Twilight is the property of Stephanie Meyer.

Bella

"… that's it for today, as I'm sure the bell will ring anytime now. Ten un buen fin de semana."

Even before our Spanish teacher was done with his speech, many students were already packing away their belongings. I guess they were all excited about their weekend. I was not in a hurry at all, but I, too, started to pack promptly. I did not want to keep Edward waiting - I did not know what kind of mood he was going to be.

I waved goodbye to Angela as I stepped out of the building, and there he was, casually leaning onto the driver's side of my truck. His eyes were the color of butterscotch- he must have fed well. I released the breath that I did not even know I was holding. He would be in a good mood today. He was not hungry.

"Happy birthday, love."

He gave me a gentle kiss when I approached him. "Ready to head to my house?" He whispered softly. In those moments that became increasingly rare, I felt like Edward that I had known and fell in love with was back. And that was the confirmation that gentle, caring and loving Edward was still there, and I just had to do better.

I sighed but nodded anyway "let's get this done with."

The drive to the Cullen's was peaceful. He did not ask me what I have done during his absence, which I was grateful. I did not do anything that Edward disapproved of, but I also did not have anything to share anyway. Instead, he turned on the radio and would tap on the wheel according to the soft jazz music. I sneaked some glances to look at him and was relieved to see that he looked the most relaxed since the incident with James from Phoenix.

When he stopped the car in front of the house, I just had time to unlock my seatbelt before I was crushed against a big and hard surface, the second time today. Emmett.

"Finally! Now I can properly wish you happy birthday!"

"Hi Emmett, thank you for holding your words at school. I really appreciate that." I put my arms around his neck and gave a brief squeeze.

"My turn, my turn, my turn! Emmett, let her go already!" The next in line was Alice, of course. As Emmett put me down on the ground, her arms was squeezing me and I felt her give me a peck on the cheek. "Happy birthday, Bella!"

I thanked her as she loosened her arms around me. I tried not to focus on the bruises that were throbbing following the hugs from the vampires. I silently prayed that I'll be able to get through the day without anyone getting suspicious.

Esme came to me gracefully at human speed, giving me plenty of time to prepare for a hug. "Happy Birthday, sweetheart." A happy sigh escaped me as I held onto her. It's been too long since I last saw her, and I missed her. She was a different kind of mother from Renne, and although I did love her, it also felt nice to be around Esme's gentle, kind, hear-warming presence.

Reluctantly, I let go of her as I heard footsteps approaching us. Carlisle was opening his arms expecting a hug. I smiled and threw myself at him. If Esme was the mother from the books that I read in physical form, Carlisle was the father.

"Happy birthday, dear." He kissed the top of my head, which was a gesture never displayed by Charlie. It was good to be held by him.

He released me slowly, though he kept his hand on my back, directing me towards the entrance, as if he somehow felt my reluctance to let go. "Let's get you inside before it starts raining."

That's when I noticed silent figures at the opened door. To my surprise, Rosalie still seemed to be in a good mood as she gave me a small smile.

"Happy birthday, Bella." She opened her arms slowly as if to give me plenty of time to reject her. When she saw that I was not opposing, she gave me a gentle hug. She chuckled when she heard my thank you, which was slightly out of breath due to shock. What did she do to the old Rosalie?

I had no time to continue that thought as I felt both his emotional greeting and his arms around me.

"Happy birthday, Darlin'" I was surprised as Jasper would always keep his physical distance. That's why he came up with his own way of greeting, I had thought. Contrary to Rosalie, I did not feel odd being hugged by Jasper. It felt so natural and good.

He released me all too soon, and guided me inside the house, to the living room. I gasped and lost my words as I saw the room completely transformed.

There were lots of balloons in many different shades of blue. I wondered how they managed… as far as I know, Forks and Port Angeles only had balloons in the classic, bold colors. There was a big banner on the wall that read "Happy 18th Birthday, Bella!" in a very elegant calligraphy. The piano was moved to the side, as well as the dining table, giving a big clear space in the middle of the living room. On the kitchen island cart made out of glass at the middle, there were many kinds of finger food - all looking too fancy to be served to a clumsy 18-year-old girl; must be the work of Esme.

Unsurprisingly, Alice was clearly in charge, but what I didn't expect was Emmett also taking a part in the commander role. He was very insistent on the order that I open the presents. Of course, it had to start from his.

It was very difficult for me to accept their gifts, but I tried my best to accept them as gratefully and gracefully as possible, as I saw Edward frown at me when he thought I was not being vocal enough with my gratitude. But to be very honest, if I ignored how much they must have spent, I actually liked what I received - they were all very thoughtful. From Emmett and Rosalie, I received a new stereo for my car (and they installed it too). Alice gave me a new pair of trainers - mine was getting too old. From Jasper, I got a small leather key case with my name engraved. Esme and Carlisle gave me a silver neckless with a small pendant in sapphire blue.

