Thanks for all the responses guys, and I just wanted to say how excited I am to be writing this story. The comments you all leave give me so many ideas for the direction of the plot, and I think there's great potential for so many story arcs like meeting new people, sampling the various "experiences" that come with college, and developing relationships.
Also, I'm sorry this chapter took so long, but I was on vacation this past week. I visited friends in New Jersey and New York. It was a much needed break from my hectic work schedule.
EPOV
These football practices were really something – about ten times more intense than high school. And Canadian football is slightly different from the American version, there are more men on each side and a longer field. We ran much longer distances for much longer periods of time and it seemed even more imperative than ever to be at the front of the line, lest they suspect me of slacking off. James was there, but only as a fourth-string running back. So, being the back-up quarterback, I never really interact with him. That certainly made practices much more enjoyable. He was usually with all the younger guys and the players who came out for the team every year but never made a starting spot. In Forks, we usually referred to this as the Dummy Squad – even though I know how mean that can sound.
And then there was that wonderful little woman waiting at home for me. I guess that sounded a tad chauvinistic, but you know what I mean – after a hard day's work, it felt good to get back to the apartment and know my wife was there to make me smile.
Collectively, our homework was not so tedious that it required a great deal of time. We were both usually done with our studies and making dinner by about 6:30 every night. Then we ate, watched some TV and made love until we were both ready for sleep. It was just how I'd pictured married life, but so much better. It was like we were meant to be together and fell into step with one another without any real difficulty.
The first football game of the year did turn out to be quite the affair. There was a little pep rally in the student center where fans showed up with their faces painted in gold and blue, holding up banners and waving pom pons. A part of me wished Bella was among the cheerleaders assembled there, but that's not a part of who she is anymore.
She was still there, though, in the crowd with Alice and Jasper. They stood just in front of the stage where the starters and back-ups had gathered to pump up the crowd. I stood between Jeff, one of the running backs, and Doug, a safety, and cheered when prompted by the coach.
"Are we gonna beat Clan tonight?!" Coach McKraig asked.
"YEAH!!!!" The fans and players screamed. We were instructed to meet at the field at 5:30, so I had an hour-and-a-half to be with Bella before I suited up. The two of us roamed around the campus for a little bit, just holding hands and talking. Alice and Jasper found us after awhile. It was a bit of an annoyance, but at least I know I'll have Bella all to myself tonight after the game. We all sat on the lawn in front of the student center and talked until I checked my watch and saw I had to head over to the stadium.
"I'll see you in a few hours," I said as I kissed Bella goodbye. "I love you."
"I love you more," she said.
BPOV
It was so exciting to finally get to watch Edward play from the stands instead of having my back to the field in front of a crowd, trying to get people to cheer. Alice, Jasper and I got some popcorn, hotdogs, sodas and Twizzlers before finding some seats. The first half went well, the Thunderbirds scored three touchdowns and left the other team scoreless – but Edward didn't play. It wasn't until the second half that Edward ran out onto the field and finally got to show what he was capable of. And boy did he ever – he threw for two additional touchdowns and ran the last one in on his own. I almost lost my voice from cheering for my amazing husband.
As the clock ran out, I hurried onto the field and made my way to Edward who was in the huddle with his teammates. As soon as they gave one last cheer and went their separate ways, I leapt into Edward's arms and planted kisses all over his face.
"Oh my God, Edward, that was amazing! You were so great!!"
"I was pretty good," he agreed as he led me to the locker rooms. "At least I'm over this first game hump; next one should be even better."
"I don't know how it could get any better, you were unbelievable! You were like Brett Favre, Peyton Manning and Donovan McNabb all rolled up into one!"
He laughed. "You're just naming all the quarterbacks you know, aren't you?"
"Doesn't mean it's not true," I replied. Suddenly, a large man came out of nowhere and clapped a hand on Edward's shoulder.
"Cullen, nice work out there. Man, we're going to be set for the next couple of seasons with you here."
"Thanks Jeff," Edward replied. "I'd like you to meet my wife, Bella. Bells, this is Jeff Smith, one of the running backs on the team."
"Bella, it's nice to meet you," Jeff said as he shook my hand. "Must be really proud of your man tonight."
