A/N : ForeverRobsessed is my hero :) She keeps my words and these people, especially Jessica, in check. That being said, SM owns all the characters I just make them do crazy stuff!


Chapter 3: Where Dreams Become Walls

*What should be a regular Saturday for her*

A feather-light touch ghosts over her closed eyelids, followed by warm, tingling whispers. It caresses her face, circles her lips, making them part slightly, trails down to the crook of her neck and pauses. The warm touch becomes a little moist and awakens tiny goose bumps in its wake. It draws a series of softly punctuated nips along her collarbone. A fingertip starts tracing the outline of her breast, causing the pink tips to harden. The whispery words are not clear to her sleep-clouded mind as it explores the valley between her soft mounds, but the sensation travels through her body, causing her toes to curl and uncurl.

Isabella, a husky voice murmurs.

More fingers and a palm join the journey to caress her breasts so softly, leaving her aching for more. As the warm, wet heat nudges her ear, following it up with a bite on the lobe, she arches her back to seek more pressure from the hand gently rubbing and kneading her flesh.

So responsive. So beautiful, a velvety voice whispers in her ear and another hand reaches the place where she is throbbing with need. Her breathing quickens and suddenly, she longs for more friction. She doesn't want soft or gentle anymore. A fire starts to flicker through her pulse points, and her body feels like it's ready to fly. But the touch starts to fade as the sleepy mist leaves her body.

No! Please don't stop!

Desperate to reach the point of free falling, Bella cries out, only to jerk awake. She finds her comforter thrown off the bed and one of her hands clutching the bed sheet in knots, while the other one lies between her legs. Embarrassment and anger rush through her instantly. Being a single red-blooded woman, self-pleasuring isn't something she is ashamed of, but for the past couple weeks, it has become unfulfilling. She hates to carry this puzzling dissatisfaction within her.

Ever since she encountered those pair of sage green eyes months ago, her dreams have frequently been full of them, even if it was Mike snoring beside her. However, after having been in close proximity of Edward Cullen two weeks ago, her dreams have become more vivid, but always incomplete. Though she never sees his entire face, an exploring hand, a woodsy smell, a husky voice, and the glimpses of a pair of smouldering eyes leave her quivering with need. Her own touch feels wrong to her skin.

Damn you, Edward Cullen!

After she walked away from him, Siobhan found her in the storage room where she was trying to calm her erratic heart. No one asked for an explanation she wasn't sure she could've given when she returned to the bar, and Edward Cullen was nowhere to be seen. The couple chatting with Jess, Sibby and Edward left a short while after. Bella thought she had been successful in putting a stop to any further visits from Mr. Cullen.

But she was wrong.

Edward has returned to the pub four times since that day, but has kept his distance. He took a table instead of sitting at the bar and deliberately ordered his drink from one of the male bartenders. The whole time he stayed there, Bella felt his eyes caressing her, but was never able to catch him staring directly…except for the moments right before he left. Every time, Edward would stop in front of the door, turn and wait to catch her eyes. He'd stare at her with undisguised longing for a few seconds. Then, with a resigned nod, eyes lowered in disappointment, he'd turn and walk away, disappearing in the darkness outside.

After the second time, Bella has started to anticipate his visit, though she refused to admit that to herself. She is still irritated for his assumptions—albeit, correct—about her settling for Mike. No matter how much she secretly enjoys Edward's attention, she isn't ready to give in yet. She doesn't even know what he wants from her—a substantial relationship or a no-strings-attached romp, like Mike had sought. The first option scares her and the second one is out of consideration. She is not that girl. Mike was a mistake, a momentary lapse of judgment.

So they have had this silent exchange going on for the last two weeks, and neither of them has any idea how to proceed from here on. Considering the dreams, her subconscious definitely tells her to comply with them, but that's what they are, dreams. Unfulfilling, making her ache for more than just a physical connection, but dreams nonetheless.

The effects of her dreams generally linger in her subconscious through the day. This Saturday, however, a weird sense of being followed overpowers that feeling as she drives to the Cancer Center in FMC for her weekly visit to Rose. The inconspicuous black SUV that stays a few cars behind her doesn't do anything suspicious, but she feels uncomfortable whenever it appears in her rear view mirror. When she pulls into the hospital parking lot, it drives on without slowing down. Bella still waits in the car for a moment to see if it comes back.

