Sorry for my disappearance; I had to take a break because RL was being an asshole. Talking about assholes, here's one…
(un-checked)
I don't. Stephenie does.
Chapter four.
Edward.
"Two house pancakes with maple syrup, one strawberry milkshake and one black coffee." The server handed us our order with a contented smile on his young face. He asked me again if there was anything else we would like, but that was all. Cooper greedily set into tearing away at his pancakes and soaking them in syrup. I was slightly cautious, what with each pancake being larger than his head, and there being four on the plate.
"Do you want me to send them back and ask for a kid's size?"
Coop looked at me like I had three heads and chomped down on his food. "Dad, you said I could have whatever I want, and these are what I want."
"Okay, okay…" I held up my hands in defence. "I've never seen pancakes this big." We were seated in a posh-looking, downtown Seattle, restaurant that we've passed before but never entered. But from the moment I ate the first chunk of pancake, I knew I had found my second home. At eleven bucks a plate this shit wasn't cheap, but damn it was worth it.
"I wish Bella could have come with us." He spoke mostly to himself and poured extra syrup over his breakfast.
"But I thought this was just a father and son day?" Not that I didn't want Bella to come, because of course I would have loved for her to join us, but I need Cooper to see that what I said the other day, about him seeming like a chore to me, was not true and we had to spend some quality time together.
"Yeah, but you weren't very nice to her either, so she needs to be cheered up just like me." How had I raised a son so smart? It blows my mind sometimes.
"It's lovely that you care so much for her, but I thought I could make it up to her another way." If she would let me; I have been a monumental ass.
"Ooh, what are you going to do?"
"I thought I could cook us a meal?"
"Um, no, Dad, that won't do; you can't cook and always burn my cookies."
Isn't it great having your son's support? Heavy sarcasm.
"Well if you don't like that idea then what do you suggest I do?"
"Um…" He played with the straw of his milkshake and stirred it around and around his glass. "I think she's tired and I think the baby is making her tired, so we could make her breakfast in bed and, Padre, you can buy flowers. It'll be like a Lazy Saturday, but only for Bella!"
He's such a charmer…
"Now, why didn't I think of that, huh?"
Coop shrugged his famous shrug, "'Cause, y'know, I'm so much better than you."
I didn't say another word, because he was so true.
"So, smarty pants, what should the breakfast consist of? Bacon and eggs…?"
He chewed on his bottom lip in thought, mopped up the river of syrup with a triangle of pancake and shoved it in his mouth; the syrup dropped down his chin which made him giggle. "She likes strawberries… and the English tea stuff – it's called Twilight, or something."
I smiled. "Twinings."
"Yeah! That's the one!"
"So there'll be tea, strawberries… anything else?"
"Ice cream!" He eyes glistened.
"Ice cream? For breakfast?"
"Yeah! A la mode…"
I shook my head in disbelief. This boy is something else.
0-0
"Padre! It's like we're part of the Puget Sound!" Cooper stared in awe at the 20x40 foot exhibit which greets you at the Seattle Aquarium. It holds over 120,000 gallons of water and contains all the various sea creatures that you find in the Puget. From one of the many rock formations I noticed a long, large, grey speckled creature slither from its hiding and made its way to the glass.
"Hey, Coop, do you know what that guy is called?"
"Oh, um…um…" He slapped his khaki shorts as he thought. "A wolf eel! I know that 'cause he's really ugly, y'know?"
"He's the not the prettiest, is he?" My arm went around his tiny shoulders and my hand patted his chest over the heart that had caused me many a nightmare.
"C'mon, Dad, I wanna see the rock pools." He broke free from my hold and sprinted off to the next amusement around the corner. There was a small crowd surrounding the pools, but seeing as most children were at school, it wasn't as busy as it normally was. Cooper had no fear when it was his turn; he touched the prickly spines of a sea urchin, sea cucumber and curled up on the floor to become a hermit crab. I admit, I had to ask what he was doing.
