Disclaimer: Once upon a time, there was a little girl who wanted to own Twilight very badly so she wished for the copyrights to Twilight from her fairy godmother. Her fairy godmother said,
"NO WAY, bitch! Are you insane? Stephenie will murder me with her lawyers before I could even attempt to talk to her! Then she'd burn the copy of Midnight Sun and accuse us all of being serial killers! Then she'd—!"
"Alright, damn it! Just shut up and go hide in my closet!"
I only got 50 reviews but honestly I LOVE YOU ALL ANYWAY BECAUSE I NEVER THOUGHT I COULD POSSIBLY GET THIS MANY! Lol thanks guys. Oh! And a very big thank you to Br0nz3Comet for being so impossibly sweet and adding me to her community Forever 17. I looked around and it's filled with even more impossibly sweet Twilight stories, so check it out and subscribe! I'm sure she and a bunch of authors will appreciate it.
Also, any new names included in reviews WILL be disregarded. The names I will be using (you lucky 19 :D) will be starred (*) like that. Also, if you don't like the way I made you, TOO BAD! (Except for you Vivian because you asked so nicely. And you too Lee Lee. But you already know who you are.) Enjoy chapter 10.
Chapter Ten- Stalkers?
BPOV
I didn't know why I was going out on a date with my best friend. I knew I didn't love him and I wouldn't love him in the near future. Any love I felt for him would only be a faint flicker of the love I still (however pathetically) held for my Edward.
Yes, I had told him he was a selfish jackass, but someone had to knock some sense into him for God's sake! He couldn't just go on a rampage and expect to just weasel his way back into my heart. Unfortunately, he had to know half of it was already reserved for him.
Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, they did.
"You are such a bitch, Bella!" Lauren screamed right into my ear. "You made Edward break up with me! How dare you intervene in my relationship!"
"Lauren, I had nothing to do with it," I explained patiently for what must have been the millionth time. "It was probably Edward's decision." Inside my head I was sobbing so hard. EDWARD WAS SINGLE! My mind screamed happily. HE'S MINE! MINE MINE MINE! It repeated in an uncanny Alice impression, not that Alice was selfish like me.
"Probably isn't good enough, Swan!" Lauren began, probably about to start on another rant about how horrible and ugly and disgusting I am.
"For God's sake, Lauren! Please don't start the "You're so ugly" rant. My ears will bleed."
"I'm glad you already know," she sneered and a blush graced my cheeks. Angry tears filled my eyes.
"You know what, Lauren? My self confidence is already at an all time low right now so could you cut it out?" I pleaded, rubbing my temple with my thumb and pointer finger. I wiped at the tear harshly, not wanting to let her know that she was getting to me.
The two new girls from out of state sauntered over to Lauren's side. Of course Lauren had sunk her claws into them already. They were drop dead gorgeous. I shuffled my feet awkwardly and pushed a few bits of hair in front of my face. I didn't want them to be able to insult me because of it.
"So, this… thing is Bella?" one asked, pointing carelessly at me. My head snapped up immediately and I pushed the hair out of my eyes. Let them see my face; at least it wasn't covered with makeup.
"The one Edward dumped you for?" the other clarified, looking disgusted.
The original Lauren looked embarrassed. I laughed at her expression because she thought she had lost Edward to me when it wasn't me at all. Edward was just a player.
"Bella, I'd like you to meet my two camp friends, Lauren Robinson*and Lauren Packard*," she said, pointing at the two girls. They looked like they could build a shine at Lauren Mallory's feet at any moment. Lauren R. seemed to have a slightly crazed look about her, like a cult member might look at their prophet.
The other one just seemed bored with Forks, as many of the teenagers here were.
"Pleasure," I muttered.
"Look, Swan. Unless you admit you corrupted my sweet Eddiekins' mind, you will pay for your actions!" Lauren M. screeched. Her followers creepily folded their arms at the exact same time. They looked like Barbie guards.
I remained silent.
"Fine then. Go to hell."
"Right back at you."
