Random Rita ~ Thursday Tippin’ Point!

♥

Evenin’, ladies!

What I mean by the title of this post is that, in my continuin’ sojourn through FicLand, some really awesome stories bubble up to the point where I’m absolutely compelled to rec them!

The followin’ fics fall into that “Tippin’ Point” category!https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12860390/1/What-s-Left-of-Me

For 15 years Edward Cullen believed his wife and child died in a car accident on a snowy night. They said she couldn’t have survived—that she’d been swept into the river. He was forced to live a life without her, to function and be the man she would have wanted. But now, a young girl proves everything he thought was a lie and he’s faced with a truth he may not be prepared for.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Mystery/Romance – Bella, Edward – Chapters: 3 – Words: 9,622 – Reviews: 390 – Favs: 320 – Follows: 593 – Updated: Mar 12 – Published: Mar 7 – id: 12860390

What you may or may not know is that anhd1207 is the new profile for anhanninen who wrote Fatherhood, Formula, and Other F Words! What’s Left of Me is obviously a much darker fic!

As his eyes go from the test results to the heart monitor, watching each beat as it appears, Edward tries to come to terms with his new reality. For fifteen years he thought he lost the greatest love of his life—his childhood sweetheart and soul mate. He thought their child died with her, having never took a breath, never been held, and never knowing the love that created he or she. He was told time and time again for years to move on, to accept that Bella was gone and nothing could bring her back. It took him a long time to even live. He threw himself into his military training, medical school, and residency.

But now . . .

Their child is alive. Somehow she made it at least close to term and everything he believed feels like a lie. He should have known. How, he’s not sure, but he should have. His baby girl needed him. Bella needed him, and he gave up. He moved on and all the while, this little girl was out there. She’s gone through milestone after milestone without him. God only knows what her life has been like, but he knows it hasn’t been easy. Imagining the horrors she may have faced makes him sick to his stomach, and he has so many questions he isn’t sure if he can handle the answers for.

The most burning is, of course, if she’s alive, could Bella be too?

A knock on the glass door pulls him back to reality and he clears his throat, scrubbing a hand over his face as he tells whoever it is to come in. Expecting a nurse, his eyes widen as his father comes in, sliding the door closed behind him. Consider he hasn’t called them yet, he’s perplexed his dad made the four hour drive from Port Angeles.

“What are you doing here?” he asks before realizing how it came out. “Sorry, I just—”

Carlisle Cullen nods. “I know. I probably should have called first, but I had to see her for myself.” He looks past his son, finding the small girl—his granddaughter—resting as ventilator breathes for her. And he knows Alistair was right. “Alistair James called . . .” he trails off, looking back at Edward.

He should have guessed the chief of staff, who’s Carlisle’s oldest friend, would have tipped his dad off after visiting early this morning. He can only imagine what people are thinking, but he can’t seem to care much. He just wished he could have told his parents himself.

“She has the brightest smile,” he chokes out, trying damn hard not to cry. He feels raw—like a live wire just waiting to spark. He doesn’t cry, hasn’t since Bella disappeared, but he’s close. Thinking about what she’s been through and what could have happened to her mom, his heart sinks a little more. “I fucking gave up.”

“No, you didn’t,” Carlisle quickly says, slowly coming around to the other side of the hospital bed. “You spent three weeks, from dawn ’til dusk, scouring the woods and river. She was gone, Edward. She was declared dead, so what should you have done?”

Kept looking, he thinks, swallowing back the lumps in his throat. “She couldn’t have died for at least five months, Dad. Five months she was alone. She was pregnant. Where the hell was she?”

Bella Swan grew up under his roof, along with his sons and daughter. He and Esme kept her anytime Charlie had to work late or go out of town. As a single father, he did an incredible job with Bella, but Carlisle saw her as his daughter too. At six Edward and Bella declared they were in love. Of course they weren’t quite the in love they’d become, but everyone knew they would be together. Esme called it adorable, Charlie had rolled his eyes, but Carlisle knew what the two kids meant that day. Something in them was connected. They were never more themselves than when they were together—and that didn’t change when Bella disappeared.

