A/N: I decided not to wait until Monday to post this chapter. I'll probably still post one Monday though. I kind of want to be done so I don't have to keep reminding myself to post! Anyway, here you go, chapter 4.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, Stephenie Meyer owns everything Twilight related. The Foo Fighters own "Home". It's a beautiful song and you can find a link on my profile page if you're interested in listening.
"Echoes and silence
Patience and grace
All of these moments
I'll never replace
No fear of my heart
Absence of faith
All I want is to be homeā¦"
"I love coming home for holidays," Alice said, smiling happily as her, Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie climbed out of the rental car.
"Who wouldn't love coming here?" Rosalie asked, glancing up at the large, grand house that stood in front of them. Despite the house's rather ornate and almost dignified look, it still managed to project a feeling of warmth and love. "I love this place too and it's not even my family."
Alice smiled and linked arms with Rose. "You know it might as well be," she said and Rosalie smiled.
Edward and Bella pulled into the driveway behind them then and when Bella stepped out of the car, Alice raised her eyebrows, silently asking how the car ride had been.
Bella shrugged a little and Alice frowned. Her cousin, for all his charming, smooth behavior and incredible good looks, became a stammering, nervous fool around Bella. And Bella wasn't much better around Edward.
Jasper, Emmett, and Edward gathered all the bags as the three girls hurried to the front door and into the house.
"Esme?" Alice called out, taking off her coat and smiling at the smell of good food wafting down the hallway.
"In the kitchen!" Esme called back and Alice, Bella, and Rosalie walked further into the house, stopping when they got to the kitchen.
"You made it," Esme said, smiling at the girls and leaving whatever was on the stove to come over and hug all three young women tightly. "It's so good to see you all," she said, stopping at Alice for a moment to kiss her cheek lightly.
"Thanks for letting us crash your Thanksgiving," Bella said, sliding into a chair at the counter.
"You know we love having you all here," Esme said. "Is Charlie still planning to stop by?"
"Yeah," Bella said nodding her head. "He'll be here tomorrow."
Edward, Jasper, and Emmett entered the kitchen then and Esme turned her attention to the boys.
"Hi Mom," Edward said, hugging his mother who kissed his cheek.
"Hi Edward," Esme said. "It's good to see you."
"You too," Edward said, moving over to the stove to inspect whatever Esme was cooking.
"Emmett, I'm glad you could make it," Esme said, hugging Emmett as well. "No game tomorrow?"
"Nope," Emmett said, shaking his head. "Which I'm very thankful for because I'd much rather eat than play football on Thanksgiving."
Esme laughed and Rosalie rolled her eyes. "You'd always rather eat than do anything," Rosalie said.
Emmett shrugged. "Now if only you could learn how to cook," he said, wincing when Rosalie smacked him on the shoulder.
Esme hurried over the hug Jasper next. "Jasper, this hair," Esme said, reaching up to mess with Jasper's shaggy curls. "It's getting longer and longer. You need a haircut."
"See, I told you," Alice said, reaching for a spaghetti noodle from the pot on the stove.
"It's all part of his rock star image," Edward said, laughing a little.
"Well, I just think you'd look so much cuter with your hair just a bit shorter," Esme said, shooing Alice away from the stove.
Jasper ducked his head away from Esme. "Yeah, yeah," he muttered, smiling a little and kissing Esme's cheek.
"Now, dinner will be ready soon and Carlisle should be here any minute," Esme said, going back to the stove.
"Can we help with anything Esme?" Bella asked.
"Um, the table still needs to be set and Edward if you could go down and bring up a few bottles of wine, that would be great," Esme answered.
Edward nodded and Alice pushed Bella towards him. "Why don't you help him Bella?" she said. "Jasper and I will set the table."
"Um, okay," Bella said, making a face at Alice's thinly veiled attempt to force her and Edward together.
Alice handed Jasper a stack of plates and they quietly set the table. When Alice went to the kitchen to get silverware and came back, Jasper was staring at his reflection in the china cabinet glass.
Alice laughed and Jasper turned quickly to face her. "Does my hair look that bad?" he asked, running a hand through the curls.
"It's fine Jasper," Alice said, still laughing as Jasper helped her place silverware around the table.
