Chapter 6

A moment later, a gentle knock sounded at Bella's bedroom door. "Bella?" Renee's voice called out softly. "Hey, sweetie, how are you feeling?"

Bella shifted more upright in bed, self-conscious that there had been a boy in her bed not five seconds earlier and now her mom was standing in the doorway. "Um, fine."

"You have a friend at the front door. Angela. Do you want me to let her in or send her away?"

Bella was surprised. "Um, you can send her in."

Renee gently shut the door to go let Angela in. Bella hurriedly tidied her room and threw on a hoodie to cover up the scratches on her chest that Edward had just pointed out.

Angela gently knocked on Bella's door. "Bella?" came her soft voice.

"Come in!" Bella called. Angela opened the door and smiled at her. She had her backpack on an was carrying her jacket. She must have come over straight from school again, like yesterday. "Hi Angela," Bella greeted, somewhat awkwardly. This was her first time having Angela over to her place and in her room, there was a certain level of intimacy that marked a level of friendship she hadn't been sure they were at yet. But after what happened, Bella presumed that they had reached a certain level of intimacy with each other.

"Hi Bella," Angela replied, equally awkwardly. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Bella said automatically. "Um, come in. Do you want to sit down?" Bella invited, sitting on the edge of her bed. Angela sat a few feet away on the bed, angling toward Bella.

"Thanks," she said.

"So," Bella started, unsure. "umm…"

Angela made to open her backpack. "I brought you this week's homework. But all the teachers also said not to worry, all the due dates can be pushed back if you're not… feeling up to it."

"Thanks, Angela," Bella said, accepting the small stack from her. "Um, do they know? Do people at school know what happened?"

Angela shook her head firmly. "No, I told everyone you were sick. I hope that's okay, I wasn't sure, but I figured you probably didn't want people to know. Or if you did, you'd want to be the one to tell them."

Bella smiled appreciatively at Angela. "Thanks. And you assumed right. And Jessica? She hasn't told anyone?"

Angela shook her head again. "I told her that it wasn't right to gossip about something like this. She promised not to say anything unless you said it was okay."

Bella felt herself sag in relief, although she wasn't sure how long Jessica could manage to not gossip before cracking. She made a mental note to reach out to Jessica to make her own plea for her silence.

"So, how are you really?" Angela asked. "I mean, you don't have to say, but I'd be surprised if you were actually fine."

Bella looked down. "I don't know. I mean, yeah, not really okay, I guess. I'm still pretty shaken up by it."

Angela's presence stirred a memory Bella hadn't yet processed. She recalled Angela's panic filled voice calling out her name and screaming at Jessica to call 911. She looked up with sudden earnestness. "Angela, I want to thank you for finding me. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't."

"I'm glad we did find you," Angela said.

"How did you find me?" Bella asked curiously.

Angela fidgeted uncomfortably. "We were starting to get worried when you never showed up at the restaurant. Jessica was starving, so we ended up getting a table, assuming that you'd show up while we were eating. But you never did. We waited outside the restaurant for ten more minutes before deciding to get in the car and drive around looking for you, assuming you had gotten lost." Angela paused, looking down, remembering. "I was not prepared to find you like that. I mean, clearly, you'd been attacked, and um, I mean, your pants were, and um, it's just something that you never think would happen here, or to someone you know. And then I saw all the blood, and then I was so scared that you were going to die." Angela wiped a tear that betrayed how much this was rattling her.

Bella put a comforting hand on Angela's knee. Angela smiled appreciatively at Bella. "I'm sorry. I really shouldn't be putting all this on you. You shouldn't be comforting me. It should be the other way around."

"No, it's okay," Bella said. Frankly it was a refreshing change to not be the one crying, though it was disconcerting that she was still the subject matter of it.

"Anyway," Angela continued. "After the ambulance took you away, we had to stick around for another hour to give the police our statement. My parents were really worried when we got home so late, I had to tell them what happened, I mean, I was also pretty upset. But don't worry," she looked up suddenly, "they won't tell anyone."

Bella smiled understandingly. "It's okay."

"Anyway, my parents think I should see someone, a therapist, to talk about what I saw, and I'm thinking about it."

"I think that's a good idea, Angela," Bella encouraged. "You should definitely talk to someone if you're struggling."

Angela nodded, then looked at Bella inquisitively. "What about you? Are you thinking about seeing someone? A therapist or something?"

The idea hadn't really occurred to her. "I don't know, I hadn't really thought about it," she admitted.

"You should think about it. It might be a good idea. You know, you should definitely talk to someone if you're struggling," Angela parroted Bella's words back to her with a playful smile.

Bella laughed at Angela's maneuver. "Wow, you're good," she said.

Angela joined in with Bella, laughing for a moment before taking on a more serious expression. "I just, I know that if I'm struggling, it must be nothing compared to what you're going through. I care about you and want you to get the help you need."

"Thanks, Angela," Bella said genuinely. "I appreciate the suggestion. I'll think about it, I promise."

Angela nodded, placated. A smile crept into her face. "So…." she started with a playful tone to her voice. "What's going on between you and Edward?"

