A/N: I'm glad everyone loved the last chapter and I was so excited to pass 1,000 reviews. Yeah me and yeah to TrinityLJ for being my 1,000th review! Everyone loved that they are finally moving in together, and they also loved the song choice, which I admit, I am also a Joshua Radin whore. Go look him up if you haven't had a chance yet.
Special shout outs to MaggieMay14, Flightlessbird11 (seriously, go read her stories), lovebuggkiss (ditto for her) and my new fan fic soul mate addictedtotwilight79.
I hope everyone enjoys the move and the ride!
I don't own twilight, but I do have a daughter who insists on watching Shrek the Halls in June!
EPOV
I couldn't believe it was mid June already. Bella and I had gone to Victoria during the first week of April and now, just over two months later, Bella was finally moving into my apartment. Thankfully, it was a bright and sunny day, although they were calling for a rain a little bit later in the evening. When we broke the news to my parents, my mother was so excited; she was practically bouncing off the walls. Alice seemed to offer us some genuine congratulations, even though I wasn't a hundred percent certain she meant them. Logan simply giggled at us and asked if we had a chance to help him with his little parental problem as we tended to refer to it.
Rosalie and Emmett were still dancing around each other like teenagers, except when they were younger they were a lot bolder about what they wanted. They had gone out on a few more dates and even though Emmett kept insisting to me that he really was still in love with her, whenever I saw them together he was very stand offish with her.
Today, they were both at my apartment helping me and Bella schlep her boxes over from her apartment to mine. We had hired some movers to move some of the bigger items, but they were not expected until later in the day. Bella ended up selling a whole bunch of her stuff on craigslist, simply because it wasn't needed in our apartment. Her bed, her dressers, her desk… all of it was gone already. Hell, she had practically been living with me on a permanent basis since we got home from Victoria anyways. We kept her couch, which we were putting into the spare room, which was also an office for her to do her writing. We had gotten a new desk, sort of as a moving in gift, and Bella had spent way too many hours fixing the office just the way she wanted it, until she determined that she needed the couch because she had done some of her best work on it.
"Please Emmett, it's just one night," I heard Rosalie sigh from the living room. She and Emmett had just walked in, each pulling a small trolley of boxes behind them. Bella followed a few moments later, absolutely fuming.
"Rosalie, I can't babysit for you. I have plans that night. Maybe Edward and Bella here can do it?" said Emmett as he shot me an odd glance and I wasn't exactly sure what was going on.
"When do you need us?" I asked anxiously as Emmett dragged his hand truck into the bedroom and left the boxes behind in a small stack on the floor.
"Next Saturday night," said Rosalie with a nervous grin. "I have a date and I thought Emmett would be able to babysit. Can you do it, please? I would really hate to cancel," she said, practically begging. I nodded my head reluctantly as Rosalie smiled and then hugged me tightly, her hands wrapped around my neck like a vise grip. She glared at Emmett as they both walked into the hallway and back towards Bella's place, still arguing about it.
"What's going on?" I asked as Bella handed me the cooler full of food from her fridge.
"Rosalie doesn't have a date. She's going out by herself in an effort to make Emmett jealous. She told me this yesterday. She's hoping that if he sees she's potentially unavailable he might smarten the hell up and finally make a move on her," sighed Bella as I loaded some of the things into the fridge, including her unnatural collection of like ten different mustards.
"I doubt Emmett has a date, he's probably just saying that because he hates the fact that Rose has one. I'll talk to him later and find out what is going on," I added in frustration as Bella handed me another jar of mustard.
"Seriously, how many fucking mustards do you have?" I asked with a grin as she shook her head at me.
"You'll be bitching one day when you are desperate for mustard with wasabi in it or horseradish mustard," laughed Bella as she turned to walk away from me and I smacked her ass playfully. "You're in trouble for that one," she replied as she headed to the door and waved at me as she started down the hallway.
"I'm counting on it," I called back to her eagerly as I continued to unload various things into the fridge before joining them back at Bella's place. Thankfully, over the past two months, we had managed to bring over most of Bella's belongings, so today wasn't as bad as expected. When I had explained everything to Rose and Emmett, they had agreed to help us rather quickly, which surprised both Bella and me. My parents were taking Logan to the science center today for some exhibit on the human body that Carlisle had blabbered on about the moment he found out about the exhibit. I was certainly glad he didn't try to drag me along and I knew Emmett thought the same thing. Perhaps this was why he and Rosalie had so readily agreed to help us move.
It was almost two in the afternoon when the movers arrived at Bella's place to bring over the last of her items. Clouds were still moving in to the area, but luckily the sky was still relatively clear and we were glad they didn't need to pull out any tarps or rain gear to haul some of her stuff across the road. We were seriously overpaying them for basically carrying over a few shelving units and a couch, but oh well, it was worth it to have Bella at my place permanently.
