Stephenie has it all. I just decided to play with her characters and add some of mine. I don't own anything you might recognize.
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I'll keep a new updating schedule. Mondays and Fridays!
The outtake is taking longer than planned...but it will be out soon. I hope.
Here's a little more E/B love...for those who missed it.
By December, I was starting to show and it became more real than ever before. My morning sickness simply disappeared on November fifteenth and I couldn't say I missed that. Not feeling sick or nausea every day gave me a newfound energy and I was almost back to my usual self – except the emotional moments that became more frequent. The things I was crying out of were the stupidest things ever, like when Edward came home five minutes later because he had stopped to buy the pizza I had told him to, like when the cupboard's door wouldn't stay close, like when I realized my jeans were a little too tight and the silliest of all, happened when Edward told me he had a surprise.
It was on twentieth, right before we left for his game.
"Uh," he uttered, zipping his bag. "You know that my next few games are…away."
"Yes, and you promised to make it back for Christmas," I said, rolling my eyes. We had had that conversation too many times.
"That's not what I wanted to say. On twenty-fourth, I'd be here. I have something…a present…that can't wait until then," he stammered.
"NO!" I shouted. "You can't! I don't like early presents. You'll have to wait," I told him sternly.
"Bella, I want to be back on time on Christmas Eve but coach may keep us late for the next day's game that's away and I'll do anything in my power to be back in time, but if something happens…I bought us two tickets at-"
My hand shot to his mouth, slapping him probably too hard. "No, no! Don't tell me. You'll be here and give me the present on Christmas morning," I told him, stressing on the last word.
Edward laughed, shaking his head. "Afraid I can't cuz where I'm taking you takes place on Christmas Eve, besides, I'll be in LA on Christmas morning. I'll leave before you wake up."
"Okay, fine. But wait until the Eve, at least."
"Don't you want to know what the tickets are for?"
"Not really," I mumbled. "And you make sure to come home."
"I don't even leave until later that night," he said amused, kissing me slowly. "But I promise that as soon as the game is over, I'm on the first plane back home."
"That you do! It's so awful that you have to play on Christmas," I added, referring to his games on twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth.
He shrugged, slinging the duffle bag over his head and grabbing my hand. "It's nothing."
"No, it's not! You should be home with me," I told him, bursting in tears.
"Christ!" he groaned, turning to me. "Bella, come on, don't cry," he whispered. I cried harder when he squeezed me in his arms. When I heard him chuckling, I knew what he was going to say because he had taken a liking on the new pet name he invented. "Shh, my little fountain."
I snorted, refraining to smile and half-heartedly punching him.
"Hey, no bruises before the game," he teased me.
"You'll have plenty after," I said laughing.
"There's the smile I love," Edward whispered, kissing my nose.
After refreshing my make-up, we left. He was happy to drive his baby again, and was extra careful at every intersection – something he had never been. He'd been such a careless driver.
"Will you be okay? I really hate that we have to come so early," he said, parking the car in the lot.
"Don't worry about me. Concentrate on the game."
"Always am," Edward said promptly, taking my hand as we walked to the building. "You have the same seat as always."
"Are you in the first five?" I asked as we stopped at the tunnel that went to the lockers.
"Yeah, so I expect you to shout," he said teasingly.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but I've never been the cheerleading type," I said as seriously as I could, locking my arms behind his neck.
Edward pouted, putting his hands on my hips. "I'll have to cancel the pom-poms order I had to Santa."
I laughed, bringing his head closer and kissing him soundly. "I don't have to shout. You already know how much I support you."
"I need a little more reminder," he teased me, pressing my back against the wall and descending for a deep kiss. I was moments away from wrapping my legs around his waist when someone cleared their throat.
Edward gulped loudly, peeking behind his shoulder then gasping loudly.
"No fucking way! What are you doing here?" he shouted shocked, turning to the person I couldn't see. When he hugged the person, I saw their head over Edward's shoulder. It was Bob. He winked at me, pushing Edward away and walking to me before lifting me off the ground and spinning me around.
"Bella!" he exclaimed.
"Bob!" I gasped, holding on his shoulders. I was getting dizzy.
"Dude, put her down!" Edward snapped. Once I was safety back on the floor, Edward wrapped an arm around me, leaning over to push against Bob's shoulder. "So what brings you here?"
