Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight but I suspect that she would have a fit if she were to read what I had done to her beloved characters…

Thank you to Simaril for helping me go back and give this story a good polish.


Chapter 28 – Let the Games Begin

Bella

I was still a bit apprehensive about the whole plan, even though Edward had assured me that other than causing Lauren a great deal of embarrassment and probably landing her in detention for several days, she wouldn't be harmed.

I wasn't a vindictive person, and although Emmett thought I was being naïve, I generally believed in the basic goodness in people.

Therefore, by the time we arrived at school in the morning—Edward picking me up as was usual—I was a nervous wreck. Lauren arrived just a minute or two after us, so we were still in the parking lot when she bent down to her car to take her bag and the wind blew her skirt up, revealing her bare bottom. She recovered quickly, but the damage was already done.

Emmett howled with laughter. "Hey, Lauren, is it laundry day or were you and Tyler planning on a quickie in the janitor's closet?" he called after her as she was hurrying away from the parking lot. The comment earned even more laughter from the few students that were still there, and I had no doubt that by lunch today the incident would be all over school.

I caught a silent exchange between Alice and Edward and instantly made the connection. "Alice?" I asked, looking at Edward.

"The one and only," he replied.

I shook my head. "Et tu, Alice?"

"It's still within your rules, Bella," Jasper said, in defense of his wife.

"You better get used to it Bella," Emmett said. "There's plenty more where that came from."

"Let's get to class," I said as the warning bell sounded.

The guys agreed and we parted ways. Edward and I had English, Alice had Spanish and Jasper and Emmett shared History for their first period.

During class, I could already hear Jessica telling Mike about how Lauren had decided to go commando this morning. Mike wasted no time in sharing the news with Tyler, who was sitting next to him, and Rob, who sat behind the two, told them about Emmett's comment.

As Edward and I entered our Calculus classroom, I noticed Lauren and Jessica standing and arguing just outside the door. I couldn't hear everything that was said but from what I did manage to catch, Lauren was furious with Jessica for letting Tyler know about what happened in the morning. Apparently, things didn't go too well. Lauren was still seething when she went inside the classroom.

I should have remembered that Lauren also had first period History and that Emmett and Jasper wouldn't let that chance go to waste, because not five minutes into the lesson a wave of whispers began forming around her.

"What's going on?" I asked Edward in a whisper. "Emmett?"

"No, it was Jasper, actually," he said with a half-smile.

"What did he do?"

"Emmett calls it stinky spray," he said. "Jasper sprayed some on her as she was walking outside of the class."

I heard giggles coming from the other side of the classroom where Lauren was sitting. The whispers began growing louder and louder.

Then, suddenly, Edward chuckled and then coughed, trying to hide it.

"What?"

"Mike thought that maybe Lauren had shit her panties, but then he remembered she didn't wear any today," Edward said, still trying to stop himself from laughing out loud.

At this point, the teacher had had enough. "Is there something you would like to share with the rest of the class, Miss Stanley?" Mr. Varner asked, turning away from the board.

Jessica held her hand over her mouth, giggling, and shook her head, snorting in the process.

Lee Stephens, who sat right behind Lauren, decided to pipe in. "I think that Lauren has shared enough with the class…"

"Excuse me?" Mr. Varner looked baffled and on the verge of anger.

"Lauren stinks!" someone shouted, and the class burst into a fit of laughter. I even thought I saw Mr. Varner crack a smile before he caught himself.

"Mr. Varner apparently also heard about the pantie-less incident this morning." Edward leaned to whisper to me.

"Already?" Wow, that was fast!

"I guess good news travel fast." He snickered.

"That's mean," I grumbled.

He just shrugged.

Lauren's face appeared to be almost purple in color as she ran out of the classroom. She didn't even look back when Mr. Varner called after her.

"Here goes her first detention..." Edward said with a satisfied note to his voice.

I rolled my eyes at him, folding my arms over my chest.

