WARNING! THIS CHAPTER IS LONG. I MEAN.....LONG! I mean, this was a twenty-pager, lots of effort, LONG chapter. But, I hope that despite the length, you can all enjoy it anyway, and appreciate it regardless. Also, it's the final chapter! We're at the end of this fic, and at the end of this adventure! yay! so read and enjoy.
Disclaimer: Twilight wasn't mine at the beginning of this, and Twilight still isn't mind at the end of this
Chapter Fifteen, Big Day
Edward
"We're waiting to pick up Renee from the airport, and then we're coming straight there," Bella was telling me over the phone.
"Sounds good," I said with a smile.
I couldn't wait to see her – it was Saturday evening and other guests were beginning to arrive at the house. I was surprised to see a couple of vampires from friendly covens hovering about. All vegetarian vampires of course, mixing easily with the humans already present. Tanya had her golden eyes on me, but she was the furthest thing from my mind.
"Did you want to come with us while we pick her up?" Bella asked me timidly.
"You know I wanted to, but Alice is making me hold down the fort here," I told her. "We have a couple of vampire friends here too, so we're all acting as security if you will."
"No one dangerous right?" The alarm in her voice was evident.
"No, but it's still precautionary."
I imagined Bella nodding due to the silence on the other line. Then she said in the softest whisper, "I'm really nervous about tonight Edward."
"You're not the only one nervous, trust me," I said with a heavy sigh. Alice always needed to go all out with everything. And while I didn't mind announcing our engagement with a boom, I didn't need the extra 'boom' and a follow up 'pow' if you get my drift. "I can do all the talking if you want," I added, in hopes to ease her nerves.
"Yeah," she said, but her voice sounded absent.
I yearned to see her face, read her expression. "Let's talk more when you get here. In private." I assumed her whispering was because Charlie was lurking around. "How does that sound?"
"Perfect," Bella replied, sounding better already. "I'll see you in a bit."
We hung up, and I took a deep breath. When I turned around, Tanya was standing there, a curious yet seductive look in her eye.
"Nervous for what, pray tell?" she asked slowly.
I gave her a smile. "You'll just have to wait for that, won't you?"
She touched her strawberry blonde hair shyly, and then surveyed the room. "I knew something serious had to be up when I arrived here and found humans littering the area. Alice must be planning something bigger than just a 'get together among friends',"
"Again," I said sternly, "you'll have to wait for that."
"Not even a little sneak peek for me?" She said, touching my arm suggestively.
I glanced up and down at Tanya. She looked sexy as always, since she just happened to exude that naturally, wearing a tight strapless red dress that stopped mid-thigh and hugged every curve she had to offer. All the boys in the room weren't trying to hide the fact about their open staring. In fact, the only ones not staring was Jasper, who was running around behind Alice, and Emmett, whom Rosalie was giving the death glare anytime he tried to take a peek.
And yet, even though she was easily the most desirable thing in the room, I was hardly fazed by her advances. I had never really been interested in Tanya romantically in the first place, but I wasn't even more so now, more than satisfied with the girl I had.
"Sorry, no sneak peeks," I said, gently removing her hand.
She pouted playfully at me, but then shook her hair sexily and regained her confident stance. "I'll never understand you, Edward Cullen. You must be the only man I know who can act so immune to my charms."
"How easily you forget about Jasper," I reminded her, as Jasper didn't see any other woman beside Alice in that light.
She nodded with a soft laugh. "True, true. I should rephrase then: you're immune to my advances."
I nodded. "Now that makes more sense."
She laughed again, then took a step closer. "It always made me curious as to why though."
I shrugged. "You are beautiful of course Tanya, and as sexy as you want to be, but," My mind went back to Bella, remembering her face when I proposed to her: the tears of joy streaming down her pretty face framed by deep dark hair, "my heart belongs to someone else."
She rose an eyebrow at me, and then took a step back. "So it's another girl."
"Yes," I admitted finally. "But you aren't getting anything else but that."
Her expression had become somewhat crestfallen at my words, but her eyes lit up at my final statement. "So this party is about the girl?" she said in a giggle. "Well doesn't that just bring the excitement back into things?"
