Characters belong to SM and the beautiful music that inspired this piece belongs to Ryan Tedder and his band of musical geniuses. The rest is all from me.
Chapter 5
-2013-
Wednesday arrived quicker than I thought it would.
"Dad?" I rolled onto my back and rubbed my face. It took a minute for me to
realize that I was on the sofa.
"What are you doing down here?" When I opened my eyes I saw Riley staring
down at me. He looked rather amused by the situation.
"He fell asleep there last night, and I didn't want to disturb him." Tanya was
now peering down at me as well. "It's almost eight, by the way."
"Almost eight? Why did you let me sleep so long?" I sat up and swung my legs
over the edge of the couch. Tanya handed me a cup of coffee, for which I was
grateful.
"I figured you could use it. Besides, you look like you haven't had a good night's
sleep in months."
"Thanks," I muttered. I chugged down the coffee, ignoring the burning
sensation the hot liquid left behind as it traveled down my throat. I was in the
shower minutes later, and ready to get on the road by nine.
"Has anyone from St. Mary's called?" I asked. Tanya shook her head, handing
me more coffee sealed tightly in a Styrofoam cup.
"Drive safe, please? You don't need to set a record for the fastest time getting
there."
I kissed my daughter on the cheek and took off.
I was no more than ten miles from home when nostalgia got the best of me. I'd
spent the past two nights reading different parts of the journal to Tanya, which
had led to my dreaming about the days when Bella and I were teenagers. Back
then we were so caught up in the way we felt that we failed to see the big
picture overall. Sometimes I wondered how we were still together, especially
since the cards had been stacked against us for the later part of our senior year.
I couldn't help but chuckle when I thought about how determined Charlie was to
keep us apart. It wasn't funny back then, but in the grand scheme of things, it
sure seemed so now.
There were no neurological teams waiting for me in Bella's room that day. The
nurses made their rounds as usual, but other than that it was a relatively quiet
and uneventful afternoon, something for which I was grateful.
I stared at the journal, which I'd brought with me once again. I never thought
about reading it to Bella, but now as we sat there alone while the drugs worked
their way out of her system, I thought it probably couldn't hurt. There was no
evidence to prove whether or not comatose individuals could hear things going
on around them. I knew that the next 24 to 48 hours would be crucial, because
it was during that time that Bella would likely wake up, if she was going to. The
thought of her not knowing where she was or what had happened was bad
enough, but idea that she might not know who she was either was enough to kill
me. I flipped through the journal, landing at the spot where I'd left off with
Rosalie. Perhaps my words would act as a guiding light, helping her fine her way
back to us.
It couldn't hurt to try.
I leaned forward in the chair until my elbows were resting on the tops of my knees. I looked up at my wife and then back down at my own familiar scrawl, beginning to read.
-June 1988-
As far as Charlie knew, Bella and I weren't together. And we weren't—not
publicly at least. Behind closed doors and in the presence of our friends, we
were back in full force, hotter, heavier, and even more in love than we were
before.
Graduation was a big deal in our small town, and an even bigger one for Bella
and I. Two days after the ceremony she would turn eighteen, which meant that
Charlie could no longer forbid her from letting me be a part of her life.
"I can't wait until we don't have to hide anymore," I murmured, kissing my way
across her collarbone. Bella shivered and tangled her fingers in my hair.
"I know. Just one more week." She looked over at the clock next to my bed and
sighed. "I need to get home. Charlie will be back from Sandstone in a half
hour."
"Mmmm, stay here with me." I tugged her tank top down and captured her
nipple in my mouth, eliciting a gasp from her.
"I want to, but…" I cupped her other breast in my hand, rolling her nipple
between my thumb and forefinger. She tugged at my hair and sighed. "I have to
go."
I gave each breast a chaste kiss before rolling over. She righted her clothing
and sat up.
"One more week," she repeated, leaning down to kiss me. I reached up and
tickled her sides, sending her into a fit of laughter.
"Tell Charlie hi for me," I joked, slapping her ass when she stood up. She looked
over her shoulder and rolled her eyes.
"I'll see you tomorrow, stud muffin."
"Love you!" I yelled.
"Love you too!"
I was still lying there, staring up at the ceiling, when my mom knocked on the
bedroom door. "Can I come in?"
"Sure," I said, pulling myself up into a sitting position. She crossed the room
and took a seat on the edge of my bed.
