Disclaimer: I do not own anything. :)
A/N: Anndd, this chapter was SUCH a pain in the ass. :PPP It took everything I had to finally get this written, let me tell you. I'm frying myself, but I knew that I had to get this out here, and so here it is. I did my absolute best, and here's what you guys get as a result of me working to get this out for you.
I'm amazing, right? ;) Hah. No. Notreally.
So, if I say I hate this chapter, will you throw things at me?
Ihatethischapter.
You might disagree, who knows?
Read on. xD
The ride home was honestly one of the longest car rides she had ever been on. Emmett seemed to pick up on the moods of those who stepped in the car, and he hadn't said anything on the whole ride home. It could also mean that Edward was in just as much trouble as she felt she was going to be in, and that was something she was not looking forward to when she got home.
Charlie had always been a bit lenient with her, but then again, nothing like this had ever truly happened. He spoke often about how he was lucky to have her, and she supposed she was a bit of a model daughter. She cooked, she cleaned, and she did her schoolwork. Most importantly, though, there had never been boy issues.
Nothing like this had ever happened, but the fact remained that nothing at all had happened anyway. How she would explain the fact that they had fallen asleep and not - well, done anything, was beyond her. Charlie was easy-going most of the time when it came to her decisions, but trying to make him understand this was going to be a lot harder.
"Do you want me to come in with you, Isabella?" Edward questioned her quietly as she stepped out of the car, ready to face the hell that was waiting for her in the house. "I could help explain -"
She turned to him, simply shaking her head, and managing a small smile. "No, it's alright. I've got it from here. Thanks, though." Emmett gave her a half-hearted grin, a little wave, which she would have found humorous had it not been for the situation, and slowly drove away from the house. She watched them go, before turning and making her way into the house, hoping with everything in her that Charlie had not been here the night before.
"Bells?" his voice called from the living room, and she sighed as she realized that he sounded concerned as he made his way into the front room. She stood still, because facing this head on was the best way to deal with it, from experience with Charlie.
His eyes were appraising when he finally reached her, as if looking for invisible scratches or bruises, anything that would amount to her not coming home the night before. He seemed to realize there was nothing wrong with her, and then his eyes narrowed dangerously, his gaze falling to her face again. "Would you like to explain yourself?" he asked quietly, and she knew that the momentary concern had faded, much to her dismay.
She had a feeling that he had already called the Cullen household, and if she lied and said she had hung out with Alice, he would already know that she was lying. She inwardly cursed the fact that Forks was so small and everyone knew everyone - he could have easily asked everyone in town if they had seen her, though she seriously doubted he had gone that far. This was still Charlie, after all.
"I was out with a friend, Dad," she sighed reluctantly, but knew that he would not believe her if she told the whole truth. "His name is Edward and it wasn't anything like you were probably thinking. We were just talking, and then we fell asleep. I meant to come home last night."
She sighed as Charlie rose an eyebrow in disbelief, just as she expected. It was not a very believable story, if she was being honest, though it was definitely the truth - it was just how she was going to get Charlie to understand this that was going to be difficult.
"I know it doesn't sound likely, but it's true," she mumbled, shaking her head. "We didn't do anything at all, Dad. I swear."
Charlie shook his head, and that was when she realized that she was going to be doing a whole lot of explaining, and it would probably not even amount to anything. Charlie might be lenient at times, but he wasn't stupid.
Only a stupid person would believe her story. She smiled, shaking her head. Not many others besides Edward had first dates in meadows, and some things she just didn't want to share with Charlie.
She was sulking. She knew it was childish, but it didn't stop her from doing it, because after all, it was hardly fair she was grounded until further notice. She had honestly never seen Charlie so angry, but as she rose her voice trying to explain things, his face had turned three different shades of red, to the point where he looked like he would surely explode.
Their argument ended with Charlie screaming that she was not allowed anywhere besides school and her obligations - the play that she had nearly forgotten about, in all honesty, despite having one of the lead rolls - and home. He also stated quite bluntly that he did not want her hanging out with that 'Edwin kid', and she had not had the heart to correct him at the time. Either way, the message was quite clear, written in black and white.
The cell phone on her nightstand rang again, shrill and demanding, and she rolled her eyes in aggravation. She knew it was Alice, and in all honesty, she did not want to explain all of this to her - and she would definitely want an explanation.
With a sigh of resignation, though, she reached for the phone, flipping it open and setting it against her hear. "Hello?" As soon as she had spoken, it seemed, Alice began spitting out a million things at once, much too fast for her to begin to understand.
"God, Bells, why didn't you call me?" she demanded, and before she could open her mouth, she continued, scoffing quietly into the phone. "Carlisle and Esme had a fit when Edward came home! Esme was just happy he was alive, I swear, they were ready to get a SWAT team, or something! I told them he was with you, and not to worry. Edward came home, and after getting his ear chewed off he locked himself in his room. Emmett's been trying to get something out of him, but he won't crack, so I needed to call you!"
She took a deep breath. "Tell me everything, Bella, and if you leave something out I'll find out."
She sighed, shaking her head and groaning, falling back onto her bed with another eye roll. "There's honestly not much to tell, Alice. He took me to this beautiful meadow, and we had a picnic. We talked for a long time, watched the stars, and then we fell asleep. That's honestly it. It's not what anyone is thinking."
There was silence on the other line, and then Alice sighed. She grinned at her friend's disappointment, knowing exactly what her friend was thinking. "Well, that's boring. I should have known. I thought you…well, did something." Another sigh.
"Yeah, but Charlie didn't believe me," she grumbled, rolling her eyes. "I'm grounded until further notice."
