Author's Note: As a reminder to those of you awesome people reading all of my WIPs at once, Jacob hasn't tried to kiss Bella or anything in this story. He's just been really rude.
Leah and I became surprisingly good friends in no time. In fact, when Edward and the rest of the Cullens left early Thursday to hunt in advance of the dinner with the Quileutes on Saturday, I spent the evening with Seth and Leah at Sue's house on the reservation, much to Charlie's delight.
Sue happily fixed us up a table full of snacks, grateful for a distraction from how much she missed Harry. Cooking was always a comfort to her, much like it was to Esme, though unlike Sue, Esme didn't eat anything she cooked and hadn't in nearly a century.
"I can't believe you're being beaten by a couple of girls!" Leah shouted at Seth as he fell behind us in the racing game we were playing.
"I'm just being polite." he answered with a grin. "Ladies first, after all."
"Yeah right." she replied, rolling her eyes. I shot ahead of both of them while they were distracted, despite not usually being one to play video games. "Go Bella!"
I laughed, enjoying the friendly competition and everyone's cheering. Even Sue joined in teasing Seth as she sat behind us snacking on some popcorn. "Don't you all play this for hours every day? And Bella is beating you on her first try? What's this?"
"Beginner's luck." Leah said, grabbing a handful of popcorn. "Just wait and see."
"Uh huh." Sue said, settling back into a relaxed position and watching us play. It felt like minutes had passed when she reminded everyone that it was past nine o'clock on a school night.
Leah walked me out to my truck. "You're pretty fun, Swan. Nice ass kicking."
"Thanks, you too."
"I guess I'll see you Saturday. Anything I should know ahead of time about going into a house of vampires?" she asked.
"Uh, I think we're eating outside." I said, blushing and laughing at myself as soon as I said it. I had a talent for being a little awkward. Leah laughed. "Esme is a great cook. She's been making me lunches all week to practice. It's a normal house. There aren't coffins and things like one would expect. They have like…bathrooms and everything."
"They don't have some kind of creepy murder basement?"
"No, no murder basement. Or if they do, that wasn't on the tour." I said. Leah laughed again. "Esme keeps the house fully stocked to keep up appearances. I'm always comfortable there. At least until Emmett and Jasper start wrestling or something. You should hear the loud noises they make when they get into it. Oh, and Alice might try to use you as her life-sized Barbie. If she offers, run far, far away."
"Run far, far away if offered a game of dress up. Try to encourage the males to wrestle for my own amusement, got it."
"Just a normal day in Forks, right?" I asked, climbing up into my truck.
"Werewolves, vampires, live Barbies…yep! Most boring town ever."
I laughed and started the ignition, dreading putting our fun night to an end, especially knowing that Edward wouldn't be waiting for me when I got home since the entire family was off on an extended hunting trip. "Goodnight, Leah."
"Night, Bella. Drive carefully."
"I will."
"I'll see you Saturday."
"See you Saturday!" I repeated back, turning the radio up a little and starting home. I kept forgetting to ask which of the Cullens had managed to repair and reinstall my stereo that I had torn out in their absence, but I assumed it must had been Edward, not wanting the others to notice that I had ruined their gift. Either way, it was a sweet gesture, and it was nice to be able to listen to music again without feeling empty.
Charlie was waiting up for me when I got home, opening the door, and helping me remove my raincoat. "How were things with the Clearwaters?"
"Fun. Sue made us a ton of food and we played video games."
"Awesome!" Charlie said with a genuine smile. "Did you get your homework done?"
"No." I said, laughing, knowing that he wouldn't protest that I had put it off for any of his friends from the reservation. "I'm going to do it real fast before bed. It's only a few math problems." I added. He shook his head but didn't lose his smile. He was really happy to see me spending time with them, and so was I. It was nice to have him not worry about me and to have a few more close friends.
"Alright. Goodnight, kiddo."
"Night, dad." I headed upstairs and took my time in the shower, relaxing and anxiously looking forward to seeing Edward the next night. I hoped he was having fun with his family and not worrying about me too much. I dried my hair, dressed in soft pajamas, and quickly did the last of my homework before settling into the bed with a contended sigh.
