A/N: Okay, so this book is getting long. I mean, Vamps was about 31 chapters, and it's finished. I'm only about halfway through with this book - you're in for a lot more. (I'm sure ilovereading75 is happy about that.) So... Enjoy the ride! Keep your nose, toes and dirty elbows inside at all times!
Ever since that night at the party, Annabelle had seemed a little... off. Maybe it was just my imagination, but it was almost like she was growing more distant. When I invited her to go fishing with me this morning, she came along, but so far she's been silent, looking deep in thought about something. Some part of me knew it was because of what I asked her; if she would go steady with me. I was so stupid to do that. I mean, we've only known each other ---- in the time she's been here ---- for two weeks or so.
I watched as she reeled in her line, staring blankly down at the water. Seeing this as something to break this deafening silence with, I cleared my throat and said, "You catch anything, Beaver?"
Annabelle smiled to herself at the use of her old nickname. "I think so... Knowing me, it's probably a shrimp."
"There aren't even any shrimp around here."
"Exactly." We both laughed at this.
But the laughing didn't last long. Annabelle went back to winding her line back up on her pole, while I waited for something to snag at mine. The sound of chirping birds rang over head of us, trying their best to break the silence. The silver water in the newborn sun's glare rippled a harmonious rythem. It sort of reminded me of The Little Mermaid, when the animals were making music, trying to make Eric kiss Ariel. I know, I'm just a little kid on the inside.
I peeked out of the corner of my eyes at Annabelle, who was now frowning at the ground, not doing anything at all. Before I finished gathering my words to ask what was wrong, Annabelle threw down her pole and jumped onto me. Her lips quickly found mine and never once parted. She was kissing me like she hadn't seen me in months, years, decades. Like I was a long lost lover.
I found myself chuckling and trying to calm her down, pulling her down gently and trying to ask what this was all about. She only shook her head and leapt back up. Then she said something that surprised me; "I'm sorry, Bale."
It came out in sort of a sob, which made me worried now. What was this? Why was she sorry? Is this still about her leaving Tennessee several years ago? Is she still upset about that? I forcefully pulled her down now, keeping a strong grip on her so she couldn't move. Her big blue eyes were brimming with tears, and it was more than enough to rip at my heart. "Annabelle, what do you have to be sorry for?"
Her eyes quivered between mine, gathering more and more moisture as the moment wore on. Finally, they spilled. "The night after the party, I had a dream that Harry kissed me and told me he loved me. I don't know what it was about! I don't want that, I want you, I don't care about Harry!" She wailed, trying to speak as quickly as possible.
I smiled, "Good Lord, Belly, slow down." I reached my thumbs out and gently wiped away her tears. "Now, tell me what this is all about. A dream? About Harry?" This was almost enough to make me drop to the ground laughing. That's my Annabelle, feelin' guilty over a dream. I remember as kids if she even scratched the truck, she'd run to her dad and start crying, apologizing.
Annabelle nodded.
"Baby," I chuckled. "I couldn't care less if he was in your dream. All I know is I'm here, in your life... And I want it to stay that way for a while."
She reached up and wiped her eyes as she nodded again, looking like a small child. I leaned down and kissed her on the lips, wanting them back on mine. Annabelle didn't waste a moment and jumped onto my chest again, wrapping her legs around my sides so I had to carry her, making me laugh again and kiss her all the more deeply.
Bale dropped me off at home, walking me up to the door and kissed me goodbye. Our kisses were continuing to get longer and longer. I was getting used to the feel of his lips. They were comfortable and sweet, not like other guys I've kissed (not many). I truly believed I was starting to... You know.. fall for ----
Bale parted when the phone rang, then looked to me, telling me to answer it with his warm eyes. Why must he be so sweet? I wanted to kiss more, not jab on the phone.
The two of us walked into the kitchen through the screen door. Bale sat down at the table while I answered the wall phone. "Hello?"
"Annabelle! So your dad really does live in the same house. That's so cool!" A girl's voice said excitedly.
"Uh, may I ask who this is?"
"Oh, silly me, it's Ashley!"
"Hey, Ash." I smiled. I've been meaning to call her. Even Bale smiled up at me, mouthing 'I told you you two would get along'. I only stuck my tongue out at him, making him laugh. "So what's up?"
