It all belongs to Stephenie M. I am just lucky to dabble with them.
WARNING: This story contains drama, blush-worthy cursing, sex, and lots of mature situations.
Chapter Title: I'm Not Afraid of You
Chapter Song: "Happy" by Leona Lewis
Bella's POV:
"Hurry up," I said to the coffeemaker while waiting for the timer to ding. I'd been up for awhile now and making great progress with the list of chores I'd given myself for the morning, but the damn coffeemaker was now holding me up. It was my own fault for forgetting to set the automatic timer before heading out for my run.
Still, it gave me time to reflect on the last week. Sunday had found the guys too drunk to get out of our beds so Rose, Alice, and I had headed over to Bree's with Jacob to try and reconcile the two. I wouldn't say we left with them being best friends again, but they were at least talking and had exchanged phone numbers and email addresses. Any kind of a start was a good one in my opinion.
By Sunday night, the guys were feeling better and even feeling the need to show they appreciated being left alone to rest. They ordered Chinese for dinner and let us pick any movie we wanted to watch while we ate.
That had been the last time the six of us had all been together. Midterms had happened this week and we'd hardly seen each other with all of the studying going on. Mr. Morris had been as accommodating as ever and had allowed his workers to study between customers during our shifts. I honestly doubted I would feel so confident about my exams if he wasn't such an understanding boss.
But today was Saturday, exams were over, and the week ahead was going to be short because of Thanksgiving. We were all looking forward to the downtime and being able to hang out together back home in Forks.
"What are you doing up so early?" Alice asked through a yawn while stumbling into the kitchen in her fluffy pink robe and matching slippers. The only time in our long friendship I had ever seen her uncoordinated was when she'd been sick with the flu and wearing the face mask I'd bought her.
"Morning, Rainbow Bright Sprite," I greeted, offering her a cup full of the finally ready coffee.
"No way," she cried, holding her palms out toward me. "I want to wake up slowly, not get jolted into awareness by uber amounts of caffeine."
I rolled my eyes at her and shoved the cup into her little hands. "It's decaf. I made this pot for Edward." We'd planned to watch a movie on my laptop last night just to finally be able to spend some time together, but we'd both fallen asleep long before the movie ended.
Alice let out a little sigh as she took the cup from me and pulled it to her face, letting the steam coat her skin. "You're my hero."
I chuckled and ruffled her bed-rumpled hair. "Love you too."
She took a sip of her coffee and then gasped, her green eyes widening. "You made Edward coffee. I can't remember the last time you made it so far in a relationship."
I shrugged, not considering a cup of coffee to be a big deal. "Owsies. He made me some when I stayed over at his dorm room."
"So you never answered my first question. What are you doing up so early?"
"I wanted to get in a quick yoga session and a run before work, which I did. I've been slacking in the exercise department to make time in the boyfriend one and needed to catch up."
She giggled into her cup. "Robbing Peter to pay Paul."
I gave her my best wicked smile and a reply sure to make her groan. "I prefer the term robbing Paul to play with Peter."
"Jeebus, Bells," Alice groaned. "It's way too early for dirty talk."
"Hey, not my fault you're just rolling out of the bed. Just count yourself lucky that I'm off to wake your brother and get myself ready for work instead of standing here and attempting to make you run for cover."
"You can leave him sleeping and I'll wake him later," she offered.
"Thanks, but he asked me to wake him. He said he had some work to do before tonight's dinner date."
Alice went from sleepy to wide awake and barely containing her excitement in less than a second. "The dress!"
"Don't even think about it," I warned, pointing a finger at her. "I'm picking my own dress."
"Can we vote? Please, Bells?" she begged with her hands in prayer formation and resting just below her pouty lips. Nice try, Ali girl, but not going to work today.
"I'll think about it," I said since a straight up refusal would have led to more pleading.
"That's not a 'no'," she sang as I headed down the hallway.
I shook my head at her positive outlook and headed into my room, deciding to let her believe whatever she wanted. I might let her and Rose help with hair and makeup, but I was picking my own damn dress.
