Hi everyone! I'm very pleased to see that people are enjoying the story so far and I look forward to hearing what you guys are thinking!
XXX
Acquiring Doctor Cullen's number had seemed like a perfect idea.
Calling him seemed like an even better idea.
Until he picked up the call and Aurora realized she had no justifiable reason to be calling him.
A small squeak escaped past her lips as she felt her eyes widen.
She heard him chuckle on the other end of the line.
"Carlisle," she giggled nervously, "how are you?"
She inwardly groaned as she dropped her head back onto the couch in defeat. He chuckled again. She grimaced.
"I'm doing well, Aurora, to what do I owe the pleasure of speaking with you tonight?"
"Well, you see," she shook her head at herself, her nose scrunching up, "I think I hurt my ankle." She slapped her hand against her cheek and squinted her eyes shut.
The line fell silent.
She could practically hear him smirking.
"Miss Aurora?"
After what felt like years, he spoke. She hadn't realized she had been holding her breath.
"Hm?"
He chuckled, "Did you really hurt your ankle?"
Aurora bit her lip to suppress a giggle, he saw right through her, "No."
Carlisle laughed and Alice grinned knowingly beside him, motioning with her hands to continue. Edward sulked in the corner- he didn't approve.
"Would you like to go get coffee, Miss Aurora?"
Aurora felt her heart stop. Her palms grew clammy, a faint smile daring to pass onto her lips. Her eyes shot to the clock on the wall- 8:17 pm- and she couldn't stop the giggle this time as she flung herself off of the couch and towards her room.
"It would be an honor."
Carlisle smiled into the phone.
Emmett mock-vomited.
Rosalie slapped his chest.
Aurora propelled herself into the closet, her eyes already scanning through the array of hanging clothing. She was blessed with having such an abundance of choices for any occasion but in that instance she felt as if she had nothing that could be deemed perfect for the occasion.
"We could walk together, if you'd like? I could be there in, say, twenty minutes?"
She could only squeak out a response before hanging up and flinging the phone away from herself in hurry.
Never in her life had she been worried about being around a man. He was just a doctor and they were just getting coffee.
Nothing more.
True to word, Carlisle arrived at aurora's apartment exactly twenty minutes later.
Her heart pounded in her ears as she opened the door, Carlisle's handsome face coming into view. He smiled at her, his eyes scanning over her face.
"Carlisle," she breathed out, her cheeks flushing under his watch.
"I must say, Aurora, I was quite surprised to hear that you wanted to see me."
She giggled nervously, her bottom lip catching between her teeth for a moment as she shrugged.
They fell silent, Aurora finding it difficult to meet his gaze while Carlisle's eyes drank in every minuscule detail.
"Well, shall we?" He quirked an eyebrow towards her, the small brunette nodding and following him out the apartment door, locking it behind herself.
They exited the brightly lit apartment building, venturing into the cold February night. The wind blew snow drifts around them, getting stuck in their hair like small white decorations. Aurora giggled as one landed on her nose, quickly dusting it away, much to Carlisle's amusement. He couldn't help smiling at her almost every moment he was near her- her happiness was contagious.
"So, Doctor Cullen," Aurora began, grinning up at him as they walked, "what has to go right in a man's life to be chosen as the on-call doctor for Fashion Week?"
He chuckled in response, shaking his head humbly, "I couldn't quite tell you, but I'm very fortunate."
Aurora mulled over his response, pursing her lips ever-so-slightly before nodding.
"So, Aurora Gray," he teased, Aurora smirking, "what has to go right in a young woman's life to become such a successful model?"
Aurora laughed, a hand coming up to rest upon her chest as she shook her head, "Oh, Carlisle, I wouldn't call myself successful, quite yet. I'm, 'up-and-coming' at best."
She had obviously been called that phrase quite frequently, given the slight bitterness and mocking tone that came with it. Carlisle would remember to ask her more about that in the future.
The future.
Such a touchy topic of the matter.
What did their future hold?
He shook away those thoughts- it wasn't time for them. It was time to get to know his mate.
