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Beta: TwilightDramaTeach
Chapter 41: One Missed Call
Bella's POV
I woke up on Friday and knew it was going to be a hectic day. I woke up thirty minutes late which put me in a rush. I had to make brownies before I left. Dad had been asking for chocolate chip double fudge brownies. I rushed through the recipe and jumped into the shower. I ran back to the kitchen in just a towel when the timer went off. I was so distracted that I burnt my fingers when I grabbed the pan without a potholder. I cursed out loud before grabbing the potholder and removing the brownies.
I got dressed quickly in jeans and the white 'Love' shirt Edward had bought me. I still needed to pack for the weekend but knew it'd have to wait until after the shopping. I turned off the oven, turned off the lights, and hurriedly left the apartment. I didn't hear my cell phone ring as I rushed out the door. I hit the steering wheel in frustration when I realized I'd left my phone on the bedside table, but then I thought about why I was so preoccupied.
I was on my way to meet Alice, Rosalie, and Angela to look at wedding dresses. I felt happy, truly happy, for the first time in at least eight years. To think that just seven months ago I was questioning whether I would ever reach this point in my life. Everything had moved so fast. My friends were settling down, happy and blissfully in love; one set married, one engaged, and the other now living together. All were enjoying their new jobs and adjusting to the 'real world.' My father had finally found someone to share his life with, someone that loved and appreciated him.
And me…I was great. I was starting my dream job, my health was improving more every day, and I had Edward. He was the most wonderful, understanding, and patient man. I still got butterflies just thinking about him. He was my rock, steady and unyielding through anything bad. My life felt so perfect. Like I had told Alice, "I could die today and die happy." Little did I know that phrase would soon be tested.
Edward and I had been talking about each of the agents through our frequent phone calls while I was in New York, and Randall Pushing was our pick so far. He had been complimentary of my writing and the most respectful. He liked the tone of the story and thought it didn't need a lot of work on the content, just basic editing. Edward and I would take a look at his price on Monday night before we made the final decision.
I was only three blocks from the boutique my excitement bubbling over enough to rival even Alice. I was digging through my purse as I sat at a red light searching for the business card I had misplaced. The car behind me honked. I looked up to see my light had turned green. I pulled into the intersection waving at the car behind me in apology. The next thing I know, I hear someone laying on a car horn, people screaming, and the crunch of metal. I was immediately enveloped in darkness.
Edward's POV
I threw the rag away, and satisfied with my rig went upstairs to the kitchen. Angela had come to make lunch for everyone at the station, and I was really looking forward to her Mexican casserole. Before I even reached the door, I could smell the wonderful aroma. I pushed the door open and found many of the guys already waiting to be served. I walked up beside her and reached for a chip.
"Ow!" I said when she slapped my hand. "I was only going to take one."
"You can wait your turn just like everyone else," She said, causing the guys to laugh and razz on me. I sulked my way to the back of the line where Emmett was.
"I got hit too," he said. I laughed. "She hits hard." I nodded in agreement. "Are you ready to go?" I nodded again.
"I packed last night," I told him. "I've been trying to get a hold of Bella to make sure she's ready, but she's not answering her phone." Emmett, Ben, and I had found people to cover the last half of our shift so we could leave tonight. Charlie and Sue's wedding was in three days, but we were all going to Forks early to help set up.
"I had to force Rosie to pack last night." I raised an eyebrow at him.
"How did you force her to do anything?" He grinned widely.
"I started packing for her." I laughed aloud at that.
"I bet she was pissed."
"Oh god, was she ever, but you know," he winked, "make-up sex is the best." I shook my head. "You should try it sometime. Do something to make Bella raving mad, then apologize, and f-"
"Don't finish that sentence," I interrupted.
"What?" he said innocently. "I was only going to say focus all your attention on her." I rolled my eyes. "When are we leaving? We're still all riding together, right?" I heard a chorus of cheers when the line started moving.
"Yes, we're riding together. I'm driving the Volvo, and Jasper's driving his truck. Bella and I will pick you and Rosalie up at 9:15 tonight. It'll be late, but we need to beat the snow storm that's coming in." I finally reached the front of the line and kissed Angela on the cheek when she handed me a plate. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," She said and smiled. "Now, was waiting in line that horrible?"
