Raum has started a new blog and featured FWtBT in one of her first posts. Go and give her some love for me: http:/myreadinglounge(dot)blogspot(dot)com/2010/12/intriguing-bookstore(dot)html.
Bella and Edward's argument was very polarizing for many of you. Some thought that Edward was a terrible tease and deserved to be shot, and some thought that Bella was a selfish bitch and Edward should cut her off. It was pretty funny to read, despite the fact that one or two people were really rude and pissed me off. I hope we all find a happy medium here somehow.
After Edward left, Bella got pissed.
Seriously, I'm the only woman in this hemisphere whose boyfriend won't let her give him a simple hand job, she fumed to herself. She banged around her apartment for a while, but the whole damn place was clean, thanks to Edward's help. She couldn't call anyone – how would she explain to Angela or Renée or her coworkers that she was seeing a guy who refused to allow her to satisfy him sexually? They'd advise her to run for the fucking hills, because the man clearly was not normal.
She was looking through her DVD collection, searching for something very angry involving lots of semiautomatic weapons, when there was a knock at her door.
"Edward," she sighed, for once not happy about the prospect of seeing him. She stomped to the door and looked out the peephole –
But it wasn't Edward.
"Hi," Alice said, looking sympathetic. Esme and Rosalie stood behind her.
Bella burst into tears.
"Is there something wrong with me?"
Bella was curled up on the couch in the fetal position, her head in Alice's lap. She munched on a bowl of popcorn while they all watched Face Punch.
"No," Esme said quickly, sitting up in the easy chair. "Of course not, Bella."
"It's all Edward," Rosalie declared from her prone position on the floor. "That boy has always been strange."
"Rose," Alice admonished. "I for one can kind of sympathize with him. I mean, he handled the situation all wrong, but he does have a valid concern."
"Where is he?" Bella ventured.
"He took your advice and went hunting with Emmett and Jasper." Alice made a face. "And the girls."
Bella sat up quickly. "The girls? Tanya went with them?"
"Relax, Bella," Rosalie said. "Nothing's going to happen. We made Em and Jazz promise to keep an eye on her."
Bella's tears started flowing again. "But…but…what if he decides he'd rather have a girl who he can actually sleep with? What if she catches him in a moment of weakness?"
"Bella, honey," Alice cooed, leaning forward and wrapping her strong arms around Bella's shoulders. "If that happens, I will personally rip off his balls and set them on fire, okay? But it's not going to happen. I promise."
"Humans cry a lot," Rosalie mused.
"She's had an exhausting couple of days," Esme admonished her.
"Actually, the girls might be able to give Edward some advice," Alice said thoughtfully. "Of all of us, they're the ones who are versed in relationships with humans."
"Heeey…" Rosalie smirked. "Good point, woman. I wonder if any of them have ever accidentally killed a guy. That would be a great story."
"So, you think he's right?" Bella said, wiping her nose and laying her head back down in Alice's lap. "He might somehow hurt me while…while…"
"Oh, sure," Rosalie said. "I'm surprised it hasn't happened already. No bruises after your previous rendezvous?"
Bella frowned. "Well…I guess a little. There were some darkish marks I noticed this morning in the shower. I just blew it off."
"We are extremely strong," Esme said. "It's difficult even to judge how tight to hug you, especially since you're so little."
"And I don't want to even think about him biting you," Alice said with a shudder. "All the vampires I know love to give and receive love bites. It's part of our sexuality. He's actually to be commended for his restraint thus far."
"Has he gone down on you yet?" Rosalie asked.
"Rose!"
"It's a serious question. Considering the consequences," Rosalie sniffed.
"Um…yeah, well, would it be all that bad if he did bite me?" Bella asked tentatively. "Would he go into a sharky frenzy or something?"
All three women gave her identical looks of horror.
"Bella," Alice said seriously, "has he explained nothing to you?"
"About what?"
"About us. About vampires."
"Um…I thought he had. Why?"
"It's not like he could just take a little sip and things would be fine," Rosalie said. "We secrete venom, girl. If his teeth get through your skin, you either die or you get changed. Period."
Bella pressed her lips together. "Oh."
"Vampire venom is completely deadly," Esme explained quietly. "When it hits your bloodstream, it causes agonizing pain, and soon it causes a metabolic reaction almost like petrification. It systematically invades all your organs until you die or you turn."
"But most of the time, it doesn't get the chance," Alice said. "Because we do actually lose it when we smell or taste blood. There are few who can control themselves well enough not to kill instead of change."
"I've never bitten a human," Rosalie announced proudly. "I'm the only one I've ever met who can say that."
"You did kill six of them, though," Alice said, glaring. "So don't get too cocky."
At Bella's confused look, Alice coughed. "Um. Long story. Anyway, back to Edward."
"Can we talk about him later?" Bella said tiredly. "I need an Edward-free evening, I think."
All three women giggled. "Preaching to the choir," Rosalie said.
"You are so fucking stupid." That was Emmett's take on Edward's situation.
