Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, I just play with them. This story is rated M, and is not suitable for younger readers. Story contains violence, coarse language and sexual "situations". Please do not read if any of these things offends you.
Note: [Beta'ed by: sandicarr & StoryPainter]
Extra note: Again, aspecial thanks goes to ericastwilight for helping me out and providing me with information about child protection, and procedures regarding the issue. I have taken creative liberty to tweak some things (nothing major) to fit the story.
Chapter 35 – "Escape"
Isabella Swan POV
Looking out the window had become my favorite pastime in the last few days. I still had a hard time coming to terms with everything that had happened. All the good things. All the bad things. So much had happened that I didn't even know where to begin in order to process it all.
If I closed my eyes, I could see Edward's face.
I inhaled deeply and breathed out slowly. The air tickled my lips and I could almost taste him.
He kissed me.
Edward Cullen kissed me.
It came out of nowhere. One moment he was apologizing, and the next he was pressing his lips to mine. I didn't know why he was doing it or what he was trying to prove. All I knew was that I had become acutely aware of my own body – it felt as if I had been shaking and standing still at the same time. He pressed his lips firmer against mine, and I hadn't known what to do. What was he expecting of me? Why was he kissing me? Was he even aware that he was kissing me? Had he lost his mind completely, maybe thinking I was someone else?
Did he like it?
Did I like it?
I still hadn't decided, and it had already been four days since it happened.
Four days since the kiss. Four days since I last saw Edward.
Four days.
And I was still alive.
There was a knock on the door and I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath, before saying anything.
"Come in," I replied quietly.
The door opened and I turned back to the window. I didn't want to look at her. I had looked at her enough and she just reminded me about everything that used to be.
"How are you feeling, sweetie?" she asked.
"Fine."
"Are you in any pain? Have you taken your meds?"
"Yes."
"Yes to pain or yes to the meds?"
I sighed and rolled my eyes. "No, I'm not in pain. Yes, I have taken my meds."
"Good," she said. I could hear the smile in her voice.
I looked down at my hands.
"When will I get my stuff back?" I asked quietly.
"I thought we got the things you needed… was there more?" she asked confused.
"My phone… my journal… I wouldn't mind getting my laptop back either, but I suppose he would refuse to give it back to me," I said.
"Oh, Bella. Why didn't you say something earlier? I'll make the call right away," she said quickly.
I forced a smile at her and nodded. "Thank you, Kate," I said.
"Anytime, kiddo, anytime," she said, smiling back at me before leaving the room and closing the door behind her. I turned back to the window and sighed.
It had been four days.
Four days since the kiss.
Four days since I saw Edward.
Four days since...
I closed my eyes and took a shuddering breath.
Four days since I had last seen or talked to my parents.
x x x x x
I didn't care that Dr. Carrot's nametag said his name was still Dr. Jenks. I had been hoping he would have changed his name by now to the more appropriate Dr. Carrot. Even though his skin wasn't as orange as the last time I saw him, he still looked ridiculous.
He X-rayed my leg, and Dr. Cullen asked if he could be present when he changed my cast. I didn't mind. Edward told me I should trust him, and since I trusted Edward I decided that was the route I was going to take.
I still felt a little weird after the weed I had smoked. And I wondered if that was part of why I wasn't angrier with Edward. I was mad at him for betraying my trust and for not keeping his promise to not tell anyone. But at the same time I was oddly grateful that he dared to do the one thing I never could.
Ask for help.
Dr. Cullen leaned casually against the wall as Dr. Carrot examined my leg. Having the cast removed felt very odd; it felt like he removed the entire leg with it. My leg was numb and light; as if it had lost all density. Dr. Carrot carefully squeezed and touched it, making me flinch and gasp a couple of times. The pain was bad, but not excruciating.
I scrunched up my nose as I looked down at my leg. It looked weird. So small and fragile compared to my left one. A long, bright red scar was now my leg's most prominent feature. The scar was a little crooked in places, and it was pretty thick. It almost looked like they had put a seven-inch string under my skin.