"You look so cute when you're angry," he said, whispering the words in my ear and making me shiver.

It's not fair that his voice could be so seductive when he does that!

I couldn't stay angry with him for long, though, especially not when he was unleashing the full force of his golden eyes on me. "You're not playing fair," I grumbled.

"Never said I was, love," he said with another dazzling smile.

The rest of the lesson was much quieter and uneventful, that is, unless you counted Edward smiling like a bloody Cheshire cat.

When the lesson was over, Edward walked beside me to Spanish, but as we entered the building, he held me back.

"Watch this," he whispered.

I looked down the hall and saw Lauren, her face and hands covered with ugly brown stains. "What happened to her?"

My eyes followed her as she approached the class and stopped. She seemed to be looking for someone.

"It's called dirty soap. Alice helped us with that one," Edward replied. "I would recommend that you don't use the soap in the girls' bathrooms today," he added nonchalantly.

When Mike passed us, Lauren's eyes locked on him. Her face was probably purple again, but I couldn't be sure with all of the brown stains on it.

"You!" she screeched, and Mike halted.

His face was torn between amusement and fear when she lunged herself at him. He jumped back and held his hands before him.

"You did this!" she screamed at him. "I don't know how, but this is all your fault!"

People started noticing her, and laughter erupted again. Mike was a well-known prankster, and it wasn't surprising that Lauren thought he was the one to blame.

Mike took another step back, still holding his hands in front of him, as Lauren advanced. "I had nothing to do with it, I swear," he managed to blurt out between fits of laughter.

I had to cover my mouth to hide my own giggles; it was just too funny. I felt sorry for Mike, though, he really had nothing to do with it, at least not this time around.

All of a sudden, I was feeling really sorry for Lauren. The guys might have thought she deserved punishment, but I couldn't just stand there. I knew I had a package of wet wipes in my bag, and I pulled it out, walking over to Lauren and Mike.

"Lauren!"

"What do you want?" she hissed at me.

I offered her the wet wipes. "I thought you might want one or two." Or ten…

Lauren looked down at my hand and then back at my face. "This better not be some kind of a trick, bitch."

Ouch!

I heard a throat clearing from behind me and turned around to see Mrs. Goff standing not two feet away.

"We do not approve of that kind of language, Miss Mallory," Mrs. Goff said. "And it should go without saying that this sort of appearance isn't appropriate either." She gestured at Lauren's hands and face, and I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who found this to be funny; I could hear several other students' muffled laughter around us.

"Get cleaned up, Miss Mallory, and report to my office at the end of the day for detention."

"But—" Lauren tried to protest, but the stern look she got from Mrs. Goff stopped her. She grumbled as she took several wet wipes and started cleaning her hands and face.

"Thanks, Swan."

I could see that saying that was almost killing her and couldn't stop myself from smiling. "You're welcome, Mallory." I might have called her by a different name, but Mrs. Goff was still within earshot, and I wasn't too keen on keeping Lauren's company for detention today.

"Now get in class. All of you!" the teacher said, and we hurried through the door.

At first, the lesson seemed uneventful. Lauren was sending deadly glares toward Mike and Jessica, who kept snickering. But all it took was a short glance at Emmett's face—and the huge evil grin that was plastered on it—to know that things weren't going to continue being uneventful.

I was right. About half an hour into the lesson, I suddenly heard Jessica scream bloody murder, followed by the loud noise of a chair being dragged on the floor. Mrs. Goff stopped mid-sentence, and the entire class turned to look at Jessica to see what was wrong.

Jessica kept screaming and hid behind Mike.

It took me a few moments to understand that she was yelling something about a mouse.

"Remote controlled retractable, life-like mouse," Edward whispered in my ear before I could ask. "And here's how Lauren gets into the picture," he continued and gestured for me to look at her.

"Lauren, that's not very nice of you," Emmett called from behind her.

She turned to glare at him. "What are you talking about?"

