Humans, Are Such Nasty Things

I stared into her eyes. Green like apples, large, innocent. I stared into her father's eyes. Dull green, emotionless, unmoving. I reached to touch her hair of burgundy but upon seeing her flinch slightly, my hand falls; her father on the other side of the bed, smiles. I once again paid attention to what Carlisle is saying as Cayden's grip on my other hand tightened. I crossed my legs.

"It would seem that she has regressed her mind to a time when she felt most safe, this being when her mother was still......with her," I knew Carlisle was going to say 'alive'. His words hurt me. I fancied believing that Nandaleah felt safest and happiest with me.

"Mommy is still with me," Nandaleah turned her head to Orville, "I don't know why you won't let me see her Daddy." Her words were hard, not as hard a you'd expect from a child as young as she.

"So Doctor what would you say is the best thing for her?" Orville turned to Carlisle without emotion, without a word of comfort to his child. My grip around Cayden's hand tightened.

"The best thing is to ease her into reality. She can't go on living in the past," Carlisle looked on Nandaleah with a slight sad look.
"And just exactly how do you expect me to do that?" Orville rolled his eyes, "I am a very busy man you know. I don't know why on Earth I entrusted my daughter to this quack" The last line he said under his breath.
Carlisle eyes narrowed for the smallest fraction of a second, but it was Cayden who said something.

"Hey, Dr. Cullen is the best doctor in this side of the world! He's saved tons of lives including your daughter's! You should think before you say something so insane!" Cayden scoffed.
"Excuse me?!" Orvillle raised his eyebrows, "I don't need some nancy-boy telling me what I can and can't say!"

"Thank you for your kind words Cayden," Carlisle smiled, "But now focusing on Nandaleah, perhaps there was some occurrence in the past, including Gwen and Mrs.Bright, that had some strong impact on Nandaleah. Something significant."

Carlisle was trying to tell me something.

"Nandaleah," I said gently, "Do you remember when I came home and my hair was cut. When Rach- Mommy said that the girl who did it was mean and you said that I looked better with short hair. Do you remember that?"
"I don't know you," she bit her lip out of fear and moved away from me. Pain is familiar to me, but never this kind of pain.
"Your ring, on your left index finger, remember I gave it to you," I tried harder. She glanced down on it then looked back up at me.

"It's the same colour as your eyes," she said, "They're really pretty."
"Thank you," I smiled. My eyes. MY EYES! OF COURSE MY EYES! I took off my glasses.

"Touch this," I handed them to her. She looked at my face and something, some emotion flashed over hers. Recognition.
"Why?" She said, moving a little closer.
"You gave me this, remember?" I said trying to keep the tears away, "At the - "
"Festival....." she said detached. Then pain contorted her face and her eyes moved as if they were trembling in fear, "Mo- mommy......"

"Enough!" Orville stood up, "All of you get out of her room!" As if that would stop me. I was at her side in an instant, Carlisle and Cayden behind me.
"No!" Nandaleah pushed me away and looked at me with tears streaming down her face. Her eyes wide with pain and fear, "I'm really sorry but I don't know you! My mommy's not dead, she didn't get hurt. SHE DIDN'T DIE! So please leave, and stop saying that."

I left the room with Cayden. I was burning. Not with sadness, but with hope. The festival. The festival in Arizona was next weekend. Brilliant. I knew exactly what to do. Pictures, tons of pictures. Brilliant. ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!

*************************

He pressed me hard against his body. His lips hard and fierce. His heat, was unspeakable bliss. This was about the fourth time we said goodbye. Thank God for flight delays.

"Don't forget me Gwen," Cayden pressed his forehead against mine and smiled. He brushed his lips against mine for another second.
"Oh, it's just a for a few days, um, what's your name again?" I smiled playfully as his strong hands around my waist pulled my body closer to his.
"Maybe this will remind you," I expected him to kiss me again but he lifted me in the air and spun me around for a bit. When my feet touched the ground he kissed my neck passionately. Too passionately for public. We were starting to get dirty looks from the generation before us. I really didn't care.

"Hurry back," he breathed into my jaw.
"I will," I said almost breathlessly,"I love you Cay."
"I love you too, Gwen," One last kiss. Then I was in the plane.

I was in the plane alright. I was in the plane for almost a FUCKING HOUR! As in what the actually FUCK was going on?! I could have been playing baseball with the Cullens right about now! No, I probably wouldn't because the Devil's incarnate Bella Swan would be there. UGH!

"Ladies and gentlemen sorry for the delay," I heard over the sweet sound of Party Poison by MCR, "We will be departing shortly. Thank you for your patience and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience we may have caused you."
"ABOUT FUCKING TIME!" some old man from the back of the plane yelled.
"Amen to that pops," I said as I was about to put in my earphones. Then I saw them. Alice, Jasper and Bella.
"Amen indeed," Bella glared at me, her nose all bruised still.

