A Family for Alice

Disclaimer: Twilight and its characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. I'm just playing with them.


I toss and turn for a while until Carlisle decides to give me another early Christmas gift. It does the trick and completely sated, I fall asleep against his chest.

In what feels like only minutes later, I'm wakened by a little body wedging itself in between me and Carlisle. Grateful we remembered to put our pajamas back on after exchanging…gifts, I slowly open my eyes. I smile as I'm met with the bright blue eyes of my favorite girl.

"Hi, Mommy," she whispers. "It's Christmas. No days weft!"

"You're very right. Merry Christmas, baby." I shift over slightly so she can snuggle against me, which she does with a happy sigh.

I glance at the clock and wince as I see that it's barely five thirty. Apparently Miss Alice couldn't sleep either. But since she seems content to lie here as I run my fingers through her hair, I don't bother moving.

The repetitive motion is soothing, even to me, and I almost fall back to sleep. Alice isn't having it, though, and nudges me until I open my eyes again.

"Mommy, when do we open presents and go to Oma's house?"

I chuckle softly. "Soon, precious. The sun isn't even awake yet, and Daddy isn't either."

"I can do that," she says as she rolls over and nudges Carlisle before I can stop her. "Daddy, wake up, wake up."

I put my hand over my mouth to stifle my laughter as Carlisle groans and rolls toward Alice.

"Allie cat," he says, voice rough and unintentionally sexy. "Why are you awake this early?"

"It's Christmas, Daddy," she says, as if it explains everything.

"Christmas, huh? I think it'll still be Christmas in a few hours. Let's go back to sleep."

I think he does just that because Alice turns back to me, brows furrowed in confusion. I stop laughing immediately. It may be early, but it's her first Christmas with us so I understand her excitement. Any kid would be excited today, but especially Alice. She doesn't deserve to be confused by her Daddy's lack of excitement.

Sitting up, I pull Alice into my lap and nudge Carlisle's leg with my foot. "Babe, wake up. Let's go open presents with Alice."

He mumbles something unintelligible but doesn't open his eyes.

Alice tilts her head back to look up at me, and I shrug. "Wanna tickle him?" I suggest, and my idea puts the smile back on her face. She crawls over to his other side, and we attack. Soon, Carlisle has no choice but to wake up as he attempts to get away from us. We're a heap of laughter and giggles by the time Alice and I finish our assault, but it does the trick and gets Carlisle out of bed.

Carlisle and I each take a turn in the bathroom before letting Alice drag us downstairs and into the living room. I sit back and watch as the two of them sort our presents into piles, laughing at Alice's disbelief at how big her pile is.

"They're all for you, precious," I assure her. "Which one are you going to open first?"

She looks over her pile, but it takes her a few seconds to make a decision. When she finally does, she digs right in, tearing paper and squealing in delight.

Carlisle captures it all on film, from the new clothes and movies to the Barbie dolls and baby doll accessories. By the time she's finished, our floor looks like we robbed a toy store. Alice's constant smile and the dozens of hugs we receive make everything worth it. Her happiness is priceless.

While Alice plays with her new toys, Carlisle and I exchange gifts a bit quieter – thanking each other with slow kisses and soft words. The remote control transforming car I give him earns me a boob grope as well, but we manage to keep the volume down somehow. At least until we find our other gifts from Alice. We thank her with raspberries and tight hugs, wanting her to know exactly how much her love means to us. It's everything, really.

And I know Carlisle will wear his t-shirt from her with pride, and I will as well. Alice seems to have very particular taste when it comes to us, but at least my "Super Mommy" shirt will coordinate with Carlisle's super dad one. We'll be the coolest parents in Forks for sure.

I leave Alice and Carlisle to play with her new toys as I make breakfast, and after we all eat our fill of French toast, we dress in our Christmas best. Carlisle and I usually coordinate for the family Christmas photo, but this year is even better with the addition of Alice. My red dress and Carlisle's green shirt are perfectly brought together in Alice's fun little white dress with a Christmas tree in the center. The bottom is trimmed with red polka dot ribbon, and the tights that go with it have green stripes. It's crazy and fun, and Alice can't wait to have her picture made in it.

Luckily for Alice, Jane wants to take the picture right away and lines us all up almost as soon as we walk in the door. We all indulge her with limited grumbling, though none of us are really complaining. Our smiles are probably embarrassingly wide.

"Should we exchange gifts before lunch?" Jane asks, receiving a responding "yes" from her sons and granddaughter before she even finishes her question.

Rosalie shakes her head and links our arms as we follow them. "Our husbands are children," she points out.

"They are," I agree. "But they're such loveable children, aren't they?"

She nods and giggles. "They are. I don't think Christmas would be the same without their enthusiasm."

I agree with that too. With Alice added to the mix, enthusiasm is at an all time high.

Just as I expect, Alice's gift pile here is as big as it was at home. Aunt Rosalie and Uncle Emmett's gift of a doll house seems to be at the top of the favorites list, but the books from Oma and Papa are close second – until Alistair calls Alice over to sit in his lap.

"We have one more gift, sweetheart," he says as he hands her a small, flat box. "This is from all of us."

I bite my lip and squeeze Carlisle's hand in mine, hoping Alice likes it. A passing comment from Emmett one day turned into a family plan to give Alice something we all wished we had as kids. Something I didn't even realize was manufactured.

Alice grins at her Papa then tears into the paper. After taking the lid off, I know she's surprised to find a simple piece of paper. But what's on the picture does matter.

