Unravelling: a short story.
Part three of three.
A week had passed and he was missing Bella like something crazy.
It had taken some time, but he had finally realised the truth with a ringing certainty; he absolutely, flat out loved her.
It was the little things that had finally opened up his eyes. Like the sinking feeling that had been settling in his gut for the past week. Somewhere along the way he had finally realised that it was there because he was in love with his best friend. Loving her wasn't a new feeling, but the realisation and acceptance was. It wasn't forced, it was just... there.
And as cliché as it sounded, he'd found out just how much really did love her after she had taken off without a word.
At the time he really hadn't believed that she loved him, brushing it off as a simple crush, but the more he thought about it, the more he came to see it was the truth. Truth that had been glaring him in the face for the last five years that he had known Bella.
Rosalie's words were coming back to haunt him.
You're too stupid to realise that you love her, too.
How right she was.
He knew he had to find her and work everything out, but that was pretty much impossible when the one person who knew where she was refused to tell him, no matter what he said. He'd pleaded and begged all to no avail.
He'd called Bella's phone countless times, even though he knew his efforts were useless.
He'd rung Emmett as soon as the realisation had hit him, but he'd been no help, claiming Rose hadn't told him either as per Bella's request.
But he couldn't just sit there and wait around, while Bella was no doubt hurting at his heartless rejection. And so, for the second time that week he was knocking on the Hale's door.
"Go away, Ed," a voice from inside shouted angrily.
But he continued to knock and finally the door opened. He stepped back to brace himself. Only it wasn't who he'd expected it to be.
Emma Grace Hale crept out the door, a scolding look on her face and a finger to her lips.
If he'd been in a better mood the sight of a three year old reprimanding him for being too loud would have made him laugh.
She shut the door behind her and stumbled over to him. She was dressed in another outrageous, mixed matched ensemble of clothes, though her trusty polka dot rubber boots still remained. He needn't have mentioned the familiar item that was clasped tightly in her left hand.
He sat down on the front steps and she took a seat beside him, kicking her boot-clad feet out in front of her.
"Psttt," she whispered and waited for Edward to lower his head before leaning over to clasp her small right hand over his ear, which she whispered into. "I gotta secret."
"Oh, yeah?" he whispered back, humouring her.
"Not 'posed ta tell you, but I knows where Aunt Bel-wa is!" she giggled into his ear.
A hint of a smile played at Edwards's lips for the first time in days and he almost laughed when she began to look around her warily, probably in fear of her mother.
"Where?"
She looked around her once more and then leant toward him again, "Mumma and Aunt Bel-wa's farm 'ouse."
A shot of adrenaline coursed through his veins. Why hadn't he thought of that? He knew the place she was talking about straight away. They'd spent countless weekends there over the years, writing songs and taking a break from their hectic schedules.
A wide grin spread across his face and he pulled Grace in toward him, alternating between kissing her mop of messy curls and her rosy cheeks.
"You smart, smart girl," he laughed.
He watched as Gracie's free hand shot up to cup his chin, pushing him away with a yelp.
"Ick, stop. You scratchy!"
She scrunched her nose at him as he ignored her and gave her another kiss before letting her go.
"Thanks for letting me know, Squirt," he smiled, as he got to his feet to open the front door. "Now quick, get inside before your mother finds us and I'll go get Aunt Bella back."
She grinned up at him and disappeared through the front door, closing it behind her with a bang.
While he knew taking instructions from a three year old wasn't the smartest thing to do, he was fairly sure that the little gremlin was right.
Jabbing ignore on another one of his countless calls, Bella fell back against the bed with a resounding thump. Night was beginning to fall and a soft breeze rustled though the open window of her bedroom at her family's old farmhouse, which was located a few hours away from home.
Tonight, sleep was remaining stubbornly out of reach and she felt no inspiration to write, which left her with nothing to do but mull over the mistake that had led her to her self-induced isolation.
The fact of the matter was that she felt stupid, so she'd run off like a petulant child who didn't get her way. She knew she needed to grow up and face her problems, but she couldn't help feeling the way she did. Humiliated. Hurt. Disappointed. On top of that, she didn't even want to think about what her boss, Marcus, was going to say about her going AWOL.
Still, she couldn't seem to get over the fact that she'd kissed her best friend, not to mention the part where she had blurted out her feelings for him. They'd never once crossed that perfectly drawn line between friendship and something more, and here she'd gone and jumped the eff over it. They'd had their little moments throughout the years, but nothing as major as what had occurred during their last encounter.
She groaned at her own stupidity as she buried her face into her pillow.
Holding back what she felt had never been her forte, but she thought she'd long mastered the art of keeping her feelings for Edward Cullen at bay. Apparently not.
The sharp shrill of her phone broke her out of her pathetic pity party.
Rolling over, she snatched the offending object off the bedside table and glanced jadedly at the screen.
Edward.
She exhaled before answering the call. It was time to face the music. Well, kind of.
"Hi," she answered, wincing slightly at the high-pitched tone of her voice.
"Bel..." he breathed, disbelief clear in his voice, "You picked up."
