Fan Fiction ❯ Everything You Want ❯ Unexpected Feelings ( Chapter 1 )

Everything You Want

Chapter 1:

Unexpected Feelings

 

 

 

`Evil. Pure evil.' Bella glared at the seemingly innocent Calculus book open in front of her. `I'm never going to get this,' She grumbled to herself. Exasperated, she whimpered and put her hands over her face.

 

“Arghhh! It's hopeless!”

 

The boy next to her rolled his eyes at the overdramatic display and reached over to tug on a strand of her long, blond hair. Said girl peeked at him through the fingers covering her face with a slightly annoyed look in her bright cerulean colored orbs.

 

“Don't you think you're overreacting a little? You've only been studying for about an hour,” He informed her as he glanced at the clock on the table beside the bed. Bella stuck her tongue out at him and began to pace around the small room.

 

`If you call studying getting up repeatedly for snacks, whining, bitching, and basically doing everything but concentrating on the task in front of her,' he thought to himself, causing an amused smile to light upon his lips as he watched her frustrated pacing.

 

Noticing the small smirk on her companion's face, Bella stopped and glowered at him.

 

“No, Cole, I don't think that I am overreacting. I think,” She said putting extra emphasis into the word, “that Calculus SUCKS and I'm never going to understand it. I'm going to fail, drop out of school, never get into college, and end up destitute, living on the streets and selling my body in order to survive! That's what I think!” With that exclamation, Bella threw herself on to her bed and buried her face into the comforter.

 

“Oh, no. You're not overreacting. Whatever was I thinking?” Cole muttered, sarcasm dripping from his statement. He sighed, closed his book, and pushed away from the desk he'd only seconds ago been studying at.

 

“Bella…” he murmured teasingly as he began to creep towards her still form on the bed. No response came from the girl, not that he expecting one. `She is such a stubborn wench,' he thought to himself with an amused expression crossing his handsome features.

 

“C'mon, Bella, admit it. You know that if you would just sit your ass down for more than two minutes and actually study, you might understand and comprehend what you're doing. It's really not that hard.” Bella snorted at that and Cole grinned. He continued his slow trek to her until he was right at the edge of the bed and proceeded to pounce upon his unsuspecting victim.

 

“Oomph!”

 

“Get off me you creep! I'm mad at you!” Despite her harsh words and struggles to move his unyielding weight, Cole distinctly heard giggles emitting from the slim, soft form beneath him. A mischievous smile began to form on his lips.

 

“Oh, really? You're mad at me, huh? Then why are you…” He trailed off as he put his mouth close to her ear and whispered, “Laughing?” With that he began to cackle manically and attack Bella's sides with his fingers.

 

“Ahhhh!” Bella screamed as she tried to buck him off her back. “No, Cole! Get off! Stop!” Bella managed to gasp out between giggles.

 

“If you don't stop, I'm gonna pee my pants!” She warned. Cole just smirked and continued his assault on her midriff. Bella desperately tried to roll him off her back, but just succeeded in further tangling their legs together.

 

“Nah, you wouldn't do that. You love your comforter too much,” Cole stated confidently as he moved his relentless assault up to the sensitive skin of her neck. He knew that was her most ticklish spot and would bring on an immensely satisfying volley of squealing and beggings for mercy.

 

“Say it and I'll stop. I promise.” Cole halted his ministrations long enough to hear what her response would be. Bella struggled to catch her breath and mumbled something unintelligible.

 

“What was that?” Cole prompted with a chuckle as he leaned down. So eager to hear her admission of defeat, he failed to notice Bella's hand snaking out from underneath their bodies until it had latched onto his ear.

 

“Owwwww! What the hell?!” Bella used his distraction and pain to her advantage as she finally managed to flip Cole off her body. Trying desperately to gain the upper hand, Bella rolled herself and straddled Cole, still managing to keep a tight grasp on his ear.

 

“Ha! Pinned ya! How's it feel to be beaten by a girl, Mr. Hastings?” Bella inquired triumphantly as she yanked on his ear lobe. Cole winced and started to reach up to remove her fingers, but Bella trapped his hands under her knees before he could latch onto her wrist.

 

“Uh uh uh, none of that you naughty boy,” Bella chided teasingly. Cole glared at her condescending tone and struggled to free his hands. Bella just smirked and used her weight to keep him pinned while simultaneously pulling on his ear. `No one can accuse me of not being able to do two things at once,' she thought to herself with a grin.

 

Not liking the expression on his friend's face, Cole stopped his struggling and looked at her with resignation in his eyes.

 

“Alright, I give up. You win.” Bella's eye's lit up at that and she allowed him to have his hands back. “My ear, please?” Bella giggled and released her claim on his lobe. “Now get off of me, you schmuck.” Cole said as he wiggled and squirmed beneath her. When she didn't immediately move, Cole grasped her around the waist and lifted her slight weight off of him.

