Beautifully Broken

Chapter 1: First Impressions

Hi loves!

This is the first fanfic I've written and I already have some chapters pre-written that I can post if you guys want more.

I think you can understand from this chapter that there is a lot more to Bella than we know right now... and maybe even more to Edward too?

Let me know if you want more and I'll continue to post. I think it'll be worth it ;)

There's a crazy, funny road ahead for these two filled with life's emotions: pain, anger, regret, and love.

Talk soon?

xx, S

I do NOT own Twilight, all the creds to Ms. Stephanie Meyer.

Right when the phone picked up, I knew I was about to brace a huge storm and the only way to get out was to go through it.

"Oh my god tell me everything." my insanely nosy sister yells into the phone far too loudly for 10am.

"Nothing much to say…."

"Bullshit. You have to tell me every single detail about him. Any tattoos? How tall is he? Oh, shit, please tell me how long his fingers are becaus-"

"HEY!" screamed Emmett, my sister's husband.

I hear them bicker in the background and her yell at him "What? A girl can dream."

"Not around me…" retorted Emmett.

"What the fuck ever," Rosalie says getting back to the topic at hand. "so, do you think you got the job?"

To be honest, I didn't know how to answer that question. Although I do believe the odds are in my favor, I don't want to get too worked up about it and especially don't want my sister getting too excited because that shit never turns out well. So, I decide to play it safe and stick to blunt and concise and purposefully leave out the part about me losing my temper. Now that I'm remembering that part of the meeting, I realize that the odds are definitely not in my favor considering I let my mouth take control of my head and pretty much unleashed on the nasty-bitch assistant. Yeah, I pretty ruined all my chances.

"Don't know. I saw him for probably one minute. I spent most of the time with his manager and agent. One of them was a bitch to be honest but the other was sweet. They seemed like they were interested in my work but you never know with those people—they can plaster on a fake face perfectly. They could've hated it but I don't really care, it's not the end of the world if I don't get the job. I don't give a shit, to be honest." I say.

Before another word can escape my mouth, my sister cuts me off. Even through the phone she can hear the bullshit in my voice as I stated the previous two sentences about not giving a shit about the job. Yeah, I've got to work on my lying skills.

"Look. You're my little sister and ever since you came out of the womb you have always felt this need to have a "I'm-a-badass-and-I-don't-give-a-shit-attitude" but I know that that isn't always true."

"But—"

"HEY," she yells putting me in my place and cutting me off once again.

"Let me finish, Swan. As much as you want to deny that it's the truth, just seeing your reaction and your eyes light up when Emmett told you that he got you an interview to be Edward Cullen's personal photographer told me everything I needed to know. The passion oozed out of you and you were determined, excited. But then, being typical Bella, you had to put back on that damn mask of yours and act all chill and act like it wasn't a big deal. Now I don't know if this mask of yours is a defense mechanism or something that you use to avoid getting hurt, but Bella, I could obviously see that you were about to start bouncing off the walls when he told you. I want to see that. Just let loose a little. It really can't hurt you."

Taking in her words, I see that she is speaking some truth here. I never really allowed myself to show too much emotion because deep emotion means expression, and once people see what you really feel, then you've let them in. So, it was a logical thing for me to do. I never got too excited if I aced a test or got asked out by my crush, because shit like that doesn't always happen.

When people get too expectant about good things coming their way, they are always in store for disappointment.

This, I know for a fact.

Rose has always been my rock. Since we were little girls, we were opposites but we were the kind that drifted together and not apart. In high school, she was the cheerleader and social butterfly while I was more under the radar. I had plenty of friends, for sure, but I wasn't as active in the whole scene; you could've categorized me as a wallflower. Instead of going to pep rallies or sports games, I was the girl that went for a surf alone to clear my head. I was never one of the loner types; I was friends with many of the football players and so called "popular" kids but they knew they shouldn't expect to see me at all of their parties. I wasn't too committed to any crowd or person, and I liked it that way. It was safe.

Remembering what Rosalie said to me before, I finally try and verbalize the excitement that has been bubbling inside of me since the interview.

"I really want this job, Rose." I said with a quiet, soft voice almost as if I was afraid somebody was going to hear me.

