Okay, so I lied. This is not the last chapter before the epilogue, there is going to be one more then I thought. Our characters got away from me and started doing their own thing in this one ;) So you get an extra chapter…YAY!
I want to give a big shout out to my beta Yuki Sakura-Chan. She is awesome. Go check out her stories, they are AWESOME!
Just a reminder I put the links to their outfits on my profile. Check em out!
Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Twilight or any of the lovely characters. They belong to the wonderfully talented Stephanie Meyer. I do own the original story line and any original characters. But I do own: All of the books, soundtracks to all three movies, Team Edward t-shirt, Twilight the movie, New Moon the movie and used ticket stubs to Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse.
Last Chapter:
Arthur offered to walk us out. He was headed to the cafeteria in search of some food and coffee. Edward and Arthur slipped out the door first and just as I was about to follow, Riley called out to me in a surprisingly strong voice.
"Bella."
"Yes," I poked my head behind the curtain again.
"Be happy."
I could feel myself choking up again. "You too," I managed to get out without crying.
I turned my tear filled eyes to him, only to be met with his peaceful, sleeping face.
The month following Riley's attack went faster than I ever imagined that it would. Before I knew it the weekend of Alice's wedding was staring me in the face and with that so was Alice.
"Are you even listening to a word I say?" Alice snapped waving her little hand in front of my face.
"Sorry Al, I sort of spaced out there for a moment."
"More like for a week. Gosh Bella, how do I go through this weekend not freaking out if you, my MOH, is not even paying attention to any of the last minute details that need to be done," she said in exasperation.
"I am paying attention Alice! I swear. I remember that I need to call the caterers one last time to make sure that they have everything prepared and I also need to inform the DJ to only play what is on the play list, anything else is not acceptable. We have to decorate tomorrow night after the rehearsal dinner. Is there anything else that I am missing?" I said hoping that there wasn't. I would never hear the end of it if there was.
"You forgot that you needed to talk to the photographer about doing indoor and outdoor shots. But besides that you had everything," she grumbled as she threw more of my clothes into my bag.
"Why again can I not pack for myself?" I asked as I saw her throw in another god-awful dress into the bag. "I mean, I'll wear my bridesmaid dress, so why can't I pack my clothes for the rest of the weekend?"
"Because Bella, if I let you pack for yourself then I would have to see you in jeans and a t-shirt this whole weekend and that is not acceptable. I am only going to get married once and that means that you have look acceptable for every little thing!" she said as she turned her evil eye onto me.
I acknowledged her rant with a roll of my eyes and flopped myself backwards onto my bed.
"So have you talked to Riley since he moved?" Alice asked as she threw yet another dress into my already overstuffed bag.
"Yes, he called a couple of days ago to tell me that they were all settled into their new place."
After being released from the hospital, Riley decided that he was going to do whatever it took to make sure that James didn't get out from under his charges easily and it was easier said than done. All Riley had to do was a quick background check on James and he found out that his brother had gotten himself involved in some pretty heavy stuff.
The things that Riley found out about his brother would be the things that would put James away for a long time. The laundry lists of felonies were long but the ones that topped the list were bad.
He was wanted in the state of Utah for questioning on the rape of three different women. The thought of that curdled my stomach and still gave me nightmares. I was just thankful that I trusted my guy instincts and that I had Edward. If it wasn't for him being so stubborn about my safety then there was a strong chance that there would have been another woman to add to that list.
So besides the rapes, Riley also found out that James had been extorting money from their father's law firm. A lot of money. It was under the assumption that he was stealing money to pay for the debts that he owed to some very bad people. The kind of people that you didn't want to be caught in a dark alley alone with.
After James was arrested and legally charged with assault and battery, extortion, and a small list of lesser charges, Riley decided that he had, had enough of Seattle and all of the drama that had found its way into his life. He packed up his apartment and asked Megan to move to Utah with him. She, of course, happily accepted.
I couldn't be happier for the two of them.
"Bella, did I lose you again," Alice sighed as she flopped down next to me.
"Sort of. I was just thinking about Riley and all of the drama with James."
"Are you still having nightmares?" she asked softly.
"There not as bad as they use to be, having Edward with me helps," I said.
Ever since the day we left the hospital after talking to Riley, Edward and I have been more inseparable then before. If I wasn't at his place, he was at mine. I had a feeling that we were going to be having the moving in together talk soon. I should be nervous about that or in the very least be thinking that we are moving too fast. But if there is one thing that I have learned from all of this is that life is too short and it rarely gives you a second chance.
