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My own eyes flew open

I lay shivering and gasping into break free of the drearay and then pale pink while I waited for my heart to slow

When I was fully back to the reality of my messy, familiar room, I was a little annoyed with ! That’s what I got for obsessing over disturbing stories in the ot dressed and headed down to the kitchen long before I needed to First I cleaned the already tidy rooms, and then when Charlie was up I made him pancakes I wasbreakfastinup Mr Weber at three o’clock," I reminded hi the et my only job" Charlie had taken the entire day off for the wedding, and he was definitely at loose ends Now and then, his eyes flickered furtively to the closet under the stairs, where he kept his fishing gear

"That’s not your only job You also have to be dressed and presentable"

He scowled into his cereal bowl and muttered the words " on the front door

"You think you have it bad," I said, gri"

Charlie nodded thoughtfully, conceding that he did have the lesser ordeal I ducked in to kiss the top of his head as I passed - he blushed and harruirlfriend and soon-to-be sister

Alice’s short black hair was not in its usual spiky do - it was smoothed into sleek pin curls around her pixie face, which wore a contrastingly businesslike expression She dragged me from the house with barely a "Hey, Charlie"

called over her shoulder

Alice appraised ot into her Porsche

"Oh, hell, look at your eyes!" She tsked in reproach "What did you do? Stay up all night?"

"Allowered "I’ve only allotted so ht have taken better care ofI think the bigger proble the cereht part, and then Edill hed "I’ll throw ets close"

"Thanks"

"At least you’ll have plenty of time to sleep on the plane tomorrow"

I raised one eyebrow Toht after the reception, and ould still be on a plane to to Boise, Idaho Edward hadn’t dropped a single hint I wasn’t too stressed about thewhere I would be sleeping to

Alice realized that she’d given so away, and she frowned

"You’re all packed and ready," she said to distract me

It worked "Alice, I wish you would let iven too much away"

"And denied you an opportunity to shop"

"You’ll be my sister officially in ten short hours it’s about tiroggily out the windshield until ere almost to the house

"Is he back yet?" I asked

"Don’t worry, he’ll be there before the et to see hi this the traditional way"

I snorted "Traditional!"

"Okay, aside froroom"

"You know he’s already peeked"

"Oh no - that’s why I’m the only one who’s seen you in the dress I’ve been very careful to not think about it when he’s around"

"Well," I said as we turned into the drive, "I see you got to reuse your graduation decorations" Three ain wrapped in hundreds of thousands of twinkle lights This time, she’d added white satin bows

"Waste not, want not Enjoy this, because you don’t get to see the inside decorations until it’s tie north of the one

"Since when is the bride not allowed to see the decorations?" I protested

"Since she putdown the stairs"

She clapped her hand over my eyes before she let me inside the kitchen I was immediately assailed by the scent

"What is that?" I wondered as she guided me into the house

"Is it too much?" Alice’s voice was abruptly worried "You’re the first huht"

"it s, but not at all overwhelrances was subtle and flawless "Orange blossoood, Bella You only missed the freesia and the roses"

She didn’t uncover my eyes until ere in her oversized bathroo counter, covered in all the paraphernalia of a beauty salon, and began to feelto look plain next to him no matter what"

She pushed me down into a low pink chair "No one will dare to call you plain when I’h with you"

"Only because they’re afraid you’ll suck their blood," I muttered I leaned back in the chair and closed h it I did drift in and out a little bit while she masked, buffed, and polished every surface of lided past the bathrooolden hair piled up in a soft crown on top of her head She was so beautiful itup with Rosalie around?

"They’re back," Rosalie said, and immediately my childish fit of despair passed Edas home

"Keep him out of here!"

"He won’t cross you today," Rosalie reassured her "He values his life too s up out back Do you want some help? I could do her hair"

My jaw fell open I floundered around into remember how to close it

I had never been Rosalie’s favorite person in the world Then, s even more strained between us, she was personally offended by the choice I wasfamily, and her soul mate in Emmett, she would have traded it all to be hu she wanted in life like it was garbage It didn’t exactly warm her toI want it intricate The veil goes here, underneath" Her hands started co in detail what she wanted When she was done, Rosalie’s hands replaced hers, shaping ht touch Alice moved back to my face

Once Rosalie received Alice’s commendation on my hair, she was sent off to retrieve my dress and then to locate Jasper, who had been dispatched to pick up my mother and her husband, Phil, from their hotel Downstairs, I could faintly hear the door opening and closing over and over Voices began to float up to us

Alice made me stand so that she could ease the dress over my hair andline of pearl buttons up my back that the satin quivered in little wavelets down to the floor

"Deep breaths, Bella/7Alice said "And try to lower your heart rate You’re going to sweat off your new face"

I gave her the best sarcastic expression I could et dressed now Can you hold yourself together for two minutes?"

"Urn maybe?"

She rolled her eyes and darted out the door

I concentrated on s, and stared at the patterns that the bathrooht made on the shiny fabric of e of e into a full-scale panic attack

Alice was back before I had taken two hundred breaths, in a dress that flowed down her slender body like a silvery waterfall

"Alice - "