Chapter 13: Bids and Bonding

GabPOV

The open rush event really opened all of our eyes to what Greek life was really about and we had all decided that it was Sigma Gamma Omega or nothing.

One of the sisters, Kieran, was welcoming and sweet, and really laid back, in fact all of the girls were. They didn't meet that stereotype of sorority girls with their overly perfect, fake, supper peppy persona. They were relaxed, fun, and genuinely liked one another. It was like a real sisterhood, and one that I was definitely looking forward to joining with the rest of my new Cullen sisters.

As I rolled out of bed this morning I was definitely nervous. It was formal bid day, and the sisters at Sigma Gamma Omega informed us that we had to stay in our rooms from 5pm on in order to see if we received a bid to pledge their sorority. They didn't give us any further details, but after I finished my last class I picked up some food supplies from the cafeteria and holed up in my room awaiting my fate.

Around 4:00 Nessie knocked on my door and asked if she could wait it out with me. She appeared to be nearly as nervous as I was. We decided to watch Legally Blonde and eat as much junk food as possible to distract ourselves from the stress of not knowing. It actually worked for a while, but as 5:00 rolled around, the stress was back in full force.

"Do you think we made a good enough impression? What if they noticed something was different about mom and Aunt Alice and that makes them not want us? There's no way I would join if they don't accept all of us…"Nessie rambled, nerves clearly taking over.

"Hey, it's ok Ness," I started as I took her hand to comfort her. "If they don't accept us, we still have each other, and honestly we are practically a sorority anyway."

"Yeah, you're right…but I really, really want to get a bid." She said and I could see in her eyes how important this acceptance was to her.

"Me too." I replied.

Just as I finished my sentence I could hear a knock on our suite door, and Nessie flew toward my bedroom door flinging it open as the doors to Bella and Alice's rooms opened. We all just stood in the common area staring at one another, until Alice finally offered to do the honors.

She walked slowly toward the door, and while we all knew that she already knew whether or not we were all accepted, I greatly appreciated that she not only managed to keep the secret, but also didn't give it away at all with her facial expressions.

Nessie, Bella, and I all sat on the large couch as Alice opened the door to reveal four of the Sigma Gamma Omega sisters dressed all in white, holding bouquets of lavender, hydrangea, hibiscus, and peonies, and four matching envelopes.

They were all beautiful in very different ways. The tallest, whose name was Kieran, had flowing red hair and large bright green eyes, next to her stood a stunning African-American girl of average height with light brown hair name Annalyse. The last two girls, identical twins with chocolate brown hair and eyes and full lips were named Gia and Johanna. They all smiled glowingly at us as Nessie, Bella, and I walked across the common room to join Alice at the door.

"Ladies, we are here to extend the warmest welcome to Sigma Gamma Omega, and to invite you to join in the bond of sisterhood with us," they said in unison. "If you choose to accept these formal invitations to pledge our sisterhood, you must report to Baker Tower at midnight, dressed only in the purest white."

They handed us the formal bids and Nessie and I were holding one another's hands tightly as we stared at them in awe.

"Oh, and I am so not supposed to tell you this," Kieran began in a conspiratorial whisper, "but we all have chosen you as our Little Sisters, and wanted to personally deliver these to you ourselves." She had the warmest smile, and I was so happy to see that the four girls that we all had gotten along with so well at the open rush event apparently felt the same way about us.

"Oh! Um…thanks!" Alice whispered back and flashed a huge smile as well. "We'll definitely be there tonight, so we'll see you then. "

The girls all smiled at us again and hurried off down the hall, as Alice closed the door. She turned slowly to face us, and we all erupted into a fit of girly squealing and jumping up and down around the common area. We looked like a group of 13 year-old girls who just found out their crushes were asking them to the spring dance, but it didn't matter, we were all going to be sisters!

As the reality of tonight's events began to sink in, I immediately went into panic mode.

"Umm, I don't know about you guys, but I don't actually have a 'pure white' wardrobe on hand. What the hell am I supposed to wear tonight?" I whined as I plopped down on the love seat. Nessie looked panic stricken as well...

I guess she doesn't have anything for tonight either.

