Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns the Twilight universe and characters. No infringement intended.
So Important
Chapter 6
I tried to forbid myself from actively seeking her out, but once I got back from the hardware store, I dropped by her office where she was already starting to organize papers, folders, and print material. She smiled at me distractedly as I told her I would be around if she needed me. I hovered around for a few moments and then decided to get to work on my own projects for the day. As I made my way down the hallway to my own office, I was both surprised and pleased to see hear footsteps behind me.
"Edward, I'm sorry," she murmured, shifting from one foot to another, "It is going to be pretty busy for me for the next little while. I don't think I'll be coming to Rosalie and Emmett's place with you tonight or hitting any of the activities on the schedule supreme. If you wanna get together and maybe go for a run one day or something, let me know. You've got my number."
"Sounds good, Bella," I told her, completely understanding that her first week was going to be busy. "I'll definitely give you a call."
"Okay," she gave me a little wave and went back to her office.
As I walked to mine, I saw Emmett leaning up against the doorframe of his, watching me.
"So, you've got her number," he said, trying to analyze my expression.
"We all have her number," I pointed out, continuing past him.
"What was the word she used? Fuckawesome?"
"It's nothing, Emmett. Don't go reading into things that aren't there."
He thrust his huge arm in front of me. "You wish, though."
I shrugged, "I'm not discussing this. She's a nice person, we have a few things in common, just let it be."
"Okay, Edward. I'll cut you a break for now," he stared at me fondly, shaking his head, "but only because I totally intend to hound your ass if you haven't done anything about it by the time the month is over."
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were busts; I didn't see much of her except for spotting her driving by in the huge, rusting Chevy around town. Alice would not hear a word about Bella wanting to buy her own car; instead she handed over the keys to the 1957 rotting beast that we used for pick-ups and deliveries to the theatre. Alice apologized about the future gas consumption in advance, but Jasper told me how pleased Bella was in having free reign of the hulk.
"She actually said 'That's great!' instead of 'Great'!" he laughed.
"She doesn't say much to you guys?" I asked, trying to sound casual.
"Edward, she's said a total of 12 words to me; I've been keeping track," he smiled warmly.
"You like her though?" I asked, noticing how he spoke of her with fondness in his voice.
"I totally love her, Edward. We all do," he admitted. "Sure, she doesn't say shit, but she's got something. Hell, even Rosalie thinks she's the bomb, which you must admit, is shocking."
"I didn't think that Rosalie would take to her so quickly," I admitted, "In fact, I figured one of two things would happen; Bella wouldn't even register on her scale and Rose would just ignore her, or that she'd be jealous and hate her guts."
"Well, thankfully, neither has happened," Jasper pointed out, "Rose loves her because even though Bella and Emmett are like besties, she can actually calm him down and get him to behave."
"Besties?"
" I know, right? When Emmett confronted her about not wanting to hang out with us after work, she indicated that the schedule didn't work for her. Thanks for that, by the way. I was sick of how repetitive shit was getting. Anyhow, she implied that she was a more spur-of-the-moment kind of girl. She told him that if he ever wanted to hang out with her, he'd have to come up with something impressive. They've already been to glow-in-the-dark bowling, made a gypsum model airplane, and are planning on going to a pottery class next week. She also kicked his ass this morning at 1 on 1. She's got a wicked rebound," Jasper told me.
"What about Alice? How are they getting along?"
"Well, she won't go shopping, so that depressed Alice for about ten seconds until she found out that Bella loves chick flicks. They're having a girls' night in tonight with movies, makeovers, and margaritas. I've been told that all men are off limits at the Whitlock/Cullen castle."
"No one told me," I said, grumpily.
"Why haven't you called her?" he asked, leveling me with an intense stare.
"I called her yesterday. She said she was busy. I guess making fucking model airplanes."
Jasper laughed, "Emmett thought you'd be pissed."
