Disclaimer: The characters of this story are the intellectual property of Stephenie Meyer alone.

Kismet

I'd never been so close to dying. Both of impatience and in the literal sense. One week. That's all I had left as a human. It was thrilling. . . and intimidating. I sat on the rim of the tub and stared at the sparkling object on my left hand. It glistened happily above my charm bracelet. A strange juxtaposition of an unending love- literally- and a lost love.

A knock at the door brought me to my senses. "Mmhmm?" I asked, standing up hurriedly and turning the running faucet off.

"Are you alright, Bella?" Charlie's voice asked.

"Yes, Dad. I'll be right out."

He mumbled something that sounded like "finally" but said more loudly, "Take your time."

I heard his footsteps go downstairs and sighed. I pulled my clothes on and opened the door, walking to my room with a slight sense of dread. Today I was picking Renée and Phil up from the airport. I was dreading the face-to-face meeting, but Edward had remained annoyingly upbeat.

He was lounging on my bed, as always, when I entered. His beauty was overwhelming and made me sigh. I couldn't wait to level the playing field. Maybe, I told myself, in a week from now I'll be worthy enough to stand next to him.

The corner of his mouth twitched upwards and he was suddenly off the bed and holding me in his arms. He inhaled my scent as he kissed my forehead, my cheeks, and my neck, saving my lips for last. The moment his lips touched mine all my worries disappeared. I was grateful that he could do that to me, I didn't really want to think about the next few hours.

"Are you ready yet, Bells?" Charlie's voice called up and Edward flashed his teeth at me with a grin. He kissed me quickly and was gone from the room moments before I heard Charlie stomping upstairs.

"I'll be right there!" I called to him and grabbed my purse from where it lay next to my ancient and decrepit computer. I took a deep breath, and grinned when I heard a knock at the front door.

"I'll get it!" I yelled and ran past him as he headed to the bathroom. I had the feeling that he was shaking his head as I flew downstairs and opened the front door.

After another breathtaking kiss, for me at least, Edward wrapped his arm around my waist and we waited for Charlie.

"It's going to be fine," Edward whispered in my ear as he kissed the top of my head. "And you look absolutely beautiful."

I blushed. I was wearing a blue shirt which Alice had given me, knowing full well it was his favorite color on me. He continued to kiss my hair, my cheeks, and my neck until Charlie was one step away from seeing us. Then, leaving his hand around me, he looked up and grinned.

"Good morning, Charlie," he said, as the perfect gentleman he was.

"'Morning, Edward," Charlie muttered. As happy as he tried to be for me, Charlie was having a hard time trying to find my fiancé acceptable.

"Can we just get this over with?" I begged, my stomach fluttering.

Charlie was frowning at me. "Well, Bells, here's the thing." He coughed uncomfortably. "I, uh, I was thinking maybe it'd be better if just you and. . . Edward, met your mother. There's still plenty of cleaning to be done."

That was a lie, I'd cleaned like a woman possessed the entire day before, but I'd had a feeling that Charlie was dreading facing Renée. He seemed to be dreading it as much as I was. I nodded my head.

"OK, Dad, that's fine." I said and turned to leave. "We'll be back. . . soon, I suppose."

"Uh, yeah. Good luck, Bella," Charlie said and walked to the front door as Edward led me into the mist that was perpetually part of Forks.

At least I wouldn't have to pick my mother up in the cruiser, I comforted myself. I had secretly been dreading that. What with me, Edward, and my mother probably packed in the back behind the screen and Phil and Charlie up front.

"See?" Edward smiled at me as he closed my door and walked at a human pace to the driver's side. The Volvo was a far more acceptable form of transportation. "I told you everything would be fine."

I watched Charlie turn back inside, his shoulders stiff, and Edward took one of my hands in his cold one.

"You knew he wouldn't come? Why didn't you tell me?"

"He'd been worrying about it all night," Edward said. "Worrying about the actual event and about trying to tell you he didn't want to go. He's absolutely terrified of meeting Phil."

Ah, yes. It made sense. Here I'd been thinking it was Renée he feared, but it was her husband he feared more. The person who had been able to, at least for a few years, keep her with him. Where Charlie had failed, Phil had succeeded. I wondered how they were going to like one another. I sighed in despair.

"Bella?" Edward looked at me with his gold eyes, so full of love, and melted my heart all over again.

"Telling her over the phone was one thing," I cringed as I remembered. "But seeing her face to face makes me nervous."

"You shouldn't be. She wants to see you happy. She'll accept it eventually."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "As in, you don't think she's accepted it yet?"

He sighed. "Let's just say, the mother-daughter time you'll be spending may be directed entirely towards Renée's efforts to convince you to cancel."

