True Love Way

Chapter 14

I turned out to be useless for making plans, so the girls took care of the details. I would take Bella over for her tests when I finished work, Charlie was coming up to stay with her during the dialysis, Emmett would keep her company while Rosalie did her rounds, and then the two of them would bring her home. Lauren would prepare our meal there and have it ready for them. Bella was nervous about her tests. I was anxious about not being with her. Lauren was over the moon that we'd have a whole night alone together. And I was a giant, walking turd through it all.

"We're home!" I heard my sister call out as she used Bella's key to let them into my apartment.

I dropped the bowl I was washing into the sink and ran out to greet them. I was expecting Bella to look pale and completely worn out, but I got a pleasant surprise. I let out a huge sigh of relief when I saw her bright eyes and rosy cheeks. "Hey! You look fantastic!"

"I've been told that before," Emmett deadpanned before slapping me on the back. "What's to eat? I'm starving!"

"Uh, about that… dinner will be a little late." I headed for the kitchen, my three hungry guests following behind.

Emmett went straight to the fridge. "Where's Lauren?"

"Em, ease up, baby." Rosalie helped Bella up on a stool so she could watch from the other side of the breakfast bar. "Edward's more concerned with Bella's health than your stomach at the moment. She did great."

I smiled at Bella as she mouthed, "I did great!" after Rosalie.

"You do look really great. How do you feel?"

"Better than I have in months, actually. Rose made them rush the test results, so I know everything is good with the baby."

"The dialysis will give her more energy," Rose added. "And now that she's not stressing about the baby…" She pressed her forehead against Bella's. "Not stressing, right?"

"Not stressing," Bella replied with a laugh. "For now. How was your day? And night… whatever." Her tummy let out a loud rumble, and I passed her over an apple as I shrugged.

"So where is the cook?" Rosalie asked now that we'd gotten Bella's report out of the way.

"You're looking at him."

Three silent faces stared me down.

"What? I am capable of cooking."

"This, I have to check out." Rosalie left Bella's side and came around to peek in the pot on the stove. "Well it smells edible."

"Does it smell almost done?" Emmett shoved her aside playfully to get at the bubbling pot. "I'm impressed, Ed. I didn't know you could cook on a stove."

"I had help," I admitted, pushing him aside so I could give it a stir. "Cooking with Mom on Skype. Fun times."

Rosalie cracked up. "You're serious! I know this aroma, now that you said that… Mom's meatballs."

"Yep. Nothing fancy. We had to work with what I had around here, and with my limited skills. All of this after she familiarized herself with technology. She's amazed, by the way. Expect a Skype call tomorrow. She's bugging Jasper tonight."

"Aw! That's adorable! Eddie cooking with Mommy over the internet."

I pinched my sister while she hugged me and smiled across at Bella as she laughed at us. "We've got about an hour to go. Can you all wait or should I order a pizza?"

"Pizza!" Emmett cried out.

"Wait!" Bella insisted. Her apple core flew across the counter and nailed Emmett in the forehead. "Shit! Em, I'm sorry! I was aiming for your chest!"

We all laughed as Rosalie picked seeds out of his hair and wiped down his forehead. "So what happened, anyway? Did Lauren get called in to the restaurant? Is she coming later?"

Rubbing the back of my neck, I hummed. "Actually… no to both."

"Lover's spat?" Emmett asked tentatively.

"Well… we broke up." There. It was out. I looked at each of them for their reactions. Emmett was clearly stunned. Bella was silently tracing her fingers along the veins in the marble countertop, avoiding looking at me. Rosalie was the only one who didn't look surprised or try to hide her reaction. A tiny grin played across her lips before she placed a kiss on my cheek.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

"No, you're not!" I laughed. Bella's head snapped up.

"Okay. I'm not really." Her grin grew into a wide smile. "You know this is better."

"He's better on his own?" Emmett asked in shock. "I don't know about that, baby. Sure, there's something to be said for being single, but Ed doesn't exactly take advantage of bachelorhood. It's not like he's hitting the clubs and picking up women. Lauren was a good match."

