This was a fun one. Hope you like it! Drop me a line to let me know what you think xx

Seven.

After my birthday, I didn't see Edward until he returned for Thanksgiving. Almost as though nothing had ever happened on the beach that night, we sank back into our usual easygoing camaraderie. We goofed off and I hung out with him and Emmett, and slowly I was able to convince myself I'd imagined the whole thing.

Edward even seemed to warm up the Peter, who I'd started dating a couple months ago. Peter hung out with us and easily slotted into the group. He was good a sports, and apparently that's all guys need to know to be satisfied.

Following the Christmas break Edward started visiting more on the weekends when Emmett came to town. We fell into an easy rhythm, going down to the beach and sitting in cars drinking beer, playing video games and attending the occasional party. He came to town the weekend of my mom's anniversary, and even though he didn't join our family tradition in the living room, he met up with Emmett and me after and we spent hours sitting in the diner laughing and joking.

I was surprised when Emmett mentioned Edward's girlfriend. I hadn't seen anything on his Facebook, and in all our frequent text exchanges she never came up.

"Really?" I drawled, cocking an eyebrow at Edward. "Serious, huh?"

He scrunched his nose but ducked his head like he was embarrassed.

I rolled my eyes at his reaction but dropped the subject. Such a guy.

The rest of the school year passed without much drama. I was still biding my time, waiting to get out of this tiny town, but I loved my friends and I was having a blast. Summer came and went in a comfortable blend of parties and sleepovers with the girls, and frequent visits from Emmett and Edward. They'd opted to stay in Seattle working summer jobs, but they got a visit in when they could.

Peter and I broke up, but it didn't hurt like I thought my first love would. Actually, that's kind of why we broke up. I really liked him and loved spending time with him, but I just didn't feel it. The sex was good, and we had fun, but I just didn't feel that deep spark inside my belly. We stayed on good terms, though, and he remained part of our friend group.

Alice and Mike broke up, too, but she was way more of a mess over that. Emily and I spent the start of the new school year nervously guiding Alice to opposite ends of the hallway when Mike rounded a corner, or expertly sitting on either side of her at football games. He was still our friend, but it was fucking awkward when Alice was constantly throwing daggers his way.

Edward brought his girlfriend to town one weekend, and I liked her. It made sense, she was extraordinarily beautiful with long limbs and long blonde hair. She was smart and sweet and fit in with our friends. They suited each other, I decided.

Edward seemed shocked when I told him Peter and I had broken up, and for a moment I thought I saw a wave of relief wash across his face before he composed his features. I chose not to dwell on it and chalked it up to him being protective, like my brother.

The months went by in much the same way as they had been, me focusing more on school and spending time with my friends, and Edward and Emmett frequently making trips down to visit. Now that I was a senior and nearing my eighteenth birthday, Charlie loosened the reigns a little and let me drive to Seattle by myself to visit Emmett for day trips. Helga chugged and wheezed her way up and down the highway every couple of months, and there were a few moments of panic when I thought she might let me down. She never did.

For Alice's eighteenth birthday, Charlie let me go with her and Emily to stay in the city over night to celebrate. Her parents had gifted her with a hotel room and a wad of cash to splurge on clothes. Charlie's only condition was that I check in with Emmett when I got there and to call after I got back to the hotel that night.

"You're not eighteen yet, Bell," he warned. "I can still ground you if you get up to any mischief."

I was two weeks away from my birthday, but now wasn't the time to point that out. I begrudgingly nodded but ultimately accepted his warning. Charlie was extremely fair, as far as parents went. Especially considering he was a cop. "Better I know what you're up to than you sneaking around," he'd told us countless times. His strategy seemed to work, because even though Emmett and I were no angels, we never lied to him. Well, almost never.

Like now, he knew that we were staying in Seattle for the night and that we'd planned to go out to dinner. What he didn't know, though, was that after dinner we were going to the party of one of Emmett's college friends. Alice decided she only wanted to date older guys after Mike, blaming his immaturity for their unceremonious breakup. Dangling the birthday card in front of Emmett, she'd managed to talk him into letting us gatecrash.

The girls and I were giddy on our drive to Seattle, blasting pop songs and screaming along to the words.

Emmett met us at the hotel when we checked in and chilled with us for a bit. He snuck us a pack of beers and held his fingers to his lips when I grinned. "Not a word to the chief," he said. I loved that Emmett was twenty-one.

He left us to get ready and said he'd pick us up after our dinner to take us to the party.

