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fembuckTitle: The Edge
Author: Janine
Fandom: Twilight
Pairing: Alice/Bella
Rating: R
Disclaimer: All characters are owned by Stephanie Meyer. I’m just borrowing them.
Summary: Something is upsetting
Part 1: Skating the Edge
Part 2: My Favorite Mistake
Part 3: The Rules of Attraction
Part 4: Shattered
Part 5: Breakin' All The Rules
Part 6: Good World Gone Bad
Part 7: 'Splaining
Part 8: Sway My Way
Part 9: Fuzzy Wuzzy Wonderland
Part 10a: The Honeymooners
Part 10b:The Honeymooners
Part 11: Complications
Part 12: Uh Oh
Part 13: All Falls Down
Part 14 - A Fortunate Confluence of Events
Part 15 - A Little More Conversation
-- Two Weeks Later “I know I’m supposed to do it … and that you don’t like me very much right now, but can you, please just … just, do it?” Alice asked, not quite able to keep the frustration out of her tone. She never thought that she would have to be begging Edward to spend time with Bella. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it,” Edward responded his voice calm, almost serene, which agitated Alice all the more. “I’m just wondering why you are suddenly so anxious to not spend time with her,” Edward continued, some emotion finally showing in his voice. “I thought it was unbearable for you to not be around her now that she’s so close,” he continued snidely. “Listen,” Alice began, gritting her teeth. “We both know that you know what’s bothering me, so let’s not play this game,” she continued a second later knowing that his senses were just as developed as hers, and that even if he had somehow missed it, that he would have picked up on it in her thoughts. “It’s never bothered you like this before,” Edward remarked. “Nothing seemed to deter you from spending time with her,” he went on, his tone arch. “I don’t see why you’re getting so worked up now. I’m fine,” he added, in a tone that made Alice want to kick him in the shins. “I don’t know, alright!” Alice said shaking her head. “Honestly, I don’t know what’s changed,” she continued. She had a theory about it though, and from the way Edward winced and looked away from her, she realized that he had picked up on her theory as well. “The point is that it has. So, the question is … can you get over loathing me long enough to just do this, for Bella?” Edward looked over at Alice sharply, his jaw clenching. “Low blow,” he said hissed, his tone as cold as his eyes. Alice looked away, and sighed. “Will you do it?” she asked her tone contrite. “Yes,” Edward responded breathing out through his nose, “For Bella.” -- Bella spotted Alice and Edward talking near a thicket of trees by the side of the parking lot, the sight stopping her dead in her tracks. She stared at them in disbelief. She hadn’t seen Edward and Alice talking like that since they had left Forks all those months ago. Since returning to town they barely spoke to each other. They barely even acknowledged each others existence. Alice had told Bella that they had spoken, and that they had reached an impasse, and she supposed it was true. Edward no longer spent all of his time glaring at Alice like he was seconds away from ripping her head off, and the last time she had mentioned Alice’s name, he hadn’t growled or dropped his head into his hands, so she supposed things were better. But, that being said, Alice had still gotten a car so that they weren’t forced to spend time together driving to school in the morning, and Bella had thought that they were a long ways off from conversing civilly which each other. That being the case, if they were talking it meant that something miraculous or something unfortunate was happening, and based on her track record in Forks she was betting on something unfortunate. Quickly, Bella began to head in their direction, anxiety tumbling through her, hoping desperately that she wasn’t witnessing the calm before the storm. -- Alice tensed, and then her head turned to the side. Edward was surprised by her reaction for a second, but then Bella’s scent hit him as well, and he turned watching her approach, frowning at the thought that Alice had detected Bella before he had. Alice shivered, and her golden eyes fluttered closed. When she opened them again they were black, and Edward was once again taken back. “I know that it probably means nothing to you right now, but thank you,” Alice said, taking the opportunity to hold his eyes while it was available to her. She knew that he would look away from her any moment. He never seemed to be able to look at her for more than three seconds or so, but she hoped that the genuineness of her statement had been conveyed. “Really, I owe you,” she added, unable to help herself from glancing over at Bella longingly. “Sure,” Edward murmured, Alice’s look at Bella riling him up again. Alice sighed knowing that their moment of civility was over. “Right,” she said, turning to look towards the trees. “See ya.” And with that she disappeared into the woods. She would come back for her car later. -- Bella approached Edward, her eyes locked on the spot where Alice had disappeared into the trees, her heart thumping painfully in her chest. “What’s going on?” Bella asked, turning her attention to Edward, trying