Chicago 1907 August 14
"Edward," My mom laughed, "Calm down. Breathe and compose yourself. She won't be here for another five minutes." Bella was coming over for her piano lessons. She only came over for piano lesson once a week. In my little six year old eyes that was like a decade.
"Five minutes!" I complained.
"Edward," My mom scolded. "Stop acting childish and be a gentleman, help your mother."
I rolled my eyes at her, "What would you like me to do mother?" I said in my most sarcastic voice.
If my mother heard she didn't take it to offence, "Go clean the piano room, your stuff is all over the floor."
I mumbled my complaints as I dragged my feet out of the kitchen and towards the piano room. The piano room was one of the fanciest rooms in the house. The Chicago light streamed through colored windows highlighting the polished wood floors making them gleam. A small chandelier hung gracefully from the ceiling. It was all pulled together with a giant black piano taking up most of the rather small room, it stood proud and elegant.
I quickly scanned the room for my mess, a few books lay around the room. I loved reading in here. It was quiet and peaceful; often my dad would find me in here. He would look at me and shake his head and walk away, I never knew what he was thinking.
I quickly picked up my books and ran up to my room to put them under my pillow so I could read them later that night. As I was walking back to the kitchen I stopped as I passed the piano room. I always wished I could play the piano, but my mother says I shouldn't waste my time. Actually my mother is dying to give me piano lessons but my father says I'm a man and should be learning to take after him and his profession, I didn't care for that much.
I quietly walked in and sat down at the bench. I let my fingers run across the keys without making a sound. I played an A, then a A major scale. That was all I had learned from listening to my mother give other children lessons. I sighed longingly, some day; I thought then stood up and walked back towards the kitchen.
When I walked in mother was putting tea on. Still holding up my gentleman act I asked, "Anything else you would like me to do?" My mother opened her mouth to answer but just then a loud knock echoed through our house. "She's here!" I exclaimed and ran out of the room leaving behind any gentlemanly behavior behind.
I ran to the door and opened it to reveal Bella and her mom. I stepped to the side holding the door open for them.
"Edward, always the gentleman." Renée commented. I smiled slyly at her then turned all my attention to Bella. Her hair was pinned up in a small bun with a few curls left down to frame her perfect heart shaped face, her dress was plain light blue with white ribbons. She carried her piano bag uncomfortably until she saw my huge smile and she smiled a huge smile too.
"Edward, it's so pleasant to see you again." She said nodding her head towards me but her face still held that huge smile. I knew she was just like this when her mother was around, polite and ladylike.
I nodded my head back still grinning at her like a maniac. "It's nice to see you too Isabella." We both laughed a little at our little act when my mother came into the room.
"Renée!" My mother greeted Bella's mom. They were like best friends just like me and Bella were best friends. They both exchanged pleasant greeting then my mother lead Bella and her mother towards the piano room. I tagged along even though my mother never let me in the room while she had students over.
Just as I was about to step into the room my mom made eye contact with me and shook her head. I hung my head. Every time I tried and every time I failed. But it was worth it. My mom closed the door of the piano room leaving me out in the hall. I sat down next to the door and pressed my ear to it so I could catch all I could from the lesson.
Bella hadn't been very good at piano when she first came and she had hated it. But her mom forced her to go through with them. Bella couldn't remember the keys and sometimes her fingers would slip into a not so pleasant cord, my mom would fear that she was hopeless. But that was a year ago, now Bella is my mom's best student. She loved playing long challenging songs that push her and make my mom want to pull her hair out.
I heard Bella starting out with her scales then she suddenly stopped. "I have something I want to show you." Bella said quietly.
"Ok honey what is it?"
"She's been working on it for a while now." I heard Renée say proudly.
"Well go on honey, show me."
The song started slow and intriguing then going into a song that was so sweet, intense and lulling I swayed a little bit, my eyes drooping.
"What was that?" My mom asked softly when Bella had finished her song.
"A song I composed." She said back shyly. I could picture Bella's cheeks turning pink and held back a laugh, Bella was so bashful.
"It was lovely." My mom said at loss of words. It was quiet for a bit and then my mom broke the silence by clearing her throat. "Well, umm, let's continue. How's this song going?" My mom said and I heard some rustling of some papers from the other side of the door.
I tuned out the rest of the hour of piano just sitting there with my head leaning on the door, kind of just day dreaming. I was jerked out of my daze when the door swung open. I fell forward and landed with a thump.
"Edward!" My mother scolded, "Were you spying in on us?" I felt my ears go red.
I sputtered for a response, "I umm, well I was, and then I dropped my um."
"Uh-uh," She said giving me the We-Will-Talk-About-this-later look. I smiled ashamed then turned to Renée.
"How long can Bella stay?" I asked hopeful.
Renée laughed, "as long as your mother will allow us." She said turning back to my mother. My mom looked back and forth in between Bella and I. She smiled affectionately, my next lesson starts in ten minutes.
"Let's go!" I said excitedly and grabbed Bella's hand and dragged her outside with me, knowing very well that it wasn't very gentlemanly like. My and Bella always played in the front yards. It had long grass with daisies sprinkled every here and there, to the right was some train track and just beyond was a forest. Everything was the perfect place to play.