"Ok, no need to panic, and I can't believe I am about to suggest this, but it is still only 6:00. We have enough time to shoot down to Boston and get something for tonight." Bella offered. I could see she was in crisis management mode.

"That should work. We will all find something at the BCBG on Newberry St, and get back with enough time to get dressed and ready before heading over to Baker Tower." Alice said, a huge smile lighting up her eyes at the thought of getting some shopping in.

"Ok, well if this is going to work, we need to hurry up, Boston is at least an hour and a half away if we speed, and I want to have enough time to try on a few dresses while we're there." I said as I ran to my room and grabbed my purse and shoes.

I noticed that Nessie was running around her room gathering up her wallet and keys as well, as Alice shouted to us to grab sweatshirts as well. Apparently it was going to be a bit chilly in Boston.

Once we all had everything we needed we rushed out the door and to the parking deck toward my LR3. I tossed Alice the keys and she stopped short looking stunned.

"What?" I asked as I ran to the front passenger side, and stopped, waiting for her to unlock the doors.

"Nothing, well it's just that Emmett never lets me drive his car, and I guess I thought you would be the same way since you guys are so similar." She said as she hit the unlock key and we all piled into the car.

"Well, 1: I'm not that possessive over things in general, and especially not a car that I have only owned for about five minutes and I didn't even pick out, and 2: I figure with your abilities you could probably drive way over the speed limit and avoid any tickets or speed traps." I replied nonchalantly as I buckled in.

"You know, I'm totally repeating that to Emmett and Edward next time they give me crap about driving their cars." Alice replied as she peeled out of the parking deck and barreled out of the campus toward our destination.

We arrived at BCBG about an hour and ten minutes later, and I had never been so excited to see traffic in my life. Alice had made record time into Boston, only slowing down once the traffic in the center of the city forced her to. To say that she drives like a speed demon would be putting it mildly.

After saying a quick prayer of thanks for surviving the trip, we all piled out of the car and rushed into the shop. Luckily, there were a variety of white dresses on display and Nessie, Bella, and I headed straight for the rack. Alice, however, walked to the shop manager and had a hushed conversation with her. Less than 5 minutes later the manager locked the doors and glasses of champagne were distributed to each of us.

Wow, Ali really knows how to shop in style.

"I figured since we are in a hurry and we need the fitting rooms available, may as well close down the store. " Alice said with a wink as she passed me.

"Um, and how much did that set you back?" Bella asked, looking uncomfortable with the added attention and the possible cost.

"Do you really want to know?" Alice asked with a raised eyebrow. Bella looked sheepish and shook her head no in response. Just then the shop manager approached our group to offer her assistance.

"Good evening ladies, my name is Mischa, can I help you ladies find anything in particular today?" she asked with a genuine smile. I guess a hefty tip can really go a long way towards excellent customer service.

"We need to see everything you have in pure white," Nessie replied. "In a size 2 and 4 please."

"I'll put together a rack for you right away, and in the meantime take a look around the store for any shoes and accessories you may need." She replied as she hurried to the back store room.

Mischa returned about 10 minutes later with two full racks of white dresses and gowns in various lengths. "This rack here is all size 2, and this one is all size 4. Were you able to locate any shoes and accessories you would like to try on as well?"

"Actually, can we each try the satin pumps in the front window?" I asked as I perused the racks of dresses. We each gave Mischa our shoe sizes as we took our first selections into the fitting rooms.

I had chosen two dresses to try on, and I really hoped one of them would be the one. It was a little strange to be trying on white dresses, and it made me think ahead to what I would want my wedding dress to look like. Once I got on that train of thought my mind drifted to Emmett and what he and the guys were up to, and whether they had gotten bids for Sigma Gamma.

"Hey, has anyone spoken to the guys today? I was wondering if they got their bids or not." I called out to the rest of the girls as I slipped into the banded one shoulder dress. It fit me like a glove and hugged all of my curves.

Looks like I found my dress on the first try.

"Um, I talked to Jake this morning, but I haven't heard from him or the rest of the guys since then." Nessie called back as she opened the curtain to her fitting room to reveal the amazingly sweet scoop neck full skirt dress with delicate flowers along the neckline and the hem. It looked perfect on her.

"Wow, Ness, that looks amazing on you!" I called over to her as we made our way to the full length mirror in the center of the fitting room.

