This chapter goes to ttyyyytt, for informing me that America does, in fact, have Borders, CullenClanFan, who's review made me get off my ass and write, and to my fellow plane haters, whoever you are.
I hate planes.
I mean, I really, really, fucking hate planes. And airports. I hate the way that they smell, I hate how they always take so long and there is never anything to do. I hate that they always make me feel sick and sleepy which means that I always end up loosing a day of my holidays.
What's worse than catching a plane? Having to get up at three o'clock in the fucking morning so that I can get to the airport on time.
Bella was going to be dropped of at our place by Carlisle, who was finishing a night shift. Together, her, mother and I would drive the four hour drive to Seattle, wait for an hour for the flight and then catch the six hour flight to Chicago.
I don't think that you understand how much I hate planes.
So anyway, here I am at three in the morning, stumbling around trying to make sure that I had all my chargers packed and my phone and IPod in my pockets and a book in my bag, still half asleep and grumpy because, you know, not only am I half asleep, but I woke up with out Bella next to me.
A door opening and voices floating up the stairs alerted me to Bella being here, and a few moments later I hear her Angel voice form the door way.
"So baby, you gunna grace us with your presence any time soon?" She giggled, her laugh tinkering and making my eyes sleepy again. I turned to face her and said with a croaky voice –
"I miss my bed. Honestly I, I do. And I think that she misses me too, look at how lonely she looks."
"You're bed is a girl?" She cocked an eyebrow, trying not to laugh at me.
I paused, wondering if I could get in trouble for answering this. "Yes?' My conformation sounded like a question.
"Should I be jealous? I saw the way that you were looking at her."
I blinked, unable to come up with something witty to say to that this early in the morning. I settled with "No."
Bella, being the wonderful girlfriend that she is, laughed at me. "Come on, we've got to go soon, you can sleep in the car." She grabbed my bag off of the ground and despite my 'masculine pride', as Bella called it, being severely damaged at the thought of my girlfriend being able to carry it faster than I could, I didn't bother to argue as I followed her down the stairs. I did, however, grab the bag off of her when we got to the front door. Bella locked up with the hidden key and then we walked to the car together, where Elizabeth and Carlisle were chatting about Chicago.
"I didn't know that you had ever been to Chicago." My mother was saying.
"Oh yes, Esme and I actually lived there for a few years in our twenties. That was where we got Bella." He gestured to the two of us, smiling at my mother's wide eyes.
"Got Bella?" Bella snorted. "You make me sound like a puppy."
"Well you have eaten dog food,"
"Emmett made me!" She exclaimed, eyes narrowed as I chocked on my laughter. "Oh shut up Eddie."
I sobered immediately. "Hey!"
Carlisle rolled his eyes. "Well, I better let you lot get going. I'll see you in a few days Bella." He kissed her head, ruffled my hair and waved to my mother before getting into the car and driving off.
Mother sighed as she started to walk around to the drivers side. Even from here I could see the bags under her emerald eyes.
"Elizabeth, do you want me to drive?" Bella asked softly.
"Oh no dear, you must be tired to."
"No," Bella giggled. "Esme wanted me to be fully rested, she sent me to bed early."
Mother bit her lip then sighed, handing Bella the keys and getting into the backseat. "Thankyou Bella."
"It's alright."
My mother was asleep before we got to the end of the street and I wasn't far behind her. It wasn't until the blaring horns or Seattle started to seep into my mind that I woke up. The radio was on, Bella looked repentant and my mother looked concerned, but slightly smug.
"What happened?" I asked groggily. Looking at the clock, I realized that it was nearing seven and that we would be at the airport soon.
"Nothing Honey." Bella said. "We are almost there though, are you hungry?"
I groaned, which could be taken either way, but she didn't push it.
TNB ~ TNB ~ TNB
"What did she say to you?" I asked her for the hundredth time, throwing the McDonalds bag into the nearby bin. We were walking around one of the CD stores near our gate. My eyes flickered over to my mother, who was inspecting a CD and seemingly paying no attention to me or Bella.
Bella sighed and kept on walking. I pushed my way after her, irritated at the crowed of people that were in the aisle with us, and wrapped my arms around her when we came to a standstill. "Just tell me!" I wined.
