Chapter Two

Alice's Point of View

Rosalie and I raced home from Seattle where we were shopping. Jasper had just called me with the… news.

As soon I got home, I raced up to Edward and Jasper, who were outside of Edward's closed door.

"Is she okay?" I whispered, seeing it as a fit tone for this subject. By the way she whimpered on the other side of the door as Carlisle tried to clean her up, she wasn't.

"No," Edward barely mumbled.

"Well, she's not okay now. She will be, though, won't she?" Jasper asked with a worried expression on his face, looking at me.

This was my queue. I closed my eyes and was immediately bombarded with a glimpse of Bella. Her face was pale, paler than normal, and she had dark circles under her eyes. I would have mistaken her for a vampire if I hadn't seen her deep brown eyes. She was hunched up, her knees at her chest, wracking with sobs. Edward's tall figure was far behind her in the form of a silhouette. His expression was hidden in the dark room.

As soon as my vision crumpled, Edward gasped and ran out the window as fast as he could. There was a crash as he broke through it.

Jasper was just about to go get him when I grabbed his shirt. "I think Bella might need you, Jasper. She's hurting, and she will be for a while."

"I'm the reason this happened to her, Alice. She won't want me near her. She hates me. And rightfully so," he said, his voice strained. Pained.

"Please, Jazz, for me. Stay. Let Emmett bring him home."

He paused. "Fine. I'll stay. For you, Alice."

"And Bella," I added with a smile.

*10 minutes later*

Emmett's Point of View

It wasn't hard to find him.

He was about a mile into the forest behind our house, following the river.

When I saw him he huddled into a tree, shaking like he was having a seizure.

I came over and sat down.

You okay?

"Does it look like I'm okay, Emmett?" he replied bitterly.

Okay, stupid question. How about, 'What's bothering you, little brother? Anything I can help with?'

"That's a stupid question, too. You know d*mn well what's wrong with me. Even you can't be that ignorant."

Fine, I give up on the questions. You do realize Bella needs you...? You, specifically, right?

"That's a question, too, but yes, I realize that. And I want to kill myself for not helping her. But I don't think I'll be too much of a comfort when I want to torture whoever did this to her."

Then why don't you?

"Because, you idiot, she needs me."

I'm sure she won't mind you leaving as long as you're doing something constructive. It's better than her thinking you're in pain, you know. Besides, I think she's pretty much terrified of guys anyway, now.

"Tell her I love her, and I'll be home soon. Tell her she has a loving family that will take care of her until I'm back."

When will you be back?

"I don't know. A few days," he said as he got up and ran further into the forest.

Alice's Point of View

Carlisle finally finished up with Bella and walked out of Edward's room. I had a vision shortly after Emmett left about Edward leaving. It didn't bother me, even if I didn't see him coming home. They love each other like nothing else.

I walked into Edward's room to see a shaking Bella. She was in fetal position and shaking with tears.

I came over and sat next to her. My hand rubbed and down her back soothingly and eventually she stopped crying.

"Do you want me to help you shower?" I asked in a soft whisper.

She nodded. I gently picked her up and carried her into Edward's bathroom. I placed Bella on the counter after pushing over Bella's comb, toothbrush, and tooth paste.

I helped her strip and sat her on the edge of the bathtub as I turned on the shower.

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Jasper's Point of View

I drifted into Edward's room while Alice was helping Bella in the shower. I sat on his bed and helped to regulate Bella's strong, painful emotions.

My gift worked strangely. Not as directly as Edward's. I just felt what someone felt. I couldn't define their feelings much more than happy, sad, mad, or excited. I felt it, of course, but I couldn't name it. Edward, on the other hand, could stream in exactly what a person was thinking. He has words for his gift, and I didn't.

Bella was in so much pain, an over-whelming fear that made me- me!- stiffen up. I didn't want to imagine what it did to my sister. How could she possibly walk, possibly utter one word, with this overwhelming fear a constant companion?

Even the tiny amount of relief I could offer to her almost got diluted, in a way, by her pain.

It was even worse knowing that I caused my sweet, clumsy, and very vulnerable little sister this much hurt. The fact that she didn't blame me at all made my guilt so much stronger.

I almost died when Bella emerged, dressed in her shabby sleep clothes, Alice holding her shaking shoulders. The look of pure fear, terror, when she saw me sitting on Edward's bed would have stopped my heart, were it still beating.

Kind of short again, I'm sorry. The inspiration for this chapter was Stand in the Rain by Superchick.