I don't own these characters. They are the sole property of Stephenie Meyer. I only borrow them. No humans are permanently harmed through my actions, though I do confess to harassing, annoying, torturing, and exasperating them – just because it's fun. I make no money from my little stories, sad day. I only play in the sandbox, I didn't build it.
Chapter 28: Cruel Intentions
Bella's POV
The sick look on Edward's face when we talked about Cassidy dating might have been funny. In fact, it probably would have been hilarious if I wasn't feeling bloated and barfy and all together overwhelmed. We were over halfway through the pregnancy! It had snuck up on me. How had that happened?
I wasn't ready for all of this shit.
I realized, truly and deeply in my gut, for the first time that Edward's days at home were numbered too. The date he would leave for the Army had always been sort of…in the future. It was some time set in a distant future that didn't really have any bearing on me and my now.
We were already in April, closing in fast on May. Then it would be the beginning of June and we would graduate. I'd waddle across that small stage and get that piece of paper that would enable me to get a job as a waitress or any other no-skill job in the service industry. If I was lucky I might qualify for a job answering telephones, not that anyone would hire a teenager with a huge baby belly and ready to pop.
Then it would be July and we'd be on the baby watch. Cassidy was due in mid-August. An end-of-July birthday wouldn't be beyond the realm of possibility. I had checked out the birthstones and I was kind of rooting for a birthday on July 31 – enough to give her the ruby birthstone and yet not early enough for it to cause problems. Yeah, it was shallow, but she'd be stuck with that lime green birthstone for the rest of her life. If we had planned this thing at all, I would have planned better than that. Honestly.
So April was halfway over and I knew that I would wake up practically tomorrow and it would be May. The rest of the summer would pass in a blur between graduation and getting ready for the baby, not to mention trying to fit a wedding in there. No matter how small they were, weddings tended to take some planning. I would have been happy with a trip to City Hall, but I had a feeling that Edward wanted something a little more formal. Nothing fancy, but he'd probably like at least family and friends there. I could do that.
But then the summer, even as busy and packed with stuff as it was, would end. And it would be September. And on September 18, Edward was leaving me. Leaving us. He would be leaving me and our newborn baby to go to Missouri (of all places!) and he'd be in the Army. His life wouldn't be his to control anymore.
Was I unselfish enough to let him do what I knew he wanted and needed to do? I'd be an eighteen year old mom with a newborn baby. We wouldn't see him until his Christmas leave, which would last two weeks. Then we wouldn't see him again until February, when he would graduate. Cassidy and I would be here in Forks. Edward would be in Missouri. His parents had asked me to stay with them after Edward left, but I hadn't made any decision yet. I knew that I would want and need the support some of someone else, and honestly I though I'd be more comfortable around Edward's parents. And his father was a doctor so he'd know if anything was wrong with Cassidy. The poor kid wouldn't have to rely on my questionable parenting skills.
Then Edward would graduate and be a full-fledged soldier. What then?
Sgt. Mann had told us to be prepared for him to deploy any time after graduation. In fact, some soldiers pretty much packed up their shit from graduation and were on a plane to Iraq a few days later. That could happen. Or it could be a year before he was deployed. We wouldn't know until they got close to actually graduating and there was no way to predict how it would go. Even if he didn't get deployed immediately, we had no idea in hell where we would be living. At all. We could be stationed in Alaska or Hawaii or anyplace in between. We couldn't even be sure we'd be in the United States.
It was a lot to take in and it just months away.
A year from now… Well, a year from now Edward could be in a war zone. Or he could be –
I had to stop that kind of thinking. Edward was right. Cassidy was meant to be, for whatever reason, and I didn't think she would have been brought into existence only to have her father taken away from her so soon. I couldn't think that. Edward was doing everything possible, more than anyone could have expected, to ensure we had a good life. I would hold fast to my faith. I would onto Edward's faith, which was stronger than my own.
I sighed and decided that I needed a distraction. I went back inside where Edward was waiting for me. I slipped my hand into his. "Can we go see a movie or something?" I asked quietly.
He turned to me, his expression concerned. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I just don't want to sit around at home tonight," I told him with a shrug. If I sat around, I would think. If I let myself start thinking too much, I would get upset.
"Sure, okay," he said, brushing his knuckles over my cheek. The worry didn't leave his eyes. "Let me tell my folks." He tilted his head and studied me carefully. "Are you sure you're okay?"
I smiled, but I knew my effort fell short of the mark. "Yeah, I'm just tired."
"Then maybe you should-"
"Honestly, Edward, I just want to go to a damned movie," I muttered.
"Okay, okay," he said, holding his hands up in surrender. "I got the message. Let me tell my parents. You call yours and tell them the plan."
Telling my mother I was going out with Edward was easier now. Honestly, he had already knocked me up. There wasn't too much more trouble we could get into. As long as I wasn't home too late or too grumpy in the morning, they wouldn't give me much crap. I needed to get out. I needed to get away. Now.
A moment later, Edward was there with my jacket, helping me put it on even though it really didn't fit me anymore. I couldn't button it around my belly. Luckily, being pregnant kept me warmer than usual so it wasn't a big deal. I had put off buying a bigger one since I hoped the weather would be warming up soon. I could always steal one of Edward's if I had to. It was an option anyway.
