Alice and Bella had a little inside joke concerning the residents of the small town Forks. Everyone in the town always seemed so alike, but truly, they were all misfits. Alice, the self-diagnosed ADD pixie, Edward, the obsessed piano girl-freak. Emmett, the strongest, most buff softy in the world. Bella, the tomato faced klutz. They had gone through half the town just naming what was so insanely weird or different about them. It seemed to them that all of the messed up traits of people seemed to be what made everyone seem so normal– no one dared to draw attention to what made them themselves. Bella and Alice frowned upon it, not understanding why they would hide such beautiful differences. In a small town like Forks, fitting in shouldn't matter. Still, living in a band of misfits, Alice– along with Bella had she found out at the same time as Alice– was nowhere near shocked to find out that a foster home of teenage children was moving into Forks. Foster children, wonderful as they were, were as different as everyone in this town. Alice put down the notice she'd found in Carlisle's office and went straight for the phone.
April 12th, Year 8– Bella leaves with Edward's family to go on vacation in California.
April 14th, Year 8– Bella goes to first real beach in her life.
April 15th, Year 8– Edward and Emmett try to teach Bella how to surf . . . perfect blackmail recorded by Alice.
April 16th, Year 8– Bella almost rips notebook trying to get video of surfing from Alice. Edward gets in trouble for hurting Alice even if it wasn't his fault. Declares Bella owes him.
April 17th, Year 8– Bella goes on the worst, most backbreaking shopping trip with Alice that she has ever experienced. Edward stays at the condo watching tv as punishment. Bella states that it was truly her that was punished.
April 18th, Year 8– Edward takes Bella to carnival on the pier. Wins her a giant cat. Bella still believes that it's really supposed to be a mountain lion.
April 19th, Year 8– Bella gets terrible sunburn spending the whole last day down at the beach trying to surf and body boarding. Edward blames himself for forgetting to remind her to wear sun screen.
April 20th, Year 8– Bella complains about it being too dark and dreary back in Forks.
April 21st, Year 8– Edward paints Bella her own personal sun. Bella declares it the best thing she's ever gotten.
April 22nd, Year 8– It's actually sunny out, so after school Edward and Bella go down to La Push beach. Edward points out how unlike it is compared to the beach in California. Bella drags him to the tidal pools and states that it's the best thing about the place. Edward makes Bella promise not to go back for awhile.
April 23rd, Year 8– Bella gets sick from the cold water she never dried off in time yesterday. She agrees willingly not to go back to the beach for awhile.
I groaned and rolled away from the window, away from the unwelcome light filtering through the window that was luring me towards consciousness. My eyes were still heavy with sleep and my mind hazy. I didn't wish to become alert and for all of my avoided thoughts to come rushing back to haunt my mind like they had last night. Edward's breathing was sound and steady. He was still sleeping, his head nuzzled into the top of mine, making movement impossible. Then my slow brain registered something. My window in Forks, Washington doesn't wake me up in the morning due to sunlight . . .
"Edward, Edward," I shook his shoulder, trying to loosen his death hold on me. He groaned and held me closer to him. I laughed and smacked his arms, pushing his face away from my hair. "Edward, let me go. I think it's sunny out!" He shook his head.
"Edward's asleep and Bella doesn't care about sunlight." He murmured, still half asleep. I giggled and shook my head, filling his face with my haystack hair. I gripped his arms and wiggled down. Soon enough, my upper torso was free of Edward. I humored him and threw a pillow into his arms as a replacement. He grunted and turned away from me, taking the pillow with him. I put a hand to my mouth to control my ongoing laughter.
Looking away from Edward, I stepped towards the window and gazed out. Sure enough, there was sun coloring the exotic green surrounding the house. The rain from the thunderstorm was still fresh on the trees and grass, the single droplets shooting off sparkles all around. It was beautiful, much prettier than the constant sunlight that Arizona had to offer. There was nothing special about that sun– it was more like rain for them.
