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Chapter 138

First Results


Bella


The cold, to which I clung to in my sleep, moved. I kind of winced and there was a musical chuckle in the air. I didn't want to wake up. In my dream, Edward was there. But I had no chance to hold on my dream.

I opened my eyes.

Was I asleep after all?

"Good morning, my angel!" whispered Edward velvety and breathed a loving kiss on my forehead.

I blinked a few times, and my fingers clawed a little into the fabric of his sweater.

A sweater that was actually there! This was not a dream? "Edward," I mumbled, puzzled. "You're really there!"

"Of course I'm here, dearest. How do you feel?"

"Don't know exactly yet," I pondered.

I tried to sit up, to get an overview, with Edward helping me. He sat behind me, so I could still lean against him. Leah got me something to drink and I checked my physical condition in the meantime.

My head felt strange. No pain, just somehow a little dizzy. Otherwise, I felt weak and powerless, almost like the last few days, but nevertheless also somehow better.

My hands slid over my belly, over my Knob, but Edward's hands were already there. I interlaced my fingers with his.

Above our baby.

I turned a little in Edward's arms and looked into the face of a displeased angel.

"Please forgive me, Bella! I have wronged you and hurt you very much with it ..." Edward pleaded seriously, but I put my fingers on his mouth.

It no longer mattered - apparently - what he had said or thought.

"That means you know it's really YOUR child?" I inquired. I could no longer fully comprehend much of the day yesterday. There were so many little scraps of memory in my head, but a logical sorting did not want to succeed for me. Breakfast. I was actually able to recapitulate that. Also that I had researched some things in front of the laptop that didn't fit together. But after that? David was there. But how long, when, or why, I could not say. Had we drunk coffee together? No, that was another day. I was lying on the floor. On the light-colored carpet in the dining room. Carlisle. Blood ... Too many little fragments.

"Yes, I know. WE are having a baby!" he whispered, and an adorable soft smile spread across his face.

I nestled sideways in his arms.

Everything was good again.

"But I must confess that I have no explanation for it."

"Maybe I was right. With the fact that it is because of Carlisle itself," I reflected.

"No. After I left you on Wednesday, that's exactly what I checked ..." Edward began to say.

I chuckled and looked at him.

"You were ... playing with yourself?" I inquired. I was not able to visualize it. I had caught Jake doing that once, but it was some time ago. I don't know which one of us was more embarrassed, but ever since that evening, I knocked on my kids' rooms doors before I entered. Edward peeked similarly cutely caught.

"In a manner of speaking. I wanted to believe you and disprove Carlisle. But to no avail. Otherwise, I would have run right back to you," Edward said a little gloomily.

"Was it fun at least?" I asked with a grin, not wanting Edward's mood to turn melancholy and brooding.

"Without you? Not a bit!" he stated with a chuckle and gently covered my lips with his, but we were interrupted.

Edward slipped from my lips, and I nearly tumbled off the bed as our son woke up, throwing his arm foolishly off.

Against Edward's back. It was in the way.

"Mom, how are you?" he immediately asked, carefully scrambling off the bed surface.

Only now did I really take notice that Becky and Marcus were also on the bed.

"Better. I think." I wasn't quite sure of that yet. "So how did the two of them get here? Or how do I get here?" I inquired.

So Jake and Edward put my little memories in a logical order and told about the day yesterday.

Apparently I had tipped over with the chair at the dining room table. David had found me, the twins joined after school and had immediately set out to find Edward. Carlisle had returned early from Alaska, so David brought me to him. The way Jake said it, he must have been terrified for me. I must have looked terrible. Pale as a corpse, barely able to speak, smeared with David's blood.

When Leah offered me an impressive selection of beverages, I had to chuckle.

But this care, which my twins had not displayed the last few days, God knows, put me in a reflective mood.