I laughed at her return to the optimistic: it was one thing we could all expect from Tanya. "Enjoy the party, we'll talk later." I said casually, patting her shoulder before walking away.
I heard the sound of a whimsical sigh coming from her, but I didn't turn around. Alice bounced over to me, concern in her eyes.
"What did Tanya want?"
"What does Tanya always want?" I said in an unconcerned shrug.
"When is Bella getting here?"
"She's picking up her mother, and then they should be coming this way," I told her. "Maybe another hour or so."
"Are you excited?" Alice chirped. "Look at how well I got this place to look. Your 'you-know-what' is going to be even bigger and better."
"Thanks again Al. I do appreciate it, even though it's a little over the top."
"It's not that over the top!" Alice whined. "I haven't even begun to go over the top. You want over the top? You just wait till after graduation!"
I gave her a weak smile, but somehow she was just making me more nervous. "I'm gonna step outside."
"Okay, but as soon as Bella comes, you come right back in and make the announcement. Because everyone is starting to get jittery about what's really going on here."
I nodded before heading out our sliding back door. As I looked around our massive backyard, pictures of my dream wedding started flashing before my eyes. Thousands of flowers, white carpet to lay out the aisle, white chairs set up on either side. And my beautiful Bella, face veiled, holding her bouquet, coming towards me in slow motion, with a proud Charlie on her arm.
I must have been standing there, fantasizing, longer than I thought I would be, because I felt a warm presence come up behind me, and the scent alone made me identify who it was without turning around. When I did come to look at Bella, I first took in just how beautiful she looked. Her hair was half-pulled back with the rest lying on her shoulders. The dress was black, fitted and thin-strapped, with a small v-neck cut and stopping right above her knees.
"I knew Rosalie only had your best interests at heart," I said teasingly.
She blushed, before taking a step closer to me. "When you're right, you're right," she whispered.
We kissed once, then once more, before Bella put her arms around me and rested her head on my chest. "I'm really nervous, Edward," she said quietly.
"We don't have to do this if you don't want to," I told her. If need be, I would tell Alice to come up with some other reason for the party. And she really only needed to convince the non-human guests, since everyone else took it as a regular party.
"It's not that." She pulled back so that I could see her face. "I'm just nervous about what everyone might think."
"About us getting married right out of high school?" I had gone through the high school system enough times to know that people who got married right out of high school we're either expecting a third member of the family, or running away from parents, or something equally scandalous.
She nodded. "Charlie and Renee got married right out of high school too. It was when Mom had me that she left him. I'm just afraid of what they're going to say about this whole thing."
I breathed a sigh of relief. So it wasn't what out classmates thought, just her parents. Well, that was understandable. "They love you Bella. They'll understand."
"And what if they don't?"
I struggled with an answer. "It's whatever you'll want to do following that," I finally said. "I'm never going to change my mind about marrying you. But I can understand if you wanted to go about things differently."
She touched her hair and looked away from me for a moment. She gave a small nod, but it seemed to have more to do with whatever she was thinking, than for what I had just said. I had never wished more desperately to know what she was thinking.
"A kiss for your thoughts, maybe?" I asked her.
She smiled, which eased the knots trying to form in my stomach. "You can get kisses whenever you want, silly," she replied, giving me a kiss afterwards. Then she sighed. "Okay, let's just do this now than later."
She led us back into the center of the living room, towards the refreshment table. There were poured glasses of champagne, and she picked up one of them along with a fork, tapping the fork against the glass to grab everyone's attention. The room quieted at the clinking sound and turned in our direction.
She put the glass down and reached for my hand. I could feel her trembling. "You all must be wondering why Alice called you here," she said in a clear, albeit shy voice. "It's not as casual of a get together as you probably thought."
Her breathing become staccato, and I gave her a reassuring squeeze. Her eyes closed momentarily, and then she said, "Truth is, we have a bit of news." She licked her lips, stalling for time. I wondered if I should step in and speak now, but then she took a deep breath and a warm smile crossed her face. "We are getting married after graduation."