"I know." Edward sighed. He was sitting on a gigantic boulder, Bella's panties bunched in his hands.
"Alice said something weird last night," Jasper said unexpectedly. He was lounging in a tall fir tree.
They all looked at him.
"Dude, Alice says something weird every fucking time she opens her mouth," Emmett told him.
"Don't go there," Jasper said evenly. "You're the one who voluntarily hangs out with Rosalie Hale. What I mean is that she had a vision. She couldn't really tell me what it was about. She said it was too vague. But while she was having it, she looked at me and said, 'Persephone is asking for something to eat.'"
"Yeah, that sounds like Alice." Tanya, who was sitting at the base of Edward's boulder, examined a fallen leaf minutely.
They were all hanging around in a small canyon in the Olympic National Forest, waiting for night to fall. Emmett claimed he preferred hunting at night, that the grizzly bears got more feisty after dark. The Denali girls told him this was bullshit, but he ignored them. Jasper had already caught a puma and they had all drained several elk. Things were going well; they were pleasantly full and feeling quite mellow. The conversation had turned philosophical. Then it had turned to sex. And then to Bella. And then to Bella's displeasure with Edward.
"Persephone was the Greek goddess of springtime," Edward mused.
"And the wife of Hades, the god of the dead," Kate said. "Sucked to be her."
"Are there any bobcats around here?" Irina asked. "I had one of those once, they were awesome."
"Bella smells like flowers," Jasper said.
"Keep your nose off of my girl," Edward said dangerously.
"So I bet Alice was referring to Bella-the-fragrant when she said Persephone," Kate offered helpfully.
"And who in the world could be her god of the dead?" Tanya inquired sweetly.
"I hate you all," Edward declared.
"So Alice says Bella is hungry, eh?" Emmett leered up at Edward. "Rawr."
"I have a feeling there was more to it than that," Jasper said. "She looked worried. Like she saw something that freaked her out."
"That happens to psychics, sometimes," Irina said. "They see things they don't like."
"Are you on medication or something?" Jasper asked her.
"No, wait," Tanya said suddenly. "When Hades carried Persephone off to the underworld, she didn't wanna go. But he made her eat some pomegranate seeds, which are the food of the dead, and so when her mom showed up all pissed, there was nothing she could do. Persephone had to stay in the underworld for part of the year, because she'd eaten the seeds."
"But Al said Persephone is asking for something to eat," Jasper said.
"Exactly." Tanya raised her eyebrows at Edward.
"So…uh…Bella wants some?" Emmett inquired.
"No, no, no," Tanya rolled her eyes. "That much is obvious. Alice means that Bella wants the change."
Edward jumped up. "Goodbye."
"We have to talk about this, Ed," Jasper said. His eyes were sympathetic. "I mean, what are you going to do? Let her get old and die and never sleep with her? I don't think she's going to go for that."
"Hell on earth," Irina agreed.
"Seventy years with Edward and no nookie? Death would be a gift," Tanya nodded.
"I give her plenty of nookie," Edward growled.
"Fuck that shit." Kate said seriously. "You can be the fucking king of hand jobs and she'll still want your dick, Edward."
"Plus, she's your mate, right?" Irina said. "Seriously, how long do you think you can hold out?"
Edward stared at her.
"Right?" Irina looked uncertain.
"Dude, she said the 'M' word," Emmett crowed.
"Oh, don't make me fucking laugh," Kate scoffed. "Of course she's your mate. How can you not know this? What the fuck?"
"Oh, God," Edward said faintly.
"We were going to break it to him gently," Jasper whispered.
Alice came over to Bella's apartment after work on Monday with Chinese food.
"Alice, I have leftovers coming out of my ears," Bella complained, but she dug into her sweet and sour chicken anyway.
"The guys are headed back tomorrow," Alice announced. She looked extremely smug about something.
"Oh, good," Bella mumbled.
"Don't worry, Edward's coming around. He got some very helpful advice."
"Did you talk to them?" Bella asked.
"No, I had a vision." Alice beamed at her. "But I'm not going to tell you any more, so just eat up."
"Um." Bella ate.
"So I have to go," Alice said after Bella had eaten her fill. "I only came by to tell you that things are looking up. Esme and Rosalie and I are going to head out as soon as the boys get back. I'm dying for something more filling than freaking raccoons."
"Uh, okay. I'll see you later, then." Bella stood awkwardly and gave Alice a tentative hug, trying not to think about her new friend slaughtering small woodland creatures.
"We'll be back soon. And…" Alice's eyes went distant for a moment. "Don't do anything dangerous, okay?"
"Okay."
Bella didn't even remember Alice's warning when her cell phone rang later that night. She picked it up and nearly dropped it when she saw the name on the caller ID.
"Billy?"
"No, it's me."
"Jacob!"
The characters really hijacked this chapter from me. I'm not really sure why Bella cries all the time, except that she's got to be on emotional overload, falling in love with sexy vampire boy. Kate turned out to be a total potty mouth, and Irina a space cadet. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed the histronics. Happy New Year!