A/N: Pictures of presents on profile along with Boy or Girl? fan art. Make sure to check them out!
WOW, I'm thrilled with the response to this story! If you add this story to your favourites or alerts list, please leave a review to let me know what you think. Thanks to everyone who did last chapter! x
Disclaimer: Copyright of original story & characters Stephenie Meyer.
POVs: Bella and Edward
Chapter Two
BPOV
"I hate this." I moaned as I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. The seat belt was stretched to its limit around my bump and I was gripping onto it like a life line. I didn't feel safe even with this thing on, or maybe it was just my motherly instincts kicking into to gear already. I didn't want to be an overprotective mother, but then again Rosalie had said the same thing and if a stranger even looked at her twin boys in the wrong way they would feel her wrath. And you do not want to feel her wrath…
"Bella love, we don't have to do this, we can turn the car back around-" I sighed loudly and it shut him up.
"We're doing this, today." I snapped and instantly felt bad. "Sorry." I mumbled.
"Don't apologize, I know you're uncomfortable." I wanted to argue and accuse him of not knowing what the hell he was talking about, but I couldn't be bothered and with him being a doctor an all he had a good idea how I was feeling, in theory. But let's try putting it into practice and have him carry a wannbe ballerina or football player around, pressing again his bladder causing him this much discomfort.
I sighed again after the little rant in my head. "How long until were in town, I really need to walk around." The little nudger kicked. "And I need the toilet." I added as I squeezed my legs together. I could see out of the corner of my eye that he was looking incredibly worried and I knew he was panicking over the thought of me peeing all over his precious Volvo. "Oh relax. I'm not going to pee on the seat." I snapped again. "Sorry love."
"We're almost there." He whispered, probably scared he was going to say the wrong thing. I couldn't help but smile and eventually it turned into laughing. "What are you laughing at?" He sounded shocked and defiantly confused over my sudden mood swing. "Stop laughing before you really do pee on my seat!" He warned me and I stopped immediately, biting my bottom lip in an act of control, but it was no use, I had the giggles and nothing was going to stop them for a while.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." I finally said after about five minutes of giggling. It had lightened the mood in the car and he even cracked a smile. I leaned over as far as I could and kissed him tenderly on the cheek. He turned his face to mine and gave me a soft chaste kiss. "Eyes on the road you." He chuckled as he turned his head back to the front.
"We're here now." He nudged his head forwards and I turned my head looking in his line of sight. Christmas had infected every area of the town. Lights were swinging from one side of the road to the other, with large decorative light features, from Christmas presents, to snow men, to bells and stars. As we started passing rows of shops, the little Christmas trees came into view which instantly put a downer on my mood as they mocked me by towering over the on coming cars and people walking on the streets. They hung from the walls, base to the wall and angled so they shot up pointing towards the sky, they looked tacky with there lights wrapped around them.
I looked away. "In good timing too, because I really do need the ladies room right now." I sat back in my seat and stroked my bump. As I touched it, the little nudger kicked, thankfully not into my bladder. "She's really active today." I casually commented while she kicked again into my hand.
"He's anxious to be born, that's why." He chuckled. "I can't say I blame him with you as his mother." I blushed scarlet at his compliment. It really made us laugh when we bumped into distant friends who hadn't known I was pregnant. He would always refer to the little nudger as a boy and I a girl. It confused the hell out of people and some assumed we were having twins, we never corrected them; we had too much fun confusing them.
"Enough with the cheesy compliments." I heard him open his mouth to say something back but he snapped it shut and I smiled smugly. "I can't wait to meet her too." I whispered, hoping secretly he hadn't heard me.
"Me either." I hadn't realised he had parked the car, I was about to yell at him for not keeping his eyes on the road as he leaned into the side of me and kissed my neck. I turned my face towards him and pressed my lips eagerly to his… It was times like this I wish we were back in our bed, naked, tangled up in our bed sheets and bodies pressed close together. He felt me stop kissing him back as he pulled away. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." I whispered. Damn hormones. I hated being all moody with Edward and snappy. He really didn't deserve to be at the end of that emotion, he was too kind to receive that.
"Four more weeks…" He trailed off. He always was good at reading me and knowing the right thing to say. Sometimes I wonder if he could read my mind. "I love you." He whispered against my lips.
"I love you too." I closed the distance happily.
We were currently sat in Stellar Pizza, Ale & Cocktails. It's a neat restaurant with a friendly environment that was perfect for during the day. No romantic vibe with kissing couples, just families coming out for a pizza before they go shopping around town. We had been here during the hours where the Ale & Cocktails in the name made sense. On a night it was a completely different environment, you wouldn't have thought that this family/friendly zone turned into, karaoke, horny couples and a nice lively party vibe. It was one of our favourite restaurants and one of the only restaurants I could attend right now.
Being pregnant had more down falls. Food. I had been turned off nearly every meat going; I was practically living off of salads. Luckily the little nudger didn't protest to me eating cheese pizzas, in fact she was rather fond of the taste and I have cravings for it all the time. Edward didn't like just plain pizza, he much preferred pepperoni pizza, he said plain cheese pizza's were too boring… but with me being pregnant an all, with a nose like a blood hound, I could smell the meat and I was soon making a trip to the ladies room. He agreed to suffer through plain pizza whilst I was pregnant. He's made lots of sacrifices during my pregnancy, cutting back on all meats.
"…Great! Only this time, you hold the pigeon down and I'll poop on its head." Emmett had been telling the same joke for the last five minutes, we all stared at him faking interest. When he finally reached the punch line he was the only one laughing until Rosalie gave a startling performance with the best fake laugh ever.
"Hilarious Embear." She leaned into him and rubbed her nose on his cheek giving a small giggle.
"Thanks babe." He grabbed her hand on the table and gave it a little squeeze. I watched in awe with a smile on my face, it was lovely to see how madly in love they were after longer than fifteen years… wow we sound old. The truth was; they had been together since they were about twelve.
