I was so pumped for this. After all this time at the gym, Bella better love me. My muscles were ripped now. Honestly, I was almost as big as Emmett. Well, maybe not that big but you get the point! Edward wasn't even as ripped as I am! I smiled confidently and picked up my water bottle. I took a deep sip and then started running again on the treadmill. I could run one mile now, nonstop. I was so proud of myself as I jogged for awhile. My mom had just gotten this new treadmill and never used it because she went to the gym in Seattle, which is good because now I can run on it for as long as I want! Also, my dad ordered this new weight lifting set and then decided that he hated exercise so now that's free for me to use, too! Everything was working out, like it was meant to be. I raised the speed on the treadmill and started running faster.
The next day, I picked out an awesome outfit that really emphasized my new muscles. The shirt was just tight enough that if I flexed my muscles, it really defined them and made them look really toned. The pants that I picked out where these amazing skinny jeans. Next, I styled my hair. I tried to go for a wind-blown look that's sexy and I think it worked. I smiled at myself in the mirror. Man, I was hot. I grabbed my school bag and headed out the door to my car.
Bella POV:
I groaned as I rolled over in my bed. Edward was sitting in my rocking chair staring at me and my tangled hair. I jumped out of bed and into his lap. He chuckled a little and then pressed his lips to mine. I wrapped my hands in his hair before I pulled away.
"I know that you don't care, but I do. My breath smells really bad so I need one human minute!" I said to him as I climbed off his lap.
"I don't care, don't go," he replied back with a sad little look on his face.
"It's just one minute. Be right back," I said as I ran from my room and into the bathroom. When I got back, Edward was changed into a new set of clothes and had my backpack on his back. I took it from him with a thank you and headed downstairs.
We pulled into school in his Volvo when I heard Edward chuckle. Alice came bounding over to the car and helped me out before Edward could. He glared at her but she stuck her tongue out at him. She then smiled at me and whispered in my ear,
"I have big news for you. It's kind of disappointing but oh well! I looked into your future to see if Mike had any weird plans for you," we both shuddered at this. She continued, "And there's no specific plan. He just thinks now that you would like an athletic guy, a track kind of guy."
I groaned for the second time today. "I thought Emmett scared him off!"
Edward was at my side. "Apparently, he thought that Emmett was only there to discourage him from trying to woo you with romance. In his mind, trying to emphasis his athletic physique is just enhancing what he already has. He thinks that Emmett won't be able to stand a chance against him in a fight now. Those are his thoughts and I am not adding anything, just so you know," he said as he took my hand and led me inside the school.
Sure enough, Mike was right by the main door leaning against the wall in a skin-tight shirt that even Rosalie wouldn't be able to pull off. As soon as he saw me, he jumped up and ran to stand in front of me.
"Hey Bella," he said. "What's up?" As he said this, he was flexing his muscles.
"Nothing much, Mike. Edward and I have to get to class now," I said. I pushed past him and Edward leaned into Mike's ear and whispered something. Mike blushed and ran into the boys' bathroom which was across the hall. I looked at him and asked him, "What the heck did you just whisper to Mike Newton?"
He just shook his head and whispered to me, "I'll tell you in our first class."
I could live with that.
Edward POV:
Why couldn't Mike get it through his thick skull that Bella wasn't interested in him? This is getting out of hand! At least he wasn't trying to be a romantic anymore. But to act as an athletic? That boy has no muscle on him at all. His thoughts are disgusting too. They all revolve around my Bella; my Bella!
As Bella and I entered school that morning I noticed Mike there way before I saw him because I could hear his dirty, vile thoughts.
Man Bella is going to flip when she sees me! I bet Edward isn't even this ripped! Man, if I was a girl, I'd so date me! Just wait until Bella sees these muscles and then she'll come over to me, forgetting all about Cullen, and we'll go to that janitor's closet where…
I shuddered at his thoughts. Bella and I entered school and sure enough, there was Mike in that disgusting shirt. He flexed his muscles and ran right up to my Bella.
"Hey Bella," he said. "What's up?"
