Chapter 4: Bubbly – Colbie Caillat

My first reaction was pure instinct and I didn't even realize what I had done before I had already lifted my disposable camera and snapped a picture of Alec, who was still wearing that intense expression. I blushed deeply as he blinked several times in surprise before breaking into a wide grin.

"Leave it to you to completely ruin a moment" he smiled somewhat affectionately and my blush grew even deeper – though I hadn't thought it possible. I fidgeted with the camera and hesitantly met his eyes. They twinkled with amusement. He wasn't mad at me. That was good.

"Sorry, I couldn't help it. Your expression was very intriguing" I told him still sporting that huge give-away of my embarrassment. Stupid blood, rushing to my cheeks all the time!

Alec tilted his head slightly backwards as he let out a laugh. I couldn't help but smile. I liked the sound of his laughter. It was so childlike and innocent. I knew he wouldn't care for me telling him that, which was why I didn't voice my thoughts. His hands had fallen from my arms, but he took both my hands as his laughter died out and gently pulled me to my feet.

"Let's get back to Volterra. I promised Aro, I wouldn't keep you up all night" he told me and I – of course – couldn't help but yawn. He chuckled and placed a small kiss on the tip of my nose. I swear my heart leapt at the sudden contact. My heart was racing and I delicately placed a hand on my heated cheek. I could still feel the coolness of his lips like a ghost of a touch.

"Oh" I let out as I – much to my embarrassment and confusion – realized I rather have him kiss me a little south of the nose. I couldn't help wondering how his cold lips would feel against my own, but I did not dare try it out. I had never felt like this towards anyone – not even Tyler who was the first and only boy to kiss me. This realization both intrigued and scared me.

"Come on, princess, let's get you home" Alec chuckled, his left hand giving my right one a tiny squeeze. The word 'home' left me with a bittersweet feeling, but I didn't want him to worry so I simply put on an airy smile and followed him. I would follow him anywhere.

..:-:..

"Soooo… how was the date? Did you kiss? Did he give you the…" Heidi began with a giggle in her voice, but I didn't hear the last part of whatever she was going to say, as Felix instantly covered my ears. I looked up at him in confusion, but he simply stared – disgusted and outraged – daggers at Heidi who seemed completely unfazed. He removed his hands as Heidi had stopped talking and they both waited for my answer. Demitri was absent today as he had some Volturi-business to take care of.

"Well?" Heidi pushed and Felix rolled his eyes with the tiniest of smiles.

"I had a really good time. Alec took me to a very fancy restaurant in Firenze and when I had finished my way too expensive dinner, we went for a walk…" I hesitated. I wanted their opinion on what Alec said to me, so that I would know if I read too much into it or if they concluded the same thing as I had.

"And?" Heidi said excitedly and it was a wonder she could even stand still.

"We talked about the future and he told me to spend the eternity with him, BUT it could just have been because I…" I trailed off, feeling embarrassed about it. They were both vampires and proud. Would they understand my worry? I did share it with Alec, but I found that to be different. I wasn't sure if I wanted everyone to know I had second thoughts about becoming a vampire.

"That sound an awfully lot like a proposal" Heidi almost shrieked and I instinctively covered my ears at the high-pitch sound.

"Don't be ridiculous. He was cheering me up, because I was second-guessing my decisions" I argued with a slight blush. I knew she was half kidding, but her words still sent shivers throughout my body.

"Good thing it weren't a proposal or I might just feel sorry for Alec. Just imagine if he had actually proposed and you didn't realize it" Felix joked with a wry smile before he tousled my hair.

"Felix! I've just done her hair!" Heidi scolded, but he didn't look the least sorry for ruining my hair. I giggled which earned me a hiss from my self-proclaimed stylist. Before Heidi even got to open her mouth yet again, my door burst open and Alec stood in front of me in a heartbeat.

"Don't you hiss at her" he snarled in a threat, but Heidi only rolled her eyes. My heartbeat quickened and my breath hitched momentarily. I hadn't been prepared for Alec coming in here so suddenly. I gently put a hand on his arm to get his attention and he instantly relaxed as he turned towards me.

"Alec, you don't have to be so protective. Heidi would never do me any harm"

"Of course I wouldn't! Why are you even here? Weren't you called by Aro?" Heidi let out in annoyance and Alec turned to scowl at her.

"Yes, but I just came back to hear you hiss at my…" he trailed off spluttering in embarrassment. Felix boomed with loud laughter that probably could be heard throughout the entire castle. I looked at Alec in shock. I had never seen him this fidgety and embarrassed before. That was usually my thing.