"What seems to be the problem, Mr. Cullen?" the teacher asked.

"Take a look at Lauren's back pocket," he said and huffed.

Jessica leaned away from behind Mike to look at Lauren who stood up and turned around.

"See? There's nothing there!" Lauren said.

But she was wrong. Even with several feet and a desk between us, I could clearly see the mouse peeping out of the back pocket of Lauren's skirt.

"You…" I could see that Jessica really wanted to call Lauren something really nasty, but Mike held her back, clearly recalling the detention Lauren had gotten earlier for doing just that.

"I don't know where that came from! I swear!" Lauren yelled.

"Oh, really?" Mike asked in a harsh voice. "Then what's that inside your binder?"

"Nothing!" Lauren screeched.

"Miss Mallory, please open your binder," the teacher, who in the meantime made her way to their desk, asked.

"Here. Happy now?" Lauren asked sarcastically, once again putting her foot in her mouth.

There, sitting on top of her notes, was the empty plastic wrapper for the mouse.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Miss Mallory," Mrs. Goff said.

"But it wasn't me! I don't know how it got there!" Lauren tried to protest.

"I'm sure you don't," Mrs. Goff said sarcastically. "I think we're going to add a few more days of detention for you, young lady." Lauren was about to open her mouth but Mrs. Goff stopped her again. "Would you like to add a phone call to your parents too?"

"No," Lauren grumbled.

"Good." The teacher returned to the front of the class. "Sit down, everyone. Class isn't over yet."

"You guys are really evil," I said to Edward.

"Why, thank you."

I rolled my eyes at him. "I didn't mean that as a compliment."

"I know." He chuckled.

w.W.w

I was right. By lunchtime, the entire school was aware of what was now known as Lauren's commando mission, as well as the detention she had earned during the morning classes. Lauren didn't dare show her face in the cafeteria. I asked Edward if he knew where she was hiding.

"In the Library. I think it's the first time she has ever gone inside it."

I had to agree with that one.

"You guys rock," I said to no one in particular.

"Don't thank us just yet, Bella," Jasper said.

"Yeah, we got a few more tricks up our sleeves." Emmett grinned.

"No way!" I nearly shouted. I got a few heads turned my way and waited until they turned back before I continued speaking. "She's already in enough trouble as it is."

"Enough? She tried to kill you! Remember?" Jasper asked, incredulous.

"But, she didn't mean to!" I retorted.

"We're not being mean to her," Jasper said, earning him a glare. "Well, not much…," he corrected.

"Well, it doesn't matter now, anyway," Alice said, suddenly joining the conversation.

"Why not?" Jasper asked, surprised by the lack of support from his own wife.

"Lauren has decided to cut the rest of her classes for today," Alice explained.

"Damn!" Emmett was none too pleased by that piece of news. "And I was really looking forward to stuffing her locker with hundreds of live crickets…"

"You didn't!" I was appalled.

"No, I didn't," he grumbled. My relief was short lived, however, because the next thing that came out of his mouth was, "But I was going to."

My mouth dropped.

"It's not that mean, Bella." Jasper tried to defend his brother. "We would have loved beating her into a pulp and hanging her from her toes, but you were the one who placed the 'no physical harm' rule."

I stared at him, shocked, trying to decide whether or not he was pulling my leg.

Emmett burst into laughter when he saw my expression. Alice and Jasper followed suit.

I glanced at Edward and saw that he was trying his best to keep his face blank. "Not you, too!"

"I'm sorry, love, but you should have seen your face," he said. "Jasper was only joking, sweetheart."

"Yeah, right," I mumbled under my breath, forgetting for a moment that they could hear me just fine, and earned myself another round of laughter from everyone, including Edward.

I blushed and lowered my eyes to my tray. My lunch was suddenly the most interesting thing in the world to me.

