*I don't own these characters.
Meeting the Cullens
JPOV
As soon as we arrived home from school, I asked Edward to go hunting with me. His emotions were still all over the place, and I wanted to get him away for a few hours before Alice arrived with Bella's clothes. The anxiety and nervousness coming from him made me wonder if vampires could have panic attacks. Edward would have been a perfect candidate for a vampire-style Xanax, if someone made that kind of pill. I chuckled to myself as we ran through the woods, thinking of suggesting some meditation techniques. He took down two deer before stopping and waiting for me to finish mine. I sighed and went over to sit down next to him on the grass.
"What's going on with you? You should be happy right now."
"I'm nervous about Alice bringing over Bella's scent. I'm expecting it to be difficult for me, but I wish I already had the immunity built up like I did over time in the vision." His fist pounded the ground and his frustration hit me like a wrecking ball. "I feel like she's so close, but still so far from me, and I can't stand it. I remember Emmett's story about his singer, and it terrifies me that her scent could be so overwhelming to me I could consider hurting her. The thought of her being hurt, especially by me, actually causes me pain."
He took a few gulps of air, his hands running through his hair. I tried to think of something to give him some kind of assurance or relief.
"Hey, I understand. I know I feel that way about Alice. Not about her scent, but about her getting hurt." I hesitated, but wanted to get it out. "That's part of the reason why I felt so bad when I read the part in Alice's vision about Bella's birthday party."
He cringed and a wave of guilt came from him. I continued on before he could say anything.
"If I hadn't snapped like that, you wouldn't have left, and Alice wouldn't have been away from her best friend. I'm sorry, and I promise I'll never let that happen now. I'd leave before I let that happen."
He shook his head, then stared at the patch of grass in front of him. "It wasn't your fault. The way the vision described me at that point, I was probably looking for any excuse to leave. I thought myself such a monster for keeping her from a normal life. If it wasn't the party incident, it would have been something else."
"But you don't feel that way now."
"No. Like in the vision, it seems Bella was born to be a vampire. And if Bella was meant for this life, I have no doubt we have souls."
To say I was shocked would have been an understatement. It's difficult for a vampire to change, but it appeared the mere possibility of Bella in his life had altered his perception of who and what we were.
"I believe there's a purpose to her coming into my life, and I'm not going to waste any time denying myself or her of being together, enjoying each other. That's why I wish her blood wouldn't affect me so strongly. I don't want another day to go by without holding her in my arms."
"You have more control than anyone I've ever met, aside from Carlisle. I'm sure you'll get past it soon enough." I slapped him on the back. "I did actually talk to Bella the other day on the phone when she called Alice."
He looked up and turned his head toward me.
"She's amazing. She asked to talk to me and told me it wasn't my fault about her birthday party. She told me I was strong because I had to deal with the thirst of everyone else, too."
Surprise and acknowledgement came from him. "I actually hadn't ever thought about it like that. She's absolutely right." He smiled. "She's pretty observant, isn't she?"
"Yes, she is," I agreed. She was my friend and my family now. "I just want you to know there's nothing I wouldn't do to help protect her and keep her safe."
"Thanks, Jasper," he said softly.
We had run a little ways into Canada, waiting for Alice to text us to come back. Edward took down another animal, wanting to be completely full before meeting Bella. Finally, we got the go ahead, and I called out for Edward. We ran back home, him keeping pace with me. Nobody was as fast as Edward when he ran at his hardest.
We slowed as we approached the house, Edward's anxiety increasing when we picked up the very faint scent of a human. I knew Alice had put Bella's clothes into a bag to keep the scent as fresh as possible from her skin. I opened the door and Edward followed me in.
Confusion rolled off of him, and I glanced back to find him standing there breathing deeply through his nose. I wasn't sure if he was trying to calm himself, or if he was already affected by the faint scent of her. I raised my eyebrows in question and he shook his head at me, walking to the living room where the rest of the family was gathered.
Alice held the bag in her hand, standing up to take the shirt out and holding it out in front of her. Edward lunged for it, faster than I'd anticipated. Luckily, Alice let go and backed away immediately. Carlisle, Emmett, and I stood around Edward to ensure he didn't run off in a fury of bloodlust, but we all watched curiously as Edward buried his face in the fabric and inhaled deeply over and over again.
I wasn't sure what was happening, nor the confusion coming from Edward and the others. Aside from his perplexity, another stronger emotion emerged which wasn't what I expected. I expected Edward to have a burst of bloodlust, and for Emmett and I to have to restrain him from seeking out Bella urgently.
