Chapter Twelve - Overload
Alice sighed and scooted closer to Bella, her hand reaching out to find a warm one. They sat on the bed for a few minutes without saying a word to each other and they were both okay with that.
Bella knew that whatever Alice wanted to tell her was going to be life changing in some way. She wasn't sure what. She couldn't tell for sure what exactly it was but she felt it was going to change her views in everything.
She pictured herself almost lost and alone and she didn't know why.
"Oh my sweet Bella," Alice soothed the human, her cold hand squeezing the other girl's, "never in a million years would I ever let you feel that way."
Bella blinked and frowned. "What way?"
"Alone." Alice whispered, scooting just a little closer to the brunette.
"Alice, I didn't say that." Confusion swept through her mind and her memory went back to when Jacob had thought she said something out loud as well.
Alice felt Bella's mind go blank on her end and she knew Jacob or someone of the pack was coursing through her mind. "You believe in gifts right?"
"Gifts?" Bella raised an eyebrow in amusement. "I won't admit it but I love having gifts given to me."
A tinkled laugh filled the room and it warmed the human's heart. "Well I'll be sure to remember that. I was talking about special gifts though. For example, some believe that they can dream their futures."
Bella sank back a bit and furrowed her eyebrows slightly. Forks, Washington just got a whole lot weirder for her. "I feel like I'm in some sort of movie," she commented quietly.
"What? Why?" Alice couldn't help but smile a little at the adorable confused features on her human's face.
"Ever since I moved here, weird things started to happen. That or I actually started paying attention to certain things." Bella got up and grabbed Polie, playing with his balding ear. "I feel like half the time I'm in a dream yet everything is so foggy."
"And you want answers to clear the fog, right?" Alice spoke calmly, watching the other girl hold her teddy with care.
"Can you give them?" Bella asked quietly.
"I can only give you what you're willing to learn or believe in." The vampire nodded gently and tugged Bella towards her again, allowing her to sit right beside her. "I've been trying to find ways to tell you about everything and every scenario I come up with just doesn't seem to be enough."
"Head first, remember?" Bella smiled a little and clutched the bear tighter when Alice stared at her intently.
"You're not scared of the unknown, are you?" Alice whispered. "You're more confused and scared than anything."
Brown eyes widened slightly but Bella could only nod. "H-how'd you know?"
"I feel it." Alice grinned a little. "I see it..."
The human shook her head and laughed. "So are you trying to tell me you have a gift, Alice? You feel and see things?"
Alice bit her bottom lip before tightening her mouth together. "It's not my gift," she moved to tuck a stray of hair behind Bella's ear, "it's yours." The words left her in a soft whisper.
Swallowing, Bella stared blankly at the other girl. She made an attempt to open her mouth and say something several of times, but nothing would escape her; not even the tiniest noise.
"Bella?" Alice frowned and moved her face closer, her golden eyes reflecting in deep brown ones in front of her. "Bell?"
Bella shook her head, trying to clear it. The room felt slightly smaller and it seemed as though it had gotten a lot warmer. "I need to breathe." She bolted up from the bed and opened the window. She stuck her head out and inhaled then exhaled slowly.
"I'm sorry," the angelic voice said from behind the human. "I told you every scenario ended badly."
After a few more minutes of breathing in the fresh air, Bella opened her eyes and slowly turned around to face the other girl. "I'm just confused."
"I know."
"How Alice? How do you know?" Bella asked pleadingly. Despite the confusion coursing through her head, she was so close to discovering something.
"Think of something," Alice stepped forward with hesitance, "anything." Once she stopped in front of the brunette, her hand found Bella's.
Bella's mind didn't even hesitate when she went to Jacob and his pack. She was still reeling from the wolf tidbit and even though she had so many questions for her friends, she knew she had to respect them and keep her distance.
"I can't see anything Bella," Alice smiled a little, knowing the wolves were racing through her mind.
Bella blinked and she took that moment to really stare at the short girl in front of her. The way her skin was so flawless and pale; the way her eyes were always so golden and playful; the way she practically danced lightly when she walked. Bella's mind drifted to those perfect lips when she smiled, the slight dimple appearing in her cheek. Alice was very much someone she felt strongly connected too, someone she thought of every day.
And then those kisses...
"Wow," Alice breathed, her eyes widening as she let go of Bella. "That- You make me sound so beautiful."
Without even missing a beat, Bella's lips twisted into a small smile. "You are beautiful."
"Not like that Bella." The vampire purred slightly and smiled when she noticed the redness start to appear on the human's skin. "Thank you."
"For what?" Bella asked quietly, visibly blushing.
"Seeing me that way," Alice replied gently, the back of fingers stroking the soft skin on Bella's neck.
"What are you trying to prove to me?" Bella closed her eyes at the sweet sensation, shivering slightly at the way her skin erupted into goosebumps.
"Your gift." Alice said simply, cupping Bella's cheek. "I can see everything you're seeing right now, in your mind. The environments you create, the feelings... the smells." She breathed in the most unique scent of her human and smiled softly. "You have an interesting mind."
