21. Falling

Rosalie, Esme, and Emmett got home around 2:00. Rosalie was oddly happy, and Emmett seemed… like his usual self. I couldn't see a grain of evidence that him and his parents were just in a massive car accident.

"So" Emmett teased, "I heard Dr. Cullen asked out a girl for you"

Rose raised her eyebrows at me, and Esme gasped,

"Oh my tell me everything. What is she a jock? Indie? I bet she's smart. Is she smart?"

I put my face in my hands, hoping they would all go away.

"Yes she's smart. She's in my English class and she went on a rampage about why Wuthering Heights is a good book." Alice gleamed

"And why did you interfere with things, Carlisle?" Esme asked

"Cause he's shy and wouldn't have said anything"

My face was beet red.

"Is she pretty?" Rosalie asked, now invested in my humiliation

"Yes. She's the other new kid, Bella Swan. She's in both of Edward's afternoon classes. Edward told me that she's friendly and kind. She's also sarcastic and witty. And according to Edward she is easy to talk to and genuinely cares about him" Alice said, continuing with the teasing.

"What instrument does she play?" Esme demanded

"None," Alice said with a sigh. I was never going to tell Alice anything ever again in my life.

"But she wants to be a publisher and move to New York" Carlisle imputed

I groaned, "Yeah and if you don't leave soon you will be the ones on this date with her"

Everyone laughed at me, but they got ready to leave. I kept my face in my hands.

Carlisle and Esme squeezed my shoulders. Alice kissed me on the cheek,

"It'll all work out" Alice said, "Text me how things are going and I'll try and keep them out later"

"I'm never telling you anything again"

She was offended, "Um yeah you are. You will give me a play by play of the whole night once I get you going"

I lifted my head and rolled my eyes at her. I knew she was probably right.

"Condoms are in the linen closet" Jasper snickered. I pretended I didn't hear him.

Finally I was alone. It was 2:45, so school was officially over. It would take Bella about 15 minutes to drive here.

I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing. The house was clean. I decided to cut up a plate of veggies because people were usually hungry after school. We had all the ingredients for pasta, so I could make her dinner if she was staying over for long.

It was 2:53 and starting at the door was not making her appear any faster, nor was it making my pulse slow.

I sat at the piano and began playing scales. Scales were not enough to distract my mind, so I started playing the 12 bar blues in B flat. I started improvising with my right hand, letting the rhythm and notes run through my fingers. My voice began to harmonize with the melody I was playing.

I almost did not hear the two light knocks on the door. I stopped playing allowing the room to be oddly quiet. I was not shaking as I opened the door, which was a noticeable improvement from before.

I opened the door, and Bella smiled at me. I smiled back at her, allowing her presence to make me less nervous.

"Was that you playing?" She asked in awe,

"Um… yeah" I admitted, "When I get nervous I usually play to distract myself"

Why did I say that? She did not need to know I was nervous.

But she blushed, as if she was also nervous about… whatever this was.

She came inside, looking at our weird house. She must think we are-

"Awe, is this you?" She said, interrupting my racing thoughts

She was pointing to a picture of Carlisle and Esme's wedding. Unknowingly this was our first family picture. Rose, Emmet, and Jazz were in the front, and Carlisle and Esme were holding Alice and I.

I laughed, "Yes"

"You were so cute, who is everyone else?"

"That's Alice, my sister. Those are my parents, which you probably figured out. The two blondes are my cousins, Rosalie and Jasper, and the dark haired guy is Emmett. Emmett's dad was the mayor of the small town we just moved from. He just moved in with us because his parents just died, and he's dating Rosalie"

Bella looked at the picture, trying to figure out my weird family. She smiled as she turned to me.

"You love them, don't you?"

"Yes" I admitted, "My family might not be conventional, but we all love each other"

She blushed and looked down, looking around the first floor.

"Do you want a snack?" I asked, desperate to not bore her to death

We sat on the couch and she talked about her weekend. She got ahead of her homework, wrote an English essay, and her dad dragged her fishing.

"It was disgusting" She said, "the fish was like, as big as me. And then my dad wanted me to remove the hook from its mouth. And then he gutted it out in front of me"

"Did you have to put a worm on the hook too?"

"Yes. It was horrible. Worms are so slimy. The hook did not want to go through it"

I shuttered. I couldn't imagine killing an animal. It went against everything I believed in.

"He wants to take me hunting this weekend" She continued. A shiver ran up my spine.

"Are you okay?" She asked, raising one of her eyebrows.

"Yes" I said, hoping it was true, "My family and I are vegan, so it's hard to me to imagine things like fishing and hunting"

"Vegan?" She empathized, "What's that?"

"I don't eat meat, eggs, dairy… anything from an animal" I clarified.

"That must be hard"

I shook my head, "I have been vegan since I was born, so I don't even think about it"

I felt bad. She must think I am such a freak.

"When are your parents coming home?" She asked as she looked away, her face red.

"Not until late. Do you want to watch a movie or something" I offered, wondering what movies we had.

We flipped through the movie channels until Bella saw something she thought looked interesting. It was called Cast Away, and Bella's mom said it was good.

As the opening credits started playing, an electrical current seemed to be circulating through us. We were only inches apart, and my hand gilded towards hers. My fingers touched the back of her hand, and she turned her palm so I could hold her hand.

