Chapter Two-
Edward Cullen
"Only if I can first," I said with a sad little smile. I felt the cushions next to me press down as she sat. She was fairly close, and I could feel the heat roll off her body.
"Why do you need to apologize? I was the one that offended you," she said sadly and a bit confused.
"I've been this way all my life. I should be used to it. You didn't know. I was being a jerk, and for that, I apologize."
"I accept your apology on one condition," her voice changed, becoming softer and sweeter.
"What is that?" I tilted my head to the side, closer to her.
"You accept mine," she laughed a little. I smiled at the sound. It was lovely.
"Yes, of course. I'm Edward, by the way." I put my hand out so she could take it if she wanted. She didn't know but, this meant more to me than just words. You could learn so much from someone's hands.
Her tiny cool hand slipped into mine slowly. She gripped it tightly, showing no signs of shyness or nervousness. I brought my other hand to rest on top of her own carefully. I dragged my fingers delicately over the top, down to her fingertips. Her fingers were long and slender. Her nails were rather short and didn't have polish on them from the feel of them. She must have chewed her nails, the edges ragged.
"I'm Bella," she said, leaning into me a little bit. Her breath brushed against my face, and I smiled involuntarily. It was pleasantly sweet.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Bella," I said a bit formally. Her hand continued to rest in my palm. There was a strange kind of heat brewing between us.
"It's nice to meet you, too," she said over the music. "You're not from here, are you?"
"Is it that obvious?" I laughed, slowly pulling my hand back to rest on my leg.
"Well, you don't have a southern accent. Plus, you don't seem to be part of any other group either," she said, and I could tell I had surprised her a bit as I leaned more deeply into her. She didn't seem to pull away, though. That was a good sign.
"I'm from Chicago. You're not from here either, are you?" I asked gently. My face turned toward hers so I could hear her better.
"Nope, I'm from..."
"Wait... let me guess," I bit my lip for a minute, scrunching up my nose in playful thought. "You have only a slight southern accent. Not nearly as bad as my Texan roommate. Has a bit of a Spanish influence flung in there, maybe? Let's see... New Mexico?"
She laughed, "so close, Arizona. Very good." She patted my knee lightly just once. I felt her relax against the back of the couch. I allowed myself to do so as well.
"What's your major?" She asked politely. Her voice was still light, and I enjoyed hearing it. I kicked myself mentally for being rude to her earlier over and over again. She had been coming to flirt with me. Idiot.
"Music. I play the piano. I want to do it professionally one day," I shrugged, a motion that came naturally when I was nervous. "I just enjoy it. There isn't much else I can do anyway, I don't think."
"Don't say that! I'm sure there is way more you can do than you think. You could do almost anything you wanted, I bet," she said it with such conviction that I almost believed her.
I shrugged again, changing the subject back to the original. "What's your major?"
"English. I want to be a writer," she said, and I could tell she was embarrassed about it for some reason.
"I love to read," I rather absently.
"Really?"
I laughed at her surprise, "you know, I can read. I read a lot actually. Braille, Audiobooks, and all that. I don't like TV much. It just sounds like..."
"Noise," she finished the sentence for me. I smiled and nodded my head. I hope she saw it.
"So, who dragged you to this little get-together?" I asked a bit sarcastically.
She giggled, and it actually warmed my heart. "Well, I kind of live here. Just moved in last week. This is Alice's thing. What about you?"
"Jasper per order of Alice. He's my roommate. I just moved here last week as well."
"We seem to have a lot in common."
"It does seem that way." I smiled a little more. I don't know why but, I blushed. I felt the heat rush to my cheeks. "Would you like a drink?" I asked. What the hell am I thinking? I asked myself. I couldn't get her a drink. I would run into someone or something, or the most likely thing was I would spill it on her.
"Sure. Hey, why don't I get it and then we can go out onto the porch? It's getting a bit too loud in here for me." She touched my knee again. "What would you like?"
"I'd like a water, please," I replied. I tried very hard not to shift my leg. Her touch sent an electric bolt through my body.
"Okay, I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere." She used the hand on my knee to push herself upwards. The places where her fingertips pressed into me tingled and burned wildly. When I couldn't hear her footsteps anymore, I rubbed the spot with the palm of my hand. I took a deep breath. What the hell am I doing?
Bella Swan
The second his hand touched mine, I felt like I was on fire. I swallowed hard and blushed a shade of red that I was very excited he didn't see. I couldn't bring myself to pull away, and he didn't for a long time. It almost felt like he was doing something indecent to my hand, the way he touched it. It was strange, and I loved it.
His face and body language were much different from earlier in the afternoon. I was so proud of myself for not giving in to my weaker self when I saw him sitting on the couch. I did want him to know I was sorry for earlier. I was surprised when he apologized first. I didn't expect that.
I rushed to the kitchen. Three different coolers were arranged in different positions. I pulled out a sprite for me and bottled water for him, shaking the water and ice off of it. I found it quicker than I had expected. I waited a minute to cool my nerves.
"Are you okay?" Alice took my arm, surprising me.
"Yeah. I'm just... I don't know. Nervous, I guess?" It sounded more like a question than a statement.
"Well, I saw you sitting over there with Edward. He's totally hot!" She bounced up and down, smiling wildly.
"Yeah. Exactly, he's the totally hot guy I made an ass of myself to earlier," I grumbled.
"Oh. That makes sense! Well, he's seemed to warm up to you now. Go get him, tiger!" She swatted my behind as she walked off. I laughed, shocked by what she had done. I wondered how many drinks she had already that night. I didn't care how hungover she was, she was cleaning up after the party in the morning.
I debated whether or not to just hand them the drink or to warn him first. I stood in front of him a second, weighing my options. I bit my lip as I considered.