"Edward, it's sunny!" I gasped, jumping onto the bed beside him. He moaned and waved me away. I shook my head in disapproval. "Come on, Eddie." I shook his shoulder again, stripping him of blankets as I went. "It's nice out, let's do something."
Sighing in defeat, Edward rolled over to face me. He squinted at my face and dropped his head back to the pillow. "Like what." He questioned, his voice thick with sleep. I dropped down onto the bed so that my face was level with his.
"I don't care." I shrugged, a smile gradually growing on my face. "Why don't we hang out with Alice and Emmett? You're not the only one who's been two months without me."
He grimaced. "But if we hang out with Alice then she'll end up running off with you." He complained. "She went shopping for you over the summer. She'll want to show you all the clothes."
I frowned at him. "Edward, I just got home." I reminded him, pushing myself erect again. "Alice will have to wait to show me my new clothes that she'll be taking back to the store. Can we please just hang out with them today?" I put on my best begging face that got him almost every time. Apparently, my time away had weakened his defenses.
"Fine." He grumbled, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. "But can we get something to eat first? I'm starving." I rolled my eyes.
"Go over to your house and change and I'll be making breakfast." I ordered, lowering my feet to the ground. "Let yourself in through the front door." He nodded greedily and abandoned my pillow. He grinned as he observed that my announcement about the sun being revealed wasn't a lie. He unlocked my window and slid it up before worming out onto my roof.
"Leave it open." I told him as he turned to close it. He shrugged and waved before starting to descend to the ground. I ran over to the window and stuck my head out– I'd forgotten to remind him . . . "Make sure you invite Alice and Emmett, too!"
I heard him chuckle from where he stood, made invisible by the roof. "Whatever you say." He called back.
I smiled and turned away to get dressed myself before I started making breakfast. I pulled on a pair of comfy jean caprees and my favorite red T-shirt. I made a quick detour at the bathroom to run a brush through my hair, pull it up, and wash away my morning breath. I was downstairs flipping pancakes by the time Edward came knocking on my door. He only knocked to alert me that he was here– I didn't have to answer or let him in, he let himself in.
"Mm, pancakes!" I heard Emmett squeal as he rushed down the hall. I laughed and stacked five onto one of the plates I'd pulled out of the cupboards. He appeared seconds later, hands outstretched greedily.
"Down boy," I giggled, placing the plate into his hands and motioning towards the maple syrup on the table. He licked his lips and smiled.
"I sure have missed your cooking, Bells." He declared as he seated himself at the table and began stuffing his face. It only took me a second to realize he was still in his pajamas. I cracked up again.
"Thanks Emmett." I snorted, turning back to the other pancakes still on the stove. I heard Edward laughing as he rounded the corner and leaned against the wall. My forehead creased when I didn't hear the sound of Alice's arrival. I turned to frown at Edward.
"Where's Alice?" I demanded, narrowing my eyes at his too innocent expression. He rose his hands defensively.
"I asked her to join us, but she was on the phone and just shooed me away," He rambled off quickly. I raised an eyebrow expectantly. He shrugged in honesty. "She wouldn't come over. I even told her it was you cooking." Emmett gasped.
"Yeah, and he's not even lying!" Emmett claimed, his face so hilariously awed I broke into another round of Emmett provoked laughter. I steadied myself on the counter and averted my attention back to the pancakes.
"That sounds quite tragic." I murmured, not completely sure if I should buy the story. Emmett's face popped into my head and I laughed breathlessly to myself. If he'd managed to look like that then they couldn't be lying. I piled a few pancakes onto a second plate and spun to offer them to Edward. He still stood leaning against the archway between the hall and kitchen, staring at me vacantly. "You said you were hungry?"
His head snapped up like he'd been scolded as his bemused expression turned flustered. I arched my brow in confusion. He smiled sheepishly. "Yes, starving." He mumbled, stepping away from the wall to accept the plate of food. "Thanks." He trailed off the table, still dazed from whatever thoughts haunted him. I filled my own plate and followed after, quickly occupying the last seat at the table.
"So what are your plans for today, Em?" I wondered conversationally as I dug in. He shrugged, swallowing a mouthful of food.
