Chapter 6. Still and Stuck
Disclaimer: Have I somehow magically gotten the ability to own Twilight over the past few days? No.
A/N: Complications came up so this had to be posted a little late... But hey.. better late than never. PLEASE READ THE A/N AT THE BOTTOM...
Day 3
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Bella:
Last night, Alice and Rosalie scored dates. Yeah, I know and it's only the third day. Of course Emmett asked Rosalie out and Jasper did the same with Alice. They double-dated and went to this fancy schmancy restaurant that I can't even pronounce the name of.
Emmett told me they could stay here in the suite with me, so I wouldn't be lonely. But to be honest, I was perfectly content with a personal date with my old copy of Wuthering Heights. The classic story could never get old.
He didn't seem to understand that I was okay with them going out. He even went so far as to try to set me up with his brother who apparently single and ready to mingle. Needless to say, I had to let Emmett down gently.
On the bright side, I got to meet Jasper. He was tall with blue eyes and honey-blonde hair. He had an alluring personality and a calm demeanor. I liked him instantly and the fact that he balanced Alice's bubbly self made it all the better.
They came back late last night, but not too late enough for them to give me a run-down of the whole evening. Apparently, Emmett and Jasper treated them to dinner then a romantic walk around the area.
If you ask me, it was a little too sappy. Like something straight out of the movies. Even the dinner at a fancy restaurant was a bit much. Or maybe I'm too simple of a person.
I stumbled out of bed, determined to find out where a brightness suddenly came from, unfortunately interrupting my sleep. My eyes slowly adjusted to the light. Alice was opening the blinds. A big window occupied one of the four walls of the room.
"Alice…" I mumbled before collapsing back on the bed. "Close them… now." I groaned.
"Oh Bella, we need some light in this room. The colors are all wrong. Red on these walls? All I did was brighten the room. I'd hate to meet the people that designed this place!" She rambled on and on and tucked the beige curtains to the side.
I closed my eyes and felt around for part of the comforter. I pulled it and tucked it around me, forming a blanket. It was quiet. Too quiet. Out of nowhere, the bed started moving, rocking me back and forth. An uneasy feeling developed in my stomach. "Al-ice!" I annunciated each syllable and relunctantly opened my eyes.
The little pixie was jumping over me from one corner of the bed to the other. "Bella, wake up!" She sang.
I reached out to grab her ankle, but she jumped nimbly out of the way. "You gotta do better than that to catch me!" She jumped up and effectively performed a flip before landing on the other side. She stuck her tongue out at me.
I felt around me for a weapon. "Ahh!" She yelled as I chucked the remote at her. Alice ducked and lost her balance, causing her to fall.
"Alice…" I groaned. She had fallen on me.
Minutes later I was up, no longer able to sleep peacefully in bed. Alice threatened me with a makeover and I knew sleep was pointless now.
"Coffee me," I said, placing the cup back on the counter.
"Bella..." Alice warned, looking uneasily at the cup waiting for her. "I've never seen you handle three cups before."
"Yes and you've never seen me up before 8:30 either. You caused this by waking me up early." I reminded her. "Now coffee me."
We shared a look and she crossed the kitchen to get the coffee pot.
"Please and thank you!" I added.
She rolled her eyes and returned. "Here's your dang coffee." Alice placed it before me.
"Much obliged," I smiled sweetly.
Alice huffed and climbed into the chair next to me. "When you go back to the room, you'll see your outfit laid out on the bed."
"Of course," I mumbled. Leave it to Alice to already have my wardrobe planned before 8 AM. "No thanks Ali, but I was planning on-"
"You are not getting back in bed!" Alice cut me off.
I nodded obediently and retreated to the bedroom. Sure enough, the clothes were at the foot of my bed. It was a dark purple v-neck and a black pencil skirt. I was grateful to Alice for nothing too fancy or uncomfortable, although I could've done without the v-neck. It dipped a little too far for my taste.
After changing, I walked out of the room to find Alice. She wasn't in the kitchen or living room. I pushed open Rose's door to find Alice rummaging through her suitcase. "This'll do," she said to herself and hid her hands behind her back, approaching me cautiously.
"Bella," She warned. "Now before you argue, you must know that this mandatory."
I watched as Alice removed her hands from their hiding spot to show me Rose's stilettos.
"Alice…" I started backing up. "Those are stilettos…"
"No Bella, these are only five inches."
"Five inches?" I repeated. I ran to the corner of the room and she followed. This started a whole chase scene. We went round and round, hopping over the bed and around the various furniture.
I slipped on the comforter while running and cursed my clumsiness. It had been conveniently pulled halfway off the bed, lying there as if beckoning me to trip on it.
Alice sat on me, trapping me to the floor. "Alice! Get off my butt!"
"Never!" She laughed and attempted to put the heels on now.
My legs flailed around wildly, trying to prevent her from putting the deadly stilettos on. I felt her catch one leg, working down to my foot. "One shoe down…" She said evilly. "One more to go."
