LET DOWN

eleven. concussion

▬ "HEY." Cori greeted as she neared Bella in the parking lot, her beanie pulled over her hair and a thick coat wrapped around her torso.

"Hey?" Bella gave her sister a weird look as she pulled her earbuds from her ears.

"Just wanted to let you know that Paul and Rachel are gonna pick me up, we're going to the rez." She told her, shoving her hands into her pockets. "So, um, I'll see you later."

"You and dad are both bailing on me?" Bella half-ass joked and Cori shrugged her shoulders, a smile tugging at her lips.

"What can I say? People like us." She hummed, teasingly and Bella rolled her eyes. "Anyways, I'm probably gonna have dinner-" The sudden honk of a horn cut her off and both girls turned to see Tyler's van skidding towards them. Bella quickly grabbed Cori's coat and shoved her to the side, knocking the girl off balance. She hit the pavement, the side of her head colliding with the cold concrete.

"Cori!" She faintly heard her name, but her eyelids drooped and darkness took over.

She came too, groaning a little as her eyes fluttered open. She was still laying in the parking lot, something soft under her head and a warm hand on the side of her face.

"Hey, Munchkin." Paul smiled, keeping his hand pressed to the side of her head. There was a small gash just under her hairline and he held a piece of his shirt against it, the rest of his shirt was under her head.

"Paul?"

"You bumped your head." He told her, his voice soft.

"I did?" She mumbled and something to her right caught her attention. "Rachel?"

"You're gonna be okay." The older girl told her, gripping her hand, tears filling her eyes. "There's an ambulance coming. You'll be at the hospital soon."

"Okay." She mumbled, letting her eyes fall closed again as she leaned into Paul's hand.

The next time she opened her eyes she was in a hospital bed, a curtain acting as a wall between her and the person on the other side. She groaned a little, squinting at the fluorescent lights beating down into her eyes. She looked around, hoping to see Paul and Rachel, but to her surprise Emmett was at her bedside.

"Em?"

"Hey, Shortcake." He smiled as he leaned towards her. "You need me to get you anything?"

"Drugs. Lots of drugs." She mumbled and he chuckled a little as he shifted in his chair. "It hurts."

"I know." He reached out and gently laid his hand against the side of her head, she flinched and he stopped then she let out a sigh. His hand felt like an ice pack and she leaned into it. "You scared the hell out of me."

"Why? What did I do?" She asked, her brows creased as she looked up at him.

"It wasn't what you did-"

"Did I fall or something?" She asked. "And where's Paul?"

He took a needless breath, trying not to let the fact that she asked for the wolf bother him. "No, Cor, you didn't fall. You don't remember?" She thought for a minute before shaking her head. "Okay, that's okay." He told her, lightly moving his thumb over the bandaid that rested just under her hairline. He could smell the blood but his worry for her was bigger than his thirst.

"Coraline." The curtain was pulled back a little and a pale man stepped closer to the bed, a clipboard in his hand. "Seems you took quite the spill."

"She doesn't remember." Emmett told him, his worry for the girl growing by the second.

"Emmett, who's that?" Cori whispered, leaning closer to the boy at her side.

"I'm Dr. Cullen."

"Cullen." She repeated before looking at Emmett. "Hey, that's your name."

Emmett gave her a small smile. "Yeah, it is."

"Wait. Is he your dad?"

"Yeah."

"Coraline, can you sit up for me?" Carlisle asked and the girl nodded, she moved to sit up and Emmett stood. Once she was sitting, he sat next to her and wrapped his arm around her, keeping his hand against the small of her back. Carlisle reached in his pocket and pulled out a small light, shining it into her eyes and she flinched, groaning as she turned away from him. "Let's have a look at your head." He gave her a kind smile as he tucked the light into his pocket and she turned back to him, he reached up and pushed her hair back. His fingers were just as cold as Emmett's.

Is my dad here?" She asked, leaning into Emmett's side, her hand grasping for his free hand and the moment she found it she curled her fingers around his.

"He's with your sister." He nodded, pulling the curtain back and she squinted a little as the lights seemed to get brighter. Then she saw her dad and her sister, they had been on the other side of the curtain.

"What happened to Bella? Did she fall, too?" She asked, looking from her sister to the boy beside her.

"You don't remember the accident?" Bella asked, her brows pinched.

"It's temporary." Carlisle nodded, looking between Charlie and Bella.

"Hey, Cor." Charlie made his way over to her.

"Hi, Daddy." She hummed, still leaning against Emmett.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Emmett asked, clearly worried for the girl. And Charlie couldn't help but narrow his eyes at the boy that sat next to Cori, their fingers laced together in her lap.