"Yes. My stomach's starting to eat itself." She rolled her eyes but laughed.
"You're incorrigible. Go eat."
I found an empty seat and pulled out my cell phone. It was 12:45. Angela was leaving from here to meet the girls at some store to help Alice look at wedding dresses. Why she wanted to look five months before the actual wedding, I didn't know. I dialed Bella again as I started to eat.
"Hello. You've reached Bella Swan." I sighed as I heard her voicemail message. "I can't answer your call right now. Please leave a message with your name and phone number. I'll return your call as soon as possible. Thank you, and have a great day."
"Hey babe," I sighed into the phone. "Just wanted to see if you're packed and ready. Give me a call back." I hung up and put the phone back in my pocket.
"You alright?" Nathan asked.
"I'm fine."
"Trouble in paradise?" I shook my head.
"No, nothing like that. Something just doesn't feel right." I tried to shake it off, but I'd felt like this since that dream in Vegas. "Just a weird feeling. It's probably nothing." Emmett and Ben had joined us at the table.
"I'm running late, hon," Angela said as she bent down and kissed Ben. "I'll see you later. Jasper and Alice will pick us up at 8:45."
"I need to finish packing," he said as he turned to her.
"I did it for you. Just get home quickly. Bye guys." Everyone thanked her for the food and told her to drive safe.
"She packed for you?" William asked while laughing.
"Don't make fun. When you get married, you'll appreciate having a wife do those little things too." Our laughter was interrupted by the tones alerting us to a call. We took off from the kitchen and hurried to our rigs. Emmett drove so I pulled on the headphones to listen to dispatch.
"Traffic accident at Pike and Highway 5," the dispatcher was saying. "Preliminary report of city bus, semi, a truck, car, and minivan. Unknown number of patients."
"Dispatch this is Unit 935," I spoke into the microphone. "We are en route, ETA 12 minutes." I waited for her to respond.
"Unit 935, approach scene from north on 7th Avenue, stage at Gold's Gym on 8th and Pike, IC will be Captain Roy Venito."
We pulled up to the scene and grabbed our stuff from the back of the rig. It was a mad house. I could see a semi, city bus, minivan, and car were involved. The semi, I assumed, had hit the minivan. When it swerved, it hit the bus and jack knifed. The bus was lying on its side, there would be many victims today. We rushed to the staging area. Emmett checked in with Roy while I looked over the scene. He came back over once he'd talked with the Incident Commander.
"We've got the minivan," he said. The minivan had hit the back of the semi. When we reached the vehicle, we saw it was a family of four. The driver, the dad, was tagged yellow. The mother and two daughters were tagged green. The little girls were crying, and the woman was trying to calm them while keeping an eye on her husband. "Sir, can you hear me?"
"Ma'am, what's your name?" I asked as Emmett assessed the driver.
"I'm Brenda," she said. "Girls, it's going to be okay."
"Brenda, do you know what happened?" I slipped the blood pressure cuff on her arm.
"We were following the semi. It was too tall to see the light. When it stopped, we didn't have time to stop."
"Are you hurting?" I pulled out the penlight to check her pupils. They were average size and responded quickly and evenly.
"I'm sore where the seatbelt caught me, but otherwise I'm fine." She had equal chest rise, her blood pressure and heart rate were normal. She had been twisting around without wincing. There were no broken bones, bleeding, or puncture wounds.
"Brenda, we're going to release you here. Other than the soreness, you're good."
"Check the girls." I tried to open the backdoor and was lucky to find it would open. I crawled in next to the youngest girl. She was still crying, but it had died down a bit.
"Hi," I said softly. "What's your name?"
"T-Tally," she stuttered.
"I'm Edward, Tally. Can you look at me?" She looked away from her mom upon Brenda's encouragement. I smiled at her. "How old are you?" I shone the penlight in her eyes. Pupils were responsive and even.
"F-five."
