A/N: YO! HEY GUYS, LONG TIME NO SEE, HUH? SORRY FOR THE TIME IT TOOK ME TO UPDATE… REAL LIFE IS CATCHING UP WITH ME! ANYWAY, HERE YOU HAVE ANOTHER CHAPTER; TIME TO MEET THE BOYS ^^
DISCLAIMER: STEPHENIE MEYER OWNS ANY TWILIGHT CHARACTERS THAT MAY APPEAR IN THIS STORY. THE REMAINDER IS MY ORIGINAL WORK. NO COPYING OR REPRODUCTION OF THIS WORK IS PERMITTED WITHOUT MY EXPRESS WRITTEN AUTHORIZATION
CHAPTER 3: MEETING MY FUTURE…
APOV
"Rise and shine, honey" a blinding light accompanied by Esme's voice woke me up from my slumber. I dreamt again of light blue eyes and dirty blond hair. I had no idea what it meant though. He was in every single one of my dreams for the past week and he did the same in all of them. He smiles, kisses my hand and tells me that he's been waiting for me; but nothing else. It's so damn confusing. I decided to put it aside so I could ponder on it later; today was going to be a long day. I used to love Saturdays but I've been dreading this one the entire week. Today was going to be our debutant party but also it'll be the first birthday that my sisters and I will spend without my mom.
"Esme, it's too early. I need my beauty rest"
"Nonsense, you are way too young to waste your time sleeping. Besides, how are you gonna open your present if you're asleep?" this woman definitely knew how to wake me up. I threw the covers aside and plopped down in the center of my bed.
"So, present, huh?" Esme's melodious laugh filled the room and she gave me a heartwarming smile.
"Yeah, they're in Rose's room, come with me. Your sisters are already in there" I jumped out of bed and ran full speed towards Rose's room. I jumped on top of my sisters, who were lying on the bed, and hugged them.
"I can't believe that even after fifteen years she's still so chirpy in the morning"
"Bella sweetie, you know you love me just like that"
"Okay, okay. That's enough… it's GIFT TIME!" The three of us sat up and Esme handed us a small box in blue wrapping paper for each. I opened mine and what I saw on the inside took my breath away. It was a necklace with a purple emerald-cut rubellite round brilliant diamond. Rose had a red one and Bella a blue one. They were truly gorgeous.
"Thanks Esme, they are beautiful"
"You are welcome Bella. I saw them and I knew they were just for you" she was right, each of the colors represented our personalities. Blue is calming. It can be strong and steadfast or light and friendly. Exactly like my Bella. Red is hot. It's a strong color that conjures up a range of seemingly conflicting emotions from passionate love to violence and warfare. Red is Cupid and the Devil. Those were each and every one of Rose's characteristics. And finally purple. Purple is royalty. A mysterious color, purple is associated with both nobility and spirituality. The opposites of hot red and cool blue. Esme definitely had learned about us; she picked the perfect colors.
"Yeah, you're right"
"Well, I'll let you get ready for breakfast and then we'll do the final rehearsal for tonight" she gave us a kind smile and left the room. I went to my bathroom after hugging my sisters and took a long bubble bath.
The past week had changed our view about our new life. Esme stopped being our enemy and turned into our best ally. She turned out to be a lot like my mom. She was cheerful and optimist, but she also knew how to keep up appearances. She was the perfect actress; she taught us how to behave and what to do in every situation.
We enjoyed the benefits that being princesses gave us. The money, the fame, the immunity and a lot more. But we despised the need to hide from the press and the lack of freedom. We couldn't leave the castle unless we had at least 3 bodyguards and when we did leave it was just to go to the mall. We had an early curfew and Esme or my father had to be with us at all times. We used to think that being a princess was going to be glamorous but we couldn't have been more mistaken. We learned to overlook all our impediments but we couldn't overlook one of our duties. Even after making plans, talking with my Esme, begging to my dad and tons of others failed attempts; we were still engaged. That bothered us to no end. We are used to have everything we want but my dad put a stop to that. He would never agree to break our engagement. Every time we brought up the subject he would get angry and storm off. There wasn't a lot we could do.
