I’m doing something a little bit different with this chapter as it’s a rather pivotal one in the story. I’m going to toggle back and forth between Bella’s & Edward’s viewpoints so you can what they’re both thinking here.
BPOV
Waking up in Edward’s arms was one of my favorite activities. I was wrapped up like a cocoon in the blankets and then further surrounded by his iron grip. My fingers crept out of the blanket of their own accord and found themselves buried in his hair. He smiled and leaned forward and kissed me, ignoring my morning breath. His, of course, tasted like honey and sunshine.
“Good morning, love.” I smiled and nodded and attempted to work my way out of the covers, wanting to go to the bathroom and brush my teeth before actually speaking to him. He chuckled, knowing my morning routine very well, and helped me untangle myself. I pulled on Edward’s blue polo shirt and bounded into our stunning bathroom and made myself more presentable. When I came back out Edward was propped against the headboard, his bare chest reflecting the morning sunlight. I smiled as I took in that sparkling beauty and threw myself back into his arms.
“Good morning to you!” He laughed and gave me a more thorough kiss that I could enjoy now that I was minty fresh. I decided I hadn’t had enough of him yesterday and climbed into his lap, straddling him. Edward stilled my hands as I started to remove my shirt and I looked at him in confusion. “Don’t you want me?”
He pushed my hair away from my face and caressed my cheek. “Of course I want you, love. I always want you. I just want to talk to you first.” I started to pull away to sit next to him but he held onto my waist and kept me on his lap.
“What is it?” He looked serious and that made me inexplicably nervous.
Even though he couldn’t read my mind, he could sense my emotions. “Nothing bad, Bella, I promise you.” I stared into his golden eyes and saw the truth there matched the sincerity in his tone so I let myself relax. He smiled at my reaction and wound my fingers with his own. “I want to talk about your transformation.” I started to tense again but then I remembered that he said it was nothing bad.
“What about it?” Surely he hadn’t changed his mind, I had promised him a month in school and I didn’t plan on reneging on that.
“I know I asked you for a month but…” I cut him off; no way was I going to commit to any more than that.
“Edward! You promised you’d change me if I gave college a month. You can’t add more, I was giving you extra by agreeing to that. Our original deal was I marry you, remember?” I flashed my ring at him. “I held up my end of the bargain so you need to hold up yours!”
He watched my growing anger with a look of pure amusement on his face. “Are you done yet?” He cocked an eyebrow at me and I glowered back at him, trying to tug my hand from his grasp but of course that was a fruitless effort. I huffed and gave up.
“No.” I actually felt my lip come out in a pout. He grinned at that and leaned forward and tugged my lip between his own. Trying to stay mad at him when he did that was pretty much impossible and I melted into him. He pulled back and put a finger on my lips.
“Now, as I was trying to say before I was so rudely interrupted.” I opened my mouth to protest but he stopped me with that cocked eyebrow again. “Is that I’ve thought about it and I won’t hold you to that extra month I got you to agree to. You’re right; our original bargain has been more than fulfilled.” My mouth dropped open but no words would come out. Was he serious?
“Wh…what?” I sputtered, that was as much as I could get out.
The smile left his face and his eyes pierced mine intently. “I mean it; I don’t want to make you wait any longer. I don’t want to wait any longer.”
I know my expression was suspicious but I couldn’t help it. “Since when don’t you want to wait? Why don’t you want to wait?”
He laughed. “Here I am giving you what you want and you question it. As always, you fascinate me.”
I put my hand flat against his chest. “Don’t change the subject, Edward. What made you change your mind?”
“Yesterday, right before we made love for the second time, when you said that you were mine forever, it just felt different.”
“Different how?” I was thoroughly confused. Who was this imposter?
“Usually when we talk about forever, when I think about taking your life and making you like me, I feel guilty.” I frowned at that revelation, not that it surprised me. “But yesterday, when you said forever, I actually felt good. I wanted it…I want it. With you. I can’t live without you.”
