A/N: It's great to see so many new readers and the continuing supporters of this story. It makes me happy to keep writing this story for you guys and myself. Keep on reading :D I'm really sorry about the wait. I'll explain in the a/n at the end. Oh and be expecting some new stories to come out, so make sure to author alert :D
I do not own any of the characters. They all belong to the wonderful Stephenie Meyer. I also do not own any songs or websites mentioned. They belong to their respective owners.
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Chapter 8: Surprise, Surprise
BPOV
Alice managed to find a way to get all of us to go with her to the party stores for supplies, then it was time to go to costume stores and thrift stores to find our outfits. We had all decided on who we would be portraying at my old-fashioned Hollywood party. Even the barista at Starbucks and a couple other random people Alice had decided to just invite, had figured out who they would be.
I had chosen the lovely Sally Blane. She had been in over 70 films from the time she was 7 to her death in 1997. She was most famous for being in the movie "I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang," which won an Academy Award. She was also famous for being related to the famous Loretta Young, who was equally as gorgeous. I loved researching old movies and actresses, which actually made my birthday seem somewhat exciting.
I wondered who everyone else had chosen to portray and how well they would pull it off. I'm sure whoever Edward, Alice, Rosalie, Emmett, and Jasper chose, they would make the old Hollywood icons look even more amazing than they had been in their time.
I decided that since we would be playing old Hollywood icons, we should dress up in old-Hollywood outfits, much like we were going to the Academy Awards or the Emmy's. We were looking at Google for what the actors and actresses used to wear to such events. During this research time, I found out who everyone was going to be.
We were all huddled around the table in the upstairs office on our laptops, researching our people. The table was also covered in snacks and sodas.
Alice was going to be the young and beautiful, Elizabeth Taylor. She had the perfect eyes for the part. Alice was drawn to Elizabeth Taylor because of her definite material excess and the fact that she had starred in a movie alongside Montgomery Clift. This was the real seller for her, since Jasper was going to be the dashing, Montgomery Clift. Alice was a very lucky girl to have snagged him, but she would be fighting off the girls all night long at the party.
Clift was famous for being young and successful. Jasper was much the same in that he had designed his parents current home at the age of 15. The blueprint for the house had astounded the building company and they said he could work for them once he graduated college. So, now he was at college, getting his degree in architectural design.
Rosalie was going to be Carole Landis. She didn't want to be Marilyn Monroe because she felt it was expected of her. Landis was famous for her chest as that had been her given nickname. She was tall, lean, and glamorous, just like Rosalie. Another thing she learned about the girl is that they shared the same middle name, Lillian.
Emmett had also found the perfect role in Marlon Brando. He had been a sex symbol in his time, known for his physique and good looks. Emmett also just wanted to say that he was "The Godfather," even though by the time Brando played "The Godfather," he had definitely lost his physique and looks.
Finally, there was Edward. Edward was going to be John Garfield. From the way Rosalie and Jasper made fun of him, the part seemed perfect. Edward had been a very brooding and do-what-he-wants-type of guy before me, which is exactly what Garfield had been. Edward had also been more of a supporting role to his friends.
Garfield had started as a supporting actor, but eventually made it to leading roles and even went on to producing instead of acting. Jasper and Rosalie, well, mostly Jasper, felt that with me, he was finally making it to the spotlight and would succeed in composing his music, instead of just playing it.
Once we found out what we were all going to wear, we set a day to go searching for the clothes at thrift stores and costume shops. It was almost eight at night, so we ordered a pizza and watched some movies. Everyone moved to leave at about eleven, except Edward.
"Will you stay tonight?" I asked him, a slight blush tinging my cheeks.
"If you want me to, of course." He said smiling as he tipped my chin up and gave me a sweet kiss.
"Thanks." I said, smiling back.
Jasper and Rosalie left in Rosalie's car and went back to the apartment. Edward and I got ready for bed, since I had work in the morning.
I changed into a nice, lacy black nightie with a dangerously low v-neck. (picture in profile). Edward borrowed some pajama pants that were a little too big, from Emmett. I walked out of the bathroom and found Edward folding his clothes up at the end of the bed, shirtless. My breathing hitched. When he straightened up, the pajama pants fell dangerously low on his hips, so that I could see the delicious 'V' leading down to his forbidden area. I had to keep myself from drooling.
