Chapter 46
Edward’s Point of View
I was not sure for how long I remained insensible, but gradually I became aware of a gentle touch smoothing the hair back from my forehead. The gesture was inexpressibly soothing.
As conscious thought slowly returned, again very gradually, something began nagging at me. It was as if I knew something was wrong, very wrong indeed, yet my mind refused to acknowledge it.
Slowly I became aware of words being spoken above and around me, but it was as if the voices spoke a foreign language. My mind was too exhausted to speculate as to which language, but in a few moments I recognized my name being softly spoken.
“Edward? Edward? Please come back to us. Please. Please….”
Esme. She was the one speaking to me and stroking my forehead.
Esme was comfort. Esme was … home.
But … wait.
Someone else was home, too. My true home.
Her name nudged its way into my consciousness.
Isabella.
She was my true home.
As her name registered, every thought, memory, and emotion flooded back into my mind in a nauseating rush.
Isabella had left.
And the pain of her absence was excruciating.
Groaning loudly, I tried to escape the torture that the memory of Isabella’s leaving brought me. The agonized sound must have alerted my family of my return to consciousness … or whatever had happened to shield me from the pain of Isabella’s desertion for a short, blissful time.
“Edward? Open your eyes, son.” This time it was Carlisle’s voice, taut with concern, as he gave me a rare direct order.
Slowly I blinked, finally opening my eyes. The faces of my family surrounded me as I laid on one of the sofas in the living room. Esme was kneeling beside me, her hand still resting comfortingly on my forehead while Carlisle leaned over the back of the sofa to observe me closely.
The rest of the family, plus Kate, Eleazar, and Carmen, were gathered around the sofa, staring down on me as if I were a strange science experiment.
I probably was just that: a phenomenon that had never been observed: the only vampire to faint.
Almost as soon as I opened my eyes, Jasper stumbled backward, reeling into Alice who moved with him almost in tandem, supporting his weight.
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Pinned but Fluttering
FanfictionAfter the death of both of her parents, Bella is left to the care of supposed friends of the family. But the longer she stays in their home, the more sinister events become. Family secrets leave her locked behind closed doors, both literally and met...
