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storyline - Brighter

prompt - material

NOT BETA'D

I kept waiting for someone to say something, to at least notice that Edward and I were holding hands, but no one ever did. Maybe being with him was only a big deal in my mind.

Well, mine and Angela's. She kept on sneaking glances, smiling.

Our hike took longer than I expected. At first we trekked through a rainforest, walking almost single file down a well worn path. It was calm feeling and cool, nothing but birds, our voices and the shushing of trees overheard. Eventually we came to the hard part: the rocky side of a mini mountain we had to scale in order to get to the baths, or tide pools. But it wasn't exactly all work and no play. The sun was bright, and a steady wind blew, cooling us off. I was glad Edward had recommended sneakers, the rocks underfoot were sharp and rough. I couldn't imagine trying to do this in flip flops, or barefoot.

"You okay?" Edward murmured, tightening his grip on me as we reached the small summit and started our descent toward the pools.

"Yeah." I kept my eyes on my progress, not wanting to fall.

The first members of the group reached the water, and by the time we'd joined them, there was all sorts of whooping and hollering as they started jumping in. I paused, taking a couple of pictures. It was...breath taking. The tide pools were clear and shallow, separated from the sea by thick reefs and rocks. Ocean waves crashed over the rocks, continually giving and taking water from the pools.

"You actually have to be careful," Edward told Angela and me as we sat down to take our shoes off. "See how the water gets sucked out with the tide?" He pointed to the bottom of the rocks. "It can pull you under if you're not careful."

We got down to our swimsuits and eased in to the water. It was calmer at one end, and personally, I preferred it. I wasn't in the mood to jump off the cliff face like Edward's daredevil friends. Maybe I'd jump once before leaving, but for now, I just wanted to enjoy this place.

And Edward's face.

And the fact that he kept touching me, fingertips on my hips or the small of my back.

"It's so pretty here," I commented a little later, snapping another picture. Angela had bought a cheap, disposable under-water camera, and we were having a ball playing around with it. I made her promise to send me doubles.

"Ha! Doubles. Very old school in such a digital age," she snorted. "I'll just find somebody with a scanner when I get back."

I sighed, a little sad that she had to leave so soon. "I wish you were staying longer," I said, tugging her wet ponytail.

She turned toward me, pouting. "Me too. This went by way too quickly."

"At least I'll see you for Christmas," I said.

"Yeah," she said, focusing her camera on one of the boys leaping in to the water. "Let's just enjoy this. I don't want to think about leaving yet."

"Call me later," Edward said, his eyes cast down. He pulled at my tank top, then slipped his hand just underneath, resting it on my shorts.

"I will," I promised, a little breathless at his touch. Now that we had free access to one another, the lack of boundaries almost scared me. I knew I should probably put the brakes on a bit, slow things down, but it felt counter-intuitive. I just wanted to...go with it.

It was very unlike me.

Or maybe it was me. This me.

Edward raised his head, glancing around the parking lot. Everyone else had left, and Angela was in my car already, being all ooey-gooey on the phone with Ben. "Promise?"

I cocked my head. "Didn't I say I would?"

But he just kissed me instead, backing me up against his truck, gently pressing his warm body to mine. My heart dropped...in a really good way. Each kiss was a little longer, a little deeper. Felt more intimate. I ran my hands down his arms and around, over his naked back. He gripped my hips and then my waist, wrapping his hands so that they covered as much of my skin as possible.

After a moment I pulled away and gazed up in to his eyes. My heart raced. I didn't want to stop, which was precisely why I did. "I should go," I whispered unevenly.

He leaned down, kissing each of my cheeks, slowly, gently. "You know how to get back to the main road, right?"

I nodded.

"Drive safely," he said, backing away.

I adjusted my shirt and pressed my palms to my cheeks, feeling how they burned.

"You too."

Angela and I spent the evening with Jasper, Alice and the girls. Pete came over, too. He seemed pretty mellow, and if I didn't know better, it would be impossible to tell that anything had gone down between us. I figured it would take a couple more days...or weeks...before our vibe was back to normal, but I could handle it. And maybe more importantly, so could he.