"You just liked her tits," Rosalie countered.

"And her food. Oh man! Does this mean no more comps at the restaurant?"

"I'm sure she'll still feed you if you show her your dimples," I assured him. "She's got nothing against you."

"Like I'd hang out with your ex if she doesn't want you around. Get real."

"Em…" Rosalie stepped over to her husband. "Maybe Edward doesn't want to talk about this right now."

"Does Esme know?" he pressed on.

"Yeah… that delayed my cooking lesson as well," I replied with a smirk.

"That means Jasper will know, too," Rose interjected. "Expect a call."

I took a glance at Bella, who still hadn't commented on my new status. Her bottom lip had disappeared entirely, and her eyes were cast downward. "Sheesh. Don't ever tell anyone in this family something you don't want the entire family in on. No one can keep their mouth shut." I wanted to distract her from thoughts of her past with Jasper.

She gave me a shy grin. "Everyone but you. You keep secrets well."

"That's the truth," Emmett agreed. "I've never bought into the whole DNA is what makes a family bullshit, but this is proof. Ed is very different from them in that respect. I'd feel safe telling him anything… even though he clams up when it comes to his own shit."

"It wasn't ugly or anything." I fought to keep my voice level. "It was amicable."

Emmett cocked an eyebrow at me. "No such thing. But I'll get the truth from you later on. We should focus on getting this meal together. I'm not kidding, I'm fucking starving." He shooed the women out to relax in the living room while he gave me a hand in the kitchen. He was a rather accomplished cook himself, having learned by taking his turn at the fire station. Mashing garlic into some butter, he spread it out on one loaf of bread before adding some chopped tomatoes and olive oil. His appetizer was toasted perfectly by the time I put the pasta into the boiling water. He served the ladies while I got busy making a salad.

"For real?" he asked me quietly when he returned to the kitchen. "It was mutual?"

I nodded. "I haven't been giving much to the relationship, and to be honest, I haven't been feeling it lately," I admitted.

"So you broke it off? I don't mean to pry, I'm just curious."

"It's okay. Rose will want to know the details anyway." I sighed and pushed a cucumber over to him to slice up. "Last night, Lauren told me she loves me."

"First time?"

"Yep." Finishing with the lettuce, I grated some carrots into the bowl.

"And you said…?"

"Nothing."

"Ah."

"Exactly. I couldn't say it just to make her happy, and she really deserves to be happy. It's not like she did anything wrong or it wasn't working between us – she's great. It was the perfect relationship for us at the time."

"But no longer," Emmett surmised.

"I thought it would move slower. No… that's a lie. I knew she was working towards this – the whole 'I love you' bit. Maybe another time, another place, I would have been able to give her what she wants. I'm just really confused right now."

Emmett grabbed hold of my arm, turning me towards him. He mouthed, "Bella?"

My silence was all the confirmation he needed. He let it go.

~ 0 ~

Emmett and Rosalie were barely out the door when her twin made the anticipated call. I wasn't anxious to pick it up. The four of us had had an enjoyable evening, despite the elephant in the room. No one mentioned Lauren again, and Bella seemed more relaxed. It was the healthiest I'd seen her look since our paths crossed again, and I wanted to retain that. I wouldn't let my love life bring her down. But then there was Jasper to deal with.

We spoke a few times a week. Well, I spoke to either him or Alice – whoever picked up the phone at the time. Rosalie had said she'd take care of telling them about Bella's accident, and I knew she had but I'd never mentioned it myself. Neither had they. I had the feeling that was about to end.

"Hey, Jazz," I said upon picking up. I knew it would be him and not Alice.

Bella got up from the couch, placing her hand on my shoulder as she passed me in the chair. She smiled at me and escaped to the balcony.

"What's up, bro?"

"You just missed Rose and Emmett," I informed him casually. "I made dinner."

"So I heard."

"Mom."

His low laugh from the other end made me miss him. "That woman can't keep a secret. So how bad is it? Your relationship, I mean… not your kitchen. Is it fixable?"

