Hey, since you are reading this, thanks for dropping in! I'm new to this field, so please just give me a try! I don't think my writing's that atrocious!
How he could have let this happen, again, Edward knew not. To think he would have learned from past mistakes would be an understatement in the very least. He had once more been lured into her bed by sweet pleas through the phone. And now, nearly three hours past, and his temptress lie sleeping at his side, one hand draped across his bare chest where it rested against his shoulder. A faint smile graced her swollen lips.
Sighing with self frustration, Edward once again found his eyes had wandered down to his lovely siren, and he cast them away, his hand winding his hair in a frustrated grasp. He needed a way out of her small apartment; a way that would permit his leave on time for once.
He had tried many a time to escape her entrapping eyes, only to be drawn in farther by their watered look. Despite the many ways in which she had hurt him over the years, he still felt an ungodly urge to protect her; even from her own sadness.
Lifting his head from the soft blue pillow upon which it rested, his eyes found their way to the clock on the nightstand beside his sleeping seductress, the read of which told him it was time to go. That is, if he wanted to avoid the angry wrath of his best friend-slash-band mate.
As gingerly as he could, Edward placed his hand over hers and lifted it from his torso, resting it on the pillow that her most beautiful head took comfort in. Then, with great care, he lifted the royal blue comforter from his bare abdomen, folding it over so it rested aside her body. He shifted his legs off of the bed, resting his bare feet against her hardwood floor.
He applied pressure to the balls of his feet, testing the floor for creaks. When no sounds reach his well attuned ears, he pushed himself gently off the bed and reached down for his faded blue jeans, slipping them on over the boxers he had worn to sleep in; if only he could've attained such a comfort.
Quickly making his way across the small room, he grabbed his jacket off the door handle from which it hung, going through the motions of putting it on, only to remember that he was still missing one vital article of clothing; his black v-neck t-shirt from Ralph Lauren. Where had they tossed that?
"Ahem," came a soft voice from the direction his back faced, causing him to freeze in his place. He had been so quiet too. "Are you leaving?" she asked, her voice echoing the despair that would surely be on her face.
"We have rehearsals in an hour," he explained, not turning around to face the havoc her eyes would wreak upon his heart. "I don't need to toy with Jasper's temper yet again."
"But you just got here a little bit ago." And here it comes, he couldn't help but think as he sighed, turning around to face his life's greatest of temptations. He nearly melted to a puddle on the floor at the sight of her standing there in his black t-shirt, so that's where it went, and nothing else. And even with her hair set in a beautifully tangled disarray of brown atop her lovely head, a reminder of their prior activities, and lack of clothing, she managed to look virtuous in the fact that she was currently tucking a stray lock of said messy hair behind her ear, biting her lower lip as she stared down at her soft little feet. It was only then that he realized she was hiding a tear from his view.
With one hand he reached out and swiped his thumb over the drop of salty eye perspiration, whipping over the spot a few times to assure that he'd gotten the entire bead before returning his appendage to his side. Her brown eyes turned up at him from behind her lashes, her face painted with the ever present blush, and once more he felt the urge to turn to goo.
"You shouldn't let Jasper control your life," she declared stubbornly. He cocked one disbelieving eyebrow at her.
"You are joking, right?" he inquired, wondering if she realized who the true puppeteer of his life was.
"Um, no?" she answered, now questioning herself in her still clouded brain. "You should do what your heart tells you." She placed her hand on his bicep, giving it a light squeeze that sent his blood pulsing. But he was too focused on his words to be distracted by that.
"Bella," he stated, her name sweet candy to his lips, "I-I can't keep playing these games of yours. I know that you aren't the serious relationship, settle down and get married type." She cringed away, eyes widening at the M word. He was too late to correct his mistake in language, so he continued on. "But I am. No, I'm saying I want to go off to Vegas and get married today. But, I need to know that you want those things with me someday to. Because this whole, you come home for a few days, mess around with me, and then leave without a goodbye isn't working anymore. I fall deeper in love with you each time you come home, and it's killing me." By this time her mouth had fallen agape, shocked at the depth of his emotions for her. She'd honestly had no idea.