"It's not a big deal."
"If it's not a big deal then why won't you tell me?"
"If it's not a big deal then why do you want to know?"
"Because I know that she said something that got to you!" I probably said that a little louder than I should of. The man standing at the next stand looked at me wearily then walked away. I sighed again and squeezed Bella, before walking over to the next stand. "Just tell me. Please."
"Excuse me," I looked up to see a middle aged man with a frown crinkling more of his balding head then I thought possible. "I was just wondering if you had the new – "
"I don't work here!" I snapped, giving the man a disgruntled look. "Dumbass." I muttered as I walked back to Bella. I guess that the black on black assemble that I was wearing did look kind of like what the workers wore, but the lack of a name tag and a logo kind of gave it away.
"I think that you hurt the nice man's feelings." Bella giggled, not taking her eyes off of the CD's.
"Won't you just tell me?" I started to poke her side, knowing that I wasn't really affecting her but hoping that she got the point. I had been trying for the forty five minutes that we had been at the airport to get her to tell me what her and my mother had been talking about when I was asleep, but she was yet to give me any details.
"Look, it wasn't a big deal, she was just asking me more about the 'nightmares' that I have. I just made up some stuff, which I feel horrible about, by the way, and told her that I felt really bad about going behind her back and that we would tell her the next time, which I also feel bad about." She sighed, disgruntled.
"She didn't say anything to make you uncomfortable?"
"No Edward." I didn't believe her for a second.
"You're sure?"
"Yes Edward." She rolled her golden eyes at me. She had spent all of yesterday hunting, wanting to prepare herself for the onslaught of human blood that she would have to smell on the plane and the big city. Jasper, who had come over to install the new stereo in my car because Emmett was on holiday and I had no idea how to, stayed for a few hours to hang out with me.
"Alright then," I mumbled. As I finished talking, a voice came over the intercom announcing that our flight was ready to board.
"Great." I muttered. Bella laughed and kissed my cheek before pulling me over to my mother, who had made her way over to the cash register to purchase her findings.
TNB ~ TNB ~ TNB
"Are you alright?" Bella asked me sweetly, though for the thousandth time that day.
"I'll be fine love," I said as I softly kissed her head, taking in the sweet scent of her hair. She always smelt like flowers and strawberries. Looking over the top of her head, I could see the dark sky, the clouds threatening rain. I sighed, part of me missing the sun and the other part comforted by the now familiar weather.
"You're so pale though." Looking at her, I could see the worry swimming in her eyes.
"That's coz I feel like I'm gunna throw up," I grunted. She sighed next to me, rubbing her hand on my arm. We had our luggage and were leaving the airport. I was heading towards the taxi rank with my arm still around Bella's waist, not really paying attention to what was going on around me but knowing my way through the familiar surroundings.
"Erm, Edward, where are you two going?" I head my mother call. Turning, I could see that she was standing next to a car, which my Grandmother was getting out of.
"Well I guess that we are getting picked up." I said monotonously.
"Apparently." Bella muttered from my side. Sighing we walked together to the car, and I smiled at the sight of my smiling mother and my exuberant grandmother. They were hugging and swapping pleasantries.
"And Edward!" She threw her arms around me.
"Hey Grandma, how are you?"
"Just wonderful, and this must be Bella." She then hugged a timid looking Bella, who's eyes I could see widen over my Grandmothers shoulders as she hugged her back.
"Hi." She squeaked.
"It's so wonderful to meet you." Grandma said, before letting go of he and turning back to my mother. "So Shelly arrives later today, but Caroline is going to pick her up, she got here a few days ago and – " Rolling my eyes, I turned back to Bella and opened the door for her.
The ride to the hotel was full of my grandmothers prattling with my mother commenting whenever she could, and I knew that I could of announced my engagement, Bella's pregnancy and the fact that I was moving to Canada in my most serious voice and that neither one of them would pay me the slightest bit of attention.
Bella had amused herself by playing with my fingers as me head rested on her shoulder and looking out the window, observing the town that she grew up in and the changes that the past hundred or so years had brought.
I could see my mother tensing as we got closer to where we used to live and when we passed Bella's old street I looked up to see her gazing at it intently.
