You all are the best readers a girl could ever ask for...thank you so so much for all your kind words! The suspense is beginning to build in this chapter, so hope you enjoy! Much love to each of you, from me!! <333 :] (P.S. special thanks to my uncle for creating the banner for me! -------->
Love ya, Dave! :P)
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Beautiful Disaster
Summer stretched out her legs and yawned. She was stunned to find herself laying on something hard and cold rather than her warm pillow. “Aro?” She rubbed her eyes, thinking she was in a dream. Aro was still holding her in his arms. He chuckled, “Good morning, love. Did you sleep any last night?” He kissed her sweetly, making her heart melt and her lips tingle. “Yes, but I didn’t fall asleep until dawn. Wha—what are you doing here?” The words spilled out rapidly due to her exhaustion. “I decided to stay till you woke.” Summer was shocked at his words. Aro used to simply up and leave early every morning, and now he was “staying till she woke?” Summer didn’t understand her husband’s intense changes. “That was very sweet of you, honey. Thank you. What time is it?” Aro briefly glanced at the clock on the wall, “It’s 9am.” Summer laughed, “No wonder I’m groggy. I’ve only slept for three hours.” “True,” Aro interjected, “but that was positively a wonderful night.” Summer looked at him sarcastically, “You’re only happy because you got lucky.” He let out a light laugh, “Yes, I did get lucky, because I was able to spend every minute of it with you.” Summer had to blush; his comment was so lovable. “I have something special planned for the two of us tonight also, dear, if you’d do me the honor.” Summer was shocked yet again. Aro never planned anything for the two of them after they were married, “How could I ever say no?” The couple laughed and Aro embraced her a final time before he went to change.

Summer draped her silk robe across her body, “I wonder if Chloe is awake by now?” Aro smirked, “I don’t know…” His voice trailed off. Instantly, Summer caught Chloe in her peripheral vision. She was slowly opening the bedroom door, staring at her daddy. She warned her mommy to keep silent. “Good morning, daddy!” She ran to embrace Aro at the knees. Aro swooped her up in his arms and cuddled her, rocking her fragile body, “Good morning, sweetheart! Timely arrival, too. I have a request to ask of you.” Chloe beamed, “What is it? What is it?” “Well, if it’s okay with your mother,” Aro continued, “I’d love for you to spend the day with me. We’ll be with Uncles Caius and Marcus for a short while, but afterwards, you and I are going to have some fun.” Chloe clasped her hands together, “Yay!” Summer walked to her daughter and husband, giving them each a peck on the cheek, “I consent wholeheartedly, baby girl, as long as there won’t be any problems.” She was speaking to Aro, and he understood exactly what she meant by “problems.” “No, no problems whatsoever today, dear.” “Great!” Summer smiled happily at her loved ones, “have fun then, you two!”

She kissed Aro and covered her daughter in kisses before they left, “Be sure to get some rest today, love.” Aro added. Summer hugged him, “I will, darling. Thank you so much.” With that, Aro and Chloe walked out of the room joyously with springs in their steps. Summer scanned herself in the mirror and skipped her way to the bathroom so she could fix her beautiful, yet unruly, curls. While prepping herself for the morning, she wondered why she was feeling so tired. That was definitely an unnatural thing for her. Maybe she just needed to spend some relaxing time with Athe. She made a mental note that she was going to be with her friend today, without any interruptions like yesterday. She dressed and knocked on Athe’s door. Athe answered with a smile, embracing her dear friend by the shoulders, “How are you feeling, dearest?” Summer laughed and pulled away to look at Athe, “I’m completely well. No need to worry, Athe.” Athe skimmed Summer, “Where’s Chloe?” “With Aro. He and Chloe are having some excitement together today.” “Ah,” Athe nodded gladly, “and that leaves you and I to have some time alone. Perfect! I’m taking you to pick some flowers, one of your favorite pastimes.” Summer cocked her head to the side, “Where are we going to do that?” Athe beamed, “An indoor greenhouse, of course!” Summer’s eyebrows furrowed, “Indoor greenhouse?” Athe rolled her eyes and grasped a basket off the bookshelf, “Less talk, more walk.” They giggled, Athe hauling Summer by the arm down a series of passageways.

