Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to the brilliant Stephenie Meyer.
Renesmee's POV:
I walked excitedly down the hall toward the ballroom with Alice. Before we even got to the ballroom, I could hear the sounds of music and people laughing. Fashionably late to my own ball, of course.
I was going to go through the main set of doors that I always entered through, but Alice ushered me toward one of the other sets, specifically the one that would draw the most attention to my entrance. I didn't put up a fight. I walked into the ballroom and toward where the rest of the people were at. A few of the various vampires in the room saw me, and the others looked my way when Marcus announced my arrival. I unintentionally blushed and allowed Alice to guide me toward where Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett were standing.
"There's the birthday girl!" Emmett shouted over the music although I could hear him just fine. Alice walked over to Jasper's side and kissed his cheek. He looked down at her adoringly and then looked back up at me.
"You look very nice, Renesmee." He told me and I smiled.
"As do all of you." I responded. As Alice pulled Jasper to the dance floor, I looked around trying to find my father. It didn't take too long. His shiny copper hair caught my eye from the corner. He was standing with Carlisle and Esme who were currently speaking to Irina and Laurent. He looked angry and I followed his gaze to Jordan. I chuckled which made my father turn in my direction. Our eyes met and he smiled at me. I smiled back and raised my eyebrows, glancing over at Jordan and then back at my dad. He rolled his eyes and shook his head, chuckling.
"Hey, Ness! Come dance with us." Emmett once again shouted. I followed he and Rosalie to the dance floor where we found Alice and Jasper. The music was fast paced so we all danced together. So as to not be a rude hostess, I also tried to dance with a handful of other people.
Everybody seemed to be having a really great time. After about two hours of dancing and mingling I decided to take a break. It was around this time that a small cake was brought out for me, courtesy of Esme, who insisted that it wasn't a real birthday party without a cake, even if I was the only one who would eat it. Everybody sang happy birthday to me while I stood awkwardly with my beautiful cake.
I looked over at Alice and the rest of the Cullens that were standing with her. She had her hands clasped as she swayed back and forth in Jasper's arms, singing. Emmett was shouting the lyrics to the song while Rosalie tried to sing through her chuckles. Esme and Carlisle smiled at me as they sang and my father looked bashful as he sang quietly, and beautifully, I'll add.
Everybody clapped when the song was over and the music started playing again. Immediately, I was swarmed by the Cullens, all insisting that I open their gifts immediately. I knew that there was no getting around it so I gave in. I was handed two small boxes, and relief began to wash over me.
"This one is from Carlisle and I. We hope you like it, dear." Esme told me, pointing to one of the boxes. I opened it hesitantly. When I opened it, there were two thin pieces of paper. "They're plane tickets. Redeemable for wherever you'd like. We got you four, two for you and two for your mother. We simply ask that you use two to come visit us sometime." She explained. I looked at Alice who looked guilty.
"Thank you both. I can't wait!" I told them excitedly, even though I knew in my head that if there were ever a situation when my mom would be using a plane ticket to go find them, it would not be a happy situation.
Next I opened Emmett and Rosalie's gift. It was very light and I took my time opening it. When I finally opened the small box, there was a photo. It was of a keyboard piano.
"Surprise! We know how much you love to play the piano, so we got you a keyboard. I know it's not the same as a real piano, which we totally would have gotten you weren't so against us spending money on you but we hope you'll like it! I already set it up in your room while you were dancing!" Emmett beamed. Once again I looked at Alice who looked even guiltier. My mom was going to flip this whole castle.
"Thank you guys! It's perfect." I said with a forced smile, hugging both Emmett and Rosalie. After the opening of my new, expensive, controversial gifts, Alice pulled me aside to explain.
"Don't kill me! We went shopping for your gifts right before I found out. I knew about the keyboard because Rosalie told me, but I didn't know about the plane tickets. How mad is Bella going to be?" Alice spoke quickly. I shrugged.
"I have no idea. I think I'll hide the keyboard in the tower with Sulpicia and Athenadora. They've never been able to hear me play, so I think they'll be fine with it. As for the plane tickets, I haven't the slightest clue. I don't think she'll agree to go see you guys just yet—no offense." I explained. She looked upset at the thought that Mom wouldn't want to see her, but quickly replaced her frown with a smile, probably so she wouldn't make me upset too.
"I understand." She responded simply. I noticed that the music changed so that it was now slow music. The dance floor cleared up a bit and couples began dancing together. I noticed Jasper making his way over to us.
"Excuse me for interrupting, but would you mind if I stole my wife away for just a few minutes?" He asked. I smiled and nodded. Alice began skipping toward the dance floor, pulling him along with her. It's adorable how in love they are. I wonder if my parents were ever that in love.
