Disclaimer: I do not own Edward. Sadly. If I did, he'd be here next to me right now, along with Jasper and Garrett...
A/N: About 3 more chapters left. Since nothing major happens here and you already know what happens, I'm just going to combine some things and add a few little things in in Edward's world.
I arrived at Bella's house on Monday morning and was surprised not to see her standing at the door waiting for me like normal. I waited a few minutes before deciding to go see what was wrong. I knocked on the door and waited. I knocked again.
"Bella?" I called. Nothing. I knew it was time to go in to see what was up. I walked in to see Bella laying on the couch looking miserable. She was still in her pajama bottoms and slippers with a button up shirt on, but open, revealing the upper half of her body. I was too worried about Bella to even think about how sexy her body was. I know, I vowed I'd never use that word about a woman, but I couldn't help it. Bella was extremely sexy to me, but right now, she looked like she was about to pass out or die. Her eyes were closed and her arm was covering her forehead. I rushed to her side to whisper in her ear.
"Bella, love, what's wrong?" She opened her eyes for a moment before shutting them again. "Bella, what can I do for you?" She groaned. I knew she didn't like being taken care of, but clearly, she was sick.
"Go away, Edward. I'm sick. Just go without me, I'll be fine," she mumbled.
"On the contrary, I don't believe you will. No, I'm going to stay right here until you are all better." I grinned at her. I knew she wouldn't like me around to see her throw up or whatever, but it was going to happen eventually anyway. I stopped myself. Was... What were our plans for the future? Were we going to get married and have kids and all that fun stuff? Or were we strictly a high school thing? No, we weren't a high school thing. In that moment, I realized that I wanted Bella by my side forever, day and night, year after year, until death do us part, the whole shebang.
"No, honestly, just go. I don't want you to get in trouble for ditching," she said, pulling me from my visions of our life together.
"Ditching is healthy every once in a while. I'm sure my good grades will be there when I return," I said, still smiling. "Plus, this is practice for the future." I stopped, not wanting to scare her off. "I'm going to be taking care of tons of girls like you for the rest of my life," I paused, "but you'll always be my favorite." That made her smile a little. "Right now, you need some sleep, though, love... and you might want to button up your shirt." She blushed brighter than I'd ever seen her blush before. She reached down and fumbled with the buttons, but she was too tired to do anything. I took her hands and moved them aside gently, taking over. I began doing the buttons, working my way down her stomach. My hands would lightly brush along her tender skin, making her blush even more.
"Sorry," she said. Why was she apologizing? It's not like I didn't want to see her in that way, I just knew she wasn't ready for that quite yet.
"No, it's not that... I mean, I am a man, but I was just looking out for your best interests. I know you. If I just let you walk around like that all day without knowing, you'd hate me," I laughed. After I was done, she curled up at the end of the couch and drifted to sleep. At first, I just watched her sleep, making sure she would be alright. It was amazing how much I cared for her and how quickly she'd taken up every aspect of my life. Later, I began watching a little bit of television and it became lunchtime. I knew Bella would be waking soon, so I scrounged around the kitchen for a can of chicken noodle soup for her. I found a tray and some crackers and carried the soup out to her with a glass of water. I came in to find she had just woken up.
"You look so much better, beautiful," I said, bending to kiss the top of her head. "I made this for you. You'll want to drink tons of water to help keep you hydrated, and chicken noodle soup always helps." She began eating the soup slowly, trying to make sure she could handle it. She was trying to be a good patient and listen to me. After she finished, I helped her get wrapped up in a blanket and she laid her feet in my lap.
She was in and out the rest of the day. She would randomly fall asleep and wake up. Every time she woke up, I would ask her how she felt and what she needed, trying to take care of her. By the end of the day, she was fully recovered. When her parents arrived home, I kissed her hair and left. I was worrying all night about whether or not the bug would come back, but my dad just told me it seemed like a normal 24 hour virus and it was more than likely gone.
