CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX:
THE WEDDING

ECHO WALKED INTO HER sisters room, surprised to see Edward standing there. Echo turned her attention towards the window when she hears yelling.

"What is that?" Bella asked.

"I'm late for my bachelor party." Edward explained. Suddenly, Emmett leaps up to the window, holding onto it as he looked at Bella.

"Send him out, Bella, or we're coming in after him." Emmett spoke.

"So this party, will there be strippers?" Bella asked. Echo smirked in amusement as she sat down on Bella's bed, waiting patiently for her. Echo had all of the movies they were going to watch downstairs.

"No, just a couple of mountain lions, maybe a few bears." Edward answered. Echo smiled with amusement.

Suddenly, Jasper leaps up to the window, looking at Bella. "Don't worry, Bella, we'll get him back in plenty of time." He disappears again.

"Okay, go. Before they break my house." Echo tells the boy. Edward looks at Echo with an apologetic smile before looking back to Bella.

"I'll meet you at the alter."

"I'll be the one in white." Bella jokes.

"That's very convincing." Edward states before he quickly leaps out of the window. Echo looked over at Bella with a small smile.

"Ready?"

"For a movie night with my sister? Always." Bella smiled. The two siblings walked down the steps and into the living room where the opening of Corpse Bride was waiting.

"Really? You're hilarious." Bella jokes. Echo let out a smile as she pressed play.

"I saw the opportunity and I took it." Echo explains as she sits down on the couch, grabbing the bowl of popcorn she had fixed. As the movie continued on, Bella let out a soft smile.

"I'm going to miss this." Bella admitted. Echo turns her head to look at her before grabbing her sisters hand in her own.

"It's not like you're never going to see me again, Isa. It'll just be different. We can have a movie night anytime you want to, I don't care what Edward or anyone else says. As soon as you come back from your honeymoon, we'll have another." Echo stated with a smile.

"Promise?"

"I promise." Echo squeezed her hand. Bella laid her head on Echo's shoulder.

"I love you, E. Forever and always."

Echo smiled down at Bella. Something they always said to each other when they were kids was that they would always love each other, forever and always. Echo wrapped an arm around her as she kissed her on the top of the head. "Forever and always."

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"What did I say about beauty sleep?" Alice asked as she fixed Bella's make up.

"That's sorta my fault." Echo admitted as she walked into the room.

"I also had a bad dream. Maybe it's wedding jitters." Bella stated.

"Do you need some help? I could do her hair." Bella and Echo turned when they heard the sound of Rosalie's voice.

"Really?" Bella asked.

"Please. I'm not offended by your choice of groom." Rosalie said as she entered the room.

"Just my blatant lack of respect for mortality." Bella states, earning a slap from Echo.

"Essentially." Rosalie nodded as she started on Bella's hair.

"Weddings! They bring everyone together." Alice said with a smile.

"Oh, my gosh! You're so beautiful. Oh, honey." Echo visibly tenses at the sound of her mothers voice.

"Not everyone." Bella mumbled to Alice. Their mother started to cry at the sight of Bella causing her to say, "Crap my mascara."

Alice hands her a handkerchief at the woman thanks her. "Charlie! Get in here."

"You sure? I don't wanna..." Charlie started before entering. Bella and Echo both look at him. "I know, I look awful." This caused a laugh to escape everyone's lips.

"We thought you needed something blue." Renée stated as she handed Bella a box. Bella opened it to reveal a jeweled hair comb.

"And something old, besides your mother." Charlie stated.

"Nice." Renée jokes.

"It was grandma Swan's." Charlie informed her.

"But we added the sapphires." Their mother stated.

"It's beautiful you guys. Wow! Thank you so much." Bella smiles before handing it to Alice.

"It's your first family heirloom. Pass it on to your daughter, and her daughter." A frown fell onto Echo's face knowing that she nor Bella were ever going to have children.

"Um...I love it." Bella states. Renée goes to give Bella a kiss but Alice quickly stops her.

"No! No smudging my masterpiece."

"Oh, she's right."

Once Alice and Rosalie finished with her hair and make-up, Alice quickly said: "Now time for the dress!"

Echo helped her sister into the dress and gave her a small smile through the mirror that she was looking in. "You look beautiful, Bella."

"Thank you, E." There was a pause before Bella asked: "Are you going to speak? At the after party or whatever."

"You mean the reception?" Bella nodded her head. "Originally I wasn't, but I've decided to." Echo answered her.

"You promise not to embarrass me?" Bella asked.

"Can't do that. Today is the day full of embarrassments." Echo smiled. Bella let out a huff and Echo sent her a small smile. "I'll see you out there, alright?"

"Okay." Echo sent her one last smile before exiting and finding her seat beside of Carlisle. She was wearing a purple dress as well as heels and her hair was curled. She hated it. Carlisle grabbed her hand before giving her a kiss on the head.

"You look beautiful."