"That's what this, again, isn't it?" He already knew the answer, though, and his tone was more accusing then questioning. She looked down in shame. "When do you leave this time?"
"Tuesday," she mumbled. It was Saturday. He breathed out an angry sigh, lightly banging his fist against the wall before resting his head against it. "Edward, I-" She had no idea what to say, however, and was thankful when he cut her off.
"Save it, Bella. Just think about what I said and let me know tonight at the club. I'm sure Alice already has plans to drag you out there," she nodded her head in assurance, "so I'll see you then." He leaned in and pressed a tender kiss between her brows.
"Um, do you need your shirt back?" she asked in a last ditch attempt at convincing him to stay.
Shaking his head, though not in exact response to her question, he voiced aloud, "No. You keep it." With that he pulled on his jacket, zipping it up almost all the way, and slipped on his sneakers. Then he was gone, his fingers itching to write new lyrics that had taken form throughout the early morning hours.
--
"Hey, look who's on time for once!" boomed the voice of Edward's step brother, Emmett McCarty from behind his drums. One corner of Edward's lip turned up as he hopped on the stage. "We were just about to start rehearsal."
"Cool. When do we go on tonight?" He needed to know if he'd have a chance to talk to her beforehand.
"They saved the best for last, of course," Rosalie Hale, Jasper's twin sister and Emmett's girlfriend, answered his question with a smirk, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder as she adjusted the mike. Edward smiled shyly down at his guitar.
"Alright guys," the commanding tone of Jasper Hale sounded from behind him, causing them all to turn their heads. "Let's take it from the top of Boys Will Be Boys." Rosalie groaned, banging her head against the head of the microphone. A piercing sound rang out through the stadium, and every member of the band plastered their hands to their ears.
"Sorry," she mumbled after it passed. "But really, Jasper?!"
"Yes, now switch instruments with Edward." Not did Jasper kick-ass with an electric guitar, he was also the band's manager, and any words of his utterance became law to the other three.
Edward ducked under the leather strap of his bass guitar, passing it off one handed to the grumpy blonde, and walked over to the microphone. Smirking over at her, he raised the stand up three inches before locking it back in place. He would've liked it higher, but not too many singers surpassed six feet in height, so they took what they could get.
But his arrogance was a façade. Inside he was still a wreck, despising himself for making her cry and hurting her with the words he said. So what if, every time she left him the hole in his heart would rip open, even wider and deeper than it had been before? Who cared? So long as she was happy.
"Edward!" Jasper shouted, and he looked passed the mirth in the boy's twin's eyes, to his best friend's glare.
"Yea?"
"Were you planning on singing anytime soon?"
"Oh, did you start?" asked the near-red head stupidly. Sighing in exasperation, Jasper ran both hands through his unruly blonde hair.
"Yes, Edward, we did. Where is your head?"
Emmett chuckled before answering for him. "Wishing it was back inside Bella."
Edward nearly launched himself at the abnormally large boy behind the drums, only stopping because of Jasper's hands had locked around his wrists, using all his strength to hold back his raging friend.
"You take that back!"
"It's the truth, and you know it!"
Edward didn't have a response to that, so he settled for a sound very similar to a growl. Emmett snorted.
"Geez, it's turning into planet of the apes around here. I'm gonna go out and get some coffee. Just give our rehearsal time to someone else and we can pick back up later when you boys have calmed down."
Jasper stared after his sister, dumbfounded, and released Edward. "Uh, yeah, what she said. Hey, Shape-Shifters!" Jasper called to the band of La Push kids huddled around the stadium's owner. They're manage, Sam, glanced up confused.
"What do you want, Pale Faces?"
"You can take our rehearsal time. We have a few things to settle." He sent a pointed look at Edward, and the group hopped off the stage.
Clapping Howard, the owner, on the shoulder, the band of six Native Americans got up on the stage and began readjusting the rehearsal equipment. Each individual band's instruments were kept in their separate dressing rooms for safety precautions. There was always that one group of crazies that would go off and destroy everyone else's equipment, just so they would have the best looking group.
