At home, I just took a shower and got ready for bed before 7:00, but I was out like a light. Although, it did seem lonely without Edward next to me; at least his scent was still on my sheets and pillow.
The next morning, to my dismay, I had to miss school and wasn't allowed to move around much and my babysitter for the day was: Alice. God help me.
I was trapped in bed forced to partake in make overs, home spa treatments, and discussing ideas for the nursery. When she was fixing my lunch, I had to call Edward or else I was going to sneak away from the damn little pixie. He helped to calm me down, but that went out the window when Alice forced me to get off the phone and eat a salad.
As soon as they got home, I wanted to run down the stairs and into my protector's arms, but I was asleep at the time. Even better, however, because Edward was there to wake me up then stayed with me while we did our homework together; although, it wasn't the alone time that I really wanted. The others decided to come in and work on their homework with us. We weren't going to do anything since I was still tired.
By Friday, I was going stir crazy and I felt bad because it was Jasper's turn to watch me. Luckily he kept me busy by working on our history papers. I swear our teacher is so lazy and barely does anything besides assigning us papers and projects to work on. Thankfully, Jasper was always my partner or my tutor and we always got A's.
"Hungry, yet?" He asked after closing his history book.
"Yes." I answered still not looking up from my book.
"What would you like?"
"Freedom." I blurted out. "I'm sorry Jazz, I know you're trying, but I…agh." I nearly threw my book across the room.
He chuckled at me. "I'm sorry, Bella, but this is for your own good and for my little nephew."
"I know, but it's just hard." I could feel my tears of frustration flooding my eyes.
Jasper picked me up and cradled me on his lap. He wasn't Edward, but it still felt comfortable.
I allowed a few tears to fall and all Jasper did was rub my arms and back slowly.
"Better?" He asked after a few minutes of silence.
"Yeah thanks." I mumbled.
"What some lunch? How about I make you a peanut butter sandwich and I'll bring up a surprise too, sound alright?" He asked.
"Sure." I normally hated surprises, but at this point I didn't care.
Jasper laid me back on my bed and pulled the covers over me then moved all my homework off the bed; neatly putting it on my desk before walking out the door.
I counted to five before I grabbed my cell phone and started to text Edward. It was lunchtime at school so he wouldn't get into trouble.
I'm bored, save me.
I wish I was there, love.
What are you doing right now?
Eating lunch with the others, what about you?
Waiting for Jasper to make my lunch. I hate feeling helpless.
I know, baby, but it's not for much longer.
Thank God.
Ha ha. I miss you so much, Bella. It hurts.
Same here. I want you with me right now!
Are you in bed?
Maybe.
You know what I would love to do if I was there alone with you?
I could only guess…
"Bella, who are you talking to?" Jasper came into my room with a tray of food.
I got another text before I answered.
First, I would kiss your bare belly…
Edward, not now, Jasper just walked through the door!
Why does God hate us?
"Edward, I should have guessed." He looked smug and I'm guessing by the heat on my face that he had a good idea of what the topic was about.
I don't know, but see ya later. Love you.
Love you too, bye.
"Don't worry so much, Bella, Alice and I do that all the time. We just know how to cover it up." Jasper explained.
I chuckled nervously and ate my lunch as Jasper ate his.
I smiled like a little girl when I saw that he gave me a couple pieces of Halloween candy.
"Shhh…don't tell anyone." He whispered playfully.
I nodded my head as I ate the first piece of candy. Mmm...Crunch Bar, my favorite.
"Did I ever tell you that you are my favorite brother?" I snickered. That earned a chuckle out of him. "We'll just keep that between us." I winked.
"You're just saying that because I spoil you."
"Emmett spoils me too, and lately Edward's been having a hard time saying no to me." I recently found out that if I say the word please enough and sincerely, eight out of ten times he will give in to my demands. I haven't been so lucky with anyone else besides the boys.
"You are one spoiled little sister."
"Aren't my other sisters spoiled?" I raised an eyebrow at him for he knew I was right.
"And on that note, I believe it's time for a nap. Mom's orders as well as Edward's." He removed the dishes from the bed and putting them back on the tray on my nightstand. "He just sent me a text reminding me of your afternoon naps while I was making lunch."
"Has he been texting everyone orders this week?" Edward was the only one who hadn't taken care of me this week. When it was his turn, mom was here. I'm guessing this was like grounding the both of us.
Jasper just nodded his head as he got me settled for a nap. I hated them, but I always felt so tired in the afternoon, or maybe they just drugged my lunch.
"Sweet dreams, little mama. You too, little man."
"See ya, Jazz." Then I was out like a light.
I awoke feeling a little refreshed, but someone wanted more room in my stomach.
"Alright, mama is going." I told my baby and got up carefully to head to the bathroom.
