2.
"I'm so bored", mutters Emmett under his breath.
When I look towards him with a raised eyebrow, he makes a face.
"Why did I have to accompany you here?" he continues unhappily.
I fold my arms across my chest and am about to respond when our father comes out of the fitting room.
"Well boys", he says, running a hand through his messy blonde hair. "My tux fits." He gestures to the black outfit he's wearing and smiles widely. "I like it."
"It looks good", I compliment him.
Emmett nods in agreement. "Yeah", he says.
Suddenly, I hear the sound of the vibration of a phone and instinctively look around for my i-phone, only to notice that it isn't mine that's vibrating.
It's Em's. And since Dad is closest to it, he reaches over to hand it over to my brother but before doing so, he takes a peep at the screen. "Bella is calling", he says.
"I'll answer it later", comes Em's reply, pocketing his phone.
That's strange. I wonder why he's avoiding his girlfriend's call. As long as he's been dating her, I don't think there's been a single occasion when he's ignored her call. Sure, he's ignored mine shitloads of times but as far as his girl's concerned, that's never happened.
I'll ask him about it later.
Maybe.
"Which one of your boys is gonna go next, Carlisle?" Pops- my maternal grandfather: Anthony Masen, questions my father.
"How about you, Edward?" says Dad, tilting his head to the changing room door. "Emmett seems a bit occupied with his thoughts."
Pops and I look over at my younger brother, both of us sharing worried looks when we notice Em's tense face as he hurriedly types a message on his face.
"What's wrong?" I mouth to Dad. Emmett Carlisle Cullen may be many things but he never sits in a place, looking stressed and angry. It simply isn't in him to be anything but cheerful at all times.
Dad shrugs. "Girl problem?" he mouths back. "I dunno. Maybe he had a fight with Bella?"
Just as those words are said or mouthed, we all slightly jump in shock as Emmett's voice rises audibly.
"I can't deal with this right now!" he yells over the phone. "Not right now. For fuck's sake, leave me alone and I'll… I'll call you later. I'm not in the mood for this shit and God help me because I'll have a fucking breakdown if another word leaves your mouth. Listen, I told you what I think and you're a damn fool if you think I'm changing my mind because I'm not. No way in hell. You deal with this, okay? This isn't my problem. It's yours."
Everyone in the store stares at him as if he's crazy.
He ends the call and seats himself back in his seat. "What?" he gives us a pointed look. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Nothing", I say, taking my suit hanger and placing the suit jacket into my hands. "Nothing at all."
~X~
On our way back home, the four of us stop by at Arby's to get a late lunch, seeing as we missed an actual meal because of my mother's insistence for us to get our final fittings done before my cousin Jasper's wedding to his high school sweetheart, Tanya Denali.
After telling the waitress what my order, I lean back in the comfortable booth. Putting my hands behind my head, I lazily say, "What was with the screaming thing, earlier?"
Emmett's face reddens. "Was just talking to a friend", he replies.
"A friend?" laughs Pops. "Back in my day, no one spoke to their pals like that, boy. That's just plainly disrespectful."
"Yeah, what the old man said", says Dad. "I agree… Em-"
He's cut in between as Em opens his mouth. "Look, it's none of your business", he says through gritted teeth, "so if you don't mind, stop asking me about my conversations, regardless of how rude you think I'm being! It doesn't concern you. Any of you."
Whoa. What's got his panties in twist? I'm about to retort with something not so nice but Dad silences me with his eyes.
What the hell. No one can speak with Pops like that and get away with it, with their legs still intact. Mom goes ape-shit if anyone says anything to her dad and I can recall that on a number of occasions, Dad has had to sleep on the couch as a result of making a funny comment or two, about Pops.
But leaving that aside, I really want to know what's going on with Emmett. I have a feeling that he won't be telling me on his own and I can't let that happen, can I? As his older and wiser brother, it's my duty to sort out his problems and I've never been a fan of seeing Em in any form of pain.
It really doesn't sit well with me to see him hurting. It's always been this way, since we were kids. I look out for him and he looks out for me. Em and I, we're not only brothers, we're best of friends.
