Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Day Twenty-Six Stranded

Edward

“Damn it. I hate this. Can’t I beat you at just one thing?” Bella exclaimed. We were playing a very heated game of ‘rock, paper, scissors,’ and Bella had only won three times out of the ten rounds we played.

“Best six out of ten?” I said, trying to cheer her up. I smiled crookedly, knowing how that made her blush. I hoped it was a good blush and that she wasn’t truly thinking “Oh, God, this guy’s a weirdo.” Besides, how would I know? It’s not like I smiled at myself in the mirror…often. But my grin had the intended effect on her; she turned crimson. Good blush, I thought.

She shook her head, as if to clear her thoughts. Yeah, she’s thinking about last night and the night before that and the night before that.

I had worried that after our first time making love, Bella would pull away from me or grow scared, and not want to do it again, especially after her nightmare. It was one of her traits I was beginning to notice--she was the type of person to overreact, and even the littlest thing could set her off. I overreacted eighty percent of the time, too, so I couldn’t exactly fault her. Our first time had been perfect, but lack of confidence and Bella’s unusual character made me worry she wouldn’t want to do it again.

Boy, had I been wrong. She actually had the opposite reaction. Like I had told her before we found the grotto, I had created a monster--a sex monster. And I loved every bit of it. She never tried to initiate the sexy time, though, but I was starting to think she knew how to get me going. She would give me this look, a look in which her eyes just turned this darker brown color with lust and her lips puckered up, as if she were dying to be kissed. She knew it drove me crazy, especially when one of her eyebrows shot up seductively. To me, it was like she was saying “Come hither, hot stuff” without actually saying it. Either way, I complied every time.

I was a very, very happy stranded man. The image of Tom Hanks in Cast Away with his volleyball ‘friend’ popped into my head, and I was so very thankful to have a human being by my side, especially Bella. If it had been anyone else, I probably would have offed myself by now, and if I had been alone, I may have lasted a week…maybe two. But now we were nearing the fourth week of our stay, and while I was still worried about my family and getting home, I certainly wasn’t miserable. And Bella wasn’t, either, as far as I could tell. She was just more worried after her nightmare.

“No. I don’t think I can take losing one more time. It’s really wounding my ego,” she said in disdain. She pouted at me, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

I opened my left hand out, palm up, and fisted my right hand, putting it on top of my left one, daring her to play again. She sighed, following my actions.

“Rock, paper, scissors,” we said together as I tried to ignore the way her hand moved up and down. I landed on rock, since she always chose scissors for some reason. But she didn’t have any of those; instead, her hand was fisted with her thumb poking straight up and out.

“What the fuck is that supposed to be?” I asked her. She smirked at me.

“It’s a bomb,” she responded. “Boom!” She let her hand out of her fist, spreading out her fingers quickly as if her hand had exploded. “It beats rock, paper, and scissors.”

“You’re so weird, Love,” I said, pursing my lips to keep myself from laughing at her absurdness. She giggled.

“You make me that way,” she said in a soft voice.

“Oh, I make you weird?” I asked, feigning hurt. I touched my hand to my heart, trying to look dumbfounded.

“No,” she explained, “you make me happy. And I’m…playful when I’m happy.” I smiled at her as her cheeks reddened. I’d seen every part of her, and yet she was still embarrassed around me.

“Why does that embarrass you?” I had to know. She looked up at me, her big brown eyes wide.

“It doesn’t really embarrass me. It’s just…” she drifted off, twisting her string ring unconsciously and looking down at her fingers. She never stopped touching that thing I gave her, and even though it was just a strand, it made my heart leap that she liked something I gave her. “I can’t even remember the last time I was really cheerful, and I don’t think I’ve even tried to crack a joke in, like, three years.”

I stared at her, sadness and joy both seeping though my body. Sadness because she had been so unhappy, and joy because I was the one to crack her misery. Her lips turned down in a frown, and her eyebrows puckered. This was her concentrating expression, and to keep her from dwelling on the past, I changed the subject.

