Chapter 7

Bella drops her suitcase and practically rushes into my arms, and I reciprocate her hug gently, saying, "Hey, Bell."

Bella speaks in a tearful tone, "I missed you so much, I'm so sorry I didn't come earlier, I wanted to be here when you woke up and..." Her voice trails off as she mentions my parents, and she buries her head deeper, and I feel my shirt getting damp from her tears.

According to Uncle Charlie, Bella's mom "forgot" to inform her about my parents' accident. They were Bella's godparents, and my mom always treated her like her own daughter, loving to take both Bella and me out.

I say, "It's okay, Bell, I understand." I gently pull her back a bit, wiping her tears with my sleeves, and say, "Don't cry here, there are a lot of people around. They might mistake us siblings for something strange, like a couple reuniting."

She playfully punches me and looks around for something, saying, "Don't say that kind of nonsense. Anyone can see that we're siblings."

I point to my eyes and say, "My eyes, my hair, everything about me. We don't have any physical resemblance except for our skin color." Then I responded, noticing who she was looking for, "Uncle Charlie had a work issue and won't be able to come. It'll just be the two of us and Sirius for the whole trip."

She nods and her eyes light up as she notices the bear-like dog looking at us. She crouches down to hug him and exclaims, "Oh my God! He's grown so much, he was so small the last time I saw him!"

I chuckle at Sirius's panicked expression as he seeks refuge from Bella's hands, which were now ruffling through his fur, messing it up entirely.

Bella looks a lot like my mother, really, the only difference is the hair color and the eyes, the rest is almost identical, all the Swans look a bit alike.

So it's no surprise that Sirius doesn't resist her touch. Even though he also came from a different reality like me, he's merged with the memories of this reality's Sirius, so he remembers the little girl who loved to mess with him when he was just a puppy.

The last time Bella came to my house was when she was around 12 years old, and yes, she came to my house, for a whole month.

I pick up the suitcase she had dropped and put it in the trunk on top of mine. Then I say, "Sirius, get in the back seat." He listens to me and escapes from Bella's clutches. She stands up, looking at me as if I stole her teddy bear.

I point to one of the thermos bottles in the car and say, "I bought some tea with milk for you, so get in the car and let's go." I push her into the car and then walk around to get into the driver's seat.

When I get in the car, I see her eyes light up as she sips her favorite drink. She asks, "Do you still remember this?"

I reply, "Bella, you told me this last year. I'd have terrible memory if I didn't remember." We used to be in constant contact, but this year it's loosened a bit due to her mom taking away her phone and leaving her with just a device to listen to music...

She says, "Oh, right, I forgot my brother has a good memory."

I playfully tap her head and say, "Unlike you, it seems like the good genes from the Swan family only went to my mom and me, and you only got a little bit of the beauty."

She gives me a dry look and mutters, "I'm very pretty, okay!" Then she adds, "A lot of boys used to ask for my number at school."

I look at her teasingly and say, "Knowing you the way I do, your dark and solitary demeanor probably scared many of them away. You spend the whole day buried in fiction books, which gives you an aura of 'don't disturb me, I'm reading.'"

She pouts cutely and retorts, "You're a terrible brother. You shouldn't talk about your sister like that, especially when she just returned home."

I ruffle her hair and begin to accelerate the car towards Forks. Yes, we call each other brother and sister. We grew up that way, and in my memories, I recall Bella saying, "Since Aunt is my godmother and Uncle is my godfather, that makes us siblings, and my dad and Aunt are siblings, so it makes even more sense." After that, the status of "cousins" changed to "siblings."

I can only feel relieved that we didn't continue with the emotional part. This time has already been... very strange, and I don't want to cry in front of people. In my past life, that would have been easy. I became good at faking emotions and various other things to the point where it became muscle memory, and I didn't even have to force it. I simply did it, but there was always the same emptiness inside.

But now? I don't have that anymore. All these emotions are too overwhelming for me, and any influence that could shake my emotional state simply presses the button and BOOOOMMMM it explodes. I did shed a few tears when I passed by the photos on the wall or when I was organizing things and found photo albums...

I return my attention to the road and hear Bella say, "After we arrive, we can drop my bag off at Charlie's house and then go to yours, okay? I'll help you with everything first." I nod in agreement and reply, "And then we'll come back to yours and wait for Uncle Charlie. I'm sure he'll want to take us to that place," I say with a nostalgic smile.