He lost his son that night, along with his daughter and grandchild. His body remained, but something in him went with her. Carlisle didn’t want to push him into moving on, but he couldn’t watch his son wither away before his life even began. Bella wouldn’t have wanted that either, but now, he understands how his son thinks he gave up. Didn’t he do the same?

“Alistair only gave me a little on her injuries,” Carlisle says after a few moments of silence. “What’s the prognosis? Do you have her chart?”

Edward nods, logging into his tablet and handing it over to his dad. It’s easier to let him read the notes than explain all of her injuries. She’s shattered—like a porcelain doll dropped on concrete. They can put her back together, and he plans to do so, but she’ll bear the scars forever. Both inside and out.

Aside from answering a few questions about her test results, Edward remains silent with his attention on his daughter as Carlisle reads. He can see parts of himself in her, like his eyes and dimples, but she looks more like Bella, and he can’t believe he missed it. The heart shaped face, button nose, and freckles . . . it’s like looking at an old photo of Bella. She’s swollen and bruised, but he has no doubt she’s just as beautiful as her mom.

“Do you know what the next step is, son?” his dad asks, pulling him out of his thoughts. “The police . . . do they know anything?”

He shakes his head solemnly. “The FBI should be here soon. But until they can talk to her or someone comes forward, there’s little to be done. I know they’ve reopened Bella’s case and Alistair mentioned something about a lawyer this morning. Probably not a bad idea.”

Carlisle nods in agreement as he rests his elbows on his knees, gazing at his bandaged granddaughter. “A lawyer’s a smart idea. I’ll handle that for you, if you’d like.”

The mood shifts slightly and it hits Edward that his dad is asking his permission to help him. When he lost Bella it was easy to push people away, to claim he could handle life on his own, and that led to a lot of years of little communication with his parents and family.

 “I’m sorry, Dad,” he confesses, furrowing his brow as he looks up. “I mean, you’ve done so much for me. And Mom. God, she might be an actual angel. I haven’t shown either of you how much you mean to be lately, and shutting you both out wasn’t my intention, but I still did it.”

Carlisle just smiles, taking Lucy’s other hand in his. “A lot has changed in fifteen years. If we focused on what we did and didn’t do, trying to change a past we can’t, we’ll never live in the present or look toward the future. Seeing this little girl here . . . seeing you with her, there’s nothing I want more than the great things the future holds. Before we do anything else, though, you should probably tell your mom.”

“I’m not sure if I’m ready,” he sighs, thinking about his mother with Lucy—her only granddaughter, which Esme has wanted more than anything. “Maybe, uh . . . you can bring her up tomorrow?”

Laughing, Carlisle nods. “Get used to sharing her.”

Aaargh! I’m so anxious to find out whether Bella’s alive or not *gnawin’ fingernails!*

~oOo~

(banner by LizziePaige)

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12853364/1/Wanderlust

Set Three years after New Moon. The Cullen family, sans Edward, is having a lazy afternoon watching YouTube videos when they stumble across a travel vlog that quickly leads to an obsession. The star of this blog? I’m sure you can guess. Rated M because this Bella is living her life. Eventual E/B.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Adventure/Friendship – Bella, Edward – Chapters: 11 – Words: 29,420 – Reviews: 236 – Favs: 133 – Follows: 260 – Updated: Mar 13 – Published: Mar 1 – id: 12853364

Havin’ discovered Bella’s travel vlog, the Cullens finally decide to do something about Edward!

“The only thing that has kept Edward from running back to Bella with his tail tucked between his legs is the fact that he thinks…and I mean truly believes… that Bella is living in a dorm room in some ivy league college and studying sappy English-Lit books while secretly pining away for him!”

“I’m not following…” Carlisle shook his head.

“Yeah, I was totally on board in the beginning and now I am lost…” Emmett added.

“Edward may be noble…but nobody is that noble. How would you all feel if your mate was off enjoying life without you and fucking every hot piece of meat that crossed their path while every pervert on the internet jacked off to it from their mothers basements!” Rose spouted.

“Rose!” Esme exclaimed.

“Sorry Esme, but it’s true. It would be much more easier for me to stay away from Emmett if I had no reason to believe that he would ever be able to move on without me.” Rose didn’t sound very apologetic at all.

