Twilight isn't mine.
Sorry for such a long wait. I work and go to school full time, so real life gets hectic.
Big thanks to venemousgal for her help with this chapter and the twitter girls.
Over the course of the next two weeks, I spent a few days a week after school hanging out with Angela and Victoria. Usually, we went to Angela's house to do homework, which was totally fine with me. Her mother always had snacks ready for us when we got there. Besides, Victoria never wanted to go to her house and I didn't want to deal with Charlie's eavesdropping.
Angela's dad was a pastor and she had two, young, twin brothers that were around Jacobs age.
I still made it a point to eat lunch in the cafeteria a couple times a week, although Jessica and Lauren were so caught up in the guys that I wasn't entirely sure they noticed me there.
Rosalie spent most of lunch either texting Emmett or talking on the phone with him. Sometimes, I would catch her eying me suspiciously and she would look like she was going to say something, but would quickly focus her attention back to her phone. Hopefully if she thought my behavior was strange, she would attribute it to what was going on with Renee.
Edward had also been acting strange lately. Well, stranger than before. Ever since the awkward good-bye at James' house, he was seemingly keeping his distance from me. Like in biology, I could have sworn that each day he was increasing the distance between our two chairs, since he was now practically huddled against the edge of the table. Or maybe I was just imagining things.
We had only hung out together after school since the barbecue and that was at an impromptu movie night at Angela's, where the six of us had stayed late, eating pizza and watching crappy movies.
For a pastor, Angela's dad was pretty cool. He had picked up the pizza for us on the way home from dropping off the twins at a friends house for a sleepover. Then, he retreated upstairs with his wife for the rest of the night, leaving us to do whatever.
So Angela and Ben were laying with their heads on opposite ends of the couch, their legs entwined, with a blanket covering them. James was sitting in an arm chair with Victoria laying across his lap and his arms wrapped around her.
Then there was Edward and me. The La-Z-Boy was the only seat left in front of the television and Edward and I went back and forth over who should sit there. Finally, I relented and with a dramatic sigh, sat down, tucking my legs under me and pulling the throw that was over the back of the chair over me. Edward
When Wednesday rolled around, I was surprised to find Rosalie waiting for me by my locker at the beginning of brunch.
"Hey, Rose. Whats up?" I asked, switching out textbooks in my locker.
"Long weekend this weekend, Swan. Five days. We're going to Seattle with mommy and daddy." She informed me
"Um..we are? Since when?" I paused, "and why?"
"Since my dad called your dad this morning to clear it with him. Parents want to go on some romantic, weekend getaway or some shit and we're going to visit Emmett."
"I think I'll pass, Rose. I don't want to intrude on yours and Emmetts couple time," I replied, making air quotes.
"Shut up. Besides, Jane is going to meet us there."
Jane was Rosalie's cousin, she was a year younger than us, but in the same grade. She was really smart and skipped kindergarten, or something. She was also pretty cool.
"I guess I can go. As long as Charlie Ok'd it."
Rose rolled her eyes. "Well, don't sound too enthusiastic about it, bitch."
"Okay, okay. It'll be nice to go to Seattle."
Of course, when I got home Charlie was all for me going to Seattle for the weekend, which made me a little suspicious, but he reminded me to pack the pepper spray in my suitcase and then lugged it downstairs next to the door, so I could put it in Rose's car when we she came to pick me up from school, so we could leave right after.
0-0
God love the Hales. We left straight from school and all drove up together in her parents Yukon Denali. Her Dad was driving, talking away on his bluetooth, her mom emailing from her Blackberry. Before we left, she had popped a movie in the back seat DVD player for us to watch.
Hours later, we pulled up to the Seattle Hyatt. Her parents checked us in, handed us our room keys and informed us that their suite was three floors above ours and that they were going to dinner and would be taking a cab the entire trip, so the car was ours.
I wondered what Rose's dad could have possibly said that would let my father, chief of police, allow me to come here for five days.
"So," Rose began, rummaging through her suitcase. "I texted Em and Jane, they're going to meet us at the restaurant and then we'll see what happens from there."
"Sounds good. I'm just going to take a quick shower," I responded, getting my toiletries bag out of my luggage.