"Are you okay?" Edward whispered in my ear sending a shiver down my spine. "Sorry about Emmett, he can be quite crude sometimes, but that was nowhere near as bad as his jokes get when he's drunk." He chuckled into my skin and my breath caught in my throat.
I struggled to get my heart rate back to normal as it hammered fast against my rib cage. He placed his hand on my tiny bump, I was three months pregnant and only just starting to show, I was petite so it looked a lot bigger than it actually was. Naked, you could see that it was just a small bump; clothes can make you seem bigger than you actually are when you're pregnant. "I'm fine." I whispered back. "And I'm used to your family now… I have known you all over ten years." I chuckled at our private conversation.
We were all at Esme and Carlisle's house; we come here once a month for a big Sunday roast dinner. It was a traditional British meal and we did this for Carlisle. He grew up in London but during his college years moved over here and Esme likes to treat him to this special meal, she knows how much he misses London from time to time. Roast beef, with roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, stuffing, vegetables and gravy. The smells floated into the dining room as we sat around the table.
Edward was on my right while Alice sat on my left. Jasper was next to her and facing him was Rosalie his twin sister. Emmett was facing Alice while Esme faced me (which was vacant at the moment as she cooked the meal) and finally Carlisle sitting in front of Edward. We always sat in the same seats, we don't know why, it just sort of happened and we never grew out of the routine.
"How are you feeling Bella?" Carlisle asked, his striking smile beamed at me and you could clearly see where Edward had gotten his good looks from. He was practically double of Carlisle minus the blonde hair; he got his bronze hair from Esme's long locks.
"I'm doing good thanks." I smiled back.
"She's not at that uncomfortable stage yet." Rosalie chirped in and laughed lightly but not in a mean way. Once you get used to Rosalie's sense of humour and personality, you realise she isn't the bitch she comes off as at first glance or first comment. Everyone at school assumed she was Queen Bitch, but she's actually the opposite, she's one of the funniest people I've ever met and she cares a lot for her family, she would do anything to protect them.
"No, I've been good so far… we can find out the sex of the baby this week." I smiled widely even though we didn't want to know. Edward squeezed my hand under the table and I leaned into him placing my head on his shoulder.
"Oh my gosh. You have to tell us the sex when you find out!" Alice said excitedly, bouncing on her chair next to me.
"Calm down pixie." I laughed. "We don't want to know what were having."
"Why not?" She asked shocked. "How am I supposed to know what to buy it if you won't tell me the sex?"
"You don't have to worry about buying her clothes." Rosalie interrupted before I had chance to say more.
"Her?" She quirked an eyebrow and I blushed.
Edward answered for me. "I've taken to calling the baby a boy and Bella calls the baby a girl." He stoked a thumb over the back of my hand and I gave a thank you squeeze. "I'm hoping for a boy and she's hoping for a girl. We know it's wrong to get our hopes up but either way were not bothered what we have as long as he's healthy." He put his chin on top of my head. "It saves calling the baby it." He said to Alice in a disapproving tone and I was glad he had mentioned that. It bothered me when people refer to their babies as it.
"Well I'm hoping you have a girl too." Alice ignored Edward and grabbed my other hand. "You have to have a girl, Rosalie has had two boys; we need a baby girl in the family before the numbers get too uneven." She giggled and Rosalie protested with a 'humph' sound. "You know how much I love your boys Rosalie; I didn't mean it in a bad way. I just think we need more girls in the family, it's starting to be overruled by boys." She rolled her eyes and Rosalie surprised me when she agreed.
"I never looked at it that way. I'm too hoping you have a baby girl." She smiled brightly and kissed Emmett. "So when are you finally going to take the plunge Alice? I've had two boys and still planning on more." She pinched Emmett and he gave a 'hey' "Bella's having one, what about you?"
"We've been talking about it a lot lately." Jasper replied, he was always the quiet type unless he got into a lengthy conversation with Edward or Carlisle about history, he was a major geek but lovable. "We're thinking of trying after new years, round about after Bella gives birth."
"Oh that's awesome." I squeezed Alice's hand and she smiled wide and goofily.
"Dinners ready." Esme called from the kitchen, I moved to get up to help her, letting go of both Alice and Edwards hands, but Edward pushed me back down.
"Me and Carlisle will help, you relax." He winked at me and I frowned. I always helped with serving dinner and cleaning up afterwards, but since falling pregnant Edward has gone over the top and does everything. I haven't cooked a single meal at home since we found out. I stuck my tongue out at him and he laughed before walking away. I knew he meant well after all.
I sat and watched as plates filled the table, gravy boats sat in the centre and a plate of meat. My plate was filled with loads of roast potatoes, Esme made the best roasts, a Yorkshire pudding sat proud among them and some vegetables coloured my plate. I watched Emmett pile his plate with slabs or roast beef and I felt my stomach turn a little. He was sometimes disgusting to look at…
I waited until everyone had finished getting their pieces of meat before I moved forwards. I grabbed a piece with my fork and put it on top of my plate, my stomach turned again I sat back and waited for the nausea to pass. I was confused seen as I don't get my pregnancy sickness during the day; it's always on a morning and that's started to stop for me. I leaned forwards again and grabbed one of the gravy boats; I poured some over my beef and Yorkshire pudding and roasts and put it down. I caught the smell of my meal again and the nausea came back, I held back a gag.
"Are you okay love?" Edward frowned at me with worry.
"I don't know." I replied honestly. "I'm feeling a little sick… I think I just need to eat something. I haven't really eaten all day." He nodded his head but never wavered his gaze from me.
I leaned forwards carefully this time and slowly. I grabbed my knife and fork and began to cut into one of the roasts. I slowly moved it into my mouth and began to chew carefully, everything was okay. I was feeling fine. I smiled and swallowed happily then shoved the rest of it into my mouth eagerly.
"Everything okay dear?" Esme asked from across the table.
"Fine thanks, your roasts are the best as usual." That compliment earned me a pleased smile but there was still something behind her eyes that told me she was wary or worried.
