– First Date

Edward picked me up in the Camaro on Monday morning. I was surprised, since Alice had told me that he didn't like to drive it to school."Good morning." I greeted as I got into the passenger seat."Morning." He offered me a smile that I returned."I must say I'm surprised." He gave me a quizzical look, and I hurried to explain. "I was expecting the Volvo.""Ah." He chuckled. "Alice.""She might have mentioned something along the line of you not wanting to drive this car to school because of careless teenagers." I blushed a little. I hadn't meant to rat Alice out like that."It's fine, really." He assured me.When we got to the school, however, he parked in the corner furthest from the entrance, as far away from other cars as possible. Alice, Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper had just arrived as well, in what I assumed was Emmett's Jeep, and were parked across the lot. When we walked towards them, Edward grabbed my hand, and I felt the by now familiar tingle run up my arm and continue down my spine. The others waited for us at the Jeep, and we all went into the school together.If I had thought that I had gotten a lot of attention during my first week in Forks, it was nothing compared to the attention I attracted when I walked into the school hand in hand with Edward Cullen. Everyone turned to look as we walked by, and the saying 'If looks could kill' took on a whole new meaning as we passed Lauren. If it had been possible, I had no doubt that her face would have turned green with envy.Edward walked me all the way to the English classroom before he left for his own class. I sat down at an empty desk in the back, but was quickly joined by Mike."So, you and Cullen, huh?"I sighed inwardly. I should have been expecting this, really. But somehow I had managed to suppress the thought of Mike and his crush over the weekend."What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him."I just… I don't like it." He said, and I stared at him incredulously."I guess it's a good thing I don't care whether or not you approve of who I date, then." I turned my attention to my notebook, checking my notes for the class."So you're dating then?"Could he not just take a hint?"That's really none of your business." Edward had asked me out, but we hadn't actually been on a date yet, so technically…"You just said…""Yes, we're dating!" I interrupted him."Are you going to the dance with him?"He just wouldn't give up."Again, really not your business." I was trying desperately not to sound too irritated, but he was making it very difficult."Because I thought that maybe we could…" He cut himself short when he saw the look in my eyes."Are you serious?" He couldn't be… right?"I just thought that we could all go together, the whole gang you know. As friends." He shrugged."I'm probably not going at all, anyway.""Why not? He hasn't asked you?" A look of triumph started to spread on his face."It's a Sadie Hawkins dance, Mike." I reminded him. "And we do have P.E. together, right? Have your eyes been closed?""Oh, right. I guess that makes sense." I liked the sound of defeat in his voice."Basic survival instinct." I winced as I remembered the time my mom had tried to teach me to dance before her wedding the previous year. "If it had just been my own safety at stake, it would have been a completely different matter. But there'll be dozens of innocents at that dance, and they don't deserve to be exposed to the natural disaster that is me on the dance floor."He actually laughed at that, and I thought that we might be able to be friends after all. He was a nice guy. When he wasn't trying to hit on me, at least. I suddenly had an idea."Why don't you go with Jessica?" She would be so excited."You think she'd want to go with me?" I could practically hear the wheels turn in his head as he pondered the suggestion."Sure." I was absolutely positive that she would. "I could mention to her that you asked me if she had a date for the dance yet, you know, accidentally…""You'd do that?""Sure." Anything to help him get over his weird obsession with me. Jessica was, just like Mike, curious about me and Edward. I told her an abbreviated version of how we had met in Port Angeles the previous Saturday, and then quickly distracted her by 'letting slip' that Mike had wondered whether she had a date for the Sadie Hawkins dance.“Really? He did?" Her face lit up."Sure. You should probably ask him as soon as possible though, don't want someone else to beat you to it." We had just gotten to the Spanish classroom and sat down at a table in the back."I'll ask him at lunch." She nodded, then frowned. "He did ask because he wants to go with me, right? It wasn't just some random question?""No, he definitely wants to go with you.""Yay!" She exclaimed quietly, since Mrs. Goff had just started the class. I returned her smile, if not as excitedly.I met Angela after history, and we walked to math together as usual."So did you and Alice have fun in Port Angeles?" She asked."We did. She didn't find a dress for the dance, but we did some shopping." I suddenly felt the need to talk to an outsider about Alice's little set up. "We had lunch with her brother and Jasper, and then she practically abandoned me with Edward, making an excuse to go back to Forks with Jasper.""Oh my God, I would have been so embarrassed." Angela's eyes went wide."Oh, I was. I was sure that she had caught on to the fact that I have a crush on him." Angela only nodded, and I realized that this was not news to her. I shouldn't be surprised; my mom had always said that I wore my heart on my sleeve, which was probably true. "But it turned out that she did it to give him a chance to ask me out.""Really? That's so exciting!" Angela gushed. "When are you going out?""Friday."“What are you doing?""We're going to Port Angeles for dinner and a movie.""That's so exciting." She repeated. "So what did you do on Saturday, after Alice had fled the scene?""We went to the bookshop and the music store, and then we had coffee at Bella Rosa before driving back.""I love that place, they have the greatest coffee." Angela remarked.