"Nothing much, Mike. Edward and I have to get to class now," my angel said. She pushed past him and I leaned into Mike's ear and whispered
"And no, you wouldn't be able to beat Emmett up. Please stop trying to impress Bella before I actually have to hurt you. And by the way, your pants are ripped in the back."
He blushed and ran away to the bathroom. Bella asked me what I whispered to him and I told her that I'd tell her in class.
MIKE POV:
I was humiliated. Actually, I wasn't really humiliated because I had known worse embarrassment. I couldn't help but think back to when Bella an away from me, the treasure of Fork's High School. I quickly ran to the bathroom after that disgusting thing whispered in my ear. Sure enough, my pants were ripped in a not so hidden spot. I took my sweat shirt out of my bag and tied it around my waist to cover my rip. I walked as fast as I could to the nurse's office where I explained my situation.
"See, I was on my way to school when I saw this cat in the tree. I felt so bad for it because it was stuck! So I climbed up the tree and helped the cat down. But on the way down, I got stuck on branch and then the back of my pants broke and I fell," I explained all in one breath. I looked hopefully at the nurse and she said, "bless your heart." I smiled in victory as she handed me a pair of sweatpants. At least I wouldn't be stuck wearing ripped jeans in front of Bella now!
I made my way to my first class. The day passed by slowly but finally, it was gym time. I met up with Bella before class started. She was talking to Edward outside of the girl's locker room and they kissed goodbye. It was like they were attached at the hip! I mean, come on! Gym was only, like, an hour long and Cullen was acting like it was forever! As soon as he was gone, I ran to Bella's side before she could go into the locker room.
"Oh, hey Mike," she said.
"Hey Bella. Guess what? We're playing tennis today, since it's so nice out," I said.
She looked at me weirdly and said, "but it looks like it's going to rain!"
"I know, but it's nice out for Forks!"
"Yeah, I guess that's right. Well, I have to go change. I'll see you in the gym."
She went into the locker room and I smiled as I made my way to the gym.
About five minutes later, (5 very long minutes later), the teacher blew his whistle and called all the students into the center of the gym. He asked us to choose a partner so naturally, I went to Bella's side before anyone else could. She gave me a death look but it was too late; everybody else had a partner. I gave her a dazzling smile that I knew she couldn't resist and she shrugged it off! I knew that she was still probably a little freaked out from all my romance attempts to capture her heart, but I knew that she'd be worshipping at my feet after seeing my amazing athletic abilities. We headed outside to the tennis courts after grabbing rackets and balls. As we were walking to the courts, I grabbed her hand, amazed at how warm and soft it was. It ended too early for my liking as she grabbed her hand away from mine.
"Mike, for the last time, I have a boyfriend! Stop trying to hit on me!"
"But Bella, Edward is no good for you! Yeah, he has you in the romance department but I bet that can't even play any sports. He's a wimp!"
Just then, Bella got a curious look on her face like she was remembering an inside joke. That soon disappeared but an angry look of hostility.
"Edward is no wimp! He's seen things that would make you pee in your pants! And he's an amazing athlete!"
"Well, then how come he doesn't try out for any teams? Because, you know I'm on almost every team that Forks has to offer."
"Edward doesn't try out for any teams here because he has better things to do then play high school sports." She was really angry now; I knew that I had to cool it off.
"Well, maybe me and him should have a little competition; you know, see how's the best."
"Well, you can try all you want to convince him to have that competition with you, but it won't work. Edward doesn't like that sort of thing."
"Is he afraid that
I'll beat him?"
"No! He just has better things to do! Now,
do you want to serve first or should I?"
Disappointed, I told her that she could serve first. Right after I said that, I realized that I should have served first just so I could have shown her my amazing tennis skills. I sighed as I got ready and watched Bella move to the other end of the court. Man, she looked so beautiful, with her hips swaying and her hair billowing in the breeze. She was behind the end line and was getting into the position to serve.
She took a serve and it went into the net. She scowled (how I love that scowl!) and tried again. The second time wasn't much better. It did go over the net but it was too far.
"Do you want me to start?" I yelled to her, my beautiful angel.
