Midnight: a Bella and Carlisle story

Chapter Seventeen: Her Choice, His Response

It has been a couple of weeks since the first night I stayed here. Thinking back on it, that was also the last time I had been close to Carlisle. I am currently in bed. It is a Saturday morning and I haven't gotten up yet. I have resigned myself to being lazy and remembering the last moment I had with Carlisle: the man... *cough* *cough*  I mean... vampire that I can't stop thinking of. 

"Hey, Carlisle? "

"Yes, Bella?"

"I like blue better than purple."

I walk over to her, slowly. I can hear her heartbeat quicken, and her breath shorten. I stop inches from her, lean forward and brush a stray hair behind her ear. Her breathing stops, and I whisper in her ear.

"I am glad you like my room." 

It makes me blush in embarrassment just thinking about it... 

Today is October 12th, a little over 2 weeks since I started to live at the Cullen's house. My days are pretty normal: I wake up and go to school with Edward and the others, come home and study some, eat dinner (alone) then go to sleep. 

I had imagined some kind of crazy household when I first thought of moving in but it hasn't lived up to expectation at all. 

Ugh! Living here will never help me decide anything if it's so normal. 

Just then, I hear a loud thud from the main room. (My room is connected to Carlisle's reading room.) 

This is a common occurrence around 7 am. Carlisle loves to read throughout the night but when he stacks his books beside him they create a model of the Leaning Tower of Piza and fall. 

I get out of bed to go help pick them up but as always, he has already placed them back on the shelves. Vampire speed constantly amazes me. 

"You know, Carlisle, you would think that with the speed to put them all away you would also be able to catch them before they topple over." 

"Yes, well. I do get caught up in the world in which I read. I do not seem to notice them until they fall over."  

I think if vampires easily felt embarrassment he may have blushed. 

He grabs the white coat from the chair where he was just sitting and puts it on. 

"Time for me to go to work. I have the morning today, someone called in sick last night. I will see you later, Isabella." 

I mentally groan as he walks away. My interactions with Carlisle have been like this since I moved in. He is always very respectful and formal with me, keeping his distance from anything personal. My theory? He wants to keep any desire he or I may have away from my decision about vampires. 

Time to get breakfast. Being the only human in the house means I don't need to share food. It also means that the rest of the house tends to spoil me with so many options for what I want to eat. They fit the bill for my groceries even with me insisting that I can get a job and pay for my own. 

Breakfast today is eggs, bacon, and coffee.  

As I get the things I need out of the fridge, Alice comes bouncing downstairs. She is always very cheerful, it is a nice change to Charlie's grumpy attitude in the morning. 

"Hey, Bella! Good morning." 

You could hear the smile in her voice. 

"Morning Alice, how was your night?" 

"It was amazing! Jasper and I went exploring in the woods, which was followed by some other activities if you know what I mean."

She winks when she mentions 'other' things. It seems like she had a fun night.