CHAPTER 8 – Early Mornings And High Heels.

Disclaimer: I still own nothing. But I can't stop snacking on my Cheese Curls Planters snacks omnomnom.

AN at the bottom, you know the drill. Enjoy!

BPOV

My peaceful slumber was interrupted by a loud knock on the door. Disoriented, I looked around my dark bedroom and my eyes found the alarm clock I had on my nightstand. 07:25 AM.

I muttered a string of curse words as I rolled out of bed and trudged my way out my room. I had an idea of who it could be, Alice. She probably came prepared for my tongue lashing though.

I stumbled clumsily to the front door, knocking my shin on my coffee table and floor lamp. Finally, I made it to the door and unlocked the deadbolt, keeping the chain lock on and opened the door only as widely as the chain allowed.

"Hi, Bella! Wow, your hair's a disaster."

Alice. Of course it was Alice.

I said nothing as I slammed the door shut to unlock the chain with fervor, but I probably freaked her out. When I took the chain out halfway, Alice was already yelling at me not to get back to bed, and she brought coffee.

I immediately unlatched the chain and took the warm foam cups from her hands, taking a sip as soon as my lips touched the cup.

"For the love of all that is holy, I love you Alice," I moaned as I let the warm liquid swirl all over my tongue and down my throat.

Alice made herself comfortable in my apartment, a knowing smile on her face. She looked awake and chipper, contrasting my current condition. I just stood by the door, watching her look around my apartment.

"You've been playing?" She gestured to the guitar lying at the foot of the couch.

Memories of last night washed over me. "Uh, yeah." Answering as vaguely as possible, I tried my best to keep my voice calm and nonchalant.

I never got the chance to sit down before I heard another round of knocking at my door. Alice and I threw a confused look at each other. I'd ran out of guesses. I ran a hand through my hair and pulled down my top to look somewhat decent and opened the door only to fit my shoulders, away from Alice's eyes.

"You might want to take a peek before you open your door, Bella. There might be a craaaazy psychopath standing where I am."

Edward.

My mouth hung open but I couldn't form any words.

Alice was going to see him and launch an inquisition on me. My luck was crap.

"I'm surprised you're awake already…" The petrified look on my face probably freaked him out. He looked baffled for a moment and lifted the foam cups in his hand, gesturing at them persuasively. "I have coffee."

My throat felt dry and raspy. Circumstances stink. Alice was going to endlessly bombard me with questions. "Um, thank you?" I cringed, holding the door tighter to my shoulder.

"Edward -"

"Oh my gosh, EDWARD. What are you doing here? You know Bella? She's my best friend, obviously—"

Alice shoved me aside to hug Edward and I was still left baffled and confused, gaping like a fish. Edward braced for impact as Alice ran at him for a hug. He lazily smiled at me, obviously finding my sheer confusion funny.

"You…" I cleared my throat, "you guys know each other?"

They both stared at me like I grew another head. Alice raised her eyebrows at me and gestured at Edward and I, making me explain first.

"Neighbors." I cleared my throat uncomfortably.

Her eyes widened in realization. She grinned at me again.

"Silly Bella. We're siblings… You know, Cullens…" Before the thought even registered in my head, Alice was already shoving me out of the way, yet again, coming back inside my apartment, a skip in her steps.

I turned around to look at Edward. "Thanks for the warning, Cullen."

He smirked at me. "I had no idea, I swear."

I sighed. What? He did the twinkly-eyed thing again!

"Fair enough, hand me the coffee and we'll call it even."

I stared down at the two steamy coffee cups that sat before me on my kitchen counter. I tried to make sense of it all, watching the steam swirl up, up and away from the cups. I tried breathing in and out regularly, struggling to not freak out. I couldn't even manage to put two and two together. Damn Cullens…

Their chatter and laughter echoed in my small excuse of a home and I knew I probably should have gone in and joined them. I wrung my hands and took another deep breath.

I walked back into my living room when I was done trying to regulate my breathing. Alice saw me first, acknowledging my presence with a loud yell. There goes my stealth plan.

I sat down on the couch, distancing myself from Edward. Alice sat in my recliner, leant back, face contemplative. I sat with my elbows on the couch, hands clasped together.

She pointed a finger at us suggestively. "So you guys know each other…" I nodded, and I could see from my peripheral that Edward did too.

"Hm, interesting."

I opened my mouth to speak but Edward spoke before I got a chance to, and I was glad. "You sound like a therapist, Alice."

Her mouth turned into a grin and I was relieved. "I can't believe I didn't see this coming…" Her head shook in confusion and I had to chuckle at her tendencies.

"You never told me why you decided to knock my door at the crack or dawn and wake me from my slumber, Alice."

Her eyes widened and she smiled again. "Oh, Bella. It was hardly the crack of dawn. Anyways, I thought I should take you on a shopping trip—"

"You woke me up at an ungodly hour to take me shopping? Alice—"

"I know… I know. Obviously you guys have plans…" She looked at the obvious distance we'd between us on the couch. "I'll take you tomorrow, okay?" She stood up before I could protest.

