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Ascension

Chapter 3 – Last Day

BPOV

When the morning sun came through the window, I opened my eyes and realized that I was cold. Edward knew I was awake and immediately withdrew himself from me and started wrapping me up in the large fluffy comforter on the bed.

"I was shivering, wasn't I?"

"Yes, love, you were shivering, but you just started. Are you all right?"

I smiled back at him and nodded. My hand reached to the locket securely hung around my neck. "Yes, Edward. I am more than all right. I only have one more day to wait before you are mine forever."

"I think you might be getting used to this wedding thing."

"Yes, I am getting used to it. The more I think about it, and the closer it gets, the more I realize it is exactly what I want, a public proclamation that we belong to each other. After that, nothing and no one can ever come between us."

My stomach grumbled in protest and Edward laughed. "Time to feed the human I think!"

At this, the door flew open and there stood Alice, Rosalie, and Esme all beaming. Alice was holding a tray with the most delicious smelling breakfast on it. She glided over to me and placed it across my lap. They all came and sat on the edges of the bed smiling. I looked around at all of them, my sisters, my love, and my almost mother and began to tear up. "You are all so kind to me. I do not deserve it."

"Of course you do!" said Alice. "You have won the heart of our brother, and son," she looked at Esme, "and that makes you more than worthy!"

Esme and Rosalie nodded in agreement. Edward just smiled at me.

"So, Edward, how did the gift giving go?" asked Rosalie.

"Funny thing," Edward said, "we seem to have given each other the same thing only I got 3 gifts and Bella only got one." He flashed a mischievous grin in my direction.

We all laughed.

Alice said, "So the lockets, they are exactly alike?"

I took mine off and handed it to her and they all looked it over. Then they all turned to Edward and he pulled his pocket watch out with the locket attached and handed it to them. All of them shook their heads in disbelief. Edward and I were both beaming.

Everyone stayed to visit while I ate my breakfast, and Emmett and Jasper even stopped in to look at the lockets. Soon afterwards, Carlisle came in to have a peek.

After breakfast, everyone took their leave. Rosalie took my tray back to the kitchen and Edward and I were left alone again.

"Well, Miss Swan, what would you like to do on your last day as a 'free' woman?"

"As much as I would like to stay here and hide in bed all day, I think I should go home and spend the day with Charlie and Renee and get all of my things in order, if you don't mind."

"Of course not, love. I am ready to go when you are."

I cocked my head to the side curiously.

"There is no sense in you driving. Someone would just have to retrieve your car tomorrow, love."

I agreed and headed for the bathroom where I knew Alice would have put my things. After showering, combing my hair, and brushing my teeth, I looked at the things I had left there. I picked them up and put them back in my bag, and then set my bag on a shelf. No sense taking these things home. Tomorrow this would be my home.

Edward and I were quiet for most of the short drive back to Charlie's house. We both knew that today was going to be difficult for me. Edward asked me if I wanted him to leave me there and I said, "No, not yet. Stay a while. Besides, you need to get to know Renee a little better."

When we got to the house, Renee flung open the door and ran out to greet us. She hugged me tightly and then hugged Edward as well. We all walked into the house talking and laughing. Charlie was there in his chair with the TV on and he and Phil were watching a replay of a game. I knew that it had been difficult for him waiting for me to return home.

Charlie turned to me and said, "Did you get everything?"

"Yes dad, we got everything. Alice, Rosalie, and I shopped 'til we dropped yesterday!"

The tiny house seemed to be bustling with excitement after Edward and I arrived. Renee could not stop gushing. I glanced sideways at Edward and he smirked at me. I guessed that she had gotten over her initial shock and anger at my decision to marry Edward now instead of later.

Renee sat in the kitchen with us while I fixed lunch for everyone and talked about everything and nothing. I had almost forgotten how much she could talk. I was thankful for Edward's conversational skills because he kept her engaged while I bustled around the kitchen.

After lunch, we all retired to the living room to visit. I felt exhausted after I sat down. I found myself daydreaming about our honeymoon and wondering where Edward was going to take me. I vaguely heard Renee's voice say, "Bella? Do you need a nap?"

"Actually, I think I do," I said. "The girls and I got home late and were up talking late into the night. I probably need to try to get rid of the dark circles under my eyes before tomorrow or Alice will kill me." I giggled after I said it. Edward glared at me, and then smiled.