I had to be quiet so that Jasper wouldn't hear me. I knew he would come up when he heard the toilet flush, but I didn't want to embarrass the guy too much. Besides I've been off my feet for almost—and quite literally—a week. I needed to stretch.
I opened the door when I finished, but Jasper wasn't behind the door. Instead I heard voices on the second floor.
Sounds like the boys are home.
"Bella?" Crap, Edward. "What are you doing out of bed?"
"I needed to stretch and a bathroom break." I replied.
"Hey, little mama." Emmett greeted.
"Hey, bother bear." I answered him. I suddenly felt a bit of a sugar buzz going through me.
"Jasper, please tell me you didn't give her sugar?" Edward nearly shouted at his brother.
I didn't heard Jasper's response so I'm assuming that he shrugged his shoulders.
"Edward, be nice." I ordered. "Where are the girls, and why don't you guys have practice?"
"The girls are having a little slumber party at the Coach's house and the Mrs. asked the Mr. to help supervise." Edward answered.
"Yeah, which means the double torture for us on Sunday because we had to skip a day of practice." Emmett added.
I heard the other two groan at the thought.
"Mom and dad won't be home until late tonight too. They went over to the Newton's for dinner." Edward said.
I held in a flinch when Mike Newton was mentioned. He had hadn't been bothering me much since that time at the Chinese restaurant, but he still undresses me with his eyes every time I was in his line of vision.
"So, just us tonight?" I changed the subject.
"Yup, and you are going back to bed, Bella." I heard Edward starting to stomp up the stairs.
"No, I'm not." I snapped when he reached the top floor.
I could see he was angry with me, but I was dead tired of being waited on like a helpless little girl.
Edward took a breath and walked up to me. Emmett and Jasper were right behind him, both looked concerned.
"Bella, you need to rest." Edward said calmly putting him hands on my shoulders.
I shrugged them off.
"I've been resting long enough, Edward." I said point blank. "I'm tired of being treated like I'm so defenseless. Well guess what? I've had to learn to stand up for myself once in awhile back in Phoenix; it scared the hell out of me at times, but I still did it. I had to learn from a young age to fend for myself, how to survive.
"I know you guys want to help, but I don't need babysitters every fucking minute." I seethed.
"Bella, calm down, love." Edward said softly putting his hands on my bloated stomach. I guess it was a reminder of my priorities.
My son was kicking continuously and I had been ignoring it, but my temper had been building over the past week.
"I'm sorry." I whipped a tear that spilled from my eye. I refused to let anymore come down either.
"No need to apologize," How can he stand the abuse I put him through? "I understand that we must be driving you crazy, but this is for your own good. Both yours and little Edward's." He chuckled and had the others going as well.
"Very funny, but I'm not naming him Edward." I giggled.
"Well, that's one name off the list." Emmett laughed.
"What list?" I asked.
"Everyone is trying to guess what the baby's name will be since you won't tell us." Jasper answered.
"There are a lot of boys' names to consider, so good luck with that." I had been thinking of names—especially this week—but have been keeping that to myself.
"Now that little mama is happy again, what's for dinner?" Emmett bellowed rubbing his hands together.
I had to laugh again which made Edward smile his signature crooked smile.
"I want to cook." I volunteered and Edward's smile dropped. I thought I heard it plop on the floor. "Edward, please." I begged.
He rolled his eyes and slightly growled. Keep it in check, girl.
I think he caught on to his little mistake and smiled in apology.
I wrapped my arms around him and felt him lift me up.
"Edward, I can…" He shot me a glare that shut me up. We had to compromise somewhere, I guess.
"So, what are we hungry for?" I asked when Edward brought us into the kitchen.
No one answered, but I knew what I wanted.
"Tacos anyone?" I asked squirming out of Edward's arms. "Put me down, Edward Anthony Cullen." I demanded harshly.
He did as he was told.
"Um…I'm up for that." Emmett answered.
Jasper just raised his hand. I sort of felt sorry for the three boys; they looked so scared of me.
"I'm sorry, guys." Oh great, the mood swings again.
"Bella, let's just start on dinner, ok?" Edward smiled down at me.
"Ok." God, I sounded like a sad little girl then went straight towards the fridge. Edward kept his hand on the small of my back as I moved.
I found everything that I needed except for the ground beef. I wondered if it was in the garage freezer.
"Edward, can you check to see if there is any ground beef in the other freezer?" I asked.
He hesitated then looked at the guys. Emmett came over and took Edward's spot then Edward left. He was so overprotective at times.
"Jasper, can you start chopping the lettuce?"
He nodded his head and got to work.
When I got out the tomatoes to have them cut as well, I suddenly got a strange craving.
"Bella, what are you thinking?" Edward asked walking in from the garage with the meat.
"Um…" I didn't really know how to answer without sounding weird.