They had both yelled at me when we all still thought David was the baby's father. But what did my children think now about a sibling in general? Especially if it would be half vampire. What would this baby do to me if it didn't follow the norm. That this would not be the case, I had already found out. It all happened much too fast. And apparently it was already thirsty.

But my concerns about the children were unfounded. Their opinion was very important to me, and they moved me. Nevertheless, my stomach growled.

Once again.

"When was the last time you ate something?" my angel asked reprovingly.

"It's been a while," I muttered. "But I'd like to take a shower first." I felt dirty. Yesterday I hadn't made it into the shower for lack of strength, and I also had blood stains on my clothes. It smelled somehow subtly ... good. Not at all as rusty and salty as usual.

Edward put the bed cover around me and carried me.

"Close your eyes," he urged me, and I did.

More than that.

I wrapped my arms further around his nape, buried my face in the crook of his neck, and sucked in his sweet smell. I barely felt how fast he was running and risked a glance.

Stupid idea! I felt a little dizzy as I watched the area behind us scurry by in a blur.

I squinted my eyes again, held onto my angel and planted a kiss on his throat, which he lovingly acknowledged with his lips on my temple.

"Just make sure you don't run into anything!" I teased him.

He chuckled.


"Oh my God!" I exclaimed as we entered the house. My eyes widened. "Did a bomb hit here?"

Dishes, cutlery, empty packaging of all kinds of food, drink bottles, pillows, wool blankets. All this generously distributed over and around the sofa and table.

"Those were your kids!" he said, faking anger. "Mine always clean up after themselves!" he added before I could comment on his choice of words.

I rolled my eyes.

Of course. His children were perfect! Mine the opposite!

I didn't have enough strength to stand on my own. Or to manage anything alone in general. Therefore, he put me on a stool in the bathroom, handed me the prepared toothbrush and began to undress me. And then himself, which I controlled very carefully.

We briefly discussed whether bathing might make more sense, but I doubted it.

I already had slight circulation problems in my normal state when I wanted to get up again from the hot water. They were always over very quickly once I was standing again, but the way I felt now, that would probably be different today. The water felt really good on my skin. It revived me a little.

Afterwards, I lay on the bed and Edward very thoroughly made sure I was dry.

I enjoyed how he gently ran over my skin with a towel. His hand lay gently on the little Knobs, and he put a tender kiss on the skin there.

"You've gained weight - since yesterday," Edward said.

He helped me to stand in front of the mirror.

"You are beautiful, Bella!" my angel whispered.

I looked at the naked woman.

She smiled and stroked very gently, but a little unhappy about the more than obvious bulge. The angel in the mirror, standing behind the pregnant woman, also smiled. He was right - as far as gaining weight was concerned, at least. Undoubtedly. But that bothered me only to a limited extent. My dissatisfaction lay in the fact that I didn't seem to have nine months. My first pregnancy I had missed for the most part. I had resolved to experience this time consciously, to study the changes in my body and was curious how the baby would affect my mood. I knew Sonya's mood swings and always found them funny. But I was sure that I would not have something like that.

"Little Knob is growing pretty fast," I noted, a little disillusioned. I was really offended about that.

"Little Knob?" asked Edward - smiling delightedly.

I explained the temporary naming while he brought me back to the bed. I breathed consciously for a moment.

It had strained me to stand in front of the mirror for a few minutes.

Concerned, Edward looked at me as he knelt in front of me.

"Maybe Carlisle was right after all," he muttered.

"With what?" I inquired.

Edward breathed deeply, as if forcing himself to rest.

"He tried to kill our baby last night before it could hurt you!" he growled.

I was startled and immediately put my hands protectively on the Knob.

"Is that what you want?" I asked, flaring up.

"No. Absolutely not, Bella. But the fact that you're already so weak now raises the suspicion that this baby is stronger than you are. And I'm not willing to risk your life for the baby's!"

I let myself fall with my back on the bed, stroked my Knob and thought about his words.

Edward lay down with me, but we were silent for some time.