"Me? You look stunning in that dress. Uncle Em is gonna flip out when he sees you in that!" She said as she twirled her finger, gesturing me to do a spin and let out a low whistle.

"Wow, I see you've been spending way too much time with your Uncle Emmett," Bella giggled as she met us in the center of the fitting room.

Her presence stunned Nessie and I into silence. She looked radiant, and even more otherworldly than usual. She was wearing a tulip hem one shoulder dress with pleating along the bust and sculptural origami flowers along the strap.

"Whoa." I managed to get out after a few moments of staring at Bella.

"Thanks." She replied shyly with a soft embarrassed smile.

"Hm-hm" Alice coughed from behind us, clearly trying to get our attention. We turned and were met with the most dazzling little fairy straight out of a Disney fantasy. It had an intricate beaded lace inset at the neckline with two flowing tiers that stopped at her knees.

"Oh my gosh, Ali!" I exclaimed as I rushed over to her. "You look so perfect. So I'm going to go ahead and say that the dress shopping is done! Let's head over and check out some accessories and get ready to head back, ok?"

I was greeted with smiles from everyone as they agreed and we quickly changed back into our clothes and handed our selections to Mischa to hold at the register while we perused the jewelry selections. While we were looking through all the accessories, I decided to shoot a quick text to Emmett to see how his day was going.

Hey babe, haven't heard from you all day, did you hear yet about your bid?~G

I came across an amazing rhinestone pave bracelet and earrings to go with my dress, while Nessie chose to wear her own simple pearl studs. Bella went with what I found out was her engagement ring form Edward and a pair of simple diamond stud earrings, and Alice, being the fashionista she is, chose a pair of silver drop earrings and a delicate web-like cuff bracelet that mirrored the neckline of her dress.

As we made our way to the register to pay for our purchases, I finally got a text back from Emmett.

Hi sweet cheeks! Sorry I haven't talked to you all day. I can't say much, but we did get our bids, and we've been busy doing super secret Sigma Gamma pledge business. Did you guys get your bids? Tell the girls we all say hi and we'll call you when we can.~E

Yes, we're in Boston now buying dresses for tonight for our bid acceptance. I'm so happy for you, and I hope I get to see you tonight. I miss you Emmie-bear.~G

I miss you too, and congrats! I gotta run, ttyl I love you~E

"Ladies, the boys all got their bids and are doing 'super secret Sigma Gamma pledge business' according to Emmett." I giggled out as I read the text aloud to the girls.

"Awesome!" Nessie called back.

"Hey, what do you say to stopping in at La Perla? It's only 7:00 and we still have another 40 minutes before we need to leave to have time to get ready." Alice asked as Mischa finished putting our dresses into garment bags.

Before Alice could open her purse, I handed the sales girl at the register my Amex Black Card and had her charge all the dresses to my account.

"Thanks so much Gabs!" Nessie, Bella, and Alice called out as they walked their dresses out to the car.

"No problem, and I am totally down for a quick trip to La Perla, Ali." I replied as I stowed my purchases in the truck and started off toward bra and panty heaven.

We all stocked up on bras and panties and lingerie and various colors and degrees of sheer and headed back to the car with no time to spare. Alice drove, once again, but this time I opted to ride in the back with Nessie, and Bella took the front passenger seat. Ness and I chatted happily for a few minutes, until we were bother overcome with exhaustion from the excitement of the day and slept the rest of the ride back to campus.

All in all it was a great day, but I was looking forward to what tonight had to offer.

We arrived back to campus around 9:30 and immediately started to get ready. Alice produced a dress rack from lord knows where and hung all of our dresses in the common area so they wouldn't wrinkle. We each took turns taking quick showers, and Nessie and Alice went over to Ali's room to do their hair and make-up. I invited Bella over to my room to get ready with me.

"I'm surprised you want my help with this. I'm usually the one needing help with hair and make-up." she explained as we sat down at my vanity.

"Oh, that's ok. How about I do your make-up and hair then? I usually just do a light make-up application for myself anyway, and I am just going to let my hair dry with my big curlers." I offered.

"Um, sure that sounds ok. You are really low maintenance, huh?" Bella asked as I took out my few make-up supplies.

