Thanks Jen for being my BETA!

& I'm so sorry that it took so long for this chapter to get up. I wrote it not once, not twice, but three times, and kept deleting it because I didn't like the results.

But this one I'm satisfied with, so I hope you are too.

Chapter 18: Just the weekend, and what happened at the party...
not to mention all the aftermath.
[I apologize that this chapter is smaller, but I felt it was essential. Plus, I've made the chapters so big sometimes that I feel you could use an eye break. ;)]

Officially rated M. ... And again PLEASE REVIEW!

Disclaimer: Twilight/Characters not mine. I just like to dabble.

For what shall it profit a man,

if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul.

Mark 8:36

Chapter 18: Aftermath

"Bella? Are you all right?"

I lifted my head slowly from my hands, my eyes adjusting on the pretty blonde girl that had a sad expression in her eyes. "Yeah Rose. I'm fine. How are you holding up?"

She shrugged, coming over to sit beside me on Edward's bed. "I'm okay..."

I nodded, looking away from her. The last twenty fours hours have been torturous. I don't think I could have expected this, but I also never expected to snap at a party, and reveal my identity.

After Edward and Emmett told their siblings the truth about me, about what I was, I left. I went hunting, tried to clear my head.

I wanted to go tell Charlie what I did, but since I didn't really know what all I did, I couldn't do that. So I reluctantly returned back to the Cullen's house, and steered away from them. Rosalie excepted the truth about me a lot quicker than the rest of them. It took a few minutes, of course, but she came around pretty quickly.

Alice and Jasper went to their bedroom to talk. I could hear her sobbing and him comforting her. He came out a few hours later, and when he walked past me, he gave me a reassuring smile that he too had accepted.

Alice didn't come around 'til about an hour ago. The bubbly, happy go lucky girl was suddenly glum. She'd glance up at me from around the room and smile, but I could tell she was weary the entire time. Her eyes were puffy from her tears, and red like the oversized shirt of Jasper's he dressed in it last night.

Edward stayed on the couch with his head in his hands, talking on the phone with different high school students.

Emmett came and explained to me what happened. He told me that I jumped for Tanya an was hissing. He said he saw my teeth, but thinks he was the only one because Edward intercepted and turned my face in Emmett's direction. He explained that as Edward was trying to hold me back, I lashed out on her and scratched her with my nails.

She got large gashes on her arms, her shoulders, her neck, her face... Blood was evident. He said my hands were moving a mile a minute, so fast that it startled everyone. It took him, Jasper, a few of their teammates and Edward to knock me down.

That's how Edward got that deep gash on his arm.

It really haunted me. I don't know how I restrained from biting her... The only thing I can think of was maybe that Edward was in the room, and though I was beyond angered, I subconsciously wouldn't have wanted to frighten him, which caused some sort of internal restraint.

But I knew how sharp my nails were, and by the idea of Julia running off... that really worried me. Thoughts of her bleeding to death were in my head, running in a circle like a hamster on a wheel. Julia in the forest, Julia beside the road, Julia frightened...

Edward's been making phone calls, trying to reach Carlisle and Esme on their cell phones, and trying to reach some of their friends at school. Most of the people can't remember what happened, being too hammered by that point. Others tried to make up stories, saying how we got into a huge fight and tried to choke each other and all these random things.

He said Ashley answered the phone, but refused to talk to him, stating that she called the police on me fighting. But since Julia hadn't been missing for a full forty-eight hours, since she was classified as an "adult" by police standards, they couldn't turn the report in...

However, that got Charlie notified, which is why he's standing here in the Cullen's house in full uniform, talking with Edward and Emmett.

And why I am in Edward's room, with Rosalie now, trying my hardest to avoid him at all costs possible. He stormed into the house a few years ago, and all he said to me was, "I'll deal with you in a minute."

And when Charlie's voice gets that deep, I stay clear.

