Previously - "So, Bella said that you wanted to talk to me."
"And you know what I wanted to talk to you about?"
"About being a vampire?" That shouldn't have sounded like a question, I already knew.
"Exactly." She nodded pointedly, determinedly, then smiled at me. "So, you want to know about my past? It's part of the story. Obviously." I nodded eagerly happy to be gaining some more insight into this family.
"Alright."
"I was born in 1902 in Biloxi, a little town in Mississippi. My sister's daughter, my niece is still alive and living there. When I was human, I still had my visions. At first, when I was still a little kid, they only happened every now and then and they were small, I didn't understand: I thought that the things hadn't happened yet but I didn't get why that was wrong. But then as I grew up, they happened more and more often, and they were about bigger things. Not just the horse races but big things, apparently I knew that my neighbor was going to beat his wife to death the night before it happened. My parents thought that I was crazy, but then what I said would happen happened. They got scared, more scared then before. They were highly religious, they thought that I was possessed or something. The local priest suggested the asylum, he wasn't completely convinced that I was possessed."
"But I still can't understand, why would anyone do that to their child."
"They were scared, things like what I could do weren't as accepted as they are now."
"Couldn't you just pretend that you didn't see anything anymore?"
" Well, that would have been hard to do – we think. Even now it's hard to act normal when I get a vision and I have a vampire brain. Carlisle thinks that as a human it would have been to hard for me to act normal, and we proved his theory right. Apparently I used to spend days and nights just sitting on my bed staring at nothing or screaming. Sometimes I would have fits if something was really clear."
"Apparently?"
"I have no memories of my human life. We found a lead to my human life and when we followed everything up, we found the hospital and me and Jasper found all of their old historical records. Everything about me was in there. My parents had written all of that in there. After the neighbor thing happened when I was fourteen, my parents sent me to an asylum. We think that that is why I don't remember anything, We saw the cell's. They were dark and cold and had no windows. Plus, the electrotherapy was known to make people loose their memories. Apparently I got even worse with that, started rambling and shouting peoples names. The paper work said that I started screaming for Jasper." Her voice was laced with sadness, but also hope and love. The smile on her face seemed strange considering the topic, though it was quite romantic that she wanted him before they even met. "We still don't know how I became free, I just went missing, and we don't know how I was changed. I just woke up, and had a vision of me and Jasper meeting, and then of us meeting the Cullen's. I was eighteen when I woke up, then year was 1920. I spent thirty two years finding him."
"Thirty Two years!" I shouted, and then blushed at my behaviour.
"Yer. But he was well worth the wait, plus, he waited longer. But you already know that. " She laughed.
"If you don't mind me asking, how come it took so long? Couldn't you just see where he was?"
She chuckled. "He kept on changing his mind as too where he was going, and most of the time he was running through the forest and avoiding humans or anything recognizable."
"Sorry that I kept you waitin' darlin'." Jaspers voice floated up the stairs and Alice giggled.
"Eventually I found him in a dinner in Philadelphia. I already loved him, and he fell in love immediately and after three years, we found the Cullen's." She gave me a few moments to absorb this information. Their story was sweet, there was no denying that, but was that meant to make me re-think being changed?
"But when I woke up, I was so confused. I remembered trivial things. The country, the language, that I was a girl, proper etiquettes that had been trained into me – stuff like that. But I had no idea who or what I was. The thirst hurt but I didn't remember the change, something that is one of most peoples most memorable human memories. I only remembered Alice when I thought 'what is my name?'. Then the vision of Jasper and the Cullen's and the hunting came through and I knew what I had to do. Jasper was the one who had to confirm to me what we were. The beginning can be scary and confusing for everyone, even if you wake up like the others did, except for Jasper and Carlisle.
This kind of life can be lonely and you mostly have to exclude yourself from humans – you can talk to them, but if they get to close they can get suspicious. But having a family like this and a mate like Jasper makes all that worth the bad things.. This life is good. I think, or more so know, that you would like it." She paused and tilted her head, her eyes straying towards the door. "If you choose this lifestyle that is." She smiled sweetly.
"Alice?"
"Mmm."
