Recap of Chapter 20:
The students return to FSA after fall break, wishing for more time off to relax but sadly studies have to be done. Edward and Bella share a heartfelt moment when singing their duet for the competition, of which makes them realize all the more just how much they really do love each other. But in the next day, another anxiety ridden event has occurred - James showing interest in wanting to join the FSA group for the competition. It's enough to send Bella nearly over the edge on the thought that the creep friend of her ex-boyfriend and rapist, would be so close to her. But Bella promises that she won't give up on the group, even if James is somehow let into the group so late. Just what else will the world throw at Bella and Edward?
Chapter Twenty One
December
~Bella~
Already it was December. It doesn't feel like it should be December but it was. What it should feel like, is that it should feel like it was still August with the new school year starting. Yet it still felt foreign for me to be at this school rather than being back in Seattle with the school that I used to go to. Such a short amount of time has passed after I changed the FSA policy with its students, even though in reality at least five months have passed since then.
Wait... Why am I going on about this again?
My mind appears to be heavily scattered lately - possibly with good reason.
For starters, it was December. It was the month I was born in. And in particular today was my birthday. I'm reaching that great age of eighteen now. The markings of a young adult yet at the same time I'm still a teen. Still stuck with high school, can legally vote now at least which I guess is a plus in of itself, somewhere. Anyhow, with it being my birthday, I already know it's just another day for me. Another day I'm alive, well, fed and clothed. All of that good stuff, I never really viewed my birthday as anything supremely special.
It probably would be smart to attempt and do something exciting or nice for myself today. Or at least on the weekend. It's already bad enough that I have enough stress going on for me that it's hard to actually think of anything truly positive. I always have to put on a smile, an act.
Instead of beating around the bush, may as well come outright with what's troubling me.
James somehow managed to sneak a spot on the singing team for our competition. Whoopie.
I could only pray so much for luck to be on my side for once, but apparently that was too much to ask for. After I had managed to get excused from that practice that afternoon with Edward, he and I went off on our own to seek privacy. We talked to one another, seeing if there was anything I wanted to do for my birthday (being the amazing secret boyfriend that he was, he remembered it and wanted to make the day special for me since it'd be our first time spending my birthday together like how we did for his). Edward wanted to see if there was a chance of stealing me away for the evening for an actual date night, since our first "date" wasn't truly one at the time. He was taken aback when I told him I haven't ever done much for my birthday in the past, before he was adamant in a plan of somehow sneaking out for something that night. It took a lot of convincing on his part, but I eventually fell to his charms and gave in.
It wasn't until that late afternoon when I returned to my dorm room from my recovery time of my sudden sickness, that I learned from Alice, Rosalie and Angela about the news of our newest late-coming member. Alice and Rosalie seemed actually pleased that we've gained another strong male voice for our competition, even so much as fanning themselves a little. God. I could just feel the bile beginning to form once more at the thought that the two of them were heavily impressed with James' singing and even beginning to develop a crush on him. Of course with our "war" in place still, they would never actually go out of their ways to flirt with him. But still.
When they left the room to get some food from our downstairs cafe of the dorm room, Angela stayed behind with me. She looked concerned when I sat heavily down on my bed, before she asked timidly how I was feeling. I admitted to her that I was absolutely sick to my very core at the fact that James was now on our team, holding my head with my two shaky hands. With gentle pressing of a "why?", I let the information spill from my mouth about who James really is. She was shocked and came over to me to hug me around the shoulders.
"I promise you Bella, I'll never let you be alone around him." she told me with a fierceness in her eyes. I had smiled at her and hugged her back. She asked me if I would bring this up with Alice and Rosalie, to which I shrugged.
"It's obvious they've been impressed by him and his singing." I had muttered bitingly, puffing my cheeks out.
"Oh, you don't think they wouldn't care of just how he ties to your past now, do you silly?"
"No I think they'll care and their feelings about him will change in an instant. I don't know, I'm angry that he somehow managed to weasel his way onto the team. He always knew somehow to charm and lure people into a false sense of who he really is." I had continued to mutter in obvious upset, glaring at the floor. Angela rubbed my shoulder.
"I don't know if Mrs. Idle would take him off the team now that she actually let him audition for a spot and let him on. I don't think it's right for starters to let another person join so late in the game, much less someone who completely unnerves one of the other members of the group. Either way, it doesn't hurt to figure something out to either get him off of this thing or make sure he can't do anything to you while we're doing this competition."
We talked it out some more, eventually with me deciding that I'll go to Mrs. Idle and Mr. Horris to let them know of this and work out a plan to keep James as far away as physically possible from me, just like how I still have my restraining order out against Joshua. I knew that at some point I'll have to let Alice and Rosalie know of this as well, where on that day I decided I'll tell them later on that night.
So yeah. All of that had happened.
For another, going back to the notion of me having to "put on an act", I guess it still goes all back to the fact I'm still forced to keep my relationship with Edward a secret. I'm getting extremely fed up with all of the secrecy the two of us have to go through. I know right now, I just can't end the "war" like it is, outright out of the blue with no solid reason. It's easy to see the ladies still have a grudge against the guys of the campus and are still doing all they can to have tiny little spats with them, shoot down their flirting or sexist remarks, or overall just stir up trouble to get them in trouble. And the guys of course do nothing but continue to fuel and egg them on to keep up this whole thing.
