Chapter 4: The Sun is Gold By Edward
"Edward?" Bella asked me in surprise as both she and I emerged from opposite sides of the clearing.
"Bella! What are you doing here?" I asked. Never thought I'd run into her here.
"Well-- you see…well-- it was such a beautiful day that I thought--" She couldn't make up her mind what to say.
"Thought that you wanted to spend some time to yourself outside?" I finished her sentence.
"Yes," she said, surprised yet again that I knew what she was thinking. "You, too?"
"Yes." There was no point in staying. She wanted to have some time to herself, I'd find another place to do the same. "Well, I won't trouble you further," I said, trying to close the conversation and make the fact that we were alone and in private not awkward.
"You don't have to go. I'll go. There are plenty of places around here to read and draw…" she said, trying to make amends.
"No, wouldn't want to inconvenience you," I consoled.
Today was a day of surprises: Bella sighed and smiled at me. At least she wasn't being as cold to me as she usually was. "I have an idea: there's plenty of room for both of us. Why don't we just both stay here and just… i don't know... maybe become more acquainted?"
I smiled, "Why not?" I said. We both nervously chuckled to ourselves, like letting out something that has been bottled up for a very long time, ten years, in fact: awkwardness. It's like Bella changed with the skies. She went from dim, calm, bubbling beneath the surface, to bright and pleasant, outgoing and full of energy. The thought Who are you and what have you done with Bella Swan? crossed my mind, however, I didn't voice it.
We found a spot of tall grass, and it was slightly damp. We sat down and she leaned against a tree, and began to read Pride and Prejudice. I shouldn't have been surprised, but for some reason I was. She did seem like the type who liked to read a lot, but I guess I'd just never really thought about it. I observed her: slender, simple brown hair, but it was wild and energetic nonetheless. The wind caressed it, and a scent of freesia blew my direction. I inhaled deeply, and sighed. Her hand barely tickled her cheek as it swept her hair behind her ear, and she looked up from her book. I quickly looked down, but too late, she had seen me watching her. I could hear her suppress a chuckle as I avoided her eyes. When I thought it was safe to look up, I
glanced in her direction. She was staring at me again. She, however did not avert her eyes from me. "You're staring at me again."
"You were staring at me," she replied in retort. A blossom fell from the tree and landed on her wrist. She held it in the palm of her hand lightly and delicately, but as if it were all she had to hold on to. She rested her eyes on it, and twirled it between her fingers. She sighed as her eyes went back to her own realm of thought.
"What are you thinking about?" I asked. If this was the woman I was going to marry, I might as well get to know her.
"I'm thinking about how nice it is not to be alone. It was what I wanted, but I realize now that I don't want solitude anymore." She tore her eyes from the blossom, and looked at me. Her eyes were deep and thoughtful. Beautiful. We just sat there, each one trying to figure out the other. "What are you thinking?" she asked me.
"I'm thinking how we're not as different as we thought we were."
She leaned in. It was like a gravitational pull, because I leaned in as well. We were just inches from each other now. I didn't know what her attraction was for me, and from the look on her face, I could tell she was fighting the impulse to keep leaning in. Again, to my surprise, she smiled, jumped up, and started running away from me, laughing and smiling all the time. "Catch me if you can!" she called tauntingly but teasingly.
A smile broke on my face as I leaped up and half-stumbled after her. She ran through the woods, laughing all the way, and I ran after her. Then I lost sight of her. "Bella?" I turned around and looked in various different directions. I heard a sort-of suppressed giggle, and I looked behind me. I saw a white blouse peeking out from behind an old and knarled tree. I went around the tree, with one hand leaning on it.
Bella was there, looking innocently up into me. It was seductive, but I could tell she didn't know it. I was pulled towards her. Sunny days were my kind of day, and hers, too, apparently.
Our lips met, and I wrapped my arms around her, and she wrapped hers around me. I pulled her towards me with such force I was afraid of crushing her, but she pulled me closer with just the same amount of almost gravitational pull. It was ecstasy, and we couldn't stop. She was warm, and I could feel her heart beat increase with every time we crushed against each other. I could feel mine get faster, too. Where was all this coming from? A day ago, I hadn't held any special feelings for Bella Swan, except for that of curiosity. But that had changed. The sun had went from yellow, to gold, and the skies from pale blue, to an intensity of color and shimmer so profound it was amazing. This is all figuratively speaking of course.
For the first time in minutes, our lips parted and I held her even closer, in a tight embrace. I heard her gasp and her arms on me loosened. "Edward," she whispered. It was a whisper of fear.
I stepped away from her and turned to follow her wide-eyed gaze. She seemed to be staring between two tall trees. I saw nothing.