"Are you sure?" he asked, glancing over at the china cabinet again.
"Quite being such a pansy," Emmett said, coming into the dining room with glasses.
"Shut up," Jasper said, flipping Emmett off.
"I saw that Jasper," a male voice said and Alice turned to find Carlisle in the doorway, an amused expression on his face.
"Sorry, sir," Jasper muttered as Emmett covered his laugh with a cough.
"Jasper, how many years have you been coming over here?" Carlisle asked, stepping into the dining room. "It's Carlisle."
Jasper nodded and Carlisle went over to hug Alice. "Hi Alice," he said. "How are you?"
"Good," Alice answered, grinning at her uncle. She had always liked Carlisle and he had been amazingly kind to her in the years she had lived with him and Esme.
"Jasper, Emmett," Carlisle said, smiling at both the guys. "You're both well?"
Jasper and Emmett both nodded as Edward and Bella appeared, both carrying two bottles of wine, and Esme and Rosalie walked in carrying plates of food.
"It smells great, Esme," Emmett said, taking one of the heavier plates from her and setting it down in the middle of the table.
The others settled around the table and soon they all had full plates and full glasses. Alice had somehow ended up next to Jasper and she found herself watching him closely as he talked and laughed with everyone.
He seemed different, more relaxed here at Carlisle and Esme's house. He teased Edward and laughed with Rosalie and seemed more like the Jasper Alice had always known. He glanced over at her and winked and Alice smiled back, taking a long sip of wine and feeling her cheeks start to flush slightly from the alcohol.
Alice loved LA and loved her job and her life there but sometimes she missed this, missed that feeling of home that only came from the place where you had spent your childhood.
They all relaxed at the table, even after their plates had long been empty, drinking wine and talking. Alice was pleased to note that Edward and Bella seemed to be enjoying each other's company at the other end of the table and Edward had even put his arm across the back of Bella's chair, his hand twitching every now and then with a subconscious desire to touch Bella's hair.
At a lull in the conversation, Rosalie glanced at Emmett and straightened ever so slightly in her chair. "Emmett and I have some news," Rosalie said, grinning.
Jasper stiffened slightly next to Alice as everyone looked towards Rosalie. "Emmett and I are going to have a baby," Rosalie announced, her grin widening.
For a moment, Rosalie's announcement was met with silence and then, everyone seemed to talk at once. There were shouts of congratulations and Bella, Alice, and Esme all got up to try to hug Rosalie at the same time.
"What? How?" Alice asked, her eyes wide. "When did this happen? Why haven't we read about it on the cover of US Weekly?" Alice placed her hand on Rosalie's still flat stomach. "No baby bump?" she asked.
Rosalie laughed. "We just found out last week," Rosalie explained. "We obviously want to keep it quiet as long as possible but we thought we'd tell all of you with us all together this weekend."
"I'm so happy for you guys," Alice said, smiling and hugging Emmett.
"Thanks Alice," Emmett said and Alice watched as he reached for Rosalie's hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "I couldn't be happier."
"Oh Rose, I hope you know I'm planning to spoil this child more than anything," Esme gushed, wiping at her eyes a little.
Rosalie laughed. "We wouldn't expect anything less," she said.
Alice glanced over at Jasper who was frowning at the table. "Jasper, you're going to be an uncle," Alice whispered to him, putting her hand on his shoulder.
Jasper looked over at Rosalie as if he hadn't even heard Alice. "Rose, you can't be pregnant," Jasper said. "It's not possible."
Rosalie's smile faded slightly. "That's what we thought but I guess the doctors were wrong," Rosalie said.
Alice looked carefully at Jasper who looked almost upset. Alice knew that Rosalie had been told a long time ago children would never be possible for her and she couldn't understand why Jasper wasn't excited for his sister.
"You son of a bitch, you knocked up my sister," Jasper muttered darkly, his eyes flashing to Emmett as he stood up quickly.
"Jasper," Alice, Edward, and Rosalie all said at the same time as Jasper leaned across the table towards Emmett.
"Jasper, what the hell is wrong with you?" Rosalie snapped, standing up as well. "You can't even pretend to be happy for us?"
Alice tentatively put a hand on Jasper's arm and he glanced down at the spot where she was touching him, seeming to relax slightly.