The next day, I rushed to Bella's house and she was waiting by the door like always. The day was uneventful and there was hardly any work to do. We were in the car on the way home when Bella seemed to be thinking about something.
"Light homework tonight, huh?" she asked.
"Yeah. I'm so glad. The less homework I have, the more time I can spend with the love of my life." I glanced over to see her blush.
"So spending time with me? Well, would you be against going out on another "date" with me?" I laughed. She was being ridiculous.
"Of course not! When?" She paused.
"... Right now...?" It came out sounding like a question.
"Where would you like to go?"
"Port Angeles. I need to do something."
"Sure. I just have to call my parents and say not to expect me home for a little while." I pulled out my phone and dialed the number to the hospital.
"Hello, Forks General Hospital Reception, how may I help you?" a nice woman asked.
"Yes, Could I speak to Dr. Carlisle Masen, please?"
"And who may I say is calling?"
"It's his son, Edward."
"Okay, he'll be right with you," she said before putting me on hold. A moment later, I heard my father's voice on the other end of the line.
"What is it, Edward?" he asked, sounding quite concerned. I never usually called the hospital.
"Hey, Dad, I was wondering if it would be okay if Bella and I went to Port Angeles for a while."
"Of course. It's fine. Just be home by nine, okay?"
"Okay, yeah, I'll be home by nine... sure."
"I love you son, be careful," he said, lovingly.
"I love you too, Dad, bye." I hung up and turned to Bella. "Do you need to call Charlie and Renee?"
"I guess," she replied. About thirty seconds later, she began talking to what I guessed was a machine. "Hey, it's Bella, I'm going with Edward to Port Angeles, so I should be back before nine. Love you guys, bye!" She said, shutting the phone and grabbing my hand. I drove quickly down the highway until we got to Port Angeles at around 3:30. It was raining fairly hard, but it had been harder. I pulled in front of the bookstore because I had a feeling this is where Bella needed to go.
"How-" she began, with me cutting her off.
"I know you, Bella. You sometimes forget these things, love," I chuckled and opened first her car door, then the door to the shop. Janet was sitting behind the counter reading a book with both of her legs propped up when we walked in. She immediately grabbed my hand and approached the counter slowly. Janet finally looked up to see who we were, before her eyes darted to our intertwined hands. A smile spread across her wrinkled face.
"Oh, there's my two favorite customers," she said, smiling. "Is there anything I can help you with? If I may be so bold, I think I helped Bella here a lot the last time she was here." Bella cheeks became red and I leaned down to kiss them.
"I'm pretty sure you did, Janet," I said. I had had a feeling that Janet had something to do with Bella's declaration.
"Glad I could help. I knew from the moment I saw you two together that there was something there. You just needed to see it for yourselves," she stopped for a moment and sighed. "Do you need help with anything in particular today, dears?"
"No, thank you. I'm going to go look for something really quick," I said, leaving the women alone to talk for a moment. I knew Bella would want to thank Janet for the advice. A few minutes later I heard a squeal and Bella's voice yelling uncharacteristically.
"OH JANET!!!! OF COURSE!!!!!" I came running towards the counter to see Bella's arms wrapped around Janet's shoulders.
"And of course, that young man is most welcome to join you as well," she said.
"THANK YOU SO MUCH! EDWARD!" she screamed, calling me even though I was already he came running.
"What?" I asked frantically.
"Janet just offered us jobs here! Isn't it wonderful!?"
"Seriously?" I asked enthusiastically. "Really? That's amazing!" I exclaimed, turning to Janet. She began to explain to me what had just been explained to Bella that we would help her clean and organize the storage room, pick our own hours, and get books at 70% off. It sounded great. Something for Bella and me to do together that would actually get me out of the house to earn a little money. The pay was reasonable and picking our own hours would be amazing. We would start next Saturday. We waved goodbye to Janet as we left the store, our arms wrapped around each others waists as we walked out into the falling rain.
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On Friday at school, Alice had an announcement to make.
