Here it is as promised- The Epilogue! Dun dun DUNNN! Lol I'm really hyper! It's been mentioned about doing something in Jake's POV so I may do that but I'm not sure yet. Watch this space.
BPOV
"Bella! Bella! Wake up!" There were two loud thumps and two bodies landed on my bed.
"Come on Bella! Come on! Do you want to miss the game?" Alice was shrieking at me while Rosalie shook me.
"Ungh." I mumbled and turned over. I heard twin sighs behind me.
"We really didn't want to have to do this…" Alice began.
"But you really leave us no choice." Rosalie completed and then there was a short pause.
Suddenly I was drenched in absolutely freezing water. I screamed and shot into an upright position.
"Alice! Rosalie!" I shrieked.
"Sorry Bella but it was necessary!" They replied with evil grins. My bedroom door slammed open.
"Wuzzgoinon?" Jacob stumbled into the room and scanned it carefully for any signs of danger. His gaze landed on me in my soaked pyjamas and he blushed as the corners of his mouth quirked up into a grin.
"So, uh, Bells. Were you just too tired to get out of bed and go to the shower?" I blushed to as his eyes swept over me once hoping I wouldn't notice. I did.
"Out." I pointed and he grinned cheekily at me before backing out into the hall.
"I'll be on the beach if anyone needs me." He called.
"What on earth is going on between you and Jake?" Rosalie was still settled at the end of my bed, away from the water.
"Yeah I know. When you started telling your story he wasn't crying at all but when you left with Jasper he went outside too, through the back." Alice chirped.
"Yeah and he came back in before you two did and he looked really upset but he wouldn't say anything." Rose and Alice seemed to be developing some freaky ability to read each other's minds and finish the other's sentences.
"And over the past few days he's been really distant. Even Emmett and Demetri say so."
"I talked to Seth and Leah from the reservation. They say he's been spending a lot of time as a wolf but he won't speak to them." They seemed to be finished and looked at me with expectant expression. I looked back at them, dumbfounded.
"Well?" They demanded simultaneously, "What's going on?" I was incredibly freaked out by this point. Rose and Alice were finishing each others sentences, well that wasn't unusual but it was freaky. Jake was acting very weird. Jasper had said that Jake still had feelings for me…
"Oh no!" I cried, slapping my hand to my face.
"Bella what's wrong?" Alice was up and by my side in an instant, staring at me anxiously.
"I need to go." I whispered, "Got to talk to Jake. Privately." I turned numbly for the door and was about to run down the stairs when a warm hand caught my wrist.
"Bella you can't go now!" Rosalie spun me round and pushed me back into my room.
"Why not? This is urgent!" I cried beseechingly.
"Well for starters you're in tiny pyjamas that are stuck to you like a second skin." Alice started.
"Granted that is our fault but you couldn't go anyway." Rosalie concluded mysteriously.
"Why not!" I shrieked again and they both rolled their eyes at me.
"Well first of all there's the football game that Emmett, Edward and Jasper are playing in and then…" They were both speaking to me like I was a two year old who was asking a really obvious question.
"We're going shopping for prom dresses! Remember prom? It's tomorrow and we don't have anything to wear!" Alice squealed as she threw something at me from the wardrobe. I didn't even bother to look at what I was meant to be wearing as I walked into the bathroom to change. I came out two seconds later and slipped a pair of flats on. I headed for the stairs again.
"Where do you think you're going?" Alice shrieked from behind me. There was the sound of running feet and I landed on the floor with an 'oomph'.
"Alice get off!" I muttered.
"No way! You have to come to this game and support Jasper! Remember Jasper? Your boyfriend? You can't just stand him up!" I felt Alice's weight lift and I stumbled to my feet.
"He'll understand. I need to talk to Jake." I walked in the general direction of the stairs and started down them.
"Bella! So help me! I will push you down those stairs if you do not get up here right this instant!" Alice yelled at me and I paused.
"Sorry mum." I stressed the word, "But I need to talk to my brother." With that I ran down the stairs, miraculously not falling flat on my face, and out the front door which I then proceeded to slam behind me. I headed towards the little car that Jake had driven up here but realised I didn't have my keys so I stuffed my hands in my pockets and started walking.
"Bella!" I turned at my name being called and saw a tall figure with black hair coming towards me, had I found Jake already? Then the figure got closer and I realised I was being trailed by Seth Clearwater.
"What's up Seth?" I really wasn't in the mood to talk.
"Nothing really. Just saw you walking and decided to walk with you." He shrugged but I glared at him suspiciously.
"What?!" He cried as we walked.
"Why are you really here? You live down on the res." I said and he stopped so that we were facing each other.
"Now why would you think I didn't tell you the truth? How do you know I don't just walk here on a…Saturday morning." He said innocently and I scowled at him.
