in a southern drawl, I was caught off guard.

"Er. Nice to meet you too Jasper." I said.

"Jasper's family was very old fashioned, he grew up in the south." Alice said, she seemed like the instigator for the conversation, I concentrated on Alice but I could feel Jasper's eyes on me.

"How is your family." I asked, she then went on to a full-blown explanation on how her family was, she said as soon as I was settled the hospital was letting me attend school, something I wasn't looking forward to.

"Enough of that." She said in her bright voice, her eyes shining, she reminded me so much of a small child hyped up on candy. "How is little Jonathan and Gabrielle? They seemed to shy away when I visited you." I smiled slightly.

"They are fine, I believe Jonathan has a crush on you, you are all he talks about when you leave, and I am not sure about Gabrielle, she has shut herself off slightly, I don't know why." I could still feel Jasper staring at me intently, I looked to him as did Alice.

"Jasper." She whispered, he looked down to her, they seemed to have a silent conversation.

"I am sorry Isabella, you reminded me of someone I used to know. I have a question about the children, seeing as you are close to them, who will be their guardian once their mother dies?" my breath caught in my throat, my hands shook slightly, I grit my teeth and force myself to take slow steady breaths.

"I have been informed by their mother that Jonathan is my father's son," I said shakily, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, "so when she passes the children will be under my guardianship." I clenched my fists, I begin to feel a churning in my stomach, I moan and turn away from them, running away to the bathroom, I ran to the toilet and yacked up something unpleasant. I knew someone followed me, I just did not know who it was, my arms shook, I stumbled out and rinsed my mouth out, I looked in the mirror, I saw Alice standing behind me. "I am fine Alice, it usually happens, along with the blackouts, I also tend to get headaches." I looked down ashamed.

"Is this normal to you?" She asked softly, I nodded, she reached out and touched my shoulder, her hand was soothing and cold, I had gotten used to it, the Cullen's were all cold, I wasn't brave enough to ask about it.

"Alice, what am I going to do, Mrs Hunter is not going to live much longer, and once she is gone I will have custody of two children, a four year old and a six year old. I do not know the first thing about childcare."

"Bella, you'll do fine, I know you will." I looked up, her gaze was reassuring. "You won't be alone." She said, her voice sounded off, distant at that, my hands tightened on the bench.

"Bella!" The panicked voice of Gabrielle shouted as she ran into my room, she jumped up on the bed and buried herself into me, her body shaking, I held her tightly, I heard little Jonathan's voice, I looked to the door, waiting for him to run in. Gabrielle cried, I ran my fingers through her hair, she held on tightly, I was shocked when Edward Cullen walked in, he held the sobbing Jonathan.

"Little man, come on, calm down." I heard his velvet voice whisper, I looked to him, he met my gaze, I gasped, only one thing could make the children this distraught.

"Belly!" Jonathan wailed, he walked over with Jonathan, I moved Gabrielle to one side and took Jonathan in the other, Edward kept his eyes on Jonathan, he latched onto me, they were crying so hard, Edward reached out and brushed Jonathan's hair. Dr Cullen slowly walked into the room, a solemn look on his face, I held the children tighter, my breath shook, the children were now and forever more under my authority until they are legal adults. My heart beat that little faster, I had to be strong now, they were, are depending on me, I bit my lip, my hands began to shake slightly.

"Nurse Davis, could you please take the children to their room." The nurse took Gabrielle's hand and she stood on the ground and held onto her leg as she sobbed, Jonathan held on with all his might and screamed, my heart broke slightly, the nurse pried his arms off of me. I could still hear him screaming my name once he was out of the room. "Isabella." I looked to Dr Cullen, Edward stood by the chair, I bit my lip. "She informed me about her will. The hospital had no knowledge of this, we assumed they would be taken into custody."

"Dr Cullen, what am I going to do?" My voice wavered, my breathing grew deeper.

"What are you talking about?" Edward asked, we turned to him.

"Mrs Hunter, in her will, declared that Isabella will be the guardian of her children, seeing as her father was Jonathan's father." Dr Cullen began to go on to explain the technical side that I had no intention of understanding, I looked to the window, my mind in a whirl, this was happening so fast, I tried to focus on my breathing. "I think it will be best if they stay in the recuperation house, until things settle out, when she turns 18 she gets the deed to her father's house. By the time she is able to fully function it will be the start of her final year, the school has been giving her work to complete and she has succeeded further than anticipated. Gabrielle and Jonathan will most likely have to repeat a year, she will repeat form 1 and he will start prep the following year."

"So the children will be strange, not only are they repeating a year, both of their parents have past, the boy's real father is dead, and they are in the custody of a 17 year old, on the cusp of 18. Carlisle, is this really the best option for the children, she barely can look after herself."