"Nice to meet you too, Jeff," I said. "And, I'm always proud of Edward, but especially tonight."
"So, you two coming out to Cardero's tonight?" Jeff asked. "That's where the team and some of the fans go after games to celebrate…or drown our sorrows in beer post-loss."
"Oh, well…" I began.
"Yeah, that sounds great!" Edward said, cutting me off. "We'll see you there in a bit."
As Jeff walked away I turned to Edward with a confused expression. "Um, I thought we were going to spend tonight alone."
"We won't be long," Edward said. "I just don't want to be the square peg on the team, and hanging out with the guys is a big part of that. Just a couple drinks and then we go home, OK?"
"OK," I agreed. "But tomorrow, I have you all to myself, right?"
"Oh, there's no question about that, Mrs. Cullen."
Cardero's was your typical restaurant and pub, filled with what seemed to be at least one-third of the UBC student population. Edward grasped my hand as we walked through the door, and I had every intention of keeping a hold of him for the duration of our time here amongst our peers. This resolve was solidified by the amount of girls who were hanging around attempting to get closer to the players. We sat down at a table with Alice and Jasper and ordered a round of beers. This was something I was going to have to get used to; I'd never really had a great deal of alcohol before I came to Vancouver, just a sip of wine or champagne on special occasions, so sitting down at a restaurant and ordering any drink I wanted was quite the new experience. I wondered what my dad would think if he saw me drinking a pint in public – legally!
"I'm hungry, let's get some appetizers," Alice said as she grabbed a menu from the middle of the table. "What do you say, Bella? Want some mozzarella sticks or buffalo wings?"
"How about both?" I suggested, turning to Edward. "Do you want something? You must be hungry after being Mr. All-star Athlete!"
"I could eat," he replied with a smirk.
"I want an order of fries," Jasper said before excusing himself to the bathroom.
We placed our order with the waitress and sat back to view the chaos ensuing all around us. UBC students occupied almost every table in the restaurant and took up every seat around the bar, with a few people lingering and hovering from group to group. One person who could have never got lost in this crowd in a million years was Jacob, who made his way over to our table through the throngs of co-eds.
"Hey guys," he said cordially. Alice and Edward nodded brusquely in his direction, I smiled and said hello. "Don't want to disturb you too much," he continued. "I just wanted to congratulate you on a good game, Edward."
Jacob patted Edward firmly on the shoulder before heading back in the direction he came from. As soon as he was out of sight, Edward shot me a slightly amazed expression. "What the hell was that?"
"I don't know," I replied with a shrug, "guess he just wants to be nice."
Alice rolled her eyes and took as sip of beer as Jasper rejoined the group. As soon as he sat down, however, Alice shot up suddenly. "Damn, I really have to pee now, too." She kept her head down and hustled through the crowd quickly. I debated following her when I spied a gaggle of girls seated near the bar staring at Edward. They kept pointing in his direction and giggling amongst themselves in a manner that made me want to get very unladylike with them. All blonds, too – how ridiculously cliché.
Jeff wandered over to our table. "Having fun, guys?"
"Yeah, this is really great, man," Edward replied.
"Cool," Jeff said. "So, who's up for shots?"
"Oh, I don't know," I said. "I've never really had a shot before."
"All the more reason to do it," Jeff said putting his hands on mine and Edward's shoulders.
I looked to Edward and his eyes pleaded with me to play along. I reluctantly stood up and followed the boys to the bar. Some of the other players were already there, miles ahead of us all in the shots department. One of the guys chivalrously gave up his seat for me and the bartender came over and eyed us warily. "What'll it be, guys?"
"Well, we've got a shots virgin on our hands here," Jeff said, motioning to me. "So, how about something easy to start? How about just some vodka shots?"
I shrugged and nodded. "Sounds good to me."
"How many?" The bartender asked.
"Um…eight," Jeff said after counting the number of people in our vicinity.
The bartender nodded once and grabbed a bottle of clear liquid from his line of liquors. After placing eight shot glasses on the bar, he filled them with the vodka and pushed the tiny cups out towards us. "That'll be $32."
Jeff pulled some money out of his wallet and slapped it on the bar. "Keep the change."
