Soleil

8. FOR WHAT

"The Krebs Cycle." Bella's attention was diverted from Edward to Mike. This had been her first one-on-one scene with him since the hospital over a "month" ago. Or one that she had paid any attention to. She had been so transfixed with her note mission with Edward, that she hardly spared a second of any free thought she could afford towards Mike.

Bella's lips pursed together as she studied Mike. For a nanosecond. She appraised and chose to ignore the probing intensity in his eyes. An unspoken question lingered there that she did not care to prod into existence. Edward was still her focus as she was dying to know if he had more to say on their world-altering conversation. In that nanosecond, Biology class had occurred. Because when she returned her stare towards Edward, the bell rang. Bella groaned, turning away from Edward to gather her things together on her desk. The inconsistencies of how time played out was beginning to give her whiplash.

"Bella?"

Bella cringed and chose to ignore Mike. She searched for Edward's whereabouts in the classroom. He was nowhere to be found. Gone. He had abandoned her. Or that is how she felt about it. Bella wriggled against a forced resistant, unable to get up from her stool. Bella's hands trembled as she slowly, unwillingly turned around to face Mike. For once, she wished time would speed up.

She had difficulty swallowing. But she knew why. The words were lying in wait. Dormant until she let them pass. And…they had to pass or she knew she would not be able to move her ass from this seat in hell.

"What? Are you speaking to me again?" She dragged the words out in a petulant tone. There was no use fighting them, but she had a choice in how she delivered them. For now.

Mike's lips twitched, fighting a smile. "No, not really," he admitted. Bella pressed her lips together, perplexed by the point of this conversation. There had to be a point if she was forced to participate. She closed her eyes and inhaled slowly through her nose, aware that she was gritting her teeth. Irritation was spiking and over-riding her initial apprehension.

"Then what do you want, Mike?" Her eyes remained closed when she finished her question.

"I'm sorry." His sincerity rubbed her the wrong way. "I'm being very rude, I know. But it's better this way, really."

She opened her eyes, the fire raging within her brown rings.

"I don't know what you mean," Bella said, her voice restrained. What had happened to her? Was her freewill switched off?

"It's better if we're not friends," he explained. "Trust me."

"It's too bad you didn't figure that out earlier," Bella hissed through her teeth. You could have saved yourself all this regret. As the predetermined words flashed in her mind, she knew there was no way in hell she was uttering that bullshit. She was lucky Mike had saved her. She just wished he would leave it at that and leave her alone. Him pretending she did not exist had been working so well this last "month".

"Regret?" Mike was staring at her, blue eyes widened in shock. "Regret for what?"

Bella's eyes shifted around the room, curious if any of the lingering students or Mr. Banner were listening to their conversation. Mike replied to her unsaid words. What. The. Hell. This had happened before, but those conversations were in private. This was out in the open. Were there no observers wondering about what they were missing in overhearing her and Mike's conversation?

Bella adamantly shook her head, refusing to clarify to Mike that her words were intended to be, for not letting the stupid van squish me.

Obviously, he did not regret it. Her response was irrational…much like her responses to Edward in some of their previous 'free-willed' interactions. Bella gaped when a soul crushing realization invaded her brain. If she was to connect her reactions towards Edward to how she was supposed to interact with Mike…she was set up to…like him?

"You think I regret saving your life?" He asked in a disbelief. A disbelief that Bella understood too well in the moment. Unable to break through her own shock, she relented to the words, "I know you do."

"You don't know anything," he snapped back, and Bella could not agree with him more. Her world was turned upside. Not for the first time though since arriving in Forks. But she was so sick of these twists and turns.

Mike? Mike Cullen was her intended...love interest? Not that it had to be Edward instead. But…didn't she get a say? The thought of it sickened her. It twisted her stomach into knots. But her dismay soon morphed into fury. She used that feeling to drive her forward.

Bella turned her head sharply away from Mike, clenching her jaw tight against the wild accusations she wanted to hurl at the world that would get her immediately tossed into a loony bin. She gathered her books together and headed to her exit. Thanks to the wrath directing her focus on her path, she narrowly avoided tripping on the doorjamb when leaving Biology. Bella venomously spat out, "thank you," for no reason as she turned down the hall to head to Gym.

Bella strained to ignore his "You're welcome" which meant NOTHING because she had NOTHING to be thankful for. She did not look back, and not even once looked or thought of Edward before time slipped away from her. Gym flashed by. Then she was in front of her clunky red truck, frustrated at her inability to have any time to process the bomb just dropped on her.

You could have saved yourself all this regret.

She agreed with that thought now. But for herself. If she had just played along and remained blissfully unaware, she would not be crying while approaching her truck in the school parking lot.

Note: Poor Bella. Talk about D-to the- RAMA. I have nothing else written at this point for this story. better figure out what comes next i guess *_* ~ Pixelephant