As the water heated, I checked my phone, finding a text from Victoria
Hey, we're all meeting at Edwards house tonight. Wanna come? -V
I bit my lip. I hadn't told her about the Seattle trip, for whatever reason. I was suddenly wishing I was back in Forks.
Sorry, can't. I'm in Seattle with Rose the whole weekend. When I get back, k?
Have fun! I'm sure Edward will be disappointed you aren't here. -V
I felt my face heat up. Rather than responding to her text, I shut my phone and set it on the counter.
0-0
The restaurant was pretty packed, especially since it was a Friday night. Rosalie had made reservations though and when we got to the hostess, she informed us that three members of our party were already there.
"Three? I thought it was just Jane and Emmett?" I asked, following as the hostess weaved through all the tables.
Rose shrugged. "Maybe Emmett's roommate tagged along."
It turned out that Rose was right. Jasper did tag along. So did Alice.
When Rose and I came into view, the three of them stood up. Emmett bounded over to Rosalie, enveloping her in a bear hug and spinning her around, kissing her noisily.
"You big jerk!" Rose scolded, once he let her down. Behind her grim expression, she was fighting a smile.
"I missed you, Rosie," Emmett shrugged, then turned to me. "Hey, Bells. I hope you don't mind the roomie and lil' sis coming along."
"Of course not! Bella, Rosalie and I are going to bond. Right, girls?" Alice spoke up.
"Right," I responded, along with Rose's nod of her head.
"Oh, how rude of me. I should introduce Jasper," Alice slapped her forehead and then looked behind her, dragging the guy behind her by the sleeve of his jacket until he was standing in front of us.
"Hi, my name is Jasper. It's a pleasure to meet you two," he greeted us, smiling slightly. His voice held a slight southern accent.
Jasper was tall and good looking, but not the type of guy I would go for. He had blond hair that was sort of wavy and fell into his bright blue eyes. He was tall and skinny, wearing tight jeans and converse.
I noticed that Alice still had a death grip on the sleeve of Jaspers jacket, when he tugged his arm from her grasp to shake our hands.
The table was set so there were three people seated on either side. Emmett pulled out the chair for Rosalie and then sat down himself, scooting his chair as close to hers as he could get, draping his arm around the back.
"Bella, sit on our side!" Alice said, her smile wide. "I want to get to know you better."
"Yeah, Bella. Sit between us, so we can both get to know you," added Jasper.
At his suggestion, Alice's head whipped towards him, looking heartbroken before composing herself and turning to me, smile back in place. "Yeah, Bella. You can sit between us."
Judging by Alice's devastated look, sitting between the two was the last thing she wanted.
"I'll just sit on the end," I shrugged. "That way I can talk to Jane, too."
Once we were all situated in our chairs, the hostess made her way back to us, Jane in tow.
"Hey guys!" Jane greeted, "Am I late?"
Jane walked around the table, hugging and kissing everyone like we were all old friends.
Sitting down next to Rose, it was easy to see the family resemblance, even though they were still greatly different in looks and personality. Their hair was both naturally blonde, although Rose's was more platinum and Jane's light. Jane was also shorter, around my height with big, blue eyes and a lightly freckled face. Where Rose tends to be blunt and make no apologies for her behavior, Jane is just pure and nice. Well, as pure and nice as the girl who got me drunk, kissed me and then went skinny dipping in the lake last summer could be.
After dinner and on Emmetts request, a huge dessert, we divvied up the tab and went to loiter around outside.
"You're all coming back to the hotel, right? We were hoping to pick up some alcohol and hang out. You guys can all crash there, too," Rose said.
Everyone agreed and Jasper made a quick phone call to a friend that lived nearby, who happened to be twenty-one.
Cai was making a run to the liquor store anyways and would pick us something up.
Thirty minutes later and fifty dollars lighter, we headed back to the hotel with a handle of vodka, a bottle of cranberry juice and a few packs of hard lemonade. Just because Alice insisted she couldn't handle vodka, to which
Jasper scoffed, saying she couldn't handle bitch drinks, either. To which Alice, very maturely, stuck her tongue out at him.
We were all sitting on the two double beds in mine and Rose's room, talking and passing around the handle, followed by the bottle of cranberry juice.