“It was really good." I agreed. "And then I had dinner with his family. His mom's an amazing cook.""I'm so jealous!" Angela exclaimed. "Not at, you know, him in particular, just the whole thing. He obviously really likes you.""I hope so." I mumbled."I want a boyfriend too!""We haven't even been on a date yet, I think it might be a bit too early to call him my boyfriend." I didn't want to jinx anything."I'm still jealous."My attempt at matchmaking went well. A couple of minutes after I had sat down next to Edward in the cafeteria, Jessica looked over at me and gave me the thumbs up. Mission accomplished."Playing matchmaker, are you?" Edward wondered as we took our seats in the biology classroom. I had told him about Mike and Jessica going to the dance together when we walked over to the science building."It was really just to get Mike off my back. He was bugging me." I wrinkled my nose at the memory."What do you mean?""Well, first he said that he didn't like that you and I were dating, and then he practically asked me to the Sadie Hawkins dance, even after I told him…""He asked you out?" Edward looked furious and glared at Mike across the room."Not really, he just sort of suggested that we would go to the dance as a gang, I guess he meant us, Jessica, Lauren and Eric, I don't know.""I bet that's not what he had in mind." He was practically growling, and I frowned at him."Are you jealous?" The thought seemed absurd, but it was the only reasonable explanation I could think of."Some guy hitting on my girlfriend? Of course I'm jealous." He shot another furious glance at Mike.Girlfriend? Huh… Maybe Angela hadn't been too far off the mark after all."Did you just call me…""Oh, crap." He gave me a sheepish look. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to assume anything, I just… I really like you, I hope you know that.""No, it's OK, I actually… kind of like it." I felt a blush rising on my cheeks. "And I really like you too. " I added quietly, my attention on the book in front of me.Mr. Banner chose that moment to start the class, for which I was grateful. I tried to focus on what he was saying, forcing the color from my face. After a few minutes, I felt Edward's hand on mine, and he intertwined our fingers under the table. Needless to say, I didn't remember a word Mr. Banner saidIt turned out that my matchmaking had been more successful than I had originally thought. As I spent P.E. on the bleachers watching the others play volleyball, Jessica came over and sat down next to me."Guess what?" She exclaimed, continuing before I had a chance to do just that. "Mike asked me to go out with him on Friday!""That's great, Jess!" Please, say they're not going to Port Angeles, please, say they're not…“We're going to Port Angeles to see a movie and have dinner."Damn."What movie are you going to?" At least I could do my best to avoid them at the theater. Double dating with Mike and Jessica was not high on my agenda."I really want to see that new romantic comedy with Ashton Kutcher, Just Married, but I don't know if it's too girly." She frowned. "Mike said it was fine, but maybe we should see something else.""No, Ashton Kutcher isn't girly." No Ashton Kutcher, then. I didn't really mind, though."I guess not." Her face suddenly lit up. "Wouldn't it be cool if we went to the dance together, me and Mike and you and Edward?""We're not going to the dance." I said quickly. And even if we were, we would most definitely not be going with Jessica and Mike."Oh, that's too bad." Coach Clapp's whistle cut through the air, and Jessica groaned. "Guess I'd better get back to the game." She said, getting up from the bleachers. I was glad I didn't have to join her.As I waited for Edward to change after the class ended, I pulled out my 'new' copy of Pride and Prejudice and opened it to a random page. I had read it so many times that I could jump into the plot anywhere without a problem. I had just gotten to the part where Mr. Darcy proposes to Elizabeth for the first time only to be turned down when Edward reemerged from the locker rooms. He strolled over to me and took my bag before helping me to my feet. As we left the gym, he didn't let go of my hand."How many times have you read that book?" He asked as we walked towards the parking lot. "Ballpark figure?""Will you think I'm insane if I tell you that I stopped counting a couple of years ago?" I replied sheepishly."Yes." He chuckled. "But I like that you're a little crazy. Who needs normal?"We had gotten to the car, and he opened the passenger door for me. I waited until we had left the lot before I brought up the subject of Jessica and Mike possibly intruding on our date."By the way, Mike asked Jessica out this Friday, and they're going to Port Angeles too.""Oh. Did you want to go with them, like a double date?" I could tell that he really didn't like that idea."God no!" I exclaimed. "I was thinking more along the line of avoiding them like the plague.""That's a relief." He chuckled."Jessica also suggested that we go to the dance together." I grimaced."What did you tell her?" He asked, glancing over at me."That we weren't going.""You don't want to go?" Did I hear disappointment in his voice "I will ask you the same thing I asked Mike; have you actually seen me in Gym?" He raised an eyebrow at me."Do you honestly think I would let you hurt yourself?" He wondered dryly."I just… I don't dance. For the sake of the people around me." He must have heard how uncomfortable I sounded."We don't have to go, if you don't want to." We had arrived at Charlie's house at that point. "There's always prom."And somehow, I knew I wouldn't get out of that one. Not considering the fact that I would most likely end up on the floor at some point, I wasn't completely sure I even wanted to.I hadn't actually told Charlie that I was going out with Edward. I just didn't know how to start the 'Dad, I have a boyfriend' conversation. But when I cleared the plates after dinner that Thursday, I thought it was best to just get it over with. It would be too much to hope that he wouldn't notice if I disappeared from the house a couple of hours the following evening"Dad?" He was on his way into the living room to watch some game on TV, but stopped and turned towards me when I called."Yeah, Bells?""I'm, eh… going out tomorrow night, is that OK?" I fixed my eyes firmly on the plate in my hands."Sure, where are you going?""Port Angeles.""To the movies?""Yeah, and maybe to get something to eat.""You going with one of your friends?" I briefly considered saying yes. Edward and I were friends, after all. But, realizing Charlie would find out the truth sooner rather than later, I decided to go with the truth."Actually… I'm kind of going on a date." He was completely silent for at least a minute."With who?" There was a suspicious undertone in his voice now."Edward.""Cullen?" How many Edwards did he know?"Yeah."He seemed to contemplate this for a moment."Are you old enough to date?""Dad, I'm sixteen!" For Christ's sake!"That's exactly my point!""Are you telling me I can't go?" I glared at him, and he caved."No, of course not. I just want you to be careful.""Dad." I mumbled, blushing profoundly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you. But you're my little girl, that'll never change.""It's just a date, dad." He nodded at me, but I could see that he was somewhere far away in his mind. After a moment, he turned and walked into the living room, and I let out a breath in relief.