Wow. That was all I could come up with. Good one, Swan.

As if she could read my thoughts, she replies.

"I know, Bella, and it is okay to acknowledge that. It's okay to be excited, and I know it was hard to figure out how to express that and I'm proud that you did, even though it was a wimpy statement, to be honest. Just remember you don't always have to act so nonchalant about everything."

Growing up, I always thought that showing reactions to things was…weak. I never cried in movies, I never jumped up and down when I had my first kiss; I never did any of that. I felt like it kept me mysterious, it kept people wondering about my story and who I was. Most importantly, it made people know that they couldn't hurt me because when you get hurt, it's always because you put a dependence on something (or someone) and your expectations were let down.

My one weakness though was laughing. I can't help but laugh at every situation. People kind of know me as that: the girl who never cries but laughs her ass off at even the most terrible jokes. This habit still goes on within me even though I am 24 years old.

Anyways, when Emmett told me that he got me an interview with Edward Cullen, the world's largest actor and may I say sexiest man you have ever laid eyes on, I was ecstatic. I felt like running around the house screaming my head off and dancing on the kitchen counters but instead I just sat back in Emmett and Rosalie's sofa and said,

"Cool. Thanks, dude."

Of course, Rosalie rolled her eyes at my unanimated behavior, but I didn't want to be one of those girls who starts fangirling and jumping up and down clapping her hands. I've never liked those kind of people; they annoy the shit out of me.

After a moment of silence between us, I decided to finally tell Rosalie about the real reason why she called me.

"So you know that whole sex hair theory about Edward…?"

"Mhmmmmmm…."

"It's totally true." I said right before I broke into a fit of giggles. It actually felt good to get excited over girly stuff.

"AGH stop you're killing me. You've got to tell me more."

"Well, when he walked in he was wearing the most fuckable outfit on the goddamn planet."

"Hold on. I'm going to need to get away from Emmett and go outside if I want to listen to this properly. He'd go all apeman jealous if he heard the reaction I am about to have." Rose said with a whisper and a few giggles.

"Alright. Keep going." She says after a few seconds.

"He walked in with a golden tan and tight white V-neck that defined every muscle of his and he wore tan brown pants with these adorable hipster sort of combat/oxford boots."

I swear, I don't think I have ever laughed as much as when I heard the deep moan that came out of my sister's mouth when I told her that.

"Fucking Christ, Bella!"

Rosalie joins me in my laughing fit and chuckles along with me.

"Did he say anything to you?"

"No, he just quickly walked in, looked at a few photographs, glanced at me, and then whispered something to his manager and left."

"Is it just me or is that kind of creeperish weird."

"It's not just you. I swear, Rose, the way he looked at me was bizzare… Like he was a deer caught in the headlights. It sent a chill down my spine."

"A good chill or a creepy chill?"

I though about the question for a second before I answered honestly. "I really don't know."

I don't know what made me feel like that. I bet if anybody saw the way the way he looked at me, they would tell me to run for the hills, but for some reason I wasn't scared.

At all.

"Your pictures are incredible, Bella. There is no way that those Hollywood kiss-ups were not impressed with your work. They may be too stubborn to admit it, but I just know they loved it."

"Okay, Raven, enough with you psychic visions."

"You know you love them."

"That I do, dear sister. I'll call you later. Tell Emmett thank you again and that I love him."

"Will do."

"Bye, love."

As I am pulling into the parking garage, I press end on my iPhone screen and slump back in the seat of my black Audi R8, otherwise known as my child and prized possession. Yeah. I had worked hard for this girl and people must be dreaming if they think they're putting their hands on her wheel. Mine.

With an exhausted groan, I get out of the car and retrieve the bags of groceries from my previous Whole Foods run. It had been a long day of stress, anticipation, excitement, and anxiety. I was confident with my work, sure, but I will admit that putting those pictures in front of those big-shot managers and agents scared the shit out of me. You could see the judgment in their eyes, and the worst part was that you couldn't tell if it was a good or bad judgment.