I must be going out of my mind.

Shaking her head, she leaves the car and soon finds herself gazing down at her sleeping friend. Rose's condition is deteriorating faster than she'd expected. Her last chemotherapy session was a month ago, but the results have not been very positive. What started as a sign of severe anaemia is now causing her friend to fade away in front of her eyes. Tears stream down Bella's cheeks as she stands there, holding a corner of Rose's pale green hospital gown, afraid to touch and wake her from this illusion of peace she gets only in sleep.

She feels so lost these days. Rose has been her rock since kindergarten. Always sassy, but with a heart of gold, and fiercely protective of the people she loves, never showing a sign of weakness even if the pain was tearing her apart on the inside. She fought hard to achieve a respectable position in a marketing firm, which still remains a man's world. The fat bank balance and her health insurance helped her to get the best treatment available, but man's limited power against nature's course was tested and proved correct once again. Initially, she had been back and forth between the hospital and her home several times, but for the past two months, the private room in FMC has become her home. She isn't responding to anything anymore. Her once thick, golden locks are gone. Cheekbones protrude from the hollow of her face, dark circles cover the once bright blue eyes. Visions of Rose in gorgeous dresses, full of life and turning heads everywhere she went float in Bella's mind, and she can't imagine her life without Rose in it.

Bella's father died a couple of years ago in an accident while fishing, and she never knew where her mother was. Renee Swan had always been just a name in her birth certificate. Her dad, Charlie never disclosed much except that she had to go away when Bella was 8 months old. After a few years, it didn't matter because Bella had a very strong bond with her father. Charlie did his best to raise a girl on his own, and Bella never had any complaints. Rose came from a set of divorced parents, neither of whom bothered to pay attention to her after she graduated from high school. She had been merely a baton for their custody battle before that. When she resigned from her job and checked herself into the hospital, she legally appointed Bella as the sole decision maker regarding her treatment. Bella knows if there were any alternatives, Rose would have spared her this pain too, as she did to Emmett. Sometimes, Bella regrets her promise to Rose about not telling Em the truth. He would be the only one to understand and share her grief over Rose's condition. Bella is scared for herself. For the first time in her life, she is standing at a point from where she is going to be truly alone.

Rosalie wakes up an hour later, but is too tired to sit up. The warm smile that breaks out on her tired face makes Bella grin, too. Without preamble, Rose demands to know what the situation with Mr. Green Eyes is. Bella rolls her eyes at the silly nickname and tries to ask her about how she is feeling instead, but Rose is having none of it.

"I'm still alive or you would have been writing my eulogy," she brushes Bella off. "By the way, don't write any bullshit note for me. You know how I was. Other people don't need to shed fake tears and dress in their best black outfits. Just drink tequila in my name and be done with it." She winks at her friend, who is now trying to stop her own tears from falling.

"What about someone who doesn't have fake tears for you… who loves tequila just as much as you do and, just like me, doesn't want to be done with you?"

The thought comes out of nowhere to Bella's mind. They never talk about Emmett because Bella knows that was the most painful thing Rose has ever endured, much more than what the disease inflicts on her.

"Come on, Bell. Tell me! Let me live vicariously through you even if your love life is no better than mine at this moment," Rose jokes feebly.

"Why, thank you, Miss Hale." Bella grimaces, but as always, she tells her all about Edward's visits to the pub.

"And?" Rose narrows her eyes at her.

"And what? That's all! I'm not hiding anything."

"There! You said the word, that means you are hiding something. You have always been the worst liar in the world, sweetie. Now spill!"

Covering her eyes with her hands, Bella groans in defeat. She has never been capable of hiding anything from Rose, and she can still see through her attempts to lie. Without looking at Rose, she stammers out the edited versions of her dreams.

"Hmmm. I'm sure you are giving me the PG rated version, but that's okay." Rose smiles cheekily, but her tired eyes become serious.

"What's holding you back from talking to him, Bell?" There's a rare streak of soft affection in her voice. "Don't compare one person to another. Everyone is different and you don't make the same mistake twice. You told me that he seems honest. Why not give him a chance? Give yourself a chance? I hate that all you do is study and work. With me stuck in here, I know you don't go out anymore either. Why are you settling for something that only makes you lonely? Weren't you a believer of someone's-there-for-everyone?" Rose starts panting slightly at the end of her long speech.