"Your, what?" Heidi asked smugly and crossed her arms across her chest. I couldn't help but feel bad for Alec.

"Friend, right, Alec? You were going to say 'friend', isn't that so?" I tried to help him, but it turned out I didn't like the sound of 'friend'. It didn't feel like… enough.

Alec gave me a look that made my heart ache and I just wanted to take him in my arms. He seemed so vulnerable it was unbearable.

"Ouch, man" Felix muttered, but still wearing a smirk. Heidi smacked herself on the forehead.

"Noel, seriously…" she breathed as if I just did something truly stupid, but I wasn't sure what she was referring to. Was it wrong of me to assume Alec was to call me his friend?

"No, Noel, I wasn't going to say 'friend'" Alec told me quietly and my heart skipped a beat.

"Oh" oops.

"Aro wanted to see you" he continued and changed the subject completely before the awkward silence became too uncomfortable.

"Ok" Aro hadn't asked for me more than a few times, in which he had only asked how I liked it here and if I had everything I needed. I, of course, didn't tell him how I wished I could see or at least call my family, as I knew that wasn't an option. The first time he wanted to see me, he told me something about me having some sort of talent – like Alec, Heidi and Demitri. I don't know. It seemed a bit far-fetched even though he must know what he was talking about. Maybe he would tell me more about this supposed talent of mine – other than it wasn't as potent as long as I was still human.

Alec wanted to take me without neither Heidi nor Felix, but I didn't mind. I felt as though I needed to apologize for my assumption, but I was also curious as to what Alec had been about to say if not 'friend'.

The first few minutes, we walked in silence. I didn't even dare to take his hand.

"I'm sorry" I finally broke the silence. He sighed tiredly, but gave me one of his almost-smiles.

"I thought you knew I wasn't just thinking of you as a friend. I really like you, Noel, more than I ought to" he made it sound almost like an apology, which confused me. I took one of his hands in both mine, and we stopped in the middle of the corridor.

"I'm sorry, I'm not so fast when it comes to this kind of things, but I really like you too. I've never felt this way about anyone and it's a bit scary, but in the good way. I don't know if that made any sense" I winced in embarrassment and blushed slightly. Alec smiled widely and pecked my cheek.

"Let's not make Aro wait" he smiled and didn't let go of my hand as we walked the rest of the way to the throne room.

There was a few from the guard assembled as always and all three heads of the Volturi was present. I felt uncomfortable under the scrutinizing looks from everyone and moved a bit closer to Alec. I saw Jane scowl at this, but Tom silently put a hand on her arm as if to stop her from doing something. I turned my gaze towards Aro, who rose from his stone seat to meet us with a wide smile.

"Ah, children, how good of you to come" he said as if he hadn't just summoned us. I let go of Alec's hand to take Aro's outstretched one. It was simply routine and I didn't really mind Aro seeing my thoughts. Why should I? There was only a few things I didn't want him to see, like my father's dead body hanging from the ceiling when Trevor and I found him, or my insecurity concerning immortality, or my feelings towards Alec that I still needed to figure out. I knew there was nothing I could do to hide those things from Aro, but at least I trusted him not to tell anyone about those things, so I didn't mind that much.

"It's always such a pleasure to read your thoughts, child. So pure" Aro breathed, his eyes still closed. Alec shifted beside me, but did not interfere.

"You will become an extraordinary immortal" Aro finished as he let go of my hand.

"I do hope that's a good thing, Sir" I blushed slightly, hoping I wasn't being rude. I still hadn't quite figured out what was appropriate in the presence of the Volturi heads. I knew the guard called them 'Master', but I felt that as long as I was still human, I wasn't quite in the position to do the same.

"I hope so too. Can we get a move on, brother? The human stink and it's almost time to feast" Caius growled in annoyance and my blush deepened. The blond really didn't seem to like me much, but then again, he didn't seem to like anyone much – other than his wife who I hadn't had the pleasure of meeting yet. Athenedora, I think Heidi told me was the wife of Caius, while Sulspicia was Aro's and Didyme the dead wife to Marcus and sister to Aro. I had felt so bad for Marcus when I heard about Didyme's death. No wonder he always seemed so distant and indifferent.

"Certainly. Noel, I've summoned you because the date is finally set. I'm going to turn you the day after Christmas. Unless, Alec wants to do the honor?" he said giving Alec a questioning look. Alec met my eyes and seemed rather pained for a moment, but it was over before I even had time to breathe, so I wasn't sure if it had only been my imagination.

"If that's what you wish, Master" he bowed slightly and Aro clapped his hands together.