"Edward, you don't know her."

"Neither do you."

"I know her more than you, and I trust her." I could hear snippets of their conversation, I felt hot, my head spinning and stomach began to cramp, I moaned softly and jumped off the bed, wobbling slightly, I brush past Edward and dashed into the bathroom. "Isabella!" I ignored the sound of the door being opened and vomited into the toilet, trying to keep my hair back as I heaved and more came out, my body heating up, it made it all worse. There was a soothing hand rubbing my back.

I held Jonathan on my hip and Gabrielle's hand, she wore a plain black dress with bobby socks and mary-janes, a small black ribbon in her hair, Jonathan was in a suit, he sobbed into my shoulder, Alice brought my dress, it was form-fitting until it flared out at the waist. I stared at the coffin at the front of the room, tears forming in my eyes, all those kind words, she sounded like such a lovely person, I felt a hand on my shoulder, it was Alice. Jasper had bent down to talk to Gabrielle, I watched as she launched herself into his embrace, he picked her up as she broke down crying, Rosalie and a big burly man came over, I learnt that he was Emmett, Rosalie's boyfriend. Edward came up and stood close by, I learnt that it was him rubbing my back, he came and visited every day, as Jonathan and Gabrielle were with me from that day on, he talked to me, he became a helping hand.

Jonathan was asleep on my shoulder as we sat in Dr Cullen's house, he offered to hold the wake at his house as Marie Hunter had no more family, her friends had long gone, Gabrielle was sitting curled up on Jasper's lap. I barely felt Jonathan leave my arms, my eyelids getting heavy, my head tilted back and I fell asleep as I was lifted up, this had exhausted me mentally, emotionally and physically, I was sure that when I woke up I would vomit.

The first thing I noticed was that the sheets I was under were not the ones at the hospital, they were too soft for that, my eyes blinked a few times before they focused on the bright room, it was a dusty blue, I sat up. I was in a very large bed, I looked to my right and found a wall of windows, I could see a forest, I assumed I was still at Dr Cullen's house. I yawned and looked around the room, opposite the bed was a couch beside a table which held a pile of what looked to be journals, there was few photos, on the opposite wall of the windows was a wall of shelves. It held books and music, there was a stereo system and a television, near the bed there was a closed door, I sighed and laid back down, I noticed that here was a window above the bed.

I moaned as I stood up, I stretched, that was when I realised I was wearing a guys tee and I could not see any other clothes for me to change into, I walked towards the door that was opposite the bed, I opened it and found a hallway. My feet padded soundlessly as I walked across the wooden floor boards, I came to a set of stairs, for some reason I went down, my hand softly running down the metal rail, I could hear faint talking, as I came to a landing I did not get the chance to look around before I was pounced on. I looked down and found Gabrielle and Jonathan, I smiled, they were both dressed and bright eyed, I looked up and found Edward, my face went hot as I realised what I was wearing.

"Alice is getting some clothes for you." He said calmly, I could have sworn that he gulped, I nodded, I bent down and grabbed Jonathan, he sat on my hip and played with my hair. "They have been fed unlike you."

"What time is it?" I said, my voice hoarse.

"It is almost 9:30, you were very tired. Carlisle said to let you sleep, I nodded and looked at Jonathan, he rested his head on my shoulder, I looked down at Gabrielle, I reached down and brushed her hair, she looked up, tears slowly forming in her eyes. I could feel Edward's eyes on me, I got down to my knees, she threw her arms around me and buried her face into my chest, my spare arm came around her, I had both of them in my arms. I took a deep breath, I did not notice Edward come up behind me, I flinched slightly as he sat down behind me, his hand came around and stroked Gabrielle's hair, he placed his hand just above mine on Jonathan's back and began to run circles on his small back, I watched his large hand move around. I could feel his breath on my neck, hear his breath, my heart hammered in my throat, my body began to heat up, I believed I needed water.

"Edward, where is the kitchen?" I whispered, turning my head to looked at him.

"Go right from here, follow the wall then turn left, kitchen is right there." He murmured, I nodded and let go of the children, I stood up and they protested, Edward took my place as I walked towards the kitchen, I stood in the large white kitchen. A hot flush fell over me, I looked around as my stomach turned for a bin, I didn't see anything, I dashed forward to the sink in the bench, I vomited into the sink, my hands clutching the bench, I run the tap, and a cool stream of water came out and washed the vomit down the sink. I tilted my head and rinsed my mouth out, I still was hot, I cupped my hands under and filled them up with water, I splashed my face, I ran some water across the back of my neck, my legs began to shake, my hands painfully gripping the bench. I could hear my shaky breath, I closed my eyes, my body was falling, I felt a cool rush of air, I felt myself being caught, I opened my eyes and found golden eyes staring down at me, I could see his messy copper hair. "Are you alright, Isabella?" I nodded, I tried to sit up and looked around but he held me down. "They are with Alice and Jasper, I went to check on you, your eyes were closed." I nodded.

