Hey guys. I'm so sorry for not updating sooner, but I was having a little trouble with the idea flow. I have no idea where I'm going with this story, but as long as you guys like it, I'll keep trying to write it. Well, please R&R and I'll try and update sooner. =]

Disclaimer (since I haven't done it in a while): I unfortunately do not own anything.

Chapter 14

I wake up to fingers running through my hair and humming from above me. I open my eyes and look up at Edward. "Good morning," he says with a kiss to my forehead.

"Morning," I mumble. I lay my head back down on his chest and shut out the light. My eyes feel puffy and my face is stiff from dry tears. I just want to go back to sleep, but I know I can't when I feel like this. "I need a human moment." He releases me from his arms and I head to the bathroom.

After using the facilities, I wash my face and brush my teeth. I even go as far as brushing my hair and throwing it back up. Anything to feel refreshed.

And that's exactly how I feel when I walk to back Edward. Refreshed and relaxed. Surprisingly, I feel much lighter after telling Edward everything. Like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

I crawl back into bed and resume my previous position. Edward presses his lips to my hair as his arms wrap tightly around me. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Shockingly…much, much better," I answer, turning my head to look at him.

"That's good to hear." A small smile adorns his face. He sits up and pulls me into his lap with me straddling him.

"Where did Alice and Jasper disappear to yesterday?"

"Alice saw that we would need some time alone so she dragged Jasper to the mall."

"Poor Jazz."

Edward chuckles. "He'll be fine. He's used to being dragged through stores day after day. Besides, I'm sure he'll be rewarded for it later." He winks. I laugh and blush. He takes his face in my hands and suddenly becomes more serious. "Are you sure you're alright?"

I cover his hands with my own and look him in the eyes. "I'm positive. Talking things out with you has made me feel better. I've never told anyone that before and now I think it was weighing me down."

He smiles at me and gently presses his lips to mine. He pulls back and rests his forehead against mine. "What do you feel like doing today?"

"I was thinking I could give you that long-awaited cooking lesson. And then we can go to our meadow."

He grins. "Of course." He stands up, me clinging to him wit my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist, and runs us downstairs before I can even process what's happening. He places me on the kitchen floor and I stumble. He catches me. "Sorry. I forget that you're not used to the whole running thing."

When I've gotten my sense of balance back, I move away from Edward and towards the cabinets. Once I see what we have for ingredients, I start setting items down on the counter.

A strong pair of arms wraps around my waist and a chin rests on my shoulder. I lean back into him. "What are we making today, Chef Swan?"

I grin. "Well, Mr. Cullen. I though we'd start out with French toast. It's quick and easy."

"Okay, what do we do first?"

"First you need to release me." I look up at him smiling. He returns it with one of my favorite uneven grins. He opens his arms and I step out of them. "Second, can you grab two eggs and the milk?" He nods and goes to the fridge. I turn back to the cabinets for bread and cinnamon.

I only turn back around when I hear an "Oops" come from Edward. I turn to see him looking at me guiltily with broken shells in his palm and egg dripping from his hand. I laugh and go over to him with some paper towels. Cleaning his hand, I say, "How are we supposed to get started on our cooking lesson if you can't even bring the ingredients safely to the counter?" He shrugs and grins sheepishly. "You are a mess, Edward Cullen."

"Good thing you're here to clean me up."

I stick my tongue out at him and he chuckles, pulling me in for a kiss. I push him away and turn to the refrigerator smiling. I grab the eggs. "Think you can handle the milk, Hulk?" This time it's his turn to stick his tongue out at me. I laugh. It's just such a childish thing to do and it's even funnier coming from him. The proper and gentlemanly 107 year old vampire.

I go back to the breakfast bar, grab a bowl, and crack the eggs into it. I take the milk from Edward and pour a little into the bowl. I pour some cinnamon in before beating the contents of the dish with a fork.

Once I'm satisfied with it, I place a pan on the stove and let it heat. I take slices of bread and dip them in the mixture before placing them on the pan.