to calm down her heart. She knew that he would hear it pounding in her chest, and didn’t want to answer a series of questions about what was bothering her. “Where’d Alice go?” she asked. Alice was supposed to be driving her to work, and then picking her up afterwards. It was their ‘date night’ as it were, and she had been looking forward to being alone with Alice –especially since Alice had been a little tense on their night together a few days before. She hadn’t been able to figure out why Alice had been so high strung, and since then she had seen very little of her lover. It was true that on their off days she usually only saw Alice at school during lunch, but the day before she hadn’t even seen her then. Presently, she and Jasper were quite tentative with each other, neither sure how they were supposed to act around the other exactly given their relationships with Alice, but she had been so worried that she had asked him where she was. Jasper had looked genuinely bewildered and shrugged, saying that he had thought she would be in the lunch room as usual. At Jasper’s response, Bella had begun to be plagued by the feeling that Alice was trying to avoid her, and the fact that Alice had just disappeared into the woods without so much as saying ‘hello’ to her when they were finally supposed to be able to spend some time alone together, only made Bella more certain that she was being avoided. That was a terrible enough feeling in and of itself, but what made it worse was that she had absolutely no idea why. “Something came up that she needed to take care of,” Edward said smoothly, his voice as calm and serene as ever. “I can take you to work now, if you’d like.” “Something came up?” Bella questioned as Edward placed his hand at the small of her back and began to lead her towards the Volvo. “What something?” she asked, her eyes narrowing as she was pushed along. Edward shrugged. His face was tranquil as ever. “She didn’t say,” he responded lightly. “We haven’t been talking much,” he continued grimacing. Bella was confused by the look for a second, and then she realized that it was an attempt at a smile, that he had been trying to make a joke. “She just wanted to ask if I could drive you to work,” Edward continued a moment later. “Is she picking me up?” Bella asked, his lacksidasical attitude towards the matter beginning to bother her. Alice wouldn’t have just broken their plans to pick up her dry cleaning or something trivial like that. If she had asked Edward to drive her, it meant that her ‘something’ must have been fairly important, fairly serious. And if it was serious, Edward surely would have known what it was. He wasn’t ignorant to what was going on with Alice, she was sure of it. He was just choosing not to tell her. Like usual. “I couldn’t say,” Edward replied, opening the door chivalrously for Bella, ignoring or completely unaware of the glare she shot him before she slipped inside. “Couldn’t or won’t?” Bella asked as Edward slipped into the driver’s seat. “Honestly Bella,” Edward sighed as he started up the car. “There’s no reason to be upset with me, I’m not the one who broke your plans,” he continued backing out of the parking space carefully. “Really, I couldn’t tell you what Alice is up to at the moment,” he went on as they headed onto the main road. Bella stared at his impossibly beautiful – and at the moment impossibly irritating face – and sighed. She knew that he knew more than he was telling her, but she wasn’t going to waste her time asking him about it any more, because she knew how that would end, too. She would ask, and ask, and ask until her voice was raw, and he would never budge. She could ask him about it until she was blue in the face, and when she finally collapsed of exhaustion he would still be sitting there, silent … looking beautiful and serene. Bella twisted away from him and turned to look out the window in a passive-aggressive snit. She’d just ask Alice about it when she came to pick her up from work … if she came to pick her up from work. -- The Swan Residence – Later That Night Bella nearly laughed at the look of surprise and disappointment on Charlie’s face when he came into the hallway to find her and Edward coming in the door. Her amusement wasn’t malicious however; on the contrary, she actually felt a great sense of camaraderie with her father over it. She suspected that she must have been wearing a very similar expression fifteen minutes earlier when she had exited Newton’s to find Edward waiting outside instead of Alice. “Edward. What a pleasant surprise,” Charlie greeted, not even attempting to sound like he meant it, and for once Bella didn’t moan “Dad,” in an annoyed tone of voice and glare at him. Frankly, she understood where he was coming from. He missed seeing Alice too. “Hello Charlie,” Edward said, a slight smile touching his lips, as his eyes drifted towards the TV where a Crest commercial was playing. “Has the game started?” he asked politely. “First Inning,” Charlie replied before glancing over at Bella who shrugged helplessly. There was nothing she could do about it. “Mariners are up next.” Edward ‘hmm’d’ and then silence descended upon the room. Bella clapped her hands