"I thought you hated tomatoes, Bells?" Emmett wondered.
"I usually do, but right now I'm really wanting some with pepper sprinkled on top." I answered grabbing what I needed.
I heard Edward chuckle, but I didn't pay any attention to him.
"Yo, Dr. Eddie, care to explain." Emmett asked.
Edward stopped and stared at his brother. "First of all, that is not my name. Second, dad told me that sometimes pregnant women will get cravings that are actually good for them."
"Finally." Jasper muttered. I paid no attention to him.
I cut the tomato in half and peppered it up good then took a bite. It tasted pretty good, but the smell wasn't working with me. I had to spit it out.
"You ok, Bella?" Edward ran to my side as I was leaning over the sink trying not to be sick. "Baby?"
"Sorry, I didn't factor in the smell. It made me sick for a second." I answered when I was under control.
"Why don't you go sit and grade the cheese and I'll start browning the meat?" He suggested.
I needed to sit anyways, so I obeyed.
"Anything new happen at school today?" I asked after a minute or so of silence.
"Turned in your homework." Edward answered.
"Picked up more homework for ya though." Emmett added. "I swear, you get more than we do, belly bear."
"Talk to Angela or Eric lately?" I asked.
There was silence in the room and that was not a good thing.
"Edward?"
There was the silence again while the boys looked at each other before he answered.
"Please, I can take it." Although, I'm not so sure if that was true or not.
"I overheard Eric talking to a few of the guys when I went to go talk to Angela for you, he said that he was thinking about taking you off the paper because he thinks you haven't been doing your share." I could see that it hurt Edward to say that because of his protective nature, and for once, I wish that he protected me from this.
I put down the grader and the cheese. I hated how this happened to me again. Tears started to pour out of my eyes, blurring my vision.
"Bella, I'm sorry for what he said, but maybe we can prove that he is wrong about this assumption," Edward kneeled down in front of me trying to whip away the tears, but they kept gushing. "Hey, everyone loves your articles. I hear some of the guys from the team talking about them in the locker room. They love that you've made them better than the previous features."
"Really?" I sobbed.
"It's true; Bells, Em and I have heard the same thing from everyone else. You're a great writer and that's why you deserve to be on the paper." Jasper spoke up.
"The principle might not like you so much, but who the hell cares about him?" Emmett laughed.
Angela and I did a feature following the dreaded assembly and actually found a woman who has become quite successful in life as a single teenaged-mother and after being disowned by her parents when she told them. Let's just say that the feature was such a huge success that Angela and I got so many praises that day by nearly the whole student body, and many of the staff. We did, however, get called into the office for a writing an "offending story," but we got off easy because the woman we talked to called him up and spoke to him personally. Turns out that the woman we interviewed went to school with our principle and was friends, he just ditched her when she got pregnant.
We thought about turning that into another story, but we would have gotten into more trouble if we did. Still, it was a good laugh.
"Feel better?" Edward smiled.
"Yes." I squeaked.
He kissed me softly on the lips then one on each cheek before getting up and continuing what he was doing.
"Damn." Jasper shouted a few minutes later.
I automatically stood up to see if I could help.
"Jasper?" I asked.
Edward moved to inspect the hand that Jasper was glaring at. "Run it under the water." He suggested.
Jasper followed his brother's advice while I moved closer to see what had happened.
I shouldn't have because once Jasper put his hand under the water; it started to turn bloody red.
"Oh God." I whispered and put my hand over my mouth to stop my lunch from coming out of my mouth, but then moved it to the counter to hold me up.
"Bells, what's up?" Emmett asked.
My knees buckled under me, but I didn't feel the floor as fast as I thought I would.
"Bella?" Edward was cradling me.
Jasper and Emmett were standing near him, looking at me.
"Get a cool cloth for her head." Edward commanded.
I closed my eyes feeling tired and a little dizzy.
"Keep your eyes open for me, baby, I need you to stay awake." Edward whispered to me.
I felt a wet cloth drape on my forehead which started to help.
"Are you going to be alright?" Edward asked.
"Just keep Jasper's hand out of my sight." I answered weakly.
"Don't worry, Bella, the bleeding stopped and I put a band-aid on it." Jasper replied.
Both he and Emmett moved to sit by my side.
"Better?" Edward asked after a few minutes.
"Yeah, I always faint at the sight of blood though." My strength was coming back and I could feel my blush starting to creep up.
Edward gently caressed one of my cheeks and smiled down at me.
"Think you can get up and eat with us?" He asked quietly.
I nodded my head, although, I'm not sure how much I can eat now.
Edward heaved my body upright, Jasper and Emmett stood close just in case, but I hung onto Edward tightly, my full strength hadn't returned and my body had been pretty weak since I had been on bed rest.
