House

"Morning baby."

"Mmmmm."

"You need to get up baby. Alice will be here in about an hour."

She groaned as she rolled over into my side.

"Are you tired baby? I can call her and tell her to come later."

"No. I'll get up in a minute."

"Okay baby. Take your time, but just as a reminder, morning sickness is coming in a minute."

"Don't remind me."

"Just trying to help baby."

I lay one hand over her small baby bump, rubbing soothing circles on her stomach. She moved her head onto my chest, placing a hand on top of my hand. Pulling away from me, she jumped up and ran from my arms.

"I'm coming baby."

I rubbed her back soothingly, as she threw up in the toilet. She sat back on the floor and I sat next to her, my hand on her stomach.

"Just wait another 24hrs and we'll be back in here."

"Shut up. I'm doing this because of you."

"No. You are doing this because of us; because of this little one. You took part willingly in the actions that caused this, so you can't blame me baby."

"I know."

"I'll get you some chocolate baby, you brush your teeth."

"Dark chocolate today."

"Okay baby."

Kissing her cheek I lifted her to her feet and ran to the kitchen, grabbing an open bar of dark chocolate. I returned to see Bella brushing her teeth gently. When she finished I wrapped my arms around her waist and took a piece of chocolate between my teeth and kissed her, giving her the chocolate. She moaned as the chocolate touched her tongue.

"You like that, don't you baby?"

She nodded her head as she wrapped her arms around my neck. I slipped another piece of chocolate into my mouth before kissing Bella once again. Her tongue ran over my lip, I opened my mouth to her and she wrapped her tongue around the chocolate, taking it into her mouth.

"Thank you honey."

"No problem baby. Take this with you today."

I handed the bar to her and pecked her lips once more.

"As much as I like the shorts, I think you should get dressed baby. You'll get cold."

"I know honey. Go find me something nice to wear, but no dresses today. I am going out today and it's supposed to snow again today. I'm going to hop in the shower."

"Okay baby. I'll join you in a minute."

"I'll be waiting."

I went into the bedroom and searched through the wardrobe for a pair of skinny jeans and dark blue top for Bella. I grabbed myself some pants and a white top before going into the bathroom. The room was slightly misty as the hot water steamed up the room. Climbing into the shower with Bella, I washed us both before wrapping her in a large, soft towel around each of us. I dried us both off and got dressed.

"Let's go get some breakfast baby."

"I'm starving."

"What about pancakes with chocolate syrup?"

"Amazing."

I lifted her into my arms and carried us into the kitchen. I turned the radio on and watched Bella swaying her hips to the music. Standing behind her, I took the bowl from her hands and started mixing the batter.

"Good morning."

"Morning dad. Pancakes alright for you?"

"Definitely. Your pancakes are better than your mothers but don't tell her that."

"We won't dad."

"Can you remind her I won't be home till late this evening? There is a shortage of doctors because of the holidays."

"I will dad, don't worry."

We finished creating a stack of pancakes and placed some in front of each of us.

"So what are you two up to today?"

"Alice and I are going Christmas shopping because I haven't had a chance yet."

"I've got some important work to do today."

"Have a good day shopping Bella. If you have any pain, tell Alice, she knows to let you rest. If she doesn't call me and I'll give her a ring. You need to stay well rested if you are going to heal completely."

"Thanks Carlisle but I think I'll be fine. Alice understands and Rose said she'd be joining us later on if she has time. You know Rose; she'll want to protect me and our baby with all her power. I think she'd punch Alice if she gets carried away."

"Let's hope that doesn't happen. I can't have Alice coming to the hospital two days before Christmas. Look at the time, I need to get going. Have a good day guys. Thanks for the pancakes."

"No problem dad. Have a good day at work."

"Bye Bella."

"Bye dad."

"Bye son."

"See you later dad."

He got up from the table and hugged us both before leaving the room.

"Come on baby, Alice will be here soon. You need to take your pain killers before you leave."

"Can you grab them for me? I'll wash the dishes."

"Okay baby."