She scowled again and threw me the tennis balls. They all landed in the net so I jogged up to the net to retrieve them. I had to admit, my jog was pretty sexy. I gathered the tennis balls and headed back to the base line to serve. Again, I had to admit it; my serve was perfect. I got ready and served. To my dismay, it landed in the net. This wasn't good. I was supposed to be spectacular at this! My heart started pounding a little bit as I got nervous. I had to make my second serve! I took a deep breath and hoped that Bella didn't think I was nervous. She started twisting the racket in her hands and it fell down. I knew that a blush would be starting to rise upon those lovely, pale cheeks of hers. I smiled but inside I was hoping that she didn't see how nervous I was because she was so preoccupied in just making sure she didn't drop her racket.
"Are you going to serve, or not?" she yelled.
"Yeah, I'm serving!" Crap, she was getting annoyed! I served my second serve and it landed perfectly in the center of the box. She took a forehand shot and hit it. As she hit it, the racket flew out of her hand and into my side of the court. I ignored the ball that was coming onto my side and ran to grab her racket. Her cheeks already had that glorious shade of red on them. I picked up her racket and handed it to her, making sure that our hands touched. She looked at me and tried to make sure that our hands didn't touch. Seeing that there was no choice, she took the racket from my hand while our hands brushed. I could feel the sparks flowing between us, almost as if an electric current was flowing. I was disrupted from my fantasy as I heard the teacher blow the whistle, signaling for us to go change. I was disappointed that I couldn't show my skills off anymore to Bella but I was happy also because it seemed as though I was having an off day. Bella seemed almost too eager to go change. I knew that it was because she was probably still embarrassed about dropping her racket and that it was definitely not because she wanted to get away from me.
After I was changed, I exited the boys locker room to find Bella and Edward in a tight embrace. It looked like she was whispering in his ear and he was kissing her neck. Man, all this couple could do was PDA! It truly revolted me to the point that I wanted to puke. I was so much better then that Edward! I knew that I was better looking, stronger, and I was definitely more romantic. Why couldn't Bella just realize this?
EDWARD POV:
I couldn't wait to be done with my last class just so I could see Bella again. I always ran a little too fast but I wanted to be right outside the locker room doors the instant that Bella walked out of them. As soon as she was out, I scooped her up in a hug and kissed her on the base of her neck. I heard her heart beat get faster and I saw the blush rise upon her cheeks. She smiled and pressed her lips to mine. She was my angel, my life, my spirit. I broke the kiss too early for both of our liking but I didn't want to push my self-control (or hers) too far. I looked deep into her eyes and noticed that something was off.
"What's wrong? What happened?" I asked her, getting frustrated and concerned at the same time.
"Nothing is really wrong except that Mike wants to challenge you to a competition to see how's the better athlete."
"Oh, really?" I laughed a little at the absurdity of that idea. "One moment," I said, only to her. I concentrated on listening to Mike who was only down the hall and sure enough, I heard his thoughts say Man, I could so beat Cullen! I was awesome at tennis today! I mean, sure I almost double-faulted but I hit my second serve in perfectly! I bet he couldn't do that! I should talk to him later after school and challenge him to a competition! Yeah! Then, Bella could see how great of an athlete I am and how strong and mighty I am and then she'll come to me! Oh, Bella. Bella with her luscious lips and her red cheeks…
I stopped listening then and couldn't help but growl a little. His thoughts bugged me, like always.
Bella looked at me with concern in her eyes.
"He was thinking about a couple things. One, how he was awesome in tennis today; two, how I could never compete with him in sports; three, how he's going to challenge me to a battle of the best athlete after school today; and four, how beautiful you are."
She rolled her eyes and again, I couldn't help but laugh. I wrapped my arm around her waist and we made our way to the Volvo.
When we were almost to the Volvo, I heard footsteps running behind me so I clued in to that person's thoughts. Lo and behold, it was Mike Newton. I cursed under my breath so quietly that Bella wouldn't be able to hear and I turned around to face him. He puffed up his chest and wiggled his eye brows at Bella. I shot him a glare.
"Hello, Mike. How may I help you?"
"Cullen. Look, I was
thinking,; next to me, you're the best athlete in this school. Let's have ourselves a little competition to see who's the
best."
