DISCLAIMER: The characters do not belong to me…they are all the creation of the wonderful Stephenie Meyer.

Bella-Free Day – Part 1

Edward's POV

"No, Alice," Bella hissed.

I struggled to wake up, wanting to know what dream had Bella so angry with my big sister.

"Not yet," Bella said sternly. "Go away and I'll be down in a half hour."

I managed to open my eyes just as I saw the bedroom door swinging closed. It hadn't been a dream; Alice was in the house and that could only mean it was Sunday. I'd been looking forward to this day almost as much as I'd been dreading it. Bella hadn't spent an entire day away from me since she'd told me she was pregnant.

Bella huffed out a breath and then turned over. A shocked look filled her face when she saw that I was awake. "Damn it, Alice," she sighed. "Sorry, Edward. I was trying to make her leave so that I could wake you in a nice way. She wanted me to leave you to wake to an empty bed."

I wrapped my arms around Bella and drew her closer, kissing her forehead. "Thank you. It would have definitely started the morning off wrong if you hadn't been here."

"That's what I told the pixie," Bella said, snuggling closer to me. "She seems moody, though. Normally, she would have taken the first 'no' and pouted a little. But this time, I had to tell her 'no' five or six times and she looked like she was going to cry."

"I think she's just stressed out holding in that huge secret. Jasper made her swear to let him announce the outcome of the promotion at dinner tonight. Honestly, I'm shocked she's keeping it together so well after a full forty-eight hours of keeping it to herself."

"I hope that's it. I'd hate to think anything was really upsetting Alice."

"I'm sure a day with her best friends and her mother will lift her spirits greatly."

"Yep! She has the whole day planned out."

"So when you leave, I won't see you again until dinner," I mentioned. "I'm not even allowed to call you."

"True," Bella agreed. "But I'm allowed to call you. What if I call you half-way through the day?"

"I would love that, Bella," I said honestly. "I know we have to get used to doing things without the other again, especially with the baby coming, but I'm not ready to give you up."

"You're not really giving me up, though. It's only going to be a day here or there. Unless I decide to stay at home with the baby. But you'll have me every Saturday and Sunday regardless, and we'll have our little baby with us to make it that much more special."

"Do you think you'll stay home?"

"I really don't know. I like the idea and hate it all at the same time."

"Just know that if you want to, you can."

"I know. I also know what a mess it'll be to explain it to Em."

"Just preface it by saying that it's a short-term thing. Knowing you, you'll want to go back to work as soon as our child is ready for Pre-K."

"That's sort of what I was thinking of doing. I'd have school hours and I could arrange all of my classes to be in the morning so I could get home in the early afternoon. By the time you got off, I'd have him settled and dinner on the table."

"You really have been thinking about this a lot. Why haven't you mentioned it before now?"

"I don't know. It just never seemed like the right time. There was always some mini-drama or something else going on. But I was thinking about it again Friday and when I mentioned it to James—"

"James? Why are you talking about it to James?"

"Because he was there," she shrugged. "You know how I am when a sudden thought pops into my head." She put her hands on my cheeks, smiling at me. "You aren't upset I mentioned it to him, are you?"

"Not really. I guess I just would have preferred you talking to me about it instead."

"I'm talking to you about it now, silly. It wasn't like I planned to discuss it with him. The thought jumped into my head, you'd just left my class and he'd just walked in. I guess I could have run off after you, but I doubt you like that idea any better."

"No, definitely not."

"So maybe now you can remind me to talk to you about it sometime this week. I keep making all these mental notes, but I still don't seem to have any sort of short-term memory."

"Doctor Johnson said it'll come back once the baby is born."

"I hope so. It's driving me nuts," Bella cried. "I write a list of what I need to do and then forget where I put the list. It's down right infuriating."

"So next time you make a list, bring it to me and I'll hold onto it for you," I suggested.

"Sounds like a great plan, Tutor-boy," she chuckled. She leaned her head up just a little and pressed her lips to mine, giving me a tender kiss. "I have to go," she sighed.

"Not yet," I said, holding her close.

"Edward, you know how Alice gets. Besides, she made appointments for a few things and I won't be the reason we miss them. Now, I love you, I will miss you, and I will see you tonight."

"Are Jasper and Emmett here?"

"No. Alice decided that part of the day should consist of you three sleeping in. They've been given strict instructions to be here by nine-thirty, though. You can go back to sleep for an hour and still have plenty of time to shower and get ready before they arrive."

I looked past Bella at the alarm clock and had to bite down a few choice words. "Bella, it's seven-forty-five in the morning. Doesn't my sister realize you need sleep more than any of us?"

"I picked the time, not her. I wanted you to have a real day of freedom. Eight in the morning to eight at night. Please don't fight me on this and just enjoy it," she pleaded, using those brown eyes against me.