“Tell me more about your work. That’s gotta be fun, working for a magazine company. My sister would be very envious of you,” I said. Bella rolled her eyes.

“I hate my fucking job. What I really wanted to be was a publisher, but there was just nothing available at the time when I finished college. So, I tried what I thought was the next best thing,” Bella said. “The only thing I’m good for is correcting all the articles’ grammar. I’m not good with hair and makeup tips or what to wear on each day of the week. I remember Mike once asked me to write an article on ‘how to tell if your boyfriend is cheating’ and I tried; it was a complete disaster.”

The only word I seemed to hear was ‘Mike’. “Who is Mike?” I asked, trying to keep the curiosity out of my voice. It mustn’t have worked, however, because Bella looked up at me, and I could tell that she was trying to read my thoughts.

She looked back down at the sand as she spoke. “He’s my boss.”

I’d never felt such jealousy in my life. The only time I could think of was when Emmett got a brand new mountain bicycle for Christmas from our folks, and I had to watch him ride it as I played with my toy car. No, that moment didn’t even come close to the jealousy I felt now.

“He’s also an asshole,” Bella continued. I could see her smiling out of the corner of my eye. She knew how I felt.

“You work for a girly magazine company, and your boss is a man,” I clarified. “Is he gay?” I asked hopefully. Bella snorted.

“I don’t know. Now that I think about it, maybe he is. Maybe he just hides it by flirting with me all the time,” she said. I growled, and she batted her eyelashes at me innocently. “But I don’t date, as I’ve told him many times,” she went on, rolling over onto her back. Her breasts bounced with the movement, and I was distracted momentarily from my jealous mood.

“Oh, you don’t, do you?” I asked, licking my lips. She chuckled.

“Nope. I just fall in love with half-naked stranded men,” she said. Her eyes were closed, and the angle of the sun made her eyelashes create a shadow against her cheeks. It was so sexy, and I could feel myself harden.

I cleared my throat, trying to get it together. I failed, of course, giving up and just attacking her into the sand, our limbs flying everywhere. I pulled her face to mine and kissed her roughly, grinding my midsection into her own.

“Just one stranded man,” I corrected her, “and you’re mine. Always.” I kissed her again, her sweet taste coating my taste buds once more.

“Always,” she said with conviction, kissing me back. I reflected on our words, and I swore to myself that she would not have to go back to work for Mike once we were home. We could move in together, anywhere she wanted. I could finish my internship elsewhere, and we wouldn’t have to worry about ever being apart.

* * *

I tossed a banana at Bella, which she almost caught, holding her hands out awkwardly. A smile lit her face when her fingers skimmed the flying fruit, but then she fumbled and dropped it, and her smile turned to a scowl, looking at it on the ground. I couldn’t help but laugh as she looked at me, hoping for another one. I walked up to her and held another one out to her.

Just as she reached to grab it from me, I whipped it high above my head, out of her arms’ length. “Edward!” she whined, reaching for it, but I was much too tall for her.

“You’ve gotta be fast, babe,” I chuckled. She narrowed her eyes at me and smiled mischievously. Her leg came up and she kneed me in the groin. I fell to the ground, grasping my stomach. She took the banana from me as I fell.

“Fuck!” I rasped out.

“Fast enough for you, babe?” I heard her ask, satisfaction coating her voice. I looked up and saw her taking a bite out of the damn banana.

“Mmmm,” she moaned, taking another bite slowly.

I got up from the sand slowly, the pain subsiding. I leaned into her ear and whispered, “You’re going to pay for that,” as huskily as I could. She looked up at me from behind her lashes and crinkled her nose. I touched my lips to hers, sucking on her bottom lip hard. I bit down on it softly as I retreated my face from hers, and her eyes opened slowly, gazing at me with lust. It was that look again, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to complain. Well, my poor, beaten shaft might, but I wouldn’t.

