A/N: I've done it...once again. Uploading a new story before the others are done, but I just can't help it. So many ideas are flying around in my head and I just have this incredible need to share them. Plus, this story has been voted for the most on my poll :D
Disclaimer: Well, if I was Stephenie Meyer, I would not be writing this right now, would I?
I tossed and turned in my bed. Tomorrow was the day that I'd been dreading for years.
My twenty-fourth birthday.
Most people would probably think I was being overdramatic and that I wasn't even old enough to worry about getting older, but the truth was, I wasn't scared of aging. I feared what was awaiting me tomorrow.
To explain that a bit better, I'll need to start at the beginning.
In my family, marriage had never been a thing that was associated with love. My great-great-grandfather was the one who started this whole mess by marrying a barroness. After her father passed away, he inherited his title and they had a kid together. That's when it all started. You see, they decided who was a fitting husband for their daughter and so she ended up marrying a young duke. When they had a son, he had to marry an earl's daughter. One day, my grandparents had this splendid idea. They decided to found a company that supported engineers and inventors of all kinds, and for that, they moved to the United States. Oh, did I forget to mention that my family was orginally from Europe? Whoops.
In the beginning, they were quite successful with their business, but after some time, they began having trouble with their company, and so they had yet another brilliant idea: have their daughter, who also happens to be my mother, marry the son of the founder of a pharmaceutical company. I now call said son 'Daddy'. This did not only fuse together their families, but also their companies. Back then, it was a pharmaceutical business that was constantly searching for new cures and such, and allowed scientists from all around the globe to present their ideas to them.
And that brings us to the problem at hand. I've been bespoken for ever since the day I was born. Hell, ever since the day I was conceived.
The reason for this all was actually quite simple. My dad wanted to take the company - yes, it still exists - to another level and he'd found the perfect partner to do so. The thing was, neither of them actually had financial issues or anything of the sort, but my dad was interested in earning more money and getting a proper husband for his beloved daughter, and nobody in their right mind would say no to the nobility, the power connected with it, and of course, the money.
Apart from the money we made with the company, we still had the family heir, so if there was any danger for the company, there would still be more than enough money in our bank accounts to save it.
This kind of assurance convinced Mr. Carlisle Cullen and his wife, Esme, to agree to this marriage. That, and the fact that their family also had a tendency to lean toward arranged marriages. So I'd been engaged to their youngest son ever since I was born. Anyway, enough with the family history, let's get to the part that has me laying awake in bed at 3AM.
My whole life, I'd never met my husband-to-be. Well, okay, that wasn't entirely true. Our parents had decided to let us grow up together, so we wouldn't be too freaked out about all of this arranged marriage stuff because in our time, arranged just wasn't how things were done. The thing was, we lived in beautiful, sunny Phoenix, and the Cullens lived at home in Chicago, so we didn't grow up together, but we did meet a few times when we were little. Edward had been to a few of my birthday parties, and I'd honored him with my presence a couple of times. Only, neither of us liked that very much. Back then, we were at the age where girls had princess parties and boys dresses up as pirates, so we'd convinced our parents that we didn't want to go to eachother's birthdays anymore. They tried to make us call eachother at least once a week once I turned thirteen and discovered the practical use of the telephone, but that didn't go over too well either. So our parents decided to let us be kids for a while longer, and then my family would move to Chicago once I turned eighteen.
Well, we did move, but I didn't go with them because I was off to college. Princeton had been my destination, my obligation, my goal, and I didn't leave the place until I majored in the English language and was ready to move the world with my words. On my twenty-first birthday, my parents had sent me the engagement ring that had been specifically chosen by Edward, my...fiancé. Back then, I downright refused to acknowledge the stunning diamonds that rimmed the pearl in the middle.
After college, we were supposed to get married, but plans changed once again. Edward had accompanied his father, who'd been planning to fly all across Africa, to do some research on the HIV virus.
Edward had just gotten out of medical school, so he wanted to use his newly acquired skills. Everyone expected me to agree to this, of course, because the family had suddenly decided that it was up to me whether or not Edward was allowed to go. As soon as Edward got wind of this news, he'd called me to practically beg me to let him go. I didn't tell him that he didn't have to beg - I mean, it's not like I had some sort of ownership of him - but I did tell him that he could go because I was definitely not prepared for that marriage. As a matter of fact, I would never be ready for the marriage, but now there was no going back.
Edward had been back at home for about half a year - a bit earlier than expected - which is why I wasn't in the country at the time. I'd decided to use the duration of his absence to do some travelling on my own and I'd actually just returned from India yesterday. So not only was tomorrow my birthday, but it was also the day I was set to meet the wedding planner, who happened to be my future sister-in-law, and I was supposed to meet Edward before Saturday because our families planned to have dinner together at a charity event soon.
With all of this flying around my head, while cursing my family for being powerful and wealthy, it was no surprise that I couldn't sleep.
"Isabella, wake up!" I heard a familiar voice command sharply. I heard that someone pull my curtains aside to let the sunlight in.
