"I am afraid that I have some bad news," the doctor says. I can feel my hands start to shake, and my throat tighten. Sweat starts to appear on my forehead as I try to prepare myself for what is to come. "What are the test results?" I ask, more like choking it out. "You tested positive for the cancer gene," the doctor says, his wise, old eyes looking sympathetically at me. "So, how long does she have until she gets the cancer?" My brother asks, looking indifferent. Though I can see past the mask, he's scared to death. Renée died four months after she was diagnosed; I never got the chance to meet her. "That's the thing. Miss Swan, you have stage three breast cancer." And there it is. "What are you going to tell everyone?" Seth asks me. I don't respond. I can't respond. "Bella?" "What am I supposed to tell them? That I have cancer? That I'm going to survive? We all know how that turned out with Renée, she died. It's a fact, I'm going to die," I say, already coming to terms with it. "Isabella, don't you dare say that. Don't you ever say that. You are going to fight this cancer, and beat it. You are not going to give up. I won't let you," Seth says sternly. "It's inevitable, I'm going to die." "Seth slams down on the brakes, making the engine whine loudly. The cars behind us hock and some swerve in order not to hit us. I fly into my seatbelt and then slam back in my seat. "What the hell, Seth?" I yell. "Stop saying you are going to die!" "Alright, alright! I'm not going to die," I mumble. Seth seems to calm down when I say that, and he starts to drive again. We had to go all the way to Seattle to see the doctor. I didn't want to go in La Push, or Forks, or even Port Angeles. Those places were all to close, and my father has connections in all three of those hospitals. If he found out I went to get these tests, he would freak out. He would have been pissed that I didn't let him come with me. But I couldn't let him come. Sue, who I call my mom, told me that after Renée was diagnosed, my dad was a wreck. He was even worse when she died, leaving him with a newborn. So, I decided to take my half-brother, Seth, with me to the doctor. I would have also taken my stepsister, Leah, but she's on a trip in Europe right now. Her fiancée, Sam Uley, broke off their engagement a week before the wedding and started to date our cousin, Emily. It nearly destroyed Leah. So, I told her to go take a trip and travel the world. She's been gone for two weeks, and she sends us post cards once in a while. "So, what are you going to tell everyone?" Seth asks me again. "I don't know," I say, looking down at my hands. "Dad is going to freak out, so I want Sue to be there when we tell everyone. I want Leah here, but I know she's been having a rough time, so I probably won't ask her to come home. Maybe at the bonfire this weekend I'll tell everyone," I say, rolling down the window. The wind whips my hair across my face, and I brush it back; the cool air feels good on my heated face. "I don't know if you should tell them at the bonfire. Remember, Jake's cousins are moving down here, so we are holding a bonfire for them as a welcoming party. We probably don't want that weighing down on everyone's shoulders," Seth mentions. "Oh," I say. He takes my hand and gives it a squeeze. "It's going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay, Bella," he says, though it sounds more like it's for his own benefit than my own. "Do you want to stop and get something to eat?" Seth asks, glancing at me before returning his eyes to the road. "No, I don't have much of an appetite right now," I say, though it's a fact that I am actually starving. But I don't want to stop, I just want to go home. "Okay, we'll be in Forks in about ten minutes, and La Push in about twenty. I think dad mentioned that everyone was going to be at the beach today since it is supposed to be really sunny," Seth says, smiling. That kid loves the sun as much as I do. "I don't think so. Look at those rain clouds. They look like they are about to burst any minute," I say, pointing to the angry, black looking clouds in the distance. "Oh man! I wanted to go cliff diving today too!" "Well, now we can watch Brady and Collin fight over the popcorn when we are all stuck at Sam and Emily's house watching movies," I say, making a face. I still haven't forgiven my cousin or Sam after what happened to Leah. I understand what happened, but I don't like how Sam handled it. Sometimes imprinting can good, and other times it's just plain cruel. "Well, you never know. It could always end up raining tomorrow." "I doubt that," I say as a few raindrops start to appear on the windshield. Seth whines again and starts to pout. "Do you want to stop at home or go straight to Sam and Emily's?" "Let's just go straight there. I don't have to go home," I say, rolling the window back up. "Alright, here we are," Seth finally says, putting the car in park and getting out. He comes to my side of the car and opens my door, helping me out. "Hey, I'm not an invalid," I say, crossing my eyes and staring up at him. "Not yet," he mumbles, going to the trunk and getting our bags out of it. I glare at him before turning around and storming inside. "Bella!" Seth calls out, but I slam the door before I hear what else he has to say. "Hey! No slamming the- oh, hey Bella. How was your trip with Seth?" Sam asks, walking down the stairs. "Great," I say sarcastically, walking