We drove to the theater in silence. We went to the one in Pt. Angeles, which would put us home a bit late but I didn't care. And it wasn't as if Forks had a lot of other options to offer. If I went home I would just lie in my bed and worry. I needed distraction and I needed it now. Luckily, Edward had jus learned to go with it.
He bought our tickets and asked if I wanted anything from the concession stand. I did. Of course. Duh. He grinned and ordered my pregnancy usual – popcorn with tons of butter, Sno-Caps, and Swedish fish. He usually just turned away when I mixed them together. I told him not to judge something he wasn't willing to try. Big baby. It was really good. Fine, let him make gagging noises, that just meant more for me.
We were waiting to go inside the theater when two older women sat down on the bench seat by the concession stand. I saw them look at Edward. Yes, he's gorgeous. And yes he's mine. I'll cut a bitch, I swear I will. Then their eyes flickered to me. They looked at my face. Yes, we're teenagers out on a date. Why don't you just go home and watch NCIS? And then their eyes went down to my now very obvious baby belly.
And that's when their faces turned sour and they sniffed, practically shoving their noses up in the air. One of them turned to the other and said in a voice meant to carry, "I just can't believe these teenagers now days. Getting knocked up and no doubt expecting the government to pay for them to live on welfare." Her companion looked at me with a nasty little smirk.
Did she not realize I was already a hormonal teenager and when you add the pregnancy chemicals to the mix I was about as irrational as a human being could get and still be out among society? Did they not see their own danger? I pursed my lips and turned toward Edward, determined to ignore them. Because if I didn't I was going to lose my temper.
I honestly thought that Edward hadn't heard them because he hadn't said anything, but when I looked up at his face I could tell that he had heard every word. "Don't worry about it, babe," I whispered. "They're just nasty old bitches who are so unhappy that they want to spread the misery."
Edward's hand tightened around mine.
"I'll bet she doesn't even know who the father is," Bitty #2 stage whispered.
Hello? Could they not see Mr. Gorgeous standing here beside me? Did they think boys like Edward had a "take pity on the local pregnant girl" charity and just took her out to a movie for shits and giggles? Yeah, nothing is sexier than a girl big and pregnant with another dude's baby, ladies.
Edward's jaw was bulging, his teeth clenching and I had to flex my hand to remind him that hey, holding my hand there, lover boy.
"It's nice to know where our hard earned tax dollars are going," Bitty #1 observed, louder than her friend.
"If my Janie came home pregnant, I would disown her, I swear I would," Bitty #2 offered.
Edward looked at me, gave me a very sweet kiss on the lips and let go of my hand. Before I could breathe, he was making his way toward Bitty #1 and #2. Uh oh. Shit was going down. Edward didn't lose his temper often, but when he did, it was a sight to see.
"Excuse me?" He said softly.
The women looked up; they had been too engrossed in their discussion about the decay of morals among teenagers today that they had missed him stalking over. He did the whole stalking thing pretty damned well and it made the muscles of his ass flex in a really sexy way. Of course, the way his jeans fit over that ass didn't hurt either. Not at all. I might have to ask him to stalk away from me more often. Just saying.
"Uh yes?" Bitty #1 asked, swallowing hard and barely able to meet his eyes.
"I'm sorry, but you're really upsetting my fiancée over there, and as you can see, she's in a rather…how should I say this…delicate condition?" He smiled charmingly but I could imagine the ice in those green eyes. No one did cold disdain like Edward Cullen. Maybe it came from having money, or being better looking than a Greek god. Who knows? But whatever "it" was, he had it in spades.
"So…" Another flash of the pearly whites and I wanted to kiss him. "I would greatly appreciate it if you could keep your rather vicious thoughts to yourself." He looked at me and smiled. "You see, we're trying to enjoy our last few months together before our daughter is born and I report for Basic Training with the Army." He nodded like some sort of diplomat or some prissy politician. "Because we're not expecting anyone to support our child except us." A wide, predatory smile that would have made me nervous if he wasn't on my side. "Have a good evening."
With that, he turned on his heel, practically marching like a soldier already and took my hand. I shoved a handful of my lovely concoction into my mouth and stared at him in admiration while the women opened and closed their mouths like dying fishes.
Okay, consider me distracted.
I grinned at him. "You know what?"
"What?" He looked worried, like I'd be upset at the women or his reaction.
"I don't want to see a movie anymore," I told him. "Let's go somewhere and make out because that was really hot." I made sure the women could hear me.
Edward grinned and even took a bit of my popcorn/Sno-Caps/Swedish fish delight. He didn't even puke, though his throat worked for a few seconds like it might come back up.
"Excellent plan, babe," he agreed. He put his arm around me and kissed me – long and hard and with lots of visible tongue just for the hell of it. I could hear the old bitties gasping in indignation behind us. "Let's go."
So we did.
Author's Note: This incident is based loosely on something that happened to my son and his then-pregnant girlfriend. It isn't just kids that say cruel and thoughtless things. Sadly.