"Yeah, when it comes that that kinda stuff, anyway."

She didn't need foundation, so I applied a soft smoky eye in shades of brown and bronze for her, and a light peach lip gloss. I went a little darker for myself, and did a smoky eye in shades of silver, grey and black and my trusty cherry Chapstick to finish off.

"So, things with you and Emmett are progressing pretty quickly, huh?" Bella asked as I started wrapping her hair loosely around my curling iron, adding extra bounce and a few waves. I paused as I was curling the last few strands, slightly embarrassed to be discussing this with Bella. While she wasn't my mom, she was still a mom.

"Yeah, it's all moving pretty fast, but it's good, I think." I replied, trying to hide my embarrassment.

"I was really surprised to see how quickly your physical relationship developed." She continued. While I felt like I was getting 'the talk' from my mom, she appeared to be very comfortable with this conversation.

"Yeah, um, I guess," was the best response I could muster.

"Gabrielle, I'm not trying to pry. I just was really impressed how much you have affected him, and how well you are handling all of this. I just wanted to remind you that I have been in a somewhat similar relationship and if you need to talk to anyone, you can always come to me," she said as she turned to face me.

"Thanks again. I don't feel like I have many questions yet. I'm kinda going on instinct and hormones right now, but once we get more settled into this I'm sure I'll be running to you for all kinds of advice." I replied, feeling like I really could come to her with anything. It was strange, she didn't look like she was older than me, and yet I felt like she could be the mother I never had.

Our conversation ended on that note and we finished getting ready in a comfortable silence. I could see a lot of Nessie's personality in Bella, and it was cool to see just how much they were alike.

Just as I finished blowing out my bangs, Alice and Nessie called out the 30 minute warning. We had just enough time to get dressed and head over to Baker Tower by midnight. As we turned to head toward the door, Alice appeared out of her room carrying four pure white leather jackets.

"I thought I might need these at some time, and it looks like once again I was right." She laughed as she handed a jacket to each of us. Nessie wore a military style jacket with a mandarin collar, Bella's jacket was in the style of a blazer, Alice wore a bomber style, while I was sporting a cool motorcycle jacket.

We filled out of the room and headed across campus to meet up with our future sisters, laughing and joking with one another along the way. There was a buzz of excitement in the air and I couldn't wait to see what tonight would bring.

As we got closer to Baker Tower we could see the glow from dozens of candles and my heart rate increased. I was so nervous and excited and by the look on Nessie's face, she was too. Bella looked excited but reserved and Alice looked like she was concentrating really hard on something.

"Hey Ali, what's wrong" I asked, worried that she saw something bad happening.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just trying not to look into the future to see what happens. It's kinda fun not knowing what's coming next sometimes." She replied with a smile.

"Well, don't hurt yourself" I said, barely able to contain my laughter at the look of concentration on her face.

"Whatever, Gabs!" she said as she swatted at my arm. Luckily I was able to dodge her fast hands and we came to our meeting spot with the rest of the new Sigma Gamma Omega pledge class. I looked around at the faces of all the other girls, and they looked equally excited and scared just like me. There were loads of nervous smiles as we greeted each other and tried to make small talk until we were told what to do next.

I was talking with a girl named Sierra, and it turns out she knew a few people I went o boarding school with, and she was a very sweet, if shy, girl. We had just started talking about where we grew up when the sisters showed up all dressed in lilac dresses carrying a single lit candle.

We all formed a loose grouping in front of them and quieted down as Kieran stepped forward began to speak.

"Newest sisters of Sigma Gamma Omega, on this night you have accepted our invitation to join in the bonds of sisterhood found in Sigma Gamma Omega. You have all be welcomed here due to your strong characters and pure hearts. We take pride in our sisterhood, and it is with great pleasure that we invite you to join us."

Kieran stepped back in line with the rest of the sisters, and one by one each girl stepped forward and said a name. It became clear, quickly, that they were each saying the name of one of the pledges, and I was anxious to see who would say my name and what this all meant. Annalyse stepped forward and called out Alice's name, Gia and Johanna called Nessie and Bella's names respectively, and finally Kieran stepped forward and called out my name.

I guess we now know who our Big Sisters were.