We primmed and primed ourselves, the smell of burnt hair wafting through the hotel room. Alice fawned over her new outfit then turned her attention towards me and fussed over my make up, deftly applying eye liner and lipstick.

I wore a black skin-tight mini dress and some heeled sandals. I was still no lady, but I'd graduated from chucks this year to low heels. When I looked in the mirror, I was happy with what I saw. I looked cute. My hair was curled and cascaded down my back, and Alice had added some colour to my cheeks that gave the illusion I'd been kissed by the sun.

The three of us strutted out of the hotel to the restaurant, flashing our fake IDs at the bartender when we ordered a round of cocktails, and giggling to each other when he didn't even blink and handed over our drinks.

Emmett picked us up at nine p.m., his friend Rhys already riding shotgun. I'd met him a couple of times on my visits, and he was cool. By the way his eyes appraised Emily's cognac skin and jet black hair, I knew he thought she looked cool too.

When we got to the party, it was pumping like all the college parties we'd seen in films. It was a lot like the parties we had at home, but way bigger, and there was no fear of parents showing up and shutting it down.

People were wedged into every corner of the house, bodies sprawled along the staircase and spilling into the living room. Emmett introduced us to some of his friends, making a point to tell them that I was his little sister with a pointed glance. I rolled my eyes, but truthfully it didn't bother me. I couldn't blame him for being protective, even if it was a little annoying.

Emmett handed me a beer and turned to the three of us. "You girls be good. I'll be out back if you need me," and with that, he ruffled Alice's hair and shot a wink at Emily before disappearing into the crowd.

We got talking to some older girls. They were college sophomores and they were friendly and open, not at all condescending like I thought people might be. One girl, Sophie, had a killer sense of humour and when she laughed her whole head snapped back. It was the kind of laugh that was infectious, and she made us feel welcome and part of the crew even though we were the youngest people in the room.

We'd hadn't even been at the party for an hour when Alice turned to me and said she needed to use the bathroom. I nodded and Emily and I got up to go with her.

We found the line to the bathroom snaking down the hallway and joined the queue. We were excitedly giggling about all the cute guys here, when I felt warmth at my ear.

"Bella, Bella bo-bana." Edward.

I turned, a sarcastic grin already plastered across my face. I poked him in the ribs and he flinched but a bright smile stretched across his lips.

"Weren't gonna come say hi?" He asked, feigning offence.

"Hey, I've got a lot of people to see, Cullen," I shot back.

He looked down at me, and for the first time since that night at the beach, a flicker of desire came across his features. It was only there for a fraction of a second, but I knew I saw it. Warmth settled in my belly.

"A-hem! I think you're forgetting something," Alice interrupted indignantly, jutting her bottom lip out and crossing her arms over her chest.

Edward leaned against the wall and looked at her, eyes dancing with amusement.

"Hmm, am I? I'm sure I turned off the stove tonight. Locked my front door. I know exactly where my car keys are. What is it I could be forgetting?" His eyes glinted with mischief.

Alice stomped her foot and huffed expectantly.

"Happy birthdaaaay," Edward sang, pushing off the wall and squeezing Alice into a bear hug. She squealed in delight and stepped back clapping her hands, bouncing on her toes.

The line for the bathroom dwindled and Alice, Emily and I made our way inside. I looked back at Edward and he winked at me, turning and making his way down the hallway.

A while later, I was rocking a light buzz and needed to get out for air. Alice and Emily trailed behind me and we found a spot in the modest backyard to stand. An air of drunk happiness had settled over everyone, and anywhere we looked people were laughing, cheering and dancing.

Emmett's friend Rhys joined us and started chatting up Emily. He had good taste, Emily was gorgeous and she knew it. Enjoying his attention, she flirted and giggled along with him. Emmett found us and slung an arm around mine and Alice's shoulders.

"Ugh, you reek, Em!" Alice complained, holding her nose. He actually didn't, but this was how these two were. They poked fun at each other and pretended to get annoyed, but really they were thick as thieves. Emmett ruffled her hair, knowing just how much that would bother her after all the effort she'd put into it, and she pushed him off her with a disgusted shriek.

Emmett bellowed a laugh, turning his attention to me. "Edward's looking for you," he said.

Confused, I asked why. He shrugged and jerked his thumb toward the house motioning Edward's whereabouts.

I walked a couple steps when Edward appeared at the backdoor. His face broke out into a grin.

"Em said you were looking for me?"

