Sorry, sorry, sorry for my absence! I've been working hard and going over this chapter until I felt it was just right. So I hope you like all of this, and I appreciate your patience!
Disclaimer: Twilight is not mine, neither the characters nor the components
Chapter Five, Confrontations
Edward
I knew what the best move would be at this point – avoid Bella Swan at all costs. Certainly there was no way to reverse our actions of Saturday night, but I could at least prevent them from happening a second time. I would just satisfy myself with that very, very intense and delicious kiss and never go near Bella Swan again.
Except, she should up at school Monday morning wearing a pair of skinny jeans and a white turtleneck sweater and flat white boots, and all her hair was falling gracefully around her in a sensual dark waterfall – creating the definition of 'tempting'. I had been coming out of the boys' bathroom when I spotted Bella, walking shyly with her eyes focused solely on what was in front of her. I knew what I had to do – brush passed her without any eye contact, walk away from her in the fastest speed I could muster without drawing attention to myself. Anything, to avoid her.
But I waited – I stood there a few feet away from the bathroom door, waiting for her to notice me standing there. Because she looked beautiful. Because the way her hair blew gracefully behind her as she walked made her scent swirl around the room and fill my nostrils. Because the simplicity of her ensemble only accented her best assets: the soft curve of her breasts, the length of her legs, the slimness of her frame.
Damn girl.
Her eyes fluttered up momentarily, and I saw her face go red with surprise when her eyes met mine. I found myself smiling at her, in hopes to relax her a bit, but it only made her flush further. I smiled inside at her behavior – damn I loved me some Bella Swan. Suddenly, my original avoidance plan seemed miles away.
I stepped out into the hallway, purposely blocking her path. "Hey," I said pleasantly.
"Hi," she chirped. She tucked that gorgeous mane of her behind her ears, and looked down bashfully. "How are you?"
"I'm fine," I told her. "And you?"
She blushed further – as if she couldn't get anymore adorable. "Good," she whispered. Suddenly her eyes locked on with mine with an intensity I wasn't accustomed to from her. "Do you wanna take a walk later? During lunch?"
I raised an eyebrow. "What for, may I ask?"
"Just to talk," was all she said.
I heard the warning bells going off in my head, but somehow, I continued to ignore them – it wasn't that hard, I had been ignoring the warning bells that came with Bella Swan since the first time I realized I couldn't hear her thoughts. Even now, I wished I could probe her mind and find out exactly what she wanted to talk about later – and yet, not knowing aroused my curiosity of her even more.
"Well, I guess I could skip out on lunch this one time," I said casually.
She gave me a knowing look, one that unnerved me for a moment. "I guess you could," she said slowly.
I looked at her suspiciously, but she said nothing more, except, "Well, I'll see you at lunch then, at the school steps?"
"Sure, of course," I said carefully.
She smiled at me and gave me a slight nod before turning away and walking towards her next class. I watched her go, the last look she gave me still lingering on me. I wondered if maybe I was in for something I wasn't quite ready for by agreeing to this meeting.
Then I told myself not to go there – I was in for something I wasn't quite ready for by agreeing to interact with Bella in the first place, and I had been doing that two Saturdays straight. What was the point of worrying about things now?
Besides, I was in too deep at this point. I liked Bella – I had a great time with her Saturday night, the kiss was unlike anything I've ever felt before, and her blushing red cheeks were more than just a turn on. There was nothing I could about the way I felt about her now, except for just to go with it and see what happens. I just had to make sure that I stayed in control of things: that there would be no more Saturday night slipups – no matter how much I enjoyed it.
Fuck, this was confusing. Part of me wanted to become so deeply engrossed in Bella Swan that I was beginning to have thoughts of her that I hadn't had for anyone since humanity. The other part of me told me that this was the exact reason why I should stay away from Bella, before things became perilous. But then that first part of me would just go back and say that staying away from Bella Swan was equivalent to avoiding quenching thirst – perilous.
There was no way to win it seemed, so I tried not to think about it anymore as I headed to class.