 

“Good lord, Bella, lay off the junk food, girl,” He muttered loud enough for her to hear as he tossed her to the other side of the queen sized bed. As soon as she landed, Bella twisted around to give him her patented `look of death', as he lovingly referred to it.

 

“Are you implying that I am FAT?” She sputtered indignantly as she tossed a pillow at him.

 

“Of course. How else did you figure you were able to pin me? It certainly wasn't because of your mad skills let me tell ya. Oh, and another thing… ” He trailed off and sat up when he noticed the murderous gleam in her eyes. `Uh-oh,' he thought to himself. `I might have gone a wee bit too far.'

 

“So let's see. So far today you have called me overdramatic, stupid, and fat,” She said as she ticked off the insults on her fingers, “Is there anything else you'd like to add to that list before I KILL YOU!?” Cole lifted his hands in order to fend off the various items Bella was chucking at his head.

 

“Hey, wait a second. Stop, stop, stop,” Cole chuckled as Bella glared at him with a stuffed bear that, ironically enough, he had given her clutched in her upraised hand, “I never called you stupid.” Bella growled at him and threw the bear with surprising accuracy at his head. She then crossed her arms and began to pout.

 

“I hate you,” Bella sniffled and stuck her lip out at him.

 

Cole sighed and crawled towards her. Stopping only to put his head in her lap and look up at her scowling face, Cole grinned. Bella just turned her eyes away from his bright green ones and resumed her pouting. She knew he couldn't stand it when she said she hated him.

 

`I've got him twisted around my pinky finger,' she mused to herself with an inward smirk.

 

Cole began to whimper and paw at her when she refused to look at him. He knew that Bella wouldn't be able to resist his puppy dog antics for long.

 

`I've got her twisted around my pinky finger,' he thought to himself with a chuckle.

 

“Alright, alright. Quit your begging, oh pathetic one,” Bella laughed as she flicked his nose and moved to tangle her hands in his shoulder length, silky black hair. She gave a lock of it a sharp tug and Cole winced.

 

“Don't call me fat again or I swear I will tell everyone we know all the embarrassing things you have done since you were four,” she warned with an ominous glint in her eyes.

 

Cole flashed his pearly whites at her and stuck his tongue out. “I promise. Cross my heart and hope to die stick a needle in my eye!” He sang out in a sing songy voice.

 

“Argh, you're such a child,” Bella smiled tolerantly as she pushed his head off her lap and started to scoot off the now rumpled bed. Cole grinned and grabbed his chest.

 

“You wound me with your words, my darling,” he exclaimed with mock sincerity.

 

“Uh-huh, sure.” Bella glanced behind her at Cole sprawled out on her bed and smiled a genuine smile. He always knew how to bring her out of a slump. He always had. Ever since they were kids.

 

“I love you, even though you are ugly and stupid. You know that, right?” Bella inquired as she giggled at his goofy expression. Cole clucked his tongue and snaked his arms around her waist to pull her back into his embrace. Bella immediately relaxed and leaned back on his shoulder so she could see his face.

 

“Of course,” he murmured softly as he tucked a strand of her straw colored hair behind her ear and searched the bright blue depths of her eyes with his own. “And I love you even though you're a stuck up drama queen. You know that.”

 

“What would I do without you?” Bella wondered out loud as she snuggled into his side. Cole squeezed her tightly and sighed contentedly.

 

“Wither away and die, probably,” he told her as he felt her breathing start to even out and her eyes begin to drift closed. Cole poked her side and watched as one eye popped open and stared indignantly at him.

 

“What?” She growled. Cole raised an eyebrow at her question.

 

“Don't `what' me. You know what. Don't think that I've forgotten why I'm here.”

 

Bella sighed and tried to snuggle deeper into his arms but Cole would have none of that. He pushed her away from him and sat up.

 

“Don't ignore me wench! Get up off your ass and get to work!” Bella flopped onto her back and stared at the ceiling, completely ignoring her friend's ranting.

 

“You have to study for the Calculus test or you are never gonna pass this class!” Exasperated with her lack of response, Cole grabbed her bare feet and began to drag her forcefully off the bed. Bella simply allowed herself to be dragged until they reached the edge where she slid down the side into a heap of arms and legs.

 

“And I'm the child?” Cole teased with a raised eyebrow. Bella pulled her legs up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. Cole squatted down so that he was at her eye level and lightly tapped her nose.

 

“I already told you, Cole. I don't get. I'm never going to get it. Not ever.” Bella narrowed her eyes at the expression on his face and said, “Don't look at me like that.”

 

“Like what, my love?” Cole grinned innocently.