I stared at the little glass positioned in front of me. I've always heard vodka, if it's good quality, doesn't have much smell or taste to it. So, following that rationale, this shot shouldn't be all that difficult to manage, right? I lifted the glass and turned to see Edward, Jasper and Jeff staring at me expectantly.
"Ready?" Edward asked. I nodded and we all tapped the shots against each other before downing the drink. My inexperience in this area of college life was evident right off the bat as I poured the drink down my throat slowly instead of in one quick gulp like my fellow imbibers. And, while I was right about it not tasting like much, I didn't take into account the burn. Oh my God, did that drink make its presence known as it flowed slowly down my esophagus, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. Tears filled my eyes and I winced as I set the shot glass back on the bar.
"That was awful," I said. The boys laughed at my pained expression. Jeff put a giant hand on my shoulder soothingly.
"Maybe vodka's not your drink," he said. "How about we try something else? I like jäger, maybe you will too."
I was about to refuse when I remembered this night was all about bonding with Edward's teammates. "Sure, just one more shot couldn't hurt, right?"
Jeff ordered up four shots this time, and I braced myself better for the onslaught of alcohol sting. My hand was quicker this time around, and the dark brown booze flowed quickly past my throat. It was strangely pleasant, even though it tasted like black licorice. And, I didn't make a face this time. Edward stepped over and put his arms around my neck. He kissed my lips once and pulled away with a big smile. "Thanks for being a good sport, love."
"I'll do anything for my man," I replied.
Alice sauntered over with a frustrated look on her face. "What the hell? I leave for two minutes and you guys are over here taking shots without me?"
"Sorry, babe," Jasper said. "What do you want to drink?"
While Jasper attempted to placate Alice with a shot of whisky, I excused myself to the bathroom. It wasn't easy to finding this crowd, especially considering my head was beginning to feel like it was in a fishbowl. I decided to get a glass of water when I got back to the bar to sober up a bit. In the bathroom, I sat in a stall for just a moment before I heard the sound of stiletto heels clicking annoyingly against the tile floor. High pitched, nasal voices belonging to what had to be some heinous breed of sorority chick filled the air.
"God, I thought that slut would never leave him alone," one voice said. "Maybe now he can finally concentrate on buying me drinks."
"I know," someone else agreed. "How pathetic can you get to hang all over the new star quarterback like that?"
I was about halfway through pulling my jeans back up as I realized these girls must have been the blonds staring at Edward. The next observation confirmed this.
"Oh my God, you guys, what if she's like some little high school girlfriend who followed Edward to college? Wouldn't that just be too lame for words?"
After making sure my pants were fully zipped and buttoned, I pushed the door open and stepped up to the floosies. "Wife, actually. I'm Edward's wife, not his girlfriend." The three girls stared at me, jaws agape, as I washed my hands calmly before reaching for a paper towel. "And no, my husband will not be buying any of you cunts drinks tonight, understand?"
I strutted back to the table, proud I had stood my ground without throwing a punch at any of those girls. Our food had been sitting there for a while, but the taste of mozzarella sticks was still delicious and comforting. Alice and I consumed most of the food while Jasper and Edward continued to mingle with the team. Over the next hour, I drank a couple glasses of water and was ready to drive Edward home, as he had become not just a little bit tipsy.
He threw his arms around me as I helped him into our apartment. Edward surprised me with how overtly affectionate he was when he was drunk. I tried to help him get undressed for bed, which provided ample opportunity for him to grope me and tug at my clothing.
"You need to get undressed, too," he slurred salaciously. Edward grabbed the front of my jeans and yanked the button open. He had my pants down to my knees before I knew it and I had to push his hands away to scold him.
"Edward, you're drunk," I said with a gentle firmness. "Just lie down and I'll go get you some water, OK?"
"Noooo," he whined, doing his best impression of a four-year-old. "No water! I want some Bella!"
"Ohh, no way in hell, Mr. Cullen," I replied as I managed to wrestle him down and tuck him under the covers. "No sex for you tonight. And, if you can't control yourself, I'll just have to go sleep on the couch."
He stuck out his bottom lip and turned away from me. "You're mean."
Sighing heavily, I walked to the kitchen and poured a glass of water for my inebriated hubby. I grabbed a few aspirin just to be on the safe side. When I returned, he was already asleep, so I set everything down on his bedside table and got ready for bed.