So, me coming out saying, "Hey I don't think we should continue on with this little 'war' of ours with the guys. It turns out, I've been secretly dating one of them behind all of your backs, yada yada. So are we still buddies ladies?" would surely, no doubt, end in a pure chaotic and horrific mess.
No, what's also just making it harder for me to continue putting up this act that I hate Edward's guts, is that the both of us are gradually beginning to explore more of each other - in the physical sense. You know, we're two young teens and I guess the easy thing to do is blame it on the fact that our hormones are seriously ramped up. We're wanting to be more adventurous and explore more aspects of our relationship. So to that, it also entails just seeing well how far are we willing to go physically?
I mean, the both of us had already humped one another on the day of the bet we lost after the Halloween dance.
We also nearly had sex with one another on his birthday - when we literally had only been dating one another for less than a month.
So, there probably wasn't much more for us to explore, other than just following through and going all the way to the end of a physical relationship. We are slowly building to that point, that much I could tell. Our once shy and chaste kisses and hand holding has slowly evolved during some of our quiet sessions, to more open groping and heavier kisses laced with lust. It always left us breathless, both of us being able to physically feel just what that amount of contact can do to us.
Of course, the biggest issue for us is that if we want to get to that physical last step, we can't really simply do it on campus. There's no way for us to have that amount of privacy together when we're pretty much shadowed by our group of friends non-stop. It helps we have insider-friends who can do their best to distract the other two but, that can only last for such a limited amount of time anyways that it doesn't always guarantee a great significant amount of time for us to enjoy our secret time together.
I know eventually that we'll get to experience that step in our relationship. The anticipation and pushing of our buttons to nearly triggering it outright, is just becoming on and off harder to manage.
I was jolted out of my musings about all of this when a certain pixie haired sprite awoke me from my slumber on my birthday, sending me back to the present.
"Oof! Alice! Please stop jumping on top of me!" I screeched in a raspy voice still thick with sleep.
"You're such a heavy sleeper, Bella, so I have to jump on top of you to get you up." Alice's already perky voice shouted into my ear. She continued to jostle me awake until I let out a harsh and rough screech at her and gave in. Giggling, she added in a happy birthday wish before she hopped off of me. I sat up in my bed, holding my head with one hand while I heard Angela slowly waking up in her bed too.
"I guess it's time to rise and shine according to our overlord pixie here?" Rosalie's voice that was thick with sleep too, as well as annoyance, popped up then from her side of the room. I glanced over and saw her rising from her bed, blue eyes narrowed with irritation from the rude awakening from Alice.
"Oh, get the knots out from your panties ladies. It's Bella's birthday! Show some excitement!" The perky pixie squealed, skipping to the closet to start, undoubtedly, the fashion show for us.
"Alice, please we're still tired. The perkiness is probably something our still-tired brains can't handle right now." Angela pleaded around a yawn, rubbing at her eyes.
"Take the perkiness like a big girl. I'm excited that it's Bella's birthday that we're all going to be celebrating with her!"
"We know that, Alice. But god... could've let us sleep in a bit longer." Rosalie grumbled, running a hand through her blond hair while she glided over to the closet then. I looked over at my phone and checked the time, sighing heavily when I saw that we were woken up at least a full two hours before our first class would start for the day.
"I need all the time this morning to get every single one of you dressed to perfection. It's a special occasion today, and we are going to look fabulous! So, you have to put up with the early hour. It's also just more practice for waking up early tomorrow, since I'm going to be taking Bella shopping as a gift!" Alice chirped, already pulling out some clothes from the closet. Today was Friday, luckily, so at least I would get to enjoy the weekend after my birthday today.
I balked though at what she said. Shopping, as a gift?
"Alice, please. I do not want you, or anyone else for that matter, spending money on me for gifts." I growled, already feeling my face begin to heat up. I have always hated it when people would go out of their way to buy me gifts. The girls turned towards me, with Rosalie's and Alice's faces marred by heavy pouts. Angela held a frown, though I remember her telling me that she was the same way.
"Bella, please! It's your birthday. You are my bestest best friend and it's only fair that I want to get you something. Besides, you do need new clothes - your wardrobe needs an update girl!" I frowned at that last remark.
"There is nothing wrong with the clothes that I wear. I replaced a bit of it when we started up the 'war'."
"Still! There's already been so many new and cute clothes that I want you to wear that would so fantastic on your body!" she continued to cry, the pout never leaving her face. The heat rose from the whole "body" comment.
"Why does it matter if it looks fantastic or not on my body?"
"For one, you have such an amazing body that I don't get why you want to hide it," Alice began, crossing her arms. I gazed down at my lap to try and avoid her glares. I wouldn't say I've been hiding my body, just more so I've been wanting to wear more comfortable clothes again. The constant 'wear sexy and tight-fitting clothes to make the guys drool' thing we've took to heart since the start of the school year, only can be handled each day for so long. I like the flannels I've been wearing, since a couple of them have been old shirts of my dad's that he let me have. So if I ever get homesick or miss him I can at least smell the shirts and feel at peace.
"I'm not trying to hide it..."
"Horse-shit." Rosalie bluntly said, snickering at my blushing face. "Alice is right though, you've kind of been avoiding the tight clothes we all got. Nothing wrong with going for the comfortable route, but please don't feel like you have to hide your body girl. As a bonus, you getting new outfits to show off that body of yours would still make the boys go mad, including Copper Head who I know likes to give you flirty eyes." she continued, and I again balked.
Has she been that observant? What if she assumes that I take the flirty looks Edward gives me as something else? I thought to myself, worried that Rosalie somehow knew what was really going on.
