Blood Solstice 2 (Sequel)

Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Beauty

Beauty

I stared at my own reflection in the bathroom mirror in front of me, gently running my fingers across my cheeks. The bruises I'd gotten yesterday were nearly gone. They had been noticeable before, but now they were faded into my skin, looking more like makeup than remnants of me getting my ass handed to me by a bunch of stupid bimbos. Ugh.

I still couldn't believe I'd gotten myself into that situation. Am I that pathetic that I can't defend myself against a bunch of idiots?

I was still discouraged over it. Alice and my sisters had saved me, yes, but the fact that I had done so little was just...pitiful. How could I ever hope to match up with vampires if I couldn't even protect myself? Sure, I'd gotten a few hits in, but not much. Is this how things would always be? Would I always be the weakling who couldn't even help herself?

I sighed and shook my head, glancing once more at my face. It was funny; this was probably the most time I'd ever spent in front of a mirror. I wasn't the vain type, definitely not. Though I had to admit I wasn't too bad looking, I didn't care for my own appearance. It just wasn't my thing, I guess. I couldn't quite get the bruises off my mind, though.

Maybe Carlisle would know?

Deciding that now would be a good time to ask, I turned away from the mirror and walked out of the bathroom towards Carlisle's office. I waited for only a few seconds.

"Come in, Bella," he called from inside.

I did as told and quietly walked inside of his office. Carlisle was just putting away a book on his shelf of thousands as I closed the door behind me. He turned and smiled warmly at me as he walked towards me.

"You know, you don't have to close the door all the time," he chuckled softly. "Now then, is there anything I can do for you?"

I nodded and pointed to the faded bruises. "I was wondering if you knew why these healed so quickly, actually."

Carlisle nodded and motioned for me to come forward, which I did. He appraised my cheeks thoroughly, narrowing his eyes slightly as he did. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he didn't like seeing me injured. He'd had that look yesterday when he'd come home and found out about what had happened at school in the locker room. He didn't react the same way as Esme had, but he was just as upset and just as sorrowful. He'd checked my bruises and given me an ointment to apply on them, which Alice did for me.

In fact, Carlisle called the school up to have a talk with the principal, who, from what I was told, was still shaken up from Esme yelling at her. Apparently the principal apologized profusely for the students and for herself and promised to suspend the girls implicated in my assault, which Carlisle thanked her for. I was happy about that too, since that meant I wouldn't have to deal with any of the bimbo brigade for a while, especially if I ended up going to school when the others couldn't.

"It would appear that your injuries have healed due in part to the ointment I gave you, but also because of your body itself. If I were to guess, I believe that the fact that you are slowly changing into a vampire is the main reason behind it. You will likely heal at a more accelerated rate than you normally would, though I wouldn't suggest doing anything drastic to test that theory, if you please," Carlisle stated softly.

"I won't," I promised, smiling at him. He smiled in return, though part of that look remained.

"Good. Now, is there anything else?" he asked curiously.

I shrugged. I didn't have any other reason to speak with him, which made me feel a little bad. He was my new father and I wanted to have a strong bond with him, just like the bond I was forming with Esme. He was always so kind, gentle and compassionate towards me. I did respect him and I did love him, but I wanted to build our relationship up, to have a true father-daughter connection with the man.