We Are Family

Surprise(s)

The gates opened slowly to reveal a drive with flowers and bushes of ivy and ferns running up each side. The first car continued down the drive, the second following closely behind. At the end of the drive, they came face to face with a beautiful house. It was modern and new, but key parts indicated that it did in fact used to be a farmhouse. Through the front windows, they could see a stunning wall of glass at the back of the house that overlooked the beach and the sea. There was a large deck accompanying it, wrapping around the back and side of the property. 

The driveway tilted at an angle to the side of the house, the door to the underground garage coming into view as they took a step forward. 

Bella looked around in awe. Sure, she had seen the blueprints and Esme's sketches, but seeing the house, in reality, was something else entirely. 

"You have outdone yourself this time Esme!" Emmett commented.

"You most certainly have," Jasper said.

"Shall we go inside?" Esme asked.

Esme led the way up the front steps to the wooden door, slotting the key into the lock and pushing the door open easily. The house was even more beautiful than the outside, if at all possible. The interior had Esme written all over it, the front room was large and white, with accents of silver and cream, and plenty of seating and open space. A white piano sat in the corner of the room facing the wall of windows, it was the perfect centrepiece. Two off-white couches, along with a loveseat and several armchairs were in the centre of the room, spaced around an oak coffee table with precision. There was already a television set up in front of the open fireplace, with plenty of space on the surrounding shelving for movies and games consoles for the boys. 

"Do you have an estimated time of arrival for the vans?" Rosalie asked, running her hand across the teddy throw placed along the back of the loveseat. 

"The last correspondence I had from them was a little over an hour ago, they had just finished packing the vans and were about to leave the airfield. It should not be too long." Carlisle replied, pleased that everything was moving so quickly. 

The family dispersed to look at the rest of their new home, happy to know that their possessions would be arriving within a few hours and soon enough they would be settled into their new home. The walls were still bare in most of the house, each of them painted a neutral colour and waiting to be covered in the exquisite artwork that previously covered the walls of the Cullen home in Forks. Of course, they would not be letting go of their old residence. It was locked up tight and protected by a state of the art security system so that it would still be in perfect condition the next time they decided to return to Forks. This was certainly not the first life that they had lived in Forks, and they doubted it would be the last. 

Despite the fact that every person but one had absolutely no use for it, the kitchen was charming. White cabinets lined the walls, with a hardwood worktop placed on top, and accompanied by stainless steel appliances. Wooden bar stools with silver detailed elements were placed around the large kitchen island. Even though they had only arrived moments ago, the cabinets had already been filled with glasses and crockery. 

Bella soon learned that there were six bedrooms upstairs, each of them large and already decorated. 

"Alice, yours and Jasper's room is the room to the left, it has the biggest closet," Esme said, adding the last part for Alice's enjoyment.

Alice bounced on her heels as she wandered into the bedroom. The neutral colour palette had extended into the bedroom quarters of the house, a mixture of white and muted greens for this particular bedroom. The bed was, as expected, white, with matching end tables. In the corner of the room sat a white Georgian style chair placed so that it looked from the large window, it was a perfect reading spot. The coloured elements in the room popped in the form of drapes and the rug beneath Alice's feet.