Leaning against the back of the closed door, I took one long last look at the sleeping man in my bed before having to wake him. And then I decided to trade the warm cup of coffee in my hands for my camera.
Putting as little weight as possible on the bed, I leaned across the mattress and lined my camera up with Edward's face. He was sleeping on his stomach with the sheet bunched around his waist and the blanket barely covering his feet. His cheek was pressed hard into the mattress and his lips were slightly parted while his wild copper hair covered the edge of the pillow resting above his head.
After getting a few up-close shots of his face, I squeezed in between my bed and nightstand to get some pictures of his entire body. My mind was already going over ways to touch-up the pictures, selecting a few for black and white, and imagining a halo effect on one of the close-ups.
A glance at the clock on the nightstand reminded me I didn't have all the time in the world to ogle my man this morning. Reluctantly, I put away the camera and grabbed the cup of coffee, bringing it over to the bed and setting it onto the nightstand. I sat next to Edward and my fingers dug right into his hair, sliding through the silky copper strands. "E, time to get up."
He made a grunting sound and shifted a little, but made no real attempt to wake.
I leaned down and put my lips by his ear. "I have coffee. And if you get up soon enough, you can shower with me. But just a shower. I have work this morning."
He groaned and mumbled out something close enough to good morning.
"Morning," I said, pecking his cheek.
His arms wrapped tightly around me and pulled me into the bed with him, getting a laugh out of me. He gave a chuckle of his own and then pressed his lips to my neck. "Morning, Angel."
I snorted and playfully slapped his thigh. "Time to stop dreaming and wake the hell up, E." He'd been calling me "angel" on and off since I'd taken care of him during his hangover.
"I'm awake," he said, breathing the words into my neck. "But do I really have to get up and let go of you?"
"Yep. I've got work." I crawled over his body and got out of the bed, not wanting to tempt either one of us.
With me out of the way, Edward let out a loud yawn while stretching his long body. His palms rested against my headboard and his feet hung off the end of the bed; my blanket was now on the floor and the sheet was dangerously close to slipping past his waist and revealing a morning moon. I chuckled at the way my mind had phrased those words, drawing Edward's attention and his green eyes to me.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
I shrugged. "My mind."
"What about it?"
"Forget about my mind and take your coffee," I said, picking the cup up and setting it into his hand.
He smiled and patted the spot of bed next to him with his free hand. I smiled back and plopped down, facing him with one leg folded under me. If things started to get out of hand, I'd be able to make a quick escape. Not that I really thought Edward would try anything knowing I had work this morning—he wasn't that selfish.
"I see you're dressed. How long have you been up?" he asked.
"About an hour and a half. I wanted to get some exercise in before work."
"You gave up sleep in exchange for exercise?"
"I like the way I feel when I exercise. That tingle in my muscles and the slight burn in my lungs … Makes me feel alive in a good way."
"Makes sense."
"Actually, it makes sweat," I corrected, chuckling at my own lame joke. "And the need for a good shower."
"Speaking of showers, I was wondering if you would mind if I traded time in the shower for time with you now. It just makes more sense for me to wait and take one back at my room where I have fresh clothes."
"That's fine. You know! Since we keep making a habit of this, you should keep a bag here. Jazz and Em do that. The only rule is that if you toss your clothes in our laundry without asking, we throw them away."
Edward chuckled, looking at me over the rim of his cup. "Cruel women."
"If you mean that as fierce and not taking crap from lazy ass men, then yes we are. If you mean it as an implication that we have some sort of duty to wash your damn clothes simply because we're female, you can shove that idea right up your ass."
"Retract the claws, Swan. I was only joking."
"Whatever," I huffed, looking away from him.
"Okay, this is the second time you've said something like this. Who was it?"
"Who was who?"
His fingers brushed my hair off my shoulder and turned my face toward his. "Who was the man that stepped all over your non-traditional viewpoint and left you pissed about it?"
I shrugged and dropped my eyes so I could watch my fingers pick at the corner of my shirt. "Emmett does it at least once a week. And it was kind of the cause of the end of one of my few long relationships. Well, long for me anyway."