The thought made me happy and sad at the same time. I imagine they were. When Alice spoke about how broken my dad was in response to her death, it made me think that they probably acted similarly to Alice and Jasper. I wasn't certain though. My mom wasn't really one that liked to show an excessive amount of emotion, and my dad didn't really strike me as one to wear his emotions on his sleeve either.
Even if they didn't show their love like Alice and Jasper did, I knew they had to have been pretty in love, and the idea made me smile a bit. I imagined it. I could see them walking hand in hand on a beach. Neither of them would speak, but the silence between them would be comfortable. Mom would stumble (because apparently when she was human she was super clumsy), and Dad would catch her just like he had when I ran into him before. Then Mom would blush and Dad would make one of his clever comments that he seemed to have an endless supply of and Mom would blush and smile or hide her face in his shirt, smacking his chest playfully.
Soon enough the sadness began to flood into me. I knew that my daydreaming was simply that—a dream. That would never happen, not now at least. Mom is so damn stubborn. She thinks she knows what is best for me all the time, and I'll admit a lot of the time she does, but she's not always right. This time, she was wrong about the Cullens. She'd never see that though.
I was pulled from my thoughts when I noticed a cool hand pull my warm one into theirs. I looked up to see Jordan facing me. I didn't even notice him approaching.
"Do you think I could have that dance now?" He asked, smirking. The feel of his hand in mine in combination with the look on his face was nothing less than nauseating. I swallowed and he sensed my hesitation. "C'mon, Princess. It's just one dance. I promise I don't bite." He said and shot me what was supposed to be a dazzling smile. I didn't like the way it felt when he called me Princess. That was my dad's nickname for me and it upset me that Jordan was ruining it. I finally accepted my fate and allowed him to lead me to the dance floor. I doubted he would let me off the hook so easily and I just wanted to get this over with.
He pulled me to the middle of the dance floor and I could see my dad glaring at him from his spot against the wall, sulking just like he said he would be. I caught his gaze and he looked questionably at me. I gave him a look that made it clear that this wasn't my idea.
Jordan pulled me close to him, much closer than I would have liked, and we began dancing. He wasn't a bad dancer, but the fact that he was holding me so close and I had a pretty good clue what he was thinking made the experience unenjoyable. I tried to focus on my surroundings rather than the boy gripping my waist. I saw that a couple others were staring at us in awe and I was once again filled with disgust. I just wanted this to end. I looked over at my dad once again and he was still watching us.
I began listening to the music and noticed that it was a different song than the one that had been playing when we first started dancing. Little asshole. I began to pull away but his grip on my waist tightened.
"Where are you going, Princess?" He asked nicely. I knew better though.
"I thought you said one dance." I responded.
"I thought you said there was nothing going on between you and Edward." He rebutted. I fought the urge to choke him and responded politely.
"I did and there isn't." I replied simply.
"Well maybe you should tell him because he keeps glaring at me." He chuckled, but I didn't.
"He's just looking out for me." I responded. Jordan raised an eyebrow at me and smirked.
"Looks more to me like he's jealous." He smirked. He was really starting to piss me off now.
"I don't see why that would be. There's clearly nothing to be jealous of." I replied, anger starting to slip through my voice. I took in Jordan's expression which seemed to be a little wounded. He quickly recovered and once again a stupid cocky expression covered his face.
"So that's it?" He asked. I was confused.
"What?" I asked.
"You're not even going to give me a chance?" He asked. I began to feel a little bad for him before I remembered who exactly I was thinking about. I shook my head.
"Sorry." I told him. He looked over at where my dad had been standing a moment ago, although he seemed to have disappeared.
"Is it because of Edward?" He asked.
"Not in the way you think." I replied honestly. He looked at me oddly and then looked past me, rolling his eyes.
"Mind if I steal her away from you?" My father asked trying to hide the smirk on his face at Jordan's annoyed expression.
"Do I really have a choice?" He half mumbled, looking at me. My facial expression must have answered his question and he let go of my waist, walking away annoyed. My father was quick to take his place, except that he was well acquainted with the concept of personal space unlike Jordan.
"What took you so long? I was dying out here." I joked. He smiled at me.
"That's my version of revenge since you won't tell me why Alice is hiding her thoughts." He told me. I shook my head. "She's singing this song in Japanese right now in her head. Please help me." He half pleaded.
"No can do, Mr. Cullen. You're just going to have to be patient." I told him.