When he caught sight of me in the doorway, his eyes glazed over and I blushed at the way his eyes raked over my fairly exposed body. I quickly ran to the bed and threw myself under the covers.
That seemed to bring him out of his shock and a crooked grin covered his face, as he launched himself on the bed, next to me.
"Oh, you think you can just do that and get away with it?" he said, his eyes lustful.
"Do what?" I said, confused as to what he meant and this new, growing emotion in his stare.
"Hide your beautiful self from me under these blankets!" he said as a devilish grin took over my favorite, crooked one.
"What are you—" I was interrupted by him, attacking me.
I let out a squeal as he jumped on me, so that he was straddling me, and placed sweet kisses all over my face and neck. I started to giggle when he kissed my neck. He pulled back the covers and stopped his assault on my face and looked me over.
He smiled, "You are too beautiful for your own good."
I blushed crimson and he placed one more sweet kiss on my lips as he disentangled himself from me and snuggled into my side. I absentmindedly began rubbing my fingertips up and down his arm.
"Mm, that feels amazing." he whispered contentedly, as his eyes slid shut.
I smiled down at him, taking in how peaceful and gorgeous he looked without a shirt on. I longed to feel the taut muscles of his chest and torso.
I pulled my eyes back up to his face and saw the deep bags under his eyes. I stopped tracing his arm to trace the purple bruise-like shadows.
"I don't normally sleep much..." he trailed off, startling me, as I had thought he was already asleep.
"Oh," was all I could come up with.
I scooted down lower, wrapping my arms across his chest, and placed my legs between his. I laid my head on his shoulder and soon fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.
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I woke up warm and comfortable. I opened my eyes to see I was still holding Edward. I tried carefully to get out of his hold without waking him, so I could get ready for work.
He stirred slightly, but quickly took hold of my pillow and inhaled deeply. I cocked my head to the side at his strange behavior, but just shrugged it off and made my way to the bathroom.
I took a quick shower and threw on my work clothes. I was out the door in twenty minutes and made it to work by 9:45. My shift started at ten and ended at four in the afternoon.
It was only a six hour shift, so it wouldn't be too terrible. Plus, on Sundays, we had a high rise of people coming in to buy religious books. It always made me laugh to myself, that they were buying the books on Sunday, usually during the time they should be at their church. If I was ever bored, I just asked them why they weren't at church instead, and most of them stuttered over their responses, searching for a decent lie.
Every now and then, we'd get a cocky one, who was able to reply to my question easily and without hesitation, always giving me an evil look afterward. To make myself feel better that they were attempting to ruin my day, I usually stuck my tongue out at them behind their backs.
The shift passed quickly, as did the next couple days. Before I knew it, it was Wednesday, which meant time to go shopping for supplies, decorations, and costumes. Alice and I left right after class to get a head start. Rosalie wouldn't be out until almost three and the boys weren't out till after six.
We found a party store and found the aisle marked "Hollywood." Alice filled the cart with tons of decorations of various shapes, sizes, and colors. We decided to look through their costume section, as well, but couldn't find anything for our characters. We figured we'd have our best bet at a thrift store or Hollywood memorabilia shop. We rang up our purchases and headed to the next stop.
Rosalie met us at the costume shop and we scoured the rows upon rows of costumes. She was able to find her costume within minutes. Carole Landis had been somewhat famous, so they actually had a dress quite similar to one we had seen in one of her photo shoot pictures.
The dress was long and white with long sleeves covered in lace. It was beautiful and flowing. (picture in profile). After we rung up Rosalie's dress, we headed over to a cake shop to put an order in for my cake. It was supposed to be a white cake half sheet, with an 8" round on top decorated like a roll of film. The film strip was supposed to have pictures of old Hollywood icons so Alice handed over a flash drive that held the needed pictures. (picture of cake on profile).
Once that was set up, we were still on the search for a cute dress for Alice and me. We decided to try the thrift store next because we figured it would be our best bet for vintage dresses. This store gave me the jackpot. I found five dresses to pick from and tried them on for the others to judge.
The first was a maroon-colored velveteen dress, floor-length with thick straps and a ruffle along the top. (pictures of all girls' dresses in profile). Alice stuck her tongue out at it and Rosalie immediately waved it away.
Next, I tried on a sheer black dress with lines of ruffles along the skirt and a slight V-neck. I put on a lacy black slip underneath. Rosalie stifled a laugh, while Alice simply cocked her head to the side. She just shrugged so I went to go put on the next one.