"I want to meet him when he picks you up tomorrow." Charlie called from the living room, and I groaned.

"Da-ad!”
Much to my surprise, Edward didn't seem to mind 'officially' meeting Charlie before our date. I appeared to be the only one who was the least bit uncomfortable with the situation.

I stopped counting the number of times I had looked out the window at five thirty. I had been ready for forty five minutes, and Edward wasn't supposed to pick me up for another half hour. I had changed my clothes three times, before finally settling for my favorite jeans and a silky, blue top. I had mastered the art of buttoning my jeans with just my right hand only the previous day, and was no longer limited to wearing draw string pants, which felt like a small victory.

Charlie got home a few minutes before six, and when I heard him close the front door, I went down to the kitchen. He was just hanging his jacket on a hook, and I noticed that he had put his service revolver on the kitchen table.

"I hope you're planning to put that away." I nodded at the gun.

"Wouldn't hurt to scare the boy a little." He muttered under his breath, and I narrowed my eyes at him. "Fine." He unloaded the gun and put it in the kitchen drawer where he usually kept it when he wasn't working.

"Thank you. And no third degree!" I jumped a little as there was a knock on the door. Charlie beat me to it and opened the door for Edward.

"Edward." He said curtly, extending his right hand. Edward shook it.

"Chief Swan. Hi Bella." He smiled at me over Charlie's shoulder.

"Come on in." Charlie stepped aside to let Edward into the house. "So, what are your plans for tonight?"
    
"Well, we have a reservation at Bella Italia at seven, and then I thought we would see a movie before heading back here." Edward glanced at his watch. "We should probably get going. Don't want to lose our table."

"Alright." Charlie turned to me. "No later than midnight."

"Actually, dad, the movie we were going to see is almost two and a half hours long, so it won't end until eleven thirty."

"Half past midnight, then." I glared at him, but knew there was no point in pushing.

"It was nice meeting you, Chief Swan." Edward said as we left the house.

"Suck up!" I teased him when we were safely in the car.

"I was just being nice to your dad." He started the engine, and I smiled as I recognized the first chords of Coldplay's The Scientist.

"Another favorite?"

He nodded.

"It's a bit melancholy, but I really like it."

"Me too."

"I overheard Mike and Eric talking earlier today, by the way." He glanced at me. "Mike said that he and Jessica were going to go to the movies first, and then eat, so that's why I made dinner reservations at seven."

"Good thinking."

"I hope you like Italian." He looked a bit worried. "We can go somewhere else, if you don't. I shouldn't have assumed…"

"Italian's fine." I assured him, starting to suspect that he was as nervous as I was. It felt oddly comforting in a way.

