This was my contribution to the TwiFans for Haiti Compilation a while back. This was the second thing I ever wrote so be prepared for craptasticness. I just read over it for the first time since I wrote it and good gawd, I'm embarrassed. I had to change a few things because it was just... bad. IDK how coachlady1 put up with my crappiness :-)

Penname: tiffaninichole

Rating: M

Pairing: Bella & Edward

Title: Earthquake

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BPOV

I can't stop thinking of him. His beautiful green eyes, his unruly bronze hair, that little sliver of stomach that peeks out of his shirt when he lifts his arms. His smile. Oh, his smile could persuade me do things I never thought I'd do... but he doesn't even know I exist. Neighbors in the same complex for three years and he never spoke to me. Sure, he'd smile politely like you'd do with any stranger. But he never really paid attention and saw me. But I can't say I blame him. I am rather plain. Brown hair, brown eyes, pale skin. Not exotic and model-esque like the types of girls I'm sure he goes for.

Every day, I look forward to the time of day when we're both leaving our apartments at the same time. He'd smile that crooked smile and I'd smile back. We'd both walk toward the exit of the building and go our separate ways. Sometimes, I walked behind him to catch a wondrous gaze at his butt. Oh, it is a sight to behold that butt of his, tight and muscular, flexing with every fluid step he took.

No one knew about my fascination with my neighbor. I was too embarrassed to tell anyone I was in love with a man I've never spoken to. My friends tried to set me up on dates, but none of them compared to my neighbor, Edward Cullen. Just the name gives me goose bumps. I sigh and look at the time. Oh! Time for my daily Edward sighting! I hop up and throw on some shoes. I don't even have work today, but I don't care. I'll just turn back around and go home once he's on his way.

I open the door and see him locking up his apartment. He looks at me and runs his hands through his hair. He looks agitated. I wonder what's wrong. I hope it's not woman troubles. I frown. Thinking of him with another woman is enough to make me nauseous. He smiles timidly and runs his hands through his hair again. Neither of us has moved from the spots in front of our doors. He takes a breath like he wants to say something and then closes his mouth. He frowns and I furrow my brows in confusion. What on earth is going on? I decide to break the ice. I need to speak before I lose my nerve or throw up. Or both.

"Hi..."

"Um, hi, Bella"

Bella? He knows my name? How?

"How did you—"

"Uh, I gotta go. See ya."

He hurriedly walks away with his head down, grumbling to himself and raking his long, elegant fingers through his hair. He's out of sight, so I just go back into my apartment. What on earth was that about? He seemed so annoyed and nervous. I wonder what his problem is. All I wanted to do was walk behind him and behold the beautiful vision that was his butt. But he had to ruin it and act weird, and in my stupefied state, I had completely forgotten to look at his keister while he walked away. Well, there's one positive—we spoke. After three years, we finally spoke to each other. And he knew my name! So exciting! But how did he know it? Did he inquire about me as I did him? If he wanted to know my name, why didn't he just ask me? But then again, I could say the same about myself. I sit on my couch and turn on my Tivo'd marathon of Family Feud, the best game show out there.

I don't know how much time passed since I became consumed in the game show, but I notice it is now dark outside. I can't find it in myself to care. I have nowhere to be, so I continue to watch my awesome marathon.

Some of these families are SO stupid!

John O'Hurley: "Alright now, Marie, name an animal that every kid begs their parents for."

Marie the Contestant: "A hyena."

"WHAAAT?" I practically scream. A hyena? A freakin' hyena? Really?

"How about a puppy, a cat, a freakin' goldfish! Idiot! Yeah, now you've struck out. Serves you right, dummy!"

All of a sudden there's a knock on my door. My eyebrows shoot to the top of my head. I'm not expecting anyone. I pause the TV (can't miss any of my awesome marathon) and walk to the door.

"Who is it?"

"It's uh... it's Edward. Your neighbor from across the hall."

Is it possible for a heart to actually beat out of a chest? Because I think that's about to happen to me. I think I saw it on an episode of Untold Stories of the E.R. My hand flies to my chest to try and keep it in my body, where I'd like it to stay. I take deep breaths to calm myself down before I hyperventilate and pass out. Edward is at my door. Edward is at my door! Oh! Open the door!

I swing the door open with more force than I intend to use and almost topple to the floor when I forget to let go of the knob. I right myself and straighten out the front of my shirt before looking at him again. I'm sure I'm as red as a tomato which probably isn't very attractive.

"Hi," I breathe.

He smirks at me "Hi."

We stand there, looking at each other for at least thirty seconds before he interrupts my blatant ogling. Rude.

"Okay, this is gonna sound really damn cliché... but, can I borrow some sugar? I'm attempting to make a pie. I saw this recipe this guy Alton Brown made and it seems like something I could do. I've never baked and he broke it down so even I could understand. I wanted to bake something for my mom and I thought I'd surprise the hell outta her by making her a pie. And I didn't wanna go to the store, because I was in pie baking mode, and going to the store would break me out of that mode. And I can't have that because I don't wanna accidentally burn the pie. Gotta pay attention and do it right, ya know?"

He palms his forehead into his hand. "Oh, God. I'm rambling. Sorry, I didn't mean to talk your ear off, it's just—"

"Edward, it's fine. I promise." I smile at him. Baking for his mom? How sweet is that? And the mindless rambling was so adorable.

"Come on in, I'll get you some sugar. How much do you need?" I ask as I turn my back to him and walk to the kitchen, and I hear him say something under his breath but don't pay it much attention.

"Family Feud, huh?" he calls from the living room.