I put on a black dress that had gold lace flower patterns all over it. It was nice and elegant, but I wasn't sure it fit the occasion. Alice shook her head no, but Rosalie couldn't keep her mouth shut.
"Oh my gosh, you look like a grandma!" Rosalie said, as she started to laugh.
I just sulked back into the dressing room and put on one of my favorites of the stack. I went back out in a powder blue ball gown that rouched at the chest. It looked like an old fashioned Cinderella dress and I felt like an old Disney princess. It was absolutely gorgeous. Alice's eyes lit up and Rosalie smirked.
"Oh my, that would be perfect, except it doesn't fit your time zone. That's more late '40s." Alice frowned as she said it.
Rosalie just inspected her nails.
This left only one more choice before I was forced to look through yet another store. I went back into the dressing room and tried on the last dress, feeling defeated. That blue one had been my favorite. I tried on the last one and it actually looked cute and simple, just like I liked it. I came out and modeled it for them.
This time Rosalie's eyes lit up and Alice started clapping wildly, as she jumped up and down.
"Perfect! It looks amazing on you! Edward won't be able to keep his hands off of you!" Alice squealed as she tackled me in a tight hug.
I nearly lost my balance, but caught myself on the dressing room door. I started to daydream about what it would be like for Edward to not keep his hands off of me. What a birthday present that would be. I felt the goofy grin start to spread on my face, so I fought it to avoid questioning.
We took the dress to the register and checked out. We decided it was time to try the memorabilia store next since they would most likely have tons of things about Elizabeth Taylor and the '50s.
We only had an hour and a half until the boys were out of class, so we needed to get Alice's dress quickly so that we could keep all the dresses a surprise.
The store had a few dresses, but none of them caught her eye. We grabbed some extra standees and wall decorations and then left for another vintage store down the block.
When we went in, it was like Alice had died and gone to 1950s dress heaven. She ran through the store grabbing tons of dresses. Occasionally she would run out of arm room and would throw some to Rosalie or me. By the time she went into the dressing room, she had eleven dresses. This was going to take forever.
She tried on the first one for us, which was a tight black number with a big bow and some tulle in the back. Rosalie and I just gave her the so-so sign. She slumped her tiny shoulders and went back inside the room.
The next one was a faded pink color, and looked like it had a built-in Victorian petticoat. Rosalie made a sound like she was throwing up and I just shook my head.
The third was actually really cute. It was a 'V'-neck and had roses all along the bottom. It was white with gray along the neck line and chunks on the bottom. She twirled it for us and Rosalie smiled at her.
"Set it aside so we can see if there's anything better, but that's definitely my favorite so far," I said smiling at her.
She placed it on the hook outside her door and went to put on the next one. This one was cute too. It had a double skirt and a cute bow in the chest area. It was covered in a strange flowery pattern, but the double skirt, made it look too bulky on her. Alice agreed with us and hurried to try on the next one. She knew we were still on a time limit.
The next one made me wish my character had been from the '50s. It was a gorgeous midnight blue, with black lace overlay. I fell in love with it.
"Oh my gosh Alice, it's gorgeous!" I exclaimed, blushing at my own outburst.
"It's really cute, but I just don't feel it's me." She replied nonchalantly.
She glided back into the room for yet another dress change. This dress was a muted pink mermaid-style dress. I told her to add it to the keep pile. She agreed and quickly changed into the next one. Rosalie didn't seem like she had much to say. I saw her texting most of the time, most likely to Emmett.
The next dress, was huge. Alice had a hard time making it out the tiny dressing room door so she could show it off. It was full of tulle with what looked like little polka dots within the skirt. It was cute, but it almost seemed to envelope Alice into its darkness.
Rosalie finally decided to speak up, "Alice? Where are you Alice? I can't find you. All I can see is this huge walking dress!" she said, starting to laugh, as Alice glared at her and squished her way back into the dressing room.
The next one made me wish even more that my girl was from the '50s instead of the boring '30s. It was a turquoise flare dress covered in black lace with a thick black scrunched ribbon around the waist.
"Ooh, ooh! Can we keep it Alice?" I said jumping up and down and running my hand over it like it was a puppy.
Alice just chuckled and added it to the possibilities pile.