Just don't tell him I told you Jazz, okay. I want Eddie to find out on his own.
The distinct timbre of Alice's voice was unmistakable. In the next two seconds, I found her around the corner, standing closely to Jasper. He had his arm around her, holding her close, nodding to what she had said – Just don't tell him I told you Jazz I want Eddie to find out on his own.
Find out what, pray tell?
Then my eyes met Jasper's, and I heard him whisper to her: Edward.
Alice spun around, her face bright and cheerful. "Eddie, hi!" she said, in an incredibly perky and unnatural tone.
I narrowed my eyes, already suspicious. "What," I growled, "do I need to find out on my own?"
Alice's eyes widened with shock and surprise. "What are you talking about?"
"Please Alice, your feigning innocence needs work."
"There's no worries, man," Jasper said casually. "We were just talking."
"I realize that, but what about?"
Alice looked hesitant, which prompted Jasper to speak again. "About this weekend. It's Halloween, and Alice wanted to have a party at our place."
"A party!" I bellowed.
"Relax, man," he said, and I felt myself doing such almost immediately. Damn Jasper and that emotional control of his. "This is why we were meeting in secret. No one knows how to tell you anything lately, you're so testy these days."
"Exactly," Alice said, agreeing instantly. "Exactly! I was just talking about having a get together at our place for Halloween. It could be nice. Stop being so testy!"
"And we could all dress up as vampires, too, right?" I seethed in an angry whisper.
"Well I was going to come dressed as something else," Alice said in a hard tone. "You can come as a vampire if you want to. I was going to take Bella costume shopping sometime this week actually."
"So is that what this is really about?" I asked her. "Bella?"
"No its about a Halloween party, loser," Alice said in a huff and an eye roll.
"Well you'd be ecstatic to know that Bella and I are going for a walk off campus during lunch," I said smugly. "So we'll be hanging out then."
"Oh really, huh? Well that should be fun, right? Right?"
My eyes narrowed again – I heard the nervous chirp return in Alice's voice. Just as I was about to ask her what exactly was she getting at, I felt Jasper calm me down yet again. "That should be nice, you and Bella," he said coolly. "I'm glad the two of you are getting along so well."
I wanted to avoid Jasper's pull on me, but it was almost impossible. I tried to garner something from Alice's thoughts – anything to merit my suspicion of her – but she seemed to only be thanking Jasper repeatedly in her mind. And that was suspicious in of itself, but there was nothing to substantial to pin on her.
"You two are up to something," I said finally.
"You already know," Jasper said. "Now we aren't up to anything but cutting this next class."
Alice giggled in a way that sent red flags my direction. "Ew," I said simply. "I'm out of here."
"Good move," Jasper called after me as I turned away from the two of them
I wouldn't let Alice get away with…whatever she was trying to get away with so easily. Now that I was away from Jasper, I was regaining control of my senses. It was obvious that if they were really trying to keep the Halloween party from me, they wouldn't have given up the information so easily. It had to be a cover for something else – something bigger.
I would tinker around in Alice's mind much later – right now I was pretty sure I did not want to be involved with the thoughts she was having now.
*
Lunch came so quickly, I wondered if time hadn't been sped up when I wasn't looking. Suddenly I was being from my class before lunch. While everyone rushed for the cafeteria, I headed towards the front steps. Bella was already waiting there, her back facing me. I found myself taking in the soft outline of her body, and the waves of her dark hair cascading down her back.
Without even noticing, I muttered, "Damn," before I could stop myself.
Bella turned around, her hair turning with it, and giving me a brush of her delicious scent. I bit my bottom lip, and tried to put on approachable face, "Hello Bella."
"Hello Edward," she said softly. "Are you ready to go?"
"You have a place all planned out for us then?"
She reddened slightly, but nodded. "I know of a place."
"Well then, lead the way."
I walked behind her slowly as she led us away from the school and towards the forest's edge. As she wandered through the large green trees, the thoughts of others begun to fade. It was one of the reasons I loved this forest – somehow, I was able to go far enough to escape people's ongoing thoughts. Mind-reading may have been an advantage in some ways, but most ways, it was a constant headache to have to hear people twittering about the most meaningless of things. And of course, due to my inability to hear Bella's thoughts, I was soon achieving a state of complete silence.
