Author's Note: I'd like to remark here that I wouldn't put a heroine in a position in which Bella finds herself in this chapter, but it's a major scene in Twilight and Midnight Sun. I think that it's a trite mechanism for the hero to come charging in to save fair maiden from a 'fate worse than death'. I do not agree with making rape, attempted or not, a part of a romantic scenario in any way, a la Meyer. That having been said, I'm going to go off and be a great bloody hypocrite.
Chapter seven: Reconciliation of Sorts
As he sat at the round table, idly turning up the edges of his two cards, Edward considered the new development. The only thing keeping Edward from laughing outright at this new roadblock of having Bella know he could read her mind, was the possibility she might tell others. Of course, Bella, being Bella, wouldn't likely go off and repeat her suspicions for fear of sounding a madwoman. However, in the improbable case that she did confide in one of the girls, he knew that they would believe her. Which would be inconvenient. If Bella breathed a word, he would have to leave town. Mentally he began listing items he'd have to sell, things he couldn't move. All of his documents were forged, as far as the U.S. government was concerned, he didn't even exist. He'd jilt his landlord, obviously, break his lease and his contract at work. He'd need a new tag for his car and—
"Hey kid, it's to you," the man to his left grumbled. Edward grumbled too and knocked on the table. He'd wait for the river to up the bet. He didn't want to scare the guys away too soon or they wouldn't risk as much. Make them think he didn't have a hand worth playing. As it stood, he had pocket Jacks and there was already one on the flop, along with a useless eight of clubs and the two of hearts. Edward knew he had the best hand and he'd play it as high as he could.
He knew poker would be good for him, but he'd have to find better games. These guys weren't real players. Granted, neither was he but he wanted higher stakes. By the end of the night he'd only made $210. Not enough if he'd have to move again. Of course he could resort to simple theft. He normally didn't like to up the crime rate in the area where he lived, it made people in general more on edge and less trusting. Fear wasn't a pleasant smell and small safe towns were the most peaceful. But if he was leaving anyway he might as well do.
But he wouldn't know if that would be necessary until tomorrow at least. He'd done some mind hopping after she left school that day, but she didn't appear to have told any of the girls whose minds he'd searched.
Not surprisingly, Bella pointedly ignored him all the next day. She stayed in the cafeteria throughout the entire lunch period and in every class he had with her he noticed she'd put her hands over her ears, or blast music from her iPod, no doubt in an effort to tune him out. From her behaviour he'd gathered she wasn't aware that she'd completely shut him out.
"Y'alright Iz?" asked O'Malley. 'Iz' was a flagged word, the moment he heard anyone utter it he'd jump into their minds. He'd been following her all day through other people to make sure she didn't snitch.
"Of course," she replied with a smile. Edward knew why the boy had asked. Her eyes were red rimmed and bloodshot, and dark bruises seemed to stain the delicate skin beneath. After a skeptical look she added yawning, "I couldn't sleep last night that's all. Just a bit tired."
"Well you could take a nap now, if you like. Use my shoulder for a pillow." It was such an obvious line but Bella just shrugged and lay her head down and closed her eyes. Edward wanted to shout at her for letting down her guard and foolishly closing her eyes and exposing her neck like that, but then he remembered that O'Malley wasn't that kind of a threat and he needed be worried that she had no qualms leaving her throat exposed and sleeping in a public place. The self-preservation instinct wasn't strong with her apparently. Like she said, it was a miracle she'd lasted this long.
And she wouldn't last much longer if all went according to plan.
.
Saturday was sufficiently dreary. No chance of sun whatever, so he went for a southward drive. He knew that she was going shopping with the girls for their dresses and without even thinking about it, he followed Bella through the other girls' thoughts, and when they left together in one car that afternoon, he found himself headed in the same direction.
He wouldn't be able to hear them if they got too far away, and for the first time, he hadn't considered this a good thing. Bella might not have said anything at school, but who knew what confidences a trip of bonding (read shopping) could inspire. Bella might yet spill the beans about him.
