August 28, 2009 Word of the Day: transcendentalism

I'm trying to make this a long chapter, but I have been stumbling over the Edward/Bella dinner. I wrote several drafts of it, but they all came out badly. So I skipped that part of the evening. But if I ever do outtakes, that will be one of them.

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EPOV, October 16, 2009:

Having fun with Bella was effortless. We had talked, joked, and laughed throughout dinner, and there was no tension between us. Bella and I had held hands the entire car ride, and the electricity continued to crackle between us.

"The campus is beautiful." Bella commented as we drove through the gates. She was eagerly peering out her window. "Are we, uh, staying in a dorm?" I clenched my hand tighter around hers.

"No, but we won't get back home until really late. Probably sometime around two in the morning." I answered. Bella's lips pursed and she smiled devilishly.

"You know, we could just get a hotel room." She said coyly, making me laugh.

"How would your mother feel about that?" I teased, tightening my one-handed grip on the steering wheel.

"She would never know. And we wouldn't have to do anything." Bella said shyly, her face reddening. "Besides, you've slept in my room before." She pointed out. I thought for a moment. Did I trust myself to spend an entire night alone with Bella in a hotel room?

"Fine." I laughed. "We can get a hotel room, but only if you promise to behave." Bella laughed too, a melodic sound I hadn't heard much before tonight.

"I always behave." Bella insisted as I pulled my car over to the curb. Uncoordinated as always, Bella was still struggling to unfasten her seatbelt in the time it took me to get out of the car and open her door for her. "Thanks." She muttered as I offered her my hand and helped her out of the car. "Wow." Bella sighed and tilted her head up to look around the campus. "I can't believe that this time next fall, we'll be in college. It's unreal."

"I know." I grinned. "Are you excited for it?" I asked as we walked, hand in hand, around the campus. Bella was silent for a minute, and then nodded hesitantly.

"Yeah, I'm excited. But….I am kind of worried about meeting new people." She admitted. "It's been hard for me, starting my senior year at a new school."

"I can imagine." I murmured. "Have you thought about where you want to go?" Bella shrugged.

"Not really. I can't even decide what I want to do yet." She sighed, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Our tour starts in ten minutes." I said quickly, checking my watch. "We should get over there."

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BPOV, October 16, 2009:

I had never thought about taking college tours. I knew that I should eventually, and I hadn't realized how close graduation was. Seven months. Seven months before I would be packing up again and leaving Forks for the next step of my life. A step, I hoped in which I could begin to get over what had happened to me in March.

"Did you like the tour?" Edward called from the sink, where he was getting a glass of water. I sank down onto one of the two queen beds and smiled expectantly.

"Yes, it was great. Thank you so much for inviting me along." I said honestly. Edward turned around to face me, smiling broadly.

"I'm glad. Now….are you hungry?" He asked, reaching for the room service menu on top of the TV.

"Famished." I admitted, flopping back on the bed. Edward moved to sit beside me and held the menu out so that the both of us could look at it. "Mmm…ice cream sounds delicious."

"Ice cream it is." Edward said firmly, snapping the menu shut and ordering room service over the phone. I had no idea how I had gotten so lucky.

Here I was, with an amazing guy who actually seemed to care about me.

"Ten minutes." Edward said quietly to me, hanging up the phone. He slowly sat on the bed next to me and pulled his legs up so that he was sitting Indian-style. "We never finished our game of 20 questions." He said wryly, grinning.

"I guess not." I agreed, recalling how that fantastic kiss had, indeed, paused the game. "Okay. Favorite ice cream flavor?"

"Um….birthday cake." Edward decided. "Yours?"

"Vanilla. What-"

"Whoa, whoa." Edward interrupted me, holding his hands up in the air. "Vanilla? Seriously?!"

"What? It's good!" I retorted.

"You're boring." He scoffed teasingly.

"Well, you're interrupting the game."

"Fine. Continue with your question."

"What kind of toothpaste do you use?" I asked, stretching and sprawling out on my stomach.

"What kind of question is that?" Edward laughed, lying on his stomach next to me.

"The kind you have to answer." I poked his arm.

"Colgate." He smiled, flashing his white teeth. "What kind of shampoo do you use?"

"Herbal Essences. Strawberry is the-"

And he leaned over to kiss me.

Instantly, my hands went to his hair, yanking gently at the roots. His hands circled my waist and held me tightly against his muscular body, his tongue slid softly over my bottom lip. I eagerly obliged, and Edward softly massaged my tongue with his own, never picking up speed in the gentle, tender kiss. Edward was an amazing kisser, not to controlling or demanding. Soft, gentle, and amazingly satisfying, And he tasted amazing. I eventually had to pull away to regain my breath. My chest heaved as I attempted to suck in a fresh breath, and I was basking in the feeling of Edward's confident hands; still resting on my hips. His thumbs tenderly massaged the area were my hip bones jutted out softly.

"Are you okay with this?" He asked quietly, one of his hands leaving my hips to gesture between us.

"Yes." I said breathlessly, licking my lips. Edward smiled softly. "I've sort of been waiting for this since the other night. Edward, I really like you." I admitted, twisting my hands. "A lot."

"Bella, I-"

Someone knocked on the door, and I jumped.

"Room service." Edward said quietly, slipping off the bed and opening the door. His voice was muffled, but he returned seconds later with a bowl of vanilla ice cream. With two spoons.

"I like you a lot too, Bella." He grinned and offered me one of the spoons. "And I was wondering…." He leaned in close to me and resisted the urge to jump on him. "If you would want to continue this….whatever you would call it."

"Relationship?" I asked quietly; hopefully. Edward raised his eyebrows sheepishly and nodded.

"Yes. Is that was what I was thinking." Edward muttered.

"I would be very, very interested in that." I said quickly.

"Good." He whispered, kissing my jaw and then my nose. "I am too."

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I'm coming home soon (September 1), so I will be able to write more. Next chapter, which I have already started formulating, has a sad edge to it, so I'm warning you now.

Xoxo- Melodyella aka Mellie