You Can Run

One

" Good Afternoon, Miss Swan," the blonde , extremely pale and attractive Doctor Cullen greeted as the brunette girl walked into his office for her daily brain picking session with him.

" Estella. Or just Stella or Stell," the girl corrected automatically.

The Doctor nodded. " Estella," he amended, smiling slightly.

The girl only looked at him as she sat down in her usual chair in the corner of the room where there was a couch and two armchairs for these sessions.

Doctor Cullen was a man with many degrees behind his name and as such he was recommended by Doctor Gerandy the Swans' house doctor when it was decided that Estella should get therapy for the traumatic experience she'd had on a tour with her friends a few months ago.

Estella had been 'Kidnapped' by 'Human Traffickers' with her friends while visiting Volterra in Tuscany , Italy as part of of the tour.

Estella had always loved fairytales and horror stories. To her they were just make believe until that fateful day she'd found herself surrounded by raging bloodsucking demons.

She survived simply because she was 'mated' to three men. Her friends Marina and Darius didn't make it out alive. They had been sucked dry of their life giving liquid.

She still don't know how she even managed to escape the castle after three months of being locked up. It had been a miracle , truly when she found herself sitting in the American Embassy in Rome a few days later after constantly being on the run and fearing that the tracker would track her down and take her back to Volterra.

"How are you feeling today? Did you get any nightmares?"

She folded her hands on her lap and silently looked at the floor.

She did get nightmares at night when her room was dark and shadows seemed to crawl from every corner , caging her in. She'd taken to sleeping with a nightlight on. Or go and crawl into her Dad's bed.

She heard the Doctor sigh and looked up, her brown eyes scanning his face. He didn't look irritated or annoyed. Doctor Cullen always seemed to be patient with her. It was remarkable, considering many people always found her silent treatment annoying.

" My sister has come to stay," she finally said , almost to the end of the session. " We're twins. Identical. Dad says we're two peas in a pod, but we're not ,even if we're identical."

" Ah, ok, tell me how you feel about her living with you and your Dad?"

He was humoring her . She knew that, but she didn't mind it much.

" Good, I guess. I saw her three months ago before my Mom send me here to live with my Dad. I missed her. We have never been apart before I went on that tour. She's the other half of my whole."

Doctor Cullen nodded, writing down something on a piece of paper stuck to a clipboard that he held on his knee.

" How's school been going?"

She shrugged. " Fine , I guess. "

" Okay. Well, Estella, our session is over . See you again on Wednesday. Don't be late." He stood up , giving her no choice but to do the same. " I'll walk you out. My shift is over anyway."

She didn't respond as she walked out of the office and down the hallway that smelled strongly of antiseptics. Goodness, she hated hospitals. She'd been stuck in one for a week when she got back from Italy. She'd been malnourished and whatnot and needed medical care.

They walked to the front reception area where her Dad and sister sat waiting for her.

Bella, her sister, immediately walked over to take her hand. The feel of her twin's hand was something solid, grounding. It made her feel alive.

Doctor Cullen and their Dad stepped aside for a bit to talk about her progress. By the way her Dad's face fell, whatever Doctor Cullen said wasn't good.

She felt a squeeze on her hand and looked at her sister who gave her a small reassuring smile. She tried to smile back , but....she failed miserably.

Their Dad rejoined them and they walked out of the hospital in silence.

" We'll go to the Diner for dinner," their Dad said once they were seated inside his Police cruiser.

Estella's Dad are the Chief of Police in Forks and the surrounding area. He worked long hours and she was left on her own most days until he came home.
Now that Bella was there she won't be so alone anymore.

She sat in the backseat, her sister sitting beside her. Bella didn't like sitting in the back , but she didn't like leaving her sister's side either. So she compromised by sitting with Estella.

The three Swans didn't talk much as they ate dinner, Estella forcing the food into her mouth because her Dad won't leave her alone otherwise. The food tasted bland and unappetizing.

A hand nudged her free hand and she looked up to see that it was Bella; offering her silent support.
She let her sister's fingers entwine with hers. She needed that comfort.

She swallowed down a mouthful of the salad she had ordered, not feeling particular hungry for meat.

After dinner the trio left the Diner and Estella was actually glad to leave the crowded place, wanting the comfort of her room. A room she shared with Bella now like when they were little.

Their Dad had bought a bunk bed that held a single bed on top and a double on the lower part.

Bella slept on the double bed and Estella, when feeling up to it , slept on the single bed.
Now with Bella there, she didn't need to crawl into her Dad's bed at night anymore. Bella was a better substitute for keeping the fear at bay.

At home the twins went off to their room to catch up on homework and then get ready for bed while Charlie, their Dad, watched some TV.

Estella wasn't much for watching TV. She'd rather read a good book or play games on the computer in her room. She can play The Sims for hours on end without getting bored.

" Hey ,Stell....," Bella began hesitantly once they were settling down for the night, lying next to each other in their matching pajamas of dark blue tank tops and cotton shorts.

" Hmm?" She turned on her side to peer at the identical face of her twin.

"Do you know Edward Cullen?"

Estella lifted an eyebrow, wondering why Bella wanted to know about Edward Cullen, the boy who was very rude and treated everyone with an air of superiority.

" Yeah, I sit beside him in Math class. He's quite rude."

Bella frowned lightly. " Yeah, he acted strange today when I sat beside him in Biology. It was as if I smelled bad to him or something."

It was Estella's turn to frown. " That boy's an...." She didn't finish because she didn't like to swear. Her Dad will have her hide anyway.

" Yeah... I plan on confronting him tomorrow. "

Estella just stared at her at that admission. She'd rather not confront that boy. On her first Math class he acted the same way, but since then he'd mellowed down a bit.
He just doesn't speak to her in class, though. It wasn't something she particular cared about.

" We should sleep," she said.

Bella nodded and turned her back towards her, reaching out to switch off the bed lamp, plunging the room into darkness. Estella was ready to switch on the nightlight.

She still didn't like the darkness. The shadows might just come alive and carry her away.

" Night, Bella," she whispered.

" Night ,Stell. Sweet dreams ."

Estella didn't correct her twin on the fact that she will most certainly not have sweet dreams. No, the nightmare train was all she will be boarding tonight.
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I rewrote the story because I wasn't satisfied with the first chapters.