The sound of her laboured breathing fills the silence of the room for the next few minutes. Bella gets Rose a cup of water and helps her take a few sips. Rose requests her assistance in elevating her bed a little, and after getting repositioned against the pillows, she looks expectantly at Bella.

Bella sighs and tries to choose her words carefully. She doesn't want to argue and get Rose agitated, but it's hard to hold her tongue when the emotions are battling so hard inside her.

"Well, first of all, what's with people thinking that I'm settling for something? Why can't they accept that it's my choice, not a compromise? I'm happy with my life. I don't want to sound insensitive and I'm your best friend so I am always on your side, but Rose, you pushed Emmett away and settled to fight this alone. You never gave him a chance."

Bella feels bad as soon as the words leave her mouth, but Rose's reaction stops her from apologizing right away. She doesn't look angry or hurt. Rose just turns her head towards the window. After a few silent beats of their hearts, she reaches her hand out without looking in Bella's direction, who grips it in both of hers.

"Don't make the mistake I did, Bella," she whispers as a lone tear trickles down her hollow cheeks.

Bella stands and leans over the bed to hug her friend as tightly she can while her own tears flow unchecked. She places her cheek over Rose's shaved head and just holds her. Eventually, Rose falls asleep again and doesn't wake up for the remaining part of the visiting hours.

With a heavy heart and a kiss on her friend's forehead, Bella leaves the hospital and drives straight to the library of the University of Calgary. It has been a rare few days of August without rain. The effects of the unpredictable climate change around the globe can be seen here, too. But the clear sky and crisp weather don't attract Bella today. Under different circumstances, she would've taken a stroll in a nearby park, but today, she needs to be away from people for a while. It's not likely that she'd be able to concentrate on the pages today, but the calm and quiet of the library in a weekend will serve the purpose.

She didn't go straight to college after graduating high school, but worked several odd jobs for a few years to accumulate the funds for college so that she would have less student loans to repay later. Rose had forced Bella to stay with her and refused to take money for it. "My gran would've put you over her knees if she knew you wanted to pay," had been her logic. So Bella stayed with her in the apartment Rose had inherited from her grandmother.

She'll have to search a place to live soon.

Now at 24, Bella is a few years older than her peers in her English major class, though there are a few people even older than her in the Museum and Heritage Studies minor program. She is cordial to all, but there's no one she can call a friend. Still, when a couple of familiar faces greet her in the library on this Saturday afternoon, she feels relieved to have some company.

The strange feeling of being followed returns as she drives to the Bronko's for her evening shift. She checks her rear view mirror frequently for a black SUV, but doesn't find it. Her evening progresses with an increasing restlessness. The steady flow of the usual Saturday night crowd keeps her busy, but some part of her subconscious remains aware and alert, seeking a head full of bronze hair. It has been five days Edward last visited, and she realizes she is missing his presence.

Damn Rose and her words!

Edward doesn't come that night.

Liam never lets the girls stay late for closing up; he does it himself. So, after waving Jessica goodbye from a distance—who appears to be busy flirting with one of the waiters—Bella drags her tired feet and a heavy heart to her car. The parking lot is mostly empty, but the Employees Only section at the far end still has several cars parked there. As she nears her car, a figure leaning against the side of it straightens.

"Hello, Isabella."

*What should be a regular Saturday for him*

Shit! I'm gonna miss her today. Fucking road construction. They have been at it for weeks. She'll be gone by the time I get there. Edward slams his palm against the steering wheel.

He hates to work on weekends. It's not as if he has someone special to spend them with, but he likes to have the days free. When he was still in Vancouver, Sunday brunch was a regular thing at his parents' house. Here, in Calgary, he sometimes goes for a hike in the outskirts of the city or spends his days-off visiting local art galleries. Though he works as a web designer, his fascination with nature and art never leaves him bored in an empty apartment. He has a few friends from work who join him sometimes on the hiking trails or for an occasional beer, but he doesn't mind doing things all by himself either.

