Well, today this teacher is headed back into the classroom after an amazing summer. It'll take me a few weeks to settle back into my new routine, but I'll get there. I'm sure I'll have plenty to share over the next few weeks.
Yeah, I love Esme, too. And you all for reading and reviewing and my team for cleaning this up. Also, i have to upload this a little differently than usual, so if I see any formatting errors, I'll fix it as soon as I can!
The sky is fully dark by the time dinner is cleared from the table, the three of us stuffed to the brim and exhausted from an evening's worth of food and laughter. Edward had disappeared to the living room to watch the football game on television, but it was only a matter of minutes before Esme, and I heard the faint sound of snores filtering through into the kitchen from where we stand, finishing the dishes from dinner before serving dessert.
"Typical," Esme chuckles at Edward's snores. "Eating all that food put him right to sleep."
"What about us?" I ask, drying a large, clear dish once Esme hands it over to me. "We ate it and prepared the same food—where's our nap?"
Esme laughs at my feigned indignance. "Tomorrow. We'll catch up tomorrow while I put him through the hell of picking out the perfect Christmas tree." She bends so she can whisper her secrets. "Sometimes, I made them look at such horrendous trees just as payback for these Thanksgiving naps."
"Brilliant!" I laugh loudly, covering my mouth at the cackle that slips through my lips. "I never would have thought of that!"
"Practice, my girl. Years and years of practice," Esme says, tapping her temple slowly as if blessed with female knowledge of the male sex that only comes with time.
"Noted," I say, reaching for my wine and taking a small sip. Dishes finished, Esme reaches for the towel to dry her hands before following suit and grabbing her own glass. She leans back against the sink, a far-off look in her eyes as she stares out the window in the kitchen.
"Carlisle would have loved this," she sighs. "All of today."
"I can see why," I reply. "You have a lovely home."
"Thank you," she smiles warmly, reaching over to squeeze my hand the same way Edward does. And, just like him, I don't flinch at her touch. "But it's not the home. It's the people in it. He would have been so happy to meet the first girl Edward brought home."
She has my immediate attention at her words. "The first one?"
Esme nods, sipping her wine, her eyes never leaving the window. "He never had time for dating or anything of the sort." She shrugs. "Always looking out for me and then for Carlisle once Edward came home from his tours."
"For me, as well," I add, thinking back to how Edward offered his help the first day I met him and how he's been nothing short of amazing ever since. "He must have sensed I needed him in some way."
My heart clenches again at the realization that I'm discovering new ways each day, on how much I've needed him.
"He's special like that. Always had a sense of where he was needed. But he's more than that," Esme sighs, the love for her son evident in everything she does. "And I think you know it, as well."
I nod and answer her with a smile, moving to help Esme with the desserts.
Because she's right.
On some level, I think I've always known.
See you tomorrow!