.
.
.
Later that night, I repeatedly knock at the door next to mine.
"What is it?" asks Emmett, finally showing up ten minutes later, with a scowl on his face.
"What took you so long?" I say, peering into his room. "What're you up to? Do you have time? 'Because I was thinking we need to talk."
"About what?"
"Don't play dumb with me", I say. "Who were you talking to earlier today?"
"No one", he shouts.
"Shut the fuck up", I glare at him. "Mom and Dad are sleeping down the hall and I don't think they'd like to be awoken to your screaming."
I enter his room and plop onto the bed. "Now talk, Em", I continue. "This is me and you know as well as I do that whatever it is that's bothering you, you want to or need to talk it over with me."
"I know I was a dick to Pops, Edward", he says. "And I'll apologize to him tomorrow morning so it'll be fine. I don't need to talk. Okay? Just go to your room."
"I'm not going anywhere till you tell me what's wrong and you know that I won't leave till you tell me."
He rubs his temple and takes a deep breath. Closing the door behind him, he comes over and sits next to me on the bed. "I slept with Alice Brandon and now she's pregnant."
I'm sure my jaw's dropped to the floor.
Out of all the things that I was expecting, this isn't one of them.
.
.
.
"What the fuck have you done, Emmett?" I say hoarsely, throwing myself on the bed. I need a moment or two to regain myself from the horrible news my brother has bestowed upon me this night.
He's gotten Alice Brandon pregnant.
"I know what you're thinking", comes his reply. "It wasn't intentional, mind you. Remember when I went for that game in Seattle?"
My head snaps up and suddenly everything becomes clear to me. About a month ago, Forks High's soccer team had a match against Seattle High and since Em's plays defence, he went as well. Alice writes for the school newspaper and she went along to capture the event.
One thing must have led to another and...
"Don't tell me", I say, feeling sick and unable to look at his face.
"What do I do? God, I'm so scared. I can't be a dad! I can't!" he throws a glass of water against the wall and it instantly shatters into pieces, while water splashes onto the floor. "I don't know what I'm going to do."
"Have you spoken to Alice?" I ask, still trying to figure things out, not giving a shit that my floor is covered with water. "What did she say?"
"She wants to keep it", he says, his face pale. "She's only a month along but she's sure that she can do this, whether she has my support or not."
I think this over. "Does she?" Surely, no teenager in her right mind would want to have a child while in high school. Sure, teenage pregnancies do happen and girls do have babies which they end up keeping but it isn't easy to do it. I feel queasy at the thought of Alice getting an abortion and although I'm fully aware of the fact that it's her body and her decision, this is my brother's child we're talking about.
Okay. Forgetting that this is my niece or nephew, it's still a baby. An innocent life that hasn't had the opportunity to enter the world as yet. This little one is nestled in it's mother's belly, unaware of the circumstances it was created in. Instead of being formed out of love, it is the result of two horny teenagers getting at each other.
Regardless of that, regardless of how it was created and regardless of how this is going to break it's father's actual girlfriend's heart, this is a baby. A baby.
A life that is fully dependent on others and needs to be taken care of.
"Does she what?" he repeats which makes me wonder why he doesn't get directly to the point.
"Does she have your support?" I question.
"I don't want this", Emmett rubs his hands through his hair. "I love Bella."
Wow. What a time to declare that he loves her. What a time indeed. How can this be love when he doesn't love this girl? When he so easily slept with another woman and cheated on the one he supposedly loves?
He cheated on her, for crying out loud. He overstepped the boundaries of their relationship, betrayed her trust and associated himself with someone else for sex; he cheated on her.
That's the last straw for me. "You don't love her!" I shout, lunging at him and pining him against the shelf. "Don't you even say that you love her, dickhead. She trusts you and this is how you repay her! She loved... No, she loves you. She worships the fucking ground you walk on and you go and knock up some random chick. You don't get to say that you love her."
He doesn't even fight back. "I don't deserve her", he says. "I never have."
"Damn right." This girl is pure and innocent. She's devoted to Emmett and once she finds out about his indiscretions, she'll fall apart; and I can't bear to see that happen.
