Chapter 3: Bonjour Paris
Half of My Heart
Oh half of my heart's got a grip on the situation
Half of my heart takes time
Half of my heart's got a right mind to tell you
That I can't keep loving you
Oh, with half of my heart
By: John Mayer
Blue sea waves wrapped around our bodies, enveloping us in our little cocoon of haven. Sand glided between our toes, symbolizing the start of a great summer. It was just my best friend and me. Edward and I.
Summer had just started, and my family was together. Happy, even. My parents hadn't started fighting, and Edward and I had never been closer. Edward was a newly crowned thirteen year old, the start of a teenager, while I was still a little twelve year old going through awkward stages. Edward was the lucky one out of us, since he never had stick arms and legs and frizzy hair. Edward was blessed with good looks and charm from the day he was born, and you could see that other people- girls my age, mostly- were really starting to notice him.
And that scared me.
"Come one Edward, let's go in the water!" I pleaded to him, wanting to dedicate this day to us. Our families were having their annual barbeque to kick off the summer. Of course, this summer ended differently than any of us thought it would. While we expected it to end in another barbeque to celebrate a new school year, it ended in heartbreak and sorrow. With me and my mom no longer in Forks.
"Alright, but it's cold!" Edward laughed.
I dragged him in anyway and laughed at his funny expressions. We were splashing each other in fun when we noticed we had another onlooker watching us critically.
"Um, hello?" I said/asked to the girl watching us from a few feet away.
"Hello. Who are you?" Edward asked politely, but I could tell he was a little irritated that she was staring.
"Sorry to interrupt," the curly-haired girl said flippantly. "But I couldn't help but notice you." She directed the last bit to Edward.
"Uh… okay," Edward said, his tone questionable.
"Do you like the bikini I am wearing?" the girl suddenly asked.
Edward looked at me in alarm, never having been asked these kinds of questions before. I shrugged, because I really didn't have a clue what was going on.
"Um… yeah, I guess. It's cool. But I kind of can't see it…" he said awkwardly.
"Cool," the girl smiled mischievously. "My name is Lauren. What's yours?"
By now the girl was completely ignoring me, which made me a little angry. Who does she think she is, interrupting our time together for petty chatter about her bathing suit? I don't what feeling came over, but I didn't like it. I just know I didn't want that girl talking to Edward.
"Edward," he said automatically. "And this is my best friend Bella."
I purposely gave her a coy smile, and she frowned at me in return. "How old is she? Like ten?" Lauren sneered.
"I am twelve years old, thank you very much! Thirteen in September!" I said almost angrily, offended by this stranger's rudeness.
"Oh," she contemplated. "Well she seems really young. How about you come with me for a little bit, Edward?" she said, now just ignoring my presence completely.
"Well I am kind of with Bella right now," Edward said uncertainly.
"Don't worry, she will be fine!" Lauren said in annoyance. "I am thirteen years old. Your age. So you should talk to me."
Then Jessica took off her cover up, exposing her bikini to the world. And just like that, Edward was transfixed from his first dose of male hormones. His eyes lit up, and he looked at me with a pleading expression.
"Go," I whispered to Edward. I don't think he heard the sad tone I didn't even try to disguise.
Edward jumped out of the water like he was getting attacked by a Great White. I sighed in frustration while he quickly waved me goodbye, walking off with Lauren and her bikini.
Well, I couldn't just wait in the water by myself! I quickly dried off and walked back to the house where the families were.
I stumbled through the door to find Edward's siblings at the table. He had an older brother Emmett, who was sixteen, and a sister, Alice, who was eleven. Also at the table were our other close family friends, Rosalie and Jasper, the twins who lived a few houses from us. They were fifteen years old. We were all lucky to be within such a close age.
"What is wrong, Bella?" Jasper asked, also the quickest to pick up on my emotions. I could talk to Jasper about anything if I didn't have Edward around. Like in this instance.