"Girls: I have something to say," she said, immediately getting the attention of Rose and Bella. "Now, we all have our boyfriends, but lately, I just haven't been feeling the girly bonds that we have. And the quickest way to fix that is-"
"MOVIE NIGHT!" Rose screamed. Everyone within a fifteen foot radius jumped a little. "Sorry, I've just wanted a movie night really bad with you girls lately."
"Well, I was going to say 'shopping', but Rosalie's idea works as good as any." They began making plans to meet with Alice after school for a sleepover. Bella turned to me, but didn't look me in the eye.
"So... you're okay with this, right?" hse stopped. "I mean, you don't have a problem with me being away from you for a little while?" I laughed at her and ruffled her hair.
"Bella, I'm not a dictator. I'm your boyfriend. Honestly, you can be so absurd sometimes. Why would I have a problem with you hanging out with your girlfriends every once in a while?" I smiled, causing her to blush, which in turn, caused my heart to beat a little bit faster. She kissed me quickly and moved away like she'd been shocked. She blushed and I grabbed her hand and squeezed it, pulling her up and leading her to bio. It was the first time our displays of affection had been public. It didn't bother that we had done it, because this had been out of pure love and adoration, not just the need for sexual gratification.
"Oh, about tomorrow, Edward," she said in the car on the way home, "I think I'll just drive up to Port Angeles by myself and meet you there. What time are we supposed to get there?"
"One. It's not a big deal." We were sitting in front of her house, the look in her eyes telling me she didn't want to leave me. She looked down at her hands and then into my eyes. I leaned down to kiss her passionately and to give her something to remember me by until tomorrow. After we broke away, she pecked my mouth once more and I kissed her forehead.
"I love you," I said. "More than my own life."
"I love you, too," she replied, hugging me before walking into the house. I drove off, praying that Alice didn't piss Bella off too terribly much. I still had to be with her and comfort her. I went home and worked on music. I was interrupted by my phone ringing. I looked at the caller ID.
"Hey, Mike," I said.
"Edward, you wanna come to a party?"
"Uh, not tonight, buddy."
"Why?" he asked, surprised.
"Uh, I'm gonna hang out with Bella later and do some homework," I lied.
"Oh." It was the only thing he said.
"Well, I gotta go," I lied again.
"Okay, well, talk to you later, I guess," Mike said. I hung up. I went back to work on my music. Nothing was coming to me without Bella. I sighed and decided to go out. There really was nothing to do in Forks, except drive to the Thriftway. I got in the Volvo and drove there, getting out into the rain and quickly running inside. I browsed around the aisles, nothing there that I really wanted or needed to buy. I spent about an hour just roaming around the place before deciding to go home. I walked back into the rain when a familiar voice called to me.
"Hey, Masen," Mike called.
"Hey, Mike," I called back absently.
"You pulled yourself away from that homework and girlfriend of yours for two seconds... huh. I talked to her the other day. I don't like what you've got going on there."
"What are you talking about?" I said, coming closer to him. I could smell a little alcohol.
"I don't like the fact that you're dating her. I mean, if you're trying to tap that, you could be banging way hotter chicks-" I stopped him with my fist connecting with his jaw. That was enough.
"MIKE! I'm SICK AND TIRED of your shit! You will never talk about Bella in that way again, you son of a bitch!" I screamed at him. I'd never been big on cursing, but I was tired of him. I didn't want to hurt him badly, for my punch hadn't done much damage. It wasn't intended for that much damage. I just wanted him to shut up.
"One day, you're gonna pay. You and that little bitch-" I punched him again, this time it was harder. He stumbled backwards and fell onto the pavement, passed out cold. I looked around to see where his car was, but it seemed that he hadn't brought it. He must have walked from whatever party he was at. I struggled to pick him up and throw him in my car to drive him to his house. When I got there, his parents were out, what a surprise. I had done this before when Mike had been drunk. I pulled him upstairs and put him on his bed before getting in my car and driving off. I thought about what he had said, but had to continue reminding myself that he was drunk and didn't really mean anything he said.