I had said - or thought - that I would do anything to have this child. To give Edward his child. But was that right? Sure, I was ready for it. That's not what I meant. I was more concerned with the question of whether I had the right to give up my own life for it. Carlisle's opinion on this really couldn't be denied. If I was incapable of standing or walking for a moment now, what else would be in store for me? Maybe I would kill both of us if I held on to it. And then who would benefit? Nobody. Edward would have neither me nor our baby. My twins would no longer have a mother ... I wanted this baby. Cost it FAST what it may.

I turned to Edward.

"I understand and respect your opinion. But let's not decide that now. At the moment, I'm actually not feeling that bad. I feel powerless, but I think it's possible that our baby is not solely responsible for that. The last few days were catastrophic. You were not there, and I was afraid that I would never see you again. I hardly ate or drank anything. The little Knob helped itself to my blood. I was a nervous and physical wreck. But today the world looks quite different again. Much more beautiful and more colorful, although there are thick clouds hanging outside. You are with us! ... Maybe the desire, to have the baby really is too dangerous, but I want to try. You have no explanation for this, so let's try to give this miracle a chance. Maybe I'll hold out long enough for it to be viable on its own without it being too dangerous for me. Like the premature babies who then lie in these 'boxes'. But maybe we just see everything too black. It could be that I'm just so weak because it's all happening too quickly, and my body can't quite keep up. Maybe it will just stay that way without getting worse. Let's just see every day how it goes," I said.

Edward looked at me, lovingly kissing my forehead and pulling me a little closer.

He reconsidered my words, I felt it.

It passed a little while until he put a hand to my cheek and lifted my gaze into his.

"You are right, my heart. We should not make hasty decisions. We cannot foresee how this will continue to develop. I love you Bella and I wish that we have this child. I promise you that I will do my utmost to protect the baby and you," Edward said meaningfully. Then he smirked slightly. "But I have to take a promise from you in return!"

"Which one is it?"

"Promise me you'll let me know how you're doing! Anytime! Without any excuses! And without downplaying it! It's important, Bella. I know that you never let yourself see weakness, how much you are a martyr. But in this case, keeping something to yourself can be life-threatening for you. No matter what you feel, no matter how silly, unimportant, or trivial you think it is, you must tell me! I can only care for you both properly if you are open and honest with me!" he looked me insistently in the eyes.

"I promise, Edward!" I vowed solemnly. This went massively against the grain, but I realized that he was probably right.

As a reward for my promise, I finally got an intoxicating kiss that did quite a bit inside me. My hands began to run over his dreamlike body. He noticed, of course, that I wanted more than just a single kiss.

Reprovingly he looked at me. Almost incredulously.

"I'm feel hot!" I purred ambiguously. After all, it had been his wish that I always told him how I felt.

"Don't you think maybe you're not in the right physical condition for this?" he inquired skeptically with a raised eyebrow.

"Maybe I don't, but you do!" I purred, turning more towards him and reaching for his middle with one hand.

"You are ... impossible!" he sighed and surrendered ...

Afterwards, I felt even weaker. But also incredibly alive.

He dressed me in comfortable clothes, wrapped me in the blanket again, and carried me over to breakfast.


Becky and Marcus were already sitting at the table speculating where their predators might have gotten lost.

Edward said that Carlisle was in the house, but that he was keeping a low profile. He didn't want to disturb our family, but wanted to talk to both of us after the meal.

Edward said it with a hint of rejection in his velvety voice, which I ignored temporarily. Instead, I turned my attention to the table.

Carlisle had prepared some things and my stomach growled loudly for food.

I was really hungry. But I was also really scared. My Knob had not really let me eat anything for three days. If it continued to have such assertiveness, I would have to give up sooner than I had assumed.

The twins soon arrived, and breakfast went comfortably.

Edward was concerned because I was ingesting truly little.

I explained my plan, which I had already tried on the previous days. Eat only a little, but steadily throughout the day. On Thursday, the baked apples and later the cookies had messed up my plan.

