Restoration: res·to·ra·tion (res′tə rā′shən) noun. The act of restoring or bringing back to a former place, station, or condition; the fact of being restored; renewal; reestablishment; as, the restoration of friendship between enemies; the restoration of peace after war.

CHAPTER 1: Special

BPOV

How much trouble could I possibly be in? Emmett was ALWAYS late and she never said a word. Maybe she never said anything because I was always there on time to entertain and to distract her from the fact that he was always late? Would it be too much to ask the universe that Emmett was on time on this particular day? The simple fact that my phone had been blowing up for the last 10 minutes should have been my warning that the universe had betrayed me.

Emmett and I had been summoned for an emergency meeting with a top secret agenda. After 12 years, we quit fighting against the category 5 tornado that was our dear friend, and we simply did as we were told. No questions asked.

I pushed through the impossible traffic desperately looking for a parking space and ignored my phone entirely. If I just focused on the drive, I would get to her faster, where I could plead my case sooner, and all would be right with the world. Honestly, how much trouble could I be in? Silly Bella.

I finally found a parking spot, grabbed my day planner and my hand bag, and rushed up the hill to the coffee shop. I rounded the corner to find her petite, slight, anger filled frame stalking a path along the length of the little patio. She looked down at her phone, punched the buttons furiously and let go a string of profanities that would have made Emmett proud. Suddenly, she froze. She lifted her gaze, cocked her head slowly towards me, lifted a tiny hand to her gigantic sunglasses and tipped them down her nose slightly.

“Clearly, you don’t care for my fragile mental state OR my big news!” Alice accused.

I was still trying to catch my breath from running up the hill, and she was laying it on pretty thick. I moved towards her, kissed her “hello,” and gave her a quick squeeze on the shoulders.

“Don’t you know by now that I live for your news and that your mental state and general well being are always at the top of my priority list, which is probably why my own life is a total train wreck? I’m sorry I’m late. Where’s Em?”

I stood smiling apprehensively in front of her, biting my lower lip and waiting for the wrath of the militant, little pixie to unfold. All she could muster on this Sunday morning was a scrunched up nose in that Bewitched kind of way, an audible pout and a slight stomp of her size 5 foot.

“He’s late as usual. And just so you know, missy, you are both on my shit list,” she stated in an exasperated tone. With that, Alice danced back to the little café table she had saved for us, plopped herself into the chair, crossed her legs, pushed her sunglasses back up on her face, and put the straw of her iced latte to her prissy little lips.

She sucked down half of the drink before I turned on my heel to face her. By the time I situated myself in the chair opposite her, I heard the distinct slurp of an empty beverage sliding up the straw.

“Alice?”

“What?!” she practically yelled at me.

“How many coffee drinks have you had this morning?” I asked cautiously. Anything that contributed to Alice being MORE high strung was dangerous.

She sank back into the chair, clutched her now empty plastic cup and answered me. “Only three… But you guys were late, and you know I get nervous. I think I have an oral fixation thingy,” she said waiving her hand at me. “I need gum, or a straw or a cigarette. Oh, don’t look at me like that. You know I don’t smoke,” her tone escalated, and she pointed at me. “Back to the real issue, you and Emmett are late! Don’t you turn this on me! Where the hell is Emmett?!” she yelled.

“Alice. Put down the iced latte and repeat after me. Caffeine is not my friend.”

She sighed and put the empty cup on the table. “Caffeine is not my friend.”

“Thank you.” I placed my bag on the back of the chair and shuffled my day planner in front of me. Just out of my line of sight, I could see she was watching me, waiting for a bigger apology or at least a better explanation of why I was late. I pulled my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs.

“I’m really sorry I’m late. I just had the hardest time getting out of the house this morning.” I pressed on with my explanation. “I know you don’t believe that people have bad days. You believe that people choose bad days, but I have to tell you that whatever you want to call it, I’m having one of those today, so I need you to cut me a little slack.”

Alice’s expression softened a little as she shifted in her seat and placed her hands in her lap. She said nothing.

“Please?” I asked.

“Fine,” she conceded and a tiny little twisted edge of a smile started a slow creep across her face.

I’d known Alice since we were little kids, and I still couldn’t catalog all of her quirks and expressions. This particular smirk seemed especially wicked, which intrigued me. She always intrigued me, and probably always would.

