A/N- Alright, this is the one shot that I've been holding over. It's been the most ridiculous, by far, to write. But it's been interesting too.
This is set between Twilight and New Moon.
Remember- I don't own Twilight, New Moon or Eclipse. And I don't own the characters either. Just the ideas that come popping out of my head sometimes.
I breathed in the scent that emitted from Edward's closet. It was that wonderful, sweet smell that he always carried with him. I took a step into the huge walk-in and let my eyes do the searching.
I wanted a sweatshirt of his and I wasn't leaving this closet til I found one.
It's silly, I know. Sneaking into my boyfriend's closet to find an article of clothing to steal.
The night before I had been dragged to La Push with Jessica, Mike, Angela, Ben and an entire crew from Forks for a bonfire. Actually, I hadn't wanted to go, but when Edward found out that Angela had invited me along, he urged me to. He was still under the impression that I should have as many "human" experiences that I could. His only condition was that I stay out of the fire and off the dark beaches.
So I went, reluctantly. And much to my surprise I had a good time. I had spent most of my time lounging at a safe distance around the fire with Angela and Jessica and a few other girls, while the boys splashed in the waves. At one point, Ben came around to stoke the fire and noticed Angela shivering. He immediately pulled his sweatshirt off and handed it to her.
Jessica and all the other girls had looked delighted at the gesture and Angela had lifted up the sweatshirt to her face and breathed deeply.
"I love the cologne he wears." Her face was in a dream-like state, "It smells so good mixed with the detergent his mom uses." She did not give it back at the end of the evening, and it looked like Ben didn't expect it to be returned.
I know it's juvenile, but I could understand. Wanting something tangible in the absence of your boyfriend. Especially if it smelled like him. It made perfect sense.
Which brought me back to the closet. Angela had made me realize that Edward would have to have a sweatshirt somewhere that I could steal. It was sure to have the same intoxicating scent that permeated the closet.
The good thing about it was that Edward wasn't home. After he knew I had agreed to go to La Push, he immediately made plans with Jasper, Emmett and Carlisle to go on an overnight hunting expedition. They had traveled to the mountains of Canada and wouldn't be back until later that evening. I just happened to come a little early to welcome them back.
Suddenly, it felt very adolescent. Being in Edward's closet. This was something a junior high girl might do. I felt like a stalker. The only difference between me and a stalker was that Esme had let me in and knew that I was in Edward's room.
I shook my head and looked around. Jeans, slacks, collared shirts, t-shirts, sweaters, jackets, brown shoes, belts… they all lined the shelves or hung neatly on the bars built into the closet. But no sweatshirt.
I searched through my memory and realized I had never even seen Edward wear a sweatshirt. It was always a sweater/jeans ensemble paired with a jacket or a collared shirt and khakis. I frowned. What a cheater!
I walked further into the closet and made sure that I was seeing right. I couldn't see the top shelf, though. With determination, I scaled the shelving unit so I could see what the highest one contained.
Bad idea. My hands were a bit sweaty from being nervous about my covert operation. When I grasped the top ledge, my hand slipped and I went sailing into—
Edward.
"Blast." I folded my arms and pouted. He was cradling me and his eyes held a mix of disbelief and amusement. I looked away. This was no time to be dazzled.
"Bella, were you trying to give me a heart attack?" Edward's voice couldn't contain his smile.
"I can't give heart attacks to someone who has no heart beat." I bit my lips, trying not to smile myself.
"I don't know. I think you get closer and closer to it everyday." He shook his head. I allowed myself to glance up, and his golden gaze captured me before I could look away again.
"I was just—" I huffed, realizing that I was about to confess to my scavenger hunt, "Put me down! Stop doing that! Can I have no secrets? Why are you home so early?"
He set me down on the floor, but wrapped an arm around my waist.
"Apparently, making sure that you don't kill yourself in my closet. Why are you in here?" he looked around, probably checking to make sure the immaculate storage space had been left unharmed.
"I was—just—looking." I smiled up into at him and tried to feign innocence. It didn't work.
"I'm sure that my clothing holds much interest with you." The sarcasm in his voice was evident.
He pulled me out of the closet and somehow all thoughts of sweatshirts flew out of my head when realization hit me. Edward was back. Of their own volition, my arms snaked around his waist and I placed my head on his chest. I felt his content sigh as he, in turn, wrapped his arms around me and inhaled the scent of my hair.
"I missed you." I murmured.
"I don't think you could miss me more than I missed you," Edward chuckled, "That's why we're back early. I was starting to get on my brothers' nerves."
"We're going to play that game? I don't think that you could miss me more than I missed you. It is impossible. I was in there playing Dante's Peak because I missed you and wanted to find a sweatshirt of yours." I blurted out and then realized that my operation was no longer covert.
"A sweatshirt?" Edward pulled far enough away so he could look at my face, "Why would you want a sweatshirt?" he asked.
"Uhm.. no reason." I went back to avoiding his eyes.
"Bella," his voice held a coercing tone. I wasn't going to give over though. Not going to do it. He couldn't make me.
"What are you doing here anyways? We weren't supposed to be back until later tonight." he was momentarily distracted.
"I was over here to surprise you." I smiled, completely honest.
"And surprise me, you did. Now come on. Tell me. Why do you want a sweatshirt? Are you cold? You could have pulled a sweater off one of the shelves." He let me go and went towards the closet again.
"No. I didn't want a sweater." I sighed. He turned to look at me and did that unfair smoldering with his eyes. Ugh.
"Last night Ben gave Angela his sweatshirt and she was so happy that she had it, I wanted one of my own. All your clothes smell like you." I shrugged. Edward's grin was astronomically wide.
"So let me see if I get this straight. You missed me and you wanted an article of my clothing, because the way it all smells reminded you of me?" he pulled me back into his embrace and kissed my forehead.
"Something like that." I nodded, feeling ridiculous.
"But why specifically a sweatshirt?" he asked.
"Because… I don't know. It's a whole... human… girlfriend-boyfriend high school thing. It's like… having something tangible to hold onto when you're not there. I don't know. Blame it on American pop culture." I sighed.
"Well, I'm sorry to say that I have no sweatshirts. They're not really my style. That and I don't sweat… so there's really no point." He shrugged.
"Oh," I feigned disappointment. I had finally seen how silly this was. Most of the time I had Edward with me anyways. There were only a handful of hours out of most days that he was absent. Why did I need a sweatshirt when I had the real thing?
"If you really want, you can have one of my sweaters." Edward combed his fingers through my hair.
"No. It's alright." I shook my head, "You're with me most of the time anyways. I don't need a sweater as long as you're here."
"Well, I think I would be the reason you would need a sweater." Edward laughed that beautiful laugh that almost always made my heart skip a beat.
Edward could freeze me any day. ;)