Pen name: Yesyov
Rating: M
Pairing: E & B
Title: The Ties That Bind – Bella's night out
This one shot was written as part of MSKathy's fundraising initiative for the victims of the disaster in Haiti.
It covers the hours leading up to that fateful night - when Edward and Bella first meet – Bella as a teenager, Edward as a 21 year old.
A few people have wondered why Bella acted so out of character on that particular night. I hope this goes a long way to explaining her actions that night and maybe, while providing you with some answers, will lead you to ask even more questions bout our leading lady and gentleman.
Bella's night out.
Early June, 1987
"So, Bella...are you coming or what?"
Bella stood against the doorframe of the bathroom of their shared hotel room. It was the last night of their end of school vacation. Bella, Lauren and Angela had been away for six days. Tomorrow they would return home to the small town of Forks, Washington, and for Bella, that meant going back to the life of the Police Chief's daughter. The person everyone in town knew.
Bella had grown up in Forks with her parents, Charlie, the Police Chief, and Reneé – her mother and his wife. Her parents were a case of opposites attracting – high school sweethearts who married young and had Bella while in their early twenties.
Her dad worked long hours and gradually clawed his way through a series of various promotions until he finally reached his goal of being Police Chief. He was Forks born and bred, and loved it.
Reneé was also a local gal. Educated in Forks High School from where Bella had just graduated, she spent most of her young adult years looking after her young daughter before finally taking a job as a kindergarten assistant when Bella went to school.
Charlie and Reneé lived a simple, small town life and were never interested in branching out any farther afield. They loved each other, their home, their friends, and their day-to-day lives; yet, Bella had the sense of wanting something more. It was one of the reasons she had agreed to go on this end of year vacation with some of her friends from school.
Truth be told, Bella was a quiet kid. She had friends – people she hung out with – but her greatest friend was her mind and her imagination. It was a place where she could relax completely; a place that allowed her to travel near and far without ever having to leave her bedroom.
Bella was an avid reader. She loved books, particularly the classics like Jane Austin and the Bronté sisters. Books allowed Bella to experience life outside of her small town community. They opened her mind to what lay beyond the borders of small town life, and she was enthralled by what possibilities awaited her there – if only she could escape the town she grew up in.
Bella was excited by the prospect of college. She had enrolled in Western Washington University in Bellingham, where she was to begin studying towards a teaching degree. She wanted to teach English. She wanted to travel and experience the world; her first step to achieving that goal would be to get her degree. She would then, upon its completion, explore the opportunities waiting for her – preferably as far away from Forks as possible.
It wasn't that Bella didn't love Forks in her own way. Her parents had made them a comfortable home, which was full of mementos. They reflected a life shared with her family throughout the years. For Bella, though, it was a relatively solitary life. She was the only child of only children, and she had no cousins, no big family Thanksgivings and no travelling to meet relatives living interstate. It had always been just the three of them, her grandparents from both sides having passed away by the time she was ten.
"Bella?" Lauren said, waving her hands in front of Bella's face. "Are you coming or what?" she asked again, a little impatiently.
Bella roused herself from her daydream. She wanted to go with Lauren and Angela. She wanted to think she was bold enough and brazen enough to go out clubbing and not worry about the consequences , but her father's ingrained words about underage drinking and personal safely came back to haunt her. Looking at her friends, she shook her head.
"Nah. I think I'll just stay here. I've got packing to do for tomorrow."
"Suit yourself," Lauren said, turning her back on Bella and going over to collect her clutch purse from her single bed.
"Are you sure, Bella? We've all got to pack," Angela asked quietly. She was aware how impatient Lauren was with Bella's anodyne behavior.
"Yeah. You go. Have fun."
"Well, don't wait up for us. We'll be late, or early, whichever way you look at it. Come on Ange, let's go," Lauren said, walking towards the door. Ange, with a small smile at Bella, followed Lauren to the door of their shared room. Lauren stopped before leaving and turned to face Bella once more.
"You know, Bella. One day, you're going to have to grow up and stop being Daddy Police Chief's little girl. It's getting a bit tiresome, you know?" And with that, she swept out the door and into the night with Angela by her side.