.
The next few hours were torturous. Horrendous. Concentrating on the five girls was indescribably painful on his reason. Humans, for all that they lived only a short while, spent a stupid about of time worrying about the inconsequential details of things. One colour was much the same as another, wouldn't effect anyone's opinion, wouldn't alter the course of events. One would think, that with such limited time as mortals were given, they'd try to make the most of it, they'd do as much as they could while they could.
They weren't unaware of their mortality, just seemingly indifferent.
Bella seemed just as eager to get away from their physical presence as he was their mental ones.
"Hey guys, I ordered a book that I need to pick up at the bookstore. Mind if I disappear for a few minutes?"
Amanda, the relatively level headed one of the other girls said, "Sure," then checked her watch. "Meet us in the food court at 7:30?"
"Great," Bella replied.
"Are you sure you'll be okay on your own?"
"I'll be fine," Bella assured, giving another one of her one arm shrugs. She had a jean jacked draped over shoulders, hiding the brace, so she looked somewhat normal. Still, she looked a bit off as she walked away from the group. It took him a moment to realize what was different about her. Edward always saw her with a backpack. She didn't carry one now, nor did she have a purse like the other girls. It made her appear... incomplete, in a way. "I'll see you in a bit."
Obviously, he couldn't follow Bella, and he certainly wasn't going to stay another minute in her friends' minds, so he withdrew from the scene, turned up Bach as loud as it would go in an ineffective effort to drown out all other sounds, and tried to enjoy his drive through the city. He'd check back in on them at 7:30.
It was silly of him, really, to try to force a confrontation, but he found himself at the bookstore all the same, evilly wondering how she would react. Another shouting fit and storming off? Would she see him, be frightened and run away? Would she apologize for making wild and insane accusations and forget the whole thing? Perhaps she had talked herself out of it. For all he knew she was embarrassed. Reason might have caught up with fear and prevailed. There were no such things as mind-readers, a sensible person like Bella would surely know that. She must be doubting herself now, especially since she had told no one else. She'd know that no one else would believe her. The idea was too outlandish.
Edward's confidence grew as he searched the store, but as he passed each shelf and searched the next mind, he didn't find her. She wasn't in the bookshop at all. The girl had lied to her friends... Interesting. As far back as he could remember, no one had even been able to get a lie past him, but now Bella could. That would make things... delightfully interesting. Provided she would ever speak to him again.
He left the bookstore and got back in his car. This time he kept his windows down to perhaps catch her scent.
Actually he saw her before he smelled her, not with his physical eyes but from the point of view of someone else. He didn't even see her face but he recognized her, that build, that stride. The man in whose mind he currently sat was eyeing her as she walked away. More than eyeing, actually. Scheming. Not alone either. He and his buddies were planning on having a good time.
Pushing his car into a higher gear he tore off in that direction. He zoomed past the men, still a good 100 meters away and pulled in next to the curb.
"Bella."
Upon hearing her name she turned around but when she saw it was he who had spoken she just glared and turned away from him again, storming off.
"Bella stop, just get in the car. It's dangerous for a girl on her own in this area at night. Let me give you a ride back to your friends."
"Go away Edward. I don't want or need you."
"Bella, listen, there is a group of men down there."
"It's a city. There are lots of people everywhere! So what?"
"You don't know the vile, repulsive things they are thinking."
She turned back gave him the most vitriolic smile he'd ever seen. "But of course you do."
He rolled his eyes. "Yes, so just get in the car."
"No."
"Bella, you aren't intending to walk half an hour by yourself at night downtown." The glower she sent him showed that that's precisely what she intended. "Get in the car."
"I'm not getting in a car with you as a driver. In fact, I wouldn't get in a car with you, period. I'd rather take my chances with the possible rapists." And with that, the chit actually walked away!
Hell! The fool woman really didn't have a sense of self-preservation! None at all! Fine, let her be violated and abused. Maybe that would teach her something about common sense, which she was clearly lacking.