There were loud gasps at first, but the room finally warmed into congratulatory applause. Bella was still smiling, but I saw a twitch in the corner of her lip. I pulled her close to me, whispering, "Everything is going to be fine," in her ear.
"I know," she replied.
"Everyone is taking it really well," I told her after wafting through a couple of thoughts. "Only the airheads think it's scandalous, like Jessica Stanley, and who cares what people like them think anyway? Everyone else is completely happy for us, just a little surprised is all."
She nodded, but looked hardly at ease. A couple of people began approaching us, shaking our hands and giving their congrats. Bella stayed close to me, her arm around my waist. I felt her grip tightening just as Charlie came towards us. Walking next to him was a woman who looked exactly like Bella, but with shorter hair. Surely this had to be Renee, Bella's mother.
"Bella, dear," Renee said, pulling her daughter from my grasp and into her arms. "I should have known something serious was going on when you told me to come down this weekend." She glanced at me with wide eyes. "I just had no idea how serious." She released Bella and stretched out her hand in my direction. "Well Edward, Bella made a point of telling me just how cute you were. If I were a few years younger and not married off myself–"
"Mom!" Bella turned beet red.
"Let's not forget if I wasn't already marrying your daughter," I added lightly.
"That too," Renee said with a grin.
"Edward, well, I must say that I'm very shocked about all of this," Charlie said gruffly. "Don't you guys think you're rushing into this a bit? What about college?"
"I would never pull Bella from her education," I said assuredly. "We'll take a gap year together maybe, and then following that, we'll return to school."
Charlie snorted, then glanced at Bella. She shrunk away from his gaze, closer into my side. "This isn't anything we really need to discuss, right Bella? There isn't a small issue growing here?"
I could tell what Charlie was getting at, and I was about to say something about it, but Bella spoke up. "No Dad, there's nothing wrong, I promise. We're just in love and we want to get married."
"Kind of like you and I, Charlie," Renee said with a grin.
"Exactly," Charlie said with a growl.
"Well Bella is a lot more mature than we were back then, don't you think Charlie? And Edward is such a gentleman." She turned back to me with a wide smile. "At least, that's what Bella tells me all the time."
"Humph," Charlie folded his arms, but he seemed less stern than before. "Well I suppose if I had to marry my only daughter off to anyone, it would be Edward."
The words warmed me more than I could have imagined. "That means a lot Officer Swan," I said honestly.
A small smile appeared on Charlie's lips. "Well if you're going to become a part of the family, you might as well start calling me Charlie."
I heard Bella's sigh of relief and a warm smile crossed her face. I knew we had finally crossed the worst of this situation, and we came out scar-free. Renee continued to talk animatedly to the both of us about planning the wedding – magically, Alice appeared at our sides as well, getting into it with Renee as well. Carlisle took Charlie aside for them to have, presumably, a father-to-father conversation.
"You okay?" I whispered to Bella.
She nodded, glancing up at me. "Everything is perfect."
Bella
The few following months after our engagement party seemed to fly by too quickly. Aside from the very few weird looks from a couple of our classmates, no one really gave Edward and me any slack about being engaged – even after I started wearing the ostentatious engagement ring. And for the most part, it didn't really matter if people were looking or whispering, because I was just so happy with Edward that I hardly noticed anything else. Not to mention I was finally able to sit with the Cullen at lunch and have six Cullens happy to see me instead of five – since our shopping excursion, Rosalie was much more pleasant towards me. I wouldn't say we were as sisterly as Alice and I had now grown to be, but she certainly wasn't shooting me death glares anymore, and that was a welcome change.
Still, it seemed like too soon when graduation had finally rolled around. I had maintained a steady A grade for the remained of the year, and was even due to graduate with honors in Biology, though I figured that had a lot to do with having Edward's help in the class. Of course, he and the rest of the family were graduating summa cum laude (and they were only mildly impressed with all of this, considering they had all been graduating summa cum laude for at least fifty years now. I, on the other hand, was still in awe). Nearing the actual day, the school orchestrated many a graduation practice, in which we were allowed to chose whomever we wanted to walk with on the big day. Edward and I initially gravitated towards each other, but Alice playfully cut us off: "You guys are going to walk together on a bigger day that this one. So if you please Edward, keep my Jasper company."
