What happens when you find your first boyfriend at eleven? Can it last forever? That was how old I was when I first met Edward. We met in a tree. A bi-yearly journey through the relationship of a girl and boy who might be meant to be. AH, Bella/Edward
This story is four chapters of teenagers-in-love-but-living-apart perfection. It needs no sparkly review. It doesn't even need my endorsement, but I want you all to know about it so you can enjoy it as much as I did. It is solid on its own, hence the excerpt. You're welcome.
"I didn't kidnap you." He scoffed. "You could've gotten away if you really wanted to. You didn't even resist for a second. I felt your hand hold mine back, Bella. And I just wanted to get you alone for a second."
"Why here?"
He tilted his head to look at me. "I don't know why here. I didn't plan it. I swear. But I couldn't take it anymore. I just had to. Because I can't stop-" he looked away and his voice lowered "- thinking about you."
My lip quivered, my eyes watering. "Well, you have to." My voice cracked in a way you just can't help. "You just have to because I'm with Riley. You could've broken up with Alice anytime before Riley, but you didn't."
"I couldn't just drop her, Bella. It wasn't like that. I didn't go out with her thinking, 'Just until Bella gets back,' you know. You were gone. And, you're... what? You're telling me I'm just imagining the way you look at me? I'm imagining the other day in the tree? I felt you, Bella. Are you going to tell me that when you're with him, you're only thinking about him?"
"It's none of your business what I do when I'm with him. And now is just too late. So you have to stop thinking about me." But my voice quivered, my innermost thoughts shaking it up, thinking, Don't stop. Don't stop thinking of me.
He gripped the bar in front of us. "How long is this ride, anyway?"
My lips tightened. I glared at him. "You're such a jerk." I tried to scoot away from him, but couldn't. The metal edge of the carriage dug into my hip.
We stopped near the top. It might've been romantic at another time in our lives, all the sparkling lights below, the breeze and the slow quiet from way up here, while everything below us was oppressive heat and loud and fast.
"I'm not trying to be a jerk. I'm just trying to..." He rubbed his hand down his face.
"Trying to what?"
The ride started moving at a slow pace until it paused again, us at the very top.
He stared straight ahead, at nothing, because the only thing straight ahead was sky. "Be me."
"Yeah? And who is that?"
He faced me again. "I don't know what I'm doing, okay? But I can't - I can't get you out of my mind. I can't. It doesn't work." He put his hand over mine on the safety bar. He stared into me as he leaned closer, so slow I barely saw him moving, and then his face was so close, our noses an inch apart, maybe less.
Closer he came, the sides of our noses touching. I couldn't take my eyes off his. My lips quivered.
"Don't kiss me," I whispered, but I didn't move away from him, his breath mixing with mine and our lips weren't touching, but I didn't want either of us to move.
The ride bumped and my lips almost brushed his. I could feel them. Kiss me. My hand on the side of his face, I kept him where he was, my fingertips moving back and forth over his cheek. It was rough, scruffier than I'd ever felt. His eyes closed as soon as my fingers met his face. He tilted his head so our noses weren't in the way anymore, our lips even closer.
"Don't kiss me, Edward."
His hand came to my face, too, holding. "I won't," he said against my lips, brushing. My stomach flipped. But it wasn't kissing. It wasn't.
Breath from his mouth heated me.
I wrapped my other hand around his wrist. My breath shuddered. I could almost cry. I was on the verge.
"Do you love him?"
No, I love you, I could've said, but I didn't answer.
"Do you think about me when you're with him?"
"Yes." It was hardly even a whisper.
"Break it off with him," he said, and every word was another brush of the lips. "If it's true. If you think about me when you're with him, break it off so I can kiss you like never before."
"Like you kissed her?"
"No." He shook his head, his forehead on mine, his eyes on mine. "Like I kiss you."
The ride started to move; we were descending. Edward didn't take his hand off my face, keeping his stare on me until we were in sight of the people below us, and he let go and we faced straight ahead like nothing happened at all. But my heart wasn't fooled, pounding, and when the ride lowered faster, my stomach jumped, though maybe this time the jump wasn't because of the ride. Maybe it was because Edward swept his finger over the back of my hand.
We were at the bottom, the bar unlocked and he lifted it up.
"I love you," he said, without looking at me, but he squeezed my hand and then walked straight down the stairs into the crowd. My heart might have stopped and taken all my breath with it. I sat there, frozen, watching him walk off, watching him disappear into the crowd until the carnival guy reminded me my ride was over.
Gulp!
Team Jacob safe.
Low smut if any. I don't remember much.
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