Edward stood and excused himself to go run some errands so I walked him to the door. He paused to kiss me briefly and whispered, "I'll see you upstairs in a few minutes." I smiled back at him and watched him walk to the car.

Renee was at my side in an instant as I closed the door. She grabbed me by the shoulders and looked seriously into my face. "You really love him and this really is what you want, isn't it, Bella?"

I nodded at her and smiled. "Yes Mom, this is really what I want. I can't imagine my life without Edward in it. He makes me feel complete, like he is the other part of my soul that has always been missing."

Renee searched my face for a lie, but found none, so she hugged me and said, "Oh Bella, I just hope… no, never mind, I know that you will be happy."

She let me go and I acknowledged Charlie and Phil before I headed up the stairs.

Renee called after me, "Bella? Phil and I are going to take off. Esme and Alice invited us over to help with the decorations. We will see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah Mom, don't be late!"

"Okay Bells! Love you!"

"Love you too Mom. See you later Phil."

I looked over at Charlie who was absorbed in the TV, and I climbed up the stairs to my room. I closed the door and crossed the room to lie on my bed. I knew Edward would be here soon, and I wanted to wait for him, but my eyes closed anyway.

It was quiet just now. All I could hear was the muffled voices on the TV set. I knew that Charlie would probably sit there all day. He was somewhat subdued these days and didn't say a whole lot. I thought about that with sadness. While I lay there with my eyes closed, I let my mind wander back to the night that Edward and I told Charlie we were engaged.

I had put my ring on and we had come to the house together. Standing outside the door, Edward took my hand and squeezed it and said, "Please let me do the talking, Bella, and if I ask you to leave the room, please go." I had looked at him questioningly, but just nodded in agreement. I would let him do whatever it took to make this go as smoothly as possible for me and for Charlie.

We walked into the house and Charlie was there in his chair flipping channels on the TV. He nodded towards us and turned back to the TV, not noticing that we had both come to sit on the couch facing him. Edward had cleared his throat to get Charlie's attention.

"Why so somber you two?" Charlie had said. He looked us over for a moment and then muted the sound on the TV. "Is something wrong?"

"No sir," Edward said. "We just wanted to, well, I wanted to talk to you about something, sir."

I had never seen Edward look so uncomfortable in my life and I knew that he was reading Charlie's mind, picking his words carefully.

Charlie picked up interest and sat up.

Edward turned to me and said, "Bella, could you please give your father and me a few minutes alone?"

I sat dumbfounded for a moment, but I slowly realized what Edward was doing. I nodded and pecked him on the cheek and started up the stairs. I paused once to look back noting that they were both staring at me, watching to see that I went away. I walked up the hall to my room and shut the door, but didn't go inside. I lingered in the hallway to hear what was being said downstairs. I knew that Edward would know that I was there, but Charlie would not and I felt that this would be acceptable. I heard Edward clear his throat again and stifled a giggle at this silly human habit.

"Chief Swan," he started and then took a deep breath, but Charlie interrupted him. "Edward, you can call me Charlie. I thought we had gotten past that already."

There was a pause before Edward said, "Charlie…" I waited for him to go on, wondering what was taking him so long. Charlie must be giving him mixed signals in his mind and Edward seemed unsure of himself. Then Edward spoke again. "Charlie, sir, I have come here tonight in elation and in shame. You see, I am very old fashioned. Carlisle has raised me in the old fashioned ways, yet I have defied him, and you, on this night. So, that being said, I have come to make amends and ask your forgiveness for what I have done."

Edward paused and I could hear nothing. There was no sound at all. I would have been able to hear a pin drop across the house. I had to remind myself to breathe.

Edward began again saying, "You see, Charlie, I have asked Bella to marry me and she has agreed, but I realize that I should have properly asked you first for her hand. I regret this mistake and hope that you can forgive me for it. I am here now to ask you for Bella's hand in marriage. I hope that you will agree and give us your blessing. If you have objections, I will try to respect your right to say no."

I almost fell down the stairs. What the hell did he think he was doing? How could he say that? I almost flew into a rage and ran down the stairs but stopped myself when I realized that Edward was probably telling Charlie exactly what Charlie wanted to hear. I held my breath again waiting for Charlie's answer.