"Fine," I sighed, removing my arms from her. "Go on before I change my mind."

"I love you," she whispered, kissing me one last time.

"I love you, too."

"Go back to sleep. I've already set the alarm for you."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." She smiled and then left our bed and our room. I assumed that meant Bella would be getting dressed in Alice's old bedroom, wearing whatever my sister had picked out for this day.

I rolled onto my back and stared up at the ceiling. I'd only come up with a few things to do today and they weren't going to take up a full twelve hours. Maybe Jasper and Emmett would have some ideas. Regardless, Bella had put a lot of thought into this, talking to Alice and Rosalie about it almost every night this week—the least I could do was follow her instructions. So I closed my eyes and attempted to fall asleep without my wife at my side.

The alarm went off and I quickly discovered that getting up without Bella was a very strange thing. She liked to say she wasn't a morning person, but she was always the one to talk first in the morning. She liked to go over our schedule for the day and it always took her from the moment she got up until we pulled into the school parking lot for her to finish—my wife enjoyed her tangents. Then again, so did I.

"Edward, are you up?" my father called, knocking on my door.

I jogged over and opened the door for him. "Morning."

"Morning, Son," he chuckled. "You look a little lost."

"Maybe a little," I agreed, grinning at him.

"I know the feeling," he said, nodding his head. "Your breakfast is in the oven."

"Breakfast?"

"Bella had your mother make her strawberry pancakes for your breakfast," he explained.

"I can't get over how much she wanted me to have a day like this. And to go so far as to ask mom to make her Christmas Eve pancakes…" I shook my head, not knowing how I wanted to finish that sentence.

"Your mother says Bella is trying to show you how much she appreciates everything you've done and everything you will do during her pregnancy."

"She really doesn't need to. She's already told me about a hundred times."

"Bella has always been very appreciative of every little kindness done for her."

"Like with James," I muttered.

My dad barked out a laugh. "Son, are you jealous of Bella's rescuer?"

"Not really," I shrugged.

"Right," he said, grinning and crossing his arms.

"A little. But you don't need to say anything. I know it's silly and there's no reason for it. It just…I thought having him join us for lunch on Wednesday would be the end, but then he seemed to be everywhere we were on Thursday, when he doesn't have Bella's class, and of course, we saw him again on Friday. And then Bella told me this morning that she had been discussing plans about our future with him."

"Did you ever stop to think how refreshing it must be for Bella to have a friend outside of our family? Someone who isn't fussing over her and the baby every second of the day?"

"He just seems a little too attentive," I replied.

"Edward, unless this young man invites himself along to one of Bella's doctor appointments, I don't see where you have anything to worry about. Your wife is a friendly person, and a fair judge of character. You can bet that if James acts inappropriate with her in any way, she will let him, and you, know."

"You're right, Dad. I'm just over-thinking, like usual."

"Sorry," he said, patting my back. "You get that from me."

I laughed as we left my room and headed down the stairs. "Couldn't you have given me tamable hair instead?"

"I tried, Son, but once again, you're just too stubborn to follow in my footsteps."

"Nice," I chuckled, grinning at my dad. "You were overdue for a good dig about medical school."

"It's all in fun, Edward. I know you'd be miserable if you'd listened to me and gone on to medical school. You picked the path that was right for you and I'm proud of you for that. I always wanted for you and your sister to be confident and follow your dreams. I just forgot that my dreams weren't necessarily the same as yours."

"Thanks, Dad. It means a lot to me that you feel that way."

"Well, here is where I leave you," he said, stopping at the foot of the stairs. "Enjoy your breakfast. I'm off to see how horrible my golf score will be compared to Jack's."

"Say 'hello' to Dean Wilson for me."

"Shall I also tell him about the student you had to threaten?" my dad chuckled.

"No," I laughed. "She seems to have finally gotten the message. There was a drop note in my box on Friday with her name on it."

"Alright, then. I'll see you at dinner."

"Good luck," I called as I headed into the kitchen. I opened the oven and found my plate of pancakes. I grabbed the syrup, fixed myself a drink, and settled down at the kitchen table.

I'd just poured the syrup over my pancakes when Emmett and Jasper strolled into the kitchen. "I smell pancakes," Emmett said, sniffing at the air.

"They're mine," I said, taking a bite.

"Strawberry, right?" Jasper asked, sitting in the chair next to me.

"They're mine," I repeated.

Emmett took the opposite seat and handed Jasper a fork while twirling his own in his other hand. "Pancakes, Edward."

"Mine, Emmett," I said, pulling my plate closer to me.

"Emmett, this calls for drastic measures," Jasper announced.

"On three," Emmett replied, nodding his head. "One…two…three."

