Ch 50 - Calling You

I thought that the world had lost it's sway
It's so hard sometimes
Then I fell in love with you
Then came you
And you took that away
It's not so difficult
The world is not so difficult
You take away the old
Show me the new
And I feel like I can fly when i stand next to you

“Calling You” – Blue October

“I don’t know about this Edward,” I mumbled as he threw my bag into the trunk of the Volvo. He put his hand up to close the trunk and I stopped him, reaching inside and grabbing the handle of my bag. I started to pull it back out but Edward's hand grasped mine, stopping me. He pried my fingers off the bag and secured it back in the trunk, shutting it.

“Relax, Bella. It’ll be fine,” he said. I sighed loudly.

“How do you know? How can you be so sure?” I asked. I was nervous, my heart pounding loudly. We were still standing in front of the apartment building and my anxiety was already leading me toward a panic attack.

He shrugged nonchalantly, not bothering to give me an answer, and I looked at him incredulously. How could he be so relaxed about this?

He opened the passenger door and I grumbled incoherently, climbing in. He shut the door and walked around, climbing into the drivers seat. He started the car up and pulled from the curb. I sighed loudly, resigned. There was no getting out of this now.

“I’m sure it’ll be okay because it’s Charlie. Despite everything, he’s your father and he loves you.”

“Yeah he loves me, but he also hates you. How do you know this isn’t some kind of trap? Maybe he’s setting you up?” I asked.

Edward chuckled. “It’s not a trap because I wasn’t even invited. It has nothing to do with me Bella.”

My eyes widened. “You’re not going with me?!”

Edward sighed, shaking his head. “Nope,” he said simply.

I groaned loudly. “Turn the car around, I want to go back home. If you’re not going to be there then I don’t want to either.”

Edward smiled lightly, making no move to turn around. I narrowed my eyes and he glanced over to me. He laughed at my expression.

“Seriously, relax Bella. It’s Thanksgiving. You’ll survive dinner at Charlie’s. It’s only a few hours and it’ll do the both of you some good. He reached out to invite you; the least you can do is acknowledge that he’s trying. You know it couldn’t have been easy for him.”

I huffed. I understood completely that this was the right thing to do, but it didn’t mean I was ecstatic about the situation. Charlie had contacted Renee, who gave him my phone number. He called last week, shocking me, and mumbled out an invitation to Thanksgiving dinner. He’d made it clear that Sue and him wanted me there, making no mention of Edward. I thought for sure he’d go along with me for support, regardless of whether or not Charlie had actually invited him, but I should’ve known better. Edward wouldn’t want to overstep, especially knowing Sue was well aware of his true nature giving the fact that her children were wolves.

“How do you know it isn’t some kinda trap to kidnap me?” I mumbled. Edward laughed loudly. He reached his hand over and clasped mine, squeezing.

“Don’t worry love, I’d rescue you,” Edward said playfully. I rolled my eyes at him and he laughed again.

The drive to Forks went by fast, much to my dismay. Edward drove straight to the Cullen mansion. We went inside and were greeted by Carlisle and Esme.

“Happy Thanksgiving Bella,” Esme said cheerfully. She gave me a quick hug.

“You too Esme. It’s great to see you guys.”

Alice bounced into the room smiling. “We’re going to go hunting, Edward, are you coming?”

Edward nodded. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the key, handing them to me. “You can take the Volvo to Charlie’s,” he said. I nodded, thanking him.

“You should take out a turkey,” I said. Edward looked at me with confusion. I shrugged. “I mean, it’s Thanksgiving. People eat turkey on Thanksgiving.”

Carlisle laughed and Edward rolled his eyes playfully. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He leaned over and kissed my lips softly. He groaned and pulled away when a soft ‘awwww’ came from Esme.

I turned to walk out, knowing I was supposed to be at Charlie’s in a few minutes, but froze and turned back. “Uh, Alice? This is going to be okay right? I mean, I’m not about to walk into a war zone am I?”