I chuckled.
She narrowed her eyes at me.
"Gwen should you have gotten to Arizona by now?" Alice said furrowing her eyebrows.
"Tell me about it," I rolled my eyes, then glanced at Bella, "Do I even want to know?"
Alice smiled, "Perhaps, perhaps not."

********************

Vampires, it's always vampires. I sighed. I was planning to stay in some dirt cheap motel, but since my dear fashionta friend Alice was with me, she insisted upon me staying in the hotel with them. And of course, she insisted on paying. My glance shifted from Alice and Jasper at the front desk to Bella sitting in front of me. I looked at her bruised nose. I smiled.

"What are you smiling about?" she folded her arms and glared at me.
"Just a beautiful night," I took out my phone and dialed Cayden, "Hey babe!"
"Took you long enough Gwen!" he chuckled, "Do you remember me?"
"Slut!" Bella hissed under her breath. I smiled back innocently.

Last night was more than uneventful, well for me at least. Vampires were after Bella, not me. I had nothing to do with it, might have been me though, had I been with the Cullens playing baseball. But I came here with a plan to help my sister, Bella being here was just a coincidence.

That's right, Bella being here is just a coincidence, yet, why do I feel compelled to follow her? More importantly where is she going? Why is she leaving Jasper and Alice? She knows they can't go out in daylight. Yet I followed her as she left the hotel.

I didn't know where she was going and I didn't let her know that I was following her. Perhaps conscience getting the better of me. She left so suddenly that i didn't have the time to run upstairs to warn Alice and Jasper. She was obviously going to get herself in some shit. Edward is probably already having a panic attack over Bella, imagine if she died. But as I followed her, I slowly began to regret it, walking so damn far. I stopped for a while to catch my breath, a stupid action. When I looked around again I lost her.

"Man, what came over me to do that," I sighed. I walked down the street. It had some type of centre for dancing. When i got closer I realized that it was for ballet and when I got closer I realized I sensed a vampire. Shit.

"Bella!" I yelled busting through the door.
Bella screamed not at me, but at the pain she felt of her leg being crushed by that blond vampire. The vampire stared up at me in confusion. His red eyes pierced me, scanned me and made me cold. He tilted his head at me as if he found some interesting, strange animal.

"Hello," he smiled. I barely heard him over Bella's scream.
I swallowed hard, "Take your foot off her.'
"Why? Is she your friend?" he asked.
"What does it matter to - " I started to say, then I felt his long cold fingers run neck down to my collar bone. I broke away from him. He blood red eyes scanned my body. I realized the situation. He was the hunter and I was his hunt. He smiled and suddenly his breath was on my neck - smelling me. I was frozen in shock at his speed.

"Peculiar," he breathed.
"What?" I said, angry at the futility of trying to get away.
"No scent," he licked my neck.
"Get of me you creep!" out of instinct I dug my elbow in his stomach. Oh wait! He's a vampire!

Then a big surprise, his face actually showed slight pain...................okay then. I took that to my advantage and ran to Bella's side.

"Swan!" I dropped down to my knee beside her body that was howling in pain, "damn her leg is broken." I heard a click on the ground. That blonde vampire was walking towards us. I stood defensively in front of Bella with my arms out.

"G-Gwen," Bella rasped. Why the hell was I doing this? I wasn't a superhero.
"So your name is Gwen, love? What a darling little name. I am James." He smirked walking closer.
"Stay away from us," I growled.
"Or what, love?" His fingers were around my neck and I felt my back hit the wall on the other side on the room. I couldn't even scream as the air left my body carrying a splash of blood with it. I crumpled to the ground. My heart was racing. I tried to raise myself up with my arms. A feeble, trembling attempt. He pushed my head down and grabbed my hair and dragged me. I held on his wrist and tried to break free.

"Oh a fighter huh?" he chuckled, "That's good, dear, I love in when my prey squirms."
"I'm not your fucking prey," I said breathlessly.
"Don't say bad words," he threw me against Bella's broken legs and we both screamed in pain.

He grabbed me and pressed me to him. He licked a trickle of my blood that escaped from my lips and stared at me very intently - almost like a lover.
"what a peculiar taste. It's not like any human's I've ever tasted. No....that not even human blood is it? Not even human blood can be that perfect," he gasped with reverence as his red eyes danced over my body.

I grunted as I tried to push him away but he just held me firmer. "More," he exhaled as his lips closed around my neck. His teeth dug deep into me and he drained my body with a ridiculous amount of force. My heart exploded in my chest. It wasn't even beating anymore, it was more like a hum. I felt dizzy as my life force drained from me. I felt myself falling, falling, falling into nothingness. My arms fell limp and grey to my side.

