.
Chapter 215
Bella
And so the weeks rolled by.
We celebrated some birthdays, saw some exciting games of the children, had many dates and were just happy as a family. And then the Easter vacations already started ...
Our four teenagers had a new relationship with each other. At least that's how it seemed to me. I couldn't really explain why I felt that way. The couples among themselves were as much in love as ever. They regularly made sure that togetherness didn't come up short, cultivated their love relationships, had dates of various kinds on their own. One evening they had each had a date and then had met by chance at the drive-in. Edward knew this beforehand, but had not revealed anything about the plans of the respective couples. But when the four teenagers were all together, however and wherever, it seemed to me more open, but at the same time more intimate, than it had been before. Maybe the twins' supernatural connection was willy-nilly slowly spilling over to Becky and Marcus. I didn't know, I was just happy that they got along so well and cordially.
Anyway.
It was Friday, April 11, 2025.
Next week was Easter. Spring was awakening. It was noticeable. It was getting warmer and brighter every day now and Ced had already marveled at the first spring flowers these days, even though we had once again a lot of snow last month.
Today began the Easter vacations and I expected the students of our family at home at any moment.
I was very nervous today. Ced was also excited. He would be meeting a grandmother today. Yes, my mom and Phil would be here for the weekend. Due to Easter, baseball season was on hiatus this weekend and next. Hence my nervousness. I had taken everything I had to do today with extreme caution. Not that I broke my neck watering flowers because of my mood, in combination with my omnipresent clumsiness. Despite all caution, I had cut my finger, bumped my knee and little toe, riveted a vase, and to top it off, a new bruise emblazoned on my butt.
Ced sat with me on the sofa, and he made sure that nothing else happened to me.
Every move I made was watched closely. With a very serious face. Apparently the Kraken also seemed to pay attention to me. It was also looking in my direction.
It wasn't until Edward was back from school with our kids that Ced and I relaxed.
The twins ran upstairs to their rooms, dropped off their school supplies, passed in the bathroom and kitchen, and were practically gone.
"Remember, Jake. She's a lady and wants to be treated accordingly!", Edward handed the keys to his Jaguar to our son.
As he did so, he also looked quite serious. Just like his baby did earlier.
"How fast is the lady?" inquired Jake with interest.
"A gentleman enjoys and keeps quiet! ... But you shouldn't challenge them!", Edward countered and already Jake and Leah were off in the Jaguar.
They would drive to the Portland airport to pick up Renée and Phil.
Our weekend guests were not poor, but they certainly had to manage their money in case of unplanned major expenses. So we didn't want to overstrain them with the luxury of the various cars that had come into our family through Edward. Last night they had taken the children's Mercedes over to the underground garage. The BMW was also there. Since Dr. Edward Cullen was officially at a medical congress, the Jaguar was now standing around, or rather our children were allowed to drive it as an exception to pick up their grandparents. It would be more spacious than the Audi, Edward's previous car, which he had left to the children after the 'Golf Cross' was buried. The Audi wasn't here yet, however, but Marcus would be here soon enough to substantiate this minor fact-twisting.
Marcus' bus was still in Rose's workshop, but slowly you could guess what it was going to be.
Jake's Harley, on the other hand, had been ready for three weeks.
However, Edward and Jake had already found a new project that would keep them busy for a longer period of time. I didn't know what it was exactly. They had said it, but I had forgotten again. They had stood in front of it respectfully and told me in awe what kind of car it was. They had taken this tin monster from the junkyard, where it had been sitting around for what felt like two hundred years. That was my guess based on the layer of rust and dirt that covered it. Rosalie had also raved about what a pile of junk they were going to deface her garage with. Then the big sheet was removed, and Rose stood in front of it as awestruck and speechless as Jake and Edward had before. I didn't understand, but well. If the bus was going to be finished one day, Edward, Jake, and Marcus were going to work on it together.
Edward walked through our house again with attentive eyes.
Checking if everything was really ready for Renée and Phil and nothing was forgotten.
We generally did not have to change much. Since they knew about Ced, all the baby stuff could stay in place. Well. By now, Ced wasn't really a baby anymore, but a toddler. And at not even sixteen weeks old! He looked older than a year, but not a year and a half. Something in between. It was hard to tell.
Just this week we had to go shopping for new clothes and shoes again, and Ced clearly took after his daddy in terms of taste. Expensive. Everything Ced liked right away, I would never have bought for my twins back then. Why spend so much money if it wouldn't fit after only a few months anyway. With Ced, it was even worse. The things would already be too small in a few weeks.
I had been able to push through, though, and it wasn't the designer clothes that were taken. Only two outfits I had allowed Edward - for special occasions. And this store actually already carried completely coordinated outfits! One of them Ced was wearing right now. A pair of red jeans, a dark blue denim shirt, a red denim bow tie, and denim booties to go with it. He looked so cute, I had to admit. He wanted to look good when another set of grandparents came. I'm sure Edward had talked him into it.
In this respect, we had only taken a few clear wedding gifts to our other house and exchanged photos of Edward for the time being.
But one of him and me was still hanging on my wall. I had photoshopped it with Esmé's help so that Edward now looked like a man my age. I covered him up for the most part, which had made things easy.
The refrigerator for Ced's blood, which was also usually hidden in the small storage room under the stairs here in the house, was now upstairs in my bathroom for the time being. Likewise the baby bottles.
By the way, this had led to a very heated discussion a good two weeks ago.
Zoey had been there and casually asked if Ced was getting too big for baby bottles.
In Ced's presence. Bad mistake! Ced wanted to be a big boy as soon as possible. Like Marcus and Jake. After a lot of crying and screaming in defiance, we had him believably fooled. Blood could only be ingested through a baby bottle. End of discussion. Ced was very skeptical about this outright lie of ours, but in the end he had to believe us. What else could he do? We didn't want to give up our cozy drinking rituals just yet. Not after just three and a half months! No way!
