There's a quick knock on the door and it opens, Esme popping her head in. "I brought soup!"
Edward carries me to the couch, despite my protests and Esme fluffs the cushion behind me.
"Edward dear, don't you have a meeting to get to? I'll stay with Bella," Esme says.
"Oh, if you have to go, I'm fine being here on my own," I insist.
"Nonsense! Rosalie won't be back for a couple hours and Alice is still at the hospital. Besides, we can use this chance to get to know each other a little better." Esme turns to Edward, who looks unsure. "You can go."
"Are you okay with that?" Edward asks me.
I nod, feeling a little unsure about him being gone but not wanting to hold him back. "Go do whatever you do."
"Hopefully I won't be gone long," he tells me with a kiss to my forehead, leaving the room so it's just Esme and I.
"Here you are, dear," Esme says, handing me a bowl of soup. "It's mainly just a broth with some vegetables so it won't be too much for your stomach."
"Thank you." The kindness from Esme in the short time I've known her is too much and I have to blink away tears.
Esme immediately notices though. "What's wrong?"
I shake my head, wiping my tears away. "Nothing," I let out a laugh at how silly I feel crying about this. "You just remind me so much of my mom."
"Oh," Esme scoots closer, rubbing my arm in comforting motions. "I know she loved you very much. And she must have been a wonderful woman to raise someone like you."
"She raised my brother too," I say without thinking.
I'm not sure how much Esme knew about everything but she seems to pick up on enough.
"He was influenced more heavily by your father than you were, my dear. He lost his way," she says. "Now, eat up. We need to get you back into tip top shape."
After I finish eating, Esme helps me wash up and I finally feel like I've fully cleaned that dungeon off of me. I'm able to change myself as long as I move slowly so I slip into some shorts and a tank top I found in the closet.
"I'm so happy you're here," Esme tells me.
I smile, giving her a hug. "Thank you for letting me stay here."
"I wouldn't have it any other way. Get some rest," Esme says. "Edward should be back soon."
"Thank you for everything, Esme."
"Anything for my future daughter," she gives me a conspiratorial look and caresses my cheek, leaving the room and gently shutting the door behind her.
I consider going to sleep, but I really want to see Edward so instead, I pick out one of the books from the shelf and curl up on the bed. I was only a little sore and as long as I didn't move too quickly, I felt just fine.
Edward is gone longer than I thought he would be and it's starting to get dark outside. I'm almost halfway through my book when the door finally opens and he walks in, looking exhausted but still handsome as ever. When he spots me, he stops for a moment, staring at me.
"How was your meeting?" I ask, putting the book down.
"I forgot you were here," he says, his face breaking out into a big smile.
I roll my eyes. "Well that's flattering."
I open my arms for him to join me and he kicks off his shoes. He leans against the headrest next to me and I scoot closer, leaning my head against his chest. He wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me closer.
"So, how was it?" I look up at him.
"Tiring," he says. "Long. Now that you're safe and awake, we can start setting other things in motion, but-" he hesitates.
"What?"
Edward sighs, "Some of the families aren't happy we brought you into Ruthenia. They don't trust you yet."
"They think I'm a spy." Even though it hurts, I can completely understand where they're coming from.
"Or that we want to use you as some bargaining chip. But I know you're not. And we don't. It doesn't matter what they think. They'll see," he says.
"Is that why that guy-" I cut myself off, realizing my mistake.
"What guy?" Edward frowns. "Did someone bother you?"
"It's not that big of a deal-"
"Bella," he all but growls. I shift myself so I'm straddling him, keeping him from doing something he might regret.
"It really was nothing," I insist. "I had just woken up and the guard was saying things about how he's not going to watch me double cross you and just called me some fun names. But he was upset."
"It was Paul, wasn't it?" Edward looks ready to go track him down. "The next time I see him-"
"Alice kicked him out of the room and that was that. Please don't do anything. It was just words."
"I don't care, they can't just disrespect you like that. They know how much you mean to me," Edward says, trying to move me to the side so he can move off the bed to leave. Not a chance.
I tighten my hold on him. "Right now, I'm just an intruder who they don't know anything about and until that changes isn't it good that they're wary? Maybe I should have been. Look at me now, all cozy with my kidnapper."
Edward gives me a look that says he doesn't think I'm being funny, but he does stop trying to move. "I don't give a damn if they're wary or if they don't like it. You're not going anywhere." He grabs both of my hands. "I want you by my side always. Here and with our people. As my equal. As my Queen."
His declaration catches me off guard. "Are you asking me to marry you?" Unlike with Jacob, this time, the idea of marrying someone leaves me feeling excited.
"Yes. Well, not yet," he amends. "I think Rosalie would kill me if she knew that's how I proposed. Like I said, I'm pretty sure they like you more than me."
"I don't mind," I tell him honestly.
Edward cradles my face, a soft smile on his face. "I know you don't. But I'm going to give you the world. There's a lot of things I didn't do right with us. This won't be one of them."
"Okay." I lean in to kiss him and he lets me, for just a second before pulling away.
"Alice said we can't," he says, although he doesn't look happy about it.