But as far as I remembered, that had worked yesterday.

Plan or no plan - I ate three rolls, a bagel, two cinnamon buns, and still sat over a well-stuffed bowl of yogurt and lots of fruit.

The wolves actually had to wait in amazement that I was done eating.

There had never been anything like this before.

I felt sick afterwards, but at least it didn't feel like it was all coming back up for me at the moment.

After breakfast, the children distributed the Advent calendar gifts. The teenagers each had one, I had two, and Edward had three in front of him.

Edward unwrapped one and out came a little music box. It had a crank that you had to operate it by hand, and it played a few bars of a Christmas carol.

In one of mine was something sweet, which I did not dare to eat now.

Provisional.

Then the children. They had a poem in theirs, which was spread over many snippets and first had to be put together.

My other one contained a special spice. I smiled.

That Esmé had thought of that! It wasn't a particularly expensive one or anything, but most stores around here didn't have it. I needed it for some very specific Christmas cookies, which I usually didn't bake because I was missing that little ingredient.

Edward opened another cute little verse about impatient children on Christmas Eve, though the kids sitting at the table unanimously agreed it definitely didn't mean them! From the last little bag, Edward pulled out a sprig of mistletoe.

It would get a place of honor in our home.

The kids cleaned up everything, but subsequently sat there indecisively. They had absolutely nothing planned for today. The group didn't have an appointment until tomorrow.

Edward and I made some suggestions.

Schoolwork, cleaning their rooms ...

"We can't get that bored at all!" said Jake, and the kids moved through the house to search for a 'meaningful' activity.


"How are you?", Edward asked me attentively.

"Very good," I answered almost truthfully. I had already told him that I was sick from eating so much. I had the impression that my energy was returning. Very, very slowly, but steadily. "I'd like to lie down for a while," I said anyway. I felt stuffed to the gills.

Edward stood up and offered me his hands as Carlisle stepped through the doorway.

Immediately Edward turned to him, but protectively in front of me. He suppressed the growl that was undoubtedly in his throat.

Carlisle took a step to the side, nodded in greeting to me, and made no move to approach me without being asked.

"I apologize to both of you!" Carlisle said ruefully, but Edward did not move a millimeter. "Yes, I would have ended the pregnancy yesterday if David hadn't gotten in my way, but only because I saw your life, Bella, threatened. Yesterday I thought I could hardly keep you with us, as weak as your heart was. I thought that this creature would not only suck out your blood, but your whole life. Just as immortal children cannot restrain themselves."

"Immortal children?" I asked, puzzled.

"It is forbidden to transform children. They are not controllable and know no limits, as their spirit remains that of a child. They exterminate entire small towns with their bloodthirst, but no one stops them, since everyone is flattered by their charm," Edward muttered sullenly.

My hands shifted on my belly.

Would my Knob be such an uncontrollable child, too?

"I don't know how your child will be. It will be born, not transformed. Moreover, it will be a half-breed. In this respect I do not assume that it is comparable with a normal immortal child ... I know that I have shaken your trust in me profoundly with this decision. It would not have been my right to make such a decision alone. I realize that I would have gone too far with it. It is your child and I have no right to interfere. I'm sorry!" Carlisle further explained himself.

I nodded at him conciliatorily.

He was a doctor to protect and preserve life. And he wanted to do nothing else. Preserve my life. But Edward looked indecisive and seemed to be mulling over his words. Or his credibility.

Carlisle wanted to walk toward us, but Edward growled restrainedly, which immediately stopped Carlisle.

I took Edward's hand, he knelt beside me and immediately looked relaxed. I put his hand on our baby and caressed over his cheek.

"He is your father! Forgive his overzealousness," I begged him.

"I promise you, Edward, that I will not harm Bella or your baby! ... If you allow me, I will help and support you as much as I can!" Carlisle affirmed anew, while Edward looked me in the eyes searching for answers.