I felt my frown turning up into a smile but tried to bite that back. “But what made you feel that way now?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know that I can say, exactly, it’s been a long time coming but if you want me to pinpoint specific things, well, for one, when Emmett was joking about you and him on a tractor I couldn’t help but worry about you getting hurt.” I snorted but he was probably right, Bella + tractor = recipe for disaster.
“I don’t want you to change me just because you fear my getting hurt though, Edward.”
“That’s not all, love, not by a long shot. Also, it was the road trip with our family; seeing you with us but separate at the same time. We had a great time, because of you, but I also noticed that you were left out of much of it, just the observer. I want you to be able to participate.” I knew what he was saying, I’d loved being with the family but I did feel like an outsider much of the time. “You’re one of us, Bella, and you belong. Never doubt that.”
“I don’t. You guys have all made me feel like part of the family.” Well, except for Rosalie of course.
“And then, yesterday, here in this bed, you mentioned forever and it felt good, Bella. I didn’t feel like a predator when I thought about changing you. I didn’t feel selfish. I felt like we were both on the same page, finally. I know I’ve been hesitant but that wasn’t because I didn’t want to be with you for all of eternity. I just was afraid that taking your life was something you’d eventually hate me for.”
I pressed both my hands and the one of his I held against his face. “Edward Cullen, you listen to me. I could never hate you. I will never resent you for changing me. You’re giving me exactly what I asked for. The fact that you hesitated, the fact that you’re scared is what makes you so right for me. You put my needs over yours, always, but this time our needs are the same. I need to be with you forever. I’m the selfish one here, asking you to do something that upsets you.”
“You couldn’t be selfish if you tried, Bella. You’re the most selfless person I’ve ever met. You’d do anything for the people you loved, including me. I know you want this for me but I always wondered if you really wanted it for you as well. You know what you’re giving up.”
It wasn’t a question but I felt he needed to hear it again anyway. “I do, Edward. I am giving up a lot, more than I ever thought possible. But I also know what I’m gaining and it’s so much more; endless love, family and friendship. That’s all that I could ever truly want, an eternity with you.”
He kissed me then, his cold lips burning against mine, one of those moments of unrestrained passion that I occasionally got from him. “It’s what I want too, Bella. I’m ready to give it to you, to us.” I laughed and pressed my lips to his again.
I pulled back and looked at his joyous face. Nothing was more beautiful than Edward when he was glowing with happiness. “When?”
I didn’t have to clarify the question; he knew what I wanted to know. “Well I need to talk to Carlisle, plan it so I can make sure that you’re completely safe.” I nodded, that was a given, Carlisle was the only one who’d ever bitten a person without killing them. “I think Alice will want some time with you before you change; something about waxing.” Now I was terrified, what did she want with me now? My panic must have shown on my face because Edward reached out to soothe me. “Relax, Bella, it’s just that since you’re change is premeditated she wants to have you properly groomed. Remember, you’ll never be able to shave your legs or underarms when you’re a vampire, our skin is too hard.” Oh, well that made sense; I had to admit that never having to shave again would go under the perks of becoming a vampire.
“Alright, I’ll let Alice have a Bella makeover day.” I didn’t need to have enhanced hearing to make out the shriek of joy coming from the main house. “They’re listening to everything we say, aren’t they?”
He laughed. “Of course. There’s no such thing as privacy in this family, except in your silent mind.” I wondered if my mind would remain silent to him after my change; I hoped so, I liked having my thoughts to myself. “I also need to have Alice check and recheck to make sure it’s safe for you.” Ahh, there was the cautious man that I knew and loved. “Your birthday is next week; do you want to do it before or after?”
I thought about that for a minute. It probably made the most sense to wait until after, Charlie and Renee would want to talk to me on my birthday, but the truth is I didn’t want to wait any longer. I was sure of my choice. “Before. In fact, I’d like to be awake and aware by my birthday.” I waited for some hesitation or fear to cross his face but I didn’t see it.
“Okay, provided Carlisle and Alice are on board, how about we plan on three days from now?”
“For real?” I couldn’t believe it.
