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A/N
Hey, FINAL CHAPTER!!! I decided to combine this chapter and the last one because the last one was too short. I know this one is really long, but hey, too bad. I hope you like it. Please review.
Sascha.
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the songs mentioned in this chapter.
POVs: Bella, Edward
Chapter 7
BPOV
When we got home from school that day, the first thing I tried to do was head straight up to my room. I should have known there wouldn't be much chance of that. Alice stood between me and the stairs, smiling brightly.
"So, Bella, how was your day at school?"
Emmett tried, rather unsuccessfully, to hide his laughter. I blushed, and once again tried to push past Alice to get to my room. Of course, this only made Emmett laugh harder. Alice looked at us both questioningly. Emmett answered for me.
"Bella got asked out, like, fifty times." He laughed loudly again.
"Maybe I should dress you more often, Bella. I'm sure Edward would like that."
She raised her eyebrows suggestively at him. Now it was his turn to blush.
"Come on Bella, let's go work on the assignment we have."
It was obviously just an excuse to get away from the others' teasing, but I didn't care, I was grateful for the chance to escape.
Edward led me through to a large room with a grand piano in the corner. Emmett looked like he wanted to come with us to keep teasing us, but Alice shot him a look and he quickly backed down. If looks could kill…
Then I realized something.
"Edward, I don't have my guitar."
He looked down sheepishly.
"Um, when I found out you'd need it; I got Jasper to go get it from your house."
I was shocked, and for a moment I just stared at him, but I wasn't angry, like I thought I maybe should be, so I let it go.
"Um, ok, so how do we do this?"
I honestly had no idea. I'd never really played with anyone else before. My guitar had just been my own thing. I played it in my room. It was my relief, my solace, whenever I was pissed off about something.
"Well, do you want to compose or do a cover?"
I didn't even think about it.
"Compose."
I didn't believe in covers. Anyone can sing someone else's songs, what actually took effort was to write your own. It wasn't just the effort of finding chords that worked together, or writing scores, either. When you write a song, you put a piece of yourself in it. That can make you vulnerable. That could be hard.
I didn't want to take the easy way out.
He didn't seem surprised by my answer.
"Ok."
He grabbed a pad of manuscript paper from a nearby bookshelf.
"Alright, try this. A minor, E minor, F major, C major."
I tried out the chords he suggested, and they felt okay. He jotted them down on the manuscript pad.
He started to pick up a melody on the piano, and I guess that to anyone listening it would have sounded great, but to me it just wasn't working. I couldn't write without inspiration, without emotion. This song wasn't me. It was exactly the same as every other pop song out there. Different chords, and a different melody, but still exactly the same.
I put my guitar down. He looked at me curiously.
"I'm sorry, this just isn't working. Can we start from scratch?"
He didn't comment, just flipped the page on the pad, and smiled at me reassuringly.
This time he started it, building up a riff on the piano. I gradually picked it up and joined in. We spent the next few hours doing this, alternatively starting an idea then the other joins in. Yet even after all those hours, I still didn't feel like we had gotten very far.
But one thing did happen that I was happy about. My love of music was back. I hadn't touched my guitar since, well, yeah. It was only now that I realized just how much I missed it.
Dinner that night was…interesting. Alice and Emmett kept making comments about Edward and I, which everyone else politely ignored while Edward just kept our heads down and waited for it to be over.
I was getting used to life with the Cullens. I no longer resented it, rather it was actually kind of nice to be with other people. They were all kind to me, even Emmett's suggestive jokes were harmless, and I was surprised to find that I wasn't missing home at all. I think they thought I was weird for not talking, but they didn't push me for which I was grateful.
Today's music practice session may have been unsuccessful, but one way or another, when I went to bed that night, I fell asleep smiling.
EPOV
Bella and I spent most of our free time working on our music assignment. I know it frustrated her; her music came from inside her. It was her. I envied that. I had been taught to play classical music. If you put a piece of sheet music in front of me I could play it easily. But this wasn't what I wanted to be doing my whole life. I wanted to play music that meant something. I wanted to be passionate. Bella had that.