"I think about you all the time Alice, that means nothing." Bella barely whispered, willing her rare stutter to keep at bay.
"Fine, try once more," she paused and scrunched her face up briefly, "just don't think of Jacob."
"What?" Bella almost chuckled at the demand and immediately thought of her friends back in La Push.
"Bella!" Alice whined and pouted. "I said don't think of Jacob!"
The brunette snorted in disbelief and scratched her forehead before stepping back from Alice. She tugged on the hem of her shirt and began to pace the large bedroom. "Maybe you're the one that has the gift."
"Well mine doesn't actually have so much detail in them. I can't smell in my visions, or see a complete picture or movement. I just see the future, you know? It all can change though if decisions are made, mine are not as accurate. You don't see the future, you just think of something and when someone's touching you, they can see what you are thinking." Alice shrugged and glanced down at her fingers briefly before she heard Bella say her name quietly.
"Oh God," Bella was mortified, shaking her head. The visions she would have every time Alice would touch her were more than PG13 rated. It would certainly explain the reactions the other girl had whenever they'd touch at those times.
It would explain how Jacob learned that she thought of him as a brother and nothing more.
"I- How- What?" Words left her mouth as she ran her hands through her hair. "This is just insane!"
"Sounds like it, doesn't it?" Alice decided to keep her distance. She wondered if telling Bella would've been easier if Jasper was around to calm the air a bit.
"And you can see the future?" Bella asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It's hit and miss." Alice nodded. "Somehow though, your gift has been giving mine a power boost. Instead of just seeing the future in odd shapes and outlines, with you, well, it enhanced all my senses."
Bella stared at the beautiful short haired girl in front of her. She wasn't sure what to say from there. Jacob was a werewolf, she apparently had a gift of mental storytelling and Alice could see the future. Without any warning, laughter ripped through the room and Bella was soon hunched over, tears threatening to escape her from laughing so hard.
Alice stepped closer with concern but heard that the laughter wasn't one of mocking, it was one of amusement and she, in return, joined Bella.
"Well I guess I can say I've heard it all." The brunette wiped her face and calmed herself down.
Alice released an unwelcome nervous chuckled and wrung her hands slightly. "Not exactly."
Brown eyes lifted in amazement. "Is this the part where you tell me you're an alien?"
"What?" The vampire smirked and shook her head. "Where would you come up with that?" She reached Bella, refusing to touch her.
"Jake." Bella shrugged. Her heart was still pounding hard but not in fear. She felt some sort of excitement from all the news, even though her head was spinning slightly. "There's more, isn't there?"
Alice nodded slowly, almost apologetically. "Bell, if you don't want to hear anymore-"
"I don't want to be in the dark." Bella said seriously. "Yeah, it's a lot to take in but please Alice, if this is going to prevent you from leaving me again like you did last night, I want to know the truth."
Golden eyes softened a bit and she finally gave in, pulling Bella in close to her, tucking her chin securely into the brunette's shoulder. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her hands moving smoothly against Bella's back, "I never meant to hurt you. You must understand that being with me is somewhat risky, Bell."
Bella closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She could smell the soft fragrance of honey radiating off the girl. "Then why do you make me feel so safe?" She whispered back.
"Because I don't ever want to hurt you." Alice pulled back and rested her forehead against Bella's. "I'll protect you where I can and unfortunately, sometimes, that means from myself."
"I really don't understand Alice." The brunette pleaded.
"Remember when I said I was addicted to you? I think you put it like you were my own person brand of heroine." A smirk escaped thin lips and she cleared her throat. "Your scent is more than intoxicating. At most it leaves me wanting you so badly. Feel you in ways I've never felt anyone before."
A light gasp left Bella's mouth at the huskiness in Alice's voice. She could hear each word drip with the truth.
"I crave you Bella. It's abnormal how often I think about you." Lips grazed the soft skin on the human's jaw. "Wanting to inhale your scent, hear you whisper my name, see me in a different light then everyone else. I want to taste you so you're so deep within my system I'll think I'm satisfied, but that'll never happen. I'll never be fully satisfied with you my sweet Bella."
Bella's fingers gripped Alice's back, her head rolling back slowly, making room for the lips that were moving down her neck. "Well obviously you know what I think about around you." She managed to breathe, trying to catch her breath. She was showing Alice the thoughts that were swimming around her mind at that moment. They weren't exactly innocent by any means.
Alice nipped gently at the tender skin, making Bella moan quietly. "Look at me, Bella," she whispered in a dangerous low voice, moving back slightly.
Bella blinked the lusty fog away from her eyes before she noticed a pair of black eyes staring back at her. "Your eyes..." she murmured throatily.
"This is why I'm dangerous." Alice ripped herself away from Bella's grip. She took several steps back and opened the window the other girl previously had her head stuck out of. She needed to take that time to try and breathe in anything but the human, who was thickly laced with arousal and lust.
