I heard the door open, but didn't pay much attention to it. I was still rooting around in Peyton's closet. I was glad I had brought the suitcase. She didn't dress life a girl enough. Sure enough, most of the stuff in her closet was jeans and concert tee-shirts. I had brought her some things that would allow her to remain true to her pink self, yet, they would please me too. I would just have to have Edward get the suitcase from where I left it, then Peyton would come home from the party to a new closet.
It was a surprise when I heard Peyton's voice in the house. "Alice, I need your help." Before she could get the words out I had ran down the stairs, coming to a stop right in front of her. I was sure that she had changed her mind. She probably still wouldn't let me go with her, but maybe she'd let me dress her up, and make her look good. She just rolled her eyes when she heard my thoughts, shaking her head slightly. "No, I haven't changed my mind. I just have someone coming over and I need you to make her look hot. She's completely head over heels for a guy who doesn't know she exists and I want you to make her look like a different person, someone he would notice," she spoke fast, as if she was waiting for something.
I was a bit diappointed that she hadn't changed her mind, but I brightened when she had told me what she wanted me to do. With a nod, I turned to Edward, who was sitting on the couch, Bella practically on his lap as they cuddled up next to each other. Nessie had taken a seat on the floor and was flicking through the channels on the television, passing up any channel that had any kind of animal, or male, on it, obviously thinking of Jacob. I met Edwards eyes and sent him a persuasive look, knowing he was reading my thoughts.
Bella noticed my look when Edward started shaking his head, and she looked at me curiously. "What is it you want him to do?" she asked me, sitting up a bit, though keeping a firm hold on him. I just kept my focus on Edward. It didn't take long to convince him to do something. He was shaking his head as I replied with my thoughts. This went on for a few seconds, and I knew Peyton was looking on, and listening also. Bella looked to Peyton for an answer. "What is it?" she asked, just as Edward sighed, throwing his hands in the air.
He gently moved Bella off of his lap, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I'll be back. Alice is sending me to run her errands for her," he sent me a glare as he stood up. I just sent him a thankful smile back in return. "We're even now," he said firmly. I chuckled. We'd see about that. I still had something to hold over his head. He narrowed his eyes at me, but just gave up, leaving the house. I laughed again as he closed the door behind himself, muttering a stream of curses under his breath at me.
Bella glanced back and forth between me and Peyton, but before she could comment, there was a light tapping on the front door. Edward must have ran off pretty fast, because otherwise whoever was at the door would have seen him. I looked to Peyton, she concentrated for a brief half a second, and I knew she was listening to the thoughts of whoever was standing on the other side of the door. It had to have been her friend, because she turned and opened it, pulling the girl on the other side into the house.
The girl had light, honey-blonde hair and brown eyes. She was average height and average in pretty much every other way, too. It would definately be a challenge working with her, but I could do it. I looked her over, a grin on my face. She looked at me nervously before turning her gaze on Peyton. I tried to make my smile more friendly. Her gaze darted over Bella and Nessie, who were both still seated, watching her. Peyton decided to speak up. "Haley, this is my cousin, Alice, she will be handling your appearance tonight. This is Bella, and Bella's niece, Renesmee, but you can call her Nessie. Bella is also a distant cousin of mine," she said while looking at Haley. Then she turned her strange green eyes on me. "It's only seven thirty now. I'll be back by eight thirty."
Haley's gaze passed over each of us before she returned her eyes to Peyton, just as her slow human mind caught up with the meaning of Peyton's words. "You're not staying?" she asked, and I could hear the undercurrent of panic in her voice. I laughed and her gaze darted to me. Before I could say anything reassuring, the door opened and Edward was there, carrying my suitcase. "What do you have in this thing, bricks?" he barked at me as he came in, barely noticing the human girl until he caught a whiff of her scent.
Haley's gaze snapped to him, and her jaw dropped. She quite visibly checked him out. There was no subtley to it at all. Bella bristled, and jumped to her feet, almost forgetting to slow down her movements. She crossed the room in lithe, swift movements and was quickly at Edward's side as he set the suitcase down. She reached up, standing on her tiptoes to give him a kiss before turning toward Haley. She took the liberty of introducing him, speaking as Peyton looked on, an amused smirk on her face at Bella's antics. "This is my husband, Edward," she said, threading her fingers through his as she leaned into him.
Peyton and I both had huge grins on our faces. Nessie was also watching with amusement. It was obvious Bella was staking her claim on him. They weren't even supposed to be married yet. Our story right now had us all in high school again. "Isn't jealousy a human emotion, Bells?" Peyton spoke so quickly and so low that all Haley would have seen was Peyton's lips trembling. If she had been looking at Peyton. Her shell shocked gaze was still locked firmly on Edward. I couldn't hold in my chuckle at Peyton's words, and Nessie burst into giggles.
