I'm posting today because this week is Thanksgiving and I won't be available. My job gave me the whole week free and I went away to have some unlimited writing time. Hopefully I can meet my writing goals.

Chapter 24:

The Winner of Project Runway:

"And now, the moment that all of America has been waiting for, the 2013 project runway winner is MARY ALICE MASEN!" Heidi said as the roars of the crowds erupted all around us, we stood up and cheered louder. Then we heard Esme give a horrific scream.

"NO, ALICE!" Esme yelled as she handed junior to Carlisle and rushed over the crowd to reach the end of the runway where Alice had fallen.

The transmission was cut as the producers and other staff started running around looking for alcohol and the medical team.

"Let me through, let me through,'' Esme said, pushing people out of her way, jasper hot on her tail.

"What's happening?" Edward asked anguished.

"Alice fainted or something, they cut the transmission," I explained to him.

"Let's get closer," Carlisle said.

we made our way through the crowd, "I'm a doctor, please let me through," Carlisle asked. They let us pass, and he handed Junior to me. I grabbed the baby and held Edward's hand. Bree, the second finalist, was holding Alice and crying.

"Awliss, Awliss" junior cried, reaching his arms out for her.

"We don't know what happened buddy," I told him.

"Can you see anything?" Edward asked.

"Carlisle is checking her, and it doesn't look good" I deducted from the look on Carlisle's face.

A few seconds later the paramedics arrived and they put Alice on a gurney.

"They're putting her on a gurney, Jasper is coming this way," I informed Edward.

his face was tear stained, "What happened?" I asked.

"Carlisle is not sure, but he says her neck is stiff and her pupils are dilated, plus the loss of consciousness. He thinks it is something neurological," Jasper explained.

"Somethings wrong with her head?" Edward asked.

"It seems so," Jasper said as we went back to where we were seated and started gathering everyone's things. We grabbed everything quickly and started looking for the nearest exit.

"Let's go to the hospital," Jasper said.

I placed my hand on Edward's shoulder and guided him through the crowd and then through the various hallways and into the elevator. We were finally out in the open and went to look for the car. I strapped Junior in and helped Edward get in the passenger seat. I tried to be serene, I didn't want him to get altered.

After that I climbed in the back and entertained Junior while Jasper drove us to the hospital.

"Something is wrong, I can feel it," Edward said. Twin intuition I guess. Soon enough we were in the hospital, we went in and found Esme and Carlisle in the waiting room of the ER.

"Mama," Junior said when he saw his mother, I handed him to her.

"Thank you, Bella," she mouthed as she hugged her youngest son close to her chest.

Alice and Esme had their problems over the years, but it was clear that all of that was forgotten now that Alice's life was threatened.

"How is she?" Jasper asked Carlisle.

"They Are still assessing her," he replied with a sigh.

"Are you sure it is something neurological?" Jasper asked in a low voice.

"Yes, the signs are there," Carlisle said.

"But let's hope I'm wrong," he added as he hugged Esme.

Edward and I looked for a place to sit, I placed my head on his shoulder and we held hands as we waited for someone to come and tell us what was wrong with our sister.

I don't know how much time had passed, Edward and I had fallen asleep but were awakened by Carlisle.

"The doctor is coming to talk to us, come on" he told us. Edward and I stood up and followed everyone inside the ER.

"Where are we going?" Edward asked in a hushed tone.

"They're taking us to a private room," Carlisle said.

My heart sank at this revelation, was Alice alive?

"I don't like the sound of that," Edward muttered under his breath, I agreed.

Finally, we arrived at the private room and entered, we each took a seat around the table. There were two doctors there waiting for us.

"What can you tell us About Alice?" Carlisle asked, breaking the silence.

"Ms. Masen has a cerebral aneurysm that ruptured," we all gasped at the doctor's response.

"She's being prepped for surgery as we speak," the other doctor added.

