A/N: Ok so here we go *Calm before the storm* (Just a warning…) and maybe thins will clear up the questions about the missing cullens… Read. Enjoy. Review..
Trip Around the Sun
Chapter Eighteen – A Cullen Christmas
Fairly early Christmas morning I was sitting very comfortably on the couch between Carlisle and the Cullens' tree. Alice had decorated it with plenty of colorful decorations. She had gone way overboard, but Carlisle, Jasper, and I didn't have the heart to break it to her. Carlisle's arm was wrapped loosely around me as Alice sat under the tree shuffling the presents around underneath it. Carlisle's cool lips were pressed to my temple as his hands very gingerly went up and down my arms, effectively cooling my sore arms through my sweater.
"I love you, Babe," He whispered softly into my ear and I smiled as he kissed the edge of my ear.
"I love you too, sweetie," I said just before he gave me a peck on the lips.
"Ok, presents," said Alice cheerily as she handed me an overly thick card.
I smiled as I opened the card and about fifty different gift cards fell into my lap. There seemed to be one for every store in Port Angeles and Alice beamed. Carlisle, Jasper, and I on the other hand burst into laughter at the statement. The card was signed by both Jasper and Alice so I figured I'd get Jasper to come too, even if Carlisle wouldn't.
"I'm taking you on a shopping spree," said Alice as though I couldn't have figured that much out, "And yes, this is why I told you not to get me anything."
"I'm glad I didn't now," I said and Carlisle chuckled.
"Don't worry, Babe," He teases, "I saw at least one was to the book store…"
"Just set the date, Alice," I said, hitting Carlisle on the chest, making him laugh harder.
The amusement of – primarily – Alice's gift carried me through Jasper opening the collection of Country CDs (The few that he didn't have) that Alice had instructed me to get for him, and the Cullens' presents to each other. Finally, Alice set my gift to Carlisle on his lap and his gift to me on mine. I had wrapped his present up in a medium sized gift bag, and his to me was in a small box.
It was wrapped up perfectly in light blue wrapping paper with a dark blue ribbon wrapped classically around it, forming a bow on top. It looked so elegantly beautiful that I almost didn't want to open it. I looked over to Carlisle, who leaned in and kissed me sweetly.
"Go ahead, open it," He said with his ever charming smile shining perfectly.
"You first," I said, I was anxious to see his reaction.
"Okay," He said with a smile as he carefully pulled out some of the tissue paper and pulled out a little half sized notebook with all the pages filled.
"My diary," I explained and he smiled at me warmly, "It goes from August to last night. I think the first entry is the night before my mom's wedding. Do you like it? I really had no idea what to get you, then this was the only thing that really stuck."
"Baby," He said pulling me closer and kissing me deeply, "I love it."
"Thought you would," I replied and he kissed me again.
"Yes yes," said Jasper, "Carlisle can't wait to read all the inappropriate things you've been thinking about him for months… open your present, Bella."
"There's more," I said and Jasper groaned as Carlisle reached back into the bag and pulled out two framed desk pictures.
The first was of all four of us, the exact picture mom had commented on, from the camping trip. The second was a picture of just Carlisle and I. He was holding me bridal style out in the side yard with the woods as our backdrop. He had his lips pressed down against my forehead. It was one of my favorites because we just looked so happy in it.
"One for my hospital office and one for my home office?" He said and I nodded.
"Exactly," I said and he smiled as he leaned down and kissed me, putting the pictures and the diary on the coffee table.
"Thanks, babe," He said as he pulled away, "Now open yours."
I smiled and he pecked my cheek once more before I turned back to the small box in my hands. I very cautiously started to slide my finger under and ribbon and Alice scoffed.
"No one's saving the paper," said Alice, and I looked over to realize Jasper and Alice were just as excited as Carlisle to see me opening it.
"No need to have a group coronary," I teased them and Carlisle kissed the side of my face.
"I love you, just open it," said Carlisle with a smile.
"Ok…" I liked teasing them way too much.
I ripped off the paper and the paper had – obviously – been covering a small, a relatively flat, square box. It was much too big for any ring – hopefully – so I knew he wasn't proposing. Not yet at least, I knew he would want to wait long enough so that he could ask Charlie for permission to ask me. He was always doing things the old fashioned way and I knew that was a big one for him. He would definitely want to do that right by his standards.
I lifted the top of the box and Carlisle took it from me as my eyes caught sight of the necklace below it. It was oval with the longest portion measuring an inch at the most. It was a brilliant silver, freshly polished. It seemed to have a design set into the center with delicate silver wisps around the edge. In the middle it looked like a lion or something and I looked over at Carlisle. It was beautiful.
"It's the Cullen crest," He said with a smile, "Everyone in the family wears one."
Tears came to the back of my eyes as Carlisle reached over to display his ring next to the necklace. Jasper then displayed his wristband on one side and Alice held her necklace on the other side. I had never noticed them before, but with the other three more blatant crests I could clearly see the design in mine.
"Do you like it?" Carlisle asked as Alice put her necklace back on and she and Jasper returned to the opposite couch.
"I love it," I said, trying not to cry.
"Open it," said Carlisle and I looked up at him, confused, "It's a locket, I had it made for you, Bella. Press the left side in the middle, then tap high on the right side and then low on the right side."
I did as he said and it sprang open the second my finger left the lower right side. One the right was a picture of Carlisle and I, and on the right was an inscription.
"My heart will always rest with you. Love always, Carlisle," Carlisle read it out loud as I read it to myself.
"Awe, Sweetie," I said, throwing my arms around him, "I swear, you're trying to make me cry."
