I have to thank my a fantastic trio of friends for helping me with this: m0t0b33, teamalltwilight and Pyejammies! ;)
As always, I don't own anything Twilight related or anything else you might recognize in my story. I DO own the idea.
We'll just call them Hot Mama and Jailbait. :) Check the pictures in my FB group: Addicted-to-romione-bedward Fanfiction (link on my profile)
Bella's POV
A loud song makes me shoot up. I get tangled in the blanket.
Edward groans and rolls away, effectively taking the blanket with him.
The song keeps playing and it takes me a moment to realize it's my phone.
"Christ, woman! Do something!" Edward mutters sleepily.
"Sorry." I pat his delectable ass and grab my phone from the nightstand.
Jasper's name is flashing on the screen.
"Hi, Jazz," I whisper, getting out of the bed and snatching one of Edward's shirts from the floor. "What time is it?"
"It's close to eight. I'm sorry if I woke you, but you need to get here."
"What happened?" I moan. "This maternity leave should last three months."
"In just a week, it will be three months," he answers cheerfully as I make my way into Kristie's room. She's sleeping on her tummy, looking all kinds of adorable.
"Why are you taking me away from my favorite people?" I inquire, softly touching her back.
"The CT scanner broke and one angry father is after Misha because she cast his son's leg incorrectly. How can you put a cast on wrong?"
"Crap." I was hoping I'd get to go back into work and it would all to be unicorns and rainbows. Apparently reality sucks. Big time. "I'll be there shortly," I promise Jasper and hang up.
Then I lean down and kiss my baby before I go to our room to get ready. While I'm getting dressed, fifteen minutes later, I try waking Edward as well.
I'm crouching near his side of the bed, stroking his cheek and coaxing him to open his eyes. It's difficult.
I understand him. Poor boy woke up in the middle of the night to let me sleep.
"Just 'ell mmm wha'," he slurs.
"I'm going to work. Jazz needs me. Kristie should wake any moment now. I'll tell Kitty to get her, okay. Sleep, honey." I kiss his forehead before I leave.
Problem is Kitty is not home. There's a note in the kitchen that she went shopping and we were sleeping too adorably so she couldn't wake us.
I scowl at the note and ball it up.
Edward will wake when Kristie cries, and I hate to leave them alone, but duty calls.
Edward's POV
I wake up disoriented to the loudest cries I've heard so far.
I remember Bella saying something about leaving, but where's Grandma?
Man, I'm so tired.
I scrub at my face as I swing my legs off the bed and walk to Kristie's room.
She's on her back in her little crib, arms and legs flaying about, her little body contorting as loud cries leave her little throat. Her face is already red and full of snot.
"Jesus, baby." I pick her up slowly. "What's got you so agitated?"
Her diaper, as I feel it, is full and stinks like shit. Literally. She's probably hungry, too.
After a tour of the house, I realize we're alone.
Fucking perfect.
"I'll heat your breakfast then I'm changing you," I tell her, keeping her in my left arm while I search for the milk in the fridge.
It was my idea to keep a few bottles here, just so Bella wouldn't wake every night to feed her. This way I can do it
I'm balancing Kristie and the hot bottle of milk, on our way to her room when the doorbell rings.
Awesome.
"Hold on!" I call over her loud cries. "I'm changing you in a minute."
"Hi, Edward." Pete waves to me, holding his favorite bowl and spoon, still in his pajamas under the winter jacket.
"You alone?" I ask amused, looking behind him.
He nods. "Mommy Alice sent me over for food. I'm out of Captain Crunch."
"That's criminal," I mutter. "You know where mine is. I really need to change and feed her."
"Pete not allowed climbing on chairs," he states, rocking on his feet.
Fuck.
Fucking shit!
"Bring me a clean diaper from her room, please. I'll get the box for you," I finally say.
I return to the kitchen and take down the cereal box along with milk from the fridge. Pete returns with a diaper and wipes.
"There you go." I point to the table as I put baby girl on the counter. "I'm on it, chill."
Fighting against my gag reflex, I tear the soiled diaper off, pushing it aside then I clean her with the wipes. Thank God, Pete knows the drill from home. I go to place the clean one on her when she decides it's pee-pee time.
On the counter, floor and me.
Christ.
"Baby, why the heck did you do that?" I protest.
She gives me a huge smile, and I'm surprised to hear a snicker from behind me.
"Pete, you better not be laughing at me!"
"No. Bella upset."
I groan loudly, because she will be upset. Big time.
After cleaning Kristie again, I put the clean diaper on then put her in a bouncer, telling Pete to watch her, giving him a milk bottle. I wipe down the counter then the floor before I run to our bedroom and quickly clean my legs, jumping in a clean pair of sweats.
As soon as I return to the kitchen, Pete points to Kristie saying she was squirmy.
In my arms she stops being squirmy and happily sucks her meal.
I'm leaning against the counter, feeding my precious baby, chatting with Pete—I'm the one doing the talking mostly when Grandma comes home with four bags of food.
