"Alright, you've got 3 seconds before I break down this door, tie you to the bedpost, and throw some clothes on you myself."
Picture this, me, Bella Swan, sitting in her room, minding her own business on a lovely Friday night, when a very scary short girl comes banging on the strategically locked door.
"Alice, I already told you, I don't want to go out tonight," I said matter-of-factly as I sipped some of my wine and nestled down into my covers. We did this almost every weekend and I usually ended up going out with them anyways because, let's face it, I really did sorta want to go. But tonight, I really didn't want to. I was tired, I had an awful day at work, and I was in a bad mood. However, Alice is Alice and she is not to be refused.
"Fine, you leave me no choice," she said menacingly as she practically growled through the door. I heard her footsteps take off in the opposite direction and I tip toed over to the door just in time to hear her enter Rosalie's room, where I could faintly here them talking. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I jumped, tripping slightly on the rug when I heard Alice coming back toward my room.
"You better be decent, Bella, 'cause I'm coming in!" she yelled as she shoved something in the keyhole and my door was flung open. Unfortunately, when I tripped, I fell too close to the door's range and it wacked me in the face. I immediately fell to the ground and clutched my nose.
"Son of a B- ALICE!" I yelled as I sat up, still holding my nose. When I looked up, she and Rosalie were both in the doorway cracking up.
"Oh my god, Bella, are you ok?" Rose asked, but of course I could barely understand what she was saying because she was laughing so hard. I rolled my eyes and stood up, making my way over to the mirror to see the damage done. I cursed again after seeing my bright red nose and the light bruise already forming under one eye.
"Alice, I look like a freakin' reindeer after a bar fight. There is no way in hell I'm going out tonight," I stated as I crossed my arms and sat down on the bed.
"Bella, come on. You can't stay here by yourself on a Friday night and we definitely aren't staying here with you," Rose huffed as she plopped down next to me on the bed. Alice had already made her way into my closet and was rifling through my clothes.
"Guys, I had a really crappy day at work today and I feel awful. I just want to stay home." Alice popped her head out of the closet and smiled sympathetically.
"And that, my dear, is exactly why you need to slip into this, throw on some makeup, and have a night out with your friends," she said as she produced my favorite blue dress from behind her back. She wiggled it at me with her brows raised and an expectant smile on her face.
"Alright, alright," I caved, "But you guys are responsible for my actions. And Rose, I'm out of there if I'm the grenade even once, got it?" She rolled her eyes but nodded. The grenade is a term guys use for the less attractive friend in a group of girls that a guy will hit on so his friend can have a shot with her attractive friend. Unfortunately, as fates would have it, I have super hot friends that guys love. Soooo, that always leaves me as the grenade. Now, I know I'm not ugly. I have a nice body, good hair, and clear skin. But I'm also just average, which I'm usually ok with, except when I get the guy that settles so his friend can score. Rose doesn't think that its real and Alice is always distracted by Jasper, her husband, so neither of them believe me or listen to my concerns. Tonight, though, I wanted a drink and dammit, I was making them buy.
Two hours later and ten tons on concealer under my eye, we were pulling up to the bar. After Rose handed the cash to the cab driver, we piled out and spotted Jasper's blond mop of hair right away in the crowd of people outside the bar. Alice immediately ran over to him and gave him an embarrassingly sweet kiss.
"Hey baby," she said as she wrapped her arms around his waist. Jasper smiled down at her and then smiled at Rose and I and whistled when his eyes landed on us.
"Whoa there. You ladies are looking mighty fine tonight," he said with a wink, "You didn't have to dress up for little 'ol me." Jasper was a total dork and was wrapped around Alice's finger. Alice, in turn, was head over heels in love with him. They had been married for a little over 2 years and theirs was a fairytale romance. Childhood sweethearts, high school baseball star and cheerleader, dedicated history professor and loving kindergarten teacher. They had loved each other since they could talk and were seriously each other's better halves. It was sickeningly cute. But I wouldn't want them any other way.
"Hey Jazz. Reenacted any good defeats today?" I teased him as I gave him a kiss on the cheek. He was also a dedicated civil war fanatic and was always going on and on about the south, being from Texas and all.
