They promised that dreams can come true. But forgot to mention that nightmares are dreams, too.
- Oscar Wilde
-
Driving at a horrifying speed of 180 mph, Edward was there within 6 minutes. He stomped on the break, putting the car in park and darting out of it simultaneously, making his way towards the entrance at a speed that was definitely faster than possible for a human. Nonetheless, he didn't care as he swiftly entered the building, instantly drowned in not only the noise of the loud talking, music, and whatnot, but the thousands of different thoughts that were equally as loud, just doubling the noise all the more. He desperately tried to narrow in on Aris's voice in the hopes that she was talking at that moment, but he was unsuccessful.
To his luck however, he spotted her sitting on the bench outside of the roller rink, though Clay wasn't beside her.
'You're fucking joking.' She thought, instantly feeling the familiar sense of venom and anger coursing throughout her veins as she made eye contact with Edward. And though those emotions seemed to be all consuming, there was still a trace of another emotion behind the ones that she was already feeling. Something between a mix of relief and happiness. The relief was most likely rooting from the fact that Clay was starting to become a lot less subtle, and a lot more obvious with his flirting, so she wouldn't be surprised if he was planning on attempting to kiss her at some point during this date. However, the happiness was rooting from the feelings that she held for Edward deep down, and God forbid she ever let them surface, so of course she ignored those emotions she was feeling, just focusing on the more prominent ones which were outshining her sense of relief and happiness by miles, that being the pure anger and hatred that was clouding her vision.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" She seethed, meeting him before he could reach her, "you promised me! You fucking promised me Edward that you wouldn't do this again! I should've known, because you're a depressed, psychological liar that won't allow anyone else to be happy as long as you're not." Her words felt like knives as she shot them at him. It was agonizing, seeing how he was hurting her and breaking her trust, but he couldn't help it when he impulsively decided to come, not caring about anything except separating both Aris and Clay.
"Aris, you really think that I'm here right now because I don't want to see you happy?" His question was calm, yet patronizing, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world that she was wrong. Though, she nodded, causing him to sigh softly.
'Either she's just oblivious, or I've hid my feelings better than I thought.' He looked down at her, silently begging her with his eyes to just understand. He wouldn't say the words out loud, he couldn't, but he just needed her to know that this wasn't about him not wanting her to be happy.
As if she could read his mind, her eyes went wide and knowing, recognizing the truth finally.
"Oh," she sighed, "you're jealous, and not because I'm going out with someone, but because that someone isn't you." Her voice was barely audible as she whispered it to herself, trying to sort through it. Edward said nothing, but his silence was confirmation enough.
"Edward, we could never work, you know that." Her voice was soft, a tone of angst behind it. She had come to terms with that long ago, and so had Edward, but finally saying it out loud made it true.
"I know." He whispered, his hand meeting the side of her face softly.
Their eyes met, the both of them filled with sorrow. They wished so badly that it could be different, that they could just get along, but the reason they were so attracted to each other in the first place was because of the constant mixed emotions and fighting; it's what kept things interesting. They were both terrified that the moment they started to get along more often than not, which was most likely impossible anyways, they'd grow bored of each other. And say they did the opposite, say they kept it interesting by constantly arguing and fighting, but also while being together. That's just a toxic and horrible relationship in itself, doomed from the start.
"What is going on here?" Clay's voice asked from a ways away, walking over to them from the bathroom's.
Edward dropped his hand, meeting Clay's angry eyes with seething ones of his own.
"Did you seriously invite him?" Clay asked furiously, turning to Aris.
"No Clay, I swear. I actually made him promise that he wouldn't show up." She sent an accusatory glare Edward's way.
Clay and Aris turned towards Edward expectantly, waiting for an explanation.
"Aris's mother was just admitted to the hospital actually," he blurted out, "c'mon Aris, we need to go." He grabbed her hand, tugging her away, but he couldn't get far before she escaped from his grip.
"What the fuck is wrong with you? Did you hit my mom with a car this time?" She hissed, looking back at Clay who stood dumbfounded, watching them walk away.
Edward rolled his eyes.
"No, that was a lie. I just needed to get you out of there before he could do what he was planning on doing, for your sake." He explained, leading them out of the building.
"He was planning to kiss me, wasn't he?" She groaned, causing Edward to nod.
"And knowing you, that definitely doesn't seem like something you'd wanna do with someone you barely know, and hardly seem to like as more than friends." He stated.
"As mad as I am at you for ruining another one of my dates, I am grateful you got me out of that." She sighed.
"Yeah, no problem," he shrugged, as if he wouldn't have done it regardless if Clay was planning to kiss her or not, "anyways, I'll see you Monday I guess."
They parted ways, heading towards their cars on opposite sides of the lot. Both of them felt relieved. Aris because she was saved from a very awkward rejection that would've taken place, and Edward because Aris didn't seem to be too pissed off anymore, and he had successfully ruined her date without being killed.
'I really shouldn't be feeling like this.' They both simultaneously thought.
-
"Kill me, just do it." He begged her, absolute agony and anguish behind each word that trickled off his tongue.
"I won't Edward, I can't." Aris refused, tears streaming down her face.
"Do it. I can't live in this world any longer. The guilt is too much. I don't deserve to be here - I'm a monster." He cried, his head sulking into his hands.
"Edward, we can work through this together," she pleaded, "you'll overcome this guilt, and I'll help you through it." The floor below her was soaked with her tears as she stood in front of his hunched over body, absolute anguish flooding her veins from seeing him broken like this.
"I killed an innocent girl, Aris!" His eyes met hers, red and puffy, "I deserve to die, and you have to be the one to kill me."
She fell to her knees, her hands meeting the sides of his face, forcing him to look at her.
"I won't kill you Edward, I can't." Her voice shook, absolute heartbreak behind every word at what he was asking her to do.
He stood up, looking down her shaking body as she wept for him.
"You can, and you will," he stated firmly, "or I'll go to the Volturi and tell them your secret."
Her eyes met his which were full of guilt. He saw the look of betrayal on her face as he threatened her, and it felt like a knife sliced through him as he saw her heart break all over again.
"You'd... go to the Volturi?" Her voice was soft, appalled, and broken.
He nodded stiffly, unable to maintain eye contact with her shattered ones.
"Then I guess I have no choice." She looked at the ground, processing what she was about to do. What she had to do, to save herself.
She looked back up, meeting his amber eyes that she'd grown to love so much. She memorized their depths for a moment, each insignificant detail about them since this was the last time she'd ever look into them again.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered, standing up and meeting his reassuring ones which were telling her it was okay; this is what he wanted. "Goodbye, Edward."
She sprinted forward, unable to look at him as she hopped on his shoulders, her hands around his neck.
Aris gasped, sitting upright and clutching her chest. Her sheets were damp with sweat, her cheeks drenched with tears as she hyperventilated, unable to catch her breath.
'It was just a dream.' She thought, relieved, then stepping out of her bed and heading towards the bathroom to get cleaned up.
Aris never got nightmares, so this was odd to her. Regardless, she shook it off, assuming that it was just a one time occurrence and she'd go back to sleeping peacefully again that night.
However, unfortunately for her, she didn't know that this bad dream was just the beginning. She didn't know that this bad dream was just the start of what was going to eventually become a real life nightmare.