Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or its characters. I own the plot of this, though.
Author's Note: I personally don't like this chapter. Sucky chapters are filler chapters. Better chapters are to come. Understood? :D kthxbye!
Thank you, Becka D and rayeman25 for the Story Alert Add. Thank you to nixxyaddiction for the Favorite Author & Favorite Story lists add and the review. :D
Bookflower: yes, it is based on that. :) I absolutely adore the Beatles. Their songs are usually my inspirational songs while writing this. Haha!
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Chapter 7
"Can I ask you something, Edward?" I started.
"Anything," he said.
"Why was Alice excited to meet me?" I asked. "I mean, was it because she was excited that you finally brought a girl over?"
"That," he said. "And other reasons."
"Like what?" I prompted.
"You see," he said. Did he look embarrassed? "We don't have a lot of friends."
"What?" I asked, outraged. He laughed. "Why?"
"It's a long story, really. To summarize, people at school often felt inferior, so to speak, to us. I've no idea why they feel so, though. They didn't really talk to us much. We gave up on trying after the first two years of high school, so we kept to ourselves.
"Oh," I said, surprised by his anecdote. I never would've thought. "That makes sense."
"Does it, really?" he laughed. "So it's been the five of us, and my band members, though we barely talk. When we do, we only talk about band-related things."
"You have a band?" I asked. I didn't know why I was so shocked. I mean, he was very talented.
"Yes," he smiled.
He walked over to his bedside table. He took out a brown manila envelope and emptied it onto his bed. Apparently, it contained a number of gig pictures. He seemed to be looking for something as he scattered the photographs. Finally, he found what he was searching for. He walked towards where I was and sat down beside me.
"Another Itch," he said as he showed me the picture. "There are four of us in the band. I'm the vocalist and play rhythm."
I nodded.
"This is Kim," he pointed to a Chinese-looking girl with long dark hair wearing a pair of white shorts and a Finding Nemo tank top. "Kim is our kick-ass drummer."
"She's pretty," I commented.
"Our bassist's name is Ralph," he said as he moved his finger to a guy in a black Coheed & Cambria shirt and jeans.
"Cute," I laughed.
"The keyboardist," he said as he pointed to an Asian guy in a green shirt and board shorts. "His name is Kyle."
"I want to hear you play sometime," I smiled.
"Someday," he promised.
He stood up and gathered the photos spread out on his bed. He inserted the pile in the envelope and returned it to its rightful place in his bedside table's drawer. I closed my eyes for a moment as I tried to contrast our different social lives. It seemed almost impossible that someone like Edward would not have many friends. It isn't that his explanation didn't make sense. I just wondered how intimidating they could be. I mean, social climbers exist, for crying out loud.
"Are you sleepy already?" he laughed.
"No," I said as my eyes flew open. "I was just thinking about the dissimilarity of our social lives."
"Tell me about your social life," he requested then added with a laugh, "And don't try to be modest."
"Fine," I snickered. "I knew and was known by a lot of people, got invited to one too many parties, went out often. You know, all that stuff. Heck, I was even voted Prom Queen! Though I had a lot of acquaintances, I only had a handful of friends that I trust entirely."
"Oh," he said, eyeing me speculatively. "Ms. Popularity."
"I never really thought of it like that," I admitted. "I just thought that I was friendly and outgoing."
"Why don't I find that hard to believe?" he said, feigning surprise and doubt. "Right, coz you just proved that when you talked to a complete stranger earlier today!"
We both laughed loudly. Though I met him just a few hours ago, I already feel at ease around him. I didn't have a problem telling him about my life and whatnot. To be honest, I didn't know why people found the Cullen family intimidating. They were really nice and well-grounded people. Even if they weren't incarnates of the characters in my favorite book, I think I'd still like the Cullens.
Our jubilant laughter was interrupted by a soft knock on the door. We both straightened up.
"Edward? Francesca?" I heard Esme's voice.
"Yes, mom?" Edward answered.
"Dinner time," she said.
"We'll be right out."
He stood up and I followed suit. He looked at me and smiled beckoningly. I smiled back and walked towards the door. He opened the door for me and we exited to the hallway.
"You don't mind eating Steak Tartare, do you?" he snickered. "We prefer our meat raw."
"Let me guess," I played along. "We'll be having Bloody Mary to drink?"
He winked and said, "Bingo."