After a few turns with the bottle, I had a good buzz going, along with everyone else.
"Let's gossip!" Alice exclaimed, struggling with the bottle opener as she tried to pry open the top off of a bottle of hard lemonade.
The guys groaned, but Jane nodded feverishly and Rose grinned.
"I'll start!" Rose exclaimed, throwing her arm over my shoulder. "Bella, Bella, Bella. You've been disappearing at lunch and after school and I don't buy your lame excuses."
"I told you, Rose. I've been working on homework and doing stuff around the house. Plus, you know what it's like at the table now, what with Mike and Tyler being there."
I was terrible at lying and knew she could see straight through me.
"Oh, this has got to be good, if you won't even tell me," Rose smiled.
"Bella, come on! Now i'm curious. Do you have a secret boyfriend? A secret looover?" Alice sang.
I buried my face in my hands in mortification. We were seriously doing this? Here, now?
Rose's eyes lit up. "Oh my God. You do!"
"Who's the lucky guy, Bella? Tell us! Is he hot? Are you fucking him? Does he have a big peen?" Jane chimed in.
"Bella looks like a tomato," Jasper commented, causing Emmett to snort.
"God, Jane. Bella's a virgin. It's only a recent thing, so I'd say the most she's doing is hand jobs or blowing him."
"SHUT UP!" I screeched, unable to take the conversation any longer. "If you guys just shut up, I'll tell you. Geez."
Everyone quieted down and Alice made a gesture like she was zipping her lips.
"So, there's this guy..." I began.
"I knew it!" Jane jumped in.
I glared at her and continued. "There's this guy, Edward. He's new at school. Well sorta new. I mean, he's been here since winter break. But anyways, he's my lab partner in biology."
I threw Rose a glance and she nodded for me to continue, looking intrigued.
"Well, Rose already knows all this stuff, but anyways. He missed a lot of school and the teacher had me go over my notes and help him catch up with everything. His mom invited me over for dinner, it was nice. Then, I said something bitchy about him to Rose, unluckily for me, he heard. I apologized. I started hanging out with him and his friends in the library at lunch and after school."
"I knew there was something going on with you two!" Rose exclaimed, looking smug with herself.
"Rose, we're friends. That's all. I mean, he's really nice and not bad to look at, but we're friends. I'm pretty sure he's not fully over the parking lot incident."
"Whatever, Bella. I can't believe you've been hanging out with them all this time. What are his friends names, even?"
I sighed. "There's James and Victoria, they're a couple. Then there's Ben and Angela. They're seniors."
"Oh, whatever. I've never really paid much attention to them." Rose shrugged, "I mean, I guess Cullen is pretty cute, if you're into the whole nerdy glasses, tall and scrawny look."
"Rosie!" Emmett whined, pouting.
"Shut it. You know I love my big, strong man," Rose cooed, running her hand through Emmett's hair.
"Well, I think it's romantic. It's like...forbidden love," Alice added, looking dreamily at Jasper, who focused his attention intensely on the bottle opener he was holding.
The bottle began being passed around again and Jane piped up about some book she read about forbidden love between a vampire and a human or something equally ridiculous.
The conversation about Edward was officially over and around three am, we all passed out.
I was the first one to wake up in the morning to a comical sight. Rosalie, Emmett and Jasper were all sharing one of the double beds, Emmett spooning Rose and Jasper facing away from them, laying just enough on the bed so he wouldn't fall off.
In my bed, Alice and Jane were in a similar position, with Jane's body nearly perpendicular across the bed, her feet somehow under my legs.
Everyone was grouchy and hungover when they woke up and we decided to forgo breakfast, with Emmett, Alice and Jasper going back to their apartment to get ready for our day out. Jane had packed some spare clothes and toiletries in her huge bag so she stayed behind with us.
The weekend was overall pretty fun and exactly what I needed to get my mind off of everything that had happened recently in my life.
Emmett had pulled me aside Saturday morning before he left, telling me that while he and Jasper did 'man things' for me to make sure Rose bought a nice dress for their date later that evening. Apparently, he had booked some dinner cruise that Rose had mentioned wanting to go on.