"Well, I have my winter break and knowing you had a game…I decided to drop by," Bob said, shrugging.
"You decided to drop by? From Seattle to Chicago?" Edward asked in disbelief. "We'll chat after the game, I hafta go, get ready." He kissed my cheek, patted his friend's back before disappearing down the hallway. I could see a new spring in his walk.
"You have no idea how glad I am that you're here," I told Bob.
"Couldn't say no to your invitation, Swan."
"Cullen, if you don't mind," I said lightly, stirring him to the court.
"Cullen, right." He nodded. "I'm gonna ask Tanya this Christmas. She's not like the others, you know? You used to say bad shit about her…but it was her friends that made her act bad. Not bad, uh, like a skank," he told me seriously.
"I never thought you'll actually be with her. I mean, when I used to complain about her, you and Edward agreed with me."
"Yes, but living with her, I realized she wasn't like that at all."
"Well, I'm happy for you if you're happy." I glanced at him and saw his big smile. "Good." I nodded to myself. "Did you come alone?"
"Yeah. When I told Mom about your invitation, she almost started packing for me. Can you imagine how much she loves to have me there?" he asked sarcastically. "Anyway, even Tanya told me to come here. No one wants me," he said dramatically.
"I do." I patted his arm. "Didn't I invite you here?"
"Are we telling Edward about this?"
"Sure. I can't keep secrets from him."
"Why did you ask me to come? I know you both missed me and shit, but from your voice…" Bob trailed off, scratching the back of his head.
I sighed, looking at my hands on my lap. "It may sound really stupid, but..." I glanced at him. "When I want to go out and forget about everything, I have Sylvia or one of my colleagues from work, but mostly Sylvia."
"Yes?"
"Well, Edward goes to a beer with the team or something, but that is once a month. He usually drags me along too. I can't say he isn't close with a few guys from the team, but Bob, you're his best friend. Edward once told me that if he needed something, anything, you'd be the first he went to, not his brother."
"That's so sweet." Bob smirked, fighting a smile.
I slapped his leg. "You lost the point! He doesn't have any best friend here! He misses you. Heck, when we watch some movie, he tells me about the time you two watched it together, when he comes from playing basketball with our neighbor, he says he's nothing like how you two used to communicate…and there was one time, last summer when we drank beer and played cards…I didn't even know of your ritual about knocking the bottles. It's complicated, but I got it and did it then Edward got this far away look," I explained, feeling tears forming in my eyes. Edward was right. I was a human fountain.
"I know what you're talking about. You had to move here because he plays for Chicago Bulls, but you're right. We used to do almost everything together, to see each other every day, to joke together, to eat together, to watch movies together… It is hard, but we grew up and…this is life."
"Bob," I sniffed. "I really wish there was another way."
He wrapped his arm around me, hugging me to his chest. "Me too. At least, we see him every day. The poster," he explained, smiling. "When we don't have customers, one of us looks toward the poster and is wondering what Edward's up to," Bob whispered. "And don't get me started on how many times I heard Alice whine about missing you. And Rose."
I smiled, letting a few tears slip down my nose. "Now the visits can be only during the summer. Edward's busy for the rest of the year."
"You'll be busy too," he reminded me. "How far along are you?"
"Four months. I guess Emmett's wish came true," I joked.
"Really? You can't tell."
"Thanks, but if you look carefully…you'll see the differences."
"Your husband may kill me if I look too closely," Bob said half-joking, half-serious.
I rolled my eyes, sitting up in my chair when the cheerleaders came on the court and started to dance.
"Good seats you got here," Bob commented in my ear.
"Blame it on Edward."
"I never had such a good seat before."
"Like you went to a game where you weren't the player," I mumbled.
"I did!" he hissed. "In the Seattle Sonics era. I was there with Edward and we had the worst tickets ever, but we saw a real game."
"Seattle has a basketball team?" I asked, feeling stupid.
"No longer. In 2008, they moved to Oklahoma, a dispute between the owner and lawmaker."
"Oh, I see."
The commentator announced the teams and the crowd erupted into cheers and applauses when the home team was introduced. They stepped in the court and started waving to everyone.
Bob leaned into me again. "What happened with the beard? I had orders from Mom to shave him," he snickered.