"It's nice out so I was planning on going down to La Push," He told me, only giving me half of his attention. "Me and the guys are gonna hang out at the beach, maybe go cliff diving." I choked on the pancake I was chewing.
"Cliff diving?" I rasped, widening my eyes at him incredulously. What kind of trouble had Emmett been getting into while I was gone?! He grinned at me.
"Yes, Bella, cliff diving." Emmett clarified. My lips departed in disbelief and I shook my head at him. He chortled and loaded his mouth with pancakes again. "You should come and watch some time." He suggested at the same time he swallowed. I shuddered.
"You're serious?" I asked in dismay. He smiled slyly and nodded, mouth too full to respond in words. I shot a look of bewilderment at Edward and he shrugged. "Is he serious?"
Edward laughed. "Yes," he guaranteed me. My jaw dropped. "It's actually quite entertaining to watch. Never had the opportunity to try it myself." He watched my expression as I ingested their words, amused. I quickly composed myself and stabbed another bite of pancakes.
"Well, why don't we go down with you today, Emmett." I ventured, blanketing the pancake in syrup before popping it into my mouth. Emmett exchanged a confused look with Edward.
"You two aren't going on a special little date or anything?" Emmett teased to disguise his surprise in my offer.
"Nope." I replied before Edward could back his way out of it. "Come on, it'd be cool. You could get your chance, Edward." I looked up to survey their reactions. Emmett's face lit up.
"That sounds sweet!" He cried, throwing the remains of his breakfast down his throat. "I gotta show you, I jump from the highest cliff and I get serious air time. Talk about adrenaline rush! Woo!" I laughed at his enthusiasm, gathering his plate with mine before walking over to the sink to clean them. Edward remained silent. I heard Emmett clamber from the table to the island, still babbling about cliff diving and other things concerning the La Push beach. I tuned him out, waiting for some reaction from Edward.
"Sounds fun, huh Edward?" I finally asked when I finished washing the two dishes I had. I glanced over my shoulder to see him staring blankly at the wall opposite where he sat at the table, plate empty in front of him. Perplexed, I wandered over and removed the plate from in front of him. He didn't respond to the movement. I waved a hand in front of his face. "You okay, Edward?"
He tilted his head up at me, his eyes still glazed over. The moment I narrowed my eyes in distress, he snapped out of it. "Yeah, sorry." He spoke distantly. "Here, let me get that." He snagged the plate from my hand and headed over to the sink and went through the motions of washing it halfheartedly. My brow furrowed in concern.
"Ha ha, did you hear what I just said, Bells?" Emmett's voice cut through my tension. I smiled nonchalantly at him and shook my head. He grinned eagerly and launched back into his story. I slouched down at the island and buried my face in my hands. What was with Edward today?
.
"I'll go get my jeep, we'll take that down to La Push." Emmett decided, finally slipping on the shoes he'd been standing next to for about ten minutes now. I was still gripping Edward's arm for support as I laughed breathlessly at Emmett's gut busting stories about occurrences at the La Push beaches. Edward had, more or less, come around to his normal self. He was leaning against the wall, catching his breath as he nodded his brother out the door. I waved him towards the door as I leaned into Edward's chest, focusing on steadying my breath to his rhythmic breathing.
"Dang," I gasped once Emmett was out the door. "I almost forgot how funny Emmett can be!" Edward arched his eyebrows in surprise.
"I didn't know that was possible," He snorted, casually resting his arms around my waist. "But then again, I have to live with him."
I coughed back another breathless laugh. "That has to be very interesting."
He snorted again. "Always . . ."
Silence arose between us as I stabilized my breathing and had time to rearrange my mind and form a trail of thought. My mind drifted back to Edward's absent expression. I turned to face him, sliding my hands to rest on his. I opened my mouth to inquire what was going on when a loud horn honked outside. I cringed and let my question drop.
"Come on, let's go." I said instead. Removing Edward's hands, I stepped into my shoes and trotted out the door. Emmett's large jeep was idling in the middle of the empty road. The driver's window was rolled all the way down and Emmett's toned arm was dangling out of it.
