Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, Stephanie Meyer does. (Disclaimer for the lyrics used in this chapter is at the bottom; I don't want to spoil anything.)
OH MAN. LAST CHAPTER.
I have responses to some reviews in the bottom author's note.
But, until then, ENJOY.
Chapter Twelve
"Bella…"
She peered into the eyes that were hovering over her, those brilliant green eyes, and pushed his hair from his face, "Yes?" She could barely manage the word with such beauty lying atop her, propped up by his perfectly muscled arms – which normally she loved, but rather loathed at the moment as they (along with their pants and her shirt) were the only things that kept their bodies from touching fully.
Edward smiled down at her and ran his eyes across her face as she had done to him many times before, "Do you know how beautiful you are?"
Bella blushed and Edward made a sound something like a groan mixed with a sigh. He leaned down and put his mouth next to her ear, lightly grazing the lobe with his teeth as he spoke: "And do you have any idea how much you turn me on when you blush?"
Those were the words that did away with the last of her self-control, she no gave up caring whether or not he was going to be in control, she used all the force she could muster into her body and rolled over so that his back was now on the mattress and she was straddling him. Much in the same fashion he had, she leaned down to his ear – however, while she was doing this, she was also sliding a hand down to undo the button and zipper on his jeans.
In what she hoped was a seductive voice, she breathed, "As much as you do with your crooked grin," her hand slowly went into his pants, "And your…"
Suddenly Bella found herself sitting upright (and alone) in her room, her hair a mess, her blanket twisted around her ankles, her eyes blurred, and no idea what it was that had awoken her; just that it would die.
Slowly it registered that what had brought her into the world of consciousness was the sound of her alarm clock annoyingly playing the radio at full volume. She groaned (for what felt like the millionth time since the day before last) when she realized what it was, You'd think they'd get sick of playing See You Again every two seconds, Bella thought bitterly, You'd also think that people would get sick of listening to it! She knew she had.
With a yawn and a stretch, Bella slid to the edge of the bed, letting her feet dangle just above the floor.
"The last time, I freaked out, I just kept looking down. I st-st-stuttered when you asked me what I'm thinkin' 'bout, felt like I couldn't breath, you asked what's wrong with me – "
"What's wrong with you," Bella said, clicking the button to silence the radio, "Is that you awaken people from really awesome dreams with your annoying, over-played song!"
She ran a hand through her hair and checked the clock; it was only ten a.m. She sighed, that meant it was a horribly long time until Alice had told her to come over and even longer until she was supposed to meet Edward at the theater.
…Edward. Thinking of him caused her thoughts to drift to what he may have planned and, once there, they did not go away. The obvious answer was that he wanted to watch a movie with her…yet…she cast a glance at her closet, if she and he were going to be sitting in a dark theater, Alice would not have taken her shopping for a new outfit…
…Well, maybe she would, but Edward certainly wouldn't go through all the trouble of writing that letter and making all these plans just to do something they'd done together countless times before.
No, Bella thought as she made her way down the hallway to the bathroom, It's not just a movie, he's definitely got more planned than that.
She began thinking up all sorts of scenarios all through breakfast, the stretch of time before lunch, and even while she went for a swim and showering off. In fact, just about the only thoughts that occupied her brain for the entire day – from ten in the morning to seven in the evening – were of Edward and their date.
Maybe Alice knows, Bella thought as she walked the sidewalk between her house and the Cullen house; I hope she does.
--
Alice opened the door with a huge grin, one that was friendly and excited…but also hiding something.
Bella raised an eyebrow, "What is it? What do you know?"
"Ohh, nothing…come in, we've gotta get you dressed!"
Bella was tugged inside and upstairs to Alice's room, then into her bathroom; she gasped. Although she'd been in Alice's room a couple of times before, she had never seen more than what the bathroom doorway and her imagination showed her, but now that she was inside, she could see that her imagination had been right on one count: it was huge.
The bathtub made the one in the upstairs bathroom at her house look like a sink and the sink made her sink look like a bowl of water. The room was painted and decorated in a rather beachy scene: blues, beiges, shells, a painting and photos of the ocean. The one thing that set apart from the beach décor was a massive white vanity covered in all sorts of cosmetics; Bella couldn't stop her jaw from dropping.
