It had been a week since Hannibal the Cannibal escaped and Professor Swan's break down was the talk of the town. No one knew exactly what had happened to the quirky college professor, but everyone could tell she was not right in the head. Everyone had already figured out her and her quiet daughter came to town to hide from something. No reasonable person would move out of sunny Florida for this little Washington icicle. They always seemed to be looking over their shoulders when they weren't running from their past. The people of Forks didn't know how right they were.
Bella was worried about her Mama. She had been drinking a lot more than usual now. Bella had found her Mama's expensive twenty year old bottle of whiskey drained in the cabinet last night. It used to be she'd take a little sip every now and then but lately her shot glass had seen a lot of wear. Even the dogs seemed more moody than usual. They'd rather spend their time sulking around then catching frisbees. She herself was jumping at every sound and shadow. She kept her own stresses hidden from her Mama because she knew if she shared it would just be all too much for her.
Edward, thankfully, hadn't brought up that night. She knew the Cullens' suspected something. Even after all the secrets they'd shared with her, she knew she still couldn't tell them the truth about herself. How do you tell a family of vampires that you are a bigger monster then them?
"Ella…Bella." She looked up at Alice with a start. Apparently she had zoned out during their senior English class.
"Sorry Alice, I just spaced out." She gave a weak, sheepish smile as she started packing up. 'What a lame excuse.' she thought.
"Well come on, you have plenty of time to zone out during Christmas break." Alice laughed grabbed Bella's hand and dragged her all the way out to the parking lot.
"So does your mom still want to do Christmas at your house?" Alice thought it was real sweet that Bella's mom offered to host Christmas dinner at her house when she heard that the Cullens' weren't really into cooking. Only she didn't know that the real reason was Mama didn't want Bella eating anything they made.
"Yeah, Mama already got everything ready to make dinner. She said y'all can come over around eleven if you wanna help out." Bella said. Her eyes focused in on Edward, who was leaning on her car a little ways off. She just hoped nothing catastrophic would happen before they got to the appetizers.
"DUKRA, GET THE DOOR!" Bella heard her mama call from the kitchen. Edward and his family must have just gotten here for Christmas dinner. She really hoped that after spending the day with her family and their little "eccentric" lifestyle that they wouldn't go screaming for the hills.
"COMING MAMA!" she hollered back. She checked herself in the mirror real quick and then sprinted down the stairs to the front door. She flattened her hair one last time before opening the door.
Edward was leaning in the doorway with that cute crooked smile on his face. "Hi." he said, before leaning down to kiss her. "Hi." Bella said back, feeling silly. "My family is getting their stuff from the car." he said as he walked around her to hang his jacket up. Just as Bella was about to reply she was interrupted by a very loud "MERRY CHRISTMAS BELLA!" and was pulled into a bone-crushing hug.
"Merry… Christ…mas…Alice" she wheezed out.
One by one the rest of the Cullen's filed in with sweets and presents. Luckily, they seemed to get along with her mama well. Esme and Mama were already becoming fast friends, for Mama's standards anyways. For the next few hours there was a lot of joking, cooking, and smiles. Bella's mama and Esme were both cooking while everyone else was hanging out in the living room with the dogs.
Esme came into the living room to tell everyone that dinner was ready. So in fifteen minutes, everyone was seated around the dining room table eating all sorts of good food. Bella had ushered her mama into putting as much variety on the table as possible. Because a lot of the traditional Christmas dinner foods weren't a part of their diet, Bella and her Mama had come up with their own traditional food that was just as extravagant. On the table in ornate serving platters were dishes filled with creamy vegetable risotto, rich smoked potatoes covered in creamy sauces, cheesy portobello caprese, and the loveliest roasted rosemary tomatoes that Mama had ever made.
"This food is delicious, Mrs. Swan. Is it all home grown?" Jasper asked. He knew both Bella and her mom were vegetarians and he had noticed an impressive garden growing out back. "Yes, I am very particular about what my durka and I put into our bodies." she responded. After everyone had finished eating, or pretending to eat, they all cleaned up and moved back into the living room. It was then that trouble had started.
Bella noticed all of the vampires stiffened right before she heard a knock on the door. Her mama got up to answer it. Bella heard her mama talk amiably for a few seconds before calling her name. She got up and went to the door with Edward hot on her heels.
Jacob was standing there with a package in his hands. "I'll just leave you alone." Mama said before slipping back into the living room. "Merry Christmas Bella." Jacob said while handing the present to Bella.
"Thanks Jake, let me go get your present real quick. " She took the present to put under the tree and replaced it with another one. When she got back, both the vampire and werewolf were attempting to glare the other to death.
"Here's your gift, sorry that the wrapping stinks." she handed the package to him. "Well it's not the thing that really stinks around here." he responded while glaring at the Edward. "Well there's already seven dogs around here, so there's no room for more." Edward spat back. The next thing Bella knew, both of them were punching each other. It took Emmitt, Jasper, and Carlisle five minutes to stop the fight. They hadn't managed to seriously hurt each other, but they had managed to disgruntle everyone else. Afterwards Edward and Jacob were sitting in opposite corners of the living room glaring at the other.
Soon all of the presents were open, or so they thought. "Shannon, I found these two gifts behind the tree. They're labeled to you and Bella, but it doesn't say from who." Esme showed Bella's mama the gifts. Shannon had a very confused look on her face as she opened the one to her. She gasped, nearly dropping the neatly wrapped box. She tore away from the party and up the stairs with the box in hand. They heard her the muffled sounds of a woman frantically rushing before she came back down in a bit of a disgruntled state.
"Well, I think that's enough merrymaking for tonight." she said as she started to ferociously collect stray wrapping paper. Bella thought it was really weird that Mama was being so rude. Then it dawned on her who exactly the gifts could be from. She quickly ushered the Cullens' and Jacob out the door, but not before Edward gave her a concerned kiss as the rest of the Cullens piled into their car.
"Are you alright Bella? Your mother was really frantic back there." he looked solemnly into her eyes and held her hands tightly.
Bella cringed at the question, but tried her best to hide it with the icy blasts of wind that plastered her face. "She's okay. It's just that the extra gifts under the tree were from a person she loved very much but had a bad falling out with. She wasn't expecting them and she just needs a little bit of time to herself to adjust." Bella bit her lip. He was so sweet and earnest. When she looked back up at him she could tell how much he was legitimately concerned for her mama. It made her feel even more horrible about keeping everything from him.
She gave him a quick kiss before he walked away, and Bella shut the door tight, slamming her back against it with an unworldly force. She took deep breaths and tried to keep her heartbeat normal, and then she reached down and clicked the lock into place. Then the dead bolt, then the chain, then the heavy padlock. After making sure they were all secure and in place, she walked off to meet her mama. This was going to be a long night.
"What the heck was that all about?" Jacob asked as he and Edward walked down Bella's driveway. All the others already left for home. "Made she just got tired with putting up with a mutt like you!" Edward spat back at him. He was a little worried about the way Bella and her mom had been acting. "Well judging by all the dogs she has, I think we both know that Bella will eventually choose me over you." Jacob had stopped and shoved Edward back. Both started growling at each other when suddenly they heard a twig break. That was the only warning they got before antlers plunged into their unsuspecting bodies.