A/N:
Proposing
Today was going to be the day and I was nervous. Alice had assured me many times already that it would all be fine, although she wouldn't show me the specifics, she thought Bella's reaction should be a surprise. It frustrated me not to know. Especially with me not being able to read Bella's thoughts, I know she preferred it that way but it made things so much harder for me. Luckily her face was more like a book, it was easy to read, but I would love to actually hear what she's thinking. Especially at times like this. The suspense is killing me.
Bella and I have been a couple for a little over three years now and everything is going well. She has her heart set on becoming a vampire like me so she can be with me forever. And I'm not against the idea of having her in my arms forever, I would love nothing more, but I don't want her to become a monster, unable to live a normal life, because of me. I had been able to convince her to try her hand at college first and she had agreed, as long as I promised to change her after she thinks she has had the full college experience. I couldn't resist her in anything when she was pleading.
But I had some plans of my own first. I wouldn't turn her until I had humanly acceptable proof that she would be mine forever. I knew it was silly because she had showed me her love for me so many times already, but I wanted to do everything right, the way I was raised.
I had brought up the idea of marriage before, and Bella had been appalled, surely that was more than a year ago and she didn't want to marry straight out of high school and everything. Especially since her idea of marriage came from the only two role models she had, her parents, and their marriage had not worked out at all, they had married too soon and it hadn't turned out well. But the images I had of marriage were all filled with love, not just from my siblings and my adoptive parents but also from my biological parents. I didn't remember much of them as it was but I knew they had been very happy together and I wanted exactly the same for me and my Bella.
I looked over to the clock on the wall and I noticed it was already nine in the morning. Charlie would probably be awake by now. I had told Bella yesterday that I would be going on a hunting trip with my family that night. It wasn't the entire truth but it wasn't a lie either. I had quickly fed on some local wildlife before returning to the house with Alice to prepare for tonight. I was going to ask for Bella's hand in marriage and I was going to do it right!
It was Saturday so I knew Charlie would be home and Bella would be off to work by now. I was quickly going to pop by their house to ask Charlie's permission, it was really old-fashioned I know, but since that was the way I was raised, that was the way it was going to be. I was pretty sure Charlie would be shocked. But he had been nothing but happy about Bella and me from the moment we started dating, we never had an argument or anything of the sort and Charlie liked how happy his daughter was because of me. I had made Forks more fun according to her and Charlie had been scared that she might have the same response to the environment sooner or later as his ex-wife had had, but in his eyes I had prevented that from happening. So I hoped for the best when I was driving towards the Swan residence.
"Edward!" Charlie exclaimed in surprise, "I'm sorry boy but Bella isn't in, she went to work, didn't you know?" Of course I knew, she always went to work early Saturday morning.
"I know Charlie, I actually came here to talk to you."
"Oh," he said a little taken aback, "what is it you want to discuss?"
"Can we maybe go inside and sit down?" I asked politely.
"Sure, come in," he said hesitantly.
I followed Charlie to the living room where he sat down in his favorite chair and gestured me to take a seat on the couch. I sat down and was gathering all my courage. Even though Charlie liked me, that didn't mean he would like me to steal away his daughter from him for good. But his thoughts were peaceful for now, curious, but not suspicious or angry or anything out of the ordinary.
"Alright, I guess I'll just get right to the point then, no reason to beat around it," I said a little nervously.
Charlie noticed and suspicion rose to the surface in his mind. "That's usually the best," he said encouragingly.
"Right," I muttered, here goes nothing, "Well as you know, Bella and I have been dating for over three years now," I could hear his mental uh oh, but I ignored it, "and things are really going well. We'll be off to college soon and since we're going there together I'd like to do it right. I guess what I came here for is to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage," I blurted out quickly, unsure if he had really been able to hear it all but from the look on his face and the thoughts in his mind he had understood the gist of it. He was shocked but he wasn't angry.
"I didn't know kids these days still asked for permission like that," he said with a small smile around his lips.
"It's the way I've been raised, it might be a little outdated but according to my parents that's the way a gentleman is supposed to go about it," I explained simply.
"I guess that's right," he muttered more to himself than me. "Well, Edward, you're a good kid and you've done nothing but treat my daughter with respect, I can see that you make her really happy and as long as you promise to take really good care of her, you'll have my blessing." Saying these many words, especially ones involving such emotion, was unusual for Charlie and I could see that he was really touched by the gesture. He wasn't happy that it meant that his daughter was going to leave him but he also knew that she would leave sooner or later even without marrying me. So he couldn't really object.
"I promise to treat her right Charlie, I will never do anything to hurt her, you have my word," I pledged solemnly.
"Good," he muttered and he got up to shake my hand. I knew the conversation was over so I got up from my seat as well and shook his hand.
