Falling To The Sun | B. Swan + E. Cullen

un

Morning rituals were an odd thing to some people, some like early showers and a jog, other liked an hour of tv. Her ritual consisted of biking her way through the wintery streets of Forks, fingerless mittens allowing her to grip the handle bars better despite the way her digits turned pink and her face became wind burned.

Pedalling quick, bag thumping in the front basket, her jeans pulled and stretched against her legs as she carried herself away from school and toward the Swan residence.

Sitting there, outside, Roman was determined to actually get off the bike and knock on the door this time. She wouldn't wait out front for Charlie to come out to ask how she was doing. She was going to go up and knock herself, or even ring the doorbell.

And then she actually was getting out of the seat, forcing herself up the front path to the door — heart slamming in her chest as her hand hovered over the painted wood, anticipation earing at her.

Ready to knock, to make herself known, Roman was gazing at the floor, biting her lip when the door was open, and someone came crashing into her, feet slipping.

Her back hit the cool concrete, air whooshing from her lungs as both the knock and the person landing on top her.

"Oh my god, Roman?" The sweet, breathy voice of the girl that owned half her heart rang in her ears and her eyes snapped open, gazing up at the girl whose face was only inches from her own.

Blood rushed to her face, cheeks burning, and she hoped her face was still wind burnt to block the furious blush that took over her face.

"Are you okay? Oh, I'm sorry, so sorry, you're bleeding," the girl stammered, a panicked sound as she scrambled off her and knelt to her side.

Fingers brushed her lip, sparks of heat shooting through her at the innocent gesture, smearing warm liquid that brought the taste of iron to the tip of her tongue, exploding across her taste buds.

"I'm fine, I'm totally fine," Roman reassured, tongue darting out to collect the excessive amount of blood that was pooling on her bottom lip. "I might need some stitches though."

"I'm sorry," Bella gasped, red tipped fingers suspended in the space between them.

Tears pooled in the girl's eyes, collecting at the corners, and Roman thought for sure that her heart was being ripped from her chest, the pounding angry.

"It's fine, Bella, really! I'm always being told not to bite my lips, this isn't the first time," Roman insisted, mitten coming up to soak the blood that was there.

"But the blood, you . . . " the girl trailed off, looking at tips of her fingers in fascination.

Roman reached up, swiping Bella's fingers clean with her free hand, watching as she blinked in slow comprehension.

Pulling her hand away from her mouth, her tongue darted out to prod her bottom lip. "Does it look okay?"

The Swan girl winced, her own hand ghosting over her lips in the same place as her bite wound. The hesitation was clear, and Roman groaned as her imagination began to run wild.

"We should probably take you to the hospital," Bella admit sheepishly, long fingers playing with her hair.

She had never known that a person could be so distracting by simply movements, her lungs felt so tight, like they couldn't get enough air just from looking at her.

Being so close, just within reach, was killing her, having never been around the girl this long or having had a conversation that didn't concern school.

"We?" Roman parroted, pushing herself up so she was seated now, face ever closer to the enticing girl. "But what about school? You don't have to go with me anywhere, Bella, I can take my bike."