Hello! Again, I'm so so so grateful for your positive reviews and reception of this story.
I hope you enjoy this chapter.
WARNING: MENTION OF TRAUMATIC EVENTS, VIOLENCE AND EXPLICIT LANGUAGE.
THE LOCKET.
Chapter 7.
Felix was the cheekiest of the three of them, which made him more impulsive and a 'act now, think later' type of guy. Which is why, when he created a group chat for the four of them, it shouldn't have surprised Bella, but it did.
Demetri was the most serious of the three. He was a softy underneath, but while Alec was quiet and slightly insecure, he had a sense of humor that could rival Felix's cheekiness. Demetri also had a sense of humor and impulsive moments but was the most serious and responsible. Bella often enjoyed testing those boundaries by hiding from him and texting him to find her.
Apparently, she was scentless, meaning no vampire had been able to catch a whiff of her since her second week at the castle. It mystified Marcus and got on Demetri's bad side. Not only couldn't he get into her mind's essence, but he couldn't get a hold of her physical one. Bella teased him and said it was to keep him on his toes. In the end, he always found her. Let's not go over the fact that it usually takes him hours to find her.
Back to the group chat, Bella opened it to find only one message from Demetri asking if she was asleep. She toyed with the idea of making a joke but decided to be serious and reply like a normal person.
Soon after she sent the text, three knocks alerted her of her mates' presence. "Since when do you knock?" She called from her bed.
Demetri opened the door and made it straight to her side, kissing her cheek before settling against the headboard. She kept a sigh from leaving her lips. She hoped that he wasn't back to kissing her cheek after that afternoon's kisses. Felix pecked her on the lips and settled on the opposite side of Demetri, sandwiching her between them. Alec winked at her and settled on her feet.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" She asked. Not that they needed a reason to come to her, but it was getting late, and they usually left her alone after she retired to her room or bed.
"We wanted to run something by you regarding your transformation," Alec answered, placing his right hand on her leg on top of the covers.
Bella nodded; this was what Renata was talking about that morning. God, it had only been that morning that Renata had teased her about it as a distraction tactic. With Carlisle's visit, implicit offer, and her finally kissing her three vampires and making plans with Jane for the next days, it had felt like a never-ending day.
"We asked Aro if he planned on changing you himself. He said he hadn't thought about it, and we offered to change you." It was an excellent summary of everything they had talked about, Felix thought.
"I know." Bella confessed.
Felix eyed her, surprised. She knew? How? So far, the only ones who knew were the three of them and Aro. "How do you know?"
"Hey! I have my sources." She shrugged. No way was she throwing Renata under the bus.
"That means it was either my sister or Renata." Alec rolled his eyes theatrically.
Bella rolled hers as well. "Does it matter how I know? The point is that I do. So, you offered to change me…and?" She gestured with her hands, encouraging them to explain their plan. It was clear they had discussed it at length.
"We know you know about the change process and the logistics of it, but we wanted to ask if you would consider allowing us to change you. The three of us, or one of us. Your choice." Demetri started, and seeing as she was neither agreeing nor denying, he continued. "It's a painful process. I don't remember much about my change, but I remember it was excruciatingly painful. We won't lie to you and say it's easy peasy."
Bella knew this, of course. She had had first-hand experience with the excruciating fire of the change. Unconsciously, she drew her legs up and tightened her arms around them, tracing absent-minded circles on her scarred wrist. Demetri noticed the change in position and hurried to comfort her, only to feel her tense under his touch. Bella's scar felt both ancient and recent. It happened almost a year ago. James was dead, and she no longer had a tracker on her back wanting to kill her just because he was bored. Victoria was who knew where and Laurent was dead. Logically, she knew there was no safer place for her than Volterra, and soon she would be able to take on her enemies herself. But the memory of James' teeth sinking into her wrist while she lay broken and bleeding out was too fresh in her mind.
