BTW- I'm sorry if I got prom and graduation dates mixed up, I've never even been to the us so I have no idea how it works, therefore, please bear it with me.

Graduation Part 2: Parties and Proposals

EPOV

Never, in my 22, almost 23 years of life, had I ever seen anything more beautiful. She was exquisite, a goddess divine of beauty and warmth, her eyes shone even while partially hidden through her mask, her dress hugged every curve in her body, making her look delectable, the color of her dress went beautiful with her skin, bringing out the creamy undertones of her luminescent color. On her cheeks was her ever present blush. Her full, sexy lips were painted a delicious, extremely kissable, glossy red, I inched closer, looking into her eyes, and cupped her cheek

"You're perfect."

She smiled a dazzling smile and my breathing hitched, before her blush started to compete with the color of her lips. I dipped in, ready to kiss her, and closed my eyes inhaling her scent and taking her in my arms only to feel her being ripped away from me.

"Hey!" I exclaimed, looking for the source of my misfortune

"You'll ruin her makeup" said Alice, her face daring me to confront her.

"For someone so small she can be so irritating" I whispered to Bella and she laughed lightly

"I heard that" said Alice, childishly poking her tongue out at me.

"Are you ready?" I asked Bella, offering her my hand, which she took daintily.

"No. But that's never stopped Alice before" she mumbled

I laughed and promised her I wouldn't let go of her all night. The car ride was quick, with my driving there was no other option, and we headed towards the gym, in a town as small as forks that was the only place to have an event like this. I was surprised the gym looked really good. AS I stepped out of the car and went to Bella's door I adjusted my fedora so that all of my bronze hair was hidden beneath it. I adjusted my black mask so that I could see, but my face was still properly hidden. I was very happy with Alice, I could barely recognize myself.

As we walked in I noticed the spotlight shine on us, and we descended the steps. I heard someone whisper "Who are they?" but I had no idea who it was. I smiled at Bella, who was beaming, I would recognize her anywhere, but I knew for anyone else it would be really difficult.

I pulled her into the center of the dance floor and glided with her, twirling her around. She smiled and hesitantly started dancing with me.

"I can't really dance" she said.

"It's all in the leading, love" I told her, and pulled her closer, twirling around.

I looked around us, noticing that apart from us two, Emmett and Rosalie, Jazz and Alice, Carlie in yellow, Seth in Black with cream, Leah in forest green, Embry in Deep marine blue were the only ones dancing. The rest were leaving us a wide space to twirl around gracefully, almost afraid to join, in fear of being outshone by our coven. I noticed all of the males in the coven were wearing fedoras (Alice of course); I would have to thank her later. I noticed someone who was easily identified, Jacob Black towered over everyone else, his hair in a pony tail, Jessica Stanley draped over his arm. She looked, well disgusting really. She was wearing and electric blue dress, that reached to the floor but had a slit that went all the way up to her upper thigh. The dress was backless with a plunging neckline, if you could call it that. Her make-up was piled on heavy, making her look unnatural. She was sneering over at Bella and I, then over at the rest.

Bella noticed this, and laughed, looking up at me and kissing me gently

"give her something to stare at" she smiled

"well if this is what I get every time the wannabe Barbie looks over here then this is going to be a very good night." I smiled at her, kissing her again before looking over at Jessica who looked like she was about to break something.

"Bella will you come with me somewhere?" I asked her, finally feeling the nerves set in.

She nodded, realizing I was nervous.

I took her hand and led her in the opposite way of where we came from. I stepped out into the back of the gym to be met by the forest. I led her slowly through the trail to a clearing; Alice had already set it up.

It was perfectly lighted, fairy lights and ribbons on the trees, I wondered where she connected the electricity to. In the middle of the clearing was a piano. My piano. The one I had taken to her house to play for her.

"Edward?" she asked, looking at me, her face full of confusion.

"Just, listen" I said, and I pulled her down to the bench and started playing for her.

When I was finished she was in awe, but still confused. I turned around in my seat, so that I was facing her and took her hands in mine.

"Bella" I started, watching her eyes widen.

"The first time I saw you, you literally almost knocked me off my feet- she smiled- you were so shy, you barely managed to say hello. I remember that day, I went crazy trying to figure out what your name was, and when I heard your voice, it was like an angel had come down from heaven, just for me. It was difficult, beyond compare to stay away from you, even then I loved you. I was your teacher, it was my personal torture staying away from you. Then, when I wanted to get away and stop thinking about you, I get invited to your house. You were my only friends' sister; you were the police chief's daughter, you were my student, yet I loved you, even then I loved you. When I try to distract myself by going away, I end up going with you, sitting next to you. When I finally listen to you I see you're so much more than I ever had hoped, you are smart, and gentle, kind and loving. The first time we kissed, it was as if a spark went through me, it was as if nothing else mattered, except you. Too many times i realized what I would become without you, and then Christmas came, and I met a new you, a slightly terrifying version of you. The shy beautiful girl I loved disappeared and in her place came a sexy, strong woman that I was sure no one would mess with. You were the pulling force that united our families, you were the one that made this year the best in my life, despite all of the bad moments, every moment I spent with you was the best moment ever. I want to be the person that you come to when you're sad. I want to be the man with which you make your life. I promise I will always love you, and be there, by your side, to protect our family, I will care for you when you're sick, I'll follow wherever you want to go, because no matter where you go, I will want to be there, with you, because no matter what happens in the world I know very few things for sure, I know the sun will rise in the east, will set in the west, I know that life goes on after loss, I know that Alice will never stop shopping and the one thing I know for sure, more than anything else is that for the rest of my life I will always love you.