"Seth you live in La Push." I said.
"Yes and? Your point there being?" He teased me as my eyes narrowed. I turned around and started walking away from him.
"Hey wait! Bella come back! I was just kidding!" I heard footsteps and he was in front of me.
"Well then tell me." I sat down on a nearby rock and looked up at him expectantly.
"Tell you what?" His face scrunched up in confusion.
"Urgh! Why you're following me!" I cried as he sat beside me.
"Oh right that." He mumbled, not meeting my eyes.
"Seth." I said warningly.
"What would you say if I told you that I was following you because I was worried about you and scared for you? That I didn't want you to be hurt again." He whispered quietly, still not meeting my eyes. I sat, shocked, for a moment and then stood abruptly and continued on my path to the beach.
"No wait! Bella!" He cried and ran after me. My hand, previously trailing through thin air, was encased in another larger, warmer hand. "Bella please let me explain." I shook him off and carried on walking until I was at the edge of the rolling waves. I took off my flats and waded in until the water was swirling around my knees. I was grateful for once that Alice had put me in a skirt. I didn't have to look round to know that Seth stood beside me.
"Explain." I said tersely without even glancing at him.
"you can understand people being worried about you after what you've gone through." he started and I nodded, still not looking at him. "But what I feel is different. I transformed into a wolf a year after your last visit to Esme and Alice and Rosalie. I did everything I had to do and went everywhere I had to but something was missing. I listened to the stories at the bonfires and they explained about a thing called 'imprint'. Do you know what that is?" he asked and I had to look at him.
"No, I've never heard of it." I replied and returned to staring at the sea.
"It's a process a wolf goes through when he meets his soul mate." I could tell he was about to say more but I interrupted.
"Why are you telling me this." I asked even though I was sure I didn't want to know.
"The first time I saw you after you came back was last week when you came into the basement on Jake's back. I saw every injury you had and I felt a murderous rage rise through me. I wanted to kill every bloodsucker who had hurt you and I wanted to do it by myself even though they were already long gone. And then I looked at your face and everything melted away. The rage, the anger and the twisting hate. All that mattered was you and that you were happy. I felt like nothing else mattered in the world except for you." I was watching his face from the corner of my eye and as he spoke his face lit up. We turned towards each other in the same second but I was still so confused.
"You said that nothing mattered apart from me and my happiness right?" I checked and he nodded with a face-stretching grin plastered across his features.
"Well at the moment I need to talk to my brother. What would make me happy would be if you left me alone." I didn't mean to say it so coldly and his face crumpled.
"Please Bella. I only want to see you happy." He whispered. I stared up into his eyes and wondered if this was some sort of twisted joke but there was nothing but pure honesty there.
"Seth…" I started but his arms were wrapping around my waist and his head was very slowly coming closer to mine…
"HEY!" Seth jumped away from me startled and I sucked in a deep breath, "Get away from her!" Jake's voice continued to ring out across the beach and I could hear the splashing as he ran through the water towards us. He shoved himself between me and Seth.
"Get out of here." he growled and there was a strange double layer to his voice. Seth stood glaring at him for a moment and then turned on his heel and ran into the woods. Jake turned to me and I flinched away from his anger. His features cleared.
"Sorry." He muttered, "Are you okay?" He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close to his chest. Seeing him made me remember why I'd come out here in the first place. Oh if only I'd listened to Alice.
"I'm fine." I murmured softly, "Just a little shocked that's all." He held me at arms length and inspected me for any signs of harm.
"Did he hurt you?" he demanded and I shook my head before pulling away from him completely and wading out of the cold water. Jake soon caught up and I followed him to a large piece of driftwood that we used as a seat. We sat in silence for a long time and then Jake sucked a breath in and I looked at him. His expression was conflicted, like he was trying to fight a storm.
"Jake what's wrong?" I asked, alarmed. He was shaking slightly and I put my hand on his arm to calm him down. He focused and looked at me.
"Just seeing him there. Touching you. Almost kissing you." He snarled, his hands curling into tight fists as his shaking resumed. I took his chin in my hand and forced him to look at me.
"Calm." I whispered and he shook himself, "I'm fine." He relaxed as he stared at me.
"Are you sure?" I wasn't sure why we were both whispering but it seemed like the right thing to do.
"I'm sure. Are you okay? You've been so distant lately." He shook his head so my hand released his chin and he turned to stare at the waves.
"I heard what Jasper said to you." He mumbled, "The night you returned home. When you went outside with him I went out through the back door and eavesdropped. Bells even if I do still feel a tiny bit of love towards you I will always be your big brother." He whispered and I stared at him incredulously; had he just admitted to still being in love with me? He didn't look at me and I jumped as he stood up suddenly. He held his hand out to me.
