I know I'm a little bit late, but I also wrote twice as much so hopefully you guys can forgive me. I'm done with my exams for the time being and should have more time to write, but I also intend to make chapters a little bit longer so I don't think I can go back to updating multiple times a day. We'll see. Anyways, enjoy and thanks for reading!

Edward Cullen has really expressive eyes. No matter how much he might try to keep a straight face, his eyes give him away. Which is why, as I turn to find him standing in the doorway, I can immediately tell he's trying very hard not to burst out laughing.

"Edward. Hi." I say, sheepishly. Well, if he's gonna do me the courtesy of pretending not to have heard my friends refer to him as 'Brit boy with a nice ass', I'm definitely willing to play along.

"Hey. Umm, this guy told me I was supposed to meet you back here…" He replies. A bit of shyness. A hint of amusement.

A lot of sexy…

Sigh. I'm not even gonna go there.

"Yeah, that was our manager, Marcus. Things got a little rowdy tonight and I couldn't go back out there, but I didn't want you to think I was ditching you." I shift my weight, play with my hair, bite my lip and give away pretty much every possible evidence of how insecure I feel. I've given this guy every reason to think I'm unstable, from randomly yelling at him from across the street, to 'forgetting' to mention that I'm in a band who would be playing at The Attic that night (and then ditching him at the table I had asked him to find for us so I could go do that), to inviting him over to our dressing room, where he would ultimately find my band mates discussing his ass. In a way, I kind of judge him for not running away. But the thing is, I'm not ready to say goodbye yet. Yes, I'm scared of this strange connection I seem to have with a guy I've just met, and I'm not sure what to do about it, but I do know I don't want him to leave yet.

"I didn't. Think that, I mean. I knew I'd see you again." The way he looks at me as he says this makes me whimper a little bit. If the entire club caught fire right about now, I don't think I could look away.

"Sooo..." Leah's voice snaps us out of our staring contest. "You wanna introduce us, Bella?"

I laugh nervously. "Oh. Yeah. Uh, Edward these are my best friends and band mates, Leah, Riley, Seth and Demitri." I point each one of them out for him until I get to Demitri, who's looking at Edward like a rabid dog would look at…well, anybody.

"So, what the fuck is your deal? What do you want with our Bells?" Demitri asks.

"Demitri! What the fuck is your damage?!" I slap his arm for good measure.

"Ouch! Geez, Bella! I was just asking the man a question, there's no need for violence!" he says, holding his arm like the big baby he is.

"You were being an asshole!" I start to lay into him again when Edward interrupts me.

"It's quite alright, Bella. I get it. He's your friend and he cares about you. I can definitely see where he's coming from." He says. Then he turns to Demitri. "To answer your questions, I helped Bella find her way here when she was lost and we got to talking. That's all there is to it."

Demitri doesn't exactly look mollified, but I give him the stink eye and he keeps his mouth shut.

"Well, I for one am glad to meet you Edward." Leah chimed in. Oh great, at least one of us is willing to act normal…

"Yeah, nice to meet you, man. " Seth is definitely trying to redeem himself.

Too late, pal!

"So, we were just talking about how we wanted to go somewhere and celebrate tonight." Total lie but thank you Riley, for making it seem like we had spent the last five minutes prior to Edward's entrance doing something other than talk about him. "Care to join us?"

Edward looks at me and I smile at him and nod to let him know I totally agree with this plan.

"Yeah, I'd like that." He replies. But he's not looking at Riley, he's looking at me. And I'm still smiling.

"Well, what are you fuckers waiting for? Let's go!" Demitri walks out without waiting for any of us and I know he's having a hard time getting comfortable with Edward's presence, not knowing what exactly it means for me. I also know he's making an effort, because if he were following his usual M.O. for situations like this, Edward would be missing a limb by now.

We all follow after Demitri, passing Marcus on the way out and letting him know we're leaving. Of course, he's on the phone again and barely stops talking long enough to wave at us before getting back to his conversation. Sigh.

That man is a workaholic if I ever saw one.

yep.

Stepping out of the club and into the chilly night air, I realize the temperature has dropped considerably. I zip up my jacket and dig my hands into my pockets for warmth. I look around me and realize I'm surrounded by my best friends in the whole world, and this man, Edward, who somehow just seems to fit right in. It feels right.

- / -

It's currently 2 a.m. and the guys are starting to lose steam.

