Note: They own it
Hearts and Thoughts
Chapter 3
I Swear
BPOV
I was not sure what to make of the feeling I was having. It was hard to think and I felt like I had had the wind knocked out of me. Edward had leaned in and whispered that the window I was looking out looked like a Monet painting, my favorite artist, and stealing the very thought from my mind.
I sighed and said I loved the rain, and at that very moment, I was not even sure I meant the rain. I think it was him.
It was like all the love that I had thought lost forever after the passing of my Mom surged into my heart because of this stranger. It was a fleeting thought as I tried to steady my breath and clear my head.
"I love the rain"
"I do too" Edward said softly
Still looking wistfully out the blurry window, I replied, even more quietly "My Mom and I use to sit out on our front porch and listen to the rain fall. It makes me feel safe to hear the pattering of rain drops."
"It's the smell for me. I remember growing up in the city and the smell of the salty ocean and the rain mixing together, reminds me of my family spending the afternoon browsing the Pikes market."
I turned to face Edward and his brilliant green eyes locked with mine and for a few seconds and it was like I speaking with an old friend, someone who knew my very soul. I have never in three years spoken to anyone except for Charlie about my mom. My memories with her were too sacred to defile with words that could not ever truly express my joys, and then my devastating loss.
I continued to share with this stranger my most special memories, trusting him instinctively.
"My Mom use to take me to Seattle every summer and we would walk the market as well. I use to love to get huge bunches of dried flowers and browse the hand made jewelry stands and then we would always go to the starbucks across the alley and she would get an original blend coffee, because she always said "it's the original store, I will get the original blend". She would buy me a biscotti and hot chocolate and then we would sit and watch the men throw the fish for hours."
"I love the market in the summer. And the fish were my favorite part too" Edward said
"When did you move from the city?" I asked inquisitively
"When I was starting 9th grade. It was rough and I missed Seattle so much, but I also met my two best friends in the world so it turned out pretty cool."
"That kind of sucks you had to move again, but it could be worse…I have lived in the same place my whole life. I wouldn't mind a change of scenery sometimes."
"Yeah, it's hard because I miss my friends, but I have my sister and were pretty close. Jasper and Emmett are only an hour and half away, so I will still see them a ton. I think they are more excited about the move than anyone, they are hoping to visit soon and scope out some new tail."
"Tail? They sound like winners." I chuckled a bit under my breath.
Why am I dissing his friends? He just told me how much he misses them. Way to be a jerk Bella!
"Dude, I think first day jitters are making me an ass, their not bad guys, I swear"
Did he just say he has first day jitters? He is by far the hottest guy in this school and he thinks he needs to worry about making an ass out of himself? Half the school is going to be falling at his feet the moment they lay eyes on him. And I'm sure the girls here will be more than happy to hop on the Edward Cullen friend train if it means being closer to him.
"I'm kidding, they will fit right in and I'm sure Jessica Stanley, among others, wouldn't mind showing them around"
"Who's Jessica Stanley? And why do I get the feeling like I should absolutely NOT let her show them anything?"
"You're a quick leaner. Let's just say unless they want to visit your Dad while they are here for some bloodwork and possible antibiotics…they should steer clear"
"Ha, good to know"
"For them or for you?" I said with a bit more flirting in my tone.
Flirty tone, Bella? What is gotten into you?
"Oh, no, just them, well really just Emmett. My little sister, Alice, and Jasper have kinda been dating for the last few months. It drives me crazy, but I guess if she is going to date, at least it's someone I know will not hurt her.
He paused every so briefly and seemed to get a bit nervous before speaking again.
"So…What about you? I'm sure growing up here your whole life, you must be dating the homecoming king… you know, all high school sweetheart style?"
I choked a bit on my own words as I let out a small laugh and said a decidedly.
"No way."
"Who then, President of the senior class? More your style?
Ha! Not in a millions years.
"See, a major perk of growing up in the same town your whole life, is that I remember when our quarterback was 6 and peed his pants during a game of hide in go seek and our class president, well he threw up all over or 7th grade teacher after riding the Farris wheel at the school carnival. Let's just say I will pass on the all boys around here"
"Oh" was all Edward said, but I saw a small smile quickly flash across his face
"So, you going to college?"
Did he think I was some dumb ass townie? Like I would just stay working at the local diner for the rest of my life, maybe marry young and pop out a few kids?
"Yes. I said a bit condescendingly "I know Forks seems super-back woods, but please, of course I'm going to college. Brown, early acceptance. I said with a little more pride than necessary "And you?"
"Berkley" he said with a smirk.
Damn, he was smart too. Hot and smart.
Feeling a bit embarrassed about my assumption I quickly apologized "Sorry about that, I'm sure you were just asking where I was going to college, not if I was. I guess I just get a little worked up over the thought of never getting out of this damn town."
