Chapter 21 – Reunion & Additions
BPOV
Weeks passed and my nausea hadn't. Edward watched me carefully, not even letting me walk down the stairs by myself. It was sweet that he was that caring, but I felt he should be spending the time studying and resting. Also, it was difficult to keep this news from my mother. Edward and I agreed to tell our families at Christmas. We backed out of our Thanksgiving trip, telling them that I was still under the weather and we had to finish up our schoolwork. My nausea was fewer and far between, but when it came, it felt like I was dying. I could barely make through my classes, but I held on.
Edward, on the other hand, was more focused on me than his work. "Edward," he came to the campus infirmary when my professor told him I was there. "Edward, you had an exam!" I sat up from the cot I was on, "What are you doing here?" His green eye took in my body, zeroing in on my stomach, "My wife is sick. Where else would I be?" He sat next to me, feeling my forehead, "How are you feeling?"
I exhaled deeply, "Better, just tired now." Dr. Donovan came into the room, "Mrs. Masen?" The tall man, with red hair and brown eyes looked at me and Edward. "Dr. Cullen informed me that you were here." Edward stood up, "Dr. Donovan?" Edward hadn't met him yet. "Yes, Mr. Masen. I was bringing something for your wife." He handed me a brown glass bottle, "Take two tablespoons every day. It's vitamins that'll help your body and the baby." Edward looked over the bottle, "I'll make sure she does. Is there anything else that we could do?"
Dr. Donovan was writing on his notepad, "Well, after this semester, I would advise that she take fewer classes. It's better that she's not too active. Also, no reaching above her head. It puts a strain on the womb." The doctor gave us a long list of things I could and couldn't do. Edward memorized each of the instructions, committing them to memory. My brow scrunched together listing to everything. I never knew it was so much work to carrying an innocent life.
Edward helped me into the car and drove us home. My hand rested on my stomach, underneath the blanket. It's been six weeks since we found out about the baby and all I could do is think about how I was going to decorate the baby's room. There were some cribs and bassinets that caught my eye. Mrs. Wells said we should wait until I was almost ready to have the baby. She was just as excited as we were for having a baby. When we first moved to Chicago, she told me she knew Edward since he was a child.
"Edward was always a gentleman. He would push in his mother's chair for her and he wasn't even five years old." Edward grimaced and hid his face in his hand. My hand caressed his cheek, "That is so sweet." As a favor, Edward asked Mrs. Wells to watch me when he wasn't home. "Edward, that isn't necessary." He thought it was and that was the end of that conversation.
Mrs. Wells was more amenable to listen, "I know where you're coming from. My husband was that bad too." She lost her husband in the Great War. She had to clear her throat before continuing, "I'll check on you when I can, but I'm more than sure you can take care of yourself."
The two of us sat in the living room, looking over materials for the nursery. There was an array of colors, but we were more interested in the durability of the material and how easily they can be altered. The front door opened, blowing in frigid cold area. It was so strong, the flames in the fireplace flickered. Edward was grunting with effort with moving something heavy.
"Ok, Eric, just one more push and it'll be in." Mrs. Wells moved me from the couch as Edward and Eric push as large, thick fir tree. Beneath their coats and scarves, there was a sheen of sweat on their necks. The tree wobbled until they were about to lock it into its stand, "Hold it right there, Edward." Edward stood on the stairs as Eric was underneath the needles and branches, locking in place. Then Eric went into the kitchen and was back with a bowl of water. Edward moved some branches of the way, letting him pour the water into the stand. "Bella, what do you think?"
The treetop was near the ceiling. Its branches blocked the way between the stairs and the second couch. Its scent filled the room and the heat from the fire made the smell stronger. "I love it." Accessing it, the tree was going to take some work to get decorated. "Did you go to Canada for this tree?" Edward chuckled and held my shoulders, "I wanted the best." I took off his coat for him, "Then it's perfect."
The four of us began to decorate the tree. Edward insisted that I remain seated, but I didn't listen. This was my first Christmas in my new home. How could I not help with decorating it? While Edward and Mrs. Wells went to get the decorations from the attic, Eric and I popped our own corn. Mrs. Wells ran longs pieces of thread through needles, so we could string the popcorn. She moved faster than a spider, having sewn by hand for years. Afterwards, she dipped the popcorn strings into a bowl of sugar syrup that had been colored with red and green cake coloring. It made the popcorn look pretty and the sugar coating made it nice to eat afterward.
After all the decorations were hung on the tree, including beautiful crystal balls, the last thing to go on were the candles. The candles weren't going to be lit until Christmas Eve and Christmas night. Edward stood on a chair as he placed a decorative star on top of the tree. The top was just out of his reach and he strained his arm to place the star.