They entered the coffee shop, typically busy though at such an hour it held few occupants. They received their drinks and took a seat by the window, Aurora's eyes already flittering outwards to watch the snow fall. She watched in delight as each snowflake hit the ground, the bright city shining behind it all. She had never seen a city so beautiful in the winter.
"How do you like New York?" Carlisle asked, watching her with fascination.
She jumped at his voice, turning her attention towards him and blushing. "I love it," she smiled, her tiny fingers weaving through her hair as she spared one more glance out the window, "I had never been here before last month." she explained, Carlisle nodding.
"Where did you live before this?"
Aurora stared at him wearily, her dark eyes leaving his face to scan the shop over. She wiggled under his gaze.
"Just a little town upstate." She finally answered, shaking her head as she took a sip of her hot chocolate. She was never one for coffee.
Carlisle cocked an eyebrow, "What does your family think of your career?"
"I don't have a family." She shrugged nonchalantly. It was a rehearsed line, Carlisle could tell that much already.
Red flags went off in his brain. It took a moment for him to try and digest it, Aurora taking her turn to cock an eyebrow at him.
"Carlisle?" She asked, her head slightly tilted in question.
"You don't have a family?" He asked, a million questions running through his mind.
She stared him in the face, her eyes growing unusually cold in comparison to what he had seen of her before.
"My parents died when I was little."
She was lying.
Her face was hard, her tiny little features having gone rigid.
Carlisle pursed his lips and sighed, forcing down a small gulp of coffee.
"I'm sorry."
And just like that, Aurora was back to her typical self, shrugging and blushing and murmuring, "It's quite alright."
They fell silent and Aurora continued to sip on her drink, the hot liquid filling her chest with warmth as she nonchalantly ogled the handsome man sitting before her.
Carlisle smiled as he met her gaze.
"Tell me about your family, Carlisle, if you don't mind." She smiled warmly, all traces of the previously cold and hard Aurora long washed away.
"Well, I've adopted all five of my children," he began, Aurora nodding, "we travel quite a bit, and we're very close."
Aurora smiled nostalgically, her eyes coming to meet his once more, "I've never traveled before. Where are you from?"
"London, England."
Aurora's eyebrows shot up, her mouth quirking, "You do have a little baby accent." She giggled, Carlisle couldn't help but chuckle with her.
He shrugged, "It's faded quite a bit, I suppose."
They continued talking throughout the night, though Carlisle couldn't help but notice that Aurora withheld a good chunk of information about herself. She easily discussed her career, her relationship with Sonia, the long dreadful process of becoming the model she was thus far.
Her favorite color was forest green, her favorite food was scallops, and her dream vacation would be to Greece.
They were menial facts, though, as she merely shrugged off deeper questions about her past.
Carlisle began to worry.
Just what could she possibly be withholding?
He walked her back to her apartment afterwards, their shoulders gently grazing one another as they did so. She was so tiny, so frail, so human.
But Carlisle couldn't help the already overwhelming feelings begin to wash over him.
They stopped in front of her door, standing to face one another.
Aurora's face lit up with a smile that quickly spread to Carlisle.
"I'm very glad to have spent the evening in your company."
Aurora blushed at his words.
"I had a very nice time with you," she paused, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment, "I'd like to see you again."
Something stirred within Carlisle- a happy feeling that infiltrated his senses.
"It would be a pleasure," he nodded, Aurora's smile widening.
Carlisle couldn't help but pull Aurora closer, her arms somehow instinctively coming to wrap around his torso in response.
They hugged for a moment, Carlisle reveling in the contact as Aurora's heart beat wildly against her ribcage.
"I'll call you within the next few days to arrange plans, if you'd like?" Carlisle spoke as they released one another, Aurora already missing his embrace. She nodded happily though and they offered one another bright smiles once more before he began down the hallway and she unlocked her door.
XXX
Carlisle returned home that evening, the events racing through his mind as he tried to dissect Aurora's short and cryptic responses to personal questions.
Edward was by his side in an instant, watching the night unwind in Carlisle's head. He cocked an eyebrow, listening to her answers over and over again in search of something more.