After Rose and Emmett went out on their date, Jasper and Alice came over, wanting to give them privacy at the apartment and the four of us ended up ordering room service and movies.
Rose came back the next morning alone, looking happier than I had seen her in a long time. I didn't ask what produced such a smile on her face and thankfully she didn't offer any information.
The rest of the weekend passed too quickly, filled with dining out, shopping and some cheesy tourist stuff. Apparently, Alice loved taking pictures.
She also loved shopping, so when Rose mentioned that prom was coming up in a couple months, Alice insisted we go search for the perfect prom dress; for Rose and for me.
However, Rose wasn't really interested in going and neither was I. Why would I go to prom without a date?
Rose's parents called each day, the entire conversation lasting under five minutes, just to make sure we hadn't destroyed the hotel room or gone on some sort of weekend bender.
I had also taken the time to call Charlie, which was another very short conversation, but that was to be expected with us.
Tuesday morning, Rose and I were all packed up. We had stayed up late with the rest of the group, but they had all gone home the night before, since we were having breakfast with Rose's parents after we checked out.
The look of relief on Charlie's face when I got home safe and in one piece Tuesday afternoon led me to believe he had missed me more than he let on.
0-0
School on Wednesday dragged by painfully slow and just when I wanted to say 'fuck it' and cut the rest of the day, lunch arrived. Although I had spent the past five days with Rose, it had been a while since I had spent any time with Lauren and Jessica, so I waited for Jess to finish packing up her Spanish binder and walked to the cafeteria with her.
The table was oddly silent, Mike and Tyler had detention for disrupting their math class, or something.
The tray in front of me held nothing remotely appetizing to eat. A dry looking turkey sandwich, a pudding cup and a carton of apple juice. It was oddly reminiscent of any meal I had ever eaten in a hospital.
I was mulling over this thought and the fact that I had been in a hospital enough times to warrant such a comparison, when Rosalie broke the silence.
"So, guys, did you know Bella has been hanging out with Cullen and his friends for the past few weeks?"
Jessica choked on the water she was drinking and Lauren immediately stopped picking at her nails.
"What?" Jessica asked, once she regained composure.
I sat there, horrified and betrayed. I had told Rosalie that in confidence. Sure, we had a pretty good buzz going at the time and we were with a bunch of other people, but Rosalie was nothing if not fiercely loyal. I couldn't understand this.
Like a deer in the headlights, I was stuck in my chair, waiting for their reactions.
"You're fucking shitting me, right?" Lauren asked, looking back and forth between Rose and me.
"I shit you not. They hang out like, all the time. Right, Bella?" Rose turned to me, her face unreadable.
"I don't buy it," Lauren said.
Rose rolled her eyes. "I don't care if you buy it or not. It's true."
Jessica and Lauren turned to look at me, waiting for a response.
"You, you're a bitch." I seethed at Rose. "It's no ones business who I hang out with. They're my friends."
Jessica snorted. "Friends, Bella? Seriously? They're a bunch of losers. Just look at them!"
"It doesn't matter. It's not like Bella is going to hang out with them anymore. Right? I mean, you had your fun, did your charitable deed for the year. Too bad you can't put it on a college app." Lauren said, shrugging.
"Anyways, prom is in a couple weeks. I need a dress."
Shaking myself out of my stupor, I quickly packed up all my stuff and slung my backpack over my shoulder.
"Bella!" Rose called after me as I exited the cafeteria. "Bella, wait!"
The clicking of the heels on the tiled flours of the hallway increased in speed as she got nearer to me, causing me to quicken my pace as well.
Eventually though, Rose caught up, grabbing me tightly by my bicep. She dragged me to the nearest room.
"What's your deal?" Rose asked, closing the door and standing in front of it, preventing me from leaving.
I crossed my arms defensively. "What's my deal? Seriously Rose, you aren't stupid. Who are you to tell Lauren and Jessica about my business? It's none of their business. And it's none of the schools business either, which,
I'm sure by the end of the week, everyone will know."
"It's for your own good. What does it matter if everyone knows? So what? It's just high school, Bella."
I scoffed. "It may be 'just high school' to you and you may be over it and not care about what other people think, but I do. I care what others think. Okay?"