He sat resolutely in his car, refusing to help the girl and just watched the scene unfold in his mind's eye as she walked away from him, turning at the next corner... into an alley and not a public street because her stupidity knew no bounds. Not even the bimbos she'd left squawking over dresses would have made that sort of error in judgment.
They broke up into two groups at that point, going to box her in from both sides. Too bad for her. He'd given her a chance and she refused him. She had audibly admitted she'd have rapists over him. Well then, she'd get her wish. She'd made her bed, now she'd have to lie in it.
He'd known they had two guns among them, but he sat up straighter in his seat when one of them pulled it out and pointed it at her. He relaxed again when he learned from the man's mind that he didn't actually intend on shooting her, only scaring her into submission. He leaned back and shut his eyes, watching Bella's panicked face as they closed in around her, joking and jeering, the open laughter when they ripped the jacket off from where it draped over her shoulders and found the brace and sling. They hooted at that. Predators always sought out the weak and crippled. They were the easiest to take down.
She made a few futile attempts to run, and a few more at kicking her assailants. She made equally ineffective remarks, requests and reproaches. 'Let me go.' 'Bastards.' 'Don't touch me.' 'You're disgusting.' And other such trite phrases. If Edward weren't in such a foul mood, he'd have found it amusing. It reminded him vaguely of the first moving pictures, black and white numbers where the villain twiddles his mustache and rubs his hands together as he approaches the helpless female who mouths something soundlessly and a moment later the dialogue appears in the middle of the screen. 'Oh no! Don't come any closer! Oh who will save me?' All the while intense piano music was played by a performer in the theater. Edward himself had been one such piano player. He'd seen hundreds of those old films and there were only half a dozen different accompaniment pieces. His practiced fingers had played them so often he could repeat them now as easily as he could decades ago.
His nostalgia was brought short.
He rolled his eyes in exasperation when he heard from one's mind that he'd kill her afterward.
That was the one thing he couldn't allow. He groaned, wondering why on earth they had to go and make things more difficult for themselves... and him. He couldn't not get involved now that her life was on the line. Grumbling at the girl's appalling luck and the men's deplorable judgment, he zoomed a few streets over and got out of his car. Really, these encounters rarely ended in murder, of course Bad Luck Bella would find just the one who would. His screeching halt got their attention, but when he got out of the car and slammed the door, all but one went back to what they were doing. Seeing it was only one person, and 'just a kid' at that, they weren't worried.
He didn't think human stupidity would ever cease to amaze and annoy him.
"You better get out of here boy and mind your own business," warned the sole fellow who'd bothered to deal with him. The one who hadn't had any intention of actually using the gun he wielded. This man was all bark.
Edward shook his head. "No, I saw her first. Go get your own."
The momentary confusion in the man's face was almost amusing.
"You heard correctly," Edward assured him. "That's my kill. Back off."
When the man finally processed that information he said, "Well there are five of us, and one of you."
"Admirable arithmetic," he said with a fake yawn and started walking past.
"Hey!" The man swung a slow and clumsy fist (to Edward's perceptions anyway) at him and he dodged easily. He didn't actually touch him, but as he was artistically dodging a punch by ducking under the man's right arm, he darted by snatching up the semi-automatic as be went, his opponent completely unaware it had been lifted. Edward spent another few minutes dancing around the man's attack. It was a dull performance, to his mind. Unable to resist showing off just a little, he let the last punch strike him. The man's fist collided with his jaw with a very loud and satisfying crunch. Needless to say, the crunch came from the other man's fingers, not Edward's face, which hadn't so much as flinched at the contact.
After howling a swearword or two, holding his broken hand in the other he looked up at Edward, incredulous rage on his face. Edward just wriggled his eyebrows facetiously, and the man abandoned his mates and jogged off.
That left four others.
