A/N: This and the last chapter are kind of slow, but the next ones that follow should be better. We finally get to know some more about Edward's past. I'm chipping away at him, I still don't know everything about him yet. The updates for my other three stories are coming tomorrow instead of Sunday. I hope you all enjoy! Shit is about to hit the fan!
7. Can't Help Falling
Saturday morning dawned bright and clear, so when I told my mom that I was leaving early so I could stop at the park for a few hours, she didn't have any objections. It was a slightly warmer day, so I didn't need my coat. There were piles of leaves along the sidewalk, some looking messy from the kids playing in them.
Cardinals whizzed past me, the bright read color of their wings a beautiful contrast to the gray haze that settled during the winter months. I walked with determination toward the park. I had seen just a few days ago, and that seemed too long, I craved his presence. I couldn't help myself, I had fallen for him. Hard and fast. I hadn't known him a month and he'd some how worked his way into my heart.
It was empty when I got there, most parents wanting to keep their kids inside so they didn't get sick. I found him on the bench, just as I had the other day, only this time he was looking at me, no book in sight. A slow smile greeted me as I got closer.
"Hi," I sat down beside him.
"Hi."
"Do you have a thing for parks or something? You seem to really like meeting here." I teased. I didn't mind, the park was abandoned for most part this time of year, making it the perfect quiet place to talk.
"I just figured this was the easiest place to meet. We could go some place else if you want."
"No," my hand instinctively went to his shoulder, "this is fine."
"What did you tell your mom?" he relaxed back against the bench.
I took my hand off of his shoulder, "That I was stopping at the park before work."
"Are we ever going to tell her?" he put his arm across the back, his hand landing on my left shoulder.
"About what?" the only thing that I could focus on was the fact that his hand was on my shoulder.
"Us." he smirked at me.
"What about us? We're just friends."
He nodded his head slowly, "Yeah." his demeanor changed dramatically, like he hadn't liked what I said.
"What are you for Thanksgiving next week?" I asked, just wanting to get him talking.
"I'm going with Emmett to his girlfriend Rosalie's house. What about you?" his thumb was rubbing circles into my shoulder blade.
"My mom and I go my best friend Angela's house every year. We've done that since my dad died." I looked at my hands. I didn't talk about my dad, not even to Angela. It's amazing how you could miss a man that you never knew.
"Wow, I didn't realize..." I cut him off.
"He died when I was a year old. I never knew him." my voice took on a somber tone.
"Come here," he turned his body toward mine, pulling me into his chest and his arms coming around me like a cage. I put my arms around his middle, anchoring myself to him. I could hear his heartbeat, something about it soothing. He smelled incredible, like Old Spice.
We sat there in silence for several minutes, just holding each other. It felt like there was electricity humming between us, the air crackling. I had never wanted to kiss someone so much as I did in that moment.
"What are you doing tomorrow?" his voice was quiet, his breath warm against my hair.
"Nothing. Jane and Aro close the store for a week starting the Sunday before Thanksgiving. My mom is probably going force me to spend the day studying Biology. I have a huge test on Tuesday, and I don't get any of it." I didn't care about any of that, I just wanted to focus on right here and now.
"Do you need help with it?" his question shocked me.
"Yeah, I do actually."
"I was really good at it. You can come over to my place, Emmett should be there tomorrow."
"Okay, that would really help me out."
"Afterward, we could finally go to that movie that we have been talking about." he pressed his nose into my hair.
"Sure." I nodded, my head still against his chest.
"We could meet here tomorrow at the same time, and I could show you where it is."
"Sounds like a plan."
&7&
"The movie ends at what time?" my mom asked for the third time this morning. My mom was over protective sometimes, always saying it was for my benefit and that when I had kids I would understand; I didn't hate her for it, I just wish that sometimes she would back off a little and let me breathe.
"Eight-thirty." I put my Biology book in my bag, the only book that I was going to need. I was nervous about going to his place. His brother was going to be there, so helped ease my anxiety. I didn't know much about his brother, and being able to meet him was going to help put together the puzzle that was Edward.
He wasn't chatty about his life. There were still so many things to know. I just wanted to crawl in his brain and figure him out. Every time that we had gotten together to talk, he learned more about me than I learned about him. I wanted to know everything, just something, anything.
"Are you sure you want to walk home after?"
"Mom, I will be fine. I have done it a million times. I've walked these streets at night more times than I can count."
She came over to me, pulling my ponytail, something that she had done my whole life, "I'm your mom, I'm suppose to worry too much."
"I'll be home by nine, I promise." I hugged her.
"Have fun. Don't study too hard." she squeezed me before letting go.
"Mom, I can use all the studying I can get for this class."
"Love you!" she called when I opened the door.
"Love you!"
