Chapter 10

"Okay, hide. One, two, three…" the girl with dark-spikey hair began to count.

"Run" Edward shouted, taking her hand to hide together.

"Wait!" she said, agitated.

Bella's laughter died as she rounded the corner, gasping for breath. Reaching a hidden clearing, she collapsed, heart hammering. Silence descended, broken only by the frantic pounding in her ears. When she stole a glance at Edward, his usual stoicism was gone. His green eyes held a new intensity, lingering on her face as if memorizing it. A blush crept up his neck, mirroring the warmth in her own cheeks. Suddenly self-conscious, Bella tugged at a braid, a strange fluttering filling her stomach. The playful chase had morphed into something more delicate, a shared discovery whispered in the dappled sunlight.

Edward approached her slowly as if she would disappear if he made a wrong move. She understood his plan and felt like her heart would burst out of her chest. Still, she also moved closer to him until their lips touched. She had never kissed anyone, and neither had he, but it felt good. It felt like fireworks going off inside of them. They stayed like that for a few seconds, in an innocent kiss that didn't go any further.

When they backed away, they both had rosy cheeks and a special sparkle in their eyes. They began to lean again until…

"Found you!"

"What should I do?" I asked exasperatedly into the phone. "I feel bad canceling on Jake, but I would also feel bad canceling on Edward."

"Oh, Bella. That's what you get for being up in the clouds all the time," Alice laughed, "we can ask Rosalie. Let me add her to the call."

I waited hoping the three of us would be able to come up with a solution. It was past midnight and I had to wake up at five in the morning because I had to help with student drop-off, but I didn't know how to handle that situation.

"I hope you have a very good reason for waking me up at this hour, my children are sick, for God's sake," Rosalie complained. Oops.

"Bella has a date with Jacob and Edward," Alice explained.

"What?" It seemed that Rosalie had forgotten her anger.

"The silly girl made plans with both of them at 6…"

"I'm still on the fact that she has a date with Edward, how did that happen?" Rosalie asked.

After giving her all the information and telling her the story of what happened when I spoke to Edward there was silence on the phone.

"Cancel with Jacob, you always see him," Rosalie decided.

"That's not fair," Alice argued. "We like Jacob better."

"That's not the question, Alice," Rosalie countered. "Bella wants to see if what Jasper said makes sense so she should experiment. It's much easier to see Jacob again than it is to see Edward with all the shifts he has in the hospital."

Rosalie had a very good point.

"Okay, okay," Alice conceded. "I accept my defeat. Bella cancels with Jacob and goes on a date with Edward."

"Wait, it's not a date. It's just old acquaintances catching up," I explained because I didn't like the idea of a date with Edward at all.

"You guys caught up on your life yesterday, this is a date," Rosalie argued.

"Why does it have to be a date?" I asked, getting flustered.

"Because that's how experiments work," Jasper said out of effing nowhere.

"What the hell are you doing on this call?" I shouted.

"Oh, was it private?" Emmett said making an appearance as well.

"And why the hell do you have me on speakerphone? Ah!"

I hung up and took a deep breath. I loved my friends but sometimes I wanted to kill them. After calming down, I looked at the time. I remembered that Jake was working on a case that kept him up late, and I thought that canceling on him via phone was more polite than by text. The phone rang a couple of times when he answered.

"Is everything okay, Bella?" he asked worriedly.

"You know? I don't need an emergency to call you," I joked with him a little. Wait, was I flirting?

"Oh I see, you were just missing me then," I heard him laugh and smiled "It's good that you called me. I needed a break. I'm excited for tomorrow. I feel like we haven't been alone for a long time."

"Jake," I stopped him. "We were together last week."

"It's been such a long time," he explained, making me blush. "Listen, tomorrow I would like to talk to you about something important."

Shit.

"I see, well then I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"That's all? Didn't you need something?"

"Just to listen to your sweet voice," I said sarcastically. He laughed and we said goodbye.

I would have to cancel with Edward. I knew he was at the hospital so there was a very slim chance he would pick up. I dialed several times but to no avail.

Double shit

I thought about Alice's comment from earlier and a crazy idea formed in my mind. A way to fulfill both commitments. It was very stupid. It was crazy. It was really, very stupid but I would have to do it.

It would be a double date.

I began to get ready, worried about what would happen that day. I hadn't told Jake or Edward that the three of us would be sharing the evening. I knew I had to do it, but I felt slightly ashamed because of it, besides, what harm could it cause?

A lot said the voice inside my head.

Alice and Rosalie had burst out laughing thinking about how I would have to deal with both of them completely alone. Their husbands had found it hilarious too. Great friends, huh?

My therapist practically did a happy dance earlier today – apparently, I'm a freaking progress champion. We went from weekly whine-fests to once-a-month check-ins. Things definitely shifted when Jake entered the picture, thank heavens for that. But then she throws this whole "trauma bonding" thing at me. Like, excuse me, how am I supposed to connect with anyone if I'm damaged? Seriously, what's the magic formula for normal bonding that doesn't involve emotional baggage?

For the outing (which I refused to call a date), I opted for a black blouse with embroidered pink flowers and jeans. I considered wearing heels, but, if things got bad, it would be easier to run away in flats. My makeup was simple, with pink eyeshadow a little darker than my blouse which highlighted my green eyes, mascara, and eyeliner. With practice, my makeup looked better each time and that gave me some satisfaction.

I arrived 7 minutes late and found Edward and Jacob talking somewhat tensely. Well, duh, Bella. This had been a terrible idea. When I entered the restaurant they both turned around and their looks softened a little, although Edward's turned back to one of irritation. Well, I was used to that.

