•I do not own any piece of the wonderful world of Twilight.

Ch. 1

The streets of Chicago were busy even for a Sunday, people bustling about in swarms, cars speeding by without taking notice of pedestrians crossing. Everyone was in a hurry to get to the markets to stock up on groceries before they closed for the holiday tomorrow, Labor Day, September 2, 1918.

I couldn't be bothered with all the commotion this morning. I was on my way to visit my darling, Isabella Marie Swan, my Bella. We had been officially courting for one month today, and I promised her that I would escort her on a morning stroll to the shops to retrieve her school supplies she had ordered the prior week which meant I had to wake up early enough to catch the 8 A.M. trolly to make the hour long commute to see her despite the fact that I had a nice car, a brand new, sleek, black Ford Model T. Her father did not prefer that I abandon said vehicle in his drive, so here I sat on the crowded trolly, trying to ignore the stench of sweaty men and sticky children clinging to their mother's arms.

Bella was not a supporter of motor vehicles anyway. She thought their speed dangerous and their general existence rather superfluous with the sufficient availability of public transportation in the city. A car, in my opinion, was a much more convenient means by which to travel, and I didn't have to marinate here on the trolley with the unhygienic riff raft of the city. I'm not a snob, but this stink was nearly unbearable. A man to my left coughed on me, and I had to visibly hide my shudder though I was internally berating the man. What was he thinking?

My family resided in Lincoln Park, one of the more affluent districts near Lake Michigan which was farther away from the bustle of city life while Bella and her father were located closer to the city center in a more modest neighborhood since her father was a widower and worked on a sherif's deputy's salary. My father was one of the top rated attorneys in Chicago which afforded us the nicer things in life. Sometimes I got the feeling that my show of having money embarrassed my sweet Bella. I was never boastful about it, but I did enjoy buying her gifts which she would hardly accept. She was so stubborn.

Luckily the weather was nice enough today for it being nearly autumn. Though it was hot, there were enough clouds overhead to block the scalding rays from burning Bella's beautiful, pink and porcelain skin which contrasted so nicely with her dark, chestnut tresses. The thought of her immense beauty brought a smile to my face and a rush of blood somewhere much lower. I shouldn't think of such things, though. Mother always taught me that gentlemen didn't discuss such intimacies outside of the marriage bed, and if nothing else, I wanted Bella to think of me as a gentleman.

I paused behind a newspaper stand to adjust myself as inconspicuously as possible and calm myself. I would never meet my beautifully innocent Bella in such an inappropriate state. I nearly growled at myself for my lack of manners and control over my thoughts about her, but she was just so perfect!

I finally made my way up the last stretch of the paved drive of the home she and her father shared. I gripped the bouquet of daisies which I had bought along the way tightly as my nerves took over. I cleared my throat and swept my fingers through my unruly hair trying in vain to mold it into submission. I gave up fairly quickly though when the few pieces in the front fell back into my face. What Bella saw in me, I would never understand, but I was so appreciative of her willingness to include me in her company.

I couldn't wait to marry Bella. We were mere days away from beginning our eleventh year in secondary school, and then we would be in our senior year together and graduate. I told her many times that she had no reason to continue her schooling since I planned to apprentice with my father at his law firm before attending college, but she insisted that she too finish her secondary education. A modern woman my Bella was indeed, so I was only waiting for any sign from her to propose.

I knocked confidently on the door, anticipating Mr. Charles Swan, Bella's father, to answer. This was always the most nerve-wracking part of visiting my love. I was not too sure that Mr. Swan approved of me calling on his only daughter, despite all of my qualifications, and I was not too sure that I did not agree with him. No one was good enough for Isabella Swan, but so long as she would receive me, I would be ever so grateful.

"Edward, it's so wonderful to see you." My Bella answered the door exuberantly, pulling me into the front room and closing the door behind her. When she turned around, she was blushing. She was more radiant than the sun, her beauty surmounting even the most popular silent movie star. "Oh, excuse me. I shouldn't have assaulted you that way!" Her eyes widened in horror as her face flushed even more furiously. It was gorgeous.

"That's quite alright. It's equally wonderful to see you, Bella. These are for you." I smiled and spoke carefully so as not to come on too aggressively, releasing the flowers to her, wishing I had angled my hand a bit more so that her soft fingers might brush against mine. I wanted to declare my love for her each moment we were together, but she was a very fragile woman, petite and shy as she was. I didn't want to frighten her away in my enthusiasm.

"Oh, Edward, thank you. They're beautiful! Wait right here while I retrieve a vase and some water for them." She disappeared into the small kitchen, and I could hear her shuffling through the cabinets until she found what sounded like a ceramic object. I wished I could be that vase with her hand wrapped so delicately around it. 'Good God, Man! Control yourself!'

