A/N: I hope everyone had a Happy 4th. Sorry it took so long to update, but it's here. Had some entertaining drama on Twitter that kept me entertained. Also, I was reading more fics and I want to share my recs. Here they are:
The Diner by Jessypt
The Cullen Sutras by Magnolia822
Laid Bare by Brits23
Thank you to my awesome beta adt216 for editing this while on vacation. Thanks to my prereaders- BellasMommy86 and slyt.
At this point in time, I will NOT give permission to have Heroin Lullabies translated in any language. Please do not let me find out that it is.
Chapter 16
Columbus, Georgia
"Well she ain't no Cinderella
When she's getting undressed
'Cause she rocks it like the naughty wicked witch of the west"
-"Shakin' Hands" Nickelback
B.
Today, Rosalie and Esme would be flying in to celebrate Cullen's birthday, which was two days away. I hadn't seen Rose in weeks and even then, we didn't speak much. I hadn't seen Esme in months. The sensation in my stomach was worse than butterflies; it felt like a swarm of locusts.
Last night in Montgomery, as I was walking back onto the bus, I tripped over one of the steps, slightly twisting my ankle. It was tender today, nothing that wouldn't be healed by tomorrow. I sat with my back up against the arm of the sofa in the lounge watching the first Sex in the City movie. All the men had cringed, even Jake and John Paul. Internally, I sighed. Jake's sexuality was his issue to deal with and when he chose to deal with it.
Alice was a whirlwind all through the bus, making sure it was clean. I wanted to help, but Cullen and Carlisle had teamed up against me and demanded I stay off my ankle. When Alice thought the bus was clean enough, she hurried Carlisle, Emmett, and Jasper out the bus. Jake and his friends were going to get some lunch, which left Cullen and me alone. It was something we hadn't had much of lately.
Before Alice finally left, Cullen got up from being curled up next to me and went to talk to her privately. It didn't bother me; I was rather enjoying laying here watching a movie. I was at the part of the movie where the girls had gone to Mexico and Charlotte was trying to make her way back to the room before she shit herself. When she didn't make it back in enough time, I doubled over in laughter.
Cullen came walking back in the lounge with a latched, purple chest in his hand. I knew it had to be Alice's.
"What's that?" I asked, as I nodded towards it with my chin.
He stopped in front of the sofa, looked down at the tiny chest, and back up at me.
"I thought I would do something for you," he softly answered.
A soft smirk lifted the left corner of his lips and his gaze was deep and danced with playfulness.
"Well, Mr. Masen, what do you have in the chest?"
He raised my legs as he sat down, placing my feet in his lap. He nestled the purple chest next to my knee and flipped the latch on it, opening up to a treasure trove of foot cosmetics. Inside I saw cotton balls, polish remover, foot scrub, foot lotion, and a red nail polish. I motioned for him to hand me the polish so I could look at the color.
It was a pretty red called Keys to My Karma, made by OPI. I wondered who chose the color.
"Who picked the color?"
"I did," he said as he opened up the bag of cotton balls, pulling out several puffballs.
"Why red? Pink or orange is more summery."
"Pink is too innocent and I don't like orange."
There was an off tone in that sentence. His mouth was set in a firm line and his shoulders shrugged. Whatever had bothered him quickly dissipated. His body relaxed as he pinned his tongue between his lips. He had soaked one cotton ball with the remover and was now removing the pink polish off my toes of the foot that was attached to the tender ankle. His pressure was firm but light, carefully trying not to rub hard.
While he removed the polish from each toe on both feet, I held the polish remover, giving it to him when asked for. We sat in silence, enjoying the company of one another. It was rare we were alone like this, with everyone gone. Normally, when we were alone, there was always the chance of someone knocking on the door.
Once he was done, he picked away the fuzz left behind, sprinkling it on the carpet. I spun the lid onto the remover and made sure it was closed. He placed it back in the chest and pulled out the foot scrub. I knew he was going to need a towel to remove the scrub.
"Sweetie, you might want to grab a towel and wet it, so you can wipe off the scrub easily."
