Ok I had the whole thing typed and my chihuahua walked across the keyboard and closed the window...so now I get to type it all again!! DANG IT!! OK well here we go AGAIN!! :)

End of Part 17
I went back to the couch, hearing Bella follow behind me. I reached my hand out to her and pulled her close to me.

"You look tired." I detto as I examined her face.

"Yeah, near-death experiences do that to me...So, what does Carlisle think of te being here?" She asked, probing for information.

"He doesn't know. He and Esme were on a hunting trip when I left. I'll hear from him in a few days when he gets back." I said.

"You won't tell him, though...when he checks in again." She asked.

I had to fight a smile, I knew she meant Edward from the first time she asked about the family. It was normal I would think for someone to ask about one they loved...if she still loved him that is.

"No. He'd bite my head off." I said, thinking how mad he would be.

Bella nodded once and yawned so hard her whole body moved. I looked at her as she smiled and placed her head on my shoulder, she took a few deep breaths in almost like she was taking in my smell before she sighed. A few moments later her breathing became più regular, obviously she had fallen asleep.

I started to move, to lay her down so she could sleep but when I did she woke up. She looked so scared, like she had Lost me.

"Shhh Bella, it's alright. I won't leave you, not tonight. Please sleep, I will stay." I detto softly as I ran my hands through her hair.

She smiled and quickly fell back to sleep, Charlie walked da on his way to letto and smiled at me before walking up the stairs to his room. A few hours later I figured it was sicuro, cassetta di sicurezza to move, so I laid her down on the cuscino and covered her with the blanket before going to sit in the chair da the window.

Part 18

I sat in the chair thinking about how much things have changed. I wished that Jasper would call me, I missed him so much it hurt. This is the longest we had ever been apart, and it was getting to be too much. I focused on our history, and before I knew it I heard Charlie coming down the stairs, attempting to be quiet.

He walked around the corner as I rolled my head and smiled at him. He smiled back and the nodded to the kitchen, obviously he wanted me to follow. I got up and walked to the cucina at human speed, sitting in the chair that I knew wouldn't be used.

Charlie walked into the cucina and began gathering the things he would need for breakfast. First he went to the refrigerator and grabbed eggs, latte and cheese. He walked over and grabbed a loaf of pane before getting a frying pan and setting it on the stove to heat up.

He began cracking eggs, then added milk, eggs, salt and pepper and mixed them all together. "Hungry? Can I get te anything?"

"No thank you, I'm still stuffed from cena last night." I detto as I smiled thinking of the mountain lion.

"Charlie, may I ask te a question." I asked as I took a napkin off the tavolo and began shredding it into pieces.

"Of course te can hon, go ahead." He detto as he looked over his shoulder and smiled at me.

"How bad was it?" I asked softly.

"Real bad." Charlie detto as he poured the eggs into the frying pan.

"Could te tell me about it? I want to know exactly what happened when we left."

He turned back to the stove, pouring his eggs into the pan. I heard him take a deep breath before he began.

"I've never felt so helpless," Charlie began slowly. "I didn't know what to do. That first week...I thought I was going to have to hospitalize her. She wouldn't eat o drink, she wouldn't move. Dr. Gerandy was throwing around words like 'catatonic I didn't let him up to see her. I was afraid it would scare her." He detto as he turned to watch me.

"She snapped out of it though?" I asked.

"I had Renee come to take her to Florida. I just didn't want to be the one...if she had to go to the hospital o something. I hoped being with her mother would help, but when we started packing her clothes, she woke up with a vengeance." He detto as he smiled slightly. "I've never seen Bella throw a fit like that. She was never one for the tantrums, but, boy, did she fly into a fury. She threw her clothes everywhere and screamed that we couldn't make her leave - and finally she started crying. I thought that would be the turning point. I didn't argue when she insisted on staying here...and she did seem to get better at first..." Charlie trailed off his sentence.

"But?" I said. I knew that this was all very hard for him talk about but I was so interested to see what got her to the point that she would jump off a cliff.

"She went back to school and work, she ate and slept and did her homework. She answered when someone asked her a direct question. But she was....empty. Her eyes were blank. There were lots of little things...she wouldn't listen to Musica anymore; I found a bunch of her Cd's broken in her trash. She didn't read she wouldn't be in the same room when the TV was on, not that she watched much before. I finally figured it out-she was avoiding everything that might remind her of...him.