"See this, Alice?" Emmett says as he points to the colorful picture. "This is your new playset. It has three swings, a slide, and a play house at the top. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Whoa." Her eyes widen as she takes in the picture. "This is for me, Papa? I get to pway with this?"

"Just for you," Alistair promises with a kiss on her cheek. "Uncle Emmett, Daddy, and I will build it for you in your backyard, and you can play as much as you want."

"That's so coowal!" she squeals, turning to give him a hug. After hugging her Papa, she goes around the room to hug everyone else, ending with me.

"So you like it, precious?" I ask as she gives me a kiss.

She nods, not moving her arms from around my neck. "I reawy wuv this, Mommy. Can Bewa and Weah pway with me too?"

"Of course they can. We'll have to wait until it gets warmer, but then you all can play as much as you want."

"This is the best Christmas," she tells me before running off toward the dining room where everyone else has gathered except Carlisle.

"No tears over lunch," he teases me, helping me stand. "I forgot the tissues."

I sniffle as I wrap my arms around his waist for a quick hug. "That's a bit of a husband fail, I think. You'll have to make it up to me."

He laughs and kisses the top of my head. "I think I can handle that." I have no doubt that he can.

Lunch is perfect. Delicious food, funny stories, happy family – just perfect. We somehow manage to have more food today than on Thanksgiving, and we all wait to eat dessert, opting instead to watch a rerun of the Christmas parade and some football to appease Emmett.

In the middle of Emmett, Carlisle, and Alistair yelling at the TV, Jane whisks Alice back to one of the bedrooms. I'm immediately suspicious, but when I look at Rosalie, she seems to be clueless as well.

A few minutes later, Jane returns without Alice and mutes the TV, raising her hand to silence any on-coming protests.

"I had one more gift," she informs us. "It's for Alice, but really, I think it's for all of us too. We're getting the better end of this deal, after all."

Her eyes glisten as she sniffles, and now I'm really confused. I scoot closer to Carlisle, and he wraps his arms around me. Rosalie and Emmett do the same. Whatever this is, it's probably big.

"Come on out, dear heart," Jane calls. "Come show everyone your pretty dress."

Alice skips into the room, stopping in front of Jane but her eyes find mine. "Mommy, wook at my bwue dress from Oma. It has my wetters on it, see?" She points up to the monogram on the white bib collar of the navy blue dress. The M and the A are expected, but instead of a large B, a different letter is centered.

C for Cullen. Mary Alice Cullen.

I feel my lip quiver as tears escape my eyes, and I motion for Alice to come to me. She runs over and jumps into my lap, and I hold her as close as I can.

"Good tears," I manage to mumble to her through my crying. "The best tears, baby. Oh, I love you so much. So, so much. I'm so happy you're here with us."

Carlisle picks me up, placing both of us in his lap as he kisses us repeatedly. I feel his tears fall in my hair, and I love that neither of us is trying to contain this love, this joy that comes from Alice being ours. It's so amazing.

We eventually compose ourselves, and Rosalie passes us a box of tissues. It's very obvious that everyone in the room has been affected because there is not an eye free of a red rim. Alice seems to know how special this is too and refuses to leave her spot on mine and Carlisle's laps, not that we want her to move.

We sit together for a while until Emmett has to turn the volume up on the game. It breaks the spell and gives us the opportunity to have some dessert. Alice goes for the pumpkin pie again, and it's apparently so good that it puts her to sleep. I start to wonder what Rosalie put in the pie when everyone else decides to doze off too, leaving Carlisle and me the only ones awake.

Carlisle stands from his spot on the couch and pulls on my hand, silently asking for me to follow him. I do without a second thought. He leads us to the back deck, and even though it's cold, I'd never pass up an opportunity to sit on the porch swing.

I snuggle in next to my husband and use the time to reflect. The day has been overwhelming in the best ways, definitely surpassing what I hoped Christmas would be.

"Mom told me something while you were fixing dessert plates," Carlisle says, breaking our silence.

"What was that?" I question, rolling my head back so I can see his face.

"Alice asked her. About being a Cullen," he clarifies after seeing my confused expression. "Mom asked her what she wanted for Christmas, and that's what she said. Not toys or movies or books. She wants to be a Cullen like her mommy and daddy."

Tears fill my eyes once more as I blink, letting them overflow. "She's so special," I whisper.

He nods. "And she's ours."

After sharing yet another slow kiss, we return to silence and to our thoughts. It's almost hard to believe that just three months ago, a shy little girl walked into my classroom. She wouldn't even speak more than two words to me and everything she did was with the highest level of caution.

I tuck that same little girl in her bed every night and cuddle with her every morning. She talks my ear off at every opportunity and is full of so much joyful energy.

She's made our lives so much fuller, and I know no one in our family would trade her for the world.

In four months, Mary Alice Brandon will officially be Mary Alice Cullen. She has the life she deserves to have, and even though we'll more than likely face a few more challenges in the future, it'll be worth it.

Alice will be loved and wanted and know she is loved and wanted.

Forever.


A/N: Should I pass some tissues around? This is the last regular chapter, but an epilogue will be posted on Friday. And please feel free to continue with the outtake suggestions, either through reviews or PMs. You guys are giving me such good things to write.

Lots of thanks to MelissaMargaret for making this pretty and to anhanninen for prereading.

And thanks to all of you for reading!

See you on Friday!