He threw me to the ground beside Bella's whimpering, bleeding body as my vision became warped and blurry. Was I going to die like this? Heh, well I had to admit, it's a pretty badass way to go. How many people get to say that in the Afterlife? 'oh I got hit by a bus' 'oh I had cancer' 'oh I was in a mugging that went bad' 'Well yeah, I got my blood drained by a vampire. How about THAT?!'

As I was contemplating this, I think James was saying something to me or Bella or maybe the two of us. I couldn't be sure. Everything was a wobble fuzz.

Suddenly there was a bright and beautiful light. It felt magnificently warm.

*********************ALICE'S POV*********************

We broke into the studio. It was me, Em and Rose. The blood would have been too much for Jazz so he went to get the others. I was beyond scared when Bella's future went blank like that. Then I remembered Gwen.

As James looked around we entered. "My, my looks like I'm in for a fight. I would have so liked to enjoy me meal in peace." he purred over Bella's screams.

"GWEN!" Emmett yelled rushing over her limp body that I didn't immediately notice. I gasped in fright. Was she?

"Uh ah, stay away from her. I haven't drained her completely yet." James ran over to Emmett about to throw a punch. Rose caught it and threw him into a wall. Right before he could recover from that she punched him straight into the ceiling.

Em was still at Gwen's side checking to see if she was....I ran over to Bella. She was in agony. Her eyes were glared over was pain . They screamed for me to help her. Her thigh bone was shattered and a sharp piece was poking out through the wound. I wasn't a doctor. I - I don't know what to do. The scent of Bella's blood was started to overcome me. Carlisle, please get here soon.

"NO! NOOO!" Emmett screamed. "This can't - I'LL KILL YOU JAMES!" Like a blur he rushed over to where James and Rosalie were fighting. James had barely missed Emmett's iron grip. He now stood where Gwen's body lay.

"Damn, is she dead already?" he gingerly touched her jaw with the tip of his shoe, "I wanted witness the moment when the light left those beautiful eyes of hers."

"TAKE YOUR FILTHY FOOT OFF OF HER!" Rosalie bellowed. She, Em and James became like three blurs.

"Her blood was divine," James mocked. I wanted to leave Bella's side. I wanted to leave her side so I could kill James. But I couldn't leave her undefended like this. I - I don't know what to do!

"Alice!" like a prayer answered Carlisle appeared by my side. He shoved some gauze in my hand and pointed to a spot on Bella's thigh to tie off so that the bleeding could stop. I did so while he examined the rest of Bella's body for injuries.

In following his orders, my hands, they, they touched Bella's blood. It was so warm and so smelt so sweet. Without me realising I lifted my bloodied hand up to my tongue.

"I have to get out of here, I'm sorry Carlisle." I felt tormented. He nodded. Edward rushed in my place. I ran over to where Gwen laid. Her eyes were dull and empty. Her skin grey. A pain gripped my chest. Far more than anger. Much deeper than despair. I wish I were human, so that the tears could run down my eyes. Instead, they welled up inside me. I fell to my knees, and I burst.

"ALICE GET WOOD!"
"WE NEED TO START A FIRE!"
"EDWARD YOU NEED TO SUCK THE VENOM OUT!"
"AAAAHHH NO! NOOOOOO! LET IT SPREAD!"
"BELLA, I - ! I CAN'T LET YOU BECOME THIS!"
"ALICE!"
"EDWARD YOU NEED TO MAKE A CHOICE!"
"WHAT IF I CAN'T STOP?! WHAT IF I KILL HER!"
"ALICE!"

James growled in annoyance as I snapped backed to reality. He was running towards Rose with his arm dismembered and half of his jaw gone.

Then, something strange happened.

James fell to ground and screamed. It was deafening. His face twisted and contorted in agonising pain. A choking sound escaped his jaw and black fluid ran down his body that had gone wild with convulsions. Rosalie shook off her confusion and yelled, "Alice, NOW!"

I kissed Gwen's forehead, then jumped on James' back, twisting his neck off his body.

Emmett had started a fire. We threw the pieces of James into the inferno. It was over. But could we really call this a win?

"Edward! Edward stop! You're killing her!" I heard Carlisle yell. No, this can't happen. I can't let another person I love die! I ran over to the pair, prying Edward's mouth off Bella's wrist. With a pained expression he pushed me off. I tried again, this time with Em's help. Self-hatred darkened Edward's features as Bella's blood filled his mouth.

"Bro stop...stop!" Emmett pleaded with him, "she's gonna die. She's gonna die, just like how Gwen did." At Gwen's name, Edward's jaw went slack. Emmett used the opportunity to grabbed him and pull him far away.

"Gwen is....."
"She's gone," I heard Rosalie say. I turned to look over at Rose on the ground cradling Gwen's empty body in her arms, rocking back and forth. Her lips quivered in a tearless sob.

"She's gone," I whimpered, as despair fell over me again.