"What was the other vision? Bella said that you saw two options for me, one being a vampire but she didn't tell me the other one." Bella walked into the room then and sat on the other arm chair. She wouldn't make eye contact with me.
"If you are going to tell him that than I should be here." She spoke to Alice, who nodded her head.
"Remember, if you decided that you didn't want to be one of us, the visions would change. But you don't want to stay human, so that is why I can't see that." So she didn't see me staying human? That was good, it meant that I was just one step closer to getting this. "The other vision was of you dying, Bella drinks from you. That vision isn't going to happen anymore though, there is like a 7% chance that it will, so just don't bleed near her for at least he next week or two." Oh.
"Why didn't you give me that much detail?" Bella asked, finally looking up to me. I smiled back reassuringly.
"Because I have ways to stop him bleeding near you for the next two weeks, or always really. Just make sure that when he shaves on the mornings that you leave. And you try not to cut yourself, use extra cream or something, I don't know how that stuff works." She shrugged.
"We can do that." I nodded as Alice's eyes glazed over. When she can back into focus, she didn't look as happy as I thought that she would.
"Alice? What did you see?" Bella put her hand on top of hers.
"The shaving thing works as far as I can see, but tomorrow when you cook dinner, just let Bella cut the vegetables. Please?" She smirked.
"O...kay?" I dragged the word out, trying to get her to tell me what had happened. Her smirk grew.
"No big deal, big knife – near severed finger. You know, the works." She shrugged, attempting nonchalance.
"I think that I'll cut the vegetables." Bella nodded, looking at me in disbelief. I could almost hear her thinking 'only you could manage to do that.'.
"Men." Alice muttered so low that I only just heard. She stood gracefully and walked from the room, shaking her head..
I was pushing the speed pedal further then usual. Mum was already home, or so Alice had said, and she was getting concerned. When we were still at Chicago, I was always home before she was. I wasn't close to any of the other teenagers and didn't want to spend any more time then absolutely necessary with them. Then only places that I really ever went after school was the music store, the library or the park – where the best recreational baseball field in my part of the town was. But I was always sure to be home before her, especially after dad died. She was an easy worrier, and the fun is kind of sucked away from something with the constant 'where are you?' buzzing in my pocket. Her confusion was understandable. I hadn't wanted to move so far away from that place (strange that I didn't call Chicago home anymore, even though we had only left a matter of days ago.) and now I was home late almost everyday and spending all of my spare time with teenagers my own age, particularly girls.
I'm actually surprised that she didn't corner me and ask me what I had done to her son.
So now I was speeding away from Bella and the Cullens and towards an angry woman that had been known to make grown men cry, literally. The street came into view, and then the house, and then my mother sitting on the porch bench, looking stern but still concerned. She followed my cars actions as I drove up to the house and parked. I refused to look at her as I locked the car and made my way up the stairs.
"Hey mum." I said meekly, shoving my cold hands into my pockets.
"You look edgy."
"You look angry." She knew that I had reason to be edgy. She couldn't be to pissed though. She knew that I loved Bella, and I though that she had believed me. I tried not to let her see that that stung.
"I am not angry," My head shot up. "I am just….confused and a bit worried." I sat on the seat next to her, still refusing to make any eye contact.
"What about?"
"You're different here than you were when we lived at the old place."
"I fell in love. "
"You're sure that – you're sure that she isn't just a phase? Are you sure that you love her?"
I tensed, and had to suppress the urge to snap at her. "Of course I am sure mum, what else could this be?" My rage left me when I thought about her.
"High school hormones?" She suggested meekly – faking helpfulness.
"Mum honestly."
"Alright, alright, I guess that I am just not used to the changes yet – you're different here then you where at Chicago. That's not a bad thing, the change is just so sudden." I wouldn't bring up dad – ask her how long it took for them to fall in love: I already knew their story, mum would tell it to me and it was one of the only ones that dad would tell or would listen in on.
"I really do love her." I muttered quietly but clearly after a brief silence. She turned towards me and smiled softly – her eyes softening, loosing their fight. They had been that way for a while now. Two years, more or less.
"I know that you do sweet." She stood up and headed for the door. "I'll be seeing her tomorrow at dinner time you know?"
"You will?" That was news to me.