I was seated back in my chair while we resumed making dinner. I noticed that Edward would look over at me with worry in his eyes. The others would too, but Edward's eyes lingered longer than the others. I would either smile slightly or ignore them.
"Looks like another storm is about to blow in, kids." Emmett announced.
"Again?" Jasper asked.
Suddenly, I could hear the rain pounding on the windows as well as the wind around the house sounding like it was going to blow the house over. It frightened me a bit when I looked out the windows into the darkened night.
"The cheese is ready, how's everything else?" I asked trying to keep my mind off my fears, but I think my voice was a little shaky.
"Bella, it's just a storm. No reason to be scared." Jasper tried to assure me as Edward came with a bowl to gather the shredded cheese.
"Yeah, no need to act like a little baby. That's what the little guy is, not you." Emmett tried to joke, but Edward turned to him and growled while Jasper gave him a head smack.
"Everything will be fine, sweetheart." Edward whispered.
I felt a little better as we sat and ate, but the storm was really starting to pick up. It was worst that the other night. Even my baby seemed to agree with me.
I usually liked watching storms because they were relaxing, but tonight it was eerie probably because of the dark shadows the trees were creating.
The guys kept trying to distract me, but the sounds from outside kept bringing me back to my fears.
"Finished?" Edward asked.
I didn't eat that much, mostly nibbling on the lettuce and peppers, not so much on the taco itself. I nodded my head.
Reluctantly, I sat at the table while the boys cleaned up. Suddenly, the sky brightened as the lightening flashed around us, thunder followed instantaneously causing the house to shake from the rumble and the lights to flicker before going out completely.
My breathing picked up, I couldn't scream or move. I was panicking again.
"Bella," Edward sounded so far away.
"Edward, where are you?" I begged; it sounded like a sob.
His hands found my outstretched ones feeling into the darkness. I needed him…needed his protection.
"I'm here, you're fine. The baby's fine." He cooed standing me on my feet. "Emmett and Jasper are going to take a look and see if they can get the lights back on. Don't worry."
He pulled me into his chest while rubbing my back and belly. I could feel the baby kicking eagerly in his hand. The motions of his hands and his sweet scent were helping to calm my nerves; that is until another round of thunder and lightening hit. I buried my face deeper into chest.
"How is she?" Jasper said.
"Scared." Edward answered calmly. "Go find some flashlights and candles."
"Come on, Bells, let's go sit in the living room and pretend we're camping." Emmett tried to laugh, but I couldn't move or stop shaking with fear.
Edward moved us, though, and as he did, a loud squeak made me scream in panic. I felt like I was in a horror movie.
Edward just hugged me impossibly closer trying to muffle my screams.
"Bella?" A sweet voice spoke through the darkness.
"Mom?" Mine was very shaky.
"Honey, it's alright. It's just a storm." Her voice was calm and coming closer. I could also hear more footfalls shadowing behind her.
"Bella, calm down, sweetheart." It was dad. "Edward, have you taken her pulse?"
"No, but I could feel her heart rate speeding up." Edward answered.
"Bella, you need to take deep slow breaths." Mom said. "The storm will pass soon. There is no reason to be so afraid."
"I know, but I can't figure out why I am so afraid." I admitted.
"That's probably just the hormones, sweetie. You are just feeling vulnerable right now, but everything will be alright." She explained stroking my hair softly.
I could feel my heart rate starting to slow back down, but it jumped again when I saw more lightening.
"Come on, let's go into the living room and we'll start a fire." Dad suggested.
Edward pulled me along with him. I kept tripping at first, but he stayed patient until I made my feet cooperate.
In the living room, Jasper was in the process of lighting candles. The room was a little brighter than the kitchen, but it still made me nervous with all the shadows dancing on the walls. The sound of the wind made them moan.
I heard the banging of wood that made me jump a little.
"That's just Emmett putting the logs into the fireplace." Edward whispered to me.
"Has anyone contacted the girls?" Mom asked as I felt a blanket under my feet. Edward guided me onto it then gentle seated us on it. He sat behind me pulling my body to lie against his chest then wrapping his arms around my middle.
"I only talked to Alice for about a minute, but there was so much static from the storm. Both she and Rosalie are fine though." Jasper answered. It sounded like he was coming closer to me.
"Thank goodness." Mom breathed.
"Found the monster flashlight." Emmett bellowed; the floor vibrated when he sat down with us.
The sudden appearance of light in front of me made me jump. Edward's arms kept me still as I calmed down.
The room became was brighter with the combination of the fire, candles, and the flashlight all lit. It helped to settle my nerves, but I still clung to Edward.
"Hey dad, can we roast marshmallows?" Emmett asked as dad started the fire.
"I don't see why not." Dad answered sitting down with mom on the sofa.
"Sweet." Emmett jumped up excitedly at the same time when more thunder crashed around the house.
