Fighting Temptation
Chapter Sixteen: Bullshit
Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Stephenie Meyer. The original characters and plot are property of me, Dobber17. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
This chapter has been edited by CherryBerry12.
Bella Swan
Finally. Finally, I was joining the guys on the morning walk to the gym. It was a breath of fresh air. Every crunch of snow beneath my shoes served as a reminder I was strong enough.
With a gentle hand on the small of my back, Edward led me across the gym to where Jaclyn sat, allowing me to get my first good look at Jared. His sandy blond hair curled slightly around his ears, and his strong jawline gave Edward's a run for its money. His hazel eyes were fixated on Jaclyn as she talked. Jaclyn waved as we approached, and Jared turned to see what caught her attention. He stood, clapping Edward on the back before gesturing for me to sit in his vacated spot.
Jaclyn made the introductions as we stripped our layers. I understood what Edward was talking about immediately; the attraction between them was blindingly obvious. Jared was adorable, both in appearance and action. He seemed to always be within arm's reach, close enough for Jaclyn to constantly touch or graze his arm with her wild, gesturing hands as she talked.
The real indicator was the way Jared shifted his body as Reid walked by, essentially creating a barrier between Jaclyn and Reid. Reid didn't spare us a glance. He admittedly looked a little rough. He was standing and walking tall, but the bags under his eyes and the stubble on his face told another story.
Jaclyn leaned into me. "It's been going around. Reid's been out with the flu too. This is his first day back."
I took a long look around the gym, trying to count in my head. We were about to start and there were still more than a handful missing. At least I wasn't the only one.
Three sharp whistles from Emmett had us on the court and stretching.
"To test your strengths and weaknesses, we are going to be doing one on ones this morning. If your last name begins with the letters A to H you will be playing against Jasper, I to Q against myself, and R to Z against Reid."
Emmett winced in my direction. I wasn't even surprised at this point. They explained how the one-on-ones would go. We would be playing half court so two people could go at once and one instructor could rest while the other two games were going on. The games were up to eleven, any basket only counted as one point, and you called your own fouls. Really, it was more unfair for the coaches. Even with the number of people missing, they would be playing just under ten games a piece. Though they were far more skilled than us, they would surely be sore tomorrow. As the games progressed, they stayed strong, their sweat the only proof of exhaustion.
Despite looking rough, Reid was strong on his feet, easily maneuvering around the court. I hated, hated to admit it … but he really was a good player. I watched his games closely, trying to find a weakness, allowing my gaze to stray when I knew the people playing against Jasper or Emmett.
I felt sorry for anyone who played against Emmett because he was just huge; it was difficult to get around him. Jared was the closest to a fair game. I cringed as Mike went up against Emmett; he didn't stand a chance. Emmett was a powerhouse, unafraid of some bumping as he dominated the game. He kept Mike out of the key nearly the whole game, making his two measly points come as three-pointers.
While Emmett had power, Jasper had height, blocking shots left and right. His arm span made it nearly impossible to steal the ball from him. Tyler managed decently well, but it was Edward who took the first win over Jasper. The game was entertaining, they practically matched each other point for point. They were working hard, dripping sweat, but still managed to laugh and talk throughout the game. Edward's victory point came as a quick shot fired well outside the three-point line, and from the look on his face, I think he surprised even himself with the shot.
Reid called me onto the court. A few surrounding athletes wished me luck, and Edward grazed my arm as we crossed paths. I shook out my limbs and nerves as I took my place.
"Ready?" Reid asked.
I nodded. He checked me the ball and our game begun.
~!~ FT ~!~
Edward Cullen
It was beautiful to see Bella on her feel again. Until now, I didn't realize how anxious seeing her sick made me. As she held her own against Reid, you would have no idea she was struggling to do simple tasks like sit up and walk across the room a few days ago.
My girlfriend truly was doing a good job against Reid.
My girlfriend.
I ran a hand through my hair. I still couldn't believe it had finally happened. The absolute radiance of her smile when I walked in the room…
I shook my head, unable to keep the smile off my face. I would do absolutely anything to keep seeing that smile.
Bella was holding her own, playing a strong defense against Reid. Reid was obviously the stronger player of the two, but it started to look like the games and his recovering body were taking their toll; he probably could've spent another day resting at home.
Bella kept her feet moving quick, taking advantage of Reid's slowed reaction time. Instead of powering in for layups she would fake the charge forward, waiting until Reid back-stepped before popping the ball from afar. Her strategy worked for a few points, but Reid quickly figured out she wasn't as comfortable making moves in the key. By the time they were tied at ten, Bella's shirt was soaked through with sweat, and both her and Reid were starting to look pale. Shoes squeaked loud on the court as both games continued on.
All she needed was one more point, one more basket to end the game and beat him. It didn't matter if she won or lost; she was playing phenomenally and doing far better than I ever expected. Nevertheless I wanted it for her, wanted her to have the satisfaction of beating someone like Reid, but I was damn proud regardless how the game ended. She didn't necessarily have a lot of finesse in how she played, but she was smart and strategic.
"Running her left side is her best bet. He won't expect it… he'll bank on her hesitating to use the left lane he left wide open for her," Jasper noted, always calculating and assessing.