“You’ll have to catch me first,” she whispered, and the next thing I knew, she was out of my hold and running away from me. Her white little legs flew around the trees as she bolted.

She had taken to wearing one of the shorts from the suitcase lately, so that she wouldn’t be so hot all the time. The only thing I had was my boxers, since the woman’s suitcase only had female clothing, and I felt kind of stupid running around in my underwear, so I just ripped my jeans to make shorts. It was a lot better, not to mention comfortable.

I ran after her, but since she had gotten a head start, I couldn’t find her right away. I shook my head, smiling at her playfulness.

Figuring she was just hiding behind a tree, I tried to keep my footsteps quiet, which was next to impossible due to all the twigs and leaves on the ground. I kept hearing noises, thinking it was her, ready to jump out and scare her, but it was just the jungle playing tricks on me.

I looked for nearly ten minutes before I finally got frustrated.

“Bella, this isn’t funny anymore. Please come out,” I said loudly.

I was met by silence, and groaned.

“Bella, come out now, or I won’t have sex with you for a whole week!” I yelled. I heard a twig snap behind me, and whirled around. I could see her long hair behind the tree. She must have thought it was covering her, though, because she made no move to get away from me.

I smirked like the Cheshire Cat and tip-toed toward her. I went directly behind the tree and held my breath so she wouldn’t hear me. As fast as I could, I jumped in front of her and grabbed her waist, falling to the ground with her. She cried out in surprise, her eyes wide with astonishment.

I leaned up on my elbows and kissed her neck. “Your hair gave you away,” I explained. She rolled her eyes, bringing her hand up and swishing her long tresses behind her shoulder.

“It’s getting so long. Just like your beard,” she said, giggling. She traced my jaw line, scratching the facial hair that now lined it. “You were joking about the no sex thing, right?” she asked, a worried look on her face.

I smiled at her and put my hands behind my head, laying back. She shivered as the wind blew, and when I looked up at the sky through the treetops, I realized it was about to rain. Angry clouds raked the sky, and I heard faint thunder far away. Bella heard it, too, and her eyes grew wide.

“That doesn’t sound good,” she said. I shook my head in agreement, and I lifted her up to her feet as I stood.

“If it starts to get bad, I think we should move to the grotto,” I said. She nodded reluctantly, and I knew how she felt about it. Bella didn’t trust the grotto. I didn’t, either, since it looked as if it could cave in on us, but it was safer than staying on land, chancing the wind and waves.

I prayed this storm wouldn’t be as bad as the last one, but now that we were in the middle of hurricane season, it was likely that it would be worse.

We walked to the shore, and sure enough, twenty minutes later, it started drizzling and the wind picked up. I walked over to the suitcase and collected warmer clothes for Bella. Leaves were flying everywhere, and our fire had gone out again, the ashes drifting in the wind. The only warm garment was a pullover, and I handed it to her. She put it on, and I could see goose bumps on her skinny little legs. I frowned and looked toward the far end of the island where the grotto was.

Bella followed my line of sight, and she said, “No, Edward. I think we should wait. Maybe it isn’t even bad. Maybe we’re just on the outskirts of the storm.”

A tropical fucking storm. Just our luck.

I looked at her and nodded, agreeing with her for now. If it got any worse, we were going in that cave. Bella would probably just blow away with seventy mile per hour winds, and I didn’t care what she said. I would drag her kicking and screaming if it meant keeping her safe.

I could just be overreacting, though. Maybe it was just a little storm, no big deal. After all, just this morning it had been warm and mostly sunny. And she probably knew more about this stuff anyway. She was from Florida, where hurricanes frequented, and I was from Chicago. The only natural disaster we ever had was blizzards.

I followed her to our spot in silence.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, I was debating my decision to listen to Bella. The wind had picked up even more, and Bella and I were completely soaked. Her white pullover had turned a murky gray color with the water, and I kept fighting my hair to keep it out of my face. The rain was coming in sheets, hard and cold like diamonds, much worse than the last time.

