Chapter 23 - Lost Windows

BELLA

It turned out my mother didn't get to come home this weekend after all. I spent Saturday night pouting until I couldn't stand it anymore and walked over to the Cullen's. I didn't really think I was welcome, but I stood outside Edward's window and watched him play his guitar with a smile, and that made me feel a little better. The show he gave me with his water bottle, and then the song he sang after he was done, really made my night. He heard me sneeze and came looking to see me, but again, I hid in the shadows. I would swear it was like he could see me, but he didn't say a word, as his eyes focused on me. He once again gave up and went back to bed. I hurried home after that, not wanting to push my luck, because we all knew I didn't have any luck to speak of.

I was surprised when Edward and Alice showed up to pick me up for school on Monday. They had no reason to, since my ankle wasn't sprained, and my face didn't need making up. Man, just thinking that made me feel like a klutz!

EDWARD

We were picking up Bella, and I realized I didn't have to, but it just felt like a habit now. I didn't know what I was going to do once school was out. I hadn't made a lot of friends, and I really didn't want to get stuck in my house all day with Esme and Alice. I loved them, but let's face it; sometimes it was easier to love people from a distance. Unfortunately for me, Bella was not one of those people.

"How's it shakin'," I asked her as she stepped out onto the porch.

She just shook her head at me. "Really, that's the best you got? How long did it take you to come up with that?"

I just shrugged. "Why don't you just cool down? What's with this frosty exterior?"

"Well, I guess it's better than duck jokes."

"Oh, leave her alone," Alice chided me.

The ride to school seemed to go too fast, and I found myself wishing I could spend more time with Bella. At lunch, I sought her out and sat at her table, like I had been doing for the past week. Alice and Emmett joined us as usual. Emmett seemed particularly excited. "So, what are the plans for this summer?" he asked, and I was curious myself.

"I've got to find a new hair style," Alice lamented. "I saw two freshmen with the same hair as me just this past week," she shook her head.

Bella raised an eyebrow at her and smirked.

"What are you doing, Ducky?"

"Her new nickname is Berry," I informed Emmett.

"Berry? What does that have to do with ducks?"

"Nothing, but it has everything to do with strawberry," I said smiling wider.

Bella actually giggled and shook her head at me.

"Well, which do you prefer?" I asked.

"Bella," she stated flatly.

"Clean the ice cream out of your ears, Swan, your name is either Ducky or Strawberry."

She rolled her eyes. "I guess I'll go with strawberry. Last thing I want to be associated with is Emmett's anus or Pretty in Pink."

"You do look cute with pink hair," I teased.

Of course, this just confused Emmett even more. "Her hair isn't pink. When was it pink? Are you going punk on us, Berry?"

"Yes, I have several piercings, now you try and guess where they are," she said like she was totally serious, and I suddenly wondered if she had real ones.

"Oh, my gosh, you guys are so easy. Bella, look what you did to them! Tell them you don't have piercings!" Alice squealed.

"How would you know?" Emmett asked. "Is Bella your secret luva?"

Alice threw a French fry at him. "No, I helped her get ready, remember? Which means I've seen Miss Swan in all her naked glory." This caused Bella to blush.

"So, is it as glorious as the dress made it out to be?" Emmett asked, and it was Bella's turn to flick a fry at him.

"Yes, of course, Bella has a beautiful body and gorgeous legs," Alice started, but I cut her off.

"Yeah, they really rock the fishnet stockings and pink hair."

"Where the hell did you see that?" Emmett asked. "You guys aren't leaving me out are you?"

"No, Emmett, we're not. Edward just ran into me at work."

"Correction, Berry, you ran into me," I teased recalling how she had punched me and then fell on me.

"Okay, this was a nice quiet table; who said you could sit with me anyway?" she asked raising an eyebrow at Emmett and me.

"Would you like us to leave?" I asked. I was pretty sure she would say no.

