3
After getting all of our stuff unpacked, Bella and I ordered a pizza and settled in my room. I think Bella was nervous about being in her room all alone with Maggie. She still had moments where the dark shadows crept their way into her eyes, making it difficult for her to let anyone close, anyone but me. Maggie came looking for her and ended up staying and enjoying the pizza with us.
"Man, this shit is good," she muttered, mouth full of cheese pizza.
"It's not bad," I agreed as the door to my room opened and Liam came in. He stopped and looked from Maggie, who was sitting on his bed to the pizza in front of her, and smiled.
"Fuck, a hot chick and a pizza?" he asked. "Eddie-"
"Edward, not Eddie," I sighed, ignoring Bella's laughter.
"That's what I said. Dude, you didn't have to get me a woman or a pizza," snickered Liam.
"Fuck you, asshole," snapped Maggie, flipping him off.
"With pleasure," laughed Liam, completely amused by her. He sat down on his bed, snagging a slice of pizza from her. "Thanks, babe."
"My name is not 'babe,' fucker," she hissed, grabbing the pizza from him. "It's Mags and don't touch my food."
"You could share," he muttered, pouting. "I'm letting you sit on my bed, looking all hot and shit."
"Ugh, you're a jerk," laughed Maggie. "Fine, one slice."
"Three," smiled Liam.
"Two," smirked Maggie, "and you have to go get us all a soda."
"Deal," agreed Liam.
Liam followed through with his end of the deal, and ran down to the lobby, grabbing us all a drink. The four of us spent the rest of the evening with him hitting on Maggie and her shooting him down. Bella laid her head on my shoulder, listening to their banter. It didn't take long for the exhaustion to catch up to her though, and I walked her back down to her room.
"Goodnight," I whispered, leaning down and kissing her.
"Night," murmured Bella.
I headed back down to my room and got ready for bed, just leaving on a pair of shorts. The beds were uncomfortable and it felt like I had just laid down when someone started banging on the door to mine and Liam's dorm room. Shifting my eyes over to the clock on my desk, I saw that it was nearly two in the morning.
"What the fuck?" he muttered, reaching over and flicking on his light. Dread filled me as I had an eerie feeling; an all too familiar feeling. Scrambling out of my bed, I threw open the door and found Maggie standing there, fist up as she prepared to bang on the door again, and panting slightly.
"It's Bella, right?" I asked.
"Yeah, she's freaking out," muttered Maggie.
"Fuck," I spat, pushing her out of the way and running down the hallway.
The other people who lived on our floor had started coming out of their rooms, trying to figure out what the fuck was going on. By the time I was half way to Bella's room, I could hear her screaming. The usual words coming out of her mouth as she begged us not to leave her. Mentally, I slapped myself for not realizing that the stress of moving and leaving her family behind was going to set off the nightmares again. When I got to her room, I found Bella thrashing around on her bed, clawing at her arms and screaming.
"NO, PLEASE, DON'T LEAVE ME!" Bella's pleas echoed through the room. "COME BACK! EDWARD, COME BACK!"
I climbed on the bed, and wrapped my body around hers, holding her as close as I could. From the doorway, I saw Maggie and Liam watching with looks of pure horror on their faces. Placing my lips right against Bella's ear, I whispered, "Baby, I'm here."
"Edward, don't leave me," she cried, clinging to me.
"Never, baby," I murmured, slipping my leg over hers and pinning hers down to the bed. "I've got you. You're safe now."
"Please," whimpered Bella.
"Shh, I'm here," I said, soothingly. "I'm here."
Slowly, Bella's body stopped shaking and her breathing started to slow, falling into a peacefully rhythm. Looking over at Maggie and Liam, I whispered, "She's fine now but I have to stay with her or she's going to freak out again."
"She was screaming," muttered Maggie.
Closing my eyes, I sighed. "I know, but she's okay right now."
