DISCLAIMER :Please, check my profile

N/A: Hello! Ushio-chan here! No, I'm not dead. I've been busy and finding the right tone of this chapter was very difficult. Either it was too dramatic, or simply too stupid to be read by others. So, after a long and terrible winter, here it is the 18th chapter.

I also would like to say thanks for the people who added this story in their communities. I feel totally flattered. Thank you, guys for all the support. It breaks my heart every time I get a PM asking me when I'm going to update and I see the draft I have written it isn't good enough.

Well, enough babbling. Happy reading!

Chapter 18

Amazing

"Say you don't know how to do it now

So you run

It's not that you're bleeding, but you're through with it now

So you run, so you run"

Seal – Amazing (Kaskade Remix)

"Hello, Bella." Said Charlie.

It was followed with a really awkward moment, the three of us staring stunned at a very surprised Charlie standing in the vestibule, with his tweed suit and dark coat; like a bunch of deers caught by the lights of a car. I glanced quickly at the mirror on the coffee table and confirmed my suspicions that my hair was standing at weird angles. Alice, at some point of our… dance had taken off her jacket and she grabbed one of the sleeves to shake it at the rhythm of the song.

I don't know how, but what was already was embarrassing, somehow, got worse.

"Like a virgin

Touched for the very first time

Like a virgin

When your heart beats (after first time, "With your heartbeat")

Next to mine"

We looked around, a bit confused, trying to find out of where it was coming. It wasn't the radio, so it should be one of the cell phones. I checked on mine, but it was turned off. I forgot to charge it again. I looked around, confused. We heard a growl from the corner and I widened my eyes at Emmett, when he pulled his cell phone from the pocket of his jeans (he was going to change clothes before going to work), Madonna singing each time louder.

"Give it to me, yeah

No one's gonna show me how

Give it to me, yeah

No one's gonna stop me now"

"It's better if you pick up at once." Said Alice in a calm voice and a devious grin. I bit my lip to not laugh. Emmett's ears were pink with embarrassment. "The next one is the chorus of Erotica."

"Alice!" he roared, but he did what she said and crossed the room to the study on the front of the house and shut the door violently in our faces. Alice and I snorted and Charlie cleared his throat.

"Well." He said, thick dark brows raised a hint of amusement in his eyes. This kind of thing used to happen all the time when we were teens. It was the way it worked. Alice pranked Emmett, Emmett pranked me and we all pranked Edward. "Some things never change."

His voice kind of gets me back to the beginning. What was Charlie doing here? What did he want?

"Dad" I said, my voice shrinking a bit "What are you doing here?"

Alice took a step towards me; both of her palms rose, asking me to calm down. Her bright eyes were wide and serious. I forced myself to calm down a bit.

"Okay, please, don't get at me, Bells. This is my fault. I called him to come here. I wanted you two to have a chance to speak."

I looked at Alice, stunned. Why, I wasn't expecting this. For Charlie to agree about coming here to make amends, I mean. But it wasn't really, a surprise. That was so Alice. It's the same thing she did when she hired Carmen to reform everything. She just fixed everyone's lives. Except her own.

"Its okay, Alice." I muttered, smiling a bit. I really wished she hadn't done this. Charlie and I were… complicated. I knew she had the best intentions. But I kind of wished she hadn't done that. Anyway, Charlie had agreed to come here. So it was a good sign. Maybe things would turn for the best "Thanks."

She nodded and, after giving me a quick hug, she excused herself. I heard her soft steps climbing up the stairs.

I turned to Charlie.

"Err. Sorry about the mess." I whispered and motioned to him to sit on the couch. I opted for the comfy armchair near the widescreen TV. He took off his heavy coat the put the suitcase on the floor.

He looked tired and stressed. I knew he was busy. His law firm was one of the biggest in Seattle. Charlie had started as a police officer, but he took Night Classes and got a Law Degree. He climbed his way to the D.A's Office, where he worked here in NY, until he got the opportunity for a partnership with Billy Black in Seattle. It was the perfect timing. I had no guts to go back to school in NY, so he shipped me to the same boarding school where Billy's son was attending, Very convenient.

