"You're very welcome, Bella." Welcome for what? I wondered. Carlisle's step was measured carefully as he approached me. He raised his hand tentatively, moving it up and down as though shaking hands with a ghost. I stepped forward to grasp his hand.
"It's nice to see you again, Dr. Cullen," I said.
"Please, call me Carbomb."
"Carbomb." I grinned at him, getting the joke. I could feel Fredward's relief at my side, as if it were an entity separate from his being.
Esme smiled and stepped forward as well, reaching for my hand. Her cold, stone clasp was just as I expected...
"It's very nice to know you," she said with a wink.
"Thank you. I'm glad to... to meet you, too." And I was. It was like meeting a fairy tale—Snow White—or Quasimodo—in the flesh.
"Where are Alice and Jasper?" Fredward asked, but no one answered, as they had just appeared at the top of the curvaceous staircase.
"Hey, Fredward!" Alice grunted enthusiastically. She ran down the stairs like a track star, a streak of black hair and white skin, coming to a sudden and graceful stop in front of me. Carbomb and Esme shot warning glances at her, but I liked it. All of it. It was all-natural and 100% real.
"Hi, Bella!" Alice yelled in my face, and she bounced forward to kiss my cheek. If Carbomb and Esme had looked cautious before, they now looked staggered, standing against the wall next to each other and clenching their fists at their sides. There was a shock in my eyes, too, but I was also very pleased that she seemed to approve of me so entirely. I felt Fredward stiffen on my side. I glanced at his face, but his expression was unreadable...
"You do smell nice, I never noticed before," she commented to my extreme embarrassment.

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Chapter 15

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