Her trauma did and didn't have to do with the pain of the transformation. She wanted to be a vampire, now more than ever. She wanted to be equal with her mates, of course. But more than that, she hated feeling fragile and defenseless. She hated hiding and relying on anyone else to save her because she was too weak. All it took James to break her was one minute. One minute that the Cullens were delayed.
"Bella?" Alec's voice shook her from her dark thoughts. She came back to herself, noticing that she had been staring at her comforter while holding her scarred hand. She looked up to meet his eyes. "Was that too much, too soon?"
She shook her head. "No. Sorry. I tend to get lost in my mind. Go on. You were saying that the transformation is painful. I know that. I know how it starts and how it ends. I know what happens in the middle. I know all of it." Again, she pressed tighter against her scar. She hoped the change erased James' mark off her, or she might do something stupid like cut it out herself and let the change cure the mess.
"Sweetheart, you're scaring me. What's wrong?" Demetri didn't try to touch her again. It was obvious she didn't want to be touched. This was one of the things that worried him most. Since the first time he had her in his arms, she hadn't shied away from his touch. If anything, she always leaned into it.
"After I'm turned, will you teach me how to fight?"
"Do you want to learn?" Alec answered her question with another one.
"I do. I don't want to depend on my gift. Whatever that is. I want to be able to defend myself if needed." She leaned her chin on her knees. The guys shared a look, worried about the sudden change. Her eyes had glazed over, and her heart had spiked.
"Bella?" Alec asked from his spot without moving an inch, all traces of playfulness gone from his eyes. "You're safe with us. You know that, right?"
She nodded enthusiastically. "I know. But I don't want to rely on anyone to save me again. I want to save myself." She refused to be the bitch in the book who waited for the hero to rescue her. She wanted to be the bitch with the sword.
"Where is this coming from?" Felix asked, moving around to sit cross-legged beside her, paying special attention not to touch her but offering his closeness as comfort.
"How much do you know of my story?"
"Only what you've shared with us." Demetri answered. "I'm sure Aro, Caius, and Marcus know everything, but we're not privy to it."
Bella then proceeded to tell them about James, Victoria, and Laurent. "It's how I got this." Bella lifted her sleeve to show the bite mark on her wrist. "James bit me, only he didn't drink enough to kill me. Instead, he started the change."
Demetri growled, pissed, looking at the scar on his mate's arm. Someone was going to die.
"I assume one of the Cullens took the venom out?" Alec ventured.
Bella nodded. "Edward and Carlisle took care of it." She could appreciate the irony of it now. Edward saving her despite her wish to be like him, to be with him. Only for it all to go to hell a few months later. She really should send him a thank you card. Without Edward's stubbornness, she wouldn't have met her mates, or maybe she would have, but the situation would have been way messier.
"Are the nomads dead?" Felix's coldness didn't scare Bella, though it surprised her.
"Only James and Laurent."
"Why do you sound like that's not a good thing?" Demetri asked, afraid of the answer.
"He was Victoria's mate. She's after me now. An eye for an eye."
"I'll kill her for you and bring you her head." Bella's eyes widened at Felix's dark promise. She didn't have the chance to respond because he stormed out of the room.
"Is he ok?" Should she go after him? Did he want to be alone?
"He'll be ok. I guess he needs to cool down. None of us is happy that Victoria is after you." Demetri answered softly.
Bella relaxed and rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and humming to herself.
They might have the element of surprise. If Victoria retreated after the cliff event, she might not know she was with the Volturi.
She felt like Shroeddinger"s cat. Victoria was both ignorant and in the know about it. And Bella had no way of knowing which. The only thing that scared her about Victoria was her uncanny ability to flee. But Bella would soon be a vampire, and Victoria was now public enemy number one.
"I want you to change me. All of you." She decided. She didn't need to open her eyes to know that her words had been registered. "I don't care how you do it, but I want you three to bite me."
