The Twilight Twenty-Five
thetwilight25[dot]com

Prompt: 25 - Tent
Pen Name: Miss Winkles
Pairing/Main Character(s): Bella/Edward
Rating: M

Multi-chapter.

Photo prompts can be viewed here:
thetwilight25[dot]com/round-six/prompts

"Thanks for putting up with my emo ass."

Rose smiles, her fingers brushing my hair over my ear. "You're just lucky you're cute."

After driving across town in her pajamas, Rose picked me up and drove me all the way back to her place. Once I stopped crying, and finished an entire tub of Chunky Monkey, she let me crash on her sofa. By the time she drove me home the next morning, I felt a little hung over, and totally stupid. To make matters worse, when I turned my phone on, I found a bunch of missed calls and texts from Edward.

"What are you going to do?" she asks, turning the heater up.

I shrug. "I don't know."

Rose takes a deep breath and the car is quiet; the sound of the windscreen wipers cutting through the silence. "I get that you're upset, Bella. But put yourself in Edward's position."

"But what…"

"Bella," she says, squeezing my hand. "If Emmett and I broke up tomorrow…"

"But you won't."

"I know we won't, it's hypothetical…"

"It's stupid."

"Can you shut up for two seconds?"

I nod sullenly.

"If Emmett and I broke up, I don't think it would be easy for me to turn off my feelings for him..."

Fear bubbles in my chest, making my throat feel tight. "You think he still has feeling for Sam?"

"No…well, yes, but not in the way you think. Bella, Emmett is my best friend. Just because Edward and Sam aren't in love, doesn't mean there aren't feelings there – even if they are platonic. Did you honestly think he was going to go back to her after what she did?"

I'm trying my best to find the part of me that, not twelve hours ago, wanted to storm upstairs and rip Edward a new asshole. But Rose is right; I knew he wasn't going to hurt me, and I walked out on him when he needed me.

I am a giant asshole.

Rose smiles. "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

When I open the door to the apartment, I'm surprised to find it dark. The lights are off and the curtains are drawn. In the living area, beneath a white sheet that's been stretched across the sofa and some dining chairs, sits Edward.

"What's going on?"

Standing, he looks around nervously. "It's a tent. Well, it's supposed to be a tent."

I shift from one foot to the other, noticing the pillows and blankets under the tent. "Why?"

"You said you'd never been camping, so I figured this was the next best thing."

It's sweet…and I want to punch him in the face a little bit.

"Can you - uh, can you sit with me for a bit?"

It doesn't escape my notice that neither Sam, nor her things are here. Hope unfurls in my heart, blooming deep in my chest as Edward pats a pillow beside him, pulling me down to the floor. A string of fairy lights sag across the front of his makeshift tent, providing a tiny bit of light.

Looking at him properly for the first time, I can see he looks about as bad as I feel. His eyes are dull and heavy looking, and the thumbnail on his left hand is red and raw, a sure sign he's been chewing the ever loving fuck out of it.

"Sam's stuff is gone," I say, bringing my knees to my chest.

Edward nods. "She went back to Italy. I told her about you and me."

"And?"

"She took it pretty well actually."

I bet she did; stupid, perfect Sam.

Edward continues, talking so fast his words begin to blur into one. "I'm so sorry, Bella. I should have said something to Sam the moment she arrived I shouldn't have let you walk out and we should never have gone to that stupid restaurant!"

"So…why did you?"

"I don't know!" he says, throwing his hands up in the air. "It was just all so sudden. One minute you're about to climb me in the hallway, the next my ex-fiancée is in my face acting like we never broke up. I freaked out! I was such a dick."

His hands are practically ripping his hair out and he looks so sad, so scared. I turn to him, our knees touching. "Stop," I plead, pulling his hands from his head. "I'm sorry, too. I'm sorry I ran out last night…."

His eyes widen. "You what? No, Bella…"

"No, Edward! I feel shitty for leaving you. I should have stayed. A real girlfriend…"

His warm hand covers my mouth. "Please stop."

My face is warm and tingly when he takes his hand away, like I can feel every bit of skin he's touched.

"Can we just agree that we were both wrong?" I ask. "I feel shitty, you feel shitty; it's a whole shitty thing."

"Really? That's it?"

I nod.

"No begging or groveling? No silent treatment?"

My smile feels weird, foreign, like it might make cracks appear in my cheeks. "Oh, there'll be groveling. And breakfast in bed."

His eyes twinkle. "My bed?"

I shove him lightly. "Don't push it."

"Wait a minute, I don't remember asking you to be my girlfriend," he jokes.

I snort. "I'm sorry; did we wake up in middle school? Are you going to get Brad from English to ask me?"

He laughs loudly, his smile dazzling even in the dark. "I don't make the rules, Bella. It's just the way it goes."

"Well?"

He shrugs. "Yeah, maybe later. Ouch!" He rubs the spot between his eyebrows where I flicked him. Smirking, he lifts himself onto his knees in front of me, taking my hand in his.

"Bella Swan," he says quietly, kissing each of my fingers. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

It's stupid and corny, but it makes my heart skip a beat or two. "Sure."

He kisses the palm of my hand, grinning.

Then my wrist.

My inner arm.

My shoulder.

And finally, me.

Meg and Tiff are my wonderful sparkly red pens.

Thank you for reading, and for the reviews. If I haven't replied I apologize.

Another update to come and then we're back to our regular programming schedule.

x Wink