Chapter Eighteen – Birthday Surprise: Part 2

I stare at myself in the mirror, wanting nothing more than to vomit at what I was seeing. Well, not so much as vomit but it felt that way. I had always hated dresses. They just never particularly bode well for me. And the boys always made me uncomfortable when I wore them. I mean, you know the comments of 'easy access' and all that bullshit. So dresses… yeah, no.

But Alice... oh my. She was a dresses galore kind of woman. And tonight was no different.

She chose a sapphire colored dress with a… what do you call them? Sweetheart neckline? It was sleeveless, the clothe covering my shoulders was a see through material covered in jewels and pearls designed to look like flowers. It even had the waist embellished with the same jewels and pearls, almost like a belt. It was also a short dress, stopping a few inches above the knee.

"Doesn't this seem almost prom-ish, Alice?" I questioned after a moment, fingers touching the edges of my hair. It was left down this time, a slight wave effect given to it. I had simple stud earrings and a silver bracelet, ignoring the fact that they were both made with diamonds.

"No," Alice gave me wide eyes before slowly breaking at the pointed look I gave her. "Well, maybe. Oh yes. It was just too pretty to pass up for you. And since Carlisle can't go to prom with you, I thought he deserved to see you in it early."

"Okay, one, thank you. Two, I am not going to prom. Trust me. Not gonna happen," I watched her face fall, sighing in defeat. "And three, that's just an excuse. You enjoy dressing people up. So don't lie to me about that."

Alice gave me such a crushed look that I immediately felt bad for my words but I wouldn't concede. She was worse than a little girl to be honest and that was something I had to work on. I may never have children, adopted even, but Alice seems to make up for that quite enough.

"So," I started, tapping the heels she gave me. They were solid black, coming together at the ankle in a rather cute bow. I actually liked them, though I would never openly admit it. Really, I just wanted to go downstairs and get this over with. It had to end in disaster.

"What about presents again?"

Alice quickly brightened at my words, jumping up immediately to grab my hand. She bounded with me out the door, chatting away about how everyone got me something I would absolutely love. I couldn't help the laugh as we got to the stairs, walking down to the rest of our little family. Everyone was waiting, beaming brightly as they saw me. I, of course, felt over dressed but said nothing as Rosalie came forward first, handing me a box.

"Alice?" I questioned, noticing how uncomfortable she looked.

"Yep," Rosalie didn't go into details as I opened the box, noting the new jewelry inside. It was more bracelets, which I loved, but I wasn't much of a jewelry wearer, so it would end up in a drawer. Unless I needed them for special occasions.

"Thank you," I prompted before Alice bounded over, shoving another in my hands. I opened each gift she handed me, noting the new clothes and shoes and few accessories before Bella stepped forward, her own gift in hand. I raised a brow, looking at Alice since I noticed that the wrapping paper was different. Cheaper. Less shiny.

"She got that one herself," Alice acted all proud but I didn't say anything about it as I took the gift.

"I'm doing this only once, got that?" I smiled but I could see that Bella understood the meaning. I was actually really uncomfortable with this whole thing. All the gifts were too much and I was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed. Even my aunt and uncle never spent this much on me and it was really beginning to bother me that the Cullens did so without another thought.

"Yeah. I know," Bella smiled as I slowly opened the paper, taking care to not give myself a paper cut. Once all the paper was removed, I opened the box, laughing when Emmett made a joke about the paper (which made Jasper stiffen and Bella shuffle… need to find out about that one) only to freeze at the contents. Inside was something that I had thought I lost many years ago, my eyes looking up toward Bella in disbelief.

"Where did you find this?" I whispered, lifting up the old book. It was… my mother's journal. When I was about to leave Forks, I had hidden her journal in Bella's house, letting her know that it was there but never revealing the spot I had placed it. Even now, I don't remember where I had hid it myself. But…

"Dad found it when he was moving things around. I just thought you deserved to have it back," Bella told me as I collapsed on the couch. I held the book tightly, my heart beating erratically. I never read mother's journal. I couldn't bring myself to do it. People always told me that it would be a good idea to look into the minds of my parents', even if it was just one, but… I wasn't ready. Even now, I wasn't sure if I wanted to read it…

"Thanks, Bella. I thought it was lost," I whispered to her. Bella nodded at me as Emmett suddenly whopped in excitement to try to break the tension in the air. But Jasper was the king of that, my shoulders relaxing as he sent a wave of calm toward me.

"Carlisle! You're back!"

I broke my gaze, glancing over at the stair case as the person everyone greeted came into view. He was dressed nicely, too nicely to be a coincidence. Which made me roll my eyes as I realized that he must have had this planned for me. But I had to admit that Carlisle in a suit was very appealing and I did appreciate a man in a suit…

"Stay out of my head, Eddie," I made a comment when I saw Edward cringe, trying not to laugh.