"Shit, I didn't think about that."
Cullen raised my legs and gently set them back on the sofa cushion. There was a pale pink hand towel with flowers on it lying on the counter under the microwave. I knew Alice was going to be mad when she saw what was done to it. After wringing it out several times, he walked back over and sat back down underneath my legs. He placed the moist towel on my leg and grabbed the scrub.
An earthy, mint smell permeated the air and made my feet tingle, bringing about a cooling sensation. He rubbed harder on my heels but softer on the soles of my feet, and after five minutes, he wiped the grainy texture from my feet. Once again, he threw something on the floor.
The skin on my feet felt smooth as I rubbed them together while I waited for him to open the lotion. It was brand new, so the seal was still on. Its scent was cucumber and mint. When he had the seal off, it went on the floor with the other thrown away stuff. Cullen twisted the lid back on and flipped the top, squirting a liberal amount into his hand.
He was cautious with my injured ankle and lightly rubbed the area around it, which was sectioned off by an Ace bandage. His pressure was phenomenal and I told him so.
"I've been paying attention during our massages. I wanted to one day be able to treat you to something like this myself," he whispered as he leaned over and brushed his lips against mine.
I visibly shivered, eliciting a chuckle from him as he pulled away. His massaging never wavered during our moment. He slid his thumb up the length of the sole of my foot, making me moan as I laid back into the sofa. I closed my eyes so I could shut out interferences and concentrate on his warm hands turning my feet into putty.
I must've fallen asleep during the massage because when I came to, Cullen was wiping the lotion residue from my toenails. My hands wiped over my face, the coldness of them refreshing me. There were several hard taps and I knew he was beating the bottle of polish against his hand. I raised my eyebrow.
"Alice told me to do it."
I nodded as if I agreed with it and looked down at my toes to see elongated cotton entwined around my toes. How much did Alice tell him? Apparently, he had listened to everything. He asked me to bend the leg of my injured ankle so my foot would be flat against his thigh. He didn't want to extend my foot so he could polish my toes.
The polish was cold as it glided over my toenails. I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried about him mucking up the polish and getting it all over my skin, but surprisingly, he stayed within the nail boundary. When he was done, polish and top coat, I had shiny, red toes. Then the thought came to me like a bull during the Running of the Bulls- this complicated, complex man who has never had a long-term, committed relationship with another human being, just did one of the sweetest, girliest, loving acts I'd ever seen a man do. He all but gave me a pedicure.
This simple deed made up for the past several days. I was starting to cherish these few moments when the complicated matters dissolved, and all that was left was us-the night we played Scrabble, when we had sex on the massage table, our talk after that horrendous night in Albuquerque, the resting under the trees in downtown Dallas, and the morning after when we enjoyed one another again and again. His voice brought me out of my reverie.
"Is everything alright? Did I do something wrong?"
In the middle of this moment of happiness, that was one of the most loaded questions I had ever heard. Soon, I felt why he asked me those questions- I had tears sliding down my cheeks. I wiped them away with the back of my hand and nodded my head.
"No, you did nothing wrong. In fact, you did something right."
He licked his lips, nodded his head, and got up with the purple chest of foot wonders to go put them back in Jasper and Alice's bunk. I extended my legs so I could get a better look at my toes. He had actually done a swell job.
I waited another fifteen minutes before I took the cotton from between my toes. As I moved my feet together, I relished in their silky texture. The pleasure of my newly polished toes didn't last too long. I grabbed my BlackBerry and looked at the time. It had to have been at least twenty minutes since Cullen had left.
The phone landed with a soft thump on the sofa cushion as I swung my feet onto the floor, landing in the mess he forgot to clean up. I balled everything up and threw it in the trash on my way out. The soreness in my ankle tweaked a bit as I hobbled down the hallway, heading to the front of the bus.
When I hirpled up front, I found Cullen clacking away on the computer keys. He must have been engrossed with what he was doing because he didn't hear me walk up behind him. I glanced down and saw there were several paragraphs typed out on the screen. If I bent down, he would know I was trying to read the words, so instead I placed my hand on his shoulder.
