I do not own Twilight or the characters of the book, that honor belongs to Stephenie Meyer.
The calm
'If you are looking for a part-time job, Bella, you can work in the store with me.' He looked at her expectantly. 'My family owns it.'
Bella smiled to him politely.
'No thank you.'
She could see the disappointment clearly on his face, although her answer shouldn't really be a surprise. Her family had all the money in the world. Why would she want to work in a store with Mike Newton? She could not escape him at school, but she would be damned if she let him get to her outside of school. You would think that he would have given up by now. Most of the time she was found next to Edward and it was as clear as daylight to the whole school they were an exclusive couple.
Mike kept chatting to her about inconsequential things and Bella let her thoughts drift. In her mind she saw a moonless night and a group of wolves running with her through the forest. The stars twinkled brightly and she could almost feel the wind blow playfully through her hair. She let go of her wild side and felt the freedom of the forest run through her veins. The wolves ran excited around her. She jumped on one of their backs, spread her arms and let the speed take her.
'Hey, are you listening to me?!'
Bella snapped out of her daydream. Mike looked at her with a slightly irritated look. She sighed.
'Of course, Mike, you were talking about our English teacher and how he is better than the one we had last year.'
He was clearly surprised that she had caught his words, but he was quick to make amends. His puppy-dog stare was twice as big when he looked at her apologetically with his baby blues. Bella wished she was tough enough to just let him think she wasn't listening. Maybe he would leave her alone then. He began another string of conversation, when the bell rang.
Thank God! She thought almost aloud. Although she was practiced in keeping up appearances now, talking socially with humans still wasn't her best quality. Liam had been the only exception to that rule.
She picked up her stuff and got up. Of course Mike followed her outside. He wasn't going to let her rest until she was in the company of one or more of the Cullens. Lucky for her she was saved quickly by an impatient Alice waiting for her in the hallway.
'Alice!' She greeted happily. Mike drifted off disappointed.
Alice took her arm.
'I saw you were bothered by Newton again, so I thought I would save you a little bit earlier. Newton is lucky Edward is so good at self-control or he would have lost his head a long time ago.' Alice chuckled with her own statement.
'Sometimes I wish I could just freeze him and leave him somewhere for a few hours or days.' Bella admitted with a wishful sigh.
Alice laughed.
'I know, for awhile it was a distinct possibility for the future.'
Bella looked at her shocked. She would never really do it, would she?
'Oh, don't be so shocked, sweetie. It flicked into the future only for a second. You would never abuse your power in that way.'
'Sad, but true.' Emmett joined the conversation and laughed at her when she gave him a look.
'If you weren't such a spoil sport, little sister, you could have so much fun with your powers.' He gave her a little nudge, which almost shoved her into the lockers. Would Emmett ever grow up? She wondered. Where was Edward when she needed him? Alice pulled her back to her side.
'Speaking about the future, did you made plans with certain wolves again?'
She furrowed her brow, wanting to know more about what Alice had seen.
'Your plans are quite set, you made up your mind about tonight.' Alice elaborated.
'I know,' Bella answered and she winked at Alice, 'I can see the future as clearly as you can now. I really felt like going tonight and since you are all hunting, I had no reason to stay home.'
It wasn't her first expedition with her wolf friends. It was kind of their thing and Bella loved these nights. Her family was used to it.
Emmett threw a heavy arm over her shoulder.
'Running and wrestling with a bunch of eager wolves all night.' He gave an exasperated sigh. 'I wish I could join you.'
She chose to ignore that, because she knew Edward was waiting for her around the corner. She quickened her step and threw her arms around his neck in greeting. As eager as if this was just a starting romance, he answered her hug and kissed her.
'I have missed you.' She said when she could breathe again.
Edward smiled and touched her blushed cheeks. They were only parted for a few hours, but it had been long enough.
'I know and running at vampire speed towards you to save you from Newton was a very hard urge to ignore.' He said with a mocking smile. 'It was a good thing Alice did so in my stead.'
'You're welcome.' Alice said from a short distance.
Edward laughed and Bella hugged him closer. Peace was the word that settled around their family for the last year. With Maria destroyed, Aro back in his guarded city in Italy with his tail between his legs and a strange but strong friendship between the Cullens and the Quileutes, a peace had surrounded them all. Bella enjoyed every minute of it. Her family was relaxed, light-hearted and happiness had surrendered them completely. They had always loved each other, but worry had been a very hard press on their happiness. They didn't have to worry about her anymore. Bella was quite capable of taking care of herself, actually she was more powerful than all of them. Now that there was nothing that could hurt their precious Bella, they could play, love and joke freely.
'Are you ready to go, love?'
She looked up to his perfect face and saw his overwhelming smile. Yes, peace was the keyword and she would hold onto it as long as she could.