Edward hated fighting, he really did. It wasn't adverse to physical violence on principle (quite the opposite, as it so happened.) No, he disliked fighting because he never really got to fight. Not only did he have to not hit his opponent (any stroke from him and they'd never recover) but he also had to avoid being hit. One punch and the guy would know that Edward wasn't normal.
His skin didn't sparkle like diamonds nor was it hard like them either, so he wouldn't be discovered that way. Though impossible to break, to touch it was perfectly flesh like, if abnormally cold, but how could it be otherwise without a beating heart to pump blood and warmth through him. The paleness of it attributed to the same reason. Beneath his skin is what truly differentiated him from the rest. That implacable strength of his muscles and unbreakable skeleton.
If he were to truly fight, he'd be revealing himself as a monster. It wouldn't be a problem if he were to kill them afterwards, dead men tell no tales, but that meant he'd have to kill the other witnesses as well, including Bella. He toyed with the idea for a moment. Perhaps he'd just do it now. Really. He wouldn't be suspected. They were in another city, none of her friends knew he was there or that he'd come across her at all. If she went missing... well... who's to say she wouldn't have encountered some other criminal? She would have been killed anyway by this lot. At least this way she'd die with her virtue still in tact. So he was doing her a favour really. And it would solve that pesky problem of her knowing the truth about him.
He worked out the logistics in his head. Obviously the men would have to die first. He'd make it seem like a gang altercation ending in a shoot out, leaving everyone dead... Yes, that was it. Before anyone could realize what he was doing, Edward could shoot two with the weapon he had, then using the only other firearm in the group kill the remaining members. It would look like between the two gunmen, they'd shot each other and everyone else. People would hear the shots, naturally, but Bella wouldn't have had time to get away. He could simply pick her up take her somewhere else and feed.
One of the men cried out and stumbled back from Bella. How cute. She had pepper spray. And wasn't afraid to use it, apparently. She was quite trigger happy, spraying indiscriminately, consequently running out of the stuff before she actually managed to hit anyone else with it. Edward wanted to shake his head and make 'tsk'ing sounds. She really was an amusing creature in her way. She was a source of entertainment and distraction for him. Now that she hated and mistrusted him it would be an even greater challenge to lure her in but he figured saving her life would be a good way to rebuild. Besides, he'd made himself a challenge. Was he so weak as to give in, a year before his goal?
If he wavered at all, the matter was settled when she dropped another to his knees with a well aimed kick. She was worth keeping around for a while longer, at least. She, if nothing else, was a wonderful break from boredom.
First thing he did was to appropriate the firearm pointed at her. He was fast, but if the man pulled the trigger, Edward wasn't sure who would win the race to Bella, himself or the bullet. Even if he did manage to get her out of the way, people might ask questions. And by people, he meant Bella. If she could figure out he was a mind reader, he didn't doubt that she might notice other oddities about him if he let her observe them. She was already suspicious, demonstrating superhuman strength and speed would probably set her off again.
That being accomplished, he was confronted once again with the problem of getting her away from the men without coming to fisticuffs. He realized he had a perfectly simple method, it had only taken him a moment to think of such human recourse. Pointing the weapon toward them, and feeling very much like a character in one of those old films, he told them to leave. He refused to go further into the role and start speech making. He rather thought that the business end of a gun barrel would sufficiently get the message across.
And it did. Once they realized that they had been disarmed, they dispersed, leaving a panting Bella slumped against the wall, staring at him incredulously.
"You carry a gun?" was the first breathless thing out of her mouth.
He shook his head. "No, that was theirs. I was just borrowing it." He chucked both of them in a nearby trashcan.
Taking her elbow he began dragging her to his car and for a moment, she simply let herself be tugged along.
For a moment.
He'd open the passenger side door for her when she jerked out of his grasp.
"What?" he asked.
She didn't answer, only stood there, glaring. Finally, after almost a minute of waiting he just got tired of it and snapped, "Christ's sake, would you just say something?"
