When Edward Met Bella
Chapter One- Hello, Goodbye
Bella Swan pulled her beloved, battered, rust-coloured old Chevy truck into the parking lot and pushed the old girl into the first parking spot she could spy. Turning off the engine, she cast her eyes around the lot, looking to see if her friend Jessica Stanley, or her 'famous' boyfriend had arrived.
Nope. No sign of Jessica, or her purportedly beautiful boy-toy. Bella let out a sigh that was a half-yawn she'd been up all night, packing away her life. Who'd have thought someone, even someone as fastidious as her, could accumulate so much unmitigated crap, even over the course of four years? She had thrown away most of it; lecture notes, timetables, invitations, other little bits and pieces, and kept only her books and her clothes. Not that the latter took up a lot of space in the Chevy's trunk- she had a few choice pieces of tatty clothing that she cherished, and rarely added to her limited collection.
She bit her lip in irritation; it was already past 9am, the time agreed by both parties when this scheme had been concocted. Bella had been eager to set off earlier, but Jessica had begged for a few extra hours in bed on her boyfriend's behalf. Bella loathed lateness with an almost feral passion, and cherished schedules and appointments as though they were her very life-blood. And so they were, in a semi-tragic way. Everything had to be planned and thought out far in advance. She emitted another sigh, and asked herself why she had even entered into this agreement. Right now, she could be breezing down the highway on her own. The way she liked it.
******
It had been over one of the many, many 'final' get-togethers that came following the end of Finals and before graduation. Almost every night, Bella had been harangued into socialising ("Please, Bella! This could be the last time!") and every night had been the same. Slamming way too much tequila and relishing the tingles; trying not to focus on the slightly-sweet sadness that comes with any great change in life; recalling all of the good times and easily forgetting all of the bad ones. In between remembering the night they had dyed themselves green and went bar-hopping dressed as Oompa-Loompas (Bella recalled that particular night with distaste- men seemed almost turned on by her outlandish outfit and kept offering to 'Oompa-Loompa-Ooompidy-Do' her), Jessica had sidled up to her.
"So, Bella," she breathed excitedly, already a little tipsy from the excess tequila she'd been slinging back in a haphazard fashion.
"What are your plans for after graduation?"
Bella gave a slightly sheepish grin. She hadn't told anyone about her grand designs, no one had asked. In fact, Bella was a little astonished that Jessica, hardly the most thoughtful of people, was enquiring about it.
Bella breathed in deeply.
"I'm going to New York, to do a post-grad in journalism, and hopefully become a reporter."
This was said with another shy smile, but there was no disguising the pride shining from her melted-chocolate eyes. For as long as she could remember, it had been her dream to become a journalist. Of documenting news as it happened. Of chronicling her world for the sake of posterity. And whilst she had never been the kind of person to publicise her dreams, she was so made up about the fact her dream grad school had accepted her, she half wanted to leap up onto the bar and proclaim her news to the masses. She resisted the urge and settled for telling Jessica.
Jessica's astonishment was anything but flattering.
"Journalist, Bella? Really? I must say, I'm surprised. I'd always thought you'd end up teaching school. You look like a teacher. I really didn't have you pegged for a journalist. You're too…" Jessica searched for the word. "Too nice." She finished lamely. Bella noticed her eyebrows rise slightly. What was left of them, that is. Jessica's eyebrows were always plucked into near invisible arches that gave her a look of permanent surprise. Not a good look was Bella's personal opinion.
Bella bit back the urge to ask Jessica just what the hell she meant by that. Looked like a teacher? Was that simply a way of saying she was a boring and plain, an old fart before her time? Probably. And 'too nice'? So, now that she wanted to become a hard-headed journalist, she was no longer nice? She tried to prevent the bubble of rage that brimmed within her from escaping onto her lips and instead seethed silently.
She had to ask herself- despite having known these girls for four years now, having laughed with them, cried with them, drank with them, studied with them, celebrated their victories and commiserated over their losses- did they really know her at all? She knew how they saw her: Sweet Bella. Innocent Bella. Quiet Bella. Workaholic, obsessive-compulsive Bella, with her almost tyrannical tidiness and over-organisation. Was that all they really saw? A plain little virgin who wouldn't say howdy to a marmoset, calloo to a chimpanzee, or even, shock horror, boo to a goose?
Yes, she answered her own questions. That was who she was to them, and that was all she would ever be to them. But Bella knew there was a side to her that they didn't see, or rather didn't understand. She knew she had determination, ambition, and integrity, not to mention a brand of self-confidence that didn't necessarily lend itself to talking to strange, unwashed men in grotty bars, but it existed. She knew who she was, which was more than could be said for the girl sitting next to her.
