Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer. I'm just feeding the addiction she has created.
Playlist for Chapter Eight – "Flirt" by Dreamland Days and "Divine Intervention" by Taking Back Sunday
Chapter Eight - Divine Intervention
~Bella~
The next two weeks seemed to pass faster than the speed of light, but still crawl like the movement of tectonic plates. My precious time with Edward was too brief. Time away from him felt like it spanned eternity.
We still hadn't spent any time together other than in our classes. We would exchange "hellos" and smiles in the hallway, between classes, catch the other's eye during class and chat whenever we could, but at lunch time Edward always joined Alice at their table and I sat with Angela at ours. I still noticed that neither of them ever ate any of the food from their trays, but kept that observation to myself.
I would have loved to spend one-on-one time with Edward, but I was willing to take whatever I could get. I was happy just being near him. On the plus side, Edward was in all of my classes. On the minus side, Mike Newton ended up in three of my classes, including gym, and managed to sit within spitting distance in the other two.
Mike swaggered over to my desk in English, before the bell rang, so I braced myself for impact.
"Hey Bella, a bunch of us are going down to spend the day at First Beach this Saturday. Do you want to go with me?" he asked.
No Mike, I'd rather have surgery for an ingrown toenail with no anesthetic than go anywhere with you. My stomach turned. I scrambled to think of an excuse, when I remembered that Angela and I were planning a trip to Port Angeles to shop for music and books. This coming weekend seemed like the perfect opportunity.
"Thanks, Mike, but I already have plans for this weekend," I told him. Hopefully that would be the end of that.
No such luck, apparently, because Mike opened his mouth to speak again. "Can't you change them? I'm sure you'll have more fun with me than whatever you have planned."
I bristled. You clueless, ignorant, arrogant, pompous…
"No Mike, Angela and I have had plans to go to Port Angeles for weeks now," I answered through my clenched teeth. Then I felt guilty for possibly hurting his feelings and added, "Maybe some other time." Wait! Retract that statement! I didn't want to encourage him. Too late… he was beaming, obviously delusional enough to think that I actually wanted to go somewhere with him.
~Edward~
Newton was getting on my last nerve. His childish infatuation with Bella and the possessive tone of his thoughts were enough to drive me insane. I imagined a million ways to end his pathetic existence, enjoying the most violent images immensely.
I wish Cullen would leave Bella alone. What an ass-hat! The way he stares at her gives me the creeps, Mike thought as I shot him a withering glare. He shuddered and returned his attention to Bella.
"Hey Bella, a bunch of us are going down to spend the day at First Beach on Saturday. Do you want to go with me?" Mike asked.
I watched closely to gauge her response. What if she wanted to go with him? My fists tightened involuntarily at the thought. He wasn't worthy of her – none of the feeble-minded cretins that attended this school were worthy of Bella. I saw her eyes tighten slightly and a frown flitted across her face for an instant, then she smiled at Mike.
"Thanks, Mike, but I already have plans for this weekend," she replied politely.
Plans with Cullen? Mike wondered as his eyes darted to me briefly. "Can't you change them?" he whined. "I'm sure you'll have more fun with me than whatever you have planned."
Could the dim-witted boy just not take a hint? Moron.
"No Mike, Angela and I have had plans to go to Port Angeles for weeks now," she answered with a frustrated tone. "Maybe some other time." Then I saw her wince when she turned away from him, realizing that she had inadvertently encouraged him to keep hope alive.
She obviously wants to go with me; she just doesn't want to let Angela down. Mike seemed far too chipper after receiving the rejection he didn't recognize for what it was. I pictured pummeling him as a punching bag, and my mood improved considerably.
I heard Alice's panic-filled thoughts as I waited for her by the Volvo.
Edward, you can't let her go to Port Angeles this weekend, she and Angela will be in danger if they go!
I watched in horror as her vision unfolded.
Bella and Angela had just left the bookstore and were on their way to a restaurant when they were approached by a tall woman with long, wild, red hair. The woman told them that her car had a flat tire and asked for their help. A pair of sinister red eyes watched from a distance as the woman led the two girls a few blocks away to a secluded area where an old car was parked alone in the back of an isolated lot.