"Yeah, well, you've been pretty persistent," she joked weakly as she watched the curtains that were gaped open, flutter gently in the breeze.
"I need to see you," he replied a few moments later.
She fiddled nervously with the corner of the bed sheet that lay beneath her.
"Why?"
"Because..." there was a slight break in his words before he attempted to start again, "Because I love you."
Bella choked at his unexpected response but couldn't find the words to reply.
Edward's forced laughter sounded on the other line of the phone.
"I'm sorry. That's a really shit way to tell you, but you needed to know. I love you."
Bella pushed herself up into a sitting position against the head of the bed, trying to get her emotions in check before she replied, but all that she could get out was a weak sigh of his name.
"You don't believe me do you?" came his gruff reply, emotion thick in his throat.
"No," she whispered back softly, gathering her knees up to tuck them under her chin.
She fought hard against the urge to burst into tears. She knew crying wasn't going to help anything now.
When he didn't respond, she continued, spewing out everything that was on her mind.
"I saw your face, when I told you I loved you. So no, I don't think you do. I think what you're trying to do is save us. I put you in an awkward position and for that I'm sorry. I just needed to get away for a bit, okay? Sort some stuff out. I'll be back in a few days, we'll talk then."
"No, Bella, I need you to und-" he started to refuse, but she cut him off.
"I promise to come see you soon, okay?" she told him shakily and with that ended the call, throwing her phone away from her as she wrapped her arms around her legs.
Tears had begun to gather in her eyes and she pressed her wet lashes to her knee, blotting the tears that she refused to let fall.
It was dark when he pulled up beside Bella's old, rusty truck and the familiar one-story homestead, an hour or so after she had hung up on him. He didn't blame her. What kind of an idiot told a person over the phone for the first time that you loved them? With that on top of the way he had acted the last time he had seen her, no wonder she had refused to believe him. But that was going to change, he thought, as he jumped out of his car out onto the gravel driveway. It had to.
A faint light from the far window was the only source of light coming from the house, though the full moon that hung low in the night's sky provided him with enough light to make his way to the front door.
He fiddled with the spare keys Bella had given him a couple of years ago in the palm of his hand as he stepped up onto the porch.
After checking that the door was actually locked, he jabbed the key home and turned it, jangling the worn handle as he did so. The door clicked open and he was left standing in the eerily dark hallway. The house was silent as he blindly searched for the light switch before flicking it on and shutting the front door behind him. He flinched at the sudden invasion of light, blinking a few times until his eyes became accustomed to it.
His gaze darted around the newly lit area as he moved toward the kitchen looking for signs of Bella. Her jacket had been haphazardly thrown over a bar stool and a few dirty dishes sat beside the sink. Other than that, the place was pretty much how it always was.
Walking toward the bench he threw his keys down before going in search of Bella. He knew without a doubt that she'd be in her old bedroom. It was a place of comfort for her; for him too. They'd written many songs within the walls of that room on countless occasions.
The door was partially shut as he approached it. He slowly pushed it open to reveal Bella curled up over the covers in the middle of the large bed. As he padded toward her he found she was asleep, her hand fisted under her cheek. Her long, wet, clumped lashes that rested against her heart-shape face, made his heart clench. Usually, when asleep, she looked exactly like her niece; serene and without a care in the world. Though, he knew that right at this moment, that wasn't the case. And that was his fault.
Looking down at her guiltily, he sat on the bed beside her sleeping figure before he lay down to curl himself around her. His arm reached out to curve around her waist and he pulled her toward his chest as he bent to kiss her exposed shoulder.
He wasn't exactly sure how he was going to make her see the truth, but he wasn't going to give up without one heck of a fight. If she wanted to be stubborn, well then, he could be twice as stubborn. Her declaration had opened up a whole new part of himself that he wasn't previously aware existed and he wasn't prepared to let it go. Loving someone- actually being in love with someone, felt pretty damn good. And knowing that that person loved you back was an even better feeling. He'd always felt close to Bella, but now that he was aware of his true feelings, that closeness had only doubled in size.
"So, rampaging toddlers and piercing alarm clocks won't wake her, but somehow playing with her hair will," a voice laughed. "Good to know."
She turned toward the familiar voice of the man currently spooning her and groaned, trying to wiggle out of his grasp.
"No, we're talking, okay?" he told her, resting his chin on her shoulder.
"I told you we'd talk in a few days. I'm not ready now," she mumbled sleepily as his arms tightened around her waist. "How'd you even find me?"
"Gracie and I sparked somewhat of an alliance while you've been away," he whispered back into her ear, involuntarily making her shiver.
"Hmmm," she murmured, not bothering to question that as she shut her eyes tightly. "Can we not do this now? I'm not interested in embarrassing myself again."
"We're doing this now," he replied firmly, but coupled with the way his hand searched out hers and threaded their fingers together, the force of his words was lessened.
"Great," she replied cleverly, at a loss as to what to say.