Back inside the Pale Face's dressing room, Jasper shoved Edward and Emmett onto the sofa, he himself taking up the chair at the makeup table.
"Alright Edward, what's going on?"
Instead of answering, he glared off at the door, once again angry at her. Even without her knowledge she was controlling his life. He couldn't let that happen to himself. Not if he wanted to go places.
"It's Bella, I swear!" Emmett answered, again, for his step sibling. "She's the only thing that ever gets him this upset!" Edward remained frozen, aside from the deepening of his frown. "But wait, Alice told me she didn't leave until Tuesday."
"She doesn't," Edward finally spoke, his voice still a near growl.
"He speaks!" cried Jasper dramatically, throwing his hands up for effect.
"Well, if she's still here, then what's the problem?" Emmett urged, concerned for his brother of every sort besides blood and close friend. He hated it when Edward got like that; hated seeing him in so much pain.
Sighing, Edward finally turned to look at his two best friends. "I finally stood up to her."
"That's great! But wait, then why are you so sad?"
"Because she was crying!"
"So, despite all the tears she's caused you-don't deny it! I've seen them-you feel guilty for making her cry once?"
Edward's forehead fell into his hands. "I don't know! I'm so confused."
They sat in silence for a while, letting Edward regain his composure. Then, he pulled out his notebook and began writing.
"What's that?" Jasper asked after a while, looking up from the chess game he'd started with Emmett.
"Just a song I've been working on."
"Let me see!" Emmett cried, glad for an excuse to leave the game. Against anyone else he was fine. But Jasper was a master strategist, and no matter how complicated a move Emmett pulled, he couldn't beat his blonde, tricky friend.
"It's not done yet!"
"Looks done to me," Emmett decided as he held the book over his head, so high it touched the ceiling. "Hey, we should sing this tonight!"
"No way! It's not ready, and we don't even have music for it!"
"Jazz and I have been working on some music that doesn't have lyrics yet. And as far as I can tell, these words would fit. Jazz, what do you think?"
Emmett handed the blonde Edward's notebook, still holding him off with one hand. "It definitely sounds possible. Let's try it quick." Sighing dejectedly, because their Lord had spoken, Edward sat down on the couch with his notebook, waiting for the music to start so he could sing. He unzipped his jacket without thinking, just knowing that it was rather hot in the small dressing room.
"Edward, dude, where's your shirt?" Emmett asked, already smirking with a knowing fashion. A pink tint worked its way to Edward's cheeks.
--
"I mean, what am I supposed to say to that?!" Bella asked, still flustered by his words nearly five hours later. Alice had a bewildered expression on her face, for once at a loss for words. Her step brother had never done anything like this before.
"I honestly don't know. But what I can tell you is that, every time you leave, Edward locks himself in his apartment for a week. He unplugs his landline, turns off his cell phone-once he even through it into a wall so hard it broke-and basically becomes a hermit. It's kind of understandable."
The look on her best friend's face was priceless, and Alice couldn't resist the urge to pull out her phone and snap a quick picture of the expression. Bella's face immediately took on a glare.
"I'm sorry, but that look was great. See," she held up her phone screen for Bella, just out of the other girl's reach. "Oh come on, you can't honestly justify what you're doing to him."
"I-I never knew he felt so strongly about me," Bella admitted, tapping her empty coffee cup against the table.
Alice snorted her laughter. "Oh please! Do you think it's normal guy behavior to not only not get angry for being woken up at four in the morning by a girl, but then rush over to said girl's apartment just to let her have her way with him and then fall asleep?! Come on Bella, get real."
Bella's face had turned scarlet at her friend's words, and she hid behind a curtain of hair as a group of college boys walked by, leering at her in uncomforting ways.
"Well, I mean, kind of. I don't know! What do I do?! Alice, you're supposed to help me with my problems, not take his side!"
"So you're declaring war on him now?" Alice asked, while her tone was really saying, "Get real."
"I don't know!"
"Well, let's think about it as we go shopping." When Bella lifted her head from her hands to glare at Alice, she continued, "We need outfits for tonight!"