He jumped in his place and slapped the laptop closed.
"What the fuck are you doing sneaking up behind me? How long have you been standing there?" he barked.
"Not long. I was worried when you didn't come back after twenty minutes. Your departure was kind of abrupt."
I saw his Adam's apple bob up and down as he swallowed. His jaw clenched and unclenched as his left hand curled and uncurled.
"Please don't sneak up behind me. I don't like my privacy invaded. You shouldn't be standing on that ankle."
He got up after laying his computer on the cushion and placed his palm on my lower back. We didn't say anything as we walked towards the lounge. When we walked in, I saw the name of the DVD player brand holding still on the television screen. I didn't want to watch another movie. I wanted to watch cable.
Cullen gave me the remote and I flicked around to several channels until I came upon a show on The History Channel about the history of vampires. We sat in silence and watched it. The part about Elizabeth Bathory made me squeamish. He noticed my huddled form, so he scooped me up and placed me in his lap, rubbing his fingers against my bare arm.
We both had on tank tops, the only difference was mine had the thin straps, and both were white. I had little black boy shorts on and he wore his usual jeans that were now hanging too far off his hips. I hadn't seen him eat much in days. Only a sandwich or some chips here and there. Hopefully, Esme would be able to get him to eat a proper meal.
The vampire history program ended, followed by a program on ancient Pagan sites in Ireland and England. It was beginning to explain Skara Brae when I heard loud footsteps and high-pitched laughs filter down the hall from the front. Cullen had his hand gripped onto my ass, making it hard for me to climb out of his lap. Soft snores rumbled from his lips.
The voices were getting louder, and as much as I hated to move away from our embrace, I needed to move. I placed a soft kiss on his partly opened mouth and crawled over his leg, relaxing against the back of the sofa with my ankle propped up on his thigh.
Alice, Rosalie, and Esme bounded in, laughing and hanging on each other. Esme stopped laughing instantly once she laid her eyes on her stepson. She brought a hand to her face, covering her mouth as she gasped. Rosalie stood speechless too. Alice looked from them to us and back again. It was Esme who spoke first after Carlisle stood behind her with a hand on her arm.
"Oh my…what has happened to my son?" she asked no one in particular as her eyes roamed over Cullen's sleeping form, trying to fight back tears but not succeeding.
"Love…," Carlisle started, but his wife interrupted.
"Don't love me. How much worse has his problem gotten?"
"It's about the same," Carlisle mumbled.
Esme left her husband's side and walked over to the couch, sitting in the tiny space next to Cullen. A loose piece of hair hung over his eyes and she swept it away with a brush of her hand. She looked up at me and smiled as sweetly as she could.
"Bella, it's so good to see you. Your father told me to tell you hello and that he loves you. How has my son been treating you?"
I played with a piece of loose string on his frayed jeans and looked up at the lovely woman with light brown hair and kindly brown eyes.
"He treats me as well as he can," I hoarsely replied before clearing my throat.
"I guess that's all we can expect, given the situation."
Jasper and Emmett had finally walked back and attached themselves to their partners. Alice asked how my ankle was and I said it was fine, just a bit tender. Then she rushed over to my feet.
"Oh, Bella, he did a wonderful job!" she shouted, waking up Cullen, who was startled to see so many people surrounding him.
"What the fuck?" he grumbled.
When he noticed his stepmother next to him, he shyly smirked and leaned over to her, resting his head against her. Esme reached around his shoulders, embraced him, and placed a kiss on his forehead.
"Son, it's good to see you. I hope you haven't been giving Bella a hard time."
Smirking against her shoulder, he said, "Nothing that she can't handle. How have you been?"
While the both of them caught up, I got up with help from Alice, wanting to give them space. Rosalie motioned for us to go up front so the family could spend time together. When we finally reached up front and got situated on the couches, Rosalie didn't waste any time on getting to the point.
"Bella, I'm not going to say I'm happy with you and Cullen. He's a douche bag. He's never committed to another human being a day in his life. His only committed relationships are smack and music. Even music takes a backseat to the drugs, at times."