"What's the outcome?" Esme asked, her voice thick with emotion.

"About 25% of people who experience a brain aneurysm rupture die within 24 hours. Around 50% of people die within three months of the rupture due to complications. Of those who survive, about 66% experience permanent brain damage. Some people recover with little or no disability." The doctor informed us with a polite smile.

Esme sobbed uncontrollably as Alice's odds were explained, she had to survive this.

"Will she ever be the same after the aneurysm?" Jasper asked.

"Survivors face the potential for physical, emotional, and cognitive changes that can be minor or significant, short-term or long-lasting. Recovery for patients who suffered a ruptured aneurysm tends to be longer and more difficult than it is for patients whose aneurysm did not rupture," The other doctor explained.

"Oh Carlisle! My sweet Alice, god please she has to be okay, she has to overcome this!" Esme pleaded between sobs.

"How long does she have to stay here?" Edward asked.

"We can't give a definite answer, we would need to see how the patient does, but usually the recovery time from an aneurysm is four to six weeks. Since hers ruptured it might be up to two months. She could be in the hospital for half that time or in the worst-case scenario she should stay the full eight weeks." The doctor explained.

"We'll we be able to see her?" Jasper asked.

"Yes, as soon as she's in recovery you can enter two at a time," the doctor instructed.

"That's all for now, we have to get scrubbed in," they both said their goodbyes and left to perform the surgery on my sister in law.

A few hours later…

"She's going to be so upset when she wakes up," Jasper choked out when he returned to the waiting room.

"Why? What happened?" Edward asked, alarmed.

"They cut off her hair, she has a buzz cut," he replied.

"I mean I know it's stupid, but you know how she is," Jasper smiled.

"Yes, but at least she's still with us," Carlisle said.

"I've been so horrible to her Carlisle!" Esme sobbed.

"Shh honey it's okay," Carlisle soothed her.

"NO! It's not okay, I treated her like dirt for years and only focused on Edward, I neglected her and I almost lost her, I'm so sorry!" Esme cried.

It was sad to see it took her all of this time to realize the way she had treated her daughter wasn't the best. I hope that she works on mending her relationship with Alice, as she mended ours.

"Mom, don't worry about that now, I know for a fact that Alice loves you," Edward said, trying to comfort her.

"It's a fact," Jasper added.

"I need to tell her Carlisle! Oh, I couldn't live with myself if something happened and she didn't know how much I love her," Esme cried again.

"You'll get a chance to tell her love, don't worry," Carlisle reassured her.

"No, I need to tell her right now, please take me to her," she insisted.

Carlisle took her hand and led her the way Jasper had come. I sighed after a few minutes of silence.

"I'm glad she's okay," Edward commented.

"I'm just worried about how she's going to react when she sees she doesn't have any hair," Jasper said again.

"That's going to be a shock for sure," Edward stated.

"That's a minor thing compared to being alive, I'm sure she won't care about that after the fact that the aneurysm was repaired," I commented.

"True," they both said.

Carlisle and Esme returned to the waiting room, "they're going to keep her sedated" he said.

"Did something happen during surgery?" Edward panicked.

"No, they're just letting her 'sleep' for 48 hours to give her brain time to recover, they don't want her to have any swelling. She'll be connected to the ventilator until they wake her up," he explained to us.

We all exhaled in relief, all was well for now.

~BSOL~

Two days later the crew from Project Runway along with Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum came to see how Alice was doing, they also brought her a massive bouquet of flowers and a get-well basket. They wanted us to speak briefly about her condition. We answered their questions and they left an hour later. They told us they were going to keep in touch to see Alice's progression and that all of the things she had to do as the winner of the show would be there waiting for her when she got better.

"She's waking up," a nurse announced and we all hurried to her room. Jasper was sitting beside Alice's bed, holding the hand that didn't have the IV in it.