together, drawing their attention over to her. “I’m gonna,” she began, cocking her thumb in the direction of the kitchen. “Dinner should be ready in thirty,” she continued inching towards the kitchen. “So, you guys enjoy the game and I’ll holler when it’s time,” she continued waving grandly towards the television, willing them to sit down – though she doubted there would be any relaxation. Edward looked over at her contemplatively after she finished speaking, and for a moment Bella was afraid that he would follow her. He sometimes spent time in the kitchen with her while she cooked, sometimes passing her ingredients, sometimes chopping vegetables for her, or sometimes just watching as she worked. Most of the time she didn’t mind it, it was actually nice to have some company when she went through the preparations, especially when it was a dish she had prepared many times before and hardly had to concentrate on. But, on this particular night she needed a little time alone, and really didn’t desire any company, and especially not Edward’s. She was anxious and uneasy, and it had been hard enough trying to act as if she was fine for the short car ride home. He had been watching her, closely, and she was still tense from the effort of struggling to keep a neutral expression on her face when all she wanted to do was frown. She needed the time in the kitchen to be alone. She needed to be able to feel uneasy about not seeing Alice without Edward scrutinizing her every breath. Edward looked towards the television and then looked towards the couch. Silently, he began to move over to it. Bella eyes fluttered, but she controlled the urge to sigh with relief knowing that Edward would hear it. He was her boyfriend, and she knew that it was mean to want to avoid him, but she really did need time to freak out over Alice in private. Tearing her thoughts away from what a horrible girlfriend she was, Bella turned and headed for the kitchen, disappearing instead mercifully alone. -- An Hour and a Half Later “So?” Charlie asked, looking at Bella keenly as Edward’s car pulled away from the house. “So …?” Bella prompted a bit impatiently, frowning at him as he gazed at her. “What happened to Alice tonight?” he asked ignoring Bella’s tone. “What makes you think Alice was supposed to come over tonight?” Bella asked looking at the stairs longingly. She wanted to flee. Charlie could be entirely too perceptive at times, and she didn’t want him asking her a bunch of questions about things that she was already stressing out over. “Because she’s over here every other night,” Charlie responded. “It’s like they made a schedule or something,” he continued frowning a little, wondering if they thought there was a fire code that said the house couldn’t be occupied by more than three people at a time or something. “Tonight was Alice’s turn,” he went on looking back over at Bella. Bella sighed. She hadn’t realized that Charlie was paying quite that much attention. “Something came up,” Bella said shrugging, hoping for nonchalance. “No biggie,” she continued. “Don’t tell me you didn’t enjoy watching the game with Edward,” she went on, smiling a little as Charlie glared at her. “It was magical,” Charlie responded in the most deadpan voice Bella had ever heard. She couldn’t help it, she smiled, and eventually her expression compelled Charlie to do the same. “I don’t think he even likes sports,” Charlie grumbled a moment later, turning to glare into the living room. “Alice doesn’t either,” Bella said laughing. “She just humors you.” “Oh, I know,” Charlie said turning back around to meet Bella’s eyes. “But at least she tries. At least she speaks,” he said glowering again. It had been a very quiet evening with the three of them in the living room. Alice usually got bored pretending to care about whatever sport was playing after Charlie ate, but then she would start babbling softly to Bella, braiding her hair or painting her nails or whatever she was in the mood for, while Charlie continued to watch the game. Every once in a while they would exchange a few words with him, but for the most part they talked softly to each other, keeping their voices down so that he could hear the commentary. There wasn’t constant communication, but it was pleasant and peaceful, and Bella knew that Charlie enjoyed just having them around in the room, even if they weren’t constantly talking to him. With Edward, there was the lack of conversation, but none of the serenity. “She’ll be around soon,” Bella said really hoping that it was true. “Try to contain your sorrow until then,” she continued laughing a little as Charlie rolled his eyes at her. She was about to say good night and turn to head up the stairs when she noticed Charlie’s expression change. It became softer, and his eyes seemed to almost shimmer as he looked at her. “What?” Bella sighed warily, sensing something emotional coming. “Nothing,” Charlie said looking down at his socks. “It’s just … it’s good to hear you laughing again,” and even though he didn’t say it out loud, Bella suspected that he was thinking that it was almost worth having Edward back in town, because it meant that Alice was back too, and thus so was her laughter and her joy. “It’s