Chapter 11: Special Holidays

Bella walked outside with Alice to see Charlie and Emmett trying to get the Christmas tree inside. "Dad please be careful," Bella insisted.

"Bells, I'm forty-two not eighty-two I know how to carry in a Christmas tree," Charlie answered.

Bella smiled as she had Renesmee sit on her hip. "Wow! Weal!" The toddler gasped.

"Yep, a real one," Emmett answered as they got the tree inside.

Bella looked over when Edward pulled up in his car. "DADDY!" She shouted. Edward got out, smiling.

"Hey Renesmee," he greeted as his daughter ran up to him.

He lifted her up, kissing her cheek. "What are you doing out here? It's cold," he commented.

"Hi daddy," she giggled.

Edward walked her back up to the house with a smile. "Hi," he greeted.

"Hi, I see Tanya's not here," Bella commented.

"I left without her," he answered.

Bella smiled a little, clearing her throat. "If you don't mind…I'd like to take Renesmee over to my parents' house," he told her.

"I think Renesmee would like to spend an evening with Grandma Esme and Grandpa Carlisle wouldn't you?" Bella asked her daughter.

"Yeah," Renesmee replied happily.

Edward smiled and rubbed his daughter's back. "You'll bring her back later right? Dad's been waiting all week to get that tree decorated with Renesmee," Bella pointed out.

"No worries," Edward assured her.

Bella smiled and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Before you go anywhere, you're going to get your jacket, gloves, and hat on," she told her daughter.

"Fine," the toddler pouted.

Edward chuckled softly, setting her down. "Hey Bells, I was wondering, how would you like to come up by my parents?" He asked. Bella bit her lower lip.

"That's sweet of you Edward…but I don't think that's a good idea," she replied.

Edward nodded his head slowly in understanding. "Maybe some other time," he told her before Renesmee came out.

"Yeah…maybe some other time," she agreed quietly.

Edward lifted Renesmee up and they left. Bella let out a deep breath, leaning against the doorframe of the front door. Rosalie came out, standing beside Bella. "You okay?" She asked. Bella glanced at her sister-in-law.

"Yeah," she replied quietly before going into the house.

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Two days before Christmas, Bella and Edward were walking with Renesmee through the forest, after hearing the toddler beg for twenty minutes. "I can't believe how much she enjoys the forest," Bella commented.

"We used to," he pointed out.

Bella stuffed her hands in her jacket pocket, clearing her throat nervously. Renesmee was staring at something and Edward walked over to her. "What are you looking at?" He asked.

"Look," she replied.

Edward looked in the snow and saw a track, but it was deep red. "Someone colowed the snow wed," Renesmee commented. Edward looked up and saw what made the snow red, a dead deer was lying not too far from the tracks.

"Come on Renesmee, let's go this way," he told her lifting her up and going down another trail.

Bella went after them and Edward smiled a little. "Hey, Renesmee, want to see something cool?" He asked.

"Yeah," she replied excitedly.

Edward smiled as he walked up a hill with Bella following behind them. She recognized the trail all too well. Edward moved the toddler onto his back. "Hold on," he told her.

"Edward please be careful," Bella insisted.

"Trust me Bella," Edward answered.

Edward jumped up and grabbed a branch, swinging on the other side of a small ravine, making the toddler giggle excitedly. He looked over his shoulder at Bella. "Come on Bells," he told her. Bella rolled her eyes before she ran, jumped up, grabbed the branch and swung over to the other side.

"I still have it," she commented.

Edward laughed and he went up another hill. He pushed back some branches and let out a sigh. "It's still here," he said quietly. Bella smiled as Edward set Renesmee down and she ran around.

"Wow! Pwetty!" She exclaimed.

Bella bit her lower lip, this meadow was all too familiar to her. Especially since this was where Edward took her for their first date back in their Freshman year of high school. "Your special place," she commented.

"I thought she'd like to see it," he answered, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Renesmee sure loves it," she said quietly.

Edward stuffed his hands in his pocket. "Bella…I would like it if we started over…as friends," he suggested.

"We'll see," she answered.