"Uh... yeah. I love that show. It's my favorite."

"Yeah, I heard you yelling at the TV before I knocked. Pretty entertaining." He chuckles. "Fast Money's my favorite round."

Could he be any more perfect? My heart soars.

"Me too!" I say a little too excitedly. I shake my head at my stupidity.

He never told me how much sugar he needed, so I just grab a drinking glass and fill it with sugar. I walk back out to the living room and am saddened when I realize that he's about to leave. I stand in front of him, nursing the glass in both of my hands, willing him to stay. I slightly lift my head to look into his eyes and am shocked to see he's already been staring at me. Do I have something on my face? He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, opens his mouth as if to say something and abruptly closes it again. He does this about fifteen times and looks like a fish out of water. I unsuccessfully try to stifle my giggle.

He raises a brow, silently questioning what I'm laughing at.

"It's just... your face." He looks confused so I explain. "You kept opening and closing your mouth like a fish. It was pretty funny." I laugh again.

He smiles at me. Ah, glorious. I beam at him. His smile falters a bit and he drops his gaze to the floor.

"Sooo... thanks... for the, ah, sugar. I mean. 'Cause you let me borrow some."

"Oh!" I hastily hand him the glass, forgetting I was holding it in my hands. "No problem. Any time. I mean, you know, any time you wanna borrow something, ya know? Sugar, ketchup, ground beef, tomatoes, cheese..."

He laughs. I blush. I'm making such a fool of myself. He reaches his hand toward me, but drops it awkwardly before it can reach me, then runs his hand through his hair.

"Thanks again for the sugar. It's a lot of sugar. Probably more than I'll need. For the pie. That I'm making. For my mom. To surprise her. So, yeah..."

"Yeah, well, you know..."

"Yeah..."

He runs his hand through his hair again and pulls it in aggravation.

"Bella... um, I—"

The ground starts shaking, rumbling violently. I look at Edward, eyes wide, shocked and scared. I lose my balance and Edward catches me and holds me close to his chest. More shaking and vibrating. Things are falling off of shelves and out of cabinets. We're being rocked back and forth by the movement of the earth.

"EARTHQUAKE!" Edward shouts.

Oh, my God! Earthquake! He grabs my arms and pulls me under the dining room table. Thank goodness Alice made me get this huge metal and wood thing. I hate the monstrosity, but am now so appreciative for Alice's adamant demands. The noise is deafening. The building is groaning, and the sound terrifies me. Will it collapse? We're lying next to each other and he's holding me, shielding me with his body. My face is in the crook of his neck and his arms are wrapped around the back of my head. I grab the front of his shirt and squeeze the fabric tightly in my fists, afraid that if even a centimeter is between us, I'll surely die. Irrational? Yes. But I'm about to die, so rationality has flown out the window.

There is loud cracking, sounds of plaster falling, glass shattering, the building groaning, the ground shaking.

My screams, sobs and tears are being absorbed by Edward's skin. His breathing is fast and erratic, which scares me even more. If he's scared, then surely we'll die. The table begins moving back and forth above us. We have to coordinate our bodies to keep from rolling around with it. Something big crashes on top of the table and I scream louder. We're really gonna die. There's an incredibly loud shrieking noise and piles of rubble, concrete and metal fall all around us. The building sways and I scream so loudly, my voice goes hoarse. I pull Edward impossibly closer. I don't wanna die.

Then it stops.

The only sounds are my sobbing and the distant sound of car alarms. We made it? Edward's grip on my head loosens slightly, but I hold him tighter. He can't let me go!

"No!" I scream. "Please. Please don't let go!" I cry into his shoulder.

"Never, Bella. I'm here." He rubs my hair and puts his chin on the top of my head. My fear hasn't subsided. The aftershock is sure to come soon. What if the building or my stupid, huge and gaudy table doesn't hold up?

I look around and see nothing but gray. Dust and debris cover everything. Nothing is recognizable. I look to the door and see a huge block of cement blocking the only exit. There's no way we'll be able to use it. We're on the ninth floor of the building, so jumping out of the window isn't an option. We're trapped. Just as I think of how we'll die of starvation, the ground shakes and grumbles. The building groans again, louder than ever. Oh, no, it's gonna collapse. I suddenly have the urge to tell Edward everything as I burrow my face in his chest, taking a greedy whiff of his scent. It's the last thing I'll ever smell and it's beautiful, it's Edward.

He grabs my face in his hands, trying to hold still around all of the shaking and commotion. I look at him and nothing else matters. I love him. His eyes are brimming with thousands of untold emotions as he looks into my eyes.

"Bella," he yells over the cacophony of sounds surrounding us. "I love you. God, I love you."

"Oh Edward... I love you too." He pushes his face to mine urgently and I grab his hair to pull him harder against my mouth. The searing kiss wrenches the air out of my lungs as we both try to portray our emotions through this one act of affection. The lights flicker off and I feel weightlessness beneath my body. A huge crash, deafeningly loud noises, screams.

I realize that the building is collapsing. Down, down, down. And nothing matters because I love Edward and he loves me. My life flashes before my eyes. Charlie catching a twelve-pound bass, smiling proudly. Renee cooking a salmon soufflé that Phil sneaks into the garbage disposal. Angela excitedly hopping up and down on her wedding day, a beautiful and glowing bride. Alice hugging me fiercely after her first fashion show. Emmett arm wrestling and purposely losing against Rose. Edward smiling at me. Edward laughing at some unknown joke. Edward holding me. Edward kissing me.

One last scream escapes my mouth before darkness consumes me.

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A/N:

Bad and corntastic, right? *shudders*