Why are you guys so amazing? Seriously you all make my day. So the Tanya prank isn't going to be in this chapter but it will definitely been in a chapter in the near future. If you have any last minute prank ideas leave your idea in a review or PM me :]
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. That belongs to Stephenie Meyer. Also, I do not own any references to movies, songs, or other media.
BPOV
When I woke up my head was pounding and my body was sore as hell. Fuck! How much did I drink last night? I slowly got up and made my way over to the bathroom. As soon as I saw my reflection in the mirror last night's events came flooding back to me. The club. Rosalie's boyfriend really being Emmett. The Captain. James. The Captain saving me. Me asking him to stay. Him staying. Damn I'm needy when I'm drunk. Well, I wasn't really drunk; I was almost raped which I guess constitutes some neediness. I washed my face and stepped out of the bathroom to find the Captain sitting in my living room. He looked, well he looked tired, and some other emotion that I couldn't quite figure out. I brushed it off and entered the kitchen. The Captain noticed my entrance and walked over to me. I was standing at the fridge trying to figure out what I wanted to eat while he stood there awkwardly on the opposite end of the kitchen.
"You can come closer Captain. I don't bite" I said with a light laugh.
He smiled and said "No I suppose not. How are you?" he asked seriously.
"I'm alright. Sore as hell but it could be worse I guess. Ummm about last night, I don't think I got a chance to properly thank you, for you know, saving my life and all. So thank you. And, also, thank you for staying with me last night. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I didn't mean to and I apologize if I did" I said and looked down at the floor like it was the most interesting thing in the world. I felt the Captain move closer to me until he was standing directly in front of me. I was fiddling with the hem on my shirt when a warm hand reached under my chin and lifted my face up to his. He looked me in the eyes and I couldn't tear myself away from his intense stare. "Don't ever fucking apologize for something like that Bella. I may be a harsh man but I know when to turn it off. Last night was an example of that." He said as he continued to search my eyes for something.
"Okay" I said softly. His hand was still under my chin, sending sparks throughout my body. We stood there for a while longer just staring at each other. I'm pretty sure if someone had walked in at that moment he or she would think we were crazy. He moved his hand so it was no longer under my chin but cupping my face. I sighed and pressed my cheek into his hand. He closed his eyes for a brief second and when he opened them they were filled with, pain? Hope? Want? But as fast as the emotions appeared, they were gone. We continued to stare at each other and I subconsciously started moving closer to him. Our faces were centimeters apart and I could feel his breath on my face when we were interrupted by a loud knock on the door.
"Eddie boy let's go. I've got places to go and bitches to kill." Emmett boomed from the other side of the door. The Captain sighed and dropped his hand. He walked towards the door and left me standing in the kitchen, stunned. What the fuck just happened? Was he going to kiss me? Did he want to kiss me? Why did he look so tortured? What was he hiding? I was brought out of my thoughts by a bone-crushing hug from Emmett.
"Ow" I said to myself, or at least I thought I had. Emmett practically dropped me on the ground and I caught myself by holding onto the counter. Emmett looked at me apologetically and the Captain looked like he wanted to murder Emmett.
"Christ Bella I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I didn't mean to hurt you. I"
"Emmett it's fine" I said amused by his rambling. "I'm not quite as fragile as I look". I thought I heard the Captain mumble something like "oh but you are" but I could have just been hearing things.
"I'm just going to wait for you in the car man. Don't take too long" Emmett said with a wink and walked out. I was still standing in the kitchen, stupidly I might add, and the Captain was still staring at me. That's new right?
"Well I guess I'll be going now" he said almost solemnly.
"Umm alright, yea. Thank you again for staying. You didn't have to do that you know" I said
"Please, like I could refuse you anything" he mumbled under his breath.
