Leah:
"This is so boring." I groaned, flopping my head back dramatically onto the headrest.
Charlie laughed around a bite of his turkey sandwich. Much to my chagrin our speed trap hadn't trapped a single speeder. We had actually clocked more people going under the speed limit than anything.
"Okay okay enough torture. This is much more exciting in the summertime when the tourists come around. Finish up your sandwich and we'll head over to the hospital."
"Hospital?"
"Yeah, the head of security has been having problems with gaps in their patrol system. They want us to come check it out and give them a few pointers." He said, crumbling his sandwich paper and tossing it onto the floor boards. It was really nice that he kept saying 'we' and 'us' even though I probably wasn't going to be able to help much with this particular mission.
We parked in front of the hospital in a spot just for police officers. Charlie was sure to point out the special treatment, clearly still keen on selling me on the many perks of becoming a cop. I had to admit it was seeming like a pretty sweet gig to me.
Charlie was met at the door by the head of security. "Hey Chief, just waiting on Dr. Cullen. He paged me and said he got caught up with a patient and was running a few minutes behind." Said a balding man with a weak mustache. He looked like a watered down Charlie. The thought had me biting my tongue to avoid laughing out loud.
"No problem Barley-" I lost it. I turned around and covered my mouth with my hand, desperately trying to disguise my laughter as coughing. Barley. No freaking way!
"Ugh sorry, something got stuck in my throat. Charlie I'm gonna go find some water if that's okay? I'm sure there's a vending machine here. Do you want anything?"
"Yeah sure kid, I'll take a root beer." Charlie said, pulling out his wallet. I waved him off.
"It's on me. Where should I meet you?" I asked, glancing over at Barley and having to bite my lip to keep from grinning.
"We're going to be over in board room 3. Might be best for you to wait in the hall outside though." Said Barley, eyeing me wearily. Oops.
"No problem." I said with a pleasant smile, my attempt at smoothing things over so Charlie didn't see me as unprofessional. I turned to walk away and find the vending machines. The hallway was long and I didn't see anything in it so I walked up to a sign on the wall with directions.
Cafeteria… 2nd floor
Okay so elevators. I headed into the small alcove next to the sign and pressed the arrow button pointing up in between two reflective metal doors, then stepped back to wait. A short minute later the elevator on the left opened and I climbed inside, lost in thought. I snapped out of it when I heard shuffling next to me and then someone clearing their throat.
"Hey! Duck savior!" I beamed up at the beautiful boy that I didn't think I would see again. I was happy to get another chance to actually introduce myself.
He chuckled and tugged his long fingers through his perfectly tousled hair. "Uh hello again. I don't believe I caught your name last time we met?"
"Right!" I stuck my hand out to shake his, "My name is Leah Clearwater." He took my hand in his and I was surprised to feel how cold it was, like grabbing an icicle. I forced myself not to react so as not to offend him. I figured that some people have bad circulation and it was honestly pretty cold in the hospital. When I pulled my hand away the absence of his touch left my skin buzzing. The current hummed its way up my arm and down into my stomach, forming a knot there. I tried to remember when it had ever felt like that when Sam touched me, even in the most intimate of ways, but I couldn't find a sensation to compare it to. Guilt rose in my throat like bile and ruined the sensation.
"Edward Cullen. It's nice to meet you, officially. Are you here on another life saving mission?" He asked, raising one sharp black eyebrow. Ding the doors opened and we both shuffled forward, moving off to the side and out of the way of a woman loading an elderly man in a wheelchair onto the elevator.
"No, I have been tagging along with the local police chief on Fridays. He is basically my uncle and he knows I'm interested in law enforcement so he's letting me get a feel for what it's like. He's in a meeting now and I'm on a very important mission to find him a root beer." I joked, and he flashed a crooked smile.
"Have you already graduated?" He asked, and even though he looked older than me I worried for a second that he was too young. Too young for what, Leah?
"No not yet, most seniors on the reservation don't have classes on Fridays. What grade are you in?"
He looked hesitant so I didn't take that as a good sign. "I'm a junior this year." He said ruefully, rubbing the back of his neck and looking at me through his long lashes. That wasn't so bad but I had to mess with him about it anyway.
