Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story.

A/N (10/16/10) – Just a few corrections have been made, nothing big. Unless otherwise indicated, the story is always from Rosalie's perspective.

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During those months, Bella had shared what seemed like everything with Rosalie. She was, not surprisingly, much more of an open book, and she volunteered her fears, and her dreams, and her feelings up to Rosalie willingly. Except that she didn't entirely.

Bella had a boyfriend named Edward, who was never around, but when Bella spoke of her relationship with him, she lied. She talked about how much she cared about him, how perfect he was, and nice, and fun, when Rosalie could easily see how much he bored her. She broke plans with him whenever she could, seemingly avoiding him at all costs, and when he was at the apartment, Bella followed Rosalie around like a dog. At parties she affixed herself to Rosalie and completely ignored Edward.

Rosalie knew what this was – Bella was either in complete denial about her feelings for Rosalie and trying to convince herself through words that Edward was the right person to be with, or she was just denying it to Rosalie. Rosalie wasn't entirely sure, but hoped for the latter. Straight girls in denial were hard work, and Rosalie didn't think Bella would be able to keep her interest if she ventured down that slope.

Because Rosalie really did want to stay interested. She found Bella fascinating; there was something about her that Rosalie couldn't pull away from. She wasn't the smartest or most interesting, and certainly not the most experienced or cultured person Rosalie had ever met, but even when their conversations were totally banal, she couldn't seem to un-hook herself.

###

On a day in early August, things changed. It was August 8th actually; a Saturday. They'd gone to Coney Island on a whim – Bella, Leah, Leah's four very annoying friends, and Rosalie.

Normally, Rosalie would have been too embarrassed to be seen with anyone but Bella, and had, of course, refused to take a subway to the grossest beach on planet earth. But Bella had whined and begged, and during Rosalie's fourth emphatic no, Bella dropped her hand to Rosalie's thigh and moved it ever so slightly inward. As if this wasn't enough, her eyes searched Rosalie's deeply as she began to run her fingers up and down Rosalie's mid, almost inner, thigh.

"God your muscles are crazy," she said. "Your body is insane." To her own embarrassment, Rosalie gulped audibly. It was the first real compliment Bella had given her. And her hand on Rosalie's thigh, the direct eye contact – Bella was making her intentions known. At least Rosalie hoped she was.

"Dirty pool, Bella, dirty pool," Rosalie rolled her eyes. A subway to Coney Island, Rosalie mused. You've got to be kidding me…

###

Needless to say, soon after she found herself on the D train staring at the four catty losers that Leah had brought along as they berated Rosalie with questions about the fashion world, or her summer home, or why she wasn't working, or who did her highlights.

These girls were all marginally attractive, clueless bitches, and not surprisingly, they were obviously intimidated by Rosalie. For the duration of what was a ridiculously long subway ride, Leah and her dork pack continued to subtly snipe at her, trying to "big time" her with pointless stories about some celebrity they knew or blah blah.

Normally girls like this would have irritated Rosalie enough to warrant some kind of rebuttal. Especially since none of them seemed to be very nice to Bella. But with Bella resting her head on Rosalie's shoulder, pretending to be sleepy, a hand (hidden by her beach bag) resting on Rosalie's thigh again, Rosalie could have cared less.

###

Bella was wearing a soft grey cotton t-shirt with a Florida Gators logo on it (the girl loved college football; something Rosalie didn't even try to comprehend), and the muted grey of the shirt actually enhanced her soft brown eyes. She had on the pair of white shorts, slightly worn and ratty, but on Bella, they looked good. At least, in Rosalie's eyes they did. Over the past few months, Rosalie had found herself caring less and less about the girl's wardrobe (and even though this may sound ridiculous, for Rosalie this was a big deal. She was critical by nature when it came to fashion, but with Bella it had stopped mattering. She didn't care what the girl was wearing, as long as she was there.)

As Bella kept herself firmly affixed to Rosalie during the horrifically endless ride to that tacky beach, Rosalie wondered to herself why she didn't just make her move on Bella. Rosalie Hale had never felt so shy or unsure about another person in her life. Why couldn't she just be the predator that she was and take her?

And God, why does going this slow feel so incredibly exciting? These tiny, shy touches alone had driven her want Bella more than she'd ever wanted anyone in her life. And the two girls had barely even held hands. Or ever verbally acknowledged any feelings that could have possibly grown between them.