Since there was hardly any traffic, we made it to Port Angeles in under an hour. Edward held the door to the restaurant open for me, and when we went inside we were greeted by a young woman.

"Welcome to Bella Italia, how may I help you?"

"We have a reservation." Edward told her. "Cullen."

She checked her list, and ticked off our reservation.

"Right this way, please." She led us further into the restaurant, and stopped in front of a table for two by the back wall.

"Thank you." Edward pulled out my chair and waited until I was seated before he sat down. The waitress put down menus in front of us.

"Would you like to order drinks first?"

Edward looked at me.

"Sure. I'll have a Coke, please." The waitress nodded and turned to Edward.

"I'll have the same, thank you."

As the waitress left, I opened the menu in front of me.

"Is there anything special that's good?" I wondered, and Edward frowned, looking at his own menu.

"Well, the pasta is always great. Alice loves their duck, but I haven't tried it."

"I think I'll stick to pasta." I scanned that portion of the menu. "The smoked salmon ravioli sounds good."

When the waitress returned with our drinks, Edward ordered the ravioli for me and pasta primavera with chicken for himself.

The food really was delicious. While we ate, we talked about movies we loved and hated. It turned out that Edward was a Monty Python fan, and I laughed so hard I cried when he did an imitation of John Cleese in The Parrot.

We walked to the movie theater, since it was only a couple of blocks away. Edward put his arm around my shoulders, and I wrapped my arm around his waist. He leaned closer, and I could feel his breath against my ear.

"This is an ex-parrot." Of course, I broke down in giggles again. "He has ceased to be."

"Stop it!" I elbowed him in the ribs.

"If you don't behave, I'll do the silly walk, and then you'll really be embarrassed." I started laughing again just thinking about it.

Luckily, we were at the theater by then, and got in line to get our tickets. I thought I saw Jessica and Mike walking in the opposite direction to where we had come from, and I quickly turned my back on them just in case they turned around.

We got some popcorn and drinks before we headed into the auditorium, which was barely half-full – the movie had been playing for almost a month after all. As we sat down in the back row, I suddenly became very aware of how little space was between us. I glanced at Edward, but he seemed completely engulfed in the commercials that had already started playing on the screen. I turned my attention in the same direction and took a few deep breaths to try to calm my racing heart. It didn't help much.

As the lights went out and the movie started, it became even more obvious that Edward was a mere couple of inches from me in the dark. It felt like there was an electric current that coursed between us, and I had absolutely no idea what Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks were up to on the screen in front of us.

About half-way through the movie, I reached for some popcorn, and apparently Edward had the same idea at the same time. Our hands connected in the popcorn bucket, and my eyes were irrevocably drawn to his. The intense look on his face made me gasp.

Slowly, he put the popcorn bucket down on the floor, without taking his eyes off me. As he leaned in closer to me, I instinctively closed my eyes.

Initially, the kiss was very soft and light, his lips barely grazing mine. As I sighed against his lips, he deepened the kiss and his hand came up to cup my neck. I pressed myself closer to him as well as I could with the arm rest between us. As his tongue slid over my bottom lip, I willingly granted him access.

I had no idea how the movie ended.

xxxxx

"You should get inside." Edward contradicted his own words by pulling me closer in the limited space of the car.

We had been parked in front of Charlie's house for the last fifteen minutes, and it was now 12.27.

"We've still got three minutes." I mumbled against his lips. He glanced at the time.

"Two." He pulled back a little, and I almost sighed out loud at the loss of contact. "And I have a feeling Charlie will come looking for you if you're not actually inside the house when he said you should be."

"You're probably right." I pouted a little.

"Do you have any plans tomorrow?"

"No, nothing at all." I blurted out, and then blushed. "That sounded just a little desperate, didn't it?"

"Desperate's good." He brushed a stray strand of hair behind my ear. "I'll call you… later today, actually. We can do anything you want."

"Yeah?" I leaned forward for a goodnight kiss, and he willingly obliged. This time, I was the one to pull away as he deepened the kiss. "I really should go."

As I spoke the words, the lights came on in the kitchen.

"Crap. Goodnight." I gave him one last quick kiss before getting out of the car and half running to the door. Charlie opened it just as I reached for the handle. I heard Edward speed off down the street behind me.

"I thought I said twelve thirty?" Charlie grumbled.

"It is twelve thirty." I walked past him into the kitchen and grabbed an apple.

"It's twelve thirty-one." He corrected me, and I rolled my eyes at him. "And I thought he took you to dinner."

"He did. Hours ago." I decided that this conversation could wait until never, and took the apple with me to my room. I heard Charlie follow as I closed the door, but he didn't say anything else.

When I got back into my room after having brushed my teeth, my phone chirped.

Sleep tight – E

I fell asleep with a silly grin on my face.