Chapter 11: The One
It was early evening when Bella's shift ended, and she was exhausted. The stables had been extra busy today with lessons going on, and it had been incredibly stressful dealing with all of the younger riders. It seemed that none of the kids knew how to take care of their horses, because Bella was forced to tack up at least twenty horses in under an hour.
The gravel crunched and rolled under her feet as she walked up the path to her front door. Her house seemed darker than usual, the nighttime sky adding a whole new element of dark. She felt uneasy walking up the steps, and she hesitated before she put her key into the copper doorknob.
She glanced over in the general direction of Edward's house. It was ablaze with light, but it seemed oddly still, almost empty. Bella found herself slowly walking towards his front door. She probably should've checked on him earlier; she wasn't sure how badly he was hurt.
A persistent knocking interrupted Edward's sleep. He felt the blackness of his dreams fade, and the light of his living room blazed into his eyes.
"Edward? Are you in there?" the knocking and the familiar voice brought him back.
"Come on in," he shouted weakly, "the door is unlocked."
The knob turned and the door creaked open, revealing Bella, looking as exhausted as ever. Her hair was pulled into a sloppy ponytail, her jeans were stained, and dark circles had formed under her eyes.
"How is your back feeling?" Bella's soft voice disturbed the silence of the house.
"Honestly," Edward said, "it feels like shit." His back was shooting with pain, and the bruised area was throbbing profusely. Bella watched his green eyes fill with agony as he tried to sit up from his awkward lying position. He wasn't able to get himself up.
"Um, Bella? Can you please help me?" his voice was weak, like he had finally given up.
"Of course," Bella made her way to the couch where Edward was lying, one hand propping him up slightly. Working together, they somehow managed to twist his body into an acceptable sitting position.
"Do you need anything?" she asked.
"Ice," the ice pack he had used earlier had melted and it was currently a puddle on his t-shirt. "And Tylenol. Please," he groaned. Bella rummaged through his freezer until she found an icepack, and then she wrapped it in a paper towel. She was unable to find any Tylenol, so she quickly made her way back to the living room.
"I couldn't find any Tylenol," she remarked.
"Bathroom. In the medicine cabinet," he replied.
After retrieving a glass of water and a bottle of pills, she sat down in front of the couch.
"Here." She handed him two small white pills and watched him swallow them, his Adam's apple bobbing. She gulped.
"Um I don't know exactly where to put this ice pack…" Bella said, having no idea what to do.
"It's my lower back," he said. "I probably need to lie on my stomach again,"
He maneuvered himself without help, and placed his head on a pillow. Edward felt like a five year old again. He hated accepting help; it made him feel vulnerable. But it was Bella's help, and he honestly couldn't care less. She was here, checking up on him, and he hadn't even had to ask. She was much too good of a person for him.
"Do you mind if I take a look?" her question permeated his thoughts. "I have to check how bad it looks.
"Go ahead," he mumbled into the pillow.
Bella gently pulled his green t-shirt over his lower back. Amongst the muscle, a large bruise was forming. She gasped. It was large, purple, black, red, brown, yellow, and every other color she had ever seen a bruise. It was absolutely grotesque. She had to look away to keep herself from getting queasy.
"That looks painful," she commented. Edward had figured it looked bad when she had gasped.
"It's not too bad," he lied. He really didn't want her to worry.
"Edward, you couldn't even sit up by yourself. It's definitely bad," Bella scorned.
"I'll be fine," he cringed in pain when he felt her gentle hand place the ice pack on the bruise.
"Are you sure? I could take you to the doctor to get something stronger for the pain."
He interrupted her, "No. Please. Tylenol works fine. Seriously, Bella, don't worry about me," he turned his head to look at her.
"I'm okay," he reassured her, his voice steady. Edward was trying really hard not to cry out.
Bella still didn't buy that he was okay, but she let it go. He obviously didn't want to go to the doctor, and his pride prevented him from asking for anything else. She sat down in front of him, her eyes never leaving his.
"Do you need anything else?" she asked. "I don't mind helping out,"
Without thinking, her hand wandered to his oddly colored bronze-brown hair and she ran her fingers though it, marveled at how soft it was. She felt him stiffen at her touch, but then his body relaxed. She brushed the hair that had been plastered to his forehead back, and his green eyes fluttered closed.
"I can get you anything you need," she almost whispered. Edward was hypnotized by her touch, and he almost forgot to answer her.
"I have everything I need right now," he answered, his eyes still shut.
The next morning, Bella woke up late. She had left Edward's place at a later time than she had intended to, so she went to bed at a very inconvenient time. She was pretty sure no one would notice her lateness to work, though. Today would be a slow day, and she doubted anyone would actually be working.
She was right. The barn was nearly empty, aside from the horses, and she enjoyed the silence. But of course, Alice was there, already working.