The feeling of Edward's lips on my neck combined with his whispered words mollified me almost instantly. "I'm sorry, love. I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's okay. I'm not upset," I said with a sigh. "But I am glad that Lauren decided to ditch. I've had enough for one day, and I'm sure she did, too."

"Sometimes, you're no fun, Bella," Emmett grumbled.

I leaned my head on Edward's shoulder as he gently squeezed me to his side.

Jasper and Emmett continued their banter, and I tuned them out while I ate. When the bell rang, Edward picked up and emptied my tray.

He still had his arm around my shoulders as we walked to Biology. When we sat down, he put it on my thigh. At first, his hand was still, but as the lesson progressed, he began moving it and painting random patterns on my thigh that were driving me crazy. Whenever I placed my hand on his fingers, he stopped, but a few minutes later, he began to move them again.

When the lesson was over, I was already burning with desire. Edward proved that he was in a similar state of mind; the moment we were out in the hallway, he pulled me into another empty classroom and had his lips on mine before the door was even completely shut.

He sucked on my bottom lip, drawing it in between his own and groaning in pleasure.

"God, how much I want you, Bella."

"Yes…" I moaned, fisting my fingers in his hair and pressing my body to his. I forgot about everything around me when his hands cupped my ass and raised me slightly so that I could feel firsthand the effect I had on him. I hitched my leg around his waist and heard him growl.

His hips bucked into me, creating the best form of friction I had ever felt. I remembered the wonderful climax he had given me not two days ago, and I wanted nothing more than to reach that peak once again.

Soon, much too soon for my liking, Edward pulled away from my lips. He kept his body still pressing me to the wall and leaned his forehead on mine.

"We have to stop, love, or we're going to be late for class," he said in a voice thick with desire.

I groaned. I didn't want to go to class, least of all gym. I wanted Edward.

"I know, love," he said. "I feel exactly the same." He emphasized his words with another press of his hardness into me before pulling away completely. "The last thing I want, though, is for your father to get a call because you were cutting classes." I looked at him, incredulous, when he suddenly smiled and added, "I don't think he's going to keep his gun away from me if he finds out that I was the reason for tarnishing your record."

I huffed. I wasn't going to tell that to my dad.

"You can't lie to save your soul, love. Now, come on, Coach Clapp is waiting."

He had such a devilish grin on his face that I couldn't help but laugh.

"Fine," I took his hand into mine, "but you are so going to pay for this!"

His grin widened, and his eyes filled with lust again. "I'm counting on it, my Bella."

"If you're going to continue looking at me like that, we're never going to get to class," I warned.

I was a little disappointed when he looked away and opened the door; for a moment, I didn't care about anything other than having another taste of Edward's lips, and possibly more than just his lips.

Edward groaned. "Bella love, please…"

"What did I do now?" I asked innocently.

"I can almost see the thoughts that are going through your mind and that's not really helping with my resolve."

I blushed and turned my eyes away from him. We were already in the hallway, and that was definitely not the place to tease him.

"Sorry," I breathed.

He pressed a kiss to my temple. "That's alright, love," he said with a smile in his voice. "It's nice to know that I have that kind of effect on you."

I rolled my eyes but decided to keep the rest of my thoughts to myself.

w.W.w

I was surprised to find Alice standing next to Edward's Audi when we got out of the gym. She wasn't looking at me, though. Her eyes were fixed on Edward, and they seemed to be having a silent conversation, one that didn't seem to be to Edward's liking as with each passing moment, his frown deepened.

Eventually he huffed, and Alice broke into a smile.

"What's going on?" I asked, looking at the both of them for answers.

"Alice has decided on a change of plans for this afternoon," Edward answered, and his tone told me that he was none too pleased about it.

At first, I thought he was referring to the dinner with Charlie, but then I recalled what happened before gym class and I blushed ten shades of red. It just occurred to me that Alice might have seen that too. "I'm going to drop the two of you at your house, Bella, and she's going to help you get ready for dinner," Edward said.

"You're not staying?" I asked, alarmed.

