Chapter 18

The next day at breakfast Charlie was in a more talkative mood. Unfortunately for Bella, the talk was not about his friend.

"Did you have fun last night?" He asked, then specified. "At the dance."

"Yeah, It was good." It wasn't as bad as she thought it would be but, good was not the right word.

Mike attempted to ask her to dance at least four times. Edward had dragged her onto the dance floor claiming; he had this one, each time and then some. When Mike came over again she shot him a pleating look. Thankfully he understood.

He turned to the girl standing next to her. "Jess, do you want to dance." She happily obliged, quickly grabbing his hand and dragging him on to the dance floor. "Angie your next." He yelled over his shoulder.

Her fathers harrumph brought her out of the memory. "Mhm, and which one of those boys was your date?"

"Dad, I'm not- I-I don't- We went as a group." She stammered.

"Mhm." He said again. "Bella, I'm not an idiot. I am the chief of police for a reason, and it has nothing to do with my good looks. Now, the boy that wasn't driving. Tell me about him."

"Edward?" She squeaked out.

Charlie gave her an impatient look.

"He is Alice's brother." She said quickly.

"And you like him." It wasn't a question.

"No,-yes,-maybe." She did like him; she wasn't sure if she should though.

"Well, he likes you."

Did he? What would make Charlie think that.

"How old is he?" Her father asked.

"Um, I don't know." She admitted.

"What do you know about him?" Charlie wiped his mouth, then pushed his now empty plate back and folded his hands in front of him.

Bella thought about this. "He is the middle child of three." Or was it four. No, she highly doubted Rosalie was a sibling. She was also pretty sure she saw Emmett flirting with her. "He's quiet and he's protective of his little sister."

"Hm, Well If you're going to be dating the boy, I suggest you get to know more about him." He got up from the table, then added. "I want a full report of anything I might want to know on my desk asap. Starting with full name, age, place and date of birth, grades, future aspirations and goals, and any arrest records."

Bella's mouth dropped open as she watched her father walk away. Was he joking?

Bella did her best to ignore her phone, but when an unknown number popped up around noon, three times in a row she panicked. Thinking it was her mom or Phil trying to call her because something bad had happened, she hurried to answer it.

"Wait, I'm here, hold on." She had fumbled her phone in her alarm. "Hello," She heard a chuckle on the other side of the phone.

"Bella," A smooth voice answered. "This is Edward."

"Oh, Um, Hey- I mean, Hi-er-Hello Edward." She felt like such a dork.

Another chuckle. "I was hoping you would join me for a meal today."

"Like a date?" She choked out.

"No, not like a date." He teased. "An actual date."

Half of her was excited that this living work of art was asking her out. The other half of her; along with her sore feet, was apprehensive and a bit angry.

"I don't know. I'm still recovering from our last date." She griped.

"The dance was a good idea. After all, what is a great romance without a ball?"

Bella stayed silent. There was no possible way he could know that he just gave her the ultimate argument. Right?

He sighed. "Okay, I promise you could wear whatever you want and there will be very little dancing."

"No dancing, No crowds, and I will be wearing sneakers, jeans and a tee shirt."

"It's a deal." He told her.

"Okay." There wasn't anything left for her to protest. "Where do I meet you?"

"We will pick you up."

We? Bella went to ask who "We" were, but the phone disconnected.

She took out two outfits. One was an oversized tee shirt and baggy jeans. The other was a peasant top and skinny jeans. She decided she wanted to look a little nice so she chose the ladder.

By the time she ran a brush through her hair and slipped on her chucks a familiar car was pulling in the driveway.

Running down the stairs Bella yelled to her father. "Bye Dad. I'm going out."

Charlie yelled back as he got out of the chair. "Where are you going?"

Without stopping she shouted. "To get your list."

She got into the back seat and watched Charlie standing in the doorway as they pulled away. He did not look happy.

She had gotten a text letting her know she was to be home by 9. She let the occupants of the car know.

"We should be back by then." Edward said.

"Where are we going?" Bella asked.

