All normal disclaimers apply.

Chapter 20

Arriving at the school, I run toward the office and burst through the door yelling. "Where is Newton?"

Mary, the receptionist, just looks at me in shock.

"Edward," my head snaps round at hearing Tia say my name. "We're in here," she carries on and I march up to the door. Tia steps further into the office to let me in.

My eyes land on Bella and I move to her. "Hey," I say softly to her, as she gives me a weak smile back.

"Edward, I'm really not sure why you are here and Mr. Swan gave strict instructions that you and your son were to be kept away from Miss Swan."

Turning sharply, I glare at Newton when I see the shit eating grin on his face.

"I told you that my father was mistaken, not that it matters anyway. I am eighteen and legally able to make my own choices," Bella says sounding a little strange.

"Yes, and look at the choice you made. Furthermore, as I have said already to you several times, due to health and safety reasons, you can't remain here," Newton tells her while leaning back on his chair. "Beside, this morning's fall shows you that I am right."

"You fell?" I ask moving to her as I crouch down, looking her over and placing my hand on her tummy.

"Kate Newton pushed me, making me lose my balance. When it was reported to that twat, he said I had to go, but did nothing to his daughter for laying her hands on me. You know what, Newton, you can shove this school up your ass," Bella hisses out, but sounds a little out of breath. "Bye," she carries on as she stands and walks to the door.

"I'm going to report you and your bitch of a daughter, you can bank on that," I tell him making him raise his brow at me.

"Your son is a dead beat, just like you. He knocked up a schoolgirl or was it you she's been fucking?"

Moving toward him, I almost reach him before I'm pulled back. Turning I see Bella standing there.

"I need your help, Edward. I'm feeling really sick and still have my locker to empty."

Taking her hand, I give Newton one last glare and maybe even a bit of a growl before moving out the door.

"You can't hit him, he'll use that to make Emmett leave," Bella whispers and I just look at her. "You know I'm right. Emmett has done too much work for this—HIM—to fuck him over again."

Since I know she is right, I don't say anything. Holding the box as she puts her belongings in it, I think about her education.

"How are you going to complete school?" I ask.

She looks at me in confusion. "I'm done, Edward, it was on my college forms that I've done everything already. I was only staying here to help ..." Bella trails off and I pull my hair.

"Emmett," I say stopping her from continuing. "You stayed on to help him, even after the way he treated you?" I ask astonished as I put her box in my car.

"Yes," Bella stops and bites her lip. "I think we need to talk. Later when Em gets home all three of us need to hash this out, once and for all."

Bobbing my head at her, I couldn't agree more.

"Sorry, Bella," Tia says walking up to us smiling.

"Why are you so happy?" I ask wondering what is causing the almost euphoric look she has.

"Nothing but I do think Karma is coming to bite some people in the ass. Stay tuned," she turns away from me and looks at Bella. "Call me when this one," she motions to me, "takes you home. Don't forget that tonight I have a date with Garrett." She wiggles her eyebrows and smiles. "I think he just may get lucky tonight too." Tia hugs Bella and then walks away.

"Coming home?" I whisper close to her ear.

Bella turns and looks at the school with deep worry. "He's going to make Emmett's life a living hell now."

Dropping my head on her shoulder, I look to the main door and see Newton standing there just staring.

"Let's go before I kick the fucking shit out of him." Bella slides into the car and I walk around to my side

"Can you please drive slow? I wasn't kidding when I said that I feel sick," Bella says as she covers her mouth taking deep breaths.

When we arrive home, I help Bella into the living room. "Do you want something to eat or drink?" I ask feeling worried about what this morning events have done to her.

"Can I have a beef or chicken bouillon cube in some warm water?"

Looking at her, I pull my brows together at her odd request.

"I know it's not very appetizing, but it's at least something I can drink and keep down."

Nodding at her, I turn and walk to the kitchen. Grabbing a cup, I get her water warmed and add the bouillon cube. After her broth is ready, I pour myself a cup of coffee and head back to the living room. After handing her the cup, I sit down turning slightly, so I'm beside her, but able to look her way.

We seem to just stare at each other. My hand moves to touch her hair and her head tilts against me automatically. Unable to stop myself, I move forward and place my lips on hers and she's kissing me back.