Needless to say, I was not in the best mood when Jake asked when I wanted to leave for dinner that night.
I sighed. "Just pick me up at seven, okay?"
"Is everything okay, honey?" Jacob asked, tilting his monstrous head to the side like a giant puppy. It didn't look that cute. I was insanely Edward deprived; I hadn't talked to him in a week. I didn't know how I had handled it at the orphanage without him. Oh, that's right; I was miserable.
"Dandy," I snapped and huffed off to where Alice was trying and failing to inconspicuously suck Jasper's face off.
Jacob came at exactly seven that night. He was dressed in some (miraculously) un-ripped dark wash jeans and a blue pinstriped shirt that hugged all his delicious muscles. If I was in love with him, I probably would have been thanking every god of every religion that they had placed this muscular being before me. But, as I was in love with another, I wished that Jacob was Edward.
"Hey, Jacob," I greeted morosely.
"Bella," he said, nodding his head. "Ready to go?"
"Yeah, let me just grab my bag."
I cringed internally at the formality of the situation. We never sounded like we were going to a funeral. We were always just talking and laughing, like normal people on a date would do. But he was nervous and I was just crabby and irritable like a girl PMSing.
The drive to Port Angeles was silent. Dead silent. As in, the crushing awkwardness of the situation caused both of us to be speechless.
We parked in the back where there were a few spare parking spaces.
"Well, uh… ready to go in?" I asked stupidly.
He smiled bitterly in response and that same smile was plastered onto his face as we walked up to the hostess in front.
"Table for two under Black," he said.
I could tell the girl was having heart palpitations just looking at his muscles.
"Okay, Mr. Black," she purred. "I'll get your table ready, and then we can get down to business." I suppressed a gag. "My name is Marcela* by the way." This Marcela was gorgeous, in an exotic kind of way. She has long flowing black hair and an effortless smoky eyed look that made any girl jealous.
"Jacob," he introduced, practically drooling all over his nice shirt.
They just eyed each other for a few minutes leaving me to stand there awkwardly.
"Um… Jacob? Pumpkin?" I cringed, not wanting to give him the wrong idea. But he seemed to be enjoying flirting with this waitress. "Aren't we kind of on a date here?" I interjected.
"Uhm," he responded intelligently.
"Marcela?" I asked, she tilted her head towards me but her eyes stared at Jake. "Could we hurry along to the table please?"
She slowly walked over to the table. I noticed we passed the bathrooms on our way there and made a face. They were emanating some foul stench no Glade air freshener could battle. Marcela was writing her number down on a napkin as soon as we got there.
"Call me," she said, sauntering away.
Jacob grinned like he had won the lottery and turned to face me.
"Did you see that?" he asked excitedly, bouncing in his chair like Emmett always did.
"Unfortunately."
"Come on, Bells! Don't be like that," he moaned.
"I'm so sorry I interrupted your time with Marcela over there," I said sarcastically. I was about to say more, but then our waitress came over.
"Hello. My name is Pamela* and I'm going to be your waitress tonight. Would like some drinks to start?" she asked quietly. Pamela was also gorgeous but she seemed humble enough not to know that she was. But because she wasn't oozing confidence like Marcela over there, Jacob took no notice. I snorted under my breath. Men!
"I'll have a root beer," Jake said shortly, twisting his neck around so he could find Marcela.
"Me too," I told her, hopefully a little kinder than Jake had said his order.
"Two root beers?" she clarified, looking at me for confirmation. I nodded. "Okay, I'll be right back with your drinks." Then she smiled sympathetically at me and walked away.
"Where the hell is that hostess when you need her?" Jacob muttered, rudely throwing himself across the table so he had a better view over my head.
"Christ! Jacob get off the table! And we don't need that slut Marcela (NO OFFENSE! You're a wonderful person, Marcela. Lol.) Aren't we supposed to be on a date?" I hissed.