"Wasn't the goal," He replied kissing me tenderly.
"Will you help me put it on?" I asked and he nodded simply as he took it from me and closed the locket.
I lifted up my hair as he very sweetly clasped it and then kissed the side of my neck. The necklace hung perfectly around my neck and felt weightless, perfect. It was as if it had always been there. I smiled as I looked down at it and then up at Carlisle.
Carlisle was beaming and I threw my arms around him. He pulled me, careful not to further injure my arms, into his lap as our lips attached. Somewhere between the start of the kiss, and the breathless ending I realized that Alice and Jasper had taken their cue to leave, and that was just fine with me.
"I adore you, Isabella Swan," He said sweetly as he kissed my forehead.
"I hadn't noticed," I replied teasingly as I kissed his cheek and he smiled, "No, in all seriousness I love you too."
"I would have loved to make you a Cullen today, Bella," He said, then clarified, "As in marry you, but you know that's not possible right now. So I figured I could make you as officially unofficial as possible."
"I already considered myself part of the family," I admitted and he smiled.
"Me too."
"You know?" I said reaching up and playing with his hair, "I can't think of a situation where I could justify leaving you, I don't ever want to. I want to stay with you forever."
"A lifetime maybe," said Carlisle and I shook my head, but that was a battle for another day.
Carlisle then wrapped me all up in a blanket and cuddled me close. As soon as I was comfortable, my head on his chest and my feet tangled with his, I sighed contently.
"Tell me about the times you were tempted," I said and he looked down at me curiously.
"What?"
"The three times you were tempted to change people," I prompted and he looked up at the ceiling.
"Oh, right, I believe you mean four now," He said, but didn't stop for my confused look, "The first was in 1901. I was lonely, and thinking about getting a roommate, so to speak, a friend. Then, I met Edward and Elizabeth Masen. They were mother and son dying of Spanish influenza, patients of mine. Their father and husband had already passed of the same awful disease, and Elizabeth was the stronger of the two. I actually thought that she would make it. Edward started to get real bad, and Elizabeth told me to save him, of course not knowing what I was. There was just something in her eyes telling me she did. I didn't think that I would ever be able to deal with changing another human, especially one that had no idea. I let him die, as was his destiny."
"Do you ever regret it?" I asked and he shook his head.
"Never," He said and I nodded, "The second was a woman by the name of Esme Evenson in 1921. I had met her ten years before when she was sixteen, she had broken her leg climbing a tree. She was highly amusing, and quite taken with me."
"I can't fault her," I said and he chuckled.
"Well, I ignored her advances for years," said Carlisle, "Then she moved away, married some Evenson guy, a sorry excuse for a man, he abused her, severely. She ran away when she found out she was pregnant, and then the baby died a few days after birth. After that she was suicidal, jumped off a cliff. When I saw her 'body' it still had a faint heartbeat, and I thought about it a second. She would make a good wife. I'm sorry, Bella love, I thought that my L'amore Fatale was already gone or nonexistent. But, luckily, I thought to make someone with so little zest for life live forever to be cruel, so I listened to the heart stop. Bella, Babe, I'm so sorry, I really-"
"Carlisle, you don't have to explain, I wasn't even born yet."
"But I do, because I didn't love her," He said and I nodded.
"I believe you," I said and he nodded, "Sweetie, I trust you. I know you couldn't lie to me. If you had loved her then you would have lied that you and not even brought up that she liked you. You won't lie to me, I know that."
"Not even if I wanted to," said Carlisle, and I leaned up and kissed him, "I have only ever truly loved you, Isabella."
"And I you," I said, kissing the tip of his nose.
"OK the third one is a quicker story," He replied, and I knew he was relaxed again, so I smiled, "It was a young girl in Rochester New York. Her fiancé and his friends had brutally raped her and left her in the street. I was the first to come across her, and I felt pity. She was the little blonde stuck up person. She had hated me because I was more attractive than she was. I pitied her because I realized that she would never have a chance to be a real person. Then, I realized what I was thinking and left her, she wouldn't become a good person if she was not one already when she was changed. That was 1933 she was Rosalie Hale. I think she is the only one that I regret not changing."
"Really?" I asked and he nodded.
"Yeah," He said, "Looking back I think she would have been fine had I changed her, she would have been a good being."
"what about Alice and Jasper?" I asked and he nodded.
"They found me after they had been changed," he said and I nodded.
"Now there's you, my fourth temptation," He said, kissing my head, "And the strongest tempt."
"Well what will you do if you don't change me?"
"Marry you," He stated, "take you away, love you, and take care of you. Then when you die, I would follow you there too. I never condoned taking ones life, especially your own, but I can't imagine having to be here without you."
I opened my mouth to tell him that that would never be acceptable to me but --
"Ok!" said Alice, prancing in the room with Jasper, "Time for the traditional Cullen snowball fight."
"Alice," I said bracingly, "You're interrupting our precious cuddling and talking time to pelt us with snow?"
"Wasn't a very cheerful conversation," She shrugged as Jasper sent me some calm waves and Carlisle chuckled behind my ear.
"Fine." I said and twenty minutes later I was standing outside in a snowsuit that matched Carlisle's.
Teams, they had explained to me, for a snowball fight much like capture the flag with snow. Carlisle and Jasper had created forts in the woods on either side of the house while Alice and I were getting ready. The object was to cause a cave in at the other team's fort, it sounded like fun.
We were just about to start when I felt Carlisle's body go rigid. He had been standing with his arms around me loosely, his hands folded over my stomach. In a second he had tightened, not nearly enough to cause me any pain or discomfort but enough for me to realize something was wrong. Drastically wrong.