The woman removed her sunglasses, her crimson eyes glowing, and the girls gasped as she grinned wickedly, her razor-sharp teeth gleaming with venom. She winked at Bella and in a flash had grabbed Angela, her teeth poised at Angela's neck.
"Now where's the fun in that, Victoria?" asked the male vampire, stepping out from the shadows. He was barefoot, his dirty, long blond hair held by a leather cord in a ponytail. "I know how much you love to play with your food… it's such a turn on."
Victoria raised her head from Angela's neck and answered, "James, darling, I'm just going for the effect here. Our little Bella will appreciate the show so much more if she knows what's in store for her and her friend."
"H… how do you know my name?" Bella asked, her voice cracking.
"It's a long story. I might tell you before we're finished having our fun with you. Of course, we'll save the best for last. Sorry, dear…" She looked quizzically at Angela. "What is your name?"
Angela was too frightened to speak. Victoria stepped back and slapped Angela across the face. Angela gasped, trying in vain to make the words come out.
"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that. What did you say your name was?"
"A… Angela," she stammered, her eyes brimming with tears.
"Well, Angela, we will have some fun with you first and Bella can watch before it's her turn," Victoria told her sweetly.
"Leave her alone!" Bella shouted, squaring her shoulders bravely. "Do what you want with me, but please let her go."
"Aww, isn't that sweet," Victoria laughed. "I'd consider your request, but it just so happens that one of you isn't enough to go around. This way each of us can have our own meal."
James held Bella tightly with his hand over her mouth, muffling her screams and forcing her to watch while Victoria slowly tormented Angela, finally draining her after she collapsed from the torture. After finishing Angela, Victoria turned to Bella with an evil gleam in her eyes. Bella struggled futilely in James' arms, her eyes wide with fear as Victoria approached her.
"ALICE, STOP! I can't watch anymore," I roared as Alice joined me at the Volvo.
"They both end up dead, Edward. You have to find a way to keep them from going."
As I tried to think of some means of intervention, it occurred to me that the two vampires in Alice's vision knew who Bella was. How? What did this mean? I had to know.
"Alice, tell me – how did they know Bella's name?"
"Edward, I'm sorry I kept this from you for all these years, but I had to. You remember after you first met Bella that I told you to get an apartment in Port Angeles so you could be near her? I had visions of those two vampires abducting her and making her an immortal child. They had identified Bella at the elementary school, but as long as you were in the area they wouldn't approach her. After a while, they lost interest in trying to get Bella and moved on to find another little girl in Seattle. They changed a little boy there as well. Those were the immortal children that drew the attention of the Volturi."
"Why on earth didn't you tell me? This would have been useful information to have at the time," I growled.
"Because in all my visions where I told you what was going on, you overreacted– in typical Edward fashion –and wound up getting destroyed and Bella made immortal," she snapped. "I had to prevent you finding out to keep you both safe. If you had confronted either of them, the male would have taken it as a personal challenge and been determined to take Bella and kill you in the process. Because you were passive, they lost interest and moved on."
"So what can we do to keep Bella and Angela from going to Port Angeles on Saturday?" I asked. I prayed with all my might that we could prevent Alice's gruesome vision from becoming reality.
Alice started bouncing on the balls of her feet. It was a wonder she wasn't actually jumping up and down. "We can ask the girls to go to see the Nine Inch Nails concert at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland. We can drive down in the morning and stay overnight in Portland after the concert. It will be a blast!" It'll be great, Edward, I promise, she and Angela will love it. I'll go ahead and get the tickets as soon as we get home.
I smiled as I thought of Bella's CD collection that I had perused in her bedroom while she slept. Even though the quantity of CDs was small, the quality was excellent. We had very similar tastes in music. She had selections ranging from both Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age to Chopin's Nocturnes, and not one country music CD. She truly was perfect in every way.
~Bella~
Thursday morning found Alice bouncing over to my locker before advisory where she stood, vibrating, with an expectant look on her face.
