A/N: Thank you for reading and reviewing! Y'all are amazing!:)
Special thanks to Mel Cee for betaing (all mistakes are mine).
Song suggestion: All I Need by Within Temptation
I don't own Twilight or the music I suggest , just my plot;)
We've been waiting for this chapter...
The night after Bella's big art show, Alice was hungover. Once the crowd in the gallery died down, the girls made their way to the bar next door where they continued to celebrate Bella and her newfound success.
Alice seemed to forget she had work the next morning, and it seemed like her boss forgot the very same thing. Rosalie entered the restaurant, black sunglasses sheathed over her tequila eyes and extra large coffee in tow.
Alice's eyes widened—she was surprised Rosalie was wandering into the restaurant so close to opening.
"Don't even start," Rosalie warned, making her way to her office, locking the door behind her. If they knew what was good for them, nobody would bother her today.
Lunch service was in full swing when Edward waltzed his way into the restaurant, dressed casually. He had just met Emmett at Felix's office to discuss some more names attached to the Cayman accounts.
Edward looked around for Alice, and he found her in between customers at the main bar. He knew Bella wasn't working because he'd asked Heidi at the hostess stand, deciding he wouldn't have entered if she had been. His business there didn't involve her for once.
"Alice." Edward grinned, greeting her.
Alice eyed the jovial young man in front of her. She could tell by the look on his face that he wanted something.
"What are you up to? She's not here by the way," Alice demanded, brashly. Her hangover was talking, and it caused her to not be her usual pleasant self.
Edward threw his hands up. "Hey, don't shoot the messenger. I know Bella's not working. I'm actually here to see you."
He took a seat on the bar stool directly in front of her. Wild eyes met his. She was tired, anybody could see that. And now that Edward knew the truth, he saw a kindred pain in her eyes, one similar to his own.
"Me? Why?" Alice blurted, setting down the wine glass that she had been polishing.
"Excuse me?" A well dressed gentleman at the other end of the bar gestured to his empty scotch glass. Alice had to tend to her regulars, so she walked away, apologizing.
A few moments later, she made her way back to a waiting Edward.
"I might have done some digging and had my private investigator get Maria's cell phone number for you," Edward shared, taking out his phone.
Alice looked at him, dumbfounded. "Edward, she doesn't want to speak to me. I—"
"Hear me out," Edward interjected before she could deny him the opportunity to present her his reasoning. Alice motioned for him to continue, snacking on an olive from her station. "I figure your parents have Maria's head filled with bullshit. So why not try to talk to her one-on-one. You're her mother, and nobody tops Mom. So if you can keep her on the phone long enough for her to hear you out and actually have a one-on-one conversation, it should help. Or at the very least, bring you closure to her decision. But this way at least, she sees that you're trying, and she can hear your side of the story." Alice's eyes filled with tears. She looked around, not wanting to appear unprofessional, so she brushed the droplets off the tops of her cheeks. She shook her head at Edward, not speaking because she didn't trust her voice. All she wanted was an opportunity to talk to Maria without anyone else's input. "Come on, Alice. You said it yourself, mistakes happen, but you still have a chance to make things right!" he pleaded, manipulating her words so they suited the situation.
Alice gave Edward a pointed look. "You're taking it out of context and you know it. I meant you and Bella can make things right."
Edward shifted uncomfortably on the bar stool. He wrapped his hand around his neck, nervously, not liking the tables now being turned on him. "Alice, she doesn't want me. She's made her stance perfectly clear."
Alice wanted to mess with him a little more. "If making amends is so easy, why don't I call Bella to come here right now?" Alice pulled out her phone for emphasis. She had no intentions of calling Bella or forcing the two together.
Edward jumped out of his chair, reaching for the phone. "Please, don't!" Edward shouted a little too loudly.
"Point made." Alice put the phone away and chuckled, going back to making a mojito for table three.
Rosalie was just making her rounds and saw the tail end of Edward's little outburst. She was still wearing her sunglasses as she approached the bar. "Masen! This isn't Wendy's. Keep the volume down." Rosalie hissed.
Edward laughed at Rosalie's appearance. It was quite obvious she was hungover. Edward reached out and moved Rosalie's sunglasses down to mess with her. "Oh, hello to you too." Alice couldn't help the chuckle that passed her lips.
"Don't you have alcohol to serve?" Rosalie barked, but there was a refreshing playfulness behind her signature snark.
"Emmett got you drunk last night?" Edward quipped, but Emmett wasn't hungover when he saw him earlier.
"No, smartass. Your ex had an art show last night, and I went to support her," Rosalie boasted, elbowing Edward and then moving away to clean a dirty spot on the shot glass next to Alice.