I pulled the covers over my heaed and turned, completely disregarding the fact that I should get up. I'd been lying awake in bed for hours and now I wanted nothing more than to sleep. Plus, I also had jetlag since I'd only come back from travelling yesterday.
"Isabella Marie Swan! Get up!" Now that she was shouting, her accent was seeping through strongly. My grandmother had come from Italy, all the way to the US, just to be present for my wedding. Normally, that would be cute. But my Granny was not at all cute. I'd actually been extremely relieved when she and grandpa decided to move back to their home country a few years back.
"Mom, let me try," I heard the much gentler voice of my mother say.
A huff came from my grandmother before I heard her stomping out of the room.
"Bella, I know you're not sleeping anymore, so please get up - you have a very busy day today."
I groaned and stirred a little, but made no more effort to move.
"Bella, if you don't get up now, I'll allow your grandmother to do whatever she pleases with you," my mother threatened.
"Fine. I'm up, I'm up," I grumbled as I threw the covers off of myself and sat up. When I finally managed to open my eyes, I frowned at the room around me. I was currently staying in my parents' castle/mansion, and as much as I love plush king-sized beds, I didn't like the rest of the room. The whole house was decorated like a castle and this room was certainly no exception. It looked like one of those princess bedrooms people usually see on television.
My mom stepped out of the closet and laid a few articles of clothing on the chair in front of the dresser before she waltzed into the bathrom. By the sounds of it, she was drawing me a bath. I smiled fondly at that. She'd never been the real maternal type because she was always a little bit too childish, and definitely too spoiled for that, but she always tried her hardest and sometimes, she got things right. Like now, for instance. A bath was the perfect thing to help relax my tense muscles.
The water was still running when my mom stepped back into the room. She came to my side and sat softly on the edge of the bed, then pulled me into a tight embrace.
"Happy birthday, my sweet darling girl. May all your dreams come true on this special day," she gushed, then sighed. "I really hope you and Edward get along well."
"Thanks, Mom," I replied, my voice still thick with sleep.
She smiled kindly at me before getting up and moving toward the door. "We woke you up extra early today so you have two hours to get ready and eat breakfast, then Alice will be here to spend the rest of the day with you. She's a very sweet girl."
"Alice is Edward's sister, right?" I asked carefully. I hadn't been too sure about her name.
My mom turned around to look at me in shock. "Bella, you have to know these things," she said with wide-eyes, speaking in a somewhat scolding tone. "Alice is going to be your sister-in-law in a few weeks."
"Sorry, sorry. It won't happen again," I grumbled and moved to the bathroom to get away from my mother's disapproving eyes.
The tub was full now, so I quickly turned off the water before I stripped my pajamas and settled into the hot water. I sighed contently as soon as I sat in the tub, and in that moment, I couldn't imagine anything better than that. I drifted off, enjoying the relaxing feel of the water, and let my hands wander over my body every now and then. Hopefully Edward would be hot or at least average, otherwise I'd start thinking about cheating on my husband. Maybe we would have a hot Latino butler who'd be willing to do everything for me...
I hadn't realized that I was touching myself until the banging on the door no longer matched the one in my fantasies.
"Bella?" Mom called frantically.
"Yeah?" I answered, slightly frustrated that she'd interrupted me.
"You have to hurry up. Alice is already on her way here. She called a moment ago to let us know that she would be here a little earlier," my mother answered.
"I'll be right out," I called in a voice that clearly showed just how unmotivated I was. I stepped out of the tub and into the shower to rinse myself off before I quickly jumped out and wrapped myself in a warm, cottony soft towel.
I already knew that today wasn't going to be a very good day. Not only was I tired beyond belief, and extremely unenthusiastic, but now I was also sexually frustrated because my mother had interrupted me and Pablo, my imaginary butler.
I bent down and started to blow dry my hair. I always dried my hair with my head upside down because I found it easier to brush and dry at the same time when my hair was dangling down. When I finished getting out all of the knots, I ran my fingers through my hair and swung my head back up, shaking it quickly and ruffling through my hair once.
Now that I had enough volume in my hair, and it didn't look like I'd just combed it, I was satisfied enough to get dressed.
Lucky for me, no one was in my room when I returned. I looked at the outfit my mother had chosen for me to wear; a cute, short white dress with a black bow on the bustline. It was nice, but not really my style. It looked a little too...nice. I sighed and put it on anyway. I wouldn't want to upset the parents on a day like today.
Edward had better appreciate this because he definitely isn't seeing this dress on me ever again.
I slipped into the white wedge heels that went with the dress and almost cried at how simple and cute the outfit was. I had nothing against cute, but this just made me look so innocent and young; it definitely wasn't the look I was aiming for. I really needed to speak to my mother again about letting me dress myself.
I fluffed my hair once more and went to grab the matching purse when I froze.
There it was, lying on my dresser just waiting for me to put it on.
I sat down in front of the dresser and gazed at it before reaching out and grabbing my mascara instead. For some reason, I started applying it to my eyelashes.
"Isabella, are you ready?" I heard my grandmother's voice from down the corridor.
