Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyers owns everything Twilight. I just love to play with her toys.
Chapter 2
Epov:
I woke up at six pm the next morning. It felt like I only closed my eyes for a minute. It was one of those mornings that you would much rather throw your alarm against the wall than silence it in a more civilized manner.
Most thirty year olds would turn on their side and sleep for ten more minutes until the back up alarm would go off and only then would they leave their warm inviting bed for the colder, crueler and much harsher outside world.
But unlike most thirty year olds I have a ten-year old daughter and she had a whole mind of her own.
"Daddy, daddy wake up. Come on get up. You promised that we were going to go to the zoo." Renesmee's enthusiasm was emphasized when she began jumping on the bed.
I kept my composure making sure that I didn't move even when she accidentally stepped on me. "Daddy, you promised. And a promise is a promise."
I didn't move as she prodded my side gently or when she prodded me a little harder.
She climbed of the bed and walked around to the side that I was facing. Slowly, without her noticing the minor movements, I moved my hands to the edge of the bed.
"Daddy, are you dead?" She asked as she slowly lifted the covers. Suddenly I grabbed her waist pulling her into me and pulled the covers over us.
"Who disturbs my slumber?" I asked in a thick groggy voice while I tickled every bit of exposed skin that I could get.
Renesmee burst into a fit of giggles. I couldn't help but laugh with her as she tried to squirm out of my grasp.
"I'm princess Nessie and I demand that you stop this torture at once or you will have to face my wrath." She said through fits of giggles.
"And what wrath could a mere midget like you bestow upon me, the great and mighty Boogie man?" I asked loosening my grip ever so slightly giving her a chance to escape.
"You asked for it. Now you face the all-powerful Blinding Light of Hope." She kicked the bed sheets off of us as she turned out of my grasp.
"No not the Blinding Light of Hope!" I wallowed in fake pain curling into a ball.
"Will you promise to be a good Boogie man and take me to the zoo?"
"I do, I do. Just make it stop. Make the pain go away." I cried in terror and she threw back the bed sheets.
I waited a minute before crawling out of bed. Renesmee was still laughing. "Fine I'm up. Go and eat some Count Chocula while I go take a shower."
She skipped happily away.
Like I said I wasn't your normal thirty old.
Emmett and Rosalie waited at the entrance of the Zoo. As soon as she spotted them, Nessie ran off with a cry of "Uncle Emmett, Auntie Rose" so loudly that people actually stopped to stare.
Emmett and Rose was Nessie's God Parents. Rose was unable to have children so naturally they spoilt Nessie like no other child has ever been spoilt before.
"Hello brother, it took you long enough to get here." Emmett said as I gave Rose's cheek a kiss.
"Yeah well it is Nessie's fault. She didn't want to brush her teeth."
"What is the point? They will get all dirty again when I eat something." I gave Emmett and Rose a look that said, "Do you see what I have to deal with."
"Well Nessie, you see it is like this. You want to continue to eat candy and all kinds of treats right?" She nodded her head at Emmett who was crouching in front of her. "Well if you don't brush your teeth they are going to rot and fall out and then you will never be able to eat candy again."
She thought about this for a while. "Fine I'll brush my teeth more. I do love candy." We all laughed and went to pay the entrance fees.
It was much later, we were at the small petting zoo and Rose was with Nessie petting every little flea invested animal that came within reach of them.
"So how are you doing?" Emmett asked me as we sat on the bench watching the girls.
"I'm fine."
"You mean your Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic and Emotional." Emmett teased. Ever since he watched The Italian Job he quotes that little line every time someone uses the word fine.
"That pretty much sums it up, yes."
"Nessie seems to be doing better." Emmett said with a kind of longing. I knew that he was thinking what it would be like if he had a kid of his own.
"Yes she does. She hasn't cried at all this week. And she asked me to tell her a bedtime story last night. I think that she is slowly but surely starting to deal with it." I replied smiling as Nessie petted a baby sheep.