Edward looked around solemnly, meeting Alice's sympathetic gaze. "Sorry" she mouthed before returning her attention to Rosalie.
Alice and Rosalie started talking, but Edward couldn't process what they were saying. He heard snippets of their conversation, something about the engagement party.
Wow. Bella finally got her big break with her art and he'd missed it. So this was what life was going to like? Even Rosalie got to support her! Edward was devastated and jealous of Rosalie. He never thought that would cross his mind. He was happy for her. Genuinely he was, but Edward couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't how things were supposed to be. Maybe Alice was right? But if she was, how the hell were they going to fix this mess?
Five days later
Rosalie sashayed into the Ivy Room at the restaurant like she was walking down a runway. She'd been like this all week, her energy blossoming as they got closer to the engagement party tomorrow. Bella was folding linens and making small talk with Heidi, who was helping her set up for the day ahead. "Bella, can I please see you in my office?" Rosalie asked, getting right to the point. She turned quickly, heading to her office without waiting for a response.
Bella's shoulders slumped, thinking the old Rosalie was back, and she strided behind her boss, shutting the door to the office after she was inside.
Once they were both seated, Rosalie pursed her lips and gave Bella a smirk. "You know you don't have to be nervous. We are friends now, right? You don't have to be afraid of me. I don't bite." Rosalie corrected herself, "I wouldn't bite you." She winked, leaning back in her chair.
Bella laughed, uncomfortably. She wouldn't go so far as to call Rosalie her friend, but over the last few days, she had definitely been a lot nicer to her than she had been initially. Bella liked the idea of having a friend, someone to have in her corner, so she had been making an effort to get to know Rosalie, to try to push away doubts about whether she was being genuine. No matter if they were starting to be friendly or not, she didn't want to hear about her escapades with Emmett or whoever the hell she was biting. "Can I ask you something?" Bella implored. She didn't want to poke the bear, but she had to know, her curiosity not allowing her not to ask.
Rosalie nodded, having a good idea what Bella was about to ask. "Why are you being so nice to me? I mean, I'm grateful, don't get me wrong, but I really don't understand what changed. I actually thought you hated me to be honest," Bella blurted, deciding it was better to speak candidly.
Rosalie stood up from her desk chair across from Bella and took a seat next to her in the guest chairs, and as she sat, Rosalie chuckled. Bella looked at her questioningly, prompting her to answer.
"I never hated you, Bella." Rosalie paused, collecting her thoughts. "I was scared of you if I'm being honest."
"Me?" Bella squeaked out, making a face, not believing what Rosalie was saying.
"Yes, you," she confirmed, adjusting her body in the chair, making a mental note on how uncomfortable they were. "You scared me because aside from Alice, you were the only other person who wasn't afraid of me. And that scared me. I've worked my whole life to get to where I am. I never really relished in the company of others. Not that I didn't want to. I just didn't have time. In school, I wasn't popular; I baked and tested recipes while my friends were partying. My exes were bleak, colorless. They were basically male versions of me. Unable to let loose or separate my personal life from my professional. When I met Emmett, he turned my whole world upside down." Rosalie stood up, her back bothering her, and cursed herself and Pottery Barn for those chairs.
She looked at Bella, who was listening intently, and Rosalie smiled, proud to have someone who even wanted to hear her bullshit. "Emmett brought me to life. I didn't think I could love someone so much and so quickly. But when it hits you, it hits you, you know?"
Bella had tears in her eyes because she did know. She had found that kind of love once.
"Oh fuck! I'm so sorry. Edward. You clearly do know." Rosalie berated herself, realizing she was messing up this whole friend thing already.
Bella waved her off. "It's fine. It's fine. I'm fine." Rosalie gave her a pointed look. Bella shook her head, looking around the room, feeling it start to close in on her. Her hands shook more than usual, panic welling up in her chest, her breathing becoming thready. Fuck, she didn't want to have a panic attack. Not here. "Can I have some water?" Bella croaked, attempting to regulate herself.
Rosalie walked over to her mini fridge, grabbed a bottle of Evian, opened the cap, and passed it to Bella.
She gulped and gulped, and Rosalie looked wide eyed as the girl downed the whole bottle in one shot.
"Thanks," Bella whispered, warding the panic away.
"Bella, I'm going to ask you something, and you don't have to say yes, but I'd really like you to consider it. Would you come to my engagement party?"