I started photographing when I was 20. Rosalie had just met Emmett, who was an up-and-coming musician; Rose was 23 and Emmett was 27. Rosalie had been one of his followers and she went to his shows when he was in town and eventually, much to Rosalie's excitement, he asked her out and they dated for a few years. Emmett wasn't one of those "sex, drugs, and rock and roll" types. He was quiet, calm, and extremely devoted to his music, not fame. He honestly was the perfect person for her, and her and Emmett were like two lovesick sixteen year olds all the time.

Even I will admit it's cute as hell.

I first met him when he and Rose came to visit me at USC where I went to college. When I asked about what he did for a living, I saw his raw passion for music spark in his eyes. This suddenly made me want to have a passion like his; something I looked forward to do and made me truly happy. I told my mom this when I was driving back to my apartment after meeting Emmett that day. She told me she was going to ship her old Canon film camera, and advised me to go shoot around LA and see how I liked photography.

I was reluctant at first because I had no clue about how to photograph, but I finally gave in and went to the Santa Monica Pier to take pictures. Six hours later, I returned home with a myriad of used film and a newfound passion. I continued to shoot around the community for a year or so and I even bought a really nice digital SLR camera. After I volunteered to photograph for a local music festival, I found that I really loved photographing people doing their job. From that, I knew that I wanted to be a photographer for actors and singers.

Today, I've shot some of the biggest names in the industry, make a very good living, and have my own studio and staff. You can only imagine the smug smile my mom gets when she talks about my photography and how "she was the reason for my success" which is actually true; if she had never sent that camera that day, I wouldn't be where I am.

Right around the time I was graduating, Emmett got his big break and he got his song in a major movie franchise. He was blowing up, and he now has a huge and devoted fanbase. His agency advised him to set up accounts with all the major social media outlets, and they told him to post pictures of his everyday life to keep fans updated. It sounded easy enough, just take pictures of what you're doing and post it on Instagram or Twitter and boom, you have happy fans. This strategy worked for about a week or so until people became uninterested. The fans wanted pictures of him doing these everyday activities. They didn't care about what he was doing, just seeing him do it. This obviously posed a problem for Emmett because he didn't have anybody to be behind the camera. Also, he was going and playing all these gigs and all the pictures he had were fans' shitty iPhone pictures scattered around his twitter feed.

At the time, I was struggling to find work so he then had the idea of hiring me as his personal photographer. Rosalie obviously couldn't do it because whenever she tries to take a picture she either takes a video or takes a picture of the floor, not the subject. I immediately accepted his offer, for this was the perfect opportunity to do what I love while also getting my name out there. My job was to photograph Emmett whenever I was around him, which was most of the time. My goal was to be able to show fans that Emmett is no different than they are, just a person with a dream and living a semi-normal life.

While working for Emmett, I got incredible opportunities and pretty soon my inbox was full with agents requesting that they photograph their clients. I eventually had to stop working for Emmett because of the amount of jobs I was getting, and he totally understood because the purpose of this job was pretty much to get me on my feet.

These various jobs kept me happy until I noticed that I didn't want the spontaneity of the jobs. I found myself getting an offer, taking it, flying to wherever this person was, photographing them for a gig or two, and then flying back home the next day. It was exhausting and I was tired of it; I wanted a stable home and job where I stuck with one client instead of a new one everyday. I wanted to work for Emmett again, but at the level I was at now, the pay was not enough. Emmett knew about this considering I would always come home to him and cry on his shoulder while engulfing pints of ice cream while crying about how much I hated my job and how I didn't know what to do.

One night, while I was spinning myself into a tizzy, he told me that his friend knew Edward Cullen, world famous actor and heartthrob, and he was looking for a personal photographer. I was pretty much going to do for him what I did for Emmett; document his life and keep his fans updated with pictures and photograph him at work. The pay was incredibly generous, the hours were reasonable, and it was exactly what I wanted.

And so, that is how I ended up this morning sitting in an modern, top-of-the-line Hollywood office waiting to be called in so Edward's team could see if I would be the right fit for him. I was bouncing my leg and gnawing on my lip, both of which were things I did when I was nervous. I suddenly because very subconscious about my outfit, was it too flashy? I was wearing a white shirt that seemed basic from the front but twisted in the back and showed off most of my back. I wore my favorite Adriano Goldschmied white skinny jeans with metallic silver pumps and my hair in its natural, messy beachy waves, pulled away from my face from my Ray Bans that sat on top of my head. I liked my outfit when I got dressed this morning, it was clean, put together, but it still had my touch to it. But now, sitting in this office, it seemed so wrong. The jeans seemed inappropriately tight, the back of my shirt too low, and my heels too high.