Bella looked down, unable to keep the blush and creeping smile from her face. "We're together now."

Angela squealed in an uncharacteristically girly way that Bella relished in. "Oh my God, tell me everything!" she insisted.

Bella did just that, excluding any details regarding Edward's supernatural ability. Bella enjoyed the excitement of sharing this new development with Angela. It was so much more fun than telling her mother, who had gone unexpectedly Mama-Bear on her this morning. Bella shared that part with Angela.

Angela nodded sympathetically. "I get it. She just wants to make sure you're safe."

Bella nodded, then conveyed to Angela her dread at having to tell Charlie. Angela chuckled. "Ah, yeah, the police chief will be a hard one to convince that anyone is good enough for his daughter."

Bella groaned and added, "Especially after what happened. I imagine he is thinking about locking me up in a tower with a thousand guards stationed outside." Not that that would keep Edward out, Bella thought to herself.

Angela smiled at her. "It's sweet that he's so protective of you. I'm sure that he'll come around eventually to the idea of you having a boyfriend."

Bella laughed. "I'm not so sure about that."

Angela chucked. "Well, maybe not, but he'll have to find a way to deal with it anyway."

Bella looked toward the window, unsure what else to say, starting to feel a little tired of socializing. Angela, always so quick to notice subtle cues said, "Well, I should get going." She made to stand up.

Bella stood with her. "Thanks for stopping by Angela. I really appreciate it."

Angela smiled at her. "Promise you'll think about what I said, about therapy."

Bella smiled back. "I promise."

Angela nodded. "And feel free to call, anytime."

"I will," Bella promised. "Thanks Angela."

They said their goodbyes and Angela let herself out. She heard Angela greeting and thanking Renee on her way out and Renee thanking Angela for stopping by.

Soon Renee was at Bella's door. "Hey, honey. How are you feeling? Do you need anything?"

Bella groaned, somewhat overwhelmed by the constant contact of people expressing their concern for her. "Honestly, I think I'm just about peopled out."

Renee smiled sympathetically. "Okay. I'll give you some space. Charlie should be home soon. I'll check on you when it's time for dinner." She closed the door, leaving Bella alone.

Bella took a moment to pace her room, feeling overwhelmed by the unfairness of it all. It was one thing for Bella to be messed up from what happened. But here Angela was, all messed up from finding Bella that night. Bella felt guilty that her friend was suffering because of her.

Bella shook her head at herself. No, not because of me. Because of them, she thought angrily. They were the ones that raped me and left me for dead. They left me lying bleeding in the street for my friend to find me like that.

Anger filled Bella's chest, and unfamiliar and uncomfortable sensation. With a sudden fit of inspiration, Bella pulled out her Walkman and double checked to see that the CD from Phil was still in there. She pressed play and let the angry music of Linkin Park flood her senses. She turned up the volume and put the cd on repeat. She lied down and let the drums, guitar and screaming lyrics wash over her, landing differently since the last time she had listened to it. It was a particularly angsty moment for Bella, but she figured she was entitled at this point.

Her first listen through to the CD, Bella let herself feel her anger. The second time through the CD, the anger melted into sadness and tears. The third listen, Bella had settled into a comfortable sense of numbness.

Just as the CD was starting over the fourth time, Bella jerked violently when a touch at her arm interrupted her reverie. Bella whipped the headphones off her head and looked around to see Charlie backing off with his arms raised in surrender. "Sorry, Bella, I didn't mean to startle you, but you didn't hear me knocking or calling your name."

"It's okay," Bella said with a hand on her chest, trying to calm her body down, which was flooding with adrenaline at her startle response that Charlie had triggered. "You just scared me is all." The angry music sounded softly from the headphones in her lap. Bella went to turn it off, somewhat embarrassed.

"I'm sorry," Charlie said again, clearly feeling terrible at scaring his daughter. "Your mom's making dinner. It should be ready in about five minutes."

Bella nodded. "Thanks, Dad. I'll be right down." Charlie exited her room, giving her some time to compose herself. Bella took some deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. She didn't know why she was reacting this way, it had just been Charlie trying to get her attention. But for the briefest moment, she was back there, feeling hands grabbing her arms. Bella shook her head, trying to clear the image.

Bella opened the door to be hit by delicious scents wafting up the stairs. Bella inhaled appreciatively as she came downstairs. "Mmm, smells delicious," she offered.

Renee smiled from her place at the stove. "Dinner's almost ready, take a seat."

Bella sat down, excited to eat her mother's cooking again. Everything Bella knew about cooking she had learned from her mother. It was one thing she missed living with Charlie.

They ate in companionable silence. Once Bella finished her plate, she was hit with a wave of sudden and intense fatigue. "May I be excused? I'm really tired." Her parents nodded and she slogged upstairs, collapsing onto her bed in exhaustion. The day finally caught up with her and she could barely keep her eyes open. Unconcerned that it was oddly early for sleep, Bella allowed the darkness to pull her under.

Bella woke, disoriented. It was dark out and she was still on top of her covers, though a blanket had been placed on top of her at some point. She squinted at the little clock on her bedside table. It was 4:30 in the morning. She tried closing her eyes again, knowing it was too early to be up, but her body had decided it had gotten its required eight hours of sleep and needed no more. Bella groaned and rubbed her face, accepting that she was awake now.