"No, I get it. Why do you think I'm headed to California?"
We both smiled at one other, silently understanding the need to see more of this world than the Olympic Peninsula and an occasional trip to the city.
Suddenly, we both looked away from one another at the loud sound of Mr. Banner clearing this throat.
I had been so engrossed with our conversation, as it flowed freely from one subject to the next, that I barely realized that the bell rang to end the class and we were sitting in an almost empty room.
Mr. Banner sarcastically asked if we were planning on staying for the next period considerding we did not pay any attention to the last. So, we both quickly grabbed our books and sheepishly shuffled out of the room.
"So, well… I guess… " I started to stammer as we stood outside the class room suddenly feeling awkward about what to say next. I felt even weirder because over than last hour I had not talked to anyone that much except for my best friend Rose in forever.
"Yeah, I mean… So… I guess I'll talk to you soon... maybe?" Edward said with as much awkwardness as me.
"Sure, see ya around"
In my dreams for sure.
As I walked off into the crowed hallway bustling with students and teachers, I quickly looked back behind me to see Edward walking off in the opposite direction. For a brief moment I felt like the whole world had stopped, and then it was his eyes that continued to make the world spin.
EPOV
Wow, I'm such a tool. First I implied she had screwed my dad, and then I leaned so close to her that I had to resist kissing her while she gazed out the window. I shared family memories with her, told her I missed my friends like I was some kind of total pussy, not to mention calling girls "tail" like an asshole right to her face. Pried into weather she had a boyfriend, and then to top it all off I made her feel like I thought she was an idiot, and has no aspirations to go to college.
Way to go Cullen, you total jackass. But on the bright side... you found out she has no boyfriend, so the conversation wasn't a total fail!
I'm not sure why I all of a sudden got nervous. I felt like I did not want our hour to have been over. She made me feel, different when we talked, and I liked it. I wanted to ask her when I could talk to her again. But instead I stuttered "Yeah, I mean… So… I guess I'll talk to you soon... maybe?" and that was it. I hoped more than anything she did not think I was a complete ass, and more than that I hoped that she had not decided that she had no intention of speaking with me again.
I walked away from Bella Swan in a bit of a self-loathing slump. I felt her eyes watch me as I retreated from our awkward final words. I wanted to look back and see her beautiful face one last time, to get me through the rest of the day, but I continued without looking back.
Beautiful.
The rest of the school day went by in a quick haze. My sister Alice and I decided to eat off campus, in lew of being stared at the whole time, while everyone who has known each other from first grade talked about the "new kids".
I did not see Bella anymore the rest of the day, except for when I closed my eyes.
It looked like I was going to become a morning person real fast, as I was already looking forward to AP Bio the next morning and I was only now just leaving the parking lot at the end of my first day.
"What has you all shit eating grinning" My pixie of a sister chirped at me as I was grabbing a snack out of the fridge.
"Nothing, shut it" I said slamming the fridge a little too hard than necessary
"Edward, please tell. I need something to make my day better. I spent most of the day miserable, missing Jazz, and all my friends back at home. I did meet one really nice girl in art class, but other than that my day sucked. So, tell." She demanded as she placed her little fists on her hips and stomped her foot on the kitchen floor.
"Fine, only because you will bug the shit out of me until I do."
This was par for the course for Alice and me. We were only a year apart, and truth be told, we were more like best friends than your typical brother and sister. We never fought, just bickered, but mostly just for the game of it. I was thankful that I had her.
"Well, I guess I'm smiling because I met a really nice girl too"
After the squealing died down a bit, Alice stared with a million questions.
"How old?"
"Senior"
"How tall?
"I don't know Alice, taller than you." I said with a chuckle
She frowned for a moment, hating when I teased her about her height.
"Hair?"
"Brown" I said matter of factually
"And Eyes?"
"Beautiful"
Alice stood there totally motionless, staring at me like I had just sprouted two heads and a tail.
Shit.
I had not meant to say it out loud. I had been thinking it all day, but that was for me to know, and for absolutely no one else, especially Alice to find out.
With her mouth still hanging open a bit, I quickly decided to cover.
"I mean… she was super hot. I'd hit it." I said with a cocky grin
"Edward Anthony Cullen" Alice screamed at me while slapping me hard across the shoulder
"First off you do not say you want to 'Hit it' when talking about a lady and second off do not try to cover with some 'she was hot' crap! I have never, ever heard you call a girl beautiful in my whole life. Smoke'n, sexy, sweet, hot, but never beautiful. SO SPILL!"
Ugh, I might as well just come clean, she will never let up and I know this will make her happy.
"I don't know what to say Alice. She was my lab partner in AP Bio first period and the moment I walked into the room, I was just… shit, I don't know, just taken."
I shifted my eyes to the floor knowing what I had just confessed was sure to send Alice over the edge.
