Summary: For years, Alice Cullen watches as her brother falls madly in love with Bella Swan more and more with each passing minute. Now Alice has had the girl and her brother as roommates. When Bella breaks Edward's heart, Alice is torn between keeping peace between her best friend and her brother while trying to emotionally be there for them both. It doesn't help that Alice finds her control on certain thoughts and feelings about the beautiful brunette slipping away from her. Is this her epic love story or her tragic one? Maybe it'll be both.
A/N: Esme and her kids are Masen's. Carlisle and his kids are Hales. Emmett is a Swan and the brother of Bella. Past is in italics. Title from the song Maps by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The bold top line of fic is a line from it. I don't own anything, and all mistakes are mine. Leave some love if you want. Also, should I continue?
They don't love you like I love you.
It's the summer before twelfth grade when the Masen's move to Forks, Washington. Esme had finalized her nasty divorce from her children's father while also gaining full custody. She had insisted that they create a new life for themselves, away from the nosy neighbors and the ghosts of nasty acts and more importantly away from the guy who was once called husband and father.
It's a week before school starts. Alice Masen makes a trip to a local store to pick up school supplies when she first sees Bella. She's skimming through the supplies with notebooks and highlighters already in her hands when someone behind her stumbles into her.
"Oh God. I'm sorry!"
Alice turns around and is smacked in the face with the beauty of a pair of chocolate eyes and a nice facial structure. Those eyes are wide, and her cheeks are a nice red from her embarrassment.
"I'm such a klutz."
"And I'm Alice!" she giggles, holding her hand out to shake Bella's. "Do you go to Forks High?"
Bella nods her head, shaking a tiny pale hand. "Bella. Senior. What about you?"
"The same! Maybe you can be my tour guide." Alice winks at her. She's always been flirtatious and a beautiful benefit of that is the deep red that again blossoms on Bella's cheeks.
Bella scratches at the back of her head and her hand twitches around the notebooks in her other hand. "Uh... yeah. I-I can do that."
They both go along the aisle gathering more items while they continue talking.
"So, what brings you to Forks? Nobody really makes something great out of themselves here. Most never get out. They just fall into a routine and stick to not moving on."
"That sounds... really depressing actually. I refuse to stay here longer than necessary." Alice takes a deep breath and concentrates on browsing before finally answering. "My mother thought it best to move my brother and I somewhere small and hardly known. Things are just how they need to be."
Bella hums. She can kind of understand that.
"I'm sure she made the right decision."
Alice looks away and seems to really think about that. "I think so, but it doesn't take away the nasty absence of what has been lost."
"Maybe what is lost leaves room for something better."
Alice looks at Bella with an intensity in her eyes. That sounds like dream, but maybe Bella is right, and she reminded Alice of something. She's the type that bounces back. The kind of girl who tries to find good all around her. A girl who is light and strong. Some would even say magical.
"I hope you're right."
"Me too."
They share a laugh before Bella realizes she's done gathering school items.
Bella adjusts the objects in her hands, nodding to the front counter. "I should get going. I'll see you at school."
"I can't wait."
Several minutes later, Alice is finally leaving the store when the sound of an engine refusing to start catches her attention. Looking to her left, she notices the girl from earlier looking frustrated as she sits in a beaten down truck and tries turning the key over and over again to get the engine going. She can't help the tiny, airy laugh that escapes her when she walks closer and hears frustrated grumbling words that she can't make out other than "damn junk" and "sorry" and "love you".
"Do you need a ride?"
The girl jumps, startled by Alice's sudden appearance, and she blushes in embarrassment for the third time today. "Oh. No. I'll get it. It's just stubborn."
Alice can't help but to tease the other girl. "It would help if you kept it up to date."
Alice doesn't know much about cars, but she knows they need to be taken care of if one planned to keep it in use for a long time. As far as she can tell, this truck is old and well used and somehow still held together. It's a piece of pure junk but she'd never actually tell Bella that.
Bella sighs in frustration, running a hand through her beautiful long hair. "Rosalie would know what to do. She just won't ever tell me."
Alice quirks an eyebrow. "Who is Rosalie?"
"The walking goddess of Forks that my brother is way too lucky enough to date." Bella grumbles, trying to get the engine to turnover once more with no success.
Alice giggles. "Wow."
Bella looks at her in slight confusion. "What?"
"Sounds like you have some jealousy simmering inside of you. Seems like you want to be the lucky one."
Bella is wide eyed. "With Rosalie?"
"Mhm." Alice's grin is wide.
"Absolutely not." Bella shakes her head borderline aggressively. "We'd kill each other."
"So, you're fine with her being a girl." Alice stated more than asked. She has a gut feeling here.
"I mean. I don't hate any sexuality. I just never thought much about my own."
Alice hummed.
"Come on." Alice reaches out and pulls the handle to open Bella's door. She smiles. "I promise I'll get you home safely."
"Okay." Bella breaks, gathering the plastic bag in her seat. "Thanks."
Alice walks back to her car. Bella instantly impressed by her Porche.
"Is this really yours?" Bella asks as she opens the passenger side door. The inside has that new car smell and Bella has never ridden in something as perfect as this. She looks back to her truck with a pout and feels like slumping down in the leather seat.
There's a trace of sadness on Alice's face as she answers. "It was a part of the agreement between my mother and father during the divorce."
Now the trace of sadness on Alice's face makes sense. Divorce is never easy. Bella knows this personally.