The next one was similar to the last one except it was pink with a white ribbon. We all agreed it just wasn't right and it was quickly tossed aside for the next one to take its place.
We were down to the last three, but we only had about a half hour until the boys were to meet us, so we had to make a decision quick.
The next one was a baby pink princess-style dress that again made it difficult for Alice to get out of the dressing room.
"Aww man. I love this dress, but it would take away from Bella, and I don't want to outshine her on her birthday." Alice said out loud.
"Alice, anything you wear will outshine me. You're beautiful and you picked the amazing Elizabeth Taylor." I said.
"Bella, Bella, when will you ever look at yourself clearly," she shook her head before continuing. "Oh well, next."
She went back in and put on a much darker dress. It was a black velvet torso with gray tulle coming out of the top and making up the entire skirt. It was really cute, but wasn't 'Alice-y' enough.
"It's just not you." Rosalie said.
"That's what I was gonna say." I said looking at Rosalie and nodding.
"Well, fine. But this is the last dress, so this is our last chance to be wow'd or find the perfect dress for me." Alice said as she skipped back into the dressing room, one last time.
The last dress just screamed perfect. It seemed just like something Alice would wear, as well as, something that Elizabeth Taylor herself would wear. It was black, with off the shoulder sleeves. It was mermaid-style with layers of ruffles along the bottom of the skirt. It beat all the dresses, in my opinion.
"Ding, ding, ding, winner!" Rosalie said, smiling widely, as Alice twirled to show us the whole dress.
"Totally! It's perfect!" I said grinning.
Alice smiled and started clapping.
"Alright girls, we're done, time to meet the boys!" Alice said as she gathered the dresses and set them on the outside rack. She sent Rosalie and me to look at shoes for our dresses while she rang up her dress.
We searched through the few rows of shoes but couldn't find anything cute. We decided we would just try Payless for shoes later. When we met Alice at the door, she was carrying three dress bags.
"Alice." I said in my motherly tone, "Why do you have three bags?"
"Well, I just wanted to make sure and keep, uh, my options open." She said smiling devilishly as we hurried to our cars.
I just groaned and got in the car. We made our way back to the first costume shop, where the boys were standing outside waiting for us.
"Hel-lo Ladies" Emmett said, trying to act smooth.
Rosalie actually seemed to blush and walked up and gave him a kiss.
I made my way over to Edward and slinked my arms around his waist. He put his arms around me and placed a kiss on my hair.
"Are we ready then?" Jasper spoke up as he grabbed Alice's hand and made his way towards the store.
We all followed, Emmett holding Rosalie's hand and Edward wrapping his arm around my waist, keeping me close to his side.
Apparently, earlier in the week, Rosalie and Emmett had become official and were now dating. It was nice to see Emmett so happy, but it was awkward, being that they took every opportunity to sneak off somewhere and make-out.
We made our way to the back of the store where the men's costumes were. They had tons of gangster costumes, which would be perfect for Edward's time period. We found him an all black suit quickly. He tried it on for us and I about melted to the floor. I was ready to pounce, but before I could move, he was back in the room changing back into his clothes. I could only imagine what he looked like in there.
Next we searched in the aisle dedicated to the '50s, for Jasper. Alice was picky on what her guy could wear, but when he found a black, vintage tuxedo that he found suitable for the occasion, he easily swayed her opinion. It was like he could control her emotions. They truly were meant for one another.
Last, but certainly not least, was Emmett. The only problem we found with Emmett, was trying to find a suit that could fit his large upper body. We ended up having to mix and match, getting some gray tuxedo pants and a dark gray jacket. Rosalie didn't seem to mind and Emmett was just excited about dressing up.
We were finally done shopping so we decided it was time to go home.
We all went back to our house for dinner and to drop off everything we had bought at all the stores. Everyone would be getting ready for the party there anyways.
After dinner was over and we had watched some television, everyone said there goodbyes and I went to bed exhausted, even though it was only ten.
The next few days passed quickly with many whispers and secrets in the house and even with the others. I figured it had to do with secret party planning. I had already warned them not to get me gifts. Alice was lucky enough I agreed to the party.
Before I knew it, it was my birthday. I woke up to Edward putting a tray of breakfast food on my lap as he kissed me good morning. I smiled at him, as I looked at the food before me. It was blueberry pancakes, eggs and bacon, with a cup of apple juice. There was also a little note next to the plate.