"You better learn to cook like this, Bella," Angela said to me, patting her belly.

Alice had gone all out for Angie's last Crucian meal, making fried fish, johnny cakes, and homemade soursop juice.

"She's getting there," Pete said, giving me a wink. "You should try her arroz con pollo," he teased.

"Oh my gosh, shut up!" I laughed, smacking his arm. I'd attempted one of Alice's recipes a couple of weeks before, and had burned the rice so thoroughly that it was a running joke now. "You'll see. I'll get the hang of it and then you'll be eating your words!"

"And your food, hopefully," he added, raising an eyebrow.

I rolled my eyes at his silliness and turned to Alice. "This was so good. Thank you."

"Any time, sweetie. You know I love to do it."

We hung out with them a little longer and then retreated back to our side, where I fished out a couple of bottles of flavored Cruzan Rum. Angela clapped her hands in delight. We'd taken her on a quick tour of the rum factory her first day and she'd fallen in love with the stuff. "For me?"

"Yeah, we got these for you to bring back," I said, grabbing the special cardboard box she'd be using to transport the bottles on the plane.

"I want some now," she said, making a face.

"Hold on, don't open those or else they won't let you take them on the plane," Pete said, disappearing in to the kitchen. He returned with several open bottles and a bunch of shot glasses. "Here. Let's do your last night right."

"Which do you want first?" I asked.

"Coconut."

"Of course." It was her favorite. "To a safe trip home," I said, toasting her.

"To best friends," she said, on our second round.

"To roommates," Pete said, when it was his turn. We were a little tipsy by this point, and getting sloppy.

"Pete," I groaned. "Do we need to talk again?"

"I'm just messing with you," he chortled, looking genuinely amused.

Angela kicked him. "Behave yourself."

"I always behave," he said, waggling his eyebrows as he poured us another round. Guava, this time.

"So not true," I said, smiling.

Angela was the first to pass out. Well, more like, she flung her flip flops across the living room, stretched out on the couch, tossed up a peace sign, and went down.

Peter stood up, stretching. "So how do you wanna do this?"

"Do what?" I asked, laying on the floor.

"Sleeping arrangements."

"Oh. Oh yeah." I frowned. "I don't know. Just...you take the bed."

"I can't take the bed, Bella. You take it; i'll take the floor."

"I'll sleep in here with Ange tonight; you take the bed. We'll figure it out later," I said, waving him off.

Scratching his head, he looked uncertainly at our couches, more cast offs we'd acquired along the way.

"Dude," I said, pointing to our bedroom.

"Fine." He started to walk away, then came back, extending a hand. I took it, letting him haul me up.

"Thanks," I said, giving him a light hug. He kissed the top of my head and walked away, closing our door with a quiet click. Either he'd softened up during the day or the rum had made him sentimental.

After using the bathroom, I turned off most of our lights and stepped outside with my phone.

Edward picked up after a couple of rings.

"Hello?"

"Hiiii, Edward."

"Hey." He laughed softly. "Are you drunk?"

"A little."

"Where are you?"

"Home. Safe and sound."

"Ah, okay. I take it you had a good night?"

I sighed, sinking in to the wicker seat on the porch. "I did. Alice cooked...really yummy stuff...and then we came back to our house and did shots."

"Shoulda had a bartender; I could've made you real drinks," he said, teasing. But not really.

"Oh, yeah? Well. Next time."

"Next time," he echoed.

Closing my eyes, I settled back against the cushions. "Edward?"

"Hm?"

"I really like you."

"I really like you too."

"Don't break my heart."

There was a pause, long enough that my eyes drifted open.

"Don't break mine."

"I would never."

"Good. I don't think I could handle that." He said it lightly, but I could tell he meant it.

"You're not the one in a new place, trying to figure stuff out," I said quietly. "I'm staying here for me, but...I want to stay here for you, too."

"Stay with me tomorrow night," he said suddenly.

Biting my lip, I sat up straight, like that would help me think more clearly. "Why?"

"Because I want to hang out without having to think about you leaving at the end."