I got to the store early the next morning. I hadn't gotten much sleep and I needed something to do. Janet greeted me and got me working. I put all of my effort into working until Bella got there. She kissed me quickly.
"Hey, gorgeous," she said.
"Hey, beautiful," I said, kissing her back again. Just then, Janet walked out from the storage room. We quickly untangled ourselves from one another and Janet just chuckled. We went to learn (and I to re-learn) how everything was supposed to be kept and worked diligently all day. We continued to work hard, but sometimes I just couldn't stay away from Bella. I needed to touch her, to kiss her. So I would sneak away for a few moments to do that, when Janet wasn't looking. If she did notice, she didn't care. We were young and in love and that seemed to please her.
After work, we decided to go out to eat. We went to the Italian place again and I paid, despite Bella's complaints. I loved doing things for her and loved making her feel loved. It did strange things to me to know that she loved me and that I could make her the happiest person on earth.
"So, what'd you do yesterday?" I asked.
"Well, nothing. Oh, well, Mike called me, but I made up some lame excuse. I had some 'homework' to do. He seemed pretty ticked, but I don't care. He's a jerk," I said, only half lying. There was no need to alert her about Mike's drunken excursions.
"Finally, five years later," she said, reaching across the table to lay her hand on mine. "I'm really glad you aren't hanging around him as much. He's not a good person. I've tried to like him for forever. I'm surprised you lasted as long as you did without realizing it."
"You bring out the best in me, Bella," I said, truly meaning what I said.
After supper, we walked back to our cars. It was fairly late, and the lights were off in the store. I was parked in front of Bella's truck, so I (reluctantly) left first. I gave her the cell phone before driving off. I started driving down the road when I realized I'd forgotten my jacket at the store. Turned around and began the drive back to Port Angeles. I was about ten minutes away from the store when I turned back, and surprisingly, I didn't pass Bella. She was a slow driver, but not that slow. I slowed down when I entered the city limits, wandering along the streets until the bookstore came into view. There, I saw two figures in the dim light of the streetlamp. One of them I recognized as Bella. The other figure had Bella up in the air before letting go of her and pushing her back through the store window. My tires squealed as I took off down the empty street, ignoring a few stop signs in my attempt to get to Bella.
I rushed out of my car, leaving it on, and jumping through the window after whoever had just done that to Bella. It was now kicking her. I could see blood everywhere as I pulled the figure off of her. I now knew it was Mike Newton. Mike fought against me as I pulled him away, off of Bella. He began punching at me and not making a connection with anything. I pushed him back into the bookshelves just to get him off me long enough to see if Bella was okay. He came back quicker than I thought he would and I continued punching him, kicking him, whatever I could do to get him to stop. I went into this with every intention of using as little violence as possible, but once I started to think of what he had just done to Bella, I couldn't stop. He was passed out on the floor and I was kicking him when I felt someone come up behind me and lay a hand on my shoulder. I stopped abruptly and turned to see Janet. I didn't even say anything to her, I just went to Bella. I looked over her and saw she was passed out.
"Bella? Bella?" I cried out, but she said nothing. She just moved her head and grunted a little. "No, No, don't move, please, don't move," I said.
"Police will be here in about two minutes," I heard Janet say. I ignored her.
"Gosh," I said, looking down at Bella, holding her hand, and knowing there was nothing that I could do for her right then. The police took Mike into custody as soon as they got there. When the ambulance arrived, I wasn't allowed to ride with her, even though I yelled and cussed more than I ever had in my entire life. I finally gave in and let them go. I didn't even realize there were tears in my eyes until Janet walked over and wiped them away. She wrapped her arms around me in a comforting embrace while I cried. I couldn't help it. I was just so frustrated, so mad. At myself. How had I not seen this coming? How had I let this happen right under my nose?
"You should get to the hospital," Janet said, pushing me towards my car once I stopped crying long enough to move away. I just nodded and went to the car to drive off, Bella's blood staining my hands.
A/N: Really really really long!!!!