"I don't think we should renounce his experience," I speculated.

It took a few more seconds before my angel nodded.

I rewarded his insight with a gentle kiss on the lips.

He helped me up from the chair and put his arms around me supportingly.

I still felt a little shaky.

Carlisle bridged the steps to us as I held out my hands to him.

"You look much better, Bella. Looking at you today, one has the impression that yesterday happened in another life ... I'm very happy for you!" he stated equanimously.

"Thank you, Carlisle ... You're going to be a grandfather!" I said.

Carlisle smiled with emotion and gave me a fatherly kiss on the forehead.

Edward and Carlisle hugged each other.

I was relieved that they had made up. I sat down again.

Standing was not yet my thing.

The doctors came to the consensus that I should rest first.

That's exactly what I had intended to do.

Edward wrapped me in a blanket again due to the weather and carried me over to our house.

That's still where I felt most comfortable, even though I loved being in this house.


He put me down on the sofa, I snuggled into the pillows, and he played the piano for me. I dozed off to the familiar sound of my lullaby.

When I woke up again, my feet were on his lap and his eyes were fixed on my face.

"Don't you get bored watching me while I sleep?" I inquired as I stretched a bit.

"Never!"

I pulled myself upright by his hand and mentally unfolded my limbs. Heedlessly, I stood up.

"Wow ..." I mumbled.

I wavered.

Edward held me immediately, but it was over quickly. With Edward's hands within immediate reach, I took a few steps.

I walked on my own legs. I felt invincible!

However, he did not refrain from following me.

It was better that way. Who knew how long I could hold myself upright.

After my extensive stroll to the bathroom, I was glad to have arrived back on the sofa.

I was completely exhausted. But hey, I hadn't thrown up! The best day of my life. Well, almost.

By means of an apple, I sought new strength while we waited for Carlisle.


"So. The first question is, how the heck did you guys do this!" wanted Carlisle to know.

"Um ... maybe YOU should brush up on your medical studies! What are you doing with Esmé all night? Playing Monopoly?" Edward taunted his father.

I couldn't help but chuckle, though I also wondered a bit about my fiancé.

Such sayings were more Emmett's style.

Carlisle was as pale as ever, but somehow there was a glimmer of a blush.

"But I don't have an answer for that. I have considered that you and Emmett were already incapable of procreation as humans because of how badly you were injured immediately before your transformation ..." but then Edward began to explain what I had rudimentarily brought up on Wednesday.

Carlisle agreed that this could be a fundamental explanation, but since Edward had already ruled it out, we came to no conclusion. Carlisle had a file with him.

"Very well. Finding this out is not the most important thing ... I took your blood yesterday. Congratulations! You're pregnant," he said with a slight smirk.

"Thank you?" I asked. That ... we already knew.

"In the tenth to twelfth week!" he added, and I was speechless.

Edward took the file from him and looked inside.

"Excuse me?", I inquired, perplexed.

"Through the blood, pregnancy can be determined by human chorionic gonadotropin. It is also called pregnancy hormone or HCG for short. In the first few weeks, this value increases rapidly. In the period from the tenth to the twelfth week of pregnancy, it peaks at up to 100,000 to 200,000 units per liter. After that, it goes down and then stays constant until you give birth. Your reading is 186,000, or let's say that's where it was yesterday."

"But ... I can't ... have been pregnant that long! Without realizing it," I stammered, mentally a bit overwhelmed.

"I agree with Bella on that. I would have noticed such a change," said Edward.

"I am also sure that I would have noticed if this time period was true. Therefore, I suggest that we take a closer look at the side effects. David said you've already thought about this and have come to the conclusion yourself that everything is moving way too fast," Carlisle suggested.

I nodded.

Edward picked up a calendar and I repeated my little timeline from yesterday.

When I had which complaints or symptoms. Only today I didn't need the Internet. Two doctors were available to me. I was embarrassed and uncomfortable at times to lay it all out in front of Carlisle, but I understood the necessity of it. At the same time, Carlisle did not give me the feeling that I had just stripped myself naked emotionally.