"Of course, you're asking her over just so that you know."
"Thankyou mother – I'll make sure that we fit your plans." I called sarcastically.
We continued with our usual routine – cooking, eating, homework, piano/television/reading. Tonight I was trying to finish the composition that I had started the other morning. It all came quite easily when I was thinking about her, naturally, like it was jut meant to be.
"That's beautiful, do I even have to ask what your inspiration was?" Mother murmured, not taking her gaze from the TV. She wasn't being ignorant or anything, she was trying not to break 'the spell' as she so often said, but she felt that she needed to comment.
"Well, this has nothing to do with the new scenery." I muttered, like her, not tearing my eyes away from the piano keys.
"So I suspected." We didn't speak again until I realized the time and kissed her head before darting up the stairs and to my bedroom. Grabbing my pajama pants I sprinted to the bathroom and showered quickly, brushing my teeth and getting dressed as fast as I could before walking at a much more reasonable pace back to my bedroom. She was sitting at the bed head, crossed lagged and staring intently at the door. She smiled at me after I walked in.
"Hey." She chirped, and I returned the greeting in much the same manner. I sat next to her on the bed.
"What happened with your mother? Was she alright?"
"She was fine, just a bit concerned." She turned to look at me, the little crease between her eyebrows. I lifted my legs from the ground and turned to face her, crossing my legs on the material. She mimicked my position, lifting herself with her arms so that she could change the way that her body was facing my. "I act different here from what I did back there." I picked up one of her hands and toyed with it, running her cool and slender fingers between my long and warm ones. "I spend more time with other people, less time at home or playing baseball or studying."
"Oh.."
"I prefer this way though." I grinned up at her.
"You can study with me – we know the answers to everything on that test." She giggled- her voice melodious and high, fitting perfectly with my deeper chuckle.
"That would not surprise me – you can't even remember how many times you've done high school."
"And College."
"How many times have you been to college?" We hadn't spoken about this.
"We don't usually go as often, but we have each been a handful of time, usually once a decade. There are new things that we can learn there – new things being discovered and everything is always changing. Medicine and the other sciences are particularly interesting, but only me and Rosalie usually do the science subjects, sometimes Emmett because he can't stand to be away from Rose for too long and Carlisle comes back every few times, you know, to see what's new, things he hasn't managed to learn yet. He gets many medical diaries through the year but he likes going to college every now and then. Either because he gets to spend more time with us, or he thinks that he can learn more that way I am not sure, but whatever works for him."
"What have you done?"
"Biology, cooking, history, social studies, medicine and a few literature degrees." She shrugged indifferently, like this was nothing unusual – but for her, it probably wasn't such a big deal.
"Bella that isn't nothing, that's amazing."
She smirked. "Well, I am glad that I have your approval Mr. Masen."
"You had it already Miss. Cullen."
"So do you have any idea what you want to study yet?" She asked after a slight pause.
"I was thinking about majoring in music, but I don't know what I want else I want to do yet." I paused, tilting my head and looking at her thoughtfully, thinking. " But medicine could be interesting, but I would probably have to major that."
"You would be a good doctor I think. You know, I have never heard you play, you'll have to show me later."
"Of course, I'll play you the new one." It was hers anyway. The song was taking the form of a lullaby, Bella's lullaby. Even though she couldn't sleep, it was the thought the counted.
"You've written a new composition?" She always seemed so interested in the trivial little things that I had to say. Other people would ask from pure common courtesy. She really cared, she really wanted to know about me.
"Yes, I have recently found some new inspiration."
"Mmmm I'm intrigued." She cocked an eyebrow at me, slowly leaning in. I met her halfway, softly pressing her lips to my own. Her taster was exquisite, I moaned. She pulled back again, her eyes dark but smiling.
"Sorry." I muttered, blushing again.
"Don't be, I am not complaining." She ran her fingers threw my hair, making me turn my head into her touch, sighing wistfully.
"I love you." If she were human she wouldn't have been able to hear me, but she wasn't human.
"I love you more."
"Doubt that." I smirked at her and she rolled her eyes, still continuing her ministrations through my hair. "Mum wants you to come over for tea tomorrow night – you don't have to of course, eating would be gross." I let my eyes close again, not willing her to see how much I wanted my mother and my love to get along.