Before she could say anything, I cut her off.
"Rosalie, stop. Just stop. Please. I don't need a lecture. I've already gotten them from Jake. If things get fucked up, then they get fucked up," I firmly stated as I stared into her cold baby blues.
She licked her lips and silently nodded, making an unspoken agreement.
"But, Bella, please tell me you've been making him wear a condom?"
Alice and Rosalie both stared back at me intensely. I shook my head.
"Bella!" gasped Alice.
Rosalie shook her head and bit her lip.
"Well, I have an IUD in and he says he's been tested and that he's fine."
Alice closed her eyes and turned away while Rosalie stared at me, emotionless and shrugged her shoulders. This was not how I imagined her return to be. We sat in an awkward silence as Alice and Rosalie sat on "my" couch and I sat on the other one. My knees were pulled against my abdomen as I rested my cheek on top of them, looking out the window. I moved my feet forward a bit and bumped into Cullen's laptop, remembering the screen full of paragraphs. It didn't look like an email, which meant it must have been a personal blog or something.
My mind wandered to the other day when Cullen kept getting text after text and the name Josie appeared the one time I saw a text come in. Curiosity got the best of me.
"Rosalie, I've asked Alice, but she didn't know, maybe you do. Do you know a Josie?"
She furrowed her eyebrows.
"The name sounds familiar; I just can't place it. Why?"
"Cullen's been getting all these text messages and he's been attached to his phone or computer the past week or so," I replied, not looking to meet her gaze.
"Like I said, it sounds familiar. The only girl I know that would be contacting him this time of year would be Tanya, but I haven't seen her in two years. I think that's the last time we all saw her, including Cullen. The last thing I heard was she met some chick and started dating her," she said, giving a nonchalant shrug.
Alice popped her head up and looked between Rosalie and me.
"Wait, doesn't Tanya's middle name start with a "J"?"
Rose scratched her head and nodded.
"I think it does, but once again, I can't recall what it is. I vaguely remember him never calling her Tanya, but by some other name."
I bit my lower lip, looking out the window as curiosity took over again.
"You wouldn't happen to have a picture of her, would you?" I asked, trying to hide my jealousy.
"I think I have one in a photo album on my Facebook. Let me check," Rosalie answered as a curtain of blond hair blanketed her face.
After a few minutes of looking on her iPhone, Rose shoved it in my face, showing a picture of a girl with her head turned, caught in the middle of laughing with her long, strawberry blonde hair covering most of her face. It was hard to tell what she looked like. My disappointment must have shown because Rosalie gently placed her hand on my arm.
"Look, Bella. I'm sorry, that's the only picture I have left of her and it's from two years ago. I wouldn't worry about her. He's openly with you, which is something he's never done. Yes, he's had girls around, but never the way he's with you. So, I wouldn't panic over it," she calmly spoke.
Alice nodded in agreement and started to get excited, making Rose and I share puzzled looks.
"Girls, we're going to be in Atlanta tomorrow. I have the day planned out, starting early in the morning to the afternoon. First, morning will be spent at an Aveda spa where lunch will be served, and then the rest of day will be spent shopping.
Bella, do you have a gift for Cullen?" Alice excitedly spewed.
"No. I don't know what to get him."
"By the way his clothes look on him, I'd say he needs new clothing," Rosalie offered, trying to not sound snarky.
I nodded while wondering what size the loose jeans were. I would look later when he changed for the show.
The next few minutes were spent in comfortable silence as Rosalie busied with her iPhone; Alice listened to voicemails on her phone, and I stared out the window through the opened mini blinds, lost in thought and trying to fight back the same uncomfortable feeling I had the last morning in Dallas. The heaviness felt like I was waiting for impending doom.
I inhaled several, slow deep breaths as I tried calming my insides and my mind. My fingers tapped, one by one, rapidly against the back of the couch, loudly. I felt a sharp pain pulsate from my lip and I knew I had bitten too hard. A faint, metallic taste filled my mouth as I wiped my tongue over the sore spot. A wave of nausea swept over me.
