"CLEAR!" A voice shouted somewhere in the distance. I tried to look in the direction from which I heard the shouting, but I couldn't seem to open my eyes. Why can't I open my eyes?

I felt an electric shock rush through my bod, vibrating from my chest, fizzing its way through my appendages so severely that I wanted to gasp in shock. Holy hell, that hurt.

"CLEAR!" Why was the person shouting? Once again I felt the pain of a thousand lightning rods shooting through my body. Damn it! Who's doing this to me? I wanted to tell them to stop, to beg them to leave me be, but I couldn't manage to make any words form from my traitorous lips.

I desperately implored my mind, searching for the connection between my brain and my limbs. My voice clawed at my throat, and I battled to regain control from the darkness in which I was trapped. With one final mental push, I slowly felt my eyes begin to open.

"Oh, shit," I managed to croak out. These were the first words that came to my mind when I realized where I was.

On my back, in an ambulance, below a young looking EMT, who was desperately clutching defibrillator paddles as if his life depended on it. I couldn't help but notice the terror in his eyes. He must be new.

"Bells? Bella, are you alright?"

My eyes searched briefly for the voice before being met with the dark brown eyes of my father, looking unusually dashing in a suit and tie.

Then it all clicked together.

"Oh, shit!" I exclaimed, trying to sit up, but before I could I was pushed down again gently by the EMT. "I'm sorry Ms Swan, but you have to stay lying down to keep your blood pressure low."

I wanted to curse the bastard out. He looked like he was seven years old. Who was he to tell me what to do?

"He's right, Bells. You need to rest," Charlie came to the EMT's rescue. I saw him shoot my father a grateful look as I huffed out an defeated breath.

Momentarily suppressing my annoyance, I looked up at my father and felt the guilt overwhelm me. "Oh my God, Charlie, I'm so sorry!" I apologized, my voice sounding very hoarse.

I can't believe my heart chose tonight to act up. Tonight, of all nights. The night of my father's rehearsal dinner. For his wedding.

"Don't worry about it, Bells. It wasn't your fault," Charlie made his best attempt at awkwardly trying to soothe me. "How far away from the hospital are we?" He called to the driver of the ambulance.

"About five minutes." The voice offered in reutrn. Charlie turned back to me and held my hand. "How is Sue? Does she hate me?" I asked desperately, worried for my future step-mother, berating myself for once again ending up in the back of an ambulance. Even though I go to my check-ups regularly, my heart still continues to betray me and I have to be rushed to hospital. I'm pretty sure Doctor Jenks is sick of looking at me now, since we see each other so often.

"Of course she doesn't hate you, she was really worried. We all were. You gave us quite a scare, Bells." Charlie patted my hand carefully and I noticed his eyes were red-rimmed and he looked extremely pale.

"Ah, crap, Charlie, I'm really sorry." I apologized again. The EMT handed me a thick blanket and I spread it over my chest and let the exhaustion consume me as I closed my eyes. Over the years, my symptoms had gotten worse. I was constantly exhausted, I could barely walk for two minutes without gasping for air, and I felt sick at the sight of food. My hands and feet were always freezing cold, too.

After a few minutes, I felt the ambulance pull to a stop and the cold gush of air as the doors were opened behind my head. I kept my eyes closed as the EMT warbled off my information to the waiting doctors as I was rolled out of the back of the ambulance on the stretcher.

Things once again began to seem hazy as I lost control of my momentary consciousness. Shapes warped and undulated around me and feelings of uncertainty began to blossom in my chest. Faces passed by, a clock on the wall wavered around my vision. Needles and bags of medicine swirled around me and I tried very hard to push off the feeling of darkness that threatened to consume me.

It felt heavy, like black fog. I felt it pressing down on me and I was helpless to stop it. Everything dulled, and I slowly felt myself surrender to the darkness.

Waking up was painful. My eyes were heavy and my chest ached. I could hear my erratic heartbeat echoing in my ears.

As I slowly opened my eyes, I only felt the pain in my chest grow. My head felt woozy as I attempted to take in my surroundings. A hospital bed. A sad cube television mounted in the right corner. A knitted blanket which I recognised to be Sue's handiwork covered my wasted body. The room was small, but pristine. The walls were white, only brightened by a single painting of a vase of flowers hung proudly in the middle of the wall. I noted the several wires coming out of the top of my hospital gown and from my forearm.