 

“Like you're indulging a petulant child. I'm not being childish... I'm not!” She insisted when he shook his head.

 

“No… You would never do that.” Bella huffed and pushed him off balance as she got to her feet and smoothed her clothing. She glanced at her digital clock and grinned when she noticed what time it was.

 

“Whoops, look at the time. I can't study anymore anyway, I have to get ready!” Cole narrowed his eyes suspiciously at that statement and watched her from his position on the floor as she flounced to her closet.

 

“Get ready for what exactly?”

 

Bella didn't even look up from what she was doing to answer him. “My date. Duh. Didn't I tell you that earlier?” She asked as she flipped through her clothing.

 

“Um, let's see… Date, date, date…. Nope. Didn't mention it. How convenient of you.” Cole's green eyes followed Bella as she pulled a light blue, denim mini skirt out of her closet and made her way over to her dresser to look for a shirt.

 

“With who, may I ask?” Bella halted her search for a moment when she heard his question, but then snapped out of her stupor and shook her head.

 

“No?” He asked incredulously. “Why not?” At her continued silence, Cole began to glower at her back suspiciously. `Why won't she tell me who she's going with tonight?' Cole wondered to himself.

 

Finally finding the tank top she was looking for, Bella turned around and caught Cole staring at her. Suddenly, a light came to his eyes and she gulped. `Uh-oh. He figured it out. Dammit. This is going to be so much harder now…'

 

“No. If you're going with who I think you're going with, don't even think about leaving this house, Bella.” Cole declared as he got to his feet and glared at her all too innocent expression.

 

“And who is it that you think I'm going with?” Bella asked as she lowered herself into a chair and waited for his response.

 

“Don't play games with me Bella Marie Campbell. You are not going out with him,” he spat out `him' like it left a bad taste in his mouth and continued, “And he is not coming anywhere near you. Didn't you learn your lesson the last billion times he told you he had `changed'?”

 

Bella felt indignation rise and seep out of her very pores at his words as she stood and rose on tippy toes to look him in the eye.

 

“You are not my father, Cole Michael Hastings; therefore, don't presume to tell me what I can and cannot do. And he has changed… I can tell.” Bella slapped him in the forehead with her palm and tried to move past to get to where her clothes were.

 

Cole grasped her wrist in passing, and forced her to look at him when he tilted her chin up with his finger. Shocked at the anger he saw swirling in her eyes, Cole softened and cupped her cheek with his palm.

 

“You're right, Bella. I'm not your father. But, I am your best friend, and I feel it's my right to tell you when I think you're about to make a huge mistake.” Bella's anger receded at his soft, heartfelt words and she drew him into a tight hug.

 

“You worry too much. I'll be fine.” Cole's arms tightened around her and she giggled. `How can I stay mad at him? He's my rock. The one I can always depend on to be there for me when the sea of life threatens to sweep me away,' Bella mused to herself as she breathed in his warm, familiar scent and the undercurrent of Adidas cologne.

 

“Ok, enough of this mushy crap. I gotta get beautiful,” Bella pushed playfully at Cole's muscular chest and stepped away to pull her light yellow night shirt over her head.

 

Cole felt like he had just been punched in the gut as he watched Bella remove her shirt. Her white cotton bra didn't leave much to the imagination, and Cole's eyes automatically took in the pale, creamy skin of her breasts… `Holy crap what the hell am I doing?!'

 

`She's undressed in front of me dozens of times! Why all of a sudden am I noticing her… attributes?' Cole shook his head trying desperately to dispel the image of her chest from his mind as he made the mistake of looking at Bella again.

 

Cole almost groaned at image in front of him. Now not only did Bella not have a shirt on, but she had shed her boxer shorts as well, leaving her clad in only pale pink panties and that damned cotton bra. `This is hell,' he thought to himself with a grimace as he felt himself growing hotter and hotter. `I'm lusting after my best friend! What the hell is the matter with me?!'

 

Completely oblivious to the turmoil her friend was experiencing, Bella bent over to retrieve her skirt when she heard a barely audible moan coming from Cole's direction. Picking her skirt up and turning around, she narrowed her eyes curiously at the expression on his face.

 

“Are you ok?” She asked with a concerned look as she began to cross the room towards her friend still clad only in the afore mentioned bra and panties.

Cole felt like he was frozen to the spot as Bella continued to get closer and closer and… He let out the breath he didn't even realize he was holding when Bella's cell phone started singing the Thong Song. She stopped in her tracks, and started to look around frantically for her cell.

 

“Shit! Where the hell… Ah! Found you!” Bella held up the little phone triumphantly and pushed the talk button.

 

“Hello? Oh, Derrick, hi!” Bella grinned and covered the phone with her hand. Pointing and gesturing wildly to Cole, she whispered, “It's Derrick!” Cole rolled his eyes and momentarily forgot about Bella's lack of clothes.