She felt someone pressing a kiss on her forehead. "With pleasure, sweetheart."
She asked them to let her tell Felix her decision, and they agreed. She kept her eyes closed, enjoying the quiet comfort of Alec and Demetri. She was warm underneath the covers, the cold of Demetri's shoulder offering a fantastic contrast that lulled her to sleep.
She wasn't sure how long it'd been since she fell asleep, but suddenly she jerked awake, her heart beating furiously on her chest, sweat pooling on the back of her neck and between her breasts. She had an oppressive feeling in her chest, indicating that she had just woken up from a nightmare.
"Hey, it's ok. It was just a dream." She recognized the smooth voice as Felix's. She patted the bed blindly, looking for him. "I'm here, princess." She felt the bed sink on her left side and a body slide beneath the cover next to her. "You can go back to sleep. If that keeps the nightmares away, I'll hold you all night long." She felt him kiss her cheek. She wanted to speak, ask him if he was ok, tell him she didn't remember what her dream was about, and say so many things, but sleep won the battle, and she fell in Morpheus' arms soon after Felix slid beside her.
…
…
…
"Wake up, sleepyhead." Bella buried her head into the pillow, ignoring the voice that dared wake her up.
Someone grabbed her blanket and started tugging on it, but she was stubborn, so she held it and threw it over her head, sighing happily now that everything was toasty warm again. She heard laughter and groaned.
"Wake up, sweetheart. We can't be late." Demetri's amused voice filtered through the fog of sleep that clouded her brain, waking her only a bit.
"It better be a decent hour." She warned.
"It's 10 am." Alec informed her. Were they all three in her room?
"Fine." She threw the covers away theatrically and got up. She stumbled into the bathroom, brushed her teeth and hair, and came out feeling decent and ready to tackle the day.
She heard a collective groan that made her stop. She turned around and found her three vampires casually dressed, more so than usual, but looking at her like she was the only glass of water in a desert. She looked down, worried she had something on her clothes, but all she saw were her pajama shorts and T-shirt. It had been warm last night, and short of sleeping in her underwear, which she almost did, this was the best next option.
"How did I not notice you only wore that last night?" Felix wasn't shy in his appreciation of her. He openly ogled her. He was sweet and a softy, but she could always count on him to talk dirty or make her feel desired.
She had fascinating dreams when sleeping with him last night and with Demetri most of the time. She wasn't sure if she was ready to have sex with them, but she wanted more. After they kissed her yesterday, it felt like something in her body had ignited and threatened to consume everyone around her.
She shrugged at Felix's words, not knowing what to say. She could tell the truth, but the reality was that if she did, they would likely do something about it, and having them all at the same time, despite being a fantasy come true, would be a bit too much too soon.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of your morning visit, gentleman?" She asked while walking to her closet to grab her clothes for the day.
"We're taking you out on a date." Alec answered from behind her. He had sneaked up on her.
She turned around and smiled excitedly at her mates. "Where?"
"It's a surprise. Hurry up, sweetheart."
Bella dressed as fast as she could, put her hair in a ponytail, and left the castle with her three vampires after eating a sandwich in the kitchen while they did whatever they did.
…
…
…
"Bikes?" She screeched, surprised. She hadn't divulged that part of her life yet. It's not that it was inconsequential, but it felt too raw, and she was embarrassed she did so many reckless things for a man that had lied to her multiple times. Edward not only broke her heart and his promises, but he also withheld critical information, such as the existence of mates and the fact that they were not mated.
He gaslighted her into believing she was a silly human who didn't know how to behave with a vampire. He made fun of her desire to be a vampire, of wanting forever. Yet, he got jealous if any of their classmates asked her out. He told her she had a magnet for danger and he'd been fighting fate all the time. He was a liar, and she had only now realized the depth of his betrayal.
She had long since gotten over Edward and thought she had forgiven him, but the recent developments angered her. How could he purposely deceive her like that? Why not be honest from the start? She fell in love with a lie, and that hurt the most.