"Bella, one of my dad's coworkers was given tickets to the Nine Inch Nails concert at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, and he gave them to my dad. He thought that Edward and I could use them and take a couple of friends. Edward suggested asking you and Angela. Would the two of you like to go with us to see the concert? We can leave early Saturday morning and go shopping in Portland and stay overnight at a hotel after the concert. It will be so much fun!" she managed to blurt out in a single breath.
"Wow! I'd love to see Nine Inch Nails, and I heard on the radio that Queens of the Stone Age are opening for them." I had CDs by both of them, so to say I was excited about the invitation was somewhat of an understatement. "I'll ask Angela if she wants to go, and we can check with the parents."
"Edward can drive us down Saturday morning and we can spend the afternoon shopping after we have lunch. We already have hotel rooms reserved for me and Edward; you and Angela can stay in my room. I really, really, really, really hope you can come!" She started bouncing again for emphasis.
"Alice," I hesitated, "I'm just curious, why didn't Edward ask me?"
"He can be really shy sometimes… and he was worried that you wouldn't want to go," she admitted, grinning from ear to ear.
"I can relate to the shy part," I told her. "Okay, thanks. I'll ask Angela when I get to our class. I think she'll be excited about it, too. And thanks again for inviting us. It was really thoughtful of you and Edward."
Alice flitted off to her next class, and I headed down the hallway to mine, my steps a little lighter than they had been earlier in the morning.
I slid into my seat next to Angela and whispered, "You'll never believe it, but Alice has tickets to see Nine Inch Nails play at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, and she invited us to go with her and Edward. Edward will drive us all down on Saturday morning, and they already have hotel rooms for after the concert. You and I can stay with Alice, and Edward will have his own room. Then we'll drive back on Sunday morning."
Angela frowned when I mentioned Sunday morning. Her dad was the pastor at the Lutheran Church and expected her to be there every Sunday morning.
"I'll ask mom and dad, but I don't know if I can miss church on Sunday morning, so don't get your hopes up," she said sadly.
The bell rang to start class and we stayed busy until it was over, so we didn't get to talk again until lunch. Angela and I were sitting at our usual table, discussing this morning's turn of events.
"If we do get to go to the concert, it should be an interesting trip," Angela said with a wink. "I don't think I've heard Edward say more than five words at a time. He's so quiet and keeps to himself. I was starting to think that he hides the bodies in his spare time."
Angela and I laughed until we nearly had milk coming out of our noses.
"He talks to me, when we actually get a chance to. Alice did say that he can be really shy," I said in Edward's defense.
"He just seems so isolated, except when he's with Alice. She's the only person he really seems comfortable with," Angela pointed out. "But I see how he watches you when you aren't looking. He really likes you; I can see it in his face. I just think he's afraid to let you know. Don't look, but he's watching you right now."
I fought the urge to face Edward and concentrated on the scratches in the surface of the lunch table instead. I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks, so I shook my hair to fall across the side of my face like a curtain, separating me from Edward.
"What's he doing?" I whispered to Angela.
"He's licking his milk carton and making obscene gestures with his hands," she whispered in reply.
I almost smacked her. "No he is not!"
"No, of course he isn't. He's talking with Alice. Well actually, they're laughing."
I could hear his musical laughter from across the room. Whatever Alice said must have been really funny. I loved that sound more than anything, and wondered what I could do to make him laugh more often.
~Edward~
All through the morning classes I wondered what Bella had thought of Alice's invitation to the concert. I listened to her limited conversation with Angela and watched through the minds of several of our classmates, but her expressions didn't provide me with any useful information.
At lunch I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing when I heard Angela say that I hid the bodies in my spare time. Oh, ladies, if you only knew…
I had to hand it to Angela. When she made the Ferris Bueller reference about obscene gestures, both Alice and I nearly lost it. It was one of our favorite movies from the 80's. Both of the girls had a sense of humor that was so refreshing to experience, I just couldn't contain my laughter.
Edward, they are great girls and we will have a wonderful time with them this weekend. I don't even need a vision to see that.
The bell rang and I left the table and headed to the gym locker room. Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley were talking about their plans for the beach trip this weekend.
