Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.

Chapter Ten: An Invitation

Elizabeth Cullen

"Baby, you okay? You've been quiet tonight."

It was the day after my parent's accident. I was still sort of mad at Ethan, but not as much I had been. He had showed up at the kitchen door earlier that night, holding a large bouquet of flowers, hoping to soften my anger. It had worked some, and, with his apology, we kissed and made up. Then he offered to take me out to dinner to make up for it. I had accepted, only at the encouragement of my mother, who was confined to the couch with Dad for the next two days.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, throwing him a convincing smile that I wasn't really putting my all into.

"You sure?" he asked, wiping his mouth with his napkin.

I nodded and threw him another smile. "Yes. I just have a little head ache that's all."

The truth was, I wasn't all that great.

Nathan had said something last night that had stirred in my mind the thought that I had thought a while ago – was I still in love with Ian?

I had mulled over that thought so much last night and all throughout the day, that it had actually given me a headache and I had slept only two hours.

Did Nathan know something that I didn't know? Was he seeing something that I wasn't seeing? Most importantly, did he see me kissing Ian?

I wasn't really sure who kissed who. Had it been me that had kissed him? Or had it been Ian that had kissed me? I didn't know. It could have been both of us.

All of these thoughts kept running through my head repeatedly.

"I have something to tell you," Ian said, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I looked up at him, taking a bite of my mushroom ravioli. We were at the Italian restaurant in Port Angeles, where we had had dinner with my parents that night that felt like such a long time ago. Like my mother, I hated it when I was taken out to dinner at an expensive place, like this restaurant, but Ethan had insisted on going there and I couldn't refuse.

"What?" I asked.

Ethan looked a little nervous and sounded hesitant as he said, "I can't meet you, your Mom, and Alice tomorrow night to go over the guest list and write out the envelopes. Would you be able to do it without me? The guest list has been finalized …"

"What's going on?" I asked, trying very hard to keep the suspicion out of my voice.

"Something came up at work, and I have to try to fix it," he said.

Why was I getting the feeling that he wasn't telling me the whole truth?

I was sorely tempted to tell him no, he had to help, but then I decided that my Mom, Alice, and I could do it without help from Ethan. I sighed and said, "Sure. We can manage."

~~0~~

Ian Dalton

Two weeks had passed since "The Kiss". I hadn't seen Elizabeth, and I didn't dare go to the bookshop. I wasn't sure what her thoughts about the kiss were, but I sure knew that I had enjoyed it immensely. It had reminded me of our days in high school, and that made me miss her all the more.

I loved working with at the Middle School. The kids loved the way I taught them music. Literally, there had been a couple of kids in my class that were so "musically challenged" that they couldn't play a single note on any instrument, and I had managed to help them learn how to play a musical instrument.

"You have such a great talent, Ian Dalton. I don't know how you do it! You could make a career out of it!"

Whenever those words popped into my brain, I smiled. Elizabeth had said those words to me near the end of our senior year of high school. Her face popped into my minds-eye when I thought of those words, and it made a surge of happiness go through my veins.

But I knew in my heart that she didn't love me – she was getting married to another man for pete's sake, of course she didn't love me anymore.

And I knew that it had been wrong to kiss her.

I sat mulling this over in my mind as I sat in a café in Port Angeles on a Thursday afternoon two weeks after the "incident", sipping at a mug of coffee, and reading a book about vampires.

I had been sitting there for about maybe twenty minutes when the café door opened and a young man in his twenties entered, followed by a young blonde woman who also looked to be in her twenties. I looked briefly up at them for a second, just as a habit, intending to go back to reading and not give them a second thought.

But then I realized that I had seen that man before – met him, actually. The man was Ethan Barr, Elizabeth's fiancée. I had run into them once at the grocery store in Forks three weeks ago, when I was picking up a gallon of milk for my mother. Elizabeth had introduced us, and Ethan had seemed like a nice guy.

I watched with curiosity – it was Ethan, and he was with another woman. And I knew for a fact that that woman was not Elizabeth.

Ethan and the woman went up to the counter, and then walked over to a table a couple moments later with two mugs of coffee and two forks and a plate with a piece of carrot cake on it. I assumed that the woman was his sister, or a cousin maybe.