As we entered the room I noticed that her breathing tube had been removed and she was breathing on her own, that was a big relief. We sat there in silent vigil watching the minutes tick by waiting for her to wake up. Finally, after what seemed an eternity Alice groaned.

The lights of the room had been dimmed to make her more comfortable.

"Miss Masen, can you hear me?" The doctor asked.

She groaned again in response, and the doctor repeated the question.

"Darling please grab my hand if you can hear me," Jasper pleaded. Her heart monitor spiked and I saw her hand grasp Jasper's.

"She moved her hand, I saw it!" I exclaimed.

"Alice sweetheart, can you open your eyes please?" Esme encouraged her.

after a few more minutes she stirred and finally opened her eyes,

"Where am I?" Alice asked her voice hoarse, she immediately started coughing. The doctor and nurse rushed to her side and checked her, the nurse helped Alice get a sip of water.

"Where am I? What happened?" She asked again.

"In New York-Presbyterian Hospital"

"What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Edward asked.

"We were on the final of Project Runway, they were going to announce the winner and then I felt a horrible pain in my head and everything went black," Alice said.

"That's basically what happened, is it good she remembers?" Esme asked.

"Yes," the doctor nodded.

"What happened to me?" Alice asked worriedly.

"You had an aneurysm that ruptured," the doctor explained.

"Is that why I had the headaches?" We all looked at her.

"Headaches? Why didn't you say anything about it, love?" Jasper said.

"I thought it was stress, I didn't think anything of it until I went into the show. That's when they got pretty bad. They were so intense I… I had to go see a doctor. The production even contacted Carlisle," Alice informed.

"You knew!" Esme said accusatory.

"Yes, but I didn't know it was going to end like this," he replied clearly ashamed.

"It is not your fault Carlisle, I told you not to tell anyone," Alice said soothingly.

"Why didn't you?" Jasper said.

"I thought I could handle it, I also didn't want to get kicked out of the show."

"I really didn't think anything of it, I thought like Carlisle that they were just produced by stress. I have been battling with them for a while. The doctors in Miami didn't find anything, they just prescribed me medicines. I guess the aneurysm developed after the last time I went for a checkup." Alice explained.

"Why didn't you tell us anything?" I asked.

"I didn't want to bother anyone with my problems," she answered. I was appalled.

"You're not a bother!" Jasper said annoyed by her answer.

"We were able to repair it," The doctor told her.

"What was done to me and how long will I be here?" Alice asked. All of us wanted to know, even though they had answered this question the day of the surgery.

"We made incisions in your scalp and skull. We located the aneurysm and placed a metal clip over the weak area of your brain blood vessel fixing it. Then we used metal plates and clamps to put the piece of your skull back in place. You will probably feel very tired for several weeks after this surgery. You may also have headaches or problems concentrating for 1 to 2 weeks. It can take 4 to 8 weeks for you to fully recover," The doctor started to explain.

We all nodded in understanding, the doctor nodded and continued.

"The incisions may be sore for about 5 days after surgery. Your scalp may swell with fluid. You may also have numbness and shooting pains near your wound. You may have swelling and bruising around your eyes. As your wound starts to heal, it may begin to itch. Medicines and ice packs can help with headaches, pain, swelling, and itching. During surgery, the incisions on your head were closed with small metal plates or clamps. Some of the plates and clamps need to be removed 7 to 10 days after surgery." She finalized, "How long until I can fly back home?" Alice eloquently asked.

"We would need to wait at least four weeks," She told her.

"Anything else?" Alice asked.

"Since your head was shaved, you may want to wear hats or scarves on your head until your hair grows back. You need to keep the incision dry for the next three days, but after that you can wash your hair as normal," the doctor added.

"Shaved head?" Alice asked as she reached for her head.

"Careful!" We exclaimed as she moved the hand with the IV too quickly.

We watched as she palmed her head and realized her hair was gone.

"Give me a mirror, I need to see myself!" she told us.

