Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns it all. I wonder if she'd let me borrow Edward? I'd take Jasper too...
Chapter 28
~~~Perks~~~
I asked Carlisle, "How does one go about being changed into a vampire when one isn't dying?"
The silence in the room and on the web-cam was absolute...before all hell broke loose!
Bella's grip on my waist caused me to wince a little. She immediately loosened her grip when she realized what she was doing. Her golden eyes searched mine. I could read the worry in her thoughts and a pretty clear, Are you sure?
She voiced it, "Edward, are you sure? We haven't told you all about us yet. You don't know the drawbacks yet."
"Dude! You don't know all the perks yet either…and I have to say, it's awesome!" Emmett's voice overwhelmed everyone else's. "You never have to sleep. Do you know how much time that gives you to have se…"
That's when Rosalie smacked him on the back of his head. But his enthusiasm made me smile and pull Bella closer to me. I could see that not sleeping, ever, could have its benefits.
"Thanks, Emmett, for pointing that out to me," I told him with a smile.
"Edward, you need to know the drawbacks too. It's only fair that you know it all before you make a decision," Rosalie chimed in, still glaring at Emmett. "All of us were changed when we were at the brink of death. None of us even knew that vampires could be real. We didn't have a choice in the matter. Death was coming to claim us and Carlisle saved us."
She glanced at the monitor and looked at Carlisle with love in her eyes. "It's not the way I would have chosen my life to go, but without being changed, I would never have met Emmett. And I'm grateful for each and every moment that I get to spend with him. Even when he's being an ass…" She reached over and planted a resounding kiss on his smiling lips.
Emmett's laugh rang out again as he pulled her into his arms. "I'm grateful he changed you too, sweetie."
Suddenly I felt my eyes drawn to Alice. She had been relatively quiet after her initial squeal at my question to Carlisle. Now I could practically hear her shouting in my head. There was a flash of a meadow…and Bella smiling up at me.
She caught my eye. "What?" she asked in an innocent voice.
"Alice, what did you see…A meadow?" Everyone's face was turned towards me. Bella gasped at my comment.
"Edward, Alice had a vision of us together in the spring, in a meadow filled with wildflowers. She saw this just after we met," Bella answered me. From the way she couldn't quite meet my eyes, I felt that there had to be more to the vision than what she had just admitted too. I'd ask her later. Right now there were more pressing concerns on my mind.
"Okay, is it just that I'm more aware of what's happening in my mind? Or are you vamps enhancing what I can see in your heads?" They all looked confused. "I just saw Bella looking up at me, in a meadow. Last night I actually heard Kate say Garrett's name…" I turned to Carlisle. They had said that he could get to the bottom of my gift. "What's happening here, Carlisle?"
"Well, Edward, I think that maybe you are more aware of what's going on in your head now," Carlisle answered. "Right now, just by being extra aware, you probably are picking up on more things than before. Eleazar did say that he had never met anyone who had so much potential. He also said that he thought that your gift would be mind reading if you were to be changed, but it isn't an exact science. "
"Changed…I'm not really sure what that involves. Bella said that a person had to be bitten for the change to occur. Oh, and not be drained." I smiled down at her, where she rested in my arms.
Carlisle smiled at us from the screen, "Yes, bitten and not drained." The smile left his face and he became somber. "Very few vampires can bite and not continue to drain the human. They need to leave enough blood for the venom to work with." He glanced at each one of his family members.
"As Rosalie said, every one of my family were close to death when I changed them. And even though I was pretty much immune to human blood at that point, it was still hard for me to stop…each and every time." He looked around again. "I don't know how hard it would be to just bite a person, in cold blood, so to speak."
I thought that over. In cold blood…that actually had kind of a medical sound to it.
Before I could continue asking questions Carlisle spoke up. "Edward, this isn't something that has to be done right this minute, or even in the near future, right Alice?"
Alice had closed her eyes and had a very concentrated look on her face. Her eyes snapped open and a smile lit her face. "Nope, I can't see the Volturi heading this way at all right now. Now that I know that this is a concern, I'll keep checking in that direction." She danced over and wormed her way between Bella and myself. She put an arm around us both and pulled us into a mini group hug.
"Since we don't have to worry about the Volturi right now, we can tell you all about being a vampire. Like Emmett said, there are lots of perks, and only a few drawbacks." She smiled up at both of us. "Now that the cousins are gone, we can just relax for awhile."
Emmett rushed over and threw his huge arms around the three of us. He squeezed and yelled "Group Hug" while we all laughed. Well, I laughed until I ran out of air.
Carlisle agreed that there was no rush and that we could speak about it in depth when we all got back to Seattle in two weeks. I wanted to be up there when my Godson was born.
After we said goodbye to the family in Seattle, I spent the rest of the evening hearing the stories of their changes. Bella told me about being thrown from a horse and Rosalie about being attacked and left for dead.
