edited 27 Dec 2017
"What is a thought but a voice in your head? Surely it is madness to hear no voice at all."
There wasn't much to do on a Monday morning in the three hours she had in between waking up and Professor Turner's class when she didn't feel like running. Bridget loathed having to do the laundry, yet she seeks refuge in the mundane activity. Six thirty in the morning, still in her pajamas and golden locks up in a messy ponytail, she was folding and ironing her clothes while waiting for the other load in the wash. She also noted on top of her head that she needed to grab some groceries at Wegmans and call the hospital to set up an appointment with Dr. Callahan. Her days living alone in an apartment differed greatly with the ones in Wilson house. There were Jules who cooks, Nigel who drives, and Anja and Rosa who split the housework between the two of them. In the house, even when she was alone she was not. But the work made her weekdays more normal, adding more to her list than just school work, which would drive her bald if done too much.
By nine forty-five, she was pacing back and forth along the hallway that led to Professor Turner's square classroom, waiting for a certain dark-haired friend to come collect her papers. Preoccupied with her own humor and imagination, she had sent a sloppy smile when her bronze-haired classmate approached her – or maybe not. Bridget quickly stepped aside, realizing that she was blocking the entrance, mumbled an apology and her eyes were back scanning for Jade.
"Waiting on someone?" Edward's voice was distinctive in her opinion, not the pitch itself, but the way he spoke. It was the opposite of hers; she almost always seemed to be in a hurry that she even speaks as if she was running out of time, so she liked Edward's relaxed pace. In her personal opinion confidence is utterly charming, and she didn't know it could be heard through a much slower pace. Everything about Edward was unbelievably poised - his utterance, the way he stood on both feet balanced and head slightly tilted to the side with inquiry, even the way he dressed himself she approved. She was a fan of classic colors and clothing, and the wine red button-down he wore underneath his light jacket brought all the life to his pearly complexion. But then again, most who got into Dexter could afford the twenty grand tuition, surely he could afford couture.
Are we friends now? Her eyes flitted to his face, biting her lower lip. "Yeah." She gestured at the stack of papers in her hand. "Had a nice weekend, Edward?"
He lightly smiled, almost a scoff was heard. Looking closer, she noticed that his eyes were brighter, either from the smile or just in general. "I did. Did you?" He adjusted the books in his hand and her eyes automatically went to it.
"Mediocre," she replied off-handedly. Certainly attending a garden party for Jade was a weekly occurence that they didn't really count as highlights. "Gatsby already?" It was a required reading for their Lit Modernism class, but it wasn't supposed to start until next week. She had to curb the fact that she was also starting it, chiding herself for wanting to boast. So was human nature.
His expression turned sheepish. "Perhaps I was getting too ahead of myself."
"There's nothing wrong with getting ahead," she rebuked. Her eyes then caught to that of a familiar head. "Jade," she called out, waving her hand.
In a blur, the culprit that made Bridget wait like a woman ought for her lover had taken the burden from her hands. "Geez, Bree, I woke up late and I had to rush and I didn't even have time to call Steve and oh – is this your new boyfriend?"
Bridget blinked at the assumption and looked at Edward, no trace of offence or pleasure on her face, nor his, apparently. "Jade, this is Edward. Edward, Jade." She gestured to them both.
Jade was named after her parents saw her eyes, and so with those beady eyes she assessed him. Maybe a little too critically for a first meeting. "I have never seen anyone with eyes like yours," a pause, "I like it," she declared in her usual singsong manner. "Bree I have to go, see ya!"
Bridget fortunately seized Jade's hand just at the right time, stopping her raven-haired friend from dashing away. Bridget swiftly removed her jacket from her waist, and handed it to Jade. "Cardigan," was Bridget's simple statement, and apparently enough for Jade to take the offered apparel before disappearing into the maze of hallways just as quickly as she arrived.
"Bold," Edward's comment broke the silence that ensued after the brunette's departure. Bridget only nodded in agreement, leading them both into the classroom. It was also a polite agreement between them that Edward chose the seat beside hers.