"Definitely over." A lump suddenly formed in my throat. It wasn't over the demise of my relationship or even the guilt I felt over my treatment of Lauren. I really missed my brother. I wished we were kids again. I wanted us to be in my old room, Jazz sprawled on my bed with his legs up my wall tossing a ball between them as we talked. I wanted to sit in my desk chair and swivel while my fingers ran over the smooth coolness of the malachite stone I'd have in my pocket. I wanted to hear what advice my outgoing brother would give me for a breakup. I had never had him there to counsel me, or console me, or take me out and get drunk over a girlfriend. Then again, Lauren was the only girlfriend he'd ever gotten the chance to know.

"Shit. How are you coping?" The light-hearted tone in his voice was gone. This was his concerned voice.

"I'm not slitting my wrists." Better I joke about it if he wasn't going to.

There was a long pause, and I could hear him drumming on something – probably his desk. "Ed, I'm really sorry to hear it's over. I thought you two were going to make it. You're really okay? Emily is sleeping. Alice is about ready for sleep herself. I can drive up there… spend the weekend."

I smiled, willing the lump to go down my throat and let me speak.

"I can ask Rose to stay at your place. We can do a dudes' day with Em."

A sound struggled past the lump. It was something like a grunt.

"Ed?"

I got a deep breath in and held it. "Yeah. I'm here."

"Six hours. Five, if I don't have to worry about Charlie's guys pulling me over for another fucking speeding ticket. Those fuckers nail me every time I'm near Forks."

The laugh finally cleared my airway. "I've never received a ticket from the Forks PD," I boasted.

"Yeah, well the boss likes you."

I closed my eyes, seeing a very clear image of my brother in my head. He would be at his desk, in his big leather chair. The office in his home was filled with dark, luxurious furniture. Hundreds of books lined the shelves of the mahogany bookcases. He had only three things hung on the walls: his framed law degree, a family portrait with Alice and Emily, and a picture of me, him and Rosalie after high school graduation. I knew he'd be turned towards that one. His eyes would show the same remorse I was feeling over missed bonding and things never said between us.

"How's Bella?"

I wasn't expecting that. Now I was glad we were separated by the miles I'd just wished were gone. I knew what that look of disapproval in his eyes would be like. If there was disappointment as well, it would be even worse.

"Good. Great, actually. She had her first dialysis session, and she's doing a lot better."

"That's great. Really good news." The drumming continued. My brother was uncomfortable. "Listen, I don't want you to think that I don't care or anything. I would have come up to visit, but things are so crazy around here. Emily's not sleeping much."

"It's cool."

"You must think I'm a total asshole for not asking about her sooner. I get the scoop from Rose, though. Like I said, I do care."

"You're not a total asshole," I retorted teasingly.

"Can you tell her I said… hi… and whatever? If she wants to know, that is. You'd know better than me." Jasper chuckled. "You've always known better than me."

Was that meant to be a shot? "I'll let her know."

"Would it be okay to drop by in a couple of weeks? Alice wants to take a trip to Forks. We'd like to come up and see you, too."

"Sure. Just let me know when. Oh, and you can let Alice know she can still call Lauren or whatever. I don't think she hates the whole family."

"Just you?" The drumming in the background stopped.

"Nah. At least I don't think so. She's been very patient with me. Very understanding about everything. I'm just a dick. She doesn't hold it against you guys. It'll be fine."

"You're cool with it, too?"

"Sure. Yeah. I've messed up enough without having Alice mad at me, too. Emily's not sleeping these days?"

Our conversation moved onto our usual. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. At least the Bella talk was over with. I went out to retrieve her from the balcony when I hung up.

"So, Jasper says hello," I said casually. "He's glad you're doing better."

Bella nodded in acknowledgement. "And how are you doing? Honestly."

I blew out a breath, staring out at the night sky. "I'm… I don't know." I chuckled lightly, shaking my head.