I looked from one to the other, wondering how grown men could actually manage to pout that way. I sighed and pushed the plate between the three of us. "If Bella asks, you both let me have my pancakes in peace," I told them.

"Silly, Bella," Emmett chuckled, cutting himself a piece of pancake. "She should have known to have enough pancakes made for all of us."

"She was under the assumption I would get to enjoy my breakfast without interruption," I replied.

"Jazz, I think he just called us interruptions," Emmett said, spearing another slice of pancake.

"He's just grumpy without his Bella," Jasper chuckled. "But we'll soon have him in a better mood. Just picture yourself sliding behind the wheel of an Aston Martin and I'm sure you'll be all smiles, Edward."

"Is that a two-seater? You guys know I hate those little cars. I feel like a bear trapped in a closet," Emmett complained.

"You'll be fine," Jasper told him. "And stop taking such big pieces. Leave some for Edward and me," he fussed, slapping Emmett's fork away with his own.

The two of them proceeded to have a fork fight while I slid my plate away and finished off my pancakes. By the time they declared a winner, I was rinsing my plate off in the sink.

"Edward, what happened to the pancakes?" Emmett whined.

"I enjoyed my pancakes," I chuckled. "Are you two ready to leave? Or do you need to find another food dish to battle over?"

"Let's go," Jasper said, rubbing his hands together. "I want to get the car rented right away."

"You sound as if you're going to be driving."

"It's an Aston Martin, Edward. It doesn't matter what you're doing so long as you're in the car," he replied.

"Once we're done with the sardine can on wheels, can we rent bikes?" Emmett asked. "I found this great place that'll rent us the new Kawasaki Concours 1400 bikes. Beautiful pieces of machinery," he sighed. "Even Rose was impressed with their specs this year."

"It's a possibility," I shrugged. "Let's just see how the day goes."

A half hour later, we were at the rental place, trying our best not to drool over the piece of engineering in front of us. "Boys, I can't promise I'm going to be able to return this at the end of the day," I said, running my hand along the hood.

Emmett chuckled and planted his big hand on my shoulder. "You'll return it, but only because you know my little sister will kill you if you try to take it home."

"I don't know," Jasper said, staring at the car. "Maybe I'll take it home and rent it out to you guys on the weekends."

"I know Alice will kill you," I laughed. "She had a low-key wedding to help save money for the house you're going to design her."

"Designed," Jasper said with a grin. "She just doesn't know it yet. She'll get the blueprints for her birthday."

"Speaking of birthdays," Emmett said, puffing out his chest. "Mine is only a month away. What are you thinking of getting me?"

"Spending your days with us is gift enough," Jasper chuckled, opening the passenger door.

I opened the driver's door and slid in behind the wheel, enjoying the feel of the leather seat. "I'm in love," I sighed, grinning at Jasper.

"How in the hell am I going to fit into this coke bottle?" Emmett asked, squatting down to see inside the car.

"I'm going to stretch out in the back and you're going to take the passenger seat," Jasper told him. "You'll have just enough leg room."

"To what? Look like I'm doing the chicken dance down the highway?" Emmett barked.

"Emmett wants to be a chicken. Emmett wants to be a duck. Quack, quack," Jasper sang, laughing his way through the words.

"Alice just had to buy Lily the Chicken Dance Elmo doll," Emmett said, shaking his head.

"I take it the doll sings that song," I said, looking between Jasper's amused face and Emmett's annoyed one."

"Lily hated the thing at first and now she loves it, jumping around and trying to do her own version of the chicken dance," Jasper explained.

"If I didn't love my baby girl so much, I'd have set that damn doll on fire by now," Emmett said. He put one foot into the car and then took it back out, frowning at the vehicle.

"Just get in," Jasper demanded. "There's enough room for you."

"Said the blonde tooth-pick," Emmett grumbled. He groaned and grunted, but finally managed to get himself into the passenger seat. "Houston, we have a problem," he sighed.

"What? Did you forget to make a trip to the little boy's room before getting in?" Jasper laughed.

"No, smart-ass," Emmett growled. "I got into the car, but I can't move enough to close the door."

I looked back at Jasper and then at Emmett again. "Seriously?"

Emmett nodded his head and that was all it took to send Jasper and me into a fit of laughter.

"He can't move," Jasper roared, grabbing his stomach as he continued to laugh.

"I'll fix it," I chuckled. I got out and went around to Emmett's door, making sure I had enough clearance to actually close it. With Emmett taken care of, I slid into the driver's seat again and started up the car.

"Listen to this baby purr," Jasper said, sounding awed.

"Jasper, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you just—"

"Shut up, Emmett," Jasper and I said together, having a pretty good idea of how his sentence would have ended.

