His Wolf Pup - a Jasper Hale Story

30- The Aftermath

Our entire family moved quickly to cover our tracks. Carlisle got Bella to the hospital in record time, where her injuries were treated properly. Emmet and Noah were tasked with setting the ballet studio on fire, so it looked like a freak accident. Alice drove off to another hotel to set up our cover story. We had decided we would say Bella tripped and fell down a flight of stairs and fell out of a window. It was a plausible story, given how clumsy she was.

Jasper and I were told to disappear as if we were never in Arizona. We booked the first flight back home, where I slept the entire flight. We made it back home to see Rosalie and Esme waiting for us.

"Is everyone okay?" Esme asked me worriedly.

"Yes, everyone is okay," I told her as she pulled me into a hug.

"I was so worried," she told me honestly.

"Don't worry, Esme," Jasper told her with a smile. "Everyone is safe and coming home soon."

As Esme released me from her hug, I turned to see Rosalie leaning up against the wall. "And Bella?" Rosalie asked, half interested.

I shrugged slightly. "Last I heard, she'll be fine."

"How was Edward when you left?" Esme asked us worriedly.

"I don't know," I told her. "I haven't spoken to him since the ballet studio. A lot was going on, and I don't know where he went."

And that was that. Emmet, Alice, and Noah came home the next day, also pretending like they were never in Arizona in the first place. It took a couple of days for Bella, Edward, and Carlisle to come home, mainly because they waited for Bella to be healed enough to be moved.

When they finally did come home, Edward stayed far away from me for no reason. Every time I would enter a room he was in, he would make some excuse and go somewhere else. He seemed to be going through something, and I didn't want to worsen it, so I let it be. It wasn't until the day before prom that he finally spoke to me.

I was sitting out in the backyard enjoying the sun when I heard someone join me. I looked over to see Edward walking toward me with a hesitant look on his face.

I don't bite.

I saw him crack a smile as he sat down next to me in the grass.

"So," I said, "what's up?"

He hesitated once again before saying, "I wanted to talk to you about Arizona."

I felt my face scrunch up in confusion as I looked away from him to think about what he might have been talking about. "What about Arizona?"

"In the ballet studio," he said. "You were scared."

"Of course, I was scared," I told him. "Bella was dying. I didn't want that to happen."

"She wasn't dying; she was phasing into a vampire until I sucked the venom out." He paused slightly as if wanting to see my reaction to his statement.

"I guess," I told him as I turned to look at him once again. "How did you stop?"

"I heard what you were thinking." He looked down at the grass as if it were suddenly the most exciting thing in the world.

"And what was I thinking?" I asked him, not precisely remembering what he was talking about.

"You were scared I was going to kill her, Emma."

There was a long silence that followed his words as I suddenly remembered that moment. I was terrified he would kill her. For a moment, I thought there was no other outcome.

"You have every right to be terrified of me, Emma," Edward told me. "I'm a monster who almost couldn't stop."

"But you did," I said suddenly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Edward, you did stop. And you can't keep beating yourself up about this. Without you, Bella would be a vampire with no future in sight."

"And that would be such a bad thing?"

"No, I just.." I was at a loss for words. "I'm not scared of you Edward, that's what I need you to understand right now."

He looked up at me uncertainly. "Why?"

"Because you're my brother. And I'll always trust you, and forgive you, and love you because of that. There is nothing you can do to make me hate or fear you."

"Even though I'm your natural enemy?" He asked in a teasing sort of way.

"Even though you're my natural enemy," I told him with a smile. I pulled my hand off of his shoulder as he started to stand up from the grass.

"Thank you, Emma."

"Of course," I told him. "Now go join everyone hunting. I know you guys need extra strength for prom tomorrow."

With a small smile, Edward ran off into the forest, leaving me alone once again in the backyard.