Two years later...
"You're scowling again," Alice murmured whimsically with a small smile on her lips as she flipped to the next page on her magazine.
Sitting in the living room, nearly on the edge of his seat, Jasper opened his mouth to say he wasn't scowling but closed it right away. He couldn't argue with his wife when he knew damn well it would be a lie. Especially because he couldn't ignore the faint giggles coming from upstairs in his little sister's bedroom. Doing her supposed "homework" with Flynn Thompson.
Esme had, for some reason, thought it a good idea to invite Bella's best friend over for dinner tonight, but conveniently left out the fact that he would be spending the night here too. So yeah maybe Jasper was in a sour mood, so what?
"Edward and Emmett aren't any better," He murmured with said scowl as he looked over to the bronze-haired vampire who stood by the window, arms crossed as he looked out towards the lake. The sun had begun to settle over the trees, casting shadows and hues of amber across Edward's stoic face. Emmett on the other hand wasn't so subtle, taking to pacing at the bottom of the stairs only to stop when Bella's sweet laugh would trickle down towards them.
"What the hell is so funny?" He muttered before pacing once more.
"They've had sleepovers before remember?" Alice added, sighing as she tossed the magazine onto the coffee table. "They're not doing anything out of the ordinary."
"Yeah, when they were six..." Edward added as he turned and came to sit on the L-shaped couch. "They're not six anymore."
"Don't remind me," Emmett sighed, sounding comically distressed however, Jasper mirrored his sentiment.
This year Bella was turning thirteen and becoming an official teenager as Alice had told her one night while playing "dress-up Bella". No longer a little kid. No longer Jasper's little Bella who'd come to him all the time and ask him to read to her. Now she was reading with Flynn Thompson upstairs and having the time of her life. Note the sarcasm.
Flynn Thompson wasn't a bad kid. Jasper honestly didn't think there was a bad bone in the lanky kid's body. What with the wide, polite smile he always gave Esme and Carlisle and his optimistic view on the world. The empath had done plenty of scouring over the years to see if his feelings changed, and the only reason he wasn't pacing like Emmett was because he knew they hadn't. The same goes for the human's ever growing feelings for Bella. Since Flynn first met Bella, he'd developed a little crush that seemed to flourish into a fully formed crush now. Which was definitely something he didn't like.
Edward had done some snooping too and with a sigh of disappointment and relief, they found that Flynn didn't show any sign of having bad intentions nor would he ever have them. If anything, his affection towards Bella was endearing and the two overprotective brothers were wise enough to recognize that they liked that Bella had a friend. A real friend.
If Bella felt the same towards Flynn however...it was hard to say. She was always happy to see him, and her good mood would often last all day after spending it with Flynn either at school or when his mother would take them to the mall or the movies. Like right now, her amusement was palpable and the soft waves of joy that reached Jasper was all the reassuring he needed.
Still didn't mean he had to like that his sister was hanging out with boys now.
"Bella! Flynn! Dinner's ready!" Esme called as she rounded the corner, wiping her hands with a towel as she looked up towards the stairs with a smile. Then she looked to the rest of her children clustered together as if they were having a cult meeting, grim faced except for Alice who kept smiling. Esme made a face as she shook her head, "Oh dear, can't the five of you try to occupy yourselves with something other than eavesdropping?"
"Heaven forbid that ever happens in this family," Rosalie said as she emerged from the kitchen. Perhaps the most surprising outcome of all was Rosalie's welcoming smile and polite attitude towards Flynn. She'd even been in the kitchen helping Esme cook dinner for their family, willingly. Rosalie of all people, who hated humans and their fragility, was actually making an effort to be nice to one. Because he was important to Bella, Jasper realized with a grin.
"I mean what's so funny? I genuinely want to know!" Emmett raised his hands in exasperation.
"Flynn's dozing off while Bella's trying to finish their project. She keeps poking him to wake up and he keeps jolting awake," Edward said, clearly hearing the boy's thoughts as footsteps were heard shuffling about upstairs, walking onto the hall. Jasper supposed the only saving grace of this torture was that Bella kept her bedroom door open at all times even when she wasn't hanging out with Flynn in her room. A habit she'd formed since all her siblings were constantly coming and going, checking up on her or wanting to spend time with the little human girl. And hopefully it stays that way, Jasper thought as his sister and the red-headed boy wandered downstairs.
