Disclaimer: I own nothing.
CH 16
APOV
I was feeling good, finally. For the longest time, Bella's future had been shadowed. As if she lived every day in a fog, making decisions as she went. She had no real future and nothing for me to see because she had no foresight. I knew she was unhappy but no matter what I did, the visions remained cloudy. She was like a fog that took over my mind and it unnerved me. Everyone else came to me so easily, all I had to do was think their name and suddenly clear visions bloomed in my mind. That was my comfort and my gift. I loved Bella dearly, but her fog had been causing me a lot of stress.
I knew Jazz felt it too. For a while, Jazz suffered greatly. When Bella was in her state we all called "the haze", it was almost as if I had lost him. When we were finally able to take some extended breaks, he would try to explain what was happening for him around Bella. It was like nothing he had ever felt before and it was breaking my whole family apart. As she began to come out of it, so too had my family. My visions of them were just as clear but now Bella began to emerge clearly for the day. I still could not see past the fog of her future but the clarity of each day brought me some peace.
With the peace, grew love and comfort. I had known all along that she was my best friend but living it and knowing it are two very different things. I also knew my whole family would embrace her as their own and it was a wonderful feeling. The only thing we were missing was Edward. A month before their departure, I had seen Esme and Carlisle leaving to check on him. As usual, I had to gauge whether or not this information would be helpful or hurtful to my family. I could see Rosalie's reaction if she knew too far in advance so I kept the information to myself. Without Edward around, I had no one to give me away. Keeping secrets was a lot easier—and a lot more burdensome. I missed him terribly. He was the only one who knew my burden and how isolating it could be. Knowing that Carlisle and Esme would also be leaving brought me down again.
Despite this, I tried to be as present as possible. I could not help myself, constantly scanning the future for when we could all be together again. I knew it would happen, but the fog surrounding Edward and Bella prevented me from knowing exactly where and when. I was truly surprised when Bella announced at the restaurant that she wanted to speak with my brother again. As soon as she said that, I was scanning. I could not see anything conclusive again and determined it was my brother's fault. He would not let anything happen unless I was careful about my maneuvers. He was so aware of my skills that he could tell when I was manipulating things, even if he could not hear my thoughts. I had to be on my A-game for things to work out.
This was another difficulty for me because while I was scheming away, life was always happening around me. It was a constant balance between living in the future and living in the present. Jazz had to pull me back frequently and ground me into just being. It was not fair to him but I knew he would not have it any other way.
While Bella took a bath that night, I had started going through all the various scenarios and determined Rosalie had to be the one to reach out to him. He would know something was amiss if Jasper, Emmett or I intervened. I also had to consider reaching out to Esme or Carlisle and having them connect with him, but I could not risk messages getting lost in translation. Plus, Rose's friendship and care for Bella would disarm him. I could see him being caught off guard by her ardor and therefore opening himself up to hear what she had to say. Despite all this, I knew he would say no. I kept this to myself as it wasn't helpful. What was helpful was knowing that Esme would be able to talk with him just enough to open the way for me to intervene. Alice strikes again!
I was honest with myself, I had been planning things all along. I knew we needed to be in Ithaca. When the college scheme came about, I knew Edward was there. I also knew we had to get Bella there. I could not have seen all the little steps in between, but I was always moving us forward without really knowing why. The five of us were scheduled to attend Ithaca College in the fall. I knew Edward would be happy deep down when he found out Bella would be across the town from his school.
When I texted him, I knew it would lead to this phone conversation and therefore just started talking when he called.
"Okay so don't be mad but I think we are coming to you."
"Alice!" he gasped back at me with exasperation.
"Sorry! I knew we had to get out there but I didn't realize why until she decided to talk to you again."
"Mhmm. I'm sure"
"Actually, we are all going to college out there too…" I hedged.
A very long silence commenced on the other end of the phone. I knew not to say anything and to let him process a minute.
"You can't possibly think I would allow that. I just agreed to maybe think about seeing her again and you're telling me that you'll all be living in the same town as me and going to the same school? Are you moving back into the house too? Because you know I'll leave if you do."
"I know you'll allow it. I have already seen it and its becoming clearer the more we talk. You miss her. You both need this."
I knew he was ripping his hands through his hair in frustration.
"Oh, and no, we won't be living at the house and we also are not going to be at Cornell with you. We are giving Bella the full freshman experience and going to IC. So do not worry—you will not run into her unless you mean to. Which you will."
Edward growled.
"What I did can't be undone, Alice, no matter how much you or anyone else wishes it so. I'm sorry."
"That's where you are wrong. I know what is going to happen, and you know I am always right. Try having some hope—it clears things up even more."
Through the phone, I could hear him sigh again.
"I really miss you. I need my brother back. You're the only one who gets it, Edward."
"I know. I miss you too. I need some time, though."
"Well, class starts in two weeks so we'll see you then! Love you!"
With that, I hung up the phone. It was time to test Bella's hunting abilities to show her just how ready she was! Everything was falling into place exactly as I planned.