Groaning, Bella allowed herself to be drug from her chair, tripping her way to the door behind Alice. They paused when they got outside, noticing a familiar blonde coming over to them.
"Rose, what are you doing here?!" Alice demanded, dropping her best friend's hand to accuse her future sister-in-law with her bright blue eyes. "You should be rehearsing!"
"We were, until her booty call," she pointed to Bella, whose cheeks in turn regained their former reddish hue, "kept screwing up. He was about ready to kill Emmett when I left!"
"Wow Rose, you sure are his hero," Alice teased.
"Hey, I know better than to stand in the way of raging Edward." Alice nodded her head in understanding, knowing very well her step brother's temper problems, especially when he was freaking out over Bella. "Your fiancée," Rose added, her new favorite nickname for her twin rolling off her tongue without a though, "however, completely different story."
"Well, his funeral. He knows that if he gets himself killed before the wedding that I will certainly find a way to bring him back to life and kill him myself," Alice stated confidently, grabbing Rosalie's hand with her left and wrapping her right arm around a near-sick Bella's waste, skipping off awkwardly toward the street.
"After the honeymoon, of course," Rosalie continued the charade.
"Of course. Bella, are you ok?" the tiny girl asked, taking in the greenish tints within the red of her best friend's face. "You look sick."
"I'm such a horrible person!" she exclaimed in a sickly tone, her eyes closed against the harsh rays of the clouded sun.
"Oh sweetie, it's ok, we still love you just the same," Alice 'comforted'. Bella rolled her head down, her eyes opening just enough to glare at the grinning pixie.
"I would like to know how you, sweet, innocent little Bella Swan, can find the courage to seduce Edward, Forks' most sought after bachelor so bad that he once nearly got arrested for doing a one-fifty on the freeway as he was heading towards your apartment." Bella's face couldn't have been redder if PETA had found her walking down a public road in a jacket made from the last animal left on earth. And yet somehow, Rosalie had found a way around the impossibility.
"Well, at least she doesn't look green anymore," Alice whispered to Rosalie as Bella's forehead slammed down on top of the tiny brunette's shoulder.
"Rose, I don't even know," Bella answered. "I'm usually at least half asleep when it happens, and then when I wake up all it takes is one look in his eyes and I just get lost."
"There's something about girls wearing their shirts that makes guys go crazy."
"Not this morning," Bella murmured dejectedly.
"So I hear," Rosalie answered, smirking at Bella's glare.
"Ugh, finally, we're here!" intervened Alice, who broke away from her friends and bounced her way through the doors of Forever21, sixteen miles outside of Seattle. "Come on!"
"You're getting our clothes from Forever21?" Rosalie inquired, looking curiously at a top near the entrance.
"No, silly! I can't have you and Bella here when I do that!" Alice was the band's executive wardrobe designer, coordinating them all in a way that only she could. Her only rule was that no one else could see them until they were on.
"Damn," Rosalie cursed, hoping Alice had forgotten the rule. Most of the time her creations were just fine; but every now and then there was that crazy one that would cause the boys to fall to the ground clutching their stomachs while they teased her mercilessly. She didn't like taking chances. "Can you at least tell where you plan to get them from?!"
"Nope." The grin on Alice's face caused Bella to chuckle slightly as she followed her friend around like a lost puppy. Shopping was definitely not her motif. "Here." Alice shoved a pile of clothes into Bella's arms, and she couldn't help but wonder how Alice had managed to accumulate that much clothes within two minutes.
After almost two hours and one hundred and forty dollars had been spent in that store, Alice and Bella had their outfits ready for the evening. Since it wasn't even four, and the concert wasn't until six, the girls walked around for a while, glancing in the windows of random boutiques.
Alice stopped outside of Gap and pulled out her cell phone.
"Hey baby," she greeted after a moment. "Um, yea, I'm gonna start shopping for your outfits, and I need to know who's singing tonight." She paused, awaiting his reply. "Really?! Oh, wow. Yea, that sounds like a great title. Ok, love you, see you in a bit. Bye."
"I'm not singing tonight, am I?" Alice nodded her head sadly at her friend. Bella looked confused.