"It's not a problem at all, Bella. I can see you guys are quite busy here."

"Yeah, we moved this morning." I said, not sure what to do with my hands. "I'm sorry but we don't have anything to eat or to drink."

Where was Edward with the coffee?

He shook his head. "I'm fine, don't worry about that. I think I chose the worst time to come here, sorry. But since your mother told me you were here and I had a business trip, I decided to come and see how you guys were doing..." He made a pause and looked around and nodded, satisfied. "You did a good job here. It's far less…." He made a pause, looking for the right word.

"Mustard." I completed his sentence with a smile. "Yeah. But we kept most of her furniture."

He looked at me and smiled back, a bit nostalgic.

"Your Grandma was one of a kind. She always had something going on: A trip to Yorkshire, a writers convention, a meeting with some specialist. And she was a stubborn old lady. She refused to move to LA or to Seattle. And she adored you. I knew she'd find a way to join the two things she loved the most."

Wow, that was probably the longest sentence I've heard Charlie speak, except when he's in Court. I didn't know how to reply that, so he cleared his throat, suddenly embarrassed about his little speech. "Listen, Bella. I'm sorry how things ended between us the last time we spoke."

"Oh, Dad." I gasped. I was kind of waiting for a fight. "I'm sorry too."

"No, let me explain. I was under lots of pressure last week. Your leaving was a scandal, people got mad and we had to send back all the gifts. Sue Black was furious and wanted to sue us." He sighed, passing his fingers through his hair.

That was really a Sue Black's thing. The appearance, the image. That was all that mattered for that family.

I raised an eyebrow "Would she be happier if I left Jacob at the alter?"

He looked at me, his expression sad. "No one is happy with any of this, Bella. But Jacob told me he's in town and he's trying to fix things between you two."

My cheeks flushed with anger. I folded my arms. "If he calls to make amends screwing up with my new job…"

Charlie pursed his lips and bent over to lean on his knees, getting himself closer, his expression was hopeful.

"Bella, what Jacob did was wrong. But you're not the first young couple close to the wedding day to have problems. He really loves you. You should try again, make it work. Dear, getting married it's a serious thing. You two had a compromise."

He's got to be kidding on me!

"It wasn't me who cheated." I said slowly, and then I stopped. Why bother discussing this again? "It doesn't matter. I'm not going back to Seattle," I said in a controlled tone. I refused myself to lose my temper with Charlie again. If Jacob was the son-of-law of his dreams, I'm sorry. I have other plans.

His expression turned even more anxious.

"I know that you didn't want any of that, Bella. The high profile wedding, the press…. But since you're here and you have spare rooms." I widened my eyes at him and he waved dismissively "I spoke to Esme. How do you think I got the spare keys to the house?"

"Oh." I said. We had given the spare keys of this house to Esme and Carlisle to keep in case, you know, the four of us lose the keys or some other emergency. What any of this had to do with Jacob.

Oh, God! He couldn't be suggesting…

"So, why don't you invite Jacob to live here and you guys could take it slow…."

I was about to explode when the door was opened and Edward showed up, one of his hands busy with the cup support. His cheeks were a bit flushed because of the cold and his slightly wet hair made me think of a shampoo advertisement.

"Hello. Sorry for the delay." He said with his gorgeous crooked smile, as he closed the door with his feet. But he stopped as soon as he saw Charlie in the room. "Oh, we have visitors." He nodded formally, but the politeness of his tone was impeccable "Hello, Mr. Swan. It's been a long time. "

Charlie stood up, his face pale with anger. There were no traces of the trying-to-make-amends and convince-Bella-to-go-back-to-Jacob anymore.

"Bella what is this boy doing here?"

"He lives here, Dad." I said in a firm tone, studying Charlie's features. That was it, the type of the moment that can decide a relationship. I knew that if I succumbed to Charlie's hate for Edward, I'd lose him again. Not because of Charlie, but because of me. Edward would never do something to separate Charlie and me and be a reason for distress. I loved my father. But Edward was my life.