She waited for more on that, but I didn't know what to say. I truly didn't know how I was feeling about everything. I felt bad, but also relieved. And then I felt bad about feeling relieved. "Sorry I didn't make dessert."

The sound of her laughter was more than welcome at that moment. "Dessert. You're worried about dessert."

"I could go pick something up. Or we could go together? Feel up to a walk?"

"I could do a walk. And I'll buy dessert."

We decided on frozen yogurt, and headed in the opposite direction of Lauren's restaurant. I didn't know if she would have gone in even though she had booked it off, but I didn't want to rub salt in the wound by parading past her business with Bella. All my jokes about her hating me were a cover. In fact, she loved me more than anyone ever had. She'd proved that last night when she let me go. I had honestly done my best to relax and tried not to worry about Bella – I'd really wanted to focus on Lauren for a change. I wanted to somehow try to make up for the hand incident.

I'd praised her dinner and her appearance, taken care of the clean-up and served her a glass of wine before massaging her feet. We'd danced in her living room and kissed like long-time lovers. We were on the path to her bedroom when she'd dropped the bomb.

"We'll get through this, Edward. I promise. I'll see you through. I just love you so much. I hope you know that."

My fingers had been working on her bra clasp, having already stripped her of her blouse. They froze, as did my ability to speak. Love. She'd said it, and I believed she meant it. No woman had ever said those words to me. I needed to respond. I should have responded with the same, but that would've been a lie. I certainly had feelings for her, but love? It would be unfair to say it when deep in my heart, I knew it wasn't there. Not with her. Then my phone rang. My gut told me to leave it ring, to not acknowledge it and work on a way to respond to Lauren. My fear took over however, dreading that it was news about Bella – that something had gone terribly wrong.

"Wrong number," I announced when I hung up. I returned to her, dipping my head down to nip at her collarbone. "Where were we?"

"Where we've been for weeks now, in two separate worlds." She slipped out of my grasp and retrieved her discarded clothing.

I dropped my head, feeling like a heel. My hands rubbed at it as I made my way over to her. "I'm sorry. I'm preoccupied."

"I know."

"You've been so patient with me, Lauren. Believe me, it means so much –"

"My patience is not enough."

"It's more than enough! I'm horrible with stating intentions and all of that. I'm not exactly phobic about commitments – I am committed – it's just the timing. I need to go slow, but I've put you on hold, and that's not fair to you. You must resent me. God! I owe you so much."

"The only thing you owe anyone is the truth, Edward."

"What?"

"It's so clear!" she cried out gently. "Be honest with yourself, for Christ's sake. I'm not resentful, Edward. I'm a realist. And you're in love with her."

Her words hit me like an anvil striking steel. Of course I was. No matter how much I denied it to myself – no matter how much I wanted to be the friend Bella needed – I had always loved her.

"Lauren… I don't know what to say. I'm so sorry."

She closed her eyes, stroking my cheek softly. "It's not something you can control, honey. It's just there. It's how you feel."

"I'm truly sorry." Somehow I knew this was it. This was the end and the beginning all at the same time.

"I love you." Her hands cupped my face and she stared deeply into my eyes as she said it again. "I love you, Edward, but I won't be the one you end up resenting. You can't move on with unresolved feelings. You have to see this through."

"It's not like that, Lauren," I tried to explain. "It's never been like that. Bella sees me as a friend. Only a friend."

"Be honest with yourself. You've never even tried with her, have you?"

It didn't require a response.

"Good luck, Edward. I mean that. I wish you all the happiness you've always wanted but been denied. This could be your time to shine. I can't keep you from that."

"Edward? Are you with me?"

Bella's voice jarred me out of my thoughts of last night. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

"Did you hear anything I said?" She tittered, scowling at me. "Of course not. Ugh. You've got other things on your mind."

"You have my full attention. What did I miss?"

"I shouldn't even repeat it. It sounds so egotistical now."

I chuckled at her. "Well now I've got to hear it!"

"Don't laugh." She issued her warning with an impish grin before turning serious. "I hope the other night didn't have anything to do with your break-up. We know what it was about, but I can imagine what Lauren thought when she walked in."