"I will come, eating is worth the effort. I will just help to clean up so that if I put any in my napkin she won't see. "
"Are you sure?" I asked, opening my eyes to stare into her golden orbs.
"Of course, I want to get to know her better – and I need for her to trust me too."
"Aright."
- - - - - - - -
"You really don't need to do this you know." I said again. We were sitting at the table eating lunch with her family. Rosalie was picking at her salad and Alice and Jasper were playing catch with the apple again. Emmett had started laughing once Bella and I had started to speak about the upcoming dinner, and that got me to worrying again.
"I want too."
"Oh I would pay to see you eat human food again, do remember the last time?"
"Shut up." Bella looked like she would be blushing.
"What happened?" I grinned. Emmett would tell me, I took his side on the Jasper using Alice to cheat at chess thing – something that I now understood with more clarity.
"Alright, so the year was 1988, and we were at a benefit for Carlisle's work. Bella and I had a bet – who could find the biggest bear, drink him then bring him back to the house. Mine was way bigger so Bella lost, and had to eat all of the food. What we didn't know was that we were sharing a table with the director of the hospital, his wife and his daughter. His wife had constructed the menu and the daughter had helped too, she made the recipe for the cake. We didn't know that either. Bella was already upset. Me and Rosalie had a little adult time IN her car."
"Do you know how long it took me to get the smell from that thing?"
"Alice had forced her to wear this dress when she wanted to wear the white one that she had picked for the night, and Bella is a sore loser. Plus the last bet we made she lost and had to fail her gym class. So we, well Bella and the humans are, eating all of the food. We were just pushing everything round on the plate. By the time the cake came Bella was practically gagging. The humans were looking worried but hadn't said anything. After a few mouthfuls or cake Bella moaned and dropped the food and said that this shit tasted like dirt. The doctors daughter started to cry and the wife was outraged at Bella for using such language. Carlisle almost got 'asked to leave the hospital.'" Bella's face was buried in her hands but the rest of us were laughing, even Rosalie managed a smirk.
"Esme was so ashamed." She shook her head, going back to stab at her salad. It was a very good thing that she didn't eat humans.
"I propose a bet!" Emmett exclaimed, raising his fist into the air and drawing the attention of the teenagers sitting around us. In a quieter voice he continued. "What are you having for dinner tonight?" He directed the question at me.
"Is their anything that is more manageable for you?"
"Avoid milk at all costs." Alice chirped.
"And cheese – or all dairy products." Jasper scrunched up his face.
"Chicken is probably the most manageable."
"Well then we are having chicken and vegetables." I looked back at Emmett after nodding at my love, running my fingers over her own.
"Remember to let Bella cut them." Alice giggled. I rolled my eyes.
"Are you having dessert?"
"Dunno."
"Alright well if you have dessert, and Bella eats one piece of chicken, one serving of whatever the dessert is and all of the vegetables on her plate – and there has to be a lot, not just ten little pieces – then she wins the bet. If she throws it all up within a half hour of leaving your house then I win. We will all be waiting for you just outside the house."
"What are the winnings?"
"A new car."
"Nope, we both love our cars."
"The loser has too….eat jelly?"
"Drink a gallon of milk?"
"No Bella, I love you too much to make you do that."
"Oh! The loser had to go to the next medical conference that Carlisle goes to."
"Deal!" They reached across the table and shook hands, sealing the deal. We were all silent for a moment, some of us (me) thinking about why Bella would so dislike going to a medical conference when she had a degree in medicine. Maybe that was a part of her plan though, so I wasn't going to ruin that for her.
"So who wins?" I asked Alice, who started to giggle.
"You wish, but this one is going to be good. Just don't start another betting war."
"Please." Stressed Rosalie, looking at her husband with wide eyes.
"What happened the last time?" This family was so full of surprises, they had decades of experience and stories and I somewhat feared that I would never get to know them all – and I wanted to know everything that there was to know.
"The whole thing lasted about two years. During that time, Emmett posed as a bikini model, went to a nightclub in women's clothes and many other various things. Bella got a teenage to propose to her, pretended to cry at the hair dresses because she complemented the length of her hair and joined the circus for two weeks." Alice giggled.
