Chapter 26: Last Minute Plans
The next few days were uneventful and basic. Alice was always preoccupied with getting the wedding and prank perfect. Edward's visits were always short and polite, and on a good day they included a kiss. His distance made the gaping hole in my chest slowly reappear, no matter how many times I assured myself it was only for a few days. And, naturally, I didn't dream at all, like normal soon-to-be-brides would be on the week before their wedding day.
"Good night, Bella," he murmured on the day before the wedding.
Silence from my end.
"Are you asleep?" he asked quietly, heading over to the side of my bed.
I didn't answer him. I just closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep.
"I know you're not asleep, Bella," he muttered.
I let out a heavy sigh in my "sleep".
"You're such a bad actress," he said between laughs. I felt him crawl under the covers beside me, and I was positive of his presence when I felt his cold, stone arms wrap around me protectively.
"Edward..." I began, but he cut me off.
"It's the eve of our wedding, Bella. Please just let me enjoy this," he murmured, burying his face in my hair. I opened my mouth to protest, but then felt stupid as I began to realize that I would be surrendering a chance to cuddle with my gorgeous fiance. I squirmed a little in his grip until I was comfortable enough to fall into a deep sleep.
I awoke on top of Edward with my head under his chin and my body sprawled on top of his. I tried to roll off him, but he held me in place.
"Sorry," I muttered, blinking a few times.
"It's fine," he said, smiling.
"What time is it?" I asked groggily.
"Noon," he replied simply.
I shot out of bed so fast I nearly twisted my ankle on the floor. "Noon?!" I shrieked.
He chuckled. "Yep."
"Oh my gosh, there's still so much to arrange! Alice needs me to be at the church right now for the pre-wedding prep! She's going to skin me alive and I'm not even dressed yet and my hair looks like a large pile of crap!" The words spilled out of my mouth so fast I could barely understand myself and by the end of my nervous breakdown I was on the verge of hyperventilation.
"Bella, calm yourself!" Edward shouted, grabbing my wrists in his hands. The cool temperature of his skin was enough to soothe me instantly.
I sighed heavily and sat down on the bed.
"Go get ready and I'll be waiting to take you to the church," he said calmly before he strutted to the door and closed it behind him.
I sighed again and then raced to my dresser to search for a pair of my comfiest jeans. After digging for a few minutes to the bottom of the first drawer, I discovered a folded up piece of paper underneath a pair of khakis.
I unfolded the paper and read it out loud to myself.
Bella, I know this isn't the right time, seeing as it's the day before your wedding. I just wanted to let you know that I may be out of your life, but it doesn't mean I've stopped loving you. I want you to understand that this will be easier for you in the long run if you stay away from me. I love you, and I always will. Jacob.
I lunged dramatically for my phone and dialed Billy Black's number, only to get a busy signal. I cursed loudly and threw my phone back on the bed before I stepped into my jeans and shimmied into them. Right as I ventured into my closet to select a shirt, my phone rang again and I raced out of my closet so fast I nearly tripped over my feet and leaped onto the bed.
I placed the phone to my ear. "Hello?" I asked breathlessly.
"Bella," Edward murmured.
"Oh, hi," I panted.
"Do me a favor and stop calling werewolves!" he said loudly and hung up. Annoyed, I thrust the phone back down onto my covers and bounded back into my closet for a shirt. I decided on a navy blue henley with a white lace cami underneath before the phone rang again.
"Hello?"
"Bella Swan! Where are you?!" Alice demanded angrily.
"Possibly still at home, getting ready?" I answered.
"Bella!" she cried.
"Sorry, I'm almost done!" I said hurriedly before I hung up and began to run my fingers through my hair furiously in a sad attempt to make it look groomed. I groaned, accepting defeat, and trudged all the way down the stairs until I realized I had left my phone on the bed and raced back up.
Edward beat me to it, handing me my phone as soon as I walked in the door of my room again.
"Thanks," I muttered as he walked in front of me, grabbing my hand and dragging me down the stairs with him until we were outside. I locked the door and went down the driveway where Edward was waiting with the passenger door of his shiny Volvo opened for me.