I wasn't sure his comment was meant for me to hear or not so I simply followed him to the door. We stood there awkwardly, neither of us really knowing where to go from here. I opened the door and he made a move to leave but turned to me and ran his index finger down my cheek. "Be safe Bella", and with that he was gone. I closed the door and went back to the kitchen. I decided that I needed coffee, lots and lots of coffee. After I had a cup I began working on breakfast. I pulled out eggs, milk, and bread for French toast and got to work. Once I finished cooking I sat down at the table with my coffee and eggy bread goodness and thought over the past 24 hours. I had so many questions but the only one my mind could focus on was, WHAT THE FUCK? Why had the Captain been so nice to me? Why did he stay with me instead of running for Mt. Rainer like most people would? And what the FUCK was going through his mind when we were standing in the kitchen? Why did he look like he was struggling with something? Ugh, I need a drink.
I cleaned up my mess in the kitchen and walked back to my room. I grabbed my robe from behind my door when I saw something black lying on the floor. I picked it up and saw that it was the Captain's shirt. I put it on my dresser and went to the bathroom to shower. The warm water relaxed my muscles and cleared my head. When I stepped out I felt refreshed and rejuvenated. Yea I like alliteration. Deal with it. I went back to my room and threw on jeans and my UW sweatshirt. I was in desperate need of food and grocery shopping provided the perfect distraction for the clusterfuck in my brain. I threw my hair in a messy bun, grabbed my keys and purse and was out the door. While I was shopping I decided it was best not to tell my dad about the whole James situation. I didn't want to press charges and I know that's what he'd want me to do. I called Alice and Rose when I was finished and asked if they wanted to meet me for lunch. They both agreed and we decided to eat at a little Italian restaurant by the pier. I dropped off my groceries at home and changed into something a little more presentable, skinny jeans, black boots and a black sweater.
I arrived at the restaurant before Rose and Alice so I got us a table and ordered a glass of wine because Lord knows I'm going to need it. Once they found the table they immediately engulfed me in a huge hug. Rose looked at me with sad eyes and Alice looked like she was holding back tears. The waiter came by and asked if they wanted anything to drink and they both ordered wine. It was silent for a few minutes while we all looked over our menus and after the waiter took our order the hounding began.
"How are you feeling Bella?" Rose asked
"I'm alright, better than I thought I would be actually" I won't admit, to even myself, that the Captain definitely had something to do with me not having a mental breakdown.
"Well that's good I guess. I'm just glad your okay. What did you do today?"
"After the Captain left I ate and went grocery shopping. Mundane tasks to keep me occupied"
"Ooooo I forgot that Edward stayed with you! How was that?"
"It was fine I guess. Nothing happened if that's what you're asking, good or bad. He brought me back to my apartment and let me sleep. Simple as that" There was no way in hell I was going to tell them about me practically begging the Captain to stay with me and the weird morning after scene. Yea no. Definitely not telling them about that. By this time I noticed that Alice was being uncharacteristically quiet. Something that was never good. She looked at me with a peculiar stare then went back to her wine.
"Alice I know you're dying to say something so why don't you just spit it out already" Rose snapped.
"I just think that it's weird that Edward offered to take you home and spend the night at your place when you described him before as being so cold and stand-offish. It doesn't make sense to me." Alice replied
"Well it doesn't exactly make sense to me either Alice. The guy was a complete asshat when I was working for him then he goes and is all knight-in-shining-armor last night. The guy's mood swings give me whiplash." I answered back. The waiter arrived with our food and there was no more talk of the Captain and his mood swings after that. We drank and laughed at had a grand ole time.
When I got back to my apartment I set my purse down on the coffee table and saw that my landline had a voice mail. Yes I have a landline. With the weather here being as bad as it is, and the fact that Port Angeles is a somewhat remote area, I decided to have a landline installed when I moved in. I pressed the retrieve button on my voicemail machine and listened.
"Hi Bella it's the Cap, Ahem it's Edward. I uhh wanted to make sure you're doing okay. And uhhhh I also wanted to see if you maybe wanted to go to dinner? With me? Maybe later this week? Or not. It's up to you. Just umm call me back on the number you have and dial extension 1918. Ummm yea. Bye."
A/N: I know this chapter is really short but I needed a filler chapter between the club and the beginning of the following week.
What do you think Alice has planned? ;)
Thank you to everyone for your reviews. You guys are all so sweet and I'm so grateful for the response that this story is getting. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.