"And you're not the one who embarrassed themselves. That was me. The way I reacted... what I said was horrible. I wasn't trying to hurt you. You just took me by surprise and I..." he paused for a moment, trying to grasp the words, but she cut in before he could continue.
"I know you weren't trying to hurt me, but you have to know that what you said on the phone does hurt. You can't lie to me about something as big as that," she told him, squeezing his hand in an attempt to communicate that it was okay that he didn't feel the same way, but apparently he wasn't taking no for an answer.
"I do love you, Bella. My heart knew it, but my head obviously hadn't figured it out yet," he replied as she felt him release her hand to brush her cheek with guitar calloused fingers tips. "You were braver than me, even if you didn't mean to blurt it out like that."
"But-" she found herself trying to rebuff his comment.
"Bells, you know I wouldn't lie to you about this," he stressed the words. "I've never told anyone I've loved them before, because I've never felt the way I feel about you with anyone, ever," he added seriously.
When she felt him reach around her waist in an attempt to turn her toward him, she didn't resist.
"I love you, Isabella Swan," he told her once again, and this time, after seeing the sincerity shining back at her through his eyes, she believed him.
Two years later.
"You're no fun anymore, Uncle Ed," five-year-old Emma Grace complained as she pulled on the sleeve of his shirt.
Edward grinned down at the girl who was fidgeting next to him on the couch as they watched Gracie's favourite movie, Finding Nemo, for the hundredth time. But even that wasn't keeping her entertained today.
"Oh, and why is that?" Edward humoured her, ruffling her mop of chocolate curls affectionately with his free hand.
"You don't play with me anymore," she replied, shooting him a dark look.
"I do too," he found himself protesting. "What are we doing right now?"
"Not playin', that's fo' sho'," she muttered back grumpily, making Edward laugh as she mimicked her father's speech habits, which lately was becoming more of an occurrence. "Ever since Masen came along you don't play with me," she continued, "Annnd you never. Put. Him. Down!"
Edward couldn't help but grin as Grace stared down at the sleeping bundle in his arms with great displeasure.
"Haven't we already been over this?" he asked sympathetically, in an attempt to mollify his jealous niece as he shifted his three-month-old son to rest gently against his shoulder.
"I don't care!"
"Grace, Mase is just a baby. He needs to be carried around, just like you did when you were little," he patiently explained once again.
"How can you like him? All he ever does is cry," she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest as she threw herself back against her seat.
Apparently five was the year of the drama queen.
"Hey, kid, you used to cover me in juice every time I saw you when you were younger and I still like you," Edward teased as he placed his arm around her shoulders to pull her against his side.
"That's not fair!" she exclaimed, sending him another glare as she shook off his arm. "I was only little and I can't remember it. I told you that, like, a trillion times already."
Dismissing him, she got up and stomped out of the room, determination clear on her face. She was off to rat him out to her mother.
Edward laughed and shook his head at the girl's antics as he dropped a kiss to his son's downy head. Grace just wasn't happy unless she had everyone's attention on her at all times, which she usually did. That girl had everyone, including Edward, wrapped tightly around her little polished pinkie finger.
Moments later a shrilling laugh caught his attention as he watched his wife carry their niece into the lounge room upside down.
"Aunt Bellllaa, let me go!" Gracie giggled happily as she squirmed about in Bella's firm grip.
Bella sent Edward a wide grin before she righted Grace and sat her down on the couch beside him.
"Little Miss Emma Grace here has been telling us you're being mean, Cullen," his wife smiled cheekily down at him, her hands on her hips.
"I'm innocent, I swear it, Mrs. Cullen!" he joked, throwing his free hand up in the air in mock defence.
"Hmmm..." she replied, "What do you think Grace, do we let him off with a warning this time?"
Edward looked down at the little girl with a cheeky smile of his own.
"Gracie knows I love her, don't you, Squirt?" he asked as his hand snuck out to tickle her, sending her into another fit of laughter.
"See?" Edward laughed before Masen began to whimper restlessly, having been woken up by all the commotion.
Bella lent down to place a kiss on her son's forehead before she gathered him out of his father's arms just as Rose and Emmett entered the room.
"Time to go, baby girl," Emmett exclaimed as he scooped his daughter up onto his shoulders.
"Thanks for having us," Rose smiled as she bent down to kiss Edward's cheek and did the same to her sister.
The family exchanged goodbyes, leaving Bella and Edward alone with their son.
"Finally, time to ourselves," Bella sighed as she returned to the lounge room with Masen cradled against her chest and beamed at him from across the room.
Edward smiled back at her as he took in the sight of his little family.
He sat down in the corner of the couch and motioned for his wife to sit in between his legs. He couldn't help but sigh contently as she snuggled in against his chest with their baby tucked protectively in-between the crook of her neck. His arms tightened around the two.
Bella looked back at him a few minutes later and caught him smiling, and, with every bit of tenderness that he could muster, he bent down and feathered his mouth over hers for a sweet kiss.
"What?" she asked with a smile of her own, when they pulled away moments later.
"We did good, you know?"
"Yeah, we did," she replied as she turned back around to glance at their precious bundle, "We really did."
The End.
