"Bella! Stop stalling!" Edward said exasperatedly as he slumped back into his chair.
"Fine! You're lying about…the broken bones." I said, making a snap decision. It had only been a minute or two, but Edward was apparently impatient.
"Wrong. I…wait. You got it…right?" he asked, clearly astonished.
"Thanks for that vote of confidence, Edward." I said sarcastically as I snatched the pad of paper and put a tally by my name.
"How did you know?" he asked in awe. Clearly, Edward was not used to losing.
"I didn't," I told him as I doodled mindlessly on the paper. "I guessed."
"Fine. You win…this round. Your turn." He said smugly. Unfortunately, he had reason to be. I was a terrible liar.
"Ok. Hmm…I managed to kill five goldfish in one week, I don't like stroganoff, and I'm obsessed with dogs." I said, flushing at the obvious lie.
"The third one." Edward said immediately. When I nodded, he grinned.
"Bella, I've known you for months know. Don't you think I would have realized if you were obsessed with something?" he admonished playfully as he marked a tally by his name with a flourish.
If only Edward knew of my real obsession…I'm sure that he'd be halfway to China now if he knew of my infatuation with him. Aw heck, who was I kidding? I was smitten. Head over heels. I was utterly, irrevocably in love with Edward Cullen.
"It doesn't help that you're a terrible liar." He added happily. I glared at him and his green eyes widened in mock surprise.
"We'll see about that. It's your turn." I told him.
"I can't whistle, I have two middle names, and I hate rap music." He listed calmly.
"Whistling." I told him instantly. His eyes darkened a shade as they narrowed, telling me that I had won again.
"How did you know?" he asked offhandedly, like he didn't even care.
"Well, for one, Alice is always saying your full name." I informed him as I stole the paper and made another tally.
"She has a bad habit of using full names, doesn't she?" he agreed.
"Isabella Marie Swan, why aren't you awake yet?" I mimicked her high, musical voice poorly. Edward chuckled though, which made me smile.
"Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, get over here right now!" he mimicked, sounding much more Alice-like.
We laughed for a moment more before I continued. "It doesn't help that last week you were whistling for three hours straight to drive Emmett crazy."
"Whatever. It's your turn." He said as he nonchalantly tried to scratch his back. I raised my eyebrows at him, but he sheepishly lowered his hand and waved me on.
"I've cheated before, I've never tasted alcohol, and I have no living grandparents." I lied.
"The third one." He said absent-mindedly. I nodded and let him mark the paper.
"You cheated?" he finally asked, seeming surprised.
"In the fifth grade on a spelling test. The kid next to me was the smartest person in the class, and I couldn't remember how to spell foreign." I explained with a smile. He burst into laughter though, so I giggled along with him.
"Bella, that's not cheating. Cheating would be what I did on a math test in sixth grade. I copied down an entire problem from the girl across from me." He told me, chuckling as he surreptitiously scratched his back again.
"Edward, you need lotion on your back." I told him as I got up to get the lotion. I could hear him groaning from inside the tiny bathroom, and I smiled and shook my head as I returned. "Here."
He proceeded to squirt some of the un-naturally pink goo onto his fingers, making a face at the slurping sound the bottle made. He then slipped his hand under the back of his shirt, attempting to reach the itchy spot. He kept at it for a good two minutes before he gave up, bringing his hand back out again in defeat.
"Bella?" he asked hesitantly. Oh no. No. He wouldn't ask me to…he couldn't ask me to…not with my attraction to him… "Can you help me out here?"
Crap. "Sure." I squeaked out, trying to appear blasé. Why couldn't I be more like Alice or Rosalie? I knew how I felt. I loved Edward. But I severely doubted that someone like him could belong with someone like me. He deserved someone who fit with him, someone like Rosalie with killer looks and confidence or Alice with bubbly charm and beauty. I deserved someone like Jacob. Still good, but nowhere near comparison with Edward.
"Thanks." He sighed appreciatively before getting up and turning around. I took a deep breath and shut my eyes for a moment before stepping closer to grab the bottle of lotion. I looked back at Edward and saw that he had already taken his shirt off, leaving it lying on the chair nearby. I tried not to suck in a breath, and only half succeeded, breathing in a shaky gasp instead.
"Edward!" I admonished. His back, while well-toned and as pale as the rest of him, was completely covered in tiny red spots. "Your back is covered!"
I began to dab a little lotion in each spot, making sure to not miss any one mark. He hissed the first time I touched his back, complaining that the lotion was cold. Carefully, I finished applying the lotion, making sure that it was sufficiently rubbed in at each spot.
"Thank you so much, Bella." He said gratefully, as he spun around. There was something in his eyes that I couldn't place, something that had become more common lately. I could tell he was happy, the way they were twinkling, but he was sick, so they were a bit glazed over. Something new was in his green eyes, and it caused my stomach to knot.
KNOCKKNOCKKNOCKKNOCKKNOCKKNOCK Someone rapped at the door.
"Who…" he asked, trailing off at the end as he shook his head. "I'll get it."
He began to put his shirt back on, when I realized what he was doing at put my hand over his to stop him. He looked down at me in confusion, his shirt tangled in his neck and arms.
"You'll get lotion all over it." I explained as I removed the fabric from his limbs. He thanked me again and padded off to the door.
"Ewmygawd! Edward!"I heard a sickeningly familiar voice squeal. Giggling in anticipation, I jogged clumsily to the door to see every minute of the upcoming show.
"Hello Meghan." Edward sighed tiredly. The red-head standing at the door was carrying a basket filled with oatmeal and calamine lotion.
"Edward! Are you sick?!? That's awful! Chicken pox, huh?!? I had them too! We should take a bath together!" she babbled on, making sure that everything she said ended in an exclamation point. At the bath suggestion, Edward's eyes widened and I swear I saw the back of his neck turn a faint pink. He turned around and mouthed for help desperately.
This would be good.
Music Listened To:
Samson, The Call, and Music Box (all songs by Regina Spektor-it was just a Regina kind of day), some Chopin, Heels over Head (Boys Like Girls), Invisible (Taylor Swift), Love You Out Loud (Rascal Flatts), Want To (Sugarland), This Kiss (Faith Hill), If You Were Gay (Avenue Q), Sun On My Face (Sugar)
Oh, and someone mentioned that you don't vomit because of the chicken pox (thank you, by the way). I realized that a little bit after I posted it, by which time it was too late. I had figured out where I wanted the story to go after I wrote that, so we'll pretend that they shared a Chinese dish and got food poisoning. Better?
I've really got to stop these author's notes that are longer than the chapters, but this chapter is dedicated to MeghanCullen, who was amazing enough to step in for me when I lost my voice today. Thanks MeghanCullen! I appreciate it!