Before I could start dry heaving, I shot up from the couch and all but ran to the lounge, where I yanked open the refrigerator door and pulled out a bottle of Vitamin Water. I needed a different taste in my mouth. As I guzzled down the flavored water, several pairs of eyes focused on me. I felt the heavy pull of their gazes.
When I was sure the taste of blood was no longer present, I lowered the bottle and looked over. Cullen had his eyes planted on me with a cocked eyebrow.
Esme, Carlisle, Em, and Jasper all looked at me with concern.
"Sorry. I bit my lip and blood welled up. The taste of it made me queasy, so I ran back here to get something to drink before I started dry heaving," I mumbled, completely embarrassed by my admission.
Cullen smirked and got up to walk over to me, pulled me into a one armed hug, where he bent down and kissed my forehead.
He held onto me as we faced the rest of the family.
"Bella, why don't you sit down and let me look at your ankle-to make sure it's not further irritated," Carlisle offered.
"Sure," I answered and nodded as I walked over to the couch, feeling the soreness tweak as the adrenalin started wearing off.
I sat next to Esme, who held my hand, as Carlisle unwound the bandage. The area was a little puffy, but nothing to be worried about.
"You need to stay off of it as much as you can for rest of the day, Bella," he ordered me, in a fatherly way as he rewrapped the bandage.
"Bella, you stay back here and watch TV or read. One of us will be on here at all times," Esme kindly demanded.
I looked over at Cullen who was biting his bottom lip inward, trying to keep from laughing. He was playing with me, so I shot him my middle finger, which made him break and start chuckling. We all started laughing. It felt good, but it still didn't replace the heaviness that pressed down on me.
"Well, boys, are you ready to go do the meet and greet at the local Hot Topic?" Carlisle asked as he stood up.
Cullen, Emmett, and Jasper nodded, but Jake wasn't back yet.
"Where's Jake? Is he not back from lunch, yet?" Jasper asked.
I shook my head.
"Nope, I haven't seen him and I was up front with the girls."
At that time, Rosalie and Alice walked in the lounge, saying they hadn't seen him come back either.
Cullen sighed, sounding irritated. He pulled out his phone and pressed Jake's number. He answered quickly.
"Jake, where in the fuck are you? We have to leave for the meet and greet. If you're ass isn't back here in ten minutes, my fist and your face are going to have a meeting," Cullen seethed.
He said a few other parting words and slapped his phone shut. Esme looked somewhat appalled.
"Son, were those words necessary? You didn't have to threaten him."
"Mom…Esme, this band is mine and I dictate how it goes. If he wants to leave, he can pack his shit and go. He's not the only drummer on this planet," Cullen barked.
"He is one of the only good friends you have," Jasper said, surprising everyone.
Rosalie spoke next, "If you aren't careful, fucker, you're going to wind up alone, with no one catering to your fucking needs."
I saw his hands curl up into fists and his mouth set in a tight line. I shot Emmett a look, hoping to convey my message that he needs to rein his girlfriend in. Apparently, he got the message.
"Rosie, baby, leave it alone…please," he begged.
She was still giving Cullen death glares, but she finally tore away from him, turning into Emmett.
Loud, booming footsteps raced down the hallway, giving way to a very pissed off Jake. He walked within centimeters of Cullen's face, harshly breathing and touching nose to nose.
"Listen up and listen good, motherfucker. I do not take orders from you. Next time you fucking talk to me that way, I will pack my shit and fucking leave," Jake said with a steely, calm voice.
Cullen pressed further into Jake's face, making him take a step back.
"Who the fuck writes all the music in this band? Who the fuck puts money in your fucking bank account? Who the fuck is the one the media wants- either it is pictures or interviews?" he answered Jake's threat. "It's me. Therefore, that makes this my band. Another thing, that threat has been used several times before, yet here you stay. Shit must not be too bad if you're still here."