Edward sent another glare at Alice who was now getting into the back seat before answering. "No, love."

"Why?" I didn't know why, but suddenly the prospect of being separated from him was almost too much to bear.

"Because Charlie is going to be home early. If I stayed, I don't think I will be able to keep my hands away from you, no matter who's watching us."

"Oh." I still didn't like it, but I could see the reason in his words.

"Don't worry, my love. We're going to see each other again tonight, and we're not parting just yet."

I managed a faint smile. Seeing him tonight wasn't going to be in private. It was going to be with my father preset, and that meant that I couldn't touch him and kiss him the way I would if we were alone.

Edward kissed me once again, careful not to get carried away this time, and opened the car door for me.

As soon as he had the engine started, he reached over the console and grabbed my hand. I suspected that I was growing addicted to his touch; the moment we made contact, I felt better than when we were apart. I felt whole and somewhat at peace.

Could it be that because we became so much closer during the weekend, physically as well as emotionally, that his absence was more profound? I didn't know, but I had the weird sense of dread as though I was about to lose him and soon.

I shook the thoughts away. I was probably just nervous about this dinner and nothing more than that.

"Are you okay, love?" Edward asked.

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, just got lost in my own mind a little." I smiled.

"It's the one place where I can't reach you, and that's where you go and hide…" Edward sighed dramatically, and I chuckled.

A few minutes later, he parked the car in my driveway and all three of us exited the car. I didn't want to let him go and the feeling was mutual. In fact, we were so absorbed with one another that Alice had to literally drag us apart.

"You'll see each other in four hours!" She huffed. "And don't give me that look, Edward Cullen!"

"I wasn't giving you a look." He looked innocent.

"You were going to, so don't!" Alice glared at him.

I giggled at their exchange and let her drag me towards the front door. "I love you," Edward mouthed to me.

"I love you too," I said in a whisper, knowing that he would hear.

"Yes, yes, you love each other. Now let's get inside," Alice said. "We only have a few hours to make you look gorgeous."

"I don't think that's enough time for a plastic surgery," I joked as I opened the door.

"Oh, shut it, Bella!" she said impatiently. "Now go upstairs and get that little tush of yours in the shower, or I'm going to put you there myself."

I ran to the stairs. Commander Alice was scary!

"And no argument about the clothes, either! Consider it an early birthday present," I heard her add as I made my way up the stairs.

I grabbed my bag of toiletries from my bedroom and went inside the bathroom. I was afraid to even think about the outfit that Alice was about to supply for me to wear. I already suspected, from the threatening tone she had used earlier, that it was going to be either a dress or a short skirt and that I wasn't going to like it.

While I was in the shower, I heard a knock on the bathroom door and Alice's voice saying, "Bella, I'm leaving a bag for you on the door handle. Wear it."

"Okay," I called back.

I waited for the door to close and then peeked around the shower curtain to see a small shopping bag with the words "La Perla" written on it. "Alice, if it's a thong I ain't wearing it!" I threatened after recognizing the brand.

"It's not," I heard her shout back. "And you are!"

I finished washing my hair and wrapped myself in a fluffy towel before taking a look inside the bag. I was pleasantly surprised to find a very basic set of bra and panties. I was expecting lace and lots of frills from Alice, so finding the plain black push-up bra and the low cut black panties inside the bag was a nice surprise. There was also a pair of stockings in there, which confirmed my suspicions that I was going to be forced into a short skirt. But the last item inside the bag had me baffled for several moments before I realized what it was.

"Isabella Marie Swan, don't even think about arguing and just put it on!" Commander Alice called from behind the closed door.

"But Alice –"

"But nothing; put it on or I'm going to have to force you into it and you're not going to like that one bit." She threatened.

Be it anyone else, I might have continued to argue, but the little vampire was definitely capable of acting on her threat.

I wore the underwear first, then the stockings and finally held the garter belt in my hands and stared at it. It was made of lace and was actually not as bad as I thought it would be. It was just the idea of wearing one that was strange to me.

