Well, well. It looks as though I've finally reached the twenties with this little piece of work here. :D So, this chapter is a bit of a teaser if I do say so myself; I figured that I'd bring back some of our old friends… Clark, Ryan, and of course Erin, since I know how much you all just loved her last time you heard from her. XD As always, I would absolutely love to hear from you all about what you thought of this little chapter here… a sincere thanks to everyone who reviewed the last one as well! :D So, I'll stop rambling now and let you all enjoy the text below.
Carlisle Cullen
"So, how are things in New York?" My mother's voice traveled across the table, interrupting the silence between us. The two of us had never shared a particularly deep relationship, and it always seemed to take an unbelievably large amount of initiative or interest to carry on a simple conversation. There were many things that I longed to have back in my possession when I relocated out of state, but the awkward and silent relationship with my mother was not at the top of my priority list.
"Not bad, for the most part," I began, absentmindedly swirling my cereal with the tip of the spoon, "at least for the time that I'm there. But for the time that I'm not, Harvard med school is also very nice."
"You're studying medicine? That's quite a broad field, Carlisle."
"I know, that's why I chose it. There are so many different areas to become an expert in. It's fascinating, and above all, it helps people and saves lives. I thought it was a good career path to take," I explained discreetly, removing my gaze from the half-empty cereal bowl to rest it on the woman across the table.
She just nodded, making no move to respond to my reasoning. "What about your social life? Met anyone relatively of interest lately?"
I internally rolled my eyes. She was never one to question the social aspects of her son's life; perhaps she had found a new group of friends that encouraged her to pry deep into my life to search for my innermost secrets. Yes, that seemed like something she could be convinced to try. "Of course. In fact, I'm supposed to meet her in half an hour to catch up with a few friends." At that, I pushed my chair out from the table, ignoring the screech it made against the floor. I took my bowl to rinse out in the sink, but before I turned to exit the door, Amy's voice stopped me in my tracks.
"Wait! You never told me who she is!"
"You remember Esme, don't you?" I replied with a small smile.
"The Esme from high school?" She looked slightly baffled, her brows furrowing as she shot me yet another question. "You're still with her?"
I shrugged lightly in response, the smile still worn on my face, "You always told me, Mom, that when you find the right one, they never leave you alone." Leaving her hanging on my statement, I bid her a short goodbye as I made my way out the front door.
# #
The midday sun beat down upon my face, inviting my eyes to look up and place themselves on the nearly cloudless blue sky above. The orange orb of the sun sat high in the sky, seeming so large yet so far away as it smoldered and shed rays upon the ground. California sun, just like I remember it. Waving in the light breeze, the lush green grass danced beneath my feet as I finally reached my destination of the local coffee shop that I had once been employed at. I pulled up a chair from another table, taking a seat underneath the canopy to shield myself from the scorching heat.
"Hey, you made it." I looked up at the male's voice, finding that it Ryan had approached the table, pulling over his own chair. "Man, it's been ages since I've seen you around here."
"I could say the same about you," I replied, allowing a grin to sneak onto my lips. Over the years, I must say, Ryan hadn't changed overly much. His dusty brown hair still managed to hang in his eyes no matter how many times he attempted to swipe it away. He'd always been quite tall when we were adolescents, but I now towered over him by at least four or five inches. Luckily for me but unfortunately for him, he was still the same gangly, awkward teenager that we all grew to know and love.
"Well, hey, you're the one who moved across the country, then got into Harvard without telling any of us," he accused jokingly, taking a small sip of the coffee he must have ordered earlier.
"How did you know what school I'm going to?" I inquired, curious as to how he obtained the information.
"Oh, I told him." I jumped, not having noticed Esme's appearance until she spoke. "We both go to the community college here, so we see each other around quite a bit."
"What about Clark and Erin? Did they stay here, too?"
"No, they didn't," Ryan interjected, "they both go to some university in Washington or something. They visit down here whenever there's a school break, though. I guess they miss the constant sun." He gestured towards the sky and the humidity that was nearly visible in the air.
"Miss the sun? Naw, we just come down here because we know that poor Ryan here would never survive without us." A familiar head of orange hair sauntered into the scene, his usual cocky grin plastered across his face. "It's been a while, Carlizzle. Wait – you hated being called that, didn't you?"
"Still do," I returned, mirroring his grin as I slapped a hand on his shoulder. "Good to see you, Clark."