“I see. So you are saying that Edward needs to be… motivated?” Carlisle seemed to be processing this information.

“Exactly.” Rose smiled.

“That shouldn’t be hard either… Bella got Hot!” Emmett whistled.

“Emmett!” Esme was getting more exasperated by the moment.

“Alright. Who here agrees with this…observation Rose has made?” Carlisle pinched the bridge of his nose.

I could already see the decision was made, I just couldn’t see any clear outcomes yet. “Fine.” I conceded. “But if this go’s bad…” I trailed off.

“How much worse could it get than it already is Alice?” Emmett huffed.

“Im just..I worry for Edward. I worry that Bella… she won’t take him back.” I whispered.

“Well, so… I guess we will be in the same predicament we are in now. Big deal.” Rose shrugged her shoulders.

“Alice. We need to have faith that it will all work out. I want my family back together. I’m so tired of living this way. I want Edward to come home, preferably with Bella.” Esme squeezed my hand in her motherly way.

“Alright. so… how are we going to do this?” I took an unnecessary deep breath.

“Text. Send him a link to the channel.” Emmett pulled out his cell phone.

“No!” I shouted. I had already debated that route earlier and the possible outcome was far from ideal.

“That won’t work in our favor. If we send him the link he won’t come home. At least, not for a while.” I explained.

“Okay… how about a picture then?

“As long as there isn’t a link or an identifier to where he can find more video or more photos, that will work.” I conceded, after seeing no other way.

“Perfect. How about this one?” Rose turns her phone to show me a topless Bella covering her chest with one arm while she took a selfie with a couple of girls and one of the boys from the travel bus. I remembered that particular video. They were at a topless beach in Brazil.

“No. A little too much. We need one of just Bella, and preferable with more clothing.” I gave Rose a withering stare. She was enjoying this a little too much.

In the end we decided on a photo of Bella on a pristine white beach in Cancun Mexico, wearing nothing but a tiny Two piece swimsuit while sitting on her surfboard, waiting for a wave. It was taken from behind her, with her back facing the camera as the sun was beginning to sink lower into the sky. A golden glow illuminated the red in her hair and cast a slight halo around her entire body. She had her head turned so she was looking over her shoulder, into the camera, with a mischievous smile on her face. It was sexy, but not raunchy, and it left enough to the imagination to have Edward calling my phone in seconds.

About Five seconds to be exact.

Incoming Call

Edward

Among all the angsty goodness goin’ around, this beautifully written, hilarious fic is a welcome breath of fresh air! Any typos are due to the fact she’s writin’ directly onto her iPad…without a keyboard!

~oOo~

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12863463/1/Black-Tears

After the death of her father, Bella found herself having to take care of her ailing mother. With her brother, Jasper, away in another country, everything was fine until she lost her job, her perfect apartment and had to live in her car. That was all before a stranger offered her a job that would lead her to believe that beggars can’t be choosers.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Drama/Suspense – Chapters: 12 – Words: 36,875 – Reviews: 64 – Favs: 47 – Follows: 71 – Updated: Mar 13 – Published: Mar 10 – id: 12863463

WARNING! This is a DARK fic that includes sex for convenience, drug use and a miscarriage!

In the eight years since Edward and Rosalie left her behind to attend med school on the east coast, Bella has had a hard life! So, imagine her surprise…

My head was pounding with a massive headache as I tried to wake up. There was something pressed against my nose that tickled. I tried to raise my hand to scratch, but something was connected to my finger. I could hear voices, but I couldn’t hear what was being said. Once I got one eye open, I could see I was in a hospital room. For what? I wasn’t sure.

“Hey there, sleepy head,” a female voice said. I didn’t recognize who it was at first.

I turned my head, causing the pain to intensify, to try and see who was talking to me. “Fuck,” I swore from the pain. “Why the hell am I in a hospital?”

“Well, when you’re unconscious from being beaten up and bleeding all over the place, you usually end up in the hospital.”

I finally made visual contact with the person speaking to me. I knew her all too well, but I hadn’t seen her in over eight years.

“Rosalie?”