I sat down and Bella followed my lead.
"I heard your song." I said.
"Oh, did you like it?" She asked her cheeks going pink.
"Did you really com-compose it?" I asked having a hard time saying compose.
"I did." She said her blush turning deeper.
"It was really… pretty." I say impressed. The door to the house opened scaring us both. Renée and my mom came out holding the tea my mom had made before the lesson. They liked to sit on the porch and watch us while we played.
We sat in silence for a bit while Renée and my mom comfortably gossiped about the latest things. I picked some nearby daisies and knotted them together, making a crown. I came up behind Bella and place the daisy crown on her head. But her bun was in the way. I set the crown momentarily on the ground and unpinned her hair as carefully as I could. When I finally worked out the last pin out of her hair it tumbled out of the bun and comfortably made a little halo falling past her shoulder to her mid-back in soft curls. I pick up the daisy crown again and softly placed it on her head.
Bella smiled up at me, "I love it." she said.
"I don't know." I say teasing, "I think you look TOO cute with it and now every guy in town will be after you. Give it back." I reached out my hand to her.
"I think you're jealous that daisies look good on me and not you." She said giggling just at the thought of it.
"You wish." I say taunting, "Now give it back." I say again.
She stood up and twirled out of my reach, "Come and get it." She laughed and stuck her tongue out at me.
I laughed at the challenge and was about to stand up and chase her for it, cause I was way faster the clumsy Bella, when I spotted something that made me stop. The train was coming at full speed down the track; nothing would dare get in its way of its destination. But there was something this time, Bella.
Bella must have seen my eyes widen. She followed my gaze to the train, I watched her eyes widen as well. The grownups must have noticed too.
"Bella move!" Renée yelled panicked.
Bella tried to take a step and she tripped she was now full on laying on the tracks, parallel with them. She tried to stand up but her dress was caught.
Both of the mothers shouted commands to get off the tracks. But after some fruitless tries she gave up, her doe eyes locked with mine with horror, her horror mimicking my own. She was now kneeling on the tracks. Her hand stretched out to me pleading, to somehow save her. Her tiny lips mouthed, I love you. That's when the train hit. I only saw a flash of red before my mom came up behind me and wrapped her hands around my eyes, hugging me to her chest.
My whole body was numb, I couldn't think. I couldn't tell if my mind was speeding to fast or if I was thinking at all. Bella, was dead? She couldn't be. She was just here a second ago, laughing and teasing with me. She had sat and played her beautiful song she had laughed with and at me, but never again. I don't know how long I sat there in my mother's arms frozen and numb. I didn't want to move, like if I didn't Bella would pop up from behind laughing and tell me this was some sick joke. But it wasn't, I wanted to jump on those train tracks with her to tell her to wait for me.
oOo
For three months after my mom brought me to ever doctor known in Chicago. I wouldn't eat, I couldn't sleep, I didn't talk, and the only thing that kept me from fully giving up was my parents. One day I saw my mom sobbing into my dad's shoulder for the loss of her only son's sanity. After that day I act like never happened, like I forgot my Bella, but in the inside, I was dying.
Often I would see Bella in my dreams. She would be whatever my age was when I had the dream. The only difference between my dream Bella and the real Bella was that dream Bella had a white flowing dress and a smile; the real Bella had most of her guts still on the train tracks at my old house. We had moved to a house far away from train tracks because my mom feared I would have the same fate as Bella.
A lot I wanted to die too. But whenever I did I could just see Bella lecturing me, telling me not to waste my life trying to get over her. Bella was like that, so selfless. Life went on, I tried to move on, but Bella was always there in the back of my head, her hand stretching out to me and mouthing those three words. I love you.
When I got older I told my mom I wanted to go to the army, and fight for our country. I wanted to save life's to try and make up for what I couldn't save of Bella.
It never came to that though. The Spanish Influenza hit in September 1918, my mom and dad's lives were taken from them. I realized last second that I shouldn't have wasted my life waiting for death if it really was coming this early in my life. I fought the disease, apologizing mentally to Bella. But on the inside I knew I was going to die. The thing is I didn't die that night, that night I gained immortality.
Living forever without my Bella, life was punishing me for wasting my life wishing to die. For that reason I tried to live happily with Carlisle, but it's not that easy when I keep seeing Bella as an angel, with white feathery wings from her back, that was new. Sometimes I will just be hunting and I see her on a boulder watching me. But every time I try to walk over she vanishes. I saw her crying on the floor the day I woke up form my transformation. She vanished with fear in her eyes. Was she scared of what I had become? Was she disgusted at the monster I was? I don't know if life could think of a worse punishment.
Well that is until I went to Forks High School in 2005…
I have the next chapter waiting for you. But it won't be up until Friday unless you review. Every five reviews make the day go down. Five reviews I will post it Thursday, ten reviews I will post it Wednesday and so on and so forth. Bottom line? Review. I don't want to post the next chapter until I know people like it. I mean I'm not just writing this for only me to read right?