8

Edward couldn't bring himself to leave Bella's side. It was silly and irrational to feel so connected to someone he'd hadn't even known more than a day and half. Yet he sat on the floor next to the bed, waiting for her to writhe in pain, for agony to fill her delicate features. But she didn't writhe in pain, nor did agony fill her delicate features. She lay perfectly still. Too still, and that worried him. He vividly remembered his own change, the way the fire burned his soul, how he'd screamed and pleaded with Carlisle to kill him, to end his misery. If he hadn't still been able to hear her heart barely beating, he might have thought she was dead. But the soft thud coming from inside her chest told him that she was alive.

Her features changed slowly, almost non-noticeable to anyone who wasn't obsessively watching her second that passed by. Where her body had been frail, fragile, sickly thin, her body had healed itself and he could imagine what she had looked like before the tumor invaded her head. Fred she'd named it. It amazed him that even on the brink of death, she had smiled and laughed. Who was this creature? Why? Why did he need her so much?

Edward.

At the sound of his name being thought, he felt his shoulders tense when he shifted his eyes toward the doorway finding Rosalie standing there with a pile of clothes on her hands.

They're for her. We thought she might want to wake up in something clean at least. She smells like death and wet dog.

"Probably," he murmured, but made no effort to stand. He couldn't leave her, not yet. "Why'd you bring them? Figured you'd be the last one to want to help her."

Rosalie pressed her lips together before she said, "I needed to see her again for myself. Barely had the opportunity to appraise her before we fled our home."

Edward nodded. "And?"

"And I can see why you and Carlisle were enamored with her, I guess," Rosalie said. "Though, I still think we acted rashly." And when he didn't respond, she added, "They aren't just going to let us go that easily. I mean I know you know this, Edward. Just because we left Forks doesn't mean they aren't going to follow us. Especially seeing as it's her that we changed. Her father is best friends with Billy Black."

"I know," he said. "But she's worth it."

"Maybe she is." Rosalie placed the clothes on the side of the bed before she walked over and knelt next to him. "Most humans, even those on the brink of death like she was, wouldn't have been so . . . comfortable in your arms. Yet, she saw you, the real you, didn't she? She's definitely unique."

"That she is," he chuckled, nudging Rosalie with his shoulder. "I know it's ridiculous, Rosalie, I do. Carlisle does, too, I can assure you that, but she's . . . she's meant to be one of us, a part of us."

"Yeah, I suppose she is." Rosalie stood up and grabbed the clothes. "Give me a minute, let me get her into something that doesn't smell like death."

Edward tensed but stood and walked out of the room, staying just outside of the door. He had managed to block everyone out while locked inside the small guest room with her, but now, he could hear them. While Alice, Esme, Carlisle, Jasper, and Emmett seemed more . . . understanding, the rest of the people inside the house, their family from Denali as they referred to them, were not. They were the only other family who chose not to feed off humans, to live a vegetarian lifestyle so to speak. They were aware of what their actions meant, the repercussions that would follow.

Rosalie was right, of course. The Quileutes weren't going to let it go, even if the treaty hadn't stretched beyond Forks and the reservation. They'd come after them. In their minds, he was sure, they considered this the ultimatum betrayal, the changing of one of their own. It wouldn't matter to them that she was dying, that she wanted to live. No, the dogs off the reservation wouldn't care if Bella Swan had died in her father's arms at the tender age of seventeen as long as Edward and his family didn't interfere.

The door opened and Rosalie came out with the clothes Bella had been wearing in the bag, her nose crinkling from the smell. Not just the dogs, wolves either, but they smelled like death, her death.

"It won't be much longer," she murmured.

"Thanks." Edward leaned forward, kissing the top of Rosalie's head. "Just . . . thanks."

"Yeah, yeah." She laughed, pushing him away. "I look forward to meeting her. Like really meeting her."

Edward grinned. "Me too."

He turned and entered the room again, once more settling on the floor next to the bed. As he watched her chest rise and fall, slower and slower with each passing second, the sound of her heart slowing more and more, he was more convinced that she was meant to be his. And he . . . Well, Edward was meant to be hers.

