Ch. 7: Without You
A/N: Hei Hei Hei ystävilleni!!!! (That's Finnish. We saw "Confessions of a Shopaholic".) The quote from last chapter was "Step right up and claim your prize." From "White Chicks". Once again, thanks for all your reviews, story alerts, author alerts, favorite story, and favorite authors. A special thanks goes out to canibeyourmemory for leaving the best reviews.
EPOV
Charlie began interrogating Bella, "What was that, Bells?"
"Oh, it was nothing." Nothing? "I was just nervous about being the center of attention, you know how I get, and Edward was just trying to help calm my nerves."
I went along with Bella, "It's true, Sir. She was nervous about going up there all alone, so I offered to go up onstage to reassure her."
"As long is there no funny business going on between you two, then I'll let it go." Charlie said sternly. He leaned towards me, so Bella wouldn't hear what he was about to say, "If you ever hurt my daughter, I will hunt you down and skin you alive."
I definitely did not want to be on Charlie's bad side. "I can promise you, Sir, that I have no intentions of ever hurting Bella."
"I'm glad we have an understanding." He said, patting my shoulder.
I was hesitant to ask, but I did it anyway, "Would it be alright if Bella and I still went ice skating?"
Renée chimed in, "I don't see why that would be a problem."
"Have fun, you two!" Esme called after us.
Bella and I practically ran outside of the lounge. "For a minute, I thought they knew about our sleeping arrangements."
"If your father ever found out about that, I don't think I would live much longer."
"I don't think Charlie would ever do that. Yeah, he's a little overprotective, but I think that comes from his job. He would never hurt you."
"You didn't hear what he had to say to me. He told me that if I ever hurt you, which I have no intention of doing, he would 'hunt me down and skin me alive'. I just don't want to be on his bad side for fear of my life."
Bella laughed, "Relax, Romeo. Let's just get to Studio B so we can go ice skating."
"Uh, Bella?"
"What's up?"
"Unless you don't mind, possibly, getting your legs all scratched up, I suggest we go up to the room and change into some pants and long sleeved shirts."
She looked down at what she was wearing. "I didn't even think about that. I, definitely, do not want to injure myself more than is probably going to happen."
With that, we ran back up the stairs to the room and changed really quickly. As we were running out the door, I grabbed my hoodie, just in case. We ran back down the seven decks and finally made it to Studio B. We rented the skates and found a seat so it would be easier to put them on.
Bella seemed nervous. "Remember that you promised that you wouldn't let me go."
"How could I forget? I promise that I will not let go of you until you ask me to."
She still seemed a little bit apprehensive, but she seemed to relax some. I noticed that she was rubbing her hands up and down her arms. I grabbed my hoodie and offered it to her, "Here, take this. I think you might need it more than I will.
She grabbed it and threw it on. "Thanks." I couldn't help but think how natural and good Bella looked in my clothes. I didn't want to be caught staring, so I turned away.
"Anytime." I don't know if my eyes were playing tricks on me, but I thought I saw her pull the jacket up to her nose and inhale.
I smiled, "Shall we?" I stood up and held my hand out for her to take.
She grabbed my hand and I pulled her up, "I guess it's now or never."
I led her out to the ice and stepped out before I turned around and grabbed both of her hands. She hesitantly stepped out onto the ice and, almost immediately, started to go down. My grip on her tightened and I held her up until she was able to regain her balance.
She breathed a sigh of relief, "That was close."
"I told you I wasn't going to let you fall. Are you ready to start moving now?"
"I guess."
I started skating backwards, leading Bella. "Showoff." She muttered.
"What?"
"Must you be good at everything you do? How can you skate backwards? I can barely go forward."
"My family and I enjoy skating. It's one of the many things we do together. I'm sure that, one day, you'll be able to skate backwards and, maybe, even do a few tricks."
She rolled her eyes, "I doubt that'll ever happen."
"Have a little faith, Bella."
We began moving a little faster as Bella seemed to get more comfortable. I was so focused on Bella and making sure that she didn't fall that I had just noticed there was music playing in the background. As soon as the next song started, I saw Bella's face light up.
I just wanna be alone tonight Cause something's
changed Without
you, I live it up a little more everyday
I
just wanna take a little breather
Cause lately all we do is
fight
And every time it cuts me deeper
You've been acting so strange
And its taking its toll
on me
Its safe to say that I'm ready to let you leave
Without you, I'm seein'
myself so differently
I didn't wanna believe it then
But it
all worked out in the end
When I watched you walk away
Well I
never thought I'd say
I'm fine
Without you
"I'm taking a wild guess here, but I think you like this song."