"I have been," she spat back petulantly. "Why should I bother saying anything aloud when you can just read my mind?"
He frowned. That she would focus on that at a time like this said something. And Edward wasn't sure what. It grated his nerves and he hated to admit that he'd been one upped by a human but at last he ground out through clenched teeth, "I. Can't."
"What?"
"I can't hear what you are thinking, you blocked me out," he said bitterly. "Rather painfully, I might add."
The look of surprise was soon replaced with satisfaction. "Good! You deserve all the pain you get!"
"Yes, I'm a terrible person and I deserve a lingering painful death, but if you don't get in the car and let me drive you back to your friends then those guys will find you again and we'll have to repeat this entire process in another quarter of an hour." She looked back in that direction nervously. Her current tantrum aside, she was still very shaken from her attack. Perhaps it was easier to be angry than overwhelmingly afraid. "I can have you across town in five minutes," he soothed.
Her eyes went wide, and if possible, even angrier.
"By dad died in a car wreck, Edward!" She spat out his name with all the seeming hatred she possessed.
"I know that," he stated laconically, shrugging.
"If you knew then why did you always insist on driving so fast? Did you enjoy it? Is that what you do? Eavesdrop on people's thoughts, find out what they fear and go off and do it? Does that amuse you?" Her eyes were rolling wildly in her head, she looked almost rabid. "You know what? You're sick, you know that?"
Actually he had never thought about it that way before. Sure he'd seen in her thoughts the accident, but he never connected it with her fear of his driving. He was a safe driver, he'd never let his car come to harm. Still, the girl didn't seem to grasp that concept. Rolling his eyes, he slammed the car door and locked it with the remote.
"What?" she asked as he continued to glare at her.
"Well if you won't get in the car, we'll have to walk back," he answered, not at all pleased by the idea. Walking was so slow, not that he was ever pressed for time but having to confine himself to a snail's pace was tedious beyond words.
In the moments that followed Bella considered him. He deduced that she was performing some kind of test to see if he really couldn't read her thoughts. No doubt she was thinking who-knew-what to try to see evidence of it on his face. He must have looked sufficiently unaffected for her face softened, almost disbelievingly. "You really can't hear me..."
He ripped his eyes off of her and stared angrily ahead of him and started walking. "No," he said, still rankled by this fact. "You pushed me out."
"I didn't know that was possible."
"Neither did I, until you did it."
"So... you can really read minds..." she said, as if only just allowing herself to truly accept it. By the sound of her voice it was clear that she felt silly for even saying it, much less believing it. She hurried her steps to walk beside him. She was going with him at least, probably only because now her curiosity was getting the better of her. "I suppose that explains your distancing people. It must get annoying, hearing that all the time."
He stopped and looked at her. He shouldn't have been surprised that she'd understood so well, but he was all the same. "Yes," he replied with utmost sincerity. Suddenly, he didn't feel so irritated. Thoughts of devouring her in an alley vanished in light of someone actually understanding what he had to put up with day after day. It was as if he were seeing her in a new light. "You are actually very easy to be around," he admitted. Well, easy to be around when she wasn't doing something entirely dim-witted.
"Not always, you could still read my mind before," she said accusatorily. So she was still angry for all the times he had read her mind. Well, he couldn't blame her for that, only be thankful that she didn't know just how often that was. Her temper seemed to be swinging back and forth like a pendulum, furious one moment, understanding the next, then the temper was in full force again.
"You know your mood swings are giving me whiplash," he told her. He didn't expect an apology or explanation or anything other than unimpressed look he received, so he continued. "You were blocking long before you tried. As you said though, not always," he allowed as contritely as he could manage to sound, which wasn't much. "What I did hear was..." He searched for a word that would neither insult nor disturb her. "Refreshing."
She lifted one eyebrow skeptically but he didn't elucidate, merely offered her an arm. After a moment's hesitation she linked it with her own and they began walking down the street together.