Rose opened her mouth to speak, but I cut her off. "And anyways, did you ever think what it would be like for Edward and his friends?"
"Okay, Bella. I'm sorry."
"I appreciate your apology, Rose, but they're just words."
I looked at Rose's face. She did look apologetic, but I was just so mad.
Rose stepped to the side, allowing me to exit the classroom.'
0-0
Gossip spreads like wildfire at Forks High.
In Phoenix, there were over 400 kids in my grade and if you broke up before school, everyone would know by lunchtime. At Forks, there's only 350 kids in the entire school.
As I walked to Biology, I could feel eyes on me. Hear whispers as I walked past.
Edward acted as if nothing was different. Maybe he didn't know yet.
When I got out of the locker room after school, Jessica and Lauren were waiting for me.
"Hey..guys."
"Listen, cancel whatever your plans are. You're hanging out with us." Jessica informed me.
I didn't like the sound of this.
"We're going to meet at Mocha Motion, okay?"
As if I had any say in the situation.
When I got to Mocha Motion, Lauren and Jessica hadn't arrived yet. I went inside, ordering a latte before securing a corner with an armchair and a couch with plush, over-sized cushions, separated by a coffee table.
Jessica and Lauren showed up shortly after, waving at me from the door as they got in line.
I waited, feeling anxious until they sat down on the couch together.
"Obviously, I didn't want to create a scene in the cafeteria at lunch today. That's totally not my style," Jessica began and I had to resist the urge to roll my eyes.
"Of course," I nodded.
"We feel like...you've strayed recently. We all do things that we regret, I mean, we're human, right?"
Jessica looked over at Lauren, who began to speak. "And we can totally understand, Forks is a fucking boring as hell town. We all like to mix things up sometimes. But Edward and his group of freaks? Really?"
"Hey, Edward is really nice. Sure, he's different and quiet, but that doesn't mean he and his friends should be treated as untouchables," I hissed.
"Oh my God. You have got to be kidding me. This is worse than I thought. You have a thing for Cullen!" Jessica exclaimed.
My face heated up. "That's ridiculous, Jessica. He's a friend. Just because I'm friends with a guy does not mean that I like him. I'm not like you or Lauren. I don't feel the need to hang all over any guy that talks to me."
"Whatever, Bella. There's two options for you. It looks bad for us to have you in our group if you're going off with Cullen and them. I welcomed you your first day here at Forks High. We are your friends. Lauren, Rose and I."
"I know, Jess."
"So either you ditch them or you can't hang out with us."
"That's ridiculous!"
"It's really not," Lauren said. "We like you, Bella. Just stop hanging out with them and we'll forget everything."
"This is bullshit, you guys. I shouldn't have to choose. You're both my friends."
I felt tears welling up in my eyes and I blinked, willing them to go down.
"We are not going to hang out like one big, happy group. Don't delude yourself. You can tell us how we're being bitches and its not fair, but it is what it is." Lauren finished, picking up her coffee and sipping it.
"Fuck this. I'm going. I'll talk to you guys later, or whatever," I said, picking up my wallet and untouched latte."
0-0
Charlie wasn't home when I got there. On the kitchen counter there was a note with two twenties wrapped around it, informing me that he would be working a double and to order whatever take-out I wanted.
Not wanting to leave the house again, I called the pizza place we had on speed dial and ordered a medium combination pizza.
I headed upstairs, changing into a worn t-shirt and a pair of lounge pants. The pizza place was always slow, so I figured I had another half hour at least until the pizza arrived and decided to busy myself with homework.
By the time five rolled around, I had finished the majority of my homework, except for the assigned English reading and had eaten nearly half the pizza.
I had nothing to do. There weren't enough clothes for a full load of laundry, I had already cleaned the house yesterday.
Laying on my bed, everything that had been building and building the past couple months came to a head.
And I broke down.
It started out small, the tears I had been fighting back since the coffee shop spilled over, wetting my pillow.
I cried over my mother's pregnancy, the thought of leaving Charlie, Forks. I cried over Rose's betrayal and my friends harsh words. I cried because I wasn't sure what I felt for Edward Cullen, but I knew I felt something.]
The tears wouldn't stop coming until my insides hurt and I struggled to catch my breath.