"Nothing," I scowled.
"Where's Edward?" Emmett asked with a cheeky grin. "Is that why you are being such a downer?"
"Shut up!" I pretended to hit Emmett's massive form in the bicep, but it ended up only hurting me.
Everyone continued chatting, while I still sat in my chair, bitterness radiating off me.
"Seriously Bells, what's wrong?" Jasper asked again, except this time quietly and without the prying ears of our friends.
"It's Edward," I admitted. "Just a few minutes ago he ran off with some girl. And everytime I think about it I feel… angry. I don't know why."
"It is cause your jealous!" Jasper lightly smiled. "You like Edward, Bella. It is obvious."
I pondered this. Me… jealous? Over Edward? I mean, I loved him as a best friend. "Hmm," was all I said, still in thought.
"You should talk to him," Jasper suggested.
"No!" I exclaimed. "We are just friends. And I am… scared to say anything like that to him. What if he doesn't like me like that?"
"What if he does?" Jasper countered.
With each second that passed, I became more certain of my feelings for Edward. I did like him. Wow, it is not every day an eleven-year old has an epiphany.
"Now what?" I asked blatantly.
"Now you tell him how much you love him! And in a few years you two will be a mighty cute couple," Jasper winked.
"I can't do that, Jasper!"
"Bella, I know Edward really well," Jasper said seriously. "I know he likes you that way. Maybe right now he doesn't quite realize it, but he will soon. He is still young and naive. He is going go off with other girls, because he is experiencing life as a teenager for the first time! He doesn't know any better! You are beautiful, and you are going to grow into an even more beautiful woman. Edward is lucky to have you Bells."
"Thanks, Jasper," I said, touched.
And then Edward walked in, his face flushed with happiness. He sat down next to me, grabbing a hotdog.
My adolescent heart almost broke right then. Edward didn't want me like that, and I would have to settle for hiding my feelings. But Jasper gave me a little shove towards Edward anyway, and I stopped dead in my tracks.
"Oh, um, hey Edward," I stuttered.
"Hi Bella!" he said with a big smile.
"Bella has something to tell you," Jasper coughed out from the table while I glared at him.
"Yeah? What is it?" Edward asked eagerly.
"I just wanted to say…" I paused. A really, really, really long time.
"Can you pass the ketchup?" I squeaked.
"Sure," Edward said slowly, his face dropping a little. Or was that my imagination?
"Are you sure that's what you wanted to tell me?" he asked. "We are best friends, Bella. We can tell each other anything."
"Yep," I said quickly.
"Ok," he said.
And just like that, everything went back to normal. Until the day I left, of course.
"We are now serving dinner!" a flight attendant's annoying, overly peppy voice woke me up from my dream that relieved the past. Where was I again? Oh, right. Plane ride. To Paris. With… Mike!
I looked over to my right, where Mike was sitting, only to have a mini heart attack as I saw how intensely he was staring at me. Was he watching me sleep? That is just creepy!
"Uh, sorry," Mike said, at least having the decency to look embarrassed on watching me sleep. Mike was kind enough to make sure we had adjoined seats on the flight. God forbid we were to spend twelve hours on a plane not sitting next to each other. I had been fortunate enough to sleep for the first six hours on the plane, but now it seemed like I would have to deal with annoying little Mike for the rest of the flight. Great.
"What would you like to drink?" the flight attendant asked me, her cheerfulness making me sick. I didn't like fake people.
"What would you like to drink, Bella?" Mike asked, immediately asking the same question after the flight attendant did. Annoying, isn't it?
"A Coke, please," I answered, only talking to the flight attendant.
"Same for me," Mike winked.
The flight attendant poured us our drinks, and when she handed mine over towards me, Mike just had to beat her to it. He quickly grabbed the soda out of her hands to hand it to me himself, resulting in it spilling all over me. My crotch, to be exact. Of course, his eyes zeroed in the spot that the Coke spilled.
