Author's Chapter Notes:
Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed and added this story as a favourite last week! I love you all! Not the response I'd love to have, but to those of you that are with me, I thank you all :P
SM owns all things Twilight...I'm just one of the many who loves to play around with it :P And all lyrics belong to their respective owners :)
Enjoy xx
Chapter Three: Home
Bella's POV
My heart rate quickened, my palms became sweaty, and I suddenly felt completely underdressed. It shouldn't even have taken the five seconds it had to place the warm, fuzzy feeling that that one laugh had set over me. I had been fantasising about hearing it again for days.
I turned on my heel so that I could feast my eyes on Edward again, but my tiny, baby heel caught on the carpet, catching my other leg as I turned. Lauren's eye caught mine, and I swear I saw her smirk smugly, but as I fell face-first towards the floor, the only thing I could concentrate on, was not killing myself.
But the floor never came. Instead, my hands found purchase on soft material that I grasped immediately. I was staring at the floor, but my body was suspended in mid air. It took me a few minutes to register the two searing hot patches on my body, one on my stomach and the other on my hip. They were hands, and the contact was sending electric shocks through my skin, heating it up to the point of blazing, white-hot heat.
With the smallest of pressure on those points, I was back on my feet and eye level with my saviour's chest. The material I had grasped was the lapels of said person's suit, and I immediately released it, cursing myself for having crushed it. I was smoothing it back out again before I realised that I hadn't looked up, or thanked my saviour, and there was a room full of people watching me.
With one last brush of my fingers, I released the expensive material and looked up into the cold, hard eyes of Edward Cullen. It was hard for me to reconcile his beautiful face with the hatred emanating from his every pore. I flinched under his intense gaze and immediately took a step back, my face flaming even more with embarrassment at what I could only assume was rejection.
I wondered how he could make me feel rejected with just a single look. He hadn't spoken a word, and I couldn't imagine what I'd done to invoke such hatred. That one look made me feel naive, and immature, for fantasising constantly about the man in front of me. One who clearly wanted nothing to do with me.
Harmless flirting was what I stored our first meeting under. He probably thought he'd never see me again. His day sounded like it had been stressful, and I knew he had been drinking. I couldn't believe I had fallen for it. Shamefully, I felt tears begin to prick at my eyes, as I realised just how stupid I had been.
Without a word, he turned his back on me and focussed his attention on Lauren. I looked myself over, making sure my black and white dress wasn't sitting in a precarious position after my fall. The halter neck, I had been happy to find, gave me what looked like a bust, but after the look Edward had given me, I felt cheap and unwanted.
I pulled my long mahogany hair down over my shoulders, unsuccessfully trying to hide the blush that bloomed even across my exposed chest. It had been too warm out for a cardigan, so the striped dress and black kitten heels were all I was wearing.
When I looked back up, I noticed the same two people who had been on my flight. The girl with the spiky black hair was watching Edward with a puzzled look on her face, and I hoped she was also wondering what the hell had just happened. The other, the massive sleeping form, was no longer asleep, but was watching me with amusement and curiosity in his eyes.
He smiled as I caught his gaze, and his whole demeanour changed from threatening to cute and cuddly in an instant. I couldn't help but smile back, my mood shifting somewhat. He wasn't disgusted by me.
"Of course, Mr. Cullen! Can I get you anything?" I rolled my eyes as Lauren's voice broke through my thoughts, clearly answering something Edward had asked her. Her double entendre was pretty damn obvious. I wondered briefly if guys actually liked that sort of thing. I was about to mutter something about her coffee making skills, but I was beaten to it.
"You're coffee making reputation precedes you. I think we'll all be fine." The girl's short tone made me turn to look at her in astonishment. She had seemed child-like, fun, and kind in the few moments I had spent with her, but the ice in her voice surprised me. She was staring directly at Lauren, who tried not to falter under her gaze as she handed some paperwork across to Edward.
I watched with a growing sickening feeling. Edward kept his eyes in front of him, no doubt checking out the plastic blonde behind the reception desk. I sighed gently, resigned to the fact that Edward was deliberately acting as if we had never met. I wasn't going to be another one of those pathetic females that fussed over him or threw themselves at him when it was clear he didn't want it.