I climbed in and tried to ignore how hard he slammed the door.
When he was inside and all the doors were closed, I reached to open the window, but he swiftly pressed a button on his side before I could even lift my finger. As I flicked the switch to roll the window down, it was unresponsive. I tried a few more times, but got no results. Frustrated, I glared at Edward.
"Did you lock it?" I demanded.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Edward said a little too innocently.
"Yeah, right," I grumbled. "I suppose this is payback for trying to contact Jacob?"
"Again, no idea," he repeated.
I rolled my eyes, knowing that was all the answer I was going to get, and waited until he pulled up at the church steps to storm out angrily.
He matched my pace effortlessly, and I whirled to face him.
"Look, what exactly do you want?" I demanded.
He took my face in his hands. "You," he replied, kissing me so swiftly that I was unsure of whether or not it happened, and then walking away. I turned around, still a little dazed by his kiss.
I stumbled up the steps and through the large doors where I was swept into a hug from Alice.
"Bella, where have you been? We need you for you-know-what!" she shrieked, dragging me into a hallway and through a door. I whirled to examine my surroundings, but I was clueless as to where I was.
"Alice, where are we?" I asked.
"This is where we plan the best wedding prank ever!" she exclaimed.
"Um, Alice, I'm not sure if--" I began. Suddenly she clutched my shoulders and shook me furiously.
"Are you backing out of your deal?!" she demanded.
Frozen with shock, with my eyes wide, I shook my head.
She released her deathly grip on my shoulders and her face lit up innocently again. "Good," she said, smiling sweetly.
I was still traumatized by her reaction and was petrified for a few minutes before she motioned for me to join her on the floor. Wanting to avoid another reaction like before, I quickly joined her where she spread a large blueprint on the floor.
During the time she explained the plans, my mind was filled with thoughts of Jacob. When did he leave that note? And when would I ever be able to see him again? The thought of him made my heart ache, but then the guilt overpowered my heartache when the thought of me marrying Edward in less than twenty four hours resurfaced.
The words streaming from Alice's mouth sounded like dribble in my ears. I wasn't even paying attention to it and yet it was giving me a migraine.
"Alice," I said firmly, cutting her off mid-sentence. "I need some air."
She looked concerned, but she just nodded and I scrambled onto my feet and out the door. As I paced down the hallway and out the large church doors, Emmett caught a glimpse of me and followed me outside.
"Bella, are you okay?" he asked. I avoided his gaze and looked at the ground instead, but he ducked his head down and smiled at me, and that caught my attention.
"It's nothing, Emmett," I lied.
He didn't look convinced.
"Really," I insisted.
"Everyone knows that when someone says it's nothing, it's really something," Emmett said lightly, causing me to laugh.
"Okay, it's something," I said, rolling my eyes.
"What's wrong?" he asked. "You can trust me."
I nodded and bit my lip. "Jacob Black left last weekend. And when I say left, I mean he said he would never come back into my life. When Edward left a while ago, I was a mess. And Jacob picked up the pieces and put them back together again, and he gave me a piece of his heart. Once Edward came back I missed him so much that I dropped Jacob like a hot potato. And now that I'm marrying Edward, I feel like I'm hurting Jacob so much. I found a note he left me in my dresser, and he told me he still loved me, but that this was best for me. That's just not good enough for me, Emmett!" I explained everything in a blur, but Emmett kept up.
He just nodded understandingly.
"What do you think I should do?" I asked, biting my lip nervously. To my complete and utter surprise, I hadn't shed one tear explaining this whole thing to Emmett.
"Edward will have my head for this," he began, "but I really think you need to talk to this guy and tell him that the separation is worse for you than only seeing him in moderation."
I comprehended what Emmett just said, and it almost sounded...smart.
Emmett had just started to turn and walk away before I called to him.
"Emmett?" I called.
He turned to look at me and raised his eyebrows.
"Thanks," I said, and he smiled at me before he walked over and swept me up in a hug. I guess this was my day for surprises, because Emmett's body was actually harder than Edward.