I ate a few more and moved onto my Yorkshire pudding. I hesitated again before putting a cut off piece into my mouth but everything was fine. The nausea wasn't so bad now, I was feeling slightly better but it was still there… I couldn't understand it.
"Mum… you've done it again. This beef is just perfect." Emmett complimented her, again earning a pleased smile. She looked around everyone as they hummed with pleasure over the nice meal, clearly enjoying it. Then her eyes landed on me again and that same look behind her eyes from before appeared again.
I finally moved onto the last piece of my food. The meat. I swallowed the mouthful of vegetables I was chewing on and cut off a small piece. I placed it onto my tongue and swallowed it quickly and that's when it really hit me. I placed a hand over my mouth instantly and gagged, there was no holding it back now.
"Bella." Everyone shouted at me at once, but there was only one voice I was concentrating on.
"Edward." I managed to speak out. "I'm gonna be sick."
"Oh my god, here." He helped me up, pulling the chair out from the table with me on it and leading me out of the room in a quick sprint. He barged the bathroom door open and I pushed away from him and shoved my head down the toilet.
"I'm sorry." I finally croaked out, my voice rough.
"You don't have to apologize."
"Bella?" Esme called from the other side of the door. Edward opened it and she came in. "Bella honey, are you okay?" I shook my head and apologized again for ruining the evening. "You don't need to apologize, it was expected." I pushed away from the toilet and looked in her eyes questionably. "When I was pregnant with Edward I couldn't eat any meats at all. When I saw you being hesitant with each item on your plate I knew instantly it was the meat that was making you look queasy. I guess your little girl gets it from her daddy." She laughed and I looked at Edward.
"So you want it to be a girl too, huh?" Edward asked her and he chuckled rubbing my back.
"You two better go, I don't want you around the meat anymore, it will do you no good. No apologies necessary." She kissed my forehead and left us alone.
"Your family are the best." I croaked out again.
He laughed. "That's because they love you, as do I." I smiled a lazy smile back, exhaustion taking over.
"So, you got any ideas about what to get everyone?" He was chewing whilst he spoke and I frowned at him. He quickly swallowed the mouthful and apologized. After all, I'd married Edward not Emmett.
One good thing about this year was we had already gotten the boys out of the way. They had begged us for a puppy and Emmett gushed at the idea. Apparently having always wanted one but Alice wasn't a fan of them so they couldn't get one when they were children. We went shopping a few weeks back with the boys, deciding to give them it early to get it out of the way. We ended up getting them a St. Bernard. It was an adorable puppy; even I had to admit that.
"Well when you went off to work I couldn't come up with any ideas on my own… and I knew you wouldn't be much help." I didn't mean that to be a dig and he didn't take it as an insult, we were both completely useless in that area and he nodded in agreement, flashing me his dazzling smile. My heart beat in my throat and I worked hard to shake myself back to reality… He was just too damn beautiful.
"So what did you do?" He asked, covering his mouth up so I couldn't see what he was chewing this time. I smiled at him.
"I phoned up the girls…" I trailed off and he looked at me apologetically.
"I'm sorry, did they rant at you?" He brushed the back of my hand and leaned forwards automatically. He wasn't going to kiss me, it was just a habit he had when he sensed I was stressed, a very protective stance.
"They were really useful actually." He still winced as if I'd told him they had ranted at me, he knew what his sister was like and when you asked Alice for shopping advice you were doomed and in for a looong conversation.
"What did the pixie have to say for herself?" He let go of my hand and picked up his slice again, taking a large bite out of it. You could tell him and Emmett were related.
I turned back to my own food and took a bite myself before going into the tale. I swallowed and began. "Well I phoned up your mother first, she was quick and very useful." He raised his eyebrow at me, knowingly. "Yes I told her I had to speak with Alice so she didn't waste much time giving me advice." He nodded his head and I chuckled before I continued, he really did know me so well. "I didn't ask about what I could get her, obviously. But she did tell me there was a book Carlisle might be interested in." I'd caught Edward's full attention now; he was a book nerd himself. "She told me about this book of photography, its called London Through The Ages."
"Oh nice, he's gonna love that." Carlisle was born and raised in London, he later moved over here where he attended university and he met Esme there. They moved to Forks a few years later, wanting to settle down in a nice neighbourhood where she fell pregnant with Emmett. "Did you check online to see if I can get it at The Elliott Bay Book store?" I blushed and shook my head; I knew there was something I had forgotten to do. "It's okay." He winked at me and the blush turned deeper. How was he still able to do that? "So we have my dad sorted… what about my mum?"
"Next I phoned up Rose." There wasn't much reaction from Edward when I told him this; he knew what Rose was like. She was incredibly helpful and she wasted no time. "She told about this gym in Seattle, it's not far from where they live. I can't remember the name though…" I trailed off deep in thought. The little nudger kicked and I looked down automatically causing a wary look from Edward but I shook my head and smiled; nothing to worry about.
"All-star Fitness gym?" He said with an eye roll.
"Yes! That's the one." I laughed at the name. "Anyway, she told me that Emmett's been wanting to join up there for a while now but he never gets around to actually doing it. So she thought maybe we could pay for him for a year, give him the boost he needs?" I hadn't meant it to come out as a question.
"Sounds good, Emmett is difficult enough to buy for." That was very, very true.
"Oh and she told me about this dress she saw in Louis Vuitton for Alice. She described it to be dusty black with layered materials coming off of it." I was always terrible at describing clothing. "She was going to buy it herself but she'd already bought her something and she knew I'd end up phoning for advice and thought it a perfect gift from us. She said I'd know what she was talking about as soon as I see it. She said it has Alice written all over it."
"So that's my father, Alice and Emmett sorted." He listed off. "Did Rose have any other ideas?" I shook my head. "Okay, what did the pixie have to say?" He repeated his earlier question in a dramatic tone.
"She was actually quite quick, she didn't waste much of time, something about loads of packing to do and that Jasper hadn't even started yet." I chuckled and took another bite out of my now coldish pizza. I ate a bit and swallowed each mouthful before I began again. "Okay, she actually sprung the news on me that she's bought Charlie's present for us."
