oOo
Usually, Bella slept very soundly. Especially when Edward was next to her, holding her in his arms.
But tonight, he didn't, and she wasn't.
He was working in his studio, only a few feet away, but Bella felt strangely alone. She'd been asleep for maybe two hours, and had woken feeling uneasy and restless. After another hour, she'd opened a book, but Syntactic Structures failed to entertain her.
The alarm clock on her bedside table read three a.m.
She willed Edward to come to bed, to come to her, but her psychic powers were not working. She tossed and turned for another hour before she fell back to sleep, and into strange dreams.
Bella didn't wake when Edward came to bed, and he didn't wake when she got up the following morning, despite the fact that she peppered the back of his neck with kisses and whispered his name – he was dead to the world.
She started her day alone, watching as the rain outside ran down the windows, reflecting her mood as she drank a cup of tea, going through her notes before meeting her professor. She was also planning to meet with Leah later that day, because she had promised to help Bella find something for Edward's garden – a subject Bella had absolutely no knowledge of.
She took the tube to Regent's Park and walked the rest of the way through the rain. The city was quite grey and drab today. There were ten more days left of her semester, and Bella was looking forward to their trip to Wales. Edward had practically been holed up in his studio over the last weeks, though she still had not seen any of his works.
The meeting with Dr. Littlesea went smoothly, and he encouraged her to stick by her theories. Her last seminar paper was due the following Monday, and Bella was just putting the finishing touches to it. If all went well, the next year would be spent on studying for her master's degree.
It had almost stopped raining when she left the building, and Leah was already waiting at the coffee shop on Cleveland Street. Bella told her about the positive feedback she'd gotten, and her friend hugged her and told her their lattes were on her.
"How's Edward?" Leah asked, slurping her iced coffee through a straw.
"Good. He's working a lot, and mostly at night." Bella shrugged.
"Does that bug you?"
"I'd like to see more of him, yes," Bella replied. "Because he mostly sleeps when I get up, and works when I get back."
"Hmm." Leah's black eyes were filled with sympathy.
"But we'll be off to Wales in a fortnight," she said. "Thank God. No more studying. My head seems to be imploding most of the time."
Leah laughed, a deep, earthy sound, and then pulled Bella up be the sleeve of her cardigan.
"Come on, girlfriend. Let's go and find some gardening stuff for your man."
Bella giggled and followed Leah, her concerns momentarily forgotten.
oOo
A/N: Oh dear, oh dear, I'm so ashamed about not replying to all your reviews. First I went to the seaside, getting almost sunburnt despite SPF 50 while simultaneously freezing my ass off due to the wind. Then I caught a nasty cold, so please bear with me for the time being… I read and cherish each and every one of your reviews.
I'm also on facebook, where you can contact me, or we can become friends. I'm Harper Pitt, profile pic is the same as here – I'd love to hear from you, and if you want, we can discuss my little story. You all have so different views on what's going to happen…
Hugs and kisses from
Your
harperpitt