—Stay—

Bella had expected pain. But there wasn't any, not after the initial feeling of Edward's teeth sinking into her skin, and even then, it didn't hurt per se, just felt different. The last thing she remembered was looking at him, the hope in his eyes before she found herself slipping into a sea of darkness. One minute, she was in intense, agonizing pain, and the next, she simply wasn't.

Her eyes opened, and laid perfectly still for a moment, just waiting for the pain to hit. But there wasn't any. For the first time in too long, her head didn't hurt, her body didn't ache. She felt . . . odd. Not like herself, yet she'd never been more comfortable in her body than she was in the moment. She lifted her hand off the bed, unsure of what she was expecting as she turned it from one side to the other. For her skin to glow? For it to look different? It didn't, not really. She flexed her fingers. They felt stronger than they had in years.

A hand shot out, their fingers wrapping around hers, and she tilted her head to the side, smiling when she saw Edward sitting on the floor next to the bed. He was even more beautiful than she remembered. Where his hand had been cold against hers before, he felt warm and comfortable, normal. His hair was wild, like he'd just spent the last three days running his fingers through it, and his eyes, which had been a warm butterscotch, had just the smallest hit of red in them. She preferred the butterscotch, of course.

"Hey," he whispered, his lips curving upward.

"Hi," she echoed, tightening her grip on his hand, causing him to wince. "You stayed with me."

"I did." He shifted so that he was on his knees. "How do you feel?"

"Strange," she replied, her eyes shifting around the room. She could see every dust particle in the air, the texture of the walls. The light was bright, the air crisp, and she could smell the trees outside. "But good. Just strange."

"It's weird at first," he said. "Do you want to sit up?"

"I don't know," she laughed, the sound surprising even her. She swung her legs to the side, quicker than she expected, and sat up. "That was . . . weird."

Edward laughed as he moved so that he was sitting next to her, their hands still wrapped around each other. "Takes a bit of getting used to. How little effort it takes to do normal things, such as sitting up."

Bella nodded. "Where's everyone else?"

Edward frowned. "You can't hear them? In the other room?"

She looked toward the door. "No. Should I be able to?"

"I don't . . . I don't know. I can. They've been waiting." Edward stood up, pulling her to her feet. She automatically wrapped her arm around him, lifting her eyes up to him. "Do you want to meet them?"

"I kind of like just being here with you," she said, smiling.

Edward grinned, his free hand coming up and cupping her face. She closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. "I like just being with you, too, but they're anxious to meet the newest member of our family."

"I suppose it's better to just get it over with."

Edward leaned his forehead against hers for a moment before sliding his hand from her face and taking a step backward, pulling her toward the door. She was nervous. Being changed into a vampire hadn't fazed her. Letting herself be held and comforted in the arms of a vampire boy she hadn't even know hadn't fazed her. Yet, meeting his family, that unnerved her.

She stayed partially hidden behind him as they made the walk down the hallway into the vast living room. Her eyes flickered around the house in the span of a second. The house was grander than anything she'd ever seen, or even imagined. But it felt . . . cold and uncomfortable.

"Hello, Bella."

She looked to her left, finding Carlisle standing with a beautiful woman with long caramel hair and the same butterscotch eyes that matched his. She was smiling, a warm welcoming smile that reminded her of her mothers.

"Carlisle," she whispered. "Your name is Carlisle, isn't it? My . . ." She gestured toward her head, "memory is kind of . . . I don't know."

He laughed and nodded. "Understandable, considering everything. Yes, my name is Carlisle Cullen, and this is my wife Esme."

Bella shifted her eyes to Esme, who gave her subtle wave. "It's nice to meet you. Officially."

"You too," Esme said, placing her hand over her heart. "Welcome to the family."

Bella pulled her lip between her teeth as she shifted her eyes from Carlisle and Esme to Alice and a tall, lanky blond with a crooked smile. While he had a smile on his face, he seemed tense, awkward, like he couldn't figure her out, which struck Bella as concerning. Was he not comfortable with her?