"Hey," Edward called, squeezing my fingers lightly. He waited until I had lifted my face to his before continuing. "I'm not Emmett. We share a last name and birth date, but our brains are wired completely differently."
"I'm sorry to compare you to him. I guess I'm just so used to him that I kind of expect it. I know that's unfair to you and I will find a way to stop it."
"And I'll keep doing what I can to prove to you that I am nothing like my brother."
I smiled and leaned in close, putting our lips within reach of each other. "Sounds like a really great plan."
Edward chuckled and set his hand on my neck, using it to join our lips together in a kiss.
Work at the coffeehouse was still in crazy busy mode and by the time I finally got my first break of the day, my feet were already annoyed with me. I sat down at a table near the kitchen and checked my phone for messages. I didn't have any calls, but I did have one new text.
Hello, Angel. Didn't want 2 take up 2 much of ur break, but wanted u 2 know I'm thinking of u. My mind can't seem to focus on anything but 2night. It will be a date u won't forget. Hope ur day is going well. TTYL.
My first reaction was to roll my eyes at Edward's "angel" comment. That was the second time he'd called me that just today and I couldn't for the life of me understand why he would think of me as something pure and innocent.
The second thing I did was to mutter 'Cheesy-E' under my breath for him talking about thinking of me since we'd only parted a couple of hours ago.
And then I just stared at my phone, feeling utterly confused. What did he mean by it being a date I wouldn't forget? Portland City Grill was a great restaurant and all, but I failed to see how a diner there could qualify as unforgettable. What was he planning? More importantly, was Alice helping him?
"Well, fuck a duck," I growled at my phone. "What the hell are you up to, E?"
Part of me really wanted to call him, but the worker in me knew I didn't have time for a long phone conversation. I could text Alice and put her on the case, but she'd probably annoy the piss out of Edward and he hadn't done anything to deserve that. I ended up shoving my phone into my pocket, getting Ben to make me a sandwich, and quickly eating my snack before getting back to work.
When lunch time finally came around, I was more than ready to sit on my ass and do nothing. I headed behind the counter and grabbed my laptop bag, planning to check email messages and listen to music. And also, there were pictures of a certain man from this morning to ogle over—I meant review! Like hell you did, you damn perv!
"Bella, do you want to come to lunch with Angela and me?" Kate asked as she hung her apron on the wall.
"Thanks, but I'm just going to stay here and work on my computer."
"Can we at least bring you something warm back for you to eat?"
"Where are you going?"
"Dane's."
I perked up immediately at the name of the place. "You have to bring me back a hot corned beef on rye smothered in mustard."
Kate chuckled at my excitement. "Sure thing."
After handing over ten bucks for food, I found an empty table in the shop and turned on my laptop. Once it was up and running, I did my normal routine of accessing the shop's wi-fi and checking my email. I had one from my dad—technically from Jacob—asking if I was having lunch with them on Thanksgiving. Apparently, Sue wanted to cook and make a big deal out of it, but was taking into consideration that I always had dinner with the Cullen family. That woman was really growing on me! Not that I'd ever had a problem with her—I'd just found it weird to go from being used to seeing her with Harry to seeing her with my dad.
I shot back a reply to let Sue and my dad know I would be there. Right after hitting the send button, I wondered if I should have told them it would be me plus one. Would Edward want to have lunch at my house? Would he consider Thanksgiving too soon to officially meet my dad? Was meeting my dad something he wanted to do at all?
While I was busy filling my head with questions, my inbox updated itself and alerted me to a new message. For some reason, I wasn't surprised to see it was from Edward. He was kind of like Alice with the ability to appear or send messages when being thought about. I'd always thought it was unique to her, but after spending the past couple of weeks with Edward, I now thought of it as a Cullen trait.
The email had no subject so I clicked to open it and find out why he'd sent it to me.
Hello, Angel.
I'm taking a short break and thought I'd send you an email. It's funny how when I'm standing right next to you, I can barely think of anything to say and when I'm away, my mind fills up with things.
