AN- Don't own Twilight (But guess what? Summit Entertainment has the movie rights to New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn!!!!! *SQUEE*)
As soon as we pulled into the driveway, I groaned. Of course, Alice would be Alice, and only Alice would decorate this lavishly for my birthday. I grumbled all the way to the house; Edward was snickering away the whole time. Traitor. He didn't warn me about this-not in the slightest. I sighed. I probably should have been expecting this. He stopped laughing as he cut the engine, and escorted me to the door.
When Edward and I walked inside, I was immediately crushed by a super-Emmett-bear-hug. "Can't…breathe…" I gasped, the same thing I always struggled to say whenever Emmett decided it was time to show me how life was as a human pancake. He put me down and grinned. "Happy birthday, favorite human! I can't wait until Edward bites you." Edward growled softly, and Emmett's grin grew wider. We all went into the main room where almost everyone else was waiting.
Carlisle was standing behind Esme, smiling warmly. Esme stepped forward to hug me. "Happy birthday," she said. I smiled at both of them, and turned to look for the others.
Rosalie and Emmett were standing the furthest away from me. Rosalie was glaring out the window; Emmett looked like he was trying to convince her of something. I inferred that 'something' was me. Rosalie still didn't like me much. Jasper was sitting on a couch, deep in thought. A flash off something reflective caught my eye, and I looked up in time to see Alice flying down the stairs, her arms full of silver-wrapped boxes. Crap. I knew they would ignore my pleas for no presents; the sight of Alice had crushed the last shred of hope that I had been desperately hanging onto. If this was what was going to happen every time I tried to refuse gifts, why should I waste my breath? They were never going to listen to me, and they liked to do this-no, that was an understatement. They loved to do this, and I would be hurting their feelings if I kept refusing. So, I sighed in defeat, accepting the inevitable.
As soon as I made the decision not to be difficult, a huge smile appeared on Alice's face. She dropped the boxes on the nearest table, and ran over to give me a hug. She misjudged the amount of force needed, and we both toppled over, laughing hysterically. Edward growled again, louder this time, and picked Alice and I up. We were both shaking so hard from our laughter that it was a miracle he could keep us up; Alice especially, but he did, then he put us on the couch.
After we stopped laughing, Alice jumped up and yelled to the room, "She's decided not to be difficult!" After glancing at me, she said, "Actually, she's completely and totally giving up. She's decided to join out ranks peacefully." She had no idea how true those words would become later on. (Oooh, foreshadowing!)
Carlisle and Esme were wearing twin expressions of happiness, mixed with disbelief. They were applauding lightly. Was I really that bad? Rosalie didn't appear to have heard, neither did Emmett. Jasper was shaking with silent laughter, registering the emotions of the room. Yes, I was really that bad. I looked at Edward last; his eyes were wide and hopeful. He looked like a child on Christmas morning, a child that had been told he might get a really big present, and he was anxious to see if it was true. I smiled reluctantly, abandoning all hope, and his eyes grew impossibly wider. After a second, he…disappeared. I looked at Alice questioningly, asking, "Where'd he go?" She just shook her head. She wasn't going to tell me. "No, Bella, I would tell you, but he's running through things too fast for me to catch any of them. I'll tell you, from personal experience, that all his ideas would usually make you run away and hide until he gave up trying to make you accept them, but in light of recent decisions, " She paused and grinned evilly, "I don't think you have a choice." I sighed, and sat back on the couch to await the torture.
It took a long time for Edward to come back. While we were waiting, we decided to play a game. Twister. The worst possible game for me. I saw Rosalie leave the room; Emmett looked after her, then shrugged, and looked at me, grinning when he caught my eye. He came over and joined us on the edge of the mat. I turned back to everyone else, and saw Carlisle and Esme preparing to play. My eyebrows shot up, and Alice grinned. I glanced at jasper; he gave me an apologetic half-smile and sat back into the couch with the spinner. I noticed then that his irises were unusually dark. I was suddenly afraid; would it be safe for me to be in such close proximity with vampires, without Edward here? Jasper picked up on my worry, and said, "Bella. You're not scared of us, are you? Talk about seriously delayed reactions." Everyone roared with laughter, and I smiled sheepishly. This was my family. They wouldn't hurt me. Jasper laughed quietly again, and returned to lounging on the couch.
"Left foot red," he called. So far so good. I giggled a little bit at the color. Everyone looked at me, waiting for an explanation. "Red," I told them. They all started laughing again, Emmett was the loudest. "Only Bella would make that connection!" Jasper chuckled from the couch, and continued calling out. 'This wasn't a bad birthday at all', I thought to myself. It was probably one of the best I'd ever had. Every time something was red, we all would start laughing.
It was inevitable. After about the fifth call, I slipped on the mat, and fell, taking almost everyone down with me. Alice, having foreseen this, was the only one left standing. She grinned at our tangled mess, and said, "Again!"
After a countless number of games, I heard Edward come in the door. In my haste to get to him, I tripped over someone, and hit my head on the corner of the table. I immediately smelled blood, and I froze.
-Cliffhanger, wheee! Sorry, I thought it was a good place to end the chapter. 5 reviews, and I'll update. Something very different from what happened in New Moon happens, I'm not saying what, b/c it would ruin it, but I will say that it doesn't cause Edward to leave. (yay!)