His brow crumpled at that. "Why?"

"You tell me," I shrugged.

Without any explanation, Edward rolled his eyes and closed the distance between us. "Well, I wasn't."

"Okaaaay," I drawled. I was about the turn back toward Emmett, but Edward flicked the bra strap that was peeking out of my dress.

"Hey! Damn it, Edward. You know I hate that," I grumbled, rubbing my shoulder.

Edward laughed loud and deep, throwing his head back in pleasure at his ability to annoy me. I laughed despite myself, because Edward could do that to me.

He calmed down and nodded to my empty cup. "You want another drink?"

I shrugged and followed him back into the sea of people.

The kitchen was overwhelming, and Edward seemed to sense my discomfort. There were a lot of people here.

"Wanna sit out the front," he asked.

Relieved, I nodded furtively and followed him outside.

There were a lot of people there, too, and Edward surprised me by continuing to walk down the street to his car. I followed him and sat in the passenger seat as he cracked the windows and turned on some music.

"So, senior year," he said casually.

"Yep," I said with a pop of my p.

"Any boys taken your fancy?"

"Nah, the pool is well and truly dry." It was. In a small town, there weren't many options left by senior year. Either I'd already dated them or one of my friends had, and the pickings were slim. I still had fun, occasionally hooking up with one of the La Push boys, but there hadn't been anything serious since Peter.

"How's Tanya," I asked, wondering where she was tonight.

"We broke up," he said, his tone even.

"Oh." I was surprised to hear this. Edward and I texted all the time, but I guess we never really spoke about relationships. I fiddled with the edge of my dress to distract my fingers.

There was a stillness that descended over the car, and Edward tapped his fingers on the steering wheel along with the music.

When I finally looked up, Edward was staring at me with renewed interest. By now, I'd only seen it a couple of times in the past three years, but the look of longing and desire that settled over his features was more heady than it had ever been.

Recognising it, I felt my heart thump as my cheeks began to pool with warmth. I swallowed and stared back at him, equal parts confused and turned on.

Edward was hot. Like, really, really hot. For a while, I never really got the appeal when other girls would talk about him. I could see he was attractive—I wasn't blind—but I never got the way their eyes glazed over when he walked by. It was just Edward. As he developed into more of a man, I noticed on his visits how he'd filled out. How his cheeks became covered with a light layer of stubble. How his nose sharpened and his lips looked pink and plump.

More than his looks though, right now I noticed just how delectable his presence was. How he was goofy and silly but also serious and mysterious. I felt heat like molten lava rolling off his skin, and I had the strongest desire to bite his bicep.

I was sure Edward could feel it too, because his eyes kept bouncing around my face, chest, arms, legs. He looked in that moment like he could consume me, and I shocked myself with the realisation that I wanted him to.

Finally, he spoke with a gravelly voice. "You look really pretty tonight, Bella."

My breathing became laboured and I gazed back at him through heavy lids.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I reached forward and lightly touched his hand. Seemingly encouraged by the contact, he brought his fingers to my collar bone and lightly trailed them up my neck, like he had that night at the beach.

By now, I thought my heart my fall out of my butt. There were a million things swirling around my mind, one of the being What the fuck is going on?!

Emmett would kill us, I thought. His little sister and his best friend, we'd both be dead. Not to mention Charlie. Plus, this was Edward, the kid I grew up following around like a lost puppy. The one who cried when he lost a game of Mario against Emmett when he was way too old to be crying about video games. The same Edward who once competed in a farting contest against Emmett while I gagged and choked in the corner of the room. The same Edward who used to snort spaghetti up his nose with the other end coming out of his mouth just to gross me out.

Right now, though, he was the Edward that was radiating sex and want and desire, and I wanted to feel him.

Slowly, like he was testing if I was about to slap him across the face, Edward snaked his fingers into the nape of my neck and slowly inched his face toward mine.

Leaning my head toward him and keeping my eyes wide open, I waited for his lips to touch mine.

When they did, I immediately opened my mouth to let him in. His kiss was soft, no tongue, and gentle in a way I'd never experienced.

Slowly, he gave me more, wrapping his lips around my bottom one and tugging softly before gently stroking my tongue with his.

I couldn't believe this was happening. And what was weirder, was that I didn't freak out at all. I liked it. A lot.

Threading my hands through his hair, I pulled myself closer over the middle console. He maintained a steady pace, deepening the kiss but never letting it get farther.