"I know Bella wanted to come with me, but she's too good of a friend to let Angela down when they have plans," Mike bragged. She'll be more than happy to come with me the next time.
"I heard that Cullen girl invite Bella and Angela to go to a concert in Portland with her and her brother," Tyler informed him, recalling the conversation he overheard near Bella's locker.
"What?" Mike nearly choked. I wished fervently that he would. "No way she's going anywhere with that creep. He looks at her like she's something to eat."
Tyler laughed and ruffled Mike's spiky hair. "You jealous of the pretty rich boy?"
"Hey! Don't mess with the 'do!" Mike whined, trying to place the quills back into their original position. "Nah, he's got nothing over me. Bella doesn't pay any attention to him, anyway. I'll have her eating out of my hand before the semester's over."
Over my pile of ashes, I thought to myself. There is no way that Bella would want someone as clueless, immature, and just generally vile as Mike Newton. Would she?
I slammed my locker with a little more force than usually, the clang of the metal echoing rather loudly throughout the locker room. Mike and Tyler both jumped and hurried out into the gym.
We were playing dodge ball, and Mike and Tyler were the team captains. Of course, Mike picked Bella to be on his team. Bella offered Mike a half-smile and joined her teammates on Mike's side of the room. I knew from Mike's thoughts that there was no way he would pick me to be on his team with Bella, and with the next pick I walked over to join Tyler's group.
I hated for Bella to be exposed to any projectiles, so when the game began I made sure I was always in the way of my teammates, blocking them from taking any clear shots at Bella. Somehow or another, the ball I was holding made rather solid contact with the back of Mike Newton's head, effectively removing him from the game. I tried hard not to grin. Really, I did.
Bella, who had been hovering in the back, tripped and found herself directly in the path of a ball batted away in self defense by Eric Yorkie and was out of the game and harm's way.
After gym had ended, I waited outside of our Calculus classroom to talk to Bella about the concert.
"Hi Bella," I said quietly. "Alice told me she asked you and Angela to join us for the Nine Inch Nails concert on Saturday, and I really hope you can go."
"Thanks, Edward. It's so nice of you and Alice to invite us. I hope we can go, too – Nine Inch Nails is a favorite of mine. I love Trent Reznor's 'tortured soul' style, and I've heard he puts on a great show." Bella smiled, that lovely blush staining her cheeks again.
"When do you think you'll know if you and Angela can go?" I asked. I would be sick with worry until I knew that I could keep Bella safe. If she couldn't go to the concert, we would have to come up with another plan.
"We'll both ask our parents tonight. Angela is worried that she won't be able to because her dad won't want her to miss church on Sunday, and if she can't go, I doubt that Charlie will let me go," she answered.
"Do you think her dad would be more inclined to agree if my parents are there in Portland with us as chaperones? I know they'll go if I ask them to. I can have my dad call Angela's."
"Maybe. I'm not sure. It can't hurt, and I know Charlie would appreciate having parental supervision for an overnight trip," she told me with a smile.
My dead heart tried to start beating again. I loved seeing Bella's beautiful smile; it could light up all of the Olympic Peninsula.
Class was about to start so we took our seats. I would talk to Carlisle and Esme when I got home about staying in Portland on Saturday night, and make sure that Carlisle talked with Angela's father. Carlisle's own father had been an Anglican pastor during the time of Carlisle's youth in London, and I was certain that he could easily find common ground with Pastor Weber. Never mind the fact that Carlisle's father was preaching in London over 300 years before Pastor Weber was born. He might not be quite as receptive to the idea of his daughter spending time with us if he were aware of that tidbit of information.
Alice met me at the Volvo after class let out. She was bouncing up and down like a prairie dog on crack. Edward, I think it's a great idea to have Carlisle speak with Angela's father and Charlie, and it will definitely work. I see us all together with Carlisle and Esme in the hotel in Portland.
Thank You, God! I released a sigh of relief and gave Alice a wide smile, knowing that there was nothing like a little divine intervention to keep Bella from becoming the victim of two sadistic nomad vampires.