As the star was placed, Edward lost his footing and fell off the chair. His body made a hard impact on the floor. "Oh no!" I moved next to him, hoping that he wasn't hurt. He looked at me, then suddenly laughed, "I'm fine." A laugh came out of me, seeing that he wasn't hurt, "Don't do that to me again." He held the side of my face and quickly kissed my cheek. We still had company.
The tree was now perfect. There was something else we needed. The next day, Edward and I walked through the city. There was a light dusting of snow on the ground. The streets were flooded with tourists and families visiting. The city was more alive than I've ever seen it. "Bella, what are we looking for?" "That," I tugged his arm, pulling him to the cart. "Which one, Miss?" The salesman held up the perfect Christmas wreath, "This one." The wreath was a perfect circle of needles with a large red bow, "Oh, it's perfect." Edward paid for the wreath, "You could have asked me to pick one up." My eyes narrowed, "I know, but I wanted to get out of the house." He rolled his eyes, "Of course. Whatever you want."
Mom was going to love this. We had an emotional conversation yesterday. She was surprised on how time passed so quickly. It was just yesterday when I was running into my parents' bedroom Christmas morning to open presents and now, they were coming to my home to celebrate Christmas with my husband.
Though he and I fought about the subject, I told Edward I was going to make Christmas dinner. "You shouldn't be exerting yourself." I rolled my eyes, "Well, think of it as a gentle exercise. Dr. Donovan said those were good for me too. Besides, I'm the lady of the house, so how can I sit by and let my guests cook. Absolutely not." Edward saw my determination and insisted on helping me. Another compromise, "That's fine with me."
The house was completely decorated on the day our families were arriving. There was a ceramic model of Santa Claus' workshop on the mantle. It took my days to finish painting each building. Edward was impressed with my attention to the detail. "Well, I can't garden in the winter, so I paint and sculpt."
The doorbell rang and my excitement grew. Edward went to get the door and I remained in the kitchen. Looking down, my stomach was lightly poking out of my dress. I had to let it out to accommodate my growth. My hands cradled my stomach, "They're here. I'll introduce you to them in a minute." It seemed silly, but I spoke to the baby when I was alone. It made me feel closer to him or her. My own theory was he or she could hear my voice. Voices chattered happily from the front room. "Where's Bella?" My mother's voice was anxious. I went out, carrying a tray of hot chocolate. The tray was in front of my stomach, hiding the baby perfectly.
"Bella," my mother sang. Edward turned and frowned, seeing me carrying the tray. He crossed the room and took it from me, "You know you shouldn't…" My hand touched his shoulder, "I know." Ms. Elizabeth and Lauren crossed the room. I turned to face them and their eyes fell. My mother was already looking down. This was a first, Mom was speechless.
They recognized the bulge, knowing what it meant. Edward held my shoulders, "Merry Christmas. You're going to be grandparents." I looked around the room, seeing that my father wasn't here. Sean remained by the door. I didn't notice him at first.
Tears fell from my mother's eyes. She stepped closer to me and lightly put her hand on my stomach. She felt how hard the bump was. She sucked in a hard breath, "My baby's having a baby?" she whispered. My hand rested on hers, "Yes." Ms. Elizabeth and Lauren came forward, neither of them speaking. My mother stepped away and covered her mouth with her hands. Edward was hugging his mother and I was hugging Lauren.
"Renee?" my dad's voice was worried, "What is it?" Everyone turned to the sound of Charlie's voice. He reached for my mom, when he saw that was crying, "Bella, what's going on? Are you sick?" Stepping away, my dad saw my stomach and he gasped. Mom looked at him, "Charlie, she's having a baby." My dad walked over to me with a look I didn't recognize. I couldn't tell if he was happy or mad. He touched my stomach, then pulled his hand away. His expression was still unreadable. Edward held my shoulders, as we waited for my father to speak.
His lips pursed together and turned away from us. Everyone watched him as he paced the length of the room. "So, the rumors were true?" My eyes narrowed until I realized what he meant. His words were like a punch to the stomach. "No, this happened afterwards." His face was turning red, "Are you sure?" I blinked once, touching my stomach lightly, "Yes. I would never do that and neither would Edward." Charlie was going to say something else, but I cut him off, "Please, do not ruin this holiday. It's the first one in our home." Charlie shook his head, "Of course." Without another word, he took up everyone's suitcases, with Sean's help and I showed them to their rooms. That was the last Charlie spoke on the subject.
The week our families were here was wonderful. Mom was experiencing her first big city holiday. She still preferred our quiet Christmases at home, but she enjoyed herself. There were plays she enjoyed and large stores for her to lose herself in. She was drawn to the infant section, but she held back. "It's bad luck to buy anything for the baby this early in the pregnancy."
