As Always, Love Bella

chapter six: confused identities

Dear Edward,

I had twin girls three and a half weeks ago. I named them Emma-Mey and Allie. Emma-Mey is for Emmett and Esme, and I'm pretty sure that it's clear that Allie is named for Alice and Rose. Jake had no objections to their names. He knows I love him, but you and the others were such a large influence in my life.

Emma-Mey weighed 4lb 9oz and Allie weighed 5lb 10oz.

Jake is completely enamored with them, and so am I. They are identical, and both of them are beautiful.

As Always, Love Bella.

~*~*~*~*~

Lizzie

~*~*~*~*~

Edward Cullen was a fast driver. He led me to his family home quickly, ignoring any and all speed limits. It seemed to me like he was trying to lose me. I could understand that. I was the daughter of his ex-girlfriend and the man who had replaced him. It was childish and more than a little bit immature, but he probably didn't want me in his home.

I had no problem keeping up with him though. He wasn't the only one who enjoyed the rush that speeding had the ability to give. When he screeched around corners, I easily leaned my bike to allow me to turn them as fast as him. I was surprised we had not been stopped by the cops. It would not be the first time I had been atopped for speeding. It was late though, so they were probably not as uptight about the laws of the road.

Edward's leading back to the house quickly became an unspoken challenge of who had better control over their vehicle. We were both in control when the jerk suddenly slammed on his brakes. It was the middle of the night! There could not have been that many reasons for him to slam on with no warning. I had to skid my bike to a stop, and I was ready to blow up at him. What if I had gone into the back of him?

I calmed when I saw the cop walking around the corner. Edward had stopped so we would not get caught. But how had he known the cop was there? There was no way he could have been able to see around the corner from inside his car - it was too far back for that to be possible. I would ask him about it when we arrived at their home, right after I told them that I knew they sucked blood in their spare time.

Edward took off again (slower than before) after allowing the cop to cross the road. He got a wave of thanks, while the cop gave me a suspicious look. I was used to getting the looks by now, but it was still annoying. So I was riding a motorbike, so what? It didn't mean I was a rebellious troublemaker or anything. It just meant that I knew how to ride a motorbike, and that it was my vehicle of choice to drive.

The moment we were out of the cop's sight Edward sped up again. I grinned as I sped up with him, and revved the bike to show him that it was on. I kept a careful eye on his front tires, as I did not want to have to brake in a hurry anytime soon again.

The Cullens and Hales appeared to be living on the outskirts of the city. It wasn't as urban as other places, but it wasn't exactly as rural as others either. They were also wealthy, if the size and appearance of the area was anything to go by.

I was lost in my thoughts when Edward suddenly turned up into a long driveway. It was windy and long, and because of Edward's sudden turn, I almost missed the turn off. I had to swerve the bike to the right suddenly to even attempt to make it.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I made it, and sucked in a breath to replace it when I hit the curve that lined the driveway. I went flying over the bars, and I felt my ankle pop out of place when it smashed off of them.

Shrubbery tore at my skin as I was forced through it by my flying off my bike. I could feel cuts on my body, and knew that my leather was going to be completely ruined. My right wrist felt broken, my ankle was throbbing and I knew I would be covered in bruises by the morning.

This was such a great start to my visit.

I heard the shrubbery being pushed apart, and someone walked through it, towards where I had landed. Edward's face came into view, partially obscured by the bush. He had a smirk on his face, which soon disappeared when he realized I was actually hurt, and not just hiding in mortification.

He helped me to my feet, and picked me up in his arms like a baby, despite my protests. I blushed as he carried me out onto the small piece of grass between the bush and the driveway. I could see that it was the smallest piece of grass separating them. Just my luck to hit the curve at this particular section. If I had hit it anywhere else, I wouldn't have hit shrubbery, I would have just landed on the grass.

My body felt like it was being shocked alive by Edward's hands and I felt warm all over. My breath caught, and I stiffened. Our eyes caught and I saw his soften for some reason. A look of longing appeared in them.

"Bella."

I jerked in response to him calling me by my mom's name and almost fell out of Edward's arms. He caught me just in time, and mumbled something about me definitely being Bella's daughter.

"You're moving very fast, aren't you, Edward? She hasn't even gotten through the door yet."

A booming laugh accompanied the words, and I noticed that while it sounded genuinely amused, it also sounded the smallest bit forced. I looked behind me and saw a huge grinning man that I assumed had spoken. Emmett, if the photographs in Mom's scrapbook were anything to go by. There was also a small almost pixie-like girl that I knew to be Alice, a beautiful blonde I knew to be Rosalie and a blonde guy who looked uptight and serious - Jasper.

If I had thought they were beautiful in the photographs, it was nothing to how they were in person. When I had first seen Edward, I had noticed his unhappiness before his beauty. With these members of the Cullen/Hale clan, I was struck by their beauty. It was only after I had studied the striking image they made together for a few moments that I noticed the underlying layer of sadness beneath the facades each of them held. Emmett and Alice had happy expressions on their faces, and Jasper and Rosalie's faces held no emotions at all. It was their body language that gave them away. The way Emmett's smile was just that little bit too wide, and Alice's eyes were worried. The way Jasper and Rosalie's face seemed to be just too empty for them to not intentionally be that way. All of their eyes were darker than they had looked in the photographs, and I wasn't sure why that was.

This family was damaged.

Edward stood with me in his arms, but I was still able to see the distance between him and his siblings. He was holding himself in a way that indicated to me that he wasn't comfortable around them. He reminded me of myself when I had first arrived back after my mom's suicide. Awkward and unsure of how they felt about me.

"Edward, calm down. We have to bring Lizzie to the house so that Carlisle can fix her up. She has a dislocated ankle and a broken wrist. Alice saw it."

I looked up at the man holding me, and was shocked to see him staring at me with unconcealed horror.

"What do you mean, after Bella's suicide?"