"Who is?"
"Oh, I'm not gonna say. But I will tell you guys that tonight is about to get very interesting." A mysterious glint sparkled in her eyes, the way they always did when Alice knew something secret and important. But she gave nothing more away than that.
As she turned to go into the store, Rose stopped her. "You do know that's a Gap, right?"
"Yup! Later!" And then Alice did the single most unthinkable deed possible; she bounced in to Gap.
Mouths agape, Rosalie asked Bella without turning her eyes away from the store, "Did Alice seriously just go into a Gap?"
"I don't know. I'm still in shock from my hallucination," was Bella's equally dazed response. Turning shocked eyes on the other, both girls slowly made their way in the direction of the coffee shop, clearly needing something to wake them up from the most bizarre dream.
They got into Rosalie's car, since Bella had gotten a ride with Alice, so that they could head back to her apartment when something caught the blonde's eye. "Hey Bella, whose shirt is that?" noticing, for the first time that afternoon, the large, black V-neck tee shirt her friend was wearing, tied at the side so it didn't look to sloppy. Bella's brown eyes went wide as yet another blush worked its way to her face.
--
"Next!" Alice called as the dressing room door reopened and Emmett stepped out in an array of white clothing; all but his shoes and tie, that is. Alice had, instead of Gap, bought the night's outfits at a Ralph Lauren store, some forty miles out of the city, much to the relief of Rosalie.
Her outfit was a bit simpler than they boys', a white polo halter with graphics, white knee length shorts, and four and a half inch black heels. Alice had pulled the top half of Rosalie's blonde hair up, leaving the rest to hang in soft waves over her shoulders and down her back.
Jasper was also dressed in mostly white, a few colors thrown in to pull the accents together. It was the brand's tradition that the singer, or lead singer depending on the song, would be dressed in dark colors, and the others in light to make him pop. One of Alice's numerous design tricks she had learned from Edward's aunt, Esme.
Edward, breathing in a deep, calming breath, walked into the dressing room. Alice handed him a pair of dark blue jeans, ordering him to call her back after they were on. The task didn't take long, and before he knew it, he was wearing a white button shirt and a black polo over that. There were white designs across it, and some outlined in gold. So it was no surprise when Alice handed him black and white shoes, much similar to Jasper's and Emmett's, and a gold tie.
Edward had never been good with ties, and when Bella walked in a few minutes later, she was not surprised to see him twisting and untwisting the gold fabric ends around one another. The left sleeve of his white shirt was rolled up to his elbow, the other wrinkled all the way to his wrist. It was a very humorous sight.
"Having fun," she asked with a giggle, and he looked up, startled that someone could have managed to sneak up on him. He was usually more observant than that. "Here, let me help."
He was hesitant at first, but after a glance at the 'tie' around his neck, he complied.
They both watched her hands work the material into the proper form, too afraid to look into each other's eyes. She looked up at his hair, running her fingers through it a few times to mess it up, and then took a step back. "Perfect," She decided.
He smiled sadly at her, and she returned the gesture before pulling her lower lip under her teeth. It took all her will not to kiss him, as part of a new agreement with herself that she and Rose had come up with on the drive back to her apartment.
"Edward, let's go!" Jasper called, poking his head in the door. Bella reluctantly turned her gaze away from him, and he followed her out the door.
She joined Alice off the side backstage, and the band rushed passed the two girls, their instruments already set up for them. The crowd roared at the semi-popular band, and Emmett lifted his drumsticks in an X over his head after he sat down.
Jasper started his guitar, Emmett following on the drums a second later, and then Edward began to sing. "They wrote this just today!" Alice shouted in Bella's ear.
It was the type of feeling that
Can't be explained
The way she moved her lips
The way it drove me insane
Blood once again found an easy route to Bella's cheeks, and Alice giggled. Emmett looked up from his drumming, winking at Bella in a way that made her blush deepen once more.
Rosalie had joined in on the bass. Bella looked over and saw her old friend, and member of the Shape Shifters, Jacob Black, glaring at Edward on stage. How odd.
