Title: Fishy Kisses
Category: Books » Twilight
Author: MadamThang
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T
Genre: Romance/Humor
Published: 07-25-10, Updated: 07-25-10
Words: 4,151
Disclaimer: All copyrights, trademarked items, or recognizable characters, plots, etc. mentioned herein belong to their respective owners. No copying or reproduction of this work is permitted without their express written authorization.
A/N: This was originally going to be for a Wit Fit but I didn't get off my duff in time to submit it. To that end, it became a birthday gift for my favorite water girl, Swimom7.
Fishy Kisses
There were things that I knew and then there were things that I wondered about.
For example, I knew Edward Cullen was beautiful, but I wondered about what he looked like without a shirt on. I'd seen enticing bits of his stomach when he bent over or did a layup in gym or reached under his shirt to scratch his tummy, but I wondered what the whole package looked like. Shoulders to hips, was his whole body as pretty as that little ribbon of exposed skin?
Another example? Okay - I knew Edward Cullen was experienced – like really, really experienced. I knew because that was what everyone said and also what they assumed. I tried to keep my mind away from all of the things that having all that experience could mean. That was a realm that I'd really never explored except in my dreams when it was completely out of my control.
The things that I wondered about tended to be more on the cerebral level, like what books did he read? What television shows did he watch? What was his favorite movie? What was his favorite subject in school?
I wondered if he'd laugh at the things I wondered about.
I sat behind him in my Junior Humanities class (a.k.a. Advanced Placement English Composition and Literature). Brainy kids were in our class and that was another thing I liked about him: he was a brain like me. That wasn't all though - he was also a jock - like, an all three seasons jock. He played soccer in the fall, basketball in the winter and he was on the track team in the spring. His body didn't look like anyone else's. His face was untouchable.
Edward Cullen had a jaw that screamed MAN and his hair was sort of longish and never seemed to be combed properly. He definitely shaved every day and had deep-set eyes that were literally hidden sometimes by extremely thick and dark eyelashes. When his eyes were closed, the lashes got tangled all together at the outer corners. Why did I know this? Because once I'd stared at him in Freshman Algebra class as he slept. At first I looked because I was generally mystified by people who could sleep in class, and then I kept on looking because I started to notice little things like the compelling nature of eyelashes.
Today I was thinking these things because it was our first day of second semester and I had just entered my seventh hour study hall and he was there. He was sitting with my friend Jessica Stanley. We'd talked and planned to sit together but now I wasn't sure if I'd ever have the guts to plop down next to her as long as he remained there.
She waved me over then and what was I supposed to do? I went. I sat. I talked. At first it was all accomplished in a detached haze. My body did what it was supposed to do even though my brain was scoffing that there was no way I was capable of sitting next to such a boy. Yet here I was. And here I remained! Each day I freaked out, came to study hall and sat and talked with Jessica and Edward.
Thus began our unexpected and unlikely friendship. We laughed every day in study hall. We talked and searched out everything we had in common. He was kind of goofy but brilliant, geeky but beautiful, and popular but kind. He was, in a word, awesome. I adored him. Jessica and I would swoon privately over his muscular arms, the audacity of his smile, his cute butt and his ability to hang out with every group at school. In spite of all that, he would come slumming to study hall with the mere mortals, me and Jessica Stanley, each and every day, and would see fit to treat us like we were his preferred crowd.
Second semester slowly crept by, gradually changing from snowy to rainy to occasionally sunny and mild. Today it had transcended to hot.
I usually brought my iPod to school even though we weren't supposed to, and one particular day I was really getting into a new bunch of songs that I'd downloaded. I sat in study hall waiting for Jessica and Edward, listening to an unusual selection for me (Lady Gaga) and sort of jamming. I was standing up sorting through folders and papers and laying out everything in piles to make sense of what I had. I was completely oblivious to the world until I reconnected rather suddenly with someone who grabbed me from behind and spun me around. I was held tightly in strong arms against a body that swayed with me for a second before I looked up in shock at Edward.
"Hey!" I said, trying to extricate myself while taking out one of my ear buds.
"Hey yourself," he replied. "What are you listening to?"
"Dance music," I answered. "Wanna hear?"
"Sure," he laughed, sitting at the table.
I pulled out a chair and handed him the ear bud. We put our heads together and I restarted the song.
"I've never heard this," he said.