I closed the door behind me, taking the porch steps two at a time. I walked toward the park, kicking leaves out of my way as I went. Once they were on the ground, they weren't as appealing, all the color in them gone, going just as dull as everything else this time of year.
When I was younger, I used to love fall and winter, especially winter. With winter came snow, and snow meant snow days. My mom and I would make snow angels and snowmen, spending hours and hours outside in it, but then she started working more, so we didn't have snow days together anymore, and with the death of them, went my love of snow.
Despite everything that had happened, I had nothing but fond memories of my childhood. My mom would always find ways to make it happy, whether it be going to get ice cream on a random afternoon, or just doing things together, our home was filled with laughter.
I couldn't imagine what it must have been like to raise me alone, and then my brother. My mom was my support system, I couldn't imagine not having that. My mom and her parents weren't close, and my dad's parents had died several years before I was born. My maternal grandmother didn't approve of my dad, so they disowned her, but my mom said that she never regretted it. Her marriage to my father was short lived, but a good one. When he found out that she was pregnant, he couldn't have been more excited. He treated her like she was glass, never letting her do anything too strenuous. My mom said that it had driven her crazy, but she was grateful for it. I didn't regret not knowing my grandparents. You can't miss something that you never had.
I found him standing near the sandbox waiting for me. He had a beanie on, covering his mess of hair that made look like he had just rolled out of bed. I wouldn't be surprised if he had. He was kicking sand around with his foot, some blowing away with wind.
"You were one of those kids weren't you?"
His head whipped around, "What?"
"You kicked sand into the other kids faces, didn't you?" I could see him doing it now and the image made me laugh.
"No, but I was tempted." He took my hand, making every inch of my body tingle. "My mom would never have let me be that mean."
"What is she like?" I threaded my fingers through his. Once again, the realization that I still didn't know anything him or his family came to mind. Was it that he didn't like talking about them, or he was it the he didn't like talking about it with me?
"She's a lot like you actually," his eyes went back to the sandbox, taking on a darker look, "She's quiet, timid, almost shy. She and my parents met in college, apparently it was love at first sight for them. She's a therapist. She didn't want me leave."
"Do you still talk to her ?" I felt bad for him, I couldn't imagine not having contact with my mom, I'd be lost.
"Sometimes," he looked back at me, his eyes bloodshot, "we meet for lunch occasionally. She even tried to talk me into coming home. I don't think that my dad would've like that."
"I can't imagine going through that," I shook my head, a chill going down my spine at the thought.
"I'm okay, Bella," he gave my hand a squeeze. "Let's go."
His apartment building was only a couple of blocks from the park. It was a small brown and beige building that I had walked and ridden past so many times and I had never look twice at it. It only had three stories, and no elevator. It was one of the oldest buildings in town, but it wasn't dilapidated. The owners kept up with it very well, painting it every three years like clockwork.
He led me up the stairs to the second floor, leading me to the door on the left, the second of only two on the floor. He locked the door, letting us both in. It was a small two bedroom apartment, CDs and books piled in random places, it looked to be organized chaos. The furniture was miss matched, the pieces looked like what you would find at a thrift store really cheap, but not in a bad way by any means. Most of the things that I had gotten over the years came from the local Good Will.
A large man exited the bedroom next to the kitchen on my right, stopping when he realized that we were there.
"Emmett, this is Bella." he stepped closer to me, in a protective manner.
"So, you're the girl he can't shut up about. For a while there I thought I was living with a mute," he hit Edward's shoulder, eyes going to our linked hands, "How old are you, Bella?"
"Sixteen." I bit my lip nervously, afraid that he wouldn't approve of me.
"He left that part out." he smiled at me, "It's nice to meet. Although, after living with him, I already felt I did." he headed toward the front door, "I have to go to theater. Something is going on with one of the projectors."
"We'll be along later, I promised her that I wold help with her homework."
"See ya there." he lifted his hand in a wave before exiting the apartment.
"He seems nice." I said when he was gone.
"He is." he didn't sound convinced.
"What is it?"
"He can't always mind his own business." he commented, finally letting go of my hand.
"Sounds like my mom." I watched him walk over to the counter that had bar stools sitting under the edge.
"Do you want something to drink?"
"No." I was nervous again, not knowing what to do, and he didn't seem to know either.
The awkward silence continued for several seconds. I stood by the door and he by the counter.
"We should get started," he walked over the couch, sitting down, "Come sit."
I sat down next him, taking my backpack off. I took out my Biology and set it on the coffee table.
&7&
"When am I going to need Biology? It's not like I am going to be a doctor!" I threw my pencil down onto my book, Edward laughing at me for the hundredth time. He had the patience of a saint, he hadn't gotten annoyed at me once in last several hours. My brain was turning to mush, and everything that I read had left my brain.
"Let's take a break." he closed the book and placed it on the floor, before sitting back against the couch. "Twenty questions?"