That night she came home a few hours before dawn. Her hair was tangled, her face flushed from the wild night, but she was also tired and in need of a few hours sleep. She walked into the house, said hello aloud, so they would all know she was home and went immediately to her room. To her satisfaction Edward was waiting for her. He was lying on her bed casually with his hands behind his neck. Without hesitation she let herself crash upon the bed into his waiting arms. Edward caught her smoothly, pressing a kiss on her lips. He studied her face.
'You look beautiful.' He smiled. 'But also tired.'
'Hmm, I am tired.' She snuggled her face in his chest.
He was taking off her shoes and some of her clothes, but she hardly noticed. She was half-asleep when she felt him return to his place beside her on the bed. She turned back on his chest and drifted off.
Edward sighed deeply when he looked at the beauty sleeping in his arms. Her face was still flushed from her outdoor experience and it made her enticingly beautiful. He let his fingers ran over the contours of her lips. Unconsciously she pulled herself up a little bit until her nose rested against his neck. He pulled the blankets higher up around her to make sure she stayed warm enough. She was up too late and needed her sleep.
The rest of the Cullens were scattered around the house, except for Rosalie and Emmett, who were doing God knows what in the woods thankfully out of hearing distance from Edward. He loved the traditional easy way they all lived around each other. Carlisle was in his study, discussing the quality of a historical book with Jasper. Esme was listening to music in the living room and Alice was sitting on a chair studying the future in an attempt to surprise Bella in the morning, since Bella couldn't see the future when she was sleeping.
Edward's nights were centered on Bella and although it would seem boring to any other, he enjoyed every minute of it. Bella's face held a small smile, while she silently dreamt. She hadn't had a single nightmare for the last year and to see her sleep so gently was a great gift to him. He had other reasons for staying with her every night. He yearned for the intimate contact, the feel of her soft warm body in his arms. Every time she placed herself in his arms, she let him know she trusted him completely. To be trusted and loved so overwhelmingly was an addictive feeling, it held him on a strange high. Last but not least he couldn't help to guard her. Even with a year of peace he had trouble letting go of his overprotective streaks. Just in case she would have another dream again, he would be there to help her.
Daylight broke through the window, but Edward ignored it. He knew Bella needed more sleep and would not wake her for the world. He was happily resigned towards spending some of the day in bed, when Bella suddenly flinched. He was immediately alert, studying her face for any sign of trouble. Bella's eyes flew open in shock and Edward felt the tension in her body.
'What is wrong?' He asked, ready for the worst.
He saw her shake her head and slowly her body relaxed.
'Just a feeling.' She answered timidly.
Even though Bella seemed to be fine, Edward sat up straight in bed. Was this the end of their peace? Somewhere deep inside him he always knew it couldn't last, no life was blessed with this much happiness for long. He stared at the wall, trying to think of anything or anyone that could threaten their lives in any way.
Jeez Edward, relax! Both Bella and I can see the future. You would think between the two of us we wouldn't miss any trouble heading our way.
Alice, who was still deeply embedded in Bella's future, had seen the exchange. Edward was ready to tell Alice to mind her own business, when he was distracted by two warms hands on his shoulders. Bella placed her chin on his right shoulder and pressed a kiss on the sensitive skin of his neck.
'It was nothing, I promise. You don't have to worry.'
Edward surrendered and turned around to meet Bella's gaze.
'Will you come with me today?'
Strange how he was very sure of her love, but still was insecure when he asked her to go with him. It was Saturday and he wanted to do something without the chance of running into people from school, which meant they needed to go far away from town. This was Forks.
'Where to?' She asked curiously.
'Into the forest, up the mountain.' He hesitated. 'Somewhere private.'
'I will follow you.'
She made it sound like a statement and the love he felt for her flared strongly.
Aro watched the massacre that took place in front of his eyes. He was like a statue, unable to move a muscle. Normally he would have joined his subjects in the feast, but this time he wasn't hungry. He had lost his appetite, the moment he had lost his victory. Coraline had meant little more to him than a means to an end, but still he missed her presence and the excitement her development had brought him. He was in great need of a new project, a new conquest to be made.
Coraline had left an emptiness behind but she was nothing compared to the emptiness of the loss of the child of time. For hundreds of years he had waited for her, spent his time and effort to find her, only to find her out of his reach forever. It gave him a bitter taste in his mouth and kept him from lavishing his tongue in human blood. His subject were too preoccupied with the feeding to notice the absence of their leader, but Caius gave him a questioning look. He was always the one to pay more attention than others. It was the reason Caius was so powerful for an unremarkable vampire.
Aro had admitted his defeat, but he was not a fool. Out of his reach or not, he made sure he was well-informed and knew everything worth knowing about Coraline and Isabella. If there was ever a chance he could get some power over either of them, he would take it, even if it was a small chance with considerable risk to himself. The simple pleasures of life meant little to him anymore and without his power play over the mythical world there wasn't really that much left to live for. The Cullens had lifted him off his throne of power and it was not to be endured. He needed a plan or a powerful ally to gain some of it back. Jane, Alec, Demetri were nothing, they were not strong enough. He needed a really powerful ally and he would find one, even if it was the last thing he would do.