"Funny Swan. What happened, you get into it with the fax machine again? I told you, those things have a nasty right hook. Duck and cover is your friend," he joked as he took notice of the discoloration under my eye.
"More like your wife needs to learn some boundaries." Alice scoffed.
"More like you need to go back to your 1 year old self and teach her how to walk properly without falling flat."
"Alright, children, break it up. Mama's lookin' fine tonight and I need to booze it up," Rose pronounced as she flicked her hair over her shoulder, grabbed Alice's hand and mine and dragged us through the bar entrance. The place was packed, considering it was a Friday night, but Rose immediately spotted a table in the middle of the room where a couple was just getting up to leave.
"Oh, prime spot, twelve o'clock," she said as she weaved her way through the other tables.
"I'll grab us some drinks. Orders?" Jasper asked. After we gave him our requests, he made his way over to the bar.
"So, Bella, why was today so terrible," Alice asked as we got settled into our chairs. I groaned and dived into my depressing day.
"First of all, I got to work late this morning because I over slept my alarm and my car wouldn't start. Which, by the way Rose, would you mind taking a look at it tomorrow?"
"Of course," she nodded.
"So, I got there late after having to call a cab and my boss was furious with me because I had given her the wrong manuscript for her meeting last night, which I didn't mean to, by the way, she told me the wrong name, so it wasn't my fault. After that, she kept coming by my office and making these snide remarks about my work ethic and blah blah blah. It was just annoying. And that was only in the morning! Then, at lunchtime, Carl comes into my office and asks me out AGAIN! I told him I was a lesbian this time, so hopefully he'll finally leave me alone. Then, after working through lunch because of the extra manuscript Irene gave me, I spilled coffee on my shirt after some idiot came barging out of the staff room and knocked right into me. Seems like that's the theme of the day, huh Alice? So I had to walk around for the rest of the day with a huge dark spot right in the center of my chest. I stayed after for a little bit to make up for this morning, so luckily I did get some extra work done," I finished off. Alice and Rosalie were giving me sympathetic looks, but still managed to let out a few good laughs at my misfortunes.
"God, Bells, you have the worst luck sometimes," Rose stated as she laughed.
"I know, I know. But, I have the whole weekend free and a very promising manuscript to read, whereas you have to go to work tomorrow," I said smugly as Alice laughed and Rose frowned. Just then, Jasper came back with our drinks.
"Here we go ladies, an Apple Martini for the wife, a Guinness for Blondie, and a Long Island Iced Tea for the love child of Rudolf and a raccoon." Rose had just taken a sip of beer and immediately began coughing it up as Alice pounded on her back, both laughing. I let out a short laugh as I gave Jasper props for that one. We all fell into easy conversation after that, catching up on the week and sharing funny stories. A couple hours later, Alice and Jasper said their goodbyes and headed home for the evening. They were heading the Alice's parents' house for brunch the next morning and didn't want to stay out too late. Soon after they left, I spotted a guy walking towards our table. I nudged Rose and jerked my head in his direction.
"What do you think? 7? Possibility of your card?" I asked her. She studied him for a second then shook her head.
"I'd say a solid 6.5 with the possibility of my name." Rose and I had come up with a sort of game, guessing how far a guy would get with Rose based on his looks, body language, and group of friends he was hanging with. Because Alice and Jasper were usually in their own little world, this was just between us single girls. It was entertaining and helped Rose keep her cool with the real losers that only wanted to cop a feel. This guy was pretty decent, though. Neat brown hair, casual business suit and an easy smile. He also only had two friends at the table he was coming from. He had promise.
"Hi there," the guy said as he reached our table. I smiled at him politely and took a sip of my drink. I learned there was never any use in joining the conversation because I always wound up on the outside of an awkward game of flirting between Rose and her various suitors. It was entertaining to watch though.
A couple minutes later, Drew left the table with Rose's number and I was a drink richer.
"Told you," I gloated. She rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. You were almost out a drink when he made that Star Trek reference, but he redeemed himself with his job. I mean seriously, a sports doctor? That's hot." I nodded my agreement and Rose and I continued chatting. A few minutes later, I noticed a really cute guy staring over at our table. He had messy reddish-brown hair and was wearing black slacks and a white collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up. I blushed immediately and turned back to Rose who was eyeing me curiously.