I had nearly drifted off to sleep when a loud thud woke me up. I sprung up to a sitting position, knowing immediately that it wasn't Edward or Alice. It was too loud. It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the hulking form standing at the foot of my bed and my heart was racing in fear.
"Jacob! What the-?!"
"Shh, don't wake Charlie!"
"Maybe I should wake Charlie. Get out! I don't want to see you."
"I'm not going to hurt you." he said, acting offended by my fearful reaction.
"I never thought that you would. But sneaking into a girl's bedroom late at night? What if I was naked?!"
"I made sure you weren't first."
"That's sick."
"I'm sorry." he said, but I knew it wasn't sincere.
"What do you want?" I asked, wanting to get this over with, make him leave and lock my window for the evening. Edward could always knock if he came back early.
"To talk."
"A phone call would have been fine." I said, keeping my arms firmly crossed over my chest and running through escape plans in my head just in case.
"What's gotten into you, Bella?"
"Me?! What's gotten into me?!" I asked, and Charlie's snores got louder from the next room. I forced myself to talk more quietly, not really wanting to explain why there was a boy in my bedroom, invited or not. "What on Earth do you mean?"
"We were friends."
"Yeah. We were. Were!"
"So, you're just going to let some blood sucker come between us? He left you. He didn't care if you lived or died. And you're really just going to take him back and cut off all of your other friends? What if he leaves again?" Jacob moved to sit on the end of my bed but thought better of it after one look at the cold, hard glare I was giving him. I was sure that it was visible even in the moonlight.
"He's not going anywhere. Ignoring everything else you just said for right now, I do have other friends. I just got back from the Clearwaters a few hours ago."
"I love you, Bella." Jacob said. "Give me a chance."
His simple statement tore at my heart. Tears rose to my eyes. Jacob was being awful, but he had once been a good friend.
I hated breaking his heart, but I never had any doubts that there was anyone for me but Edward. "I love Edward. That will never change. If you really loved me, you would want to see me happy. Not try to manipulate me like this." I was crying before I could finish my statement, despite my best attempts to stay angry and to not show my weakness and my care for even former friends, or now enemies.
Jacob moved to stand in front of me. He raised a hand as if to touch my arm but changed course and kept it to himself, looking at me sadly. "I'm being an ass, aren't I?"
"Yes." I answered without hesitation. "You are."
He exhaled loudly and sat down in the desk chair a few feet away, putting his head in his hands. "My best friend in the entire world not only doesn't love me back but wants to willingly give up her life to become a leech. How am I supposed to handle that?"
"By still being my friend and respecting that it's my choice." I insisted. He was quiet. I continued. "My best friend keeps trying to make me his girlfriend even when I've repeatedly said no. He hid the man I love more than anything from me and tried to keep him away forever, ruining my life. Oh, and he turns into a giant wolf, so he's not entirely human either."
"I can't handle this."
"No one is asking you to handle anything. Either you are my friend, or you're not. Trying to keep Edward away from me, bringing my bike to Charlie, telling him about the tribe's secrets, those things don't exactly add up to wanting to still be my friend."
"I want to be more than your friend."
"Well, I don't. I've made that very clear. I'm sorry that I can't be who you need me to be, but I'm not changing who I am or who I'm dating for you."
"I'm sorry." he said sincerely this time after a long silence. "It sucks, you know. Losing you, turning into a shapeshifter, all of it."
"I know." I said quietly. I still cared for Jacob, just not how he wanted me to. "I could have been a better friend to you when you started shifting. I'm sorry if I led you on in any way. I do love you, just not in that way. I had a great time together."
"Me too."
"I'm sure you'll find a nice girl someday who makes you happy and you will be so glad that you didn't settle for me."
"It wouldn't be settling."
"It would, and you know it. We work great together as friends, but we want very different things for ourselves. I don't want to stay in Forks or La Push forever."
"I guess you're right."
"I don't know the first thing about working on cars." I said.
"I don't know the first thing about those classic books you love so much." he admitted.
"Classical music bores you, but it's my favorite."
"I'd like to stay close to my dad and make sure that he's taken care of."
"And I'd like to go away to college."
"You would still want that for yourself?"
"I do."