I couldn't help the ache that settled over me, however, when it dawned on me, that he probably wouldn't mind if Lauren threw herself at him. It was just me that wasn't his type. I wasn't sure why that surprised me; I wasn't anyone's type.
With boring brown eyes, mousy brown hair, short and a small, un-shapely frame, I had to rely on fucking tricks in my clothing to even give me a bust. No one had ever paid attention to me, so why the hell would Edward fucking Cullen be the first? I scoffed at myself, realising too late that it was aloud.
As Edward slowly turned around, no doubt to ask me what my problem was, I made the hasty decision to flee. I turned on my heel, noticing as I did that the massive guy was watching me carefully, probably looking out for a repeat performance. I smiled at him reassuringly, as if to say, "Don't worry, I've got it this time," and was surprised when he chuckled lightly, clearly getting my message.
He stepped out of the way and pressed the button for the elevator, knowing he was standing between it and me. I smiled at him in thanks, concentrating on not turning around. I could feel his eyes on me, the exposed skin of my back burning under his gaze, but I wasn't going to turn around. I wasn't going to subject myself to the look in his eyes and allowing him to make me feel worse.
"Ah! Mr. Cullen." Dread washed over me at the sound of Felix's voice.
I had just sat in his office and discussed day dreaming about Edward, and there he was, Felix's next fucking appointment. Someone fucking shoot me.
My eyes caught Felix's, and I pleaded with him through one look not to mention anything. I'd never live it down if Edward ever knew. With an almost imperceptible nod in my direction, he flicked his eyes back to Edward and shook his outstretched hand.
It wasn't until that very moment, when their hands made contact, that I realised the glaringly obvious. Edward had a meeting with Felix. I had just had a meeting with Felix. I was, as of that moment, employed by Felix. If my train of thought was correct, then in around half an hour, Edward would be too.
I was going to be working in the same fucking building as Edward fucking Cullen. Who, I may remind you, clearly hated me. My immediate future became suddenly more miserable as that thought sunk in. I would be forced to see him every day.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed that the girl who had come in with Edward was watching me, but I backed into the waiting elevator without looking in her direction. She was probably wondering why I was still standing there and openly ogling Edward as he interacted with my new producer. Fuck my life.
As the doors closed over all five people disappeared, but one remained, burned on my retinas. The same unworthy feeling washed over me at the memory of his cold look, and I slid down the back wall of the elevator until I was sitting on the polished floor with my knees at my chest.
There were no tears this time because I couldn't really blame him. I had never been enough for anyone before, not even my own mother, so why would a superstar think any differently? I wasn't upset; I was empty, numb from feeling anything other than the light jolt of the elevator as it came to a stop on the ground floor.
"Miss?" Tom's kind voice floated over to me, but I didn't look up at him as I scraped myself off the floor, hauling myself into a standing position. I didn't want to see sympathy, empathy or even fucking apathy as I brushed past him.
I smiled tightly in his direction to avoid being rude, but my eyes remained fixed on the front door, which was revolving in and out of the summer sunshine. Heidi hung up the phone as I neared her, but I didn't want questioning; I just wanted to find a seat outside in the sun, to sit alone and quiet.
"Bella?" I looked at her briefly, but even as I smiled at her, her confusion grew. "Bella, what's wrong?" I shook my head with a sad smile. There was nothing wrong with anything other than me. "Bella, stop!" I halted in my tired tracks and listened as Heidi's footsteps clipped across the marble in a much lighter staccato than Renee's had.
Heidi's cold hand wrapped around my wrist, and she tugged me to the nearest bench in the foyer, sitting down silently beside me. I thought she was going to grill me, but she stood again and made her way back to her desk instead.
"What did you do to Bella? She's practically comatose! Felix, something clearly happened, this isn't normal...no...well, what should I do...Edward? Yeah...okay...yeah I guess I could do that...sure I'll get Tom to help...are you sure? Felix, I don't know about this...well, he was the only other person up there! It's not that hard to believe is it? Okay, okay...yeah I know...love you." Her one sided conversation made little sense to me, so I concentrated on the passers by instead.
Everyone was as immaculately dressed as the people I'd already met, and I wondered what everyone did to be able to afford such nice things. It wasn't the biggest building, but I knew it was a worldwide company, and there were thousands of jobs any one of them could do.
