Edward had instantly become good friends with Alice, despite the not-so-good beginning. He liked Alice enough that he didn't ask the small, lightweight and probably not-so-strong vampire to move back out of his room. Instead, he chose a different room, one with a view of the forest. Alice shared my view of Edward getting a girlfriend, as did all the of the family. But we thought it'd never happen. That is, until one day...
"Esme!" Alice shrieked, bounding down the stairs. "Esme, Esme, guess what!" She continued on without a break. "Edward's gonna fall in LOVE!"
"Really?!" I gasped, dropping my book. Normally, I wouldn't do that, being a vampire, but I was so happy for Edward. However, it seemed that Edward wasn't happy for himself.
"The future changes, Alice" he growled. Suddenly, his face blackened in rage as he saw the next thing that Alice projected to him. Deliberately, she turned her back to him to talk directly to me, even though Edward could obviously hear.
"Who's the lucky girl?" I asked.
"The new girl. Bella Swan. She will one day...become one of..." Alice paused.
"NO!" Edward roared, jumping into the conversation. Alice completely ignored him.
"Us!" she finished triumphantly.
"No. It's a danger. And it takes away her soul." Edward protested, struggling to lower his voice.
"Dude, you should know. Don't bet against Alice." Jasper sudenly appeared at the bottom of the stairs with a slight smile on his face. It was true, after all. Edward had bet against Alice serveral times, all of them lost. Last time, he swore he'd never bet against her again.
"It's not a bet, Jasper. This is a girl's life that we're taking, not a stupid $25!" Edward exclaimed.
"Whatever" Alice said, dismissing both boys with a flick of her hand. "Esme, lemme tell you some more about her!" Alice was jumping up and down with happiness now.
"Go ahead. It doesn't look like I have a choice here" I laughed.
"OK, so her full name is Isabella Marie Swan. So, what I see, she's very clumsy..." Alice rattled on. I tried to smile and nod in the right places, but it was hard, since she didn't leave any time for reactions. Of course, I was terribly interested, and that was what allowed me to listen to her for the full two hours that she babbled on, at vampire speed.
"They're gonna get married..." Alice continued, a gigantic smile on her face.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa" I protested, a look of shock on my face. "Hold it. They're gonna get MARRIED?!?" Marriage was a human thing, not a vampire thing. Even though for the charade, all of the Cullen couples were married.
"Yup. Can I continue now?" Alice had her tiny hands on her tiny hips, a hilarious expression of impatience.
"Sorry. Go on" I told her, and she continued to babble at the speed of light.
************
"I'm home!" yelled Edward first as he stalked into the house. Odd. Edward was usually happy.
"Hello, Esme!" Alice chirped, skipping along behind Edward. I shot a confused look at first Edward, then her, then Edward, then her again. Alice giggled.
"I've been asking to talk to Bella all day. Thougthwise, of course" Alice told me. "But you won't believe what happened today! Firstly, Jasper was being totured by Edward's protective feelings, but then..." Alice paused for drama.
"She nearly got hit by some stupid human's van! Edward, not caring about the exposure, he ran out there and SAVED her!!" Alice was shrieking now.
"Shut up, Alice! If her blood was spilled, then you know what would've happened! You know her blood smells better than the others to me!"
"It does?" I asked him, surprised. Edward seemed to realize that he'd given something away. Silently, he moved over to the piano, sat down, and started composing. Alice moved over, joining her sweet voice to the melody, leaving to contemplate today's activites.
************
Edward was hunting again for the second day in a row. I noticed that Edward no longer stayed in the house at night, but slipped out of a window. When I asked Alice, she said that he was watching Bella sleep.
"I'm back!" yelled Edward.
"Come on, when are you gonna ask her?" Alice chirped, continuing an argument that had obviously been started previously.
"Ask what?" I asked her.
"He's going to ask Bella out!" she screamed, delighted.
"I'm bringing her to Port Angeles, because she will hurt herself if she goes alone. That is NOT a date." Edward shot back, glaring.
"That has DATE written all over in capital letters!" Alice sang. Edward stomped upstairs, and the sound of Clar de Lune filled the whole house.
Alice was laughing beside me.
*******************
"She knows" Edward said as he entered the house.
"What?" asked Carlisle, stunned.
"She knows what we are" Edward said again, looking directly at Carlisle.
"And she doesn't care!" Alice chirped behind him.
"Alice! you ruin the suspense!" Edward said, laughing. Odd. Edward NEVER laughed these days.
"Oh, he's happy because of his girfriend Bella" Alice mock whispered to me, knowing that everyone could hear. Edward rolled his eyes.
"OK, Bella's coming here. This Saturday" Alice announced.
"No way!" declared Emmett, slipping in behind Rose. "I'll bet, Alice!"
"You're on! You need to pay for a new wardrobe for me, with me chosing the clothes, if you loose." she replied, grinning at him.
"Deal. If I win, then you owe me a new car of my choosing."
"I'm with Alice" announced Jasper.
"Emmett" chimed in Rose. Edward just rolled his eyes.
"Alice for me. You won't catch me betting against her." Edward said, purposefully emphasizing "me". Carlisle and I laughed. My family was back to their normal laughing, happy selves.