My insides light up and I move closer to her. Before long, she's lying back and I'm hovering over her. My hands move so that one is cupping the side of her face and the other is running down her body to her leg. Gripping her knee, I pull it up over my hip so I can rest between her legs.

"Fuck, Mina," I hiss out as I start to grind against her. "Fuck, I want to be inside her," my mind chants.

"Ed – war – d, we need to stop," Bella pants. "Please."

My mind hears her small plead and I'm hit with a memory of our night together. Her tear filled eyes as I slammed into her. Pulling back, I quickly cover my face with my hands. She was a virgin and I stole it from her, and I wasn't even sober enough to make it good for her.

"Edward," Bella says softly as she covers my hands.

"How can you be near me? I didn't know. I should have known when we ..." I stop as I wave my hand between us. "I hurt you," I say on the verge of a sob.

"What?" Bella says and I turn to look at her.

"When we made this baby," I say weakly as I place my hand on her tummy. "It should have been amazing. I should have made sure you were ready for me. I should be able to remember all of it. I shouldn't have made you feel dirty, like I didn't want it as much as you did. I shouldn't have told you it shouldn't have happened."

Turning away from her, I don't want her to see the intense pain that must be radiating from my face. So many weeks of pain and hurt that could have been avoided if I had just took a fucking stand.

Bella moves so she's in front of me. "Edward, it was amazing and you did take care of me."

Shaking my head at her, I make sure she's looking at me. "I may not remember it all, but I saw your tears, you told me I was too hard."

Bella moves forward. "I had gone to the bathroom, when I got back to my room you were stripping. At first I thought I got the wrong room, that I allowed the pull I have for you to lead me to your room."

"You feel it too?" I say interrupting her.

"Yes, I have always felt it, from the day we meet."

Leaning forward, I kiss her lips softly.

"What happened next?" I ask knowing I need to know this.

"I saw Mr. Cullen on my bed, and as I looked around, I knew it was my room. My eyes landed on you and you looked sad, but somewhat happy. Not sure why, but at the moment I couldn't do it anymore, I couldn't keep my word to Emmett. When we kissed I felt like ... this was what we should've been doing all along, and I knew you were the one for me. You spent time working me up. I wanted you inside of me – so desperately, and when you did, it hurt. You looked so worried and confused. I thought you were going to reject me, but you didn't you started to move. You slowly built up and were moving too fast—too hard—it only took me asking you once to slow down and you did. You stopped for a few minutes and kissed me telling me you were sorry, that you wouldn't hurt me again.

"When it was over, you kept a hold of me as you fell asleep. It wasn't long before you started talking in your sleep. You were worried about Emmett, and how you were wrong and bad for what you did. Then your dream turned more to an erotic dream."

Gulping, I had no idea of any of this additional stuff.

"I called Emmett and I don't think he was shocked, but a little horrified by what we did. I was scared and started to panic. When he suggested we just move you to your own room and make you think it was a dream, it helped calm me. My brain told me this way I could get Em to come clean and we could start something together. Doing it that way would've unburdened you so you wouldn't think badly of yourself or me."

Cupping her face I shake my head, but she continues on.

"But the next morning my heart was aching for a part of you to remember. It hurt so badly when you didn't," Bella sniffles. "Then after I thought about it more clearly, I realized by doing what we did, we have in fact lied to you and ... I felt like shit. No matter how much I begged, I knew he wasn't ready to tell you. I then started worrying that if I did come to you, it would come between you and Em. But that was when my brain started over thinking everything and I was hit with the guilt of what if's. What if, after a little time I would regret being with you. I've always wanted to be a mother and my need—want—for a child of my own would come between us. If that happened, we'd end up parting and I would've come between you and Emmett for nothing. I knew it—I—was not worth that."

Shaking my head again, because she is worth it, she's always been worth it.

"Then I heard you and Jasper talking. If I am truthful, I would say it gave me the reason I needed to leave and get out. It helped me to get away from all of this, before you decided I was too much or before Em no longer had a need for me."

Hating the hurt she feels, I watch the tears fall from her eyes.

"I should have told you then how I felt, instead of running, but I just couldn't."

Bella stops talking and I slide down on my knees in front of her.

"They don't love me, why would anyone else?" she cries and I close my eyes knowing she's talking about her parents. "He wanted me to ... but I couldn't it's alive, to me it is alive and has been from the second we made him."