I read the truth on his face. “Yes, Bella. You’re ready and so am I. As long as it’s safe, we’ll do it. I am ready to start forever with you.”
I wrapped my arms around him and pressed my face to his neck. “I love you.”
“I love you too, sweetheart. I can’t wait to show you just how much. Soon I won’t have to hold back with you anymore.” The thought of that thrilled me and I rocked against him, we were still aligned and both of us were ready. I pushed up a little and took him inside me.
“Show me now, as much as you can.” He kissed me and showed me, moving inside of me with slow, sure strokes. We fell back into the bed and made love again, the resolution between us making us feel even closer, which I’d never thought possible.
EPOV
It was amazing how free I felt since Bella and I had our discussion about changing her. All the doubts, all the fears were gone. I was still nervous, no doubt that would not subside until she was safe and strong at my side. I knew getting through her change was going to be the most terrifying and painful time of my life but I knew it was right for us too.
While Bella went exploring Hanover with Alice, Emmett and Rose, I sought out Carlisle to discuss the upcoming transformation. Alice had reassured me again that I would maintain control and Bella would be just fine but I wanted to try to spare her some pain if I could. There had to be something we could do to help her through the change.
I found Carlisle in his new study, which was a replica of the one he’d had in Forks. We had left a lot of furniture behind but some pieces had made the move and it was clear that his entire office had made the cut. I wasn’t surprised really; it was the place that he was most at home. He looked up with a smile when I entered.
“Edward, I expected you would want to talk to me. We heard the good news.”
“I don’t know if it’s good news, but it’s definitely news.”
He gave me an indulgent look. “Our family will be truly complete. It is very good news and we could not be happier about it.”
I couldn’t mask my surprise. “I know you agreed to my doing this but I didn’t think you were going to be happy about it. I’m still taking a human life and we’ve sworn…” He cut me off.
“Edward, yes, I am against taking a human life in most cases but in this case, the human in question is your mate. I would never deprive you of the love of your life. We’ve spent many years together and you’ve never been happier than when Bella came into your life. You’re my son and I want your happiness above anything else.“ He humbled me, always. “I would feel that way even if Alice hadn’t seen…”
“What? What did Alice see?” I couldn’t stem the panic that those words brought to me.
“Son, everything’s going to be fine. While you and Bella were…occupied, for lack of a better word,” I smiled as I thought about what we’d been occupied with, “Alice had a vision.” He didn’t need to tell me what she’d seen, I saw in his mind that Aro was coming here to see if we’d kept our word and changed Bella.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “When?”
“Not for awhile yet, a couple of months at least, there was snow on the ground in her vision.” I breathed a sigh of relief on that front. She’d be a newborn but hopefully she’d have some control. I knew Jasper would help us get through the visit.
“Did Alice see anything else?”
Carlisle looked confused. “Not that I know of, why?”
“I was just wondering if she saw what kind of power Bella was going to have?”
Ahhh yes, what kind of power will she have indeed? I’ve been wondering about that for quite some time. My best guess is she’s some kind of shield, best used as defense. Aro would love to have someone with that talent, although he already has Renata, still all shields are different. “No, she hasn’t seen that and she’s tried. She can tell she has something but can’t decipher what it is.” Alright, well that hadn’t changed anyway. I must admit that I was very curious about what my wife’s silent mind would reveal once she was one of us. We’d all sat around and discussed it and of course Emmett and Jasper were taking bets. Jasper was on board with the shield theory while Emmett thought she’d have an offensive skill not unlike Jane of the Volturi. I imagined he just wanted to see her zap people.
“I guess time will tell on the power front, I’m sure Aro is curious about it though. He’s never seen a human that was immune to our powers the way she is.” It made me very nervous, Aro’s interest in Bella. It was not entirely intrigue over what she might become that would bring him here. I’d have to try to rein in my temper, no doubt. My Bella had no idea the effect she had on men of all species and getting to hear their less than chaste thoughts of her was a trial. “I wanted to talk to you about her change, Carlisle.”
“Yes, son, I know. Are you afraid you’ll lose control? Alice doesn’t see that happening but I imagine you’re still nervous.”