But all I felt from him was desire.
I moved closer—very slowly and carefully—to pull the shirt from his face and ask him what was going on. As my hand reached out, he growled at me in warning. I halted immediately, looking over at Carlisle and Emmett who were standing on the other side of him. It was clear Edward didn't want us to touch her clothing.
Carlisle's eyes darted from Edward to me again. "What is he feeling, Jasper?"
"Umm… not bloodlust," I said, chuckling.
Alice started giggling, and I felt confusion from everyone else.
"Edward, can you put the shirt down please?" Carlisle asked.
Ignoring Carlisle, Edward kept his face buried in the shirt and started rubbing it over his skin.
I met Alice's eyes. "Are you positive this is Bella's shirt?"
She narrowed her eyes at me, annoyed I even asked. "Yes, Jazzy. It's hers. I took it from her personally and I smelled her myself up close. That's her scent."
"I don't understand. What's going on?" Esme asked.
I looked around at everyone before carefully leaning closer to the shirt and taking a large inhale of Bella's scent. It suddenly hit me that nobody in the room, including myself, was affected from Bella's scent.
"Do any of you have any thirst at all when you smell her scent?"
Everyone shook their heads, shock and excitement rolling off of Carlisle.
"Carlisle, her scent doesn't elicit thirst from any of us… including Edward. I think I may have been right when we were talking about how her shielding gift may change even though she's still human."
Carlisle nodded at me to continue. Hope and excitement came from Edward. At least he was listening while enjoying her scent.
"Her gift is completely defensive. She's a protector, not only of herself, but of others. I think her knowing in advance how much her scent affected Edward has altered something, and she's shielding it somehow to protect him and herself." I silently wondered if perhaps she could shield other things.
"Amazing," Carlisle said in wonder.
Edward pulled the shirt away from his face slightly and looked around at us. He stopped when his eyes landed on Alice. "For certain, this is Bella's scent?"
She nodded.
Edward turned and started walking towards the door, and I streaked past him to block it.
"Where are you going?"
His desire and excitement flowed as he clutched the shirt near his face. "I need to see her and find out for myself if it's true. I need to make sure she's not my singer. Why would that change from the vision?"
"Wait, Edward. First, I'm not sure she isn't your singer."
He furrowed his eyebrows and shook the shirt at me. "What do you mean? How can she be? I'm not thirsty from her scent. She smells like heaven, but I don't want her blood."
"I know. What I mean is she could still be your singer, but is shielding it from you." I held up my hands. "Look, none of us are thirsty around her scent. If she smelled like a regular human to us, then we would still be somewhat thirsty, right?"
Edward stopped and thought about what I was saying. "Then, I shouldn't be any danger to her. Let me go to her."
I kept my hands up to keep him still. "Well, we don't know for sure. I'm theorizing from the evidence. Wait until the morning when she comes here, and we can hold you back if necessary. You don't want to go over there and hurt her if I'm wrong, do you?"
I felt despair raging through him at the suggestion. It hurt to say those words to him, but he needed to stay here... just in case. He slumped his shoulders and sat down in a chair.
His hands gently stroked the shirt, his face was pained with sadness as he stared at it. "You're right. I should wait until tomorrow. You and Emmett have to promise to restrain me when she comes in. I couldn't live with myself if I hurt her."
He buried his face in her scent again, and Esme rubbed his shoulders in sympathy.
"She'll be here in the morning, honey," she said softly. "You'll see everything is going to be fine."
Carlisle came over to stand next to me. "You think she's altered her shield somehow to block her scent?" He continued after I nodded. "Do you think she'll display other capabilities of a physical shield as well?"
I shrugged. "I have no idea. I guess we're going to find out. From the vision, Bella seems to have a lot of clumsy moments. I wonder if any of her accidents will force out a physical shield in our presence?"
Carlisle was excited at the thought of learning new things about gifts.
"I doubt she's even aware she has shielded her scent," I said. "If that's what is going on, I'm sure it's something that happened subconsciously. At least, I hope so."
"Why?" he asked me.
"Remember her mind shield. She could never take it down until she really tried, and only when she was a vampire. If she's shielding her scent the same way, then she would have difficulty removing the shield, which is good. If she's doing the shielding knowingly and somehow lets up in Edward's presence, he's going to be bombarded immediately by his singer's full scent and there'll be no warning or precautions taken to keep him from the impact of his thirst for her."