I got out of the bath tub and wrapped a towel around my body before going to my closet. I grabbed my underwear, jeans and a pink tank top and got dressed. I did my make up simple and put on flats. As I made my way to the kitchen I pondered on another strategy to end with our engagement. Maybe Esme's sons would like to help us. I mean, what teenager is thinking about a serious marriage? It's kind of twisted.
RPOV
After we had breakfast, Esme insisted on another rehearsal. We had already memorized every single step for tonight, but she wanted it to be perfect. We went over every single detail of the night, until Esme decided it was time to get ready. We took another shower and put on our bath robes before going to the dress room. Jacques – Esme's stylist – was waiting in there for us.
"Mes beautés. I'm glad you finally arrived, there's a lot of work to do and so little time" his French accent was deep and even from yards apart you could tell he was gay. "Sit, sit. We need to start working now" each of us took a seat and he started working his magic. He began with me, then Alice and at the end Bella.
His beauty routine was complete. He plucked our eyebrows and did some facials before starting with the hair and makeup. He did our hair in soft curls and pinned it up to one side. He let some curls loose in our face, giving us a sophisticated look. Our makeup was really beautiful and complimented our hair perfectly. He applied foundation and powder, he did our eyes in different shades of pinks and silvers, but he gave them a smoky look. He also added silver glitter to give them a chic and playful twist. He applied mascara, eye liner, blush and lip gloss and we were ready. We weren't allowed to look at the mirror until we were dressed, so we headed to where Esme was waiting for us so we could change.
Esme was dressed in a beautiful black gown that only she could wear with such poise and elegance. It had a sleeveless circular neckline with embellished back piece. It was floor length and had a mermaid silhouette. It fit her like a glove. She was wearing silver strap heels to complete the look. Her makeup was done in smoky black and silver, but she had no glitter on her eyes. And her hair had been flat ironed and was arranged in a half up do. Now she looked like a real queen.
"WOW Esme, you look beautiful"
"Thanks Alice. You girls should really get dressed; the party already started and it's almost time for your grand entrance"
She gave us a new underwear set and our dresses before ordering us to go to the changing rooms. The underwear was the same, white lace boy shorts and matching push up, strapless, lace bra. Like everything in this place, we weren't allowed to pick out own dresses; they had been my dad's decision. Unfortunately for us, he ordered the three dresses in pink. Okay, fucking, girlie pink. They were really beautiful. Pink just isn't my color. Alice's dress is made with poly chiffon fabric and features an embellished crisscross waistline that opens to a shear back. The pleated chiffon skirt is long to the floor. She added silver gladiator heels strapped at the ankle. Bella's dress has a sweetheart neckline with beaded accents on the straps and under the bust line. It's a hot pink, floor length dress with a thigh long opening. Her shoes were the same as Alice's. My dress is an elegant fuchsia color with an orange and fuchsia overlay. The elegant strapless top is ruched with fuchsia and orange beading on the empire waistline. My shoes are like my sisters' but in gold to match the dress. We look truly gorgeous. Esme led us to another room, which was connected to the ballroom, to wait until it was time for our entrance. She wished us luck before she entered to the party. I could hear the music and the chatting of the guests and they were making me nervous. Not to add that we were going to meet our fiancées tonight. I could already tell that today is gonna be the longest day of my life.
BPOV
I could feel my sisters' anxiety build up as the minutes tickled by, but I had no idea how to help them; I was almost as nervous as they were. Our life had changed so much in the course of one week that I felt completely helpless. So many things were going to happen tonight and I had no idea of how to deal with them. Before I could think of a way to react, Esme came back to the room.
"Girls, it's time" as soon as the words left her mouth, the spoke person in the room announced us.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please stand up to welcome the future of our kingdom. The hope of England. The babies of the castle. I'm honored to present to you the princesses of England. Princess Rosalie Lillian Swan. Princess Mary Alice Swan. And crowned Princess Isabella Marie Swan" the cheers of the crowd were deafening as we slowly descended the stairs that led us to the ballroom. At the bottom of the stairs my dad was waiting for us.
