Chapter Five
Edward is still asleep when I wake up, his arm is wrapped around my waist and his legs are tangled with mine. Very carefully, I untangle myself from him and make my way to the bathroom, grabbing my clothes for the day on my way.
I take a quick shower and then dry off, changing into a pair of jeans and the same gray hoodie from last night. I twist my hair into a messy bun, not bothering to do anything while it's still wet.
When I leave the bathroom, Edward is still asleep and I don't know if he needs to be into work today.
Should I wake him up? Or should I let him sleep in? He was so miserable last night and if he does have work today, maybe his captain understands why he might not come in.
"Edward…" I shake his shoulder gently, trying to wake him up.
He groans and buries his face in his pillow and I can't help but smile – I do the exact same thing in the morning. "It's almost ten…" I tell him, hoping he's still somewhat awake. "I don't know if you need to be in work today…"
He just shakes his head and turns so that he's facing me. "No, I have today off." He yawns, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "You?"
"Bakery's closed today."
Edward sits up, running his hands through his hair. "I'm sorry about last night – about coming over so late."
I shake my head. "Don't apologize, I'm happy you came to me. I mean…it wasn't under good circumstances, but I'm happy to be there for you." I babble nervously. "What I mean is that you shouldn't have to deal with something like that on your own."
He smiles at me and then tosses the covers off. "I need to call Jasper really quick." He grabs his cell from the bedside table and I head out into the living room to give him some privacy.
Once I'm in the kitchen, I grab a cup of yogurt from the fridge and some granola. I take a seat at the kitchen counter and scroll through emails on my phone.
"I asked Jasper to drop some clothes off for me." Edward appears from the bedroom, standing across from me on the other side of the counter. "I gave him your address, I hope that's okay?"
Nodding, I put my spoon down. "Yes, although I'm surprised he doesn't already know it."
He fixes me a confused look. "Why would he know your address?"
"He went out with Alice…my roommate." I can't help but laugh. "He didn't tell you?"
Shaking his head, Edward looks annoyed but a little impressed. "That asshole never told me. He said he was going to try and go out with her but he never…" He shakes his head, laughing.
"How close are you two? Besides being partners." I ask, forgetting about my breakfast.
He shrugs, clasping his hands in front of him on the counter. "We've known each other since high school, senior year. We became quick friends, went to the academy together and got a job at the same police department. He's like a brother to me."
"Alice and I are the same way – siblings, I mean. I'm an only child and we've known each other since the third grade. She's like my sister and she's the closest person to me, she knows everything about me and vice versa."
Jasper shows up a few minutes later, with a bag of clothes for Edward. Edward punches his arm, asking why he never said anything about Alice and then thanks him for the clothes. And then Alice is suddenly awake, running out of her bedroom when she hears Jasper's voice. She smiles brightly at him and he returns the smile.
Jasper invites Alice out to breakfast and she quickly accepts, and then he looks at both Edward and I, asking us if we want to go – more likely out of politeness. I was getting the hint that he really didn't want us to go.
We both decline and then Alice changes quickly, heading out with Jasper.
I plop down on the couch and Edward sits next to me, pulling my legs into his lap. I flick on the TV and then surf through the channels, until settling on Law & Order: SVU. Edward groans and I glance over at him, quirking an eyebrow. "What?"
He laughs, nodding towards the TV. "This stuff is never true."
"It's a TV show…" I laugh, amused at his frustrated expression.
"But they can at least try be as serious as possible!" He exclaims. "Look, the lawyer showing up to the crime scene? That would never happen!"
I just laugh, turning my attention back to the show. Amazingly, Edward stays quiet through the rest of the episode – although he makes a snide comment about who the suspect is at multiple points.
When the show ends, I mute the commercials and glance over at Edward. "Do you want to talk about last night?" I ask.
He suddenly stiffens and I feel bad for asking. "There's nothing really to talk about. I had to tell parents the one thing they should never have to hear. It sucked – it's part of my job."
Shaking my head, I pull my legs from his lap and cross them. "Edward…your captain sent you home – he obviously thinks it's serious."
"Bella…" He warns, looking straight ahead at the TV.