"You know, your father and I don't like hiding things for you," she began. When
I started to roll my eyes, she held a single finger up to stop me. "But, we've
been doing it because we love you and we love Bella. And even though we're
still not happy about the part you played in what happened to The Bear's Den
this spring, we've never felt his no-contact stipulation was fair."
"I appreciate that," I said, focusing my eyes everywhere but on my mom's face.
I hated it when she got emotional, and that seemed to be the route the
conversation was taking.
"That being said, you both graduate in a week, and I would hope that once your
ceremony is over and you're free from the confines of high school, you'll be able
to have that conversation with Charlie."
I slung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, stretching my arms high
above my head. "Bella's birthday is two days after graduation, Ma. We can tell
Charlie after that."
Esme seemed satisfied with this plan. "Good." She stood as well, motioning at
the door. "Your father should be home any minute and dinner's ready. Why
don't you wash up and help me set the table?"
"Sure. I'll be down in a minute." Once I knew she was downstairs, I opened my
sock drawer and dug my hand around. I pulled out the velvet box I'd hidden in
there, opening the lid and inspecting the ring that was seated inside. The
diamond solitaire wasn't huge, but it was what I could afford, and I knew at the
end of the day that Bella wouldn't want something big and flashy. Despite my
initial impressions of her, she was a relatively simple kind of girl, and as long as
I presented the token of my love when I asked the big question, I knew she'd
be happy.
Jasper's words about the proposal pool played over in my mind, and I couldn't
help but laugh. Back then I had no intention of asking Bella to marry me so
soon, but the past few months had changed a lot of things, and I'd come to the
realization that Bella was truly it for me. I wanted her and only her, and so
asking her to commit to the next leg of our journey together didn't seem like
such a bad idea to me.
I tucked the ring back where I was keeping it hidden and made my way
downstairs.
Graduation would formally mark the end of our high school days.
And, if all went as planned, it would also become the night that Bella Swan
agreed to spend the rest of her life with me.
.
.
.
Our commencement was relatively short, given that our class consisted of a
whopping 89 kids. The school provided coffee, cake and juice in the gym
following the ceremony, but when everyone parted ways and then sun went
down, the real fun began.
"Cheers to end of high school!" Emmett held a can of beer up and grinned. The
rest of us held our drinks up too, toasting to the idea of no more homework or
catty cliques. We were at Eric Yorkie's house, where a post-graduation kegger
was in full swing. I was careful not to drink too much, as I planned on popping
the question later when Bella and I had a moment or two alone.
"I can't believe we did it," Alice squealed, wrapping Bella and Rose up in an
awkward, drunken hug.
"I know! Where did the last year go?" Bella looked over the top of Alice's head
and smiled at me. "No more homework or football games or cheesy dances."
My eyebrows shot up. "Cheesy dances? You made me go to every one of them!"
"Only cause I wanted an excuse to spend time with you." Bella winked and I felt
my jaw drop.
"Oh c'mon, you had fun at those dances and you know it!" Alice said, slapping
my arm and giggling. Alice on a sober day was sometimes hard to handle, but
once she had a few drinks in her I usually wanted to strangle her.
We left Yorkie's house and made a stop at the Stanley's place. Enough of our
classmates were throwing parties that we could have continued to hop like that
until dawn, but after our third stop at the Denali farm, I pulled Bella aside and
asked if she wanted to go.
"I thought you'd never ask," she said, eyes twinkling and skin flushed with
excitement. We said goodbye to our friends and found my jeep. The ring was all
but burning a hole in my pocket, and even though I had what I considered a
grandiose proposal in the meadow planned out, I only made it as far as the field
behind Bella's house before the anticipation got the best of me.
I pulled off the dirt road and parked in the tall grass. The sky above us was
clear, and just like we had the night we first said, "I love you", we climbed into
the back seat and tossed a blanket over our laps.
"Couldn't handle the overwhelming crowds anymore, huh?" Bella teased. I
chuckled.
"If these crowds are overwhelming, I have no idea how we're going to navigate
UMD in three months."
"We might have to take up day drinking," Bella joked, snuggling into my side
and looking up at the sky. "I know I've said it at least a dozen times, but the
stars will forever me my favorite part of coming here from the cities."
I shifted so that I was facing her. I saw a myriad of emotions swimming in the
deep brown pools that were her eyes, but the most prominent one staring back
at me was love.