"I explained. She understood. It's fine. Don't worry about it."

"But I do! I am. I feel like I've crashed into your life and turned it upside down!"

I smiled easily at her. "You have."

"Yeah, well it's not fair to do that to you."

"Am I complaining?"

"Do you ever?" She poked me with her elbow when I huffed. "My point is I feel horrible if my being here ruined your relationship. I'm feeling stronger now. I can get my own place nearby."

How the hell did this happen? Just yesterday I had a girlfriend and the girl I'd loved forever in my life. Now both were leaving me? "Why would you do that? I mean, you feel good now, but what happens when you get weaker? Or if something happens with the baby? What if you fall, or get sick? You shouldn't be alone right now, Bella. You just shouldn't be."

"Neither should you," she replied softly.

"Then don't move out. Problem solved."

"Just like that?" She snickered as I pulled the door open to the ice cream shop.

"Just like that. Stay with me."

"I'll cook for you. Now that you don't have a personal chef, it's the least I can do."

"You just don't want to eat my cooking again." I grinned at her as we took our place in line. "How bad was it anyway?"

"Skype cooking works pretty good for you. It tasted good. The texture was a little off."

"I need to work on my balls?"

The two older ladies ahead of us turned to glare at me. I glared back. It wasn't my fault they only listened to half of our conversation. Bella cracked up, burying her face in my chest. "They could be a little firmer," she squeaked out between laughs.

Completely put off, they huffed and stepped out of line. "Guess they think my balls need some work, too. I'm a real winner with the ladies these days. I can chase them off without even trying."

"It wasn't my fault? Honestly?"

I knew she wasn't referring to the blue-haired prudes. She was back to worrying about Lauren. I couldn't lie to her, but I could hardly tell her the absolute truth. "It's my fault. Honestly. You don't have to worry about anything."

We placed our order and took it with us. The night was too nice to waste. We strolled along the pier while we ate our frozen yogurt cones. A frazzled woman with a toddler and a belly the size of Bella's passed us. She smiled at us and patted her belly. "Good luck!" She groaned in frustration as she chased her little boy as he ran towards the water.

Bella's hand went to her own belly. "I found out the sex. Want to know?"

"Yeah!" I smiled at her enthusiastically.

"We were right." She was smiling too.

"A boy, huh?"

"I know. It's silly to get excited when it really doesn't matter. It's not like he's mine." Bella tossed her napkin into the trash can, popping the end of her cone into her mouth.

I followed suit and stood in front of her. "He matters, Bella. Whether he's yours or not." My comment, unwittingly, started the waterworks. Bella fell into my chest as I embraced her.

"Wish my dad could understand that," she said after she collected herself. "I hate that he's so uncomfortable around me. We talked yesterday – really talked. He said he feels like he let me down."

I remained silent, hoping beyond hope that Charlie hadn't reiterated his wish that the baby hadn't made it.

"It wasn't him; it was me. I let him down. I got so wrapped up in Gianna and Marcus' lives that I let my relationship with my own father suffer. I don't regret my friendship with them. They were there when I really needed them, but so was my dad. The problem there was that he knows me too well. He can just look at me and know what I'm feeling and that's too much to handle sometimes. I shut him out over and over until… essentially I abandoned him too. I didn't tell him about the surrogacy when I agreed to it because I didn't want him telling me I was making another mistake."

"Bella, I don't think Charlie ever intends to be critical of you – he's only looking out for you."

She nodded, looking up at me with her tear-streaked face. "I know. And it's so frustrating because he's always right." With a snort, sniffle and sob, she fell against me once more. "He told me he's proud of me for helping Gianna and Marcus this way."

I smiled, feeling quite choked up myself. This was a massive step for Charlie.

"You were right though, he's scared. He's scared that I'm not putting myself first. He thinks I'm still giving myself to a vow I made to my friends and not thinking of what's best for me. But this isn't about them. This is about their baby. He's all alone, and I can't abandon him completely. He's lost both of his parents… I don't want to lose my dad over this too."

