Really, Alice!? Did you just up and disappear like some damn pixie and leave me here alone to fend for myself here?! I swear if she comes back, i'll happily chew her out right infront of Edward! Oh... oh that's right. Edward. Right, okay, yeah, sure, let's get back to the conversation please, brain! In three, two, one...
"I gathered that from this little... well I have no idea what to call it, but here we are. Not that I mind it of course. But what exactly was the grand here?" Bella wondered as she quickly took the offensive.
"Knowing Alice, it was just a ploy to lure me out of the room for one reason or another. She's pretty set in her ways when it comes to hosting these parties. Which includes making sure that first time guests are, at the very least, properly introduced to the entire family. Save for our parents, of course."
"So, what i'm getting from this is that I was nothing more than glorified Cullen bait this entire time?" Temper flaring, Bella was going to push harder for an answer.
"No no, nothing so sinister or misleading. Alice was very excited to have you at the party, that's a promise. You just happened to be in the wrong part of the house when she decided that it was time to come fetch me. I'd have ventured down sooner or later." Offering what he could for an explanation. More concerned with defusing the tension.
"That reminds me by the way, and i'm sorry this is insanely rude but I have to ask because way too many people whisper about it. Are you really just sitting up here scrolling through Spotify and playing with the lights while everyone else parties?" Bold. Very bold move, but dancing around the subject would only frustrate Bella more. Quirking an eyebrow as Edward replied first with a chuckle while looking to the floor for a moment.
"I'll admit that's easily the most tame rumor i've heard about myself. Or any of my siblings, for that matter. But unfortunately i'll have to dash their dreams." Standing aside for a moment, Edward nudged the door further open and offered Bella a full view into the room. "It's not exactly the most interesting place in the house, but I will take credit for the music. The lights are just a remote downstairs." Gesturing across the room as Bella leaned a bit in the doorway, she spotted his computer. Currently running two separate Spotify windows, and likely a few idle Google tabs.
"Well, on the one hand, it'll actually be kind of funny to watch their heads explode when I tell them I saw Edward Cullen's bedroom. On the other, maybe it'd be even more fun to torment them with nothing." Another chuckle from Edward as she pondered the decision.
"If you'd care to make it more interesting, i'll play along with either choice, if you'd like. They certainly get wound up about rumors and whispering. Imagine their shock if the newest friend in their circle just blows them out of the water."
"Deal. Tell you what, give me ten minutes or so to track them down and play it up. Let's go with the first idea, i'd really like to see who freaks out more." Bella mused as she turned her head towards the stairwell.
Nodding in agreement, Edward slowly shut the door while turning away. Eyes closing as he became motionless. The patter of Bella's footsteps echoing like war drums in his ears as she headed downstairs. To his left hand he looked, fingers clutched tightly around what was once a smooth golden doorknob. Turned to a mangled mess, resting in his palm. All too thankful that she had not heard the soft metal being twisted into a heap and being separated from the door itself during their conversation.
"Damnit..."
[Cullen House, Ground Floor]
"God, it's about time, Bella! Where the heck did you disappear to? You wouldn't answer your texts either, it was starting to freak us out." Jess was already beginning to fluster herself. Bella hadn't even kicked off her little prank yet.
"Sorry, sorry! Alice wanted to talk to me then I just sort of wandered off and got lost upstairs. I actually ended up running into Edward..." She remarked, and all four of or friends suddenly shared the same look. Confusion, shock, and severe curiosity.
"E-Edward? Like, Cullen, the hermit, Edward? What was he doing? Why didn't he come down with you?"
"Well, he was just coming out of his room, and I wanted to see this supposed super-setup of his, so I asked. He happily showed me inside, to talk about it." Thank God they were gulable at the particular moment. Bella couldn't hold a poker face or lie to save anyone's life. Let alone her own.
"Wait wait, whoa hold on. You actually went INTO his room?! There's no way, you're completely full of it. Edward barely shows himself at these parties. There's no way he would have le-."
"Unlike much of what is said about myself and my siblings, this particular bit of gossip is completely true." Edward retorted as he appeared from the hallway leading upstairs. Looking much the same as he did before. Except having given his hair a bit of a taming. "But, Bella won't be able to tell you anything, i'm afraid. I had to swear her to secrecy before she left my room. So, no matter what it was that happened, she can't say."
"I was trying to tell you before, Jess, but you interrupted me. Sorry. Guess I can't say anything, now." Enough to bait them in, and likely drive them insane. There were more questions about the Cullens that could ever be answered. And now piling this ontop? Perfect.
"I'm sure you have questions, but I have to go find Alice. I'll be back shortly." Nodding with a rather warm, if inviting smile as he left the small group behind. Edward disappeared into another corner of the house. Leaving Bella and her friends behind.
Probably could have set that up a little better. Maybe less like a cliché movie scene, but hey, it worked! Shame on all of you for going off on so many rumors about Edward and the Cullens. Ride that high horse until I inevitably mess it up and become part of the gossip circle myself. Yup! I'll have to thank Alice for that opportunity. And then subsequently chew her head off for leaving me all alone up there.
Naturally Jess, Angela, Mike, and Eric refused to forget about that little exchange for even a second. Prodding her for any and all information they could get about what happened upstairs. Hilariously, Bella kept telling the truth despite their protests. Nothing. Not a thing at all. Nope. They talked, she left, and he came down. But of course that would never be good enough to satiate their ever-growing need to know. Even as they began to gather their things and head for the door, the questions hadn't stopped. Alice and Jasper had since returned to their posts from earlier and were bidding farewell to everyone who left the party. Cheerfully inviting them to the next one already before it was even in the works. Not that Alice didn't have her hands deep in future events. Looking particularly perky as Bella made her way towards the door. Offering both hands and clasping onto one of her own.