"I'm Alice," the woman next to him said, sliding her hand around his arm, drawing his attention down to her. The way his expression changed when he gazed upon her was drastically different than the look he had just given her. "Edward didn't bother introducing us when I drop off his car. This is Jasper, my husband."

"It's nice to meet you, Bella," he said, smiling, though his eyes shifted to Edward first.

"You too," she said, quietly.

Next to Alice and Jasper were another couple, she presumed. She was tall, curvy and absolutely gorgeous with long, silky blond hair, who she imagined as a human was beautiful. The man next to her was big and burly, with curly brown hair, and when he smiled, a pair of dimples sunk into his cheeks. They both, like everyone else, had butterscotch eyes.

"That's Rosalie and Emmett," Edward said, clearing his throat.

"Feels a bit repetitive, but it's nice to meet you both," Bella said, clearing her throat.

"You too," Rosalie said.

"Welcome to the family, Bella," Emmett told her, his eyes also shifting from her to Edward first. From the corner of her eyes, she saw him shake his head.

"There were more people here, weren't there?" Bella asked, looking around the room. "When we got here? Or was I hallucinating because of Fred?"

"Fred?" Carlisle asked, his eyes shifting between her and Edward, who grinned and gestured toward her head. "You named your tumor Fred?"

She nodded. "Made it easier to blame it for trying to kill me if it had a name. Hated the name Fred, so I went with it."

Carlisle and Esme laughed while Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett simply smiled.

"Yes, there were other people here, but they thought it might be easier on you if you met us all in small doses. They decided to go hunting," Carlisle explained, tightening his arm around Esme. "How are you feeling, Bella?"

"Different," she admitted, squeezing Edward's hand. "And, um, my throat feels . . . dry? I don't know how else to explain it."

"You need to feed," Edward said, drawing her attention to him. "I can take you, show you how, if you would like."

"I would," she told him with a grin. "I really would."

Edward turned and brought his other hand back up to her face before nodding, and taking a step backward. "We'll be back."

Bella shifted her eyes between each of them, noticing the way they watched her, watched them both before following Edward out onto the large, wrap around front porch. She waited for the pain to hit, as it had for the last few years. The glare coming off the snow normally would have had her cowering in agony, but not anymore.

Edward released her hand and walked down the steps into the yard. "Follow me, okay? Let your natural instinct take over."

"What are we going to feed on? You said we don't feel on humans, right?"

He nodded as they turned and started to run, weaving easily between the trees. She should see each and every flake of snow as she it kicked up, each unique in shape and size. The run was freeing, yet terrifying at the same time. How could she move like this when just days before she could barely walk on her own?

"Animals," he replied. "We're vegetarians," he added with a smirk. "We chose not to drink human blood, preferring animal blood over humans."

She nodded. "Why?"

Edward slid to a stop, so she did the same. "We value human life, Bella."

"But you agreed to change me," she said, cocking an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because you were dying, and I couldn't let you die."

"Why not? Everyone dies, Edward," she challenged. "What made me so special? You broke a treaty, didn't you? With the wolves off the reservations? I remember hearing stories about them when I was a little girl, when my dad would take out there when I came to visit. About the cold ones who stole their children away. That was you, right?"

Edward closed the gap between them, his hands coming up to cup her face. His eyes met hers and his lips parted as he whispered, "That wasn't us, but others like us. We're different than other vampires, Bella. We chose life over needless killing, and it took a long time to get the Quileute tribe to believe that we were different, but now, they aren't going to be forgiving."

"Because you changed me?"

Edward nodded, pressing his forehead against hers. "But we . . . I had to save you, Bella."

"Because I'm important to you. That's what you said, wasn't it?"

He smiled and nodded. "You said yes because I'm important to you, too. Right?"

This time she nodded. "I just don't understand why I need you, Edward."

"We'll figure it out, sweetheart." Edward kissed her forehead. "Together."

Her eyes fluttered to a close. "Together."

Thank you for all the AMAZING reviews! This chapter feels super awkward to me, especially Bella's reactions toward the rest of the family. But I think that's how it has to be, until she gets to know them better. Leave me a few words, and I'll see you next time!