Speak || A Twilight Fanfic

Chapter 27

Only two days had passed since Bella had left for Italy, but it had felt like an eternity for Gabriella. Especially as she woke that Monday morning with her father hovering a lit cupcake near her face.

"Happy birthday, Gabs," he smiled. "Can't believe you're sixteen today."

"Well, you should," the girl chuckled as she sat up in bed, smiling and blowing off the candle. "You're part of what made me all those years ago."

"Seriously, kid? Sarcasm, first thing in the morning?"

"It's my birthday," she shrugged. "You can't be mad at me today."

"Actually, I think I can surpass that by being your father," he snickered. "But I'll let it go since I'm reserving my anger for my other daughter."

"I surely don't wanna be Bella when she gets back," Gabi said as she peeled the paper from the cupcake. "Thankfully, I have no rich friends who could whisk me away to another country in the blink of an eye. Although it wouldn't be a bad problem to have."

"You're very funny this morning, kid," he sighed jokingly. "But how about you get ready for school and come downstairs? I got something I wanna show you."

"You didn't cook breakfast, right?" the girl worried. "I love you and all, dad. But I'd like to go to school without food poisoning or charred food breath."

"So many jokes!" Charlie exclaimed. "But I promise it's not something you'll hate. Hurry up, Gabs."

The younger Swan hopped out of bed the second her father was out of her room, getting dressed as quickly as she possibly could. It helped that she had picked her clothes a week in advance. Her mother had finally packed and sent all the possessions she still had in Florida, which included the only dress she had ever sewn for herself—a simple slip dress that she had made not too long before she had packed for Forks and had never gotten to wear.

Paired with a brown leather jacket, the blue satin and cream lace slip dress clung to her body like a perfect-fitting glove. As she stared at herself in her mirror and asked herself how she had been able to make the garment herself, she found herself wondering what Paul would think of it. She wondered if he'd like the color against her skin, if he'd enjoy the feeling of the soft fabric in his hands, if he'd notice how it would bundle if he tried to take...

Her heart hammered against her chest as the thoughts swirled through her brain. She felt her skin warm and beads of sweat form on her forehead as her lungs ached for air. Gabriella knew what the feeling was. She had fallen victim to its allure before, but it had never been that strong. It had definitely never been a full-body feeling.

The girl pushed the emotion down as she straightened her dress and left her room. The last thing she needed was her father asking why she was so flushed on a March morning. He had already worried over her supposed slip in the middle of the woods that left her slashed and battered. She didn't want him to get concerned about her newfound feelings for a boy only a few months before he thought was in a gang.

"You almost done, kiddo?" Gabi heard her father call as she made her way down the stairs. "I don't wanna rush you, but I've gotta get to work."

"I'm here," she announced. "Sorry, time slipped away from me."

"Oh, don't worry, Gabs," he smiled softly. "Well, don't you look pretty? Is that a new dress?"

"Not exactly. I made it last year, but I never got to wear it," the girl explained. "Mom sent it with my things last week."

"How did I get such a talented daughter?" Charlie mused brightly. "Can't believe you came from me."

"Well, there's also another half to my DNA."