"Note taken," Edward mumbled but I saw his smile. Carlisle chuckled at our antics before approaching me, pulling me to my feet before hugging me tightly.

"You look beautiful, Mikhaila."

"Not so bad yourself," I retorted, feeling his chuckle reverberate through his chest. I relaxed considerably in his hold, not realizing how tense my shoulders were. Then again, I never handled parties to well… or attention. But it amazed me that just by being in his arms, or in his presence, how relaxed he made me. All anxieties and everything disappeared and I felt safe. It… was nice.

"Awe, how cute," the moment was broken by Alice. I giggled, noticing how giddy she was before she asked Carlisle if he got my gift. But instead of a straight answer, I was asked to turn around.

"Why?" I questioned as he gripped my shoulders, turning me slowly.

"It's a surprise," he told me. I raised a brow at his words before turning my back to him. I was then surprised by a blind fold, smiling widely.

"Really?" I laughed again as the clothe was tied securely behind my head. The others were laughing at my antics as I was then turned again, feeling hands grab my own. I knew they were Carlisle's, his fingers immediately entwining with mine.

"Ready?" he asked. At my nod, he began to lead me somewhere, taking his time as each step I took was a bit unsure. Maybe the heels wasn't such a good idea.

"What is it?" I laughed as he took me down the stairs, blind fold in place. I had to trust him irrevocably, taking each step one at a time. Carlisle wouldn't let me fall. I knew he wouldn't. But it was still nerve wracking as I allowed him to lead me through the house. I heard a door open and felt the cool breeze from outside as I was lead down the steps from the front door. Only when I got to the bottom did he stop me, his hands working at the blind fold before removing it completely. And I felt my jaw drop in total and complete surprise.

Sitting out front of the house, was a car. And not just any regular car. But a white 2006 Aston Martin db9. How do I know? I happened to look it up the other day out of boredom when at home. When you're grounded, you tend to do things you normally don't but at the same time, it served a purpose. I had been meaning to get a car, I mean, I'm 20 now. And I did like the sleek look of the Aston Martin. But how did he know that I…

Edward. Of course. He was probably in Bella's room when I had searched the car. That little prick.

"You did not," I felt all the air leave my lungs as I looked at the vehicle in front of me before turning to Carlisle. "You did not just buy me a car."

"Do you not like it?" the sudden confusion on his face caused a jolt of pain to shoot through my chest. I reacted almost instantly, grabbing his hands to provide some sort of reassurance. It wasn't that I didn't like what he got me, I just… I didn't like having a lot of money spent on me. I always felt like I owed people afterwards, trying to top what they did for me on their own birthdays and holidays. But now…

"No, baby. I love it, I really do," I missed the look on his face at my endearment, not even realizing that I used it. "I just… you should not have spent that much on me. I'm not worth it."

"Sweetheart," Carlisle cupped my face, making me pause in my words. I felt my heart flutter in my chest at his loving term, knowing he more than likely noticed my now flushed face. I ducked my head in an attempt to hide it, embarrassed that he could get such a reaction by a single word. Lord, he could really make me melt if he wanted too, couldn't he?

"You are worth so much more than anything I own, Mikhaila. I wanted to get this for you. Money means nothing to me," Carlisle moved my hair, placing it behind my ear before using a single digit to get me to look up. "I will do whatever it takes to see a smile on that beautiful face. Whatever you want or need, I will provide it."

"I don't have a say in that, do I?" I sighed in defeat. I guess being a vampire who has lived for hundreds of years, you can afford to spend a bit of the money you accumulated over time. But it didn't necessarily mean that I will just let him go on a spending spree. And I really didn't need much anyways.

"No. As a mate, it is my duty to provide for you."

"And my job as well right?"

"Just being with me is enough, Mikhaila. I need nothing," he pulled me close, placing a kiss on my forehead. "Save you."

"Okay," I turned toward the car, looking it over again before glancing up at Carlisle. "I really do love it. Though I think you cheated. Edward told you."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he teased. But that was enough to let me know that Edward was indeed the reason for the sudden purchase. Still, I was very grateful.

"Well, come on. Let's go for a drive," I suddenly switched moods, very excited for the drive. Carlisle, however, chuckled at my antics as I practically skipped to the driver's door. That had me pause, looking at him with the tilt of my head.

"What?"

"Nothing, Mikhaila," he began to walk toward me, a smile still on his handsome face. That's when it dawned on me.

"There's more, isn't there?'

"My dear, darling Mikhaila," Carlisle started. He put his arm around my waist, leading me to the passenger side of the car before opening the door. "That's why it's called a surprise."