"Pfff, please. As if I'd give him the time of day." I hastily replied, trying to play off my facial expression that probably gave away my sudden surprise. She chuckled and nodded her head.
"Well duh, we know that. Thus it'd still work well to our advantage, you know?"
"Exactly!" Alice chirped in, and I let out a heavy sigh, relaxed. Thank god.
Angela chuckled then, shaking her head.
"Well, we'll amuse you Alice and you can doll us up if you want. The shopping trip gift, that's purely up to Bella so please if she really doesn't want you spending money like that, on her then you need to respect that. Alright?" Angela was quick to come to my defense, trying to come up with the compromise to make me and her happy in both cases.
"But -"
"No, Alice. It's Bella's choice. Simple as that." she was also quick to put her foot down to stop Alice from trying to argue any further on it.
She's such an amazing friend. I thought to myself, laughing at Alice's continuous pout.
"I'll think about it Alice, alright?" I gave in somewhat, rolling my eyes. I know she just wanted to give me a gift, no matter how ridiculous it might actually be. So the least I could do was at least give her some hope and actually consider it. Alice perked up upon hearing this and clapped her hands excitedly.
"It's not a yes!"
"But it's not a no!" I groaned at that statement when she dove right back into the closet. I've unleashed the beast.
After that, we let Alice have her fun in dolling us for today. She spent a short amount of time on Rosalie and Angela, before letting Rosalie take over the reigns to finish up Angela and herself. Then, the pixie turned towards me, a curling iron in one hand and a tube of lipstick in the other. A devious smirk graced her pale face.
"Oh no..." I muttered, my face probably contorted in fear.
"Oh yes!" she squealed giggling.
I sat there and endured the torture. My hair was tugged this way and that, my face took whatever makeup she stuck there, and my body was pulled around like a doll as she threw whatever clothes she deemed fitting for today. By the time she was all done, it took me a couple seconds to wake myself up again to take in all that she had done. (I probably dozed off, somehow, without fully noticing it myself.)
"Voila! My masterpiece is done!"
I took her open hand and let her lead me over to the standing mirror we had in our room, and look at my reflection. My mouth dropped open in a gape. Alice looked over myself to appreciate her work in the mirror with me, and giggled at my expression.
"I know, I know. It's stunning, isn't it?" she teased, beaming at me.
It was like I was looking at a total stranger in the mirror. My long hair looked glossy and so silky, shiny even as it cascaded around my pale face. The curls she did in my hair were so delicate and pretty that I couldn't help but play with one of them, twirling it around my finger on and off. I then took in the makeup she did for my face, surprised that she didn't go overboard like I thought she would. Nothing appeared to be too heavy, it looked natural. Skin looked even from the light tinted moisturizer she did, eyes were framed between my perfectly groomed brows, the eye shadows that complimented my eye color, the eyelashes that looked elongated to make my eyes look so big and doe-eyed. I lifted a finger to my lips, noting the red that wasn't too bright or too dark, and she snickered.
"The lipstick isn't going to be budging off by the way. It's a good formula that's going to last all day."
"Alice..." I breathed, unable to really form words at how amazed I am at her work.
"I know, it's absolutely perfect."
"Damn Bells, you are looking hella smoking." Rosalie praised, letting out a wolf whistle and a smirk. Angela who was standing beside her, nodded her head excitedly in agreement. The three of them were dressed well today too, between Alice's normal cute style, Rosalie's tight hugging clothes that fit her style naturally, and Angela's comfortable yet well put-together sweater and pants. Alice then stuck a wool-knit beret on my head, making sure it fit well yet didn't disturb the curls.
I engulfed her into a tight hug when she was done, and she laughed.
"Thank you. Holy shit, I didn't know how much I would like it but I absolutely love it Alice." I told her, squeezing her. She squeezed me back and then pecked my cheek.
"You're welcome Bella, I want you to look perfect today. It's your day after all." she chirped, smiling brightly up at me.
"I think, I'll be willing to accept the shopping trip. Honestly, I think it'll be fun as long as I get to spend it with you girls." I admitted as we were walking out of the dorm room. She let out an excited scream and tackled me into a pixie bear hug; it nearly knocked me to the ground on my ass.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you Bella! I promise you won't be disappointed!" she screeched happily up to me, her eyes alight with a new excitement. Here's to hoping I won't regret giving the pixie this wish.
We continued our way out of the dorm, with the other girls who knew us stopping to wish me a happy birthday. They either gave me hugs or took a picture with me, saying they'll tag me on any social medias we share to get the word spread today that everyone on campus should wish me a happy birthday today. I blushed at that, mostly not one for wanting all of the attention on me, but I smiled and still took their wishes or whatever they said to me, in appreciation.
"Oh jeez! It's freezing out here!" Jessica, who had joined us in walking out of the dorm after we met up with her, screeched once we reached outside.
"Well it is December, and we live in a normally cool state." Rosalie pointed out, rubbing her arms to try and create a bit of warmth for herself. We nodded in agreement and realization at how true the obvious was. I was holding onto myself in vain to try and keep the warmth that I had in my body, when I heard a very loud whistle. Oh boy. Well I guess it was time to start the obvious and usual routine.
"My my. Little Swan seems to be all dolled up today." My insides melted upon hearing that familiar honey voice, and we turned to find them. The boys were walking towards us at our usual meet up spot that we always seem to converge on. They each were donned in clothes to try and combat the lack of heat today, though Emmett was the least bundled-up. It wasn't surprising considering he was a hulking mass of meat so no doubt he didn't need much to actually keep himself warm.