I rummaged through my bag and handed Jasper my compact. Alice gasped and started crying when she saw that indeed her hair was gone.

"Oh, darling it's just hair, it will grow back," Jasper comforted her.

"It will take a long time!" Alice groaned.

"Sweetheart, I think that you being here after what happened is more important than your hair, you can always wear a wig," Carlisle said.

"Okay that's enough," the doctor said.

"Now that Ms. Masen is awake. We need to run a battery of tests, so please vacate the room. You may come back later," she informed us.

We gathered our things and went out of the room, we asked a nurse how long the tests would be and she said they could last two to three hours. We decided to go grab something to eat and come back later.

Alice was asleep when we came back, so we decided to leave and come back tomorrow. Esme was allowed to stay and accompany her through the night. She had a bag with everything she needed and rented a cot to put in the room. I helped her get settled.

"Thanks Bella, please take care of my boys for me," she smiled.

I chuckled, "always," I replied and then went down to the parking lot where the guys and Junior were waiting.

The next day we went back to the hospital right when visiting hours started.

Alice was awake when we arrived, she was eating her breakfast which consisted of some chicken broth with vegetables, toast, juice, and a gelatin cup.

Jasper grimaced, he loathed hospital food.

"Good morning darling," he said, handing her the bouquet of flowers he had brought.

"Thank you, they're lovely," she replied, giving him a small smile. Jasper kissed her forehead.

"How are you feeling?" Edward asked.

"I've been better," she said.

"The doctor has to come and see her again, she says her legs feel weak. We tried getting her up to help her shower and she could barely stand," Esme explained.

"I hope this is only temporary," she said, her tone weary.

"I'm sure it is," Carlisle reassured her.

She finished her food, and then placed the lid back on the tray. I moved the table away from the bed.

"Have you eaten?" Carlisle asked his wife.

"No, I was waiting for you guys to come," Esme replied.

"Come on, let's get you something to eat," he smiled and extended his free arm.

"Alice, I would like to talk to you later," Esme said. "Sure mother," she said nonchalantly.

"Do you guys know what she wants to talk about?" Alice asked us after Esme and Carlisle left the room. We all nodded, "but you're not going to tell me," she stated as we answered her question with our collective silence.

"It's nothing bad though," Jasper reassured her.

"Okay…" Alice sighed and looked around the room. "At least the room is nice," she commented with a small smile.

"Yes, I said that too, it is not as depressing," I told her.

She motioned for me and Edward to get closer to the bed.

"Oh Alice, we were so scared!" Edward said, looking for her hand. Alice took his hand and brought him closer to her.

"I missed you so much," she told him and kissed his cheek.

"I missed you too, don't you ever scare us like that again!" Edward said.

"I'll do my best," she replied with a smile.

I had my turn hugging her, as we released each other she noticed my ring.

"Oh, it looks amazing on you, just like I imagined it would," She said.

"How was the proposal?" She asked.

"Well it was a bit of a disaster at the beginning," Edward started to say.

Edward continued telling Alice what happened the night of our engagement.

"Thank you, guys, for being here," she told us after Edward finished telling her about the engagement debacle.

"We have to go back soon, we need to continue with our practice hours if we want to complete them on time," I commented.

"When do you leave?" Alice asked.

"End of the week," Edward said, Alice nodded in understanding.

Jasper was intently looking at his phone, "what is it?" Alice asked.

"I'm just telling my parents about you, they're worried," he said.

"They want photographic evidence that you're 'okay'," he added.

"I told them you weren't up for that," he said.

"No, it's fine, send them a photo," she said, posing for him. Jasper snapped the photo and sent it to his parents via text.

"They also send their congratulations," Jasper finalized putting his phone back in his pocket.

"Congratulations, for what?" Alice asked, confused.

"Because of the show," he said as if it was obvious.

Did she not remember she won?

"Who won?" Alice asked, we all smiled. "You did darling," Jasper said.

"I won Project Runway?" She said her voice cracking.

