TWILIGHT

"Dancing on Air"

by shel

© july 2008

disclaimer: bella, edward, and the rest of the cast of characters we've come to know and love, belong to stephenie meyer and possible other copyright holders. i intended no true infringement on their copyrights; i only wanted to borrow these marvelous characters for a short time in my own scenarios and hopefully return them no worse for wear; the only things i've gained from this tale are the satisfaction and pleasure of having written it and in knowing that others may have enjoyed it too…

rating: pg-13

summary: quality time for bella and her soon-to-be siblings leads to both old and new worries…

timeline: post-eclipse (and written before the release of breaking dawn)…

archive: please don't without expressed permission…

notes: song credits: don't worry baby (brian wilson/roger christian), surfin' u.s.a. (chuck berry/brian wilson), can't help falling in love (weiss/peretti/creatore), she's got a way (billy joel)…please let me know if you enjoyed my tale and why and, if not, why not…and, please, don't bother wasting your time or mine by sending any flames…

Part One

"You've a pretty voice."

Rosalie had spoken softly but I was still startled enough to drop all over my lap the stack of floral arrangement photos I'd been so carefully sorting. And as it fully registered that Rosalie had been complimenting me, the photos continued their slide to the floor while I stared back at her in shock.

"She's right; you have a very pretty voice. Now," Alice stated, matter-of-factly, "pick up those pictures and get back to work. You're supposed to be choosing an arrangement for the church's ladies' room."

The end of her statement was lost to Emmett's shouts as he destroyed Jasper's last something or other on the video game they played while, simultaneously, I lost my balance in reaching for the pictures on the floor and fell off the chair.

Four vampires now shifted their focus solely to me and I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks. "It's only a matter of time, you know," I muttered. The day was fast approaching when my clumsiness would no longer be an issue.

"Unless that will be your enhanced trait," Emmett teased. "Imagine the holes you'll leave in the floor."

"Shut up, Emmett," I growled as I got to my feet.

"Nice…" Emmett grinned, "Sounds almost like the real thing."

"She's been practicing," Jasper pointed out. He sounded almost proud of me.

"There are times our younger brother deserves every last growl," Emmett laughed.

Jasper nodded his head in complete agreement, "You've no idea just how much he frustrates her."

I growled again though I wasn't sure how much of it was in Edward's defense or how much because I agreed with them. Just because it was my stupid idea to maintain most stupid boundaries until we were married didn't mean I wasn't still left frustrated every time Edward pulled away from me. Thank God the day was fast approaching when that would no longer be an issue too.

As I finished gathering the photos from the floor, I heard Alice chiding me, "Bella, you've got to learn how to take a compliment."

I don't have a problem when it's deserved but I didn't tell her that as I glared at her. I dumped the pile of photos on the table in front of her not caring that some fell into her lap. She merely giggled and I walked away in a huff, not quite missing the edge of the chair as I stalked by. Emmett burst into laughter as I rubbed my sore hip.

"Whatever happened to Charm Schools and lessons for being graceful?" Rosalie sighed as she set her magazine aside and left her spot on the sofa behind Emmett to sit next to Alice. "Young ladies learned to behave as young ladies," she commented as she began sorting through the pictures.

I growled at her too, momentarily forgetting how pleased I was that she seemed to be softening towards me now that she understood how determined I was to truly join their family, despite all her efforts to convince me otherwise. "How'd you hear me anyway? Between Jasper and Emmett, I barely heard myself, not that I was aware I was even humming until you so helpfully pointed it out."

"You weren't humming, you were singing," Alice corrected with a smile. "And don't bother denying it because we all heard you. And stop with the blushing, it's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"It's not like I'll ever be the next American Idol," I acknowledged.

"Who was thinking about that?" Emmett shrugged. "It was pretty, nothing more, nothing less."

I sighed again. He didn't understand. He probably had a terrific singing voice. As if on cue, he picked up where I'd been interrupted in my humming of the Don't Worry Baby.

