Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.
Author's Note: Thank you all SO much for reviewing! It made me extremely happy! I am proud to say that this story so far has received over a thousand hits! Which is awesome!
I hope you all enjoy this chapter!
Chapter Six – A Strange Connection
Bella Swan
I sat bolt upright in my bed, almost falling off in the process. My heart was pounding erratically, so hard that I thought it would pound right out of my chest. You could probably hear it all the way on the other side of the campus.
"Bella?" The small worried voice came from across the room, and I looked over to see Alice sitting up in bed, looking at me worriedly.
"I'm okay," I said, running a shaky hand through my hair. "Go back to sleep. Sorry for waking you." The alarm clock that was glowing from my desk read 4:02 a.m.
"Are you sure?" Alice asked.
I nodded. "I'm fine. It was just that dream again." My voice didn't sound convincing, even though I assured her I was fine.
"Okay," she said – sounding unconvinced – and laid back down. Her soft snores filled the silent room a couple moments later.
For several moments, I laid in my bed, staring at the white ceiling, wide awake. My mind was whirling with images from my nightmare.
My nightmare of the night my parents died always haunted me on my birthday, and on those days it was more vivid and real. I'd been having the dreams ever since after my seventh birthday. They plagued my dreams several times a week, always waking me up in the very early morning.
I sighed and turned to face the wall, willing – pleading – to myself to go back to sleep … to no avail.
Maybe this birthday would be different. Hopefully.
~o~
For two hours, I was forced to endure Alice's makeover torture. Alice had told me earlier that afternoon that she wanted me to look "absolutely perfect" for my date with Edward. I told her to go easy on me.
And so, I was forced to seat on the toilet in our bathroom for two hours while she worked on my make-up and hair.
"Okay," she finally said. "You can look now."
I opened my eyes. What I saw was pretty surprising – for me, at least. Alice had done a really good job, I had to admit. My hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and was curled, giving me a cute look. She had lightly brushed some eye shadow to my eyelids, and had added some sparkling, very light pink lip-gloss to my lips. As a finishing touch, she had put some very pretty, real tiny diamond earrings in my ears – cheap studs she had gotten from Claire's.
For clothes, I was wearing a jean skirt that went to a bit past my knees, and a white blouse. On my feet, Alice had stuck a pair of black shoes. They went to my ankles, and had to be tied up.
In all, I was … pretty. Beautiful maybe.
"Wow," was all I could get out.
Next to me, Alice was grinning. "You look beautiful," she said.
I blushed. "Thanks, Alice."
She giggled and kissed my cheek. "You're welcome. You're so fun to put make-up on. Too bad I hadn't met you before college."
Before I could answer, a knock came at the door of our room, and my heart plummeted. He was here. Alice grinned and pulled me out of the bathroom. Then she pushed me gently towards the door before going to perch on the edge of her bed. I looked at her, and she smiled encouragingly back at me.
I sighed and opened the door.
He was standing in the hallway, looking impossibly, inhumanly gorgeous. When I opened the door, he smiled his crooked smile at me, and my heart fluttered and stopped for a split instant. "Hey," he said.
It took me a second to say hello back. When I got my voice back, my cheeks heated up and I said, "Hey, Edward."
"Are you ready to go?" he asked.
I nodded. "Yeah. Let me just get my sweater. Do you want to come in for a second?" He nodded.
I quickly grabbed my sweater and purse from my desk. I turned to Alice, who was grinning at me from her bed, and said, "By, Alice."
"Bye, guys. Oh, and Edward, have her back by eleven," she said.
Edward rolled his eyes, chuckling. "Yes, mom. She'll be home early."
She laughed. "Bye guys."
We walked in comfortable silence out of the dorm building and to the student parking lot. I kept my gaze trained on the gravel of the ground as I walked, too shy to strike up small talk. A small, soft smile was playing on my lips.
We approached Edward's car, a shiny, silver Volvo, and he opened the front passenger car door. "Milady," he said, the crooked grin that I loved so much appearing on his face.
I smiled, giggling. "Why thank you, kind sir," I said as I got into the car.
Soon, we were driving along the road away from the campus. I was still quiet, still too shy to speak. Oh, stop it, Bella. Speak to him, my conscience told me. I mentally took a deep breath and was just about to ask him a random question when he suddenly spoke.
"So, I thought that we could see a movie and then grab a bite to eat," he said. He clearly was as nervous as I was, and I was comforted a little by that fact.
I turned my head to look at him, a smile creeping up onto my lips. "That sounds good. Do you know what's playing?"
He nodded. "I looked through the listings this afternoon. There's a few movies playing that sounds good."
We arrived a couple moments later at the local movie theatre, only to discover that it was closed.
"'Closed for new painting. Will reopen in two days'" Edward said, reading from the sign on the door to the theatre. "There goes that plan. The movies that are playing are really good, too. Dang, I must have been reading last weeks paper."