"Bella!" she shouted, startling a few horses. Alice put the broom she had been using down, and practically skipped over to Bella.
"You heard about, Edward's fall, right?" Alice chipped excitedly.
"Yeah, Alice. I was the one who told you about that. I was the one who saw it happen, remember?"
"Oh yeah! My bad, I like totally forgot! But anyway, Angela, one of the new stable hands, told me that Edward is like paralyzed. Is that true?" she asked, her large eyes blazing with excitement. Alice lived for drama, and Bella had been forced to sit through nearly twelve straight hours of soap operas. If something somewhat dramatic happened it real life, Alice would be the first person to share.
"He's not paralyzed, Alice," Bella nearly laughed out loud. "He just has a really nasty bruise on his lower back," she said softer.
"Oh, really. I guess Angela just told me some stable gossip." Alice's eyes grew suspicious. "Wait… when have you seen Edward Masen's lower-back? Do you have something to tell me, Bella?"
"Um…." Bella couldn't think of a reasonable enough excuse.
"Oh. My. Goodness, Bella! Tell me, like, everything!" Alice was practically salivating. It was just sad.
"There isn't anything to tell, really." Bella attempted to walk away, but Alice yanked her back.
"You are a terrible liar, Bella," she'd definitely heard that one before. "There is something to tell, I can see it in your eyes," Alice's grip tightened on her wrist. Stable work had definitely made her stronger. There was no escaping for Bella. So she gave up.
"Fine. Maybe there is something to tell," she replied, giving in.
Bella and Alice worked side by side, and Bella told her everything without missing a detail. Alice couldn't stop bombarding her with questions. She told her about meeting Edward, the dinner at the Cullen's, their trail ride, and the almost kiss. She told her about Edward coming to her house, bringing her boots, and she told her about what had happened last night. When there was nothing left to tell, Alice simply stood there in silence, a smile growing on her face.
"I think you like him, Bella…" Alice was about to explode with excitement. "And I think he really likes you," she winked.
"Stop, Alice, please!" she whined. Alice's looked hurt.
"Sorry, but I think I get to torture you, especially since you haven't told me anything!" she snapped. "Seriously, why couldn't you share any of this? I'm like your best friend, I deserve to here at least some of the story,"
"I guess I didn't want you, to you know, freak out," Bella said looking at the shovel in her hands.
"I will freak out about anything exciting that happens in you life, Bella. My name is Alice Hale, of course I'll freak out about everything!" she remarked. "But I'm not mad, I'm merely disappointed that you felt you couldn't tell me,"
"I know," Bella replied. They finished the stall they were mucking, and they migrated towards the tack room for a break.
Bella plopped down on a bale of hay in the corner of the room, and took a long swig of her water. Alice sat down next to her and sighed in contentment.
"I'm so glad that you finally found someone, Bella," she turned her head and smiled. Bella almost spit out her water.
"Alice, it's not like I'm engaged to the guy. We are just…." Bella had no clue what to call it. Sometimes she really hated Edward, and other times she liked him. She really didn't know what to think.
"It's just that, we met four days ago. He's not the one!" Bella finished.
"You shouldn't say that, Bella. I have a good feeling about this one." Alice giggled.
"I'm so glad you won't have to settle for Jake, I mean, you two make a cute couple and all, bu…."
"Why is everyone convinced that we are dating?" Bella interrupted.
"It was a joke, Bella. I know you'd never go out with him," Alice laughed like a schoolgirl. "He's too much like a…. puppy. He follows you around everywhere and is like uber loyal. It's weird," she commented.
"Yeah, it is weird." Bella replied. She had no idea why Jake was so in love with her.
A knock at the door quieted their giggles. I tall, handsome man with dark blonde hair stood at the door.
"I'm Edward Masen's trainer, Jasper Aro. Have you two ladies seen him by chance?" he asked with a slightly southern drawl.
"Um…I haven't, uh, have you seen him Bella?" Alice elbowed her in the ribs. She was at a loss for words.
"Yes. He actually acquired an injury yesterday, and he's resting up in his cottage. Do you need me to show you there?" Bella asked.
"No, it's fine. I know the property very well. Thank you, miss," he nodded at Bella than gave Alice a wink.
When he disappeared, Bella looked at Alice. She was clearly in a daze, and her breathing was labored.
"Bella, I think I just found the one," Alice smiled breathlessly.
AN: Sorry for taking an entire week to update. I was super busy all week, and I would've updated yesterday, but I had stuff to do.
Anyway, I think Edward and Bella's relationship is going to change within the next few chapters, and I'm excited to share that. Plus, Alice might finally get her man. ;)
Any suggestions, comments, questions, ideas, etc? Hit the review button! You know you want to! :)
If I don't review within the next few days, I promise I'll have a new chapter up on Saturday! Thanks for reading!
-Katy (a.k.a UsedToLoveHim)