 

How he hated that man. `I don't understand what she sees in him. I mean, yeah he's good looking… If you like blond, athletic, football playing ass holes who don't care who they hurt as long as they get what they want. But, God, how many times has he broken her heart and yet she still keeps running back to him?' He frowned and stewed in his angry thoughts as he watched Bella continue to talk excitedly and pull on her skirt.

 

`When is she going to learn? She's so beautiful and smart; she could get any guy she wants. Better question, why does she even want someone like him?'

 

“Ok, I'll see you in about fifteen minutes. Bye, love you, too.” Bella pressed the end button on her phone, and looked up at Cole through her long, sooty eyelashes.

 

She could see he was not happy with her, but there really wasn't anything she could say to reassure him that she knew what she was doing and that she would be ok. `At least nothing that hasn't already been said,' she thought.

 

“Turn that frown upside down Mr. Grumpy Pants!” She chided in a child like voice as she strode over to him. Using her two pointer fingers, Bella tugged at his lips until they formed a large, goofy smile.

 

Gently slapping at her hands, Cole stepped back and stared at her with an odd expression on his face. His whole body felt like it was on fire at her simple touch.

 

`Why do I feel like this? It's Bella. Bel-la. I've known her since… forever. I should not be reacting like this! I think I might be dying…' He panicked at the thought.

 

Misinterpreting the look on Cole's face, Bella stepped back and sighed. `He's never going to understand why I continue to date Derrick, so I'm going to stop trying to convince him. Besides, it's my life, not his. I can date whomever I deem worthy.'

 

With an irritated glance at Cole, Bella spun around and headed towards her bed. Pulling on the tank top, she smoothed her skirt and looked critically at her reflection in the mirror.

 

“So, how do I look?” Bella inquired nervously as she twisted her hair into a messy bun and turned to wait for Cole's answer.

 

Cole let his eyes travel from the top of her blond head, down across the delicate features of her face, stopping for a moment when he got to her exposed cleavage and tummy peeking out from her short tank top, and then continuing down her long, pale legs.

 

`God, when did she get so…'

 

“Beautiful…” He murmured. Bella giggled and raised her arms above her head, striking a pose.

 

“I know. Don't be jealous, sweetie. Not everyone can be as gorgeous as I am!” Bella kidded as she slipped her feet into a pair of white, sequined flip flops and grabbed her purse.

 

Striding over to where Cole stood with a dumb look on his face, Bella reached up and pulled his head down for a quick kiss. It was only a brush of her lips on his, but Cole felt himself wishing for so much more.

 

“I love you. Please don't sit at home and worry about me all night. I'm a big girl and I know what I'm doing, ok?” Bella gazed up at him, desperately looking for a sign that he was ok with her decision.

 

“Don't look at me like that, Bella. I will not approve of you going out with him again,” He placed a finger over her warm lips to shush her when she opened her mouth to argue with him, “But, I also won't stand in the way of something you think you want.”

 

Bella didn't miss the implication of his words, but chose to ignore it and focus on the good part, as was her way.

 

She grinned. “Thank you, Cole, I knew I could count on you. You're always there to catch me when I fall.”

 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever wench, get the hell out of here. I'm sick of seeing your ugly face.”

 

Bella rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him. `Always the kidder,' she thought with a smile. `What would I do without him?'

 

With one last kiss and a wave, Bella grabbed her keys and strode out of her bedroom. Cole watched as she left the room and found his eyes trailing down her back to her perfect butt and hips as they twitched side to side while she walked.

 

`Mmmmm, I wonder what she would feel like under my hands… Holy BEGEEZUS! What am I thinking?! When did I become such a complete LECH?' Cole scrubbed his face with his hands and struggled to contain the heat rising steadily throughout him at the thought of his best friend's perfect body and shifting uncomfortably when his jeans began to get noticeably tighter.

 

`Dear lord, man. She's like your freaking sister! Feeling that way about her is so wrong!'

 

“Then why doesn't it feel wrong?” He wondered out loud.

 

`Alright, that's it, dude. You most definitely need to get laid.'

 

Shrugging away his disturbing thoughts, Cole gathered his things and slipped on his shoes. Glancing around to see if he had left anything and seeing that he hadn't, Cole left the room and shut the door gently behind him.

 

Inside the empty room, a slight breeze blew in from the open window and fluttered the pages of the long forgotten Calculus book.

 

 

*~~~~A/N~~~~*

 

 

 

Ok, guys. This is my first fan fic, so please be gentle, but honest. I really wanna know what you think and I'm open to opinions and suggestions. Please Review!!!! Thanks bunches!!!! :o)

 

 

 

Next Chapter: Fighting Temptation