I looked at Edward and stretched to him. He didn't hesitate. We weren't a couple of teenagers caught in my room in a compromised situation anymore. We had nothing to hide, nothing to be ashamed of. He held my hand and our fingers intertwined. He looked at me and stared back at his emerald green orbs. They were full of love and trust. He nodded lightly. That was the moment.

"With me." I said, finally." We are back together."

There was a moment of silence.

"What is this, Isabella?" he asked, in a controlled voice "What is the meaning of this?"

"This means that I'm not going back to Jacob." I said, raising my chin, my cheeks burning. "Because I'm with Edward now and forever. The wedding is off."

His face suddenly looked like strawberry milkshake badly mixed.

"You what?" he spat, incredulity and anger washing down his face. He took a couple of steps away from us, trying to calm down. "Is this some sort of a joke? Are you doing this to punish Jacob? To punish me because you didn't want a fancy wedding? I can't understand what you are doing with this boy. I believe you remember what happened the last time you got involved with him? What he made you go through? "

Edward took a step forward. His expression was serious, but I could see his eyes shinning.

"Charlie. I'm sorry that we didn't tell you earlier, so you didn't have to discover this way." He gave me a reassuring squeeze on my hand. I squeezed it back. "But what happened to Bella was a sick joke played by an envious girl. I don't know if you recall, but I was also a victim. She took photos of me too." He made a pause and said in a low tone. "It was my fault if I didn't see the type of the person I was hanging out with in time. I was naïve and reckless. If I could turn back time and save Bella from all the humiliation and distress she endured, I would. Unfortunately I can't. I'm sorry for everything you and Bella suffered. But I love her."

I took a sharp breath and said.

"And I love him too." Charlie sighed and I rushed saying. "It's true, Dad. This is what I want. I'm happy here."

Charlie's face went paler.

"I don't believe you, Bella. Your fiancé comes here to try making amends with you and now, you discover that didn't stop loving Edward Cullen? The same bastard you ran off the other time? How can I agree and be happy with something like this?"

I took a step closer to him, ice filling my veins.

"Aren't you forgetting the fact Jacob cheated on me, Dad? At our engagement party? I'm sure we spoke about that."

He made a face and picked up his coat and suitcase.

"I really don't want to hear this anymore. When you get back to your senses, call me. Think about of what you are doing."

"I'm sorry you don't agree with me, Dad." I said as he walked to the door. Edward whispered.

"Aren't you going after him?"

I shook my head and shrugged. "There is nothing to do now. "

I walked with Charlie to the door and opened it. He glared at me and walked out. I saw the shiny limo waiting for him on the corner. I heard a door being opened and Emmett showed up behind the door of the study/bedroom.

"Is it safe to go out?"

I rolled my eyes. "Emmett." I closed the door and turned. Alice was climbing down the stairs, very agitated.

"Sweet Jesus, what a disaster! It wasn't suppose to happen this way!" she shook her head, frustrated and then she glared at Edward "That was your fault! What a freaking bad timing of yours!"

Edward narrowed his eyes at him. "Shut up, Alice! How come you didn't say a word about calling Charlie? If you had planned this right…"

Emmett picked up a cup of coffee and took a sip.

"True. Charlie got us totally off our guard. And you have bad timing, bro."

Edward stared at Emmett, looking perplexed. "Emmett, why on Earth are you wearing sunglasses inside the house?"

We all snorted and Emmett cursed and took off the sunglasses.

"Whatever" he said, waving the sunglasses "Don't change the subject."

I was half hearing them, as they kept discussing Charlie's fiasco. I looked around at the living room. I was sad for what happened to Charlie. But I had tried to live by his rules and this brought me here. And this is what I want. This is my life, my friends and the guy I like. I'm sorry if this displeases Charlie. But I'll not run away from this.

"Guys." I called and they totally ignored me. Emmett and Alice were busy making a revival of all the moments that Edward ruined just because he showed up at the wrong time "GUYS!" I called again, louder.

They turned to look at me, a bit surprised, as they had forgotten I was still here. I put my hand on my hips in a decided movement and said, with a huge smile.

"Forget about Charlie and the dinner I was planning tonight. Let's go out! Pick some place to have a drink and then have dinner."