"Hey, I kicked ass on the trapeze. Even you said so." Bella pointed at her sister, raising one of her delicate eyebrows. "And eat your food." Now she pointed at me. I rolled my eyes and started to eat my sandwhich. The food wasn't all that appealing and I was looking forward to the meal tonight, anything had to be better than this.
"But this taste's gross, I think that the bread is slightly stale." I poked at the bread, wondering how serving this shit was actually legal.
"Take mine then, I think that this one is alright."
Shrugging, I took her sandwhich and replaced it with my own. This one was better, but only marginally so. "Still like home made food better, but I couldn't be bothered making anything." Emmett laughed. "What?"
"Humans are so lazy. That stuff smells fine to you, and it would only take a few seconds to make."
"But I don't like mornings, and I would have to get up earlier."
"It's just sleep, what's so great about sleep?"
"Nothings great about sleep, it's just that waking up is a pain in the ass."
He snorted and rolled his eyes, muttering "Humans."
The rest of Tuesday passed by uneventfully, apart from the fact that I never had to let go of Bella. We were still getting lectured in Gym and we had watched a video in biology. The constant comforting hum of electricity that passed through not only my skin, but now my entire being whenever we touched was magnificent.
"Do you feel it too?" She asked me suddenly as we were walking towards the parking lot. My car was parked next to the 'Cullen spot' which was good because now I only had to walk a little bit to get to the cover of the cafeteria and the overhang of the brick classrooms – meaning that Bella and I didn't get as wet as everybody else.
"What do you mean?"
"The….humming. No, the current…." She sighed and seemed to struggle finding the words, so I helped her out.
"You mean the feeling when we touch, the electric humming that runs through my body? That one?"
Her smile was so bright that it could light up this town. "That's the one that I'm talking about."
"So you feel it too?"
"Of course I feel it too." I smiled and lifted our intertwined hands, placing a kiss on the top of hers and smiling over them at her glittering eyes.
"What are we feeling, and why do I get the distinct impression that this conversation isn't pg rated."
"Because you're a pig." Bella answered Jasper without tearing her eyes from mine.
"Hey." His cries of disapproval were drowned away when Alice, his tiny little wife, shoved him into the car and shut the door in his face.
"Ignore my husband, I'll see you tomorrow Edward, and I don't know when I'll see you Bella. But remember, let Bella cut the vegetables!" She cried as she reopened the door and shoved Jasper over, until he pulled her into the car and leaned over her, slamming the door closed. Rosalie took off from the parking lot but not even the beep coming from the old rusted Toyota that he went past could tear my attention from my Bella.
"Come on lets go before we get caught up in the rain again." She sighed, breaking our eye contact but not letting go of my hand as she walked over to the passenger side door, which I opened to her. She didn't say anything about that habit but I knew that she liked it. She had grown up in a completely different time where women were treated with a hell of a lot more respect then they are these days – opening a door for a woman was a necessary custom when she was growing up.
"Do we have everything that we need at your place?" She asked me quietly, fiddling with the fingers on my spare hand that I had placed on the console.
"Yer I think so, if not we can just substitute anything that we need."
She nodded. "Cool." And I chuckled at her attempt to sound 'modern'. She rolled her eyes. "I should warn you though, I don't really remember how to cook – it's been a while."
"Understandable when you and nobody in your family have to eat."
She laughed. When we got home, Bella made me do my homework saying 'you only get to do high school for the first time once.'
"But what about all the other times?"
"I said the first time." She muttered, looking at the Spanish text book that I had tossed on the ground. "You really don't like Spanish do you?"
"When am I even going to go to Spain?"
"Spain is great, except for all the sun – but we have ways to work around that."
"You've been to Spain?"
"Of course. Esme went through a stage where she was obsessed with Spanish architecture so we all went there for a month. We have a holiday house in Texas that looks like it jumped from a Spanish magazine." She rolled her eyes.
"But Texas is sunny."
"Yer, but Jasper likes to go there every now and again. He actually managed to track down some of his family and some of them still live there. He likes to check in every now and again, make sure that they're alright. He got Rosalie to act as a lawyer for them once because they ran into a spot of trouble."