"Come on. Alice and Rose will be worrying and you've got a game to go to." I took his hand and he pulled me to my feet. He didn't let go for a while and we stood staring at each other until his phone buzzed.
I'm walkin' on sunshine! Whoa oh!
I'm walkin' on sunshine! Whoa oh!
I'm walkin' on sunshine! Whoa oh!
And don't it feel good?
Jacob sighed and flipped his phone open.
"Hi Alice." he muttered into the speaker. Then he proceeded to hold the phone away from his ear as Alice's shrill voice screamed through it.
"Where's Bella?! Where is she?! Is she okay?! Is she safe?! Answer me if you want to have children!" I laughed quietly but Jacob's eyes were wide with fright.
"Whoa! Calm down, stop blasting my eardrum and don't threaten me like that again!" He cried back and her voice poured out again.
"I'm not kidding! Answer me!" I rolled my eyes and grabbed the phone from him.
"Alice I'm fine." I said and held the phone away from my ear like Jake had done.
"Oh thank goodness! We were getting so worried! I thought I told you to never do that to me again!" I hesitated and then pulled the phone back to my ear.
"Alice I told you I was going to talk to Jake and he told us earlier that he'd be at the beach. Remember?" I waited while she thought about it.
"Right, so are you done talking yet? Are you on your way home? I think we can still make it to the game before it starts." She jabbered on and on and Jake sighed as he tugged the phone free of my hand.
"Al? Be waiting on the porch ok? We'll be there in a minute." He clicked the phone shut and pulled his shirt off (All Jake fans go ahhhhhhh- me included) and I frowned at him.
"Uh Jake what are you doing?" I asked as he started to pull his shoes off.
"I said we'd be home in a minute. You really didn't think we'd get home that fast walking at this pace did you?" He flashed one of his stellar smiles at me. "We're going to the game. Wolf style." I stood there, mouth open as he disappeared into a bush. I heard a small explosion and then the russet wolf came running back to my side. I caught sight of the small glint in his eye and then his head came down and he somehow flicked me onto his back.
"Jake!" I complained but his body shook with silent laughter and he ran in the direction of the house/
Rosalie and Alice were waiting on the porch as promised and their eyes grew huge at the sight of me.
"Bella what's going on?" Rosalie squeaked as they cautiously approached us.
"We've got a football game to get to." I suddenly looked down at my outfit, "Apparently we're cheerleaders." Alice giggled happily.
"Your not actually going to be doing the cheering with the squad, Your going to be sitting in the front row cheering on our boys with all your might with Rose beside you. I'm the cheer captain and if we don't hurry we're going to miss the game.
"That's why Jake is wolf-form. Even your Porsche wouldn't get us there on time." Impossibly their eyes grew wider. To my surprise Rose shrugged and climbed on behind me. Alice seemed to be frozen and then she sighed.
"Fine but if this messes my hair up you will pay." Jake stood from his crouch and suddenly a thought occurred to me.
"Won't Edward and Jasper be mad if Jake shows up? What with the whole thing between wolves and vampires I mean." To my surprise Alice and Rose laughed.
"You're so forgetful Bella!" Rose gasped, "Don't you remember that this game is between Forks High and the La Push wolves? It's only wolves playing for the other team." She explained but I was still confused. Alice saw my expression and laughed again.
"One of the most vital La Push players is sitting out due to an injury they got when they were rescuing you. Leah won't fill in because she's going to be watching Paul to make sure he doesn't move around too much and all the other wolves who could have played are busy. Besides Jake wanted to play." She shrugged and I turned to watch the forest we were running through flash by. We arrived at the school in no time.
"Hey!" Jasper and Edward met us at the entrance to the stands, all ready to go. "I nearly thought you weren't coming." he said as he pulled me off Jake's back while Edward helped the other two down.
"I wouldn't want to miss you guys getting your butts kicked." I teased as we ran inside. He lead me to my seat and kissed me before running to the middle of the field where everyone was waiting.
"Popcorn?" Demetri leaned forwards from his seat behind us with a huge bucket of popcorn in his hands.
"Mm yes please!" I reached for it enthusiastically and held onto it while Demetri climbed down into a seat beside Rose.
"You girls excited?" He asked as we munched.
"You bet! Emmett is gonna shine! The boy may not be the brightest but he sure can play football!" Rosalie cried as the cheerleaders danced and chanted. I tried to forget that Seth was staring at me as I answered too.
"I agree Rose but there's still the possibility of the wolves winning. Jasper, Edward and Emmett are only three people and then there's the rest of their team who don't really look up to tackling a La Push boy. The La Push team is all wolf remember." They both laughed at that and then we leaned back to watch the game unfold.
Half-time came around quickly with a dead tie and Jasper, Edward and Emmett jogged over to sit with us. After a small hesitation Jake and some of the other Quileute boys joined us while we watched Alice and her cheer squad.
