Chapter Nine
"Bella, you have to stop tripping."
"Huh?" Alice has caught Bella mid chew. The brunette is gaping, food half chewed in her mouth. Alice's delicate finger goes underneath Bella's chin to close her mouth. Bella continues chewing, swallows.
"I know what you're doing," she says, sitting down next to Bella. "And I don't think that's a good way to becoming fast friends with Rosalie."
Bella immediately flushes red because of course Alice noticed. Rosalie had noticed too but given up on commenting on it- still, did the blonde know the real reason behind Bella's actions? That was the bigger question.
"Who else knows?" Bella asks because there is no point in denying this.
"Just me right now. But Emmett has his suspicions, so does Jasper and my parents. Edward probably has not noticed because he's too busy being in love with you, and Rosalie," here Alice shrugs. "I don't think she knows why you're actually doing it but she does know it's probably not an accident."
Bella wants to sink into the ground. "Was I really that obvious?"
Alice offers her a half smile, wry and pitying. Bella groans. Alice pats the back of the brunette's hand. "But, you don't have to continue doing this. You can do something else to get closer to her. Do you want my advice?"
Bella shakes her head. "Not right now. I'm currently dying of mortification."
Alice rubs Bella's back. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. I would totally do the same."
Bella is just sullenly silent before taking another bite and chewing thoughtfully on it. She hesitates before her next words.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure. Anything," Alice offers earnestly.
"When a vampire vamps out, because of like, running into a wild animal or something, would they like, you know, chomp down on someone's neck and drink their blood?"
Alice narrows her eyes. "That is an oddly specific question." She was not expecting this topic; seemed she hadn't looked into the future to see this coming.
"I'm just curious. About you guys, is all," Bella mumbles, avoiding eye contact.
"It would make us want to bite down and drink blood. Because we're in fight mode."
"What about...kissing? Would a vampire want to kiss you?"
"Cuz of vamping out?" Alice frowned, propping her hand up under her chin. "No...that's not the norm." Something flashes in Alice's eyes. "Is this about Rosalie? Did this happen during the camping trip?"
"No!" Bella blusters out, eager to not have Alice discover the truth. "Why would you think that and not Edward?"
But Alice slinks back into her seat with a cat like grin. "No, you're right. It could be him too." But she says it like she doesn't mean it.
And that is how, Alice learns about something she shouldn't, before either of the two affected parties do.
School ends and summer is here. Which means a trip with the Cullens.
Bella hadn't planned one out. She'd just wanted to chill over the summer. Do nothing but read books and avoid the heat of the outdoors. Edward had different plans. "We're taking you with us to Italy." He had announced one afternoon as he and Bella were at the bookstore, looking for Bella's summer selection.
Bella nearly dropped a heavy book on her foot. "Why?" she blurted out, shocked.
"Don't worry about asking your father about it. I already asked him and he said yes."
Bella feels a sting of betrayal from her father. He hadn't mentioned anything to her about this!
"But Edward, you didn't ask me," Bella points out, putting her books back on the shelf.
"It was to be a surprise."
"I certainly am surprised but not in the good way," Bella commented, watching as his face dropped.
"You don't want to go?" he asked, not understanding her lack of enthusiasm. "Is it the money? You don't have to worry about that-"
"It's not that, Edward," she cuts in. "I'm just not the traveling type. My summer plans include reading books and not doing anything else."
He takes her hands into his, looking deeply into her eyes. "Bella, I know you like doing your own things, but this...this is a big deal for me. I've always wanted to go on a trip with my significant other. To someplace as romantic as Italy. We have a huge villa there. You don't even have to go explore the country if you don't want to. You can stay there and read all the books you like and I'll stay there with you. I just...my family goes each summer there and I don't want to be away from you."
Bella furrows her brow. Edward's asking a lot from her, but...but she didn't know the whole family was leaving. She bites her bottom lip. She knows how stupid this will sound, but she doesn't think she can last a whole summer without having the Cullens to rely on. A whole summer without Rosalie's stupid face.
"Okay, let me think about it. I'd have to pack," Bella sighs softly because yes, she's apparently crushing so bad on Rosalie that she'd go to another country for her. Damn it, Bella sort of wished she didn't know she liked Rosalie because then it wouldn't hurt like this, knowing that she and Rosalie would never amount to anything.
"Alice already packed a bag for you," Edward admitted and Bella rolled her eyes. Of course Alice would.
The villa is a fucking mansion. Even bigger than the one in Forks. Edward gives Bella a tour of it and the brunette can't wait to see all the spots she can read books in, curled up with a nice glass of lemonade and ignoring the nature outside. She's never been overseas before and to be honest, now that the flight is over, she kinda thinks she likes it. Maybe she should travel more, see the world a bit. She thinks she'll tell Edward she wouldn't mind him showing her some touristy spots in the city.
This villa can be easy to get lost in. Bella's walked in Emmett's room by accident. She's stumbled into Esme and Carlisle sharing a loving stroll through the garden's together. Bella's nearly walked out a door which turned out to be a window. She's definitely gotten lost in the vast wine cellars that look like they come from the Cask of Amatiado.
Edward gave her a tour but she still gets lost regardless.
And then Bella stumbles into a room Rosalie is in. The blonde is in what seems to be a garage, working on a car. Bella doesn't notice Rosalie is even there. Bella just sees the car first, an expensive model with the hood popped up and all the doors open. Who just left it like this? She gets closer, peers inside, when she feels something cold clamp onto her ankle from the under carriage of the car.
She jumps and smacks her head so hard into the car roof that she blacks out for a moment. When she comes to, she's on the floor of the garage, Rosalie crouching over her. With Bella's vision all light and fuzzy still, Rosalie quite possibly looks like a living goddess now. Her blonde locks are glowing, strands curling around her face. Her red lips seemed even redder.