"She's okay?" asked Maggie, voice rising. Bella whimpered and Maggie pressed her lips together. "Didn't seem like she was okay when she was begging you not to fucking leave her," she hissed.
"Look, just don't make a big deal about it and I will talk to her tomorrow about it," I begged. Maggie looked doubtful. "Mags, please, just...give her some time."
Shaking her head, Maggie sighed. "Okay, I guess I'll have to trust you."
"Mags, you can stay with me if you want," suggested Liam. Maggie cocked her eyebrow at him. "You can sleep in his bed," said Liam, putting his hands up.
"Fine, but don't get any ideas, pretty boy. I can kick your ass," she muttered, grabbing her pillow off her bed. "Let's go."
Maggie shut the door behind her, but not before she and Liam both gave us a look that clearly said they thought we were both insane. Bella whimpered again as I reached down and pulled her blanket up over us. I tried to get as comfortable as I could in her tiny twin size bed but there wasn't much room. Pressing my lips to the top of her head, I closed my eyes and let the pure exhaustion pull me under.
"NO!" screamed Bella, scrambling out of her bed. Snapping my eyes open, I looked over and found her on the floor, crouched down and trying to protect herself. The sun was shining in through her windows and, I swear, I heard a fucking bird singing outside. Fucking chipper birds.
"Bella, it's okay," I said, slowly as I climbed out of her bed. She lifted her eyes to me, they were full of fear. "Hey, it's okay."
"I need to run," she muttered, teeth clenched.
"Okay, let's go run," I agreed, quickly.
Bella nodded her head and scrambled to her feet. She stripped off her pajamas and slipped on a pair of cotton shorts and one of my shirts. My Who T-shirt, in fact. The very one she wore the first time she needed me to hold her while she slept.
"You ready?" she asked, looking up at me through her lashes.
"Yeah."
Bella and I headed down to my room so I could change. She waited in the hall, muttering something about not wanting to get in the way. I think she was just embarrassed that she had a nightmare and they knew about it. Liam was passed out on his bed, arm slung over his eyes and snoring quite loudly. Maggie was curled up in my bed, pillow over her head as she tried to drown out Liam's snoring.
Since I already had shorts on, I just grabbed a shirt and my socks, shoes, and iPod, and headed out into the hallway. Bella was already listening to her iPod. Her eyes were wide and fearful. I slipped my shirt on and pulled my shoes and socks on before wrapping my arm around her waist and leading her over to the elevator.
Since neither of us knew our way around campus very well yet, we ended up just taking off running and hoped we could find our way back. Bella pushed herself hard than I had seen her do in a long time. The entire time we were running, she clenched and unclenched her fists over and over. I could do nothing but try to keep up. This was just how Bella dealt with things.
Falling onto a bench in the middle of campus, she bent over and placed her head between her knees. "Fuck, this is a huge campus," she panted.
"No shit," I gasped, ignoring the burning in my lungs as I breathed deeply and I was in good shape. Bella and I never slowed our training down. Sitting down next to her, I clutched at my side. "You gonna tell me what happened?"
Bella looked over at me, frowning. "I woke her up, didn't I?" she asked. I nodded. Bella turned away from me. "You weren't there," she muttered. "In my nightmare. You weren't there and I was looking for you but I couldn't find you."
"You know I'm never leaving you, right?" I asked, reaching over and taking her hand in mine.
"I do," admitted Bella, looking back at me. "Was she completely freaked out?"
"Yeah," I sighed, nodding my head.
"Fuck," she muttered, shaking her head. "I haven't had one in months."
"I know," I said, quietly. Bella slid over and laid her head on my shoulder, slipping her legs over mine. I wrapped my hand around her knee, holding her legs up on mine, and moved my other arm to around her waist. "Do you need to call them?"
"It's been less than a day," she murmured, knowing I asking about her brothers. She tilted her head up to me. "Kind of pathetic, huh?"
"No," I smiled, kissing her. "Come on, let's get back so you can call and then we can grab some breakfast before our meeting with Phil."