"Hurry up slow pokes!" Emmett yelled, sticking his head out too. "This is Forks, if you don't remember. You never know how long the sun is gonna stay!"
I laughed and nodded in agreement. I was glad that I could put off missing the sun for at least one more day. I gripped Edward's hand and pulled him hastily after me. I hadn't been down to the La Push beaches since . . . was it really that long? Maybe a year or more. I could have sworn I'd gone there sometime within that time span, yet nothing came to mind. I shrugged it off and allowed Edward to lift me into the car.
It was a quick ten minute drive to La Push. Had I been driving in my ancient truck, instead of Emmett speeding in his fancy jeep, it would have taken somewhere around fifteen. I clung to the twenty seat belts the seats offered, scared out of my wits by the Cullens signature crazy driving. Emmett and Edward never hesitated to grasp an opportunity to tease me.
"Land! Oh sweet land!" Emmett cried the moment he parked the car in the small road leading up to the first beach. He threw himself down on the ground as I placed my wobbly feet on the ground. "Come, Bella. Join me. You looked pretty terrified in the car yourself. It's safe here, not moving!" I stuck my tongue out at him and he rolled over onto his back, howling with laughter.
"She'll still find something to trip over." Edward mocked, kicking a pebble out of my way and then motioning me onward. I narrowed my eyes at him and shoved him in the shoulder. A lopsided grin lit up his face and he wrapped his arms around my waist and twirled me around.
"Ah! Edward put me down!" I shrieked, beating on his arms. He laughed and dropped me to my feet. I swayed unsteadily and stumbled to my right. He stretched his arm out to pull me upright. I playfully smacked his arm away the minute I was back securely on my feet.
"You are not trustworthy." I joked, backing away from him. His smile grew and he held up his hands in defeat.
"Won't do it again, promise," He vowed. His eyes flickered towards Emmett. "But that doesn't mean anyone else cant!"
My eyes widened as I was caught off guard, expecting Edward to say no more and for us to head towards the beach. Emmett sprung of the ground and sprinted straight at me. I screamed and rose my hands in front of my face on reflex, not realizing until seconds later that this wasn't going to help me. He snagged me by the knees and tossed me roughly over his shoulder. I balled my hands into fists and began pounding against his back, unable to scream for the wind had been knocked out of me. Emmett's whole body shook with his roaring laughter as he swung me this way and that.
"Edward Anthony Cullen, get me down, now!" I demanded breathlessly. I lifted my head from Emmett's back and was instantly rendered dizzy by the circular motion. "Ugh." I groaned, dropping my head back down. I settled with kicking and hitting until Edward would find the decency to stop laughing and help.
"What now, bro?" Emmett boomed as he stopped spinning. I could still hear Edward's hysterics.
"Let's throw her in the water," Edward suggested mischievously. "You'd like that, right Bells?"
I gasped. "Don't you dare!"
"Do it, Emmett!" Edward encouraged him, coming up to tussle my hair. I swatted angrily at him as a chunk of my hair fell from the ponytail and into my face. I huffed and the hair flew up and fell back over my right eye. I scowled at Edward as he broke into a fit of laughter again.
"Edward, I'm not kidding," I growled, punching Emmett in the back again. "Let me down, now. This might be fun to watch, but it's not the most comfortable positioning of my life." Emmett's shoulder shook as he chuckle at my statement. I clenched my jaw and narrowed my eyes at Edward.
"Fine," Edward chuckled with a roll of his eyes. "Let her down, Em." He obliged and withdrew his hands from my legs. Set off balance by the sudden lack of pressure, I was sent toppling over Emmett's back, head first. I covered my head and braced for impact.
My stomach flipped uneasily as Edward caught me and turned me upright before placing me on my feet. I staggered into his chest and took a deep breath. "You," I heaved, trying to catch my breath. "Are the biggest jerk I've ever met." He chortled at my words and I pushed away from him.