Today was Thursday. The assignment was due tomorrow, and we still hadn't developed an idea. We weren't even close to being ready. I think we both knew that this assignment was about more than just marks.
Bella was sitting in a chair a couple of meters away from the piano where I sat. We were toying with yet another new set of chords.
A major7, A major7, A major9, A major.
Suddenly Bella stood up silently, leaving her guitar in the corner. She started to walk out the door, but glanced back at me at the last second. I didn't question her directly, but I think she could see it in my eyes. She sighed.
"I'm sorry Edward. I just can't do this."
I didn't respond, just watched her as she left the room and walked up the stairs. I didn't bother pushing her.
No one questioned me about Bella's whereabouts during dinner, but I could see them all glancing at me when the thought I wasn't looking. I ignored this.
Later on, I was walking up to my room when I heard a sound come from Bella's room. She was playing her guitar and singing. I had never heard her sing. She was amazing. Her voice was soft, but perfectly clear. There was so much emotion in her voice that made the song so much more real. I leant against the closed door and listened.
(A/N This song is called Soldier, by Angus and Julia Stone. In this story, I am pretending that Bella wrote it.)
I met him down by the bay,
he said life is a stranger
that won't go away.
He took me by surprise,
and I felt for the first time,
what it's like to be alive
I'm a soldier,
but I don't know how to fight.
I'm your best friend
but I'm scared to see you tonight.
I'm the darkness,
but I want to be the light,
oh how I want to be,
oh how I want to be.
I met him down by the sea,
said I look like someone he knew.
I said I don't know anyone,
so how could I possibly know you.
He touched my hand,
finally I understand
what it means to be here with you.
I'm a soldier,
but I don't know how to fight.
I'm your best friend
but I'm scared to see you tonight.
I'm the darkness,
but I want to be the light,
oh how I want to be,
oh how I want to be.
I'm a soldier,
but I don't know how to fight.
I'm your best friend
but I'm scared to see you tonight.
I'm the darkness,
but I want to be the light,
oh how I want to be,
oh how I want to be.
The song finished, and I gently pushed the door open. Bella jumped when she saw me. She knew I had been listening. I knew I might have upset her, but I couldn't bring myself to regret listening.
"Did you write that?"
"Yeah, after mum died."
I was silent. She had never spoken about her mum before. I only knew she'd died because I'd read the articled about Bella in the newspaper after Charlie died.
I looked over at her. She was looking back at me, her eyes burning into mine. And suddenly I didn't even think about what I was doing, I just moved quickly over to where she was sitting on her bed and crushed my lips to her. I felt her respond and smiled into the kiss. This felt so right, and all coherent thought left my mind except for the need to wrap my arms around her, to feel her hair in my hands. I didn't realize it before now, but I had been waiting so long for this.
Suddenly Bella broke away. She moved slightly away from me.
"Edward, we can't do this."
I tried not to let the rejection hurt too much, but it was still painfully obvious in my voice.
"Ok."
She heard it too, and must have felt bad.
"It's not that I don't like you, Edward, what girl doesn't like Edward Cullen?" That made me half-smile. "It's just, I can't do this, it's too soon."
My voice was more controlled this time.
"Ok."
She hesitated slightly, and I recognized the expression on her face. She wanted to say something, but was afraid.
"What, Bella?"
She bit her lip, but continued.
"Edward, can I talk to you?"
"Of course."
She bit her lip again.
"No, I mean, can I really talk to you?"
Now I got it. She wanted to talk about what had happened to her parents. My voice was softer this time.
"Sure."
And so she told me her whole story. Of her mum, and her childhood. Then about her mum dying and how trapped she'd felt afterwards. Then about Charlie, their relationship, and how when he died, all she wanted was silence, solace.
She spoke emotionlessly, but I could hear something underneath that, something she fought to control. Throughout her story, I searched her face for anything, an emotion, a sign, but she kept it blank. But right at the end, a silent stray tear ran down her cheek, giving her away.