I wasn't upset to be walking with Alice though – if it wasn't going to be Edward, it was obviously going to be her. And I soon found out what the truth was behind her wanting to walk with me – we were organized into lines of two that would split off once we came to seating. This split meant that whomever you were walking with would not end up sitting next to you. However, whomever was behind you, would end up next to you.
"If I can walk with one of my best friends, and still end up sitting next to my boyfriend for this whole boring endeavor, I choose door number one please," Alice said in laugh once I confronted her. "And you get to sit next to Edward, so we both win!"
On the day of our actual graduation, the sky was filled with ominous clouds, but Alice assured all of us it wasn't going to rain. I suppose it all worked out in the end then – the Cullens wouldn't have to worry about the sun coming down on their skin and lighting them all up as they received their diplomas. Graduation felt like a blur to me – I walked with a permanent smile on my face to the Pomp and Circumstance, and received my diploma with a firm handshake. But inside, all I could think about was next week.
The very next week, I was getting married.
Anytime we were required to be seated, Edward's hand found mine and held it in his lap. He seemed so calm, as if next week wasn't even…well, next week! Then again, Edward was over a hundred years old, and had been born into a time where courting and marriage was as common as it was revered. But I was only eighteen, and marriage was hardly common now anymore, and dating was about as revered as Burger King.
I didn't think I was having cold feet – I was very certain that I wanted to spend the rest of my lifetime with Edward Cullen. But marriage? What had blew my mind with happiness the day of the his proposal, now gave me the chills.
Once the ceremony was over, the graduates left the stage to join their families. Renee hugged and kissed me all over, while simultaneously managing to flick away endless at me with a disposable camera. Charlie murmured how lucky we were that it didn't rain, considering how dark the sky looked. In his own reserved way, I knew he was congratulating me just as much Renee was.
I didn't even really get a chance to bask in my post-graduation glory, because Alice had a whirlwind of pre-wedding plans that had to be carried out. I had to get a final fitting for my dress, we had to get the catering organized for the reception party (for the human guests of course), we had a thousands of calls to make, a million wedding practices to run-through, and apparently, I had to have a rocking bachelorette party (although I was desperately trying to avoid this last one).
Everything went over smoothly – too smoothly, I almost wished there was some drama to delay Saturday. I wanted to talk to Edward, but Alice kept him just as busy as she was keeping me. It wasn't until the night before, following my 'rocking' bachelorette party (I found myself wearing a veiled tiara, permanently red in the face, while two very hunky strippers danced around me and the rest of my female guests cheered and hooted in approval. Even Rosalie got up and did a couple of sexy turns with the strippers), that I finally got a chance to really talk to Edward. I was lying in my bed, trying to fall asleep, when I heard the soft tap on my window.
I turned around in my bed to see Edward sitting on the sill with a small smile on his face. "Hey," he said.
"Hi," I whispered.
He got up from the sill and came over to sit on the edge of my bed. "Tomorrow's the big day," he murmured.
"Yeah," I replied, albeit uncertainly.
He glanced down at me, and touched the exposed side of my face gently. "Are you having second thoughts Bella?" I saw his smile falter a bit, but he kept it up anyway. "You can be honest with me."
"Edward, I…" I paused to sit up in bed as well. "I don't know how I feel."
"You don't want to marry me?"
He sounded so sad, and I instantly frowned. "It's not that, Edward. I want to be with you, I do. But…."
"You don't want to marry me," he added quietly.
"It's not that!" I insisted in a raised tone.
There was a long break, my words marinating in the silence. "What is it then?" he asked me calmly.
I ran my hand through my hair, scratching the back of my head. "I'm scared," I whispered.
"Of what?"
"Marriage," I said in an even softer tone. "I guess I've just never imagined myself getting married. I didn't think I would meet someone that would make me want to get married. And–" I made sure to say this next part carefully "–do we really need to get married if we're already going to spend the rest of our lives together?"