Nodding at her, I stroke her cheeks to wipe away her tears.

"I know that you don't want ..." Bella's eyes lock with my own. "You don't have to be with me. I know you have this need to care for everyone. The need to be responsible, but really, I'll be okay. Tia will help me."

"Mina, I love you and I want this, him or her, you ... please just give us a chance?"

Bella pushes away from me and runs. Jumping up, I follow her and see that yet again she's sick to her stomach.

"I think we should leave this talk here and get you to the doctor."

"I'm fine," she groans out.

"Please, Mina, for me, let me get you and our baby looked over?"

Bella looks at me and nods.

Helping her to stand, I hover over her as she rinses her mouth out.

"I am really just stressed, I think."

Nodding at her, I brush her hair back from her pretty face.

"I haven't been helping much," I chuckle a little, though I don't find any part of this funny or amusing. "I should've been acting my age, and just talked to you about what and how I felt. If we'd just both taken the time to talk about what we felt for each other, this could be so different right now. "

"Edward, you didn't want to be or me to be a cheater, you did it to protect your son."

Shaking my head at her, she gives me a look to say don't even try to deny it.

"Yes, you are right, I didn't want to hurt him, but I think I was scared too. I was scared to open myself up to you, because I believe deep down that you would've rejected me."

Bella frowns and I lean forward to kiss her nose.

"I have never wanted someone or anything in the world, the way I want you."

My eyes dance between her eyes and lips as she slides into my arms.

"I want you too," I say and kiss her head feeling my heart race. "We need to communicate better, but for now we need you to be looked at."

~MSG~

The drive to the hospital seems to go slow. Once we are there, I help Bella to sit before checking her in. Taking the seat next to her she lays her head on my shoulder.

"Miss Swan," a nurse calls out and I wave my hand at her while standing up.

"Mina, love, they're ready for us," I say softly to her.

The nurse leaves us in a room and I help Bella get the gown on before helping her on the bed. Right after putting the covers over her legs, the doctor comes in. He does the standard checks. Check her blood pressure, heart beat, oxygen intake, he even weighs her.

"Well Miss Swan you've lost a little bit of weight, and look rather dehydrated. I'm thinking it may be best to keep you here for a day or two. While you're waiting on a bed, I'll do a scan to check on the baby."

He doesn't seem to wait for a reply before he walks out of the room.

"What?" Bella says sitting up. "I don't think I can stay here?"

Looking at her, I frown.

"I may have been a little bit childish," she says.

Keeping the stern look on my face, she lets out a sigh, knowing she needs to be here.

"After my dad dropped me off at the clinic, and I refused to do what he wanted ... I went home and removed myself from their insurance plan, so they wouldn't try to stop me from having the baby."

"What, why?" I ask feeling astonished by what she just said.

"I was angry and upset. They—he—believed that I couldn't do this on my own. He thought I would somehow, after two years, suddenly need them." Bella stops and shakes her head, before quickly wiping her eyes. "He didn't care about what I was trying to tell him. He made it seem like I was about to lose a tooth, not abort my—our—child. It made me feel as if he was saying I ruined their lives. Like he wished I was never born. I just snapped, and called the insurance company. Deep down I know it was them I wanted to yell at, but I didn't. So I don't have insurance and I'm still waiting on medical aid to come through."

Shaking my head at her, I make a quick decision. "You'll be on mine within the next hour," I say pulling out my cell.

"What, no?" Bella says as she covers my hand.

"Mina, this is my baby—mine and yours—so YES. I love you and I'm doing this. This isn't to make you give me a chance, but because it's the right thing to do. Besides, it's what I want to do, so please hush and no arguing."

Before I can call my health insurance company, the doctor walks back in.

"I'm going to hook you up to some IV fluids first," he tells her as he takes her hand gently.

He swiftly inserts the catheter into a vein on the back of her hand. He tapes up the tubing to her arm, as a nurse brings in an ultrasound machine. He pulls the blankets down below her hips and tucks a towel over them. He pulls up the gown to expose her lower abdomen.

"This, my dear, will be a little cold," he says.

He places some blueish colored gel on her belly, as I watch. Moving my chair closer to Bella's head, I sit and take her hand. He runs the wand over her stomach and I sit here feeling amazed as our baby appears on the screen.