I could barely hear above Alice's squeals
I tried to make a bee line out of the room while she was dancing around in her own little happily ever after world, but she caught me by my shirt and pushed me back into the kitchen.
"I'm not done hearing about this mystery girl that has seemingly broken the wild stallion otherwise known as Edward Cullen.."
"Very Funny Alice"
"I am not being funny at all. Do you know how many girls at our old school would have died to hear you call them beautiful, or to have you say you were taken with them?"
"Alice, seriously"
"Edward, seriously. You know you had more girlfriends than you could count."
"Fine" I conceded with another cocky grin
She was right.
"Well, what is her name?" Alice asked excitedly, hoping to scope her out tomorrow, I'm sure
"Bella Swan"
Alice gasped and then went from zero to sixty miles per hour as she ran around the kitchen island and jumped right onto my back laughing like a schoolgirl who was being chased around the schoolyard.
"ALICE! MY EARS! WHATTHEHELL" I screamed hoping she could hear me over her own screams
"BellaSwanismynewfriend,andEdwardIlovehersomuchandIjustknowyouandheraregoingtomakethecuttestcoupleandwecangoondoubledateswithJazzandherandthenwecanallgotocollegeandthengetmarriedandliveonthesameblockandhavebabiesatthesametimeandgrowoldtogether"
Alice always was one for the dramatics and speaking too fast that all her words blended together when she got supper excited.
"Alice, first get off my back, and then try to speak like a human, not some crazy fairy."
Slinking off of my back and talking a deep breath, Alice fixed her rumpled clothes, and then simply said "Bella Swan was the girl I made friends with today too."
She got a giant grin on her face and turned and started to walk away into the family room
"Not so fast little sister" I said as I grabbed at her hooded sweater and pulled her back and onto the kitchen stool. "Your turn to spill"
"Well, like I said I met her in art class. Her easel was right next to mine and we were supposed to be painting a 'feeling'. I didn't quite know what the heck the teacher meant by that so I leaned over and asked her what she was painting and she smiled and tilted her canvas toward me, like she had the entire concept in the grasp of her paint brush. I looked at her canvas and she had painted her entire canvas the most amazing shade of emerald. I giggled and said "thanks?" and then we both started to giggle uncontrollably. The teacher asked us to step out of the class room and get ourselves under control before coming back in. We ran out of the class still laughing, and we both slid down the hallway wall and after about five minutes we had calmed down a bit."
"What the hell was so funny? I don't get it."
"I guess you had to be there."
"OK" I said a little annoyed that my little sister seemed to have inside jokes with the beautiful girl, after knowing her for like 5 seconds.
"Edward, don't be jealous" She said smirking. "it was just funny because I did not know how to paint a "feeling" and I thought she was going to show me some kind of masterpiece that I could get ideas from and then when I saw her green canvas I thanked her with a question mark in my tone, and I think it dawned on her that she had painted the entire canvas green and nothing else and that the only person that would get the 'feeling' it was her. So, basically she showed me nothing of substance to help me out and it was funny at the time for both of us."
All of a sudden Alice looked at me with the strangest look. Like something had just occurred to her and a smile spread across her little face and she was absolutely beaming.
"What?" I said completely confused
"What period did you meet Bella?"
"First, why?"
Alice began kicking her legs wildly and nearly vibrating off of her seat.
"Your eyes"
"What about them?"
"Your eyes, Edward"
Even more confusion washed over me as our conversation about her and Bella's art class turned into what seemed more and more like a trip to the eye doctor.
"What about them Alice?" I said getting more annoyed at her vagueness
"She was painting the color of your eyes!" Alice said so assuredly that it was like she had a magic ball and could somehow read minds or tell the future or some shit.
"Kiss off Alice. If you're just going to try to mess with my head, I'm outta here"
"No Edward, I'm serious. It was the exact color of your eyes, and our art class was second period."
I thought about it for a quick second and then felt like a jack ass for even considering believing my little sister might be right and that Bella Swan even gave me a second thought the rest of the day.
"Whatever" I said indifferently as I turned and headed up the stairs to my room feeling like a jerk for hoping maybe Alice was right
"Edward, I'm positive. When we were sitting outside of the class room talking I asked her why she painted the canvas all green when we were supposed to be painting a 'feeling' and she said "green is the color of his eyes" and then she turned 10 shades of red and we walked back into class.
Shit..Taken.
I glanced back at Alice who was radiating from the kitchen counter as I continued to climb the stairs to my room, all the while feeling a little of her radiation running through me now.
I shut the door behind me and fell onto my bed with a thud. I flopped over and stared at the ceiling for the longest time just rolling Bella's words around in my head. 'It's the color of his eyes'
A smile slowly reached my eyes and I quietly said aloud, "I swear that girl will be mine."
A/N: Reviews are painting feelings with your words. Paint for me please!