Edward nodded his head slowly, clearing his throat. Bella smiled to see her daughter having the greatest time of her life in the meadow, making snow angels all over the place.

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After awhile, Edward was sitting in his room, wrapping up a present when Rosalie came in. She couldn't help but giggle behind her hand. "What?" He asked.

"Edward, you were never good at wrapping," she replied.

She walked over and grabbed the box from him, fixing the wrapping paper for him. "I'm guessing this is for Renesmee?" She asked.

"No Rose I thought I'd give you the tea set," he replied.

Rosalie smiled a little. "I never had a chance to say congratulations," he told her. Rosalie stared at him.

"Trying to fix everything up?" She asked.

"I'm willing to try if you'll let me fix what I did to the family," Edward replied.

She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, sighing a little. "Well little brother, you have a lot to make up for," she commented. Edward smiled a little and let out a sigh. "Can I ask you something?" She asked.

"Sure," he replied.

Rosalie sat down on the floor. "What were you and Bella fighting about the day you left?" She asked. Edward glanced over at his older sister.

"We were fighting because I thought she was cheating on me with Jacob, it was stupid I know Rose so please don't start beating me over the head with a club," he muttered.

He moved his fingers through his hair. "I want to take it all back Rosalie. I want to take back all the shit I did, all the things I said. I was going to apologize to Bella the same damn day. I even stopped by and bought her flowers and I was going to beg for her forgiveness for putting that blame on her," he explained. Edward closed his eyes tight. "I hate myself Rosalie, I really do, you don't need to punish me for something I'm already punishing myself for, please stop punishing me too," he told her.

Rosalie sighed. "It's not just Bella you hurt Edward," she told him.

"I know! I hurt mom! I hurt dad! I hurt everyone! Stop kicking that shit in my face every time you walk into the damn room," he told her standing up.

Rosalie stood up from the floor. "Edward, what you did was irresponsible and selfish! You wrecked this entire family!" She exclaimed.

"Fine! I'm selfish! Is that what you wanted to hear?! I'm selfish!" Edward shouted.

Edward left the room and ran down the stairs grabbing his keys. "Edward!" Esme called before Edward slammed the front door closed. Jasper looked towards the stairs.

"What the hell Rose?!" Jasper exclaimed.

Rosalie sighed. "I went too far again," she answered.

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Later that night, Edward still wasn't back and Esme was worried sick that he was gone again.

Bella was sitting in the living room when she overheard Jasper telling Emmett about where they found Edward's car. "It's sitting right outside the forest," Jasper told Emmett. Bella got up and grabbed her jacket as well as her keys.

"Bella where are you going?" Charlie asked.

"I'm going to find Edward," she replied.

She left the house before anyone could object.

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She pulled up to where Edward's car was found and pulled her hood on, walking up the hill. She tripped a few times, since the ground was wet with rain and snow. Bella went to step over a ground when she slipped, sliding down the hill. She stood up, cleaning the mud off her. "EDWARD!" she shouted. She started climbing the hill further when she came to the meadow.

Bella pushed back a few branches and found Edward sitting in the meadow in the rain. She walked over and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "Edward…" she said quietly. He looked up at her with a heavy sigh.

"I don't know how many times I can keep apologizing for what I had done Bella," he whispered.

She reached out and placed her hands on his face.

(Flashback)

Bella was by her locker frustrated. "Edward I told you, he just needed my help with something," she insisted.

"Bella you're always with him. You're with Jacob more than you are with me," Edward answered.

"He's my best friend!" She exclaimed.

Edward stared at her. "Some days it doesn't feel that way," he told her.

"What does that mean?" She asked angrily.

Edward was glaring at her when the bell went off. "Listen Edward, Jacob's my best friend. You might be my boyfriend and you know what, if you seriously think that I'm picking Jacob over you, you're crazier than I thought!" She snapped.

"I'm not a fool!" Edward answered.

"Really, you can hardly tell sometimes," she hissed before storming off.

Edward glared before storming off to his own classroom.

(End Flashback)

Edward was staring at her with the saddest eyes she had ever seen. "I'm so sorry Bella, I'm sorry," he whispered brokenly. Bella wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"I know," she answered.