It's not as though anyone is going to see me in these, right? I thought as I put it on.

The damn thing did make me feel very sensual when I looked myself in the mirror. I wasn't sure how I felt about it though.

"Stop admiring yourself in the mirror and get your butt back in your room. I still need to do your hair and makeup."

I laughed. I couldn't help myself. Shaking my head and wrapping myself in my towel again, I made my way out of the bathroom and into my bedroom.

Sure enough, there was a dress laid across my bed.

"Alice, I'm going to freeze in a short dress," I tried to protest. I already knew that I would end up losing the argument, but I had to at least try.

"Oh, bollocks!"

I stared at her.

"Bollocks, Alice? Really?" I giggled. Not only it was a crude word, but it was a British crude word at that. Alice, the Mississippi girl, using British slang? When did that happen?

Alice lost her frown and was soon giggling along with me. "What can I say, Carlisle rubs off on me," she shrugged

"Carlisle?" That was even funnier. "Since when does Carlisle even know such words, let alone use them?" I was laughing so hard that I felt my tummy starting to hurt. "It's all that daytime television you're watching," I accused her.

"Rubbish!" Alice exclaimed with a perfect English accent, sending me into another fit of giggles.

It took us several minutes to calm down and for me to catch my breath.

"Just try it on, Bella. I promise you won't object as much once you see how it looks when it's on you," Alice said.

"All right, let me have it," I said and she picked the dress from the bed and handed it to me.

At a closer look, I saw that the dress was knit and quite warm, so that was one problem solved. I pulled in over my head and Alice helped me pull my hair out of the collar and guided me to the full-length mirror on the inside of my closet door.

The dress wasn't as short as I had feared it would be, it ended just a little above my knees, and the design was very simple. There were no frills or ribbons, no sequins either. Just plain black with two pockets on the skirt—one on each side of the dress. The pockets were a welcome addition, it meant that I wouldn't have to carry a purse with me and worry about not forgetting it somewhere. The dress had some excess fabric that folded over and created a collar that wasn't too revealing.

It probably didn't look that impressive on the rack, I thought as I turned to look at the way the dress hugged my form. The push-up bra that I was wearing had given me quite the cleavage and the feel of the fabric of my lingerie under the dress made me feel very sexy.

I glanced to look at Alice and saw her face beaming. The little minx knew I would like it all along, of course.

"Now go sit on the chair and let me do your hair and makeup."

"Alice, we still have three hours before we have to leave."

"Two and a half actually, which doesn't leave me much time to get you ready, get home and make sure everyone is dressed and be ready myself before you and Charlie show up on our doorstep."

"When is Charlie coming home, by the way?" I asked as I sat on the chair she had set in front of my desk. The desk had a scary-looking chest-like bag on it that I imagined must have carried all of Alice's "equipment".

"He'll be home in thirty minutes," Alice answered and plugged in the blow drier. "I picked out some clothes for him and laid them on his bed. When he comes home and sees how you're dressed tell him that you have his own outfit there."

"What is he wearing?" I asked dryly

"A nice pair of dark jeans and a navy blue button down shirt. It's not too fancy for him to feel uncomfortable, but it's dressy enough so he won't feel underdressed next to the rest of us."

"Alice, how am I going to explain the clothes to him?"

"Tell him that you found them in the back of his closet."

I snorted. I was certain that the only thing in the back of Charlie's closet were more flannel shirts.

"I'm actually telling you the truth, you idiot." Alice sounded a little angry. "Now, can we please stop talking and get your hair dried?"

I chuckled. "All right." It was for the best if I didn't know otherwise, really. Because not only was I a terrible liar, but having a cop for a father didn't make lying to him any easier.

It took Alice fifteen minutes to have my hair completely dry. When she was done with it, she took out a hair iron and began curling my hair. It was a lengthy process, and she was just a little more than half way through when I heard Charlie arrive.