"There's gonna be a bump. Some swelling. And you will be in a lot of pain." His eyes moved to the girl again. "You do have a mild concussion but that should subside with a couple days of rest. Your memory will also return."

"I'm so sorry." Bella told her, her brown eyes filled with worry. "I-I-I just reacted."

"Sorry for what?" Cori asked, her eyebrows pinched. Bella's lips parted but she wasn't sure what to say so she simply closed her mouth.

"You ready to go home?" Charlie asked.

"Can Emmett come?" She asked, keeping a tight grip on the boy's hand.

"Yeah, I don't see why not." He sighed, though he wanted to say no.

"Thank you, sir." Emmett gave him a nod, he wasn't ready to let her out of his sight. Especially since he couldn't be the first one to her aid. He wanted to be, he had even started across the parking lot but the second the smell of her blood filled the air he stopped, he didn't want to hurt her even worse. And it didn't help that the second she hit the cold pavement, the boy Emmett had come to despise, for reasons other than the fact that he turned into a wolf, jumped out of his truck.

His anger boiled to an all time high and he knew that it was best to stay away, because he probably could've handled the blood. But no way in hell could he fight off the bloodlust and the anger that just seeing Paul near Cori filled him with.

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▬ EMMETT SMILED AT THE girl that laid across his chest. Her hair pulled back into a low messy bun, her eyes closed, her cheek squished against his hard chest. She shifted a little, pulling herself closer to him and draping her leg over his. If she moved any more she'd be in his lap and he wouldn't complain.

She was exceptionally clingy and, oh man, did he ever relish in that simple fact.

Though they were alone in her room, the door was open and Charlie occasionally made his way up the small flight of stairs to check on them. He still wasn't completely comfortable with the fact that Cori, his youngest daughter, had a boy in her room. Much less an older boy. Granted, he didn't know just how much older.

"Cori." Emmett whispered, not wanting to startle her... again.

"Mmm?"

"You're tired, maybe I should-"

"No." She snuggled closer to him, like she was trying to hold him in place. "Stay."

He chuckled a little, rubbing her back. "I don't think your dad would like that very much."

"But I would like that very much." She mumbled, clearly half asleep.

"I would too."

"Then stay."

"Cori-"

"Please?" Her voice became a soft whine. "I don't want you to go."

He was torn. He could say yes and stay with her, hold her, comfort her, but Charlie would probably chase him out of the house with a rifle. Or even though it would take everything in him, he could leave. He could go home and keep the fact that Charlie actually liked him intact. Because he knew that one day, he'd need to be on Charlie's good side. He'd need to get the blessing to date Cori, was it necessary? No. But he wanted it so badly.

"I know, Shortcake." He squeezed her a little, pressing a kiss to her forehead – the first time his lips met her skin. "But I have to. Your dad would kill me if I stayed and I very much want to be alive."

She was quiet for a few moments, thinking it over. She knew he was right. She knew that if Charlie had found them cuddled up, he'd simply go grab his gun that he kept locked in a safe in his room, and he'd threaten the boy all the way from Cori's bed to the city limit sign and then some.

"Okay." She muttered, clearly not happy. He chuckled lightly, pressing another kiss to her forehead. "I like it when you do that."

"Really?" He hummed and she nodded. "I'll keep that in mind." He kissed her forehead once more and she smiled, letting out a soft hum. He moved to get up, making sure the girl was comfortable in her bed as he tugged the cover up over her. "I'll see you tomorrow, Shortcake."

"Goodnight, Tree." She murmured and he gave her one last kiss on the forehead before he made his way out of the room. He pulled the door closed and turned to see Charlie a few feet away.

"She's asleep. Just remember to check on her every few hours, the concussion and all."

"Thank you, Emmett." Charlie held his hand out and the boy quickly shook it. "I'm, uh, glad she has you."

Emmett couldn't help but smile. "Me too." He mumbled, leaving Charlie slightly confused as he pulled his hand back. "Well, uh, it's late. I should head home." Charlie simply nodded and the boy made his way down the stairs and out of the house towards his Jeep. He glanced up at the window that he knew led to Cori's room, a smile painted on his lips as he twirled his keys around his finger.

the way this book has taken over my life is hilarious! for years i wanted to work on it but i couldn't. i always got blocked or invested in other fics but i am so happy that i can work on this series once again because cori means everything to me.

i wanna say cori was my second oc that i ever created and she has such a special place in my heart and always will. and i am so happy to be writing this now that i better understand her as a character and can better write her.

let me know your thoughts!!