*Waits to be slapped* Uh hi guys…Yeah we suck. BIG TIME. But you know what? It has been one hell of a year since we started this story. I hope you will stay with us. Well…me; because you see, Elle just does not seem to have anything left for the story. I think she is crazy ;) haha but that was her decision. Nevertheless, I am here to tell you I am not giving up and this story WILL continue. I plan to bust ass tremendously this summer with my own story Soulmate and this. It is my goal to finish both by the end of the summer. I really hope you will stick with me until the end! Without further delay, here is the next installment! Btw, it is a whopping 10 pages! So be happy! : )
Chapter 10 – Hanging On and Hoping
I awoke from my sleep haze with a groan as I heard booming laughter coming from the living room downstairs.
Who would be causing such a ruckus… my mind trailed off. Why would anyone be up so gosh darn early on a Saturday?!
I took a moment, sleepily glanced at the clock on my nightstand, and nearly had a heart attack. 11:30?! As in nearly noon? I, Edward Cullen, never slept in on Saturdays passed nine o'clock. Then suddenly the previous night's memories came flooding back to me in waves and I began to feel sick.
I groaned once more and sat up in bed while rubbing my eyes. My confrontation with Bella had not gone over well. No, it certainly had not… However, I refused to let that make a difference. Today, I would show Bella I was still the best friend she had left behind that day and that I would do anything to keep from losing her. Even if I knew I could not have her as my girlfriend, I would take whatever she gave me with a smile on my face.
With newfound confidence, I leaped from the bed and got ready in a rather hurried manner. Trotting down the stairs, I found quite the site before my eyes.
"Um…what, may I ask are you all doing?"
I watched as Emmett yelled "right hand yellow" and nearly everyone tumbled to the ground in Jasper's attempt to shift his right hand from red to yellow. To make it worse, Bella was nearly squished beneath both Jasper and Emmett while Rosalie had her own corner of the mat and Alice balanced with perfect grace between Jasper and Bella.
Alice glared at me evilly before stating, "Oh goodness, Edward. It doesn't take a genius to see that we're playing twister."
"Okay, I'll give you that Alice. But why is poor Bella underneath both Emmett and Jasper?"
"I…(wheeze)…am…(wheeze)…fine," Bella choked out with a certain look towards me that said, don't try and weasel your way into my good respect.
"Oh she's fine," Alice stated off-handed.
I watched on, smirking, as Emmett struggled to whack at the spinner like a cat. Finally, he resorted to just blowing at it until it spun. "Right foot green!" he shouted.
A chorus of groans was heard followed by a "oh no" and a rather uncomfortable Bella crying out in pain.
"Oh my God, Bella, are you alright?" I exclaimed. She had been pinned beneath both boys and part of Alice. I rushed to her side immediately, my mind frantic with worry. "Emmett, get the hell off!" I yelled. He was still laying there with a scowl on his face, rather disappointed in losing the game.
Emmett grumbled a bit as he and Jasper moved to stand up. I quickly brought Bella to her feet and into a vice-like hug. I was just happy she was okay. She shrugged me off after a moment, clearly still perturbed about last night. I frowned and then turned to glare at Alice. "Was this your idea?" I demanded.
She sniffed and said with her nose dramatically in the air, "Maybe…"
"Chill, Edward. I am fine. It's not the end of the world, you know," said a bitter Bella with hard eyes.
I gave her my best I'm sorry look I could muster up and I watched as her eyes softened into the beautiful chestnut orbs I loved.
I grinned crookedly and went to pull her into a hug. This time she accepted and hugged me back with more enthusiasm.
"When you guys are done having a silent conversation in front of your very curious best friends, we were thinking about going to see a movie. What would you all like to see?"
Before I could as much as think of a movie, everyone burst out with ideas, the Last Song, Kick-Ass, Date Night, and Clash of the Titans were all yelled out. I felt Bella's giggle as she leaned against my side. I sighed at the contentment she provided and then turned to my brother.
"We aren't seeing the Last Song, Emmett. Even the girls don't want to," I growled.
