In sickness and in health
Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight Saga, sadly, or any of the characters. Nope sadly, I am just borrowing a few names and places.
A.N: hope you enjoy, sorry I keep writing the same thing, anyway… Looking forward to seeing what you think of this chapter. Sorry it took so long to update, my computer is deciding to give up the will to live! Stupid machine. Anyway, hope you all enjoy
Chapter 12: spreading the joy
Just as Edward promised he woke me for dinner, well he brought me dinner in bed. He made me a delicious meal of Spaghetti carbonara. After my yummy meal, Edward proceeded to put on 'Marley & me'. I loved the film but the ending was so sad, I literally sobbed, Edward offered to turn it off but I had to see the end. I could not just leave it not knowing what happened. After watching the film and calming down, poor Edward had to change his shirt because I had soaked it through with my tears. When, finally my tears had stopped Edward turned the TV off and began humming my lullaby causing me to drift once more into a peaceful sleep.
As I woke this morning, I felt nervous knowing that today I would be telling my dad, the chief of police, that he was to be a grandfather. I am not sure who I was worried for the most, my husband or my father's health. Not that anything can actually happen to Edward but if Charlie were to try something then it would lead to a whole assortment of problems that are best left untouched. I don't really want to put my dad through all of that.
Dad is meant to be coming around at four this afternoon, where Esme is making him steak pie with roast potatoes, she was going to do fish but I have been told to limit my fish and I should stay away from oily fish. It just so happens that most of the fish my dad likes is oily, so it would have meant making two different meals. Of course, Esme didn't mind doing this, but I rather made a big thing about it. I said something along the lines of "Esme it's not fair to make you cook two different meals when you wont be eating any of it, it's just not right. Why don't you let me cook?" she refused my offer and still wouldn't listen so I then proceeded to tell her that my dad also loved steak pie and I hadn't made it for him in ages, and that was eight weeks ago. In the end, I won and now Esme only has to cook the one meal. I still feel bad about this, Charlie is my dad, and Esme shouldn't have to cook for me let alone my dad. They say you win some, lose some, well I lost that one. I have started to notice my clothes are feeling a little more snug but I refuse to think about it because then I have to make a decision, one that Alice will obviously see. I shudder at the mere thought of Alice taking me shopping. I would definitely lose that battle, along with my sanity, and after yesterday, all I want is to relax right up until the time that the baby is ready to come. Then I will probably lose it completely, or so I've read.
I decided that I would tell my dad first, because although I have no idea how he will react I know that no matter what he will be there for me if I need him. My mum I'm not so sure. I know that she will react one of two ways, either she will think that I am ruining a good thing, or she will simply be happy for me. If it is the first of the two, I know that I will need all the support I can get, even with Edward telling me that I am nothing like my mum. I know she regretted having me at a young age. I don't want her to be ashamed of my choices. Although knowing my hair-brained mother I could be completely wrong. I am brought out of my inner assessment of my mum by the most mouth-watering smell. As I walk into the little kitchen, I notice Edward making me scrambled eggs. I walk up behind him and lay my face on his back, wrapping my arms around his waist
"Good morning love, how did you sleep?" he asked stirring the contents of the pan
"I slept really well thank you, I always do when you hum to me" this brought an idea to mind.
"Edward, what do you think about composing a song for the baby? I mean it doesn't have to be right now. It's just that the lullaby you made for me relaxes me so much I was thinking that it may do the same for the baby." Edward places the spatula down and turns around in my arms and kissed my forehead,
"That my beautiful Bella is an exceptional idea, I would love to. If I compose it soon then we will be able to play it to the baby, whilst it is in your womb, we still have a minimum of 8 weeks till the baby can hear, so I have plenty of time" Edward kisses my cheek this time, wiping away a stray tear with his thumb as he stands. God I love him so much.
As I sit, waiting for Edward to finish I glance at the clock. We still have five hours, which gives me enough time to clear up around the cottage and then get ready. Edward brings me in a delicious ham melt with scrambled eggs on the side and I practically melt at the sight alone. The taste is 1000 times better.
I finish my breakfast and wash the dishes, as I am about to wipe the sides down Edward stops me.
"Bella what are you doing?"
"I am trying to tidy up, what does it look lie I'm doing silly" I respond
"Bella you don't need to clean anything love. The house is tidy." I sigh knowing he is right but I just want to keep myself busy until I have to get ready.