Dr. Carrot put some soothing gel on my leg and gently massaged it in, it cooled my skin and I immediately felt better. Dr. Cullen was looking at the X-rays on the board and I couldn't read his face to determine whether or not the scans were good.
When the gel was completely absorbed, Dr. Carrot prepared my leg for the new cast before putting it on. When he was done, Dr. Cullen turned to us and frowned a little in genuine concern.
That guy had no fake feelings. Everything was genuine.
"Bella, would you mind if Dr. Jenks examined your arms now?" he asked gently.
"Her arms?" Dr. Jenks echoed, looking down at my covered arms in confusion. He cleared his throat and looked at me uncomfortably. "Have you… injured yourself?"
I guess he believed the lie too.
x x x x x
Kate put the bag down on my bed before walking over to me. She held out her hand and I smiled softly when I saw the object she was holding. My phone.
"Thank you for getting it for me," I said, as she handed it to me.
"It was my pleasure," she replied. "Your dad didn't mind me getting your laptop either. I guess he realized it was necessary for your education." She turned to leave and as she walked towards the door she said, "Dinner will be ready in an hour. I think we have a few things to discuss."
I looked at her retreating back and swallowed thickly. "Have I done something wrong?" I asked nervously. "Are you… are you sending me back?"
She turned her head, smiling sadly and shaking her head.
"Never, Bella. The thing I want to talk to you about is a good thing, don't worry," she replied softly. "So, dinner in an hour." I nodded and she smiled before leaving.
I turned on my phone and waited for it to load. A few moments later it chirped and I looked incredulously at the screen.
This can't be right…
x x x x x
Dr. Cullen stepped up to us and smiled softly at me. "May I show him?" he asked, and I nodded. He pulled up the sleeves on my arms and showed the scars to Dr. Carrot. "Look closely, and tell me what your professional opinion is. What would you say about these scars?"
Dr. Carrot frowned and put on the glasses he had in his pocket. He gripped my wrist, turning my arm softly so he could see it from all angles. He did the same with the other. He obviously took Dr. Cullen's question seriously.
"I would say that… they look odd," Dr. Carrot concluded. "Like this one right here." He pointed to one of the deeper ones, near the crook of my arm. "The angle from which it is cut, I can't imagine how she managed to do it." He let go of my arm and scratches his neck absentmindedly. "What is this about, Dr. Cullen?"
Dr. Cullen smiled crookedly, his smile reminding me of Edward.
"She didn't do them herself," Dr. Cullen said, and my stomach clenched at his words. I still couldn't believe I had actually told him my story. All because Edward told me to. How Edward managed to get such power over me I would never know. Was this how it felt to trust someone? You blindly let them lead you anywhere because you believed they would never hurt you.
And apparently I trusted Edward like that.
Edward freaking Cullen!
In what reality did that make sense?
Dr. Carrot sat down on the stool he had been sitting on while examining me, looking completely baffled. I guess he wasn't prepared for this. He probably thought I was just one of those generic suicidal teens that weren't really suicidal at all. Someone who just cut herself for the attention.
I didn't want to stay long enough for him to decide what kind of nutcase I was. Maybe he thought I was in some kind of ritualistic gang or something? Maybe he would believe another lie. Besides, I still didn't know if Dr. Cullen believed us, or if he was just doing this to prove a point now. Maybe he thought I was crazy and this was his way to make sure of it. Also, he probably wanted to make sure that I would be taken care of.
"Can I… can I leave now?" I asked in a shaky voice.
Dr. Carrot nodded. "Yes, but please try to keep off your feet for a few hours, give the cast some time to harden completely," he said, waving me away as if he wasn't really listening to me at all.