"How could you tell?"
"When it started, your face lit up and you relaxed enough to have me let go of one of your hands."
She looked down and realized that I had, in fact, dropped one of her hands. The smile on her face went from ear to ear.
Called you up cause' it's
been long enough Cause something changed, you were acting so
strange Without you, I live it up a
little more everyday
And you said that you were so much better
We
have done a lot of growing up
We were never meant to be
together
And it's taken its toll on me
It's safe to say that
I'm ready to let you leave
Without you, I'm seein' myself so
differently
I didn't wanna believe it then
But it all worked
out in the end
When I watched you walk away
Well I never
thought I'd say
I'm fine
Without you
I moved so that I was now standing next to Bella instead of in front of her. She relaxed even more and started to become more fluid in her motions.
"I really do like this song. It's definitely up there in my top ten."
"May I ask why you like it so much?"
"I don't know. The meaning of it is kind of a downer, but it's also a good message. If things aren't really working out, or the other person is a bad influence, and you realize that you can be fine without them, it might be worth it to let them go."
"I hope that you don't think that way about me."
She smiled and my breath hitched, "No, I don't think that about you."
"Good." Now that Bella and I were friends, I was hoping that it would stay that way, even after this cruise ended.
Cause something changed, you were
acting so strange Without you, I live
it up a little more everyday
And it's taken its toll on me
It's safe
to say that I'm ready to let you leave
Without you, I'm seein' myself so
differently
I didn't wanna believe it then
But it all worked
out in the end
When I watched you walk away
Well I never
thought I'd say
I'm fine,
Without you
Without
you
Without you
Without you
I just wanna be alone tonight,
I
just wanna take a little breather.
BPOV
After our little talk, Edward and I kept skating. He kept his word and didn't let me fall once, for which I was grateful for. I tried skating on my own, but that didn't blow over too well. I fell three times before I gave up and held onto Edward's hand the rest of the time.
At 12:15, there was an announcement made saying that we needed to clear off the ice. We made our way over to the gate and were back on non-slippery ground. We returned our skates and left the studio. I left his hoodie on. It smelled amazing and I couldn't get enough of it. When I thought he wasn't looking, I would take a big whiff of the intoxicating smell.
"What's next on your list, Romeo?" Just then, my stomach growled loudly and I blushed.
He chuckled, "I think someone's a little hungry."
"I don't know what's wrong with me. Ever since I've been on this cruise, I'm always hungry."
"I think it's just part of the cruising experience. They have food available 24/7, and it's free, so there really are no limits when it comes down to it. So, what do you feel like eating?"
"I saw on the diagram of the ship that there's a Johnny Rocket's onboard. Can we go there?"
"That's fine by me." Edward didn't grab my hand and, at first, I didn't understand why. Then I figured that Charlie's words were still stuck in his head. I guess I can't blame him. I had to stop myself from reaching out and grabbing his hand myself.
We made it up to Johnny Rocket's on Deck 12. In all honesty, I had never been to one before, but I had always wanted to. It was decorated like a 50's style diner with the red booths and white tables. There were even little working juke boxes on each of the tables.
One of the waitresses, from Poland, led us to a booth and we took our seats. I decided to order the Rocket Single with fries and a chocolate milkshake and Edward ordered the same.
Edward was flipping through the little juke box and found something he liked. He put the nickel in the machine and selected the song.
Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Stray cat strut, I'm a ladies' cat, Yeah don't cross my path
Black
and orange stray cat sittin' on a fence
Ain't got enough dough to
pay the rent
I'm flat broke but I don't care
I strut right by
with my tail in the air
A
feline Casanova, hey man, that's where it's at
Get a shoe
thrown at me from a mean old man
Get my dinner from a garbage
can
I had been thinking, and I figured it was time for me to let Edward off the hook. "So, I was thinking earlier today."
"About?"
"About me forgiving you. You've showed me that you really aren't a class A asshole."
He laughed, "Thank you, it really means a lot to me that you would trust me." I would trust you with my life.
I don't bother chasing mice
around I
wish I could be as carefree and wild,
I slink down the alley looking for a fight
Howling to
the moonlight on a hot summer night
Singin' the blues while the
lady cats cry,
"Wild stray cat, you're a real gone guy."
but I got cat class and I
got cat style.