“The one and only.” She sat on the side of the bed next to me. “I never expected to reunite this way, but someone needs to keep me busy.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” The last time I saw Rosalie, she was getting on a plane with her twin brother, Edward, who had been the love of my existence most of my life.

“We just moved back. There was a job offer for the infamous Cullen doctors here in Seattle, so here we are,” she explained, looking more beautiful than the last time I saw her.

I was still a little confused and not completely awake. “Who’s we?”

“I think you got hit a little too hard on the head.” Then I heard someone else enter the room.

“Stop monopolizing the patients, Rose. I’m sure she has a headache the size of Bainbridge Island.”

That voice would be one that I’d never forget. “Edward?”

“Hi, Bella,” he said, finally coming into view. I was having a hard time seeing anything.

“Edward?” I couldn’t stop saying his name. “Is that really you?”

He walked around to the other side of my bed and sat in the chair. “In the flesh.”

“Why am I here?” I raised my hand and saw IV’s stuck in the top of my hand and my other one was in a cast. I tried looking over the rest of my body and noticed one of my legs was propped up on pillows; also in cast. “What the hell happened to me?”

“We don’t know the whole story, but some man brought you in. He said he found you like this. He thinks you were jumped because your car was gone and all your stuff from your purse was all over the ground,” Rosalie explained. “You have a broken arm, leg, collarbone, a few ribs and your nose is broken along with a small fracture to your left cheek bone. I don’t think I’ll need to do surgery, but we’ll have to wait for the swelling to go down before I can determine the damage.”

I could only see out of one eye and that was very minimal at best. “I have no clue what happened.” I was surprised I was able to talk clear enough. My voice sounding scratchy and my throat ached. “Is Jimmy here?”

“Who’s Jimmy?” Edward asked.

I closed my one good eye as I remembered the last thing I witnessed Jimmy doing. “He used to be my boss!” I growled.

“Oh,’ Rosalie said. “The good looking blonde pacing the waiting room? He’s barely left the hospital.”

“How long have I been here?” I felt so constricted and tried to sit up. “I need to sit up.”

Edward grabbed the remote and raised the head part of the bed. “More?”

“No; so how long?” I pointed to the cup on the rollaway tray and Rosalie hopped up to get it for me. She was wearing a white doctors jacket over her blue scrubs.

“Six days,” Edward answered. “You’ve been in and out of consciousness. It’s understandable with the massive concussion you have.”

I lay quietly until Rosalie stuck a straw to my lips. “Drink slow or you’ll make yourself sick.” She set my cup down. “Look, I gotta take off. I have an appointment in then minutes.” She kissed my cheek. “I’ll try and come by later and we can catch up.”

“Okay,” I agreed.

“Edward has some stuff to explain to you so he’ll be here a little longer.” She gave my good hand a light squeeze. “Use that button as much as you have to.”

She was gone a moment later and I was left in complete silence. I knew Edward was in the room, but I couldn’t look at him.

“What’s happened to you, Bella? You’re not the same person I remember.” I wasn’t about to jump into explaining how my life turned around after he left me. He lost that right when he stopped me all together.

“Obviously,” I said sarcastically. “Someone decided they wanted to kick my ass and leave me for dead.”

“Are you in trouble?” I ignored him. “You can tell me and I can help the best I can.”

“Just be my doctor. It’s none of your business about the rest.” I still couldn’t look at him.

“Bella?” He was about to lecture me.

“Don’t Edward; just don’t.”

“Fine.” I heard him say as he got up from the chair and shoved it back causing the legs to make a horrible sound across the floor. “You want me to only be your doctor, then here goes.”

He opened my file and started to read over it. “You tested positive for Benzoylicgonine which is also knows as cocaine. You also tested positive for pregnancy, but your HCG levels have dropped in the last two days which means your body is rejecting the pregnancy which could very well be from the beating your body sustained. You’re very underweight and that could be another reason you’re miscarrying.”

“Stop,” I said. I didn’t wanna hear anymore. I had no clue I was pregnant and definitely didn’t wanna be.

“No, as your doctor, you need to know this. If your body doesn’t expel the fetus completely then you’ll need to have a D&C to finish the process your body can’t complete.” By this time, tears were streaming down my cheeks. “Doing cocaine while you’re pregnant could lead to a number of things.”