She touched the tiny scar on her forehead, courtesy of her losing control the first time she got on her bike. One of the few times she heard Edward's voice after he left her. A small smile slipped. What would Jake say if he saw her now? Three mates and a date with bikes. She would miss Jake forever, he had been her best friend, but she'd used him to get a hallucination. Whether he knew the truth or was brought into whatever lie Carlisle spun, she hoped he found true love.
She watched her mates walk to the bikes, and her slight smile became full. She hoped Jake found what she had found with these three crazy men.
"Do you know how to ride them?" Demetri asked once she was on top of her bike.
She noticed how he asked if she knew instead of assuming she did or didn't. It's the small details.
"I do." She felt the familiar excitement in her stomach, her blood pumping faster with the adrenaline rush. She tapped her foot on the ground waiting for Demetri to get into his bike so she could take off. He walked purposely slow to tease her. She laughed, and he shot her a wink over his shoulder. Sexy, teasing Demetri. He would pay for it. "Hurry up!" She called.
"Yeah, Demetri, stop flirting with my girlfriend and get on your bike." Felix mocked. She stuck her tongue out.
They had the place for themselves. Demetri had rented the bikes for the day and brought them into an abandoned terrain half an hour from the castle. He'd told her that morning to pack something for lunch since they would unlikely leave to get food. She was perfectly content with doing that. She always felt too self-conscious whenever Edward watched her eat, and why waste perfectly good food for pretenses?
"Are we racing?" Bella called, probably louder than she needed, but it was hard to shake the human habit of speaking loud over the rumble of the bikes.
"Sure. Just pay attention to the road. We don't do well with blood." Was that Alec joking in the open? Would wonders never cease?
"Don't worry; if I fall and bleed, you'll have to deal with me getting unconscious first. I do faint at the sight of blood." She grinned at the irony and took off without warning them. They had the advantage of their keen senses, so she had to take whatever leverage she could.
"That's cheating!" Alec called behind her.
She laughed and sped ahead. She had forgotten how freeing it was to ride a bike for fun. It was ironic, like most things in her life. Riding a bike was dangerous; Charlie would have had a conniption had he ever found out about the bikes she and Jake had rescued. You had to pay attention to many things at once, starting with holding the bike up with your weight. But despite needing to pay attention to all these things, she felt free, like she was flying. She didn't realize it was because there were no hallucinations this time compared to the last time she rode a bike.
She laughed until she cried, and then she laughed some more. She didn't care that Alec was now ahead of her or that Demetri and Felix were behind her, bickering about something she couldn't understand over the sound of the wind, the motor of the bike, and her laughter.
They spent the day riding their bikes until they started getting flirty and taking turns riding with Bella on their bikes. Demetri was in a playful mood that day, and she thoroughly enjoyed watching him be more open and shed some of that responsibility that was always on his shoulders whenever they were in the castle.
When Demetri slid into the seat behind her, she stifled a surprised gasp. He was hard. He'd always respected her boundaries with physical touch and intimacy, but it seemed that his playful mood bled into every aspect of their interaction. "You're hard." She whispered. It was futile; she knew Felix and Alec could hear her. She should get used to the fact that they have no secrets. It was hard to remember sometimes.
"You do that to me." He whispered back into her ear. She closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of his breath tickling her neck and her ear. "Seeing you ride your bike, so free, so careless. Seeing your chest shake with your laughter and your eyes shine is the best show I've ever seen." How could he be so sweet and so dirty at the same time?
She wiggled in the seat, rubbing against his hard-on. To her surprise, he thrust against her ass. She moaned; the friction was incredible. "Keep that up, and I'll forget myself and fuck you in this bike." He accompanied his delicious threat with a gentle nibble on her neck.
"No, you won't." Alec intervened.
"Mind your own business." Demetri warned.