Bella bit down on her lip, contemplating what Rosalie had requested. She knew Alice was going to the party. Rosalie had asked her at the bar after her art show. But Bella wasn't stupid. She knew full well that Edward was attending—he was best friends with Emmett, so of course he would be there. "Rosalie, I don't—"
Bella was about to decline, but Rosalie cut her off. "Don't say no just yet!" She looked down at her watch. "How about I leave a chair open for you?" Bella opened her mouth to protest. "Away from Edward and next to Alice and Heidi," Rosalie reassured, waking over to her office door, grabbing the handle to turn it. "Now get back to work."
Bella widened her eyes at Rosalie's brashness.
"Don't think I'm going soft just because we're friends!" she called after her.
"Are you sure you don't want to come? I ironed that pretty jumpsuit I bought for you last year at Macy's," Alice insisted, finishing applying her lipstick in the bathroom mirror before walking out to the living room.
Bella stood by the doorway to the apartment, Alice's shawl over her shoulder, ready to send her off.
It wasn't that Bella hadn't considered going to Rosalie and Emmett's engagement party—she had—but it was not her time to change her story. She had her chance, and she'd fucked it up.
"Have a good time. Give the lovebirds my best." She wrapped Alice in the shawl, gave her a tight squeeze, and opened the front door for her. After a quick goodbye, Bella closed the apartment door, heading to the kitchen to grab some of the chips she usually had to hide from Alice.
Alice leaned against the bar, nursing her old fashioned, judging the taste. Nobody made drinks like she did. Someone slid beside her, flagging the bartender. "Bourbon, neat," Edward ordered, smirking a hello to Alice.
She rolled her eyes at his failed attempt to be charming, greeting him tersely. "Edward." Alice was at war with herself for what she wanted to do and what she should do.
Edward moved to go say hello to Emmett when Alice decided to throw caution to the wind. "Wait!" she said as he turned back around. "Do you still have Maria's cell number?" This was her life and could be one of the last chances she had to make things right with her daughter, so she had to try.
He nodded, pulled out his phone, and began rattling off the phone number. Alice keyed in the digits and then she motioned that she was going outside, making her way out of the restaurant. Edward shouted after her, "Good luck!"
Alice dialed the number, her fingers trembling slightly, and pressed the phone to her ear. It rang and rang, and right before it was meant to go to voicemail, a voice answered. "Hello," Maria muttered into the phone. Tears pooled in Alice's eyes as she heard her daughter's voice for the first time in months.
"Maria, it's Mom. Please don't hang up," Alice spoke quickly. Alice couldn't help the tears streaming down her face, earning her odd looks from passersby outside All Hale the Kale. But it didn't bother her what they thought of her—she was just so overwhelmed at the moment and couldn't care less about how she looked.
The night droned on, and Bella sat on the couch channel surfing. She shifted on the couch, uncomfortable. Every time she thought she could relax, she felt a knot in her stomach. It was like her body knew she wasn't meant to be sitting in her apartment right now. No, she was supposed to be at the restaurant.
Bella wanted to go, just let it all go and be free with how she wanted to continue her life. She yearned to stop pretending. To just stop all this madness. Everything was so out of hand, she couldn't distinguish what was real and what was 't decide if she had been trying to protect herself or Edward more. If that was why the lie fell so easily from her lips. How long could she go on lying—to herself, to others? It was all just so messed up. One big mess.
The only way she could fix this was to finally get out in front of it. Edward was the only person who would ever truly know her. Their childhood wounds wrapped around them so tightly that you couldn't figure where she began and he ended. Healthy, probably not? But love? It was always love. It had gotten convoluted along the way. People and forces got in their way and pushed them off of the only path they were meant to be on.
Bella looked over at Caius, who came over tail in hand, so to speak, and sat on Bella's lap, calmly purring. It was as though he was approving of Bella's sudden bravery.
Now the question was whether she was brave enough to finally stop running and face herself. She grabbed Caius and moved him so that she could stand and put her shoes on, not even bothering changing out of her jeans and long sleeved t-shirt.
Hopefully she wasn't too late.
The guests laughed and drank, celebrating Emmett and Rosalie's whirlwind romance. Edward sat next to Felix, across from Emmett and Rosalie who stopped to make out every five minutes.
Edward looked around the restaurant for Alice, hoping her conversation with her daughter went well. He'd contemplated many avenues in order to reunite her with her daughter, but ultimately, he knew redemption was a solo mission. Even if you failed, as he felt he did.
After a second scan of the room, he spotted Alice heading to the women's restroom. He wished for her story to end more positively than his.
"Speech, speech," Emmett chanted at Edward. He looked over at his best friend, puzzled.
"You're my best man. You need to give a speech," Emmett demanded, taking a piece of bread and shoving it into his mouth.
Etiquette was never Emmett's forte.
"I'm your best man?" Edward asked, confirming. He wasn't surprised, but he had thought Emmett would have at least asked him instead of telling him.