"I think you're right. We'll definitely have to talk with her about it tomorrow."
I could almost see the list of questions for Bella forming in Carlisle's mind. Ever the scientist. I smiled at him and glanced back over at Edward.
His despair had been totally washed away again, and the desire was back in full force. I shook my head. I had a feeling Edward and Bella were going to be an interesting pair. In Alice's vision, it was always Bella who had the hormones running amok through her system, due to her lust for Edward. It was always Edward putting on the brakes physically. If he had less stopping him—like the subtraction of his bloodlust and knowing from the vision he could be with her and not harm her—there was no telling what these two were going to be up to before long.
We all kept a close eye on Edward throughout the night, making sure he made no sudden moves toward the door.
BPOV
I hardly slept through the night. Even though I knew he wouldn't, I still waited up in case Edward decided to come through my window. I chuckled at myself, thinking about how that probably made me very bizarre. Normal young women didn't wish for strange vampires to sneak into their bedroom in the middle of the night.
But then again, I had never really been normal.
I never quite fit in right in my world. I was never great at anything, never played sports, never had the right friends, was never pretty enough, and never stood out in anything. However, when I read about my future with Edward, the Cullens, and being a vampire, I knew I fit in exactly right in their world. It was like I had always been meant to be a part of it. Like it was the missing piece in my life. I eagerly anticipated my meeting with the Cullen family as I stared at my alarm clock hit six a.m.
I got out of bed and decided to make breakfast for my father before he left for the station. I mixed together some batter and had a stack of pancakes and a cup of coffee ready for him when he came down the stairs.
He looked shocked when he saw the table set up for his breakfast. "Morning, Bells. Wow, you didn't have to do all this. You should've slept in on your first Saturday in town." He sat down and took a drink of his coffee.
"Oh, I couldn't sleep. New bed and all, you know? It'll just take a few nights to get used to. Besides, I wanted to make you a big breakfast before you left for work. We haven't had a breakfast together in a long time."
He smiled at me and dug in. "These are great! I miss home-cooked food. I've never really gotten the hang of it."
I shook my head. That was an understatement. The man was a disaster in the kitchen.
"Well, I don't mind taking over kitchen duties. I like to cook."
He needed to quit eating greasy diner food and takeout.
"Let me know if you need me to pick anything up at the store, and I'll also keep some money on top of the fridge if you want to go by the market to get anything."
He shoved more pancakes into his mouth and I nodded.
"Okay." I took a drink of my milk and hesitated, hoping he wouldn't get too suspicious with what I was about to propose. "Um, I was thinking about calling that girl you talked about, Alice Cullen? I thought she might want to hang out sometime today if she was free. I'm all done unpacking and I kind of wanted to get out and explore a little. I agree with what you said about wanting a friend to show me around." I hoped that didn't sound ridiculous. I was such a terrible liar.
He seemed to buy it, though. "That sounds great, Bells. Alice is a nice girl. I'm sure she'd love to hang out if she isn't busy today. Hold on, I think I have the Cullen's number in here." He reached for a phonebook in the drawer and flipped through it. "Here it is. You can call the Cullens here."
"Thanks. I'll probably do that later. What time do you think you will be home tonight?"
"Probably around seven. Mark normally takes over my weekends, but he's sick. You can always call me at the station, though, if you have any problems."
I smiled. He cared so much about me, even if he had never been overly affectionate.
We finished our breakfast and he left for work. As soon as the door closed behind him, I ran up the stairs, only tripping once, and jumped into the shower. I took my time brushing out my hair and drying it into soft waves. As I scanned my wardrobe, I almost wished Alice was here with some emergency outfit. I really wanted to look nice when I met Edward.
Although, it would probably be a good day if he didn't attack me, let alone look at my clothes.
I sighed. I just wanted to hold him and kiss him.
I ended up selecting a blue top and a knee-length skirt, adding a touch of mascara and lip gloss to my face. I noticed the time and flew downstairs just as a black Mercedes pulled into the driveway. The sight of the car made me wonder if Alice would ever get her yellow Porsche in our real future. I stifled a laugh as I locked the door.
I turned around to find Alice standing there beside someone, who I knew from the vision to be Jasper. He was beautiful, just like she was, with honey blond hair and golden eyes to go along with his tall, lean body.
I walked up to them and held my hand out to him. "Hi, Jasper. I'm Bella."
He took my hand and gently shook it in greeting. "Hello, Bella. It's very nice to meet you."
