Mine 8

“Good morning did you sleep alright?”Rosalie asked Bella when the human exited the bathroom freshly showered wearing designer jeans and a designer sweater. Bella’s feet were clad in thick comfortable looking socks. This was the first time Rosalie had seen Bella not in work clothes or dressed up and she thought her mate look adorable. Rosalie was fighting the urge to take Bella in her arms and snuggle her close. Rosalie had also fought the urge to join Bella in bed and hold her while she slept. To Rosalie’s amusement she discovered that Bella talked in her sleep. She spoke nothing but nonsense but Rosalie hung on her every word. It had Rosalie looking forward to nights spent listening to Bella talking in her sleep in the future. Rosalie was hoping Bella would say her name one of those nights.

“I slept good which I credit to the pain pills the doctor gave me because yesterday was a crazy day and I likely wouldn’t have been able to sleep without the help.”Bella made her way into the kitchen and pulled out everything she needed to make a bowl of cereal. She set it up on the table and took a seat.

Rosalie moved from the couch to the seat across from Bella.”I agree yesterday was a crazy day even for me and I’m not human.”

“Any updates about Edward?”Bella wanted to know what he was up to.

“I have been texting with my family and Tanya’s family all night. He and Carlisle locked themselves in Carlisle’s office after they were released. They stayed there for three hours before both of them left. Carlisle in a car and Edward on foot. They were each followed while they were gone. Carlisle went to the hospital and Irina saw him in his office going over the personal information that you gave when you were admitted. She didn’t confront him she listened while he talked to Edward on the phone. Apparently they were trying to find out who your emergency contact was so they could use them to get me away from you.”Rosalie had not been pleased with that plan.

Bella chuckled.”To bad for them I don’t have an emergency contact or any people they can use against me.”

“Although I am saddened you don’t have any personal relationships it works in our favor this time.”Rosalie didn’t like that her mate was so alone.

“What happened after Carlisle hit a dead end?”Bella took a bite of her cereal and looked at the ingredients on the box. It was a new kind she was trying and she wasn’t sure if she liked it.

“He went back home to continue searching for information about you on the internet. My brother Emmett broke into Carlisle and Edward’s computers to find out what they were doing. From what he said the pair didn’t find anything other than the stuff we found. That being something that is frustrating both of them.”Rosalie was glad that Bella changed her name because Edward and Carlisle wouldn’t find any personal information about her.

“They will find absolutely no links between Bella Swan and Cynthia Cooper. I did my name change in Alaska so no one would see the notice that had to be posted in the paper legally. Plus I have a drastically different job now.”Bella knew the pair weren’t finding out anything about her past.

“That was smart.”Rosalie wouldn’t have thought to go to Alaska to cover her tracks.

“Well I’m kind of known for my intelligence.”Bella joked.

Rosalie smiled at the teasing. It seemed that Bella was becoming more comfortable around her.”That you are.”

“So did all Carlisle do is go home and go back to his office?”Bella asked.

“Yes and he stayed there until his shift at the hospital started.”Rosalie had been surprised Carlisle didn’t skip work.

“What was Edward doing this whole time?”Bella knew he wasn’t being idle.

“Edward was trying to break into your building. He got the location from the tracker on my car and spent four hours trying to get access to the elevator. Kate and my brother Jasper watched him the whole time. He didn’t even come close to getting in. Which is likely because he is shit with technology. I think the only way for him to get access is to steal someone’s access card or have someone else hold the door open for him.”Rosalie had really thought that Edward had enough skill to break into the elevator.

“That’s one more reason he can’t be my link. I could never live with someone who was shit with technology.”Bella would go insane if she lived with someone who couldn’t understand how her inventions work.

“I’m not as good as you with technology but I can hold my own.”Rosalie liked when Bella would tell her reasons that Edward couldn’t be her mate.

“You have the willingness to learn. If Edward is as old as you and is still shit with technology that means he has purposely chosen not to grow and adapt with the times. I could never be with someone who refuses to grow and adapt to the world around them.”Bella told her.

