Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or anything associated with the series.
A/N: I don't re-read what I write after I've written it. I just use spell check and then call it a day. So there are probably lots of mistakes; I apologize in advance for them.
A/N #2: I'm really sorry for being away for sooo long; long story short: life sucks. But, I've finally decided to get back into writing… with a new story. That's not to say that I'll ignore my unfinished works, I just want to start on something new to get me back into the swing of things. I've also decided that after I post a couple chapters here, I'll be switching over to Pa tre on. I'll only post the first two chapters of all my new stories here and then the rest on Pa tre on; I will eventually post the whole story once it's done, but Pa tre on will get the chapters as soon as I write them; which will be at least 4 times a month, probably more. I know some people may not like it, but that's the solution I have right now that helps me so I actually can write, and ensures that everyone will still get to eventually read the stories.
It had only been a month since the Cullen's had abandoned Bella. It had only been a month since her entire world had closed in around her. The person she had thought would be there for the rest of her life, the rest of eternity, left her heartbroken in the forest, completely and utterly lost on how to get home.
When she was eventually brought home, she became numb from all the pain she felt from what her… ex… had done to her. Not only had he taken away what she had truly believed to be her one, true love, but he had also taken away her adopted family. They had taken her in, with practically no questions asked from most of them, and treated her like one of them.
They had filled in the void in life that had been created by her real family. Esme had become a mom for her. For once she felt what it was like to be taken of like a beloved child instead of taking care of the adult-figure. Carlisle was the perfect father figure she had wanted when she was growing up. Nothing against Charlie, but by the time Bella lived with him, they had missed their chance at bonding. They were just two room-mates that one was legally required to care for until she at least finished high school. But Carlisle was always there with a gentle smile and non-judgmental eyes and always knew what to say; even when Bella struggled with what she wanted to say, Carlisle seemed to know.
The others, well, they were her siblings. Alice was her over-energetic, self-proclaimed best friend. She was always available to help put a smile on Bella's face when she needed it… at least, she used to be. Jasper was such a stoic presence, a steady figure in the background that although he didn't say anything, Bella knew he was there and always available when she had a question for him about homework or something random about life. He was a steady, reliable presence. Emmett was always there with a laugh, making sure that Bella never got carried away with taking things too seriously. He was always a breath of fresh air and always had a joke at the ready. Then there was Rosalie. She was blunt to a point. She was the only one, though Bella hadn't known at the time, that told her how it really was. She always told Bella that she wasn't meant to be in her family; that Bella was a risk to them all; and unfortunately it seemed she was right. She really didn't belong.
With the exception of Rosalie, they had all acted like Bella belonged, like I would be with them forever. But in one afternoon, he had ruined it all. He took my whole family away.
"Are you going someplace Bells?" Charlie asked as she walked into the kitchen. He was already dressed for his shift at the station, drinking coffee as he read the newspaper.
"Yeah, I was um, thinking of going out." She finished, not able to come up with a location quick enough that he would believe. Not that Bella thought Charlie would actually question her about where she was going. He knew she wouldn't do anything illegal or sketchy and was probably just happy she was willingly going out someplace that wasn't school or work.
Charlie lowered his cup that he was about to take a sip from and seemed to fight against a smile appearing on his face. He likely didn't want to appear too happy and cause Bella to change her mind about her decision to leave the house on her own.
"Oh?" Charlie asked, momentarily at a loss of what to say. "Where do you plan on going?" He asked, causing Bella to mentally curse at her bad luck. It really was too much to hope that he wouldn't ask follow up questions; he was chief of police after all.
"Well, uh, I was planning on just taking a walk on a trail someplace." Bella answered, trying her best not to fidget too much and get caught in her lie. Bella had one place she wanted to go and she didn't think Charlie would even remotely approve of her decision.
Charlie picked his cup back up, apparently losing interest in the conversation; or at least not willing to be too nosy in case his daughter changed her mind.
"Any particular trail in mind?" He asked as he looked back at the newspaper, hopefully about to drop the conversation.
"Um, not really." Bella answered as she slowly moved to look for a quick meal she could take on the go. Hopefully a breakfast bar of some sort was still around in one the cupboards. The sooner Bella left, the less chance she had of backing out of her plan. "I figured I would just drive someplace and stop when someplace looks easy enough." She answered as she found a granola bar in the back corner of a cabinet. It would do just find for quick breakfast.
"Well, just make sure you don't get lost." Charlie cautioned, ever the worried parent. "You remember to take your phone with you just in case." He added.
Shortly after the Cullens had left and Bella had been catatonic, he was worried that Bella would get into some kind of situation, whether at work or even at school, where she wouldn't be able to handle since she was so emotionally unbalanced, so he got her a phone to keep on her at all times to have for emergencies. It wasn't a fancy phone, but it made Charlie feel better that Bella had a way to call him from wherever she was if she needed him for anything.
