Lover | Edward Cullen

Ch. 21: Lavender

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~One Year Later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There is a time in one's existence in which life-changing decisions must be made, and stuck with, no matter the cost. Decisions adored, decisions resented, decisions regretted.

Of course, sometimes it's a bit of all three.

"Momma!" Renesmee screamed. "The baby peed again!" I laughedl and took the small bundle into my arms. For about three days, I'd had my darling newborn daughter. Luna Eliza Cullen. She had blonde hair, blue green eyes, and was absolutely perfect. Nessie was obsessed, of course, and spoiled her sister.

"Here you go," I cooed, picking Luna back up. I think Edward left the house whenever he realized Luna had to use her diaper. It was honestly quite funny, until she pooped and I smelled it.

"There you are, my darling," I murmured to the baby. She was quite beautiful, not like a human. Humans were incapable of the beauty she possessed.

"Dela." Edward decided now was a good time to come back to the small nursery we'd made for our daughter.

I smiled as he pecked my cheek, then Luna's. She adored him, that was clear.

"How does she think?" I asked, laying the baby in her crib.

"Not like we do. It's a bunch of colors and pictures and sounds, but that's about it. No words, or names." He said this like it fascinated him. It was sweet, but I also didn't want him treating our kids like test subjects.

"Mm." Baby Luna babbled a tiny bit, as she fell asleep. I sang her a soft lullaby, the same one Eliza sang to Edward. Sort of out of place now, yes, but I wasn't about to care.

"She and her cousin are gonna be besties." I murmured. Rosalie was expecting a baby within the month, who would probably somehow be more spoiled than Renesmee or Luna.

"Probably." Edward agreed.

"Momma, Daddy!" Nessie called. She showed me an online article, about the Influenza. Just thinking about it made my hands shake...

We were sitting alone on the couch, we being Edward, Elizabeth and I. The radio was on, and though all of us were doing separate things, the newsman had our attentions.

"And finally- wait... We're going into lockdown! I repeat, we are going into lockdown! Nobody is to leave the house they find themselves in without a proper face covering, and it is advised to avoid contact with the world."

I felt a shriek building up in my throat. No... This couldn't be real.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A black dress covered my body, as I dusted the shelves. The death of my future father-in-law left its mark on us all. The maids were no longer allowed to come, meaning Eliza and I were in charge of keeping the house tidy - at least it occupied us. Edward spent his days alone, unless someone came in to talk to him. No matter how little time they'd shared, Edward looked up to his father, and his death had truly slapped him in the face, like it did us all.

Our futures were no longer sure. We'd been plunged into a different world, and this time there was nobody to keep us safe.

"Was- was this how you almost died, when you were a human?" Renesmee asked quietly. Physically, she was thirteen, mentally she had no defined age.

"Yes, Nessie. Yes." Was all he could say, as he held both of us close.