In fact, the clearing in which Bella came to a stop in, turned out to be the very same clearing that I usually escaped to when I wanted to be alone with my own thoughts, rather than be bothered with others. There was a large patch of soft green grass, outlined with tall pine trees and the edge of a cliff. Bella took out the view of the lush valley, before coming down on the ground and lying on her back in the grass. The accent of the green against her white clothes and pale skin made her appear more heavenly than usual.
"Are you just going to stand there?" she said teasingly, her face red but her voice confident.
I grinned and joined her down on the ground, lying on my stomach and propping myself up with my elbows. Bella's upturned face and slightly flushed neck made me want to sink my teeth into her flesh. I swallowed the venom pooling in my mouth, and forced a smile onto my face to hide the desire.
"You okay?" she whispered.
I wondered if she could see my desire flashing in my eyes or something. "Yeah, I'm fine." But I wasn't, because my voice had dropped to a dangerous low level – the kind any predator would use to reel in prey.
And it seemed to work with Bella, because she leaned up closer, bringing her face only a few centimeters from mine. "You sure?" her voice had become a breath.
I grasped a large handful of grass, struggling to hold my composure. But fuck, Bella smelt so fucking good, and those soft lips of hers were a slight stretch away from mine. Don't do it. Back the fuck up. Lighten the mood. Confuse her. Something!
I smiled teasingly at her. "Well Bella Swan, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you're hitting on me."
She blushed, but didn't turn away from me, which surprised me in of itself – I was certain that she was going to shy away as usual. "Maybe," she said playfully. She leaned closer to me, until I could feel her soft breast pressing against my arm. "Do you like it?"
I stuttered – fuck – my mouth opening and closing dumbly. My actions only egged Bella on more, and she leaned forward more until our lips touched. She was kissing me, only because I was too stunned to move. My body wanted to respond, but I fought the action.
Stop this.
"Bella," I growled finally, ripping myself away from her touch.
"Yes," she breathed, leaning her head into my exposed neck and placing soft kisses there.
I groaned: why did she make me feel so fucking good? Why was I letting her do this? I tried to shake her off: too much skin-on-skin contact. Too much.
"Stop," I said in a more forceful tone.
"I don't mind," she said slowly. She touched the side of my face and gently pulled my head towards hers so our eyes could meet. "I don't mind that your skin is always cold, that your body is harder than mine, that your eyes get darker when you're hungry–"
At first I had just been enjoying the softness of Bella's hand caressing my face, completely ignoring whatever she was saying, but her last sentence pulled me from the sensation. I jerked back from her quickly. "What?"
She titled her head, her expression open. "I don't mind, that–" she took a deep breath "–you're a vampire."
I looked at her wide-eyed, unable to believe that those words had left her mouth. Then I laughed it off, because it seemed like the right way to solve this pending problem. I laughed long and hard.
"That's funny, Bella," I said, once I was done forcing the laughter. "Me, a vampire."
"You are a vampire," she said in a certain tone. "I know Edward. You don't have to lie to me. I don't mind. I still like you. I still really like you."
She reached out to touch my hand at this point, but I pulled it away quickly. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"I spoke to Alice," I murmured.
My eyes blazed when I met hers again. "You what?" I growled.
"Spoke to Alice," she said calmly, not intimidated by my anger. "But I had a dream before that, about us, about you biting me. And I wasn't afraid. I'm not afraid of–"
"You sound insane, Bella,"
"Your eyes are dark right now," she told me. "They darken when you're thirsty." She paused, then added challengingly. "Or else, tell me why suddenly they are suddenly the color of midnight, when they used to be the color of topaz?"
A sudden laugh left my throat and I glanced at her. "Topaz?"
She smiled at me shyly, her face reddening. "Liquid topaz."