Flynn yawned as he complained about their extensive science project due tomorrow when Bella stopped short, her big brown eyes noticing the group meeting her siblings were having in the living room. She pursed her lips just as Flynn bumped into her from behind.
"Ah, sorry," Flynn said, placing a hand on her shoulder as he walked around Bella, "Did I hurt you?"
"No, I'm good," Bella said quickly, still eyeing her siblings with a withering glare. Or what Jasper started to recognize as such. Not that he should be surprised since she's been giving her siblings, mainly Emmett and Alice, that look since she was six years old. She only seemed to perfect it the older she got. Standing there now with her long brown hair cascading down to her waist, wearing an old sweatshirt she'd stolen from Emmett and leggings, she looked every bit a young lady. But Jasper could still see the little girl toddling around the living room with a book in hand for Jasper to read to her before she went to bed.
Time really has passed us by, hasn't it?
Edward looked to the empath and gave him a grim smile, agreeing wholeheartedly.
Jasper eyed Flynn's hand as it continued to linger a little too long on Bella's shoulder. A jab to his side made him grimace, looking to his wife who still had that smile plastered on her lips.
Alice wasted little time as she rose and skipped towards the two kids, she wrapped her arm around Flynn's as she led him into the dining room. Even though he was twelve, the boy was still taller than his wife, and would probably be around Jasper's height by the time he's in high school, if not taller. "Flynn! I love the new glasses, those frames look so good on you! What did I tell you? I knew the round ones would look so much better!"
"Ah, thanks Alice," Flynn smiled broadly while Bella stared Edward, Emmett, and Jasper down. The boys had the decency to look a little ashamed that she'd known right away what they'd been doing. Since they seemed to do this every time Flynn was over.
"Really?" She said dryly before turning around and heading into the dining room. Somehow Bella being mad at any of them was the equivalent of disappointing or angering Esme. And the few times either of them were upset, it was like a dark cloud had swept over the entire household. Who would have thought such a small, human girl would have such a hold on such powerful supernatural beings?
"Well, you guys ready to experience death again?" Emmett sighed ruefully as he stood and mentally prepared for the terrible meal they were about to stuff down their throats to keep up appearances. For Bella and her friend.
Once dinner was over and Bella and Flynn went back upstairs to get ready for bed, Esme made the boys wash all the dishes once they effectively finished purging their stomachs outside in the woods where the kids wouldn't hear them. The last thing they needed was for Flynn to freak out and tell his mom all the Cullens decided to develop food poisoning...
Ridiculous.
Jasper was just finishing with loading the dishwasher when he heard Carlisle and Esme speaking in the hall, "I wanted to give him a place to take his mind off it," his mother said.
Carlisle was silent for a moment before sighing, "Shame they couldn't make it work out. They were a nice couple. It was kind of you to invite him over, honey."
"What's going on?" Jasper asked when his parents wandered into the kitchen.
That was when Esme explained the real reason she'd asked Flynn to spend the night. Why the best thing for the kid was for him to be as far away from his home as possible, if only for a night.
And then Jasper and his brother's felt like the biggest overprotective idiots they could be at times, as Bella often pointed out.
Bella stepped out of the bathroom, all dressed in her green matching plaid flannel pajamas and ready for bed, when she spotted Flynn standing by the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. He was still in his thick hoodie and jeans, but would go into the bathroom to change soon. He always let her go in first, waiting patiently for her to get changed before taking his turn. It had become a routine of sorts during their once a month sleepovers which hadn't been as often lately.
"What are you doing?" Bella asked as she came to stand beside him. His gaze fixed on the array of books on her impressive collection. A small smile on his lips as if he were deep in thought.
Over the years Bella's love of books had become a rather life-altering obsession. Rare was it when Bella wasn't seen without a book around the house or at school. So much so that Carlisle thought it best to install a large bookshelf to put all her books when they'd started to piled up on her desk and the floor. Now it seemed like she would need a second bookshelf on the other side of her window as this one was already full, books gathered on the floor in neat stacks.