Jacob didn't respond, merely looked around, twisting around like a child. I sighed and looked around the sizeable restaurant (for Port Angeles at least). There were a few couples sitting at private tables in different corners of the room. I recognized girl from my Trig class, Kellie*, sitting with a tall, muscular guy with hair of a reddish brown hue that I found strangely gorgeous.
After I finished fawning over Kellie's handsome date, I realized something absolutely awful as Jacob was still lying on his stomach over the cheap plastic table.
"Jacob! Down boy! The waitress is coming back!"
He slowly returned to his former position.
"Two root beers," she said, placing the drinks in front of us. "And remember that La Bella Italia has free refills." Jake immediately downed the soda gratefully. "Which I suppose we'll need. Have you decided what you would like to order?"
I coughed awkwardly. I hadn't even looked at the menu. I picked the first reasonably priced item I found.
"I'll have the mushroom ravioli," I cried triumphantly. Jacob raised an eyebrow at my tone and calmly ordered two orders of the New York strip steak. That boy could eat and eat and never get full. I shook my head at the black hole staring at me.
"I'm going to go to the bathroom, okay, Bells?" Jacob asked abruptly, staring at something or, more likely, someone.
"Yeah," I responded, irritated. If he didn't want to be on a date with me, he could have just said so.
I looked over at Kellie again. She seemed infatuated with her date. I smiled to myself, glad of her fortune. She was a sweet girl, always looking to help others. When I needed help in Trig, she was the only one who was willing to help.
After about ten minutes, Jacob and my meals came except there was one problem. There was still no Jacob. I decided to go check on him, to see if he was sick. I noticed Kellie's date had gone missing; maybe I could convince the beautiful stranger to see if I was okay.
I snorted at the thought.
Hi Kellie's date! Could you go see if my date is alright or if he's barfing his guts out on the bathroom floor? Make sure not to get any on your shoes!
I shuddered.
But, luckily for me, I had no need for any of that. When I walked over to the bathrooms, there was an angry Jacob standing next to a very frightened Marcela. They both didn't notice me but were instead looking at a bronze haired Adonis, aka Kellie's date. As I heard the man's voice I knew who it was immediately.
"You're going out on a date with Bella! Not this… trash. I thought you were in love with her since the third grade and now that you have your chance, you screw it up!" Edward yelled.
"What? Like your record's clean? You're the one who broke her! You screwed up more than I did," Jacob shot back, grasping Marcela for confidence.
Edward's eyes narrowed to slits. His normally emerald green eyes had turned an ugly blackish-greenish color. "You think I don't know that?" Edward whispered, his voice hoarse and broken.
"You think I don't know I screwed everything up? God gave me back Bella and she tried to help me, but I got so damn caught up in myself and the sudden popularity that I was just stupid. If it's you she wants, that's what she'll get, but don't screw yourself over like I did or both of you will be unhappy. I'm going to go back to my table and pretend like none of this ever happened. For both of your sakes, release this girl to do her job and you," he hissed, focusing his glare on Jacob who squirmed uncomfortably.
"Get back to your date or I will kick you over there myself. If she loves you, there's nothing I can do." His voice suddenly turned to hopelessness and longing. "I won't come between you two. But I'll always be waiting in the wings. She'll always have that spare option if she wants it." (Eclipse) He sighed.
I did want it. I wanted it badly. But it wouldn't be my spare option. Edward was my only option. I had no choice in the matter. No matter how angry at him I was, my heart melted to hear his regret, his sorrow, the simple pureness of his words.
"Edward," I choked out, a knot in my throat and tear filling my eyes. I reached for him slowly and he backed away from me. He looked shocked and embarrassed, probably hoping I hadn't heard his speech or seen Jacob's antics.
"Bella, love, please. I feel terrible. I missed my chance and I… was too late. Go be happy with Jacob," he said, though his eyes were filled with a great pain, as if it caused him agony to be letting me go.
"I heard everything," I said tenderly. "And I saw everything." I glared at Jacob.
"You. Get out of here. I'll speak with you later," I stated threateningly. Jacob escaped back to the dining room, probably going to pay the bill.