Before it was Edward's turn to give me his gift, Alice announced that it was time for the cake. I was getting quite full already from nibbling on the very tasty finger food Esme prepared. But I tried to look excited as Alice brought the cake. The happy birthday was sung, a generous piece was cut for me to eat (Esme promised to pack the rest to take home with me to eat with Charlie), Emmett and Jasper were fooling around pretending to taste the cake, and the only thing left was Edward to give me his gift.

I was sitting on the couch between Esme and Carlisle when Edward started approaching me. I tried not to feel scared, and I even managed to give him a big smile and try to look excited. He gave me a CD with his piano music. There was a card that read "There're more gifts for you, later" in his perfect writing, and I felt nervous - what did he mean by 'gifts'? I hope it did not involve any pain.

After I thanked him, I tried to put the card on to the coffee table in front of me, where all the gifts I had received were placed. I felt a familiar stung of the sharp paper, as it gave me a small cut on my finger.

Many things happened, and my human body was on overdrive to understand every one of them.

I was thrown from were I was sitting like a football and was caught by a cold and hard figure.

Esme was the one who caught me and she was now hugging me, pressing my face to her as if to protect me from seeing and hearing whatever was happening in front of us. But it was too late. I saw and a moment later, my brain caught up and trying to come up with some explanations. Jasper and Carlisle were crouched in front of us, both of them growling and glaring at Edward. Jasper had his arms exposed for the reason unknown to me. I saw Emmett behind Edward, slowly approaching him. Rosalie was following his movements, and Alice was next to me, on the other side of Esme. She was muttering something that I couldn't understand. And Edward was… his eyes… he was furious and wild. Even behind Esme's arms, I could feel his glare. He looked like he was ready to spring towards a prey, to finish it off. My breath caught as I realized that I was his prey here. And I only had myself to blame…

I could not see anything as I heard some growls and sounds of vampire bodies colliding even through Esme's hands. I even heard something - or somebody - crashing into Edward's precious piano. Oh no… he's going to be so angry…

A moment later, I felt both Esme and Alice relax and release their tight hold, though neither of them let me go completely. As I slowly raised my head, I saw that the living room that I had known was completely destroyed. The huge dining table was thrown in front of the sofa, like a barricade. Holes and dents now marred the wooden floor and pieces of broken balloon, food and glass shards were shining under the surprisingly-intact ceiling light. It almost looked beautiful, like a piece of modern art.

Carlisle was suddenly blocking my view. I must have closed my eyes at some point, as I vaguely saw no chaos behind him. Instead, I saw the tier curtain that Esme made herself; I was seated at the kitchen island. "Bella, I need you to take a deep breath, honey." I heard him say but I was not certain. I felt like I was inside a bubble, which was making it difficult to see, hear, or even feel…

"Alice, let me see her arm. It's okay. You did very well. Jasper, my bag, please…"

A sharp pain on my arm broke the bubble that I was in. I gasped as I realized that my whole body was throbbing. I had various bruises on my body, and landing in Esme's arms probably left more damage.

I felt calm fill the room and saw Jasper back. Esme was also here with a glass of water with a straw, and I took a sip eagerly. It was a nice distraction from whatever Carlisle was doing. I was certain that I was bleeding, but I didn't dare to take even a peek as I was afraid of what I would see.

I guessed from the way Carlisle's was moving so fast that he was tending to my injured arm at the vampire speed. He made some comments that the cuts were not too serious - just some were deep and needed stitches, and I felt Esme relax next to me. He also placed some painkillers in front of me. I think he said that I should take one now, before the local anesthetic wears off.

I didn't want to take them. They make me dizzy and forgetful - which upsets Edward. Edward being upset meant pain for me. And I wanted to avoid the pain. But he's going to be upset anyways… and it was all my fault. I was a bad girl… and now his family also know how unworthy I am…

"Bella?" I heard Esme call me from beside me. She was back to being worried again.

"I'm-m rea-lly s-sorry. It's all m-my f-fault…" I tried to apologize, but it was getting difficult to get the words out.

I felt arms wrap around me, and my face was pressed to a strong, cold surface. I think I smelled a faint smell of alcohol.

"Shhhh. It's not your fault. If anything, we're the ones who need to apologize to you. You got hurt because of what we are. I'm so sorry, my dear." I could feel a profound remorse in Carlisle's voice, and I wanted to tell him that he didn't need to apologize. But I was crying so hard.

"We're sorry for Edward's behavior. You must have been terrified." I felt Esme's gentle hand pat my head, and I cried harder at her mention his name.

***Chapter End***

Thank you for reading! :)
And thank you all for your positive feedbacks!