"Wow." That was impressive. "Rosalie has a law degree?" She nodded.
"So you need help with Spanish? I'm fluent." Well isn't she just full of surprises.
"Great." About an hour later, all of the homework that I had been set – which was more then necessary considering that I had just spent seven hours and fifteen minutes there – was done, Spanish and trig and all. Bella had here done in about ten minutes, her pale hand flying across the page like there was no tomorrow. We were on the couch now, her laying in front of me with my arms wrapped around her waist
"Where else have you been?' I murmured into the top of her head. I felt her shrug underneath me as she turned her head away from the TV, my lips were met with her cool forehead instead of her strawberry scented hair.
"We've been to almost every country, but some times only the airports. A few smaller countries we haven't been to and me and Alice have never been to the middle east. But there are still finer things that we haven't seen, sights and places that we've always wanted to visit. Plus, the places that we've been have developed since we were there last."
"But it would have been interesting to see them at that point, to think of everything that Carlisle has lived through."
"You can ask him about it if you like, I know for a fact that he wants to get the chance to know you better, answer any questions that you have."
"Even if they aren't about vampire lifestyle?"
She chuckled. "No, they don't have to be about vampire lifestyle – though I know that you're still interested in that."
I smirked, looking at her eyes and seeing that she was looking up at me through her thick lashes. "Is that an invitation to start asking?"
"Now?"
"Yes."
"Go ahead." She rolled in my arms, pressed against me in a sinful way. I shuddered and she smirked, obviously knowing where my teenage thoughts were headed, though in my defense, her eyes had darkened and her lids were slightly hooded.
"Erm.." I cleared my throat and tried to get my thoughts out of the gutter.
Don't be run by your hormones Masen..
"Is there an age limit on how long you can live?"
"Naturally – none that anyone has ever reached and there are some really really old vampires, people that make Carlisle look like an infant. But sometimes, if there is someone that the Volturi think is a threat to them – because they have to much power or are to old, they think that they know to much or have seen to much, then the Volturi will get rid of them. That has only happened a handful of times but there are still some people that are older then those three." Her eyes glazed over, obviously she was thinking about another time, another place. Had she met any of these 'Volturi' or the people that they had 'gotten rid of'? Was there a threat to her? She shivered. "Sorry."
"Have you ever met the Volturi?" I asked her.
"No, but Carlisle lived with them for a short period of time ages ago. He was there for a few decade but eventually he got sick of the constant pressure that they put on him to change his ways, plus even though they are quite civilized, he couldn't live in a place where so much innocent human blood was spilled – he doesn't see the need. Of course, he would never ever pressure somebody to this lifestyle, but there was never even another option for him – he refused to be a murder." I could see the pride shining in her eyes and it made me that much more eager to get to know Carlisle.
"So they are human eaters?"
"Yes, but they are all very civilized considering that. Usually human eaters stick to travelling in no more than groups of three, but there are so many of them with the Volturi."
"And who exactly are they?" Her eyes widened in confusion and then in shock, before she giggled.
"How silly of me, I kept on explaining them and you have no idea who or what they are." She took a steadying breath. "The Volturi is made up mostly of three different men, Caius, Marcus and the unspoken leader, Aro. They are all over a millennia old, and have taken ruling of our world. They enforce the laws and make sure that the humans don't know about us."
"You have laws!"
"Only one," She giggled. "we have to make sure that the humans never become aware of our existence. If somebody makes a spectacle of themselves or tells the humans – or is a threat to the Volturi's power, then the Volturi and their guard will step in and…. Take care of them."
"So they could kill you for telling me." She was silent, frozen in my arms and not even breathing. "Bella," My voice was a lot less demanding and persuasive then I wanted, and a lot more scared then I would have liked.
"We won't let that happen."
"How can you be sure?"
"By the next time that we or anyone that knows about you sees the Volturi you'll…."
"Be dead or changed?" I finished for her, and she winced.
"Exactly, and the Denali's don't know about you yet, and they are like family to us – they won't tell anybody – not that that would matter if they saw Aro."
"Why not?"