It took every ounce in me to not ogle Edward for too long; didn't want the girls - at least Alice and Rosalie - to question as to why I was eye-fucking him. It was hard though. My Adonis was dressed today in a tight black sweater, a scarf wrapped around his neck to provide more warmth. A black beanie sat on top of his copper messy hair, while he wore a pair of black jeans that hugged those strong legs of his in all of the right places.
Fuck me sideways.
Coming back down from my fantasies, I noticed Alice scoffed at her adoptive brother's remarks. "If you think my best friend is dressed up for you, you pig, then you're sadly mistaken and dreaming for something that will never happen." she remarked with a smirk. Edward's emerald hues rolled around, and he frowned at her.
"Sadly, you're trying to dress an ugly duckling, Alice. It's a good attempt, so nice try in getting little Swan's hopes up." Emmett came in then with his awfully rude comment. Every time, he always has to put me down. I thought to myself, and noted how Edward really looked like he wanted to punch Emmett for that comment. That's my prince.
Rosalie stepped in then to defend me.
"For one, Bella's no ugly duckling. The only ugly I see right now, is coming both from your mouth and you in general, you hulking mass of stupid." She growled at Emmett, her blue eyes alight with anger. Emmett actually jumped back a bit from how much venom was laced in her voice. Probably had to be a first again, seeing the giant Emmett actually be afraid of Rosalie.
"And for another, Bella looks absolutely beautiful no matter what. We dolled her up today since it's her day, but doesn't matter. Any other day, she's perfect the way she is and neither of you would ever be able to have a shot at my best friend. No way in hell would she look twice at you fucks." She added confidently, hands on her hips while the rest of us let out harsh laughs at the boys. I hoped mine sounded convincing enough. If only Rosalie knew.
The boys pouted heavily at that remark.
"Aww, are you wee boys upset at us for that?" Jessica teased them in a baby voice, snickering.
They recovered, glaring.
"Well, sorry. But the truth has been said. Someone needs to wake you boys up from your deluded fantasies." Rosalie continued, raising an eyebrow over at them as if to dare them in challenging her.
"As I was also speaking the truth. Granted, I'm not into small pipsqueaks like Swan. Nah, I'm into the more tall, blond and shapely girls." Emmett was the quickest to respond, leering over at Rosalie. I rolled my eyes at this. Lord, he really had to be the worst one.
Us girls shuttered at that statement.
"As if I'd ever be into you, you dumbass." Rosalie remarked, tossing her perfect locks behind her shoulder.
"I'd never date creeps." Alice hissed, making her glare completely obvious as she directed it over at Jasper. He balked a little, pulling his jacket closer to him in attempts of trying to play it off.
"And I'd never date any guys that acted like you." I spoke up to play along, throwing a glare over at my Adonis. Instead of backing down, he smirked confidently down at me.
"I bet you I could easily make you change your mind. Granted you'd have to give me a chance to warm you up and melt away that cold attitude you got. But, I think you'd easily fall for my charms." he boasted, winking. He even used such a convincing, smooth tone that I nearly gave in. The damn cheater.
"Puh-lease!" I fake growled, crossing my arms over my chest.
Suddenly, I heard the bell go off in the distance of the main school building. Damn, seems we spent way too much time out here having this little spat with the boys that we didn't realize the time that had passed.
"Great, you fucks are going to make us late for class. Come on ladies, let's get to our education." Alice growled, pulling Jessica and Angela with her. Rosalie looped her arm through mine and we all strutted off on our separate ways, leaving the boys behind.
"Thanks, by the way. For standing up for me." I mumbled to Rosalie in appreciation. I was really happy she was quick to defend me against Emmett's nasty remarks about my appearance. She smiled brightly at me and pecked my cheek like Alice had this morning.
"You're really pretty, Bella. No way I was going to let some fuckwit like him try and put you down."
I chuckled at that, nodding my head.
The morning passed by in a blur. I took all of the birthday wishes with appreciation and giving everyone smiles. It actually felt nice that people remembered it was my birthday, and were going out of their way to try and say it. Even some of them saying they'll want to do something with me to show how much they like me and how much of a friend they were. It felt abnormal for me since in the past, I made sure to never make a big deal out of today. But after getting so many of these, it felt nice and made me realize that maybe I shouldn't be so much of a stickler about it.
Lunch time came around at last. Our practice for our music group was cancelled today on account that Mrs. Idle was sick for the day, and our other coaches were away as well. So at least it was a means of an escape away from James.
Tanya, Irina and Lauren joined us at our table. Tanya asked Jessica if she had told us yet.
"Told us what?" Angela inquired, looking over at her with a raised eyebrow.
"There's a winter dance going down tonight." Jessica began, clapping her hands excitedly.
"A dance?" Rosalie, Alice and I asked simultaneously; our tones varied between excitement from the two of them, and hesitation from me.
"I know, it's last minute." Lauren inputted, snickering.
"It's supposed to be a dance the staff is allowing us to have, to relax. Seeing as we have winter finals coming up soon, they wanted to give us a chance to have fun for a night." Tanya added in. Already, I could tell from Rosalie, Alice and Jessica's bouncing they looked excited.
"Oh my god! We have to go! That's the fun we can do tonight for your birthday." Jessica squealed, looking at me pointedly.