“Seriously? You’re fine? I don’t want to drop this if more groveling is required. You can’t bring this back up in 2 min- UGH!” I was totally blindsided. Emmett wrapped my entire drawn up body into a huge bear hug. His head came crashing down on my shoulder as he growled loudly into my neck and lifted me out of my seat.

“Hells Bells!! I’ve missed you so much!” He swung me around with my back curled up against his chest. My feet were flailing, and I couldn’t really do anything more than squeak out a totally pathetic girly squeal. He was laughing at full volume while hugging me so tight I could barely breathe.

“If you don’t put me down this instant I swear to everything holy I will puke on you!” I choked out.

”Oooh, Em. I can’t deal with puke,” Alice said. “Put her down. It’s all fun and games until someone pukes.”

With that, he stopped spinning and gently released his grip, allowing me to untangle myself. Once my feet were on solid ground, I steadied the vertigo by squatting on the ground with my head between my knees.

“Dang, Bella! Are you okay?” Emmett’s voice, although concerned, was still colored with a low chuckle. He rubbed his hand in small circles on my back.

Without raising my head or straightening my stance, I raised one hand above my head and gave him the thumbs up. “I’m fine,” I mumbled.

I still had trouble admitting how delicate I was. I wanted to be the tough girl. I should be the tough girl, but I wasn’t. I couldn’t even manage a bear hug from Emmett without getting queasy.

“Sorry, Bella. I just haven’t seen you in a week. You missed the last super secret, but very regular meeting of the ‘trés amigos.’” He laughed, “And I have to tell you that ‘dos amigos’ doesn’t make such a fun meeting.”

I straightened up and made my way back to my seat.

Alice promptly smacked him on the shoulder as he sat down next to her. “I am so offended!”

“Oh please, Alice! You even said it was crap because Bella wasn’t there.” Emmett teased her, “You have no idea how much it hurt my feelings when you said that. I’m a person Alice… with feelings.” He threw his head back in fake protest and started to wail the most obnoxious cry I’d ever heard.

I laughed out loud, enjoying my friend and appreciating his talent for annoying Alice.

“Shut it, Em,” Alice demanded.

Emmett obeyed and settled into his chair, and I stifled my laugh to a mere giggle. He only sat still for a matter of seconds and then excitedly reached over to both Alice and me. He patted his flat hands on our knees, and bounced in his chair like a 5 year old. “I’m so excited to see you guys! What’s new? What’s going on?!”

I put my hand on Emmett’s to stop the spasm on my knee, squeezed his fingers and let go. I stood up. “Before we get to that, I need a minute. I haven’t gotten my coffee yet.”

“Sure. Go right ahead,” Alice chirped. “Take your time.”

“Awesome.”

Emmett piped up with his coffee order. “Hey Bella, can you get me a half caf, sugar-”

“-free soy latte? Yes, Em, I can. I always do.” Emmett hadn’t actually ordered or paid for his own coffee when he was out with Alice or me since sometime in early 2004. I left my friends at the table and went inside.

As I stood in line to order our drinks, I looked past the patrons sitting inside the coffee shop and through the plate glass at Emmett and Alice. These two held my history and my future. They were my lifelong friends. Alice had raised her sunglasses to the top of her head now and had drawn him into a fierce conversation. What kind of scheme could she be hatching now?

But Emmett’s body language said something other than ‘scheme.’ He was shaking his head back and forth at Alice. He then rested his elbows on his knees and dropped his head.

Uh oh. That can’t be good.

APOV

“Is everything set, Em?”

“Duh!” Emmett hated the insinuations that he was slightly irresponsible.

“So you’ve got the time off and the jeep all checked out?” I baited him.

“Jeez, you can be such an unbelievable nag sometimes.”

I waved him off. “Do you think she has any idea what we’re up to?”

“No way. How could she ever guess this?” He shook his head left to right. “Does she have any clue you’ve got this whole thing planned? I bet you a dollar she won’t go.”

“What makes you think she WOULDN’T want to go? What are you thinking?”

Emmett hunched over, dropped his elbows to his knees and hung his head. His words tumbled to the sidewalk as a smirk crept across his face. “Guess who finally called me back two nights ago?”

“Shut! Up!” I slapped Emmett’s arm.

“Ow!” Emmett rubbed his now stinging bicep. “Yep, we talked for about an hour. He’s in.”

I could feel my eyes draw into a suspicious squint but I tried to feign any real interest. “He’s in on the whole thing?”

