"Not knowing is a good place to start" - Fredrick Backman
Stephenie Meyer owns everything Twilight related.
CHAPTER 4
Bella woke up with a sharp jolt, she snapped her eyes open and for a split second she thought she was floating. Slowly, consciousness trickled back, and with a slight turn of her head Bella saw her alarm clock reading half past 6. She rolled the other way to see her bay window was slightly open and her curtains blowing with the breeze. Bella's dream made her believe she was falling off a cliff into tumultuous water, but here she was safe in her bed.
This dream or maybe nightmare felt exceptionally real, she didn't dream often but when she did they are always vague, hazy, and blurry. This one felt sharp, detailed and lucid; as if she made the conscious decision to step off the cliff. That makes no sense, Bella thought, she would never ever harm herself. That would be a selfish decision and would hurt her family. Bella's family is the most important thing in her life, she would do anything to make sure they were happy and safe.
Bella took a deep breath, "come on Bella, get it together" she whispered to herself. She laid on her back and stared up at the ceiling, trying to not think about her dream. She didn't want to overanalyze it, scared to know what it meant. Or maybe it didn't mean anything, dreams can be illogical.
She rolled out of bed and went to her bathroom, deciding a nice relaxing bath should help. She filled her clawfoot bath tub with warm water and bubbles and then sank herself low into the water. She coud hear her mother walk into her room and knock on the door.
"Come in," Bella said.
Her mother slowly opened the door with her left hand, in her right she was holding some tea. "I made you some green tea with lemon and honey" she said in almost a whisper. "Did you sleep well?"
"I don't know, you tell me" she said playing with the bubbles
"I heard a lot of movement, tossing and turning," she announced, setting the tea cup on her little teakwood bathroom table.
"I had a dream or maybe a nightmare, I'm not really sure" Bella said
"Do you want to talk about it" her mother asked
"Not really, It was dense, I'm sure it meant nothing" She replied, rather quickly
"Okay, well I'm here if you change your mind, but I'll let you relax" her mother said turning for the door
"I was hoping to sleep in a little longer" Bella said, leaning her head back on the tub
"I know, I was surprised to hear you get out of bed"
Bella made no comment
"I'll have your breakfast ready when you come down" her mom said closing the door behind her
"Thank you" she uttered
Bella couldn't help but let her mind wander back to her dream as she slipped further into her tub
Bella's dream or nightmare
She could remember feeling her back leaning against a tree, her head tilted up to the sky. She remembered seeing dark clouds and loud rumbling thunder. Her heart was beating fast, she could feel droplets of water hit her face and shoulders.
"Bella" she heard her name, she knew that voice. The same voice that asked her if she was enjoying the weather.
"Come out, wherever you are Bella" his voice sounded deeper though and more menacing
The rain started to pick up, Bella crept around the tree but he wasn't there, she couldn't see him
"Edward" she whispered but no reply. The only thing she could hear was thunder and the pitter patter of the rain. She turned back around and ran to the end of the forest. Once she got through the army of trees, she was hit with the warmth of sunshine, and saw the headland of a cliff. She couldn't help but to feel safe, not fully knowing where she was though. She took a step foreward and admired the sunset that played out in front of her. Bella remembered feeling a tug towards the edge of the cliff. She couldn't help but to keep moving foreward, never taking her eyes off the sunset, then all of a sudden she's falling. She remembered seeing the harsh waves slamming into the wall of the cliff.
Then she woke up, secure in her bed.
She sat up in the tub and shook her head, trying to shake the dream out of her memory. She got out of the tub, slipped on her robe, and started getting ready for the day.