When I felt I had no more tears to shed, I headed to the bathroom to see the damage.
My eyes were bloodshot and puffy, my face red and blotchy.
I looked a mess.
I needed someone to talk to.
I had no one to talk to about anything, except Edward.
Acting on impulse, I quickly washed my face and brushed my hair up into a sloppy bun. Not bothering to change my clothes, I ran down the stairs, grabbing my wallet and keys on the way out.
Although it had been a while since I had been to Edward's house, I knew the way almost subconsciously.
Edward's car was in the driveway when I pulled up along the curb in front of their house. After a quick check in my rear view mirror to make sure I looked presentable, I hastily got out of my truck and skipped up the steps to his front porch.
Calming my breathing down, I rang the doorbell and almost instantly heard footfalls on the other side of the door.
It felt like nearly an eternity before the door opened and I felt the tears welling up again. Geez, when did I become such a girl?
I quickly swiped them away when the front door opened, revealing Esme.
"Hello, Bella, dear." Esme greeted me.
"Um..hi Mrs. Cullen. Is Edward here?" I asked, hating how my voice cracked as I spoke.
"No, I'm sorry. I sent him and his father to the supermarket a little bit ago," Esme was looking at me with concerned eyes, but thankfully didn't comment on my appearance.
"Oh, okay. I'm sorry for bothering you. Could you just tell him that I stopped by? Or not, I mean, either way. It's okay. I suppose I can just see him at school tomorrow." My face heated up with my stupid blush at my bumbling words.
I must have opened up some sort of floodgates with the crying thing, because I started crying again. Out of embarrassment this time, I'm pretty sure. The irony of the situation didn't escape me.
But Esme just stood at the door, her face softening into a motherly look as she ushered me into the house.
"I'm sure they'll be back in a few minutes, Bella. Why don't you go wait for Edward upstairs in his room?"
I nodded my thanks at her and headed upstairs.
Edwards room looked exactly the same as it did the last time I was in here. It was all so neat and clean.
I slipped off my converse at the foot of the bed and climbed up, sitting cross-legged with my back against the headboard.
I now felt incredibly foolish coming here. What was I trying to accomplish? Edward and I had been friendly towards each other, but I could still tell we were strained since our meeting at the park. I had no right to come here and wallow in my own pity party and drag him down into it.
With a huff, I got off the bed and went to put my shoes back on to sneak out.
Then, the front door opened and I could hear guys voices.
Well, I guess I had no other option now.
I heard running up the steps followed shortly by the sound of the bedroom door knob turning.
Edward entered, looking worried as he took in my appearance.
"Bella, what's wrong? My mom said you came over upset? Are you okay?"
Edward looked genuinely concerned at me as he waited for my response, causing my heart to clench.
I didn't put any thought or effort into what I did next. In a way, it seemed to come almost naturally.
In three steps, I was off the bed and standing in front of Edward, who now had an unreadable expression on his face.
I didn't want to analyze his expression or any of the things I would normal go over and over again in my head.
I grabbed his biceps to steady myself and stood up on my tiptoes, pressing my lips to his.
And there you go. A kiss. Sort of, maybe. We'll see how everything turns out next chapter, okay? I promise no month long wait!
I'm considering writing an outtake of the Emmett and Rose date. Should I?
As always, I respond to all my reviews with a teaser of the next chapter!
I'm co-hosting a contest with TKegl and Tropical Sorbet
Announcing the Long Distance Lovin' Anonymous One-Shot Contest!
When love's long distance, sometimes you've gotta make do. So we want your best phone-sexin', skype-lovin', naughty-textin', IM-mmm-mmm-ing good times. The only requirement is your two long-distance lovers must do the deed via some mode of technology... no hands-on activity allowed, unless it's the do-it-yourself kind.
Banners will be awarded for first, second, and third place, as well as two honorable mentions.
Submissions will be accepted starting JUNE 1, 2010… so get to writing!
For more information, go to www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/~longdistancelovincontest
I think that's all. I'll add more pictures to the blog soon. If you want to know what the hell I'm doing instead of writing, or to come say hi, I'm on Twitter. Links to my twitter page and blog are on my profile.