"Do you go to school?" I continued the exam as she shook her head. "I'm going to touch your tummy okay?" She looked at her mom before nodding at me. I checked for signs of any underlying issues, but things seemed fine. Emmett was assessing her sister. "So, Tally, tell me what you were doing today."
"We were going to the aquarium." She was still sniffling, but the tears had pretty much ceased.
"I haven't been to the aquarium in a long time. I want to take my girlfriend since she's never been." Tally looked at me with wide eyes.
"Never?" Her voice was incredulous, and I had to laugh.
"No, never. When I take her, what should we see? What are your favorite animals?"
"I like the penguins, but Sissy likes the turtles."
"I think the penguins look like little people in tuxedos." She giggled.
"Ma'am," I heard Emmett say quietly to Brenda. "We need to transport your husband to the hospital. There are some severe bruises from the seatbelt. There could be some internal problems that I can't detect. Going to the hospital is going to be the safest bet. Okay?"
"Can we all go with you?"
"I'm sorry, but it's against protocol. We'll take you and the girls to the treatment area. Once you're released, you can go to the hospital. We'll take him to Virginia Mason."
"Tally, Cindy, I need you two to stay here until your mom asks you to get out of the car, okay?" I said to the girls whom were now calm and no longer crying. They both nodded. Emmett and I loaded Gary onto the stretcher as quickly as we could. Brenda got out of the van and came to the stretcher.
"What do I do?"
"Get the girls and hold their hand while we go to the treatment area."
"Girls, come on out here." They got out slowly and walked to Brenda's side. She grabbed Tally's hand. "Cindy, hold your sister's hand. It's very important that you don't let go. Stay by my side." She looked at me and nodded. Emmett and I dropped the three off at the treatment area then pushed Gary to the rig. We lifted him into the back, and I pulled myself inside.
We dropped Gary off at the hospital and returned to the scene. There had been a large number of responders dispatched. The scene looked to be clearing. Emmett went to the staging area to get our next assignment. He motioned for me to follow, and we made our way to the bus. Emmett explained that all but one critical patient had been transported. We were to help treat those tagged green and release them if appropriate. We rounded the semi, and I froze. Ben came jogging over to me.
I saw Tyler cut away a piece of rusted red metal. I felt my heart seize and breath leave me in a whoosh. "Is…B-Ben. Be-Bella? She-" I tried to walk to the truck, but Ben held me still.
"Edward. We have everything under control." That was my answer. My heart stopped, and I forgot how to breathe. They had a white sheet draped over the driver side door and part of the front windshield. I felt my stomach roll. It was drenched in blood from the window down. There was a pool of blood just under the door. Her dead eyes flashed before my eyes.
"N-no." Ben took my arm.
"Edward, we just about got the truck cut away. Jeremy and Keith are about to get her on a backboard."
"Let me go," I said between gritted teeth and broke his hold. I sprinted over to the front of the truck. "Bella!"
I slowed down and walked to where I could look inside. My heart broke and fear seized me completely. She was wearing the white True Religion shirt I'd bought her for her birthday. It was one of my favorite shirts on her, but now it just looked horrible. The entire chest and left side was red from her blood. I could see a laceration on her left temple. She must have struck the window on impact. She wasn't moving. She wasn't moving. I put my foot on the front bumper and pushed myself onto the hood.
"Edward!" I heard Ben say from behind me. I felt him grab my ankle, but I shook him off. I crawled towards the cab.
"Bella, love, I'm here." Someone had already put a C-Collar on her and cleaned the laceration. I glanced at the tag to see it was red…not black. When I looked closer, I could see the red had been torn halfway. Oh God. They almost passed her up. They almost gave up on her. I slipped inside and knelt on the seat next to her. I reached up to move the hair that had slipped in front of her face. My hand was trembling as I tucked the strand behind her ear. "Bella, love?" I let my hand hover in front of her face. I felt a bit more relieved when I could feel her breath against my hand. "Bella, can you hear me?" As they pulled the door away from the frame, the truck shook. Bella let out a whimper.
"Almost there," I heard from someone.