"Never." I said automatically. I was ready. Ready to say goodbye to my family, ready to marry Edward, and ready to be with him forever in the form of a vampire. Nothing anyone could say would stop me. Regardless, my throat felt dry with anxiety.

The trees whizzed by. The air conditioning, on the lowest setting since summer in Washington was never very hot, just humid, blew my hair behind my shoulders. Edward's hand never left mine, one finger of his touching the ring on my finger. The drive, normally an hour's length, was over in less than thirty minutes. Renée's plane wasn't due to land for another thirty minutes, so I was only partially surprised when Edward parallel parked downtown. I looked up to see where I would be anxiously awaiting my doom and smiled. Edward was opening the door beside me, a grin on his face.

"I thought you might be hungry," he said and entwined his hand in mine as we walked into the Italian restaurant. It was the same restaurant he had taken me to, well dragged me to really, two years ago. The night I found out for sure what he was.

"Well, I'm not really," I said but my stomach growled at me. Edward chuckled. "No, really," I tried to protest. "It's just nerves."

It wasn't, though. I'd stayed as long in bed as possible, completely skipping breakfast. Charlie wasn't one for waking me up and I wasn't keen on leaving the sanctuary of Edward's arms around me as I lay in bed. So, in truth, I was famished. I wondered, though, if I would be able to keep any food down.

Kismet proved to be a funny thing. I recognized the hostess who seated us immediately. The same gorgeous one who had seated us last time. She was batting her eyelashes at Edward without success, much as she had last time, but he was still smiling at me. As we sat down I noticed her glance at my ring and thought that she had sighed silently. I hoped she had. He was mine and I wanted her to know it.

"Your server will be right with you," she said and disappeared into the kitchen. I knew she was going to spread the word as soon as she got inside and wondered if fate would assign us the same waitress as before. Luck was on my side, the waitress was a different one, though her eyes were as fascinated with

Edward as the other had been.

"What are you thinking about?" Edward asked softly after ordering two Cokes.

I sighed and met his eyes. So much beauty, so much I wanted. I needed. I couldn't exist without him. I was wondering if Renée would really understand.

"I know that Renée wants me to be happy, and when I spoke to her yesterday she seemed. . . content enough, but is that what she really thinks?" After all, she was my mother. The mother who raised me to believe that marriage before thirty was unhealthy, insane even. And here I was, an eighteen-year-old high school graduate.

"We can wait, you know," his voice was so soft I couldn't help but frown at it.

"I don't want to wait," I argued as the waitress returned. She asked for our order, looking specifically at Edward. I tried to hide my smirk, but I failed. I was glad to see that everyone wanted him and all he wanted was me. As I opened my mouth to order, Edward beat me. I sat back, stunned. He'd never ordered food before. He ordered the same ravioli that I'd had the last time. As I stared at him the corner of his mouth twitched up in a smile.

"Nice memory," I muttered.

"Especially when it's a memory of you," he said and played with my hands over the table. Suddenly he was frowning again. "I won't argue with you. I am too selfish and love you too much to start arguing about waiting again, but I don't understand what it is you fear about facing your mother."

I snorted, I couldn't help myself. He had met my mother, he knew her to be charming and observant. I didn't think that he knew the side of her that could really get angry.

"I'm expecting the worse," I explained. "That maybe she didn't get on the plane, maybe she's decided not to come. Maybe she's disowned me. She loves me, I know that, but I don't think she loves you enough to let me go without a fight."

"Is that what this is about? You think she doesn't want to give you up?" His right hand played with the ring on my finger again.

"Well, it is the last time I'll see her in a while- maybe years! It's definitely the last time she'll see me, as I am. The human me." I took a deep breath. "I just wonder how she'll take it. She probably doesn't realize that this is the last time. Or maybe she does. Maybe she's preparing for the worst too."

"You're being silly, Bella," Edward said gently.

"Silly? I'm not so sure any more." The waitress came with the ravioli and I picked at it with a fork, no longer hungry enough to eat it.

"This will not be the last time you see her, Bella. I promise. You will see them all, Renée, Charlie, everyone you want. You shouldn't doubt their love for you." He stole the fork from my hand and stabbed a piece of pasta. He held the fork up, towards my mouth. "You really should eat, Bella."

I sighed and accepted the pasta, claiming the fork back as I chewed. He watched me with smoldering gold eyes. About half way through the dish I felt I'd had enough. I sighed and leaned back. Edward grinned.

"Dear Bella," he said. He stood and held out his hand to me. "Let's face the demons you fear so much, shall we?" Leaving a bill on the table, clearly not wanting change, he led me out into the late afternoon light. I was now only moments away from my nightmare.

NB: This is my first fan fiction- I've only written original pieces before, so I'd appreciate any comments and feedback you have. Thanks!