"Good, then it's decided" I felt a bit dizzy. I don't know what I had expected, but this… this just seemed so sudden. Christmas was only a few months away!

"Oh, and one more thing before you leave" Aro said as Alec moved to take me back the way we came. I looked up at the dark haired, ancient vampire who gestured towards the double doors.

"Bring her in" he said with slightly hidden amusement. Cauis rolled his eyes in annoyance, clearly not wanting to be there. I looked to the doors with a mix of dread and curiosity. Aro hadn't brought my mother into this, right? If so, that would mean she either joined the Volturi or got killed. I didn't want either for her, because then Trevor would be all alone and… I didn't think mom would be able to handle something like that.

The doors glided open and before I had time to blink, something – or rather someone – rushed through the doors and almost tackled me to the ground. Alec growled warningly, ready to rip away whoever was clinging to my person.

"Chill, witch-boy, this is my ginger" a familiar voice hissed and my eyes welled up.

"Beth?" gosh, even my voice sounded shaky. My 'attacker' let go of me and a familiar pair of eyes met mine – except these weren't brown, but bright red. I let out a gasp.

"You're a… a…" I started shakily, forgetting completely about our audience.

"A vampire, you freak, yes, I'm a vampire – and I've been this way long before I met your sorry little ass" she rolled her eyes, still having a solid grip on me. Alec hissed and made me aware of the many pair of eyes watching us.

"Beth! Your language!" I breathed. I didn't know why she always shocked me so. I should've gotten used to her curses and rudeness by now.

"Don't give me that. Why the hell are you with the Volturi, you clumsy little human?! I turn my back to you a week and then your mom calls me crying to tell me that you freaking disappeared in Volterra! What the hell?! I thought you were dead and I had to come beat some Volturi-ass" she shrieked, completely ignoring everyone around us.

"Maybe we should take this somewhere else, Beth" I suggested. I turned towards Aro with a blush.

"If it's ok with you, Sir?" I had to verify. This was, after all, their home and therefor, their rules.

"Yes, you girls have a lot to talk about. Nice to see you again, Elizabeth" Aro smiled, but Beth only huffed – her rudeness almost made my breath hitch. She took my hand and started dragging me towards the corridor from which I came previously, muttering about my 'scent being goddamn everywhere'. Alec hurried after us, sending daggers towards my best friend who completely ignored him.

"Is this your room?" she asked as we reached it, but didn't wait for an answer before stomping in as if she owned the place. Felix and Heidi was still there waiting for me to return, but quickly turned towards us with a questioning look.

"Who…?" started Felix, but Beth didn't let him finish.

"Shush it, Shrek. No time for unnecessary questions"

"It's Beth" I breathed not sure if I should be happy about her being here or cry for the same reason. I had forgotten how rude she could be, but I still loved her. Despite the name-calling, she was my very best friend and someone I could always count on. Besides, I knew she didn't mean to be hurtful and I didn't really mind her calling me names – though some of them I would prefer not to be called.

"Apparently Noel's best friend is a vampire" Alec scowled and slumped down in one of my armchairs. I let Beth pull me to the bed and sat down across from her. This still didn't feel quite real – with having her here and all. I was getting a bit dizzy.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Heidi muttered with a roll of her eyes, but luckily, Beth didn't comment.

"Spill. Now" she demanded of me and I rolled my eyes with a smile.

"There's not much to spill, Beth. I just wanted to see Volterra and then I met Heidi at the plaza" I smiled, but Beth was practically spluttering with anger.

"You, what?! Well, of course, you just accidentally went to the vampire capital and were fished by Barbie over there. Doesn't the human magnet usually bring humans to Volterra from all over the world and not inside the city? Well, that's not important! How the hell did you survive coming over for lunch?!" she shrieked so loudly, Felix had to cover his ears and Heidi grimaced. Alec just scowled silently in the chair. Was he really that mad about Beth being here?

"Hey, freak, focus!" Beth snapped her fingers in front of my face and I blushed slightly.

"Aro says I have some sort of talent"

"Yes, the talent of being the most un-fucking-lucky klutz in the entire goddamn world! Man, I knew I should never have let you move to Italy" she was now pacing back and forth on my floor. The others were watching her somewhat timidly. Beth was a force of nature, so I wasn't surprised.

"How on Earth did you two become friends?!" Heidi suddenly exclaimed, making Beth stop to glare daggers at her and I turned to look at her with confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…"

"She thinks I'm too much of a bitch to be friends with such a dense little human like yourself, strawberry head"

"Would you stop calling her names?!" Alec jumped up from the chair, his hands culled up in balls. I stood from the bed.