"She said no strenuous activity. This doesn't feel strenuous," I push.
"It's about to be if we don't stop," he says. He kisses my shoulder with a smirk and I blush, moving off his lap.
Edward and I keep talking into the night but I must doze off at some point because when I wake up, it's morning and I'm alone in the bed.
"Edward?" I scan the room, but he's nowhere to be found. I feel a sense of panic rising before I spot the note on the nightstand.
My love,
I wish I could spend the morning with you but I've been called to the council. Rose will be there all day to keep you company but don't hesitate to call if you need me.
Yours, Edward
At least I wasn't going to be alone. I slip out of bed and look through the closet for something to change into. Most of the clothing on my side looked to be too tight for my cuts or didn't cover as much as I had hoped for, so I borrow another one of Edward's shirts. I'm sure he won't mind. I pull on a long skirt to hide the large cut on my leg and venture out to see if I can find anyone.
It's fairly quiet as I walk down the hallways, but there's still a sense of comfort, unlike back at my castle where it just felt cold.
I run into Esme near the front entrance. "Good morning , Bella!" She greets me with a huge smile.
"Good morning." I stand awkwardly in the hallway, not sure where to go.
"Rosalie should be back soon. Are you hungry? I can make you something," she offers.
"Actually, can I help?" I ask. "I never got to cook back home and I'd really like to."
"I'd love that," she says.
I spend the morning cooking with Esme. Well, more like she cooks and I attempt to help. After I almost cut myself with the knife and the water I was watching boiled over, Esme sat me on the table in the kitchen to arrange fruit on a plate.
"I'm sorry I couldn't be of much help," I tell her, feeling bad that she's doing all the work.
Esme walks over from the stove to wrap an arm around my shoulders. "You'll learn. I'll teach you. If you want," she offers.
"Yes please!" I nod, placing the last grape on the plate.
"Hi Mom," Rosalie sticks her head in. When she spots both Esme and I, she walks right in.
"Hi Bella," she sits down next to me, giving me a hug. "I'm so glad to see you out of the hospital."
Esme carries over a plate of eggs and toast and some more soup for me and encourages us to start eating, taking the other seat at the table.
"Edward said you could spend the day with me?" I ask Rosalie hopefully.
She gives me a warm smile. "Yes. Mom, do you want to join?" She asks Esme.
"I'd love to," she says, looking back and forth between the two of us. "But I have to meet Carlilse at the shelter this afternoon."
"Can I come sometime?" I wasn't quite strong enough yet, but I knew it's something I would enjoy doing.
"Of course," Esme claps her hands in delight. "I'm sure everyone would love to meet you."
Esme leaves not long after we finish eating, leaving Rosalie and I alone in the house.
"Come on," Rose says, taking my hand. "I have plans for you. I brought some more clothes for you if you want to change into something else," she tells me, eyeing my outfit.
"I like this shirt," I tell her.
Rose smirks. "It's Edward's isn't it?"
When I nod, she shakes her head. "Fine. But at least see what I got you. And let me do something about your hair. It's much too long."
I was already missing Edward and wishing that he would come back soon, but I also knew that I wouldn't be able to rely on him forever. I needed to start working on feeling comfortable when he couldn't be around, even if the thought of that made my stomach drop.
I follow Rose into another room. It's absolutely gorgeous, the furniture perfectly matching the walls, all tied together by the plush carpet in the center. She leads me to the large couch where there are several bags waiting.
"This is Emmet and I's room," she explains, reaching into one of the bags. "You can keep the shirt on but these might be more comfortable." She hand me a small bundle of fabric.
I reach out to touch it and it might just be the softest thing ever felt.
"It's nice right?" Rosalie smiles.
"Thank you," I smile back, taking the fabric. I slip on the pants, and instantly feel more secure, slipping off the skirt. "I'm surprised you picked out pants."
"Our family is quite…non-traditional," Rose says. "In more ways than one as I'm sure you've noticed. And besides, clothes are the least of our worries, don't you think? I mean of course we'll dress up for any formal events and public outings, but I think it's also important to appear relatable and live our lives the way we want to."
I take in everything Rosalie says. I know what she's saying was true, Edward had told me he wanted me to be equal to him. But it was still hard to wrap my head around after all these years of being told otherwise.
"Come on, I'm cutting your hair," Rosalie says, taking my hand and pulling me into the bathroom.
"I've never really cut it before," I tell her. I remember getting it trimmed a couple times when I was younger but other than that, it's always been long.
"Do you want me to leave it around the same length then?" Rosalie asks, running her fingers through my hair.
I thought about it for a second. I spent my entire life trying to be the person my father wanted me to be. I dressed, looked, and acted exactly how he expected me to. For the first time in my life, I finally had the choice to be who I wanted. It might take a while to find who that person is. Frankly, I don't know if she even exists, but this, my hair, seemed like a good place to start.
"No," I shake my head. "I trust you."
Rosalie gives me a smile and kisses the top of my head, grabbing the pair of scissors on the counter and cutting the first strand.
As the pieces of hair fall to the floor, I finally feel like this is the start of leaving behind the old Bella and becoming something new.