I shrugged, "I'm not pissed at all. I'm glad she's getting along with everyone. Of us, that is."
"Yeah, I guess I don't have to tell you how popular she is with Black and Newton. They've both found reasons to drop by the offices several times this week."
"Has she seen either of them?" I asked, not even bothering to sound casual this time.
He laughed again, "No. She's got a knack for escaping the building with speed and ease."
"So, if you guys have been dumped for the evening, what are your plans?"
"Maybe Alice suggested possibly meeting us over at The Black Sow later on." Jasper hinted, "Bella's not much up for the club scene, so that lets out Sublime and she doesn't want to leave town, so Seattle's out, thank god. Alice doesn't think the pub is her thing because of the way she bolted earlier this week, so when Emmett asked her what her favorite sports were and she said pool and darts, Alice knew the Sow would be her deal. We know how much of a dive it is, but there's a bit of dancing if they really wanted it. Rose wanted to let loose a bit, and I'm sure margaritas won't hold her back. I guess I don't have to ask if you are in or not."
I sighed, "I guess not."
I stood in front of my closet and changed from the navy pants, white dress shirt and tie. I was such a girl. It was my seventh outfit discarded. I sighed and finally decided on wearing a pair of black jeans, and a black t-shirt and fitted vest. I walked into the bathroom and shook my head at my disheveled hair. I tried to flatten it out some, but it looked awful. I was just about to start shaving, when my brothers started pounding on my apartment door.
Emmett pushed his way past me, ruffling my hair up as he walked by. Jasper took one look at me and pulled out a bottle of beer from the fridge and handed it to me.
"We're leaving in five, chug-a-lug," he ordered.
He and Emmett popped open their bottles, and Emmett counted off. We all finished at the same time, and Emmett handed me my leather jacket and waited impatiently as I put on my black sneakers.
As we walked by Emmett and Rose's apartment we heard a burst of loud laughter.
"Hey, I thought they were upstairs," Emmett said, and gave a wink as he used his key to enter his apartment.
We walked in, and I was surprised to see the girls crowded around the island in the kitchen, slicing limes and building shots. Bella held a bottle of beer in her hand and raised her shot glass in my direction and tipped it back, following with a slow sip of beer.
"You guys aren't supposed to be here," Alice said firmly, her hands on her hips.
I couldn't take my eyes from Bella, who, while still keeping to the black jeans, sneakers, and black shirt uniform she had established, was wearing the tightest of jeans possible and very clingy long-sleeved shirt. I hid a smile as I noticed a silver die-cast imperial storm trooper belt buckle slung through the loops of her jeans. I could tell she had noticed my reaction because she quickly sported a brief grin in return.
"Hey, how about a shot for us?" Jasper suggested, pulling Alice towards him.
Alice shot a look at Rosalie and Bella. They both laughed at Emmett's puppy dog eyes, and I smiled as Bella rolled her eyes at Rosalie.
"Fine. Just one. Then vamoose."
"Having fun?" I asked Bella as Alice started pouring more alcohol into glasses.
"Yeah," she admitted.
"Have you girls been drinking for awhile?" I asked, unable to tell from her expression if she was even slightly inebriated.
She shrugged.
I ran a hand through my hair, frustrated again. We were back to one-word responses at best, but she didn't even seem to want to speak to me. I was slightly assured that when Jasper and Emmett crowded around the island she automatically drew closer to me. I watched just as closely once the drinks were passed around and we all had a shot. She followed up with another slow sip of beer, and I suddenly had to hide another smirk. She caught it though, and shot me a deadly look.
We were ushered out of the apartment quickly enough, and the next time I saw her that evening, she still didn't look any worse for wear, and I knew why. Rose and Alice on the other hand were both tipsy, and clutched on each one of Bella's arms when they approached our table. Bella unceremoniously shuffled the girls so they were sitting beside their significant others and she slumped into the empty seat beside me.