Alice put both her hands on Bella's shoulders and steered her to the vanity's stool, "You should see Rosalie's…"
Alice began working on Bella's make-up and hair, babbling excitedly as she transformed Bella from the pretty girl next door to…
"There!" Alice removed her hands from Bella and spun the girl so she could gape at herself in the vanity's mirror, "Sex goddess!"
A blush spread across Bella's cheeks.
"Uh-uh, don't you dare blush…at least, not yet," she winked at Bella and brought back a vivid memory of her dream; the girl blushed harder and looked at the floor. As she was doing this, Alice grabbed the bag with the purchases from the day before that Bella had brought along, "Now, you put everything we bought yesterday in here, yes?"
Bella looked at her and crinkled her brow, "What do you think Edward has planned…?"
"No, Bella, just answer the question: did you bring everything we bought?"
"Yes."
Bella didn't really understand why Alice had been so persistent with the outfit, but she could understand it more than the sexy bra and panty set Alice had forced her to buy. Did she think that the evening was going to end with her and Edward naked? …Was the evening going to end with her and Edward naked?
Alice must've caught on to Bella's train of thought before she rapidly shook her head, "Oh no, no, no! You don't have them because…" she paused, searching for the right words, "I mean, don't worry…Edward has no plans for seeing or removing them…right now…" Alice nudged Bella and only got a small glare in return, she coughed. "Those are just for you – unless you decide to share…"
Bella shook her head, "I don't think so…not tonight."
"The thing is, there's almost no piece of clothing that makes a girl feel sexier than the right pair of underwear and nothing makes a girl look sexier than the right bra."
"And these are them?" Bella asked skeptically.
Alice crossed her arms and looked flatly at Bella, "Remember that Rosalie works at Victoria's Secret…and I learned almost everything about undergarments from her. Plus, this isn't just public opinion I'm giving you here: both she and I have a pair of them and we love them," a sly look crossed her face, "So does Jasper and Rosalie says Emmett is quite fond of them as well…"
Bella pulled a face, "Too much information."
Alice grinned, "Is there such a thing?"
Bella rolled her eyes and Alice simply grinned before speaking, "I'll give you your privacy to change…" She handed the contents of the bag to Bella and caught the girl eyeing the underwear with an unsure face, "into everything, and I do mean everything."
Bella sighed again, this time defeated, "Fine…fine…"
As Alice made her way to the door, she paused and grinned at Bella, "Trust me, you'll totally thank me later."
"I'm sure I will." Another eye roll before the bathroom door was closed with a click.
--
Alice sat on her bed, just waiting for the outburst she knew was coming since Bella had bought the clothes without really looking at what Alice had picked out.
Any minute now...
"Alice!" Bella's voice sounded both shocked and angry.
Alice smiled to herself and crossed to the bathroom door, with phony innocence, "Yes?"
"This outfit…this…where are the pants?"
Alice laughed, "Silly Bella, it's a dress; there aren't any pants."
Bella was silent a moment and then the bathroom door swung open, revealing Bella in her revealing dress. With her hands, she motioned to it, "This is a dress?"
Alice beamed, "And it looks fantastic on you; just like I knew it would."
The black-haired girl checked her watch, "Oops! You better get your boots on, we gotta get going."
--
Bella gave Alice another flat look as she climbed from the car, "You didn't need to open the door for me…I'm perfectly capable."
Alice simply shrugged and linked arms with Bella, "Come on, we don't want to keep your prince charming waiting, do we?"
Bella blushed and was silent as they walked through the parking lot.
The very first thing the two girls noticed upon entering the movie theater was Emmett; Bella had to restrain herself from laughing as Alice sighed and rolled her eyes skyward.
What on earth are you wearing?"
Emmett tugged at the too-small maroon vest he was currently wearing with a white shirt and black pants (the standard uniform of the theater), "Shh, Al! I'm in disguise."
