Leave a review, yeah? At least leave me a song recommendation to get the music out of my head.
Oneshot: The Cure
It was her clothes that made me first notice her—black skinny jeans, red Converse High-Tops with pristine white laces, and a black Cure t-shirt with the most iconic silhouette in the world gently pressed against her slim form. It was dark, but the light of the bonfire was plenty bright enough to illuminate the girl's choice in clothing.
I breathed in the smoke from the fire and closed my eyes even as Robert Smith's voice ironically continued crooning through my headphones. The girl was wearing my favorite t-shirt, the one I had picked up half an hour earlier, smelled, and tossed back down on my floor in favor of something cleaner. Fuck me, I groaned internally.
I looked up again, my eyes half-lidded as if it would save me from the power this girl already held over me, still eager to find her. Of course she had disappeared, though, and I opened my eyes fully to scan the crowd of teenagers on the logs around the fire, my lips turning down in disappointment.
Jessica was sitting on the ground four feet away, pushing out her chest so far that I wondered that her back didn't break, but I ignored her; and Lauren after her, jabbering on to Tyler, who was holding conference with her lap on his; and Emmett rolling in the sand and screeching while Rosalie stood off to his side, laughing hysterically at the fact that he had managed to catch himself on fire.
The girl had vanished, a magical nymph cloaking herself in the darkness to spite and intrigue, even as Just Like Heaven morphed into LoveSong. My fingers picked up the notes on my jean-clad knees without a thought, distracted by the sound. A beer was suddenly floating in front of my face.
I glanced up to see Alice Cullen smirking down at me, one hand tempting me with the bottle under my nose, the other holding two similar bottles between the fingers of her other hand. "Thanks," I said quietly, taking it from her and scooting over to allow my two best friends to sit down.
"You're brooding again," she chirped, her fairy-voice trilling even through the magic of my favorite band. "Let me guess, The Cure?" she said, tugging one of my earphones out.
"Yeah," I yawned, rolling my shoulders and looking at her out of the corner of my eye. I nodded to Jasper over her head, and he smiled back before swigging from his bottle, reminding me of my own. I sipped at it and grimaced as the taste hit my tongue. Beer wasn't a favorite, but it was better than nothing.
"What's eating you, Emo-ward?" she teased, nudging me with a bony elbow. "I thought it was Sun-ward making an appearance today?"
"It was, for a while," I agreed, setting my beer upright in the sand next to me. I flexed my hands and watched as they continued to play out the notes I was hearing again. "But then my parents started fighting again and I lost my inspiration for that song I was working on. Emo-ward returns," I scoffed scathingly, shaking my head bitterly and glaring down at my drink.
"I'm sorry, Edward. You need a place to stay tonight, man?" Jasper offered, sympathetic and supportive until the last.
"Do you mind?"
"Nah, my mom understands," he said, shrugging and then belatedly realizing I was actually asking about him and Alice. "Oh, her parents are actually checking on her tonight, so she can't come over anyways."
Alice smiled up at me softly. "Even if I could, I'd sacrifice my pleasure to make sure you were okay, Edward."
My lips twitched up on one side and I slung an arm over her tiny shoulders to press a kiss to her temple. "Thank you, Ali. You're my saving grace sometimes, even if you do annoy me daily."
She swatted at me until I let her go, laughing as I relaxed. I wouldn't have to return home to hole up in my room and hear my mom screeching at my dad about him not trusting her, or my dad yelling profanities back at her. My piano and guitar weren't even enough to make me return home tonight—my inspiration had died as their voices rose this afternoon.
"There's a new girl here tonight," Alice said a few minutes later, interrupting our conversation about a concert in Seattle in two weeks.
I looked at her and recalled the silhouette on the girl's shirt, anxious to find her again. "Have you seen her yet?" I asked, picking up my beer again so that my hands wouldn't give away my interest by tweaking out.
"Just once, half an hour ago at the most. She was hovering around the fire earlier, but I think she walked off to go watch the ocean or something. She seems nervous, unused to all this."
Jasper looked at me evenly, watching as I absorbed this, a smile playing on his lips.
