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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄
|| stupid dog ||

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BELLA AND EDWARD WATCHED FROM THE LIVING ROOM AS Emmett, Esme and Carlisle sped into the forest opening, laughing loudly with each other — Alice and Jasper jumped from a tree hand in hand, kissing each other gently — and Alec, Arlina and Bree sped into the space beside the five Cullens, laughing within their own group.

"Finally." Edward spoke, rubbing his mate's hip gently whilst they both watched their family walk back from their hunt. Alec had been getting along with everyone pretty well, and he'd been getting used to the vegetarian diet, he wasn't sure if he ever wanted to go back to the Volturi, but he knew he had to soon.

Rosalie walked forward and rubbed her hands together, attempting to make them warm, "My turn." She took the cooing Renesmee from Bella, and smiled bright.

"Where does she sleep?" Bella asked.

"In my arms. Or Edward's or Alec's." She looked up at her brother with a smile and he grinned back.

"Is Alec okay? Like, will he tell the Volturi or?" Bella questioned and the rest of the family burst into the room, mostly Alice.

"Cross my heart." Alec spoke from where he stood with his arm around Arlina and Bella smiled, nodding at him thankfully.

"Happy birthday." Alice leaned forward, smiling at the newborn and Bella shook her head, confused.

"I stopped aging three days ago." Bella responded.

"Well, we're celebrating anyway. So suck it up." Alice spoke, causing everyone around the room to smile at her. Alice held out a key to Bella, and guided her out of the room allowing the rest of the family to giggle.

"We won't be seeing them for a while." Emmett clapped his hands together with a raise of his eyebrows and everyone laughed, knowing it was true.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

BELLA AND EDWARD MADE THEIR WAY INTO THE ROOM, Emmett, Arlina and Carlisle were sat at the table reading books and researching urban legends about vampire babies and Jacob was stood at the window, eating a sandwich and watching Rosalie play with Renesmee outside.

"Wow. Done already?" Emmett asked and Arlina looked up from her page with a smirk on her face. 

"Where's Renesmee?" Bella questioned, ignoring the question and looking over at Jacob.

"Blondie stole her." Jacob gestured to Rosalie outside and Alec walked in with a scoff.

"She technically didn't steal her, I gave her to her." Alec scrunched his brows as he sat down beside Arlina, patting her thigh as a greeting, "That was confusing."

"Break a lot of stuff?" Emmett questioned and Bella shook her head in disbelief.

"Emmett... No." She spoke under her breath and everyone but Jacob chuckled quietly. The phone rang and Bella looked over at it sternly, walking towards the table slowly, "Is that Charlie?"

"He's been calling twice a day." Edward explained and Jacob turned around.

"He's in pretty rough shape, but Arlina's been reassuring him." Jacob looked over at her with a grateful smile and she nodded over at him with a small smile.

The ringing continued and then abruptly stopped, "Eventually, we'll have to tell him you didn't make it." Carlisle told her.

"He needs to mourn, Bella." Edward told her and she nodded, looking down sadly.

"Okay. We'll do it tomorrow." Bella turned around and walked back over to Edward, holding onto him for comfort and everyone around agreed.

"I'm gonna miss this place." Emmett stood up from the table with a sigh.

"We'll come back. We always do." Carlisle explained and Jacob looked over with confusion written all over his face.

"Wait." He pushed off of the wall, "Nobody said anything about leaving."

"Once people believe Bella's dead, we can't risk anyone seeing her." Carlisle explained and Jacob shook his head in anger.

"So you just... disappear?" He asked Bella and she looked down guiltily.

"Jacob, we don't have another choice." Edward defended and Arlina looked over at the shapeshifter with a small reassuring smile.

"You can always visit, or I'll bring Renesmee down to see you, I don't mind." Arlina told him and Jacob shook his head, rushing out of the room.

"He better not do anything stupid, I couldn't read what he was thinking." Edward looked down at his feet with confusion and Arlina agreed.

"He probably will do something stupid." She added and Alec tapped her thigh gently in beats as if he was listening to a song.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

"LOOK, I SOLVED A PROBLEM. YOU WERE LEAVING." Jacob defended himself, "What did you expect me to do?"

"You don't realise the danger you've put him in." Bella scrunched her brows, the gold coming through in her eyes, "The Volturi will kill anyone who knows about us."

"No, I didn't tell him about you. Just me. I only said you were different." Jacob explained.

"And that we have a niece who we adopted." Edward added.

"I mean, seriously, Jake, he's not just gonna let that go." Bella hissed at him in anger.

"Did you consider the physical pain you put Bella through? It'll be like sticking a white hot branding iron down her throat. And that's assuming she can control her thirst." Edward spoke in disbelief, and he didn't know what he'd do if he saw Bella in such pain again.

"Look, Charlie's been in hell." Jacob tried to defend his decision again, "And I know you'll be much happier with him in your life."

"Jacob, don't try and pretend you're doing this for anyone but yourself." Edward scolded him and Jacob shrugged, glancing at the ground.

"Sorry you feel that way because... he'll be here in ten minutes." Jacob looked away.

"What?" Bella yelled.

"We're gonna need Alec." Edward added, trying to stay calm.

Some of the Cullens, Alec and Jacob stood, and sat, around Bella, getting her ready to see her father again.

"These will irritate your eyes at first." Alice told the newborn as she placed brown eye contacts into the girl's eyes carefully.

"The main thing is not to move too fast, Bella. Try taking a seat, and maybe... crossing your legs perhaps?" Alec crossed his arms over his chest with a calm demeanour and Bella nodded at him, she stood up slowly and attempted to walk over to the chair across the room, but instead she sped over, almost knocking the chair over.

"Maybe a tad slower. Hmm?" Esme suggested with raised brows and Carlisle smiled.

"Blink at least three times a minute and hold your breath, it will help with the thirst. And do not forget to move your shoulders, so it looks like you're breathing and you should be fine." Alec nodded at her and everyone around the room smiled at him gratefully.

"And don't sit so straight. Humans don't do that." Rosalie shook her head with a smile and Bella slouched, feeling awkward in that position, so she stood up abruptly.

"Okay. I got it." She told them, "Move around, blink, slouch."

Edward chuckled quietly from across the room and a couple others smiled too. The sound of Charlie's car approaching was heard in the room and they all began to prepare themselves quickly.

"Good luck, Bella." Arlina stood from the couch and rubbed the girl's arm comfortingly, earning a smile in return. She walked off to her bedroom with Alec hot on her trail, and the two sat on her bed, "So, when are you going home?"

"I am home." Alec smiled at her with a shrug as he opened up a book he had already started reading from Arlina's bookshelf and she smiled.

"I mean, when are you going back to your coven? Jane? She's probably worried about you." Arlina placed her hands in her lap, fiddling with her fingers and Alec glanced over at her with a smirk at her nervousness.

"I called Jane to tell her everything was all right, and to tell Aro I was staying to help Bella into her transition and to control her gift." Alec explained, reaching over and taking her hand in one of his. Arlina nodded acceptingly, leaning her head back on the headboard and closing her eyes, relaxing to the feeling of Alec's thumb rubbing on the back of her hand gently.

Soon, Alec smiled and sped over to her, planting kisses all over her neck, and her eyes fluttered open, smiling at him wide and giggling quietly.