"I'll be out in a minute," I yelled back and stared at the thing again. I sighed and reached for it, then slipped the ring on the ring finger of my left hand where it belonged. I'd only worn it once before - on the day I'd received it - and I'd taken it off after only a second.
I felt it's weight and knew it had less to do with the rock on it and more with the fact that reality was starting to caught up with me. I had no chance of running away anymore, and I had no more excuses left. I had to face my destiny and live with it. I gulped. My destiny was to be wed to Edward and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it.
I sighed once more and then moved out of my room.
"It's about time, Isabella," my grandmother complained. She'd been standing in front of my door.
If I wasn't so tired right now, I would've snapped something back at her. My grandmother and I weren't known to get along. She was a very traditional, strict person, and I was...well, I was just about the exact opposite of what she wanted in a granddaughter. She partly blamed my mother for being a bad parent.
I swept passed her and skipped down the entirely-too-large staircase that led to the monstrously large entrance hall. The kitchen was behind the stairs and I quickly rushed into it before Granny Swan made it downstairs.
"Happy birthday, Bella," Laurent, our family cook, spoke in that oh-too-cheerful voice of his. Laurent had been cooking for us ever since I was ten years old. Now he was standing in this oversized kitchen with a marzipan cake in his hands.
"Aw," I cooed. "You don't know how much I've missed that cake. Thank you," I pulled him into a hug, careful not to harm the cake.
"It's nice to know you missed the cake," he said, sounding a bit offended.
I moved to the fridge to get some cherry-banana juice. Laurent handed me a glass before I could even start looking for one.
"Oh, you know I missed you too; there isn't a single person in the world that can cook like you," I said and smiled brightly at him. Laurent had always been one of the few people in the house who could actually brighten my mood instantly. When I was little, I used to make fun of his French accent, which honestly, I still did every now and then.
"Sure there is - I've taught you well," he replied nonchalantly.
"Yes, but you didn't teach me everything," I said. "When are you going grocery shopping?" I sat on the island in the middle of the kitchen with a bowl of cereal and started munching happily.
"You know, there is a special breakfast here that I made just for you. Your mother spent a whole day deciding what you should have for your birthday breakfast," Laurent told me and motioned toward the dining room.
Behind the stove was a big hatch, which was now closed. It was usually only ever open when my mom threw dinner parties and wanted to show off her amazing French cook. I always rolled my eyes at that.
"Oh, please, you know I don't care much for those fancy breakfasts. Besides, my grandmother will probably be in there, so I'll just have to make do with cereal."
"Hmm," he hummed in a musing tone. "I thought this might happen, so I was kind and made some waffles for you, but if you'd rather eat ce—"
"Shit! Why didn't you say so earlier? You know I'd die for your waffles, Laurent. Give 'em to me!" I exclaimed and nearly threw down the cereal bowl so I could reach my greedy hands out.
Laurent chuckled and went around the counter, grabbing a plate with his delicious waffles on it out of the oven. He then went to the fridge and put some whipped cream on top with a single strawberry.
"Enjoy, ma chérie," he handed me the plate and laughed at my sparkling happy eyes.
"Laurent, I swear I love you," I muttered threw my mouth which was now stuffed with waffles. "Will you marry me?"
He laughed again. "I don't think your parents would be too impressed by that."
"Fuck that. We can run away and change our names. They'll never find us."
Laurent rolled his eyes.
I swallowed quickly. "You didn't answer my question, by the way."
"About the grocery shopping?"
I nodded.
"Actually, I was planning to do that today. Would you like to come along?"
"Hell yeah!" I shouted and jumped off the counter, only to halt my motions and frown. "But I can't, I have an exclusive meeting with my wedding planner slash future sister-in-law."
"Oh, Alice is coming here? Why did I not know that?"
"You're just the cook, nobody tells you anything," I answered as I skipped to the sink to wash my plate.
"If you want to eat my waffles ever again, it'd be wise of you to keep those things to yourself," he threatened.
"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled with a small giggle. Just then, the doorbell rang. "Oh fuck," I cursed to myself and quickly dried my hands. "How do I look?" I asked Laurent, fluffing my hair yet again and straightening out my dress.
"As gorgeous as always, of course. Although you do look more like the nice version of yourself," Laurent commented while his eyes roamed over my outfit, inspecting it.
"Thanks for reminding me," I replied dryly. "My mother chose this outfit. Can't you tell?"
"She is aware of the fact that you are twenty-four now, right?"
"I'm not sure about that," I shrugged. "But today, I'm also going to meet future count Edward—"
"What? You're finally meeting him? Why didn't you tell me this? Oh darling, no wonder you're so out of it today," Laurent suddenly squeaked, sounding like a teenage girl.
"I am not out of it," I protested.
"Oh really? So you let your mother dress you everyday? That's a perfectly normal occurrance for you, huh?" He raised his eyebrows.
"Shut up," I murmured and threw the dish towel at him.
"Okay, tell you what. I'll hold off on the grocery shopping and do it tomorrow so you can come along - if," he stressed as he saw my hopeful expression, "you tell me all about him. Deal?"