Edward has tried to explain to him the severity of the situation, in full detail as possible. He told him about the party, the drinking, the dancing, the argument between Rose and Ashley, how Julia stormed in, directed her attention to me instead of Rosalie, and how I snapped when she said I was inhuman and a freak. But he only told him I attacked her with my nails, not that I tried to bite her. I am not sure if Charlie believed him or not, but I was praying he did.

Charlie has threatened to pack me up right now and leave, but Edward has begged him to stick it out, see if Julia comes around... he even pulled reverse psychology on Charlie, stating that it was his job to get to the bottom of this.

But when Charlie's voice became stern toward Edward, saying, "Don't worry. I plan to get to the bottom of this... with everyone," Edward directed their conversation elsewhere.

They still haven't been able to contact Carlisle. His cell phone has gone straight to voicemail, his pager has been non-reponsive, and Esme's cell appears to be dead as well. Edward says this is rare, but has happened before, so we shouldn't worry about it yet. His dad is a surgeon, and sometimes he'd spend over twenty four hours on call in a room with his hands inside people's bodies, so Edward didn't bother to worry.

Rosalie had her head in my lap, and she was silently sobbing, telling me how much she loved me and accepted me for who I was, and how sorry she was for starting that fight with Ashley. She thinks it's her fault, and no matter how many times I've tried to tell her it wasn't, and that it was bound to happen one day, she refuses to believe me.

"But I should have let it go!" she cried. "None of this would have happened if I just shrugged it off. It's not like people don't hit on Emmett all the time, I don't know why it bothered me so much when she did it."

"Because Ashley Gwinn is the typical girl who thinks she can have anything she wants, and you needed to put her in her place."

I expected her to kind of chuckle at that response, but instead, it made her worse. She covered her face and began to sob louder. I rubbed her arms, trying to reassure her that none of this had to do with her, that I still loved her, that I wasn't mad at her...

Emmett came in about forty minutes later, and he held her too, sitting beside me. I hated that they were all giving me these sad, silent smiles, but since I was returning them, I guess it made us all even. We didn't really know what to do, or how to act around each other.

I could hear Edward and Charlie's voices get louder, but Emmett told me to stay there, and to let them hash it out. I cringed when I heard Edward shouting. It was unlike him to get so heated, and toward my father, this was worse.

"How is this my fault?" he yelled. "This was unavoidable, and it was bound to happen. You've kept Bella so isolated, so sheltered, you couldn't have expected her to not break one day!"

"I HAD to keep her sheltered, Edward, our identities depended on it. We would be in hiding, Edward. We wouldn't be able to stay in one place. You would have never met her... and now we might have to go away. Is this what you wanted?"

"Of course not! I'm trying to do everything in my power to help this situation, and make it right. But you cannot attack me, the one person who loves Bella, when something goes wrong. I wasn't th-"

"You love Bella, huh? Well then why would you take her into that sort of situation, Edward? Why didn't you think it through and realize, hey, this isn't such a great idea, maybe we should rethink this?"

"Because Bella was dying to find her own identity! You don't even see it, but the rest of us do! She's came out of her shell these past four months. She's turned into this beautiful, intelligent, confident woman, and she needed to be around people within her own physical-age bracket! She needed to see that it was okay to relax and be happy!"

Charlie was silent for a few minutes. Then his voice was low when he responded. "Yeah, well you see what happens when Bella tries to blend in. You know, this all could have been avoided if you two would have steered clear from each other."

Edward was just as silent. Then, he was calm when he spoke. "Well, with all do respect, sir, I love Bella with all my heart, and you cannot stop me from being with her."

"How do you figure that, Edward? You're just a human."

"It doesn't matter. Even if you could hold me down, Bella is your equal, and I guarantee you that not only would she fight for me, but she may also stray from you, if you try and hold her back."

Charlie scoffed. "This is ridiculous."

"Maybe so, in your eyes... but I think we have more important things to worry about than my relationship."

"That's right. Thanks to last night's party, I have a missing girl on my hands."