He slowly pulled back, dropping one, two, three small pecks onto my lips as he looked at me with hooded eyelids. I saw him search my face, and wondered what he saw there.

"What was that?" I breathed shakily.

He shrugged and a slow, cocky grin settled on his face. "I wanted to know what it'd feel like," he said simply.

His hand snaked back out of my hair and down my arm. I flipped my hand and he traced shapes into my palm.

I have no idea how long we sat there, him playing with my fingers and me watching him, but eventually I started to squirm.

"I gotta pee," I whispered.

A smile broke over Edward's face and he squeezed my hand, moving to step out of the car. As though we both made some kind of silent agreement not to say anything about what had just happened, we split up when we go to the house.

After finishing in the bathroom I headed out back to where I'd last seen Alice and Emily.

Emily was now making out with Rhys and Alice was grinding her ass all up on a cute boy with dark features. Alice caught sight of me and waved me over.

"Where have you been?" She questioned.

"Just out front," I said vaguely. Alice searched my face and must've noticed my flushed cheeks because her eyebrow quirked a little, but she decided not to say anything.

The rest of the night went by in a blur, and at different points I became hyperaware of Edward's presence as he came in an out of my periphery. Something told me he was watching me too, because every now and then I would feel the tingle on the back of my neck when someone's eyes are on you.

It was almost two a.m. by the time Emmett made the executive decision that Alice, Emily and I had to go back to our hotel. I grumbled but Emmett was right, I'd promised to call my dad when we got back and I didn't want to give him a heart attack by calling when the sun started to rise.

Surprisingly, Edward offered to drive us. I shot him a questioning look, staring down at his cup. "It's been water for hours," he said, tilting his cup for me to inspect.

We followed Edward and Emmett jumped into the passenger seat. The three of us squeezed into the back, resting our heads on each others shoulders after easily the best night ever.

Alice chattered away excitedly, talking about all the people we'd met that night. Emmett and Emily joined in too, poking fun at Alice's overexcitement. Edward and I remained silent, but every now and then his eyes would flick to the rearview mirror and catch my gaze.

By the time we pulled up to the hotel I was lost in thought. Alice called my name looking at me with a quizzical look, her eyes flicking to my fingers that were absently touching my lips. I snapped my hand away and looked to the rearview mirror to see Edward watching me with that same look of desire from earlier.

I shook myself out of it and said my goodbyes, following the girls into the lobby.

When we made it to our room, Emily and Alice began stripping out of their clothes.

"Okay, what the hell happened between you and Edward?" Alice demanded, cutting right to the chase. Shocked, my eyes bulged. When I looked at Emily she was wearing a shit eating grin and began cackling. Alice shrieked and joined in laughing, slapping her hands to her mouth.

"Oh my God! I knew it!"

I felt like a deer and headlights, and I'm sure I looked like it. There was no point trying to deny it.

"How… how did you know?" I managed.

"I saw you two leave to go inside together, then you disappeared. And when you got back you looked like you were about to start levitating," she laughed, still somewhere between a state of shock and amusement. "Plus, Edward didn't take his eyes off you the whole night."

I blushed at the information and covered my face with my hands.

"Oh my God," I groaned. "What the fuck did I do? It's Edward, for Christ sake."

I looked up at the girls, my eyes pleading for them to make sense of this for me.

Emily threw her body onto the bed and planted her head in her hand, eyes still smiling at this entirely unexpected slice of gossip.

"I mean, is that so weird? You know him, like really know him. Plus, Edward is hot." I whacked her with a pillow, eliciting another witchy cackle from her.

"Yeah but, he's like my brother."

"A hot brother," Alice chortled, narrowing avoiding the pillow I lobbed her way too.

"I mean, honestly it's weird, but not that weird. Like it's totally unexpected, but I don't know. It kind of makes sense," she said, tapping her chin in thought.

I buried my head into the sheets and groaned again, totally confused by what I was feeling. I'd just never thought of him that way, then suddenly I did, and I didn't know what to make of it.

Emily slapped my ass and laughed. "Just wait til Emmett finds out!"

"No!" I rolled over and stared at them seriously. "I mean it. Don't tell Emmett. I don't even know what this means and I don't want things to get weird."

Alice and Emily looked between each other then both nodded. I knew they wouldn't tell, these were my girls.

"Fine," Alice agreed. "But just tell us one thing."

I waited.

"Was it good?"

"So fucking good," I relented, releasing another round of squeals and hollers from the girls.

I buried my head back into the bed. I was so fucked.