I waited for her to speak.
"Time?"
I laughed, "It's not even midnight."
She shook her head dejectedly, and grimaced as a waitress came around to take their orders.
"Wellington's," she told Jessica, the waitress, who didn't even look at her and eyed me up instead.
"Edward, what can I do for you?" she simpered. It was hard to miss the sudden thrust of her breasts in my face and my only defense was to look away.
Bella snorted.
Jessica whipped around to glare at her and I said quickly, "I'll have what she's having. A pint of Welly. Thanks."
Jessica flounced off after I failed to meet her eyes.
Bella leaned over and whispered in my ear, "She's probably going to spit in my beer."
I couldn't anticipate the physical reaction I got from her closeness. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end, and I could feel heat rush to my face. My heart pounded loudly in my ears, but I cleared my throat and said, "I'll make a point of reaching for your glass instead, and then we'll know for sure if she did or not."
"Sneaky," Bella observed.
"Really? Because I was wondering about your move earlier this evening," I teased.
She didn't even bother to hide her wide smile.
I leaned over and whispered back in her ear, "Spitting out your shot into your beer bottle? Did you even drink anything tonight?"
Bella seemed affected by my closeness as well. I could see a faint blush begin at her throat but she shrugged both my questions and her reaction off as nonchalantly as possible.
"Got it from Coyote Ugly," she told me.
I gaped at her, and instantly tried not to picture her up on the bar in one of the outfits they wore. It must have been obvious to her because the blush continued to spread across her cheeks and though she continued to look at me, she couldn't hold it for long. She began looking over my shoulder, and then unconsciously looked towards the nearest exit.
I reached for her hand and squeezed it for a moment assuredly. I let it go and changed the subject, "What chick flick did you watch?"
"Never Been Kissed."
"Ah. Drew Barrymore," I recalled.
"Ah. Michael Vartan."
I raised my eyebrows and she smirked, "Liked him in Alias, too."
"What tv shows do you like now?"
"None," she said, suddenly fascinated with the grain of the fake wooden table.
"You done with tv, too?" I smiled gently.
She nodded again, but seemed relieved when Jessica came back with our beer. Like lightning, I reached over and paid for our drinks before she could protest. Jessica shot her a dirty look, and I made that point of reaching for the drink that she had handed Bella. Jessica simply turned on her heel and left without a word.
"Cheers," Bella said and took a long drink of her beer. She closed her eyes again, and I loved seeing how much she enjoyed the taste of it. She hit me with the sweetest of smiles and my heart galloped wildly again.
I had to calm down, gain some sense of control. I chugged a bit of my beer, but realized that it would probably only make things worse. I glanced over at our companions, and shook my head. Alice and Jasper were pressed forehead to forehead, murmuring together, and Emmett was practically humping Rosalie's leg.
"Come on," I said to Bella, grabbing our beer.
She quickly followed and I started to lead her towards the pool tables, but immediately changed course as I saw both Mike Newton and Jacob Black standing around one of them. Instead, I led her down to the back end of the bar and got the darts from the bartender.
She smiled at me and we started our first game. We weren't very competitive with each other, but it certainly seemed to break the ice a bit between us.
"I heard you've got a wicked rebound," I said as she took aim.
The dart flew and met its target, and I was visibly impressed at her accuracy. She smiled at me and said, "maybe."
"You a pro at any other sport?"
"I can bowl. I'm pretty good with a gun. Archery is cool," she offered.
"So, you're a good shot," I summarized.
"Don't take that as a warning or anything."
"I won't," I assured her.
"What are you good at?"
"Swimming, running, and I like hiking," I told her.
"Solitary endeavours," she mused.
"I guess. I played basketball, some football and a little hockey when I was in school, but after I graduated that was the end of organized sports for me."
"Did you do well in school?" she enquired.
I nodded, "Yeah. It came pretty easy to me. You?"
"My attendance wasn't so great, but it was because I was bored."