So cozy we sat together on the sofa even now and Ced drank of course.
We made the most of the time we had together until our visitors arrived.
This time, that was also very much in Ced's mind. As long as Phil and Renée were running around here, Edward could not be seen. We had already explained this to Ced. He thought it was most peculiar. As always.
After the bottle I went in the kitchen, so slowly prepare the dinner, while Edward with his son raved. But they soon gave me a hand and I enjoyed having my two men still with me. We teased each other, fooling around, rather inadvertently dinner took shape.
Marcus came home from school at some point, and he had Becky with him. She had something to do at home, so they had not brought her directly.
They greeted us in turn, as usual.
"You look really cool!" stated Marcus to Ced's outfit, and the boys high-fived.
The young people extended the table and set it, so I still had Edward to myself for a little bit, but then Edward's cell phone was already beeping.
The twins had already crossed the city limits and would be here soon.
I sighed and immediately felt comfortable cold arms around me.
"I miss you already," I muttered.
"Otherwise, you can stand a few hours without me every morning," he teased.
"Yes, but that's different ... That's when my mother isn't there either!" I blurted out the last part.
Edward smiled beautifully crooked and breathed a kiss on my lips.
"I'll be back soon, dearest. In time to put our Knob to bed," he promised.
"And what are you doing until then?", I asked him.
He smiled charmingly, but it seemed deceptive.
"My wife has forbidden me to order new windows because the old ones are dirty. In this respect, I have an occupation," he said, deeply theatrical.
I rolled my eyes.
He had made the suggestion in all seriousness!
"See you later, my heart!" he said goodbye and kissed me again.
Forbidden good that I was a little dizzy and then held on to the kitchen counter. Well, that was worth waiting for!
Ced was also sufficiently cuddled again and said goodbye, before Edward disappeared over the terrace into the forest.
Just in time. When I lost sight of him, I already heard the front door.
"Good luck to you both," I murmured to Marcus and Becky, to which they looked at me in slight panic.
I chuckled.
They would need the luck. Phil was a pretty uncomplicated man and one got along well with him. But my mom would bombard them both with so many questions that they would hardly have time to catch their breath. Besides, no questions were too embarrassing or intimate for my mom. She always wanted to know everything, and gladly several times, because it would have been so nice.
And equally, my mother rumbled through our hallway into the living room.
She hugged me, Becky, and lastly Marcus, all very tumultuously, while already voicing so many questions and observations that it was hard to keep up as a human.
So that the two of them would be engaged to their grandchildren, what Jake and Leah had already said about them along the way, how pretty Becky was, how tall Marcus was, whether it had been love at first sight, how nice it would be to be back in Saco, whether I would be a difficult mother-in-law...
Ced hid a bit from the chattering Auntie behind me, but he smiled at this hullabaloo.
Leah went into the kitchen for me to check on dinner.
She had already had this verbose attack through the journey.
Phil had then also arrived in the dining room. He, too, had just watched the spectacle for a moment, but now came up to me and gave me a quick hug.
"Hello, Bella. Thank you for inviting us," he said much more calmly.
"It's good to have you guys here!", I said honestly.
The nervousness that had accompanied me all day was gone. It was good to finally see them both again. It would probably be the last opportunity to look my mother in the eye. I was in for a whole litany of truth-twisting and plain lies, but what the hell. It was like Edward had said. I didn't want to leave my mother with worrying thoughts about me because I had been virtually alone since I was a teenager. In those two days, I could prove to her that I had a very full life, not a lonely one. A happy one, not a sad one. She simply should not worry about me anymore, even if she would not meet Edward in person.
"And so you're the little man we've heard about?" squatted Phil down to Ced's eye level and held out his hand with a smile.
Ced was about to grab it with an equal smile, but my mom was faster.
"Oh my goodness," she exclaimed and immediately knelt by my son. "I've completely overlooked you. I'm terribly sorry about that. You are quite a handsome boy ..." she began to pamper him, pinching his cheeks, tickling his belly.
She also let Ced breathe briefly enough to shake Phil's hand after all – it was probably more of an oversight – and kept on pampering. Accompanied by her never-ending voice. I couldn't tell if Ced was amused, maybe even enjoying it, or just letting it wash over him.
But he knew how to stop Renée. He hugged his grandmother and gave her a tentative peck on the cheek. With that, my mom was then overwhelmed and quiet, smiling like she was high.
Jake handed out drinks and I relieved Leah in the kitchen.
They sat down on the sofa and Renée still had a lot of questions in store, but she didn't let go of this surprised happy face the whole evening.
During dinner she asked almost continuously, and the children had to tell a lot.
I forbade everyone to help clean up in the kitchen afterwards.
The peace and quiet did me a world of good – in between.
However, not much time passed before my mother joined me in the kitchen.
She had actually been able to tear herself away from Ced.
She leaned against the kitchen counter so that she could continue to look at the others.
"Becky sure is adorable. And how handsome Marcus is," she noted. "You sent me pictures of them, but seeing them for real is something else. And how they are with each other. It seems like the love between them is literally tangible."
"Yes. They are all like parts of a whole," I agreed.
"But little Ced tops it all off. I can't believe how cute he is," she continued to gush. "You haven't sent me a picture of him yet. Why not, really?"
Of course, so she wouldn't be surprised at how fast Ced was developing. But I couldn't very well tell her that.
"We wanted to surprise you," I smiled. "But beware of him," I warned, whereupon she gave me a skeptical, questioning look. "He's a charmer!", I stated truthfully.
Renée laughed heartily and could imagine it very well. He would certainly break many hearts. At the moment, mainly mothers' hearts.
"His mother must have looked like you, though. One would recognize you in Ced's face if one didn't know he wasn't your biological son."