"We could hardly talk; I was so worried about saying something that would upset her-the littlest things would make her flinch-and she never volunteered anything. She would just answer if I asked her something directly." He finished as he poured his eggs onto a plate, grabbed his crostini, pane tostato and came to sit with me at the table.

"She was alone all the time. She didn't call her Friends back, and after a while, they stopped calling."

"It was night of the living dead around here. I still hear her screaming in her sleep." He whispered as his whole body shivered.

This was all so much to take in, how could he think this would help!? For what he has just told me it sounded like her spirit was broken, it was too much. I felt responsible, this was my fault to a point.

"I'm so sorry, Charlie." I detto sadly.

"It's not your fault." He detto as he shook his head, a protective look mostrare on his face. "You were always a good friend to her."

"She seems better now, though." I added.

"Yeah. Ever since she started hanging out with Jacob Black, I've noticed a real improvement. She has some color in her cheeks when she comes home, some light in her eyes. She's happier." Charlie said, his face lightening. "He's a anno o so younger than her, and I know she used to think of his as a friend, but I think it's maybe something più now, o headed that direction, anyway." He detto as he smiled a bit.

I know he was adding this in so that I would pass it along, and I probably would if Edward would talk to me...or anyone.

"Jake's old for his years." He continued. "He's taken care of his father physically the way Bella took care of her mother emotionally. It matured him. He's a good looking kid too-takes after his mom's side. He's good for Bella, te know." He insisted.

"Then it's good she has him." I agreed. I was so conflicted, I was glad that she found someone...but at the same time...how could she just sposta on?

Charlie sighed out a big gust of air, folding quickly to the fact that I wasn't arguing. "Okay, so I guess that's overstating things. I don't know...even with Jacob, now and then I see something in her eyes, and I wonder if I've ever grasped how much pain she's really in. It's not normal Alice, and it...it frightens me. Not normal at all. Not like someone left her, but like someone.....died." He detto as his voice cracked.

I nodded slightly, it was what I imagined Edward going through. I know that he probably wished he was dead, that he could die. They were like two sides of a coin, the other half to one another and now...well.

"I don't know if she's going to get over it, I'm not sure if it's in her nature to heal from something like this. She's always been such a constant little thing. She doesn't get past things, change her mind."

"She's one a kind." I agreed.

"And Alice..." Charlie detto slowly. "Now te know how fond I am of you, and I can tell that she's happy to see you, but....I'm a little worried about what your visit will do to her." He detto as he nodded.

"So am I, Charlie, so am I. I wouldn't have come if I had any idea. I'm sorry." I admitted.

"Don't apologize honey. Who knows? Maybe it will be good for her." Charlie detto as he reached his hand out to comfort me. I quickly pulled my hand back and rest them on my lap.

"I hope you're right." I detto quietly.

I was beginning to think that Edward and everyone else might have been right. What was I doing here? If she had died what would I have done? Would I have been able to comfort Charlie at all o would he be upset at me for mostrare my face?

"Alice, I have to ask te something." Charlie detto quietly.

"Go ahead." I detto calmly, the fear rising inside my body, but my voice held steady.

"He's not coming back to visit, too is he?" Charlie asked. The anger mostrare in his tone and all over his face, he obviously hated my brother.

"He doesn't even know I'm here. The last time I spoke with him he was in South America." I detto softly as I looked Charlie right in the eyes.

"That's something, at least." Charlie detto as he snorted softly. "Well, I hope he's enjoying himself."

I had to control my reaction, I understand that he is upset..and that his daughter was broken...but this was still my brother we were talking about. How could he be enjoying himself when he was away from Bella? I had to focus myself before I could answer.

"I wouldn't make assumptions, Charlie." I detto as I felt my eyes narrow in anger.

That is not where I would have chosen to leave this conversation, with my anger making Charlie uncomfortable. I shook my head as I heard Bella fake stretch in the living room.

I knew that she had been awake for most of the conversation, she tried to hide that face, but she didn't do a good job. I wish that she hadn't heard certain parts of the conversation, I'm sure she was in deep thought about everything...especially the parts about Edward.