"Bella, go with him. I can't let you see me. I've been absolutely… not myself. I didn't know I had it in me to be that cruel. You have no idea how sorry I am," he muttered, his eyebrows furrowing as he looked at the ground, the first blush I had seen in a while gracing his cheeks.
I was tempted to give into my paranoid side, the side that said Edward knew I was there the whole time and everything was just for show. But just then, he looked into my eyes. They burned with an intensity I hadn't seen in a long while. It convinced me that he wouldn't lie, at least not now.
"Hey," I said quietly, lifting his chin with my finger, so he would look me in the eyes. "I'm sorry for what I said too. No matter what happens you can always come to me. You'll always be my lo-best friend," I finished quickly. I blushed too as I realized what I had almost said. Love. He was my love. But his knowledge only consisted of me being his friend.
"So, are we friends?" he asked tentatively, his voice filling with happiness and hope.
"The best."
We exited the restaurant and walked around the small town, talking and laughing as if we hadn't seen each other in years.
I saw him eyeing a music shop a few blocks down, so I giggled and said, "Edward. Just go. I'll be at the book store if you need me."
He smiled and flew to the shop. I heard the distant tinkle of bells and chuckled to myself. Edward was always so eager when it came to music.
I walked into the bookstore and was greeted by a pimply teenage guy, probably around fifteen, who was wearing a black shirt with the words, "Whenever Giles sends me on a mission, he always says "please." And afterwards I get a cookie."(Buffy fans anyone?) I looked through their meager selection from the classics and decided not to buy anything. I owned all the books they had in stock.
I left the small store feeling disappointed. They obviously wanted to appeal to the population of people who read ludicrous stories about vampires and humans falling in love. I snorted to myself. What was society coming to?
I checked down the street for Edward, as I was obviously getting a ride home from him but he was nowhere in sight.
Maybe I could find his car; it wasn't as if Port Angeles was that big, maybe ten blocks in each direction.
I ducked into an alley which was a shortcut to the Port Angeles mall. It had the biggest parking lot in town so it was plausible that he had parked there.
I heard some footsteps behind me. It was a group of scruffy looking men. When they saw me, they waved with goofy grins on their faces. I sped up and grasped the pepper spray Charlie had given me.
Before I could reach the end of the alley, a hand wrapped around my waist and a different hand covered my mouth before I could scream.
"Where are you going, darling?" A voice asked, sounding friendly. But then it commanded to someone, "Get that bottle away from her. I wouldn't want anyone to miss out on the fun." The men laughed raucously and someone kicked my only weapon away from me. Panic filled me and my instincts told me to flee but it was impossible with the very strong, very hairy arms wrapped around my waist and neck.
"If you knew what we had planned for you, you'd be screaming your head off," the leader seemed to chuckle. I didn't scream, knowing it was hopeless.
"Hmm…" the man mused to his gang members. "Brave, this one is. And pretty too," he said running a hand through my hair. While he was distracted with my hair (gag) I bit the hand of the one holding me.
He jumped back, howling and clutching his hand, and I immediately screamed, "EDWARD! Help, please! The police! Anyone!" I felt a wallop to the back of my head and I fell to the ground, not having enough time to brace myself for the imminent fall. I immediately burst into tears, the pain in both my head and face overwhelming. I still attempted to get up though, which soon proved to be a bad decision.
"Shut it or we'll make this a lot longer and bloodier than necessary," he ordered, planting his foot on my back and slamming me back into the ground. I felt blood trickle down my chin and I whimpered pathetically.
"Now," he rasped. "Let's get started."
Cliffy! That was the first good one I've had in a while. I hope you all liked that chapter; I know you were dying because Edward was such an ass and it looked like she might end up with Jacob *shudder*. And of course as soon as everything is alright, Bella has to go get kidnapped. I told you there was more drama to come! Please review this chapter; I'll keep the minimum at 60, so… well I was going to say no pressure but… PRESSURE! I channel my powers of persuasion to you over the Internet. PLEASE REVIEW!