"Well then. It certainly won't be possible to determine a definite day, but I'm thinking of a time of about ten days," Carlisle finally stated.

Edward was already smiling in love at me while I counted. But I did not get far with it.

"How are you doing today, Bella. You received two blood transfusions yesterday and today you ate something again for the first time."

"To say I'm doing splendidly would probably be an exaggeration. But definitely better than yesterday. Yesterday I barely had the strength to lift a hand. Earlier, I even got upstairs and back on my own," I announced proudly.

"No nausea, no urge to vomit?"

"No, nothing."

"I already have a theory for this. The baby might have refused you nourishment because you denied it their food. As you yourself suspected, it apparently needs blood and when you no longer had enough to quench its thirst, it rebelled. A warning signal, if one wants to call it that. Now it has gotten blood yesterday and lets you take up the nutrients important for you again ... We should continue to give you blood regularly so that the child doesn't die of thirst and doesn't eat from you. But I cannot say yet what the dosage will be. For this it is absolutely necessary that you pay attention to your body and do not ignore the signals it gives you. It is absolutely essential that you keep us informed of your condition at all times," Carlisle made clear.

I looked down at the floor, a little embarrassed, while I noticed a smug chuckle next to me.

One could really think that they had agreed on something.

"Okay," I mumbled. "Wait a minute! ..." then occurred to me afterwards. "Blood? ... By means of needles?" I asked horrified and noticed how I already became pale at the thought of it.

"I suppose you could drink it, too, if that's more to your liking," Carlisle offered an alternative.

"I'll pass," I contorted my face in disgust.

"And such a thing wants to become a scary vampire!" queried Edward, chuckling, and pulled me into his arms.

I had not yet given much thought to how I was going to get a grip on my usual reaction to blood - that it basically made me sick and dizzy - as a vampire. With such things I would only deal them when they came.

"Then there would be one last issue for now," Carlisle said after his chuckles ended as well. "Every pregnancy should be managed medically."

An ice-cold shiver ran down my spine and I shook myself involuntarily.

"Bella?" asked Edward immediately anxiously.

"Nothing. It's okay," I said, prompting my lungs to continue breathing normally. Edward, of course, did not believe my appeasement. He heard my racing heart far too clearly for that. "When I found out on Wednesday that I was actually pregnant, I realized that only one of the two of you could examine me ... I hyperventilated!" I admitted sheepishly.

The two men smirked and exchanged a few vampiric glances with each other. Carlisle nodded at some point and left before Edward pulled me into his arms.

"What did you guys talk about?" I asked. I couldn't stand it when Edward left me out just because he thought it scared me or was none of my business. Especially when they talked without me, while it was clearly about me.

"It occurred to me that I could examine you without you really feeling it as such. Therefore, I asked him exactly what kind of examinations are necessary and to what extent ... To be honest, Bella, I don't feel competent enough. I learned all this at some point, but only theoretically, while Carlisle can look back on many years of practical experience. He has already helped countless children see the light of day. Also, I'm too emotionally involved and might be too worried or just too cautious about some things for fear that I might somehow harm you or our baby," Edward admitted.

It was a weakness he admitted to, and it apparently tugged at his self-confidence a bit.

He lowered his gaze in shame.

I wanted to cheer him up and put a hand to his cheek, because I thought it was silly that he saw himself belittled in his pride. I had barely touched him when he took my hand, kissed it, and looked at me again.

As if he had to convince me of his opinion because my life depended on it, he went on talking before I could say anything.

"Carlisle takes his doctor-patient confidentiality very seriously. Even I won't know anything from him, not even in his thoughts, unless you specifically allow it. And because of Sonya, the examination room is already equipped for any pregnancy-related side effects. Appropriate medication, equipment, or instruments. During pregnancy, for the delivery, or aftercare. He is prepared for all eventualities that a normal pregnancy might bring and he is already thinking about what with you ..."