"Oh, what she does to me, when she makes love to me," he leered at his wife.

I tried not to notice Rosalie's reaction and simply tune out the rest of his singing, for which Alice joined in harmony. I rolled my eyes at their perfection.

"Surprising you're familiar with the song," Rosalie said to me. "The Beach Boys were nearly two generations before you and I didn't think Edward enjoyed the surfing craze."

"With that wall of music, it'll probably take another century to cycle back to that group," I smiled shyly, uncomfortable in teasing Edward to his siblings when he wasn't around. "Actually, my mom's a bit eclectic in her music tastes so I heard quite a bit of the sixties stuff growing up. Some songs stuck with me better than others."

"I surfed once in New Zealand," Emmett reminisced. "Water was a bit rough but it was way cool."

Rosalie laughed, "Until you were wiped out by that wave and the board splintered when it hit you on the head. And that poor shark that followed thinking you'd make a nice snack…"

"Let me guess," I inquired of him, "you had shark for lunch that day?"

"Hunting lesson number one, Bella, half the fun is when they bite you first," Emmett winked.

Rosalie moved in a blur to whap her husband in the chest. "Edward will bite you if you keep that up."

"Ever tried surfing, Bella?" Jasper inquired, distracting his "twin" for the moment.

"I'm going to need to learn," I sulked, knowing they'd never continue the hunting conversation now. "Why not now?"

"So what about surfing?" Emmett asked under his wife's withering glare. "Nothing like the sensation of being one with the water."

I caught all of his siblings rolling their eyes and laughed. "Are you kidding? I can barely balance myself on a solid floor, you want me to try it on a skinny board in the ocean?" This time, I didn't mind their laughter and admitted, "A couple of years ago on one of my summer visits with my dad, he went surfing, said he'd always wanted to try, but he didn't need to convince me to stay on the beach."

"If everybody had an ocean," Emmett sang, "across the U.S.A., then everybody'd be surfing, like Califor-nigh-ay…"

I smiled despite the fact that the whole conversation was beginning to bother me, not specifically the surfing or singing or even the hunting, but the consequences of my decision. What if I was wrong about becoming more graceful, more like them, after I was changed? What if Emmett was right and I'd only prove to be more clumsy? What if every trait I was hoping would improve for the better would only improve for the worst? What if I would still be unable to rival them for anything, not in looks, not in abilities? Would there be resentment, on either side? And, could I handle it for eternity?

I slumped down in the other chair next to Alice and noticed Rosalie watching at me. I was beginning to recognize the look. Generally it was on Alice's face just before I would find myself caving to her latest plan. "What?" I warily asked.

"Edward doesn't know you can sing, does he…"

"I can't sing," I stated. So it's not like the topic ever went further during his many interrogations on my life before him.

"Oh, Rose, that's wonderful," Alice suddenly clapped with glee.

"What?" Emmett rubbed his hands together, "Is it that good? Then I want in!"

"No!" I gasped as my mind reeled in horror at what Rosalie's plan might be. "Whatever it is, no! And, Jasper, cut that out!" I fought the calm waves he was sending me. This was no time for me to calm down. "Absolutely not, Alice!"

"Now Bella, it's a wonderful idea, truly…" Alice encouraged with a smile.

"Don't be like this, Bella," Rosalie instructed as she flipped through some of the papers in front of her. "Where is that playlist, Alice, so we can make the changes?"

"Changes?" I gasped again. "Do you know how long it took us to agree on that list? No, no changes!" I pushed my chair back and stumbled towards Jasper and Emmett. "Do something!"

"We are," Emmett smiled slyly. "We're watching you all weekend until Edward gets back from hunting with Carlisle and Esme."

"Don't let her out of your sight or else," Jasper nodded in mock seriousness, repeating Edward's last words to them.

"You know the opportunity to surprise Edward doesn't come along very often. So you need to grab it when it comes knocking," Alice sternly advised.

I stood in an angry stance, arms folded across my chest, "The playlist is fine just as it is. Besides, Edward will hear your thoughts and he won't agree if I don't. And I don't."