"Hey! Have you had your tour yet?" I could tell straight away that Heidi's voice was too high pitched, alerting me to the fact that she was lying about something.
"Heidi, I'm fine; nothing happened with Felix. I just wanted some time alone, without my mother, you know?" Her fake smile slipped and she nodded with genuine concern. Even having only met my mom for no more than five minutes, she already understood what I meant.
"I know you want to be alone, but I have spare time. Let me show you around, okay?" I nodded with resignation, learning quickly that Heidi wasn't one to not get her way.
As I stood, she linked her arm through mine, and I was thankful that my small heel choice made me a little closer in height with her in her death traps. I found myself wondering how she worked all day in shoes like those.
"So, Bella, where are you from?" She started up another conversation as she led us up the marble staircase that flowed down into the middle of the lobby without breaking the room.
"Forks, originally. This is actually the closest I've been to home in years." I smiled sadly and caught the sympathetic look Heidi threw my way.
The staircase brought us onto the balcony that ran around the edge of the main lobby, the marble never seeming to end. From where we stood, I could see parts of the entrance area I hadn't known existed. Chandeliers hung five feet from the ceiling, hanging over leather sofas situated on plush rugs. They glinted like pure ice in the sun streaming from the floor-to-ceiling glass windows on the opposite wall from the door. The Volturi did nothing in half measures.
"What about you?"
"My mother is German, but my father is from Los Angeles. They met when he was over there on business." At my raised eyebrow, she continued. "He's a chef; my second name is Fisher..." My jaw slacked, and my eyebrows rose in appreciation for the fact she had just shared with me
Graham Fisher was one of the most successful chefs in the western world. His restaurants were chic, but affordable, and popping up in cities worldwide. She may have only been the receptionist - I cringed at that because her job was damn important - but she was certainly worth a pretty penny herself.
"I don't want to be...blunt, but why do you work here?" She laughed good naturedly and laid a hand on my arm as we walked the length of the balcony.
"Oh, the usual...didn't want to be seen relying on daddy's money. To be honest, Caius is one of his favourite customers. That's probably why I got the job in the first place, but I wanted to work for my own money. The pay slip for this place is ten times bigger than a receptionist anywhere else." We both laughed lightly when she wiggled her eyebrows, but I was soon sobered up by what was before me.
We had passed through yet another set of double glass doors, black this time, so you couldn't see in. In front of me was a huge booth, filled to the brim with the best technology money could buy. Leather arm chairs and sofas were dotted sporadically, bringing the room more personal vibes and finishing it off with comfort.
To my right, behind a panel of switchboards and mixers, was the trademark glass wall, showing off a huge room, barely lit with soft light. My eyes widened at my realisation that no room in the building was small. Even the recording booth - one of many I guessed - had plenty of room around each instrument, and a relaxation area of its own. A microphone, drum kit, five guitars on stands, a piano and a keyboard filled the room before me.
To the left of the first room was another glass wall and booth, this time with at least a dozen microphones set up, presumably for a choir or small orchestra. I couldn't help the smile that blossomed across my face at what I was before me. I was looking at a room I would soon be living out of most of the time, and it couldn't have made me happier. I was looking at my future.
"This is one of the executive suites; you'll be on the next floor with your own room. There are little to no differences in them. This one is just a little more private is all." I nodded as Heidi's words floated through to me.
Even standing in such a room had calmed me, given me confidence, and made me happier than I had felt in months. I wasn't naive enough to think that my feeling would last, factors such as my mother and Edward Cullen playing exactly into my insecurities; but, at that moment, everything felt right.
"Felix, said -" I cut myself off, not sure whether he had really meant it or not.
"What?"
"Nothing, it's okay." I smiled at her in reassurance, but she wasn't buying it.
"Bella, I can just phone him and ask." I laughed at the evil look in her eye before deciding to spit it out.
"Before I left his office, he said I was free to use anything. Do you think I could check out one of the suites upstairs?"
"Of course!" She bounced up and down and clapped her hands together in excitement, making her look like a child at Christmas. I laughed long and hard as she led me back out onto the balcony. I stopped when my laughter rang out around the much larger room, cringing at the sound.
"Wait right here! I'll need to grab your keys and things for your suite." She smiled at me and literally dashed off, so much so that I feared for her life in those stilettos.