Glowering at them both, I began backing towards the beach. "Let's go watch maniacs jump off some freaking cliffs." I huffed before turning my back on them. I could hear their rushed footsteps approaching me from behind.
"You aren't mad, right?" Emmett asked cautiously, falling into step beside me.
I rolled my eyes, but shook my head no. It was impossible to be mad at my best friends. Besides, no matter how twisted there sense of fun was, it was still fairly entertaining even when I was the entertainment. I paused and turned my head to eye Edward deviously. "Well I might be mad at that one." I nodded towards him and turned back to face Emmett. "Will you deliver that message for me?"
Emmett giggled and nodded. "Edward, she hates you!" He quipped over his shoulder.
"Awh, Bella," Edward whined jokingly, speeding his pace to walk beside me. "I was just messing with you. Here, let me make it up to you." He held out his hand and I surveyed him suspiciously.
"What-
He snatched my hand and pulled me off before I could form a full sentence. He guided me through the opening in the brush that lead to the beach and past the fire pit where multiple people, both from Forks and the reservation, were gathered, and towards the forest at the end of the beach.
"Edward," I laughed as I stumbled trying to keep up with him. "Where are you dragging me off to?"
He smiled at me. "The tidal pools!" He announced happily.
I giggled but stopped short, pulling on his hand to make sure he stopped before I yanked off my feet. He backed up a few steps as he realized I was no longer moving with him. He raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"What's wrong?" He wondered. "You love the tidal pools! You bugged me all about going to see them last time we were here . . . even though that was a while ago." I shook my head at his doubt that he'd gotten something wrong with his assumption.
"I'd love to see the tidal pools," I assured him, firmly standing my ground before he could take that as a green light and take off again. "But not yet. I want to spend some time with others. I haven't been to the beach for a year or so. Let's go hang out with Emmett and his friends for a little. I missed Emmett, too." His face fell and he opened to his mouth to protest.
"Bella? Isabella Swan?" A husky voice cut him off. I slid my hand out of Edward's grasp and turned towards to depict who had been calling my name. A tall, shirtless boy with russet skin and long black hair stood at the edge of the fire pit, smiling at me. I squinted at him and took a step forward.
"Jacob Black?" I questioned incredulously. The last time I'd seen Jacob Black had been years ago when my father had last forced me to go fishing with him in fear that I was overstaying my welcome at the Cullens' house. He'd long since realized that was nothing to worry about. He was only a couple months younger than me, but he looked like he could have been a year older. I was surprised I'd even recognized him. He looked much more mature than the last time I'd seen him.
"Yeah!" He beamed. "I'm surprised to even recognize me, I haven't seen you in ages! How's Charlie?" He casually took a few steps towards me. I grinned and strode up to him.
"He's fine," I remarked. I tilted my head back in order to see his face. "Wow Jacob, how tall are you?"
"Six four." He told me proudly, puffing out his bare chest conspicuously. He smirked down at me. "I see you're still a small one."
I rolled my eyes. "Five four is a perfectly normal height." I sniffed.
He chuckled. "So what have you been up to lately, Bella? How'd you manage to get sunburned in Forks?"
I self-consciously pressed my hand to my cheek and covered my peeling nose. "I spent the summer in Phoenix with my mom." I enlightened him, a light blushing tinting my cheeks at his observation. "After spending ten years here I forgot that sun screen even existed."
Jacob snorted. "That's a smart move," He heckled, sliding a rubber band off of his wrist to pull back his silky hair. I opened my mouth to form a smart rebuttal but Edward's voice stopped me as his arm wrapped around my shoulders.
"She's already compromised with Renee to go during the winter next time," He informed Jacob without acknowledging me. His jaw was clenched like he was angry. "To lower the risk of her getting skin cancer from absentmindedness." Jacob chortled uneasily, eying Edward's arm draped around my neck. I casually shrugged it off.
"I don't think that Renee will let me walk out of the house without sun screen after listening to me complain," I added lightly, trying to ease the sudden tension. Edward nodded indifferently, glaring at Jacob. The abrupt hatred he had accumulated startled me.