Yep, this drinking thing is really going to take some getting used to.
EPOV
Damnit! I got wasted and acted like an asshole last night, after Bella had been so good about letting me have drinks with my teammates. My head was throbbing like I had been hit repeatedly by one of my 300-pound linemen. In fact, it felt like my center Benny was sitting on my head. It was 11 a.m. by the time I felt capable of fully opening my eyes. Of course, Bella was already up and about. She left me a glass of water and some Ibuprofen. My guilt factor went from bad to worse.
"Hey baby, you up yet?" She called softly from the kitchen.
"Yeah," I said, immediately regretting raising my voice to such a high decibel level.
"Do you think you could eat something, or are you feeling sick?"
I slowly sat up to fully gauge the magnitude of this hangover. It wasn't too bad, and I didn't have any stomach problems; so I got up, took the aspirin sitting on the bedside table, and walked out to face my wife. I knew I had a lot to apologize for, but she acted as if nothing had happened last night. She just gave me a big hug and kiss like she does every morning.
"Sorry about last night," I said as she made my favorite: scrambled eggs with bacon and cheese in them.
"There's nothing to be sorry about, Edward," she said.
"Just let me apologize, please? I got too drunk and acted like an ass, and I know I asked you for sex last night in the middle of my drunken stupor."
"You did," she replied with a wry smile. "But you were drunk, and I didn't really think anything of it."
"I'm sorry just the same," I said as I kissed the side of her neck. "And, if it's any consolation, I have one splitting headache this morning."
"Aw, poor baby," she cooed as she ignored her cooking for a moment to turn and kiss my forehead. "Drink some tomato juice, I hear that's supposed to help a hangover."
I opened the fridge and found a bottle of V8 sitting in one of the side shelves. As I poured myself a glass, Bella continued to move about the kitchen making breakfast. She sliced up pieces of fruit like cantaloupe and strawberries, and buttered whole wheat toast that popped up out of the toaster and made the apartment smell wonderful.
"What's with all this healthy food?" I asked as I stole a strawberry from her cutting board. "You didn't have to go to all this trouble, Bells, we could have just had Pop-tarts or frozen waffles."
"I get tired of that stuff," she replied as she spooned the eggs out onto two plates. "Sometimes I want a real breakfast. And besides, I don't want to gain the freshman 15."
I shook my head and just smiled as I helped her carry the food to the table. With the amount of time she and Alice spent at the campus gym, she wasn't in any danger of gaining weight. Still, after hearing that married women usually put on a few pounds in their first year of marriage, and coupling that with being a freshman in college, Bella was worried about being doubly at risk. I told her she was worrying needlessly.
"Still, I'm not taking any chances," she would say.
After breakfast, I was feeling almost like myself again so I joined Bella in the shower and really got around to giving her a proper apology. Our tiny shower didn't make impromptu sex very easy, but at least there was a little hand rail on one of the walls Bella could hold on to, stabilizing us as I grasped her smooth, silky thighs and pounded into her thoroughly. Once we were both dry, Bella suggested we stay in bed all day and watch movies—the best idea I've heard in a long while.
"Let's go to the video store and see what they have to rent," she said as she slipped into her UBC sweatpants.
"I thought we were staying in," I whined as I flopped myself down on the bed in protest.
"Yeah, but I'm tired of all our movies, and I don't want to watch TV. So we'll need some other form of stimuli."
"Fine," I replied, my voice muffled by the comforter. I reluctantly got dressed and drove us to the place where we'd become accustomed to renting DVDs. Afterward, we made a quick trip to the grocery store for some popcorn and ice cream.
"So much for healthy eating," I teased as Bella grabbed a pint of Ben and Jerry's cake batter ice cream.
"Everything in moderation," she replied, sticking her tongue out at me.
We pulled back up to the apartment to find Alice sitting by the front door waiting for us.
"Al, what's wrong?" Bella asked.
"I need to talk to you," my sister replied, indicating she didn't want me to hear what was bothering her.
"I'll go put the food in the kitchen," I said as I kissed Bella softly on the cheek and entered the apartment. My sister isn't the type to keep secrets from me, so I assumed this was some problem with Jasper. The two of them have been together almost as long as Bella and I have, but their relationship has been much more tumultuous. But, every time Jasper did something stupid or thoughtless, Bella reminded Alice how much Jas really loved her and all was right with the world again—at least until the next incident reared its ugly head.