"Yes love, don't you remember?" Jasper asked.

Alice denied with her head, "I won" she stated.

We all nodded in reply, a small smile appeared on her lips.

Esme had her chance to speak to Alice and finally mended their relationship. I'm glad Esme decided to build bridges instead of burning them. That gave me hope for the future, a future in which Edward and I were married and formed a life together.

~BSOL~

Alice was finally out of the hospital. She couldn't fly back to Florida yet, so stayed with Esme and Jasper in the studio he rented for the time Alice was in Project Runway. Edward, Carlisle and I returned to Florida and continued with our routines. Alongside mom I tentatively started looking into colors and flowers and wedding dress styles and made a wedding binder.

Edward and I didn't know when we were getting married as we still had a lot on our plates. I know I wanted to finish school first, thank goodness we were on the last stretch of our college education, and would be done in May. Hopefully Alice would be able to fly back by then for graduation.

We spoke with Alice every day, she spent most of her time sketching the designs for the collection she was going to launch thanks to Project Runway. Although she was having a little bit of trouble sometimes because her hand would go numb. It was a side effect of the surgery, we hoped it would pass soon. She received a lot of messages and letters from people all over as the news and entertainment shows sporadically asked Alice for updates.

With Jasper's help she sent a small video to thank everyone for their support, Jasper advised her to make a separate Facebook page so the fans could keep in touch with her. She also received messages and comments there. Esme was helping with interviews as they realized Alice also needed an agent/assistant. Esme was being very nitpicky, but in this case that was a good thing.

Alice was taken aback by all the popularity she had gained at first. When she was on the show she didn't experience it first hand as they weren't allowed to be out in public or have contact with the outside world so they wouldn't get distracted.

She came to terms with her shaved head and decided to wear head wraps for a while. A couple of weeks ago Jasper surprised her with a beautiful mid length dark brown wig. It also had highlights, she cried when he gave it to her just in time for an interview she was going to have on Good Morning America. The rest of us flew into N.Y for spring break and were able to be in the audience on GMA. Jasper was going to be with her during the interview.

Alice's POV:

I was a little nervous because of the interview as GMA is watched all over the United States.

"How's the recovery been?" Robin Roberts asked me.

"Recovery is hard, I have good days and bad days. Some days my head hurts, or my incision itches, or I have muscular spasms. There are times I can't even feel my legs or fingers," I replied.

"The doctors said all of these things would happen, so it is just a matter of time. Some of the symptoms will fade and some I'll have to live with for the rest of my life, and I'm okay with that," I added.

"I'm glad I had my family to help me every step of the way," she concluded looking at Jasper.

"We are glad that you're better and we look forward to seeing your collection when it finally launches," Robin added.

"Before we go to a commercial, is there anything you'd like to add, Jasper?" George Stephanopoulos said. Jasper looked at me and smiled as he stood up, he took a breath I could see he was nervous.

"What is it?" I asked alarmed.

Jasper kneeled in front of me just as our song started playing, and I could see pictures of us in various moments of our relationship displayed on the various screens on set.

"Mary Alice Masen, I have loved you since the first moment I saw you. You literally had me at 'hello'. You melted my heart with your beautiful smile. You're the most wonderful woman in the world and I don't want to spend another day without you. Would you make me the happiest man on earth by being my wife? Alice, will you marry me?" Jasper said as he opened the pink velvet box he had on his hand and revealed the most beautiful ring I've ever seen.

It has a pink stone in the center and smaller tear shaped diamonds at the top and bottom. It was encased in a gold band. I loved it!

"Oh Jasper! Yes, of course I'll marry you!" I exclaimed.

The audience cheered as he slid the ring on my finger and then rose to his feet, he cupped my face and kissed me.

So what do you think? What are your thoughts on Edward seeing again? Let me know...

Glad that ffn is finally sending notifications again, it was a rough month.

See you on the next chapter!