"What shirt was she wearing?" My voice sounded a little funny, and Alice laughed and slapped my arm.
"Oh, Edward, don't die now, but I swear… the same shirt you wore yesterday!" she whispered melodramatically, eyes manically lighted by the flames in front of us, which were turning blue and green as the salty wood caught and snapped.
"I didn't think I recognized her," I muttered, rolling my eyes. "What's she look like? Who is she?"
"My mom told me Chief Swan's daughter is moving back to live with him until she goes to college," Alice offered, glancing at Jasper to see what information he might have.
"Her name is Isabella Swan, she's a senior. Brown hair, pale skin, and that's all I could see," he reeled off. "I think we'll like her though, I got a good vibe."
"Emo-ward probably likes her simply because she's wearing his favorite band," Alice snickered, and I gently pushed her backwards off our log into the sand. She shrieked and laughed as I hurriedly stood up to avoid getting kicked in the face. Jasper and I chuckled while she pulled herself upright again, shooting me a death glare and trying to rub the sand out of her hair.
"Asshat," she muttered, eyes narrowed as she kicked sand in my direction before flipping back down onto the log, taking up my spot as well as hers, tiny feet propped in Jasper's lap.
"You guys want more beer?" I offered, looking at my bottle, which had mysteriously lost all liquid inside.
"Find me a Smirnoff, if you can, and I'll give your seat back," Alice ordered, closing her eyes and relaxing with a smile on her face. Jasper nodded and looked down at his girlfriend.
I ignored the pang of loneliness in my chest as I walked away. I loved them, I did, but seeing their happiness and togetherness was rough sometimes, especially in the wake of my parent's failing marriage. I knew I was cursed to end up like the two people who had raised me, alone and bitter and living a life I was unhappy with just because I accidentally got someone pregnant and their parents insisted on a shot gun wedding.
Boys Don't Cry started winding through my one headphone, off balance until I lifted the other back up and found solace in the music. The ice chest was at the edge of the trees, hidden just in case someone happened to walk by and see all the underage drinking going on.
I reached for a beer and jerked my hand back in shock when I grabbed a hand instead of a bottle. My eyes lifted as I let the hand in mine go, and I gasped silently, my mouth falling open slightly.
The dark brown eyes inches from mine own widened, the pupils spilling with light from the fire behind me, a golden ring etched around the black. Dark eyelashes were shadowed against her cheekbones when she blinked, and I watched as the pale flame-kissed skin glowed brighter with a blush. Her lips were plump and red, and as I watched she took her bottom one into her mouth, giving me no doubt as to where the lines etched into her lip came from.
I stood up and backed away a step, trying to hold my eyes in their sockets and keep my cool. The girl—Isabella, Jasper had said—directed her gaze to the sandy ground and mumbled an apology I couldn't hear over my iPod. Small delicate hands snaked through the beer bottles to grab the neck of a Smirnoff, and she backed away silently, dark tendrils of hair catching the red light of the fire and showing off coppery strands in the pieces that had escaped her long curled ponytail.
"Wait," I said, wincing as my voice reverberated though my head, a sure sign I had spoken much too loudly.
She started and hunched her shoulders before turning to glance at me, worrying her abused lip between her teeth again. I quickly reached up and tugged my headphones out, interrupting the song. "Do you need a place to sit or anything?"
She blinked at me, letting her lip go, and then glanced back down the trail to the ocean. "Er… I was… maybe for a little while," she said, relenting when I smiled at her hopefully. Her voice was soft and pure and pretty and low—I wondered if she sang much.
"Edward Masen," I offered, stretching out a hand for her.
"Bella, Bella Swan," she shyly admitted, stepping forward hesitantly to shake. "I love your shirt."
I glanced down at the navy-blue shirt I was wearing, the light green umbrella raining skulls, the puddle underneath home to Death Cab For Cutie, one of my other favorites.
"Thanks. Yours, too. It's ironic, because I was just listening to that song," I said, smirking as I looked at the girl.
She blushed and started laughing, a real smile taking over her face. "Even more ironic, I have Transatlanticism stuck in my head."
I started laughing with her, surprised. She moved slightly closer, and I lifted a hand to indicate she should walk with me.