"It's okay, Bella." I placed my hand on her cheek. She was clammy and cool to the touch. I leaned in close to her ear. "I love you, baby. I'm right here, love. Everything's going to be okay. We're going to get you out of here and take care of you. All you have to do is hold on. All you have to do is fight, love. You'll get through this. We're going to be okay." I heard the metal finally give way and pulled back. Jeremy slid the backboard toward me.
"Let me in, Edward, so I can get her on the board," Keith said.
"I can fucking do it," I growled. More gently than I ever had, I situated Bella onto the board. She groaned as I did. I started strapping her down while Jeremy worked from the top. "You're doing great, love." Jeremy, Keith, Emmett and I pulled her from the mangled truck and hurried to the waiting ambulance. "What were her last stats?"
"Respirations 12. Heart rate 97. BP 95."
"Better or worse than when you started?"
"Respirations and BP down, heart rate up."
"You're going to be fine, love. Just hang in there. You're going to be okay." I let go and stepped back as they lifted her into the back of their rig and onto the stretcher. I started to step up, but I felt an arm wrap around my own.
"Edward, you can't go with them," Jim said. "We have people that need to be transported."
"She needs me." I felt another strong hand clamp onto my shoulder.
"The sooner we treat the patients, the sooner we can get to Bella," Emmett said softly.
"I'm right behind you, Bella. I'll be right there, baby. Just hang on."
"We can handle this. Go to the hospital. Stay with Bella," Jim said as he closed the doors and Jeremy drove away. We rushed back to the rig and jumped inside. Emmett pulled away. I couldn't get the image of Bella's bloody shirt out of my head.
"She's going to be okay," Emmett said.
"You don't know that," I heard myself say.
"Edward, you have to be strong. If you don't believe she'll be okay, she won't either. We need her to fight."
"You were there. You saw her."
"Head wounds bleed a lot. You know this. She was responsive. She was breathing on her own. Edward, don't flake out on her now. She needs you." Emmett pulled into the hospital bay minutes later.
We made our way to the ER Waiting Room. Emmett pushed me to sit down in a chair and went to the front desk. I leaned my elbows onto my knees and rested my head in my hands. She had to be okay. She had to be fine. I needed her here. She was going to be fine. That was the only solution here.
"Hey, are you at work?" I heard Emmett ask and assumed he was on the phone. "Do you have anything scheduled today? Can you come to Seattle?...No, it's not…Dad," I looked up when I realized who he'd called. "There's been an accident. We need you and mom here…It's Bella…Edward's here…Sure." He held the phone out to me.
"Hello," I said in a hollow voice.
"Your mom and I will be there in a few hours, son," he said. I heard a car door close on his end of the line. "I'm going to get her now then we'll pick up Charlie and Sue." I closed my eyes. I hadn't thought about calling anyone yet. "What hospital is she at?"
"Virginia Mason."
"I'll call Eleazar. Hopefully he can fill me in."
"Okay."
"Put your brother back on the phone." I handed it back.
"Hey," I heard Emmett say. "No…It was-Not now. I'll call you later…Kay…Bye."
I felt like I was running on autopilot. I don't remember doing anything really until mom came rushing into the waiting room. I stood up, and she pulled me into a hug. Has it really been long enough for them to drive here? It was the first bit of relief I'd felt all day. We stood there for a few minutes as she held me and rubbed my back. I needed this. When I pulled back and opened my eyes, they were blurry. Mom reached up and brushed tears from my eyes. She guided me back to the chair and had me sit.
"It's going to be okay," she said soothingly. "She's going to be fine." My chest ached. If only she could promise that. I finally looked up. Rosalie, Alice, Angela, Jasper, and Ben were sitting on my right.
"When did you get here?" I asked them.
"Emmett called after he talked to Carlisle," Alice said softly. She looked so scared. "We came straight over. That was about three hours ago." I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion.
"You've been pretty out of it," Emmett said from across the room where he was talking to dad. I looked to my left to see Charlie and Sue. I could tell Sue was having trouble not crying. Charlie just looked lost.
"What-" Charlie started but had to stop and clear his throat. Emmett and dad pulled a chair up and sat in front of us. "What happened?" He looked at me pleadingly.