Emmett had mentioned meeting Rosalie when he hurt his knee years ago. Now I knew the real story of him almost dying after meeting a bear. Alice didn't know how she came to be changed. But she recounted her meeting with Jasper and how they had found the family and joined them.
They all pushed the pluses of being a vampire, especially Emmett. The list was pretty long:
Immortality and never aging
Vampires didn't physically age after their change.
They were frozen at that point in their life.
They didn't die although they could be killed.
Eternity with your loved one
Immortality gave you an eternity with your loved one.
Never sleeping
Which meant lots of time for sex…Emmett mentioned that one, again.
Lots of time to learn new things, to accumulate knowledge and skills.
Super strength
One wouldn't need a jack if one had a flat tire
Superior hearing and eyesight
It was meant to help with hunting, but it helped in other ways too.
It also meant that there were few secrets amongst the family.
Extra gifts: empathy, shield, psychic, etc.
These gifts helped the family, but carried their own drawbacks
Accumulated wealth
Alice was good at finding trends in the stock market
Their wealth allowed them to help people in various ways:
Carlisle as a doctor
Jasper as a history professor
Elite Guardians, body guards
Esme and Alice's work for Ronald McDonald Houses
Alice and her fashion help to those in need
That last one was brought up by Emmett, just to tease Alice. Although she did take it seriously and expounded at great length how she had helped many people to dress better over the decades of her life. There was a lot of laughter over that.
When I tried to ask a question about the drawbacks, Bella said that it was time for bed. I couldn't believe that it was already after midnight.
"There will be plenty of time to talk about those things tomorrow. Now it's time for a shower and sleep for the human." She gave me a gentle hug then asked if I'd like her to bring me a cup of tea after my shower.
"That would be great, chamomile, please." I said goodnight to her brother and sisters and made my way up to my room.
As I stood in the shower and let the hot water run down my chest, I thought over what had happened throughout the long day. It still amazed me that I had spent most of the day with nine vampires. I couldn't get over how easy it all seemed. One small part of me felt like I should be running for my life, but the bigger part felt like I had finally found something to run towards.
Bella…and her family.
Except for Mike and Jessica, I didn't have any close friends. I had many acquaintances and a working relationship with my manager, Robert. I could always find someone to play a game of tennis with or to have dinner with. But after I lost my parents, it had been hard to make real solid friends. I don't really know why. But it had just never happened.
And now I had Bella in my life. I had brothers and sisters. And Carlisle and Esme…they weren't actually parents, but there was certainly a parental feeling from them that filled a small portion of the hole that my parents' death had left in me.
I turned and let the water run over my shoulders, while I held my casted arm in its bag out of the stream. Alice had mentioned that my cast would be off at the end of the week. I smiled as I thought about the pluses that had been laid out for me this evening. Having Alice see some things in the future would certainly be a big positive.
Emmett and his one track mind made my smile widen. He really wanted me to know that sex, as a vampire, was awesome. I laughed out right, thinking about the many times he tried to get me alone to "fill me in" on what that was like. Each time he tried to get me alone one of the women would pounce on him and smack the back of his head. He must have a callous there by now!
Turning the shower off, I stepped out and dried myself. I slipped on the flannel pants that I had taken to sleeping in. But I left the shirt off that Bella insisted I wear. Tonight I wanted to feel her next to my skin. I'd tell her that I'd turn the electric blanket on.
Bella was just coming in the door, my mug of tea in her hand, when I stepped out of the bathroom. Her superior hearing had let her know when I was done in there. That made me smile too. She smiled in return and it took my breath away. She was so gorgeous.
I took the mug from her hand and set it on the bedside table. I turned back to her and pulled her into my arms. I was now aware that I couldn't actually pull her or turn her or move her unless she allowed it. She was ten inches shorter than me, but unless she willed it, I wouldn't be able to move her a millimeter in any direction. But each and every time I went to pull her into my arms, or to adjust her closer to me, she let me. It amazed me that this wonderful creature would allow me, a mere mortal, to be so close to her. That she, in fact, encouraged our closeness.
As she snuggled close to my chest, her arms looped around my waist. I looked down into her lovely eyes. Her sweet breath washed across my face and for several moments I was lost in the aroma that was Bella. When I let my own breath out with a sigh, it was her turn to close her eyes and inhale. She had told me that I smelled like spicy musk, vanilla and warm linen in the sunshine. Apparently dazzling went both ways between us.
When I could form an ordered movement again, I lowered my head and kissed her on the lips. Our kiss started soft and sweet, but then something changed. I realized that Bella had dropped her personal shield and that I was now awash in both of our feelings and thoughts of love...and lust. All of Emmett's talk of sex had certainly brought it to the front of my mind, not that it had been pushed too far back anyway.