Yes, we had noticed that too. Ced had my nose and chin next to my brown hair. Even the red tint, when the sun hit the hair, he had gotten from me, although it shimmered a little bronze with him.
"Edward showed me a picture of her. Yes, she looked somewhat like me. Not confusingly similar, but you might have thought we were sisters," I replied.
"Isn't that strange that Edward chose a woman who looks something like you after you?"
"I wouldn't say that. Everyone has a certain taste when it comes to general type. Leah always chooses guys who are tall, dark, and muscular," I appeased.
"I have to say that I find all of this a little concerning. I remember Charlie calling me when Edward left town that time. He was scared for you and overstrained with you because you couldn't get over that breakup. Who's to say it's going to be any different this time?"
"I just know. Everything is different today than it was then. Edward didn't actually leave me, but his father took another job. It wasn't his decision. Should he have stayed in Forks alone as a minor?"
"But he didn't get back to you after that!"
"But he even explained that to me at the time. He didn't want to leave, he wanted to stay with me, but he had no choice. So he thought it would be better, easier for both of us, if we stopped contact completely. A clean break, as he called it. But he was not happy with it. Charlie once told me that Edward called him once. Back then. He had wanted to know how I was doing and asked what college I was going to. But I was already well on my way to getting together with Jacob, which Charlie told him straight up."
That was a lie, of course, but it was about in line with the human facts that were known at the time: Carlisle had accepted a job in Los Angeles, but we had been seniors. Why shouldn't we have met again in college? Even Angela had asked me about it once.
"Your college? ... I remember how you proudly told me about his grade point average on the phone. With that, he could have chosen one of the best universities, couldn't he? And he would have gone to yours? ... So he already wanted to win you back then? And only changed his plans because of Jake, so as not to be in your way? ... It's romantic," she sighed now.
"But because of the circumstances at the time, it took a long time for us to get together this time. I didn't dare get involved with him. For fear it would end like that again," I said.
I had already told her on the phone how we had met again here, but she wanted to hear it again. Edward had moved here in the summer. He desperately needed a change of air after the death of his wife, but hadn't been able to make it happen sooner because of his job. - An unspecified period of time based on Ced's assumable age. - Shortly after the beginning of the school year we had run into each other for the first time. It had been a shock. In the weeks that followed, the encounters that I had actually wanted to avoid became more frequent. Once I had met him in the city in an ice cream shop. With Ced, who was fighting with a huge ice cream scoop. The little one had wrapped me around his finger, and I finally gave in to meet Edward. Really we were together since the beginning of February, but I had not told the children immediately. For fear, it would still go wrong. Last month Edward moved in here.
"You've always had a hard time with decisions, but once you make a decision, you stick with it and follow through to the extreme," she commented on the rapid changes.
Then my cell phone rang.
It was Edward who wanted to greet our guests, at least by phone, and regretted not being there in person.
"It's really too bad. Couldn't you skip that meeting?" sighed Renée into my cell phone just now.
I smirked at that and turned away from my mom so she wouldn't see.
But I knew what Edward would answer her, even if I didn't hear it. Aside from the fact that this supposed convention was about his field, it was a chance for him to meet his father. He had moved to Saco alone, without his parents or siblings, so he rarely saw them anymore. The last time he would have been there was Christmas. In truth, Esmé and Carlisle had been traveling and vacationing in Europe for three weeks already.
"Now I simply hung up, but surely you still wanted to talk to Edward!" came to Renée's mind when she hung up.
"No, no. I'll call him anyway when I put Ced to bed. That's why he won't have asked for me," I countered, wiping across the countertop.
My kitchen was habitable again.
"And Edward has no qualms about leaving his young son with you? I mean, he doesn't know you guys that well yet, does he? Doesn't Ced crave his daddy? How old is Ced, anyway?" asked Renée.
We had avoided giving an exact age until now because we didn't know what he would look like today. Those had always been quite creative phone calls with her, in order not to have to come out with it. Most of the time something 'happened' exactly when she had asked for it. A tipped over glass, a call on the other phone, I stumbled, the doorbell rang ... After that I could usually avoid her question. Admittedly, Edward had helped me with that.
"Ced is a Christmas baby. He was born on the 25th of December. Not last year, of course. The year before ... 2023," I answered almost truthfully. I had only cheated a year into it. "Ced is very comfortable with us and has settled in quickly here. Jake and Leah are great big siblings and play with him a lot. He even calls me Mommy now," I gushed, grabbing a new bottle of water from the fridge, which we took to the sofa.
Meanwhile, my mother looked touched.
I sat on the floor with Ced, playing with him while my mom asked a lot about what my kids thought of Edward, and she got unanimous opinions back.
"I even let a Dad slip out once," Jake commented, to which Renée was quite taken aback.
After all, my twins were no longer little children who could possibly be wrapped up by a man just because he liked their mommy.
Phil and Renée soon joined me on the carpet, which pleased Ced very much.
New playmates.
At some point I noticed that my wolves had looked up at the same time.
Leah nodded inconspicuously in my direction upstairs. I looked at the living room clock.
It was already after nine o'clock.
"It's about time for bed for you!", I reprimanded Ced playfully.
He shook his head.
"Renée," he gestured to her.
I took his hand.
And he explained through his thoughts that they were just playing so nicely together. Building blocks. Besides, Jake, Marcus, Becky, and Leah would also still be awake.
I replied accordingly: If he were eighteen, he could also stay up as late as he wanted. Renée and Phil would still be there tomorrow, too. Besides, Daddy would surely already be upstairs and have a bottle ready for him.
That worked.
Whether Daddy or blood was the deciding factor, Edward would find out for himself.
So I went up with him.
As expected, Edward was already sitting with the bottle in the oversized colorful armchair in our bedroom.
Ced immediately ran up to him and climbed onto his lap.