"I don't know specifics. It was an accident. There were five vehicles involved. She-it-she-there-" I stopped when mom grabbed my hand. I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate. All I could see was that blood-soaked sheet.
"Shh," mom said as she rubbed my back. "Everything's going to be fine."
"A semi ran a red light," Emmett said. I looked up as my breathing started to slow. He must have gotten details. "It hit her truck and pushed her into oncoming traffic. A city bus hit her." I heard gasps from around me, but I couldn't respond. Knowing what happened was even worse.
"Do you know of any injuries? What was the initial assessment? Who called you?" dad asked.
"No one called. We responded to the accident."
"Oh Edward," mom said as she covered her mouth.
"She had a laceration on her temple that we could see at the scene. There had to be something else wrong, though, because they took her to surgery."
"What?" I asked confused. "How do you know this?"
"Edward, the doctor came and talked to us."
"What? When?" I didn't remember any of that.
"About ten minutes after we got here. He told us they were taking her to surgery."
"I was able to talk to Eleazar about an hour ago," dad said. I turned to look at him. "He had the day off, but he said he'd come in. He's going to see what he can find out then come and talk to us."
"Is she going to be okay?" Charlie asked.
"We don't know. Those are all common injuries in a car accident, but those are easy to diagnose. There could be problems under the surface. They would have run tests to check. We won't really know until the doctor comes back to talk to us. Edward, come with me." I stood up and followed him to the hallway. "Are you okay, son?" It took me a minute to respond.
"It was red," I whispered.
"What?"
"The privacy sheet. The white privacy sheet we put up if a victim's not going to be moved for a while. She was pinned. The dashboard had collapsed. Her head wound bled. The sheet, it was red. There was so much blood. Her whole shirt was red. She never opened her eyes, dad. I could barely feel her pulse. It was so faint." I shuddered at the memory. "I'm scared. It was so bad. I can't lose her, Dad. I need her. I can't live without her. She has to be okay, dad. She has to be okay."
"I know." He pulled me to him and hugged me tightly. "We have to think positive. She's going to need us to be there for her."
"Excuse me," I heard someone clear their throat behind me. I turned around to see a doctor. "I have news, Edward. Let's go back in the waiting room." His eyes were tired and almost apologetic. I felt on edge immediately. I nodded and went back inside. I took the seat next to Charlie so dad could sit by mom. "Is everyone here for Bella?"
"Yes," I answered then pointed at Charlie. "This is her dad."
"Charlie Swan," he said as he stood and extended his hand.
"I'm Dr. Lewis," he smiled at Charlie but it looked forced.
"I'm sorry I'm late," I heard from the door and looked up to see Dr. Denali.
"Eleazar, thank you for coming," dad said and shook his hand.
"How's Bella?" Charlie asked getting anxious. Dr. Lewis grabbed a chair and sat down. The sense of dread grew. This was going to be bad.
"She's in recovery right now." Dr. Denali also pulled over a chair. "As soon as we can, we're going to move her to ICU." Sue grabbed Charlie's hand as mom did dad's. "She's going to be in there for a couple of days."
"Is it really that bad?"
"She's alive, Mr. Swan. That's what you need to focus on. She suffered some very severe injuries. When the semi hit her truck, she hit her head on the side window. She had a two-inch contusion on her temple. Some of the broken glass scraped her skin, so she has some cuts on her face. We had to removed some imbedded fragments from her temple and eye. That impact put her truck into the other lane of traffic. When the bus hit her, it tossed her into the steering wheel while the dashboard was shoved towards her. When she hit the steering wheel, it broke three ribs. She also has a transverse fracture of the tibia.
"En route to the hospital, one of her lungs collapsed. During the CT, we found a Perimesencephalic Subarachnoid hemorrhage. We took her to surgery to perform a craniotomy." I felt like I'd had the breath knocked out of me.
"Wait, wait," Charlie said as he shook his hands. "What does any of that mean? Dumb it down for me, doc. All I understood was broken ribs and collapsed lung."