"Bells?" he called from downstairs.

"I'm up here, Dad," I answered. "Alice Cullen is here to help me get ready."

As I listened to Charlie hustle about, taking off his gun and coat, a thought occurred to me. "Alice, what are we going to tell Charlie about how you got here and how you're getting back home?" I couldn't tell him she would be running home, could I?

Alice smiled an all-knowing smile and moved on to the next lock of hair that needed curling. "Jasper dropped me off after school, and he's picking me up in forty five minutes from now."

She sounded so sincere that I almost believed her myself, despite knowing perfectly well that Jasper did no such thing.

"Does Jasper know that he is picking you up?"

"Yes, he does." She gave me another grin. "While you were taking your time with your shower, I called him."

I was about to ask her when did she have time to bring the clothes over but heard Charlie making his way up the stairs. Alice had gone through two more locks of hair before he knocked on my door.

"Come in, Dad."

Charlie smiled when he saw us. "Hi, Bells. Hi, Alice."

"Hello, Mr. Swan," Alice said politely.

"Call me Charlie, please," he said.

"Alice is helping me get ready," I repeated my explanation to him. "I picked out an outfit for you, as well. It's lying on your bed." I decided that the direct approach would be the best.

"I can dress myself, Bells." Charlie wasn't happy.

I gave him a pointed glare. "And what were you planning on wearing tonight?"

Charlie chuckled. "Fine. I wasn't planning on anything in particular, and obviously I'd have to come up with something dressier than I had thought I would."

"That's why I picked it out for you," I said. "At least have a look at it before you say no." I gave him my best imitation for an Alice-pout.

"All right, Bells. I'll go have a look." Charlie turned to walk to his bedroom across the hall. "Nice meeting you, Alice."

"Nice meeting you too, Mr. Swan."

"It's Charlie," he called from the hallway.

"He's in a good mood," I commented. It was strange to see Charlie so easy-going.

"He had a good day," Alice said in a satisfied tone.

"Alice?" I was tempted to turn my head to look at her, but she was currently holding a hot iron next to my scalp, and I didn't feel like getting burned. "What do you know that I don't?"

"Lots of things," she said calmly.

"Alice!" That wasn't what I meant, and she knew it. But the damn little vamp wasn't going to let me in on the secret, no matter how much I pleaded.

I saw Charlie walk out of his bedroom and had to cut my arguing short. "What did you think about the clothes, Dad?"

"They're great, actually. Where did you find them?"

"In the back of your closet," I answered innocently.

"I thought there are only flannel shirts and old fishing gear there." He looked confused.

"I thought so, too," I chuckled, "until I found them."

"All right, well, I'm hopping in the shower. What time to we have to leave?"

"Six thirty."

"Great. Well, have fun girls." He smiled at Alice and me.

"We will," Alice chimed.

Charlie gave us another smile and left the room.

"There's definitely something going on with him." Charlie had a certain bounce to his walk today that he didn't have the last time I had seen him. "He can't be all that happy just because we're coming over for dinner, can he?"

"Nope, that's not it."

After spending another fifteen minutes guessing, unsuccessfully I might add, I gave up. I didn't really need to know why my dad was so happy; I was just happy that he was.

Once my hair was done, Alice took out two ornate silver hair combs and used them to push some of the curls away from my face. Once that was done, we moved on to the makeup.

Considering the success she had had in choosing my clothes, I decided to trust her and kept my mouth shut. I was proven right in doing so when I was standing once again in front of the mirror. I looked…damn hot! Even if I do say so myself.

"There's only one thing missing…" Alice turned to search for something inside my closet and came out holding a shoebox in her hands. "Here." She handed it to me.

I pulled the lid off and stared at a pair of boots with a very high heel. "Alice, I can't wear these!" I whined. "I would probably end up falling and breaking my neck!"