Bella sat down heavily on her bed and then flopped onto her back.
What Lauren had said hit home – hard. Bella had spent most of her week away acting like she was still at home. She hadn't gone to any of the bars here at the hotel. She hadn't gone out with Lauren and Angela when they had ventured into town earlier in the week to go clubbing either. She had, she reminded herself proudly, participated when the girls brought beer back to their room a couple of nights ago, but honestly, she had to admit, she didn't really like the flavor. It wasn't the first time she'd had beer; she'd had some at parties before, but she'd never drunk to excess. One beer, two at the most, was all she'd ever consumed.
Being the police chief's daughter, and the person everyone knew in town, meant that Bella couldn't go anywhere local without being recognized. Even in Port Angeles, she usually ran into somebody her father knew, and she was always worried about letting "the team", as he used to refer to their family, down. Bottom line, she was underage in the state of Washington, and even though she was now in California, she was underage here, too. She was literally hundreds of miles away where almost nobody knew her, and yet, she still found it difficult to break the ties that bound her to her father's expectations.
Bella got up from the bed and went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and get ready for bed. She had her book to finish, and now, alone in her room, was as good a time as any.
An hour later, she was only ten pages further along in her book. Her mind kept wandering. She wondered what Lauren and Angela were doing. Where they were; how much fun they were having in her absence. She slammed the book shut in frustration and lay cursing herself and her sensibilities.
"Stuff it," she said aloud into the room and threw back the covers. She went to her nicely ordered suitcase and looked through her clothes. She didn't own any really provocative numbers like Lauren did, but she considered her options. The stonewash denim miniskirt she'd brought with her caught her eye. She pulled it out, along with a red and white thin-striped shirt and a two-inch wide, white leather belt. She had a pair of white pumps with a one and a half inch heel – the highest she owned - in the bottom of her bag. She grabbed those too. Red, white and blue, she smirked to herself. That would have to do. How patriotic.
Bella stripped out of her pajamas and into the outfit. She looked young still – too young. She wondered how she was going to be able to pull this off. She wasn't as voluptuous as Lauren, and Angela's darker features made her seem older than she was. Bella's pale skin, despite a week at the beach in the Californian sun, didn't give off the same illusion.
Make up, Bella thought, and hair. The hair's gotta go up, at least at the front. And the bangs; I can tease them, too. She went to work.
Half an hour later, Bella looked at her reflection in the mirror. Makeup and hair done, she decided this was the best she could do without help from the others.
Walking back into the room, she grabbed her purse from her bedside table and checked her wallet. Lauren had gotten fake IDs for all of them. Her older sister knew somebody who made them for $20. The picture didn't quite look like Bella but it would pass inspection as long as nobody looked too closely. At 18, Bella was three years younger than the legal drinking age for California. Still, she reasoned with herself, she'd be 19 in a couple of months, and despite her nervousness she was determined to make a go of what was left of her too brief holiday.
Lauren's words still rang in her ears. She'd been making slights against Bella most of the week they had been away. Little comments here and there that were just enough to continuously undermine Bella's already shaky confidence.
Not tonight, Bella reminded herself, trying to will herself into a false sense of bravado. And with that, Bella crossed to the door of her room and let herself out into the night.
Bella hadn't been to any of the resort's discos, preferring to not risk detection being underage. That hadn't stopped Lauren and Angela though; they'd been out several times while they'd been away. Really, Bella reasoned to herself as she crossed the resort and headed towards the nightclub, what's the worst that could happen tonight? So, they might find out that she was underage and kick her out tomorrow? She was going home then, anyway.
Taking a deep breath, Bella pulled herself together as pushed open the door to the nightclub. The noise, loud enough outside, was so much louder inside. The smell of cigarette smoke and alcohol hit her in the face, and she wrinkled her nose, adjusting to it.
Taking in her surroundings for the first time, Bella could see the band playing on the elevated stage towards the opposite end of the club. According to the flyers she had seen posted around the resort, it was a cover band. They were currently playing a number by Culture Club. The music was alright, but the song was at odds with the bands appearance – they all had jet black hair, white faces and their lips – was that lipstick? She couldn't really tell from where she was. Bella crossed to the bar and with her best mature voice, ordered herself a beer.