The wind was blowing so hard that I could barely hear myself as I told Bella we should move before it got even worse.

“We won’t have light for much longer, and then it will be impossible to get in the cave,” I shouted to her. Her beautiful face was scrunched from the wind blowing so hard. She looked toward the rocks on the other end of the island, her expression one of indecision. The tops of the trees were bent enough to where I thought they would break with the pressure.

“Please don’t tell me you want to try to stick through this,” I yelled to her. Her eyelashes were watery when she looked back at me.

“I don’t know, Edward. The waves! We have to go through the waves to get to the grotto. It isn’t safe!” she yelled back. I sighed. She was right.

Suddenly, a flash of light littered the sky and blinded us for a second. The lightening was so close. Then we heard, more than saw, the tree fall before us, struck by lightening. I pulled Bella quickly out of the way before the tree toppled onto us. The thunder shook the ground beneath us with its force. We both looked at the stump of the tree that had been hit with lightening, and it smoked for a few seconds before the rain put it out.

Bella turned and looked up at me, fear in her eyes. “Let’s go!” she shouted, taking my hand. I put my arms around her waist and her shoulders, leading her across the island.

Running as fast as we could, it took us about ten minutes to get to the other side. I shook my hair out of my eyes and took in the frightening sight that was the sea before us. Waves were crashing against the sand like angry fighters in a wrestling match.

My idea didn’t seem so great anymore. The cliff was all rock, and the only way to get to the opening of the grotto was to swim around the rocks. We wouldn’t have to go far in the water, but it was still dangerous, especially with the mad current. And I knew we couldn’t fight what was happening on land.

“Edward…” Bella trailed off, taking in everything. My eyes shot to hers, and she was facing the same dilemma as me.

“C’mon,” I said, gripping her hands and leading her to the edge of the shore before the waves struck again. She ran with me through the water, and soon we were deep in. The water had risen with the wind and current, so it was deeper than it should have been.

I knew my swimming skills were near perfect, and my legs were as strong as they were when I was in high school, but I also knew those things didn’t matter when put up against nature.

“Hold on tight!” I yelled, and was instantly reminded of the plane crash when I had told her to hold onto me. I wasn’t sure which situation was worse.

We had to fight the waves, and I lost my footing under the water many times. We finally neared the rocks, and I was already exhausted. My main goal was to put one foot in front of the other and pull myself to my destination. Swimming was impossible with the current, and it kept trying to suck us farther into the sea. I was up to my shoulders in water, and Bella could only hold onto me since her feet didn’t touch. Each wave that hit us was harder than the last, and I kept feeling Bella get pulled from me. She held on tight, though, and it was what kept us together. I couldn’t hold onto her anymore; I had to use my whole body to fight the current.

I reached the edge of the cave opening finally, but wave after wave crashed over our heads. I had nothing to hold on to, just my feet in the sand beneath the water.

One wave hit us extra hard, harder than the others, and I was thrown into the wall of the cliff hard. I could feel my shoulder get cut and scraped against the rocky edge. We were only about three feet away from the opening, but it was getting harder every second.

“Edward, I’m scared!” Bella cried as the water retreated and sucked us away from the cliff. I braced myself and tried to dig my feet into the sand beneath. She coughed water up and tried to wipe her eyes with her left hand.

“No!” I shouted. “Don’t let go of me!”

But it was too late.

The next wave hit us with so much intensity that I was thrown into the rock wall again, harder than the last time. My bare back met the rocks, where Bella had been. I felt the absence of her arms around my neck, and everything went blank for a second until the water retreated again, pulling me forward. I looked around frantically, searching for her.

“BELLA!” I shouted, blinking water out of my eyes. I looked everywhere for any sight of her, but couldn’t see anything.

“BELLA!” I shouted again. She’s gone, where is she? She’s gone… I could feel myself start to go crazy as another wave hit me against the cliff.


All pictures are taken from either Google or Deviantart.