She tapped her chin a few times. "Well, I suppose you both can stay, as long as Alice vouches for you."

"Not happening. My brother's an idiot, and so is Emmett. Goodbye," Alice said with a flick of her wrist.

Emmett and I gasped, and Bella just started out laughing.

"You guys are cruel you know that? That was just mean," Emmett said like he was really hurt.

"Oh, you're fine," Bella said. "Here, you can have my pudding cup," she said passing it to him.

He eagerly took it, and I was a little jealous. "Hey, I'm hurt, too. What do I get?"

She looked at me and smirked. "For you, Edward, you get a bottle of water," she said a little too mischievously. For a moment, I thought she was going to dump it on my head, but she just handed it to me, as she got up to empty her tray. "Have fun with that," she said with a wink, leaving me totally baffled. Then to my horror, it dawned on me that Jasper or D might have told her of the water bottle usage in military school.

"Dude, what's your deal? It's just water, you're acting like she told you that you forgot your pants," Emmett said around a mouthful of ill-gotten pudding. Emmett didn't know how close to the truth he was.

BELLA

Okay, that was a little mean, but I couldn't resist. I was going to save my bottle of water for later, but when he asked for something, I couldn't stop myself. I gave him the bottle of water. When I stood, he cringed like I was going to dump it on him. As appealing as I thought Edward in a wet t-shirt might be, I had something else in mind. I gave it to him and told him to have fun with it. It took a moment, but I saw when everything snapped into place. I was sure I would hear about it in biology.

Edward was almost late to class. He rushed in and slid into his seat. "Running a little late," I commented.

He just grunted, and I saw his cheeks had a red hue to them. "You look a little flushed, Edward. Is everything alright?"

I saw him bury his face in his hands and take a deep breath. I was starting to worry.

I leaned over and nudged him. "Dude, seriously, what's up?" I asked.

"I got caught with the water bottle," he said, and I couldn't help but laugh.

His eyes widened, and he pointed at me. "YOU KNOW!"

"Quiet down in the back," Dr. Banner warned.

"You know!" he hissed accusingly. "Who told you?"

"I'll never reveal my source." Truth was, he was my source.

"I'm so going to kill those guys," he growled.

"Ah, come on, Edward, I was just teasing you. It isn't like you're the only boy in the world doing it. Heck, even girls do it." I would, too, if I could just get someone to help me figure it out.

I looked up at the board and started taking notes. I could feel his eyes boring into the side of me. I was doing my best to ignore him.

"Do you?" he asked leaning very close to me. I could feel the heat radiating off his body.

I swallowed hard. "Not yet."

"Yet?"

"I haven't figured out how," I mumbled.

I heard snickering next to me. "And you're doing so well in biology," he whispered.

"Maybe I need tutoring on that." My whole face heated, as my blush flared.

"Hmm, well, that's something to think about now, isn't it?" he said, and his voice seemed deeper.

Damn, he was hot. The bell rang too soon, and I waited until he left the room before I moved. I didn't know how, but it seemed Edward Cullen could affect my whole body without even touching me.

After school, I was so embarrassed by what I had said that I kept my eyes on the ground. He grabbed my door just like he did for Alice every day, and I sat quietly next to him, as we drove to my house.

"Okay, you two, what the heck is going on? The tension is insane!" Alice complained.

I blushed so deep and shook my head. "I don't know what you're talking about. Do you, Edward?"

He smirked at me. "No, Berry, I have no clue," he said a little too smoothly.

He got my door and walked me up to the house. Alice was waiting in the car, so we had a moment alone.

"Thanks for the ride," I mumbled.

"Sure, no problem, you're on the way, anyways."

"Thanks."

He leaned in close to me and whispered, "Call me if you need tutoring."

My eyes widened, and I looked up at him. I gulped hard and squeaked, "Okay."

He smiled and winked, and then he strutted back to his car. How had my water bottle joke gotten so out of hand?