"Hello, my darling. How do you like your new grandparents?" he asked our crumb.
Ced snuggled into his arms, ready to drink, and clapped a hand against Daddy's neck.
Multi-tasking.
I snuggled up with the two of them and watched Ced tell about Renée and Phil.
He thought they were nice. Renée's arrival was quite funny. She talked almost as much as Alice.
Ced was not a bit tired after the bottle.
I didn't seriously expect it either.
At least we were already putting his pajamas on when Jake knocked on the door.
I had left my cell phone downstairs and Renée had remembered that I wanted to call Edward.
So I had a welcome excuse to stay up there a moment longer.
I don't know exactly how it happened, but somehow I was quickly lying on our bed and my two men were tickling me out.
Still, I would have preferred to stay up there instead of going back down at some point.
From both I got thick smooches, so that I survived the rest of the evening alone.
Had actually become even quite cozy.
Renée had her grandchildren tell her in hairy detail about their marriage proposals and ended up sitting there with tissues.
On my advice, they had brought along souvenirs in the form of new 'Jacksonville' T-shirts. Five of them, one for each child. Blue, yellow, pink, black and colorful.
The children present gave well-behaved thank you's, Ced would make up for it tomorrow.
Around eleven o'clock, everyone retired to the children's/guest rooms after breakfast was set for nine o'clock.
And in my bed my husband was already waiting for me ...
He was also the first thing I saw the next morning.
"Good morning, my heart," he whispered velvety soft.
I smiled dreamily and let this pretty face affect me on this peaceful morning.
"Good morning, Mommy!" rumbled Ced loudly in contrast, jiggling around in my back.
Peacefulness, goodbye!
But I smiled about it.
Very much so. My baby could rarely sit still. Actually, only when he got his bottle of blood.
While Ced and I had our morning drinks, Edward brought me up to date.
The children were already jogging. All four of them on two legs each. They would bring rolls and croissants from the bakery. He had breakfast ready to the point where we wouldn't have to do much, but it would look to Renée and Phil like we or I had prepared it without any other help. The grandparents, by the way, were still asleep but would be waking up soon.
The three of us quickly got into the shower, got ready and were still frolicking in the living room with morning 'good mood' music until Edward announced that Renée and Phil were on their way to join us. Edward planted a kiss on me and Ced each, me on the lips, Ced on the forehead and off he went again.
I sighed.
Fortunately, our visitors stayed only until tomorrow.
The children all had a 'date'.
Jake and Marcus would run over to the workshop to tinker with Edward and Rose. Becky and Leah, on the other hand, planned to make themselves at home in the attic there and continue writing our story. Today, unfortunately, without me, but we had already agreed on our closer plot ideas, and they wanted to implement them. I was curious about the result.
Therefore, Renée, Phil, Ced, and I were left alone.
I made some suggestions about what we could do until the afternoon.
The boat tour I had taken with Edward on Thanksgiving was unanimously approved.
We had lunch on one of the islands. With Ced I had retired on the boat with an opaque bottle.
We made a detour on the way back via Old Orchard Beach and walked along the beach. It was just ten degrees, but the first surfers were already there.
I told them that Marcus also surfed and that he had tried to teach Leah, Jake, and Becky. How far these attempts had come, however, I did not know.
Would I ask the four of them later.
Ced, however, looked on very enthusiastically.
The sun was shining, but it was quite windy, so we stopped at a beach café.
Ced and I shared a piece of cake, but he asked for a bottle again through his gift. So for dessert, after the cake.
'Can you wait until we get home?' I asked in response.
It was not my way to deny my son blood, I also had a bottle with me, so I explained my question in more detail.
It took some time for him to drink it empty. Longer than if I just re-diapered him and went to the bathroom myself. There was a risk that Renée would come after me and she would then see the toddler with a baby bottle. This was not necessarily unusual in principle, but Renée would then possibly notice that the bottle contained blood. The bottle might fall, revealing the contents, which we would not be able to explain. Especially if my mother got the idea of wanting to give Ced the bottle herself. Besides, we just wanted to finish our coffee and then leave for home anyway. We would be home in half an hour at the latest.
He considered this and then nodded, which I rewarded with a kiss.
And I kept my word. I finished my coffee, had six pieces of cake wrapped up for the teenagers, paid, and not half an hour later Ced got his bottle from Becky.
He was happy! Blood or Becky? One did not know so exactly.
Of course, the children had retreated to one of their rooms so that our guests would not notice.
We rested a bit from the trip, put our legs up, Renée looked at the pictures on the wall, we chatted. Until the kids were with us on time.
We all had a date. Our favorite neighbor had invited us to dinner.
David had lived with us for a while at the time when his parents kicked him out due to his premature fatherhood. We had successfully talked him out of looking for and furnishing his own apartment. The end of his studies had been foreseeable, but it had been clear that his professional future would not lie in Jacksonville. With Daniel, he had lived with us, so Renée now assumed that Daniel would remember them well. He didn't, of course. How could he? He hadn't been a year old when he moved to Philly with his dad. Daniel had no real memories of Philadelphia either.
David grilled, of course.
The men were therefore very quickly standing around the grill with beer and talking shop as they called it.
Leah and Becky were just as quick to engage with the children.
With my mother I went then Sonya in the kitchen to lend a hand, which she should do no longer so much because of the progressive pregnancy.
"Thirty-fifth week," she announced with glee when I did get her to sit down.
Yes, Sonya was nearing the end of her pregnancy, and you could see it physically. Well ... the end of the pregnancy, not of herself. She was still in perfect health, but the enthusiasm about the pregnancy itself was gone. The fat belly bothered her, the heavy legs were annoying, the rapid exhaustion was so not to her taste. She also no longer knew how to lie down at night. In a few weeks she would have it over with and would be rewarded for her exertions with the sweetest gift. Provided Carlisle did everything right. David was the only one who doubted that, but he had more general worries.
