Jumping back a little to see what Edward is up to!

Chapter 11

EPOV

—DC—

"Edward, kid, please just read the script I sent a few weeks ago," Marcus, my agent, begged me. "Look, you've had a good couple of roles these last few years. But those have been side characters, this one, it's the lead, Edward. Besides that, word is the auditions are just a formality. They want you."

I perked up at that news. He was right; I'd gotten good roles with plenty of screen time. However, they were never the lead. "I'll read it, but help me out, man, what's the gist of it? I get that it's a lead, but is it actually worth it?"

"I'm assuming you've heard of it, but maybe not. You know that book, 'Someone Else' by Isabella Swan? They've adapted it for a movie."

Did I know that book? Of course, I knew that book. Everyone knew that book. It had flown off of shelves; they had talked about it on the news and every morning talk show.

For a while, Bella Swan had done nothing but surround me.

When I'd seen her name in the media, my curiosity had piqued and I purchased it.

I knew she'd loved to read. Her nose had often been in a book. But I'd never known that she had a love of writing.

Kristen—the heroine of the novel—had resembled Bella in quite a few ways. She'd started out defeated and unsure of herself. Her family was unsupportive of her, and at the first opportunity she got, she ran. She started over and remade herself. Along the journey, Kristen made new friends and even fell in love with a man named Robert. But most of all, She'd found acceptance of herself.

I almost choked on my drink when I'd read Robert's description: tall, green eyes, unruly, coppery hair. It was uncanny and had made me wonder if she thought about me from time to time like I did her.

"Yeah, I've heard of it. I'll definitely read it. Go ahead and set up the audition."

"Great!" Marcus exclaimed. "You're not gonna regret this, kid."

—DC—

I pulled into Rose's driveway, killing the engine. Usually, I knew what reaction to expect from my twin, but this felt like uncharted territory. Rose had held on to a lot of hurt when Bella left.

Bella had pulled away from Rose and Alice those last few weeks of our senior year of high school. They'd gone from being inseparable to having short, stilted conversations. She didn't pry, because none of us pried where Bella was concerned, but that was probably where we went wrong. Bella let them in, but only so far, and no one attempted to push further.

I often wondered if I had gone about it another way, if I had stayed silent but protective, would things have turned out differently? Or was it the fact that I'd stayed silent for so long? Maybe she wanted someone to push, to break down her walls. But we were young, and the reality of the world around us was terrifying.

None of us knew how to handle the pain Bella was going through.

Rose figured that Bella would head off to Columbia, she'd get her fresh start, and then maybe she'd reach out. That didn't happen, though, and we didn't have things like Facebook, at least not how it was today.

So aside from contacting her parents or flying to New York and stalking her at Columbia—neither of which was an option at the time—there was no way of finding her.

And it was obvious at that point, Bella wasn't going to search any of us out, either.

—DC—

I didn't bother to knock and just let myself into Rose's house. It was late, and Emmett worked the night shift on these days, so I didn't have to worry about walking in on them. Making that mistake once was more than enough.

"Rose?" I called for her when I didn't find her in the living room.

"Back here!" she yelled, and I followed her voice back toward her office.

I dropped onto the loveseat across from her desk, watching as she tapped away at her keyboard. Besides keeping all of my social media accounts updated, she had other high profile clients she worked with. But right now, I needed my sister's full attention. "So, I just got off the phone with Marcus."

"Oh yeah? How'd that go?" she responded without looking up.

I let out a frustrated breath. "Rose, you're going to want to pay attention to this."

She lifted her head, looking at me with concern. "Did something happen?"

"Just listen, okay?"

"Okay…"

"Apparently, they're turning Bella's book into a movie. He said they're auditioning for it, but that they're almost positive they want me for the lead."

She stared at me for a few moments, her expression unreadable. "Where are the auditions? Is she going to be there?"

I rubbed the back of my neck, laughing nervously. "I'm not sure. Marcus sent over an email with all the details. I just glanced at it before I walked in here."

She stared at her computer screen, pulling up my work email, I was sure. "Auditions are in two weeks, in New York. Two weeks—how long have you sat on this script, Edward? They may want you, but you still need to seem interested."

"It's probably been in my email for a while."

She sighed heavily. "Sometimes I think I should have been your manager. You need to look at the stuff Marcus sends you. Between you and the ten other people's accounts that I manage, I don't have the time to make sure you read important emails, too. Oh, and I'm coming with you when you go to New York. Even if she's not at the auditions—"

"You can't be angry with her, though, Rose. We all tried just as hard to reach her as she did us."

"But she knew where to find us, Edward. She knew she could call our house or Alice's, or write a fucking letter, and our parents would tell us. All we knew was that she was at Columbia."

I understood her anger, and everything she said was true. Bella had all of our information; she could have contacted any of us in some way.

But I wanted to believe that I understood Bella as well. If you had been tormented by people for years, and you could escape and not look back...why would you stay?

"You can come, Rose, but not to the audition. And if Bella is there, and I get the chance to talk to her, I'll tell her you want to meet up. Fair enough?"

She rolled her eyes, but there was a faint smile on her lips. It gave me hope that maybe everything would work out.

—DC—

I paced back and forth in the green room, waiting my turn. There were some big names here along with me, and it had honestly been shocking that I was even being considered.

But that wasn't what had me nervous. She was here. We'd gotten a list of everyone who would be present, and her name was on it. When it'd just been the thought of seeing her, it felt different.

Now, my mind was constantly going. What did she think of me? Had she seen any of my movies? I was known for lashing out at the paparazzi, I hated being followed, but how did she perceive me? Did she think I was a dick? Would I get the chance to talk to her?

There was a knock on the door, and the assistant to the casting director poked her head in. "They're ready for you, Mr. Cullen."

I wiped my sweaty palms on my pants and plastered a smile on my face. I was usually confident in my acting abilities, but today, I wasn't so sure.

—DC—

As I walked into the room, my gaze landed on her.

The years had been kind to her. If she had been beautiful at eighteen, at twenty-four, she was breathtaking. It was easy to say she was no longer that frightened, beaten down girl. Everything about her screamed confidence. And fuck me. The cleavage she was showing hypnotized me.

Teenaged Edward had only dreamed of getting such a glimpse of Bella.

I quickly composed myself, schooling my features and jumping into my lines once the casting director gave me my cue. I could have sworn that hours had passed by the time I was done, but I knew it was only mere minutes. Auditions tended to be quick, especially when they'd already decided.

Marcus had all but promised me the part, but I knew nothing in this business was guaranteed. I politely thanked everyone for their time, and left the room, my heart beating out of my chest.