It was silent for several minutes. Silent in terms of conversation anyway but the rest of the town still roared around them, the thoughts of thousands of people still buzzed in his head but somehow all he really noticed was the quiet between the two of them. After a long time, during which she was no doubt processing a lot of information she had been denying before, she asked, "Why don't you use that ability to help people?"
"Why should I?" he returned.
"Why?" she asked incredulously. "To do some real good in the world!"
Rather than explain that doing good, for all intents and purposes, went against his nature, he settled for a truth that would put her off all the same. "Who would believe me? Not like a local police office is going to believe the words of a guy who says they should arrest someone because he could read their minds..."
"Oh..." She frowned. "You could make money. Go to Vegas or something."
"Because I'd love all that attention?" he said sarcastically. "Bella I thought you knew me better."
"Right," she said sheepishly. "I suppose your name in bright neon lights isn't exactly subtle enough for you." Edward pursed his lips, not at the luridness of that repulsive image, nor at the fact that he already felt that he was in the spotlight because of that travesty of a vampire book. No, it was to stop himself from grinning. "I suppose a tiny town with fewer people would be easier to bear than a teeming metropolis."
That was true, certainly, but there were other reasons for his choosing the Pacific Northwest over sunny Las Vegas.
"You are grasping this rather well." 'Especially considering she'd just been assaulted.' He knew she'd break at some point. Perhaps if he was lucky it would be after he got her back to her friends. He had planned on appealing to her sympathetic nature, and asking her for help with something, so that she would invest herself in him, rather than the other way around. At the time he had thought he'd need to come up with a specious need, but now that part of the truth was out there, he didn't have to invent one. She was the only living or non living being who knew his secret. One less lie he'd have to keep track of. One more truth he'd have to watch out for. "If I'd have known I might have told you sooner."
"You didn't tell me at all," she pointed out severely. "I found out. And I didn't exactly take it well either. I was going to move, you know. Just because of you. After exams I was just going to go back to New Mexico. The thought of you being inside my head bothered me that badly. I couldn't sleep, I was so freaked out. I knew I couldn't be around you for another year knowing I'd have zero privacy. I wanted to shout it to everyone, warn them that you were listening on their thoughts, but I just couldn't actually bring myself to say it aloud."
"Believe me, it's not like that. I spend all my waking moments trying to tune the world out. It has it's uses upon occasion, I will admit that, but I wouldn't consider the constant headache worth it."
"Is that why you don't sleep?" she asked sincerely.
"I..." He stopped, thinking for a moment. "I don't know." He didn't, at that. He'd assumed that it had to do with his being a vampire, but he'd never consulted with other vampires about their sleeping habits. It might just be him, now that he considered the matter.
The walked for another few minutes without conversing before another question burst from her, clearly one she'd been desperate to ask.
"Is it true? Are your parents really dead or did you just say that because you knew mine were too?"
"They really are, I assure you." And have been for half a century.
"Oh."
Thinking to prevent her from asking more questions along those lines, he said, "Don't you have a book to pick up?"
She smiled and shook her head. "I lied."
"Oh." This pleased him enormously. Not that she'd told her friends a falsehood, but that he had no means of detecting it. It added blessed mystery into his life. Most people feared the unknown. On top of being practically indestructible, he had nothing to fear, because nothing was hidden from him. Except the mind of one girl. Now she would be a true challenge to overcome. He didn't have his usual advantage. The mind games could go both ways.
This time the silence stretched until they made it all the way back to the food court where her friends would soon be arriving to meet her.
"You didn't have to walk with me, you know," she said. He was sure this was just polite reflex and he speedily stamped on her civility, because it had been necessary, and he wanted her to know she'd put him out.
"Well you were being too stupid to get in the car. You didn't leave me any other non-pedestrian option."
She blushed. "Alright I deserved that," she said stepping off the escalator. "But really. You didn't have to help me, but you did... and I—"
He cut her off. "They were going to kill you, Bella," he said matter-of-factly. She was about to make some sort of protest, or to tell him he was exaggerating but he stopped her with a steady stare and tapped his temple. "I know, remember?"
