Chapter Two finally up! Sorry for the delay. I was debating whether or not to continue this. I decided to after all. I hope you all like this! Updates to be fortnightly (I hope).
I sighed before beginning my explanation. Today was going to be a long day.
I launched into a brief summary of what had happened earlier this morning, conveniently skipping the part about my suspicion that I had slept with Green Eyes. Alice's eyes were nearly bulging out of her sockets, and her mouth dropped wide open. I resisted the urge to tell her to shut it in case a fly flew in; I was already in her bad books as it was. Her face twisted into a strange expression, and I was worried she might start screeching at me again.
"…and so here I am, married officially" I finished weakly, fearing the wrath of Alice Almighty. I prepared to cover my ears, to shield them from the long lecture they were sure to receive. There was around ten seconds of awkward silence. She looked at me with that strange expression of hers, and I glared back, defiantly. Surprisingly, Alice broke the silence. By laughing. Loudly.
"Oh my god…this is so…damn…funny…only you can…do something…like this…Bells…!" she said in between bouts of laughter. And then she frowned slightly. "I can't believe I wasn't invited to the wedding. And here I was thinking that when the day came you would ask me to be your maid of honor. Guess I was wrong." She pouted for effect at the end of the last sentence. "I hope you'll at least invite me to your baby shower." She managed to choke out, before losing herself to laughter once more.
Her tiny frame was shaking furiously, and there were tears coming out of her eyes. A normal person would assume that she was having a fit, or something, but I knew better. That's what an amused Alice looked like. Very scary. Anyway, amused was better than angry. I was too tired right now to deal with Alice being mad with me on top of everything else.
"Yeah," I mumbled, but loud enough for her to hear me. "This whole situation is goddamn hilarious. My life is a bloody comedy for you to enjoy. I'm glad that at least you are enjoying yourself."
"Don't worry. I am" said Alice, seriously. For the love of all that is good, someone please educate the chortling pixie before me in the subtle, but magnificent art of sarcasm!
Regardless of her giggling, I continued as if I hadn't been interrupted. "Anyway, where is Jasper?" I asked curiously.
Jasper, Alice and I were sharing a double roomed suite. I slept in one room, while they shared the other. Although there were suite's with three rooms available Rose and Emmett booked a single room for themselves for the simple reason that no one was willing to share a suite with them. They can be very, very loud when they are procreating and, take this from someone who has been there and done that, the grunts and moans make sleeping impossible. Nausea however, is a likely symptom. The recommended distance to put between yourself and the happy couple after nine is at least fifty meters. Which makes sharing a room impossible (thank god).
"Asleep." said Alice, answering my previous question. "What else did you expect? It's eight in the morning, and we're on vacation. He was actually very worried, and wanted to go out looking for you, but I told him you'd be fine, and that you were capable of handing yourself. And then you just had to go and get drunk, and prove me wrong!" she said, her previously hidden anger coming out slightly. "As much as I found this whole episode amusing, what the hell were you thinking, Bella. Scratch that. You weren't thinking, period. You know that you aren't capable of holding your alcohol. Why did you go and get so drunk. And do you have any idea what the tab…"
She only stopped mid rant because I placed my hand over her mouth. "I'm sorry." I said sincerely. I realized just how anxious she must have been. The poor thing probably hadn't slept properly. "But I wish you wouldn't treat me like a child. You were right in what you told Jasper. I am capable of handling myself. I'm a big girl. And I know I screwed up, but I need your moral support more than anything else to get through this." I exhaled loudly, before looking at her straight in the eye. "So what do you say, Alice?" I asked. "Will you be there for me?"
"Of course" she said, hugging me tightly. "That's what best friends are for!" she said, smiling widely. I smiled right back, and it was then I realized why Alice and I were the best of friends to begin with. We would always be there for each other. Of course, a moment like this couldn't last forever, and was ruined by her very next statement.
"By the way Bella, and take this as a caring gesture from a friend, you look like shit."
"Gee…thanks for the heads up" I muttered, although I knew she was probably right
"No worries. I can fix you up like this" she said, snapping her fingers. Not giving me time to respond, she pushed me into the bathroom in my room, and gave me a towel, which she appeared to have pulled out of thin air. Have I mentioned that Alice is magical? Well she is!
"Have a shower first, it'll do you good." She slammed the door on my face, leaving me utterly confused, and faintly amused.
Deciding that it was too dangerous to ignore Alice's orders, I turned on the shower and stepped in. And I found that as usual, though I'd never admit it to her, Alice was completely right. As the warm water ran down my body, I felt myself relax. It was as if all the tension from my body was being washed away with the water. I took a generous amount of the body wash the hotel had provided us, and rubbed it all over my body, moaning softly whenever I hit a tense spot.
I then braced myself to do something I'd rather not. The 'Had I Slept With Green Eyes?' Test. I apprehensively examined myself for signs of having had sex, and to my horror I found them. For one, there was a large hickey on neck. Also, bite marks trailed from my shoulder, all the way down to my belly button. I shivered at the possibilities of what I had unwillingly subjected myself to the previous night. The bruises covering my body clearly indicated that it had been rough. What annoyed me the most was that just the thought that the green-eyed Greek god (nice alliteration there, Bella!) causing this to happen my body, turned me on incredibly.