"Can't you tell? I'm being a hermit crab!" He knelt on the ground with his butt on the heel of his Converse and kept his head close to the floor. How are kids so flexible? I don't think I could ever get into that position.
"Oh my, God! Dad, look!" Cooper, again, sprinted off and pointed to a plastic sign tacked to the wall. "It says the octopus will be fed at noon and 4pm! That is so cool! What time is it now?"
I stole a glance at the watch on my right wrist. "Nearing eleven-twenty-five."
"So… can we watch the octopus having lunch?"
"Of course we can, bud."
"Yay! Thanks, Dad." He wrapped his little arms around my waist in a hug – clearly not embarrassed being seen with his old man. "This is a great Howard and Tony day."
"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself."
Maybe, just maybe, he'll forgive me for how I acted the last couple of days.
"I fink we should do this with the baby when it comes; I fink he or she will love seeing these animals – just like I do."
It occurred to me then that I hadn't spoken to him about the…baby. Hell, I hadn't even spoken to Bella about it properly. What were his views on becoming a big brother? Was I the only one that was scared shitless?
"Hey, Coop, we have time before the feeding session, so do you want to come and sit here with me for a minute?" I pointed behind to the window seats.
"But I want to see the jellies swim over you…" He pointed to the arched tunnel full of moon jellies bobbing along the water.
"We can see them as well. Come on; this will only take a minute."
Cooper hunched his shoulders and slumped his way to the benches. "Better be important…" He mumbled – I barely worked out what he had said.
"Yeah it's important. I want to ask you about the baby."
The way his eyes lit up and how the smile wiped away the previous scowl showed me just how much that meant to him. And boy did it make me feel awful. "You really want to talk about the baby? Good things?"
"Ye-yeah – of course good things." Because of my selfishness and because I thought about myself before anyone else, I hadn't realised how much that meant to him. "How do you feel about becoming a big brother?"
He leaped off the seat in eagerness. "I'm so excited! I always wanted someone to play with 'cause… y'know… I don't have that many friends and… well, you're working all the time and Flash is my best friend, but it's not the same… so I'm excited to play with my brother or sister."
It was like someone had dug their way into my chest and yanked out my heart. Was that a sign that I was failing him as a father? Spending too much time away when I should be with my family? I felt sick and angry.
Cooper found the advantage in my silence and asked me his own question. The hardest question. "Are you… excited about the baby, Padre?"
The love I hold for him was a clear sign that, of course, I would love and accept any other child that I may have, but that wasn't the question. He asked if I was excited about it, and I didn't have an honest answer. I hoped it was down to how sudden it was – I had barely walked through the door, after being in South Africa for two weeks, to find out that in nine or so months I was going to be a father again. It's crazy.
But I had to remember that it was just as sudden for Bella too and she needed my support more than she needed anything else.
"You're not excited, are you?" His voice was small, but it held so much truth.
I scratched my forehead, "it's a hard question to answer, Bud. I know that once I've got my head around it I'll feel a lot more excited." There – that was the best I could do.
"Y'know when I was in Mom's tummy?"
"Yes."
"Did you love me then?"
"As you know, Cooper, that was a very hard time for your Mom and I; because she was so ill I was scared to get too attached to you in case… well, in case the worst happened."
"And I died with my mom?"
I chilling shiver spread through my body. To control my emotions I ruffled his bright blonde hair and kissed the crown of his head. I spoke over the lump that was still lodged in my throat. "…Yeah." I took note of the time – we had approximately ten minutes left. I ended our conversation on a high. "But the second the doctor put you in my arms I loved you more than I thought I would."
Cooper grinned and laughed quietly to himself. "What was I like, again?" He shuffled closer to my side.
I knew that he knew my description to a T, but he loved to hear me say it. "You hated the doctor holding you and boy did you cry! But when I rocked you in my arms you stopped – just like that. You had these large, dark eyes and your hair was so light that it seemed as though you didn't have any at all. But even as a tiny, tiny baby, I recognised your Mom's features in you. And what I loved the most wasn't how you looked or how you acted, but realising that you were mine – you were my little boy."