“He is stuck in the past. He loves music but won’t listen to any that was made after he became like me. He won’t read books that are from after either. It’s like he stopped living when he was changed. Which is rather common of people like me. They can’t move on from the life that had before. For Edward though his attitude is that the world was perfect when he was human and it should have never changed. That being because he believes that women should have no rights and obey their husbands. He is against homosexually and thinks that no-one should have sex before they are married. It’s like you said he refuses to grow and adapt because in the modern world he is nothing special.”Rosalie knew that was what Edward’s problem was. He didn’t have a place in the modern world so he clung on to his human life.

“It seems Edward has no power so he tries to use what he claims are his values to gain control over others.”Bella said.

“He does exactly that.”Rosalie saw Edward try to control everyone he met.

“His views being just another reason to add to the list of why I am not his mate. I would never bow down to a man. Even when I was a preteen working at NASA I didn’t put up with men talking down to me. I also didn’t put up with women trying to mother me. There is no way that I would put up with Edward trying to make decisions for me about how I lived my life.”Bella would never let someone control her ever again.

“The first thing he would do as your link would be making you quit your job. Then he would forbid you from working on any type of projects. He would then insist the you only listen to music, reads books and watch tv and moves he approved of beforehand. He would never let you speak to anyone unless he was there and would likely take your phone away from you. Now that I know you better I think if he was your link you would have killed him even though it’s almost impossible to kill your link.”Rosalie was positive Bella would have killed Edward if he was her mate.

“I want to kill him now and he isn’t my link. I doubt if he was that feeling would change. I would kill him and probably Carlisle as well.”Bella figured the doctor would annoy her to the point of her wanting him dead.

“They are a package deal. If I didn’t know for a fact he had a link I would swear that Edward was his.”Rosalie only knew because the Cullens had been before the royals and the bond was confirmed.

“What did Edward do when he failed to get into the elevator?”Bella asked.

“He ran around the building a few times leaving his scent.”Seeing Bella’s confusion Rosalie explained.”Scent marking is the equivalent of a dog peeing on something to claim it’s territory. Edward was telling any other supernaturals that he owns this building and they are not to trespass or he will kill them.”

Bella rolled her eyes.”What a dick head. Is there a way for you to scent mark it?”

“I could but I would have to leave you alone to do it. Not that scent marking matters really because you are my link. Any supernaturals would stay away from you because of that not because of Edward pissing on your building.”Rosalie wasn’t concerned about Edward leaving his scent. She had the law on her side.

“I get what you are saying. I just hate the idea of Edward trying to claim me in anyway.”Bella finished off the last of her cereal, stood and put bowl and spoon in the sink. She then make herself a cup of coffee. Once done she relocated to the couch, picked up the remote and put it on the world news channel.

Rosalie followed after her taking a seat on the other end of the couch.”What are your plans for the day?”

“Catch up on the news then I have some work I brought home to do.”Bella told her.

“What kind of work?”Rosalie was very interested in Bella’s law career.

“I took on a new case last week that I am going to be presenting in court on Tuesday.”Bella said.

“What’s the case?”Rosalie couldn’t wait to see Bella in a court setting.

“A man came to me to help him get custody of his three children from his ex wife. His divorce lawyer did a hatchet job and he got screwed over badly. The ex has a lot of problems some that caused her to spend 6 months in a mental hospital while they were married. She is supposed to take medication to manage her symptoms but she sells them instead to pay for her drug habit. My client is being forced to pay more alimony and child support than he can afford and didn’t have the money to pay for a lawyer. One of my former clients told him about me and he came to me last week desperate because he didn’t have any chance of getting his kids back.”Bella explained.

“Why did she get custody originally if he had proof of her being an unfit mother?”Rosalie wouldn’t have given her the kids if she was the judge.

“Her parents are very wealthy and well connected around here. She had a team of lawyers representing her in her divorce. My client had one that shouldn’t have been practicing law but it’s all that he could afford.”Bella had made a complaint about the lawyer after the man had left her office.

“Do you think you can win?”Rosalie didn’t know anything about Bella’s skills as a lawyer.

Bella nodded.”I have collected overwhelming evidence to prove she is unfit. To include hiring a private detective to follow her and take videos and pictures of her activities. He only needed three days to collect enough for me to win.”

“Are you worried about her parent’s influence?”Rosalie was impressed with Bella’s effort to get evidence.