"My girls" he smiled kindly as we approached, he hugged us and turned us to see the crowd. He motioned for them to shut up and the immediately did. "Today, I give you away to society. I give to you this society so you can make the best of its future. Today I'm also introducing you to the future of France. And to my favorite boys"
The people started dissipating and three handsome guys came to us. They stood a few feet away from us and I couldn't believe my eyes. Never in my life have I met such boys. The one at my left was really big and muscular; like a weight lifter. He had brown curls and dark blue eyes. He would have been scary if it wasn't for his smile. Every time he smiled, dimples formed in his face. He is like a teddy bear; big but friendly. The one at my right was big too, but not as muscular as his brother. He had dirty blond hair and light blue eyes, he was handsome and somewhat, his mere presence was soothing. He was looking strangely at Alice, like if they had met before. But, without a doubt, the most gorgeous man of the three was the one in front of me. He was tall like his brothers, leaner than them but still muscular. His hair was the strangest color, like copper or bronze; he also had a dazzling smile. The most impressing thing about him was his eyes, they were the most breathtaking shade of green, they were endless pools of mystery.
"Girls, these are Emmett, Jasper and Edward Cullen. Guys, these are my beautiful daughters" Edward, I couldn't imagine a better name for him. He looked like he could be part of the books in where those names were still commonly used. He belonged in a time of love and illusions, exactly from where the name was taken.
"Beautiful is an understatement Charlie, they are breathtaking" judging by Emmett's way of speaking, I could already tell that he's a ladies' man. He was quite good with the words.
"Thanks for the compliment Emmett" the orchestra started playing and the guys asked us to dance.
"Would you like to dance, Isabella?" Edward's voice was like velvet, smooth but still manly. I took his hand and he led me to the middle of the dance floor, where my sisters were already dancing. He was a great dancer; one that could finally dance with me and don't make a fool out of himself. Everything would have been perfect, but unfortunately, he opened his mouth. "Well, I finally discovered the mystery before the princess of England"
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Everyone speaks so highly of you, but you aren't what I imagined"
"And how exactly did you used to imagine me?"
"I pictured a spoiled blonde with no brains" his nonchalantly angered me to no end. His love for himself outshined his good looks; it was impossible to have a decent conversation with him. He was just too proud.
"So every princess should be like that, no brains, blonde hair, good looks and daddy's girl?"
"Well, why else would they need a man to rule by their side? They aren't capable of doing it themselves"
"You're so chauvinistic" the song ended and I stormed off from the room. There's no way in hell that I'll marry Prince Edward. I simply hate his guts.
EPOV
Well, to say I was surprised with what I found would be an understatement. What I told Isabella was true. When they told me that I was engaged to the princess of England, the blonde bimbo was the girl I thought about. I could already tell that this princess is anything but a spoiled bimbo. I liked what I saw in her. She was going to be quite a challenge, but those chases were the ones that I enjoyed the most. The hardest ones are always the best ones as well. I know that I acted as a prick with her, but something in her eyes made me defensive. They were endless pools of brown, but even at her young age, they seemed to carry the weight of the world. Her eyes reflected a wisdom I was not ready to face. She seems protective of the things and the people she loves. She was aware of every movement her sisters made, and she anticipated their well-being. Like if she was responsible of them. Her eyes told me that in the few minutes that I danced with her, but they also told me that she was on guard. It is going to be difficult to read her. She's quite a mystery.
"So lover boy, what do you think of Princess Isabella?"
"Hey Emmett, I thought you were never going to ask. You lasted longer than usual"
"Fuck you prick. Just answer the question" I thought about not saying anything, but I was curious to know about Rosalie as much as he was curious about Isabella. And I knew that the only way to find out was answering him.
"Well, I'm not gonna deny she's quite the beauty, 'cause you saw her too. But she's also quite a bitch"
"That's all? No comments about killer legs, or big boobs? Nothing at all, man?" Typical Emmett.
