#6
We left the office of the creep tart and boarded the car again. Edward was silent along the way and Seth kept telling him how awesome his display with Aro was. I was secretly jumping up and down because Edward took my advice to heart and he put that awful man in his place. He shouldn't have to belittle the Prince of his country but still, since Edward wasn't Emmett, Aro Volturi felt the need to treat him like a child in his brother's shoes.
When almost half an hour had passed since we left the office and I couldn't understand why we were taking so long… and besides, silence was never my forte. "Where are we going?"
Edward looked at me with a smile "The Children's house is a little bit away from the center of the town. I wanted it to be a place where they could have a place to run, be free and happy without being in the middle of the chaos that is the town sometimes"
Free and happy. Sounded like something Edward wished for himself. I smiled and looked at the landscape from the window. It was a sunny day and you could see the colors reflecting on the window. It was an amazing picture and I was, once again, happy of my choice of moving here.
"What are you thinking?" Edward asked and I turned to look at him. He was looking at me with a look of concentration on his face "You are smiling like you won the lottery or something"
"Oh… it's just that… I'm happy I moved here. I mean, I love Seattle and my father is there. I grew up there but… it was always foggy or raining. I'm more of a sunny weather kind of girl…besides, I think I never got along with so many people at once…" I said and blushed while his eyebrows went up "I mean, my only real friend was always Alice… we were inseparable since high school until she moved to London for a fashion seminar and remained there until she knew I was moving here and decided to branch her business here too"
"Well, I was not the most popular teenager either" I looked at him like he was crazy "I'm serious! I was geeky, I wear glasses, my parents made me have bodyguards everywhere I went, I was shy and I actually relied on Emmett most of the time… still do, actually"
"You wear glasses?"
"Yeah, for reading… don't tell me that was the only thing you got from all that" he said laughing. I was about to answer him when Seth turned around on the front seat with a grin.
"He was the geekiest geek EVER!" Edward blushed and Seth grinned even brighter "But I'm a geek too. That's why I didn't care about bodyguards or Emmett sending me away. I wanted to be his friend"
"And you are… even if you annoy me 99% of the time" Edward answered lightly.
"You love me, Moon Pie" Seth said and then touched the earphone on his ear "We're here, your highness. Show time!"
Edward took a deep breath and I felt the need to reassure him that everything was going to be fine. I took his hand and squeezed it briefly. He smiled at me. He has such a pretty smile. It could light up a room if he wants too. I smiled back and shook my head to clear it from those thoughts about Edward's smile. I wanted him to know that I was here for him. Seth indicated that we should go inside and Edward led the way. A young man and woman were in front of the building waiting for him with a smile.
"Your Highness. It's such a pleasure to have you here" the man said with reverence in his voice. The woman was smiling so much I was sure her face was gonna break in half if she kept this on.
"Thank you so much, Laurent. Irina, so nice to see you again" he then turned to me "This is Isabella Swan. She's the Head of Press Releases and Announcements at the Royal Palace and she's accompanying me today in the name of the Royal Palace"
That wasn't completely true, but I wouldn't say anything about it. "It's a pleasure to meet you guys"
"American, I see!" Irina said with a laugh "I'm Irina Johnson and this is my husband Laurent. We're in charge of the House of Rising Sun. Prince Edward made sure we were the ones making the rules and taking care of the wonderful kids here"
"How many kids are here at the moment?" I wondered while we were walking inside. The building was beautiful; it was open and full of colorful things that were so appealing for everyone. There was a small stream of water on the backyard where we could hear the laughter of children.
"We can host up to 50 or 60 kids… but right now we have 25…" Laurent answered for his wife. Edward turned to look at him.
"That's like 5 more since I was here last…" he murmured and Irina smiled sadly.
"Yeah, in a month we received a couple of little children that are wonderful. And a little baby girl no more than a few weeks old"
Edward shook his head and strode to the backyard. I followed him realizing Seth stayed by the door with the other bodyguards. I turned to look at him and he motioned with his hands and a smile on his face. I rolled my eyes and followed Edward.
I couldn't help but smile when I saw him surrounded by kids everywhere. He was on the grass and there was a kid hanging on his neck a few others just jumping up and down beside him. He was smiling so brightly and listening to them retelling stories about the house and their games. Edward was eating it all up. He was in his element and I was so happy I get to see him like this.
"It's amazing, isn't it?" Seth appeared beside me. I just nodded "He always lights up when he's working on something he truly believes. The children love him and he always makes sure they have all they need."
I was amazed at this man in front of me. He was blowing raspberries to kids' tummies and tickling another few while a little girl with pigtails was looking at him like he was the most magnificent thing in the world.
"He's in his element. He's lighting up the room right now" I whispered and Seth smiled.