She slipped on a cashmere sweater tucked it into flowy trousers and added a belt
Once satisfied with her appearance, she leisurely made her way downstairs to the kitchen. Bella made her way over to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup
"I was wondering where those pants were" her mother said eyeing her up and down
Bella smirked as she held her coffee up to her lips, she tends to steal her mothers clothes quite often
"Aren't they lovely? Bella asked with a twirl
"Yes, because they are mine" her mom said tapping her nail on the granite countertop
"Sharing is caring" Bella responded walking to the breakfast nook where her dad and Uncle Henry sat. She greeted them both with a kiss on the cheek and a quick morning as she took her seat across from her father.
Bella's mother brought her food over and sat down, for a while nobody said anything. Bella quietly ate, not wanting to be the first person to start a conversation..
"I hope we each had time to cool off from yesterday," her father said, breaking the silence,"we need to make a decision by the end of the day," he added
"Bella, your father and I are going to go hunting today, would you like to come with us?" her mother asked
Her and her family don't feed on humans, instead they chose to feed on animals. It's not illegal to feed on humans as long as it goes unnoticed. Uncle Henry used to have a human diet but Bella's parents convinced him to make the change years ago, before Bella was born
Bella disliked hunting, she didn't have those natural instincts that her parents did. Normally, when she goes with them, she'll hang out in the trees as they hunt first. When they are done they will hunt for her and bring her what they find. Usually smaller animals, Bella doesn't need as much blood as her parents, if it were up to Bella she wouldn't hunt at all. She craves blood sometimes though it's rare, she craves human food more often. Nevertheless, one of the rules in order for her to be able to go to school is that she has to hunt a little bit.
"Mhmm" Bella responded after a long pause
"I think it would be a great idea, you didn't come with us last time" her father decided, nodding his head
Bella rolled her eyes and finished her breakfast before standing up and cleaning her dishes
"Would you like to join, Henry?" Bella's mother asked as she stood up, she walked over to Bella and quickly braided her hair out of her face.
"I already hunted before coming here, so I'll stay back" he said
"We'll leave at quarter past 12, not a minute later" Bella's father said
Such a random time, Bella thought as she finished up with the dishes
"Bella, would you like to help me in the greenhouse? We have flowers to tend to" her mother asked
"Okay, let me get my coat, I'll meet you out there" Bella responded
After she was done, she went to the coat closet grabbed her coat and walked through the back door
She was careful not to slip on the back porch stairs, they were pretty wet from the rain last night. She found her mom in the greenhouse trimming some purple, bluish hydrangeas, one her mothers favorite flowers.
"Those are beautiful" Bella said as she walked over to her mom
"They turned out great" her mother said, admiring the color
Bella and her mother worked quietly together, trimming and watering the flowers. Gentle rain created a peaceful white noise in the greenhouse.
"Mom" Bella said as she was working on adding compost to the ferns soil
"Yes honey"
"Do you remember what it felt like when you met dad" Bella asked
"Why do you ask" her mom questioned with a smirk
"I'm just wondering" She replied rolling her eyes, with a big sigh
Bella could answer her own question if she wanted to, she could see all her mothers memories without her permission. She won't do that though, not to family. Memories are private and Bella knows to respect that.
"From what I remember it felt like the world stopped when I met your father. It was like we were the only two people that existed, "she said. Bella knew the story of how her parents met, her father had told her when she was younger. Bella's mother doesn't remember every detail, because she was human when she met Charlie. After Charlie changed Renee, her human memories faded a bit but Charlie keeps the memory alive for both of them.
Bella's mother was born in Burlington, Vermont in 1966. Renee had a conventional childhood, her father was a banker and her mother was a kindergarten teacher. She met Charlie at the University of Vermont in 1988, her senior year of college.
Her mother had a part-time job on campus as a library assistant, she was pushing her cart around res-shelving various books that had been returned, when she noticed Charlie walking into the aisle she was in. This wasn't the first time she caught sight of him around campus, but this was the first time they were this close.
She had noticed Bella's father's eyes linger on her cart in her peripheral vision, when she turned her head to look at him, he snapped his head trying to make eye contact. Renee remembered the golden orbs and instantly was mesmorized with them. She asked him if the book he was needing was on her cart and a light yes had fallen from his lips. The book he needed was called "A Pattern Language" written by various authors.
