The snow drifted lightly in the wind before settling on the ground. It was cloudy, and if it wasn't snowing, it was raining. Normally, this would be enough to make someone miserable. Not for us. Earlier, Alice had alerted that the light snowfall was a facade; a heavy blizzard was on its way and poised to make its arrival known any time now. The news was turned on and the attractive young weather girl confirmed what Alice already knew. People were encouraged to stay home, schools were cancelled for the day, and roads shall remain closed until further notice. This meant that every individual of Cullen family were stuck at home...with each other. We hadn't minded the idea, though; since the confrontation with the Volturi a few weeks ago, these kinds of times were much appreciated and any time we had with each other was brought with a renewed, albeit never lost, sense of peace and contentment. There was no need for pretense within our home, and even with all the quirks this family possessed, nothing could provide more of a sense of normalcy than this very moment did. I sat in one of the bay windows, trying to etch every single detail of this moment into my flawless memory. I did so quietly, under the impression that I was doodling in my sketch book, as to not interrupt this scene that was so typical of my family, yet so anticipated.
Everyone took joy in the blizzard, for we didn't have to act like we had things to do. The blizzard provided us with the perfect excuse to have just one lazy day, free from worry. Each member had dispersed to partake in their favorite past times. Though separated throughout the house, nothing could shake the feeling of togetherness I felt as I sat here lounged on the bay window overlooking the expanse of the backyard and the terrain beyond it. It was fairly quiet and I barely heard my Carlisle approach me with that serene smile of his that never failed to warm my heart. Wordlessly, I patted the seat next to me, an invitation he didn't refuse. He lifted my legs onto his lap before picking up the issue of National Geographic that someone, probably Jasper, had haphazardly left lying on the floor, and started reading. I couldn't help but stare at his profile, as if I never saw it before. Even after all this time, his beauty never ceased to surprise me; every time I looked at him, there always seemed to be another thing that I have yet to notice and I could have stared at him all day. That is until...
"For Heaven's sake, Jasper!" the boisterous tone of Emmett said incredulously. "That maneuver I made was totally legal, you aren't playing fair!"
Jasper merely responded with a smug grin on his face and Carlisle snickered from his seat next to me without having taken his eyes off the magazine. He knew enough of our two oldest sons to know that their ensuing argument was just silly banter, nothing to get too worked up about. "Sorry, brother, but you're just not that good at this game," Jasper chuckled. Currently, my two oldest boys were against the northern wall of the living room locked in another one of their board games. Right now, it seemed as if the game in question was their version of chess-eight different chess boards and a medley of complicated rules. "You should know the rules. You helped me write them, remember?" Jasper added.
"Yes, but...," a dejected Emmett said. He knew Jasper had him there, and he was at a loss for words.
"No 'buts'. Illegal maneuvers will result in the revocation of one of your 'Kings' and/or one of your 'Knights'. Seeing as I totally wiped out all of your knights already, I have no choice but to alleviated you of one of your Kings," Jasper explained, schooling Emmett on the rules as if they were the most obvious things in the world.
My lovely daughter Bella sat cross-legged on the floor next to them with her elbows propped up on her knees and her chin resting on her fists, eyebrows furrowed glancing between her two older brothers, who now completely ignored the chess game altogether and were locked in a stare-down contest.
"So, wait...Guys, hello?...Can you just look over here for a second?," she was quietly pleading for their attention. She clearly wanted to learn the logic behind this game, and she started pressing on her temples as if she'd get it if she concentrated enough. Little did she know, her attempts to understand were futile; "Cullen Chess" was invented decades ago, and none of us have yet to figure out the intricacies that Jasper and Emmett formulated out of the game. Then again, this was Bella and her curiosity seemed very hard to quench.
