A/N: Ah, finally! A chapter. If you read my newest story yesterday, I said that I was posting another chapter to this :) I have kept my word. Now, onto Beautiful with you. As always, I'd love to know what you think. You've waited a while for this, so I won't keep you any longer!
Disclaimer: I wish I owned Twilight. But alas, I do not :(
Chapter Three
"Ca-Carlisle!?" Bella gasped, beyond confused.
"Blood..." he hissed, and in a flash, he was gone from the room. Her gaze was so unfocused, she couldn't even tell if he left out the door, or out the window.
Her heart was pumping so furiously, it felt like it was going to snap her ribcage.
What happened to him? She thought, a little worried for him.
He'd said, "blood." She frowned, then her eyes widened. She lifted up her dress, and sure enough, on ridiculously long underwear, she saw some fresh blood.
Her period had came a few days before she expected.
"Shit!" she cursed, running to the washroom and looking around frantically. What was she supposed to do? She knew that this time period didn't exactly have tampons. She'd read that women of this time period simply used rags, and other absorbent materials.
"..."
She was definitely going to be taking a bath everyday.
"SHIT!" she cursed again in frustration. The past sucked. Somehow, she managed to heave up the heavy shirting, and pulled off the blood-stained underwear. It was only a few drops, perhaps the forces of the universe would have mercy on her, and maybe she'd have a light period this month.
She picked opened a cabinet, picking up a large cloth.
"..."
"Why me?" she groaned, looking up towards the ceiling and waving her arms.
After about twenty minutes, she somehow managed to get the cloth wrapped around her.
She kept fidgeting, feeling extremely uncomfortable. Her pity of women of this time was growing by the hour. Then again, women of age in this time spent half their lives pregnant, so she supposed they didn't have to put up with their periods too much.
She walked around the house without her shoes on, sighing as she continued to wait for Carlisle to return. She did some things here and there, but she wasn't really sure what to do in the kitchen. There was meat, and it was packed in salts, making her cringe lightly. Luckily, there were some apples, and she ended up eating four of them over the course of the day.
When night fell, she began to wonder if Carlisle was even going to come back at all. Would he really abandon her? What if he decided she wasn't worth all the trouble? These thoughts brought little comfort to her, but at the same time, she knew Carlisle wasn't that type of person to just abandon someone. Well, future Carlisle wasn't.
She couldn't believe he reacted that way over her blood. She was so use to seeing the compassionate, composed Carlisle. Seeing a Carlisle that didn't have all that self-control was oddly startling. It was almost like he was a different person without it. She supposed she always assumed that he'd always been the same way he'd been in the future. She wasn't sure why she thought that, but came to the conclusion that it was subconscious. After all, look at Edward. He'd killed people in the past, and he resented Carlisle for trying to curb his appetite.
Bella still couldn't picture her Edward ever resenting the man he looked at with such love and admiration. Nor could she imagine him slaughtering people, even if they were evil...but he did.
Her heart thumped harshly at the thought of Edward. She sat on the sofa in the sitting room, looking at the clock to see it was already eight p.m. She sighed, looking down as she felt tears well up in her eyes. Here she was, stuck two hundred years in the past...and she'd accidentally drove away the only person that could help her and that she trusted. Of course, she couldn't exactly help that her period had started. Yet another thing she cursed for being human.
She wiped her eyes, sniffling and looking up, only to squeal in shock.
Carlisle was standing silently in the doorway, his pure, golden eyes watching her silently.
Relief washed through her, and she almost jumped up, running to him and hugging him. Considering she was on her period though, she stopped herself.
"Carlisle," she whispered quietly, knowing he'd hear her. "I...I thought you weren't coming back."
"I apologize if I have worried you," he said regally after a moments pause. "The scent of fresh blood so abruptly..." his beautiful face frowned. "I wasn't quite prepared for it. I'm terribly sorry if I frightened you or hurt you in anyway. It was not my intention for this to happen. I assure you, it will not happen again."
"..."
Bella wanted to apologize, but apologizing for getting her period just sounded ridiculous in her head.
"I wonder if I might ask you a few questions?" he asked suddenly, taking her off guard.
"O-of course, Carlisle," she gave him a small smile. "Ask me anything you want."
"Thank you," he inclined his head, but didn't move from his spot. "I was wondering if you could tell me about my family. You see, you said I changed some of them. I told myself that I would not change anyone to this lifestyle, and I am very curious as to what happened to make me change my mind."
Bella froze. She couldn't possibly tell him that, could she?
"Carlisle, I-" she frowned, looking down and feeling guilty. "I wish I could. But, I'm afraid. Your wife and son are marvelous people. If I speak now, I may alter the future," she looked up at him, seeing his surprise. "I cannot risk them not being changed."