I turned to hide my face in Edward's chest. He continued to stroke my hair down to my back repeatedly.
"Want some, Bella? You didn't eat that much at dinner." Jasper asked.
I just nodded as Emmett came back with the marshmallows and the rest of the fixings for smores.
My fears of the storm were still there, but at the thought of yummy smores made me hungry. My nerves settled more after I took the first bite.
Edward still kept one arm around me as we ate and started up conversation after conversation.
After my second smore, dad said that I had enough. I grumbled, but lost the battle.
Edward and Jasper stopped eating when I did—that I thanked them for—but Emmett kept eating until after his fourth when mom had to remove the fixings and hid them back in the kitchen. When she came back out, she announced that it was time for bed.
From all my panic attacks—and from the fact that the storm had turned into heavy rain, which always made me groggy—I was the first to get up.
Wait not true, my lower body didn't allow that, so the guys had to pull me up. If all three are pulling me up at six months, I would hate to see how many people it would take when I'm at nine months.
The lights still hadn't come back on as we made our way upstairs using candles to find our way. After fighting with everyone for a few minutes, they finally relented to let me walk upstairs without someone carrying me. However, I was starting to really feel the exhaustion kick in by the time I started my way up to the third floor.
Edward snaked his arm around my waist, supporting my weight as we made our way to my room.
"Jeeze, Bells, you look like you want to drop." Emmett snickered behind us.
"Did you forget your room is on the floor you just passed?" I said sarcastically.
"We just wanted to tuck in our baby sister, and our baby nephew." He cooed.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw both Edward and Jasper roll their eyes. Emmett was oblivious to them.
When we reached my room, I could still hear the wind blowing strongly outside. Looking out my window into the dark night, I could see the trees shaking fiercely against one another.
"We can stay with you until you fall asleep," Edward offered, "If you want?"
"Please." I answered.
He just smiled lightly at me while leading me towards the bed. He and Jasper set down their candles as they walked in.
"So what story should we read you two tonight?" Emmett said squinting at my bookcase.
"Emmett, you don't need to read to me like I'm a little kid. Obviously, I'm a big girl." I pointed at my big belly.
"Okay then, why don't we read to our little nephew." He joked.
I rolled my eyes at him and looked at Edward and Jasper for help, but they had amused looks on their faces that I wanted to smack right off.
"Fine, maybe you can get him to stop kicking me in my sleep." I grumbled crawling into bed.
Jasper went to sit on my computer desk chair while Edward went to go sit on the plush chair in the corner.
"Come on guys, sit with me please?" I begged putting on my best pouting face.
They looked at each other then at me before relenting.
I moved to the middle of the bed to allow them to sit on either side of me on top of the blankets, but I cuddled into Edward's side. He just chuckled as he settled himself in.
"Now, don't think anything is going happen." Emmett joked wagging his eyebrows suggestively.
"Emmett, I am not going to have sex with Edward with you two in the same room." I shot up angrily. "I'm not as horny as everyone thinks I am."
"Bella, calm down, baby." Edward pulled me back against him wrapping his arms around me while Jasper began to rub my shoulder soothingly.
"I didn't mean that, Bells. You know how I am sometimes." Emmett apologized.
I tried not to let the tears that were flooding my eyes threatening to pour out. "It's ok, Emmett." I replied. "Just read the stupid story."
Emmett pulled out Hamlet, the one I had borrowed from Edward. It was on my list to read, but I hadn't started it yet. It's supposed to be a tragedy, but Emmett kept making me laugh with the voices and small comments about the characters.
Edward got fed up with him after a few pages and grabbed the book to read it himself. Emmett's version made me laugh, but with Edward's voice, it soothed me to the point where exhaustion came over me.
I awoke the next morning sweating and feeling very claustrophobic. Before the panic started to pick up, someone was starting to rub my arm slowly. It wasn't just anyone either, I opened my eyes and turned to see Edward's beautiful green eyes already opened and looking at me with love and adoration.
"You alright?" He whispered.
"I don't know." I admitted then looked around me.
I silently laughed when I saw the cause of my little stress. Apparently, not only did Edward stay with me, but so did Emmett and Jasper. Emmett was lying horizontal across the foot of the bed while Jasper was lying on my other side. Still on top of the blankets as was Edward.
"I'm surprised the bear is sleeping so quietly." I giggled softly.
Edward smiled in amusement.
"I think it has something to do if he is sleeping with a girl." Jasper added quietly. "Morning." He yawned.
"Did we wake you?" I asked.
"I've been taught never to lie to a woman, but I don't want to hurt your feelings, so I'll plead the fifth." He replied.
"Sorry." I said again.
"No worries, but I didn't get the best of sleep anyways."
"Well, there isn't much room on this bed." Edward retorted. "With this many people, I'm surprised there wasn't that much fighting."