"Yeah - it's not one of the songs on the radio - it's a deep cut," I explained.
"Nice," he replied.
We were quietly listening and his hair was touching my ear. While I was contemplating whether it was weird or not to realize this, his hand came to rest on my thigh. I thanked God silently that I'd shaved my legs that morning. It was hot and shorts were what I picked. How was I to know that Edward Cullen's hand would end up on my skin today?
And his hand was just huge. I mean, I thought I had big thighs and lamented my weight all the time, but his hand covered the entire top and his fingers wrapped almost all the way around. It made me feel warm and not-so-fat at all.
Our heads were barely touching and I wanted to reach up to brush his hair away because it was tickling me plus I sort of wanted to touch it. He turned his head as if he read my mind and then his face was whisper-close to my cheek. A second later I felt his nose touch my skin. I was trying to tell myself it wasn't intentional but I could've sworn I heard him inhale deeply. I turned to look at him in surprise. He didn't move and just sat there, entirely too close to me, audibly inhaling the air around us.
"What kind of shampoo do you use?" he asked.
"Um, I think it's called Pureology or something like that," I answered. "My mom buys it at the mall."
"It smells awesome," he said. "Is it just for girls?"
"Um, yeah I think so. Guys wouldn't want to smell all flowery would they?" I asked, wondering why he was acting so uncharacteristically curious about me.
Before he could answer the flowery question Jessica came bounding up.
"Hey guys! My parents just opened the pool for the year. Do you want to skip study hall and come over to break it in with me?" she asked excitedly.
"I don't have a suit," I said, immediately disappointed and relieved at the same time. I couldn't imagine baring my body in front of Edward. The whole hand-on-my-thigh thing was still killing me.
"I have one you could borrow," she volunteered. "Or else my sister might have one."
I knew Jessica's boobs were way bigger than mine so any suit of hers would hang on me like my mother's. Her sister though, was two years younger, about my height, and flat as a pan bottom.
"Excellent," I said sarcastically.
"Uh – what about me?" asked Edward.
"Do you have your gym shorts here? Either that or I could get some shorts from my dad's drawer for you," volunteered Jessica.
"Let me check my locker," he said.
We all stood up and walked together to Edward's locker where, sure enough, he had a pair of basketball shorts that would fill the bill.
"And we're off," he said.
We drove over to Jessica's and went in through the side gate at her house and immediately spotted the in-ground pool that looked all blue and perfect. We went into the house and Edward went to the bathroom to change while Jessica and I went up to her room. I ended up putting on her sister's very conservative tankini and naturally Jessica let it all hang out in something entirely too small.
There was no way Edward would ever see me if I stood beside Jessica. I knew in my heart that it would turn out this way eventually. I never got the guy and it was glaringly obvious that the situation wasn't going to change anytime soon. I figured Jessica's attributes would eclipse anything I had to offer, even if I was way better in the friendship department.
I wrapped a towel protectively around my body and walked down the stairs behind Jessica who was unflustered and uncovered in her barely-there bikini.
And then his eyes popped. He was in the water already, watching us make our way over to the pool. I knew he would react that way and resigned myself to our platonic friendship, shoving my disappointment down. Jessica had a body and wasn't afraid to use it. I walked quietly behind her, dropped my towel, and dove into the water straightaway to avoid the not-good-enough feeling.
The water was freezing cold but it felt invigorating. I felt happy and let myself enjoy it quietly for a few minutes, turning back and front somersaults and doing a quick handstand. I pointed my toes for good measure because back in Phoenix that was the standard.
I tried not to dwell on the fact that Edward and Jessica were probably getting it on while I was in my own water world.
I emerged from my handstand and Edward was leaning against the edge of the pool talking to Jessica.
"Figures," I mumbled inaudibly.
I ducked my head under the water again to squelch the warm feeling of imminent tears and swam with wide free strokes, opening my eyes to clear them and to see blurrily under the water. The chlorine stung for a second and I squeezed my eyes closed again briefly before reopening them. Just as I did that, Edward's legs loomed in front of me and I almost slammed into him. I immediately came up for air.
"That was close," I sputtered.
"What was?" he asked, smiling down at me in his Atlantian glory.
"I almost ran into you," I said.
"Hmm. Well we certainly wouldn't want that to happen would we?" he asked. He was looking at me with a crooked smile on his face and I couldn't help feeling like he might be flirting with me.