“Just fucking shut up!” I yelled. I wiped at my face the best I could with my good hand. “I didn’t know I was pregnant.”

“How could you not know? You were three months along, Bella. Did that cocaine fuck up your head so much that you didn’t even realize you missed a period let alone three?”

“I didn’t know,” I said in a low voice. “Just leave it alone.” I cried harder. “Just leave it alone.”

He came to stand right next to me. “I can’t and I won’t. Something’s happened to you and I’m bound and determined to find the Bella I once loved.”

“I need you to leave me alone. If you truly loved me once, then you would’ve never. . . ” I stopped my sentence, not wanting to think about how I felt when he stopped all contact with me.

“I would have never what?” I kept my mouth shut. “Never have what, Bella? No need to keep it all bottled up now.”

Just when I was about to tell him, the door opened. “Dr. Cullen, you’re needed in 302.”

“I’ll be right there,” he said and waited for the door to close, again.

“This isn’t over. You’ll tell me sooner or later.”

When he reached for the door handle, “Don’t count on it,” I said. 

I could feel his eyes on me for a long minute before he left the room.

Whether or not Edward can handle the truth remains to be seen!

~oOo~https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12774608/1/Prey

Behind a painted smile lies secrets many wish to keep. A modern nightmare. Warning: drug use and sexual situations some might find uncomfortable.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Romance/Hurt/Comfort – Bella, Edward – Chapters: 33 – Words: 23,896 – Reviews: 277 – Favs: 66 – Follows: 135 – Updated: Mar 12 – Published: Dec 27, 2017 – id: 12774608

Edward and his parents have just moved into their new home…

Something about the pool deck calls to me. Maybe it’s the warmth. Maybe it’s the openness. But it’s now become my routine.

I don’t even get into the pool. I just sit out here, under the sun, and make shapes in the clouds. Needless to say, I’m mind-numbingly bored.

“Hey!” the familiar shout comes just moments after my neighbor’s back door slams close. Glancing up, I spy two blonde heads peeking at me from over the fence.

“Hey,” I call back.

“I’m Peter,” right grins. “That’s Garrett.”

“We’re twins, if you didn’t know.” Garrett tells me frankly.

“That’s cool,” I smile, glancing back at the clouds.

“What grade are you in?” Peter asks.

“Yeah,” Garrett interjects. “What grade?”

“Eleventh.”

“Cool!” Peter shrieks.

“We’re in first.” Garrett nods, grinning proudly.

“Definitely not babies,” I smile. They grin back, showing off missing teeth.

A movement over their heads draws my attention away. The second floor of their house is lined with wide, clear windows – so clear, you can see right through them into the room that lies beyond. A flash of one long, pale, bare leg draws my eyes to the rightmost window of the house. The leg extends, flexes, and drops slowly onto the bed its owner reclines against.

“- and, and we love baseball!” Peter finishes, flashing me a toothy grin.

“So do I,” I mutter, glancing back at the beguiling window. The owner of the long leg now stands with her back to me. She’s tall, willowy with long, shapely legs. My eyes greedily drink her in as she flips her silvery, white hair over her shoulder and strides out of the room.

“- teach us sometime because dad’s always too busy and Riley doesn’t know how to hit because he’s a pitcher.”

“Sure,” the words flow past my lips.

The boys sport matching toothless grins. I smile in return, mind conjuring the image of the girl in the window.

“Tomorrow?” Garrett asks, eyes wide, hopeful.

“Yeah,” I shrug.

“Okay!” Peter grins, cheeks pink with excitement. “Come teached us over here. . . and then we goin’ swimmin’ in your pool!”

A flicker of movement draws my attention back to that window. It’s open now, and the girl is back – sitting cross-legged on the floor.

“Yeah,” I agree, lips numb and mouth dry.

Tomorrow.

To be clear, Edward is not a predator! However, somebody fits that description and he becomes desperate to find out WHO and stop them!

“Good first day of school?” Mom asks, shoveling a heaping helping of cheesy goodness onto my plate. 

“Sure,” I shrug, forking in a piping hot mouthful. 