As things began to become clearer, I saw my father, asleep in a low Morris chair, his head leaning uncomfortably against his shoulder. He would have a crick in his neck when he woke. I tried to get up so I could help in into a more comfortable position, but soon realized the wires sprouting from me connected to several machines behind and beside my bed.

I slumped back against my pillow in frustration. I stared up at the white tiled ceiling. Why was I here? I had to rack my brain for a while before I remembered what happened. Oh God... Charlie and Sue's rehearsal dinner.

I felt terrible. Charlie and Sue had put this day off for so long, waiting to see if I would get better. I don't think they understood the true extent of my disease. They didn't have to know I was basically a lost cause. I held as much of the truth of my condition as I could as a means of preservation- as much as one could, given the bi-monthly collapses. I briefly pondered if I had been selfish in my withholding; desperately holding on to a shield of pseudo-independence and a façade of strength.

Now I'd gone and ruined their special day. Or at least the rehearsal of their special day.

My thoughts were interrupted by a tentative knock on the open door. I looked up to see Doctor Jenks, flanked by a young medical intern. I gave him a brief nod and weak smile as he entered the room. I looked over to Charlie, who seemed to be stirring in his sleep.

Charlie blinked a few times and looked over at me. His eyes widened when he saw I was awake and he suddenly sat upright. He let out a groan and grabbed the right side of his neck, and tilted his head from side to side as if stretching it.

Doctor Jenks gave me genuine smile as he approached the side of my bed. "I'm very glad to see you're awake, Bella," He said as he reached into his pocket for his little torch. He reached up to my eye and held it open as he shone the light into it and instructed me to look in different directions.

He repeated this action on my other eye, as Charlie and the intern watched in silence. Doctor Jenks pulled back, snapped the torch off and placed it back in the breast pocket of his white lab coat. He turned to my father. "Sorry, Charlie, we have to talk to Bella in private for a while now."

Charlie looked quickly to me and then looked back to Doctor Jenks, shaking his head. "She only just woke up. I can't leave her now. She's my daughter." I caught the intern give him a sympathetic smile, but Doctor Jenks stayed cool.

"Bella is twenty-six years old. We need to speak to her alone, just for a few moments." Doctor Jenks said kindly, "Unless, you preferred he stayed?" He said as he turning his attention back to me.

I shook my head and looked up at Charlie, whose figure appeared to be swaying a bit, the wooziness from whatever medication they were giving me taking significant effect.

Charlie let out an irritated huff and stood. He gave me one last look before turning on his heel and walking out of the door, mumbling about how he needed to stretch his legs anyway.

Doctor Jenks stepped closer to the bed and pushed his glasses up his nose, a habit to which I had long since become familiar. "Bella. I'm terribly sorry, but it seems as though the day we have dreaded for so long is finally here."

I felt that very familiar feeling of dread swell in my stomach. I felt as though the blood in my veins had turned to ice as I let his words sink in.

It appears as though the day we have dreaded for so long is finally here.

Finally here.

I knew what this meant. My heart had finally failed me. After the past three years of restricted living, the day I had been fight off for so long had arrived.

I swallowed hard. "So... what? I'm stuck in a bed from now on?" I asked, thinking back to my first conversation with Doctor Jenks three years ago. He warned me of this day. I didn't think it would happen this soon. It felt like only yesterday I even found out I was sick.

Doctor Jenks placed his hand in mine and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Over the past few years, he and I had become friends. Or, as good a friend as could be made in the confines such an unfortunate situation would allow. I almost found comfort in the discomfort he showed as he delivered me the news.

"The strain just became too much for your heart to handle. After you collapsed, we brought you into surgery immediately and attached your heart to a machine which will help steady your heartbeat. This seems to have improved your condition drastically. However, it is not a cure, and while you are attached to the machine, you must stay in the hospital full-time."

Doctor Jenks removed his hand from mine and reached for the chart from the hands of the intern beside him, who had taken it up from where it was hanging on the end of my bed.

He studied it with a quick glance and looked up at me. "As you know, you have been on the transplant list for the past year. I am very confident you will not have a long wait before a new heart comes along." the intern gave me a hopeful smile as Doctor Jenks finished speaking.

God, I hated these people. They were far too optimistic.

"What if a new heart doesn't come along? What happens then?" I asked, trying very hard to mask the bitterness in my tone.

Doctor Jenks sighed. "There is always a possibility a heart won't come along in time. But I don't think being pessimistic is the right thing to do in this situation. Look on the bright side."

I tried very hard not to roll my eyes at him. "Bright side? Where is there a bright side in this?"