"Emmett, the whole point of a disguise is to blend in. Your so-called 'disguise' just makes you stick out like a sore thumb!"
Emmett frowned, "Taylor said I would blend right in…"
"Alice snorted, "Taylor must've lied because you stick out like a…"
"Um, sorry to interrupt…but…I thought I was meeting Edward here and…" Bella glanced to the large clock on the wall, "Now?"
"Oh!" Alice slapped herself on the forehead and then slapped Emmett on the back of his, "Dolt! You sidetracked me!"
"…Dolt?"
"Just show us to the stairs."
Emmett straightened his borrowed vest once again, "Certainly. Right this way, m'ladies."
He led them around to a plain door with a simple sign that stated 'ROOF ACCESS: Authorized Personnel ONLY'.
Bella raised an eyebrow as Emmett looked around, opened the door, and ushered the two girls inside before closing the door once again. The stairway was filled with the smell of vanilla and a faint glow that, upon turning around Bella found, came from multiple candles set up on both sides of each step.
"What…"
"Wonder later! Start climbing!" Alice gave Bella a little shove.
The brunette climbed the stairs, her stomach doing flip-flops the entire way and Emmett and Alice just a few steps below her. Her heart began to beat more rapidly as she reached the top and wrapped her hand around the door handle and pushed it open.
It took her a moment to spot Edward, but when she did, her breath caught in her throat. She couldn't see what he was wearing nor what expression he wore, but even as a shadowy silhouette against the globe of the setting sun, he was gorgeous. She didn't notice that her breathing had stopped until she was forced to exhale all the air in her lungs rather loudly.
--
Edward sat on the edge of the roof, staring out at the sunset and, every so often, glancing down at his watch to check the time. Although he looked – at least when he wasn't glancing at his watch or tapping his fingers on the concrete – calm and collected (and devilishly handsome) on the outside, on the inside he was nervous as hell. No, terrified, he'd never done anything like this before and, given recent events, he wasn't entirely sure what Bella would say. More importantly, what was he going to say? He mentally slapped himself for spending so much time searching for music when, really, what he needed had been a script.
He was mentally going over his various options of what he should say to Bella when he became aware of her presence.
He nearly jumped out of his skin but caught himself just in time and, instead, stood up and casually stuck his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He took a few steps forward, his patented (Sexy, Bella thought) grin on his face and something suave-sounding on his tongue, but both of those quickly disappeared and he stopped in his tracks when he saw Bella's outfit. His breath hitched and he couldn't stop his eyes from traveling down her body to take it all in.
She was wearing a tight-fitting blue dress with a low neckline (it stopped just above where her bra started and showed off just the tiniest bit of the fabric from her bra) and a high hemline (it ended halfway to her knees). Her legs (which looked extra long and lean and perfect) were cased in some sort of sheer, shiny stocking that disappeared into black faux-suede boots that came midway up her calves; his mouth went dry.
Bella bit her lip and nervously twisted the toe of her boot into the roof, a blush was spreading across her face and she had the urge to look towards the ground…but that would mean having to look away from Edward and she did not want to do that, ever. She did, however, tug on the hem of the dress to try and make it cover up more.
This snapped Edward out of his trance. He swallowed and brought his gaze up to her face. At the sight of her gnawing nervously on her better lip, he couldn't help himself, he quickly closed the distance between them and buried his face in her strawberry-scented hair as he embraced her. In response, she wrapped her arms around him.
"Bella…I…" Edward paused and chuckled nervously, "I'm really being a loser about all this, aren't I?"
Bella pulled back and looked him right in the eyes, "Why do you say that?"
Edward shrugged, "Well, I just…I'm taking something that…really no one else on the planet seems to have a problem with and…"
"What, apologizing? I've already forgiven you, I should have told you…no, I shouldn't have even freaked out in the…"
"Edward shook his head, "No, I mean," He leaned his head back and exhaled into the sky before looking back down at Bella. He extended one of his hands to her, the palm facing up, "I guess what I'm asking is…may I have this dance?"
--
Alice and Emmett were pressed against the door, listening intently to the conversation, waiting for Edward to say the one and only line he really rehearsed so that they could do the last piece of their part.
