A/N: Review and I'll send you a preview for the proposal. :) I don't own Twilight! Thanks so much for your amazing reviews so far! So sorry it took me so long to update, I re-wrote this chapter like six times, but I think I'm finally happy with it. :)
Bella's POV
Wednesday November 26, 2010
I stared at the numbers on the digital clock beside my bed.
4:57am
I can't get to sleep. I was too excited. Today I would get to see Edward and we would be together for a whole five days. Five amazing days. Well. Almost.
Charlie and I were having Thanksgiving with the Cullen's, but then Charlie and I would drive back to Forks, a couple hours away from Seattle, but Alice was going to come spend a few days in Forks, and Edward thought he'd come with her. Of course, we were spending Thanksgiving night at the Cullen's, as Alice was once again forcing me, against my will, to go shopping on Black Friday with Rose and Esme. Not that I was opposed to spending time alone with them, I just hated shopping. Especially at 5am.
Edward had been acting really strange the last few weeks. It was starting to make me paranoid. He kept making these secret trips to Manhattan, and wouldn't tell me about it until after the fact so that I couldn't insist on meeting him there. Alice told me not to worry, he'd been spending every night at Emmett and Rose's. I trusted him and all…it was just strange.
5:15am
This was really irritating. I just wanted to sleep away the time. I'd considered taking an over the counter sleeping pill, but I didn't want to oversleep my ride to the airport.
I must have drifted off sometime, because Alice woke me up at 11am.
"Bella, you have to get up now. Jazz is picking us up in an hour to drive to the city. We have to go!" Alice said, excitedly. I only groaned.
"Bella! You get to see Edward in five hours! You need to be presentable! He hasn't seen you in a month!"
That woke me up. I shot out of bed with a huge smile in my face. Alice giggled.
"That's more like it!" Alice laughed, leaving my room, closing the door behind her. I took a quick shower and stood in front my closet, just staring in my towel, my hair dripping down my back.
I couldn't decide what to wear. Alice and I had gone shopping awhile back, but I couldn't decide on which outfit. I decided on a pair of skinny jeans, brown knee high boots, a white t-shirt and a brown leather jacket. I knew I looked good in this outfit. I laid the outfit on my bed, going back into the bathroom to blow dry my hair and put on a little make up. Nothing too dramatic. I finished getting ready, got dressed and threw a few last minute things into my suitcase.
I found Jasper and Alice seated on the couch downstairs. Alice's jaw dropped when she saw me.
"Bella! You look HOT! I'm so proud of you!!" Alice shrieked, jumping up to hug me.
"Alright girls, we have to go, or everyone is going to be waiting on us". Jasper said.
We loaded up the car and began the 4 hour journey to Manhattan. We were flying out of La Guardia. As we began to see signs of the airport, I grew increasingly restless. I knew we would be the last ones there, because Edward had texted me to see where we were and how long we would be. We pulled into the small parking lot adjacent to the airport hanger where "CullenAir" was housed. I saw Edward leaning against his car, beaming, and was out of the car before Jasper parked. I jumped into his waiting arms, wrapping my legs around his waist. He laughed and spun me around. I felt the tears began to slip down my cheeks, and tried to cry as softly as I could manage. Edward's body stiffened, and his arms moved from being wrapped around my waist. He placed his hands on my sides, trying to pull me away so he could see my face. I just tightened my arms around my neck so he couldn't pull me away.
"Baby?" he asked, alarmed. I didn't answer, I just cried into his neck.
"Sweetheart? What's wrong?" He asked, growing alarmed. I just shook my head. It took me a moment to speak. Meanwhile, Edward wrapped his arms back around my waist, holding me tightly. Before I could answer, I heard Emmett behind us.
"Hey! Lovebirds! Let's go! You can screw each other on the plane if you need it that bad. We're going to be late as it is!" I heard Edward growl at him.
"Emmett. Shut up." There was a harshness to his voice that made me sure Emmett understood and dropped it. I heard him speak again a few moments later.
"I don't get it. Rose and I are the newlyweds…and these two are all over each other". Emmett whined.
"They haven't seen each other in a month you insensitive asshole". Rose snapped. I imagined her annoyed expression, rolling her eyes at her husband. I giggled a little bit.
"I'm okay, I'm sorry. I just missed you". I whispered to Edward, loosing my grip on him. He breathed a sigh of relief, and set me on the ground. He put his hands on either side of my face and gazed into my eyes, trying to read me.
"I missed you too". He said, kissing my forehead. I smiled as he pulled away. He smiled back, and put his pointer finger under my chin.
"I've missed that smile!" he laughed, kissing either side of my lips. I kissed him then. It was short, but passionate. He broke away.
"Alright, we need to get on the plane now." I turned around, but saw that we were alone now. He took my hand, and led me onto the plane. Everyone was seated, giving me very concerned glances. Emmett, on the other hand, pretended that he hadn't seen anything outside. He jumped up, wrapping me in a tight hug.
"Hey there! How are you?" He asked, squeezing me so tightly my feet lifted off the floor. I coughed.
"Em-mett…can't breath!" I laughed, as Edward tried to pry me from Emmett's grip. I hugged Rosalie next, and took my seat next to Edward, buckling my seatbelt for take off. Alice kept staring at me, concerned, but didn't mention anything about it for the rest of the flight. I listened to Edward tell me stories about medical school, and all, but I couldn't focus. All I could think of was wondering why I had lost it with Edward. Sure, I had missed him so much, I felt like it would kill me, but crying? When I saw him? After only 3 and a half weeks? That wasn't me. What was wrong with me?
