CHAPTER 9
Bella was excited about her GED result arriving. It couldn't arrive soon enough. She was actually striking off days from the calendar. Or calendars. It annoyed the doctors to see random dates on their work desk calendars, slashed with a bright red marker. Bella could be really mischievous when she wanted to be.
But the funniest part was that even though Bella was looking at at least a dozen and a half calendars everyday, she had no idea that her birthday was right there.
Edward's amusement knew no bounds. Bella's birthday was staring at her in the face, and she was clueless. It was good and bad, both. Bad, because he knew her mood would sour when she receives best wishes for the day. And good, because it would make his plan better.
Bella was sitting on a window ledge overlooking their tree, munching on a sandwich, when Edward sneaked behind her and encircled her waist with his arms.
"Hi."
She gasped and then grinned. "Hi to you too."
"What up?" He kissed along her jaw.
"Nothing's up. I was waiting for you. Where did you go?"
"Somewhere nice."
"Somewhere nice?"
"Yep."
Bella pouted at his clipped reply and his stupid grin.
"What are you not telling me?"
"You know I am hiding something from you?" He looked at her in mock surprise and then quickly kissed her pouted lower lip.
"Edward, what is it?"
Edward smiled at her and held out his hand.
"Wanna go? To thesomewherenice? With me?"
She smiled at him curiously and took his hand which he gripped firmly.
"Let's go."
He pulled her towards the path beyond their tree in the backyard.
She had never ventured into the thicket of trees beyond their tree. It was the edge of the forest where no one went until they wanted to get lost. And it was forbidden to the kids at the Shelter. Like that magical Harry Potter forest. Where Voldemort sneaked in to drink unicorn blood. She told him that.
Edward laughed boisterously at that and told her to have a little patience.
"Edward, how far is it? And do you even know the way back?"
"Almost there, Belle. And yes I know my way back."
.
.
Minutes later, Bella saw a little bright opening between the trees not twenty feet away from them. She didn't ask him anything. She just walked towards the little arch between the trees unthinkingly. Like it was pulling her to itself. Edward stood still to let her take the lead.
A few steps later, Bella was standing on the edge of the most beautiful meadow. Wild flowers grew in scattered bushes, and the grass brushed her ankles. The canopy of tall trees that towered over the circular field made it glow green. It was…heaven.
"Your somewhere nice," Edward spoke from behind her.
His soft voice broke her trance, and she whirled around to find him leaning against a tree. He was wearing a gorgeous smile on his lips.
"My somewhere nice?" Her voice was a soft whisper, but it echoed in the quiet wilderness.
"Yes." He saw her turn to look at the meadow again.
He walked towards her and stood right behind her. She felt his body warm her back, even though it was an inch away from touching her. He grazed his stubbled chin on her neck and whispered.
"The sun isn't out today."
Bella turned her head slightly and looked at his smiling face confusedly. "What?"
"Still this place looks like its glowing."
Bella processed his words and looked back at the flowers and the bright glow adorning the whole place. Heaven… she thought again.
The sun isn't out today…Still this place looks like its glowing.
"What I am trying to tell you is…" he held her waist and turned her around to face him. "That sometimes miracles happen. The sun doesn't shine, but our world still glows. It's still beautiful."
"Edward." She cupped his face in her hands and traced the light shadows under his eyes. "I don't understand."
He lightly kissed the small furrow between her eyebrows.
"You always said that there is no point in living when there isn't much life for you. You don't say that now, but I don't think you believe in it like I do. I brought you here to show you, Bella. To show you why I want and need to live."
Bella still wasn't sure what he wanted to say. She knew this wasn't her favorite topic, still she didn't feel like stopping him.
"And why do you want and need to live?"
He smiled and stretched his neck up. She followed his actions, and her eyes widened at what she saw. She saw pearly streams of light fall on them through the dense shade of the leaves.
"Because it's a beautiful world, Bella."
She couldn't blink. His words were not registering on her ears. They were registering on her heart.
"And it is beautiful because of you."
She looked down to look at his face again. An equally beautiful thing.
"Me?"
"If you didn't happen, Belle, hope wouldn't have happened. Love wouldn't have happened. And this somewhere nice wouldn't have happened. Thank God you happened, Bella. Happy birthday."
She felt her bones sink into the thin air of this heaven.
Happy birthday?
"B-b-birthday?" she gasped.
He nodded slowly, afraid a little how she would react. But she was silent. Edward waited for her to say something for a long while until he couldn't control himself.
"Bella?"
"I feel it, Edward." Her voice was not wavering with tears.
"You feel what?"
"What you feel. I feel that, too." A brilliant smile broke across her face.
"I do feel the beauty, Edward. I'm grateful you happened to me, too."
Edward kissed her before she finished speaking. His kiss was fierce and her response was deep.
"I love you," they spoke at the same time, when they broke apart for a second or two.
Edward peppered her throat with small, wet, and noisy kisses. He bent her a bit, to lick the dip between her collar bones before kissing it. She moaned through her smile. He lifted her head to look into her eyes and pulled her up to kiss her lips again, this time tasting her mouth with his tongue.
They fell into the grass on top of one another, neither of them unlocking their lips from each others'.
