Whoot! Chapter Seven! :D Huzzah! I had a flood of inspiration for this, so I had to write it out, before I lost the mood.
Disclaimer: TWILIGHT ISN'T MINE.
Bella P.O.V.
I turned warily to look over my shoulder, but no one was there, not that I could see, anyway. Just a busy street, cars passing in blurs of white and blue and black. I turned back to the playground. The kids, two girls and one boy, wereplaying tag. I could hear the girls' giggling bouncing around the area, and smiled unconsciously. It might be weird, but I love kids. They're so innocent, compared to the harsh adults around me. Truthfully, there were times when I wished to go back to that stage in my life, where the only things that mattered were my favorite color and what presents I got for Christmas. But then I would remember what I really am and that I can't escape to the past.
I am who I am. Or something corny like that.
The two gay guys had taken notice of me, and it looked like they were offended, because I had been glancing at them a few times. It was their own fault, really. If they were going to make out in a public venue, then they should have picked someplace a little less obvious for their hiding spot. I watched them walk away from the park, holding hands.
After what felt like an hour, a woman came walking down the sidewalk winding around the playground. She was pushing a light blue stroller, and I caught a glimpse of a small, gurgling baby as she passed. The three kids on the monkey bars all crowded around her, and they walked around the bend and into a nearby neighborhood. Once they were out of sight, I was alone.
Finally. I sighed and let my body slump, resting my head on the top of the bench. I closed my eyes, breathing in everything: the oily smell of car exhaust, the acidic smell of the humid air, and the very faint scent of actual nature. Arizona didn't have very much greenery around, and whenever trees were planted on the side of the streets it looked fake and unwelcomed.
I peeled my eyes open. I had to figure out what I was going to do. My hair was slightly ratty, since it had dried without a brush. The cut on my hand hurt, but it had stopped bleeding before I'd even gotten to the park. I'd watched my blood, as it pooled up around the wound, slightly intrigued by it. It had been a really deep red tone, but then it had crusted over, and it was scabby-looking and almost brown.
So where was I going to go?
I patted the spot where my cell phone was resting comfortably in my pocket. Sadly, it had no charge. Maybe then I could have called Jasper, a cab, anyone but my family. I was also slightly bored, again. The park, without people flocking around it, was boring.
I looked up at the sky, pretending like I could possibly tell time from the position of the sun in the sky. I guessed that it couldn't be past three, at least, and went back to thinking of ways to amuse myself.
Then I had to cringe.
"Bella!" A faint voice cried. It was closer than the last time I'd heard it. Which was a really long time ago, I thought. But I had no time to ponder it because then I saw it - the familiar sleek car of Edward Cullen, Cocky Bastard, rounding the corner of the small park's parking lot. I had no time to think about it.
I took off running.
Now, really, what else could I have one? I was not going back to that dusty old house with those dusty old people guilt tripping and punishing me like I did something wrong. I will not go back, dammit, was my mind's mantra, and I held onto it like a prayer.
As fast as I could go, I ran into the nearby neighborhood I'd seen the kids and their mom walk into, cutting across a sloping hill covered with gravel, just to ensure that he couldn't follow me with his car. I dashed into an alleyway, passed a couple of pre-teens smoking, and ran through the winding streets, hoping maybe I could confuse him. I had no experience in evading capture, though. I felt like a prisoner caught in the light of a warden's flashlight, discovered trying to escape.
Through the stitch in my side and my heavy breathing, I managed to see a chain-link fence; there was grass on the other side, suggesting maybe another park or something like that. I tried to urge myself faster, and forced myself not to look back as I attempted to climb it.
I failed my first try. I slipped and fell back, landing on gravel. Ow. The sharp pieces of rock pierced me like tiny, sharp daggers, but I made myself get up and try again. This time, I got over without too much difficulty, except for the landing, which hurt worse than falling off.