"Edward, we're jumping!" Emmett called from the far side of the fire pit, waving a massive hand above his head. "You gonna join us?!"
Edward glanced at me, wistful. "I don't think so!" He called back with a wave meant to send him off. I exhaled sharply.
"Why not?" I demanded, blushing a little as Jacob watched my outburst intently.
He shrugged. "I'm fine here," He offered. "Besides, I don't want to leave you all alone."
"I won't be alone," I reminded him, motioning towards Jacob. "I want to see you jump. Please?" I stepped closer to his side. "Just once, for best friend who you missed greatly."
He sighed. "Fine," He resigned unhappily. I beamed at him and pushed him towards Emmett. His face fell and he rose his hand. "Wait up, Em, I'm coming!"
"Reluctant to leave you, isn't he?" Jacob commented, lowering himself to sit on one of the makeshift seats surrounding the fire pit. He patted the one next to him.
"We're like two parts of one whole," I confessed, blushing a little at Edward's behavior. "He doesn't usually act like this. He's been acting weird ever since I returned yesterday."
His eyebrows raised in surprise. "You just got home yesterday?" He whistled. "You even brought home the sun for us."
I smiled. Jacob was easy to get along with. I liked him already. "I had to bring something back for everyone," I shrugged.
Jacob looked past me to the ocean. "Did you ever consider that Edward might be acting different because he thinks he might like you?" He questioned without looking at me.
I was temporarily stunned by the accusation. After a few seconds of hazy thoughts, I laughed it off and composed myself again. "No, that's impossible," I assured him. "Edward and I are best friends, that's it." It felt funny that it seemed like I was convincing myself more than him.
Jacob's lips twitched up. "I'm surprised . . ." He mumbled to himself. I raised an eyebrow quizzically. He shook his head.
"So has anything interesting happened to you over the years?" Jacob asked conversationally, leaning back onto his left hand.
"Hey Jacob, I need your help for a minute and then Billy wants you home." A teenage boy requested from the center of the fire pit, near the stack of driftwood meant for the actual fire. Jacob grimaced. I smiled encouragingly.
"Hey, wait," I stopped him, holding up my hand before he could raise himself. "Do you have a pen?" He looked around him and nodded. Standing up, he retrieved a pen from over near a small, battery powered radio and handed it to me.
"Give me your hand," I instructed. Not catching onto my intentions, Jacob hesitantly placed his hand palm up into mine. I flipped it over and scribbled my house number on the back. "Call me and we can catch up some time." I blushed red, realizing what he might take out of this. I meant as friends, so we could talk like friends because that's what we'd been when we were younger– though we'd both been too shy at the time to form any real friendships, along with her two older sisters.
He examined his hand and smiled. "I'd like that," He murmured before walking towards the fire stack, bemused.
I smirked to myself. It was fairly entertaining that someone could consider Edward ever liking me as more than a friend after all the girls he'd seen. There was a time, when I was maybe eleven or twelve, that I had a small crush on Edward myself. But it had been a quick phase that had ended nearly as soon as it arrived. I tilted my head back to watch the bluest sky that Forks will ever see. I was right. It was impossible.
And as I sat there, dazed by my reverie, I missed Edward as he threw himself over the ledge of the cliff.
A/N- eeek Rossie when the heck are they going to get together for crying out loud! Patience young one, you can tough it out for another chapter. . . or two . . .or three.. . or . . . well maybe they aren't getting together at all and I toetaly lied to u! Haha, gotcha ;]
Don't get impatient with me, I'm taking this story at a somewhat slowish pace, just cuz I'm trying to prove that Edward/Bella stories can still be good if they don't randomly fall in love at the first chapter and have a buncha fluff crap for the rest. Honestly, yes love is something that finds you, but Bella's a shy person, so she'll be slowing the process thank you:]
Last chance for my poll. It'll be closing Friday around midnight. So far Newton's in the lead with Rosalie in seond(Thank you!!!!)
ahaa:] once again, I suggest you check me out on my other name, JE-stars!!!
Better go review if you want more!! :]
~Rossie