"Hey! We're back!
The best is yet to come!
F-H-S Look out for number 1!
Excellence, perfection, teamwork, success!
Forks High School, a step above the rest!
Pride and spirit!
Need we say more?
F-H-S We rock the floor!"
Everyone clapped and shouted as they finished in a pyramid with Alice perched proudly on the top. She winked at us and flipped off. The La Push cheerleaders did a few routines while the Forks squad got some rest. Everyone in our little group was laughing and chattering happily but I noticed Edward glancing at Seth with a disbelieving expression on his face. I would have buried my face in my hands right there if Jasper hadn't been sitting with his arm around me. Apparently Seth had forgotten Edward's ability and was thinking about our morning at the beach. Edward's eyes flicked over to me and his eyebrows rose. Luckily Jasper and Emmett were laughing about something and he didn't notice.
I glanced sharply at him, warning him with my eyes and an emotion I didn't recognise flickered across his features before his face became a mask and he turned away. I knew he was going to be watching me carefully after this.
"Bella I have to go." Jasper stood, dropped a chaste kiss onto my forehead and jogged onto the field with the others. Alice came and flopped into his vacant seat. She immediately grabbed a bottle of water and drank until she stopped panting.
"Did you see that?" She squeaked breathlessly, "We totally showed those La Push girls! And they call themselves cheerleaders!" I let her babble on until the whistle blew and I hushed her. It started off well for the wolves with Jake getting possession of the ball frequently but then the tables turned as Jasper stole the ball and made off down hill. After that the game evened up but I wasn't paying much attention. I was too busy thinking about all that had happened this morning and the emotion that had crossed Edward's face. I didn't notice the game had ended until the stands around me exploded in a roar of applause. I dragged myself to my feet and join in as enthusiastically as I could.
Jasper found me straight away and kissed me in front of everyone.
"We won Bella!" He cried, "We won!" I wasn't really listening to him talk about the game, he didn't notice as he was surrounded by the adoring crowd, I was watching two large figures walk away as slowly as they could manage until they could bear it no more and flat out sprinted for the woods. I faintly heard an explosion and saw some shreds of fabric float to the ground as Seth and Jacob tore away into the forest.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Bella!" Alice was jumping up and down in excitement as I made my way carefully around the store with three coffees in my hand. "Over here! Over here! I've found the perfect dress for you!" A sigh escaped my mouth but thankfully she didn't hear me. This was the 22nd "perfect" dress she had found.
"No Alice! No full length dresses! You know I find it hard to walk even without a long skirt to fall over!" She looked at me with her puppy dog eyes.
"But Bella." She whined, "It's so pretty!" I had to admit it was beautiful. The top section was all straps crossed over each other in blue and a small bit of white. The blue flowed out until it reached about hip-length and then it faded into white and into turquoise half-way down the mannequin's calf.
"No." I said firmly and turned away from it. "There's nothing here, let's go somewhere else." She opened her mouth to complain but Rose appeared at my elbow and rescued me.
"Alice she's right. And besides this means we can go and drink our coffee." Alice immediately started bouncing on the spot at the mention of coffee.
"Caramel latte for you." I handed Alice a steaming cup and turned to Rose, "Mocha for you and I keep the cappuccino." We sat down on a nearby bench and started drinking while Rose and Alice discussed the dresses we had seen so far. Eventually we stood up and continued our hunt.
Alice had been complaining about my limits in the first few shops but she had stopped now although she still muttered things under her breath.
"No metallic, shiny dresses. No sequin covered dresses. No pink, yellow or orange dress. No dot covered ones and none shorter than mid-thigh. No giant bows either. Or weird fussy collars. Or padded shoulders. Fringe, no. Slashed fabric, no." There had been a couple more I'd said and she looked like she was about to cry.
"Bella you've not given me anything at all to work with!" She had cried.
"Bella! Come here!" I was interrupted from my musings by Rose throwing a dress at me and pushing me into the closest dressing-room.
I shrugged out of my clothes and pulled the dress over my head.
"Rose you're the best!" I exclaimed as I examined myself in the mirror. It was a very simple dress, blue with thick black straps that crossed over my back. A V neckline with a thick black band beneath it and then the dress fell to mid-thigh. (outfits on my profile)
"Well come out here so we can see you!" Alice called and I shifted the curtain out of the way. They sighed as I came into view and I did a little twirl with my arms above my head.
"That's perfect!" Rose cried.
"Now it's our turn!" Alice cried and they pushed past me into the changing room.
Alice came out first on a short black dress with studs around the waist band and on the thin straps that crossed her back. The skirt was the same length as mine but tutu styled so it flared out.