While I'm doing all this, Edward is intently staring at me while leaning against the counter. His eyes don't leave me once. A lot of good this cooking lesson was.

I take my French toast off the pan and place them on a plate. I find the maple syrup and let it rain on my food. The whipped cream is found in the fridge door and makes a nice little mountain in the middle of my toast slice.

I sit down at the breakfast bar across from the vamp and take a bite of my breakfast. Once I swallow, I say, "Take a picture, it'll last longer." He grins. "Did you learn anything from this?"

He nods. "I learned that you pay attention to none of your surroundings while you're cooking. And, you're much more graceful in the kitchen. You're almost normal," he teases.

I make a face at him and stuff French toast and whipped cream into my mouth. He just laughs.

I sit in silence for the rest of my meal and try my hardest to ignore him. I'm near failing.

"Hey people!" a female's voice calls from the foyer. Thank god!

"In the kitchen," Edward says. No need to yell. She can hear him.

"Good morning!" Alice says cheerfully, entering the kitchen with Jasper in tow.

"Good morning," I reply. "Hello Jasper." He responds with a nod of his head.

"How was your night?" Alice asks with a less cheerful expression on her face.

"It was…emotional," I say. "It was probably a good thing you weren't here," I tell Jasper. He smiles at me. "Anyways, how was your night? Where'd you disappear to for so long?"

"Well, first we went to Seattle to shop, just like Edward told you this morning. And we rented a hotel room. I'm sure you know the reason." I blush. "We went hunting and then returned to our room for the remainder of the evening."

I continue to blush, feeling guilty the entire time. I wish I could control it. I feel bad for testing Jasper this way. At least he doesn't look like he's struggling too much. And Edward's not growling. That's a plus.

"Do you have any plans today, Bella?" she asks, interrupting my thoughts. "I was thinking we could head into Port Angeles for the day." I struggle with my answer. I do have plans with Edward, but I'm still annoyed. Just because I'm clumsy doesn't mean I'm not normal.

I see Alice wink and I'm relieved. She must've foreseen the events of this morning. "No, I don't. I guess we could do that. I haven't been there much since I've moved here." Out of the corner of my eye, I see Edward looking slightly taken back by my answer. I'll apologize to him later.

"Woo!" Alice exclaims, jumping up and down and clapping her hands. "Let's go get ready." She grabs my hand and drags me to her room. She closes the door, turns on some loud music, and laughs. "Did you see the look on his face?"

"Yes, and I do feel somewhat bad about it, but he deserved it." Alice giggles again. "What are you thinking to keep him out of your head?"

"Mixing and matching outfits and trying to figure out the best colors for you."

I laugh. "I don't see how you do that and talk to me at the same time. I'd be a mess trying to do it."

"It takes years and years of practice. Even now I sometimes slip up. Edward isn't the easiest person to hide things from."

"Does it bother you that your own thoughts aren't even private?"

"Sometimes, but I'm sure everyone else is just as annoyed with me knowing what's going to happen. I know it annoys Jazz because I always know what he's going to do when he's trying to surprise me. Hell, my power annoys me too."

I don't know how to respond so I stay silent. "Anyways," Alice says, "Let's get you ready. You have a date to get to."

I smile and nod. I head off to the shower while Alice disappears into her closet. When I reenter her room, there's an outfit on her bed and no Alice in sight. Regardless of her absence, I look over the outfit she's chosen: A pair of dark skinny jeans, a dark green long-sleeved shirt, a navy raincoat and matching rain boots. Two awfully smart investments for Forks. Good thinking Alice.

When she still hasn't returned by the time I'm dressed, I decide to do my own hair and makeup. I blow dry my hair before throwing it up messily on top of my head. I apply a little bit of brown eyeliner and some mascara before declaring myself ready.

I turn back to the bed to grab my jacket and notice some things I didn't before: two blankets and an umbrella. Good ol' Alice. I put on the coat, grab the blankets and umbrella, and head downstairs.