The evening was very enjoyable, which was certainly also due to the beer. Of course, my mother did not refrain from asking - in a strange touch of motherly care - what kind of person Edward was.
"He's the best friend I have!", David stated unequivocally to that, which Sonya stated for herself as well.
"Now have you made sure enough that your daughter is in good hands?", I asked my mother with a laugh as we brought plates into the kitchen.
"Don't know yet," she giggled goofily, as if I'd caught her at something. " Maybe it just unsettles me that he's not here, too. That I don't see him among my family on this fun night," she added.
"Usually Edward is there, and he would have as much fun as we do. You've talked to him on the phone a few times, too. Besides, you'll see him at the twins' wedding!", I made clear.
The latter was a lie.
"Oh, honey. I forgot all about that. We won't be able to come then, I'm afraid," she began to apologize.
Something I had already known without her.
"There's the season break, and the team is going to a special training camp for three weeks to prepare for the second half. Since Phil is the head coach, he can't interrupt that. And my presence as his wife is required there this time, unfortunately. The club has its founding anniversary sometime in those days and there will be several official celebrations. I'm very sorry, Bella."
"It's okay, Mom. To be honest, I was already expecting it. You're always away with the team in June," I smiled placatingly.
The truth was that we had informed ourselves about when exactly this training camp would be. When we saw that the club had an anniversary, my vampires had set about putting the flea in the ears of those responsible to celebrate it accordingly. Through many fake accounts on social media, they had asked how this would be honored. Whether there would be official events. A gala dinner for the board ranks. Something special for the fans. They made a point of wanting to include the entire team after all. The players'/coaches' wives were always quickly forgotten at club events. They had driven this so rampant until the first announcements appeared on the homepage. No idea how many accounts they had created, but it was just like always: My vampires were thorough! This time not without self-interest. None of my vampires wanted to give up the wedding. Because that's what it would have come down to if Phil and Renée came to the wedding. For the twins themselves, this was also manageable. They saw their grandparents once or twice a year at most. So they didn't mind if they weren't there that day. It would be worse for my wolves if one of the vampires would be missing. They had much more of a family connection to them.
At some point the younger kids were all in their beds, my four went over with Ced too to put him to sleep and Daniel went with the teens. He was too old to go to bed already, but didn't want to sit up with us alone either.
We chatted about God and the world, drank a beer or two, told amusing anecdotes, reminisced about the past.
Around midnight we went home after a very enjoyable evening.
The youngsters were still awake, of course, and an attempt was made to familiarize Daniel with the world of 'The Dark Eye', however, the wolves were not present.
Marcus whispered to me confirmingly that they were in the forest.
We old people withdrew.
I quietly pushed the bedroom door into the lock behind me and looked around in the darkness.
"Edward?", I asked in a whisper.
No answer. That worried me.
Cautiously, I braved my way to the bed and felt my way to the bedside lamp.
I flicked it on ... and got such a huge shock that I cried out.
"Alice!", I cursed afterwards.
"Hi ... Bella," she fiddled cheerfully, lying comfortably across the bed.
She seemed to be deliciously amused by my fright.
"Bella?", I heard my mother approaching across the hall and I just saw Alice rush into the bathroom.
Actually, I only saw the door being closed.
"Bella. You were screaming. What happened?" Renée was already standing in the doorway.
He was closely followed by Phil, who probably wanted to chase away some burglars or sex offenders.
"Nothing. Just got a fright. There was a spider sitting on the bed," I said with relief.
"Oh, I see ..." she was visibly relieved, too.
"I hope you didn't wake the little guy up with that," Phil nodded toward the cradle.
"I think if ... we would have heard by now," I said, but went to check on my baby.
He narrowed his eyes as if he had been disturbed.
Gently I stroked along his cheek.
"All is well, my darling. Go back to sleep," I whispered.
I adjusted the Kraken and it relaxed again.
"It's okay," I mumbled to my parents.
They nodded and left again.
"Alice!", I then cursed again, but quietly. She also appeared immediately. "What are you doing here? And why do you frighten me so much that my heart almost stops?"
"Question two: Because it's fun. Question one: Because I should excuse Edward."
"How? Excuse me? ... Wait a minute! ... Fun?"
"Yep ... Fun. You humans are so jumpy. That's funny," she said good-humoredly.
"Haha ... Very funny!"
"We were all just coming back from hunting together when we ran into the wolves. Edward accompanied them," she then finally explained.
Okay, I could have figured that out on my own.
We chatted a bit more before she disappeared.
I got ready for bed and just as I was about to reach for my book, there was a knock on my window. I dropped the book in shock and there was a clear giggle outside the window.
But these vampires were all the same!
I stood up and pushed the window up.
"Why don't you come through the door?", I asked annoyed, because one had to scare me all the time here.
"I promised to visit you through the window like I used to," he smiled charmingly, on the other hand.
"Then we lie together now like before? Me wrapped in a thick blanket and you don't touch me?", I asked pointedly.
"Nostalgia is very nice in between, but you don't have to overdo it!", he determined fortunately and kissed me so stunningly that I couldn't have held on to it anyway.
First, however, Edward went to Ced at the cradle and looked at his son.
I knew he hadn't seen him since this morning. After the early afternoon craft session was over, he had planned a more extended hunting trip with his siblings.
"He was very good today," I praised our baby.
Well. Theoretical baby. Practically toddler.
I went to Edward, and he put an arm around me. Together, the proud parents looked down at their treasure.
Ced was so cute when he slept.
I told about Ced's desire for blood when we were at the beach and that he had waited until we were home.
Quite brave.
"Bloodthirst is different for him than it is for us. I've noticed that a few times. He registers it very carefully when there is blood in the air for whatever reason. Whether you cut yourself or bumped ...," Edward said.