"Did you skip a lot?" I asked, surprised.
She nodded, "Yeah, I guess. I never got any flack for it though. I showed up for tests and exams, handed in my papers when they were due. Most of the teachers recognized why I wasn't showing up."
"We're you outgoing back then?"
"No."
"Were you ever outgoing?"
"Umm..."
Her silence was an immediate warning to change the subject.
"I need to know some more about your band," I challenged.
She sighed, but answered. "I got roped into it. We did covers of 80s rock anthems."
"Do you miss it?" I asked, noticing her expression. She had her eyes closed as she answered, but a smile played at the corners of her mouth.
"I think I'd play the drums again if I had access to a kit," she admitted.
"There's one at the theatre," I told her.
She shook her head quickly, "Yeah, no."
"I could bring it over to your apartment."
Bella surprised me by giggling. It made me laugh when it was obvious that it surprised her as well. "Edward, you'd regret it if I had a drum kit upstairs from your apartment. So would anyone else in the building."
"I know something about acoustics," I assured her. "We could definitely figure out a way to make it work. Hell, I've got a second room in my apartment that I don't use except for storing junk. We could trick it out and you could come over whenever you want."
"Pimp my Room?" she teased.
I couldn't help but laugh, "Yeah. We could steal one of the disco balls from the props room at the theatre, maybe put down a funky tiled floor for dancing."
"Don't forget the fun-furred walls," she said, "That would cut out some volume."
"What's this about fun fur?" said a voice over my shoulder, and automatically we both tensed up.
Mike Newton approached us, and one look at Bella's face told me enough that he was unwelcome here.
"Joke," I said, not saying any more than Bella would have.
Mike Newton tried to swagger as he headed in Bella's direction and she quickly reached into her pocket and handed me a twenty dollar bill, "Sorry, excuse me. Edward, would you order you and me another round?"
Without waiting for answer, she brushed past Newton and headed in the direction of the ladies washroom. I was fucking pleased that she made the distinction of excluding Newton from our order and he couldn't miss the ditch she just did.
He was about to say something to me when my Blackberry starting ringing. I looked at Mike and he grimaced. He waved a hand at me and walked back towards the pool tables.
"Bella?" I asked after checking the caller ID.
"Is he gone?"
I laughed, "Yeah. He didn't even say goodbye."
"Well, don't order me a beer. I'm... just trying to open this window here and..." I could hear muffled noises and a high pitched squeal.
It took a moment for me to put two and two together, and I couldn't help but laugh at her avoidance technique. I quickly made my way towards the ladies washroom and said, "Bella! Wait. There's an exit just outside of the washroom. To the left."
"This is more fun," she said, and I could hear her moving around.
"Is there anyone in there?" I asked, almost near the door.
"No, why?" she asked.
I pushed open the door, and got a great view of her bent over the windowsill, preparing to bring her legs over the side.
"Edward," she laughed, as I reached for her waist to steady her.
She managed to jump out the window and land on both feet on the pavement below. It was a small drop, and I managed to complete the maneuver as well. I could hear girls' voices from the washroom as the door banged open. There was no time to reach up to slide the window closed, so I grabbed her by the hand and we high-tailed it out of there back to The Bakery. We didn't stop running until we hit the lobby entrance.
"Emmett mentioned your disappearing skills, but I had no idea," I breathed, only slightly winded.
Bella, on the other hand, didn't seem out of breath at all, but only said, "Practice."
Back to the one word answers.
"Wanna come up?" I asked, not wanting to be apart from her this soon.
She avoided my eyes again.
"I could make us something to eat," I offered.
She shifted from one foot to another.
"I'll let you kick my ass at scrabble," I took a chance.
She managed to both frown and grin at the same time, "Ha."
"I'll have you know that I am the reigning champion in these here parts," I mock bragged.
"Was," she said, and began leading the way to the elevator.