"Bella..." my words melted away as I tried to remember everything I'd spent the
past two days rehearsing. When I drew a blank, I said a silent prayer and
improvised, my voice thick with emotion. "I know we're young and we haven't
had a chance to see the world in its entirety, but if I were to die tomorrow I
could do so happily, simply because I've had the chance to spend the last year
with you."
She sat up straighter, focused intently on my words. The look of adoration on
her face was enough to keep me going. "When I think of my future, you're in it.
When I think about what college will be like, I'm comforted by the simple fact
that you'll be by my side through the experience. When I wonder what kind of
home I'll have or car I'll drive or life I'll live … it's not a terrifying thing to do,
because you're a part of every piece in this puzzle. Simply put, you're my life.
And you have been for months." I slipped the box out of my pocket and held it
up where she could see it. Her eyes grew wide, her face lit up, and she brought
both hands up to cover her mouth.
"Promise me you'll always be a part of my life, Bella," I continued, opening the
box and taking the ring out. "Promise me you'll be Mrs. Edward Cullen
someday."
She said nothing as tears began to fall from her eyes. Her silence was just
starting to worry me when she flung her arms around me and pulled me close to
her.
"I promise," she whispered in my ear. I could feel her smile against my skin,
and when she pulled back and looked at me again, I was certain I had tears in
my own eyes as well. I grabbed her left hand in mine and slid the ring on her
fourth finger, where it fit perfectly.
"I love you," I said, cupping her face with my hands and placing a chaste kiss on
each of her eyelids. Bella slid her hands up over my chest and shoulders, linking
her fingers behind my neck and hugging me tightly.
"I love you too."
.
.
.
Two days later, I found myself on the road that led to Bella's farmhouse. It was
the first time since the fire that I'd been there, and though I promised myself I'd
stay calm for what we were about to do, I couldn't stop the tidal wave of anxiety
that washed over me the minute I hit her driveway.
I slowed the jeep to a crawl and took a deep breath. Bella was eighteen as of
that morning, and there wasn't a damn thing Charlie could do about our
relationship anymore. The thought alone was enough to provide some comfort,
but as the trees broke and the house came into view, I wondered if we would be
better off waiting a while before we announced anything.
I parked and cut the engine, taking five deep breaths to calm my nerves. I was
about to climb out when Charlie's angry voice flooded out of the open windows.
"Nothing's changed, Bella. I don't like that boy and I don't want you hanging
around him!"
"I'm an adult now, Charlie." My jaw dropped when I heard Bella say those
words. She never called her dad by his name. "It doesn't matter what you want.
I can make my own decisions, and I want to be with Edward. I love him and
that's all there is to it."
"Love?" Charlie laughed. "You're a kid, Bells. You don't even know what love is!
And you might be eighteen, but that doesn't mean you can run around this town
doing whatever the hell you please. As long as you're living under my roof,
you'll abide by my rules, and I will not tolerate you seeing that boy!"
I heard glass break and a door slam. It was quiet for all a two minutes before
Bella whipped the front door open and blazed through it. She had a suitcase in
one hand and her purse in the other, and Charlie was right on her heels.
"Where do you think you're going?" he shouted, but Bella didn't pay him any
mind. She ran to where I was parked and threw her things in the back of the
jeep. When she turned to face her dad she pulled her ring out of the pocket of
her jeans and slid it on her finger, holding her hand up in the air for Charlie to
see.
"We're engaged, Charlie! We're gonna get married and there's not a damn thing
you can do to stop us!" I tried to say something, but Bella shushed me and
continued. "You say as long as I'm under your roof I have to follow your rules?
Well then, I'm not living under your roof anymore! You're not going to stop me
from being with the person I love, Charlie."
"Isabella Marie," he boomed, starting down the steps and across the yard. "If
you get in that jeep and drive away, you don't get to come back! I won't
tolerate this kind of disrespect form anyone, least of all my own daughter!"
Bella stared at him for a mere second before climbing up in the jeep and
slapping her hand against the dashboard. "Drive, Edward."
"But-"
"Drive!" She commanded. I fired up the engine and threw her in gear, peeling
out of Charlie's driveway and leaving him behind in a cloud of dust.
"Where are we going?"
Tears were coursing down her cheeks now, and when I reached out to wipe my
thumb across her face she pushed my hand away.
"I have no idea. Just drive, Edward. Just drive."
Neither of us knew what we were doing or where we were going. So, we did
what any pair of emotionally charged, in love eighteen year olds would do.
We eloped.
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