I pecked her lips and put my plate by the sink. After grabbing her pills from the bedroom, I saw Alice pull into the driveway.

"Hey Alice."

"Morning Edward."

"How are you and Jasper today?"

"We're doing great. We can't wait for Christmas. How is Bella?"

"She's alright for now. No signs of a headache or pain. I think you'll be good to go. At any point, if she starts to look tired or in pain, I need you to sit her down. I don't want her coming home saying she has a headache, or sore legs. It's your job to look after her, because Bella will be Bella, and she needs to be told when to stop."

"Calm down Edward. She'll be okay. I promise I will look after Bella. If you don't remember, I do design most clothes in the mall. I have a lot of control there and if I need anything they'll give it to me. Bella will have anything she needs in an instant. Give me some trust."

"Sorry Alice. I can't help but worry."

"I understand Edward. It's because you love her. I worry about Jasper all the time. You have a baby to worry about too. Not only do you have to look after Bella, but the life inside her. I care for the baby too Edward. Everything will be fine. I won't go crazy with shopping today Edward, don't worry."

"Thank you Alice. You're a great sister."

"And you're a great brother and husband, Edward. Come on. I can smell pancakes."

"We made some this morning. Mom's not up yet."

"I think I'll go get some."

"Come on then."

We walked into the kitchen to see Bella, with a cup of coffee and magazine.

"Good morning Bella. You ready for a day of shopping?"

"Morning Alice. I'm excited, I have a lot of shopping to do."

"We'll we'd better get going soon then. I'm gonna have a few pancakes first though."

"Okay Alice."

"Here you go baby. Take them with you."

"Thanks honey."

I pecked her lips and sat down next to her again. Alice grabbed some pancakes from the stack and sat opposite us. Esme walked through the door, with her hair tied up and a long dress on.

"Morning Mom."

"Good morning Edward, Bella, Alice. How are you all?"

"We're doing well mom. How are you?"

"I'm good thanks Alice."

"Take some pancakes mom. There's chocolate syrup on the counter."

"Thank you Bella."

When Esme finished her breakfast, Alice and Bella got up to leave. Esme said goodbye and went upstairs to clean up a little bit.

"Have a good time Alice. I hope you get everything you need."

"Thanks Edward."

I pulled her into a hug.

"Take care of her."

"I will."

She pulled back and turned to Bella.

"I'll wait in the car."

"Thanks Alice."

She turned and walked out the door, wrapping herself up in her large coat.

"Have a good time baby. Take care of yourself."

"I will Edward. Don't worry. I'll text you at lunch so you know I'm okay."

"Thank you baby. I love you."

"I love you too honey. I'll see you later."

"Okay baby."

I pecked her lips quickly, pulling her into my arms.

"I'll miss you baby."

"I'll miss you too honey. I got to go."

"Bye baby."

"Bye honey."

Pecking her lips again, I let her go and watched her walk out the door, climbing into the car. I waited until they had disappeared down the drive before calling up to Esme.

"Mom. I'm heading out now. The address is in the kitchen, on the counter."

"Okay son. I'll be there at around 1 o'clock this afternoon."

"I'll see you there mom."

"Bye Edward."

"Bye mom."

I grabbed my bag of the couch and left the house, jumping into my Volvo. I drove to my new house for the first time. It was beautiful. The wall was completely glass and I could see the living room, dining room and part of the kitchen all at once. I took the key from my pocket and climbed the steps of the porch. Turning the key, the door unlocked. I swung it open, and stepped inside, straight to the living room. A lot of the furniture was missing but it still felt like a home.

I walked round the glass staircase into the large kitchen. There was an island in the middle of the kitchen with four stools on one side and draws and cupboards on the other. A tall fridge stood at the edge of the counter, with an identical freezer next to it. A long wall counter ran along the back wall of the house, stopping by a wall, dissecting the dining room from the kitchen. A tap lay in the middle of the counter, separating the counter of. A washing machine and dishwasher stood under the counter, beside the fridge. Cupboards lined the wall and under the counter.