"I will, the moment you stop thinking with your dick." Alec got off his bike but did not move closer to them.
"I'm perfectly capable of thinking with my head and still tease my girlfriend." Demetri barked, also getting off his bike.
What the hell was going on? They were playfully teasing each other. Of course she wouldn't let her first time be on a bike, with dirt clinging to her clothes and getting into places it had no business getting into. It was all harmless. Why did Alec get so defensive? She looked at Felix for help, and he nodded, getting off his bike and stepping between the two men about to bite each other's heads off.
"Enough." Was it wrong to be turned on by Felix's authoritative voice? Probably. She decided it was best to cool off before she did or said something that made everything worse. She took off on Demetri's bike, only stopping when she figured she'd be far enough to be out of earshot. She turned off the motor and climbed off.
She didn't want Alec and Demetri fighting over her. It was just healthy teasing; Demetri only happened to be more direct and cruder with his. Alec was sweet and respectful, his words always careful, but what he didn't say with words, he said with a look. Felix enjoyed tossing innuendos in the air and pressing himself against her. If she didn't like any of it, she would have stopped it the first time it happened. If she hadn't liked Demetri's teasing, she would have called him out on it. She didn't need a knight in shining armor fighting imaginary battles for her. She could fight her own battles.
She knew she was hormonal, and she was a step away from resembling a dog in heat. But she also had common sense. She would not allow her hormones to rule her actions. She was perfectly capable of giving as she was in receiving.
She closed her eyes and tried to regulate her breathing. She was angry at Alec and herself for fleeing and not putting everything in order herself. She said she could fight her own battles, yet she left Felix to deal with two temperamental vampires on his own.
No, that wouldn't do. Either she could, or she couldn't fight her own battles. Either she was the bitch with the sword, or she was the damsel in distress. But she refused to play one one time and the other another time.
She got on her bike and rushed back. It had only been five minutes, but it was long enough.
"Alec, back off." Felix warned.
Alec had his arms crossed and was leveling Demetri with a look. She could see some black fog indicating Alec was pissed off. He would never intentionally black out his friends, right?
"Enough!" She yelled, climbing off the bike and hurrying to step next to Felix, right in between two of her mates.
"Bella, back off." Felix warned softly, worry written on his face.
"No. You all need to back off." Demetri looked at her. She saw he was hurt. Yes, fleeing hadn't been the right move. "Alec, it's sweet that you're concerned, and I appreciate you having my back like that, but I can take care of myself. If I didn't like what Demetri was saying, I would have stopped it." Alec looked hurt as well. But this was not about sparing feelings. This was about her.
"Listen to her." Felix ordered, placing a hand on her shoulder. She patted it affectionately.
"Each of you has your way of interacting with me, and I like it. You need to trust that I will speak up if you do something I'm uncomfortable with. I don't want you all to be the same. I want what I have been given so far." Alec nodded, the hurt fading from his eyes as understanding filtered in. She turned to Demetri. "You have to trust that even if I retreat, I'll come back. Always, ok?" He nodded. "You don't need to go all avenging angels on each other. I fight my battles, agreed?" She looked at the three of them, waiting for all to nod or give her some signal that they understood.
"I'm sorry." Alec apologized, his fog disappearing completely.
"Thank you." She pecked him on the lips. "Now, I will ride with Demetri just like before this dick measurement competition. And I want to have a good time. So, if you need another pissing contest, get it out of your systems now."
She walked back to Demetri's bike with her back turned to her mates. She held her shoulders straight, and her head held high. A smile stretched across her face, almost ear to ear. Hell yeah! This is how it should be. If she didn't want her relationship with the world's three most powerful vampires to consume her, she couldn't let it rest on Demetri's shoulder. It should be her having control of her own life.
"Let's go." Demetri climbed on the bike and gave Bella her helmet. She put it on and climbed in front of him. "I'm proud of you." Was all he said before she took off.