I couldn't believe Bella had just admitted to me being a vampire, and I was already shifting away from the seriousness of the situation and back into the sexuality of it all. Suddenly I wanted to pull Bella beneath me, rip off all her clothes and fuck her senseless. Liquid topaz.
She leaned closer to me again, as if she was hearing my thoughts. "It doesn't matter to me Edward," she said quietly. "I always knew there was something different about you anyway. This changes nothing between us."
Hearing her words brought me back to the reality of things. I stood up quickly. "It changes everything," I said firmly. "If you're so certain about what I am, you should be terrified about what I'm capable of."
"You drink animal blood," she said. "That's why you're eyes are gold instead red."
Alice clearly told her everything, I thought in frustration. "Don't be crazy, Bella."
"Don't lie to me, Edward," Bella said, her voice an angry shrill as she stood up. "I am not crazy. I know what you are, and I'm not afraid. It doesn't change anything and it doesn't matter to me. And if it doesn't matter to me, it shouldn't matter to you."
"We have to get back to school," I grumbled.
Her expression changed, from the open and friendly one, to one of sheer irritation. "So that's it?" She basically yelled at me.
I turned back at her, glaring. "I should have just ended things between us like I said I would."
She glared back. "You only said that because you're afraid about being a vampire and having a relationship with a human. And you shouldn't feel that way anymore, because like I said: I. Don't. Care."
I shook my head: because even as she was annoying me with all her blather, coming to all the right conclusions and totally ignoring my putdowns, she was still incredibly sexy with her angry red face and arms folded right under her bust.
"We have to go back."
"I'll find my own way," she said harshly. She stomped towards me, a fire in her chocolate brown eyes. "But this isn't over Edward. Trust me on that."
I stood in muted shock as Bella rushed away from me, whipping me slightly with her dark mane of her.
Fuck. It. All.
*
"ALICE!"
"Jesus, fuck, you're loud," Emmett moaned from the living room couch.
I glared at Emmett and the big guy actually shrunk away from me: proof that I must have looked beyond furious. "Where's Alice?" I seethed.
"I 'unno," Emmett murmured. "Her room, maybe? You can track her, can't you?"
"She's diverting her thoughts to hide from me, and its working frightfully well," I muttered angrily. "But she's here, I know it. Because I can feel Jasper here as well, trying to calm me down."
"And it is clearly not working, man," Emmett said. "What is up with you right now?"
"Nothing, expect wanting to murder Alice," I growled.
"Why would you want to do that?" Jasper said casually, as he came down the stairs.
I glared at him, but as usual, he seemed unfazed. I could feel him trying to relax me excessively, but I was much too mad to pay any attention. "Where's Alice?" I growled.
"She's coming," Jasper said coolly. "Just take a breather why don't you?"
I kept my eyes narrowed, turning away from Jasper as I saw Alice coming down the stairs. She didn't look scared as she should have been, but actually, way too calm for my likings. I snarled at her.
"You are a dumb fucking little pixie."
"Edward!"
Fuck – Esme was now standing in the living room, her eyes horrified. "Why the language?"
I tried to smile politely at her. "Sorry, Esme. I'm just a little angry with Alice."
"You're a little more than angry, dear," Esme said in that maternal tone of hers. "I can see that you're shaking."
"Well, just call me furious," I grumbled as I turned my attention back to Alice, who was now standing right in front me.
Her face was calm, and I saw Jasper place a comforting hand on her shoulder. I scowled at the both of them, but saved my angriest expression for Alice. With Esme in the room, I could no longer hurl the obscenities forming in my mind, but I would not let her get off so easily.
"I just had an interesting conversation with Bella Swan," I told her through closed teeth.
"Did you?" she said. "What about?"
"About vampires," I said. "And how I am one."
Esme gasped, already understanding the entire situation. "Alice honey, you didn't."
Alice turned to face Esme. "Yes Esme, I told Bella about us."
There was a shattering from upstairs, and in the next instant, Rosalie was barreling down the staircase, fire in her eyes. "You dumb fucking pixie!" she yelled.
"Rosalie, please!" Esme hissed, angry herself.