Jake backed away, fists curled up, and looked at his lead singer. He remained silent, knowing everything that was spoken was the truth. No one said anything. The awkward silence filled the room rapidly. Between the heaviness in my gut and the silence, I was seconds away from screaming.
Jake finally gave one last sneer before leaving. After he left, the pressure in the room deflated about fifty percent, easing some of the unpleasantness. Carlisle was the first to speak.
"Let's get this shit over with before you boys wind up fist fighting one another. Esme, I wasn't going to ask you to come, but I think I'm going to need you."
She sighed intensely, nodding her agreement.
Alice leaned into Jasper as they had moved closer to Emmett and Rosalie. Carlisle and Esme ushered everyone out, except for Cullen. He told his son two minutes and no longer. Cullen nodded and turned towards me. A beep echoed through the quiet lounge, alerting us both to another fucking text message. A slow smirk eased across his lips. He punched a few buttons and slid his phone down a front pocket of his jeans.
His hand reached out and ran through my hair, settling at the nape of my neck as his thumb stroked my cheek. His face seemed relaxed with a lazy smile as he looked down at me.
"Pretty girl, I'm sorry you had to see that. I'll be back after while. You get some rest," he said before leaning down and softly, chastely kissing my lips.
He moved his hand up and glided it softly down the side of my face. We stared a few seconds longer at one another and then he left.
Cullen
Carlisle had a personal SUV for us to ride in to the meet and greet- a big ass Escalade. I sat next to Jasper, who rode with his eyes closed, and could smell body odor emanating from him.
"Dear cousin, when is the last time you bathed?" I mumbled to him.
One eye cracked open, raising an eyebrow, and a smirk lifted the corner of his mouth.
"I believe it was Biloxi. I kinda like the organic aroma," he slowly drew out.
Another beep from my phone loudly alerted me to another text. I exhaled an aggravated sigh- this shit was getting old. Jasper quirked the same brow at me again, silently asking a question.
"Don't bother asking. It's nothing, just an old acquaintance."
"Cuz, you've been on that fucker for days now as well as your computer. Don't think Bella is the only one that's noticed. You're not as slick as you used to be," he muttered.
I lifted my middle finger and shoved it in his face. He laughed and pushed my hand away. I shot a quick text back to the person, telling them not to contact me again until they arrived.
The rest of the ride and the meet and greet was strained and awkward. Jake and I sat on the opposite end of the table at the signing. There were several cute girls, some of them I eyed but did nothing more than that. By the end of it, my jeans pocket was stuffed with pieces of paper with numbers and Facebook information. I tossed them in the trashcan outside the store.
The ride back to the bus was better than the ride over. Jake and I talked, but it was still very strained. It was good to have Esme here, but she had the flower shop back in Forks that she loved, so getting her out here for longer periods was hard. She somehow made situations endurable.
After the driver dropped us off, Jake, John, and Embry headed off elsewhere. Our equipment was finished being set up and it was late afternoon, so they were taking off to get some dinner. I headed onto the bus where I heard cackling, knowing the three girls were having "girl talk." The rest of them were behind me, waiting to get on the bus also.
From the amount of noise the girls were making, I thought they would've been up front, but no, they were in the back. All three were huddled in front of Alice's laptop howling in laughter at whatever played on the computer. Bella looked up at me and doubled over with laughter.
"What the fuck are you girls watching?" I asked, expecting the worse.
Rosalie commented before Bella could, "We're watching old Loxley Screw shows on YouTube. Cullen, you looked like a fucking nerd with having long hair and it being shaved underneath."
My palm met my face as I shook my head, embarrassed by some of the shit I've done in my past. Bella had tears running down her cheeks when I looked up. Carlisle and Esme walked back as did Emmett and Jasper, which erupted in more laughter from the girls.
"What the fuck are you three watching?" Emmett asked as he stuffed his face with cookies.
I looked at my brother and mouthed, "YouTube."
Emmett groaned, knowing they were watching old videos of us. Jasper ruffled Alice's hair and walked over to sit at the table. Esme grouped around the girls and started in on the laughing, too. I looked over at Carlisle, who had a bemused look on his face, and smiled. Emmett disrupted the laughter by announcing he wanted food other than cookies.