"Morning," came a velvety voice from the corner.

Bella started in surprise, her heartrate speeding up.

"Sorry," Edward said, "I didn't mean to scare you."

Bella leaned over and turned on the lamp next to her bed so she could see Edward sitting calmly in the rocking chair.

Bella sat up in bed to look at him. "It's okay, I've just been a little jumpy lately, I guess. You should have seen me when Charlie tried to let me know it was time for dinner. I'm pretty sure I jumped a foot." Bella eyed Edward. "Were you watching me sleep?"

"Yes," he admitted. "I have a hard time staying away from you. And I wanted to make sure you were safe." He looked at her uncertainly. "Does that make you feel uncomfortable?"

Bella thought about it a moment and realized it didn't. It probably should, but she could not deny that she felt safer knowing that Edward was nearby and ready to protect her at a moment's notice. Her very own bodyguard. She shook her head. "No, it doesn't. I'm glad you're here." She thought for a moment more. "But there may be times when I will need space and privacy."

Edward nodded understanding. "And I will give you that gladly, assuming it doesn't interfere with your safety."

Bella nodded in acquiescence. "Deal," she agreed.

"So, where were you today? Or yesterday, I guess," she clarified, disoriented at the odd hour.

"Well, I went to school, keeping up with appearances and all that. I kept checking my phone constantly, of course, ready to come racing over the moment you needed me. Which I did, of course. Then I spent some time with my family, trying to placate them about our relationship."

Bella squirmed with anxiety. "They don't approve?" she asked, looking down. Of course they don't, how could they? Who was she, a mere human, a damaged one at that, compared to the God-like figure before her? Of course his family wouldn't think she was good enough for him.

Edward shook his head. "They're concerned. It's a risk to my whole family for us to be together. There are so many ways that it could go poorly, and my family would be exposed."

Bella looked at Edward earnestly. "I'd never tell anyone! You have to know that!"

Edward smiled at her. "I know that. I'm not worried about that. But if something were to happen, if I were to lose control for even one second…" Edward trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

"I don't think that would happen. I know you won't hurt me."

Edward shook his head. "I don't want to. But I could, so easily. If I let my guard down for a sliver of a second." He shook his head at the thought.

"Hey, let's not talk like that," Bella insisted.

"But you should know," Edward insisted. "You should know how dangerous this is. I love you so much and want to never see you harmed again, but I'm dangerous, Bella."

Bella shook her head stubbornly. "I feel safe with you. I won't argue with you that vampires aren't dangerous. I know I won't win that fight. But humans are dangerous too and I sure wish you had been there that night."

Edward's face filled with agony. "I wish I'd been there that night too. I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself for not."

Bella shook her head again. "No, I wasn't trying to make you feel bad. It's not your fault that you weren't there to protect me. We weren't together yet, there's no reason to expect you to have been there. But don't even entertain the thought that staying away from me makes me safer than being with you. If it hadn't been for you, Tyler's van would have likely killed me."

Edward couldn't argue with her. "I'm starting to think keeping you safe may be a full-time job."

"You sure you still want the job?" she asked, somewhat playful, somewhat fully serious, wanting to give him an out.

"Yes, I'm sure," Edward said, completely serious.

"So, your family…" Bella started, changing the subject back. "What do they know about me? Do they know what happened?"

"Well," Edward started. "They know that I'm hopelessly in love with you." Edward watched Bella duck her head and blush, enjoying the small smile that crept at the corner of her lips. "They know that you were attacked, but they don't know the specifics. I figured it wasn't my place to share that information without your consent."

Bella nodded appreciatively. "Thank you for that."

"Esme, my mother for all intents and purposes, wanted to make sure I extended an invitation to you. She'd love to have you over and get to meet you."

Bella's eyes widened. "Meet your family?"

Edward eyed Bella curiously. "Are you scared to be in a room full of vampires?"

Bella shook her head. "No, it's not that. I'm just scared they won't like me."

Edward smiled kindly at her. "They're going to love you. Well, Jasper may struggle having a human around as the newest to the 'vegetarian' lifestyle. And Rosalie may take a bit to come around, but she will eventually. You have some things in common."

Bella looked at him incredulously. "What could I possibly have in common with Rosalie?" Rosalie was quite possibly the most perfect and gorgeous of all his family members. To be compared to Rosalie felt ridiculous.

Edward pursed his lips and shook his head. "It's not my place to tell. In due time," he assured.

Bella thought contemplatively for a moment. "I really wasn't prepared for all this meet-the-family stuff when we got together."

"Are you regretting…?" Edward asked.

"No," Bella insisted. "I just kind of prefer it like this. Private. No one else."

Edward smiled at her. "I prefer this too."

She made room for him to join her on the bed, cuddling with a blanket between them to protect Bella from the chill of his skin, and chatted until the sun rose. Edward asked her a million questions about her life, drawing from what felt like a never-ending curiosity about the minutia of her human life. Bewildered, Bella answered every single one, reveling in his devoted attention and fascination.