Hey guys.
Thank you for the lovely reviews, they really mean the world to me.
Once again, do not expect updates this regularly. I'm off sick this week (damn food poisoning) so I've been able to write more. Once I'm back at work updates will definitely slow down.
Also, for the sake of this story, the age of consent in CA is 17. And COVID is not a thing haha
Anyway, time to meet some friends :D
Disclaimer: All characters, apart from the grams and the kids, belong to Stephenie Meyer
Chapter 3
Unwritten
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
(Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfield)
Who decided that kids would have so long off school during summer? whoever it was must not have had any kids of their own.
By the end of summer I was just about pulling my hair out. I loved my daughter with my whole heart and we got along well – she would always be my little best friend and I would forever be hers – but I was desperate for her to go back to school.
We had been in Seattle for three weeks and I had started my new job but was able to work from home during the summer break. But finally it was the night before the first day of school and I, for one, could not wait. Cali was a different story. She had been so excited since we had moved and had barely stopped talking – either to me about the exploring we had done around the city, or over the phone to the people we had left behind in California. But today she had been quiet, withdrawn, and I knew it was because she was nervous for school the next day.
She gets that from me, I told him.
I was stood in the kitchen while she sat at the dining table coloring.
"What do you want for dinner, baby?" I asked with my back to her, looking through the pantry. I waited for a response but one never came. I turned around and looked at my daughter, her head down concentrating on her coloring. "Cali, I asked a question."
"I answered," she told me and a frowned.
"Telepathically?" I asked sarcastically.
Cali rolled her eyes and said, "I shrugged."
"Well when I'm not looking at you, I'm gonna need a verbal answer. I know I tell you I have eyes in the back of my head but I don't really." Cali rolled her eyes again. "Enough with the attitude, Calissa." I very rarely used her full name – she was my Cali girl, after all.
Cali packed up her pencils and coloring book and stood up. "I'm not hungry," she told me and began to leave the room.
"Well then you can finish unpacking the rest of your boxes like I've been asking you for three weeks," I told her as she walked out and went up the stairs, her bedroom door slamming behind her.
"Damn kids," I muttered before going back to examining the pantry before deciding to make a lasagna.
Around two hours later, I called Cali back downstairs for dinner. She walked down and saw the lasagna on our plates and huffed.
"I don't want lasagna," she complained as she sat down at the table.
I put our plates down and turned to grab the garlic bread from the counter. "Well you didn't tell me what you wanted so I picked, and I wanted lasagna."
She huffed again but picked up her fork and began to eat. Despite her complaints she practically inhaled her food so she must have enjoyed it. When she had finished eating, she picked up her plate and put it on the counter beside the sink.
"Can I watch TV?" she asked.
"Have you unpacked those boxes yet?" I asked as I began cleaning the kitchen.
I practically heard her eyes roll. "No."
"Well then no," I told her and she huffed and made her way back upstairs. "And what did I say about that attitude?" I called after her, her slamming door her response.
I finished cleaning the kitchen and went upstairs to run Cali a bath. Once it was full, I knocked on her door once and returned downstairs to do some work. Once I had finished, I sat in the living room and turned the TV on, deciding on reruns of 'New Girl'. Fifteen minutes later, Cali walked into the room wearing her rainbow pajamas, her hair hanging wet around her shoulders, a hairbrush and hair ties in her hand. She stopped in the doorway and looked at me so I paused the TV and turned to face her.
"I'm sorry about my attitude, mommy. I'm just really nervous about tomorrow," she told me in a small voice.
I held my arms open for her and she climbed on my lap and rested her head against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her damp hair, inhaling the scent of strawberry from her favorite shampoo. "It's okay, baby. I forgive you."
We sat cuddling for a few moments before she pulled away. "Can you braid my hair please?"
"Of course baby," I told her and she handed me the hair ties and brush before sitting on the floor in front of me. I braided her hair into two French braids and then placed a kiss against her head when I was finished.
"Thank you, mommy," she told me as she sat beside me.