"I'm sorry, Mike. I'm a little busy at the moment. Bella and I have plans."
"Are you afraid to go against me? I bet you are! You know you're going to lose!"
"I will not lose, Mike," I was getting angry now. This kid is annoying! "Fine, we shall have a little competition of the best athlete. You pick the activities and I'll be there."
"Alright! So,
tomorrow, we're going to have a little tennis tournament. Be at
the courts at 8:00 AM. We have no school tomorrow. Is that too
early for you?"
I smiled in mockery. He had no idea that I
couldn't sleep. "8:00 is fine. Bella," I said, addressing her
now. "Would you like to be there?"
"Of course!" she said, emphatically. I didn't have to ask, really. I knew that she liked to be there when stuff like this happens.
"So it's settled then. I'll see you on the courts tomorrow morning."
With that said, I opened the passenger side's door and Bella stepped in. I went around to the driver's side, climbed in, and left the school (and Mike) behind.
I glanced over at Bella. She was giving me a weird look.
"What?" I asked her.
"You know what! You are a vampire! You're totally going to humiliate Mike out there tomorrow!"
"I know," I said, very happily. Mike was finally getting what he deserved.
"Just don't be too good, ok?"
I looked deep into her brown eyes that were begging and pleading with me. I sighed. I couldn't ignore that look.
"Ok, fine. I'll make it close, ok?"
"Ok. I mean, I know Mike is an annoying little bug but he has no idea what he's going up against tomorrow."
I looked over at my angel again and replied, "Oh, I know!"
THE NEXT DAY
MIKE POV:
I was so ready for today! Cullen had no chance of winning. I had been practicing and I knew that my game was going to be great! I saw that stupid Volvo pull up along with gigantic jeep wrangler behind it. I gaped at that jeep. It was huge! I saw that giant Cullen. What was his name again? Em.. Et. Emme…Emmett- that was it! I shuddered involuntarily when I saw him jump down, flex his muscles, and give me a glare. That beautiful blond (Rosalie I think it was) jumped down too in the most graceful manner that I had ever seen. She took Emmett's hand they both went onto the courts, holding rackets. I clutched my racket tighter. I glanced back to the Volvo. That pixie girl, Alice, was stepping out along with the tall blond guy, Rosalie's twin, Jasper. They both had rackets too. Edward and Bella stepped out last, with only Edward holding a racket. I breathed a sigh of relief. At least Bella wouldn't get hurt today. I couldn't help but keep staring at her. She looked beautiful. Not as beautiful as Rosalie or Alice who were in these tiny tennis skirts and shirts, but she was beautiful in her own way. I loved her. Edward wrapped his arm around her (which I hated!) and made his way to us.
"Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper all heard that we were going to play tennis and they wanted to join us so they're going to be playing their own game."
I quickly looked up in time to see Rosalie serve. This was going to be good. She looked so delicate, so fragile. Boy, was I wrong. She got ready and BAM! She served a shot that must have been at least 90 miles per hour. There was no way that Emmett could get that and yet, I heard another crack and saw Rosalie running to get the ball. They were amazing!
Edward laughed.
"They like showing
off. Shall we begin? Would you like to serve first or should I?"
I
glared at him. He laughed, yet again.
"I'll serve first, if you don't mind. Here Bella. I brought a chair for you to watch me win-I mean to watch us," I said, smiling at my one true love. She must have smelled something nasty because she scrunched up her face. I ignored her and went onto the court. I was so pumped! This was going to be great! Edward got into the ready position and I served. It went into the net. I was just nervous-I was better then this! I took a deep breath and served again. It went over perfectly. Edward hit it back like it was no big deal and it went down the left line. I ran to the left side of the court, just making it in time. Man, he had a fast hit! I hit it into the right corner. There was no way he was going to make-uh oh. He hit it back, faster then the last time. I ran to hit and hit it as hard as I could.
"Out!" I heard Edward yell from the opposite side of the court.
This wasn't good! I was just warming up; I'd get better! I took another ball, said the serve, and served.