"I was gonna go into town today and look for a wedding dress. Do you wanna go with me? It's just gonna be me ---- my mom couldn't come into town in time." She explained.
Her mom couldn't even come wedding dress shopping with her? I know I'd just die if my mom couldn't go with me. That's the one thing mother's and daughter's are required to do by law. "I'd love to! Lemme get changed... I'm all fishy."
Bale began to laugh when I hung up the phone. "You're all fishy, huh?" He stood up and wrapped his arms around me. "You know, being the fish expert I am, I find it very attractive."
"And me, being the girly girl I am, find it very disgusting." I waggled my eyebrows at him. "But anyway, I'm going to get ready. I'm gonna help Ashley look for a wedding dress today."
Bale leaned in a kissed me once more, "That sounds great. Have fun, I'll see you tomorrow morning."
He let go of my waist and started heading for the door. Remembering something he had said this morning when I confessed to the dream ---- which now seemed stupid ---- I bit my lower lip. "You know," I began. "This morning, you called me something..."
Bale stopped and turned around, "Beaver?"
I shook my head.
He looked deep in thought for a minute, going over everything he had said this morning, before smiling to himself and looking up at me with those twinkling eyes. "'Baby'?"
I nodded. "No one's ever called me that... I kind of... Liked it." I shrugged.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow morning, sugar."
I frowned. "Dude?!"
"I don't want it to lose it's touch." He chuckled, then walked out the screen door and into his truck, leaving me in the kitchen, blushing like a red tomato.
"So what style are you looking for, Ash?" I asked, sipping the last of my blue slushee we had bought down the road. I'm surprised they let us in here with these things.
"Eh, white." Ashley shrugged, looking around at the mountains of white tulle.
"Well that narrows it down." I nodded.
Ashley groaned, "I know! I suck at this. I just want to close my eyes, spin around, point to a dress and that's the one I wear, no matter how hideous it is."
I laughed, "I'm sure we can do something a little smarter than that... Like maybe blijndfold you too."
"Can I help you ladies?" A grey woman asked from behind us. We both turned around to see a smiling, southern woman, but something told me she didn't like morking here anyway. "Are you here to pick up your mother's dress?" She asked.
I couldn't help it, I choked on my shlushee. Ashley frowned. "No, I'm getting married, I'm looking for a wedding dress for me." Ash said.
The woman looked shocked, but I only looked around sipping on my blue ice, pretending I wasn't hearing any of this. Maybe they'll think I'm deaf...
"Well, first we should take mesurements I suppose..." The woman shrugged, then gestured for Ashley to follow her to the back room.
Just as soon as they left I felt awkward. "Well, I'm bored." I whispered to myself. Why don't they have magazines here? Don't they usually have magazines? The only music playing was the bridal march, over and over and over and over and over and over ---- aaaahhhhhhhhhh!
I still looked around, and before long, saw a really pretty dress. It was short, and bubbled sort of, but it was cute. With little blue bows all over it, it looked like a little girls fantasy dress. Huh, and look, it's in my size.
Ashley ran up to me, looking more excited this time. "She said there's only a few dresses that meet my butt requirments," This made me laugh. "So I don't have that much to chose from! YES!" She smiled.
She followed my eyes and looked at the dress I had been admiring. "Oh my God, that's cute... Ugh, not my size. You should try it on!"
I choked again. What is it with these married women?! "Uh, I'm not getting married!!" I practically screamed.
"Still, it's fun to just try them on. Come on!" She grabbed the dress, my arm, and dragged both of them to the fitting rooms.
Surprising to me, she chose one room, and only one. She pushed me inside and began taking my tank top off of me! "Dude?! Can I undress myself!" I laughed. Ashley rolled her eyes and took my slushee, taking a sip, then set it just outside so we didn't spill it on the dresses.
It didn't take the two of us long to get the dresses on. The most fun part was trying to zip mine up. Standing outside the rooms was a large mirror, with many angles so you could see all side of the dress. Ashley was first, looking from front to back. The dress she had on was very simple, but looked beautiful on her. It was spaghetti strapped, silk, and fitted. Since she didn't have any flaws on her body, the silk looked perfect on her. The vanilla color matched her bleach blonde hair and pulled out her hazel eyes. It was obvious she didn't have to go looking very far for her wedding dress.