Not that Rosalie would have wanted that, of course. But as they exited the train into a mass of people, Bella leaned up and kissed her jaw softly. It was a sneaky kiss, too quick for her sister or her minions to see, but it happened. So as they made their way into a teeming throng of tattooed masses on the boardwalk, Rosalie instinctively grabbed Bella's hand. She held it for a few minutes, and dropped it as soon as they hit a clearing. She wanted to see what Bella would do.

###

As soon as their hands had touched, the electricity coursed through Rosalie. The feeling of holding her hand as they maneuvered through the crowd was amazing to her. It was like she could feel every part of Bella's hand; each pad on her fingers, each line in her palm. And each tiny spot where they connected sent adrenaline coursing through her body. I'm turned on by hand-holding, Rosalie mused. But she didn't chuckle to herself; she was too far gone to laugh at her own ridiculous emotions. All she could think about was Bella, and the feeling that connection had given her.

As she broke the connection and dropped her hand, she watched as Bella bit her lower lip in that incredibly endearing way that she did when she was nervous or unsure, and even that gave Rosalie another rush. Rosalie looked away in a disinterested manner, trying in vain to regain her composure, but she could feel Bella's eyes boring into her.

Rosalie Hale, the girl who wouldn't even so much as brush her teeth without calculating and weighing the ramifications of the action, was so caught up in the intensity of wanting Bella that her emotions were overriding her nature to the point that she truly no longer cared. Bella was everything; all she could see. She knew that eventually nothing in the world would stop her from moving forward; from finding out what was going to happen next.

And as she turned back to meet Bella's eyes, she knew that something major was finally going to happen. Bella's eyes were so filled with want it was almost unbearable. Rosalie wasn't sure, but she thought she might have actually physically shuddered as those deep, haunting chocolate orbs caught her own. And as she watched Bella draw in a shaky breath as they gazed at each other, in that moment Rosalie was certain that the beautiful girl next to her felt the same.

###

As they all suffered in line waiting to buy beer and hot dogs, Bella told her sister she wasn't feeling well, and announced to the group that she needed some air (they were, of course, already outside.)

Her eyes bore into Rosalie's as she asked her, point blank and in front of everyone, if she'd please come with her. Rosalie hastily accepted, shoving a few hundred dollar bills into Leah's hand and ordering her to treat everyone. Bella's hand latched instantly to Rosalie's, and she clung tightly, dragging Rosalie through the crowd.

When they reached an impasse, Bella leaned back into Rosalie, slightly pressing their bodies together, and spoke in her ear: "I think I'm having a panic attack, I need you to calm me down."

Rosalie was stunned – it was a total lie. Bella was fine. But she was creating an excuse for Rosalie to comfort her. Rosalie was finally able to snap out of her trance, and Bella's words caused her to chuckle to herself. God, we're both such chicken shits it's hysterical. Neither of us can say what we want. It's probably going to be years before either of us ever makes a move. Rosalie had no idea why she was waiting anymore. She bit her lip and steeled herself, finally mustering the courage to change things.

####

Bella leaned back even further, pressing her soft, slim body into Rosalie's front to the point that Rosalie's breasts had made more than light contact with the smaller girl's back. As she waited for the crowd to move enough to create an opening, Rosalie leaned into her, moving the arm that was attached to Bella's forward and around Bella's waist, embracing her from behind.

"Don't be scared," she murmured. "I'll take care of you, okay?" Rosalie was more than willing to play into Bella's ruse. Bella turned her head back to meet Rosalie's eyes, and their lips were so close that they almost touched.

Inches apart, Bella breathed out "okay" as she licked her lips. Oh God, Rosalie groaned inwardly as she thought to herself, the moment for being tentative so needs to be over.

As gross as the setting was, with her lips so close to Bella's Rosalie judgment was more than a bit impaired, and she thought that if their first kiss was on a boardwalk in Coney Island, so be it. She was about to lean in the last few inches, when a strong hand gripped her shoulder, yanking her back.

###

"What up, sluts?" Leah shouted dramatically, already in full party mode. Rosalie groaned and rolled her eyes, but quickly composed herself and turned to face the interrupting offender with a smirk on her face. Leah shoved two shots at the two girls, and Rosalie winked at Bella while she tossed hers back, thinking that a little liquid courage might be exactly what they both needed. Bella tossed hers back as well and threw the plastic shooter on the ground haphazardly, clearly trying to impress Rosalie with her own coolness.

And Rosalie was impressed with Bella. But for very different reasons.

"So you sluts ready to party?" Leah whooped, her pack of friends gathering around them.

God how Rosalie hated that type of vernacular; it was so pedestrian, so 'Jersey Shore'. She had no intention of ignoring such a class-less query.