"You two have fun!"

The door slammed behind her. We were alone again.

I lifted both my feet, stretching them on the empty space we had between us, obliterating it completely. "So… What do we do?"

EPOV

This was so awkward and wrong on so many levels. I probably should've listened when Alice spoke about her friends. I couldn't help but automatically ignore her when she brought up the topic of her lady friends, conversations with her about that certain topic never ended well. She always tried so hard to set me up with one of them, I kept denying. She never succeeded but it didn't stop her from trying time and time again. If I'd listened, I probably would've met Bella sooner. But then again, I also probably had to go through a few… non-preferred chicks before she set me up with Bella.

"Let's finish that song." I clasped my hands together and turned to her.

She nodded at me, "give me a minute to change."

I nodded at her but she didn't see it, she was already walking away from the couch and into her bedroom. I leaned back into the couch and clasped my own coffee in between my hands. Her apartment was exactly the way it was when I left it last night. Wait no, was that this morning?

The guitar was still at the foot of the coffee table and I smiled again at the thoughts of last night. The paper sat crinkled on the table, it was the paper. I'd written a lot of music, but I always wrote alone and I was proud of it. But this… I can't even describe how exhilarating the entire process was. I genuinely doubted that writing with anyone but her would be unpleasant.

She was different.

I was getting in too deep and I knew it. I was risking everything I knew.

I was just hoping it would be worth it.

BPOV

I dressed quickly, comfortably. I got out of my sweater and shorts and dressed into a simple top. I quickly brushed my teeth while I slipped on my jeans, hastily putting them on.

I liked this.

I missed the simplicity of being able to dress in whatever I felt like. For a while now I'd been dressing as Ben Hollis' girlfriend and I missed dressing as myself. I stared at my makeup stash as I ran a brush through my hair, foregoing my hair products and curling iron.

Ben Hollis' girlfriend would not walk out without make-up.

I was Bella today. I looked away from the stash and looked at my reflection instead. My hair was tousled but not tangled, my face clean. Despite sleeping in late, I looked fresh. Awake. Healthy.

I missed this.

I walked back out into my living space, a smile on my face. I grabbed my bag and my laptop off my kitchen counter. I slipped my phone in my jeans pocket and grabbed my coat from the kitchen stool.

I turned around to see Edward, guitar and coffee in hand. I walked over to the small cabinet behind the door and held my hand to the wall while I slipped on my shoes.

"You ready?"

I nodded once and we stepped out to my hallway and into the elevator.

The weather was nice that day. It was as if the clouds took an off day. The sun's yellow light peered through the top of the buildings and we were encased in a warm glow. The remnants of snow had started to melt away, the crisp, cold, white that usually rimmed the sidewalk was gone. The sun glinted on the slick pavement as we walked. Today was different.

But it was still the same.

The photographers were walking backwards on the sidewalk, their eyes glued to the hole at the top of their cameras, fingers clicking away. I had my sunglasses on, Edward too.

I guess he came prepared this time around.

I smiled at them, head turned down. It was a short walk to the coffee shop and I was glad. Edward opened the door for me and once inside, I felt comfortable.

EPOV

The photographers left once we were inside the coffee shop. I sat in a corner booth and stared at the light pole I leaned on that cold day.

Damn pole.

I remembered how the world looked so different back then. Like Bella was too good for me and how I could never come close to being a friend of hers.

Now I sat in the warm booth, her body so close to mine, it hurt.

I wanted to swoop her in my arms and kiss her reckless.

But this was reality and as much as it was different from that light pole, it was still the same. I was still on the outside looking in.

No matter how close I was to her, it would never be enough. She loved Ben. I was just the friend. I took whatever I could get. And this was it, for now, it would be enough.

BPOV

I sat my lukewarm coffee down on the table while I zipped down and peeled off my grey hoodie. I had a white top inside and the coffee shop was warm. I sat down and placed my laptop in front of me, booting it up quickly.

Edward was pulling out his guitar; he pushed back his chair from the table so that he could balance the guitar on his knee.

I looked back to my computer, accessing the Internet from the coffee shop; I loaded my Internet browser and typed in several up-to-date gossip sites with ease. I'd gotten use to the sites, their addresses memorized.

"What are you doing?"

I peered from the top of my laptop and looked back down, clicking a few links. I could see Edward from my peripheral, his eyes still questioning. Once the pages had loaded, I turned the laptop around, the screen facing him.

"You're on the internet. Congratulations."

He looked back at me, eyebrows raised.

"Um, sorry?" I offered. I didn't know what to say. His expression then changed, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"They called me 'male friend'…" The tone of his voice a mock-offense.

I stuck my tongue to the inside of my cheek, holding back a laugh.

"Not fitting enough, Edward?"

"Most definitely not."

I couldn't hold back my smile anymore and we tumbled into laughter.

I browsed some more, sipping my coffee slowly. It was comfortable. I closed my laptop once I was done and looked at Edward. He was flattening out my notebook paper on the desk; guitar leaned down the side of our table.