"Oh my word..." I gasped.
"What? Is it okay? It's terrible isn't it?" She worried, her eyebrows knitted together.
"No! It's amazing! You couldn't look more beautiful."
Ashley smiled, turning a little in the mirror to look at her butt ---- which looked lovely ---- before turning around to look at me. Then she screamed.
"I'm sure it's not that bad!" I screamed back defensivley.
"No! No, no, no, no, it's not that. You look..." She smiled, and accepted that as her answer then stepped to the side so I could look at the dress. When I saw, I took my own breath away. I never really imagined myself in a wedding dress, like some girls did, nor did I ever put a ring on my left hand and think what it'd be like for it to mean something someday. It's just never crossed my mind, since I've never had a real boyfriend.
But here I am, standing in a beautiful, well fitting, white dress... Thinking what it would be like for Bale to wait for me at the end of the isle...
I shook myself; I didn't really want to be thinking that right now. "Wow." I croaked.
"Exactly! You have to get married now. Well, not now but soon, and you have to wear this dress." She smiled.
I shook myself again, "It certainly is interesting..."
"Is this the one?" The woman asked Ashley after frowning at me, obviously not liking that I was trying on the dresses just for kicks. "You look very beautiful, dear." She added to Ash.
"Yes, I think I'm getting this one. And how much is that one?" She asked, pointing at the dress I had on.
"That one is $1,250."
I choked again, and I wasn't even drinking anything this time. What is this, lined in silver?! "Oh hell no, helllllll no, HELL NO!" I yelled, already unzipping the dress in front of Ash and the woman. As I was in my fit to take off the gown, the bell over the shop door rang and in walked someone. Someone Ashley ran up to and kissed. When I looked, I saw Harry, smirking at me trying to wriggle out of the dress. The dress was already down to my waist, exposing my bra. This is lovely...
I yanked the dress back up to my neck, way too far up, but I didn't car. "Uh, hi, Harry." I gulped.
He laughed and waved before kissing Ashley hello. I blushed violently before skuttling off to the dressing room. On my way there, I didn't see the slushee still sitting in the floor. I knocked it over, making the blue liquid splash all over... And all over the dress I was wearing. Just on the back... And it blended in with the blue bows! But the old woman didn't seem to agree.
"NO! Ugh, look what you've done!"
"...Sorry..."
"SORRY?! IT'S RUINED! HOW AM I GOING TO SELL IT NOW?!"
"So, tell me how you bought a wedding dress again?" Bale smirked, looking over to me as he drove his truck to my house. I was hugging a garment bag, though the old woman didn't even want to give me one, saying 'no further damage could make this dress more hideous'.
Outside it was pouring rain, as if the sky was disappointed in me too. I already felt terrible for spilling my drink all over the place. And she could have gotten the blue out I bet, but she didn't even want to bother with it... I had to go into my college tuition to pay for this damn thing. Ashley offered to pay for it, but I wouldn't let her... Plus, it was kind of hard to hear her with the two of us laughing so hard on the way out.
I'm pretty sure I'm banned from that wedding dress shop. "I spilled blue drink all over it." I sniffed. I still wasn't happy about it. It was funny at the time, and now it wasn't... At all.
"I'm sure it looks very beautiful on you, blue drink and all." He was holding back a laugh and I could tell.
"Oh bite me! I didn't mean to. Ashley wanted me to try it on, saying it'd be fun... It was fun, but not that last part." I shook my head. "I'm so dumb."
"Don't beat yourself up, Annabelle, that old woman has been like that for as long as I've known her." Bale smiled, stretching out one arm and pulling me next to him in the middle of the truck seat. We rode the rest of the way to my house like that. And when we got there, he offered to walk me to the door, but it was raining even harder and I told him I would be fine. I used the garment bag to shield me from the rain. What else could I do to this dress?
"I'll see you tomorrow, baby." Bale called after me with a smile.
I turned around, holding the dress over my head. "Oh now you call me that!"
"Well you had a rough day." He shrugged with a grin before watching me walk inside and driving off. I smiled to myself... He finally used that name again.