"We could all go out to eat," Carlisle offered.
"I think I want Emmett and I to spend some time alone together," Rosalie quietly replied.
Carlisle understood and offered the idea to the rest of us. Alice and Jasper had plans for dinner alone, so that left my parents, Bella, and me. That was fine; it didn't bother me.
Alice closed her laptop and shooed away Rosalie. She carefully got up, making sure Bella's ankle wasn't jarred. Rose was wrapped around my brother as he pulled her down the hallway, on their way to dinner. Jasper took Alice's laptop and placed it on the table. She kissed Esme and Bella on their cheeks as she waved goodbye to Carlisle and me on their way out to eat Mexican.
"Well, what are we in the mood for?" Carlisle asked, clapping his hands together.
Esme wanted chicken, I wanted steak, and Bella wanted pork.
"Well, we can go to O'Charley's. They have a variety," my father offered.
We all agreed and he called for a taxi.
B.
Dinner was nice. Cullen helped steady me, even though I could walk just fine. My ankle was now a throb and a slight tweak. The dinner seemed normal, everyone seemed normal. However, it was just a façade that could quickly crumble. The conversation flowed and was light. The food was excellent and we were all satisfied.
On the car ride back, the heaviness still hadn't let up any. If anything, it had increased. Cullen tapped me on my shoulder when he caught me absentmindedly twirling my hair around my finger and sucking in my bottom lip so I could bite on it.
He softly asked if anything was wrong; I told him everything was okay.
Cullen was the first one out of the taxi. He acted as if his ass was on fire the way he was running towards the bus. We couldn't see around the other side of it where the taxi had parked, so when Esme, Carlisle, and me walked around to the side where the door was, we found Cullen, Jasper, and Alice staring at the bus wide-eyed.
Frantic screams were coming loudly from the bus and it was rocking back and forth. Carlisle walked over to the others and stopped in his tracks, gawking. Esme and I ventured over to the others, only to be stopped too.
With the blinds open, the lights on, and very visibly and audibly were Rosalie and Emmett fucking. Her long, blond hair and ghost white ass were plastered against the blinds and window while Emmett had her legs spread out wide. It was a sight I wished I had never seen. Then again, I'm sure they have all said the same shit about Cullen and me. Not that we're any better, but at least we were loud enough so they would hear and know not to come up front or to interrupt us.
I looked over at Cullen, who as if on cue, turned and looked at me with an amused look on his face.
"That was a sight I could have gone without seeing," Jasper mumbled.
Alice and I nodded. I turned around and saw Esme had walked over to Carlisle and turned her face into his neck. His hands had balled up into fists, but he wasn't the first to react-it was Cullen.
He pushed in the code for the bus and the door opened, quickly followed by his loud voice, startling Rosalie-causing her to scream and clutch her chest. Emmett got into his face until Cullen pointed out the window. Both of them turned around and I quickly saw Emmett's face fall when he saw that their mother had seen him fucking. Rosalie quickly sat down on the couch and leaned over, retrieving her clothing. Emmett darted out of view as Cullen motioned for us to come on the bus.
Once Carlisle got on the bus, he immediately closed the blinds, giving Rosalie an evil look.
"Sorry, Carlisle."
He shook his head and went down the hallway, where he confronted his other son. Many colorful words and phrases filtered down the hall into the front. Rosalie was now dressed and hiding under her ice blonde hair. I studied her, trying to figure out her demeanor. She tilted her face slightly, just enough for me to see a fraction of a smirk. She was enjoying every second of the commotion.
I stepped back, minutely, and barely grazed her knee. She was wearing dark jean shorts, a red tube top, and bare feet that were painted a dark crimson. Her eyes met mine with a finely arched eyebrow raised. I slowly shook my head, signaling not to add more fuel to the fire. She flippantly waved me off. When I turned back around, Esme had been watching us. I shrugged my shoulders and went over to Cullen who was sitting on my couch.
"Hey. What we saw isn't any worse than what we've done, except we haven't been doing it where everyone walking by could see," I said calmly, stroking his forearm.