"Em, I danced with the girl for about five minutes. Besides, I don't want to repeat everything when Jazz arrives" his devilish grin told me that I wasn't going to get out of this one, but I didn't intend to. I wanted to hear everything about these ladies. Even if it meant telling them everything I knew as well.
"Hey speaking of Jazz; where the hell is he?"
"I have no idea, but look who's coming our way" I saw Rosalie and Isabella make their way to us, but they stopped before a set of double doors that led to the garden and motioned for us to follow. I casted a glance in Emmett's direction and he nodded, so we followed them outside. They were whispering in the farthest corner of the garden, in a table set for six people.
"So ladies, why the late night escapade?" Emmett was never the subtle one of us. He went directly to the point.
"Well, we have a deal for you" Rosalie's words were somewhat intriguing and I was curious to know what they had planned; and why we couldn't discuss it inside.
"Why don't you take a seat so we can explain?" we did as told and waited for them to speak "Wait. Where's your brother Jasper?"
"We were wondering the same thing before you interrupted us, so if you don't mind, explain" I know I was being harsh but, fuck, I'm curious.
"Yeah, if we like your deal and agree to it, we'll tell him later"
"No Emmett, your brother needs to be in here. And my sister Alice does too. We won't tell you anything if we don't find them"
"Well sugar, let's find them then; shall we"
"Let's go. And never call me sugar again or I'll castrate you, lover boy" Em's face was priceless, but the worse part of this situation was that Rosalie was being serious. Her eyes showed a deep pain and Isabella's face was hard and expressionless. I had no idea why a simple nickname affected them so much; but they made it clear not to call Rosalie sugar.
We looked for Alice and Jasper in every single corner of the building. We looked in the bathrooms, in the kitchen, in the various living rooms, in three floors of bedrooms; we looked for them in anyplace we could think of and we didn't find them.
"I have no idea where they could possibly be"
"I know Edward, it's like they suddenly vanished"
"No Rose. Alice knew we needed to talk with the guys. I sent her to look after Jasper"
"Then, where are they? We already looked for them everywhere"
"Wait Emmett. I think I know where they might be? Bella, think like Alice. She's easily charmed; she's naïve and simple hearted. And if Jasper is anything like his brothers, where would she take him?"
"Of course Rose, how I didn't think about it before?"
"Girls, sorry to interrupt your little game, but you lost us. Care to explain?"
"Not right now Edward. You'll figure it out when we arrive. Follow us" they took off their heels and started running to another side of the castle. Emmett and I followed closely behind. We got to an intersection that could led us to two differently buildings and they went to the left side. The building before us was exactly the same as the other two. Rose explained us why as we continued running.
"These buildings are exactly the same on the outside but not on the inside. They hold a different section on the castle. They are named after us. The one we were in is the main house and it's named after Bella. And this one is Alice's"
"Alice came here to hide, didn't she?"
"Yes, she knew everyone was going to be at the party and that no one would think of looking in here"
"Smart girl, huh?"
"I would say elusive Emmett, but yeah, I guess smart works too" Bella led us inside and up two flights of stairs. The hallway was deserted but from under one of the doors we could see some light. We opened the door and I couldn't believe what we found inside.
RPOV
Alice's dress was hiked up, exposing half of her thigh and Jasper's lips were locked with hers, and he was touching every single inch of skin he had access to. Their desperation and need were unbelievable; the attraction between them was so palpable that it left us speechless. They didn't even notice our arrival until Bella spoke up.
"MARY ALICE SWAN. WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?" they separated with a start and looked at us surprised. Alice's eyes were wide as saucers and both of their lips were swollen from kissing.
"Bella, please. It isn't what it looks like. I can explain it"
"You better Missy. But you'll explain later. Both of you need to fix now and the six of us need to talk about something. We expect you outside this room in five and it's my last word" Bella closed the door with a calm and serene mask, even though I knew that she was angry on the inside. Exactly five minutes later, Alice and Jasper came outside; Alice didn't even look in our direction, ashamed, she just kept walking past us and into the cold air.