Edward and I were intensely staring at each other now. Normally, I would have blushed and looked away the second I realized he was looking at me, but not this time; I couldn't even tear my eyes away from him and his dazzling green eyes. He seemed to be looking at me in the same way, but I couldn't figure out why. It's not like he could like me as more than a friend or anything. I was just so plain and boring and Edward could have any girl he wanted.
"Here we go." The waitress had come back with our drinks and food and broke us from our own little world.
"Thank you," we both said at the same time, making me giggle.
I don't bother chasing mice
around I
wish I could be as carefree and wild,
I slink down the alley looking for a fight
Howling to
the moon on a hot summer night
Singin' the blues while the lady
cats cry,
"Wild stray cat, you're a real gone guy."
but I got cat class and I
got cat style.
Edward looked up from his food, "Tonight's the Captain's Welcome Aboard Reception and I was wondering if you would like to go with me."
"Are you sure you aren't sick of me yet? I've practically taken up your whole day and I don't want you to feel like we have to spend every minute together."
"I am, most definitely, not sick of you. How could I be? I really enjoy spending time with you. It's a nice change of pace from my family." I had my hand on the table and he reached for it. I blushed, naturally, but didn't pull my hand away.
"If you're sure, I would love to go with you."
He smiled that damned crooked smile and my heartbeat, once again, picked up. "Good, it would be boring if you weren't with me. You always cease to amaze me."
I paid for our lunches, repaying Edward for the bingo incident, and went down to the pool area.
We were walking by the stage and there was some kind of contest going on. I didn't pay attention until Edward stopped walking, his jaw on the floor. I looked up and began laughing hysterically, tears rolling down my face, Edward soon joining me.
Emmett was up onstage in nothing but a Speedo. Apparently, he was entered in the Mr. Sexy Legs Contest. He was posing, so his legs were being shown off. He looked like he thought he was hot shit. It was the funniest thing I had ever seen. I looked around and found Rose looking mortified at the sight of her boyfriend up onstage. That is until she heard some girls commenting on how hot they thought Emmett was. I saw her walk over to them and, I'm guessing, telling them to lay off of Emmett. They walked away after the confrontation.
I made my way over to Rose, Edward following close behind. "Hey, Rose. What is he doing up there?"
"I have no idea. I begged him not to do it, but he insisted that he could win."
"What's up with the Speedo?"
"That was, again, his idea. It was only required to wear shorts but he told me that he would have a better chance of winning if he wore it."
Edward still hadn't stopped laughing, his face now red from lack of oxygen. Alice and Jasper had found us and, much like Edward, Jasper had tears in his eyes from laughing so hard. Alice didn't need the situation to be explained.
I heard a gasp behind me and turned. Esme and Carlisle were there, Esme's jaw on the floor much like Edward's was. They ran over to us.
Rose spoke before they asked, "I told him not to do it." She shook her head.
Esme was speechless, but a grin was slowly appearing on her face.
Carlisle spoke, "Leave it to Emmett."
The rest of the contestants finished their poses and then the announcer, who was from Kenya, moved to the center of the stage. "All right, that was the last of the contestants. Voting will be determined by the loudest screams from the crowd. The announcer pointed to the first six contestants, in turn. The number three contestant had the loudest screams so far. "And contestant number seven." I think I went deaf. The loudest screaming I had ever heard erupted around me. Clearly, Emmett had the contest in the bag and he knew it. The last three contestants were voted for, but none came close to the screams Emmett received.
"And the winner is contestant number 7, by a landslide!" He handed Emmett a trophy with a pair of legs at the top.
Emmett bounded down the stairs booming, "I told you the Speedo would work. You know, chicks dig me because I rarely wear underwear and when I do it's usually something unusual." The biggest grin I had ever seen appeared on his face and I don't think it would leave until later tonight.
Rose slapped him upside the head, "I'm right here. I don't want to hear about other girls. But yes, you did say the Speedo would work." Rosalie kissed him on the lips before he wrapped her up in his massive arms.
This cruise was already shaping up to be the best vacation I have ever been on.
A/N: Thanks for reading, we hoped you enjoyed it. The songs in this chapter were "Without You" by Hinder and "Stray Cat Strut" by Stray Cats. Johnny Rockets is more fun than a barrel of monkeys, I swear. Our first time going to one really was on the cruise. You can't go there and not play with the juke box. So much fun!! Please read and review. Thanks again! Näkemiin!!