"I'm uncomfortable." Echo mumbled back. "I completely forgot my mother was going to be here. Can you just kill me now and get it over with?"

"Absolutely not." Carlisle stated. "You'll be alright. I'll be by your side the whole time."

"No, cause she'll try to interrogate you and I'll end up punching her."

"So, what you're telling me is that whenever your mother comes near to turn the other direction?" Echo nodded her head.

"Yep."

They were both silenced when the music stopped. Everyone stood up as Bella appeared, Charlie beside of her. The two started down the isle and Bella glanced at Echo who gave her a wink as well as a reassuring smile. Charlie handed her off and Edward took her hand. Everyone sat back down and soon enough they started to repeat after the minister. And when they kissed Echo held a wide smile as she was clapping. Her little sister was now officially married and she didn't really know how to feel about it.

Everyone went to the wedding reception and Echo walked up to Bella, giving her a tight hug. "I'm so happy for you, Bells."

"Thank you, sis." Bella responded. Echo removed herself and offered Edward a small smile as well as a nod. Echo walked back over to Carlisle and let out a sigh.

"My little sister is officially married." Echo stated. Carlisle wrapped an arm around her as he kissed her on the top of the head. "I'm glad she found someone. She's been more of a loner, even when we were little."

"They found each other, I've never seen Edward so happy with anyone."

Everyone started to sit down when Emmett grabbed everyone's attention. He held up his glass to give his toast. "I'd like to propose a toast, to my new sister. Bella I hope you've got enough sleep these last eighteen years, cause you won't be getting anymore for a while." Echo smirks in amusement at the statement from the Cullen boy. Next, it was Jessica.

"Well Bella was just like everybody else, totally mesmerized my Edward, or the hair, as I call him. Um...and then suddenly, Edward is all about Bella. Even though she's not the captain of the volleyball team." She let's out a laugh and Echo cocks an eyebrow at her jealousy. "I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Or the president of the Student Council."

And then, it was Charlie's turn. "Edward will be a good husband. I know this because...because I'm a cop, I know things. Like how to hunt somebody to the ends of the earth. And I know how to use a gun." Echo chuckles lightly at that. Alice goes, then Renée goes, singing an old song she used to sing Bella, and then it was Echo's turn. Carlisle gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. Echo makes her way up to the stage and looks at Bella, sending her a small smile.

"Bella has always been a loner, even when we were kids. She was the "suffer in silence" type. But, ever since she met Edward she's been so happy and I could never thank Edward enough for making my little sister happy. Thank you, for doing that. It makes me sad to know that my kid sister is no longer a kid but instead she is a grown adult that has a loving husband that she cherish's with everything she has. Bella and I used to say that happily ever after's didn't exist, but we were both wrong. I'm glad you found your happy ever after, Bella. I will always be your sister and I will always love you. Forever and always."

Bella smiled at her words before whispering, "Forever and always."

Echo sat down beside Carlisle once again and she tucked herself into his side. Lastly, Edward went up. " It's an extraordinary thing to meet someone who you can bare your soul to and accept you for what you are. I've been waiting, for what seems like a very long time, to get beyond what I am. With Bella I feel like I can finally begin. So I'd like to propose a toast to my beautiful bride. No measure of time with you will be long enough. But let's start with forever."

After toasts, everyone watched Bella open her presents before going back to talking. Edward led her outside so that he could reveal another wedding present which just so happened to be Jacob. A glass of champagne was held in her hands as she looked at Carlisle who were talking with the Denali's.

"Can I sit here?" Echo tensed at the sound of her mothers voice before she slowly nodded her head. Renée sat down beside of Echo and a tense silence fell between them. "Look, Echo. I-"

"If you're going to apologize for treating me like I didn't exist, then please stop talking. I don't want your apology. You made me grow up at the age of seven. I never got the chance to be a child because of you. Apologize all you want to Renée, but I won't accept it. I won't forgive someone that ruined my entire life." Echo's voice was dangerously low and Renee was looking down at her lap. "Please, leave my sight before I throw this glass of champagne at your head."

Renee looked at her oldest daughter with a saddened look, but Echo refused to look at her. The mother let out a sigh before getting up and walking away. Echo drank the rest of her drink before getting up and walking outside. She didn't want to ruin Bella's party so she stood outside and closed her eyes. Tears started to fall from her eyes before she was letting out a sob and falling to the ground. Carlisle appeared and quickly pulled Echo into him. She tried to muffle her sobs into his shirt. She didn't want to cause a scene, but after seeing her mother she couldn't take it anymore. All the anger and sadness and longing for a mother she had been building up over the last eighteen years was finally coming out. And of course, it had to happen on her sisters wedding day.

1,949 words
Authors note: This was really long. Also, I was listening to Human by Christina Perri and was crying while writing Echo crying :,)

I hope you all enjoyed! Stay safe! Until next time, bye lovelies!♥️

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