"Is there a reason you only use me as an example?", I asked bitingly.
He skipped the answer by breathing a kiss on my forehead. However, he smirked considerably.
"I just wanted to say that he has a very different relationship with blood than we do. He needs it, he knows that, and he tastes that ... Jazz went off on you that time after you cut yourself on the paper. That wouldn't happen to him today, but in Ced, the smell just triggers him to listen inside to find out for himself if he's thirsty right now or not. He also doesn't mind anymore if he has to wait a moment. Like with you this afternoon, or even one afternoon over there when we ran out of blood in our fridge, and I had to get some from Carlisle's house. He's not as obsessed with it as the rest of us."
"And yet he hit me once when I had none left," I recalled of that past afternoon.
"Yes, but he wasn't three weeks in the world then, and he's learned to master that instinct by now. He knows that if he wants blood, he'll get it. Even if it's a little delayed, it's not to spite him. He knows that."
"And one day you will teach your son how to hunt out in the woods?", I asked.
"I think so," he sighed theatrically.
I asked why.
"The thought of my son wrestling with wild animals doesn't delight me any more than the fact that you intend to do the same."
"But Jake and Leah wrestle vampires. You can handle that, too," I stated.
"Only because I know how well they cope with such dangers. The wolves were born to be able to destroy our kind. And they heal on their own. That's an unbeatable argument!"
"And will you also teach me how to kill a cougar or a bear?"
"Since I have no other choice, I guess I'll have to. Not that you die of thirst as an immortal. But we'll probably limit the hunt to squirrels and foxes at the very most! Everything else is too dangerous!"
I laughed at him unceremoniously, which he didn't find so funny.
Squirrels and foxes! My husband must be nuts. However, I admitted that hunting was not necessarily one of the things I wanted to become immortal for. I could do without it even gladly if that were possible.
"But I'm excited to watch you do it then. One of the last things you have never let me participate in. How you surrender to your instincts," I said, as we lay in bed.
"In your presence, however, I follow quite different instincts," he purred, which he then very pleasantly allowed me to participate in.
The next morning was very relaxed.
Renée and Phil invited us out for brunch so no one would have to do anything for breakfast.
The table was reserved for half past ten, so we could take our time.
We were all not particularly late sleepers, although it had not become extraordinarily late in the evening either.
Our teens brought us coffee, Ced's bottle, and themselves to our big bed where we spent some time lounging around together and enjoying time as a complete family. We had a few things to discuss amongst ourselves regarding the day's schedule, but other than that, it was also just really nice to have everyone gathered together.
"Renée's coming over," Edward murmured in the meantime, disappearing into the bathroom.
I quickly slid a little more centered on the bed so that the place where Edward had been sitting didn't seem so empty.
Then there was already a knock.
Renée had just wanted to make sure that I was awake and everything else was in order. She hadn't heard anything; the children's room doors were open and the rooms themselves were empty. Slowly, however, it should be a little busier in the house, because we had to leave in a good half hour to go to the bistro.
"You guys want a cup of coffee to wake you up?" asked Jake.
"We didn't hear you or we would have asked you earlier," Leah added.
Renée declined with thanks.
Coffee within her own morning ritual upset her.
She was now reassured and went back to the guest room.
The teenagers left my bedroom with her to take up the walk to the shower.
Leah winked at me as she made sure to close my door properly, too, and not just accidentally leave it ajar.
"I feel like I'm your secret lover," Edward smirked as he leaned in the bathroom doorway.
"Then be careful that my husband doesn't catch you! He is very jealous!", I warned him.
"I would be too, with a woman like that," he smiled charmingly.
We got ready, but then I had to leave Edward in the bedroom.
The brunch was very cozy, although Renée and Phil now apologized to the twins personally for not being able to attend the wedding.
Phil cursed that this year, of all years, was his club's anniversary. Otherwise, they could have at least left the training camp for a day or two.
However, the twins were really not disappointed about it and promised to visit them in Jacksonville after their honeymoon.
I promised to come over with Edward and Ced then, too.
In the meantime, the teenagers took Ced to a nearby playground, but only so Ced could get a bottle.
All in all, there was still a lot to talk about until we were back home in the afternoon.
Except for Ced and me, everyone was then busy packing suitcases.
Renée and Phil had to go back to Jacksonville and their plane left around 4:30 p.m.
Less than half an hour later, Jake, Becky, Leah, and Marcus left for Los Angeles.
Their birthday presents from David and Sonya. They would fly with all their children of course.
Meanwhile I played with Ced in the living room, could give him another bottle, undisturbed, also a banana, which he plastered sitting on the kitchen counter.
I looked dreamily into the forest and wondered what Edward was doing.
My cell phone beeped.
Why does a beautiful woman look melancholy into the forest?
appeared on my display.
I smiled and immediately looked back into the forest.
I really didn't see him anywhere.
So I wrote:
She searches the dark forest for monsters and misses one of them.
Not for much longer, my heart.
That's when the first suitcase came down.
Jake.
He blithely stole the last piece of banana from his brother and waved into the forest.
"You see him?", I asked, horrified.
"Sure. He's sitting on a branch back there," he said succinctly.
I looked again, squinted my eyes strained and gasped.
I saw nothing there.
One by one everyone came down with suitcases and bags and we left for the airport in the Jaguar and the Audi.
Jake got to drive the Jaguar again, which he was totally excited about.
I would drive back in the Audi and Edward, who of course wanted to see his children off in person, would then drive the Jaguar. Officially, the Jaguar would stay at the airport so that Edward could get home after his convention, which was the last day today.
The Mitchell family was also already loading various luggage.
We just waved as we passed their driveway. We would see them in a moment, after all.
There was a little confusion at the airport as to who needed to go to which terminal, but then we said goodbye to Phil and my mom.
She hugged me tightly, cuddled Ced, also cuddled the twins. Emma was not left out either. Of course, my guests had been quite enthusiastic about the short one.