"What?" Edward looked up startled. "How did she know we hadn't gotten him something ourselves?" He sounded annoyed. I stared at him for a long time like he had said something dumb until I finally had to say what I was thinking.
"Do you not know us at all? Since when do we know what to get anyone? Charlie is even worse to buy for than Emmett." I rolled my eyes at him.
"Okay… what did she get him then?" He was still kind of annoyed.
"She bought him a Rolex watch from when she went on her New York trip. She's wrapped it and everything and the price was good, although I think she's lied and told me it was cheaper than what she'd bought it for."
"How much are we talking?" He asked casually. Edward had come from a wealthy family, they had been brought up with the best of the best and as a family ourselves we weren't so bad with the money. Being a doctor pays really well and being a book publisher brings in a nice wage. We could afford the designer gear for Christmas and birthdays, at least if its just one item like we tend to buy for everyone. We were quite well off, but we still had to tend to ourselves and our soon to be family of three.
"She said she bought it for $2,000." He spat his food out on his plate and I slapped him on the arm looking around embarrassed.
"For a watch?" He looked like someone had just smashed a truck into his Volvo. "And you think she was lying about the price?" I nodded my head. "Who in their right mind would spend that much on a watch or more in this case?"
"Rolex watches are a very expensive brand. Plus, how often do I get to buy stuff for my father? He isn't as well off as we are, being the chief of police in Forks doesn't exactly bring in the largest pay check." I ranted at him and felt the baby kick again and I winced.
"What's wrong?" He asked in a rushed worried tone.
"Nothing, she just kicked again and it kind of hurt, everything's fine now though." I brushed a hand over my stomach.
"You sure?" I nodded and he sat back, his expression never changed though. "Okay… so we have my father, your father, Emmett and Alice sorted." He said, encouraging me to continue.
"She told me about a book Jasper has been interested in for a while now. Called the Act of Confederate Congress-"
"-R. General In Chief." He finished for me. "Yeah, he's been talking about that to me too. Why isn't Alice getting him it though? It's a present he will really love; wouldn't it be better coming from her than us?"
I shook my head. "She's already bought him something. A month trip to Rome." He stared open mouthed at me.
"Wow, well he'll defiantly love that more than the book." He chuckled and I joined him. Jasper was the biggest History geek. He's never been to Rome before and it's always been a dream for him… Alice certainly loves her man. "I'm guessing you didn't check online to see if I could get it at the book store?"
"Nope, but Alice said you could." I winked at him and he blushed a little. I liked that I still had that effect on him too. "So that's Jasper sorted. I asked her about Rose, she told me about a perfume she saw in Parfumerie Nasreen, called Lola Mark Jacobs. I've see the bottle before and its gorgeous, it has a lovely colourful layered Rose on top as the lid; perfect for her." I smiled wide and continued. "She's also been routing around the Louis Vuitton shop. She told me about a short black strapless dress with patterned sides, tight fitting and quite short."
"Sounds like Rose to me." He laughed and I tapped his arm playfully.
"That's not nice." I commented. "It should be easy enough to find."
"Okay, so only my mother left."
"She was great help with Esme. She's seen a long white dress, also in Louis Vuitton. It has a gold band around the bottom of the breast and it's backless."
"Isn't a white dress too weddingy?" He scrunched his face up in an adorable way when he pronounced the last word.
"That's the point… Remember? Carlisle's taking her away to Isle Esme after they renew their vows. It will be perfect for the wedding and with him surprising her with the news at the cabin this weekend, it will just top off the whole surprise." He smiled happily, this was one of the reasons I didn't want to miss this trip. Edward's family mean the world to me and if I'd have missed Carlisle proposing this to Esme, it would have crushed me. "Oh and she mentioned a necklace. She's been in Flanagan and Lane Antiques Jewellery shop recently and seen a lovely necklace with pearls that drapes down your back instead of the front. It sounds like it would go nice with the backless dress." I sat back and felt relaxed. It was all done; the only thing left for us to do, was buy the things.
"I'm impressed." Edward chuckled and sat back himself. "Are you sure you don't want anything for Christmas?"
"No. We agreed. No presents for each other, just presents for the baby and don't argue with me on this, again… Rose and Emmett did the same thing when she was carrying Joshua and Ethan. Everyone bought her babies presents instead of them, I expect everyone to do the same for us and for us to do the same to each other. I think its nice spoiling our baby instead of ourselves, in my eyes I see having the baby as a gift."
"You're right." He picked up my left hand, the hand not on my bump and kissed it softly. He put it down and never let go of it, he laced our fingers together and stared deep into my eyes… Whenever he did this, I always wonder what he's looking at. It made me self conscious right now, but that because I was self conscious about everything to do with my physical appearance. I was currently wearing a black maternity top that didn't hug my figure but bagged, it hung low around the neck showing off a tiny bit of my cleavage and showing off my new full boobs. I wasn't that big, and as a petite woman I had a tiny figure and the bump actually suited me a lot with clothes on. I had skinny jeans on but they weren't tight around the stomach, a brilliant design by Alice of course. Converse shoes, which I always wore, I couldn't wear heels. And a black pea coat, which I could only wear whilst I was pregnant… but I loved it so much Alice has given me the same pea coat for after the pregnancy.
"Ready to go?" I asked, finishing the last of my water off. I was addicted to coke, but whilst I've been pregnant I've drank a lot of water and I've gotten used to it. I thought it was healthier for the baby.
"Yep, I'll go pay and you visit the ladies room before we set off." I laughed and agreed.
As I was coming out of the bathroom I saw Edward staring at a little boy playing with the buttons on his mother's coat. He must have been about three years old and the fascination in his face was comical. I watched as Edward smiled, his eyes lighting up… I could just picture him with a little boy, teaching him how to play football, relating to him during the awkward teenage stage and helping him follow in his footsteps to becoming a doctor, well, if that's what little Edward Junior wanted to do. He would be such a spoilt little boy, or girl… but he would be a daddy's boy for sure if Edward got his wish.