Not wanting to bring Alice further down, Bella points to where they should turn on the road and slides into a different conversation. "Is your family like rich or something?"
"No, not anymore." Alice releases a light laugh despite the downfall of a money tower.
Bella grumbles while crossing her arms. "At least you got something cool out of it."
Alice casts a quick glance at Bella. Her eyebrow raising. "You sound bitter."
Bella sighs. She's not bitter. She just wanted something more. Her loving family again. "When my parents divorced, all I got was the choice of who I wanted to live with."
"Did you make the best choice?"
Bella shrugs. She didn't have much of a problem with Rene, but she's missed her dad and when she came back to Forks last year, she can't regret her time here and a part of her wished that she chose to live with him sooner.
"Well, now we're at a switch off. It's my dad's time to deal with me."
"Are you hard to handle?"
Bella smirks at her. "I don't think so, but who knows. Maybe you'll be able to figure that out."
"I would love to investigate on who you really are."
Bella smiles at her. The car finally rolling to a stop in front of her house.
"See you at school, Bella. I'm looking forward to that personal tour."
Bella exits the car, waving at her as the girl drives away. Her grin already being memorized in Alice's mind.
That same day, Alice drives home to tell Esme all about the new girl she's met. Esme smiles at her daughter over a mug full of tea, happy that Alice is already making friends after leaving their old life behind so abruptly. Alice is nice and interesting and beautiful, and it comes very easy for her to draw people in. These people who want her positivity and kindness. But Esme knows that twinkle in Alice's eyes and she knows this Bella girl is already important to Alice. That she wants what the other girl is willing to offer.
Esme also knows that Alice falls easily and judging by her rapid and repetitive talking about the small contact with Bella, she knows the girl will soon become another one Alice's crushes.
Alice skips happily into the kitchen to work on cooking breakfast. She has an hour and a half before she needs to be at her art class, and breakfast is the most important meal of the day! It's also the one meal of the day that Bella skips the most. If it weren't for Alice and Edward, Bella would probably never see a pancake with bacon in the morning ever again. The only times they really let her miss is on her days off so she can sleep in.
Rummaging through the cabinets, Alice takes out the pancake mix and sets about making some. Bella comes stumbling into the kitchen with wild bedhead, sleepy eyes and Edward walking behind her with a fond grin on his lips.
The three of them have been living together in an apartment in New York since the start of their college journey. After graduating from Forks High back home, they had cashed in on their scholarships. Edward had gotten into Julliard while Alice had gotten into Columbia University. Bella didn't receive a scholarship and had no idea what career she wants to go for anyway.
At first, Alice was hesitant about living with her brother and his girlfriend. It hadn't been only because she wanted to be free from her family as her own independent, but as adults it would be awkward. Alice would probably never have a lover stay the night. The most important reason being how could she exist in a stable manor when her brother and Bella - the first culprit of her heart and the one that has loved to linger - live with her. How many times would she accidently hear them having sex? How many times could she handle constant displays of affection? Or the mutual I love you's? It was hard enough when Edward and Bella didn't live together.
There is a part of Alice that refuses to believe that her feelings for Bella are still more than friendship. Those feelings - strong, undeniable, startling and beautiful. They've faded, right? But there's another part of her feelings that can't be squashed. The jealousy. And a lingering guilt about something that Edward should never know.
"Good morning, Bella!" Alice smiles wide with affection.
Bella's voice is rough from sleep when she replies with her own greeting. Edward's hand on the small of her back guiding her into a seat at the table where Alice just put down glasses of orange juice and a fruit salad. The pancakes still cooking away on the stovetop.
Edward steals a piece or two of fruit from the bowl. Bella smiles when he feeds her a grape. Alice pretends the pancakes are more important than the nausea settling in her stomach caused by the display of affection.
Finally, Alice settles the pancakes on three plates, and they start to dig in. This Alice can't help but like. The three of them sharing a moment of their times to just be together. She loves her brother. She really does. And she loves Bella. Infinitely so. Just like the way Alice herself is loved.
Edward is the first to finish his food. He wipes his mouth with a napkin before standing up and grabbing his plate to put away. "Come on, love. We should leave so you can get to work on time."
Bella nods while chewing her last forkful of pancakes. She heads back in their room to get dressed and brush her teeth and tame that wild mess of hair. The moment she is out of sight, Edward turns to Alice and walks closer to her as he lowers his voice.
"Alice, I need to talk to you about something of importance. It's best that we talk later. I'll meet you at our normal cafe."
"Are you okay?"
Edward has that charming grin painting his lips. His face turns so soft.
"More than okay if this goes my way."
Alice is about to ask Edward what that means but silences herself when she hears footsteps coming.
Bella walks back in as Alice deposits the rest of the dishes in the sink. As her best friend goes to pass her, she bounces up on her toes to kiss Bella on the cheek. Bella blushes. Edward doesn't notice, has never noticed the tension that lies just underneath their friendship. It's there like a raging inferno.
The door clicks shut behind them, an audible turn of the lock heard right after. Alice makes her way inside the bathroom to shower, pondering underneath the hot water what exactly Edward needs to speak to her about.
There's an uneasy feeling in her stomach. There have been plenty of times over the years while he's been with Bella that he asked to talk to her. Almost each of those times she worried that he knew the truth. That somehow Edward figured out about her feelings for Bella... and for a certain thing they have shared together.