"I'll try to help in any way I can."

"No, Edward, I think you've done enough."

The next day, no change. Charlie refused me in staying with Edward, but since I didn't want them to be at their house alone with all of this madness going around, he called his best friend Billy, who's also on the force, and had him park outside their house and keep an eye on things.

When he received a call at eleven this morning, stating that Julia had been found a few miles away, and was in the hospital, he told me to stay home while he went and got a statement.

Of course, I didn't do that, and went to Edward as fast as I could.

I freaked out, running into his arms, panicking that Julia was going to tell him I tried to bite her. He tried to comfort me, but I could tell he hadn't slept in over two nights, so I quickly hid my emotions and made Emmett force him to get some sleep.

When he refused, we resounded to drastic measures, and put some crushed Tylenol Pm's in his water. Edward was out in five minutes flat, on the couch.

So I spent the day prancing around their living room, avoiding the awkward tension from a silent Alice. She sat in a chair, with a book in her lap, but she never really opened it. Jasper came around and spoke with me, but I could tell it was still a little weird for him. And Rose and Emmett treated me like normal, but I could tell Rosalie was still stressed out. She called Ashley Gwinn this morning and even apologized to her, and from what I got out of it, Ashley accepted it.

Around three this evening, Edward woke up groggy and a little confused. He rubbed his face vigorously, trying to figure out how he passed out. Emmett and I just shrugged it off, pretending that he just over-exhausted himself and crashed. He thought for a few moments, before accepting our lie as his fate.

Around four, their phone rang. We all lunged for it, but Emmett got to it before the rest of us.

"Hello? Yes, this is Emmett. Yes... Mmhhmm. Right... Really? Wow... that's awful... So is she- Yes. Yeah she's here. All right. Yes sir. Bye." he sighed, as well all stared at him with wide eyes and open palms.

"Well," he exhaled, sitting beside Edward. "That was your dad, Bella. It's not good. Julia is having some pretty serious infections, and her blood pressure is extremely high. He said she couldn't remember much from the party, doesn't even know who attacked her. So that might work in your favor... but he asked if you were here, and I didn't lie to him."

"That's okay Emmett. I understand."

Edward groaned, throwing himself back against the cushions. "I don't feel well."

I walked over to him, rubbing his leg. "I'm sorry, is there anything I can do for you?"

He flopped over and laid his head on my lap, covering his face. "Yeah, just don't leave me."

"I won't."

He fell asleep after a few more seconds, but his head began to feel warm, so I made Emmett take his temperature. 101.8. We put some ice on his forehead and covered him up, and I stayed with him, turning the phone down beside him.

Rose came and sat beside me, throwing Edward's legs on her lap. Then, Alice came over on my other side. I was kind of stiff when she sat down, but as she put my cold hand between her warm hands and gave me a comforting smile, I relaxed.

"I love you Bella," she whispered to me. "I'm here for you."

I smiled, so happy that she finally came around. "I love you too, Al."

Emmett and Jasper sat on the floor, playing cards. We all didn't speak much, but the fact that we were all together, as our own little family, made me feel so much better. They proved to me that it really didn't matter about our differences...

Around seven pm, Edward shot up from my lap, waking from a dead sleep. He ran into the kitchen, and I heard him throwing up in the trash.

I went in there to find him, but Jasper all ready had him, trying to put a cold towel on his neck while Edward sat on the floor in front of the trash.

I kneeled beside him, rubbing his back. "Edward, what's the matter? What are you feeling?"

He groaned and got sick again, causing me to sort of wince. I didn't like hearing him get sick, not because I couldn't handle it, but because there was nothing I could do about it. Jasper hopped up and ran toward the closet in the hall, trying to find something to help coat his stomach.

Alice came in and sat beside me. She lifted his shirt and stuck my cold hands on his heated back, smiling at me. "I'm sure it helps," she said.

I didn't even think about that, but was gracious when she did.