At home, she still insisted on some of our family traditions and so did Ms. Elizabeth. We read from Charles Dickens' infamous story 'A Christmas Carol.' It was my favorite Christmas story, apart from the biblical story of the first Christmas. "When Jacob Marley's ghost appears, that always frightened me as a child." Edward held me close, as we sat by the fireplace, "I'll keep him away." Ms. Elizabeth's family tradition was to hang an ornament on the tree and tell the story on how her family got it.
She held up a golden decorative orb, with line of silver across the middle of it. On top of the line was 'E.A.M' and on the bottom was 'E.D.M.' "My husband gave this to me our first Christmas together, in this very house." She smiled softly at the ornament, "Now," she held up a silver ornament, "I'm making it a new family tradition." She handed Edward the ornament. It was the same as hers, with the initials 'E.A.M' on top. The only difference was the initials 'I.M.S' on the bottom.
The evening progressed into the night. As the sun set and the clock chimed 6 p.m., it was time to light the candles on the tree. Edward lit the first one and I did the second. Our parents, Lauren and Sean lit candles around the tree. We spent the rest of the evening singing Christmas carols. My eyes began to get heavy during the chorus of 'Silent Night.' A tear came to my eye at "Mother and child, holy infant, so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace." All I could think about was next Christmas, when we're all surrounding our tree and a small infant is sleeping in my arms. That would be a holy night for me. My baby's first Christmas.
Christmas morning was perfect. I woke up to the smell of cinnamon, the tree and coffee. There was chattering coming from downstairs, along with the composition of 'Classical Christmas,' from 'the Nutcracker' playing. The bedroom door opened, "Merry Christmas, Mrs. Masen." Edward sat beside me, with a cinnamon roll. My mom only made them every Christmas and my birthday. He set the coffee mug on the nightstand. My eyes widened at the late time. It was past 10 a.m. "Edward, how could you let me sleep so late?"
I scrambled to get out of bed, but Edward held my wrist, "Because you need your rest, Bella." He set the bottle of my vitamins down. "Edward," my voice was a bit whiny, "we have guests. I should be getting them breakfast." He pressed his lips to mine, "Our mothers wanted to do it for us. Their Christmas present to us."
Despite my requests, Edward got me Christmas presents. "It's our first Christmas together. How can I not get anything for my wife?" It was a new fur coat with a muff. "At least it big enough for me to grow in." Later in the day, I had my own surprise for Edward and Ms. Elizabeth. The doorbell rang, "I'll get it." Edward stood, but I pushed him back into his seat, "I said I'll get it."
Our guest was here, "Merry Christmas Dr. Cullen." Dr. Cullen stepped in, "Merry Christmas, Mrs. Masen and thank you having me." Ms. Elizabeth gasped as she came down the stairs, "Dr. Cullen!" Edward and his mother greeted the doctor. She looked as though she wanted to through her arms around him, to embrace Dr. Cullen as a relative. He was glad to see them doing so well. He was a very charming man. For his presents, we gave Dr. Cullen a new stethoscope and notepad.
"Everyone out of my kitchen!" I ordered. Anger was coming from me and I didn't know where it was coming from. My mother and mother-in-law insisted on cooking Christmas dinner but I said no. Edward argued their side, "Excuse me, but this is my home and my first Christmas in it. If I need help, I will ask, but until then, Edward you entertain our guests." None of them argued with me after that. They rushed out of the kitchen as I began to work.
Everyone enjoyed the meal, down to the hot cherry pie and hot chocolate. This holiday was wonderful. Exultation ran through me as Edward looked at me from across the table. We were separated by our talking guests, but I felt closer to him than ever.
After Christmas, things started to slow down. On New Year's Eve, I felt terrible that I had fallen asleep before midnight. Edward kissed my lightly, waking me up. "Huh?" The room was dark. There was only a single line of light, coming from the door Edward left open. He caressed my face, "Happy New Year, love." He pressed his lips to mine, sharing our first kiss of the year. That was wonderful moment, but something even more wonderful happened.
Edward and I were sitting on the couch together, watching the flames in the fire. Everything in the house was silent. Our families were leaving tomorrow. My hand was running across my stomach. There was a light bump from my torso nudging into my palm. I looked at my stomach,thinking it was my imagination. "Something wrong?" Edward asked, kissing my hair. "No." I looked back at the flames, but my mind was on my stomach. The flames licked at the wood when there was another bump.
My head turned back to my stomach. My body stiffened and Edward felt it, "Bella?" Silent tears fell, "I felt the baby." Edward's hand rested on my stomach, "Are you sure?" his voice was skeptical. "Something poked me from inside." Both of our hands stayed on my stomach, waiting for the next nudge.
The two of us waited on edge. "Oh," I whined, "I'm sorry you missed it." Edward pressed his lips to mine, "We have plenty of time for him to kick me." I smirked, "Well, she'll nudge you soon enough."