"It will sort itself out in time," Alice said in reference to my nightmares. "You went through a pretty traumatic experience, it's completely normal to still be having side effects from it."
"Thanks, Dr. Alice," I joked as I nudged her in the side. "Are you going to tell me next that time heals all wounds?"
"It does!" she grumbled. "Joke all you want, missy, but time does heal all wounds and so does distance. I have a strong feeling that once James is expedited back to Utah to face those rape charges that your dreams will become a little bit more pleasant."
Instead of cracking another joke and trying to divert the conversation, I just rolled over onto my side and looked at her "I know, Al. I hope that, that will happen too. I understand what you're trying to tell me and I appreciate your concern."
"I love you, B and I just want you to be happy."
"I love you too, Al and if you haven't noticed I am happy. My best friends getting married this weekend, I am ecstatic. Just the thought of wearing a dress and walking down an aisle in stilettos in front of hundreds of people makes me want to do a happy dance."
"Oh you!" she chuckled as she pushed herself off the bed. "You will wear that dress and those shoes and love every minute of it!"
"Of course I will, what kind of MOH would I be if I didn't love every minute of it?" I joked as I helped her zip up my finally full bag. "That's if we don't die trying to carry this bag down to the car."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~WYB~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The ride to Forks was pretty uneventful; Alice demanded that all the girl's ride in one car with the boys following behind in Em's jeep. We girls filled the time by chatting and catching up. Alice and Jasper had opted for the nontraditional version of Bachelor and bachelorette parties. Instead of doing separate parties, we threw them a huge party together last weekend. It was a blast.
"Is it going to be weird for all of us to be together again in Forks?" Rose asked as we passed the welcome to Forks sign. I knew that she was mainly referencing to Edward being with us, because it's not like this would be the first time we would all be in back in Forks together. But it would be the first time with Edward since our almost wedding.
"No, I don't think so. If anything it will make it feel more like home," I admitted as I stared out the window.
"It does," Alice agreed.
"Are you worried about the parental units?" Rose spoke up again. I thought about what she asked for a second. I wasn't worried about my parents. They knew about Edward and me and after some discussions they had come to terms with it.
About a week after Riley had been released from the hospital Edward and I were enjoying a quiet evening at my apartment. It was the first weekend that we had absolutely nothing to do and had planned on snuggling on the couch and in the bed for the entire weekend. A knock on the door interrupted any plans that we had planned.
My parents showed up unannounced, they had received a call from Emmett (my nosey brother) he accidentally let it slip that Edward and I were back together. My mom says that she wasn't the least bit surprised but my dad on the other hand….well let's just say that he was surprised and not in the happy way.
Anyways they show up on my door, wanting to "visit". Visit meant my mom wrapping Edward up in a big hug and telling him that she missed and loved him and my dad yanking Edward out of the apartment for a "talk".
When they finally showed back up three hours later my dad seemed to be in better spirits and Edward, well let's just say he was little quiet for the rest of the night. He still won't tell me what he and my dad discussed, but I have a strong feeling that my dad really laid into him and made him feel even more guilty about taking off on me and I'm sure that he made some not so idle threats about "taking care of him" if he ever did it again.
Thankfully after that my parents were very understanding and surprisingly enough supportive of Edward and I. Edward's parents on the other hand….well I'm not sure. Edward knew that I was very upset with his parents. That I was angry about the way that they had kept me in the dark and about the fact that it was partially Carlisle fault that Edward ran that night. So because of those things we didn't discuss his parents much, I'm sure they knew about Edward and I. Especially once my mom found out, because if they didn't they would after taking a quick trip to the grocery store. My mom was very known for not being able to keep anything close to the chest. I'm sure that Edward and I reuniting was a very big thing in the town of Forks, our almost wedding was still talked about in beauty salons and at church barbeques.
So I figured that they knew I just hadn't found it in myself to ask Edward what they thought about it. Not that I didn't think that they would be thrilled by the news, I knew that they thought of me as a daughter but there was a lot of animosity there that I didn't know how to let go of. In time I'm sure I would get over it, but the key point to that statement being time.
"Well you know as well as I do that my parents are okay with Edward and I," I offered to Rose. I mean she is married to my big mouth brother, no secret was safe there….obviously.
"You know that I was talking about Edward's parents!"
"Fine, I don't know. Edward and I haven't discussed his parents," I offered lamely.
"Why not?" Alice chirped in.