"Isabella?" Alice's voice asked as she floated into the room, I looked up and found her at the bench, she smiled, Edward helped me up, she stepped forward and gave me a hug, which I returned, she stepped away and I swayed, by the time she reached out to steady me, Edward was already behind me, holding me up, my heart raced. "I brought you some clothes, I hope you like them." She said, I nodded. "Come with me, Edward, the kids are asking for you." She said as she reached out for me, her cool hands slid along my arms until they reached my elbows, it was then I realised Edward was gone, I saw him walking on the other side of the bench.

Alice smiled and I looked to her, she began to walk, helping me as she did, we went back the way I came and Edward disappeared, we went up the stairs I came down. Instead of turning right towards the room I came from, we went left and walked down the hallway until we got to a room that I could only assumed was Alice's. It was a dark grey colour and there was lots of colour around the room, she set me down on the bed which was neatly made, she went to a double door and pulled it open, I gaped as I saw the large wardrobe, she walked in and grabbed a bag on a coat hanger, I caught a glimpse of some male clothes in the wardrobe. She smiled and laid the bag on the bed, she opened it, inside was a pair of skinny denim jeans, a black long-sleeved tee, I was expecting something more fancy then what she brought out, she went back and grabbed a shoe box, they were converse, black, hightop, I stared at her. "Edward said you are more plain. What he meant is, you would wear more practical stuff then what Rose and I would. There are also a few more long-sleeved tees in there, some shirts and a hoodie. Oh and another pair of pants."

"Alice, I cannot accept this, it's too much." I said, she shook her head.

"Nonsense, you are my friend. Besides, Carlisle said I could buy you clothes because yours were damaged." I forgot that, she smiled, I didn't like that smile, she seemed evil. "Unless you want to stay in Edward's shirt I suggest that you change." I gulped and she walked out of the room, I sighed and stood up, I pulled on the jeans, I was surprised, the were a perfect fit, not too tight, not too lose. I pulled Edward's shirt from over my head, I grabbed the tee and slid it on, I grabbed the converse and sat down once more, I yanked the converse on and laced the laces, I looked into the bag and grabbed the hoodie, sliding the grey-blue jumper on. I sighed and walked out of Alice's room, I walked down the hall and got to the stairs as Edward was coming up, I stared at him, he slowly came up to the landing.

"That fits you better than my shirt." He said with the hint of a smile on his lips.

"Well, I don't usually wear things this tight but, it will have to do." I said, he chuckled.

"Jonathan and Gabrielle have gone outside with Rose, Alice, Emmett and Jasper. Carlisle said you and the children can spend the rest of the weekend here." I nodded.

"What are you doing?"

"Going to my room." he said pointing behind him, to the room I woke up in, I looked behind him then back to him.

"I was in your room."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because you were exhausted and it was the only option really, Jonathan and Gabrielle had the guest room, I figured you could take my bed and I take the couch."

"So very chivalrous of you Mr Cullen." I muttered, he smirked.

"Quiet the sarcastic remark Miss Swan." He countered, I crossed my arms.

"I tend to do that." He chuckled and I tried my best not to smile, we stared at each other for a while, I ran my hands against the denim against my thighs, I looked to a wall. Tapping my fingers against my thighs, I looked back to him and gasped, he was standing right in front of me.

"Do you want to join me?" His voice was soft, I could feel my face heating up.

"What?" I managed to say.

"Would you like to join me in my room? I was thinking we could talk, about something other than formal stuff." I stared at him. "I am not trying to have sex with you, if that is what you are thinking." My face fell. "I mean, not that you aren't beautiful, or doable." He blurted. "I just don't want that, I mean, I, ah, I, I would if you wanted, but I won't because it would be weird. Not weird but, ah, this is not going well." He was scratching the back of his head, he ran a hand across his eyes. "I've ruined it haven't I."

"I am not sure." I said, he looked to me, I was captivated by his golden eyes, I stared, my heart hammering in my chest.

"Are you alright?" He asked, I nodded. "Can we start over?" I nodded, he smiled, it was more of a crooked lazy smile, I swore my legs were shaking, I took a deep breath. "Would you like to hang out with me today?" I nodded.

WORD COUNT: 3,205

Is it going to fast? I hope it is alright and to your liking.

Yours always,

My Degree of Sarcasm.