Rose was, of course, wearing a red dress. It was strapless satin and unremarkable until it reached the skirt which was many layers of fabric, folded to make it look incredible. The skirt fell longer than ours, reaching to just above her knee. Alice squealed happily.
"We look gorgeous!" She screamed, "Now we need to pay for these and find some equally gorgeous shoes!" We hurried to change and pay and then we were on our way to the shoe shops.
Alice quickly found a pair of four-inch black heels with several straps and Rose was next with some red heels with a detailed front. It took me a while to find the perfect pair but eventually the reached out to me.
They were simple shoes, just blue courts with the same height heels as Rose. There was a cute blue bow on the front, made of a shiny blue plastic kind of thing that I loved.
Eventually we headed back to the car with shoes, dresses, jewellery and bags as well as some sweets for the party we were having tonight in celebration of the game.
"That was so much fun! Oh Bella I got you an outfit for the party!" Alice flung a bag in my direction as we were unpacking all of our stuff. That explained why she'd had more bags than Rosalie and me.
To my surprise it was a relatively simple outfit, a long shirt that hit the top of my thigh with a thick belt around the middle and some loose black shorts. However I did not like the shoes she chose for me.
"Come on Bella! They're awesome!" She cried as she waved the shoes in front of my face. They were black peep-toe ankle boots with weird mesh bits. They were also 5 inches high.
"Please Bella?" She pouted adorably and then an evil grin came onto her face, "If you don't I'll get Edward to tell me what you were glaring at him for this morning." She threatened and horror washed over me. How did she even see that? She was on top of a pyramid at the time. Luckily Rose was in the bathroom doing her make-up so she wouldn't hear.
"You wouldn't." I was happy to find that my voice was low and even rather than high and shaky like I'd been expecting.
"I would." She replied as she put the finishing touches to her hair. Her dress was grey with a plunging neckline and she'd accessorised it with a black beaded necklace. Her shoes were black suede lace-up ankle boots.
Rose was in a black mini with a thick waist and gentle pleats and she had teamed it with a simple white vest under the skirt and bright pink peep-toe platforms.
We all had on the same make-up apart from our lip colour: smoky eyes and black liner. Rose had on bright pink lip gloss to match her shoes, Alice was wearing a subtle yet shimmery shade of peach and mine were a medium red.
"Girls we look fabulous!" Alice cried as we showed off to each other, "Now let's go down and help Mum put the finishing touches to the party!"
By the time we were finished decorating the living room had transformed completely. There were disco lights everywhere and a huge music system with a dance floor in front of it. Food tables were spread around the edges of the room and I had to say Esme had outdone herself with the food. There was even a giant cake with the Forks High uniform on it.
"Esme this is awesome!" I cried as she crept up the stairs to get out of the way, "Thank you so much."
"Your welcome. Has anyone seen Jacob lately?" She asked from the top of the stairs.
"No I haven't seen him since the end of the game." Alice replied and I wondered if she'd seen him run off too.
"I'll go down to the beach and see if he's there." I turned for the door and opened it just as Emmett put his hand up to knock.
"Hey Bells! Leaving already?" He swept me into a bone-crushing hug.
"Emmett…can't…breathe." I gasped until Jasper tugged me out of his brother's arms and folded me into his own.
"Like Emmett said: you leaving already darlin'?" He asked with his southern twang.
"Yeah I need to find Jake." I said as I pulled out of his arms and started back on my course to the beach.
"Alright. I'll see you inside." I could hear some doubt in his voice but put it behind me as I stepped onto the sand.
"Jake?" I called, "You out here?" I scanned the beach in the fading light but could see nothing so I turned back to the house that was now full of people. Somehow Alice found me in the crowd.
"Hey." She panted, "You find him?"
"Nah. I don't think he's out there." I replied and her eyebrows drew low on her forehead. She dragged me onto the dance floor and we danced a bit and then she dragged me off to the edge of the room.
"Did you see the way he took off this morning?" She asked when we stopped by a food table. "Who was that running with him?"
"Yeah I saw it. I think Seth went with him." I shrugged even though I knew it had been Seth. Suddenly I was angry. "Al I need some air. I'll be outside if you need me, ok?" I asked and she nodded before turning to dance with Demetri. I hurried through the kitchen and out the back door where I collapsed onto the bench in the garden.
Why was my life so complicated? My boyfriend's a vampire and my brother is a wolf. Why couldn't I just be a normal girl.
"Hey Bella." Jasper's familiar form appeared out of the darkness and he sat down next to me. "You alright darlin'?" He asked, draping his arm round my shoulders.
"Yeah I'm alright." I answered while curling into his side, "Just wondering when my life became so complicated." I sighed and he chuckled slightly.
"I wondered what was with all the confusion coming from out here. Your life probably got confusing when you met me." He said and we sat in silence for a while. The music changed and Jasper pulled me to my feet.