"Being a bloodsucker doesn't take priority?"
"I wish you wouldn't call them that. Becoming a Cullen." I corrected. "And no, Edward doesn't want me to change anything for him. I'm the one that wants to join their family in every way. He's actually against changing me. We are both going to go to college. I get to choose where. He said that he will follow me anywhere, and I believe him. There's a lot you don't understand about him and his family. When he left, it nearly destroyed me, but his heart was in the right place. He was trying to protect me."
"Yeah, right." he said, shaking his head.
"Well, what did you do when you first started shifting? You avoided me, right? Wouldn't return my calls?"
"That's different."
"How?" I demanded.
"He knew what he was all along."
"True, but he was just going about his life when he met me, just like you were. He had no idea that we were going to meet or fall in love. He didn't even know that I existed."
"He could have stayed away from you in the first place."
"He tried! I wouldn't let him. He saved my life, you know."
"From the danger he put you in."
"Not from other vampires. From an accident in the parking lot at school. I would have died if he hadn't pushed me away. He told me to stay away from him then, but I wouldn't listen. He told me that he was no good. I decided that I didn't care. I love him. And even if I didn't understand it in the beginning, I have loved him since the moment I saw him. And the reason it hurt so much when he was away, is because I thought about him every single second. There was no escape from the pain. The reason I liked doing dangerous things like riding bikes is because when I was being reckless, I heard his voice in my mind warning me to stop, almost as if he were still here."
"You only spent time with me so we could do dangerous things?" he asked sadly.
"No. At first, I did come to you with the bikes for that reason, but if I didn't want to hang out with you, I would have just left them with you. You're my friend. I enjoy spending time with you when you aren't being so rude to me and Edward. And I've missed you."
"So, vampires…they have a thing kind of like imprinting?" he asked after another minute or two of silence.
I thought about it a minute. "I suppose you could say that. Although you said imprinting is more of a protection thing. Vampires don't imprint. They find their mate. And they don't break up or divorce or anything like that. It's forever."
"You don't have a choice?"
"I do. I'm not a vampire. But I don't want one. There was never a choice in my heart. He doesn't have a choice to love me or not love me though. He can't just wish it away or move on, no matter how much he tries."
"Huh." Jacob said, thinking and actually trying to understand us for the first time. I yawned and glanced at the clock on my bedside table, my eyes growing wide when I realized that I would have to be up for school in less than five hours. "Sorry." Jacob said, following my line of sight. "School, yeah. I should probably go."
"Does this mean we can be friends again?"
"I'll try." he said, coming to squeeze my hand for a brief second before disappearing out of my window with a thump that I was sure would wake Charlie.
I shut the window but didn't lock it now that I knew Jacob wasn't going to bother me again. Even though I knew he was going to be hunting for another full day, I still hoped that Edward would appear during the night. I hated sleeping without him.
We had worked through most of my fears about him suddenly leaving. I was confident that he would return from his hunt, but it was still hard to fight the lonely feeling of not having Edward near me. He said that humans couldn't feel the true intensity of vampire emotions, but I loved him more than I ever knew possible.
Eventually, I did manage to fall asleep and rest a few hours before my alarm went off.
School passed slowly and it was hard to not look at the empty seats where the Cullens should have been, more out of habit than anything else. I spent a few class periods talking with Angela but otherwise tried to keep myself distracted with a book. It wasn't working.
My mind kept running through everything that had happened with Jacob the night before and also worrying about increasingly impossible scenarios for the upcoming dinner with the Cullens and the Quileutes. At first, I was just wondering what would happen if a couple of the wolves wanted a playful fight with Emmett and if it would actually turn violent.
Then, I debated what would happen if one of the Cullens were to mention their past slip ups, like the few times Jasper had drank human blood since becoming a Cullen. Finally, my imaginings got truly crazy as I thought about them all fighting and either of my families getting hurt. I couldn't bear it.
I was grateful when the bell rang dismissing school, where I could at least go home and distract myself with housework, cooking, or anything more interesting than staring at a wall or a book that couldn't hold my attention.
"So, I hear there's some kind of party I'm not invited to tomorrow." Charlie said as I sat the table for dinner and placed a plate of baked chicken and vegetables in front of him.