Sure, keep kidding yourself Bella. Works really well for you, I thought to myself.
"Wanna play tunnel?" asked Edward. He looked entirely too enthusiastic at the prospect of playing the juvenile water game with me, but I couldn't help feeling the exact same way he looked. The thought of swimming so close to him was thrilling.
"Um, okay," I said hesitantly. "Jess are you going to play?" I didn't really want her to because I was certain he was interested in her but I had to be polite. She shook her head and raised her sunglasses to answer.
"I'm going to try and get a little color," she said, lowering her sunglasses back down dismissively. I was relieved. I had him to myself to play pool games.
Ooh – right where you want him Bella, I thought snarkily.
"Then it's just us," said Edward. "I'll go under first. Stand over there." He pointed some distance away.
I stood obediently, opening my legs so he could swim through. He ducked under the water and started toward me and it seemed to take forever. I half thought he wouldn't make it but when he got to me he swam easily through and popped up the other side.
"Now you," he said after breaking the surface and shaking the water from his hair. He looked absolutely stunning soaking wet. His eyes looked even more beautiful and I concluded that wet and dripping was definitely his best look so far.
"Bella?" he asked.
"Yeah – here goes," I said, trying to recover myself.
I moved away and he stood ready with his feet apart. I ducked under and swam toward him and as I was going under, my arm brushed against his leg. It felt like a fuzzy tree trunk and I decided I'd need to take a look at him when I emerged. I'd been so busy shielding myself from his gaze at Jessica that I hadn't bothered to look him over properly.
When I emerged he was already turned around to watch me.
"Wow," he said. "Your hair is really long!"
"Yeah," I admitted. "You really can't tell when it's dry, but it's past my bra strap."
At the mention of my unmentionables I blushed and ducked under the water so the blush didn't spread everywhere like usual. When I came back up I looked at him as we talked and swam around each other in the water.
He had really nice shoulders and I was a bit amazed that he had body hair. I mean most guys our age had armpit hair but Edward had chest hair and a little line of it went right down to his belly button and beyond. He had nice arms and I wondered how strong he was. I reminded myself that he was a basketball player and that he ran. I suddenly wanted to see his legs as well. I ducked under the water and opened my eyes. From what I could tell, he had nice legs but things were blurry without goggles.
"Jess – do you have goggles?" I asked when I came up for air.
"Yeah – that trunk over there," she said, waving in the direction of a fake treasure chest at the side of the pool.
I pushed myself up and out and ran over to the treasure chest.
"Do you want some?" I asked Edward.
"Yes please," he answered smiling that crooked smile again. It made me feel bashful and I felt self-conscious getting out of the water while he was watching me.
I went over to the chest and rifled around until I saw some goggles. I grabbed a pair for him and one for me and tossed his into the water. I stood up and put on mine, adjusting them before I jumped back in and submerged myself immediately to get a quick look at his legs. They were quite nice and covered with the same hair that appeared on his chest. He was definitely yummy from head to toe.
He joined me under the water and smiled at me before making a grab for me. I tried to kick away and escape but those long fingers wrapped around my ankles and had me firmly imprisoned. I moved my arms so that my head came out of the water and took a breath.
"Let go Edward!" I said desperately. I needed to get my feet on the ground or I was going to go under again.
"Nope – you're trapped," he said. "You're my prisoner."
I looked over at Jessica and she was just ducking into the house, talking on the phone to someone.
"Where's she going?" I asked, struggling to stay above water.
"Mike Newton called and she said she wanted to talk to him about something," he explained. It didn't escape my notice that he was pulling me closer to him. "Piggy back ride?" he asked unexpectedly.
"Uh…" I stammered.
He pulled me closer and pulled on one leg so that I floated behind him. I put my arms around him so I didn't sink.
"Do you want me to swim or what?" he asked.
"That would be fun," I said.
When his feet came off the ground, I wrapped my legs around him, feeling the smooth skin of his sides against my inner thighs. I tried to shift my legs down but then I was brushing against his hairy legs and it tickled. Plus I felt like I was entering the danger zone and I felt like I needed to get some distance between us.
When he came back up I said, "Let's just walk around."