"I kept having this dream that someone was kicking my stomach." Jasper said.
"I think my stomach was touching yours, Jazz. The baby likes to kick at night too." I patted my baby lovingly. "We're sorry."
"Will you quit saying that!" He scolded playfully.
"Anyone hungry?" Edward asked.
"ME!" Emmett screeched bouncing up to his knees.
"Emmett, how long have you been awake?" I laughed.
"Well, if some people would just be quiet while others slept I think I would have slept for a little while longer." He joked. "Plus, I know someone kept kicking me all night and it wasn't my nephew."
"That's what you get for sleeping at the end of the bed, idiot." Edward replied getting out of bed.
"I didn't want to sleep on the hard floor." Emmett defended getting up into his little brother's face.
"Boys, there is a pregnant woman in the room," I spoke up. "If you want to fight, take it out of said woman's room."
Both boys rolled their eyes at me.
"Whose turn is it to carry Bella?" Emmett asked.
"Edward's." I automatically replied reaching up to him like a little child.
"No fair." Emmett pouted as Edward picked me up bridal style.
"Emmett, you can carry me back up the stairs after breakfast." I compromised.
He started jumping up and down, excited as a little boy then ran downstairs ahead of us. "Come on slow pokes." He shouted from the hallway.
In the kitchen, Emmett had beaten us down. Dad was sitting at the table with his paper and coffee in hand. Mom was flipping French toast on an already huge pile then put the plate in the middle of the table.
"Morning." Dad greeted us.
"Hi." I said as Edward put me down in my seat.
"Did everyone sleep well?" Mom asked.
There was a round of uh-huhs before we all dug into our breakfast. French toast, sausages, and fruit. I think I ate about a much as Emmett and maybe a portion of what Edward had.
"I see you're feel better, Bella." Dad commented.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Oh shoot. "Sorry dad."
He chuckled at me.
"So how was the dinner last night?" I asked trying to get someone else talking instead of me.
Mom and dad looked at each other and I didn't like the looks on their faces, but that look changed as soon as it came up.
"It was fine, sweetheart." Mom answered. "Mrs. Newton made up a lovely dinner while the Mr. cooked up a delicious dessert."
"I didn't know that man could bake." Dad laughed. Mom chuckled too, but the rest of us could tell that they were hiding something.
"How was Mike?" Emmett grumbled.
Edward reached under the table to put his hand on my thigh to calm me.
"He wasn't in at the time." Mom seemed to lying.
"Mom?" She didn't look up from her plate. "We know you're lying. Now tell us!"
Edward gave my thigh a little smack to get my attention. It didn't hurt, but it was enough to tell me that I needed to calm down.
"Mom, dad, we can take what you heard." Jasper tried to reason.
"We know mostly what he says; we go to school and share a locker room with him." Emmett added.
Mom and dad looked at each other.
"He was talking about the girls again, wasn't he?" Edward asked.
Mom looked like she was going to cry and dad looked, he looked like he wanted to kill something.
It was all the answer we needed.
"So, what did Mr. Newton make? Did you get the recipe, mom?" I asked.
A small smile came up on mom's face while dad's was still trying to compose himself.
Before mom could answer though, the phone rang. Mom got up faster than me.
"Hello? Yes, just a moment please." Mom answered. "Bella, phone for you."
I got up as fast as I could then took the phone out into the other room to have a private conversation.
"Hello?"
"Hello, pet." My breathing hitched.
"How did you get this number?" I asked quietly hoping no one in the next room would hear me.
"A little birdie told me." He snickered. "I also heard something interesting about you."
"It's not true. Just go away." I said through my teeth.
"So you aren't pregnant or you aren't adopted?"
"I am adopted."
"Are you pregnant with my child?"
"What do you care? You treated me like shit and then left. If you didn't want anything to do with me then why would you care about my baby?"
By this time, I had moved into dad's study and closed the door. My voice was becoming angrier and I didn't know how much longer it would be before I started screaming.
"Don't misunderstand me, Isabella, you were wonderful that one night. In fact, I can't tell you how excited I am that you are pregnant with my child. At first, I was shocked and scared, but that's how it is at the start right?
"I'm calling you to tell you that I can take care of this little one; I have the means…"
"I don't care, everything you said to me. Every touch, whisper, or feeling you had for me was a complete lie and all you wanted was to get into my pants."
"Not all of that is true." He snickered darkly.
"You know all of that is true and I will tell you that you will not come anywhere near me or my baby."
"Oh my dear Isabella, I believe I can. See, I am the baby's father and I can have him taken from you since you are underage."
"What about you? You had sex with a minor and my baby is proof of that."
"You are making things difficult for me, pet."
"I am not your pet and you will leave me alone." I hung up before he could respond to that.