"So you're new here?" I asked, slipping my hands into my pockets.
Bella nodded, and shrugged. "Do I really stand out that much?"
"You wouldn't if Forks was bigger. But alas, it is not," I teased, pleased to hear her laugh again.
"All the other girls also seem to be immune to the cold—three are wearing mini-skirts," she observed, lifting a skeptical eyebrow at Lauren—still situated on Tyler's lap, but now grinding and panting—and then over Katie Marshall and Erin Smith, who were both covered in goosebumps but trying not to show their coldness as they fluttered their eyelashes at one of the natives.
I rolled my eyes. "You probably won't be surprised by their GPAs," I snorted, shaking my head. "Or the number of STDs they grow."
Bella smirked and turned her gaze on me. "How do you know how many STDs they have?"
My beer had just met my lips and I nearly sent the alcohol back into the bottle. I coughed and started chuckling. "People here tend to talk. A lot. About everything. Especially if it's gossip and drama. Hence, your popularity."
She grimaced, small nose crinkling in distaste. "You mean to tell me that the same mouths shaping the words gonorrhea and Chlamydia are also saying my name?"
I snorted and smiled down at her. "Hadn't thought of it that way. Good point."
"Ew," she said simply, and we laughed again.
Alice and Jasper were now occupying only one spot—she was sitting in front of him on the sand, head resting in his lap, eyes closed as he stroked her hair. There was nothing sexual in the manner—just love, and I envied it.
"Hey, Alice, here's your Smirnoff. Jazz, your Corona. This is Bella; Bella, these two are my best friends, Al—"
Alice leaped up, spraying sand everywhere, and launched her small body at Bella in a hug. "I'm Alice Cullen! I can't wait to go shopping with you. There's this place in Seattle that has cute band shirts, so you can still be you, but cuter, because that looks like a guy's shirt, not that it's bad on you, because it kind of suits you, but that doesn't mean you're like a guy either, because you're really pretty." In simple Alice-form, she had accosted the new girl.
I looked at Jasper imploringly, and he stood to free a shocked and pleased Bella. I watched the blush rise to her cheeks again and immediately felt blood swarm to a lower region of my body. I sat down and coughed, trying to hide it as I bent over to brace my elbows on my knees and looked up at everyone.
"I'm Jasper Whitlock, Alice's girlfriend and Edward's closest friend." The southern drawl was out in a force tonight, I noted. The alcohol always brought it back, though his gentlemanly ways were rarely disturbed.
"It's nice to meet you both," Bella said, smiling at them and then giggling when she looked at Alice. "And um… thank you?"
Alice trilled a laugh and pulled Bella down to sit with her on the sand in front of me and Jasper. I tried not to notice the height of Bella's head was perfect to reduce the discomfort in my jeans, shifting in my seat and attempting to look natural.
She didn't even notice, of course. Alice had already absorbed her in conversation, and she wasn't paying attention to me at the moment.
We sat there the rest of the night, chatting and laughing and getting to know each other. I found myself undeniably attracted to Bella, and focused on delving deeper into her mind and life.
Bella had no idea of the affect she had on me. She was effortlessly classy, artsy, beautiful, and so fucking sexy that I had only known her less than ten minutes and had a raging hard on to show for it. The blushing, her voice, her musical tendencies, the goddamn lip biting that could bring any man to his knees… She had shown she was witty during our discussion about skirts, and the only make up on her face was a light coat of mascara instead of the cake most girls wore over their skin. The girl wasn't judging my friends, she wasn't stuck up, and she was new, a mystery and a novelty and just so goddamn pretty.
She had moved up from Phoenix, Arizona—of course it was a huge shock to go from bright sunny desert one morning to dark cloudy rainy cold forest the next. But she didn't mind—her mom had just gotten remarried, and Bella was here to give the newlyweds time alone, while simultaneously closing the distance between herself and Chief.
Bella loved reading—right now, she was in the middle of One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo, Dante's Divine Comedy, and The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux.