Her skin was warm underneath mine. The electricity seemed to be flowing through us quickly. Her eyes were on the TV, but I could tell she was completely unaware what we were watching. Her eyes closed and she sighed, and she rested her head on my shoulder.

My heart was racing, but I felt strangely calm. I let my cheek press lightly against her head.

But then I realized what we were watching.

It was a plane crash movie.

I closed my eyes. Trying to force myself out of the panic attack I knew I was about to have.

"Edward?" Bella asked, noticing the sudden tension in my body

I pulled myself away from her, knowing the moment was lost.

"I-I'm sorry" I said, still shaking.

Bella looked up at the TV, realizing what was happening.

"Oh my God." She clicked the TV off, "I'm so stupid… I didn't even think.." She trailed off.

She took both my hands in hers and began rubbing them slowly.

I closed my eyes, feeling the tears starting to fall.

"I'm such a mess" I whispered.

But her fingers stroked my cheek, whipping away the tears.

"No you're not" She insisted.

I opened my eyes and looked into hers. Her hand moved from my cheek to my neck, her other hand still in mine. I moved my other hand through her soft hair, never looking away from her eyes.

"Bella" I whispered, my eyes glancing down at her lips.

I moved my face forward, not completely sure about what I was doing. She closed her her eyes and pressed our bodies closer together, and I learned in further to press my lips to hers.

She kissed me back, and we moved our lips against each other. She pulled herself closer to mine, and I could feel the electricity flow through us. Her hands migrated towards my hair, and she pulled lightly at the strands at the back. My hands ran down her back, and she moaned quietly and she mumbled my name.

I pulled my lips away from hers, and I looked into her eyes. She bit her lip, and we both blushed.

I was about to pull away from our close embrace, worried that kissing her had been a bad idea, but she pulled her lips back to mine. Her fingers tangled in my hair, but I couldn't feel the pain. I pulled her closer to me, feeling her figure across my crest. My hands moved to her neck, and I pulled her closer, deepening our kiss. Her mouth opened, and I could taste her breath…

And of course, that's when I heard the door open. I pulled away from her and saw Alice pop her head in.

"I am so sorry," she whispered, "I tried to text you, but you didn't reply. Things just set in for Emmett, and he's not doing well."

I turned to face Bella, anxious that she would run out. But instead she held my hand.

"Should I go?" Bella whispered, seeming unwilling to leave my side,

"No, of course not" Alice interjected, "Rose and Jazz are going to take him upstairs. I'm sure everyone would be okay if you stayed for dinner"

Bella smiled at my sister and nodded,

"They'll be in the house in a few seconds. Edward, go upstairs and get Bella's lipstick off of your face. There are makeup wipes in my bag on the dresser" She looked smugly at both of us. I owed her so much for this.

I took Bella's hand and pulled her upstairs. I needed a second alone with her.

I shut the door behind me, and I moved Bella so her back was on the wall. I kissed her, letting our lips move against each other. Her hands lingered on my chest, and her fingers brushed my shoulders. She moaned my name again, and it was the hottest thing I have ever heard in my life.

Why oh why did they have to be home? I was not finished kissing her yet. But I forced my lips to leave hers.

She looked up at me like she was feeling the same way.

"I'm so sorry beautiful" I murmured in her ear, "I think I liked that a little too much"

She pressed her lips against mine again.

"Don't apologize for that" She whispered in my ear, her hands running down my chest.

I opened Alice's make up bag, but I had no idea what anything it was.

Bella laughed and pulled out a tiny blue package. She opened the top of it and grabbed a wipe. Instead of handing it to me, she pressed it to my mouth. I could feel the warmth of her fingertips on my lips.

She smiled, pleased by my distraction.

"It looks like I'll have to wear better lipstick next time" She blushed, and I had to make a conscious effort not to lean in and kiss her.

I held her hand and led her downstairs. Alice was in the kitchen and smiled at us.

"E, can you help me cut up vegetables?"

"Sure," I sighed, letting my hand drop from Bella's

"Can I help too?" Bella asked

"Of course" Alice said cheerfully, "Esme and Carlisle are upstairs with Emmett"

"How's he doing?" I asked,

"Not good. He's had a long day. Rosalie is going to stay home with him tomorrow"

I nodded. I knew Rosalie would distract him,

"Everyone is excited to meet you, Bella" Alice said excitedly,

Bella looked nervous, "Oh," She mumbled

I snicked, "Don't worry beautiful" I ensured her, "they will like you"

We finished cooking quickly, and everyone came downstairs. I was surprised Emmett had come downstairs.

Everyone had a million questions for her, of course. They asked her about Phoenix, if she could get us free MLB tickets, and about her family.

I pressed my legs againsts hers as their questions continued. We played footsies like we were children, but I was relieved to be able to continue to touch her, even if it was just our legs. Whenever our eyes met with both blushed and looked away.

After dinner I walked her back to her truck. She stood on her toes to kiss me, and I let the bliss her kiss brought fill my body.

"I'm sorry... " I whispered in her ear, "If you give me a redo I promise to take you on a much more romantic date"

I kissed her neck and pressed my body against hers.

"I'll see you tomorrow," I promised, and then I moved my lips against hers.

"Text me when you get home" I whispered. It was barely audible over our hammering hearts.