Whispering Woods
Chapter Forty-Eight
After the hot make out session on the third floor, Edward needed a cold shower. He'd be blue balling it for the next hour if he didn't get it under control, considering he shared the class with Bella.
He had no clue if she was some kind of cure all for his issues with his dick since they hadn't done much yet. Time would only tell, but getting a hard-on wasn't an issue at least. Desire seemed to be taking over, though, and he wasn't sure how much more he could take. Bella seemed to be feeling the same way.
They wanted each other something fierce and somewhat desperate enough to scare them. Neither had the insane amount of lust hit them hard enough to overcome their senses and logic.
If it hadn't been for a bright light pulling them away from a hot and heavy kiss, they would've been late for the class they had after lunch. They didn't even have time to find what caused the strange flash they caught at the corner of their vision.
Edward did his best to ignore the whispered and not so quiet speculations about him as they headed to class. According to the rumors he caught throughout the day, Bella put him under a love spell that had an adverse effect on him and sent him in a seizure. His favorite was whatever Bella did to him, being apart from her caused separation anxiety.
They did their best to ignore them, neither adding to the speculation by denying or admitting to anything. It wouldn't help, and it had the added benefit of no one bothering them. Most students gave them a wide berth while walking down the hallways.
Their biology class allowed Edward to sit beside Bella, fueling rumors. They didn't care, though it made it difficult to concentrate. His fingers itched to touch her, to brush the sliver of skin along the waistband of her jeans. She shook her head, her hair tumbling, the scent of it making his mouth water.
What the hell was happening? He hit puberty at twelve years old and would pop a hard-on with the slightest stimulation, either visual, mental, or physical. He managed to get it under control in a few months. The proximity of Bella made him feel like that again and lose his precious control.
Bella thought her skin couldn't burn any hotter without spontaneously combusting. Every inch of her body seemed to be primed and ready for something she didn't understand.
They needed to talk more with their families. Did the mating bond demand some kind of ritual? She read countless shifter books in the last few years that described mated characters meeting for the first time and their initial reaction.
She tried to remember how her parents acted around each other before her mother disappeared. Back then, Charlie had no problem with displaying his love for his wife. The years of mourning her after she went missing also indicated mates lived half-lives after losing the other.
It scared the fuck out of her.
She pulled out a notebook, furiously writing something, and pushed it to her left, enough for Edward to read.
Edward clenched his hands and his jaw. The urge to grab Bella and run was overwhelming. The edge of Bella's notebook hit his fist on the table. He pulled his hand under the table and looked at her.
Big fucking mistake, he thought. The flush in her cheeks went all the way down the V-neck T-shirt. The trio of freckles under the hollow of her throat drew his gaze, and he caught the fact her nipples were standing to attention. As if awaiting his tongue and the scrape of his teeth.
He had to cough to cover up his groan. Bella nudged her notebook toward him again.
We need to talk to Esme and Carlisle. They're mated, so they'll be able to tell us wtf is going on.
Edward looked up as Mr. Banner noticed them in his mind. "Damn kids, never pay attention. I'll teach them a lesson." Edward knew exactly what he planned on doing and shared a look with Bella who also realized what was about to happen.
"Why don't you tell us what Ms. Swan has to say, Mr. Cullen?"
A few students laughed; one suggested he read it out loud. Mr. Banner walked toward them, but Bella and Edward were too busy looking at the notebook, watching as the words reassembled or changed.
I'll let you use my notes for the class you missed. He allows us to use notes for pop quizzes and sometimes tests. I have most of it memorized, so I'm good.
A feminine print of carefully highlighted notes instantly popped up in an easy shorthand. Notes for the last few classes, looking exactly the ones she wrote.
Mr. Banner pulled the notebook before Edward could pull it away. "Well?"
"Bella was offering the use of her notes for class since we heard you were giving a pop quiz today instead of the lab. You were a few supplies short for the experiment and postponed it."
Mr. Banner huffed and rolled his eyes, aware that other students would warn others that took the same class. Not that he believed the young man, though he could admit Bella was his star pupil. He could never admit it to anyone. Not with the stigma placed on her pretty little head. Such a shame, she had so much potential.
He looked down at her note written on top of carefully taken notes.
Bella batted her lashes as Edward smirked when Mr. Banner simply placed the notebook on the table and apologized under his breath. "While it was nice of you to offer your notes, Ms. Swan, I don't want to see the notebook move between you again until after you completed your quizzes."
A student snickered, earning a glare of Mr. Banner. " I'm allowing the use of your notes, as I'm sure you heard by now. It's only five questions, each worth twenty percent. No excuses, I want to see you all do well."
The rest of the teacher's speech as he passed out the test questions was lost to Edward and Bella. They watched as her original message reappeared, but her notes remained.
It was both frightening and helpful. Edward could only shrug as he pulled the notebook to his side of the table and started the quiz, eager to get it done. The notes highlighted what he needed to answer all five questions.
Bella still finished first, but not long after, he dropped off the sheet of paper onto Mr. Banner's desk. He didn't bother to look up from a book he was reading. Her fingernails tapped on the desk surface, signaling her impatience. Not that Edward could blame her. They had so much shit happening, and though they agreed to the "no magic" rule when they arrived on campus, it was clear magic had a mind of its own. He hadn't asked for help, only imagined the note changing to prevent Mr. Banner from seeing about the mate thing.
Bella's meticulous notes weren't something he had even thought of, but the magic did. How couldn't that fuck with their heads?
They needed to talk with their family. The more they knew, the better. They couldn't afford to know so little because they felt something was coming.
AN: Thanks to Midnight Cougar for help with the chapter, any mistakes are mine since I can't leave anything alone. I know it's been a while, what can I say other than, life is a little insane. Next month, two of my kids are moving out and eight hours away, for college. How can two girls accumulate so much? Don't get me started on how expensive it is to move. After a long, long talk with my family, I put my foot down. I need to have time for myself. Self-care for me is writing and considering how inconsistent updates have been during the last year and a half, you can imagine what it's been like. The last few updates have been thanks to time at my local cafe. I missed it so much, and writing, and all of you. Thanks for your continued support.