Emmett sighed and looked at me. "And her father, has he been dealing with the divorce?"
"No. I'm freaking out Emmett. Bella is moving on with her life. She is dating Jacob Black and he is two years younger than she is. We taught him how to ride a bike, how to drive a car, stood up for him when bigger guys wanted to bully him, helped him deal with his fathers accident and how to flirt with girls. Do you know how weird it is, knowing that he is now sleeping with my wife?"
Emmett made a face. "Ex-wife, and yes the thought has crossed my mind. They only went on a date once and she hasn't slept with him."
"Did you talk to her?" I asked trying to keep my excitement at bay. I was hungry for any information about her that I could get.
"Yes I talked to her." Emmett confessed before smiling and waving at Nessie who was now riding on the back of a pony.
"And?" I prodded him.
"And nothing, we talked about Nessie's surprise birthday party next month and how someone must rein Alice in because Jasper is definitely not going to keep her at bay."
Oh great. Alice just loved throwing parties and she loved Nessie so every year the parties just got bigger and bigger and more expensive than the previous year. She just doesn't know how to do something halfway.
"Right, I think that we have to give Rosalie that job, she is least afraid of the evil pixie." Emmett nodded in agreement. "So Bella didn't ask about me?" I asked and he sighed.
"No Edward she did not mention you, ask about you or even hint about anything about you like you are doing right now. She left you, remember." He reminded me oh so subtlety.
"How can I forget?" I sighed and changed the subject purposefully. It took some effort but I enjoyed the rest of the outing with my family.
Later that night, after she was fed washed and dressed; Nessie pestered me again to continue the bedtime story.
"Please daddy I want to hear the rest of the story. I brushed my teeth and everything." I looked at her and smiled. After Emmett's little speech I had no trouble into convincing her to brush her teeth.
"Fine, what was the last thing that you remember about the story?"
"Our noble prince Edward was talking to the beautiful and shy princess No Name."
"Princess No Name?" I asked wondering where this child of mine got all her crazy names.
"Yes you haven't revealed her true name and we have to call her something. So please tell the story so that I can give her a better name."
"My, aren't you bossy? Very well our noble prince didn't cross paths with this mysterious lady until the next Biology class…..
The story
It was storming outside and I was trying to get my stubborn fringe out of my eyes. I had to keep pushing it back with my hand and it was on one such an occasion that the new girl slipped into her seat next to me.
"I thought it was only girls that had bad hair days." She said as she glanced at the fringe that was threatening to fall back into my eyes again.
"Didn't you know that I was a male impersonator?" I asked in the most girlish voice that I could possibly manage.
"Really and here I just thought that you were gay." She quipped back trying hard to hide a smile as my fringe slid into my eyes.
"My dearest heart, don't flutter so much…" I said making a highly offended voice. "No honey I'm just really good at what I do. But right now my stupid hair is threatening to ruin that whole image."
She thought for a moment and then pulled something out of her bag. "Here this might help." Without asking she pushed my fringe back, stuck something in my hair and when she pulled away she left me enveloped in a wave of strawberries that completely left me in a daze.
I reached up and felt a hair-clip in my hair. "You better watch out Edward, the guys might make a move on you. I must say that pink looks nice on you."
Reality
"No, you can't do that?"
"Do what?"
"You can't make the hair-clip pink. A noble prince will never wear anything pink."
"Yes but a girl will and that is why it is pink."
"But a prince will find a spell and perform some magic on it to make him look more handsome and prince like."
"How do you know what a prince should look like?"
"Duh I'm a girl and somewhere out there in the world is a knight in shining armor that is someday going to whisk me away and we are going to live happily ever after."
"Someone should sue Disney for breaking every girl's heart."
"What?"
"Nothing, so what color must this hair-clip be?"
"Make it black, which should look much better."
"Fine then the prince used some magic on the hair-clip turning it black…"
The story
"There that is much better….." I re-capped the permanent marker and examined my handiwork. "Black looks so much better on me, won't you agree?" I turned to Bella after placing the hair-clip back in my hair, sucking in my cheeks to look like those models on the runways.