Her latest playlist was home to The Postal Service, The Cure, Death Cab for Cutie, Iron and Wine, Garbage, and various other bands I loved. We bonded immediately over that. The girl was shocked to discover my musical tendencies and demanded to hear something soon. I volunteered to have her over some day after school, which started on Tuesday after break ended.
As she spoke, snatches of a melody would float through my mind, and I filed them away for later, tomorrow, when I had the correct papers and a pencil. She leaned back into my knees and I dribbled sand in her hair, laughing as she flung it back at me. Both of us were covered in the dirt, and I felt the need to visit the ocean.
I stood up and watched as she almost fell over before chuckling and reaching a hand down to her. The girl grabbed it with a smile on her lips and I pulled her up easily before tugging her toward the beach path. Bella followed quietly, and I slowed and smiled as I walked next to her, hands entwined.
I usually couldn't hold someone's hand. There was something about the sweat and clamminess or heat that just turned me off—but Bella's hand was neither sweaty, clammy, or hot. It was cool and smooth and fit perfectly in mine—our fingers folded together without gap or discomfort, as if made specifically for each other.
"So I'm guessing you don't have a relationship," Bella ventured as we emerged onto the pebbles.
I laughed and shook my head. "No, not me. Nobody in this town is… nobody here fits perfectly with me. I'm still missing my puzzle piece."
She looked thoughtful. "Me too. Back in Phoenix, I barely had any friends. I mean, I had a few, but only for small ventures. I thought I would be absolutely friendless when I got here, but you and Alice and Jasper are so… well… I just want to thank you, for inviting me to… thank you," she said, smiling up at me.
I grinned down and tugged her hand again, headed toward the ocean. "Are you afraid to get wet?"
"No, not really, though it is a bit cold," she muttered, rolling her eyes and stopping. She let go of my hand and I felt the wind biting against my empty palm. I frowned, and then brightened when I realized what she was doing, bending down to untie my own shoes and roll up my jeans.
"What time is it?" she asked, hopping on one foot as she tried to roll up the cuffs of her own pants.
I steadied her. "About one thirty," I answered, laughing when she almost fell over. "You okay there? How much did you drink?"
The girl glared at me from under her bangs and eyelashes, and my lower body once again came to life in a flash of heat and tension. "Only two Smirnoffs, but I'm naturally clumsy."
I laughed and took her hand again, leading her down to where the foam was pressing against the cold sand. She yelped as the water washed over her small toes, and I laughed while it swirled around my calves as I stood in front of her, dragging sand out from underneath my toes and pulling me back to the sea. She stepped forward and lost her footing on a rock—I reached out to steady her waist, and we laughed, looking at each other before beginning to walk where the waves just reached.
She was yawning by two o'clock and her blinks had slowed, large brown eyes beautiful and sleepy and I was still hard from imagining that's what they'd look like in the morning when she woke up next to me. I smiled softly and led her back to our shoes, picking up both pairs and brining her back up the path to the light of the fire and our friends—I noted the disheveled state of Alice's hair and Jaspers shirt, and smirked.
"Hey, are you going home or spending the night to watch the sun rise with the rest of us?" Alice chirped as we came into view.
We'd all called our parents about two hours ago to ask permission, and they'd all agreed—actually, mine hadn't answered the phone, but I didn't care anyways. I was staying. The melody in my head was still swirling steadily, thanks to my new inspiration, and I didn't want it drowned out by yelling.
When I looked at Bella, she was yawning again, her small pink tongue curling invitingly before she lifted a hand to politely cover her mouth. I swallowed, shifted, and smiled at her when her eyelids fluttered open again.
"I don't know, Alice, she looks kind of tired," I said quietly, reaching out a hand to set it on Bella's thin shoulder. She had been shivering for a few hours, and I'd handed my coat over to her a while ago. The fire was enough to keep me warm, despite the fact that it was dying down. We had all moved down onto the sand to be nearer to it.
"No, no, I want to stay. If I fall asleep, you have to promise to wake me up," she protested, stifling another yawn and trying to scowl ferociously at us.
I laughed at her. Alice nodded, dead set on following her orders, and Jasper leant back on the sand to look up at the sky above us. We all fell silent for a while, listening complacently to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach, pulling at the rocks and sand before pushing it back in with seaweed and the occasional creature.