He actually looked disappointed. Instead, I turned to Rosalie. I hadn't had the chance to get to know Rosalie very well yet. Nevertheless, from the way she acted with everyone else, I could tell she had a damn good head on her shoulders. He butted heads a lot with everyone when her opinions got in the way, but she was a good friend to Bella, and for that, I was grateful. "So, Rose, what was your suggestion?" I asked, politely.
She raised her eyebrows at me. Because we hadn't had the chance to get to know each other, Rose and I usually had no need of addressing each other too often, it at all. Needless to say, she was clearly surprised by my question.
"Uh, well I suggested Date Night. You know the one with Steve Carell and Tina Fey?"
We all nodded our heads and Alice started bouncing up and down.
"What, oh great pixie?" Bella chimed in, to relieve Alice of her pent up excitement.
"Can we go see Kick-Ass?! Please, please, please, please, please, please!!!!!"
"Jasper?" I asked, trying to include him. He was always so quiet; I sometimes forgot he was there.
"I said Clash of the Titans."
"Okay, let's narrow it down to two and then flip a coin," I suggested. "We're not seeing the Last Song. Is everyone in the mood for a comedy?"
Everyone mumbled or nodded in agreement. With that settled, I pulled out a quarter from my pocket and said, "Heads, we go to Date Night. Tails, we go to Kick-Ass."
Tossing the quarter, everyone watched as it fell down to my palm and I flipped it onto the back of my opposite hand. "Heads it is!" I declared.
Alice looked a little deflated at the news, but I knew she would perk up when she got there. She loved movies no matter what they were.
**Two and a half hours later**
My eyes were still watery as we walked out of the movie theater in Port Angeles.
"Okay," I started. "I'm not going to lie. That was definitely one of the funniest movies I've seen since the Hangover. Good choice, Rosalie."
Everyone nodded enthusiastically and we made our way to our cars. In the parking lot, Jasper and Emmett had parked across from each other, bumper to bumper. When they got in the car, Emmett started screaming, "You back up your junk!" To which Jasper responded, "No, you back up your junk!"
They proceeded to fight it out with the movie dialogue as Bella and I leaned against my Volvo nearly in pain from laughing so hard. Eventually we all managed to gain composure to drive home.
As I got on the highway, I turned to Bella. "Hey, I have to get a tie for the dance on Friday. Would you mind coming and help me pick one out?"
She smiled softly and agreed. I saw the mall as we came over the hill and we made our way to Macy*s.
We looked around for a while and found several silver ties. They all looked to the same to me, and I could not decide which was best. "Bella?" I asked hopelessly. "I'm totally lost…"
Bella chuckled lightly and made her way to the stand where I stood pondering which style.
"Well, I'd say, since it's homecoming you don't want anything too flashy. No patterns, because usually they are too tacky… As for the width, skinny ties are not that attractive and wide ties usually signify being a little older."
I was baffled by her seemingly broad knowledge of something about which I certainly should have known more. "You're incredible, Isabella."
I saw her freeze, when I spoke her name. The thrill of her name rolling off my tongue was exhilarating and I did not realize how I had missed it so. A becoming blush covered her features as she cleared her throat and gave me what I assumed she meant to be an easy smile. I saw right through it though. She had missed it too, but a small hint of pain and desperation sparkled in her eyes.
"But…anyway," I started awkwardly. "What do you think? Silver or silver?" I asked holding them up. She giggled at my lame joke and chose the one in my right hand. "Silver it is," I stated.
She took the tie from my hand and undid the neat looking knot made by the store clerk. She put it around my neck and proceeded to tie it. As she tightened it around my neck, her hands rested on my chest and I heard her sigh. She looked me in the eye and gave me the most heart-breaking smile I had ever seen. I saw a glimmer of something in her eye as we stared at each other. Hope maybe? I could not tell.
I cleared my throat awkwardly and she seemed to come back to the present. She lowered her hands but then proceeded to give me a tight hug around my torso.
"Thank you, Edward," she murmured, "for coming back."
