Don't Fight It

Chapter 21

A/N: Thanks for the reviews last chapter and for being patient while I got this one done.  I re-wrote this chapter several times, and I'm still not overly happy with it, but it is what it is.  I also noticed that I tend to use the word "that" a lot.  Like way too much.  So, I tried to get rid of the uncessary ones, but there might be a few still lingering about.

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I woke up bright and early on Sunday morning, eager for what the day was to bring. I was taking Bella on a picnic today, and I was hoping she'd say yes when I asked her to be my girl again. We'd been taking things slow and it had been torture, but it was for the best. It gave us the chance to start over which was good. We'd talked and been even more open than we had been before. I felt that we were in a good place to start dating again, and I just hoped she felt the same.

After my shower, I bounded down the stairs, the smell of pancakes luring me toward the kitchen. I walked into it, then walked right back out. I really didn't need to see Carlisle's hands all over Esme first thing in the morning.

"Sorry, Ed!" Carlisle hollered from the kitchen, but I could tell he was smirking. Rolling my eyes, I slowly made my way back into the kitchen, keeping my eyes down just in case it really wasn't safe.

"Good morning, Edward!" Esme said, putting a plate of pancakes in front of me after I sat down.

Finally looking up, I gave her a smile and thanked her. She had a slight blush going on, and I knew she was slightly embarrassed by what I had witnessed. I was too, but I guess that was the price I paid when living with newlyweds, if they could still be considered that after five months.

"What are you plans for the day?" Esme asked me over breakfast.

"I'm taking Bella for picnic later. I figured we'd go down to First Beach since it's supposed to be nice out today," I told her.

"How are things with the two of you?" she asked. She and Carlisle had been very supportive of me, but I knew Esme wanted Bella and I back together.

"Good," I told her after taking a sip of my orange juice. "I'm going to ask her if she wants to go out on a date later in the week."

Esme beamed and told me to have a good day. She informed me that she and Carlisle were going antique shopping in Seattle. Carlisle looked less than thrilled, but he was going because Esme wanted to.

I killed some time by doing homework before deciding I needed to get ready for the picnic. As I stood in front of the fridge, I realized I hadn't planned things well at all. There wasn't much in the fridge for a picnic. Shutting the fridge door, I grabbed the cooler from the garage and got into my car to head to the grocery store. Once there, I grabbed some chicken strips, potato salad, cookies, and bottled water, and some ice.

Back at my car, I put everything in the cooler then sent Bella a text asking if she was ready. I got a response back immediately saying she was ready whenever I was. As I drove over to her house, I found myself feeling a bit nervous, and rolled my eyes at myself. I felt the way I did when I took her out on our first date, but this wasn't a date. Not really. After I pulled into the Swan's driveway, I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself. Getting out of the car, I headed up the walk and knocked on the door.