"Deal," I agreed just as I heard the piercing voice of my grandmother scream my name throughout the house. I sighed. "Why can't I have a cute old, wrinkly grandma who likes to tell stories instead of the devil's mistress?"
"We both know you're not the type of girl that deserves a cute granny - you're almost as devilish as she is," Laurent chuckled.
"Fuck you, Laurent," I sang and danced out of the kitchen.
"Love you too," I heard him call after me.
"Isabella, what were you doing in the kitchen?" My grandmother thundered as she suddenly stood in front of me.
I opened my mouth to answer her question in the normal Bella manner when I noticed a tiny figure in the entrance hall talking to my mother.
That must be Alice. I'd never imagined her to be that tiny.
Laurent decided to answer granny for me. "Isabella," he said in a mocking tone as he stuck his head out of the kitchen, "wanted to know what I planned to serve at the wedding."
My grandmother still didn't look very pleased, but she nodded anyway and then led me toward my mother and Alice. "If you wanted to know what was on the menu, you could have simply asked Mary-Alice - she knows everything concerning your wedding. There's no need for you to associate with the houseworkers, Isabella. It was cute when you were little, but you're all grown up now," she scolded on our way.
"Oh, you've seen the menu? Don't you just love it?" the tiny girl in front of me asked as my grandmother finished her little rant.
"Um, yeah. I love it," I muttered halfheartedly.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Al—"
My grandmother made a sound of disapproval, cutting her off.
"—Mary-Alice Whitlock," the girl corrected with a smile that didn't look nearly as carefree as it had a second ago. "You're wedding planner and sister-in-law-to-be. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too. I'm Bella," I replied.
"Isabella," my grandmother said with emphasis, "wants to take part in the wedding preparations. She also needs to choose a wedding gown, as well as set a wedding date with Edward."
"We don't have a wedding date, but we're already in the middle of preparations?" I asked in disbelief, looking at each of them as if they'd lost their minds.
"We're not in the middle of preparations, we only started last week. Nothing has been finalized yet—I merely created a few options for you to choose from if you want to, and we already have a vague time frame," Alice told me, her smile bright again.
"The preparations need at least a month, so you can choose any date from then on," my mother told me gently.
"I don't want it to me any more than two months from now," my grandmother threw in.
I restrained myself from strangling her and instead turned to Alice. "So what do we do today?"
She seemed to be rather ecstatic that I'd asked her that specific question. Now that I really got a good look at her, I realized how much she resembled a tiny pixie with her short black hair neatly combed down and a purple flower in her hair, matching the purple dress she was wearing. Her mixed colored eyes seemed to glow and her tiny body dance around gracefully.
She was like a cute little toy.
"Well, I thought I would introduce you to the people that you and I will be dealing with from now on. The florist expects us today at 11:30 and it's already—" she looked at her watch, "Holy crap, it's already 10:45!" She grabbed my arm and pulled me along as she rushed toward the front door.
"Bye Mom," I managed to call before the door closed and Alice practically threw me inside the limousine.
"Hurry up or we're going to be late for our meeting with the florist," Alice called to the driver before she put the window up. "Sorry about that," she said to me as I positioned myself more comfortably from the awkward heap I'd landed in when Alice threw me.
"Don't worry about it," I told her while I fluffed my hair.
"Okay, I'll just break down today's agenda for you. We're going to meet the florist because he already has a few ideas that he wants to show you. After that, we'll go to my workshop so I can take your measurements, and later we'll meet Edward for lunch and go see the real estate agent so you can look at some houses and apartments. Then you should come to my office with me—I have some ideas for wedding themes and you can decide on one. Afterwards, we'll have dinner with my brother, his wife, and my husband," she'd been looking at a personal organizer the whole time which probably contained today's schedule.
I sighed. It was going to be a long day and I wasn't sure if I could behave for that many hours. I looked out the window and watched the scenery of the city life. From the corner of my eye, I saw Alice watching me.
"Aren't you at all curious?" she asked me with surprise in her voice.
"About what?"
"Your fiancé."
I cringed at the term. I hated thinking of myself being engaged. I glanced down at my left hand before I turned to face Alice again.
"Is there anything to be curious about?"
"Well, I don't know," she answered. "I was just wondering why you aren't asking any questions. A normal person would."
"I don't exactly consider myself normal. Did Edward ask about me?"
"No, he didn't, but he didn't have to because your parents always go on and on about the great things you've done and what a brilliant student you are and how beautiful you are," Alice giggled.
"Well then, tell me something about Edward."
Alice's face turned thoughtful. "Easier said then done," she mumbled after a while.
"Isn't he your brother? You must be able to tell me something. What's his favorite food?"
"I don't know. I don't think he has a favorite food. Oh wait, I know he likes mushroom ravioli," Alice smiled proudly.
"Do I even want to know what kind of person he is if his own sister doesn't even know his favorite food?"
"He's really nice, I swear. It's just...well, Edward is a bit more serious than the rest of us."
"Does that mean he's no fun at all?"
"No. He's just not as open as other people, especially not around strangers. He's been like that ever since we finished high school."