Two in the morning guys, really? Some badass rockstars you are…

I know, right?

In their defense, we arrived in London less than 18 hours ago, and we had partied our asses off the entire week before that knowing we were finally getting to take our music outside of the U.S. I think all the excitement is finally catching up to them. Me on the other hand? I'm too hyped from this constant buzzing energy I feel anytime Edward looks at me, or talks to me, or gets within ten fucking feet of me, to feel tired.

In the past two hours we had been bar hopping – or is it pub hopping? – in pretty much every place we could find along the way, until we eventually found a park and Leah slurred announced that as our stop, for the simple reason that she was too tired to keep walking. We've been here for the past half hour, just hanging out, lying on the grass and trying to make out shapes in the stars. It actually started out as Riley throwing himself on the ground because staying upright was making him dizzy, and then Seth and Leah found it to be a good solution and next thing you know we were all lying on the ground playing what turned out to be a strangely entertaining little game. I managed to find a duck-horse-pig creature. No one believed me, but I totally did.

Demitri had sobered up, and even exchanged a couple of words with Edward, which practically had me checking him for a fever. Meanwhile, Riley, Leah and Seth had gotten more inebriated with every pub we passed through, which led to their current state of 'lying on the ground not knowing which way was up'.

As for Edward and I, well we spent the entire time keeping close to each other and exchanging looks that had me blushing, but we hadn't really said much of anything to each other. I know there's plenty for us to talk about but it seems wrong somehow to talk about anything significant whilst surrounded by my drunken friends.

"Alright, I think it's time I take these booze heads back to the hotel. I'm beat anyways. You staying or coming, Bells?" Demitri asks.

I'm having a hard time believing that Demitri is actually asking me that, instead of just informing me that it's time to go. Hmm, I guess Edward and I are gonna have that talk sooner rather than later.

"You go ahead Dem, I'll follow you in a little while." I respond.

Demitri looks from me to Edward and then back to me, then nods. I know that look. It's his 'I'm trusting you take care of yourself even though it pains me to do so' look. Yeah, I can read all that into one look, when it comes from one of my best friends. It also says 'don't make me regret this'. I nod back at him to let him know it's all good, that I know what I'm doing.

You have no idea what you're doing.

I'm done agreeing with you brain.

Demitri collects our friends and starts to lead them away. It's a slow progress, given they can't even walk in a straight line. Edward offers to help but, thankfully, Demitri refuses his offer saying he can handle it. I don't know if he does that for my benefit or just to prove that he doesn't need Edward's help, but either way I'm thankful.

We sit there on the grass, watching Demitri leave until he's out of sight.

…and then there were two…

"So, you're a musician, huh?" Edward says. I peek at him from the corner of my eye. Luckily, he doesn't seem angry. In fact, he looks somewhat amused.

"Yeah...umm, fuck. I'm sorry for not putting that out there sooner. I promise I wasn't trying mess with you or make a joke at your expense, I just…well, would you believe it if I said I forgot?" I frown, figuring he's either going to think I'm mentally challenged or full of shit but surprisingly he lets out this loud belly laugh, and he doesn't seem to be laughing with derision.

"Yeah, actually, I can absolutely believe that." He's silent for a moment, then says in a half-whisper "Meeting you made me forget some things too." I blush.

What the fuck is up with all the blushing?

I have no idea, but I don't like it.

I don't know what to say to him in response, so I don't say anything at all. Admitting that he affects me just as much could be a dangerous move, and I'm not prepared to let him in like that. I don't know what's wrong with me. I've never been the type to believe in fairytales. I don't believe in love at first sight or destiny, or any of that bullshit. I'm a child of divorced parents, and I've seen up close how two people who had supposedly loved each other for eighteen years can suddenly turn on each other and becomes enemies. I had front row seats in witnessing how people change, and love just disappears overnight. I am by no means a romantic. Yet here I was, feeling like I've known this guy for years as opposed to four hours, and experiencing fucking 'tiny fireworks' whenever he touched me. It's ridiculous, and my logical mind refuses to accept it. It's probably just jetlag.

Edward seems to notice the shift in my mood because he quickly changes the subject. "So, tell me about this band of yours, have you guys been together long?"

I jump at the opportunity to discuss something less terrifying. "Well, as friends we've known each other since childhood. I met Riley when were both four, then Leah and Seth when I was seven, Leah was eight and Seth was six, and finally Demitri joined our little group when I was nine and he was twelve. We're a pretty tight knit group. As for the band, it started out as a hobby about four years ago. We used to play in my mom's garage, it drove the neighbors crazy but my mom always managed to appease them." I laugh.