Almost as much as Ced, but only almost.
While we were changing terminals to send everyone else to California, Edward joined us.
The goodbye chaos started all over again and this time it was a bit more detailed.
"Take good care of my babies!", I demanded of David, a little parting tear sitting in the corner of my eye.
"Like they were mine," he promised and gave me a kiss.
Sonya was admonished by Edward not to overexert herself.
We strongly reminded our four children to be on their best behavior. Both in Los Angeles under David's supervision and in Forks, where they would fly on to the next Saturday, while David returned to Saco with his family.
Then it was time to board the plane and we who stayed behind waved after them for a long time.
Longer than they could have seen it.
"Then I guess we should go home," I sighed wistfully.
Ced was also a little glum on Edward's arm after his siblings would be gone for almost two weeks.
Edward said nothing, put an arm around me and led me to the underground parking ...
Or so I thought. We passed the exit, but I only noticed it with a delay.
I looked up at my husband and he peeked so strangely.
Somehow challenging, so I saved it to ask. But I paid more attention to the surroundings, and I knew the way. The way to the private jets.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Black, Mr. Black," a young man I knew very well approached us.
Jack. Our co-pilot from the flight to Chicago.
We shook hands in greeting, and he smiled kindly.
I had already liked him on my wedding trip.
"And of course Mr. Swan," he didn't leave out our son, who flatly thought it was pretty cool not to be passed over.
"What have you done?!", I then asked my husband once.
"If everyone else is on vacation, we're allowed to do that too ... aren't we?" he asked back with a sanctimonious smirk.
"And will you tell us where we're going?"
"No!"
I stuck my tongue out at him, he chuckled.
We followed Jack and chatted along the way.
Edward had brought our luggage earlier and it was already on the plane.
We also congratulated warmly.
Jack was now the pilot for this type of aircraft and would fly us to our destination himself. The departure would be delayed a bit, as he had to work through various checklists before takeoff. Normally the co-pilot would pick up the passengers, but since he had flown us before, he had wanted to pick us up personally.
We made ourselves comfortable on board and greeted the co-pilot until it was time to take off and we had to buckle up.
Flying was a whole new experience for Ced, and he found it all absolutely exciting. At least for the first hour while he explored the plane and got to know the cockpit on Jack's lap. After that, there was even something for us to eat, but then he quickly got bored.
It was dark outside, which is why it was not possible to peek out much now.
Fortunately, Daddy had brought something to play with, which we used to bridge the long time.
Well. We flew much longer than I had expected.
I fell asleep.
When I woke up, I didn't necessarily feel like I had just dozed off.
I had dreamed a lot, although I couldn't really remember it.
Ced was also awake and peeking out one of the windows with his daddy. It was bright outside. For a long moment I just watched them smiling until Edward realized I was awake.
Ced came running to me, crawled onto the spacious couch I was lying on, and gave me a kiss.
Edward was delayed in coming. I heard him talking to someone and then he sat down with a cup of coffee to join me.
"Good morning, beautiful lady," he greeted me charmingly.
Probably I was far from any beauty, but what the hell.
"Hi ...", I replied and took a sip of coffee first.
I needed that this morning. I didn't feel bad, but the dream must have been exhausting.
"So we're still flying," I stated rather matter-of-factly.
"Yes, but not for too much longer."
Ced pulled me to the window to show me how high we were.
He just loved it. How small the world was below us.
"This doesn't look like we're still in America," I commented to Edward, who was also standing with us.
He chuckled.
"I mean North America," I specified.
"That's right, my darling. Below us is South America. In about two hours we'll land in Rio."
"Rio?", I repeated. Kind of incredulous, kind of stating.
I pondered.
"Isle Esmé?", I dug deeper.
My husband nodded in affirmation.
I smiled and looked forward to it.
One had already told a lot of this small island and in thoughts I had already painted everything colorfully. But a small thing made me worry nevertheless. Rio de Janeiro? On a sunny morning? Because I did not see a single cloud through the window.
Cautiously, I looked around to the cockpit. I saw no one, yet I whispered.
"Isn't that a problem for you in the middle of the day? They'll wonder, won't they, when you glitter through the streets?"
"The skies are about to close in and won't clear until late afternoon. See all the way in the back there? That's where the clouds are already starting to form. Don't worry, my heart. Alice can always be counted on in such matters," he reassured me.
We looked out for a moment until Edward whipped up a little breakfast for Ced and me. Just toast with butter and jam. For Ced Nutella and cocoa.
He told us that on such long flights there was actually a stewardess present, but he had dispensed with that. Since we were flying overnight, we would not need much anyway, and we could prepare a breakfast ourselves. He also told me that this idea had come to him only a few days ago. When we had thought about what we would do during those days when neither teenagers nor neighbors were around. We had actually thought of quite a few things to do as well. A visit to the Native American village, a trip to Boston, the house near Dartmouth he had wanted to show me ... We had planned quite a bit, since Professor Steward was also using the Easter period for a vacation and thus I was also on vacation. So now our original plans would be cancelled. A call from Esmé and Carlisle from Europe had spontaneously changed his mind.
But that didn't matter to me. We had eternity!
"What's wrong with Cookie, anyway?!" it then occurred to me in a panic.
We had promised our neighbors to watch Cookie and actually would have taken him over to our place after we got home.
Edward chuckled and showed me a text message on his phone.
From Emmett.
The Fiffi had to sniff every other tree! And on the way are damn many trees! It took me over three hours to get home!
I laughed and was now reassured about this as well.
We freshened up a bit, Ced marveled at the view from the cockpit and then we landed.
Under a blanket of clouds.
We seemed to have quite a bit of luggage with us.
Three large suitcases and another very generous bag.