I buried my face in her hair, smelling the fragrant sent of strawberries from her shampoo. "Nothing can keep us apart, Isabella." A part of me hoped she would hear the underlying meaning in my words. I did not intend to lose her in any way, especially as my best friend.
We pulled apart at some point and made our way to the counter to buy my tie. As we left the mall, I took her hand in mind as merely a friendly gesture. As kids, we did this all the time. She seemed content enough until I felt her finger the bracelet on my wrist. She stopped dead in her tracks staring at our interlocking fingers. She gave me the sweetest expression that would put chocolate to shame.
"I can't believe you still have that!" She chuckled slightly, shaking her head in disbelief. "I think I paid about ten dollars for it."
I was confused. Why would she think I got rid of it? She still had my necklace, so why would it have been such a shock? "Why would I not wear it, Isabella? It's the last and best thing you ever gave me and I've not taken it off since the moment you put it on my wrist."
I reached toward her and found what I was looking for. The small chain with the elegant 'E' hung around her neck. "I see you still have my gift as well."
"Of course I do, Edward. I have always been the sentimental type. You know that."
I nodded still perplexed at her disbelief. We continued walking then and made it to the car. "Are you hungry?" I asked, realizing it was past five. We had been in the mall for quite some time.
Her stomach growled, signaling her answer. I chuckled and drove to a diner a few blocks away. After eating a fair share of dinner, we made our way home to see what the others had been doing.
"I enjoyed our time together today, Isabella," I confessed as we entered the house. Her hand was still in mine. In fact, it had not left mine unless necessary.
"Me, too, Edward; it's been quite some time," she murmured.
"Where have you two been?" scolded Alice as we closed the door in the foyer.
"Out," I said shortly. "What are you doing here Alice?"
"Emmett invited us all over for dinner."
Oh crap, I thought. My mom would not be too happy. She hated when Emmett or I missed our family dinners on the weekends.
"Edward!" my mother crowed, coming into the room.
"Mom…" I said warily. She was acting so happy.
"How was your afternoon? It is lovely to see you Bella. How are you?" She asked brightly.
"I-I'm good, Esme," Bella stated, throwing me a confused look.
"Um…I know I missed dinner mom, I'm sorry. We just lost track of time and grabbed a bite on our way home." My mom had not stopped smiling and giving me a knowing look that rather crept me out.
"Oh honey, it is fine! Really, it is nothing. I am glad you are home though. Alice has been bouncing around like a crazy person."
I looked over to Alice and saw a huge grin plastered on her face. What in the hell was going on?
I glanced down to where Alice's eyes focused: Bella and my hands intertwined from before and her rather close proximity to my side. My breath caught in my throat and I began coughing violently. I seized the opportunity to pull my hand from Bella's and place it over my mouth.
"Sorry," I wheezed.
Alice rolled her eyes and said, "C'mon, everyone is waiting!"
Bella and I followed hesitantly to our family room. Probably my favorite room in the house, it contained a massive flat screen TV, a Wii, surround sound, and huge comfortable leather seats, better than those in a movie theater. Not to mention our cabinet overflowing with video games, board games, movies, and CDs. Emmett and I had always been big into video games and we watched movies more than a movie critic did. I took a seat in one of the over sized seats and patted the one next to me for Bella to sit down. She stared at me biting her lip. I knew that expression. She wanted to say something.
BPOV
Bad, Bella! Bad, Bella! My conscience told me not to, but I could not help myself. I missed Edward so much these past few years and really wanted to make up for lost time.
"C-can I sit with you?" I asked, quietly. We had done it all the time as children. Being in Edward's arms had always provided me a certain kind of comfort that nothing else could. I also knew that the contact gave Edward a sense of contentment as well.
"Sure," he replied warmly, opening his arms. I saw his eyes flash an emotion I had never seen cross his features. I could not tell what it was. Was it hope, maybe? I disregarded my thoughts and climbed on to his lap as his arms wove around me. Laying my head against his chest, I turned to look at what everyone else was doing.