"Aro can read every thought that you have ever had just by touching you, extremely bad if you've done something wrong but extremely good if you haven't done the wrong .thing."
"Every thought!"
"Every thought, except from mine and whoever I choose to protect. I think that there might be a few other people with shields, but theirs don't work the same as mine, Aro can still hear their thoughts."
"Wow."
"We've gotten so off topic." She giggled.
"Were the Volturi always in power?"
"No the Romanians used to be in charge but the Volturi over threw them – it's amazing that they are still alive." She got that far away look in her eyes again.
"Have you even met them?"
"Yes I have actually, they ran into us about three decades ago, they are kinda freaky but extremely interesting."
"How old are they?"
"Older then the Volturi, but still not the oldest."
"That is insane."
"Not in my world." She smirked lightly up at me. "Anything else?"
"Will you change me."
"Nice try." She rolled her eyes as she got up off of the couch, walking away from the living room and towards the kitchen.
"But I was serious, I haven't changed my mind on that yet – nor will I."
"You haven't talked to everybody yet."
"Doesn't matter." I called, getting off the couch and following her into the kitchen. She was getting all of the groceries that we would need to cook dinner.
"You do the chicken, I'll do the vegetables – we don't need you bleeding out or missing any of your limbs."
"Can vampires be hurt?"
"Of course." I could practically hear her rolling her eyes, and felt my stomach clench.
"How?"
"We can only be hurt by other vampires, shape shifters like the ones in La Push or the real werewolves." She stopped moving for a second, before turning to look at me over her shoulder. She gulped and looked back at the vegetables. "To kill us they need to rip us apart and then burn the pieces."
Was she serious? How do you respond to that?
"Are you alright?" She asked me softly, still not turning around.
"I'm fine." We worked in silence mostly for the remainder of the time, her chopping at a human pace and me cooking the chicken. I laughed at her repulsed face – her cute little nose scrunched up and a little v in between her eyebrows.
"How does that smell nice to you?"
"How does this smell bad!" I chocked out between my laughter.
"It's dead animal – even chicken blood is gross. Chicken blood to me is like eating…. What's something really gross?"
"Veal?" It sounded like a question.
"Yer, like veal. Cow tastes gross too." My laughter reduced to a chuckle. "So when will you're mum be here?"
"Anytime now."
"Oh, I think that I can hear her turning down the street now, I'll set the table." She was a blur through the kitchen and then the dinning room, before returning back to the kitchen and standing in front of me.
"I have no idea what just happened." I muttered with a blank face. That speed was going to take some getting used to. Her face was remorseful as she glanced up at me.
"Sorry."
"Don't worry, I'll be going at that speed some time."
She rolled her eyes. "So determined to be a vampire – what is so exciting that you want to do this."
"I want you forever."
She sighed. "You don't just want it so that – "
"Hey guys! Ohh this smells great!" My mother barged through the door, cleanly interrupting whatever it was that Bella was about to say.
"Hey mum! What were you saying?" I whispered that last part to Bella.
"Later." She muttered, before plastering a smile on her face and turning around to face her mother.
"Hello Ms. Masen, how was your day?"
"It was wonderful dear, just let me go upstairs and freshen up and then we can talk." She smiled at me and then walked briskly up the stairs. I turned around to try to continue the conversation that we had been having, but she cut me off.
"Is that supposed to be doing that?" She pointed her hand over towards the stove and tilted her head to the side. I turned around and looked at the stove – where the chicken was spitting violently from the heat. I cussed, apologized to Bella and ran towards the stove – turning off the heat and trying to salvage the chicken breast that I had been attempting to cook, all the while Bella was giggling madly the whole while. I turned the heat down to almost off and grabbed the freshly cut vegetables, putting them in the freshly oiled pan that I hadn't seen Bella put in the stove.
"We should have already cooked those right?"
"Probably but too late now." I shrugged, having bigger things on my mind then cooking vegetables. What had she been about to say? She had looked….distressed. I could hear my mother walking on the stairs again.
"So, how was school guys?" Did this kind of conversation come naturally to all parents? Because Esme and Carlisle didn't do this but all of the other times that I had gone to somebody's house, their parents always asked this question.
