Chapter Eleven

Stupid For You

"Mate, Bella has got to be the second coolest chick to ever live." Emmett plopped his beer mug down on the bar to punctuate his statement.

Edward tried to scowl in response, but couldn't quite force the corners of his lips down. Instead, the stayed firmly etched into a slightly crooked smile.

"I wager you think Rosalie is number one?"

"Hell, yeah. I mean it, man. I love that girl. I think I might marry her." Emmett's eyes were wide with wonder as he confessed his intentions.

"Why the bloody hell would you go and do something stupid like that?" he muttered.

"What? Get married? Let a gorgeous woman take care of me for the rest of my life? Have hot monkey sex every night with a supermodel? I don't see any drawbacks here."

"Ugh." Edward sighed, frustrated by the direction the conversation was headed.

"Just because you're a heartless dick doesn't mean every man is," Emmett pointed out. "Some marriages last—"

"Where's Jasper?" Edward interrupted, desperation coloring his voice.

"He's coming. Unravel the shorts, man."

Moments later, Jasper joined them at the bar. The three had decided to scope it out as a potential venue, though Emmett had fought hard to wait until Bella could join them. Edward, who was growing increasingly frustrated with his feelings for his roommate, had fought even harder to come out without her.

"I like it," Jasper said.

"Well, that was quick," Emmett laughed. "What do we do now?"

"I'm sure we can think of something," Edward said, raising his hand to get the bartender's attention.

So how are you and Bella doing?" Emmett asked, waggling his eyebrows.

"Don't say it like that," Edward snapped.

"Like what?" Emmett's face was the picture of innocence.

"Like we're some kind of couple. We're not."

"Easy, tiger," Jasper said, putting a hand on Edward's shoulder.

"You should get on that," Emmett continued, as if nothing had been said. The whiskey had obviously started to set in, and his playful nature was rearing its head.

"You are at least being nice, aren't you?" Jasper asked, though he would have known otherwise if Edward had misbehaved. Alice had no qualms about railing on about Edward's finer moments.

"Been a saint," Edward assured them.

"Good. That girl deserves a bit of sunshine." Jasper swirled the Jameson in his glass before draining it in one quick gulp.

"What makes you say that?" Edward wanted to know. He was aware that there was some darkness in her past, but Bella kept her mask firmly in place at all times.

"Not my story."

"But it was obviously Alice's," Edward retorted.

"Bella will share, I'm sure. It will all make sense someday," Jasper returned with a shrug.

"Deep shit, man," Emmett slurred, tossing back yet another glass of whiskey.

"Yeah, well, leave Bella out of the conversation and see how quickly we lighten up," Edward suggested with a smirk.

"One more question. Is she about ready for a walking cast?" Jasper pressed.

"Yeah. We were at the doctor yesterday and he said another week, probably. She was beside herself. Did you know it's the fourth time in the last year that she's had a cast on?" Edward said. He shook his head in amazement.

At first, he'd assumed it was because she was so bleedin' clumsy, but she'd explained that once was after the car accident, once was from her most recent fall, and the remaining two were for corrective surgeries meant to help her walk better.

"Alice mentioned that." Jasper nodded.

"Poor girl," Emmett murmured.

Edward felt his heart twist painfully. He was growing increasingly accustomed to the feeling, and it pissed him off.

"That's enough, damn it. Bella-talk is now officially off-limits. I've had five weeks of following her around like a little bitch. I'm having a Bella-free night, even if it kills me."

Edward's words proved to be near-prophetic. Somewhere close to nine-thirty the next morning, his eyes popped open, and his head exploded. He shivered, which made his teeth clench together, and that didn't help the blinding pain in his skull at all. Still blinking his eyes to clear the fuzz, he reached for the comforter to drag it over his head. His fingers grasped only concrete, and he sat up quickly and whipped his head around.

He'd slept on the sidewalk. Again. Like a bum. And he had a perfectly nice house to go to, with a beautiful, soft—albeit rather frilly—bed to sleep in. Why in God's name had he chosen to collapse in that particular doorway?

He glanced around for signs of Jasper and Emmett, but vaguely remembered them leaving him alone in the bar the night before. Next, he reached for his guitar, which never left his side. Panic finally set in as he realized it was nowhere around. Just as he was jumping up to begin a frantic search, he heard squealing tires and a voice calling his name.

"Edward? Jesus, man, you look like shit!"

Edward blinked his eyes against the bright November sun and saw a black Toyota 4-Runner idling at the curb. He squinted a bit to make out the driver. Mike Newton.

Shit.

"What are you doing here?" he croaked, returning to the search for his guitar.

"Bella was worried sick about you. Jasper told her you'd stayed behind after they both left, and she thought something might have happened to you." Mike jumped out of the car and came to offer assistance. "What are you looking for?"

"I think I might have left my guitar inside..." Edward slurred, his first indication he was still rather drunk.

"Here, man. Get in the car. I'll run in and check for you." Mike half-carried Edward to the truck and pushed him into the passenger seat.

Edward spent several seconds trying to re-learn the workings of a seatbelt while Mike went and knocked on the door of the pub.

"Bad news, man. They never saw it," Mike said when he climbed back into the car. "Maybe you left it at home?"

"Maybe," Edward allowed, but he knew better. His guitar never left his sight.

"If you don't mind me saying... Hell, actually, I don't care if you do mind me saying. You don't deserve Bella."

"What's it to you?" Edward sighed.

"I care about her a lot. She called me this morning, frantic. She didn't have a way to get to the office, and you weren't home. Personally, I don't give a flying flip what you do in your spare time, but she obviously cares about you. And has started to rely on you. You're an asshole for leaving her stranded, but that wasn't even what she was so worried about. After I dropped her at work, she begged me to come see if you were somewhere around this bar. I was sure you'd gone home with some tramp, but she insisted I at least look."