"...my wife?" he asked lowly, staring at her and making her freeze.
She needed a glass of water to finish swallowing her foot. She hadn't mentioned Esme to Carlisle. She'd only said family and mentioned Edward...
"Damn," she cursed under her breath, sighing. "Yes, you have a wife in the future. She's a beautiful, kind woman...with a big heart. She was like a second mother to me and I love her dearly."
His golden eyes watched her, making her a little tense. Surely, he would understand?
"So, I finally do find a mate," he said quietly, looking relieved? Her heart went out to him. Carlisle must be very lonely...
"Yes, and she is lovely. Perfect for you in every way. I wish I was half the woman she is," Bella smiled, reassuring him. The least she could do is provide him with a little comfort, even if she couldn't really reveal anything to him.
He watched her for moments, looking like he was contemplating something.
"You speak very highly of her. You put her even above yourself."
"I put you above myself," Bella said quietly, giving him a small smile as shock crossed his features.
"Well, I am flattered, Miss Swan," he whispered quietly, looking at her as though he'd never seen her clearly before. "I find it puzzling because I've only just met you, but I suppose there is much about our relationship I do not know."
"Yes, quite," Bella chuckled, letting out a small yawn. "You were always so kind and welcoming to me, Carlisle. Almost like a second father."
He looked at her strangely for moments. What was that look for?
"I'm terribly sorry to have kept you awake," Carlisle said after a long pause, giving her a small bow. "If you wish to retire for the evening, I do not object. I shall wake you in the morning."
Without another word, Carlisle turned his heel, walking down the hallway. Bella frowned. Just because she yawned, it didn't mean that she wanted to go to bed!
Grumbling, she made her way into the washroom, taking care of her personal issues.
When she finished, she entered her room, reaching around her back and cursing when she couldn't get the buttons undone.
"C-carlisle?" she called out, waiting for him to come to the room.
Five minutes passed.
Then ten.
Bella came to the conclusion that he'd left the house again. Was it really that unbearable to be around her? No, perhaps he just wanted to have some more alone time to think.
Feeling sad, and feeling that she didn't have much of a choice...she crawled onto the bed, heavy skirting and all. To say that it was uncomfortable would be an understatement, and she groaned, trying to get comfortable. She rolled over on her stomach, finally getting at least somewhat comfortable.
After a while, she started to get dreary, and she passed out.
"Miss Swan! Wake up!"
Bella groaned, hearing Carlisle's voice that sounded like it was right next to her ear.
"What?!" she groaned, snapping her eyes open to see Carlisle standing next to her bed, looking down at her.
She groaned, hissing when she felt her back muscles contract from sleeping in the corset. Frowning, she looked around, seeing one candle lit on the desk.
It was still dark outside.
"I'm sorry to wake you, but you were screaming, 'Edward.' in your sleep," Carlisle explained, making her tense as the memory of her dream came back to her.
She'd been running after him in the woods all over again, screaming his name, hoping he'd run back to her.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled, a tear leaking out of her eye before she hastily wiped it away. God, was she hot.
"No, I am sorry that I left without remembering that I needed to help you with you dress," he said sincerely, waving his arm towards her back. "I will assist you now, if you wish."
"Oh, its okay," she groaned, pushing herself into a sitting position. She was way too hot. Falling asleep on a summer night with all the heavy dressing was killing her.
She quickly stood, turning her back on him.
"Please, get this thing off," she groaned, pulling at the bodice. "I'm so hot I can't stand it. I don't care if you have to use your strength to rip it off, please just do it. I'm burning alive."
"..."
She quickly pulled her long hair over her shoulder, waiting for him. After moments, she felt him slowly approach her, and she heard him take a deep breath as he slowly began undoing her buttons.
When he finally unlaced her corset, Bella instantly ripped the bodice down her waist, fanning herself.
"I'm going to have a heat stroke," she complained, turning to look at him with a flushed face and chest.
His eyes were a little wide, but he made no move to step away from her.
"Yes, you are generating a lot of body heat," he said quietly, and his brow furrowed worriedly.
"I'm not use to this," she complained, waving her arms around and she ripped down the rest of her dress, leaving her in her slip. "In the future, they have machines inside houses that throw out ice cold air in the summer. It's called air conditioning."
He raised his eyebrows in interest. "That sound fascinating."
"It is," she said, fanning herself as she exhaled. God, she was still too damn hot! Maybe she could...
"Um, Carlisle?" she asked hesitantly.
"Yes?"
"Feel free to say no..." she looked down, turning redder. "But um, can you hold me for a little while? Just until I get to sleep?" she looked back up at him.