"That was my hair-clip." She said glaring at my head.
"Was, being the appropriate word. Thank you for the lovely accessory." I said getting out my books.
"You're not welcome." She looked at the teacher as he began our class.
"You're only jealous because now I look hotter than you." I whispered while taking notes.
"Please, you need why more than a hair-clip to make you even remotely desirable." She chirped back.
"Oh so you think I am desirable?"
"So is a car."
"Ouch that hurt just a little."
"Good your ego needs a little deflating."
I chuckled silently and didn't say anything, just taking notes and watching her through the edges of my peripherals.
"So are you going to tell me your name any time soon?" I asked just to have something to talk about.
Reality:
"I bet it is something really cool. Like princess Jasmine or something."
"She is not a princess."
"It's a story. I can make her Xena: The warrior princess if I want to."
"But I'm telling this story and she is not a warrior princess or any princess for that matter."
So what is her name then?"
"You have to listen to the story to find out."
"Well then you better start talking or I'm making her Princess of dreams and you'll have nightmares forever."
"Ok, I surrender. I'm telling the story. The prince kept on taking notes to make it seem like he wasn't really interested in her answer…
The Story
"Bella Swan. Curiosity satisfied?" She asked angrily but the laughter in her eyes betrayed her true feelings.
"My curiosity is never satisfied. Bella is short for Isabella I presume. It's a beautiful name." I said and then something dawned on me. "You are chief Swan's daughter!"
"Mr. Cullen is there something that you would like to share?" The teacher asked and I cursed myself for my little outburst.
"No Sir. Sorry for interrupting your class." He looked at me for a couple of more seconds.
"Exploring your feminine side today are we?" He asked and I frowned confused momentarily. Then I remembered that I was wearing a hair-clip on top of my head for the whole world to see.
"No sir, just winning a bet." I said and the teacher rolled his eyes.
"Back in my day we betted on kissing girls not on wearing their accessories. But whatever works for you, Mr. Cullen." The class chuckled softly for the joke.
"You're chief Swans daughter?" I asked her silently now when our teacher continued with his lesson.
"Yes, do you know my father? Oh wait... of course you know my father. It is a small town after all." Bella said annoyance flooding her voice.
"Uhm your father and I had a little….incident last year that I would rather forget about." I said hoping that she would let it go.
"What kind of incident?" Of course she was going to ask.
"It was nothing illegal or anything." The bell rang and whoever it was who thought up saved by the bell could not have been more correct.
"Well it is definitely something." She countered as I hurriedly packed away my books.
"Yes it definitely was something. Enjoy the rest of your classes Bella." I said heading for the door.
"Edward you might want to take that thing out of your hair, before some guy really does make a move on you." She said teasingly and I removed the hair-clip that I had forgotten.
"See I knew that you thought I was hot." I said and she smiled shaking her head.
"I do not think you are hot, but you make one ugly girl. In a town this small some guys might settle for ugly girls because they can't get the hot ones." She walked passed me with a smile on her face.
I rolled my eyes and stuck the hair-clip in my back pocket. She was right this was a small town with a lot of desperate teenage guys in it.
Reality
I looked down. Nessie had fallen asleep, once again. She looked so peaceful almost like an angel. She was an angel. She was my princess and I knew that there was nothing that I wouldn't do for her.
I sighed and went to place her in her bed. I did my routine check on the doors and windows before settling in for the night. I still missed Bella. I still loved Bella. If only I hadn't gone away for that weekend. Maybe things would have been different. Maybe Bella wouldn't have….
No stop it Edward. You promised yourself that you were not going to think about what ifs. It is done. It is history. Bella made her choice and you will just have to deal with it.
Eventually…..
A/N And this is chapter two. Thank you for those of you who had reviewed I appreciate the feedback.
Thanks to everyone who added the story to some form of list.
As always feel free to review and tell me what you think.