"I appreciate the ride," Edward said tightly.

"It wasn't for you," Mike assured him. "Call her and let her know you're alright, please?"

He handed over his phone, and Edward fumbled around for a moment until he found the address book.

"Did you find him?" Bella asked breathlessly, as soon as she picked up.

"Emmm, hello. This is Edward. I'm to tell you that I'm safe. Your boyfriend found me and scraped me off the sidewalk."

"He's not— Oh, whatever. I'm just glad you're okay," Bella said. "You are okay, aren't you?"

Edward thought for a moment, lamenting the loss of his guitar, then replied. "I'm alive, thank you."

"Oh. Good. I'll, um. I'll see you at rehearsal tonight, then. Go home and get some rest, Edward."

He wanted to snap at her for treating him like a kid but bit his tongue forcefully. Having someone care about him was actually kind of heart-warming. Instead, he gave a non-committal grunt and snapped the phone shut.

"I don't know what your deal is," Mike continued his previous train of thought, "but if you keep hurting her, I'll kill you."

"Fair enough."

Edward noted with relief that they had reached Bella's house. He patted his pockets and was grateful he'd managed to keep possession of his keys, at least. He didn't bother to thank Mike again for the ride.

oOo

"Not that any of us are shocked, by any stretch, but what seems to have crawled up your ass today, Mr. Cullen?" Jasper lilted.

Edward felt his shoulders drop and buried his face in his hands.

"My guitar's been nicked," he mumbled through his fingers.

Emmett and Jasper exchanged a look.

"That's just wrong." Emmett shook his head.

"It's my own fault. I was so drunk, I didn't even know where I was." Edward scrubbed his face hard with his hands.

"We can get you a new one," Bella offered.

Edward's head snapped up, and he glared at her.

"Right, so. That's the answer, isn't it? Why didn't I think of that? Little Bella. Saint Bella," he said with a mock bow. "Miss Everything's Bloody Rosy Bella. Let's just buy another one, shall we? Well there isn't another one. That guitar was my dad's. The only think of I have left of him."

"Oh," Bella said quietly.

"Right. Oh," Edward roared. "So piss off, alright?"

He was spluttering, he was so angry.

Bella stood awkwardly for a moment and then nodded once, grabbed her bag and crutches, and gave Alice a meaningful look. Alice stood quickly and followed her friend out the door. Jasper sighed, knowing Alice would have to take Bella home and then come back for him.

"That was kind of mean, mate," Emmett said, his voice hushed with sadness for Bella.

"I don't give a shit. She just stomped all over my last nerve, throwing money after money to make everything all better." Edward kicked over a stool and flopped down on the floor, tears threatening to spill over.

Deep down, he was mortified that he'd lashed out at Bella that way. She'd never once been less than nice, and she deserved so much more than he continued to give.

When Edward arrived home that evening, he was worried about what to expect. Perhaps he'd finally pushed too hard. Her genuinely sweet spirit grated on his nerves constantly, but he was starting to see that it was because it forced him to constantly examine himself. And he always found himself wanting.

"Hello?" he called when he opened the door.

He received no answer, and that worried him. He sat down on the couch to wait, hoping he'd have the chance to at least apologize before she kicked his ass to the curb.

Hours later, Edward jolted awake at the sound of a key in the lock. Through bleary eyes, he saw it was after midnight. Bella struggled to get around the door with her crutches, and he started to stand and offer his help. She kicked the door shut gently and took off down the hallway quickly without even looking in his direction.

oOo

Edward dragged himself to rehearsal with a nagging in the pit of his stomach. A week had passed since he'd last seen Bella, and he was certain that she wouldn't be at practice.

She'd obviously allowed him to stay out of a sense of obligation. She was always gone in the morning when he woke up, no matter how early he tried to rise. Mike was apparently swinging by to pick her up in the morning, while Angela gave her a ride home every night—always around midnight.

He'd worried himself sick over the situation and found himself praying that she would, indeed, show up to rehearsal. The first thing he saw when he entered the studio was his guitar. No one else was in the room. He looked around in confusion before slowly approaching the instrument.

With ginger fingers, he picked it up and strummed a few chords. It was in perfect tune—even better than he could do.

"I had it tuned for you," a soft voice announced. "It sounded awful. I had to buy two new strings, too."

Edward whipped his head around and saw Bella in the doorway. "You found it?" he whispered.

Tears prickled at his eyes. Without realizing what he was doing, he moved closer to Bella.

"I did," she said simply.

"How? Where?" He had trouble forming coherent thoughts.

"Louisville."

"Kentucky? Why would you..." he trailed off, realizing that there little but a breath between them.

"Because...you're a brilliant artist, and an artist needs the proper tools," she whispered.

Edward let out a breath and leaned his forehead against hers. He breathed in again, becoming lightheaded with the scent of her.

"Are we practicing or not?" Emmett came crashing through the door and Edward jumped back as if he'd been burned. The larger man leaned in, placed a quick kiss to Bella's cheek, and gave Edward a fierce punch to the shoulder.

"Yeah, what's all the talk about?" Jasper asked, kissing Bella's other cheek.

"Well... Yeah..." Edward said, still staring at Bella in amazement.

She seemed completely oblivious as she took her place on the stool next to his, ready to sing as if she hadn't just turned his world upside down. Again.

oOo

I've never been one for author notes, but I have to reach out again to the guest who requested a PDF in a review. Without a name, I can't contact you, and I really want to. I'm going to put a link to my website in my profile so you can contact me through there.

Again, thank you all so much for reading and reviewing.