"Will do, thanks," I mumbled, climbing off the examination bed. I grabbed the new crutches that Dr. Cullen had provided me when we got to the hospital and quickly left the room.
x x x x x
In only four days, I had managed to get ninety-seven missed calls and twenty text messages. I pushed some buttons and my heart swelled in my chest when I saw that all the missed calls and all the text messages were from Edward. I checked my voice-mail and I closed my eyes as I held the phone to my ear with both my hands. My heart ached as the automatic voice told me how many messages I had.
Soon the voice was replaced by a warmer, softer one.
"Sparrow… hearing your fucking voice is like music to my damn ears. Even if it's just your recorded voice telling me to leave a message… I have no idea if you'll ever hear this… I don't fucking care… I just…" He paused, and it sounded as if his voice almost cracked as he breathed. "I needed to call you… to hear your voice… I need to know that you are okay… that you didn't do anything stupid. I know I failed, I know that… but please… if you hear this… call me. Let me know that you're okay."
I felt tears slip from my eyes as the messages continued to play in my ear.
x x x x x
Edward was waiting in Dr. Cullen's office. The door was ajar when I got there and pushed it open with my crutch. Edward stood up slowly as I closed the door.
I looked at him and almost smiled at the sight. His hair was a complete mess. It looked like he had tortured it or something. He asked me how I was feeling. I didn't know what the answer to that was, so I just said I got some meds and that I was fine. I wanted nothing more than to get out of there. Just run away and never look back.
But Edward wasn't letting me. He said I had to stay and fight. I didn't want to listen. He promised I would be safe, that I would never have to go back to Hell again. I had already been there, then Edward saved me, and now he expected me to return even though he promised me I was safe?
He promised me.
I was going to give up. What good would it do to fight? I had fought enough. This was it. I was done. I had been to Hell and back and to Hell again. I couldn't take it anymore. Edward promised he would keep me safe and that I was not going to return. He didn't keep his promise.
He hugged me to him and I buried my face into his chest. I wanted to believe that he had done it to hurt me. This was the ultimate payback after all, sending me back to the place where I was hurt the most. This would end me; he knew that. I wanted to believe that this was the last step in his master plan to bring me down for messing up his life.
But I couldn't.
I couldn't believe that, no matter how much I wanted to.
Edward didn't hate me anymore. He cared for me. He wanted me to be safe. I could see it in his eyes. And I could hear it in his voice when he spoke to me. There was no faking that.
Edward cared about me.
And I cared about him.
But that didn't change the fact that he promised he would keep me safe… and failed.
x x x x x
"It's four in the fucking morning and I can't sleep. It's weird that I've never slept better than when I slept with you… even though I never got more than a couple of hours the times we did sleep together… not sleeping together like… fuck… you know what I mean…"
I chuckled at the pure Edwardness of it all. He was himself even at his worst.
Message after message played and they were all very much the same. He mentioned my voice a lot. He told me to call him. He wanted to know if I was okay. But as the messages went on, the emptier he sounded. When I reached the last message – which was received no less than three hours earlier – he sounded as if he was on the verge of a breakdown.
"Sparrow… I don't fucking know what to do anymore… I… I feel fucking lost. I don't know what to do with myself. There is nothing I can do… I… I fucking miss you." His voice broke and he took a few shuddering breaths before continuing. "Okay? There. I said it. Is that what you've been waiting for me to say? That I miss you? Fine. There you fucking have it. I MISS you, Sparrow. I fucking need you here." He was mad, but the sadness overruled his anger. He wasn't angry with me, I knew that. He was upset with the situation. He was quiet for so long but I could hear his ragged breathing. He took a deep breath and I could almost hear him prepare to say something important. But the words never came. Even though he did nothing but breathe, I still couldn't hang up on the message. His breathing was all I had. His voice soon broke the almost-silence, and my heart ached as the last words rang out."Just call me back… please, Sparrow...I fucking need you." It was a whisper. But it was enough.
When the automatic voice told me that I had no more messages. I also had no more tears to shed.
x x x x x
I turned my head to the only person in the room – in this world – that I trusted. It was his fault that we were here right now. He told his father even though I asked him not to. But that didn't matter right now. What mattered was that he held his arms around me protectively, not wanting to let me go.