Haley broke out of her daze at the sound of Nessie's laughter, and Nessie immediately turned her attention back to the television when Haley looked over, pretending that she had laughed at some commercial. Haley turned her gaze back to Edward, though she wasn't quite as obvious about it. "I'm Haley," she offered, holding her hand out toward him.
Sensing Bella's mood, I took her hand instead. "They'll be down here. We, however, are going upstairs I have a lot of work to do with you," I said as I pulled her away. When I had touched her hand, I had a quick vision. I saw her, in the midst of some party, all dressed up, looking like a completely different person. A boy with raven colored hair and dark blue eyes was walking up to her, and I could tell it was the one she was trying to impress. "I promise you, you'll look so good, you're bound to be noticed. No guy there will be able to take his eyes off of you," I assured her because now that she wasn't staring at Edward, the situation seemed to be coming back to her, along with her hesitation.
(Peyton's POV)
When Alice had Haley upstairs, I burst out laughing. Bella glared at me, and looked up at Edward, who immediately wiped the amused smile off of his face. He cleared his throat. "That wasn't funny," he told me, trying to look stern, under Bella's gaze. That just made me laugh harder. 'Whipped,' I thought to him, so Bella wouldn't hear. He sent me a glare, but didn't reply. He looked down at Bella. "Your husband?" he brought the amused smile back to his face, holding tight so she couldn't get mad and break away.
She turned her glare upon him, and forced her way out of his arms. She took her seat on the couch again, trying to ignore Edward, but not doing that good of a job. Nessie was snickering, holding her hand above her mouth so she wouldn't be seen, but we could still hear it. Bella reached out and lightly hit her daughter in the back of the head. Edward was by her side, trying to apologise. "You guys saw the look on her face. Actually, you both heard her thoughts. They could not have been good. So I got a little jealous. Shut up about it already," she turned her glare on me.
I held up my hands in surrender. I didn't want to get in the middle of this. I felt a little satisfaction at having started it, though. Only because I knew Bella and Edward never really fought long, and even when they did, they always made up, and made out. I sent Nessie a smirk, because she would have to be the one around them when they made up, and then retreated.
I got into my car once again, intent on driving around town, hoping to see if it had anything else to offer. I had been driving for about ten minutes when I decided to change the CD. I was counting on the fact that I would hear the thoughts of someone coming. Just his luck, the only person whose thoughts I can't hear walks in front of my car. By the time I looked back to the road, there was a figure, just a few feet away from the grill of my car. He was very lucky that I don't drive as fast as Edward, I realized as I slammed on the breaks.
He turned, finally realizing the danger he was in, and his widened blue eyes met mine. For a brief fraction of a second, I really thought I was going to hit him. I thought that he would die, and those blue eyes would lose the spark of life behind them. I knew I should have been worried about spilling his blood, because I wasn't sure I could control myself if it was out in the open, but that was honestly the last thought on my mind. The first and formost was, No, not him, not now. Not this way. Of all the ways Icould take his life, don't let it be this way. Don't let it be any way.
Then the car stopped, just inches from him. I immediately let out a sigh of relief, thankful that I was in my car as I took a deep breath. I rolled my window down, leaning out of the car to yell at him. "Oh, God, are you okay? I'm so sorry. I'm usually more in tune to my surroundings, but I didn't see you, or hear you, which is unusual for me. Are you alright?" I repeated, because he was taking the headphones out of his ears. That explained why he wasn't paying attention to traffic. The basketball in his hands explained why he was out in the first place, though I didn't understand why he was playing basketball when he should have been getting ready for his party.
I wanted to get out of the car, but I needed the air that wasn't full of his scent. I could hear his wild heartbeat from here, and I wasn't sure I could handle being close to him right now. I didn't want to take any chances. He seemed to be in shock, though, still staring at me, immobile, silent. I wondered if I should do something to snap him out of his shock. I was about to stop breathing and get out to help him. I had my hand on the door handle, but he seemed to snap out of it. He kind of nodded at me, and then got out of the way of my car.
I watched him walk away, wondering if he was really over the shock of nearly getting flattened, but he disappeared into the darkness, and I had no choice but to keep driving. I drove around town aimlessly, for a lot longer than I should have, wondering about things that really shouldn't have been an issue. Things that I definately shouldn't have been thinking about, not if I wanted him to live his life as normal as possible. It was nearly nine o'clock by the time I started driving to my house.
(Bella's POV)
As soon as Peyton had come to pick up Haley, I took Edward's hand, leading him outside, so we could go on a walk. I wanted some alone time with him. I was sure he was still thinking about my reaction to Haley's interest in him, even without reading his thoughts, because I knew I was. I wanted to talk without being overheard by Alice or Nessie.
