Impasse

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.

A/N- an old story that I've rejigged a bit. Some of you might recognize it.

Waking Up

Bella's eyes opened to a bright, white light. She was in an unfamiliar room, a white room. The wall beside her was covered in long, vertical blinds, over her the head, the glaring lights blinded her. She was propped up on hard, uneven bed – a bed with rails. The pillows were flat and lumpy. There was an annoying beeping sound somewhere close by.

Her hands were all twisted up with clear tubes, and something was taped across her face, under her nose. She lifted a trembling hand to rip it off.

"No, you don't." And cool fingers caught her hand.

"Huh?" Bella turned her head slightly, her eyes widening in surprise at the angelic looking being sitting beside the hospital bed. His exquisite face was just inches from hers, his chin resting on the edge of the pillow. He had to be the most beautiful boy she had ever seen, but he was a stranger, she had no idea who he was, or what he was doing sitting to close. "I'm sorry, I don't understand." She whispered, not knowing what she was sorry for.

"Shhhh." He shushed her. "Everything's alright now."

"Is it?" Bella faltered. She couldn't remember clearly, and her mind rebelled as she tried to recall what had landed her in hospital…AGAIN.

"I was almost too late. I could have been too late." The angelic boy whispered forlornly; his face tormented.

"I don't understand." Bella repeated, her brow furrowing in confusion. Goodness her throat was so dry, she sounded like a hundred a day chain smoker.

"He tricked us all." The boy said resignedly, bewildering Bella further.

"He did?" Bella struggled to remember, what he was saying made no sense. "I need to call Charlie and my mom." She continued through the haze, panic setting in. Her parents would be worried, especially her mother. Renee wasn't adept at dealing with stressful situations, hence the reason why Bella always took the adult role.

"Alice called them." The angelic boy reassured her. "Renee is here – well, here in the hospital. She's getting something to eat right now."

"She's here?" Bella panicked as she tried to sit up, but the spinning in her head accelerated, and the boy's cold hand pushed her gently down onto the pillows. And who was Alice?

"She'll be back soon." He promised. "And you need to stay still."

Bella's head was still spinning. A dull ache began at her temples as she tried to force herself to remember what had brought her to this sad, sorry state. And who was this beautiful boy who spoke as if they were intimately acquainted. It was quite unnerving knowing that he seemed to know everything and she knew nothing. He seemed to know Renee, which must mean he knew Charlie, too.

"I don't understand." She said, repeating the now familiar refrain.

"Don't worry, Bella." The boy said soothingly. "We came up with a good cover story- you fell down two flights of stairs and through a window." He paused, smiling slightly. "You have to admit, it could happen."

"What?" Bella was thoroughly alarmed by this admission. What did he mean cover story? What on earth had happened? Who was he? Why was he saying all these confusing things? Surely even Renee would not be taken in by such a blatantly false story? But then again, it wouldn't be the first time her mother had been duped.

The beautiful boy sighed heavily, his eyebrows dipping, forcing a slight crease onto his formerly smooth brow. His skin was so white, it had the sheen of fine porcelain. There was no sign of stubble or anything. He really had the look of a statue – a marble Adonis.

"You have a broken leg, four broken ribs, some cracks in your skull, bruises covering every inch of your skin, and you've lost a lot of blood. They gave you a few transfusions. I didn't like it – it made you smell all wrong for a while."

Bella recoiled slightly at this bizarre admission. What he said sounded quite creepy – she smelt wrong for a while? What on earth did he mean by that? She was getting increasingly unnerved and more uncomfortable. Upon awakening she hadn't realized her injuries were so severe. It wasn't the first time her innate clumsiness had landed her in the ER, but this was on a whole other level. It seemed her accident had also affected her brain. She still didn't know who the boy was. She didn't remember him at all, but he spoke as if they were intimately acquainted, and not being one for confrontation, Bella didn't want to say anything, not until one of her parents were present. Where were they?

"I'm sorry I don't smell right." She apologized, hoping this would appease the strange boy.

"Why are you apologizing for that?" The boy's eyes blazed a burnished gold suddenly, his frustration clear in the tone of his voice. Apparently, it had been the wrong thing to say. Bella stared at him pensively, wishing that he would just leave. He was scaring her now.

Against her wishes the boy lifted her gauze wrapped hand from the bed and holding it gently in his, careful not to disrupt the wire connecting her to one of the monitors, he ran the tip of his nose along the sensitive skin of her wrist. This odd action made her tremble.

"You smell wonderful, Bella. Like always." He murmured dreamily. "It was almost impossible….to stop. Impossible. But I did." He looked up finally, with a half-smile. "I must love you."