"Hello," I greeted them both. "Let me explain: I made a mistake and made plans with both of you and didn't want to cancel with either of you so I thought the three of us could eat together. What do you think?"

Jacob seemed to be holding back his laughter while Edward looked annoyed but resigned. Both men nodded and a girl came to show us to our table. I sat on one side and put my purse next to me so that none of them could sit with me. I didn't want to start with favoritisms. The atmosphere felt tense but maybe it was just my imagination.

"So," Jake began. "Cullen, you're a doctor, right?"

"That's right," he confirmed.

"Why did you go into medicine?" he asked, intrigued. "What drew your attention to that profession?"

"I remember this one time when a special person told me that there was nothing better in the world than working with children. I had always wanted to be a doctor, but I followed their advice," he explained.

I felt myself blushing. I had been that person. I had told him that when he asked me why I wanted to be a teacher.

The three of us stayed quiet for a while until the waiter came to take our order. I got a call from Alice and I excused myself for a moment to take it.

"Hello?" I answered.

"How is everything? Has someone already confessed their love for you?"

"Very funny. I don't know what to do, Alice. This is all very awkward, what the hell was I thinking?," I murmured looking towards the table where Jake and Edward were chatting; Jake smiling, Edward serious.

"It does look awkward, but it seems like they're getting along."

"Yes, apparently... wait. Why do you say it like that?" I started looking around and found her with Rosalie at a table wearing wigs and sunglasses. "Are you serious? Don't you have kids to take care of?"

"We're taking care of you," Rosalie said, taking hold of the phone. "Now, go back to your date"

They hung up and I stared at the phone. I smiled a bit. They had done the same thing on one of my dates with Dimitri… Oh, no. No. I shouldn't have thought about that. I had to breathe and calm down. I did my technique quickly and returned to the table.

"All good?" Edward asked.

"Yes, I just work," I answered. He didn't seem to believe me but left the matter alone.

I was about to ask what they had talked about while I was gone but was interrupted by a worker on a small platform. He announced that it was time to start karaoke and that anyone could participate. I had forgotten that they did that in this place.

"I'd tell you to do it," Jake said. "But I know you don't like to sing."

"What?" Edward asked, confused. "You love to sing."

"No," I interjected curtly. "I do not. And let's talk about something else."

"Well, I want to karaoke, so I'll be right back," and with that, Jake got up and left us alone. He was a strange guy.

"Bella, do you really not sing anymore?"

Why couldn't he just leave well enough alone?

"No, the last time I sang was at my family's funeral. That can leave a bitter taste in one's mouth."

I turned away so I wouldn't have to look at him. I remembered my little Alec and felt my hole gaining strength.

"I see," he said, lowering his head. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you," I answered sincerely.

At that moment we were distracted by some tone deaf screams that came from the stage singing "Careless Whisper" by George Michael. Jake was very handsome, funny, and athletic, but he definitely couldn't sing. Edward and I looked at each other and laughed a little. I still admired his courage to get up and sing.

"Do you think next time it can be just the two of us?" Edward asked. "I know it's difficult because of my schedule but I really would like to be with you alone without interruptions."

"We can try," I promised.

"Will your husband be angry if you go out alone with an ex-boyfriend?" he joked.

I didn't know what happened. But I started laughing. It was a strange laugh. A laugh that hadn't come out of me in years. I couldn't remember the last time I had laughed like this. My abdomen started to hurt from laughing so much. I understood why Jake had laughed so much on our first date. I didn't even know if it was funny or not, but his words shook me.

Edward had a smile on his lips and eyes full of confusion. For a moment I glanced at Rosalie and Alice and they looked at Edward as if he had discovered the fire. Their looks were a mixture of respect and gratitude. Jake, for his part, stopped singing and also looked at us surprised but happy. Edward noticed for the first time that Rosalie and Alice were there and rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

When Jake returned, we congratulated him on his performance and ate. I still had tears in my eyes from laughter. I had surprised myself but Edward had always had an innate talent for making me laugh. It was incredible to do it, I didn't know I was still able to laugh.

The conversation between Edward and Jake seemed to have broken the ice because they were now talking in a more natural way, but there was still some tension. Edward and I kept to ourselves the fact that Alice and Rosalie were there. All in all, it was a nice evening.

Edward received a page about an emergency at the hospital and had to leave with his food half-finished. I felt kind of bad for him. Jake and I were left alone and continued talking. It was then that I remembered what he had told me on the phone.

"Hey, and what was the important thing you wanted to talk about?" I asked.

"Oh that," he replied. "I was going to tell you that I really want to kiss you," I was stunned. "I won't do it unless you want me to, though. I'll let you know that I'm very persistent, but I don't want to do something you're not comfortable with. I like you a lot, Bella. And I'm not dating anyone else anymore. I guess what I'm saying is, wanna give the whole dating thing a try?"

I was quiet. I really appreciated Jake's honesty. That's what this was about, right? Get on with my life. Learning to be the new me in a world without my family. I liked Jake too. He was everything a girl could want in a man. Even so, the memory of Edward making me laugh was present as if it were a ghost.

"I don't know if I'm ready for a kiss yet," I answered honestly. "But I'm willing to try a relationship."

Jake smiled and swore he could see all his teeth. It was adorable.

"You won't regret it, Bella. I've been told I'm a great boyfriend," I rolled my eyes as I chuckled. "I also understand that I have a rival, but I am difficult to beat so I won't worry about that."

Rival? Edward? What the hell had they been talking about?