"It was wonderful to meet you, Bella! And yes, I am very sorry for ditching you upstairs earlier. But if SOMEONE, would keep an eye their so called 'friends', I wouldn't have to worry about it." Scolding the absentee Emmett as she glared past Bella. "Next time though i'll be glued to your side, I promise. Unless you'd rather hangout with Edward again...? Afterall, that was a pretty good, if abrupt, prank to pull on your friends!"
"Oh, he told you? It was pretty random but I figured, why not? But saying we hung out is pretty generous. It was great though, honestly. My dad says nothing but good things about your parents, and you guys. Nice to see it was pretty much true." Bella dodged the question as best she could. Alice seemed rather fixated on the whole Edward subject... it was really odd.
Saying goodbye to everyone else as Bella headed for her truck, she took a sparring glance back the Cullen's home. Raising an eyebrow as she watched Jasper visibly relax himself. Likely happy that he wasn't around so many people now. Sending off a quick text to Charlie as well before hopping in and beginning to head for home. A few generous honks to the others as they took off towards Forks too.
Well, not the worst night in the world, I guess. Got to see their house, get to know Alice better. Music, food, and everything else was great. Would have been nice to meet Rosalie though, or talk to Emmett. Come to think of it... Alice was so damn insisting that I stick to her for awhile, and then she took me to meet Edward. Hell, I talked to him more than I did Jasper, and he was with Alice all night! God that's so weird. He said it was just a coincidence, but still, i'm not buying that. No big deal I guess, after all it was definitely worth it to give Jess and everyone a bit of a freakout moment. Then again... it'll just bite me in the ass for the foreseeable future. I'm genuinely surprised I haven't gotten any texts from them yet. OH! Oh, no yeah I did. Great. This will be a fun night, clearing them out and trying to ans- CRAP! STOP, STOP!
It only took a second, just that one second of glancing at her phone and not paying attention. Charlie had called it, and ice was indeed forming on the roads outside Forks. It'd hardly snowed, if at all, but the cold air this far north combined with constant rain lead to some ignorantly cold nights when it came to this time of year. But even the weight of the old truck and the relatively new tires weren't enough to stop her from skidding. Doing her best to straighten it out of the skid, Bella offered a pretty fair amount of obscenities along the way. Too distracted to be angry at herself while keeping it on the road. Forks was so littered with treelines and pitfalls, another wrong move would likely do serious damage to the truck. Left. Then right. Trying to find the sweetspot and even herself out. But one bad patch after another ruined any chance it had. Only a few more feet before those thick trunks would meet her.
THUD!
Braced for the impact, Bella had closed her eyes at the last moment and gritted her teeth. But while she was expecting the sounds of metal crunching and even glass breaking if the window got smashed, it never came. Too on edge to think properly, she quickly scampered out of the cab. Shooting around the front to look at the side that had supposedly impacted with the trees. Staring in bewilderment as she just tried to figure out what happened.
Wh-what in the hell? I absolutely, without a doubt, slammed into SOMETHING. But the truck is fine. How can it be totally fine?! There are some scuff marks along the door, but for all I know, they were already there. The tree isn't even marked! What happened?! Where was the boom, or the crash, or the crunching?! Maybe the mud stopped me short somehow? Or there are some seriously big rocks buried in the ditch...
Eventually Bella's train of thought had circled around one too many times. Unable to decide whatever string of luck she should thank and got back into her truck. Making her way home, carefully, she thought it best to skip the almost crashing part with Charlie as she headed inside. No point in worrying him over an accident that didn't seem to actually happen. Shoes kicked off, clothes changed into something more comfortable than she left in, it was time to crash in the right way. Flopping down onto her bed and answering the last arrant texts that she really didn't want to. Bella settled in and browsed a few different pages before dozing off. But not before shooting off another 'thank you' text to Alice. She'd asked for Bella's number before she'd actually left. Already passed out before her reply even showed up.
[Cullen Household, several hours after the party.]
"I told you everything would be fine with her here. You were worried for no reason, even with having her so close. I'd call a smashed doorknob a pretty big victory concerning the pressure you were putting on yourself the entire time. I heard the poor thing buckle under your grip all the way downstairs, Edward." Alice looked over her 'brother' as he paced around the living room. Mind racing from one end to the other as he listened. "Not to mention keeping her from wrecking that poor old rust pile tonight. Not that you can exactly go claim a victory for that, but still, you did so well!"
"No, Alice, I made so many mistakes. I couldn't have held out any longer with her before when we were alone. Being downstairs was my only hope to calm down. So many people, that much blood, it barely kept distracted. And stopping the truck? Even worse. Imagine if she'd gotten hurt regardless. The smallest cut, the tiniest drop of blood, I would have killed her without a second thought, Alice. And if Emmett hadn't been there to stop me the day Angela was 'introducing' us to her, I could have easily snapped. He may be slower, but his strength is far above mine. That was too much, Alice. I'll spend the next few days up north feeding, then come back home. At least then my head will be clear and the bloodlust will be gone."
"Oh come one! You're just being over dramatic. We all know the risks when it comes to being around everyone else. But I told you a hundred times. I saw her in my visions, I saw her being here, and with us, and she was clearly alive. So just calm down, and the next time you two talk, you'll be perfectly fine. In case you forgot, most of us have been through this 'phase' and come out of it just fine. Carlisle can help you too, you know that. He and Esme will be back by the time you return. So go hunt, maybe find a nice waterfall to stare at for awhile, and come back."
So off Edward went to quench his thirst on a handful of unsuspecting carnivores hiding in the mountains to the north. Doing his best to keep his mind off of Bella Swan. Which lasted up until he began making the trip home.
Damnit.