I was five seconds away from making a run for it and crying in my car, but then a stunning, tall, olive skinned woman dressed in the most beautiful pencil skirt called my name. Gripping my portfolio, I got up and shook the woman's hand, amazed by her striking exotic features.

"Hello, I'm Zafrina, Edward's agent. Please, come in and take a seat." She says with a cold tone and slight accent that I can't recognize off the top of my head. Politely, I introduced myself and walked into her office to see another man waiting in there. He stood up and approached me with his hand out and a gentle smile on his face. "I'm Riley, Edward's manager. Wonderful to meet you."

"Likewise," I say as I take a seat.

Riley and Zafrina are sitting on the modern, white leather couch across from me watching me take out my pictures and lay them on the glass table between us. As I start to lay them out, I start to explain my experience, how I have worked with many actors and musicians, blah, blah, blah.

About 30 seconds into my spiel, I am unexpectedly cut off by Zafrina.

"Ms. Swan, I have read your resume. I know the work that you've done. Now, all I need is for you to answer one question for me. What makes you think that you're cut out for this job?"

Taken back by her blunt and very rude comment, I wait a second before I answer. Putting on a sweet smile, I start laying down the line classic Bella-style.

"Well, Zafrina, I have a good knowledge about this industry and the people who work in it. I know how these people think, how they operate, what they want to see, and what they don't want to see. I know that it is all smoke and mirrors and that everybody is screwing somebody over whether they know it or not. I've seen it happen thousands of times. So, if I get this job not only would I be Edward's photographer, but also his protector. I would protect him from the oh-so many traps in this corrupt town. I would be the person he could trust, since it is obvious that it is hard to find those kinds of people in Hollywood nowadays. So, yes, I do think I am cut out for this job because not only will I take the pictures of Edward that people actually want to see, but I also will protect him from the bottom feeder insects of this wonderful place we like to call Hollywood."

After that, the whole room is silent until I hear an intake of breath from behind me.

Startled, I see none other than Edward Cullen in all his glory leaning against the doorframe behind me, staring at me with a look I cannot describe.

Hatred? Confusion? Astonishment? I can't tell.

Right then, he walks over to the glass table, puts his hands in his pockets and examines my pictures while I am frozen in shock. As he is looking at my pictures, I see his perfectly messy golden brown hair on his head and the light stubble on his face. His outfit is right out of every girl's fantasy and while studying him, I can honestly say that I am unable to find any flaws. All too soon, he stands up straight, whispers something into Riley's ear and walks out.

Holy. Shit.

I'm going to have a really hard time working if I have to work around that creature 24/7. I now know what People Magazine meant when they named him the "Sexiest Man Alive".

Zafrina pulls me back from my hormonal teenage moment and tells me that we are done with the interview and storms out of the room with Riley trialing behind her. I pick up my stuff, pull my glasses off my head and on to my face, and walk out the door fuming from Zafrina's attitude but also amazed at Edward's surprise appearance.

Usually when I'm working for an actor or singer, the closest I get to them is their manager and the celebrity won't even glance my way. So, that's why I was so shocked to see that Edward was there and I was only at the interview stage. As I am about to walk out, I hear Riley yell my name. I freeze, preparing myself to be screamed at for pretty much calling him and Zafrina "bottom feeding insects".

Riley catches up to me and I internally flinch, scared for my life. "What you did in there…."

Oh shit, here it comes

"Was absolutely incredible."

I jolt my head up and look at him in surprise.

"What?"

"Zafrina's a bitch and she needed to be told that, so thank you. We'll speak to you soon."

And just like that, Riley walks back to his office and I stand in the middle of the agency with my jaw on the floor and a completely puzzled expression on my face. The giggle clearly came from the receptionist across the room and the look of amusement on her face about my reaction said it all. When the elevator arrives, I start to head out to my car utterly confused and turned on as hell by the man who I never even spoke a word to.

Damn. I need a drink.