"So he's no fun," I concluded in a grumble before crossing my legs in a swift motion.
Alice looked like she was trying to fix the first impression she'd just created. "I'm sure the two of you will get along perfectly. You're both very intelligent and judging by the way you're dressed, you might actually have similar tastes."
"I doubt that. My mom wanted me to wear this. I think she was afraid that I might put on some ripped jeans, which is totally ridiculous; I haven't worn them in years."
"So you don't usually dress like this?"
"No way in hell."
"Thank God. I was scared you were going to be like Ed—" the look that I gave her silenced her. Then she sighed. "I give up. You'll have to meet him yourself to know if he's bearable or not. I mean, I love him—he's my brother—but he can be difficult."
"Is he at least hot?"
"Ew. Isabella, he's my brother."
"Ugh, don't call me Isabella," I told her. "The only person who does that is my grandmother. It's just Bella."
"Oops, sorry."
"No worries. You might've already realized that my grandma doesn't like nicknames too much."
Alice coughed to diguise her laugh.
"Mrs. Whitlock, we're here," the driver spoke through an intercom.
"Alright, let's go," she announced and opened the door to get out of the car.
I stepped our right behind her and followed her into the white house in front of us. Once we were inside, we were surrounded by flowers and all different kinds of decorations.
"Alice! It's so nice to see you again," a male voice exclaimed happily.
A man appeared from behind one of the rose bushes and just by looking at him, I could tell he was gay. That made me smile. I often liked gays more than girls.
"James! How are you?" Alice called back in a similar voice.
"I'm great, just great. Oh, you brought something sweet?" he asked as he caught sight of me.
"Yes, that is our bride. Bella, this is James. James, meet Bella," Alice introduced us.
"Oh darling, such a waste. A hot piece of candy like you shouldn't go to someone like Edward," he said, shaking my hand.
"James, don't say things like that. You'll scare her," Alice scolded.
"Oh, I'm sorry, sweetie," he said with an apologetic expression on his face.
I simply shrugged.
"Not real talkative, huh? Well, most people are speechless around me and Alice, we just blabber on 24/7. Tell me when it gets to be too much for you; I tend to get carried away," he gushed without taking a breath.
"Will do," I told him with a smile.
"Okay James," Alice said with a suddenly very business-like voice. "What have you got for us?"
"As you can see, I have quite a few things, but I worked on some stuff just for you." He led us to the next room which was bigger than the one we were just in. Everywhere there were tables with different floral decorations.
"Okay, Bella, I already thought of some possibilities for themes, and I asked James to work on some samples," Alice explained to me.
"I thought Edward and I were supposed to decide together," I yawned, still not the least bit impressed with the whole situation.
"Well yes, but the bride always has veto power. As for the groom...well, he should just go along with everything the bride says."
"Okay, here is the first table set that Alice requested," James gestured to a table with a cloth on it that was red in the middle. On it was a flower arrangement made from white and red roses that stretched across the red stripe in the middle of the table.
"What kind of theme is that?" I asked, eyeing it all with distaste. "Cliché?" It was beautiful, of course, but it was just so stereotypical. If I had to get married this early in life, then there was no way red roses would be involved.
"No, the word that popped into my mind was romance," Alice told me, sounding a little bit put off.
I quirked an eyebrow at her. "No offense, but do you really think 'romance' is the best theme in mine and Edward's case?" I asked her sarcastically.
James giggled at that. "I told you it was a bad idea," he mumbled to Alice. She grimaced, crossing something out on her planner before James lead us to the next table with green cloth and little yellow flowers covering it. "This is a much simpler theme. I call it 'Spring Fever'. The wohle place would be in light, yet subtle colors like these. You know, green, yellow, perhaps a little bit of soft pink and even a splash of orange or red."
"Anything else?" I asked in a disinterested tone.
"None that are complete yet," James answered.
"So you don't like Spring Fever?" Alice asked me.
"Not really - it's just not me. But then again, this whole wedding thing isn't really my thing either."
"Of course it is!" Alice reprimanded quickly. "Weddings are everybody's thing. We just have to find the right theme for you."
"If that's what you think."
"It is. We could make the wedding a bit more exotic, sicne you just came back from India. Stronger colors, but not too much. Maybe we could even import some flowers."
"No need to go overboard, Alice. I don't want you to go through that much trouble," I interfered as she pulled out her iPhone and started to type furiously.
"Trouble? It's not trouble at all. It's my job," Alice told me with a bright smile.
"Alright, but there's still no need to start anything right now if nothing is finalized, right?"
Alice looked at me, then at the phone, then at James who nodded in agreement. "You're right," she sighed before her enthusiasm returned. "But you can tell us what your favorite flowers are - James will get them. And I will think of some more possibilities. How does that sound?"
"Fine, I guess."
"Okay, this is going to be a lot of hard work, so we'll need somewhere to sit," Alice said while giving James a meaningful look.
"Follow me," he sang and walked through a glass door that led to a garden. He brought us to the other side of the garden and into a greenhouse.