I bit my lip. Shit well... now I guess I have to come up with a hopefully convincing excuse. I thought to myself. With it being my birthday, Edward had finally texted me during passing period that he was going to still take me out tonight, since he had something planned for me. Whatever it was.
"I can't go."
"What?! Why not?" Alice cried, frowning at me.
"My parents texted me, asking if I would be up to going out to dinner with them tonight. You know, seeing as how it is my birthday, they want to spend some time with me on it." I lied. In truth, I'm pretty sure my parents will want to go out to a dinner with me to spend time with me. They haven't called or texted me asking about it but I'm sure they will.
"Oooh." Rosalie made a noise then, and nodded her head. "Well honestly, as much as I know all of us would like to spend time with you tonight, we understand that they are your parents and they want a dinner with you." She said next, smiling.
The other girls nodded in agreement, with Alice thankfully not putting up a fuss over it. I sighed in relief, happy they believed the lie.
(Hours later)
My phone began ringing and I raced over to my phone, smiling when I saw who was calling.
"Hey dad!"
"Hey there Bells." I heard his gruff voice respond after my greeting.
"Hi sweetie!" I laughed when I heard the next voice that chimed in.
"So mom is there with you as well?"
"Yeah, she decided she'll drop by for the weekend. Since it's your birthday, you realize that we're going to want to take you out to dinner, yes?"
"I know that, and of course I'll go out to dinner with you guys." I told him, smiling.
"When would be the best time then?" My mom's voice cut in then.
"Um..."
"I can take a guess that you're going to be busy tonight yeah?" My dad asked next, as if reading my mind in knowing that I'll be busy with someone else tonight. I let out a sigh of relief. I still hadn't told my mom about Edward, though I think maybe sooner or later it would be wise to tell her. It was also great that I was alone in the dorm room right now, working on getting ready for my secret date with said secret boyfriend.
"Yeah, I do. Listen, would it be alright if I bring someone along for our dinner? I think I'll be able to come out for it tomorrow night, but I figure maybe mom should meet this person." I asked, pursing my lips.
"Ooh! Is it a boy?" Jesus, my mom was quick.
"Uh... Yes." I gave in, laughing when I heard her squeal.
"Ah! Renee please! You're basically screaming into my ear." I laughed even more upon hearing my dad's complaining.
"Sure Bells, bring him along. Your mom and I will make the reservations for our dinner. I can even swing by and pick you two up from the school." Charlie offered after a bit, and I smiled brightly to myself.
"Sure, that works out for me! I'd appreciate it if you can dad." I replied happily.
We exchanged a few more words, and then with a final happy birthday wish, love yous and all, we hung up. No sooner did I stand from my bed to continue getting ready, did my phone ring a second time.
"Hello?"
"Hey there baby." I let out a little happy noise upon hearing that velvet voice come through on the phone.
"Hey." I breathed, and heard his chuckle.
"So, how's my beautiful girl doing on her birthday so far?" Edward asked.
"I'm doing alright, babe. It's been a nice day really, though I've been absolutely dying to spend some alone time with you." I murmured, biting my lip with a small smile. He let out another chuckle.
"Trust me, I've been dying to get to our alone time tonight as well. I'm really excited for what I have planned for you, and can only hope you'll like what I have in store." he purred and I giggled girlishly.
"I honestly can't wait. I'm almost done in getting ready, so I should be able to meet up with you soon. Where are you? Need to know if I'll need to sneak off away from the eyes of the others."
"I'm hidden out front by the main gate. I got us a ride to take us into town, to the restaurant I'll be taking you to."
We talked for a couple more minutes before we hung up on one another. I finished getting ready, pulling my hair into a bun. I then took in the dress that I switched to, smiling. For some reason I wanted to wear a maxi dress that also had a turtle neck and long sleeves (so at least I wouldn't freeze to death), pairing it with some black heels. Alice helped me in toning down the makeup she had put on for me today, as well as gave me a clutch to where I could stow away my phone, dorm room keys, cards, ID and some other little things.
Of course I waited till the girls were gone, before I put on a special underwear set. I guess I was hoping that something would happen tonight, or maybe I just wanted to try to feel a little sexy for Edward. But, I have no idea if we would even be able to do anything like that.
I left the dorm room, sneaking my way out carefully to the front where Edward said he would be. Once I reached the gate, I saw him and had to fan myself for a second. Why is it that he had to be so perfect in anything and everything? He was dressed well, wearing now nice trousers and a black jacket. When he turned towards me, he was wearing a blue tie and white dress shirt underneath. His hair looked messy like it always did - the way I liked it. In his hands, he had a small rose bouquet.
"Hi." I breathed again, feeling my face heat up upon seeing him and how intense those green eyes of his were staring at me. Edward's mouth parted a little when he first laid eyes on me, but he shook himself and that little smirk of his appeared on his beautiful face.
"Damn. I feel really under dressed now." He breathed next, laughing. I giggled and walked up to him, letting him hand me the roses.
"You didn't have to get me these." I giggled, breathing in the roses. He chuckled and then bringing something out from behind his back, he had a little bag in his hands. "Nor did you have to get me anything else." I added, narrowing my eyes up at him. He knew how much I didn't want people to spend money for me or get me any gifts.
Edward rolled his eyes.
"You're my girlfriend, Bella. I am going to get you gifts because I want to spoil you. So please, amuse me." he argued, pulling a familiar pout that looked pretty similar to Alice's that she pulled on me this morning. Ugh.