"Um perfect 10 over at the bar," I said as Rose surreptitiously glanced his way. Her eyes widened as she no doubt took in his sexy appearance.
"Holy crap. He's more like a 15," she said, "and he's coming this way!" She quickly schooled her features into a seductive look and threw back her shoulders. She was wearing a tight white dress that showcased her flawless tan and perfect body, no guy would dream of rejecting her. I slumped down a little further and took a big gulp of my drink, all hope with that guy crashing and burning.
"Hello ladies," a deep voice said from behind me. Glancing up at Rose, I saw her wink at me and give a wide smile to the guy behind me. I turned around and saw not only the guy from the bar, but also another one standing in front of him. This guy was tall and broad shouldered with curly black hair, bright blue eyes, and a killer smile. I didn't have to look at Rose to know this one was a keeper for sure.
"Hello yourself," she said as she motioned to the chairs Alice and Jasper had vacated. The big guy took the chair next to Rose and the cute one sat down next to me.
"I'm Emmett and this is Edward," the big one said as he motioned to himself and then to the one sitting next to me.
"It's nice to meet you boys. I'm Rosalie," she practically purred. Emmett looked like a kid in a candy store and I wanted to laugh.
"I'm Bella," I said as both boys turned to me expectantly.
"Can we get you ladies some refills?" Emmett asked as he motioned to Rose's empty beer. She nodded and he grabbed the nearest waiter and ordered another round for both himself and Rose.
"So a Guinness, huh? Not many girls appreciate a strong brew like that," Emmett said appreciatively.
"Well, I'm not just any girl," Rose said with a smile and with that, they were lost in their own conversation. I sat there for a second, awkwardly swirling my drink around and surreptitiously glancing at Edward from my peripheral view.
"Can I get you another drink?" I heard Edward softly ask from my side. I turned to him, surprised that he initiated conversation.
"No, I'm fine, thanks though. Any more and I might tip over the edge. Next thing you know, I'll be on top of the bar singing karaoke," I lamely joked. Edward chuckled slightly.
"I don't think they have karaoke here," he said with a smile.
"Exactly." He laughed and I swooned. He had a very nice laugh. As I thought about it, he had a nice everything. He had kind green eyes, a crooked smile that was hiding some very nice, white teeth, and an easy air about him.
"Well then no more alcohol for you. I like this bar and I don't think I want to be banned from it anytime soon," he said with a twinkle in his eye. We were quiet for a moment before he leaned in and spoke softly.
"May I ask you a sort of personal, intrusive question?" he asked slowly. I leaned back for a second, stunned by his question, but nodded none the less.
"How'd you get a black eye?" he asked seriously. I burst out laughing at his concerned look and tone of voice.
"My roommate hit me with the door earlier tonight. I was standing behind it and she threw it open too fast. Instant contact and I was down flat. Hurt like a bitch, but it was kinda funny," I said with a laugh.
"A bit of a klutz, are you?" he asked lightly.
"That's an understatement. I trip over thin air, I spill for no reason, I find the only chair in the room that is broken and subsequently fall out of it in front of an entire conference room, you name it."
"And here I thought I was bad! Yesterday, I was walking down the hallway in the hospital when I stepped on my untied shoelace and stumbled slightly. I caught myself on a nearby wheelchair that was just sitting off to the side."
"That's not even that bad," I protested. He gave me a pained look and continued.
"That wasn't the bad part. The wheel chair didn't have the safety lock on it so when I fell onto it, it flew out from under me and I fell flat on the floor. The wheelchair went rolling across the hallway and into someone's room, taking the elderly man sitting in it on quite the ride." I laughed with him and he gave me a wide grin and launched into some more of his embarrassing moments. We continued to swap embarrassing stories for a while and I found myself growing increasingly attracted to him as the night went on. After a while, we transferred from embarrassing stories to just talking in general. I found out he went to UCLA for undergrad and medical school and was a second year resident at NY Presbyterian. He loved dogs, but wasn't allowed to have them in his apartment, much to his chagrin. He grew up in upstate New York with his parents and younger sister. He also had a profound hatred for the color purple.