He put his feet down on the ground and I felt safer on many levels. He made his way around the pool until we were at one of the deep end corners. He turned so my back was against the corner of the pool and he smooshed me so his back was pressed against my front. I still had the goggles on and my hair was stuck to my arms and shoulders. I wanted to dip under and take off the goggles and smooth my hair back but I couldn't really move since Edward had me pinned.
My breasts were flattened against his back and I could feel his hipbones under my calves. His shoulders felt hard and slick under my hands and I felt my breathing pick up. He reached up and lifted my hands from his shoulders right before he turned around to face me. I let my legs drift down so I wasn't indecent and his arms were suddenly around me. Less than a second later he pulled me up against him and laughed.
"You still have the goggles on," he said. His were pushed up into his hair and he looked stunning. Such a pretty boy.
I reached up to move them and he let me out of his arms. I dipped my head into the water to smooth my hair back and when I stood up again he was watching me intently.
"What?" I asked suspiciously.
"You are really pretty Bella," he said.
I reeled with skepticism and the blush came on quickly. I lowered my shoulders under the water reflexively. No one had ever given me such a compliment and for some reason it made me feel exposed…
"Thank you," I said shyly.
"You don't wear makeup do you?" he asked.
"Not very often," I said, assuming this was probably a bad thing.
"You don't need it," he said.
Hunh. I smiled and laughed. "My mother doesn't agree."
He started to press forward toward me and I tried to sink down into the water to get away. He wasn't having it and pulled me up tight with his arms that were circled around me again.
Butterflies clogged my throat and then he leaned in and said, "Let me kiss you…"
"What?" I asked in total disbelief.
"I want to kiss you," he said. "Can I?"
"Now?" I asked.
"Yes now," he laughed.
"What if Jessica comes out?" I asked.
"Here," he said and looked above the lip of the pool. I was invisible in the corner and he blocked out everything anyway. I could only see his chest and his face in front of me. He lowered himself into the water so our eyes were level. "Please?" he asked.
"I don't know," I said, scared as all hell.
"Please Bella?" he asked. "Or maybe you haven't been kissed before?"
"Of course I have," I said defensively. "I mean…um…Well, in the fifth grade," I said.
"Hmm," he said smiling, "So not so recently?"
"Um, no. Not that recently," I admitted.
"So can I?" he persisted.
"I guess," I said in a small voice.
There was no escaping him now. I was trying to figure out where to put my hands. I had just had my hands on him for the piggy back ride but this was different! It was only skin everywhere and I felt nervous enough without adding the unfathomable fact that I was going to be touching his bare skin while he was kissing me. Thank God he took my hands and raised them to his shoulders as his arms came around my waist. I could feel his thighs touching mine and then he dipped his head.
"Ready?" he whispered. His eyes were on mine and he looked really sweet.
"No," I said honestly.
He laughed quietly and leaned in. "Here goes," he warned.
My lips buzzed right before he touched down. His mouth was warm and soft and sure all at the same time and after a second of pressure, he let up. I thought we were done but he came right back down and kissed me again and again until I thought I might sink below the waterline and drown from my sudden inability to connect with the real world.
Finally he did stop but his mouth hovered near mine, rubbing softly back and forth across my lips. His fingers touched my chin and my jaw and then in the softest way possible, he took my lower lip between his and sucked on it before pressing his mouth back to mine. His tongue teased my upper lip and mine parted almost automatically. I couldn't quite let my tongue do what his was doing, but I finally let my arms encircle his neck and my hands went into his hair. I realized a second too late that everything I had was pressed against everything Edward and when I tried to wiggle away he wouldn't let me.
"Don't?" he pleaded softly.
"Okay," I whispered back and I voluntarily stilled myself.
He came closer again, his tongue and lips making warm enticing movements in and around my mouth. I'd never felt anything like it and my body was trying to persuade me to get closer him. His hands were running over my back and my sides and getting tangled in my hair.
"Oh my God," I whispered as I took my mouth away from his. I was getting overwhelmed and a little nervous about what might come next. I mean after all, he was experienced. He pushed his face into my neck, touching his soft lips in odd but delightful places and then he snuffled a little bit. It tickled and I giggled involuntarily.
He took flight with my giggles, growling and snuffling my neck like a big dog. I was squirming like crazy then and laughing my head off because he was so unexpectedly silly. I had completely forgotten about Jessica Stanley until I heard her clear her throat right beside us.
"Well lovebirds," she said smiling broadly. "It's about frickin' time!"