Ced and I marveled through the cab window at all there was to see. The many people, music in the streets, the Copacabana, the statue of Christ high up on the mountain.
We then went out to sea in a speedboat.
Edward had very carefully packed Ced and me into life jackets.
We drove for what felt like an eternity until something was visible on the horizon.
An island and it came closer and closer. And, as expected, there was only one house on it. At least I didn't see any others. It was much bigger than I had imagined. I had thought of a small cute little house. A generous South Sea log cabin perhaps, only of course much more luxurious. I knew my vampires! But this was more like a stately chateau. Only limited to one building.
Ced ran ahead.
Across the boardwalk, he stopped a few times to peer into the water below.
"Swim!" he pointed to the refreshing water.
The sand was new to him. After all, the beach in Maine was so much different. Especially with the weather there. But here, one didn't know single-digit air temperatures. It was soft white sand.
I immediately took off my shoes and socks to feel it under my feet, which Ced immediately copied me on.
Then we came to a spacious terrace, which even had room for a small sofa lounge. A hammock also hung very invitingly on the side.
Ced walked on, patting his hands in amazement against the large doors. They were not solid at all, however, but were apparently attached to the frame by a turning mechanism. Consequently, our son tumbled into the house. He peeked skeptical and sniveled for a moment, checked his hands and knees, and then laughed.
Inside the house, everything was also very spacious and open to the roof. An even larger sofa landscape, a spacious open kitchen.
"I don't believe it!" escaped me as I entered one of the bedrooms.
Edward smirked knowingly, but raised his eyebrows hypocritically in interest.
"This is exactly the bedroom I dreamed of. At the very beginning, when we met again!", I explained, downright shocked.
It was just like in my dream. The big white bed, the mosquito nets blowing in the light wind, the sandy beach started right behind the floor-to-ceiling windows, view of the sea and the sound of the waves. It was beautiful.
Edward kissed me devotedly, but Ced had taken sufficient notice of this room and was already on his way to the next.
Another bedroom, a blue one, but with a crib in front of the actual bed.
Not a baby cradle, but a real bed. However, lower and colorful and you could fold up the sides.
He crawled in and looked at us with a grin.
He had probably found his sleeping place. The vacation could begin!
And they were really nice days!
The first day I had a migraine and stayed in bed most of the time.
I guess I didn't quite get along with the climate change.
My men took care of me touchingly, even though I kept shooing them outside. They should also use our vacation.
Fortunately, however, the headache was over the next day, and I was able to explore the island with my men.
Building sandcastles, swimming in the sea, walks through the adjacent jungle, snorkeling, water turtles, grottos, parrots, jumping down waterfalls. Even dolphins made an appearance. Everything was so colorful and bright that it carried over to my dreams. Usually I always knew if I was dreaming or not. Here, however, I found it difficult to distinguish. But it didn't matter. These whole days were altogether so deeply relaxing that I recovered even during these waking dreams.
The only excitement was that Ced had scraped his knee a bit.
With a colorful 'magic plaster' and healing puff of his parents, however, it was half as bad. Could also have been due to the subsequent ice cream that the tears dried up so quickly. It was Ced's very first real injury, although it was quite small, so we watched it very closely. He bled a bit, but it healed very quickly. No comparison to the wolves, but a human child would certainly have at least traces of it for a few days. One day later, however, there was already nothing more to see of it.
There had even been a gala dinner on Easter Sunday.
For this Edward had packed me an elegant evening dress, for himself a suit and also Ced wore a solemn white shirt. We dined on the terrace with a picturesque sunset.
On Easter Monday we did the traditional Easter egg race. Only just in the sand.
Another day, when the weather permitted, we were on the mainland.
Strolling through the streets, visiting the statue of Christ, shopping for gifts for our children, driving through the winding streets of the artists' district of Santa Teresa. We climbed up and down the colorful staircase 'Escadaria Selarón'.
But then I fell into bed in the evening dead tired.
We also skyped with our other children from time to time. Without a fixed agreement, they simply contacted us when they had time.
They were a bit jealous of us.
Los Angeles was undoubtedly beautiful, Forks a piece of home, but neither compared to Brazil.
Then, unfortunately, was already our last evening.
Edward was just putting Ced to bed. He had almost fallen asleep at dinner while I was enjoying the sound of the sea.
I was a little bit tipsy. I had no one to help me empty a bottle of wine. So I had to drink alone.
I walked barefoot along the beach so that the outgoing waves splashed over my feet.
It was incredible how warm the water was. In Maine it was still freezing cold because it had to warm up over the summer, but even then it was still fresh. Here, summer was over, and it was heading into the southern winter. Still, right now we had a casual summer-night temperature of twenty-five degrees, though the ocean couldn't necessarily be colder.
Cooling arms wrapped around me as I gazed dreamily up at the moon.
"Thank you, Edward. For these wonderful days," I sighed happily.
"You are such a wonderful wife and mother. You deserve only the best things in life ... Me, for example!", he began tenderly and ended cheekily.
I chuckled.
Must have been the wine.
But I turned to him, looking at the face of my marble angel in the moonlight.
It seemed cold and hard in texture, but incredibly gentle in expression.
I kissed my husband lovingly ... which ended with us making devoted love in the sand and waves.
The next day, our son determined what we would do for the last hours left to us.
The answer was so surprising: swimming!
But at some point, even the most beautiful vacation had to come to an end.
We arrived in Rio by speedboat just as the sun was disappearing behind the horizon.
Our private jet was waiting for us at the airport, but Jack was not with us this time. We would apparently pick him up again at a refueling stop in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and leave our current pilot there.
I had not noticed anything about a stopover on the outbound flight. But I didn't catch it on the return flight either.
I slept blissfully and dreamed of white sandy beaches, white bedrooms, and white husbands. In between, a chocolate Easter bunny hopped around, still waiting to be sought and found by our various children.
Thanks for reading!