"It was fine." I answered noncommittally.
"Nothing overly eventfully." Bella chirped in from next to me. I smiled over at her, enjoying that her eyes no longer held any sadness, like they had before Elizabeth intruded. I mean, I honestly loved my mother but I kinda wished that it was just me and Bella here. That way we could finish the conversation and I could kiss her until I was going to pass out, something that my mother certainly wouldn't appreciate watching.
"Dinner's ready," I told them, poking the carrot and checking the crispness. "could you get some drinks please mum?" She nodded and, after asking Bella what she wanted, got all of us waters and headed to the dining room to put them on the table.
"Here let me get that for you." Bella grabbed one of the plates, before I stopped her from moving away and kissing her lips lightly.
"You sure that you're alright?" I muttered, closing my eyes and breathing in her freesia scent.
"Of course, I'll tell you later tonight." I opened my eyes and stared at her, her golden eyes looking up at me. "Come on," Her face brightened. "Let's go eat." I laughed at her fake enthusiasm.
"What's so funny?" My mother poked her head around the arch separating the two rooms.
"Oh nothing, just Bella being sarcastic." Bella ducked her head, muttering something about being a vampire and blushing.
"So Bella," My mother started after we had started to eat. Bella had only grimaced slightly when she started to eat the chicken, but after the first few bites I couldn't even tell that she suffered from any discomfort.
Oh no, I thought, She's started.
"where are you from?"
"Well I was born in Chicago, but after Esme and Carlisle adopted me we moved up to Alaska. Carlisle has some family up there and we wanted to be closer to them."
My mother nodded, taking in this new information – some of which she already knew from what I had told her.
"What about your brother and sisters? Edward told me that you had a few…." She trailed off, looking up at Bella after popping a piece of chicken into her mouth.
"Yes, Emmett, who was adopted after me was from Tennessee. Alice, who was adopted just after him was born in Mississippi but Jasper and Rosalie were both born in Texas, their twins."
"Big range." My mother nodded as Bella chuckled.
"Unfortunately, Jasper takes being from the south seriously, never ever mention the civil war around him – you never get him to shut up." She grinned.
"Your brother likes history?" My mothers head shot up from her plate, curiosity sparkling in her green eyes.
"Yes, specifically the civil war, he's always reading books about it and comparing them to other things that he's read. He was ecstatic the day we found that one of the Major's in the war had the same first name at him." Bella looked at me slyly, mischievous gleaming in her eyes. I snorted, almost choking on my chicken, remembering the day when I had discovered Jaspers true identity in history class. "You alright?"
"I'm fine." Elizabeth continued to quiz Bella for the next extremely drawn out hour and a half, the longest meal that I've ever had. Bella was good though, she never faltered in her answering, but I could see her slowly becoming paler….if that were possible….and she was starting to look sick by the time I finally pointed out the time and suggested that we have some dessert. Bella and I insisted on clearing the plates and getting the food, squatting away my mothers protests that she help us.
"How are you holding up?" I asked her quietly as I scraped the plates into the bin and she dished up the ice cream.
"I'm fine, just don't know how much longer I can hold this in. Dairy is even worse but I just can't loose. I would never hear the end of that." She chuckled weakly.
"You look nauseous." I told her, wrapping my arms around her waist and leaning my head on her shoulder as she dropped the spoon. She turned around in my arms and snaked her arms around my neck.
"Well, I'm sure that to a human that would have tasted fantastic, but to me…."
"That tasted worse than chicken blood." I finished for her, savoring the sound of her laughter.
I ate as quickly as possible, and Bella followed my lead. Mum was shooting us suspicious looks, but I couldn't find it in me to care. Bella had to be so sick right now.
"Thankyou Elizabeth, I really had a great time tonight." Bella hugged my mother while we stood at the front door – about to leave - after she had continuously been told that she should call my mother Elizabeth, that Mrs. Masen was to formal. We were sitting in the car before Bella started to speak.
"You know that I was going to stay tonight right – if that's ok."
"Of course! I just figured that me offering to drive you would make more sense then Carlisle coming over and then driving back home without you, plus," I smirked over at her. "we still have that bet with Emmett." She laughed.