A/N: For the prompt "cold," from the WFN Advent challenge! Also for Lupa_Barnes' challenge, Destroy Dic(tion) December.
The day after Edythe kissed Bella at the hospital, Bella went to Biology with one mission in mind: find out what the hell the kiss had meant.
Of course, she was mindful that Edythe probably wasn't out of the closet (and it seemed like no one was in Forks, so Bella couldn't blame her), so rather than asking her during their group project, she scribbled into her notebook. "Can we talk about yesterday?"
Edythe looked at the note, pressed her lips tightly together, and shook her head.
Bella frowned. She tried again. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."
At that, Edythe looked exasperated. She wrote back. "That was hardly yelling."
She felt just a little victorious. She'd kind of expected Edythe to refuse to say anything to her. "Well, I'm sorry I forcefully whispered at you."
Her lips quirked up into a smile and she just shook her head. She didn't write back.
Bella was distracted, though, staring at her lips. She knew what they felt like now, when before she'd only daydreamed about them. They were smooth, not chapped, but somehow not soft.
And cold.
She wished she could lean over just a little and press their shoulders together, just to see if Edythe was always that cold, or if it had just been from the weather that day.
Not that the weather was ever nice here.
She sighed. Then an idea occurred to her. Maybe Edythe was still uncomfortable writing anything down, because any one could walk by and see their notes. So, she wrote her phone number down on the page. "Text me after school. Please?"
Edythe looked at the message for a while, frowning again.
Finally she took Bella's pencil from her hand and wrote back, "Maybe."
That was good enough, for now.
Bella had had her suspicions about Edythe ever since the first day of school, when Jess had told her Edythe had rejected so many boys. She was sure not every boy had asked Edythe out, but equally certain that many had. It was unusual for her to like none of them. It had just seemed obvious, at least to herself, that Edythe probably wasn't straight. Maybe she was assuming, but there was no harm in hoping that she wasn't the only gay kid at school.
She hadn't really expected Edythe to like her back, though. Not to mention that for a while, she'd thought Edythe hated her, what with the glaring and the silent treatment. It hadn't taken much for her to believe that Edythe was straight and that her bi-fi was broken.
The hospital had been a pleasant surprise. A very pleasant surprise.
And if Edythe thought she was going to let a little distance stop her from solving the supernatural mystery the Cullens presented, she was wrong.
The bell rang, pulling Bella out of her thoughts.
For once, Edythe hadn't vanished. She was still sitting next to Bella, slowly collecting her books. She looked thoughtful.
Bella started to pack her bags, too. "Edythe," she murmured. "I just want you to know that I'm not going to tell anyone."
That seemed to surprise her. "I know." She bit her lip, stared into Bella's eyes for a moment, and then quickly grabbed her notebook. She wrote her own phone number down. "In case I chicken out," she explained, and then she pulled her usual vanishing act.
Bella clutched her notebook and smiled. She hardly even noticed when Mike started talking to her about the lab.
After gym, Bella was practically vibrating with excitement. She couldn't wait to go home and stare at her phone until Edythe texted (or when she texted Edythe. Whatever.)
The cold in the air hardly bothered her as she rushed to her car. She could see Edythe and Alice talking quietly next to their shiny Volvo, and she waved. She probably shouldn't have drawn attention to them, but she figured people would just assume they were friends, given that Edythe had saved her from being crushed by Tyler's van. Anyway, she was too excited. Edythe was willing to talk to her, even after their fight—and even better, she didn't hate her. And she was probably gay.
Edythe noticed, and ducked her head. Alice nudged her with a grin, and waved back at Bella.
Her truck was a welcome respite from the cold. It was still cold from the air outside, but it blocked the wind, and it always heated up fast. She kept her jacket on, though, as she pulled out of her parking spot and joined the traffic leaving school.
She had already programmed Edythe's information into her phone, so when it chirped on her seat while she drove down Main Street, a quick glance showed her Edythe's name.
Despite the cold, she felt her face get hot. Maybe Edythe couldn't wait, either.
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