That's when it all seemed to sink in and it finally hit. She trembled, paled, swayed on the spot. He took a step forward to catch her if she fainted but she didn't. Instead she stumbled forward and clutched at his shirt, and began crying against his chest, no doubt too distracted to notice he was abnormally cool. He had been wondering when that was going to happen, and had hoped he wouldn't be around when it did, but luck didn't seem to be on his side that evening.
He knew that had she not just been through a harrowing ordeal, she wouldn't be clinging to him so desperately. Which was fine because he wasn't ecstatic about it either. He wouldn't want her to make a habit of leaking on him. Only in effort to end it as soon as possible did he pat her back consolingly.
"There there. Be a big girl now," he whispered, not to be comforting, but so that the other people around them who were looking openly, wouldn't hear his ridiculous words. "Come on. No more tears now." He glared at a passerby who was gaping at the sobbing girl, making unfounded suppositions as to why she was crying. "Bella," he said firmly, but quietly. "You're alright, girl. You are alright. Safe as can be now." He led her to the nearest line to one of the many restaurants in the food court and told her to order something. "You need to eat."
She controlled her shuddering breath and, hiccoughing slightly, asked simply for an order of fries. They stood at the other side of the counter waiting for it to be ready. By that time she'd stopped weeping, but she shivered as if being bit by an icy wind. An embrace from him wouldn't help her on that score, so he didn't offer one.
She revived a bit after mechanically chewing and swallowing half the fried potatoes.
"Sorry about that. I don't know what came over me," she apologized.
"Better now?"
She nodded and munched on another fry. "Thanks," she said, half the thing still sticking out of her mouth.
She finished it and they continued to sit in a strange perversion of what one might have usually deemed 'companionable silence.' Edward checked for the third time if it were 7:30 yet. Almost.
"Edward?" she said finally, in a very uncertain voice.
"Hmm?"
"How did you know where I was if you can't read my mind?"
"Say 'hear thoughts' rather than 'read minds.' 'Reading minds makes it seem like I have a choice in the matter."
"You didn't answer my question," she pointed out astutely, her voice more confident.
"I come here most weekends," he remarked casually. "Just like when you hear someone speak aloud, I am naturally more aware of people's mental voices I know. So when I heard Kacey, and Mary-Anne, it was hard not to know you were here."
"But I left them. How did you know where I was? How did you know I wasn't at the bookstore?"
"You think it so unlikely that I might have taken a friendly concern?"
She frowned in response and Edward grinned at her skepticism.
"Violent thoughts are generally harder to miss. I found you by chance in their minds and thought I might stop by and give you a hand."
Edward was awaiting the inevitable 'thank you' that he'd grown accustomed to with the girl and was startled when she said instead, "That was stupid, you know."
"I beg your pardon?"
"I said that was stupid. Coming after a group of men on your own."
It was his turn to frown. "So was walking right into them after I expressly warned you not to. It could have all been prevented if you had just listened to me to begin with," he told her sternly.
She was prevented from replying openly by the arrival of her group. She gave him a look that, for the first time to his memory, he couldn't decipher. She was clearly trying to communicate something but damned if he knew what it was.
Before any of the other girls had time to speak or jump to any hasty conclusions, Edward explained, "I was just passing by when I saw her sitting by herself, so I kept her company until you arrived. I really should be going now though. Have a nice night."
And with that he made his ungracious retreat. The girls waited until he had just disappeared from sight before unleashing a barrage of questions about her time with him.
"Really, I'd been sitting for maybe a minute before he arrived, and then you guys showed up a minute after that. He asked how exam preparations were coming, I said fine, asked him how his studying was going and he said fine too, and that's all there was to it."
The girls were far from appeased and the conversation about his not so humble self continued.