I let out an exasperated groan to let him know just how easily it worked on me; a victorious, shit-eating grin graced that face of his in the next second.
"And victory."
A sleek car pulled up then and I gasped. "Oh please tell me you didn't spend a fortune on me to get this ride to take us to dinner." I cried at him and he shrugged his shoulders.
"Carlisle and Esme gives us enough money on our cards to ensure that we have enough for books, clothes, foods or anything else while we're at the school. Getting this car as a means of a ride to the restaurant honestly wasn't that much. Besides, like I said, I want to spoil you so again amuse me princess." I huffed at his reasoning, noting he had the door to the backseat open for me.
"You're lucky I love you too much." I grumbled in defeat and got into the car, hearing him chuckle once more.
He got into the back with me after making sure I was secure in my seat, then told the driving the location we'd like to go to. During our car ride, Edward sat close to me with his hands playing with my hair while he stared down at me intensely. His eyes seemed to be filled with love and joy that he was able to spend this day with me in privacy. I smiled back up at him, playing with the ends of his hair. It felt really nice that we'd get to have tonight together, just the two of us. No worries about being caught by our friends, or interrupted. We could just be Bella and Edward.
It didn't take us long to make it to the little town, and soon the car stopped. Edward got out and raced around to my side, opening the door and extending a hand down to me. I took it and we thanked the driver before he closed the car door and we were left on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant, the car driving away.
"I hope you like the food here. I've been here a couple times with my family, and I've always liked the food here. They mainly specialize in Italian, but they have like steaks and seafood here too." Edward rambled while we walked towards the door. I put a hand on his, causing him to look down at me.
"Relax sweetheart. I trust the choice of food you wanted to do for tonight. I'm sure whatever I'll pick to eat, I'll be happy." I reassured him, knowing he was already beginning to get nervous. He let out a sigh of relief, smiling down at me.
Stepping into the restaurant, I heard the soft music of jazz playing. It was dimly lit, and there were a few tables already filled with adults. Some I could see were on dates too, and a few were groups who were laughing to themselves over whatever conversations they were having. Edward and I walked up to the hostess. She was a young adult, probably no more than 21. She was shapely and a little bit taller than me, with pale skin and bright red hair. She had a name-tag that read Cindy.
She looked up when she heard my heels clicking, and smiled at us.
"Hi. I have a reservation for two, under the name Cullen." Edward spoke to her, and she looked down at her podium, no doubt there being a list of reservations somewhere on there. She hummed and nodded her head. "Yes, a private table is all set up for you and your dinner date, Mr. Cullen. If you two will follow me." She replied politely, grabbing two menus. We followed after her, making our way through the restaurant passed other tables. Thankfully, the other adults here paid no mind to us. I didn't have to worry about cougars ogling my date at least.
We were taken to a rather private booth, and after she let us slide in and handed us our menus, we were told our waiter or waitress would be with us soon before we were left alone.
"Mmm, a fancy booth." I remarked out loud, giggling at how comfy it was to be sitting in it. He laughed at the obvious statement I made before he slid over to me. He wrapped his strong arm around my shoulders and brought me close into his side. His other hand went to my lap and he took the hand that sat there in his. His thumb was tracing my skin.
I hummed at how good it felt to be so close to him, resting my head against his chest.
"Content over there, my lady?" I heard him purr quietly to me, and I giggled.
"Indeed I am."
I felt him shift a little and I looked up. He was bending down and I knew what he wanted.
I greeted those lips of his eagerly, letting out a tiny moan when we were connected. It's been too long since we've last kissed each other. I let a hand come up to knot themselves in his hair, feeling my heart skip a beat when he let out a little growl at that. He always loved it when I would play with his hair like this. Edward shifted once more to where he was turned more towards me, and took the kiss deeper by letting his tongue slip out and tangle with mine. He tasted so delicious, and his hot breath was making me so dizzy.
If only he knew how much he really was turning me on like this. I thought to myself, letting one of my hands escape from his hair to rest on his thigh which I gave a squeeze. He brought a hand to mine, and then taking it in his, he directed my hand towards -
"Oh!" I gasped quietly, and we pulled away from one another. His face was tinted in a bit of a blush, his eyes a darker green. My own face felt hot.
"Uh. Sorry, that was probably a little too brazen of me." He muttered, looking away in embarrassment. I brought my hand back, just as bold, and his face became darker. Edward looked up at me in shock and I smiled, hoping it appeared to be alluring like I was imagining it to be in my head. I really wanted to groan when I saw him bite his bottom lip.
"You know from our little sessions together, it hasn't been fair to either of us that we get up there, before we have to stop each other." I whispered, and he released a tiny moan. "Bella... please." he whispered huskily in my ear; goddamn him and his voice.
"I have something planned for us tonight. We probably shouldn't tease each other like this - else it's going to be really hard for me to control myself." he murmured, and began disentangling himself from me. I let out a noise of protest and he barked out a shaky laugh. "Trust me, we'll get to have our time with one another. Just have patience. I want tonight to be special for you." He purred and shivered.
Our dinner passed by in a blur. My mind was too hazy and foggy with extremely dirty thoughts about my boyfriend. All I remember was ordering some good food and having Edward feed it to me. I was awakened from my thoughts when I noticed Edward was pulling me out of the restaurant and we were walking on the sidewalk together with his arm wrapped around me. I also realized that we weren't trying to flag a ride to head back to the school.