Then there's his love for tennis. Being a Canadian, one would expect him to be a fan of either ice hockey or lacrosse, but he inherited his passion from his British mother. Esme Cullen had her son as her fellow audience of every grand slam since he was six years old. Edward grew up watching Pete Sampras and Roger Federer, while Anna Kournikova visited many of his typical teenage dreams. He can recite stats from Carling Bassett -Seguso to Eugenie Bouchard without looking at the figures.

So, while he doesn't lack in activities to pursue in the weekends, sometimes loneliness creeps in through the corner of his mind. Some part of him whispers how it would be more enjoyable to share his love for all those things with someone special. Once in a while, when he comes back to an empty house after a long day at work, he imagines what it would be like to have someone to come home to or wait for someone to come home to him.

However, there's no one to fill that space in his life. He had dated in high school and in college, but in all his 27 years on this earth, he has never felt a pull strong enough to pursue someone for more. One night stands have never been his preferred way to have female company. Though it might sound old-fashioned, he has always been the kind of person who needs a certain level of intimacy before stripping down to skins. His past girlfriends never complained about his sexual ardor, but Edward has always wondered if it will be different when he shares himself with someone he loves.

Sophia, his last girlfriend before he came to Calgary, chats with him on Facebook sometimes, but he doesn't feel any attraction towards her anymore. Their breakup had been mutual and uneventful. Both of them knew there was not enough spark to continue the relationship long distance.

Attraction.

He had no idea how deep and overwhelming this feeling could be until a certain Isabella Swan stepped into his life. When she'd brushed him off and walked away that night two weeks ago, he'd left the bar without speaking to anyone. He'd expected to be grilled by Jess, if not by the others, too, after Bella's abrupt retreat. Surprisingly, no one asked anything. At first, he thought about not going back there, to her, anymore. But that only lasted for two days. He has gone back to Bronko's four times in the past seventeen days, but has never once tried to engage her in any sort of conversation. To be specific, he hasn't talked to anyone from the pub since then, and everyone has given him a wide berth.

Edward doesn't know what he'd done to make Bella so hostile towards him, but he isn't a man to force anything on a woman or any person for that matter. He waits for her to come to him, though he doesn't know if that is ever going to happen. Without acting like a stalker, he tries to communicate his silent longing to her, but he hasn't received any hint of reciprocation from her yet. It doesn't escape his notice that from a third person's point of view, he might look like a pathetic loser. At the same time, he can't deny the inexplicable pull that makes him go back to her. She doesn't have the perfect figure of a model, but the curves of her body drive him crazy with an unstoppable desire to touch her. What makes her irresistible to Edward are her distinct features. The smirk playing on her lips when she enjoys an inside joke with Jess, the curve of her eyebrow when she puts a wilder patron in his place without being rude, the happy twinkle in her eyes when she talks to the regular older gentlemen, the swift movement of her limbs when she serves the tables around the floor—it's the little things that make her sexy in his eyes.

At the moment, he finds himself growing more and more pissed with every passing second that he's trapped in this car. Every day this week, he had to work late and was too exhausted to go anywhere except home. He'd thought he would be free by seven tonight, but a high profile client often has the power to ruin any personal plans the employees of a private firm might have. The meeting went on until 10 PM, and though his boss has given him Monday off, that won't make up for another day of not seeing Bella. Thanks to the city's impeccable public service maintenance, it will take him even longer to reach 16 Ave.

When he pulls into the almost-empty parking lot of the pub, the first thing he confirms is that Bella's car is still there. This also brings the person in question within his view. Shoulders slumped as though she were carrying all the weight of the world on them, eyes fixed in front of her feet, her gait is tired as she drags herself towards her car at the very end of the lot where the employees park their car. Stepping out of his car, Edward watches her walking away again, and a slow ache starts building in his chest. He silently mourns another day of lost chance. The breath he hasn't realized he was holding comes out in a long sigh.

Then, something unexpected happens.

A shadow moves in the darkness and Bella stops dead in her tracks. The tall figure steps closer to her, but she doesn't move an inch. Before he realizes what he is doing, Edward finds himself running across the lot.

Consequence be damned, nothing will happen to her while I'm here. That is the only thought that runs through his head as he rushes towards his girl.


Thank you for reading. Until next time...