Bella felt totally freaked out now. Not just by his words but also by the unexpected declaration of love. She stared at him like one would a snake, facial features tense, chocolate brown eyes filled with trepidation. But the boy seemed too lost in his own head to notice the subtleties behind her horrified reaction.

"You even taste better than you smell." The boy continued, still wearing the same half-smile. "Even better than I imagined."

Okay, Bella was officially weirded out now. She didn't know how much longer she could endure his suffocating presence. She felt trapped, unable to move from the hospital bed due because of the severity of her injuries, she was totally at his mercy.

Where was Renee? Where was Charlie? Why had her parents left her alone with this crazy boy?

"I don't know what to say." Bella faltered, trying to stifle her rising panic. "I'm sorry."

The angelic boy raised his eyes to the ceiling. "Oh, Bella, of all the things to apologize for."

"What should I apologize for?" Bella asked, her stricken gaze darting toward the closed door. She must be in a private room, she thought, wondering briefly how Charlie's insurance was able to cover such a huge cost. She hoped he wasn't paying for it out of his own pocket. He may be the Chief of Police, but he still didn't earn enough to fork out for such a luxury.

"For nearly taking yourself away from me forever."

"I'm sorry?" Bella's next apology ended with a question mark. She was so confused and upset. She really didn't know how much longer she could disguise her disquiet. So far, her bland replies to the strange boy's questions seemed enough to keep him fairly calm, but she guessed he would soon figure out her deception. What would his reaction be then?

"I know why you did it." His voice was comforting now. "It was still irrational of course. You should have waited for me; you should have told me."

"Waited for you?" Bella echoed faintly.

"Yes, you should. Running off like that alone." The boy shook his head, his gaze turning grim.

Bella shuddered and then winced at the change of expression on his exquisite face. Her reaction seemed to alarm him.

"Bella, what's wrong?" He asked anxiously.

"I don't – I wish I – "Bella stumbled over her words in her distress.

"Oh, Bella!" The angelic boy sighed wearily again, seeming to understand her inability to express herself. "You're thinking of James, aren't you?" He didn't notice the look of confusion cross her face, and didn't seem to expect an answer as he began to ramble, almost as if speaking to himself. "After I pulled James off you, Emmet and Jasper took care of him." There was a fierce note of regret in his tone as well as a murderous look in his eyes.

More unrecognizable names!

Bella shuddered again, wishing she could get up out of the bed and run. She was in fear for her life now. This teenage boy was talking as if he and his friends had committed murder. Her heart began to flutter like a baby bird inside her chest, her breath coming in short gasps.

"There was so much blood…but I stayed, Bella. Jasper and Emmet couldn't – they were too affected. But I stayed right by your side. I would never leave you. Never."

The beautiful boy's face shone with conviction; his porcelain features twisted into a fierce scowl. "My family love you as much as I do." The fury in his eyes softened when he said the last part.

Bella couldn't take anymore. When he began to run the tip of his nose along her wrist again, inhaling deeply as he did so, she lost all sense of composure.

"Why are you here?" She cried.

The boy raised his head, staring at her, first in confusion and then hurt touching his eyes. His brows pulled together as he frowned. "Do you want me to leave?" He finally took notice of the terror in her eyes. "Oh, Bella, I am so sorry. This is completely remiss of me. I didn't mean to scare you like this by flooding you with all this information. I should have waited and consulted with Carlisle. I just thought you would want to know – but of course the memories are probably still too fresh, too raw."

"I don't – "

The boy cut her off again by placing one cold forefinger over her lips. "Hush now, I can hear your mother outside."

Before Bella could react to this significant bit of news, the boy moved swiftly from the hard, plastic chair by her side to the turquoise recliner at the foot of her bed, leaning all the way back, and closing his eyes. He was perfectly still. He didn't even seem to be breathing.

Much to Bella's relief she could hear her mother now. Renee was talking to someone, maybe a nurse, and she sounded tired and upset. Bella wanted to jump out of bed and run to her, to calm her, promise that everything was fine, even though that was supposed to be Renee's job. Bella felt the full irony of her twisted priorities.

The door finally opened a crack, and Renee peeked through.

"Mom!" Bella cried loudly in her relief.

Renee took in the strange boy's still form on the recliner and tiptoed to Bella's beside in order not to disturb him.

"He never leaves, does she?" She whispered to Bella.

"Mom, I'm so glad to see you!"

Renee bent down to hug her gently, and Bella felt warm tears falling down her cheeks.

"Bella, I was so upset!"