I opened it up and read it. It was written in beautiful script.
Happy Birthday, my beautiful Bella.
I hope to spend the rest of them with you, as well.
Love, Edward
I felt my eyes start to well up with tears of happiness as I reached over to try and hug him.
"This is too much Edward. Thank you so much." I said, trying to hold back my tears, as he rubbed soothing circles on my back.
"Anything for you, my Bella. Happy birthday." he said, as he reluctantly let go to grab his own plate of food from the kitchen.
He returned and took a spot next to me on the bed. It was quiet in the rest of the house, which automatically made me suspicious.
"Why is it so quiet? Is everyone still sleeping or something?" I asked him with a puzzled look.
He chuckled softly, "No, they wanted to give us the morning alone, while they went to go get the food and confirm who was coming."
"Oh." I said, returning to my untouched breakfast.
We ate in a comfortable silence, often meeting eyes between bites, which made me blush.
Once we finished, he put the dishes in the sink and came back to my room. He scooted next to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. I leaned my head against him, reveling in the warmth and comfort he exuded.
"What would you like to do for the rest of the morning?" he asked as he tipped my chin up to look at him.
I could think of a few things I'd like to do, I thought to myself, making myself blush. He stared intently at me, curiosity in his eyes about my curious reaction.
Suddenly, he seemed to understand what I had meant and a crooked grin appeared. He leaned in and placed a warm, soft kiss on my lips. I immediately tangled my fingers in his hair and he pulled me closer to him. I felt his tongue trace my lip and I happily granted access. Our tongues danced and I found that his taste was just as amazing as the rest of him.
I moaned into his mouth, as our tongues danced. I felt my breathing become ragged and knew we would have to stop for air soon, but I kept kissing him until he finally pulled away.
"That was amazing. I've been dying to try that." He said out-of-breath and smiling.
"Me too." I replied sheepishly.
We laid there for a while, drinking in the moment, until finally I realized I had to get ready for my birthday party.
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We were ready to within a few hours, with only an hour and a half until the party. Alice and the rest of the gang had just called saying they were on their way back.
When she showed up, I noticed she had already done her hair and make-up like she knew she wouldn't have much time to get ready. Rosalie's hair and make-up was done, as well. How long does it take to get food?
I was sitting in my dress on the couch next to Edward who was already in his suit and a matching fedora. He seemed jittery sitting next to me, like something was on his mind.
Alice quickly walked over to me and pulled me off the couch, dragging me to her bathroom, with Rosalie following close behind.
"So how was your morning with Edward?" Alice asked as she started pulling on my hair with a comb.
"Ow-fine. Ouch!" I squeaked as she pulled through a particularly difficult tangle.
I then recounted the morning's events and had to hide my smile. Alice missed it, but Rosalie didn't. She decided to smirk at me when I met her gaze, knowing I'd been caught, but she didn't speak up. I guessed she was saving it for a rainy day, which could be everyday, thanks to Seattle's lovely weather.
She finished her slow torture on my face and hair and stepped back so I could see the damage. I actually looked a lot like the girl I had picked. She had given my tight waves and some black eyeliner for make-up. She had also decided to attach a few individual fake lashes, to make my eyelashes seem thicker. I smiled at Alice and moved to get out of the bathroom and back to Edward.
"Where do you think you're going miss? You gotta help us into our dresses." She said smiling widely and pointing to the dresses on her bed.
I shrugged and helped them zip up their dresses. Finally it seemed we were all ready.
"Um Alice, where exactly is this party going to be? None of the decorations are up..." I trailed off confused.
"You silly, silly girl. That's a surprise, but it's not here, as you can obviously see." She said gesturing to the plain living room.
The boys met us in the main hall and we made our way to the cars. Edward and I took his Volvo and followed Rosalie's bright red car to our unknown destination.
We pulled up to a tall hotel and parked. When we got inside, Alice led us to a large conference room that was filled with all the various decorations we had bought. It looked wonderful, but it almost reminded me of an old high school dance that you see in the movies. I giggled at the thought and Edward looked to me questioningly. I just shook my head and made my way around the room, taking in all the wonderful decorations and food choices.
Minutes later, more people began to show up, pouring in dressed in old-style dresses and looking like old movie stars. It almost made me giddy trying to guess who was playing who.