"You won't lose him, Bella." I made my statement with every ounce of certainty that I felt. "Charlie adores you. You are everything to him, believe me. He may be gruff and act impulsively when it comes to you, but that's his nature – his base instinct. You've got a man who's the Chief of Police – sworn to protect innocent people, but he's also a man who'd give his own life to save his only daughter. It's got to be tough to be in that position. He's tough, but he's only human. And he'll never turn his back on you."

"What would I do without you?" Bella held onto me for dear life, pressing her head firmly against my chest as her hands gripped my back.

I stroked her hair, shushing her as she wept. "Lucky for you, you don't have to figure that out. That's one more guaranteed thing in your life, Bella. I'm here."

~ 0 ~

As it always had in times of stress, my immune system turned its back on me. I woke the next morning with a bitch of a cold. There was no fever, so I went about my day, not bothering to find a replacement at work. It got worse over the next days, but being the stubborn bastard that I am, I persevered even with the congestion and complete lack of appetite. I came home to the wonderful scent of home cooking a few days later. My apartment smelled like a home for the first time when I stepped in.

I moaned in delight as I headed for the kitchen. Bella was bent over the oven, removing a pan of freshly made buns.

"Just in time!" She beamed at me, turning the buns out to cool.

I lifted the lid off the pot on the stove. Homemade soup. "You're killing me with this." I took a deep inhalation. "It's the only thing I've been able to smell all day. And I'm actually hungry! I want to dunk my whole head in it."

She grimaced and pushed me aside. "Don't do that! You'll get noodles up your nose."

"Wouldn't be the first time," I commented as I transferred the buns over to the breakfast bar. "I had a freak spaghetti incident once."

Bella ladled out steaming bowlfuls of soup, passing them to me. "I have a feeling you're not attempting humour with this."

"Correct."

"Spaghetti incident?"

I helped her up onto the stool before taking a seat next to her. "I used to eat dry pasta. Weird, I know."

"Gross!" She snickered as she turned up her nose.

"Even grosser up the nose… I was sitting on this little stool my mom kept in the corner of the kitchen, munching away on a piece of dry spaghetti. I must have been sick or something, because Dad took Rosalie to Jasper's tee-ball game, but Mom and I stayed home." I sipped on a spoonful of broth and sighed. "That's so good." I took another before continuing my story. "Oh, I know! It was the day I got my cast removed. My arm was still in a sling, and I'd snuck a few extra strands into it for later on. So, I'm munching and I hear the car pull up. I take off to go show them my bare arm, but my mom stops me. 'Don't run with that in your hand, Edward! You'll put your eye out!' I know she's right, so I go back to the stool."

Bella giggled beside me. "You looked so adorable in your pictures of when you were little. You were always banged up."

"Always. So Jazz and Rosalie came in first, and I showed them the new scar – that was my first compound fracture – we were all impressed. The spaghetti fell out of my sling, so I bent down to grab it before Mom saw. Just as I had them gathered in my good hand, Dad came up behind me, scaring the shit out me. I stumbled over the stool. Dad grabbed for me, not wanting me to fall on my newly mended arm, but inadvertently jerked my elbow upwards as I'm going down – spaghetti up the nose."

"Ouch!" Bella's hands went to her own nose. "Jeez! That must have hurt!"

"Bled like hell."

"Your mom never expected that one, huh?"

"I was full of surprises. That was the end of me eating dry pasta though. She was even more sure I'd put an eye out after that."

"Nah. Your glasses would have protected them."

"Bella, Bella. Think of who you're talking about. My glasses were always the first to go when I'd fall. I broke more pairs of glasses than bones – and that's no simple feat!"

Her soup was cold by the time she got her giggles under control enough to finish eating. Between the hot meal and her laughter, I was feeling much better. I decided to spend thirty minutes on the treadmill since I'd been neglecting it. Then I showered and went to bed. The fever hit sometime in the night.

