La Cantante

Celebrations and Such

We all settled into the table and opened our menus. We discussed what we wanted to eat. My parents got a wide variety of Greek appetizers: saganaki, taramosalata, lemon soup and Greek salad for starters. We all decided to try some different things from the menu and share our food. The waiter served our appetizers and scuttled away.

"So, Edward, I heard that you got an apartment?" Carlisle asked.

I took a sip of my water and nodded. "Yeah. It's in Dorwood Hill Apartment complex. It's really nice. The square footage is about 1600 square feet. Two bedrooms and two bathrooms with a storage facility. It's a secure building with a doorman. It also has an underground parking garage. We have two parking spots, but will only be using one. We move in on January 5th."

"Sounds really nice. What's the rent?" Carlisle pressed.

"$1,100 a month. That includes assessments, water, heating and electricity. On Monday, I'm setting up everything for cable, telephone and internet," I explained

"Bella, you're moving in with Edward, right?" Esme asked kindly.

"Yes, Esme. I'm very excited. As much as I love rooming with Alice and Rosalie, it'll be nice to move in with Edward. The dorm experience has been fun, but it does have its challenges," Bella said with a grin.

If you only knew what those challenges were.

"That's fantastic! Over the Thanksgiving break we'll have to discuss decorating options. We'll make the apartment look fantastic. Consider it our Christmas present to both of you. We'll get your furniture and necessities for your new place," Esme gushed.

"Oh, Esme. That's too much! You really don't have to do that," Bella said as she blushed.

"Oh, nonsense. Who am I going to spend money on besides my children? It'll be my pleasure to decorate your apartment," Esme chastised.

Soon, Bella will be your daughter-in-law, Esme. It's only a matter of time.

Bella shot me a glance, filled with apprehension. I smiled at her reassuringly. "Thanks, Mom. It means more to us than you can imagine."

"Not a problem, Edward. I'm happy that you found a place. I just want to make sure I capture both your personalities in the décor. I have some ideas, but I want to run them past Bella over your Thanksgiving break. I'll have some sketches drawn up and we'll discuss them. When are you planning on heading home for Thanksgiving?" Esme questioned.

"Breaking Midnight has a show on Tuesday evening. This was a last minute change. We won't be able to head out until Wednesday morning," I clarified.

"That's okay. Bella, I got those recipes that you sent. I'm looking forward to your broccoli casserole, sweet potato casserole and Bella Brownies. My mouth is watering at the thought!" Esme said, rubbing her stomach.

"Those are all family recipes. However, the brownies are payment. Emmett said he would only come to the concert tonight if I made my Bella Brownies," Bella retorted.

"Your brownies are the shit, Isabelly. I still would have come to your concert, but the brownies are an added bonus," Emmett said with a grin.

"Whatever, Em," Bella giggled.

"Well, Bella. I'll make sure to have all of the necessary ingredients. I'm going grocery shopping on Tuesday evening. We should be all ready to go for preparations on Wednesday. This is going to be so much fun," Esme squealed.

"So, how was your trip to Toronto?" Carlisle asked Bella, Rose and me.

"It was a lot of fun. Busy but fun," Rose replied. "We left on Thursday and got into Toronto by 9. Friday, we were given the chance to explore the city. Saturday we had our performances. We competed in the morning and got into the semi-finals. Unfortunately, our performance at the semi-finals was not strong enough to move us to the finals. We did stay to watch the final competition and the groups were really good."