A flitting thought had Bridget snickering, causing Edward to look at her questioningly. She shook her head, grinning slightly. Don't ask. She took the time to assess her new friend, her chin resting on the palm of her hand. Something about him was lighter, he looked almost chipper to be back in campus. She wondered what could've made such a good looking person so giddy, but she figured even the most beautiful people (like Mom) have the most humane predilections (like successful baking).
She stared at him a moment longer, not backing down even when he was looking back. I think you should ask him, a voice that sound suspiciously like Pa's resounded in her head, and she was back in the ranch's dining room for a millisecond. "Edward." His eyes flitted back to hers at the mention of his name. "Where did you transfer from?"
A brief smile. "Alaska."
Her eyebrows shot up. She'd never been, but her heart clenched remembering Dad telling her about it. It was no small distance and colder than Rochester for sure. "Why did you move?" you must feel like melting here.
He shrugged half-heartedly. "I wanted to. My parents are here; I grew up here." Really? Why have we never met?
She was seeing all the little telltales; his forefinger moved to be caged by his thumb, the clench of his jaw after he answered. "Oh? They made you move here." A mischievous smile accompanied her statement. It earned her a raised eyebrow.
"More like my sister, but yes, they succeed." His smile was crooked.
She liked how his family sounded like at the moment, especially judging from the mildness of his face compared to when he was talking in general. He adored his family. She briefly wondered how big his family was but nodded, turning back to her desk after leaning to the side, letting the sonata in her head win the duel and play to her heart's content. There, I've asked.
"Why did you choose Dexter?"
Her music halted. The question was almost out of the blue, she should take her time. Should she say Pa? No, it would only fish out more questions. Say that Mom went here? No, it would conjure the same questions. New friends shouldn't dig each other's dirts too soon or it would fail before anything good could even come out of it. She then caught his expression: brows furrowed, eyes flicking between her face and her fingers, which kept fiddling. Her sardonic smile was almost perfunctory. He's trying to read me.
She straightened her back. We're not exactly friends just yet. Acquaintances was more like it. Something about his honeyed voice forced her instinct to turn his subtle getting-to-know-each-other offer down. "It's close enough drive from home yet far enough to have the college experience."
"Protective parents?"
Her lips parted, but no words came out. They were, she thought. Dad would always insist on picking her up from parties, and Mom would always wait up no matter how late she stayed out. She would always roll her eyes and told them they were restricting her and being plain uncool, but secretly diving in immense pleasure when Dad sent threatening looks to her guy friends and when Mom brought something home from her friend's atelier. Oh, she knew they were the coolest parents there were; all the fancy galas that came from founding a vastly spreading chain store, the allowance she got to spend unsparingly, the parties they understood she would like to attend and have, and even the sad fact that they had set it so that Bridget wouldn't have to even lift a finger if something bad were to befall the pair. She loved them so dearly it hurt that Edward suggested they were protective. They were much more than that, they were the most amazing, beautiful couple that always made time to talk to her, to make her feel loved even when their schedules were packed to the brim.
"Something like that," she replied curtly.
Besides, if Edward had grown up in Rochester, he would have heard of her family and her name at least once. The media had blown up the accident to an unnecessary proportion, painting their family pictures on every local newspaper available, so much so that it was almost embarrassing if it wasn't so tragic and made her wish the earth would swallow her whole. It mustn't be that hard to connect the dots. He wasn't saving her any dignity by acting as if he didn't know who she was, and that she was orphaned. She was surprised that she felt… disappointment, that yet another new acquaintance was walking on eggshells upon her. Because she would always remember, no matter how little it was mentioned, of her orphaned status.
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Professor Turner had done the unexpected: announcing that since it was Monday and every student in the class would be a lazy-butt, he decided to give them a pop quiz and let them choose whoever they wish to pair with. Bridget didn't dare turn her expecting eyes to anyone since her mind had flew straight to choose the smartest in class, Kevin, but doing so would allow the Professor to judge her to the grave. Still, she couldn't help but to look at Kevin briefly, breathing a sigh of disappointment when he had partnered with yet another of the smartest in the class. Cheat.