"He didn't shave for a few games and scored then he shaved and didn't score. But that happened in the pre-season," I explained. "I told him that he was insane and he told me about the other players' superstitions and I gave up telling him to shave."
We focused on the game when it started; the score was tight all through it, but in the end the Bulls won. Milwaukee Bucks didn't stand a change after the last break.
"I'll see you in the car," Edward said before leaving to shower, change clothes and give interviews.
I left the arena with Bob, leading him to the car and telling him in more details about what had happened with the accident since he seemed really curious. In the car, I started the engine so I could warm up the air.
"Damn, how can you live here?" Bob moaned, rubbing his hands together from his spot in the backseat.
"You get used to the weather," I told him with a shrug.
"I doubt it."
We kept talking, and it was my turn to ask the questions. I missed everyone so, for the next hour, I found out what everyone had been up to. When Edward finally made it to the car, he was frozen.
"You get used to it, I see," Bob chuckled.
"W-what?" Edward asked through clenched teeth.
"I told him that you get used to this weather," I explained.
"Don't listen to her. My ass is freezing," Edward muttered, looking at Bob through the rear-view mirror. "Home?" he asked, glancing at me.
"Sure. Where are you staying?" I asked Bob.
"I was hoping to crash at your house."
"You haven't seen it!" Edward exclaimed.
"I don't think anyone saw the house," I reminded him.
As Edward parked in the driveway, Bob whistled. "This is a nice place."
"Thanks," Edward answered, getting out and grabbing his duffle bag with him. "You didn't turn the porch light on," he moaned.
"I forgot," I admitted, finding the lock with the light from my phone. "Come in."
Edward showed Bob to the living room while I went to the kitchen to find some snacks. When I reached the living room, I found them looking over some photos. Edward looked up and motioned for me to go closer, wearing a huge smile.
"Come, see this, love."
"What do you have there?" I wondered, perching on the edge of the couch.
"There are a few pictures of Irina," Bob explained. "She's so big. I can't believe there's been three years."
"Is she talking?" I asked, looking at the little girl in picture. She was focused on her daddy's hair, pulling at it.
"Of course, she is! The funny thing is that a couple of months ago she stopped calling Tanya mommy and now, she's calling her Nya. We can't make her understand that I am allowed to call her Tanya, but she's not." He shrugged.
"I'm sure it's confusing. You're calling Mrs. G mom and she has to call Tanya mom," Edward said thoughtfully. "What was going on in here?" he added, shaking the photo in his hand. Bob was in the tub with Irina, wearing a horrified expression, looking toward the camera.
"Oh, fuck!" Bob exclaimed. "Tanya was out with one of her friends and Mom insisted I should man up and wash her. She told me it was alright to wash with Irina. I was skeptic, but I agreed. Fuck, that was the worst mistake of my life."
"What happened?" Edward asked, grinning.
I put the bowl with snacks that I was still holding, on the table, before sliding between the arm of the couch and Edward, focusing on Bob.
He turned red and looked away, clearing his throat. "It's mortifying. I'm sure you realize what happened."
I burst in laughter. "She realized you were different."
"And she kept asking why didn't she have one too," he added, still looking at the carpet. "I turned to shout for Mom to come, save me when I saw her with the camera in the doorway, trying not to laugh."
"What did you tell her?" Edward asked, giving Bob the pictures back.
"I tried to make Mom explain her that, but she told me that when Tanya came back, we should explain together. I was thinking 'what do I have to explain?' because honestly, how much can a two year old understand?" Bob mumbled. "Tanya told her that she was a girl like her mommy and grandma, and that girls were different from boys. That was about it. We're still rubbish at being parents."
"And here, I wanted to ask for tips," Edward said playfully.
Bob rolled his eyes, taking some pretzels in his hand and slouching on the couch. "It's tough, man. But…it's nice, I guess." He shrugged. "Do you have some coffee?"
"That's forbidden around here, sorry," Edward joked. "We have hot cocoa if you want," he suggested.
"Sounds great." Bob nodded.
"Stay here," Edward told me. "I'll be right back."
I knew he was tired, but I appreciated that he offered to make it. All I had to pray was that the kitchen wouldn't look like a war zone afterwards – like the last time I allowed him to make tea. He really had to stick to what he knew how to cook.