"Sure thing, sweetheart," the bartender drawled, sizing her up. Bella maintained eye contact. She'd seen Lauren do this before, and she was hoping she could pull this off. "You got some ID on you?" he asked her, crinkling his eyes as he looked at her.
"Yeah. Just here," she said, amazed at how confident her voice sounded while she produced the fake ID from her purse and handed it to him.
The bartender looked between Bella and the ID and back again. A smirk pulled at the side of his lips.
"Alright, sweet. What's your poison?" he asked her, handing back the ID card.
"A beer, thanks," Bella repeated.
"Yeah, I heard that. What type?"
"Ah," Bella stumbled. She had absolutely no idea what name of beer to order. She looked across at the people spread around the bar. She caught sight of a Corona being drunk by a guy to her left. She asked for one of those.
"Lime or lemon?" the bartender asked.
Oh god. Just stop with the questions already, she thought.
"Either, I don't mind." Where the hell did that voice come from?
"Go with lemon. I prefer that to the limes."
"Right. Thanks," Bella answered, grateful for the reprieve.
"Be right back," he winked at her before he left to retrieve her drink.
Handing it to her, Bella paid for the beer and then made a hasty exit from the bar.
Well, she said to herself, looking around as she took a swig from her beer. One down, she coaxed.
She strolled around the edges of the dance floor. The music wasn't too bad at all really. She watched the band, looking like she tried to fit in with the other people there. She took another sip of her beer and watched the crowd dance. Being there solo as she was, she lacked the confidence to just go out and join in the dancing. She stood there to the side and continued to drink her beer. Before long, she realized she was nearly at the bottom of it.
Hell, that went down quick, she thought looking at the near empty bottle; however, she didn't have to contemplate it for too much longer because she was soon approached by a guy she'd seen over by the bar a little earlier.
"You here alone tonight, are ya?" he asked.
"Ah, no," Bella replied. My friends are out there dancing. I just wanted to finish my beer, first," she continued loudly over the noise of the music while tilting her almost empty Corona in his direction.
"Looks like I've come in at the right time then," he yelled back. "Want to hit the dance floor with me?"
"Ah, OK?" she replied timidly, nodding her head at the same time but looking less than confident.
"Sweet!" he said a little too enthusiastically. "Let's go." He grabbed her hand and pulled her with him towards the dance floor.
"Ah, hang on," Bella yelled, pulling back on his arm. "My purse," Bella said, indicating her bag.
"Give it to me. I'll put it over by the bar."
Not knowing the protocol for such things, Bella handed over her handbag, and as soon as he'd disappeared with it, she regretted her decision. She watched him cross over to the bar and give it to the bartender – the same one Bella had spoken to earlier. He looked up and Bella waved to him from across the room. He smiled back at her and winked before taking the bag and placing it, from what Bella could tell, under the bar. She smiled back at him in thanks. Her dance partner then crossed the room back towards her.
"Taken care of," he said, without preamble. "Let's dance," he said taking her hand again. "I'm Callum," he said loudly.
"Bella," she shouted back at him in response.
He nodded his head as they reached the center of the floor and began to move with the music. Bella didn't really dance. She could move and bounce around a bit, but that was about the extent of her dancing ability. She was inconspicuous on the dance floor. Callum, on the other hand, was not.
He began waving his arms around and jumping up and down. Bella watched him dance and began to think that he might actually take off if he wasn't careful. She looked around quickly as they danced. Callum's unusual style wasn't going unnoticed. A small space had cleared around them on the dance floor, and Bella dropped her gaze, wishing the now obvious circle she was dancing within would open up like a black hole and shoot her out to a far distant realm of the universe and away from her dance partner.
Wanting to look anywhere other than at him, Bella glanced up towards the band, and caught the eyes of one of the band's guitarists who smirked at her before turning his gaze elsewhere.
"Great," she said aloud.
"What was that?" Callum shouted back at her.
"Nothing," Bella mouthed back in response.
Callum just nodded his head and continued to do his best impression of a helicopter.
Good grief, how long does this blasted song go for? she lamented.