But as I watched, I began to realize that they were way too happy with each other, the woman was very giggly, and the both of them were looking at each other with those lovey-dovey eyes.

And then, to my utter surprise, they leaned forward and kissed each other. When they pulled apart a couple seconds later, Ethan pulled her hand into his and began to run his thumb across it.

I closed my book, threw a couple dollar bills down on the table and left the café.

I needed to find Elizabeth.

~~0~~

Nathan Cullen

Today was the day. Today was the day that I was going to gather my guts and ask her out.

Okay, Nathan, I thought, you can do this. Go up to her, and ask her out. It's simple. All you have to do is say, "Will you go out with me?"

I stood near one of the water fountains at school and stared across the hall at Mackenzie, who was at her locker, pulling books out of her locker to take home, since it was after the last class of the day. I drew in a deep breath and walked across the hall to my locker, which was conveniently next to hers.

She smiled at me when I got there, and I smiled back at her, then we both looked away.

"So, uh, what did you think of that Algebra test?" she asked.

"Brutal," I said, right away.

"I know. I thought I was going to die. I really hate it when Mr. Boone gives us these pop tests. Aren't they supposed to be pop quizzes anyway?" Mackenzie said.

I nodded. "Yeah."

We both laughed.

"So, uh, are you … um, going to the dance on Saturday?" I asked, referring to the dance that was happening two days from now.

Mackenzie tilted her head, her brown hair slanting to the side. She smiled a soft smile and said, "Um, I'm not planning on it. Nobody's really asked me."

"Would you … wouldyouwanttogowithme?" I asked in a rush, then mentally let out a huge breath of relief. I've finally asked her out!

Mackenzie looked confused for a second, and then she said, "Pardon?"

"Um, I said, would you want to … go … with me?" I asked, hopefully.

A look of realization came across her face and, with a blush spreading across her cheeks and her lips turning upwards into a smile, she said, "Yes. Sure."

I huge smile spread across my face. "Great."

I exited the school five minutes later, feeling so happy that I leaped up and punched the air as I skipped all the steps and landed on the pavement on two feet.

Mackenzie Serra HAD SAID YES!

Elizabeth Cullen

"So, have you and Ethan decided on where you two are going to go on your honeymoon yet?" Aunt Alice asked.

It was Thursday afternoon, and Mom, Aunt Alice, Leah, Aunt Rosalie and I were in the kitchen above the bookshop, drinking hot cocoa and discussing wedding plans. Ethan had been going to meet us there, but he had called at the last minute saying that he couldn't make it. I had tried not to make such a big deal out of it, and Mom and Aunt Alice told me that "Most men don't want to have anything to do with wedding plans."

I smiled and said, "He wants to take me to Maui."

"Ooh, aloha! So romantic! Tell me all about it when you get back, alright? I've never been there and I've always wanted to go there!" Leah said. "Actually, I think, when I get engaged, I'm going to get married in Hawaii."

We all laughed.

Nathan burst through the kitchen door then, looking happy and joyous, with a humongous smile spread across his face. "Hello, everyone!" He kissed all of our cheeks – much to our surprise, and then headed for the cupboard and took out the package of Oreos.

"Hello," Mom said. "Any reason why you're so happy?"

"I … have … a … date!" he said. "A date! Can you believe it!"

"Congratulations!" Leah and I said in unison, smiling.

"Who's the lucky girl?" I asked.

"Mackenzie Serra, the girl I've had a crush on since middle school! We are going to the dance at school on Saturday," he said. "Well, I'm off to do homework."

And with that, he left the kitchen and went off down the hall to his bedroom, backpack on his back and Oreos in hand.

"He has finally got a date …. My other baby's growing up!" Mom said.

~~0~~

Later, about seven-thirty that evening, I lay on my bed. I held in my hands an envelope – a small white one with his name on it. I was trying to decide whether or not to actually give it to him, to invite him.

And then, before I knew what I was doing, I was stuffing the invitation into the back pocket of my jeans, grabbing my sweater off my desk chair and my keys off my desk. I knew that I could have just sent it to him through the mail, but I decided that he needed an in-person-apology for "The Kiss".