We finished the last ten minutes of 'New Girl' before it was time for her to go to bed. I turned the TV off and made sure the front and back door was locked before we walked upstairs. I went into her bedroom to close her curtains and pull her duvet back while she went into the bathroom to brush her teeth. I noticed a few boxes still unpacked in the corner of her room and shook my head. She walked back into her bedroom and climbed into bed and I sat beside her with her copy of 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone'. We had already read the whole series once before but she loved it and had asked to reread it. We took it in turns to read paragraphs, me helping her with some words she still struggled with. When we had finished the chapter we were on, I kissed her on both cheeks and then her forehead as I did every night.
"I love you so much, baby girl," I told her.
"Love you too, mommy."
I placed one last kiss on her forehead and then turned her nightlight on before turning to leave the room.
"Sleep well my angel," I whispered before turning off the light and pulling the door to, leaving it open a bit and went to have a shower and get myself ready for bed.
* * CG * *
The next morning was a big rush. It was my first day going into the office and Cali was starting at her new school.
I woke Cali up at six-thirty and then went back to my bedroom to get myself ready. Dressing smart in a pair of blue-grey slacks and a white blouse with lace details on the sleeves and picked out a pair of simply nude heels. Leaving my chocolate brown hair down, falling in waves around my shoulders, I put a small amount of makeup on before grabbing my bag, phone and heels and made my way downstairs to start breakfast.
I had just finished the pancakes when Cali came downstairs wearing a floral dress with a white t-shirt underneath it, carrying white sneakers and her new schoolbag. Her hair was still in their messy braids from the night before.
"Are you gonna take your hair out?" I asked her as I put her pancakes in front of her.
She put a mouthful of pancake in her mouth. "After breakfast," she mumbled around her food.
Once we had finished our food, we both went to brush our teeth and I helped her take her hair out of their braids, her copper locks now falling in waves around down her back before we both put on our shoes and got ready to leave.
"Do you have everything?" I asked her and she nodded. "Bag?" She held it up. "Pencil case?" She pointed to the bag, telling me it was inside. "Okay, let's go."
We walked out of the house and down the steps to my car. We paused when we got there and I sighed before walking back up the steps.
"Where are you going?" Cali asked me.
"I forgot the keys," I called back to her as I walked back in the door and heard her laughing.
The drive to school literally took a couple minutes and I parked up and climbed out of the car and made our way to reception. The woman in reception welcomed Cali to their school and I signed some paperwork before she gave us directions to Cali's new classroom. We made our way to class and saw the teacher stood at the door while kids Cali's age hung their bags on pegs outside the class. The teacher – a woman around my age and height with black hair and glasses on her face – spotted us and walked over with a smile on her face.
"Hello, there. Who do we have here?" she asked in a sweet voice.
I looked down at my daughter who was standing slightly behind me, hiding her face in my hip. I looked back up at the teacher and smiled.
"Hi. I'm Bella. And this"–I stroked my daughters hair softly–"is Calissa."
The teacher smiled. "What a beautiful name. I'm Mrs Cheney. I'm so happy to meet you, Calissa. We're gonna have a lot of fun."
Cali peeked at the teacher from her hiding spot and then moved so she was stood beside me. "You can call me Cali," she told her teacher in a small voice and the teacher grinned.
"Thank you, Cali. Are you ready to have some fun?" she asked and Cali nodded apprehensively. Mrs Cheney looked at me before speaking to Cali again. "I'll give you a sec to say goodbye to your…" she trailed off.
I smiled. This was not the first time someone had asked who I was to Cali. I'd had her young, after all and some people assumed I was big sis. "Mom."
Mrs Cheney nodded and gave me a smile. "You say goodbye to your mom and I'll see you in class in a sec, okay?" she asked, and Cali nodded. Mrs Cheney gave me one last smile before walking away to greet the other children who were arriving.
I turned and knelt down in front of my daughter. "Your teacher seems lovely," I told her. "You're gonna have so much fun today making loads of friends. You're not even gonna have time to miss me." Cali rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around my neck. I hugged her, rubbing her back soothingly before letting go. "I love you so much, baby-girl."
"Love you too, mommy."
"I'll be back later to pick you up, and you can tell me all about your day and your new friends."
Cali nodded and I kissed her forehead before standing back up. She hung her bag on an empty peg and looked at me. I gave her one last encouraging smile and she waved at me before turning and walking into the classroom.
* * CG * *
After having a meeting with my new bosses, who praised me for the work I had already done from home since moving to Seattle and talked me through the plan for the next few months, I left the office at eleven-thirty.
