Chapter Fifteen

Nearly a week had passed. Finally, I was given the okay to ditch my crutch, and Edward and I's relationship, or whatever you wanted to call it, sat oddly in the "watch movies and talk all night and maybe kiss stage." Rose had grown wary of me, and Emmet seemed apologetic enough while still standing by her side. Alice seemed electric with the idea, and Jasper seemed as if he was just happy to see us happy. Carlisle was approving, or so I had been informed, and as told by Edward, Esme whole heartedly approved. Today was the day I was supposed to meet Esme, and was going to see Edward's home for the first time. I was so incredibly nervous that I couldn't stop fidgeting and fixing the hem of my skirt in the mirror. It was the first time I had really gotten to look at my leg in the mirror from this angle in a month, it was striped with nearly faded pink scars that would probably fade to the slightly raised white. Personally I think it made me look like a badass, but Edward seemed saddened by their presence for whatever bizarre reason. There was a knock on my door, just a gentle tapping, before the door creaked open. My father stood in his full uniform with a slight smile, just happy to see me no longer on a crutch and in a boot.

"Hey hon I just wanted to make sure you were set for today?" Ever since the accident he has hated leaving me on Saturdays for his shift.

"Yeah dad, I've got plans set and some homework that I still need to do." I smiled back to him shortly and watched him awkwardly nod and leave, shutting the door on his way.

After he was gone Edward and his fancy car showed up ready to take me to his home where his family of sorts awaited. I stood nervously in the doorway with my tiny backpack purse slung over my shoulder. Edward climbed out of his car and stared at me from just outside of his open door. I knew he could hear the racing thoughts in my mind, the thoughts of anxiety and worry over what his family would actually think of me in a place so removed from the constraints of the human experience.

"Ara, I promise none of them have any negative thoughts towards you." He said with a smile as he approached me.

"Are we sure about that because Rosalie seems to have a tad bit of disdain."

"I'm absolutely sure that Rose doesn't think anything about you that she wouldn't say straight to your face." He shot a smile as I met his gaze with a glare.

"You see, that is the thing I'm worried about. That she will say it to my face, and then I'll have to fist fight her, and of course she would win, but my effort would be notable." I sighed and began to walk off my porch toward where he stood at the base of the stairs.

"Emmett would love that." He chuckled and wrapped his ice cold arm around my shoulders and walked with me to my side of the car, where as always he opened the door for me and helped me in. After my crutch had been removed from the situation I made protests about him still doing this, but he insisted that Esme would have his head if she found out he was anything less than a gentleman. He seemed to like the stream of thoughts that came to my mind after that about how, if it were up to me, chivalry would have died when car doors became common. I just hated waiting for someone to open or close my door when I was fully capable. Granted with Edward the wait wasn't long but it was still a wait of such and that was enough for me.

I would never be able to conceptualize the blinding speed that Edward drove at, but the fear of the speed was nothing compared to the adrenaline that pumped in my veins at a lightning pace. I turned my attention away from the window and just stared at Edward's face as he drove. I saw the smallest smile creep onto his face and watched and wondered what his mind contained, envious that I did not possess the power he did. He turned suddenly down a pathway I didn't even realize was there and we began going up what would have been described as treacherous terrain to anyone who couldn't navigate a car like it was a feather drifting on the wind. I realized we had been riding in silence the whole way, and only began to realize I had no idea where my thoughts had taken me, just that I had lost a bit of time during a zone out. Embarrassment flushed my body and reddened my face to which I heard Edward give a soft chuckle as he parked the car in front of a massive white house nestled into a grove of trees as if it had just sprung from the earth like the trees around it.

"You fascinate me." I heard his voice speak as I took in the house before me, wondering what was behind each door and imagining the possibilities. I turned to look at him puzzled and found him facing me with a smile broken across his heart stoppingly beautiful face.

"Why's that?" I inquired with a laugh.

"Just seeing the world through your eyes is such a magnificent thing, I have never seen a human have a view of the world in such a textured and interesting way." I reached over and held his smooth hand and met his topaz gaze.

"And what do you see, or hear…? Now?" I looked at him with all my wonder, wondering what we were, if we were anything at all, and if he would just kiss me already.