My parents were at the kitchen table, looking through a bunch of papers and such, and they looked up when I entered.

"Hey, um, I have an errand to run. I'll be back in a little bit," I said, and, after saying a quick 'good-bye' to both of them and kissing the tops of their heads, I left.

The drive to Ian's house went by very quickly, especially since I still knew the way. All too soon, I was pulling my truck up in front of his house. But I found myself unable to get out and walk up to his house. Instead, I sat there in the cab of the truck, engine on, heat spewing out of the vents.

All of sudden, there was a knock on my window, and I jumped.

Ian was standing outside.

I took a deep breath to calm my heart and then pulled the keys out of the ignition. I opened the door and stepped out.

"Hi."

"Hi. What are you doing outside my house? Stalking me?" Ian asked, humor in his eyes.

I shook my head. "I, uh, I just came over here to apologize. I don't know what came over me that night at the hospital and … well I just wanted to say that I'm sorry."

Ian shrugged. "It's alright. I shouldn't have kissed you anyways."

I looked at him in shock. "It was you that kissed me?" He nodded. "I thought it was me that kissed you!"

He laughed. "It was me. But you did kiss me back. I should have been the one to say that I was sorry, not you."

A blush – to my surprise – crept up onto my face, and I looked down at the rain laden ground. Then I looked back up and pulled the envelope out of my pocket. "I also came over here to give you this." I handed him the invitation and he took it. "It's an invitation to the wedding. You don't have to come if you don't want to, but … I want you to. All of the information's in there."

He smiled, but the smile lasted for only a second. "So, uh, you're really gonna marry this guy?"

I looked at him, a bit confused. I nodded. "Yes," I said slowly. "Would there be a reason why I wouldn't be marrying him?"

He scratched the back of his head. "Listen, Liz, I've been looking for you all afternoon to tell you something."

"What would that be?" I asked.

"I don't think you should marry that man."

My mouth dropped open. "And why shouldn't I?"

"I saw him this afternoon, at a café in Port Angeles, with … with another woman. They looked very love-y dove-y together. Elizabeth, I don't know any other way to tell you this but … I think that that guy is cheating on you."

Despite my own suspicions of Ethan, I glared at Ian. "What gives you the right to accuse my fiancée that he's cheating on me? He loves me. You shouldn't accuse people you don't know of something that you're not entirely sure of what they're doing, Ian. I can't believe you would accuse that of him. He wouldn't do anything of the sort like that."

"Elizabeth, I saw him. I saw him kiss that other woman!" Ian argued. He placed his hands on my shoulders but I shrugged out of them.

"Don't touch me. I have to go," I said.

I had inherited one of my mother's embarrassing traits – anger was directly hardwired to my tear ducts. Right then, tears were sparking in my eyes and I knew I had to leave.

So, I opened my door, got in, and within five seconds, I was driving off, my heart breaking into tiny pieces all the way home.

Ian Dalton

As I watched Elizabeth drive off, I felt my heart drop.

I scrunched up my hand, and when I heard the crunch of paper, I remembered the invitation in my hand.

I opened the envelope and took out a single piece of white cardstock, with gold rimming the edges. Printed in elegant black calligraphy, the words read:

You are invited to the wedding of

Elizabeth Marie Cullen

Ethan Cory Barr

On

January 1 at 1:00 p.m.

I sighed and placed the card back in the envelope, not even bothering the read the rest of it. I walked slowly back into the house.

I had just lost my best friend and love of my life.

Author's Note: Am I good or what? Two chapters in two days! I hope everyone liked this chapter. I'm not sure how much I like this chapter, but I do like that Nathan has finally (almost!) gotten the girl of his dreams.

The story will be coming to an end very shortly (probably one or two more chapters and then an epilogue). I want to thank everybody who reviewed the previous chapter! Please keep on reviewing! They keep me inspired and they make me write faster.

Next Chapter: Because I'm sort of anxious to finish the story within the next couple of chapters, there will be sort of a large time lapse in the story. The next chapter will be set right before the wedding, and you'll get to see how the story will evolve from there (I can't really tell you what happens!).

So, please review on your way out! I will try to write another chapter tomorrow and if I finish it, I'll post it. Until Next TIme: Lemonade Ninja.