"Seriously, though. How can you rule out an entire color? I mean, purple is a cool color. It's a royal color. It's, I don't know… the color for Saturday on the Thai solar calendar."
"I don't care. It's just an awful color. Did you know that the word 'purple' came from the Greek word porphura which is a dye made of snail mucus. And you're an editor; surely you've been on the receiving end of some purple passages. Oh, and of course in 16th century England, purple was a mourning color. If that's not reason enough, then I don't know what is," he said passionately. I shook my head at him.
"Alright, so what's a good color then?" I asked, "One that's not named after snail spit, of course."
"Blue," he said simply. I waited, expecting him to elaborate, but after a second of waiting, I prompted him.
"Because…" I said with a wave of my hand. He smiled.
"Well first off, it's the color of the ocean which is my favorite thing in the entire world. It's a peaceful, calming color. It's one of my alma mater's colors. And it's the color of Friday on the Thai solar calendar. Friday is a good day," he said matter-of-factly. I smiled at him shyly.
"Friday is a good day," I mumbled. A few hours ago, I would have been whistling a different tune, but talking to Edward had made my day infinitely better. A burst of laughter from Rose made me glance her way. In all honestly, I had forgotten she was even there. She and Emmett seemed to be getting along very well, though. They were touching each other in every way possible that convention would allow and grinning from ear to ear.
"I would say they're getting along nicely," I commented to Edward. He let out a short laugh.
"I'll say. He was quite taken with your friend, practically from the moment he saw her. I thought he was going to rip my arm off the way he was dragging me over here. I'm glad he did though. I wasn't going to come over here otherwise," he finished with a shy smile.
I stiffened up immediately as his words sunk in. He was Emmett's wingman, which meant I was the grenade. Yet again. I felt my cheeks flood with heat from my embarrassment and I stood quickly and grabbed my purse and coat from the back of my chair. I could see Edward stand as well, his face a mask of confusion, but I didn't want to look at him. It was embarrassing enough that he just admitted he didn't want to come over and talk to me.
"Well I won't keep you any longer, then. I'm calling it a night," I said stiffly, trying to pass it off as casual.
I leaned down near Rose and whispered, "I'll meet you back at home." She looked up at me confused and immediately asked what happened. I gave her the look and simply said, "Grenade." She looked shocked for a moment, but I started walking away before she could say anything, not wanting to stick around any longer.
"Bella, wait, where are you going?" I heard Edward call out behind me but I didn't stop or respond. I bumped into quite a few people as I made my way through the bar and out the door.
I got a cab quickly and gave him my address. As soon as we pulled up to my apartment building, I flew up the stairs and threw open the door to the apartment, stomping my way to my room. I flung my bag and coat onto the floor and made my way into my bathroom. I stopped right in front of the mirror and stared at myself.
I was flushed with anger, embarrassment, and the cold and my hair was slightly disheveled due to the wind outside. I scrutinized myself, trying to see myself through a guys perspective and was thoroughly disappointed. The average girl staring back at me didn't stand a chance with a gorgeous guy like Edward. To my horror, tears filled my eyes at the sting of rejection, but I warded them off as I threw my hair into a messy bun on top of my head and wiped off all traces of makeup, taking care to not press too hard on my eye and nose. I unzipped my dress and stepped out of it, throwing on my old, baggy sweats and a tank top. It was a little past midnight and I was exhausted. I turned off the lights and crawled into bed, willing myself to sleep so I could forget about the long and disappointing day.
A pounding at the door startled me awake. I sat up in bed and glanced at the clock on my bedside table, the glowing lights reading 1:47. I got out of bed and tip toed over to my purse, rifling through it to try and find my pepper spray. Once I felt the tip of it, I opened my bedroom door and jumped a mile as another knock sounded. I crept slowly toward the front door and looked through the peephole. I choked down a deep breath and jumped back when I saw Edward's face through the little hole.
"Bella, are you there?" He called out. I looked through the peephole again and saw that Edward his hands on either side of the doorframe and was leaning with his head down. I debated for a moment on whether or not I should answer him. On one hand, I didn't care why or how he was there, I never wanted to see him again. On the other side, I was seriously curious as to why he was there and what exactly he wanted to say to me. I debated a moment longer until my curiosity won out.