Emmett pulled away slowly and then sauntered back inside with his hands jammed into his pockets. I dug my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed the Black's number yet again.
"Hello?" was the answer. Only it wasn't a male's voice at all. It was Hannah.
"Um...hi. I'm Bella." I noticed that my own voice was shaking. Jeez, Bella! Calm down and get ahold of yourself! "Can I speak to Jacob, please?"
"Oh, he's busy right now, can I take a message?" Hannah asked.
"Tell Jacob it's me, and that I got his note. Tell him I want him to be here today because I need to talk to him," I explained. I waited in the silence, until a clear gulp was audible.
"Jacob said he was out of your life now," she clarified.
"Well if you haven't noticed, Jacob is an idiot. So tell him what I told you," I said sternly before I snapped my phone shut and went back inside the church to join Alice. As I rounded the corner into the hallway, a strong hand grabbed my right elbow and pinned me against the wall.
"Ow!" I cried, and a cold hand clamped over my mouth.
"Shh!" Edward hissed.
"What are you doing?" I demanded, my words lost underneath Edward's hand.
"If you must know, I'm taking you out today," Edward said simply, before dropping his hand down and taking mine.
"We're supposed to be rehearsing," I said acidly.
He laughed. "What else is there to do but say 'I do'?" he asked sarcastically.
I rolled my eyes but didn't object again. Inside, I was secretly rejoicing. Yes! I get to spend today with Edward!
"Where are you taking me?" I asked curiously.
"Home," he replied. "Get in."
And I obeyed his orders and sat in my seat, buckling my seatbelt. I watched his fingers as they turned the key and he backed out. As soon as the car was completely out of the space, we noticed Alice at the hood of the car, fuming mad.
"Oh, crap," I muttered, smacking my palm on my forehead.
"Where do you think you're going?" she demanded.
"HOME!" Edward shouted, laughing as he shifted to DRIVE and zoomed out of the parking lot. Even strapped in, I was clutching the door and the seat frantically, my eyes wide with terror.
Alice narrowly avoided getting hit and shattering the windshield, and she kept up with us easily. I jumped as her hands suddenly grabbed ahold of the bumper and she held on tight, climbing on top of the trunk and over the top of the car.
Edward began swerving in the street to get her to fall off, but Alice was no weakling. She clung onto the top of the car with all her might. Edward's speedy driving had already taken us towards the La Push border, and Edward flew by the "Welcome to La Push" sign as if it didn't exist. I realized where we were heading with Edward's insane driving; near the cliffs. The cliffs that I had thrown myself off of. I recognized the exact spot we were approaching.
Before I could protest, Edward abruptly spun the wheel to the right, and we spun in a complete circle before stopping an inch before the edge of the cliff. I actually thought if I leaned too much to my right, the car would tip over and I would end up in the middle of a metal and upholstery sandwich.
Alice was still gripping the top of the Volvo before Edward opened his door and stepped outside.
Alice climbed down and right before her feet touched the ground, Edward pushed her so swiftly I could barely tell if he had, and she lost her footing and fell off the cliff.
"Edward!" I shrieked in horror. He couldn't contain his laughter, and he nearly fell off the cliff himself.
Before I could even stop him, he gripped me around my waist and hurled himself off the cliff too.
"Are you crazy?!" I demanded in mid-air, but he was still laughing. Instead of saying anything else, I just decided to enjoy the moment. After spending a never-ending week of time apart from Edward, it was nice to be in his arms again, even if it did involve eventually being immersed in frozen water.
Edward didn't let me go once, and after we surfaced, he planted a kiss on my lips, which made me smile wider than I had all week.
"Thanks honey," I giggled.
And then Alice grabbed us by our ears and dragged us all the way back to shore where we would both face our dooms. This should be fun.
Sorry it's been so long! I've kinda been busy and even now that it's over I just haven't had any good ideas or good writing days. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed that and during the summer I will work on it more along with my other story Robbed. Please keep reading and reviewing!