"A contusion is a gash," Dr. Denali explained in a calm voice. "Head wounds bleed a lot, even if they're small. We had to do a blood transfusion, because she lost a lot of blood. The tibia is the bone in her lower leg, in her calf. Transverse means it broke parallel to the ground, all the way from one side to the other. She has a cast that will be on her leg for at least six weeks."
"What's a peri-perimes-"
"A Perimesencephalic Subarachnoid hemorrhage, simply, is a bleed between the skull and the outer membrane of the brain. It's very dangerous. As the blood gathers, pressure builds and can damage the brain. When we found the bleed, we took her to the OR to relieve the pressure. That procedure is called a craniotomy. That means we had to drill a few holes in the skull and remove the section to drain the bleed and repair the problem. Then we soft-wired the section of skull back into place."
"She-you-how-is-"
"Did you discover the hemorrhage early enough?" I asked. Maybe there wouldn't be brain damage.
"We won't know until she's awake," Dr. Lewis said.
"How long is that going to be?"
"Remember, Bella's body has experienced a lot of trauma and been under a lot of stress."
"Is she-" I couldn't ask, but he knew without me having to voice it.
"She's in a medically induced coma right now. There's been some swelling of her brain."
"Wait. Why?" Charlie said. "You did the surgery. She'll be fine. Why a coma?"
"The coma will allow the blood vessels in the brain to narrow," Dr. Denali clarified. "That decreases the pressure. If the pressure is decreased, the brain damage may be averted."
"Brain damage?"
"You know what? We're getting ahead of ourselves. These next 48 hours are going to be crucial. We won't know much of anything until she wakes up. We need her awake to determine the extent of her injuries, specifically the effects of the TBI, traumatic brain injury." Charlie hung his head; I stood up and walked the room. The anxiety was stifling. I couldn't sit still. "I know this sounds horrible. I know we've thrown some very big words and scary thoughts your way.
"What you need to do right now is think positive and pray. We really don't know much until she wakes up. She could wake up, remember everything, have little brain damage, and heal quickly. We just have to wait and see."
"Can we see her now?" Charlie asked anxiously.
"Once we have her in ICU, I'll let you go up two at a time. I'll give you five minutes a piece, but that's it. I don't want to take any chances of infection. You can see her again tomorrow morning when visiting hours begin at 8:00am," Dr. Lewis said.
"I'll show you to the ICU Waiting Room," Dr. Denali offered.
We followed him from the ER Waiting Room. He and dad were talking. I caught a few words then blocked them out when I realized they were discussing the craniotomy. Dr. Denali had been present for it. I didn't want to know the details. I just wanted to see her.
"You can wait inside," Dr. Lewis pointed to the room. "I'll come get you when she's settled." It was an hour and twenty minutes later that he returned. He took a seat to speak with us. "We've got her settled in. You can go see her now, but I want you to be prepared.
"She has a black eye and bruises on her legs, arms, and across her chest from the seat belt and steering wheel. Her head is bandaged from the surgery. She's got a cast on her leg, and she's also on a ventilator."
"What?" I asked. "Why?"
"It's just a precaution. We'll hopefully take her off the vent tomorrow."
"Can I please go see her now?" Charlie asked, the anxiety in his voice evident.
"Of course. Follow me." He stood up without letting go of Sue's hand and left the room. Mom came over to sit beside me.
"Do you want to go see her next?" she asked softly. I shook my head then leaned against her. She wrapped her arm around me and leaned her head on mine. I needed her motherly comfort at that moment. "You're going to see her though, right?"
"Yes. I want to be the last though." I felt her nod. "Will…will you go with me?"
"Of course, sweetheart."
I watched as Charlie and Sue came back from the ICU. Sue was crying, and Charlie was wiping his eyes. Rosalie and Emmett went next. The fear grew each time they came out and one or both were crying. Eventually, mom and I were the only ones left. I stared at the door to the Unit trying to build up the courage to go. Mom grabbed my hand and squeezed.
"Are you ready?" she whispered. I took a deep breath and nodded. We stood and followed Dr. Lewis to room four.
He stepped aside. When I looked inside, my knees went weak. I knew what to expect. I'd seen this on the job and in school, but nothing could have prepared me to see Bella like this. It didn't even look like her. Not my Bella. My Bella was strong and fierce. The girl in that room looked weak, fragile. I could feel myself shaking my head.