I was pleased to see her hit the button for the 4th floor, but I managed to keep a straight face.
I led the way to my apartment and we headed to the living room. I watched as she kicked off her sneakers by the couch, and I went into the kitchen, "Do you want a drink? I've got beer, milk, juice and bottled water. I think I have a bottle of wine somewhere too."
"What kind of beer?" she asked.
"La Chimay Rouge, Leffe Blonde, Stella, Guiness and PBR."
"Stella, please," she said.
I came back with a Stella for her and a Leffe Blonde for myself.
"So, you like beer."
"As do you, apparently. Although, I don't know how any true beer lover would have the gumption to spit tequila shots into it."
"Please," she said, "It was a Bud light. I was doing myself a favor on so many levels."
"So, about your amazing escape skills..."
"If you swear not to say anything, I have a confession to make."
"Scout's honor," I said solemnly.
"I am getting so sick of dodging Newton. Why can't guys take a hint?"
"Some guys, guys like Newton don't catch things like that. Or forget it even happened. I wouldn't be surprised if his mission to get you to go out with him is still on, even though it was totally obvious to him that you ditched him this evening."
She looked momentarily horrified.
"I heard Jacob Black's been dropping in at the offices more frequently."
She rolled her eyes, "He, at least, has the decency to observe my personal space issues as well take note of my intense dislike for cheesy one liners."
"So he's not on your shit list then?"
She shrugged, "No, but I'm not carving his name and mine on the closest tree either."
I stood up and got the scrabble game from the bookcase. We started setting up, and after drawing my letters and thinking for a bit, she interrupted me.
"Why did you drop out of med school?"
It was the first time she ever asked me a personal question, and it took me a few moments to figure out how I was going to answer. I didn't give her the short and sweet answer, nor did I feel like hashing it out. Instead I said, "It was too big of a deal. Every day that I was in class I would calculate how much it was costing me financially. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to be a doctor. I knew on some level that I applied because of my father, but I couldn't justify putting all that money towards an education that I probably wouldn't even use. I could keep up with the classes, but there were so many other people who had applied who had that drive, that love for it. I could never really compete or compare.
It took me a month of avoiding my family's calls and my friends' emails before I got up the nerve to make the announcement that I had withdrawn from school. I was already in London at that time, and I was expecting for shit to really hit the fan. Instead, I was surprised to find out that I had a lot of support, especially from my father. Turns out he was proud everything that I did, including music."
There was a not uncomfortable silence and we played a few rounds. I was surprised to note that she really was going to kick my ass in Scrabble. She was already a good 40 points ahead of me, and I could tell that her mind wasn't really on the game at all.
"What are your parents like?" I asked.
"My parents were great," she said, focusing on her tiles.
I waited to see if she was going to elaborate but was sorry to have brought up a topic that she didn't seem to want to talk about. I was mistaken.
"They died when I was young. I don't remember them that well. The person who is like a father to me, his name is Charlie. He's the one who keeps calling. He pretty much raised me single-handedly. He was my mother's first love."
"Is Charlie living in Toronto?"
"Not too far from Toronto."
"What is Charlie like?"
"Quiet. Understanding. Supportive."
"Are you... angry with him?" I asked, remembering how she reacted after his phone call on Monday.
She shook her head, "No. Not really. He's just... too protective. He keeps asking me if I've eaten, if I'm making friends, if I am getting any sleep... it's driving me nuts."
"How did he take your news about moving out here?"
"He knew why I had to leave, but he doesn't wholeheartedly approve. He's hoping I'll be back home in a month."
I couldn't help but worry that she was going to do just that. It must have been written all over my face because she surprised me by reaching for my hand and squeezing it gently.
"I signed a contract, Edward. You know that. 2 years. I'm not planning on letting anyone down. You have some time to work up to my scrabble level, don't worry."
I laughed and this time it was she who rubbed comforting circles on the top of my hand.