Soaked from sweating but chilled to the bone, the last thing I wanted to do was move from my bed, but nature called. I wrapped my comforter around myself and stumbled across the apartment only to find the bathroom occupied. I leaned against the wall for a moment until my legs refused to hold me any longer. I slid down the wall and stayed where I landed. Bella found me huddled on the floor, shivering under my blanket when she came out.

"Oh! You're worse today!"

"I feel like death," I uttered with a groan before crawling into the bathroom. One look in the mirror showed the impossible – I actually looked worse than I felt. After expelling all that needed to get out, I washed up as best I could.

"Let me help you back into bed." Bella was waiting anxiously for me.

I shook my head at her. "I have to get a prescription."

"I'll go! Where?"

"No, no. I have to get a prescription, not pick it up. This is bronchitis. I know it."

Not trusting me to make it across the street on my own, Bella escorted me. There was no possible way I could work through this, so while I waited to be seen by a doctor, I called in 'dead'. Fever does remarkable things to me – for one, I lose all ability to even pretend I don't feel like death, and I don't care in the least how I'm perceived. I also lose about a dozen or more years of maturity. I piss and moan, grumble and whine, all the while wishing my head would just explode already and end my misery. If my head won't comply, then I just wish for my mommy to come by and feed me Jell-O in between naps. I'm lazy and unhygienic – someone only a mother could love at times such as these. And when my fever got too high, I just got stupid.

"Not bronchitis," I announced as Bella helped me out of the waiting room after my examination. "Pneumonia. Good news for you. I'm not contagious."

"Goody. Let's get you home."

"I have to get this filled." I waved around the script written for antibiotics and two inhalers. I then proceeded to walk into a wall, rebound, and land squarely on my ass. Two orderlies witnessed my act, and rushed over to help. I attempted to push them off me. "I just have to sit for a minute."

"Do you know if Dr McCarty is working right now?"

I shook my head at Bella, even though she was addressing the orderlies. "I saw Dr Caine." I waved the prescription around again. "Caine. But I'm okay. Don't get him."

Ignoring me, she asked again. "Dr McCarty? Is she here?"

"He's a neuro patient?" One of them asked, convinced I had head trauma.

"Ohhhh!" I clued in. "My sister! You're looking for my sister! Yeah! Get my sister!" If Mom wasn't nearby, Rosalie was good to me whenever I felt shitty too.

"I'll page her." One orderly left while the other hoisted me into a wheelchair. I didn't have the energy to resist.

"Jesus, Edward! How high is your fever?" Rosalie bolted for me when she spotted me in the wheelchair.

"High. I'm high. Hi!" I grinned at her as she felt my face.

"Pneumonia." Bella filled her in. "He woke up like this. I have to get his medication, and I have no idea how I'm going to get him home. Can I borrow the wheelchair?"

"Zoom!" I laughed like a five-year-old.

Rosalie grabbed the paper from my hand, scanned it, and took hold of my wheelchair. "Let's get you something so we can get you home."

I must have dozed off because suddenly I was in a small room and something was stabbing my arm. "Ow! Something bit!"

"It's a needle, Edward. Relax." Rose's voice was calm, and I could feel her cool hand on my forehead. There was a cold compress on my neck as well. "It's some antibiotics and a fever reducer. Give it fifteen minutes, then I'm going to come back and drive you home. Okay? Can you make it through fifteen minutes?"

"Bella?"

"She's getting your meds for home, honey. She'll be right back."

I nodded, or I think I did. My head may have just been too heavy to hold up. I dozed off again.

~ 0 ~

"Hey, sleepyhead. Feeling better?"

I blinked my eyes, adjusting to the dark room. "What… where am I? What time is it?"

"Shhh!" Bella placed her hands on my chest and gently urged me back down when I tried to sit. That was good. My head felt like it was weighted down with sandbags. "We're home. It's late. You've slept all day. Rosalie was here a couple of hours ago to give you another shot. You don't remember?"

"A shot?" The sand started to shift around in my head. "I was at the hospital."

Bella smiled. She looked like an angel. "That's right. So you do remember."