Once Bella's place was finally empty and the keys had been handed in to her building manager, Emmett and I sat out on my small balcony overlooking the city and sipped on some Corona's in relative silence. "So, do you really have a date?" I asked bluntly as he glared at me, clearly upset that I had apparently caught onto his ruse.
"No. I can't believe she has one though. We've gone out like five times already, I feel like I am working from scratch every time we go out," Emmett added with a sigh as he leaned back in his chair and took a long sip of his beer. I could tell he was frustrated about the entire situation and decided to just come clean with him about the information Bella had given me earlier.
"Okay, you know I am totally on Team Emmett when it comes to this shit, so I'm just gonna tell you everything I know," I started to say as Emmett glared at me in surprise. "Logan really wants you guys back together. In fact, he's basically recruited the entire family, including mom and dad in his efforts."
"No shit," laughed Emmett as he smiled at me, apparently pleased that his son was trying to play matchmaker. "I bet he's buttering up mom and dad as we speak; that little sneak."
"Rosalie doesn't really have a date. She doesn't think you're seriously interested in her so she was trying to make you jealous," I said with a small grin as Emmett looked over at me incredulously. He ran his finger along the rim of his bottle before he began to pick away at the painted on label, clearly thinking about her. "I don't know what is going on with you two, but she wants you man. Make a fucking move or lose her."
"She doesn't have a date?" Emmett stammered as he closed his eyes and I patted him on the shoulder lightly in support. Sometimes, he could be a suave motherfucker, but lately, in the presence of his 'soul mate' Rosalie, he was like a three year old with his head stuck in a lawn chair. Nothing was going right for him in the romance department and it was honestly starting to depress even me. Happy go-lucky, I'm now living with the love of my life, Edward.
"Nope." I glanced back towards the kitchen where Rosalie and Bella were standing talking, no doubt about Rose's situation with Emmett. "Can I make a suggestion? I think you should bust in on Rose's 'date' and finally tell her how you feel."
"And if she rejects me?" asked Emmett nervously.
"Then screw her. You're too good for her then," I said boldly as he took another swig of his beer and patted me on the leg.
"Fine. Find out where she's gonna be and let me know. I'm tired of all these games and I'm sure you would all like Logan to leave you guys alone," added Emmett with a nervous laugh. As we finished our beers, Bella and Rosalie stuck their heads out onto the patio to let us know that they were going to order some pizza before Esme and Carlisle arrived with Logan. "Sounds wonderful," said Emmett a little too enthusiastically. I grinned at him as both girls simply shook their heads in confusion and stepped back into the condo.
"Any suggestions on how to win her over?" asked Emmett quietly after they had disappeared.
"Well, don't kill her with kindness," I added as I took the last swig of my beer and stood from my seat. "Just be yourself, but sexier. Kiss her for fucks sake man or take her home and do god knows what to her. We'll keep Logan overnight. Anyways, I should get back in and move those boxes from the living room before mom and dad get here. Care to help?" Emmett simply nodded his head and followed me back into the condo, which got suspiciously quiet when we walked in.
"So, I told him that he was crazy to think I would go out at such a formal charity event unless he bought me the gown," said Rosalie with an anxious giggle as Emmett and I glanced at each other and simply rolled our eyes.
"Rosalie here is telling me about Bryan, who is taking her to a charity ball next Saturday," said Bella awkwardly as she took a sip of her wine and started towards the bedroom. "Can I talk to you for a moment?" she asked as she pointed at me and I followed her, eager to get away from Rose and Em.
Bella was clearly frustrated at the stance Rosalie was taking in her quest to win over Emmett, but I had to admit, that had he not already known she was lying through her teeth, he would have been moving into caveman mode. "She is driving me nuts. I hope you were able to convince Emmett to pull his head out of his ass," she asked as she opened one of the boxes on the bed and began to put some things away in the new dresser we had gotten for her, which matched mine.
"Yeah. He wants to know where she is really going so that he can surprise her and finally move up his game," I laughed as Bella smiled and I kissed her cheek. "I feel so bad being so sneaky, but something desperately has to change between them or I might have to lock them into a room for a week with a bottle of water and a box of condoms."
"Well, she's apparently having dinner with a co-worker at The Lodge and then heading to the theatre down the street to see Terminator by herself. Can you believe that shit? I don't know why she's not asking Emmett, it's like the perfect date for him. All her shit about this Bryan guy, who by the way works in the mailroom at her office and can barely afford Taco Bell let alone a fancy dinner, is killing me," sighed Bella as she sat on the bed, clearly exasperated. "Is it too much to ask that when we walk back into the room they are fucking like rabbits on our counter?"