"Bella, do you need help or something?" He said with a little laugh. I jumped a little.
"How did you do that?" I asked as I closed my gaping mouth.
"Everyone has a certain sound they make when they walk. Plus, I knew your smell from before."
"Gee, do I need to shower that badly?" I muttered. I placed the water against his palm, and he gripped it tightly. He slowly unscrewed the cap, chewing something over.
"No. You smell like strawberries and a bit like books. I think it's lovely."
My face burned with his words. Was he just complimenting me? Was he flirting? It was probably just my overactive imagination. I slowly and carefully took his hand.
"Come on, let's go to the porch. Unless you want me to leave you alone?"
"No. It's getting too warm in here for me." He stood and slid his folded up thin metal cane in his back pocket. His face was mere inches from mine. He was taller than me by several inches and it the difference made me feel like a child staring up at an adult. He was gorgeous and my breath caught in my throat. He noticed, much to my embarrassment. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. You're right. It's too hot." I carefully took his hand again and led him through the small sea of people. I opened the door to the backyard and was relieved to find it somehow empty. I flicked on the light then turned to Edward. "Careful, there is a small step. I'm going to lead you over to a chair. Is that's alright?"
His grip tightening on me as he stepped down. He seemed oddly graceful.
"That's fine," he answered. When the chair hit the back of his knees, he sat. I stopped, staring at him for a moment. I realized what I was doing and that I was still holding his hand. I fumbled back and overcorrected, falling directly into Edward with a thud. The water from his open bottle splashed up and covered my face and chest, sprinkling him as well.
"I am so sorry," I muttered. I tried to stand up only to realize that his hands were gripping my back.
"Are you okay?" Concerned colored his tone, his hands still holding me tightly. They felt warm and inviting there. I loved it. I didn't want him to let go ever.
"I'm klutzy. I tend to fall a lot," I said sheepishly.
"You should be more careful. I don't want you to hurt yourself," he said with a small smile. His hands slowly dragged off my back, and I missed them instantly. I carefully stood, wiping my face with my hands. I had effectively shaken up my unopened soda that now sat on the ground.
Edward Cullen
It shocked me when she landed in my lap. She jerked so suddenly from my hand that I think she tripped over herself. I wondered why she pulled away so quickly but, I wasn't against her being on my lap. My hands automatically went around her, trying to keep her from falling further.
"Are you okay?" I asked after she apologized. I hope she didn't see how much I enjoyed feeling her against me.
"I'm klutzy. I tend to fall a lot," her voice was soft, embarrassed.
"You should be more careful. I don't want you to hurt yourself," I told her honestly. Slowly, I let my hands slip from her back to my knees. I had lost my water somewhere along the way. Bella lifted off of me carefully. I missed her pleasant weight but, I wasn't going to say that out loud.
I heard her groan and the scrapping of something. There was a low hiss and then the cracking of plastic. Bella sighed, setting something on some sort of table nearby.
"If it makes you feel better, I fall a lot, too," I joked.
She giggled for a second before stopping herself, "yes, but I'm pretty sure I'm worse."
"Are you so sure about that?" I smirked, relaxing against the seat completely.
The door opened behind us with a loud creak.
"Hey Edward, I've got some stuff I got to do so I was going to head back. Would you like a ride?" Jasper asked from the doorway.
I sighed and slowly nodded. I stood, pulling my folded cane from my back pocket. "It was a pleasure talking to you, Bella."
"It was a pleasure," she said softly. I couldn't understand the tone of her voice, and it bothered me.
"Goodbye, Bella," I repeated her name like it would make her spill what she was thinking from the contents of her mind.
"Bye. Maybe We'll get to see more of each other soon," she said in a quick rush like she was ripping off a band-aid and it would hurt less if she did.
"In a manner of speaking. Yes, I'd like to see you again," I joked again, and I heard another small giggle. I smiled in the direction of her voice before moving towards the door. Jasper took my arm.
We were silent until he helped me back into his truck. I leaned my head against the glass and took a deep breath.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine," I commented with a sigh.
"Are you going to ask Bella out?" The truck began moving forward slowly, going to the short distance to our dorm.
"I don't know. Probably not. Why?" I asked, confused. I lifted my head from the glass and turned my face in the direction of his voice.
"Well, you may not be able to see the look on her face but, I did. She likes you," he said with a little laugh.
I was surprised that he could talk about my disability so freely, even joke about it. It was a nice change from the overly politically correct.
I snorted, smiling at what he said. "Really?"
"Yeah. Do you like her?"
I thought on it a second before I answered, "yeah, I do."
"Then ask her out," he said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"That's easier said than done," I replied rather quickly, dismissing the idea of trapping someone with my inabilities. Any women that would want me would deserve more.
"And, why is that?" The truck stopped, and I heard the keys rattled with the sudden change but, Jasper didn't seem to move.
"I just don't think that-"
He cut me off, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Dude, really? You just said you like her. Alice likes her. She's a great girl from what I see. She's smart and actually able to hold up a conversation. Plus, she's hot."
"My point exactly," I laughed at his statement, thinking on the last part. "She's hot?"
"Ah huh. Real hot."
"Maybe I will ask her out. I don't know." I shrugged my shoulders. I felt the seat next to me shake, and then low laughter filled the cab. "What?"
"You know, for a blind guy you're still pretty shallow," he chortled.
"Shut up," I laughed with him. I rubbed my hand over my mouth then adjusted my glasses. "It doesn't honestly make a difference, I guess."
"Yeah, but you still got a little too excited when I said she was hot," he opened the door, and I followed suit. I carefully climbed down from the cab. Jasper's hand rested on my shoulder, guiding me back to the dorm. "Don't worry, that just means you're normal."
"If only that were true."
Thanks for reading!