"Don't make me go," I pleaded. I saw in his eyes that he was going to.
Dr. Cullen took a step forward, putting a hand on Edward's shoulder, and as soon as he did, I could see something change in Edward's eyes.
No…no… no, Edward… NO!
"By not letting her go you are making things more complicated than they have to be. Let her go, Edward. It's the right thing to do here." He said it all quietly, as if he didn't want me to hear. I guess he didn't realize I was in Edward's damn arms and, of course, I heard every damn word he said! "They're in the waiting room. Let's go."
Edward's grip had lessened around me. I wondered if he had even noticed. I could easily step out of his embrace; he wasn't holding me back at all. That hurt. A lot.
I steadied myself on my crutches and I bit hard on my lip to keep from crying.
"You promised me, Edward," I told him, feeling my heart close in on itself. This was what I got for trusting people. I got my heart broken. Why didn't I listen to myself before I let Edward in? Why did I even let him in, in the first place? He was Edward. Of course he would hurt me. This should come as no surprise to me.
But it did come as a surprise. A huge surprise.
And it hurt.
It hurt so much.
When we left the room, he tried to reach for me, but I wasn't having it. I jerked away from his touch as if he had burned me. When we reached the waiting area and noticed my parents, I could feel Edward tense beside me. I shook my head at him, not wanting him to bother with it. If he had let me go in Dr. Cullen's office, then he could surely let me go now too.
He touched my shoulder and it was like he had sent a shockwave of electricity through me. I lost my breath for a moment, feeling dizzy and confused.
I barely even heard how my mom yelled at him to not touch me. Edward moved to stand in front of me when Mom started walking towards us.
"Fuck you, bitch!" he spat, his voice pure venom.
"Are you going to let him talk to me like that?" Mom asked, turning to my father.
"Calm down, Renée, fighting won't solve anything," he replied with a tired sigh, pulling back my mom by gripping her hand. He gave Edward a tired, yet stern, look before continuing. "Now, let my daughter go so we can go home. It's been a long day… and night. I'm sure she's tired as well…" He held out his hand and looked at me. "Come on, Bella, it's okay."
I stepped out from behind Edward. He looked down at me with more pain in his eyes than I thought possible.
You can't keep me safe and let me go at the same time, Edward. You have to choose, I thought. I shook my head, silently trying to convey my message, hoping he got it.
Mom had released herself from Dad's grip and was now walking over to me, grabbing my hand. She pulled me away from Edward and I had to fight to keep upright. I wonder if my mom was even aware of my injuries. Did she think the cast was just for show? That it was some new kind of trendy accessory? Probably.
I looked back at Edward and I could see his hands twitch at his sides as if he longed to reach out for me. I wanted to tell him not to bother; he couldn't save me now. Mom had me. He took a step forward, but was held back by his father. Dr. Cullen whispered something to him and Edward winced.
"I'm sorry," he mouthed to me.
Of course he was.
"Good bye," I mouthed back.
x x x x x
At that time, I really thought it was goodbye. I thought I was going to die that day. That I would be taken back to my parents and I would never be safe again. Mom would cut me again; sacrifice me to her gods or whatever the hell she believed in. And I would die.
I didn't die. It had been four days, and I was still alive.
All thanks to Dr. Carrot and Kate. I obviously didn't believe it then. Someone from the CPS could never be a good thing. I watched TV. I read the news. They were not to be trusted. Even though their sole purpose was to keep children from harm. Considering my past experiences, how could I expect anything to turn out for the better? Even if I had the "good" guys on my side?
I was glad I was wrong.
x x x x x
I turned away from Edward, grasping my crutches more tightly in my hands as my mom loosened her grip on me. When we were far enough from Edward, she only let her hand linger on my shoulder. She probably felt that I had given up. She saw no reason to hold me back anymore. I wasn't going to run.