I took his face in my hands and gently kissed his lips, to interrupt his restless and nervous chatter.

"Please stop commending Carlisle to me ... I trust Carlisle and I will go along with him as my doctor. I even prefer him to you. You are my man. The father of our baby. Even though Carlisle is very close to me, I will have more of a patient-doctor relationship feeling with him. If only because he has treated me so many times for my countless injuries. But I want you to be there all the time. Not because I don't trust Carlisle or it will still make me uncomfortable, but because it's your baby too. You shall participate in all facets of it ... Besides, I'm not sure you'd really examine me properly if you got with your hands too close to me," I smirked in conclusion.

"I am honestly relieved about this decision ... You know, I actually noticed a difference this morning, but what it means, whether it's natural or not, I couldn't say," he said in an easy manner.

"Then you only slept with me because you wanted to inspect me medically? Because you wanted to check your competence?" I asked indignantly and jumped up from the sofa. A mistake! As soon as I was standing, I felt like a headbutt would knock me out.

"Bella!" I heard somewhere still horrified.

I felt myself sinking, but also that I was not reaching the floor. I blinked and held my head. And marveled.

Over again? Nothing spun, nothing felt dizzy or lightheaded.

I scrambled out of Edward's arms and tried anew to stand up.

Slowly. It worked.

I put a hand on my belly.

It felt a little empty.

"If I were human, I'd have had umpteen heart attacks over you by now!" complained Edward, running his hand gracefully through his hair when I casually mentioned I could use something to eat.

"Then we can be glad that you are already dead!" I stated matter-of-factly.

He smiled in a forbidden manner and standing in front of me, intertwined his fingers with mine.

"You are life-threatening! Even for vampires!", he kissed me mischievously. "You seduced me, and I was defenseless," I got an answer after all.


We asked the children by text message what they thought about food. Noon was over and the predators would certainly be on the verge of starvation after their meager breakfast.

They were staying over there in the main house and yes, they were hungry. All four of them. They were already standing in the big kitchen diskussing. We could therefore take a little time.

I put on shoes and a thick jacket, and we strolled over. However, Edward carried me the last bit.

In the living room, he gently set me down. He took my jacket to the wardrobe and returned with a blood pressure monitor while the children brought me something to drink and sat with me. They had spent the morning in the playroom.

My blood pressure was too low.

"Blood or food? What do you feel like?" asked Edward.

"I think both," I reflected. I was hungry, but a certain limpness had appeared during the walk.

He called Carlisle in, who was already hold the blood bag in his hand. As well as the needle for my hand.

I then felt nauseous in advance. So did Jake and Leah, who ducked into the kitchen. I wish I could go with them.

Carlisle took my hand, disinfected it, and grabbed the needle out of the sterile package.

With eyes widened in fear, I followed his every move.

"Bella," Edward directed my gaze gently to him, who was kneeling on the floor in front of me.

He pulled me forward to the edge of the cushion, his arms wrapped around me, and he put his lips to my ear.

"Our day alone in Portland …," he murmured.

I closed my eyes at the thought of that day.

Everything had been perfect. The trip with the boat, the junk store, ice skating. And then the night! The sea of candles, the shared bath, his massage.

"One of the best days of my life!" I said enthusiastically.

"It was ten days ago," he whispered, looking at me again.

My heart skipped a beat.

"You mean?" I asked vaguely and couldn't believe it.

"I'm sure of it. Something changed that night, but neither of us knew what it was," he confirmed, stroking over my cheek and kissing me.

On that perfect night, our little Knob was created. A child of all-consuming love.

When we broke away from the kiss, we were alone, and the transfusion was already underway.

I had not even noticed the sting.


For lunch there was spaghetti with a pretty tasty cream sauce and after that I felt perfectly fine again.

I followed Carlisle - on my own - into the examination room.