"Thank you Charlie," I said sincerely.
"No problem kid," he replied with a smile on his face.
We said our goodbyes and I walked out the door feeling very happy and satisfied. I immediately called Alice with the good news. I knew she already knew how it would go but I wanted to share it with her nonetheless.
"I told you it would all work out fine!" she gushed the moment she picked up the phone.
"Yes you did, but you wouldn't show me so I didn't know!" I told her teasingly.
"You should just trust me! I know these things!" she told me mock sternly.
"Anyways, I'll be home in a few minutes, will you help me finish up?" I already knew the answer, Alice loved organizing parties and romantic settings, so she was thrilled that I had asked her help for this very special occasion.
"Of course Edward!" she gushed, "It's all going to be so romantic! You'll both love it, you'll see!" she said excitedly.
"Right, see you in a bit," I told her before hanging up the phone.
I spent the rest of the day preparing for my date with Bella tonight. Alice would go over to her house and force Bella to put on something nice. I had begged Alice not to bother but she wouldn't listen, no surprise there, she said this was all going to be perfect and in her eyes it could never be perfect if Bella showed up in jeans and a sweater. I couldn't care less but she had been such a great help today I couldn't deny her a little more fun. She had promised me she would go easy on Bella as much as she could. Although I knew that still meant hours of suffering for Bella and I felt sorry for her. I hoped tonight would make up for it though.
I had never been this nervous in my existence and I felt really uncomfortable the entire time. Even Jasper's waves of calm didn't seem to help much. I was practically bouncing with nervous energy. So when it was five to seven I dashed out the door and raced over to Bella's, I had promised her I'd be there at seven sharp. So I was there four minutes to seven and I was just sitting in my car, watching the clock slowly crawl closer to seven. When the last minute was finally up I got out of my car and sprinted toward the front door.
Charlie answered the door and he took in my appearance. He noticed I was a little edgy and he grinned at me.
"Hi Edward, I believe Bella will be right there, you look very nice," he said while winking at me conspiringly. He knew what I was about to do and he found my appearance very amusing and somewhat endearing, it was nice to hear in his mind that he was truly happy Bella had found me, he thought I was good for her. I could hear his chuckle in his mind and he was reminded of the day he had asked Renée to marry him.
I heard Bella on the top of the stairs, telling Alice she truly couldn't descend those stairs in those heels and it made me curious. Alice was the first to descend and she had a huge smirk on her face.
"Gentlemen, I'd like you to meet the new Bella Swan," she announced proudly and I saw something fly in front of her eyes. Had Bella just seriously thrown something at Alice? I looked over to see what it was and there was a small stuffed bear on the floor. I chuckled and Alice glared at me. "Just get your butt down here Miss Swan," she yelled upstairs sternly.
Charlie couldn't help but chuckle with me and it took all our strength not to tumble over with laughter when Alice shot us another glare.
Just watch the damn stairs Edward she told me annoyed It'll be worth it! she promised a little softer.
So I complied and stared up the stairs, waiting for Bella to come down. Slowly I saw a pair of legs come down, followed by the most beautiful creature I had ever seen. Bella was truly beautiful. Alice had put her in a blue dress, the same color as the blue blouse Bella owned, she knew how much I loved that color on her skin, her hair was up and she looked fabulous. I wasn't able to take my eyes away from her anymore.
Bella noticed my stare and the moment she looked into my eyes she tried to hurry down the stairs. I knew she was going to trip so I quickly walked over to give her my hand and lead her down the last few steps.
"You look amazing," I whispered into her ear before kissing her cheek.
"You're not so bad yourself," she replied while blushing, referring to my black tux.
I told you it would be worth it Alice thought smugly. And I just nodded infinitesimally in the general direction of where she was standing, unable to take my eyes away from Bella.
"Have fun kids," Charlie said suggestively while flashing me a grin the moment I looked at him.
"Thank you Charlie," I replied sincerely, unable to stop myself from grinning back.
We were out the door and I was leading Bella to the passenger seat of my car. I opened the door for her and buckled her seatbelt. When I knew she was all set I walked over to my side and got in.
"Ready?" I asked her.
"Sure, where are we going?"
"That's a surprise," I told her with a smirk.
She raised her eyebrows suspiciously but didn't pry, I was thankful for that.
We spent the short drive in silence, I guessed we were both nervous about tonight but I wouldn't know why Bella would be nervous. We had been on dates before and Alice had played dress-up with her on more than one of those occasions. Unless Alice had let something slip. I would kill her if that was the case.