He smiled and I returned it. I was eager to know Jasper better than I did in the vision.
"Are you ready to go meet the family, Bella?" Alice asked me.
I nodded excitedly.
"Well let's go, ladies," Jasper said, opening our doors for us.
"Isn't he sweet?" she asked me, turning around to look at me in the backseat.
"Yes, he is."
Along the way, Alice rambled on about places we passed and I watched out the window to find what she pointed out. We finally pulled onto an obscure drive, which was long and winding, and it ended in front of the three-story white home she had described perfectly. My nerves went crazy as I got out of the car. Alice grabbed my arm and we made our way to the door.
"Where did Jasper go?" I asked, noticing he had disappeared.
"Oh, he's inside. He's going to be with Edward, just in case. Are you okay, Bella? Your heart is beating really fast."
"I'm just fine. I'm nervous. I want everything to go well. I hope Edward is alright," I blurted out.
Please let him like me. Please let him like me. Please let him like me.
My breathing quickened as Alice led me through the front door. As soon as we were inside, I was greeted by Esme and Rosalie. Esme gave me a hug and a welcoming smile.
"Your home is beautiful," I told her.
"Thank you, Bella," she said, her smile growing even wider. She was so endearing, I understood immediately how all the Cullen "siblings" loved her like a mother.
Then I turned toward Rosalie, a little frightened about how she was going to treat me. She looked like a supermodel, and it was hard not to feel inferior in her presence. In Alice's vision, she wasn't even here the first time I saw the Cullen house because she didn't like me. But it was comforting to find a smile on her perfect face now.
"Welcome, Bella. I'm Rosalie. I'm really glad to meet you."
I shook her outstretched hand in amazement, trying to get my tongue to untie itself and say something. "It's nice to meet you." I wondered if my voice sounded as nervous as I thought it did.
She seemed to want to reassure me. "I know you probably don't have the best regard for me after reading Alice's vision, but I wanted to let you know I'm hoping we'll be friends and maybe sisters one day. I did some horrible things in the vision, and I think I learned a lot about myself and about you. I would never treat you like that knowing what I do now."
The sincerity of her words calmed me. I cautiously leaned forward and reached around to give her a hug. She seemed shocked I would hug her, not that I blamed her. I was sure none of them had been hugged by a human before.
"Thanks, Rosalie. That means a lot to me."
Her arms wrapped around me so gently, as if she thought I would break. I backed away as soon as she finished her quick hug, embarrassed about my forwardness. There might have been something wrong with me that I felt so comfortable with all of them this quickly.
She didn't let me see any uneasiness in her expression, though. It was something else that shone in her eyes. Hope, maybe? I didn't understand that, but I didn't want to ask.
It was time to meet the others anyway.
With Alice on one side of me, Rosalie on the other, and Esme in front of me, we walked into the living room. I was in a female cage and had to surmise it was because they were protecting me from Edward. It made me sad, because I didn't want him to be so affected by my presence.
Well I did, but only in a good way.
As we walked into the living room, I was approached by Carlisle.
"Hello, Dr. Cullen," I said to him, smiling.
He grinned and took my hand. "Bella, it's wonderful to meet you. We have so much to talk about. Please call me Carlisle."
He was so beautiful, they all were. They almost took my breath away. I was still surrounded by my group of vampires when someone shouted over to me.
"Hey, Bella. I'm Emmett. I'll meet you properly in a minute."
I laughed. "Hi, Emmett!"
Then Carlisle and Esme moved to the side, and I got my first view of Edward. His beautiful face really did take my breath away. I felt dizzy as my eyes took in his bronze hair, his straight nose, sharp cheekbones, smooth jaw-line, and perfect lips. My eyes finally met his. Their golden color smoldered somewhat darker than everyone else's. I moved forward unconsciously, like I was being pulled by an invisible string, and Alice and Rosalie remained glued to my sides.
I broke eye contact with Edward to notice Jasper and Emmett holding Edward's arms tightly at his sides. When my eyes darted back up to his face his nostrils flared slightly, but I felt nothing threatening coming from him. I reminded myself to breathe as I looked into his eyes yet again, continuing to move forward. There was a charge or energy increasing in strength the closer I got to him. His eyes told me he would never hurt me, but I needed to know if my presence was painful for him. When I was a few steps away, I found my voice.
"Edward," I breathed out softly. My fingers itched to caress his angelic face.
His lips turned up into a small grin. "Bella." His velvety voice sent tingles through my body.
