Chapter 1

Everything was perfect. There wasn't a flower petal out of place; Alice had really outdone herself.

"So, what do you think?" she asked excitedly.

"It's awesome!" I laughed, staring at the scene in front of me with wide eyes. "I don't know how you do it, Alice."

"It's a gift," she replied smugly. "Now come on! The guests will be arriving soon, and I don't want anyone to see you until you look absolutely fabulous!" She grabbed my wrist and began dragging me back towards the house.

"But what about Jack?" I whined, looking back at the setup longingly.

"Edward and Garrett are taking good care of him. You'll just have to wait until he's up at the altar." Yes, Alice had insisted that we go by the human tradition of avoiding each other until it was time for the wedding. Well, she said she made Edward and Bella do it too, and if they could pull it off, I certainly could. Maybe.

"I look fine, Alice," I said, struggling against her grasp to watch my beautiful wedding stage disappear into the trees.

"Yes, you do, but fine isn't good enough. I still need to make a few finishing touches to your make-up. And watch out for the branches! I don't want your dress to have any stains." I sighed. Even vampire beauty wasn't enough to keep Alice at bay; she still had to paint my face to perfection. I kind of agreed with the whole dress situation, though. We had spent hours looking for the perfect gown just before the Volturi had summoned us to Italy, and after all that, I wasn't about to have it ruined.

"What was that smell?" I asked, my mind still set on what I had seen a moment before.

"It's a mixture of orange blossoms, lilac, freesia, and roses," she replied, shrugging. "I used it at Bella's wedding, and since it was human-approved, I figured I should probably use it again."

"Well I'm sure they'll love it. Where did you get all the chairs? Surely they weren't just lying around the house; there were hundreds of them!"

"That's a Cullen Family secret." She smiled and winked, and I rolled my eyes. She probably just stole them from some department store or something.

We wove our way around the trees for a few minutes before the house finally came into view. The Denali cottage was actually quite homey, and had a sort of camouflage-color that made it blend in with its surroundings. I was almost positive nobody knew it was there; at least, not until everyone from school was invited to my wedding. As embarrassing as it was to be engaged as a junior, I knew perfectly well that the inhuman bond between Jack and I was too strong to ignore. Besides, technically I was a freshman for life, so it wasn't like I would ever be old enough to get married anyway.

We ran up into the bathroom as soon as we entered the house, and Alice immediately set to making me look 'fabulous.' Tanya came bounding up the stairs not long after, having heard the commotion.

"I'll do her hair," she offered. "I don't think it should just be hanging down like that on her special day." Alice smiled.

"I agree. Maybe you could braid it here and twist it around like this…" She wove her fingers around in my hair, showing Tanya how she thought it should look. Since I couldn't sleep through it, I decided to daydream.

I thought about Jack, and that first time we'd met. He came as an outgoing stranger that every girl seemed to stare at from the very first day. Even some of the popular guys had asked him to hang out with them, but e turned down there offer. He was standing right next to me when it happened, and though he didn't know me at all at the time, he still chose to hang around. I hadn't realized how lucky I was in that moment, but I certainly appreciated it now. I thought about that first time seeing him after my transformation, how wretched I felt for lying to him about something as simple as my eye color, about how the car crash only caused 'minor injuries' instead of 'it turned me into one of the undead.' I thought about just a few weeks ago, when I had first come back from Italy. Jack had made me a wonderful picnic to celebrate my homecoming, and to explain that he had told my parents he was my fiancé. I had a nice time with him while it lasted, but it was a very awkward conversation when I finally got home. We had to go through all the topics like 'are you sure you're ready for this?' and 'don't you think you're too young for such a commitment?' and 'are you sure it isn't because you're pregnant?' Wow.

"And… perfect! You are now officially done," Alice chirped, patting my face one last time with whatever make-up utensil she was holding. I blinked in surprise.

"It's time for the wedding?" I asked. I had really zoned out.

"Yes," Tanya replied, rolling her eyes. "Thinking about Jack, I presume?"

"You presume correctly," I retaliated smugly. "Come on, let's go. Daydreaming is one thing, but I'm ready to see my real Jack, in the flesh."

"Yeah, the stony, marble flesh," Tanya laughed.

"Hey, don't mock her!" Alice said. "It's her wedding day. You're right, Cassandra. Let's go get you a husband!"