"Let me help you!" Mike said, reaching for napkins and awkwardly placing them in my… lap area. Once he started to blot, I lost it.
"I got it Mike!" I screeched/yelled in his ear.
"Just trying to help," Mike managed a smile, but I could see his cheeks become a dark crimson.
"Aren't you two just the cutest couple!" the flight attendant smiled.
"What? No!" I almost yelled. "We are not a couple!"
"Not yet," I thought I heard Mike mutter.
"Oh, I am sorry," the attendant said, still smiling. "I just figured since you are in first class together you are… together."
"It's okay, we get that a lot," Mike said seriously.
"Ha ha, he is just kidding!" I laughed nervously. "We are just co-workers and friends."
"It always starts that way," the attendant nodded sympathetically to Mike.
Mike nodded in agreement, and I had to bite my lip to keep from screaming at his insanity. Why did the creepy people always have to like me like that?
The flight attendant handed us the crappy airline food, and luckily Mike didn't interfere this time. I spent thirty minutes eating, slowly chewing the mushy food, to avoid having to talk to Mike. He was still watching me out of the corner of his eye, and I was still feeling awkward around him. He did blot Coke from my crotch. Experiences like that should not be encountered with your flirtatious boss.
When Mike started to talk to me, I quickly shut him up. "I have some work to do," I said, pulling out my laptop from my carry-on bag. "I need to go over the new articles Angela sent me and do some writing. So do you think we could just be… quiet for a bit? I need to stay concentrated," I said, mentally congratulating myself on such a foolproof plan to shut Mike up. It really wasn't necessary to work right now, since the articles weren't due for another two weeks. But why not get ahead? Hopefully Angela and I could do some sightseeing when she arrived in a few days.
"Sure! Go on ahead," Mike said enthusiastically, but his face fell slightly.
I typed away for hours, getting lost in my little world of writing. Though summer fashions wasn't exactly my favorite topic to write about, writing was writing. No matter what you write about, your voice is still going to be heard across the thousands of people who read what you write. And that is exhilarating.
After I was satisfied with all that I had accomplished, I looked over to see what Mike was up to. In my little bubble of work, I actually forgot that Mike was there. I was pleasantly surprised to see him sound asleep instead of watching me. Wow, no wonder it was so quiet. I knew Mike couldn't shut up completely unless he was knocked out.
I sighed in content. Only four more hours to go… Then I would be in Paris. I didn't know what Paris would be bring, but how bad could it be? I would go to the convention on the weekends, type some more on my laptop on the weekdays, and sightsee Paris with Angela during my free time. I could handle this.
Sun poured through the window as I groggily opened my eyes. My eyes blinked from the sudden sunlight, and I could barely move from the comfy bed I was sitting on. The down comforter and pillows only added to my immobility. Ah yes, wherever I was, this was heaven. Hmm… where was I again?
The awkward airplane ride rushed back to my head. The bleary memories of the even more awkward taxi ride to the fancy hotel Mike and I are staying at hit me at full force. Holy crap, I am in Paris!
Wait! I have a convention to go to! My eyes searched for the digital clock that read 7:16. Panic consumed me as I realized that the stupid alarm did not go off, and I had to meet Mike in the lobby at 7:30.
I bolted out of bed, getting dressed in a frenzy. I threw on an outfit- that Angela organized, or course- that consisted of a black sweater dress, black tights, and black high heeled boots. Casual and sexy, as Angela put it. Future ad supporters and other top magazine people would be at the convention, so I had to look sophisticated and charming. Hah! Like that would happen.
I looked at the clock again, and time seemed to not be on my side, since it read 7:24. I threw back my hair in a messy bun and slapped on some make-up. At 7:28, I was ready. I had to admit, I looked pretty professional for getting ready in ten minutes.
I sprinted down the four flights of stairs, almost doing a face plant in my heels, but I made it to the hotel lobby by 7:30. Wow, maybe I should have gone out for track.