"N-n-no," I stuttered hoarsely. "No. That's not Bella." I didn't see her silky chestnut hair or her deep chocolate eyes. Her smooth pale skin was shades of black, blue, and purple. "No, that can't be her." My breath was ragged. I couldn't tear my eyes from the bed. "It can't be. She's not my Bella." Two hands grabbed my face. I looked down to see mom focusing me.
"Edward, calm down," she ordered in a stern voice. "Listen to me. Bella needs you. She can't do this on her own." Her thumb swiped away the tear rolling down my cheek. "Take a deep breath, collect yourself, and go tell her she's going to be okay."
I took a few minutes to calm myself then slowly walked in. I made my way to her side and reached for her hand. I stopped short when I saw the IV in her hand. I looked at her other hand. It was in a splint. I wanted to rub her arm to touch her, but her arms were covered in bruises. I didn't want to hurt her. She was so beaten up. I looked back up at her face.
Dr. Lewis had been right. There was a large, deep bruise around her left eye. The head bandage covered her forehead, and her lips were parted to accommodate the tube for the ventilator. Her cheek was the only thing unobstructed. I leaned forward and ever so gently placed my lips on her face. I closed my eyes as a sense of relief filled me for the first time that day. She was alive. It was all that mattered. We'd figure the rest out. I pulled back and brushed the back of my fingers over the unmarred flesh.
"Hi, love," I said quietly. The beep of the heart monitor and the hum of the ventilator was the only noise in the room. "I know you're hurting, baby, but everything's going to be okay. You're going to wake up and make a full recovery. I'm going to take care of you, and everything's going to be fine. You don't need to worry about anything. We're going to take care of you. I love you, Bella." I heard mom walk over. She placed a hand on my back before leaning down to kiss her on the forehead.
"We're all here for you, Bella," she said. "Just focus on getting better. We'll see you when you wake up."
"Can I-" I had to clear my throat. "Can I have a minute alone?"
"Sure, sweetheart. I'll be in the waiting room." I grabbed a chair and pulled it over so I could sit at the head of the bed. I laid my head next to hers and rubbed her cheek. I needed to hold her, but this was all I could do.
"I've never been so scared in my life. When I saw you in your truck, I couldn't breathe. I thought I'd lost you. It was the worst feeling ever. I need you, Bella. I can't live without you. There would be no reason to. Don't leave me. I can't do this without you. Come back to me, Bella. Promise you'll come back to me." I knew she wouldn't answer me, but I needed her to know. I sniffed to try to hold back the tears.
"Edward," I heard Dr. Lewis say from the doorway. "I'm sorry, but it's time to go." I nodded.
"I can't stay in here yet, but I'll just be outside in the waiting room. I'll be back tomorrow at 8:00am." I leaned forward and kissed her cheek again. I reluctantly pulled back and stood to leave. I would have fought to stay with her, but I didn't want to make the staff mad. I'd be here until she left, so I needed to make them happy.
My breath was ragged as I followed Dr. Lewis back to my family. The further I got away from her, the worse it got. My vision blurred with each step. I could feel my heart hammering in my chest like it was trying to get out. I stumbled when my feet hit the carpet of the waiting room. I let myself fall to my knees. I couldn't hold it in anymore. It hurt too much. I leaned forward to rest my head on the floor and cried.
AN: Hello everyone. See, I didn't kill her. There were a few of you worrying I would. I couldn't do that. I hope this chapter didn't disappoint. Yankee13 really made this possible though. She is a god-send.
Let me know what you think, and I'll send you a sneak peek of the next chapter. There aren't many after this; maybe three or four then an epilogue. The closer I get to the end, the harder it is to write. I think it's my brain telling me it doesn't want to be done with the story.
I almost forgot. There are pictures on the blog of the shirt and the accident. Well, it's as close as I could get to accident pictures. Link to the blog can be found on the author page. Proceed at your own risk thought. There are no injured or dead people in the pictures, but it still may be disturbing or a trigger for some. I didn't want you going in blind. :)