12. Lucas

Ididn't know if the fact that Bernadette hadn't called or texted me once throughout the whole day was a good or a bad thing.

I knew that it either meant she was coping well, or she wasn't doing well at all but was just too scared to call me and disturb me. I hoped that she was doing well, but as I walked into the house, I realized that it was exactly the opposite.

She was curled up on the couch in the living room, softly sobbing into her hands.

I rushed over to her immediately, kneeling down in front of her so that I could grasp her hands and squeeze them tight in my own as a gesture of reassurance.

"Bella, what do you need me to do right now? We can talk about what's going on if you want, or I can help distract you so that you don't have to think about whatever it is that is making you cry right now."

"I think I need to talk about things," she said, wiping her face with her free hand and suppressing another sob. "There's a lot that's going on."

"I know. You have a lot to deal with and I can't imagine the hormones are making it any easier. Let's talk then." I got up to sit next to her on the couch, pulling her into my side and squeezing her tight. I had always been the one to comfort her whenever we were little, and so it felt so natural to do it now.

"I called my old friend today," she said, which made me look at her in surprise.

"You mean your friend from college?"

She nodded.

"Oh Bella, why did you do that? You know that neither of those girls have your best interests at heart."

She sighed. "I know that. I really do, especially now. But the fact is that I wanted someone else to listen to what's going on. You're incredible and I'm so grateful that you're here for me, but you're also the only friend I have, and you're currently deeply involved in the situation."

I should have known that she would feel lonely. All this time that I had been coddling her, that I had been having lunches with her at work, had I actually been preventing her from doing what she needed to do and making better friends?

That's certainly what it was seeming like.

"I'm sorry, I know I've kept you from meeting other people at the office. I've felt so protective of you, I've just wanted to make sure that you're all right and that no one hurts you again."

"You're going to have to let me learn sometime, Lucas. Besides, I know that I can make better choices now. I know what I'm looking for when it comes to a friend. I need to be able to talk to other people, to have a larger support system."

"I know, and I think I know just the way to make that start happening." I winked.

She looked at me curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I was thinking we throw a party."

She let out a little laugh, which made my heart jump with happiness. "A party? And how do you propose that a party is going to help?"

"Easy. I have quite a few good friends from college. I know that there are at least a few of them that would love to be friends with you and would also be a good support network. I'll organize a little get-together party, invite them, and then you can socialize and find some people who work well as friends for you. How does that sound?"

She smiled. "It sounds a bit like a far-fetched dream. Do you think it will really work? I mean, you know I'm not very good at making friends."

"Which is why it's good these people are already all my friends. I know they're friendly and I can vouch for them. On top of that, I can let them know that you're looking to make some new friends. I know they'll want to get to know you."

"Okay, you've convinced me," she said, and I was happy to see that there was no longer that glisten in her eyes that made me think she was about to cry at any second. "I'll try this little party thing of yours and see how it goes."

"Excellent." I cracked my knuckles and grabbed my phone. "We'll do it tomorrow. I'll take the day off work and the two of us can go shopping and do all the set-up work during the day. It should be enough of a warning for a good number of my friends to be able to make it."

She laughed. "You think? Isn't it a little last minute?"

I shrugged. "I may be put together, but there are plenty of my friends who aren't. Last minute is kind of just how we end up doing plans."

"I guess it should be all right then. How much are we setting up?"

"Oh, not much at all. I was just thinking we could make sure there are food and drinks for people and maybe a few board games out. You know, something of that nature."

"Okay." I could tell from her expression that she was still mulling the idea over in her head, deciding if this was really going to work for her.

"And, if you don't feel comfortable, we don't even have to throw a party. We can definitely cancel it. I could even just arrange for you to meet a few of my friends for dinner or something like that."

She shook her head. "No, a party sounds great, let's do that."

"All right, a party it is then. I'll start inviting people," I said, settling back into the couch and getting out my phone to start texting people the invites for tomorrow.

* * *

The next morning, Bernadette and I slept in rather late. We had earned it though, what with all that she had been going through lately and all the hard work that the two of us had been doing.

I still woke up before her though, and so I decided that it might be a nice treat for her if I cooked her some breakfast in bed.

I slipped out of bed, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead, put on a robe over my pajamas to keep away the chill, and padded downstairs to the kitchen.

Waffles were her absolute favorite breakfast food. Since it was fall, we still had quite a good selection of fruit, so I decided that some waffles with sliced fruit and maybe maple syrup or powdered sugar were in order.

Of course, it helped that I quite enjoyed the sound of that too.

Humming to myself in the kitchen, I went about making us two waffles each, then cut up some strawberries and washed some raspberries. I assembled everything with a side of hot tea, put it all on a tray, and then headed back upstairs to the bedroom.

By this time, Bernadette was stirring, and as I set the tray down, she opened her eyes slightly.

"What time is it?" she asked, her voice groggy from sleep.

"It's almost noon," I replied, smoothing back her hair and kissing her forehead.

"Noon?!" She shot up in the bed, then winced. "I hadn't realized it was so late."

I laughed. "Relax, there's nothing for you to worry about. We don't have to do anything today but go out to grab some food for the party, and that can definitely wait till after breakfast, or I suppose it's more like lunch now."

She noticed the tray I had set down and gasped. "You didn't."

"Well, it's right there, so clearly I did."

"I mean, you really didn't have to, but I really appreciate this."

"Of course. It makes me happy to see you happy. Besides, I was also getting pretty hungry and knew no matter how tempting it was I couldn't stay in bed with you all day."

She smiled. "A day spent completely in bed sounds like heaven."

"Mhmm, especially if I get to eat you for breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

She giggled, her face going completely red. "Oh dear, that would ummm, uhhh…"

"You don't have to be shy about it," I said with a laugh. "But you are especially beautiful when you're blushing for me like that."

Her color deepened and I sat down next to her, pulling her into my lap and leaving a trail of kisses all down her neck.

"Mmmm, so tasty," I said, and she laughed again.

"Stop it! We need to eat."

"Whoever invented meals was a spoilsport. I just want to be able to enjoy you all day and all night."

"Lucas!" She batted at me gently and I sat back with an exaggerated pout on my face. "Stop doing that! We need to eat!"

"All right, all right," I said. "I guess you are right. "But I will be enjoying you tonight, you can count on that."