A/N: Okay, so this is the moving in/starting school chapter. Right now I'm thinking there are going to be maybe five more chapters (the babies would arrive in the fifth) and an epilogue. That could change, but so far that's my plan =D
DISCLAIMER: S. Meyer owns all!
BPOV
"Again?" Edward asked from behind me. I turned around, smiling sheepishly, and shrugged my shoulders. My eggs finished cooking on the stove and I slid them onto a plate, taking it to sit down at the breakfast bar.
"That's three cartons in one week," he chuckled, taking the seat beside me. I stuck my tongue out at him and stuck a forkful in my mouth, glaring at him playfully as I chewed.
"I can't help what I crave. Blame them," I said, gesturing to my swollen midsection. He laughed loudly and shook his head, stealing a forkful of my eggs.
"We need to go grocery shopping today," I said between mouthfulls. Edward nodded his head in agreement and stood up to grab a notepad and a pen. We quickly scribbled out a list of everything we needed and Edward washed my dishes while I went upstairs to get dressed. We headed to the store a few minutes later, quickly grabbing a cart and walking through the aisles.
Once we had found everything on our list, plus quite a few things that were not on our list, we paid for it all and headed back to the house. Edward carried everything inside and I started putting it all away, and I couldn't help but smile during the process. I giggled quietly as Edward brought me the last of the bags and started taking things out.
"What?" he asked, looking over himself nervously. I laughed louder this time and shook my head, putting some things in the refrigerator.
"It's nothing. It's just, this seems so odd to me. I mean, here we are, in our own Victorian mansion, married and putting away groceries, expecting twins in a few months. This is all stuff I didn't expect to happen until after college, but it just feels right, you know?" I looked at him, waiting for an answer, and a slow smile spread across his face.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. This is kind of surreal, isn't it?" he asked. I nodded my head and giggled again, then went back to putting things away.
We spent the rest of the week just putting away the rest of the things we had brought from our old homes, and getting the house ready. By the time our first week in the house was over, everything was put away and we were officially moved in. The only projects left were the kids' rooms, and we had agreed not to work on them until after the baby shower.
The following week we prepared for school. We both had a lot of books and supplies to get for our first semester, and I needed new clothes; my stomach had grown exponentially since my shopping trip with the girls. The week passed quickly, and it was finally time for our classes to start.
"Are you sure you don't want me to go with you?" Edward asked for the thousandth time. His first class started an hour after mine, and he was ridiculously nervous about me attending class by myself. He had already made me promise to carry only what was absolutely necessary in my backpack, and I had agreed to let him buy an SUV for me to drive to class. I really think he's being a bit too paranoid, but there was no use arguing with him.
"Edward, I will be fine. I promise, I will call you as soon as I get to class, when I leave to come home, and when I get home. I will let you know if I need anything, and I promise to be careful. I have to go now, okay?" I sighed. He wrapped me in one last hug and kissed me tenderly for a minute before releasing me.
"Okay. I love you," he murmured, staring into my eyes. I stretched on my toes to kiss him one last time.
"I love you too," I replied. He handed me my bag and I grabbed my keys, heading out the door to my car. I pulled into the campus parking lot a few minutes later, and found my class quickly. My freshman English class was first, and it was in a large lecture hall. I had a creative writing class immediately after in the same building. I had talked with Edward and Carlisle and agreed that I would only take two classes this semester, to lessen the level of stress.
I called Edward at all of the designated times, as promised. He remained tense and nervous, but did manage to tone it down a little after the first few calls. I made it home by noon, and made myself an omelet before settling down to work on my first day's homework. Edward wouldn't be home from class until dinner time, so I had an entire afternoon to kill.
My homework only took me an hour, and I sat at in our office tapping my fingers on the desk, contemplating what to do next. I got up and walked around the house, stretching my legs, and ended up in the twins' rooms. I looked around at the empty space for a few minutes before making a decision. I went downstairs and grabbed my keys and purse and jumped into my car. I arrived at the hardware store minutes later and walked over to the paint department in search of the perfect colors.
Edward and I had already discussed what we designs we had in mind for the kids' rooms, so I knew exactly what he wanted. I really didn't have a preference, and his ideas sounded fantastic, so I just decided to go for it. I grabbed the swatches I wanted and walked over to the counter to order my paint. Half an hour later, I left the store with my paint, rollers, brushes, tape, floor covering, and face mask.
I got to work immediately, covering the floors and taping all of the baseboards, windows, and crown molding. I slipped my mask on and opened all of the windows and doors in the two rooms and bathroom, knowing that too many paint fumes would not be good for the babies, and poured the first can of paint out into the tray.
I spent the rest of the afternoon painting furiously, desperate to finish before Edward got home. I swiped the roller over the wall one more time, and dropped into onto the plastic sheeting, sitting on the floor beside it. I let out a loud sigh, but smiled happily. Just as I stood up to start cleaning up my mess, the front door opened below me.
"Bella? Where are you, love?" I heard Edward call. I jumped to my feet as quickly as I could in my condition and walked into the hallway. I waited at the top of the stairs, deciding I would just let him come to me.
"I'm up here, Edward," I called down the stairs. I heard his keys and bag drop on the table and his quiet footsteps as he crossed the living room to the turret. There was a short section of wall in the upstairs hallway that was open, looking down on the living room. I leaned against the railing and looked out the windows on the opposite wall while I waited for him to reach me.
"Hello, love," he walked to my side and kissed me softly. He pulled back to smile at me, and noticed for the first time my disheveled appearance.
"Bella, sweetheart, why are you covered in paint?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. I looked down at myself and noticed that I did manage to get quite a bit of paint on myself in my haste to finish the rooms.
"I've been busy this afternoon," I replied, smiling mischievously. He crooked an eyebrow and crossed his arms, waiting for an explanation. I grabbed his hand and led him to the room, placing my hand on the knob.
"Close your eyes," I ordered. He complied with a sigh, and I giggled before leading him inside. I walked him to the center of the room and released his hand.
"Open your eyes," I whispered. He opened them and blinked slowly, turning his head to look around the room. His eyes widened slightly, and the corner of his lips twitched up in a smile.
"Bella, you did all of this?" he asked incredulously. I giggled and nodded my head, and grabbed my face between his hands, crushing his lips to mine.
"I love you," he murmured, not removing his lips from mine. I tangled my hands in his hair, deepening the kiss for a minute before pulling back.
"I guess you like it?" I chuckled. He nodded his head quickly and I pulled him into the bathroom and the other room, revealing the rest of my hard work. The first bedroom was painted a soft, sage green, and the other was lagoon blue. The bay windows in each room kept the colors from feeling too dark and oppressing. We had decided that we didn't want standard baby colors, and these were both Edward's choices. He wasn't sure about the bathroom, so I made the decision on that one, opting for a darker shade of aqua. The vanity had a beige granite top and a light wood base, so the room had a beach-like feel.
"I love it," Edward finally said, after inspecting each room. "I wish you had waited for me to help you," he continued with a glare in my direction,"but I love it. You did a great job, love. Thank you." He pulled me into another hug and pressed his lips softly to mine. He pulled back much too quickly and I missed the contact immediately.
"How was your day?" he asked quietly. I stood up on my toes and captured his lips again. He stood still for a moment, caught off guard, before catching my drift and kissing me back with more intensity than before.
"I missed you today, Dr. Cullen," I whispered seductively. Edward growled against my lips and scooped me up in his arms, rushing down the hall to our bedroom.
"You have no idea how hot that is," he moaned, laying me on the bed. I was starting to get the idea.
A/N: Naughty Edward =P The baby shower is next, and I'll try to update soon! R&R plz!