"Do you want to get started?"

I looked into his green eyes and nodded, another smile already creeping up my lips.

I nodded, all other thoughts pushed to the back of my mind.

"Yeah."

The day passed quickly. We sat in our booth, laughter and chatter echoing in the near empty spot we were in. It was all very much effortless. Easy. Simple. Natural.

I couldn't remember the last time I'd laughed this much. We spent an hour finishing up the song and once we were done, neither of us made the move to leave.

So there we were.

We ordered and shared several different types of cakes and bagels throughout the day, a substitute for lunch and dinner. I didn't order more coffee; I needed to be able to sleep.

Our server was a small lady with dreads in her hair, and every time we raised our hands to order, she rolled her eyes and smacked her lips before she made her way to our table. We always ended up stifling our laughter with the back of our hands, struggling to stay polite and keep our voices down.

Sometime past noon, Edward packed up his guitar and I shut down my laptop. Neither of us made the first move to leave, so we didn't. We talked. We stayed clear of personal topics and that worked great. We bantered some more about music and books, but it was all in good fun.

Fun.

Sometime past midnight, I pulled out my cell. This was it. I never thought that this moment would ever come. I never thought that I'd be able to do this. My mind was made up now and I wasn't going to back out of it. I pulled up a new text message window and typed in Ben's number.

I won't be there tonight.
-B

I hit send and the message was delivered. Just like that.

Edward noticed my change in mood but I covered it up quickly, telling him that it was alright. I hated lying to him but today was an exception.

I had to make exceptions. Right?

The rest of the night passed by in a blur… A blur of laughter and conversation and chatter.

It was like that scene in a movie where the entire world swerved and time kept going, but we were in a bubble. I was aware of the world but I chose to not care.

I knew exactly what was going on but I ignored the fact.

Ignorance is bliss.

EPOV

The walk home was surprisingly quiet. The photographers were gone and the streets were empty. I turned around to see a smiling Bella and I couldn't help but smile as well.

I readjusted my grip on my guitar case, my fingers were starting to ache. "Where's the posse, Bella?"

She chuckled.

"I don't know… They probably think I'm over at Ben's or something. They'll be back around here somewhere near two, I presume."

I nodded, turning over her words in my head. "you're not staying at Ben's tonight?"

She shook her head and looked straight ahead at the empty street. "No."

I nodded but I didn't push it. As much as my curiosity wanted to know, I didn't want to scare her off. She didn't owe me anything and I had no right to ask her.

We walked the rest of the way in silence, letting the soft patter of our shoes fill the air around us.

We greeted Charlie on our way in. He looked surprise at our arrival.

"No crowd tonight, Bella?"

She smiled. "Not tonight Charlie."

As soon as Bella turned around, Charlie winked exaggeratedly at me, gesturing at Bella. I frantically shook my head and Charlie ignored the gesture completely, going back to his newspaper.

I walked towards the elevator but Bella paused in her steps, her hand on my shoulder. She muttered as she leaned down and slipped off her shoes. She looked back up and caught me staring.

"What?"

I shrugged when her hand left my shoulder. We were walking again. "Why wear shoes you don't find comfortable?"

Bella chuckled and pondered for a second. Our walk to the elevator was slow and I was glad. She spoke after I pressed the call button.

"You wouldn't understand, Edward."

"What? Is that a girl thing?" I tried to lift the mood but Bella didn't smile.

I crossed my arms in front of me. "Try me."

Her shoes were hooked over her two fingers. She bit on her bottom lip nervously before she spoke.

"When I'm out, I can't just be Bella. I have to be… Ben Hollis' girlfriend. It's what the world sees." She shrugged. "I can't walk out in whatever I please. I have to look presentable. Always calm, always composed, always put together. As different as it was today," she gestured at me, "it was still the same."

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Once inside, she leaned against the walls as the elevator traveled up. We didn't make eye contact.

It was late at night and we were both tired, so the silence was welcome. The elevator dinged again and the door opened for Bella. I stuck my hand to the door, keeping it open.

Bella turned to look at me, mouth open, and ready to say goodnight but I beat her to it.

"You..." I cleared my throat. "You wouldn't have to be anybody but Bella when you're with me."

Her mouth closed again in shock and my brain protested. The words I said were involuntary and I couldn't take them back.

Her lips closed and she looked at me for another beat then nodded curtly before her bare feet pattered onto the carpet. She didn't turn back around to look at me. I didn't blame her. I screwed up.

The silence in the hallways and elevator were deafening. I lifted my hand off the doors and they closed in front of me.

I leaned back against the cold walls, my head looking up and I stared at the ceiling. "Goodnight."

AN:

Hey you made it to the bottom! Congratulations, you survived.

As usual: RosAlice22, I heart you darling. That is all.

Although it doesn't look like it, this chapter is the longest one yet, word-count wise. I kept my promise! 2-week updates… Yeah, expect the next one soon.

Don't throw rocks at me for the ending, the next chapter will add up the suspense like this chapter, but I promise you, things will pick up soon enough.

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