She indeed got both shoes on and helped me balance in them for a few minutes.
"Where's Rose?" I asked, finally realizing the suite was void of our other friend.
"Oh, she went out somewhere with Emmett early this morning. I'm not sure when she'll be back." Alice said.
I grabbed my purse and my coffee cup from the other room. Alice's eyes drifted to the purse in my hand. "Where are you going?"
I shrugged. "Out. Don't wait up." Surprisingly, I made it to the door without any casualties.
"Remember we have to meet with Jessica." Alice was now leaning against the doorway into our room.
"Yeah, that's what I figured I'd do. You don't have to come today. I'll just be waiting in the lobby for her. Maybe we'll go somewhere today to conduct the interview."
"Alright," She mumbled and disappeared into the room.
By the time I reached the elevator, it was already coming down. The doors opened and someone was in there this time. The man was tall and tan. His black hair was short and spiky on top, and his eyes were dark brown.
"Hey," He greeted. "Lobby?"
"Yes," I said.
He pressed the button, although it was already lit. The elevator moved quickly and was now at the 14th floor. Then it went slow before coming to a loud stop in between floors.
"Are you serious?" I exclaimed and sighed loudly. The wall became a support as I leaned back against it
The elevator was stuck. Unhappy was really an understatement for me right now.
The man frowned, and his grimace matched mine. With a small sigh, he turned to face me. "I'm Jacob," He said. He came over to the wall I was leaning against.
"I'm annoyed," I replied as I sank to the floor.
"Nice to meet you annoyed." He smirked. "Coffee?" He nodded towards my cup.
"I'm not much of a morning person," I mumbled. The elevator floor was a rich red and surprisingly comfy. It felt so luscious.
"How long do you think it'll take them to figure out something's going on with the elevator?" Jacob asked.
"Hopefully not too long. I have places to be." I thought about Jessica who was no doubt already waiting for me in the lobby.
"I was just going to get some breakfast in the dining room before they closed," Jacob sighed and rubbed his stomach.
I laughed and he looked up at the doors. "You think that if we beat on the doors enough times that we'll break through?"
"No, I doubt it," I snickered. "We're stuck between floors. No breaking through that."
"Well in that case…" He joined me on the floor. "It's a good thing we're not claustrophobic."
"You're on the thirtieth floor?" I asked for idle conversation.
He nodded, and we sat there for a few minutes of comfortable silence. No matter how awesome the carpet felt, the bright red was beginning to make me dizzy. I was already a little uncomfortable because of the situation, but then I remembered the heels.
"I hope you don't mind," I said as my fingers worked quickly to unstrap the death machines. "Stilettos aren't really my thing. My friend only forced me into them."
"Forced?" He raised an eyebrow at me.
"Yes. She literally had to chase me down just so I'd stay still long enough for her to trap me in them." We shared a comfortable laugh. "My name is Bella," I finally said.
"And I'm Jacob, although you already know that."
"Well Jacob, my life officially sucks." I leaned my head back too far and it hit the wall with a thud. "Yep." I sighed.
I took a sip of my coffee before continuing. "I had an appointment scheduled and now I've missed it."
"An appointment? You aren't here on vacation?" He asked, sliding ever-so-closer to me.
"Sadly no. I'm a wedding planner so I'm here strictly on business." I held my cup a little tighter than I should have.
"Really? Where are you from?" Jacob asked.
"Port Angeles, Washington. You?"
"Santa Monica, California. I'm here on vacation."
Ever since I went to Disneyland and took a trip to Hollywood once, I've always loved California. I even vowed to go back when my schedule wasn't so tight. "That is beyond awesome. I've been to California once and fell in love with the state. I heard Santa Monica is gorgeous!"
He laughed. "Yeah, it's pretty awesome. Great for tourism, for sure. You know where La Push is, right? I have family over there."
I nodded. "Yeah, it's not too far from where I live. At the least, it's maybe a little over an hour drive."
An idea came to my mind. "Hey Jacob, why don't we just press the call button," I suggested.
"What?" He raised a curious eyebrow.
I explained, "Doesn't every elevator have like a call button or something? You press it in case of emergency." I stood up and walked over to the button panel.
Realization dawned on him. "Can you read French?"
"Good point. But we could just press some buttons until something works…"
He laughed as I pushed every button on the panel. Not even the telephone button worked. And it wasn't as if the power went out because the lights in the elevator still worked.
With nothing else to do but wait, I curled up in the corner and Jacob sighed.
"We could still try knocking. We won't break through, but it may alert somebody that the elevator is stuck." Jacob said. With that, he began knocking on the elevator doors.
After a few minutes of it, I groaned and threw my arms lazily over my ears. "Jacob, I don't see how that will solve anything."
He frowned but came back to my side. "Got a cell phone so we can call somebody?"
"Not really." I didn't have my phone so I had idea of how Edward's phone could benefit me. "You?"