"Oh, you're awake!" She gasps. "I never thought it will take me so much…"
"Hi, Grandma," I say, pushing away from the counter to give her space.
"Did you change her?" she asks, pursing her lips.
Shit. Did I miss something? "Yeah."
"What in God's name is the soiled diaper doing on the counter?"
Oh. Crap. I try to smile and look innocent.
It doesn't work, but she just shakes her head and throws it away, washing the counter again.
Pete saves me by asking if he can borrow one of my games. I'm sure Jasper doesn't agree with me, but by showing Pete my car games, we realized how competitive the little guy can be.
Luckily, Kristie just finishes eating pushing the bottle away from her mouth. I quickly deposit it on the now polished counter and turn her around, patting her back a little. This is the tricky part, most times her meal makes a reappearance on my back. Not today. Thank Baby Jesus.
Keeping her in my arms, I guide Pete to my old room, going through the stack of DVDs there. I choose a couple and hand them to him.
Shortly after that he's gone—with his bowl, spoon and my games under his arm. I watch after him to make sure he gets inside his house safely then close the front door.
"Sheesh!" I jump a mile when I find Grandma in front of me.
"Were you just out? Like that? With the baby?"
Jeez, she can be scary.
"I just… Pete…" I throw my thumb over my shoulder. "It's uh…not very cold."
"It's winter, Edward! Kristie is too young to be out barely dressed! And you! You want to catch your death, kid? You're not even wearing a shirt!" She puts her hands on her hips. "Where's your… Bella, anyway?"
I guess she'll never see Bella as my wife. I shrug, but she takes it the wrong way, scolding me some more about responsibility.
All the while I'm thinking cut me some slack. I'm still new to this and it takes a lot of time to get used to the idea that I have a baby who depends on me when Bella's not around.
*MHM*
As time passes, I decide to take a course on photography after a particular discussion with Bella while we looked through some old pictures I took.
I have no idea what I can do with photography, but it's worth a shot.
After a few classes, I meet with Emmett for a beer and tell him what I'm doing. He jokes that I'll end up as a wedding photographer. That sounds like a lucrative job, but definitely not what I have in mind.
To finish my classes, I need to present a series of different pictures—nature, people, events. Emmett saves me by asking if I want to go to the zoo with him and Rose.
Bella can't come along and Grandma's forbidden to be around Kristie since she got a cold. How did that happen in June? I have no idea. So that leaves me alone with Kristie for our zoo trip.
I decide against the stroller—I bet she'd love to see the animals not the roof of the stroller and the sky. I tell Em we'll meet at the zoo.
After packing my new camera—the one Bella got me on my nineteenth birthday—I strap baby girl in her car seat then drive to the zoo.
"There you are!" Emmett exclaims startling me as I step out of the car. "Oh, you alone?"
"Hi, man." I punch his shoulder. "And no. Not alone. Can you grab the pink bag while I unstrap Kris?"
"Playing daddy?" he jokes.
"Well, Bella's at work and Grandma's sick. Not like I don't love spending my time with my angel." I take her out of the car then grab the carry-on or whatever is called. "Can you help? Hold her a little so I can put this on?"
He pales and hugs the bag to his chest.
"I'll help," chimes a soft voice from behind me.
"Oh, hey, Rose. Thanks." I almost forgot about her.
Carefully, I pass baby girl to my friend's girlfriend and quickly slip the carry-on's straps over my shoulder so I can keep her in front of me. Before Kristie has time to open her mouth and cry that she's with a stranger—though she knows Rose, I have her in the pouch.
And cue Emmett laughing at me. The first time he saw me carrying her like this, he said I looked like a kangaroo.
"She's more like a Koala baby," I say smirking at him. "Look how she's clinging to me." True, her small hands are gripping my shirt, while she frowns at Emmett.
After locking the car, I start walking to the entrance of the zoo.
Emmett keeps laughing, but he quickly stops when Rose slaps the back of his head. We pay for the tickets then start the tour.
"So what happened to your precious car?" Emmett comments after some time.
"Bella stole it," I mumble. "I hate driving Snowflake. Especially when I'm alone. You know how people look at me?"
"But it's safer for the baby!" Rosalie interjects.
"True, though I could live without driving it."
While we walk around, take photos for my project—people, animals and even just nature, like an empty bench or a blooming flower.
These photos along with a few others get me a diploma. I can actually get a job with this. Before I leave the school, I grab a few flyers on hiring companies.
After talking with Bella, I decide to sign a contract with a company that will send me whenever someone needs a photographer.
Of course, my first few clients aren't amazing—just someone's birthday, or taking pictures of places for a magazine. This one is great actually, though I miss my girls like crazy.
But as I've come to realize, taking care of my family comes with sacrifices. Bella made many sacrifices after Dad died to keep me in school—I was too stupid to realize it at the time. It was never easy for her to keep me in high school, take care of Dad's business and have time for herself, too.
The Epilogue on Friday...and that's it. :)
I hope you like where life is taking them.