Chapter Two

I slashed your tires…

Given the heavy chill in the air, Bella was surprised when Paul led her to the docks overlooking the ocean just a few blocks from the campus. His heavy leather jacket hung past the tips of her fingers, keeping her upper body warm against the abrasive wind. Glancing at the man nearly twice her size, Bella couldn't help but wonder how he wasn't cold in his simple black v-neck t-shirt. She knew that the polite thing to do would be to offer him his jacket back, but she was cold. Rubbing her fingers along the outside of the cracked sleeves, Bella let her feet swing a bit from the edge of the dock, her shined heels neatly at her side. Paul hadn't tried to speak to her since they arrived, choosing instead to stare out into the endless blue of the ocean, the stars and low city lights creating luminous ripples that seemingly disappeared over the horizon. The silence probably should have made her feel awkward, even if it was what she had asked for, but it was… comfortable. After the first ten minutes, she had nearly forgotten what had drove her here in the first place. As damning as the evidence was, Bella decided to give Edward a chance to explain himself. After all, they had been together for too long for her to just end things, especially because before tonight, she had never had reason to doubt his loyalty to her.

"You're not supposed to be thinking that hard out here." Paul's deep rumble pulled her from her thoughts. Blinking back into the moment, Bella's brain all but shut down as she met those deep onyx pools. "This is a place to not think." He offered when she didn't say anything. The way his lips quirked into a nearly teasing smirk made Bella think he knew exactly why her tongue had deserted her.

"It's hard not to think. The only time I ever really forget about the real world is when I'm reading." She offered, turning her gaze back towards the ocean. The first hints of daylight were beginning to creep over the horizon, lightening the sky the slightest bit. "I'm an English major." She offered. The topic might have been cliché, but it was the best way to get to know someone on campus.

"Ah, the paperweight degree." Paul teased. When Bella's narrowed eyes met his amused expression, he held his hands up in mock defense. "Hey, I'm right there with you. I'm majoring in art." Bella felt the annoyance drain from her body as Paul leaned back to rest on his elbows.

"You any good?" She asked with a tilt of her head, meticulously curled ringlets falling over the raised collar of his jacket.

"Good enough. Better than some, worse than the greats." He gave her a crooked smile. "I've gotta paint a portrait for my final, and Professor Kesh is sick of seeing my asshole friends." His eyes moved over her face again – reminding her body how hot it had felt the first time he had done that just hours earlier. Suddenly, the heat inside his jacket was almost too much. Pushing the sleeves up to her elbows, Bella allowed her back to lay flat against the dock. "You should let me paint you."

Bella turned her head to find his face only a foot away from her own, no hint of teasing in his words. Why would he want to paint her? She was… unremarkable. Men painted pictures of beautiful women – women that inspired the psyche and sparked debates. "You want to paint me?" She asked a bit skeptically.

"Yeah. You have great bone structure." He offered as he looked back towards the lightening sky. "And your eyes are… complex."

Bella snorted as her complex eyes traced Orion's Belt before seeking out the Little Dipper. "Brown is the most boring eye color on the planet. You should want to paint someone like Rosalie Hale. Her eyes are like sapphires." Which was probably why Edward was so quick to jump ship…

"Surface beauty is just that – surface." His voice took on a grizzly tone, like the subject upset him personally, though Bella didn't understand why. Paul was one of them. One of the beautiful people that probably thought it was normal to get hand outs and compliments on a daily basis. "If you want to see someone's true soul – their true worth, you have to look into their eyes. A simple glance can tell you their entire story if you just know how to see it."

Bella's head had lulled to the side as he spoke, her gaze tracing the slope of his crooked nose and the fullness of his lips, stopping at the stubble that line his angular jaw before those fathomless black eyes caught her own. Bella didn't want to see Paul's soul – she realized as her breathing grew shallow. The way he spoke, and the way he seemed to affect her without trying was dangerous enough. Part of Bella knew that for every layer of Paul that she uncovered, she would become more and more intrigued, and that could not happen. She had Edward, and Paul wasn't the type of guy that liked girls like Bella.

"So…" His voice was a near whisper, heavy lids nearly breaking the spell his eyes seemed to have on her. "Will you let me paint you? I need to pass this final." He pushed lightly, though Bella was already leaning towards a yes.

