S. Meyer owns Twilight. I own a collection of elephants.
The Bella Plan Chapter 5
Day one of Operation Get Over It has turned into a shit show. I've endured a shopping spree, a facial, and was propositioned by a transexual. The latter two incidents witnessed by the girl I'm supposed to be getting over. I have the shittiest luck. Mom's pedicure is taking for fucking ever, so I have no choice but to sit and wait. I try to focus on my phone and not stare at Bella, but it's just no use. My eyes won't stop wandering over to her and her luscious auburn hair as James brushes and styles, or the gorgeous smile that brightens her face when she laughs. I even stare at her bare feet as they dangle from the too tall salon chair. Fuck. If her being here is hard, how the hell am I going to deal with school? I can only hope that we won't have many classes together.
Mom is finally done and I see her paying the bill so I make my way to the front door to wait. Bella calls out when I walk by.
"Hey Edward? Do you wanna go grab a bite to eat?" Holy shit. Did Bella Swan just ask me on a date?
"I'm meeting some kids from school at the pizzeria." Of course she didn't you moron.
I'm about to decline when my mother the traitor throws me under the bus.
"Oh! That's a great idea! That way I can meet your father for dinner. Bella, you can drive Edward home after?"
"Sure thing, Mrs. Cullen."
Am I invisible?
"You kids have fun!" Mom kisses my cheek and leaves me standing mute with Bella.
What the fuck just happened?
After Bella pays her bill, we leave the salon and hop into her truck. Her giant, red Chevy is ancient and would probably crush my silver Volvo like at a monster truck show. I can't lie though, it's sexy as fuck watching a small, feminine girl like Bella, handle the behemoth.
"Your hair looks good." She's talking to you, Edward, stop staring like a lovesick buffoon.
"Thanks, yours looks good, too." Bella grins and my heart flip flops. She really needs to stop smiling at me if my plan is going to work.
"So, what did you think of James?"
"He was alright...when he wasn't picking on me." I can't help but smile when Bella laughs.
"He's a riot, and you should feel honored. He only kids with people he likes."
I speak before my brain registers what my mouth is doing.
"I always thought that you and Jacob were a couple." This isn't part of your plan dumbass.
"As does everyone else in Forks." I wait for her to elaborate as she maneuvers her truck down the streets of PA.
"Jake and I have been friends pretty much since birth. Our dads are best friends, so we would do everything together; ride bikes, play board games and sports, watch movies, fish, literally everything. When we were eleven, we were watching some Disney flicks at his house and he told me a secret. He said he would rather kiss Aladdin than Princess Jasmine. I told him that was okay with me. The problem was his Dad. We'd always hear Billy talking about how being gay was wrong and 'those' guys weren't real men. Really nasty stuff. So, I kept his secret."
"Why tell his secret now?" Bella shrugs.
"James was honest with you, so there's no reason that I shouldn't be. I know I can trust you, Edward. Besides, you might see Jake and James together if you go back to the salon. Anyway, things got worse in middle school. Do you remember that boy Benjamin? Back in eighth grade?"
I nod. I do remember. It wasn't a secret that he liked guys. Some of the kids, and parents, were shitty to him. He got into more than his share of fights defending himself. I never had a problem with him. He was always cool with me, but now that I think about it, I didn't exactly have his back.
"Well, after Benjamin and his family moved away, Jake and I overheard Billy ranting about how it was a good thing 'the pervert' and his family were gone blah, blah, blah, his usual anti-gay bullcrap. Jake was hurt and freaked out. So he asked if I would pretend to be his girlfriend until he was old enough to get away from Forks, the Rez, and Billy. Everybody always thought we were a couple anyway, even our families, so it was a no brainer for me to help him. I love my best friend and I don't ever want to see him hurt in anyway, by anyone. It's not like anyone has ever been interested in me anyway, so it hasn't been a hardship."
Bella has no freaking clue how wrong she is about no one being interested. Fuck. Me.