"Leah," Rosalie spoke calmly, evenly, looking slightly downward so that she could meet the girl's eyes. "Just so we're clear, a, I'm always ready to party, so asking that is irrelevant." This earned a chuckle and a hand squeeze from Bella. "And b, you sound utterly tasteless when you refer to me, or anyone else, as a slut. You sound like a piece of trash."

Leah's mouth hung open, and it was entirely unflattering on her. "Now I know you're not a piece of trash," Rosalie continued, "but if you call me that again I won't hesitate to throw you in a dumpster filled with real garbage, do you understand me?" Rosalie was completely serious. This girl was entirely beneath her and seemed to be forgetting her station quickly.

Leah was clearly miffed and embarrassed, and to add insult to injury, a pair of very attractive girls made their way into the circle and right up to Rosalie.

"We're so sorry to bother you," they said in unison, "but you're the girl from the old Ralph Lauren ads, right? Rosalie Hale?" Rosalie flashed them a brilliant smile, hardly believing the good fortune of being able to remind Leah even more of who she was dealing with (while also being able to flirt in front of Bella in an attempt to make her jealous.) She continued to smile brightly as she introduced herself and chatted with the two girls, one of whom began to come on to her almost immediately, mentioning how she was straight but had always said to her friends that a girl who looked like Rosalie could turn her in an instant. Rosalie laughed seductively, but was cut off as Bella yanked her arm.

"Rosalie I feel so sick, we have to go." Off course you do, Rosalie thought to herself as she rolled her eyes, but secretly she was thrilled with Bella's reaction. Bella shot a quick glare at Rosalie and took off, but not before grabbing four more shots from Leah and a lunchbox cooler filled with beer. Without even a chance to excuse herself, Rosalie went off after Bella, who was rapidly disappearing into the crowd. Leah and her friends were left in the dust, snickering to themselves about what an arrogant bitch Rosalie was.

###

Rosalie was tall, but not tall enough to see Bella over the throngs of people, so she just moved as fast as was possible in the direction Bella had seemed to be headed. The crowd appeared to be endless, and refused to break up even as Rosalie pushed farther and farther down the boardwalk and toward the pier.

Finally, she seemed to reach the end, although she was now far, far away from Leah's group, and with spotty cell phone service, had no way to reach Bella, whom she couldn't see. She ran further, turning heads in her tight white shorts and embroidered polo, a sweep of blond hair flowing behind her as she broke into a sprint.

Finally, she caught site of Bella's grey t-shirt far up under the secluded pier, and she slowed to a jog. Upon reaching Bella, Rosalie looked back and realized that they were at least a half a mile away from the crowd. Bella was in the shade under the pier, still glaring at her. Rosalie came to a stop, saying nothing and catching her breath.

Despite the anger her expression held, Bella couldn't help but stare at the sweat glistening on her body as Rosalie pulled her pink polo over her head, striping down to her white bikini top and her own (much shorter) white shorts. Finally, Bella moved her (for lack of a more modest term, "fuck me") eyes of hers up to meet Rosalie's, and her gaze was piercing.

Bella spoke no words, but handed Rosalie two of the four shots she'd been carrying. Rosalie raised an eyebrow at her, having no idea what to make of this strange behavior. Bella threw two of her own back in record time, and Rosalie glared at her, sighed dramatically, and threw hers back as well. She knew this was ridiculous; she hated shots, and getting drunk during the daytime was always regretful, but with Bella she couldn't control herself. In fact, she seemed to be willing to do almost anything.

Bella turned her back to Rosalie and headed down the beach, staying in the shade of the pier. Rosalie could do nothing but follow, perplexed and intrigued, and annoyingly, also kind of turned on. Push and pull manipulation; that was Rosalie's specialty, not Bella's, and yet in the past few minutes it felt to Rosalie that the tables had been completely turned. And surprisingly, she didn't mind.

###

Halfway down to the water's edge, Rosalie decided she could take no more of this follow me wordlessly behavior, so she closed the gap between them and yanked the lunchbox from Bella's hand. It stunned Bella momentarily, and Rosalie took that time to smirk at Bella and grab her hand. She wove their fingers together and pulled Bella the rest of the way to the water.

Bella plopped down on the sand and zipped open the lunchbox, cracking a beer before Rosalie even had time to settle herself next to her.

"Thirsty today, are we?" Rosalie raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah, I guess I am," was her curt reply. Rosalie refused to acknowledge that Bella was angry with her; Bella didn't get to have that kind of control. Not to mention there was absolutely no real reason to be angry with her. Rosalie reached out for her hand. Bella yanked it out of her grasp.