I hesitated, not sure how to respond that he wasn't invited for a reason without revealing too much. "Carlisle and Esme invited some of the Quileutes over for dinner as sort of a peace offering. I wouldn't say that you aren't invited exactly, just that it's kind of a private thing."
"You're going." He knew that he didn't have to ask.
"Because Edward is. We spend the weekends together. Would you like to come?" I asked, wondering what he was getting at.
"No, I'll be at work. I'm just messing with you." he said with a smile.
"You scared me."
"What, you thought I was mad?"
"Not mad, no. But I didn't want you to not think that the Cullens don't like you."
"I know they do. Do you really think they will get along for this dinner? Maybe it's a good thing I'll be the cop on duty during it. I'd hate to see any of them arrested."
"I hope they will. The Cullens are really trying. The Clearwaters love them and have been trying to change everyone else's opinion. I think the only issues might be Billy and Jacob, although I don't think Jacob will go."
"They invited him?"
"I think so." I answered, honestly unsure. Alice and Esme were handling all of the details, though Alice was frustrated that the wolves blocked her visions, so she had no idea of the potential outcome.
"Well have fun. If it gets too crazy, call me. Maybe I should let you borrow my cell phone just in case tomorrow."
"Then how would I call you if you were on patrol?"
"You could call the station and have them radio me."
"Or I could just run to the Cullens' house phone and call you."
"True. State the obvious." he said, laughing quietly.
"I'm sure it will be fine. They want to be friends. If Jacob does show up, he will be the only one with an issue versus how many?"
"Alright, fine." Charlie said. "Do you have all of your homework done?"
"I just have a little bit I was going to go upstairs and finish up before bed."
Charlie nodded and helped me wash the dinner dishes before wishing me goodnight and relaxing with a beer in one hand and the remote in the other in front of the TV.
I went upstairs to my room anxiously waiting for the sun to finish setting and my dad to go to bed so that Edward would come visit, at least I hoped that he would. I didn't know how long they would be out hunting in preparation for the dinner, but he would have to come home at some point during the night so they could start decorating, as if Alice or Esme could not decorate for any special occasion.
I opened the door to my room that I hadn't remembered closing and jumped when I saw Edward lounging on my bed, his arms behind his head and a relaxed smile on his face.
"What took you so long?" he asked with a mischievous, crooked grin. His handsome face and bright golden eyes, freshly tinted from his hunt, made my heart flutter with joy.
It was hard to find the words to express my excitement, so I hastily jumped onto the bed beside him and hugged him tightly, his arms catching me and shielding me from hitting any part of my body against his hard muscles. My lips found his before my eyes adjusted to our new position and I kissed him eagerly and excitedly. He wrapped a hand in my hair, and I stroked his cheek with my thumb. Everything was perfect again.
His other hand was gently rubbing my back and I pulled back with a smile, feeling complete. "I missed you."
"I missed you too." he said, rubbing his nose gently against mine. "You were all I could think about. My brothers wouldn't stop teasing me."
"They're ones to talk. They have mates too."
"They do. But I don't want to talk about them right now." he said, leaning in for another kiss.
"You started it." I said and he laughed, one of his cool hands gently resting on the back of my neck as he leaned in towards me. My homework was just going to have to wait.
I woke up the next morning surprised to find Edward still with me. He usually went home early in the morning, not wanting Charlie to catch him in my room as he got ready for work.
"Good morning." he said with a contented smile as I sat up beside him.
"Always a good morning with you here." I answered, lightly tracing his face with my fingers. He leaned into my touch and closed his eyes.
"Hmmm. A very good morning indeed."
"Is Charlie already gone?"
"He left for work a little while ago. I hid outside for a few minutes and came back when he left."
"Afraid I'll skip town before tonight?"
"No." he laughed. "You wouldn't get very far in that sloth of a truck you have anyhow." I made a face at him but decided to let his insult of my red beauty pass for now. "I missed you. Two days is way too long to be without you."
He dazzled me and made me forget any concerns about my morning breath or messy hair as we kissed and snuggled close together.
I leaned closer to him, intending to rest a hand on his thigh, but he grabbed my hand with a grin before it could touch him and sat it on his knee instead. I blushed and stopped kissing him, laughing. "I'm sorry."