Isabella Marie Swan, my love, my angel, will you marry me?" I said, kneeling at her feet as she sat on the bench. Never did i stop from looking into her eyes. One moment, they went from confusion, to love, to happiness, and that when I heard it…

"yes" she whispered, her eyes wide

"Yes?" I asked, almost as if in shock

"Yes, I will marry you" she said and then she threw herself at me from the bench, so she fell on top of me and we kissed on the grass next to my piano. It was like a movie moment. I held her close, and put the ring on her.

"It's beautiful, was it too much?" she asked

"Nothing is ever too much for you my Bella, but no, it wasn't, this was my grandmothers, Elizabeth Masen's, she was Esme's mom, and she and Edward Senior they loved each other so much, they couldn't bear to ever be apart, she gave me this ring before she died, telling me to give it to the one woman that would make me never want to leave her side, because that was the woman that would be my true love, that's you.

"That's beautiful, thank you" she said not letting me go but at the same time admiring the ring in the lights of the trees.

"So now, Ms. Swan, you are engaged" I told her

"Yeah, I am. I'm soon going to be Bella Cullen" she said proudly. I beamed at her, loving the name that would forever make her mine.

"We should get back, Alice is waiting to assault you" I said

"She did this, didn't she" she said, looking around

"Alice will be Alice" I said as I helped her up and fixed the ruffles in her dress.

"Perfect" I mumbled, raising her hand to kiss each finger before kissing the one where my grandmothers ring was

"I love you" I told her

"I love you too, my Edward" she smiled, and I kissed her one last time before walking back through the trail and into the auditorium.

Alice caught my eye, and I beamed at her. She jumped and whispered something into Jaspers ear, who turned around and smiled as well. Alice ran over to us and practically jumped Bella, who was smiling widely

"OH EM GEE! Let me see the rock!" she said, grabbing Bella's hand

"OOOOOO" she squealed. "Good job Edward, I approve" she said turning to me, and hugging me.
"Congratulations little sister." Said Jasper, who was holding Bella, as if he didn't believe it and didn't want to let go.

"Thanks bro"

"Edward" he started, clapping me on the back in a manly, I repeat, manly hug. "Congrats man, you take care of her, she's special." He said

"I know, I promise I won't hurt her" I told him honestly.

Then came Emmett and Rosalie, while Rosalie had tears in her eyes, Emmett looks as if he weren't prepared, but once Rose whispered something in his ear he relaxed and came to me

"I wouldn't want it to be anyone else" he said, then went to his sister and gave her a big Emmett hug.

Then when I thought we were done being congratulated, we had Carlie, Leah, Embry and Seth there too, al offering different forms of congratulations to Bella and threats to myself, that's when it finally struck. I did it. I was going to marry Bella, and we would be together. I was, engaged.

BPOV

Engaged. Wow. Engaged.

No one is staring at you, I promised myself. No one is staring at you. No one is staring at you. But, because I couldn't lie convincingly even to myself, I had to check. As I sat waiting for one of the three traffic lights in town to turn green, I peeked to the right —in her minivan, Mrs. Weber had turned her whole torso in my direction. Her eyes bored into mine, and I flinched back, wondering why she didn't drop her gaze or look ashamed. It was still considered rude to stare at people, wasn't it? Didn't that apply to me anymore?

Then I remembered that these windows were so darkly tinted that she probably had no idea if it was even me in here, let alone that I'd caught her looking. I tried to take some comfort in the fact that she wasn't really staring at me, just the car.

My car. Sigh.

I glanced to the left and groaned. Two pedestrians were frozen on the sidewalk, missing their chance to cross as they stared. Behind them, Mr. Marshall was gawking through the plate-glass window of his little souvenir shop. At least he didn't have his nose pressed up against the glass. Yet.

The light turned green and, in my hurry to escape, I stomped on the gas pedal without thinking —the normal way I would have punched my nicely Bella-altered guardian, so that it would get me into danger.

Engine snarling like a hunting panther, the car jolted forward so fast that my body slammed into the black leather seat and my stomach flattened against my spine.

"Arg!" I gasped as I fumbled for the brake. Keeping my head, I merely tapped the pedal. The car lurched to an absolute standstill anyway.