"Just wondering when you became such a book nerd," That earned him a playful shove, making him laugh. Bella's cheeks warmed as a smile made its way across her lips. Flynn turned to look at her, nearly looking down at her as he seemed to grow taller and taller by the day. Over the years, Bella had grown used to Flynn's tall, lanky appearance but he had change quite a bit this year as puberty hit.
His glasses weren't the small narrow frames he'd been wearing since she could remember. Now he had some round ones that complimented his diamond-shaped face and brown eyes. Unlike Bella's eyes that were in her opinion plain and well, just brown—Flynn's eyes had small specks of green that made them look almost hazel in certain lightings. They were...pretty. His once short hair had started growing out over the summer, the red curls settling over his temple and cheekbones. If he let it grow anymore it would probably reach his jawline like Jasper's hair.
"What are you reading now?" He asked, snapping her out of her assessing thoughts. Bella blinked and followed Flynn's attention as he picked up a book that laid flat on the shelf with a bookmark sticking out of it. He picked it up, the spine of the book looking worn as if she'd read it more than once before. She had. Flynn snorted and she scrunched her nose, already knowing what he would say. When he looked at her again with a grin, he waved the book in one hand, "Wuthering Heights again? Seriously?"
Bella snatched the book, "So what? It's my favorite book."
He snorted, bending down to pick up his neatly folded pajamas which Alice had gifted him last Christmas and were coincidentally the same green shade as Bella's, "Okay, B. Try not to bore yourself to death with that while I'm gone."
"I'll try and do that," the sarcasm in her tone earned her a playful shove this time. While she climbed into bed, Bella heard a knock at the door and glanced up to see Carlisle standing in the hall, a soft smile on his lips. Bella smiled, happy to finally see her dad after failing to see him last night when his shift was extended due to an emergency surgery he had to perform, "Hey."
"You two okay in here? Need anything?" Carlisle asked as he sat beside her, wrapping her in a gentle embrace.
"I think we're good. He's just getting ready," Bella sighed with the roll of her eyes, "but I'm sure you all knew that."
Carlisle smiled, "Your brothers have been giving you a hard time?"
"Not me..." She murmured pointedly.
"Ah, I see. Well, I'd say they'll get over it but..."
"They're a couple of paranoid overprotective vampires?" She said that in a whisper just in case Flynn could hear and Carlisle chuckled.
"They'll always see you as their little Bella, as I do. That'll never change no matter how old you get, sweetheart."
Bella shrugged, not really sure what to say about that. She didn't really understand why they all saw her as the same little girl when she was much older...but maybe that's what a kid would say so she didn't point it out. Instead she chose to be empathetic to her brother's plight, "You guys don't have to worry."
"If only you knew how impossible that is, love." Carlisle said as he placed a kiss on her forehead before rising just as the bathroom door opened and Flynn emerged. Taking in the matching pajamas they both wore, Carlisle raised a brow but refrained from saying anything as he affectionately ruffled Flynn's hair in passing, "Good night, kids."
"Good night, Dr. Cullen." Flynn said, ever polite and looking after Carlisle as if he were his biggest fan, eyes bright and smile wide enough Bella could see the dimples forming on his cheeks.
"Night, dad." Bella called out.
Carlisle left the door wide open as he glanced over his shoulder and a warm wave of love hit her, courtesy of Jasper conveying how her adoptive father felt when she used the term "dad".
"The door stays open now," Carlisle said with mock authority before disappearing down the hall. Effectively making both teenagers blush redder than a couple of tomatoes as they looked at one another and laughed.
Staring at the small glowing stars stuck to the ceiling of her bedroom, Bella laid perfectly still as she tried and failed to doze off. Sighing she tried to close her eyes and willed herself to sleep.
"Can't sleep either?" Flynn asked from the other side of the bed, startling her. He snorted, "scaredy-cat."
"I am not," she answered with a pout. "Why aren't you asleep? I thought you were so tired you couldn't bring yourself to work on the project."
"Nah, I just wanted you to do it for me."
Bella kicked him for that, stretching her leg all the way across the bed to reach him since he was so far away. That had been a new change too she realized. Before they used to sleep side by side, whispering and giggling at silly things until their stomachs hurt and Esme came in to urge them to sleep. Now that they were a little older, Bella had the feeling things had changed between them somewhat.