I peeked out the doorway and Emmett was perched on my couch watching ESPN while Rosalie was chopping some strawberries at the counter. They almost looked like a married couple in their own right. "Nope, not gonna happen," I laughed as I felt Bella behind me, her arms around my waist. I turned around and leaned forward to kiss her, only to have my next move interrupted by knocking on the front door.
"Rosalie, it's wonderful to see you," I heard Esme say brightly as Bella grabbed my hand and pulled me into the living room with the rest of the family. Logan was wandering over to Emmett and showing him the rather intricately labeled skeleton that he was holding.
"This is the liver," said Logan as he pointed it out to Emmett.
"Yeah Emmett, you remember, the organ you will need replaced sooner rather than later," I laughed as Logan looked at me in confusion.
"You can get a new liver? I hate liver. Momma made me eat it once and it was nasty," sighed Logan as he sat down on the couch beside Em, who wrapped his arm around his shoulder. They started discussing the game on TV as Esme and Carlisle came over and gave us a big group hug.
"This is so wonderful. It should have happened a long time ago," said Esme as she rested her purse on the coffee table and proceeded to rummage through my fridge. I was certain she was about to throw together some sort of meal with all the chicken and mustard we had in the fridge, so I nudged Bella and she spoke up.
"We ordered some pizza for dinner Esme. I certainly hope you and Carlisle can stay for a little bit," requested Bella as she took a sip of the wine she had poured for her and Rosalie earlier. My mother eagerly agreed and I leaned against the wall of the kitchen staring at my family, glad that things were finally moving in a good direction. If only Emmett and Rosalie could smarten up, life could be perfect.
BPOV
The move could almost be considered flawless, if it wasn't for Rosalie and her half-hearted attempts to win Emmett's affections. After five, apparently, passionless dates, Rosalie had decided to make up a date with some imaginary guy named Bryan and insisted that she needed Emmett to babysit, which of course made Emmett create a fake date of his own and now Edward and I were coerced into babysitting Logan next weekend while they did nothing, but stew about their feelings for one another.
Even now, as we all sat around our living room eating pizza and watching baseball, I could sense the tension between the two of them. It reminded me of Edward and I back in Jackson Hole, before we started getting to know each other more and having sex regularly. "And then, we saw a beating heart and blood came out and it was really yucky," said Logan has he waved his arms about, excitedly explaining the exhibit he had seen with Edward's parents.
"Logan, we're eating dinner honey, can we talk about this later?" suggested Rosalie sweetly as she sensed that a discussion on a bloody heart wasn't exactly proper fodder for the dinner table.
"So, Bella, when does the book tour start?" asked Esme with an anxious grin. She was probably already planning our wedding and picking out china patterns, while trying to gauge the best time for a wedding between me and her son, when he hadn't proposed and I wasn't expecting one for a long time to come.
"September apparently, although the release date has been pushed back slightly due to a problem with the printer. I heard something about a possible strike, so I'm just remaining hopeful that things proceed as planned," I said casually as she dragged me into a conversation about Angela and their history together. I kept glancing over at Edward, who seriously looked as though he was in seventh heaven. He wasn't speaking to anyone, but was keeping his eye on everything happening around us. I made a mental note to ask him about it all later when we were finally alone in our apartment.
Our apartment, I still loved the sound of that. Even though Edward was technically the only owner, he said as soon as we were married he was putting me on the deed, which caught me a bit off guard. I finally relented after four conversations on the topic, because Edward kept insisting that he needed us to be equal partners in everything going forward. It probably didn't help that he considered withholding sex from me in order to get what he wanted. Sneaky bastard.
Right after the baseball game ended, Alice and Jasper showed up with a huge basket of cheeses, crackers and wine as a housewarming gift, which I found extremely thoughtful. As I hugged them both for their generous gift, I could hear Edward scoffing behind me. "I've lived here by myself for six months and you never brought me a gift. I finally move Bella in and you come bearing baskets. How is that fair?"
"Well, this basket is for Bella actually. When I moved in with Jasper she got us a huge bottle of champagne. What did you get me when I moved in with him?" retorted Alice as she placed her hands on her hips, which helped her look even more frustrated at her older brother.
"Emmett and I sent you that huge crystal vase," Edward said angrily as he glanced over at Emmett. "I shelled out like two hundred bucks for that thing."
Alice bust out laughing now as everyone glanced over at Emmett. "What? So I forgot to put his name on the card, give me a break. That was like two years ago," sighed Emmett as he turned his attention back to the TV. Edward groaned as he expressed his displeasure at Emmett.