"Bella, Bella, Bella," Jasper chuckled, "after all this time hanging around with us, don't you trust us to know how to keep our thoughts from him when we need to?"

"Whose side are you on, anyway?" I snapped.

"You, Bella Swan," Rosalie declared as she purposefully strode over to me, "are going to serenade your husband at your wedding and that's all there is to it."

But I was just as determined and refused to be swayed. "If I'm going to do any serenading it'll be in the privacy of our own room and since there's really no privacy in this house, I guess that ends that." Hah.

"Oh you'll have privacy," Emmett announced. "Did you really think our little brother would take you back here for your wedding night or for your first few weeks as a married couple?"

My mouth dropped. That's exactly what I was expecting. While we were postponing the honeymoon for a few days until after my mother and Phil left, we certainly weren't going to be staying with Charlie.

"You know what he's planned," I accused as I inwardly prayed that Edward hadn't bought us a house or some other unnecessary extravagance like that. "Why am I always the last to know?"

"It's more fun that way," Emmett laughed.

As if I'd already agreed to this insane idea, Alice hugged me enthusiastically. "Guests will have tears in their eyes."

"From my lousy singing," I muttered.

"Bella…" Rosalie's voice held a warning that somehow scared me more than Alice's absurd vision of which I still had no details.

"And while you're dancing with Edward," Alice sighed happily. "Oh, Bella, it's so beautiful."

"Dancing…" I whispered. I must have paled because Rosalie immediately sat me down on the sofa. "I forgot all about that. What am I going to do? I can't dance. And with those shoes you're making me wear? I'll probably trip on the dress and if I'm lucky only break my ankle instead of my neck!"

This time Jasper tried to hide his amusement, "Relax, Bella, it's just a dance."

"And the dress will hide any missteps so you don't have to worry about anyone noticing," Rosalie assured me.

"You seemed okay at the prom," Emmett pointed out.

"Because I was standing on his feet!" I threw my hands up in exasperation and flopped down on my side. I grabbed the pillow and pressed it to my face in an attempt to make all the annoying vampires surrounding me disappear. "I knew this weekend was a bad idea."

"Regardless," Alice spoke above the laughter, "you make a beautiful couple dancing to -- oh never mind. Trust me, Bella, it'll be so --"

"What song?" Emmett interrupted. "Edward said you hadn't settled on the one yet. Alice…" he growled, "'fess up."

Admittedly, I was curious. I'd added some songs to the sampler CD we'd made that Edward hadn't heard yet. I peeked at Alice from beneath the pillow. "Alice?"

"You realize it's not a done deal if you both haven't already agreed," she reminded me. "If either of you change your mind or decide to surprise the other, the vision won't come true."

I slowly sat up and nodded. "Which one?" I requested. Somehow I couldn't really picture Edward agreeing to Shania Twain's You're Still the One even though that song was one of my new selections.

She looked me over, "Nope, I don't think I should tell you."

"Alice!"

"Well you haven't been very agreeable with the floral arrangements."

"What does my trying to save money have to do with anything?" I frowned. "Just because I don't see why we can't re-use the aisle arrangements on the tables as centerpieces means I'm not agreeable? Really, Alice, there's no reason to keep me from knowing my own decision…Please?"

"All right," she suddenly grinned, "you twisted my arm." I rolled my eyes as she revealed, "You dance to the King."

"My man, Elvis!" Emmett cheered. "Which song? No, don't tell me. Love Me Tender, right? We used that one at our tenth wedding."

"Seventh," Rosalie corrected with a warm smile.

I glanced away from their personal romantic memory and shook my head. Ten weddings. I was trying to live through one! "Actually, I was thinking of Can't Help Falling in Love," I admitted. "The lyrics seemed to fit so well."

"Would that be the part about fools rushing in or the part about taking your whole life too," Emmett teased before turning back to his wife. "Didn't we dance to that, Rose, at our third?"