Alice smiled. “It’ll be fine Bella, don’t worry.” Edward glanced at her as she spoke, narrowing his eyes slightly. She turned to him and I didn’t miss the slight shrug of her shoulders. Something told me she had no idea how this was going to go and was simply trying to appease me.

I hesitantly turned and headed out, climbing into the Volvo. I drove to Charlie’s slowly, trying to calm my nerves. I froze as I pulled up in front of Charlie’s house, instantly noticing the forms in the front yard.

I took a few deep breaths and climbed out, walking slowly up to the house. Billy smiled at me, nodding in acknowledgement. Seth glanced in my direction but turned from me quickly.

“Hello, Billy,” I said warmly. After the encounter with Victoria, when Billy had welcomed me into his home in order to protect me, I had a newfound respect and admiration for him. I wasn’t upset to see him at all, just a little worried about what it meant. Billy’s presence most likely meant that Jacob would be present also. And I hadn’t even stopped to consider the fact that Sue’s children would obviously be here. Seth I wasn’t worried about, he may be a bit cold toward me but he wasn’t exactly a mean person. Leah, on the other hand, could be quite hostile.

I walked up to the front door and hesitated, but pushed it open. “Dad?” I called out as I walked inside.

Charlie’s head popped around the corner from the kitchen and he smiled. It seemed genuine and it relaxed me immediately. “Hey Bella. We’re just working on some cranberry sauce in here.”

“We?” I asked skeptically. Charlie wasn’t very skilled in the kitchen and his involvement was likely to end in disaster. He laughed.

“Well, Sue is making cranberry sauce. I’m just supervising.”

I smiled. I sat timidly down on the couch and Charlie came in a few minutes later, sitting down beside me. He turned on the TV—football—and started watching the game, occasionally turning to me and saying something. It wasn’t at all uncomfortable.

After awhile Billy and Seth joined us, and the atmosphere stayed relaxed. Seth seemed to warm up to me a bit, occasionally even smiling and speaking to me but he kept his distance. I started to wonder if maybe my fears were unfounded, if I’d overreacted. But that question was answered quickly, as the back door opened and Leah walked in, followed by Jacob.

“God, what is that smell?” Leah asked, wrinkling her nose. Her eyes fell on me and she scowled. Of course I’d reek of vampire, and it didn’t fare well for me being closed up in a small house with three wolves.

“Leah, manners,” Sue said sternly. Leah narrowed her eyes slightly at me but didn’t say anything else. Jacob walked around Leah and came over to where we were. He didn’t acknowledge me, simply took a seat across the room.

After about 20 minutes Sue declared dinner was ready, and nearly everyone ran for the table. A bigger table had replaced the small mismatched set recently, obviously in order to make room for Sue and her family to dine here.

I hung back nervously and Seth stalled. He turned and smiled sadly at me. “It’ll be okay, they won’t be too bad. I know my sister can come off as being mean but she won’t disrespect mom.”

I nodded. “Do I really smell that bad?” I said hesitantly. Seth laughed.

“Not as horrible as them but you don’t entirely smell pleasant. Sickly sweet. But at least it isn’t so strong that it burns the nose as it does with them.” I nodded. “Actually, I’m a bit surprised you didn’t bring one of them with you. Charlie thought for sure you wouldn’t come here without him. Mom warned us that it was a possibility and that if we couldn’t contain ourselves we’d be thrown out.”

I shrugged. “I tried to bring him, he wouldn’t come though. Didn’t want to overstep, he knows how people feel about him.”

Seth nodded. “Yeah well, my sister will probably tear me up later for saying this, but that leech of yours isn’t so bad.”

I smiled. Seth and I walked over to the table and I took a seat beside Billy. Seth sat down on the other side of me. Leah and Jacob sat across from me, Leah scowling and Jacob avoiding looking at me at all costs.

We started eating, everyone making small talk. I sat quietly, not wanting to ruffle any feathers.

“So Bella,” Charlie said after a moment. I silently cursed; knowing whatever this was wasn’t going to be a topic I wanted to discuss.