The other teens around us had also fallen in volume, separating into smaller groups instead of the large ring we had been earlier. Tyler and Lauren had long since disappeared into the trees; Jessica was currently sprawled over a towel across the fire, flirting with Mike; Katie and Erin had gone home to get sweats, prompting a small laugh from me and Bella.
Jacob Black had joined our group for a while—he apparently knew Bella well from when they were children. She treated him in a friendly manner, though it was obvious the younger kid was as enamored of her as I was. He had to leave an hour ago—unlike Forks High School, the rez had school tomorrow morning.
"Hey, Sun-ward's back," Alice observed as I teased Bella again, an hour later.
The girl looked at me in confusion and I sighed. "Alice believes I have two modes—Emo-ward, and Sun-ward. Emo-ward lives on the days my parents fight, and when I don't have musical inspiration. Sun-ward is… I don't know what his deal is," I explained.
Bella laughed again, and yawned. I contemplated why Sun-ward was back and came to only one conclusion: Bella was my inspiration, the cure I had always been waiting for. It really explained the power of my favorite band, that this magical girl had appeared in their shirt to bring me back to life.
I sighed and copied Jasper, rolling onto my back and resting my head on my folded arms to watch the twinkling indigo sky, bright white lights shining prettily as stars blanketed the sky. The smell and heat of the fire was relaxing, warm soft sand under me, the sound of my best friends' voices and laughter around me, and the new addition of Bella—as we moved closer to the fire, the smell of freesia and strawberries and salt water and girl had grown stronger until my nostrils were overwhelmed in her perfect scent, my ears drowned happily in the sound of her bell-like laughter, my eyes contentedly sweeping over her beautiful face and soft body.
It was perfect and peaceful.
And when the girl yawned yet again, I reached up and pulled her arm until she was resting her head on my abdomen. I was glad she was looking up at the stars—if she looked down, I'm sure my hard on would have scared her off.
The weight of her head was warm and comforting, one of her hands bunched in the side of my shirt as she slowly blinked up at the night, fire and stars burning in her eyes. I smiled and closed mine, relaxing and combing my fingers through her hair, trying not to imagine them tangled in the brown locks as she squirmed beneath me, skin hot and slippery with sweat, small muscles and smooth lines tensing as my body pressed into hers, eyes hectic with a lustful light as she dragged her short nails over my back while our hips moved together…
I shook my head and really hoped she wouldn't look down.
But when I opened my eyes to look at her again, she had rolled so that she was facing me, one arm flung over my stomach, the other still gripping my shirt tightly, her eyes closed and lips barely touching as she breathed in deeply. A soft smile lifted to my face and I looked up at the sky again, listening to the quiet whispers of Alice and Jasper.
When Bella started moving up my body, I tried not to move, watching as the sleeping girl wiggled up so that her head was pressed over my heart, one hand curled just beneath her chin, the other wrapping serenely around my arm, holding me to her.
The quiet was disrupted as a cloud of sand rose between me and Jasper—I covered Bella's face and tucked mine into her hair, glaring once the sand had settled again. Emmet and Rosalie were bickering in loud voices, straightening their clothes—Emmett's still had the singed area from the fire earlier.
"Shut up, you asshats!" I hissed, looking down at the girl to make sure she hadn't woken.
"Sorry, Eddie," Emmett boomed. I glared at him and he smiled sheepishly, sitting up next to us and watching the fire. "Who's the short broad?"
I rolled my eyes at his rustic term for the girl. "Bella Swan, Chief's daughter, new girl."
"Getting it on with a girl of the law! Go, Eddie!" he whooped quietly, face alight with mischief.
I glared at him. "Shut up, Emmett. Rosalie's glaring at you."
Indeed the blond giant was. Her narrow blue gaze was directed at her boyfriend, blond hair mussed, sand caked to some pieces, lips pursed and arms crossed, talons tapping on her forearms.
"Ah, Rosie, I'm sorry about your hair," he whined again.
She rolled her eyes and looked at me. "Is she seriously wearing a band shirt?"
I rolled my eyes again, copying her. "Are you really wearing a cardigan?"