I giggled. "It's alright. That means we get more time together before we have to head back to the campus."
He grinned. And then his stomach growled. His grin grew even wider. "I like that idea. How about we go eat some dinner? I have the perfect place in mind."
I nodded. "Sounds good. And where would this place be?"
"This little Italian restaurant near Forks. I've heard people talking about it and I've been there a few times." He paused, hand frozen on the car door handle to the passenger side. "You do like Italian food, right? I forgot to ask."
I giggled and nodded. "I love Italian food. I haven't had it in ages."
A few minutes later, we arrived at this tiny restaurant that was nestled in between a bookstore and a small bakery. The smells that were emanating from the bakery and restaurant smelled so good that it made my mouth water. Truth was, I hadn't eaten Italian food since … my 7th birthday.
We got out of the car and I caught a glance at the name of the restaurant.
La Bella.
My heart plummeted and I could feel tears burn in the back of my eyes.
This was the same restaurant we had eaten at … the night my parents had died.
Edward opened the door of the restaurant, holding it open for me. I managed to throw a small convincing smile at him as I headed through the door. He followed me, and I could have sworn his eyebrows creased together slightly in confusion, but it disappeared as soon as it had come.
As we entered, the maitre'd lady looked up, and her eyes widened as her gaze fell on Edward. I felt a slight twinge of jealousy. Nobody should stare at a guy who was on a date with another girl. It was just plain rude. But then again, what can I say? Edward was pretty good looking.
"H-hi, welcome to La Bella. May I help you?" asked the girl, who looked like she was probably about seventeen or eighteen.
"I have a reservation," Edward answered, flashing the girl his most dazzling smile. "Cullen is the last name." I fought back a giggle; he sounded so formal.
The girl just stood there for a moment, ogling him before she shook her head slightly and said, "Cullen? Let's see … ah, yes. Follow me, please." She grabbed two menus and we followed her to a secluded booth in the back of the restaurant. There was a card holder in the middle of the table with a card that said 'Reserved' in fancy gold lettering.
She placed the menus on the table and said, "Your waiter will be with you shortly." And then she disappeared though the swinging double doors that obviously led the kitchen.
I giggled as we sat down. Edward raised his eyebrows and asked, "What's so funny?"
I smiled and said, "You really shouldn't dazzle women like that. The poor girl is probably hyperventilating in the kitchen right now."
He grinned and said, "Well, I at least know that I have eyes for only one girl, and that is you."
I blushed, smiling.
The waiter came just then and her eyes went immediately to Edward. "Hi, my name is Katie and I'll be your server tonight. Can I start you off with any drinks?" she asked.
"Water, please?" I asked. Katie nodded and then turned to Edward.
"Make that two, please?" he asked.
Katie nodded and left through the kitchen doors. She came back a moment later with two glasses of water. Edward flashed my favorite smile at her, causing her to gaze at him for a second before shaking her head and heading towards the kitchen again.
Edward shook his head. "They always do that. All through high school the girls in my class ogled at me."
I smiled and picked up my menu. He did the same and we sat there in comfortable silence, looking through our menus.
"So, tell me about yourself," Edward said, breaking the silence.
I looked up at him. "Well, what do you want to know?"
Edward shrugged. "I don't know. Something about you that I don't know – outside your college life."
I bit my lip; I wasn't ready to tell him yet. "How about we start with you asking me simple questions, and I asking you simple questions?"
"Okay. What's your favorite color?" he asked.
"Um, it changes every day, but if I really had to choose, then it would probably have to be blue or white," I said. "What's yours?"
"I'd have to say royal blue. It's my favorite color on you," he replied. My cheeks heated up. "What kind of books do you like to read?"
"I like anything, but my ultimate favorite are classics. I was introduced to them when I was nine and I've been reading them ever since," I said.
"What's your favorite classic?" he asked, watching me with some sort of expression on his face.
"I'd have to say Pride & Prejudice and Wuthering Heights," I said. "They are my all-time favorite."
He smiled then, and our eyes met, staring straight into each other's eyes. It was then that I felt this sort of connection between us spark to life.
This connection was like no other; it was strange. I'd never felt anything like this before, and it was totally new to me.
And then, in my heart, a feeling erupted. A feeling that was new to me as well.
It was love.
Author's Note: Well, there's chapter six. What did you all think of it? Tell me if you think it's a good depiction of a date (I've never been on a date before!) or not.
I'm going to have to get at least five or six more reviews in order for me to post another chapter, so review review review!
You guys are awesome! See you next chapter, Hershey Kiss Lover.
NEXT CHAPTER:
And then his lips were on mine, lingering there for a few seconds before he pulled back, searching my face for my reaction. Slowly, I smiled a small smile, and he grinned back, and pulled my face to his.
This kiss lasted longer, several seconds longer than the first one.
And it was magical.