She asked him if he was studying architecture and he at the time was currently working on a MS in Historic Preservation. Charlie fell in love the moment he saw Renee but he kept his distance, not wanting to intrude on Renee and her life. Renee was persistent though, she wanted to get to know him, she knew there was something special about him.
"I knew it, the moment I saw him, I knew he was the love of my life" her mom said. Her parents got married a year later in 1989 and Bella was born three months later.
"So hypothetically speaking, I would know if I met the right person just by looking at them?" Bella asked
"No, not necessarily, love can develop over time" her mom replied
"Well that's confusing" Bella said patting the soil around the ferns
"Every relationship is different Bella, some move faster than others" She said "just remember love is friendship that has caught on fire, when it's right you'll know" She said and winked at Bella
When they finished in the greenhouse, Bella took her green gardening gloves off and went inside the house to the kitchen. Where she saw her father reading a newspaper and dressed ready to hunt
"Hi dad" She said as she went to the sink to wash her hands
"How was gardening" he asked
"It went well, mom can grow anything" Bella responded
"She's a nurture" he said with a shrug, flipping through the pages
"I'm going to get changed before we leave"
"Hurry up, we need to leave on time" her father said
As Bella was walking to the stairs, she met up with Uncle Henry
"Why don't we have a movie night" he asked "we haven't had one in a while, we can even watch one of your old hollywood films"
"Hmmm, okay let's do that" Bella responded, even though her Uncle annoys her, she loved him dearly
"Have fun hunting" he says and squeezing her cheek
After Bella was changed and ready to go, her and her parents went out the back door. Bella doesn't run as fast as her parents so her dad normally carries her. They have to run to higher ground, away from humans. They were heading out Northwest Portland to Forest Park. Bella placed her backpack on her back and then they headed off. She felt the wind whistle in her ear and whip her hair around, as her dad took off. They got where they needed to be in a record of time. Bella sat down at a tree and took a book out of her bag to read a bit while her parents hunted first.
"Bella we won't be far but stay here until we get back" her dad said
"Sounds good" She responded
As Bella sat there reading, greatly invested in her book. Something broke her concentration, she thought she heard something, maybe a voice that didn't sound familiar. She listened closely but didn't hear anything, she shook her head and focused back on her novel. Then she heard footsteps get closer, it can't be her parents not yet at least. She stood up with her back against the tree, and looked around. That's when she saw two vampires, a blonde haired man in his early twenties and a brunette woman who looked to be in her mid twenties. Where are my parents? Bella thought.
"Hello" the man spoke first with a warm smile on his face, they were a few feet away but Bella still took a step back around the tree
"We don't mean any harm" the woman said, her voice was sweet and reminded Bella of her mother. Bella didn't respond and took another step backward
"Hello, can we help you?" Bella heard her father's voice as her parents came out right behind Bella and stood in front of her blocking her view. Her mother grabbed Bella's hand and pulled her close
"We were just hunting and noticed we weren't the only ones in the area, we just wanted to introduce ourselves" The male vampire said "I'm Carlisle Cullen and this is my wife Esme"
Cullen, Bella thought, her mind instantly snapping back to Anatomy, Hello I'm Edward Cullen you must be Bella Swan
"Nice to meet you both, I'm Charlie, this is my wife Renee and our daughter Bella" my father said trying to be cordial.
"We have a residence not too far from here, you're more than welcome to come over and meet the rest of our family" Carlisle said
"That's very kind of you, thank you for the invitation" Bellas father said "We'll need to finish here first but maybe after?" Bellas father said in a cautious voice. Bella peaked slightly around her fathers arm to get a better look at both of them.