“Not really. I’m so used to her scent by now that I don’t think it’ll affect me too greatly. If I didn’t kill her two years ago, when I had far less control, then I really don’t think I will now.”
“I agree completely. In all of my life I’ve never seen anybody with your level of control.”
I snorted. “Please, Carlisle, what about you? You’re around human blood daily.”
He chuckled and laced his fingers together. “Yes, but I have a couple more centuries on me than you do. And, I’ve never met my singer. I’d like to think of I met him or her now I could resist, but two hundred years ago? I don’t know if I would have had the strength. You not only had the strength to resist but you were able to love yours. I’ve never seen or heard anything like it.”
I felt rather embarrassed at the obvious pride in his voice. “I wouldn’t have resisted if it hadn’t been for you and our family. If you hadn’t taught me self control all those years ago, she wouldn’t be here with me today. For that I will forever be grateful.”
He absolutely glowed at my words. “I think maybe we can agree that we’re all responsible for having Bella here with us today. And we’re all glad of it.” I honestly thought Rosalie would be a little more accepting by now. Maybe after the change…
“I hope so. I keep telling myself that once she considers Bella to truly be family she’ll put this resentment for her choices aside.”
“It’s hard for her, Edward. Harder for her than the rest of us. It’s hard to live a lifetime never getting what you truly wanted.”
“I can relate. Before I found Bella I was a lot more like Rose than I like to admit.”
“I know. It was hard for you, being alone for so long. You found your happiness, perhaps she will find hers as well. Emmett can only give her so much.” That was hard for me to understand, with Bella being everything to me, but we all had different wants and Emmett couldn’t give her what she wanted most.
“I suppose. I know I would do anything I could to give Bella what she wants.”
He smiled indulgently. “You’re what she wants, so that’s pretty easy for you to give.”
I laughed. “I know. I wish she wanted more; I’d like to give her the world.”
“You are. You’re giving her eternal life during which she can see the world and do anything she wants.” That was a good point but I still felt inadequate and humbled.
“Maybe, but I still wish I had more to give.”
“Son, you have forever, she’ll come up with some things, of that I have no doubt! Now, you wanted to discuss the changing process, correct?”
“Yes, I know how it works of course, but I was wondering if there was anything we could do to make it easier on her?”
“As you know, I’ve considered morphine but there’s just no knowing how it will work until we try it unfortunately. I’ve never done this with someone who wasn’t dying before.”
“I really want to spare her any pain that I can. The thought of her burning for three days is torture to me. Really that’s the reason I’ve been resistant to changing her for so long.”
“I know, son. I’ve made a few calls to try to see if anybody knows of anything that might help but I’ve come up blank. I’m the only vampire doctor out there and nobody else has cared enough to try to spare someone they changed.”
I sighed. “I guess we’ll just have to try the morphine or maybe some other method? Could we induce a coma? Maybe if she took something before I bit her…”
“No, we don’t want to give her anything that might slow the spread of the venom. That will just make the change process longer.” That thought horrified me, three days was already too much.
“Okay, morphine alone then. We’ll just have to hope that it works.”
“It won’t.” I started when I heard Jasper. I’d been too caught up in my discussion with Carlisle to hear his approach.
“What do you mean?”
“Alice said the morphine does nothing for Bella. She said all it will do will make her burn in silence. She doesn’t admit that to you, of course, but Alice drags it out of her after she gets her alone.”
“Dammit, why didn’t she mention it before?”
“She just called, this is the first time you two have discussed and decided on anything.”
“Oh.” I didn’t know what to say or do now.
“Really, the only thing the morphine would do would be lull you into a false sense that it helped her. Alice wanted to keep quiet for your sake but if I was in your position, I’d want to know.”
“Yes, thanks, Jasper, I don’t want to sit next to her blissfully ignorant of the pain she’s in.” Her screams would torment me but I almost needed them. If I felt the pain with her, I’d at least being paying some kind of penance for what I’d done to her. “I guess there’s nothing we can do then.” I felt terrible; I’d wanted so badly to come up with something that would make it easier on her.