"Awh, just a baby." I laughed and playfully punched his arm, an action which only served to hurt my own fingers. I think I played it off well though because he laughed really hard.
"If you're a junior, why are you here? Shouldn't you still be in school?" I asked before realizing maybe that was private and I probably shouldn't have asked.
He shrugged, "My Dad works here." The explanation didn't really answer my question but I didn't push, it clearly wasn't any of my business.
"Oh cool. Well it was nice seeing you again, I should probably go track down that root beer for Charlie." I gave an awkward half wave and started walking towards the cafeteria. He turned and followed, falling into step beside me with his hands in his pockets.
"I'll come with you if you don't mind." I definitely didn't, I was honestly hoping he would. "I was wondering how our duck friend's story played out. Did he have a happy reunification with his mother?"
"Yes actually. We took them to Tachinitch Pond, over off of Cedar. They all looked very happy to be free from a mediocre Forks education." I said with a teasing smile.
"Ouch." He said playfully, putting his hand over his heart as if mortally wounded. "Not only am I a baby but now I'm a dumb baby." We both laughed and I looked around for the vending machines, spotting them lined up against the far wall of the cafeteria.
I walked up to the one with Pepsi products and unzipped the small front pocket on my purse that I used to house loose change, digging out several dollars worth of quarters. Edward leaned nonchalantly on the machine and I became acutely aware of his proximity. He smelled amazing, like he was wearing some kind of high end cologne. It was a refreshing change of pace from the offensive Ax Body Spray every other male in my age range coated themselves in daily.
I slowly deposited the quarters into the machine one by one, wanting to prolong our time together. I punched the glowing button and Charlie's root beer landed in the catch at the bottom with a deep thud. I reloaded the correct amount of change and this time selected a Diet Pepsi.
"You know diet is actually worse for you than regular." Edward mused, a small smile playing on his full lips. They looked really soft. I could never get Sam to use chapstick but I bet Edward did.
"So I've heard. I don't drink diet to, like, watch my figure or anything." I said, and his eyes swept over my body reflexively. The knots in my stomach reappeared. "I just don't like the regular kind. It makes my teeth feel fuzzy." I finished, wrinkling my nose up in mock disgust. He grinned and pushed off of the vending machine.
"Do you want anything? I'm buying." I asked, jiggling my bulging change pocket to demonstrate my hearty weath.
"No thank you."
I shrugged and zipped the pocket shut. He bent down and grabbed the drinks for me before I had the chance, and we both started walking slowly back to the elevators in a comfortable silence. I pushed the arrow pointing down and fiddled with the strap of my purse trying to think of a way to see him again without asking him out. I knew I wasn't ready for that yet but I liked Edward and could see us being friends.
The elevator on the right opened with a ding and we both stepped on. I wrung my hands nervously, gathering my courage.
"Would you-"
"I'm having-" we both started at the same time, and then stopped. I giggled and gestured for him to go ahead with my hand but he shook his head.
"Ladies first."
"Okay I was just gonna say I'm having a small party thing for my birthday tomorrow and I was wondering if maybe you would want to come?" I asked, fiddling with my purse strap again. A tortured expression flitted across his face before he could disguise it, making me wish it wasn't too late to suck the words back into my mouth and disappear in a puff of smoke.
"Where is the party taking place?" He asked a little too casually.
"My house, on the reservation." I answered and he frowned. "If you need a ride I could always come pick you up." I offered quickly, and then kicked myself internally for sounding so desperate.
"I would love to but my sister and I have plans and she would be very put out with me if I canceled again. Perhaps I could get your phone number and I couldn't make it up to you another day?" He asked, looking down at me through his lashes. The sting of rejection tried to rear its ugly head but the yearning in his eyes reigned it in. He clearly wanted to spend more time with me too but didn't want to disappoint his sister. It was actually kind of sweet.
I reached into my bag, immensely grateful I had brought my notepad and pen, and wrote out my phone number before ripping out the page and handing it to him. We exchanged the paper for the sodas as the elevator let out its final ding.
"Well it was nice running into you again. Bye Edward." I said, before walking away to go find Charlie, grinning widely.
"Talk to you soon, Leah." I heard him say. I turned back to sneak one last glance and he was watching me walk away with a dazed look on his face.
Ditto.