"Fourth," she smiled before blowing him a kiss.

"Either would suit you two," Jasper mused, focusing on me. "Did you ever see Love Me Tender?" When I shook my head, he continued, "It was set in the period of time shortly after the war. It was a fairly new song then, not Elvis's song but the one it was based on, Aura Lee."

It was so rare for Jasper to speak of his past, at least with me, so I was eager to hear more. "I do like the song Love Me Tender. It's so simple, sweet, almost sad even. But how did Aura Lee go? Was it much different?"

I was sure if it would have been possible Jasper would have been blushing.

"You brought it up," Alice shrugged to him with the hint of a smile.

Emmett gave his brother a playful shove, "You're not the only one who thinks they can't sing, Bella."

Before I knew what happened, I was suddenly on the opposite side of the room in the relative safety of the arms of my pixie-like friend. "A little more notice would've been appreciated, Alice," I panted as I tried to follow the vampire tornado now tearing up Esme's living room.

It was the exploding TV that brought Emmett and Jasper to a standstill. "Oh, crap," I whispered, taking in the damage. It was the TV Edward had replaced a few months ago after his own temper tantrum.

"I probably shouldn't have thrown the remote," Emmett sheepishly confessed before slapping his brother's shoulder, "Look what you caused!"

"What I caused!" Jasper snarled and shoved back.

"Enough! Esme will have both your heads," Rosalie seethed. She threw the remnants of a lamp at Emmett. "Esme had that rug imported! It's practically one of a kind, how are we supposed to replace it? And they'll be home in --"

"Seven hours, fourteen minutes," Alice sighed, "so we'd better start cleaning up. I'll prepare Esme a list of the best deals for replacing everything."

"Wasn't that vase a gift from Carlisle from Italy?" I murmured.

"Better idea," Rosalie suggested to her sister, "is for you and Emmett to do some shopping and get whatever you can while Jasper and I take care of the clean-up. You can always work on the list from the car."

I stepped towards the ruined sofa and offered, "I'll start by --"

"You'll start by going to bed," she directed me. "We're not about to risk you getting hurt when it was Em--"

"But it was my fault," I told her. "If I hadn't --"

"Don't be ridiculous, Bella, these two are grown men," Alice pointed to their contrite spouses, "most of the time anyway, and will accept the consequences of their ridiculous actions. Now go to bed before I leave a message for Edward and tell him how uncooperative you were this whole weekend."

"You wouldn't," I glared at her.

"Try me," she challenged with that menacing grin of hers. She spun on her heel and grabbed Emmett by the elbow, "We'd better get a move on, we've got a long drive ahead of us."

"Where are you going?"

"To where the stores are still open, silly," she chirped before pecking her husband on the cheek and pushing Emmett out the front door before he could do the same to Rosalie. "Behave, Bella…see you in the morning."

I turned around with a sigh to find Rosalie already changed in a T-shirt and jeans. I never even noticed her leave. Even dressed down she looked good. "It really is too early for bed," I maintained, "and I'm not the least bit sleepy."

"Then why don't you sit over there and look over the floral arrangement photos? I believe Alice said you were supposed to choose for the ladies' room." She pointed to the table and quietly added, "It should keep you out of trouble for a bit."

"And if you're really good," Jasper noted as he rolled up his sleeves, "I might just give you a dance lesson before bed."

I was about to retort when I realized that wasn't a half-bad idea. I'd seen him dance and, given his talents, he'd probably be the only one who could keep me calm and feeling less embarrassed by my lack of coordination. "Really?"

Rosalie nodded in approval. "Depending upon how fast you are to pick it up, we could probably manage a couple of the easier dances tonight."

"We still have two weeks before the wedding," I murmured, "plenty of time to practice."

"Except you're always with Edward," Jasper smiled, "so it wouldn't be much of a surprise to him now would it?"

"Unless I'm a quick study," I told him, keeping my fingers crossed in my lap.

"We'll see, Bella," Rosalie considered with an amused smile, "we'll see."