“No they may have connections and wealth but I have too much proof. If the judge rules in her favor it would be obvious that they are corrupt. That method is how I win most of my big cases. I make it so the judge or the jury has no other choice but to side with me. Most other lawyers don’t put in the extra effect to have a slam dunk case. They focus on sweet talking the court and swaying them to their side of thinking. I have never done that. Even when I had cases that it was no doubt going to go my way I still made sure that I did all I could to build the best case possible.”Bella gave each client her best effort.

“You are kind of amazing you know that?”Rosalie thought Bella was even more incredible after hearing what her mate just said.

Bella waved off the praise.”I’m not incredible I am actually doing my job not talking my clients money and doing as little as possible to help them.”

“How did you get involved with the five people you helped get out of jail?”Rosalie would hold back her praises because Bella obviously wasn’t comfortable receiving them.

“My first case ever was a woman who had been forced into prostitution by her boyfriend when she was 14 years old. She had murdered her pimp and was sentenced to life without parol.”Bella was cut off by Rosalie.

“That’s not right!”Rosalie bet that the pimp would have killed the girl eventually.

“Her family didn’t think it was either. They spent three years trying to find a lawyer to take her case. They came to me as a last resort. Initially I could tell they didn’t believe someone so young could help them no matter how smart they were. It wasn’t until I actually got her a retrial did they put their faith in me. I worked night and day for three months building a case for her freedom. When I walked into the courtroom and took a seat next to my client the prosecutor asked me if my parents knew I was skipping school.”Bella hadn’t reacted to the man.

“What a fucker.”Rosalie would have punched him gently in the face if she was there.

“He sported a smug look all through out opening arguments and when he presented his case. I wipe that smug look off his face when I started presenting my evidence. To include some prostitutes that previously worked for the pimp. I wish I had a camera to catch his expression when the jury announced that she was not guilty. I thought his head was going to explode he was so angry.”Bella told her.

“I’m proud of you for beating that asshole and getting that girl out of prison. After that case did people reach out to you because of it?”Rosalie figured that case would have gotten Bella a lot of clients.

“Yes but most of them I refused to represent. I don’t need money so I can pick and choose my clients. That means I can work on cases that involve people who need help. I will never work for some wealthy person who wants me to help them screw someone over.”Bella had strict rules when it came to picking clients.

“That’s admirable. Most people who get a degree from an Ivy League school are focused on making partner in as big firm so they can make a lot of money.”Rosalie said.

“I got offers from some big firms but I wasn’t interested in working for anyone else. Even if I went back to NASA I would go as an independent contractor and not a government employee.”Bella would never take orders from anyone ever again.

“What’s it like working at NASA?”Rosalie was obsessed with the space program and thought it was amazing her mate worked there.

“I didn’t have a normal experience working at NASA. I was a preteen so nobody really wanted me to partner on their projects with them. Anytime I tried to help they would complain to my boss.”Bella initially became depressed with all the rejections.

“What kind of person complains about 12 year helping them?”Rosalie thought that was extremely petty of them.

Bella shrugged.”At first it hurt my feelings but then one day my supervisor led me into an empty lab and told me that if my coworkers were to stupid to appreciate my brilliance then I could work on my own and rub my accomplishments in their faces. He made that lab mine personal one and restricted asses to it so only me and him could enter.”

“You supervisor was great.”Rosalie was happy that Bella had someone on her side.

“He really was. After that talk I didn’t bother trying to speak to anyone. I just spent all my time in my lab. When it came to working on projects together like the Denver space shuttle my supervisor would assign me with problems to solve by myself. My coworkers actually complained about that but my supervisor put them in their place by telling them how I was the largest contributor to the project by a large margin and they were working in groups. He actually used to make jokes about naming the space shuttle after me because I did most of the work on it.”Bella loved working at NASA with her supervisor.

“It blows my mind that I’m sitting with someone who was the main contributor to making a space shuttle. Do you have any pictures taken while you were working on it?”Rosalie wanted to see what it was like for a space shuttle to be built.

“I have a bunch of stuff related to my time working at NASA in storage to include some of the things I invested while I was there.”Bella kept all her work from NASA.

“Wait you have access to things you created while you were at NASA?”Getting a head nod from Bella got Rosalie even more excited.”Are some of those things used on the space shuttles?”

“I have the pieces of the space shuttle that aren’t classified. Those that are I had to sign a bunch of paperwork threatening me with all kinds of horrible stuff it I tell anyone about them.”Bella fully believe she would be killed if she shared certain secrets.