"No, Edward, I've seen how my dad reacted to some of the things he had to do. I've seen how much it hurts him and how he handled it and it scared me." I didn't want to lecture him – it wasn't my place to lecture him. But I lived with Charlie since I was twelve and, even in a small town like Forks, there were still accidents. He would have to tell parents that their child died in a car accident, or trying to be a daredevil and went cliff diving and hit the rocks or got pulled into the strong current. He would come home and I could just see it in his eyes whenever he had to make that kind of house call…and then he would drink. "Just…talk to me. Please."
He just shakes his head, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "I don't want to because you shouldn't have to deal with my problems. You're not the cop."
"No, but I've grown up living with one. And I'm dating one."
He gives me a sideways glance and the side of his mouth twitches, trying to fight a smile. I don't know why he's smiling, because this isn't really something to smile at…
"What?" I demand, frustrated.
Edward chuckles, and then turns to look at me. "You said we're dating." His lips twitch up into a cocky smile.
Rolling my eyes, I cross my arms over my chest. "Seriously? That's what you're focusing on?" I was annoyed by him changing the subject, but my stomach twisted as he continued to smile.
"It's just nice to hear you say it aloud, that's all."
Groaning, I slump back against the couch's arm. "You're a pain in the ass."
He may have eluded my questions, but he wouldn't be able to dodge them for long. I didn't want him to try and avoid them, I'm worried about what he might do or how he might act if he doesn't talk to someone.
"And you're my girlfriend." He mocks, leaning towards me. I roll my eyes at him again, but I'm smiling. Goddammit, I don't want to smile.
His lips brush against mine. His hands grip my thighs, yanking me towards him so that I slide down the couch and my back is against the cushions, Edward hovering over me. I laugh, my hands resting on his hips and he leans down, pressing his lips to mine again.
"You know…" I say, turning my head to the side to avoid his lips. "A boyfriend would normally talk to his girlfriend about his problems."
He groans, dropping his head. "I don't want to talk about it right now. Can you please just respect that?"
I flinch, feeling guilty. Okay, maybe I shouldn't push him…we've only just started dating and who knows how he'll react?
When he goes to kiss me again, I put the palms of my hands against his chest and shake my head. "Oh, no. You are not using sex to make me forget about what we were attempting to talk about."
"Fine." He huffs, pushing himself off me and pouting, crossing his arms across his chest – it's almost comical.
The front door opens, Alice and Jasper walking in with smiles on their faces. "We're back!" Alice calls and then her voice drops when she turns and sees us on the couch. She glances between me and Edward, raising an eyebrow to me. I just shake my head and she turns to Jasper. "Do you want to stay or…?"
Jasper shakes his head. "I really wish I could but Edward and I have plans." He looks to Edward as if waiting for him to confirm.
"Shit, yeah, sorry." Edward runs his fingers through his hair and then looks at me. "Do you mind?"
"No, go ahead! I don't want to keep you from anything important." I push myself off the couch at the same time that he does. He bends down and presses a quick kiss to my cheek and, after grabbing his things, heads out with Jasper.
Alice plops down next to me, a bright smile plastered on her face. "So…I didn't know Edward stayed over."
"It was a last-minute thing…" I shrug, not wanting to talk about it.
She quirks an eyebrow. "Does it have anything to do with his shift ending early?" I look at her, surprised. "Jasper told me that he got off early last night."
"He didn't want to talk about it and it's not really my place to say anything."
Thankfully she doesn't push. She's dating a cop – she has to know that there's things that Jasper won't tell her or won't want to talk about with her. At least I'll have her to understand, Rose would just keep pushing.
Thanksgiving comes and goes and soon the bakery is bombarded with orders for holiday party orders – all the way up until New Year's Eve. We basically had deliveries going out every single day, even on Sundays. We hired a handful more staff members and Jacob brings in a few of his friends from the Reservation to act as delivery men.
Edward's busy at work, picking up extra shifts for overtime. We don't get to spend much time together, except for when he stops by for coffee every now and then.
It's frustrating, really frustrating.
But there's nothing either of us can do. I'm not going to fault him for picking up extra shifts, especially when I don't get home until midnight practically every night. We manage a few phone calls here and there, but I'm usually getting ready for work when Edward is getting off.
At work, I'm able to concentrate on the orders I'm working on and forget about my worries. But after work, when I'm back at the apartment and Alice is asleep, I stare up at my ceiling in the dark, my mind racing with worries and fears and doesn't shut up until I manage to fall asleep around two in the morning.