I tried to push all my emotions down, ignoring the tugging feeling in my stomach that told me to get back to Edward, to run into his arms and never let go. I tried to become the emotionless shell I had been for the past few months, but that was impossible. Something had changed, and I couldn't go back completely. Edward had changed it all.
And it hurt.
Something inside me that I didn't even know was there was aching, and breaking, and it hurt! It hurt so much. Dr. Cullen told Edward to let me go…and he did. Edward didn't fight him at all. He just stood there, watching me go. He could have tried more than he did, but he didn't.
I followed my parents towards the entrance, letting all the positive feelings that Edward had brought with him drop behind me. As soon as I stepped out of that hospital, I was not going to let anything hold me back anymore. I wasn't going to let Edward's words mess with my mind again. I wasn't going to let myself be fooled into believing I actually had a future.
Of course I didn't.
I was destined to die, one way or another. And, if I were lucky, I might just make that happen soon.
I still had the pills. Maybe the misery could end tonight?
We were just about to leave when a voice rang out.
"Excuse me, Chief Swan!"
We stopped and turned around, seeing Dr. Carrot jogging towards us from down the hallway. When he reached us, he shook Dad's hand.
"Sorry, you can't leave yet. There are a few things that I still need to talk to you about. You can join me in my office," he said, smiling. Mom sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Can my husband take care of it? I just want to take my daughter home," she said, but Dr. Carrot shook his head.
"I'm afraid not. Please follow me."
x x x x x
I never got to Dr. Carrot's office. I never went inside. Mom had looked almost terrified when Dr. Carrot said that I had to wait outside, but she didn't argue with him. I had seen how Mom clenched her fists by her sides as she went into the office and I wondered what she was thinking. I suppose she knew when she should shut up and not show how crazy she really was. Acting like a possessive mother would not have worked out well in her favor. Even I knew that. But did she know she was in trouble? Or was I the one in trouble?
I sat in a chair outside his office, weighing my options. I seriously considered running away. This was something I never even thought of before Edward entered my life as my knight in a shiny Volvo. But, somehow, I now considered it an option. Running away was always an option.
Edward taught me that.
x x x x x
"No, she's not going anywhere!" I heard Mom protest loudly. "She'll only go back to that good-for-nothing boy. It's his fault she's in here!"
"With all due respect, Mrs. Swan, we both know that's not true," I heard Dr. Carrot reply with a stern voice, and I almost wanted to smile at the barely masked condescension in his voice.
My leg was aching again. I closed my eyes and breathed slowly through the pain, and while I did that I felt someone sit down in the chair beside me.
"How are you feeling, Bella?" Dr. Cullen asked his voice soft.
"Confused… empty… lost," I replied, without opening my eyes. "Where's Edward?"
"He's… occupied at the moment," he replied vaguely. "My son has a temper, as you probably know, and his presence right now would not help you."
"What does that even mean?" I asked, sighing exasperatedly and opening my eyes. "What is going on?"
I saw that he was reluctant to tell me, but something also very clearly said that he didn't want to keep me in the dark. He knew the past few months of my life had been pure hell; I didn't need to be pulled through any more shit.
"I talked to Dr. Jenks after you left, we discussed your scars and I took the liberty to tell him what you told me. Not the whole thing, obviously, but the necessary part that your mother was the one who hurt you. We called the CPS and they sent over someone to take care of this," he explained.
"And… what does that mean? Take care of this?" I asked.
"Chances are that you won't need to go home today," he replied.
My eyes went wide and I looked at him in shock.
"What?" I asked dumbly. He chuckled softly and took my hand in his.
"Bella, a child who has been abused can't stay in her home, for obvious reasons. You will most likely be placed in protective care until we can find a more permanent solution. You need more care than most children because of your leg," he explained softly. "So a normal foster family won't do. Your case worker will explain everything to you once she gets here."
"I'm still confused… this is all too much," I said quietly.