"You probably made me pay for the entire thing too, huh?" Edward asked as he poked Emmett on the shoulder. Emmett simply grinned and said nothing in response, which of course made everyone think that he was right. When I looked over at Esme, she was scowling at Emmett almost as fiercely as Edward was, clearly disappointed in her eldest child.
Alice and Jasper hung around a lot later than the rest of the family, but everyone else had arrived so much earlier than them. I noticed Edward corner Emmett before he left. I knew they were discussing where Rosalie was going to be on Saturday night and I was pleased to see that our plan was coming together somewhat. Logan had asked me earlier in the night if we had any ideas for his parents, and I kept insisting that we were 'working on it'. Although for once, I was telling him the truth.
Once the family had left, Edward and Jasper worked on putting my shelves back together in the office, while Alice helped me unpack some of my photos and breakables in the living room.
"I admit I will still a bit surprised you are moving in with Edward," said Alice as she pulled a photo of her and I from high school graduation out of the box and placed it on the mantel. "My mom kept insisting you guys would be cute together and I never believed her. I think I was keeping you for myself."
"Aww.. . Alice, you know I don't swing that way baby," I said sweetly as I pulled her into a hug. "I may be in love with your brother, but you will always be the first Cullen I loved," I added with a laugh as she squeezed me tightly.
"If you are sure he's what you want, then I am happy for you, just don't name your kids anything stupid," she laughed as I grabbed another photo from the box, this one of Alice, Jasper and I together. It had been before they had started dating and we were all simply friends, back when things were easy and life consisted of school, sleeping and drinking copious amounts of alcohol.
"Consider it done."
We chatted easily as I made a pot of coffee for all of us and were finally relieved when they left around nine o'clock. Edward was lying on the couch, looking exhausted, as I wandered over and sat down beside him, kissing his temple.
"Today was long," he said with a tired sigh as he propped himself on his elbows. "No more moving for a while, okay?"
"Deal," I replied sweetly I lay down beside him and he wrapped his arms around me tightly.
"Since, we're doing the babysitting thing next weekend, Rosalie's going to drop Logan off early and we're going to take him to my parents place, if that's alright with you? They are calling for warm weather and dad opened the pool a few weeks ago," said Edward as I felt his fingers brush along the nape of my neck.
"That's cool. Then we'll be out of the city if the shit hits the fan between Rose and Em. I wouldn't put it past her to hunt us down for letting the cat out of the bag about her pseudo date," I laughed for a moment as I then let out a low groan from the feeling of his fingers dancing down my back, making me ache for him desperately.
I stood from the couch and began sorting through some boxes in the kitchen as Edward fell sound asleep on the couch, his light snoring making me laugh excitedly at the prospect of hearing it every night in our bed. I opened the fridge and noticed even though we had purged two fridges into one, we were still missing a ton of things, the most important being eggs and milk for breakfast the next morning. I glanced up at the clock and saw that it was only nine thirty. Since summer was fast approaching, there was a still a bit of sunlight cascading through the windows and I decided to head over to the local store.
I grabbed a pen and piece of paper and left Edward a short note saying I was heading to the store down the block. It was around the corner from our apartment and I knew a quick trip would only take me ten minutes at the most, so I grabbed the twenty dollar bill and keys that was resting on the counter and quietly stepped out into the hallway, locking the door behind me.
I wandered down the street, enjoying the warm breeze as I stared at the buildings around me. Everything seemed so perfect in the city now that I was living with Edward and I was soon to be a published author. I smiled at some of the couples passing me on the street and recalled the time when Edward and I walked back to my old apartment after reuniting at the Lodge a few months ago. We had been working our way back to one another and dealing with our trust issues, which were now a thing of the past.
I stepped into the store and quickly adjusted to the bright lights as I made my way to the dairy case at the back. Before Edward had come into my life, I would spend many an evening coming down to the store to grabbing a pint of Ben and Jerry's after having an argument with Jacob. I quickly grabbed my items and made nice with the cashier who was clearly new before I headed out onto the sidewalk, my purchases in hand.
The next few moments were a complete blur in my memory. I had noticed that a light mist was falling and then I heard tires screeching and some yelling coming from somewhere, but I didn't know where. I thought I heard someone yell 'move', but I was motionless. All I saw were bright white lights and then there was nothing. No people, no sounds, no Edward.
All around are me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for the daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
And their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I wanna drown my sorrows
No tomorrow, no tomorrow
And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which in dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very very,
Mad world, Mad world
A/N: Sorry for the cliffie. I really do love you guys! Get pissed at MaggieMay14 who thought my plot device was genius. You'll find out more next chapter. The song at the end is Mad World by Tears for Fears, although I personally prefer the Gary Jules version.