We landed and Carlisle and Esme picked us up from the hospital. We all chatted about what was new with them, but I was still preoccupied. I was thankful that the only one that seemed to notice was Alice. Edward was caught up in laughter with Carlisle…some kind of medical school or hospital inside joke.
We arrived at the house and almost immediately went to bed, tonight, I was going to sleep with Edward in his room, because Charlie wasn't as cool with us sharing a bed as Carlisle and Esme were. I had put my pajamas on and finished brushing my teeth in the bathroom that was connected to Edward's room. When I emerged, he was lying in bed, on his back underneath the white sheets. He was staring up at the ceiling, but his eyes snapped towards me when he heard me step out of the room. I smiled at him, and climbed into the bed, scooting closer. He opened his arms, and I slipped into them, resting my head on his cool chest. He wrapped his arms tighter around me, and brought the covers up to my chin. His hand went to my cheek, and his thumb pushed my face up so that my eyes met his.
"Would you please tell me what you are thinking before I go completely mad?" (From Eclipse).
Damnit. He was more perceptive then I gave him credit for.
"I'm just glad to see you again," I told him, which wasn't a lie.
"There's more to it than that". It wasn't a guess. It was a statement of fact. I tried to play innocent, and shook my head. He sighed.
"Alright, but Bella, just so you know, I want you to be able to talk to me about anything. Even if you think it will hurt my feelings or make you mad." He told me, sincerely.
I nodded.
"Edward, I'm fine." I reassured him. "Better than fine. I'm wonderful. I'm back in your arms, where I belonged". I smiled, snuggling closer to him. He dropped it then, and hugged me tighter. I was asleep in minutes.
The next morning when I woke up, Edward wasn't in bed. I looked to the bathroom, but the door was open, so I knew that he wasn't in there either. I looked at the clock.
11am?! How had I slept so late? I took a quick shower, and pulled on a nice pair of jeans and a black button down and went downstairs. Charlie was on the couch speaking to Esme and Carlisle. He looked up and smiled at me.
"Well there's my girl! We were wondering when you were going to wake up!" He called, and I ran over to hug him. I held him tightly, biting back tears again.
What the hell was going on? At least it was more acceptable to cry over.
"Good morning! Happy Thanksgiving!" I told them.
"Happy Thanksgiving, dear!" Esme said softly to me.
"How are you, kid?" My dad asked, putting an arm around me.
"I'm good! How are you, dad? You look absolutely wonderful!" I said, admiring him.
"I'm good, thanks to these two here. They take good care of me." He said, gesturing towards Carlisle as Esme.
"The kids went to do some last minute errands for me," Esme told me. "Thanksgiving tradition. I cook, so they do all the shopping". She laughed. I nodded in understanding.
Dinner was ready not too much later. We sat around the large table, with Charlie and Carlisle at the ends. Carlisle said a prayer of thanks, and we began to pass the food around the table.
"Alright kids, you know the drill. Everyone go around and say one thing you're thankful for." Esme said, looking towards Carlisle to start.
"Alice, why don't you start?" Carlisle asked, looking to his right.
"I'm most thankful for Jasper". She said, clutching his hand, kissing his cheek. Carlisle rolled his eyes.
"No, that's unacceptable. You said that last year". Carlisle said. "You know the rules".
Alice groaned.
"Fine…I'm thankful for the fact that we are all together this year". Alice said looking toward Charlie and I. I cold see the emotion that clouded Charlie's eyes. Alice looked towards Jasper. He thought for a minute.
"I'm thankful to all of you, for accepting me so easily into the family". He said, sincerely.
I was sitting next to Jasper, and didn't even need to think about my answer. I had a back up.
"Well, I was going to say what Jasper said...but I am thankful for Alice and Edward. The best friend and boyfriend a girl could ask for." I said, and Alice smiled at me while Edward winked. Charlie was next.
"I am thankful for my health". Charlie said, beaming. Edward's turn was next. He locked eyes with me and said "I am thankful for my relationship with Bella". I was so lost in his eyes, that I missed what Emmett and Rosalie were thankful for, but I did pick up that both of them said they were thankful for their stable jobs and being married.
Carlisle and Esme said that they had a joint thing they were thankful for. They both looked right at me and I felt the blush start to rise against my cheeks.
"We are both thankful for the influence Bella has had on our son". Yep. I was blushing like an idiot, but I saw that Edward was beaming.
After dinner, desert and a little talking, Charlie and I decided to drive back to Forks for the night, and then Edward would pick me up and drive me back to Seattle early the next morning. I didn't argue, as I knew Charlie would find it uncomfortable sleeping at the Cullen's. The ride back home was quiet for the most part, as I was quiet.
It took me awhile to fall asleep that night. I was feeling off, and I couldn't pin point why. I must have fallen asleep sometime, because sometime in the middle of the night I woke up with a start.
I shot up in bed and lunged for my cell phone that was on my nightstand, falling off the bed in the process. I found Alice's number in my contacts, and hit the "send" button, not even bothering to check the time. As soon as she mumbled a sleepy "hello", I blurted it out.
"Alice. I'm late".