"Do you think I would do anything that would put you in danger?" Alice looked at me pointedly. "Edward would have my hide if I did. These are Manolo Blahnik, and they would make your legs look amazing. Edward won't know what hit him."

I didn't recognize the name of the designer, but I had no doubt that—with as exotic as it sounded—the boots were worth a small fortune.

I took out one of the boots and examined it. It was open toed with a lace-up at the front and the design on the boot itself had a pattern of flowers. There was really not that much fabric to it. It was pretty much a bunch of flowers with thick strings in between.

Once again, Alice was right. The boots did make my legs look amazing. They also gained me an extra four inches of height, which still left Edward a good six inches above me but gave me a definite confidence boost.

"Well, my work here is done." Alice smiled at me, appraising her own handiwork. "I'm a genius!"

"Yes you are, Alice," I said with a chuckle. "I'm sorry I gave you so much trouble."

"Eh, that's okay. I knew I could get you into it."

I sighed at that.

"Now, Jasper is going to knock on your door in a few moments, so I'm going downstairs. I will make sure Edward doesn't see you in my mind until you arrive." Alice smiled. "Happy birthday, Bella." She threw herself at me for a hug.

I wrapped my arms around her and laughed. "Thank you, Alice, but my birthday is tomorrow."

"I know, but I wanted to be the first to congratulate you." She grinned.

A moment later, we both heard the knock on my front door. "Jasper's here," she said and danced her way out of the room. She paused after opening the door and turned to me. "There's a new perfume on your dresser. Spray it on before you leave."

"It's just dinner, Alice, not a grand ball!"

"Exactly!" she agreed, taking me by surprise. "If it were a ball, you'd be wearing a gown," she added and disappeared down the stairs to answer the door.

I shook my head. She was right, of course. Had it been a ball, I would probably be wearing something made of shiny silk and a bloody tiara on my head. I shuddered at the mental image.

I heard the bathroom door open and Charlie's voice asking, "Who was at the door, Bells?"

"That was Jasper, Alice's boyfriend. He picked her up so that she could go and get ready," I answered from my bedroom. I glanced at the clock. It was six, already. I couldn't believe that it actually took so long to get me ready. "We only have half an hour left until we need to go, Dad."

"Yeah, I know," he answered, and I heard the door of the bathroom shut closed.

I allowed myself several more moments to admire my reflection. The curls that Alice had worked so hard to create were cascading over my shoulders, held back by the two combs that glinted in my hair. The makeup was perfect. Alice had left my eyes natural with just a touch of mascara and black eyeliner, and she painted my lips with a lipstick that was only a tone or two darker than my own natural color. The dress was hugging my shape but wasn't tight enough to make me uneasy, and the boots proved much more comfortable than I had expected them to be.

"You really look beautiful, Bella. New outfit?" Charlie's voice came from behind me, and I turned to look at him. He was smiling again.

"Yes, an early birthday present from Alice," I said, addressing only the second part of his words. "You look nice, too." He was already dressed in the outfit Alice had picked out for him. He didn't only look nice; he actually looked much younger, although it could have been the happy vibe he was sporting and not the outfit that was responsible for that.

"Thanks," Charlie said, embarrassed. He wasn't good with compliments either. "Ready to go?"

"Yes, I am. I'll meet you downstairs?"

"Sure, I'll be there in a minute, just need to put my shoes on."

Just as I was about to leave the room I remembered what Alice said about the perfume and walked over to my dresser.

Chanel No. 5. Well, at least she went for the classic. I put a few drops of the perfume behind my ears and on the pulse points in my wrists before placing the bottle back on the dresser. I picked up my cell phone, stuffed it in the pocket of the dress, and made my way out of the bedroom.

Time to face the music.


I know you are all worried about Emmett. I promise you he will have his Rose eventually. Just be a little more patient.

I went a little overboard with Bella's outfit, I know, but I'm a girl so I'm allowed to indulge myself once in a while.

Thank you for reading.

Alley Cat.