"Then we got invited to play at a birthday party and we figured that was a nice way to make some cash, so we started doing that. Next thing you know we're playing local festivals and our names are making the papers, and our little hobby turned into our entire lives outside of school". I glance at Edward to make sure I'm not boring him out of his mind with my story, but he seems to be listening with rapt attention.

"So anyways, a little over a year ago we saw some flyers advertising a talent show in Seattle, hosted by this big record company and we figured we had nothing to lose, so we signed up. We didn't win. This chick who sang like Mariah Carey did." He laughed and I couldn't help but laugh too. "Yeah, we were pretty disappointed. But, as it turned out, there was a silver lining. One of the execs who were watching the competition liked what we did and he called us up about a week later asking to see us play one more time. He sat on my mom's old couch in her garage and watched us play for forty-five minutes. When it was over all he said was 'I'd like to sign you', and that was that." I realize that I answered way more than what Edward had asked and it makes me feel a bit foolish. "Sorry if I rambled, like I said, I get really passionate about certain things".

Edward smiles sweetly at me. "Don't worry about, I meant it when I said I can relate. I tend to ramble when I feel passionately about something too." He says.

"Really? And what kind of things do you feel passionate about?" It's about time I get to know this mysterious brit boy, especially if he's going to worm his way in to my brain and heart like he's already doing.

He laughs and shoots me a crooked smile. I get the impression that he wants to say something naughty but then he changes his mind, shaking his head. "Well, family for one. I'm very loyal and dedicated to my family, they mean the world to me, so when it comes to them I can get a little carried away." I smile at the idea that my brit boy is a family man.

Your brit boy?

Can it.

"Aside from that, well, I'm passionate about acting. It's what I love to do and I hope to God that I have the opportunity to spend my life doing it. I mean, I don't wanna sound like a bum, but I'd probably go crazy working a nine-to-five job. I need the crazy schedules, and the constant change of location and sets and characters. I love waking up at four a.m. to go shoot a scene somewhere in the freezing cold, but it would probably kill me to have to wake up at seven to go sit in a cubicle in an office building. Am I making any sense?" I smile at him, because I get it, I really do. "Yeah" I say. "You're making perfect sense."

A sudden gust of wind snaps me out of our little bubble and I shiver. Edward notices this and places his hand on my arm, rubbing it a little to warm me up. Fucking tiny fireworks.

I thought that only happened when you had skin to skin contact.

Yeah, apparently it doesn't work like that!

"Maybe we should start heading back." He says, and my heart drops. "I'm having an amazing time just sitting here with you and talking but I don't want to see you freeze to death". He looks genuinely disappointed when he says this, and I believe him. The fact that he's as reluctant to leave me as I am to leave him warms me…and freaks me out a little bit.

"Yeah, we should probably get going." I give in. But not completely. "Will you walk me to my hotel? Or, if that's too far out of your way, it's fine, you don't have to." I rush to assure him.

"Hey, do you really take me for the kind of guy who would let a woman walk to her hotel alone at three in the morning?" He asks, pretending to be offended but giving himself away with the mirth in his eyes. Fucking expressive eyes.

"Oh my, have I offended you Sir? I do beg your forgiveness!" I say, in a terrible mock British accent. His eyes seem to darken then and what I think I see in them scares me a little. Hunger.

He laughs off whatever he was really feeling and responds in kind. "My dear Madam, I accept your forgiveness if you'll accept my company this fine evening." He says, in his delicious British accent. I think my brain just turned to mush.

"Sure." Is all the answer I can come up with at that moment. He chuckles at my random interruption of our little game.

We begin making the walk to my hotel in slow, reluctant steps.

"So, how long are you staying in London for?" He asks.

I sigh. Right. Back to reality it is. "Five days. We have a couple more gigs here and then we move on. It's not a huge tour, mostly just bars and clubs, but Marcus thinks it'll really help make a name for us internationally." I reply.

"Five days…" He whispers. "And after this tour you go back to Seattle?" He asks.

"Ugh, not if the studio has its way. They wanna move us to fucking Los Angeles. Can you believe it"?

He laughs. "I'm assuming you don't like L.A. then?"

"Too sunny. I burn easily." I reply. Total bullshit, of course.