“Yes ma’am. He hasn’t called you?” Emmett was surprised.

“Er… No. The last time we spoke, I wasn’t very nice to him. He probably thinks I’m still a cranky-pants and doesn’t want to deal with me until he has to.” Then I was curious. “Did he ask about us?”

“He did. He always does.” Emmett sat still. “I think you and Bella both have a selective memory when it comes to him.”

“I know,” I sighed.

“Don’t you think its time to let him off the hook? He left me, too, and you didn’t see me wringing my hands and looking for new ways to punish him over the last 10 years.” Emmett leaned back into his chair with one eyebrow cocked.

“What exactly are you referring to, Emmett Cullen?” Emmett had turned the whole conversation on me. “I wasn’t punishing anyone.”

“What if this whole thing backfires on us?” Emmett brought me back to the present as he questioned my current, brilliant plan.

“Not possible,” I stated. I was sure of it.

Emmett’s laugh boomed across the patio. “If you say so.”

“I do say so.”

He reached across the table and mussed my hair. “Look at you, working so hard to be Julie the Cruise Director.” Emmett cautioned, “Don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t work out.”

“Oh, don’t you worry about me. It’s going to work out.”

I thought about the scope of my plan. All of us were supposed to be back together again, all six of us. If Emmett knew the extent of my plan, he’d kill me. The wheels were already in motion.

No stopping this bus now.

BPOV

When I got back to our little table, it seemed our meeting was underway... without me. I put Emmett’s coffee on the table in front of him. Alice positioned her gigantic Jackie O’ glasses back on her face as she stared straight ahead with a silly grin, and Emmett leaned back in his chair, knotted his hands behind his head, and looked up to the sky. Something was up.

“Has the meeting been brought to order without me?” I asked nervously.

“Sit down, Bella. We’ve got a surprise for you,” Alice snapped her head at me.

Oh no. Not good. I hate surprises. Surprises never turn out the way they’re intended.

“We’re taking a trip next weekend!” Alice squealed.

“It’s a road trip, Bella!!” Emmett sat up and shook his burly fist in the air. “Woo Hoo!!”

“A road trip? Where? Why?” I was so confused.

“You remember a couple of months ago when we got the letters from the Forks Alumni Association? Well, I decided that we were going. We’re all going home for the big Forks High School 10 year reunion!” Alice could tell I was forming my protest. She continued, “Charlie already knows you’re coming,” she said, indicating my father. “I’ve talked to Angela and Mike, and everyone is so excited. They’re all expecting us, so there is no backing out. Understand?”

“Yeah, baby!” Emmett was more enthused than this news warranted. He looked at me eagerly.

“Great.” I could barely pretend I was interested. What were they thinking? I hated high school.

Emmett snickered at my response. “Say you’ll go, Bella. It won’t be any fun without you… Remember, ‘trés amigos’ good – ‘dos amigos’ bad.” He winked and pointed a finger in Alice’s direction.

I usually see Emmett and Alice at least 2 or 3 times a week. Who else would I be interested in seeing?

I looked between Emmett and Alice with their pathetic little faces. Emmett reached over and took my left hand and held it to his chest, and then, in a sweet sing-song voice, he said, “you have to go if you want to get a special surprise.”

Alice kicked him under the table and hissed at him, “subtle, Em.”

Emmett winced, but he continued, adjusting his approach slightly. “What? The whole point of this pow wow was to tell her.”

“Tell me what?”

Emmett took a breath and then said, “If I asked you who you would least expect at the reunion, who would you name?”

I stared blankly at Emmett unable to imagine whom I might not be expecting, and who in the world it could be about whom they were being this cautious with me. His face told me that I should be prepared. I didn’t know if I wanted to know the answer. I could feel the heat beginning to creep across my face as I looked down at my right hand, which lay in my lap. I was nervous.

No. It wasn’t possible.

Always my protector, Emmett read my tension, and he squeezed my left hand since it was still resting on his chest. He put his other hand on my back and began to rub. “Bella?” he asked cautiously. “Breathe, Bella.”

Maybe it was possible. My face shot up from my lap and my eyes darted between Emmett and Alice. It felt like my heart was going to explode in my chest. There was only one person on the planet that would ever demand this much attention from us. I wish I could say that I was still mad at him and that I didn’t want to see him, but I did. Was it possible that he was really coming back into our lives?

Was he finally coming back to me?

I tried to play it cool. “Edward’s coming home?”