His pretty eyes looked like they were going to pop out of his head at her request. She couldn't help but to allow a small giggle to escape at his expression.
"M-Miss Swan, I cannot possibly..."
She raised her eyebrow. Carlisle stuttered?
"But...I'm too hot," she frowned, feeling bad. "You can leave the second I go to sleep. I'm just not use to this. Even in the future, I was use to laying on your son's chest. That and I had air conditioning," she wouldn't ask if she literally didn't feel like she was going to combust.
Carlisle looked lost for words. She knew it may be a lot to ask for this time period, knowing he'd refuse.
"It's okay, Carlisle," she whispered, looking down and suddenly feeling selfish. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked that, or put you in that position."
She couldn't look at him, so she went back over to the bed, crawling in the middle and keeping her back turned in embarrassment. She didn't dare cover up, but the silken sheets were somewhat cool. Perhaps that would help her sleep.
She lay there for minutes, sighing to herself.
Suddenly, beside her, the bed dipped, making her eyes widen. She whipped around, seeing that Carlisle had removed his over coat and boots, and was awkwardly laying on his back next to her, stiff as a board as he looked at the ceiling. She smiled as she saw his arms pinned to his sides, clearly just offering himself to her to do whatever she needed to do.
She smiled warmly. "Thank you, Carlisle. You're too kind to me," she said quietly as he stared at the ceiling.
"...I am not sure what it is that you want me to do," he said, keeping his eyes up.
"Hold your right arm up," she said quietly, watching with an amused expression as he did so.
She slowly scooted next to him, watching his eyes snap to her like whip.
Not making eye contact, she quickly tucked herself into his side, laying her head on his chest.
The coolness from him instantly enveloped her, and she let out a relieved moan. She completely molded her body against his side, not really being able to deny herself the coolness that he offered.
He was like a statue underneath her, and she knew his arm was still in the air.
She chuckled against his chest. "Carlisle, you can put your arm wherever. You don't have to hold it in the air."
She felt him hesitantly lay it behind her head, and she chuckled again. His chest wasn't moving, and she knew he was holding his breath.
"Is my smell bothering you?" she asked quietly, laying her hand beside her head on his chest.
"..."
"I do not understand how you can be this close to my person after what I did," he eventually said quietly.
"It's okay, Carlisle. I've already forgiven you...even though I wasn't mad in the first place. I was just concerned for you," she replied quietly.
"Concerned for me?" he asked, and she could hear the confusion in his voice.
"Yes, I know you were in pain," she frowned. "I could never be mad at you, Carlisle. I trust you completely. I know who you truly are."
"..."
"You have a very forgiving heart, Miss Swan," he eventually said quietly as her eyes felt heavy.
"As do you, Carlisle," she whispered in a drowsy voice. "And please, call me Bella."
"Bella..." she heard him say quietly before she lost consciousness.
Bella moaned sleepily, shifting against the hard, cold body next to her. She smiled, burying her face into the coolness, and letting out a contented smile. For moments, she thought she was with Edward, but then she remembered that she was actually with Carlisle.
"You're awake," Carlisle's voice said softly, making her finally raise her head and look at him sleepily. His golden eyes were looking softly down at her, and she smiled, thinking maybe he'd finally warmed up to her.
"Morning," she said sleepily, yawning and rolling over to stare at the ceiling.
"You talk in your sleep," he said after a moments pause. "If not for your heart rate, I would have thought you were awake."
She chuckled, running her hand through her messy hair.
"Yeah, I always talk in my sleep," she smiled over at him.
"You said: why would you keep a VCR when you could have a DVD player? VHS tapes suck," he recited to her with a confused expression. "I spent most of the night trying to figure out what you meant."
Bella let out a bark of laughter, quickly covering her mouth as she sat up.
"I don't even think I could explain that," she smiled at him as he watched her. He was looking down, and she followed his gaze to see that her slip was hanging over her shoulder. She quickly pulled it up.
"Well, there's things in the future called movies and shows," she explained, realizing how hard it was to explain something like that. "They come up on a screen, and you can watch moving pictures. Its like watching real life. And a DVD player and VHS are things that you use to make the things play on the screen. DVD is better quality than VHS...that probably doesn't make sense, huh?"
"Not exactly," he frowned, looking confused. "It may just be my immortal brain, but I think I somewhat understand what you're saying, though it seems unrealistic."
"Trust me, you'll see one day," she smiled, stretching her arms over her head as her stomach growled loudly.
"..."
She flushed in embarrassment. It was even loud to her. To him, it probably sounded like it thundered in the room.