Rose smirked and flicked sand at me—I turned my head away and grinned, closing my eyes again. "If I fall asleep, wake me for the sun."
*~*~*
I grunted at the impact of the shoe in my ribs, and turned the opposite way reflexively, my arms tightening around something warm and soft which squeaked in surprise and released a gasp of warm air over my neck. Alarmed, I rolled back the other way and sat up, surprised to find a dazed Bella sprawled across my lap. "Sorry!" I whispered quietly, letting her go.
She sat up groggily and blinked at me slowly, beautiful brown eyes tired and sleepy, the silhouette on her shirt wrinkled. "Wazzgoinon?" she slurred.
I yawned and looked around me. Emmett, Rosalie, and a few others were dutifully waking all of the teens sprawled across the sand in the darkness. The rim of the eastern sky was a pale reddish orange, and I remembered why we were out there. "Oh! Sunset," I explained in a quiet murmur, reaching out to pull her toward me again. The girl willingly leaned into me, yawning and curling into my side again. Alice and Jasper were standing, both of them wrapped in a blanket from the back of Jasper's car.
The group of kids reassembled in a group around the western edge of the fire, where we were sitting. I sighed and stood up, pulling Bella with me. She reached into the pockets of my coat and I shivered, reminded that I was missing it. Of course she didn't miss this. Brown eyes stared up at me, concerned, and then she was slipping the coat off. "Bell—"
She cut off my protesting by lifting my arms and slipping one of the sleeves on. I sighed and pulled the rest of it on, thinking for a moment as soon as I saw the goosebumps rise on her arms. Smiling as I glanced at Jasper again, I reached out and enveloped her in the lapels of my jacket, resting my head on hers. She stiffened in surprise, and then relaxed against me, pressed flush to my body.
I hoped to God she wouldn't notice my morning wood, but she seemed distracted, small fists curling into the collar of my shirt, her nose skimming across the skin of my neck before she had pressed the side of her face against me. "Edward…"
My head spun as I looked down at her. She was perfect. The girl tilted her head up to meet my gaze and smiled softly; I resisted the urge to kiss her and turned us toward the sun rise.
The orange, pink, and red light streaked across the night sky, stretching fingers over the tall trees, until the rim of the sun was a muted sliver against the horizon. Our group of teenagers remained silent as we stood together, watching the beauty spread across the world as it woke up, greeting the day. I pulled Bella tighter against me, and she sighed, warm breath on my skin again; I shivered and felt her silently laughing.
When the sun was halfway into the sky, a brilliant mix of colors spread out over our heads, I looked down to find Bella's eyes glued onto mine, a small smile on her mouth.
My breathing stuttered and my gaze involuntarily dropped to her lips before darting back up. Her smile widened and she reached up on her tiptoes, pausing to give me a chance to draw away—I took the second of hesitation to close the difference between us and pressed my mouth to hers.
Her eyes opened lazily a moment later as she dropped back down to her heels. "Good morning," she whispered, her hands in my hair now.
I smiled and glanced up at the sun again. "The best," I agreed, and ducked back down to kiss the girl—my girl—again.
……..
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am home again
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am whole again
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am young again
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am fun again
'LoveSong'—The Cure
…
And I do believe it's true
That there are roads left in both of our shoes
But if the silence takes you
Then I hope it takes me too
So brown eyes I hold you near
Cause you're the only song I want to hear
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere
"Soul Meets Body"—Death Cab For Cutie
AN:
So, I'm back. It's just a short fluffy piece, I suppose. But music has been swarming my head lately, specifically these two bands, and I needed to get it out. It started with the shoes and Bella's shirt, and grew to this. It's short, and that's okay, because it's a oneshot and not a full-out 27 chapter story. Sorry. But I posted, and it's been months, so… yeah. Short AN because I'm tired. On October break, thank god. I slept and wrote today, and that's about it. The rain was wonderful and I love this type of weather. It was exhilarating to run outside for the mail earlier.
Leave a review, yeah? At least leave me a song recommendation to get the music out of my head. (yes, I'm desperate enough to ask twice).
Love ~ hyacinth