One of the things that I keep forgetting and remembering is to thank you. Thank you for giving me a chance at all, and especially for forgiving me after our misunderstanding the night I met Bree. I also wanted to thank you for helping me during my hangover. I know you like to move past things and not bring them up again, and I respect that completely, but I needed to thank you first.
Alice called earlier. She tried to get information out of me about tonight, but I didn't budge. I have a master plan for our date and it does not include my sister's help. It does include spoiling you, though. I wasn't sure if you liked surprises or not, so I figured I should give you a little hint of what lies ahead of you. The rest you'll discover tonight when I'm standing next to you and can watch the expressions that color your beautiful face.
I'm going to stop here before I accidentally give something away. I'll be thinking of you.
- Edward
From the words "master plan" until the end of the email, I didn't breathe. When I finally did take in fresh air, it burned going down and I rubbed at my chest with my fisted hand to try and still the sensation.
I wanted to vomit.
I wanted to wrap my arms around him and hold him as tightly as I could.
What I actually did was sit and stare at the computer screen through blurry eyes. Usually when a guy was open with me about his feelings, it was at the end of things while he rattled off a list of reasons why he felt I was a psycho bitch. With Edward …
He cared. That was really the only way I could phrase it to where I actually understood it a little.
I decided the way to handle the email was to reply to it in a teasing way. It would make me feel something other than confused and it would hopefully make Edward laugh.
E,
That was the single cheesiest email I've ever read. And I swear to all that is holy and unholy, if you thank me one more time, I'm going to jot the words down on paper and shove them down your throat.
Nice try with the master plan thing. I'm not afraid of you.
Grinning and flipping off your email,
Bella
I chuckled as I hit the send button and then opened up a new tab. After plugging in my earbuds and fixing them just right in my ears, I clicked on over to YouTube. I debated on what I wanted to hear for awhile before deciding to go old school and listen to one of Charlie's favorites. I typed in my keywords and had a video of John Fogerty singing "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" within seconds.
In the middle of my foot-tapping and web searching, my computer made a loud beeping noise. I stared at it, wondering what the hell its problem was. My eyes zeroed in on my email tab blinking in the top left corner of the screen. I clicked on it and found a chat screen up with Edward's name displayed on top and the words "You shouldn't have said that" in the chat window.
Shit! I wasn't expecting him to get my email and read it so soon. Should I reply? Or should I just say I needed to do homework?
My fingers ended my dilemma all on their own. "Why's that?"
A little Edward is typing message blinked a few times before a new message appeared in the chat window. "Because now you've thrown down the gauntlet. The master plan will have to be beefed up and expanded."
I gasped at his words and quickly pounded out a response. "Don't even! I'm warning you, Cullen."
There was a moment of stillness and then he was typing and I was replying and we were pretty much having an argument that wasn't really an argument through a little chat window.
"What can you do about it, Swan? You're at work until an hour before the date. And you would never stand me up."
"How do you know that?"
"Because I'm starting to know you. And because you like being around me. You said so yourself."
"That doesn't guarantee you anything."
"Then how about because it would hurt my feelings and you wouldn't do that without reason?"
"Fine." I took my hands off the keyboard and used them to cup my chin while I stared at the screen. He was right and we both knew it, so I might as well just let it go. I really had to wonder what the hell I'd gotten myself into with this man.
Alice's POV:
I was dressed and more than ready to get going, but lacked a destination. My fingers drummed against the countertop while I kept a close eye on the green numbers of the microwave clock. I'd promised myself I'd give Edward an hour to get to his room and clean himself up before pouncing on him about the date tonight. I wouldn't have given him any time at all if I hadn't been convinced he would be angry over it and not give me any information at all.
"What are you doing?" Rose asked. Her voice startled me and I had to grab the countertop to keep from tumbling off my stool.
"I'm waiting for it to be time to call Edward," I told her while she chuckled at my near miss. "He left with Bella not quite an hour ago, saying he was going to shower, so I thought I'd give him time to do that before calling."
Rose leaned across the counter, blocking the clock from my view. "Why? What's going on? I want in on whatever it is."