The game went on for about a half hour. I won three points out of an entire set, which is six games. Before I knew it, the game was over and I had lost. This wasn't supposed to end this way! I was in shock as Edward hit the last point to the far right corner and I didn't reach it in time. Bella looked on from the side lines with a pitied look in her face. That went away fast as she jumped up to congratulate him. I wanted to throw my racket on the ground, curl up in a ball, and cry. I was supposed to win! After I gathered my thoughts after a minute or two, I made my way to Cullen with a new plan in mind.
"Nice game, Mike. You had a couple nice shots." I felt like he was being sarcastic.
"Congratulations, Cullen. You should join the tennis team since you're so good. I'm sure Coach Clapp would love to have another member on the team. I'll put in a good recommendation for you"
This was so good! He stood there in shock at what I had just said!
"Thank you for the
offer, Mike, but I don't participate in school sports. I just like
to play for fun and for my own enjoyment."
"That's too bad. I'll see you around, ok?"
I was sad that I had lost and that Bella hadn't jumped into my arms, but I had a new plan in mind. As soon as I got home, I took a quick shower, and picked up my phone.
I pulled out the school directory and looked up Coach Clapp's phone number. This was so good! I quickly dialied the numbers and waited for him to pick up.
"Hello?"
"Hi, is this Coach Clapp?"
"Yes it is. Who is
this?"
"This is Mike Newton, I have some interesting
information for you…"
EDWARD POV:
That was too easy! After that ridiculous game of tennis was over, we all met back at the mansion to hang out. Suddenly, Alice got a vision look on her face. I concentrated and was soon spiraling into her vision. This isn't good. She had a vision of Mike calling Coach Clapp, talking about my amazing tennis skills. He was suggesting that I be put on the tennis team. Bella put her hand on my arm. I could feel her eyes burning into my face, full of concern. This was not good; Mike had gone too low. As soon as Alice's vision ended, our phone rang. Only Alice and I knew who was on that phone and neither of us wanted to speak to him.
We heard Carlisle answer.
"Hello? Oh, hello
Coach Clapp. How may I help you? Edward? Tennis? Oh, really. Hmm, I'll have to ask him, oh wait, he's right here would you
like to speak with him? Ok, I'll go get him."
One second
later, Carlisle was standing in front of me with an amused look on
his face with the phone in his hand.
It's Coach Clapp. So you're on the tennis team now, eh? He was mocking me in his thoughts. I gave him an evil glare and took the phone.
"Hello?"
"Edward! It's Coach Clapp, listen, I just got off the phone with that
Newton kid. You know, Mike. Anyways, he was telling me all about
you playing tennis! Well, we've been having a hard time recruiting
players for our team and Mike mentioned that you'd love to
join!"
"I'm sorry, Coach. Mike heard wrong. I don't do
sports."
Rosalie and Emmett were laughing now. Bella looked shocked.
"Well, Edward, helping the school would look great on a college application-"
"I have enough extra curricular activities"
"Well, this is a great way to stay in shape. Look, sleep on it and get back to me tomorrow. It'll be a great way to participate in the school and meet new people!" With that, he hung up. I looked up at Carlisle, who was holding in laughter while I was on the phone. Suddenly, everybody was in hysterics.
"It isn't funny!" I yelled to them.
They didn't stop and I got angrier. Bella put a soothing hand on my arm and I calmed down.
"I think you should do it. It'll help you seem more human if you participate in school sports, just don't go crazy with the speed and running fast," said Carlisle, after he had composed himself.
I looked at him like he was crazy, which he was for even thinking of that idea. There was no way that I was joining the Fork's tennis team. Suddenly, Alice got another vision. I saw myself, in Alice's vision, wearing the white collared shirt and the white stretchy shorts of the tennis players. This was not good.
Author's Note:
Sorry I ended it weird. I couldn't figure out where to end it. I know I didn't end it like the other one's but trust me; Mike will have plans in the next chapter! I'm sorry it takes me so long to update-this is like 8 pages in word. Oh, and this is the last chapter that I'm submitting for Irish Froggy's The Mike Challenge. I will update more (if you want!) but the contest ends tomorrow. Um, I knew that there was more I had to say but I can't think of it!! Enjoy!