When the door closed behind us, I led him down the porch steps, walking down the sidewalk holding his hand, almost like any other couple. I was looking at the moon, enjoying being alone with him, waiting until I was sure we would be out of earshot of Alice before speaking. He was the one who broke the silence. He pulled me to a stop and spun me around, pulling me close so he could wrap his arms around my waist. I reached up and wrapped my arms around my neck, playing with his hair as I looked into his eyes.
In that moment I forgot everyone else, as I often did when I was around him. It was just Bella and Edward, no one else. I stepped up onto my tip toes so I could plant a kiss on his lips as he leaned down to meet me. I had forgotten all about Haley and even Peyton's problems. Nothing else mattered if I was with Edward. "So," he broke the silence, speaking softly against my lips. "Humans checking me out makes you jealous?" his tone was amused.
I was dazed for a moment. I honestly didn't have any idea what he was talking about. Then it all came back, and I glared at him, though not for the reasons he was thinking, I'm sure. "I thought we were supposed to be equals now. You still dazzle me just the same way you used to," I muttered, looking up into his eyes. I had to break the eye contact to remember exactly why I had been mad earlier. "You know, you've had your share of jealous moments, you can't blame me," I added.
He chuckled lightly under his breath. "You dazzle me to, you know," he said, his hand reaching up to move my chin up, so I could look into his eyes again. He returned the hand to my waist and tightened his grip. "I never said it was a bad thing that you were jealous," he mused. I was looking into his eyes, but I kept darting my gaze elsewhere. I wasn't exactly proud of feeling jealous. "In fact," he continued. "I think it was extremely sexy," he added, his voice husky.
My gaze snapped onto his, but before I could say anything he had brought his lips to mine in a searing kiss. I felt it from head to toe. His kisses still gave me an all over feeling of contentness. I sighed against his lips once the kiss was over and put my heels back on the ground, so I could rest my head on his stone chest, in the crook of his shoulder. "I love you, you know that, and I'm going to keep loving you forever," my words were quiet, but I knew he could hear them, of course. I tightened my hold around his neck, taking in a deep breath of the smell that was purely Edward.
His arms tightened around my waist in response and he pressed his face into my hair, taking a deep breath in. "You are my life, now and for the rest of my existence," he voice was muffled by my hair and I closed my eyes as I leaned into him. I'm not sure how long we stood, wrapped in each others embrace, in the middle of a publis sidewalk, but it didn't matter. Time had ceased to matter to me, because I have an abundance of it, and I know I'll spend it all with Edward, and that was all that truly mattered. The only time that matters to me anymore, is time spent away from my other half.
(Lucas's POV)
I was wandering through the party, looking for her, but she still hadn't arrived yet. I hadn't seen her since she nearly ran me over, and I desperately wanted to talk to her. I had been in shock then, now I wanted to know what she was thinking. I wanted her to know what I was thinking. I knew it was an accident. I shouldn't have been in the road. That wasn't why I didn't speak to her. I went into shock, because I almost didn't believe she was there. I had been thinking about her as I had walked, actually, I had been thinking about her most of today, and I had initially thought that I was just imagining her.
So I had stumbled along home, unable to believe that it had actually happened. When I got home I realized my mistake, but there was nothing that could have been done about it. I didn't have her number, I didn't want to go barging to her house. I only knew where she lived because the town was small enough, that there had only been one available house that she could have bought. Instead, I took a quick shower, to wash off the sweat that I had worked up playing basketball, and picked Rachel up, only a bit later than eight o'clock.
Now I was wondering if she'd actually show up, and as I wandered, looking for her, I was also trying to stay out of Rachel's way. I really didn't want to deal with her, not now. I had gotten a drink from the kitchen, but Brooke was there, drinking up a storm, and all over every guy within arms reach, so I hadn't stayed there long. I briefly wondered what had happened between Brooke and Nathan this time, because I noticed that Nathan was also avoiding the kitchen. I didn't really get a chance to talk to my brother, not that I would have been able to hear him over the pounding music, and thoughts of them left my mind quickly, to be replaced by thoughts of her. Nathan and Brooke could take care of themselves.
I was making my way through the living room once again, ignoring the girls as they threw themselves at me, trying to get me to stop and dance. I saw Rachel and I wanted to duck down the opposite hallway, toward the back of the house, but then I saw her, just a few feet past Rachel, talking to a girl I didn't even bother looking at. I had a problem. I could walk past Rachel and hope she didn't notice me, though that was unlikely, to get to her. Or I could dart in the opposite direction, and hope I could find her later, away from Rachel.