"I guess what I'm asking is…may I have this dance?"
Alice elbowed Emmett in the ribs, "That's it!" She hissed, "That's your cue; music, music!"
Emmett removed a small remote from his back pocket, silently pushed the door open a crack, and pointed the remote at a cleverly hidden CD player before pushing the 'PLAY' button.
He watched Bella and Edward a moment before Alice grabbed his shirt, "Emmett! Give them privacy!" He sighed but obliged and the two of them went to the bottom of the steps.
--
Bella looked down at her feet, then his hand, and finally her gaze returned to his face, just as the music began playing from somewhere, "You're serious, aren't you?"
Edward smiled, "Of course I am! Now, may I or may I not have this dance?"
Bella matched his smile and took his hand, curtsying a little, "You may."
As the sun continued to sink, the stars began to appear, and some song she'd never heard before played, Edward pulled Bella close. He had his hands on her waist and her head on his shoulder.
"We stood so tall, we caught a plane by the wing and held it safe until we found it a place to land. We laid across the ocean wide, bridged the gap in record time, people traveled across and kissed our hands…"
As they swayed, he tilted her head up so that her gaze, once again, met his. Peering deep into her eyes and with nothing but sincerity, he spoke softly and lovingly, "Bella Swan. I think I may be falling in love with you."
Bella stopped and stepped back, her breathing stopped as well and her eyes moved rapidly across his face, taking it all in and looking for any sign that he was lying or kidding; she couldn't find any. Without further thought (or any thought, really), she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him into a passionate kiss.
When she broke it, she stood on her tip-toes and whispered breathlessly into his ear, "I know I'm falling in love with you."
Edward grinned and kissed her forehead before pulling her tighter against him, his arms wrapping around her waist again and her arms wrapping around his neck, and they continued to dance.
"All for love, we become larger than lifesize, wondersome, great in the eyes of someone. Larger than lifesize we become great in the eyes of someone. Larger than lifesize we become, larger than lifesize we become, great in the eyes of someone…"
THE END...?
Due to lack of sleep, here are my responses to some reviews…
In response to eskimo-zo's last comment: Yes, it was an amazing concert. I got pictures with the band, got my sweatshirt signed by all four of them, met the chick who drew the Like Vines album cover, and – before the show – saw Bob at TGI-Friday's, he sat a few booths from us.
In response to swizzlebit's last comment: It's not really obvious, but what Edward was writing was a list of songs. He was trying to find the absolute perfect song for him and Bella to dance to.
In response to toujoursmoi's last comment: I used to say 'cool beans' and then a bunch of other people started saying it and I was like 'I give up' and stopped.
In response to gacktxx's last comment: Yeah, I know how short the chapter before this one was…but that's not its fault, I kind of snapped while writing and just wanted to get it done with to go off and do things.
In response to xx . Mari . xx's last comment: I did mean 'out there', thank you for catching that and actually listening when I asked people to point out any mistakes.
In response to everyone who said they hated Jacob: Good. You were supposed to dislike him and be suspicious of him the entire time.
Okay and, no one really asked, but I feel like explaining it anyway. In the tenth chapter, when Bella gets the SnoCaps over the Junior Mints…the candies are kind of like the guys. Jacob is like the SnoCaps because he's not really good and kind of stupid looking – at least, that's how I pictured him – where Edward is the Junior Mints because, honestly, Junior Mints rock and what other candy can you picture Edward Cullen being? Nothing! So, Bella – being mad at Edward – chose the Jacob Candy…and then wound up not eating any of it because it wasn't what she really wanted.
…Oh man, I need sleep.
Anyway, the lyrics at the end, DO NOT BELONG TO ME, they are from Lifesize by A Fine Frenzy (which, honestly, fucking rocks…go listen). The lyrics earlier were (as mentioned) from See You Again by Miley Cyrus; but if your radio DJ is any like ours, you already knew that because they play it all the freakin' time.
There it was! The story! What did you think? Should I write extras or begin something new for you all? Because, honestly, I do have ideas and I could either way!