I walked up to him and laced my fingers into his hair, pulling him down so I could kiss his cheek and bringing his gaze to me. "Let's go shopping." He heard the slight moan in my voice and he chuckled wrapping his arm around my shoulders and hugging me to his side. He kissed the top of my head and I sighed into him.
EPOV
'Do they know it's Christmastime' was blasting out in the main shopping mall. Christmas decorated every area of the large space. Numerous huge Christmas trees took up a large portion of the space, each one reaching to the high ceiling, white ones and green ones, even a large pink one which Bella actually admitted she liked. Each one had been decorated with oversized baubles and lights. Presents were placed underneath them which made Bella cringe away from them unconsciously and cower more into my side. If I hadn't have thought it was an endearing quality to her personality, I would have thought she was incredibly strange and not in a good way like some would say strange is a personality trait that's rare and unique.
I hugged her closer to me as we carried on walking, weaving in and out of the noisy late shoppers. It was nice to know we weren't the only ones leaving this until the last minute. I watched a family of four walk across from us, their children happily laughing with animal shaped balloons floating above their heads attached to string in their hands. I watched as a girl danced around her parents dressed as a ballerina. I watched a queue of children line up to visit Santa in the open grotto the mall had set up. I watched as Bella stared at the guy dressed as Santa. I frowned at that. "What are you looking at?" I asked casually, trying to keep the annoyance and jealously out of my voice. There was no kid on his lap and he looked way too young to be a fat old guy.
"What?" She shook herself back to reality and spoke like I'd just woken her up out of a daydream.
"How come you were staring at that dude?"
"What dude?" I could see a blush crawling up her cheeks.
"Santa." I growled the word.
"I wasn't staring at Santa." She mocked me by growling the word back and giggled.
I narrowed my eyes at her suspiciously and carried on walking. I watched her as her eyes drifted back to Santa, still no child sat on his lap. "Liar." I accused her. "Why don't you just go sit on his damn lap?" Heat crawled up my cheeks.
"What the hell are you talking about?" She was blushing furiously, I didn't know if it was from the embarrassment of being caught or anger.
"You, staring at him openly like you could just jump his bones." I rushed out, trying not to shout.
"You're being ridiculous." She spat at me.
"Am I?" I frowned at her.
"Yes." She said through gritted teeth.
"So I was just imagining you staring at him then?" I asked her, quirking an eyebrow.
"I wasn't staring at anyone." She blushed again, her face turning bright red.
"Your blush says different." I smirked at her and she looked like she wanted to either scream at me or slap me hard. She pushed away from me instead and walked into the bookshop we were aiming for.
The Elliott Bay Book store was huge. It was one of my favourite places in Seattle. It was like walking into a different world, with the two levels. As soon as you walk in you immediately see the second floor towering over you. Two light wooden staircases lead up to the second floor where you can see many bookcases full of books even from standing in the entrance. The bottom floor, the main floor is massive and like a maze. Any new timer here would be confused and stunned at first… it was something that had to grow on you before you learned to love it and appreciate the layout and the quiet atmosphere. Bella huffed beside me.
"Can you just find the books already? I want to get this day over with as soon as possible." She snapped each word and it brought back my anger.
"With pleasure." I snapped back. I walked around her and found the computer which logged every book in this place. I forgot that they had this, that's why it didn't really matter that Bella hadn't checked online before we got here. I followed the instructions by clicking photography when it said select a category, then it gave you the option of searching from A to Z or typing in the title. I typed in London Through The Ages and was happy when it popped up. "Bella, come over here." I called her over my shoulder and she begrudgingly obliged.
"What is it?" She still snapped each word.
"They have Carlisle's book in stock, I'm just gonna check that they have Jaspers. Do you wanna go find Carlisle's? It's in the photography section." She turned on her heel without another word. I shook my head and started a new search. I selected the category Religion and typed in Act of Confederate Congress R. General In Chief, I was relieved to see they also had it in stock. I ended the search and I went to find Jaspers book.
I found it easily; the task now was to find Bella… I searched all along the bottom floor, searching the photography section twice and couldn't see her anywhere. I even searched the top floor and couldn't find her. I walked back to the entrance and caught her standing near the counter; two sales women stared at me openly, one with striking red hair the other a blonde. I walked up to Bella and turned to the closest woman, the blonde and smiled at her as I put my arm around Bella's shoulders. The red head walked away while our assistant leaned in close to me. "How can I help you?" She was young, I'd say around the age we were.
"Bella did you get the book?" She slammed it on the counter ignoring me completely. I placed mine on top. "Just the two books please." I turned my gaze down to Bella and caught her staring daggers at the woman.
"Cash or credit card?" The sales woman asked, avoiding Bella's gaze.
"Credit card." She gave me the small machine and I inserted my card and typed in my pin. I paid in silence and she bagged my good. I thanked her and we walked out. "What was all that about?" I asked Bella.
"Nothing." She replied quietly.
"Bella?" I asked again.
"Those two were talking about you." I furrowed my eyebrows together and I didn't question what they were saying, it was pretty clear by the way she was reacting.
"So?" I said.
"So they were talking about you, saying how sexy you were and that the blonde would defiantly do you. If I weren't pregnant I'd have ripped that pretty blonde hair off her tiny fucking head."
"Bella, you don't need to be angry-" She cut me off.
"Oh but you have a right to be jealous just because I was staring at a fucking guy in a red suit with a fake fucking beard." She steamed.
I stayed quiet as I stared at her and watched her cool off. I placed a hand over her stomach and brushed at the bump hidden under her layers of clothing. "Look at us… We're both acting like teenagers." I chuckled and she joined in.
"I know." She sighed and looked into my eyes.
"I'm sorry love." I looked at her full of apology.
"I know you are. I'm sorry too for acting bitchy." She stepped closer to me and stood on her tiptoes pressing her bump into my lower body and kissing my lips tenderly. I wrapped my arms around her waste and brought her closer to me. I deepened the kiss and we both moaned in sync.
