Evening Star: Edward's Story

Chapter Six: A Close Call

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Chapter Six: A Close Call

Bella awoke slowly, her eyes blinking in the early morning sunshine streaming through her window which caught the reflections of my skin, sending brilliant sparkles cascading across the walls and ceiling of her room. She put up a hand to shade her eyes against the brightness and groaned softly.

"What's wrong, love?" I spoke softly but anxiously. What could be wrong with her? Was she ill? In pain? Waking from another nightmare? Humans were so fragile, and Bella was so much more so than most of her kind. The cast on her leg provided a constant reminder....

"Um, it's just so ... bright ... in here." She attempted to open her eyes and was blinded again by the brilliance. "Ugh ... it's too early for this," she moaned, hiding her face against my chest to protect her eyes. I sighed, feeling relief course through me as I realized that nothing was wrong, and I thrilled to have her in my arms, so close ... and so safe. I wished that I could never let her go. But the brilliance of my skin was obviously causing her pain....

"I'm sorry. Do you want me to leave?" I asked, saddened that this most glorious of summer mornings was being ruined by my presence.

"No!" she said firmly, her voice raised to punctuate her point. "I'll ... adjust. It's just hard to deal with so much brightness so early ...." she trailed off, yawning widely.

She burrowed against me more tightly, if that was possible, her arms wrapped around my neck as she lay half on top of me. I folded my arms more firmly around her too, and we remained so for several too-short, very sweet minutes, just enjoying each others' touch as bird song wafted through her open window on the warm summer breeze.

"I might actually be able to wear shorts today," Bella mused, her voice muffled against my chest.

"Can you get them on over your cast?" I smiled, yet also couldn't help feeling a little trepidation. Bella was so beautifully formed, and seeing her clad in only shorts and a tank top would be more of a temptation than she was aware of. I found it more difficult during these warm summer months to keep my thoughts off her lovely figure, even with so many more worrisome happenings on the too-near horizon....

She frowned at the reminder of her awkward and heavy cast. I cleared my throat, trying to remove the image of Bella in summer clothing (and not much of it) from my mind. "What are your plans for today?"

The sun went behind a cloud as I spoke, thus dimming the glimmer of my skin. Bella felt the difference and raised her head carefully, squinting her eyes against possible brightness. Finding that the room only faintly glowed now, she pulled herself off me into a sitting position, grasping both of my hands in her lap as she did so.

"I was planning to drop off another few more job applications this morning," she said. "Charlie really wants me to get a summer job." Her brow wrinkled. "I'm not sure why he keeps pushing me; it's not like him."

I knew the reason for Charlie's insistence upon Bella working this summer. Although I didn't always catch Charlie's exact thoughts, the tenor of them was clear in this case. My lips tightened into a hard line at the thought.

"You know why, don't you?" she asked, her eyes narrowed. I nodded slowly. She waited, but I didn't tell her; I knew she would be angry with Charlie, and I didn't want to be the cause of family discord.

"Edward?" she prodded.

I sighed. "Charlie thinks that if you're working this summer, then you'll have less free time ... thus less time to spend with ... me," I stated slowly.