"We should come back here when we have the time." I muttered, knowing that she would hear me.
"I would like that."
I heard her gasp as we drove past my old street. She was looking at the large park.
"What is it?"
"We used to go there all the time. Me and my friends, I mean. There used to be big events there on holidays and everybody from around this part of town would come to play games and socialize. They were so much fun. I remember when I was fifteen I was escorted to one by this boy that lived a few houses away and – "
"I thought that you said that you never said yes to anybody that wanted to court you?" I cut her off.
"I didn't, but this boy said that he wanted to take me to the Thanksgiving day event, not that he wanted to court me." She smiled sheepishly at me. "It's not a big deal Edward. We were already friends and I am pretty sure that Billy only took me because his mother was concerned about his lack of interest in finding a wife and he knew that she would not want her son with a girl like me."
"What was wrong with you?"
"I did not have a very high social standing despite my dad's job, I did not have a lot of money and because of my mother's….activities and reputation, that did not make me a desirable candidate for a wife, socially at least. Plus the fact that I worked instead of focused on forwarding my social standing, and hated to attend the balls, and I couldn't dance."
"That's really stupid." I said.
"That's how society was."
"Well society was stupid." I muttered. She sighed in response before looking back out the window, playing with my fingers again.
TNB ~ TNB ~ TNB
I dumped my bad on the floor next to the bed and then let myself fall backwards, moaning at the softness of the quilt. The hotel, though not as nice as the two that I had stayed at when with the Cullen's, was still very nice, and because each of us had a separate bedroom Bella would be able to sneak into mine via the balcony.
I was dragged out of my musings by a surprising "Hey!" from the wall next to the television. I gave a small yelp, jumping up off of the bed, to see Bella standing by an open door. "Adjoining bedrooms, I assume that your mother didn't know about that."
I walked over to her and wrapped my arms around her waist. "Well, that'll come in useful."
"So what else do we have to do today?"
"We're free for the next three hours. We have to go to dinner with my aunt and six."
"Which aunt?"
"Caroline and Shelly, and Shelly's two kids. Caroline's daughter won't fly in till later."
"I thought that your dad only had one sister." She said as she walked over to the bed.
"Shelly isn't really my aunty, she my dads cousin, but I just call her aunty."
She hummed in recognition. "How you feeling."
"Better."
"Well then lets go out."
"Out?"
"Yep, out. It'll help you to concentrate on something else." She jumped up off of the bed, grabbed a light coat from her room and her purse before grabbing my hand, jacket and room keys and pulling me from the room. My mother and grandmother were in the hall saying goodbye and looked at us curiously.
"We are going to go for a walk." I said as I put my jacket on. "That alright?"
"Just be back by five thirty."
"Mkay."
Bella and I followed grandma to the lobby and we parted ways once we left the hotel.
We were walking around town in no particular direction, talking about nothing and everything.
"Oh lets go in there!"
I looked to see where Bella was pointing and saw that we had stumbled upon one of the bigger shopping centers around. "Isabella Cullen, voluntarily going into a shopping center? I thought that I would never see the day." I teased her, squeezing her hand.
"I promised Alice that I would get her something, and besides, there's a Borders."
I led her into the shopping center, taking in the different shops and people, noting that there were only a few changes. That was to be expected I suppose. Bella and I had only been dating for about six months.
We had only been walking round for about a half hour and were just passing a Cotton On, when I heard a somewhat familiar voice call my name. Automatically I turned to the sound of the voice.
Sitting on the edges of the indoor fountain (where they almost always were these days) were some of my former 'acquaintances', they were the closest things that I had to friends before I left Chicago. Marty, still tall and blonde, Jack, still short and dark haired, and Oli, with another tattoo on his arm and new words on his fingers, along with a bunch of other guys that I couldn't remember the names of, or be bother looking at them close enough to realize who they were. Alissa, apparently still Oli's girlfriend, Tracy and Kate, two other girls that hung out with the group where there two. They were looking at me curiously, probably trying to see if it way really me, and at Bella, probably wondering what the fuck she would be doing with me. Kate was whispering in Tracy's ear and I heard Bella snort next to me. Looking at her, I could see that she was rolling her topaz eyes.