into the kitchen and opening the fridge. I grab a bottle of Sparkling Lemonade and take a sip. It's sour, but I don't care. "Bella, come on! I'm sorry that I called you an invalid! Ah," Seth says, but then stops when he sees Sam. He gives me a panicked look, and I glare at him. "Why would you call Bella an invalid?" Sam asks, eyeing the two of us. "Cause he's an ass," I say, walking past them. I sit on the couch between Paul and Jared. Paul throws his arm around my shoulders and kisses my temple. I smack his shoulder; he knows that that annoys me. But, I snuggle into his side, enjoying his warmth. "Bella, what do you think we should watch? I want to watch an action movie, but Jared here wants to watch a comedy. So, you choose," Paul says, rubbing my arm. "Well, I feel like watching a comedy. So, I go with Jared's decision," I say. Paul pouts. "POPCORN!" Brady and Collin yell out when Emily brings in two huge bowls of popcorn into the living room. "Hello, Bella," Emily greets, handing me a bowl of popcorn. Paul takes a handful right away and stuffs it all in his mouth. "Hey," I mumble, really not in the mood for talking. Jacob walks in and sits against my legs. I play with his hair, not paying attention to the movie. Brady and Collin are still fighting over the popcorn, and I smile slightly. I'm going to miss this. I'm going to miss everyone. "Bella, do you want to come help me finish dinner?" Emily asks when the movie is over. "Sure," I say, standing up. I sway a little, and Paul steadies me. "You okay?" He asks, looking at me, concerned. "Yeah, I'm fine," I say, waving him off. Seth gives me a knowing look, and I narrow my eyes at him. I go into the kitchen and help Emily with the food. There's two big bowls of salad, one ceasar and one greek, and there are three different kinds of fish, salmon, halibut, and swordfish. There's also some roasted vegetables, rolls, and mashed potatoes. It looks more like a dinner, but then again, all of the boys are werewolves. "Alright, come on to the table boys," I say as Emily fills the last glass with water and then sets the pitcher on the table. The boys come running to the table, and fight for seats. Sam sits next to Emily, who sits next to Collin, who sits next to Brady, who sits next to Jake, who sits next to me, who sits next to Paul, who sits next to Jared, and who sits next Seth. Some of the pack are missing, but I have no idea where they are. "So, what did you guys do during your trip? Where'd you go?" Brady asks while he tears apart a roll. "Yeah! Tell us all about it!" Collin says, dipping his finger in the mashed potatoes. "Well, we went sightseeing. But we mostly spent time in the hospital," Seth says. I start to choke on the fish that I was eating, and Paul has to pat me on the back a couple of times. "The hospital? Why were you at the hospital?" Sam asks, his dark eyebrows pulling together. "No reason," I say casually, giving Seth a warning look. "Bella had to get some tests done." Oh my god. He better not do what I think he is going to do. "Why? What's wrong with Bella?" Jared asks, looking at me from behind Paul. "Seth," I hiss out, now glaring. "What tests, Seth?" Emily asks, looking concerned. "Nothing," I say at the same time Seth says, "For cancer." Everyone stops eating. It's silent, and not the good type of silence. Slowly, I feel and see everyone's turn to me. I wipe my mouth with my napkin, and stand up. "Seth, can I talk to you in private?" I ask, more like demand. Seth follows me outside and onto the porch. It's stopped raining, and the smell of it is heavy in the air. When the door closes, I whirl on him. "What the hell was that?" I yell at him. "Bella, they need to know," Seth says, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yeah, but I thought we agreed to tell them this weekend!" "No, you decided that. I said it was a bad idea." "Well, you know what? It was my decision to tell them and when to tell them, not yours! I am the one who has fucking cancer!" "Bella?" I hear. I still, recognizing that voice. Slowly, I close my eyes and take a shaky breath. Turning around, I say, "Hey, dad. Mom." "Bella?" My dad repeats. "I have to get out of here," I say. "No, Bella. You are going back into that house and we are going to have a civilized conversation about this," Mom says, walking up to me and taking my arm. She leads me into the house and sets me on the couch. Seth sits down next to me, but I ignore him. What he did was right, but not okay. "What kind of cancer, Bella?" Jake asks, squatting in front of me and taking my hand. Tears well up in my eyes, and I blink them back. "Breast cancer. Stage three," I say, and I hear a gasp. Dad. "Th-that's worse than Renee's," he stutters out. I can tell he's crying, but I can't bring myself to look. "Why didn't you tell us?" Jake asks, rubbing my hand. "I-I didn't want to. I didn't want you guys to freak out. I just found the bump last week, and I thought it wasn't anything until I checked again and it was bigger. So I asked Seth to drive me to get the tests done and then the results. I'm so sorry," I cry out, now sobbing uncontrollably. Jake stands up and gathers me into his arms. I clutch at his shirt, soaking it actually. "Bella, honey, you don't have to be sorry. You don't have to be sorry for anything," Jake whispers in my ear. "We are here to support you, Bella. Don't you ever forget that," Paul says. "We love you, Bella," everyone says.