"Just haven't." I knew I was being stubborn but I really didn't want to rehash this conversation again. When I was ready to deal with Esme and Carlisle, I would deal with them. Right now only irreversible damage would be caused by the things that I want to say to them.
"You know, B, those people are going to be your in-laws one day," Alice said obviously not dropping this subject.
"They already would be if Carlisle hadn't opened his big mouth and demanded things from Edward!" I didn't want to fight with Alice during her wedding weekend, but I couldn't help it when it came to this subject.
"Edward also made a decision there too, Bella," Rose pointed out.
Gah! I almost wish that I driven with the guys, at least I would have gotten some peace. Maybe a few crude jokes from Em, but mostly peace.
"I know that, Rose," I ground out. "But Edward's parents are something that I am going to have to deal with, when I'm ready. I'm not, okay. I know that I have forgiven Edward for what he did, but their betrayal hurts a lot in a different way. I almost feel like they did this because they didn't want Edward and I together."
I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of my shoulders with that confession. That thought had been nagging my subconscious since I had found out about the part they had played in all of this.
"Oh Bella," Alice gasped. "You seriously don't think that, do you?"
I sighed heavily then. I guess we were going to have this conversation after all. "What am I suppose to think, Alice? Not only did Carlisle play a big part in why Edward left but He and Esme kept the real reasons from me. Not only that, they also kept Edward's drinking and self destructive behavior from me. So excuse me if I am having a problem with just turning the other cheek and believing that they were doing what they thought was best for us."
Silence settled upon the car then. I felt bad for letting lose but it had to be done I suppose.
"I didn't look at it that way," Alice said in a subdued voice. "I guess I didn't step back and look at the big picture. So many of things could have gone differently if they had just been upfront with you from the beginning."
"Of course they would have. Now you understand why I feel the way I do."
"Just a minute Bella," Rose cut in. "You want to know what I think?"
I could tell by the steel edge to her voice that I wasn't going to like what she had to say.
"Not really but I already know that's not going to stop you," I muttered.
I saw the coroner of her mouth twitch like she wanted to smile, but she quickly controlled it.
"Your right, that's not going to stop me, so here it is, you need to grow up! I know that his parents hurt you, I get that. You have every right to be a pissy bitch about it. But you have to remember that no matter what they are Edward's parents. They are going to be a part of the rest of your life, no matter if you like it or not. So either you can hold onto that anger and eventually force Edward to choose sides,"
"I would never force," I cut in quickly but she shut me down with one fierce look.
"Not intentionally but somewhere along the lines he is going to expect you to be the bigger person and get over it and when you don't then he is going to be forced to choose. We already know that he will choose you; he learned that lesson the hard way. So like I was saying you could either hold onto this and let it fester until it eats away at your and Edward's relationship or you can get the fuck over it and move on."
"So what I'm supposed to just say "I know that you guys totally screwed me over four years ago and all but let's be the best of friends now?" I shot off angrily.
"Crap Bella. I'm not telling you to crawl into their bed and ask for a bedtime story, I'm telling you to deal with it internally. Get angry about it, let them know and then let it go. I just want you to be happy, that's all," she said.
"I am happy. I don't need them in my life to make me that way." I knew that I was being stubborn but I couldn't help it.
"Fine," Rose huffed. "Whatever you say, but don't say that I didn't warn you when this all blows up in your face."
I bit my tongue in hopes that would stop me from saying something rude. After a quick count to ten I tried to express to her what I was feeling. "Rose, I don't think it is as bad as you are trying to make it seem. Edward and I are doing great, better then great actually. We are fantastic. I don't intend on letting this rift with his parents last forever, I just need time. Okay. Now I don't want to talk about this anymore, we are being rude and ruining Alice's wedding weekend."
"You guys aren't ruining it, you're just making it more entertaining," Alice offered from the driver's seat. I knew that she didn't really feel that way but Alice was always trying to act as a buffer between Rose and I.
"No Alice, Bella is right, we are being rude. I'm sorry for harping on you about all of that. I just have been really emotional lately."
All of a sudden the car jerked to a screeching halt. I shot forward, bracing my hands against the car seats in front of me.
"Alice what the hell," I screeched. I quickly looked out the window to see what she had stopped for.
"OH MY GOD!" Alice screamed at the top of her lungs.
Cringing, I slumped back against the seat. Before I could start questioning what the heck was going on all three of our cell phones starting ringing.
"Hello," I about shouted into the phone.
"Bella, are you guys okay?" Edward's panic voice filled my ear. I remembered then that the guys were right behind us and must have been concerned with Alice's quick stop.