Who was he kidding? This was classic Emmett.
Edward looked over Emmett incredulously but stood up. He grabbed a champagne flute from a passing waiter and gathered his thoughts.
He took a deep breath. Here goes nothing, he thought. Edward gently tapped his glass with a knife off the table and waited until the room quieted down.
All eyes were on him. No pressure. He looked down at Rosalie and Emmett. Rosalie narrowed her eyes at him, giving him a warning of sorts, while Emmett patiently waited on what Edward was going to say.
"Good evening, I'm Edward Masen. I've been Emmett's best friend since childhood, and apparently, I'm also the best man." That honest candor earned him a few chuckles.
"All jokes aside. When I first met Rosalie, if I'm being honest, I was skeptical of her and Emmett and if they were meant to be. Rosalie's a respected businesswoman, and Emmett's … Emmett. Kidding, sort of." Edward tilted his head, biting back a snort. He needed to do this for his friend—Emmett was always there for him. He deserved this. Even Rosalie was growing on him.
"But after spending time with the pair, I realized that sure it's soon and they both probably have a ton of obstacles ahead of them, but in love, you need to be fearless and completely and utterly real. The fears, the noise—it all doesn't matter at the end of the day. What matters is that two people were brave enough to be true to themselves, and each other, and surrender to their fears in order to come together fully. To support one another unconditionally, through the good times and the bad ones. To stand beside each other until they are no longer afraid anymore. Rosalie and Emmett, I wish you a lifetime of being real. To Rosalie and Emmett." Edward raised his glass, looking up from a crying Emmett to come face to face with the front door. There stood his real. His Bella. Wide eyed and stunned at Edward's words.
She watched as Rosalie and Emmett embraced him, but his eyes didn't move from hers. Bella grew uncomfortable under his unrelenting gaze. The familiar feeling of not belonging settled in her bones, and she had the urge to do what she did best—bolt.
Bella lingered for one last look at those green eyes that she loved so fucking much. Once his gaze met his, she turned and ducked out the door behind her.
Edward was used to her running. She was like a skittish cat, always taking off. But this time, he wasn't letting her go so easily. Sure, she could just be here to celebrate her boss, but something told Edward to follow her. And follow her, he did—he exited the restaurant silently. Edward crept closely behind, mainly wanting to make sure she was okay. She shouldn't be alone on this dark and gloomy night. He peered up at the dark clouds filling the sky, taking in the way the air felt heavy. A storm was coming.
Bella blanched as she pressed her palm on the side wall of the restaurant, stumbling as she walked along the sidewalk. She leaned against the facade of the building, facing the taxis and cars passing by, trying to get her rapid breathing under control. She couldn't get over how Edward had been doing nothing but trying to change and show her how he'd changed, and all she had done was push him away. His speech was so eloquent and classic Edward. Her Edward.
Bella threw her hands up to cover her face. She was so tired. Tired of this fight. Tired of lying to herself and him. Tired of pretending.
"Bella?" Edward called behind her, holding the door to the restaurant open, unsure if she wanted company.
"What, Edward? Please just leave me alone," Bella begged, too drained to fight this connection anymore. There was a part of her screaming at her that she should push him away one more time, for her sake and his. Her feet shuffled, her body unconsciously drawing her to him, as if pulled by a magnet, and she was afraid she might feel overwhelmed being in such close proximity to him.
Edward shook his head, even though she couldn't see him, since her face was still in her hands. The sky darkened even more, the clouds growing in number, and thunder rumbled a little way away.
"I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You seem pretty upset." Edward shut the door behind him, stepping forward but maintaining a healthy distance, not wanting to cross her obvious boundaries.
A couple holding hands passed them, hurriedly, trying to beat the impending storm. Their fingers threaded together tightly as they sped along, and Edward couldn't help but wish he could do the same with the beautiful girl in front of him.
"I can't do this anymore, Edward," Bella expressed as the couple passed, her voice cracking as she spoke his name.
"Do what?" Edward implored, moving a little closer but still not close enough to touch her.
"I can't stand here and pretend we don't have history. I can't pretend it doesn't kill me, to see you and not talk to you. I can't pretend I don't love you. When I do, I always have. I can't pretend anymore—" Bella sobbed, slowly peeking her head up as she blurted out her confession. She wiped her nose and finally looked into his green eyes once more. They were addicting to her, hypnotizing.
Sincerity shone through clearly in his crystalline gaze, but there was something more there, a look that she easily recognized, one that she had seen often during their brief time together—love.
A/N: Don't hate me, it had to end there. Next chapter is worth it, pinky swear! Let me know your thoughts:)