Weighing, measuring abdominal circumference and blood pressure, urine and blood sample and the like. That would now become a regular procedure. Then came the part that I found really nasty. I would never again be ashamed of Carlisle attending to a sprained finger or a bruised knee of mine. Because all that was nothing compared to the compromising gynecological examination by my father-in-law!

My cheeks threatened to scorch as I hung with my legs in the stirrups attached to the stretcher.

Despite everything, however, I also knew that my own thoughts alone made this situation unbearable.

The heat inside me was very slow to subside, although Carlisle behaved absolutely professionally, as expected. He spoke matter-of-factly equanimously, did not touch me more than necessary, explained everything in an understandable way without giving me the feeling of being at his mercy in any way.

Granted, he didn't have a chance to be unseemly. Aside from the fact that there was no way I was sizing Carlisle up like that, Edward was sitting by my side, and he would certainly be following Carlisle's thoughts very closely for his own medical interest. He tried to relieve the heat in my cheeks. Without significant success, by the way.

As soon as Carlisle was finished, he turned away from me and left the field to Edward, so to speak.

Much too quickly, much too relieved, I sat up with a jerk and collapsed against Edward's upper body. But the dizziness was over again immediately, and Edward helped me get dressed.

"What about an ultrasound?" I inquired while still sitting on the stretcher.

"I tried that yesterday, but it didn't yield any usable images," Carlisle replied.

Nevertheless, he tried again today. He didn't think he would see anything more today, but for one thing, I was pretty curious, and for another, maybe he could at least see where exactly the baby was lying right now or if this protective cover was changing. For that I needed to expose my belly only a little bit without taking off my clothes again.

Well, for me it was an image interference, lighter in some places, darker in others.

But the doctors present diligently discussed and threw a bunch of technical terms at each other.

I put my arms under my head and closed my eyes.

This babble of voices somehow had a soporific effect. They didn't argue, but exchanged opinions and assumptions, while this cold 'thing' was pressed over my belly. In this respect, they spoke calmly.

I dozed off.


"Bella, dearest," I was kissed awake immensely pleasantly. "We're getting visitors!"

"How long have I been asleep?" I yawned and stretched. On the stretcher in the examination room.

"Just a few minutes. So you didn't miss anything," my angel chuckled.

"And who's coming?" I asked.

"The godfather of our Knob," Edward said, eagerly awaiting a reaction from me.

"David?" I pondered. Someone else didn't come to mind.

Edward smiled with relief, in a way. He helped me down from the stretcher, but I felt well enough to go on my own.

Were these fluctuations now normal for me?


The Mitchell family appeared in full. David, Sonya, Daniel, Luces, Deacon, and Emma.

Our party was also complete. Edward, me, Jake, Becky, Leah, and Marcus. And Carlisle.

Luckily the rest of the vampires were not there, otherwise we would have stood in the hallway for an hour to greet everyone properly.

I was startled when I saw David. He was moving very carefully, and his nose was black and blue.

"What happened to you?" I asked, stunned. Had he looked like that yesterday?

"Walked into a door?" he shrugged with his shoulders.

Such a pathetic lie that even Emma could expose.

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously and crossed my arms in front of my chest.

"Against a Native American one. Or rather, two of them!" he admitted softly as he hugged me.

I gasped indignantly, freed myself and wanted to read the riot act to my children, but David forbade me to even turn to them.

"They already apologized!" he whispered to me.

"Who's up for a swim?" asked Jake enthusiastically.

All the children, even the almost grown-up ones, shouted out at once wildly, "Me, me ..." and away they went.

I was surprised that the children had swimming suits with them.

Sonya enlightened me, however, that the twins had already made this suggestion this morning so that there wouldn't be eight children swirling around two pregnant women.

We spent a quiet afternoon together as a foursome at Edward's house.

I had even managed the stroll there completely alone. We did not speak about the misunderstanding of the last few days. It had become meaningless.


Thanks for reading!