My eyes opened slowly. The dim light was pooling in from the wide, floor-to-ceiling windows, lighting up the darkened room. It took me a second to get my bearings and truly realise where I was. White sofa, pale walls, solo cups strewn across the floor. Alice's house. My eighteenth birthday party. I lifted my head off the soft, thick-piled carpet. I regretted it instantly.

The buzz of alcohol was gone. Dull pains behind my eyes and in my brain took its place instead. I began regretting the multiple shots handed to me by Jas and Emmett. I mean, they didn't make me drink them, but they supplied me with enough alcohol to take out an African elephant. The pain I felt made its way into my hand. I looked down and saw my hand wrapped in some sort of removable bandage. It took me a moment to remember what had happened. Jake. Kiss. Punch. Edward. Green eyes. Deep, green eyes.

I raised my good hand to my head, massaging my temple slightly, to try and rid the pains vibrating through my nerves and synapses. I looked down and realised I was still in my dress. I was still in Alice's house. Just not in her bed like I'd hoped. On the floor of the sitting room. Slowly, I rose to my feet (bare feet- I had no idea where my heels had gone). The pains in my head intensified the more I stood and stretched. Water. That's what I needed. A large glass. As soon as possible. I stumbled from the soft carpeted sitting room, through the hallway, dodging the many solo cups and sticky puddles of alcohol, and made my way into the kitchen. Breathing deeply, I grabbed the closest glass to me and made my way over to the sink, filling the glass almost to the brim with cool, fresh water. It did not take me long to finish it, and pour myself another, and another.

I only knew a few things. Or could remember a few things. The party finished late. Or should I say early, as in the early hours of the morning. Alice, Rose, Emmett, Jasper and I had had the best time possible. We'd danced, laughed, drank shots and had been stupid until silly o'clock. But where were they all now? Why was I the only one in the sitting room, leaving a pool of drool on the cream carpet as I slept? I'm assuming the others had made it home, or at least to a bedroom to get a better sleep than I had. Part of me wanted to creep along the hallway, upstairs and check. But the other part of me didn't know what I would be walking into, so I decided against the idea. I stepped back through into the sitting room and slumped down on the spotless, white sofa. I was surprised but also very grateful no alcohol or stains had made their way on to the leather sofa, or very light flooring. I brought my working hand back up to my head and my temples. The water was working its way slowly but surely into my system, making me feel hydrated and more alive. My eyes closed, giving my brain a slight break.
My eyes shot open as I heard the footsteps down the solid stairs.
"Alice?" I called out, but these footsteps sounded heavier than her light fairy-like steps.
"Afraid not," a deep voice called back. It got closer and closer. "How are you feeling?"

Edward stood at the entrance to the sitting room, his arm leaning against the wooden doorframe. He looked tired. He looked beautiful, but tired. Pale and purple circles painted his under eyes, his hair coppery in the brightening sunlight, but dishevelled, like he had slept on one side for the whole night. He had on a dark long sleeve top and sweatpants. Not what I was used to seeing him wear.
His thick eyebrows raised slightly and I realised how long the silence had become after his question.
"So, too hungover to talk?" he smirked.
I shook my head and gathered my thoughts. Speak, Bella. Be normal.
"No… I mean, I definitely could not drive right now, but no." I spoke under my breath, my eyes darting down to my bare legs. I tried to cover the bare tops of my thighs with my hands. I didn't realise how short this dress was.
"No, I wouldn't recommend you driving in your state, Bella." Edward said. I could hear the smile in his voice. Our eyes met and the green stared down into mine. The green as deep as a forest green, like the trees that surrounded the house we stood in. I moved my eyes towards the mess that scattered the floor and coffee table – the drinks cups, the empty bottles of liquor.
"I hope we didn't keep you up last night. I can't even remember when people began to leave." I said, my eyes meeting his again.
"Don't worry about that. I'm not precious about my sleep schedule." He sighed and began to pick up the empty red solo cups. I slowly rose from the couch and did the same, gathering up the rubbish people had left on the floor, silently praying there was no spillage on the almost white carpet.
I didn't truly understand what Edward meant by that- was his sleep schedule erratic? What kept him up? Did he work through the night? I didn't want to pry.