Edward reached his hand forward and sighed, cupping my face gently and brushing my hair behind my ear. "You see things so vibrantly, your thoughts are almost dizzying to hear, the way they circle and come up with something just to dismiss it for another thing. The way you seem to just have this endless loop of things in your head, though muddled at times. It is almost like you don't even realize you're actively thinking about these things while you are. Songs that play in your head for hours on end from a simple sentence spoken near you, that you didn't even acknowledge, are there until hours have passed and you randomly sing the chorus. I'll know what movie or book you want to read before you've even acknowledged it yourself because you daydream about those worlds at a near constant rate before the thought even pops into your mind that you want to read it." He shook his head, the puzzlement clear in his eyes. "It is the first time I have ever noticed someone such as you, you clearly have a unique worldview free of judgement and disdain for others."

I felt the blush creeping onto my face and making it hot, which I was positive Edward had noticed. "Awe shucks," I spoke impulsively as I pushed the hair on the opposite side to Edward's hand, behind my ear. He chuckled and dropped his hand, before I knew it he was out of the car and opening my door to help me out.

Suddenly my heart was racing and my palms were sweaty. I heard Edward chuckle and immediately snapped my attention to him, I probably looked crazed in the eyes and that only made him laugh harder. "You're really more afraid of the idea of meeting someone new and then not liking you than of the fact that everyone in that room is a vampire?" He raised a single eyebrow, and when I nodded as if it were a completely normal assumption, he placed his fingers on his forehead, shrouding his eyes as he shook with laughter.

Once he had stopped laughing he walked me up the steps of the front porch and opened the door for me. The home was so beautiful, an open concept, massive windows all along the back, a staircase that half spiraled up to a second floor. The floors were a rich wooden color and the walls were pale lightening colors that made the room feel more spacious. There was a grand piano in the corner of this main room that my hands itched to play. I only knew a couple songs and they were entirely imperfect, but my mother had taught them to me and that made them perfect in my opinion.

Edward allowed me a few moments in my memories before his cool fingers found their way into my hand and lead me towards the kitchen where his family waited. Once through the door I was greeted almost immediately. "Ari!" Alice danced forward and hugged me in a near bone crushing way. Once she let go Jasper gave me a charming smile and moved to the side. Rosalie regarded me with a simple look and mild disdain, while Emmett gave a large beaming smile and tiny wave like the giant teddy bear he proved to be. Carlisle and Esme were standing at the other side of the entire group, and Esme was breathtaking.

"Nice to see you again Arabella." Carlisle smiled as he walked forward with his wife. "Feeling better?"

"Oh much, thank you." I smiled and then turned my attention to Esme. "Hello, it's so nice to meet you."

"It is lovely to meet you!" Esme exclaimed as she walked forward to give me a small hug. She wasn't much taller than me, and her hair was copper with tones of gold and brown, almost a richer shade compared to my fiery red.

"You have such a lovely home, and that piano in the entrance!" My head sat over my heart as it swelled when I mentioned the piano.

"Thank you so much, but that piano is Edward's," she smiled. "I thought for sure he would have done some showing off by now."

"Oh he's done a bit of showing off." I laughed lightly.

"I hope not too much, that wouldn't be very well mannered." She shot him a glance as if to challenge him.

"Oh no ma'am I think it was an appropriate amount for the matter at hand." I laughed and looked at Edward, whose face was beaming as he looked at his (for all intents and purposes) adoptive mother.

"Edward you should give her the tour." Esme said with a smile, "I can have lunch for Arabella ready by the time you are done."

"Oh you didn't have to do that!" I blushed sheepishly as she waved her hand at me.

"Nonsense, you are our guest and I want to do this for you."

"Okay," I huffed, "and please just call me Ara or Ari, Arabella is much too formal." I felt so embarrassed by my name, even more embarrassed when I was around Isabella all the time, she is the only reason I never went by Bella, because she insisted on the Bells/Bella nickname. Her reasoning was always "well Isa sounds weird but Ara sounds cute." I had moved past it and accepted that I was never going to be a Bella, but the embarrassment I felt from my full name was second nature at this point.

"Ara it is." Esme nodded, wrapping her arm around Carlisle as they walked from the room, whispering things to each other in hushed but quick tones.

The rest of the Cullen's left the room in pairs and Edward and I stood alone in the kitchen, filled to the brim with high end appliances that had seemingly never been used.