Recap: Bella is ticked off because Edward dragged her to her Cullen-tastic birthday party. Bella made a wish and blew out the candles. Alice had a vision about her wish. Alice is amused, which should really make everyone nervous. Mwahahaha.

I apologize for the fluffiness of this chapter. I meant to get it going, but then got distracted. Oh, and again I add that Twilight = not mine.

After Alice's little revelation, I was nervous. I knew Edward could tell, because he looked more worried than usual. Heck, everyone could probably tell because they could hear my heart trying to escape my chest. Crap, I wish I knew what Alice saw. I opened my gifts, and everyone except Edward and Alice was distracted from my wishing, which apparently was going to cause an incident. It can't be too bad if Alice is laughing…Right?

"Thanks everyone. I really appreciate all this stuff. You shouldn't have gone to all this trouble for me." I could feel myself blushing, which made me blush more as I stood next to Edward, who had a bag with the gifts in his hand. Esme smiled and shook her head quietly, having already told me several times that it was no trouble. I think she gave up trying to convince me for the day. As I turned to walk through the door, which Edward was of course holding open, I saw Alice wink at me. Okay, THAT makes me nervous! I rushed out the door, trying to ignore the puzzled and slightly frustrated look that formed on Edward's face. Crap. Now I'm going to be questioned in the car. Ugh.

A few moments later, Edward had zoomed out of the driveway and back onto the road. He looked over at me with his piercing topaz eyes and frowned. "Bella… Why was Alice acting more strangely than usual?" When I answered by merely shifting awkwardly in my seat and trying not to make eye contact, I heard him sigh softly. "Why won't you tell me what you wished for, love? I won't get mad." He smiled over at me, trying a different approach. I, however, was not about to let him dazzle it out of me.

"Well, Edward, I'm not sure what Alice saw." I looked over at him, flashing what I hoped was an innocent smile. "After all… I'm not a mind reader or anything." That earned me a growl. Oops. Too much? Edward looked back at the road, and we were rapidly approaching my house.

"Well, Isabella…" I winced. He never called me that. Clearly, he was not amused by this situation. "I can see you aren't going to take this seriously." The car whipped violently into the driveway, screeching to a halt behind my truck. Good thing I had my seatbelt on… Yikes. Despite being irate, Edward still performed his gentlemanly duties: opening my door, undoing my seatbelt, helping me out of the car, and carrying my things inside. After putting the rest of the cake in the fridge for Charlie later, I looked up to find Edward standing in the doorway of the kitchen empty-handed. A slight panic overtook me as I looked at his tense posture and stony gaze.

"You – you are staying, right?" I hated how pathetic my voice sounded as I begged him to stay without directly saying it. But really, I was feeling quite pathetic. If he left I would feel terrible, and it would ruin an otherwise decent birthday for me. Stepping forward, I reached out my hand to him hesitantly, feeling the threat of tears filling my eyes as I watched him look at the floor. Suddenly, his eyes snapped up and he looked heartbroken, reaching out to cup my face delicately in his icy hands.

"Shhh, Bella…" Edward spoke softly as he kissed first my cheeks then my forehead softly. "Don't cry, love. I'm sorry. I was rude. I should know better than to pry…" I closed my eyes, leaning into him and letting out a soft gasp of surprise when I felt his lips graze each eyelid lovingly. "I just wish I knew what was going on in that beautiful mind of yours." I tensed a little, getting the feeling that he was again changing tactics to figure out what Alice had seen. He must have noticed, because he tilted my face up to his as I opened my eyes. "I suppose I have to wait and see, if you won't tell me, then?" Phew. That was easier than I expected.

*** several hours later (aka after dinner with Charlie and Edward 'leaving' for the night) ***

I came back into my room after changing and brushing my teeth, flopping down in my chair with a sigh. I hadn't realized how stressful having a nosy vampire asking questions could be. I glanced around my room, not seeing or sensing Edward's presence anywhere. I sighed again, slightly relieved, but also very disappointed. I'm pathetic… Two hours apart and I'm already getting lonely. Picking up my hairbrush, I started working out the tangles, wincing slightly when I hit a particularly nasty one, and practically jumping out of my skin when I felt the brush being taken out of my hands.

"Sorry, love, I didn't mean to startle you…" Edward chuckled from behind me as he gently ran the brush through the rest of my hair. Mmmm…I closed my eyes and smiled, discovering yet another mundane activity that my boyfriend was perfect at. "Did you enjoy your birthday?" Putting the brush back on my dresser, he kissed the top of my head and wrapped his cold arms around me.

I tipped my head back to look at him and smiled. "Oh, it was alright." He frowned slightly, looking worried, and he opened his mouth to speak. For once, I was fast enough and I placed my finger to his lips. "I had a good time, really." I moved my hand and gave him a soft kiss. "Thank you."

Edward picked me up and carried me over to my bed, tucking me under the covers with a smile before climbing in next to me, laying on top of the covers. I couldn't help but chuckle at how awkward it was that he was fully dressed. He gave me a quizzical look, but I snuggled into his arms and he started to hum my lullaby. I was asleep before I knew it.

***EPOV***

My love was asleep in my arms, her heartbeat slow and steady, her warm breath on my neck as she nestled closer to me in her sleep. I smiled to myself, enjoying this quiet closeness immensely. This was a much better way to spend my evenings than any hobby I had attempted in the past century. Closing my eyes, I let out a contented sigh as her pulse and warmth lulled me into a hazy pseudo-slumber.

***the next morning***

I stirred, wondering when I had gotten under the covers, and why I couldn't remember laying here for so long. The warmth of my blanket cocoon was amazing, and I realized I hadn't felt this sensation in a very long time. It was almost like waking up after a good night's sleep. Wait a second… My eyes flew open at the realization I couldn't hear Bella's heartbeat anymore, and I froze, staring at the very familiar torso on top of the blankets next to me. This is not right. I got out of the bed with so little grace that I fell to the floor with a solid and surprisingly painful thud. This is very not right.

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