Edward looked hurt again. "Me marrying you has little to do with you being changed, and everything with me being in love with you Bella. I want to make an honest woman out of you. Rosalie and Emmett, Jasper and Alice, and of course Carlisle and Esme, they aren't just living out their existences together. They're married too. Papers and all."
I stopped to think about it, and I did remember rings on the respectable fingers on every member of the Cullen family, though they were quite less ostentatious than the one Edward had bought for me.
"I just want to marry you because it feels right, because I'm in love with you, because that's what people in love do," Edward continued. "Because I want people to look at us, and see our wedding bands, and know what's going on between us, and know the bond that's between us is unbreakable."
I knew what Edward was saying made perfect sense, but my heart still beat with fear. "I want to be with you forever," I told him.
"I want to be with you forever," he replied.
"I don't want marriage to change that," I said. "With marriage, there's always the option of-" my voice broke temporarily "-divorce." I paused, looking down. "There's always a way out: an option to leave."
"That's not an option for me, Bella," Edward insisted, lifting my head gently to meet his gaze. The certainty in his eyes made me weak. "Not ever."
"You promise?" I asked him, voice quivering.
"I vow," he said in a sure tone. He pulled me into his arms and held me tightly. "You're all that matters to me now Bella. Us being married will not change it for the worse. My feelings for you could never change. I'm in love with you, and it will only ever be you."
I didn't know when the first tear fell, but I realized I was crying into Edward's shirt. But I was far from unhappy. With a deep breath, I said, "I love you too, Edward. I still a little nervous, but so long as you promise to be there at the end of the aisle, waiting for me, then being a little nervous and a little scared will pay off in the end…if it means that I can be with you forever."
"You will," he whispered. "We will. Forever."
*
"Bella, are you? … wow."
I was sitting in Alice's room, when I heard her voice coming from behind me. When I turned around, I saw three pairs of golden eyes and one set of brown like my own, staring at me in awe.
"What?" I asked quietly.
"You look gorgeous Bella," Rosalie said in a quiet voice.
Coming from Rosalie, the most gorgeous creature on the planet, this had to mean something. I blushed, "Thanks Rose."
Alice and I had decided on a strapless dress that hugged my bust and stomach, before fanning out into a flowing long skirt, covering my feet. The top half of my dress was beaded with small glistening rhinestones, as was the bottom hem of the skirt of the dress. All my hair and been swept of my shoulders and it a sleek chignon bun, a diamond hair comb tucked in for decoration. I was already wearing the veil, styled as a headband, with the covering for my face up for now, and the train hanging down behind me to the floor.
"Oh honey," Renee gushed, coming towards me, her eyes already wet with unshed tears. "You look more beautiful than I could have imagined."
"Thanks Mom," I said, giving her a quick hug.
"It's almost time to start," Alice said. "Are you ready to do this?"
"Yeah," I said slowly. "I am."
"Don't you worry about a thing with this rain. We successfully moved everything inside, no problem. Everything will run just as smoothly as it would have been if we were in the backyard."
Of course, it hadn't started raining yet, but Alice told everyone she had a hunch it would start soon. And everyone who knew better, knew to trust Alice's 'hunch'. "Thanks, Alice," I said in a grateful tone.
"It will be just like we practiced, just in case this were to happen," Alice explained. "You'll come down the staircase, all eyes on you, Charlie will be waiting at the bottom, and the two of you will walk towards the screen door were Edward will be waiting. We've set up the aisle with a white carpet, so you can't miss it."
"Right," I said with a nod. "I got it Alice. The first time you told me."
"Okay, okay, I can take a hint," she said, grinning. "You truly look amazing Bella."
I blushed. "Thanks Alice."
The women all left the room after giving me a bunch of 'you're so pretty, I'm so happy for you' expressions. I turned back to the full length mirror and took a final look at myself. I smiled at my reflection, actually feeling as beautiful as everyone said I looked. I took another deep breath before turning to leave the bedroom.
I walked down the hall, carrying my dress as to not step on it, going towards the staircase, but staying hidden from sight. Rosalie gave me a wink just before she descended down the stairs, giving me the cue that the ceremony was starting. My heart was beating a million times per second, but I tried to keep a calm exterior. Alice gave me the thumbs up just before she went down the stairs as well. I came to the top of the stairs, watching as Alice was met by Jasper and the two walked down the aisle.