Not even one of them was moving. Rosalie's eyes bored into mine with a look that told me we would be talking very soon. Alice was grinning wildly again and Jasper and Emmett were staring at Edward with blank expressions.
Just as I was beginning to feel uncomfortable from their stares, Rosalie cleared her throat and snapped, "Jasper, Emmett, you better decide what game before Alice and I pick something!"
"No! Rosie, don't! I'll … I'll pick. How do Wii Sports sound?"
Everyone nodded in accord and I watched as Rosalie and Emmett went first.
Rose picked bowling much to Emmett's protest. Apparently, Emmett was not very good at this particular game. "It's not even a sport!" he griped when he had lost miserably. "It's just a game."
"Stop complaining, Emmett. You are just upset because I won."
"Our turn!" Alice screeched in excitement. She and Jasper decided on kickboxing; and Alice was good. I watched in admiration as her lithe petite figure worked hard but showing little effort. Jasper was just as athletic, though. He ended up beating her, but barely.
"Alright, Bella," Alice stated matter-of-factly. "DDR is over there," she pointed toward the corner of the room where the game supplies sat.
I shot Alice a death glare. Only she and Rose were to know about my dancing talents, but now she had blabbed it to the boys. Edward looked at me, puzzled.
"Let's just play," I said with a sigh. "Then she will shut up."
He shrugged and we quickly set up the mats and chose a song. Edward set his difficulty to hard and I set mine at expert.
"You sure, Bella?" he asked with a smirk. "You have never been exactly…lithe on your feet."
I stuck out my tongue and pressed play. After just a few steps, I was already kicking Edward's ass. I added in some of my own moves making it look less like stomping on a mat so much as a hip-hop dance. By the time we got the end of the song, I had smoked him.
"How in the hell did you get that good at dancing? You can barely go down a flight of stairs without greeting death with that brilliant smile of yours," he said with a smirk.
I shrugged and said, "Mom signed us up for dance lessons right after I got settled and it turns out I'm rather good at it."
Alice snorted in the background. "Good is an understatement, Bells. You could make a living off of it." Edward's eyebrow raised but I ignored both of them and went back to the couch. Edward sat and opened his arms for me to place myself on his lap.
A few hours later, it was nearly midnight and I was falling asleep on Edward. We had been watching Disney movies for a while and my brain was shutting down for the night. I snuggled closer into Edward's shoulder and felt his arms tighten around me.
"Hey guys," I heard Edward mutter. "I really need to get Bella home. She is nearly passing out…"
"Yeah she has a huge day of shoe shopping tomorrow," Alice stated exuberantly.
EPOV
Bella groaned against my chest and I was 99 percent sure it was because of Alice's comment and not her being tired.
I picked Bella up bridal style and carried her small flight upstairs outside to my car. Bella's green Eclipse was still there, but she could just get it tomorrow.
"Edward!" Jasper called softly from the doorway. After I had placed Bella in the car and strapped her in, I turned to Jasper.
"You want me to drive Bella's car home? Then I'll just ride back with you," he suggested.
I nodded and gave Bella's keys to him. After arriving at her house, I quietly opened the front door as to not wake up her parents. They would not be mad or anything, but I was sure they would appreciate me being as quiet as possible. I set Bella into her bed and covered her with a few blankets.
"Good night, Bella love, I'll see you tomorrow," I whispered softly, kissing her cheek. My comment was so low I knew she would not be able to hear me as she drifted quickly into an unconscious stupor.
I got back in the car, Jasper waiting in the passenger seat. As I drove back to my house, Jasper opened his mouth to say something.
"Edward…" he started awkwardly.
This was not like Jasper at all. Jasper was the cool, calm, and collected one of the group with a great head on his shoulders. He was so confident that he never looked awkward.
"I've known Bella a very long time. Now that's not to say that you haven't, Edward," he said quickly, clearly afraid of offending me. I signaled for him to continue, no offense taken. "But it's important that you know what you missed. I am not sure how Bella was before she came to live with Alice, but I know what she was like when she moved here. She was so quiet; unnaturally so. It worried Alice and her parents. I am not sure even she realized how much she scared them."