"As long as you're not an inspiring Picasso."

He laughed deeply as he moved fluidly to his feet, as if gravity didn't affect him. Reaching down, he offered her a hand up, his fingers lingering on hers just a moment longer than necessary as she gained her footing with far less grace than he had. "More of a Monet." Thinking of what her face would look like skewed in splotchy water colors and no decisive lines made Bella frown. "Relax, Bella. I was kidding. I like realism. I think that human's possess enough character on their own. No need to skew reality."

As the sun broke the horizon, they turned their backs on the ocean, Bella slipping on her heels before following Paul down the rickety old pier and back towards the sorority house. She listened as Paul spoke of his favorite artists with a vigor she didn't know he was capable of, smiling lightly as his eyes lit up. It was always nice to watch people speak of their passions. It brought a light to being that nothing else could. As they reached her sorority house, Bella felt an odd twinge of disappointment that their time together would be ending, but it wouldn't be the last time she saw him. She had agreed to go to his flat the next day so he could begin painting her. Apparently, it would take a bit of time and Paul had put it off for weeks.

"Thank you, Paul." Bella smiled lightly as they stopped on the sidewalk outside the sorority house. The sisters must have cleaned before going to bed, because the yard was as clean and neat as it had been the previous morning. She knew that if a professor found out about the party, they would all be at risk, so she was glad that any evidence was long gone. "You actually made me forget why I was upset." She reached for the lapel of his jacket when his hot hand covered her own to stop the movement.

"Keep it." He offered. As she opened her mouth to protest, he shook his head. "Just until tomorrow so that I know you'll show." He teased with that heartbreaking smile, his hands slipping easily into the worn denim pockets of his jeans. "Besides, it gives me an excuse to see you again." His smile grew at her baffled expression, and before she could recover, he was walking back the way they had come, his long strides carrying him out of earshot before her brain started working again.

Bella had managed to grab food, nap, and sneak out of the sorority house without running into any of her sisters who were undoubtedly sleeping off the party. She had hung Paul's jacket in her closet, caressing the smooth leather before slipping on one of her own. Part of her – the petty part that could only picture Rosalie's smirking face – wanted to wear it to see Edward. Sure, nothing had happened, but she wanted to plant the seed of doubt in his mind. It was a childish thought, one the logical part of her mind overcame. She wasn't surprised to find nearly a dozen missed calls from Edward, and more texts than she could count when her phone was finally powered on. She simply sent him a text that she was on her way. There was no sense in working herself up until they were face to face. Besides, she had promised herself that she would hear him out.

Her heels were white today, accented with tiny black bows that matched the ones that decorated her dress. The faux fur of her coat wasn't nearly as warm as the real leather of Paul's jacket, but it did the job. Her mother had raised her with the belief that to be pretty, one had to make sacrifices. Sure, there were times Bella would prefer just to wear jeans and an old t-shirt (not that she owned either), but she would hear Renee's voice in the back of her mind. You're going out in that? What if you run into someone important? And all hope was lost.

The door to Edward's frat house swung open before she could even knock, his familiar arms wrapped around her middle. "Bella…" He breathed her name as he buried his face in her neck. It was hard to be mad at him when he so openly showed her affection. "I'm so glad you came over. Please… let me explain."

Bella sighed, beating back the small voice in her head that sounded an awful lot like Paul's. "You better explain, Edward Cullen." She frowned and crossed her arms as he pulled away to lead her inside. She sat on the couch, the living room oddly free of bodies. She wondered if Edward had cleared out his brothers.

"Bella, you know how rumors spread at parties like that." He took her hand and she resisted the urge to snatch it away. For all she knew, it could have been just a rumor. "When I went upstairs, I was just trying to get away from the crowd. Everyone saw what happened between me and that gangbanger, and they were jumping to horrible conclusions. Rosalie found me and tried to kiss me. I had just pushed her away when Emmett walked in."

She wanted to believe him. Every word he spoke soothed the ache in her chest that the previous night had caused. Still, Paul's words echoed in her mind 'I was there when your supposed boyfriend flew out of the house half naked with the slutty blonde'. Taking a deep breath, Bella met Edward's eyes. "Someone said you were half naked when you left."