"He always does this. He fights for the children in this country like no one else has done before. Edward makes sure he's here for them at least three times a month as long as he can make it. If he can't, then Emmett or Jasper make sure to be on top of everything for Edward. He's an amazing person"
I just marveled at this person in front of me. I'm not gonna lie, the first time I saw him by the lake I thought he was beautiful and well-spoken. Now, I see that his beauty is not only on the outside, his heart is beautiful too. He's an amazing human being and one of the main reasons I was happy I took this job and moved to Andorra.
"Mr. Edard… you gonna play wift us?" the little girl with pigtails asked sweetly. Her front teeth were missing and she mispronounced half the words but she was a cutie and I swooned when she asked that to Edward.
He smiled at her and gave her a little tug at one of the pigtails making her smile "I'll see if I can. I have to talk to Mister Laurent and Miss Irina first, okay?"
I felt a tug in my jacket and looked down to see a girl exactly like the one asking Edward to play with her. It was an exact replica of the other little girl. "Who are you?" she asked me while looking at me with wonder.
"Lily, what are you doing?" Edward asked, coming my way.
"I'm asking the lady who she is… and I'm Maddie" the little lady said and Edward laughed and ticked her ear
"No, you're not Maddie. Maddie is with me. You're not tricking me, young lady"
"Miss Irina believed me earlier…" Lily said crossing her arms and pouting.
"But I recognize you guys easily." Lily shrugged and the girl – Maddie – in Edward's arms giggled "She's Miss Bella. She's with me today"
"She's your princess?" asked Maddie and Seth choked up and started coughing. Edward blushed and I could feel my temperature rising in my neck and ears… way to go, kid.
"Um… no. She's working at the palace with me" answered Edward after composing himself.
"Like Cinderella?" wondered Lily looking at me like trying to piece where the glass slipper was in all this.
"Uh… no…" Edward tried but I just went to Lily's level and smiled.
"Not exactly. You see, Cinderella worked in the kitchen and didn't work for the Prince but for her step-sisters and her step-mother. Cinderella just danced with the Prince, didn't work for him"
Lily nodded like the explanation was perfect and Maddie started to fuss in Edward's arms so he put her down and they grabbed each one of our hands and pushed us together. I collided with his chest and almost fell down but Edward grabbed me by my waist and steadied me. The girls giggled and suddenly there was music everywhere. Ellie Goulding's "Love me like you do" started playing somewhere. Edward cocked an eyebrow after making sure I was steady on my feet and looked at the girls and then behind me at Seth.
"You dance with Bewwa now. Then she can be youw pwincess!" Maddie announced and bounced around. She then took Seth's hand and started to dance with the man like she owned the place.
Edward looked at me and shook his head laughing "I'm so sorry for this but, we have to do as they say or we won't be able to leave in peace"
"I don't know how to dance… I've never been able to do it before without injuring someone in the process" I admitted with a blush.
"It's all in the leading. You trust me, right?" he asked and I nodded. He positioned us to dance to the song. I wasn't even listening to anyone else but Edward.
He started swaying back and forth and leading the dance attuned to the song. I was lost in his eyes and his smile. Besides, I never realized that he smelled so good before. It was like almonds and musk… so nice. Stop sniffing him, retard!
"You are so good with the kids. They all love you" I said while trying not to step in his foot.
"I try to make their lives a little bit brighter. They have so much joy and I want to make sure they have what they need here. If it was for me, I would have them all in the Palace but then my father would have a coronary and we don't want that" I laughed and he continued "They all have a rough background. Lily and Maddie have been here the longest and their story is sick at best" I looked at his eyes and willed him to continue "Their mother died at birth, some complications with blood clothing, and their father blamed them for it. They were abused so badly that when they came here they didn't trust anyone. When Emmett tried once to calm them in one of their crying episodes, they screamed so badly that the doctor had to sedate them" I could feel my eyes fill with tears "I came by everyday and just sit by their side and tried to engaged them in games and dances. I endured more Disney movies than when I was a kid. I put ridiculous crowns on my head because it made them smile. Until I won their trust… and now, I'm their puppy every time I come here"
"That you took the time to gain their trust speaks wonders for who you are as a person, Edward. These kids love you and you love them equally. I'm so happy you let me come here with you today. For real, it's been an amazing experience so far"
"Even the dancing…?" He asked with mischief in his voice. I laughed again.
"Even the dancing… at least I haven't injured anyone" one of the kids bumped against Edward and we stepped closer together. I stopped breathing suddenly. His face was so close to mine and I could feel his breath against mine and there was little space between us…
"Kiss your pincess, Edard!" Maddie yelled and we both jumped away from each other. Edward tugged at his hair and I fixed my shirt awkwardly
What in the world was that?!
Hi! I'm back, I guess... I can only apologize for disappearing from here, but at least I didn't stop writing.
I'm gonna keep pulishing the rest of it and then post it as soon as I'm able since I don't have anything else to do besides writing and reading.
At least there was something between Princeward and Journalistella, right?
Love, AYEN!