Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight and/or it's characters. I merely play with them like puppets and put them in scenarios that I find to my liking. I'm not making money off of these. I bow down to Stephenie Meyer for creating these characters that help me dust off my writing skills. And please forgive any grammatical errors. I have no beta. :(
*I'm currently in the process of writing a series of ficlets that I shall post periodically. I'm horrible at long, multi-chapter stuff. Hence all the short one-shots. Hope you like them anyway! Thanks in advance for any reviews you leave!
Forks had never been known as a sympathetic town that gave it's inhabitants a plethora of sunny days. This simple fact was even more frustrating to the younger residents during the span of the Summer months. The break from school, for many, was supposed to be known as the time to go outside, to swim or to surf. Instead, many merely counted the hours in between rainstorms in the small town. The current record for the Summer was an unbelievable 8 hours. And yet, with all of the rain, they hadn't even been lucky enough to be blessed with a decent thunderstorm in months, so a good game of baseball was definitely out of the question.
Other than having less rain that usual, today wasn't really any different than any other in Forks. Overcast, with a slight chance of showers, but none just yet. It was already nearing noon and Bella Swan was just a little bored.
Well, as bored as one can get with a vampire for a boyfriend.
Lounging in the Cullen living room while Jasper and Emmett dueled against one another in their latest video game, Bella rested her head on Edward's shoulder and sighed. Alice and Rosalie had taken a trip to L.A. to do some shopping. And while they had tried to convince Bella to come along, she'd politely declined. Shopping had never been her forte, and it certainly hadn't been something she enjoyed when Alice insisted on dressing her up in as many different ensembles as possible. Then there was Charlie. He had his things packed up and had gone fishing the moment he found out that there would be a break in the rain. Charlie was a gambling man, and it put a soft smile on Bella's face merely thinking about him.
"Are you regretting not going with my sisters now?" Edward murmured into her ear with a bemused smirk touching his lips. Quickly, Bella shook her head in disagreement, knowing that Edward would never truly believe that to be the case. He tended to be her venting post for when she returned from the tortuous shopping trips. Though, to be honest, he was her venting post for everything else as well. A sudden swell of love and appreciation came over her, prompting her to reach for his cool hand to link their fingers together.
"Certainly not! Though, I am a little bored," she admitted, shifting anxiously in her seat on the couch. Watching Emmett and Jasper curse one another mercilessly while their video game counter-parts ripped the limbs off of each other wasn't exactly her idea of entertainment.
"I'm going to eat your leg for breakfast, Zombie-boy! Prepare to be mutilated!" Emmett hollered at Jasper, his eyes never once leaving the television screen, causing Bella to jump. A throaty chuckled escaped from Edward's throat as he resisted rolling his eyes at his a soft and affectionate squeeze to her hand, he reached with his other to push her hair back away from her neck. He then leaned in and pressed a chaste kiss to her pulse.
"Want to get out of here?" Edward suggested, feeling slightly smug as Bella's body surged with sudden excitement beside heart rate accelerated considerably and he could hear the rush of blood coursing through her veins. And while a small part of him was unbelievably self-satisfied about the influence he had over her, a larger part felt guilty for teasing her in such a way.
"Sure, what did you have in mind?" she asked, with potential excitement shining in her eyes. A thoughtful expression crossed Edward's features as he considered some of the activities that they could participate in that might alleviate some of their boredom; activities that didn't involve Bella forgetting to breathe, and Edward having to call on all of the will-power he possessed.
"Hm, I'm afraid that Forks doesn't allow for much as far as recreation goes. Would you like to go see a movie? I hear that the latest zombie, horror film was released sometime last week," he grinned as Bella made a face of pure distaste, along with a small look of disappointment. Obviously, a movie was no where on her mind. But before she could voice her objection, someone else decided to share their approval of the idea.
"Dude, Jasper! We should go to the movies!" Emmett exclaimed, taking a brief moment to glance from Edward to Jasper. But in that moment, Jasper's alter ego on the video game promptly stabbed the end of an umbrella into Emmett's character's eye. A disturbing visual then followed, causing Bella to look away with a cringe. To be honest, the video game reminded her of the time she went to the movies with Mike and Jake, and of course, that reminded her of worse memories. Closing her eyes, she mentally shook herself and cleared her head.
"Victory is sweet, dear brother! Now, if you don't mind doing so, please remind me who just mutilated whom?" Jasper cheered as the video game prompted them to start a new round. Emmett dramatically threw himself on the ground and writhed in agony. It had been quite the sight watching a larger-than-life vampire roll around on the floor.
"Death by umbrella!! What an embarrassing and unmanly way to go!" Emmett moaned. Edward merely shook his head as Bella tried to contain her own laughter at the scene.
"Hey, I think I may have an idea," Bella said excitedly, the light in her eyes back full force. When she got that look in her eyes, Edward always found it difficult to look elsewhere. She tended to be the one doing the dazzling. While it took a moment for Edward to shake himself away from her gaze, when it did, a soft smile took it's place on his face as he waited for her to continue. Anything that caused her to be this excited had to be a good idea, right?
"Please, do tell," there was an encouraging tone to his voice as he ran his thumb in circles against the back of her hand. Jasper and Emmett were now starting a new game, with their attentions no longer focused on the two sitting behind them.
"Well, it would be in Port Angeles, so we'd have to drive. And..." she hesitated, biting her lip in minimal frustration. Edward groaned and tossed his head back against the couch. Bella quickly picked up where she left off, in order to avoid any more hindrance on her part.