I went to the grocery store to pick up some bits for dinner and then returned home, changing out of my work clothes and into a pair of mom jeans and a thin black t-shirt, thankful that I didn't have to wear my heels anymore as I put a pair of sneakers on.
I did some more work at the dining table and then decided to clean my house until finally it was time to collect Cali from school. Deciding to walk as the weather wasn't too bad, I left the house and made the short fourteen minute walk to the elementary school.
When I got there, I stood at the gates where other parents had gathered, waiting for the kids to come out. Finally, the gates opened and kids began running out. I saw Cali running out, a big smile on her face,
"Mommy," she shouted as she made their way over and wrapped her arms around my waist. "Can Morgan come over to play?" she asked as she pulled away from me.
"Who?" I asked and she turned to point at a slim brunette girl who was tugging on the hand of a gorgeous blond, the pair moving over to where we stood.
"This is my best friend, Morgan," Cali told me when they had reached us. "Can she come over to play?"
"Can I, mommy?" the girl looked up at her mom.
The blond shook her head. "I'd need to talk to her mom first, Morg."
The girl rolled her eyes. "Well she's right there." She pointed at me, and I chuckled.
"Hi," I said to the blond. "I'm Bella, and this is Calissa."
The blond smiled at me. "I'm Rosalie, nice to meet you," she replied. "And this firecracker is Morgan."
"Well, now you've met, can I go to their house to play?" Morgan asked, a big smile on both young girls' faces.
Rosalie shook her head again and their smiles dropped. "We'd need to plan it, Morg."
"We'll arrange for you to play one of the days," I told them. "Plus, if you want someone to come over, you'll need to unpack those boxes from your room," I told Cali, and she rolled her eyes.
"New to Seattle?" Rosalie asked and I nodded.
"Yeah, we moved a few weeks ago from California."
Rosalie smiled. "Well welcome to Seattle. We live not far from here if you need anything or just need a friendly face in the unknown city."
"I appreciate that, thank you," I replied, genuinely touched by the kindness of the gorgeous stranger. "And I'm more than happy to have Morgan over one of the days."
"We'll definitely arrange it," Rosalie replied. "But right now, Morg, we need to go get Cam, Linc, Alex and Chris."
"You have five kids?!" I asked before I could stop myself. She looked amazing!
Rosalie laughed. "God no. I have three, Morgan, Camry and Lincoln. Alex and Chris are my best friends. She had another one last week so I offered to pick hers up while she for the first week."
I nodded in understanding and, with another promise to the girls that we would arrange a playdate soon, we said goodbye.
"Wanna go to the playground for a bit?" I asked Cali and she nodded excitedly, putting her small hand in mine as we walked to Rainier Playground, chatting happily about her first day at school.
* * CG * *
Rosalie and I exchanged numbers the following day at pickup and, true to our word, we arranged a playdate for the girls for the Friday.
Friday pickup saw me standing with Rosalie and, when the kids came out, I met her youngest daughter; a beautiful blond called Camry, as well as her friends oldest two; Alexander and Christian. Cali and Morgan came skipping out of the gate, excited for their playdate – although the other kids began complaining that they didn't get to play too.
We said goodbye to Rosalie and the kids and made our way to the park I had taken Cali to on the first day of school. I sat and watched the girls play for an hour before telling them it was time to leave. We walked back to the house, the girls walking two steps in front of me chatting about school. Cali and I had decided that it would be fun to make pizzas with Morgan so we got home and I helped the girls make their personalized pies. The girls went to play in Cali's bedroom while the pizzas were in the oven and then I called them downstairs and we all sat at the dining table to eat.
The girls sat in the living room watching a movie while I cleaned the kitchen and then I gave them a bowl of ice cream. I sat with them to watch the last half an hour of 'Tangled'. When the movie finished, the girls went back upstairs to play.
There was a knock on the door at seven thirty and I went to answer it, seeing Rosalie standing on the small porch.
"Hi, Rosalie, come on in," I told her, opening the door for her.
"Hi, Bella. How's she been?" she asked as she stood in the entryway.
"She's been great. We went to the park and then made pizzas for dinner. They watched a movie and had some ice cream. They're just playing upstairs now. I'll go grab her." I walked upstairs and told Morgan her mom was here to take her home before returning downstairs.