She was very fond of Jessica, but she could see that Miss Stanley was and always would be someone who could only identify herself, value herself, in terms of relationships to men. Someone who could never stand alone. Since they had first met, that first week of their first ever semester at the University of Chicago, Jessica had been in and out of relationships with various men. In the all-too brief interludes that followed the end of one relationship and the commencement of another, Jessica was sullen, miserable and blatantly fragile. Only when she could be upon the arm of some guy or another was Jessica confident, breezy, collected and happy. Bella had sworn to herself that she would never be that kind of girl. And she wasn't.
"Well," Bella said, clasping her hands together, fidgeting slightly.
"Maybe I won't be a good reporter. But I'm certainly going to try. And at the very least, New York will be an interesting place to live." She said, taking a slight slip of her daiquiri.
"New York," Jessica said thoughtfully, raising her eyebrows once more. (Really and truly, her eyebrows mystified Bella. She could watch them all day with ghoulish fascination).
"Edward's going to New York."
Ah yes. The famous Edward Cullen, Jessica's boyfriend of six months. So very famous, in fact, that Bella had never even met the guy, nor had any of her girlfriends. She assumed that either Edward wasn't interested in meeting Jessica's friends, or that Jessica simply didn't trust any of her friends to not snatch him away from under her surgically-altered nose. (Bella had seen the 'before' pictures. It was anything but pretty. Jessica's nose was currently small, cute and perfectly formed. It used to resemble an entire bar of Toblerone in terms of shape, texture and length).
Bella had heard everything about him, of course, information gushing from Jessica's collagen-enhanced lips. He was a Politics major, son of a doctor, captain of the Debate team, and the happy owner of the face of an angel, the hair of a devil, and the body of some manner of Greek god. And, Jessica had confessed numerous times over cocktails, or even just over dinner (the girl had no sense of appropriate dinner-time conversation) that Edward was particularly gifted at the freaky stuff. The kind of fuck that girls only dream about, but that she, Jessica Stanley, was enjoying on a daily or sometimes tri-daily basis.
Not that the freaky stuff was something Bella, the warrior virgin, knew very much about. It wasn't that she was frigid- at least, she didn't think she was. Just that she had yet to meet a guy that she liked enough to sleep with. Usually the only response that the guys she dated got when they whispered sweet nothings in her ear were gagging sounds. Her friends discussed sex as the be all and end all of their universes. Bella tried not to think about it too often, and just assumed it would happen when she was ready and when she met a guy who didn't make her want to rip out her own eyes with his sheer disgusting-ness.
Still, there was something not quite right with the love-affair of the century. Why did Edward seem utterly disinterested in Jessica's life? Why was Jessica always over at his apartment, but he had never crossed the threshold of theirs? It was a mystery, but Bella kept her own counsel, said nothing, and made enthusiastic noises when expected to.
Jessica's eyes lit up, she was clearly having a brainwave. Interesting. Bella didn't really think Jessica had enough brain to facilitate such a thing. Miaow. Stop it, Bella.
"How are you getting there?" Jessica asked sweetly, toying with her perfectly coiffed hair. Her helmet of thick tresses stood in direct contrast to Bella's own barnet, which was healthy and clean, but not exactly styled in any way.
"Driving, unfortunately," Bella said, rolling her eyes somewhat. She would have dearly loved to have flown, but it would be cheaper and easier to drive, rather than having all of her things delivered. Besides, her father, a police chief in Washington, didn't exactly have wads of cash lying around. Furthermore, she would need all the money she could get for settling in New York- it was a pricey city. So, it was all aboard ye olde Chevy and truckin' it for eighteen hours before she finally hit the big city. She wasn't relishing the prospect, but it had to be done.
"Hey- maybe you could drive my Eddie? He was going to try and get flights, but if you guys went together, it would be cheaper for both of you, wouldn't it?"
Jessica was blatantly delighted with this scheme; obviously it would be a good way to help out her beloved boyfriend, although Bella had to wonder why 'Eddie' was struggling for cash. Weren't his family card-carrying members of the American elite? And she didn't seem too worried about Edward and Bella being in a car together for such a long journey. Obviously, she considered Bella to be too plain in comparison with her glitterbug-gorgeousness to be capable to stealing his affections.
"Yeah, I guess it would," Bella said thoughtfully, draining her daiquiri. Her thoughts were broken by the cry of
"Jess, Bell! Photo time!" Angela Weber, another member of their group was waggling her digital camera at the girls. She felt Jessica's arms going around her neck and both broke into semi-artificial smiles. The camera flashed, capturing this epochal moment forever on film. Jessica's arms retracted and Bella found herself saying
"Yeah, I guess I'll drive with Edward to New York."