“Did you have a good time with Riley Swan?” She presses, smiling as she passes me the salad. Frowning, I drop a few leaves onto my plate before handing the bowl to Dad.

“Yeah, he’s a nice guy.”

“Hm,” Dad hums, frowning at my words. “I’ve heard otherwise.”

“Really?” I ask, interest piqued. Maybe this will give me some insight on Bella. “What have you heard?”

“Well,” Dad intones, folding his napkin across his lap. “Phil has mentioned – in passing – that Riley isn’t a conscientious child. Something about him shirking his familial responsibilities in order to further his social life. Not only that, but he is also physically aggressive with his peers. It’s a wonder he hasn’t been expelled for all the fights he’s instigated. Seems to me that he’s very selfish. Real shame, but every good family has a black sheep.”

“I don’t know,” I mutter, immediately jumping to his defense. Riley might be oblivious, but he means well and cares for his family. It’s very obvious, even in the minimal interactions I’ve had with him. This description of Riley just isn’t accurate. “Riley isn’t like that. He cares about his family a lot. The fights he’s been in were in his sister’s defense.”

Scowling, Dad puts down his fork and fixes me with a cold stare. “And you think her promiscuous behavior warrants a defense?”

“Yes – maybe – I don’t know. . . but, Dad. . . I think there’s something wrong with her – Bella. She’s just. . . she’s so sad and scared. I don’t know what it is but I feel like I need to help her. It’s like nobody else sees it but me.” The words come tumbling out of my mouth like word vomit. Through it all, Dad stares back at me with a blank, unblinking stare.

After the last words leave my mouth, the silence stretches between us. Dad stares back at me, eyes cool, calculating as he digests my words. After a beat, he takes a deep breath before speaking. “You need to leave that girl alone, Edward.” His words, although spoken softly, deliver a powerful blow. His eyes pin me to my seat, flashing with steely, unblinking authority.

What the hell?

~oOo~https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12823589/1/All-the-ways-you-know-me

Bella and Jacob are expecting their first child, when tragedy strikes. Lurking, still waiting for her chance at vengeance, is Victoria, who is emboldened by Jacob’s death.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Hurt/Comfort/Romance – Bella, Edward – Chapters: 41 – Words: 83,367 – Reviews: 365 – Favs: 107 – Follows: 194 – Updated: Mar 13 – Published: Feb 3 – id: 12823589

He had watched.

Lurked, or stalked, more like, he thought of himself on his worse days.

His cause, on better days, he told himself, was noble.

Jacob was gone, and she was alone. He would keep her safe until. . . he was less certain about when that would end. There were so many things that could hurt her. Some of them, he could protect her from. Others, he could only wish to.

She wept, and then slept restlessly most nights, from grief, or discomfort, he couldn’t tell. It was frustrating. It made him ache in fresh ways to not be able to soothe those tears.

Her health concerned him. She was carrying her pregnancy well, but he could hear small blips and dislocated beats in her body that he didn’t like. He would ask Carlisle about the strange melody of her heart, and the baby’s. They didn’t seem. . . right, to him.

He’d resumed his silent surveillance after Alice had called him. She’d been able to see Bella again, in more than fits and starts, and what she saw had rattled her enough that they’d both come back.

But only Edward had stayed.

Edward’s concern for the baby prompts him to call Carlisle back to Forks!

“We have no place here Edward-none-we left.” Carlisle said, his voice cold.

“We didn’t know what we were leaving,” Edward said, “I was wrong, I know, but—we can’t leave her now, not until Victoria is dealt with.”

“You seemed content to leave her with Jacob. What’s wrong with the rest of the wolves?” Carlisle asked “Hmm? You know, as well as I do that this has nothing to do with Victoria, and everything to do with your feelings. Don’t do me the disservice of lying, after what you asked me to do today.”

Edward glowered. Content was not the word he’d use. Far from it.

“I was wrong to leave,” he said, “we’ve all known that since. . . ” he couldn’t quite finish the statement.

“Yes,” Carlisle said. “We have.”

“It’s different now,” Edward said, “Jacob’s gone—”

“Exactly,” Carlisle said, “and do you think she would really welcome your presence, after what you heard today?” He gestured towards the hospital.