"Oh no you don't, I don't think so, Bella," Rosalie taunted as she tackled Bella, grabbing both of her wrists and pinning them on her sides. Bella struggled mightily, trying desperately to get free but beginning to giggle as she tried in vain to control Rosalie's movements. "Listen you little boozehound," Rosalie was tickling her now.

"Stop!" Bella pleaded as she wiggled, laughing so hard she could barely catch her breath. She was very ticklish.

"Oh I'm not going to stop until you agree to start talking to me, little one. And I'm much stronger than you, so don't waste your energy struggling…"

Bella jerked forward and bit Rosalie on the shoulder playfully, causing Rosalie to scream in mock horror. All of a sudden she felt Bella's lips replace her teeth, and she froze. The moment she felt those soft, full lips pressing on her tan skin, Rosalie's stomach dropped. "What are you doing?" She whispered.

"Kissing it to make it better?" Bella asked questioningly. Her face was so close to Rosalie's; in fact her lips were now so close that Rosalie instinctively licked her own and held her breath. Bella moved even closer, and Rosalie felt those hot puffs of air on her waiting mouth. Tiny, insignificant breaths that they were; to Rosalie, it was like they were electrically charged. In that moment, she felt like she was on fire. They were so close.

###

And then all of a sudden Bella was gone. Rosalie blinked and looked up. Bella was sitting next to her, drinking her beer as if nothing had even happened.

Rosalie collected herself for a second and then pulled herself up next to Bella, stretching her legs out in front of her languidly and kicking her flip flops off, forcing herself to act just as non-plussed as Bella.

But the silence between them was dragging, the awkwardness becoming palpable. Think, Rosalie urged herself, think of something to say, anything. She bit her lip and looked down at the sand. "So you totally ditched your sister, you know?" God, years of exemplary training, an Ivy League degree, an IQ off the charts, and that was all she could come up with?

"Yeah they seemed kind of worth ditching though, you know?" Bella was also staring down at the sand, finding it clearly fascinating.

"What happened to you back there?" Rosalie questioned her, unable to help herself. Bella sighed, continuing to stare at all those tiny little grains.

"Sometimes I just can't take it, you know?" She paused, taking a deep breath. "Sometimes I feel like I have everything under control, but then all of a sudden it's like my life is caving in on me, like everything is going to hell. It's like I go from being able to control everything, to all of a sudden controlling nothing."

I know the feeling, Rosalie thought, rolling her eyes and letting out a sigh of her own.

"So I freak out," Bella continued. "And I run away from it all."

"Yeah, literally," Rosalie snarked.

"Oh please Rose, you're like an Olympic level athlete or something, I knew you could keep up."

Junior Olympics, Rosalie, mused. On skis. Definitely doesn't count.

"You're not so bad yourself," Rosalie retorted. "You were like a ninja darting in and out of that crowd."

"Yeah," Bella smirked, looking up at Rosalie. "Maybe I've got more moves than you give me credit for." Rosalie's breath caught in her throat. They were caught in another one of those stares again. This time Bella licked her lips. Those eyes were absolutely killing Rosalie; they were completely mesmerizing. And apparently, they could also completely block her ability to form cohesive sentences. The tension surrounding them was insane – neither of them had ever let it get this far before. Rosalie should have been the one who could handle it; she could practically teach a class on seduction 101, but not surprisingly at this point, she was the first to back down.

"It's going to be okay, Bella," Rosalie tried to sound comforting. She reached out to rub her leg soothingly. "I'm sorry you got upset."

"Yeah…" Bella said nothing more, and instead stared at Rosalie's hand. She was still rubbing Bella's leg. Bella caught her hand and stopped it. They both stared down. The waves rolled in and out a few feet farther out, drowning all other noise. The air was salty and thick, and it mingled with Bella's shampoo as the breeze sent the mix swirling around the two girls. Rosalie closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, tilting her head back but keeping her hand on Bella's leg. And Bella's own hand remained top of hers. Rosalie tried to lose herself in the sounds and smells of her surroundings, not sure in this moment if she could handle another tense, "almost but not quite" moment between them.

###

But she was snapped back to the moment when she felt Bella move her hand. Very slightly, almost imperceptibly, she was moving Rosalie's hand inward, towards the soft flesh of her inner thigh. Rosalie could do nothing but watch, helpless and fascinated. Bella rubbed her thumb over Rosalie's hand. It was getting so close to that inappropriate spot on the leg where platonic touching is not allowed. So close. Rosalie inched her thumb out.