She nods and smiles a little at the memory, "I remember when we all used to go there as kids. It was so much fun, and Grandpa loved that place."

I continue: "And that's why Uncle Charlie loves that place too. It's the place that Grandma liked because of the memorable proposal there. It's where Grandpa asked her to marry him."

Bella smiles, probably reminiscing the hundreds of times our grandparents told us about the day of their engagement. Even though Grandma used to say that as the most beautiful woman in town, she deserved a more... thrilling place for a proposal than a café. But everyone knew she was just teasing, as she always got emotional when recalling those moments, and she was the one who eagerly talked about that day with joy.

With a nostalgic atmosphere, we arrive at Uncle Charlie's house. It's a normal family home with a white color and simple architecture—just kidding; it's quite a regular house.

As we approach the stairs leading to the entrance, Bella says, "I don't know how I feel coming here after so long."

Messing up her hair, I say, "Your expression makes you look like you're about to enter a battlefield, and the reason you think that way isn't even here yet." I take her bag and start climbing the stairs.

She lets out a heavy sigh and says, "What do you expect? I haven't seen her or lived with Charlie for a long time, it's a bit..." I interrupt her as we step inside the house.

I look at her seriously and say, "Bell, I ignored it earlier when you called him 'Charlie,' and I know you're uncomfortable, insecure, and apprehensive. I know Uncle Charlie well, and I know that he must be feeling the same way, but I also know that his biggest emotion right now is happiness for finally spending time with his daughter again.

I know it might be difficult, but can you do it for me? uncle Charlie just lost his sister, and I lost my parents... I only have you two now, and it's really hard for me. I can imagine it's hard for him too, especially because he's trying to stay strong in front of me since I woke up. But I remember hearing him crying one of the nights he stayed with me after waking up."

I sigh as I finish speaking, and Bella starts to cry. I hug Bella when I see her eyes welling up and hold her close, holding back my tears.

She says, "I'm sorry," between sobs.

I say, "Don't feel bad, okay? I just want you not to be too hard on him. He's already going to be overwhelmed trying to be a good father, and if he could, he'd keep both you and me in Forks, watching over us like hawks, protecting us so he doesn't lose anyone else."

She pulls away and starts rubbing her eyes, saying, "I... I will try, I'll try to be warmer even though..."

I interrupt her with a light flick on her forehead, and she covers it, looking at me like a hurt rabbit. I continue where she left off, "Even though both of you are incredibly introverted and don't know how to deal with this kind of family emotion? I know, you're the same in that."

Just as she was about to respond, we hear a siren in front of the house, serving as a substitute for a regular horn. I start pulling Bella out of the house as I say, "Looks like he's here. I thought it would take longer."

Bella nods in agreement with me.

When we step outside, we see Uncle Charlie getting out of the car after parking it. He walks towards us and speaks in his typical Uncle Charlie manner, "Hey, daughter, it's been a long time." He seems like he wants to go for a hug but doesn't quite know how to initiate it.

And Bella is the same way, she scratches her arm a bit as she replies, "Hi... Dad, it's been a while."

I roll my eyes at this interaction and push Bella towards him, saying, "For the love of God, just hug already. It's not that hard to show a little family affection, okay!"

They initially hug awkwardly, while giving me angry looks, but soon Charlie embraces Bella tightly and says with a slightly choked voice, "I missed you so much, daughter."

Bella reciprocates a bit hesitantly and says, "I missed you too... Dad."

Seeing the two of them finally reunited after such a long time, and Charlie releasing some of the burden that weighed on his shoulders lately, I smile at them.

Afterward, we enter the house, and I take Bella's things upstairs. We inform Charlie that we'll be arranging my stuff and then return to his house. I leave Sirius with him since we'll only be storing my belongings and coming back.

I thought it was close because my father always said the distance was around 700-900 meters... but it's a bit farther and deeper into the forest.

When we arrive at the house, I can't help but let out a nostalgic sigh. It's a large house filled with cherished memories.

Bella says, "This house is still as beautiful as I remember." Her eyes reflected the same nostalgia.

And I add, "And big."

(Insert image of the house here, and I'll also put it in the comments.)

After unpacking the luggage and placing it in my already spacious room, which my grandparents loved to build, Bella speaks with a hint of envy as she explores the house, "Why didn't I come to live with you? It's so big here, it will surely leave you feeling a bit lonely."