Edward scoffed, shaking his head and breaking the eye contact they held. "Another rumor. You know I take my vow of chastity very seriously, Bella." She should have believed him, but Paul hadn't given her a reason to doubt him. One thing was clear, and that was that she and Edward needed to get on the same page. "Please, love… you have to believe me."

"I want to believe you, Edward." She breathed as his hand tightened around her own. "But if we're going to continue seeing each other, we need to learn to trust each other. None of this would have ever happened if you hadn't gotten so needlessly jealous and stormed off."

He had the good sense to look ashamed. "You're right." He nodded with a tight smile. "You're always right. I will try to work on that. I know it can't be easy, but I worry sometimes that my vows – the promise I made to my father and God… puts strain on our relationship."

He always had a way of making her feel like the bad guy – like some perv that was simply trying to turn him against his faith. Plenty of happy couples waited until they were married to have sex. Edward's parents had waited, and they were happier than most people. "Paul isn't a bad guy." She sighed as he tensed. "He found me alone after you left and took care of me. He didn't make any passes or say anything torrid. He was just being nice. In return, I offered to let him paint me for his final piece in art class." It was close enough to the truth, at least.

She could see the way Edward's jaw tightened and the way his golden eyes narrowed, but after a moment, he let out a slow sigh through his nose. "Well, I'm happy you were taken care of. If you want to be friends with this… Paul, I can't say I approve, but it's your choice to make." He offered tightly. "You know what they're saying though, don't you? About him and his friends?"

"Weren't you just the one advocating not to listen to rumors?" Bella quipped with a raised brow.

After a moment, Edward chuckled with a nod. "Fair point. So… still love me?" He asked with big eyes – eyes that always did Bella in.

"Of course I do, Edward. I'll always love you." She smiled as he pulled her into his arms, placing a chaste kiss on her lips.

"And I you." His thumb ran over her knuckles as they both glanced to their intertwined hands. "One day, Bella, I'm going to marry you. You will be Isabella Cullen, and we will have the perfect life." Perfect. The word should have made Bella's heart sore. After all, she had strived for perfect her whole life, and Edward Cullen was perfect. "You look lovely today, by the way." He offered as he swept her curl behind one ear. "You're still wearing the pearls I gave you for your birthday."

She smiled lightly as her hand went to her earlobe. They caught in her hair and stabbed her skin when she slept, but it made Edward happy to see her wear them. "My mother tried to steal them last time I went home, but I managed to stop her."

He chuckled and kissed her brow. "I'll have to send her a pair for Christmas. Are you sure you won't come home with me during the break?" He pleaded for what must have been the hundredth time.

"I really want to see my parents. I'm their only child, and it's rough on them having me away for so long. You're going to come stay with us for a few days before we drive back here though, right?"

"Of course." He purred as his thumb ran over her jawline. "I love Renee… and Charlie at times." He joked lightly. "And I wouldn't miss an opportunity to see you."

It was amazing how easily they could slip back into some semblance of normalcy – as if the previous night never happened. For all Bella knew, Edward was telling the truth. She had no reason to believe Paul over Edward. After all, she had known Edward for years and Paul for… hours. Besides, she wanted to believe Edward. She wanted to live the perfect life she had built for herself. It had taken years of hard work, and she wouldn't let it be torn away by one night of uncertainty.

Before they parted, Edward promised to cut all ties with Rosalie. It seemed that he and Emmett were still strained, but she was sure he would come around. By now, news of the supposed affair would have spread across campus, so instead of going to the library like she had planned, Bella headed back to her sorority house. She was surprised to find Angela lounging on her bed, a small smile playing on her lips. Before Bella could even ask, Angela tisked and directed her gaze to the unmistakable leather garment that hung in Bella's open closet.

"Sit down, Swan. I want to know everything."

Author's Note:

So I promise I'll have another chapter of All Roads up soon, I've just been obsessed with this AU. Now that the craziness of the holidays are almost over, I'm hoping to get more writing done. I don't think I've mentioned this yet, but the whole basis for this fic is P!NK's song, Beautiful Trauma. It's amazing, I highly suggest you go check it out to get the 'theme' of this fic! As far as vampires and werewolves and such, I've decided I'm not going to reveal that yet! I want you guys to go on this adventure through Bella's eyes, so buckle up! As always, reviews are loved!