“That’s not true.” What was he talking about?
“What do you mean, son?” Carlisle spoke up then. Like me, he was upset to know that the morphine would be pointless.
“Well it’s true that there’s nothing you can do, but there is something I can do.” I saw what he was talking about and my jaw dropped open.
“You would do that?”
He looked at me calmly. “Yes, I would do what I could.”
Carlisle was getting irritated by our cryptic talk. “What are you two talking about?”
Jasper glanced at him before looking back at me. “I can help her. I will try to take as much pain from her as I possibly can.” I tried to contain my excitement at the idea, what he was talking about would cause him a great deal of stress and pain.
“Jasper, are you sure you could handle it?”
“Well, I would not be able to do it the whole time. I’d have to go away and feed because it would drain me. And obviously, I can’t be around when you bite her or right after. I’d have to wait for the wounds to heal up so I wouldn’t be tempted. Alice says I will be a great help though.”
I didn’t know what to say. The fact that he would consider doing that for Bella was beyond touching. I wanted to ask him why. “I can feel curiosity, Edward, if you want to know why, just ask.”
I looked at Carlisle who was just as interested in the reason as I was. “Alright, why would you do it? You know what kind of pain we’re talking about.”
“All too well. Which is one of the reasons why, as a matter of fact. Bella is my sister now; I will never let anyone in my family be hurt if I can do something to alleviate it.” This was the second time he’d referred to her as his sister and it continued to touch me. “I created hundreds of newborns in my time and I left each and every one of them to suffer through it alone. They meant less than nothing to me then…I guess I consider this atonement now.” I could understand that, I was still tormented by the lives I’d taken, regardless of the people I’d saved while doing it.
There was more, though, I saw a flash of it in his mind. “Jasper, you know that…”
He cut me off. “I know, Edward, but that doesn’t change how I feel about it.”
Carlisle cut in, irritated again. “What else is there?”
“He still feels guilty for when she cut herself on her birthday.”
“Jasper, son, that incident is long behind us and was nothing to be ashamed of. All of us were affected and…”
“I know exactly when it was, Carlisle, and I know exactly how much time we all suffered because of it.”
“Jasper, I made it worse, I overreacted and threw her into the table. I’m the one who decided to leave, that was all on me.”
“But I was the only one who went after her when she cut herself, Edward. Every single one of you handled it except for me. If I’d had control, it never would have happened, we never would have left.” He’d been carrying that guilt for over a year now and never let any of us know it. I felt terrible.
“Jas, if we hadn’t left, Bella and I might not be here together today. There’s no knowing where we’d be right now.”
“No, there isn’t, but I do know that you both suffered terribly during the time you were apart. And you weren’t the only ones; my Alice was nearly as bad off as you were. She held it together for me but I felt what she was going through, even if she wouldn’t talk about it. I owe it to her and to you both to help out. I want to. Please.” His voice was pleading with me and I could hear I need to echo in his thoughts. I wasn’t going to say no to him helping Bella but I didn’t like what it would do to him.
“I don’t know what to say. A part of me is happy that her torment would be lessened but I hate what you’ll go through.”
“I’ve been through worse.” Pictures of his time in the south flashed through his mind; attacking newborns, ripped body parts, fires…I shuddered along with him. “I have to do this, for all of us.”
Carlisle walked around the desk and put a hand on Jasper’s shoulder. “Alright, son, if you’re sure you can handle it.”
“I can. I’ll hunt while Edward changes her and come back an hour or so after. I don’t know how long I can sit with her at any given time but I’ll go until I can’t stand it anymore, leave and then come back when I can handle it again.” He seemed sure of himself.
“Jasper, I don’t even know how to tell you thank you. There aren’t enough words out there.” I brought a hand forward and he grasped it in his own, then I pulled him in and gave him a hug, grateful beyond words and hoping my actions would let him know just how much comfort he’d brought me.