"How's your hand?" he asked, pointing down at the hand in the temporary bandage. I took my injured hand in my other, holding my wrist close to my chest. It ached with the movement, but wasn't as sore as I remember it being when it connected with Jacob's face.
"It feels… It aches. I think I'll survive through, thanks to you, Dr. Cullen." I picked up a few more solo cups and stacked them, placing them on the coffee table.
"You'll need to practise your punches- ways tonothurt your hand on impact." He murmured.

We continued to tidy in silence. Edward moved through to the kitchen and grabbed a bag to place all the empty bottles in. The sitting room and hallway were looking more how I was used to seeing it- clean, pristine and hospital-like with all the white and bright. The kitchen was going to the big job.

It seemed as if Edward and I were the only ones in the massive house. We worked quickly and quietly. Although the kitchen was a very big space, Edward moved around the island and counters in close proximity to me. Wiping surfaces, gathering glasses, popping balloons and chucking them in the trash bag. It felt weirdly normal. I had only met Edward months ago, at Jake's party, and seen him a handful of times in the Cullen house when spending time with Alice. However, we had never truly had a conversation until last night. And what circumstances it was. Him playing doctor. Me, unsure if I was able to string a comprehensive sentence together in my drunken state. He didn't know much about me; I didn't know much about him. Only what Alice had told me. I thought back to last night, and remembered what Edward had told me. Him dropping out of medical school. Or not even going. I couldn't remember specifically. Screw the alcohol for blurring my memory.

I decided to break the verbal silence.
"So, what do you do, if you're not at med school?" I tried to ask in a nonchalant manner. I didn't want to come across as nosy or prying, even though, I really was prying. He looked up from putting balloon remnants in the trash bag, a more serious look on his face. His expression made his jaw harden; his jawline even more defined than usual.
"I work at a bar, to my mother and father's distaste. It's not forever, but it pays the bills for now," he said, staring deeply into my eyes. "Hence the late nights and sleep schedule."
That made sense- bar work meant Edward was likely to work into the early hours of the morning. He was probably very used to being around drunken idiots, like he was last night. I wonder why Carlisle and Esme didn't approve. Maybe Carlisle really wanted Edward to be like him- a medical professional. There aren't many bars in Forks, so I imagine he works in a town or city nearby.
"It's a small bar in Port Angeles. It's called the Drawing Room. It has a good vibe to it, not too many assholes or drunk old men." He said, continuing to gather balloons. He popped the one in his hands, and I jumped at the noise. Looking at Edward, I could imagine him working behind a bar, serving drinks, shaking cocktails and throwing out people have had one too many. He was only twenty-one, but came across a lot older than he was. I wish I was like that, but my baby face said otherwise. There'd been a few occasions at the Thriftway, where I'd been ID'd to buy Tylenol, which is ridiculous.
"It sounds nice." I said, but immediately regretted the words coming out of my mouth. I'd turned eighteen yesterday. I'd never stepped foot into a bar- legally. He probably could guess that.

"Tell me then, Bella", he said in a low voice. I liked the way my name rolled off of his tongue. It gave me small butterflies in my stomach. They danced their way up towards my throat. I coughed quietly, trying to clear the butterflies and push them back down into the pits of my stomach. "What do you want to do? You have, what, eight, nine months of school left. Anything in mind?" Edward asked.
The question took me by surprise. He wanted to know more about me. Me. I took a second or two to ponder over my answer. Edward did make me slightly nervous. I didn't want to stumble over my words and sound like an idiot.
"Hmm… I mean I'd like to get out of Forks. My grades may say otherwise though."
I wasn't lying. My grades were not great. I tried at school, sometimes. I could do better though. Charlie would say the exact same.
Edward looked up and smiled at me. He flashed his perfectly white, straight teeth. I melted slightly in the spot I was standing.
"I believe you could do that." He said, his face beginning to frown slightly, like he was trying to figure me and my brain out quickly.
"There's a good Biology course at Dartmouth. Not that I have properly looked into it yet," I said. I'd always been interested in Biology, the one subject I excelled at in school. "Unsure how I'd break that news to Charlie, though."