Bella looked back to the band again. The guitarist was watching her.
"Oh, just let me die," she mumbled and she looked away.
"Yeah, it is a great night," Callum yelled back at her, completely misunderstanding what she'd said, a big goofy smile on his face.
"Yeah. Woo-hoo!" Bella said with false enthusiasm.
She turned her back on him and watched the band as they played. The guitarist, the one who had been looking at her, was playing some kind of dueling guitar thing with a fellow band member. She watched him intently. He looked like he was really good. His fingers moved over the strings quickly, and his hand slid up and down the neck of the guitar with ease and confidence. He was tall, she noted, and really, despite the hair and makeup, she thought he looked good. He had long fingers. She noticed those as he played.
The song ended and the dancers clapped appropriately.
"That's it for this session, folks. We're taking a 20 minute break. We'll be back soon," the lead singer announced, and automatically, the nightclub's recorded music took over as people clapped again before resuming their dancing.
"Wanna dance some more?" Callum yelled in her ear, making Bella jump.
"Ah, actually. I'm going to visit the ladies room," Bella said. It was the first excuse she could come up with.
"Oh, well. I'll walk you there."
"Ah. No…it's alright. I can make it on my own."
"Well, I'll see you when you get back."
"Yeah, great!" Bella said, her voice sounding much less than enthusiastic.
"Alright, then. See you in a minute."
Not if I can help it, Bella thought to herself as she made her way off the dance floor.
She headed over towards the bar to retrieve her bag. While she waited patiently for the bartender to notice her, she felt somebody sidle up beside her.
Oh good grief, she thought turning her head ready to tell Callum that she thought she'd be calling it a night.
To her surprise, it was the guitarist from the band who stood next to her.
"Interesting dance partner you've got yourself there," he said.
"Ah. He's not my dance partner. He's just…," she let her voice tail off.
"A moving disaster?" he finished for her.
Bella laughed, "Something like that. I was watching you play. You're good," she said, looking for something to say. Holy cow, look at his eyes, she thought. They're green as…
"Thanks. I was watching you, too. Bit hard not to, really. Are you getting a beer?"
"My bag is behind the bar. I wanted to get it."
"Why, you're not leaving now are you?" he asked. "We've got another whole set to play yet."
Bella shrugged.
"If I buy you a drink, will you stay Brown Eyes?" he asked her, looking at her intently.
Bella weighed her options. Back to my room alone, or a drink with Master Green Eyes over here. Live a little, Bella.
"Sure."
"What will you have?"
"A Corona with lemon," Bella answered confidently, glad for her earlier experience at the bar.
"Right. Joe!" Mr Green Eyes called from his place. "Two Corona's."
"Coming right up!" the bartender, Bella now knew to be Joe, called back from his spot while pouring two beers from the tap located behind the bar. He looked up to smile at Mr Green Eyes before making eye contact with Bella, and giving her his third wink of the night.
What's with all the winking, Bella thought as she smiled back at him.
"So, what's your name, Princess," Mr Green Eyes asked her as they waited for their drinks.
"Bella. Yours?"
"Eddie."
Bella nodded. She had no idea what else to say.
"I haven't seen you in here before," Eddie said, making conversation, leaning into her so he could be heard over the noise. "You just started your holiday?"
"Just about to finish it actually," Bella replied. God he smells good, she thought.
"Finish?" he questioned.
Again, Bella just smiled and shrugged.
"Well, I'm glad you came here tonight, then. Thanks, Joe," he said, looking up towards the bartender as he passed over their beers. "Add it to my tab."
"Sure thing, Eddie."
"You have a tab here?" Bella asked curiously.
"Yeah. It's easier than having to carry money with me when I play. I fix it up at the end of the night."
"Right."
"So, where you from?" Eddie asked.
"Up north." Bella didn't, not elaborating further.
"Canada?"
"Not that far north," she said, being deliberately vague. "You?"
"Around here," he answered, also vaguely.
"Have you been playing for long?"
"We've had the band for a couple of years, since we started college together. Where do you go to school?" he asked her.
"Near home."
"You don't elaborate much do you Brown Eyes?"