"Okay," I sat back against the cushions. "What do you want to know?"
"Favorite color?" his voice was full of humor with a hint of seriousness.
"I don't know," I bit my lip for a second, "Green." I hoped that the next question out of his mouth wouldn't be why. I knew it was because of his eyes. I hadn't thought twice about the color until I met him. "What's yours?"
"Brown." Did he just say brown? Was he fucking with me?
I let out a snort, trying not to laugh out loud.
"What?" he sounded insulted.
"Brown? Really?" I couldn't contain my laughter anymore.
"You said green."
"I can't win with you can I?"
"Nope." he grinned cockily.
"Fine I give." I threw my hands in the air, surrendering.
"Have you ever had a boyfriend?" his next question surprised me, I hadn't expected that to come out of his mouth.
"No," I chanced a look at him, "Have you?"
"No, I haven't had a boyfriend." his voice oozed sarcasm.
"You knew what I meant." I punched his arm. It only made the jerk laugh harder.
"Yeah, her name was Irina. I dated her freshman into sophomore year. She cheated on me with the captain of the football team and I haven't been in a relationship since." I hadn't expected that response. I couldn't imagine someone cheating on him.
"Have you dated?"
"Yes, I've dated." he emphasized the word, making it clear exactly what kind of dated he meant. Sex.
"Oh." it was the only thing that I could think to say.
"Have you ever been kissed ?" he jumped right into the next question.
"No. I've never kissed anyone." I looked at him. The humor that was there had been replaced with... longing? My heart sped at the thought of his lips on mine.
We didn't say anything after that. His body started to lean closer to mine on the couch. My breath became erratic; he was going to kiss me! Our eyes remained on each others as he got closer and closer until his lips were almost touching mine, only to have the moment ruined. A loud bag from the third floor separated us. We were suddenly on opposite ends from one another and I wasn't the only one who was breathing hard.
"We should get going," his eyes were on the clock on the cable box. "The movie starts soon."
At that moment, I couldn't care less about the movie. "Okay."
He helped me pack my bag before we left.
&7&
As we walked to the theater, he held my bag in one hand and mine his other. When ever his hands touched my skin, it sent tingles everywhere, and I hoped that never faded. The theater was small, so it was only able to show two movies at a time, changing them every week. This week they had The Wizard of Oz and Young Frankenstein. We were going to see the latter, I had never seen it before, but Edward had and insisted that it was good.
We sat in a row near the back, a group of boys sat behind us. Through most of the movie they were throwing popcorn, if it had been any other day, I would have been pissed, but I wasn't really paying attention to the movie anyway. Edward had his arm around me, his thumb once again rubbing circles into my skin. Even though it was on top of my shirt, I could still feel the heat of his hand on me, causing my breath to hitch.
When the movie was over, it took me several seconds to realize it. I was in an Edward induced haze, and I didn't want to leave it. As we walked out of the building, one of the assholes ran into my shoulder. I would have fallen if Edward hadn't caught me in time.
"Asshole!" I heard him shout before looking at me, "Are you okay?"
Our faces were so close I could feel his breath, our lips so close to touching. I held my breath as he slowly closed the distance between us. Then I felt his on mine. He was kissing me and it was perfect, at least until a hand wrapped around my arm and ripped me from him.
I looked over to see my mom, and my heart stopped.
"We're leaving, now!" she then looked at Edward, "And don't you ever, put your hands on my daughter again!" she hissed through clenched teeth.
She dragged me to the car, all the while keeping a tight grip on my arm. She opened the passenger side door and nearly pushed me, slamming it behind me. She tore her door open, getting in and starting the ignition.
"What were you thinking?" her eyes never left the road, but I knew that they were blazing. "You lied to me, Bella. You never lie to me. You can come to me about anything,and this you chose to lie to me about?" she glanced at me, her eyes practically glowing with her anger. She was furious, and I couldn't blame her. I had created this mess.
"I'm sorry." the tears were stinging my eyes, but I fought them back. I didn't deserve to cry.
"Sorry isn't good enough." she was already parking in front of our house. "You're so grounded." she gritted her teeth.
Even though we were home, neither of us moved. Tyler was in the backseat, oblivious to what was going on between us.
"I want to meet him." she finally said, the anger hadn't dissipated from her voice.
"What?"
"You heard me," she looked at me, taking her keys out and holding them, "You've insisted on spending time with him,, that gives me every right to meet him. I can't believe you were hanging around a guy that isn't just too old for you, but forced you to lie to me."
"He wanted me to tell you! The lying was all me! Edward had nothing to do with it!" I defended.
"Whatever!" she got out of the car, slamming her door. She got my brother out of the backseat and went inside. All the while I sat there, letting the tears fall. I was now having to lie in the mess that I had created.