Except she didn't hesitate. She powered through the left side, banking her layup off the board and into the basket. She kept her victory quiet, giving Reid a polite nod and allowing herself a huge sigh before walking off the court. I was ready to stand and cheer, the pride in my chest needing some sort of release. Instead, I squeezed her hand in silent congratulations, unashamed as Jasper followed the movement with his eyes. We would tell everyone fighting in our corners soon enough.
Except we didn't have to tell anyone. By the time we got to the cafeteria, Alice had stolen Bella and with one look over her shoulder, I knew she knew. I don't know when he had time, but Jasper must have texted her at some point during the morning drills. I followed Emmet, grabbed a few slices of pizza from the line of boxes. I grabbed an extra plate for Bella. Knowing Alice, she wasn't going to let Bella up from that table anytime soon. By the time I reached them, Bella was already near the end of her story, telling Rose and Alice how I found her with my iPod.
Alice's excitement was nearly palpable. For so long she was in my corner, encouraging me. In fact, as the six of us ate lunch, there seemed to be a heightened giddiness in the air. The subject wasn't pushed further, there were no more details shared, but the excitement radiating from everyone was enough to put me on cloud nine. My family already accepted Bella with open arms, and now that we were official, they were ready to smother her in love.
Nothing could wipe the smile off my face.
The afternoon drills were individually tailored, letting us focus and work on the weaknesses spotted during the one-on-ones from the morning. Though Jasper admitted there wasn't much to critique, he wanted me to fine tune my defensive discipline. As the game went on, I started slipping, not boxing out each and every time. Bella was to work on her confidence with ball-handling. Jasper praised her on her sharp-shooting, but reinforced the need to be comfortable both inside the key and out.
Honestly, it was an easy afternoon. The pairs continuously rotated through the baskets, allowing for plenty of down time as Jasper, Emmett and Reid supervised, answering the occasional question and providing any necessary guidance.
By the end of the afternoon, he smile was finally wiped off my face.
The day was officially done and we were free to go. As soon as I stepped foot in the gym after a quick trip to the bathroom, I saw the flailing limbs in my periphery before her body collided with mine. On instinct, my arms wrapped around her waist to steady her. Her arms wrapped tightly around my shoulders and her loose, dark hair created a curtain around us. Her arms were strong, crushing her body to mine. The hand that raked through my hair felt like poison.
"It's softer than it looks." Lori's voice was unmistakable.
"That's enough Lori." I grabbed her arms to peel them off me.
She tightened her grip. "You do remember my name," she purred.
In the recent midst of Reid keeping mostly to himself, I had forgotten all about Lori's behaviour the first day.
"That's enough," I repeated firmly, not caring if I made a scene as I yanked her arms from around me. She tried to reach for me again, but one look at my face had her backing off.
Her upper lip curled. "She doesn't deserve you," Lori spat, loud enough for only the few people closest to hear.
One of who was clearly as unimpressed as I. An arm wrapped around Lori's shoulder, dragging her further from me. "Lord help the poor soul who ends up with you," Jaclyn said, fighting a smile as Lori stumbled over her feet to keep up.
Lori tried to shove her arm off as they strode away. "Let. Go. Of. Me!"
"Oh, you don't like this?" Jaclyn crooned, leading Lori into the hall.
It was bullshit.
Absolute bullshit.
I didn't bother looking around to see who all saw. I was only concerned about one person, those beautiful dark eyes watching every step I took toward her. A careful mask was in place, making it impossible to read her in that moment.
As soon as we cleared the doors, her hand slipped into mine, the strength and warmth doing more for me than anything she could have said. I gripped her hand tighter, needing the reassurance she was there with me.
I took in a deep lungful of the fresh air. "I thought someone was falling. I didn't know it was her."
"It's okay, Edward," she soothed, her voice smooth and strong. "You've developed a knee-jerk reaction to those types of situations."
I wanted to smile, to laugh, give her some sort of reaction. She was trying to tease and make me feel better. I forced a smile on my lips. She pulled me to a stop an instant later.
"This is not your fault. Real talk, Edward. Vent it out. We're not going back to the hotel until you're okay."
"I'm okay," I automatically responded. She stood patiently, gently squeezing my hand. I released a breath and roughly raked a hand through my hair with my free hand. "Why can't we just be left alone. I mean by Lori and Reid. Clearly our body language wasn't enough for them from the get go. They're just selfish. Selfish and spoiled and so used to getting their way they can't take someone telling them no. Reid finally, fucking finally. started getting the point and started acting professional today. It should not have taken him a week to get to this point. Now Lori's taking on Reid's role before we can even enjoy a full day of normalcy. Just one day. That's all I want. One day to enjoy this sweaty hell with you without worrying about people lurking around corners, trying to catch us off guard. A happy, normal day. It that literally too hard to ask for? I just… I love you and I'm tired of this bullshit around us."
"What was that last part?" Her carefully crafted mask was back.
I swallowed hard, fighting the lump in my throat, realizing what I said too late. "… The bullshit part?"
"Further back." Her mask cracked, just the smallest amount. The twinkle in her eye and the oh-so-small smile was enough to break me.
"I know it's something you say after you've been dating for you know, longer than a day… but, I think, for a long time, I've fallen more and more in love with you every day without even realizing it," I rushed out in a single breath.
"You don't have to be dating someone to fall in love with them," she whispered, a full smile emerging on her face. "I love you too, Edward."