"Are you?" he asked, laughing too.
"I was trying to rest my hand on your thigh."
"That was about to not be my thigh."
"Why did you stop me?" I pouted.
"After your change, future Mrs. Cullen." he said with a smile that made my heart flutter. "Come on, we better get out of here and go where there are chaperones if that's the mood you're in."
"Do we have to?"
"We'd better."
"I don't wanna." I groaned, reaching for his face.
"Too bad!" Alice shouted from outside, loud enough for me to hear.
"What is she doing here?"
"Making sure that we come help her decorate." he said, laughing quietly. "Nothing was going to happen, Alice. You know that."
She jumped through my window with the grace of a cat. "I don't know. I saw Bella reaching for something fun a minute ago."
I blushed and hid my face in my hands. "She didn't succeed." Edward said with a laugh.
"That's too bad." Alice answered, making me blush even harder.
"I wasn't trying to be inappropriate!" I shouted, still not looking up. "I just wanted to scoot closer to him."
"Uh huh." Alice said. "Edward, downstairs. I'm going to help Bella get dressed."
"I can dress myself."
"Nope. Not for an event like today. I've bought you a lovely dress."
"You expect me to wear a dinner dress all day and not ruin it?"
"Don't be silly!" she exclaimed. "I, of course, picked you out a sensible outfit for now."
"Why dress me now if you are just going to dress me again later?"
"Because it's fun." she answered.
Edward kissed my hands that still covered my face and gently pulled them away. I could barely look at him, still too embarrassed. He leaned closer to me, just inches from my face, and dazzled me until I forgot we weren't alone. "Soon." he whispered, kissing me gently and disappearing downstairs so Alice could play Bella Barbie.
When we arrived at the Cullen house, Alice immediately put all of the men to work helping her hang lanterns and tea lights around the yard. It was fun to watch them hanging decorations in tall trees without the need for ladders. To alleviate some of Rosalie's protesting about the smell of human food, Esme and Carlisle decided on hosting a barbeque under some picnic tables in the yard. The large benches were freshly carved from fallen logs, a fact which Emmett was proud to brag about to anyone who would listen.
"What are you nervous about, Bella?" Jasper asked, landing easily on his feet from a tall tree beside me.
"Them coming here."
He didn't need any further details. "It will be alright. You saw the letter they sent us yourself. We're friends now. Edward and I will know right away if anyone has hostile intentions."
"They're friends now. What if they learn something they don't like? Or if they find out that Edward is going to change me? Surely, we can't stay friends after that."
"One night at a time." Carlisle said, stepping outside with his arms full of large satin ribbons. He wore a gentle smile and patted my shoulder as he walked past, somehow managing to not drop a thing. He sat the ribbons on the table beside Alice, who was happily giving commands to everyone except for me. I was deemed too much of an accident risk to help and was told to just observe. "You'll see." he said. "This is the start of a new friendship. Everything is going to be fine. In fact, the best it's ever been between our peoples."
"I wish Alice could see the wolves."
"Me too. But there are some things that are better seen from one's own eyes."
Carlisle went back inside to help Esme. Edward was being a showoff and kissed my cheek, disappearing in a flash before I could even reach for him and scurrying to the top of another tree, his hand full of small, battery powered lights. I smiled and admired my new family, so glad to have them back in my life.
Just before the Quileutes started arriving, Alice whisked me upstairs to do my hair and insist that I wore the dress she bought for me.
"I know you want to ask me something." she said as she braided my hair into an intricate updo.
"Not where everyone can hear me." I whispered.
"Fine. I saw that you wanted to ask me anyhow, but it's Edward you should be asking."
"So, he hasn't made any decisions yet?"
"He has some ideas, but nothing firm. He was waiting to talk to you."
"Oh, crap!" I shouted.
"What's the matter?"
"There's something I forgot to tell him."
"Oh, well I'm sure you all will have some time together after dinner."
"No, he needs to know before. I'm surprised he didn't ask about it."
"I'm almost done." she said, trying to calm me down. I knew that people would start to arrive soon, and I didn't want him to be taken by surprise if Jacob showed up.