"How much longer will you two be testing my patience? We leave in a few hours." He said. I could feel my face fall and my throat tighten at his words. I knew they were leaving, but hearing it coming from him made was like a punch in the gut. The reality of the situation was harsher than I imagined it would be. "I'm sorry, Princess." He said when he noticed my expression.
"What? No, don't be. It's fine. I knew you guys wouldn't be staying forever. It was nice having…friends outside of just my family here." I explained.
"I understand completely." He responded, smiling down at me. I blushed a bit. "You know, I don't think I had the opportunity to tell you how breathtaking you look tonight." I chuckled.
"Why, thank you. You look quite dashing yourself." I told him. He seemed to be surprised by my reaction.
"Okay, whatever you say." He responded and we danced some more.
"You know, I was starting to think that I smelled or something with the way you've been keeping your distance from me tonight." I said bluntly. He chuckled.
"Are you saying that you didn't enjoy our thrilling eye conversations?" He joked.
"Don't get me wrong, I did. However, this is much better." I told him honestly. I looked at him and noticed him staring at me with a smile on his face.
"You know, you're really extraordinary, Renesmee." He told me. I blushed a deep shade of red. His smile dropped a bit as his cold hand stroked the blush on my cheek.
"Hey, can I ask you something?" His eyes rose from my cheeks to my eyes and he grinned crookedly.
"I suppose." He answered and I took a deep breath.
"Why did you hate me so much when you first got here?" He looked surprised by my question and thought for a few seconds before shaking his head.
"It's complicated, Renesmee." He told me.
"It doesn't have to be. Whatever you tell me, I won't get mad. I promise." He smiled a bit at me. He was silent for a couple seconds.
"You reminded me of my mate." He said simply and I listened intently, hoping he would continue. "Her eyes were the same shade of chocolate brown as yours…and you have the same heart shaped face. Even your blush reminds me so much of her." I was trying to control my breathing. He didn't seem suspicious, but it was still intense listening to my father talk so endearingly about my mom.
"I thought you didn't like me because you couldn't read my mind." I replied. He grinned crookedly.
"Well that too. You two are the only ones I've ever come across that I can't read." He explained and I nodded. "I'm so sorry, Renesmee." He whispered. I looked at his face which seemed pained.
"Why?" I inquired.
"I was so angry with you for reminding me of her that I was an ass before getting to know you. I shouldn't have taken it out on you." He said sincerely. I smiled at him.
"All is forgiven." I told him. "I guess I should apologize too for making you so upset with my appearance." I told him, seriously. He chuckled.
"You can't control how you look. I just overreacted." I sighed deeply. "I can't even begin to explain how much I miss her." My heart started to race. These were the words I was looking for! He misses her. He still loves her. I know for a fact that Mom still loves him. If only she weren't so damn stubborn! "Are you alright, Renesmee?" He asked me.
"What? Of course! Please continue." I said and he rose an eyebrow at me.
"You're acting strange." He pointed out.
"Am not!" I defended myself. "Go on…" He half smiled at me and twirled me around. I laughed.
"I'm not sure I believe you, but her name was…" He looked up at me, but I saw his eyes travel past me. Immediately, he let out a sharp intake of breath and glancing at his face, it looked like he'd just been kicked in the gut. "Bella?" He whispered, finishing his sentence. It only took me half a second to understand why he would have finished his sentence with such uncertainty.
I turned around and followed his gaze. Standing before us, in the place where the brothers' thrones normally were, was my mother. She was looking directly at us. Her face remained composed, but I could see through her eyes that she was shattered. I could feel my father's hold on me loosen, but I didn't turn to face him. I kept my eyes trained on my mom. After a second, her facade changed and I could see the hurt in her perfect golden eyes.
"Surprise." She whispered although I could hear her just fine. With just that simple word, my whole world came crashing down. Tears flooded my eyes and I thought I was going to fall as I pulled away from my father. She immediately turned and began walking out of the ballroom and I intended to run after her but I felt a cold hand wrap around my wrist.
I turned and saw an unreadable look in my father's eyes. It was his hand that was wrapped around my wrist. I quickly forced it out of his grip, thoughts of my mom filling my head, and ran after my mother, leaving him dumbfounded.
Author's Note:
So there you have it—Bella's back!
I hope everyone is happy with this update. I've been working nonstop all week on my research essay, so I'd be able to get this chapter up for you all.
This is a monumental chapter, in addition to the fact that I had to work my butt off to get it written in time, so I hope you'll be kind and review! I think 295 reviews is an attainable goal for this chapter.
Leave your thoughts on this chapter and predictions!
As always, thanks to everyone who has favorited, alerted, and reviewed on this story! You are amazing (:
Until next time, Taylor
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