"I don't know. Alice is…." I trailed off. The sound of Alice telling Jasper that she was fine and just needed a minute caught my attention.
"Alice is?" he prompted.
"I think fine? I don't know. She is just staring at Rose right."
"Bella get off of that phone," Alice turned a strict eye onto me.
"I have to go?" It came out more as a question then a statement.
"Call me back, please," he pleaded.
"I will." I shut the phone and looked at Alice in confusion.
"What the hell, Alice?" I demanded. "What's with giving us whiplash?"
"You!" she said to Rose, completely ignoring me. It was then that I released that Rose was being unusually quiet.
"What, Alice?" Rose finally sputtered out.
"OH MY GOD! YOUR PREGNANT!" Alice bellowed out.
"What!" I screeched. There was no way, was there? "WHAT?"
"I….ah…you….how…how…can't…my….Em…" Rose literally sputtered out. I had never heard her stutter before, I mean this was Rosalie Hale-Swan, international super model extraordinaire.
"You are! Oh my God, your pregnant," Alice whispered, which was a nice reprieve from her screeching.
Still nothing from Rose, besides her earlier stuttering. So I tuned out Alice as she rambled on about baby pink wall paper vs. baby blue and leaned forward until my head was neatly in between the two of them, cocking my head to the side I took in Rose's shocked expression.
"Rose?" I asked her quietly.
"It was suppose to come out this way," she whispered. It took me a second to realize exactly what she was saying, but when it sank in I almost wanted to screech like Alice but my vocal chords didn't want to work that way. Surprisingly I felt my eyes start to fill with happy tears.
"I'm going to be an Aunt?" I choked out.
She turned glowing face towards me and with watering eyes she said "Yes."
"Oh Rose," I said reaching one of my hands out and wrapping it around hers. "When did you find out?"
"About a month ago, we were waiting."
"Why?" Alice butted in.
"We wanted to wait until after the wedding," Rose filled us in.
"Why?" Alice chirped again.
"Well Al, we didn't want to take anything from your wedding. We decided to wait until you guys got back from your honeymoon before we made the announcement," she explained.
"Nonsense, this is the best news I've heard in a long time," Alice choked out as her own happy tears spilled out. "We're going to have a baby!"
I had to laugh at Alice, Rose and Em were being silly if they thought that Alice would be mad that they announced this now.
"Yes we are," Rose said smiling through her own tears.
"I'm going to be an Aunt," I announced louder finally giving into my own tears.
We all squealed and hugged as best we could given the cramped area.
"Em's going to be a dad," I stupidly said as we pulled away from each other.
"He is," Rose said smiling, thankfully not calling me out on the stupidity of my announcement. Wow, pregnancy must really agree with Rose.
"I'm sorry, I have to hug him," I said as I rushed out the door and into the street. Rose and Alice must have followed suit because upon seeing us the guys unloaded from the jeep. Edward shot me a concerned look when he saw me, I'm sure that me running from Alice's Porsche crying would cause anyone to wonder what the hell.
"Bella, are you okay?" he asked as I ran towards them. I just nodded as I bypassed him and jumped into my brother's surprised arms. Thankfully he had quick reflexes, because he caught me and held me close to him.
"Bells, you okay?" he asked quietly. I pulled my head back so that I could take in his face.
"You're going to be a dad," I said in a watery voice. His eyes went wide with surprise.
"How do you know?" he asked.
"Alice guessed and Rose confirmed."
"Should have known that pixie would figure us out," he chortled his face exploding into a huge smile.
"You're going to make me an Aunt," I squealed loudly. Everyone else must have heard because I could hear Edward and Jasper offering up congrats from behind me.
"Are you happy?" I had to ask, even though I knew the answer.
"Beyond happy, Bells. I am fucking flying," he shouted as he spun me around in a circle before setting me back onto my feet. "Now, I need to go kiss my wife."
I smiled at his back as he jogged over to Rose and picked her up in a bear hug, squeezing my niece or nephew between them.
"Are you happy, Love," Edward asked as he slid his arm around my waist. I turned to look at him, taking in his happy eyes and his toothy smile.
"I'm fucking flying," I said mimicking my brother.
We're reaching the end now friends. Only one chapter left and then the epilogue, it makes sad and happy at the same time. Sad because I am going to miss this story and Happy because I finally finished. But don't fret my pets, I still have my other story and a million more in the works…..now I just have to decide which one to go with and beg my beta to love me enough to keep beta-ing for me!
XO-
Symphiann