I backed slowly towards the bed, drawing Bella with me. Our lips never came apart. When the back of my thighs touched the bed, I sat down and pulled her onto my lap. I ran my fingers through her long, silky hair as I tilted her chin up, I moved my lips along the line of her cool jaw, tasting as I went. Her breath caught as I sucked her earlobe into my mouth. I moved on, kissing the spot just below her ear, sucking gently. Bella's arms tightened around my waist and a soft moan left her lips. The sound called me back to them and our kisses continued. I let my fingertips trace her collarbone, she was so delicately made. Once again I was amazed that one so unbreakable could appear so finely knit together.
I let my lips slip down to her other ear as she tucked her face into my neck. I knew she was sniffing the aroma of my blood…Once again savoring the bouquet without partaking of the wine. When her tongue came out and left a cool trail along the cords of my neck, I bit her neck hard. My teeth didn't make an indent at all. But apparently it made an impression on Bella because suddenly we were no longer sitting on the edge of the bed, but lying down together against the soft pillows. I looked around in surprise.
Her voice was soft as she whispered in my ear, "Why have superior strength if you don't use it for good…" And then she was straddling my waist, tipping my head up with her thumbs beneath my chin to give her access to my throat. My breath left in a gasp as she placed her own open mouthed kisses down my neck to my collarbone where she gently sucked the skin there into her mouth. I knew she was being very careful with her teeth, teeth that could rip my skin in a moment. My body shuddered, and it wasn't with fear.
I slipped my hands underneath her soft shirt, massaging the exquisite skin of her sides and back. I gently brushed my fingertips along the underside of her breasts, but no farther. We had drawn some lines with regard to our intimacy, and I think that we both were a bit shy to move passed them. To keep myself from pushing my hands higher, I sat up and pulled her closer to me. We were now lap to lap and chest to chest. When I realized just how closely we were entwined, it occurred to me that my sitting up hadn't helped curb our intimacy. Our bodies were so close, with only some relatively thin scraps of fabric keeping us apart.
It was time to stop, for now. We leaned back, which brought about another wave of lust from us both as our bodies created friction in wonderful places. We were both panting quietly through our mouths…
"Tell me again why we should wait," Bella begged me. It took me several moments and several deep breaths to answer her.
"Because we are both old fashioned…damn it!" I whispered back to her with a small laugh. "And Emmett and your sisters are downstairs and I think that I might make way too much noise if we continue on with this."
She chuckled quietly and sighed before moving off of my lap. Even knowing that it was a good idea, my arms didn't want to release her.
"Your tea got cold…" Bella said as she reached out for it.
"That's okay," I said as I stopped her from getting it. "I think that I'm warm enough anyway." I slid down the pillows to lie on the bed and she curled up facing me. Our hands were twisted together, my face buried in the wild mess that was her hair. My heart was finally starting to slow its trip-hammer pounding.
"I enjoyed spending time with your family today and listening to their stories this evening." I nuzzled my face closer to her hair. "So far, the list of the upsides of being a vampire is quite long, and very appealing."
"Edward, I know it sounds that way, but the negatives are pretty grave too." Bella tucked herself closer beneath my chin. She placed the blanket between the flesh of her arm and my side. She was always thinking of ways to keep me comfortable.
"Well, we'll see about that tomorrow. Right now I'm pretty much hating being human," I said with a wide, jaw cracking yawn. "I want to stay awake," I whined, trying to sound like a two-year old. Apparently it worked because she gave me a light smack on my hip.
Bella chuckled, "Go to sleep, little boy. We'll fill you in on the bad stuff tomorrow. Tonight I want you to have happy dreams." Before I could form a rebuttal, she blew her sweet breath across my face again and as tired as I was, I fell into a deep sleep.
\o/ \O/ \o/
A/N….I was going to keep going through to the downside of being a vampire, but decided to post this now…and continue writing the next chapter.
Do you all remember when I posted every three days or so? I think that the closer I get to the end of this story, the slower I write! It's like I don't want it to end…which is not fair to any of us, me included…sigh. I think that there are about five chapters left…and that makes me sad!
So, I'm going to try and update Thursday of this week…but I have a few art projects to deal with too. My daughters and I are helping kids paint horses on the walls at our local elementary school as a fund raiser. For $5 the kids get to choose two colors and paint a stenciled horse on the wall of the school…AND sign their name. The school's going to make a load of money for not much outlay. Cool…BUT, a bit of time intensive for those of us helping the kidlets paint.
Okay, let me know what you think of this chapter. I had hubby read the kiss…and he gave me a few pointers…!!! He's good…
Thanks for reading AND reviewing…and those of you who found the story on TWILIGHTED...say HI here too!
Kathie
P.S....DANG! I'm just under 3000 words right now, Thursday night...and there are still things to be discussed in Chapter 29...Drawbacks....so I'm not going to be able to get it up tonight...I'm actually hoping for Saturday morning as we will be painting stencilled horses with over 70, yep 70! kids tomorrow...Probably won't get all the kids done, so will have to be back on Tuesday...but hoping to get most of them done tomorrow...which means I won't be home typing! Ah...it's for a good cause....
Please forgive me....and leave a review... ;)
Kathie