"Tonight's the dinner date where Bella has to wear a dress. I got her to agree to a vote on the dress and I know she's going to make the stipulation that we can only vote on what's in her closet. So my thought was to find out what Edward has planned, purchase a new dress appropriate for it, and then slip it into Bella's closet before she gets home from work."
Rose chuckled while rubbing her hands. "She's going to be pissed! It's a damn good thing we aren't afraid of her."
I chuckled and nodded, used to Bella's behavior after all these years of being her friend. "She'll thank us when we're done, just like she always does." Bells rarely liked my methods at the outset, but she could never deny my results in the end.
"What can I do to help with your evil plot?" Rose asked, a wicked grin sitting on her red lips.
I smiled at her readiness to help. "Nothing until I talk to Edward."
"Then let's call the boy," she urged, sliding my phone across the countertop and closer to me. "Come on, Ali. You know you want to call him," she practically sang. She was right, too.
I picked up my phone, hit his speed dial, turned on the speakerphone, and waited for the call to connect.
Edward answered on the third ring. "Yes?"
"What a way to greet callers, big brother," I replied.
"I knew it was you and I don't have time to chat. Say whatever you're calling to say so I can get back to what I'm doing."
"You're awfully surly. Did something happen with Bella after you guys left here?"
"No, Alice. I'm busy. What do you want?"
"I just had a few questions about your dinner date tonight."
"Alice, I don't need your help. Thank you for wanting to, though."
"But, Edward, you don't understand. If you don't tell me what you have planned, I can't make sure Bella has the perfect outfit for it. If she doesn't, she'll end up feeling either over or under dressed, putting her in a bad mood, and quite possibly ruining your plans for the evening."
"I have absolute faith that whatever Bella chooses to wear will be fine."
"You don't know her the way I do, Edward. Not yet anyway."
"Alice, I appreciate your desire to help, but it's not necessary."
"At least tell me where you plan to take her after dinner so that I can have a dress length in mind."
"I'm not telling you anything."
"Come on, Edward," Rose urged. "Drop the pain-in-the-ass routine and tell us what we want to know before we drive over there and beat it out of you."
"The two of you should forget about my dinner date and go make some plans of your own," Edward replied, sounding angry.
Rose gave out a little growl and took my phone out of my hand, bringing it up to her lips. "Look, don't think for a second that just because Bells uttered the words 'I forgive you' last Thursday night that she's forgotten about you walking away from her. You are nowhere close to being in the clear with her. Leaving her unprepared for your date tonight isn't going to help matters."
I took my phone back from Rose. "Edward, what Rose is trying to say is that we want things to work with Bella and you, and we're trying to help."
"Alice, you know me. You know everything I do is well-thought out and planned, and tonight's date is no different. I have taken into account my enormous error last week and the fact that despite her assurances, I can see in her eyes that there's still some hurt inside of her. What Bella needs more than your help with a dress, is to know that I care enough to plan a night out for us all on my own. And honestly, Sis, if I let you help you would just take over and it would cease to be my idea pretty damn quickly."
"But, Edward—"
He interrupted me. "Alice, I love you and I sincerely appreciate your desire to help, but the absolute best way for you to help is to butt out. I'm not telling you anything about tonight's plans no matter how much you beg. And I'm not afraid of you, Rosalie, so don't waste threats on me. Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I have things to do. Enjoy your Saturday and I'll see you tonight when I come to pick up Bella."
The very next sound was the click of the call ending. I drew my eyes away from my phone and turned them toward Rose. "Did he really just hang up on me?"
"Sweetie, he really just told you to fuck off," Rose said with a little laugh. "When the hell did he get a set?"
I huffed and set my phone down on the counter. "If he thinks for a single second that I'm just going to sit here and do nothing, he is very sorely mistaken."
"So what do we do without knowing his plan?"
I hopped off the stool and opened one of the kitchen drawers, pulling out a pad and pen. "We compile a list of what we know about Edward and make some very educated guesses. Then we shop."