"What do you want, Edward?" I asked with my eye pressed to the peephole, watching as his head snapped up at my voice.
"I came to apologize. I think you misunderstood what I said and I want to explain," he pleaded, "Can I come in?" I sighed.
"I don't think so. It's late and I'm tired." I said slowly as I watched his face fall in disappointment.
"Bella, please. I really like you and I want a chance to get to know you better." I pressed my forehead against the door and considered it for a moment. He sounded so sincere. Plus, I really wanted to know how he got my address. I flipped the light switch next to me, illuminating the small living room and unlocked the dead bolt, slowly opening the door. I peaked out and saw his eyes shoot up to meet mine.
"I'm just warning you, any funny business and I'll take you out. I've got pepper spray," I said, trying to sound menacing.
His lips twitched as he said, "No funny business, I promise."
I stepped aside to let him through the door, against my better judgment. After closing the door behind him, I tugged nervously on my tank top as he surveyed the room. He was quiet for a few moments before his eyes finally made their way back to mine.
"Look, maybe you should just go h-" I started before he cut me off. His eyes were so sincere and caring.
"Bella, I was the one that wanted to come over to your table first," Edward interrupted as he stared intently at me. I pondered his words for a few moments and came up with two possibilities. One was that he wanted to come over because he wanted to talk to me. The other was that he wanted to talk to Rosalie. Honestly, there wasn't any question as to which it was. I was quiet a moment before I finally responded, trying my best to keep the hurt out of my tone.
"Well, I think you've missed your opportunity because Rose seemed quite enamored with Emmett." Before I was even finished with my sentence, Edward was shaking his head and pleading with his eyes.
"No, you don't get it. Bella, I wanted to come to the table to talk with you, not Rosalie. From the very second you walked into the bar, I couldn't take my eyes off of you. You were so damn sexy, laughing with your friends, just completely oblivious to the fact that every guy in the place was staring at you. And don't you dare say they were staring at Rosalie. They were staring at you too," he said passionately.
My heart was doing funny things in my chest, but my head was still a little apprehensive, especially after his comment earlier. "I don't understand then. Why did Emmett have to drag you over to our table then?" A sheepish expression crossed his face as his hand came up to run through his hair.
"In case you didn't pick up on this at the bar, I'm kind of socially awkward. I was a total nerd in high school and it wasn't until college that I even had a girlfriend. I'm not exactly outgoing either," he said shyly. "I was too much of a chicken shit to come talk to you so Emmett had to literally drag me over to your table. I was too embarrassed. And besides, you're about 50 times out of my league."
All throughout his explanation, I could feel my cheeks getting redder and redder. My heart was also beating faster and my mouth was gaping at his confession. By the time he finished, I was racking my brain, trying to come up with a response.
"So, you like me," I questioned, requiring some clarification.
"Yes, Bella, I really, really like you." Before he could say anything else, I practically launched myself into his arms. He stumbled back a bit with a surprised grunt but latched his strong arms around my back and pulled my face to his. As our lips met, my heart beat wildly out of control and my mind was singing hallelujahs. Our mouths moved as one and our bodies molded together perfectly, like we were made for each other. Without breaking the kiss or his hold on me, Edward carefully walked over to the couch and sat us both down. Eventually, we slowed down and trailed off with gentle kisses. As we both pulled back, a lazy, satiated smile spread over Edward's face, no doubt mirroring the one on my own.
"I'm really glad I came after you," he said with a smirk as he pulled me off his lap and set me down next to him. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders as I snuggled into his side.
"Me too," I murmured in agreement. A second later, a thought popped into my head and I sat up abruptly. "How exactly did you know where I live?" Again, his hand went to his hair. Must be a nervous habit.
"I, uh, kinda weaseled it out of Rose after she ripped me a new one and nearly castrated me. I explained what happened and she took pity on me." I nodded.
"Gotcha. Well, as long as you didn't stalk me or something," I said as I leaned back into him.
"Nah, that doesn't come until date two," he said with a smirk. With that, we resumed our previous make-out session with renewed force and didn't surface until morning.