"May I have this dance?" He asked sincerely and I giggled.
"Of course!" He took my hand and we twirled around the garden crazily, laughing like mad.
"You feeling better now?" He asked when we stopped twirling. I beamed up at him.
"Yes I am. Now let's go inside and be sociable or Alice will send everyone out looking for me." I giggled and he laughed at me.
"Your wish is my command." He bowed with a smirk on his face and then ground disappeared from beneath me as he picked me up and threw me onto his shoulder.
"Hey!" I was giggling more madly than ever now, "Put me down!" I cried and pounded on his back with my fists.
"You trying to hurt me? That feels like someone's hitting me with a pillow." He teased as he set me down at the doorway and we walked in holding hands. People were gradually starting to leave now and the music had been turned down low. I scanned the room for Alice and found her slumped on a sofa, fast asleep.
"Bella we need to leave." Jasper tapped my shoulder and I whirled to face him as confusion painted my face.
"We do?" I asked as he wrapped his arms around me.
"Not you and I silly." he chuckled, "I mean Emmett, Edward and I." He laughed and twirled me round again.
"Ohh, ok!" I said and he laughed before bending in to kiss me. He planted one more light kiss on my lips before letting me go.
"I'll see you soon yeah?" he asked as Emmett and Edward stumbled past him.
"Soon as possible." I promised and he grinned before running to the car. He waved and then I closed the door and turned around to see Rose starting to clear up. I went over to Alice's sleeping form and shook her shoulder gently.
"Al? Al wake up." I whispered and she stirred, mumbled something and turned over, "Al if we don't get this mess cleaned up now we'll have to do it tomorrow and that means less getting read time for the prom." I whispered and was aware of Rose at my shoulder.
"3...2...1..." She counted down and right on time Alice sprang up from the sofa.
"Did someone say prom?" She cried and immediately started flying around the room tidying. Rose and I looked at each other, shrugged and cleared up the bits she missed. We were done in no time and the second we were finished Alice drooped back onto the sofa and started to snore lightly. Rose shook her head and started up the stairs towards her room. I sighed and scooped Alice up in my arms.
"Come on." I said to her lifeless form, "If you sleep like that you won't be able to dance tomorrow."
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
"Bella wake up now or you will start your day wet and cold again!" Alice was jumping up and down on my bed in excitement. I yanked the covers up and over my chin and she fell onto the floor with a loud thump.
"Hey!" She protested and I could see her pouting in my mind, "Fine. I'll just go and get the water." I wasn't paying attention to what she was saying as I was halfway between sleeping and waking. Then I got soaked again.
"Alice!" I screamed but no-one came crashing through the door like yesterday. Alice seemed to realise this too.
"Isn't Jake here?" She asked, already on her feet on the way to the door. I was right behind her. His door was open and we peeked round it to see an empty bed and an empty room.
"Maybe he just went out for a morning run." Alice suggested quietly and led me back to my room.
5 hours later
"Girls!" Esme called, "Lunchtime." We had been in my room for 5 hours, scrubbing and oiling and buffing and every other thing you could imagine. The prom started at 5 at Alice was freaking out that we didn't have enough time.
"Alice calm." I muttered around a mouthful of pasta, "We'll be fine."
"Fine? Fine?!" She shrieked, "We only have four and a half hours left! Four when we've finished eating! We still have to do our hair and our make-up and get our dresses on and our shoes and jewellery. We do not have time!" She screeched and I blew a breath out.
"Listen to me." I said, pulling her back into her seat, "We. Will. Be. Fine." She huffed and started spooning pasta into her mouth before pulling us back upstairs to keep getting ready.
3 and a half hours later
"See. I told you we'd be fine." I said as I came out of the bathroom where I'd been getting dressed carefully so as not to ruin my hair or make-up. Alice threw a necklace over my head and tossed some earrings at me.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Your psychic." She said, "Hurry up and put those on. We need to get you into your shoes." She said as she fastened a small black choker around her neck. Rose came hurrying into the room looking gorgeous but stressed.
"The guys are here." She explained as she pushed silver earrings through her ears. Alice shrieked and threw some things in my bag which she then pushed towards me.
"Shoes." She commanded, "Now." I obliged and pulled my phone out of my bag.
"I need to make a quick phone call." I told them and headed out onto the balcony without another word.
"Hello?" Quil picked up after a few rings.
"Hi Quil." I said hastily, "Has there been any sign of Jake or Seth?" I asked.
"No sorry. Whenever we go on patrol they either ignore us or phase back. Sorry Bella but they really don't want to talk to anyone right now." He replied and I sighed.
"Thanks Quil. See you." I distantly heard him say good-bye and then I hung up and dashed back into my room to finish the "mission" as Alice called it.