"Sure. Um… I don't remember coming home."

"You've been pretty out of it," she told me with a more amused smile. "I guess you don't remember. It's probably better anyway."

"Shit. What did I do?"

She chuckled a bit, stroking my hair. "Don't worry about it. Rosalie said you need to drink lots. Can you manage some more water? I've got your bendy straw!"

I felt my face heating up, and it had nothing to do with the fever. I had a feeling I'd made an ass of myself in my feverish stupor that I couldn't recall. "Bendy straws are great." I took small sips in between coughs. She set the glass down when she was satisfied I'd drank enough.

"Your fever's down a bit but not gone."

"I'm gonna have to pee."

She cracked a grin. "You want help this time?"

I groaned for more than one reason as I got out of bed. I was wearing nothing but boxers – different ones than I'd had on earlier, I was sure. "What did I do? Did I piss myself? Oh shit…"

"It's okay!" Her giggle matched my little boy antics. "We all have accidents. Maybe you should sit this time. You may have better aim that way."

Well fuck. If she was witness to me pissing down my legs already, there was no point in letting modesty take over at this point. I didn't bother redressing. Instead, I headed for the door and made a sharp right to the bathroom.

"Edward!" Bella was behind me this time, stopping me from falling to the ground when I walked into another wall. "Hey, the bathroom's over this way, remember?"

"What the hell? It's supposed to be…" I rubbed at my eyes and squinted to take in my surroundings. Right. I was in the spare room, not my own. "Sucks being half-blind," I grumbled.

I managed to empty my bladder into the toilet this time. I may have dribbled a bit, but that was normal. I shuffled back to the bedroom, now shivering. Bella had the sheets stripped off.

"Have you got more? These are soaked. You sweated a lot."

I shook my head. I had two sets. One for each bed. "I'll just crash on the couch." Grabbing a pillow and blanket, I headed back out.

"Come on…" Bella prevented me from collapsing on the couch. "I should try to get some sleep too. Come in with me."

Over the next twelve hours, Bella alternated sleeping next to me and tending to me. She dosed me with meds, made me drink, and helped me in and out of bed. I had no more issues with walls or bad pissing. The sand was finally beginning to clear out of my head, but the pressure in my chest was worse. Daylight was peeking through the curtains when I opened my eyes. I squinted at the clock on my bed table and spotted my glasses there. I put them on and saw my inhalers laid out as well. Just what I needed. I sucked in the first puff and coughed up half a lung. Bella's hands were on my shoulders as she knelt behind me.

"Okay?"

I nodded, holding onto my chest while the coughing continued. "See why… I dis… patch…?" I choked out between hacks.

She hummed, rubbing my back. "Probably better."

The coughing subsided without any relief from the pressure. I did my second pump and leaned against my propped-up pillows, closing my eyes. "You won't want to be around when this shit starts coming up. It's nasty."

"In the words of Gran, better out than in. You feel much cooler. I think the fever broke last night."

"Ready to move out on me yet?" I risked opening one eye. She was grinning at me just like in the middle of the night.

"You told me I'm not allowed to. Ever."

"Oh my god…" I tipped back further and groaned. "What else did I say or do that was completely humiliating?"

She continued smiling at me as she got up. I noticed her attire for the first time – a thin nightshirt that prominently displayed her growing body. My eyes acted on their own, dipping down for a second or five when she leaned over me to kiss my forehead. She wasn't wearing a bra.

"We're beyond humiliation, you and I. We're only real. Lie back. I'm going to take care of you until you're all better. No arguments."

Little did she know I never argued when I was sick. She did discover the thing I loved most when I was sick, and I took full advantage. For several hours a day over the next four days, my head found a home on her lap as she played with my hair. It kind of made me glad I had the tendency to revert to a little boy during illness and even made me think having shitty genes wasn't entirely a bad thing.

A/N ~ There. Lauren's done. Wasn't too painful, was it? ;)

Love and appreciation to msj, Shug and all of you reading. XX ~ SR