After a few more struggles, Edward's stomach settled briefly. He whined, laying his face on the cold floor and throwing one of my hands on his forehead. He seemed paler than normal, but Alice reassured me that it was common when people got sick. She said he was probably just overstressed, since he stayed up all night trying to handle everything.

It made sense, but I couldn't relax. So I basically became his shadow, following him from the couch to the bathrooms while he got sick. It only happened about four more times, but each time, he seemed to be feeling worse.

And we still couldn't contact Carlisle or Esme.

Around eleven that Sunday night, Edward woke up. He was quiet and still whining, but didn't seem as pale, so I took that as a good sign. Charlie never called or came over for the rest of the night, so they all slept on the couches in the living room, together, while I kept an eye out on everyone.

Charlie did however arrive at seven in the morning on Monday. He called out for the kids from school, and pulled me into their dining room to explain to me that Julia's infections are severe, she isn't waking up, and has now had a high temperature.

I told him about Edward's reactions and his stomach flu, but Charlie suddenly got stiff. "Does he have any marks on him? Did you get him?

When I told him I accidentally scratched him once, Charlie ran into the living room and looked at Edward's arm. It wasn't infected since Emmett cleaned it that night, but he advised Rosalie and Alice to monitor it and keep an eye out on it for any changes.

So that made me feel awful.

Because if he got that sick over one scratch from me, then I really didn't want to think about Julia, or the extent of her damage.

Edward stayed awake. As the time went past us, he started to gain strength.

Subtle at first.. but around six this evening, he seemed almost back to normal.

Around eleven, his cell phone rang. He said it was Carlisle's number. He spoke on it for a few minutes, walking outside. I watched his expressions go from worry, to thinking, to distraught, to yes sir, no sir... He began to walk around the yard, listening to Carlisle speaking.

"Hey Bella, come here for a second," Charlie said, coming from the office. I walked down the hall, into Carlisle's empty study. He was sitting at Carlisle's desk, his brows furrowed.

"What's up, Dad?"

"Didn't you guys say that Carlisle's phone was turned off due to his surgery?"

I nodded, confused.

I watched as he opened the small drawer in the middle of desk, and lifted out an Iphone from there. He examined it, and it had a broken screen, and wouldn't stay turned out.

My throat tightened and then I remembered Edward said it was Carlisle's number on his phone. I ran through the hall and toward the living room, no Edward.

I asked his brothers and sisters if he came back in, and he didn't.

Then I ran outside, no Edward. I couldn't even smell him.

I panicked, running back inside to grab the phone. I dialed Edward's cell phone, but it was turned off suddenly.

My stomach flipped as I yelled for Charlie to get in here.

I told him about Edward's call and how he went outside so he could hear Carlisle better.

Alice ran to the phone to try to get ahold of Esme by her cell.

But suddenly, I realized that Edward wasn't here.

And that was not Carlisle on the phone.

So there we go, Chapter 18! Keep the reviews and compliments/suggestions/positive feedback coming in! They are always welcome. Stay tuned!

ANSWERS TO REVIEW QUESTIONS/RESPONSES:

- Thanks to everyone who's continued to be faithful with their reviews per chapter, their positive feedback, advice, and their constructive criticism, etc. It's been amazing and so enjoyable to come home from a long day's work and see the number rise from people who enjoy the story just as much as I do! I can't say it enough: You're the best!

- A lot of people have asked me what I meant by the ending line of Chapter 17, "just like the iris". When I googled the song b y Goo Goo Dolls, I really loved why it was called "Iris". It's the opening of the eye, and seeing what is in front of you... so that was the reference I was making. Just that Bella was afraid to lose them, now that they knew what she was.

- If you're in the mood for some drama, go check out my latest Edward/Bella fanfic "The Ex Factor", subscribe and review! Rated Mature!

- IF I MISSED SOMEONE'S QUESTION, I TRULY APOLOGIZE, PLEASE LET ME KNOW AND I WILL ANSWER IT ASAP!

Sincerely, Angela.