Edward stepped into her room and I momentarily forgot anything I had previously been thinking at the sight of him in his outfit. It wasn't quite a suit, this being an informal dinner, but he wore dark jeans, a black button up and a blazer, making his pale skin look otherworldly beautiful. He had tried to comb his hair, but it did what it wanted to, as always. His golden eyes were piercing into my very soul. He was absolutely stunning.
"I don't have to be a mind reader to know that look." Alice giggled.
He smiled handsomely and took one of my hands, kissing it tenderly. "You wanted to tell me something?"
"Wasn't important." I surprised myself by giggling, so enthralled I was by him.
"You seemed to think it was a moment ago." He grinned and my heart fluttered. I shook my head, trying to clear it, but Alice held me still again to finish my hair.
"I forgot to tell you that I had a visitor last night." I said, forcing myself to keep my thoughts straight. "I spent the day with Leah but when I was almost asleep, Jacob snuck in my window. He scared me."
Edward and Alice both growled quietly. "It's alright. Nothing happened." I said, trying to diffuse the situation before they could get truly upset. "We argued a little, but he apologized before he left. I explained to him all of the reasons why we could never be together, and I think he understood. I'm still upset with him for how he's treated us but…I think he's trying."
"I don't want you to see him without one of us there." Edward said, always overprotective.
"I don't want to."
"Do you think he'll try to show up tonight?"
"No, I doubt it."
"And he didn't hurt you?" he asked, his eyes tracing the outline of my arms and exposed skin to make sure that I was unharmed.
"He didn't. Just scared me when he came inside. He was loud."
Edward nodded and stayed quiet, keeping his thoughts to himself. Alice once again insisted that he leave us alone while she dressed me, including a matching set of necklace and earrings.
She had picked out a long purple dress with a short v-neck that just showed off my collarbone. To my surprise, it was comfortable and not over the top, though I wouldn't feel like myself if I didn't grumble about her outfit choices at least a little bit. "I'll be the only one in a dress."
"No, you won't. Esme, Rosalie and I are all going to wear dresses."
"People don't usually wear dresses to cookouts."
"Well, we will. Besides, I don't get many opportunities to dress you up." I pouted. "And Edward is going to love it." she added.
"He's already seen it in your thoughts."
"No, he hasn't. I've been reciting Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in French all day. He has no idea."
"He really wants to see Bella." he added quietly from the hallway. "My sister has been hogging her attention for hours."
"It has not been hours." she said, helping me stand up and facing me towards the door. "Come in."
"About time." he complained, but his eyes landed on me and he smiled handsomely. He stood frozen for a moment, although I couldn't imagine what was so special about a simple dress. He approached me slowly, his eyes never moving away from me, and took me in his arms. "You're gorgeous." he said "And with your hair pulled up like this, your scent is delectable."
"It isn't too much?"
"No." he answered, leaning in to place a gentle kiss on my neck. Alice giggled. "I can hear some of their cars coming up the driveway. I will tell you all about how beautiful you are later." he promised, kissing me softly and offering his arm to escort me down the stairs.
The first car was led by the Clearwaters, with Sue nervously driving at the front of the line of hopefully new friends. Leah and Seth rode with her and immediately ran up to me and Edward.
"A dress, Bella?" Leah asked, looking down at her jeans and button up shirt. "Way to make me look bad."
"I didn't pick it."
"Alice played dress up with you?" she asked.
"Of course, I did!" Alice said in an excited voice, "You must be Leah."
I greeted Sue and tried to help make her more comfortable as the family eagerly greeted Seth and Leah. Sam, Emily, Old Quil, Quil, Embry, Paul, Jared, and Billy came out of a few large trucks behind everyone, with Sam pushing Billy's chair.
Everyone was greeted and ushered to the backyard to hang out as Esme put the finishing touches on dinner. Sue and I were quick to offer to help her, giving everyone else a chance to get acquainted. The two mothers were fast friends, immediately bonding over a shared love of their children, romance novels and cooking large meals.
