SEVENTEEN YEARS AND TEN MONTHS LATER

Bella POV

I sat cozy next to Edward watching a new romantic comedy when my darling daughter popped into my head.

Elizabeth Marie Cullen—we all call her Ella—is my baby, well not really a baby any longer. She grows so fast and time flies when one isn't aging, I mused. I stayed the same and I saw my Ella blossom before my very eyes. Ella's now the age that Edward appears to be and she is the sweetest daughter a mother could ever hope to have.

Edward is extremely strict with her a truly overprotective father and something that agitates him to no end is that her mind is closed to his gift, like my own.

Ella is absolutely gorgeous. She is a fair height, has a slight hour glass figure, long curly bronzy-brunette hair, pale skin—however not as pale as the rest of us, and brown eyes with flecks of topaz in them.

I remember for a short time when she was first born Edward and I and the rest of the Cullens moved to Alaska and returned to Forks when Ella had to start school. I remember it like it was yesterday when Edward and I dropped her off at Forks Elementary and she wouldn't let go of Edward's hand. She's the only reason we remain in Forks we didn't want to move her away to an unfamiliar place and to an unfamiliar school.

She has more than once voiced her opinion whenever we even mentioned moving. 'That's alright you all can go I'll just stay here with Sophia' She is much more bold than I ever was, I guess that's all her father.

Edward POV

Ella, is an honest to God, loves to annoy everyone under her roof, blasting her music so loud you could hear it from here to Mexico, teenager. She spends most of her time listening to some groups I prefer but playing it so loud I know she can barely make out the lyrics. While she listens to that outrageously loud music she sits in front of her easel painting.

I find it quite amusing that she can even fall asleep with the music blasting that loud. I swear a bomb could go off and she would sleep right through it. Although it might be selective hearing because whenever she's asleep and any of us say something we don't want her to hear she always does.

At school my daughter finds everything so simple and it's her first time. She has all advanced placement classes and is acing all of them without even trying. She is the center of attention just like Bella once was and also wishes to divert from it. All boys want her, but she brushes them off like I know my girl would. None of them deserve her if they judge her by her appearance alone.

Ella POV

I sat in trig nodding off as usually as I listened to a monotonous explanation that I thought would never end. I wasn't unaware that even in my half-asleep state that all the male populace in this class had their eyes on me. Sophia was sitting in the desk next to me feverishly writing down every word that came out of this dull man's mouth and then the bell cut him short.

"Sophia Weber-Cheney move your butt a little bit faster." I rushed her as we both headed to biology.

Sophia is the only girl in Forks that I have ever taken a liking to. She never resented me like the other girls or tried to be my friend because she wanted attention. She is a really sweet girl that doesn't judge me for who I am on the outside rather on the inside. Although, she finds herself hideous I think she is absolutely gorgeous with her light brown hair, fair skin, and always kind brown eyes.

The best part is that she knows exactly what I am and there is no need to hide it. She knows the whole deal that I'm half-vampire, that none of the family I live with ages, that my mom and hers were best friends when they were in high school and that both of my parents – well my dad looks the same as he did then. I guess it was just fate.

Although, Sophia looks like the kind of quiet girl that no one could ever fathom getting into the least bit of trouble, she's really not. Usually if I'm getting in trouble she's my partner in crime, we a dangerous duo. She was the one who found out what I was when we finally crossed paths in third grade. – It's really weird that we didn't meet sooner in a town this small. – We've been best friends ever since.

"Ella, you know I really need these classes. Can you help me study, please?" She begged breaking my reverie as I finally registered my surroundings. We were in biology. Great! Another boring lecture, well I guess I could use a little more sleep. "Well, its Friday and our movie night. If you want you can stay over Saturday as well and we'll," 'you'll' I mentally corrected myself, "hit the books. And it wouldn't hurt if we watched a flick or two." She smiled. "You're the best." She said as the teacher began his dull lecture and I sunk into my semi-awake state, basically sleeping with my eyes open.

I jumped in my seat as the bell rang. Sophia just smiled and shook her head as I gathered my books and we stopped at our lockers. Then the vilest boy in Forks –or in the world-- came up to me, Matt Newton. He may be popular, but he sure is annoying, I don't know how girls can stand such arrogance for the whole day when he aggravates the hell out of me for only a few minutes.

He leaned against the locker next to mine, "So, are you going to the semi-formal in two weeks?" He asked with a smile that was supposed to tempt me but didn't quite do its job. "Maybe…" I said with a small smile on my face giving him false hope and then turned around and started walking to the front of the building with Sophia and he jogged to catch up. "Would you consider going with me?" He asked in a voice he probably thought sounded seductive. I could tell Sophia was holding in laughter since she had her lips pressed together and her eyes were glistening like she was about to cry from holding in her giggles.

"Matt…I'll think about it." I said as Sophie and I walked out into the rain and slid into my dad's silver Volvo with him at the wheel. I only managed a 'hello, Dad' before Sophia and I let out our laughter. We went over the whole conversation laughing too hard to even sound coherent. Then we were in the garage outside the huge pale white house I call home and still laughing our heads off. We both took deep breaths and tried to stop the paroxysm of giggles. It worked, a little.

As Sophia and I got out of the car we looked at all the cars safe from the rain. I have to say it is extremely ridiculous I don't have a license, I mean I'm seventeen. Seventeen! And my father won't even let me go for my driver's permit. He said driving is "dangerous". This man is completely absurd. He's the one who always goes a gazillion miles per hour.

"So the Newton boy asked you to the semi-formal." My father stated he had obviously been listening in. Then he smiled, "I assume from all the giggles that you're not going with him."

I cleared my throat and said, "Well…I didn't exactly say no…to him, yet." It's fun to watch the spoiled boy squirm. He spends his daddy's money; he doesn't even know a value of a dollar and on top of it all he's an arrogant popular jerk. Yeah what more could a girl want? I rolled my eyes at my thoughts.

Sophia and I ran to the house and stopped once we got under the roof of the porch. We were soaked. That was stupid, I'm fast enough to run through the rain and barely get wet. Just one of the cool things about being half vampire along with tremendous strength, the appearance of a goddess, and my favorite the ability to annoy my family – wait the last one was a teenager thing, not a vampire thing. The major bonus is that I sleep and eat actual food and don't drink blood. Ew…I hate blood. The rust and salt smell, it's so disgusting and if I see it I end up fainting or puking. That's pretty ironic when all my family is vampires.

Sophia and I stood on the porch for a moment wringing out our dripping hair with my father looking at me with a smile on his face. His eyes were black and I know what that means, he's going hunting.

We went inside and then ran up to my room and closed the door. My room has all four walls and the ceiling painted a midnight blue. My mom wouldn't let me paint them black, so I chose the color closest to it. On my walls hung my black and white paintings. A large one of my parents in an embrace, one of a blossom of a rose in black, and of my best friend. She always tells me that painting is much more beautiful than her and I roll my eyes every single time. Everything else in my room means little to me. I have a really cool stereo system, a flat screen television mounted on my wall, a book shelf, a queen size bed and my easel – the most important thing.

I took out the stack of movies that were going to occupy us tonight and took out two sets of pajamas. We both changed and then went downstairs to get the snacks we needed. Salsa and Tostitos, popcorn, snow caps, and red licorice.