Rosalie just realized something.”You could build your own space shuttle if you wanted couldn’t you?”

“I guess I could. I have the knowledge and the wealth to buy the materials. I don’t know why I would though.”Bella didn’t see the point.

“That is awesome. I am so happy you are my link.”Rosalie couldn’t believe that her mate could build a real space shuttle. She couldn’t wait to tell her family. They were all interest in space travel as well.

“Your reactions to the things I tell you about my life make me happy you are my link too. As a matter of fact I wouldn’t trade you if I could.”Bella thought her and Rosalie complimented each other perfectly.

Rosalie smiled brightly hearing that.”I wouldn’t trade you either.”

“Tell me about your life. I feel like we only talk about mine or what Edward and Carlisle are up to. What things have you done during your long life?”Bella expected Rosalie to have done some incredible things.

Rosalie winced thinking about her accomplishments or more accurately her lack accomplishments. It was very embarrassing comparing her many years alive to all Bella did in a couple decades.”I haven’t done much with my life. Carlisle is my creator and once I became like this I was put into the role of his adopted teenager daughter. I have played that role ever since. I go to high school and college every time we settle into a new place. Other than that I love cars and my hobby is restoring old cars and selling them.”

“You haven’t done anything with what you learned at school?”Bella would have thought Rosalie would have done more with her life than just continuously going to school over and over again.

“No none of us did. Carlisle as you know is a doctor and his link is an interior designer. The rest of us pretend to be teenagers.”Rosalie was very embarrassed admit that and based on the look on Bella’s face her mate thought it was embarrassing as well.

“If I’m your my link you don’t expect me to pretend to be a teenager and go high school do you?”Bella wasn’t going to no matter what anyone said.

“I would never force you to dumb yourself down. I am planning on quitting school and integrating into your life because there is no way that I’m forcing you to integrate with my life.”Rosalie didn’t care who was against it Bella was not going to pretend to be a teenager and be forced to go to school for the rest of her life. It would be an insult to Bella even suggesting it.

“I am happy you don’t expect that. That said I want you to do what you want to do. You don’t have to suddenly be involved in everything I do. That wouldn’t be healthy for our relationship. You need to make choices about your own future. You have as much of a say in this as I do.”Bella wouldn’t be happy if Rosalie didn’t have her own life.

“I really have to think about what I actually want to do. I am very interested in technology so if you will let me I would love to help you with your projects. I don’t have much hands on experience but I’m willing to learn.”Rosalie would love helping Bella work on things. Especially the robot.

“The only thing I’m working on now is the robot and I don’t have a lot of extra time to work on it.”Bella wished she did.

“Well when you have time let me know and I will be there right away.”Rosalie wasn’t going to miss out on her chance to work on a robot.

“I’ll think about it.”Bella would have to compare the pros and cons of letting Rosalie work with her before allowing it.

“Good.”Rosalie hated that Bella didn’t say yes but clung to the fact she didn’t say no either.

Bella glanced at the tv noticing the time.”I should get to work. Do you need anything?”

“I’m good. Do you mind if I change the channel though?”Rosalie didn’t want to watch the news.

“Go ahead.”Bella stood from her couch and made her way over to her desk.

“Thanks.”Rosalie called out to Bella’s retreating back. Picking up the remote Rosalie surfed the channels. She thought that her morning with Bella had been positive so far. Bella did tell her she wouldn’t trade Rosalie as a mate for anything. That had to mean that Bella liked her as more than just a friend. Rosalie of course wouldn’t ask her because that would make things awkward. Almost as awkward as admitting to Bella that Rosalie had done nothing with her life. Rosalie hadn’t thought how she spent her time mattered but after meeting Bella Rosalie hated that she hadn’t done more all the decades she had been alive. Bella was 12 years old when she was building a space shuttle. Rosalie had been alive over a century and all she had to show for it was that she was good at fixing cars. It was beyond embarrassing. Especially because while Bella was building space shuttles she went to an Ivy League law school at the same time and opened her own practice before she turned 20. Now Bella was making a huge difference in the world while Rosalie was pretending to be a teenager spending her time going to school. Rosalie needed to make a plan on how she was going to change her life in a way that she would fit into Bella’s world because there was no way Bella would ever fit into hers.