There were taps on her table. Her eyes followed the pen up to Edward, whom looked mildly amused. "What?" her voice had come out as if she was out for blood, but they somehow ended up pairing anyway.
Professor wrote on the board, "Hilbert's Paradox" and Bridget knew she was screwed. She had read of it when she was trying out World Wide Web for herself but never actually looked it up, and she could usually do anything at all because she practiced beforehand. She would only make herself a fool, and for some reason she felt more of a fool being paired with Edward, a stranger, than she would be with Kevin. She should've just worked alone.
'A hypothetical hotel with infinite number of rooms, all of which are occupied.' With the first sentence on the board, Bridget crossed off Pigeonhole Principle in her head. Okay, she could answer the first question.
"Move every guest from room n to room n plus 1, then that guest can take room number 1," she said to Edward as she wrote down her answer, then noticed that she didn't even indicate which answer it was, but thankfully he knew anyway, busy scribbling down his answer. She later realized that he was already writing before she said anything.
Her face scrunched up in thought by the second question. 'A bus came with infinite number of guests wishing to stay in the hotel.' She closed her eyes. Natural numbers could only be divided into two. She looked at him, expecting his guess.
"You're on the right track." He didn't move his eyes from his paper.
She recoiled in her seat, eyes widening comically. She wanted to laugh. "I haven't said or written anything for question B."
When their eyes met, his were sheepish, almost remorseful. "If you can catch the first one you can work out the second one, naturally."
She noted his discomfort, frowned and went back to her thoughts. "Odd and even?"
"Move every guest from room n to 2n, freeing up every odd-numbered room." He nodded.
She smiled at his clarification. She might not be so bad, after all.
The last question, however, had her raising her eyebrow. What? 'Infinitely many buses with infinite guests inside.'
"There is an infinite quantity of prime numbers." Her help came in a smooth, modulated voice. She couldn't tell whether he was mocking her or just being kind and lending a hand. Or a brain. She knew she was smart, she was offered to move ahead twice when she was in school. The talk with her parents resulted in bumping her up a year, and she didn't regret it since she was now an emancipated woman and her face could still pass as a freshman in high school with the right clothes and make up. Yes, she couldn't even begin to regret their decision.
She quickly racked her own brain for a response because Edward had given her a hint and because she had heard that one before. "Euclid," she sighed. She looked at his paper and saw what she expected: he had finished. It made her want to grin. No Kevin, Edward will do. "So, I empty all the odd-numbered rooms?"
Edward nodded.
"Move the guests in odd number i to two-to-the-power i..." she trailed off, then shook her head. "Ah, lost it."
"That was correct." He placed is index finger on the corner of her paper and slid it toward him, taking his own pencil and wrote down i, 2, 3, 5, and 7. He circled the i. "i is odd numbers, since prime numbers are always odd, except for two. Move all guests from odd number by placing them to room two to the power i." He looked at her and waited for her to absorb the explanation. He continued at her nod, "the guests from the first bus can go to every room of three to the power x. Guests from the second bus to five to the power x, and so on…." He looked at her again.
Patience, Edward, she mentally chided, though didn't dare to say it out loud. When the light bulb appeared in her head, a wide grin plastered itself to her face. "Got it." She wrote down the answer in her own words, unwilling to erase the scribble that Edward made. He wrote his numbers with elegant crooks, she almost hated him for it.
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From what little I have researched, the family was supposed to be in Alaska with the Denalis, so here are my tweaks: it would be too early for Rosalie to relive where she died and Emmett would naturally choose to stay with her so they're both in Alaska as relatives of the Cullens.
The rest of the 'children' went to high school in Rochester, then 'move' to any university they please whilst Carlisle stayed back in the hospital to keep up appearances. Anyway, I might add new characters for fun and some original characters' development.