"Why can't you sleep?" She asked, genuinely wanting to know.
Flynn was quiet for a long time before saying, "I guess I'm just thinking about my mom and dad."
Bella turned onto her side, facing him and finding that Flynn was staring up at the stars too, noticing that his glasses had been left on the nightstand.
A heaviness settled in her chest as she recalled what he'd told her last week.
"They're still fighting?"
"They stopped talking all together so no. But I think it would have been better if they were, at least then they'd actually talk." A long pause, "I think...I think they were talking about getting divorced. Not just separated or whatever."
"Well, what do you want to happen?"
Flynn glanced at her then averted his gaze once again, "I don't know anymore. They were fighting so much it was like being in a concert but not the enjoyable kind. Like the one where there's only screaming and loud banging music that makes your head throb."
Bella smiled at that, unsurprised he could make such a serious topic seem lighter somehow.
Then a memory—distant and somehow still fresh—played in her mind. Renee yelling at her, pinching her back when no one was watching to get her anger out whenever Bella annoyed her. Charlie slamming doors and cursing at her mother. All the name calling and feeling of utter loneliness that followed whenever her parents finally stopped fighting, leaving her alone and feeling ignored.
"I think I know the feeling..."
This time Flynn turned to face her, rolling onto his side and taking in the saddened expression on her face. The nightlight on the wall casting shadows across her cheek and eyes.
He asked, his voice barely above a whisper, "You do?"
"Yeah..." She bit her lip nervously, feeling dread for what she was about to admit out loud while knowing that she'd never really told anyone what she was about to say. Not to any of of the humans in her life that is, "A long time ago, before we moved here...I was adopted by Carlisle and Esme. And my biological parents, well they weren't the nicest from what I remember."
Flynn seemed to inch closer and the bed dipped, making her glance up to find the kindest eyes gazing into hers. Compassion and awe shining in them, "Bella. I...I didn't know. Why didn't you ever say anything?"
"I didn't think it was important. To me, they're my family, you know? Carlisle and Esme are," She trailed off, feeling an odd knot in her throat as she tried to find the words. Clearing her throat she continued, "They're my parents. They're what my real parents should have been. But I remember what it was like before them, all the fighting and...wishing that it would stop."
This time Bella couldn't bring herself to continue.
A warm hand landed on hers then, gentle as Flynn reached out to her, "I'm sorry."
"I didn't tell you to make you feel bad for me. I just wanted to say that I understood what you meant. How you feel on some level." She didn't know why she suddenly felt embarrassed, why her cheeks warmed to the point she was self-conscious about it. The truth is that she never really opened up like this to anyone other than her family. But she'd wanted to share this with Flynn, her best friend who'd told her everything and never seemed to hide who he truly was. He was unapologetically himself and she loved him for it. If only he knew all my secrets...then maybe being myself wouldn't be so hard. If only I could tell him why in a few years, I'd be going away.
Bella knew by now that the Cullens moved every few years to avoid suspicion, wanting to return to the same place after a long period of time. Once she reached high school, she suspected they would move again and she would have no choice but to leave Flynn behind too. But would that mean they couldn't stay in touch? Would she have to disappear completely from his life?
"Thank you," Flynn's voice interrupted the tumultuous thoughts in her head as his hand squeezed hers, "thank you for sharing that with me. For understanding me, Bella."
Bella took in his words as she inched a little closer, holding his hand as she smiled at him, "You too."
The next day when she and Carlisle dropped Flynn off, they found out that Mr. Thompson wasn't home. That he'd packed a suitcase up and left without saying so much as a goodbye to his son.
Later than year, Flynn's parents did get a divorce and between him and Bella, he was as relieved as he was heartbroken. That was the year Bella and Flynn truly became inseparable, relying on one another for support and genuinely caring for one another. Bella also knew without a doubt that leaving Flynn behind would be the hardest things she'd ever have to do and she wasn't ready at all to do it any time soon.
Thanks for reading x
I really wanted to show another side to Bella's life in this chapter, giving her a human companion that was definitely necessary and the 'cons' to living a life with the Cullens as moving and keeping secrets is inevitable. Also Flynn is a really sweet character to write :)