My heart clenches at the very thought of it and before I can restrain myself, my fist is in contact with Emmett's jaw and he collapses with pain.
Just as I'm about to pack another punch, the door bursts open and I turn to look at my mother's outraged face.
"Boys!" she gasps and calls out for my father.
.
.
.
"What's happening here?" Dad's voice is deadly and clearly in no mood for nonsense. I don't blame him though. If I were in his shoes and I'd just gotten my sleep disturbed because my kids are fighting late at night, I'd be pissed too.
Especially if I had to head to work early in the morning.
Em and I exchange looks. We can't tell them anything right now, that much I am sure of. It's close to 2 AM and if they get a wind of what's actually going on, water won't be the only thing wetting these walls. There will be blood right alongside it and that too because my mother will be outraged.
"Nothing", I say quickly. "It's nothing at all. You can go back to bed."
"This doesn't look like nothing", replies Mom incredulously, pointing towards the shards of glass.
I shake my head. "It's nothing", I repeat firmly.
"Care to explain, Emmett?" Dad says, knowing that I won't be the one to tell the truth. "We've been hearing raised voices for quite a while now and your mother had me convinced that it was the Blacks next door but turns out, it's our own sons."
"Dad", I say. "Trust me, it's not worth getting angry over. We had a tiny disagreement but it's been resolved, hasn't it?" I nudge Em's foot.
"Yeah, what he said", nods Emmett. "It was nothing. We were wrestling and got slightly rowdy."
"Is that so?" Mom arches an eyebrow.
I smile weakly. "Yup", I say, hoping she buys it.
Dad doesn't look convinced but he doesn't say anything. Wrapping an arm around Mom's waist, the two of them leave the room. "Behave", says Mom before gently shutting the door. "We'll speak to you in the morning. Good night."
.
.
.
Walking into the kitchen the following morning, I head to the fridge and grab a carton of orange juice. Taking a sip from it directly, I move towards the stove to see what I can have for breakfast. Maybe there's something left from when my parents had breakfast before leaving for work.
"Good morning", says a female voice from a small distance behind me.
Oh no. I don't even have to turn around to identify who it is. I'm fully sure it's Bella. "Hi", I say, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with the fact that I'm not wearing a shirt. I don't like feeling exposed in front of people, and as far as Bella is concerned, my self-consciousness doubles or perhaps triples in her presence.
"Have you seen Emmett?" she asks, looking slightly out of it.
"Must be in his room. That guy sleeps like the dead and since it's Saturday, I'm a hundred percent sure he doesn't plan to get out of bed till afternoon."
"He's not there." She must have checked already.
This catches my attention. "Really?" Where could he be?
I reach for my phone and tap the screen to type a message.
Where are you? -Ed.
I press send and wait a few seconds for a reply.
At Alice's -Em.
That makes sense.
How're things going there? -Ed.
"Edward?" says Bella.
Okayish. I dunno. I'll tell u later. -Em.
I don't answer the last text, preferring that he talks things over with Alice, rather than be worried that Bella is at our house, in our kitchen and right next to me.
Yeah. I think he wouldn't want to know.
"Huh?" I say.
"Did you talk to Em?" she asks in concern. "He isn't replying to my messages or answering my calls. I'm worried that something's wrong."
"I'm sure everything's okay", I lie smoothly, patting her shoulder. "He's probably tense because of finals and his upcoming game."
"No", she says almost hysterically. "It's not that. I know something's bothering him otherwise he'd never ignore me."
"It's okay, Bells", I reassure her. "You have no reason to worry."
I feel like slapping myself. Of course she has every reason to worry but she doesn't know that now.
"Has he said anything to you?" she asks unhappily. "Is he in trouble? Does he want to break up with me? Has he met someone?!"
"Whoa. No. He hasn't confided anything of that sort to me."
Another lie! Way to go, Cullen, I think to myself. You've turned into a big ass liar in a span of twenty four hours. First, you lied to your parents and now to the girl you're in love with... the girl who supposedly belongs to your brother.
Just great.
A/N: Please review! Thank you.