good to be laughing again,” Bella said softly, acknowledging his unspoken sentiment. Over the past weeks she had been watching him more closely, and she saw how much he still worried about her. She was making a conscious effort now, to be more open, to talk to him about her day. Obviously, there were many things she couldn’t tell him, but she did try to fill him in about the costumers at the store, what funny thing Pete had said at lunch, and the little inconsequential tidbits about her day that seemed to please him so much to hear, in an attempt to make up for the hell she had put him through during the Cullen’s absence. Charlie looked up and held her eyes. A moment passed between them, and Bella knew that he understand the subtext of her words. She knew that he understood that she was sorry, that she knew that he worried, but that she was better and that everything would be okay. “Goodnight Dad,” Bella said softly, her eyes lighting up as he smiled at her unexpected use of the title. She made a mental note to call him ‘Dad’ more, though she realized it would take a while to break the habit of calling him ‘Charlie’. “Night Bells,” he said. He sounded content. Impulsively, Bella stopped in front of him on her way to the stairs, and pressed herself up onto her tiptoes, pressing her lips against his cheek. When she pulled away Charlie’s cheeks were bright red, and she smiled at him. “Oh, Dad,” she muttered affectionately. She slapped him on the arm then, and headed for the stairs, promising herself that she would hug Charlie once a week from that moment on so that he wouldn’t act like it was miracle when she touched him. -- Half an Hour later Bella sighed heavily and flopped back against her mattress. Alice still wasn’t answering her phone. Bella closed her eyes. Her heart was beginning to pound in her chest again, and she was starting to feel hot. She knew that worry and concern were beginning to turn into panic, and she tried to calm herself down. Alice wasn’t going to leave again like she did before. She had promised that she wouldn’t. Besides, everything was out in the open now, and her life hadn’t been in danger for weeks. There was no reason for Alice to leave. Everything was fine. The thought was meant to reassure her, however Bella couldn’t help but remember the last time she had repeated those words to herself, and how very, very wrong everything had been back then. She rolled over onto her right side, curling up into a fetal position. Then she shifted so that she was resting her back. A few minutes after moving onto her back, she moved again, shifting onto her left side, curling up into the fetal position once more. A couple of minutes later she then rolled off the bed all together and began to pace. She had to go see Alice. Bella’s heart began to slow as the thought came to her. Yes, she would go see Alice. She would talk to Alice, Alice would tell her that she’d just had to go hunting, or that Rose had suggested a shopping trip, or that she’d been neglecting Esme and wanted some mother-daughter bonding time, and she would laugh airily and hug Bella and tell her that everything was fine. She’d swat Alice’s arm and tell her that she had been so scared, Alice would whisper ‘silly human’ and kiss her, and everything would be fine. Yes, she would go and see Alice. Everything would be okay. Bella sat down on her bed and took a deep breath. She would go and see Alice. She just needed to stop shaking first. -- Bella blinked, she was halfway down the stairs when the doorbell rang. “You’re grounded,” Charlie reminded her from the living room, and Bella knew that he thought Edward had come back. “I know,” Bella called back rolling her eyes. It was true that she was planning on leaving the house after her new curfew, but she was sure that Charlie would give her permission to go see Alice. Charlie made exceptions all the time where Alice was concerned. She just hoped it really wasn’t Edward at the door, because if he had come back, by the time he left it would be probably be too late for Charlie to even consider letting her leave the house. Bella continued down the stairs, getting more irritated with every step. “What?” she asked as she flung the door open. She knew that whoever was on the other-side didn’t deserve her ire, but she was unable to hold it back. She had to see Alice after all and they were getting in her way. “I thought,” Alice began blinking, looking at Bella confusedly. “Alice,” Bella whispered, not quite able to believe that Alice was truly standing in front of her. “Alice!” Bella said more loudly, immediately wrapping Alice up in her arms. Alice rubbed her back lightly for a second, but then disengaged herself from the embrace. Her eyes drifted behind Bella to Charlie, who had no doubt emerged from the other room upon hearing Bella’s squeal of delight. “Hey Charlie,” Alice said waving. “Hey there kiddo,” Charlie greeted smiling. “I ah, I know it’s kind of late,” Alice began shooting Charlie her most charming smile. “But I was hoping talk to Bella. Mom insisted on bonding time this afternoon, but Lauren told Angela something about Katie, and Katie’s saying it’s not true, but everybody totally thinks it is so I don’t