After a few hours of time on our own (Rose and Emmett had gone upstairs as well-to do what, I really don't think I want to know), Alice was banging on the door.
"Carlisle!" she cried. "Renee, Bella's mom, is going to be at the hospital in approximately twenty-four minutes to meet you. And then Bella will wake up tomorrow, make sure to tell Edward that." I smiled, and gave Carlisle one more hug.
"See you later," I said. He kissed the top of my head, then slid out of the bed. I grabbed a book, and started to read, not bothering to get out of bed. I saw Carlisle, fully clothed, leaving the room, and a few seconds later, I heard the car pulling out of our driveway, and racing away to the hospital. I clothed myself, then headed out to work on design plans. Alice hadn't seen any visions of Edward and Bella getting married, but it still might happen. So I had decided to begin building a house, or more of a cottage, to be exact.
Seeing my decision, Alice nudged my shoulder.
"You know it's not just because of that. You know you love to renovate," she laughed. I grinned back. Alice knew me only too well. I bent over the blueprints that I had spread out in front of me, thinking about the best way to fix it up for Edward and Bella.
"Don't forget a closet. I want to stock it," Alice quipped, leaning over my shoulder. I shot a glance at her.
"But Alice," I whined, "It's a cottage. A giant closet would be completely ignoring the proportions!" She looked at my pleading face, a little smirk on her lips.
"Too bad, Esme," she told me. "We can put it on the edge, so that it wouldn't throw the rest of the proportions out of place. Plus, I've already seen you giving in." At the last sentence, Alice's grin grew wider, and she began hopping up and down, unable to help herself. I rolled my eyes. Alice laughed, seeing what I was about to say, but I said it anyways.
"And you say I love to renovate. What about your own inclination to shop?" Alice rolled her eyes, then they suddenly glazed over. I held my breath,, hoping it wasn't anything bad. But a second later, Alice's eyes focused again, and she squealed.
"Speaking of which, I'm going shopping. Bella needs a dress, and some makeup. Edward's taking Bella to the prom!" she giggled, and bounced out the door. I stared after her, unable to help my smile. My family was insane.
We were all vampires.
Alice could see the future.
Edward could read minds.
Jasper was empathic.
Carlisle was a doctor.
Edward fell in love with a human, and he was taking her to the human prom.
How completely insane.
That night, Carlisle came back from the hospital, looking happy.
"Esme," he greeted me, giving me a hug and a quick kiss. I smiled at him, happy now that he was home. Carlisle grinned back at me.
"Alice told you, didn't she?" I asked, guessing at the reason for his happiness. Carlisle's smile only got wider.
"Depends on which article of information you're talking about. She told me that Bella's going to wake up tomorrow, and she told me that Edward's taking her to the prom. But she didn't tell me about this. What's the renovation for?" Carlisle gestured towards the blueprints, house books, and supplies scattered around the room. I smiled, kissing him again quickly.
"Oh, I was hunting, and I found this beautiful cottage. It's a very enchanting place, and I thought that it would be perfect for Edward and Bella if they get married. They could be not too close, and not too far." Carlisle smiled at me, and brushed a strand of hair out of my face. I smiled, and closed my eyes at the sensation. His arms were still around my waist, and mine around his neck.
"Not to mention your love for renovating," Carlisl teased, smiling lovingly at me. I smiled back, staring into his honey golden eyes.
"Esme!" Alice's voice chirped, coming from the garage. Carlisle and I turned to look at the distraction. Alice glared pointedly at the mess of books and blueprints.
"Bella's going to be here all day tomorrow. Since the night is...erm...not a prime time for working on cleaning it up," I looked at Carlisle sheepishly, who returned my glance, looking as abashed as me. "Then you should probably get it out of the way now so that Bella doesn't suspect anything." I nodded, knowing that there was no way I'd be able to contradict the pyschic. Alice turned, and left the room just as Jasper came in. He looked at me and Carlisle, and smiled.
"Hi, Carlisle, Esme," was his greeeting. I smiled back, and watched him follow Alice's back out of the room. Jasper was lugging several giant plastic bags, results of Alice's shopping trip. I sighed, disentangling myself from my husband's embrace. I looked up at him again, and sighed.
"I suppose I have to clean up a bit, according to Alice," I said. Carlisle smiled at me.
"I'll help you," he told me. "Four hands work faster than two, even at vampire speed." We grinned at each other, and quickly cleaned up the mess, before heading upstairs. Carlisle headed into his office, and I could hear a medical book pulled out of the shelf and dropped onto the mahogany desk with a loud thunk. I went into our bedroom, and pulled out a good home renovating book. In Alice and Jasper's room, I could hear Alice commanding Jasper where to put all the makeup, hair, and beauty supplies. I smiled to myself, shaking my head sympathetically.
Poor Bella.