"Your eyes turning black means you're dangerous?" Bella made a move to go to Alice's side but the vampire told her to stay away. "No more games Alice! What's going on? What are you?"
Alice blinked, inhaling deeply. She managed to step away from the window and faced the human. All she really wanted to do was hold the girl against her, she didn't want to think of Bella like a tasty treat, not that kind of treat at least. "My gift came with... my race."
"Your race?"
"My family, we're not normal, Bella. We hardly belong in your world but we have nowhere else to go. We try and make our life as human as possible so society won't suspect anything indifferent about us." Alice started to make her way towards the bed, kneeling down on it with one knee. "We don't sleep, we can't actually. This bed has been unused for years."
"Werewolves?" Bella swallowed, wondering maybe that was why her friends from La Push had something against the Cullens. A new pack moving in on their territory perhaps.
"No!" Alice shook her head almost violently. "Wait, what? What made you think that?"
Bella kept her lips sealed. She swore she would never tell a soul the truth about the Quileute Legends.
"So you know about werewolves?" Alice asked.
"I've heard stories." Bella lied and closed her eyes. "Please forget I mentioned that, it was silly."
"Vampire." Alice whispered.
Bella's eyes shot open and she stepped back slightly, her head tilting to the side. "Vampire?"
"Yes." Her head nodded solidly before she finally shifted and sat down on the bed, facing Bella.
"You want to eat me?" Bella squeaked, finally putting everything together. "Vampires eat humans and I'm human and-"
"Bell!" Alice shot up and grabbed the brunette's arms. "I'd never hurt you, I told you that. It's just that when things get heavy between us, I smell your... scent."
"Oh." Bella swallowed, not even concerned at the blush creeping up her ivory skin. "Vampire?"
"Yeah." Alice nodded, feeling Bella's body relax slightly. "Are you okay?"
"Sure, I mean I just found out the girl I like is a vampire, I have some sort of gift and my best friend is a werewolf. I'm peachy." Bella wiggled her way out of Alice's grasp and started to pace the room. "Are you sure you don't want to eat me?"
"Can you please stop saying it like that?" Alice smiled nervously. "I'll admit I can be a little bloodlust driven around you but thankfully I'm strong enough to control it. When I'm kissing you Bella, I'm kissing you. I'm not getting a foreplay taste of a meal... believe me. I'd rather rot an eternity locked away then ever see you that way."
"Your family?" Bella asked quietly. "They're vampires as well?"
Alice nodded. "We're all different than most vampires. Instead of feeding off of human blood, we hunt animals. Our camping trip was a hunting trip." She bashfully said, scared of terrifying the poor human out of her life.
"Do uh, do the others have 'gifts'?" The brunette bounced from foot to foot slowly, trying not to have her brain explode with all the bizarre information.
"Well, Edward can read minds-" she was cut off but Bella's whine.
"Not him too!"
Alice laughed lightly, "Bella, he can't read yours for some odd reason. He can read everyone's mind apart from yours."
"Oh, good." She sighed with relief and scratched the back of her neck. "Is there something wrong with me?"
"What?" Alice asked confused.
"Well here I am, one simple little human who has a gift that others have, yet they happen to be vampires and what's so wrong with me that Edward can't read my mind?" Bella almost pouted. She was more than thankful but she still felt a little... left out.
"Trust me; you don't want him digging in there. He wouldn't like what he'd see." Alice smirked a little and bit her lip. "Besides, nothing's wrong with you. You find out that your new friend and her family are a coven of vampires, and your best friend is werewolf, yet you think there's something wrong with you? Please Bella."
"Oh shit Alice," Bella groaned, "I promised Jake I'd take that secret to the grave with me!"
"It's okay, we know." Alice softly smiled. "We're not going to be spreading their secret around." She motioned for Bella to sit beside her. "Technically we're not supposed to like their kind. However, I have to say I respect Jacob a lot. He could've told you about us once he found out who we were but he didn't."
"He's a little upset that I'm so taken with you." Bella smiled shyly. "Now I know it wasn't just because you're a girl."
Alice giggled a little before cupping Bella's warm cheek. "I know you've had a long couple of days and I'm sorry for being a part of that. I wanted to tell you but no one's ever supposed to find out about us. By telling you... I may have just put your life in danger."
"Oh you mean werewolves and vampires aren't enough to get me into trouble?" Bella raised an eyebrow.
"I'll explain it soon but right now, I think it's best we give your poor human brain a rest." Alice leaned forward and kissed Bella's forehead.
"Yeah," the brunette sighed, closing her eyes, "I might freak out a little later."
Alice laughed quietly and pulled Bella tighter into her body. "I'm counting on it."
"Alice?" She whispered, her nose pressed against the cool skin of the vampire's neck.
"Hmm?"
"What did you mean when you said my 'gift' gives you a power boost?" Bella pulled back to stare into familiar golden eyes. She watched Alice's hand move from the spot on her back and place it against her human beating heart.
"Like I said my sweet Bell, you literally make my heart beat."
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