“Yeah, dad?” I said hesitantly.

“Where’s that boyfriend of yours at?”

I sighed. Leah laughed dryly and I glanced up to see Jacob’s eyes boring into me, finally dropping his avoidance. His stare was cold, almost menacing.

“He’s uh, with his family,” I mumbled. Leah scoffed and muttered ‘family my ass’ under her breath. Sue shot her a look that nearly frightened me, and Leah shut up quickly. I was hoping Charlie would drop the subject but the look he gave me indicated he wasn’t quite done.

“That’s nice. I guess he’d want to have dinner with his family, anyway, instead of us.”

“You didn’t exactly invite him,” I said pointedly. Charlie huffed.

“Yeah, well, it was implied,” he grumbled.

“He’s not stupid dad, he knows you hate him. He’s not just going to impose when it’s clear he’s not wanted.”

Leah scoffed again. I glared at her, narrowing my eyes in irritation.

Sue cleared her throat and Charlie glanced at her. She gave him a pointed look and he mumbled something under his breath.

“He wouldn’t be imposing Bella. He’s important to you for whatever reason so he’s welcome here,” he mumbled. I looked at him with surprise, noticing he was glancing at Sue. Sue smiled lightly at him and nodded. Charlie smiled in return.

I was quite taken off guard by the fact that the Quileute was asserting to the human that a vampire was welcome in their home. But I knew even though she was well aware of the supernatural aspect, she was a parent first. And she’d try to guide Charlie to do what a parent should, putting her personal feelings aside. I gained a lot of respect for her at that moment.

Jacob was watching the exchange with disbelief. Everything was quiet for a moment, before Charlie spoke again.

“So I guess you and Edward are still living together,” he said, more of a statement than a question. I heard silverware clatter and looked over to see Jacob had dropped his fork. He narrowed his eyes at me, looking furious. He stood up, pushing his chair back hard and knocking it over, turning and running from the room quickly. Billy sighed loudly, shaking his head. Charlie grumbled, standing up to pick up the chair Jake knocked over.

“Your boy and his jealousy of Edward is ridiculous,” Charlie said to Billy. Billy merely nodded but Leah laughed bitterly.

“Jealous?!” she nearly yelled, jumping up. “You think Jake is jealous of that filthy bloodsucker?!”

Sue jumped up quickly, knocking her chair over in the process. “Watch your mouth, Leah!” she yelled. Leah shot her mother a look of disbelief and fled out the back door, slamming it. Charlie sighed, turning back to his food and taking a bite.

“I guess it’s a good thing Edward didn’t come with you,” Charlie said softly after a moment.

I nodded. We finished the meal in silence. Afterwards I helped Sue with the dishes while the guys went into the living room to finish the football game.

“Look, Bella,” Sue said after awhile. “I’m sorry about the way Leah acted. She has a bit of a temper, doesn’t realize what she’s saying…”

I held my hand up to stop her. “You don’t have to apologize to me Sue. Except for Charlie, everyone in this room today knew the real problem, so we don’t have to beat around the bush. We both are well aware of what Edward is, just as we’re both well aware of what your kids and Jake are. They’re designed to hate him, it’s in their nature and you can’t apologize for something that can’t be helped. Which is exactly why I won’t apologize for Edward. He is what he is, there’s no changing it. He didn’t ask for it anymore than Leah or Seth or Jake asked for what they became. It’s life, and it’s not all roses and sunshine, and we just have to deal with what we’ve got and not make excuses about it.”

Sue looked caught off guard by my rant but nodded after a moment. “I can’t say I understand this thing you have with that… uh, Edward… but you’re Charlie’s daughter and he loves you, so I’m doing my best to accept it all.”

I nodded. “I appreciate that. And I don’t expect you to understand because I know logically it doesn’t make sense. He’s supposed to be a predator and I’m supposed to be his prey, but that’s not how it is. We just fit, it’s as if we were made for each other. And I won’t apologize for that. Edward’s not going anywhere, he’s going to always be a part of my life.”