******
9.10am. Bella looked at her watch again, a delicate gold timepiece. They were now ten minutes late. She drummed at the steering-wheel in annoyance. This would screw up her entire journey plan. She supposed the pair were having one final, freaky hurrah, saying farewell to Edward's bed. Jessica was headed home to Boston, but apparently they were both planning on making it work long-distance. Yeah right, sweetheart. As if Jessica could exist without some guy close at hand to validate her very existence.
Finally, as it came round to twenty past 9, she saw Jessica sauntering over towards the Chevy. She didn't immediately catch sight of the famed Cullen boy but saw Jessica's shit-eating grin sparkle from across the lot. Yes, definitely good-bye sexy times. She stepped out of the Chevy and stood awaiting the approaching pair.
Edward Cullen finally entered her line of sight.
Well, well, well. For once in her twenty-two years Jessica Stanley had not been exaggerating. Edward Cullen certainly did have the face of an angel- pale, well-sculpted with sharp cheekbones and a strong jaw. Almost beautiful, it seemed to Bella, if a man who so clearly oozed masculinity from each and every pore could be considered beautiful. A pair of glassy, green eyes met hers and smirked slightly. The hair was certainly devilish- all sexed up and messy, shining the most curious and attractive shade of bronze. She wasn't sure if his hair was like that all the time, or if it resembled sex hair because it was, in fact, sex hair. Whatever it was, it looked good.
And as for the Olympian physique, whilst his jeans were fairly baggy and his dove grey cashmere jumper fell quite loosely from his body, she could still see he was strong, toned and powerful, without having the pumped-up look of a Mr Universe candidate. Just right, really. He was certainly, she had to admit to herself, one of the most physically splendid specimens she'd ever encountered. She was immediately on guard.
"Bella!" chirruped Jessica, as she tugged Edward over to the truck.
"Sorry we're late; we got a little…tangled up." She cast a little flirtatious wink in Edward's oblivious direction.
"It's fine," Bella lied, tucking her hands into her pockets.
"Oh, so sorry! How rude of me. Eddie darling, this is my dear chum Bella Swan. Bell, this is my boyfriend, Edward Cullen." Jessica elongated the word 'boyfriend' within an inch of its life. Bella had never noticed how nasal Jess's voice was before.
Bella pulled out a slightly clammy hand from her pocket and held it out to Edward. He gave that same little smirk, green eyes shining, and took her hand in his own.
"Pleasure, I'm sure." His voice was low, and rough, whilst somehow, paradoxically remaining smooth, velveteen almost, and very easy upon your ears.
As their hands moved in unison, Bella felt her entire body fall under attack with a fizzing that rippled through her. Lust? She queried silently. She'd never been the lustful kind. Whatever it was, it was delicious and dangerous so she removed her hand and caged it back in her pocket, where it would be safe from the source of this new emotion.
"Yeah, you too." She shrugged lightly, and bit her lip for a moment before awkwardly walking over to open up the trunk. Edward followed, and of course Jessica teetered after him, and he swung his bags into the trunk.
"We should get going…but, uh, I can give you guys a minute to say goodbye." She walked over and gave Jessica a half-hearted cuddle.
"Take care, Jess." She said, overwhelmed slightly by Jessica's powdery perfume.
"Not goodbye, darling, but au revoir! Good luck with your "reporting"! And stay in touch, 'kay? Promise?"
Bella made no such promise but got into the driver's seat and waited for them to say their tender farewell.
And waited...
And waited- -
And waited!
"I'll miss you more," Jessica crooned in between teary kisses (hers, not his).
"No, no. I'll miss YOU more," Edward would refute, and then the whole hellish cycle would begin again.
The interchange she couldn't help overhearing made her feel a little nauseous. She had been so right not to get involved with anyone, to compromise her future with forced goodbyes and possible regrets. Yet a tiny little corner of her heart hurt that there was no one who was really sad to say goodbye to her. She shushed that irritating little part and sighed as their sloppy kissing assailed her ears again.
Eventually she rolled down the window.
"Look guys," she said, softly, as the pair broke apart. "I'm sorry, but we're nearly an hour behind schedule."
Edward smiled at her, a disarming smile she couldn't quite call genuine.
"So sorry, Bella. How rude of me." He gave Jessica one final kiss and headed round into the passenger seat. Bella started up the engine and Jessica stood sobbing as the car tore itself out of the car park and onto the main road.
"So?" Edward said, looking to her with a wolfish grin.
"So." She responded, sighing inwardly. This would be a long drive.
A/N:
Hey, welcome to my very first FanFic. How exciting!
What did you all think? Yes, no, maybe? I would love to hear your thoughts, comments, criticisms- all that shizzzz.
Many, many thanks to my lovely betas aprilbaby19 and Serendipity.
Chapter 2 is almost ready to roll so it won't be too long before I update.
Review? I will send big air hugs your way. You know you want to.