"Bella," yelled Alice, pounding on the door. "What the hell is taking you so long?" That shook me out of my reverie. I washed and dried my hair quickly, fearing Alice's wrath.
Examining my body one last time, I blushed realizing that this had been the first time I had slept with someone since Jake and I broke up. I was normally one who took sex seriously, and would only sleep with someone I was dating for at least two months. I had only slept with four other guys, all of whom had been serious boy friends. Pushing that thought out of my mind, I wrapped the towel around myself, and stepped out of the bathroom. Alice had left some clothes on my bed, which I examined with great disgust. As usual she had left me with a skirt much too short, and a blouse which exposed twice as much cleavage as I normally would agree was appropriate. But right now 'I owed her one', and she would not hesitate to remind me of that fact, if she had to.
Donning the skimpy outfit, I plonked myself onto my soft bed and sighed. I hadn't realized just how exhausted I was. I shut my eyes, trying to relax, and stayed that way for god knows how long. I only opened my eyes at the sound of footsteps, and saw Alice entering the room, her tiny arms filled with all sorts of cosmetics, brushes, and generally anything which translates into 'Bella Torturing Device.' Also known as BTD.
Alice and I had made an agreement about the usage of the BTDs. I would put on her torturous make up without a fuss, only if I was going on a date which I had approved of twenty four hours before, or if it was a 'very special occasion'. Since neither of the two held true, I was afraid of what was going to happen.
"Why are you dolling me up?" I asked suspiciously. "Is there anything you want to tell me about?"
"No…Yes…Maybe…Pineapples!" stuttered Alice nervously. Alice nervous? This wasn't something I got to see everyday. And that worried me. When Alice was nervous, it meant that she had done something I really wouldn't like.
"What did you do this time, Ali?" I asked tiredly, rejoicing inwardly at her cringe upon hearing her dreaded nick name.
"I sort of set you up on a blind date." she said hurriedly.
"You did what?" I asked her astonished. "How could you do something like that? You know about our twenty four hours in advance rule. And how could you possibly set me up on a blind date with some stranger, when I'm freaking married?" I screamed hysterically.
"Just so you know how ridiculous you sound, you were the one who married a complete stranger, and now you're so opposed to going on a blind date with one." she huffed. "For your information, I did follow the twenty four hour rule. More like the twenty four day rule. I set this date up like a month ago. It's just my cousin, not some creepy stalker. Since both of you are single, and he's moving next door, I thought it would be a nice way for you to get to know each other.
Perhaps some explanation of my living arrangements in Chicago is warranted for here. Alice and I had roomed together in college, and when we graduated, we found what we thought would be a lovely little apartment to share. Our agent had said, and I quote 'A cosy little flat in Maple Regency is just what you need. Lush greenery surrounds you, and the amenities are world class. The rooms are large, and airy, so there's plenty of space to keep all your belongings. The house is just right for two independent ladies such as yourselves to get a head start on your career. Plus at the rate it's being offered, it is definitely a steal.'
When we had actually visited the lovely 'Maple Regency', we found out that cosy meant cramped, the only lush greenery surrounding us was a measly excuse for a potted plant in the living room, the world class amenities were a single dumbbell in a closet labeled 'gym', and the only air we would get was the choking smoke from the road below us.
The only thing the agent hadn't completely lied about was the price. Though it had certainly not been a 'steal' as she had so eloquently put it, we knew it was the best rate we were going to get in the city, and we couldn't afford anything else with our meager pay checks, so we grudgingly signed the papers and rented out the house.
A few months later, Alice and Jasper had met, and they had begun to see each other. Alice had refused to let Jasper into the apartment either to pick her up or to drop her off because she didn't want him to see the dump we lived in. Jasper's family was very well off, and Alice felt too embarrassed to let him see her current sate of living. She had thought it would just highlight the difference in their financial status.
When Jasper finally did come into the flat we called home, to surprise Alice for her birthday, he got the shock of his life. Alice had burst into tears thinking that he would dump her for hiding her economic standing from him, but instead he had just hugged her. A week later, he called us to that his sister's roommate had moved, and that she was looking for new ones.
Alice and I naturally jumped at the offer, especially since Rosalie lived next door to Jasper (Alice's reason) and it was offered at a fantastic rate (my reason). Rose was an awesome room mate, and the three of us had great fun together. Rose and Em (Japer's best friend, and room mate) were already dating, and in what seemed to be a very short time, they got engaged, and moved in together, in their own little flat. This left Jasper hunting for someone to room with.
Incidentally Alice's cousin was moving to Chicago, and he needed some place to stay at. No prices for guessing, Jasper offered to let him stay in his house, and the matter was resolved. Now that I think about it, I vaguely do recall agreeing to some sort of date with her cousin, but I was probably half asleep.
I sighed once more. I seemed to be doing a lot of that lately. Best get this stupid date over with quickly, so I can work on getting an annulment, and go back to my normal (boring) life once more.
"Let's go Alice." I said glumly, while she did what looked like a Mexican version of the happy dance
Finish date, obtain annulment, and get the hell home. Sounds simple enough. But fate had other plans for me. Who ever said life was that easy?
So? What do you think? I'd love to know!
