1998
I sat at a table coloring. It was a picture of me and my bestest friend Bella. When people asked me why she was my bestest I always told them because we have the same birthday, and her grandma lives next door to my house, and she's very good at reading, and she likes to listen to me play music. Those were the bestest things about her.
"Good morning Bella," our teacher Miss Maggie said causing me to look up. I couldn't help but get excited to see her. But Bella looked sad. She gave a small smile to our teacher. When she is really happy she gives a great big smile. I then look to see it isn't her Nan or even her mommy dropping her off. It is a stranger. Another weird lady that wears lots of make-up and that smelly stuff, I can smell her from here. Our teacher looks at her a little funny like she always does when a stranger drops Bella off. But Miss Maggie is so nice even she says hello. The stranger lady gives Bella a hug but Bella doesn't hug back. And then she leaves. Bella puts her bag in her cubby and comes over to me.
"Who was that?" I ask as she grabs a piece of paper and some cray-ons. Bella taught me it's not crowns but Cray-ons, like Cray and then on. She's smart like that.
"I don't know." She shrugs and starts to color. I think she is "dropping the subject" that's what my mommy says at least.
At lunch when we pull out our food Bella sits with nothing. "Bella where's your lunch?" I ask.
"Renee forgot to pack it." She tells me. She calls her mom by her name. Not to grown ups though then she calls her mother or my mother but to me she just says Renee. I asked why once and she said because that's who she is. I still don't a thousand percent sure get it. She asked me to not tell Miss Maggie. I don't and split half my lunch with her, cuz that's what best friends do. Still Miss Maggie notices. And when Bella's Nan comes that day Miss Maggie and her have a long talk.
2002
It's early fall. September 13th. Bella and I are turning 8 years old. We are in 2nd grade and will be the 2 oldest in our class. My mom and her Nan are inside getting our party ready. We are supposed to be inside to staying clean before the guest arrive but we are up in the lemon tree. It's hot. Arizona is always hot but today is super hot. I take the pocket knife my older brother Emmett gave me as my secret brother gift to cut a lemon in half for Bella and I. Sometimes I will admit it's good to have a 14 year old brother.
"I can't believe he gave you a knife." Bella spoke sucking on her lemon.
I shrug. "It was his old boy scout knife."
"It is pretty cool and now no more trying to cut lemons with plastic butter knives." She smiles showing off her two missing front teeth. "Though you have to be careful, promise?"
"I won't hurt myself with it," I tell her. She gives me a look. I sigh before promising her back. "Now are you going to read to me or not?" She smiles down at her copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. We are almost done. She would have already been done if it weren't for the fact she's reading it to me. She's a genius when it comes to books and writing. Her Nan has to make sure they are appropriate for her because she will read anything she can get her hands on. I on the other hand am terrible with reading and writing. The letters get all mixed up and it makes it hard. My parents tell me it's called dyslexia. So Bella reads to me. She is hoping to get the next Harry Potter book for her birthday. She's going to have such a surprise to find that she is getting the next 3 books for her birthday. I saved up my money for the 2nd one while her Nan got her book 3 and my parent's got her book 4 along with some other things.
I wasn't sure how long we were up in the lemon tree. I let Bella's calm voice take me into the story, but as she closed the book that she had now just finished, I noticed Emmett coming outside. "Hey you two better get down from the tree the party is about to start."
"Be right over," I called back. Emmett nodded before going back into our house. I pocketed my knife and jumped down from my perch before reaching back up to grab the book so Bella could get down. Right when we were about to leave I got an idea. I grabbed out my knife and began carving into the tree at eye level.
" What are you doing, Edward." Bella hissed at me while looking around worried we would get caught. I ignored her and kept carving. After a moment I moved back to take a look at my handy work. In the tree now etched in my shaky handwriting was, "Bella + Edward." I smiled over at Bella to find her head tilted slightly and a little wrinkle on her nose. "Isn't that what people in love do?"
I felt my face go red and my eyes go wide. I didn't mean it like that. I mean Bella was my best friend and love was for older people. Then Bella starts laughing. "I'm only kidding. You have to put a heart around it if you want it to mean love. The look on your face." And with me still looking baffled she ran inside.
2006
I sat at the piano practicing. We had always had the baby grand in our sitting room and much to my mothers joy and dismay I was the only child of hers that took interest in it. By the time I was 9 I had mastered the basic songs a normal kid learns. And to a lot of people's amazement at the age of 12 I was now starting to play around with harder pieces. I had even started to secretly write my own stuff. Right now it was only Bella and I home. She sat in the piano room with me doing her homework while I worked on a song I was writing for my mom. My mom was at my 11 year old sister, Alice's, dance practice while my dad was still at the hospital working. Emmett being a Sr in high school and 18 was out with his friends doing god only knows what. My mom and Bella's Nan thought we were responsible enough to spend an hour alone after school. And we were. So this was the perfect time for me to do my secret music writing.
" Why don't you just let people hear your own pieces?" Bella asked me looking up from her history study guide.
I paused in my music and wrote some notes down on the sheet music, before turning around on the bench to face her. "I guess I don't want people to make a big deal about it." I shrugged.
"Why not?" She pressed on. " After all it kinda is a big deal Edward. What other 12 year olds are writing their own music on the piano."
I just shrug. I couldn't explain it exactly not even to myself. Maybe I was so used to being the middle child for so long stuck between two overly talented siblings. Alice had been dancing since she was 2 and was competing locally and winning, while Emmett played every sport ever made. "I guess I just enjoy it being my thing." I tell her.
"But you let me listen."
"You're different."
"How so?" She now has that look on her face I know too well, the one that wants answers.
I sigh and run my fingers through my hair, a habit I had fallen into. It gives my already awkward red hair a look of constant messiness. "Because Bella you are my best friend and you won't look at me or treat me any different. I will always just be Edward to you."
"Of course you're Edward to me." She comes over and sits on the bench next to me. "Fine it stays secret and no big deal. But one day Edward you are going to be a big deal."
"What do you mean?"
"With talent like that you're going to do something big that makes you more than just Edward. You have talent. Promise me you will share that talent with the world" I have never been able to completely get use to Bella's bluntness. It leaves me speechless sometimes. She just says things so sure and so set in stone. My mom says she's an old soul and she just sees people for who the really are.
"You act like I'm going to leave you behind one day." I look at her and see the sadness I have grown used to in her eyes again. I know my best friend doesn't have the best home life. Her Nan is amazing but her mom not so much. She tried to spend as much time at her Nan's or my house as possible. For the most part her mom doesn't care but every few months her mom tries to be "a mom" and forces Bella to stay in their little apartment on the other side of town. But after a few weeks it falls apart again and she's back at Nan's. I noticed she has been putting on some make-up right on her cheek bone ever since she came back from the two weeks with staying with her mom. I didn't say anything though.
She shrugs."Maybe one day you will." As the words escape her mouth my stomach fills with dread and nausea. I don't like when she talks like this.
"You're my best and only friend Bella where would I go. Anyway who would read to me? I know you want to get rid of me Swan but you're not doing it that easy." With that she laughs causing my heart to skip a beat just a little. It's moments like that I live for. To be able to make her smile. She gives me a hug before finding her spot back with her homework and allowing me to go back to playing the piano.
So there ya'll have it Chapter One. Hope ya'll enjoy it and thank you for reading! I'm always happy to hear from ya'll and if comments are made I will try my best to respond to them all. I wanna thank my friend/editor Arcade Android for reading and helping my dyslexic ass from putting up a story filled with run-on's and spelling errors. Love ya boo!
Write on,
Spunkransom12