"Eww. Yuck." A boy said next to us causing us to break apart and look down at him. "Gross." He complained again and Bella laughed in my arms. His mother pulled him away and we looked at each other again, my arms still tightly holding onto her.
"So… Santa…?" I quirked an eyebrow suggestively and chuckled. She nodded her head innocently, widening her eyes and biting on her bottom lip. I stopped laughing immediately and stared at her stunned. "Really? Santa…" She nodded again and raised one of her own eyebrows.
"What do you say?" She giggled and I felt my body react to the sudden heated moment.
BPOV
"Can we get the clothes out of the way now? You know how much I hate shopping for clothes." I said grumpily and Edward chuckled, pulling me closer to him.
"Sure." We carried on walking until the store came into view and I moaned, muttering to myself under my breath. He laughed and I frowned at him. "Cheer up grumpy, it's not so bad… it's not like you don't know what you're getting."
"You're right." I sighed. "Come on." I broke myself free from his grip and trailed my hand down his arm until I found his hand and gripped it tightly pulling him along with me. We entered Louis Vuitton and I felt my stomach tighten… The shop was gold and white; white walls, white floor, white roof with golden shelves holding designer bags, shoes and other items. The far wall was decorated in the signature pattern that was spread all over the accessories in the store. I hurried my steps on walking towards the clothing area, no need to waste time.
"Hi, can I help?" A young girl asked and I stopped dead in my tracks Edward bumping into the back of me. She stared at him for longer than what was necessary before she looked back at me. Was every girl going to lust after him today? I frowned at her and she stepped back, really look at me now. "I'm sorry, we don't do maternity wear." I felt heat crawl up my face.
"I'm not here to buy for me." I snapped at her and she widened her eyes.
"Sorry, would you like any help?" I could tell she really wanted to get away from us and I let her. I walked past her stepped into the first line of clothing.
"Bella…" Edward trailed off.
"What?" I turned on him.
"I thought everything was okay now, why did you snap at her?" He brushed his hand down my cheek and looked deep into my eyes. My heart hammered against my chest and for a few seconds everything I was feeling washed away.
"I don't know…" I whispered. "I'm just not in the best of moods, I really hate being here." I sighed and gave him a small smile. I looked to my left and saw a row of underwear; I blushed and turned back to him. I was never comfortable buying underwear in front of Edward and being around them right now made me self conscious and miserable that I wouldn't be able to buy anything for myself while we're here, not like I was here to shop for me… but it was still nice to have the option. "Let's find these dresses, okay?" He nodded and brushed his lips against mine. He pulled away giving me that crooked smile I love the most. He brushed his hand over my bump and there was no mistaking the love he held for me and the little nudger behind that gaze… And that's just like, my troubles washed away and I was instantly calmer.
I walked deeper into the jungle of clothes, dragging Edward along with me. I found Esme's dress quickly and walked up to it, my mouth falling open at the site of it. It was breathtaking. The material was soft, not silky soft but it looked silky the way it hung straight and very long. It was one of those dresses that no matter how small you are; it will add inches to your height in a very flattering way as it hid your feet from view. I hesitantly touched it as if scared it would crumble in my hands, the fabric was to die for and I knew it was worth every penny. The gold band under the breasts was actually quite delicate, the way it formed a pattern in the centre, two strips of gold weaving in and out of each other and then going off at the side's wrapping around the back. The top half parted at the breasts from the band up and it tied around the neck leaving the back completely bare. "Wow." I sighed.
"Is that my mother's dress?" Edward whispered behind me.
"Yeah, it's gorgeous. Your sister may be annoying at times, but she really knows what she's talking about." I found Esme's size and turned to Edward with it, making sure not to trail it on the floor. He held his arm out and I wrapped it around him and he held it carefully trying not to crease. "Now to find Alice and Rosalie's."
"Oh the joy." He chuckled. "The fabric on this is really soft."
I turned on him and gave him a teasing glare. "No touching the designer gear." He held his free hand up in surrender and winked at me causing my traitor blush to come back. I turned around before he could see.
I walked down isle after isle and thought about giving in until Edward called me. "Bella." I turned to face him and saw him staring at a brownish black dress and as Rosalie put it, it had Alice written all over it. It was stunning and made me insanely jealous that Rosalie had seen it first and suggested it for Alice. I would have actually bought this for myself if I thought I could pull it off. It had a frill at the top of the breasts hiding cleavage in a really subtle way. Two nice thin straps that would allow your collarbone to be shown and leaving your arms bare. I stepped forwards and touched the layers at the bottom of it. The main material was a soft material but it didn't look soft with its ruffled look. A black ribbon tied with a small bow around the waste giving the illusion that the main fabric wasn't jet black but had tints of brown to it, a dusty colour as Rosalie had put it. The bottom part, the layers, they were all different kinds of fabric. They weren't over the top, making it seem like a puffy ballerina skirt, the colours were placed nicely on each other from a dirty rusted bronze shade to a black leather material. It looked rustic and kind of gothic and that's why not just any kind of girl could pull this off but Alice could with her short spiky black hair. This would suit her immensely.
I found her size and place it on top of the dress currently in Edward's arms. Two down, one more to go. I was feeling better; so far the two dresses were to die for. Alice's was a little pricier than I would have thought, it would defiantly be the most expensive dress out of the three but I was pleased we had found them. "Okay, now to find Rosalie's." I rolled my eyes and he gave a similar expression back, quite bored and wanting to this over with. I could tell he didn't like being around female clothes, I almost laughed but thought it too mean; I didn't want to make him more uncomfortable.
We were getting nearer to the more party-ish dresses now and I saw a few red, yellow, blue, purple dresses and a few other colours, it was only near the end of the row when I found the black ones. I was searching through the rack when I touched something hard. I brought it out and Edward raised his eyebrows at it. "Wow that's short." He commented and I nodded, not sure we should get Rose this. From first glance it was exactly as I'd described it earlier, short, strapless and patterned on the sides. Dark gold and black beads travelled down each side symmetrically in a curve, going nearer to the front at the middle but then going back in to end near the top of the hip bone. The fabric was similar to Alice's, it was soft at the touch, almost velvety, but it looked rougher with the scrunched up effect. I held it next to my body; the bump would only get in the way and the bottom hit just above my mid thigh. "That really is short…" He trailed off.