Because of this, since her transformation Emmett and Jasper had taken it upon themselves to get Bella used to the madness that was the Cullen household. Of course, she was exposed to it as a human, but being a vampire allowed for her to fully participate in some of their crazier schemes, without the risk of her getting hurt. Somewhat unfortunately, their rambunctious ways seemed to rub off on Bella, much to Edward's dismay. Eventually, however, Edward realized that his Bella was no longer a fragile human and that she was actually now able to physically keep up with everyone else. Now, he found it quite amusing how much she enjoyed herself getting into mischief with Emmett and Jasper. They would even include Renesmee in their craziness on occasion. In every way, Bella was the younger sister the boys have always wanted (she wasn't overtly girly and conservative like Rose and Alice were) and they were ecstatic the first time Bella showed a liking to their favorite hobbies. I chuckled inwardly, remembering the first time my youngest daughter had approached her brothers, practically begging them to teach her how to properly throw a football. Even if the lesson took less than three minutes, Bella claimed it "was way more fun than playing Bella-Barbie".
I smiled at her as she interacted with her brothers. Carlisle leaned over and whispered to me, "Who would've thought that a daughter of ours wouldn't be interested in maxing out our savings, eh?". We shared a quite chuckle, but Alice must've heard what he said because she rolled her eyes playfully at us.
"Bella, are you still trying to figure out that game-you know you won't, we've told you a million times," Alice quipped at her sister from her perch on the couch, where she had her laptop cradled in her tiny lap. Around her lay swatches of fabrics of different colors and textures. "Look at this outfit that I just purchased for you online." Bella let out a low grumble of disappointment, she was still in the midst of figuring out the game! As figured, Bella gave in to her sister (always trying to make others happy) quickly before rushing back to her earlier position.
For the past few days, Alice had been pouring herself over her laptop trying to get a head start on her purchases for the upcoming spring season. Though she was much deeper than her somewhat superficial hobby implied, shopping was very much a big part of what Alice loved. And though she spent way too much money, Carlisle never denied his daughters, or any of his children, their happiness.
"Esme, can you help me with something?," Alice voiced quietly as I turned my head to where she was eyeing me hopefully.
"Of course, dear. What is it?" I asked as I untangled myself from my husband's embrace and got up from my seat. He gave he a quick peck on the cheek before quickly reabsorbing himself in the magazine. I stroked the top of Alice's spiky head as I leaned over the back of the sofa to look at the computer screen.
"I want to get Rosalie something nice. I like this Peach cardigan but she would also look so gorgeous in this ruby one," she said, disgruntled.
I giggled at her dilemma. When she asked what was funny, I simply told her she should just buy both of it, for that hasn't stopped her before! The biggest grin spread across her angelic face before declaring me a genius. "You're right, mom!," she squealed. My heart warmed for the umpteenth time that day at her use of the word 'mom'.
I was reveling in happiness when we heard the raucous laughter of Edward coming from the garage followed by a very shocked squeal that very much only Rosalie could pull off. "Ed-ward!," she screamed, though from here, you could hear the smile in her voice, she wasn't really mad. For quite some time now, Edward's and Rosalie's bond had strengthened, and today, you wouldn't even know their relationship was ever strained. They both shared an undying appreciation for Bella, and the little girl she fought fate for, our Renesmee. That one commonality was enough for them to toss all their other disagreements aside. Bella and Renesmee were simply that precious to them-to all of us.
The pitter-patter of small feet drew the attention of those of us gathered in the living room. We all looked up to see Nessie standing on the landing of the staircase yawning and rubbing her fists into her eyes. Up until this point, she had been in Edward's room, listening to some of his classical recordings. Even at her very young age, she took a keen interest to music, something that made Edward obscenely proud. She would ask him to show her his music collection, and she spent a lot of her time here in Edward's old room. Of course, the room isn't as masculine as it was before. Nessie would occasionally bring something of hers into the room, forget it there, and slowly the room started to look "girly". Eventually, the music had lulled her to sleep, and a three hour nap later, she stood glassy eyed looking at us probably wondering what the noise was that had wakened her. As if to answer her question, we heard the shuffling of feet, as if Rosalie was chasing Edward around the garage where they were busy probably fine tuning the fleet of cars that they housed there. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Edward was chanting at Rosalie while he would cough up bouts of laughter. Unable to mask her concern any longer, Bella scooped up her daughter and covered her face in kisses before they headed to the garage door to see what the commotion was about. I had followed them, and stopped at the disaster that was Rosalie.