"Yes of course, we live off NW Quimby Street, the corner of 33rd Avenue " Carlisle said "our home is behind the gate"
"Sure, we'll find our way" Charlie said
Bella was able to obtain a visual of their house through Esme's mind, it was beautiful; a more modern angular architecture with a great number of windows and natural elements. The home looked to be three stories, made out of primary glass and steel, with touches of cedar and stone. For a more modern architecture the home was still warm and inviting with many warm white lights, completely different from Bella's home. She didn't pry in Esme mind, though it can be hard to pull back, curiosity can be addicting. Bella will refrain herself though until a decision is made by her family.
"Well, until next time" Esme spoke with a genuine, inviting smile that reached her eyes and then the next second they were gone.
"Let's finish up here and we'll discuss when we get home" Bella's mother said and turned toward Bella giving her a kiss on the forehead
After they got home, following cleaning up from hunting, the Swans met at the dining room table to make some final decisions.
"So you meant more Cullens and they invited you over" Uncle Henry spoke
"They were hunting, and we crossed paths" Her father responded, "After having some time to think, has anyone changed their mind from yesterday?"
Silence
"This is absurd, we need to handle this and move on" Uncle Henry said
"We can't keep running, we don't have to tell them everything, but we need allies" her mother said sharply
"Realistically, I'm not even sure I could handle all of them in such a small time frame" Bella said
"What do you mean, you've done this before" Uncle Henry retorted
"Not this many at one time though, there's seven of them" Her mother chimed in
"Exactly," She said. Bella has the ability to see anybody's memories, without even touching them. She just needs to be in a close vincity to them. Her ability goes even further, she can shut off memories as well, like switching off a TV. She can close off certain memories a person has, she can't fully take them away but she can switch them off to where that person won't remember what Bella shut off. The specific memory is still there but it's blacked out, to where that person won't remember it.
That's how the family has been able to stay undetected for as long as Bella has been born, any vampires they have met in passing have been modified, Bella calls it.
The "modification" doesn't take long, after Bella is done the individual will be a little stunned for a couple of moments, that gives the family time to get away. The individual won't remember meeting the family and will only remember right before. The most modifying Bella has done in a single time had been three vampires, and that had been a little difficult. Though she has never told her family that.
At times, she is allowed to practice on her family with their most recent memory, turn off, turn on, and repeat. Bella has to be extra careful that she turns the memory fully off, because she does have the ability to dim a memory as well, a dim memory can still be remembered by an individual. It would be blurry and not as clear but it could still be recollected. Modification can take a moment longer if there is more than one memory Bella has to shut off, it can be finicky but so far it has done the family well.
"Okay, let's give this ally thing a try" Bella's father said
"What" Uncle Henry snapped, "You are going to just let this happen?"
"Bella can always modify if things start going south" He responded
"The more memories they have of us the more time Bella will need to modify" Uncle Henry sharply replied
"We will manage" Charlie had said
Bella's father had made the final decision and she couldn't help but to think if this was the right thing to do. Her heart wants to befriend Cullens but her head is telling her this is a terrible idea. Her mother is right though, they can't keep running away. Will the Cullens want to be allies to them? Uncle Henry had a good point yesterday, why would they protect Bella's family when they have their own family to protect?
I guess only time will tell
"We should get ready to go" Bella's mother said
Bella got up from the table first and went into the kitchen to grab a sip of water, her heart was racing again.
Damn these nerves she thought as she leaned on the kitchen counter, after she was done she grabbed her overcoat and walked outside. The weather was chilly and the dark clouds had started to swarm over their house
"Alright" her Uncle said behind her, "let's go meet the Cullens" he said sarcastically, opening the door for Bella and helping her into her fathers SUV
Nobody said anything the whole ride there, the only thing that could be heard was Claire de lune by Debussy playing softly in the background.
Thank you for reading my latest chapter, I'm having such a fun time writing this story
We are starting to learn a little more about the Swans, next chapter we will officially meet the Cullens
Until next time!