"I'm sorry, Mom. But everything's fine now, it's okay." Bella comforted her, quickly falling back into her old role as the carer.

"I'm just glad to see that your eyes are finally open." Renee perched on the edge of the bed.

Bella suddenly realized she had no memory of when it was, or how long she had been in the hospital. Her last memory was of moving in with Charlie, him gifting her with the truck he had purchased off his friend, Billy Black, and then everything after that was a blank.

"Its Friday, hon, you've been out for a while."

"Friday?" Bella was confused. She tried to remember what day it had been when she arrived in Forks…but nothing came up but a series of vague images that made no sense.

"They had to keep you sedated for a while, honey – you've got a lot of injuries."

"I know." Bella winced – she could feel them.

"You're lucky Dr. Cullen was there. He's such a nice man…very young, though. And he looks more like a model than a doctor…."

"Who's Dr. Cullen?" Bella cut in, feeling more bewildered than ever.

Renee peered at Bella's wan face with a worried frown. "He's Edward's father, silly." She said, glancing over her shoulder at the boy lying with his eyes closed in the chair.

So, his name was Edward?

"And I met Edward's sister, too. Alice is such a lovely girl."

So that's who Alice was – Edward's sister.

Bella grimaced as she tried to make sense of these new revelations. Renee mistook her ambivalent expression for one of pain.

"What hurts?" She panicked anxiously, turning back to face Bella. Edward's eyes flashed in Bella's direction; his brow creased with concern.

"Its fine." Bella quickly assured her mother before Renee went into full panic mode and started causing havoc. "I just have to remember not to move."

She noticed that the boy called Edward had lapsed back into his phony slumber when he was reassured that she was alright.

Bella took advantage of her mother's momentary distraction to ask about her stepfather. "Where's Phil?"

Renee immediately brightened, the panic on her heart shaped face receding as quickly as it had arrived.

"Florida – oh, Bella! You'll never guess! Just when we were about to leave, the best news!"

"Phil got signed?" Bella guessed.

"Yes! How did you guess! The Suns, can you believe it?"

"That's great, Mom." Bella tried to inject the appropriate amount of enthusiasm in her voice, though she had little idea what that meant.

"And you'll love Jacksonville so much." Renee gushed while Bella stared at her vacantly. "I was a little bit worried when Phil started talking about Akron, what with the snow and everything, because you know how much I hate the cold like you do, but now Jacksonville! Its always sunny, and the humidity really isn't that bad. We found the cutest house, yellow, with white trim, and a porch like in an old movie, and this huge oak tree, and its just a few minutes from the ocean, and you'll have your own bathroom – "

"Wait, Mom!" Bella interrupted, feeling completely overwhelmed at this flood of information. She noticed that Edward still had his eyes closed, but he looked too tense to pass as someone deeply asleep. "What are you talking about? I've just moved in with Dad. I can't just leave when I've only just arrived. He brought me a truck and everything….and I haven't even started school yet. I don't really want all the upheaval of moving again so soon. I should at least give it a few months to be fair to him."

Renee laughed, but it sounded forced. "What are you talking about, baby? It's already been months. And isn't that why you ran away in the first place, because Forks was getting too much? You told Charlie you were feeling trapped, just like I did. You should apologize to him, you know." She lowered her voice a little. "You could have just called me. Driving off in the middle of the night wasn't your best move, and what you said to him really hurt."

"What?" Bella croaked in alarm. She had no idea of what Renee was talking about. This couldn't be true. She would never do such a cruel, mean thing to Charlie.

"But don't worry about that now." Renee babbled. "Phil will be around so much more now…we've talked about it a lot, and what I'm going to do is trade off on the away games, half the time with you, half the time with him."

"But, Mom, I don't understand." Bella cried in anguish, the panic welling up inside her again.

Renee's hands fluttered helplessly over Bella, trying to find a safe place to pat. She made to do with Bella's forehead, it was unbandaged.

"Bella, baby, you hate Forks. Charlie will understand once you apologize and explain properly." Renee suddenly paused, looking back and forth between Edward, and then her distressed daughter, this time very deliberately.

"Is it this boy?" She whispered.

Bella opened her mouth to issue an abrupt denial, but Renee began to talk again before she had a chance to speak.

"I want to talk to you about that."

"Huh?"

"I think that boy is in love with you." She whispered again, frowning.

"He's practically a stranger." Bella whispered back frantically.

"He seems very nice, and my goodness, he's incredibly good looking, but you're so young, Bella…" her voice was unsure, as far as Bella could remember this was the first time Renee had ever attempted to sound like a parental authority. That was confusing in itself. She recognized the reasonable but firm tone of voice from talks that she'd had with her mother about men.