"Being a quiet person myself, I took quickly to Bella and I was soon able to break down the pieces of the wall that separated her from the rest of us. She slowly opened up to me, and eventually to everyone else. I could see how broken she was by your separation. She did not tell many people about you. I think she was afraid that saying everything aloud would somehow erase her memories of you. However, I was the shoulder she cried on for awhile until she developed a closer bond with Alice. Eventually she and Rosalie became the best of friends as Ali and I started to date."
"I wanted you to know that I do not forget what happened; how hurt she was and how much pain were present in her eyes. Please be careful with her Edward. In the many years she has been here with us, I have seen her happy. However, never have I seen her as happy as when she is in the same room as you. It is as if a piece of her that was lost got put back in its place and now we see every facet of Bella we could imagine. Do not do anything to hurt her Edward. I beg you. We all do. Seeing Bella revert to that shell and building that wall all over again would be heartbreaking. I understand that you want to date Leah to get your mind from Bella, but just know that we all spend more time with each other than with anyone else. Ali and I are together and you see how Emmett and Rose just gravitated towards each other so quickly. Your wishes may not be as easy as you think they are. So be cautious, think before you act. And do not hurt my best friend."
I stared at the house before me. We had long since arrived in my driveway but I hung on every one of Jasper's words. They shocked me and scared me at the same time. It was also slightly comforting to know that Bella had been in such capable hands these past few years, but scary to know that she hid behind that wall just as I had after our separation.
"I understand, Jasper," I finally choked. "I really do. Thank you for telling me all of this. I will tread carefully." I gave him a gracious smile and shook his hand firmly to let him know how truly thankful I was.
Clearly, if my feelings for Bella were so strong this early, the arrangement with Leah probably would not last long. However, Leah did not seem to be my problem. Jacob was.
With a new plan, I got out of the car and made my way to bed after saying goodnight to Alice, Rosalie, and Jasper. Yes, homecoming would be very interesting.
BPOV ~ Monday Morning
I took my seat for English just as the bell rang. The class was still quite chatty, though that was probably because the dance was coming up so quickly. It was the Monday before the dance and I had to admit, all the buzz around school was getting me pretty hyped up for it. Not to mention Rose and Alice constantly jabbering on about hair and makeup and shoes and dresses and jewelry… I stopped myself before I got a headache.
As upset as I was about Edward and his choice to take Leah instead of me to the dance, I was still excited to go with Jacob. He really was a good friend. He had always been there in the wings. I knew that he rather liked me and so I did feel somewhat bad about using him as an excuse to go to the dance. It has not been my proudest decision, but I still thought it would work.
Just then, a note plopped down on my desk with my named scrawled in an elegant script. I opened the paper and read the note Edward had sent my way.
I need your help picking out a corsage for Leah this afternoon. Are you up for the job?
My heart panged and I tried to ignore it. Knowing he was buying Leah a corsage for homecoming and not me, did not exactly ease my worries of how much he liked her. My conscience tried to set me straight assuring me that every boy that took a girl to the dance bought her a corsage. It was tradition and Jacob would be doing the same thing. But, it was not the same, I argued back.
Quickly, I wrote my affirmative response and passed it towards Edward. Just because I was unhappy with his decision did not mean I was going to pass up the chance to spend time with my best friend.
Before I knew it, English was over and I was walking toward my locker. Suddenly Rosalie intercepted me.
"Can we talk?" she demanded without letting me respond. I was pulled into the girls bathroom that was, thankfully, empty.
"You avoided me all day yesterday, Bells," she accused.
I stared anywhere but her face as pink colored my cheeks. I was caught red handed.
"No I did not," I stated unconvincingly.
"Do NOT fight me on this, Bells. You know I will win. I always do." She kept calling as I pushed past her out of the bathroom and to my next class.
So let me know what you thought! I'd love feed back. Review, review, review!! And once again, I'm sorry about the wait. I'm hoping I found my groove with the story and you'll get both points of view along the way :) bear with me and this summer will be rewarding!! ~Mackie