"I'm, I'm sorry," Jasper said softly, sinking back into his chair. "I am happy for you Rose," Jasper said, looking over at his sister again. "I'm sorry."
Rosalie glared at her brother. "Jasper, you know I love her," Emmett said softly. "We're going to get married," he said. "We were just as surprised about this as you."
Jasper nodded. "I know," he said. "I'm sorry," he said again.
An awkward silence filled the room and Esme stood up quickly. "Well, I think good news like this deserves some dessert," she said, hurrying into the kitchen and returning shortly with two pies.
"When are you due Rose?" Bella asked as Esme began to pass around dessert plates.
Rosalie tore her eyes away from Jasper. "Not until the spring," Rosalie answered.
"I hope whatever doctor you're seeing is a good one," Carlisle said. "I could check him out you know."
Rosalie smiled. "Thanks Carlisle," she said. "But she's fabulous. Emmett did all this research and is making sure we do everything right."
Emmett shrugged. "This is my kid we're talking about," he said, putting his hand on Rosalie's stomach. "I'm not taking any chances."
Alice grinned. "This is so exciting," she gushed. "I just can't believe it."
"I know," Rosalie said. "Trust me, I know."
Rosalie's smile continued to grow as talk of the baby filled the dining room table. Slowly, they moved to the living room, Edward and Bella helping to clean off the table and do the dishes as Esme fussed over Rosalie.
Alice noticed that Jasper had slipped out the back door to the deck and she quietly followed after him. Jasper looked up when he heard Alice come through the door and he smiled slightly.
"Coming out here to chastise me for being a terrible brother?" Jasper asked, leaning against the railing on the deck and taking a long drag from the cigarette he had.
Alice shook her head and hopped onto the railing, sitting next where Jasper was leaning. "Nope, I just wanted to make sure you were okay," Alice said.
Jasper sighed. "I feel like an ass but that's nothing new," Jasper muttered.
"You should feel like an ass," Alice told him. "And you should stop this," Alice said, taking the cigarette away from Jasper. "I don't want you to die of lung cancer or anything."
"Alice," Jasper started and then he shook his head.
"What?" Alice asked. "What's going on Jasper?"
"Nothing," Jasper said, looking up at the sky. "They're just so young. And Emmett's a big-shot football player and Rosalie is so self-absorbed, how are they going to take care of a baby?"
"Jasper Hale," Alice said sternly. "This is all your sister has ever wanted and she always thought she couldn't have it. How can you even ask that?"
"I'm sorry, Alice," Jasper said. "It's just, uh, never mind," Jasper said, turning back towards the door.
Alice hopped off the railing and reached for Jasper's hand. "Someday you're going to tell me what's got you so mixed up," Alice said.
"I don't deserve you Al," Jasper said in return.
Alice didn't correct him on her name. Jasper had said those words to her so often, it had almost become a joke between them but he looked so sad and so lost in the moment that Alice stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly.
Jasper seemed surprised at first but he cautiously reached out and hugged Alice back. Alice seemed to fit perfectly in his arms. They held each other for a long moment and then Alice pulled away, smiling a little.
"Come on," she told Jasper, taking his hand. "Let's go talk about what an amazing uncle you're going to be."
Jasper laughed softly and followed Alice back into the house.
"Al, I need help," Jasper called down the hallway and Alice groaned slightly. She left the bathroom and made her way down to the room Jasper was staying in. He was standing in front of the mirror, holding a tie helplessly in his hands.
"Jasper, you really need to learn how to do this," Alice said, taking the tie from him and standing on her tiptoes.
"Why? That's what I have you for," Jasper said, giving Alice his rock-star grin as she called it.
Alice rolled her eyes and tied his tie. "At least you're in a better mood today," she observed, stepping back and looking Jasper up and down.
Jasper shrugged. He turned towards the mirror and made a face. "I've never understood this dressing up for holidays thing," he said.
"It's fun," Alice responded. "And Esme likes it."
Jasper nodded and turned around to face Alice. For a second, he stared at her. "Al, you look great," Jasper finally said and Alice thought there was something different about the way he was looking at her. It was the same look he had given her that night in her apartment and while it partially thrilled her, it also made her nervous.