"She's hiding something." He mumbled, the rest of the family making their way into the living room.
"How did it go?" Alice squealed, paying no attention to their troubled expressions.
They looked to her and Carlisle grinned faintly, "She's quite delightful-"
"And quite secretive." Edward interrupted, further unimpressed with her.
Alice sighed, shrugging, "Secretive or not, she'll still be one of us in no time."
XXX
"Aurora, dear?" Sonia knocked on the dressing room door, slowly peeking her head in. Aurora looked up from her book, quirking an eyebrow.
Her stylist paused momentarily, waving Sonia in before going back to work at putting curlers in Aurora's hair.
"Would you mind giving Aurora and I a moment?"
Aurora's eyes widened slightly, the stylist hesitating a moment before sighing and nodding, quickly exiting the room.
Sonia walked closer to the small brunette, pulling a chair from the neighboring makeup mirror and plopping her hands into her lap. Aurora closed the book and raised an eyebrow, already pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.
"The Dannemora prison called this morning."
Aurora felt the color drain from her face, her stomach somehow clambering its way up into her throat. She swallowed hard and exhaled, "What did they want?"
Sonia pursed her lips and shrugged, "The same thing as always. She wants to talk to you, Aurora-"
"Well I don't want to talk to her!" Her voice raised, cracking mid-sentence as breathing suddenly became difficult.
Sonia waited, sighing and running a hand through her hair as she waited for Aurora to calm down.
Aurora shook her head, swallowing again and focussing on her breathing.
They stared at one another for a moment, pity filling Sonia's green eyes.
"I'm sorry."
Aurora groaned and dropped her face into her hands, shaking her head and mumbling something to herself. Sonia knew she shouldn't have said anything.
"I knew this was a bad idea, I just- I just would've felt bad if I hadn't told you."
"Don't tell me next time." Aurora pulled her face up, her eyes acquiring that same cold gloss about them.
Sonia shook her head, "No, Aurora. I'm going to tell you next time too, because one day you might change your mind."
Aurora began to shake her head frantically, the curlers in her hair bobbing in distress, "I'm never going to change my mind! You don't get it Sonia, you don't-"
Sonia raised her hand up, palm facing Aurora as to tell her to stop, and the young girl quieted down after a moment.
"I will not pretend to know anything about what happened to you. But I repeat, I will tell you the next time she calls."
They fell in silence and Aurora slowly shook her head, her eyes dull and empty as she sat within her own mind.
Flashbacks pushed at the brim of her mind, hot flames and their screams, smokey air and shattering windows and crashing beams.
"I need a drink." Aurora stood up, rushing towards the fridge to yank out a bottle of water, "You should go. Beatrice will be getting impatient." She took a sip of her water and stared at Sonia expectantly, her manager sighing in defeat.
"I just want-"
"I'll see you after my shoot. This discussion is over."
She stared at her harshly once more before Sonia shook her head and left, allowing Beatrice to re-enter and continue on with her hair.
It took Aurora the rest of the day to calm herself down.
Her hands shook during the shoot, her legs trembled, she held her face too tight for fear that it all might fall apart if she didn't.
The moment she got to her apartment that night, she screamed. Muffled by the couch pillow she had acquired upon entrance, she screamed out all of the wild emotions she felt that day. And when she was done, she delicately placed it back onto the couch, fluffing it tenderly and continuing towards her room.
She changed into sweatpants and a t-shirt, tied her hair into a top-knot and slowly made her way towards her closet.
Her heart pounded against her ribs, she feared it might break through them at any moment. She hadn't even unpacked the small shoebox yet, it still lay tucked into the back corner of her large closet.
Just a black shoebox, that's all it was.
But it wasn't.
She knelt down on the ground, her fingertips grazing over the surface before slowly removing the top. Her breath caught in her throat.
The pain of seeing the picture on top was still raw.
She stared at it with hatred, her eyes scanning over each happy face and landing on one.
The top came crashing back down on the box and she sucked in a sharp breath of air as she backed away from it.
It was far too soon to forgive.