"I'd have to leave eventually," I said, smiling in the darkness.

"Yeah, but you could always come back."

"What, every night? Yeah right."

"Why not?" he laughed.

"I like my bed," I said, yawning.

"Pete's in your bed."

Whoops. "I...it's not like that anymore."

"I know it's not. But I'd still feel better if you were here."

"We'll see."

"Yeah, we will."

I yawned, suddenly overcome with sleepiness. Hiking and playing in the sun, good food, and too much rum did that to a girl.

"Go to sleep, Bella."

"Mkay. Night, Edward."

"Good night."

I managed not to tear up until after I'd dropped Angie at the airport.

As much as I adored my new life, I'd forgotten how badly I missed my friends. My old friends. Angela promised she'd be back. I think she knew I needed her, and she said she missed me too much anyway, too.

Pete was at work when I got back home, having gotten a ride in with Ty. Our place needed a good cleaning; Peter could be messy in the mornings, especially if he was running late. And he usually was if we'd been drinking the night before.

I'd just finished mopping when I heard the crunch of gravel out front. I peered out the window, surprised to see Edward getting out of his truck. Grimacing, I looked down at my ratty old t-shirt and shorts. I hadn't even showered yet.

Oh well. It was too late to do anything except free my hair from its messy ponytail.

I opened the door before he knocked. "Hey."

"Hey." He subtly looked me up and down, making me feel naked. I wasn't wearing a bra, so maybe I did look a little indecent.

I waved him inside. "I was just cleaning this place up. I wish you'd told me you were coming..."

"Sorry. It was kind of a last minute decision...I'm heading in to town now."

"Working?"

"Yup."

"Maybe I'll come in later. See if the bartender can hook me up with 'real drinks'." I grinned, walking to the kitchen so I could wash my hands of cleaning stuff.

"So you remember," he chuckled. "I wondered."

"Yeah, I was pretty toasty, but...no. I remember."

"You weren't just drunk dialing me?"

I gave him a dirty look, making him laugh. "No...I said I'd call, remember?"

He nodded, coming closer. "I remember."

I hopped up on to the counter, grabbing an orange from the fruit bowl we kept there "And I meant what I said."

"About what?"

"You know what," I rolled the orange between my palms.

A look passed between us. He stepped closer, and I parted my legs to let him in.

"You said a couple of things," he said, squeezing my thigh. "But I meant what I said, too."

I nodded, biting my lip.

"So, you don't have to work at all today?"

"Nope."

"Come to the Pub, then."

As if I could say no. My heart pitter-pattered his name for God's sake. "Sure. Just let me finish up here and then I'll make my way downtown."

He kissed me lightly, letting his fingertips just under the hem of my shorts.

"You're very touchy," I breathed.

"Only with you," he said.

"I like it..."

"Do you want to stay with me tonight?" His lips brushed against mine.

"I don't know if I should."

"Think about it and...let me know."

We kissed, long and slow. His hands moved up under the material of my shirt, touching bare skin. I locked my ankles, hugging him closer. So close I felt his phone vibrate. He broke away, digging for his phone. "That's probably Emmett, wondering where I am..."

He laughed, showing me the screen. It was indeed Emmett, being his usual, crude self. He texted back and pocketed the phone, leaning back into me.

"Anyway, I'm not...propositioning you or anything. I just want to chill."

"You want to chill. All night."

"Yeah." He grinned impishly.

Don't do it, girl. Don't do it.

"Okay."

"Crucian" is the 'proper' term; "Cruzan" is more slang. As in, no one really says Crucian, they all say Cruzan. And the rum is Cruzan. "croo-jhan" not "crew-zan". please.

also, i was kind of kidding about having e and b do the dirty last chapter (it'd be a little premature, no pun intended) but i'm glad to see you're all on board anyway! haha!

and, thanks for the reviews, loves. i know i'm a total lame-o for not replying, but it's hard when i update daily. and tiny tyrant makes it reeeeeeally hard (twss). even getting these chapters out takes longer than i'd like thanks to him. in fact, he's ripping pictures off of a bulletin board right now. dammit...