"Should we really get her this?" I raised an eyebrow at him, unsure. I cocked my head to the side and stared at him.
"Well I know Emmett would love it and let's face it, Rosalie loves to please Emmett. Anything to get his jaw to hit that floor and she buys it…. That's, a jaw dropping dress." He blushed at his comment and it made me furrow my eyebrows.
"You never told me you like short dresses…" I commented, narrowing my eyes.
He gulped and turned to walk off. "We better go buy these." I laughed at him and he turned around the blush deepening.
"Soo… you like short dresses, huh?" I giggled.
"Your one to talk… you like Santa." He laughed back and I stopped to blush myself.
"No… I like the idea of you dressed as Santa." I smiled flirtatiously and walked off with the dress in my arms towards the counter. I didn't hear him follow me but I knew not to turn around… I loved to tease him.
EPOV
We were still in the mall sat in Costa, a coffee shop. It was right in the centre and in the open, so shoppers were walking by on either side of us. If truth be told, I was really looking forwards to getting back home. Bella's teasing wasn't helping me at all today… the Santa comment back in Louis Vuitton almost made me drop the clothing in my hands and drag her off into the nearest changing room. I had to stop that line of thought though… we weren't teenagers anymore; we were adults and having a baby. Sometimes it was hard though, looking at her right now with her brown hair waved down her back draping on the table in front of us, she had luscious lips that just begged for me to kiss them, her rosy cheeks and those chocolate brown eyes. She looks even more beautiful than the day I first met her.
I noticed she'd been staring at the back of me and a few times I'd looked around to see what she was looking at but each time there was nothing there in particular. It was making me a little paranoid. "What are you looking at love?" I asked her, holding onto her hand and brushing the back with my thumb.
"That baby shop behind you, Mother Care." She said in a dreamlike voice.
"What about it?" I asked casually.
"Well… we haven't gotten anything yet." She sighed, still staring at the shop window.
"We have plenty of time for that. As soon as we're back from the trip this weekend we can go shopping. Plus, you've pacifically asked everyone to buy us baby stuff. We best not buy anything in case someone else has bought us it."
"You're right." She smiled at me but her gaze drifted back to the shop window.
"What are you looking at specifically?" Curiosity was getting the better of me today.
We had two takeaway cups in front of us and she picked hers up, handling the clothes bags too. She stood next to me. "I'll show you." She weaved through the tables me trailing behind her, with the bag of books as she worked her way past the traffic of shoppers and finally got us to the store. We were staring past the window at a display of tiny manikins, each dressed in different clothing. "Look at that one." She said, her voice holding a hint of giddiness. The baby grow was white and on it was red writing reading: My Mummy and Daddy 'love' Me. The 'love' was replaced with a heart instead of the actual word, but the meaning was the same. It made me smile wide.
"We should get it." I said enthusiastically.
"Really?" Her eyes shone with excitement and I nodded, I've never seen her so eager to shop before. She threw her half filled coffee in the bin next to the shop and turned and headed into the shop. Shop assistants always gave you glares if you came into a clothes shop with a drink; I copied her and followed her in. Rows and rows of little baby grows hung on straight out hooks so you can view them all on a nice display. We passed all the blue and pink ones, Bella giggling at some of the sayings on them until we faced loads of white ones. We'd talked about this previously, about what colour we should get our baby. We agreed that blacks, greys, whites, yellows and cream colours would suit both a girl and boy. Bella laughed. "Aww look at that one." She touched another white baby grow, this one reading: Don't laugh; Daddy did my hair. I blushed.
"Well were not getting that one." I said and read another funny one. "How about this one?" I took it off its hook and handed it to her, it read: My mum made me wear this.
"Well that would be true if I'd thought of buying it, but seen as your suggesting it, it should be dad not mum." She stuck her tongue out at me but turned her back to me suddenly. "She kicked again." She moaned brushing a hand over her stomach then she turned to face some bibs as if nothing had happened. I sighed, and shook my head. She was never one for showing pain, she hid it well and that's why I worried so much about her. I didn't ask if she was okay, I knew she would say fine. She laughed catching my attention. "Oh my god, we have to buy these!" She said excitedly. I turned to face the bibs. There were four of them that she had grabbed, all white but with different coloured rims and matching coloured writing. The blue one read: Cereal Killer. The Orange one read: My dad can hack anything. The green one read: A chop off the old block. The purple one read: My dad is killer. I chuckled at them all.
"Defiantly buy them; Emmett will have a good laugh reading those." If her smile got any wider her face would crack. "Now to find the baby grow from the window." I turned back and searched through the sayings until I found it. I got the size 0 - 3 months. It was so tiny. I felt my heart speed up a little with excitement and anticipation. I couldn't wait to see our little nudger wearing this.
"Edward!" Bella called, her excitement never stopping. She laughed at another title; we were now facing some black tiny t-shirts. "This one is too funny." She laughed handing me the t-shirt while I passed her the white baby grow to add to the bibs. It read: Nine Months Inside and all I get is this LOUSY T-SHIRT. I chuckled again handing her back the shirt.
"Defiantly another must buy." I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her front, placing both of my hands flat on her bump. I put my head on her shoulder and turned into her neck to place a soft kiss below her ear. "Let's buy these and get the rest of the presents so we can finally go home." I kissed her again feeling her relax into me. She hummed with pleasure and spun around in my arms, wrapping them around my back.
"Sound's good to me." She reached up on her toes and kissed me softly, I wanted so much to deepen it and never stop kissing her. But for now this will do…
"Bella?" I called as I walked through the door. No answer. "Bella, you home?" I called again and no answer. I shut the door and hung my coat and keys up on the designated hooks and walked further into the house. "Bella?" I called again but there was nothing but silence. I was confused seen as she's always home before me and if her boss ever threw a deadline at her she phoned to say she would be home later, but I never received a phone call.