Standing there in all her beauty, Rosalie was glaring playfully at Edward, while the front of her silk shirt was covered in what looked like car oil. Edward had a guilty look on his face, and on his shirt, Rosalie's handprints had smeared oil indicating she had probably put up a fight with him after whatever stunt he had pulled. "What happened?" I chastised my children half-heartedly; nothing was going to sour the peace at home today.
"He squirted that bottle of oil on me. I said pass it to me, not toss it on me," she told me before addressing the second part of that sentence to a sheepish looking Edward.
"Whoops," he cowered. As he slowly backed his way behind Bella and Nessie in hopes of using them as a shield (Rosalie would never harm him if Nessie was in the way), he tried flashing Rosalie one of his charming smiles, in hopes she'd forgive him. That boy was too charming for his own good and he knew it!
"Edward!" Bella and I scolded at the same time Nessie murmured, "Daddy's busted", a term she had undoubtedly picked up from her uncles. He looked at Renesmee with a pout that feigned hurt.
"I didn't mean it. It's not my fault Auntie Rosie can't catch," he cooed as he made a motion to gather her into his arms. "You forgive me, right, baby?" Nessie looked thoughtful for a moment while tapping her chin.
"Of course! You're my Daddy!" she squealed as she launched into his extended arms. I beamed at her excitement. A while ago, we had observed that Nessie, though still very graceful next to other human children her age, had inherited her mother's clumsiness. She has also inherited her father's fearlessness. Edward joked that that made for one scary combination, and my family found it terribly humorous and quite endearing.
"I love your logic, Nessie, but what about me?" Rosalie smiled at her niece. "Us girls have to stick together. Are you going to let him get away with it that easily?"
Not knowing how to answer her question, Nessie tucked her head into the crook of Edward's neck shyly and simply stated, "You're still my pretty Aunty Rose." That, we all knew, would strike a cord in Rose. So Nessie was a Charmer as well! Edward smirked at hearing my thoughts. "She gets that from me," he chuckled. I know, Son. He smiled again. Rosalie's face lit up with instant joy at her niece's words.
"Oh, well. I guess you're forgiven for now, Eddie," Rose tapped Edward's cheek patronizingly as she passed by him on her way back into the house to get cleaned up. Edward frowned at the nickname. Nessie giggled, slapped his cheeks between her tiny hands and planted a loud smooch on the bridge of his nose. She knew how much he hated that nickname. She also knew how to cheer him up. Bella and I watched them-the bond between Edward and his child was extraordinary, and followed them back into the living room where the rest of the family had been waiting.
I stopped in the doorway, taking in the new scene that had taken place in our short absence. Bella went to take a seat on the piano bench next to Edward who began playing a tune I knew he was making up on the spot, but was a beautiful tune nonetheless. Renesmee was still small enough to sit up under the baby grand her parents were occupying, and she was there assembling a jigsaw puzzle she had started earlier in the week but never finished because her overactive attention span led her to abandon it in her pursuit of another activity.
Alice was still on her computer, though this time, she had a still-covered-in-car-oil Rosalie next to her. They would look at each other and share giggles over something before they would turn their attention to their husbands who were in the process of cleaning up their previous game of chess. From the scattered game boards and strewn-about chess pieces, it seemed this game had gotten a little out of hand while I was observing the earlier catastrophe in the garage. While organizing the games back into their respective boxes, Emmett and Jasper would banter playfully and would swipe at each other to get the other riled up even more to which Alice and Rose would simply roll their eyes.
The wind howled and whipped at the trees outside, informing us of the blizzard's arrival. Two strong, familiar arms embraced me from behind. Though it was cold outside, nothing had warmed me more than to be witness to this family's antics. Never had I imagined this amount of love could be possible for our kind. But we had it. We had come full circle, in a way; from each of us being all alone in some way at one point in history to being a complete family.
The snow started falling harder, blanketing our backyard in its pristine white purity. Our children and grandchild all stopped what they were doing to gather at the large window to view the spectacle. My husband and I stood back admiring it all.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Carlisle murmured contentedly gazing in the direction of our family or the snow, I couldn't really tell.
I thought back to our past, to our today, to our future.
"It most definitely is," I said. "It's stunning."