"Well we know he's taking her to Portland City Grill for dinner from her blurting it out last week."
"But is he starting with dinner?" I asked, unconsciously tapping the top of the pen to my chin.
"How the hell should we know? It's been like a year since he dated anyone. What was her name? Meg? Marsha?"
"Mary." I frowned a little at the thought of her and how sad my brother had seemed after their breakup. "Let's just start with the basics," I said, setting the pen to my paper and starting to write. "He's romantic. He likes to spoil the person he's with. He knows his food and wine selections, thanks to Daddy. He's already done what Bella considers a great date, so he'll be out to show her his version of one."
"While those are filling up your paper, they're not exactly creating any ideas in my head," Rose announced. "How is this getting us any closer to picking a dress?"
I looked at the list and read over everything I had written down twice before an answer came to me. I smiled up at Rose, feeling extremely excited and confident. "We don't dress her for tonight's activities. We dress her for the mood of the night."
"Meaning?"
"Edward plans on treating a lady to dinner so that's exactly what we're going to give him. We need a dress that's feminine and sexy. Something to accentuate Bella's curves but not put them on display."
"Alice, are you sure you're right about this? Because of all the adjectives that have ever come to mind in all the years I've known Bella, feminine has never been one of them. She's a cute woman and has a great body, but when I think feminine, I think soft. The few times I've ever seen her look soft weren't good ones."
"Exactly! Our girl is long overdue for a change," I said, smiling wider as I slipped my purse onto my shoulder. "Let's get on the road, Rose. We have a lot of stores to hit and only seven hours to find the perfect dress and get it into Bella's closet."
Bella's POV:
"Not funny," I groaned, looking at the newest text message on my phone. Edward was so kindly reminding me he would see me in an hour for our date. I was beginning to suspect he'd figured out I was nervous for tonight and was trying to keep me that way. I had no clue what the reason for it would be, but that didn't stop me from thinking it.
My phone beeped again and I let loose a few choice words about what I would do to Edward if he was sending another text. Once I got it open, I saw that it was from Alice.
Get home pronto! Only fifty-eight minutes to get ready! :)
I sighed and slipped the phone into my pocket, resisting the urge to rub at my temples. If the text was any indication of her level of excitement, my night was going to be long before it even got started.
In an effort to forget about the night lying ahead of me, I flicked the volume dial to the right and cranked up my radio. After hearing a rather loud and obnoxious request to visit a local car dealership, the guy in charge of the music came on to inform us lucky listeners that Death Cab for Cutie would be serenading us with "I Will Possess Your Heart". I didn't normally go for the softer stuff, but I was in the middle of navigating a turn and needed both hands on the truck's wide steering wheel to make it happen.
How I wish you could see the potential,
The potential of you and me.
It's like a book elegantly bound, but
In a language that you can't read
Just yet.
You gotta spend some time, love.
You gotta spend some time with me.
And I know that you'll find, Love,
I will possess your heart.
I snapped the radio off with a flick of my wrist. I'd had enough of song lyrics fitting to my life the other night and was in no mood for it now, especially one that sounded so much like the words could have come right out of Edward's mouth.
I made it home, with hardly any recall of the drive there, and flew up the stairs, only having forty-five minutes left until Edward arrived.
Emmett and Jasper were on the sofa watching television and I tossed a wave their way while rushing down the hall and into my room. My non-empty room.
"I don't have time for you two. I have to shower, dry my hair, dress, and slap on some goop," I told them.
"We know," Alice replied. "That's why we're here to help." She grabbed me by the shoulders and pushed me into the bathroom. "Get in there and wash away the coffeehouse smells as quickly as you can. When you get out, we'll vote on your dress."
"I only said maybe to that," I yelled through the closed door while stripping. I didn't have time to argue with Alice. Actually, I didn't have time for much of anything. Why the hell had I told him to pick me up at seven?
I sighed in defeat as I stepped under the warm shower spray; I would have to let the girls vote. It was the only way to make up some time so I would be ready by seven. And my little fairy of a best friend had probably known it all along, which was why she hadn't argued when I'd only given her a maybe on the voting thing. She was a hell of a lot smarter than most people realized, and she used it to bend us all to her will. I chuckled and gave a silent thank you for having her with me and not against me.