"Does it hurt? Are you okay?"
He nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. I promise." He glanced at Jasper. "I'm good, Jazz. Her scent isn't affecting me." He turned toward Emmett. "It's okay, Em. You guys can let go."
Jasper locked eyes with Alice and then nodded at Emmett before they released Edward's arms.
My scent wasn't affecting him?
I didn't spend too much time thinking about it because he moved forward to stand right before me. I breathed in his delicious scent and felt intoxicated. I didn't really want to shake Edward's hand in greeting; I wanted to hug him and kiss him. But I gently reached for his hand and electricity charged up my arm as our fingers touched. We looked at our hands and then back at each other before smiling. He took my hand and brought it to his mouth, giving me a gentle kiss, looking into my eyes the entire time.
Breathe, Bella.
I couldn't resist any longer. My arm wrapped around his waist and I leaned in to hug him, pressing against him with my head resting on his chest. He slowly brought his arms around me, while his head bent down towards mine. He seemed to be breathing in my scent just fine, and I was thoroughly enjoying his.
I wasn't sure how long we stood there holding each other, however our moment was broken when someone else in the room tried to get our attention.
"Ahem."
The voice broke through the haze I was feeling from being pressed against Edward. Whoever it was got his attention, though, and he started speaking softly into my ear.
"Bella, would you please join me on the couch?"
I shivered in delight as his cool breath flowed over my skin and nodded into his chest, unable to come up with a coherent sentence. He led me over to the couch and pulled me down so we were sitting as close as possible. One of his arms wrapped around my shoulders and pulled me tightly against him as his other hand grabbed mine to hold in his lap. I tore my eyes away from his to finally notice the rest of his family sitting around us on the chairs and couch.
Carlisle seemed to be chuckling behind his hand. "Bella, we're so glad to have you here. We're all in kind of an odd situation, but I hope we can spend time together to try and figure out what Alice's vision means and what we may need to do in the future." He smiled, his golden eyes kind and warm. "May I ask if you felt the same sort of charge Alice described when you and Edward first touched?"
I was sure I blushed, because I felt my cheeks get heated. I nodded to Carlisle turning my face toward Edward. He smiled at me before leaning in so close I could feel his breath on my skin. I gasped a little when he rubbed his cheek to mine, cooling down the fire my blush had lit. He inhaled deeply as his nose moved along my jaw, his gesture intensely intimate, yet innocent at the same time. I was suddenly aware his whole family was witnessing our exchange, and I wanted to bury my head in the crook of Edward's neck and hide.
"You two might want to take it down a notch, or I'm going to have to excuse myself," Jasper teased.
Everyone started laughing, and I tried to take a few deep breaths to calm down. It was all so overwhelming, not the least of which was being next to Edward. I squeezed his hand, wondering if he even felt the pressure of my fingers, and the question about my scent resurfaced in my brain.
"You don't seem like my scent is bothering you. What happened?"
Edward peered over at Jasper and nodded his head, and I surmised Jasper had asked a question in his thoughts. It was odd knowing Edward could read everyone's mind except mine.
"Well, Bella, we are only guessing at this," Jasper said, tearing my attention away from Edward. "When Alice brought over your shirt last night, we realized that none of us were affected by your scent in a vampire kind of way."
Vampire kind of way?
"I mean to say, it didn't make any of us thirsty," he continued.
I nodded. That was what Alice had told me last night. "So, I'm not Edward's singer?"
It worried me somewhat, because if I wasn't his singer, did that mean I wasn't his mate? Wasn't his love? Was any of Alice's vision true regarding Edward and me?
"You very well could be. I think what has happened is that you're blocking your scent with your shield."
My mouth dropped open at Jasper's explanation.
How did I do that?
"But I haven't done anything."
He nodded and smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that."
I was completely confused.
"Remember from the vision how Edward couldn't read your mind?" he asked, and I nodded. "Well, you weren't doing anything then either, but now you know your scent would cause Edward pain, and I think subconsciously your shield has protected both you and him from your scent. Otherwise, you would make the rest of us as thirsty as other humans do… and you don't."
Ah, I understood what he was saying. I smiled because my wish came true. I had been so worried about Edward suffering being near me, so shielding my scent was a welcome consequence of reading the vision.
I turned toward Edward again. "You still can't read my mind, can you?"
"No, unfortunately I can't," he said, chuckling.
Boy, I was glad for that.
AN: What did you think of Bella's first meeting with the Cullens? Let me know.