"I'll prepare your bath, retrieve you and then make your breakfast," he said, standing at his vampire speed. In the blink of an eye, he had his coat and boots back on, and he was gone from the room.
"Thank you..." she muttered to the empty space, not even sure he'd hear her.
She got up from the bed, stretching and yawning. She walked over to the mirror on the wall, laughing bitterly when she saw herself. Her hair was an absolute wreck, sticking up in every direction. But, she did notice that the godawful bruises underneath her eyes were gone. She'd slept better in the past the past two days than she had for months after Edward left in Forks.
Anger filled her at the thought, taking her off guard. That was new. Usually, it was just utter depression when she thought of Edward, not anger. Why was she suddenly feeling angry for what he did to her? Of course, logically, she knew she should be angry at Edward...but, she didn't understand why she just suddenly was.
She silently fumed, trying to work her fingers through her hair. It was about to her elbows, and she suddenly had a strong urge to just whack it all off and just wear a damn wig.
One of those powdered ones.
She giggled at the thought.
"Is there something amusing?"
Bella gasped and spun around. Carlisle was standing in the doorway, tilting his head adorably at her.
Her heart lurched.
"No, just...thinking," she muttered, giving him a small smile.
"Well, your bath is ready," he informed her, giving her a brilliant smile. "I shall go prepare your breakfast now."
He was gone from the room again before she could thank him.
She sighed, walking down the hallway and into the washroom. She quickly undressed, groaning in disgust as she saw the rag she took off. Forget washing it, she was tempted to burn it. She bundled it up, fully intent of getting rid of it. But, luckily for her, it seemed her period was light.
Thank God.
She got in the hot water, smiling happily as she dunked her messy hair in it. She lathered up, washing twice as good as she did yesterday, having felt pretty gross when she woke up.
She cringed. Ugh, she'd sweated and everything before she woke up...Carlisle was probably disgusted.
After she finished, she looked around, seeing that he had lay some undergarments on the table, and to her mortification, a cloth she knew was for her period.
She quickly threw the items on after powdering herself, and she worked the brush through her hair.
She didn't see a dress in sight, so she shrugged, walking out the hallway and looking around.
Smelling food, her stomach lurched as she followed her nose into the dining room.
There stood Carlisle, sitting down a plate as his eyes traveled over to her.
"Miss Swan, why are you in your underwear?"
She looked down. Good God, the underwear alone had more fabric than most clothes she wore on a daily basis.
"I'm hot," she frowned. "And, I didn't see a dress or anything. I'm not going anywhere, so why does it matter?"
"It matters because it is completely vulgar. You are not my wife, nor are you my mistress. Therefore, I am not permitted to constantly see you in such attire," Bella's mouth popped open. "I have no choice but to help you into your dresses, but walking around in merely your underwear is much too vulgar."
Bella stuck her bottom lip out, giving him a stubborn expression.
"But...I'm completely covered," she rebuttal. "And...its so hot here. I'm not use to it. If you pile all those dresses on me, I could have a heat stoke. You should know that, doctor." she crossed her arms, seeing surprise flash across his face.
"How do you know I am interested in medicine?" he asked, tilting his head again.
Bella groaned. She really needed to stop doing that...but he must know he'll be a doctor in the future.
"You're a doctor in the future," she shifted, looking down at her bare feet and wiggling her toes.
He was quiet for moments, his intelligent eyes flashing as he looked to be in deep thought.
Eventually, he spoke, "So, I do succeed...That is wonderful to know," he said quietly, giving her a smile.
"Yeah, you're an amazing doctor," she smiled, twisting her hands in front of her.
"Well, come eat. You must be hungry. We'll discuss your clothing afterward," he smiled, pulling out her chair.
"Lovely," Bella sighed, sitting in the chair as he took his seat. "Aren't you getting tired of babysitting me?" she asked, frowning and feeling guilty.
His musical laughter reached her ears, causing her head to whip up and look at him. His brilliantly white teeth were sparkling at her and she felt her throat go dry.
She blinked, swallowing thickly and looking down at her plate, not liking how her heart was hammering. What was happening? Since when did she EVER have this type of reaction to Carlisle?
"Of course not. I'm grateful for the company."
"Huh?" Bella said stupidly, looking up at him. What were they talking about again?
He raised a regal eyebrow. "You asked if I was tired of babysitting you, remember?"
Her cheeks instantly flamed.
"Erm – yeah, sorry. My mind just...went elsewhere for a moment," she muttered, her chest fluttering as she forced herself to look away from is handsome back and stare at the bacon, eggs, and biscuit on her plate.
'What's happening?' she thought worriedly, panicking internally. She couldn't put her finger on it, perhaps because subconsciously, she didn't want to.