Leah:
Our extended family left the next morning after breakfast and I fully expected my mom to unleash hell on me the moment they were out the front door. To my surprise she just ordered me to clear the table and left for the other room. My dad winked at me and I mouthed 'thank you', signing prayer hands at him as he followed suit.
"Want me to dry?" Seth asked, walking up to where I stood at the sink with both hands full of empty mugs.
I ruffled his hair and he tried to swat me away, almost dropping the mugs in his right hand. I started carefully loading them into the sink with a chuckle. "Yeah, thanks buddy."
When we were done Seth handed me his towel and I dried my hands. He left the room in the same direction as our parents and I pulled my phone from my pocket, flipping it open and noticing I had one new text from Edward.
Good morning beautiful, hope you slept well
Warmth flooded my cheeks and I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
Well good morning handsome. I did, actually, thanks for asking. You?
Like the dead.
I chuckled at his odd response and another text came through.
Would you like to go to lunch with me today?
My stomach flipped anxiously. Things were getting a little more serious with Edward faster than I had been expecting. I needed to be honest with him about the fact that I was fresh out of a 6 year relationship with my childhood best friend. I looked at the clock on the stove and read 9:48 AM.
Sounds great. Want to meet at our spot around 11 and leave from there?
I slid the phone in the pocket of my pajama pants and ran up the stairs to get ready. I showered quickly and blow dried my hair. I dressed in a red low cut t-shirt I had been complimented on several times in the past, dark wash skinny jeans with frayed rips up both legs, and my Forks PD jacket. I applied my makeup, sans the messy eyeliner this time, and slid down the banister.
"Where ya' headed?" My Dad asked as I passed his recliner. I didn't like lying to my dad, and rarely was it ever even necessary, but I wasn't ready to share Edward with anybody just yet. It was fresh and exciting, but still flimsy. Not ready to withstand the weight of outsider opinions. And according to Charlie my Dad wasn't likely to approve.
"Just gonna go meet up with Raven, if that's okay?" I tacked that on to butter him up. It worked like a charm.
He sat up a little straighter in his seat, "Sounds good kiddo. Behave yourself."
I rolled my eyes and slipped into my rain booties before skipping out the front door.
When I pulled up to Tachinitch Pond Edward was already stretched out on the bench, his long arm draped casually across the length of it's arched wood. It felt like a subtle invitation.
I climbed out of the car with an air of determination and crossed the short distance, plopping myself down close to him cheerfully. He smiled and brought his arm down from the bench to wrap it around me as I leaned my head back into his chest.
"Well hello there." He said, resting his chin in my hair.
"Hi." I breathed, inhaling his amazing one of a kind scent.
We sat like that for a few minutes, the only sounds coming from a pair of women with their small children strapped into strollers, walking laps around the pond and chattering with one another.
I sighed and put my hand on my face. Better just get it over with now instead of in a crowded restaurant where I would be humiliated when he stormed away. If roles were reversed I know I would be a little put out if he told me he had had a girlfriend up until yesterday even if the relationship was as tempestuous and unstable as Sam and I's had been this last few months.
"What's wrong?" Edward asked softly. I felt his cool fingers tug at my hand and I let it drop from my face. He didn't let go.
"We haven't really talked about our dating histories yet." It was a lame starting point but it was the only one I could choke out in the moment. I couldn't bring myself to look up to his face, afraid I would chicken out. All the abandonment this past year was obviously starting to give me a complex.
"No we haven't, but I can assure you there's not much to be worried about. I've never liked anyone else before." He said, confusion lining his tone. A lump in my throat formed at his easy confirmation of his feelings for me. As hard to believe as his dating history was, that wasn't the issue I was worried about currently. I sat up gently and he removed his arm from my shoulders, setting it back onto the bench and sitting up straighter. He didn't let go of my hand.
"Edward I need to tell you about Sam."
The flash of hurt on his face was unbearable, but as fast as it came it was gone again, replaced by patient curiosity. I forced myself to continue, fiddling with his fingers as I spoke.
"Sam and I met in kindergarten, on the very first day when he was too shy to ask for a turn on the swings so I asked for one and gave it to him." I couldn't help but smile at that. To my surprise Edward did too. I continued. "We were inseperable ever since, even started dating in eighth grade. A few months ago our relationship… changed. It became really unhealthy and I wasn't happy at all anymore." His brow furrowed and he was starting to look angry. My shoulders drooped in shame, about to deliver the devastating blow that would push him away for good.
"I tried to make it work but we aren't a good fit and I've come to accept that now. We officially broke up yesterday, right before I came here to see you." I finished quietly, staring at our hands.
"Leah, you have no reason to feel so guilty. You didn't do anything wrong." He said softly. I looked up into his eyes and saw nothing but understanding.
"When you say this relationship became…unhealthy.. may I ask what you meant by that?" He asked tightly, his brow furrowing again in frustration.
"Uhm yeah, he just started getting extremely possessive, angry all the time with wild unpredictable mood swings. Everything I did made him angry. Then he started disappearing for days at a time with no explaination, not even to me. His mom thought he was on drugs but she tested him and it came back completely clean. He's an adult now so she can't force him to stay home. He dropped out of High School with only 8 months to go! Then he was just gone again into thin air for the last four weeks straight." I explained, grateful Edward was still listening and giving me the chance to more fully explain.
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Did he ever harm you? Physically?" He looked angry now and I was reeling, trying to figure out what specifically I had said to upset him so badly.
"No no never. But a few times it did feel like maybe he was.. close. I don't know it's hard to explain."
He must have heard the worry in my voice because his eyes opened and he visibly relaxed, squeezing my hand reassuringly.
"Leah, I need you to really hear this. I am not mad at you. I'm only angry at the idea of someone hurting you." His cool fingers brushed a lock of hair behind my ear, lingering on my cheek for a few moments longer before falling. "I feel very.. protective over you. I know we haven't known each other long but I've come to care for you a great deal."
"And I need you to hear this. I am not a cheater. I never would have even entertained a stray thought in your direction if I hadn't already resolved to end things with Sam the moment he came back, if he ever came back." I said forcefully, before fully processing his wird a second later. "And I've come to care a great deal about you as well." I said, smirking coyly. I hoped he knew my teasing tone didn't make it any less true.
"I'm glad to be the subject of your stray thoughts. You should know you consume all of mine." He said, staring intensely into my eyes. My heart raced as the white hot electrical current that only he had ever ignited inside of me forged a path throughout my body before settling with a dull crackle in the pit of my stomach.
Soft pink surged to my cheeks and he lifted both of his hands to my face now, his thumbs caressing across the stained skin. His fingers pressed ever so gently into my jaw, tilting my head up lightly towards his. His eyes searched mine, asking for permission. I parted my lips and nodded faintly.
He got the message.
His lips brushed against mine so softly I thought I had imagined them. He started to pull back but I followed and kissed him back once almost as gently. He leaned his forehead on mine and our noses brushed against one another's. His sweet breath was downright intoxicating. My heartbeat was roaring in my ears.
He pulled his lips away but didn't drop his hands yet. He stared intensely into my eyes as if he was trying to communicate with our thoughts alone.
"Leah, there's something I need to tell you too."
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