At last, they reached a solid glass door. Inside, there were different flowering plants, all a range of assorted colors. Summer adored nurturing plants, exactly as Athe indicated. The sight took her breath away, compelling Athe to laugh louder. They stepped in, and Summer inhaled the naturally enchanting aromas, “Athe…this is incredibly exquisite! How did you find this place?” Athe began preening a bushel of lilacs, “I became lonely one day, so I scouted out this greenhouse. It brought me the solace I desired.” Summer kissed her friend’s cheek, “You know me too well.” Athe glanced up at her, smirking, “I sometimes wonder whether that’s a good or bad thing. Oh!” Athe grabbed Summer’s hand and led her to a gorgeous rose bush, “You’re favorite. Like it?” Summer gasped, “I love it!” “Well then,” Athe encouraged her, “work your green thumb magic.” Summer smiled widely, “I’ll try. Hopefully, after all these years, I haven’t lost my touch.” Athe patted her back, “I highly doubt that.” Summer started clipping off a few thorns from the bush. These roses appeared rather odd. They were a periwinkle color with white tips on the top petals, giving them a frigid look.

Cold roses, Summer thought. That was quite the contradiction. Roses were usually depicted as warm and gentle, not icy and bleak. Yet, they managed to achieve beauty in the eyes of their beholders. These cold roses reminded Summer of her situations with Jake and Aro, shedding a ray of hope in her heart. Her situations, no matter how cold and barbed they were, would keep their beautiful. Their ends would be beautiful and bring peace. “Do you miss the Cullens much, Summer?” Athe nonchalantly inquired. Summer bobbed her head from side to side, “Yes, now and again. They were such loving people, and I regret not being with them for a while longer.” She didn’t want to say too much to Athe, not for fear of untrustworthiness, but fear of Caius asking Aro to read Athe’s mind like the paranoid husband he was. Athe had no powers, meaning she would not be apt to hide her thoughts from Aro’s skill. “I understand, Summer. What I would give to travel outside Volterra for a day.” Athe’s tone was solemn. Summer felt compassion for her. Restricted to the indoors for all eternity was not a fascinating proposal.

Summer turned back to her floral work until, unexpectedly, there was a sickening eruption of fluid in her stomach. It speedily rushed up her throat, burning like poison. Summer covered her mouth and ran out of the greenhouse to the nearest restroom. She bent over the sink and vomited, though she tried not to look at it. It was nothing but animal blood and silver venom, which smelled terrible when mixed. Just when she thought it was over, acid fluids spilled out once more. She couldn’t stop for minutes on end. Finally, it came to a halt, allowing her to catch her breath. She wiped her mouth with a towel. What just happened, Summer thought. That was extremely abnormal…unless… Summer’s eyes grew wide; this couldn’t be true, or real, for that matter. “This has only happened once when I was pregnant with Chloe.” She muttered to herself. “I can’t possibly be pregnant again…not this soon.” She impulsively placed her hand on her stomach, gasping after she touched it. Her perfectly flat stomach now had a small bump. While she was pregnant with Chloe, there were no visible signs till a week later. Summer shook her head in pure disbelief. An array of troubling thoughts leaped through her head. Chloe was only three years old, how would she handle this? What would Aro say? Why was this pregnancy beginning differently than her first? But one question protruded from all the rest. What would Jake think? Would he detest her, if he ever saw her again? What would become of their already suffering relationship? Helpless tears flowed down her flawless cheeks. For once in her life, the only thing she could do was survey the damage and cry.
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Hope it wasn't dragging, lol. Thankies for reading, sweets! <3