The Dead of Night

Chapter Three

Chapter Three: The Arrivals

“BELLA! BELLA! WHAT’S WRONG? BELLA ANSWER ME!”

Reality was harsh in the morning. I was awoken by Charlie’s shouting and vigorous shaking. Then I heard the screaming. I had heard it in my dreams, and now, it echoed in my brain. It took me a couple of seconds to realize that the screaming was coming from me. Once I realized it, I shut my mouth with my hands. Charlie leaned back on my bed and stared at me shocked and bewildered. I could feel the warm tears streaming from my cheeks, and my bed was shaking like there was an earthquake. It was me, trembling.

“Bella, are you all right?” Charlie asked, inspecting me to see if I had been hurt. I stared back at him, afraid to move my hands. What happened? I could barely remember the dream that had shocked and terrified me. I could only remember the screaming. The dream had been filled with terrible, loud and painful screams. Sensing Charlie’s growing suspicion, I threw my hands up.

“Sorry, Dad.” I was surprised at the decibel my voice reached. “I—I was having a really bad nightmare.” I stared into the darkness of my room and attempted to steady my breathing. The memory of my dream pushed into my mind. I remembered the beauty of his skin, the color of his eyes, and the gloriousness of his voice. He had always seemed too surreal. That’s when it hit, a painful blow direct from the hole where my heard had once been. I grabbed my chest, not thinking, and hunched over in pain, gasping for air. My cover was blown.

“Bella? Are you hurt?” Charlie grabbed at my shoulders. “Do you want me to take you to the hospital?” He seemed overly concerned. I guess I wasn’t really surprised, especially since … everything.

“No, Dad. I think I’m okay,” I said in between my heavy breaths. “I think I have a stomach ache or something.” I was always a terrible liar, everyone and their mother knew it. I glanced up sheepishly and met Charlie’s wary stare. I had to think of something to say, fast, or I was going to Forks Hospital. “Dad, you know if we go to the hospital, you’ll have to talk to Dr. Gerandy.” I knew that would work. Charlie had been avoiding Dr. Gerandy since he had come to examine me after they had found me. Renee told me they had gotten into a disagreement, and Charlie had been too reluctant to seek him out. He felt really bad about it, but was too prideful to change his mind. I could tell that fighting with an old friend was really bothering me.

“That’s not the point,” Charlie said, attempting to take control. “If you’re not feeling well, then I really want to have you looked at. I don’t want to wait and see if it gets worse.” He was genuinely concerned, but I was not about to let him drag me to the hospital.

“Yeah right, Dad. You just want them to think I’m crazy so they’ll lock me up!” I said in a sarcastic tone. My attempt at humor failed. Charlie looked like I had said the worst thing in the world to him. His lips pulled back to a grimace, his eyes widened, and he gasped slightly. Charlie Swan’s face was horrified. He reacted like I had said I hated him. Seeing my error, I rolled my eyes and said, “Dad … kissing,” but my tone proved otherwise.

Charlie glanced at the floor and then rose off the bed. “Well, you seem like you’re okay now,” he said, not looking at me. “You should try and get some more sleep.”

I glanced at the clock; it was 6:15 am. “I think I’ll just get up,” I said, more to myself than him. “I don’t think I could fall asleep again. Do you want breakfast?” I turned around and he was gone. I heaved a sigh. I wish I could make him understand. I immediately shook my head. Understanding would require talking about it, and I was not interested. I stood for a moment, wondering what to do next.

Well, homework always holds my attention. I picked up  my backpack and unzipped it. I almost cursed aloud. I had forgotten my math book in my locker at school. The one subject that can take my mind off everything. I continued to kick myself until I had a strange inclination. I wasn’t sure what compelled me to look for my scinence book, but I did. I picked up the book and opened the front cover. There, sitting between the binding and the first page, was what appeared to be a note. It was written on clean paper. I opened it, and my mouth dropped open.