I momentarily forgot my sleepiness once we stepped into the sunlight. To me, the sun was a universal remedy. No matter how bad my mood was, it always got better when the sun was shining. And to add to my sudden contentment, it looked really beautiful inside the greenhouse with all the different kinds of flowers and plants all over. In the middle there was a table with chairs around it that looked perfect for a tea party.
Alice and I sat down while James looked at me expectantly.
"Name a flower," he demanded sweetly.
"Um...orchid?"
"What color?" Alice asked as she busily started writing down every word I said.
"I kind of like the pink ones," I answered with a shrug. Generally, I wasn't one for pink, but in the case of flowers - or at least orchids - I loved it.
"Coming right up," James announced and skipped down the aisle.
"So Bella, don't you want to talk about yourself?"
"What?" I asked, dumbfounded. I'd been starting to doze off since the sun was shining down on me.
"You like the sun," she noted.
"Of course," I smiled at her. "Who doesn't?"
"I'm pretty sure there are some people who don't," Alice answered seriously.
"Well those people are nuts."
"I agree with you on that. Maybe we should go to the beach sometime or...oooh! We could make it a beach wedding!" Alice suddenly started jumping up and down in her chair.
I looked at her in amusement. "I won't complain about that one," I told her and laughed at the joyous expression that took over her face.
She quickly scribbled something down in her personal organizer just as James came back in with some pink orchids and what I thought were pink lilies.
"I thought you might like these as well," he explained.
"I love lilies," I cooed, making James smile. "But I like white lilies the most." That James and Alice both gasp in shock. "What?"
"White lilies are the flower of death, darling - we can't use them," James informed me.
"Ugh, fine," I said, thinking of a compromise. "I want yellow lilies then."
"They shall appear momentarily." And with that, James was gone again.
The next to hours of my life were more entertaining than I would've thought. I came to see that Alice was a very nice person and I could actually see myself being friends with her. After a few minutes of listing flowers, I got tired of sitting and decided to go through James' collection and occasionally point out some of the flowers I liked. Alice took notes the whole time and made jokes on the side. What was even more amusing than that was the bantering that occurred between Alice and James when they didn't agree on something. At one point, Alice threatened to draw on his crisp white suit with her pen if he didn't agree with her. Needless to say, he complied immediately in a desperate attempt to save his precious clothes.
After those two hours, I was even more exhausted than I had been before and I hadn't even thought that was possible.
"Okay Bella, here's my card. Call me when you need anything at all. Flowers, drugs, a shoulder to cry on - doesn't matter what, I'll help you out," James offered as he handed me a card.
"Oh shit, I knew you were a drug dealer. I'll totally get back to you," I said with a laugh as James winked playfully.
"Okay, kiddos. No more playing around now, we have to go meet the groom for lunch and we're actually already kind of late," Alice said and dragged me away as I waved James, who was watching us with an amused expression, goodbye.
Once we were back inside the limousine, I laid down on the seat I had all to myself.
"I don't want to meet the groom," I whined and closed my eyes to try to at least relax a little.
"Oh Bella, it'll be just fine, really. You two will probably hit it off right away," Alice assured me.
"Where are we going for lunch?" I asked, yawning as I completely ignored what she'd said.
"I was thinking Chinese, and I know this great place, so—"
"So we're eating Chinese?"
"Um, yes," Alice answered hesitantly. "But if you don't like Chinese, we can—"
"Shut up, Alice. I love Chinese, mostly because I get to eat with chopsticks, which I love."
Alice chuckled. "So do I. One time, I refused to use cutlery for an entire month just because I'd recently learned how to eat with chopsticks."
"God, Alice, I think I love you," I mumbled, causing her to chuckle once again.
Even if I wouldn't get along with my future husband, at least I hit it off well enough with his sister.
About a half an hour later, Alice had to wake me up.
"Bella, I can't believe you fell asleep just before you meet your future husband," Alice gasped out between giggles and snorts.
"Hmm?"
"Wake up. We're already late."
"But I'm tired," I mumbled, but opened my eyes anyway.
"What did you do last night?" she asked. "Did you even get any sleep at all?"
"No, not really," I answered truthfully as I sat up.
"Here," Alice handed me a hairbrush and started to dig through her purse for something. Meanwhile I quickly brushed through my hair, smoothening it again before ruffling it slightly. Alice found whatever she'd been looking for and crawled closer to me. "Okay, just let me do my job," she murmured and started to apply lipgloss to my lips.
"Alice, what are you doing?" I managed to ask with a partly closed mouth.
"I'm making you look like someone who did not just fall asleep before meeting the person they're going to spend the rest of their life with. And someone who's a little more awake," Alice stated simply and started smudging something underneath my eyes. Then she applied some mascara to my lashes before looking at me once and giving me a satisfied nod. She knocked on the window behind her and this time, the driver opened the door for us.
Alice stepped out first and led the way into a palace-like restaurant.
The hostess who was greeting us had her hair in a fancy hairdo that involved a pair of chopsticks. I'd always wanted to wear my hair like that, so I made a mental note to try it out sometime soon.
"Names?" the hostess asked politely.