"I understand, it must be very overwhelming for you to accept that you are safe after living all these months in fear of your mother," he replied softly.
Always with that stupid word.
Safe.
I didn't feel safe. Not yet.
Suddenly the door to Dr. Carrot's office flew open and Mom stalked out. She grabbed my arm, yanking me from my chair and I tumbled to the floor. I swear to God that she would have dragged me away if she could, not caring if I was lying flat on my face and not caring about hurting my leg. But she never got the chance, instead a couple of security guards came faster than a speeding bullet and grabbed her, pulling her away from me. Dr. Cullen helped me up on my feet but I couldn't even stand upright. I was shaking uncontrollably and I was so close to bursting into tears.
"LET GO OF ME!" Mom yelled, kicking and screaming in the grip of the security guard. "SHE'S MY DAUGHTER! YOU CAN'T TAKE HER! YOU CAN'T TAKE MY DAUGHTER! SHE'S MINE!"
People in the hallway had stopped to stare at the commotion, and I couldn't do anything but to look at the scene unfolding before me. Dad stood in the doorway to Dr. Carrot's office looking at me like I was the freak here.
"Bells, is it true?" he asked, his voice was quiet and I just barely heard him over the commotion.
I had a feeling I didn't need to ask him to clarify, so I just nodded, not trusting my voice enough to answer for me. Something shifted in his eyes at my response and he looked at me like he didn't even know who I was anymore. This, I guess in a way, was true. We had all lived a lie for the past four months. And the look in his eyes now told my why that was. He was taking her side. He always took her side, which just proved to me, once again, why I never dared to tell him what happened. He wouldn't believe me because he didn't want to believe me.
He stepped away from the door and followed the security guards as they took Mom away.
I felt my throat close up on me and I tried to breathe, but it was impossible.
Mom wanted to hurt me. Dad didn't want me.
I had no one.
x x x x x
Everything that happened after that was all a blur to me. Four days worth of… blur. Too much happened in such short amount of time. Dr. Cullen took me to his office while someone else took care of my parents. I stayed there until there was a knock on the door and Dr. Cullen entered with a woman trailing behind. She was just a few inches taller than me and she appeared to be in her mid thirties. She introduced herself as Katherine Peters, from CPS, my new caseworker.
She asked me to call her Kate because she wanted us to be equals, or something like that. She asked me a bunch of questions, but I couldn't remember half of them. I didn't even remember my answers. My mind was spinning a hundred miles a minute, trying to process what was happening.
It wasn't until she got my file from Dr. Cullen and had a talk with Dr. Carrot that it was decided I wasn't going home. She spoke to one of the hospital's security guards in the hallway while I waited in the office. I don't think she intended for me to hear what they said, but I did.
I heard it all.
Mom had gone completely mental when the security guard pulled her away. Kicking and screaming while Dad followed. According to the guard, Dad didn't ask about me. All he kept asking was about what was going to happen to Mom.
He didn't ask about me at all.
It was dark out when I was finally allowed to leave the hospital. I was told that my dad had packed me a bag and that we would stop by the house to pick it up. Dad wasn't home when we got there and neither was Mom. I didn't ask where they were, but I still wondered. He must have been around somewhere, since he had the time to pack me a bag with the things he figured were necessary for me.
But since he didn't ask about me, I wasn't going to ask about him either.
After we picked up my bag, everything seemed to fall apart even more. Kate was told that there were no foster homes available in Forks that could take me in on such a short notice. Although, the foster parents who could were not comfortable with having such an old teen in their house. Apparently, they thought I was a drug addict or something and that was the reason why I was abused by my mother.
Kate yelled into the phone when she found out. She was very upset, which I found kind of funny since I wasn't feeling anything at all. I had slowly retreated into my old shell and I didn't feel much of whatever Edward had left in me anymore. I was back to being empty.