It was a few moments before Charlie spoke but his voice was very clear. "Well, Edward, this is a surprise isn't it? Is she pregnant?"

"Oh no, sir. I told you I was old fashioned. I didn't get all of the event sequences wrong, sir."

"You are both so young."

"Yes, sir. I know we are young, but both of us are mature and feel like we are ready."

"What about college?"

"We are definitely still planning on Dartmouth in the fall, sir."

"I know that my daughter is in love with you, Edward, and that you love her as well. I am concerned, however, with…I hate to bring it up, but you did leave her that time, Edward. It nearly killed her. If you marry her that can never happen again. Are you sure you are ready?"

Waiting quietly at the top of the stairs was agony for me. I felt sorry for Edward down there by himself with Charlie lecturing him. I also felt sorry for Charlie that he was having such an emotional conversation with Edward alone.

Finally, Edward replied, "I understand your concern, Charlie. Our leaving was a very unfortunate thing. I…didn't handle it so well…with Bella. When we left, I didn't want her to waste her life waiting for me, in case we never came back. I…I did not do well without her either, and that was probably the biggest reason we came back. Esme hated Los Angeles, but I think they were more concerned about how…depressed I was. I apologize, again, for leaving her like that. I can promise you that it will never happen again."

Tears started rolling down my face listening to Edward tell Charlie this. I fought against the urge to run down the stairs before Edward asked me to come back.

"I appreciate your apology, Edward. I think that, in recent months anyway, you have both seemed very devoted to each other. I hate to admit it, but I don't worry about Bella's safety when she is with you anymore. You seem to take care of her, and you seem to have her best interests in your heart. As much as I would like to trump you for my own selfish reasons, I don't think I can. Bella is mature for her age and seems to know what she wants. I have to tell you this though Edward, if she wants you, count your blessings every single day that my daughter is in your life. Keep her happy and hold on to her with everything in your being. Give her everything that is in your power to give her to keep her happy. Can you do that, Edward?"

I was sobbing silently by the end of Charlie's speech. "He's saying yes," I thought triumphantly.

"Yes sir," said Edward, "I can definitely live with those terms."

I heard Charlie shift his weight and realized he was standing. I heard him take a step and peeked around the corner to see what was happening. I saw Edward and Charlie meet in the middle of the living room to shake hands and as they did, Edward said, "Thank you, Charlie, for trusting Bella to me. I promise that I will provide Bella with everything she needs and everything her heart desires. She will never want for anything. I also promise that I will never leave her again, because as much as it would kill her, it would kill me too. I never want to be apart from her again. I love her with my entire being. I promise to take care of her and keep her safe for as long as we live."

Charlie broke their handshake and hugged Edward. I could see his eyes glistening with tears. They both called my name and I snapped back to reality. I grabbed my bedroom door and pulled it open.

"Yeah?"

"Bella, come back down here please." It was Edward.

I started down the stairs trembling and almost tripped. I caught myself and headed down. Edward met me at the bottom of the stairs. I was still standing on the bottom step when he grabbed my left hand and slid my ring off. I must have looked confused because he winked at me and got down on his knee. I looked up at Charlie who was wiping his eyes, and then back at Edward. His face was full of love.

"Isabella Marie Swan, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Edward held the ring up to me and waited. All I could do was nod and grin stupidly. He smiled and said, "Is that a yes?"

"Of COURSE it's a yes, Edward!" I cried.

Edward slipped the ring on my finger and stood up and hugged me tight. He kissed me chastely on the lips and murmured, "I love you, Bella, now and forever, I love you."

Now I was crying as I whispered, "I love you too, Edward, with all my heart."

Charlie walked over and hugged us both and then looked embarrassed. He backed away slightly and then smiled at me. "Now you get to tell Renee." With that, he turned and went into the kitchen. I could almost HEAR him smirking….

I felt the side of my bed sink when Edward sat on it and took my hand. My eyes fluttered open and I smiled.

"I had hoped you were asleep, but alas…" he sighed.

"I was just thinking."

"What were you thinking about?"

"I was thinking about the night you asked Charlie if you could marry me and then asked me to marry you properly."

Edward smiled at me and touched my cheek. When he pulled his hand away a glistening tear drop was on his finger. "You are not sorry you said yes, are you?"