There was loud laughter from the backyard within minutes and we knew that everyone was finally getting along. At least, it certainly sounded that way. I walked outside carrying a tray of homemade buns to find the elder Quileutes and Carlisle laughing at a tangle of Emmett, Jasper, Seth, and a few unidentified wolves on the ground. All of them were laughing loudly and from the sounds of it, trying to wrestle but not succeeding very much due to their matching strengths. The result was all of them being held down on the ground by their strength. One would occasionally roll another over, and they would laugh, getting nowhere.
My heart skipped a beat when I didn't see Edward, but he took the tray from my hands and kissed me on the cheek. "You don't think I'm quite that immature, do you?" he whispered with a chuckle.
"Of course, you are!" Emmett shouted. "You're just trying to impress Bella by staying out of it."
"Perhaps." he answered.
Sue stepped outside behind me with her hands full. "This looks a little-"
"Sexual?!" Emmett asked.
"Uncomfortable." Sue corrected with a loud laugh. Everyone outside laughed even louder and all of the men got up thanks to Emmett's comment, putting some space between themselves.
Carlisle was laughing the loudest. "I have never seen them stop fighting so fast."
"There's nothing wrong with sex." Emmett insisted.
"No, there isn't." "Definitely not!" A few people agreed. "But some of us are related!"
"Oh." Emmett said, laughing even louder. "Time for a new game then." Sue and I shook our heads and went inside to finish helping Esme.
"Can you believe them?" she asked me.
"They're acting like a bunch of wild animals." I said and she laughed loudly.
"They are a bunch of wild animals."
Alice and Rosalie came inside to help us finish up and dinner was done in no time. Edward tried to help, but Esme sent him back outside, insisting that he needed to be a good host to our guests and that we had everything under control.
We were almost afraid of what position we would find the guys in when we stepped outside this time, but thankfully they and Leah were playing a game of horseshoes in the large yard while Carlisle, Edward, and the elders were deep into what looked like an interesting conversation.
Though Billy flinched a little when I approached Edward and wrapped an arm around him, he quickly smiled and was on his best behavior. He was trying. After decades of hate, it was the best I could ask for. "Hi Bella."
"Hey Billy, Quil."
"I kind of thought your dad might be here tonight." Billy said.
"He's working. He did ask me why he wasn't invited, but I told him it was kind of a personal evening."
"We're going to fix him a nice, big plate of food before you head home." Esme said, putting a hand on Carlisle's shoulder as she surveyed the damage to her yard from a pack of playful wolves and vampires.
"That won't be necessary." Edward said with a laugh. "He's about to turn into the driveway."
"What?!" I asked.
"Relax. He's not going to stay long. He's on patrol and wanted to stop in and make sure none of us killed each other yet." Edward laughed.
"You guys don't live in Forks. He doesn't have jurisdiction here." I said.
"A technicality to him."
"Everyone act human!" Emmett shouted, waving his arms, and making silly faces. "This is not a drill. Act human! I repeat, this is not a drill! Human approaching! Act human! Especially you, Seth!"
"Is that necessary?" Billy asked with a puzzled expression.
"He's joking." I explained. "Emmett is kind of a goof if you haven't noticed."
"Only kind of?! Aww, Bella you hurt my feelings. I want to be full goof."
"OK, after Charlie leaves." I insisted as everyone cracked up laughing.
"Deal." he said with his booming laugh.
"Why me especially?" Seth asked.
"Because I like you the best." Emmett answered.
I faintly heard the crunch of Charlie's tires on the gravel driveway and looked up at Edward, nervously. "It's fine." he said, gently kissing me on the cheek. "I'll go greet him."
"I'm coming with you." I insisted. He raised an eyebrow but put an arm around me as we walked to the front yard.
"Bella! You're in a dress!" Charlie exclaimed when he saw us.
"Alice." Edward explained.
"Ah."
"What are you doing here, dad?"
"Well I uh-I was patrolling in the neighborhood and uh-" he hesitated, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.
"And you wanted to make sure the fighting hadn't started without you?" I asked.
"Something like that." he said with a relieved smile, seeing that we weren't mad at him.
"Esme had just said something about making a plate to send home for you when you pulled in. You must have super hearing when food is involved." I said.
"That won't be necessary now, will it?" Esme asked with a smile, coming around the side of the house to greet my dad. "Won't you join us, Charlie?"
"I didn't mean to crash the party."