Alice turned around from her spot next to Jasper. "To Seattle."

"Do you have any protest about going?" Jasper asked.

"No." Bella said, but her anxiety skyrocketed.

Almost three hours later They pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant.

"Stay here. We will be right back." Edward told her, then got out of the car with Alice.

Bella felt awkward sitting in the backseat with only Jasper in the car.

"I'm sorry about yesterday. If I had known you didn't want to go I would have warned you." Jasper said quietly.

"It's okay."

"It's not." Jasper said louder. "Edward is spoiled, he always gets what he wants and he is never told no. He has to learn that it's not all about what he wants. That he has to take other people's opinions and wants into consideration."

So it was Edward he was mad at yesterday?

Alice and Edward were back quickly with bags of something that smelled delicious. The sent filled the car as they drove to their next destination.

"A school?" Bella asked.

"The University of Washington." Edward said. "We will see you two later." He told Alice and Jasper.

Bella was apprehensive about being alone with Edward but she swallowed it down and started to follow him. Before she could get out of the car Jasper told her to give him her phone.

"Now you have my number if you need a ride at any time." He told her. She tried to take the phone back, but he held on to it. "Any time Bella."

She nodded her head to let him know she understood. "Thanks." She said as she got out of the car.

Edward had brought her to a large room that looked like an auditorium. On the small stage lay a picnic blanket.

Edward smiled at her. "Chair, or stage?" He asked.

"Stage." She told him.

Edward took her hand and led her to the blanket. He waited for her to sit down before he went over to the podium. He pulled what looked like a picnic basket out from next to it, then pushed a few buttons on something. The lights dimmed and the dome ceiling lit up like the night sky. Dancing planets and shooting stars seemed to encompass the whole room.

He sat down across from her and started unpacking the basket, pulling out plates, wine glasses, and silverware, then a round glass bottle with a long neck.

"What is that?" She tried to hide the panic in her voice.

"Its sparkling grape juice." He assured her.

She relaxed. He then unpacked the food he bought. There was spaghetti, Chicken cutlet, Cheese ravioli, and what looked like tiramisu. He dished out some of the food on each plate. They sat and ate. It was the most romantic thing Bella had ever seen.

"So, how did you set this up?" She asked in between bites.

"Let's just say my father has some pull around here."

After they were done eating they sat in the chairs watching the stars and talking for what seemed like hours. Nearing the end of their time there, he leant forward and pressed his lips to hers.

The kiss was short and sweet and Bella was certain she was a hundred percent irrevocably in love with Edward Cullen.

They had gotten back to Bellas at Five to nine. When she walked into the house Charlie was waiting.

"Sit." His tone of voice broke no argument. "I don't know how things were done at your mothers, but here there are some rules you need to follow."

She pressed her lips together.

"Starting with; when you are going out you will ask me ahead of time, not tell me as you are leaving the house. You will tell me where you are going, and who you are going to be with. And you will be home at a time that I deem appropriate. Do you understand?"

"No," Bella exclaimed. "Why did you not have these rules when you sent me out with Mike, or Angela? Why now?"

"Because I know Mike and Angela, I don't know these new kids."

"That's not fair, you're going to ruin everything!" She cried out.

Bella stomped up the stairs to her room and slammed the door, after a few minutes of brooding she took out some loose leaf paper and began to write.

The next morning she came down stairs and slapped the piece of paper down on the table in front of her father. Going back upstairs without a word she hid in her room till he left for work.

Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, fifteen years of age.

Born in Chicago Illinois on June twentieth, He is a Gemini.

He is six feet tall, has green eyes and copper hair.

His aspiration is to go to Juilliard. He plays the piano.

His backup plan is to go to Harvard, Yale, or Columbia. He will also apply to Princeton and Penn.

He is presently a student at Forks High School. He is a sophomore. His grades are in the top five percent of his class.

He lives with his parents. His favorite; color is blue, food is venison, and movie is Romeo and Juliet, the nineteen sixtyeight version.

He has never been arrested.

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