Speaking of reviews; abortion is a theme of this and the next chapter. It is a very controversial subject so I won't post my opinion up here. If you waant to know, feel free to ask. And what do you think about it? I'm curious!
Disclaimer: I am not saying if I think Carlisle's thoughts on abortion are or are not correct *unless you ask; I'll be happy to answer* and BD is not mine :( My Lit h/w is though and it's super boring!
Chapter Fifty: ImpossibleCarlisle:
Seventeen days - and a thousand times more inappropriate jokes - later, and Bella and Edward apparently showed no signs of returning home any time soon.
"You might have to start charging those two rent," Rosalie suggested with a snicker.
"More like damages!" Emmett laughed heartily, joined by his brother and sisters and admittedly, Esme and I.
"Just as long as they don't sink the place, they can stay," Esme reasoned. Alice guffawed.
"The way they carry on on that beach, I wouldn't be surprised if they did sink the place!" She cringed, exaggerating her disgust. "Mind you, it's not quite as bad as watching you two. I mean-"
Esme cleared her throat loudly, cutting Alice off. Jasper was grinning diabolically alongside his mate. Rosalie pressed her lips together to avoid laughing and Emmett high-fived his brother.
"Do you think Bella might soften up her anti-gift policy after this?" I asked, changing the subject before Esme's and my sex lives became open targets. Everyone looked to Alice, who grinned and shut her eyes, waving her fingers in a mystical fashion before putting her fingers to her temples.
"I see..." she began dramatically. "I see..?"
Alice began to tremble a little. This happened with some of her visions; usually vivid ones, but not necessarily bad ones. Jasper could always tell the difference, though.
"Alice?" his voice was low. Alice whimpered. Jasper was at her side in a flash, arms wrapped firmly around her. The rest of us shared fearful glances.
"Alice, darlin', what is it?" Jasper asked softly as Alice came out of her vision.
"Phone," Alice requested. Rosalie flashed across the lounge and returned to the dining room with the handset. Alice was set on her mission, not saying a word as she hurriedly pressed the numbers in. It was only thanks to Jasper that we weren't all pacing the floor as we waited for whoever she was calling to pick up.
At last, they did.
"Bella? Bella, are you okay?" Alice demanded into the speaker of the phone, holding it a few centimetres away from her mouth, trying not to sound too urgent…and failing. "He is. What's the problem?" Another pause, then: "Is Edward all right? Why didn't he answer the phone?"
I looked to the others to see if any of them had heard or seen something I had missed. They shrugged and gave me blank and worried looks. Esme clasped my hand tightly, her wide eyes intent on Alice's face.
"Bella, what's going on?" Alice pressed. "I just saw- Here's Carlisle."
I was taken by surprise when Alice pressed the handset into my palm. I'd scarcely had time to gather my thoughts. Everyone's eyes were on me. Esme's hand clasped mine. I stared straight ahead and tried to pretend it was any one of my other patients who had called.
"Bella, it's Carlisle. What's going on?" I managed to keep my voice relatively calm, though I was clenching Esme's hand with a ferocious strength born of panic.Edward was medically experienced enough to deal with most illnesses or a fall, even if it caused broken bones or concussion. What had happened to him? Why hadn't he answered his phone? What had Alice seen? Why did Bella need my help so urgently?
"I- I'm a little worried about Edward," Bella replied, flustered. "Can vampires go into shock?"
"Has he been harmed?" My worry was slipping into my tone now. Esme gasped.
"No, no," Bella hurried to assure me. "Just…taken by surprise."
Edward? Surprised?
"I don't understand, Bella."
"I think…well, I think that…maybe…I might be…" Bella paused to take a deep breath. I was holding mine. Alice had her fingers interlaced, pressing them to her lips, bouncing anxiously. Jasper's eyes shifted between myself and Alice every few seconds. Emmett and Rose watched for my every flicker of emotion or reaction. Esme fought the urge to claw at my hand with her anxious fingers. She fidgeted uncomfortably. The silence seemed to drag on an hour, until at last, Bella got the word out.
"Pregnant."