BPOV
Alice took me by the elbow and pulled me out to the parking lot. We sat on the curb and she seemed at a loss for words to explain what was wrong this time. I decided to try and prod her into spilling. "What did Jas do now?"
Still she remained silent. Now I was really worried.
"Alice, what's the matter? Did you guys have a fight? Was it something that happened at the bar last night? Is he cheating on you? Tell me, please!" I grasped her shoulders and shook her lightly, but she continued to stare off into the distance.
After another full five minutes of this stoic behavior, she finally spoke. "It's not something that he did, it's something that we did."
"What?"
"I...I haven't had a period in two months," she said, pulling something eerily familiar out of her pocket. "I thought it was just my body being irregular or something, but I wanted to make sure and..." she handed me the pregnancy test—it was positive.
"This could be a mistake," I said quickly, setting the stick down and retaining my hold on Alice's shoulders. "Those tests aren't one-hundred percent accurate, you know that."
"Yeah, but they're right more often than not," she replied, refusing to meet my eyes. "What am I going to do, Bella? I'm not ready to have a baby yet, I'm only 19!"
"Look, you need to go see a doctor and make sure this test is being accurate," I said, not wanting my best friend to make any rash decisions in her fragile state. "Then, if it's true, you and Jasper need to discuss options. You could give the baby up for adoption, or..." I didn't want to go any further, especially not when Alice shot me a look of warning.
"No! Abortion is not an option," she said.
"What did Jas say when you told him?"
"I haven't yet," she admitted. "I need to wrap my head around this first."
I pulled her close and let her warp her arms around me, my head resting on top of hers. "Go back and talk to Jasper. Let him know everything that's going on; it's his baby, too. That is, if there even is a baby."
"I think there is, Bells," she replied. "I've been so moody and difficult lately, plus I've either been sick as a dog or eating like truck driver. I think this is for real."
I pulled away slightly and planted a small kiss on her forehead before we got up, hugged and said our goodbyes. It was too weird to imagine—Alice pregnant. She doesn't even like kids all that much. Maybe it was some kind of tragic karma. No, I couldn't think that way about my friend; she didn't deserve being saddled with a baby at 19, especially as an unmarried mother.
Walking back into the apartment, I debated whether I should tell Edward or let him hear it from Alice when she was ready to say something. But, he's my husband, and I don't like keeping things from him. He was sitting in the living room watching hockey when I closed the front door behind me.
"What's wrong?" He asked, immediately turning off the TV.
"Alice thinks she's pregnant," I said. "She took a test this morning and it came out positive."
"Oh my God, what did Jasper say?"
"She's going to tell him right now, hopefully," I replied. "For the moment she's just wondering what she's going to do if this test turns out to be accurate."
"Aren't they always?" Edward asked as I removed my sweatshirt and sat on the couch beside him.
"Nope, they can be wrong. Not often, but it's been known to happen."
"Damn, this sucks."
I couldn't have said it any better myself. We got back to the plans we had originally set, but with a more somber tone to the day. Lying in bed, watching one inane movie after another, we didn't talk much. It now seemed there was a 900-pound elephant in the room. We've never really discussed children, because I thought it was assumed between the two of us that we should wait until after college when we are more settled into our lives. But this whole Alice pregnancy thing was putting the topic back up for discussion; a discussion neither one of us wanted to have right now. So, it was just hanging there above our heads, taunting us.
Couldn't I just be married and enjoy my alone time with my husband for a few years? Did babies and such have to happen right away? Certainly there was no pressure from our parents; Dad, Esme and Carlisle were all in agreement we should wait. It was just that traditional notion of a husband, a wife and a couple rug rats running around the house that refused to vacate my psyche. I do want kids, and making some sort of time frame to have them sounds so cold and inhumane – as though I'm trying to schedule them into my life like a salon appointment or something. Having kids when the time feels right seemed like a more natural course of action.
But, being a mom so young? That hardly seemed to work out in any positive way.
We're going to have to have this conversation, Edward and I. When, however, is another question altogether.