"Oh wow," Bella says looking at it. "What's that?" she says loudly sounding worried, and I feel my own worry as I look at the image.

"That's a heartbeat," he says smiling pointing to the little moving pulse of gray.

"That's the heartbeat?" I ask out loud, trying to think back to Emmett's scan. Unable to remember seeing his heartbeat, I shrug. It's no wonder I didn't see Emmett's, this is a big improvement since back then.

"Yes, it's the heartbeat, would like to hear it?"

Bella bobs her head sobbing out a faint but audible, "yes."

Leaning over, I kiss her temple. With a single button the room is filled with a shushing sound. It sounds a lot like a horse galloping under water. Tilting my head a little, there seems to be an echo.

"What's with the echo, does that mean there's something wrong?" I ask. Bella turns looking at me with panic in her eyes. Before I can say anything the doctor is answering my question.

"No, that is the other baby's heartbeat," the doctor says off handily.

"Other baby?" Bella says slowly. "What other baby?"

The doctor chuckles a little. "You're having twins," he says happily. "That's more than likely the reason why you've been hit so hard with the morning sickness. No worries though, both babies appear fine and each have their own placenta, and it appears you are right about the date of conception the measurements are perfect."

He pulls the wand away and then cleans Bella's tummy off.

"Your room will be ready in an hour or so. Try to get some rest, and I'll leave this leaflet for you to look over. It's about an injection that I can give you to try and stop you from being sick."

The doctor hands the paper over and I take it from him as Bella still looks stunned.

Smiling at Bella, who's just looking at the seat the doctor was sitting on, I caress her cheek.

"Mina, love," I say softly and she looks at me with her eyes filled with unshed tears.

"Two?"

Bobbing my head at her, I grin.

"Why are you looking so happy?"

"Because I now have double the chance that one of these babies will look like you." Placing my hand on her tummy, I lean down and kiss it twice.

"But I thought?"

Shaking my head at her, because her thoughts are so skewed.

"Mina, I meant what I said. When I looked into your eyes that first night I saw our future. I saw us married, with kids, a dog, a new house ..." Closing my eyes, I can still see it. "We were so happy, I want that. I want that with you."

Bella takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "You don't seem scared?"

"I am not scared, not any more. I lost you and that hurt drowned all fear I had. I thought I had lost you for good. The pain I felt was as if someone was torturing my soul. I was about ready to say fuck you to Emmett, she's mine. I should have done that," I chuckle, "But everything seemed to just blow up and I couldn't find you. I looked for you, and I couldn't find you. It never crossed my mind that you would have turned to Tia."

"She's good to me ... The day of your guys day out, she went out with me. She told me she knew how I felt for you and even tried to convince me that you loved me. She told me that we had to fight for what and who we love. She said I wasn't giving you a fair chance, because you would always put Emmett first, being a father was your job. So when I had nowhere to go, I found myself at her door. I wanted to call you, but I was afraid."

"What were you afraid of?"

"That you would only stay with me because it was the right thing to do. That since you were a single parent you would never do that to me. I thought you would hate me, thinking that I did it to trap you."

Shaking my head at her, I try to silently tell her how wrong she is.

"I ..." she trails off and I kiss her lips.

"I would never hate you, Mina, and yes I am here for the babies, but the larger part of me is here because I love you."

Bella and I keep talking and it's good to get some of the nitty gritty out of the way. We still have a long way to go. There's a big talk with Emmett still to come as well. However, for the first time since I met her, I can see a happy way out of all of this for us together.

When she was being transferred up to her room, I call Emmett and just remind him to pick up Rose. My next call is to Tia, to let her know that Bella's being admitted. My last call is to the insurance company, who put Bella right on mine where she belongs.

By the time I arrive at her room the nurse is injecting Bella with the medication to help with the sickness. We discussed it earlier and after reading over the paperwork, it seemed to be the best bet considering how sick she's been. At dinner time she was told to only try a few bites. Sadly she was still sick, but the nurse told us it can take a few shots before it kicks in and really starts to work. At the end of the day, I crawl into my bed feeling happier than I have felt in a very long time.

A/N: So what do you think of how things went, and what do you suppose is up Tia's sleeve?