"Or what, lover-boy? You're gonna cut off my senses? Tear me to pieces in front of sweet, innocent, little Noel" Beth smirked while hugging me close and leaning her chin on my shoulder. Alec was practically shaking with anger.

"Beth! You're being rude! Alec would never hurt my friends. Stop being ridiculous" I sighed tiredly. This was going to be a long day, if I were to spend it with both of them.

"Don't be so sure, Noel" Alec growled and I couldn't help but notice how handsome he was when he was angry. My heartbeat quickened. What was I thinking?! Focus, Noel, Alec was always handsome. Oh, this is so not helping! I forced myself to return back to reality before my thoughts got too sidetracked.

Beth just giggled cruelly. Did she have to do that? Couldn't she see she was just making things worse?

"Oh, did you hear that? You're scaring her, lover-boy" Beth nuzzled her nose against my neck. A flash of pain crossed Alec's face before his expression turned void of emotion. That's when I snapped. I rarely got angry, but even though Beth was my best friend and I loved her, I couldn't tolerate her being mean to Alec. She enjoyed agitating people by being extremely rude far too much. I brushed her off and looked her in the eyes.

"Beth! That's enough! Would you please try to be nice?! I had really missed you and needed your advice, and when it turns out you're actually a vampire and I can therefore talk to you, you… you… do this!" I yelled. Ok, maybe 'yelled' wasn't exactly it, but I raised my voice considerately.

Beth's smile grew wider and she gave me a quick hug.

"Good, you're ok. When I heard you were with the Volturi, I freaked! Don't ever scare me like that again, stupid" she smiled and tousled my hair. I pouted, trying not to smile at her, as I was still mad about her hurting Alec.

"Stop that, I'm still angry" I pouted childishly, but she only laughed.

"That's good too. You know I had to make sure that you like witch-boy, so it wasn't just one-sided puppy-love from his side" she planted a quick kiss on my cheek before turning towards Alec – who seemed as dumbstruck as Felix and Heidi.

"If you hurt her, I have to kill you, you know?" she winked at him before strolling towards the door as if she was walking on a catwalk. She turned in the doorway.

"I'll see you later, sugar. Tootles" she winked at me and I couldn't help the smile forming on my lips. So typical. Couldn't that girl just do something normally? If she wanted to know about that stuff, she could've just asked instead of playing those mind-games.

I slowly turned towards the others.

"I'm sorry about Beth. She can be a bit… much"

"You don't say" Felix muttered still seeming to be a bit in shock. Heidi shook her head as if she was still trying to process what just happened. Alec had crossed his arms across his chest and refused to meet my eyes. I sighed.

"Well, it's almost dinner-time. Afton must be back from the airport with a fine group by now. Felix, are you coming?" Heidi broke the silence and moments later, I was alone with Alec – trying not to think about what Heidi just said. I would never get used to their way of looking at humans – as if we were nothing but cattle.

"I'm so sorry, Alec" I warily stepped closer to him, but didn't dare to touch him. I wasn't sure if he would want that when he was still mad. He sighed and let his arms fall to his sides.

"Don't apologize for her. Nothing of what just happened is your fault. I'm the one who should be sorry for losing my temper. I don't want you to be scared of me" he truly looked sorry and it broke my heart. I took both his hands in mine and caught his gaze. He barely closed his fingers around mine as if he was afraid of hurting me. I gave his hands a reassuring squeeze.

"I could never be scared of you" I smiled, but it fell as he pulled his hands from mine.

"I heard your heartbeat quicken, Noel" he said accusingly as if that closed the discussion.

"So? My heartbeat always quickens when you're around. I just…" I blushed.

"For a moment, I thought you looked rather handsome when you are angry" I mumbled embarrassedly. Now it was my turn to avoid his eyes.

"What?"

"Well, I always think you're very good-looking, but I just noticed that…" he quickly shut up my ramblings with a peck on the cheek. I blushed deeply and couldn't help the smile that pulled at my lips. He chuckled and gently put his cold hands on either side of my face. It felt good against my heated cheeks. I met his red eyes that were slightly darker than usually. He needed to feed too.

"You're so cute, princess" he smiled widely without any trace of a condescending tone. My heart fluttered and I wanted to kiss him so bad. For a moment, I thought he would lean in and meet my lips with his, but I never found out if that was his intension as someone knocked on my door. He let go of me after placing a delicate kiss on my nose, and I went to open the door in a bit of a daze.

"Oh, hello, Demitri, what are you doing here?"

"Fetching Alec" he smiled at me before looking over my shoulder.

"You have to come now, if you want anything" he said and Alec nodded. I shivered, trying not to think about what they were going to eat.