He squeezed me back. “There’s nothing to thank me for, really. You’d do it for me if the situation was reversed, any of us would. That’s what makes us a family. I might have taken longer to come around to it than the rest of you but you are all my family.” His quiet conviction made any misgivings I had fade away.
“I guess we have a plan then. Thank you, Jasper, I’ll never forget this.”
He pushed me away and grinned at me. “Well naturally you won’t, beauty of being a vampire you know.” We all laughed at that. “You’ve helped me plenty of times when I was tempted to take someone’s life. I couldn’t have lived with myself if I’d slipped and it would have hurt Alice, which would be even worse for me. So, honestly, we’re more than even.”
“I was just…”
“You were just doing the right thing. So am I.” He was right.
“You’re the best, Jas.”
He laughed. “I know.” I threw the couch pillow at him and he caught it with a grin. “Just telling it like it is, bro,” he said in a perfect Emmett imitation. “I think we’re all getting a little too emotional for my taste. Who wants to hunt?” I popped up and headed to the door, Jasper and Carlisle hot on my heels.
BPOV
The last couple days of my human life had been a whirlwind of activity. My family had taken it upon themselves to make sure that I experienced all my favorite things one more time before my change. Emmett made it his mission in life to secure all of my favorite meals. I felt like a criminal on death row getting their last meal as he piled plates of food in front of me. I jokingly asked him if he was trying to make me fat so he’d have something new to laugh at me for since I wouldn’t be blushing or tripping anymore; he was not amused.
Alice, of course, took me shopping as it would be awhile before I’d be able to do that activity. See? Another reason becoming a vampire was the right choice for me! Jasper took me to the Dartmouth College Library and we both got lost in books for hours. Esme took me to a gardening store and we spent time selecting flowers and herbs to plant together at the house. It was wonderful spending time with them one on one, there wasn’t much opportunity for that before.
Of course, I longed for solitude when Alice dragged me to the spa. “Now, Bella, this is the last chance you’ll have to primp properly.”
“Alice, I never cared about primping properly! I thought these last few days were supposed to be mine!”
“You agreed to Bella’s Day of Beauty!”
“That was in a moment of weakness. I’m over it now.”
“If you’re not going to do it for the fun of it, do it for the practicality.”
“What do you mean?” The word practicality being spoken by Alice sounded quite foreign.
“I mean, the rest of us girls didn’t have the option to shave and have the perfect haircut and manicure when we were changed. You get to be smooth and fabulous going in.” Oh, well that made sense. Another bonus, never having to shave again.
“Okay but can’t I just shave at home and be done with it?”
“Waxing is more efficient, you won’t miss any spots and you won’t have any growth before tomorrow either.”
“Waxing? Did you say waxing? No way, Alice! That’s going to hurt.” I tried to push past her as she guided me toward the front door but that was a fruitless effort. Her firm grasp held me in place; I was like a five year old struggling against a 250 pound man. Sighing I gave up the idea of running, I’d just fall anyway. “Look, Alice, you know that this is dangerous. I’ll probably get burned, then I’ll fall and spill more wax on myself, getting burned some more. Then I’ll trip trying to run and break my leg.”
“Did you forget who you’re talking to? None of that is going to happen.” Stupid all-seeing sister. “Now come on, imagine Edward’s reaction when he feels your silky skin.” That made me feel marginally better. “We’ll start with the manicure and pedicure, that’ll give you some time to get used to the idea.”
I supposed I could handle that, so I let her lead me into the opulent spa. I briefly wondered what this was going to cost but I knew better than to question it. Alice gave my name to the lady at the front desk who smiled coolly and directed me to the pedicure area. Alice busied herself selecting the perfect color for me while I slipped my feet into the tub. Now that felt incredible. I closed my eyes and let myself drift as I felt the nail technician get to work. Sometimes being girly was not such a bad thing, not that I was going to admit that to Alice. A glance at her face showed she knew what I was feeling anyway, she looked rather smug. I bit back a groan as my feet and calves were massaged. Alice aimed some kind of remote control looking device at me and all of a sudden my chair started vibrating and messaging me. Why exactly had I been avoiding places like this?
