So I haven't published anything in a few years... New account, new stories. This story is currently unbeta'd, so bear with me. I don't promise to be the best writer out there, but I plan to have fun with the characters and story line. Feedback and critiques are always appreciated!
Summary: When her best friend, Alice, gets engaged, Bella is thrilled to be the maid of honor. One thing she doesn't expect, though, is how charming Jasper's brother, business mogul Edward is... And how sexy the whole Southern accent thing can be. Best man/Maid of honor duties to ensue.
Chapter One: The Engagement
At the ripe age of 23, I am happy to report that I have only seriously planned out putting a hit on someone around five times.
It isn't an easy feat to count those times on one hand when one of the few people you consider a close friend is named Alice Brandon, has a tendency to get excited about anything and everything, and is the proud owner of a pair of pipes to match the lead singer of a heavy metal band.
A pair of pipes that apparently had decided waking me up at 7 am on a Saturday morning by shrieking in my ear was a fantastic idea, causing my overactive imagination to go all Ted Bundy on her.
Alice jumped on the bed with me, ignoring my muffled grunts.
"Bella! Bella Bella Bella, you'll never guess what happened last night. You have to guess!"
I pulled one of my pillows over my head, trying to ignore her for as long as humanly possible (not very, Alice could be extraordinarily annoying and was very persistent). I was beginning to regret giving her the spare key to my apartment, which she had deemed necessary for 'emergencies' soon after I had signed the lease. Said emergencies included showing up when she knew that I was at work and rearranging the contents of my living room, as well as trying to throw out any pairs of sweatpants I owned.
"Bella," she sighed in exasperation, shoving my shoulder none too gently. "This is important. And I know you have to be out in a couple hours to go to yoga with Rose anyways. I won't be there today." I groped around the bed with one hand, launching a spare pillow at the source of the sound and grinning to myself when I heard a resulting grunt.
My triumph didn't last very long, when she got serious and wrestled the pillow from over my face, throwing it on the floor in frustration before grabbing my face with two hands and forcing me to look at her.
"You're ruining my announcement!" she said irritably, jabbing me in the ribs with one hand. I scowled at her.
"For such a petite little shit, you sure can be violent." She shrugged, before her face melted into the look that Rose and I had dubbed the "Jasper face". I groaned, getting ready to voice more complaints at the early morning wake up call, but she slapped a hand over my mouth and started talking first.
"It happened last night," she squealed, and I squinted at her in confusion, shoving her hand away from my mouth.
"What are you talking about, Alice? It happened years ago, don't pretend like you were a virgin until last night… I heard all the sappy details about the candlelit dinner and night trying not to smack your head on the top bunk of the bed in Jasper's dorm freshman year."
She rolled her eyes. "No, dumbass, not that." Her voice raised several octaves when she spoke again. "He proposed. Bella, Jas and I are getting married!"
I sat up suddenly, shoving her off of me and down to the end of the bed, wide awake.
"Shut up. Alice!" She beamed at me, sticking her left hand in front of my face and wiggling her fingers to show off a flashy silver ring.
"I know!" she shouted, probably waking up all of my neighbors in the process. I grabbed at her hand, bringing it closer to my face so that I could properly inspect the rock. Jasper clearly knew his girlfriend- fiancé- well. The single diamond was huge, winking at me as I turned it in my hand.
"Al, I'm so happy for you," I sighed, letting go of her hand and tackling her in a hug, all of the animosity from minutes ago forgotten. She let us roll around for a few moments before shoving me off and sitting up, patting anxiously at her well coifed hair.
"It was so romantic, Bells," she said dreamily, sneaking a glance down at the glittering bauble on her finger, "I know you're not much for the whole sappy thing, but Bella." I laughed, waving my hand for her to spill all the details.
She eagerly clasped my hands in hers, and we both adjusted ourselves to sit cross-legged on the bed, knees brushing against each other, exactly how we had done in college.
"I had mentioned like, a month ago that I had never gone skating at Central Park, and apparently Jas loves to ice skate… He said that his parents used to take him and his brother all the time growing up. So he called Thursday night and told me to dress warm and that he'd pick me up around seven on Friday, and you know I love surprises, but I had no idea that he was going to propose!"
I laughed at her squeaky voice, squeezing her hands.
"So anyways, we got there and I was all happy because obviously ice skating is meant for girls to look cute and fragile and god, Bells, it's such a good couple activity, and thankfully I never fell on my butt even though Jasper did once because he was trying really hard to show off and damn is he a good skater plus he looks super cute in a scarf and stuff…" she trailed off, taking a moment to catch her breath before continuing her rant.