"You're alive. I was worried I'd have to give you mouth to mouth," the blonde sighs out in relief.
"Mouth?" Bella garbles and Rosalie's sitting her up.
"You hit your head hard," she says, voice soft like Bella's never heard it be before towards her. But that might just be because Bella hit her head hard and her hearing is also kinda wonky right now. Bella winces at the pain and feels something cold placed on her head. It's an ice pack. Rosalie's holding it there. Bella goes to hold it in place, only to see she somehow cut her hand on the fall down. "Can you sit in that chair?" Rosalie asks and Bella mumbles out a quick yes before allowing Rosalie to help her up to her feet. Bella sways and bumps into Rosalie who doesn't push her away.
Despite the smell of motor oil, Rosalie's scent still stands out over it. Bella inhales deeply and allows Rosalie to put her on the chair. "Give me your hand," Rosalie orders, still sounding so kind. Bella does.
"Be careful, something grabbed me under the car," Bella says, though Rosalie's a vampire. What should she be afraid of. Bella wonders what it was. An alien maybe? Rosalie's back which is turned to Bella, tenses a bit and when she turns around it's with a sheepish look. She's carrying antiseptic in her hand and gauze. "That was me. I was under the car working on something and I wanted to scare you."
Bella feels dumb. "Oh."
They say nothing, just stare at each other. "Well," Bella says slowly. "You scared me good."
Rosalie gives a wry smile and then goes to attend to Bella's wound.
Because Bella's mouth doesn't know when to stop, she starts speaking.
"So...you apologized to me," Bella states slowly as Rosalie bandages Bella's wounds, going a bit rougher on this.
"I did," Rosalie says tensely, looking down at Bella's wound and not up at her, because for reasons.
"Why?" Because now that Bella has had more time to think about it, why was the vamping out incident a reason for Rosalie to apologize?
"Can't you just accept the fact?" Rosalie asks and now her voice sounds more like herself. Irritated, a half growl. Insults waiting on her tongue.
"No, I can't," Bella stubbornly plows onward. "Because I don't want us fighting. I want us, if we can't be friends, then at least on amicable terms. And you apologizing to me is a sign that maybe we can be something like that."
Rosalie glares at Bella now. "I hate you," Rosalie whispered, voice choked with emotion. "I was fine not knowing you because it made it easier to hate you. But you just kept pushing to be my friend and I can't hate you like I want to anymore."
Bella isn't expecting this. It catches her off guard so bad she laughs.
"Why is that so funny?" Rosalie asks, disgruntled.
Bella shakes her head, trying to make her laughter stop. "I don't know. It's just...it feels nice I guess to hear you don't actually hate me."
"Didn't I just start that sentence with me telling you I hate you," Rosalie points out, getting to her feet.
"Yea, but it's like you said later on, that it's not the same type of hate. So you don't hate me hate me," Bella explains and Rosalie just huffs and shakes her head. She doesn't say anything, getting back to work on the car. She let's Bella stay and watch her work.
Bella's plans of reading don't go accordingly, when Alice drags Bella on a shopping trip the second week here. They go at night, and Edward and Rosalie tag along. Edward because he's Bella's boyfriend and Rosalie because she's just looking for some new nice clothes.
Bella complains and whines but Alice cannot be talked down, wanting to use Bella as a model and try out some new fashions on her. "I'm buying you clothes."
"Do not," Bella says and she's not joking.
"I will. Consider it your tourist memorabilia of this place," Alice says just as seriously and Bella sometimes really hates how rich they are because they do stupid shit like this. Bella puts up with Alice's habits while Edward watches with amusement, saying Bella looks stunning in every single outfit she is tormented to put on. Rosalie goes off to do her own thing and Bella can't stop the pang in her chest that wishes Rosalie had stayed.
By the time the mall closes, Rosalie shows back up, clearly looking unhappy but for once not at Bella. She whispers something to Edward who stiffens up and puts a protective hand on Bella's waist, dragging her closer. Alice takes Bella's right side, Rosalie takes the back. They're forming a protective circle around her and she wonders why.
"What's going on?" she asks but none of them will answer which is pissing her off. They just look stony faced, bodies stiff and eyes searching. They make it out of the mall like this, walking down the street towards the villa. They don't get far before three men step out in front of them, cloaks swishing around them. They slipped out of the shadows like water, silent.
Vampires, Bella thinks and she isn't wrong when her vampires bristle next to her. "Edward...?" she trails off under her breath and he presses himself closer to her. They all do.
"Relax, we do not come in harm, but in peace," one of the male vampires speaks. The bigger one. He pulls down his cloak's hood and reveals himself.
"Alec," Edward bites out, cordial but reluctantly so.
"We heard the Cullens were in Italy. And who do we see but a little human pet with them," Alec says, his Italian accent thick. Bella's hands start to sweat. Who are they? "And last time the Cullens were in Italy, we had some unfinished business."
Alice hisses next to Bella but Alex puts up a hand. "Calm down little Alice, the rest of your family is fine. They are already in our quarters, awaiting to have a little chat with us." His eyes rake over Bella. She shivers in disgust.
"Alice, is that true? Are our parents, Emmett and Jasper with them?" Edward asks. Alice nods her head solemnly yes, having looked forward to see this.
"We can't actually go with them! Are you stupid!" Rosalie hisses from behind.
"We don't have a choice," Edward mutters back as the three vampires wait. "No one turns down an invitation from the Volturi." Then louder, and directed towards those three men, Edward speaks. "We shall come. But we have to escort Bella back to our villa."
"Nonsense. Bring the human. We insist," Alec smiled, a very unwelcoming smile.
Bella swallowed nervously.