"Everyone needs to calm down," Jasper said, and instantly it was done.
Except for me of course, because I was still very much mad at Alice. "What were you thinking?" I hissed.
"I was thinking that Bella already knew almost everything," she told me. "She had a conversation with her friend, Jacob Black. You remember him don't you? The Alpha from La Push. Apparently Jacob didn't approve much of your budding relationship with the girl and he told her a story about The Cold Ones."
I knew I didn't like that fucking mutt.
"All I did," Alice continued, "was confirm what she bloody already knew. I can't really be the bad guy for that, now can I?"
"You could have denied it," I said in frustration.
"Considering the conversation with Bella that you just had, you know how hard it is to convince her of otherwise when she already has her mind made up."
I did – I could still remember the determination in her behavior when she called me out as a vampire. Nothing I said made a difference – she still held onto her claim, except she became more frustrated.
"I can't believe you'd do this to us Alice," Rosalie screamed. "We finally get to come back here, one of the best locations we've ever lived in, and you – excuse my French, Esme – royally fucked it up for everyone!"
"Rose, baby, calm down," Emmett said soothingly.
"That's no French I've ever heard."
Carlisle now entered the scene, and the whole Cullen coven was together. I caught Alice smiling to herself as if this was what she wanted all along. She had probably predicted this gathering hours ago and had been preparing ever since. My melting irritation for her came rushing back as she walked towards the center of the living room.
"Family," she said slowly. "Bella can be trusted, I promise. I wouldn't have confided our secret in just anyone. There's something special about Bella Swan – and Edward would vouch for me if he wasn't in such a horrible mood. She's really sweet, and has already double promised not to say a word to anyone. In fact–" She turned to me at this point "–she's happier with this knowledge because now she knows why you were acting like such a brat in the beginning. She's hoping that this will ultimately bring you two closer together."
Esme sighed. "Oh that's so sweet," she said softly. Then she gave us her best Esme-smile. "I mean, I don't really know this Bella girl, but she sounds nice enough. If you and Edward approve of her–"
"I don't approve!" I hissed.
"Not right now, you don't," Alice said quickly. "But if you were fed and happier, you would be singing her praises just like I am."
"Let's not get carried away there, Al," Jasper said. "Edward is not at the 'sing-praises' stage of things yet."
"Thank you," Edward said in relief. Jasper's emotional control could get annoying at times, but it did help him to keep a level head about things.
"Fine," Alice said with an eye roll. "But you like her, don't you Edward?"
Six pairs of eyes turned on me, all in different shades of gold. Rosalie's expression was the fiercest, as if she was going to pounce on me if I said the wrong thing. Also, her eyes were just as dark as mine, which meant on top of everything else, she was miserably hungry.
Sadly enough, I knew I was about to utter the wrong thing. "Yes," I muttered in a barely audible tone. "I like her."
Alice cheered, as if this had been the one thing she had wanted to hear this entire time. Esme turned doting mother eyes on him and Emmett waggled his eyebrows. There was an angry shriek from Rosalie before she stomped back up the stairs. Emmett quickly went after her, probably to calm her down.
"Listen, everyone has to get their hunting done before Saturday night," Alice said. "I want to have Halloween party here – nothing big," Alice added that last part quickly when she saw Carlisle narrow his eyes questioningly, "Just something to make us seem less unsociable as we're portrayed to be. And it should be fun, you know? I'll do all the work, so no one has to worry."
"Well you know I'd love to help Alice," Esme said.
"Thanks Esme," Alice said gratefully. Then she turned her attention back to me. "Don't be mad at me Edward. You know I do everything for your benefit."
"You have a weird way of showing that," I whispered at her fiercely. "And I'm still incredibly mad at you."
Alice shrugged but chuckled. "I'll deal with that, so long as that in the inside you know I'm right."
And, fuck it all, on the inside, I knew she was right.
I'm off to work on yet another chapter, trying to squeeze in as much writing as I can between working, eating, sleeping and playing Rock Band 2 =)
Please leave a review, thanks!
--Brin--