Alice had been smart enough to put name tags by the front door with a black sharpie so people could write who they were portraying and then their name underneath.
I saw a classic Marilyn Monroe, Marion Davies, Audrey Hepburn, Charlie Chaplin, Bette Davis, Gene Kelly, Lloyd Hughes, Loretta Young, and so many more. Wait, how many people had Alice invited?
The question was pushed out of my head when I saw Angela and Ben walk in dressed as Ella Raines and Buster Keaton. Ben had on a black suit with a long-tailed coat and a gray vest. Angela had on a cute, yet simple gray number that had black cuffs and buttons down the left side of the chest. It looked amazing on her.
She caught sight of us and made her way over.
"Wow, this looks amazing! You guys did an awesome job." she said to Alice and the rest, then she turned to me. "Happy Birthday Bella! You look gorgeous! I love that dress." She said smiling, as she hugged me.
I whispered my thanks and she went off to look around the rest of the room. Next to come in was the barista from Starbucks, Stefan or something was his name. He was dressed as Clark Gable. He wandered around confused, so I drew my attention back to the new people flooding in.
I saw Jessica walk in followed by Mike and Lauren. This was going to be a fun night. They saw us and Lauren sneered at me as she tried to scoot closer to Mike without Jessica noticing. Apparently, Mike was Max Linder, Jessica as Margaret Lindsay, and Lauren was Lauren Bacall. Lauren definitely pulled off Bacall's mean look. Jessica's dress was a black velvet, floor-length gown with a maroon diamond covering the left side. Lauren's was a black, sparkling, knee-length dress with a built-in bolero. It was cute, although I hated to admit it.
The next people actually had me confused, yet terrified and I hadn't even met them. The girl had brilliant red hair and cat-like features. She was wearing black laced dress with hot pink lining for the straps and the top of the dress. There was a hot pink flower in the top center, as well. When she got closer, Alice seemed to recognize her and smiled at her until she saw her date who was filling out his name tag.
Before I could even register the mysterious girl's name, I felt my body tense and my blood leave my face. James was her, at my party, near Alice. This would be trouble. He leaned up and caught Alice and me gaping at him. A sly smile crossed his face, as he made his way over to his date.
"Lovely party, Alice." he spoke in a smooth tone that made me cringe.
"Y-yeah. You're here wi-with Victoria?" she said, trying to keep calm.
"Yes, this is my girlfriend, Victoria Wells." he said.
The girl didn't move, she only nodded before throwing a sharp glance at Edward. Edward only tightened his grip on my waist and pulled me back slightly, as if to protect me. I got to see that Victoria was playing a mean-looking Carole Lombard and James was supposed to be the moody, Warren Beatty.
When the silence was becoming awkward, Emmett spoke up in a gruff tone.
"Well why don't you two join the other guests and enjoy the party." he said, ending their stay near us.
James nodded curtly at Emmett and walked over to the other side of the room to the beverages. By the time the last people had come inside, there were probably thirty people at the party, and I only knew less than half of them.
"Alice, why is he here and who is that girl?" I asked Alice after I pulled her aside from Emmett telling everyone a funny story from his childhood.
"I don't know why he's here. I didn't know she was his girlfriend. I just invited her when I was buying my dress." she said sounding guilty and somewhat scared.
"Well, I don't think they'll do anything, but they sure are creepy." I said, shuddering as I said it.
We made it back to the group just in time to hear Emmett talking about how I had tripped and fallen into his cake at his sweet sixteen. I wished I could've run away.
The rest of the night went smoothly with some music, dancing, and eating. At one point, my dress kept slipping off my shoulder from being so sweaty, attempting to dance. I had to go look for Edward since I had lost him on the dance floor. He had been acting somewhat strange all night. I figured it was because of James and Victoria's presence after I had told him the James incident.
I found him in one of the corners of the room. He was facing away holding one of the black helium-filled balloons and he seemed to be talking to himself.
When I got closer, I could start to hear what he was saying.
"You can do it. Just gotta stay under control. You can do it." he repeated that last sentence to himself in an unrecognizable high, squeaky voice.
"Edward?" I called to him, tentatively, not wanting to disturb him with whatever was going on.
He turned around quickly, meeting my gaze with wide eyes.
"Uh-oh." he said in that same squeaky voice and quickly hid the slowly shrinking helium balloon.