“She won’t need to,” Edward hissed at him. “I won’t intrude. I just mean to see her safe.”

“In her bedroom?” Carlisle challenged him.

Edward looked down. “And you would have me leave her helpless and alone?”

“There were wolves watching her, Edward. You know that.”

There were, but not close enough. Not to his satisfaction. And now that he was back, they’d retreated to their own territory.

“I will keep her safe, until we’ve dealt with Victoria,” Edward said again.

Carlisle could see that he wouldn’t be swayed, so he pulled out his only card. “Then,” he sighed, “we should all be here. To deal with this. So you can at least be in the open. To maintain our appearances.”

Edward looked at him, horrified. “I promised her,” he said, “no, we can’t do that!”

“Then,” Carlisle said, “leave, and let the wolves deal with this. She is the mother to one of their children, Edward. They will keep her safe.”

But he couldn’t. He literally couldn’t leave. It felt like something was slicing up, and inside him, simply to consider it. He sucked in a breath, and then pushed it out again with the words, “Fine, we’ll settle here again, then.”

“You heard what she said,” Carlisle said, lifting his chin towards the building.

Edward nodded.

“This will not make her happy,” Carlisle went on.

Edward nodded again. “But it will keep her safe.” And right now, that would be enough.

Lemme just say that Vampward with a baby is too stinkin’ cute for words!

~oOo~https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8788207/1/I-See-Dead-People

Bella Swan comes to Forks with something a little… extra. What will she do when she realizes that it’s not just a group of ridiculously attractive teenagers she’s going to High School with, but ones that have a little something ‘extra’ too? Her life has already changed once, is she ready for three of them to change it again? And are they ready for her?

Rated: Fiction T – English – Romance/Humor – Bella, Jasper – Chapters: 28 – Words: 148,594 – Reviews: 1,247 – Favs: 1,765 – Follows: 997 – Updated: Apr 2, 2014 – Published: Dec 12, 2012 – Status: Complete – id: 8788207

Normally, I’m a die-hard Edward / Bella shipper! However, if you’re open to a truly unique experience, you’ll enjoy I See Dead People! Bella’s dead great-gran has to be one of the most lovable original characters since Kevin in Deb’s Angel Series and that’s sayin’ somethin’ LOL!

Bella still hadn’t figure out exactly why she could see Nan, and only Nan. (If it truly was an extrasensory gift, then it only applied to her, something she was extremely grateful for, even more so when her mother moved them into a house across the road from a graveyard.)

She had asked her once, but Nan appeared to be as uninformed as her. Either that or she was deliberately being vague in a ‘I can’t share the secrets of the universe’ kind of way. All she had said was that she was there to look out for her.

“Consider me your own personal guardian angel,” she had said with a smile.

Durin’ lunch on Bella’s first day at Forks High School…

“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

Bella squinted. Now that she looked harder, she realized how unnaturally pale they all were and how they were dressed rather. . .light for strolling around outside in January. Sure, she probably wasn’t one to judge (Hello! Sitting outside in the cold) but she had a thick, wool jacket on. And why were they entering the cafeteria from the outside anyways? Where were they coming from? They also appeared to share the same golden eyes.

But she had a feeling that none of those things were what Nan was referring too. No, she was undoubtedly talking about the almost indiscernible shimmery silver glow that encased all six members.

She turned to Nan, seeing the same, slightly brighter glow. Depends. What exactly are you seeing?

“Death.”

Wow. Melodramatic much? The group had finally reached the cafeteria doors and Bella watched as a younger red-haired girl who had just exited stepped back in awe and managed to catch a brief glimpse of the back of the fifth member as they entered. Despite the length of the golden hair, the slight swagger to their walk and the leanness of their frame made her absolutely certain it was a he. She admired the flex of his shoulders under the dark green fabric (‘my favorite color’ she noted absently) and the way the faded blue jeans he wore hugged his. . . *ahem* hips. She wondered if the front looked as good as the back.

I’m pretty sure they’re not ghosts. That girl there is obviously seeing them. Said girl wavered on her feet. She looks like she’s going to swoon actually.

“I didn’t say they were ghosts, Chime.”