He frantically slipped his hand into her sweater and under her shirt to touch her bare skin. She shivered when his cold fingers touched the skin of her stomach and encircled her navel. Edward released her lips to nip her chin and the line of her jaw.
"Are we going to do it again?" Bella was breathless with excitement.
"Do what?" He grinned against the cheek.
"Um… you know what."
"Uh, I don't know." He kissed her eyelids, slowing his movements.
"You know I'm talking about sex." Her face was flushed a warm shade of rose.
Edward laughed throatily at her expression."Yeah. I knew you are talking about sex. But no, we are not going to do it now."
She pouted, and he kissed her again.
"It's cold here, Bella. It may rain."
"But it's my birthday, Edward."
"I know. And I do want to give you something."
"So, give me something." She pulled him by his hair towards her and started the kiss by biting his lips.
Motherfucking sexy.
He groaned in her mouth and didn't bother stopping her. She pushed his jacket off his shoulders and started pulling his t-shirt up. She could only expose some of his torso; she ran her hands across it. He couldn't let himself ask her to stop.
They didn't stop.
They couldn't.
On a makeshift bed of their own clothes, they laid down and made slow love. Or maybe it was frantic. They didn't know whether it took ten minutes or ten hours.
Their bodies came together, and their hold on each other never loosened.
Beautiful world…was all it could be described as.
.
They were lying completely naked one over the other, as green canopy shined above them. The exhaustion took about an eternity to simmer and cool. He heard her contented sigh and lifted his head from the crook of her neck to look at her.
"Hi," he murmured.
"Hi, to you too." She smiled.
"We should get dressed." He touched the corner of her lips with his thumb.
"We should." She grazed the tip of his thumb with her tongue before blushing.
Neither of them moved to get their clothes. They both laughed at each other. Eventually, Edward made her pull her clothes back on. But she collapsed in the grass again, smirking at eerie light percolating through the trees above. Edward lay down beside her and turned his head to talk to her. She turned her head at the same time and rolled closer to him for a kiss.
She was so in love with him.
"Uh, I have something for you. For your birthday."
He flipped her over and trapped her under him. Again.
"What? Wasn't all of this," she gestured all around her, "a birthday present?"
"Yes, it was. But it was more like a…um…setting, I guess. I was supposed to give you your present when we got distracted with all your horny kissing." He snorted at her, teasingly.
"Ugh. Like I am the only one who's hormonal and shit. I hate you." She tried to push him off her but failed. He held her hands above her head to kiss her once more.
"Hey, Belle. Let me give you presents."
That soft kiss on the lower lip always calmed her.
"I hope it is not too much. Wait, presents?"
"No, they are not too much. They are just about right, I think." He ignored her little outburst.
He waited as he studied her face once more.
"Okay." She acquiesced.
Edward reached his hand into the inner pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small cloth pouch. It was brown in color and was smaller than Edward's fist. He placed it in her hand and said, "Happy birthday, Bella."
Bella was somewhat glad the pouch was not big. She wondered what to say or do now. She wasn't exactly used to receiving birthday gifts.
She rolled on her stomach and rested on her elbows as she lightly touched the strings holding it closed. Edward copied her movements and nudged her lightly.
"Open it."
She gazed into his jade eyes and sighed. "Oh-kay."
Her fingers fumbled a bit with the strings before she yanked it open. She peered in to see something glittering inside it. She slipped two fingers in it and pulled out a bracelet made of silver beads. But the beauty of the simple silver beads wasn't what made her gasp. It was the little charm hanging on it that took her breath away.
She caressed the word inscribed on silver.
FOREVER.
"I want that long with you, Bella. I hope you do, too."
She looked at him with glazed eyes and saw nothing but a pleading look on his face— like he was scared she would say no. As if she could want anything other than that. Even after all that he had given her today, she couldn't really understand his insistence on this. He was again urging her to forget the truth, ignore the reality… But how could she say that she did not want forever with him?
"I want forever with you, Edward. I love you."
He touched his lips to hers with a soft, steady pressure.
Thank you.
His smile was breathtaking. Her tears were making her eyes look even more beautiful.
"Shall I help you with this?" He slipped a finger into the silver loop of the bracelet she was still holding.
"Help me with this?" She asked with a chuckle, wondering how difficult wearing a bracelet would be.
"Um hm." He nodded, smirking crookedly.
"Okay." She shrugged and dropped it into his palm.
The next thing she knew Edward was crouched at her feet and was pushing the hem of her jeans up.
"What are you—"
"It is a bracelet. But I'd rather you wear it here."
He kissed her toes before clasping it close on her left foot, like an anklet.
The forever charm was kissed too.
"Why would you rather I wear it there?"
Edward crawled back to her and placed his hands by the sides of her head. Their noses brushed.
"I'll show you."
His mouth moved closer to hers and simultaneously, his naked toes hitched her jeans' hem again.
His lips brushed against hers, and his toe found the cold metal of the anklet.
His lips parted and closed around hers, and he rolled the beads against her skin with his toe.
He spoke against her lips.
"Forever at our feet, Bella."
-E3B-
A/N:
I'm not gonna say 'that'.