The dining room, had a large, rectangular table, able to sit twelve; five along each side and one on each end. Twelve identical chairs stood around the table waiting for use. Other than that there was no other furniture in the room.

Opening the door to a bathroom connected to both the living room and dining room. It was a relative size as there was space to go from one door to the other.

Walking through the bathroom, I saw a door next to it by the front door. I opened the door and walked down the wooden steps, into the spacious bedroom. Walking around the room, I noticed the space in the room. There was a lot of space. It was painted a light blue, with a matching carpet.

The en suite was large, with a basin, cupboards, toilet, bath and shower. It was a light space with lights around the top line of the room as well as around the mirror and main lights in the middle of the ceiling.

I went back up the stairs and to the main glass stair case. Walking up the stairs, I saw five doors on the first floor. The first was a small bedroom with willow green walls and dark green carpet. There was no bed yet but I had ordered one.

The room opposite was a study. A large wooden desk stood in the middle of the room with shelves lining the walls. Most of the shelves were stacked with book after book.

The next room was another bedroom, this time slightly bigger. These walls were a white cotton colour. A double bed was against the wall, facing the windowed wall. A large wardrobe stood against the far wall next to a desk with a round mirror leaning against the wall.

The last two doors; one lead to a toilet and basin, and the other to a shower and bath.

I climbed the last set of stairs to the top floor. There was only two doors up here. The first was to the side. It was a bare room with one windowed wall. The other three walls were a plain white with a couple black marks here and there.

The final room was huge. It was about a third of the whole floor. Like the other room, this one was bear with one glass window for a wall. This room though, was painted a velvet blue with wooden flooring. There was one door to the right, behind the door, that led to a large closet and the other the en suite. It was just smaller than the bedroom as it had a bath large enough for six people to sit in comfortably. A bench ran around the inside, slightly raised from the base of the bath. A double shower stood in the corner taking up quite a bit of space. A counter ran along a whole wall with a large mirror. A cabinet was placed on either side of the mirror and below the counter, next to the adjoining walls. A separate door led to a toilet and wash basin.

I left the room and jogged back down stairs taking note of which rooms to do first. I'd start with the top and make my way down. When I got downstairs I saw two delivery bans appear from the trees.

"Good morning. Are you Mr. Cullen?"

"It's just Edward, but yes that is me."

"Can you sign here, then we can get these things built."

"Here we go."

"There's a lot to do. I'll show you what there is then you can show us where you want us to start. We have all day so there's no rush."

"Thank you. I appreciate the help."

He showed me what all the boxes had in them and I marked them with a letter depending on what room they were going in so it made their job so much easier.

"If we can start with the master bedroom on the top floor and work our way down that would be great. I can help with carrying and putting things together if you show me what to do and hopefully we can get home sooner."

"That would be very helpful thank you."

We got to work carrying the furniture for the top floor upstairs. Pulling things out of boxes, I realised the extent of the work we had to do. It took two and a half hours and five cups of coffee to create the room. Moving onto the next room, we spent less time in because it was the smaller room downstairs. I decided this would be Olly's room as it was a reasonable size for him and he didn't need a super big room. He'd like a small room that would feel more like a safe place, than a large, empty room. I moved on to the final pieces in Eliza's room, whilst the workers moved on to what would be the guest room. I ordered some pizzas for us as lunch approached. Esme arrived soon after we finished eating.

"Afternoon mom."

"Good afternoon son. You sure know how to pick a house. It's beautiful."

"Wait till you see the inside. Come on. The men have done three rooms. There's another room and then bits and pieces here and there to do. Most of the rooms had some furniture in, before we started."

"Where do you want me to start?"

"If you start downstairs, and work your way up, then we should finish soon enough. The top floor is done. You can't go up there. All the bathrooms are done and don't need touching. The kitchens done. There's a bedroom downstairs that needs some adjustments to give it a more homely feel and then there's the living and dining rooms that have the basics but needs a bit more to it. There is two bedrooms upstairs that have all the furniture in that is needed but I'm not sure about the colours needed for the beds or pillows."

