Stubborn Love by VampiresHavebeagles
Rating: M
Genre: Angst/Romance
Characters: Edward & Bella
Summary: She'll lie and steal and cheat, and beg you from her knees. She'll make you think she means it this time, tearing a hole in you. But I still love her. I don't really care. A story from iambeagle and VampiresHaveLaws.
I love it when I find a story and it has a new and interesting characterization of one of these people we have come to love. In Stubborn Love by Vampireshavebeagles, which is a collaboration between VampiresHaveLaws and iambeagle, Bella is just that character for me.
The writing of these two ladies is exceptional. They really know how to set the scene and give enough details to feel like you are right there.
This silence.
It's something I've missed.
It adheres to my skin, branding my lips and tongue as it coats my thoughts in its white noise.
There's nothing but empty space around me, outlined by sandy mountains and the kind of green you don't get in the city. I swipe my hand down my eyes, trying to remove any lingering traces of fatigue that pull against my lids, and yawn, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter with my left hand.
I've made this journey countless times before, the deserted road familiar as dust shifts up from the tires, clinging to the windows before clouding the air a suffocating beige. It's a grainy comfort that reminds me of evenings spent racing my bike across the very potholes that jerk my body forward in my seat now.
The sun is low in the sky, but the humidity is still here, sticking to my arms and chest. It's one of the reasons my parents insisted on a pool when landscaping, the heat cloying no matter what the hour.
Tasting salt on my lips, I pull in a deep breath, feeling its damp dryness in my lungs, and crank down the window a little further.
The story is three chapters in and told from Edward’s POV. Edward goes to school in Tucson and is home for summer break. But home is not Forks, it’s Corona de Tucson, Arizona. He spends the summers at his mother’s house while she is in Florida with her boyfriend. It is his first day that he sees and meets the elusive Bella, who is staying across the street. They start hanging out during the days, but Bella is not very forthcoming with details about herself.
"You need a ride or something?" I ask, starting the ignition before buckling my seatbelt.
"No," she replies, not bothering with her own belt. "I'm just tagging along with you."
"You don't know where I'm going," I inform her, eyes lingering on her face before I look over my shoulder and back out of the driveway.
"It doesn't matter," she responds easily, shrugging.
I fight back a smile and busy myself with flipping through the radio stations, eventually settling for silence, not able to find a song that I want to listen to. I point towards the stereo, my way of telling Bella she can take over, but her focus is out the window.
The breeze whips her tied up hair behind her shoulder, a few loose strands coming forward to brush her cheeks as her eyes take in everything and nothing.
Her expression is one of easiness, maybe boredom, a blank page that I'm waiting to be filled. But then her lips curl just slightly, her thoughts her own, and I wonder what she's thinking about.
The sunlight catches her hair, finding hints of red and gold, and her lips are this sort of dark pink that makes me lick my own in response.
It's the first time I've considered her beautiful and not just interesting.
She's an enigma, a conundrum I have yet to figure out. But everyone has a story, an answer that has the potential to spiral into a thousand others—I'm just still in the dark as to what hers is.
I love this Bella! She is bold and gives off the impression that she doesn’t care about what others think. She also knows just how to push Edward’s buttons. I am so interested in seeing where this story is headed and what Bella’s story is. It’s a great time to start reading this gem. VampiresHaveLaws and iambeagle have such a beautiful writing style and a very unique story. I’ll leave you with this last taste.
Whenever she looks at me her eyes scream secrets and her lips give life to the words that float inside her head, little pieces gifted that aren't nearly enough to form any solid base of opinion. I want to gather her thoughts in rope and bind them together tightly with knots impossible for her nails to pick apart or fingers to unravel; I want to bite at her wrists and taste the truths on my tongue until she gives in and lets me get my way, even if only for a short while.
Thank you so, so much! Meg and I so appreciate this. And love you. XOXO