"Where are we going?" I asked him finally, wondering if it was part of his plan to keep us off of the campus tonight.
"We're going somewhere to spend the night together. Figured you'd realize at some point that we're not rushing back to the campus before the curfew locks us out, so at least tonight, I get to spend the night with you." he murmured, squeezing my waist with that shit-eating grin coming onto his face when he saw a blush come upon my face.
"Oh..."
"That's alright with you yes?"
"Of course!" I squeaked out, realizing that he was worried I wasn't pleased with this plan. In reality, my nerves were starting to pick up. A mix between of nervousness and anticipation.
We hurried on to wherever Edward was leading us, wanting to escape the cold. He finally stopped us as a nice looking hotel and led me inside. I was quiet by his side while he asked for a room for us. Without questions from the person at the desk who took Edward's black card and got us assigned to a room, Edward led us to the elevator.
"This hotel looks really nice." I breathed when I saw the shiny interior of the elevator. He pressed a button while humming in response, squeezing my hand that was in his. We were quiet after that, on our way up to our room. My heart was beating so fast in anticipation, my stomach a mess of butterflies in excitement. He was bouncing on the balls of his heels with his lips pursed, those cheeks of his tinted a slight pink.
Finally, the elevator's ding! had us hurrying out of the small enclosed space and he led us eagerly over to a nice dark wooden door with our room's number on it. He pulled out the key card and pushed the door open, letting me slip inside.
"Wow..." I mumbled, taking in our room.
It was just a simple bedroom, yet felt cozy and so elegant design wise. The floor was a nice soft carpet, with the walls a nice dark red color. There was a large, comfy looking king bed with clean white sheets and a mountain of pillows sitting against the headboard. There was a fireplace against the wall opposite of the bed, a large flat screen TV hanging above it. To my immediate right upon entering the room was the bathroom no doubt; when I looked inside there was a Jacuzzi tub, a decently sized shower that could hold probably more than one person at a time, and the usual necessities of a sink and toilet. And to the corner of the room next to the bed, was a set of double doors that looked like it led out to a decently sized balcony.
"I think it'll suit for our needs for the evening." Edward murmured quietly from behind me, closing and locking the door behind him. My heart skipped a beat again when I heard him locking the door.
He, with the little bag in one hand and my hand in the other, led me over to the bed. We sat down together on the edge and he handed me the bag once more. "Now, I think is a good time as any for you to open this love. I hope you like the gifts I got you."
"Before we get to the gifts, you mind if I go wash my face of this makeup?" I asked him in a short breath and he smiled, nodding his head.
"I think we can get a bit more comfortable and settle in for the evening. Go ahead love."
I skipped to the bathroom and took off my dress, noting that also inside the bathroom there was a little cupboard that held a bunch of fluffy white towels, and some silky looking robes. Man this hotel really likes to treat their guests right. I thought to myself with a short chuckle, slipping the silky robe on. I then washed my face to get rid of some of the makeup. After patting my face dry I took a look in the mirror. My face was clean of the makeup for the most part so at least it wouldn't be stuck on my face overnight and irritate my skin. My cheeks were stained lightly from my blushing still, and my eyes looked wild and alight with excitement.
I couldn't wait to see where this night would go.
With one last look in the mirror, I slipped out of the bathroom. Edward had started a little fire in the fireplace to try and warm us up after we had been outside in the cold for a little bit. I took in the fact that he had his jacket off. I took one finger and began biting on the nail lightly when I saw that he was wearing suspenders since they were off of his shoulders and resting down at his sides freely. His tie was also off now too, and he had unbuttoned the first few buttons on his white dress shirt.
"You look good in suspenders babe." I finally spoke up and he looked over at me to see my staring. The tint on his face darkened a bit when he took in the fact I was wearing a robe now and I saw him visibly gulp.
"Uh... Thanks." he choked out, and I giggled. I walked over to the bed and plopped down on top of it, trying to make sure that I didn't flash my undergarments flashed. I wanted to keep them a bit of a surprise. He walked and sat down onto the bed with me, his shoes gone from his feet. He took the bag again and handed it to me, smiling.
I dug inside and immediately felt pieces of thin paper. "Oh, what's this?"
"Tickets." he stated simply and I pulled them out from the bag. I looked at them and my hand flew to my mouth in shock.
"Tickets to go and see Imagine Dragons?!" I squeaked and he nodded his head, smiling.
"Seeing as how they're one of our favorite bands, I managed to snag them so you and I will be going to see them this upcoming summer."
"Oh Edward! This is too much, it must've cost you a fortune to get them!" I cried, my eyes feeling like they were beginning to tear up from how extravagant this gift was. He waved a hand at me, chuckling.
"I've said it multiple times and I'll say it again. I want to spoil you Bella. You deserve this and I just want to make you happy. Plus, it's just another chance for you and I spend time together." He said, and I nodded my head, launching myself at him to engulf him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around me, adjusting my body to where now I could sit in his lap. I kissed his cheeks multiple times with thank you falling out passed my lips.
"You still have another gift sitting around in that bag love." he told me, pointing back to the bag.
"Oh sweetheart. The tickets are more than enough, I can't believe you got me more than one gift." I blubbered, but reached back over to the bag and pulled out the next gift when my fingers found it.
"Oh!" I gasped once more when I pulled out a small black box.
"Now, before you say it, it's not the tell-tale ring." he hastily said, taking the box from my hand. I put a hand to my chest then, wanting to calm my racing heart when I the box. He hesitantly opened it and showcased what was inside, and I knew I was going to cry when I saw what was inside.