"And I know that you're going to love the baby when it's born." He spoke with so much surety; I couldn't do anything but believe him.
A crowd had surrounded the octopus tank, waiting the midday feeding. "C'mon, Padre!" Cooper grabbed my hand and yanked me towards them. A member of staff sat on above the tank with a long, steel rod resting on her lap. An additional staff member stood in front of the crowd and introduced us to the octopus.
"…He is a giant Pacific octopus which is the biggest species of octopus in the whole world, and he is one of many creatures found in the nearby Puget Sound…"
The lady above the tank speared some food onto the end of the rod and tapped the water to get the animal's attention. Once it realised she was offering food, a long, curling tentacle stretched out through the water to grab the food. He pulled the rest of his red body to the fish and as he ate, his tentacles grazed through the water and gave us a great view of how large he really was.
As this continued on, the lady who originally introduced us to him asked the children various questions, which I knew and Cooper, too, stuck his hand up for all. At the end we were asked if we had any questions of our own. I should have known that Coop would ask one.
"Um… can you keep them as pets?"
Lord, give me strength.
0-0
Before we left the aquarium I allowed Cooper to get one thing from the gift shop he waited so patiently to enter. He searched the whole shop and took a good look at everything it had to offer before running off to grab his gift from the clothing section. I had expected a t-shirt or a sweater but what he actually came back with I had never even considered.
"Um, what is that, Bud?"
He peered at the gift in hand and then beamed, "it's a present for Bella! Well, it's for the baby, but I'll give to Bella. D'ya think she'll like it?"
It was a shark baby towel with a hood that had two dark eyes, a set of white, triangular teeth and a floppy fin to finish the whole thing off. Even if Bella hadn't appreciated the shark part, I knew she would have loved it because he picked it out especially for her in mind.
0-0
Not only had we planned breakfast for Bella for the next morning, but we also used the spare hours before she came back from work, to put together her favourite meal – mushroom risotto. Surprisingly enough I only messed up once… okay make that twice.
Shortly before seven-thirty, Bella walked through the door and sighed loudly. She was dressed in her usual black, yoga pants, a green tank top and a thin black jacket over-top. Her hair hung loose in a ponytail; every movement screamed exhaustion. She hadn't noticed us standing in the dining room but when Cooper couldn't hold back his giggles, her head spun around in shock.
"What the…" She looked over the table at the candles burning as a centre piece.
"We made you dinner!" He bounded over for a hug.
"You did?"
"Yeah! I cut the mushrooms."
"I won't get food poisoning… will I?"
Cooper laughed loudly and I smirked at her silliness. "Of course not, babe."
"I need to go tinkle!" Cooper grabbed a hold of the front of his shorts and sprinted away to the nearest bathroom.
Remind me to give him a raise in his allowance.
"I've been a jerk."
"You've been the biggest jerk." Surprisingly, Bella smiled. I was thankful to know she wasn't as pissed as she had been.
My hand stroked her arm with a whispering touch. "I hope you can forgive me, because I honestly don't know what I would do or how I would cope if you can't."
"Of course I'll forgive you, Edward, but what you said was uncalled for and my forgiveness is not going to happen over-night."
That was good enough for me. "But you still love me, right?" I went for my favourite tactic – charm.
Try she might, but in the end her dam broke and I held her in my arms once again. "Yes, I still love you, you big buffoon."
0-0
I had taken what Cooper told me (about working too much) into consideration and had contacted Jean Laurie the next morning to discuss my working hours. She reluctantly changed my shift from nine till five, to seven till three. That allowed Bella to take Cooper to school and me to pick him up. I only wished I had noticed it sooner.
Coop was eagerly telling Bella and I about his day at school when there was a loud knock at the door. I excused myself to go see who it was. The moment the door was open and before I had the chance to work out who it was a powerful force was felt in my nose followed by a sharp, searing pain.
The fuck?
"You deserve it, asshole."