"Is your father home?" I asked, and then cleared my throat, trying to hide the crack in my voice as she returned to the foyer.

"No, he was called to the station early." She smiled softly but looked down to the floor boards as the rouge of her cheeks darkened yet again.

"Ah...I shouldn't have come in. It is so untoward of me to be here without accompaniment." What did she think of such abhorrent behavior? I was meant to be behaving as a gentleman, not taking advantage of her and thinking about her hands on me!

I walked back to the entryway, reaching for the door handle behind my back, but Bella stopped me when she placed her hand gently on my wrist which had become exposed beneath my rising coat sleeve. The feel of her silken skin against mine sent shivers up my spine. Oh, my Bella...

She jerked her hand back when her touch ended in a shock of static. "Sorry! I can't seem to stop from touching you today...Not that I wanted to touch you...I mean, I want to touch you...Oh Goodness! How rude of me! It's just that you were...I was...there was something—" She was obviously embarrassed and flustered by her forwardness, but I found it quite endearing and reassuring of her affection for me.

I decided I shouldn't allow her to doubt herself any longer. This was it. I was going to declare my feelings. We had spoken mutedly in the hypothetical of our favor for one another—it had been a month after all—but neither one of us wanted to be the first to break the careful barriers which our society had placed. She was still assumed a young, untouched girl at sixteen years old in societal eyes, while I, as a male, was viewed as a man of experience, a demon sent to poison such innocence at seventeen. In that moment, though, watching my Bella torment herself, I knew I had to rectify the situation. I would bend first. "Bella, I assure you it's alright, really. I merely wanted to protect your reputation. If I had it my way, we would forever be alone." That was the most forward I had ever been with her. I stood still and maintained what I hoped was a pleasant expression as I waited for her response. I really hoped I didn't offend her feminine sensibility.

"Really?" She smiled and blushed again.

"Really." I grinned back at her. How could one not smile at such purity of heart? Could she not see that she was worthy of someone much better than myself?

"I enjoy our private moments together as well." She spoke just above a whisper, and my heart soared at her reciprocation.

I opened the door slowly, hesitant to end these few moments of solitude with her, yet aware that her neighbors could have witnessed my arrival and be misinterpreting my intentions even as we spoke. I offered her my elbow. "Come along. The shops will open soon, and I don't want you out in the midday sun with the weather as warm as it is."

"Wait! There was something I wanted to give to you. You know, to recognize the anniversary of our first day of our courtship." She bit her lower lip, and I couldn't help but stare. I had to restrain myself from reaching out to free that perfectly lush lip from its dental prison.

"You needn't have bought me anything." I responded. I had a few gifts in my nightstand drawer at home—and one in my coat pocket currently should the time arise to offer it to her—but she so strongly disliked when I gave her things that I did not mention them to her. She, however, gave me everything just in her existence, so I felt a constant need to offer the world to her to correct the imbalance between us. Her mind was a gift, her kind spirit a luxury, her heart a relief from the cruelty in this life. What did I have to show for myself but a few trinkets whose intrinsic value was nothing beside those?

"I didn't. I made something for you." Before I could ask she disappeared again, this time in the parlor, and returned just as quickly with her one hand behind her back. She smiled demurely, and I feared that I might be the one blushing now. "Well, I kind of made something for you." She corrected and smiled wider.

"What are you hiding?" I asked with a quirk of my brow and a smirk.

"Well, you always seem to be sweating when I see you—" She began.

"Let me clarify that I have been sweating because it has been nearly ninety degrees daily for the last month we have been seeing one another," and I mentally added that there was also the distinction that her mere presence made me nervous. "I do not have a medical problem with diaphoresis." I laughed.

She blushed once more and stuttered, "Oh, that's not what I meant at all. Of course it's been hot. I'm so sor—"

I interrupted her rushed apology. I wished she knew there was no reason to be so self-conscious. Her most offensive comment couldn't scare me away. "Bella, you don't have to keep apologizing. I'm sorry if my jest made you uncomfortable. What is it that you have made—kind of?" I winked at her, and she giggled, the sound of an angel.

"This." She presented to me a white handkerchief embellished with a golden stitched music note. "I'm sorry it isn't more detailed. I only just learned needlework. Your mother actually helped." She explained.

I ran my finger over the slightly raised thread. It was smooth and consistent in its pattern. Though small, she had obviously paid good attention to the details. "I will cherish it forever, my love." The term of endearment slipped out before I realized what I was saying, and once I did, I looked to Bella's eyes in astonishment. "Forgive me! That was so—"

"Now who's apologizing when he shouldn't?" Bella laughed, and she wrapped her hand around my elbow, her smile brighter than I had ever seen it. "Let's go before it gets much warmer, my darling." She squeezed my arm gently, and I couldn't help but think how lucky I was to be able to call Isabella Marie Swan my own.

I'd love to hear from you! Like and Review!