I leaned my forearms on the banister and watched her fly down the stairs and over to her desk. When the staccato of her heels stopped, my attention was grabbed by the soft "ding" of the elevator to my left.
I should have looked away, but I simply couldn't. After Tom stepped out of the way, a mane of coppery coloured hair stepped out of the golden and dark-wooded box. From my vantage point, I let my eyes rake over his face, and then his body, as he waited for his two companions to step out after him.
He looked tired, his eyes drooping and pronounced by dark circles. But, apart from that, he looked as drop dead gorgeous as he usually did. His clothes clung to him perfectly, his shirt hanging precisely off his chest and flowing down over the sculpted abs that had raised millions for charity. My eyes watched his jean clad thighs as he walked across the marble floor, and I felt myself blushing as I imagined him without the hindrance of clothes.
As if my blush had somehow lit up my side of the room, his eyes flashed up to where I was standing and rooted me to the spot. I breathed a sigh of relief when the narrowing of his eyes didn't come; instead, he looked at me as if he was trying to figure something out - like he was imagining me even being there. Yeah, I wished.
I held his gaze in some sort of act of defiance and flushed deep red when he smirked. A paradox really; did I blush before he smirked? Or did he smirk because I blushed? Who knew, but simply looking in his emerald green eyes, even from a distance, did things to me that I had no intention of ever admitting aloud.
Something caught his attention, and his eyes shifted away from me. Following his gaze, I noticed the big guy looking at me with a mischievous grin on his face. Edward smacked him across the back of his head after they exchanged words, and then they headed to the reception desk.
Even from my elevated position, I could tell that the young girl who had taken over from Heidi was exceptionally flustered. It wasn't too long before Heidi put the items in her hand down and helped her out.
I watched with nothing short of envy as Edward clasped Heidi's hand and shook it, obviously introducing himself. I thought back on our time at the bar and seethed with disappointment when I realised he probably hadn't been flirting at all. He was just being polite at the time, and for the second time in an hour, I mentally slapped myself for being so stupid.
Their encounter didn't last long, as Heidi glanced up at me and gathered her things again. My face was continually hot as I felt Edward watching me, while I watched Heidi ascend the stairs in a graceful manner I could only dream of having. She smiled brightly when she got to the top and pointed me in the direction of another elevator.
Edward's attention didn't falter from me as I turned and disappeared into the safety of the elevator. I probably imagined it, but every fibre of my being was hoping he really had been watching me so closely. I wanted him to look at me, no matter what the reason.
As the elevator stopped at the next floor, I came to the conclusion that this wasn't a healthy thing to admit to. Edward's attention, or even his presence, may not prove to be as disrupting to me as my mother's, but it was obvious that it would only serve as a distraction.
I was torn. The more prominent part of me wanted to be close to him, to see him on a daily basis, maybe even watch him rehearse and record. But another part, a less obtrusive, deep down part of me knew that wanting all those things was only going to cause me problems.
My almost trivial problems once again ceased to exist, as Heidi handed me a key card and motioned to a dark wood door in front of me with a flourish. With bated breath, I slid it into the device on the door. With a soft click, the light turned green, and the door quietly pushed itself open.
Embarrassingly, my eyes started to tear up as I looked around my suite. It was all I could have ever wanted, everything I had been working towards, but had always just been out of my reach. I finally had a home, a purpose, and a future with one of the most powerful record agencies in the world. Sony BMG could choke on my demo for all I cared at that moment.
I hadn't realised I was crying until Heidi's arms circled my shoulders, and she brought me in for a hug. I squashed the voice that was telling me to feel uncomfortable, having only known her for a few hours, and hugged her back, needing the comfort more than I realised. My tears fell faster as I failed to remember the last time my mother had hugged me or shown me any real human comfort.
"You're home, Bella. Nothing can take this away from you now." With one final squeeze, Heidi backed silently out of the room and left me to calm myself down.
It didn't take long. With one lingering look around the room, I felt myself smile again.
"There's gotta be something more
Gotta be more than this
I need a little less hard time
I need a little more bliss
I'm gonna take my chances
Taking a chance I might...
Find what I'm looking for
There's gotta be something more."
Author's Chapter End Notes:
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