"My friend Alice, the one who just had the baby, wants to meet you, by the way," Rosalie told me as we waited for the girls.
I raised my eyebrows. "Oh, really?"
Rosalie nodded. "When I dropped the boys at her house earlier she asked where Morgan was and I told her about you and Cali. She said she'd like to meet you and suggested lunch on Monday, if you're up for it."
I smiled. "Lunch would be great. Thank you."
Rosalie smiled back, her beautiful face lighting up. "Okay perfect. I'll text you the details," she told me as the girls walked downstairs, both of them looking sad that their playdate had come to an end.
"Hey, sweetie. Did you have fun?" Rosalie asked her daughter. Morgan nodded, still looking sad.
"Next time, can we have a sleepover?" my daughter asked, and Morgan's face lit up at the idea.
Rosalie and I looked at each other. "We'll have to see," I told the girls and both their faces dropped again.
"We need to get going, baby. Your daddy needs cheering up."
"Did his team lose again?" Morgan asked and Rosalie nodded. Morgan sighed. "Guess I'll have to cheer him up again," she said, and I laughed.
"Maybe some of your homemade pizza will cheer him up," Cali suggested, and Morgan smiled.
"Daddy loves pizza. Would it be okay if I took some to him, Bella?" she asked me, her blue eyes sparkling.
I smiled. "Of course, you made it after all," I told her and left to grab her pizza from the kitchen. I had already planned to send it home with her so it was already in a Tupperware box. I handed the box to Morgan and the girls hugged one last time before Rosalie opened the front door.
"I'll text you the details for Monday," she told me and then her and Morgan were out the door.
Cali and I watched as they climbed into a cherry red Audi and gave one last wave before they pulled away from the house.
* * CG * *
The weekend passed quickly and before I knew it, it was Monday again.
I wasn't going into the office today so I dressed casually in a pair of ripped jeans, a white lace cami and a thin cardigan in sage green. I grabbed my brown bag and put on a pair of brown sandals, leaving my hair down and wavy once again.
Cali came out of her bedroom at the same time as me, dressed in a pair of pink jeans and a floral top. We had breakfast and then left for school.
After I waved Cali off, I had a few hours before I had to meet Rosalie and her friend Alice so I did some editing on the current book I was reading for work. Finally, it was time to leave so I packed up and got in my car, heading to the restaurant Rosalie had texted me to meet them at on Saturday.
The twenty minute drive passed quickly and I parked at the restaurant. I walked in and saw Rosalie already sat with another woman. I breathed in nervously – despite Rosalie telling me over the weekend that there was no need to be nervous because Alice was the nicest person ever – and then walked towards them. As I approached I saw a baby carrier on the chair beside Alice, inside it the sweetest newborn baby. Rosalie and Alice stood up as I approached them and Rosalie leaned forward to give me a hug.
"Bella, so glad you could make it. Ali, this is Bella. Bella, this is Alice, and her adorable baby girl, Carolina."
Before I could say a word, Alice – a tiny woman with short black hair and dark blue eyes – leaned forward and pulled me into a hug.
"So nice to meet you, Bella. I just know we're gonna be great friends."
"Okay, don't scare her off Alice," Rosalie joked, and the three of us laughed as me and Alice pulled apart.
"It's nice to meet you, Alice. Your baby is adorable," I told her as I pulled out the chair beside Rosalie and we all sat down.
Alice gave me a tired smile. "Thank you."
"She's your third, right?" I asked as a waitress approached us and we placed our orders.
"Yeah, Carolina's my third. Rose said you've got the one," Alice replied.
I nodded and smiled, thinking about my angel. "Yeah, Calissa. But we call her Cali."
Alice smiled. "That's beautiful." I smiled at Alice as the waitress put our iced tea in front of us and we all thanked her before she walked away.
"If you don't mind me asking, how old were you when you had Cali?" Rosalie asked after taking a sip of her drink.
I took a sip of mine, humming at the sweet taste before answering. "No, I don't mind at all. I was seventeen when I fell pregnant. I found out a couple weeks after my eighteenth birthday."
Alice shook her head. "I couldn't imagine doing it that young." Her eyes widened and she put her hand out. "Not that there's anything wrong with it," she told me quickly, thinking she had offended me. "I just mean, it must have been so hard. Jesus, I'm thirty-two and I was anxious when I found out we were pregnant with this one." She nodded to the sleeping girl beside her.