I swallowed my reaction and, to sort this out without anyone over-reacting, slipped upstairs to my study. Esme was puzzled, but she didn't follow. The others murmured amongst themselves, curious and concerned, as I shut the door. I'd heard stories, of course; it was a fairly popular but extremely far-fetched vampire myth. The incubus; a male vampire who impregnated human females, often ones he supposedly fed off repeatedly throughout the relationship.
No. It's not possible. There are too many holes in that myth. Besides, it's not as though Bella is a medical professional. She might be wrong. She's probably wrong. That's why she wants to talk to me.
"When was the first day of your last menstrual cycle?" I asked.
"Sixteen days before the wedding." Not a gap worth worrying about - yet.
"How do you feel?"
"…weird." Her voice was choked with tears. "This is going to sound crazy – look, I know it's way too early for any of this. Maybe I am crazy. But I'm having bizarre dreams and eating all the time and throwing up and… and…I swear something moved inside me just now."
I tried to formulate a response, but none came. The symptoms were certainly signs of pregnancy, but really, it was completely unreasonable. It was far too fast, first of all...
"Um, I think Edward wants to talk to you," Bella said.
"Put him on," I said, my voice strained. You shouldn't hurt her so long as you're careful, I had told him. What a fool I was! How many myths had been proved right in my existence – in fact, by my existence? And yet, I chose to ignore the one that could be permanently damaging if not fatal to Bella. Of course incubi were unheard of amongst true vampires: there were very few of us who could exercise the restraint for such an act, and even fewer who would want to try.
"Is it possible?" Edward's voice was hardly more than a breath. I gathered my thoughts quickly.
"Well the signs are right," I began carefully. "They're all indications of pregnancy, but severely accelerated. To my knowledge, nothing natural could produce this kind of effect.
"I've heard the Incubus myths, of course, but never heard of anything like it actually occurring. I don't know how credible they are; to be honest, I haven't looked into it. Esme and Rosalie can't bear children because they're frozen. Their bodies can't change to accommodate life inside of them. Whether Emmett and I are fertile or not is irrelevant.
"I'm inclined not to believe the stories, but you and Bella have long since exceeded the known boundaries for vampire-human interaction. As far as I know; only the Denali sisters, you and I would have the experience and strength for that level of intimacy with a human. I certainly don't have the inclination, and the Denali sisters don't have the ability to bear children, but you? You are a special case. I don't know what to make of it."
"And Bella?"
"There's no way to tell for sure until I take a closer look. Pregnancy or not, this rate of growth...infection...whatever it may be, could be very dangerous for Bella. Bring her home. I'll take a look, and if it's true…well…I'll be prepared for that just in case. Get her here as soon as possible, okay?"
"Yes. Yes I will," Edward replied, and hung up.
I pressed the 'end' button and let the handset clatter onto my desk. I put both hands under my chin and stared at the wood. I'd never heard of any disease that could give someone such specific symptoms, even if Bella was hallucinating...and while she sounded confused and frightened, she didn't sound deluded.
But pregnant? That was...complicated. If she was pregnant - if, I reminded myself - what would I do? Clearly, with this rate of acceleration, it was not a normal pregnancy. It could - in fact, it probably would - be extremely detrimental to Bella's health. Especially if it was indeed Edward's child. Bella was young, fit, and she ate reasonably well, but whatever it was that was growing inside of her would use up nutrients and vitamins faster than she could produce them for it, let alone for the both of them. Not to mention, it would force her body to change dramatically, very quickly; she was not ready for that.
Bella could very well die. And Edward would follow. And at the end of it all, the child would probably waste away too.
You've chosen not to live without her, and that doesn't leave me a choice.
No choice then; no choice now. I would not lose my daughter and I certainly would not lose my son. Even if it meant...
I rubbed my hands over my face and then through my hair. This was not going to be easy.
"Carlisle?" Esme's soft voice made me jump. She slipped into my study and I watched her face fall as she noted my expression.
"What's happened?" she asked sadly, wrapping her arms around my shoulders and kissing my cheek supportively.
"It's Bella," I explained. "She's sick."
"Oh, dear! And on her honeymoon, too," Esme lamented. "What has she got?"
"It's easily dealt with," I shrugged. It hurt.
"Carlisle." Esme's eyes locked onto mine, sweetly pleading the answer from me while somehow threatening blood and hellfire if she didn't get it. "What's wrong with Bella?"