It wasn't much of a choice. I had suddenly had such a strong desire to get close to her, not much would have kept me away. I desperately wanted to touch her, feel her perfect skin underneath my fingertips, but I decided I would assess the situation first. She had come, that had to mean something good, right? She had accepted my decision, no matter what she thought I was thinking about her. Unless she was just really into the party scene, which I highly doubted, for some reason, then she had to want to talk to me, right?
I was already walking toward her, pushing past the crowds, before I had even consciously made the decision. She had looked straight at me, and her gaze met mine, pulling me toward her. There was something about her green eyes. They were mesmerizing. They made my heart race and slow down at the same time. It was irrational, but I didn't want to lose the feeling. I walked towards her, no longer seeing the crowds of people around us. She had stopped talking to the girl beside her, and her complete attention was on me. The house could have fallen down around us and I wouldn't have noticed.
Then I was stopped. I felt arms around me, and I looked down to see Rachel in front of me, her arms around my neck. I reached up to remove her arms, glancing back up so I could meet her eyes again, but she was gone. She had disappeared into the crowd and I couldn't see her. I sighed and looked back down at Rachel, still trying to pry her arms away from my neck. "I never thanked you for inviting me tonight," she whispered heavily in my ear, and I could smell the alcohol on her breath without turning my head.
I finally managed to pry her arms off, but before I could push her away, she crashed her lips onto mine, on hand returning to my hair while the other moved down to my chest so she could steady herself. I was shocked, but it didn't take me long to snap out of that and push her off. "Listen Rachel, I said I just want to be friends and that's what I meant. Don't do something we'll both regret," I said. I held onto her for a moment to make sure she had her balance, then I turned away, disappearing into the crowd just as easily as Peyton had.
I wondered what Peyton had thought of Rachel being all over me. Had she seen the kiss? Was she jealous? Did she even care? I knew I would be jealous if I saw someone else kissing her, but did she feel the connection between us that I felt? Was it even real? Maybe my mind was just imagining it. Maybe there was no connection, or maybe she simply didn't feel it. Maybe she was already attached to someone. We hadn't talked about the subject of boyfriend, or girlfriends, today. Maybe she had just ben humoring me while talking to me. Or maybe she only wanted to be friends. All the possibilities flashed through my mind as I wandered through the party, trying to spot her again.
(Nathan's POV)
I was avoiding the kitchen. I knew Brooke was there, and she probably didn't want to see me, so I just stayed away. Only stopping in for brief moments to get a drink. I didn't drink much as a result of avoiding the kitchen. I felt bad for what Brooke was doing. I knew she was getting wasted and hitting on everyone because of me. I also knew that it was the right time for us to break up. Everything I had told her tonight was true. She was partially right, though. My mind was definately on Peyton. It had been ever since I had sat down next to her in class on Monday.
She intrigued me. I hadn't met a girl at this school that didn't fall at my feet when I turned on the charm. I saw it as a challenge. So, while breaking up with Brooke was the right thing, it was mainly brought on by the arrival of Peyton. As I mingled through the crowds, saying hi to everyone and avoiding the kitchen, I looked for her. It was a long time before I finally spotted her. I began making my way over to her, but then I noticed the girl next to her.
I had never seen her before, which made me believe that she was a relative of Peyton's from somewhere, visiting, maybe. She wasn't the same gorgeous as Peyton, but it would have been hard for her to be. Peyton was gorgeous in a perfect kind of way. This girl definately wasn't perfect, but she was beautiful despite her imperfections. She had honey-blonde hair, that fell to halfway down her back in ringlets. Her deep brown eyes were lined by full, gorgeous lashes. Her make-up was done perfectly. She was wearing a short black skirt, and a deep blue tube top, balancing quite well on her matching heels, which were at least three inches tall.
I couldn't recall ever seeing her before, but I wanted to talk to her, to get to know her. In that moment, everyone else in the room disappeared. All I could see was her, and even Peyton paled in comparison. While Peyton had practically no color at all, this girls cheeks had a pinkness in them that had nothing to do with make-up. I didn't completely understand it at the time, but in that moment my life changed forever.
A/N: Okay, I added more of Lucas's POV in here, at the request of my reviewers. I had intended to put more of him in the last chapter, but I ended the chapter earlier than I had initially been planning. I added Nathan's POV in there at the end, but I don't really think I'll do it from his POV much. I just thought that was necessary. Anywho, let me know what you think. I get to see the Twilight movie tonight, and I'm really excited!!! Oh, and I don't think I'll update much in the next week, because I'm not going to be home. I'm spending all of Thanksgiving week in Oakland with my Grandma. So this'll probably be the last you hear from me for at least a week. I hope you like the chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of it.