"Do you trust me?" she asked, a hint of mischief in her eyes now. Edward's eyebrow lifted marginally before he let out a soft breath.
"What a silly question, Bella. Of course I trust you," he sighed, brow furrowed.
"Great! Let's go to Port Angeles!" and with that, she grabbed his hand and eagerly tugged him in the direction of the garage. And while he could have kept her there easily, he was curious to see what she was up to. So with that, he allowed her to pull him into a mysterious adventure.
"You aren't thirsty, are you?" she asked him innocently, eyeing him from her seat beside him in the Volvo. "Take a left here, by the way."
With a turn of his arm, Edward took the next left as Bella had instructed. He was starting to feel a bit of reluctance in following Bella's instructions. She was leading him in a circle it seemed. He knew Port Angeles enough to know that she either had no idea where she was directing him, or she knew exactly where they were going, but wanted to waste some time so he wouldn't catch on. When she grinned and told him to take another left before he could answer, he figured out exactly which one she was doing. She was stalling.
"I went hunting with Emmett and Jasper last night, Bella. Don't you remember?" he answered her question while still wishing desperately that he could read her mind. Oh the irony of having thousands upon thousands of voices in one's head, but the one that you'd like to hear more than anything? There was nothing. It had the potential to render him completely helpless at times.
"I know you went hunting Edward. I asked if you were thirsty," she informed him, pointing for him to take a right at the next intersection.
With a drawn out breath, Edward shook his head. "No, I'm fine at the moment. Why? Are you afraid that I'm suddenly going to lose my battle and bite you?" Bella blushed, and in return, Edward couldn't keep himself from softening slightly at the pink tint that touched her cheek. He would miss that when they were married and she was changed. His free hand reached and he grazed his knuckles over her cheek gently, allowing some of the heat that warmed the surface of her cheeks to briefly transfer through to the top layer of his skin. There was no other feeling quite like touching Bella's warm skin, and Edward knew that. He knew that if the feeling could be bottled and sold, he would spend every last penny of his life's savings buying up every bottle.
Bella closed her eyes and tried to keep the small and content hum from escaping, but it was pointless. She practically purred against his touch before finding the words once more. "Nonsense Edward, I just don't want you to be grumpy when you realize what I've planned," she said simply, waving her hand dismissively. Her eyes focused on the road again before she pointed in a new direction. "Now, pull into the parking lot here."
Another self-satisfied smile stretched across his face as he turned on his blinker. Though, right as he had crossed through into the entrance and looked up to see the sign, his eyes darkened and widened in disbelief. Shaking his head, it seemed as if he were battling with his deepest and darkest demons. Bella reached over and patted his hand with a smile as he parked. She didn't dare hesitate long enough to give him time to back the car up and leave. So, she quickly jumped out and waited eagerly for him to follow.
"Come on, slow poke!" she turned the key out of the ignition and attempted to figure out what had made this girl, this woman, want to come here out of all the places. Certainly, she had her reasons, but he couldn't help but feel as if this was a joke.
"I can't believe you wanted to come here," he said through clenched teeth. "And even worse is the fact that you've dragged me here along with you. You couldn't have asked Jacob to accompany you here? He would have fit right in." And with the unexpected jab at Jacob, Edward felt marginally better. It was amazing what a few jokes at the dog's expense could do for his mood sometime.
"Oh come on, Edward, don't be like that," she whined slightly, giving him the most convincing pout that she could manage. Slumping his shoulders in defeat, Edward shoved his hands into his pockets and followed her knew she had the power. She had all the power. An outsider would have seen the obvious. They would have seen a vampire and a human and would have made an assumption before really knowing the truth. Edward was powerless when it came to Bella. She had him in the palm of her hand, and he was ready to set up shop there.
"Two tickets please," Bella requested from another teenager that sat begrudgingly in the ticket booth. After sliding her cash past the opening in the glass barrier, Bella looked over and smiled happily at Edward while the girl in the booth passed back two tickets and her change. She also took the time to glance back and forth between Bella and Edward, but neither of them noticed. In fact, they hadn't noticed those kinds of glances in a long time, mostly due to the fact that they were too busy watching one another to pay any mind.
"When was the last time you did something like this?" she asked, genuinely curious as they passed through the gates and into the open courtyard. A thoughtful look crossed his features before a reluctant smile touched his lips. His human memories were few and far in between, but occasionally, there would be something that triggered specific ones. This was one of those days, and he couldn't help but feel joyous at the fact that Bella's antics had managed to bring one of his human memories to the surface.
"I was twelve, and my mom and dad brought me. I didn't want to go home at the end of the day. I think Mom had to bribe me with ice cream," he admitted, a bittersweet smile brought him out of his ranting, as well as the memory.
"That's really sweet, Edward," she said softly, reaching to grab his hand and lace his fingers through hers. He smiled briefly and squeezed her hand, finally seeming to accept her idea of entertainment. Sometimes it took him longer to accept the fact that any place could be fun and entertaining as long as Bella were with him. Though, he noticed a mischievous smile out of the corner of his eye, that threatened to spill over.
"But are you absolutely sure you're okay? I don't think I have anything that I could bribe you with in order to leave. Because you know, here, they have lions, and tigers and bears..." she trailed off as his eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Don't even think about it," he growled under his breath as they passed up the monkey exhibit of the zoo. And with an innocent smile, Bella clucked her tongue.
"Oh my..."