even know why she’s bothering to deny it! And Bella’s in class with Rob, who heard from …” “Sure, okay,” Charlie said and Bella knew that he had lost track of what Alice was saying some time after ‘Lauren told Angela’. “Come on in kiddo,” he said really, really not wanting to hear the rest of Alice’s story. He loved the kid most of the time, but when she got into excessive teenage girl mode, he knew it was best to flee the scene. “I’ll be in the living room. You two have fun.” “Thanks Dad,” Bella said, and then she grabbed Alice’s hand and dragged her up the stairs. -- “I’m so mad at you,” Bella said, pressing Alice against the door, kissing her the moment they were alone inside of her room. “Feels like it,” Alice murmured, pulling back, pressing a soft kiss to Bella’s lips before disentangling herself from Bella’s limbs. She moved further into the room, stopping by the window Bella had left open in case she decided to come by. “Why did you come through the front door?” Bella asked frowning. “You’ll just have to sneak back in later.” Charlie tended to bend the rules for Alice, but he hadn’t quite forgiven either of them enough yet to allow for slumber parties. “I can’t stay,” Alice said her eyes steady on Bella. “I just thought it would be better to talk here than at my house.” Bella’s face fell, realizing what had brought Alice over. When she’d decided to go and see her, Alice must have had a vision. If she’d left right away she would have reached the Cullen’s before Alice could have headed her off, but she’d hesitated for a while, trying to pull herself together (which Alice would have also seen) which gave Alice enough time to race over and head her off. “Talk about what?” Bella asked; her voice falling into a bit of a monotone as she realized Alice hadn’t come over to see her, only to stop her from going to her house and possibly making a scene. “Why I asked Edward to drive you today,” Alice said, perching herself on the windowsill. “Are you really going to sit all the way over there?” Bella asked; confusion and annoyance warring in her tone as she eyed Alice. “It’s for the best,” Alice sighed. “Sit down, please,” she continued her voice soft, and gentle. “I know you’re worried, but there’s no reason. Really, there isn’t,” she went on. “I’ll explain. Everything’s fine … mostly,” she added, causing Bella to look at her sharply. “Everything doesn’t feel fine,” Bella murmured softly, moving to sit in her desk chair nonetheless. She would have normally sat on the bed, but with the way Alice was acting she knew that sitting on the bed – with Alice in the room but not next to her – would just make her feel worse. “I didn’t mean to make you worry,” Alice said shaking her head. “I should have realized you would, but I didn’t. Not until I saw that you planning to come see me,” she continued in an apologetic tone. “I was hoping to avoid this topic,” she went on. “It’s a little embarrassing, but I don’t want you worrying … and, well I suppose it was inevitable.” Bella looked at her curiously. She had never known anything to embarrass Alice. “Since when do you get embarrassed?” Bella asked before she could think better of it. “Oh, it happens every few decades,” Alice responded smiling a little at Bella before she tilted her head to the side to look out the window. “I really am sorry about today,” Alice said sighing, turning to face Bella again. “It’s just really hard for me to be around you at the moment.” “Why?” Bella gasped, wondering if this had something to do with Edward, and Alice feeling guilty about their relationship. She couldn’t think of anything else that would make Alice stay away. “It’s not unusual really,” Alice began softly, trying to reassure Bella. “It’s always harder for me … at certain times of the month,” she continued, her speech pausing when Bella’s eyes widened, and her skin flushed deep red. “Usually I can handle it … it’s just … this time, I don’t know,” she said shaking her head. “It’s just much harder this time.” “Oh god,” Bella groaned realizing what Alice was saying. Alice was staying away because of her period. Bella felt her cheeks flush but forced herself not to begin hyperventilating. Obviously, Alice didn’t want to talk about it anymore than she did, but it was out there now and she supposed they should talk about it. Actually, given the fact that she spent the majority of her time around vampires she was surprised that she had never thought about how her cycle would affect them. “But you’ve been around me … while I was … you know, before,” Bella said forcing the words past her lips though she was still blushing. “I know,” Alice said, her eyes scanning the floor. “But it’s just … it’s harder this time,” she continued sounding lost and so sad that Bella’s eyes began to water in sympathy. Bella stood up and took a step towards Alice, but stopped moving when Alice pressed herself against the window frame. “Sorry,” Alice said immediately, her eyes ashamed as she looked at Bella. “Please sit,” she continued looking at the chair Bella had just vacated. “I just … I can’t be … excited around you when you’re like this,” she went on. She knew that Bella wasn’t planning on ripping her clothes off when she started to