I checked the answering machine to see if she'd left a message here instead, but found no beeping light and no awaiting message. I was worried now. "Bella? Are you home?" I called again, my heart starting to beat harder. I checked every room on the bottom floor before I checked the top; I was nearing our bedroom when my panic was getting worse and I'd pulled out my mobile and started dialling her number. I opened the door and found it empty. I pressed call and held it to my ear, my breathing getting faster. I heard the ringing of her phone coming from the bathroom and I barged my way in, my imagination taking a turn for the worst.
"Bella!" I ran towards her form curled on the floor and I felt tears blur my vision. I bent down to her level, cradling her in my arms. "Bella… Bella, please answer me." I brushed the hair from her face and she blinked up at me, her face streaked with dried tears, fresh ones now falling.
"Edward." She uncurled herself and wrapped her arms around my neck.
"Bella are you okay?" My voice was rushed and panicked. She didn't answer me. "Bella please, your scaring me, what's wrong?"
She pushed herself away from me and smiled. I felt my heart stop beating for a few seconds, confused as hell. "Edward…" She smiled wider. "I'm pregnant!"
I stared at her, her words not sinking in. "What?"
"We're having a baby." She brought her bottom lip into her mouth but couldn't contain the smile spreading impossibly wider on her face. I still stared at her like she had two heads. "Say something." She sighed.
"I… don't know…what?" My mouth was dry.
She laughed, more tears falling from her eyes. "Look." She said, backing away from me. I sat very still, my body frozen on the spot as she got up and walked away. She came back in a flash with about eight pregnancy tests, each one showing positive. My heart finally found its beats and I let out a breath I hadn't known I was holding.
"We're… having a baby?" I didn't mean it as a question, it was a fact.
"Yes." She said, nodding her head. "How do you feel?" She grabbed my face with her hands and really looked at me. I looked at her like I was seeing her for the first time.
"I don't know. I can't really feel anything at the moment… this is all too much." We weren't trying for a baby, how did she get pregnant? We were always so careful… How did I feel about this? I didn't know. "How come you didn't answer me when I called you before?" I said, suddenly annoyed. Shock can be known to do that to you; you ignore reality and start a random conversation off topic.
"What?" She blinked at me, looking at me like I had two heads now. "Edward, I tell you I'm pregnant, that were, having a baby-" she spoke slowly, making sure each word sunk in "-and you ask me why I didn't answer you?" She huffed and let go of my face. "I was shocked okay? I was sick this morning. I've been sick every morning for the past few weeks. It's always been when you go to work though and I get up; I thought nothing of it until I missed my period." She rambled on. "Then Jessica suggested I take a pregnancy test. It freaked me out and I insisted that that wasn't it, that this was something else, something worse." She rushed out, her words falling into one another, but I stayed quiet, still shocked, still listening. "So I went to the store, bought a boat load of tests, came home, peed on the first stick and hey presto, a blue line." She sank back, staring at one of the tests in her hand. "Then I tried another and another and before I knew it I'd peed on eight of them, each showing a blue line." She looked at me, really looked at me. "I was scared, I cried, I was shocked, I fell asleep I was so tired from crying." She had the energy to give a shaky laugh; I couldn't even find the energy to blink. "I just… I was about where you are right now; I didn't know how I felt about it." She leaned forwards now, putting her hands back on my face. "But now it's sunk in… I feel really good about this. We're gonna be parents, Edward. Your gonna be a daddy."
And just like that it sunk in for me. I'm gonna be a dad. Me. Edward Cullen. A dad. I gulped and really thought about it now. Would I make a good dad? Would I be good enough for a little person to depend on me? Could I really take that plunge, start a family of my own and raise a child as my own… The answer… was yes. I could see it so clearly. I could see me and Bella dressing a new born baby girl or boy, taking it in turns to dress him, burp him, feed him and change him. I could see us taking him to school for the first time. I could see us crying as he goes off to college leaving us for the first time, finally me and Bella alone just the two of us again. I could picture grandchildren… me, a grandfather! Sat on a porch with Bella, watching as our grandchildren run around our garden…
"I'm gonna be a dad." I finally whispered and I liked the sound of it. "I'm gonna be a dad." I said it again, the words sounded perfect and right. "I'm gonna be a dad!" I yelled, grabbing onto Bella, pulling her close to me, kissing her like I'd never kissed her before. "You're gonna be a mum." I kissed her lips. "We're gonna be parents." I kissed her over and over again not giving her chance to speak, I didn't want to let go of her. This woman means the world to me and she was creating a child that was ours. Ours. No one else's. Just mine and Bella's, to love and cherish and raise together. "I love you so much." I moaned into another kissed.
"I love you too." She gasped between the kisses. She pulled away, needing to breathe but I didn't want to stop kissing her. She giggled happily as my lips collided with her jaw line, her neck, her collarbone, her breasts, her stomach… I kissed her stomach countless times before she brushed her hands through my hair, pulling me back up to her. My lips were puffy; I could feel how red they were. "I'm guessing you feel happy about it then." She giggled and placed one of her hands on my groin raising her eyebrows at me. I growled and picked her up in my arms. She laughed as I sprinted into our bedroom and placed her on the bed. "I really do love you Mr. Cullen."
"I really love you too Mrs. Cullen." I smiled and kissed her again, softly this time, passionately. I was going to savour this moment and turn it into a memory because from years to come I will look back on it as one of the happiest moments of my life…
Haha, I love teasing pregnant Bella. Their still acting like teenagers who are in love, with their jealousy and their little stupid arguments *smiles*
Time for grumpy Charlie on a plane, an overprotective Edward worrying about Bella, a hyperactive pixie, Jasper sharing boring Christmas facts, Emmett being a pain in the ass, Rosalie with her death glares enough to frighten the big guy, two loud kids running around and a Christmas proposal from Carlisle to Esme. Everything sounds normal and happy… not. haha
Two down, three more to go! Read and review please! I'll update sometime next week x