"Okay," murmured Bella.
It took us almost ten minutes to find our way around campus and find our way back to the dorms. Bella pulled me into her room with her, freezing when she saw Maggie sitting cross legged on her bed. In fact, Maggie looked worried and a little scared. Bella shifted from one foot to the other before she walked over to her desk and picked up her cell phone. She left her hands travel across my chest as she walked past me and out into the hallway.
I tried to sound reassuring when I said, "She's not dangerous."
"Yeah." Maggie nodded her head but I could tell she didn't believe me.
"Yeah," I echoed, pulling the door shut behind me. I walked down the hall to the balcony that looked over campus. Bella was sitting in the ledge, dangling her feet over as she talked on the phone.
"I know," muttered Bella. "I'm trying but it's hard...I don't think I can do that...You know why, Car...He did, all night." Looking back at me, she smiled. "I just really miss you...I am a girl, dickweed." Bella laughed. "Okay, hang on," she murmured, turning back to me she held out the phone. "Carlisle wants to talk to you."
"Okay," I said, taking the phone from her. I threw my leg over the ledge and sat with Bella tucked into me. Bringing the phone up to my ear, I muttered. "Carlisle."
"It doesn't sound like you are taking care of her, boy," he growled.
"Would you prefer we shared a room?" I asked.
"NO!" he bellowed. I pulled the phone away from my ear and Bella laughed silently.
"I am doing everything I can for her, Carlisle. I promise," I reassured him. Through the phone, I heard him sigh.
"I know, kid. Look, it's going to be rough for a few days but you have to do everything you can to make sure she feels safe."
"I am."
"I know you are, but...don't be afraid to call, even at three in the morning, okay?" he asked.
"Okay," I said, nodding my head. "Is Esme okay?"
"She's okay, Edward. Don't tell her I told you but she cried," he chuckled.
I laughed. "Tell her we're okay, will ya?" I asked.
"Sure thing, kid," he replied. "Let me talk to Bella."
"Here." I handed Bella.
"Hey," she murmured, into the phone. "Yeah, kind of nervous. It's a whole new ballgame here...I promise...Tell Em and Jas I love them, okay...yeah, I love you, too, Car...I will soon...okay, bye." Bella hung up the phone and laid it on the ledge in front of her.
"Feel better?" I asked.
"Yeah," she said, quietly. "They've just been my anchor for so long, Edward."
"You don't have to explain anything to me." I smiled, kissing her. "I miss Esme, too."
"God, we're so pathetic," she groaned. "Less than a day apart from our siblings and we're whining about missing them."
"Seriously," I snorted.
"Thank you for holding me last night."
"I'll hold you every night, if you want," I suggested.
"I do, but something tells me Maggie isn't going to like that too much."
"She just doesn't understand," I said.
"Yeah, I'm sure that's it," muttered Bella, sliding off the edge. "I'm going to go take a shower. Meet you by the elevators in twenty?"
"I'll be there."
Bella slipped her hand to the back of my neck and pulled my lips down to hers, giving me a quick kiss before she turned and left me alone. Sighing, I climbed off the ledge and followed her inside but headed down to my dorm room. Liam was sitting on the edge of his bed, tying his shoes when I came in. He looked up and smiled, but it was off.
"Hey," he said, standing up. "Is she okay?"
"She's fine," I muttered, shortly. "Gonna shower so..."
Without giving him a chance to say anything, I grabbed my shower stuff and headed down to the bathroom. I hung up my towel and clean clothes before starting the shower, letting the water heat up until it was nice and hot. The water scorched my back and shoulders, but at the same time, it felt good. Between the run, the twenty hour car ride, and sleeping with Bella in her tiny bed, my body ached.
I finished my shower and dried off, not bothering to shave this morning. Bella always seemed to like a little bit of stubble. I got dressed, pulling on my khaki cargo shorts and Clash T-shirt. Always go back to the basics, you know, and the Clash, definitely ranked in the basics. I brushed my teeth before heading back down to my room. Like I knew he would be, Liam was already gone. Can't say I was too surprised. Tossing my towel and running closes on the floor, I headed down to the elevator.