"I'll get straight onto them. There's a van coming soon with some more things. I asked Rose to come help. She'll be here in ten minutes."

"Thanks mom. Come on. I'll give you a tour."

I led her round the first two floors of the house, showing her what I wanted done and her pointing to various parts she had an idea for. Making sure she had everything she needed, I left her downstairs in what I hoped to be Eliza's room. Soon after I got a text from Bella.

'Hey honey. I'm perfectly fine. Alice and I are having a great time. I've nearly finished my shopping. We may be home early. I don't know if you'll be there though. Tell Esme I'm doing the diner tonight. Anyway, I'm fine. You can text Alice if you want but trust me. I'll text you soon. I love you honey. See you later. xoxoxo.'

I quickly sent her a message back.

'Thank you baby. I love you too. I trust you baby; I believe you. I wish you were in my arms but I'm glad you are having a good time. It's good you're out of the house. You've been inside too long. Don't make any plans for tomorrow baby; I have a surprise for you. See you later. Love you. xoxoxo.'

Putting the phone in my pocket and a new energy inside me, I went back to work.

All the rooms were done and Esme was working on the finishing touches with Rose. They'd bought hundreds of cushions, pictures, frames, books, music, dvds, lamps, kitchen supplies and everything else.

"Thank you guys for your help. I couldn't have done it without you. You can go home if you want, I can finish up here."

"No that's okay Edward. We are staying till we think it's perfect. Nothing but the best for the Cullens."

"Fine. I'll be upstairs. Call me when you're done."

"Will do Edward."

I ran up the stairs with a bag of things for mine and Bella's new room. I placed a photo on the bedside table. It was of Bella and me on our wedding day, gazing into each other's eyes, my arms around Bella's waist, holding her to me. I placed four other frames on a shelf above the dressing table. One of Bella and her parents, one of me and my biological parents from when I was younger, one of me and my Cullen family and then one of Bella and me, when I was going off to the army and I was in my uniform, holding Bella to me. Then I stacked some of Bella's favourite books around the frames and some of my favourite music. I hung up all the clothes from our apartment in the closet as well as some of the new clothes I ordered for both of us. Then I placed freesia scented candles around the room and lit them to spread the scent throughout the room. I stocked the cabinets with everything from our apartment and new large, fluffy, cotton towels.

"Edward."

"Yes, Rose?"

"We're done."

"Okay. I'm coming."

I walked down the stairs into the living room.

"Wow. This place looks amazing. Thank you Mom, Rose. You're help means a lot to me. Thank you."

I took them both into a hug, tears filling my eyes.

"It was no problem Edward. Family help each other and you and Bella deserve this so much. We didn't do much."

"You did more than enough Mom. Thank you."

They pulled back, smiling at me.

"We're going to head off now Edward. I think you can finish up here."

"I can. Thank you for the help. If it wasn't for you this place wouldn't look half as good as it does. I love you Rose, Mom."

"We love you too Edward. We'll see you later."

"See you later. I'll be about another half hour here."

"Okay son. If you decide you need anything else, ring me and I'll get it for you."

"I think I'll be fine Mom. Go have a rest. You've been working for four hours and Bella's doing the dinner."

"I told you to tell her that she could cook last night if I got my kitchen back today."

"Hey, she texted me telling me she was cooking tonight. Don't blame me. Can you leave her to it tonight though, it is Christmas in a day. She won't be there tomorrow. I'm bringing her here. You can do the cooking tomorrow."

"Fine Edward. I'll leave her tonight. Only because she has a hard week."

"Thank you Mom."

"See you soon Edward."

"Bye Rose, thank you."

"It's okay Edward. I had fun. I'll see you later."

"See you later Mom."

"I'll see you later son. I think we'll have to have Christmas lunch here."

"Sounds like a plan. We'll talk details tonight."

"Okay Edward. See you later."

I walked them to the door and waited until they'd disappeared into the trees of the driveway. I ran round the house, adding personal items to Bella and me in the downstairs rooms as well as the study and our bedroom. Finally I blew out the candles in our room and placed a Christmas card on the kitchen counter before locking the door.