~Bella~
Angela called me the minute her dad told her she could go to the concert on Saturday. It seems that Dr. Cullen had called and convinced Pastor Weber that Angela would be safe overnight in Portland in the hands of the Cullen family. I had no doubt that Charlie would agree to let me go if Angela was allowed to go. We squealed together out of sheer giddiness.
"You know what this means," Angela said, still giggling.
"What?" I asked.
"You get to spend nearly two days with Edward!"
"Thanks for reminding me. Now I'll never get the butterflies to migrate out of my stomach," I laughed. "What can I possibly say to Edward that will keep his interest? I'm probably the most boring person on the planet."
"Oh, I don't know, but I have a strong feeling that Edward will find anything you do fascinating. Just be yourself, and you can't go wrong," she assured me.
"Great," I muttered sarcastically. Then it struck me again – we were actually going to Portland with Edward and Alice to see two of my favorite bands. "I can't believe we're going to see Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age in Portland!"
Angela and I squealed our excitement again.
A few minutes after Angela and I had finished our conversation, the phone rang. A warm, gentle voice met my ear.
"Good evening, you must be Bella. I'm Carlisle Cullen, Alice and Edward's father. I hear that they have invited you to a concert in Portland this Saturday night and you need permission to go"
I answered affirmatively once I regained my wits and realized that he couldn't see me nodding through the phone.
"May I please speak to your father?" Carlisle asked.
I went up to my room while Charlie spoke briefly with Dr. Cullen, and I could hear Charlie laughing before he hung up the phone. After a few moments I heard Charlie's footsteps on the stairs.
"Bells?" he called out.
"Yeah, Dad?"
Charlie came into my room and sat down on my bed. "Dr. Cullen and his wife are going to stay at a hotel in Portland on Saturday night so that their youngest son and daughter can go to a concert. They told me that their kids have four tickets, so they've invited you and Angela to go with them. Pastor Weber agreed to let Angela go with them, so if you want to, I have no problem with you going as well."
"Thanks Dad! I'd really love to go. Two of my favorite bands will be playing. And Alice and Edward are really nice, so I think it will be fun."
"Just remember you can always call me if you need me for anything. I'll probably spend most of the day Saturday fishing with Billy. Now I'm going to hit the sack, it's been a really long day and tomorrow always starts early. Love you, Bells," Charlie said.
"Good night, Dad. Love you too," I yawned.
I sunk happily into my pillow and fell asleep with a huge smile on my face.
A/N: Well there you have it folks – Bella and Edward are going on a date! What lies ahead for them in Portland?
Random story fact #1: There really was a Nine Inch Nails concert at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon (opened by Autolux and Queens of the Stone Age) on Saturday, September 24, 2005.
Attending concerts is one of my favorite pastimes (aside from reading Twilight Fanfiction!). My most recent addition was the Muse concert in Houston. Next up: Blue October in May! A Little Distracted is my partner in musical crime, so you can find her there, too…
Mega-huge thanks to A Little Distracted for her mad beta skillz and never-ending moral support (including allowing me to borrow her imagination from time to time when mine utterly FAILS)! Now if she would only finish Chapter 7 of the story she has yet to post… Get on it!!!
For those that were doing the math (and maybe checked the Forks High School calendar), Edward left Forks on Tuesday, May 10, 1994. (Random story fact #2: There was an annular eclipse that could be seen across much of North America on that day!) He finally saw her again in their first class on Tuesday, September 6, 2005.
If you are looking for a good read, I have these suggestions at the moment:
"Bitter Edge" by ginginlee, an all-human fic that has nearly stopped my heart (and made me absolutely despise a very unfit mother!).
"Outside the Rain" by la-tessitore, is just amazing and completely owns me right now.
"Taken" by BellaLovesEdward729, kept me on edge constantly with a very deranged and creepy kidnapper.
The link for the playlist for My Imaginary Friend is on my profile, or here is the web address:
www(dot)playlist(dot)com(slash)playlist(slash)19366254859
Okay, so I'm going to panhandle for reviews... Reviewers will get a teaser from Chapter 9...