I got up again. Before me was a retention basin, like a large valley stretching far until a street cut across it. I decided that the street would be my next goal, and once I got there I would find another place to shoot for. I almost thought about just sitting down and giving up, though. My legs were shaking from fatigue, and the stitch in my side was extremely painful.
But something inside me was burning; I didn't know what it was, but it licked at my gut and heart, enflaming them, and I had a new found strength in me to keep going.
I ran through the basin, trying to pick my path before I took it, just to stay one step ahead. I still hadn't checked behind me to see if Edward was following me, and I almost didn't want to know. But I had to find out, and I looked unsteadily behind me.
There he was. He had just made it over the fence, jumping down and landing ungracefully on his knees. He got up fast, though, and looked at me, running towards me. He was all bronze hair and long legs taking incredibly fast strides. He was gaining on me, dammit. I felt desperation leak into my mind, as I realized I wouldn't make it to the street. I had to choose a different way.
Looking around frantically, I spotted, in the corner of the basin, the drainage pipe that would flood it with rainwater when spring came around. Long, iron bars were set across it vertically. I was close to it enough to it that I could see that one of the bars was bent slightly, and there was a small hope within me that I could squeeze through. I had to. This was no longer about escaping. It was about proving to Edward, to my family, the lengths that I would go to to assert my freedom from them.
I finally reached the pipe. I turned sideways and jammed myself through the bars, clenching my teeth against the pain as I found trouble with my lower body. Edward was almost to me, his face a mask of complete disbelief that would have been comical if I wasn't having some painful difficulties fitting through.
Fuck, let me through, dammit!
It seemed to be just when he got within a foot of me that I finally popped through, rolling away from the opening with all the momentum I'd built up.
I slumped to the hard ground with relief. I'd done it. Shown my determination. Or something. I was too tired at that moment to actually consider anything else but the fact that I wasn't running anymore.
Lifting my head, I saw Edward, leaning against the bars, panting slightly, each of his hands grasping an iron rod. His head was lifted, but because of the bright sunlight glaring into the pipe, all I could see was his outline.
"Fine," he muttered quietly. "Game on."
Suddenly he turned sideways, and started shoving at the bars, grunting as his arm went through, though not without some coaxing on his part. I gaped at him and he continued to push, somehow getting part of his torso through. He managed to maneuver his head through, but then all his progress stopped. Neither of us said a word as he huffed, angry, and tried to pry himself back out. He didn't budge an inch.
"Fuck." He said.
I laughed then, a full, hardy one, even though the pipe smelled like rotten eggs and cobwebs and I was tired and my cut had opened again. Even though the guy who I considered a completely cocky bastard was stuck in the bars three feet away from me, glaring daggers at me. Even though I was going to get dragged back to my grandparents' house.
Even though I felt like crying.
I stopped laughing, and smiled up at Edward, who didn't look very happy.
"I'm going to kill you," he grumbled.
I shrugged. "Better you thank my grandpa." I was shocked at how hoarse my voice was.
He didn't have a response for that, and kept trying to free himself.
Behind him, I heard light footsteps, and I was suddenly wary of who was coming. Alice? Emmett? My grandparents?
"Shit, Bells, are you crazy or what?"
No fucking way. "Jasper!" I cried, running to the bars. Edward looked annoyed at me so easily ignoring his presence, but I did. And there Jasper was, standing with his hands in his pockets. He looked dirty, like he hadn't showered for a few days, and his clothes were in just as bad shape, if not worse.
How is he here?
"Ed, why'd you get yourself stuck like that?" He laughed, smacking Edward's shoulder with his hand.
"Jasper, help me get outta here!"
My blood suddenly ran cold, and I found myself stumbling away from the opening. Neither of them noticed me as Jasper tried to help pry him from between the bars.
How do they know eachother? Why? No, no, no, no! I slumped back to the ground, ignoring the stray shards of glass that were pricking at my legs. This wasn't right. I'd asked for Jasper's help to get Edward off my back, and instead he was helping aid him with my capture.
Why?
Edward P.O.V.