Oh god, how did he find out about this? Does he know where I am now? I couldn't let anything hurt my new family or my baby, but what do I tell everyone? My psycho baby's daddy wants to come and take my child away from me and possibly hurt all of you in the process. Another question that needs to be answered is should I tell them that he called me? Not now, at least. Hopefully I can hold it off for another time or until I try to figure out what his game plan is.
When I walked back into the kitchen, everyone was going about their business except Edward who kept glancing over at me with questions in his eyes. He knew something was up and I prayed that he wouldn't bring it up while everyone was around.
The phone rang again making me jump this time.
"You alright, honey?" Dad asked putting a comforting hand on my shoulder.
"Yeah, the phone just surprised me out of my deep thinking." I lied.
"Bella, phone again." Mom called.
"Jeeze, little mama, you're popular today." Emmett joked.
I said a quick prayer then answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hey Bells, its Jacob."
"Hey Jake. What's going on?" I looked back at my brothers who had notably stiffened.
"Nothing much, but we did want to ask you if you wanted to hang out with us next weekend. The weather for that day is looking nice and we're thinking about having a bonfire followed by some creepy stories." He chuckled.
"Hang on and I'll ask, but would it be alright if I invite my siblings?"
"Sure, I guess." He didn't sound too happy about that.
"Jake." I warned.
"Alright, alright, I'm sorry. They're invited if you want."
"Dad," I put my hand over the speaker, "Jake invited us kids to go to a bonfire next weekend will that be alright?"
"Down at La Push?" I nodded. "I guess that would be alright. Esme, what do you think, dear?"
"I think that would be wonderful, but don't stay out too late and be home before midnight."
"Thanks…Jake, we'll be there."
"Ok, see ya then."
"Bye, Jake." I hung up the phone glad that it was Jake and not him.
The rest of the day went by fast. The girls got home after lunch time, but when I told them about the bonfire, they were as happy as the boys were. No sarcasm there. I was seriously thinking about going by myself if they all kept this up.
Before I knew it, it was Sunday and mom was taking me to my doctor's appointment. The boys had practice and everyone else decided to go watch. We would just join them later.
"Hello Bella, Esme." Dr. Wang greeted when she entered the exam room.
"Hi doc, how are we today?" I asked.
She chuckled. "I believe that was my question. So, how have you two been feeling this week?"
"Suffocating. I need to get out." I groaned.
The two ladies in the room just laughed at me. I would have been angry if I wasn't trying to hide a smile myself.
"Well, let's see how you both are."
The exam didn't take very long at all, and I still got excited to see my son on the monitor as if it was my first time all over again.
"Well Bella, it looks like you two are doing very well. I'm thinking the rest must have done you both some good. I would prescribe that you get more of it."
"I'll try." I answered.
"Alright, I want you to schedule another appointment at the end of the month, but call me if you have any more problems."
"Thank you, Julia." Mom spoke up before I could answer. She was giving me that look that said 'I better listen to the doctor.'
After the appointment, mom drove us to the school so that we could join the rest of the family at the football field. It was a pretty chilly day, but at least there was no rain only cloud cover.
"So, is there still only one in there?" Rosalie asked when I sat down.
"Yes, Rose. My son is in there." I pointed out. She and Jasper have been betting that I'm still having twins no matter how many times I showed them the pictures.
"How much longer until they're done?" I asked after a few minutes of silence.
"About another half hour. We heard the coach say that he was going to stretch practice and make them work harder." Alice whined. "They would have been done about an hour ago if this was any other practice."
"I feel bad for them." I agreed.
"Girls," Dad called us. "I'm sorry, but I got called into an emergency and your mother is coming with me to work in the nursery. We'll be back later tonight."
"Ok." We said in unison and watched them walk down to the parking lot.
For the rest of the time, we watched the boys. I felt bad for them; the coach was really pushing them to their limits.
"Hey," An idea suddenly came to me, "How about we treat the boys since mom and dad are going to be out tonight?" I grinned mischievously.
The girls caught my drift and we started to formulate a plan as we noticed the guys starting to head into the locker room. Our guys, though, came running up to the fence in front of us.
"Hey sweetie." Alice pouted reaching Jasper first and giving him a kiss on the mouth.
All three were dripping sweat and breathing like they just ran a marathon or three.
Emmett had all but collapsed on the fence trying to hold himself up.
"You gonna be ok?" I asked Edward stroking his cheek.
He took a deep breath then leaned into my hand giving my wrist a chaste kiss. "I think so." He whispered.
"Well, we have good news." I started.
The boys perked up a little bit more.
"You're having twins." Emmett bellowed.
I tried to smack him, but he pulled away from the fence.
"NO!" I yelled. "Thanks to that, now I'm not going to tell you and you ruined what we had planned for you guys tonight."