approach her. She likely just wanted to hug her, to comfort her in some way. But just having Bella that close to her would be enough to get her libido started, and in the state she was already in, she knew that Bella being any closer to her would be too much for her to take. “It’s too much, even for me,” Alice admitted out loud. “Right now … you have no idea how hard it is right now, even this far away from you,” she continued sighing deeply. “Your blood is singing so loudly,” she finished, her voice falling off into a purr. Bella forced herself not the react to the timber of Alice’s voice and sit back down. It always made her flush with excitement when Alice purred like that. Alice only even did that when she was thinking about touching Bella, or was actually touching her, and in Bella’s mind the sound of Alice’s purr had become associated with intense sexual pleasure. Still, even as her body reacted to the vocalization she knew not to press things. Alice’s eyes were completely black, and Bella could practically feel the hunger rolling off of her. Sitting down, Bella turned her eyes back to Alice. When she did, she found that Alice wasn’t looking at her directly. She was about to say something, to try and comfort Alice, but just before she spoke, she realized that Alice’s coal black eyes were focused between her legs. Bella breathed in deeply, her body shaking a little. She wasn’t sure whether it was from embarrassment or excitement, though she suspected the latter, and the thought made her shiver again. “H-h-how long will you have to stay away?” Bella stammered, her heart racing with arousal she knew wouldn’t be sated, her brain cursing nature’s ‘gift’ to womankind with every fiber of her being even as she spoke. Alice blinked, her nostrils flaring as she tried to chase away the images that had been flooding her brain. But it was hard to do, and she stayed in that fantasy world for a while longer, imaging Bella underneath her, twisting, her skin stained red, utterly helpless, and wanting, terrified sounds emerging from Bella’s throat as her blood pumped into Alice’s mouth with every beat of Bella’s heart, her hips thrusting against the girl beneath her as she moved inside of Bella, her fingers slick with blood and cum. Alice felt a growl working its way up her throat and pressed her lips tightly together, trying to contain the sound. She tore her eyes from the tantalizing nook at the apex of Bella’s thighs, allowing them to wander around the room instead. “It should,” Alice began slowly, her voice cracking as she squeezed her eyes shut. “It should be okay in a day or two,” Alice continued, her voice still shaking as she opened her eyes once more. Focusing on her, Bella could detect tiny shivers traveling across her small frame, and her mind automatically flashed to the night of her birthday party. “Right,” Bella said uncomfortably, shifting a little bit. It disturbed her somewhat, to think that anyone, even Alice, knew that much about her flow cycle. “Is this going to happen every time I …” she began trailing off knowing that Alice would be able to complete the sentence on her own. Alice stared at the ground. “Probably … for a while at least,” she admitted. “Probably until you’re turned,” she said knowing that by the time she developed enough control to handle Bella like this, that she would probably have enough control to turn her. Bella nodded, and then looked at her curiously. “Why is Edward still okay?” Unlike Alice he hadn’t been acting strangely around her for the past few days. Everything was business as usual with him. Alice met her gaze looking genuinely confused and shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said a little helplessly. “My best guess is that my sensitivity to you has increased because we’re lovers,” she continued shrugging a little. “I don’t really know though, and I … haven’t exactly wanted to bring it up with Carlisle,” she added. Bella shuddered. “Please don’t,” she muttered softly. Alice laughed at that, the sound cheering Bella up a bit. “I’ll come and see you … when I feel less monstrous,” Alice said standing. She smiled but it was pained, and Bella knew that she felt terribly about the way her body was making her react to her at the moment. Bella nodded and stood as well, moving toward her closet to give Alice some space as she made her way towards the door. “My windows always open,” Bella said, returning Alice’s smile, trying to reassure her that she didn’t hold anything against her. Alice stared at her for a second, and then before Bella could blink, Alice was standing in front of her. “I love you,” Alice said softly, and then she leaned forward, pressing her lips gently to Bella’s before quickly heading back over to the door, moving quicker than Bella could see once more. “Love you too, Tink,” Bella said, smiling brightly, intensely relieved even though she wouldn’t be wrapped up in Alice’s arms that night. “Night,” Alice said, her voice so tender and full of longing that it almost brought tears to Bella’s eyes. “Night,” Bella breathed out, trying to keep her voice cheerful even thought she knew that that it without Alice beside her it was going to be a very long night.
To be continued …