Alice's information proved true as he sang about the event that had occurred just that morning, tears brimming in her eyes at the memory. She refused to let them fall, but Alice must have sensed it anyway because her arm wrapped around her friend's shoulder; now able to reach thanks to the four inch heels her feet did don.
Don't go away again
I wanna be more than a phone call at four AM
Seems like every time you come back home
It's just to steal my heart and leave
As the song continued on, Bella began to wonder about the other songs he'd written for the band. There were many of them that sounded similar to this one, but he had always said that he never wrote songs about anyone. Obviously, she realized, that was a lie. There were so many! Days of the Old, Think of You Later, Picking Up the Pieces, etc…
A lump formed in her throat as she continued to fight off the persisting tears. She lasted until the third verse.
And I
Will always stand between us
And hold you so high
Just enough to watch you fade
Tonight you'll cry yourself to sleep
As I like awake in some far off city
Pretend you're lying next to me
Eyes wide open dreaming of you
And with his words, all of the confusion and awkward feelings from the day left her mind, one assurance taking its place. She rushed outside as the band entered in to their final chorus, preparing to make the most important phone call of her life.
"Hello, um, I need to cancel my flight to Phoenix."
--
The song ended and Edward opened his eyes, having closed them during the last chorus. He looked over to the side to see Alice standing there clapping, sadness in her eyes when they reached him. He looked around frantically, his eyes depressed when their search for the chocolaty brown orbs came up short.
He ran over to Alice's side. "Where'd she go?"
"She left."
"Why?!" he demanded, grabbing Alice by the shoulder.
"I don't know!" He released her, instead grabbing hold of his hair in frustration. He'd scared her off! How could he have let that happen?! "She may still be in the parking lot, if you hurry," Alice offered tentatively. Edward had gone into his unpredictable mode, and she was wise to be wary.
He sprinted off in the direction of the parking lot, shoving people out of his way as he went. Thankfully for him a group of people were leaving, and they held the door open as he went by. They clearly saw he was in a delicate state.
He froze at what he saw.
Bella hadn't left, but was in fact sitting on the trunk of his Volvo, her hands resting on her fists, held up by her elbows pressing into her knees; her eyes were trained on the door as she awaited his arrival.
"Bella?!" She grinned at him, and he returned it, though a bit more dazedly. "Alice said you left."
"No, I had to make a phone call, and Emmett's drum playing was awfully loud." They both chuckled.
"Who did you have to call?" he asked curiously, strolling over to his car and stopping a few feet away from her face.
"The airport," she answered lazily, reaching out and tracing the length of his tie with her index finger. She followed its path, completely at ease.
"Why?" he urged, a bit impatient with her teasing. She was so obviously withholding information from him.
"I had a flight to cancel," she informed, grasping his tie around the middle and gently pulling him towards her. He didn't fight, but instead dragged his feet in her intended direction.
"Seriously?" He didn't want to sound hopeful, for she had actually pulled the same thing on him a year or two before, but he couldn't help it. The thought of her moving back to the town she hated the most, for him, was an impossibility he definitely felt excited about.
"Mm-hmm," she murmured, staring up into his eyes. He gasped at what he saw. "I, I never wanted to let myself believe that you really did care about me. But between what you said this morning, and Alice, and then that song, I've kind of been convinced."
"Good." He placed his arms on either side of her, leaning in so his face was inches away from hers. She gulped, still holding this neck captive with the tie. "But to be safe, I'm storing you at my house until Wednesday morning."
"That sounds like a very good idea, though I would definitely stay willingly."
He couldn't take it any longer. Her lips, still a bit swollen from his wrath during the early hours, were taunting him with each of their movements. As gently as he could, which wasn't saying much, he pressed his lips against hers, relishing in the familiar moan that escaped from her throat. She was his, same as he had always been hers, and nothing was going to change that again.
So I almost rushed and posted this five and a half hours ago, but decided better. Please do tell your friends about this story! I like to know how people feel about my writing, because though some say it's good, I tend to doubt myself a lot. But please, let me know if you loved it, hated it, can't wait for other stories of mine! Anything!
~Jazz~