"Sure dad." Bella said before making a quick exit. She hadn't even left the house yet and she could already feel her nerves kicking in.
Getting into her truck, she started to eat her food. She would eat it slowly and hope it worked as a decent distraction as she drove the very familiar road. She didn't have a radio in her truck anymore to be able to use it as a distraction, so anything she could do for a distraction would be welcomed.
By the time she was turning onto the long, well-hidden driveway, that was starting to overgrow with foliage that may someday block the entrance, she had finished her granola and her fingers were tightly gripping the steering wheel. She took several deep breaths, knowing that it was only going to get harder as she got closer to the Cullen's house.
But she was determined to get inside.
She had no idea if there was security, some type of security system that was left on since no one was there. Or would they not be concerned about anyone breaking in since anything anyone would steal could easily be replaced? She was also worried about the painful memories of promises made that would never be kept. Would she be so trapped in her memories and just have a complete panic attack and not even get to what she had meant to do at their house?
All she wanted was to go to… his… room and see if she could find any clue about why they all abandoned her. After all the promises that most of them had made about her being part of their family, she wanted to know why they left. There had to be a better reason that what she was told. He said that he was leaving to protect her from the pain of being involved in their world; but from what she was experiencing, there was nothing more painful they could have done besides leaving her like they did.
For once, she actually had to pay more attention to how she was driving and where to try and avoid random tree branches that had fallen in the few storms that had hit the area since they had left. Her truck was nice and sturdy, but it was old; no reason to add extra stress to it if she didn't need to. She was too determined to get to the house, to investigate his room, to let a stray branch deter her. She had questions and she was determined to get those answers in the only way she could; regardless of how much it hurt.
As she parked her car in front of the house, even though it had been several months since they had left and even with the couple storms that had come through the town, the house still looked better than most of the houses in town, she took several deep breaths to calm her nerves. It was just more evidence that no matter how much he wanted to erase their presence, there was no getting rid of them. It was as hard as she thought it would be to get out of her truck; but at least she was there. One step at a time.
After a couple minutes of taking deep, calming breaths, Bella was finally able to leave her truck. She kept her eyes on the ground, not willing to look at the door in case memories would overwhelm her and cause her to stop. She couldn't let that happen.
Once she was at the front door, she raised her hand to open the door but paused half way there. Before, when they were still here, the door was always unlocked and open for her to just walk right in. She used to feel to welcomed, so at home. It was unnerving to know that she goes inside, it will likely be either entirely empty, or mostly empty.
She could admit that she was scared to go inside; she was afraid of how she may react. She wasn't sure if what she would see would destroy her, or if it would enrage her. She wasn't sure which was better, her possible anger or her continued despair.
Bella felt the only way she could really move on, just as he had wanted, was to get her answers, to figure out if she really wasn't good enough for him, or if he really was just too afraid for her. She needed to know. Getting through was the real first step to her mission; she was sure it would be the hardest thing for her to do.
But before she could move any closer to the handle, it was suddenly swung inwards and immediately leaning against the door jamb was a blonde vampire she had never met before. She had a frown on her face that was almost in anger. The golden eyes had gone from clear confusion on why a human would be willing to walk up to the Cullen's old home that they no longer lived at, to a giddiness that was on the alarming side.
"Oh, this is just too great." The woman said with a wide smile. "What are you doing here, trying to vandalize the place; or did you just come here to visit me?"
Bella dropped her hand in shock; she really hadn't expected anyone to actually be in the house. She really had thought the house would be empty and she would be able to be alone, in peace, while she went through the house looking for answers; or at least get some kind of closure that she had really been left behind by her family.
Now, there was this vampire, one she had never met before; all of her plans were completely out the window. She couldn't be here anymore; she could never go there again.
"I uh, I'm sorry. I didn't think anyone was here." Bella nervously answered, afraid to make the unknown vampire angry. While she may have gold eyes, Bella had been told plenty of times how delicious she smelled; she didn't want to risk angering the vampire. "I'll just go." She said, knowing it would be safer for her to just leave than to hang around.
As she turned to leave, a hand grabbed her shoulder, preventing her from leaving.
"Oh come now, you just as well as I do, that you are not allowed to leave." The woman said as she started to pull Bella into the house. It took a lot of muscle control for Bella to simply not fight against being pulled inside, there was no chance she would be able to release herself against a vampire anyways; why fight the inevitable? "Hey, guys, we have a guest!" She shouted into the house, even though whoever there had to be a vampire also and likely already knew she was there.
This was turning out to be one of Bella's worst ideas ever, she thought as she was dragged further into the house that no longer felt as welcoming as it used to.