"We're meeting Mr. Cullen," Alice told her.
The hostess made a sound of recognition and led us through the restaurant. It was split into two parts, separated by a little stream that had a cute little bridge built over it. We crossed that bridge and the hostess gestured toward a table in the far corner.
This was it. This was the moment I was going to meet Edward, and now for the first time today, I was nervous.
We approached the table and the moment I saw the man sitting there, my nervousness was immediately replaced by something else. Shock. My future husband was...welll, he was a freaking monster. A handsome and kind of sexy monster, but still a monster. How the fuck did the little kid I remember turn into that? There must've been a lot of steroids involved in reaching that.
"Emmett, what are you doing here?" Alice interrupted my thoughts as she waved her arm toward a chair, telling me to sit down. I took the seat right in front of Ed—whoa, wait! Emmett? I thought his name was Edward. So, wait, then is this not Edward?
I let out a sigh of relief, earning a curious glance from Alice and the giant monster called Emmett, who was sitting in front of me.
"Yeah, I'm sorry, but Edward is still busy at the hospital so he asked me to meet you guys for lunch," he explained with a shrug.
"Ugh, he is such an idiot. I should've known he would find a way to put this off for a bit longer. If it keeps going like this, the two of them are never going to meet each other before they get to the alter," Alice complained with dramatic hand gestures as Emmett kept stealing glances at me and seemed to be surpressing a grin.
"What?" I asked self-consciously.
"Nothing," he answered innocently and then seemed to remember something. "Right, sorry. I'm Emmett Cullen, your future brother-in-law. Nice to meet you, Isabella," he held his giant hand out toward me and grinned like a little kid, showing his dimples.
"I would've said you were cute if you hadn't just ruined the moment by calling me Isabella. I fucking hate that name," I grumbled.
"It's just Bella," Alice told him for me.
"So Edward's girl has a dirty mouth, hates proper names, and thinks I'm cute? This is going to be fun."
"You're only cute because of your dimples," I clarified.
"Yeah, yeah, we're all very cute. Now can we please get back to the problem at hand?" Alice interrupted impatiently.
"What problem?" both Emmett and I asked at the same time. We looked at each other and he grinned at me again while I quirked a brow at him.
"We have to see the real estate agent, but without Edward, this is hardly going to be manageable," Alice said exasperatedly.
"Yes, but we both know what Edward likes, so it's not a very big deal, Alice," Emmett commented with a shrug.
Alice stopped her dramatic antics and looked thoughtful for a moment. "True. And we weren't going to decide anything today anyway. We just need to make sure we take a lot of pictures, Emmett. I'll make a catalogue for Edward, then."
"Okay, this is all really great and stuff, but I'm starving and if I don't get food soon, I'll eat one of you - probably Emmett - and then I'll go to jail for cannibalism and then there will be no wedding to plan anymore, so let's eat," I said so fast that I had to take a huge breath the second I finished talking.
Emmett looked at me for a second before he broke out into a booming roar of laughter, causing people to look at him funny while Alice seemed to take my threat literally as she quickly shoved a menu in my direction while waving at a passing waiter and ordering our drinks.
"So Bella," Emmett started and took a large breath. "Tell us something about yourself."
"I already tried that, Emmett, and I didn't get anything out of her," Alice informed him.
"That's because there's really not much to tell," I objected.
"Um...didn't you just come back from India?" Emmett asked in confusion.
"Yeah, I did," I answered just as the waiter appeared with our drinks.
"Are you ready to order?" he asked politely, looking at each of us. We quickly ordered before Emmett turned his attention back to me.
"So, you like travelling?" Emmett asked, although it was more of a statement than a question.
"That would be an understatement, my friend. I love to travel. I love to see everything the world has to offer, I love learning more about different cultures and meeting new people. If I had a normal like like everybody else, I would be on my way to South Africa right now," I said dreamily and swayed slightly to the sound of the background music.
"Hmm...South Africa," Alice hummed and pulled out her personal planner to scribble something in it.
"What are you writing now?"
"South Africa could be beautiful for a honeymoon," Alice replied thoughtfully.
"I don't know why you and Edward have these workaholic tendencies," Emmett muttered and shook his head.
"I'm not a workaholic, I just work a lot," Alice protested.
I laughed at that. "I'm not an alcoholic, I just drink a lot," I started singing.
"Huh?" Alice looked at me in confusion.
"Oh, come on, don't you know the song?"
Alice shook her head.
"Alcoholic by Pitbull and DJ Laz," Emmett noted.
"Thank you," I sighed while looking at Alice as if she'd lost her mind.
"You listen to the same music as Emmett?" she asked in disbelief.
"Apparently," I answered with a shrug.
"That's totally awesome," Emmett cheered and held out his fist toward me.
I grinned at him and bumped my fist against his. "Fo sho."
"Fo shizzle," Emmett was now grinning just as much as I was.
"Please Bella, tell me you're not like Emmett," Alice groaned as she looked at the two of us.
"I'm not like Emmett. I have tits and less muscle," I answered nonchalantly.
Emmett guwaffed.