"Not really. I guess I left it in the room." He felt around in his pockets.
"Alright well I didn't get enough rest last night. I'm still adjusting to the time difference and having a barely five foot pixie jumping on your bed and allowing light into the room wasn't how I envisioned my morning going. Oh and being locked in an elevator with another person. No offense."
Jacob shrugged. "None taken."
"Alright, so I'm going to take a nap then." My eyes slowly shut and I could only hope today would be one of those days I didn't sleep-talk.
"Bella…" A voice called my name.
"Oh Bella…" Not now.
"Bella." Should I respond?
"Oww!" I was up now and very pissed off. I treasure my sleep. The carpet of the elevator was comfortable and Rosalie decided to ruin it by sitting on me.
Wait… Rosalie in the elevator?
I opened my eyes. "What's going on?"
"You can get out the elevator now," Rose said and immediately I felt all her weight being released.
I sighed in relief and grabbed the shoes, opting to walk barefoot. Hopefully the floor is clean and no one gets mad.
We were in the lobby now. Rose led me to a sofa to sit on. Out the corner of my eye, I saw Jacob talking to a man, his gold name-tag showed he was the manager. "I'm so sorry about the inconvenience," the manager, Rob, said.
He walked over to personally apologize to me. "I'm sorry about the incident. But we'll give you free room service for the rest of your stay."
"Thanks," I replied. "But that's okay. We're still alive. No harm done. We don't need free-"
"Yes. It was an inconvenience. A few minutes longer, and my best friend could've starved to death or died of boredom. Then you'd have guilt and a law suit on your shoulders." Rosalie cut me off. "And free room service just may be enough to make this better." She shot me a look and I knew what she was doing.
"Yes, of course. Again I apologize." Rob said to Rose, avoiding her glare.
"Good. Then we'll talk about any other compensations, later." Rosalie dismissed him with a wave of her hand, and he quickly walked over to the concierge's desk.
"What was that about?" I questioned Rosalie.
She shrugged. "Who doesn't want free room service?"
I had to agree with that. Rosalie placed my coffee cup in front of me, but it was cold by now. I pushed it away. "Rose, what time is it?"
She took her phone out of her pocket. "Roughly 10 a.m."
"We were in there for over an hour?" I frantically searched the room. "What happened to Jessica?"
"Oh she couldn't make it today. You know, she mentioned telling you or getting someone to pass on the message." Rose informed me. "She didn't tell you?"
"No… why did she-"
"Oh hey, Bella. You're up now." Jacob was now standing beside my sofa.
"Yeah." I hoped he wouldn't mention any sleeptalking.
Rose gave me a curious glance. Jacob shuffled his foot awkwardly back and forth across the carpet. "So Bella, do you think we could hang out sometime non-elevator related?"
Rosalie answered for me. "She'd love to. We're on the 29th floor, suite 47."
I gave her a pointed look and she met mine with an innocent one.
"Jacob, this is Rosalie," I introduced.
The shared a few words before he left to go back to his room, seeing as though breakfast had long since been over.
I had a feeling Rosalie would stay true to her word and make sure we're able to get another free accommodation. She had a terrible habit of manipulating people, either by her beauty or the weight of her glare. In this situation, the glare came in handy, though. Rob was like putty in my best friend's hands. I don't like taking advantage of people like that, but honestly the more I thought about it, the more I thought that Rose could get us free access to the restaurant's bar. That would be nice.
Rosalie helped me up off the sofa and offered to put my shoes back on for me, to which I politely declined. Then, she made some excuse about meeting me back in the room later. She had something to take care of.
The minute I walked through the door, I was jumped by a pixie.
"Oh Bella, Rose came and told me about the elevator! You're alive!" She hugged me as if we hadn't seen each other in years.
"Ali- can't… breath…" I choked out. She giggled and let me go before looking me up and down. Her eyes settled on the shoes that were in my hands instead of on my feet. Her look was one of disgust.
Then her eyes danced wildly as she took in my expression. "Met a cute guy in the elevator?"
I laughed as we hi-fived each other. "You know it!"
Rose POV:
"So Emmett, do you think we can set up a camera in the elevator?... You know, for some pictures to go on your company's website?" I asked.
"I already got a few in place, Rosie." Emmett laughed. "But of course we can't show people's faces."
We were looking at the live camera footage for the elevator now.
"Oohh! Hot guy on level 30!" I zoomed in to get a closer look.
"But I'm hotter, right?" Em asked, wiggling his eyebrows.
I pushed him playfully.
"Is that Bella getting on now?" We took a closer look at the screen now.
"Stop the elevator!" I exclaimed with a smile on my face. All we had to do was get a hold of the hotel engineer. It would be too easy. "It's matchmaking time."
A/N: The ending Rose POV was supposed to be a little vague. All will make more sense later.
As for the introduction of Jacob's character... he and Bella are not going to date... that I know of. I'll have to check my notes again. But remember: This is an Edward/Bella story. So with that being said, press that button and review!