"I am sure he'd survive. He'd want what's best for you, no?" Edward asked, his face still puzzled and his eyes looking intently at me. He is right. Charlie would always want what is best for me. If he could manage himself before I moved back in with him aged eight, he could survive a few more years while I was at college, right?
"Yes, he would support me. I just can't fathom the idea of him surviving on burgers from The Carver Café."
The thought had crossed my mind. I do most of the cooking and cleaning at Charlie's- let's just say he is not the best in the kitchen. Edward laughed quietly under his breath, his face softening, his frown lines disappearing.

We chatted. It seemed like for over an hour. Edward asked about Charlie, asked about my mom, asked more about school. He even asked me about Jasper and his intentions with Alice. I, of course, sold Jasper to be the lovely guy that he is, and how he only had good intentions with Alice. He wouldn't even be able to hurt a fly, Jasper. I see the way he looks at Alice. Although he has never been in a serious relationship before, I can tell this means something to him.

The kitchen began to look neat and tidy, just how Esme and Carlisle leave it after every meal time. I didn't know when they'd be due back from their trip. If it were today, they wouldn't be too upset by the mess. The sunrise reflected off of the white, polished kitchen cabinets and I found myself squinting in the light. Although the house was basically made of glass, due to the sheer number of trees, I didn't remember this house being so bright.
"I think we have made a very decent effort, Bella," Edward stretched as he spoke, tired and aching after cleaning up a mess that wasn't even his to begin with. "Care for a drink?"
I nodded my head. I hadn't realised how dry my throat had become, or how the butterflies had stayed lock in my stomach, not making their way back to my throat. I thanked God that they had listened, and I hadn't stumbled over my words too much. Edward strolled over to the huge refrigerator, decorated with magnets from recent tropical trips and shopping lists. He pulled out a carton of orange juice. I turned my back on him and grabbed two small tumbler glasses out of the cabinet behind me. I was careful with my grip, not to drop the glass with my inured hand. I stepped around the kitchen island, the floor cold beneath my bare feet. I'm glad Alice had painted my toes. I handed Edward the two glasses. He reached out for them. Our fingers barely touched. The electricity raced from the tips of my fingers, down my hands and through my arms, into my chest, and what felt like, into my heart. I held my breath. I held my hands where they were for a second, and Edward did the same. He gripped the glasses and slowly set them down on the counter in front of us. I looked up at him, expecting his wild eyes to have found mine. I was disappointed they hadn't. Edward cleared his throat and opened up the orange juice and poured two reasonably full glasses.
"Thank you, Edward." I said, barely louder than a whisper. He didn't reply and took his glass up to his lips. I did the same.

"There you are!" a voice called from the hallway. Alice. Jasper following closely behind her, both wearing the same clothes from the party last night. I set my glass down on the counter. I looked at Jas, raising my eyebrow and smiling at him. I hadn't realised Alice and Jasper were at the point of their relationship to be staying over. I caught Edward looking Jas up and down, clearly having a very similar thought to mine. He didn't seem best pleased about a boyfriend spending the night with his younger sister.
"Wow, Bella, thank you for cleaning. If we were up earlier, we absolutely would have been helping." Alice said, a worried look spreading across her face. She hadn't noticed Edward's inquisitive looks towards Jasper, who was still standing behind Alice.
"Don't worry. It wasn't all me anyway. I had, well, some help." I turned towards Edward. He broke his gaze towards Jasper and looked into my eyes, like he was staring down into my soul. A smile crept across his face.
"Yes, she put me to work. Unsure what she's paying me though." He smiled wider, looking at me and moving his eyes towards Alice. The smile was addictive and I couldn't stop my mouth from making the curve upwards. I tried to hide it, placing my good hand over the lower half of my face. Alice looked my way, eyes wide, and also smiled. A smile that suggested she wanted to know the whole story. I nodded my head slightly, confirming I'd tell her every detail as soon as we were alone.