Fifteen minutes later we were ready.
"I'll go down first." Alice was telling us how we were going to go down the stairs, "Then Rose. Then you." She pointed to me, "Try not to fall Bella." She pleaded and then turned to face into the living room. I heard Esme sigh as Alice descended and Demetri and Emmett wolf-whistled jokingly before Esme took several dozen photos.
"You look beautiful." I heard Demetri say before Rose followed Alice's footsteps. I could practically hear Emmett's jaw dropping open and I giggled quietly. The snap of Esme's camera stopped and I knew it was my turn. I placed one foot on the first step with my hand resting on the banister. At first my eyes were resting on my feet but I heard someone suck in a breath and looked from my feet straight into Jasper's remarkable eyes.
"Bella." He breathed, catching me as I stumbled down the last step, "You are beyond words tonight." Esme's camera clicked and I blushed as I turned to look at everyone. Jasper was wearing a white shirt but he'd left the top three buttons undone and there was a loose black blazer on top. Dark jeans encased his legs and ended in navy Converse. Emmett and Demetri were dressed similarly but Demetri was wearing a blue blazer and a black tie with little studs around the knot to match Alice's dress. Emmett was in a black blazer but his shirt was silver and he was wearing a bright red tie. I stifled a laugh. Apparently Alice had been busy making sure everyone co-ordinated.
Jasper leaned down and kissed my forehead carefully as Esme snapped away and I giggled as I looked deeply into his eyes.
"Come on princess." He teased, "Your carriage awaits." He swept his arm towards the door and I laughed and tucked my arm through his. Emmett and Demetri were close behind with Rose and Alice but the three of us stopped dead as we saw what was waiting for us.
Jasper had not been kidding. There was a large, open horse-drawn carriage waiting for us in the fading light. There was a team of three white horses, one with red ribbons plaited into its mane, one with blue and another with black. Alice, Rose and I squealed quietly at the same time so as not to scare the horses.
"Come on darlin'. The prom awaits!" Jasper lifted me into the carriage and sat beside me. We waited while Rose and Alice were lifted in and then Emmett and Demetri followed them before we were off, trotting through the empty streets.
"This is so romantic." Alice sighed and we nodded in agreement. All too soon we were pulling up at the school. Everyone's attention immediately focused on us and I gulped as I thought about getting down from the high carriage and dancing. Jasper sensed my fear.
"Don't worry." He whispered so no-one else could hear, "I won't let you fall." I smiled at him gratefully and then he lifted me down.
"Bella!" Angela waved at me from beside a silver Aston Martin that Edward was leaning against. Angela looked absolutely beautiful in a light green dress with a sequinned halter neck and a skirt that flowed to the knee.
"Angela!" I cried, dragging Jasper over to them, "You look fantastic!" She grinned and held out her foot so I could see her shoes clearly.
"You like?" She asked. Dark green heels that were taller than mine with a knotted peep-toe front.
"I love!" I cried.
"Thanks. You look incredible too!" She squealed and linked her arm through my free one. Edward took up her free arm and we walked in to the gym hall together.
"Wow they've transformed this place!" Angela and I said at the same time as we looked around in awe. It was definitely not recognisable as a gym hall.
"Edward what are they doing here?" I heard Jasper mutter and turned to him, concerned.
"Who?" I asked before Edward could answer. Jasper discreetly pointed out several giants in the room and I realised some of the wolves had come. I scanned the crowd anxiously for any sign of Jake or Seth but found none. Quil noticed me scrutinising the room and shook his head sadly as he mouthed 'sorry' at me.
"Bella darlin' you been havin' a hard time lately." Jasper spoke and I realised we were alone. I spotted Edward and Angela on the dance floor. Edward met my gaze and stared piercingly at me. "Let's dance. You need to forget about it all." He took my hand and led me into the midst of the dancers.
"Jasper I won't be able to dance in these shoes." I worried and he smiled gently.
"I promised I wouldn't let you fall remember?" He took my waist in his hands and lifted me slightly until I found myself resting on his feet. He grinned at me and then we were flying around the room. I caught sight of faces I knew in the crowd and I laughed when I saw Jessica and Lauren both in hideous neon pink dresses with identical scowls on their faces. Predictably they were staring at Edward and Jasper. I smirked and planted a solid kiss on Jasper's lips.
"Lauren and Jessica?" He asked as the corners of his mouth turned up.
"You guessed it." I laughed and he shook his head.
"No. Edward can read their minds remember. Look at Angela." Angela was glaring hard at her sisters whenever she could. She winked at me and kissed Edward like I had just done to Jasper. Jessica and Lauren got up and stomped outside as we laughed our heads off.
"Hey bro!" Suddenly Emmett was in front of us with Rose in tow. She looked very out of breath and her hair was coming down. I grinned at her and she grinned back.