"Oh, cmon. Be honest. You can't possibly be that concerned about UV rays."

I sigh. "Ok, that's not all I'm concerned about. The thing is, I've always thought of L.A. as this celebrity-infested, phony, superficial place. It's hard for me to imagine living there without feeling like I'm selling out, you know? The guys and I never want our band to be about money and fame, but going to L.A. feels like we're taking a shortcut to that kind of lifestyle. Next thing you know, they'll be telling us to perform half-naked and record pop songs!"

Edward is attempting to appear sympathetic at my plight, but again he fails miserably.

Geez, I'm not sure how great of an actor this guy is…

"Go ahead," I say. "laugh at me. But I'm very protective of my band and band mates. I don't want us to lose track of why we're doing this, and I don't want our work to be hijacked by a bunch of corporate suits."

Edward immediately sobers. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude or unsympathetic. I can understand where you're coming from. It's kind of how I feel when my manager approaches me with these ridiculous scripts that have no depth and nothing to offer, trying to convince me that the money's worth it." He seems genuinely apologetic and I feel kind of bad for snapping at him. "But I think that no matter where you live, you'll always have to deal with phonies and superficial people trying to make you into something you're not. It's the downside to being a part of the entertainment industry, people are always trying to make more money out of you. But at the end of the day it's still your decision, no matter what your geographical location is, what's your is yours. Maybe being in L.A. will have its advantages, maybe it'll open some doors for you guys, but you're the ones who decide which doors you wanna walk through." He smiles then. "Besides, I would kill to live in L.A. I've been hassling my agency about getting me something there forever, but it's easier said than done."

Edward in L.A.? Me in L.A.? At the same time?

I shiver, but this time it's not from the cold. "Well, when you put it like that L.A. doesn't seem so bad after all." I smile at him and he smiles back.

You weren't always this 'smiley'. I wonder what's changed in the past couple of hours…Oh, yes! You're in lo-

Shut the full cup!

I snap out of my reverie and notice that my hotel is just up ahead. I swear I can feel my heart deflating. What is wrong with me? I've never felt this weird about a guy…

I told you, you're in Lo-

"HEY!" I say a bit too loudly. "Listen, I know I've taken up way too much of your time as it is and you probably have other places to be, but I was wondering, you know, if you wanted to, you could maybe, you know, come inside. Not to my room! I mean, I'm not inviting you into my room, I'm not a slut! I have something to show you, something not in my room…" Oh God, just strike me down now.

Luckily, Edward is a gentleman who brushes off my weirdness like it's no big deal. "I'd love to." He says.

I grab his hand and drag him inside before he can change his mind. We get on the elevator and I press the button for the last floor. We get off-

*snickers*

We get OUT OF THE ELEVATOR and I lead him to the staircase where we climb up to the rooftop. As we walk through the door that leads out into the roof I look at the Edward's face to gauge his reaction to my surprise and am relieved to see that he seems to appreciate this as much as I did when I first found it. Of course he did.

The entire rooftop had been turned into a garden. There was actual grass in place of concrete, and a little walkway so we wouldn't have to step on it. There were beautiful flowers spread out and even a padded bench where you could sit and take in the view of the city. And the view...breathtaking didn't begin to cover it. The city lights looked amazing.

Edward and I make our way to the bench and sit down.

"Wow…" He says. "This place is beautiful. I've been to this hotel before and I had no idea they had this."

"They didn't exactly advertise it to us either. I found it by accident when I got bored and decided to take a look around."

He looks at me and reaches for my hand. "I'm glad you brought me here." He says.

I squeeze his hand and lean my head on his shoulder. "Me too."

- / -

I couldn't tell you how long we were up on that roof, talking and just spending time together. All I know is that the sun was peeking out in the horizon when we finally fell asleep on that bench. His arms around me, keeping me warm and making me feel safe. My head on his shoulder and my hand against his heart.

1) Yes, Bella has a kind of subconscious little voice who loves to confront her with facts she's not ready to face or make comments she wouldn't dare allow herself to make. Bella is a strange girl but she is not being haunted by a ghost nor is she suffering from schizofrenia. 2)You guys got a little hint at the family drama that helped shape Bella into what she is today. Emotionally cautious, a bit of a cynic, definitely scarred. That's not all there is to it though as you will all come to find out. Meanwhile, try to be patient with our little Bella as she sorts through her feelings.