All that was left Charlie.
All that was left was me.
The current music switched easily into the traditional bridal march. I took a deep breath and pulled the veil over my face, before walking slowly down the stairs. Just as Alice had predicted, everyone turned to look at me, making me blush instantly. When I reached Charlie and we linked arms, he patted the top of my arm in a fatherly way. To my surprise, I saw his eyes wet with tears.
"You look beautiful Bells," he whispered to me.
"Thank you, Dad," I murmured.
We walked the aisle slowly, as practiced. I was proud of myself for not falling, considering the amount of times I tripped over myself during practices. Everyone was looking at me with wide smiles, while taking a couple of quick snaps. They soon all became a blur when my eyes locked on with Edward's. He was standing proudly at the altar, looking nowhere else but at me, his golden eyes shining. He looked more handsome that I could have conjured up in his black suit and the attempt to calm his hair, even though it was still adorably ruffled. Once we reached the top of the aisle, Charlie let the tears fall. Just before he could give me away, I turned around and gave him a tight hug.
"I love you so much, Dad," I whispered in his ear. "And I love everything you've done for me. Thank you so much, Dad."
"I love you too, Bells," he said in a voice broken from crying. "He's a good man, and I know you'll both be so happy."
We pulled apart and I turned towards the altar, feeling the tears in my eyes as well. Edward was smiling warmly at me, and instinctively reached for my hand. I held it tightly, and he gave me a soft squeeze. 'I love you so much', he mouthed to me.
'I love you too' I mouthed back.
The wedding march faded away, and the pastor began to talk.
"Dearly beloved…"
Edward
Few things compare to the sight of Bella coming up the aisle, looking heavenly in her bridal gown, her face shielded with the wedding veil. I could see nothing else but my angel floating towards me, and once I had her hand in mine, everything felt more than complete. Once we said our 'I dos', and we could finally face each other, I raised her veil slowly.
She was crying, but there was a smile on her face. Gently, I cupped her moist cheeks and leaned down to kiss her softly. I felt her hands gripping the lapels of my suit jacket as she kissed back. The crowd began to hoot and holler behind us, although I'm pretty sure that was mainly Emmett just being loud. Bella started to giggle when she too realized it was Emmett making the most noise, before taking my hand and leading us back down the aisle and up the stairs.
"Bella, I–"
"Just a few more minutes, Edward," she said as we were at the top of the staircase. "Just a few more moments of me and you."
"It's going to be me and you for the rest of eternity," I said playfully.
She blushed. "I know, but let's have these few minutes anyway," she added before pulling me close into another passionate kiss.
We held each other for a long time, lips welded together, and I felt myself sighing through my nose out of sheer happiness. "I'm so glad we did this Edward," Bella whispered finally, pulling back from me slightly. "I'm so glad we got married."
"I'm so glad we got married," I echoed with emphasis.
She smiled brightly. "Okay, let's go back downstairs now."
Alice had a knowing smirk on her face as we descended the staircase, while everyone else just looked up anxiously. When they saw the smiles on our faces, they erupted into pleasant applause. Jasper and Emmett began moving the chairs around for the reception while Bella and I received our wedding gifts with smiles and stood for thousands of pictures.
The rain had started, but hardly anyone noticed. We took our wedding photos with our bridal party in front of the fireplace and on the staircase as well. Then we all sat down in the assigned seats for the reception, while several people stood up and made toasts. I held Bella's hand through the whole thing as we listened intently.
Alice: "Big brother, and new little sister, words cannot express how happy I am that this day has finally come. Eight months ago, at the start our senior year, I looked at my brother and said 'Edward, that Bella girl would be good for you'. And he kind of brushed me off and said 'yeah, right'. I bet right about now he's eating up his words as much as he's eating up this delicious wedding cake!" The crowd laughed politely, and I rolled my eyes playfully at Alice. She grinned as she continued. "Still, I never gave up on those two. It certainly wasn't easy for them to get to this point – there was a lot of high school drama along the way. But you could tell as their relationship developed, that there was something special building between them, and that a little bit of 'drama' wasn't going to stop them. And look at them now! Married! Who knew?" She paused, then laughed to herself. "I knew!" She added, making the crowd laugh again. Finally, she raised her glass. "So I toast to Edward and Bella, and wish them the lifelong happiness that they both so rightly deserve."