Bella didn't seem too keen on the conversation. In fact, she looked completely uncomfortable, shifting awkwardly in her seat as she made a few attempts to change the subject which went ignored. One girl made a comment about how he looked so good he could belong in Hollywood, and Bella grumbled aloud, but amusedly so under her breath, "I hope you heard that, you subtle bastard."
"What?" asked Kacey, perplexed.
"Nothing," she replied. Edward grinned, knowing the message was for him. She knew damned well how little he'd care for the scenario.
.
The road was a small one, only two lanes, one for each direction of traffic, the solid double line in the middle indicating no passing. They had made their purchases, and Edward had actually made a nice enough killing at the outskirts of the town while they did. Heading back to the city behind them, he approached the girls' car which was going an appalling 55 miles per hour. He flashed his brights at them to get them to speed up.
"What the hell does he want?" asked Amanda, the driver. "He's tailgating the hell out of me."
The girls in the backseat, including Bella, turned around to look at the offending car, his. Since the other girls weren't looking at Bella, he couldn't tell if she recognized his car. The others didn't, that he could tell. Growing wearing of waiting, he raced passed them, swerving into the opposite lane to pass them, narrowly missing an oncoming truck. He heard the driver's loud and violent cursing. Amanda yelled less than generous things as well at being abruptly cut off.
Bella did recognize him. "You bastard, you're going to get yourself killed one of these days, driving like that," said Bella disapprovingly, then whispered, "Why can't you just drive more safely?" He honked his horn in response, to show her that he'd heard, and then sped ahead to likewise show what he thought of her suggestion. He'd drive however he damned-well pleased.
.
At first he'd been overly kind and attentive, the progress he made was slow and little. It wasn't difficult, the pretense of politeness, he did it everyday of his life after all. But he could be more or less himself around her and get further along, he realized. It was Monday during lunch, and for the first time since she'd started going there, they both sat in the cafeteria. As she nibbled on her food he whispered, so that only she could hear, a continuous commentary of the other occupants of the room, several of whom were wondering as to why he and Bella were sitting together alone. He didn't share this with her though.
"And O'Malley has to piss, but he doesn't want to lose his spot at his table..."
"Edward stop. Isn't that... an invasion of privacy?"
"Yes. So?"
"Well, you can't help it but I don't want to intrude."
"Think of it as helping me, sharing my pain, easing the burden. Come on it'll be fun. Guess what Kacy is thinking right now."
"I have no idea."
"Guess."
Bella sighed, glanced over at the girl and said, "Her diet?"
Edward frowned. "Beginner's luck. How about Amanda?"
It pleased him that she got that one, and the following four, entirely wrong.
"How long have you been able to do this?" she asked, growing tired of his game.
"Forever," he replied curtly.
"How does it work?"
He shrugged. "People think and I hear. If I want to pay attention to one person in particular I can see what they see."
"How far is your range?"
"You are just full of questions, aren't you?" he commented. She just continued to look at him, still expecting an answer. He shrugged again. "Too far. Several miles. More, if I'm concentrating." He had needed to concentrate intensely in order to reach her house from his apartment in town. The time he'd spent at her place while she was concussed had been close to sanctuary, he didn't hear anyone other than her and the occasional people as they drove down the road.
He stood, taking his tray with him. "Your friends are going to come over here for an interrogation. Stay if you want."
"What will they ask?"
"Isn't that an invasion of privacy?" he asked wryly.
"I just want to be prepared."
Edward rolled his eyes. "They half hope, half dread we are having a torrid affair," he told her. "Tell them whatever you please, so long as you keep them away from me." He walked off, depositing his empty tray in the rack and pitilessly left her to the vultures.
"Was that Edward Cullen who just left?" one asked.
"Yes. We're having a torrid affair," she deadpanned. Although he had authorized such a remark, he hadn't expected her to actually go through with it. Her tones had been so obviously sarcastic and indicative that she knew what the other girls were hinting at, that they cut off their interrogation immediately, ashamed.
Yes, the girl would prove to be an admirable diversion.