I smiled, assuring her I wasn't offended. "It was definitely tough, but I had a lot of support."
"So are you still with Cali's father?" Rose asked.
I shook my head. "No, he's not in our lives. He doesn't even know she exists." They both frowned. "I met him when I was seventeen, he was visiting Carmel – where I'm from – for the summer. At the end of summer, we exchanged numbers and he went back home and I started my senior year. I tried to call him when I found out but it turns out he had given me the wrong number."
The girls gasped. "I can't believe he would do that," Alice told me.
"What a dick," Rosalie chimed in. I laughed and nodded. "But it seems like you're doing good without him. Cali's an amazing little girl. You should be so proud of yourself for raising her all by yourself." Alice nodded, even though she hadn't met Cali.
I smiled, grateful. "Thank you. I mean, I had a lot of help. We lived with my grandma so she was with me through everything, and I had a few friends who stuck by me when some people didn't."
"Even having kids at our ages it takes a village," Rosalie told me. "My husband and I were twenty-three when we had Morg and I don't know what we would have done without my parents, and my brother."
Alice clapped her hands suddenly, seeming to have forgotten her sleeping baby who began to fuss at the noise. "Fuck," Alice whispered while me and Rosalie laughed.
Alice picked Carolina up and rocked her, trying to get her settled again.
"What were you clapping for?" Rosalie asked her, still laughing.
Alice's face lit up despite the crying baby in her arms, remembering. "Oh yeah. Bella you're single?" I nodded and she looked at Rosalie. "We should set her up with your brother!"
"I don't wanna be set up," I said at the same time as Rosalie said, "He's engaged, Ali."
I looked at Alice and frowned. "You wanna set me up with a guy who is engaged?"
Rosalie looked at me. "We can't stand his fiancé. But that doesn't change the fact that he is engaged," she told Alice, who pouted.
The rest of lunch passed quickly with lots of laughs. Alice let me hold a fussy Carolina who, for some reason, seemed to settle quickly in my arms. Alice joked that I was magical and asked if I was available for hire. Before we knew it, it was time to pick the kids up so we said 'see you soon' and made our way to our own cars and I followed Rosalie – who had asked me to call her Rose as we were friends – to the school, Alice right behind me. We got to the school and the three of us stood together as we waited for our kids to come out.
The kids ran out of the gate and over to us, ready to tell us about their days. The kids said goodbye to each other and I hugged Rose and Alice goodbye before taking Cali's hand and leading her to the car, a big smile on my face.
The rest of the week passed in a blink of an eye and before I knew it, it was the weekend again. Rose, Alice and I had texted each other all week and Alice had made us a group chat which she had named 'Super Moms'.
Sunday night after Cali was settled in bed, I sat in the living room and called my grams.
"Hey, sweetie," she answered the phone.
I smiled at the sound of my grandma's voice. "Hey, grams. How are you?"
"I'm good. How are you? How's Cali? She in bed?"
I nodded, forgetting she couldn't see me. "Yeah, I've just tucked her in. And we're good. I just wanted to check in."
Grams and I spoke for a little over an hour; she told me about Mauve and Lois arguing at the Bingo Friday night and I told her about my lunch with Rose and Alice.
"I'm so glad you've both made good friends up there. I didn't want you to be alone," grams told me, her smile clear in her voice.
"Me too. You'd like Alice and Rose. And Cali is so happy at school. Her and Morgan have become best friends. We took all the kids to the park Friday after school and she's become good friends with the rest of the kids too. It's Alice's oldest sons birthday next week so Cali's been invited to his birthday party."
"That makes my heart so happy, hon," grams told me. "As much as I miss you both, I'm so happy you're happy up there."
I smiled, thinking about how happy we were in this new city, with our new friends.
Life really was good at the moment.
So, she's friends with Rose and Alice. I wonder who the brother is ;p and we've heard a snippet of Bella's version from the phone call ten years ago. We will get Edward's version and more of Bella's very soon.
Grams was not meant to make an appearance this chapter but she had stuff to say apparantley haha
Next up, the moment we've all been waiting for... THE REUNION.
Thank you for reading :)