They all stared at me, stunned and Edward regained his voice before the others.

"Who are you and what have you done to my Bella?"

The others laughed and I gave him a hug. "Your Bella wants to go out. Come on, guys. It's Friday! There must be some place in this city for us to go."

Edward shot his siblings a perplexed glance.

"It's worse than I thought."

Alice shrugged. "I don't care if she's sick or this is an alien. Let's take the chance! How about the New Moon, Em? Do you think we can get a table?"

Emmett chuckled. "I'll see what I can do."

"Excellent!" beamed Alice "And then we could have dinner at the La Bella Italia. I heard their mushroom ravioli is fantastic."

Edward bent to me and asked.

"Are you sure about this?"

I nodded at him. "Sure thing."

And then they got ready to work. The house seemed totally empty without them. It wasn't bad. I liked that house and I had gazillions of things to do, but I didn't want to think about Charlie. Or Jacob. Or Lauren. So, I picked up my purse and went out.

It was still too chilly to be outdoors, so I took the subway and spent the rest of the afternoon at the Met, with the little children visiting the museum. I followed the group of the tourists, enjoying the speech of the guide. On my way back, I passed by the grocery store and bought just the necessities for breakfast and some other things.

When I got home, I realized the cable guy and the TiVo guy were almost leaving. I apologized to them (I had completely forgot about it) and made them come in. I put the things in the refrigerator and prepared myself some hot chocolate and went to the living room. Fortunately, they didn't take too long. I climbed up the stairs and went to my room, taking the hot chocolate.

I turned on the IPod and picked "Claire de Lune" as background music. My room was a bit messy; not only because of my luggage, but also because of the books I had inherited from Grandma and that I wanted to put on the two bookshelves that flanked the big fireplace.

I decided on trying one of her books, mostly because I liked the cover. A red headed woman sat with her back to the camera. She was wearing a white corset and her eyes were closed. It was a fantastic story, with a touch of romance. I liked the classics, but I decided giving a try. I took the book with me to the bench under the bay window and curled myself up to read.

I was awoken up by a hyper Alice, who had escaped from work earlier and had also time to grab a cute outfit from "The Wardrobe" (why was everything at Alice's work in capital letters? Have you noticed that? The Book. The Wardrobe. It was so smug). I nodded, yawning a bit while she pushed me to the bathroom (Alice may be small, but she was quite strong). I took a bath and let her dress me up and put on make up. She had picked out a pair of dark washed jeans, with a navy blue pleated scoop neck tank top. It was very cute. Except for one detail.

"Alice, I'm going to freeze outside."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't fear, woman of little faith. I'll manage that."

"Thanks, Alice." I said, with a shy smile, as she handed me a creamy double-breasted A-line coat in solids. It was very warm. To my distress, she picked a pair of boots.

She nodded, satisfied. Her outfit – black leggings and black turtleneck wool shirt, black boots and a velvet skirted peacoat. She looked great. I said that and she waved dismissively. "Just a few things I found at The Wardrobe." (You see what I mean? Always in capital letters)

The boys were already waiting for us "For a long time" pointed out Emmett. After a quick debate, we decided taking a cab to downtown, instead of going with one our cars.

"New Moon" was the hottest place of the week in NY, and the only indication of the location was a dark circle on the top of the door and the security guards. There were no windows. Inside, as the name said, everything was black, with a few details in white, including the clothes of the waitress. It was typically NY: Beautiful people drinking and chatting, dancing bossa nova as soundtrack and colorful drinks. We sat at a table near the bar. It was black with a white half moon.

We drank and chatted about everyone's day. I was really having a good time. One hour later, Kate showed up in a total white outfit and greeted us cheerfully, looking even more ethereal than usual. It was funny, but she seemed to fit that place even better than us.

I had no idea that Emmett had called her, since he barely speaks about her.

Well, what do I know?

I took a sip of my 'Sex on the Beach" and then I felt Alice's hand squeezing mine. I looked at her and saw she was staring at someplace else.

"What?" I whispered.

"Don't look now. But Rosalie just came in with Royce King. And Lauren."

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N/A: See you on the next chapter. Reviews, please!