Chapter 1
It was a warm September morning. The sun was just beginning to rise. Esme Cullen was sitting in her favorite place in her house. She was sitting on the porch swing that was on the balcony attached to her and Carlisle's bedroom. With the sun rising there was plenty of daylight out, just enough for Esme to start drawing. Sunrises and sunsets where her favorite thing to draw and paint. The way the warm golden colors brighten up the sky and the pinks seem to dance around in the newly found light, always gave her a sense of was the best part of never sleeping, she was able to watch the sun rise and fall to her heart's content.
Esme began to sketch out the sunrise, lost in thought and into her work, that she didn't hear her husband walking through the sliding glass doors, and leaning against the door frame watching his wife doing what she loved. He began to get lost in his own thoughts, remembering the first time he found out that she could draw.
It was a year after her transformation and she was able to control her thirst a lot better. Esme would vanish for hours or even days at a time. Carlisle knew she was in the house because her scent remained. One day curiosity got the better of him and he went up to the roof, which was her favorite place to be at that time, and found her sitting down on the tiled roof, slightly leaning on the chimney with her legs curled up with what looked like a book on top of them. As he got closer he noticed it was a sketchbook.
"Next time you wanna sneak up on me, maybe mask your scent." Esme's voice came out a bit raspier than her usual sweet and caring tone. Carlisle took a step forward, giving a small chuckle.
"I'm sorry my love, my intentions were not to sneak up on you. You tend to vanish for long periods of time, and I grew curious as to what was holding your interest." Carlisle said, squatting down next to her.
Feeling his presents so close to her, Esme finally looked up from her work and smiled at him. Flipping the book around so he could see what she was working on. Carlisle took the book from her hands and inspected the drawing. It was a beautiful black and white drawing of a wine glass. The wine glass was holding a clear yet slightly bubbly liquid. The background was cut off by most of the glass, but what he found really beautiful was the reflection inside the wine glass.
"The Eiffel Tower?" He looked up from the drawing and was met with soft golden eyes, that seemed to have a small light behind them.
"I've always wanted to go." Esme confessed.
"I never knew you could draw. Why didn't you tell me?" Carlisle asked.
"I've never been one to show off my work. I would rather watch others bask in their own glory." Esme looked down and reached for the drawing that Carlisle still held in his hand.
"Esme, promise me that you won't take yourself for granted. Every Time you draw something, even if you hate it, please show me. I wanna see it." All Esme could do was smile up at him.
"I love you."
"Are you stalking me again?" Esme's voiced had pulled him back to the present day and out of his memories, reliving the moment she first told him that she loved him.
"I was just thinking of the time when I found out that you could draw." He said walking towards her, leaning down and wrapping his hands around her top half, his nose in her hair, taking in an unnecessary breath in, to breathe her in. He was addicted to her smell.
"Yes, I believe that was also the day I confessed my love for you." Esme said, slight amusement in her voice. Carlisle looked down to look at her drawing. Still in the beginning stages, but he could tell she was drawing the sunrise that lay in front of them. There was a sense of calm that hung around them, and it was moments like these that they will both cherish and hold onto forever.
The moment was short lived when there was a sudden crash from just below them. Esme stood up from her spot and looked at her husband.
"Let's go see what Emmett broke this time." She said.
"It was Nessie!" They heard the muffled voice, of Emmett, yelling at them. Giving a soft chuckle both parents held hands and made their way downstairs. They made their way to the kitchen to find a plate that was shattered and pieces of it where laying on the kitchen tile. Esme was about to scold the two culprits, Emmett and Nessie, when something caught her eye. Looking back down at the shattered plate she recognized the old fashioned pattern on it.
"Is..is this one of our wedding plates?" Esme asked kneeling down to inspect the pieces more.
"I'm really sorry mom." Emmett said.
"What happened?" Carlisle asked.
"Well, Uncle Emmett and I were just sitting here, while I was eating my breakfast, and suddenly the plate just fell." Nessie explained, doing her best impression of a sweet angel.
"Okay, now for the real story." Carlisle said, fold his arms across his chest.
"Mama made me breakfast and she and Daddy left to go hunting leaving Uncle Emmett in charge." Nessie looked down at her hands and started pulling at her fingernails.
"When I came in to see how the little one was doing, she claimed that she was not hungry and that she wasn't gonna eat anything. I thought some exercise would make her hungry, and I got her to start chasing me around the kitchen and I guess we got close to the counter and hit the plate." Emmett confessed.
Esme started to pick up the shards of glass, hearing her family talk back and forth, when suddenly her vision went blurry for a split second and she felt an almost tickling sensation running down her face. Esme quickly wiped her face and stood up quickly, heading for the bathroom.
She could hear her husband calling after her, but she didn't wanna worry him. This could just be the last bit of her human side leaving. Seeing her plate that meant so much to her, the plate set belonged to her mother, and she was more than happy to use it to symbolize her and Carlisle coming together and starting a family, when they got married, or maybe it was extra venom, that needed to escape. Esme sat on the floor of the bathroom, resting her head on her legs, letting the liquid pour from her eyes. She hoped whatever this was would end soon.
"Sweetie, are you okay? What's going on?" Esme could hear Carlisle's voice, slightly muffled through the door.
That's weird. Esme thought. Why is Carlisle's voice muffled? Without warning, the door suddenly opened with a loud bang, causing Esme to jump but she stayed in the same spot. She suddenly felt a familiar cold sensation wrap around her, causing her to shiver.
"Esme...you're...you're warm." She heard the soft yet concerned voice of her husband, talking in her ear.
"Carlisle.." Esme said, looking up at him. Her face stained with tears. "What's happening to me?"
"I don't know sweetheart." Carlisle said, pulling her closer to him, her head resting on his chest. "We will figure it out."