Twenty minutes later, I had shaved what needed to go, shampooed and conditioned what had stayed, and had lathered the rest up in the silky body wash stuff Alice had given me for my birthday. I didn't normally use the stuff because guys had a tendency to keep touching me when I did, but I figured I could risk it with Edward tonight.
I rinsed away all of the suds and turned the shower off, reaching up for the towel I had hanging from the curtain rod. While I padded the water from my face, I could hear sounds coming from my bedroom. Alice and Rose were laughing over Gwen Stefani singing about what she would do with money. She might not have had much when she'd made the song, but she sure as hell did now. Plus, she had hot ass Gavin Rossdale as her husband and baby daddy. I didn't see that kind of thing as being in my future, but I was looking forward to Alice and Jasper popping out some kids for Auntie Bella to spoil rotten.
I was forcefully pulled out of my thoughts by a fist pounding on the bathroom door. "For fuck's sake, Hale, give me time to dry the fuck off!" I yelled at the door.
"Just making sure you're moving your ass," she called out. "You have twenty-two minutes before the clock rolls over from on-time to fashionably late."
After making sure the towels on my head and body were secured tightly, I threw the door open and rushed into my room. "I'm about to make up major time because I'm agreeing to a dress vote."
Alice squealed as expected while Rose just smiled.
"We are only voting on what's currently inside of my closet. No pulling shit out of your rooms, you sneaky bitches," I warned them.
"I am hurt," Rose said, putting a hand over her heart. She could fucking have a tear rolling down her cheek and she still wouldn't be able to sell me on that shit.
"No, no," Alice said as she put her little hand on Rose's arm. "We have to respect Bella's choice in the matter and be grateful that we're even getting a vote." Alice never said shit like that unless she'd already figured out a way around it.
"What the fuck did you do?" I cried, nearly tripping on the corner of the bed while running for my closet. I pulled the sliding doors open and found my clothes pushed off to the left and right with a black dress bag hanging all alone in the gap between.
"We wanted to make sure you had the perfect dress for tonight," Alice said with a smile, leaning against the left door.
"We also wanted to buy you a little something to celebrate your return to the dating world," Rose added, appearing at my right with her arms crossed in front of her chest.
I forced myself to take a few deep breaths before replying. "While I appreciate the thought and sentiment behind this evil act, I'm highly fucking pissed that I had zero say in whatever is inside this bag. How do you even know whatever the hell this is will be right? Edward told me he didn't tell you anything and he certainly didn't tell me."
Alice smiled. "I know my brother and I'm sure the dress will be perfect."
"Whatever," I grumbled, turning and glancing at the clock. Friggen six forty. Time to suck it up and stop fighting the inevitability of Alice Cullen getting her damn way. "Let's see the damn dress," I told them.
Alice gave another of her patented squeals while Rose reached into the closet and pulled the bag out. "Bella, close your eyes," Alice demanded.
I took a step back from them. "The fuck I will."
"We want you to see the full package before you make a decision about the dress," Rose explained.
"No, you want to fucking make sure I can't do shit about it if I hate it," I argued. "I have less than twenty minutes to get into this getup, fix my hair, and put on makeup."
"We promise to take full responsibility for you being late if you hate the dress and need to change," Alice assured me, knowing exactly how much I fucking hated to be late for shit.
"Trust us, Bells," Rose said, dangling Alice's eye mask from her long fingers.
I groaned and held a hand out for the damn mask. "If I hate the dress, you two will pay for it for weeks to come," I promised them.
Rose gave me a shitty grin before pulling the mask the rest of the way down and covering my eyes in darkness. "Bells, shut the fuck up and submit to our torture."
I laughed at her excuse for a threat, but I did submit to the will of my girls. I just hoped I was making the right choice.
A/N: Thanks to Eternally Addicted for the idea of sneaking in an Alice POV! So excited for next weekend and the BIG DATE!!!