I put two and two together and realized he had been sucking on the helium. I started giggling. No wonder he sounded so funny. He blushed a deep crimson and cast his eyes downward. I stepped closer to him and tipped his chin up so I could look him in the eye and figure out what was wrong.
"Edward..are you okay?" I said fighting more giggles. He simply nodded, avoiding speaking again.
"What's going on?" I asked him as I brushed my thumb across his cheek.
His eyes met mine and he looked almost guilty.
"Bella." he said in that squeaky voice, making him curse under his breath.
He sighed a squeaky sigh and seemed to take deep breaths to clear the helium. He held up his finger to stop me when I opened my mouth to speak again.
"Sometimes...I get nervous. I-I am really, really, trying to control myself, but it is becoming exceedingly difficult." He seemed to struggle for words uncharacteristically,
"It's just that with you, and that dress falling off—"
"Listen, if this is about James being at the party—"
We both spoke at the same time.
"Wait, what?" we both said.
"This has nothing to do with James." he said giving me a look like I was crazy.
"What's this have to do with me?" I asked incredulously.
"I—Well, I just don't know if I'm going to be able to keep my hands off of you much longer, so I was using helium to calm myself down. I found talking to myself in that ridiculous voice helps." he blushed and looked down in embarrassment.
I actually started laughing. This made him blush even more.
"Oh..no..I'm not...laughing...at you." I managed to gasp out while I tried to catch my breath.
He looked up, searching my face for an explanation. I caught my breath and started speaking again.
"I was just laughing at how right Alice was, since I thought she was crazy." I was shaking my head, as if speaking to myself.
He smiled at me and pulled me into a hug.
"So it doesn't bother you, that I'm acting like a complete man...not to mention completely strange and bizarre?" he asked as he kissed the top of my head.
"No, actually. It's entertaining and somewhat exciting, I might add." I said, as I pulled away to look at him.
"Exciting?" he asked, his eyebrows shooting up.
"Well, it makes me feel...wanted...and since I'm wanted by you, it makes me sort of...giddy, so to speak." I said, smirking at him.
That crooked grin appeared on his face and he gave me a sweet kiss, causing butterflies to erupt in my stomach.
We decided it was time to go back over to the dance floor and see what all the fuss was about. Alice couldn't stop laughing.
Apparently, Alice had decided to give some hip-hop/r&b music to the DJ and now Lauren and Jessica were in the middle of the dance floor, grinding on each other, trying to be sexier than the other, in order to attract Mike. Mike just stood there with his mouth hanging open and, I'm sure, a puddle of drool at his feet.
Alice and Rosalie were pointing and laughing at the spectacle, while Emmett seemed to be mimicking Mike's facial expression, earning him a smack upside the head from Rosalie, who had caught him staring.
A few minutes later, Alice announced it was time for cake and dessert. When I went over to the cake I saw the pictures were not what I thought they were. Instead, they were pictures of me throughout childhood and into my awkward high school years.
"How-how did you get these pictures?" I immediately wheeled around on Alice.
"Well, I e-mailed your mom and she scanned some over to me. It was Emmett's idea actually." she said smiling in victory.
Oh well, it was too late now. I just decided to make my wish and get the party over with.
I wish, Edward and I could be together for the rest of our lives. Then I blew out the candle.
I got bombarded with "What was your wish" questions, but I just told them if I told them I'd have to kill them.
After that, the party went by smoothly and soon everyone was leaving with their little goody bags that Alice had prepared. They came with candy, a little bear with "Hollywood" written on its stomach and stars, and a pretend award that had a fake Oscar mixed with a reel of film and a plastic camera that read "Bella's 19th Birthday September 13, 2008."
We stayed to clean up for an extra hour and between the six of us, we got it looking nice and clean. It was only about eleven-fifteen when we got back to the house and I decided to open my dreaded presents there. Surprisingly, Alice had convinced people I didn't even know to get me at least a card.
I got home and sat down on the couch. Edward sat next to me and Alice sat on my other side. Jasper leaned on the armrest of the couch, while Rosalie and Emmett stretched out along the loveseat together.
Alice started handing me some of the gifts. The first couple presents were simply cards from the unknown guests. Some of them had random gift cards or even some cash. Next, Edward handed me a small silver bag with silver tissue paper. Inside were two tickets to the Muse concert next month at The Showbox. I squealed with delight and threw my arms around his neck, kissing all over his face in rapid succession.