"Why you do that?" it was the first time Jasper had spoken to us in the night and I realized why Alice had fallen for him so easily. He was definitely charming and I could see he cared, at least a little, for her.
"Do what Jasper?"
"Hurt her Bella. Why don't you let her be happy?"
"Because I know my sister Jasper. She's easily charmed as you already realized; she's caring and trusting; and clean and naïve. She's been hurt before, I don't want you to hurt her if she has to spend the rest of her life married to you. I don't know how strong she feels right now; you might as well be old news for tomorrow, just a one night fling; or she might never forget you. And believe me, I'm not gonna let that happen" no one dared to utter a word and we quickly reached Alice's side. I smiled to her in reassurance and she mouthed the words 'need to talk'. Definitely tonight was going to be a long night. After we arrived, Alice's problems were set aside and we could finally settle to talk.
"So ladies. What was that subject you wanted to talk about?"
"Well Emmett, it was supposed to be for the three of you but we'll see how it works after what we just witnessed"
"Bella?"
"It's okay Rose, you tell them" I knew my sister well enough to tell that she was so angry she could barely talk, so I quickly continued with the subject at hand.
"Okay. I'm not really subtle so I'm gonna cut back the crap. We don't want to date you but we know that one day we will have to marry you; so we have a plan to make the mean time more… pleasant"
"We like you offer, please continue"
"Okay Emmett. We have a proposition for you guys. The six of us can date whoever we want until our eighteen birthday, which is three years from now. And unless we find a way not to marry, the wedding will be as soon as high school is over. No jealousy, no strings, no hard feelings, no judgments; nothing. Do you guys agree?"
"I agree" Edward was the first to agree, looking defiantly in Bella's direction.
"Count me in" Bella's glare at Edward was challenging; they were playing a game she wasn't about to lose.
"Hell yeah" Emmett's response was exited; he liked the possibility to continue with his skittishness and dalliance.
"You know I'm with you. It was my idea"
"Me too. I like your plan" I could tell Jasper was thinking about the possibility of Alice's rejection
"Alice? How about you sister" Bella was being a bitch and pushing Alice to do this; but we were doing it for her own good. If she got hurt we were going to be the ones to stand by her side and comfort her; we knew how an upset and heartbroken Ali could be, and we disliked it. She deserved much better than to be crushed by this boy. We all did.
"Yes Bella. You know I'm on this with you girls" she sighted; defeated and finally agreed. She never liked being pushed into something, but she knew as well as we did that it was for the best. It was useless to deny that we felt attracted to the boys but it was also useless to like them. They were players and we were tired of dealing with that kind of guys. We knew it was almost impossible to find a way around the engagements so this was the only plan that could maybe work in the meantime. I just really hope that no one gets hurt in the way.
After that the party went as expected. We acted charming and kind in front of the guests and they were all fascinated. We danced with every single guy in the party that asked us and we received lots of expensive gifts. Necklaces, diamonds, crowns, gowns, everything you could imagine. And as I tried to fall asleep I couldn't stop myself from thinking that I would trade everything for my freedom.
A/N: HOPE YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER; I THINK IT'LL BE ONE MORE BEFORE THEY TURN 17 YEARS AND THE REAL DRAMA STARTS. I WANT TO APOLOGIZE FOR NOT UPDATING BUT I GOT SIDETRACKED, MY LIFE IS GETTING COMPLICATED NOW THAT'S END OF SEMESTER AND WELL THE NEW MOON MOVIE DIDN'T HELP EITHER! I WENT TO THE PREMIERE AND IT WAS AWSOME AND I SAW IT LATER ON THAT DAY WITH SOME OF MY FRIENDS. PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THOUGHT ABOUT IT! I PROMISE I'LL UPDATE SOONER NEXT TIME! LOVE YOU GUYS AND KEEP READING!
TODAY'S STORY:
The Blessing and the Curse » By pretending she is falling for Edward, Bella is fulfilling Esme's dying wish. But sexy, possessive Edward can read her mind. Will she ever get into his? Can Bella forget the pain of her teenage years, and can she resist his relentless seduction? AH.
XOXO *A & V*