Engagement Announcement...Bella and Edward's That Is

"I was eager to tell everyone in North America that Bella had agreed to marry me..."

In Justine Lark's fanfiction, Breaking News, Edward and Bella are engaged and about to announce it to everyone at Forks High. With just a slight shift to the Eclipse timetable to when their engagement occurred (the author writes in her notes, "I figured that Edward first purposed the night they came home from Italy, and if Bella had any sense, she'd have accepted on the spot."), this one-shot from Edward's point of view gives us an inside look at the reaction of the student body-some sweet, some unkind, and some downright hilarious.

Bella, of course, is reluctant to be spreading the word, while Edward is overjoyed. As Bella fears the embarrassment of the assumption of a shotgun wedding, Edward is convinced that everyone will see it only as a normal step of their love. As they begin to tell their friends, the reactions vary from surprise to happiness to not-so-nice. As word spreads and they enter the cafeteria together, Edward is assaulted with the thoughts of the entire student body, many which are not what he expected, but exactly what Bella feared.

Lark writes convincing characters and uses little details that make their personalities' really shine. Edward's annoyance at the wrong assumptions, Bella's nervousness at being the center of attention, Jessica's snarky thoughts, and Angela's kind, considerate ones give us the character's we know and love from the Saga. Lark provides some especially funny moments when good ole' Mike Newton finds out, thoughts that are bad enough that Edward chooses to block them out. But above all, she portrays Edward's joy at his engagement to Bella. At one point, surrounded by the petty and unkind thoughts of others, he thinks to himself, "The joy and security of having her as my wife was the most extraordinary gift I could receive." That's the Edward we know and love, and Lark gets him just right. The only fault with this one-shot is the author doesn't provide us with the Cullen's reaction to the pair deciding to spread the news; I would have liked it to expand to after school, and would have particularly loved to hear Rosalie's reaction. Breaking News is funny and sweet, a perfect little pick me up of fanfic.

Rated: T (PG-13)

4 out of 5 Gold Apples