"Why don't we go over to the main hose, you can get dressed over there later on, come on lets find something for you to do." I'm thankful that Edward understood what I needed in the moment.
It wasn't until I was getting dressed that I realised just how snug my clothes had realty begun to get. It took me ages to get into my jeans. There was no way I was giving in just yet. I am only eight weeks. I breathe in as much as I can and finally I manage to get the button closed. Once I was dressed Edward and I slowly, to reduce my chances of falling, made our way to the main house.
As I stepped in through the front door, I called out a greeting to everyone. Esme was the first to greet me back and I immediately asked if there was anything, I could help with.
"Bella honey, there is nothing I need you to do. Why don't you go and relax. You should relax as much as possible," I go to argue but she cuts me off, "Besides sweetie, I have done everything that needs to be done already."
I walk off into the living room, slightly upset. I couldn't just sit here and do nothing for the next four hours. I would not let my mind mull over all of the different ways the conversation between my dad and I could play out.
Edward must have noticed my inner turmoil "Bella love, seeing as there is nothing to here, how about we go out for a little while" I agree to his offer and follow him out to the car. I don't bother asking where we are going; I just know that I needed to do something. We were in the car for about 40 minutes and as we stopped, I wondered where exactly we were. I didn't have to wonder long as Edward opened my door. We were in Seattle.
Downtown Seattle to be precise, Edward started to walking towards a small shopping centre and I looked at him curiously.
"Bella I know you don't want to go shopping with Alice yet, but I couldn't help but notice you having some trouble with your jeans this morning. I thought that if I brought you out, you would not have to endure hours upon hours of shopping. We can take our time and you can get whatever you want. Nobody knows we are here obviously; Alice would have a fit if she knew. I know you are starting to get uncomfortable in your current clothes. You can even buy the same as you are wearing but in the next size up so that nobody notices."
I sigh, more out of love than anything else, god I love this man in front of me. I lean up on my tiptoes and place a small kiss on his lips, "thank you."
We ended up spending 2 hours shopping, I did as Edward had suggested and just brought clothes that I already had, just in the next size. The hardest part of the trip was going shopping for new underwear with Edward present. I know he is my husband but it still felt slightly embarrassing. I would say that this is the one area, which I don't mind Alice taking over. I knew that I needed to get some new bras. Edward was a true gentlemen and waited outside of the shop, Just to help ease my embarrassment.
I fell asleep in the car on the way back to the house. Edward had decided that we should go back to the cottage first, where I could put my new purchases away and then have a nice relaxing bath before getting ready. I woke in Edward's arms as he carried me from the car.
"Hi sleepy head" he greets me
I smile up at him "Hi, how long do we have till Charlie should be here? I ask curiously
"We still have just over an hour, so you can put your clothes away and I will run you a nice hot bath and then you can bath and get ready"
I hum in acknowledgement; "you have everything planned out don't you" he smiles and kisses my cheek. He sets me down on my feet and waits for me to get my balance.
Edward carried my bags into my closet and I immediately set to work putting my clothes away. After about 20 minutes, I am finished. I sit on our bed and lay back trying to relax. Just as I close my eyes, Edward sits on the bed causing a slight shift.
"The bath is ready for you love," with Edward's help I get up from the bed
"I won't be too long; we still have plenty of time, right?" I ask Edward knowing the answer to the question, but just needing that bit of reassurance.
We arrive at the main house with ten minutes to spare, and I cannot sit still. One minute I am tapping my foot, and then I am up pacing. Edward comes up to me and places his hands on my shoulders to try to calm me down. In the end, Jasper has to step in, but as soon as Charlie's hand knocks on the door, I am back to full-scale nerves. So much so, that Jasper has to stand next to me and place a hand on my shoulder. Carlisle opens the door and invited Charlie in and I greet my dad.
"Hi daddy" I greet almost shyly
"Hi bells… err, so how have things been since your birthday?" I'm not quite sure how exactly to answer this, I don't just want to jump straight in.
"I've been good, things are a little hectic at the moment but other than that, it's been good." I try to be as honest as possible knowing that my dad would be the first to spot if I was lying.
Luckily, Emmett is in the front room watching a game, I'm not sure who it is between, I'm too busy trying to word exactly how to tell my dad that I am with child. Do I tell him while we are eating… no what if he starts to choke. So that is settled I will tell him after dinner.