Mike greeted me. "Hi Bella! Wow, you look pretty today," he said.
"Um, thanks Mike," I said.
"Did you sleep well? I practically had to drag you to your hotel room, you were so tired," he chuckled. "I almost stayed there to make sure you weren't dead!"
His mischievous smile was really creeping me out.
My forced laughter came out high pitched. "Oh, that would have been unnecessary! Let's go!"
We took a cab into the heart of Paris, and for the first time since I arrived, I truly got to see the city. It was breathtaking. There were so many beautiful buildings, and Angela was right, there were a lot of cafes. I almost got excited thinking about how much more fun it would be when she got here.
For the first time in a long time, I felt the tiniest bit of happiness. It was like a new start in a new city. That's when I realized it. I hadn't thought of Edward once since I arrived in Paris. I didn't know whether to cry or smile at this. I was happy that I was not obsessing over him, but it also upset me that I let my mind drift away from the person I loved the most. Edward would love Paris. The thought that I would never experience this magnificent place with him made me nostalgic.
We arrived at the convention soon after the little monologue in my head. It bothered me that right after I realized how much I improved not thinking about Edward, he gets stuck right back in my head. Oh well, nothing I can do about it now.
Mike helped me out of the car, much to my dismay. Luckily, I had a brilliant thought for him to go check us in while I went to my first meeting. He easily complied, and I breathed a huge sigh of relief that I wouldn't be seeing him for a while. Since we were both from the same company, we had different schedules. Our goal at the convention was to get as many people as we could interested in sponsoring and placing ads in FreeStyle. Our magazine was doing pretty well, but we still hoped for more popularity, so we really needed to get our name out there. I was told to hand out my super snazzy business card to anyone I could, which I thought was rather obnoxious. But hey, nobody asks for my opinion.
I grabbed a list of meetings and seminars going on today and highlighted the ones Mike Sr. told me to attend. Aw crap, the meeting started in ten minutes! Why was I having such a bad day?
I ran around the convention center- which is very big, I should tell you- looking for the correct room. I was running and running so fiercely, that I didn't even notice that I ran into someone until I heard their groan of pain and saw their briefcase's papers spilling across the carpet.
"Oh my God, I am so sorry!" I said, mortified. I quickly reached down and put their papers together, my face heating up. Luck and time were not on my side today.
"It's okay-" the stranger stopped dead in their tracks.
My face whipped up at the sound of that voice. A voice that I never expected to hear again. I then looked at the stranger in shock, recognizing the familiar face in front of me. He was taller, leaner, and better looking than I remembered.
"Bella?" He said, looking confused.
I mirrored his tone, "Jasper?"
Suddenly his face broke into a smile and he grabbed me in a huge hug, "BELLS!"
With a laugh, I hugged him back. No one had called me that in a long time. "JAZZY!"
AN-Mhcheergirl and Skazmi: Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews! We hope you like the chapter ;) Let's make this interesting, have any of you guys sat next to an EXTREMELY irritating person on a plane ride? Haha, answer in a review, and don't forget: if you review you get a preview! Oh, and 30th review gets a one shot by the both of us! So review- everybody wins!
Also, check out our friend Daughter of Posieden's stories! She loves writing as much as we do, and she writes for many fandoms! So check her out :)
Skazmi: Oh and to Daughter of Poseidon: THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU for the story(: Haha, James and Lilyyy (: I LOVE it! Haha and I love you too. (; I would have written this in a review but then I was a retard and wrote the review BEFORE I read the AN and then when I wanted to say all of this in a review it wouldn't let meee…. Yeah and I called you before but I didn't say thank you as much as I meant it because I couldn't find my cell phone at the time and was freaking out :P ahaha..so yeah. and if a person other than Daughter of Posiedon is reading this...umm...HI? hehe THANKS FOR READING THIS STORY! :P