I discover the no longer MIA Alice chatting with Edward in the living room. They quiet and look up when I enter. "Sorry about just disappearing. I was only getting my things out of the car. I didn't mean to take that long."

"It's okay, Alice. I can dress myself." I turn to Edward. "You ready to go?"

"I thought you were going with Alice to Port Angeles," he says stiffly.

I place my items down and go to him. I wrap my arms around him and look into his eyes. "Of course not. We had plans. I was only trying to get back at you fort he 'normal' comment."

He sighs and his arms circle my waist. He rests his forehead against mine as he responds. "I'm sorry. I never should've made that comment regarding your normalcy. I love that you're clumsy. It gives me more of a reason to keep you in my arms."

I laugh. "I'm sorry for making you think I ditched you. I like being in your arms," I say smiling.

"Aw, that's so adorable…Now get out of here," Alice commands. I giggle. Edward chuckles and leads me outside. We climb into Nancy and take off.

Our ride is fairly silent. It's a comfortable silence though. We sit there staring out our respective windows, holding hands across the console.

When we arrive at our "parking spot," I reluctantly climb into his arms for the running part of our voyage. I hold on tight to him with the blankets and umbrella between us. Once we reach the meadow, I'm more relaxed. My stomach can finally catch up with the rest of my body. His running is like an extreme roller coaster.

Edward kisses my forehead and takes a blanket from me to spread on the damp grass. He sits down and beckons me over. I smile and lay down with my head in his lap. My hair fans out and he begins to run his fingers through it. I close my eyes and marvel at our relationship and surroundings.

"I wish we could stay out here forever," I say, still not opening my eyes.

"We could. I'm not objecting."

I sigh and look at him. "But there are other things out here I don't want to be around."

"Like what? Wild animals?" I nod and he laughs. "Bells, you're currently cuddling with the most dangerous thing out here. Trust me when I say that no animal will dare come near you when I'm around."

"I don't know if I should be swooning at your protectiveness or running in terror because of your demonizing admission."

"Probably running, but I'm glad you're not."

I smile up at him. "Me too." He grins and leans down to press his lips to mine. "How is it that you can stand to do that?" I ask when we separate.

"Do what?" he responds, rubbing my cheek with his thumb.

"Kiss me."

"Mind over matter. I want more than just your blood, so it helps if I just ignore the part that only wants it. Of course, this is nothing. Just pressing our lips together doesn't really bother me. If it was to evolve into anything further, I'm sure my control would be tested." He pauses. "Besides, the more we kiss, the better my control gets."

I grin. "Well, I'm all for helping you improve your control."

"Me too." He presses his lips to mine again, his hand still resting on my cheek.

I smile against his lips as he goes to pull away. He gives me one quick kiss before leaning back on his hands. I remain in his lap.

"We should camp out here some night. Just the two of us." He looks at me and then up at the sky. "Well, obviously not tonight, since I'm pretty sure Alice was telling us it's supposed to rain when she left me the umbrella. But some other night."

"We will. I promise. Pick a day and I'll have Alice check the weather."

"Okay, no tent either. Just you, me, some blankets, and the stars."

"As you wish," he says, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

I close my eyes and rest my head back in his lap. I only open them when I feel water on my cheek. More keep falling, causing me to open my eyes. I sit up and smile at Edward. This is when it starts pouring. I scream. Edward chuckles. We stand up and I take his hand, running for cover beneath the trees, laughing. Only problem is…I trip.

A pair of strong, hard arms wrap around my waist before I hit the ground. He sets me on my feet, but doesn't release me. I look at him questioningly as he brushes his hand over my cheek. He leans in, pressing his lips to mine. I smile against his mouth before throwing my arms around his neck and kissing him with even more enthusiasm.

He pulls away when I need to breathe. He lifts me off my feet and spins us around. I throw my head back and laugh, feeling the rain pelt my face all the while.