At about five o'clock Esme calls us into the dining room, telling us that dinner is ready. As I sit down Esme walks in holding two plates and I feel my stomach turn. I try to swallow back the feeling that washes over me. I couldn't take it anymore and had to run to the bathroom. Luckily, Edward was nearby and ran me to the toilet. Before I knew it I was being sick, just what I needed. I hope I am not coming down with anything. That is all I need. As I stand up and brush my teeth I am hit with the realisation of what just happened, I'm not coming down with anything, its just part of the pregnancy, morning sickness, though not so much morning, if you ask me. We walk back hand in hand to the dining room where I notice Esme has replaced my plate of steak with a bowl of soup, for that I am thankful. As I sit, dad looks up at me and I smile.
"So Bells what was so important that you had call you old dad over here."
This is it, the moment of truth, literally, and I can't get the words out
"I… well umm" I stutter choking on my words my dad chuckles at this
"Wow, it is gonna be something big like you're pregnant, isn't it?" I could tell from the tone of his voice that he was joking but he had hit the nail on the head. I could feel the colour draining from my face. I couldn't speak so I look over to Edward pleading him to say something. Edward nods as if understanding my request.
"Actually Charlie, you couldn't have answered better for us if you tried. Bella is pregnant" my dad drops his fork and I immediately look over to him watching too see how he reacts. I really did not expect to hear what he said next, so much so I almost asked him to repeat himself just to be sure.
"You mean I'm going to be a grandpa? Bells," he looks at me, I simply nod not trusting my voice, as tears were already sliding down my cheeks. My dad stands up and walks over to me. He hugs me and kisses my cheek. "Congratulations Bella, Edward, wow a grandpa! Wait till I tell the guys down at the station." Apart from my wedding day, I have never seen Charlie react with so much emotion. I rather enjoy seeing him like this, it's different.
"So you're not mad at me or disappointed that I am pregnant so soon" I ask just to certify that I am hearing him correctly.
"Of course I am not angry kiddo, why would I be?" Charlie seems to pause as if waiting for me to answer, but when no answer comes from me he continues, "I mean sure you could have waited a little while longer before you had kids, but I would be a bit of a hypocrite if I judged you. You are a married woman bells, you decide what you want from now on, though you always have really." I laugh, that is certainly true, and when do I ever listen to anyone. If I set my mind on something I don't stop, just look at Edward. As I look to Edward, I see him smiling and I just know that he is thinking about something similar.
"So how did Renée take the news?" Charlie asks interrupting me mid-thought
"Well she doesn't actually know yet, I wanted you to know first." I see my dads eyes widen in what, surprise?
"What is it dad?" I ask wanting to know just what it was that caused his reaction.
"Umm nothing really, I just expected you to tell your mum first is all, considering how close you two were"
"I know I would normally. It's just, I knew that when I told you, you would ultimately support me and be happy. With mum, especially with how flighty she gets, I don't know how she will react. I think I just wanted to know that I at least had one of you on my side first, if that makes sense."
"It sure does kiddo, although I am sure that your mum will be happy about it. How do you plan on telling her?"
"That is the other thing, I have no idea how to tell her. I was just going to call her, there was no way I could email her and tell her. That would just be wrong. To tell you the truth I wasn't completely sure how I was going to tell you." We finish the rest of our meal in silence and the dad moves back into the living room with Emmett.
"Well that went better than I thought it would," I tell Edward nonchalantly.
"You should have heard his mind, he really is happy for you Bella; he is already planning fishing trips with the baby." I smile, still remembering when Charlie fist took me fishing. I don't think I will ever forget when I fell out of the boat as I tried to reel my catch in. It was about half past 6 when Charlie decided to head home. We said our goodbyes and he left. Edward and I had decided to stay at the main house tonight, well I asked Edward if we could because I missed it here and he, of course, said yes.
As I was sitting on Edward's bed, I decided that there was no time like the present to call my mum. I sat in Edward's lap as I dialled the all too familiar number.
"Hello?" I hear my call through the phone
"Hi mum it's me, Bella. I have something I wanted to tell you"
"Oh hi sweetie, how are you doing? How is married life treating you? How was the honeymoon, if you know what I mean? C'mon you have to tell me everything." I roll my eyes knowing my mum would be asking me these questions but there was no way I was sharing, especially in a house full of vampires, them knowing that we have sex is enough for me.