"Stuff me into a damn car and then tell me to shut up," Emmett muttered, staring out of the passenger window like a tantrum-throwing three year old.

Once we were on the highway, smoothly speeding down the road, Emmett was forced to admit the car was nice. He still complained a little about the space in the car, but he was impressed with everything else, especially with how much Jasper knew about the car.

"So, Jasper, when are you going to tell Alice you want your own sports car?" I asked, grinning at his reflection in the rearview mirror.

"I can't answer that question," he said, smirking a little.

"Can't or won't?" Emmett pressed.

"Can't," Jasper replied. "My lovely wife would kill me since my answer depends on the information I made her promise to keep secret."

"Dinner's only ten hours away," Emmett said. "Alice will never know you told us."

"Are you kidding?" I laughed. "Ali always knows. She still claims she knew Rose was pregnant before Rose knew."

"I admit the pixie can guess correctly pretty often, but how will she know Jasper told with us not being anywhere near them today?" Emmett asked.

"Don't know and don't care," Jasper said. "I'm not risking it."

"Wuss," Emmett chuckled.

"I love the way you always act like my sister doesn't completely terrify you," Jasper replied.

"She doesn't," Emmett shrugged.

"Right," Jasper and I laughed.

"Just like Alice doesn't scare Jazz, and Bella doesn't scare me," I added.

Emmett let out a growl. "How the hell did we all end up whipped? When I first met you guys, we were doing our own things, hanging out at the gym, checking out girls."

"And now we're all happily married. I don't see where we lost anything, Em," Jasper said.

"I don't mean it like that," Emmett replied. "I just never would have believed I'd be one of those guys listening to his wife."

"You do it because you want her to be happy, Emmett. There's nothing wrong with that. In fact, it's more manly that acting like a caveman," Jasper told him.

"Thank you, Doctor Spock," Emmett said sarcastically.

"He's the baby doctor. You should have said Freud," Jasper corrected.

"I'd rather go with Dr. Ruth," Emmett chuckled.

"Of course you would," Jasper sighed, shaking his head. "My sister married a perv."

"Says the man who plays cat and mouse with his wife," Emmett replied, grinning wickedly.

"Stop before you start," I warned Emmett.

"Oh, come on, Edward. Let me educate those little virgin ears of yours," Emmett chuckled.

I smirked at him, knowing just how to shut him up. "On second thought, Em, go ahead and tell me. I'll be sure to try whatever it is with Bella tonight."

"So Jasper, didn't you say something about designing a house?" Emmett asked.

"Yes, I did," Jasper chuckled. "It's a good first home for us. I just need to find the perfect location to build it."

"Tell us about it," I said.

"It's going to be two-stories with three bedrooms and an office for each of us. The kitchen will be huge for entertaining—you both know how much Alice loves parties."

"A pool?" Emmett asked, looking hopeful.

Jasper chuckled at him. "Don't know yet. It'll depend on the property."

"You should talk to Heidi," I suggested.

"Yeah, I really like her," Emmett added. "She's honest and she doesn't talk crap. I told her what I thought the house was worth and she told me I was undervaluing it, especially with the new roof."

"I'll have to do that. First, I have to find the time to see some properties without Alice around," Jasper replied. "I want to surprise her with as much of it as possible."

"Speaking of surprises," I said. "I have an idea for Bella that I want to share with you two."

"You've got my attention," Emmett chuckled. "It's not like I can go anywhere."

"I'll trade my attention for a turn behind that steering wheel," Jasper said, looking hopeful.

"Attention and secrecy," I countered.

"Done," Jasper replied immediately.

"What about me? I can't drive this matchbox," Emmett whined.

"We'll rent the bikes right after we take the car back," I offered.

"Deal," Emmett said, grinning wide. "So what do you have planned for my baby sister this time?"

I smiled, hoping they were going to like the idea as much as I did. It was critical that they like it because I wasn't going to be able to pull it off without them both helping me. I'd eventually need Rosalie and Alice as well, but not until much later. For now, the fewer people who knew about it, the better. I didn't want Bella hearing anything about it until it was ready for her.

Hello!!! I wanted to get this out to you guys before we all get lost in the craze of this weekend! I'm going to be away for a few days, but I promise to have another chapter when I return. I wanted Edward to have a fun chapter or two before I smack him with more drama. Next chapter will be the girls' POV, and then a final chapter about Edward's free day. After that, we get into some major drama for our fluffy little couple. Sorry, Edward. You know I love you and won't hurt you...much.

I hope you all have a great weekend and get out to see the movie! Whether we all love the movie or only certain parts of it, it's our movie. And at the very least, we have these books to thank for bringing us all together on this site and others like it. So go out and show your support for your favorite Cullen (or wolf if you can stand their smell - ha!).