"Ladies," Johanna began, "We each have just announced who we have chosen as our Little Sisters. This is an honor that we each cherish, and a responsibility that we take on to guide you through the pledging process. We are here to mentor you, guide you, and most of all help you in your journey to becoming a sister of Sigma Gamma Omega. Lean on your Big Sister, go to her for help, and know that you are now a part of a family…a line of strong, intelligent, caring women."

I was starting to get choked up by this ceremony. All this talk of family and caring was really hitting home for me, and this time I really knew that joining this sorority was indeed the right choice for me.

Once Johanna finished her speech, all of us pledges were asked to stand in front of our Big Sisters and to repeat our pledge to them. At the end of our pledge, we were each presented with a pledge pin, placed on our dresses over our hearts, and were instructed to wear them in this same position everyday for the entire pledge process. The pin was beautiful, with a large amethyst surrounded by gold ivy filigree.

Once all of us girls were pinned, Gia stepped forward to address our pledge class.

"Ladies, the pledge process has officially begun. Look at the ladies to the left and right of you. They will be there with you and to support you through this process. Lean on one another. This may get difficult, but it will always be with the interest of making you the best members of Sigma Gamma Omega that you can be. That is all for this evening. I suggest you head home and get a good night's sleep… this may be your last one for quite a while." She said with a wink. The rest of the sisters shared a laugh as well and they all headed off toward the sorority house and after a round of goodbyes, the pledges all headed off as well.

I was excited to return to the room and text Emmett to see how crazy his day was, and to check if I could possibly get to see him tonight. As we got back to our suite, I headed straight for my room to where I left my cell phone and was surprised to see my Emmett laying across my bed waiting for me. I called a quick goodnight to the girls before locking my door and joining him on the bed.

"Hey babe, happy to see me I guess," Emmett said around my mouth as I had engulfed his lips in a desperate kiss. I can't believe how much I had missed him today, and I was starting to second guess this whole pledging thing if it meant I would see less of him.

"Yeah, sorry about the attack, but I missed you so much today." I replied after I got my hormones in check enough to remove myself from his face. Once I regained my brain function, I noticed that some of my new goodies from La Perla were laid out on the bed as well, and I knew I hadn't left them there earlier.

"Hey Emmie, any reason why my new undies are laid out? I can pretty much guess by the size of you that these won't fit you." I giggled.

"Oh yeah, um so you know how pledging started today?" he asked with a smirk showing off his insane dimples. God, I would give him anything he wanted when he made that face.

"Yeah" I replied, breathless and a little dizzy.

"Well, we each need to bring back a pair of girl's underwear and well us pledges decided to make a little game out of it to see who could get the hottest girl's panties, and well…you are the hottest girl I know so…"he trailed off spinning one of my lacy thongs around his finger as he leaned in closer to me.

"Mmm…so how are you all supposed to know whose underwear they are?" I asked feeling a little flustered by the devilishly sexy look he was giving me.

"Well, we are supposed to get a picture of the girl modeling the underwear." He tried to sneak in before kissing me senseless. I'm guessing this was his attempt at getting me to agree to pose in my skivvies for all of his fraternity brothers to see.

"Mmm…have you lost your ever loving mind?" I purred at him after he finished kissing me into mental oblivion. Well, almost.

"C'mon babe…you pick the underwear you would feel comfortable in and I promise I won't let them keep the picture." He tried again.

"But Emmie, you should know by now that I don't feel comfortable in underwear. I hardly ever wear them." I said around his lips. By this point I had climbed on his lap and was kissing my way down his neck.

"Uh, oh yeah. Well, maybe you can just…mmm that's nice….pick something that covers a lot?" he said. I could tell that the nibbling I was doing on his ear was definitely starting to affect his mental function. I stopped and sat up to look him in the eye.

"Ok, I am by no means shy, but I have an even better idea. One that is sure to win you this little bet. How about you take a picture of me, wrapped in these sheets holding up a pair of my underwear, and you show that to them? This way they can see they are mine, without actually seeing any of the goods." I offered.

"That sounds perfect babe…"Emmett trailed off as he bagan kissing my neck and chest. We spent the rest of the night kissing and loving one another, and at some point Emmett got his picture for his bet.

I just hope that he doesn't think that came without a price. He so owed me for this.