"Mum, married life is treating me wonderfully, well my husband is anyway. The honeymoon was amazing. We went to a little island near Brazil and it was amazing. Anyway how have you an Phil been?" I didn't want to give too much away, especially with my mum"
"We have been good, not been doing much really just the same old, same old. So what was this news that you wanted to share, oh hold that thought I will put the phone on speaker so Phil can hear, saves me having to repeat it. Right go ahead honey," I sigh knowing that it is that well known now or never moment.
"Mum I am pregnant." I don't want to overdo it, short and simple is best.
"I'm sorry what was that honey, I don't think I heard you properly" I know this isn't the best sign and I don't care anymore. It is my life.
"I said I am pregnant, I am carrying your grandchild"
"Oh sweetie are you sure, I mean you could be wrong- I cut her off
"no mum I am 100 percent positive, Edward's dad Carlisle checked me over as well, he thinks I am 8-9 weeks already."
"Oh but Bella so soon, you are still so young, I mean I know you have never been young minded, but you are still young. You are eighteen, you don't know how to look after a baby. You have your whole life still ahead of you. Don't you think you are rushing into things." angry tears are cascading down my cheeks. How dare she. I though she might take it bad but this is just I can't take it
"How can you say I don't know how to care for a baby? I am damn sure that if I can look after both myself and you from the age that I did then I will a brilliant mother. . I am a married woman, why is it so hard to accept that I would have children. I was hoping you would be at least happy for me. Did you know we thought we would never be able to have children, It was never supposed to be a possibility for us. But I, no we have been blessed with a baby." I rant and I sob into Edward's shirt.
"Bella sweetie I didn't mean to upset you, it's just that well I know what you are going through if anyone should it's me. I'm sorry; really, I am .I suppose it is just a shock. I mean you only married a couple of months ago and already a baby is on the way. You certainly don't hang about do you?" she laughs lightly, what is funny. "I am happy for you sweetie I just wish that maybe you would have waited a little longer, I mean do I look old enough to be a grandmother to you." I can't think of anything else to say at the moment, I am too upset. My mum basically told me I was making a mistake. How do I handle that? The one person I wanted to support me just as much as Edward. My own mother, I suppose she was never really the supporter and more the supported.
"Well I have to go now mum; we have to go back to our cottage. I just though you would like to know that you are going to be a Nan, goodbye" I don't wait for a reply I just hang up. I cry uncontrollably and it actually got to the point that Edward offered to call Jasper, but I needed to let it out. Clearly, Alice saw this and she came and got me. She took me up to her room where rose was, sitting on Alice's bed. Alice sat me on the bed and I curled into myself continuing to cry.
"Why can't she just be happy for me?" I sob I don't want any answers I just need to verbalise everything in my mind. I'm guessing Alice and Rose knew this because neither spoke.
"How can she say I am rushing into things she was young when she had me" I kept on making comments when finally I had no more tears left
"I will be a good mum, won't I? I refuse to be like her." I ask looking to both Rosalie and Alice.
"Bella don't worry about what Renée said you will be a perfect mother, and downstairs is your baby's perfect dad. No matter what anyone tells you, look at what you have already done. You cared for yourself and your mother from a young age. You move here and do exactly the same for your dad. I wouldn't be surprised if it's second nature to you already" I look at Rosalie as she is speaking and I pray she is right.
Alice decides to pipe in, "besides Bella you have all of us here and I know you will be a brilliant mother"
"But I can't depend on all of you. Besides how do you know-"Alice cuts in and taps her head. Does this mean she has seen it, how?
"Bella silly as soon as you decided to be the best mum for that baby in there" she places her hand on my stomach "I could see various visions of you raising a baby. Unfortunately I can't quite tell you the sex of the baby yet, what with my visions being slightly blurry" Alice huffs and this causes me to giggle.
We continue to talk and Alice decides to give me a pedicure, surprisingly its quite relaxing that is, up until I let out a small yawn.
"Right come on sleepy head, lets get you back into your husbands arms I am sure he is dying to talk to you right now," Rosalie jokes.
Before they can open the door, there is a slight knock. Alice calls whoever it is, into the room; it turns out to be Edward and I smile as soon as I see his face. I have all the reassurance I need right here. Edward asks how I am feeling and then carries me to his room and puts me in bed. He doesn't talk about it anymore and I am grateful for that I, just want to put it behind me. As Edward kisses me goodnight I know I don't need my mum. I have Charlie and all of the Cullen's, I will be fine and I will be a damn good mother.
A.N hope you enjoyed. Once again sorry it took me so long to update.
Let me know what you think
Amy x