"I...take it...you like the...present?" he managed to get out when he could breathe through my assault on his face.
I stopped kissing him to smile and nod in definite approval.
He smiled back at me, "And Alice said you hated gifts."
I blushed and was brought back to reality when Alice placed two large boxes at my feet in electric blue, glitter wrapping paper.
I unwrapped the first one slowly, not wanting to rip the beautiful paper. When I opened the box, my eyes grew wide and immediately turned to Alice, my eyes questioning if it was real. She smiled in assurance and I pulled the beautiful navy blue dress from the vintage boutique out of the box. Edward eyes it with a small smile playing on his lips, no doubt, trying to imagine what I would look like in it.
I reached over to hug Alice after putting it gently back into the box, but Alice put up her hands to stop me.
"Hello, another box?" she said, smiling at me.
I turned to open the other box, but Emmett had jumped up from his spot and ripped off the wrapping paper.
"What? You're too slow! I wanna get to my present!" he said shrugging, with his big, white grin plastered to his face.
I was almost scared of what he could've possibly gotten me. I opened the next box and found the other amazing dress I had fallen in love with at the boutique where we found Alice's dress. This time she actually let me hug her.
Suddenly, as I was leaning back into the couch, I heard the oddest sound. A whimper. I looked around the room for the source and was met by Emmett's grin growing even wider. I got up to search for the source of the strange noise, as I heard it louder and more often.
They all followed me, as the sounds led me to the kitchen. When I walked around the corner of the counter, my jaw dropped at what I saw. My eyes began to water with tears of joy.
There in a cage on the floor, was the cutest red-brown, long-haired chihuahua puppy, I had ever seen. (picture in profile). When he caught sight of me, instead of being scared, he stood up, with his tail wagging and his tongue lolled out.
I walked over to the cage and took the puppy into my arms. He immediately tried to lick my face. I looked at his little red collar and the small tag that read, "Jake," in shiny, silver letters.
"We got him at the new adoption center at Petsmart." Rosalie said.
"I knew that you had wanted a dog since you were little, but couldn't have one since Charlie's allergic and all. I figured it'd be easier to start off with a small dog, too." Emmett said, beaming like a proud father.
"Rosalie helped out by getting you a dog starter kit of sorts. A dog bed, food bowls, food, and dog shampoo." Jasper said quietly from beside Alice.
I walked over to them with Jake still in my arms and hugged each of them individually. Jasper was tentative at getting close to me, as if he feared he might break me. Then again, he had seemed reserved since we met him.
I took Jake into the backyard, so he could go to the bathroom. Edward came out with me to watch the puppy. He stood behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, placing his head on my shoulder. We watched Jake frolic through the grass that was practically as tall as him. I'd have to remind Emmett to mow the back lawn.
When Jake seemed finished and had sufficiently explored the new territory, he ran over to me, trying to crawl up my leg. I picked him up and we all went inside.
It was time for everyone to go home, so I hugged Rosalie and Jasper one last time and saved Edward for last. While Alice and Emmett walked the other two outside, I put Jake back in his cage then found Edward standing in the doorway, waiting for me. He hugged me and we just stood there, for what felt like an hour.
He finally pulled away to look at me. He seemed to be having an inner struggle with whether or not he should say something to me.
"Edward?" I asked, trying to prompt him. It worked.
"Bella. I know it's still kind of early and I know this relationship is only a month old, but would you come with me to my parents for Thanksgiving? Oh, your parents could come, too." He added the last part quickly.
I stood there stunned, not knowing what to say.
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Okay, so I have some explaining to do. I have been super busy lately with projects and midterms. Then add on lots of A.D.D. And writer's block lol. Then, last week I was house-sitting for the week and didn't have time to even write. BUT, I finally got it up. It's 15 whole pages. I hope that makes the wait more worth it. Thanks to those who have stuck with me. It'd be great to see all those on alert leave me some kind of review to know if you like it or not, or even just wanna say update lol. Oh and I know someone else has done the whole Jake as a dog thing, but I thought it'd be funnier if he was this little, but cute, annoying, yapping dog instead of a big confident, overbearing dog. So tell me what you guys think! R&R! Thanks guys :D
-DL
P.s. You can find pictures of all the dresses, suits, celebrities, and new people mentioned on my profile, as well as other goodies. :D