Hi, I haven't updated in a hideously long time. Like, seriously, I'm ashamed of myself.
Please, just enjoy.
Edward Masen
I woke up with a horrible throbbing behind my right ear, my neck stiff and a completely numb backside.
Why am I on the floor?
And then I remembered the events that led up to me being sat against my bedroom door, feeling like I'd been stabbed in the chest.
I pushed myself off the floor and opened the door behind me, keeping my eyes to the floor and walking pointedly to my bathroom. I peed, stared at my tired face, washed my hands and slid on the running shorts that were on top of my laundry basket.
Back in my room, I put a tank top on, slid a hoodie over my head and tucked my ipod into my waistband.
I listened to my feet thudding against the asphalt and pretended not to notice the brunette running just slightly behind me to my left. My ipod ran out of battery about ten minutes ago and on any other day I might have turned to the woman and sparked up a conversation, but today I had found myself, due to unforeseen circumstances, both running in the dark and not quite knowing the appropriate plan of action for taking a woman back to my apartment. For a fleeting second I wondered whether Bella would figure out for herself that I am attracted to her, based solely on the women I brought home.
Running had calmed me, cleared my mind and allowed me to think rationally about the things Bella had said back in the apartment. Bella had always been an utterly selfless, fun but sensible, oddly mature young woman. She's either finally becoming a stroppy teenager, or she's conjured some ridiculous idea in her mind that she's responsible for all the things that have happ-
"Hey, I've seen you around here before, are you okay? You look anxious."- The tiny dark-haired woman was looking up at me from under unnaturally straight bangs. I scratched the back of my head so I could discretely take a peek at the rest of her body but when I looked back up to her face, her eyes were bright, startling blue. I didn't find the feature as attractive as I felt I should. The young woman blushed and dropped her gaze and I realised I hadn't responded to what she'd said.
"Oh, uhm, anxious? No, yeah, yeah I'm fine."
"You're Edward, right? I think you live in my building? My name's Jessica."
I instantly felt shitty, I had no idea who she was and was angry at myself for being rude. I felt my face morph into a panicked expression and the woman in front of me just chuckled.
"I don't think we've ever met, my roommate knows you though? Lauren?" At this point my panicked expression became something akin to dread and horror. She outright laughed.
"She's not that bad!"
I laughed, realising again that I'd only said about three words to this woman who was oddly charming.
"So, Jessica, was it? Sorry. Yeah, I live in the buidling, floor below you I think. You might've known my roommate, Rosalie?" It was her turn to look panicked and I managed to swallow the chuckle in return.
"Uh, yeah. I met her a few times. Tall, blonde? Terrifying." She whispered the last word to herself and I smiled fondly, thinking of Rose...
"Hi, my name's Edward, I'm here to ask about the apartment share?"
"Hi, I'm Rosalie, never Rosie, always Rosalie."
"Hi, I'm Edward, always Edward. Never anything else. You're the person advertising for a roommate?"
"Yeah, but I did say I was a female, is that okay with you?" The girl was one of the first blonde women I'd, however platonic, found attractive in the last 6 years. She was stern and well dressed but cold. she was staring at me with icy blue eyes and an eyebrow raised, making me feel like what she was actually asking was 'I'm female, that does not mean we will sleep together, do you understand?'
"Yeah, of course. I'm a little desperate, I moved here on a whim about three weeks ago after I decided to leave for college six weeks later than everyone else. Now I'm living on a friend's couch, trying to catch up on coursework and looking for somewhere to live... And talking too much." I rolled my eyes at myself and threw a 'please find me adorable' grin at her, hoping she'd think I was charming and offer me half off rent.
"You seem sane, I like that you're clean and smart despite sleeping on a couch, and I need someone to pitch in on rent, so you can move in whenever you like. You'll have a three week trial period, if I decide at any point during those three weeks that you're an untidy, disorganised or creepy asshole, I kick you out, no questions asked. Understood?"
I grinned, sincerely, and grabbed her up in a bear hug, saying "Understood. Life saver. Thank you!" She made an odd little squeak and I put her back down, not wanting to ruin my chances already. I got the impression she was not used to being caught offguard.
The first day, I left my underwear on the bathroom floor. She yelled at me.
The third day, I used a new mug for my second cup of coffee. She yelled at me.
The eighth day, I used a coaster for my drink, I rinsed my plate before I put it in the dishwasher, I folded my towel and put it on the rack, I was a model housemate. She yelled anyway, then she cried on the sofa for an hour. Then she watched Bridget Jones and cried some more. Then she smiled at me, all warm and fond when I brought her some sweet tea. Then she cried.