"Nonsense, you're always welcome here."
"I'm technically on patrol."
"Don't you get a lunch break?"
"True. I'll- uh, I'll call dispatch and let them know." he said, stepping back inside the cruiser. Esme was thrilled. I hoped that everyone would behave and not make Charlie suspicious. My eyes grew wide and I looked at Edward in a panic as I realized it would be suspicious if the Cullens weren't seen eating.
"It's OK." Edward whispered.
"You don't know what I'm thinking." I whispered back.
"I don't have to. It's in your expression. Remember the pizza? And the steak?" he asked, and I shuddered. The Cullens had already done enough eating and regurgitation of human food for my sake, although I suspected that Emmett would probably enjoy the gross factor of it all. Edward laughed and my expression and we led Charlie to the yard with everyone else.
To my surprise, not everyone would step away from their matches of horseshoes and lawn darts (which looked really dangerous) to eat. Everyone made themselves a plate, vampires too for Charlie's sake, and most of the 'teenagers' resumed their games, sitting plates to the side and occasionally nibbling on them or stuffing their faces when it wasn't their turn if they were one of the human food eaters.
Charlie didn't even notice, launching into easy conversation about sports with Billy, Old Quil and Carlisle, only occasionally sneaking a glance at me and Edward, who was slipping chips and other finger foods from his plate to mine when Charlie wasn't looking.
Alice, Rosalie, Jasper, Esme, and Sue started up a game of croquet and there was enough chaos going on that Charlie didn't suspect a thing. There was plenty of food and drinks. The yard was filled with laughter and friendship, no serious topics seeming to be on the agenda tonight.
I was grateful to see both sets of my family and friends mingling easily and getting along, even seeming to enjoy each other's company. Leah tried to get me to join her in lawn darts a few times, earning quiet growls from Edward, which only made her laugh. "I'm clumsy enough just walking, Leah. You don't want to trust me with any sharp objects. Thank you though."
"You're no fun, Swan."
"You said I was a ton of fun the other night."
"Touché." she said, going back to her group and their dangerous merriment. Although I was confident that the vampires could probably throw the darts hard enough to take off someone's head if they wanted, they were showing restraint and acting at least mostly human.
Charlie departed after about an hour, not wanting to be missed from work too much. This was when the pleasant, if old fashioned, games devolved into chaos again. There was a bunch of blurs shooting around the yard as various vampires wrestled and Quileutes shifted, participating as friends, and showing off their strengths. There was talk of a game of football, but Carlisle wouldn't allow it without a thunderstorm, not wanting to arouse human suspicion.
When darkness fell, the lights in the trees sparkled and lit up the yard in a lovely way, reflecting back from the large glass walls of the house. "Cullens, we would like to apologize and sincerely thank you for a wonderful evening." Old Quil said, shaking Carlisle's hand. "For too long we have allowed our hatred to guide us. We see now that you are a wonderful, honorable family. You wouldn't kill a human no more than we would."
"Thank you. That means a lot to us." Carlisle said, returning the handshake. "You are welcome here any time."
"We will meet with the council next month and consider amending the treaty, if you'd like."
"We would love that, although there is no pressure. We don't mind staying out of La Push if it makes anyone more comfortable. We would definitely never hunt there for any reason."
There were many well wishes as the Quileutes went on their way.
"Oh, Bella!" Alice shouted, smiling mischievously. "I have a surprise for you."
"I hate surprises." I said and Edward chuckled.
"Fine then. I won't tell you about this one."
"It's just a secret? No gifts?"
"No gifts." she promised.
"Fine."
"You're so mean to me." Alice said, sticking her tongue out.
"I'm sorry. But you remember how the surprise party went."
"Well, the party just ended." she grinned. "But I did speak to Charlie before he left, and he said that you could stay the night with me and Rosalie and have a girl's night!"
"Thank you." I said, knowing that it meant more time with Edward.
"Exactly. Don't grumble about my surprises!" She laughed and turned towards the yard to help everyone else clean up. Edward and I joined her, though I was the slowest out of everyone. They didn't mind.
Author's Note: I promised a long chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! This was double the usual length. There's at least one more long chapter outlined, if not two.