Alice was obviously trying to bite back a giggle - how she found that humorous, though, she honestly did not understand. She grumbled, and then listened to the whispering in the background, raising an eyebrow in confusion as she wondered who Alice was talking to, but she instantly knew.
"Isabella?" Edward's voice spoke into the phone, deep and velvet. She smiled despite herself, biting down on her lip.
"Hey, Edward."
He chuckled quietly, and she listened to the ruffling noises in the background, and then the high call of Alice, telling him to find her when he was done talking to her. He shouted something she couldn't hear, before speaking into the phone again. "How much trouble did you get in?" he questioned, and she had a feeling that he was pursing his lips to keep himself from laughing - she rolled her eyes, imagining his smirk from the other side of the phone.
"Heaps," she mumbled, sighing in exasperation as she sat up in the bed, crossing her legs. "Charlie didn't believe my story, but I kind of guessed he wouldn't." Edward laughed on the other line, and she bit her lip, trying not to lash out on him for laughing at her.
"Carlisle was a bit skeptical, too," he murmured, and she knew he was smirking. "In all honesty, I doubt any self respecting parent would believe our story. Falling asleep in a meadow, it all sounds very…"
"Fairy tale like?" she finished for him, grinning wide. It did sound like some act straight out of a movie, something that didn't normally happen in real life. Not many people besides Edward had places like he did, places that were quiet and out of the way. When he had wished that he could take her out to dinner, she had expected a restaurant, and she had a feeling that he had known that, too.
"Exactly," he laughed, and she bit on her lip, wondering how much things had changed between them just over the duration of a few days. Then again, maybe nothing had changed at all. "Hey, Swan, if I'm not mistaken, I think you rather liked last night. If I may be so bold, it might have been worth it."
She scoffed, rolling her eyes. He was still the same Edward, and she was still the same Bella. Even if their relationship shifted, they were still very much the same. "Yeah, well, you liked it too, Masen. You're the one who asked me out, remember?" He chuckled on the other line, and she tried to imagine him. One side of his mouth was probably pulled up into his infamous crooked smirk, smug and confident, but absolutely beautiful.
"Touche," he murmured, and she smirked at the small victory. "I think we should do it again sometime. Then again, it's not up to me - I only had three wishes, after all."
She groaned inwardly at the reminder and the smile he heard in her voice. She really wished everyone would forget the stupid genie costume, because obviously no one involved had. "I can't. Charlie grounded me."
She was certain he was smirking by now. "I'm very disappointed in you, Isabella. Are you truly not that creative?" he questioned, and she sighed, but couldn't help the little hopeful spark at his words - obviously, he wanted there to be a next time, something even she wasn't too sure about. Did she want to go out with him again?
All she knew was that the night before was truly one of the best of her life, and she couldn't deny that. She was finally seeing Edward Masen in an entirely different light.
"Either way, I will see you in school." She raised an eyebrow at the tone of his voice, and the way he truly sounded as if he was going to burst out into laughter. "Did you hear about my replacement?"
"Replacement?" she repeated, wondering what he was talking about.
"For Romeo and Juliet. Apparently, I'm unfit for the part with all of my injuries, and so they picked someone new."
She sighed, having guessed this would happen. "Who's the fill in?"
"Mike Newton." He laughed out loud, then, obviously having been keeping it in for quite a while. "He's hardly Romeo material." She had to agree with that, grinning wide at the teasing tone of his voice, and how it seemed so much easier to speak to him now - nothing had changed, but at the same time, everything had.
"Are you serious?"
"Unfortunately, yes," he chuckled, and she fell back on the bed, smiling to herself.
Somehow, she had a feeling things between her and Edward would be much smoother now.
They transitioned into easy conversation, the teasing and verbal sparring ever present, just as it always was. She wasn't sure how long they spoke on the phone, but it was easily more than an hour. They didn't seem to need a subject, easily falling from one to another, laughing constantly. It wasn't something she had ever expected, but something she loved all the same. If this was what her relationship with Edward was going to be like, then she figured it would be much easier than she expected.
Until he had to go and mess anything up.
She heard Alice in the background, yelling for him to have a chance to talk to her. She sighed as he mentioned something about having to give the phone over, and then he whispered. It was so quiet at first she was certain she had heard it wrong, but she knew she couldn't be. His voice was just as velvet, smooth, and melodious as always, and those words he spoke were ones she had never expected to hear, "L'amo, Isabella. Arrivederci, bella."
Did he honestly think that in another language she would not comprehend what it meant? Because even in Italian, it meant exactly the same thing.
I love you, Isabella. Goodbye, beautiful.
"Bella? Bella? Bella, are you there?"
Despite her best friend's voice on the other line, she snapped the phone shut, letting her eyes flutter close.
This is exactly what she did not want to happen.
Because inside, she knew she had fallen for Edward Masen, something she had promised herself she would never do.
A/N: Okay.
First off, I am really sorry if you felt like I rushed this chapter. :P You don't know how impossibly hard this chapter was to write, and how much writer's block I went through, but I felt like this was the way this chapter should go. Edward and Bella have been working up to the last line of this chapter for a long time. :) And, plus, there is still plenty of stuff left.
Plus, don't tell me you don't like the mental image of Mike playing Romeo. And then Edward's reaction to Mike playing Romeo. :PP
Fun. :)
Anyway, this chapter really is necessary, as much as it is definitely not my favorite.
Review, please. I hope I didn't disappoint TOO much. ;)
You're still all cullentastic.
And I love you.
XO,
Nicky