We both sat in silence for a while once she finished. Eventually, I got up and started to leave, but she stopped me, grabbing my wrist. I looked back at her curiously.
"No. Stay with me. Please."
So I climbed into the bed with her. She looked exhausted, so I started to hum a classical lullaby I had written that she inspired. And so we both fell asleep, with her wrapped in my arms.
I woke up early the next day, and opened my eyes to see Bella sleeping beside me. I smiled, but decided I should go back to my own room so the others didn't know I had slept here.
A couple of hours later everyone was downstairs for breakfast. Emmett laughed as soon as I walked through the door.
"So what were you and Bella doing last night, Eddie?"
Bella, already sitting at the table, blushed furiously.
"It's not what you think, Emmett. Anyway how did you know I was with her?"
"It wasn't exactly hard to notice you weren't in your room last night. You left your door open. Not what I think, eh?"
"We were talking."
It was Bella who said this, and everyone turned to look at her in shock. I think they could tell from her and my expressions what we had talked about because no one pushed it further.
It was Alice who resumed conversation.
"Don't you guys have that music assignment today?"
I watched as Bella's eyes widened in alarm.
"Crap." She murmured under her breath.
I laughed.
"Don't worry. I have a song I wrote. It's an easy guitar part, you'll be fine."
She took the sheet music from me and murmured a quick 'thanks'.
Soon we were all piled into the cars and driving to school.
Bella and my first class was music performance. When we reached the class, everyone was really excited about performing their duets. Bella and I silently took our seats.
Mr. Mason walked in, and we watched as two by two, our classmates got up and performed their duets. There were a few dodgy pop covers, but most of them were really good. Last of all were me and Bella. Mr. Mason called our names.
"Mr. Cullen and Miss Swan."
We got up and took our seats, me and the piano, and her at a chair near me. We had it positioned so that we could see each other.
We hadn't actually played this song together before, but it was an easy score, and I was hoping that once we felt the music it would just flow.
I mimed a bat to Bella and she nodded. I began to play the piano intro and Bella quickly joined in on guitar. Then I began to sing.
(A/N This song is called Falling Slowly, by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, in this story I'm pretending Edward wrote it.)
I don't know you
But I want you
All the more for that
Then Bella started to sing a harmony, singing the same words but a third above me. Our voices worked in the way that I was sure they would.
Words fall through me
And always fool me
And I can't react
And games that never amount
To more than they're meant
Will play themselves out
Take this sinking boat and point it home
We've still got time
Raise your hopeful voice you have a choice
You'll make it now
Falling slowly, eyes that know me
And I can't go back
Moods that take me and erase me
And I'm painted black
You have suffered enough
And warred with yourself
It's time that you won
Take this sinking boat and point it home
We've still got time
Raise your hopeful voice you had a choice
You've made it now
Falling slowly sing your melody
I'll sing along
Everyone clapped wildly when we finished, but to be honest I hardly heard them. My eyes locked with Bella's and at that moment I didn't care that our teacher was watching, I didn't care that we had nine other students screaming for an encore, and from the look in Bella's eyes, neither did she.
We both stood up and crossed over to each other and kissed each other so passionately that people began to clear their throats. We ignored them, wrapping our arms around one another. Finally, we pulled away, and rested our foreheads together. We were both smiling like mad people. Bella was the first to speak.
"Edward?"
"Hmm?"
"Thank you."
A/N
There you go! Did you like it? Just to let you know, I have someone who is going to continue this story for me (thank you Bekki) so once I've arranged the details with her I'll let you know what's going on and how you can keep reading this story. Thank you sooooo much to everyone who has read this story. To be honest, I didn't expect people to read it, I just wrote it for fun. I enjoyed writing this story, and this I improved as a writer throughout it.
Please review this chapter? Did you like my ending? I had to keep it vague because the story's going to be continued.
Thank you again to all of you.
Love, Sascha.