Seriously. I'm fucking dying, and he's telling me to look on the bright side.

Doctor Jenks gave me a small smile. "Every cloud has a silver lining. You just have to look for it."

Yeah, sure.

"As we previously discussed, when the time came, you would be transferred to Seattle General Hospital." I looked up at my doctor and released a loud breath of defeat. A day I knew would come, but had prayed wouldn't. I wasn't one for miracles, but my previous three years had been full of futile hope.

At least Charlie had Sue now. I didn't have to feel guilty about leaving him to fend for himself.

"When will I be transferred?" I asked, toying with the edge of the knitted blanket, twirling the yarn between to pale fingers.

"We have yet to make the arrangements, but it looks as though the helicopter will be available to take you tomorrow morning."

So soon? Crap, what would I tell Charlie?

"I see..." I murmured as Doctor Jenks handed the chart back to the intern. "I will be in contact with your doctor in Seattle often, so I will always be up to date with your case." I closed my eyes again as I considered all that had happened. Seattle. Whoa.

"You're tired. We should leave you. I'll explain the situation to your father." I snapped my eyes open at Doctor Jenks's words.

"Please convince him to stay in Forks. His entire life is here. I'm a grown woman, I don't need him to come with me to Seattle," I pulled a face as I imagined my father coming with me. Don't get me wrong, I loved my father, but it would be extremely nice to just lie down for a while and not to pretend I was totally healthy when I have searing pain in my chest. His job, Sue, his entire life was here in Forks. I couldn't be the one to take that away from him.

Doctor Jenks smiled. "I understand entirely. I'll see what I can do." As he and the intern left, I threw my head back onto the pillow and let my exhaustion consume me. This was all a lot to take in.

I wasn't really surprised though. I knew this was coming. I was just surprised it came so soon.

I tried to push all thoughts of death and hearts and machines and transplants out of my head as I felt my eyelids grow heavier. It wasn't long until I felt the thick layer of sleep surround me, comforting me, taking me to a place where I wasn't sick.

Discussing my transfer to Seattle was difficult for Charlie to understand. Jenks had managed to convince him that this was the best thing for me, the best way to survive, during my wait for a new heart.

He wanted to come with me. Doctor Jenks and I had to explain to him that him following me out to Seattle wasn't a good idea. Sue needed him, the police station needed him, and I would just be stuck in a hospital bed in Seattle anyway.

I also convinced him not to call Renée. She was far too dramatic for her own good. She would probably hop on the next flight out to Washington so she could be by my bedside day and night. Once again, I loved my mother, but I don't think I could spend that much time with anyone.

When morning came, and I received another visit form Charlie after I sent him home to get some rest the day before, along with Sue and her two teenage kids, Leah and Seth. The time waiting for the helicopter was spent in awkward conversation and tentative glances of sympathy. By the time the notification of the helicopter's arrival, it was a relief to escape from my feelings of inadequacy.

Seth gave me a warm, brotherly hug, and Leah gave me and awkward half-smile before Sue wrapped me up in her arms and whispered words of encouragement into my hair.

Only Charlie accompanied Doctor Jenks and I up to the helipad to see me off. I bit back fears of new surrounds and loneliness in the awkward elevator ride, dreading what was waiting for me in Seattle. With the ominous ding of the final level, Charlie wrapped his arms around me in an awkward, yet somehow comfortable hug.

"Bye, Bells. Call me anytime, okay?" He sniffed as he released me from the hug.

"Will do, Charlie," I felt my eyes start to fill with tears but I turned away from him before he saw, wishing no more pain on my father than I had already caused.

"Ready?" Doctor Jenks asked as he stood back to let me be pushed up the ramp into the helicopter in a wheelchair before him.

"Yep," my voice hoarse from unshed tears. I sent one last melancholy wave toward Charlie as Doctor Jenks climbed into the helicopter after me and closed the door. I felt the vibrations as the engines came to life and I looked out of the plexi-glass window to force a final smile at Charlie.

Doctor Jenks adjusted the nasal cannula leading from my nose to the portable oxygen tank strapped to the back of my wheelchair as we slowly began to rise off the ground. Charlie stood with a nurse, his clothes whipping around him as the propellers stirred the air.

I gave him one last wave as we rose high into the air and set off towards Seattle General Hospital.

A/N: And so it begins! I think it's about time we got introduced to Bella's new doctor, don't you? ;)

Leave reviews and let me know what you think! Sometimes I lose motivation with this story, and it helps to you guys are out there, reading. See you next chapter!