I squinted through the tears in my eyes and focused on a furious looking Emmett and Jasper.
I was so confused. What were they doing here and why did Emmett just punch me in the nose?
"Jesus, Edward; are you okay?" Bella put a caring arm around my shoulders and placed a hand on mine – the one covering my nose. Together, we brought my hand forward and gasped at the blood that pooled there. "Oh, my God. Sweetheart, come on – let's clean you up."
The bleeding soon stopped, but I kept a bag of ice to my nose to stop the swelling.
"Right," Bella pointed at my brothers, "are you going to tell me what the hell that was for?!"
My baby loves me…
Jasper, being the calmest out of the two, stepped forward to explain all. "Yesterday evening we got a call from a certain little boy who explained everything that had been going on around here. Edward, I'm sorry you got hurt; we didn't plan on attacking you – did we, Emmett?"
Emmett just scoffed and crossed his arms tighter across his middle.
"But," Jasper continued, "from what Cooper told us, I can't say you didn't deserve it."
"Cooper? Why did you phone them?"
My son came out from behind Emmett and pointed straight at me. "You made Bella cry! I told you I was going to ring my Uncles and I did!"
And there I was, thinking he'd forgiven me.
"Sweetheart," Bella knelt in front of Cooper, "Dad and I need to talk with Uncle Jasper and Uncle Emmett quickly. Can you go and make sure all the pets have been fed and get started on your homework and I'll come and find you when we're done?"
"But I want to talk too!" He stomped his foot.
"Fine! But, Emmett, if you dare say anything inappropriate in front of him I'll punch you in the nose myself, got it?"
"Daaay-um," he whistled, "pregnancy is making you feisty, girl."
0-0
One hour later my brothers were finally making their leave and my nose was back to full working order. Our conversation went well and, thankfully, no more blood was shed. Jasper continuously helped me see how I had messed up, even though I knew already, and Emmett descriptively explained what would happen if I acted like a jerk again.
"…You may have trouble walking and producing more children…"
I shivered at the thought.
"…Oh, and Mom and Alice will be informed next time…"
That put the message across plain and simple.
0-0
Two weeks later.
0-0
"Is this your first child?" The ultrasound technician, Nancy Bell, helped Bella get comfy on gurney and pressed a few buttons on her computer keyboard. I sat on the other side of the bed, squeezing Bella's hand in support. We had been to see a gyno, but this was the first scan for us and when we would see the tiny creation in her stomach.
Fuck, my emotions.
"Our first together, yes."
"Oh, I love first scans!" Nancy rubbed her palms together and beamed at us both. "Okay, Bella, can you pull up your top and lower the hem of your pants…" I could feel the nerves through her grasp. "Sorry, how far along are you, again?" You could see the cogs turning in Nancy's head. Something wasn't adding up.
"Um…eleven weeks… why?"
She brushed it off, "Oh, I'm sure it's nothing; no two pregnancies are the same and some women are larger than others."
We both knew, from how flippant her answer sounded, that it wasn't nothing.
Nancy wiped down Bella's abdomen and proceeded to squirt the colourless gel, apologising for the chill. "Right, let's see what we can find, shall we?" A few more buttons were pressed and then the probe went on a search.
Nancy moved it from one side to the other, and glanced at the screen with a questioning expression on her face. We couldn't see what she had found, and I started to worry that she might not have found anything…
"Is everything okay?"
Bella's eyes had glazed over and she gnawed on her knuckles.
"Oh, yes, but this would explain why you looked rather on the large side…" She used one hand to turn the screen around for us both to see.
Um, have I gone cross-eyed, or…
Are there two babies on that screen?
Oh, fuck. Twins.
0-0
TWINS! TWO BABIES! DUE BAMBINI!
To see the behind the scenes of this and TWOF, head on over to RosieRathbone FanFiction on FB
Or! If you want to get sneak-peeks from Cooper and see the baby shark towel, you'd want to go to Cooper Troopers Working of Fate on FB.
THOUGHTS?