Damn Bella Swan. Damn her to the pits of a fiery hell.
I stared at her, resting inside the conrete pipe, seeming like she was at complete ease. She hadn't looked at me for around ten minutes.
My neck and shoulder hurt like hell, stuck between the bars. Okay, so maybe trying to go in after her was a little stupid. But it's not like she's super skinny, so I figured I could fit through as well. And plus, I wanted to see the look on her face when I had squeezed through. But instead I was embarrassed and absolutely stuck.
Jasper, as I had learned his name during the few hours driving around, was pulling harshly on my other arm. But he was no help because he was laughing too hard to really get me out.
"Come on, man," I muttered.
"I'm trying. Look, this will be a lot easier if we just call the fire department."
I saw the humilition that would come with that. Probably some news station would want to catch footage of this. It's not every day a teenager makes an ass out of himself in view of the general public. I didn't want to think about going back to school with something like that hanging over my head. "Nuh-uh. Call my brother instead." Emmett was going to laugh his ass off, but he wouldn't tell anyone if I asked him not to. "Here," with my free hand, I dug my phone out of my pocket and tried to hand it to him.
But Bella's arm suddenly shot through the bars, and snatched my cell from me. Before I could stop her, she had scuttled away, into the depths of the pipe, her face defiant. It was the same expression she'd had when she was shoving herself through the bars.
"Bella, give me my fucking phone." I hissed.
She shook her head.
Jasper looked around me, at his supposed friend. She had seemed really happy to see him, had practically screamed his name in my ear. But that was all she said before retreating back into the pipe.
"Bells, come on. This is dumb." He said.
She pursed her lips, avoided his eyes. She still wasn't saying anything. I wondered, for just a second, what the hell went on in her crazy girl head.
Jasper sighed. "Hey, come here. I missed you."
Bella squinted her eyes, like I've seen my mom do when she's trying not to cry. But I didn't think it was possible for Bella to feel emotions. I felt a little bit of what felt like sympathy, but I shoved it away. It was harder to get rid of than the worrying.
I remembered her in the arcade, the way she'd looked so full of an attitude with her hands on her hips, lips set into a scowl. I had hated her then. Now she looked small, cornered like a hunted animal. Her hair was frizzy, tangled. Her eyes looked tired.
I found it hard to hate her in that moment.
"Bells," Jasper said again, gently. I suddenly envied him for his patience. If it were me, I would be yelling at her by now.
She stood up slowly, her legs shaking. She was probably tired, with all of the running she did.
And amazingly, she slowly placed my cell in his hand. Then she
He called Emmett, and then both of them were there, my brother and sister. Laughing. At me.
Alice was apparently rolling on the ground, since Jasper felt the need to keep me updated on what they were doing.
Emmett was cackling so hard and loud that I thought he was going to pass out from laughing so much.
"You - ba haa ha! You look like Winnie the pooh! Ha haa!" Alice cried.
"Your brother is choking," Jasper said.
"Shut it, dude," I griped at him. He just snickered, though.
Once Emmett had finally calmed down enough, he grabbed around my waist. And pulled.
Really hard.
"Ow, ow, fuck, ow!" I yelled. My voice echoed hollowly. "Shit!" I got my head out, and all that was left was my shoulder, sore from all the tugging.
One last pull, and I was finally free.
Emmett and I ended up in a tangled heap on the ground. Alice jumped on us, laughing, and I groaned. She was small but heavy on my arm. We started laughing together.
We all sobered up at the same time and looked back over to the pipe. Bella was still sitting away from us, back turned. Jasper was kneeling next to the opening, murmuring something to her. She didn't move.
Jasper stood up, then, and turned sideways.
"Dude, that's not a good idea," Emmett said. "You can't fit. You're as big as Ed."
Alice got up, and walked over. "Let me go in." No one said anything as she easily slid between the bars.
This was fun to write. XD Edward stuck! Ha!
Review if you like. I like hearing what you guys think. c:
Asta-la-bye-bye!