"And then the music changed- and Bells, he had asked them to play our song- and he got down on one knee and he had the ring- Bella, it's from Tiffany!- and let me tell you, getting down on one knee while ice skating does not look easy… And I was crying at this point and then he said, 'Mary Alice Brandon, would you do me the honor of marrying me?' Bells, he actually said 'do me the honor' like how perfect is that? And everyone skating saw it and it was honestly so perfect. I could barely even speak to answer him because I was crying so hard- not one of my finer moments but thankfully it wasn't really an ugly cry."
I rolled my eyes in amusement, knowing how much she would like the fact that they had an audience for it. Alice beamed at me, fresh tears threatening to spill from her eyes, and I released her hands to pull her into another long hug.
"And then afterwards we went to that cute little cupcake shop around the corner- I brought one of those salted caramel ones for you, it's on the counter- so we talked about it a little, and we haven't set an exact date yet because obviously we still have a lot of thinking to do, but I think we definitely want to get married around Christmas time next year- which doesn't even give me much time, that's only thirteen months away!"
I nodded, trying to keep up with the amount of information gushing from her mouth, thankful for the momentary reprieve when she looked at me with a wicked gleam in her eye.
"There is one detail I'm already set on though… And I talked to Jasper about it and he agreed so listen, Bells…" I quirked an eyebrow at her as she smiled tearily.
"Do you think you'd be my maid of honor?" I gaped at her for a moment, and she rushed on, "I know you're really not in love with the whole walking down an aisle thing but I promise the heels won't be too high so you won't trip and I really just want you there with me because I met you and Jasper around the same time anyways and you really are my best friend-" I cut her off, flashing a blinding smile.
"Al, of course I will!" This time it was her turn to tackle me, squeezing my waist so hard that I thought I might pop. When she let go, we lay side by side on our backs, fingers interlaced. "I'm so happy for you and Jasper," I said, turning my head to look at her. She stared up at the ceiling with a huge grin.
"Me too," she murmured, and we lay there in silence for a few minutes before she reluctantly got up.
"I asked my parents to meet me for breakfast so that I could tell them the news, otherwise I would stay here all day. I have to call Rose and tell her, too. Don't have too much fun without me at yoga!" I walked her to the door, giving her one last hug before the door shut behind her.
Engaged, wow. Though I can't say I was surprised- Alice and Jasper had been attached at the hip since they met, our second week of freshman year at NYU. They couldn't be less alike- Alice was a high maintenance city girl, while Jasper was quiet and spoke with a slow, steady Southern drawl.
I turned the coffee maker on and padded to the bathroom to take a quick shower before I had to meet up with Rose at the yoga studio down the street from my apartment. Saturday morning yoga had become a tradition for the two of us and Alice since we discovered the studio when I moved into the apartment after graduation.
Twenty minutes later, I was en route to the studio with a fresh cup of coffee in my hand and my mat tucked under my arm, thankful that the studio was close enough that I could walk rather than have to shovel my driveway to get my car out. Rose met me in the lobby before we ascended the stairs, a happy grin on her face.
"I take it Alice called you?" I asked, as she linked her arm with mine, careful not to spill my coffee.
"I heard you got the earliest wake up call," she said with a laugh, and I rolled my eyes. I thanked god every day for the fact that Rose was significantly lower key than Alice- the three of us had been inseparable once we met- Alice and I were roommates freshman year, and Rose had been just down the hall.
"No chatty today, ladies?" our instructor, Irina, asked as we laid out our mats, one of the last to arrive. Much to her chagrin, Alice liked to talk through the routines, interrupting everyone else's relaxation.
We laughed as we stretched, whispering to ourselves about the wedding and taking our bets on how much of a bridezilla Alice would be, despite the fact that she regularly dealt with weddings in a career as an event planner.
"I have heard Jasper's brother is like, majorly hot though, Bella," she murmured to me as we stretched out into our poses. I snorted, relaxing my muscles.
"Don't give Alice any ideas, I don't need to be set up with anyone. I'm perfectly happy being fifth wheel to you guys, Jasper, and Emmett."
Rosalie looked over at me, shaking her head. "I'm just saying, don't write it off… Maybe what you need is a little best man/maid of honor romance with a southern gentleman who probably has better than average skills in the sack, listening to what Alice says about Jasper."
A startled laugh erupted from my mouth, arms shaking, and I took several deep breaths to compose myself.
Still, the thought wasn't a bad one…
Like I said, feedback appreciated!
Until next time,
Seven