I reached for him and buried my face in his chest, taking in his scent, and said, "No, Edward, I will never be sorry that I said yes."

Edward rocked me back and forth stroking my hair and murmuring in my ear. "My beautiful Bella," he said over and over. Soon, he laid me back on my bed and laid down next to me, still stroking my hair, and he started humming. I was soon fast asleep.

I woke with a start a few hours later. It was almost dark. How long had I slept? Edward was sitting in my rocking chair smiling at me. I reached for him and he was instantly by my side holding me. "Alice will be here soon," he whispered. "Maybe you should go get something to eat."

I nodded in agreement. I was hungry, but I didn't want Edward to go. He lifted my face and held it with both hands, looking into my eyes. He kissed me hungrily, but with the same restraint he always had. He broke the kiss and gazed into my eyes once again. "I am going to hunt with Emmett and Jasper tonight, Bella. I want to make sure…" he trailed off, never breaking his gaze.

I nodded but said nothing.

"Alice is staying with you tonight and she will help you get ready in the morning. Please don't forget we have a date at four o'clock tomorrow. Don't be late." He smiled and brushed my lips with his again.

"Won't you come back later, Edward? Please?"

He chuckled, "Alice would not let me within 10 miles of this house tonight, Bella. You know the rules. I can't see you until four tomorrow."

I wrinkled my nose and frowned.

"Oh, my beautiful Bella, don't frown. I will be there waiting for you. And if you should decide not to come, I will stand there and wait for you for all eternity until I turn to dust and blow away."

I hugged him tight. "I'll be there Edward, I promise."

A knock at the front door broke our embrace and I heard Alice talking to Charlie. She soon opened my bedroom door, looked at Edward, and said, "Your brothers are outside waiting for you Edward. It is time to say goodbye until tomorrow." She smiled, flashing her perfect white teeth at him.

Edward sighed and kissed me one last time on the lips. "Isabella Marie Swan, I bid you goodnight. I love you."

With that, he was up and out the window in a flash. I started to go to the window to watch him and to wave, but I knew that he was already gone and would not turn around to see me, else he would never leave.

I looked back at Alice and she was still grinning. "Come on, Bella. Let's go get you something to eat. We don't want your stomach growling all night and keeping us awake, now do we?" and she winked.

After we had fed the human, Alice and I excused ourselves to bed. We sat and talked for awhile and finally I had the nerve to ask her what I had wanted to ask for a long time. "Alice, you know that Edward and I plan to, um, consummate our marriage right away."

"Yes, Bella, I know."

"Well, I know Edward is very nervous about it ending… badly. Have you seen anything…? "

"All I have seen is a good ending. I have not seen it ending badly at all. I don't think you have anything to worry about Bella."

I was relieved. "Thank you, Alice. Could I just ask you for some… advice?" I looked at her hopefully.

"Sure Bella, what would you like to know?"

"I'm just unsure of myself. Edward and I are both virgins and, well, with the current circumstances, it is not going to be easy. Is there anything that I should or shouldn't do?"

Alice looked thoughtful for a moment and then closed her eyes. When she opened them she spoke very seriously, "If there is anything that Edward asks you to do or commands you to do, you must do it, Bella. Your life might depend on it. As much as you might want to take control of certain… things… you can't. As long as you are human, you are going to have to let Edward take charge. Is that clear?"

I nodded vigorously and said, "Absolutely clear, Alice. Don't be too aggressive, I've got it."

Alice smiled and we went back to small talk. She told me that she had my luggage all packed for the honeymoon. I was slightly concerned about this because I had no idea where we were going and Alice insisted that I not take any of my clothes from Charlie's house with me on the honeymoon. Alice was going to take care of moving my belongings from Charlie's while I was gone. She and I packed a couple of boxes and I pointed out items of clothing that I couldn't part with. She wrinkled her nose a couple of times but agreed to keep the things I asked for. Before we knew it, it was midnight and she reminded me to get some sleep. She was going to do some work on her laptop while I was sleeping.

I got ready for bed, then gave Alice a hug and said, "You are the best friend and sister a girl could ever hope for, Alice. Thank you, for everything."

Alice giggled and said, "You're welcome, Bella. I am very proud to have you as my sister. Now, get to bed so we don't have to have plastic surgery in the morning to get rid of the bags under your eyes!"