A/N:
Thank you to the lovely ladies from Sparkly Red Pen, Angmclure and hmmille who preread and beta'd this first chapter. They rock! :)
You already know it, but still…
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the intellectual property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended.
**C~W~M**
The sun was bearing down on him, scalding his neck and arms. Sweat poured out of every pore of his body, dampening the ratty wife-beater he had on. But it was his backpack, heavier than usual, and his saliva, thickening to glue his tongue to his palate, that prevented him from stopping.
The water he had wasn't nearly enough and he was saving it for Bella; no matter how thirsty he was, he would not drink it. She had to be feeling just as horribly as he was–women dehydrated faster–even though she'd had a sip two hours and twenty minutes before.
Slowing down, he looked back, searching for her. Far away, further than he expected, Bella was dragging her feet through the dirt road, raising dust behind her.
The skyline had turned orange and the sun was almost touching the mountains they had descended in the morning. They were making good time, so Edward figured he could give her the rest of the water. There should be more where they were going – or so he hoped. There were no certainties anymore.
In any case, they had to be arriving in town – Edward was positive they'd get there sometime that night.
So he stopped, waiting for her to catch up to him.
A few wild curls had stuck to her rosy cheeks, and her chest was moving quickly.
"You're tired."
Stopping in front of him, Bella bent over herself, placing her hands on her knees. Edward noticed a small whistle on her breathing as she tried to control it.
"Do you have any respiratory problems?"
Bella just stared at him.
"Bella, do you have asthma?" he insisted.
Bella took a deep breath and held it in. Edward, unsure of what to do, kept staring at her chest cavity.
As she exhaled, Bella straightened her back and crossed her arms. The accusatory glare she threw at him had him feeling like a little boy all over again.
"What I have—" she answered, while her body bent forward in his direction, "is tiredness."
Her lips crashed together, forming one thin line.
"I'm tired of following you like a lost puppy. I'm tired of your temperamental tantrums. I'm tired that you don't pay me any attention."
Even though he suspected Bella was truly angry with him, Edward couldn't contain his smile. There was no way he could understand why an annoying little creature made him feel alive again.
"What are you laughing at?"
"I don't pay attention to you?"
With her hands on her waist, Bella snorted. "Unbelievable!"
Edward´s brain took some time to react. When watching Bella stomp in the opposite direction clicked with its meaning, she was already far enough that he had to shout.
But she kept walking away, as fast as her short body allowed her, giving no sign that she'd heard him call.
"Bella!"
He didn't even know what he'd done to cause such a reaction. Well, he knew that he hadn't spoken to her much and had forced her to speed up all day long, but that didn't count, right? They had to stay on schedule, and he'd even given her all of his food and most of the water, after all. He was carrying her personal possessions, which were obviously made of lead, for Christ's sake!
With too much distance between them, she was showing no signs of slowing down. Edward called her name one last time before rushing down toward the blinding sunset. Each time his feet hit the ground she came closer…closer…so close…close enough for him to reach his hand and grip her skinny arm, forcing her to stop with a jolt.
"Bella?"
How many times had he said her name today? Two syllables that rolled smoothly out of this mouth.
No answer. No movement.
Slowly, he lowered his hand. What should he do? He had no idea how to deal with people, let alone temperamental women. If they were talking about a walker, it would be a different story. That, he knew how to handle.
"Look," he started. "You can't just go on your own."
Her shoulders rose. Edward, sensing she was about to answer, kept going, "I know you don't…need me." He tugged on his hair, ignoring how hot it really was. "It's just…"
I've been alone too long.
"Come with me. Please."
To his relief, Bella turned around.
He could see the tears staining her cheeks while her bottom lip trembled. She was making an effort to stop them, he knew, as her teeth sank down on her bottom lip.
"What's the point?" she rasped.
It hurt. How, he didn't know. He'd been attacked by men, slapped by women, scrunched by walkers. He'd even been shot once. But it had never hurt like this before.
She'd been hurting for a while now, mourning her friends – that much he knew. But the thought that Bella might not want to keep going, that she might not have hope anymore, felt devastating.
He wanted to say something, anything, to make her feel better. He wanted to hug her and hold on tight, to keep her in his arms. He wanted to caress her soft skin and taste her swollen lips. He wanted everything with her, but he kept quiet. He didn't know what to do.
Except… he lowered his backpack to the ground and pulled the bottle of water out of it. It had just a bit left, and he forced it into Bella's hand.
"No," she thrust it to him. "You have it."
With her other hand, she tried to clean the tears. There were angry marks on her arms from the sun; they'd have to hit a pharmacy again.
Edward didn't take the bottle. He took a step back.
The anguish marking her almond eyes told him to lighten up the situation. So he talked about the time he'd snuck out of the house and took his dad's car, only to graze it against a light pole and pretend it hadn't happen. He told her the story about his first date – the girl he'd taken on a picnic and had an allergic reaction to the food.
As he spoke and Bella calmed down, they started walking again – this time, much slower. Edward's hand found Bella's small one and, eventually, his arm embraced her thin waist. She'd laughed out loud when he'd told her how he'd choked up in front of his crush when he'd smoked his first cigarette. Edward's skin burned when Bella's hand closed around his hip, even though the sun was no longer up.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
"Why?" she asked, her tone much lighter than before.
"For everything. I'm not the best to have around."
"Edward." Bella stopped walking.
He didn't want to make eye contact with her, so he stared at the horizon above her head. That didn't seem to stop her, though. Her small hand found his cheek, compelling his eyes to close.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said."
She had nothing to apologize for, unlike him. But he wasn't about to argue with her for such a reason, not when he felt so good. He nodded his head once, slowly, not to lose contact with her skin, and offered a small smile.
"Come with me."
When she lowered her hand, to take his and pull him forward, he obeyed.
**C~W~M**
A/N: So.. You've read this far! What do you think? :p