So what? Some mad scientist injected a bunch of teenage corpses with some experimental serum and they came back all ‘re-animator’ style? She chuckled. Or better yet, maybe they’re all. . . she trailed off. Oh god, they’re vampires, aren’t they? She groaned and began thumping her head against the tree.

Best. First. Day. Ever.

~oOo~

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7617777/1/Proud-Fictionista-Witfit-Prompts-Winter-2011-2012

Based on Fictionista Workshop’s Witfit prompts. There’s nothing quite like a man who works with his hands for a living. AH, OOC.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Romance/Drama – Edward, Bella – Chapters: 68 – Words: 109,910 – Reviews: 5,344 – Favs: 1,483 – Follows: 1,134 – Updated: Mar 26, 2012 – Published: Dec 8, 2011– Status: Complete – id: 7617777

Don’t let the long damn title put you off readin’ one of the best Bluecollarward’s I’ve come across in a while!

Times are tough and McCarty Custom Cabinetry isn’t immune to the bad economy, despite a spate of rich clients with homes along the North Shore of Long Island, New York.

I unload my saws and buckets of tools into the garage attached to the office before heading inside to look for Emmett.

“I have another job for you,” he says from behind his desk. I’m sitting across from him, breathing a sigh of relief that I won’t be unemployed. “Remember the site survey I went on a few weeks ago out in Old Brookville?”

I nod. “The kitchen renovation with the possible wine cellar?”

“That’s the one. We got the call yesterday. I have some of the materials on order and we should be able to start on the kitchen next week. They’re not sure about the rest yet.”

“Okay. Do you have plans for me to look at?”

“Just preliminary so far. In the meantime, can you have the DiSanto job wrapped up by the end of the week?”

“Yeah, there are just a few punch list items left.”

“Good. This job should take a while. The kitchen is enormous and the client is a bored housewife with very specific tastes. There’s a custom spice rack and some special cabinets she wants. She didn’t really give me time to measure properly so you’ll need to finalize the plans as part of the job.”

I sigh and run a hand through my hair. Bored housewives are the worst people to work for; they tend to look to me to alleviate that boredom. Early on, I would happily answer their questions and engage them in conversation about what I was doing. But I quickly learned lonely housewives didn’t really care about what I was doing so much as they were interested in what they thought I could do for them. I dreaded getting propositioned on a job, but it happened often enough that Emmett and I had a procedure in place when it did.

“How worried do I need to be?” I ask him warily.

“I think you’ll be fine, Edward. She’s young, but not particularly friendly. She should leave you alone.”

“Okay, good.” I’m relieved. He’s usually good at reading who I do and don’t have to worry about. It’s not as if I’m not tempted on occasion, but this is my job and I need it more than I need a quick roll in the hay with some rich guy’s wife. Besides, I respect Emmett way too much to ever put his business in jeopardy.

~oOo~https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12847635/1/Bat-Zoned

Friend zone, dead zone, twilight or bat zone? It’s not a multiple choice question. It isn’t a choice at all.

Rated: Fiction M – English – Supernatural – Bella, Edward – Words: 6,400 – Reviews: 43 – Favs: 57 – Follows: 52 – Published: Feb 23 – Status: Complete – id: 12847635

BONUS ONE SHOT YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS!

He had been at the sanctuary for a nearly a year when she first arrived, dragged in by her friend in an effort to prove that bats were not the scary creatures horror movies made them out to be. 

She was not particularly keen on any of the bats her friend had shown her, at least not until she saw him. He was a magnificent specimen – a Malaysian flying fox (Pteropus vampyrus) with bronze-brown fur and velvety black skin on his folded wings – and the moment she set eyes on him, she was captivated.

She stared at him, caught in his adorable round-eyed gaze, not even noticing that he had slowly stretched his wings out until they reached their full six-foot span. She gasped, her eyes widening at his display, but when she spied the other blatant sign of his prowess, her heart rate increased and she became a little breathless.

She signed up that day to volunteer.

To say there’s more to this magnificent specimen than meets the eye is an understatement *wink!*

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So, which fics are you dyin’ to rec to your friends?

Happy Thursday, y’all!

Rita