"I don't know him, Mom. If he is into me, I'm sure its just a crush."

"Let's hope he realizes that. You are far too young to get tied down." Renee stated firmly. Then she sighed, glancing guiltily over her shoulder at the big, round clock on the wall.

"Do you need to go?" Bella asked resignedly,

Renee bit her lip. "Phil's supposed to call in a little while…I didn't know you were going to wake up…"

"No problem, Mom." Bella tried to tone down the disappointment in her voice. She was used to not coming first in her mother's life, a sad conclusion, but true nonetheless.

"I'll be back soon. I've been sleeping here, you know." Renee announced, proud of herself.

"Oh, Mom, you don't have to do that! You can sleep at home – I'll never notice." The swirl of painkillers in her brain was making it hard for Bella to concentrate even now, though, apparently, she'd been sleeping for days.

"I was too nervous." Renee admitted sheepishly. "There's been some crime in the neighborhood, and I don't like being there alone."

"Crime?"

"Someone broke into that dance studio around the corner from the house and burned it to the ground – there's nothing left at all! And they left a stolen car right out front. Do you remember when you used to dance there, honey?"

"I remember." Bella shivered, an ominous feeling building up inside her. She glanced uneasily in Edward's direction, experiencing a sudden sensation of dread. Some internal instinct made her wonder if he and his family had anything to do with it. It was too coincidental that they were in the neighborhood when all the chaos happened and she had her unexplained accident. A horrifying thought occurred to her in the same moment. Had she been running away from Edward? Is that why she had said those awful things to Charlie and left in the middle of the night?

"I won't be long, baby." Renee promised before Bella had a chance to beg her to stay. "I love you. Try to be more careful when you walk, I don't want to lose you."

Then she was gone.

Bella shuddered, her stricken gaze landing on Edward again. She was shocked to see a wide grin forming on his face, like a confirmation of her worst fears.

As soon as the door closed, he was back by her side. Bella cringed away from him in fear. "Bella?" He asked in surprise when he caught the apprehensive look on her face.

Then without waiting for her answer, a hostile expression took over his face, twisting his angelic features into a feral mask.

"I can't believe it!" He snarled, striding to stand in front of Bella's hospital bed protectively. "Don't worry, Bella. I'll get rid of him. I cannot believe the audacity – to come all the way out here!"

"What? Who?" Bella cried in anguish. What was happening now?

The door to her room opened again on silent hinges and a lanky figure slipped stealthily inside. Bella held her breath, her eyes opened wide and staring, as she drank in the sight of the tall, teenage boy standing a few feet away. His imposing presence seemed to fill up the whole room, his height alone dwarfing that of Edward, who was forced to crane his neck a little to meet his imperious glare.

A faint hint of recognition hovered around the edges of Bella's consciousness as she continued to stare and stare. She had never seen such a beautiful boy. Unlike Edward's angelic features, he had the kind of face that stopped you in your tracks. Bella guessed he must get used to that, the sudden pause in a person's natural expression when they looked his way followed by overcompensating with a nonchalant gaze and a weak smile. He had long black hair, which fell like black satin curtains on either side of his face. He'd passed that point where the soft muscles of childhood hardened into the solid, lanky build of a teenager; the tendons and veins prominent under the red-brown skin of his arms, his hands. The planes of his cheekbones were sharp, his jaw squared off, any hint of childish roundness gone. She wasn't sure of his age. It was hard to tell. He could be older than her, maybe he was younger, although she didn't think so. Oh, if only she could remember his name. She knew him. She was sure of it.

"What are you doing here, Jacob?" Edward demanded, putting an end to Bella's obvious ogling.

"Just checking up on a friend." The newcomer replied nonchalantly. "Not that its any business of yours, Cullen." His dark eyes narrowed slightly, as if in challenge.

Jacob- so that was his name!

Just like his face, the name was familiar.

Jacob's hostile gaze disappeared as his eyes slid past Edward and onto Bella. He broke out into an excited grin, which stretched wide across his face, the bright teeth standing in vivid contrast to the deep russet color of his skin.

"Hey, Bella."

Bella felt an unfamiliar surge of enthusiasm at his smile. She realized she was pleased to see him. This knowledge surprised her, but in a pleasant way. He had called her a friend, and she was certain they were. She was close to remembering who he was, everything about him seemed so familiar.

She found herself smiling back. "Hey, Jacob!" She said, copying his own greeting.

A/N-thanks for reading!