"These are your friends?" She asked me, throwing a glare at the two girls.
"Friends is probably giving them more credit then what they were, acquaintances is more appropriate."
"I don't like the brunette."
"That's Kate."
"Edward, Dude! Come on!" Marty waved me over. Oli was grinning like a mad man, of all of them, he was the one that I had been closest to.
"Sorry." I groaned to Bella as I started to walk the two of us over. She squeezed my hand, trying to show me that she didn't really mind.
"Hey man!" Oli cried, standing up.
"Hey!" we shared a quick 'man hug' slapping each other's backs before quickly pulling away from each other.
"Edward!" Kate thrilled before throwing her arms around me. I tensed, knowing how pissed off Bella would get and not knowing if I should hug her back. Thankfully, she pulled away after a few seconds and her brown eyes flashed to Bella, giving her a curious look, clearly trying to see if she knew her. Kate may have been a nice girl, though there was no denying that she was a complete flirt and a little ditzy.
"I haven't seen you before." She finally realized. "I'm Kate." She flashed her signature grin.
"Bella." Kate hugged her then, and Bella blinked in shock before slowly raising her arms to hugged back. I would have thought that she would have been used to random hugs, what with living with Alice for fifty or so years. When Kate pulled back, I quickly wrapped my arms around Bella, noting the way that one of the other guys, Jeremy I think, was looking at her.
The others introduced themselves to Bella and I tried not to glare when I saw just how many of them were staring at her.
Bastards.
"So, what are you doing here? You moving back?" Oli asked me, grabbing Alissa and pulling her into his lap. She stumbled slightly and I wondered if her and Tracy still did drugs on the weekends. From the spaced out look in her eyes, I was guessing yes.
"Nope, still living in Washington, just here for family stuff." I smiled tightly, wanting to get on with the day.
"What was it called? Spoons or something?" Marty snorted, enjoying the way that the others chuckled appreciatively.
"Forks." I tried not to get pissed at his comment, knowing that if anybody else had of said it I probably would have laughed to.
"Because that's so much better."
"It's not that bad." Bella chimed in. Immediately, Marty sobered and stared at her, somewhat transfixed.
"Oh, sorry."
"So are you Edward's girlfriend Bella?" Alissa asked quietly. Apart from the constant PDA's that she and Oli partook in, and the drug habits, she actually reminded me a bit of Angela Webber. Bella nodded shyly, hiding her head in my chest as I leaned to kiss her forehead.
"How'd that happen?" Jeremy snorted, probably not meaning for me to hear.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Bella snapped, surprisingly angry. I guess that I shouldn't be to shocked though, she could be like a tiger when something pissed her off.
Jeremy's eyes widened and his voice was slightly higher than usual when he spoke. "I – I just meant that Edward was never really interested in girls before, then he moves across the country and comes back with a really hot one." He also choked a bit when he realized what he said, and Tracy glared at Bella.
"As inappropriate as that last part was, he's right." Alissa smiled at Bella. "Before today I always had a suspicion that he was gay."
"Hey!"
"Sorry Edward, but its true. Girls would throw themselves at you and you'd shoot them down ever time! What do you expect us to think?"
I didn't bother to dignify her with a response, instead I glared at the top of Bella's head because she was laughing at me.
"Thanks for your support honey." I muttered.
We spent another half hour with my 'friends', reminiscing about 'old times' and declining offers to a party that night. I waved as we left, told them that I would go on facebook more often (even though I had only gone on a handful of times since I had moved), and sighed heavily as I dragged Bella away from Kate, who was intent on giving her another hug.
"Sorry." I apologized, grimacing somewhat.
"Don't be, they were nice." And she looked like she actually meant it. I think that she liked them more than I did. Meh.
"Oh! It's five, we gotta go now if we want to get back to the hotel on time." She said, glancing at the clock in the middle of the food court. Puling on my hand, she started to drag me back the way that we came. I could feel my heart start to beat faster and my stomach seemed to be filed with lead.
She was fine with my friends, but now she had to meet my family, and my family was crazy.
I just hoped that they didn't scare her off.
Next chapter, Bella meets the Masen's. Review Please :), I would insert a witty remark about what reviews are better than, but i can't think of any right now.