"Thanks," Alice said softly.
"Alice! Can you come here for a second?" Bella's voice called from downstairs and Alice smiled.
"Yep, be right down!" she called back to Bella.
"Aren't you just Miss Popular?" Jasper teased, flashing Alice another grin.
"Go make sure your sister and Emmett know it's almost time to eat," Alice said, shoving Jasper towards Emmett and Rosalie's room.
"They're probably still asleep after all the sex last night," Jasper muttered. "Can you even have sex when you're pregnant? Is that safe?"
Alice rolled her eyes. "Go," she said, sticking her tongue out at Jasper before she hurried downstairs.
Bella was waiting at the bottom of the stairs and she pulled Alice into the library. "I think your cousin is bipolar," Bella said in a frustrated tone.
Alice laughed. "Edward still not picking up your not so subtle hints?" Alice asked.
"Sometimes I think he gets it and then two seconds later he's back to pretending I don't exist," Bella said, flopping down into one of the chairs. "I should just go back to Jacob. At least Jacob wasn't such a moody girl."
Alice laughed again and pulled Bella up from the chair. "Bella I can assure you Edward likes you," Alice said. "The moodiness is just his screwed up way of showing it."
"Well, I'm getting impatient," Bella whined. "Do you know how long it's been since I've had sex?" Bella said, dropping her voice to a whisper.
"You do not get to use that argument on me," Alice countered, raising her eyebrows slightly.
Bella sighed. "I'll see what I can do about Edward," Alice said. "You have to be patient for a little longer."
Before Bella could say anything the door to the library opened and Edward stood there. "Bella, Charlie's here," he said, smiling at Bella.
"Right, thanks," Bella said, following Edward out of the library. Alice followed behind them as well and soon they were all once again seated around the table, their plates full of food.
Jasper was being especially nice to Rosalie who Alice could tell was trying to stay mad but was too happy about the recent turn of events in her life to really stay angry. And Alice knew all too well that Jasper could be exceptionally charming when he wanted to be.
After making sure everyone had a plate full of food, Esme sat down as well and smiled at everyone. She lifted her wine glass and everyone followed her lead. "I just want to say I'm so happy to have you all here," Esme said. "Our house seems far too quiet without you all around."
They clinked glasses and quickly dug into the huge spread of food Esme had prepared. "You know, I just realized, I've spent more holidays here than I have anywhere else," Jasper said, glancing up thoughtfully.
"Well, you were rather young when you and Edward were off touring the world," Esme said. "We're just glad you boys always found some time to come home."
"Oh, the good old days of tour buses with your parents," Edward said, laughing a little.
"Someone had to keep you boys in line," Carlisle added in.
"And poor Alice used to be so jealous that she was stuck here," Esme said, smiling over at Alice. "She'd get so excited whenever Jasper and Edward came to visit."
"I think she was more excited about Jasper than me," Edward pointed out and Alice glared at him.
"Oh, that's right, she did have all those posters of Jasper covering every inch of her room," Esme said.
Alice's face flushed scarlet. Jasper raised his eyebrows at her across the table and Emmett laughed loudly. "You were a big fan of Jasper back in the day shortie?" Emmett asked.
Alice shrugged. "I didn't have posters covering ever inch of my room," she muttered.
"Yes, you did," Edward said.
"Well, clearly I should have been a Jacob Black fan since you both grew up to be such idiots," Alice snapped.
Jasper laughed. "That was a low blow Al," he said, nudging her with his shoulder.
"Well, I had pictures of a certain supermodel covering my walls and look at how that worked out for me," Emmett said, grinning at Rosalie who leaned over and kissed him.
"You know, when Bells was a teenager, she had Edward's face on one wall and Jacob's on the other," Charlie added.
"Dad," Bella hissed, turning to glare at her father.
Edward frowned and Carlisle quickly changed the subject. Alice felt Jasper lean towards her and then he whispered, "Did you really have pictures of me covering your room?" he asked.
"No, not covering," Alice hissed back.
"I always knew you had good taste Al," Jasper whispered, winking at her. Alice shook her head and turned back to her food, wanting to forget the fact that Esme had just revealed a rather embarrassing secret Alice had worked hard to keep from Jasper for so many years.