"You get used to it," Bob said softly making me look at him curiously. "I know you're scared. Edward told me."
"Of course, I am! I'm sure everyone is scared…but they have nine months to prepare, I think."
"Lucky you," Bob muttered.
"Oh, sorry." I had forgotten he sort was introduced to the baby without the nine months of preparation. I had never actually realized how weird it must have been for Tanya and Bob. At least, we had time to get everything under control…and we hadn't even started painting the room. "I just realized how hard it must have been for you," I whispered.
"And we had school," Bob reminded me. "But everything played out well, I think. Are you starting to get ready? You know? Buy a crib, paint the room, buy clothes?" he asked.
"It's a little complicated," I admitted.
"How can it be?"
"Well, I don't want to know the sex until-" I cringed as a crash came from the kitchen.
"Fucking shit!" Edward shouted. "Bella!"
I shook my head, getting up. "Sorry," I muttered to Bob, going to see what Edward had destroyed.
My white stove was dark brown and cocoa powder was everywhere. The pot Edward used for the hot chocolate was on the counter, dripping the contents on the floor.
"What the fuck, Edward?" I snapped.
"I burnt my fingers," he whispered sheepishly.
"I don't even want to know what you did! This is the second time you're destroying my kitchen!"
"I swear, I didn't want to! I just dropped the kettle," Edward defended himself, stepping away when I advanced to him.
"Watch out!" I yelled, but it was too late. He had stepped right on the hot chocolate puddle on the tile.
"Oh, oops." Edward moved aside, leaving smudges of chocolate everywhere.
"Just stop moving. Take your socks off and go away," I hissed. "I'll clean up."
After peeling his socks off, Edward disappeared from the kitchen. After all these years, he had finally learned not to stay in my way when I was angry. When I finished cleaning his mess, I realized how late it actually was and decided against making a fresh hot chocolate. Going to the living room, I found Bob in front of the unfolded couch, spreading the bed sheet.
"Let me help you," I said.
"Don't worry, I've got it." I watched as he made his 'bed', delaying the inevitable. I never knew how to start a discussion after a fight. "Have to say I missed your fights," he commented.
"Yeah, sorry you had to hear that. He's such a big baby sometimes," I groaned.
He stepped closer. "He's really sorry too. Go and talk," Bob whispered.
"When did you grow up so much?" I wondered amused.
"Figuratively or not?" Bob asked, chuckling. "Go to him, Bella."
I nodded, leaning to hug him. "Thank you for coming here," I said again.
"It's my pleasure." He kissed my cheek and took a step back.
"Did you know he was coming?"
I froze, looking in Bob's wide eyes. When I turned to the doorway, I saw Edward, leaning against the frame, looking upset. We were going to tell him, but not like this.
"So?" he insisted.
"Look, man. She asked if I could come and I said I'd see, then she fucking pleaded me and…I knew, uh, something was wrong," Bob started saying.
"Wrong? What's wrong, Bella?" Edward asked curiously, raising an eyebrow at me. "Why couldn't you tell me if something was wrong? Why bring Bob?"
"Because it wasn't for me!" I exclaimed. "It's for you!"
"Me?" Edward asked surprised. "Why would I need Bob?"
I bit my lip because I could see it in his eyes that he realized why Bob was here. When Edward met my eyes, I felt a tear slipping down my cheek at his tender gaze. He cleared his throat and came to us.
"Thank you, Bella." He kissed my temple before turning to Bob and hugging him tightly. "I appreciate it, man."
"What are friends for?" Bob asked with bravery, but his trembling voice betrayed him. "Christ! Can you go away, Bella? You're making me cry," he complained.
It was then that I realized I was really crying as I watched them. I wished there was some other way to have them close.
"Hey, she's my human fountain," Edward said lightly, squeezing me to his side. "We'll let you sleep," he added, patting Bob's shoulder.
"Yeah. Good night and no funny business, I'm right here."
I rolled my eyes, sniffing. "Take your mind off it," I scolded him. "Night."
Once in our room, Edward apologized for the hot chocolate incident then thanked me for inviting Bob. I told him to take it as an early Christmas present. That night, we locked the door and tried to be really quiet as Edward showed me how much he appreciated my present.
Enjoyed it? Anyone missed Bob?
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