Bella was already waiting for me, tapping her foot nervously as she stared at a spot on the black and white speckled tiles. She had on a pair of black cotton shorts and a black tank top with a pair of ruby red lips that stretched across her chest. I walked up to her, slipping my arms around her waist, and pulling her into my arms. She sighed and looked up at me, letting her hands come to rest on my chest.
"You look beautiful," I said, smiling.
Bella blushed. "Thanks," she murmured. "You don't too bad yourself, handsome."
"Gee, thanks," I scoffed, kissing her. "I'm fucking starving."
"Me too," she laughed, reaching behind her and hitting the button. "Food sounds kind of good, too."
As the doors opened behind her, I growled and pushed her in, pressing her against the walls. The doors closed behind us just as I crushed my lips down onto hers. Just like every time we started making out, our kisses became more intense. Our lips moved faster, harder. I wrapped my hand around her thigh, pulling her leg up over my hip, literally picking her up off the ground. Bella wrapped her other leg around my waist, thrusting her tongue into my mouth.
"Oh, holy fuck," gasped a girl. Breaking our lips apart, Bella and I looked over and saw Missy standing with her hand on the doors, holding them open. We hadn't even realized we had reached the lobby. "This kind of explains why your dick brother went all caveman on me yesterday," she giggled.
"Yeah, sorry," muttered Bella, dropping her feet to the ground and rushing out past her.
"Don't be," laughed Missy. "That was hot."
My ears were flaming as I walked past her, trying very hard not to make it too obvious that I had a raging hard on in my pants. Based on the hysterical that followed me, I don't think I hid it very well. I caught up with Bella outside, who was a little pink in the face, but didn't say anything about getting caught making out in the elevator. Instead, she slipped her hand into mine as we walked over to the dining hall, having ran by it this morning.
The dining hall was huge, offering everything from cold cereal to waffles to pancakes to eggs and everything else you could think of. There were two stories to the dining area, and it looked like the entire bottom floor was full. So once Bella and I had our breakfast, her with a bowl of maple and brown sugar oatmeal and me with cinnamon toast crunch cereal and some orange juice, we headed upstairs.
Maggie and Liam were sitting at a large table towards the back of the room, heads leaning toward each other and whispering furiously. Like they could feel us, they both looked up and stared. Bella snorted and led me toward a small table on the other side of the room from them. We sat down and she picked up her spoon, scooping a large amount of her oatmeal.
"Almost like high school again," she muttered.
"Kind of," I agreed, pouring my milk over my cereal. "Do you think we should explain everything to them?"
Bella pursed her lips as she looked over at them. "No," she said. I followed her gaze and noticed that they were still staring at us. "I think we should just fuck right here and give them a reason to stare."
I burst out laughing, choking on my cereal. Bella fell back in her seat, laughing with me, or at me. Whichever you choose. "Baby, one of these days you are going to randomly say that and I am really going to take you right then and there," I smirked.
"Promise?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows at me.
"Oh, yeah," I growled. "Hard, too. And fast."
"Tease," she muttered.
"I'm the tease?" I sputtered. "You're the one who keeps teasing me with offers to fuck everywhere and anywhere."
"I'm waiting for you to take me up on one of them," she smirked.
"You're such a fucking vixen, Baby," I purred, slipping my arm around her waist and pulling her chair closer to mine. Lowering my lips down to her ear, I whispered, "And I fucking love you."
"I fucking love you, too," she murmured, turning and kissing me. "Now, let's eat. Our meeting starts in half an hour."
With one last kiss, Bella leaned back over and started eating, looking over her shoulder at Liam and Maggie once more. Placing my arm on the back of her chair, I sighed inwardly. So far, things weren't going nearly as good as we were hoping they would. I hoped it wasn't a mistake for us to come here to go to school.