I ponder this for a moment, realizing the truth in her words, and reply, "Why don't we agree that you can come here sometimes? Uncle Charlie can come too, I know he'll enjoy spending time together."

She nods in agreement and says, "Then I'll sleep here tomorrow!" She walks out and goes into the room next to mine, which is hers.

I follow her and find a room that doesn't quite match the current Isabella, with princess-themed decor.

I give her a teasing smile and say, "I forgot how my little Bella used to love this kind of thing before becoming the current dark and solitary style."

She shoots me a playful glare and pouts, "It's a bit much... but I like it this way, and it's not as strong as you make it sound! There are just a few collectible dolls and a dollhouse..." She points to a large toy house.

And she's right, it's not that much, but compared to the current Bella? It's quite different.

I was about to respond to Jake when I feel my pocket vibrate, and when I check, it was a message from Uncle Charlie saying that Bella gift has arrived.

I tell her, "Let's go, Uncle Charlie is calling us. He said we're going to dine out."

She nods, and we head out.

Upon arriving, we see a large, old stove... an old pickup truck. I know it might offend some people if I say it's very old, but it truly is. The paint is in bad shape, making it look aged. If it were in better condition, it would be a beauty! I'm a lover of vintage cars, so believe me when I say it would be a beautiful car.

I step out and greet Billy and Jacob, "Hey Jake, old Billy, it's been a long time since I've seen you guys." I'm met with an enthusiastic hug from the excited Black boy.

Jake says, "Man, it's been so long! Feels like it's been years since I last saw you, and it's only been about 5 months? Something like that." He pauses for a moment and looks at me seriously, saying, "I'm sorry about what happened. You can count on me for anything you need." I squeeze his shoulder appreciatively and then turn to look at Billy.

Billy: "I echo Jake's words. You'll always have a family in me, kid." He speaks warmly and continues, "If I could, I'd get up to give you a hug too."

We all chuckle at that, and their attention turns to Bella, who's examining the pickup.

Billy: "Look at that, the little girl has grown up and become a young lady."

Bella crosses her arms in front of her body, feeling a bit embarrassed, and says, "Thank you. You look good too."

Billy teasingly looks at Charlie and says, "Your dad couldn't stop talking about you moving to Forks, did you know that?"

Charlie blushes a little and glances at his friend, saying, "You may be in a wheelchair, but I can still beat you up, you know?"

Billy laughs heartily, and we all join in.

Jake greets Bella, "Hi, I'm Jacob. I guess you don't remember me? I used to play with you and Damian when we were kids."

I interject when I notice Bella getting a little uncomfortable at that, "The same guy who used to eat sand and pretend to be a dog? I'm sure she remembers that. It's impossible to forget such things."

This prompts Jacob to chase after me, and everyone present bursts into laughter.

After a while, the two of them head home, not wanting to intrude on the family's reunion day.

And I point to Bella's new car, which she already knows is hers, and say, "No way am I letting you drive this for too long. Every day when you come home from school, I'll work on it and turn this car into a beauty, just what this old lady deserves." I pat the car.

Bella asks with a bit of doubt, "Are you sure? I don't think you can do that."

Uncle Charlie chimes in, "It's okay, Bella. Damian learned a lot from his dad and grandpa, or did you forget he took part in the restoration of the Charger?" He points to my car.

I continue, "He's not the only car enthusiast. I also took part in improving Grandpa's Gran Torino." I say with a smile, thinking about that car... very green for my taste, but I like it.

Bella seems to recall that and sighs, agreeing with it, but then asks in confusion, "Where is the Gran Torino?"

I look at Uncle Charlie, and he answers, "It's in the garage. Didn't you guys open it? Your motorcycle and the Land Rover are also there, Damian." He looks at me.

[pictures of the cars here, and also in the comments..]

I shake my head, "We didn't open the garage, we just brought our stuff inside."

Charlie seems to remember something and says excitedly, "Since it's dinnertime, let's go straight to the Carver Café!"

Looking at Bella knowingly, she smiles back at me, as we had already talked about this place being where he'd take us.

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may have some wrong words, so thank you if you let me know, I use 2 correctors... and sometimes out of nowhere it puts Spanish words in the middle :V

I don't care much, since it's free.

Good Morning, Good Afternoon, and Good Evening, depending on the time you are reading this ^^