Everyone raised their glasses and cheered. The next person to stand up was Charlie. He cleared his throat and scratched his chin. "Uh, I'm not very good at these things–" with that everyone started to chuckle, including Bella, who then said 'you got it Dad!' "–thanks Bells." He sighed, then continued, "I've only had Bella with me for the past two years, but it was definitely the best two years of my life. Bells is my only little girl, and I love her so much. And if I had to give her away to someone, anyone, I would give her to Edward. Which is what we all witnessed today. Edward is a good guy, and when I look at him, I see the same love and affection I hold for my little girl in his eyes. I know he's the right man for my baby, and I'm glad the two of them have found each other." He now raised his glass. "So I toast to that: for them finding each other."
The glasses were raised again, along with soft murmurs of agreement for Charlie's words. A couple more people stood up and said some heartfelt words: Carlisle, Esme, Renee, Jasper, and even Rosalie said something nice – though her speech was quite short. Once Emmett sat down, there was a long pause, and I figured it was time for Bella and I to speak and to thank everyone for coming. But just as I was about to stand, there was a loud throat clearing noise from the back of the room.
Jacob started to come forward. I saw Bella's eyes light up, and heard her breath get caught in her throat.
"Uh, I don't have a glass," Jacob started.
He looked nervous. I stood up from my table and walked towards him with my glass in my hand. "Here," I said. "Take mine."
"Thanks," he said quietly. Then he turned to the crowd, clearing his throat a second time. "I will admit, I was not a fan of this relationship. I heard Alice talk about some 'high school drama', and I'm pretty sure she was talking about all the problems I caused. I didn't want to lose Bella, because…" he stopped, glancing back to look at Bella at this point, "I loved her. And I didn't think there was anyone else in this world that could love her like I did. So when she told me that she was involved with Edward, all I could think was 'what the hell? No!'."
The crowd laughed, albeit a little nervously. Jacob took another deep breath. "I did some I shouldn't have done, and I handle my jealousy in the worst of ways. I didn't want to listen to reason, or listen to her, and I drove this wedge between one of the most important people in my life. I hurt Bella, when I had convinced myself that I was the only one who couldn't."
Now the crowd went completely stone silent. Jacob turned the liquid in his glass slowly. Bella got up from the table and walked over to where he and I were standing, her eyes shiny with tears. Jacob looked down at her.
"I'm so sorry Bella, for all the pain I caused you," he whispered to her. He turned to me. "And I'm so sorry Edward, for all the pain that I caused you." Then he turned back to the crowd. "Because I realized that there was someone who could love Bella more than I did, and who did love Bella more than I did. And that was Edward. Edward, despite all the trouble I put him through, would not be scared away from Bella. He wouldn't leave her. And Bella, who I determinedly tried to pull away from Edward and went to the most extreme measures to do so, wouldn't leave him either. Their love was something that I couldn't break. And I realized later on, that it was something I didn't want to break. All I wanted in the world was for Bella to be happy, and she was happy with Edward."
He raised his glass shakily. "So, this is for Bella's happiness. For Edward's happiness. For new beginnings and the end of old pacts." I heard Bella gasp in shock at this point. "This is for their love, one that only comes around once or twice in our lifetime."
Everyone not only raised their glasses, but once they set them back down on the table, they started clapping heavily. Half the room was in tears. Bella was past emotional, and she left my side to throw her arms around Jacob. He returned the embrace tightly, and I saw the tears coming from his eyes as well.
"I saw the whole thing," he told her. "The wedding. Alice invited me, and I couldn't miss your big day for anything else."
"I'm just so happy you're here, Jake," she said in a shaky tone. "I'm just so happy that you're here."
Jacob looked up at me while still holding Bella. He gave me a knowing nod, to which I nodded back. And once he and Bella separated, we gave each other a firm handshake.