"Jesus, Emmett, shut up," Alice complained.
"So since we seem to be done talking about me, how about you guys tell me what exactly it is you do. Okay, Alice, I know you're a wedding planner, but what about you, Emmett?"
Emmett opened his mouth to answer, but Alice barged in. "I don't just plan weddings. First, I plan the best weddings ever, and not for just anyone. I also design the most beautiful wedding dresses. I'm disappointed that you don't know that. My label is well known," Alice looked at me in shock and hurt.
"What's it called?" I asked her.
Now she looked miffed and a little confused. "How can you not know Jazzine?"
"Well, if you only design wedding dresses, then it's really no surprise that I don't know your label. Why do you only do wedding dresses, anyway?"
"It goes well with the wedding planning," Alice shrugged as she answered. That made sense.
I looked at Emmett, waiting for his answer now.
"I'm a surgeon. A plastic surgeon to be exact."
"Are you serious?"
Emmett nodded.
"You don't look like a doctor."
"Yeah, I know, but that's hardly my fault."
"So every guy in your family is a doctor?" I asked. "How frightening."
"It really is. You should hear some of the disgusting stories they tell at dinner. Ew," Alice shuddered.
"Hey, my stories are a lot less disgusting than Edward's and Dad's," Emmett protested.
"Whatever, Emmett. You're not any better. Seriously, never again do I want to hear about some guy who wants his dick chopped off and replaced with a vagina. It's just revolting to hear."
"Please, Alice, that wasn't even the worst one. I could tell you about this one chick who—"
"Shut up, Emmett."
"Oh look, our food," I almost screamed as the waiter arrived back at our table, balancing our plates.
The second Emmett got his plate, he attacked his food, grunting as he scarfed it down. I watched him, mesmerized.
"Bella, don't look at that - you'll get nightmares if you look too closely," Alice advised quietly she she took a small bite of her own food and gazed at her planner.
"It's kind of gross, but fascinating at the same time. It's like watching a starved wolf," I murmured to her.
"I'm tell you, you shouldn't want too long. You won't be able to eat for days."
Somehow I managed to tear my gaze away from Emmett's oddly accurate wolf impersonation and looked down at my own plate. While eating, I thought a little. So now I'd officially met my siblings-in-law to be. Both of them were people I got along with just fine, so Edward couldn't be too bad, right? I was pulled out of my thoughts by the ringing of a cellphone.
"Sorry," Alice said hastily before answering the call. "Jazzy? I missed your voice," she started cooing instantly.
"It's really sickening sometimes," Emmett complained, his mouth still full. "You'd think they were teenagers rather than a married couple."
I giggled quietly at that.
"Oh she's great, you'll really like her...what?...um, no, I'm afraid she's not...yes, I know...it might be problematic, but I'm sure it'll work out...oh, didn't I already say that?...Edward's not here...yes, I know, he's an idiot, but that's his loss. Now Emmett is here and he got to meet her first...in the hospital, of course. Where else would he be?...yes, I know, that's the reason I love you...okay, see you tonight," Alice ended the call with a gentle smile on her pixie-like face.
"Am I right to assume that your wedding was not arranged?" I asked her lightly.
She looked at me with wide eyes. "No, it wasn't arranged. Approved, but not arranged."
"What does that mean?"
"Well, even if my family didn't decide to whom I married, it's not really an uncommon thing in my family, so they still had a say in the whole thing, but they approved, so I didn't have to worry about it too much. Much different than in Emmett's case," she explained.
Emmett sighed loudly at that. I looked at him in question but he simply shook his had.
"Well, every family is messed up. At least you don't have a grandmother like mine," I said.
"Not true. Believe me, there are more than enough people in our family who would get along just fine with your grandmother," Alice objected.
"Please tell me those people aren't invited to the wedding," I whined.
"I wish," she sighed. "But that's not going to happen."
"Oh fuck. I'm dreading the day more and more with every second," I mumbled.
"So are you guys ready to go?" Alice changed the topic quickly.
I looked down at the plate in front of me. I'd barely eaten anything, but now I wasn't even in the mood to eat.
"Sure," I answered and smiled brightly at Alice.
A/N: Awww, I'm sorry to break all of your hearts, but Edward just didn't want to show up. But if it makes you feel better, I already have the second chapter almost done, but I decided that I won't upload it...not without a few reviews at least.
Yes, I'm blackmailing you into writing reviews, I'm amazing aren't I?
Sooo...if anyone feels like betaing this story ( I know this chapter seems totally perfect, even if there are a fe typos) please tell me. The thign is that the one who betaed this chapter, is already working with me on FASGS for those of you who don't know what that is, it's my number one story Forks Academy for Special Gifted Students
And because this story is not anywhere close to being done and we're also working on her story PEP (Prophecy of the Elemental Phoenix) I came to think that this story might need someone else. So if anyone wants to do the job just tell me, because I'm seriously in need for a beta.
Okay now after I promoted my own stories and begged for a beta, there should be something else I should mention...hmm, well I don't remember ...
So that's it from me now, review and tell me what you think even if it is only the first chapter :D