"It's not real interesting."
"I doubt that."
Again, Bella just shrugged.
"So, your dancing style doesn't exactly match your partner's."
"He's not my partner," Bella said again, slowly this time.
"That's good to know," Eddie said with a wink. "Drink up; I've got to be back on stage in five."
"Right," she said, taking a swig.
"So, if you're going home tomorrow, where have you been partying since you've not been here before?"
He was leaning into her, and Bella could feel his breath against her neck as he spoke. She could also smell beer on his breath, something she didn't notice the first time. In fact, she could smell beer and cigarettes.
"Do you smoke?" she asked him.
"Yeah. Don't you?"
"Not often."
"Do you want one?" he asked her, reaching into his top pocket to produce a packet.
Bella looked at the smokes and then into his eyes that challenging her with just one look.
"Sure. Why not?" she replied, hoping she wouldn't embarrass the hell out of herself on her first puff.
He held out the packet towards her, and she tentatively took one from it. He, in turn, took one for himself before putting the packet back in his pocket. Then he did the darndest thing. He reached for her hand and took the cigarette from her. He put both cigarettes in his mouth before reaching into his pocket again to retrieve a lighter. He lit both cigarettes and puffed away while he replaced the lighter before taking one from his mouth and offering it back to her.
She looked from him to the cigarette and reached up tentatively to take it from him. Her fingers touched his, and a little gasp left her lips as she felt a jolt run through her fingers and up her arm. Her eyes widened in response and she looked to him only to see him smiling down at her.
"You're welcome," he said before taking a long slow drag on his cigarette.
I wonder if he'll notice if I don't actually smoke it, Bella thought as she put it to her lips.
"Don't worry, Princess," he said, watching her closely. "I won't tell."
"I don't smoke all that often," she said, apologizing.
"You look fine, though. Really," he said, winking at her. "Will you stay 'til the end of the next set?"
"Why?"
"Well, a group of us usually stay back afterwards. Joe here keeps the bar open for us for a little while afterwards. I thought you might join me and the guys."
"Will I be the only girl?"
"Nah. There are usually a few who like to hang around afterwards."
Bella tried to take a drag on her cigarette. She coughed and spluttered.
"At least stay long enough for me to buy you another drink, Brown Eyes. I'd like to, if you'd like to, that is."
Go on, Bella, bite the bullet.
"Sure. Why not?" she said.
"Great. Joe," he said, calling out.
"Yo!" Joe said, looking up.
"Get Brown Eyes here another beer will ya? She's gonna stay back at the end, too."
"Will do, Eddie," Joe said, winking.
"What is it with all the winking?" Bella asked aloud this time.
"He's always got his hands full, pulling beers," Eddie responded. Bella hadn't realized he'd heard her over the music.
"Oh, that makes sense."
"See you at the end of the set, Brown Eyes," Eddie said leaning and whispering into her ear. "I'll be looking for you on the dance floor."
"Don't. I think I'll sit out for a while. Just listen to the music."
"That would be a pity, but I'll keep a look out anyways."
"Why?" she asked turning to look at him.
"Cause I like the way you move."
Eddie returned to the stage with the rest of his band. Bella watched him from her position by the bar. She expected him to pick up his guitar, but this time, he moved to behind the keyboards – there were two of them; one perpendicular to the other. The band readied themselves as the last recorded track played through the nightclub's speakers. As soon as its final chords played out, the band kicked into gear with a heart thumping version of Elton John's Benny and the Jets.
Bella watched Eddie as he played. Every once in a while, he would look up from his keyboards and over to where she was, still perched by the bar. He would smile at her before he returned to his music. The crowd loved them. Most of the nightclub was alive with dancing. It was noisy. It was smoky. It was surreal – in Bella's experience anyway.
This is much better than being stuck in my hotel room, Bella mused. And I bet ya Lauren isn't going to have drinks with a guitar-strumming, keyboard-playing band guy tonight.
Bella took another swig from her third Corona of the evening. She was feeling a little light-headed, but not in a bad way. She just felt relaxed and carefree. So, tonight's turning out not to be so bad after all.
Little did she know that the choices she would make this night would change the rest of her life.