It was a simple ring with colorful gemstones that sparkled in the dim light.
"It's breath-taking." I blubbered while tears slowly fell from my eyes. He took it out of the box and gestured for me to give my hand. He slipped it on my ring finger and let me admire it for a second.
"It's a promise ring. You and I have only been dating for so long but, I know in my heart that I want to be with you for as long as I can, Bella. You matter to me more than anything else in the world. I have never felt such a strong emotion for a girl; never have I felt such strong love for you. In the short amount of time that you and I have known each other, I know in my heart that I will always want you and only you in my life. I love you very much Bella, so this ring is my promise to you that I will always and will forever be yours." he breathed to me, sliding his thumb back and forth over the ring that now sat on my finger. The tears fell fast at his declaration of love.
I once again flew up and attacked his lips with mine. He reciprocated to my lips, his arms around my body. I dug my fingers into his wild copper hair, scratching his scalp lightly to which he groaned at the sensation. He leaned forward and pushed me back onto the bed on my back, hovering over me while he took the kiss deeper. I tangled my tongue with his, hitching my leg around his hip. He took a hand and gripped my thigh; it sent shivers through me to feel that big strong of his hand there.
"Jesus..." he growled when he felt the bare skin there, sliding his hand up a bit and pushing the bottom of the robe off of my leg.
"There's one last thing I want to do tonight with you Bella. Only... Only if you want it though." he breathed, stopping part way in his sentence since we had freed each other from our lips and I was unbuttoning his shirt, placing kisses on his sculpted chest after each button was undone.
"I think you know what I want." I murmured to him, and pushed on him. He fell back on his back now, the shirt fully unbuttoned and falling open to expose that chest of his. I sat on top of him now, straddling his hips, and undid the tie to my robe. I looked down at him and watched as his eyes watched me push the robe off of my body. His eyes grew dark and his cheeks were darkening in a blush when he took in the underwear that I was wearing.
"I can tell you want it too." I purred, wiggling my hips briefly against his lower half that was obviously very eager to have me on top of him. He moaned and threw his head back at the movement, bucking gently back in agreement.
"You drive me mad, Bella." he growled. I leaned down on top of him to press myself against him, the contours of our body melding together beautifully. He wrapped his arms around my back, his hands playing with the clasp of my bra.
"It's going to be your first time with someone, right?" I whispered, blushing just as I felt him undo the clasp. "Oh!" I gasped in the next second, my heartbeat picking up. He flipped us over to where he was on top again. My bra was now hanging loosely on my body. I watched with rapt attention as he took his shirt and whipped it off of his body, his sculpted chest now bare for me to appreciate in all of its glory. I bit my lip when I saw how his pants was hanging low on his hips, his prominent 'v' standing out.
"Yes. I hope that doesn't turn you off." he whispered, working on unbuckling his belt. I shook my head wordlessly, not caring in the slightest that he hasn't been with any other women before me.
He finally freed himself of his pants, and now he was just wearing the most sinful pair of boxer briefs that clung to him in all of the right places. I couldn't help but stare at just how eager he was.
Edward's gruff chuckle had me looking back up at him with my face exceedingly hot.
"Come here, you. You have no idea how much I want to kiss you." That voice of his was at an all time low rumble. Our lips met again in a slow, languid kiss, before I let out of squeak and my hands flew up to my now suddenly bare chest in a natural reaction. He had ripped the loose bra that barely hung on my arms, exposing me.
"You have nothing to be embarrassed about, my sweet angel." he purred, wanting to pull my arms away. But Edward wasn't also actively pulling my arms away; he was being gentle and patient with me, letting me set the pace for the evening. I knew he wouldn't hurt me or force me into something I didn't want. "It's just you and me tonight. But I want you to be comfortable with this. You have no idea how much I've been wanting you like this, and how hard it has been to not outright kiss you in front of our friends, to have my way with you." he continued, shifting a little to keep himself comfortable while he was hovering of me.
"You know if you were to ever do something so brazen out in the open in front of everyone, I wouldn't stop you." I muttered, the blush that probably was at its darkest, felt like it was getting even darker.
That crooked smirk of his that always lit my insides on fire, slipped onto his lips.
"That just tempting me further to follow through with it."
I giggled girlishly at that, and after a minute or so, I finally lowered my arms to let him ogle my bare chest. He looked down and his lips parted.
"Stunning..." he let slip out and my breathing hitched.
"Bella?" I looked up and saw those eyes of his, dark with passion. He was asking me, silently, if I was ready. Ready for him and I finally commit to this end-goal of a physical relationship. It was something that we've been progressing towards in the past few months. Always getting so close to following through, yet never exactly reaching it. It's built up some sexual frustration for us, but we knew that perhaps doing it any time sooner wouldn't have been right or it would've been too soon for us to follow through. But he was right, tonight it was just us. Just two teens who were crazily in love with each other. Just Edward and Bella.
I've never felt so ready before in my life.
"Yes."
At that simple answer, our night began.
A/N: And that is where it will end. I can only hope that I wrote the more "detailed" bits as tastefully as I could without explicitly saying the actions between two hormonal teenagers who were in love with one another.
It's also just me dipping my toe in the water to test it out, see how far I can begin in pushing it. So to speak.
Perhaps in the future, things may get more raunchy and more explicit. I'll have to see.
Feedback is appreciated.
~LadyLily~