I parked the car in the parking lot and helped Bella out. I held her hand as we walked towards a nice restaurant my father had recommended. How he had known about this particular restaurant was beyond me but I was grateful because it turned out to be a wonderful place. The restaurant was inside a fancy hotel and even though the space was very large, it was still cozy and when the waiter took us to our seats, continuously eying Bella in admiration, which frustrated me, I noticed that there were separate private booths and luckily Alice had reserved one of those for Bella and me. I didn't need anyone watching us tonight.
"You've been very quiet, is everything alright?" Bella asked worried. I hoped she didn't think I wasn't having a good time, that would surely not be of any help.
"I'm fine love, just taking it all in, you look truly beautiful tonight," I told her honestly.
"Thank you," she said while blushing.
The rest of the dinner was lovely, according to Bella the food was delicious and we had been chatting happily the entire time, reminiscing about the first time we had sat in a restaurant together, protective as I had been of her then it was a good thing I had followed her to Port Angeles and was able to find her in time. The thought of those men still made me shiver with anger. But I was surprised when Bella confessed that it had been one of her favorite nights despite everything.
After Bella had finished her desert I paid the bill and we were ready to leave. As we walked out the door the waiter shot Bella one last longing glance and I couldn't stop myself from scowling at him, he flinched and quickly looked away. I thought I saw Bella smile a little and I hoped she hadn't noticed my weakness but she didn't say anything so I would never know.
We were in my car again and I was driving towards our next destination, where I would propose. I was getting more nervous by the minute, I loved this girl more than anything in the world and I couldn't wait to marry her but there was a small part that, despite Alice's promise, was scared that Bella would turn me down.
I drove quicker than usual and Bella seemed to notice because she was clinging to her seat even more than she already did when I was driving 'slowly', right now I just couldn't wait to get there and see her reaction.
I parked the car near the entrance of the forest and Bella seemed to know where we were. There goes that part of the surprise but I hadn't truly expect her to not know our location.
"You're making me hike?" she asked incredulously.
"No silly girl, I'm running, don't worry about the dress, I'll be careful," I told her teasingly.
I picked her up bridal-style and she let out a squeal in surprise. I chuckled and before long I was running at my fastest to get to our meadow. Bella had put her arms around me and snuggled into my chest, her scent was delicious and I kissed the top of her head or rested my cheek on her hair every now and then, every time I would let out a sigh of contentment.
We reached our meadow quickly and I put Bella down on her feet a few feet away from the clearing.
"Don't look," I whispered in her ear, she shivered, and then I placed my hand over her eyes. I led her to the edge of the meadow and there I froze. Alice had done a truly amazing job. She had put candles in the form of a huge heart in the middle of the meadow and she had given me the instructions to kneel down in the middle of the heart and propose. I had gladly agreed to it, since that had been my plan from the start, which was the only reason Alice had suggested it to begin with.
I walked Bella into the meadow and situated her in front of the heart, right at the tip of it. Then I reluctantly released her but not before telling her to keep her eyes closed for just a little while longer. When I was certain she had complied I walked towards the middle of the heart on the floor. If my heart had still been beating it would have been racing by now. I felt butterflies violently attacking my stomach and I was so nervous I felt like my entire body was trembling. Then I took a good look at the creature standing before me, the most loving, sweet and caring person in the whole world and she loved me. All my worries disappeared instantly and I knelt down on one knee and pulled out my mother's ring.
"Alright, you can open your eyes love," I told her, I heard my voice was a little shaky still from the excitement and I hoped she wouldn't be able to hear.
Bella slowly opened her eyes and when she saw the candles she gasped. Then her eyes searched for me and the moment she spotted me sitting in the middle of the candles and her eyes grew wide, immediately guessing my plan. She didn't speak, she just gazed at me and stood there, not moving. I grew a little nervous again but I forced myself to utter the words.
"Bella, I love you with all that I am, will you honor me with your hand in marriage?" I asked her solemnly.
She just stood there, the suspense was killing me. Then I heard her heart accelerate even further and tears started to fill her eyes. She carefully closed the distance between us by stepping into the heart of candles.
She stood in front of me, with watery eyes and she looked very touched. "I love you too Edward, so much," she murmured, "I would love nothing more than to be your wife," she said sincerely while beaming at me. I felt a victorious smile spread across my face and I couldn't contain the butterflies I was feeling anymore. This beautiful girl had just agreed to be mine forever. I kissed every single finger on her hand before I slid the ring on the right finger. Then I scooped her up into my arms and started kissing her. She kissed me back with so much emotion and passion it made my head swim. I was going to marry Bella, my life couldn't be more perfect.
A/N: Well that was it for my supply of fluff for you guys for now. I hope you enjoyed it :) If only Edward would propose to me (A) *sigh* Anyways, thanks for reading, don't forget to review :)
Until next time,
Xxx,
Thari