He was playing with his bottom lip and staring off into space. He turned to me, leaned into my hair, and whispered, "The last part of your statement is the difference. I know this wasn't Emmett's doing. It was all hers."
Alice and Jasper were still standing, not saying anything, until Alice looked at Rosalie.
"Rose, that act was your idea. I know it was. At least when we all fuck on the bus, it's either behind the curtain of the bunks or we're loud enough to alert others to not come into the area."
"Oh please, Alice, save it. When did this bus become the Disney channel? None of y'all hide when everyone is snorting coke or smoking a fucking joint. Hell, fuckhead over there shoots up. We all know he does. Look at his fucking arms, fucking bruises and track marks everywhere."
"That will be enough from everyone. I flew in to celebrate my son's birthday, not to have to deal with this bullshit," Esme seethed, her face turning a faint pink.
Everyone zipped their lips at her outburst, as we all were in shock. Our eyes were round in surprise. Carlisle appeared amidst the silence, looking to each us. He finally looked up at his wife, quirked an eyebrow and grinned. Esme crossed her arms in front of her and went to him.
He motioned for her to go on back, lightly placing a hand on her lower back. After they were in the back for a few minutes, Emmett bounded back up front, avoiding everyone. He sat next to Rosie and pulled her into him. Her ice blue eyes scanned the room before finally resting on me.
"What, Rosalie?" I asked.
She shook her head and moved her eyes to the ceiling. Jasper was the one who broke the silence.
"Fuck this shit. I'm going into the club and doing some shots. Anyone care to join me?"
I raised my hand and got up. Emmett and Rose got up, too. We all looked at Cullen.
"I'll be there in a few. There's something I need to do."
I internally sighed. We turned around and walked away.
Cullen walked in with his parents. His eyes were glassy and couldn't keep focus on anything. It was then, in that moment, I knew Esme chose to ignore her son's problem. We all were ignoring the problem, even though it was out in the open. However, I knew no matter what we all said to him, that it ultimately came down to him. None of us could make him get clean. If they ever forced him, he would relapse the moment he got out of rehab. All of us knew this, but we continued on as if nothing was wrong.
Jake and the other two came in behind the others. They appeared to be drunk as was Jasper and Emmett. Astonishingly, their show was good.
I left the club early and went back out onto the bus. I got comfortable in my PJs and got onto my laptop. My email was a bit backed up with two from Charlie. I typed out an email to him, letting him know I was fine. Jessica sent me a few new pictures of Caleb. I replied saying he was getting so big and the new pictures were cute.
Once I checked everything online, I put away the laptop. I had a new book that I wanted to get started on, so I climbed into the bunk, and turned on the overhead light.
Moans and whimpers woke me up. I hadn't noticed that I had fallen asleep. My book had fallen to my side. I moved it to my side closer to the wall, and then rubbed my face. Once I was more alert, I realized the moans and whimpers were sex noises. Alice and Jasper were in the bunk over from ours and Emmett and Rosalie were across. Each bunk had noises coming from it.
I stepped down onto the floor and heard more sounds coming from the lounge. Jake, Paul, and Embry were out cold. That left the other sounds to Carlisle and Esme. Every couple on the bus was having sex. I walked down the hall to the front. Cullen was sitting on my couch typing away on his computer. He was interrupted by a beep from his phone, another damn text. I heard him grumble and slap his phone shut. He went back to typing.
I sighed and went back to bed, hoping to be able to get some sleep. After several tosses and turns, I gave up sleeping. I had grown angry. Everyone was having marathon sex, but me. Stumbling sounds from the hall told me Cullen was coming to bed. I hoped he was up for sex because listening to everyone had made me horny.
He yanked the curtain back, lazily pulled himself up, and threw himself on the bed, slapping me in the stomach with his arm. He rolled over clumsily, sloppily kissed my check, mumbled incoherent words, and passed out. The arm that lay over my stomach had a fresh rivulet of dried blood. My eyelids clenched tight as I fought back tears.
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