"Don't keep her away too long," he told me. "Now that that I've ended that old pact, there no reason for you guys to avoid coming back here."
"We'll be back before you know it," I replied. Then I turned to everyone and said, "Thank you all so much for coming, and for being with Bella and I on this special day."
"It means so much to us," Bella added, "to spend an unforgettable day like this with family and friends." She glanced up at me, her smile bright, then looked back at everyone. "But it's about time for us to start honeymooning."
"Yeah, honeymoon!" Emmett hooted loudly just before Rosalie smacked him on the shoulder, giving him a death glare.
Everyone came towards us a second time, giving us their best wishes and final goodbyes. Bella was tearful again as she said goodbye to her parents, but by the time she returned to me, her bright smile had returned.
"To Island Esme?" she asked me.
"To Island Esme." I said, returning her smile.
Bella
"It was nice that Jacob was there," I said to Edward.
We were in the plane on our way to start honeymooning. Edward leaned back in his chair, eyes closed, and a happy smile on his face. He glanced down at the sound of my voice. "It was nice that he came," he replied.
"I was really happy to see him," I continued. "And you heard what he said about that pact?" I added excitedly.
"I did," Edward said with a grin.
"I knew he'd come around," I whispered to myself. "That's my Jacob."
He put his arms around me and held me tightly. "And this is my Bella."
I returned his embrace, giving him a squeeze. "This is my Edward."
We kissed each other gently before gazing into each other's eyes. Never did I ever imagine that there would be so much love waiting for me in those honey-gold orbs of his. I pulled in for another tight hug.
"Are you happy?" he asked me.
"I am so happy," I told him. "I don't think it's possible for me to become happier than I am right now."
"Don't say that so quickly, Mrs. Cullen," he told me. "We still have eternity to spend together."
I giggled. "Right you are."
We released each other, though kept our fingers laced. After a few moments of silence, I asked, "Is it going to hurt, being changed?"
Edward was quiet for a long time, and I glanced over at him to gauge his reaction. Finally, he said, "It's going to burn. The idea is that venom starts replacing your blood, and your entire body needs to undergo a major transformation in order to sustain the venom." He paused, then added, "It might hurt Bella, but I suppose it's different for everyone. When Emmett was being changed, he seemed relatively fine. A day of burning he said, but then he was okay."
A day of burning… I bit my lip thoughtfully. "I can do this."
He squeezed my hand and smiled. "I know you can."
"Right after the honeymoon, you promised," I reminded him.
"I didn't promise that," Edward said with a raised eyebrow. "I don't recall promising anything except changing you." He shrugged. "I'll change you whenever you want."
"Don't do that Edward," I said tersely.
"What are you going to do about, a small human girl like you," he teased.
I glowered at him, before hopping out of my seat and climbing into his lap, straddling him easy. He groaned at the contact, which brought a sexy grin to my face. "There's a lot of things I could do about it," I told him, lowering my eyes suggestively.
"You win," Edward muttered gruffly.
"I always win," I said knowingly.
Edward's hands came to rest on my waist. "I love you."
"I love you too," I said. "This is going to be one hell of an eternity."
"The best eternity it can be now that I have you," Edward murmured as he reached up towards me.
"The best forever now that we have each other," I added softly just before our lips met.
Yay! Final chapter! All that follows is the dramatically short (at least, shorter than this chapter) epilogue, which I also hope you will all enjoy. Since I don't really want to leave any author notes on my epilogue, I'm going to leave them all here.
So thanks to everyone from now who is about to review these next two chapters, and for everyone who reviewed the previous chapters. You really helped make this story what it was, a pleasure to write (and hopefully a pleasure to read). Thank you the anonymous reviewers, who can't reply to personally:: know that I appreciate you just as much as the reviewers that I CAN reply to.
And finally:: thanks for all the reviews you're about to leave (or did I say that already?, lol). anyway, thanks for coming along with me for this fun ride of a story. And I hope to see you all in the future for my next fic (whenever that may be)
Thanks again, and enjoy the epilogue!
--Brin--