"What's up Em?" Jasper paused in our dancing and I climbed carefully off his feet.
"We're doing a swap!" Emmett said proudly to Jasper, "I get Bella, you get Angela, Demetri gets Rosie and Edward gets the hyper pixie over there. Every new song and we swap again. So for instance next I get Angela and you get Alice." He pointed to where Alice was bouncing up and down on her heels. Jasper laughed and handed me over to Emmett before heading over to Angela and Edward and explaining the swap. Angela grinned as Edward's mouth turned down when he surveyed Alice. Emmett seemed to realise I wasn't going to do much in my heels so he set me on his feet like Jasper had done.
"Bells I have to say you look hot tonight!" he grinned at me but unfortunately we were dancing past Jasper and Rose with their partners at the moment. His compliment earned him a slap from both of them. He winced but grinned at me anyway and spun me like a child until my feet were flying through the air behind me. We were both giggling crazily when the song finished and Emmett set me back on the ground so Demetri could take over.
"You do look very nice tonight." He offered but he didn't seem to be up to the feet thing so we just kind of swayed on the spot while Emmett spun Angela until she was dizzy. Eventually the song ended and Edward came and took over.
I refused to look at him until he sighed and lifted me onto my feet and started spinning me away from prying ears. Well, mainly he was spinning us away from the Emmett and Alice zone because Alice had decided she wanted to fly so Emmett was just holding her hands and swinging her round and round while people edged away as fast as they could.
"Bella." Edward said and my attention focused on him. He opened his mouth but I shook my head, already knowing what was going to come.
"Edward I don't want to talk about it. Everything's so complicated that I just want to have this night with no problems." He was silent for a while and I thought he'd actually heeded my words and wasn't going to bother me. That thought disappeared quickly with his next words.
"Did you kiss Seth?" He murmured very quietly so no-one could hear us, not even those with extra-strong hearing.
"No." I said and refused to say more.
"He was thinking about it at the game yesterday. That's the only reason they lost because he wasn't focused. He was thinking about kissing you and it didn't seem like a fantasy, seemed like a memory." He said sharply and I realised we were now outside.
"Well we didn't actually kiss no matter what he was thinking." I denied but he raised an eyebrow.
"You didn't actually kiss? What do you mean by that?" He asked suspiciously and I sighed before pretending to zip my lips shut. However because he'd mentioned it I was now thinking about the scene in the sea.
"Oh so he was going to kiss you until Jacob interrupted." Edward mused and I gasped, "How interesting."
"I thought you couldn't read my mind!" I accused and he smiled sheepishly.
"Apparently I can now. It seems I couldn't when I…when I…" He stuttered and I sighed before completing his sentence.
"When you had feelings for me." I finished and he nodded.
"Exactly and it stayed that way until I met Angela. Then I could hear you loud and clear." he explained and it was turn to raise an eyebrow.
"Have you told anyone this?" I asked and he looked down.
"No." He muttered, "Not yet." I smiled as I realised I'd got him off the entire Seth subject. "Well you had until you started thinking about it again." Edward raised his head and grinned at me before opening his mouth to say more but luckily for me he was interrupted by a loud scream followed by several choicy curses. We immediately dashed inside to find Alice covered in punch and Emmett rolling on the ground with laughter even though he was covered from head to toe in food.
"What happened?" I asked Angela who was clutching her stomach as she laughed.
"Emmett put Alice on his shoulders and they were twirling around madly but then Emmett tripped over Jasper's foot and he landed on the buffet table while Alice landed in the punch bowl." She explained between laughs. I immediately looked at Jasper and he winked at me as he laughed. I made my way to his side and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder.
"I thought I would get payback on Alice for torturing you for about 8 hours." He chuckled, "Emmett was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and helped out without knowing."
"Jasper Cullen I'm ashamed of you!" I scolded, but my anger was fake and I only whacked his shoulder Playfully which resulted in nothing but a sore hand for me. "I appreciate the thought though." I paused. "Actually I appreciate the entire thing!" I joined in everyone's laughter until my stomach hurt and then I stumbled forwards to a very angry Alice who was still yelling at Emmett.
"Come on Al." I chirped and she glowered at Emmett before turning to me, "We need to get you home and changed before the punch absolutely ruins that dress." She pouted.
"But Bella." She whined, "I need to get revenge on Emmett and I need to tell Jasper to keep his feet to himself!" I just laughed.
Rose appeared at my side and together we marched a very sticky Alice home.
That was a lot longer than I had originally planned because I decided to stick some extra details in there that will be further explained in the sequel! Any questions you can put in reviews and I will answer as well as I can in the author's note that will tell you the name and summary of the sequel. Send me any questions or just tell me if you enjoyed it or not!