I reverted my gaze back to Ryan, who was craning his neck around Clark's still rather short and lanky build. Am I the only one who grew a few inches here? Ryan finally gave up on searching for whatever he was looking for, turning to Clark instead, "Dude, where's your girlfriend?"
"She's finishing some paper she has to write for a course she wants to take next year. She'll probably be here within an hour or so." My brows furrowed at his statement, a short snicker escaping my lips.
"You have a girlfriend? Who is it?" I attempted to stifle my laughter, amused by the simple fact.
Clark sat down and rubbed the back of his neck, refusing to meet my gaze, "Well, uh… it's Erin." My hand clapped itself over my mouth, hiding away the grin that had so sneakily broken through.
"No way," I snickered, revealing the grin beneath my hand as Clark rolled his eyes. "You and Erin? That's just not possible."
"Well, I could have said the same about you and Esme years ago." He shrugged it off, taking a bite of a granola bar he had hidden in his pocket. "What is the big shock, anyway? I mean, it was bound to happen sooner or later."
"He's just jealous," Ryan put in, despite the fact that he was fully aware of Esme sitting beside me. "After all, we all know that Erin was totally into him a few years back." Ryan knew? How could he possibly have known? It had been four – nearly five – years since, and he suddenly knew about the secret affairs of the past?
"How do you know about that?" I inquired softly, all traces of my previous smile instantly wiped from my expression.
"Please, Carlisle, it was completely obvious. Even a blind guy could have seen how much she adored you."
"How about we change the subject, huh?" Esme and I twisted in our seats while Clark and Ryan stared on behind us at the approaching woman. She was tall, very tall; not quite my height, but enough to make Esme seem like a dwarf. Her brilliant brunette hair swung around her waist in the light breeze, swaying as she walked. She flashed a stunningly white smile at me before taking her own seat next to Clark, "Nice to see you again, Carlisle, Esme." She gave a small nod in Esme's direction, the name adopting a particularly dry tone.
"Erin," I began, returning her welcoming smile, "well, you've sure changed a bit." Esme took my hand underneath the table, lacing our fingers together. I gave hers a reassuring squeeze as Erin's eyes flashed to the two of us, seemingly scrutinizing.
"I would say the same, but it seems as though the two of you have stayed quite… consistent." I simply nodded in response, causing a bout of speechlessness to come over the five of us. We each exchanged glances for a few moments before Clark finally sparked a conversation out of one of our many high school mischiefs. For what felt like hours upon hours on end, we each shared laughter, smiles, and even tears whilst reminiscing on our reckless lives as adolescents.
When the time struck around ten-thirty, Esme looked up at the darkening sky and checked her phone, "Well, it's getting late… I should probably start heading home."
"Same here, I still have to finish that paper," Erin murmured, half to herself.
"I thought you finished it before you came?" Clark accused, staring at her in disbelief. "Isn't it, like, really important?"
Erin rolled her eyes, "Sure, like I'd actually take the time to finish a ten page paper before spending time with my friends. Really, which would you choose?" I cracked a small smile at their short bout of bickering before turning back to Esme.
"I'll walk you home, if you wouldn't mind?"
"Of course." She grinned up at me, taking my hand once more. After two semi-light punches on the shoulder from Clark and Ryan and a short yet tight hug from Erin, we said our goodbyes and headed in the direction of Esme's home.
"I take it you still live in the same house?" I queried, my vision scanning the familiar pathways.
"Yeah, I do. Alice doesn't, though; my aunt thought it best that she stay with them at least until I'm out of college. Something about 'being too busy with school to balance work and caring for a sister'." She shrugged. "She'll visit once every couple of weeks though. Fortunately, she's not there tonight." My eyebrows lifted in mock confusion as she unlocked the front door, switching on a few lights as we made our way through the house.
"Are you trying to imply something?" I asked dumbly, playing along with whatever sort of scheme she had up her sleeve for the both of us. Fishing around in her pocket for a second, she pulled out her cell phone and tossed it along with her keys on the desk in the corner of her bedroom.
"Well," she started, placing herself lightly on the edge of the bed, her fingers absentmindedly tracing the pattern of the blanket, "we're both adults now. I'm sure that you're allowed to spend the night away from home without your mother's permission?" One corner of my mouth pulled up in a smirk as I removed her hand from the blanket and sat on the place it had previously rested.
"I can't imagine that she'd mind." My voice was barely above a murmur, the smirk still visible on my lips. I leaned back onto the rather comfortable bed, my arm looping around Esme's waist to pull her down with me.
Oh, how could I ever resist?
… heehee. ;)