The ninth day, I came home with a pint of ice cream, a hot water bottle and a copy of an Officer and a Gentleman. She cried, hugged me and handed me a spoon.
The twelfth day, she told me my trial period was up, that I had nothing to worry about, and that she couldn't guarantee she wouldn't yell at me ever again. She was the first friend I made in New York city, and will always be one of the best friends I've ever had.
On the thirty sixth day, I stocked the freezer with ice cream. I'm a pretty great roommate.
I was brought back to reality by Jessica announcing that she was gonna keep running, and asking if I wanted to finish my run with her. I agreed with a nod and an uncomfortable smile and started to jog alongside her. She was loud, breathing like a bulldog and hacking her lungs up every thirty strides, but she kept to her side of the sidewalk and she didn't try and talk to me whilst we ran.
When we got back to our building, she held the door open for me, grinning and wheezing away. I pressed the button for the elevator and asked "So, Lauren huh? What's uh," I frowned "what's that like?"
She giggled, a little too much. "She's okay, she pays her rent on time, she's a little messy and clueless but she's sweet nonetheless." I took the time she was talking as an opportunity to appraise her body again, this time in the light, and shrugged inwardly, she was nothing special but I wouldn't say no.
"So, anyway, she was the only person left and she'd turned up with Kleenex so I figured she couldn't be that bad." She chuckled and looked at me expectantly, not realising I'd missed almost all of her anecdote and I grinned politely, nodding.
"Anyway, this is my floor, so I'll probably see you around. It was nice to meet you."
"Yeah you too!" She waved as the lift doors closed and I let out a breath I didn't realise I'd been holding and tried to rid my mouth of the lingering taste of sickly perfume.
"NO. NO. STOP! PLEASE!"
I looked up the hall and felt the blood drain from my face as I recognised the screaming voice, taking off at a sprint, ignoring Mr. Drummond hanging out of his own front door and frantically trying to get the key in my apartment door. I burst in, leaving the door open and hurtling through the apartment towards the spare room. She was writhing on the floor, flushed and wrapped in the comforter, she'd wound herself up in it, her legs were straining and kicking and i pulled the material from her body and laid her down on the bare bed, still kicking and making noises that, in any other setting, would have slayed me.
"Bella, Bella wake up. Fuck, please Bella. Please wake up."
She stopped moving and relaxed completely, sinking like liquid caramel onto the mattress. I finally stopped panicking, let my breathing steady and rested my forehead on the pillow next to her. After a few seconds I went to get up again, remembering I'd left my door open and wandering through my apartment to close it. Mr. Drummond's shiny, bald head was inside my door, peering around my hall and taking in my apartment.
"Can I help you Mr Drummond?"
"I heard a young girl in here, Masen. What's going on? You declared to Mr. Volturi that she's here? What's she screaming about anyway? You're not a kidnapper are you? What's going on? Who is she?"
I laughed at the old man who'd lived next door and noted that, despite his nosy questions, he actually seemed more concerned than curious. I made a mental note that next time I needed to leave an apartment key for a guest, I'd leave it with him.
"Sorry about that, it's a friend of mine from back home,"
Not your sister?
Shut up.
"she's come to stay with me but I think she's having some trouble adjusting. I appreciate your patience though. Her name's Bella Swan and she'll be staying with me from now on."
He didn't look appeased. "Okay. If I hear anything worrying, I'll call the police Masen. I mean it."
"I expect nothing less, Mr. Drummond, thanks for your concern." He took one more sweep of the apartment and left. He smelled of cigar smoke and spearmint gum. I liked him.
Returning to Bella in the bedroom, I noticed what she was wearing and gulped, looking up to the ceiling and cursing my 21-year-old libido. She had a pair of boyshorts on with little owls on them and a hooded pyjama top that she'd pulled to one side in her sleep, exposing almost her entire right breast, I could see her nipple under the fabric and cursed under my breath. One of her hands was in her hair and the other rubbed sleepily at her nose, making her pull a pig face. I laughed, amused that I could be so turned on by someone whilst also finding them shockingly adorable.
And then my smile dropped, I realised what I was doing, and I left the room, turning the shower to cold on auto-pilot and cursing my rock-solid cock and my disgusting attraction to my younger sister.
Ahh, Fuck my life.
Please forgive my rubbish updateyness.