Sue grew quiet. “What about the future, Bella?” she said softly after awhile. “What happens when you get older?”

I sighed and shrugged. “We’ll deal with it as it comes.”

She glanced at me--sadness and concern in her eyes. “It’ll kill Charlie if he loses you.”

I smiled sadly. “No, it wouldn’t. He’s resilient. He has you and Seth and Leah now. He has Billy and Jake. He doesn’t lack for family. Charlie would be okay.”

“Is that what you intend? To be… like him?”

I sighed. “I don’t know,” I said softly.

“If that happens, I think the treaty would be broken.” I glanced at her confused. “The treaty says they can't bite a human and according to the legends that's how they're created,” she said with a shrug.

I turned back to the dishes, caught slightly off guard. We finished up in silence and I walked back out to the living room. I glanced at my watch and then turned to smile at Charlie.

“I should get going,” I said softly. Charlie glanced up at me and smiled.

“Okay,” he said softly. I paused momentarily, feeling a bit awkward, but turned for the door. I walked out and headed for the Volvo but Charlie caught my arm in the driveway. He looked slightly nervous.

“I, uh, just wanted to thank you. For coming. And I wanted to say I’m sorry. You know, about the stuff back there.”

I smiled sadly. “It’s okay Ch—Dad, it’s not a big deal.”

He nodded. “Well it was great to see you. Maybe I’ll see you around Christmas?” he said hopefully. I smiled and shrugged.

“Maybe.”

“You can bring Edward,” he mumbled. I smiled at the fact that he was truly trying.

“We’ll see. I’ll see you later dad.” He nodded and turned, walking back into the house. I climbed into the Volvo and pulled away from the curb, noticing Jacob standing along side the house. He was watching me, looking slightly hurt. I hit the brakes and stopped the car, gazing at him. He turned after a moment and disappeared. I sighed and hit the gas, driving away.

I arrived back at the Cullen’s house and Edward greeted me. He froze when I approached, smelling me. “Those dogs were there?!” he asked incredulously.

I smiled sadly and nodded. “Not for long. As soon as Charlie brought up the subject of you they flew on out of there in a rage,” I muttered.

I saw Edward grin, but he forced it away quickly. “Sorry,” he said. I rolled my eyes and waved him off. I plopped down on the couch as the rest of the family entered. Rose smelled the wolves on me and stomped out of the room, grumbling about me stinking up the house.

I sat quietly while the family chatted, lost in thought. I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, Sue’s words playing over and over again in my head. I hadn’t given too much thought to the future but I knew that someday Edward and I would have to seriously sit down and discuss where this was going. I figured all we had up against us was Edward’s refusal to end my human life, completely unaware that there was a bigger problem standing in the way—the treaty. If I allowed any of them to change me, it would ignite the battle that had successfully been warded off for decades. I’d start the war that would end up hurting people I cared about.

If I were selfish and insisted on immortality, I’d once again be ruining lives. But if I were being honest, the idea of not having an eternity with Edward was devastating. Years weren’t enough with him. I needed centuries. I needed eternity.

“Are you okay Bella?” Edward asked softly after a moment, sitting down beside me. I glanced at him and forced a small smile.

“Yeah I’m fine,” I said.

He glanced around at his family members before turning back to me. “We can go somewhere else if you want,” he said, eyeing me suspiciously, obviously not believing me. I shook my head no.

“It’s okay, I just have some stuff on my mind,” I said, shrugging.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked, his expression hopeful. I smiled.

“Maybe later,” I said. He nodded, smiling.

Truth be told, I was afraid to bring it up. Afraid of his reaction, afraid of what my reaction would be when he confirmed what Sue said was true. I was pretty sure Edward wouldn’t allow the treaty to stop him, if he really wanted to do it, but could I ask that of him? After everything I’d done, could I allow myself to be that selfish?

Maybe… but not yet. I wasn't ready for that right now.