And finally, the invisible boundary between friends and something more was crossed. And then she was there, her hand touching smooth skin in an area that there was no going back from. This was so undeniably a moment, and Rosalie understood finally and completely that Bella did want the same thing, she wanted Rosalie. Secretly she had still been so unsure, so afraid to make a move and get rejected and so afraid to lose the relationship they already had, that her brain had refused to act. But now, now she knew. For sure.

Her hand was there, with Bella's on top, and they both continued to stare at it, frozen for what felt like an eternity. Finally, Rosalie broke it. She lifted the tips of her fingers and ghosted the pads over thin, creamy skin. She heard Bella suck in a breath, and she lifted her head. Bella was still staring down, watching now as the fingers that conveyed such clearly non-platonic intentions, moved beneath her own hand.

Rosalie reached out with her other hand and trailed her fingers down Bella's jaw, stopping at her chin. "Bella," she breathed, lifting her chin and bringing her to eye level. Bella's eyes were boring into Rosalie; by now they seemed to be always boring into Rosalie, searching, questioning. And now, Rosalie could see, they were again totally filled with desire.

Rosalie leaned in slowly, so slowly, wanting to savor this moment as long as she could. Bella began to tilt her head, readying herself for what was to come. With one last glance, Rosalie broke their gaze and closed her eyes, trailing her fingers behind Bella's ear as she closed the gap.

Their lips pressed tentatively, lightly. God, even that slight touch felt so amazing to Rosalie. She leaned in again, kissing Bella a little harder. Bella's lips were so soft, and she pressed them to Rosalie gently, but with clear intention. After the third time their lips met in this cautious embrace, Rosalie pulled her other hand from Bella's thigh and brought it to her waist. Bella moaned at the contact, chaste as it was, and Rosalie could no longer contain herself.

She pressed her lips to Bella's with urgency and force, pulling Bella into her. Bella kissed her back, bringing her own hands to Rosalie's face and cupping her cheeks as she kissed her equally as hard. Rosalie sighed into the kiss as she felt Bella's warm body press against hers, and clearly the sigh sent Bella over her own edge, as all of a sudden Rosalie felt a smooth tongue trace her bottom lip, requesting entrance that was long overdue.

Rosalie quickly granted it, but before she could make another move Bella's hands were snaking into her hair as she kissed her deeply and with more passion than Rosalie thought she had ever felt in her life. Rosalie groaned and kissed back, sucking on her tongue, and using her strong hands to move their bodies together in perfect rhythm with their lips. She pulled Bella in even deeper to her, pressing them as tightly together as she could while her hands guided Bella's hips. Bella let out her own little moan, and scratched her nails on Rosalie's scalp. It felt amazing; everything felt amazing; Bella could kiss like no one she'd ever met.

"Oh my God," Bella almost panted, gasping for air. "I feel like I'm on fire right now. Rose, what are you doing to me?" Rosalie's only response was to kiss her again with as much passion as she'd ever mustered. Her mind was blank, consumed only with Bella, with kissing Bella, right here, right now. She kissed her deeply, then tenderly, almost lovingly, then deeper again. As they fell deeper into a tantalizing rhythm, the two girls barely broke for air, simply too absorbed with the feel of each other to bother.

###

Rosalie slowly lowered Bella back onto the sand, and they lay on top of each other, and then side by side, and then sitting up again, then back down, over and over. Bella kissed her with tremendous intensity, never allowing Rosalie to take total control, making sure to do her own fair share of exploring and learning.

They stayed like this for what must have been hours, as all of a sudden it was dusk and they were still laying there, facing each other on the sand, kissing slowly and deeply as Rosalie's strong hands rubbed Bella's back and Bella's hands ran all over Rosalie's arms, her back, her thighs, her face, her hair – everywhere.

This was so perfect: Rosalie knew it was fucked up, and dangerous, and she'd certainly ruin it, but right now she didn't care, because it felt perfect; utterly and completely perfect. An hour later, Rosalie realized that it was now almost completely dark. But the lights of the pier and the full moon rising in front of them had washed over them, and they laid there kissing as they were bathed in a strange version of boardwalk moonlight.

"Bella," Rosalie whispered, pulling away only slightly. Bella only responded by seeking her lips out again and attempting to pull Rosalie in deeply. Rosalie allowed her for a second, but realizing that making out on the sand in a remote part of Coney Island after dark wasn't exactly the safest idea, she reluctantly broke the kiss.

"Bella," she relented. "We have to go, come on."

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TBC

Thanks for the feedback, it kind of reminds me to keep going with this.