Hi,
I wish you all a very nice weekend... here goes ch. 24, I hope you´ll enjoy it :-)
A/N I don´t own anything...
CH24
Ellen returned back in her office. There was no one else. All teachers went either home or in the gym to watch the sports. She had to sit down, she had tears in the eyes and couldn´t stop them. She could not understand herself. Why did Mrs. Hart say something like this? Yes, she was still married, but her husband hit her many times, and hurt not only her, but also her child. But she couldn´t explain it to anyone. Nobody would understand. Everyone in Forks was certain that she was having an affair with Cullen. This was one of the reasons why she hated small towns. Everyone knew everything the best and judged so easily. Nobody would believe that she takes the Cullens as her good friends. She reminded again of the need to find her own place to live. Maybe then the gossips will stop. She will not be living in his house anymore. Suddenly she could hear the mobile phone beeping. She checked the display but she had no will to reply immediately. She just wanted to be alone with her thoughts.
Few days before Patricia´s birthday, Carlisle suggested they could have a nice lunch on saturday. He wanted to spend some time with the girls and exchanged the ER shift too. Ellen liked that idea, she missed their common time. In the last weeks he was taking night shifts in the ER also during the week and Ellen spent the evenings alone looking at some advertisements. But she wasn´t satisfied with the choice. The houses were either too expensive or unsuitable for little children. She hoped she would appear something interesting but nothing seemed to be good enough.
Patricia was missing Carlisle too. She barely saw him before she went to bed. She got used to his presence and felt sad when he was away for the whole day. Ellen could not understand how he could hold on everything but he assured her that he takes some nap before the shift or during the night when he has no patients.
Ellen brought all the bags with groceries out of the car and planned to give things in the fridge. Carlisle was turning off the laptop as he saw the girls coming. Patricia ran to him immediately:
„ Heyyyy…." He held her in his hug: „ Hi, sweetie….did you enjoy shopping?" Patty frowned:
„ Mum, wanted just to buy groceries…no fun today….."
He caressed her hair when Ellen suddenly shouted:
„ Shit, I am so stupid…How could I forget that?..."
He asked: „ Elly, what happened?"
She waved the hand: „ It´s ok, I´ll do something else…don´t worry…."
She smiled, but he knew there was something wrong.
She seemed to act weird… He needs to ask her when Patty would be sleeping. He wanted to go to play with the little one but his phone rang. He looked at Patty who brought him the telephone:
„ Uncle, your phone is ringing…."
He thanked and left the room. When he came back, she was sitting on the sofa looking at some pictures in her favorite book.
Ellen asked: „ Did anything happen?"
He gave the hands in his pockets:
„ I need to send something to my colleague….. Would you mind if I jumped to my office?... I´d be back within an hour…."
Ellen agreed. Patty stood up: „ Uncle Carlisle, may I go with you?"
He seemed to be pleased: „ Of course, sweetie, I will be glad to have a company…"
Patty kissed Ellen and ran to Carlisle´s car.
He drove his car in the office. It was necessary to send the document today. The doctor from Seattle was expecting the report about one of the patients. On the other hand, he was glad that they could spend some time alone with Patricia. They have not seen each other in the previous week because of his work in the ER for adults. But he couldn´t refuse the shifts. They had no one else.
When they arrived in his office, Patty went to play with the toys in the waiting room and he headed to the patients´ folders. When he closed the folder, he suddenly remembered what Patty told him on the first morning after she spent her first night in the new room.
FLASHBACK:
After the first night in the new room he didn´t forget to ask Patricia about dream. When she woke up, he knew about that. He came closer, knocked on the door and Patricia went to hug him. He sat down on her bed and asked:
„ Do you remember what I told you before sleeping?"
She nodded with smile: „ Yes,….."
He asked: „ and do you…?..."
She said something that surprised him: „ Well, mum would not like to say this…"
He was surprised, Ellen had no idea that he told her something about first dreams, therefore he couldn´t get what Patty meant by that. He asked carefully:
„ Pattie, it is gonna be just between us, I promise, mum won´t know about this…"
She doubted when she watched him: „ will you keep it just for yourself?"
„ He raised his fingers: „ Yes, it will be our secret….I swear…"
Patty smiled and continued: „ I had a dream….. that….. that… I called you daddy and we were living here with mum…."
This touched him deep, he had no idea that such a small child could imagine something like this. But he was amazed.
He hugged her: „ You are really a sweetheart….."
She looked at him with questions in her eyes: „ Are you sure?..." He nodded immediately:
„ Absolutely…." Then he became silent. After few minutes as he was holding Patty he said:
„ And who knows, this dream may become true, who knows?"
Patty replied: „ I don´t know, mum would be angry…."
He looked at her: „ Why do you think?"
She said: „ Because mum doesn´t want to be here, she told me once, that we have our dad and have to live with him…. She said we cannot live here because your house is too small…"
He asked: „ And what did you tell her?"
Patty replied: „ That you can buy bigger…"
He laughed and caressed her hair:
„ Patty, this house is big enough but only your mum will decide whether you stay here….. but I will always visit you….no matter what happens….."
Patty asked: „ Uncle Carlisle, tell me, when I already have my dad, how could you be mine too?"
She surprised him by her question. She referred to the dream, she couldn´t understand it. He took a deep breath:
„ Sweetie, yes, you have your dad, that is true, but there are dads who take care of the kids. It is the same with my children, I am not their biological father, but I adopted them and I take them as my own…. Look at Edward, Alice, Jasper, Rose or Emmett….. I love them as my own but I am not their true father….."