"Bella, he was only joking." Rosalie tried to defend, but I was not in the mood.
"What was the plan tonight, babe." Edward cooed gently combing his fingers in my hair.
"Since mom and dad were going out tonight, we were going to have a couple's night." I grumbled with my arms crossed over my chest.
"I could go for that, does that include a shower though?" Edward asked.
I looked up at him and he was sincere. "How about a bath?" I offered as seductively as I could.
"Sounds like a plan. I'm afraid to go into the shower room actually." Emmett said.
"Why baby?" Rosalie asked.
"Mike and Tyler talk about us in the locker room." I mumbled.
"Dude, what have we told you about certain things in the locker room; they stay in the locker room." Emmett roared smacking Edward's shoulder.
"I bugged it out of him because I saw that it was hurting him just like it was hurting you and Jasper." I yelled again.
"Bella, love, calm down." Edward tried to soothe. "We won't let those guys hurt any of you if we have anything to say about it."
"We know you'll protect us." Alice replied.
"Why don't you guys go ahead and get ready to leave. Those asses should be out of the shower by now. We'll meet you in the parking lot in a few." Rosalie ordered.
We each kissed our men then left.
Out in the parking lot, I was looking for Edward's Volvo, but Alice pointed me to Emmett's Jeep. I'm beginning to hate climbing it in.
"Sorry Bella, but Edward and I are working on his car." Rosalie answered my unspoken question. "It should be done before school tomorrow if we can work on it tonight."
"Oh no, we don't have the key to get in." Alice complained.
We groaned at the thought, but waited leaning on the car regardless.
Only a few minutes had passed by when Rosalie grabbed Alice and me then push us to stand behind the Jeep.
"What the hell, Rose?" Alice complained.
"Shhhh….listen." She replied.
As we stayed quiet, the familiar sounds of two boys walked our way.
"Did you see Rosalie Hale looking at me and Alice Cullen?" Oh no, Tyler which means Mike is with him.
"Hell yeah, but so was Bella." Mike answered. "You know, I found some new porn that star pregnant women, and man, is it hot."
Fear and hate rushed over me. From the look on my sister's face, they had the same reaction.
"Think maybe we can get them to do our own porn. Maybe have Rosalie dressed up as the Greek goddess she is and Alice as a sexy pixie?" Tyler asked.
"That would be so sweet, dude. Although, I think they should wear their Halloween costumes now those were hot." Mike replied. "Although, Bella's was a little depressing when it came to sexiness, we'll have to find something else for her to wear."
"How about nothing?" Tyler suggested.
Tears of anger and humiliation were starting to flood my eyes, but I did not want to shed any because of those jackasses.
The two idiots kept bouncing ideas back and forth which were becoming more and more explicit. By this time, tears were starting to run down my eyes. Rosalie was holding onto both Alice and I; comforting us as well as keeping her here.
I took a deep breath to relax when we heard their cars speed out of the parking lot, but we still hung onto each other.
"Where are they?" A familiar voice boomed not too far from us.
"I don't know, maybe they're in the bathroom." A tranquilized voice replied.
The guys were coming, but we stayed put.
"Hey, why are you girls back here?" Emmett was the first to find us, but our backs were turned towards him.
Edward came around to the other side where he could see my face.
As comforting as Rosalie and Alice were, I needed Edward. Either my hormones were getting worse or the pain building up from Mike's words was too much, I needed to be in Edward's arms.
He engulfed me as soon as I left the shelter of Rosalie's grasp. The other girls followed my lead into their significant other's arms.
"What happened?" Edward whispered to me.
I couldn't fight the sobs, nor could I answer through them.
"Alice, tell me what's wrong." Jasper demanded soothingly.
"We heard Mike and Tyler walking through the parking lot." She began her voice a little shaky.
"What did they say?" Emmett asked. He was going into big brother/big bear mode.
"The usual, but I don't think Alice or Bella ever heard them talk like that before." Rosalie answered; she was calmer than the rest of us which made me think this was not her first time. "If I was alone, those fuckers would be dead right now."
I could feel the tension rise inside Edward's body, but I clung to him tighter afraid that he was going to leave me even if it was to hunt down Mike and Tyler. Judging from the tightness of his grip on me, he was afraid of doing what I was thinking he wanted to do.
"Bella?" Rosalie asked.
I turned to look at her. Her face was composed as if nothing had happened; as if we hadn't heard those bastards who were walking just a few yards away from us.
"Bella, I know you're scared, but they are all talk and if you just stick with us, they won't stand a chance of hurting us."
"How can you be so calm after that?" I asked shakily.
She turned to look back at Jasper who nodded in encouragement at her then turned back to me.
"We'll talk at home when you've calmed down because our story is more of a horror story." She answered.
Edward gave me a kiss on the forehead then led us to the back doors of the Jeep.