After she was done yelling at whoever was on the phone, she took a deep breath and turned to me, telling me that I had a choice to make. I could either go back to the hospital or go with her. She didn't care about the rules, and she wanted to take me home with her. She said she was tired of seeing older kids getting thrown around and slipping through the cracks just because they were just that… old. There was too much focus on younger kids, because they were more vulnerable.
Kate later explained to me that she always wanted to work with troubled teens and that if breaking the rules meant helping someone out, she would do it in a heartbeat. Apparently, I wasn't the first case she broke a few rules for, and she still had her job, her license and the right to work with troubled teens… so whatever end result she got, the rules she broke on the way were easily dismissed by the other CPS people.
Kate was an approved foster parent and had hosted a bunch of kids before, but never the ones she was a caseworker for – like me. But that didn't mean that the CPS wasn't annoyed when they found out that Kate had brought me home. Something about "keeping her distance" and not getting "emotionally involved." It almost sounded like something someone would say on Grey's Anatomy. However, I totally got what they meant. Because if they got emotionally involved, their judgment would be clouded and the kid in question could end up even more hurt than before.
Eventually, they finally agreed to let me stay with Kate – just until they found me a more permanent solution. They were trying to find a foster home for me in Forks, so I wouldn't need to move. So far, they hadn't gotten anywhere as far as I knew. I guess they finally realized that if the choice was between the hospital and Kate, I would be more comfortable at Kate's. I'd had enough of hospitals in the past few months to last a lifetime.
Kate spoke to my school and I was told that I could make up for the missed schoolwork come January. Since Christmas was only a few weeks away anyway, there was no reason for me to stress about it now. I had enough on my plate as it was already.
I tried to ignore the feeling of abandonment that assaulted me as I thought about my parents. How not even my dad had called me, or tried to contact me at all. It was as if he really didn't care. He didn't even care enough to pretend to care.
I closed my eyes and took a cleansing breath.
There was only one person I wanted to see. One person I really, truly, missed.
And that person was not my father.
I scrolled through the address book in my phone until I found him. My thumb hovered over the green call button, but I never pushed it. I stared at his name and number as if that was enough to make the call.
I sighed and pushed a button. Not the green one. Instead I pushed the button that left the address book and sent me back to the main-screen.
I was going to call him, but not right now.
It was still too much.
x x x x x
I stared out the window, thinking about Edward, until it was time for dinner. The delicious smell of chicken and rice had made its way to my room, and my mouth was watering. It was a nice change to be able to eat good food without having to make it myself.
Kate prepared a plate for me as I sat down at the table. She prepared a plate for herself before sitting down across from me.
"How old are you, Bella?" she asked me, smiling as she cut her piece of chicken into smaller bits.
I looked at her, feeling confused. She knew how old I was, so why was she asking me? And why was she smiling like that when she did? I was still thinking about Edward, and I was not in the mood for mind games right now.
"Seventeen," I replied slowly.
"How long have you been seventeen?"
"A while…?" I replied, still confused.
She chuckled lightly. "I mean, when is your birthday?"
"September 13th. Doesn't my file say when and where I was born?"
She smiled. "Yes, it does," she replied simply as she picked up a folder that had been lying on the chair beside her. She put it on the table and pushed it across to me. I quirked an eyebrow at her before opening the folder. My heart stopped beating, and I quit breathing as my eyes landed on the first page.
"Are you serious?" I asked in a shaky voice, looking up at her with wide eyes.
"Definitely," she replied, smiling sadly. "I won't lie to you, Bella, the process takes a while and there's no guarantee that you will win. There are several different things you need to do to be eligible, and with your medical past with a suicide attempt on record…" She sighed and shook her head, as if wanting to put that thought out of her head. "But it's always an option. It may not work out, but it will still be worth a shot, even if it's a long one and even though you're turning eighteen soon. Everything is worth a shot."
My emotionless mask was fading and her smile grew when she noticed. I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling too. I looked back down at the folder in my hand and flipped through the fifteen or so pages in it. I went back to the first page and stared at as if it held the key to my salvation.
Emancipation of minors in Washington State.