I couldn't bear to look around at the reaction. If there had been any doubt as to who was driving this car before, it was gone now. With the toe of my shoe, I gently nudged the gas pedal down one half millimetres, and the car shot forward again.

I managed to reach my goal, the gas station. If I hadn't been running on vapours, I wouldn't have come into town at all. I was going without a lot of things these days, like Pop-Tarts and shoelaces, to avoid spending time in public.

Moving as if I were in a race, I got the hatch open, the cap off, the card scanned, and the nozzle in the tank within seconds. Of course, there was nothing I could do to make the numbers on the gauge pick up the pace. They ticked by sluggishly, almost as if they were doing it just to annoy me.

It wasn't bright out —a typical drizzly day in Forks, Washington—but I still felt like a spotlight was trained on me, drawing attention to the delicate ring on my left hand. At times like this, sensing the eyes on my back, it felt as if the ring were pulsing like a neon sign: Look at me, look at me.

It was stupid to be so self-conscious, and I knew that. Besides my brother and sister in law, did it really matter what people were saying about my engagement? About my new car?

"Yeah, who cares what they think," I muttered under my breath.

"Um, miss?" a man's voice called.

I turned, and then wished I hadn't.

Two men stood beside a fancy SUV with brand-new kayaks tied to the top. Neither of them was looking at me; they both were staring at the car.

Personally, I didn't get it. But then, I was just proud I could distinguish between the symbols for Toyota, Ford, and Chevy. This car was glossy sleek, sleek, and pretty, but it was still just a car to me.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but could you tell me what kind of car you're driving?" the tall one asked.

Um, a Ferrari, right?"

"Yes," the man said politely while his shorter friend rolled his eyes at my answer. "I know. But I was wondering, is that... are you driving a Ferrari F149?" The man said the name with reverence. I had a feeling this guy would get along well with Edward Cullen, my... my fiancé (there really was no getting around that truth with the wedding just days away). "They aren't supposed to be available in Europe yet," the man went on, "let alone here."

While his eyes traced the contours of my car —it didn't look much different from any other shiny red car to me, but what did I know?—I briefly contemplated my issues with words like fiancé, wedding, husband, etc.

I just couldn't put it together in my head.

"I don't know," I told him honestly.

Today i did my weekly phone call to Seth, i had to check up every Friday, because Sue, was who was still unresponsive was visited by them every Thursday and i had to check up on her. .

"Hello?" Seth Clearwater answered, and I sighed in relief.

"Hey, Seth, it's Bella."

"Oh, hiya, Bella! How are you?"

Choked up. Desperate for reassurance. "Fine."

"Calling for an update?"

"You're psychic."

"Not hardly. I'm no Alice —you're just predictable," he joked

"I know I am." I hesitated for a minute. "How is she?"

Seth sighed. "Same as ever. she won't talk, though we know she hears us

"Any hint that she might..."

"She's not coming home, Bella. Sorry."

I swallowed. "S'okay, Seth. I knew before I asked. I just can't help wishing."

"Yeah. We all feel the same way."

"I guess I'll see you at the... wedding," I said, forcing the word out through my teeth.

"Yeah, we wouldn't miss it."

I smiled at the enthusiasm in his voice.

"It wouldn't be the same without you."

"Tell Edward I said hi, 'okay?"

"Sure thing."

Not everybody liked this idea.

Alice? I asked as i saw her in the living room of me home, Esme sitting next to her

"What's going on?" I demanded, hesitating in the doorway.

"Thirty seconds, please, Bella," Alice told me. "Your patience will be rewarded."

"What's going on?" i asked

Alice rolled her eyes. "It's the final check on the fit. For both of you."

I peeled my gaze off the elegant Esme for the first time and saw the dreaded white garment bag laid carefully across the sofa.

"Aaah."

"Go to your happy place, Bella. It won't take long."

I sucked in a deep breath and closed my eyes. Keeping them shut, I stumbled my way up the stairs to my room. I stripped down to my underwear and held my arms straight out.

"You'd think I was shoving bamboo splinters under your nails," Alice muttered to herself as she followed me in.

I paid no attention to her. I was in my happy place.

In my happy place, the whole wedding mess was over and done. Behind me. Already repressed and forgotten.

We were alone, just Edward and me. The setting was fuzzy and constantly in flux —it morphed from misty forest to cloud-covered city to arctic night—because Edward was keeping the location of our honeymoon a secret to surprise me. But I wasn't especially concerned about the where part. I was more concerned on the acts that would follow afterwards. The traditional actions that occur on the honeymoon. I was ready, i was completely prepared to be Edward wife and have him in every way possible, i was ready for him to be absolutely mine, and no one elses.

I was only vaguely aware of Alice and the slip and slide of satin over my skin. I didn't care, for the moment, that the whole town was talking about me. I didn't think about the spectacle I would have to star in much too soon. I didn't worry about tripping on my train or giggling at the wrong moment or being too young or the staring audience or even the empty seat where my father should have been

I was with Edward in my happy place. And soon, very soon i would be very happy...