Patty understood: „ So you would be my dad too?"
He kissed her forehead:
„ Well, if your mum allows me, I will…..but let´s keep it a secret now ok? I will tell you when the time is right…."
She hugged him and he took her downstairs to make some breakfast….
While Carlisle and Patricia were away, Ellen was preparing the lunch. She was looking out of the window, it was already snowing. She was looking forward when they will be throwing snowballs, building a snowman and most of all they will be having fun. She wanted to teach Patty ice skating and probably skiing. She was already old enough to begin with that. They might go in the mountains to teach her the basics. She wasn´t very good at it, but she used to enjoy it when she was in the college.
Ellen realised that since college she changed her life completely. How could she resign for all her hobbies? For everything she loved? How could she give up her whole personality? She realised that just now, she managed to return back to some of her hobbies. She appeared inside the person she used to be…. And she liked the change, it was so natural to think about going back to her hobbies.
She began chopping the potatoes and could hear the car coming back to the garage. They both came back and Ellen asked:
„ Everything finished?"
He smiled: „ Yes, it´s sent.…."
She began serving the lunch. Carlisle suddenly had a telephone ringing.
Ellen smiled: „ You seem busy today…..Shall we wait for you?"
He replied: „ I need to take this…Please eat…I´ll také later….."
He left the room again. Ellen served the lunch for Patricia and sat down to her. When they finished, she cleaned up the plate when Carlisle came in the room with smile in the face.
Something must have amused him.
Ellen questioned his look: „ Did anything happen?"
He nodded and asked Patricia: „ Sweetie, would you like to watch some Cinderella DVD?"
The little girl agreed immediately and sat down to the
TV. He turned the movie on and headed back to the kitchen where Ellen was doing the washing up.
He hoped they would have some time to talk.
He came closer and dared to hug her from behind whispering: „ I have some good news…."
She was surprised by this position they were standing in but she had to admit she enjoyed it: „ Really?... and will you tell me?"
He turned her to see her face and said: „ Alan just phoned…"
She stared: „ And?"
He smiled at her and wanted to whisper in her ear.
He moved down next to her left ear and couldn´t resist but had to kiss her.
Before she could react, he whispered:
„ It looks like that tomorrow is the last day of your marriage. You will be divorced after the weekend…. And….. free again….. Alan managed everything and you will receive the decision soon….."
She gasped and couldn´t believe it. It was a huge shock for her. She never believed it would be over so early and so easily. She jumped with joy and hugged him tight with her hands around his neck.
He hugged her too and turned around with her. He could feel her relief and happiness. After a moment he stood her back on the floor and smiled:
„ Congratulations…..you did it…..you are free….."
She giggled: „ It is mostly because of you….. I owe you so much for your help and constant support….."
He caressed her: „ You don´t owe me anything…."
„ Yes, I do….because without you I would still be staying with him, never getting the strength to do this…."
He looked deep in her blue eyes and she lost herself in his. She understand her behavior but she felt a huge desire to kiss him. She was so happy from the news that she had no will to resist. She moved a little bit to his lips. She wished to feel them again. He started moving his lips towards hers too. He touched her lips as softly as he could and finally he was allowed to kiss her.
Ellen enjoyed the moment too. She hugged him around the neck and felt his lips gently moving with hers. This kiss was much longer than the one few months ago in the woods. They could enjoy it fully because they had nowhere to hurry. After few moments she pulled back. He was curious about her reaction.
She was scared when she realised what she did again. She messed it up again. She didn´t want to make him think something kissed him and made him feel that she wants more. Is she going crazy?
She looked down and he said: „ Elly…." Ellen looked up and replied:
„ I…..I apologise… I didn´t….I … I mean ….I never wanted you to think of something….. I mean….."
He didn´t get her. She kissed him, and now she felt sorry for doing that. He felt he needed to say something:
„ Ellen, sorry….but sometimes I don´t understand you…..and believe me I really do try…. You want to be kissed, hugged and….then you always move back…. I don´t get it….."
She stared at him. She never saw him questioning her like this:
„ I apologise, I am so confused….sorry…I mean…I …. I should probably concentrate more on Patty, I think…."
He watched her with doubts: „ I believe, you´re only hiding behind Patty….. first you should clarify what you feel here…"
He touched gently her chest. She looked sad in his eyes and saw the feeling of disappointment: „ I just can´t get what you wish…..once you make me feel you want something, then you refuse….it´s so hard to understand….you confuse me…."
She could feel the tears in her eyes: „ I apologise…I never meant to …."
She ran upstairs immediately.
He watched her and wanted to follow her. But something was telling him that he should let her alone She needs time to think about her feelings. It is not easy after what she had gone through. It´s been almost two months since she moved in. It was wrong of him to talk to her like that. He felt sorry, he should have been silent, he must have scared her….. he was angry at himself.
For the whole time he´s been silent and now he tells her these things. He had no idea why he acted like this. Perhaps he was already should apologise to her...maybe a flower would help. He returned back to Patty with question on his lips: „ Sweetie, would you like to go to the mall?"
„ Mall? We have already been there…"
He laughed: „ I know, but there is a surprise I need to get….we will buy flowers for your mum…but it will be our secret…"
„ OK, we can go….."
He touched her hand: „ Please, can you tell mum? She is upstairs…."
After few minutes Patty entered the bedroom: „ Mum, uncle Carlisle is taking me to the mall, he is planning a surprise….., is that ok with you?" She replied: „ Yes, of course, sweetie…. Enjoy it….." Patricia kissed her and disappeared in the door.