“How are you doing, Bella?”
“Just great, Alice, how about you?” She pouted, presumably over the fact that she really couldn’t participate in the process. Her face brightened after a minute though.
“I’m ordering four of these chairs, no reason why we can’t bring some of the spa experience home, is there? We don’t need two guest rooms.”
I laughed but liked the idea of an in-home spa. “I don’t think you’d get a lot of complaint over that one.” Alice started quizzing the owner on where they acquired the chairs while I zoned out. Thirty minutes later my toes were a soft pink color and I was led to another table where they repeated the process on my hands. I loved the massage. I planned on having Edward give me one nightly once he didn’t have to worry about hurting me anymore.
“So what’s next Alice?” She was grinning down at her cell phone, having received a text.
“Hair,” she answered absently.
“What’s going on?”
She smiled at me brightly. “It seems your husband wants to take you for a night on the town after you’re all primped and pampered.” One last date while I was human? I smiled at his thoughtfulness. “After we’re done here we’ve got to pick you out a dress.” My smile fell away. “Oh come on, Bella, it won’t be that bad, I already know just what to get.”
“So why don’t you go get it while I get my hair done? It’s not like you’ll let me have any say, anyway.” She glowered at me for a minute but then shrugged.
“I suppose that’s easier. Just get your hair trimmed, no major change unless you really want it, remember, you’ll have to live with it forever.” I cringed at the thought of cutting my hair short. A trim would be fine.
Alice took off and I got my hair washed and cut, just cleaning up the split ends. Before Alice was back I was led over to a secluded room for my waxing. I couldn’t believe she wasn’t here to hold my hand through the process. Knowing her, though, she was staying away on purpose. I broke out in a cold sweat as I took in the room, the table looked entirely too much like the examining table at the doctor’s office for my liking. There was a casserole type dish that had some steaming hot substance heating, bringing to mind a witch’s brew from some old cartoons I used to watch on Saturday mornings. The overly cheery music was no doubt meant to sooth the unwitting victim but it wasn’t going to work on me.
I jumped when a perky voice appeared behind me. “Hi, I’m Becky and I’m here to wax you. It says we’re doing legs, underarms and bikini area.” Bikini area? Did that mean what I think it meant? Who was this sadist, ready to torture me with a happy smile? Was she on loan from Guantanamo Bay?
I opened my mouth to inform Battleaxe Becky that I would be leaving but before I could say a word Alice whirled into the room. “Yes, that’s right.” Becky nodded and went to get set up. I watched suspiciously as she cut a bunch of strips from some cloth, wondering if she was going use them to bind me to the bed. She’d need them to keep me there if she was going to try to touch me anywhere that only my husband’s hands had roamed.
“Alice,” I hissed at her. “What does she mean by bikini?”
“Your legs, Bella, basically any area that would not be covered by a swimsuit.”
I sighed, but at least it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was. “So she’s not going to, you know, take any hair from down there?”
Alice started laughing hysterically. “Bella,” she choked between laughs. “Do you honestly think I’d ask you to do something like that? So not your style!” Humph, I didn’t know whether to be offended by that comment or be glad she knew me so well. Before I could respond, Becky came over and told me to lose my clothes and put on this short spa robe. I did as I was bade and watched in trepidation as she slathered some sticky, honey-like substance on my legs. Alice moved over and held on to my hand. “It’ll be alright, Bella.”
Alright? Holy crap but that hurt. I bit my lip to keep from screaming as the first strip was cast aside, but a gasp of pain did escape me. Alice squeezed my hand tighter and whispered, “I hate to say this to you, Bella, but this pain is nothing compared to what you’re willingly going to endure tomorrow. If you really can’t handle it…” I glared at her as the strips continued to come off.
“I can handle it, Alice.” And I did. I sat silently as Becky the Torturer ripped out hair after hair. I was going to show Alice and my entire family that I was strong enough to handle becoming a vampire. Alice watched me with a look of pride on her pretty face.
