heavens calling | carlisle cullen

08

Carlisle looks at her as she says the word. "Vampire..." Wren whispers.

Carlisle sighs gently. "And now you know..."

It is silent for a long moment as Carlisle stares at the floor and Wren stares at him. Neither speak, neither breathe; one luckily doesn't need to breathe, but the other does - she quickly gasps in a small breath and turns away, leaning on the trunk of the car for support as she suddenly feels faint.

"Are you-" Carlisle begins to ask, about to reach out to hold her steady.

Wren holds a finger up silently and he nods once, stepping back. He watches her take small breaths for a moment. "Let's go somewhere warm, dry. My pla- okay, no then. A coffee shop?" He asks as she turns her shaking head to nod once.

He quietly opens the passenger door for her and she climbs in, avoiding him as much as she can - he hides his pain as best he can as she does. He drives to the 24hr diner round the corner from the hospital and follows Wren as she silently walks inside, sliding into a booth far from the few other people in there at 5 am.

"Good morning, what can I get for ya'll?" The perky, middle-aged woman asks.

"Two black coffees." Carlisle says, forcing a smile.

"Coming right up!"

Wren waits for the woman to go before she speaks. "How much of that book is true?" She demands.

Carlisle folds his hands on the table, talking in a calm voice. "I don't know - I have no idea what my children wrote in there, but since Edward has the... ability, I guess you could say, to hear my thoughts, I would assume most of it is accurate."

"You were born in the 1600s?" 

He nods. "1640, I believe. I was changed in 1663 in my early 20s."

Wren exhales slowly. "You're like, 400?"

He smiles gently. "372 years old."

Wren takes a moment to digest that as the woman brings their coffees; she finally leaves and Wren speaks. "Your father was a pastor?" He nods. "So you're religious?"

"Yes and no. My faith comes and goes at times... right now? I'm feeling a little separate from my faith, I'm questioning how a god could be so unkind to me... But other times, I rely on my faith to guide me." He says gently.

Wren frowns. "What has made you lose your faith now? is it... me?"

Carlisle gives a small chuckle as he shakes his head and watches her. "No, well I mean - how do i explain this? Well, I guess I lost it again a few years ago. My children have all found their footing-"

"Are they actually yours...?"

Carlisle laughs as Wren blushes. "No, not at all. I changed Edward, Rose and Emmett. Alice and Jasper came to our family a few decades after. I can explain more later." Wren nods small. "Well, I lost my faith when Edward found his life companion; all my children have settled down and I'm nearing 400 without any success. I like to think I have lived the best life I could with the cards I have so... so why has God treated me this way?"

Wren is quiet for a moment; Carlisle watches her, noticing the way her face softens ever so slightly. "You've never met anyone?"

He smiles gently. "Not until now, no... There was one, a woman I knew almost 100 years ago but... she didn't survive the transition. We never got a chance."

"Until now...? Me?" She asks, surprised.

He nods small again. "Yes, love - you."

Wren exhales slowly and sits back, leaning her head on the bench behind her. What does this mean? She swallow hard and asks that out loud. "What does... What does all this mean?" She whispers, holding the hot mug in her palms, looking down at the table now.