“I knew you could do it, Bella, you’re stronger than you know.” I nodded, not trusting myself to speak yet. I got up and hopped in a shower to remove the sticky substance and clean up. I put back on my jeans and blue t-shirt, the denim rubbing against my sensitive skin made me a little uncomfortable but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. I was slapped down into another chair and endured a facial and makeup application. Alice added that to the itinerary after Edward texted her about the date. An hour later I was done to Alice’s satisfaction and we headed out into the already cooling air. I had a feeling winter was going to be extremely cold, not that it would matter to me once I changed.
We strolled past a boutique that advertised piercing and I stopped and looked at Alice. “Alice, can vampires have pierced ears?” Her eyes got glassy as she went into a vision. When they cleared, she smiled at me.
“Yes, as long as you’re wearing the earrings when you change. Are you sure you want to do it?” The doubt in her voice was enough to propel me into the store.
“Hello ladies, may I help you?” A forty-something lady with light brown hair and blue eyes smiled over at us.
“Yes, I’d like to see about getting my ears pierced.” She led me over to a little glass case and showed me her starter earrings.
“We start with little gold studs, generally. You wear them for 6 weeks before taking them out and then you can change them.” I picked out a pair of pretty gold studs and sat at a chair while she marked my ears. Alice, meanwhile, was accumulating piles of earrings, thrilled to have something new to shop for.
“Bella, look at these hoops! They’ll look so pretty with your hair pulled back! Awww, butterflies! And little flowers. We have to have these.” I was so busy watching her that I didn’t even notice the lady lining up the gun and shooting my ear. I felt a quick pinch and a flash of heat but it was really over before I processed it. Then she did the other ear just as quickly. I breathed a sigh of relief that the process was so simple.
“What are these?” Alice asked the saleslady, looking at some really cute but strangely shaped earrings.
“Bellybutton rings.” I laughed nervously and started to tug her away from those when I saw one that had a dangling music note with a pretty blue sapphire above it. It was adorable. Before I could stop myself, I asked if they did that piercing here as well. “Oh yes, dear, we do.” Alice was staring at me, her eyes so wide I was afraid they might pop out of her head. Suddenly she squealed.
“You’re going to do it! You’re going to get a bellybutton ring! Edward will die! Well, not die but you know what I mean.” I did know what she meant but I wanted more detail.
“Can you give us a minute?” The sales lady took the pile of earrings Alice had selected and walked them over to the cash register. “What do you see?”
She grinned. “I see a very excited brother. More excited than I care to see him, honestly, but I figured you’d be happy to hear it.” I was and it decided me.
“I’d like to get that music note belly button ring and be pierced.”
“Great, dear.” She led me to chair in the back room and had me unbutton my jeans. I held Alice’s hand tightly again and wondered at what kind of insanity I was subjecting myself to in the next 24 hours. Waxing, piercing and becoming a vampire. I’m pretty sure nobody else ever had that combination to deal with. I felt a stinging pain in my belly but kept my eyes tightly closed. I heard a little click and was all done. I opened my eyes and smiled down at the music note dangling down my belly. It was really cute.
“Bella, it’s adorable!” Alice hugged me and ran back to the spot where I’d picked out the bellybutton ring. “We need the butterfly, the peace symbol, the guitar…” She broke off and giggled. “The key, the handcuffs, the star in red, the three hearts and that pretty squiggly one.” The sales lady could not contain her smiles as she gathered all the purchases. I tried to protest but Alice cut me off. “I don’t get to buy this kind of stuff every day, you WILL indulge me.” I nodded ruefully; there was no point in protesting. She paid for our purchases and led me outside.
“Alice, can you do me a favor?”
“Of course!” Sincerity rang in her tone.
“Can you not think about the bellybutton ring around Edward? I want to surprise him.”
She gave me a wicked grin. “I won’t give it a thought until after you’re gone. Then I will be showing Esme and Rose every little piece we bought today. They’re going to love it!” She paused a second and laughed. “I think Emmett & Jasper are going to react rather interestingly as well.” I didn’t really want an explanation of that one, it frightened me. She took me back to the car and we went home to prepare for my date with my husband.
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